RU2752282C1 - Pass-through grating with contactless structure and single-bit control for formation of multibeam pattern - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: antenna equipment.SUBSTANCE: invention relates to antenna technology, in particular to the design of an antenna array cell and to a pass-through antenna array based on such cells. The technical result is achieved by the fact that the antenna array cell contains a central printed circuit board including a slot structure having symmetry, and at least two switching elements that are located in the said slot structure symmetrically relative to the plane of symmetry of the slot structure, input and output polarization filters, as well as a control line for controlling the switching elements, and one of the polarization filters is made with the ability to pass radiation with a polarization parallel to the plane of symmetry of the said slot structure, while the other of the filters is made with the ability to pass radiation with a polarization perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of the mentioned slot structure, and the input polarizing filter, the central printed circuit board and the output polarizing filter are separated from each other by a gap.EFFECT: reduction in size and simplification of the structure of the cells of the controlled pass-through antenna array.10 cl, 6 dwg

Description

The technical field to which the invention relates

The present invention relates to radio engineering, and more particularly to a pass-through antenna array with a contactless structure and one-bit control, as well as cells of such an antenna array.

State of the art

The constantly growing needs of mobile users determine the rapid development of communication technologies. Currently, there is an active development of communication systems for new and promising data transmission standards, such as 5G (28 GHz) and 6G (subterahertz band), which will be characterized by higher performance indicators such as high transmission speed and energy efficiency.

New applications require the introduction of a new class of radio systems capable of transmitting / receiving data / energy and having the ability to adaptively change the characteristics of the radiated electromagnetic field. An important component of such systems are controllable antenna arrays, which find their application in data transmission systems such as 5G (28GHz) and WiGig (60GHz), long-distance wireless power transmission (LWPT) (24GHz) systems. , automotive radar systems (24GHz, 79GHz), etc.

Antenna arrays used in these areas must meet several basic requirements:

- low losses;

- simple control scheme;

- wide operating frequency range;

- inexpensive, compact architecture suitable for mass production.

Currently, there are several basic approaches to the construction of the architecture of antenna arrays.

The structure of the lattice with direct (feeder) excitation is considered traditional. In such an array, the antenna elements are powered directly from the outputs of the control circuit (usually including phase shifters) powered by a high-frequency power source. Thus, each antenna element is connected to and receives energy from a power source through a power sharing system. Such a grid can be made with a multi-layer power dividing system and can have a low-profile structure. However, such a grid architecture has high power losses due to the presence of a power dividing system on multilayer printed circuit boards.

An alternative is a pass-through antenna array with spatial ("optical") excitation. In such an array, the phase control system and the emitter matching circuits together with two sets of antenna elements (receiving and transmitting) form a so-called "discrete lens", which operates on a principle similar to an optical lens. Said discrete lens has a receiving aperture and a transmitting aperture. A set of receiving antenna elements of a discrete lens is irradiated by means of an irradiator located at some distance from said lens. Usually this distance is comparable to or greater than the transverse dimension of the lens. The phase control system controls the generation of radiation of the transmitting antenna elements. In such an array, there is practically no power loss in the power system due to the propagation of radiation from the feed in the air (with the exception of the so-called overflow of the feed power for opening the lens). In addition, this antenna array does not have the problem of difficulty in providing power with increasing size of the array. One of the disadvantages of such an antenna array is the complexity of the structure of the antenna array elementary cells.

The prior art solution described in US 9,941,592 B2 discloses an elementary cell including a receiving antenna, a transmitting antenna, and including first and second radiating surfaces separated from each other by a separation region, a phase shift circuit containing switches each of which has a state of on or off, and the corresponding switch provides or blocks the passage of current between the first and second emitting surfaces; grounding layer; a first printed circuit board including a first surface provided with a receiving antenna and a second opposite surface provided with a ground plane; the semiconductor material plate containing the first surface is provided with first and second emitting surfaces, and the switches are formed in the separation region, integrally with the transmitting antenna. However, the known solution has a complex structure and requires soldering to assemble the said unit cell.

