Tunable antenna system with multiple feeds

• US 8,798,554 B2
• Filed: 02/08/2012
• Issued: 08/05/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Darnell, Dean F., Ouyang, Yuehui, Xu, Hao, Ayala Vazquez, Enrique, Zhou, Yijun, Bevelacqua, Peter, Nickel, Joshua G., Jin, Nanbo, Mow, Matthew A., Schlub, Robert W., Pascolini, Mattia, Hu, Hongfei
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TUAN HOANG
• Application Number:
  US13/368,855
• Publication Number:
  US 20130203364A1
• Time in Patent Office: 909 Days
• Field of Search: 455/73, 455/77, 455/90.3, 455/132, 455/550.1, 455/575.7, 343/702, 343/745, 343/850, 343/853, 343/857, 343/909, 333/132
• US Class Current: 455/77
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 5/35 using two or more simultaneously fed points

Abstract

Electronic devices may be provided that contain wireless communications circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include radio-frequency transceiver circuitry and antenna structures. The antenna structures may form an antenna having first and second feeds at different locations. The transceiver circuit may have a first circuit that handles communications using the first feed and may have a second circuit that handles communications using the second feed. A first filter may be interposed between the first feed and the first circuit and a second filter may be interposed between the second feed and the second circuit. The first and second filters and the antenna may be configured so that the first circuit can use the first feed without being adversely affected by the presence of the second feed and so that the second circuit can use the second feed without being adversely affected by the presence of the first feed.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

an antenna;

a first antenna feed at a first location in the antenna;

a second antenna feed at a second location in the antenna;

a first radio-frequency receiver that is configured to receive radio-frequency signals from the antenna in a first communications band;

a second radio-frequency receiver that is configured to receive radio-frequency signals from the antenna in a second communications band;

a first filter coupled between the first radio-frequency receiver and the first antenna feed, wherein the first filter is configured to pass the radio-frequency signals in the first communications band and is configured to block the radio-frequency signals in the second communications band; and

a second filter coupled between the second radio-frequency receiver and the second antenna feed, wherein the second filter is configured to pass the radio-frequency signals in the second communications band and is configured to block the radio-frequency signals in the first communications band, wherein the second filter comprises a notch filter.

2. The electronic device defined in claim 1 wherein the first filter comprises a band-pass filter.

3. The electronic device defined in claim 2 wherein the band-pass filter has a passband and wherein the notch filter has a stopband that overlaps the passband.

4. The electronic device defined in claim 3 wherein the first radio-frequency receiver comprises a satellite navigation system receiver.

5. The electronic device defined in claim 4 wherein the second radio-frequency receiver comprises a cellular telephone receiver.

6. The electronic device defined in claim 5 wherein the cellular telephone receiver is configured to operate in a third communications band, wherein the second filter is configured to pass radio-frequency signals in the third communications band.

7. The electronic device defined in claim 6 wherein the third communications band includes frequencies lower than the stopband and wherein the second communications band includes frequencies higher than the stop band.

8. The electronic device defined in claim 7 further comprising a tunable circuit coupled to the notch filter that is configured to tune the antenna to cover the third communications band.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 8 wherein the tunable circuit comprises a switch-based adjustable capacitor configured to exhibit at least first and second selectable capacitances.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 1 further comprising a tunable circuit coupled to the second filter that is configured to tune the antenna.

11. The electronic device defined in claim 10 wherein the tunable circuit comprises a switch-based adjustable capacitor having at least first and second selectable capacitances.

12. The electronic device defined in claim 11 further comprising a signal path coupled between the second antenna feed and the second radio-frequency receiver, wherein the switch-based adjustable capacitor is interposed within the path between the second antenna feed and the second radio-frequency receiver, and wherein the second filter is interposed between the second antenna feed and the switch-based adjustable capacitor.

13. The electronic device defined in claim 12 wherein the first radio-frequency receiver comprises a satellite navigation system receiver and wherein the second radio-frequency receiver comprises a cellular telephone receiver.

