WO2021082016A1

WO2021082016A1 - Antenna array and communication device

Info

Publication number: WO2021082016A1
Application number: PCT/CN2019/115160
Authority: WO
Inventors: 金黄平; 尚鹏; 刘祥龙; 张碧军; 毕晓艳; 陈大庚; 张关喜; 唐朝阳
Original assignee: 华为技术有限公司
Priority date: 2019-11-01
Filing date: 2019-11-01
Publication date: 2021-05-06

Abstract

Provided is an antenna array comprising at least one two-port antenna element and at least one four-port antenna element. Alternatively, the antenna array comprises four-port antenna elements arranged with different orientations. Mixing two antenna elements having different numbers of ports in an antenna array, or arranging four-port antenna elements with different orientations in an antenna array, can improve a spatial resolution and sidelobe suppression performance of the antenna array. The invention facilitates improving the system throughput, thereby enhancing system performance.

Description

Antenna array and communication device

Technical field

The present application relates to the field of antenna technology, and more specifically, to an antenna array and a communication device.

Background technique

In order to obtain a larger system throughput, it is hoped that the antenna's spatial resolution can be maximized through the design of the antenna. Generally speaking, the area of the antenna array determines the spatial resolution of the antenna array. However, blindly increasing the distance between the antenna elements to increase the area of the antenna array will result in an increase in the area of the antenna panel. This is not conducive to the deployment of communication equipment (such as base stations).

How to design an antenna array based on an antenna panel with a limited area to improve system throughput is a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently.

Summary of the invention

The present application provides an antenna array and a communication device, in order to improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array within a limited area, thereby increasing the system throughput.

In the first aspect, an antenna array is provided. The antenna array includes at least one row of antenna elements arranged in a horizontal direction and at least one column of antenna elements arranged in a vertical direction; wherein the antenna elements in the antenna array include at least one first antenna element and at least one second antenna element The number of ports of the first antenna unit is different from that of the second antenna unit, and the number of ports of the first antenna unit is greater than the number of ports of the second antenna unit.

In the antenna array provided by the embodiments of the present application, two types of antenna elements with different numbers of ports are mixed and arranged in the antenna array, and a reasonable design can be made using the different radiation characteristics of the antenna elements with different numbers of ports in space. The spatial resolution of the resulting antenna array in the vertical direction and/or the horizontal direction can be improved. In the limited area of the antenna panel, the spatial resolution of the antenna array is improved, so that the capacity of multiple input multiple output (MIMO) transmission is increased. This helps to improve system throughput.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first antenna unit is a four-port antenna unit, and the second antenna unit is a two-port antenna unit.

Since the two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit are mixed in the antenna array, the spatial resolution of the antenna array can be improved, which is beneficial to increase the system throughput.

Optionally, the four-port antenna unit is a four-port quadrifilar helix antenna (QHA) unit, the four-port QHA unit is a QHA unit driven separately by each spiral arm, and the two-port antenna unit is Cross-polarized antenna unit.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the antenna array includes at least one row of first antenna elements or at least one column of first antenna elements.

It is obtained through simulation that the spatial resolution in the vertical direction of two columns of antennas combined with a column of four-port antenna unit and a column of two-port antenna unit can be greater than that of two columns of the same four-port antenna unit or two columns of the same two-port antenna unit. The maximum value that can be reached.

Combining a row of four-port antenna units and a row of two-port antenna units with two rows of antennas has a horizontal spatial resolution greater than the maximum that two rows of the same four-port antenna unit or two rows of the same two-port antenna unit can achieve value.

Therefore, when the antenna array includes at least one row of first antenna elements or at least one column of first antenna elements, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in at least one direction can be improved, which is beneficial to improving system throughput.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the outermost column or the outermost row of the antenna array is the first antenna element.

When the outermost column or the outermost row of the antenna array is the first antenna unit, it is equivalent to that the antenna unit on the outer side in the antenna array has a larger number of ports. Based on the phase pattern of the antenna unit, it can be known that introducing an antenna unit with a larger number of ports at the edge can increase the maximum slope of the difference between the phase pattern of the antenna array in at least one direction, and also increase the antenna array’s The spatial resolution in at least one direction.

However, when antenna elements with a large number of ports are introduced in the middle area of the antenna array, the angle area of the phase pattern will overlap by a large interval, which brings limited gain. Therefore, a second antenna unit with a smaller number of ports can be used to reduce antenna cost and pilot overhead.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the two outermost columns or the outermost two rows of the antenna array are first antenna elements, and the two outermost columns are symmetrical with respect to the center of the antenna array , The two outermost rows are symmetrical with respect to the center of the antenna array.

By introducing antenna elements with a larger number of ports on both sides of the antenna array, that is, introducing antenna elements with a larger number of ports on the two edges of the antenna array, the antenna column can be improved to a greater extent in at least one direction The spatial resolution.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, in each row of antenna elements in the antenna array, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged; or, the antenna In each column of antenna elements in the array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, in each row of antenna elements in the antenna array, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged; and, the antenna In each column of antenna elements in the array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.

The arrangement of the multiple antenna arrays listed above all improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in at least one direction to varying degrees, which is conducive to improving the system throughput.

In the second aspect, an antenna array is provided. The antenna array includes at least one row of antenna elements arranged in a horizontal direction and at least one column of antenna elements arranged in a vertical direction; wherein the antenna elements in the antenna array include a first antenna element and a second antenna element, and the first antenna element One antenna unit and the second antenna unit are both four-port antenna units, and the orientation of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are different, when the center of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit When the centers of the units coincide, the second antenna unit has a deflection angle relative to the first antenna unit.

In the antenna array provided by the embodiment of the present application, by mixing antenna elements of different orientations in the same antenna array, the phase pattern corresponding to each port of the antenna element of the mixed arrangement can be distributed uniformly, which is beneficial to Improve the side-lobe suppression capability of the antenna array and improve system performance. On the other hand, by arranging the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit mixedly on the edge of the antenna array, it is beneficial to improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction and/or the horizontal direction, and improve the system throughput.

Optionally, the deflection angle is 45°.

It can be obtained through simulation that when the deflection angle between the first antenna element and the second antenna element is designed to be 45°, the phase pattern distribution corresponding to each port in the array is the most uniform, so that the maximum resolution of the antenna array is consistent This maximizes the sidelobe suppression capability, which in turn helps to improve system performance.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are both four-port QHA units, and the four-port QHA unit is driven separately by each spiral arm QHA unit.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the antenna array includes at least one row of first antenna elements or at least one column of first antenna elements.

Since the phase distribution diagrams of two adjacent first antenna units may not be uniform in space, there is a hollow in a certain area. By introducing a second antenna unit with a deflection angle, this part of the hollow can be compensated for. The area of the spatial phase distribution pattern between the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit tends to be uniform. This helps suppress side lobes, which in turn improves system performance.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the outermost column or the outermost row of the antenna array is the first antenna element.

Since the first antenna element and the second antenna element have different phase patterns in space, the slope of the difference between the two phase patterns is compared with that between two first antenna elements or between two second antenna elements at the same position. The slope of the difference in the phase pattern is larger. Therefore, the first antenna element in the outermost column or outermost row of the antenna array can improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction, thereby increasing the system throughput.

In addition to the improvement in the above-mentioned sidelobe suppression capability, the spatial distribution rate of the antenna array in at least one direction is also improved, which is beneficial to improve the system throughput.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the two outermost columns or the outermost two rows of the antenna array are the first antenna elements, and the two outermost columns are symmetrical with respect to the center of the antenna array , The two outermost rows are symmetrical with respect to the center of the antenna array.

Therefore, the phase patterns of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit in the antenna array are evenly distributed in the left and right parts or the upper and lower parts, so that better sidelobe suppression capabilities can be obtained, which is beneficial to improve system performance. In addition, there are mixed arrangement of the first antenna element and the second antenna element on the two edges of the antenna array, which can improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in at least one direction, which is beneficial to improve the system throughput.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, in each row of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged; or, the antenna array In each column of antenna elements, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.

Therefore, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged in rows or columns in the entire array, so that the phase pattern of each port of the antenna elements in the entire antenna array can tend to be evenly distributed. This is conducive to obtaining better sidelobe suppression and improving system performance. In addition, there are mixed arrangement of the first antenna element and the second antenna element on the two edges of the antenna array, which can improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in at least one direction, which is beneficial to improve the system throughput.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, in each row of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged; and, the antenna array In each column of antenna elements, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.

Therefore, the four antenna elements adjacent to the first antenna element are all second antenna elements, and the four antenna elements adjacent to the second antenna element are all first antenna elements, so that the antenna elements in the entire antenna array are The phase pattern of each port can be evenly distributed, which is conducive to maximizing the side lobe suppression capability and improving the system performance to the greatest extent. In addition, there are mixed arrangement of the first antenna element and the second antenna element on the two edges of the antenna array, which can improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in at least one direction, which is beneficial to improve the system throughput.

With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in some implementation manners, there is at least one spacing between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array.

Based on the multiple possible implementations listed above, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may include the row spacing and column spacing between the first antenna element and the second antenna element, and the two adjacent second antenna elements. The row spacing and column spacing between one antenna element, and the row spacing and column spacing between two adjacent second antenna elements. Due to the different design of the antenna array, the introduced spacing is different. However, it can be understood that in the antenna array provided by the embodiment of the present application, there is at least one of the above-listed spacings between adjacent antenna elements.

As an example, there are various spacings between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array.

With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in some implementation manners, the first antenna element includes at least one antenna element, and the second antenna element includes at least one antenna element, and each antenna element corresponds to a port.

That is, each antenna can exist as one antenna unit.

With reference to the first aspect or the second aspect, in some implementations, the first antenna unit includes at least one sub-array, the second antenna unit includes at least one sub-array, and each sub-array includes multiple antenna elements, and Each sub-array corresponds to a port.

That is, multiple antennas can exist as one antenna unit.

It should be understood that the antenna unit is only a high-level generalization, and does not indicate the number of antennas that actually exist in the antenna array.

In the third aspect, this application provides an antenna array. The antenna array includes at least one four-arm helical antenna QHA pair, each QHA pair in the at least one QHA pair includes a first QHA and a second QHA, and the diameter of the first QHA is larger than that of the second QHA. Diameter, and the second QHA is embedded in the first QHA.

By nesting two QHA units of different electrical sizes together, the antenna array can support dual-frequency operation. Compared with traditional antenna arrays that support dual-pinning, the area of the array is greatly reduced, which is also conducive to reduction. The area of the small antenna panel.

It should be understood that the QHA pair provided in the third aspect may be used in combination with the antenna unit mentioned in the first aspect and/or the second aspect in the form of an antenna unit. Here, the antenna unit formed by the QHA pair may include one or more QHA pairs. Each antenna unit can include one element, corresponding to one port, that is, a single-port QHA unit; each antenna unit can also include four elements, corresponding to four ports, that is, a four-port QHA unit; each antenna The unit may also include a sub-array, the sub-array includes a plurality of sub-arrays, the plurality of sub-arrays in the sub-array may correspond to a port, that is, a single-port QHA unit; each antenna unit may also include four sub-arrays, each sub-array The array includes multiple arrays, and multiple arrays in each sub-array can correspond to one port, that is, a four-port QHA unit.

By combining with the antenna unit mentioned in the first aspect and/or the second aspect described above, for example, it can be arranged in an antenna array mixed with a two-port antenna unit and/or a four-port antenna unit, on the one hand, it can support Dual-frequency operation, on the other hand, can provide the spatial resolution of the antenna array and improve the system throughput.

It should be understood that the antenna array provided in the above aspects may be a part of the antenna panel or the entire antenna panel, which is not limited in this application. On the whole, by introducing the antenna array provided by the embodiments of the present application, it is beneficial to improve the system throughput when the antenna panel area is limited.

In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, and the communication device is configured with an antenna array in any possible implementation manner of the foregoing aspects.

Description of the drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of an antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an antenna panel provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a cross-polarized antenna unit provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a four-port antenna unit provided by an embodiment of the present application;

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a phase pattern of two ports provided by an embodiment of the present application;

6 to 58 are schematic diagrams of antenna arrays provided by embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 59 is a schematic diagram of QHA provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 60 is a schematic diagram of an antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application;

61 and FIG. 62 are schematic diagrams of two other four-port antennas provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 63 to FIG. 103 are schematic diagrams of antenna arrays provided by embodiments of the present application.

Detailed ways

The technical solution in this application will be described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

In order to facilitate the understanding of the embodiment of the present application, first, a brief description of the application scenario of the antenna array provided in the embodiment of the present application is made with reference to FIG. Fig. 1 shows several possible schematic architecture diagrams of a base station suitable for the antenna array provided in the embodiments of the present application. Figure 1 shows the evolution of the base station architecture according to several architectures shown in the order from a) to c). As shown in Figure 1, the architecture of the base station can be a macro base station + antenna architecture, as shown in Figure 1 a); it can also be a separate base station + antenna architecture, as shown in Figure 1 b); Or, it may also be an active antenna unit (AAU) + base band unit (BBU) architecture, as shown in c) in Figure 1. This application does not limit this.

Taking the separated base station + antenna architecture shown in b) in FIG. 1 as an example, the base station may include an antenna, a baseband unit (BBU), and a remote radio unit (RRU). Among them, the BBU can be connected to the RRU through a common public radio interface (CPRI) or enhanced CPRI (enhance CPRI, eCPRI), and the RRU can be connected to an antenna through a feeder. The antenna shown in FIG. 1 may be a passive antenna, which is separate from the RRU and can be connected through a cable.

Among them, the BBU mainly completes the processing of baseband signals, such as channel encoding and decoding, modulation and demodulation, and so on. A BBU can include multiple baseband boards. RRU mainly completes signal intermediate frequency processing, radio frequency processing, and duplex functions. Among them, the intermediate frequency processing includes functions such as up-conversion, down-conversion, digital-to-analog conversion, and analog-to-digital conversion. The radio frequency processing includes the power amplification function of the received and received radio frequency signals. In some scenarios, the RRU may not include IF processing functions, such as a zero-IF system.

It should be understood that the architecture of the base station shown in FIG. 1 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. In another possible design, the base station may include an active antenna system (AAS), and the antenna of the AAS and the radio frequency module are integrated.

