PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-8259017-B2
Application Number: US-201113335714-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Hybrid antennas for electronic devices

Abstract:
A portable electronic device is provided that has a hybrid antenna. The hybrid antenna may include a slot antenna structure and a planar inverted-F antenna structure. The planar inverted-F antenna structure may be formed from traces on a flex circuit substrate. A backside trace may form a series capacitance for the planar inverted-F antenna structure. The antenna slot may have a perimeter that is defined by the location of conductive structures such as flex circuits, metal housing structures, a conductive bezel, printed circuit board ground conductors, and electrical components. Springs may be used in electrically connecting these conductive elements. A spring-loaded pin may be used as part of an antenna feed conductor. The pin may connect a transmission line path on a printed circuit board to the planar inverted-F antenna structure while allowing the planar inverted-F antenna structure to be removed from the device for rework or repair.

Claims:
1. A hybrid antenna in a portable electronic device, comprising:
 a planar inverted-F antenna resonating element that contributes a frequency response for the hybrid antenna in a first communications band; 
 a ground plane having portions defining an antenna slot that contributes a frequency response for the hybrid antenna in a second communication band; and 
 a pin that is electrically connected to the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element, wherein the pin comprises conductive structures that are biased away from each other. 
 
     
     
       2. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 1  wherein the ground plane comprises a printed circuit board having a conductive pad and wherein the pin electrically connects the conductive pad to the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element. 
     
     
       3. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 1  wherein the pin comprises a spring-loaded pin. 
     
     
       4. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 1  wherein the pin further comprises an internal structure and wherein the conductive structures are biased away from each other using the internal structure. 
     
     
       5. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 4  wherein the internal structure comprises a conductive spring. 
     
     
       6. A hybrid antenna in a portable electronic device, comprising:
 a planar inverted-F antenna resonating element that contributes a frequency response for the hybrid antenna in a first communications band; 
 a ground plane having portions defining an antenna slot that contributes a frequency response for the hybrid antenna in a second communication band; and 
 a pin that is electrically connected to the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element, wherein the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element comprises a flex circuit including at least one conductive region and wherein the pin bears against the conductive region. 
 
     
     
       7. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 6  wherein the conductive region of the planar inverted-F antenna element comprises a first conductive trace and a second conductive trace formed on the flex circuit and comprises a backside trace that overlaps the first and second conductive traces and forms a series capacitance for the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element. 
     
     
       8. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 6  wherein the ground plane comprises a printed circuit board having an antenna transmission line structure. 
     
     
       9. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 6  wherein the flex circuit comprises polyimide. 
     
     
       10. A hybrid antenna in a portable electronic device, comprising:
 a planar inverted-F antenna resonating element that contributes a frequency response for the hybrid antenna in a first communications band; 
 a ground plane having portions defining an antenna slot that contributes a frequency response for the hybrid antenna in a second communication band; and 
 a pin that is electrically connected to the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element, wherein the ground plane comprises a printed circuit board having a conductive pad, wherein the pin electrically connects the conductive pad to the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element, and wherein the pin comprises a spring-loaded pin. 
 
     
     
       11. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 10  wherein the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element comprises conductive structures on a flexible substrate and wherein the spring-loaded pin forms an electrical contact with the conductive structures. 
     
     
       12. A hybrid antenna in a portable electronic device, comprising:
 a planar inverted-F antenna resonating element; 
 a printed circuit board forming part of a ground plane that has portions defining an antenna slot structure, wherein the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element and the antenna slot structure provide antenna coverage for the hybrid antenna in at least a first communications band and a second communications band; and 
 a spring-loaded pin that electrically connects the printed circuit board and the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element. 
 
     
     
       13. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 12  further comprising:
 a conductive bezel that defines portions of the antenna slot structure; and 
 a spring that electrically connects the printed circuit board to the bezel. 
 
     
     
       14. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 12  wherein the planar inverted-F antenna element comprises a first conductive trace and a second conductive trace formed on a flex circuit and comprises a backside trace that overlaps the first and second conductive traces and forms a series capacitance for the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element. 
     
     
       15. The hybrid antenna defined in  claim 12  wherein the portable electronic device comprises an upper housing portion and a lower housing portion and wherein the upper housing portion comprises a conductive planar frame member having an edge that runs parallel to the antenna slot, the hybrid antenna further comprising:
 a spring that electrically connects the conductive planar frame member to the bezel.

