Electronic device with diverse antenna array having soldered connections

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9865915-B2
Application number	US-201313780787-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 28, 2013
Priority date	Feb 28, 2013
Publication date	Jan 9, 2018
Grant date	Jan 9, 2018

Abstract

A wireless electronic device may be provided with antenna structures. The antenna structures may be formed from an antenna ground and an array of antenna resonating elements. The antenna resonating elements may be electrically connected to the antenna ground using solder. The antenna resonating elements may be formed from metal traces on a dielectric support structure that surrounds the antenna ground. The antenna ground may be formed form stamped sheet metal and may have slanted steps adjacent to the antenna resonating elements. To form a solder joint between the metal antenna resonating element traces and the sheet metal of the antenna ground, laser light may be applied to the sheet metal of the antenna ground in the vicinity of the solder paste. Separate metal members may also be provided in the vicinity of the solder paste and may be heated using the laser to join metal traces on plastic carriers.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus, comprising:
a layer of metal that forms an antenna ground;
antenna resonating element traces supported by a dielectric, wherein each of the antenna resonating element traces and the antenna ground form a respective antenna in an array of antennas;
and
solder that connects the antenna resonating element traces to the antenna ground, wherein the array of antennas comprises six antennas, at least some of the antennas have different electric field polarizations, at least three of the antennas are configured to transmit and receive radio-frequency signals in at least a 5 GHz communications band, and at least three of the antennas are configured to transmit and receive radio-frequency signals in at least a 2.4 GHz communications band.

2. The apparatus defined in claim 1 wherein the layer of metal that forms the antenna ground comprises sheet metal.

3. The apparatus defined in claim 2 wherein the dielectric comprises a plastic carrier.

4. Apparatus, comprising:
sheet metal that forms an antenna ground;
a ring shaped plastic carrier that surrounds the sheet metal and that has antenna resonating element traces, wherein each of the antenna resonating element traces and the antenna ground form a respective antenna in an array of antennas; and
solder that connects the antenna resonating element traces to the sheet metal that forms the antenna ground.

5. The apparatus defined in claim 4 wherein the array of antennas comprises six antennas.

6. The apparatus defined in claim 5 wherein at least some of the antennas have different electric field polarizations.

7. The apparatus defined in claim 6 wherein at least three of the antennas are configured to transmit and receive radio-frequency signals in at least a 5 GHz communications band and wherein at least three of the antennas are configured to transmit and receive radio-frequency signals in at least a 2.4 GHz communications band.

8. The apparatus defined in claim 5 further comprising:
radio-frequency transceiver circuitry coupled to the array of antennas; and
storage and processing circuitry coupled to the radio-frequency transceiver circuitry.

9. The apparatus defined in claim 8 wherein the storage and processing circuitry and the radio-frequency transceiver circuitry are configured to perform wireless base station operations and the storage and processing circuitry includes a mass storage device having a capacity of at least 256 GB.

10. The apparatus defined in claim 2 , wherein the sheet metal comprises stamped sheet metal.

11. The apparatus defined in claim 10 , wherein the stamped sheet metal has a planar portion, a first slanted portion that is bent at a non-zero angle with respect to the planar portion, a second slanted portion that is bent at a non-zero angle with respect to the planar portion, and the planar portion is interposed between the first and second slanted portions.

12. Apparatus, comprising:
stamped sheet metal that forms an antenna ground;
dielectric support structures having antenna resonating element traces, wherein each antenna resonating element trace and the antenna ground form a respective antenna in an array of antennas;
solder that connects the antenna resonating element traces to the stamped sheet metal that forms the antenna ground, wherein the stamped sheet metal has a planar portion, a first slanted portion that is bent at a non-zero angle with respect to the planar portion, and a second slanted portion that is bent at a non-zero angle with respect to the planar portion, and the planar portion is interposed between the first and second slanted portions; and
a conductive bracket, wherein the planar portion is mounted to the conductive bracket and is electrically shorted to the conductive bracket.

13. The apparatus defined in claim 12 , further comprising:
storage circuitry mounted within the conductive bracket and below the planar portion of the stamped sheet metal.

14. The apparatus defined in claim 12 , the stamped sheet metal further comprising:
an additional planar portion, wherein the first and second slanted portions are both interposed between the planar portion and the additional planar portion, and the dielectric support structures completely surround the additional planar portion.

15. The apparatus defined in claim 14 , further comprising:
housing structures, wherein the stamped sheet metal, the dielectric support structures, the conductive bracket, and the solder are each enclosed within the housing structures.

16. The apparatus defined in claim 15 , wherein the housing structures comprise a wall structure, the planar portion and the additional planar portion of the stamped sheet metal each extend parallel to the wall structure, the planar portion is formed at a first distance from the wall structure, and the additional planar portion is formed at a second distance from the wall structure that is greater than the first distance.

17. The apparatus defined in claim 11 , further comprising:
radio-frequency transceiver circuitry; and
a plurality of coaxial cables each having a corresponding radio-frequency connector structure that is coupled to the radio-frequency transceiver circuitry.

18. The apparatus defined in claim 17 , wherein the first and second portions of the stamped sheet metal comprise a plurality of openings through which the plurality of coaxial cables pass, wherein each coaxial cable of the plurality of coaxial cables is coupled to a respective antenna resonating element trace in the array of antennas through a respective opening of the plurality of openings.

19. The apparatus defined in claim 11 , wherein the antenna resonating element traces comprise first, second, third, and fourth antenna resonating element traces, the first and second resonating element traces each extend in a first direction, and the third and fourth resonating element traces each extend in a second direction that is perpendicular to the first direction.

20. The apparatus defined in claim 19 , wherein the stamped sheet metal has first, second, third, and fourth peripheral edges, the first and second peripheral edges extend between and perpendicular to the third and fourth peripheral edges, the solder connects the first antenna resonating element trace to the third peripheral edge, the solder connects the second antenna resonating element trace to the fourth peripheral edge, the solder connects the third antenna resonating element trace to the first peripheral edge, the solder connects the fourth antenna resonating element trace to the second peripheral edge, the second antenna resonating element trace is configured to resonate in a first radio-frequency communications band, and the fourth antenna resonating element trace is configured to resonate in a second radio-frequency communications band that is different from the first radio-frequency communications band.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Shiu Boon W
• Guterman Jerzy
• Pascolini Mattia

Classifications

• H01Q1/24 Primary

  with receiving set · CPC title

• H01Q9/42

  with folded element, the folded parts being spaced apart a small fraction of the operating wavelength · CPC title

• H01Q21/28

  Combinations of substantially independent non-interacting antenna units or systems {(multiple beam H01Q25/00)} · CPC title