In another possible design, the base station may also include a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). DU can be used to realize the transmission and reception of radio frequency signals, the conversion of radio frequency signals and baseband signals, and part of the baseband processing. The CU can be used for baseband processing, control of the base station, and so on. Wherein, the DU may include at least one antenna. At least one antenna in the DU may adopt, for example, the antenna array provided in the embodiment of the present application. The CU and DU may be physically set together or physically separated, which is not limited in this application.

It should be understood that the architecture of the base station may refer to various possible base station architectures in the prior art. For the sake of brevity, I will not list them all here.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, those skilled in the art can understand that the above-mentioned antenna may specifically include a radiating unit (or antenna element, vibrator, etc.), a reflector (or base plate), and a power distribution network (or , Feeder network) and radome.

Among them, the vibrator can be deployed on the antenna panel. Specifically, multiple antenna elements may be deployed on the antenna panel, and each antenna element may include one or more elements. The multiple antenna elements can form an antenna system in the form of an array. The antenna system may be called an antenna array (antenna array), or an antenna array.

Wherein, each antenna unit may include one or more elements. Optionally, each vibrator may correspond to a radio frequency channel (RF channel), which is driven by the corresponding radio frequency channel. Optionally, multiple vibrators may also correspond to one radio frequency channel and be driven by the corresponding radio frequency channel.

For ease of understanding, FIG. 2 shows an example of an antenna array. The antenna array shown in FIG. 2 may be deployed on an antenna panel, for example, it may be a part or all of the antenna panel. This application does not limit this.

The antenna array shown in FIG. 2 is an antenna array with 8 rows and 8 columns, that is, it can be simply referred to as an 8×8 antenna array. In other words, the dimension of the antenna array is 8×8. In other words, the antenna array may include 8×8 (ie, 64) antenna elements.

Among them, each antenna unit is a cross-polarized antenna unit, or called a dual-polarized antenna unit. Each cross-polarized antenna unit may include one or more cross-polarized antennas. Each cross-polarized antenna can be in a cross shape, and two polarized antennas that are cross-distributed (or placed) can form ±45° dual-polarized radiation. For ease of understanding, each "×" in FIG. 2 is used to indicate a cross-polarized antenna unit. Since each cross-polarized antenna unit may include one or more cross-polarized antennas, each cross-polarized antenna may include two elements with different polarization directions, or two elements orthogonal to each other. Therefore, each cross-polarized antenna unit can correspond to two polarization directions. As shown in the figure,

Represents the first polarization direction,

Indicates the second polarization direction. Exemplarily, the first polarization direction may be a horizontal polarization direction, and the second polarization direction may be a vertical polarization direction; or, the first polarization direction may be a vertical polarization direction, and the second polarization direction may be a horizontal polarization direction. Polarization direction; or, the first polarization direction may be +45° polarization direction, and the second polarization direction may be -45° polarization direction; or, the first polarization direction may be -45° polarization direction, The second polarization direction may be a +45° polarization direction.

Optionally, each antenna unit includes a cross-polarized antenna. In this case, each antenna unit includes two vibrators with different polarization directions, such as one vibrator in the first polarization direction and one vibrator in the second polarization direction. Each vibrator can be driven by an independent radio frequency channel. Each element can correspond to an antenna port. Therefore, each antenna unit can correspond to two antenna ports. The antenna unit may be called a two-port antenna unit.

Optionally, each antenna unit includes multiple cross-polarized antennas. In this case, each antenna unit may include two groups of dipoles with different polarization directions, such as a group of dipoles with a first polarization direction and a group of dipoles with a second polarization direction. Each group of vibrators may include multiple vibrators, and the multiple vibrators may be driven by an independent radio frequency channel. Each group of vibrators can correspond to one antenna port. Therefore, each antenna unit can also correspond to two antenna ports. The antenna unit is still a two-port antenna unit.

In another possible design, a group of oscillators driven by the same independent radio frequency channel is called a sub-array. In other words, each sub-array can correspond to one radio frequency channel, that is, to one antenna port. In this case, each antenna unit can be composed of multiple sub-arrays. For example, a two-port antenna unit consists of two sub-arrays. Hereinafter, for the convenience of distinction and description, a group of vibrators corresponding to a radio frequency channel is referred to as a sub-array.

For ease of understanding, FIG. 3 shows an example of a cross-polarized antenna unit. Figure 3 specifically shows the correspondence between the elements in the cross-polarized antenna unit and the radio frequency channel. As shown in the figure, a) in Fig. 3 shows an antenna unit composed of two elements with different polarization directions. Among them, the vibrator in the first polarization direction is driven by the radio frequency channel 1, and the vibrator in the second polarization direction is driven by the radio frequency channel 2. Figure 3 b) shows an antenna unit composed of two groups of elements with different polarization directions. Among them, the four vibrators in the first polarization direction are all driven by the radio frequency channel 1, and the four vibrators in the second polarization direction are all driven by the radio frequency channel 2.

It should be understood that FIG. 3 is only an example, showing that one antenna unit includes four elements with the same polarization direction, that is, each group of elements includes four elements. But this should not constitute any limitation to this application. For example, each radio frequency channel can drive two, three vibrators, or other numbers of vibrators. This application does not limit the number of vibrators driven by the same radio frequency channel in each antenna unit.

As mentioned earlier, a cross-polarized antenna unit can provide two ports. Therefore, compared with the traditional single-polarized antenna, under the condition of the same area, by increasing the degree of freedom of polarization, the ability of spatial multiplexing is increased, and the number of ports is doubled, thereby increasing the throughput of the system .

In order to obtain a larger system throughput, it is hoped that the antenna's spatial resolution can be maximized through the design of the antenna. In a possible design, the spacing of the antenna elements is set to a half-wavelength of the operating frequency point. This is because the spatial resolution of the antenna array at this time is excellent, and the sidelobe suppression capability is strong.

However, with the development of multi-antenna technology, the dimension of the antenna array increases, the number of antenna elements increases, the area of the antenna array also increases, and the antenna panel also increases, which is not conducive to the deployment of communication equipment.

Take the cross-polarized antenna unit shown in FIG. 2 as an example. The distance between two adjacent antenna elements is 0.5 wavelengths. The antenna distance in the 8×8 antenna array shown in FIG. 2 is about 3.5 (0.5×7) wavelengths in total. Considering the area of the antenna unit itself, the width of the antenna array shown in Figure 2 is about 4 wavelengths. In the frequency band with a center frequency of 1.8 gigahertz (GHz), the width of the corresponding antenna array is about 667 millimeters (mm). If the dimension of the antenna array is further increased, for example, the number of rows and/or the number of columns is increased, the size of the corresponding antenna array will be further increased. This may result in an increase in the size of the communication equipment, which is not conducive to deployment.

Based on this, the present application provides an antenna array, which can achieve greater system throughput under the same area.

The antenna array provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

It should be noted that for the convenience of description hereinafter, the antenna array of the drawings is shown in a square or rectangular shape. The four sides of the square or rectangle are the four edges of the antenna array. The multiple antenna elements on each edge are connected together to look like a straight line, but it does not mean that the antenna array has real edges.

The dimension of the antenna array may be M×N, for example. Both M and N are integers greater than 1. An antenna array with a dimension of M×N can be represented. The antenna array has M rows and N columns. The rows and columns here are similar to the sides described above, and can be understood as a row or column that looks like a straight line formed by a plurality of antenna elements arranged in a straight line. Therefore, each column includes M antenna elements, and each row includes N antenna elements.

Hereinafter, for description, terms such as "horizontal direction", "vertical direction", "left", "right", "upper", "lower" and so on are introduced to describe the orientation. When describing columns, the positional relationship can be defined by "left" and "right", and when describing rows, the positional relationship can be defined by "upper" and "lower". For example, the leftmost column, the rightmost column, the top row, and the bottom row. It can be understood that, in the antenna array, the two outermost columns may include the leftmost column and the rightmost column, and the two outermost rows may include the uppermost row and the lowermost row. Wherein, the two outermost columns are symmetrical about the center of the antenna array, and the two outermost rows are also symmetrical about the center of the antenna array. In addition, the horizontal direction and the vertical and direction are

In addition, in the following description, in order to facilitate the distinction, different rows or columns may be described by belonging to the first column, the second column, the first row, and the second row. Unless otherwise specified, the column number can be determined from left to right, and the row number can be determined from top to bottom. For example, the first column can refer to the leftmost column, and the first row can refer to the top row.

It should be understood that these terms are only introduced for ease of understanding when describing in conjunction with the drawings, and should not constitute any limitation to the application. "Left", "Right", "Up", and "Down" are all relative to the antenna array whose azimuth is determined. It can be understood that in actual use, the antenna array can be deployed on the antenna panel, and the antenna panel can be installed on the bracket. During the installation process, the antenna panel may be tilted, turned or rotated, and the orientation of the antenna array may change, but this will not affect the relative positional relationship between the antenna elements in the antenna array. Among them, "left" and "right" are opposite, corresponding to multiple columns arranged in the horizontal direction; "upper" and "down" are opposite, corresponding to multiple rows arranged in the vertical direction. For example, if the antenna array is rotated 90° with the center as the axis, "left" and "right" can be exchanged for "up" and "down"; "up" and "down" can be swapped with "left" and "right"; "Column" can be swapped with "Row"; "horizontal direction" can be swapped with "vertical direction". For another example, when the antenna array is rotated 180° with the center as the axis, "left" and "right" can be reversed, and "up" and "down" can be reversed.

It should also be noted that in the following description of the antenna array, terms such as "left-right symmetry" and "up-down symmetry" are used. Among them, left-right symmetry can specifically mean that the antenna array is divided into two parts according to the number of columns, such as the left half and the right half, the number of columns contained in the left half and the number of columns contained in the right half. The same, and the antenna elements included in the left half and the right half are symmetrical about the vertical center line of the antenna array. That is, the left half and the right half have the same antenna elements at positions symmetrical about the vertical center line. In other words, if the antenna array is folded in half along the vertical centerline, the antenna elements at any position can be completely overlapped.

The top-bottom symmetry can specifically refer to the fact that the antenna array is divided into two parts according to the number of rows, for example, the upper part and the lower part. The number of columns in the upper part and the number of columns in the lower part are the same. And the antenna elements included in the upper half and the lower half are symmetrical about the horizontal center line of the antenna array. That is, the upper half and the lower half have the same antenna elements at positions symmetrical about the horizontal center line. In other words, if the antenna array is folded in half along the horizontal centerline, the antenna elements at any position can be completely overlapped.

It should also be noted that the antenna unit described below with reference to the accompanying drawings may be an oscillator driven by a radio frequency channel alone, or may be a sub-array driven by a radio frequency channel. For the corresponding relationship between the vibrator and the radio frequency channel, please refer to the relevant description of the cross-polarized antenna unit in conjunction with a) and b) of Fig. 3 above.

In the following, for ease of understanding and description, each antenna element is represented by a figure, such as "○", "×" or "●", and different figures represent different antenna elements. However, it should be understood that this should not constitute any limitation on the number of vibrators and the number of ports included in each antenna unit. For example, "○" and "●" can represent four-port antenna units in different azimuths, and "×" can represent two-port antenna units.

If each element in the two-port antenna unit is driven by an independent radio frequency channel, the corresponding relationship between each element in the antenna unit and the radio frequency channel can refer to a) in Figure 3, if multiple elements in the two-port antenna unit Driven by a radio frequency channel, the correspondence between each vibrator in the antenna unit and the radio frequency channel can refer to b) in FIG. 3.

Fig. 4 shows an example of a four-port antenna unit. Fig. 4 specifically shows the corresponding relationship between the vibrator and the radio frequency channel in the four-port antenna unit.

If each element in the four-port antenna unit is driven by an independent radio frequency channel, you can refer to Figure 4 a). It can be seen that the four-port antenna unit may include four vibrators, and each vibrator is driven by an independent radio frequency channel. Each vibrator can provide a port.

If multiple elements in a four-port antenna unit are driven by a radio frequency channel, the correspondence between each element in the antenna unit and the radio frequency channel can refer to b) in FIG. 4. It can be seen that the four-port antenna unit may include four sub-arrays, each sub-array may include four dipoles, and each sub-array may be driven by a radio frequency channel. Each sub-array can provide a port.

It should be understood that the figure shown in FIG. 4 is only an example and should not constitute any limitation to the application. Each radio frequency channel can also correspond to two, three or other numbers of vibrators. This application does not limit this.

It should be understood that the correspondence between the antenna element and the radio frequency channel shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. In the antenna array listed below, the correspondence between the antenna element and the radio frequency channel is not restricted, nor is the correspondence between the port and the radio frequency channel restricted. The antenna array provided by the present application mainly relates to the modification of the structure of the antenna panel, and does not limit the design of the driving circuit. For example, four ports can be understood as four polarization characteristics, and two ports can be understood as two polarization characteristics.

It should also be noted that the antenna array described below with reference to the accompanying drawings can be understood as a partial feature of the antenna panel. In other words, part of the antenna panel adopts the antenna array described below in conjunction with the drawings. In this case, the present application does not limit the characteristics of other areas of the antenna panel. Alternatively, the antenna array described below in conjunction with the drawings can also be understood as all the features of the antenna panel. In other words, the entire antenna panel adopts the antenna array described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. This application does not limit this.

It should also be noted that, for convenience of description below, the different antenna arrays provided in the embodiments of the present application are described in detail by taking an 8×8 antenna array and a 2×8 antenna array as examples. But this should not constitute any limitation to this application. This application does not limit the number of rows and columns of the antenna array. For example, the antenna array may also be 8×2, 4×8, 8×4, 2×12, 12×2, 4×12, 12×4, 16×10, and so on. For the sake of brevity, I will not list them one by one below.

For ease of understanding, here is a brief description of the antenna arrays listed below. The antenna array provided in this application may include at least two antenna units with different numbers of ports. The antenna arrays shown in Figs. 6 to 58, Fig. 60, Fig. 63, and Fig. 64 include two antenna elements with different numbers of ports. The antenna array provided in the present application may also include at least two antenna elements with different orientations. The antenna array shown in Fig. 65 to Fig. 98 includes antenna elements of different orientations.

The antenna arrays listed below in conjunction with multiple drawings may all include at least one row of antenna elements arranged in a horizontal direction and at least one column of antenna elements arranged in a vertical direction. Wherein, the antenna unit in the antenna array may include at least one first antenna unit and at least one second antenna unit. In a possible design, the number of ports of the first antenna unit is different from that of the second antenna unit. For example, the number of ports of the first antenna unit is greater than the number of ports of the second antenna unit. In another possible design, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are both four-port antenna units, but the orientation of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are different. The antenna array provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

In a possible design, the antenna array may include two or more antenna elements with different numbers of ports. That is, antenna elements with different numbers of ports can be mixed and arranged in the antenna array.

