Antenna device and communication device

• US 8,212,736 B2
• Filed: 12/04/2007
• Issued: 07/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Koyanagi, Yoshio, Satoh, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): MANCUSO, HUEDUNG XUAN CAO
• Application Number:
  US12/746,491
• Publication Number:
  US 20100277395A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,673 Days
• Field of Search: 343/876, 343/702, 343/700.MS
• US Class Current: 343/876
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/242 specially adapted for hand-held use
• 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: H04B 7/0691 using subgroups of transmit antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 7/10 Polarisation diversity; Directional diversity

Abstract

An antenna device and a communication device capable of changing over polarization characteristics of an antenna to improve transmission capacity in various kinds of polarization environments and used configuration by preventing reduction of the communication capacity for a reception signal degrading or varying depending on momentarily changing polarization conditions between a base station and a terminal. The antenna device (110) includes a plurality of first antenna elements (111,112) for a first polarizing direction, a second antenna element (121) provided in the direction orthogonal to the first polarizing direction, a plurality of switches (131,132) for switching connection between the plurality of first antenna elements (111,112) and the second antenna element (121), and power supply parts (141,142) respectively provided on the plurality of first antenna elements (111,112).

Claims

1. An antenna apparatus comprising:

at least two first antenna elements for a first polarization direction;

a second antenna element that is set in a direction orthogonal to the first polarization direction;

a switch that switches connections between the first antenna elements and the second antenna element; and

a feeding section that is set in each of the first antenna elements.

2. The antenna apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the switch switches the connections depending on a polarization direction.

3. The antenna apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, when a number of feeding points of the feeding section is N (where N is an arbitrary natural number), a number of the first antenna elements and second antenna elements is N+(N−

1), and a number of switches is (N−

1)×

2.

4. A communication apparatus having an antenna apparatus used for MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) or diversity, wherein the antenna apparatus is the antenna apparatus according to claim 1.