WO2024080600A1

WO2024080600A1 - Phase shift unit and phase shifter including same

Info

Publication number: WO2024080600A1
Application number: PCT/KR2023/014087
Authority: WO
Inventors: 김용진; 이성훈; 이재준; 김대호; 전후동; 김군중
Original assignee: 주식회사 기가레인
Priority date: 2022-10-13
Filing date: 2023-09-18
Publication date: 2024-04-18
Also published as: KR102512924B1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a phase shift unit. A phase shift unit according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a first circuit board having a first circuit pattern; a second circuit board having a second circuit pattern that can partially overlap the first circuit pattern so as to be electrically connected to the first circuit pattern; a moving member connected to the second circuit board so that the length of a part where the first circuit pattern and the second circuit pattern overlap can be changed by moving the second circuit board; and a housing including a conductive shielding unit and covering at least part of the moving member, the first circuit pattern, and the second circuit pattern.

Description

Phase conversion unit and phase shifter including same

The present invention relates to a phase conversion unit, and more specifically, to a phase conversion unit capable of converting the phase of a transmitted signal and a phase shifter including the same.

Recently, with the introduction of newly expanded 5G services in mobile communication systems, MIMO (Multiple-Input Multiple-Output) antenna technology is gaining prominence.

In general, beamforming is applied to MIMO antenna technology in 5G services. This beamforming method focuses wireless signals in a specific direction by changing the steering angle of the beam radiated from the antenna using a phase shifter. The phase shifter includes a plurality of phase conversion units that shift the phase of a transmitted signal, that is, convert the phase.

Meanwhile, the antenna of the base station equipment providing 5G service consists of 64 antennas, and the number of phase conversion units of the phase shifter is also configured to correspond. For example, in the case of a hybrid beamforming method (2 sub-array method) in which two antennas are connected to one transceiver, there may be 32 phase conversion units.

In this way, when the number of phase conversion units increases, a problem may occur in which the phase conversion of the transmission signal cannot be performed stably due to signal interference between the phase conversion units.

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a phase conversion unit with improved isolation performance and a phase shifter including the same so that the phase of a transmission signal can be stably converted.

The problems of the present invention are not limited to the problems mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

In order to solve the problems described above, a phase shift unit according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a first circuit board having a first circuit pattern; a second circuit board having a second circuit pattern that can partially overlap the first circuit pattern so as to be electrically connected to the first circuit pattern; a moving member connected to the second circuit board to change the length of a portion where the first circuit pattern and the second circuit pattern overlap by moving the second circuit board; and a housing including a conductive shield and covering at least a portion of the moving member, the first circuit pattern, and the second circuit pattern.

The housing may include a non-conductive housing body, and the conductive shield may be supported on the housing body.

The conductive shield may be formed in the form of a thin film on the surface of the housing body.

A plurality of accommodating parts are formed in the housing, a partition is provided between the plurality of accommodating parts, and each of the plurality of accommodating parts accommodates at least a portion of the moving member, the first circuit pattern, and the second circuit pattern. It can be.

The moving member includes: a first moving part on which the second circuit board is disposed; and a second moving part extending from the first moving part, and at least a portion of the second moving part may be accommodated in the housing to press the second circuit board in the direction in which the first circuit board is located.

The moving member may include an elastic member supported by the first moving part to press the second circuit board toward the first circuit board.

In order to solve the problems described above, a phase shifter according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a support frame; and a plurality of phase shift units disposed on the support frame, wherein the phase shift units include: a first circuit board having a first circuit pattern; a second circuit board having a second circuit pattern that can partially overlap the first circuit pattern so as to be electrically connected to the first circuit pattern; a moving member connected to the second circuit board to change the length of a portion where the first circuit pattern and the second circuit pattern overlap by moving the second circuit board; And a housing coupled to the support frame to cover at least a portion of the moving member, the first circuit pattern, and the second circuit pattern, and having a conductive shield short-circuited with the support frame. .

The phase shifter according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a conductive coupling member that secures the housing to the support frame and short-circuits the conductive shield and the support frame.

