Abstract:
An apparatus built in a computing device and configured to allow the efficient radiation of millimeter-wave signals and capturing of at least video signals is provided. The apparatus comprises a body portion enclosed in a casing; a webcam module for capturing and receiving at least video and audio signals, wherein the webcam module includes at least a lens located in a first location of the body portion; an millimeter-wave array of active antennas configured to radiate the millimeter-wave signals, wherein the millimeter-wave array of active antennas is located in a second location of the body portion; and a radio frequency (RF) circuitry configured to control and activate the array of millimeter-wave active antennas, wherein an opening in the casing of the body portion is formed around the first location and the second location to expose the lens and the array of millimeter-wave active antennas.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/602,740, filed on Feb. 24, 2012, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to assembly of a circuit for transmitting and receiving millimeter wave signals in a computing device, and more particularly to an arrangement of millimeter wave antennas in a computing device. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    The 60 GHz band is an unlicensed band which features a large amount of bandwidth and a large worldwide overlap. The large bandwidth means that a very high volume of information can be transmitted wirelessly. As a result, multiple applications that require transmission of a large amount of data can be developed to allow wireless communication around the  60 GHz band. Examples for such applications include, but are not limited to, wireless high definition TV (HDTV), a wireless docking station, wireless Gigabit Ethernet, and many others. 
         [0004]    In order to facilitate such applications there is a need to develop integrated circuits (ICs), such as amplifiers, mixers, radio frequency (RF) analog circuits, and active antennas that operate in the 60 GHz frequency range. Such circuits should be fabricated as a chip that can be assembled on a printed circuit board (PCB). The size of the package may range from several to a few hundred square millimeters. In addition, there is a need to solve problems resulting from the current assembly of electronic devices, such as laptop computers, in order to enable efficient transmission and reception of millimeter wave signals. 
         [0005]    A prime example for such a problem is illustrated in  FIG. 1 , which shows a typical assembly of a laptop computer  100  having radio transmission capabilities. A motherboard  110  of the computer  100  includes a RF module  120  that receives and transmits RF signals through a receive antenna  130  and a transmit antenna  140 , which are located in the lid  150 . Signals from the RF module  120  to the antennas  130  and  140  are transferred over wires  160 . The motherboard  110  and the RF module  120  are installed in the base part of the computer  100 . 
         [0006]    The assembly illustrated in  FIG. 1  cannot be adapted to enable the integration of 60 GHz communication applications in consumer electronics products, primarily because transferring high frequency signals over the wires  160  significantly attenuate the signals. Increasing the power of the signals at the RF module  120  would require designing complex and expensive RF circuits of the module  120 . Thus, such assembly is not feasible for commercial uses in consumer electronics products of 60 GHz communication applications. 
         [0007]    Recent solutions have been proposed to include the RF module operating the 60 GHz in the lid of the of the laptop computer, while the base-band module is integrated in the base of the computer. An illustration of such an assembly is shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         [0008]    A laptop computer  200  includes an RF system  210  for transmission and reception of millimeter wave signals. The form factor of the RF system  210  is spread between the base plane  202  and the lid plane  205  of the laptop computer  200 . 
         [0009]    The RF system  210  includes two parts: a baseband module  220  and RF module  230  respectively connected to the base plane  202  and lid plane  205 . The RF module  230  that includes active transmit (TX) and receive (RX) array of antennas. When transmitting signals, the baseband module  220  typically provides the RF module  230  with control, local oscillator (LO), intermediate frequency (IF), and power (DC) signals. The control signal is utilized for functions, such as gain control, RX/TX switching, power level control, sensors, and detectors readouts. Specifically, beam-forming based RF systems require high frequency beam steering operations which are performed under the control of the baseband module  220 . The control signals are typically transferred from the baseband  220  of the system to the RF module  230 . 
         [0010]    The RF module  230  typically performs up-conversion, using a mixer (not shown) on the IF signal(s) to RF signals and then transmits the RF signals through the TX antenna according to the control of the control signals. The power signals are DC voltage signals that power the various components of the RF module  230 . 
