U.S. patent application number 14/266570 was filed with the patent office on 2014-08-21 for handheld electronic device with cable grounding.
This patent application is currently assigned to Apple Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Apple Inc.. Invention is credited to Bartley K. Andre, Daniel J. Coster, Daniele De Iuliis, Richard H. Dinh, Robert J. Hill, Phillip Michael Hobson, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Kenneth A. Jenks, Steven P. Jobs, Duncan Robert Kerr, Adam D. Mittleman, Shin Nishibori, Matthew Dean Rohrbach, Douglas B. Satzger, Robert W. Schlub, Calvin Q. Seid, Christopher J. Stringer, Tang Yew Tan, Erik L. Wang, Eugene Antony Whang, Rico Zorkendorfer.
Application Number | 20140233170 14/266570 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 40135939 |
Filed Date | 2014-08-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140233170 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hobson; Phillip Michael ; et
al. |
August 21, 2014 |
Handheld Electronic Device With Cable Grounding
Abstract
A handheld electronic device may be provided that contains a
conductive housing and other conductive elements. The conductive
elements may form an antenna ground plane. One or more antennas for
the handheld electronic device may be formed from the ground plane
and one or more associated antenna resonating elements. Transceiver
circuitry may be connected to the resonating elements by
transmission lines such as coaxial cables. Ferrules may be crimped
to the coaxial cables. A bracket with extending members may be
crimped over the ferrules to ground the coaxial cables to the
housing and other conductive elements in the ground plane. The
ground plane may contain an antenna slot. A dock connector and flex
circuit may overlap the slot in a way that does not affect the
resonant frequency of the slot. Electrical components may be
isolated from the antenna using isolation elements such as
inductors and resistors.
Inventors: |
Hobson; Phillip Michael;
(Menlo Park, CA) ; Wang; Erik L.; (Redwood City,
CA) ; Jenks; Kenneth A.; (Capitola, CA) ;
Hill; Robert J.; (Salinas, CA) ; Schlub; Robert
W.; (Cupertino, CA) ; Dinh; Richard H.; (San
Jose, CA) ; Tan; Tang Yew; (Palo Alto, CA) ;
Mittleman; Adam D.; (San Francisco, CA) ; Andre;
Bartley K.; (Palo Alto, CA) ; Coster; Daniel J.;
(San Francisco, CA) ; De Iuliis; Daniele; (San
Francisco, CA) ; Howarth; Richard P.; (San Francisco,
CA) ; Ive; Jonathan P.; (San Francisco, CA) ;
Jobs; Steven P.; (Palo Alto, CA) ; Kerr; Duncan
Robert; (San Francisco, CA) ; Nishibori; Shin;
(Kailua, HI) ; Rohrbach; Matthew Dean; (San
Francisco, CA) ; Satzger; Douglas B.; (San Francisco,
CA) ; Seid; Calvin Q.; (Palo Alto, CA) ;
Stringer; Christopher J.; (Woodside, CA) ; Whang;
Eugene Antony; (San Francisco, CA) ; Zorkendorfer;
Rico; (San Francisco, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Apple Inc. |
Cupertino |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Apple Inc.
Cupertino
CA
|
Family ID: |
40135939 |
Appl. No.: |
14/266570 |
Filed: |
April 30, 2014 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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14158403 |
Jan 17, 2014 |
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14266570 |
|
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|
13021689 |
Feb 4, 2011 |
8681056 |
|
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14158403 |
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|
11821329 |
Jun 21, 2007 |
7889139 |
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13021689 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
361/679.3 ;
343/702 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01Q 9/0421 20130101;
H04M 1/0202 20130101; H01Q 1/243 20130101; H04M 1/0266 20130101;
H05K 5/0247 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
361/679.3 ;
343/702 |
International
Class: |
H01Q 1/24 20060101
H01Q001/24; H04M 1/02 20060101 H04M001/02 |
Claims
1. A wireless communications device having a front face defined by
opposing first and second edges and opposing third and fourth
edges, comprising: a glass element that covers the front face from
the first edge to the second edge and from the third edge to the
fourth edge, wherein the glass element includes a hole.
2. The wireless communications device defined in claim 1, further
comprising a metal bezel that surrounds the glass element.
3. The wireless communications device defined in claim 1, further
comprising a plastic bezel coated with metal, wherein the plastic
bezel that is coated with metal surrounds the glass element.
4. The wireless communications device defined in claim 1, wherein
the glass element has a lower end and wherein the hole is in the
lower end.
5. The wireless communications device defined in claim 4, further
comprising a button disposed within the hole.
6. The wireless communications device defined in claim 5, wherein
the button is the only physical input mechanism within the lower
end.
7. The wireless communications device defined in claim 5, wherein
the button allows a user to supply an input command to the wireless
communications device and wherein the button is round and has a
concave exterior surface.
8. The wireless communications device defined in claim 1, further
comprising: an additional hole; and a speaker at the additional
hole.
9. The wireless communications device defined in claim 8, further
comprising: a radio-frequency transceiver; an antenna ground; at
least a first antenna resonating element that forms a first antenna
with the antenna ground; at least a first transmission line having
an outer ground conductor, having a first end that is connected to
the radio-frequency transceiver, and having a second end that is
connected to the antenna; a plurality of conductive fasteners
connected to the transmission line at locations along its length
between the first and second ends; and a conductive member that
mechanically and electrically connects the conductive fasteners to
the antenna ground.
10. A wireless communications device, comprising: a housing having
a metal portion and a plastic portion; a display disposed within
the housing, wherein the display has a front surface, the front
surface including an upper region, a middle region, and a lower
region; a button disposed within the lower region of the front
surface of the display; and a speaker hole disposed within the
upper region of the front surface of the display.
11. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, wherein
the button is the only physical input mechanism within the lower
region.
12. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, wherein
the metal portion surrounds the periphery of the display including
the upper, middle, and lower regions.
13. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, wherein
the metal portion includes a portion that is flush with the front
surface of the display.
14. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, wherein
the wireless communications device has a front surface and wherein
the front surface of the display covers most of the available
surface area of the front surface of the wireless communications
device.
15. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, wherein
the front surface of the display is formed from glass.
16. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, wherein
the display comprises a touch screen.
17. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10 wherein
the wireless communications device has a rear surface formed by the
housing, wherein the housing has a camera opening on the rear
surface, and wherein the wireless communications device further
comprises a camera at the camera opening.
18. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, further
comprising an antenna having an antenna ground plane and an antenna
resonating element, wherein the plastic portion of the housing
overlaps the antenna at the second end.
19. The wireless communications device defined in claim 18, further
comprising: a radio-frequency transceiver; a transmission line
having an outer ground conductor, having a first end that is
connected to the radio-frequency transceiver, and having a second
end that is connected to the antenna; a plurality of conductive
fasteners connected to the transmission line at locations along its
length between the first and second ends; and a conductive member
that mechanically and electrically connects at least one of the
plurality of conductive fasteners to the antenna ground plane.
20. The wireless communications device defined in claim 19, further
comprising: a metal tab that is electrically connected to the
housing; and a spring that presses at least one of the plurality of
conductive fasteners against the metal tab.
21. The wireless communications device defined in claim 20 wherein
the transmission line comprises a coaxial cable and wherein at
least some of the plurality of conductive fasteners are crimped to
the outer ground conductor.
22. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, further
comprising a connector port in the housing.
23. The wireless communications device defined in claim 10, wherein
the button allows a user to supply an input command to the wireless
communications device and wherein the button is round and has a
concave exterior surface.
Description
[0001] This application is a continuation of patent application
Ser. No. 14/158,403, filed Jan. 17, 2014, which is a continuation
of patent application Ser. No. 13/021,689, filed Feb. 4, 2011,
which is a continuation of patent application Ser. No. 11/821,329,
filed Jun. 21, 2007, which are hereby incorporated by reference
herein in their entireties.
BACKGROUND
[0002] This invention relates generally to wireless communications,
and more particularly, to wireless communications circuitry for
handheld electronic devices.
[0003] 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.
[0004] 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.RTM. (IEEE 802.11) band at
2.4 GHz and the Bluetooth.RTM. 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).
[0005] 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.
[0006] 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.
[0007] It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide
improved handheld electronic devices and antennas for handheld
electronic devices.
SUMMARY
[0008] 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.
[0009] 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 into the display to make the display touch
sensitive.
[0010] A bezel may be used to attach the display to the housing.
The bezel may surround the periphery of the front face of the
housing and may hold the display against the housing.
[0011] The bezel and at least a portion of the housing may be
formed from metal or other conductive materials. Electrical
components, such as the display, printed circuit boards, integrated
circuits, and a housing frame may be grounded together to form an
antenna ground plane.
[0012] An antenna slot may be formed in the ground plane between
the bezel and the conductive portion of the housing. The slot may
have a rectangular shape or other suitable shapes. Components such
as a dock connector and a flex circuit can be configured so that
they overlap somewhat with the rectangular slot shape, thereby
altering the inner perimeter of the slot. With one suitable
arrangement, the dock connector and flex circuit are configured so
that slot perimeter length increases due to the presence of the
overlapping dock connector are balanced and substantially canceled
by perimeter length decreases due to the overlapping flex circuit.
