MOBILE WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE HAVING DIVERSITY ANTENNA SYSTEM AND RELATED METHODS

• US 20130002498A1
• Filed: 09/11/2012
• Published: 01/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: MAN, YING TONG, QI, YIHONG, COOKE, ADRIAN, WONG, JOSHUA
• Granted Patent: US 9,007,267 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/745
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/30 Combinations of separate antenna units operating in different wavebands and connected to a common feeder system
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 3/24 varying the orientation by switching energy from one active radiating element to another, e.g. for beam switching
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 5/20 characterised by the operating wavebands

Abstract

A mobile wireless communications device has a portable handheld housing. A circuit board is carried by the portable handheld housing. RF circuitry is carried by the circuit board. A diversity antenna and main antenna are carried by the portable handheld housing and coupled to the RF circuitry and operative together. The RF circuitry tunes the diversity antenna into a diversity communications frequency band to achieve a diversity mode of operation with the main antenna and tunes the diversity antenna into a non-diversity communications frequency band when cross-coupling has occurred from the diversity antenna to the main antenna when operating in the diversity communications frequency band. A switch is carried by the portable handheld housing and connected to the RF circuitry and coupled between the diversity and main antennae and disconnects the diversity antenna when operating in the non-diversity band to prevent cross-coupling from the diversity antenna to the main antenna.

Claims

1. A mobile wireless communications device, comprising:

a portable handheld housing;

a circuit board carried by the portable handheld housing and RF circuitry carried by the circuit board;

a diversity antenna and main antenna carried by the portable handheld housing and coupled to the RF circuitry and operative together wherein the RF circuitry tunes the diversity antenna into diversity communications frequency band to achieve a diversity mode of operation with the main antenna and tunes the diversity antenna into a non-diversity communications frequency band when cross-coupling has occurred from the diversity antenna to the main antenna when operating in the diversity communications frequency band; and

a switch carried by the portable handheld housing and connected to the RF circuitry and coupled between the diversity and main antennae that disconnects the diversity antenna when operating in the non-diversity communications frequency band to prevent cross-coupling from the diversity antenna to the main antenna.

2. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, wherein the portable handheld housing further comprises an upper and lower portion and said diversity antenna is located at the upper portion of the housing and the main antenna is located at the lower portion of the housing.

3. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, wherein said diversity antenna comprises an array antenna comprising a plurality of antenna elements.

4. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 3, wherein the switch comprises a plurality of switches and each antenna element includes a respective switch that is controlled for individually turning ON and OFF selected antenna elements to change a combined radiation pattern of the array antenna.

5. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, wherein said switch comprises a microelectromechanical (MEMS) switch.

6. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, wherein said circuit board is configured substantially in size to the portable handheld housing and said diversity antenna comprises an antenna array carried by the circuit board and comprising a plurality of antenna elements and said switch comprises a plurality of switches and each antenna element includes a respective switch that is controlled for individually turning ON and OFF selected antenna elements forming the array antenna to change a combined radiation pattern of the array antenna.

7. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, wherein said circuit board is configured substantially different in size to the portable handheld housing and said main antenna is carried by the circuit board, and further comprising a cable connected to the diversity antenna and circuit board and operative with the main antenna.

8. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 7, wherein said switch is located at one of either the end of the cable connected to the circuit board or the end of the cable connected to the diversity antenna.

9. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, and further comprising a load having a different impedance connected to the switch for imparting a different load impedance when the switch is switched to the load.

10. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, and further comprising a display and user input device both carried by the portable handheld housing and connected to the RF circuitry.

11. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 1, wherein said main antenna is operative at frequencies in the Global System for Mobile (GSM) frequency communications band.

12. A mobile wireless communications device, comprising:

a portable handheld housing having an upper portion and a lower portion;

a circuit board carried by the portable handheld housing, RF circuitry carried by the circuit board, and a main antenna carried by the circuit board at the lower portion of the housing and coupled to the RF circuitry and configured for multi-frequency cellular phone communications, including frequencies in the Global System for Mobile (GSM) communications band;

a diversity antenna formed as an array antenna and carried by the portable handheld housing at the upper portion of the portable handheld housing and coupled to the RF circuitry and the main antenna and configured to be tuned with the main antenna into a diversity communications frequency band to achieve a diversity mode of operation with the main antenna and to be tuned with the main antenna into a non-diversity communications frequency band when cross-coupling has occurred from the diversity antenna to the main antenna when operating in the diversity communications frequency band; and

a switch carried by the portable handheld housing and connected to the RF circuitry and coupled between the diversity and main antennae that disconnects the diversity antenna when operating in the non-diversity communications frequency band to prevent cross-coupling from the diversity antenna to the main antenna.

13. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 12, wherein the switch comprises a plurality of switches and said array antenna comprises an plurality of antenna elements, wherein each antenna element including a respective switch that is controlled for individually turning ON and OFF selected antenna elements to change a combined radiation pattern of the array antenna.

14. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 13, wherein said circuit board is configured substantially in size to the portable handheld housing.

15. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 12, wherein said switch comprises a microelectromechanical (MEMS) switch.

16. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 12, wherein said circuit board is configured substantially different in size to the portable handheld housing and further comprising a cable connected between the diversity antenna and circuit board and operative with the main antenna.

17. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 16, wherein said switch is located at either an end of the cable connected to the circuit board or the end of the cable connected to the diversity antenna.

18. The mobile wireless communications device according to claim 12, and further comprising a load having a different impedance connected to the switch for imparting a different load impedance when the switch is switched to the load.

19. A method of operating a mobile wireless communications device, wherein the mobile wireless communications device comprises a portable handheld housing, a circuit board carried by the portable handheld housing, RF circuitry carried by the circuit board and a diversity antenna and main antenna carried by the portable handheld housing and coupled to the RF circuitry and operative together, wherein the method comprises:

tuning the diversity antenna into a diversity communications frequency band to achieve a diversity mode of operation with the main antenna;

tuning the diversity antenna into a non-diversity communications frequency band when cross-coupling occurs from the diversity antenna to the main antenna when operating in the diversity communications frequency band; and

disconnecting the diversity antenna when operating in the non-diversity communications frequency band to prevent cross-coupling from the diversity antenna to the main antenna.

20. The method according to claim 19, and further comprising switching the diversity antenna into a different load impedance.