Patent ID: 12216215

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments disclosed herein describe apparatuses, systems, and methods for aligning antennas. An antenna aligner may use multiple sensors and/or a camera with a reference object for a faster, more reliable, and more precise antenna alignment compared to the conventional antenna aligners. A processor may use the data from the multiple sensors to determine at least one of a roll, tilt, or azimuth of the antenna that the antenna aligner is coupled to. A location of the reference object in the field of view of the camera may be used to align the antenna with respect to the other objects in the field of view.

The sensors may include, but are not limited to, magnetic field sensors, GNSS receivers, inertial motion sensors, or tilt sensors such as accelerometers. The magnetic field sensors may measure the earth's magnetic field at corresponding locations. Based on these measurements, which may be directional as magnetic fields are vector quantities, a processor may determine an azimuth) of the antenna. The processor may determine other alignment information, e.g., roll or tilt, based on measurements from other sensors such as inertial motion sensors or accelerometers. In an embodiment, the magnetic field sensors may be within a reference plane. For instance, a printed circuit board (PCB) in the antenna aligner may have multiple magnetic field sensors, and the PCB may be mounted in a known reference plane relative to the antenna aligner. The processor may use this reference plane to potentially mitigate a localized magnetic field effect influencing the magnetic field sensors. For instance, the reference plane may allow the magnetic field sensors to measure the same or similar vector directions (e.g., relative to the reference plane) of the earth's magnetic field. An outlier measurement, where at least one vector direction is substantially different, may be discarded from the final measurement. Although the aforementioned sensors are recited in plural, a single sensor (e.g., one magnetic field sensor) may be used to achieve same or similar functionality.

The inertial motion sensors and tilt sensors such as accelerometers may be used to select a portion of the data measured by the magnetic field sensors. The view of, and therefore the measurement made by the magnetic field sensors, may be three dimensional (e.g., for each magnetic field sensor, forming a sphere with the sensor in the middle, wherein each point in the sphere may have the same magnetic field intensity). The roll and the tilt data may then be used to select a portion of the sphere (e.g., a two-dimensional circular slice). The azimuth of the antenna may then be determined using the selected data for each magnetic field sensors.

The magnetic azimuth calculated based on the measurements from the magnetic field sensors (or one magnetic field sensor) may not necessarily be the geographical azimuth because of the non-alignment of the earth's magnetic and geographical poles. Therefore, the magnetic azimuth calculation may have to be augmented (or corrected) to account for the non-alignment. For instance, the antenna aligner may have pre-stored data with corrections to determine the geographical azimuth from the magnetic azimuths (e.g., offsets for magnetic azimuth calculations). In other instances, the user may provide the correction data. Furthermore, GNSS based location determination may be used to retrieve the correction data corresponding to the determined location.

The GNSS receivers may provide additional data for alignment. In an embodiment, azimuth calculations from the magnetic field sensors may be used until there a GNSS lock (e.g., determination of a geoposition within a desired confidence level). Once there is a GNSS lock, the aligner may switch the azimuth determination based on the GNSS receiver data. When the lock is lost, the aligner may switch to the magnetic field sensors. The antenna aligner may also operate using a “hybrid” approach, determining alignment based on both the magnetic field sensor data and GNSS receiver data. Both types of measurements may be used for the azimuth calculation. For instance, GNSS based location may be used to determine the correction to generate a geographical azimuth from the magnetic azimuth calculated by the magnetic field sensors.

The antenna aligner may further indicate to the user what type of measurement was used for azimuth calculation. For example, the antenna aligner may indicate, at a display, that magnetic field sensors were used to calculate the azimuth, that GNSS receivers were used to calculate the azimuth, or that a hybrid approach was used to calculate the azimuth using both magnetic field sensors and the GNSS receivers.