The coupling member may secure the housing to the support frame by being inserted into an insertion hole formed in the housing and coupled to the support frame.

The coupling member may be provided on the support frame to be inserted into an insertion hole formed in the housing.

The housing includes a non-conductive housing body; and a housing protrusion that is inserted into a coupling hole of the support frame and protrudes from the housing body to secure the housing body to the support frame, wherein the conductive shield is disposed on the surface of the housing body and the housing protrusion. It can be.

In the present invention, by providing a conductive shielding part in the housing of the phase conversion unit, signal interference problems between phase conversion units are reduced, isolation performance is improved, and the phase of the transmission signal can be converted more stably.

In addition, the present invention has the effect of synchronizing the phases of each transmission signal converted by the plurality of phase conversion units by simultaneously operating the plurality of phase conversion units by the operating unit and the driving unit.

The various and beneficial advantages and effects of the present invention are not limited to the above-described contents, and further various effects are included in the present specification.

1 is a perspective view showing a phase shifter according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 shows a portion of a phase shifter according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 3 is an exploded view of a portion of a phase conversion unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 4 is an exploded perspective view of a phase shift unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 5a shows the first and second circuit boards of the phase shift unit according to an embodiment of the present invention separated.

Figure 5b shows the first circuit board and the second circuit board of the phase shift unit according to an embodiment of the present invention combined.

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a portion of a phase shifter according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a method of changing the length of an overlapping portion of a first circuit pattern and a second circuit pattern of a phase shift unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

8 to 11 are cross-sectional views showing various modifications of the phase shifter according to the present invention.

Hereinafter, a phase conversion unit and a phase shifter including the same according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a phase shifter according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The phase shifter 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention is a device that can change the steering angle of a beam radiated from an antenna, and shifts the phase of the transmitted signal through a plurality of phase conversion units 120. , that is, the phase can be converted.

As shown in the drawing, the phase shifter 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a support frame 110, a phase shift unit 120, an operating unit 150, a driving unit 160, and a sliding member. Includes (170).

A plurality of phase conversion units 120 are disposed on the support frame 110. The support frame 110 has a flat plate shape and may be made of a hard material capable of supporting the plurality of phase conversion units 120, for example, a metal material such as aluminum. The support frame 110 may have a square shape so that the plurality of phase conversion units 120 can be arranged in an array. However, the material and shape of the support frame 110 are not limited to the above-described examples. Additionally, at least a portion of the support frame 110 may be made of a conductive material such as metal so that a portion of the phase shift unit 120 can be short-circuited.

The plurality of phase conversion units 120 may be arranged in a plurality of arrays on the support frame 110. Specifically, a plurality of phase conversion units 120 are arranged in an array spaced apart from each other along the second direction on the support frame 110, and the array of these phase conversion units 120 is arranged in plurality along the first direction. It can be.

In Figure 1, the array AR1 and AR2 of the pair of phase conversion units 120 are shown to be arranged spaced apart in the first direction on the support frame 110, but the arrangement structure of the phase conversion unit 120 is It is not limited to these. For example, the plurality of phase conversion units 120 may be arranged in an array of three or more on the support frame 110.

The operation unit 150 is connected to a plurality of phase conversion units 120 so as to operate the plurality of phase conversion units 120 in batches. The operation unit 150 may synchronize the phases of the transmission signals each converted by the plurality of phase conversion units 120 by operating the plurality of phase conversion units 120 in batches. The specific operation of the operation unit 150 will be described later.

The driving unit 160 may provide driving force to operate the operating unit 150.

Below, each component of the phase shifter 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in more detail.

2 to 5B/, each phase conversion unit 120 includes a first circuit board 121, a second circuit board 124, a moving member 127, and a housing 138. .

