PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-9356355-B2
Application Number: US-201314064589-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Antennas for handheld electronic devices

Abstract:
A handheld electronic device may be provided that contains wireless communications circuitry. The handheld electronic device may have a housing and a display. The display may be attached to the housing a conductive bezel. The handheld electronic device may have one or more antennas for supporting wireless communications. A ground plane in the handheld electronic device may serve as ground for one or more of the antennas. The ground plane and bezel may define an opening. A rectangular slot antenna or other suitable slot antenna may be formed from or within the opening. One or more antenna resonating elements may be formed above the slot. An electrical switch that bridges the slot may be used to modify the perimeter of the slot so as to tune the communications bands of the handheld electronic device.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. An antenna in a portable electronic device having a planar surface with a periphery, comprising:
 a ground plane; 
 a conductive structure that surrounds the periphery so that an opening is formed between the conductive structure and the ground plane; and 
 a switch that tunes the antenna. 
 
     
     
       2. The antenna defined in  claim 1 , wherein the switch forms part of a conductive path that bridges the opening. 
     
     
       3. The antenna defined in  claim 1 , wherein the portable electronic device includes a display and wherein the conductive structure surrounds the display. 
     
     
       4. The antenna defined in  claim 3  wherein the conductive structure comprises a bezel. 
     
     
       5. The antenna defined in  claim 3  wherein the conductive structure comprises stainless steel. 
     
     
       6. The antenna defined in  claim 1  wherein the antenna comprises an inverted-F antenna. 
     
     
       7. The antenna defined in  claim 6  wherein the switch forms part of a conductive path that bridges the opening. 
     
     
       8. The antenna defined in  claim 7  further comprising an antenna feed terminal electrically connected to the conductive structure. 
     
     
       9. The antenna defined in  claim 8  further comprising a transmission line having a first conductor coupled to the antenna feed terminal and a second conductor coupled to a ground terminal on the ground plane, wherein the ground terminal and the antenna feed terminal are on opposing sides of the opening. 
     
     
       10. A portable electronic device having a planar surface with a periphery, comprising:
 a ground plane; 
 a conductive structure that surrounds the periphery of the planar surface so that an antenna opening is formed between the conductive structure and the ground plane; and 
 a switch that is coupled to the conductive structure. 
 
     
     
       11. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 10 , wherein the antenna opening forms part of an antenna and wherein the portable electronic device further comprises control circuitry that provides control signals to the switch to tune the antenna. 
     
     
       12. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 10 , wherein the antenna opening forms part of an antenna, wherein the portable electronic device comprises a wrist-watch device, and wherein the switch is opened and closed to tune the antenna. 
     
     
       13. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 12 , further comprising control circuitry, wherein the control circuitry provides control signals to the switch to open and close the switch. 
     
     
       14. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 13 , wherein the opening has a first perimeter when the switchable component is open and a second perimeter when the switchable component is closed, and wherein the second perimeter of the opening is less than the first perimeter of the opening. 
     
     
       15. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 10 , wherein the switch bridges the antenna opening. 
     
     
       16. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 15 , further comprising a display, wherein the conductive structure surrounds the display. 
     
     
       17. A portable electronic device, comprising:
 an antenna that is formed from a ground plane and a conductive structure and that is based at least partly on an inverted-F antenna structure, wherein an antenna opening is formed between the conductive structure and the ground plane; and 
 a switch that is coupled to the conductive structure and that tunes the antenna. 
 
     
     
       18. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 17 , wherein the switch forms part of a conductive path that bridges the antenna opening. 
     
     
       19. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 17 , further comprising control circuitry, wherein the control circuitry provides control signals to open and close the switch to tune the antenna. 
     
     
       20. The portable electronic device defined in  claim 17 , wherein the portable electronic device has a planar surface with a periphery and wherein the conductive structure surrounds at least some of periphery of the planar surface.

