KR102158099B1 - Reflector Antenna Device Providing Beam Tilt Function - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is a reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function. The reflective antenna device comprises: a housing; a reflective antenna positioned in the housing; a second lens spaced apart from the reflective antenna and positioned on an upper part of the reflective antenna; and a first lens positioned on an upper part of the second lens, wherein the first and second lenses have a structure which can independently rotate within the housing. The reflective antenna device has an advantage of being able to adjust a beam tilt angle in a desired direction.

Description

Reflector antenna device providing a beam tilt function {Reflector Antenna Device Providing Beam Tilt Function}

The present invention relates to a reflective antenna device, and more particularly, to a reflective antenna device that provides a beam tilt function.

In recent years, 5G communication has been initiated, and 5G communicates using a millimeter wave band of 20 GHz or higher compared to conventional 4G communication. The millimeter wave band has a very large attenuation characteristic compared to the low frequency band, and signal loss due to an obstacle is very large.

In the 5G band, very large amounts of IoT data, 360-degree video data, VR data, and various types of big data are supported through mobile communication networks, and for this reason, communication using the millimeter wave band is essential.

In addition to the use of the millimeter wave band, a larger number of Small Cells are expected to be used in 5G systems for efficient use of resources. These small cell base stations are installed in relatively high areas such as on the roof of a building, and many shaded areas that many base stations cannot cover due to poor transmission characteristics peculiar to millimeter waves occur.

A reflector antenna is used to provide a service signal suitable for such a shadow area. The reflective antenna is an antenna that operates in a manner that reflects a received signal. The reflective antenna generates a reflective signal at an angle equal to the angle of an incident signal, and provides it to a shaded area, like a general reflective phenomenon.

Even if a reflective antenna is used, it cannot cover all shaded areas, and a service signal is provided by using a reflective antenna to a target shaded area where service signals are essential.

However, due to changes in surrounding topography due to new building construction and changes in crowded areas due to environmental changes, the target shaded area that needs to provide a service signal may be changed.

However, the conventional reflective antenna does not provide a tilting function for changing the direction of the reflected signal, and thus there is a problem that it cannot adequately respond to the change of the target shadow area.

The present invention is to solve the problems of the prior art described above, and proposes a reflective antenna device capable of adjusting a beam tilt angle in a desired direction.

In order to achieve the above object, according to an aspect of the present invention, the housing'reflective antenna located in the housing; A second lens spaced apart from the reflective antenna and positioned above the reflective antenna; A reflective antenna device is provided that includes a first lens positioned above the second lens, wherein the second lens and the first lens provide a beam tilt function having a structure that can independently rotate within the housing.

The reflective antenna has a structure in which a plurality of cells are arranged, and each cell provides a beam tilt function, wherein each cell includes a preset metal pattern structure.

Each of the plurality of cells has a metamaterial structure.

One side of the cross-section of the first lens forms an inclined structure, and one side of the cross-section of the second lens forms an inclined structure.

The cross-section of the first lens has a trapezoidal shape in which an inclined structure is formed on one side thereof, and the cross-section of the second lens has a right-angled triangular structure.

A 3D lens is disposed on the first lens.

The tilt angle of the first lens tilt structure and the tilt angle of the second lens tilt structure are the same.

The housing includes an upper fixing part, a first rotation part located below the upper fixing part, a second rotation part located below the first rotation part, and a lower fixing part located below the second rotation part, wherein the first rotation part And the second rotation unit has a structure that can be rotated independently, the first lens is coupled to the first rotation unit, and the second lens is coupled to the second rotation unit.

When it is desired to form a beam tilted in a specific direction in the longitudinal direction of the housing, the first lens so that the inclination direction of the first lens inclination structure and the inclination direction of the second lens inclination structure coincide with the specific direction. And the second lens is rotated.

When a beam is to be formed in the longitudinal direction of the housing, the first lens and the second lens are rotated so that the inclined direction of the first lens inclined structure and the inclined direction of the second lens inclined structure are opposite.

The number of the second lenses is two or more, and may have an arc shape having a specific angle from a plan view.

According to another aspect of the invention, the housing; A reflective antenna located in the housing; A second lens spaced apart from the reflective antenna and positioned above the reflective antenna; And a first lens positioned above the second lens, wherein one side of the first lens cross-section forms an inclined structure, and one side of the second lens cross-section forms an inclined structure, and the first lens and the first lens At least one of the two lenses is provided with a reflective antenna device that provides a beam tilt function having a rotatable structure.