         [0011]    In the receive direction, the RF module  230  receives RF signals at the frequency band of 60 GHz, through the active RX antenna and performs down-conversion, using a mixer, to IF signals using the LO signals, and sends the IF signals to baseband module  220 . The operation of the RF module  230  is controlled by the control signal, but certain control information (e.g., feedback signal) is sent back to the baseband module  220 . 
         [0012]    However, other than the RF module  230  and an array of antennas, the assembly of the lid plane  205  typically also includes one or more cellular antennas (not shown) to communicate with a cellular network, an array of Wi-Fi antennas (not shown) to receive and transmit signals from an access point of a wireless local area network (WLAN), and one or two webcams (not shown). To avoid problems of signal interferences, the various antennas, i.e., the array of millimeter wave antennas (module  230 ), cellular antennas, and Wi-Fi antennas, should be positioned at a predefined distance from each other. 
         [0013]    In addition, recently the cases of certain laptop computers (also known ultrabook computers) are being made of metal or carbon fiber materials, and the dimensions of the lid plane are small. To enable efficient energy radiation of signals in such computers, the various antennas are placed in areas that are not covered by the metal case. For example, the various antennas are located in the hinge between the lid and the base of the computer. This assembly also contributes to the problem with signal interferences and provides poor antenna radiation properties. 
         [0014]    The above noted problems in laptop computers are also applicable to other handheld computing devices, such as smartphones, tablet computers, and the like. In such devices the area for placing additional components, and in particular, millimeter wave antennas, are even more limited. Thus, as can be readily understood, the available space for installing additional RF circuitry and active antennas for the 60 GHz band in order to allow efficient transmission or reception while avoiding signal interferences is very limited. 
         [0015]    It would be therefore advantageous to provide a solution that overcomes these limitations. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0016]    Certain embodiments disclosed herein include an apparatus built in a computing device and configured to allow the efficient radiation of millimeter-wave signals and capturing of at least video signals. The apparatus comprises a body portion enclosed in a casing; a webcam module for capturing and receiving at least video and audio signals, wherein the webcam module includes at least a lens located in a first location of the body portion; an millimeter-wave array of active antennas configured to radiate the millimeter-wave signals, wherein the millimeter-wave array of active antennas is located in a second location of the body portion; and a radio frequency (RF) circuitry configured to control and activate the array of millimeter-wave active antennas, wherein an opening in the casing of the body portion is formed around the first location and the second location to expose the lens and the array of millimeter-wave active antennas. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]    The subject matter that is regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
           [0018]      FIG. 1  is a typical assembly of a laptop computer having radio transmission capabilities. 
           [0019]      FIG. 2  a diagram illustrating the assembly of a laptop computer having millimeter wave radio transmission capabilities. 
           [0020]      FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram of a laptop computer with a built-in combined webcam and RF module assembled in accordance with one embodiment. 
           [0021]      FIGS. 4A and 4B  show a front and back panel of a handled computing device with a built-in combined webcam and RF module assembled in accordance with one embodiment. 
           [0022]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram of the combined webcam and RF module according to one embodiment. 
           [0023]      FIG. 6  is a diagram of an assembly of the combined webcam and RF module in a lid plane of a laptop computer illustrating the exposure of the array of active antennas. 
           [0024]      FIG. 7  shows an arrangement array of active antennas surrounding the perimeter of the lens according to another embodiment. 
           [0025]      FIGS. 8 and 9  illustrate an implementation of the combined webcam and RF module constructed according to the disclosed embodiments. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0026]    The embodiments disclosed herein are only examples of the many possible advantageous uses and implementations of the innovative teachings presented herein. In general, statements made in the specification of the present application do not necessarily limit any of the various claimed inventions. Moreover, some statements may apply to some inventive features but not to others. In general, unless otherwise indicated, singular elements may be in plural and vice versa with no loss of generality. In the drawings, like numerals refer to like parts through several views. 
         [0027]    A schematic diagram of a laptop computer  300  assembled in accordance with one embodiment of the invention is shown in  FIG. 3 . The laptop computer  300  may be any handled computer, such as a netbook, a notebook, an ultrabook, and the like. The case of the laptop computer  300  may be made from metal, carbon fiber, or plastic materials. The teachings disclosed herein can also be applied to other handled computing devices, such as, but not limited to, smartphones, tablet computers, digital cameras, camcorders, and the like. 