Description:
This application is a continuation of patent application Ser. No. 13/286,612, filed Nov. 1, 2011, which is a division of patent application Ser. No. 13/083,487, filed Apr. 8, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,169,374, which is a continuation of patent application Ser. No. 12/941,006, filed Nov. 5, 2010, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,924,231, which is a continuation of patent application Ser. No. 12/564,803, filed Sep. 22, 2009, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,843,396, which is a continuation of patent application Ser. No. 11/821,192, filed Jun. 21, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,612,725, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     This invention relates generally to wireless communications circuitry, and more particularly, to wireless communications circuitry for handheld electronic devices with conductive bezels. 
     Handheld 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. 
     Due in part to their mobile nature, handheld electronic devices are often provided with wireless communications capabilities. Handheld electronic devices may use wireless communications to communicate with wireless base stations. For example, cellular telephones may communicate using cellular telephone bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, and 1900 MHz (e.g., the main Global System for Mobile Communications or GSM cellular telephone bands). Handheld electronic devices may also use other types of communications links. For example, handheld electronic devices may communicate using the WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) band at 2.4 GHz and the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz. Communications are also possible in data service bands such as the 3G data communications band at 2170 MHz band (commonly referred to as UMTS or Universal Mobile Telecommunications System). 
     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. For example, manufacturers have made attempts to miniaturize the antennas used in handheld electronic devices. 
     A typical antenna may be fabricated by patterning a metal layer on a circuit board substrate or may be formed from a sheet of thin metal using a foil stamping process. Many devices use planar inverted-F antennas (PIFAs). Planar inverted-F antennas are formed by locating a planar resonating element above a ground plane. These techniques can be used to produce antennas that fit within the tight confines of a compact handheld device. With conventional handheld electronic devices, however, design compromises are made to accommodate compact antennas. These design compromises may include, for example, compromises related to antenna height above the ground plane, antenna efficiency, and antenna bandwidth. Moreover, constraints are often placed on the amount of metal that can be used in a handheld device and on the location of metal parts. These constraints can adversely affect device operation and device appearance. 
     It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved antennas for handheld electronic devices. 
     SUMMARY 
     In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a handheld electronic device with wireless communications circuitry is provided. The handheld electronic device may have cellular telephone, music player, or handheld computer functionality. The wireless communications circuitry may have one or more antennas. The antennas may be used to support wireless communications over data communications bands and cellular telephone communications bands. 
     The handheld electronic device may have a housing. The front face of the housing may have a display. The display may be a liquid crystal diode (LCD) display or other suitable display. A touch sensor may be integrated with the display to make the display touch sensitive. 
     A bezel may be used to attach the display to the housing. The bezel surrounds the periphery of the front face of the housing and holds the display against the housing. A gasket may be interposed between the bezel and the housing. 
     The bezel may be formed from stainless steel or other suitable conductive materials. A ground plane element in the housing may serve as antenna ground. The ground plane element may have a slot. The slot may be used to form a slot antenna or a hybrid antenna. In a hybrid antenna configuration, one or more antenna resonating elements, such as planar inverted-F antenna resonating elements, may be located above the slot. The bezel may be electrically connected to the ground plane element. The bezel may surround the slot while accommodating the antennas. This allows the bezel to provide structural support and to enhance the appearance and durability of the handheld electronic device. Even though the bezel surrounds the slot, proper operation of the antenna resonating elements that are formed above the slot is not disrupted. 
     The slot may be located in the center of the handheld electronic device or at one end of the handheld electronic device. A switch that bridges the slot may be placed in an open or closed position to adjust the perimeter of the slot and thereby tune the antennas. 
     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 handheld electronic device with an antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram of an illustrative handheld electronic device with an antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3A  is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative handheld electronic device with an antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3B  is a partly schematic top view of an illustrative handheld electronic device containing two radio-frequency transceivers that are coupled to two associated antenna resonating elements by respective transmission lines in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an illustrative planar inverted-F antenna (PIFA) in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative planar inverted-F antenna of the type shown in  FIG. 4  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is an illustrative antenna performance graph for an antenna of the type shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5  in which standing-wave-ratio (SWR) values are plotted as a function of operating frequency in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of an illustrative planar inverted-F antenna in which a portion of the antenna&#39;s ground plane underneath the antenna&#39;s resonating element has been removed to form a slot in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a top view of an illustrative slot antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is an illustrative antenna performance graph for an antenna of the type shown in  FIG. 8  in which standing-wave-ratio (SWR) values are plotted as a function of operating frequency in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective view of an illustrative hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed by combining a planar inverted-F antenna with a slot antenna in which the antenna is being fed by two coaxial cable feeds in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 11  is an illustrative wireless coverage graph in which antenna standing-wave-ratio (SWR) values are plotted as a function of operating frequency for a handheld device that contains a hybrid PIFA/slot antenna and a strip antenna in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view of an illustrative handheld electronic device antenna arrangement in which a first of two handheld electronic device antennas has an associated isolation element that serves to reduce interference with from a second of the two handheld electronic device antennas in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 13  is an exploded perspective view of an illustrative handheld electronic device with a conductive bezel in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 14  is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative handheld electronic device with a conductive bezel in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 15  is a somewhat simplified interior perspective view of an illustrative handheld electronic device with a conductive bezel in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 16  is a perspective view of an illustrative slot antenna that may be used in a handheld electronic device containing a conductive bezel in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 17  is a perspective view of an illustrative hybrid antenna that may be used in a handheld electronic device containing a conductive bezel in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 18  is a perspective view of an illustrative handheld electronic device slot antenna in which the slot is located in an interior portion of a ground plane and in which a conductive bezel surrounds the periphery of the ground plane in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 19  is a perspective view of an illustrative handheld electronic device hybrid antenna in which a slot is located in an interior portion of a ground plane and in which a conductive bezel surrounds the periphery of the ground plane in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 20  is a top view of an illustrative handheld electronic device slot antenna in which the slot follows a meandering path and in which a conductive bezel surrounds the periphery of the ground plane in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 21  is a top view of an illustrative handheld electronic device slot antenna in which the slot has a meandering border and in which a conductive bezel surrounds the periphery of the ground plane in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 22  is a top view of an illustrative handheld electronic device slot antenna structure in which the slot is bridged by a switch that allows the slot to be selectively shorted and thereby tuned in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 23  is an antenna performance graph showing how the resonance peak of a tunable antenna of the type shown in  FIG. 22  may be adjusted by selectively bridging a portion of the slot in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly, to wireless electronic devices and antennas for wireless electronic devices. 
     The antennas may be small form factor antennas that exhibit wide bandwidths and large gains. In accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the present invention, the antennas are configured so that they accommodate a conductive bezel on the wireless electronic device. The bezel may serve as part of the antennas. For example, the bezel may form part of a ground for an antenna. The bezel may also perform mechanical functions such as providing structural strength for a wireless electronic device. With one suitable arrangement, which is described herein as an example, the bezel may hold a liquid crystal diode (LCD) display or other display to the surface of a wireless electronic device. 
