Patent Publication Number: US-7583228-B2

Title: Antenna, antenna combination, and portable electronic device having the antenna or antenna combination

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE 
   This application is a continuation-in-part (CIP) of application Ser. No. 11/826,240, filed on Jul. 13, 2007. The prior application is herewith incorporated by reference in its entirety. 

   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to an antenna and a portable electronic device having the same. 
   2. Description of the Related Art 
   With the evolution of wireless communication technology, various portable devices are exploiting wireless communication technology for data transmission, thus causing the antenna design to evolve at a rapid rate. Nowadays, these portable communication devices are becoming lighter and smaller, and the antenna must also be reduced in size in order to be installed into these electronic devices. 
   In terms of antenna&#39;s exterior design, the lengthy external antenna that is designed to receive and transmit radio frequency has become shorter and has been internalized, and it makes the appearance of the devices more appealing. In terms of application aspect, antenna is able to take on different shapes and sizes, thus the antennas can be designed accordingly to comply with various electronic appliance standards and to cater for different system products. Therefore, antenna manufacturing has the characteristic of high versatility with low volume. However, the basic objective of designing an antenna is to improve the quality of signal transmission and reception, thus this property should not be compromised from improving its exterior appearance, size or choice of material. 
   Nowadays, the helical antenna and the monopole antenna are used in the circuit separately, and its pitfall is that both the helical antenna and the monopole antenna can only have a single-band frequency respectively. The applicant of the present invention has filed a U.S. patent application with application Ser. No. 11/806,287 on Can 31, 2007, which discloses a multi-frequency antenna combining with helix element and/or radiating element. The multi-frequency antenna comprises a helix element connecting to a feeding portion and a helix element connecting to a grounding portion. The radiating element is resonated with high frequency such as 5 GHz, and the helix element is resonated with low frequency such as 2.4 GHz. However, the multi-frequency antenna of the U.S. application Ser. No. 11/806,287 further comprises a base for fixing the radiating element and the helix element, and further for grounding and feeding capabilities. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present provides an antenna, an antenna combination, and a portable electronic device having the antenna or the antenna combination. 
   It is an object of the present invention to provide an antenna, an antenna combination, and a portable electronic device having the antenna or the antenna combination for which the manufacturing process can be simplified. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide an antenna, an antenna combination, and a portable electronic device having the antenna or the antenna combination for which the manufacturing cost can be reduced. 
   It is a further object of the present invention to provide an antenna, an antenna combination, and a portable electronic device having the antenna or the antenna combination for which a similar level of performance as that of the Planar Inverted F Antenna (PIFA) can be can achieved. 
   The antenna receives or transmits wireless signals by using a coaxial cable to feed current. The antenna comprises a radiator; a grounding portion; and an arc-shaped feeding portion coupled with the coaxial cable for feeding current, wherein a first end of the arc-shaped feeding portion is connected with the radiator, and a second end of the arc-shaped feeding portion is connected with the grounding portion. 
   The grounding portion of the antenna can comprise a helix structure. 
   In one embodiment, the antenna can further comprise a fixing portion extending from the grounding portion, the fixing portion can be shaped in circular, round, or polyhedron. 
   In another embodiment, the radiator of the antenna comprises a plurality of bending portions, for example, the radiator can have at least one U-shaped portion formed by the plurality of bending portions, in response to different requirements for high frequency resonance. 
   Furthermore, the present invention provides an antenna combination, which comprises a coaxial cable, a grounding element and the antenna depicted above. The coaxial cable is connected with the arc-shaped feeding portion of the antenna to feed current into the antenna. The grounding element covers at least one portion of the grounding portion of the antenna. 
   Still further, the coaxial cable comprises a feeding core, an isolating layer, a meshed metal layer, and an insulating sleeve. The isolating layer covers the feeding core and exposes a portion of the feeding core. The meshed metal layer covers the isolating layer and exposes a portion of the isolating layer. The insulating sleeve covers the meshed metal layer and exposes a portion of the meshed metal layer. 
   The arc-shaped feeding portion of the antenna is connected with the feeding core, wherein the arc-shaped feeding portion can be shaped in circular in order to facilitate the process of connecting the feeding core with the arc-shaped feeding portion when manufacturing. Preferably, the grounding portion can be shaped in helical to cover the meshed metal layer of the coaxial cable therein. The helical grounding portion can have more contact areas with the meshed metal layer and be fixed with the meshed metal layer, however, the grounding portion of the present invention is not limited to helical shape, on the other hand, the grounding portion can have different shapes as long as it can contact with the meshed metal layer of the coaxial cable. 