         [0028]    The form factor of a millimeter-wave RF system operable in the 60 GHz is speared between a base plane  301  and a lid plane  302  of the laptop computer  300 . Specifically, the base plane  301  includes a baseband (BB) module  310  while the lid plane  302  includes the RF module  320  with an array of active antennas. The connection between the modules  310  and  320  is by means of one cable  315 . The functionality of the baseband and RF modules  310  and  320  and the signals transferred between them have been described above. 
         [0029]    Further assembled in the laptop computer  300  is an array of WiFi antennas  350  and/or cellular antennas  355 . As schematically illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the antennas  350  and  355  can be placed in the lid  302 , or in the hinge area between the base  301  and lid  302 . It should be noted that more antennas, such as Bluetooth® and/or Global Positioning System (GPS) antennas can be integrated in the computer  300 . This is also the case for smart phone and tablet computers. 
         [0030]    According to certain embodiments disclosed herein, the RF module  320  and its array of active antennas are integrated in a webcam module  330 , forming a combined webcam and RF module  340 , which is assembled in the lid plane  302 . The dimensions of the combined module  340  are the same as the webcam module  320 . To assemble the webcam module  330  or the combined module  340  in the lid plane  302 , an opening in the casing of the lid is formed. That is, the only portion in the lid plane  302  that is not covered by material used for encasing the lid is in the location of the combined module  340 . 
         [0031]    Thus, if the casing of the lid is made of metal, at the location of the webcam module  330  or the combined module  340 , there is no metal casting. Therefore, it should be understood that locating the RF module  320  inside an opening created for the webcam module  330  or the combined module  340  would allow RF signals to efficiently radiate with low signal interferences. It should be further understood that in the alternative, where the array of active antennas are covered by metal casing, then a “caging” effect is created, and as such RF signals cannot be efficiently radiated outside of the casing of the lid. Therefore, RF signals cannot be efficiently received and transmitted by the RF module  320 . Whereas in the proposed assembly, the RF signals can freely radiate through an opening (or a hole) that exposes the lens of the webcam module  330 . In one embodiment, the combined webcam and RF module  340  is disposed in a lid  302  above a screen  303  of laptop computer  300 . 
         [0032]    A webcam module typically includes a body portion enclosed within its casing. The body portion has an accommodated space inside for accommodating an electronic circuits and lens. The electronic circuits may include an image processor, an image sensor, a peripheral circuitry, and a connector (e.g., a USB connector). According to certain embodiments, the RF module  320  and its array of active antennas are placed in the accommodated space within a webcam module, to contain the combined webcam and RF module  340 . 
         [0033]    In another embodiment, as illustrated in  FIG. 4A , the combined webcam and RF module  410  is disposed in the front panel  401  at the side of the device&#39;s screen  402 . Alternatively or collectively, as illustrated in  FIG. 4B , the combined webcam and RF module  410  is disposed in a back panel  403  of a computing device  400 . The arrangements illustrated in  FIGS. 4A and 4B  are suitable for handheld computing devices, such as smartphones, and tablet computers. It should be noted that in all of the embodiments depicted in  FIGS. 3 ,  4 A and  4 B, the webcam and RF module  410  is a built-in module of the computing device. 
         [0034]      FIG. 5  shows an exemplary and non-limiting block diagram illustrating a combined webcam and RF module  500  constructed according to one embodiment. The module  500  allows capturing images as well as receiving and transmitting millimeter wave signals. In a particular embodiment, the RF millimeter wave signals are in the 60 GHz. 
         [0035]    In a body portion  510  of the combined webcam and RF module  500  there are installed on a printed circuit board (PCB) a connector  501 , an image processor  502 , a peripheral circuit  503 , and lens  504  integrated in an image sensor chip (or IC). The PCB is not illustrated in  FIG. 5 . The body portion  510  is enclosed within its casing. The components  501 ,  502  and  504  are elements of a standard webcam module. The connector  501  may be a USB micro connector, such as USB 2.0 or USB 3.0, or any other type of high-speed serial bus. In certain implementation, the PCB can be replaced with any other substrate material used to for electronic modules. 
