Patent Publication Number: US-2022224014-A1

Title: Antenna with a heat sink for a meter

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     None 
     BACKGROUND 
     Gas and water meters are disparately located and require a very-efficient, compact antenna to communicate with a controller or other network for functionality. Typically, the meter location is a very unfriendly environment to antennas. Most meters have very little space for the antenna and the antenna is located close to other metal structures. For example, a typical meter has the antenna located near the meter&#39;s large metal housing and can often be secured using a metal face-plate and a plurality of screws. 
     All of these structures can interfere with the antenna performance. In the case of potted meters, the antenna can also be hindered by water-proofing compounds. Moreover, the antennas must be intrinsically safe, which constrains many traditionally effective antenna design strategies. For at least these reasons, the utility metering industry has difficulty achieving good range with a cellular radio. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a diagram of an antenna with a heat sink for a meter according to one embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a diagram of the antenna with the heat sink for the meter according to another embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram of the antenna with the heat sink for the meter according to another embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a flowchart that illustrates the operation of the antenna with the heat sink for the meter according to one embodiment. 
     
    
    
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     One embodiment is a device comprising a primary radiator tuned to a plurality of bands, a ground plane connected to the primary radiator, and a heat sink connected to the ground plane, the heat sink connected substantially perpendicular to the ground plane, the heat sink configured to extend the ground plane, wherein the primary radiator is connected in series with the ground plane and the heat sink, the connection creating a first resonance which enables the modification of at least one property of the primary radiator. 
     Another embodiment is a system. The system includes a radiation system tuned to a plurality of bands, a ground plane system connected to the radiation system, and a heat sink system connected to the ground plane system, the heat sink system connected substantially perpendicular to the ground plane system, the heat sink system configured to extend the ground plane system, wherein the radiation system is connected in series with the ground plane system and the heat sink system, the connection creating a first resonance which enables the modification of at least one property of the radiation system. 
     In another embodiment, a meter is provided. The meter includes a housing including at least one waterproofing element, a radiator tuned to a plurality of bands, the radiator enclosed in a cage connected to the housing and secured with a face-plate by a plurality of connection elements, a ground plane connected to the radiator, and a heat sink connected to the ground plane, the heat sink connected substantially perpendicular to the ground plane, the heat sink configured to extend the ground plane, wherein the radiator is connected in series with the ground plane and the heat sink, the connection creating a first resonance which enables the modification of at least one property of the radiator. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIG. 1  is a diagram of an antenna with a heat sink for a meter according to one embodiment. A meter  100  includes a housing  110  and a communication module  120 . The housing is a physical device, typically made of metal, which enables gas or water to flow through the housing to be controlled, metered, or otherwise utilized. The communication module  120  is connected to the housing and can communicate externally with a controller or other operator. 
     The communication module  120  is capable of sending and receiving signals over the air, via an I/O controller  190 , which in turn can be used to control the physical operation of the meter  100 . For example, the communication module  120  could be used to communicate the state of the meter  100  to a human operator, who in turn could send a signal back to the communication module  120  which causes it to alter the state of the water and gas flowing through the housing  110 , for instance by shutting off a valve in the housing  110 . 
     The communication module  120  is comprised of a radiator  130 , a ground plane  140 , and a heat sink  150 . The radiator  130 , the ground plane  140  and the heat sink  150  are attached to a circuit board  160 . In one example, the radiator  130  is tuned to a plurality of bands. These could be, for example, LTE or other over the air bands. In some embodiments, the radiator is an LTE antenna tuned to bands  2 ,  4 ,  5 ,  12 , and  13 . Any suitable radiator  130  can be used. In some examples, the radiator  130  is stamped metal and can be in the form of a planar inverted-F antenna (PIFA). 
     The radiator  130  is connected to a ground plane  140  which is shown as block  140  for purposes of example only. The ground plane  140  typically encompasses all of the circuit board  160  except the portion where the radiator  130  resides. The heat sink  150  is connected to the ground plane  140 . The heat sink  140  is configured to extend the ground plane  140 , such that the radiator  130  can more effectively process LTE bands  12  and  13 , without increasing the physical size of the communication module  120 . To that end, the heat sink  150  can be connected substantially perpendicular to the ground plane  140 . 
     In operation, when the radiator  130  is connected in series with the ground plane  140  and the heat sink  150  on the circuit board  160 , the connection creates a first resonance in the communication module  120 . The first resonance enables the modification of at least one property of the radiator  130 . In one example, the modification includes compacting the signals of longer wavelength bands, such as LTE bands  12  and  13 , such that the communication module  120  can utilize them with a smaller size of the ground plane  140 , and hence, the communication module  120 . 
       FIG. 2  is a diagram of the antenna with the heat sink for the meter according to another embodiment. In  FIG. 2 , the communication module  120  is shown in more detail. The communication module  120  is connected to a meter housing (not shown) and can communicate externally with a controller or other operator. The communication module  120  is capable of sending and receiving signals over the air, which in turn can be used to control the physical operation of the meter (not shown). Typically, a face-plate (not shown) is placed directly on top of the communication module  120 . The face-plate encloses and protects the communication module from humans and the environment. The face-plate is typically comprised of a metal, although other types of face-plates can be used as well. 