The flex circuit may be used to route signals from the dock
connector to processing circuitry on the handheld electronic
device.
[0013] The handheld electronic device may have transceiver
circuitry for handling wireless communications signals. With one
illustrative arrangement, the handheld electronic device may have
first and second radio-frequency transceivers and first and second
corresponding antenna resonating elements. The first antenna
resonating element may be used with the antenna ground plane to
form a cellular telephone antenna. The second antenna resonating
element may be used with the antenna ground plane to form a data
band antenna (e.g., at 2.4 GHz). The antenna resonating elements
may be located over the slot in the ground plane.
[0014] The antenna slot may have an associated resonant frequency
peak. The perimeter of the slot may be adjusted so that the
resonant frequency peak for the slot coincides with at least one
communications band associated with the cellular telephone
antenna.
[0015] Electrical components such as a menu button or other user
interface control, a speaker module, and a microphone module, may
be placed in an overlapping relationship with the antenna slot and
one or more of the antenna resonating elements. To prevent
interference between the antennas and these overlapping electrical
components, the overlapping electrical components may be isolated
using isolation elements. Inductors or resistors may be used for
the isolation elements.
[0016] Radio-frequency signals may be routed between the
transceiver circuits and the antennas using transmission lines such
as coaxial cables. For example, in a handheld electronic device
arrangement having two transceivers and two antennas, two coaxial
cables may be used to route radio-frequency signals to and from the
antennas. To ensure proper grounding of the coaxial cables and to
prevent reflected signals from radiating out of the coaxial cables
instead of the antennas, the coaxial cables may be electrically
shorted to the conductive housing of the handheld electronic device
and other portions of the antenna ground plane.
[0017] With one suitable arrangement, at least some segments of the
coaxial cables have exposed outer ground connectors. Conductive
fasteners may be attached to the exposed ground connector portions
of the coaxial cables. For example, metal ferrules may be crimped
to the coaxial cables at the exposed ground conductor locations
along their lengths, thereby electrically shorting the metal
ferrules to the coaxial cables. In turn, the metal ferrules or
other conductive fasteners may be connected to the conductive
housing and other portions of the antenna ground plane in the
handheld electronic device.
[0018] A J-clip or other suitable conductive member may be used to
structurally and electrically connect the metal ferrules to a metal
frame in the device housing and other portions of the antenna
ground plane. The conductive member may have bendable extensions
and a base that is welded to the frame. The extensions on the
conductive member may be crimped over the ferrules during assembly.
In the event that the handheld electronic device needs to be
reworked or recycled, the extensions may be bent open to release
the coaxial cables. Releasably fastening the coaxial cable ground
conductors to the antenna ground in this way may therefore
facilitate both rework and recycling, while ensuring good antenna
performance by properly grounding the coaxial cables.
[0019] 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
[0020] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an illustrative handheld
electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0021] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an illustrative handheld
electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0022] FIG. 3 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.
[0023] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an illustrative planar
inverted-F antenna (PIFA) in accordance with an embodiment of the
present invention.
[0024] 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.
[0025] 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.
[0026] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an illustrative planar
inverted-F antenna in which a portion of the antenna's ground plane
underneath the antenna's resonating element has been removed to
form a slot in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0027] FIG. 8 is a top view of an illustrative slot antenna in
accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0028] 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.
[0029] 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.
[0030] 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.
[0031] 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.
[0032] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of an illustrative
handheld electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the
present invention.
[0033] FIG. 14 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.
[0034] FIG. 15 is an exploded top perspective view of an
illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0035] FIG. 16 is an exploded bottom perspective view of an
illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0036] FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective bottom interior view of
an illustrative handheld electronic device showing how a handheld
electronic device may have coaxial cable transmission lines and
flex circuit antenna resonating elements in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0037] FIG. 18 is a perspective interior view of an illustrative
rear housing portion in accordance with an embodiment of the
present invention.
[0038] FIG. 19 is a top view of an illustrative handheld electronic
device in which a cosmetic plastic cap has been removed to expose
antenna resonating elements in accordance with an embodiment of the
present invention.
[0039] FIG. 20 is a perspective view of a portion of an
illustrative antenna coaxial cable to which a conductive fastener
such as a ferule has been attached in accordance with an embodiment
of the present invention.
[0040] FIG. 21 is a perspective interior view of a portion of an
illustrative handheld electronic device showing how a data channel
antenna may be connected to a coaxial cable transmission line in
accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0041] FIG. 22 is a perspective view of a portion of an
illustrative handheld electronic device in which two antenna
coaxial cables have been routed together along the edge of the
device in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0042] FIG. 23 is a perspective view of an interior end portion of
an illustrative handheld electronic device showing how a coaxial
cable antenna transmission line may be connected to an antenna in
accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0043] FIG. 24 is a perspective view of a portion of the interior
of an illustrative handheld electronic device showing how a flex
circuit may be used to route connector signals around the edge of
the handheld electronic device and showing the location of
components such as a microphone, menu button, and speaker module in
accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0044] FIG. 25 is a partially sectional perspective view of a
portion of the interior of an illustrative handheld electronic
device showing the location of an antenna grounding bracket that
may be used to make contact between antenna flex circuit traces and
a bezel on the handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0045] FIG. 26 is a perspective view of an end portion of an
illustrative handheld electronic device showing the location of
components such as a dock connector and menu button in the handheld
electronic device in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0046] FIG. 27 is a perspective view of a portion of the interior
of an illustrative handheld electronic device showing an
illustrative flex circuit antenna configuration in accordance with
an embodiment of the present invention.
[0047] FIGS. 28 and 29 are perspective bottom views of the interior
of an illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0048] FIG. 30 is a rear view of an upper interior portion of an
illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0049] FIG. 31 is a cross-sectional view of an interior portion of
an illustrative handheld electronic device showing how a spring may
be used to help electrically connect a housing frame to a housing
in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0050] FIG. 32 is a rear view of a middle interior portion of an
illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0051] FIG. 33 is a perspective view of an end portion of an
illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0052] FIG. 34 is a cross-sectional view of an interior portion of
an illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0053] FIG. 35 is a partially cross-sectional perspective view of a
middle interior portion of an illustrative handheld electronic
device in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0054] FIG. 36 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of a housing
and a bezel in an illustrative handheld electronic device in
accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0055] FIG. 37 is a top view of an antenna slot with overlapping
electrical components in an illustrative handheld electronic device
in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.
[0056] FIG. 38 is circuit diagram showing how isolation elements
may be used to interconnect a menu button with control circuitry in
an illustrative handheld electronic device in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0057] FIG. 39 is a top view of an illustrative handheld electronic
device showing overlap between an electronic component and antenna
resonating elements in accordance with an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0058] FIG. 40 is a perspective view of a section of coaxial cable
with exposed segments and insulated segments in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0059] FIG. 41 is an antenna performance graph showing how the
resonance peak of a handheld electronic device antenna having a
ground plane with a slot can be adjusted by positioning electronic
components to change the inner perimeter of the slot in accordance
with an embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0060] The present invention relates generally to wireless
communications, and more particularly, to wireless electronic
devices and antennas for wireless electronic devices.
[0061] 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, which is
sometimes described herein as an example, the portable electronic
devices are handheld electronic devices.
[0062] 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.
[0063] 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.
[0064] 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.
[0065] 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.
[0066] 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. Housing 12 or portions of housing 12 may also be formed
from conductive materials such as metal. An illustrative housing
material that may be used is anodized aluminum. Aluminum is
relatively light in weight and, when anodized, has an attractive
insulating and scratch-resistant surface. If desired, other metals
can be used for the housing of device 10, such as stainless steel,
magnesium, titanium, alloys of these metals and other metals, etc.
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. To facilitate electrical
contact between an anodized aluminum housing and other metal
components in device 10, portions of the anodized surface layer of
the anodized aluminum housing may be selectively removed during the
manufacturing process (e.g., by laser etching).
[0067] 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.
[0068] 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).
[0069] 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 or glass layers. If desired, touch screen
functionality may be integrated into display 16 or may be provided
using a separate touch pad device. An advantage of integrating a
touch screen into display 16 to make display 16 touch sensitive is
that this type of arrangement can save space and reduce visual
clutter.
[0070] In a typical arrangement, bezel 14 may have prongs 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 and may help to prevent
debris from entering device 10.
[0071] 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.).
[0072] 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). Button 19 may
be, for example, a menu button. Port 20 may contain a 30-pin data
connector (as an example). Openings 24 and 22 may, if desired, form
microphone and speaker ports. 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.
[0073] 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.).
[0074] Handheld device 10 may have ports such as port 20. Port 20,
which may sometimes be referred to as a dock connector, 30-pin data
port connector, input-output port, or bus connector, may be used as
an input-output port (e.g., when connecting device 10 to a mating
dock connected to a computer or other electronic device. Device 10
may also have 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, a subscriber identity module
(SIM) card port to authorize cellular telephone service, a memory
card slot, etc. The functions of some or all of these devices and
the internal circuitry of handheld electronic device 10 can be
controlled using input interface devices such as touch screen
display 16.