     The wireless 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 are handheld electronic devices. Space is at a premium in handheld electronic devices, so high-performance compact antennas can be particularly advantageous in such devices. Handheld electronic devices may also benefit from the use of bezels. For example, a stainless steel bezel that surrounds the periphery of a handheld electronic device may serve several useful functions by increasing device rigidity, holding a glass or plastic faceplate for a display in place, enhancing the esthetic appeal of the device by serving as a visually appealing design element, and serving as a protective structure (e.g., to prevent a potentially fragile component such as a plastic or glass display from being damaged if the handheld electronic device is inadvertently dropped). The use of handheld devices is therefore generally described herein as an example, although any suitable electronic device may be used with the antennas and bezels of the invention if desired. 
     The handheld devices may be, for example, 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 handheld devices may also be hybrid devices that combine the functionality of multiple conventional devices. Examples of hybrid handheld 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 handheld device that receives email, supports mobile telephone calls, and supports web browsing. These are merely illustrative examples. 
     An illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 1 . Device  10  may be any suitable portable or handheld electronic device. 
     Device  10  may have housing  12 . Device  10  may include one or more antennas for handling wireless communications. Embodiments of device  10  that contain one antenna and embodiments of device  10  that contain two antennas are sometimes described herein as examples. 
     Device  10  may handle communications over one or more communications bands. For example, in a device  10  with two antennas, a first of the two antennas may be used to handle cellular telephone communications in one or more frequency bands, whereas a second of the two antennas may be used to handle data communications in a separate communications band. With one suitable arrangement, which is sometimes described herein as an example, the second antenna is configured to handle data communications in a communications band centered at 2.4 GHz (e.g., WiFi and/or Bluetooth frequencies). In configurations with multiple antennas, the antennas may be designed to reduce interference so as to allow the two antennas to operate in relatively close proximity to each other. 
     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, so that the operation of conductive antenna elements that are located in proximity to housing  12  is not disrupted. In other situations, housing  12  or portions of housing  12  may be formed from metal elements. 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. The conductive material may be a metal (e.g., an elemental metal or an alloy) or other suitable conductive materials. With one suitable arrangement, which is sometimes described herein as an example, bezel  14  may be formed from stainless steel. Stainless steel can be manufactured so that it has an attractive shiny appearance, is structurally strong, and does not corrode easily. If desired, other structures may be used to form bezel  14 . For example, bezel  14  may be formed from plastic that is coated with a shiny coating of metal or other suitable substances. Arrangements in which bezel  14  is formed from a conductive metal such as stainless steel are often described herein as an example. 
     Bezel  14  may serve to hold a display or other device with a planar surface in place on device  10 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , for example, bezel  14  may be used to hold display  16  in place by attaching display  16  to housing  12 . Device  10  may have front and rear planar surfaces. In the example of  FIG. 1 , display  16  is shown as being formed as part of the planar front surface of device  10 . The periphery of the front surface may be surrounded by a bezel, such as bezel  14 . If desired, the periphery of the rear surface may be surrounded by a bezel (e.g., in a device with both front and rear displays). 
     Display  16  may be a liquid crystal diode (LCD) display, 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 and 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. 
     In a typical arrangement, bezel  14  may have prongs (e.g., prongs with integrated threaded and/or unthreaded screw holes) that are used to secure bezel  14  to housing  12  and that are used to electrically connect bezel  14  to housing  12  and other conductive elements in device  10 . The housing and other conductive elements form a ground plane for the antenna(s) in the handheld electronic device. A gasket (e.g., an o-ring formed from silicone or other compliant material, a polyester film gasket, etc.) may be placed between the underside of bezel  14  and the outermost surface of display  16 . The gasket may help to relieve pressure from localized pressure points that might otherwise place stress on the glass or plastic cover of display  16 . The gasket may also help to visually hide portions of the interior of device  10 . 
     In addition to serving as a retaining structure for display  16 , bezel  14  may serve as a rigid frame for device  10 . In this capacity, bezel  14  may enhance the structural integrity of device  10 . For example, bezel  14  may make device  10  more rigid along its length than would be possible if no bezel were used. Bezel  14  may also be used to improve the appearance of device  10 . In configurations such as the one shown in  FIG. 1  in which bezel  14  is formed around the periphery of a surface of device  10  (e.g., the periphery of the front face of device  10 ), bezel  14  may help to prevent damage to display  16  (e.g., by shielding display  16  from impact in the event that device  10  is dropped, etc.). 
     Display screen  16  (e.g., a touch screen) is merely one example of an input-output device that may be used with handheld electronic device  10 . If desired, handheld electronic device  10  may have other input-output devices. For example, handheld 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). Display screen  16  may be, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display, a plasma display, or multiple displays that use one or more different display technologies. 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. Bezels such as bezel  14  of  FIG. 1  may be used to mount display  16  or any other device with a planar surface to housing  12  in any of these locations. 
     A user of handheld 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 handheld 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 handheld 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 handheld electronic device  10 . For example, a button such as button  19  or other user interface control may be formed on the side of handheld 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.). 
     Handheld device  10  may have ports such as bus connector  20  and audio and video jacks that allow device  10  to interface with external components. Typical ports include power jacks to recharge a battery within device  10  or to operate device  10  from a direct current (DC) power supply, data ports 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, etc. The functions of some or all of these devices and the internal circuitry of handheld 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 handheld electronic device  10  to function properly without being disrupted by the electronic components. 
     With one suitable arrangement, the antennas of device  10  are located in the lower end  18  of device  10 , in the proximity of port  20 . An advantage of locating antennas in the lower portion of housing  12  and device  10  is that this places the antennas away from the user&#39;s head when the device  10  is held to the head (e.g., when talking into a microphone and listening to a speaker in the handheld device as with a cellular telephone). This reduces the amount of radio-frequency radiation that is emitted in the vicinity of the user and minimizes proximity effects. 
     A schematic diagram of an embodiment of an illustrative handheld electronic device is shown in  FIG. 2 . Handheld 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 combination of such devices, or any other suitable portable electronic device. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , handheld 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 WiFi®, protocols for other short-range wireless communications links such as the Bluetooth® protocol, 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 , and 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, one or more 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  and computing equipment  48 , as shown by paths  50 . Paths  50  may include wired and wireless paths. 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). 
     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 handheld electronic device  10 ), or any other suitable computing equipment. 
     The antennas 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 the cellular telephone bands at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, and 1900 MHz, data service bands such as the 3G data communications band at 2170 MHz band (commonly referred to as UMTS or Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), the WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz, the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz, and the global positioning system (GPS) band at 1550 MHz. These are merely illustrative communications bands over which devices  44  may operate. Additional local and remote communications bands are expected to be deployed in the future as new wireless services are made available. Wireless devices  44  may be configured to operate over any suitable band or bands to cover any existing or new services of interest. Device  10  may use one antenna, two antennas, or more than two antennas to provide wireless coverage over all communications bands of interest. 