Depending on the embodiment, the first circuit board 121 and the second circuit board 124 may be formed of a printed circuit board (PCB). As shown in FIG. 5A , the first circuit board 121 may have a first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit board 124 may have a second circuit pattern 125 . The first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 may form a circuit pattern as part of a transmission line that transmits a signal to an antenna. As shown in FIG. 5B, the second circuit board 124 has a side having the second circuit pattern 125 so that the second circuit pattern 125 can be overlapped and connected to the first circuit pattern 122. It may be disposed opposite to the surface having the first circuit pattern 122 of (121). Accordingly, the second circuit pattern 125 may overlap and connect a portion of the first circuit pattern 122 .

The overlapping length of the second circuit pattern 125 with the first circuit pattern 122 may change depending on the operation of the operating unit 150. Specifically, the second circuit board 124 may be connected to the moving member 127, and as the moving member 127 connected to the operating unit 150 moves in the first direction, the first circuit pattern 122 and The length of the overlapping portion of the second circuit pattern 125, that is, the length of the circuit pattern, may be changed. For example, since the second circuit board 124 moves in the first direction together with the moving member 127, while the first circuit board 121 is stationary, the second circuit board 124 moves in the first direction. The length of the circuit pattern may change as it moves along.

The phase conversion unit 120 may take a form in which one or more of the first circuit board 121 and the second circuit board 124 are omitted in order to reduce parts and manufacturing man-hours. For example, the first circuit board 121 may be omitted and the first circuit pattern 122 may be formed in the housing 138. That is, the first circuit pattern 122 may be formed on the lower surface of the housing 138, that is, the surface facing the moving member 127. Additionally, the second circuit board 124 may be omitted and the second circuit pattern 125 may be formed on the moving member 127.

Referring to Figures 3 and 4, the moving member 127 moves the second circuit board 124 to change the length of the portion where the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 overlap. do. The moving member 127 includes a first moving part 128 connected to the second circuit board 124, and a second moving part 130 extending from the first moving part 128 and connected to the operating part 150. and an elastic member 134 supported by the first moving part 128. As shown, the protruding part of the second moving part 130 is inserted into the hole formed in the operating bar 151 of the operating part 150, so that the second moving part 130 can be coupled to the operating bar 151. there is.

The first moving part 128 is provided with a support part 131. As shown, a plurality of support parts 131 may be arranged spaced apart in a hemispherical shape on the upper surface of the first moving part 128. As shown in FIG. 6, the support portion 131 is in contact with the inner surface of the housing 138, so that the first moving portion 128 can be tightly embedded in the housing 138. Accordingly, the first moving part 128 can move stably in the housing 138 in the third direction without lifting.

Although not shown in the drawing, the support part may be provided on the first moving part 128 to be in contact with the second circuit board 124. The support part in contact with the second circuit board 124 may prevent the first moving part 128 from being lifted in the third direction within the housing 138.

As shown in FIG. 3, the first moving part 128 is provided with a slit 132 extending in the longitudinal direction of the moving member 127 and a contact part 133 capable of contacting the inner surface of the housing 138. . The contact portions 133 are disposed on both edges of the first moving portion 128 and may contact the inner surface of the housing 138. A plurality of slits 132 may be provided between a pair of contact portions 133. When the first moving part 128 is located in the housing 138, the contact part 133 may contact the inner surface of the housing 138 and be elastically deformed in the second direction. Accordingly, the first moving part 128 can move stably without being distorted while the pair of contact parts 133 are in stable contact with the inner surface of the housing 138.

The elastic member 134 may be disposed on the first moving unit 128 to apply an elastic force to the second circuit board 124 in a direction in contact with the first circuit board 121 . The elastic member 134 may be made of a material with elasticity, such as rubber or silicon. The elastic member 134 includes an elastic member body 135 in contact with the first moving part 128 and a plurality of legs 136 elastically deformably connected to the elastic member body 135. As shown in FIG. 6 , the plurality of legs 136 may be in contact with one surface of the second circuit board 124 to apply elastic force to the second circuit board 124 . In this way, the elastic member 134 is supported by the first moving part 128 and applies an elastic force to the second circuit board 124, so that the moving member 127 moves the second circuit board 124 while moving the first circuit board 124. The first circuit pattern 122 of the substrate 121 and the second circuit pattern 125 of the second circuit board 124 can be maintained in stable contact.