[0075] 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.
[0076] 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'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.
[0077] 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.
[0078] 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.
[0079] 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.RTM., protocols for other
short-range wireless communications links such as the
Bluetooth.RTM. protocol, etc.).
[0080] Input-output devices 38 may be used to allow data to be
supplied to device 10 and to allow data to be provided from device
10 to external devices. Display screen 16, button 19, microphone
port 24, speaker port 22, and dock connector port 20 are examples
of input-output devices 38.
[0081] 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.
[0082] 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).
[0083] 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).
[0084] 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's own personal computer, a peer device (e.g., another handheld
electronic device 10), or any other suitable computing
equipment.
[0085] 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.RTM. (IEEE 802.11) bands at
2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz, the Bluetooth.RTM. 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.
[0086] A top view of an illustrative device 10 in accordance with
an embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 3. As shown
in FIG. 3, transceiver circuitry such as transceiver 52A and
transceiver 52B may be interconnected with antenna resonating
elements 54-1A and 54-1B over respective transmission lines 56A and
56B. In the example of FIG. 3, there are two transceivers, two
corresponding transmission lines, and two corresponding antenna
resonating elements. This is merely illustrative. For example,
device 10 may have one transceiver, one corresponding transmission
line, and one corresponding antenna resonating element or device 10
may have more than two transceivers, transmission lines, and
antenna resonating elements.
[0087] Portions of device 10 may form a ground for the antennas
formed by resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B. The antenna ground,
which is sometimes referred to as the antenna ground plane or
antenna ground plane element, may be formed of conductive device
structures such as printed circuit boards, transceiver shielding
cans, integrated circuits, batteries, displays, buttons, screws,
clamps, brackets, flex circuits, and portions of housing 12.
Components 52 of this type are shown schematically in FIG. 3 as
transceivers 52A and 52B and as battery and other components 52C.
With one suitable arrangement, which is sometimes described herein
as an example, such grounded conductive structures are located in
region 170, above dotted line 23 in FIG. 3.
[0088] Bezel 14 may surround device 10 and may be electrically
connected to antenna ground (e.g., by shorting bezel 14 to the
conductive structures in region 170 of device 10). When bezel 14 is
connected to the ground structures, bezel 14 forms part of the
ground for the antenna(s) of device 10 (i.e., bezel 14 becomes part
of antenna ground plane 54-2).
[0089] 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 the periphery of ground plane 54-2 may be
substantially rectangular) and may contain an opening beneath
resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B. The opening in ground plane
54-2 is sometimes referred to as a hole or slot and is generally
filed with air and other dielectrics and components that do not
significantly affect radio-frequency antenna signals. The opening
may be of any suitable shape. For example, the opening may be
rectangular in shape. In this type of scenario, bezel 14 may define
right, left, and lower sides of the opening (in the orientation of
FIG. 3), whereas the conductive device structures above line 23
(e.g., printed circuit board, conductive housing surfaces,
conductive display components, and other conductive electrical
components) may form a top side of the opening (in the orientation
of FIG. 3). In some embodiments of device 10, one or more
conductive structures such as dock connector 20 (FIG. 1) may
overlap at least partly with the otherwise rectangular opening
defined by the ground structures above line 23 and bezel 14. In
this type of arrangement, the opening in ground plane 54-2 may have
a non-rectangular shape. Non-rectangular shapes for the opening may
include, for example, polygons, squares, ovals, shapes with both
flat and curved sides, etc.
[0090] When operated in conjunction with antenna ground 54-2,
antenna resonating elements such as resonating elements 54-1A and
54-1B form antennas 54 for device 10. In the example of FIG. 3,
there are two antennas in device 10, one of which is associated
with antenna resonating element 54-1A and one of which is
associated with antenna resonating element 54-1B. This is, however,
merely illustrative. There may, in general, be one antenna, two
antennas, or three or more antennas in device 10.
[0091] Antenna resonating elements in device 10 may be formed in
any suitable shape. With one illustrative arrangement, one of
antennas 54 (i.e., the antenna formed from resonating element
54-1A) 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 54-1B) 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 54-1A and 54-1B if desired.
[0092] To permit antennas 54 to function properly, part of the
housing of device 10 (i.e., portions in region 18) may be formed
from plastic or another suitable dielectric material. With one
suitable arrangement, which is described herein as an example,
antenna resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B may be formed from
conductive copper traces on a flex circuit. The flex circuit may be
mounted to a plastic supporting piece that is sometimes referred to
as an antenna cap or antenna support. A plastic cover, which is
sometimes referred to as a cosmetic cap or housing cap, may be used
to enclose the antennas. The cosmetic cap may form a portion of the
housing of device 10 in region 18. The cosmetic cap may be formed
from a plastic based on acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymers
(sometimes referred to as ABS plastic). If desired, plastic
portions of the housing of device 10 may be formed from low
dielectric constant materials. An example of this type of plastic
is the low dielectric constant plastic that is sold under the trade
name IXEF.RTM. by Solvay Advanced Polymers, L.L.C. of Alpharetta,
Ga. This plastic, which is a polyarylamide, has a satisfactory
structural strength for forming parts of the housing of device
10.
[0093] 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 such as a lithium-ion
battery, which may be mounted along the rear face of housing 12 (as
an example). One or more transceiver circuits such as transceiver
circuits 52A and 52B may be mounted to one or more circuit boards
in device 10. With one suitable arrangement, two printed circuit
boards may be stacked on top of each other in the housing of 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 54-2 may be used with
each of the two antenna resonating elements.
[0094] With one illustrative arrangement, transceiver 52A may be
used to transmit and receive cellular telephone radio-frequency
signals and transceiver 52B 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.RTM. (IEEE 802.11) bands at
2.4 GHz and 5.0 GHz, the Bluetooth.RTM. band at 2.4 GHz, or the
global positioning system (GPS) band at 1550 MHz.
[0095] The circuit board(s) in device 10 may be formed from any
suitable materials. With one illustrative arrangement, the circuit
board or boards of device 10 may be provided using multilayer
printed circuit board material. At least one of the layers may have
large planar regions of conductor that form part of 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. Circuit boards in ground plane 54-2 may, if desired, be
electrically connected to conductive housing portions using
shorting brackets, springs, screws, and other conductive
structures.
[0096] Suitable circuit board materials for a multilayer printed
circuit board in device 10 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. In a typical flex circuit, antenna resonating
elements may be formed from copper traces (e.g., on one side of the
flex circuit substrate).
[0097] In the illustrative configuration of FIG. 3, ground plane
element 54-2 and antenna resonating element 54-1A may form a first
antenna for device 10. Ground plane element 54-2 and antenna
resonating element 54-1B 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 is typically connected to antenna ground to
form part of the ground 54-2 and thereby serve as a portion of
antenna 54.
[0098] Any suitable conductive materials may be used to form ground
plane element 54-2 and resonating elements such as resonating
element 54-1A and 54-1B. 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).
[0099] Transceiver circuits 52A and 52B (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 52A and 52B may operate simultaneously (e.g.,
one can transmit while the other receives, both can transmit at the
same time, or both can receive simultaneously).
[0100] 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. 3,
transmission line 56A (e.g., a coaxial cable) may be used to
interconnect transceiver 52A and antenna resonating element 54-1A
and transmission line 56B (e.g., a coaxial cable) may be used to
interconnect transceiver 52B and antenna resonating element 54-1B.
With this type of configuration, transceiver 52B may handle WiFi
transmissions over an antenna formed from resonating element 54-1B
and ground plane 54-2, while transceiver 52A may handle cellular
telephone transmission over an antenna formed from resonating
element 54-1A and ground plane 54-2.
[0101] An illustrative planar inverted-F antenna (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
54-1A. 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'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's ground, the antenna's ground terminal,
the antenna'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 54-1A. Ground terminal
62 is shorted to ground plane 54-2, which forms the antenna's
ground.
[0102] 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 54-1A 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.
[0103] 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 cable or other transmission
line has its center conductor electrically connected to point 60
and its ground conductor electrically connected to point 62.
[0104] 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.sub.1, indicating that the antenna
performs well in the frequency band centered at frequency f.sub.1.
PIFA antenna 54 also operates at harmonic frequencies such as
frequency f.sub.2. Frequency f.sub.2 represents the second harmonic
of PIFA antenna (i.e., f.sub.2=2f.sub.1). The dimensions of antenna
54 may be selected so that frequencies f.sub.1 and f.sub.2 are
aligned with communication bands of interest. The frequency f.sub.1
(and harmonic frequency 2f.sub.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.sub.1).
[0105] 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 54-1A 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.
[0106] 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 an opening (slot) under antenna resonating
element 54-1A. Slot 70 may be filled with electrical parts with
radio-frequency isolation, air, plastic, or other suitable
dielectric and represents a cut-away or removed portion of ground
plane 54-2. With one suitable arrangement, which is shown in FIG.
