KR101294310B1 - Mobile terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

A mobile terminal related to the present invention includes a terminal body having a ground, conductive members embedded in the body, each having a predetermined length, and a single pole double throw (SPDT) switch disposed between the conductive members. By including a control unit for controlling the SPDT switch ON or OFF to transmit and receive a signal of any one frequency band by connecting the conductive members to each other, to implement a radiator more efficiently in a small space, Since the performance can be maintained, the mobile terminal can be made smaller.

Description

[0001] MOBILE TERMINAL [0002]

The present invention relates to a mobile terminal having an antenna for transmitting and receiving wireless electromagnetic waves.

Mobile communication services continue to evolve with the development of mobile communication technology and consumer demand for more diverse services. Early mobile communications have been focused on simple voice communications. Recently, however, various mobile communication services have emerged, such as multimedia services such as music and movies, wireless mobile Internet services that can use the Internet at high speed while moving, and satellite communication services that provide mobile communication across borders.

On the other hand, a general mobile communication terminal reduces the radiation efficiency of the antenna, narrows the frequency band, and decreases the antenna gain while miniaturizing the antenna of the mobile communication terminal. However, despite such deterioration of performance, mobile communication terminals are constantly required for miniaturization, multifunction, and high performance. Therefore, the antenna used in the mobile communication system also requires miniaturization and high performance.

Conventional mobile communication terminal antenna has a quarter-wave monopole or helical shape that protrudes outside the mobile communication terminal, which is inconvenient for the user to carry and also has a problem of robustness. In order to solve these problems, researches on built-in antennas are being actively conducted.

In particular, in relation to the miniaturization of the terminal, an attempt to reduce the volume occupied by the antenna continues, and thus an antenna device in which conductive members are formed on a circuit board may be considered.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a mobile terminal having an improved antenna device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an antenna device for transmitting and receiving multi-radio signals of low frequency and high frequency band in a smaller space, and a mobile terminal having the same.

In order to achieve the above object, a mobile terminal according to the present invention includes a terminal body having a ground, conductive members embedded in the body, each having a predetermined length, and an SPDT disposed between the conductive members. (Single Pole Double Throw) switch and a control unit for connecting the conductive members to each other to control the on or off (OFF) of the SPDT switch to transmit and receive a signal of any one frequency band.

As an example related to the present invention, the conductive members may include: a first conductive member extending from a feed part to a first SPDT switch; a second conductive member extending from the first SPDT switch to a second SPDT switch; And a third conductive member extending from the 2 SPDT switch to the third SPDT switch and a fourth conductive member extending from the third SPDT switch to a predetermined length.

As an example related to the present invention, a path from the power supply unit to the first conductive member and the first SPDT switch via the second conductive member forms a first path to transmit and receive a signal of a first frequency band, The path from the power supply part to the first and second conductive members and the second SPDT switch and through the third conductive member forms a second path to transmit and receive a signal of a second frequency band, and from the power supply part. A path through the fourth conductive member via the first, second and third conductive members and the third SPDT switch may form a third path to transmit and receive a signal of a third frequency band.

As an example related to the present disclosure, an electrical element may be disposed, and further including a circuit board having a first side and a second side, wherein the conductive members may be formed to extend from the first side to the second side. .

As an example related to the present disclosure, the circuit board may be divided into a first region in which a ground portion is formed and a second region in which the conductive members are disposed.

As an example related to the present invention, the signal line extending from the SPDT switch to the controller may include at least one inductor.

As an example related to the present invention, at least one of the conductive members may be formed in a planar patch form.

As an example related to the present invention, at least one of the conductive members may be formed to extend in parallel with each other by a predetermined length and be coupled.

In the mobile terminal according to at least one embodiment of the present invention configured as described above, since conductive members are formed on one or both surfaces of a circuit board, an antenna device having a complicated pattern can be implemented at a lower cost.

In addition, since the radiator can be implemented more efficiently in a smaller space and the performance of the antenna can be maintained, the mobile terminal can be further miniaturized.

1 is a front perspective view of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;
2 is a rear perspective view of a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention;
3 is an exploded perspective view of the mobile terminal of FIG.
4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which conductive members are formed on a circuit board.
5 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a modification of FIG. 4.
6A to 8B are graphs showing an operating state of each antenna shown in FIG. 4 and corresponding voltage standing wave ratios (VSWRs) according to frequencies.