The solution described in US 9,099,775 B2 discloses a radiating cell having two phase states suitable for a transmitter antenna array capable of transmitting microwave signals, the cell comprising a first antenna and a second antenna placed on both sides of an assembly comprising two substrate layers separated grounding layer. The second antenna comprises a conductive element capable of emitting, wherein the cell comprises at least two switching means, each of which can have an on state and an off state between two ports. One of said ports is connected to the second radiating element, while said switching means is controlled in the opposite way. An emitting cell is used, in particular, in the implementation of transmitter arrays using several configurable cells to control the radiation pattern. However, the known solution has a complex multilayer structure.

Thus, there is a need in the prior art for a simple and inexpensive, low-loss, compact-size controllable walk-through antenna array structure suitable for mass production.

The essence of the invention

The present invention addresses at least some of the above problems.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an antenna array cell comprising:

- a central printed circuit board including a symmetrical slot structure and at least two switching elements, which are arranged in said slot structure symmetrically with respect to the plane of symmetry of the slot structure, and the switching elements are made in such a way that when one of the elements has a low impedance state, the other of the elements has a state of high impedance and vice versa,

- input polarizing filter parallel to one side of the central PCB,

- an output polarizing filter parallel to the other side of the central PCB,

- control line for controlling switching elements,

wherein one of the polarizing filters is configured to transmit radiation with polarization parallel to the plane of symmetry of said slot structure, while the other of the filters is configured to transmit radiation with polarization perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of said slot structure, and

wherein the input polarizing filter, the central printed circuit board, and the output polarizing filter are separated from each other by a gap.

In one embodiment, said gap is an air gap.

In another embodiment, said gap is filled with a dielectric layer.

In another embodiment, the center PCB is a two-layer PCB.

In another embodiment, the control line is a microstrip line in the center PCB.

In another embodiment, the polarizing filters are provided on single-layer printed circuit boards.

According to another embodiment, each of the polarizing filter printed circuit boards includes a slot antenna.

In another embodiment, the polarizing filters are perforated metal sheets.

In another embodiment, the switching elements are selected from pin diodes, photoconductive elements, transistors, MEMS.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is provided a walk-through antenna array including a cell array in accordance with the present invention and a control unit for driving the antenna array.

The present invention provides an antenna array of unit cells having a compact size and simple structure.

Brief Description of Drawings

The invention is further illustrated by the description of preferred embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows the general structure of a feed-through antenna array known from the prior art.

FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a unit cell structure of a feed-through antenna array in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 3 depicts possible embodiments of a slotted structure in a central printed circuit board of an antenna array cell in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows the equivalent circuit of the switching elements.

FIG. 5 shows the operating states of an antenna array cell in accordance with the present invention in a top view of the cell.

FIG. 6 schematically shows the propagation of radiation in a unit cell of an antenna array in accordance with the present invention.

Detailed description

The pass-through antenna array is used to scan the beam (steer the beam) or focus the radiation field. As shown in FIG. 1, the antenna array is irradiated with a feed such as a spherical or plane wave. The feed can be a directional antenna or antenna array, including, but not limited to, at least one of the following: open rectangular waveguide array with power splitting circuitry, slotted rectangular waveguide array, slotted radial waveguide array, etc. Due to the propagation of radiation from the feed to the antenna array through the air gap, the presented circuit has low power losses. The pass-through antenna array converts the incoming radiation into directional radiation by controlling the radiation phase of the elementary cells that make up the said antenna array. Thus, a phase control means is located between the receiving antenna elements of the feed-through antenna array and the transmitting elements of the feed-through antenna array, which may include, for example, a phase shifter, a delay line, etc. In general, the phase can be controlled in the range from 0 to 360 degrees, however, in this case, the cells of the feed-through antenna array have a complex structure that provides such phase control.

Next, referring to FIG. 2-6, the unit cell structure of a feed-through antenna array in accordance with the present invention will be described.

FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a unit cell structure of a feed-through antenna array in accordance with the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cell (1) of the pass-through antenna array consists of an input polarizing filter (2), an output polarizing filter (4) and a central printed circuit board (3) located between said filters. These layers are separated by an air gap. The air gap is provided by spacers (spacers). Dielectric filling or multilayer dielectric filling of gaps between layers is also possible, i. E. the said gap can be filled with a dielectric. The accessibility for mounting the switching elements must be taken into account.

