Waveguide system and methods for inducing a non-fundamental wave mode on a transmission medium

• US 10,090,601 B2
• Filed: 06/08/2016
• Issued: 10/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/25/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: AT&T Intellectual Property I LP (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Henry, Paul Shala, Bennett, Robert, Barzegar, Farhad, Gerszberg, Irwin, Barnickel, Donald J, Willis, III, Thomas M., Guntin, Ed
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Benny
• Application Number:
  US15/176,547
• Publication Number:
  US 20160380358A1
• Time in Patent Office: 846 Days
• Field of Search: 333240, 333237, 333248
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 1/16 for mode selection, e.g. mode suppression or mode promotion; for mode conversion
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 3/10 Wire waveguides, i.e. with a single solid longitudinal conductor
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 3/12 Hollow waveguides H01P3/20 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 3/122 Dielectric loaded (not air)
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 3/16 Dielectric waveguides, i.e. without a longitudinal conductor
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 5/02 with invariable factor of coupling H01P5/12 takes precedence choke joints H01P1/04, H01P1/06
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 5/08 for linking dissimilar lines or devices H01P1/16, H01P5/04 take precedence; linking lines of the same kind but with different dimensions H01P5/02
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 5/087 Transitions to a dielectric waveguide
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/08 Radiating ends of two-conductor microwave transmission lines, e.g. of coaxial lines, of microstrip lines
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/20 Non-resonant leaky-waveguide or transmission-line antennas; Equivalent structures causing radiation along the transmission path of a guided wave
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/26 Surface waveguide constituted by a single conductor, e.g. strip conductor
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/52 Systems for transmission between fixed stations via waveguides
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/56 Circuits for coupling, blocking, or by-passing of signals

Abstract

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, a system for generating first electromagnetic waves and directing instances of the first electromagnetic waves to an interface of a transmission medium to induce propagation of second electromagnetic waves substantially having a non-fundamental wave mode. Other embodiments are disclosed.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

radiating, from waveguide slots of a waveguide system, instances of first electromagnetic waves;

combining the instances of the first electromagnetic waves along a portion of a transmission medium to generate a combined electromagnetic wave that is guided by the transmission medium without requiring an electrical return path, the combined electromagnetic wave having at least a dominant non-fundamental wave mode, and the combined electromagnetic wave having a non-optical operating frequency; and

transmitting, by an antenna system coupled to the transmission medium, a first wireless signal based on the combined electromagnetic wave received from the transmission medium.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the combined electromagnetic wave includes a modulated signal in a frequency band of the combined electromagnetic wave.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first wireless signal is directed to an antenna of the antenna system for down-converting the modulated signal in the frequency band to the modulated signal in a cellular frequency band for wireless delivery to a mobile communication device.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the radiating further comprises up-converting the modulated signal in the cellular frequency band to the modulated signal in the frequency band for transport in the combined electromagnetic wave.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the transmission medium comprises a conductorless transmission medium.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the conductorless transmission medium comprises a dielectric core.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving, by the antenna system, a second wireless signal that is converted to a second electromagnetic wave that propagates on the transmission medium, wherein the second wireless signal comprises a modulated signal operating in a cellular frequency band generated by a communication device.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the antenna system comprises a first antenna and a second antenna, the first antenna facilitating transmission of the first wireless signal in a millimeter-wave band, and the second antenna facilitating reception of the second wireless signal in the cellular frequency band.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein a pair of the waveguide slots is configured to have a relative position to each other to generate the instances of the first electromagnetic waves having electric field orientations of a substantially similar direction to produce at least the dominant non-fundamental wave mode.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the radiating the instances of the first electromagnetic waves comprises enabling one or more slots of the waveguide slots.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the one or more slots of the waveguide slots are enabled by removing an obstacle blocking generation of the instances of the first electromagnetic waves by the one or more slots of the waveguide slots.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the radiating the instances of the first electromagnetic waves comprises disabling one or more other slots of the waveguide slots.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the one or more other slots of the waveguide slots are disabled by applying an obstacle to each of the one or more other slots of the waveguide slots to prevent generation of electromagnetic waves by the one or more other slots of the waveguide slots.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the radiating the instances of the first electromagnetic waves comprises:

emitting, from a first slot of the waveguide slots, a first instance of an electromagnetic wave having a first phase; and

emitting, from a second slot of the waveguide slots, a second instance of the electromagnetic wave having a second phase.

15. A system, comprising:

a launcher that facilitates radiating instances of electromagnetic waves from a plurality of waveguide slots; and

a waveguide structure that facilitates generating a combined electromagnetic wave based on the instances of the electromagnetic waves radiated by the launcher, the instances of electromagnetic waves being directed to a portion of a transmission medium, thereby forming the combined electromagnetic wave substantially having a non-fundamental wave mode, and the combined electromagnetic wave having a non-optical operating frequency; and

an antenna system coupled to the transmission medium that facilitates transmission of a wireless signal based on the combined electromagnetic wave received from the transmission medium.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the combined electromagnetic wave includes a modulated signal in a frequency band of the combined electromagnetic wave.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the wireless signal is directed to an antenna of the antenna system for down-converting the modulated signal in the frequency band to the modulated signal in a cellular frequency band for wireless delivery to a mobile communication device.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein a pair of the plurality of waveguide slots is configured to have a relative position to each other to generate the instances of the electromagnetic waves having electric field orientations of a substantially similar direction to produce the non-fundamental wave mode.

19. A system, comprising:

a waveguide structure comprising a plurality of waveguide slots;

a processing system including a processor; and

a memory that stores executable instructions that, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance of operations, comprising;

radiating, from the plurality waveguide slots, instances of electromagnetic waves;

combining the instances of the electromagnetic waves along a portion of a transmission medium to generate a combined electromagnetic wave that is guided by the transmission medium without requiring an electrical return path, the combined electromagnetic wave having at least a dominant non-fundamental wave mode, and the combined electromagnetic wave having a non-optical operating frequency; and

transmitting, by an antenna system coupled to the transmission medium, a wireless signal based on the combined electromagnetic wave received from the transmission medium.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the combined electromagnetic wave includes a modulated signal in a frequency band of the combined electromagnetic wave, and wherein the wireless signal is directed to an antenna of the antenna system for down-converting the modulated signal in the frequency band to the modulated signal in a cellular frequency band for wireless delivery to a mobile communication device.