Electronic device with near-field antennas

• US 9,621,230 B2
• Filed: 03/03/2014
• Issued: 04/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Ouyang, Yuehui, Hakim, Joseph, Darnell, Dean F., Pascolini, Mattia
• Primary Examiner(s): WEST, LEWIS G
• Application Number:
  US14/195,247
• Publication Number:
  US 20150249485A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,135 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 5/35 using two or more simultaneously fed points
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/00 Loop antennas with a substantially uniform current distribution around the loop and having a directional radiation pattern in a plane perpendicular to the plane of the loop
• 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 9/42 with folded element, the folded parts being spaced apart a small fraction of the operating wavelength
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/26 using coils
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/48 Transceivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals

Abstract

An electronic device may have multiple near-field communications antennas. Multiplexer circuitry may have a transceiver port that is coupled to a near-field communications transceiver, and multiple antenna ports coupled to respective near-field communications antennas. Non-near-field communications antennas may be used by non-near-field communications circuitry. The electronic device may have a housing with opposing first and second ends and a display. One of the near-field communications antennas and one of the non-near-field communications antenna may be formed from shared antenna structures at the first end. Another of the near-field communications antennas and another of the non-near-field communications antennas may be formed from shared antenna structures at the second end. An additional near field communications antenna may be overlapped by the display.

Claims

1. An electronic device, comprising:

a first near-field communications loop antenna;

a second near-field communications loop antenna;

near-field communications circuitry that wirelessly communicates using the first and second near-field communications loop antennas;

an antenna ground; and

an inverted-F antenna resonating element, wherein the first near-field communications loop antenna includes a portion of the inverted-F antenna resonating element and a portion of the antenna ground.

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

a first non-near-field communications antenna;

a second non-near-field communications antenna; and

non-near-field communications circuitry that wirelessly communicates using the first and second non-near-field communications antennas.

3. The electronic device defined in claim 2, wherein the first near-field communications loop antenna and the first non-near-field communications antenna are formed at least partly from the antenna ground.

4. The electronic device defined in claim 2 further comprising a third near-field communications loop antenna.

5. The electronic device defined in claim 4 wherein the non-near-field communications circuitry comprises a cellular telephone transceiver.

6. The electronic device defined in claim 1, further comprising:

an additional inverted-F antenna resonating element, wherein the second near-field communications loop antenna includes a portion of the additional inverted-F antenna resonating element.

7. An electronic device, comprising:

a first near-field communications loop antenna;

a second near-field communications loop antenna;

near-field communications circuitry that wirelessly communicates using the first and second near-field communications loop antennas

a first non-near-field communications antenna;

a second non-near-field communications antenna;

non-near-field communications circuitry that wirelessly communicates using the first and second non-near-field communications antennas;

an antenna ground for the first non-near-field communications antenna, wherein the first near-field communications loop antenna, the first non-near-field communications antenna, and the second near-field communications loop antenna and the second non-near-field communications antenna are formed at least partly from the antenna ground.

8. The electronic device defined in claim 7 further comprising:

a first inverted-F antenna resonating element; and

a second inverted-F antenna resonating element, wherein the first non-near-field communications antenna is formed from the first inverted-F antenna resonating element and the antenna ground, the second non-near-field communications antenna is formed from the second inverted-F antenna resonating element and the antenna ground, the first near-field communications loop antenna includes a portion of the first inverted-F antenna resonating element, and the second near-field communications loop antenna includes a portion of the second inverted-F antenna resonating element.

9. The electronic device defined in claim 8 further comprising a third near-field communications loop antenna located between the first and second near-field communications antennas.

10. The electronic device defined in claim 9 further comprising a display, wherein the display overlaps the third near-field communications loop antenna.

11. The electronic device defined in claim 10 further comprising:

control circuitry; and

multiplexer circuitry controlled by the control circuitry, wherein the multiplexer circuitry has a transceiver port coupled to the near-field communications circuitry, has a first antenna port coupled to the first near-field communications loop antenna, has a second antenna port coupled to the second near-field communications loop antenna, and has a third antenna port coupled to the third near-field communications loop antenna.

12. The electronic device defined in claim 11 further comprising additional multiplexer circuitry coupled between the non-near-field communications circuitry and the first and second non-near-field communications antennas.

13. The electronic device defined in claim 12 wherein the non-near-field communications circuitry comprises a cellular telephone transceiver.

14. An electronic device, comprising:

a first near-field communications loop antenna;

a second near-field communications loop antenna;

near-field communications circuitry that wirelessly communicates using the first and second near-field communications loop antennas; and

peripheral conductive electronic device housing structures that form part of the first and second near-field communications loop antennas.

15. The electronic device defined in claim 14, further comprising:

a first non-near-field communications antenna;

a second non-near-field communications antenna; and

non-near-field communications circuitry that wirelessly communicates using the first and second non-near-field communications antennas, wherein the peripheral conductive electronic device housing structures form part of the first and second non-near-field communications antennas.

16. Apparatus, comprising:

a first near-field communications loop antenna;

a second near-field communications loop antenna; and

near-field communications circuitry;

multiplexer circuitry, wherein the multiplexer circuitry has a first antenna port coupled to the first near-field communications loop antenna, has a second antenna port coupled to the second near-field communications loop antenna, and has a transceiver port coupled to the near-field communications circuitry, and wherein the near-field communications circuitry wirelessly communicates using the first and second near-field communications loop antennas;

a conductive structure that forms at least part of the first near-field communications loop antenna and that forms at least part of the second near-field communications loop antenna, wherein the conductive structure forms an antenna ground;

non-near-field communications circuitry;

a first antenna resonating element arm, wherein the first antenna resonating element arm and the antenna ground form a first non-near-field communications antenna; and

a second antenna resonating element arm, wherein the second antenna resonating element arm and the antenna ground form a second non-near-field communications antenna and the non-near-field communications circuitry wirelessly communicates using the first and second non-near-field communications antennas.

17. The apparatus defined in claim 16 wherein the first near-field communications loop antenna includes at least part of the first antenna resonating element arm.

18. The apparatus defined in claim 16 further comprising a third near-field communications loop antenna coupled to a third antenna port of the multiplexer circuitry.

19. The apparatus defined in claim 16 further comprising an electronic device housing having opposing first and second ends, wherein the first antenna resonating element arm comprises an inverted-F antenna resonating element arm at the first end and the second antenna resonating element arm comprises an inverted-F antenna resonating element arm at the second end.

20. The apparatus defined in claim 16 further comprising:

a third near-field communications loop antenna;

an electronic device housing;

a first antenna window in the electronic device housing through which the first near field communications loop antenna operates;

a second antenna window in the electronic device housing through which the second near-field communications loop antenna operates; and

a display mounted in the electronic device housing and having a portion through which the third near-field communications loop antenna operates.