The central printed circuit board (3) includes a symmetrical slot structure (6) and at least two switching elements (8, 9), which are located in the said slot structure symmetrically with respect to the plane of symmetry of the slot structure. The plane of symmetry is the normal plane to the planes of the elements such that, relative to this plane, the mirror symmetry of the geometry of all elements of the central printed circuit board is observed. This symmetry of the layout allows for phase adjustment (switching) (0/180 degrees). The distance or angle between the switching elements in the said arrangement is adjusted to provide the required signal parameters (matching, transmission, bandwidth, etc.). The symmetry plane of the central printed circuit board can be arbitrarily positioned relative to the symmetry planes of the polarizing filters. However, in a particular embodiment of the present invention, the plane of symmetry of the central printed circuit board may coincide with one of the planes of symmetry of the polarizing filters.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the slotted structure (6) is circular. In alternative embodiments, the slotted structure of the central printed circuit board may have a different shape depending on design, technological and other requirements (see Fig. 3). It is also noted that the slot structure can also have an asymmetric shape. However, the greatest efficiency of the antenna array cell in accordance with the present invention is achieved when using the symmetrical shape of the said slot structure (6).

The said switching elements (8, 9) are made in such a way that when one of the elements has a low impedance state (i.e., the switching element is closed) and thus connects the fragments of the central printed circuit board that delimit the slot structure, the other of the elements has a high state. impedance (i.e. the switching element is open) and vice versa. The mentioned switching elements can be made in the form, for example, pin-diodes, photoconductive elements, transistors, MEMS (Microelectromechanical systems, microelectromechanical systems), etc.

In an alternative embodiment, a high parasitic capacitance switching element may be used. To create a parallel resonance on the parasitic capacitance, a closing track is placed next to the switching element, which plays the role of inductance. In the state of parallel resonance, the switching element has a high resistance, which effectively "turns off" said switching element. This embodiment allows the use of inexpensive components, which reduces the cost of manufacturing the antenna array.

In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the center PCB includes two switching elements. However, it should be noted that in alternative embodiments, the central PCB may include more than two switching elements, said switching elements being grouped into two groups so that the groups have different states at any given time. At the same time, according to the present invention, the arrangement of the said switching elements (groups of elements) should have a mirror symmetry.

The switching elements are controlled by a control line (10), which is connected to the switching elements (8, 9) in the central part of the printed circuit board fragment, surrounded by the slotted structure (6). The control line (10) in an exemplary embodiment is a microstrip line in a central PCB. The length of the control line (10) from the slotted structure (6) to the said central part of the printed circuit board fragment surrounded by the slotted structure (6) should preferably be on the order of 1/4 of the wavelength of the fundamental mode of the microstrip line. This length gives a high impedance of the section of the control line (10) at the intersection of the control line (10) and the slot structure (6) and prevents leakage of the main signal into this control line (10). The second end of the control line (10) is connected to a data transmission bus (not shown), through which control signals are transmitted from the antenna array control unit to the antenna array elementary cells. It is also possible to install filter elements known from the prior art on the conductors of the control bus to reduce (prevent) signal leakage into the control bus.

In the exemplary embodiment of the antenna array cell shown in FIG. 2, said switching elements (8, 9) are pin diodes. An equivalent circuit for the operation of these switching elements in two states is shown in FIG. 4. As seen from the above-mentioned equivalent circuit, depending on the control signal in each of the above two states, one of the pin diodes is conductive, while the other is non-conductive. Thus, with such a switching element switching circuit, one control line is sufficient to control both switching elements. The central part of the cell, separated by the slotted structure from the rest of the printed circuit board, receives a positive or negative potential with respect to said rest of the circuit board via a control line. Depending on this, one of the diodes turns on.

In an exemplary embodiment, the center PCB is implemented as a two-layer PCB, wherein the first layer includes a slotted structure and the second layer includes a microstrip control line. Switching elements can be located on both sides of the printed circuit board. If they are located on the side of the microstrip control line, then the contact pads of the switching elements are connected to the other side of the printed circuit board by means of plated holes. If there is no microstrip control line, the central printed circuit board can be made in a single layer. For example, in the case of using photoconductive switching elements, they can be controlled by their dielectric optical waveguides realizing the function of a control line of the switching elements. In this case, optical waveguides can be located in the gaps between the polarizing filters and the central plate, without significantly affecting the signal passing through the antenna array due to their small transverse dimensions. Also, optical waveguides can be located perpendicular to the planes of the array elements. In this case, the microstrip control line is unnecessary.

