CAVITY ANTENNAS

• US 20130050032A1
• Filed: 08/30/2011
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Bevelacqua, Peter, Zhu, Jiang, Guterman, Jerzy, Shiu, Boon W.
• Granted Patent: US 9,455,489 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/702
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/2258 used with computer equipment
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/24 with receiving set
• 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 13/18 the slot being backed by, or formed in boundary wall of, a resonant cavity longitudinally slotted cylinder H01Q13/12 ; Open cavity antennas

Abstract

Cavity antennas may be provided for electronic devices. A cavity antenna may have a conductive antenna cavity with an opening. An antenna resonating element may be soldered within the cavity opening. An electronic device may have a display that is covered by a display cover layer. A cavity antenna may be mounted so that the cavity opening is located under a portion of the display cover layer outside of the active display region. An antenna cavity for a cavity antenna may have one or more bends. A curved antenna cavity or a cavity antenna with one or more angled branches may have a portion that extends between a conductive housing wall and internal device components such as a display. A speaker may be formed using the interior volume within a cavity antenna.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

a conductive housing;

at least one conductive internal component within the conductive housing; and

a cavity antenna having an antenna cavity with conductive walls and an antenna resonating element, wherein the antenna cavity has an opening in which the antenna resonating element is located and wherein the antenna cavity has curved portions that are located between the at least one conductive internal component and the conductive housing.

2. The electronic device defined in claim 1 wherein the conductive housing comprises a metal housing wall.

3. The electronic device defined in claim 2 wherein the conductive internal component comprises a display.

4. The electronic device defined in claim 3 further comprising a display cover layer having a region that covers the display, wherein the opening is located adjacent to an area of the display cover layer outside of the region.

5. The electronic device defined in claim 4 wherein the antenna resonating element comprises a laser-patterned antenna resonating element that is soldered to an edge of the conductive walls of the antenna cavity, wherein the edge surrounds the opening.

6. The electronic device defined in claim 4 wherein the antenna resonating element comprises a two-shot plastic substrate.

7. The electronic device defined in claim 1 wherein the antenna cavity has a T-shape.

8. The electronic device defined in claim 1 wherein the cavity antenna is configured to operate at an operating frequency, wherein the antenna cavity has a curved shape characterized by a bend radius, and wherein the bend radius is greater than one quarter of a wavelength at the operating frequency.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising a speaker having an interior chamber, wherein the conductive walls surround the interior chamber.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 9 wherein the speaker comprises a mesh covering the opening and the antenna resonating element.

11. Apparatus, comprising:

conductive cavity walls forming an antenna cavity in a cavity antenna and forming an interior volume for a speaker, wherein the antenna cavity has an opening that serves as a speaker port through which sound produced by the speaker exits the speaker.

12. The apparatus defined in claim 11 further comprising a diaphragm and a speaker driver attached to the diaphragm, wherein the diaphragm and speaker are mounted within the antenna cavity.

13. The apparatus defined in claim 12 wherein the antenna cavity has a length with at least two bends.

14. The apparatus defined in claim 11 wherein the antenna cavity comprises stamped metal walls and wherein the cavity antenna further comprises a laser-patterned antenna resonating element in the opening.

15. The apparatus defined in claim 14 wherein the opening has an edge and wherein the apparatus further comprises solder connected to the antenna resonating element along at least part of the edge.

16. Apparatus, comprising:

a conductive antenna cavity having an opening with a peripheral edge; and

a laser-patterned antenna resonating element soldered to the peripheral edge.

17. The apparatus defined in claim 16 further comprising:

a conductive electronic device housing; and

an internal electrical component within the housing, wherein at least a portion of the conductive antenna cavity is interposed between the internal electrical component and the conductive electronic device housing.

18. The apparatus defined in claim 16 wherein the conductive antenna cavity has multiple branches that surround an internal electrical component within an electronic device.

19. The apparatus defined in claim 16 further comprising:

an electronic device housing;

a display in the housing; and

a cover layer that covers the display in an active area and that has an inactive area not covering the display, wherein the opening is mounted under the inactive area.

20. The apparatus defined in claim 19 wherein the conductive antenna cavity has at least a portion that lies between the display and a rear surface of the housing.

21. A cavity, comprising:

a conductive antenna cavity; and

an antenna resonating element having a substrate on which conductive antenna resonating element structures are formed, wherein the conductive structures are soldered to the conductive antenna cavity and wherein the substrate comprises a substrate selected from the group consisting of;

a laser-patterned substrate on which the conductive structures are formed using laser patterning and a two-shot molded plastic substrate having first and second shots of plastic with different metal affinities.