Description:
This application is a division of patent application Ser. No. 12/120,008, filed May 13, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,102,319 which claims the benefit of provisional patent application No. 61/044,456, filed Apr. 11, 2008, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. This application claims the benefit of and claims priority to patent application Ser. No. 12/120,008, filed May 13, 2008, and provisional patent application No. 61/044,456, filed Apr. 11, 2008. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     This invention relates generally to electronic devices, and more particularly, to antennas for electronic devices such as portable electronic devices. 
     Handheld electronic devices and other portable electronic devices are becoming increasingly popular. Examples of handheld devices include handheld computers, cellular telephones, media players, and hybrid devices that include the functionality of multiple devices of this type. Popular portable electronic devices that are somewhat larger than traditional handheld electronic devices include laptop computers and tablet computers. 
     Due in part to their mobile nature, portable electronic devices are often provided with wireless communications capabilities. For example, handheld electronic devices may use long-range wireless communications to communicate with wireless base stations. Cellular telephones and other devices with cellular capabilities may communicate using cellular telephone bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, and 1900 MHz. Portable electronic devices may also use short-range wireless communications links. For example, portable electronic devices may communicate using the Wi-Fi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz and the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz. Data communications are also possible at 2100 MHz. 
     To satisfy consumer demand for small form factor wireless devices, manufacturers are continually striving to reduce the size of components that are used in these devices while providing enhanced functionality. Significant enhancements may be difficult to implement, however, particularly in devices in which size and weight are taken into consideration. For example, it can be particularly challenging to form antennas that operate in desired communications bands while fitting the antennas within the case of a compact portable electronic device. 
     It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide portable electronic devices with improved wireless communications capabilities. 
     SUMMARY 
     A portable electronic device such as a handheld electronic device is provided that may include a hybrid antenna. The handheld electronic device may be formed from two portions. A first portion may include components such as a display and a touch sensor. A second portion may include components such as a camera, printed circuit boards, a battery, flex circuits, a subscriber identity module structure, an audio jack, and a conductive bezel. 
     The hybrid antenna may include a slot antenna structure and a planar inverted-F antenna structure. The planar inverted-F antenna structure may be formed from traces on a flex circuit substrate. A backside trace that overlaps the other traces on the flex circuit substrate may form a series capacitance for the planar inverted-F antenna structure. 
     The antenna slot may have a perimeter that is defined by the location of conductive structures such as flex circuits, metal housing structures, a conductive bezel, printed circuit board conductive regions (e.g., layers of metal and other ground conductors), and electrical components. Isolation elements may be used to prevent certain conductive structures from affecting the slot perimeter when the antenna handles radio-frequency signals. 
     Springs may be used in electrically connecting conductive elements associated with the antenna. For example, a spring may be used to connect a conductive midplate that forms part of the first portion of the device to the conductive bezel. A second spring may be used to electrically connect a transmission line ground conductor on a printed circuit board to the conductive bezel. The edges of the printed circuit board and midplate may be aligned and may help define the antenna slot edge. 
     A spring-loaded pin may be used as part of an antenna feed conductor. The pin may connect a transmission line path on a printed circuit board to the planar inverted-F antenna structure. The pin may make contact with the printed circuit board at a pad that allows the planar inverted-F antenna structure to be removed from the device for rework or repair without damaging the printed circuit board. 
     Further features of the invention, its nature and various advantages will be more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an illustrative portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram of an illustrative portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of an illustrative portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of an illustrative portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is an interior bottom view of an illustrative portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a side view of an illustrative portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a partially assembled portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention showing how an upper portion of the device may be inserted into a lower portion of the device. 
         FIG. 8  is a top view of an illustrative slot antenna structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is an illustrative graph showing antenna performance as a function of frequency for an illustrative slot antenna structure of the type shown in  FIG. 8  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view of an illustrative planar inverted-F antenna structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 11  is an illustrative graph showing antenna performance as a function of frequency for an illustrative planar inverted-F antenna structure of the type shown in  FIG. 10  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view of an illustrative hybrid planar-inverted-F-slot antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 13  is a graph showing antenna performance for a hybrid antenna of the type shown in  FIG. 12  in accordance with the present invention. 
         FIG. 14  is a top view of an illustrative planar-inverted-F antenna resonating element in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 15  is a top view of an illustrative handheld electronic device with a hybrid antenna structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 16  is a perspective view of a portion of a handheld electronic device showing how grounding spring structures may be used to ground a printed circuit board to a conductive bezel when forming an antenna slot structure for a hybrid antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIGS. 17 and 18  are perspective views of a portion of a handheld electronic device in which a spring-loaded pin has been used to create an antenna contact to a flex circuit antenna resonating element in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention relates generally to electronic devices, and more particularly, to portable electronic devices such as handheld electronic devices. 