Since the throughput of the system is related to the spatial resolution of the antenna array, the system throughput can be improved by maximizing the spatial resolution of the antenna array. The phase pattern of all ports in the antenna array can be obtained by using the same position reference point. Then, the maximum slope of the difference between the spatial resolution of the antenna array in a certain direction (such as the horizontal direction and the vertical direction) and the phase pattern of any two antenna elements in the same direction in the antenna array (that is, as the radiation The slope of the angle change) is related.

Specifically, when two antenna elements in the antenna array receive a signal in a certain direction of arrival, the difference in reception phase corresponding to the two antenna elements can be used to identify the direction of arrival. The change trend of the receiving phase difference with the radiation angle (that is, the slope of the phase pattern difference) reflects the minimum interval of the spatial position that the antenna array can distinguish, that is, the slope of the phase pattern difference reflects the antenna array The spatial resolution. Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction and the maximum slope of the phase pattern difference between any two ports in the horizontal direction (usually the phase of the leftmost column of antenna elements and the rightmost column of antenna elements) The slope of the difference in the pattern) is related to the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction and the maximum slope of the difference in the phase pattern between any two ports in the vertical direction (usually the uppermost line of antenna elements and the lowermost line of antenna elements). The slope of the difference of the phase pattern of a row of antenna elements) is related.

For ease of understanding, a simple description of the slope of the difference in the phase pattern is given here in conjunction with FIG. 5. Figure 5 shows the phase pattern of two ports provided by two four-port antennas. Wherein, the horizontal axis direction may be the radiation angle, and the vertical axis direction may be the value of the phase pattern for a specific direction. The phase pattern can be understood as the initial phase of the antenna element radiation in different directions. For easy distinction, different line types are used in the figure to correspond to different four-port antenna units. The two lines of the same linear shape represent the respective phase patterns of the two ports of a four-port antenna unit. The slope of the difference between the above-mentioned phase patterns is the slope of the difference between two lines of the same line type. Under the same panel size, the maximum slope of the phase pattern difference between the four-port antenna unit compared to the two-port antenna unit is greater than the maximum slope of the phase pattern difference between the two-port antenna unit. Therefore, the spatial resolution of the four-port antenna unit is greater than that of the two-port antenna unit. However, when the antenna elements are arrayed, the angle areas of the phase patterns of the ports of the two adjacent four-port antenna elements may overlap. For ease of understanding, this is described with reference to FIG. 5. It can be seen that there is an overlap between the angle area formed by two lines of the same line type and the angle area formed by two lines of another line type in FIG. 5. As shown in Figure 5, there is an overlap between the angled area formed by two solid lines and the angled area formed by two dashed lines.

If the antenna elements in the entire antenna array are set as four-port antenna elements (this antenna array can be called a four-port antenna array), the angle area of the phase pattern of the four-port antenna element in the middle area of the antenna array will be very large. Because of the overlap of large intervals, the gain brought by the four-port antenna array is limited. If the antenna unit in the middle area of the antenna array is set as a two-port antenna unit, and the antenna unit at the edge is set as a four-port antenna unit, the gain brought by it is set as a four-port antenna unit (ie a four-port antenna array) The gain is comparable. From the perspective of ports, setting the antenna unit in the middle area of the antenna array as a two-port antenna unit can reduce the number of ports, that is, reduce the antenna cost and pilot overhead. Therefore, the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit can be mixed and arranged in the antenna array to obtain a larger gain.

It should be understood that the above-mentioned gain may specifically refer to an antenna array with the same dimensions formed by two-port antenna units, such as the antenna array shown in FIG. 2. For the sake of brevity in the following, when it comes to related descriptions of gain, the antenna array provided in this application can be compared with an antenna array composed of two-port antenna units. For example, an antenna array composed of two-port antenna units with the same dimensions can be used. For comparison, or a given dimension antenna array composed of two-port antenna elements. The description of the same or similar situations will be omitted hereafter.

The following describes in detail an antenna array including two antenna units with different numbers of ports provided by an embodiment of the present application with reference to Figs. 6 to 64.

Optionally, the antenna unit at the edge of the antenna array includes at least one four-port antenna unit (that is, an example of the first antenna unit). It should be understood that the antenna elements located at the edge of the antenna array may include the two outermost columns of antenna elements and the outermost two rows of antenna elements of the antenna array. For example, the antenna elements in the leftmost column and the rightmost column of the antenna array, and the antenna elements in the uppermost row and the lowermost row of the antenna array. The antenna unit at the edge of the antenna array includes at least one four-port antenna unit. For example, at least one of the two outermost columns includes one or more four-port antenna elements, and/or, at least one of the two outermost rows includes one or more four-port antenna elements. If the edge of the antenna array contains at least one four-port antenna element, the maximum slope of the phase pattern difference of the antenna array in at least one direction can be increased, and the spatial resolution of the antenna array in at least one direction can be improved. rate.

Through simulation, the two columns of antennas that combine a column of four-port antenna unit and a column of two-port antenna unit (ie, an example of the second antenna unit) can have greater spatial resolution in the vertical direction than two columns of the same four-port antenna unit Or the maximum value that two columns of the same two-port antenna unit can reach. In other words, by combining a column of four-port antenna elements and a column of two-port antenna elements into two columns of antennas, the spatial resolution of the antenna array obtained in the vertical direction can be improved. Therefore, a reasonable design can be made for the arrangement of the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit in each row, so as to maximize the spatial resolution in the horizontal direction. Therefore, the overall spatial resolution of the antenna array is improved to improve the throughput of the system.

Optionally, at least one column in the antenna array is a four-port antenna unit. As a result, at least one column of four-port antenna units and two-port antenna units are alternately arranged in units of columns, and the spatial resolution of the resulting antenna array in the vertical direction can be improved.

Fig. 6 is an example diagram of an antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 6, the antenna array may include at least one two-port antenna unit and at least one four-port antenna unit. "X" in FIG. 6 represents a two-port antenna unit, and "○" represents a four-port antenna unit.

The antenna array shown in FIG. 6 is an example of an antenna array having a dimension of 8×8. The antenna elements in the leftmost column of the antenna array are four-port antenna elements. The 8 four-port antenna units in this column can provide 32 ports. The other seven columns of the antenna array 400 may be two-port antenna units. Each column of 8 two-port antenna units can provide 16 ports. In this antenna array, in the horizontal direction, the leftmost antenna element is a four-port antenna element, and the rightmost antenna element is a two-port antenna element. When all the ports of the array generate phase patterns under the same reference coordinate, the leftmost antenna element The slope of the difference between the phase pattern of the four-port antenna unit and the rightmost two-port antenna unit is relatively large. For example, denote the slope of the difference between the phase patterns as Δ ₁ , and denote the slope of the difference between the phase patterns of the leftmost two-port antenna unit and the rightmost two-port antenna unit shown in FIG. 2 as Δ ₀ , then Δ ₁ >Δ ₀ . Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction can be improved. In the vertical direction, the uppermost antenna unit includes a four-port antenna unit and a two-port antenna unit. For example, the slope of the difference between the phase pattern of the bottom four-port antenna unit and the top four-port antenna unit is denoted as Δ ₂ , and the phase direction of the bottom two-port antenna unit and the top two-port antenna unit The slope of the difference between the graphs is denoted as Δ ₃ , then Δ ₃ > Δ ₂ . Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction is also improved. Since the spatial resolution of the antenna array in both the horizontal and vertical directions is improved, it is beneficial to improve the throughput of the system, and the gain is obvious.

It should be understood that in the antenna array shown in FIG. 6, the column where the four-port antenna unit is located is the leftmost column, but this should not constitute any limitation to this application. Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the four-port antenna unit can also be designed in the rightmost column of the antenna array, or it can be designed in any column of the antenna array, which is perpendicular to the antenna array. The spatial resolution does not affect. Therefore, if there is only a requirement for the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction, the column in which the four-port antenna unit is located is not limited.

Based on the same principle, the antenna elements in the rightmost column of the antenna array can also be designed as four-port antenna elements. As shown in Figure 7. Fig. 7 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 7 is symmetrical. The antenna elements of the two outermost columns of the antenna array (or the leftmost column and the rightmost column of the antenna array) are all four-port antenna elements, and each column can provide 32 ports. The remaining six columns (that is, the remaining six columns in the middle of the antenna array excluding the leftmost column and the rightmost column) are two-port antenna units, each column can provide 16 ports.

Since the leftmost antenna unit and the rightmost antenna unit are both four-port antenna units, the slope of the difference between the phase patterns of the two is relatively large. For example, if the slope of the difference in the phase pattern is denoted as Δ ₄ , then Δ ₄ > Δ ₁ . Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction can be further improved compared to the antenna array shown in FIG. 6, which is beneficial to improve the system throughput and has obvious gain.

It should be understood that FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 are only examples, and should not constitute any limitation to the application. Fig. 8 and Fig. 9 are two other examples of the left-right symmetrical 8×8 antenna array provided by the embodiment of the present application. In the antenna array shown in Figure 8, when viewed from left to right, the first and second columns are four-port antenna elements, and when viewed from right to left, the first and second columns are also four-port antenna elements. The four columns (that is, the remaining four columns except the two left columns and the two right columns) are two-port antenna units. In the antenna array shown in Figure 9, when viewed from left to right, the first to third columns are four-port antenna elements, and when viewed from right to left, the first to third columns are also four-port antenna elements. The two columns (ie, the remaining two columns excluding the above-mentioned three columns on the left and three columns on the right) are two-port antenna units. It can be understood that as the number of four-port antenna units increases, the total number of ports provided by the antenna array will also increase. The spatial resolution of the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 can be referred to the related descriptions above in conjunction with FIG. 6 and FIG. 7. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

It should also be understood that several examples of mixed arrangement of four-port antenna units and two-port antenna units are listed in combination with multiple drawings above, but these drawings are only examples and should not constitute any limitation to this application. For example, although it is not shown in the figure, it can be understood that based on the same concept, the arrangement of the two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit can be expanded into more possible forms. For example, increasing the number of columns of the same four-port antenna unit, or changing the position of the column where the four-port antenna unit is located in the antenna array, etc. Any one column or multiple columns of the four-port antenna unit in the antenna array has little effect on the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction.

It should also be understood that the embodiments of the present application are only examples, and an antenna array with a dimension of 8×8 is shown. The antenna array can also be a larger or smaller dimensional antenna array. When the antenna array includes more columns of antenna elements, the number of columns of the four-port antenna element in the left half and the number of columns of the four-port antenna element in the right half may be increased. This application does not limit this. Those skilled in the art can derive antenna arrays of any dimension based on the same concept. The antenna arrays of other dimensions will be described in detail later in conjunction with FIG. 12 to FIG. 29, and will not be described in detail here.

As mentioned earlier, when the four-port antenna elements are closely distributed, the phase patterns of each in the space may partially overlap, and the resulting gain is limited. Therefore, it is not necessary to arrange the four-port antenna elements in two adjacent columns or More columns. For example, four-port antenna elements and two-port antenna elements may be alternately arranged in each column of the antenna array.

Optionally, in the antenna array, the two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit are alternately arranged in units of columns. In other words, in each row of antenna elements of the antenna array, two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements are alternately arranged. In other words, it is arranged in the form of ABAB. In other words, in the antenna array, among the four antenna elements adjacent to each two-port antenna element, two four-port antenna elements adjacent in the horizontal direction and two two-port antenna elements adjacent in the vertical direction are included. The four antenna units adjacent to each four-port antenna unit include two two-port antenna units adjacent in the horizontal direction and two four-port antenna units adjacent in the vertical direction.

FIG. 10 is an example of an 8×8 antenna array in which four-port antenna units and two-port antenna units are alternately arranged according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Fig. 10, viewed from left to right, the odd-numbered columns of the antenna array are four-port antenna elements, and the even-numbered columns are two-port antenna elements. Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the antenna elements of the odd-numbered columns and the even-numbered columns of the antenna array can also be swapped. For example, looking from right to left, odd-numbered columns can be four-port antenna units, and even-numbered columns can be two-port antenna units.

As mentioned above, since the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit are alternately arranged in units of columns, the spatial resolution in the vertical direction can be maximized. In addition, when the leftmost column is a four-port antenna unit and the rightmost column is a two-port antenna unit, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction can be improved. Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array shown in FIG. 10 can be improved, which is beneficial to increase the system throughput.

The antenna array can further consider symmetrical distribution. For example, the antenna array can be designed symmetrically. The antenna array is divided into left and right parts, namely the left half and the right half as described above, and the left half and the right half are first symmetrical about the vertical center of the antenna array. The four columns in the left half and the four columns in the right half can be alternately arranged by the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit in units of columns.

FIG. 11 shows another example of an 8×8 antenna array with left-right symmetrical distribution provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 11, the left half of the antenna array (that is, the four columns on the left) from left to right are: four-port antenna unit, two-port antenna unit, four-port antenna unit, and two-port antenna unit; the antenna array The right half (that is, the four columns on the right) are: four-port antenna unit, two-port antenna unit, four-port antenna unit, and two-port antenna unit from right to left. The reason why the four-port antenna unit is designed on the outside is to obtain greater spatial resolution and sidelobe suppression in the horizontal direction.

It should be understood that the dimension 8×8 of the antenna array described above in conjunction with FIG. 6 to FIG. 11 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. The dimension of the antenna array can be artificially defined, which is not limited in this application.

