Hand-held transceiver antenna system

• US 6,317,089 B1
• Filed: 12/23/1999
• Issued: 11/13/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Wilson Electronics LLC (Wilson Electronics Holdings LLC)
• Original Assignee: Wilson Electronics
• Inventors: Wilson, James W., Buren, Alan Van
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Don
• Assistant Examiner(s): DINH, TRINH VO
• Application Number:
  US09/471,537
• Time in Patent Office: 691 Days
• Field of Search: H01/Q.132, 343/713, 343/906, 343/702, 343/715, 343/725, 343/700.MS, 343/795
• US Class Current: 343/713
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/3291 mounted in or on other locations inside the vehicle or vehicle body
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/285 Planar dipole H01Q9/065 takes precedence; patch antenna H01Q9/0407

Abstract

Apparatus is provided for coupling to a hand-held transceiver such as a cellular phone that is being operated in a radio frequency-shielded environment such as in an automobile, to transfer energy between the transceiver and an auxiliary antenna that is not shielded from the surroundings. The apparatus includes a pair of capacitor coupling elements (30, 32) that are positioned adjacent to each of the two radiating elements (40, 54) of the hand-held transceiver, and a coaxial cable (20) that connects the coupling elements to the auxiliary antenna. Each coupling element includes a sheet of electrically conductive material lying adjacent to a corresponding radiating element of the transceiver without surrounding the transceiver. A piece of releasable fastening material such as VELCRO is fixed to the transceiver, and a corresponding releasable fastening piece is fixed to the coupler that includes the coupling elements, to enable the user to quickly mount the coupling to transmit and receive from within a vehicle and to quickly disconnect for use of the transceiver outside the vehicle.

Claims

1. A hand-held transceiver that has first and second radiating elements, and apparatus that is unpowered for transferring energy between said transceiver and an auxiliary antenna, comprising:

a capacitive coupler comprising upper and lower capacitive coupling elements lying adjacent, respectively, to said first and second radiating elements to capacitively couple to said radiating elements;

a coaxial cable for coupling said coupler to said auxiliary antenna, said coaxial cable having inner and outer coax conductors with one coax conductor connected to said first coupling element and the other coax conductor coupled to said second coupling element;

said upper coupling element has a primarily rectangular upper part and has a tapered lower end that is of progressively greater horizontal width at progressively higher locations therealong, and said lower coupling element has a primarily rectangular lower part and has a tapered upper end that is of progressively greater horizontal width at progressively lower locations therealong, with said coax conductors connected one to the lower end of said upper coupling element and the other to the upper end of said lower coupling element.

2. In a vehicle that includes a primarily metal body, an auxiliary antenna mounted substantially on the outside of the vehicle, and a hand-held transceiver located inside the vehicle, where the transceiver includes a metal housing forming a lower radiator element and a rod-like member extending up from said housing and forming an upper radiating element, with at least the upper radiating element having a height that is a plurality of times greater than its horizontal width, an improvement comprising:

a capacitive coupler that includes upper and lower electrically conductive coupling elements, said coupler being detachably connected to said hand-held transceiver with said upper and lower coupling elements lying adjacent to said upper and lower radiating elements, respectively;

a transmission line connecting said coupling elements to said auxiliary antenna;

each of said coupling elements includes electrically conductive material having a width and having a height that is more than twice said width.

3. The improvement described in claim 2 wherein:

said capacitive coupler includes a dielectric substrate and upper and lower sheets of electrically conductive material that are mounted on said substrate with said upper sheet lying at a higher level than said lower sheet, with each sheet forming one of said coupling elements and with each sheet facing one of said radiating elements, with said upper sheet having upper and lower ends and said lower sheet having upper and lower ends;

said upper end of said upper sheet is of rectangular shape and said lower end of said upper sheet is tapered in width to be progressively wider at progressively higher locations, and said lower end of said lower sheet is of rectangular shape and said upper end of said lower sheet is tapered in width to be progressively wider at progressively lower locations.

4. The improvement described in claim 2 wherein:

said radiating elements each is elongated and extends primarily vertically;

at least said lower coupling element extends along a height that is greater than half the height of said body.

5. The improvement described in claim 2 wherein:

said transceiver is constructed to transmit at a predetermined frequency, and each of said coupling elements is spaced from a corresponding radiating element by no more than one-tenth of the wavelength of said predetermined frequency.

6. The improvement described in claim 5 wherein:

said coupling elements each has a surface facing a corresponding radiating element, with the width of the surface of a first of said coupling elements subtending an angle A of at least 60°

around the corresponding radiating element.