   The grounding portion and the meshed metal layer can be fixed with each other, for example through soldering. The arc-shaped feeding portion and the feeding core can be fixed with each other through soldering as well. 
   In order to fix the antenna to other application devices, the fixing portion of the antenna can use a fixing means (such as screwing or soldering) to fix the antenna to a case of other application device. The fixing portion can be in any shape, for example, the fixing portion can be round, square, triangular, or polyhedron. 
   Moreover, the antenna disclosed in the present invention further comprises a fixed connection portion extending from the grounding portion so as to meet different requirements by connecting the antenna with another antenna. 
   Besides, the above-mentioned antenna or antenna combination can be applied in portable electronic devices. Therefore, the present invention discloses a portable electronic device, which can be a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), or a mobile phone capable of transmitting/receiving wireless signals. The portable electronic device disclosed in the present invention comprises a case, a wireless communication module, and the above-mentioned antenna combination, a coaxial cable of the antenna combination is connected with the wireless communication module for transmitting/receiving wireless signals, and the antenna combination is disposed within the case; for example, the antenna combination is fixed to the case through the fixing portion of the antenna. 
   Various frequencies can be generated through the antenna disclosed in the present invention to cover a wide range of bandwidths for different system requirements. The antenna of the present invention has high practical industrial value as it is simple to design and all the components are formed in one single process, therefore it also leads to low manufacturing cost. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective diagram showing an antenna according to one of the embodiments of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective diagram showing the antenna with a grounding element according to the embodiment of  FIG. 1 ; 
       FIG. 3  is a Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) diagram according to the embodiment of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 4  shows a radiation pattern with Y-Z plane according to the embodiment of  FIG. 2 ; 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective diagram showing an antenna according to another embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 6  is a perspective diagram showing the antenna in the embodiment of  FIG. 5  with a grounding element; 
       FIG. 7  is a Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) diagram according to the embodiment of  FIG. 6 ; 
       FIG. 8  shows a radiation pattern with Y-Z plane according to the embodiment of  FIG. 6 ; 
       FIG. 9  is an equivalent circuit diagram according to the antenna disclosed in the present invention; 
       FIG. 10A  to  FIG. 10C  show different variations of the fixing portion according to the antenna disclosed in the present invention; 
       FIG. 11A  to  FIG. 11D  show different variations of the first grounding portion according to the antenna disclosed in the present invention; 
       FIG. 12  shows two antennas of the present invention being connected with each other through a fixed connection portion; 
       FIG. 12A  to  FIG. 12C  show different variations of the fixed connection portion of  FIG. 12  according to the antenna disclosed in the present invention; 
       FIG. 13  is a partial perspective view showing antenna connecting with the wireless communication module according to the portable electronic device disclosed in the present invention; and 
       FIG. 14  is a perspective diagram showing different positions for the antenna disposed within the portable electronic device according to the present invention. 
   

   REFERENCE NUMERALS 
   
       
       antenna  1 ,  5 ,  10   a ,  10   b ,  10   c ,  11   a ,  11   b ,  11   c ,  11   d ,  120 ,  12   a ,  12   b ,  12   c    
       arc-shaped feeding portion  11 ,  51   
       grounding portion  12 ,  52 ,  112   a ,  112   b ,  112   c ,  112   d    
       radiator  13 ,  53   a ,  53   b  ground portion  14 ,  54   
       connecting portion  15 ,  55   
       fixing portion  16 ,  56 ,  106   a ,  106   b ,  106   c    
       fixed connection portion  121 ,  122 ,  123 ,  124   
       coaxial cable  2  feeding core  21   
       isolating layer  22  meshed metal layer  23   
       insulating sleeve  24  grounding element  3   
       covering portion  31 ,  32   
       case  100  wireless communication module  131   
       fixing means  99  portable electronic device  140   
     
  
   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   The present invention provides an antenna, an antenna combination, and a portable electronic device having the same. The advantages and innovative features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
   Please refer to  FIG. 1 , which shows the antenna according to one of the embodiments of the present invention. The antenna  1  uses a coaxial cable  2  to feed current for receiving or transmitting wireless signals. 
   The antenna  1  disclosed in the present invention comprises an arc-shaped feeding portion  11 , a grounding portion  12 , and a radiator  13 . The arc-shaped feeding portion  11  is connected with the coaxial cable  2  for feeding current thereto. A first end of the arc-shaped feeding portion  11  is connected with the radiator  13 , and a second end of the arc-shaped feeding portion  11  is connected with the grounding portion  12 . 
