JPH08331028A - Antenna system - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To extend the utilizable environment by interconnecting an outdoor antenna and an indoor antenna with a cable or the like and sending a signal sent/received by each antenna between the antennas to attain indoor use of a portable telephone set without any hindrance. CONSTITUTION: In the case of transmission, a radio wave form a portable telephone set 13 is received by an indoor antenna 11 and led externally from a building 12 via a cable 16 and given to an outdoor antenna 14, and received by a base station 15. In the case of reception, a radio wave from the base station 15 is received by the antenna 14 and led in the inside of the building 12 via the cable 16 and given to the antenna 11 and sent to the telephone set 13. Thus, when the telephone set 13 is in use in the building 12, even when radio wave interference is caused by the building 12, the attenuation in the transmission reception wave is suppressed, the indoor use of the telephone set 3 is realized without hindrance and the indoor use nearly around a limit of the service area is attained.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an antenna device suitable for improving sensitivity when a portable telephone such as a portable telephone or a PHS (Personal Handy Phone System) portable device is used indoors.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A portable telephone such as a portable telephone or a PHS portable device uses radio waves to communicate with a base station or a master station (generally referred to as a base station in this specification) to talk to the other party. The demand for such a phone has increased remarkably because it is possible to move freely within a certain area (service area) and make a call at a desired place.

[0003]

However, since the portable telephone of this type communicates by using radio waves as described above, when the mobile station is away from the base station or there is a radio wave obstacle between the base stations, the transmission / reception wave is generated. Diminishes, making calls difficult. Of these, the problem due to the distance from the base station can be solved by specifying the service area and clarifying the available area in advance, but with regard to radio interference, it becomes unavailable even within the service area. The problem remains. Electromagnetic interference occurs inside buildings, underground, tunnels, etc., but it is thought that there are many opportunities to use mobile phones or there is a desire to use them, especially when using mobile phones. Regarding indoor use (use inside the building).

It goes without saying that it would be convenient if a portable telephone could be used indoors without any obstacles, but it has not been dealt with heretofore, and even if it is in a service area, a telephone call is made indoors. It is not uncommon for the condition to drop significantly or the call to be lost. In particular, this is remarkable for indoor use around the limit of the service area, and there has been a demand for improvement in this point.

An object of the present invention is to realize an indoor use of a portable telephone without any obstacle, and in particular, an indoor use in the vicinity of the limit of a service area, which can greatly expand the use environment. To provide a device.

[0006]

[Means for Solving the Problems] The above-mentioned object is to be installed between an indoor antenna installed inside a building for transmitting and receiving radio waves to and from a portable telephone, and an external antenna installed outside the building and a base station. This is achieved by providing an outdoor antenna for transmitting and receiving radio waves, and indoor and outdoor antenna coupling means for coupling the outdoor antenna and the indoor antenna and transmitting the signals transmitted and received by the respective antennas between the antennas.

[0007]

The indoor antenna transmits and receives radio waves to and from the portable telephone, and the outdoor antenna transmits and receives radio waves to and from the base station. The indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means couples the outdoor antenna and the indoor antenna, and transmits the signals transmitted / received by the respective antennas between the antennas. With this, when the mobile phone is used indoors, radio waves are transmitted to the base station through the indoor antenna, indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means and outdoor antenna during transmission, and outdoor antenna, indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means and indoor antenna during reception. Radio waves are transmitted to the mobile phone via. Therefore, when the mobile phone is used in a building, the attenuation of the transmitted and received waves can be suppressed even if the building suffers radio interference, and the mobile phone can be used indoors without any obstacles. It becomes possible to use indoors in the vicinity of the limit, and the use environment can be greatly expanded.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of an antenna device according to the present invention. In FIG. 1, 11 is a building 12
An indoor antenna installed inside the building for transmitting and receiving radio waves to and from a mobile phone (a mobile phone, a PHS portable device, etc.), 14 is installed outside the building 12, and a base station 15 is installed.
An outdoor antenna 16 for transmitting and receiving radio waves to and from the indoor antenna 11 is connected to the outdoor antenna 14 and the indoor antenna 11, and signals transmitted and received by the respective antennas 11 and 14 are transmitted to the antenna 1.
An indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means for transmitting between 1 and 14 is a cable here.

In the above-mentioned device of the present invention, the portable telephone 1
When 3 is used indoors, it operates as follows. First, at the time of talking, the radio wave from the mobile phone 13 is received by the indoor antenna 11, drawn out of the building 12 via the cable 16 and given to the outdoor antenna 14, and transmitted from the outdoor antenna 14 to the base station 15. To be done. Further, at the time of reception, the radio wave from the base station 15 is received by the outdoor antenna 14, drawn into the inside of the building 12 via the cable 16 and given to the indoor antenna 11.
1 to the mobile phone 13.

As a result, the portable telephone 13 is installed in the building 12
When used indoors, attenuation of transmitted and received waves is suppressed even if the building 12 suffers radio interference, and the mobile phone 13 can be used indoors without any obstacles, especially indoor use around the limit of the service area. It is possible to expand the usage environment significantly.