The reference object in the field of view of the camera may be used for optical alignment. An image of the reference object may be shown in a display together with other physical objects (e.g., a city block) in the field of view of the camera. The distance between the camera and the reference object and/or the orientation of the reference object vis-à-vis the camera (e.g., an angle between a line perpendicular to the field of view of the camera and the reference object) may be predetermined, and the predetermined distance and/or orientation may be used to determined how the antenna is aligned to the other objects in the field of view. For instance, a user may manually adjust the antenna until the reference object is in a straight line with another object in the field of view (e.g., center of a building rooftop).

Further details of example embodiments are described below with references toFIGS.1-4.

FIG.1shows an example environment100for an antenna alignment apparatus (also referred to as an antenna aligner), based on the principles disclosed herein. The example environment100includes an antenna104. The antenna104may be disposed on a pole106. The pole106is just an example, and the antenna104may be located on any type of structure such as an antenna tower, rooftop, treetop, building wall, vehicle top, satellite, and/or any other type of structure. Furthermore, the antenna104can be any type of antenna, including a dome antenna, loop antenna, Yagi-type antenna, and/or any type of antenna that may have to be aligned for optimal performance. Although the antenna104is described herein as a singular antenna, a combination of antennas that may have to be aligned should also be considered within the scope of this disclosure.

An antenna aligner102may be attached to the antenna104using a clamp108. The clamp108is just an example, and any kind of coupling or connecting device should be considered within the scope of this disclosure. The antenna aligner102may include any type of sensors, displays, and/or other components configured to align the antenna104. When coupled to the antenna104, the orientation of the antenna aligner102may correspond to the orientation of the antenna104. In other words, the alignment of the antenna104may correspond to the alignment of the antenna aligner102itself. The alignment may include parameters such as roll, pitch, or azimuth; as understood in the art.

In operation, the antenna aligner102may be coupled to the antenna104. The antenna aligner102may display the alignment information in a display or transmit the alignment information to another device (e.g., a nearby smartphone). As the antenna104is adjusted, the antenna aligner102may provide real time feedback of the alignment information. In some embodiments, the antenna aligner102may allow the user to input the desired alignment. When the desired alignment (or an alignment within a margin of error of the desired alignment)) is reached, the antenna aligner102may provide a visual and/or audio feedback. The video feedback may include, for example, an indication in the display or a LED (Light Emitting Diode) light being green. The audio feedback may include, for example, a sound indicating that the desired alignment has been reached.

FIG.2shows perspective views of an example antenna aligner102, based on the principles disclosed herein. More particularly,FIG.2shows perspective views of an external form factor of the antenna aligner102. The external form factor generally shows optical components for the antenna aligner102. It should however be understood that other sensors (e.g., magnetic field sensors) may be disposed in the external form factor of the antenna aligner102. As shown, the optical components may include, for example, a camera204, a reference object202, a display206, and a control panel210.

The camera204may be any kind of camera, including but not limited to optical camera, infrared camera, and/or any other type of sensor that may capture any type of electromagnetic waves to generate an image of objects in the field of view of the camera204. For instance, the field of view of the camera204may include buildings within a city block; and the field of view may indicate that the front portion of the antenna104is aligned towards the city block. However, the view by itself may be able to only provide just a rough alignment (i.e., the antenna104is generally alignment towards the city block), but not a precise alignment as desired.

The reference object202may be any kind of mark, stud, and/or any other type of component that is within the filed of view of the camera204. For instance, the reference object202may be a printed mark that is visible in any type of image captured by the camera204. The printed mark may include a symbol, text, log, insignia, and/or any type of print on the material surface of the antenna aligner102. In other instance, the reference object202may be a physical stud, such as a physical protrusion or other kind of physical landmark in the surface of the antenna aligner. The physical stud, which may be visible in the field of view of the camera204, may be any shape or size.

The display206may render the field of view of the camera204. For instance, the display may show an image captured by the camera204. Within the image captured by the camera, the display may show an image208of the reference object202. The location of the image208of the reference object202may provide a more precise alignment of the antenna.

