Abstract:
An antenna device ( 10 ) of a consumer electronic product is formed on an outer surface ( 302 ) of a shell ( 30 ) of the electronic product. The shell of the consumer electronic product is adapted for forming an enclosure of an electronic product. The antenna device extends on a planar plane and is integrally formed with and is coated on the outer surface of the shell. A method for making the antenna device includes: (A) providing a consumer electronic product having a shell for forming the antenna device on an outer surface thereof, the shell being adapted for enclosing components of the consumer electronic product therein; (B) coating a copper layer on the outer surface of the shell of the electronic product; (C) forming circuitry out of the copper layer to form the antenna device.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates generally to antenna devices, and more particularly to an antenna device used as a frequency transceiver antenna provided in a consumer electronic product. 
   2. Description of Related Art 
   Consumer electronic products, such as mobile phones, have become increasingly developed, aiming for the smaller size, lighter weight, multi functions, and lower power consumption. An antenna, one of essential components of the mobile phone, is a crucial factor for determining communication quality. 
   An example of an antenna typically used in mobile phones is an exposed coil. Under normal circumstances, the antenna still protrudes a specific length out of the body&#39;s top surface of the mobile phone. The conventional coil antennas are thus unsuitable for use in miniaturized mobile phones; hence, microstrip antennas which are flat and small have been developed. However these antennas require the installation of spiral antenna elements on separate ground boards, and the insertion of dielectric and loading material of specific thickness between them. It is thus difficult to reduce the size of the antenna. Furthermore, since these microstrip antennas are mounted inside the mobile phones, reception and transmission of signals by these micorstrip antennas cannot have an optimal quality due to obstruction of other components around the microstrip antennas. 
   Therefore, it is desirable to provide an antenna device wherein one or more of the foregoing disadvantages may be overcome or at least alleviated. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates, in one aspect, to an antenna device of a consumer electronic product. The consumer electronic product has a shell being adapted for forming an enclosure of an electronic product. The shell has an outer surface. The antenna device extends on a planar plane and is integrally formed with and coated on the outer surface of the shell. 
   The present invention relates, in another aspect, to a method for fabricating the antenna device. The method includes: (A) providing a consumer electronic product having a shell for forming the antenna device on an outer surface thereof, the shell being adapted for enclosing components of the consumer electronic product therein; (B) coating a copper layer on the outer surface of the shell of the electronic product; (C) forming circuitry out of the copper layer to form the antenna device. 
   Other advantages and novel features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Many aspects of the present antenna device can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the present antenna device. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views: 
       FIG. 1  is an assembled, isometric view of a mobile phone with an antenna device in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is similar to  FIG. 1 , but viewed from another aspect; 
       FIG. 3  is similar to  FIG. 2 , but shows the antenna device in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 4  shows the antenna device in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 5  shows the antenna device in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention; and 
       FIG. 6  is a flow chart showing a preferred method of making the antenna device. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIGS. 1 and 2  illustrate a mobile phone with an antenna device  10  in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention. Also the antenna device  10  can be used as a frequency transceiver antenna of other consumer electronic products, such as PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants), cordless telephones, interphones, notebook computers, desktop computers or wireless handheld devices. In this embodiment, the mobile phone has a cuboid-shaped shell  30  defining an inner space (not shown) therein for receiving electronic components, such as switching circuits (not shown) which are used to obtain signal conversion. The shell  30  is made of Mg—Al alloy (magnesium-aluminum alloy), and includes a front wall  301 , and a back wall  302  parallel to the front wall  301 . A top side wall  303 , a bottom side wall  304 , a left side wall  305 , and a right side wall  306  interconnecting four sides (i.e., top, bottom, left and right sides) of the front wall  301  and the back wall  302 , respectively. Each wall of the shell  30  is rectangle shaped. The six walls cooperatively form the cuboid-shaped shell  30 . The front wall  301  of the shell  30  forms an output section  37  near the top side thereof, a display section  31  in a middle thereof, and an input section  36  near a bottom side thereof. The input section  36  has a microphone  33  and a plurality of keys  32  or a touch panel (not shown) for inputting signals. The output section  37  of the mobile phone can contain a speaker  34  which can transform electric signals into mechanical vibrations so as to transmit acoustic messages therein. 
   Particularly referring to  FIG. 2 , the antenna device  10  is directly and integrally formed on the back wall  302  of the shell  30  and is located near the top side of the shell  30 . The antenna device  10  is a rectangular wave-shaped electronic circuitry  101 . The electronic circuitry  101  is made of copper. The back wall  302  of the shell  30  defines a concave  308  in an outer surface  300  thereof corresponding to the electronic circuitry  101 . The concave  308  is rectangle-shaped. A depth of the concave  308  is approximately the same or a little larger than a height of the electronic circuitry  101 . The electronic circuitry  101  is received in the concave  308  and is not higher than the concave  308  of the shell  30  and thus abrasion of the antenna device  10  by a foreign article is avoided. In this embodiment, the electronic circuitry  101  has a rectangular wave (i.e., crenellated) shape. Alternatively, the shape of the electronic circuitry  101  is variable, and can be other wave shapes, such as sine wave shape, sawtooth wave, pulsating wave shape, longitudinal wave shape, etc. Also the antenna device  10  is not limited to being wave-shaped, other shapes, like linear shaped or slice shaped can also be suitable. For enhancing aesthetic appearance of the mobile phone, the antenna device  10  can be formed as the trademark of the product, or to be formed as a part of the trademark. One end (right, top end as viewed from  FIG. 2 ) of the electronic circuitry  101  forms an input terminal  102  which is electrically connected with a signal processing circuit of the mobile phone. The other end (left, lower end) of the electronic circuitry  101  is an earth terminal  103  and is electrically connected with the ground. A through hole (not shown) can be defined in the back wall  302  of the shell  30  corresponding to each of the terminals  102 ,  103  of the electronic circuitry  101 . Wire cables extend through the through holes and interconnect the electronic circuitry  101  and the switching circuits and the ground. Alternatively, the electronic circuitry  101  can be connected with the switching circuits and the ground through spot welding. 
