Antenna with selectable elements for use in wireless communications
First Claim
1. A planar antenna apparatus, comprising:
- a single substrate having a first side in a plane and a second side, the second side of the substrate being substantially parallel to the first side of the substrate;
a radio frequency feed port located on the first side of the substrate, the radio frequency feed port coupled to a device generating a radio frequency signal;
a plurality of active antenna elements located on the first side of the substrate, the plurality of active antenna elements selectively coupled to the radio frequency feed port, wherein the selective coupling of one or more of the plurality of active antenna elements to the radio frequency feed port forms a directional radiation pattern that radiates substantially in the plane of the plurality of active antenna elements, wherein each of the plurality of active antenna elements generates an individual directional radiation pattern.
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Abstract
A system and method for a wireless link to a remote receiver includes a communication device for generating RF and a planar antenna apparatus for transmitting the RF. The planar antenna apparatus includes selectable antenna elements, each of which has gain and a directional radiation pattern. The directional radiation pattern is substantially in the plane of the antenna apparatus. Switching different antenna elements results in a configurable radiation pattern. Alternatively, selecting all or substantially all elements results in an omnidirectional radiation pattern. One or more directors and/or one or more reflectors may be included to constrict the directional radiation pattern. The antenna apparatus may be conformally mounted to a housing containing the communication device and the antenna apparatus.
412 Citations
46 Claims
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1. A planar antenna apparatus, comprising:
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a single substrate having a first side in a plane and a second side, the second side of the substrate being substantially parallel to the first side of the substrate; a radio frequency feed port located on the first side of the substrate, the radio frequency feed port coupled to a device generating a radio frequency signal; a plurality of active antenna elements located on the first side of the substrate, the plurality of active antenna elements selectively coupled to the radio frequency feed port, wherein the selective coupling of one or more of the plurality of active antenna elements to the radio frequency feed port forms a directional radiation pattern that radiates substantially in the plane of the plurality of active antenna elements, wherein each of the plurality of active antenna elements generates an individual directional radiation pattern. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. An antenna apparatus, comprising:
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a substrate having a first side in a plane and a second side, wherein the second side of the substrate is substantially parallel to the first side of the substrate; a plurality of antenna elements on the first side of the substrate, wherein each of the plurality of antenna elements is selectively coupled to a communication device and forms a directional radiation pattern with polarization substantially in the plane of the plurality of antenna elements; and a ground component on the second side of the substrate, the ground component coupled to one or more of the plurality of antenna elements on the first side of the substrate, wherein the selective coupling of one or more of the plurality of antenna elements to the communication device results in a configurable radiation pattern that minimizes interference in a signal environment. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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32. An antenna apparatus, comprising:
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a plurality of individually selectable antenna elements on a single substrate within a single plane; an antenna element selecting device that communicates a radio frequency signal with a communication device and selectively couple one or more of the antenna elements to the communication device, wherein each of the antenna elements generates a directional radiation pattern with polarization substantially in the plane of the single substrate. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A method, comprising:
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generating a radio frequency signal in a communication device; receiving an indication of interference in a signal environment; and selectively coupling a plurality of antenna elements within a single substrate on a single plane to the communication device in response to the indication of interference in the signal environment, wherein the selective coupling of the plurality of antenna elements to the communication device results in the generation of a directional radiation pattern substantially in a plane of the antenna elements for each selectively coupled antenna element, the directional radiation patterns of the selectively coupled antenna elements collectively generating a radiation pattern that minimizes an effect of the interference in the signal environment. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44, 45, 46)
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Specification