Here, it is preferable that the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14 have a directivity with a reflector in order to achieve a high gain, and it is preferable that the directivity can be adjusted according to the installation environment. . 2A to 2C are diagrams showing a specific configuration example of such indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14,
(A) is a side view, (b) is a front view, and (c) is a top view. In each of these figures, reference numeral 21 denotes a reflector, and here, a pair of flat metal reflectors (21a, 21a,
21b) is provided. Reference numeral 22 is an antenna such as a half-wavelength dipole antenna or a half-wavelength tablet antenna, which is a half-wavelength dipole antenna, which is arranged in front of the pivoting portions of the reflection plates 21a and 21b so as to stand along the pivoting direction. In this case, the opening angle θ1 of the reflectors 21a and 21b can be appropriately adjusted by the reflector opening angle (θ1) adjusting mechanism 23, and the distance of the half-wave dipole antenna 22 from the pivotal portion of the reflectors 21a and 21b. L1 can be appropriately adjusted by the antenna position (distance L1) adjusting mechanism 24.

The reflectors 21a, 21b and the half-wavelength dipole antenna 22 are supported by a column 26 by a tilt mechanism 25 so that the tilt angle θ2 in the vertical direction can be adjusted while maintaining their positional relationship. The column 26 is supported by a pedestal 28 via a pan mechanism 27 so that the tilt angle θ3 in the left-right direction can be adjusted.

With the above configuration, the antennas 11 and 1 are
Reference numeral 4 makes it possible to attach the mobile phone 13 to the moving range within the building 12, that is, the space where the indoor antenna 11 is installed, or the base station 15 with proper orientation and with desired directivity. The indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14 basically use the antenna shown in FIG.
The sizes of a and 21b and the directivity can be optimally set for the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14.

FIGS. 3A to 3C show reflectors 21a, 21.
FIG. 3A is a diagram showing directivity with respect to the opening angle θ1 of b and the distance L1 of the half-wave dipole antenna 22. FIG.
1 is 180 ° and the distance L1 is a quarter wavelength (λ / 4),
In (b), the opening angle θ1 is 90 ° and the distance L1 is a half wavelength (λ / 2). In (c), the opening angle θ1 is 90 ° and the distance L is L.
1 shows the directivity in the case of 1/3 wavelength (1.5λ). In general, FIGS. 3A and 3B are suitable for the indoor antenna 11, FIGS. 3B and 3C are suitable for the outdoor antenna 14, and in particular, FIG. Station 15
Is a directivity suitable for the outdoor antenna 14 when is distant. The main directions of directivity are the tilt mechanism 25 and the pan mechanism 2
You can turn to the optimum direction with 7.

In a mobile phone system or PHS, the radio wave transmission output from the base station (master station) 15 is significantly lower than that of the broadcasting station, and the frequency is extremely high, so fading occurs due to the influence of radio wave obstacles. It is extremely useful that it is easy and the optimum adjustment of directivity is possible.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged top view showing a partially cutaway embodiment of a directivity adjusting mechanism in which the directivity can be continuously adjusted by an operator's operation. In FIG. 4, reference numeral 41 denotes a directivity adjusting mechanism, here, a knob 41a and a stay 41.
b, a pair of reverse gears 41c, 41c, a pair of reflector driving gears 41d, 41d, and a housing 41e. In this case, the knob 41a has a bolt shape with a thread cut on the outer periphery of the tip side, and the stay 41b has the knob 4a.
The internal thread portion of the rear end side cylinder portion meshes with the thread portion of 1a,
With the rotation of the knob 41a in the direction around the axis, the knob 41a is configured to be movable in the axial direction (vertical direction in the drawing) (adjustable drive of the distance L1). The stay 41b has a threaded portion formed in the middle thereof, and the antenna 22 is attached to the tip thereof. The reverse gears 41c and 41c are provided with a stay 41 between them.
The intermediate screw portion of b is interposed, and the stay 41b rotates in opposite directions as the stay 41b moves back and forth in the axial direction. The reflection plate drive gears 41d, 41d are individually meshed with the reverse gears 41c, 41c, and drive the reflection plates 21a, 21b as the reverse gears 41c, 41c rotate, so that the reflection plate opening angle θ1 can be adjusted and driven. Has been done.

According to this, the stay 41b, the reverse gears 41c, 41c, and the reflection plate drive gears 41d, 4 are turned by rotating the knob 41a, for example, in the clockwise direction (arrow A direction).
1d and the reflectors 21a and 21b are driven in the directions of arrows R to E, the opening angle θ1 of the reflectors 21a and 21b decreases, the distance L1 of the antenna 22 increases, and the directivity is continuously increased. . When the knob 41a is rotated counterclockwise (the direction opposite to the arrow A direction), each part is driven in the opposite direction to the above, and the opening angle θ1 of the reflection plates 21a and 21b is increased.
Is increased, the distance L1 of the antenna 22 is decreased, and the antenna 22 is continuously operated in the direction in which the directivity is weakened.