7, the removed region 70 forms a rectangular slot. Slots of other
shapes (oval, meandering, curved sides, straight sides, etc.) may
also be formed.
[0107] 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 54-1A and 54-2 as viewed
from the top view orientation of FIG. 3. Typical resonating element
lateral dimensions are on the order of 0.5 cm to 10 cm.
[0108] The presence of slot 70 reduces near-field electromagnetic
coupling between resonating element 54-1A 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.
[0109] 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.
[0110] 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 56A 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 56A is connected
to signal terminal 80 (i.e., the positive or feed terminal of
antenna 72) and the outer braid of coaxial cable 56A, which forms
the ground conductor for cable 56A, is connected to ground terminal
78.
[0111] When antenna 72 is fed using the arrangement of FIG. 8, the
antenna'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.sub.2. The center frequency f.sub.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.sub.2, perimeter
P is equal to one wavelength.
[0112] Because the center frequency f.sub.2 can be tuned by proper
selection of perimeter P, the slot antenna of FIG. 8 can be
configured so that frequency f.sub.2 of the graph in FIG. 9
coincides with frequency f.sub.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.sub.2. In the vicinity of frequency f.sub.2,
the increase in performance from using slot 70 results in the
antenna performance plot given by dotted line 79 in FIG. 6.
[0113] If desired, the value of perimeter P may be selected to
resonate at a frequency that is different from frequency f.sub.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.sub.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 54-1A 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.
[0114] 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.
[0115] By using slot 70 in combination with a PIFA-type resonating
element such as resonating element 54-1A, 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).
[0116] An illustrative configuration in which the hybrid PIFA/slot
antenna formed by resonating element 54-1A, 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 56A-1 and 56A-2 have inner
conductors 82-1 and 82-2, respectively. Coaxial cables 56A-1 and
56A-2 also each have a conductive outer braid ground conductor. The
outer braid conductor of coaxial cable 56A-1 is electrically
shorted to ground plane 54-2 at ground terminal 88. The ground
portion of cable 56A-2 is shorted to ground plane 54-2 at ground
terminal 92. The signal connections from coaxial cables 56A-1 and
56A-2 are made at signal terminals 90 and 94, respectively.
[0117] With the arrangement of FIG. 10, two separate sets of
antenna terminals are used. Coaxial cable 56A-1 feeds the PIFA
portion of the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna using ground terminal 88
and signal terminal 90 and coaxial cable 56A-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 56A-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.
[0118] When multiple transmission lines such as transmission lines
56A-1 and 56A-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 52A of FIG. 3).
[0119] In operation in handheld device 10, a hybrid PIFA/slot
antenna formed from resonating element 54-1A of FIG. 3 and a
corresponding slot that is located beneath element 54-1A 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.sub.n (or another suitable frequency band or bands).
By adjusting the size of the strip antenna or other antenna
structure formed from resonating element 54-1B, the frequency
f.sub.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).
[0120] A graph showing the wireless performance of device 10 when
using two antennas (e.g., a hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed from
resonating element 54-1A 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 54-1B is used
to cover the frequency band centered at f.sub.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.
[0121] If desired, the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna formed from
resonating element 54-1A 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 54-1B is used to provide additional
frequency coverage for device 10 is shown in FIG. 12. Ground plane
54-2 may be formed from metal components in housing 10 including a
metal frame coated with plastic (as an example) that has conductive
edges 96 that are electrically connected to bezel 14 (FIG. 1).
[0122] As shown in the somewhat schematic representation of FIG.
12, resonating element 54-1B may have 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 antenna cap support
structure 102 (e.g., by adhesive).
[0123] Coaxial cable 56B 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 56B is connected to ground terminal 132 using metal tab 130.
Metal tab 130 may be shorted to housing 12. Transmission line
connection structure 126 may be, for example, a mini UFL coaxial
cable 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. Conductive path 124 may include
circuit components (e.g., a capacitor) for impedance matching.
[0124] When feeding antenna 54-1B, terminal 132 may be considered
to form the antenna's ground terminal and the center conductor of
connector 126 and/or conductive path 124 may be considered to form
the antenna's signal terminal. The location along dimension 128 at
which conductive path 124 meets conductive strip 120 can be
adjusted for impedance matching.
[0125] Planar antenna resonating element 54-1A 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 in
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
54-1A resonates at the 850/900 MHz GSM bands, thereby providing
coverage at frequency f.sub.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.sub.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.sub.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.sub.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).
[0126] 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 54-1A and the
L-shaped strip antenna formed from resonating element 54-1B. 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 54-1A. This manipulation can minimize
induced currents around the signal and ground areas of resonating
element 54-1B. 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 54-1B (i.e., in the vicinity
of paths 122 and 124).
[0127] Additionally, arm 98 can act as a radiating arm for element
54-1A. Its resonance can add to the bandwidth of element 54-1A 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 51-1A that reduces its
frequency separation from element 51-1B 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 54-1A and 54-1B
without arm 98.
[0128] As shown in FIG. 12, arms 98 and 100 of resonating element
54-1A and resonating element 54-1B 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 54-1A and 54-1B 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).
[0129] Resonating elements 54-1A 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.
[0130] A conductive path such as conductive strip 104 may be used
to electrically connect the resonating element 54-1A 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 54-1A) 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.
[0131] A coaxial cable such as cable 56A 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 cable connector 110 may be used to
connect coaxial cable 56A 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.
[0132] 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 54-1A and 54-1B.).
Conductor 112 may be directly electrically connected to resonating
element 54-1A (e.g., at portion 116) or may be electrically
connected to resonating element 54-1A 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.
[0133] Slot 70 may lie beneath resonating element 54-1A 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.
[0134] 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.
[0135] 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.
[0136] 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
54-1A.
[0137] 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.
[0138] 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
54-1A in the same way that conductor 58 routes radio-frequency
signal from terminal 60 to resonating element 54-1A in FIGS. 4 and
5, whereas conductive line 104 serves to terminate the resonating
element 54-1A to ground plane 54-2, as with grounding portion 61 of
FIGS. 4 and 5.
[0139] 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).
[0140] 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 54-1A and ground plane 54-2 as
needed for PIFA and slot antenna operations, a single transmission
line (e.g., coaxial cable 56A) 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.
[0141] 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.
[0142] 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.
[0143] 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.degree. bends, have 180.degree. bends, etc.). The strip
antenna formed with resonating element 54-1B can also be formed
from conductors of other shapes. Use of different shapes for the
arms or other portions of resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B 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 54-1A and 54-1B 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.).
[0144] A somewhat schematic cross-sectional 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,
ground plane 54-2 may include bezel 14, display 16, housing 12, and
other conductive components 52 in region 170 of device 10. Housing
12 in region 18 may be made up of a plastic cosmetic cap, which
allows antenna resonating elements (e.g., elements 54-1A and 54-1B
of FIG. 12) to be placed in region 171. Bezel 14 may be used to
mount display 16 to housing 12. Electrical components 52 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.).
[0145] As a result of these electrical connections, bezel 14 and
conductive portions of device 10 in region 170 form conductive
ground plane 54-2, as shown in FIG. 14. The conductive portions of
device 10 in region 170 may lie on one side of dotted line 23,
whereas at least some of the conductive portions of bezel 14 may
extend outwards from portions 170 and may lie on the other side of
dotted line 23, thereby defining slot 70.
[0146] With one suitable configuration, slot 70 may have an area
equal to the opening between bezel 14 and the conductive portions
of device 10 that lie on the opposite side of dotted line 23. With
other suitable configurations, one or more electrical components
may overlap with the otherwise rectangular opening formed between
bezel 14 and region 170 to form slot with smaller dimensions
(rectangular or non-rectangular).
[0147] An exploded perspective view of an illustrative handheld
electronic device 10 in accordance with an embodiment of the
present invention is shown in FIG. 15. As shown in FIG. 15,
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, polyester film,
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 having,
for example, a 0.6 mm diameter), gasket 150 may have a rectangular
cross-section, etc. Gasket 150 may help to seal the surface of
display 16 to prevent debris from entering device 10, may help to
center the display within bezel 14, and may help to hide
potentially unsightly portions of display 16 from view. Display 16
may have one or more holes or cut-away portions. For example,
display 16 may have hole 152 to accommodate button 19 and hole 182
to accommodate sound from a speaker.
[0148] 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 uppermost surface of
display screen 16 just above the liquid crystal display (LCD)
element. Frame subassembly 180 may receive the display and touch
sensor components associated with display 16. Antenna structures
may be housed behind cosmetic plastic cap 212. Cosmetic plastic cap
212 may also cover components such as a microphone and speaker.
Additional components (e.g., an additional speaker, audio jacks, a
SIM card tray, buttons such as a hold button, volume button, ringer
select button, and camera module, etc.) may be housed in region 158
at the opposite end of device 10.