The reflective antenna device of the present invention has the advantage of being able to adjust a beam tilt angle in a desired direction.

1 is a view showing an environment in which a reflective antenna providing a beam tilt function is used according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a view showing an example of a reflective antenna used in the reflective antenna device of the present invention.
3 is a perspective view showing the appearance of a reflective antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is an exploded perspective view of a reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a cutaway perspective view of a reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a cross-sectional view of a reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a view showing a beam direction according to a structure of a lens positioned under a 3D lens.
8 is a perspective view showing the structure of a first lens according to an embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a cross-sectional view of a first lens in a direction a according to an embodiment of the present invention.
10 is a perspective view showing the structure of a second lens according to an embodiment of the present invention.
11 is a cross-sectional view in a direction b of a second lens according to an embodiment of the present invention.
12 is a cross-sectional view of a case where the beam of the antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is set to face the front side of a dielectric lens.
13 is a cross-sectional view of a case in which a beam of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is set to tilt in a specific direction with respect to a front surface of a dielectric lens.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention may be implemented in various different forms, and therefore is not limited to the embodiments described herein.

In the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted in order to clearly describe the present invention, and similar reference numerals are assigned to similar parts throughout the specification.

Throughout the specification, when a part is said to be "connected" to another part, this includes not only "directly connected" but also "indirectly connected" with another member interposed therebetween. .

In addition, when a part "includes" a certain component, it means that other components may be further provided, not excluding other components, unless specifically stated to the contrary.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a diagram illustrating an environment in which a reflective antenna providing a beam tilt function is used according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a reflective antenna 10 and a main antenna 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention are shown. As an example, the main antenna 20 may be an antenna that emits a signal of a millimeter wave band, and may be a small cell base station antenna installed in a high ground such as a building.

In the millimeter wave band, a signal is transmitted with high directivity due to its characteristic attenuation characteristics and poor transmission characteristics, which means that the coverage of the main antenna 20 is not wide and many shaded areas are generated.

In the environment shown in FIG. 1, the lower part of the building is likely to be a shaded area 30 to which the beam of the base station antenna 10 does not reach, and the reflective antenna 20 is used to provide an appropriate signal to the shaded area 30. Used.

Unlike a general antenna, the reflective antenna 20 does not operate to radiate a supplied signal to the outside, but operates in a form of reflecting a received signal. The reflective antenna 20 reflects the received signal on the same principle as the general reflection of light. That is, the received signal is reflected in the same form as the angle of incidence and the angle of reflection to the reflective antenna 20.

The reflective antenna 20 reflecting the received signal as described above is known, and various types of reflective antennas are known. As an example, a reflective antenna 20 implemented using a plurality of cells having a metamaterial structure is known. As another example, a reflective antenna having a parabola shape is also known.

However, as described above, the angle of the signal reflected from the reflective antenna depends on the angle of the incident signal. Consequently, the coverage of the reflective antenna is determined by the angle of the incident signal, the position of the reflective antenna, and the steering angle of the reflective antenna.

The target shadow area to be covered by the reflective antenna may be changed as necessary. The target shadow area may be changed due to changes in the shape of the building or the crowded area, but the existing reflective antenna could not respond to such changes in the target shadow area except by changing the physical installation location of the reflective antenna.

The antenna proposed in the present invention provides a beam tilt function to the reflective antenna to provide an appropriate signal to a target shadow area.

2 is a view showing an example of a reflective antenna used in the reflective antenna device of the present invention, Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the reflective antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, a reflective antenna used in the reflective antenna device of the present invention includes a plurality of cells 150, and a plurality of cells 150 are formed on a substrate 160. According to an embodiment of the present invention, a specific metal pattern is formed in each of the plurality of cells 150. The shape of the metal pattern formed on each of the plurality of cells 150 is preferably the same, but is not limited thereto.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a pattern formed on each of the plurality of cells 150 preferably has a metamaterial structure.

Each cell 150 emits a reflected wave corresponding to the arriving RF signal. Meanwhile, the metal pattern structure of the cell shown in FIG. 2 is exemplary, and it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that it may have various metamaterial structures.

