ANTENNA FOR CIRCULAR POLARIZATION, HAVING A CONDUCTIVE BASE SURFACE

• US 20100302112A1
• Filed: 05/24/2010
• Published: 12/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Delphi Delco Electronics Europe GmbH (Aptiv PLC)
• Original Assignee: Delphi Delco Electronics Europe GmbH (Aptiv PLC)
• Inventors: LINDENMEIER, Stefan, HOPF, Jochen, REITER, Leopold, LINDENMEIER, Heinz
• Granted Patent: US 8,334,814 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/713
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/10 Resonant slot antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/24 Combinations of antenna units polarised in different directions for transmitting or receiving circularly and elliptically polarised waves or waves linearly polarised in any direction circularly polarised patch antennas H01Q9/0428; circularly polarised horns H01Q13/0241; cross-polarised horns H01Q13/0258; polarisation converters H01Q15/242; cross-polarised rear feeds H01Q19/136; crossed polarisation dual antenna H01Q25/001
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/28 Conical, cylindrical, cage, strip, gauze, or like elements having an extended radiating surface; Elements comprising two conical surfaces having collinear axes and adjacent apices and fed by two-conductor transmission lines waveguide horns or mouths H01Q13/00; slot antennas H01Q13/00

Abstract

An antenna for circular polarization having an electrical dipole radiator which is oriented essentially parallel to an electrically conductive base surface in a plane of symmetry SE oriented perpendicular to the electrically conductive base surface. The dipole is in connection with a slot radiator which is configured in an electrically conductive base surface, with its longitudinal expanse along the intersection line between the plane of symmetry SE and the electrically conductive base surface. The slot radiator connection location is formed by means of connection points situated at the longitudinal edges and lying opposite one another. The electrical dipole radiator and the slot radiator are tuned to one another in their resonance frequencies. The slot radiator and the electrical dipole radiator with dipole feed line are connected with the antenna connection location by way of a combining network, in terms of magnitude and phase, in such a manner that circular polarization exists in the remote field at the frequency at which the radiators are tuned to one another.

Claims

1. An antenna for circular polarization, comprising:

a) an electrical dipole radiator (1);

b) an electrically conductive base surface (2) having a front side and a back side, and having an antenna connection location (12) on said front side, wherein said electrical dipole radiator (1) is coupled to said electrically conductive base surface (2) and runs at a distance along said front side of said electrically conductive base surface (2) and in a plane of symmetry (SE) oriented perpendicular to said electrically conductive base surface (2), wherein said electrical dipole radiator (1) is oriented essentially parallel to the electrically conductive base surface (2),

c) a dipole feed line (6) coupled at a first end to said electrical dipole radiator (1), said dipole feed line having a dipole connection location (8) which connects to said electrical dipole radiator (1), wherein said dipole feed line (6) runs in the plane of symmetry SE toward the electrically conductive base surface (2),

d) a slot radiator (3) configured in and coupled to said front side of said electrically conductive base surface (2), said slot radiator having a longitudinal expanse (4) along an intersection line between the plane of symmetry SE and said electrically conductive surface (2), said slot radiator (3) comprising;

i) a plurality of longitudinal edges (18);

ii) at least one slot radiator connection location (7);

iii) a plurality of connection points (19, 25) configured to connect said dipole feed line (6) to said slot radiator, said plurality of connection points (19, 25) comprising at least one set of connection points situated at said plurality of longitudinal edges (18) and lying opposite one another wherein said at least one set of connection points (19) are disposed in said at least one slot radiator connection location (7);

e) a combining network (13) comprising a connection between said electrical dipole radiator (1) having said dipole feed line (6), said slot radiator (3), and said antenna connection location (12);

wherein said electrical dipole radiator (1) and said slot radiator (3) are tuned to one another in their resonance frequencies, in terms of magnitude and phase, so that circular polarization exists in a remote field at a frequency at which said radiators are tuned to one another.