In this way, the moving member 127 of the phase shift unit 120 according to an embodiment of the present invention presses the second circuit board 124 toward the first circuit board 121 without shaking or twisting in the up, down, left, and right directions. It can stably move linearly together with the second circuit board 124. Accordingly, the moving member 127 stably overlaps the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 and moves the portion where the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 overlap. The length can be adjusted.

In addition to the configuration shown, the elastic member 134 of the moving member 127 may be changed into various other configurations that can apply an elastic force toward the first circuit board 121 with respect to the second circuit board 124.

3, 4, and 6, the housing 138 is disposed on the first circuit board 121 and includes a portion of the moving member 127, a portion of the first circuit board 121, and the second circuit board 121. The circuit board 124 may be covered. The first moving part 128 of the moving member 127, the first circuit pattern 122 of the first circuit board 121, and the second circuit pattern 125 of the second circuit board 124 are formed in a housing ( 138) can be accepted. The housing 138 includes a housing body 139 fixed to the support frame 110 and a conductive shield 144 supported on the housing body 139.

The housing body 139 may be formed of a non-conductive material so as not to distort signals transmitted through the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125. The housing body 139 is formed with a pair of accommodating parts 140 that each accommodate the moving member 127, and a partition 141 is provided between the pair of accommodating parts 140. At least a portion of the moving member 127, the first circuit pattern 122, and the second circuit pattern 125 may be accommodated in each of the pair of accommodation parts 140.

Additionally, the housing body 139 includes an insertion hole 142. The insertion hole 142 may be formed to penetrate the housing body 139 and the conductive shielding portion 144.

The number of receiving portions 140, partition walls 141, and insertion holes 142 provided in the housing body 139 may be changed in various ways.

The conductive shield 144 is coupled to the housing body 139. The conductive shield 144 has a shielding function to block interference signals outside the housing 138. Due to the action of this conductive shield 144, the problem of signal interference with other phase conversion units 120 is reduced, the isolation performance of the phase conversion unit 120 is improved, and through this, the phase conversion unit 120 ) can more stably convert the phase of the transmission signal to the set phase. The conductive shielding portion 144 may be formed in the form of a thin film on the surface of the housing body 139. Additionally, the conductive shielding portion 144 may be formed to partially cover the upper surface of the housing body 139 so as to be spaced apart from the first circuit board 121 . The conductive shield 144 is electrically connected to the support frame 110 by being short-circuited to the support frame 110, and can form a shielding structure against interference signals together with the support frame 110.

The conductive shield 144 is formed using an electrolytic plating method using a plastic electric plating (PEP) method, an electroless plating method using a laser manufacturing antenna (LMA) method, an electroless plating method using a laser direct structuring (LDS) method, or another method of patterning a metal layer on plastic. It may be formed to a thickness of 1 ㎛ to tens of ㎛ or other thickness through a plating method or various other methods.

The housing 138 may be fixed to the support frame 110 through a coupling member 146. The coupling member 146 is inserted into the insertion hole 142 of the housing 138 and its end is inserted into the coupling hole 111 of the support frame 110, thereby fixing the housing 138 to the support frame 110. there is. The coupling member 146 may be made of a conductive material. As shown in FIG. 6, a portion of the coupling member 146 is in contact with the conductive shield 144 and the other portion is in contact with the support frame 110, thereby short-circuiting the conductive shield 144 to the support frame 110. You can. By short-circuiting the conductive shield 144 to the support frame 110 through the coupling member 146, the conductive shield 144 can stably shield interference signals, and the isolation performance of the phase conversion unit 120 is improved. It can be improved further.

In the drawing, two coupling members 146 are shown to secure the housing 138 to the support frame 110 and short-circuit the conductive shield 144 to the support frame 110, but the coupling members 146 The number can be changed in various ways.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the operation unit 150 is connected to a plurality of phase conversion units 120 so as to operate the plurality of phase conversion units 120 in batches. The operation unit 150 includes a plurality of operation bars 151 connected to the moving members 127 of each of the plurality of phase conversion units 120 arranged in an array, and one or more operation bars 151 connecting the plurality of operation bars 151. Includes a guide bar (154). Depending on the embodiment, the plurality of operation bars 151 may be arranged according to the number of arrays of the plurality of phase conversion units 120. For example, as shown in the drawing, a plurality of operation bars 151 may be arranged in pairs to correspond to a pair of arrays AR1 and AR2.