[0149] Bezel 14 may be secured using any suitable technique (e.g.,
with prongs that mate with holes in a spring fastened to housing
12, with fasteners, with snaps, with adhesive, using welding
techniques, using a combination of these approaches, etc.). As
shown in FIG. 15, 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 structures along the
inner perimeter of housing 12 when frame subassembly 180 is mounted
in housing 12 and when bezel 14 is used to attach display 16 to
device 10.
[0150] Portions 160 may have screw holes 162 through which screws
may mate with corresponding threaded standoffs when attaching bezel
14 to housing subassembly 180. The screws and other conductive
structures (e.g., welds, wires, springs, brackets, etc.) may be
used to electrically connect bezel 14 to grounded elements within
device 10. For ease of assembly, frame subassembly 180 may have
tabs, snaps, or other attachment structures. For example, frame
subassembly 180 may have holes 164 that receive mating fingers on
display 16. Prongs (ears) 186 may receive screws that are used in
securing and grounding bezel 14 to dock connector 20.
[0151] Frame subassembly 180 may include a frame that is based on a
thin (e.g., 0.3 mm) stainless steel layer onto which plastic
features have been overmolded and attached (e.g., with a heat
staking process) or other suitable structural components. Frame top
156 may be recessed within frame subassembly 180 to accommodate the
touch sensor and other portions 154 of display 16. Sensors such as
an ambient light sensor and a proximity sensor may be mounted in
region 184.
[0152] An exploded perspective rear view of the illustrative device
of FIG. 15 is shown in FIG. 16. As shown in FIG. 16, housing 12 may
have ground tab 190. Tab 190 may be used to help ground antenna
resonating element 54-1A to conductive housing 12. To ensure that
tab 190 makes good electrical contact to housing 12, anodized
portions of housing 12 may be removed using laser etching.
[0153] Logo 192 may be formed of a metal such as stainless steel
(as an example). Logo 192 may be attached to housing 12 using
adhesive or other suitable attachment mechanisms. Buttons such as a
volume button, hold button, and ringer mode select button may be
located in region 194.
[0154] Camera module 196 may be attached to frame subassembly 180.
Transceivers, such as transceiver 52A and 52B of FIG. 3 may also be
attached to frame subassembly 180. As shown in FIG. 16, transceiver
52B may be housed in conductive can 198 and transceiver 52A may be
housed in conductive can 200. Cans such as cans 198 and 200 serve
as radio-frequency shielding enclosures that reduce electromagnetic
interference (EMI). SIM tray 202 on frame subassembly 180 may be
used to receive SIM cards.
[0155] Cosmetic cap 212 may have a recess such as recess 204 that
accommodates dock connector 20 when cap 212 is attached to device
10. Cap 212 may have inwardly protruding snap keys (plastic beams)
that are guided through holes in the frame during assembly and that
snap into bezel 14, thereby preventing cap 212 from becoming
detached from device 10 during use. Bezel 14 may have rails 208
that guide cosmetic cap 212 during assembly and that help to retain
cap 212 on device 10.
[0156] Antenna resonating elements such as antenna resonating
elements 54-1A and 54-1B may be formed from conductive traces on
flex circuit 210. Flex circuit 210 may be mounted on a plastic
antenna cap (as an example).
[0157] The exploded view of device 10 in FIG. 17 shows an
illustrative arrangement for coaxial cables 56A and 56B and shows
an illustrative shape for flex circuit 210. Flex circuit 210 may
have slots 227 and other features to help flex circuit 210 conform
to the curved surface of antenna cap 102. Screw 218 and clip 248
(also sometimes referred to as a bracket or spring) may be used to
ground coaxial cable connector 110 to bezel 14 at location 222.
Screw 220 and clip 246 (also sometimes referred to as a bracket or
spring) may be used to ground bezel 14 to dock connector 20 at
location 224. Clip 246 may also be electrically connected to
conductive strip 104 (FIG. 12).
[0158] Cables 56A and 56B may have exposed portions at which their
outer ground conductors (e.g., braid conductors or other outer
conductors) are exposed (i.e., not covered by plastic or other
insulating materials). These exposed portions allow cables 56A and
56B to be grounded to bezel 14 and the rest of ground plane 52-4
along their length. This provides good grounding for cables 56A and
56B and prevents cables 56A and 56B from acting as antenna
elements. Without grounding along their lengths, cables 56A and 56B
might radiate radio-frequency signals reflected back from antenna
resonating elements 52-1A and 52-1B.
[0159] The exposed conductive portions of cables 56A and 56B form
electrical connections between the ground conductors of the cables
and ground plane 54-2. Cables 56A and 56B may be bare of insulator
along their entire lengths or along only certain isolated segments.
For example, cables 56A and 56B may have no insulator directly
under ferrules 226. Ferrules 226 (or other suitable conductive
fasteners) may be connected to the conductive braid in the exposed
segments of cables 56A and 56B by crimping. One or more brackets or
other suitable conductive fastening members (sometimes referred to
as J-brackets) may be used to structurally and electrically connect
ferrules 226 to ground plane 54-2 (i.e., by shorting ferrules 226
to conductive portions of device 10 such as the metal portions of
frame subassembly 180 and bezel 14).
[0160] An interior perspective view of a conductive housing portion
12 is shown in FIG. 18. As shown in FIG. 18 ground tab 190 may be
part of a ground bracket 228. Ground bracket 228 may have a tab
under region 230 that slides into a mating channel in housing 12.
The anodized surface of housing 12 in this region may be stripped
using laser etching, thereby allowing the tab in region 230 to make
good electrical contact between bracket 228 (and its tab 190) and
housing 12.
[0161] Metal strips such as strip 234, which are sometimes referred
to as brackets or rails, may be formed of cast magnesium and may be
attached to housing 12 using adhesive (as an example). For example,
a rubbery glue may be used to attached strips such as strip 234 to
housing 12. Metal strips such as strip 234 may be spaced apart from
the sidewalls of housing 12 to form channels such as channel 232. A
spring in each channel may have holes that engage mating hooks on
bezel 14.
[0162] Bracket 242 may be used to hold an audio jack, vibrator, and
a button wire flex circuit. Bracket 242 may be formed from a metal
such as cast magnesium.
[0163] Top ground bracket 240 may have fingers that engage housing
12. The anodized surface of housing 12 may be removed by laser
etching in the finger contact region to ensure that ground bracket
240 makes good electrical contact to housing 12. Ground plane
components in device 10 that are placed on top of ground bracket
240 may make contact to housing 12 through ground bracket 240.
[0164] Logo 192 may be shorted to housing 12 to ensure that logo
192 does not electrically float relative to housing 12. Laser
etching may be used to remove a portion of the anodized surface of
housing 12 under region 236 to ensure a good electrical contact
between logo 192 and housing 12. Logo 192 may be adhesively bonded
to housing 12. In one embodiment, logo 192 may be bonded to housing
12 using a thermal bonding agent and an epoxy resin bonding
agent.
[0165] Pin 238 may serve as a pivot for a SIM card ejection tray
arm.
[0166] A top view of the end of an illustrative device 10 with its
cosmetic end cap removed is shown in FIG. 19. Microphone rubber
boot 244 may form a seal between the cosmetic cap and microphone
inlet port 260. Microphone inlet port 260 may be used to channel
sound to a microphone in device 10. Electrical connections may be
made at locations 254. A screw may be used at each location 254.
The screws may engage threaded portions of a dock flange associated
with dock connector 20. The screws pass through bezel tabs 186 on
bezel 14. On the left size of dock connector 20 (in the orientation
of FIG. 19), the screw also passes through spring 246 and flex
circuit 210. Spring 246 may be formed from a metal such as
stainless steel. A conductive trace (conductive strip 104 of FIG.
12) is located adjacent to spring 246. When the screw is screwed
into the frame, the spring 246 presses outwards between the flex
circuit trace and bezel tab 186, thereby making good electrical
contact at point 106 (FIG. 12) between bezel 14 and conductive
strip 104 (FIG. 12).
[0167] Coaxial cable connector 110 may be snapped into a mating
connector on flex circuit 210. Ground clip or bracket 248 (which is
shown in a partially uncompressed state in FIG. 19) may be used to
help hold connector 110 in place and may be used to form an
electrical contact to bezel (see point 115 of FIG. 12).
[0168] Frame portion 253 may be used to support cosmetic cap 212 in
the event that external pressure is placed on cosmetic cap 212
(i.e., in the event that device 10 is inadvertently dropped).
[0169] Brackets 250 may be connected to or formed as part of
brackets 234 of FIG. 18 and may be screwed into the frame of device
10 (e.g., frame portions 252) using screws 254.
[0170] Capacitor 258 may form part of path 124 (FIG. 12). Epoxy 256
may be used to provide capacitor 258 with structural support (i.e.,
to protect capacitor 258 from cracking during assembly). Capacitor
114 may also be protected using epoxy.
[0171] Flex circuit 210 may be mounted to antenna cap 102 using
pressure sensitive adhesive. Slots 227 allow the conductive traces
of resonating element such as resonating element 54-1A to conform
to the curved surface of cap 102. The conductive traces may be
formed of copper or other suitable conductive material.