In some embodiments, the antenna104may be manually adjusted until the image208is aligned with a physical landmark (e.g., a centerline through a roof of a building in the display206). For example, the antenna104may be rotated, turned, or linearly moved until the image208is in a straight line perpendicular to the surface of the display206.

In other embodiments, computer vision may be used to calculate alignment based on the location of the image208within the display206. More particularly, the computer vision may detect the location of the image208(e.g., based on the reference object202being known the computer vision). The computer vision may further detect locations of other physical objects within the display206. The other physical objects may include buildings, trees, roads, or other antennas. Based on the location of the image208and the location of the other objects, the computer vision may determine the alignment of the of the antenna aligner102and thereby the alignment of the antenna104. The computer vision program instructions may be executed by the processor of the antenna aligner and/or other external processors (e.g., a processor of a smartphone) based on the information transmitted by the antenna aligner102.

The control panel210may allow configuration of the antenna aligner102. For instance, the control panel210may include buttons that may allow a user to configure various settings, e.g., indicate a desired alignment for the antenna104, control zoom level of the display206, control the communications between the antenna aligner102with other external devices, and/or other settings.

In operation, the antenna aligner102may be clamped (or otherwise connected) to the antenna104. The adjusting motions of the antenna104may be imparted to the antenna aligner102based on the clamping. Based on the parameters measured by the antenna aligner (e.g., location of the image208in the display206vis-à-vis a location of a known structure), an alignment determination of the antenna104may be made.

FIG.3shows an example architecture300of an antenna aligner (e.g., antenna aligner102shown inFIGS.1-2), based on the principles disclosed herein. As shown in the architecture300, the antenna aligner may comprise components such as a processor302, magnetic field sensors304a-304n(collectively or commonly referred to as sensors304), GNSS receivers306a-306n(collectively or commonly referred to as receivers306), accelerometers308, a communication interface310, a display312, and a control panel314. It should be understood that these components are shown and described as mere examples; and antenna aligners with additional, alternate, and fewer number of components should also be considered within the scope of this disclosure. For instance, in addition to the specific sensors described, the antenna aligner may have additional sensors, e.g., optical cameras or infrared cameras; an example camera204is shown inFIG.2.

The processor302may include any kind of processing components that may receive data from the other components, perform calculations on the received data, and provide a response (e.g., a control signal to the components or a communication signal to other devices) based on the calculations. The processor302may also control the overall operation of the antenna aligner. Examples of the processor302may include controllers, microprocessors, discrete logical components, and/or any type of components configured to perform processing operations described herein. The processor302may be coupled to a non-transitory computer readable medium/memory (not shown) that may store computer program instructions that the processor302may execute to cause the functionality described herein. Although the example processor302is shown as a single component, it should be understood the processor302may include multiple components, such as multiple processors. It should be further understood that a portion of the processing operations may occur outside the antenna aligner.

The magnetic field sensors304may include any type of sensor that may measure the earth's magnetic field at a corresponding location. The magnetic field sensors304may use any kind of measuring technology such as Hall effect. The measuring technology may further include measuring effects of the earth's magnetic field on resistance and/or on an electric current moving through a circuit. Regardless of the measurement technology, the magnetic sensors304may generate a vector measurement of the earth's magnetic field. The vector measurement may be in a Cartesian system, with the X direction being parallel to earth's magnetic north-south axis, the Y-direction being in the earth's east-west axis, and the Z-direction being perpendicular to the plane of the surface of the earth. The measured earth's magnetic field vector B may therefore have corresponding intensities in each of the above three directions. The scalar magnitude of this vector measurement (i.e. square root of (X2+Y2+Z2), which may be measured in Gauss or Tesla, may be referred to as total intensity of the magnetic field vector B. Other parameters such as inclination and inclination, may be calculated through the orthogonal X, Y, Z components of the field vector B. The magnetic field sensors304may provide these measurements to the processor302. Although multiple magnetic field sensors304are shown inFIG.3and described herein, architectures with a single magnetic field sensor304should also be considered within the scope of this disclosure.

