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CN-116458010-B - Phase shifter and antenna device

CN116458010BCN 116458010 BCN116458010 BCN 116458010BCN-116458010-B

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a phase shifter, an antenna device, and a base station. The phase shifter includes a substrate including a first conductive member, a movable assembly, and an adjustment assembly. The movable assembly includes a second conductive member electrically coupled to the first conductive member and adapted to move relative to the substrate in a first direction to shift a phase of an electrical signal output by the phase shifter. The adjustment assembly is coupled to the movable assembly and is adapted to move the movable assembly to achieve alignment of the second conductive member with the first conductive member or a change in a force applied to the substrate by the movable assembly. In this way, error adjustment mechanisms are provided to the phase shifters, and the antenna apparatus and base station including these phase shifters can achieve increased accuracy and consistency.

Inventors

  • ZHANG JUN
  • DENG HONGJUN
  • LENG TAO
  • WANG YUANHAO

Assignees

  • 上海诺基亚贝尔股份有限公司
  • 诺基亚通信公司

Dates

Publication Date
20260508
Application Date
20201119

Claims (8)

  1. 1. A phase shifter (10), comprising: A substrate (20) comprising a set of first conductive members (21, 22); -a movable assembly (30) comprising a second conductive member (31) electrically coupled to the set of first conductive members (21, 22), and the movable assembly (30) is adapted to move in a first direction (D1) with respect to the substrate (20) to shift the phase of an electrical signal output by the phase shifter (10); -an adjustment assembly (40) coupled to the movable assembly (30) and adapted to move the movable assembly (30) to effect: Alignment of the second conductive member (31) relative to the set of first conductive members (21, 22), and A change in force applied by the movable assembly (30) to the substrate (20), Wherein the movable assembly (30) further comprises: A movable plate (32) on which the second conductive member (31) is arranged; a housing (34) receiving the movable plate (32) and including at least one snap-in hole for receiving the adjustment assembly (40) to allow the movable assembly (30) to move toward the movable plate (32), and An elastic member (33) arranged between the movable plate (32) and the housing (34) such that elastic deformation of the elastic member (33) caused by movement of the adjustment assembly (40) applies the force to the movable plate (32) toward the base plate (20), Wherein the phase shifter (10) further comprises a housing (50), the housing (50) being fixed on the substrate (20) and receiving the movable assembly (30), and wherein the housing (50) comprises at least one through hole adapted to receive the adjustment assembly (40), Wherein the adjustment assembly (40) further comprises at least one adjustment member which is snapped into the at least one snap hole and which is arranged above a first side of the movable plate (32), each adjustment member comprising a tapered end adapted to abut against the first side in response to a movement towards the movable plate (32), the first side extending in the first direction (D1), and Wherein the at least one adjustment member comprises a second adjustment member (42) and a third adjustment member (43) spaced apart from each other along the first direction (D1), and wherein at least one of the second adjustment member (42) and the third adjustment member (43) is adapted to move towards the movable plate (32) to cause translational or rotational movement of the second conductive member (31) relative to the first conductive member (21, 22).
  2. 2. The phase shifter (10) of claim 1, wherein the adjustment assembly (40) comprises: A first adjustment member (41) engaged in a first engagement hole (341) of the at least one engagement hole (341, 342, 343) and adapted to be moved towards or away from the movable plate (32) to change the force applied to the substrate (20) by the movable assembly (30).
  3. 3. The phase shifter (10) according to claim 1, wherein the elastic member (33) is fixed on the movable plate (32).
  4. 4. The phase shifter (10) of claim 1, wherein the elastic member (33) is arranged against an inner wall of the housing (34) to be elastically deformed in response to the movement of the second conductive member (31) relative to the set of the first conductive members (21, 22).
  5. 5. The phase shifter (10) of claim 1, wherein the set of the first conductive members (21, 22) includes a pair of wires arranged in parallel on the substrate (20), and the second conductive member (31) includes a U-shaped wire.
  6. 6. A phase shifter (10), comprising: A substrate (20) comprising a set of first conductive members (21, 22); -a movable assembly (30) comprising a second conductive member (31) electrically coupled to the set of first conductive members (21, 22), and the movable assembly (30) is adapted to move in a first direction (D1) with respect to the substrate (20) to shift the phase of an electrical signal output by the phase shifter (10); -an adjustment assembly (40) coupled to the movable assembly (30) and adapted to move the movable assembly (30) to effect: Alignment of the second conductive member (31) relative to the set of first conductive members (21, 22), and A change in force applied by the movable assembly (30) to the substrate (20), Wherein the movable assembly (30) further comprises: A movable plate (32) on which the second conductive member (31) is arranged; a housing (34) receiving the movable plate (32) and including at least one snap-in hole for receiving the adjustment assembly (40) to allow the movable assembly (30) to move toward the movable plate (32), and An elastic member (33) arranged between the movable plate (32) and the housing (34) such that elastic deformation of the elastic member (33) caused by movement of the adjustment assembly (40) applies the force to the movable plate (32) toward the base plate (20), Wherein the phase shifter (10) further comprises a housing (50), the housing (50) being fixed on the substrate (20) and receiving the movable assembly (30), and wherein the housing (50) comprises at least one through hole adapted to receive the adjustment assembly (40), Wherein the adjustment assembly (40) further comprises at least one adjustment member which is snapped into the at least one snap hole and which is arranged above a first side of the movable plate (32), each adjustment member comprising a tapered end adapted to abut against the first side in response to a movement towards the movable plate (32), the first side extending in the first direction (D1), and Wherein the movable plate (32) comprises at least one protrusion protruding from the first side in a second direction (D2) perpendicular to the movable plate (32), and each of the at least one adjustment member is adapted to abut against the respective protrusion with a movement towards the movable plate (32).
  7. 7. An antenna device (1) comprising: An antenna array (2) comprising a plurality of antenna elements, and The phase shifter (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, the phase shifter (10) being electrically coupled to the antenna array (2).
  8. 8. A base station (212) comprising an antenna device (1) according to claim 7.