Hereinafter, a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the present specification, the same or similar reference numerals are given to different embodiments in the same or similar configurations. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

1 is a perspective view of a mobile terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The case (casing, housing, cover, etc.) constituting the external appearance of the main body of the terminal is formed by the front case 111 and the rear case 121. Various electronic components are embedded in the space formed by the front case 111 and the rear case 121. At least one intermediate case may be additionally disposed between the front case 111 and the rear case 121. [ The cases may be formed by injecting a synthetic resin or may be formed of a metal material, for example, a metal material such as stainless steel (STS) or titanium (Ti).

The front case 111 may include a display unit 113, a first sound output unit 114, a first image input unit 115, a first manipulation unit 116, a sound input unit 117, and the like.

The display unit 113 includes a display module 141 (see FIG. 3) such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) module, an organic light emitting diodes (OLED) module, and the like, which visually express information. The display unit 113 may be formed as a touch screen to enable information input by a user's touch.

The first sound output unit 114 may be implemented in the form of a receiver or a speaker.

The first image input unit 115 may be implemented in the form of a camera module for capturing an image or a video of a user.

The first operation unit 116 receives a command for controlling the operation of the mobile terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The first manipulation unit 116 may be a key area formed to receive a user's touch input on the window unit.

The sound input unit 117 may be implemented in the form of, for example, a microphone to receive a user's voice, other sounds, and the like.

The second operation unit 123, the interface 124, the power supply unit 125, and the like may be disposed on the rear case 121 mounted on the rear side of the mobile terminal 100.

The second manipulation unit 123 may be installed on the side of the rear case 121. In addition to the first manipulation unit 116, the second manipulation unit 123 may be collectively referred to as a manipulating portion, and may be adopted in any manner as long as the user is tactile in a tactile manner. . For example, the operation unit may be implemented as a dome switch or a touch screen or a touch pad capable of receiving commands or information by a push or touch operation of a user, or may be a wheel, a jog type, a joystick, Or the like.

In terms of functionality, the first operation unit 116 may be used to input a menu such as start, end, etc., and the second operation unit 123 may have a special function such as activation of the first image input unit 115 in addition to the scroll function. It can act as a hot-key that performs. If the first and second manipulation units 116 and 123 are minimized as illustrated, a telephone number or a text may be input by a touch screen provided in the display unit 113.

The interface 124 is a path for allowing the mobile terminal 100 to exchange data with an external device. For example, the interface 124 may be a wired or wireless connection terminal for connecting to an earphone, a port for short range communication (for example, an IrDA port, a Bluetooth port, a wireless LAN port a wireless LAN port, etc.), or power supply terminals for supplying power to the mobile terminal 100. The interface 124 may be a card socket for receiving an external card, such as a subscriber identification module (SIM) or a user identity module (UIM), a memory card for storing information.

The power supply unit 125 is installed in a rear case 121 for supplying power to the mobile terminal 100. The power supply unit 125 may be detachably coupled for charging, for example, as a rechargeable battery.

2 is a rear perspective view of the mobile terminal 100 of FIG.

Referring to FIG. 2, the rear case 121 may further include a second image input unit 127, a second sound output unit 130, and a broadcast signal receiving antenna 131.

The second image input unit 127 may be a camera having a photographing direction substantially opposite to that of the first image input unit 115 (see FIG. 1) and having different pixels from the first image input unit. For example, the first image input unit 115 has a low pixel so that the user's face is photographed and transmitted to the counterpart in case of a video call, and the second image input unit 127 immediately photographs a general subject. It is preferable to have a high pixel because it is not transmitted in many cases.

The flash 128 and the mirror unit 129 are further disposed adjacent to the second image input unit 127. The flash 128 emits light toward the subject when the subject is photographed by the second image input unit 127. The mirror unit 129 allows the user to see his / her face or the like when the user wants to photograph (self-photograph) the user by using the second image input unit 127.

The second sound output unit 130 may implement a stereo function together with the first sound output unit 114 (refer to FIG. 1), and may be used for a call in a speakerphone mode.

The broadcast signal receiving antenna 131 may be disposed at one side of the rear case 121 separately from the antenna for a call or the like. The antenna 131 may be installed in the rear case 121 to be pulled out.

In the above description, the first operation unit 116 and the like have been described as being mounted to the front case 111, and the second operation unit 123 and the like are mounted to the rear case 121, but the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto. For example, the second operation unit 123 may be disposed in the front case 111 adjacent to the first operation unit 116. In addition, even if the second image input unit 127 is not provided separately, the first image input unit 115 may be rotatably formed so that the image capturing direction of the second image input unit 127 may be taken.

