Dielectric antenna device for wireless communications

• US 20090305652A1
• Filed: 10/09/2006
• Published: 12/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Advanced Digital Broadcast SA (Advanced Digital Broadcast Holdings SA)
• Original Assignee: Pirelli & C SPA
• Inventors: Passi, Stefano, Boffa, Vincenzo, Ricci, Fabrizio, Vallauri, Roberto, Germani, Simone
• Granted Patent: US 10,727,597 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/90.300
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/246 specially adapted for base stations
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/42 Housings not intimately mechanically associated with radiating elements, e.g. radome
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/44 using equipment having another main function to serve additionally as an antenna , e.g. means for giving an antenna an aesthetic aspectH01Q1/27 - H01Q1/34 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/0485 Dielectric resonator antennas

Abstract

A wireless transceiver station including an antenna device and a casing, the antenna device including at least one resonator element cooperating with the casing of the wireless transceiver station and having a shape with a low aspect ratio so as to be conformal with the casing, the at least one resonator element including a composite material and being adapted to be excited by a feed system which is positioned inside the resonator element so as to allow the antenna device to irradiate with a substantially omnidirectional radiation pattern.

Claims

1-27. -27. (canceled)

28. A method for controlling the transmission and/or reception of a radio signal from/to a wireless transceiver station provided with a casing, comprising:

providing said wireless transceiver station with at least one antenna device comprising at least one resonator element cooperating with said casing and comprising composite material, said resonator element being shaped so as to have a low aspect ratio and to be conformal with said casing; and

coupling said radio signal with said resonator element so as to resonate therein a resonant mode of a TM_{0, n,δ}

class of resonant modes.

29. A wireless transceiver station comprising at least one antenna device and a casing, said antenna device comprising at least one resonator element cooperating with the casing of said wireless transceiver station and having a shape with a low aspect ratio so as to be conformal with said casing, said at least one resonator element comprising a composite material and capable of being adapted to be excited by a feed system which is positioned inside said resonator element so as to allow said antenna device to irradiate with a substantially omnidirectional radiation pattern.

30. The wireless transceiver station of claim 29, wherein said feed system produces in said at least one resonator element a resonant mode of a TM_{0, n,δ}

class of resonant modes.

31. The wireless transceiver station of claim 29, wherein said substantially omnidirectional radiation pattern has a peak to peak ripple limited to less than 5 dB along a main plane of said antenna device and a minimum of a radiated field along a direction perpendicular to said main plane.

32. The wireless transceiver station of claim 31, wherein said peak to peak ripple is 4 dB.

33. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 31, wherein said minimum value is lower by more than 10 dB than a maximum value of the radiated field.

34. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 33, wherein said minimum value is lower by more than 15 dB than a maximum value of the radiated field.

35. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 31, wherein said at least one resonator element has a substantially axial symmetry around an axis which extends along a direction of the minimum of the radiated field.

36. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 29, wherein said composite material has a dielectric constant of 5-100.

37. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 36, wherein said dielectric constant is 8-40.

38. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 37, wherein said dielectric constant has a value of 10-20.

39. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 36, wherein said composite material comprises at least one polymeric material and at least one dielectric ceramic powder.

40. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 39, wherein said polymeric material is a thermoplastic resin.

41. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 40, wherein said polymeric material is selected from polypropylene and acrylonitrile/butadiene/styrene or a mixture thereof.

42. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 40, wherein said dielectric ceramic powder is selected from titanium dioxide, calcium titanate, and strontium titanate, or a mixture thereof.

43. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 35, wherein said feed system is positioned at a distance from said axis of symmetry of said at least one resonator element which is lower than λ

/8 where λ

is a wavelength corresponding to a resonant within the resonator element.

44. The wireless transceiver station according to 43, wherein said feed system comprises a coaxial connector and a metal pin.

45. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 44, wherein said metal pin is derived from a central pin of said coaxial connector.

46. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 29, wherein said resonator element has an aspect ratio lower than 0.5.

47. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 46, wherein said low aspect ratio is less than 0.25.

48. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 46, wherein said at least one resonator element is supported by a conductive groundplane.

49. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 48, wherein said at least one resonator element comprises a sphere cap, supported by a reversed cut cone, supported by a cylinder and a bottom of said cylinder.

50. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 49, wherein said bottom of said cylinder is partially cut off.

51. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 48, wherein said at least one resonator element comprises a sphere cap and a cylinder supported by said sphere cap, said sphere cap having a top partially cut off.

52. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 48, wherein said at least one resonator element is partly enclosed in a conductive wall connected to said groundplane.

53. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 52, wherein said conductive wall has a cylindrical shape.

54. The wireless transceiver station according to claim 52, wherein said at least one resonator element comprises a cylinder overlapped by a cut sphere.