From a mathematical point of view, a central slotted PCB can be represented as an eight-port (four-port device) described by a scattering matrix.

In general, the mentioned matrix has the following form (indicating the properties of some elements of the matrix of the described structure):

.

...

For simplicity, we assume that we have an infinite periodic structure of zero thickness, and the transverse dimensions of the cell are less than half the wavelength. Only the normal incidence of a plane wave is considered. Then, according to the theory of periodic structures, at sufficiently large distances from the structure (in comparison with the period of the structure), the field can be described by a plane incident wave, plane reflected waves of two polarizations, and transmitted plane waves of two polarizations. This implies the possibility of describing the system by the scattering matrix as a linear system with a finite number of ports. The port in this description is a plane wave of some kind of polarization. Zero thickness enables us to connect the field on one side of the structure (z <0, the z axis is perpendicular to the plane of the central PCB) with the field on the other side (z> 0) through its continuity in the slot. The property of reciprocity is also used when using reciprocal materials with symmetric tensors of material equations (for Maxwell's equations) used to describe materials in electrodynamics. The first port (port1) in the mentioned four-port device is the port on the z <0 side with y-polarization, the second port (port2) is the port on the z <0 side with x-polarization, the third port (port3) is the port on the side z> 0 with y-polarization, the fourth port (port4) is the port on the z> 0 side with x-polarization.

S ₁₂ = S ₂₁ , S ₃₂ = S ₂₃ - the property of the fact that the scattering matrix of devices with symmetric tensors of Maxwell's material equations is symmetric.

S ₄₁ = S ₂₁ , S ₃₂ = S ₁₂ - this equality is a consequence of the fact that the complex amplitudes of the cross-polarized transmitted (S ₄₁ , S ₃₂ ) and reflected (S ₂₁ , S ₁₂ ) fields are excited by the same field in the slot on both sides of infinitely thin screen.

Thus, S ₄₁ = S ₂₃ .

S ₄₁ is the complex amplitude of the transmitted wave with x-polarization when the wave with y-polarization is incident from the side z <0 (let us assume the state of the keys, if we look from the side z <0 and the y-axis is directed upwards, is 0 for the key located to the left of the plane symmetry (key 1) and 1 for the key located to the right of the symmetry plane (key 2)).

S ₂₃ is the complex amplitude of the transmitted wave with x-polarization when the wave with y-polarization is incident from the side z> 0, and the state of the keys, if we look from the side z <0, is 0 and 1 (similar to that described in the previous paragraph) or, if we look from the side z> 0, it is 1 (key 2 is located to the left of the plane of symmetry) and 0 (key 1 is located to the right of the plane of symmetry), and this is equivalent to falling from the side z <0, but with the state of keys 1 (key 1 ) and 0 (key 2).

Since the x-axis from the side z> 0 goes in one direction, and from the side z <0 - in the opposite direction, then when switching symmetrically located switching elements S ₄₁ changes sign.

The input polarizing filter and the output polarizing filter are, in the exemplary embodiment, formed as printed circuit boards, each of which includes a slot antenna for passing a wave with a specific polarization. The slots (slots) in these printed circuit boards are rectangular, with the slot (5) in the input polarizing filter (2) being perpendicular to the slot (7) in the output polarizing filter (4). In this case, the input polarizing filter (2) passes, for example, a horizontally polarized wave, and the output polarizing filter (4) passes a vertically polarized wave, or vice versa.

In an exemplary embodiment, the input polarizing filter is configured to transmit radiation with polarization parallel to the plane of symmetry of said slot structure, and the output polarizing filter is configured to transmit radiation with polarization perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of said slot structure. The reverse configuration is also possible. This follows from the above symmetry property of the scattering matrix of the complete device (s ₁₂ = s ₂₁ ).

Thus, in the general case, one of the polarizing filters must be capable of transmitting radiation with polarization parallel to the plane of symmetry of the said slot structure, while the other of the filters must be capable of transmitting radiation with polarization perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of the said slot structure. ...

In an alternative embodiment, the input polarizing filter and the output polarizing filter may be perforated metal sheets.