   The radiator  13  of the antenna  1  can comprise a plurality of bending portions for adjusting the high frequency resonance of the antenna  1 ; that is, changing the current distribution by using the plurality of bending portions to meet different requirements of different frequency resonances. For example, the bending portion of the radiator  13  can be shaped in U shape as illustrated. Based on different requirements, the present invention can use a plurality of bending portions to form a plurality of U shapes for different high frequency resonance conditions, details will be described below. 
   The arc-shaped feeding portion  11  of the antenna  1  is disposed between the radiator  13  and the grounding portion  12 . The grounding portion  12  contacts a portion of the coaxial cable  2 , which will be described in detail later. 
   In one embodiment, the antenna  1  can further comprise a fixing portion  16  extending from the grounding portion  12 . The fixing portion  16  can have different shapes, such as circular, round, or polyhedron, etc. 
   The grounding portion  12  of the antenna  1  can have a helical structure, which will be described in detail later. 
   Besides, please refer to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , one aspect of the present invention is to provide an antenna combination, which comprises a coaxial cable  2 , a grounding element  3 , and an antenna (such as the antenna  1  mentioned above). 
   The coaxial cable  2  can comprise a feeding core  21 , an isolating layer  22 , a meshed metal layer  23  and an insulating sleeve  24 . Stripping by layers, the isolating layer  22  covers the feeding core  21  and exposes a portion of the feeding core  21  as illustrated; the meshed metal layer  23  covers the isolating layer  22  and exposes a portion of the isolating layer  22 ; and the insulating sleeve covers the meshed metal layer  23  and exposes a portion of the meshed metal layer  23 . 
   In one embodiment, the arc-shaped feeding portion  11  of the antenna  1  is connected with the feeding core  21  of the cable  2 , the arc-shaped feeding portion  11  can be shaped in circular in order to facilitate the process of connecting the feeding core  21  with the arc-shaped feeding portion  11  when manufacturing. For example, the arc-shaped feeding portion  11  and the feeding core  21  can be fixed with each other by soldering. 
   Preferably, the grounding portion  12  can be shaped in helical to cover the meshed metal layer  23  of the coaxial cable  2  therein. The helical grounding portion  12  can have more contact areas with the meshed metal layer  23  and be fixed with the meshed metal layer  23 . However, the grounding portion  12  of the present invention is not limited to the helical shape, on the other hand, the grounding portion  12  can have different shapes. The grounding portion  12  and the meshed metal layer  23  can be further fixed with each other by soldering. 
   The antenna  1  can further comprise a second grounding portion  14  disposed between the arc-shaped feeding portion  11  and the first grounding portion  12 . A connecting portion  15  can be further provided between the second grounding portion  14  and the arc-shaped feeding portion  11 , the shape of the connecting portion  15  can be varied based on different design requirements. 
   The antenna  1  and the coaxial cable  2  of the present invention can be grounded through the covering portion  31 ,  32  of the grounding element  3  covering the grounding portion  12  and the grounding portion  14  respectively. 
   In order to fix the antenna  1  to other application devices (which will be explained below), a fixing portion  16  of the antenna  1  can be adapted to screw or solder the antenna  1  to other application devices. The fixing portion  16  can be in any shape, such as round, square, triangular, polyhedron, or the like. 
     FIG. 3  is a Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) diagram according to the embodiment of  FIG. 2 . It is obvious that the VSWR ratio of the antenna  1  of the present invention under both high and low frequencies (such as 2 GHz and 5 GHz) are smaller or equal to 2, which are better than the standard VSWR ratio of 2.5 commonly known in the industry. Further refer to  FIG. 4 , which shows a radiation pattern with Y-Z plane according to the embodiment of  FIG. 2 . From  FIG. 4 , it can be seen that the antenna  1  of the present invention has a uniform radiation pattern. 
   Please refer to  FIG. 5 , which is a perspective diagram showing an antenna according to another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, an antenna  5  comprises a radiator having a plurality of bending portion  53   a ,  53   b  for forming a plurality of U shapes. Further, the bending portion  53   a  shown in  FIG. 5  is bended in three dimensions. Moreover, although the bending portion  53   b  is disposed in the X-Y plane, the bending portion  53   b  can be disposed in the X-Z or z-y plane (not shown in figures) based on different high frequency resonance requirements. 
