Electronic Devices Having Multiple Phased Antenna Arrays

    公开(公告)号:US20220094078A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-03-24

    申请号:US17031780

    申请日:2020-09-24

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may include first and second phased antenna arrays that convey radio-frequency signals at frequencies greater than 10 GHz. The second array may have fewer antennas than the first array. Control circuitry may control the first and second arrays in a diversity mode and in a simultaneous array mode. In the diversity mode, the first array may form a first signal beam while the second array is inactive. When the first array is blocked by an object or otherwise exhibits unsatisfactory performance, the second array may form a second signal beam while the first array is inactive. In the simultaneous mode, the first and second arrays may form a combined array that produces a third signal beam. The combined array may maximize gain. Hierarchical beam searching operations may be performed. The arrays may be distributed across one or more modules.

    Radio-frequency modules having high-permittivity antenna layers

    公开(公告)号:US11923621B2

    公开(公告)日:2024-03-05

    申请号:US17338463

    申请日:2021-06-03

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    CPC classification number: H01Q5/35 H01Q3/34

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a phased antenna array on an antenna module. The array may include low band antennas and high band antennas that radiate at frequencies greater than 10 GHz. The module may include antenna layers, transmission line layers, and ground traces that separate the antenna layers from the transmission line layers. The low band antennas and the high band antennas may have radiators patterned onto the antenna layers. The radiators may be fed by transmission lines on the transmission line layers. The antenna layers may have a dielectric permittivity that is greater than the dielectric permittivity of the transmission line layers. This may serve to reduce the lateral footprint of the low band and high band antennas, which allows the antennas to be interleaved along a common linear axis in the phased antenna array, thereby minimizing the lateral footprint of the antenna module.

    Radio-Frequency Modules Having High-Permittivity Antenna Layers

    公开(公告)号:US20220393351A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-12-08

    申请号:US17338463

    申请日:2021-06-03

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a phased antenna array on an antenna module. The array may include low band antennas and high band antennas that radiate at frequencies greater than 10 GHz. The module may include antenna layers, transmission line layers, and ground traces that separate the antenna layers from the transmission line layers. The low band antennas and the high band antennas may have radiators patterned onto the antenna layers. The radiators may be fed by transmission lines on the transmission line layers. The antenna layers may have a dielectric permittivity that is greater than the dielectric permittivity of the transmission line layers. This may serve to reduce the lateral footprint of the low band and high band antennas, which allows the antennas to be interleaved along a common linear axis in the phased antenna array, thereby minimizing the lateral footprint of the antenna module.

    Electronic Devices Having Co-Located Millimeter Wave Antennas

    公开(公告)号:US20220094061A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-03-24

    申请号:US17031627

    申请日:2020-09-24

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may include a phased antenna array. The array may include co-located first and second antennas formed on a dielectric substrate. The first antenna may include a first patch element and multi-layer parasitic structures. The multi-layer parasitic structures may include a first set of co-planar parasitic elements. The first set of parasitic elements may overlap the first patch element and may be separated by a gap. The multi-layer parasitic structures may include an additional parasitic element that overlaps the gap. The second antenna may include a second patch element that is co-planar with the additional parasitic patch. The second patch element may at least partially overlap one of the parasitic elements in the first set. The first and second patch antennas may collectively cover first and second frequency bands while occupying a minimal amount of space on the dielectric substrate.

    Electronic Device with Reconfigurable Antenna Radiation Pattern

    公开(公告)号:US20250087877A1

    公开(公告)日:2025-03-13

    申请号:US18626267

    申请日:2024-04-03

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: A head-mounted device may have a housing with a cover having three-dimensional curvature. A front-facing display may be mounted to the cover and may display images through the cover. The cover may have a peripheral region laterally surrounding the front-facing display. An antenna may have an antenna resonating element layered onto the cover overlapping the peripheral region. The antenna may be switchable between different radiation patterns. A controller may gather wireless performance metric data for each of the radiation patterns. The antenna may be switched to exhibit a radiation pattern that optimizes the wireless performance metric data. This may serve to minimize interference from external devices operating using the same ultra-low-latency audio communications protocol as the antenna.