   During operation of the mobile phone, the input terminal  102  receives or outputs electromagnetic signals. The switching circuits being electrically connected with the antenna device  10  is used to transform the electromagnetic signals. Since the antenna device  10  is integrally formed on the back wall  302  of the shell  30 , the antenna device  10  no longer occupies a protruded space, which is suitable for the design requirement of the miniaturized mobile phones. Furthermore, as the antenna device  10  is formed outside the shell  30 , the effective of receiving and outputting signals is improved, resulting in better communication quality, including sound, words and pictures. 
     FIG. 3  illustrates a second embodiment of the antenna device  10 . The difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment is that the concave section  308   a  defined in the back wall  302   a  of the shell  30   a  has a shape and size essentially identical to that of the antenna device  10 . The antenna device  10  consists of a rectangular wave-shaped electronic circuitry  101 . The concave section  308   a  is a rectangular wave-shaped groove. The antenna device  10  is formed in the concave section  308   a  and thus the concave section  308   a  is essentially filled. Cooperatively the back wall  302   a  and the antenna device  10  construct an integrated and planar-shaped outer surface  300   a.    
     FIG. 4  shows the third embodiment of the antenna device  10   b  which has several electronic circuit segments interconnected together. As shown in  FIG. 4 , the antenna device  10   b  includes a rectangular wave-shaped circuitry  101 , two horizontally extended linear-shaped circuit segments  101   b  and a vertically extended linear-shaped circuit segment  100 . The circuit segment  100  is located at a right side of the antenna device  10   b  as viewed from  FIG. 4 . The two linear-shaped circuit segments  101   b  extend transversely above and below the rectangular wave-shaped circuitry  101  and are parallel to each other. The right ends of the three circuit segments  101 ,  101   b  as viewed from  FIG. 4  are connected together by the right vertical circuit segment  100 , whilst the left ends of the three segments  101 ,  101   b  are separated from each other. A junction of the upper horizontal circuitry segment  101   b  and the right vertical circuitry segment  100  forms the input terminal  102   b.  A junction of a lower, right end of the rectangular wave-shaped circuitry  101  and the right vertical circuit segment  100  forms the ground terminal  103   b.    
   As shown in  FIG. 5 , the antenna device  10   c  in accordance with the fourth embodiment of the present invention is similar to the third embodiment. In this embodiment, the antenna device  10   c  includes five circuit segments, which include a rectangular wave-shaped circuitry  101 , two horizontally extended linear-shaped circuit segments  101   c,    101   d  and two vertically extended linear-shaped circuit segments  105 ,  106 . The right ends of the three circuit segments  101 ,  101   c,    101   d  are connected together by the right vertical circuit segment  105 . The left ends of the three circuit segments  101 ,  101   c,    101   d  are connected together by the left vertical circuit segment  106 . The input terminal  102   c  is formed at a junction of the right end of the circuit segment  101   c  and a top end of the right vertical circuit segment  105 . The ground terminal  103   c  is formed at a junction of the left end of the circuit segment  101   d  and a bottom end of the left vertical circuit segment  106 . 
     FIG. 6  shows a preferred method in accordance with the present invention for producing the antenna device  10 ,  10   b,    10   c.  Firstly, an electronic device, such as a mobile phone, a PDA, a cordless telephone, or an interphone is provided. In this embodiment, the consumer electronic product is the mobile phone as shown in  FIGS. 1-2 . The consumer electronic product has a shell  30  forming a back wall  302 . A concave  308  is defined in an outer surface  300  of the back wall  302 . The concave  308  is rectangle-shaped. The back wall  302  defines a planar-shaped bottom surface (not labeled) in the concave  308 . Then a very thin insulating layer is formed on the bottom surface in the concave  308  through vacuum sputtering, vaporization or anodizing. For firmly attaching the insulating layer to the bottom surface, the bottom surface is previously processed with cleaning, caustic scrubbing or burring. 
   The electronic circuitry  101  is then formed on the insulating layer on the bottom surface in the concave  308  of the shell  30  by the following steps. Firstly, a thin layer of copper foil is applied onto the insulating layer of the bottom surface so as to evenly cover the insulating layer. The copper foil layer can be formed on the insulating layer through sputtering, hot-pressing, electroless copper deposition, or electrodeposition. As material does not easily adhere to the insulating layer, surface activation of the insulating layer is usually needed before forming the copper foil layer on the insulating layer. The surface activation usually includes silver spraying, sandblasting, and coursing. Thus the copper foil layer is easily applied to the insulating layer after surface activation. Then the electronic circuitry  101  is formed on the insulating layer by the copper foil layer through photoresist coating, exposing and etching. 
   It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.