Figures 12 to 17 are antenna arrays with a dimension of 2×8 provided by embodiments of the present application. The 2×8 antenna array shown in Fig. 12 to Fig. 17 and the 8×8 antenna array shown in Fig. 6 to Fig. 11 have the same arrangement of antenna elements in each row, but the number of rows is reduced, so the number of ports Also reduced accordingly. For the relevant description of the 2×8 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 6 to FIG. 11. For the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

Figures 18 to 25 are antenna arrays with a dimension of 2×12 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The 2×12 antenna array shown in FIGS. 18 to 25 is the same or similar to the 8×8 antenna array shown in FIGS. 6 to 11 in each row, except that the number of rows is reduced and the number of columns is increased. . Therefore, the number of four-port antenna elements included in each row can be slightly increased, and the number of ports will also change accordingly. For the related description of the 2×12 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 6 to FIG. 11. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

FIG. 26 and FIG. 27 are antenna arrays with a dimension of 4×12 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The 4×12 antenna array shown in FIG. 26 and FIG. 27 and the 2×12 antenna array shown in FIG. 20 have the same arrangement of antenna elements in each row, but the number of rows is increased. Therefore, the number of ports also changes accordingly. For the relevant description of the 4×12 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 6 to FIG. 11. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

FIG. 28 and FIG. 29 are antenna arrays with a dimension of 16×10 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The 16x12 antenna array shown in Figs. 28 and 29 and the 2x12 antenna array shown in Fig. 21 have the same arrangement of antenna elements in each row, except that the number of rows increases and the number of columns decreases. Therefore, the number of ports also changes accordingly. For the relevant description of the 16×10 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 6 to FIG. 11. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

Further, in the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 27, there are at least two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements, and the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 27 have at least two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements. The spacing of may have at least one value.

Specifically, there are two or more of the following spacings between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna arrays shown in FIGS. 6-27: D1, D2, D3, and D4. Among them, D1 represents the column spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements, D2 represents the column spacing between adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements, and D3 represents two adjacent four-port antenna elements. The row spacing between, D4 represents the column spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna units. Optionally, D4≥D3>0. Optionally, D2>D1>0. In order to facilitate understanding and description, the following description of the spacing and its value are based on the example of the above-mentioned magnitude relationship.

There are three kinds of spacings of D1, D2, and D3 between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 6. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array shown in FIG. 6 may have three different values. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, the line spacing includes the line spacing D3 between two adjacent four-port antenna elements and the line spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements. Since each row of antenna elements mixes two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements, the row spacing can be considered in combination with the row spacing between the two-port antenna elements and the row spacing between the four-port antenna elements. The line spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements may be greater than the line spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements, so the line spacing can be the line spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements. Spacing D3. The column spacing includes the column spacing D2 between adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements, and the column spacing D1 between two adjacent two-port antenna elements.

As in the antenna arrays shown in Fig. 7, Fig. 12, Fig. 13, Fig. 17, Fig. 18, Fig. 19, and Fig. 25, the above-mentioned D1, D2, and D3 distances between adjacent antenna elements also exist, and they may also have Three different values. For specific analysis, please refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 6. For the sake of brevity, the description will not be combined with the drawings.

There are four spacings of D1, D2, D3, and D4 between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 8. Based on the above example of the relationship between the values of the spacings, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 8, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may have at least three different values. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, the line spacing includes the line spacing D3 between two adjacent four-port antenna elements and the line spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements. Considering that the two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit are mixed in each row of antenna units, the row spacing adopts D3. The specific reason has been explained above, and for the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here. The column spacing includes the column spacing D4 between two adjacent four-port antenna elements, the column spacing D2 between adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements, and the distance between two adjacent two-port antenna elements. Column spacing D1. It can be understood that when D3=D4, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have three different values; when D4>D3, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have Four different values.

As shown in Fig. 9, Fig. 11, Fig. 14, Fig. 15, Fig. 20, Fig. 21, Fig. 22, Fig. 23, Fig. 26, Fig. 27, Fig. 28 and Fig. 29 each antenna array shown, between adjacent antenna element There are also four pitches of D1, D2, D3, and D4 mentioned above, and they may also have at least three different values. For specific analysis, please refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 8. For brevity, the description will not be combined with the drawings.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 10, there are two kinds of spacings, D1 and D2, between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the relationship between the values of the spacings, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 10, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may also have two different values. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, the row spacing includes the row spacing D3 between two adjacent four-port antenna elements, and the column spacing includes the column spacing D2 between adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements. .

Since in the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 16 and FIG. 24, the above-mentioned D1 and D2 distances also exist between adjacent antenna elements, they may also have two different values. For specific analysis, please refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG.

Further, in the multiple examples described above in conjunction with FIG. 6 to FIG. 25, the column spacing of two adjacent four-port antenna units may be, for example, 0.5λ～0.6λ, and the columns of two adjacent two-port antenna units The pitch may be 0.5λ, for example. Among them is the wavelength, which can be determined by the operating frequency.

Fig. 26 and Fig. 27 show two examples of antenna arrays with a dimension of 4×12 in combination with specific spacing values.

In the antenna array shown in Figure 26, the column spacing of two adjacent four-port antenna elements is 56mm, and the column spacing of two adjacent two-port antenna elements is 43mm. The adjacent four-port antenna element and the two-port antenna The cell column spacing is 50mm. If the distance between the edge of the antenna panel and the outermost antenna unit is 56 mm/2, that is, 26 mm, the width of the antenna panel is approximately 569 mm.

In the antenna array shown in Figure 27, the column spacing of two adjacent four-port antenna elements is 56mm, and the column spacing of two adjacent two-port antenna elements is 35mm. The adjacent four-port antenna element and the two-port antenna The cell column spacing is 35mm. If the distance between the edge of the antenna panel and the outermost antenna unit is 56 mm/2, that is, 26 mm, the width of the antenna panel is approximately 499 mm.

Fig. 28 and Fig. 29 show two examples of the pitch value of an antenna array with a dimension of 16×10 in combination with specific pitch values.

In the antenna array shown in Figure 28, the column spacing of two adjacent four-port antenna elements is 53mm, and the column spacing of two adjacent two-port antenna elements is 40mm. The adjacent four-port antenna element and the two-port antenna The cell column spacing is 57mm.

In the antenna array shown in Figure 29, the column spacing of two adjacent four-port antenna elements is 53mm, and the column spacing of two adjacent two-port antenna elements is 43mm. The adjacent four-port antenna element and the two-port antenna The cell column spacing is 57mm.

It should be understood that the foregoing is only for ease of understanding and description, and various possible column spacings in the antenna array and the width of the antenna panel are listed in conjunction with FIGS. 26 to 29. But this should not constitute any limitation to this application. The above-mentioned dimensions can also be applied to the multiple possible antenna array forms shown in FIGS. 6-25.

It should also be understood that the foregoing description of the possible spacing in the antenna array is given in conjunction with the drawings, but these drawings and the relationship between the values of the spacings are only examples for ease of understanding. This application does not limit the specific value and size relationship of each spacing. In addition, since the various possible antenna arrays provided in the above embodiments may be mixed with more different antenna elements, there are more types of antenna elements between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array obtained after mixing. The spacing is not limited to the values listed above, and may have more possible values. This application does not limit this.

It should also be understood that multiple examples of antenna arrays have been described above in conjunction with FIGS. 6-29. Based on the increase in the vertical spatial resolution of the antenna arrays shown in the multiple examples, the spatial resolution in the horizontal direction is improved to varying degrees by designing the arrangement of the antenna elements in each row. Based on the same method, on the basis that the vertical spatial resolution can be improved, by designing the arrangement of the antenna elements in each column, the vertical spatial resolution can be improved to different degrees.

Through simulation, if a row of four-port antenna units and a row of two-port antenna units are combined and placed in two rows of antennas, the spatial resolution in the horizontal direction can be greater than that of two rows of the same four-port antenna unit or two rows of the same two-port antenna The maximum value that the unit can reach. In other words, by combining a row of four-port antenna elements and a row of two-port antenna elements into two rows of antennas, the spatial resolution of the antenna array obtained in the horizontal direction can be improved. Therefore, it is possible to further make a reasonable design for the arrangement of the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit in each column, so as to maximize the spatial resolution in the vertical direction. Therefore, the overall spatial resolution of the antenna array is improved to improve the throughput of the system.

Optionally, at least one row of four-port antenna elements in the antenna array. As a result, at least one row of four-port antenna elements and two-port antenna elements are alternately arranged in row units, and the spatial resolution of the resulting antenna array in the horizontal direction can be improved.

FIG. 30 is another example diagram of an 8×8 antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 30 is an antenna array with a dimension of 8×8. The antenna elements in the top row of the antenna array are four-port antenna elements. Since the uppermost antenna unit is a four-port antenna unit, the lowermost antenna unit is a two-port antenna unit. When all the ports of the array generate phase patterns under the same reference coordinate, the slope of the difference between the phase patterns of the uppermost four-port antenna element and the lowermost two-port antenna element is relatively large. For example, denote the slope of the difference between the phase patterns as Δ ₅ , and denote the difference between the phase patterns of the top two-port antenna unit and the bottom two-port antenna unit shown in Fig. 2 as Δ ₃ , then Δ ₅ >Δ ₃ . Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction can be improved. In the horizontal direction, the leftmost antenna unit includes a four-port antenna unit and a two-port antenna unit. For example, the slope of the difference between the phase pattern of the leftmost four-port antenna unit and the rightmost four-port antenna unit is denoted as Δ ₄ , and the phase directions of the leftmost two-port antenna unit and the rightmost two-port antenna unit The slope of the difference between the graphs is denoted as Δ ₀ , then Δ ₄ > Δ ₀ . Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction is also improved. Since the spatial resolution of the antenna array in both the horizontal and vertical directions is improved, it is beneficial to improve the throughput of the system, and the gain is obvious.

It should be understood that, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 30, the four-port antenna unit is located in the uppermost row, but this should not constitute any limitation to this application. Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the four-port antenna unit can also be designed on the bottom row of the antenna array, or it can be designed on any row of the antenna array. The spatial resolution does not affect. Therefore, if there is only a requirement for the resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction, the row where the four-port antenna unit is located is not limited.

FIG. 31 is another example diagram of an 8×8 antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 31 is symmetrical up and down. The antenna elements of the two outermost columns of the antenna element (or the uppermost row and the lowermost row of the antenna array) are all four-port antenna elements. Each column can provide 32 ports. The antenna elements in the remaining six rows (that is, the remaining six rows in the middle of the antenna array excluding the uppermost row and the lowermost row) are two-port antenna elements, and each column can provide 16 ports.

Since the uppermost antenna element and the lowermost antenna element are both four-port antenna elements, the slope of the difference between the phase patterns of the two is relatively large. For example, if the difference in the phase pattern is denoted as Δ ₂ , then Δ ₂ > Δ ₅ . Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction can be further improved compared to the antenna array shown in FIG. 30, which is beneficial to improve the system throughput and has obvious gain.

Fig. 32 and Fig. 33 are another two examples of an 8×8 antenna array that is symmetrical up and down according to an embodiment of the present application. In the antenna array shown in Figure 32, when viewed from the top, the first row and the second row are four-port antenna elements, when viewed from the bottom up, the first and second rows are four-port antenna elements, and the remaining four rows ( That is, the remaining four rows except the upper two rows and the lower two rows) are two-port antenna units. In the antenna array shown in Figure 33, viewed from the top, the first row to the third row are four-port antenna elements, viewed from the bottom up, the first row to the third row are four-port antenna elements, and the remaining two rows ( That is, the remaining two rows except the upper three rows and the lower three rows) are two-port antenna units. It can be understood that as the number of four-port antenna units increases, the total number of ports provided by the antenna array will also increase. For the spatial resolution of the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 32 and FIG. 33, reference may be made to the related descriptions above in conjunction with FIG. 30 and FIG.

It should also be understood that several examples of mixed arrangement of four-port antenna units and two-port antenna units in behavior units are listed above in conjunction with multiple drawings, but these drawings are only examples and should not constitute any limitation to this application. For example, although it is not shown in the figure, it can be understood that based on the same concept, the arrangement of the two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit can be expanded into more possible forms. For example, increasing the number of rows of the same four-port antenna unit, or changing the position of the row where the four-port antenna unit is located in the antenna array, etc. Any one row or multiple rows of the four-port antenna unit in the antenna array has no effect on the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction.

It should also be understood that the embodiments of the present application are only examples, and an antenna array with a dimension of 8×8 is shown. The antenna array can also be a larger or smaller dimensional antenna array. When the antenna array includes more rows of antenna elements, the number of rows of the four-port antenna element in the left half and the number of rows of the four-port antenna element in the right half can also be increased. This application does not limit this. Those skilled in the art can derive antenna arrays of any dimension based on the same concept. The antenna arrays of other dimensions will be described in detail later in conjunction with FIG. 36 to FIG. 49, and will not be described in detail here.

Optionally, in the antenna array, the two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit are alternately arranged in units of rows. That is, in each column of antenna elements of the antenna array, two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements are alternately arranged. In other words, it is arranged in the form of ABAB. In other words, in the antenna array, among the four antenna elements adjacent to each two-port antenna element, two two-port antenna elements adjacent in the horizontal direction and two four-port antenna elements adjacent in the vertical direction are included. The four antenna units adjacent to each four-port antenna unit include two four-port antenna units adjacent in the horizontal direction and two two-port antenna units adjacent in the vertical direction.

FIG. 34 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array in which four-port antenna units and two-port antenna units are alternately arranged according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 34, when viewed from top to bottom, the odd numbers of the antenna array are four-port antenna elements, and the even numbers are two-port antenna elements. Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the antenna elements of the odd-numbered rows and the even-numbered rows of the antenna array can also be swapped. For example, when viewed from the bottom up, odd numbers represent four-port antenna elements, and even numbers represent two-port antenna elements.

As mentioned above, since the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit are alternately arranged in units of rows, the spatial resolution in the horizontal direction can be maximized. Moreover, when the top row is a four-port antenna unit and the bottom row is a two-port antenna unit, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction can be improved. Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array shown in FIG. 34 can be improved, which is beneficial to increase the system throughput.

FIG. 35 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array distributed vertically and symmetrically according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 35, the upper half of the antenna array (ie, the upper four rows) from top to bottom are: four-port antenna unit, two-port antenna unit, four-port antenna unit, and two-port antenna unit; the antenna array The lower part (ie, the four rows below) from bottom to top are: a four-port antenna unit, a two-port antenna unit, a four-port antenna unit, and a two-port antenna unit. The reason why the four-port antenna unit is designed on the outside is to obtain a larger spatial resolution in the vertical direction.

It should be understood that the dimension 8×8 of the antenna array described above in conjunction with FIG. 30 to FIG. 35 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. The dimension of the antenna array can be artificially defined, which is not limited in this application.