     The electronic devices may be portable electronic devices such as laptop computers or small portable computers of the type that are sometimes referred to as ultraportables. Portable electronic devices may also be somewhat smaller devices. Examples of smaller portable electronic devices include wrist-watch devices, pendant devices, headphone and earpiece devices, and other wearable and miniature devices. With one suitable arrangement, the portable electronic devices may be wireless electronic devices. 
     The wireless electronic devices may be, for example, handheld wireless devices such as cellular telephones, media players with wireless communications capabilities, handheld computers (also sometimes called personal digital assistants), remote controllers, global positioning system (GPS) devices, and handheld gaming devices. The wireless electronic devices may also be hybrid devices that combine the functionality of multiple conventional devices. Examples of hybrid portable electronic devices include a cellular telephone that includes media player functionality, a gaming device that includes a wireless communications capability, a cellular telephone that includes game and email functions, and a portable device that receives email, supports mobile telephone calls, has music player functionality and supports web browsing. These are merely illustrative examples. 
     An illustrative portable electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 1 . Device  10  of  FIG. 1  may be, for example, a handheld electronic device that supports 2G and/or 3G cellular telephone and data functions, global positioning system capabilities, and local wireless communications capabilities (e.g., IEEE 802.11 and Bluetooth®) and that supports handheld computing device functions such as internet browsing, email and calendar functions, games, music player functionality, etc. 
     Device  10  may have housing  12 . Antennas for handling wireless communications may be housed within housing  12  (as an example). 
     Housing  12 , which is sometimes referred to as a case, may be formed of any suitable materials including, plastic, glass, ceramics, metal, or other suitable materials, or a combination of these materials. In some situations, housing  12  or portions of housing  12  may be formed from a dielectric or other low-conductivity material. Housing  12  or portions of housing  12  may also be formed from conductive materials such as metal. An advantage of forming housing  12  from a dielectric material such as plastic is that this may help to reduce the overall weight of device  10  and may avoid potential interference with wireless operations. 
     In scenarios in which housing  12  is formed from metal elements, one or more of the metal elements may be used as part of the antennas in device  10 . For example, metal portions of housing  12  may be shorted to an internal ground plane in device  10  to create a larger ground plane element for that device  10 . 
     Housing  12  may have a bezel  14 . The bezel  14  may be formed from a conductive material or other suitable material. Bezel  14  may serve to hold a display or other device with a planar surface in place on device  10  and may serve to form an esthetically pleasing trim around the edge of device  10 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , for example, bezel  14  may be used to surround the top of display  16 . Bezel  14  and other metal elements associated with device  10  may be used as part of the antennas in device  10 . For example, bezel  14  may be shorted to printed circuit board conductors or other internal ground plane structures in device  10  to create a larger ground plane element for device  10 . 
     Display  16  may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, or any other suitable display. The outermost surface of display  16  may be formed from one or more plastic or glass layers. If desired, touch screen functionality may be integrated into display  16  or may be provided using a separate touch pad device. An advantage of integrating a touch screen into display  16  to make display  16  touch sensitive is that this type of arrangement can save space and reduce visual clutter. 
     Display screen  16  (e.g., a touch screen) is merely one example of an input-output device that may be used with electronic device  10 . If desired, electronic device  10  may have other input-output devices. For example, electronic device  10  may have user input control devices such as button  19 , and input-output components such as port  20  and one or more input-output jacks (e.g., for audio and/or video). Button  19  may be, for example, a menu button. Port  20  may contain a 30-pin data connector (as an example). Openings  22  and  24  may, if desired, form speaker and microphone ports. Speaker port  22  may be used when operating device  10  in speakerphone mode. Opening  23  may also form a speaker port. For example, speaker port  23  may serve as a telephone receiver that is placed adjacent to a user&#39;s ear during operation. In the example of  FIG. 1 , display screen  16  is shown as being mounted on the front face of handheld electronic device  10 , but display screen  16  may, if desired, be mounted on the rear face of handheld electronic device  10 , on a side of device  10 , on a flip-up portion of device  10  that is attached to a main body portion of device  10  by a hinge (for example), or using any other suitable mounting arrangement. 
     A user of electronic device  10  may supply input commands using user input interface devices such as button  19  and touch screen  16 . Suitable user input interface devices for electronic device  10  include buttons (e.g., alphanumeric keys, power on-off, power-on, power-off, and other specialized buttons, etc.), a touch pad, pointing stick, or other cursor control device, a microphone for supplying voice commands, or any other suitable interface for controlling device  10 . Although shown schematically as being formed on the top face of electronic device  10  in the example of  FIG. 1 , buttons such as button  19  and other user input interface devices may generally be formed on any suitable portion of electronic device  10 . For example, a button such as button  19  or other user interface control may be formed on the side of electronic device  10 . Buttons and other user interface controls can also be located on the top face, rear face, or other portion of device  10 . If desired, device  10  can be controlled remotely (e.g., using an infrared remote control, a radio-frequency remote control such as a Bluetooth® remote control, etc.). 
     Electronic device  10  may have ports such as port  20 . Port  20 , which may sometimes be referred to as a dock connector, 30-pin data port connector, input-output port, or bus connector, may be used as an input-output port (e.g., when connecting device  10  to a mating dock connected to a computer or other electronic device). Port  20  may contain pins for receiving data and power signals. Device  10  may also have audio and video jacks that allow device  10  to interface with external components. Typical ports include power pins to recharge a battery within device  10  or to operate device  10  from a direct current (DC) power supply, data pins to exchange data with external components such as a personal computer or peripheral, audio-visual jacks to drive headphones, a monitor, or other external audio-video equipment, a subscriber identity module (SIM) card port to authorize cellular telephone service, a memory card slot, etc. The functions of some or all of these devices and the internal circuitry of electronic device  10  can be controlled using input interface devices such as touch screen display  16 . 