3 is an exploded perspective view of the mobile terminal 100 of FIG.

Referring to this drawing, the window 140 is coupled to cover one surface of the front case 111. The window unit 140 covers one surface of the display module 141 so that visual information output from the display module 141 is recognized from the outside. The display module 141 and the window unit 140 form the display unit 113 (see FIG. 1).

The window unit 140 is formed to recognize a user's touch and enables input of information (command, signal, etc.).

The window unit 140 may have an area corresponding to the display module 141 and may be formed of a material through which light can pass. The window unit 140 may be formed with an opaque region in which light is not transmitted or the light transmittance is very low. For example, the surface may be treated to prevent light from passing along the edge of the window 140.

An operation pad may be formed on the front case 111 in correspondence with the first operation unit 116. The operation pad is a target to be touched or pressed by the user. It may be formed as a manipulation area on a portion of the manipulation pad window 140.

In the front case 111, an acoustic hole 114b, a window hole 112b, and an image window may be formed.

The sound hole 114b is formed to correspond to the sound output unit 114 so that the sound of the mobile terminal, for example, a ring tone, music, etc., is emitted to the outside. The window hole 112b is formed to correspond to the display unit 113. A light transmissive image window may be formed corresponding to the first image input unit 115 (see FIG. 1).

The rear case 21 may include a circuit board 170, a display module 141, a speaker module 114a, a camera module 115a, and a switch.

The circuit board 170 may be configured as an example of a controller for operating various functions of the mobile terminal 100. The circuit board 170 may detect an electrical change, for example, a change in capacitance or a charge amount, generated inside the window 140 generated when the user touches the window 140.

Inside the window 140 is formed so that the electrode is embedded. The electrode may be formed in a conductive pattern. The electrode may be charged with charge, and if the conductor moves at a close distance, the amount of charged charge may change accordingly. When a conductor, for example a user's finger, touches a window, the amount of charge charged in the electrode changes, which is like changing the capacitance between the finger and the electrode.

The electrode of the window unit 140 is electrically connected to a controller for detecting a change in the amount of charge, for example, the circuit board 170. For this electrical connection, the flexible circuit board 150 may be connected to the circuit board 170 (see FIG. 3 above) through the hole 152. According to the detection of the change in the amount of charge, the circuit board 170 may change at least one state among functions related to the mobile terminal 100.

The flexible circuit board 150 extends from one end of the window unit 140. One end of the flexible circuit board 150 may be connected to the electrode by forming a connection portion 151 and the other end may be connected to the circuit board 170 by the connector 185. The connection part 151 may be formed of a metal material to maintain a certain stiffness and elasticity.

In the antenna device according to the present invention, conductive members, which are radiators 180 constituting the antenna device, may be formed on at least one surface of the circuit board 170.

Various electronic devices may be mounted on one surface of the circuit board 170, and a shield member (not shown) for protecting the electronic devices may be mounted on one surface of the circuit board 170. The shield member may be electrically connected to the circuit board 170 to extend the ground of the circuit board 170. However, the shield member is formed so as not to cover the conductive members, which is advantageous for the antenna to exhibit a certain performance.

Various elements attached to the circuit board 170 may be configured as an example of a controller for operating various functions of the mobile terminal 100. Various elements attached to the circuit board 170 may be provided in plural and may perform a function of a control unit by a combination with each other. In addition, at least a portion of the circuit board 170 is electrically connected to the antenna device, and is configured to process radio signals (or radio electromagnetic waves) transmitted and received by the antenna device. For the processing of the wireless signal, a plurality of transmit and receive circuits 172 may be formed or mounted on the circuit board 170.

The transceiver circuit 172 may be formed including one or more integrated circuits and associated electrical elements. In one example, the transceiver circuitry may include a transmit integrated circuit, a receive integrated circuit, a switching circuit, an amplifier, and the like.

At least one transceiver circuit 172 may operate simultaneously by simultaneously feeding a radiator 180 formed of a plurality of conductive members. For example, while either one is transmitting, the other can receive, both can transmit or both can receive.

As an example of the power supply unit, a battery is disposed inside the terminal, and the battery is accommodated in a metal seating member forming a seating space. The seating member may be electrically connected to the circuit board 170 to extend the ground of the circuit board 170. In addition, the seating member, the shield member, and the ground layer of the circuit board 170 may be electrically connected to form a ground of the terminal.