     A cross-sectional view of an illustrative handheld electronic device is shown in  FIG. 3A . In the example of  FIG. 3A , device  10  has a housing that is formed of a conductive portion  12 - 1  and a plastic portion  12 - 2 . Conductive portion  12 - 1  may be any suitable conductor. With one suitable arrangement, portion  12 - 1  is formed from metals such as stamped  304  stainless steel. Stainless steel has a high conductivity and can be polished to a high-gloss finish so that it has an attractive appearance. If desired, other metals can be used for portion  12 - 1  such as aluminum, magnesium, titanium, alloys of these metals and other metals, etc. As shown in  FIG. 1 , display  16  may be formed on the front surface of device  10 . To accommodate display  16 , housing portion  12 - 1  (the lower portion of the case in the orientation of  FIG. 3A ) may have a cut out portion that is surrounded by bezel  14 . 
     In the illustrative embodiment of  FIG. 3A , housing portion  12 - 2  may be formed from a dielectric. An advantage of using dielectric for housing portion  12 - 2  is that this may allow one or more antenna resonating elements such as antenna resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B of antenna  54  in device  10  to operate without interference from the metal sidewalls of housing  12 . With one suitable arrangement, housing portion  12 - 2  is a plastic cap formed from a plastic based on acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymers (sometimes referred to as ABS plastic). These are merely illustrative housing materials for device  10 . For example, the housing of device  10  may be formed substantially from plastic or other dielectrics, substantially from metal or other conductors, or from any other suitable materials or combinations of materials. 
     Components such as components  52  may be mounted on one or more circuit boards in device  10 . Typical components  52  include integrated circuits, LCD screens, and user input interface buttons. Device  10  also typically includes a battery, which may be mounted along the rear face of housing (as an example). One or more transceiver circuits such as transceiver circuits  52 A and  52 B may be mounted to one or more circuit boards in device  10 . In a configuration for device  10  in which there are two antenna resonating elements and two transceivers, each transceiver may be used to transmit radio-frequency signals through a respective one of two respective antenna resonating elements and may be used to receive radio-frequency signals through a respective one of two antenna resonating elements. A common ground may be used with each of the two antenna resonating elements. 
     With one illustrative arrangement, transceiver  52 A may be used to transmit and receive cellular telephone radio-frequency signals and transceiver  52 B may be used to transmit signals in a communications band such as the 3G data communications band at 2170 MHz band (commonly referred to as UMTS or Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), the WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) bands at 2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz, the Bluetooth® band at 2.4 GHz, or the global positioning system (GPS) band at 1550 MHz. 
     The circuit board(s) in device  10  may be formed from any suitable materials. With one illustrative arrangement, device  10  is provided with a multilayer printed circuit board. At least one of the layers may have large planar regions of conductor that form a ground plane such as ground plane  54 - 2 . In a typical scenario, ground plane  54 - 2  is a rectangle that conforms to the generally rectangular shape of housing  12  and device  10  and matches the rectangular lateral dimensions of housing  12 . Ground plane  54 - 2  may, if desired, be electrically connected to conductive housing portion  12 - 1 . Ground plane  54 - 2  may have an opening in the form of a slot in the vicinity of antenna  54 . The opening may be formed by the shape and relative placement of the printed circuit boards, battery, integrated circuits, and other conductive components that make up the ground plane and/or may be formed by the shape and relative placement of these ground plane components relative to bezel  14 . For example, ground plane  54 - 2  may have a slot in region  53  (e.g., a slot in a printed circuit board), beneath resonating elements such as resonating elements  54 - 1 B and  54 - 1 A. A rectangular slot (or other suitably shaped opening) may also be formed in the space between bezel  14  and ground plane  54 - 2 . The slot may have any suitable shape. Illustrative slot shapes include rectangles, squares, ovals, shapes with both flat and curved sides, etc. 
     Suitable circuit board materials for the multilayer printed circuit board include paper impregnated with phonolic resin, resins reinforced with glass fibers such as fiberglass mat impregnated with epoxy resin (sometimes referred to as FR-4), plastics, polytetrafluoroethylene, polystyrene, polyimide, and ceramics. Circuit boards fabricated from materials such as FR-4 are commonly available, are not cost-prohibitive, and can be fabricated with multiple layers of metal (e.g., four layers). So-called flex circuits, which are formed using flexible circuit board materials such as polyimide, may also be used in device  10 . For example, flex circuits may be used to form the antenna resonating elements for antenna(s)  54 . 
     As shown in the illustrative configuration of  FIG. 3A , ground plane element  54 - 2  and antenna resonating element  54 - 1 A may form a first antenna for device  10 . Ground plane element  54 - 2  and antenna resonating element  54 - 1 B may form a second antenna for device  10 . These two antennas form a multiband antenna having multiple resonating elements. If desired, other antenna structures can be provided. For example, additional resonating elements may be used to provide additional gain for an overlapping frequency band of interest (i.e., a band at which one of these antennas  54  is operating) or may be used to provide coverage in a different frequency band of interest (i.e., a band outside of the range of antennas  54 ). 
     Bezel  14  may be formed from a conductive material and may be mounted on device  10  in the vicinity of ground elements such as ground plane element  54 - 2 . Bezel  14  may be electrically connected to the antenna ground (e.g., to ground plane element  54 - 2 ). When bezel  14  is connected to antenna ground, bezel  14  forms part of the ground and thereby serves as a portion of antenna  54 . 
     Any suitable conductive materials may be used to form bezel  14 , ground plane element  54 - 2 , and resonating elements such as resonating element  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B. Examples of suitable conductive antenna materials include metals, such as copper, brass, silver, gold, and stainless steel (e.g., for bezel  14 ). Conductors other than metals may also be used, if desired. The planar conductive elements in antennas  54  are typically thin (e.g., about 0.2 mm). 
     Transceiver circuits  52 A and  52 B (i.e., transceiver circuitry  44  of  FIG. 2 ) may be provided in the form of one or more integrated circuits and associated discrete components (e.g., filtering components). These transceiver circuits may include one or more transmitter integrated circuits, one or more receiver integrated circuits, switching circuitry, amplifiers, etc. Transceiver circuits  52 A and  52 B may operate simultaneously (e.g., one can transmit while the other receives, both can transmit at the same time, or both can receive simultaneously). 
     Each transceiver may have an associated coaxial cable or other transmission line over which transmitted and received radio frequency signals are conveyed. As shown in the example of  FIG. 3A , transmission line  56 A (e.g., a coaxial cable) may be used to interconnect transceiver  52 A and antenna resonating element  54 - 1 A and transmission line  56 B (e.g., a coaxial cable) may be used to interconnect transceiver  52 B and antenna resonating element  54 - 1 B. With this type of configuration, transceiver  52 B may handle WiFi transmissions over an antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 B and ground plane  54 - 2 , while transceiver  52 A may handle cellular telephone transmission over an antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 A and ground plane  54 - 2 . 
     A top view of an illustrative device  10  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 3B . As shown in  FIG. 3B , transceiver circuitry such as transceiver  52 A and transceiver  52 B may be interconnected with antenna resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B over respective transmission lines  56 A and  56 B. Ground plane  54 - 2  may have a substantially rectangular shape (i.e., the lateral dimensions of ground plane  54 - 2  may match those of device  10 ) and may contain at least one slot (e.g., a slot under the antenna resonating elements). Ground plane element  54 - 2  may be formed from one or more printed circuit board conductors, conductive housing portions (e.g., housing portion  12 - 1  of  FIG. 3A ), conductive components such as display  16 , batteries, or any other suitable conductive structure. Bezel  14  may be electrically connected to ground plane  54 - 2  and may therefore sometimes be considered to form part of the antenna ground plane. 
     Antenna resonating elements such as resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B and ground plane  54 - 2  may be formed in any suitable shapes. With one illustrative arrangement, one of antennas  54  (i.e., the antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 A) is based at least partly on a planar inverted-F antenna (PIFA) structure and the other antenna (i.e., the antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 B) is based on a planar strip configuration. Although this embodiment may be described herein as an example, any other suitable shapes may be used for resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B if desired. 
     An illustrative PIFA structure is shown in  FIG. 4 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , PIFA structure  54  may have a ground plane portion  54 - 2  and a planar resonating element portion  54 - 1 A. Antennas are fed using positive signals and ground signals. The portion of an antenna to which the positive signal is provided is sometimes referred to as the antenna&#39;s positive terminal or feed terminal. This terminal is also sometimes referred to as the signal terminal or the center-conductor terminal of the antenna. The portion of an antenna to which the ground signal is provided may be referred to as the antenna&#39;s ground, the antenna&#39;s ground terminal, the antenna&#39;s ground plane, etc. In antenna  54  of  FIG. 4 , feed conductor  58  is used to route positive antenna signals from signal terminal  60  into antenna resonating element  54 - 1 A. Ground terminal  62  is shorted to ground plane  54 - 2 , which forms the antenna&#39;s ground. 