The guide bar 154 may connect both sides of the plurality of operation bars 151, respectively. As shown, a pair of guide bars 154 can be provided to connect a plurality of operation bars 151. The guide bar 154 connects the plurality of motion bars 151 so that the plurality of motion bars 151 can move along the first direction simultaneously. In addition, by simultaneously moving the plurality of operation bars 151 by the guide bar 154, all phase conversion units 120 forming the array AR1 and AR2 of the phase conversion units 120 are operated in batches to transmit the transmission signal. Phases can be converted in batches.

The guide bar 154 may be supported by a plurality of guide rollers 156 installed on the support frame 110. The guide roller 156 is installed in contact with the guide bar 154 and can guide the guide bar 154 so that the guide bar 154 can move stably without lifting from the support frame 110. The number or installation positions of the guide rollers 156 are not limited to those shown and can be changed in various ways.

The driving unit 160 is disposed on the support frame 110 and provides driving force to drive the operating unit 150. The driving unit 160 may be connected to at least one of the plurality of operation bars 151. The plurality of operation bars 151 may reciprocate along the first direction by the driving force provided by the driving unit 160. The driving unit 160 may include a motor 161 and a plurality of gears 162. The plurality of gears 162 may be connected to a screw shaft (not shown) connected to the operating bar 151. Accordingly, the rotational force of the motor 161 is transmitted to the screw shaft through the plurality of gears 162, so that the operation bar 151 can move linearly. In addition, the driving force of the driving unit 160 is transmitted to each phase conversion unit 120 through the operating unit 150, so that the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 of each phase conversion unit 120 are changed. The nested length can be changed.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, the overlapping length of the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 can be changed by the moving member 127 that moves by receiving driving force from the driving unit 160. there is. In FIG. 7 , a hatched portion indicates an area where the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 overlap. As the length of the overlapping portion of the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 increases, the length of the circuit pattern formed by the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 becomes shorter. Conversely, as the length of the overlapping portion of the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 decreases, the length of the circuit pattern formed by the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 becomes longer. Lose. The phase of the transmission signal may be converted according to the length difference value (D) of the circuit pattern formed by the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125.

The movement range of the operation bar 151 and the moving member 127 by the driving unit 160 may be set to match the range of the overlapping area of the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125. For example, the movement range of the operation bar 151 and the moving member 127 may be 0 mm to 14 mm, and the overlapping area range of the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 may be 0 mm to 14 mm. You can.

The driving unit 160 can be changed into various different forms that can provide driving force to move the operation bar 151.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, the sliding member 170 is installed on the support frame 110 to guide the operating bar 151. That is, a portion of the sliding member 170 is inserted into the sliding groove 152 extending in the first direction to the operating bar 151 to limit the movement of the operating bar 151, and the operating bar 151 is connected to the support frame. The operation bar 151 can be guided so that it can move linearly stably without being lifted or shaken from (110).

In addition, the phase shifter 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may further include a control unit (not shown). The control unit may provide an operation command, such as an electrical signal, to the driver 160 to operate the plurality of phase conversion units 120. The operation instructions of this control unit may be implemented through a program executable by a processor.

Depending on the embodiment, the control unit may store attribute values of the motor 161 and the gear 162 of the driving unit 160 so as to control the operation of the driving unit 160. For example, the control unit may store the number of gear teeth of each gear 162, the rotation ratio of each gear 162, etc.

Depending on the embodiment, the control unit may control the driving unit 160 based on the value input from the manager as follows.

First, the control unit can obtain an input value corresponding to the phase to be converted. As an example of the input value, the control unit may obtain the phase conversion value of the phase shifter 100 as an input value. Here, the phase conversion value may be 0° to 12° Tilt, but is not limited thereto.