And, the antenna device is a part of the terminal body heat-sealed or crimped to the case or battery cover or carrier (that is, press-mounting the conductive metal plate to be the radiator 180 on the plastic carrier having an appropriate shape), or printing It may be formed in a film type and attached to any one surface.

In addition, the antenna device may be provided in plurality, and may be formed to be close to the top or bottom of the terminal body, respectively. It may also be formed close to the side end of the terminal body.

When provided in plurality, the antenna device may be an antenna configured to transmit and receive radio signals corresponding to at least one of a personal communication system (PCS), an advanced wireless service (AWS), a digital communications network (DCN), and a long term evolution (LTE). The antenna may be any one of a broadcast signal reception antenna, a Bluetooth antenna, a satellite signal reception antenna, and a data reception antenna of the wireless Internet operating in a band such as FM radio frequency band, Blue Tooth, or WIFI.

An antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention transmits and receives radio signals corresponding to at least one of a personal communication system (PCS), an advanced wireless service (AWS), a digital communications network (DCN), and a long term evolution (LTE). It can be used for an antenna that is configured to.

As shown in FIG. 3, the antenna device is formed close to the top or bottom of the terminal body, and electrical elements such as a speaker or a motor may be disposed between the antenna and the battery. The antenna device may be spaced apart from each of the electrical devices in consideration of radiation efficiency by the electrical device. However, since the antenna device according to the present embodiment has more improved antenna characteristics, the antenna device covers at least a part of the display module 141. It may be arranged so that.

4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention, in which conductive members 181, 182, 183, and 184 are formed on a circuit board 170.

Referring to FIG. 4, in the antenna device, conductive members 181, 182, 183, and 184 are formed on one surface of the circuit board 170 as the radiator 180. SPDT switches 185a, 185b, and 185c are disposed between the conductive members 181, 182, 183, and 184 to connect the conductive members.

The SPDT switches 185a, 185b, and 185c switch and electrically connect the conductive members 181, 182, 183, and 184 adjacent to each other according to a communication mode to selectively connect the conductive members 181, 182b, and 184. In other words, the SPDT switch connects the conductive members to each other so as to transmit and receive a signal of any one frequency band in each communication mode.

The conductive members may include a first conductive member 181 extending from the feeder to the first SPDT switch 185a and a second conductive member 182 extending from the first SPDT switch 185a to the second SPDT switch 185b. ) And a third conductive member 183 extending from the second SPDT switch 185b to the third SPDT switch 185c and a fourth conductive member 184 extending in a predetermined length from the third SPDT switch 185c. ) May be included.

Alternatively, they can include fewer conductive members and SPDT switches. When configuring an antenna for transmitting and receiving signals in three communication modes, that is, three frequency bands, three or four conductive members may be configured, and two or three SPDT switches may be configured. When configuring three SPDT switches, each of the first SPDT switches 185a may be controlled to be always ON in the communication mode.

In order to control the ON or OFF operation of the SPDT switch, each switch may be connected to the signal controller 173. In this case, at least one inductor 175a, 175a, 175b, 175c).

In addition, the conductive member of any one of the conductive members is formed in the form of a planar patch (Planar Patch) or loop antenna, it is possible to implement the MIMO (Multi Input Multi Out) technology more appropriately. For this reason, the antenna device may be partly operated as a monopole antenna and partly as a PIFA antenna or a loop antenna.

At least one of the conductive members may be coupled to extend in parallel with each other by a predetermined length. Due to the coupling, the physical length of the conductive member corresponding to the constant frequency can be shorter.

In addition, any one member may be formed to have a meander structure formed of a conductor having a serpentine shape to form a predetermined length corresponding to a specific frequency.

The circuit board 170 may be divided into a first region A in which a ground portion is formed and a second region B in which the conductive members are disposed. Various elements may be arranged in the first region. As such, by separating the ground and the region where the conductive members are formed, the wireless transmission / reception performance of the antenna can be further improved.

5 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a modification of FIG. 4.

At least one conductive member may be formed on both surfaces of the circuit board 270. That is, when the first to second conductive members 281 and 282 are formed on the first front surface, the third to fourth conductive members 283 and 284 may be formed on the second surface. Thus, the size of the circuit board 270 can be further reduced, resulting in miniaturization of the terminal.

Members formed on different surfaces may be connected at side ends of the circuit board 270 or may be connected to each other by forming a conductive binder in a via hole penetrating both sides of the circuit board 270. In this case, via holes 276a and 276b may be formed to connect the signal lines 284a, 284b and 284c of the first and second surfaces to each other.

