Hybrid antennas for electronic devices

• US 8,106,836 B2
• Filed: 05/13/2008
• Issued: 01/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Hill, Robert J., Myers, Scott A., Schlub, Robert W., Darnell, Dean Floyd, Zhang, Zhijun
• Primary Examiner(s): DUONG, DIEU HIEN
• Application Number:
  US12/120,012
• Publication Number:
  US 20090256759A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,358 Days
• Field of Search: 343/702, 343/872, 343/700.MS, 343/797
• US Class Current: 343/702
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 11/00 Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing waveguides or resonators, lines, or other devices of the waveguide type
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/48 Earthing means; Earth screens; Counterpoises
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/10 Resonant slot antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/103 with variable reactance for tuning the antenna tuning resonant circuits H03J
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/28 Combinations of substantially independent non-interacting antenna units or systems multiple beam H01Q25/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/30 Combinations of separate antenna units operating in different wavebands and connected to a common feeder system
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/0421 with a shorting wall or a shorting pin at one end of the element H01Q9/0414 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/06 Details
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/42 with folded element, the folded parts being spaced apart a small fraction of the operating wavelength
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49018 with other electrical component

Abstract

A portable electronic device is provided that has a hybrid antenna. The hybrid antenna may include a slot antenna structure and an inverted-F antenna structure. The slot antenna portion of the hybrid antenna may be used to provide antenna coverage in a first communications band and the inverted-F antenna portion of the hybrid antenna may be used to provide antenna coverage in a second communications band. The second communications band need not be harmonically related to the first communications band. The electronic device may be formed from two portions. One portion may contain conductive structures that define the shape of the antenna slot. One or more dielectric-filled gaps in the slot may be bridged using conductive structures on another portion of the electronic device. A conductive trim member may be inserted into an antenna slot to trim the resonant frequency of the slot antenna portion of the hybrid antenna.

Claims

1. An antenna in a portable electronic device having first and second housing portions, comprising:

conductive structures in the first housing portion that define an antenna slot having a perimeter with at least one gap; and

a conductive bridging structure mounted to the second housing portion that bridges the gap and completes at least a portion of the perimeter of the antenna slot when the first and second housing portions are connected to form the portable electronic device.

2. The antenna defined in claim 1 further comprising an inverted-F antenna structure mounted adjacent to the antenna slot.

3. The antenna defined in claim 2 wherein the antenna slot handles global positioning system radio-frequency signals, wherein the inverted-F antenna structure handles radio-frequency signals in a 2.4 GHz communications band, and wherein the conductive structures comprise a printed circuit board.

4. The antenna defined in claim 2 wherein the antenna slot handles global positioning system radio-frequency signals, wherein the inverted-F antenna structure handles Bluetooth®

radio-frequency signals in a 2.4 GHz communications band, and wherein the conductive structures comprise a printed circuit board.

5. The antenna defined in claim 2 wherein the antenna slot handles global positioning system radio-frequency signals, wherein the inverted-F antenna structure handles IEEE 802.11 radio-frequency signals in a 2.4 GHz communications band, and wherein the conductive structures comprise a printed circuit board.

6. The antenna defined in claim 1 wherein the conductive structures comprise at least one structure selected from the group consisting of:

a camera, a flex circuit, a conductive bezel, and a metal bracket.

7. The antenna defined in claim 1 wherein the first housing portion comprises a tilt assembly containing a display and wherein the second housing portion comprises a housing assembly containing a plastic housing.

8. A portable electronic device, comprising:

a first assembly containing conductive structures that define an antenna slot, wherein the antenna slot has an inner perimeter with at least one gap, wherein the gap lies along the inner perimeter of the antenna slot; and

a second assembly that includes a conductive bridging structure that bridges the gap and completes at least a portion of the inner perimeter of the antenna slot when the first and second assemblies are connected to each other to form the portable electronic device.

9. The portable electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising a hybrid antenna that includes the antenna slot and an inverted-F antenna structure mounted adjacent to the antenna slot.