     Components such as display  16  and other user input interface devices may cover most of the available surface area on the front face of device  10  (as shown in the example of  FIG. 1 ) or may occupy only a small portion of the front face of device  10 . Because electronic components such as display  16  often contain large amounts of metal (e.g., as radio-frequency shielding), the location of these components relative to the antenna elements in device  10  should generally be taken into consideration. Suitably chosen locations for the antenna elements and electronic components of the device will allow the antennas of electronic device  10  to function properly without being disrupted by the electronic components. 
     Examples of locations in which antenna structures may be located in device  10  include region  18  and region  21 . These are merely illustrative examples. Any suitable portion of device  10  may be used to house antenna structures for device  10  if desired. 
     Any suitable antenna structures may be used in device  10 . For example, device  10  may have one antenna or may have multiple antennas. The antennas in device  10  may each be used to cover a single communications band or each antenna may cover multiple communications bands. If desired, one or more antennas may cover a single band while one or more additional antennas are each used to cover multiple bands. As an example, a pentaband cellular telephone antenna may be provided at one end of device  10  (e.g., in region  18 ) and a dual band GPS/Bluetooth®/IEEE-802.11 antenna may be provided at another end of device  10  (e.g., in region  21 ). These are merely illustrative arrangements. Any suitable antenna structures may be used in device  10  if desired. 
     In arrangements in which antennas are needed to support communications at more than one band, the antennas may have shapes that support multi-band operations. For example, an antenna may have a resonating element with arms of various different lengths. Each arm may support a resonance at a different radio-frequency band (or bands). The antennas may be based on slot antenna structures in which an opening is formed in a ground plane. The ground plane may be formed, for example, by conductive components such as a display, printed circuit board conductors, flex circuits that contain conductive traces (e.g., to connect a camera or other device to integrated circuits and other circuitry in device  10 ), a conductive bezel, etc. A slot antenna opening may be formed by arranging ground plane components such as these so as to form a dielectric-filled (e.g., an air-filled and/or plastic-filled) space. A conductive trace (e.g., a conductive trace with one or more bends) or a single-arm or multiarm planar inverted-F antenna may be used in combination with an antenna slot to provide a hybrid antenna with enhanced frequency coverage. Inverted-F antenna elements or other antenna structures may also be used in the presence of an antenna slot to form a hybrid slot/non-slot antenna. 
     When a hybrid antenna structure is formed that has an antenna slot and a non-slot antenna resonating element, the slot may, if desired, contribute a frequency response for the antenna in a one frequency range, whereas the non-slot structure may contribute to a frequency response for the antenna in another frequency range. If desired, the frequency responses of the non-slot and slot antenna structures may reinforce one another in one or more bands. For example, a slot antenna resonance may coincide with a harmonic of a non-slot antenna structure, thereby enhancing the frequency response of the non-slot structure at this frequency. Antenna structures such as these may be fed using direct coupling (i.e., when antenna feed terminals are connected to conductive portions of the antenna) or using indirect coupling (i.e., where the antenna is excited through near-field coupling interactions). 
     Hybrid slot antennas may be used at one end or both ends of device  10 . For example, one hybrid antenna may be used as a dual band antenna (e.g., in region  21 ) and one hybrid antenna may be used as a pentaband antenna (e.g., in region  18 ). The pentaband antenna may be used to cover wireless communications bands such as the wireless bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2100 MHz (as an example). The dual band antenna may be used to handle 1575 MHz signals for GPS operations and 2.4 GHz signals for Bluetooth® and IEEE 802.11 operations (as an example). 
     A schematic diagram of an embodiment of an illustrative portable electronic device such as a handheld electronic device is shown in  FIG. 2 . Portable device  10  may be a mobile telephone, a mobile telephone with media player capabilities, a handheld computer, a remote control, a game player, a global positioning system (GPS) device, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, an ultraportable computer, a hybrid device that includes the functionality of some or all of these devices, or any other suitable portable electronic device. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , device  10  may include storage  34 . Storage  34  may include one or more different types of storage such as hard disk drive storage, nonvolatile memory (e.g., flash memory or other electrically-programmable-read-only memory), volatile memory (e.g., battery-based static or dynamic random-access-memory), etc. 
     Processing circuitry  36  may be used to control the operation of device  10 . Processing circuitry  36  may be based on a processor such as a microprocessor and other suitable integrated circuits. With one suitable arrangement, processing circuitry  36  and storage  34  are used to run software on device  10 , such as internet browsing applications, voice-over-internet-protocol (VOIP) telephone call applications, email applications, media playback applications, operating system functions, etc. Processing circuitry  36  and storage  34  may be used in implementing suitable communications protocols. Communications protocols that may be implemented using processing circuitry  36  and storage  34  include internet protocols, wireless local area network protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.11 protocols—sometimes referred to as Wi-Fi®), protocols for other short-range wireless communications links such as the Bluetooth® protocol, protocols for handling 3G communications services (e.g., using wide band code division multiple access techniques), 2G cellular telephone communications protocols, etc. 
     Input-output devices  38  may be used to allow data to be supplied to device  10  and to allow data to be provided from device  10  to external devices. Display screen  16 , button  19 , microphone port  24 , speaker port  22 , and dock connector port  20  are examples of input-output devices  38 . 