In yet another alternative embodiment, the slot is, for example, elliptical instead of rectangular.

In a further alternative embodiment of the invention, a strip antenna may be used in place of the slot antenna.

FIG. 5 shows the operating states of an antenna array cell in accordance with the present invention in a top view of the cell.

In the example of FIG. 5, the slit (5) of the input polarizing filter transmits the vertically polarized (y-polarized) waves, while the slit (7) of the output polarizing filter transmits the horizontally polarized (x-polarized) waves.

In the case shown in FIG. 5a, the state of the first switching element (8) is identical to the state of the second switching element (9). The system is symmetrical about the y-axis. In this case, changing the polarization is impossible, because it is the result of symmetry breaking. Consequently, there is no radiation at the output of the unit cell. Therefore, such a configuration is not used in the present invention.

In the case shown in FIG. 5b, the switching element (8) is on and the switching element (9) is off. The opposite situation is shown in FIG. 5c. In this case, the system has a violation of symmetry. Due to this asymmetry, the polarization of the transmitted radiation changes. The vertically polarized wave passes through the slit (5) of the input polarizing filter. A horizontally polarized wave (cross-polarized wave) passes through the slit (7) of the output polarizing filter. The described two states (Figs. 5b and 5c) have the opposite direction of the electric field in the slit of the output polarization filter (0 and 180 degrees). Thus, switching between these two states allows one-bit control of the phase (0/180 degrees) of the radiation of the elementary cell of the antenna array.

The principle of changing the polarization of radiation in a unit cell of an antenna array in accordance with the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. 6.

FIG. 6 schematically shows the propagation of radiation in a unit cell of an antenna array in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 6 in the notation used to indicate the propagation of radiation, the superscript indicates the direction of propagation of the radiation ("+" means propagation from left to right in the figure, while "-" means propagation from right to left), the number in the subscript indicates the serial number of the layer, in where the radiation propagates (1 - the space before the input polarizing filter, 2 - the air gap between the input polarizing filter and the central PCB, 3 - the air gap between the output polarizing filter and the central PCB, 4 - the space after the output polarizing filter), and the letters in the subscript denotes the polarization of the radiation (C - radiation with copolarization with respect to the incident wave, X - radiation with cross-polarization with respect to the incident wave).

As shown in FIG. 6, the incident wave is partially reflected from the input polarizing filter and partially passes through it. Further, the slit structure partially transmits the incident wave and partially reflects it, and at the same time depolarizes both the reflected and the transmitted wave.

Therefore, the incident wave is partly reflected from the input polarizing filter and partly reflected from the central PCB. The interference of these reflected waves produces a net reflection, and optimization of their amplitudes and phases minimizes the net reflection. In this case, the cross-polarized radiation is completely reflected from the input polarizing filter.

Standing waves of both polarizations exist in the two air gaps.

On the right, only radiation with cross-polarization relative to the incident wave passes through the output polarizing filter. In this case, the switching elements in this case, due to their symmetrical arrangement, make it possible to switch the phase of the transmitted signal at a constant amplitude.

Thus, as seen in FIG. 6, the output polarizing filter only passes cross-polarized radiation with respect to the incident wave. The principle of operation of a unit cell is based on the excitation of fields with two polarizations in a slot with asymmetric switching on of switching elements, polarization filtering, and matching of the input and output ports of the structure. As a result, it is possible to create a switchable transmission structure for input electromagnetic waves. A phase shift of 180 degrees is set automatically by taking into account symmetry.

Adjusting the parameters of the polarizing filter slits and air gaps allows you to match the radiation reflections from the slots and the central PCB.

Thus, in accordance with the present invention, it is possible to assemble an antenna array elementary cell with a contactless structure (polarizing filters and a central printed circuit board are separated by an air gap) and one-bit control (0/180 degrees) from three separate substrates with a minimum number of control elements, i.e. ... the proposed arrangement has a compact size and a very simple structure with minimal losses. This arrangement, due to its simplicity, makes it possible to reduce the costs, both material and time, for the production of the said elementary cell of the antenna array. It is worth noting that the production of a three-spaced PCB layout, in which the polarizing filters are single-layer and the central PCB is made of two-layer, is much simpler than the production of a multilayer PCB layout.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a walk-through antenna array including an array of unit cells in accordance with the present invention, as well as a control unit for driving the antenna array. Next, the operation of such a pass-through antenna array will be discussed.