     The face-plate connects to the communication module via connection elements  210 ,  211 ,  212 , and  213 . The connection elements can be a variety of connectors. In one example, four metal screws are used to secure the face-plate to the communication module  120 . The communication module  120  also includes a battery  230  which supplies the power needed for the communication module  120  to perform I/O operations via I/O controller  190 . 
     The communication module  120  is further comprised of a radiator  130 , a ground plane  140 , and a heat sink  150 . The radiator  130 , the ground plane  140  and the heat sink  150  are attached to a circuit board  160 . In one example, the radiator  130  is tuned to a plurality of bands. These could be, for example, LTE or other over the air bands. In some embodiments, the radiator is an LTE antenna tuned to bands  2 ,  4 ,  5 ,  12 , and  13 . In the example of  FIG. 2 , the radiator  130  is a stamped metal PIFA which is capable of utilizing a wide range of bands in a small area. In this example, the radiator  130  includes a low-band radiating element (LBRE)  230  and a high-band radiating element  240 . 
     The radiator  130  is connected to a ground plane  140 . The ground plane  140  encompasses all of the circuit board  160  left of a radiator feed point  220 . The heat sink  150  connected to the ground plane  140 . The heat sink  140  is configured to extend the ground plane  140 , such that the radiator  130  can more effectively process LTE bands  12  and  13 , without increasing the physical size of the communication module  120 . To that end, the heat sink  150  can be connected substantially perpendicular to the ground plane  140 . It should also be noted that the heat sink  140  is substantially perpendicular to the face-plate (not shown). 
     In operation, when the radiator  130  is connected in series with the ground plane  140  and the heat sink  150  on the circuit board  160 , the connection creating a first resonance in the communication module  120 . The first resonance enables the modification of at least one property of the radiator  130 . In one example, the modification includes compacting the signals of longer wavelength bands, such as LTE bands  12  and  13 , such that the communication module  120  can utilize them with a smaller size of the ground plane  140 , and hence, the communication module  120 . It should also be noted that merely increasing the size of the ground plane  140  is not sufficient, as this would increase the size of the face plate, and hence, make the interference with the radiator  130  even grater. 
       FIG. 3  is a diagram of the antenna with the heat sink for the meter according to one embodiment. In  FIG. 3 , the communication module  120  is connected to a meter housing  110  of a meter  100  and can communicate externally with a controller or other operator via an I/O controller  190 . The communication module  120  is capable of sending and receiving signals over the air, which in turn can be used to control the physical operation of the meter  100 . A face-plate  320  is placed directly on top of the communication module  120 . The face-plate  320  encloses and protects the communication module  120  from humans and the environment. The face-plate  320  is typically comprised of a metal, although other types of face-plates  320  can be used as well. 
     The face-plate  320  connects to the communication module  120  via screws  300 ,  301 ,  302 , and  303 . The screws  300 ,  301 ,  302 , and  303  can be any variety of screw suitable to secure the face-plate  320 . In one example, four metal screws are used to secure the face-plate to the communication module  120 . The communication module  120  is comprised of a radiator  130 , a ground plane  140 , and a heat sink  150 . The radiator  130 , the ground plane  140  and the heat sink  150  are attached to a circuit board  160  (not shown) and are depicted as dotted lines since they are not visible underneath the face-plate  320 . In one example, the radiator  130  is tuned to a plurality of bands. These could be, for example, LTE or other over the air bands. In some embodiments, the radiator is a PIFA antenna tuned to LTE bands  2 ,  4 ,  5 ,  12 , and  13 . 
     The radiator  130  is connected to a ground plane  140  at one side of the circuit board  160  (not shown). The heat sink  150  is connected to the ground plane  140  at an opposing side of the circuit board (not shown). The heat sink  140  is configured to extend the ground plane  140 , such that the radiator  130  can more effectively process LTE bands  12  and  13 , without increasing the physical size of the communication module  120 . To that end, the heat sink  150  can be connected substantially perpendicular to the ground plane  140 . 
     In operation, when the radiator  130  is connected in series with the ground plane  140  and the heat sink  150  on the circuit board  160 , the connection creating a first resonance in the communication module  120 . The first resonance enables the modification of at least one property of the radiator  130 . In one example, the modification includes compacting the signals of longer wavelength bands, such as LTE bands  12  and  13 , such that the communication module  120  can utilize them with a smaller size of the ground plane  140 , and hence, the communication module  120 . 
       FIG. 4  is a flowchart that illustrates the operation of the antenna with the heat sink for the meter according to one embodiment. At step  400 , a radiator is provided. The radiator can be any radiator capable of cellular transmission. In one example, this includes an LTE antenna, such as a stamped metal PIFA radiator that can transmit in LTE band  2 , LTE band  4 , LTE band  5 , LTE band  12 , and LTE band  13 . At step  410 , a ground plane is provided. The ground plane can be connected to the radiator, for example, at a radiator feed point such that it provides energy to the radiator on a circuit board. 
     At step  420 , a heat sink is provided. In one example, the heat-sink occupies one side of a circuit board, while the radiator occupies an opposing side of the circuit board with the ground plane essentially in between. This is connection is made at step  430 , such that the ground plane and the heat sink are connected in series with the radiator on the board. 
     At step  440 , the heat sink connection is made such that it is substantially perpendicular to a face-plate. The face-plate is generally parallel to the circuit board and resides on top of a controller housing where these components are secured. The connections create a first resonance in the system. When this resonance occurs at step  450 , at least one property of the radiator is modified at step  460 . 
     Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.