    Electronic devices having multiple phased antenna arrays

    公开(公告)号:US11469526B2

    公开(公告)日:2022-10-11

    申请号:US17031780

    申请日:2020-09-24

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may include first and second phased antenna arrays that convey radio-frequency signals at frequencies greater than 10 GHz. The second array may have fewer antennas than the first array. Control circuitry may control the first and second arrays in a diversity mode and in a simultaneous array mode. In the diversity mode, the first array may form a first signal beam while the second array is inactive. When the first array is blocked by an object or otherwise exhibits unsatisfactory performance, the second array may form a second signal beam while the first array is inactive. In the simultaneous mode, the first and second arrays may form a combined array that produces a third signal beam. The combined array may maximize gain. Hierarchical beam searching operations may be performed. The arrays may be distributed across one or more modules.

    Electronic Devices Having Differentially-Loaded Millimeter Wave Antennas

    公开(公告)号:US20220094036A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-03-24

    申请号:US17031618

    申请日:2020-09-24

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may have an antenna that conveys radio-frequency signals at frequencies greater than 10 GHz. The antenna may be embedded in a substrate. The substrate may have routing layers, first antenna layers on the routing layers, second antenna layers on the first antenna layers, and a third antenna layers on the second antenna layers. The antenna may include first traces on the first antenna layers, second traces on the second antenna layers, and third traces on the third antenna layers. The first antenna layers may have a first bulk dielectric permittivity. The second layers may have a second bulk dielectric permittivity. The third layers may have a third bulk dielectric permittivity. At least one of the first, second, and third bulk dielectric permittivities may be different from the others. This may differentially load the antenna across the antenna layers, thereby broadening the bandwidth of the antenna.

    Electronic Device with Antenna Polarization Diversity

    公开(公告)号:US20250087871A1

    公开(公告)日:2025-03-13

    申请号:US18623219

    申请日:2024-04-01

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: A head-mounted device may have a housing with a cover having three-dimensional curvature. A front-facing display may be mounted to the cover and may display images through the cover. The cover may have a peripheral region laterally surrounding the front-facing display. An antenna may have an antenna resonating element layered onto the cover overlapping the peripheral region. The antenna may be switchable between a first polarization state and a second polarization state. In the first polarization state, the antenna conveys radio-frequency signals having a first polarization with an earbud. In the second polarization state, the antenna conveys radio-frequency signals having a second polarization with the earbud. One or more processors may gather wireless performance metric data from the radio-frequency signals and may adjust the antenna between the polarization states to optimize the wireless performance metric data.

    Electronic Devices With Millimeter Wave Antennas

    公开(公告)号:US20240186721A1

    公开(公告)日:2024-06-06

    申请号:US18441656

    申请日:2024-02-14

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    CPC classification number: H01Q21/06 G02B27/017 H01Q1/276 H01Q1/405

    Abstract: A head-mounted device may have a head-mounted housing that is configured to be worn on a head of a user. While the head-mounted device is being worn, left and right displays in optical modules in the head-mounted device may provide images to eye boxes located rearward of the head-mounted device. A forward-facing publicly viewable display on a front portion of the head-mounted device may be covered with a transparent housing portion forming a display cover layer. Millimeter wave antennas may be mounted under a dielectric member that is interposed between the antennas and an edge portion of the transparent housing portion. The antennas may have planar outer surfaces. The dielectric member may have a planar surface separated from the planar outer surfaces by air gaps and a curved outer surface.

    Electronic devices having antennas with hybrid substrates

    公开(公告)号:US11646501B2

    公开(公告)日:2023-05-09

    申请号:US17338481

    申请日:2021-06-03

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    CPC classification number: H01Q19/005 H01Q1/38 H01Q21/065 H01Q1/243

    Abstract: An electronic device may have an antenna embedded in a substrate. The substrate may have first layers, second layers on the first layers, and third layers on the second layers. The antenna may include a first patch on the first layers that radiates in a first band, a second patch on the second antenna layers that radiates in a second band, and a parasitic patch on the third layers. A short path may couple ground to a location on the first patch that allows the first patch to form a ground extension in the second band for the second patch without affecting performance of the first patch in the first band. The first layers may have a higher dielectric permittivity than the second and third layers to minimize the thickness of the substrate without requiring a separate dielectric loading layer over the substrate.

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