The processor302may calculate the average of the measurements to determine, e.g., azimuth of the antenna. The azimuth may indicate the orientation of the antenna in relation to the magnetic axis (e.g., magnetic north and south) of the earth. The processor302may then offset the azimuth calculation using predetermined values to calculate the azimuth of the antenna with respect to the geographic axis of the earth. The predetermined values may be stored in the memory coupled to the processor as a lookup table as magnetic azimuth-geographic azimuth pairs.

In some embodiments, multiple magnetic field sensors (e.g., at least three magnetic field sensors)304arranged in a reference plane may be used. These magnetic field sensors304may be arranged, for example, within a PCB of a known plane with reference to the antenna aligner. In other examples, the magnetic field sensors304may be in different parallel planes. Orientations of the established reference plane with, for example, the earth's surface may be used to calculate the azimuth of the antenna. It should however be understood that the plane formed by three magnetic sensors is merely an example and any number of sensors may be used within the antenna aligner.

The GNSS receivers306may communicate with GNSS satellites to calculate the corresponding positions of the GNSS receivers. More particularly, the GNSS receivers306may receive GNSS signals broadcasted by the GNSS satellites, and use the attributes of the signal (e.g., time of the broadcast embedded in the GNSS signals) to geolocate themselves. Geolocating may include determining latitude, longitude, altitude, and/or other attributes associated with determining the corresponding geolocations. When multiple GNSS receivers306determine their geolocations, the processor302may use these geolocations to determine positional parameters of the antenna aligner, such as its azimuth. In some embodiments, the processor302may use the geolocations as a redundancy check on the calculated alignment parameters (e.g., azimuth). In other embodiments, the processor302may perform a “hybrid” calculation using the data from both the magnetic field sensors304and GNSS receivers306.

The accelerometers308may include any type of accelerometer that may be used to detect the orientation of the antenna (e.g., based on the orientation of the antenna aligner) with respect to the earth's surface. For instance, multiple accelerometers308may measure the direction of gravitational pull at corresponding locations, and, based on comparing the directions, may detect the orientation of the antenna. The orientation may include, for example, roll and tilt of the antenna. In some embodiments, the processor302may use the orientation determined by the accelerometers308to perform the azimuth calculations. For instance, the processor302may select, for a three dimensional (e.g., spherical) magnetic field measured by a magnetic field sensor, a two-dimensional circular slice. The magnetic azimuth is then determined based on the selected portion of the three-dimensional measurement. It should be noted that that accelerometers308are described just as examples and any kind of inertial motion sensor and/or tilt sensor should be considered within the scope of this disclosure.

This alignment information generated by the antenna aligner may be used by a user to physically adjust the antenna until the desired alignment is reached. To that end, the alignment information may be calculated in real time during the adjustment, providing a real-time feedback to the user. When the antenna falls within a desired range (e.g., within a margin of error of an alignment target), the antenna aligner may provide a visual or audio feedback. The visual feedback may be within a display or through LEDs. The audio feedback may be an audible tone or a message.

The communication interface310may use any type of communication technology to facilitate the communication between the antenna aligner and external devices. For instance, the communication interface310may provide a port (e.g., an Ethernet port) for wired data communication between the antenna aligner and the external devices. In addition or alternatively, the communication interface310may comprise a wireless communication components for supporting protocols such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and/or Zigbee. The external devices that the communication interface310may be used to communicate may include mobile devices (e.g., smartphones or tablets) being carried by a user performing the alignment. The external devices may further include other types of computers and servers that the antenna aligner may transmit to and receive from.

The display312may be any kind of display, such as an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or LED (Light Emitting Diode) display. The display may be touchscreen and provide the user with configurable parameters (e.g., rendered as options in a graphical user interface) that may be used for customizing the functionality of the antenna aligner. The display312may further show the view of a camera of the of antenna aligner. The view may be used by the user to determine a proper alignment of the antenna.

