System and method for electronically adjustable antenna

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9537461-B2
Application number	US-201414555646-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 27, 2014
Priority date	Nov 27, 2014
Publication date	Jan 3, 2017
Grant date	Jan 3, 2017

Abstract

An antenna having a line feed delivering a radiofrequency (RF) signal to or from a radial waveguide is provided. The radial waveguide may include radiating elements on its periphery for converting the RF signal into a wireless signal. Filter elements are disposed within the waveguide, interposed radially between the line feed and the waveguide periphery. The filter elements are controllable for tunably filtering of the RF signal in their vicinity. Portions of the RF signal propagating through the waveguide in different direction may be bandpass filtered differently or blocked, thereby allowing for both beamsteering and bandpass filtering to support multiple frequency bands concurrently. Also provided is a design for the filter elements as tunable filter components of a frequency selective surface.

First claim

We claim:

1. An antenna comprising:
a line feed configured to deliver a radiofrequency (RF) signal;
a radial waveguide operatively coupled to the line feed and configured to propagate the RF signal radially with respect to the line feed, the radial waveguide having a pair of parallel conductive surfaces defining a cavity therebetween; and
one or more filter elements disposed within the cavity of the radial waveguide and interposed radially between the line feed and a periphery of the radial waveguide, wherein each of the filter elements is controllable to facilitate filtering of the RF signal in a vicinity of said filter element, and wherein frequency characteristics of said filtering of the RF signal are adjustable in accordance with control signals provided to the one or more filter elements.

2. The antenna according to claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of radiating elements disposed around the periphery of the radial waveguide, the radiating elements configured to convert the RF signal for wireless propagation beyond the waveguide.

3. The antenna according to claim 1 , wherein the RF signal comprises a first signal component in a first frequency band and a second signal component in a second frequency band.

4. The antenna according to claim 3 , wherein a first set of the filter elements within a first area of the waveguide are controlled to pass the first frequency band.

5. The antenna according to claim 4 , wherein a second set of the filter elements within a second area of the waveguide are controlled to pass the second frequency band.

6. The antenna according to claim 4 , wherein the first area is controllable by selection of the first set of the filter elements, thereby directing the first signal component in a desired direction.

7. The antenna according to claim 1 , wherein the RF signal is in a first frequency band during a first time interval and in a second frequency band during a second time interval, and wherein a first set of the filter elements are controlled to pass the first frequency band during the first time interval and a second set of the filter elements are controlled to pass the second frequency band during the second time interval.

8. The antenna according to claim 1 , wherein the filter elements are arranged in one or more circles concentric with the line feed.

9. The antenna according to claim 1 , wherein each of the filter elements comprises a conductive housing configured to have an aperture defined therein, and a controllable varactor positioned within the aperture.

10. The antenna according to claim 1 , further comprising additional filter elements different from the one or more filter elements.

11. The antenna according to claim 10 , wherein the additional filter elements are configured solely to direct propagation of the RF signal.

12. The antenna according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the filter elements is adjustable between at least three states based on said control signals, each of the at least three states corresponding to different characteristics of said filtering of the RF signal in the vicinity of the at least one of the filter elements.

13. The antenna according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the filter elements comprises:
a surface having an aperture formed therein; and
a controllable element disposed at least partially within the aperture, said controllable element electrically controllable to adjust an electrical impedance characteristic of the at least one of the filter elements, thereby adjusting a filtering effect of the filter element upon the RF signal,
wherein the at least one of the filter elements is oriented across a direction of propagation of the RF signal.

14. The antenna according to claim 13 , wherein the surface of the filter element is an electrically conductive surface.

15. The antenna according to claim 13 , wherein the controllable element comprises a semiconductor structure, the filter element further comprising a control signal carrier operatively coupled to the semiconductor structure to adjust the electrical impedance characteristic of the filter element.

16. The antenna according to claim 13 , wherein the controllable element comprises a varactor.

17. The antenna according to claim 13 , wherein the controllable element comprises a MEMS component, a controllable capacitance, a controllable electric field, a mechanically movable component, or a controllable magnetic field.

18. A method for operating an antenna, the method comprising:
emitting a radiofrequency (RF) signal from or to a line feed, the RF signal further propagated via a radial waveguide, wherein the antenna comprises the line feed and the radial waveguide operatively coupled to the line feed, the radial waveguide having a pair of parallel conductive surfaces defining a cavity therebetween, wherein the line feed is configured to deliver the RF signal and the radial waveguide is configured to propagate the RF signal radially with respect to the line feed, and wherein one or more filter elements are disposed within the cavity of the radial waveguide and interposed radially between the line feed and a periphery of the radial waveguide, and wherein each of the filter elements is controllable to facilitate filtering of the RF signal in a vicinity of said filter element; and
providing control signals to the one or more filter elements for adjusting frequency characteristics of said filtering of the RF signal.

19. The method according to claim 18 , wherein the control signals comprise first control signals and second control signals, wherein the first control signals control a first set of filter elements and wherein the second control signals control a second set of filter elements, the second set of filter elements different from the first set of filter elements.

20. The method according to claim 19 , wherein the first control signals and the second control signals are provided in a time-varying manner.

21. The method according to claim 19 , wherein the first control signals control the first set of filter elements to pass a first frequency band during a first time interval and the second control signals control the second set of filter elements to pass the second frequency band during a second time interval.

22. The method according to claim 18 , wherein at least one of the filter elements is adjustable between at least three states based on said control signals, each of the at least three states corresponding to different characteristics of said filtering of the RF signal in the vicinity of the at least one of the filter elements.

23. The method according to claim 18 , wherein at least one of the filter elements comprises a conductive housing configured to have an aperture defined therein, and a controllable varactor positioned within the aperture.

Assignees

• Boutayeb Halim
• Miraftab Vahid
• Huawei Tech Co Ltd

Inventors

• Boutayeb Halim
• Miraftab Vahid

Classifications

• H01Q3/24

  varying the orientation by switching energy from one active radiating element to another, e.g. for beam switching · CPC title

• H03H7/0115 Primary

  comprising only inductors and capacitors (H03H7/075, H03H7/09, H03H7/12, H03H7/13 take precedence) · CPC title

• H01P1/208

  Cascaded cavities; Cascaded resonators inside a hollow waveguide structure (H01P1/205 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01Q3/446

  the radiating element being at the centre of one or more rings of auxiliary elements · CPC title

• H01Q1/2291 Primary

  used in Bluetooth® or Wi-Fi® devices of Wireless Local Area Networks [WLAN] (H01Q1/241 takes precedence; WLAN in general H04W) · CPC title