Antenna with folded monopole and loop modes

• US 8,963,784 B2
• Filed: 02/22/2012
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Zhu, Jiang, Li, Qingxiang, Gomez Angulo, Rodney A., Schlub, Robert W., Caballero, Ruben
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Hoang V
• Application Number:
  US13/402,831
• Publication Number:
  US 20130214986A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,098 Days
• Field of Search: 343/702, 343/833, 343/834, 343/841, 343/846, 343/848
• US Class Current: 343/702
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/18 the slot being backed by, or formed in boundary wall of, a resonant cavity longitudinally slotted cylinder H01Q13/12 ; Open cavity antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/30 with feed to end of elongated active element, e.g. unipole H01Q9/44 takes precedence

Abstract

Electronic devices may be provided that contain wireless communications circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include radio-frequency transceiver circuitry and antennas. An antenna may have an antenna ground that is configured to form a cavity for the antenna. The antenna ground may be formed on a support structure. The antenna ground may have an opening. The support structure may have a planar surface on which the opening is formed. A folded monopole antenna resonating element and an L-shaped conductive antenna element may be formed in the opening and may be capacitively coupled. The folded monopole antenna resonating element may have an end at which a positive antenna feed terminal is formed. A ground antenna feed terminal may be formed on the antenna ground. A segment of the antenna ground may extend between the ground antenna feed terminal and an end of the L-shaped conductive antenna element.

Claims

1. An antenna for an electronic device, comprising:

a monopole antenna resonating element; and

conductive structures that are capacitively coupled to the monopole antenna resonating element, wherein the monopole antenna resonating element and conductive structures are configured to exhibit at least one monopole antenna resonance and at least one loop antenna resonance, wherein the conductive structures comprise a portion of an antenna ground, and wherein the antenna ground comprises metal that forms an antenna cavity.

2. The antenna defined in claim 1 wherein the monopole antenna resonating element comprises a folded monopole antenna resonating element.

3. The antenna defined in claim 1 wherein the monopole antenna resonating element has opposing first and second ends, wherein the antenna comprises an antenna feed having a positive antenna feed terminal at the first end and having a ground antenna feed terminal.

4. The antenna defined in claim 3 wherein the monopole antenna resonating element comprises a folded monopole antenna resonating element having first and second segments with an interposed bend.

5. The antenna defined in claim 1 wherein the conductive structures comprise an L-shaped conductive element.

6. The antenna defined in claim 5 wherein the L-shaped conductive element has a first segment and a second segment and has a bend interposed between the first segment and the second segment and wherein the first segment runs parallel to at least a portion of the monopole antenna resonating element.

7. The antenna defined in claim 6 wherein conductive structures that are capacitively coupled to the monopole antenna resonating element are characterized by a capacitance between the conductive structures and the monopole antenna resonating element and wherein the portion of the monopole antenna resonating element and the first segment of the L-shaped conductive element are separated by a gap that gives rise to the capacitance.

8. The antenna defined in claim 7 further comprising a support structure, wherein at least part of the antenna ground is formed on the support structure.

9. The antenna defined in claim 8 wherein the support structure has a planar surface on which the monopole antenna resonating element and the L-shaped conductive element are located and wherein metal of the antenna ground covers substantially all of the support structure except the planar surface to form the antenna cavity.

10. The antenna defined in claim 1 wherein the conductive structures comprise a bent conductive element having a portion that is separated from a portion of the monopole antenna resonating element by a gap that produces a capacitance between the bent conductive element and the monopole antenna resonating element.

11. The antenna defined in claim 10 wherein the conductive structures comprise an antenna ground having a portion that is coupled to the bent conductive element.

12. The antenna defined in claim 11 wherein the antenna resonating element comprises a folded monopole antenna resonating element having opposing first and second ends, wherein the antenna comprises a feed having a feed terminal on the first end of the folded monopole antenna resonating element, and wherein the bent conductive element comprises an L-shaped conductive element with a first end terminated at the portion of the antenna ground and a second end adjacent to the folded monopole antenna element.

13. An antenna for an electronic device, comprising:

an antenna ground having an opening;

a monopole antenna resonating element in the opening; and

a conductive antenna element in the opening, wherein the conductive antenna element and the monopole antenna resonating element are capacitively coupled.

14. The antenna defined in claim 13 wherein the monopole antenna resonating element has opposing first and second ends, the antenna further comprising an antenna feed having a first antenna feed terminal coupled to the first end of the monopole antenna resonating element and having a second antenna feed terminal coupled to the antenna ground.

15. The antenna defined in claim 14 wherein the antenna ground has a portion coupled between the conductive antenna element and the second antenna feed terminal.

16. The antenna defined in claim 15 further comprising a dielectric support structure having a planar surface on which the opening, the monopole antenna resonating element, and the conductive antenna element are located.

17. The antenna defined in claim 16 wherein the antenna ground is configured to cover the dielectric support structure except in the opening.

18. The antenna defined in claim 17 wherein the antenna ground and dielectric support structure are configured to form a cavity for the antenna, and wherein the opening comprises a rectangular opening on the surface of the dielectric support structure.

19. The antenna defined in claim 18 wherein the monopole antenna resonating element comprises a first segment, a second segment, and a bend interposed between the first segment and the second segment, wherein the conductive antenna element comprises an L-shaped element having a first segment, a second segment, and a bend interposed between the first segment and the second segment, and wherein the portions of the monopole antenna resonating element and conductive antenna element that run parallel to each other comprise portions of the second segment of the monopole antenna resonating element and the second segment of the conductive antenna element.

20. The antenna defined in claim 19 wherein the first segment of the monopole antenna resonating element is coupled to a positive antenna feed terminal and wherein the first segment of the conductive antenna element has an end that terminates at the antenna ground.

21. The antenna defined in claim 13 wherein the monopole antenna resonating element and the conductive antenna element comprise portions that run parallel to each other and that are separated by a gap to create a capacitance between the monopole antenna resonating element and the conductive antenna element that capacitively couples the monopole antenna resonating element and the conductive antenna element.

22. An antenna comprising:

a dielectric support structure having at least some sidewalls and a surface;

an antenna ground that covers the sidewalls and that is configured to form an opening on the surface;

a folded monopole antenna resonating element in the opening; and

a conductive antenna element in the opening that is capacitively coupled to the folded monopole antenna resonating element.

23. The antenna defined in claim 22 wherein the conductive antenna element comprises a bent strip of metal having a first end that terminates at the antenna ground and an opposing second end that is separated from the folded monopole antenna element by a gap.

24. The antenna defined in claim 23 further comprising a first antenna feed terminal at an end of the folded monopole antenna resonating element and a second antenna feed terminal on the antenna ground, wherein the antenna ground has a portion that extends between the second antenna feed terminal and the first end of the bent strip of metal and wherein the monopole antenna resonating element and conductive structures are configured to exhibit at least one monopole antenna resonance associated with the folded monopole antenna resonating element and at least one loop antenna resonance associated with a loop formed from the folded monopole antenna resonating element, the bent strip of metal, and the portion of the antenna ground.