, который представляет собой полный вектор комплексных амплитуд (компонентами являются комплексные амплитуды сигналов от элементарных ячеек антенной решетки). Вектор сканирования определяется следующим образом:The radiation pattern of the antenna array is characterized by the scanning vector

, which is the full vector of complex amplitudes (the components are the complex amplitudes of signals from the elementary cells of the antenna array). The scan vector is defined as follows:

, (1)

, (1)

- мнимая единица,

- волновое число,

- вектор от N-й ячейки антенной решетки до точки наблюдения,

- фазовая задержка распространения электромагнитных волн от N-й ячейки антенной решетки до точки наблюдения,

- комплексная амплитуда сигнала от N-й ячейки антенной решетки в точке наблюдения при ее возбуждении сигналом комплексной амплитуды 1.where

- imaginary unit,

- wave number,

is the vector from the Nth cell of the antenna array to the observation point,

- the phase delay of the propagation of electromagnetic waves from the Nth cell of the antenna array to the observation point,

is the complex amplitude of the signal from the Nth cell of the antenna array at the observation point when it is excited by a signal of complex amplitude 1.

To generate a single-beam radiation pattern of the antenna array, the control unit sets the excitation vector w ₁ of the antenna array cells, consisting of ± 1 elements for one-bit control. The number of elements of the excitation vector is equal to the number of elementary cells in the antenna array, with each element specifying the phase of radiation of the elementary cell of the antenna array. The excitation vector of the antenna array cells for generating a single-beam radiation pattern is set as follows:

, (2)

, (2)

- регулируемое значение фазы, оптимизируемое посредством моделирования множителя решетки (AF, array factor),

- вектор сканирования, представляющий собой полный вектор комплексных амплитуд (компонентами являются комплексные амплитуды от элементарных ячеек антенной решетки), exp - комплексная экспонента

, arg - аргумент комплексного числа, sign - функция знака действительного числа: +1 для положительного числа, -1 для отрицательного числа, 0 для 0.where

- an adjustable phase value, optimized by modeling an array factor (AF),

is the scanning vector, which is the full vector of complex amplitudes (the components are the complex amplitudes from the elementary cells of the antenna array), exp is the complex exponent

, arg is the argument of a complex number, sign is the sign function of the real number: +1 for a positive number, -1 for a negative number, 0 for 0.

The lattice factor is determined as follows:

, (3)

, (3)

where θ and ϕ are the current elevation and azimuth angle of the observation point in a spherical coordinate system.

This formula for the scalar product of vectors coincides with the summation of the complex contributions from the unit lattice elements

and gives the complex amplitude of the signal from the entire array at the observation point taking into account the individual complex amplitudes of the excitation of the single elements without taking into account the directional pattern of the individual elements.

To generate a multi-beam radiation pattern of the antenna array, the control unit sets the excitation vector w _M of the antenna array cells as follows:

, (4)

, (4)

- вектор сканирования для s-го направления, а

- весовой коэффициент для s-го направления, оптимизируемый посредством моделирования множителя решетки. Для матрицы 16х16 и более весовой коэффициент в большинстве случаев может быть равен единице.where

is the scanning vector for the s-th direction, and

is the weighting factor for the s-th direction, optimized by modeling the lattice multiplier. For a matrix of 16x16 and more, the weighting factor in most cases can be equal to one.

An antenna in accordance with the present invention is capable of performing both beam scanning and focusing of the electromagnetic radiation field, while the antenna can form both single-beam and multi-beam radiation patterns.

The described antenna control method according to the present invention can be performed by a control unit that executes program code contained on a computer-readable medium.

The antenna of the present invention is advantageously intended for use in the millimeter wavelength range. However, alternatively, any wavelength ranges can be used for which it is possible to carry out radiation and controlled focusing of electromagnetic waves. For example, shortwave, submillimeter (terahertz) radiation, etc. can be used as an alternative.

The compact and high-performance steerable antenna array systems according to the present invention can find application in wireless communication systems of the promising 5G, 6G and WiGig standards. Moreover, the present invention can be used both in base stations and in antennas of mobile terminals.