The control panel314may comprise buttons, dials, capacitive touch screens, and/or any other type of input components used to configure the functionality of the antenna aligner. For instance, the control panel314may be used to calibrate the antenna aligner, start a communication between the antenna aligner and an external device, configure the display312(e.g., by changing the zoom level), and/or change any other functionality of the antenna aligner.

FIG.4is a flow diagram of an example method400of calculating antenna alignment parameters, based on the principles disclosed herein. The steps of the method may be performed by an antenna aligner (e.g., antenna aligner102shown inFIGS.1-2) and/or other computing devices (e.g., a smartphone) in conjunction with the antenna aligner. The steps shown inFIG.4and described herein are merely examples and methods with additional, alternate, or fewer number of steps should also be considered within the scope of this disclosure.

The method400may begin at step402, wherein a tilt and/or roll of an antenna aligner is determined using one or more tilt sensors. For instance, an accelerometer may be used to determine a roll and a tilt of the antenna aligner. At step404a magnetic azimuth of the antenna aligner may be determined based on measurements from an array of magnetic field sensors (or a single magnetic field sensor). The magnetic field sensors may be fall in a same reference plane (e.g., by being in a same PCB) or multiple parallel reference planes (e.g., by being in multiple, parallel PCBs). At step406, a magnetic declination may be applied to the determined magnetic azimuth. The magnetic declination may adjust the magnetic azimuth to correspond with the geographic azimuth. The magnetic declination may be previously stored in the magnetic aligner and/or in one or more other devices. Alternatively, the magnetic declination may be provided by the user. Steps402-406may continue in the background to always provide a magnetic field-based azimuth. Furthermore, steps402-406may operate in tandem with steps408-412for GNSS based azimuth determination or a GNSS based azimuth determination and/or correction of the magnetic field sensors based azimuth determined in steps402-406.

At step408, GNSS based azimuth of the antenna aligner may be determined. If the determination is successful, the GNSS based azimuth may be used instead of the magnetic sensor based azimuth (also referred to as magnetic azimuth). If the determination is unsuccessful, GNSS based location and altitude may be determined at step410. The GNSS based location may be used at step412to determine a magnetic declination for the location (e.g., correction to be applied to magnetic azimuth to generate the geographical azimuth) and the declination may be applied to the magnetic azimuth determined in steps402-406. In other words, the GNSS based location may be used to generate the geographical azimuth from the magnetic azimuth as an alternative to or in addition to pre-stored/user provided magnetic declination of step406.

At step414, antenna alignment parameters may be displayed. The antenna alignment parameters may include, for example, roll and tilt of the antenna (e.g., based on measurements from tilt sensor(s), azimuth of the antenna (e.g., as measured be the magnetic field sensors and/or GNSS sensors), etc. The parameters may be displayed on the antenna aligner itself and/or other computing devices such as smartphones.

While various embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example and not limitation. It will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art(s) that various changes in form and detail can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope. In fact, after reading the above description, it will be apparent to one skilled in the relevant art(s) how to implement alternative embodiments. For example, other steps may be provided, or steps may be eliminated, from the described flows, and other components may be added to, or removed from, the described systems. Accordingly, other implementations are within the scope of the following claims.

In addition, it should be understood that any figures which highlight the functionality and advantages are presented for example purposes only. The disclosed methodology and system are each sufficiently flexible and configurable such that they may be utilized in ways other than that shown.

Although the term “at least one” may often be used in the specification, claims and drawings, the terms “a”, “an”, “the”, “said”, etc. also signify “at least one” or “the at least one” in the specification, claims and drawings.

Finally, it is the applicant's intent that only claims that include the express language “means for” or “step for” be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f). Claims that do not expressly include the phrase “means for” or “step for” are not to be interpreted under 35 U.S.C. 112(f).