Body antenna system

• US 10,014,578 B2
• Filed: 12/18/2014
• Issued: 07/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: NXP B.V. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Inventors: Kerselaers, Anthony, Gomme, Liesbeth, Thoen, Steven
• Primary Examiner(s): Tsang, Fan
• Assistant Examiner(s): McKinney, Angelica M
• Application Number:
  US14/575,865
• Publication Number:
  US 20150318613A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,293 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 2038/146 in combination with capacitive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/273 Adaptation for carrying or wearing by persons or animals
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/00 Loop antennas with a substantially uniform current distribution around the loop and having a directional radiation pattern in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the loop
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/005 with variable reactance for tuning the antenna
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/40 Circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 13/005 Transmission systems in which the medium consists of the human body
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/22 Capacitive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/26 using coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/263 Multiple coils at either side
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/266 One coil at each side, e.g. with primary and secondary coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/48 Transceivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/72 for local intradevice communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2225/51 Aspects of antennas or their circuitry in or for hearing aids
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/554 using a wireless connection, e.g. between microphone and amplifier or using Tcoils

Abstract

An electromagnetic induction antenna including: a first inductor including windings; a second inductor including windings spaced apart from the first inductor; and an impedance connecting the first and second inductors; wherein the first and second inductor form a capacitor; wherein the capacitor is an electric field antenna, and wherein the inductor is a magnetic field antenna.

Claims

1. An electromagnetic induction wireless communication system comprising an electromagnetic induction antenna comprising:

a first inductor including windings;

a second inductor including windings spaced apart from the first inductor; and

an impedance connecting the first and second inductors, wherein the first inductor and the second inductor form parallel plates of a capacitor configured to act as an electric field antenna, and wherein the first inductor and the second inductor together form a combined inductor configured to act as a magnetic field antenna, wherein the electromagnetic induction antenna is configured to communicate using a reactive electric field that is coupled to a living body, the reactive electric field has a direction perpendicular to a surface of the living body, and the reactive electric field is available around the living body.

2. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 1, further comprising:

a tuning capacitor coupled to the first inductor and the second inductor to create a resonating circuit that is configured to operate at a specific frequency.

3. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 1, further comprising a transmitter comprising:

the electromagnetic induction antenna; and

a signal source configured to produce a first communication signal used to drive the electric field antenna to produce the reactive electric field in a near-field region of the electric field antenna and to drive the magnetic field antenna to produce a reactive magnetic field in a near-field region of the magnetic field antenna, wherein the transmitter, when positioned at a location on the living body, is configured to communicate with a receiver positioned at another location on the living body.

4. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 3, wherein the transmitter further comprises:

a voltage control unit coupled to the signal source configured to produce at least one of an amplitude difference and a phase difference between the communication signal used to drive the electromagnetic induction antenna.

5. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 4, wherein the transmitter further comprises:

a controller, including a data processing unit and a signal processing unit, configured to control operation of the voltage control unit.

6. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 3, further comprising a transceiver comprising:

the transmitter; and

a signal detector connected to the electromagnetic induction antenna configured to detect a second communication signal.

7. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 6, wherein

the signal detector is configured to detect the second communication signal from a bridging device near the living body, wherein the second communication signal includes audio data from a remote device in communication with the bridging device.

8. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 7, wherein

the signal source is configured to transmit the first communication signal to the bridging device coupled to the living body.

9. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 6, wherein

the signal detector is configured to detect the second communication signal received from a remote control device near the living body, wherein operation of the transceiver is configured to be controlled by the second communication signal received from the remote control device.

10. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 9, wherein

the signal source is configured to transmit the first communication signal to the remote control device coupled to the living body.

11. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 6, wherein

the signal source is configured to transmit the first communication signal to a wrist mounted device coupled to the living body.

12. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 11, wherein

the signal detector is configured to detect the second communication signal received from the wrist mounted device coupled to the living body.

13. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 1, further comprising a receiver comprising:

the electromagnetic induction antenna; and

a signal detector connected to the electromagnetic induction antenna configured to detect a communication signal received from a transmitter positioned near the living body via the reactive electric field received by the electric field antenna and a reactive magnetic field received by the magnetic field antenna.

14. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 1, wherein

the electromagnetic induction antenna is implemented in a wrist mounted device that comprises one of a display device, a remote control device, and a bridging device coupled to the living body, wherein the bridging device is in communication with one or more remote devices.

15. The electromagnetic induction antenna of claim 1, wherein the combined inductor has an inductance larger than inductances of the first inductor and the second inductor.

16. The electromagnetic induction antenna of claim 1, wherein the first inductor is a first planar coil and the second inductor is a second planar coil that is parallel to the first planar coil, and wherein the capacitor has a capacitance proportional to a physical separation between the first inductor and the second inductor.

17. The electromagnetic induction wireless communication system of claim 1, wherein the electromagnetic induction antenna is implemented in a hearing aid device, and the first inductor and the second inductor are each fitted on different sides of housing of the hearing aid device.

18. A wrist mounted device comprising:

a first inductor;

a second inductor spaced apart from the first inductor;

an impedance connected to a first terminal of the first inductor and a first terminal of the second inductor, wherein the first inductor and the second inductor form parallel plates of a first capacitor configured to act as a first electric field antenna;

a third inductor having a first terminal connected to a second terminal of the first inductor;

a fourth inductor having a first terminal connected to a second terminal of the second inductor, the fourth inductor spaced apart from the third inductor, wherein the third inductor and fourth inductor form parallel plates of a second capacitor configured to act as a second electric field antenna, wherein the first, second, third, and fourth inductors together form a combined inductor to act as a magnetic field antenna, and wherein the wrist mounted device is configured to communicate using a reactive electric field that is coupled to a living body, the reactive electric field has a direction perpendicular to a surface of the living body, and the reactive electric field is available around the living body; and

a signal source having a first terminal connected to a second terminal of the third inductor and a second terminal connected to a second terminal of the fourth inductor, the signal source configured to produce a communication signal used to drive the first and second electric field antennas to produce the reactive electric field and drive the magnetic field antenna to produce a reactive magnetic field, wherein the wrist mounted device, when coupled to the living body, is configured to communicate with another wrist mounted device coupled to the living body using the reactive electric field and the reactive magnetic field.

19. The wrist mounted device of claim 18, further comprising:

a signal detector connected to the first and second electric field antennas and the magnetic field antenna, the signal detector configured to detect the communication signal received from the other wrist mounted device coupled to the living body.

20. A wrist mounted device comprising:

a first inductor;

a second inductor spaced apart from the first inductor;

an impedance connected to a first terminal of the first inductor and a first terminal of the second inductor, wherein the first inductor and the second inductor form parallel plates of a first capacitor configured to act as a first electric field antenna;

a third inductor having a first terminal connected to a second terminal of the first inductor;

a fourth inductor having a first terminal connected to a second terminal of the second inductor, the fourth inductor spaced apart from the third inductor, wherein the third inductor and the fourth inductor form parallel plates of a second capacitor configured to act as a second electric field antenna, wherein the first, second, third, and fourth inductors together form a combined inductor to act as a magnetic field antenna, and wherein the wrist mounted device is configured to communicate using a reactive electric field that is coupled to a living body, the reactive electric field has a direction perpendicular to a surface of the living body, and the reactive electric field is available around the living body; and

a signal detector having a first terminal connected to a second terminal of the third inductor and a second terminal connected to a second terminal of the fourth inductor, the signal detector configured to detect a communication signal received from another wrist mounted device coupled to the living body using the reactive electric field received on the first and second electric field antennas and a reactive magnetic field received on the magnetic field antenna.