Independently mounted on-glass antenna module
First Claim
1. A vehicle communication system, comprising:
- an antenna having an antenna terminal disposed on a surface of the vehicle;
a communication subsystem having a communication subsystem terminal disposed on the surface, wherein the communication subsystem terminal comprises one of an antenna module output terminal, a coaxial shield terminal, an antenna module power terminal, and an antenna module ground terminal; and
an antenna module comprising;
antenna circuitry having a first circuit terminal and a second circuit terminal;
a first compressible contact electrically coupling the antenna terminal to the first circuit terminal when the compressible contact is compressed;
a second compressible contact electrically coupling the communication subsystem terminal to the second circuit terminal when the compressible contact is compressed; and
a cover adhesively mounted to the surface, said cover being disposed over the antenna circuitry and arranged to compress the first and second compressible contacts when the cover is adhesively mounted to the surface.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An antenna module provides signals received by an antenna to a communication system, such as a vehicle radio, wireless telephony system, or keyless entry system. The antenna module includes antenna circuitry having a terminal. When a compressible contact is compressed, it electrically couples this terminal to another terminal, which is disposed on a surface. A cover disposed over the antenna circuitry compresses the compressible contact when the cover is adhesively mounted to the surface. As a result, the terminals need not be soldered to the glass or other surface. Accordingly, the manufacturing process can be simplified. For example, the antenna module can be installed independently of other manufacturing processes.
34 Citations
16 Claims
-
1. A vehicle communication system, comprising:
-
an antenna having an antenna terminal disposed on a surface of the vehicle;
a communication subsystem having a communication subsystem terminal disposed on the surface, wherein the communication subsystem terminal comprises one of an antenna module output terminal, a coaxial shield terminal, an antenna module power terminal, and an antenna module ground terminal; and
an antenna module comprising;
antenna circuitry having a first circuit terminal and a second circuit terminal;
a first compressible contact electrically coupling the antenna terminal to the first circuit terminal when the compressible contact is compressed;
a second compressible contact electrically coupling the communication subsystem terminal to the second circuit terminal when the compressible contact is compressed; and
a cover adhesively mounted to the surface, said cover being disposed over the antenna circuitry and arranged to compress the first and second compressible contacts when the cover is adhesively mounted to the surface. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
-
-
9. A method for installing an antenna module, the method comprising:
-
providing antenna circuitry having a first terminal and a second terminal;
arranging a first compressible contact to electrically couple the first terminal to an antenna terminal disposed on a surface when the compressible contact is compressed;
arranging a second compressible contact to electrically couple the second terminal to a communication subsystem terminal of a communication subsystem disposed on the surface when the compressible contact is compressed, wherein the communication subsystem terminal comprises one of an antenna module output terminal, a coaxial shield terminal, an antenna module power terminal, and an antenna module ground terminal; and
adhesively mounting a cover disposed over the antenna circuitry to the surface, thereby compressing the compressible contacts and electrically coupling the first terminal to the antenna terminal and the second terminal to the communication subsystem terminal. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
-
Specification