     The dimensions of the ground plane in a PIFA antenna such as antenna  54  of  FIG. 4  are generally sized to conform to the maximum size allowed by housing  12  of device  10 . Antenna ground plane  54 - 2  may be rectangular in shape having width W in lateral dimension  68  and length L in lateral dimension  66 . The length of antenna  54  in dimension  66  affects its frequency of operation. Dimensions  68  and  66  are sometimes referred to as horizontal dimensions. Resonating element  54 - 1 A is typically spaced several millimeters above ground plane  54 - 2  along vertical dimension  64 . The size of antenna  54  in dimension  64  is sometimes referred to as height H of antenna  54 . 
     A cross-sectional view of PIFA antenna  54  of  FIG. 4  is shown in  FIG. 5 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , radio-frequency signals may be fed to antenna  54  (when transmitting) and may be received from antenna  54  (when receiving) using signal terminal  60  and ground terminal  62 . In a typical arrangement, a coaxial conductor or other transmission line has its center conductor electrically connected to point  60  and its ground conductor electrically connected to point  62 . 
     A graph of the expected performance of an antenna of the type represented by illustrative antenna  54  of  FIGS. 4 and 5  is shown in  FIG. 6 . Expected standing wave ratio (SWR) values are plotted as a function of frequency. The performance of antenna  54  of  FIGS. 4 and 5  is given by solid line  63 . As shown, there is a reduced SWR value at frequency f 1 , indicating that the antenna performs well in the frequency band centered at frequency f 1 . PIFA antenna  54  also operates at harmonic frequencies such as frequency f 2 . Frequency f 2  represents the second harmonic of PIFA antenna (i.e., f 2 =2f 1 ). The dimensions of antenna  54  may be selected so that frequencies f 1  and f 2  are aligned with communication bands of interest. The frequency f 1  (and harmonic frequency 2f 1 ) are related to the length L of antenna  54  in dimension  66  (L is approximately equal to one quarter of a wavelength at frequency f 1 ). 
     In some configurations, the height H of antenna  54  of  FIGS. 4 and 5  in dimension  64  may be limited by the amount of near-field coupling between resonating element  54 - 1 A and ground plane  54 - 2 . For a specified antenna bandwidth and gain, it may not be possible to reduce the height H without adversely affecting performance. All other variables being equal, reducing height H will generally cause the bandwidth and gain of antenna  54  to be reduced. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , the minimum vertical dimension of the PIFA antenna can be reduced while still satisfying minimum bandwidth and gain constraints by introducing a dielectric region  70  in the form of a slot under antenna resonating element  54 - 1 A. The slot  70  may be filled with air, plastic, or any other suitable dielectric and represents a cut-away or removed portion of ground plane  54 - 2 . Removed or empty region  70  may be formed from one or more holes in ground plane  54 - 2 . These holes, which are sometimes referred to as slots or openings, may be square, circular, oval, polygonal, etc. and may extend though adjacent conductive structures in the vicinity of ground plane  54 - 2 . With one suitable arrangement, which is shown in  FIG. 7 , the removed region  70  forms a rectangular slot. Slots or holes of other shapes (oval, meandering, curved sides, straight sides, etc.) may also be formed. 
     The slot in ground plane  54 - 2  may be any suitable size. For example, the slot may be slightly smaller than the outermost rectangular outline of resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 2  as viewed from the top view orientation of  FIG. 3B . Typical resonating element lateral dimensions are on the order of 0.5 cm to 10 cm. 
     The presence of slot  70  reduces near-field electromagnetic coupling between resonating element  54 - 1 A and ground plane  54 - 2  and allows height H in vertical dimension  64  to be made smaller than would otherwise be possible while satisfying a given set of bandwidth and gain constraints. For example, height H may be in the range of 1-5 mm, may be in the range of 2-5 mm, may be in the range of 2-4 mm, may be in the range of 1-3 mm, may be in the range of 1-4 mm, may be in the range of 1-10 mm, may be lower than 10 mm, may be lower than 4 mm, may be lower than 3 mm, may be lower than 2 mm, or may be in any other suitable range of vertical displacements above ground plane element  54 - 2 . 
     If desired, the portion of ground plane  54 - 2  that contains slot  70  may be used to form a slot antenna. The slot antenna structure may be used alone to form an antenna for device  10  or the slot antenna structure may be used in conjunction with one or more resonating elements to form a hybrid antenna  54 . For example, one or more PIFA resonating elements may be used with the slot antenna structure to form a hybrid antenna. By operating antenna  54  so that it exhibits both PIFA operating characteristics and slot antenna operating characteristics, antenna performance can be improved. 
     A top view of an illustrative slot antenna is shown in  FIG. 8 . Antenna  72  of  FIG. 8  is typically thin in the dimension into the page (i.e., antenna  72  is planar with its plane lying in the page). Slot  70  may be formed in the center of antenna conductor  76 . A coaxial cable such as cable  56 A or other transmission line path may be used to feed antenna  72 . In the example of  FIG. 8 , antenna  72  is fed so that center conductor  82  of coaxial cable  56 A is connected to signal terminal  80  (i.e., the positive or feed terminal of antenna  72 ) and the outer braid of coaxial cable  56 A, which forms the ground conductor for cable  56 A, is connected to ground terminal  78 . 
     When antenna  72  is fed using the arrangement of  FIG. 8 , the antenna&#39;s performance is given by the graph of  FIG. 9 . As shown in  FIG. 9 , antenna  72  operates in a frequency band that is centered about center frequency f 2 . The center frequency f 2  is determined by the dimensions of slot  70 . Slot  70  has an inner perimeter P that is equal to two times dimension X plus two times dimension Y (i.e., P=2X+2Y). At center frequency f 2 , perimeter P is equal to one wavelength. 
     Because the center frequency f 2  can be tuned by proper selection of perimeter P, the slot antenna of  FIG. 8  can be configured so that frequency f 2  of the graph in  FIG. 9  coincides with frequency f 2  of the graph in  FIG. 6 . In an antenna design of this type in which slot  70  is combined with a PIFA structure, the presence of slot  70  increases the gain of the antenna at frequency f 2 . In the vicinity of frequency f 2 , the increase in performance from using slot  70  results in the antenna performance plot given by dotted line  79  in  FIG. 6 . 
     If desired, the value of perimeter P may be selected to resonate at a frequency that is different from frequency f 2  (i.e., out-of-band). In this scenario, the presence of slot  70  does not increase the performance of the antenna at resonant frequency f 2 . Nevertheless, the removal of the conductive material from the region of slot  70  reduces near-field electromagnetic coupling between resonating elements such as resonating element  54 - 1 A and ground plane  54 - 2  and allows height H in vertical dimension  64  to be made smaller than would otherwise be possible while satisfying a given set of bandwidth and gain constraints. 
     The position of terminals  80  and  78  may be selected for impedance matching. If desired, terminals such as terminals  84  and  86 , which extend around one of the corners of slot  70  may be used to feed antenna  72 . In this situation, the distance between terminals  84  and  86  may be chosen to properly adjust the impedance of antenna  72 . In the illustrative arrangement of  FIG. 8 , terminals  84  and  86  are shown as being respectively configured as a slot antenna ground terminal and a slot antenna signal terminal, as an example. If desired, terminal  84  could be used as a ground terminal and terminal  86  could be used as a signal terminal. Slot  70  is typically air-filled, but may, in general, be filled with any suitable dielectric. 
     By using slot  70  in combination with a PIFA-type resonating element such as resonating element  54 - 1 A, a hybrid PIFA/slot antenna is formed (sometimes referred to herein as a hybrid antenna). Handheld electronic device  10  may, if desired, have a PIFA/slot hybrid antenna of this type (e.g., for cellular telephone communications) and a strip antenna (e.g., for WiFi/Bluetooth communications). 
     An illustrative configuration in which the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed by resonating element  54 - 1 A, slot  70 , and ground plane  54 - 2  is fed using two coaxial cables (or other transmission lines) is shown in  FIG. 10 . When the antenna is fed as shown in  FIG. 10 , both the PIFA and slot antenna portions of the antenna are active. As a result, antenna  54  of  FIG. 10  operates in a hybrid PIFA/slot mode. Coaxial cables  56 A- 1  and  56 A- 2  have inner conductors  82 - 1  and  82 - 2 , respectively. Coaxial cables  56 A- 1  and  56 A- 2  also each have a conductive outer braid ground conductor. The outer braid conductor of coaxial cable  56 A- 1  is electrically shorted to ground plane  54 - 2  at ground terminal  88 . The ground portion of cable  56 A- 2  is shorted to ground plane  54 - 2  at ground terminal  92 . The signal connections from coaxial cables  56 A- 1  and  56 A- 2  are made at signal terminals  90  and  94 , respectively. 