     Input-output devices  38  can include user input-output devices  40  such as buttons, touch screens, joysticks, click wheels, scrolling wheels, touch pads, key pads, keyboards, microphones, cameras, etc. A user can control the operation of device  10  by supplying commands through user input devices  40 . Display and audio devices  42  may include liquid-crystal display (LCD) screens or other screens, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and other components that present visual information and status data. Display and audio devices  42  may also include audio equipment such as speakers and other devices for creating sound. Display and audio devices  42  may contain audio-video interface equipment such as jacks and other connectors for external headphones and monitors. 
     Wireless communications devices  44  may include communications circuitry such as radio-frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry formed from one or more integrated circuits, power amplifier circuitry, passive RF components, antennas, and other circuitry for handling RF wireless signals. Wireless signals can also be sent using light (e.g., using infrared communications). 
     Device  10  can communicate with external devices such as accessories  46 , computing equipment  48 , and wireless network  49  as shown by paths  50  and  51 . Paths  50  may include wired and wireless paths. Path  51  may be a wireless path. Accessories  46  may include headphones (e.g., a wireless cellular headset or audio headphones) and audio-video equipment (e.g., wireless speakers, a game controller, or other equipment that receives and plays audio and video content), a peripheral such as a wireless printer or camera, etc. 
     Computing equipment  48  may be any suitable computer. With one suitable arrangement, computing equipment  48  is a computer that has an associated wireless access point (router) or an internal or external wireless card that establishes a wireless connection with device  10 . The computer may be a server (e.g., an internet server), a local area network computer with or without internet access, a user&#39;s own personal computer, a peer device (e.g., another portable electronic device  10 ), or any other suitable computing equipment. 
     Wireless network  49  may include any suitable network equipment, such as cellular telephone base stations, cellular towers, wireless data networks, computers associated with wireless networks, etc. For example, wireless network  49  may include network management equipment that monitors the wireless signal strength of the wireless handsets (cellular telephones, handheld computing devices, etc.) that are in communication with network  49 . 
     The antenna structures and wireless communications devices of device  10  may support communications over any suitable wireless communications bands. For example, wireless communications devices  44  may be used to cover communications frequency bands such as cellular telephone voice and data bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2100 MHz (as examples). Devices  44  may also be used to handle the Wi-Fi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz (also sometimes referred to as wireless local area network or WLAN bands), the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz, and the global positioning system (GPS) band at 1575 MHz. 
     Device  10  can cover these communications bands and/or other suitable communications bands using the antenna structures in wireless communications circuitry  44 . As an example, a pentaband cellular telephone antenna may be provided at one end of device  10  (e.g., in region  18 ) to handle 2G and 3G voice and data signals and a dual band antenna may be provided at another end of device  10  (e.g., in region  21 ) to handle GPS and 2.4 GHz signals. The pentaband antenna may be used to cover wireless bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2100 MHz (as an example). These bands may be covered in groups. For example, a first communications band may be used to handle signals at 800 MHz and 900 MHz and a second communications band may be used to handle communications at 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2100 MHz. In this respect, the pentaband antenna may be considered to operate as a dual-band antenna, each band covering multiple subbands of interest. If desired, another (dual band) antenna may be used to handle 1575 MHz signals for GPS operations and 2.4 GHz signals (for Bluetooth® and IEEE 802.11 operations). These are merely illustrative arrangements. Any suitable antenna structures may be used in device  10  if desired. 
     To facilitate manufacturing operations, device  10  may be formed from two intermediate assemblies, representing upper and lower portions of device  10 . The upper or top portion of device  10  may sometimes be referred to as a tilt assembly. The lower or bottom portion of device  10  may sometimes be referred to as a housing assembly. 
     The tilt and housing assemblies may each be formed from a number of smaller components. For example, the tilt assembly may be formed from components such as display  16  and an associated touch sensor. The housing assembly may include a plastic housing portion  12 , bezel  14 , and printed circuit boards. Integrated circuits and other components may be mounted on the printed circuit boards. 
     During initial manufacturing operations, the tilt assembly may be formed from its constituent parts and the housing assembly may be formed from its constituent parts. Because essentially all components in device  10  make up part of these two assemblies with this type of arrangement, the finished assemblies represent a nearly complete version of device  10 . The finished assemblies may, if desired, be tested. If testing reveals a defect, repairs may be made or defective assemblies may be discarded. During a final set of manufacturing operations, the tilt assembly is inserted into the housing assembly. With one suitable arrangement, one end of the tilt assembly is inserted into the housing assembly. The tilt assembly is then rotated (“tilted”) into place so that the upper surface of the tilt assembly lies flush with the upper edges of the housing assembly. 
     As the tilt assembly is rotated into place within the housing assembly, clips on the tilt assembly engage springs on the housing assembly. The clips and springs form a detent that helps to align the tilt assembly properly with the housing assembly. Should rework or repair be necessary, the insertion process can be reversed by rotating the tilt assembly up and away from the housing assembly. During rotation of the tilt assembly relative to the housing assembly, the springs flex to accommodate movement. When the tilt assembly is located within the housing assembly, the springs press into holes in the clips to prevent relative movement between the tilt and housing assemblies. Rework and repair operations need not be destructive to the springs, clips, and other components in the device. This helps to prevent waste and complications that might otherwise interfere with the manufacturing of device  10 . 
     If desired, screws or other fasteners may be used to help secure the tilt assembly to the housing assembly. The screws may be inserted into the lower end of device  10 . With one suitable arrangement, the screws are inserted in an unobtrusive portion of the end of device  10  so that they are not noticeable following final assembly operations. Prior to rework or repair operations, the screws can be removed from device  10 . 