36 to 41 are antenna arrays with dimensions of 8×2 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The 8×2 antenna array shown in FIGS. 36 to 41 and the 8×8 antenna array shown in FIGS. 30 to 35 have the same arrangement of antenna elements in each column, but the number of columns is reduced, so the number of ports Also reduced accordingly. For the relevant description of the 8×2 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 30 to FIG. 35. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

42 to 49 are antenna arrays with a dimension of 12×2 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The 12×2 antenna array shown in FIGS. 42 to 49 and the 8×8 antenna array shown in FIGS. 30 to 35 have the same or similar arrangement of antenna elements in each column, at least the number of columns is reduced and the number of rows is increased. . Therefore, the number of four-port antenna elements included in each column can be slightly increased, and the number of ports will also change accordingly. For the relevant description of the 12×2 antenna array, reference may be made to the above description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 30 to FIG. 35. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

It should be understood that for the detailed description of FIGS. 30 to 41, reference may be made to the above related description in conjunction with FIGS. 6 to 25. The difference is that the antenna arrays shown in Figures 30 to 41 above are arranged in units of columns to design four-port antenna units or two-port antenna units, and the antenna arrays shown in Figures 30 to 41 are arranged in units of rows. Design the arrangement of the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit. In fact, the antenna arrays shown in FIGS. 30 to 41 can also be understood to be obtained after the antenna arrays shown in FIGS. 6 to 25 are rotated by 90°. Therefore, it has the same or similar structural features and performance as the antenna array shown in FIGS. 6 to 25 above.

Further, in the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 30 to FIG. 41, there are at least two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements, and the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 30 to FIG. 41 have at least two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements. There may be many different values for the spacing.

Specifically, there are two or more of the following spacings in the antenna array: D5, D6, D7, and D8. Among them, D5 represents the column spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements; D6 represents the row spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements; D7 represents adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements The line spacing between; D8 represents the line spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements. Optionally, D5≥D8>D7>D6>0. Optionally, D5≥D3. Optionally, D2≥D7. Optionally, D1≥D6. For ease of understanding and description, the following description of the spacing is based on the example of the above-mentioned size relationship.

The antenna array shown in FIG. 30 has the above-mentioned three pitches of D5, D6, and D7. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 30, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may have three different values. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 30, the column spacing includes the column spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements and the column spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements. Since each column of antenna elements mixes two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements, the column spacing needs to be considered in combination with the column spacing between the two-port antenna elements and the column spacing between the four-port antenna elements. The column spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements may be greater than the column spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements, so the column spacing can be the column spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements. Spacing D5. The row spacing includes the row spacing D6 between two adjacent two-port antenna units and the row spacing D7 between the adjacent four-port antenna unit and the adjacent two-port antenna unit.

Since in the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 31, FIG. 36, FIG. 37, FIG. 42 and FIG. 43, the above-mentioned three kinds of spacings also exist between adjacent antenna elements, they may also have three different values. For specific analysis, refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 30. For the sake of brevity, the description will not be combined with the drawings.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 32, there are four kinds of spacings of D5, D6, D7, and D8 between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 32, the spacings between adjacent antenna elements may have at least three different values. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 32, the column spacing includes the column spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements and the column spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements. Since each column of antenna units is a mixture of two-port antenna units and four-port antenna units, the column spacing adopts the column spacing D5 between adjacent four-port antenna elements. The specific reasons have been explained above. For the sake of brevity, it will not be omitted here repeat. The row spacing includes the column spacing D8 between two adjacent four-port antenna elements, the column spacing D6 between adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements, and the column spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements. Column spacing D7. It can be understood that when D5=D8, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have three different values; when D5>D8, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have Four different values.

Since the antenna arrays shown in Fig. 33, Fig. 35, Fig. 38, Fig. 39, Fig. 41, Fig. 44, Fig. 45, Fig. 46, Fig. 47, and Fig. 49 also exist between adjacent antenna elements D5 and D6 , D7 and D8 are four pitches, so they may also have at least three different values. For specific analysis, refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 32. For the sake of brevity, the description will not be combined with the drawings one by one here.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 34, there are two spacing values of D5 and D7 between adjacent antenna elements. If the distance is based on the size relationship between the values of the spacings above, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 34, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may have two different values. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 34, the column spacing includes the column spacing between two adjacent four-port antenna elements and the column spacing between two adjacent two-port antenna elements. Since each column of antenna units is a mixture of two-port antenna units and four-port antenna units, the column spacing adopts the column spacing D5 between adjacent four-port antenna elements. The specific reasons have been explained above. For the sake of brevity, it will not be omitted here repeat. The row spacing includes the row spacing D7 between adjacent four-port antenna elements and two-port antenna elements.

Since the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 40 and FIG. 48 also have the above-mentioned two kinds of D5 and D7 spacing between adjacent antenna elements, they may also have two different values. For specific analysis, please refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 34. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

It should be noted that, in the foregoing, the possible spacing in the antenna array is illustrated in conjunction with the drawings, but these drawings and the relationship between the values of the spacing in these drawings are only examples for ease of understanding. This application does not limit the specific value and size relationship of each spacing. In addition, since the various possible antenna arrays provided in the above embodiments may also be mixed with more different antenna elements, there may be more antenna elements between adjacent antenna elements in the mixed antenna array. This distance is not limited to the values listed above, and may have more possible values. This application does not limit this.

In order to improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in both the horizontal direction and the vertical direction, the edges of the antenna array can all be referred to as four-port antenna units. Fig. 50 is another example of an 8×8 slave antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 50, the two outermost columns and the outermost two rows (that is, the leftmost column and the rightmost column, the uppermost row and the lowermost row) of the antenna array are all four-port antenna elements. All of the antenna units can be two-port antenna units.

Since the leftmost and rightmost antenna elements are both four-port antenna elements, the slope of the difference in the phase pattern is relatively large. In the same way, the uppermost and lowermost antenna elements are all four-port antenna elements, and the slope of the difference in the phase pattern is also relatively large. Therefore, the antenna array shown in FIG. 50 can improve the spatial resolution in both the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, which is beneficial to improve the system throughput.

Further, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 50 has at least one value.

As shown in Figure 50, there are two spacing values, D3 and D5, in the antenna array. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings (ie, D5≥D3), the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 50 may have at least one value. Specifically, the row spacing includes the row spacing D3 between the adjacent two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit, and the column spacing includes the column spacing D5 between the adjacent two-port antenna unit and the four-port antenna unit. It can be understood that when D3=D5, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have one value; when D3>D5, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have two values. Different values.

It should be understood that the antenna array shown in FIG. 50 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. For example, the 6×6 antenna units in the middle area of the antenna array can be arranged in a mixed arrangement of four-port antenna units and two-port antenna units, or arranged in a mixed arrangement of two-port antenna units and antenna units with fewer ports. The application is not limited.

It should be noted that the foregoing description of the possible spacing in the antenna array is made in detail with reference to the drawings, but these drawings and the relationship between the values of the spacings are only examples for ease of understanding. Since the various possible antenna arrays provided in the above embodiments may be mixed with more different antenna elements, there may be more types of antenna elements between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array obtained after mixing. The spacing is not limited to the values listed above, and may have more possible values. This application does not limit this.

Further, in order to maximize the spatial distribution rate in both the horizontal and vertical directions, the antenna array can be designed such that four-port antenna elements and two-port antenna elements are alternately distributed among the antenna elements in each row, and the antenna elements in each column Among them, the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit are alternately distributed. In other words, in the antenna array, the four antenna elements adjacent to each two-port antenna element are all four-port antenna elements. The four antenna units adjacent to each four-port antenna unit are all two-port antenna units.

FIG. 51 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 51, each row and each column of the antenna unit satisfies the alternating distribution of the four-port antenna unit and the two-port antenna unit. Since the two rows or two columns in the antenna array are swapped, the spatial resolution of the antenna array is not changed. Taking the antenna array shown in Figure 10 as an example, the antenna elements in the first column and the second column in the even-numbered rows in Figure 10 are swapped, the antenna elements in the third and fourth columns are swapped, and the fifth and sixth columns are swapped. The antenna elements of the column are swapped, and the antenna elements of the seventh column and the eighth column are swapped, and the antenna array shown in FIG. 51 can be obtained. Taking the antenna array shown in Figure 34 as an example, the antenna elements in the first and second rows in the even-numbered column in Figure 34 are swapped, the antenna elements in the third and fourth rows are swapped, and the fifth and sixth rows are swapped. The antenna elements in the seventh row and the eighth row are reversed, and the antenna array shown in FIG. 51 can also be obtained.

It should be understood that the illustration shown in FIG. 51 is only an example, and the antenna array may also be designed as shown in FIG. 52. The antenna array shown in FIG. 52 may be, for example, the antenna elements in the first column and the second column in the odd-numbered rows in FIG. 10 are swapped, the antenna elements in the third column and the fourth column are swapped, and the fifth column and the sixth column are swapped. The antenna elements in the seventh column and the eighth column are swapped. It can also be obtained by swapping the antenna elements in the first row and the second row in the odd-numbered column in Figure 34, the third and fourth rows The antenna elements are swapped, the antenna elements of the fifth row and the sixth row are swapped, and the antenna elements of the seventh row and the eighth row are swapped. This application does not limit this.

In fact, the antenna array shown in FIG. 52 can be understood to be obtained after the antenna array shown in FIG. 51 is rotated by 90°. Therefore, it has the same or similar structural features and performance as the antenna array shown in Figure 51 above.

It should be understood that the dimension 8×8 of the antenna array shown in FIG. 51 and FIG. 52 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. This application does not limit the dimensions of the antenna array.

FIG. 53 is another example of an antenna array with a dimension of 2×8 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The arrangement of the antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 53 is the same as that of the two adjacent rows (such as the first row and the second row, or the third row and the fourth row, or the fifth row and the fourth row) of the antenna array shown in FIG. 51. The arrangement of the antenna units in the sixth row, or the seventh row and the eighth row) is the same, but the number of rows is reduced, so the number of ports is also reduced. For the related description of the 2×8 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 51. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

FIG. 54 is another example of an antenna array with a dimension of 8×2 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The arrangement of the antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 53 is the same as that of the two adjacent columns of the antenna array shown in FIG. 51 (such as the first column and the second column, or the third column and the fourth column, or the fifth column and the The arrangement of the antenna units in the sixth column, or the seventh and eighth columns) is the same, but the number of columns is reduced, so the number of ports is also reduced. For the relevant description of the 8×2 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 51. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the antenna array with a dimension of 2×8 may also be an array obtained by reversing the two rows of the antenna array shown in FIG. 53. The antenna array with a dimension of 8×2 may also be an array obtained by reversing two columns of the antenna array shown in FIG. 54.

FIG. 55 and FIG. 56 are another two examples of antenna arrays with a dimension of 12×12 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The arrangement of the antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 55 is similar to the arrangement of the antenna array shown in FIG. 51, and the arrangement of the antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 56 is the same as the arrangement of the antenna array shown in FIG. 52 Similar, but the dimension increases, so the number of ports also increases. For the relevant description of the 12×12 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in combination with FIG. 51 and FIG. 52. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

FIG. 57 is another example of an antenna array with a dimension of 2×12 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The arrangement of the antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 57 is the same as the two adjacent rows (such as the first row and the second row, or the third row and the fourth row, or the fifth row and the fourth row) of the antenna array shown in FIG. 55. The arrangement of the antenna elements in the sixth row, or the seventh row and the eighth row, or the ninth row and the tenth row, or the eleventh row and the twelfth row) is the same, but the number of rows is reduced, so the port The number also decreases. For the relevant description of the antenna array with a dimension of 2×12, reference may be made to the description of the 2×8 antenna array with reference to FIG. 53. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

FIG. 58 is another example of an antenna array with a dimension of 12×2 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The arrangement of antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 58 is the same as that of two adjacent columns of the antenna array shown in FIG. 55 (such as the first column and the second column, or the third column and the fourth column, or the fifth column and the The arrangement of the antenna elements in the sixth column, or the seventh and eighth columns, or the ninth and tenth columns, or the eleventh and twelfth columns) is the same, but the number of columns is reduced, so The number of ports also decreases. For the relevant description of the antenna array with a dimension of 12×2, reference may be made to the description of the 8×2 antenna array with reference to FIG. 54. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the antenna array with a dimension of 2×12 may also be an array obtained by reversing the two rows of the antenna array shown in FIG. 57. The antenna array with a dimension of 12×2 may also be an array obtained by reversing the two columns of the antenna array shown in FIG. 58.

Further, in the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 51 to FIG. 58 above, the distance between adjacent antenna elements has at least one value.

Specifically, in the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 51 to FIG. 58, there are two kinds of spacings, D2 and D7, between adjacent antenna elements.

Take Figure 51 as an example. In the antenna array shown in FIG. 51, the row spacing includes the row spacing D7 between adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements, and the column spacing includes the columns between adjacent two-port antenna elements and four-port antenna elements. Spacing D2. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings (ie, D2≥D7), the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 51 may have at least one value. When D2=D7, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have one value; when D2>D7, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have two different values. value.

For specific analysis of the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 52 to FIG. 58, reference may be made to the relevant description made above in conjunction with FIG. 51. For brevity, the description will not be combined with the drawings one by one here.

It should be noted that the foregoing description of the possible spacing in the antenna array is made in detail with reference to the drawings, but these drawings and the relationship between the values of the spacings are only examples for ease of understanding. Since the various possible antenna arrays provided in the above embodiments may be mixed with more different antenna elements, there may be more kinds of spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array obtained after mixing. It is not limited to the values listed above, and there may be more possible values. This application does not limit this.

Multiple antenna arrays are listed above in conjunction with FIGS. 6 to 58. These antenna arrays all include antenna elements with different numbers of ports. Moreover, in each of the foregoing examples, an antenna unit with a larger number of ports is designed on at least one edge of the antenna array to obtain a larger spatial resolution. Based on the same concept, those skilled in the art can make changes to the multiple antenna array examples listed above, for example, the antenna array shown in the figure can be flipped horizontally, flipped vertically, rotated at different angles around the center, and increased. Large dimensions or reduced dimensions, etc. These changes should fall within the scope of protection of this application.

Based on the antenna arrays listed above, by mixing antenna elements with different numbers of ports in the same antenna array, a reasonable design can be made using the different radiation characteristics of antenna elements with different numbers of ports in space, so that the mixed results The spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical and/or horizontal directions is improved. In the limited area of the antenna panel, the spatial resolution of the antenna array is improved, so that the capacity of MIMO transmission is increased. This helps to improve system throughput.