As another example of the input value, the control unit obtains the length value of the overlapping area of the circuit pattern formed by the first circuit pattern 122 and the second circuit pattern 125 or the movement range value of the operation unit 150 as an input value. can do. Here, the length value of the overlapping area of the circuit pattern and the movement range value of the operating unit 150 may be 0 mm to 14 mm, but are not limited thereto.

Next, after obtaining the input value, the control unit may generate a result value to enable the plurality of phase conversion units 120 to convert the phases identically using the input value and a pre-stored reference value. Specifically, the reference value may include an operation expression or comparison data. For example, an operation expression may be an operation for generating a result value for an input value, and comparison data may be data in which a plurality of input values and their result values are calculated and stored in advance. That is, the pre-stored comparison data includes result values according to input values, and the control unit can match the result values based on the input values.

As an example of a reference value, the pre-stored reference value may include an operation formula or comparison data generated based on the conversion range of the input value and the movement range of the operating unit 150. Here, the conversion range of the input value may be the phase conversion range of the phase conversion unit 120 (for example, 0° to 12° Tilt), and the movement range of the operating unit 150 may be the length of the overlapping area of the circuit pattern. It may mean a change range (for example, 0 mm to 14 mm). More specifically, the calculation equation may be an expression for whether the operating unit 150 must move Ymm in order for the phase to change by X°. For example, when the control unit inputs the tilt angle of the beam (for example, tilting the direction of the beam by 6°) into the calculation equation reflecting the reference value, the movement length of the operating unit 150 (for example, 7 mm) It can be obtained as an output value.

As another example of the reference value, the reference value stored in the control unit may include a gear ratio calculation formula or comparison data generated based on the plurality of gears 162. Here, the gear ratio calculation formula may be data obtained from the number of teeth of the gear 162. The control unit may store the gear ratio calculation formula (for example, number of driven gear teeth/number of drive gear teeth) for each gear 162 and use the gear ratio calculation formula in the calculation process of generating a result value for the input value.

Next, after generating the result value, the control unit can convert the phase of the transmission signal through the plurality of phase conversion units 120 by controlling the driver 160 based on the result value.

Depending on the embodiment, the control unit controls the operating unit 150 to operate through the driving unit 160 based on the generated result value, and may control the moving speed of the operating unit 150 depending on whether there is a load. . Specifically, the result value may include continuous values for moving the operating unit 150 at low or high speed through the driving unit 160, and based on the continuous values, the operating unit 150 may move through the driving unit 160. It can be moved at low or high speed.

The control unit may move the operating unit 150 at a low speed through the driving unit 160 within a preset range according to the result value. When moving at low speed, if no load is applied to the driving unit 160 while moving within a preset range, the control unit can move the operating unit 150 at high speed through the driving unit 160. At this time, 'load' may mean a state in which the operating unit 150 is caught by an obstacle and does not move.

In this way, the control unit moves the operating unit 150 at low speed within a preset range and then moves it at high speed through the driving unit 160, thereby preventing the operating unit 150 from being damaged by an obstacle while moving at high speed.

In addition, the operation of the operating unit 150 and the driving unit 160 may be performed continuously without stopping depending on the driving speed change.

As described above, the phase shifter 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention operates the plurality of phase shift units 120 simultaneously by the operating unit 150 and the driving unit 160, so that the plurality of phase shift units 120 operate simultaneously. This has the effect of synchronizing the phase of each transmission signal converted by (120).

In addition, the phase shifter 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention has a conductive shield 144 in the housing 138 of the phase shift unit 120, thereby reducing signal interference between the phase shift units 120. , isolation performance is improved, which has the effect of converting the phase of the transmission signal more stably.

Table 1 below shows the results of a comparative experiment on the isolation performance of the conventional phase shifter including a housing without a conductive shield and the isolation performance of the phase shifter according to the present invention including a housing with a conductive shield. . As shown in Table 1 below, as a result of comparing and measuring the isolation of the conventional phase shifter and the phase shifter according to the present invention, it was confirmed that the isolation performance of the phase shifter according to the present invention was improved compared to the prior art. .