[0172] At location 262, coaxial cable 56A may be routed away from
the antenna traces, so that cable 56A may be maintained closer to
ground plane 54-2 (e.g., bezel 14) and further away from resonating
element 54-1B.
[0173] Grounding clip 190 may engage ferrule 226 to ensure that
ferrule 226 and coaxial cable 56B are grounded to housing 12. Screw
276 may be used to hold down grounding clip 190 on antenna cap 102.
Trace 264 may form part of the ground for antenna resonating
element 54-1B in conjunction with ground tab 190. Conductive
branches 120 and 122 may form part of antenna resonating element
54-1B.
[0174] Alignment posts 266 may mate with corresponding holes in
flex circuit 212. This helps to align flex circuit 210 to antenna
cap 102 during assembly.
[0175] Ferrule 226 of FIG. 19 is shown in more detail in FIG. 20.
As shown in FIG. 20, a biasing member such as spring 268 may be
located between part of antenna cap 102 and underside 274 of
ferrule 226 adjacent to frame cross member 280. Spring 268 may be
formed of urethane or other suitable resilient material. During
assembly, ferrule 226 may be pushed downwards against spring 268,
causing arms 270 and 272 to splay outwards away from each other.
When under tension in this way, spring 268 biases ferrule 226
upwards in direction 278 against tab 190 of bracket 228 (FIG. 19),
so that ferrule 226 (i.e., the ground conductor of coaxial cable
56B) is shorted to ground plane 54-2 (e.g., housing 12).
[0176] Spring 268 is also shown (behind frame cross member 280) in
the perspective view of FIG. 21. Polyester film 282 may be used to
protect flex circuit 288 from damage. Adhesive 284 may be used to
mount battery 204 to frame 290. Polyester film 286 may be used to
protect battery 204 (e.g., by preventing puncture damage to the
relatively thin battery case).
[0177] As shown in FIG. 22, coaxial cable 56A may be connected to
printed circuit board 292 of transceiver 52A using coaxial cable
connector 296. Electromagnetic shielding cases 200 and 294 may be
used to provide radio-frequency EMI shielding for the circuitry of
transceiver 52A. For example, shield 294 may be a metal shield that
is soldered to printed circuit board 292 to shield one or more
transceiver integrated circuits, whereas shield 200 may be a metal
shield that is attached by snaps to shield discrete components
associated with transceiver 52A.
[0178] Frame 290 may have a sheet metal core (e.g., a stainless
steel sheet of 0.3 mm thickness) that is surrounded by a plastic
overmold. The overmolded plastic parts that make up frame 290 may
provide detailed structures that would be difficult to fabricate
from stainless steel. Metal screws 297 may be used to secure
conductive bezel 14 to exposed sheet metal portions 298 of frame
290, thereby shorting bezel 14 to frame 290 and ensuring that both
bezel 14 and frame 290 form part of ground plane 54-2.
[0179] Ferrules 226 or other suitable conductive fasteners may be
electrically connected to frame 290 and bezel 14 using a bracket
(e.g., a J-bracket) or other suitable conductive member. The
bracket may be connected to ferrules 226 by soldering, welding, or
by physical contact (i.e., by crimping the bracket to ferrules 226
with or without soldering or welding). With one suitable
arrangement, the conductive member is formed of metal (e.g.,
magnesium or aluminum) and has bendable extensions (i.e., fingers).
The bendable extensions may be crimped over the ferrules or other
conductive fasteners during assembly to attach the conductive
member to the ferrules and the coaxial cables. If device 10 needs
to be reworked or recycled, the coaxial cables may be released from
the conductive member and device 10 by bending the extensions away
from the conductive fasteners on the cables.
[0180] A detailed view of an illustrative arrangement for forming a
connection between coaxial cable 56A and the antenna structures of
device 10 is shown in FIG. 23. As shown in FIG. 23, coaxial cable
56A may be connected to flex circuit 210 using a coaxial cable
connector 110. The center conductor 108 (FIG. 12) of cable 56A and
connector 110 may be connected to antenna conductor 112. Capacitor
114 or other tuning components may be used to connect conductor 112
to conductor 304. Conductor 304 may be connected to portion 116 of
antenna resonating element 54-1A. As with the traces that make up
antenna resonating element 54-1A on the top surface of flex circuit
210, conductors 112 and 114 may be formed as traces on flex circuit
210. If desired, flex circuit 210 may have traces on two sides. Use
of a single-sided flex circuit arrangement, in which traces 112,
114, and the other antenna traces are formed on a single side of
flex circuit 210 may help to reduce the cost and complexity of the
antenna. Flex circuit traces may be formed of any suitable
conductor such as copper.
[0181] Epoxy 306 may be used to provide structural support for
capacitor 114 (e.g., to prevent capacitor 114 from being damaged
during assembly). Adhesive 308 may be used to attach flex circuit
210 to the end face of antenna cap 102. Frame 290 may have screw
hole 302. Bracket 248 (FIGS. 17 and 19) may be attached to frame
290 by screwing a screw (i.e., screw 218 of FIG. 17) into hole 302.
Spring 246 can be attached to dock connector 20 using screw 220 of
FIG. 17. When screw 220 has been screwed into place (through one of
bezel prongs 186 of FIG. 15, bezel 14, clip 246, conductive strip
104 of antenna resonating element 54-1A, and dock connector 20 are
shorted together as described in connection with forming the
connections at point 106 of ground plane 54-2 in FIG. 12.
[0182] A perspective top view of device 10 with internal structures
(such as display 16) removed is shown in FIG. 24. As shown in FIG.
24, flex circuit 288 may be used to form a bus that conveys signals
from dock connector 20 to processing circuitry located towards end
326 of device 10. The overall shape of antenna slot 70 is formed by
the boundaries of bezel 14 and frame 290 (which lies along dotted
line 23). This overall shape can be influenced by electrical
components that lie within its boundaries. Certain components, such
as microphone 244 and speaker 316 may be isolated from the antenna
using inductors (as an example). Other components (e.g., button
320) may be isolated from the antenna using inductors or resistors
(as an example). Isolating components in this way can eliminate or
substantially reduce any impact these components might have on the
effective area of slot 70.
[0183] Dock connector 20 may contain metal that overlaps the
otherwise rectangular shape of slot 70. Moreover, flex circuit 288
contains signal traces and ground traces. The conductive material
in these traces acts as a portion of the ground plane of device 10
and therefore can alter the effective shape of slot 70. As shown in
the illustrative arrangement of FIG. 24, flex circuit 288 may be
routed around the edge of slot 70 immediately adjacent to bezel
14.
[0184] Speaker flex circuit 312 may be used to route signals from
flex circuit 288 to speaker module 316. Speaker flex circuit 312
may be connected to flex circuit bus 288 by soldering (as an
example). Components 314 may include isolation inductors and other
electrical components for supporting the operation of speaker
module 316. Electrical components 318 may be used to support the
operation of dock connector 20.
[0185] Stiffener 322 may be used to support flex circuit 288 as
flex circuit 288 passes towards microphone 244 and button 320. A
flex circuit extension (i.e., a tail of flex circuit 288) in the
vicinity of region 324 may be used to connect the leads of menu
button 320 to flex circuit 288. Menu button 320 may be a dome
switch or any other suitable user interface control. Components 330
may be formed using inductors (e.g., traditional wire-wrapped
inductors or ferrite chip inductors) or resistors. Components 330
may be used to help isolate button 320 from the antennas of device
(e.g., to prevent button 320 from significantly influencing the
shape of slot 70). Electrical components 328 may include inductors
for isolating microphone 244 from the antennas of device 10.
[0186] Pressure sensitive adhesive 332 may be used to mount battery
204. Foam 334 may help to prevent damage to display 16. Alignment
posts 336 on dock connector 20 may be used to help align flex
circuit 288.
[0187] As shown in FIG. 25, extension 338 of flex circuit 288 may
be used to make electrical connections between flex circuit 288 and
button 320. Ground bracket 248 may have an indentation such as
indentation 340 that mates with a rib on frame 290.
[0188] FIG. 26 shows how dock connector 20 may have 30 pins 342 (as
an example). A flange formed from metal mounting tabs 344 may be
welded to the main body of dock connector 20. Screws 220 and 346
may be screwed into threads on metal mounting tabs 344 through
holes in tabs 186 (FIG. 15) of bezel 14. Screw 348 may be screwed
into frame 290 to secure grounding bracket 248 to the frame. Screws
such as screw 348 may be screwed into portions of frame 290 that
are added to frame 290 after the plastic overmolded portion of
frame 290 has been formed. These added portions of frame 290 may,
for example, be added using a heat staking process.
[0189] The presence of spring 246, which forms part of an antenna
terminal for the hybrid PIFA/slot antenna, helps to reduce the
tolerance required in connecting bezel 14 to the antenna.
[0190] As shown in FIG. 27, speaker 316 may have an associated port
350, through which sound may emanate during device operation. In
the rear view of FIG. 27, speaker port 350 is located on the right
side of housing 12 and microphone port 260 is located on the left
size of housing 12. This is merely illustrative. Speaker port 350
and microphone port 260 may be located on any suitable portion of
housing 12 (e.g., front face, rear face, top side, bottom side,
left side, or right side). As shown in FIG. 27, screws 254 may hold
housing brackets 250 to the frame. The view of FIG. 27 does not
include antenna cap 102, so components such as speaker module 316
are visible beneath flex circuit 210.