In addition, the reflective antenna applied to the present invention is not limited to an antenna having a metamaterial structure. Any type of reflective antenna that generates a reflected wave corresponding to the received RF signal may be applied to the reflective antenna device proposed in the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, a reflective antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 100 and a 3D lens 110 coupled to an upper portion of the housing 100.

The housing 100 is made of a dielectric material, and a reflective antenna as shown in FIG. 2 is embedded in the housing 100.

The housing 100 may have a shape having a circular cross section such as a cylinder or a cone, and FIG. 3 shows the housing 100 in a cylindrical shape.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the housing 100 is divided into a plurality of sections, and FIG. 3 shows a case divided into four sections as an example. Referring to FIG. 3, the housing 100 may include an upper fixing part 102, a first rotating part 104, a second rotating part 106, and a lower fixing part 108.

The 3D lens 110 is coupled to the upper fixing part 102, the opening surface (not shown) is formed in the upper fixing part 102, and the 3D lens 110 is coupled to the opening surface of the upper fixing part 102 do. The 3D lens 110 has a curved shape and functions to improve the directivity of a beam radiated from a reflective antenna inside the housing. 3 illustrates a case in which the 3D lens 110 is coupled to the upper fixing part 102, but the use of the 3D lens is not necessarily required. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that a planar lens may be used in consideration of an economic aspect, and a 3D lens may be omitted if necessary.

The first rotating part 104 has a structure that can independently rotate with respect to the upper fixing part 102 located above the first rotating part 104 and the second rotating part 106 located under the first rotating part 104. Have.

The second rotating part 106 has a structure that can be rotated independently with respect to the first rotating part 104 located above the second rotating part 106 and the lower fixing part 108 located under the second rotating part 106. .

The first rotating part 104 and the second rotating part 106 have a structure that can be rotated based on the center, and various structures can be employed for independent rotation of the first rotating part 104 and the second rotating part 106. There will be, and an example thereof will be described with reference to separate drawings.

The rotation of the first rotation unit 104 and the second rotation unit 106 is performed to tilt the beam reflected from the reflective antenna, and the tilt of the beam is adjusted through the rotation of the first rotation unit 104 and the second rotation unit 106 How to do this will be described in detail with reference to separate drawings.

The lower fixing part 108 is located under the second rotating part 106 and functions as a base of the antenna device of the present invention, and the lower fixing part is closed without forming an open surface.

4 is an exploded perspective view of a reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a cutaway perspective view of a reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function according to an embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 to 6, a reflective antenna 210 is built into the housing 100, and the reflective antenna 210 is formed on the substrate 200. As described above, the reflective antenna 210 reflects the received RF signal.

A first lens 300 and a second lens 310 are installed above the reflective antenna 210 by a predetermined distance from the reflective antenna 210. The second lens 310 is positioned under the first lens 300. The first lens 300 may be in close contact with the 3D lens 110 positioned at the top, or may be spaced apart from the 3D lens 110 by a predetermined distance.

The first lens 300 is coupled to the first rotating portion 104 of the housing 100 and the second lens 310 is coupled to the second rotating portion 106 of the housing 100.

Since the first rotation unit 104 and the second rotation unit 106 are independently rotatable, the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 coupled thereto also have a structure that can independently rotate.

Referring to the cut perspective view of FIG. 5 and the cross-sectional view of FIG. 6, a first protrusion 400 protruding outward from the first rotating part 104 along the outer circumferential surface of the first rotating part 104 is below the first rotating part 104. ) Is formed.

Meanwhile, a first stopper 410 is formed on the second rotating part 106 to prevent the first protruding part 400 from being separated while protruding upward from the first protruding part 400. The first stopper 410 prevents separation of the first protrusion 400, but is not coupled, and the first rotation portion 104 is not fixedly coupled to the upper fixing portion 102. Therefore, the first rotation portion 104 Has a structure capable of independently rotating with respect to the upper fixing part 102 and the second rotating part 106.

A second protrusion 420 protruding in the inner direction of the second rotating part 106 along the inner circumferential surface of the second rotating part 106 is formed under the second rotating part 106.

Meanwhile, a second stopper 430 is formed on the lower fixing part 108 to prevent the second protrusion from being separated while protruding above the second protrusion 420. The second stopper 320 is a second protrusion It prevents the departure of (420), but does not combine. Accordingly, the second rotating part 106 can rotate independently with respect to the first rotating part 104 and the lower fixing part 108.