4 and 5, a path through the second conductive member 182 through the first conductive member 181 and the first SPDT switch 185a from the power supply unit is a signal of a first frequency band. Form a first path to transmit and receive. The path through the third conductive member 183 through the first and second conductive members 181 and 182 and the second SPDT switch 185b from the power supply unit receives a signal of a second frequency band. A second path is formed to transmit and receive. In addition, a path through the fourth conductive member 184 through the first, second, and third conductive members 181, 182, and 183 and the third SPDT switch 185c from the power feeding part may be a third path. A third path may be formed to transmit and receive a signal in a frequency band.

The first to third paths are from a high frequency band to a wideband CDMA (WCDMA) communication band (2.4 GHz), a digital cellular system (DCS), or a personal communication system (PCS) band (1700 to 1900 MHz), respectively. It may be formed to have a physical length corresponding to any one of a communication band of a Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) band (850 to 950 MHz) and a long term evolution (LTE) band (700 to 787 MHz).

6A to 8B are graphs illustrating an operating state of each antenna shown in FIG. 4 and corresponding voltage standing wave ratios (VSWRs) according to frequencies.

6A illustrates a state in which the first SPDT switch 185a is turned on by the signal controller and the second to third SPDT switches 185c are turned off. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 6B, the antenna device may transmit and receive a radio signal corresponding to the first path.

 7A illustrates a state in which the first SPDT switch 185a and the second SPDT switch 185b are turned on by the controller, and the third SPDT switch 185c is turned off. As one or more switches are turned on, the entire first to third conductive members 181, 182, and 183 operate as one radiator. That is, since the lengths of the conductive members connected to each other are increased, the signals of the intermediate frequency band can be transmitted and received. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 7B, the antenna device may transmit and receive a radio signal corresponding to the second path.

8A illustrates a state in which the first to third SPDT switches 185a, 185b, and 185c are turned on by the controller. As one or more switches are turned on, the entire first to fourth conductive members 181, 182, 183, and 184 operate as one radiator. That is, since the lengths of the conductive members connected to each other increase, it is possible to transmit and receive signals of a low frequency band. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8B, the antenna device may transmit and receive a radio signal corresponding to the third path. For example, by the above operation, it is possible to transmit and receive a radio signal of any one of the Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) band (850 to 950 MHz), the long term evolution (LTE) band (700 to 787 MHz). .

The mobile terminal described above can be applied to not only the configuration and method of the embodiments described above but also all or some of the embodiments may be selectively combined so that various modifications may be made to the embodiments It is possible.

Claims (8)

A terminal body having a circuit board;
Conductive members formed on the circuit board and each having a predetermined length;
A single pole double throw (SPDT) switch configured to connect or disconnect the conductive members when the conductive members are disposed between the conductive members and controlled on or off; And
A control unit for controlling the SPDT switch so that the conductive members transmit and receive a signal of any one frequency band;
Some of the conductive members are formed on the first surface of the circuit board, and the rest except for the part are formed on the second surface of the circuit board, and are different from each other through conductive couplings formed in the via holes passing through the circuit board. The conductive members formed on the surface are connected to each other,
The at least one conductive member formed on the second surface extends in parallel with each other by a predetermined length and is coupled to the mobile terminal. The method of claim 1,
The challenge members,
A first conductive member extending from the feed portion to the first SPDT switch;
A second conductive member extending from the first SPDT switch to a second SPDT switch;
A third conductive member extending from the second SPDT switch to a third SPDT switch; And
And a fourth conductive member extending a predetermined length from the third SPDT switch. The method of claim 2,
A path from the power supply unit to the first conductive member and the first SPDT switch via the second conductive member forms a first path to transmit and receive a signal of a first frequency band,
A path through the third conductive member from the feeder via the first and second conductive members and the second SPDT switch to form a second path to transmit and receive a signal of a second frequency band,
A path through the first, second, and third conductive members and the third SPDT switch from the power feeding part and through the fourth conductive member to form a third path to transmit and receive a signal of a third frequency band; Mobile terminal. delete The method of claim 1,
The circuit board is partitioned into a first region in which the ground portion is formed and a second region in which the conductive members are disposed. The method of claim 1,
The signal line extending from the SPDT switch to the control unit comprises at least one inductor. The method of claim 1,
At least one of the conductive members is a mobile terminal, characterized in that formed in the form of a planar patch (Planar Patch). delete

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