As an example and not a limitation, the above-mentioned two-port antenna unit is a cross-polarized antenna unit. For the specific description of the cross-polarized antenna unit, please refer to the description made above in conjunction with a) and b) of FIG.

As an example and not a limitation, the aforementioned four-port antenna unit is a four-port QHA unit.

For ease of understanding, Figure 59 shows a schematic diagram of a QHA. As shown in Fig. 59, a QHA can include four spiral arms, and each spiral arm can be understood as a vibrator, and can also be called a vibrator arm. Each vibrator can be independently driven by a radio frequency channel.

The QHA unit can also be composed of one or more QHAs. If each QHA unit includes only one QHA, each spiral arm in the QHA can be driven by an independent radio frequency channel. That is, one spiral arm corresponds to one radio frequency channel, for example, refer to the above description in conjunction with a) of FIG. 4. For the sake of brevity, I won't repeat them here.

Each QHA unit can also include multiple QHAs, such as four. The spiral arms of the same orientation in the four QHAs can be driven by the same radio frequency channel. That is, the four spiral arms from the four QHAs correspond to one radio frequency channel, for example, refer to the description made above in conjunction with b) of FIG. 4. For the sake of brevity, I won't repeat them here.

In the embodiment of the present application, since each QHA unit can provide four ports, in order to facilitate the distinction from the single port in the prior art, the QHA unit is referred to as a four-port QHA unit.

In order to better understand the embodiments of the present application, FIG. 60 shows an example of an antenna array in which cross-polarized antenna elements and four-port QHA antenna elements are mixedly arranged. The antenna array shown in FIG. 60 is an antenna array with a dimension of 12×10. Among them, from left to right, the first to third columns are four-port QHA antenna units; from right to left, the first to third columns are also four-port QHA antenna units, and the remaining four middle columns are crossovers Polarized antenna unit. The antenna array shown in Figure 60 is similar to the antenna array shown in Figure 28 and Figure 29 above, except that the number of rows is reduced and the number of ports is also reduced. For related descriptions of FIG. 60, please refer to the related descriptions made above in conjunction with FIG. 28 and FIG. 29. For the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here. However, it should be understood that this application does not set any limitation on the value of the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array in FIG. 60.

It should be understood that the four-port antenna unit listed above is only an example. This application does not limit the specific form of the four-port antenna unit. For example, the four-port antenna unit may also be an antenna unit composed of the antennas shown in Figs. 61 and 62. If the four-port antenna unit in the antenna array shown in FIG. 60 is replaced with the four-port antenna unit shown in FIG. 61 or FIG. 62, the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 63 and FIG. 64 can be obtained. For related descriptions of FIG. 61 and FIG. 62, please refer to the above related descriptions. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

In another possible design, the antenna array provided in the present application may include at least two antenna elements with different azimuths. That is, two or more different azimuth antenna elements can be mixed and arranged in the antenna array.

The at least two different forms of antenna elements may be, for example, the same type of antenna elements existing in the antenna array in different orientations. Due to the different orientations in the antenna array, the radiation characteristics of each in space are different. The radiation characteristic of the antenna unit in space mentioned here may mean that when the antenna unit is at a certain position in the antenna array, the antenna unit does not take into account the possible influence of other surrounding antenna units on it. Radiation characteristics formed in space. In other words, it does not consider the changes in the radiation characteristics of the space that may occur due to the influence of other antenna elements around. In an implementation manner, the radiation characteristics of the antenna unit in space can be characterized by a phase pattern, for example, refer to FIG. 5. When the above-mentioned at least two different types of antenna units are designed in an antenna array, their respective phase patterns are also different due to different azimuths in the antenna array.

In the following, taking a four-port antenna unit as an example, an antenna array including two different types of antenna units will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 65 to 98. Hereinafter, for the convenience of distinction and description, the two different types of antenna units are denoted as the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit. Both the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit may be four-port antenna units, but the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit have different orientations in the antenna array, so their respective radiation characteristics in space are different.

Optionally, the antenna array includes at least one first antenna element and at least one second antenna element. When the center of the first antenna element coincides with the center of the second antenna element, the second antenna element has A deflection angle. In other words, the second antenna unit can be understood as being obtained after the center rotation of the first antenna unit. For ease of understanding, a four-port antenna unit is taken as an example to illustrate the relationship between the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit. If you mark the four-port antenna unit, such as

Indicates that the vertical line is a mark. Rotate around the center of the four-port antenna unit, you can get

. Then the four-port antenna unit before the rotation can be recorded as the first antenna unit, and the four-port antenna unit after the rotation can be recorded as the second antenna unit. It should be understood that here is only a mark provided to facilitate understanding of the relationship between the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit, and should not limit the structure of the antenna unit.

Optionally, the deflection angle is 45°.

Optionally, the antenna array includes at least one column of first antenna elements and at least one column of second antenna elements.

That is, at least one column of first antenna elements and one column of second antenna elements in the antenna array are adjacent to each other. In other words, at least one column of second antenna elements is adjacent to one column of first antenna elements in the antenna array.

FIG. 65 is a schematic diagram of an antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 65 is an antenna array with a dimension of 8×8. For easy distinction, the first antenna unit is represented by "○" in the figure, and the second antenna unit is represented by "●". It can be seen that each antenna element in the antenna array is a four-port antenna element, so the number of ports provided in each row can be 32 ports, and the number of ports provided in each column can also be 32 ports.

The antenna array shown in FIG. 65 includes seven columns of first antenna elements and one column of second antenna elements. The column of second antenna elements shown in the figure is the leftmost column of the antenna array.

As mentioned above, the antenna array shown in Figure 65 introduces the first antenna element and the second antenna element, which is beneficial to suppress side lobes and improve system performance. In addition, the uppermost row and the lowermost row of the antenna array shown in FIG. 65 are mixed with the first antenna element and the second antenna element, respectively. Since the first antenna element and the second antenna element have different phase patterns in space, the slope of the difference between the two phase patterns is compared with that between two first antenna elements or between two second antenna elements at the same position. The slope of the difference of the phase pattern of the antenna array is relatively large, so the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction can be improved, thereby increasing the system throughput.

It should be understood that the illustration in FIG. 65 should not constitute any limitation to this application. For example, the column of second antenna elements may also be the rightmost column of the antenna array, or the column of second antenna elements may also be any middle column of the antenna array. This application does not limit this.

It should also be understood that the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction is not limited to the position and number of columns of the first antenna element or the second antenna element in the antenna array, as long as there is at least one column of the first antenna in the antenna array. The unit and at least one column of second antenna units can increase the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction. Therefore, the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 66 to FIG. 80 can also be improved in vertical spatial resolution, thereby improving system throughput.

FIG. 66 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 66 includes two columns of second antenna elements and six columns of first antenna elements. The two columns of second antenna elements are the two outermost columns of the antenna array, that is, the leftmost column and the rightmost column of the antenna array. Six columns of first antenna elements are located in the middle area of the antenna array. That is, each column of second antenna elements is adjacent to a column of first antenna elements. It can be seen that the antenna array shown in Fig. 66 is symmetrical. Therefore, the design shown in Figure 66 can achieve better sidelobe suppression capabilities in both the left half and the right half of the antenna array, which is conducive to improving system performance.

FIG. 67 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 67 includes four columns of first antenna elements and four columns of second antenna elements. The four columns of second antenna elements can be divided into two parts, which belong to the left half and the right half of the antenna array respectively. As shown in the figure, the first column on the left and the second column on the left of the antenna array are two columns of second antenna elements, and the first column on the right and the second column on the right of the antenna array are also two columns of second antenna elements. The middle four columns of the antenna array (that is, the remaining four columns except for the first column on the left, the second column on the left, the first column on the right, and the second column on the right) are the first antenna elements.

FIG. 68 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 68 includes six columns of second antenna elements and two columns of first antenna elements. The six columns of second antenna elements may be divided into two parts, respectively belonging to the left half and the right half of the antenna array. As shown in the figure, the first column to the third column on the left of the antenna array are three columns of second antenna elements, and the first column to the third column on the right of the antenna array are also three columns of second antenna elements. The middle two columns of the antenna array (that is, the two columns except the first column to the third column on the left and the first column to the third column on the right) are the first antenna elements.

Based on the same principle described above, the designs of Figure 67 and Figure 68 enable both the left half and the right half of the antenna array to obtain better sidelobe suppression capabilities, which is conducive to improving system performance.

FIG. 69 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 69 includes four columns of first antenna elements and four columns of second antenna elements. In the antenna array, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are alternately arranged in units of columns. As shown in the figure, in each row of antenna elements, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are arranged in the form of "ABAB". That is, in the antenna array, among the four antenna elements adjacent to each first antenna element, there are two second antenna elements adjacent in the horizontal direction and two first antenna elements adjacent in the vertical direction. . The four antenna units adjacent to each second antenna unit include two first antenna units adjacent in the horizontal direction and two second antenna units adjacent in the vertical direction.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 69, viewed from left to right, the odd-numbered columns are the second antenna elements, and the even-numbered columns are the first antenna elements. Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the antenna elements of the odd-numbered columns and the even-numbered columns of the antenna array can be swapped. For example, from right to left, the odd-numbered columns are the second antenna elements, and the even-numbered columns are the first antenna elements.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 69, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged in a column in the entire array, so that the phase pattern of each port of the antenna element in the entire array can be evenly distributed. This is conducive to greater sidelobe suppression capabilities and system performance.

FIG. 70 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 70 includes four columns of first antenna elements and four columns of second antenna elements. Fig. 70 shows a symmetrical antenna array. As shown in FIG. 70, the left half of the antenna array (that is, including the four columns on the left) from left to right are: the second antenna element, the first antenna element, the second antenna element, and the first antenna element; the antenna From right to left, the right half of the array (that is, the four columns on the right) are: the second antenna element, the first antenna element, the second antenna element, and the first antenna element.

Based on the same principle described above, the design of Figure 70 enables both the left half and the right half of the antenna array to obtain better sidelobe suppression capabilities, which is beneficial to improve system performance.

It should be understood that the dimension 8×8 of the antenna array described above in conjunction with FIG. 35 to FIG. 70 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. The dimension of the antenna array can be artificially defined, which is not limited in this application.

Fig. 71 to Fig. 76 show an antenna array with a dimension of 2×8. The arrangement of each row of antenna elements in the 2×8 antenna array shown in Figs. 71 to 76 and the 8×8 antenna array shown in Figs. 65 to 70 is the same, except that the number of rows is reduced, so the number of ports Also reduced accordingly. For the relevant description of the 2×8 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIGS. 35 to 42. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

Fig. 77 to Fig. 80 show an antenna array with a dimension of 2×12. The arrangement of each row of antenna elements in the 2×12 antenna array shown in FIGS. 77 to 80 and the 8×8 antenna array shown in FIGS. 65 to 70 is the same, except that the number of rows is reduced and the number of columns is increased. Therefore, the number of ports also changes accordingly. For the relevant description of the 2×12 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 65 to FIG. 70. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

It should be understood that changing the number of columns of the antenna array does not change the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction. Therefore, when the dimension of the antenna array is reduced from 8×8 to 2×8, or changed to 2×12, or changed to other dimensions, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction has little influence, so The impact of system throughput is not significant.

Further, in each antenna array shown in FIG. 65 to FIG. 80, there are multiple spacings between adjacent antenna elements, and may have multiple different values.

Specifically, in the antenna arrays shown in FIGS. 65 to 80, there are two or more of the following spacings between adjacent antenna elements: L1, L2, L3, and L4. Wherein, L1 represents the column spacing between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements; L2 represents the column spacing between adjacent first antenna elements or two adjacent second antenna elements. L3 represents the row spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements or two adjacent second antenna elements. Since the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are both four-port antenna units with different orientations, the line spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements is equal to the distance between two adjacent second antenna elements. The column spacing can be the same, and the row spacing can also be the same. L4 represents the line spacing between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements. Optionally, L1>L2≥L3>0. Optionally, L1≥L4>0.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 65, there are three kinds of spacings of L1, L2, and L3 between adjacent antenna elements. If considered based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of each spacing, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 65, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may have two different values. As shown in FIG. 65, the line spacing includes the line spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements and the line spacing between two adjacent second antenna elements, both of which are L3. The column spacing includes a column spacing L2 between two adjacent first antenna elements, and a column spacing L1 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements. It can be understood that when L2=L3, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have two different values; when L2>L3, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have three values. Kind of different values.

As the antenna arrays shown in Fig. 66 to Fig. 68, Fig. 70 to Fig. 74, and Fig. 76 to Fig. 79 also have the above-mentioned distances L1, L2, and L3 between adjacent antenna elements, there may also be at least two differences. The value of. For specific analysis, refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 35. For the sake of brevity, the description will not be combined with the drawings one by one here.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 69, there are two types of spacings, L1 and L3, between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 69 may have two different values. As shown in FIG. 69, the line spacing includes the line spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements and the line spacing L3 between two adjacent second antenna elements. The column spacing includes the column spacing L1 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements.

In the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 75 and FIG. 80, there are also the above-mentioned two distances of L1 and L3 between adjacent antenna elements, and they may also have two different values. For specific analysis, refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 69. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

It should be noted that the foregoing description of the possible spacing in the antenna array is made in detail with reference to the drawings, but these drawings and the relationship between the values of the spacing in these drawings are only examples for ease of understanding. Since the various possible antenna arrays provided in the above embodiments may be mixed with more different antenna elements, there may be more kinds of spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array obtained after mixing. It is not limited to the values listed above, and there may be more possible values. This application does not limit this.

It should be understood that multiple examples of antenna arrays have been described above in conjunction with FIGS. 65 to 80. In addition to improving the sidelobe suppression capability of the antenna arrays shown in these multiple examples, the spatial resolution in the vertical direction is also improved. Based on the same method, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction can be improved.

The spatial resolution of the antenna arrays shown in FIGS. 81 to 94 in the horizontal direction has been improved.

Optionally, the antenna array includes at least one row of first antenna elements and at least one row of second antenna elements.

That is, at least one row of first antenna elements and one row of second antenna elements in the antenna array are adjacent to each other. In other words, at least one row of second antenna elements is adjacent to one row of first antenna elements in the antenna array.

FIG. 81 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 81 includes seven rows of first antenna elements and one row of second antenna elements. The row of antenna elements shown in the figure is the top row of the antenna array.