     An exploded perspective view showing illustrative components of device  10  is shown in  FIG. 3 . 
     Tilt assembly  60  (shown in its unassembled state in  FIG. 3 ) may include components such as cover  62 , touch sensitive sensor  64  (e.g., a capacitive multitouch sensor), display unit  66 , and frame  68 . Cover  62  may be formed of glass or other suitable transparent materials (e.g., plastic, combinations of one or more glasses and one or more plastics, etc.). Display unit  66  may be, for example, a color liquid crystal display. Frame  68  may be formed from one or more pieces. With one suitable arrangement, frame  68  may include metal pieces to which plastic parts are connected using an overmolding process. If desired, frame  68  may be formed entirely from plastic or entirely from metal. 
     Housing assembly  70  (shown in its unassembled state in  FIG. 3 ) may include housing  12 . Housing  12  may be formed of plastic and/or other materials such as metal (metal alloys). For example, housing  12  may be formed of plastic to which metal members are mounted using fasteners, a plastic overmolding process, or other suitable mounting arrangement. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , handheld electronic device  10  may have a bezel such as bezel  14 . Bezel  14  may be formed of plastic or other dielectric materials or may be formed from metal or other conductive materials. An advantage of a metal (metal alloy) bezel is that materials such as metal may provide bezel  14  with an attractive appearance and may be durable. If desired, bezel  14  may be formed from shiny plastic or plastic coated with shiny materials such as metal films. 
     Bezel  14  may be mounted to housing  12 . Following final assembly, bezel  14  may surround the display of device  10  and may, if desired, help secure the display onto device  10 . Bezel  14  may also serve as a cosmetic trim member that provides an attractive finished appearance to device  10 . 
     Housing assembly  70  may include battery  74 . Battery  74  may be, for example, a lithium polymer battery having a capacity of about 1300 mA-hours. Battery  74  may have spring contacts that allow battery  74  to be serviced. 
     Housing assembly  70  may also include one or more printed circuit boards such as printed circuit board  72 . Components may be mounted to printed circuit boards such as microphone  76  for microphone port  24 , speaker  78  for speaker port  22 , and dock connector  20 , integrated circuits, a camera, ear speaker, audio jack, buttons, SIM card slot, etc. 
     A top view of an illustrative device  10  is shown in  FIG. 4 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , device  10  may have controller buttons such as volume up and down buttons  80 , a ringer A/B switch  82  (to switch device  10  between ring and vibrate modes), and a hold button  88  (sleep/wake button). A subscriber identity module (SIM) tray  86  (shown in a partially extended state) may be used to receive a SIM card for authorizing cellular telephone services. Audio jack  84  may be used for attaching audio peripherals to device  10  such as headphone, a headset, etc. 
     An interior bottom view of device  10  is shown in  FIG. 5 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , device  10  may have a camera  90 . Camera  90  may be, for example, a two megapixel fixed focus camera. 
     Vibrator  92  may be used to vibrate device  10 . Device  10  may be vibrated at any suitable time. For example, device  10  may be vibrated to alert a user to the presence of an incoming telephone call, an incoming email message, a calendar reminder, a clock alarm, etc. 
     Battery  74  may be a removable battery that is installed in the interior of device  10  adjacent to dock connector  20 , microphone  76 , and speaker  78 . 
     A cross-sectional side view of device  10  is shown in  FIG. 6 .  FIG. 6  shows the relative vertical positions of device components such as housing  12 , battery  74 , printed circuit board  72 , liquid crystal display unit  66 , touch sensor  64 , and cover glass  62  within device  10 .  FIG. 6  also shows how bezel  14  may surround the top edge of device  10  (e.g., around the portion of device  10  that contains the components of display  16  such as cover  62 , touch screen  64 , and display unit  66 ). Bezel  14  may be a separate component or, if desired, one or more bezel-shaped structures may be formed as integral parts of housing  12  or other device structures. 
     Device  10  may be assembled from tilt assembly  60  and housing assembly  70 . As shown in  FIG. 7 , the assembly process may involve inserting upper end  100  of tilt assembly  60  into upper end  104  of housing assembly  70  along direction  118  until protrusions on the upper end of tilt assembly  60  engage mating holes on housing assembly  70 . Once the protrusions on tilt assembly  60  have engaged with housing assembly  70 , lower end  102  of tilt assembly  60  may be inserted into lower end  106  of housing assembly  70 . Lower end  102  may be inserted into lower end  106  by pivoting tilt assembly  60  about pivot axis  122 . This causes tilt assembly  60  to rotate into place as indicated by arrow  120 . 
     Tilt assembly  60  may have clips such as clips  112  and housing assembly  70  may have matching springs  114 . When tilt assembly  60  is rotated into place within housing assembly  70 , the springs and clips mate with each other to hold tilt assembly  60  in place within housing assembly  70 . 
     Tilt assembly  60  may have one or more retention clips such as retention clips  116 . Retention clips  116  may have threaded holes that mate with screws  108 . After tilt assembly has been inserted into housing assembly, screws  108  may be screwed into retention clips  116  through holes  110  in housing assembly  70 . This helps to firmly secure tilt assembly  60  to housing assembly  70 . Should rework or repair be desired, screws  108  may be removed from retention clips  116  and tilt assembly  60  may be released from housing assembly  70 . During the removal of tilt assembly  60  from housing assembly  70 , springs  114  may flex relative to clips  112  without permanently deforming. Because no damage is done to tilt assembly  60  or housing assembly  70  in this type of scenario, nondestructive rework and repair operations are possible. 
     Device  10  may have a hybrid antenna that has the attributes of both a slot antenna and a non-slot antenna such as a planar inverted-F antenna. A top view of a slot antenna structure  150  is shown in  FIG. 8 . Slot  152  may be formed within ground plane  154 . In device  10 , ground plane  154  may be formed by conductive components such as display  16 , printed circuit board conductors, components, etc. Slot  152  may be filled with a dielectric. For example, portions of slot  152  may be filled with air and portions of slot  152  may be filled with solid dielectrics such as plastic. A coaxial cable  160  or other transmission line path may be used to feed antenna structure  150 . In the example of  FIG. 8 , antenna structure  150  is being fed so that the center conductor  162  of coaxial cable  160  is connected to signal terminal  156  (i.e., the positive or feed terminal of antenna structure  150 ) and the outer braid of coaxial cable  160 , which forms the ground conductor for cable  160 , is connected to ground terminal  158 . 