Meanwhile, Figures 8 to 11 are cross-sectional views showing various modifications of the phase shifter according to the present invention.

First, the phase shifter shown in FIG. 8 is formed such that the conductive shielding portion 244 provided in the housing 238 of the phase shift unit 220 covers the entire upper surface of the housing body 139. This conductive shielding portion 244 may be formed on the surface of the housing body 139 through a plating method of patterning a metal layer on plastic, or various other methods. The conductive shield 244 can improve the isolation performance of the phase shift unit 220 by being shorted to the support frame 110 through the coupling member 146.

The phase shifter shown in FIG. 9 is equipped with a coupling member 346 on the support frame 310 for fixing the housing 338 of the phase shift unit 320 to the support frame 310. The coupling member 346 may be provided on the support frame 310 to stand vertically on the upper surface of the support frame 310.

The housing 338 includes a housing body 339 in which an insertion hole 342 is formed, and a conductive shielding portion 344 formed on the surface of the housing body 339. The housing 338 may be fixed to the support frame 310 by inserting a coupling member 346 into the insertion hole 342. The coupling member 346 is made of a conductive material and can short-circuit the conductive shielding portion 344 of the housing 338 to the support frame 310. The conductive shield 344 can improve the isolation performance of the phase shift unit 320 by being short-circuited to the support frame 310.

The phase shifter shown in FIG. 10 is provided with a coupling member 446 in the housing 438 of the phase shift unit 420. The housing 438 includes a housing body 439 and a conductive shielding portion 444 formed on the surface of the housing body 439. The coupling member 446 may be coupled to the housing 438 through various methods, such as an interference fit method or an insert injection method.

The housing 438 may be fixed to the support frame 110 by inserting the coupling member 446 into the coupling hole 111 of the support frame 110. The coupling member 446 is made of a conductive material and can short-circuit the conductive shielding portion 444 of the housing 438 to the support frame 110. The conductive shield 444 can improve the isolation performance of the phase shift unit 420 by being short-circuited to the support frame 110.

The phase shifter shown in FIG. 11 includes a housing protrusion 548 where the housing 538 of the phase shift unit 520 is inserted into the coupling hole 511 of the support frame 510. The housing 538 includes a housing body 539 and a conductive shield 544 supported on the housing body 539. The housing protrusion 548 may be formed integrally with the housing body 539 to protrude from a surface facing the support frame 510 of the housing body 539. A housing hole 547 is formed in the housing body 539 to extend to the end of the housing protrusion 548. The housing protrusion 548 may be shaped like a hollow tube.

An engaging groove 549 is formed in the housing protrusion 548 into which the engaging protrusion 512 of the support frame 510 is inserted. A plurality of engaging protrusions 512 may be spaced apart along the circumference of the coupling hole 511, and the engaging grooves 549 may be provided in a number and shape corresponding to the plurality of engaging protrusions 512. The conductive shield 544 may be disposed on the upper surface of the housing body 539 and around the housing hole 547. The conductive shield 544 may be shorted to the support frame 510 by contacting the engaging protrusion 512 of the support frame 510. The conductive shield 544 can improve the isolation performance of the phase shift unit 520 by being short-circuited to the support frame 510.

In addition, the housing may be coupled to the support frame in various ways, such as mechanical coupling using other types of coupling members, other mechanical coupling methods, bonding methods, or adhesive methods.

Additionally, the conductive shielding of the housing may be shorted to the support frame in a variety of different ways. For example, the conductive shield may be formed to extend to the lower end of the housing body and may directly contact the support frame without using a separate coupling member.

Although the present invention has been described above with preferred examples, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the form described and shown above.

For example, the number of phase conversion units disposed on the support frame may vary.

Additionally, the first circuit board may be provided in a number corresponding to the number of phase shift units, or may be provided in a number smaller than the number of phase shift units. When the number of first circuit boards is smaller than the number of phase shift units, two or more first circuit patterns that can form a plurality of phase shift units may be provided on one first circuit board.