         [0036]    In accordance with an embodiment disclosed herein, a RF circuitry  520  and an array of millimeter wave active antennas  530  are also included in the body portion  510 . The RF circuitry  520  and the array of active antennas  530  comprise the RF module  550 . 
         [0037]    In an embodiment, the active antennas in the array of active antennas  530  can be controlled to receive/transmit radio signals in a certain direction, to perform beam forming, and for switching from receive to transmit modes. In one embodiment, an active antenna in the array  530  may be a phased array antenna in which each radiating element can be controlled individually to enable the usage of beam-forming techniques and to allow antenna diversity, for example, spatial diversity and/or polarization diversity. The array of active antennas  530  include a plurality of radiating elements designed to support efficient reception and transmission of millimeter wave signals in at least the 60 GHz frequency band. According to one embodiment, the radiating elements of the active antennas  530  are implemented using metal patterns in a multilayer substrate of the PCB. 
         [0038]    The location of the array of active antennas  530  inside the body portion  510  of the combined webcam RF module  500  is selected so that the antennas  530  are not covered by the casing of the body portion  510  and the casing of the computing device (e.g., the casing of a lid or panel). 
         [0039]    As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , the combined webcam and RF module  500  is assembled in a lid plane  600  of the laptop computer. As can be shown the casing (labeled as  601 ) of the lid covers only a portion the module  500 . Specifically, the lens  504  and array of active antennas  530  are exposed through an opening  602  allowing visibility to objects. The opening  602  is typically covered by a clear plastic material. Thus, RF signals can also be radiated through the opening  602  without signal interferences or signal losses. In another embodiment, the active antennas can be placed behind the lens  504 , preferably facing an opposite direction than the image sensor. 
         [0040]    Referring back to  FIG. 5 , the RF circuitry  520  typically performs up-conversion, using a mixer (not shown) on the IF signals received from the baseband module to the RF signals, and then transmits the RF signals through the TX antenna according to control signals also received from the baseband module. In the receive direction, the RF circuitry  520  receives RF signals at the frequency band of 60 GHz, through the active RX antenna and performs down-conversion, using a mixer, to IF signals using the LO signals, and sends the IF signals to the baseband module. According to one embodiment, the IF, LO, and control signals are received from a baseband module over a cable connected to a connector  540 . The connector  540  may be a mini micro coaxial connector (UFL) connector or other suitable attachment structure. In one embodiment, the RF module  550  including the RF circuitry  520  and active antennas  530  may be fabricated in a single integrated circuit (IC). 
         [0041]    According to another embodiment, the array of active antennas  530  is a triple-band antenna designed to receive and transmit millimeter wave signals in the WiFi bands of 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz as well as the WiGig band of 60 GHz. Such a triple-band antenna includes a printed antenna having two wings for transmitting and receiving low-frequency signals in any one of the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequencies, and an antenna array including a plurality of radiating elements being printed on one of the wings of the printed antenna; the antenna array transmits and receives the 60 GHz band signals. An example of a triple-band antenna can be also found in a co-pending application Ser. No. 13/052,736, to Myszne, et al., assigned to the common assignee of the present application. 
         [0042]    The power signals that power the various components of the RF circuitry  520  are supplied by the baseband module over the cable connected to the connector  540 . In another configuration, such power signals are supplied through the connector  501  (e.g., a USB connector) or a power supply that powers the webcam&#39;s electric components. 
         [0043]    The peripheral circuitry  503  is also installed on the PCB in the body portion  510  of the combined webcam and RF module  500 . The peripheral circuitry  503  includes electronic components, such as capacitors, resistors, and inductors, power management circuitry (e.g. voltage regulators), a time reference (e.g. crystal) that can be shared with the image sensor and image signal processor  502 , and the RF circuitry  520 . 