[0191] A perspective view of the interior of device 10 is shown in
FIG. 28. Battery leads 352 may be used to convey power from battery
204 to the electronics of device 10. Leads 352 may be soldered to
printed circuit boards such as printed circuit board 292. There may
be any suitable number of leads 352 (e.g., ground, positive, and
negative). Screws 354 may be used to screw circuit boards such as
circuit board 292 to the frame of device 10.
[0192] Radio-frequency shielding (sometimes called EMI shielding)
may be provided in the form of conductive cans 200 and 198.
Shielding cans 200 and 198 (which are sometimes referred to as EMI
enclosures, radio-frequency enclosures, or shielding housings) may
be constructed from metal or other suitable conductive materials.
Can 200 may be used to shield transceiver 52A (FIG. 3), whereas can
198 may be used to shield transceiver 52B (FIG. 3).
[0193] Coaxial cable 56B may be connected to the transceiver in can
198 using coaxial cable connector 376. Coaxial cable 56A may be
connected to the transceiver in can 200 using coaxial cable
connector 296.
[0194] A conductive foam pad such as pad 358 may be affixed to the
top of can 200 to help ground can 200. When the cover of the
housing of device 10 is installed, conductive foam 358 may rub
against an exposed portion of the interior of the housing, thereby
electrically shorting can 200 to the housing. Can 200 may also have
bent up fingers 356 that rub against the housing to short can 200
to the housing. Bent up fingers 370 on can 198 may be used to short
can 198 to the housing.
[0195] To ensure that fingers such as fingers 370 and 356 make good
electrical contact with the housing, the portions of the housing
that contact the fingers may be processed to remove any
nonconductive coatings. For example, if the housing is an anodized
aluminum housing that has a nonconductive anodized coating, the
anodized layer may be removed by laser etching in the regions of
the housing that contact fingers 370 and 356 and the regions of the
housing that contact other shorting structures such as conductive
foam 358. Cans 198 and 200 may be used to shield one or more layers
of printed circuit board (e.g., multiple stacked printed circuit
boards). These circuit boards may be used to mount integrated
circuits and/or discrete components.
[0196] Camera module 196 may have a lens 372. Lens 372 may be a
fixed focal length lens (as an example). Camera module 196 may be
used to acquire still images and video images (e.g., video
containing audio). Camera flex circuit 377 may be used to
electrically connect camera module 196 to the printed circuit
boards of device 10.
[0197] Recess 360 may be configured to receive components such as
an audio jack and other input-output components. Holes 374 may be
formed in the touch screen module of display 16 to reduce
weight.
[0198] As shown in FIG. 29, device 10 may use a connector such as
connector 378 to receive a flex circuit plug. The flex circuit plug
and its associated flex circuit may be used to convey electrical
signals to the circuitry of device 10 from components such as an
audio jack, volume button, hold button, and ringer select
button.
[0199] As shown in FIG. 30, SIM card tray 202 may have a spring
380. Spring 380 may have a bent portion 382. When compressed, bent
portion 382 can press upwards (in the orientation of FIG. 30)
against a SIM card to hold the SIM card in place in tray 202.
[0200] A cross-sectional view of housing 12 is shown in FIG. 31. As
shown in FIG. 31, a conductive member such as J-clip 384 may be
used to secure coaxial cables 56A and 56B. J-clip 384 may be
electrically connected to conductive portions of frame 290 (e.g.,
exposed metal portions), thereby shorting ferrules 226 (and thus
the outer braid conductor of coaxial cables 56A and 56B) to frame
290 and the other portions of ground plane 54-2.
[0201] J-clip 384 may have a generally horizontal planar base
member such as base member 390 and a generally vertical planar
member such as vertical planar member 388. J-clip base 390 may be
welded to the metal of frame 290 or may otherwise be electrically
and mechanically connected to frame 290. Base 390 may have
alignment holes 400. During assembly, an assembly tool with mating
protrusions may engage holes 400 and hold J-clip 384 in place for
welding.
[0202] J-clip 384 may have bendable extensions such as clip
extensions 386. Extensions 386 may be manually crimped in place
over coaxial cables 56A and 56B during assembly. If desired,
extensions 386 may, at a later time, be bent backwards to release
coaxial cables 56A and 56B. This releasable fastening arrangement
allows for rework. For example, cables 56A and 56B can be replaced.
The ability to remove cables 56A and 56B from device 10 may also be
advantageous when disassembling device 10 (e.g., when recycling all
or part of device 10). Extensions 386 may have any suitable shape.
For example, extensions 386 may be provided in the form of
relatively narrow fingers that are easy to crimp and uncrimp.
Alternatively, extensions 386 may be provided in the form of
relatively wider tabs. Wide tab shapes may make good electrical
contact with ferrules 226, but may be harder to crimp and uncrimp
than narrower extension structures.
[0203] Spring 392 may be formed from metal or other suitable
springy conductive material. Spring 392 may be glued or otherwise
mounted in a channel between the side wall of housing 12 and
housing bracket 234. During assembly, fingers on bezel 14 engage
holes on spring clip 392, thereby securing bezel 14 to housing
12.
[0204] Housing bracket 234 may be glued or otherwise affixed to
housing 12. Allowable excess glue 394 is shown above bracket 234.
The housing bracket that is shown in FIG. 31 is sometimes referred
to as the left housing bracket of device 10. Device 10 may also
have a corresponding right housing bracket.
[0205] Display 16 may be mounted to housing 12 using bezel 14 and
gasket 150. Display 16 may have a planar glass element such as
glass element 404 and a touch sensitive element such as touch
sensitive element 402. Frame 290 may have a conductive element such
as sheet metal plate 396. Sheet metal plate 396 may be electrically
and mechanically connected to sheet metal plate 397 (e.g., by
welding, by gluing, by using fasteners, etc.). Foam 398 may be used
to help protect display 16 from shock (e.g., in the event that
device 10 is dropped).
[0206] A top view of device 10 in the vicinity of J-clip 384 is
shown in FIG. 32. As shown in the FIG. 32 example, extensions 386
may be used to crimp coaxial cables 56A and 56B at various segments
along their lengths. In the example of FIG. 32, there are four sets
of extensions 386 of substantially equal size that are spaced
equally along edge 406 of device 12. If desired, the segments of
cables that are electrically connected to extensions 386 may be of
different sizes or there may be a different number of extensions
386. For example, there may be more than four extensions 386, there
may be two larger extensions 386 and two smaller extensions 386,
etc. There may also be only a single extension 386 along edge 406,
although arrangements with more than one extension are generally
easier to uncrimp when desired for rework or recycling and are
therefore generally preferred.
[0207] As shown in FIG. 33, grounding bracket 248 may be used to
short the ground connector portion of coaxial cable connector 110
to bezel 14.
[0208] FIG. 34 shows a partially cross-sectional interior view of
device 10. As shown in FIG. 34, bracket 234 may have a long,
relatively uninterrupted rail portion such as rail 412 and, at
intervals, may have extending fingers 410. Spring 392 may have a
relatively uninterrupted rail portion 416 (mostly hidden from view
in FIG. 34) and, at intervals, may have extending fingers 418.
Fingers 410 of bracket 234 and fingers 418 of spring 392 may be
interleaved as shown in FIG. 34. Bracket 234 may have holes 414 in
rail 412. During manufacturing, an assembly tool may hold bracket
234 by engaging holes 414 with mating prongs. Spring 392 may have
holes such as rectangular holes 420. Bezel 14 may have mating
prongs. During assembly, the mating prongs from bezel 14 may slide
into rectangular holes 420 to secure bezel 14 in place relative to
housing 12 of device 10.
[0209] As shown in FIG. 35, rail 416 of spring 394 may have
alignment holes 422. During manufacturing, an assembly tool may
hold spring 394 using prongs that mate with holes 422.
[0210] A bracket such as top bracket 440 (e.g., a bracket formed of
a conductive material such as magnesium or aluminum) may be
attached to housing 12 at the top of device (e.g., using screws,
glue, etc.). A bracket such as sheet metal bracket 424 may be
attached to top bracket 440 using screws such as screws 426. A flex
circuit for a hold button or other suitable button may be attached
to bracket 424. A protective film such as polyester protective film
428 may cover the flex circuit to prevent damage. Flex circuit 436
may be used to route signals to circuitry 432 from a hold button
mounted to bracket 428 (as an example). Circuitry 432 to which flex
circuit 436 is routed may include jack 378 (FIG. 29).
[0211] SIM card ejector arm 436 may swing about pivot 238. Spring
438 may bias SIM card ejector arm 436, so that arm 436 may be used
to eject a SIM card from device 10. Flex circuit 434 may make
contact with overlapping printed circuit boards (not shown in FIG.
35).