     The performance of a slot antenna structure such as antenna structure  150  of  FIG. 8  may be characterized by a graph such as the graph of  FIG. 9 . As shown in  FIG. 9 , slot antenna structure  150  operates in a frequency band that is centered about center frequency f 2 . The center frequency f 2  may be determined by the dimensions of slot  152 . In the illustrative example of  FIG. 8 , slot  152  has an inner perimeter P that is equal to two times dimension X plus two times dimension Y (i.e., P=2X+2Y). (In general, the perimeter of slot  152  may be irregular.) At center frequency f 2 , perimeter P is equal to one wavelength. The position of terminals  158  and  156  may be selected to help match the impedance of antenna structure  150  to the impedance of transmission line  160 . If desired, terminals such as terminals  156  and  158  may be located at other positions about slot  152 . In the illustrative arrangement of  FIG. 8 , terminals  156  and  158  are shown as being respectively configured as a slot antenna signal terminal and a slot antenna ground terminal, as an example. If desired, terminal  156  could be used as a ground terminal and terminal  158  could be used as a signal terminal. 
     In forming a hybrid antenna for device  10 , a slot antenna structure such as slot antenna structure  150  of  FIG. 8  may be used in conjunction with an additional antenna structure such as a planar inverted-F antenna structure. An illustrative planar inverted-F antenna structure is shown in  FIG. 10 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 10 , planar inverted-F antenna structure  164  may have a substantially planar resonating element  166  that lies in a plane above ground plane  154 . Element  166  may have a groove such as groove  165  or other features that change the shape of element  166 . For example, element  166  may have one or more arms, rather than the single folded arm structure shown in the example of  FIG. 10 . Planar inverted-F antenna resonating element  166  may be fed by a transmission line such as coaxial cable  178 . In the example of  FIG. 10 , antenna structure  164  is being fed so that center conductor  172  of coaxial cable  178  is connected to signal terminal  174  (i.e., the positive feed terminal of antenna structure  164 ) and so that the outer braid of coaxial cable  178 , which forms the ground conductor for cable  178 , is connected to antenna ground terminal  176 . The position of the feed point for antenna structure  164  along the resonating element arm  166  in dimension  175  may be selected for impedance matching between antenna structure  164  and transmission line  178 . 
     The performance of an antenna structure such as planar inverted-F antenna structure  164  of  FIG. 10  may be characterized by a graph such as the graph of  FIG. 11 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , antenna structure  164  may operate in a frequency band that is centered about center frequency f 1 . The center frequency f 1  may be determined by the dimensions of antenna resonating element  166  (e.g., the overall length of bent arm  166  may be approximately a quarter of a wavelength). Frequency f 2 , at which planar inverted-F antenna structure  164  may provide additional antenna coverage, may coincide with a harmonic of frequency f 1  (as an example). 
     A hybrid antenna may be formed by combining a slot antenna structure of the type shown in  FIG. 8  with an inverted-F antenna structure of the type shown in  FIG. 10 . This type of arrangement is shown in  FIG. 12 . As shown in  FIG. 12 , antenna  182  may include an inverted-F antenna structure  164  and a slot antenna structure  150 . Slot antenna structure  150  may be formed from a slot in ground plane  154  such as slot  152 . Ground plane  154  may be formed by conductive housing members, printed circuit boards, bezel  14 , electrical components, etc. Slot  152  of  FIG. 12  is shown as being rectangular, but in general, slot  152  may have any suitable shape (e.g., an elongated irregular shape determined by the sizes and shape of conductive structures in device  10 ). Planar inverted-F antenna structure  164  may have an arm such as arm  166 . Arms such as arm  166  may have one or more bends, extensions, or other shapes, if desired. Multiarm structures may also be used. 
     Transceiver circuitry may be coupled to antenna  182  using one or more transmission line structures. Examples of suitable transmission lines that may be used for feeding antenna  182  include coaxial cables, flex circuit microstrip transmission lines, microstrip transmission lines on printed circuit boards, etc. 
     Hybrid antennas such as hybrid antenna  182  of  FIG. 12  may cover multiple communications bands. As shown in  FIG. 13 , for example, the sizes of slot  152  and planar inverted-F antenna resonating element structure  166  may be chosen so that planar inverted-F structure  168  resonates at a first frequency f 1  and has a harmonic resonance at frequency f 2 , while slot antenna structure  150  provides an additional frequency response at second frequency f 2 , which increases the efficiency of antenna  182  at frequency f 2 . The resonance at frequency f 1  may cover communications bands at 800 MHz and 900 MHz and the resonance at frequency f 2  may cover communications bands at 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2100 MHz (as examples). With this type of arrangement, hybrid antenna  182  may be referred to as a dual band antenna (i.e., an antenna with resonances at a first frequency f1 and a second frequency f2) or may be referred to as a pentaband antenna (i.e., an antenna that covers bands at 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz, and 2100 MHz). 
       FIG. 14  shows a top view of an illustrative planar-inverted-F resonating element  166 . Antenna resonating element  166  may be a substantially single-arm resonating element structure formed from conductive portions such as conductive portion  180  and  184 . Conductive portions  180  and  184  may be formed from conductive traces such as conductive copper traces or traces formed from other suitable metals. Traces such as traces  180  and  184  may be formed on a flex circuit substrate such as flex circuit substrate  190  or any other suitable support structure. A typical flex circuit substrate material is polyimide. Element  166  may also be formed using other structures (e.g., stamped metal foils, etc.). In the illustrative arrangement of  FIG. 14 , a series capacitance is formed between elements  180  and  184  from overlaps created by backside conductive trace  186 . In general, a hybrid antenna in device  10  may use any suitable electrical components (e.g., capacitors, inductors, and resistors) in any suitable configuration (series, parallel) to form an impedance matching network and/or frequency tuning network for the antenna. 