         [0044]      FIG. 7  shows another arrangement of the array of active antennas  530  of the combined RF and webcam module according to one embodiment. The active antennas  530  are designed to surround the perimeter of the lens  504 . In one embodiment, the distance between radiating elements in the array of active antennas  530  is typically between a half wavelength and a full wavelength. The connections between the radiating elements and the RF circuitry  520  are by means of traces (not shown) being routed through metal vias in the substrate. It should be noted that the radiating elements of the array of active antennas  530  are designed to support efficient reception and transmission of millimeter wave signals, particularly in the frequency band of 60 GHz. The arrangement of the array of active antennas  530  as shown in  FIG. 7  may be utilized in a device when the opening in the casing of the device is limited. 
         [0045]    In another arrangement of the combined webcam and RF module  500  depicted in  FIG. 8 , the body portion  510  of the module  500  includes a baseband (BB) module  801 , a medium access control (MAC) layer circuit  801 , and the RF circuitry in addition to the connector  501 , the signal processor  502 , and the image sensor and lens  504  discussed above. In one embodiment, an IC  810  integrates the baseband module  801 , a medium access control (MAC) layer circuit  802 , and the RF circuitry  520 . The baseband module  801  has the functionality described above, for example, with respect to  FIG. 2 . 
         [0046]    Thus, in this embodiment shown in  FIG. 8 , there is no connector  540 , and the IF, control, and LO signals are provided by the baseband module  801 . The MAC layer circuit  802  in the IC  810  provides the MAC functionality according, for example, to IEEE 802.11ad communication protocol. The RF circuitry  520  controls and activates the array of millimeter wave active antennas  530  discussed above. The connector  501  is a high-speed serial connector being connected to a high-speed serial cable (e.g., USB3, PCIe, and the like). Over the high-speed serial cable video signals captured and processed by the webcam module as well as data signals output by or to be processed by the MAC layer circuit  802  are also transported. The data signals processed by the MAC layer circuit  802  are compliant with the IEEE 802.11ad communication protocol. 
         [0047]    In yet another arrangement depicted in  FIG. 9 , the body portion  510  of the combined webcam and RF module  500  includes only the connector  501 , the peripheral circuitry  503 , the lens  504  connected to the image sensor, and an IC  910 . The IC  910  integrates the webcam&#39;s image processor (e.g., processor  502 ), a baseband module, a MAC layer circuit, a RF circuitry ( 520 ), and the array of millimeter wave active antennas. The functions of these components are discussed in detail above. 
         [0048]    According to this embodiment, the array of active antennas is implemented on the substrate upon which the IC  910  is mounted. The IC  910  is fabricated on a multi-layer substrate and metal vias that connect between the various layers. The multi-layer substrate may be a combination of metal and dielectric layers and can be made of materials, such as a laminate (e.g., FR4 glass epoxy, Bismaleimide-Triazine), ceramic (e.g., low temperature co-fired ceramic LTCC), polymer (e.g., polyimide), PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene) based compositions (e.g., PTFE/Cermaic, PTFE/Woven glass fiber), and Woven glass reinforced materials (e.g., woven glass reinforced resin), wafer level packaging, and other packaging, technologies and materials. 
         [0049]    It should be noted that in other embodiments, the combined webcam and RF module  500  can also include circuitry to support WiFi connectivity integrated, for example, in the IC  910 . In this configuration, the active antennas are constructed as a triple-band antenna described above. 
         [0050]    It is important to note that these embodiments are only examples of the many advantageous uses of the innovative teachings herein. Specifically, the innovative teachings disclosed herein can be adapted in any type of consumer electronic devices where reception and transmission of millimeter wave signals is needed. Moreover, some statements may apply to some inventive features but not to others. In general, unless otherwise indicated, it is to be understood that singular elements may be in plural and vice versa with no loss of generality. 
         [0051]    All examples and conditional language recited herein are intended for pedagogical purposes to aid the reader in understanding the principles of the invention and the concepts contributed by the inventor to furthering the art, and are to be construed as being without limitation to such specifically recited examples and conditions. Moreover, all statements herein reciting principles, aspects, and embodiments of the invention, as well as specific examples thereof, are intended to encompass both structural and functional equivalents thereof. Additionally, it is intended that such equivalents include both currently known equivalents as well as equivalents developed in the future, i.e., any elements developed that perform the same function, regardless of structure.