As mentioned earlier, the antenna array shown in Figure 81 introduces the first antenna element and the second antenna element, which is beneficial to suppress side lobes and improve system performance. In addition, the leftmost column and the rightmost column of the antenna array shown in FIG. 81 are respectively mixed with the first antenna element and the second antenna element. Since the first antenna element and the second antenna element have different phase patterns in space, the slope of the difference between the two phase patterns is compared with that between two first antenna elements or between two second antenna elements at the same position. The slope of the difference in the phase pattern of the antenna array is relatively large, so the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction can be improved, thereby increasing the system throughput.

It should be understood that the illustration in FIG. 81 should not constitute any limitation to this application. For example, the row of second antenna elements may also be the bottom row of the antenna array, or the row of second antenna elements may also be any row in the middle of the antenna array. This application does not limit this.

It should also be understood that the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction is not limited to the position and number of rows of the first antenna element or the second antenna element in the antenna array, as long as there is at least one row of the first antenna in the antenna array. The unit and at least one row of second antenna units can improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction.

Therefore, the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 82 to FIG. 94 can also be improved in horizontal spatial resolution, thereby increasing system throughput.

FIG. 82 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 82 includes two rows of second antenna elements and six rows of first antenna elements. The two rows of second antenna elements are the two outermost rows of the antenna array, that is, the uppermost row and the lowermost row of the antenna array. Six rows of first antenna elements are located in the middle area of the antenna array. That is, each row of second antenna elements is adjacent to a row of first antenna elements. It can be seen that the antenna array shown in Figure 82 is symmetrical up and down. Therefore, the design shown in Figure 82 can achieve better sidelobe suppression in both the upper half and the lower half of the antenna array, which is conducive to improving system performance.

FIG. 83 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 83 includes four rows of first antenna elements and four rows of second antenna elements. The four rows of second antenna elements can be divided into two parts, which belong to the upper half and the lower half of the antenna array respectively. As shown in the figure, viewed from top to bottom, the first and second rows of the antenna array are second antenna elements, and the seventh and eighth rows are also second antenna elements. The middle four rows of the antenna array (that is, the remaining four rows except the first, second, seventh, and eighth rows) are the first antenna elements.

FIG. 84 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 84 includes six rows of second antenna elements and two rows of first antenna elements. The six rows of second antenna elements can be divided into two parts, which belong to the upper half and the lower half of the antenna array, respectively. As shown in the figure, viewed from the top, the first to third rows of the antenna array are second antenna elements, and the sixth to eighth rows are also second antenna elements. The middle two rows of the antenna array (that is, the remaining two rows except the first row to the third row and the sixth row to the eighth row) are the first antenna elements.

Based on the same principle described above, the designs of Figure 83 and Figure 84 enable the upper and lower half of the antenna array to obtain better sidelobe suppression capabilities, which is beneficial to improve system performance.

FIG. 85 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 85 includes four rows of first antenna elements and four rows of second antenna elements. In the antenna array, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged in a row unit. As shown in the figure, in each column of antenna elements, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are arranged in the form of "ABAB". That is, in the antenna array, among the four antenna elements adjacent to each first antenna element, there are two first antenna elements adjacent in the horizontal direction and two second antenna elements adjacent in the vertical direction. . The four antenna elements adjacent to each second antenna element include two second antenna elements adjacent in the horizontal direction and two first antenna elements adjacent in the vertical direction.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 85, when viewed from the top, the odd numbers are the second antenna elements, and the even numbers are the first antenna elements. Although not shown in the figure, it can be understood that the odd-numbered rows and the even-numbered rows in the antenna array can be reversed. For example, when viewed from the bottom up, the odd numbers represent the first antenna element, and the even numbers represent the second antenna element.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 85, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged in row units in the entire array, so that the phase patterns of the ports of the antenna elements in the entire array can be evenly distributed. It is beneficial to maximize the sidelobe suppression capability and maximize system performance.

FIG. 86 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. The antenna array shown in FIG. 86 includes four rows of first antenna elements and four rows of second antenna elements. Fig. 86 shows an antenna array symmetrically distributed up and down. As shown in Figure 86, the upper half of the antenna array (that is, including the upper four rows) from left to right are: the second antenna unit, the first antenna unit, the second antenna unit, and the first antenna unit; the antenna The bottom half of the array (that is, including the four rows below) are: the second antenna unit, the first antenna unit, the second antenna unit, and the first antenna unit in order from bottom to top.

Based on the same principle as described above, the design of Figure 86 enables the upper and lower half of the antenna array to obtain better sidelobe suppression capabilities, which is beneficial to improve system performance.

It should be understood that the dimension 8×8 of the antenna array described above in conjunction with FIG. 81 to FIG. 86 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. The dimension of the antenna array can be artificially defined, which is not limited in this application.

Figs. 87 to 94 show antenna arrays with dimensions of 8×2. The arrangement of the antenna elements in each column of the 8×2 antenna array shown in Figs. 87 to 94 is the same as that of the 8×8 antenna array shown in Figs. 81 to 86, except that the number of columns is reduced, so the number of ports is Also reduced accordingly. For the relevant description of the 8×2 antenna array, reference may be made to the description of the 8×8 antenna array in conjunction with FIG. 81 to FIG. 86. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

It should be understood that based on the same concept, antenna arrays of other dimensions, such as 12×2, etc., can also be obtained. For the sake of brevity, the drawings are not illustrated here.

It should be understood that changing the number of rows of the antenna array does not change the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction. Therefore, when the dimension of the antenna array is reduced from 8×8 to 8×2, or when it becomes 12×2, or when it is changed to other dimensions, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction has little influence, so it has little effect on the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction. The impact of system throughput is not significant.

Further, in each antenna array shown in FIG. 81 to FIG. 94, there may be multiple spacings between adjacent antenna elements, and may have multiple different values.

Specifically, in each antenna array shown in FIG. 81 to FIG. 94, there are two or more of the following distances between adjacent antenna elements: L2, L3, L4, and L5. Among them, L2, L3, and L4 are described in detail, and for brevity, they are not repeated here. L5 represents the column spacing between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements. Optionally, L5≥L4>L3>0. Optionally, L2≥L3. For ease of understanding and description, the following description of the spacing is based on the example of the above-mentioned size relationship.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 81, there are three types of spacings of L2, L3, and L4 between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 81, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may have at least one value. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 81, the line spacing includes the line spacing L4 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements and the line spacing L3 between two adjacent first antenna elements. The column spacing includes the column spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements and the column spacing between two adjacent second antenna elements. Since the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are both four-port antenna units with different orientations, the line spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements is equal to the distance between two adjacent second antenna elements. The line spacing can be the same, both are L2. It can be understood that when L2=L3, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have two different values; when L2>L3, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have Three different values. In addition, this application does not limit the size relationship between L2 and L4. If L2=L4, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array can have one value (that is, L2=L3) or two (that is, L2>L3) different values; if L2≠L4 , The distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have two different values (ie, L2=L3) or three (ie, L2>L3) different values.

In the antenna arrays shown in FIG. 82 to FIG. 84, FIG. 86 to FIG. 92, and FIG. 94, there are the above-mentioned three kinds of distances of L2, L3, and L4 between adjacent antenna elements, and may also have at least one value. For details, reference may be made to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 81. For the sake of brevity, the description will not be combined with the drawings.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 85, there are two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements, L2 and L4. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship between the values of the spacings, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 85, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may have at least one value. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 85, the row spacing includes the row spacing L4 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements, and the column spacing includes the column spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements or The column spacing between two adjacent second antenna elements is L2. As mentioned earlier, this application does not limit the size relationship between L2 and L4. If L2=L4, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array can have one value, if L2≠L4, then the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array can have two different values. value.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 93, there are also the above-mentioned L2 and L4 distances between adjacent antenna elements, and they may also have at least one value. For specific analysis, refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 85. For brevity, details are not repeated here.

In order to improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in both the horizontal direction and the vertical direction, the four edges of the antenna array can be designed with the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit alternately arranged.

FIG. 95 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. In the antenna array shown in Figure 95, the leftmost column and the rightmost column adopt a design in which the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged, and the uppermost row and the lowermost row also adopt the first antenna element and the second antenna The design of alternate arrangement of units.

Therefore, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 95, by designing the antenna elements at the edge of the antenna array as the first antenna element and the second antenna element alternately arranged, the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction can be made uniform. Can be improved, which is conducive to improving system throughput. On the other hand, because the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are alternately arranged, the phase pattern of each port of the alternately arranged first antenna unit and the second antenna unit tends to be uniform, which is beneficial to improve the sidelobe suppression capability , Improve system performance.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 95, there are two kinds of spacings, L1 and L4, between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship between the values of the spacings, in the antenna array shown in FIG. 95, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may also have at least one value. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 95, the column spacing of the antenna array includes the column spacing L1 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements and the column spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements. L2, since L1>L2, the column spacing of the antenna array adopts the column spacing L1 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements. The line spacing of the antenna array includes the line spacing L4 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements and the line spacing L3 between two adjacent first antenna elements. Since L4>L3, the antenna The row spacing of the array adopts the row spacing L4 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements. Since L1≥L4, the distance between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array may have at least one value.

FIG. 96 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. In the antenna array shown in FIG. 96, the four edges (that is, the two outermost columns and the two outermost rows) adopt the second antenna element, and the middle area of the antenna array (that is, the two outermost columns and the outermost rows are removed). The first antenna element is used for the 6×6 antenna elements in the remaining positions other than the outer two rows. Not shown in the figure, the internal area of the antenna array may also use a second antenna unit. This application does not limit this.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 96, the edge column (or row) and the adjacent inner column (or row) adopt the adjacent column or row of antenna elements with different azimuths, that is, a column of second antenna elements and a column of first antenna elements. One antenna element is adjacent, and a row of second antenna elements is adjacent to a row of first antenna elements. This can make the phase pattern of each port of the antenna unit at the edge of the antenna array evenly distributed, which is beneficial to improve the side lobe suppression capability and improve the system performance.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 96, there are also two types of spacings, L1 and L4, between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may also have at least one value. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 96, the column spacing of the antenna array includes the column spacing L1 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements and the column spacing between two adjacent first antenna elements. L2, since L1>L2, the column spacing of the antenna array adopts the column spacing L1 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements. The line spacing of the antenna array includes the line spacing L4 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements and the line spacing L3 between two adjacent first antenna elements. Since L4>L3, the antenna The row spacing of the array adopts the row spacing L4 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements. Since L1≥L4, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have at least one value.

FIG. 97 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 97, in each row of the antenna array, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged; in each column of the antenna array, the first antenna element and the second antenna element are also alternately arranged . In other words, in the antenna array, the four antenna elements adjacent to each first antenna element are all second antenna elements, and the four antenna elements adjacent to each second antenna element are all first antennas. unit.

Since the two rows or two columns in the antenna array are swapped, the spatial resolution of the antenna array is not changed. Therefore, the spatial resolution of the antenna array shown in Fig. 97 in both the vertical direction and the horizontal direction can be improved. On the other hand, due to the alternate arrangement of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit, the phase pattern of each port in the entire antenna array is evenly distributed, which is beneficial to maximize the side lobe suppression capability and improve the system performance.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 97, there are also two types of spacings, L1 and L4, between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may also have at least one value. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 97, the column spacing of the antenna array includes the column spacing L1 between adjacent first antenna elements and second antenna elements; the row spacing of the antenna array includes adjacent first antenna elements. The line spacing from the second antenna unit is L4. Since L1≥L4, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have at least one value.

It should be understood that FIGS. 95 to 97 are only examples, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. Based on the same concept, those skilled in the art can also list more possible antenna array forms. For example, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit in the figure can be swapped. Another example is adding other types of antenna elements to the antenna array.

FIG. 98 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. In the antenna array shown in FIG. 98, in addition to the above-mentioned first antenna unit and second antenna unit, a two-port antenna unit is also added. The four edges of the antenna array can adopt a design in which the first antenna element and the second antenna element are alternately arranged as shown in FIG. 95. The middle area of the antenna array (that is, the outermost two columns and the outermost two columns are removed). The 6×6 antenna units in the remaining positions outside the row can use two-port antenna units.

The reason why the middle area is designed as a two-port antenna unit is that if a four-port antenna unit with the same orientation is used, the angle area of the phase pattern will also overlap in a large interval, and the resulting gain is limited. If the antenna unit in the middle area is set as a two-port antenna unit, the overlap of the phase pattern can be reduced, and the gain it brings is equivalent to that of all four-port antenna units.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 98, there are also two kinds of spacings, L1 and L4, as in FIG. 95, between adjacent antenna elements. Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements may also have at least one value. For specific analysis, please refer to the description made above in conjunction with FIG. 95. For brevity, it will not be repeated here.

It should be understood that the dimension 8×8 of the antenna array described above in conjunction with FIG. 95 to FIG. 98 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. The dimensions of the antenna array can also be other larger or smaller dimensions, such as 4×4, which is not limited in this application. Since the embodiments of the present application have been described above in conjunction with a number of drawings, for the sake of brevity, examples are not described here based on different dimensions.

Multiple antenna arrays are listed above in conjunction with FIGS. 65 to 98. These antenna arrays contain antenna elements of different orientations. In addition, in each of the above examples, the alternate rows and/or columns of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are designed as close to the edge of the antenna array as possible to reduce the intersection of the radiation field of the antenna unit in the edge area. Overlap the area, so as to obtain a larger spatial resolution. Based on the same concept, those skilled in the art can make changes to the multiple antenna array examples listed above, for example, the antenna array shown in the figure can be flipped horizontally, flipped vertically, rotated at different angles around the center, and increased. Large dimensions or reduced dimensions, etc. These changes should fall within the scope of protection of this application.

Based on the antenna arrays listed above, by arranging antenna elements of different azimuths in a mixed arrangement in the same antenna array, the phase pattern corresponding to each port of the mixed arrangement of antenna elements can be distributed uniformly. It is beneficial to improve the side lobe suppression capability of the antenna array and improve the system performance. On the other hand, by arranging the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit mixedly on the edge of the antenna array, it is beneficial to improve the spatial resolution of the antenna array in the vertical direction and/or the horizontal direction, and improve the system throughput.