     With the arrangement of  FIG. 10 , two separate sets of antenna terminals are used. Coaxial cable  56 A- 1  feeds the PIFA portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna using ground terminal  88  and signal terminal  90  and coaxial cable  56 A- 2  feeds the slot antenna portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna using ground terminal  92  and signal terminal  94 . Each set of antenna terminals therefore operates as a separate feed for the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna. Signal terminal  90  and ground terminal  88  serve as antenna terminals for the PIFA portion of the antenna, whereas signal terminal  94  and ground terminal  92  serve as antenna feed points for the slot portion of antenna  54 . These two separate antenna feeds allow the antenna to function simultaneously using both its PIFA and its slot characteristics. If desired, the orientation of the feeds can be changed. For example, coaxial cable  56 A- 2  may be connected to slot  70  using point  94  as a ground terminal and point  92  as a signal terminal or using ground and signal terminals located at other points along the periphery of slot  70 . 
     When multiple transmission lines such as transmission lines  56 A- 1  and  56 A- 2  are used for the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna, each transmission line may be associated with a respective transceiver circuit (e.g., two corresponding transceiver circuits such as transceiver circuit  52 A of  FIGS. 3A and 3B ). 
     In operation in handheld device  10 , a hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 A of  FIG. 3B  and a corresponding slot that is located beneath element  54 - 1 A in ground plane  54 - 2  can be used to cover the GSM cellular telephone bands at 850 and 900 MHz and at 1800 and 1900 MHz (or other suitable frequency bands), whereas a strip antenna (or other suitable antenna structure) can be used to cover an additional band centered at frequency f n  (or another suitable frequency band or bands). By adjusting the size of the strip antenna or other antenna structure formed from resonating element  54 - 1 B, the frequency f n  may be controlled so that it coincides with any suitable frequency band of interest (e.g., 2.4 GHz for Bluetooth/WiFi, 2170 MHz for UMTS, or 1550 MHz for GPS). 
     A graph showing the wireless performance of device  10  when using two antennas (e.g., a hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 A and a corresponding slot and an antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 2 ) is shown in  FIG. 11 . In the example of  FIG. 11 , the PIFA operating characteristics of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna are used to cover the 850/900 MHz and the 1800/1900 MHz GSM cellular telephone bands, the slot antenna operating characteristics of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna are used to provide additional gain and bandwidth in the 1800/1900 MHz range, and the antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 B is used to cover the frequency band centered at f n  (e.g., 2.4 GHz for Bluetooth/WiFi, 2170 MHz for UMTS, or 1550 MHz for GPS). This arrangement provides coverage for four cellular telephone bands and a data band. 
     If desired, the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 A and slot  70  may be fed using a single coaxial cable or other such transmission line. An illustrative configuration in which a single transmission line is used to simultaneously feed both the PIFA portion and the slot portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna and in which a strip antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 B is used to provide additional frequency coverage for device  10  is shown in  FIG. 12 . Ground plane  54 - 2  may be formed from metal (as an example). Edges  96  of ground plane  54 - 2  may be formed by bending the metal of ground plane  54 - 2  upward (as an example). When inserted into housing  12  ( FIG. 3A ), edges  96  may rest within the sidewalls of metal housing portion  12 - 1  and may form electrical contact with bezel  14 . If desired, ground plane  54 - 2  may be formed using one or more metal layers in a printed circuit board, metal foil, portions of housing  12 , portions of display  16 , or other suitable conductive structures. 
     In the embodiment of  FIG. 12 , resonating element  54 - 1 B has an L-shaped conductive strip formed from conductive branch  122  and conductive branch  120 . Branches  120  and  122  may be formed from metal that is supported by dielectric support structure  102 . With one suitable arrangement, the resonating element structures of  FIG. 12  are formed as part of a patterned flex circuit that is attached to support structure  102  (e.g., by adhesive). 
     Coaxial cable  56 B or other suitable transmission line has a ground conductor connected to ground terminal  132  and a signal conductor connected to signal terminal  124 . Any suitable mechanism may be used for attaching the transmission line to the antenna. In the example of  FIG. 12 , the outer braid ground conductor of coaxial cable  56 B is connected to ground terminal  132  using metal tab  130 . Metal tab  130  may be shorted to housing portion  12 - 1  (e.g., using conductive adhesive). Transmission line connection structure  126  may be, for example, a mini UFL coaxial connector. The ground of connector  126  may be shorted to terminal  132  and the center conductor of connector  126  may be shorted to conductive path  124 . 
     When feeding antenna  54 - 1 B, terminal  132  may be considered to form the antenna&#39;s ground terminal and the center conductor of connector  126  and/or conductive path  124  may be considered to form the antenna&#39;s signal terminal. The location along dimension  128  at which conductive path  124  meets conductive strip  120  can be adjusted for impedance matching. 
     Planar antenna resonating element  54 - 1 A of the illustrative hybrid PIFA/slot antenna of  FIG. 12  may have an F-shaped structure with shorter arm  98  and longer arm  100 . The lengths of arms  98  and  100  and the dimensions of other structures such as slot  70  and ground plane  54 - 2  may be adjusted to tune the frequency coverage and antenna isolation properties of device  10 . For example, length L of ground plane  54 - 2  may be configured so that the PIFA portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed with resonating element  54 - 1 A resonates at the 850/900 MHz GSM bands, thereby providing coverage at frequency f 1  of  FIG. 11 . The length of arm  100  may be selected to resonate at the 1800/1900 MHz bands, thereby helping the PIFA/slot antenna to provide coverage at frequency f 2  of  FIG. 11 . The perimeter of slot  70  may be configured to resonate at the 1800/1900 MHz bands, thereby reinforcing the resonance of arm  100  and further helping the PIFA/slot antenna to provide coverage at frequency f 2  of  FIG. 11  (i.e., by improving performance from the solid line  63  to the dotted line  79  in the vicinity of frequency f 2 , as shown in  FIG. 6 ). If desired, the perimeter of slot  70  may be configured to resonate away from the 1800/1900 MHz bands (i.e., out-of-band). Slot  70  may also be used without the PIFA structures of  FIG. 12  (i.e., as a pure slot antenna). 
     In a PIFA/slot configuration, arm  98  can serve as an isolation element that reduces interference between the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 A and the L-shaped strip antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 B. The dimensions of arm  98  can be configured to introduce an isolation maximum at a desired frequency, which is not present without the arm. It is believed that configuring the dimensions of arm  98  allows manipulation of the currents induced on the ground plane  54 - 2  from resonating element  54 - 1 A. This manipulation can minimize induced currents around the signal and ground areas of resonating element  54 - 1 B. Minimizing these currents in turn may reduce the signal coupling between the two antenna feeds. With this arrangement, arm  98  can be configured to resonate at a frequency that minimizes currents induced by arm  100  at the feed of the antenna formed from resonating element  54 - 1 B (i.e., in the vicinity of paths  122  and  124 ). 
     Additionally, arm  98  can act as a radiating arm for element  54 - 1 A. Its resonance can add to the bandwidth of element  54 - 1 A and can improve in-band efficiency, even though its resonance may be different than that defined by slot  70  and arm  100 . Typically an increase in bandwidth of radiating element  51 - 1 A that reduces its frequency separation from element  51 - 1 B would be detrimental to isolation. However, extra isolation afforded by arm  98  removes this negative effect and, moreover, provides significant improvement with respect to the isolation between elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B without arm  98 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 12 , arms  98  and  100  of resonating element  54 - 1 A and resonating element  54 - 1 B may be mounted on support structure  102  (sometimes referred to as an antenna cap). Support structure  102  may be formed from plastic (e.g., ABS plastic) or other suitable dielectric. The surfaces of structure  102  may be flat or curved. The resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B may be formed directly on support structure  102  or may be formed on a separate structure such as a flex circuit substrate that is attached to support structure  102  (as examples). 
     Resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 -B may be formed by any suitable antenna fabrication technique such as metal stamping, cutting, etching, or milling of conductive tape or other flexible structures, etching metal that has been sputter-deposited on plastic or other suitable substrates, printing from a conducive slurry (e.g., by screen printing techniques), patterning metal such as copper that makes up part of a flex circuit substrate that is attached to support  102  by adhesive, screws, or other suitable fastening mechanisms, etc. 
     A conductive path such as conductive strip  104  may be used to electrically connect the resonating element  54 - 1 A to ground plane  54 - 2  at terminal  106 . A screw or other fastener at terminal  106  may be used to electrically and mechanically connect strip  104  (and therefore resonating element  54 - 1 A) to edge  96  of ground plane  54 - 2  (bezel  14 ). Conductive structures such as strip  104  and other such structures in the antennas may also be electrically connected to each other using conductive adhesive. 
     A coaxial cable such as cable  56 A or other transmission line may be connected to the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna to transmit and receive radio-frequency signals. The coaxial cable or other transmission line may be connected to the structures of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna using any suitable electrical and mechanical attachment mechanism. As shown in the illustrative arrangement of  FIG. 12 , mini UFL coaxial connector  110  may be used to connect coaxial cable  56 A or other transmission lines to antenna conductor  112 . A center conductor of the coaxial cable or other transmission line is connected to center connector  108  of connector  110 . An outer braid ground conductor of the coaxial cable is electrically connected to ground plane  54 - 2  via connector  110  at point  115  (and, if desired, may be shorted to ground plane  54 - 2  at other attachment points upstream of connector  110 ). A bracket may be used to ground connector  110  to bezel  14  at this portion of the ground plane. 