14. The electronic device defined in claim 13 further comprising a cellular telephone transmitter that is coupled to the signal path.

15. The electronic device defined in claim 1 further comprising:

a housing containing conductive structures that form an antenna ground for the antenna and having a peripheral conductive member that runs around at least some edges of the housing, wherein at least part of the peripheral conductive member forms an antenna resonating element for the antenna.

16. An electronic device, comprising:

an antenna having a first antenna feed at a first location and a second antenna feed at a second location;

a first radio-frequency receiver that is configured to receive radio-frequency signals from the antenna in a first communications band;

a second radio-frequency receiver that is configured to receive radio-frequency signals from the antenna in a second communications band;

a first filter coupled between the first radio-frequency receiver and the first antenna feed, wherein the first filter is configured to pass the radio-frequency signals in the first communications band and is configured to exhibit a first impedance in the second communications band;

a second filter coupled between the second radio-frequency transceiver and the second antenna feed, wherein the second filter is configured to pass the radio-frequency signals in the second communications band and is configured to exhibit a second impedance in the first communications band, wherein the second filter and the antenna are configured so that the antenna exhibits a first resonance in the first communications band while the second filter is exhibiting the second impedance in the first communications band and wherein the first filter and the antenna are configured so that the antenna exhibits a second resonance in the second communications band while the first filter is exhibiting the first impedance in the second communications band; and

a housing containing conductive structures that form an antenna ground for the antenna and having a peripheral conductive member that runs around at least some edges of the housing, wherein at least part of the peripheral conductive member forms an antenna resonating element for the antenna.

17. The electronic device defined in claim 16 wherein the first filter is configured to exhibit a third impedance in the first communications band and wherein the third impedance is less than the second impedance.

18. The electronic device defined in claim 16 further comprising a tunable circuit coupled to the second filter that is configured to tune the antenna.

19. The electronic device defined in claim 18 further comprising an adjustable capacitor in the tunable circuit.

20. The electronic device defined in claim 16, wherein the second filter comprises a notch filter.

21. An electronic device, comprising:

an antenna having first and second antenna feeds at different locations;

radio-frequency transceiver circuitry having a first circuit that handles communications associated with the first antenna feed and a second circuit that handles communications associated with the second antenna feed;

a first filter coupled between the first antenna feed and the first circuit, wherein the first filter is configured to pass radio-frequency signals in a first communications band and is configured to block radio-frequency signals in a second communications band;

a second filter coupled between the second antenna feed and the second circuit, wherein the second filter is configured to block the radio-frequency signals in the first communications band and is configured to pass the radio-frequency signals in the second communications band;

a tunable circuit coupled to the second filter that is configured to tune the antenna; and

a tunable capacitor in the tunable circuit.

22. The electronic device defined in claim 21 further comprising a housing containing conductive structures that form an antenna ground for the antenna and having a peripheral conductive member that runs around at least some edges of the housing, wherein at least part of the peripheral conductive member forms an antenna resonating element for the antenna.

23. The electronic device defined in claim 22 further comprising a signal path between the second filter and the second circuit, the electronic device further comprising:

an additional antenna; and

an antenna selection switch interposed in the signal path, wherein the antenna selection switch is coupled to the additional antenna.

24. The electronic device defined in claim 21, wherein the radio-frequency transceiver circuitry is configured to cover radio-frequency signals at low-band cellular telephone frequencies, at high-band cellular telephone frequencies, and at satellite navigation system frequencies that are less than the high-band cellular telephone frequencies and greater than the low-band cellular telephone frequencies.

25. The electronic device defined in claim 24, wherein the tunable capacitor comprises a switch-based adjustable capacitor that is configured to tune the antenna between first and second sub-bands of the low-band cellular telephone frequencies while the antenna covers the high-band cellular telephone frequencies.

26. The electronic device defined in claim 21, wherein the second filter comprises a notch filter.