In addition, in the embodiments shown in the drawing, the conductive shield for improving the isolation performance of the phase shift unit is shown to be disposed on the entire upper surface of the housing body or a part of the upper surface of the housing body, but the location of the conductive shield or The form can change in various ways. As another exemplary embodiment, the conductive shield may be formed to extend from the top surface of the housing body to the side, or may be formed on the side of the housing body.

Additionally, although the embodiments shown in the drawings show the conductive shield being shorted to the support frame, the conductive shield may be disposed without being shorted to the support frame.

Additionally, in the embodiments shown in the drawings, the conductive shielding portion is shown to be formed in the form of a thin film on the surface of the housing body, but the conductive shielding portion may be formed of metal or other conductive material in various other shapes, such as a plate shape or a block shape.

Additionally, the conductive shielding part may be disposed on or built into the surface of the housing body through insert injection, or various bonding methods other than plating.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not necessarily limited to these embodiments and may be implemented in various modifications without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. Accordingly, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are not intended to limit the technical idea of the present invention, but are for illustrative purposes, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. Therefore, the embodiments described above should be understood in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of protection of the present invention should be interpreted in accordance with the claims below, and all technical ideas within the equivalent scope should be construed as being included in the scope of rights of the present invention.

Claims

a first circuit board having a first circuit pattern;

a second circuit board having a second circuit pattern that can partially overlap the first circuit pattern so as to be electrically connected to the first circuit pattern;

a moving member connected to the second circuit board to change the length of a portion where the first circuit pattern and the second circuit pattern overlap by moving the second circuit board; and

A phase conversion unit comprising a housing that includes a conductive shield and covers at least a portion of the moving member, the first circuit pattern, and the second circuit pattern.
According to claim 1,

The housing is,

Includes a non-conductive housing body,

A phase conversion unit, characterized in that the conductive shielding part is supported on the housing body.
According to claim 2,

A phase conversion unit, wherein the conductive shielding part is formed in the form of a thin film on the surface of the housing body.
According to claim 1,

A plurality of receiving parts are formed in the housing, and a partition is provided between the plurality of receiving parts,

A phase conversion unit, characterized in that at least a portion of the moving member, the first circuit pattern, and the second circuit pattern are accommodated in each of the plurality of accommodation parts.
According to claim 1,

The moving member is,

a first moving unit on which the second circuit board is disposed; and

It includes a second moving part extending from the first moving part,

A phase shift unit, wherein at least a portion of the second circuit board is accommodated in the housing to press the second circuit board in the direction in which the first circuit board is located.
According to claim 5,

The moving member is,

An elastic member supported by the first moving unit to press the second circuit board toward the first circuit board.
support frame; and

It includes a plurality of phase conversion units disposed on the support frame,

The phase conversion unit is,

a first circuit board having a first circuit pattern;

a second circuit board having a second circuit pattern that can partially overlap the first circuit pattern so as to be electrically connected to the first circuit pattern;

a moving member connected to the second circuit board to change the length of a portion where the first circuit pattern and the second circuit pattern overlap by moving the second circuit board; and

A housing coupled to the support frame to cover at least a portion of the moving member, the first circuit pattern and the second circuit pattern, and having a conductive shield short-circuited with the support frame. Cheongi.
According to claim 7,

A conductive coupling member that secures the housing to the support frame and short-circuits the conductive shield and the support frame.
According to claim 8,

The phase shifter is characterized in that the coupling member is inserted into an insertion hole formed in the housing and is coupled to the support frame, thereby fixing the housing to the support frame.
According to claim 8,

The phase shifter, characterized in that the coupling member is provided on the support frame to be inserted into an insertion hole formed in the housing.
According to claim 7,

The housing is,

Non-conductive housing body; and

A housing protrusion protrudes from the housing body to be inserted into a coupling hole of the support frame to secure the housing body to the support frame,

The phase shifter, characterized in that the conductive shield is disposed on the surface of the housing body and the housing protrusion.