     Conductor  108  may be electrically connected to antenna conductor  112 . Conductor  112  may be formed from a conductive element such as a strip of metal (e.g., a copper trace) formed on a sidewall surface of support structure  102  (e.g., as part of the flex circuit that contains resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B.). Conductor  112  may be directly electrically connected to resonating element  54 - 1 A (e.g., at portion  116 ) or may be electrically connected to resonating element  54 - 1 A through tuning capacitor  114  or other suitable electrical components. The size of tuning capacitor  114  can be selected to tune antenna  54  and ensure that antenna  54  covers the frequency bands of interest for device  10 . 
     Slot  70  may lie beneath resonating element  54 - 1 A of  FIG. 12 . The signal from center conductor  108  may be routed to point  106  on ground plane  54 - 2  in the vicinity of slot  70  using a conductive path formed from antenna conductor  112 , optional capacitor  114  or other such tuning components, antenna conductor  117 , and antenna conductor  104 . 
     The configuration of  FIG. 12  allows a single coaxial cable or other transmission line path to simultaneously feed both the PIFA portion and the slot portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna. 
     Grounding point  115  functions as the ground terminal for the slot antenna portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna that is formed by slot  70  in ground plane  54 - 2 . Point  106  serves as the signal terminal for the slot antenna portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna. Signals are fed to point  106  via the path formed by conductive path  112 , tuning element  114 , path  117 , and path  104 . 
     For the PIFA portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna, point  115  serves as antenna ground. Center conductor  108  and its attachment point to conductor  112  serve as the signal terminal for the PIFA. Conductor  112  serves as a feed conductor and feeds signals from signal terminal  108  to PIFA resonating element  54 - 1 A. 
     In operation, both the PIFA portion and slot antenna portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna contribute to the performance of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna. 
     The PIFA functions of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna are obtained by using point  115  as the PIFA ground terminal (as with terminal  62  of  FIG. 7 ), using point  108  at which the coaxial center conductor connects to conductive structure  112  as the PIFA signal terminal (as with terminal  60  of  FIG. 7 ), and using conductive structure  112  as the PIFA feed conductor (as with feed conductor  58  of  FIG. 7 ). During operation, antenna conductor  112  serves to route radio-frequency signals from terminal  108  to resonating element  54 - 1 A in the same way that conductor  58  routes radio-frequency signal from terminal  60  to resonating element  54 - 1 A in  FIGS. 4 and 5 , whereas conductive line  104  serves to terminate the resonating element  54 - 1 A to ground plane  54 - 2 , as with grounding portion  61  of  FIGS. 4 and 5 . 
     The slot antenna functions of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna are obtained by using grounding point  115  as the slot antenna ground terminal (as with terminal  86  of  FIG. 8 ), using the conductive path formed of antenna conductor  112 , tuning element  114 , antenna conductor  117 , and antenna conductor  104  as conductor  82  of  FIG. 8  or conductor  82 - 2  of  FIG. 10 , and by using terminal  106  as the slot antenna signal terminal (as with terminal  84  of  FIG. 8 ). 
     The illustrative configuration of  FIG. 10  demonstrates how slot antenna ground terminal  92  and PIFA antenna ground terminal  88  may be formed at separate locations on ground plane  54 - 2 . In the configuration of  FIG. 12 , a single coaxial cable may be used to feed both the PIFA portion of the antenna and the slot portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna. This is because terminal  115  serves as both a PIFA ground terminal for the PIFA portion of the hybrid antenna and a slot antenna ground terminal for the slot antenna portion of the hybrid antenna. Because the ground terminals of the PIFA and slot antenna portions of the hybrid antenna are provided by a common ground terminal structure and because conductive paths  112 ,  117 , and  104  serve to distribute radio-frequency signals to and from the resonating element  54 - 1 A and ground plane  54 - 2  as needed for PIFA and slot antenna operations, a single transmission line (e.g., coaxial conductor  56 A) may be used to send and receive radio-frequency signals that are transmitted and received using both the PIFA and slot portions of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna. 
     If desired, other antenna configurations may be used that support hybrid PIFA/slot operation. For example, the radio-frequency tuning capabilities of tuning capacitor  114  may be provided by a network of other suitable tuning components, such as one or more inductors, one or more resistors, direct shorting metal strip(s), capacitors, or combinations of such components. One or more tuning networks may also be connected to the hybrid antenna at different locations in the antenna structure. These configurations may be used with single-feed and multiple-feed transmission line arrangements. 
     Moreover, the location of the signal terminal and ground terminal in the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna may be different from that shown in  FIG. 12 . For example, terminals  115 / 108  and terminal  106  can be moved relative to the locations shown in  FIG. 12 , provided that the connecting conductors  112 ,  117 , and  104  are suitably modified. 
     The PIFA portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna can be provided using a substantially F-shaped conductive element having one or more arms such as arms  98  and  100  of  FIG. 12  or using other arrangements (e.g., arms that are straight, serpentine, curved, have 90° bends, have 180° bends, etc.). The strip antenna formed with resonating element  54 - 1 B can also be formed from conductors of other shapes. Use of different shapes for the arms or other portions of resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B helps antenna designers to tailor the frequency response of antenna  54  to its desired frequencies of operation and maximize isolation. The sizes of the structures in resonating elements  54 - 1 A and  54 - 1 B can be adjusted as needed (e.g., to increase or decrease gain and/or bandwidth for a particular operating band, to improve isolation at a particular frequency, etc.). 
     An exploded perspective view of an illustrative handheld electronic device  10  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 13 . As shown in  FIG. 13 , handheld electronic device  10  may have a conductive bezel such as conductive bezel  14  for securing display  16  or other such planar components to lower housing portion  12 . A gasket such as gasket  150  may be interposed between bezel  14  and the exposed surface of display  16 . Gasket  150  may be formed of silicone or other soft plastic (as an example). Gasket  150  may have any suitable cross-sectional shape. For example, gasket  150  may have a circular cross section (i.e., gasket  150  may be an o-ring), gasket  150  may have a rectangular cross-section, etc. Display  16  may have one or more holes or cut-away portions. For example, display  16  may have hole  152  to accommodate button  19  on lower housing portion  12 . 
     If desired, display  16  may be touch sensitive. In touch sensitive arrangements, display  16  may have a touch sensor such as touch sensor  154  that is mounted below the active portion of display screen  16 . Lower housing  12  may have a recess  156  that accommodates the display and touch sensor components associated with display  16 . Antenna structures may be housed behind a plastic end cap in region  18 . Additional components (e.g., a speaker, etc.) may be housed in region  158  at the opposite end of device  10 . 
     Bezel  14  may be secured to housing  12  using any suitable technique (e.g., with fasteners, with snaps, with adhesive, using welding techniques, using a combination of these approaches, etc.). As shown in  FIG. 13 , bezel  14  may have portions  160  that extend downwards. Portions  160  may take the form of prongs, rails, and other protruding features. Portions  160  may be configured so that the outer perimeter of portions  160  mates with the inner perimeter of recess  156 . Portions  160  may have screw holes  162  that mate with corresponding screw holes  164  on lower housing portion  12 . Screws or other fasteners may be used to attach bezel  14  to lower housing portion  156 . The screws and other conductive attachment structures (e.g., welds, wires, etc.) may be used to electrically connect bezel  14  to ground elements within device  10 . For ease of assembly, portions of lower housing  12  (i.e., the portions of lower housing  12  that include screw holes, such as portion  166 ) may have tabs, snaps, or other attachment structures. During assembly, portion  166  may be attached to bezel  14  using screws. After portion  166  and bezel  14  have been attached to each other, the attachment structures on portion  166  may be inserted into mating structures on lower housing portion  12  to attach portion  166 , bezel  14 , gasket  150 , and display  16  to lower housing portion  12 . 
     When arrangements of the type shown in  FIG. 13  are used for handheld electronic device  10 , the antenna resonating elements of device  10  may be housed in region  18 . A cross-sectional view of an illustrative handheld electronic device  10  in which the location of region  18  is shown relative to the grounded components of device  10  and bezel  14  is presented in  FIG. 14 . As shown in  FIG. 14 , bezel  14  may be used to mount display  16  to housing  12 . Electrical components  168  such as printed circuit boards, flex circuits, integrated circuits, batteries, and other devices may be mounted within portion  170  of device  10 . The conductive structures within portion  170  can be electrically connected to one another so that they serve as ground for the antenna(s) in device  10 . Bezel  14  can also be electrically connected to portion  170  (e.g., through welds, metal screws, metal clips, press-fit contact between adjacent metal parts, wires, etc.). 