It should be understood that multiple antenna arrays are listed above in combination with the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit in different azimuths. But this should not constitute any limitation to this application. In another implementation manner, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit may also be antenna units with different parameters. For example, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit may have different helical pitches, or have different helical heights, and so on. In this case, the radiation characteristics of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit in space are also different. Therefore, the mixed arrangement of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit with different parameters in the antenna array is also conducive to improving the side lobe suppression capability of the antenna array and improving the system performance. For example, the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit in the antenna array shown in FIG. 65 to FIG. 98 can be replaced with: the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit with different pitches, or the ones with different helical heights. The first antenna unit and the second antenna unit.

In the example of multiple antenna arrays provided above in conjunction with the drawings, both the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit may be four-port antenna units. As an example and not a limitation, the four-port antenna unit is a QHA unit individually driven by each spiral arm (ie, the four-port QHA unit described above). For the specific description of the four-port QHA unit, please refer to the above description in conjunction with a) and b) of FIG. 4, and for the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

In another possible design, the above-mentioned first antenna unit and second antenna unit may also be two-port antenna units. As an example and not a limitation, the above-mentioned two-port antenna port is a cross-polarized antenna unit. For the specific description of the cross-polarized antenna unit, please refer to the description made above in conjunction with a) and b) of FIG.

Wherein, the first antenna unit may include, for example, a vibrator in a horizontal polarization direction and a vibrator in a vertical polarization direction, and the second antenna unit may include, for example, a vibrator with a polarization direction of +45° and a vibrator with a polarization direction of -45°. For the arrangement of the first antenna element and the second antenna element in the antenna array, for example, reference may be made to the antenna array described above in conjunction with FIG. 65 to FIG. 98. For the sake of brevity, no further description will be given here in conjunction with the drawings.

Because the distance between the antenna elements is related to the operating frequency. However, communication equipment usually needs to work at different frequencies. If different antenna arrays are designed for different frequency points, for example, the antenna unit that supports operation at frequency 1 and the antenna unit that supports operation at frequency 2, according to the form of ABAB, are in units of rows or columns. The design will increase the area of the antenna panel and the cost will be higher.

In view of this, an embodiment of the present application also provides an antenna array, which may include at least one antenna element pair.

Specifically, the antenna element pair may be composed of two QHA elements with different electrical sizes, for example. For the convenience of distinction and description, the two QHA units in the antenna unit pair are denoted as the first QHA unit and the second QHA unit. Optionally, each QHA in the first QHA unit and the second QHA unit is a QHA driven separately by each spiral arm. That is, both the first QHA unit and the second QHA unit may be four-port QHA units (or four-port antenna units). Optionally, each QHA in the first QHA unit and the second QHA unit is a QHA driven by four spiral arms. That is, both the first QHA unit and the second QHA unit may be single-port QHA units (or single-port antenna units).

In one implementation, the first QHA unit and the second QHA unit may have different diameters. For example, the diameter of the QHA in the first QHA unit is larger than the diameter of the QHA in the second QHA unit. In this way, the QHA in the second QHA unit can be embedded in the QHA in the first QHA unit.

As mentioned earlier, each QHA unit can include one or more QHAs.

If each QHA unit includes one QHA, each QHA unit pair may be nested by two QHAs with different diameters. The corresponding relationship between the vibrators and the radio frequency channels in the two QHAs can be referred to the description made above in conjunction with a) in FIG. 4, and for the sake of brevity, details are not repeated here.

If each QHA unit includes multiple QHAs, each QHA unit may be composed of multiple QHAs with different diameters. For example, every two QHAs with different diameters are nested together to form multiple pairs of nested QHAs. In other words, each QHA unit can include multiple pairs of nested QHAs. The correspondence between multiple QHAs with the same diameter and the radio frequency channel in each QHA unit can be referred to the description made above in conjunction with b) in FIG. 4, and for the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

Since each QHA unit can be driven by four radio frequency channels, the antenna unit pair provided in the embodiment of the present application can be driven by eight radio frequency channels.

FIG. 99 is a schematic diagram of an antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 99, the dimension of the antenna array is 8×8, and there are 8×8 (that is, 64) antenna element pairs, which are evenly distributed in the antenna array. In the figure, the large circle can represent the first QHA unit, and the small circle can represent the second QHA unit.

It should be understood that the antenna element pair may be formed by combining two QHA elements corresponding to different diameters. This application does not limit other parameters of the two QHA units, such as pitch, spiral height, etc. In addition, the two QHA units may also be two QHA units with different azimuths, such as the above-mentioned first antenna unit and second antenna unit.

By nesting two QHA units of different electrical sizes together, the antenna array can support dual-frequency operation. Compared with traditional antenna arrays that support dual-frequency operation, the array area is greatly reduced, which is also conducive to reduction. The area of the small antenna panel.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 99, there are two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements, L6 and L7. Among them, L6 represents the column spacing between two adjacent antenna element pairs; L7 represents the row spacing between two adjacent antenna element pairs. Optionally, L6≥L7>0. Optionally, L6>L1, L7>L2.

Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship of the values of the spacings, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 99 may have at least one value. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 99, the column spacing of the antenna array includes the column spacing L6 between two adjacent antenna element pairs, and the row spacing of the antenna array includes the column spacing between two adjacent antenna element pairs. The line spacing is L7. Since L6≥L7, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array has at least one value.

It should be understood that the antenna array shown in FIG. 99 is only an example for ease of understanding. The above-mentioned antenna element pairs can also be mixed and arranged with other antenna elements to form different antenna arrays.

FIG. 100 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 100, the antenna array has a mixed arrangement of antenna element pairs and two-port antenna elements. Specifically, the antenna array shown in FIG. 100 can be understood as an improvement based on the antenna array shown in FIG. 51. The four-port antenna unit in FIG. 51 is replaced with the antenna unit pair provided in this embodiment, so that the antenna array can support dual frequency point operation.

Based on the same concept, the four-port antenna ports in the antenna arrays in FIGS. 6-50 and 52-58 can all be replaced with the antenna element pairs provided in this embodiment to support dual-frequency operation. For the sake of brevity, I will not list them all here.

FIG. 101 is another example of an 8×8 antenna array provided by another embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 101, the antenna array further distinguishes the antenna element pairs in different azimuths, and arranges the antenna element pairs with different azimuths in the antenna array in a mixed manner. For the convenience of distinction and description, antenna element pairs with different azimuths are denoted as a first antenna element pair and a second antenna element pair. In the figure, for easy distinction, the first antenna unit is paired with

Indicates that the second antenna unit is paired with

Said.

Specifically, the antenna array shown in FIG. 101 can be understood as an improvement based on the antenna array shown in FIG. 97. The first antenna unit in FIG. 97 can be replaced with a first antenna unit pair, and the second antenna unit can be replaced with a second antenna unit pair, so that the antenna array can support dual-frequency operation. And the spatial resolution of the antenna array can be improved, and the system throughput can be improved. In addition, by introducing two antenna element pairs with different azimuths, it is beneficial to improve the side lobe suppression capability and improve the system performance.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 101, there are two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements, L10 and L11. Wherein, L10 represents the column spacing between the adjacent first antenna element pair and the second antenna element pair; L11 represents the row spacing between the adjacent first antenna element pair and the second antenna element pair. Optionally, L10>L1. Optionally, L11>L4. Optionally, L10≥L11>0.

Based on the above example of the magnitude relationship between the spacing values, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 101 may have at least one value. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 101, the column spacing of the antenna array includes the column spacing L10 between the adjacent first antenna element pair and the second antenna element pair, and the row spacing of the antenna array includes the adjacent first antenna element pair. The line spacing L11 between the pair of antenna elements and the pair of second antenna elements. Since L10≥L11, the distance between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array may have at least one value.

It should be understood that the antenna array shown in FIG. 101 is only an example, and should not constitute any limitation to this application. For example, only the first antenna element in Figure 97 can be replaced with a first antenna element pair, as shown in Figure 102; or, only the second antenna element in Figure 97 can be replaced by a second antenna element pair, as shown in Figure 103. Shown in Figure 103. The antenna arrays shown in Fig. 102 and Fig. 103 can also obtain antenna arrays that work at dual frequency points. And the spatial resolution of the antenna array can be improved, and the system throughput can be improved.

For the arrangement of the antenna arrays in FIG. 102 and FIG. 103, reference may be made to the above related description in conjunction with FIG. 97 and FIG. 101. For brevity, a detailed description is not provided here. It should be noted that the spacing value in Figure 102 and Figure 103 may be different from the spacing value in Figure 101.

The second antenna unit shown in FIG. 102 has the same diameter as the first QHA unit of the first antenna unit pair, and may also have the same diameter as the second QHA unit of the first antenna unit pair.

In the antenna array shown in FIG. 102, there are two types of spacing between adjacent antenna elements, L12 and L13. Wherein, L12 represents the column spacing between the adjacent first antenna element pair and the second antenna element; L13 represents the row spacing between the adjacent first antenna element pair and the second antenna element. Optionally, L10>L12>0. Optionally, L11>L13>0. Optionally, L12≥L13. Based on the foregoing example of the relationship between the sizes of the spacings, the spacing between adjacent antenna elements in the antenna array shown in FIG. 102 may have at least one value.

Of course, the second antenna element in FIG. 102 may also have the same diameter as the second QHA element in the first antenna element pair. In this case, the value of the above-mentioned spacing can be reduced accordingly.

The diameter of the first QHA unit of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit pair shown in FIG. 103 is the same, and may also be the same as the diameter of the second QHA unit of the second antenna unit pair. The antenna array shown in FIG. 103 also has two spacing values, L12 and L13, and may also have at least one value. The specific analysis and the related description made above with respect to FIG. 102 are not repeated here for the sake of brevity.

Of course, the first antenna element shown in FIG. 103 may also have the same diameter as the second QHA element in the second antenna element pair. In this case, the above spacing values are all reduced accordingly.

It should be understood that the foregoing combination of several possible antenna array forms combines several possible designs together, and multiple schematic diagrams of the antenna array are shown. However, these schematic diagrams are only examples and should not constitute any limitation to this application. The antenna unit pair provided in this embodiment can be combined with any of the possible designs provided above to obtain an antenna array that supports dual-frequency operation. For the sake of brevity, the drawings are not illustrated here.

It should also be understood that the present application describes in detail the antenna array provided by the present application in conjunction with multiple embodiments and drawings. These embodiments and drawings are only used to help those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions of the present application, and are not intended to limit the technical solutions of the present application. Benefiting from the guidance presented in the foregoing description and related drawings, those skilled in the art will think of many improvements and other embodiments of the present application. Therefore, the present application is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed.

The application also provides a communication device. The communication device may include an antenna panel, and the antenna array shown in any one of the above-mentioned embodiments may be deployed in the antenna panel. For example, the embodiments shown in FIG. 5 to FIG. 58, FIG. 60, and FIG. 63 to FIG. 103 are combined with the above.

The above are only specific implementations of this application, but the protection scope of this application is not limited to this. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in this application. Should be covered within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of this application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

An antenna array, characterized in that it comprises:

At least one row of antenna elements arranged in the horizontal direction and at least one column of antenna elements arranged in the vertical direction; wherein the antenna elements in the antenna array include at least one first antenna element and at least one second antenna element, and the first antenna element The number of ports of an antenna unit and the second antenna unit are different, and the number of ports of the first antenna unit is greater than the number of ports of the second antenna unit.
5. The antenna array of claim 1, wherein the first antenna unit is a four-port antenna unit, and the second antenna unit is a two-port antenna unit.
The antenna array according to claim 2, wherein the four-port antenna unit is a four-port four-arm helical antenna QHA unit, the four-port QHA unit is a QHA unit driven by each helical arm individually, and the two The port antenna unit is a cross-polarized antenna unit.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the antenna array comprises at least one row of first antenna elements or at least one column of first antenna elements.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the outermost column or outermost row of the antenna array is the first antenna element.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the two outermost columns or the outermost two rows of the antenna array are first antenna elements, and the two outermost columns are opposite to the antenna The center of the array is symmetrical, and the two outermost rows are symmetrical with respect to the center of the antenna array.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein in each row of antenna elements in the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged; or In each column of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein in each row of antenna elements in the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged; and In each column of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein there is at least one spacing between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array.
9. The antenna array of claim 9, wherein there are multiple spacings between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the first antenna element includes at least one antenna element, the second antenna element includes at least one antenna element, and each antenna element corresponds to One port.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the first antenna element includes at least one sub-array, the second antenna element includes at least one sub-array, and each sub-array includes a plurality of sub-arrays. Antenna elements, and each sub-array corresponds to a port.
An antenna array, characterized in that it comprises:

At least one row of antenna elements arranged in the horizontal direction and at least one column of antenna elements arranged in the vertical direction; wherein the antenna elements in the antenna array include a first antenna element and a second antenna element, and the first antenna element and The second antenna unit is a four-port antenna unit, and the orientation of the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are different, when the center of the first antenna unit coincides with the center of the second antenna unit When the second antenna unit has a deflection angle relative to the first antenna unit.
The antenna array according to claim 13, wherein the deflection angle is 45°.
The antenna array according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the first antenna unit and the second antenna unit are both four-port four-arm helical antenna QHA units, and the four-port QHA unit is each helical QHA unit driven separately by the arm.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein the antenna array comprises at least one row of first antenna elements or at least one column of first antenna elements.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 16, wherein the outermost column or outermost row of the antenna array is the first antenna element.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 17, wherein the two outermost columns or the outermost two rows of the antenna array are first antenna elements, and the two outermost columns are opposite to the antenna The center of the array is symmetrical, and the two outermost rows are symmetrical with respect to the center of the antenna array.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 17, wherein in each row of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged; or, In each column of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 15, wherein in each row of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged; and, In each column of antenna elements of the antenna array, the first antenna elements and the second antenna elements are alternately arranged.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 20, wherein there is at least one spacing between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array.
22. The antenna array of claim 21, wherein there are multiple spacings between adjacent antenna elements of the antenna array.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 22, wherein the first antenna element includes at least one antenna element, the second antenna element includes at least one antenna element, and each antenna element corresponds to One port.
The antenna array according to any one of claims 13 to 22, wherein the first antenna element includes at least one sub-array, the second antenna element includes at least one sub-array, and each sub-array includes a plurality of sub-arrays. Antenna elements, and each sub-array corresponds to a port.
An antenna array, characterized in that it comprises:

At least one four-arm helical antenna QHA pair, each QHA pair in the at least one QHA pair includes a first QHA and a second QHA, the diameter of the first QHA is larger than the diameter of the second QHA, and The second QHA is embedded in the first QHA.