     The shape of slot  152  in the hybrid antenna may be determined by the shapes and locations of conductive structures in device  10  such as electrical components, flex circuit structures used for interconnecting electrical components, printed circuit board conductors, metal housing structures, metal brackets, bezel  14 , etc. This is illustrated in the top view of  FIG. 15 . As shown in  FIG. 15 , slot  152  may have an inner perimeter P that is defined along its left, right, and lower sides by bezel  14  and dock connector flex circuit  198  and along its upper side by printed circuit board  192  (and conductive elements such as frame midplate  208  of  FIG. 16 ). The conductive structures surrounding slot  152  (e.g., metal structures, electrical components, flex circuits, etc.) intrude on the generally rectangular slot shape formed between bezel  14  and printed circuit board  192  and thereby modify the location and length of perimeter P. 
     Planar inverted-F antenna structure  166  may be positioned so that structure  166  and substrate  190  overlap slot  152  (as shown schematically in  FIG. 12 ). Dock connector flex circuit  198  may contain conductive traces that carry signals between 30-pin dock connector  20  and circuitry on printed circuit board  192 . Conductive foam pad  196  may be used to ground dock connector flex circuit  198  to a conductive midplate structure associated with tilt assembly  60  (not shown in  FIG. 15 , but shown as midplate  208  in  FIG. 16 ). Board-to-board connector  194  may be used to electrically connect the conductive traces in dock connector flex circuit  198  to the circuitry of board  192 . 
     The antenna may be fed using a spring-loaded pin sometimes referred to as a pogo pin. The pogo pin may serve as a positive antenna feed terminal and may be connected to the traces in planar inverted-F antenna resonating element  166  by bearing against a portion of these conductive regions at feed location  188  ( FIG. 14 ). Electrical connecting structures such as springs may be used to form electrical connections with conductive bezel  14  (or other such conductive structures). 
     Spring  200  may be used to form an electrical connection between bezel  14  and midplate  208  ( FIG. 16 ). Spring  200  may be formed as part of a metal rail. The metal rail may also be used to form springs such as springs  114  for engaging with clips  112  when assembling tilt assembly  60  and housing assembly  70 . The metal rail may be electrically and mechanically connected to bezel  14  using any suitable arrangement. For example, the metal rail and spring  200  may be welded to bezel  14 . 
     Spring  202  may be used to form an electrical connection between ground conductors on printed circuit board  192  (i.e., a printed circuit board ground that is tied to antenna transmission line ground) and bezel  14 . As such, spring  202  may be considered to form an antenna ground terminal for the antenna feed (i.e., a ground terminal such as ground  158  of  FIG. 8 ). 
     If desired, isolation components may be used to electrically isolate electrical components that overlap slot  152  at the frequencies at which antenna  182  operates. For example, series-connected inductors may be used to electrically isolate microphone components in microphone  76  from slot  152  at radio frequencies. Other components may also be isolated if desired (e.g., speaker  78 , buttons, etc.). 
     A perspective view of the end of device  10  is shown in  FIG. 16 . As shown in  FIG. 16 , spring  202  may be part of a larger bracket-shaped conductor that is mounted to printed circuit board  192 . Pogo pin  210  may be used as a positive signal terminal that forms an electrical connection between a radio-frequency positive signal path in a transmission line structure on board  192  and the planar inverted-F antenna resonating element. The transmission line structure may be used to interconnect the hybrid antenna to radio-frequency transceiver circuitry on the printed circuit board. 
     Dock connector  20  may have a conductive frame  204  (e.g., a metal frame), and pins  206 . Pins  206  may be electrically connected to corresponding traces in dock connector flex circuit  198 . 
     Midplate  208  may be formed from metal and may form part of tilt assembly  60 . Midplate  208  may be used to provide structural support for components such as display  16  in tilt assembly  60 . With one suitable arrangement, midplate  208  may be formed from a conductive material such as metal. Spring  200  may be used to electrically connect (ground) midplate  208  to bezel  14 . 
       FIG. 17  shows the end of device  10  in the vicinity of pogo pin  210 . The perspective of  FIG. 17  is inverted with respect to that of  FIG. 16  (i.e., the interior of device  10  is being viewed from its rear in  FIG. 17 , whereas the interior of device  10  is being viewed from its front in  FIG. 16 ). 
     As shown in  FIG. 17 , pogo pin  210  may be used to form an electrical contact at location  188  with the conductive structures in flex circuit  190  (i.e., trace  180  of structure  166  of  FIG. 14 ). Antenna flex circuit  190  may be mounted to a support structure such as support structure  212 . Structure  212  may be, for example, a plastic structure that also serves as an enclosure for speaker  78 . Antenna flex circuit  190  may be mounted to support  212  using a layer of pressure-sensitive adhesive (as an example). To facilitate proper alignment of flex circuit  190  relative to support  212  and device  10 , antenna flex circuit  190  may be provided with one or more alignment holes such as alignment hole  216 . Support structure  212  may be provided with matching pegs such as peg  214 . 
     Pogo pin  210  may contain metal structures that are biased apart using an internal metal spring. When installed in device  10 , the ends of pogo pin  210  may be biased away from each other to form a good electrical connection between the antenna transmission line (positive conductor) on printed circuit board  192  and the antenna resonating element conductors within flex circuit  190 . As shown in  FIG. 18 , pogo pin  210  may be fastened to flex circuit  190  and may have an opposing end that bears against a conductive pad such as pad  218  that is formed on printed circuit board  192 . In the event of rework or repair, this type of arrangement allows flex circuit  190  and therefore planar inverted-F antenna resonating element  166  to be removed from device  10  without damaging printed circuit board  192 . 
     The antenna transmission line on printed circuit board  192  forms a pathway between the antenna and radio-frequency transceiver circuitry mounted on printed circuit board. The antenna transmission line may include a positive conductor and a ground conductor. The positive conductor may be connected to pad  218  and, via pin  210 , may be connected to the antenna resonating element traces in flex circuit substrate  190 . The ground conductor may be connected to ground (bezel  14 ) via spring  202 . Grounding between midplate  208  and bezel  14  may be provided using spring  200 . 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative of the principles of this invention and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20111222
Publication Date: 20120904
Grant Date: 20120904
Priority Date: 20080411
Inventors: SCHLUB ROBERT W.
LI QINGXIANG
ZAVALA JUAN
HILL ROBERT J.
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/40", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/0421", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/0421", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/364", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/364", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/40", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 41163555