2. The antenna according to claim 1, wherein said slot radiator (3), with said slot radiator connection location (7), is formed by introducing an elongated, approximately rectangular slot having essentially straight longitudinal edges (18) and a small slot width (5) in comparison with said longitudinal expanse (4) into the electrically conductive base surface (2), with the longitudinal symmetry line (SL) that results from the intersection line between the plane of symmetry (SE) and the electrically conductive base surface (2) running parallel to the longitudinal expanse (4) and passing through a center location (Z) of said slot radiator (3),

wherein said electrical dipole radiator (1) and a progression of said dipole feed line (6) are essentially symmetrical to a symmetry line (ZL) that stands perpendicular on said electrically conductive base surface (2) and runs through said center location (Z) of said slot radiator (3), and wherein said electrical dipole radiator (1) with its dipole connection location (8) is fed in electrically symmetrical manner.

3. The antenna according to claim 1, further comprising a cavity resonator (15) to support a radiation on a front side of said slot radiator (3) that faces said electrical dipole radiator (1) and shields against the radiation on a back side of said electrically conductive base surface (2).

4. The antenna as in claim 1, wherein said slot radiator (3) has a longitudinal expanse (4) which amounts to approximately half a wavelength,

wherein said electrical dipole radiator (1) is spaced at a distance (14) from said electrically conductive base surface (2) for configuring a circular polarization of the antenna, wherein the dipole spacing distance (14) from said electrically conductive base surface (2) is selected to be about one-quarter of a free space wavelength, and wherein a phase difference of the signals at said dipole connection location (8) and said slot connection location (7) amounts to 0 degrees or a whole-number multiple of 180 degrees, depending on the direction of rotation of the circular polarization, and wherein a set of signal powers that prevail at the two radiator connection locations (7, 8) are of approximately equal size.

5. The antenna as in claim 1, further comprising an antenna line (11), wherein said combining network (13) is connected with said antenna connection location (12) by way of said antenna line (11) that is configured to be non-symmetrical with reference to said electrically conductive base surface (2), and wherein said combining network (13) is formed in a vicinity of a center location (Z) of said electrically conductive base surface (2),

said antenna combining network comprising:

i) a slot connection point (19) of a slot connection location (7) which is formed by a mass connector of said antenna line (11) on one of the two longitudinal edges (18),

ii) another slot connection point (19) which is formed by connection of the voltage-carrying conductor of said antenna line (11) adjacent on the opposite longitudinal edge (18), and

wherein said dipole feed line (6) is structured as a symmetrical two-wire line, the two conductors of which are connected with one of the slot connection points (19), in each instance, so that said slot connection points (25) are also formed by them. (FIG. 1)

6. The antenna as in claim 1, further comprising an antenna line (11), wherein said combining network (13) is connected with said antenna connection location (12) by way of said antenna line (11) that is configured to be non-symmetrical with reference to the electrically conductive base surface (2) as a mass surface, and wherein said antenna line (11) is formed in the vicinity of a center location (Z),

a feed line connection point (25) which is formed by a mass connector of said antenna line (11) on one of said two longitudinal edges (18) of said slot radiator (3);

at least one additional feed line connection point (25) which is formed by connection of a voltage-carrying conductor of the antenna line (11) adjacent on the opposite longitudinal edge (18), that, however, the slot connection location (7) is formed at a distance (16) from the center (Z), in order to reduce the impedance of the slot radiator (3), and is connected by way of a parallel branching of the non-symmetrical antenna line (11), by way of slot connection points (19) formed in analogous manner. (FIG. 2)

7. The antenna as in claim 5 in the part of the line guided between the parallel branching of the antenna line (11) and the slot connection location (7), on the one hand, and to the dipole connection location (8), on the other hand, the result is brought about that the phase and power conditions are met, by means of inserted adaptation networks (10) and/or phase rotation elements (17), as well as by means of the slot width (5) of the slot radiator (3) and by means of the transformation properties of the dipole feed line (6).

8. The antenna as in claim 5, further comprising a circuit board, wherein said electrical dipole radiator (1) and said dipole feed line (6) are imprinted onto said circuit board, wherein the phase and power conditions are met, by means of configuration of the characteristic impedence and by means of configuration of the line length, by means of guiding the line in meander shape, essentially symmetrical to the vertical symmetry line (ZL).

9. The antenna as in claim 5, wherein said combining network (13) is formed from a circuit consisting of reactive elements, having a set of impedance transformation and phase rotation properties required to fulfill the phase and power conditions.