[0212] A detailed cross-sectional view of bezel 14 in the vicinity
of spring 392 is shown in FIG. 36. As shown in FIG. 36, bezel 14
may have extended members such as prongs 442 that mate with
corresponding rectangular holes 420 in fingers 418 of spring 392.
Spring 392 may be mounted between housing 12 and bracket 234, so
when bezel prongs 442 protrude into spring 392, bezel 14 is held
into place.
[0213] As described in connection with FIG. 14, a handheld
electronic device with a conductive bezel may define a slot 70 that
is roughly rectangular in shape (as an example). In a device such
as the illustrative handheld electronic device described in
connection with FIGS. 15-36, components that contain conductive
elements may overlap with the rectangular slot that is formed by
bezel 14 and the conductive portion of housing 12 and frame 290.
These overlapping components may alter the shape of slot 70.
[0214] As shown in FIG. 37, for example, in region 18 of device 10,
slot 70 may have a roughly rectangular shape arising from the
rectangular opening defined by bezel 14 (to the left of dotted line
23 in FIG. 37) and housing/frame 12/290 (to the right of dotted
line 23). Dock connector 20, which may be formed of a conductive
material such as metal (e.g., stainless steel), may be grounded to
bezel 14. As a result, dock connector 20 may form part of the
ground plane 54-2 for device 10. In the example of FIG. 37, dock
connector 20 protrudes into the otherwise rectangular opening of
slot 70, thereby altering its rectangular shape. In particular,
dock connector 20 adds a length of 2LA to the interior perimeter of
slot 70. Flex bus connector 288 also contains conductive elements
(e.g., copper ground and signal traces). Flex connector 288
therefore also alters the shape of slot 70, resulting in a
shortening of the length of perimeter P of 2LB.
[0215] As described in connection with dotted line 79 of FIG. 6,
there may be a peak antenna resonance associated with slot 70. The
position of the peak resonance may be determined by the length of
perimeter P. In general, the peak resonance of the slot antenna
portion of the antenna of device 10 is located where the
radio-frequency signal wavelength is equal to the length of
perimeter P. In device 10, the perimeter P of slot 70 may be
determined by the size of the rectangular opening formed by bezel
14 and frame/housing 12/290 and by the modifications to this
rectangular opening that arise from the presence of connector 20
and flex circuit 288. If desired, the locations and shapes of dock
connector 20 and flex circuit 288 may be selected so that the
perimeter length reduction (2LB) that arises from the presence of
flex circuit 288 cancels out the perimeter length addition (2LA)
that arises from the presence of dock connector 20 (i.e., lengths
LA and LB may be substantially equal).
[0216] As shown in FIG. 25, components such as microphone 244,
button 320, and speaker 316 may also overlap with slot 70. These
components may be prevented from significantly altering the value
of antenna slot perimeter P by using isolation circuitry. For
example, inductors may be placed on the leads of microphone 244
(e.g., in circuitry 328). Similarly, inductors may be placed on the
leads of speaker 316 (e.g., in circuitry 314). Inductors may also
be placed on the leads of button 320 (see, e.g., components 330).
At low frequencies, such as at frequencies in the kilohertz range
and below, which includes the audio frequencies handled by
microphone 328 and speaker 316, the inductors allow current to pass
freely (i.e., the inductors act as short circuits). At radio
frequencies (i.e., at 300 MHz or more, and particularly at
frequencies of 850 MHz to 2.4 MHz or greater), the inductors have a
large impedance and act as open circuits, thereby isolating
microphone 244, speaker 316, and button 320. When microphone 244,
speaker 316, and button 320 are isolated from the radio-frequency
antenna signals, microphone 244, speaker 316, and button 320 do not
affect the value of perimeter P for slot 70 and do not load the
antenna resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B.
[0217] The isolating inductors that are used to isolate electrical
components such as microphone 244, speaker 316, and button 320 may
be conventional wire-wrapped inductors or may be somewhat smaller
inductors of the type that are sometimes referred to as ferrite
chip inductors. An advantage of using ferrite chip inductors is
that they have a small size. An advantage of using conventional
wire-wrapped inductors is that they tend not to create the types of
antenna losses that might arise when using ferrite chip inductors
in close proximity to antenna resonating elements.
[0218] If desired, components such as microphone 244, speaker 316,
and button 320 can be isolated using isolation elements other than
inductors, such as resistors. As shown in FIG. 38, button 320 may,
as an example, be isolated using isolation elements 330 (e.g.,
resistors). Resistors 330 may be placed on the leads of button 320
between button 320 and control circuitry 36 (e.g., where shown by
components 330 in FIG. 25). In a fully assembled handheld
electronic device, button 320 may overlap antenna resonating
elements such as antenna resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B (FIG.
19).
[0219] The close proximity of button 320 and the antenna resonating
elements can create antenna losses. Moreover, the overlap between
button 320 and antenna slot 70 can affect the shape of slot 70 and
its perimeter P, potentially affecting the location of the resonant
peak of the handheld device antenna. By selecting resistors 330 of
sufficient size, the impact of button 320 on perimeter P can be
eliminated or substantially reduced and the possibility of antenna
losses due to the close proximity of button 320 and the antenna
resonating elements can be eliminated or substantially reduced.
[0220] With one suitable arrangement, the values of resistors 330
may be about 3000 ohms. This value is sufficiently high to at least
partially isolate button 320, while allowing direct current (DC)
control signals (e.g., relatively low frequency button press
signals in the kilohertz range or lower) to pass from button 320 to
control circuitry 36. Although described primarily in the context
of isolating menu button 320 from radio-frequency signals,
resistors may be used to isolate any suitable type of electrical
component that is potentially subject to radio-frequency
interference (e.g., any other electrical component that overlaps
slot 70 and/or antenna resonating elements such as antenna
resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B).
[0221] FIG. 39 shows how an electronic component such as menu
button 320 may overlap resonating elements 54-1A and 54-1B (i.e.,
in a top view from the front face or rear face of device 10).
[0222] FIG. 40 shows an illustrative coaxial cable of the type that
may be used for coaxial cables 56A and 56B in handheld electronic
device 10. As shown in FIG. 40, cable 56 may have a center
conductor 444. Dielectric layer 446 may surround center conductor
444. Ground conductor 448 may surround dielectric layer 446.
Segments of insulator 450 may surround ground conductor 448 at one
or more locations along the length of coaxial cable 56. Cable 56
may have one or more exposed (bare) segments of ground conductor
448 at one or more locations 452 along the length of cable 56. At
least some of locations 452 may be spaced so that they are
equidistant from each other. If desired, some of locations 452 may
be spaced at locations that are not equidistant with respect to
each other. There may be any suitable number of locations 452
(e.g., one, two, three, more than three, etc.). There may also be
any suitable number of insulating segments 450 (e.g., no segments,
one segment, two segments, three segments, more than three
segments, etc.). Ferrules 226 or other suitable conductive
fasteners may be crimped or otherwise mechanically and electrically
attached to ground conductor 448 of cable 56 in locations 452. If
desired, additional layers of material (e.g., insulating and
conductive material) may be included in cable 56. The layers of
insulator and conductor that are shown in FIG. 40 are merely
illustrative.
[0223] Cables such as cable 56 of FIG. 40 with alternating exposed
ground conductor and insulated segments may be formed using any
suitable technique (e.g., by selectively covering a bare cable with
insulating segments, by selectively stripping an insulated cable,
or by using a combination of these techniques). Insulating
materials that may be used in cable 56 include
polytetrafluoroethylene, polyvinylchloride, etc. Conductive
materials that may be used in cable 56 include copper, aluminum,
metallized polyester tape, etc.
[0224] An antenna performance graph showing how the resonant peak
of a handheld electronic device antenna having a ground plane with
a slot can be adjusted by positioning electronic components to
change the inner perimeter of the slot is shown in FIG. 41. The
resonant frequency peak of a communications band being handled by
an antenna that contains a slot of a given inner perimeter may be
f.sub.a (as an example). The inner perimeter of the slot is
generally equal to about one wavelength of the radio-frequency
signal. Proper operation of the antenna at frequency f.sub.a may be
ensured by positioning components such as a dock connector, flex
circuit, conductive housing, and conductive bezel relative to one
another to achieve an inner perimeter of a desired length.
[0225] When designing an antenna to operate in another frequency
band, the shape of the antenna slot and its inner perimeter can be
changed accordingly. For example, if it is desired to design an
antenna for operation at a frequency f.sub.b that is larger than
frequency f.sub.a, the inner perimeter P may be shortened. This
will cause the resonant frequency of the antenna to shift from the
frequency f.sub.a (solid line 500) to f.sub.b (dotted line 502), as
shown in FIG. 41. One way to shorten the inner perimeter of an
antenna slot in an antenna ground plane involves positioning a dock
connector, flex circuit or other component(s) in device 10 so that
an end of the slot is truncated (as an example). In general, any
suitable adjustments may be made to the positions of the dock
connector, flex circuit, bezel, conductive housing, or other
conductive components in a handheld electronic device to achieve a
desired slot shape and inner perimeter.
[0226] 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.
* * * * *