Description

Phase shifter and antenna device Technical Field Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of telecommunications, and more particularly, to phase shifters, antenna devices, and base stations. Background In the field of communications, phase Shifters (PS) are commonly used in antenna devices to improve the range and accuracy of antenna beam scanning. With the phase shifter, the number of antenna elements in the antenna device can be reduced, and thus the cost and power consumption of the antenna device can be saved. In recent antenna technology, various phase shifters have been proposed. For example, a digital phase shifter may include diodes and other peripheral circuitry to shift the phase of a signal. Another proposed PS includes a first Printed Circuit Board (PCB), a second PCB parallel to the first PCB, and a third PCB bent between the first PCB and the second PCB to be coupled to ends of the first PCB and the second PCB. The phase shifter may continuously shift the phase of the signal by moving the first PCB or the second PCB in a parallel direction. There remains a need for improved solutions for phase shifters. Disclosure of Invention In general, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a phase shifter, an antenna apparatus including the phase shifter, and a base station. In a first aspect, a phase shifter is provided. The phase shifter includes a substrate, a movable assembly, and an adjustment assembly. The substrate includes a set of first conductive members. The movable assembly includes a second conductive member electrically coupled to the set of first conductive members, and the movable assembly is adapted to move relative to the substrate in a first direction to shift the phase of the electrical signal output by the phase shifter. An adjustment assembly is coupled to the movable assembly and is adapted to move the movable assembly to achieve at least one of an alignment of the second conductive member and the set of first conductive members, or a change in a force applied to the substrate by the movable assembly. In a second aspect, an antenna device is provided. The antenna device comprises an antenna array and a phase shifter. The phase shifter includes a substrate, a movable assembly, and an adjustment assembly. The substrate includes a set of first conductive members. The movable assembly includes a second conductive member electrically coupled to the set of first conductive members, and the movable assembly is adapted to move relative to the substrate in a first direction to shift the phase of the electrical signal output by the phase shifter. An adjustment assembly is coupled to the movable assembly and is adapted to move the movable assembly to achieve at least one of an alignment of the second conductive member and the set of first conductive members, or a change in a force applied to the substrate by the movable assembly. In a third aspect, a base station is provided. The base station comprises an antenna device according to the second aspect. It should be understood that the summary is not intended to identify key or essential features of the embodiments of the disclosure, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following description. Drawings Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: fig. 1A to 1C show possible arrangements of phase shifters; FIG. 2 illustrates an example communication network in which example embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented; fig. 3 illustrates a block diagram of an antenna device according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; fig. 4 illustrates a perspective view of a phase shifter according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; fig. 5 illustrates an exploded view of a phase shifter according to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; Fig. 6 illustrates a top view of a substrate of a phase shifter according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure; FIG. 7A illustrates a top view of a movable plate and a resilient member of a movable assembly according to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; FIG. 7B illustrates a top view of an alternative implementation of a movable plate and resilient member of a movable assembly according to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; fig. 7C illustrates a bottom view of a movable plate and a resilient member of a movable assembly according to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; Fig. 8A illustrates a top view of a housing of a movable assembly according to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; Fig. 8B illustrates a bottom view of a housing of a movable assembly according to some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; fig. 8C illustrates a bottom view of a housing of a movable ass