10. The antenna according to claim 5, wherein said slot radiator has two ends formed as transverse slots which are configured to shorten a longitudinal expanse (4) of the slot radiator (3), wherein said transverse slots (22) have a transverse slot length (23), which are configured to be symmetrical relative to the longitudinal symmetry line (SL) and oriented essentially perpendicular to it, and thus, as a function of the transverse slot length (23) and the transverse slot width (24), said slot resonance frequency occurs at a smaller longitudinal expanse (4) than half the free-space wavelength.

11. The antenna as in claim 5, further comprising at least one capacitor (21) which is coupled to at least one end of said electrical dipole radiator (1) and configured to shorten a length of said electrical dipole radiator (1), (FIG. 4)

12. The antenna as in claim 1, wherein said electrically conductive base surface (2) is provided by the outer surface of an electrically conductive vehicle body itself, which is formed from sheet metal, and wherein said slot radiator (3) is introduced into the sheet metal.

13. The antenna as in claim 1, wherein said electrically conductive body (2), is coupled to the outer surface of a vehicle body;

wherein said slot radiator (3) is configured, in a recess of said vehicle body and connected with it in electrically conductive manner, so that the outer surface of the electrically conductive body essentially fills a recess of said electrically conductive vehicle body, and supplements its outer surface with its own surface.

14. The antenna as in claim 1, wherein said electrically conductive surface is formed on a vehicle body that is electrically non-conductive, and wherein said electrically conductive base surface (2) is formed by the surface of the electrically conductive body into which the slot radiator (3) is introduced, which surface is selected to be sufficiently large in area.

15. The antenna as in claim 5, wherein, said antenna line (11) to said slot radiator connection location (7) is configured as a strip line (20) that is configured non-symmetrically with reference to said electrically conductive base surface (2), as a mass surface, the strip conductor of which is guided, in a location of a slot of said slot radiator (3), essentially perpendicular to its longitudinal expanse, and at least partly over said slot, thereby causing one of said plurality of slot connection points (19) to be formed by a point on said electrically conductive base surface (2) at a location where said strip conductor crosses one of said longitudinal edges (18) in a top view, and another slot connection point (19) to be formed by means of contact-free radiation coupling of said voltage-carrying strip conductor to an opposite longitudinal edge (18).

16. The antenna as in claim 15, wherein said combining network (13) further comprises said slot radiator (3), so that a signal power that is present at said antenna connection location (25) is divided up between said slot radiator (3) and said electrical dipole radiator (1) which is fed in at a location of said slot radiator (3) at said slot radiator connection location (7), and wherein a feed of the signal power of the electrical dipole radiator (1) results from connecting the feed line connection points (25) at another location of the slot radiator (3).

17. The antenna as in claim 1, further comprising at least two electrical line pieces configured for transformation between the impedance of said slot radiator (3), which is relatively great in comparison with a characteristic impedance of lines that can be technically implemented, to the impedance level of said electrical dipole radiator (1), by means of the dipole feed line (6), this transformation is structured using said at least two electrical line pieces, each having an electrical length of lambda/4, which are connected in a chain,

whereby to achieve a sufficiently low-ohm line characteristic impedance that can be technically implemented, an impedance of said slot radiator (3) is transformed to a lower impedance level than that of said electrical dipole radiator (1), by means of this line piece, and this impedance level is transformed to the impedance of said electrical dipole radiator (1), which level is higher, in comparison, by means of an additional line piece having a low line characteristic impedance that can be implemented, which is switched in the chain.

18. The antenna as in claim 1, wherein said at least one slot radiator connection location comprises at least two slot radiator connection locations, wherein plurality of antenna connection points comprise at least one first set of connection points and at least one additional set of connection points, wherein said first set of connection points are disposed in a first slot radiator connection location, and said at least one additional set of connection points are disposed in a second radiator connection location.

19. The antenna as in claim 1, wherein said plurality of antenna connection points comprise at least one first set of connection points and at least one additional set of connection points, wherein said at least one first set of connection points, and said at least one additional set of connection points are disposed in said at least one slot radiator connection location.

20. The antenna as in claim 1, wherein said electrical dipole radiator comprises a first dipole radiator, wherein said plurality of antenna connection points comprise a pair of antenna connection points positioned on opposite sides of said at least one slot radiator, wherein said pair of antenna connection points are configured to have opposite polarity, to form a radiation field forming a second dipole radiator extending transverse to said first dipole radiator.