As described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the housing 100 of the present invention includes an upper fixing part 102, a first rotating part 104, a second rotating part 106, and a lower fixing part 108. It is formed as a body part, and the first rotation part 104 and the second rotation part 106 are independently rotatable by using a protrusion and a stopper.

However, the structure described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4 is only an exemplary embodiment of the first rotation unit 104 and the second rotation unit 106, and various rotational structures are used for the first rotation unit 104 and the second rotation unit ( It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that it can be applied for independent rotation of 106).

Before examining the specific structures of the first lens 300 and the second lens 310, the beam tilt structure studied by the inventor of the present invention will be described.

7 is a diagram illustrating a beam direction according to a structure of a lens positioned under a 3D lens.

7A is a diagram showing the beam direction when a disk-shaped planar lens (a structure with a rectangular cross section) is used as the lens, and (b) is a diagram showing the beam direction when a lens having a right-angled triangle structure is used as the lens. It is a diagram showing the beam direction. 7A and 7B show beam directions when a beam is vertically formed from the reflective antenna 210.

Referring to FIG. 7A, when a disk-shaped planar lens is used, the beam direction is set perpendicular to the 3D lens, and the beam is not tilted because it is the same as the beam direction reflected from the reflective antenna 210. . However, when a lens having an inclined cross-section as shown in FIG. 5B is used, the beam is tilted in association with the inclined direction of the lens. It can be seen that the beam direction is tilted in a direction close to perpendicular to the inclination direction.

The inventor of the present invention proposes the first lens and the second lens structure of the present invention, paying attention to the research results on the beam tilt structure as shown in FIG. 75(b).

8 is a perspective view showing the structure of a first lens according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 9 is a cross-sectional view of a first lens according to an embodiment of the present invention in a direction, and Figure 10 is an embodiment of the present invention A perspective view showing the structure of a second lens according to an embodiment, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view in a direction b of a second lens according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIGS. 8 and 9, the first lens 300 has a trapezoidal structure in which a cross section in a specific direction is inclined at one side. 10 and 11, the second lens 310 has a structure in which a cross section in a specific direction is a right triangle.

Preferably, the inclination angle formed on the first lens 300 and the inclination angle formed on the second lens 310 are the same.

In the present invention, it is possible to tilt the beam direction of the antenna device in a desired direction through rotation of the first lens and the second lens having the structures as shown in FIGS. 8 to 11, and the beam direction is adjusted to be formed perpendicular to the 3D lens. It is also possible to do.

12 is a view showing a cross-sectional view when the beam of the antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is set to face the front of the dielectric lens.

Referring to FIG. 12, the first rotating part 104 is arranged such that the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 are disposed so that the inclined direction of the first lens 300 and the inclined direction of the second lens 310 are opposite. ) And the second rotating part 106 are rotated.

As shown in FIG. 12, when the inclination directions of the inclined structures formed on the first lens 300 and the second lens are opposite to each other, the beam tilt directions due to the inclination cancel each other, and the beam direction of the radiation patch 210 is It is directed vertically with respect to the 3D lens 110 and the beam is not tilted in a specific direction.

13 is a diagram illustrating a cross-sectional view when a beam of an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention is set to tilt in a specific direction with respect to a front surface of a dielectric lens.

13 is a diagram illustrating a case in which the beam direction is set to tilt to the left when viewed from the front.

Referring to FIG. 13, the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 are rotated so that the inclination directions of the inclined structures of the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 coincide based on the intended tilt direction. Let it.

As shown in FIG. 13, when setting the beam direction so that the beam is tilted to the left, the downwardly inclined direction of the inclined structure of the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 is directed from left to right. One lens 300 and a second lens 310 are disposed. When setting the beam direction so that the beam is tilted to the right according to the same principle, the first lens 300 so that the downward tilt direction of the tilt structure of the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 is from right to left. And a second lens 310 is disposed.

Of course, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the upward and downward tilt beams can also be formed through rotation of the first lens and the second lens according to this principle.

Meanwhile, although not shown, the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 may have a structure that can be moved up and down, and the substrate of the first lens 300 and the second lens 310 according to the required directivity You will be able to adjust the separation distance from (200).