   The connecting portion  15  shown in  FIG. 1  is bended in three dimensions, however, based on different designs, in the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 5 , the connecting portion  55  can be in a U shape. Although different connecting portion  15 ,  55  are shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 5 , they are only for illustration and not used to limit the present invention, the number and the shape of the connecting portion  15 ,  55  can be different in various embodiments. 
   Similarly,  FIG. 6  is a perspective diagram showing an antenna combination comprising the antenna  5  in  FIG. 5  with the coaxial cable  2  and the grounding element  3 .  FIG. 7  is a Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) diagram according to the embodiment of  FIG. 6 . It is obvious that the VSWR ratio of the antenna  5  in the present invention under both high and low frequencies (such as 2 GHz and 5 GHz) are far less than 2, which are much better than the standard VSWR ratio of 2.5 commonly known in the industry. Further referring to  FIG. 8 , which shows a radiation pattern with Y-Z plane, from  FIG. 4 , it can be seen that the antenna  5  of the present invention has a relative uniform radiation pattern. 
     FIG. 9  is an equivalent circuit diagram for the antenna  1 ,  5  disclosed in the present invention. By designing the radiator  13 ,  53   a , or  53   b  to have various shapes, the antenna  1  or  5  can have smaller size and also maintain a certain performance. Those skilled in the art should know the length of the antenna  1  or  5  is designed based on ¼ wavelength of the transmitted wave, therefore it will not be necessary for further describing. 
   Still further, although the fixing portion  16 ,  56  shown respectively in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 5  are shaped in circular for fitting the screw, the present invention can have other variations. The fixing portion can be shaped differently for fixing the antenna to application devices. Please refer to  FIG. 10A to 10C , which show various antennas  10   a ,  10   b ,  10   c  respectively comprising fixing portion  106   a ,  106   b ,  106   c  being in different shapes. 
   As mentioned above, in order to simplify the manufacturing process, the grounding portion  12  illustrated in  FIG. 1  is employed to cover the meshed metal layer  23  of the coaxial cable  2 , however, the present invention is not limited to the helical grounding portion  12 . Please refer to  FIG. 11A to 11D , the grounding portion  112   a  to  112   d  of the antennas  11   a  to  11   d  can have different shapes to contact with the meshed metal layer  23  of the coaxial cable  2 . 
   Please refer to the embodiment of  FIG. 12 . In order to provide different functions for different applications, the antenna  5  disclosed in the present invention can further comprise a fixed connection portion  121  extending from the grounding portion  52 . The fixed connection portion  121  is disposed to connect with another antenna  5  to achieve required functions. Although, in  FIG. 12 , we take the antenna  5  as the example, it is only for illustration and not for limitation. Other antennas  1 ,  10   a - 10   c  or  11   a - 11   d  can be utilized for  FIG. 12 . Besides, as shown in  FIG. 12A to 12C , the fixed connection portion  122 ,  123 ,  124  can be shaped differently. 
   Besides, all of the antennas provided in the present invention can be applied in various portable electronic devices. Another aspect of the present invention discloses a portable electronic device. 
   Please refer to  FIG. 13  and  FIG. 14 , although a laptop  140  is used as an illustration, it is not intended to limit the present invention, as those skilled in the art will know, the portable electronic device disclosed in the present invention can be a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), or a mobile phone.  FIG. 13  partly shows a portable electronic device  140 , which comprises a case  100 , a wireless communication module  131 , and an antenna combination as described above (the antenna  5  is used here as an illustrative example). The antenna  5  electrically connects with the wireless communication module  131  through the coaxial cable  2 , wherein the antenna  5  is used to receive and/or transmit wireless signals. Besides, a fixing means  99  can fix the antenna  1  to the case  100  of the portable electronic device  140 . For example, a screw is used with the fixing portion  56  of the antenna  5  to fix the antenna  1  to the case  100  of the portable electronic device  140 . Furthermore, although the fixing means  99  is a screw in  FIG. 13 , it is only for illustration example, the fixing means  99  can be in any other formation such as soldering or the like to fix the antenna  5  to the case  100 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 14 , the antenna  1  or  5  can be disposed at any position in the portable electronic device  140  according to different designs. It should be understood that the figures discussed in the present invention are only for illustration and not for limitation. Various frequencies can be generated through the antenna disclosed in the present invention to cover a wide range of bandwidths for the system requirements. The antenna of the present invention has high practical industrial value as it is simple to design and all the components are formed in one single process, therefore it also leads to low manufacturing cost. 
   It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the present invention cover modifications and variations of this invention provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.