As an example, θ1 is 180 ° to 9
0 ° and L1 are set to be adjustable in an appropriate range within a range of λ / 2 to 0.1λ. In addition, the pitch of the other screw parts other than the screw part on the tip side of the knob 41a is not uniform,
For example, it may be formed roughly up to the driving position where θ1 is about 180 ° to 100 °, and may be formed finer as it approaches the driving position of 90 °. According to this, θ1 is 9
The finer the adjustment becomes, the closer to 0 °, in other words, the stronger the directivity becomes. Since the positional relationship between the base station 15 and the antenna device of the present invention is fixed after both are installed, the respective parts of the device are adjusted with a position, an angle or a directivity capable of receiving the radio wave from the base station 15 with the maximum sensitivity.
By fixing, the transmission / reception sensitivity of the mobile phone is greatly improved.

As described above, the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14
By giving the directivity to, it is possible to prevent the howling phenomenon that the amplified radio wave is amplified again, to suppress the transmission power to the minimum, and further to reduce the multipath fading noise. In addition, since the tilt mechanism 25 and the pan mechanism 27 are directed to the optimum direction, the location conditions of the building 12 and the installation conditions of the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14 can be flexibly dealt with.

It should be noted that an amplifier (booster) for amplifying a signal (antenna transmission / reception signal) in any one direction between the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14, preferably bidirectional, is provided between the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14. Thereby, the transmission / reception performance is further improved. This amplifier may be provided in the indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means. Further, if the cable 16 constituting the indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means is formed in a flat strip shape with flexibility, it can be wired indoors / outdoors along the uneven surface of the window sash of the building 12. In addition, there is no need for drilling work or the like for wiring the cable 16. Further, the indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means may be configured to include a wireless communication means, and the indoor / outdoor antenna coupling may be performed wirelessly instead of using a cable such as the cable 16.

Further, the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14 do not necessarily have to be installed at back-to-back positions as shown in FIG. 1, and the indoor and outdoor antenna coupling means are designed to be installed at arbitrary positions such as extending the cable 16. it can. When the indoor and outdoor antennas 11 and 14 are not provided with the reflector 21 and are composed of only the antenna 22, in order to avoid the howling phenomenon, the antennas 11 and 14 are installed at a position deviated from the back-to-back position as shown in FIG. Is preferred. Further reflector 21
May be formed into a curved surface or a spherical surface.

[0022]

As described above, according to the present invention, an indoor antenna, an outdoor antenna, and an indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means for coupling these indoor / outdoor antennas are provided, and indoor / outdoor radio waves are transmitted via the indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means. Since the mobile phone can be used indoors without any obstacles, it is possible to use indoors especially around the limit of the service area, and it is possible to greatly expand the usage environment. is there.

Further, by constructing the indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means with a flexible flat-belt-shaped cable, there is no need to make a hole for cable wiring in the building, and at least the outdoor antenna has directivity. According to the configuration with the antenna having, the transmission / reception sensitivity is greatly improved, and the configuration that the antenna directivity is adjustable makes it possible to easily obtain the optimum directivity according to the antenna installation conditions. By providing an amplifier for amplifying the antenna transmission / reception signal between the indoor antenna and the outdoor antenna, the transmission / reception performance is further improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a specific configuration example of an indoor / outdoor antenna of the same device.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing directivity with respect to an opening angle of a reflector and a distance of a half-wavelength dipole antenna.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged top view showing an example of the directivity adjusting mechanism with a part thereof cut away.

[Explanation of symbols]

11 ... Indoor antenna, 12 ... Building, 13 ... Portable telephone, 14 ... Outdoor antenna, 15 ... Base station, 16 ... Cable (indoor / outdoor antenna coupling means), 21 ... Reflector, 21
a, 21b ... Reflector, 22 ... Half-wavelength dipole antenna, 23 ... Reflector opening angle adjusting mechanism, 24 ... Antenna position adjusting mechanism, 25 ... Tilt mechanism, 26 ... Strut, 27 ... Pan mechanism, 28 ... Pedestal, 41 ... Directivity adjustment mechanism, 41a ...
Knob, 41b ... Stay, 41c ... Reverse gear, 41d
… Reflector drive gear, 41e… Housing.

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An indoor antenna installed inside a building for transmitting and receiving radio waves to and from a mobile phone; and an outdoor antenna installed outside the building for transmitting and receiving radio waves to and from a base station. An antenna apparatus comprising: an indoor-outdoor antenna coupling means for coupling the outdoor antenna and the indoor antenna, and transmitting signals transmitted and received by the respective antennas between the antennas. 2. The antenna device according to claim 1, wherein the indoor-outdoor antenna coupling means is a flexible flat-belt-shaped cable. 3. The antenna device according to claim 1, wherein at least the outdoor antenna is a directional antenna. 4. The antenna device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the antenna directivity is adjustable. 5. The antenna device according to claim 1, further comprising an amplifier for amplifying an antenna transmission / reception signal between the indoor antenna and the outdoor antenna.