Dielectric Covers for Antennas
    51.
    发明申请

    公开(公告)号:US20210376443A1

    公开(公告)日:2021-12-02

    申请号:US17400710

    申请日:2021-08-12

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with wireless communications circuitry and control circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include centimeter and millimeter wave transceiver circuitry and a phased antenna array. A dielectric cover may be formed over the phased antenna array. The phased antenna array may transmit and receive wireless radio-frequency signals through the dielectric cover. The dielectric cover may have first and second opposing surfaces. The second surface may face the phased antenna array and may have a curvature. The curvature of the second surface may include one or more recessed regions of the dielectric cover. The one or more recessed regions of the second surface may serve to maximize and broaden the coverage area for the phased antenna array. The first surface may be conformal to other structures in the electronic device.

    Electronic Devices Having Wideband Antennas

    公开(公告)号:US20210328346A1

    公开(公告)日:2021-10-21

    申请号:US16851812

    申请日:2020-04-17

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may include a curved cover layer and an antenna. The antenna may include a ground and a resonating element on a curved surface of a substrate. The curved surface may have a curvature that matches that of the cover layer. The resonating element may include first, second, and third arms fed by a feed. The first arm and a portion of the ground may form a loop antenna resonating element. The second arm and the first arm may form an inverted-F antenna resonating element, where a portion of the first arm forms a return path to the antenna ground for the inverted-F antenna resonating element. A gap between the first and second arms may form a distributed capacitance. The third arm may form an L-shaped antenna resonating element. The antenna may have a wide bandwidth from below 2.4 GHz to greater than 9.0 GHz.

    Antenna arrays having multi-layer substrates

    公开(公告)号:US10594028B2

    公开(公告)日:2020-03-17

    申请号:US15895482

    申请日:2018-02-13

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a phased antenna array for conveying millimeter wave signals. The array may be mounted to a substrate that includes transmission line layers having a first dielectric permittivity and antenna layers having a second dielectric permittivity that is less than the first dielectric permittivity. A ground plane may be interposed between the antenna layers and the transmission line layers. The array may be mounted to the antenna layers and transceiver circuitry may be mounted to the transmission line layers. Transmission line traces may be formed on the transmission line layers. The relatively high permittivity of the first set of dielectric layers may allow the transmission line traces to be routed relatively close together with minimal electromagnetic interference. The relatively low permittivity of the second set of dielectric layers may allow the array to operate with satisfactory antenna efficiency, gain, and bandwidth.

    Antenna arrays having surface wave interference mitigation structures

    公开(公告)号:US10553945B2

    公开(公告)日:2020-02-04

    申请号:US15710361

    申请日:2017-09-20

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with wireless communications circuitry and control circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include centimeter and millimeter wave transceiver circuitry and a phased antenna array. A dielectric cover may be formed over the phased antenna array. The phased antenna array may transmit and receive antenna signals through the dielectric cover. The dielectric cover may have a surface that faces the phased antenna array and may have a curvature. The antenna elements of the phased antenna array may be formed on a dielectric substrate. The dielectric substrate may have one or more thinned regions between antenna elements of the phased antenna array to reduce surface wave interference between adjacent antennas. The dielectric substrate may have a smaller thickness in the thinned region than in the regions under the antenna elements. The dielectric substrate may be totally removed in the thinned region.

    Antenna Arrays Having Multi-Layer Substrates
    56.
    发明申请

    公开(公告)号:US20190252771A1

    公开(公告)日:2019-08-15

    申请号:US15895482

    申请日:2018-02-13

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a phased antenna array for conveying millimeter wave signals. The array may be mounted to a substrate that includes transmission line layers having a first dielectric permittivity and antenna layers having a second dielectric permittivity that is less than the first dielectric permittivity. A ground plane may be interposed between the antenna layers and the transmission line layers. The array may be mounted to the antenna layers and transceiver circuitry may be mounted to the transmission line layers. Transmission line traces may be formed on the transmission line layers. The relatively high permittivity of the first set of dielectric layers may allow the transmission line traces to be routed relatively close together with minimal electromagnetic interference. The relatively low permittivity of the second set of dielectric layers may allow the array to operate with satisfactory antenna efficiency, gain, and bandwidth.

    Systems and Methods for Mitigating Polarization Loss

    公开(公告)号:US20190097328A1

    公开(公告)日:2019-03-28

    申请号:US15714970

    申请日:2017-09-25

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with wireless communications circuitry and control circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include centimeter wave and millimeter wave transceiver circuitry and a phased antenna array. The phased antenna array may transmit and receive wireless signals having a frequency higher than 10 GHz. Beam steering circuitry may be coupled to the phased antenna array and may be adjusted to steer the wireless signals to communicate with external equipment. Sensor circuitry in the electronic device may gather sensor data. The control circuitry may use the gathered sensor data to determine a polarization mismatch between the electronic device and the external equipment (e.g., between a signal transmitting device and a signal receiving equipment or vice versa). To mitigate the polarization mismatch data loss, the control circuitry may adjust the polarization settings associated with antennas of the electronic device.

    Electronic device antennas with harmonic resonances

    公开(公告)号:US10153554B2

    公开(公告)日:2018-12-11

    申请号:US15253374

    申请日:2016-08-31

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may have a housing and other structures that form an antenna ground for an antenna. An antenna resonating element arm for the antenna may extend along the periphery of the housing. The resonating element arm may have opposing first and second ends. A return path may couple the resonating element arm to the antenna ground at the first end. An antenna feed may be coupled between the resonating element arm and the antenna ground in parallel with the return path. Electrical components such as first and second capacitors may be coupled between the antenna resonating element arm and the antenna ground. A first of the capacitors may be coupled between the antenna resonating element arm and the antenna ground at a location between the first and second ends. A second of the capacitors may be coupled between the second end and the antenna ground.

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