     As a result of these electrical connections, bezel  14  and conductive portion  170  of device  10  may be configured as shown in  FIG. 15 . As shown in  FIG. 15 , conductive portion  170  may serve as the antenna ground plane for device  10 . Portion  172  of bezel  14  may extend outwards from grounded portion  170  so as to form opening  174 . Opening  174  can accommodate one or more antennas that have ground plane openings, such as slot  70 . 
     With one suitable configuration, opening  174  may be sized to directly form a ground plane slot or hole (e.g., slot  70  of  FIG. 12 ). In this type of arrangement, the dimensions of opening  174  coincide with the dimensions of the opening of slot  70 . If desired, opening  174  may be large enough to accommodate a somewhat smaller slot opening within its borders. In this type of arrangement, the opening of slot  70  may be formed as an opening in a circuit board ground plane or an opening within other conductive structures. The slot may therefore form an opening that has an area that is smaller than opening  174 , so that slot  70  is contained entirely within opening  174 . With another possible arrangement, slot  70  overlaps with opening  174 . In this type of configuration, the effective area of the opening of slot  70  may be reduced in size, so that the resulting antenna opening is confined to the area of overlap between the slot and opening  174 . 
       FIG. 16  shows a possible location for bezel  14  relative to a slot  70  in antenna ground plane  54 - 2 . The location of bezel  14  in  FIG. 16  is indicated by a dashed line. As indicated by the example of  FIG. 16 , slot  70  may be used to form a slot antenna for the handheld electronic device. The slot antenna may operate as described in connection with  FIG. 8 . The location of conductive bezel  14  that is indicated by the dashed line in  FIG. 16  accommodates the slot antenna, because slot  70  can be formed within the opening  174  ( FIG. 15 ) that is formed by bezel  14  in region  172 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 17 , the handheld electronic device  10  may have a hybrid antenna. The hybrid antenna may be formed from a slot antenna and additional resonating structures, such as PIFA resonating structures. In the example of  FIG. 17 , slot  70  is used to form a slot portion of the hybrid antenna and PIFA resonating element  176  forms a PIFA portion of the hybrid antenna. A possible location for bezel  14  that accommodates the hybrid antenna is shown by dashed-and-dotted line  14 . The slot in the hybrid antenna of  FIG. 17  may be configured for in-band resonance (e.g., as described in connection with slot  70  of  FIG. 12 ) or may be configured for out-of-band resonance (in which case the slot resonates at a portion of the frequency spectrum that is not being used for antenna transmission and reception). Moreover, although PIFA portion  176  is shown as including a solid resonating element located above slot  70 , there may be one or more resonating elements located above slot  70  and these resonating elements may have any desired shapes (e.g., straight or meandering arms, solid rectangles, rectangles with gaps, etc.). 
     Bezel  14  may accommodate slots in various positions along the surface of handheld electronic device  10 . For example, slot  70  may be located in the center of ground plane  54 - 2 , as shown in  FIG. 18 . In the example of  FIG. 18 , the bezel of the handheld electronic device may be located where indicated by dashed line  14 . In this location, bezel  14  may accommodate a centrally located slot, such as slot  70 . 
     A central location may also be used in hybrid antenna arrangements. As shown in  FIG. 19 , for example, slot  70  and resonating element  176  may be formed at a central location within ground plane  54 - 2 . In this type of illustrative configuration, the bezel of the handheld electronic device may be located where indicated by dashed-and-dotted line  14 . Because bezel  14  is located around the periphery of ground plane  54 - 2 , bezel  14  may extend around slot  70  to accommodate the centrally located antenna. 
     Peripherally located bezels are compatible with slots of various shapes. The example of  FIG. 20  shows how slot  70  may follow a meandering path. This type of arrangement may be used in applications in which a relatively larger inner perimeter P is desired for a slot antenna or for the slot portion of a hybrid antenna. The meandering path increases the inner perimeter of slot  70  while minimizing increases in slot area. Bezel  14  may be located as shown by dotted-and-dashed lines  14  to accommodate slot  70  and, if desired, optional resonating elements may be provided above slot  70  for forming one or more hybrid antennas. 
       FIG. 21  shows another illustrative configuration. In the arrangement shown in  FIG. 21 , slot  70  has a meandering perimeter  178 . The length of perimeter  178  is longer than the length of the perimeter of a rectangular slot with a comparable area. The use of a meandering perimeter may therefore be advantageous in which a particular perimeter P is desired to tune the antenna&#39;s operating frequency while minimizing slot area. Slots of the type shown in  FIG. 21  may be used in slot antennas or in hybrid antennas (e.g., hybrid PIFA/slot antennas with in-band or out-of-band slots). 
     If desired, the perimeter of slot  70  may be adjusted using a radio-frequency switch. Real-time perimeter length adjustments of this type may be used to adjust a slot in a slot antenna or a hybrid antenna. By adjusting the perimeter of the slot, the frequency at which the slot resonates is adjusted proportionally. 
     An illustrative embodiment of a slot with an adjustable perimeter is shown in  FIG. 22 . Bezel  14  may be located along the path defined by dashed-and-dotted line  14  to accommodate slot  70 . Although shown as being rectangular in shape in the example of  FIG. 22 , slot  70  may have any suitable shape (e.g., a meandering perimeter and/or meandering path may be used). 
     As shown in  FIG. 22 , slot  70  may be bridged by switch  184 . Switch  184  may be formed from a p-i-n diode or other suitable controllable high-frequency electronic components. The state of switch  70  may be controlled by control signals provided by control circuitry associated with the transceivers of handheld electronic device  10 . When switch  184  is open, slot  70  has perimeter P 1 . When switch  184  is closed, point  180  is shorted to point  182  through switch  184 . This effectively reduces the perimeter of slot  70  to P 2 . The perimeter length is equal to about one wavelength at the peak resonant frequency of the slot. Because P 2  is less than P 1 , the resonant frequency of the slot increases when switch  184  is closed. As an example, the resonant frequency of slot  70  (and the associated antenna or antennas of device  10 ) may change from f a  to f b  when switch  184  is moved from the open to closed position, as shown in  FIG. 23 . When switch  184  is open, the perimeter of slot  70  is P 1  and the resonant frequency peak is f a . When switch  184  is closed, the perimeter of slot  70  is reduced to P 2 , so the resonant frequency peak associated with slot  70  increases to f b . The tuning capability of slot  70  may be used to tune the antenna(s) of device  10  (e.g., to tune the antennas between different communications bands of interest). Slot tuning arrangements of this type may be used to tune slot antennas and hybrid antennas (as examples). 
     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: 20131028
Publication Date: 20160531
Grant Date: 20160531
Priority Date: 20070621
Inventors: HILL ROBERT J.
SCHLUB ROBERT W.
CABALLERO RUBEN
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H01Q9/0407", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/0421", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/40", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/0421", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/52", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/103", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q23/00", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/48", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/28", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/28", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/371", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/40", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/10", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/103", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/20", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/52", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q23/00", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/521", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/30", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/30", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/521", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/371", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/10", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/30", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/371", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q23/00", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/40", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/0421", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/521", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/28", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/103", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/52", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q23/00", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/30", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/28", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/103", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/0421", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/52", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/10", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q13/08", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/24", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/04", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 39562854