The present invention can find application in all types of LWPT systems: outdoor / indoor, automotive, mobile, etc. This ensures high efficiency of power transmission in all scenarios. The power transmission device can be built on the basis of the described structure of the antenna array and thus can implement beam focusing when charging devices in the near field or scanning the beam for transmitting power to devices located in the far zone of the transmitter antenna.

When used in robotics, the proposed antenna can be used to detect / avoid obstacles.

The present invention can also be used in autonomous vehicle radars.

In addition, the present invention can find application in the implementation of intelligent transmitting surfaces for transmitting signals from base stations to users. This implementation allows you to reduce power consumption and the number of required base stations.

It should be understood that while terms such as "first", "second", "third", etc., may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and / or sections, these elements, components , areas, layers and / or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used only to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another element, component, region, layer or section. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer, or section may be called a second element, component, region, layer, or section without departing from the scope of the present invention. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the respective listed positions. Elements mentioned in the singular do not exclude the plurality of elements, unless otherwise specified.

The functionality of an item referred to in the specification or claims as a single item may be practiced by several device components, and vice versa, the functionality of items specified in the specification or claims as several separate items can be implemented in practice by a single component.

The embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments described herein. Specialist in the field of technology based on the information set forth in the description and knowledge of the prior art will become apparent and other embodiments of the invention, which do not go beyond the essence and scope of this invention.

Elements mentioned in the singular do not exclude the plurality of elements, unless otherwise specified.

A person skilled in the art should understand that the essence of the invention is not limited to a specific software or hardware implementation, and therefore any software and hardware known in the prior art can be used to implement the invention. So hardware can be implemented in one or more specialized integrated circuits, digital signal processors, digital signal processing devices, programmable logic devices, user-programmable gate arrays, processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, electronic devices, other electronic modules made with the ability perform the functions described in this document, a computer, or a combination of the above.

Obviously, when it comes to storing data, programs, etc., the presence of a computer-readable storage medium is implied. Examples of computer-readable storage media include read only memory, random access memory, register, cache memory, semiconductor storage devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD- ROMs and digital versatile discs (DVDs), as well as any other storage media known in the art.

While exemplary embodiments have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that such embodiments are illustrative only and are not intended to limit the broader invention, and that the invention should not be limited to the specific arrangements and structures shown and described, since various other modifications may be apparent to those skilled in the art.

The features mentioned in various dependent claims, as well as the embodiments disclosed in various parts of the description, can be combined to achieve beneficial effects, even if the possibility of such combination is not explicitly disclosed.

Claims (16)

1. Antenna array cell containing: - a central printed circuit board including a symmetrical slot structure and at least two switching elements, which are arranged in said slot structure symmetrically with respect to the plane of symmetry of the slot structure, and the switching elements are made in such a way that when one of the elements has a low impedance state, the other of the elements has a state of high impedance and vice versa, - input polarizing filter parallel to one side of the central PCB, - an output polarizing filter parallel to the other side of the central PCB, - control line for controlling switching elements, wherein one of the polarizing filters is configured to transmit radiation with polarization parallel to the plane of symmetry of said slot structure, while the other of the filters is configured to transmit radiation with polarization perpendicular to the plane of symmetry of said slot structure, and wherein the input polarizing filter, the central printed circuit board, and the output polarizing filter are separated from each other by a gap. 2. An antenna array cell according to claim 1, wherein said gap is an air gap. 3. An antenna array cell according to claim 1, wherein said gap is filled with a dielectric layer. 4. The antenna array cell of claim 1, wherein the center PCB is a two-layer PCB. 5. An antenna array cell according to claim 4, wherein the control line is a microstrip line in a central printed circuit board. 6. An antenna array cell according to claim 1, wherein the polarizing filters are made on single-layer printed circuit boards. 7. The antenna array cell of claim 6, wherein each of the polarizing filter printed circuit boards includes a slotted antenna. 8. An antenna array cell according to claim 1, wherein the polarizing filters are perforated metal sheets. 9. Antenna array cell according to claim 1, wherein the switching elements are selected from the group including pin diodes, photoconductive elements, transistors, MEMS. 10. Pass-through antenna array, including an array of cells according to any one of claims 1 to 9 and a control unit for controlling the antenna array.

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