10. The portable electronic device defined in claim 8 wherein the first assembly comprises a housing assembly that includes a plastic housing.

11. The portable electronic device defined in claim 10 wherein the second assembly comprises a tilt assembly that includes a display.

12. The portable electronic device defined in claim 11 further comprising an inverted-F antenna structure mounted adjacent to the antenna slot.

13. The portable electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising a hybrid antenna that includes the antenna slot and an inverted-F antenna structure mounted adjacent to the antenna slot, wherein the first assembly comprises a bezel that forms part of the hybrid antenna.

14. The portable electronic device defined in claim 13 wherein the first assembly has first and second spring prongs located on opposite sides of the gap and wherein the conductive bridging structure comprises a conductive member on the second assembly that electrically connects the first and second spring prongs when the first and second assemblies are connected to each other.

15. The portable electronic device defined in claim 14 further comprising a leaf spring that is electrically connected to the conductive structures, wherein the first spring prong forms part of the leaf spring.

16. The portable electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising:

a switch; and

a bracket with which the switch is mounted to the first assembly, wherein the bracket forms one of the conductive structures, and wherein the conductive bridging structure electrically connects the bracket to another of the conductive structures when bridging the gap.

17. The portable electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising an additional gap along the inner perimeter of the antenna slot, wherein the conductive bridging structure bridges both the gap and the additional gap.

18. The portable electronic device defined in claim 17 further comprising first, second, and third springs, wherein the first and second springs are located on opposite sides of the gap and form a first set of electrical contacts between the conductive structures and the conductive bridging structure and wherein the second and third springs are located on opposite sides of the additional gap and form a second set of electrical contacts between the conductive structures and the conductive bridging structure.

19. The portable electronic device defined in claim 18 further comprising an inverted-F antenna structure, wherein the antenna slot and the inverted-F antenna structure form a hybrid antenna that covers at least a first band of communications frequencies associated with the antenna slot and a second band of communications frequencies associated with the inverted-F antenna structure, and wherein the first and second bands are not harmonically related.

20. The portable electronic device defined in claim 19 wherein the first band includes global positioning system signal frequencies and wherein the second band comprises a 2.4 GHz band, and wherein the conductive structures comprise at least one electrical component.

21. The portable electronic device defined in claim 20 wherein the electrical component comprises a camera.

22. The portable electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising an inverted-F antenna structure, wherein the antenna slot and the inverted-F antenna structure form a hybrid antenna that covers at least a first band of communications frequencies associated with the antenna slot and a second band of communications frequencies associated with the inverted-F antenna structure, and wherein the first and second bands are not harmonically related.

23. The portable electronic device defined in claim 22 wherein the first band includes global positioning system signal frequencies and wherein the second band comprises a 2.4 GHz band, and wherein the conductive structures comprise a conductive bezel.

24. The portable electronic device defined in claim 22 wherein the first band includes global positioning system signal frequencies and wherein the second band comprises a 2.4 GHz band, and wherein the conductive structures comprise a flex circuit, a printed circuit board, a camera, and a conductive bezel.

25. The portable electronic device defined in claim 22 wherein the conductive structures comprise conductive foam.

26. The portable electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising:

an inverted-F antenna structure; and

a flex circuit transmission line having a positive signal conductor and a ground signal conductor, wherein the antenna slot and the inverted-F antenna structure form a multiband hybrid antenna for the portable electronic device, and wherein the inverted-F antenna structure comprises a metal structure that is electrically connected to the positive signal conductor and wherein the ground signal conductor is electrically connected to the conductive structures that form the antenna slot.

27. The portable electronic device defined in claim 26 further comprising a solder joint that electrically connects the positive signal conductor to the inverted-F antenna structure.

28. The portable electronic device defined in claim 27 wherein the conductive structures include a switch mounting bracket, the portable electronic device further comprising a screw that electrically connects the ground signal conductor to the switch mounting bracket.