Further, a case where the second lens 310 has a semicircular shape in a plan view and an inclined structure is formed on the side has been described above, but the second lens is not limited to a semicircular shape in a plan view. For example, the second lens may have an arc shape having a specific angle (eg, 90 degrees, 60 degrees) in a plan view. In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the number of second lenses is one has been described, but there may be two or more second lenses, and in this case, the beam tilt in various directions may be implemented. Of course, when two or more second lenses 310 are used, the second lens 310 will have an arc shape having an angle smaller than a semicircle in plan view.

Meanwhile, a plurality of metal patterns forming an array structure may be formed on the 3D lens 110 provided at the top, and such a plurality of metal patterns may also contribute to the beam tilt function.

Further, the first lens 300 may be formed with a plurality of grooves to achieve a difference in dielectric constant, and the plurality of grooves may double the beam tilt effect.

Above, the description was made on the assumption that the direction of the beam reflected from the reflective antenna 210 is the 3D lens direction (vertical direction), but the radiation direction of the reflective antenna 210 will be variously determined according to the direction of the received RF signal. . However, even if the radiation direction of the reflective antenna 210 is set differently, it will be easily understood by those skilled in the art that the beam tilt of the radiation signal can be achieved by the same principle.

The reflective antenna device of the present invention described above can provide an appropriate signal to a service area without changing the physical location of the reflective antenna device even if the shadow area to be covered is changed.

It should be understood that the embodiments described above are illustrative in all respects and not limiting.

For example, each component described as a single type may be implemented in a distributed manner, and similarly, components described as being distributed may also be implemented in a combined form.

The scope of the present invention is indicated by the claims to be described later, and all changes or modified forms derived from the meaning and scope of the claims and their equivalent concepts should be interpreted as being included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims (15)

housing;
A reflective antenna located in the housing;
A second lens spaced apart from the reflective antenna and positioned above the reflective antenna;
Including a first lens positioned above the second lens,
The second lens and the first lens have a structure that can be rotated independently within the housing,
A reflective antenna device that provides a beam tilt function, wherein a 3D lens is disposed on the first lens.
The method of claim 1,
The reflective antenna has a structure in which a plurality of cells are arranged, and each cell includes a preset metal pattern structure.
The method of claim 2,
Each of the plurality of cells has a meta-material structure. A reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function.
The method of claim 1,
A reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function, wherein one side of the first lens cross-section forms an inclined structure, and one side surface of the second lens cross-section forms an inclined structure.
The method of claim 4,
A reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function, wherein a cross section of the first lens has a trapezoidal shape in which an inclined structure is formed on one side thereof, and the cross section of the second lens has a right-angled triangle structure.
delete The method of claim 4,
A reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function, wherein an inclination angle of the first lens inclination structure and the inclination angle of the second lens inclination structure are the same.
The method of claim 1,
The housing includes an upper fixing part, a first rotation part located below the upper fixing part, a second rotation part located below the first rotation part, and a lower fixing part located below the second rotation part, wherein the first rotation part And the second rotating unit has a structure that can be rotated independently, the first lens is coupled to the first rotating unit, and the second lens is coupled to the second rotating unit, the reflection providing a beam tilt function. Antenna device.
housing;
A reflective antenna located in the housing;
A second lens spaced apart from the reflective antenna and positioned above the reflective antenna;
Including a first lens positioned above the second lens,
The second lens and the first lens have a structure that can be rotated independently within the housing,
The cross section of the first lens is a trapezoidal shape in which an inclined structure is formed on one side, and the cross section of the second lens is a right-angled triangle structure,
When it is desired to form a beam tilted in a specific direction in the longitudinal direction of the housing, the first lens so that the inclination direction of the first lens inclination structure and the inclination direction of the second lens inclination structure coincide in relation to the specific direction. And a reflective antenna device that provides a beam tilt function, wherein the second lens is rotated. The method of claim 9,
When the beam is to be formed in the longitudinal direction of the housing, the first lens and the second lens are rotated so that the inclined direction of the first lens inclined structure and the inclined direction of the second lens inclined structure are opposite. A reflective antenna device that provides a beam tilt function.
housing;
A reflective antenna located in the housing;
A second lens spaced apart from the reflective antenna and positioned above the reflective antenna;
Including a first lens positioned above the second lens,
The second lens and the first lens have a structure that can be rotated independently within the housing,
A reflective antenna device providing a beam tilt function, wherein the number of the second lenses is two or more and has an arc shape having a specific angle from a plan view.


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