Abstract:
An electronic device may be provided with a dielectric cover layer and a conductive layer on the dielectric cover layer. The conductive layer may define an opening. A dielectric spacer may be mounted to the cover layer within the opening. A substrate may be mounted to the spacer. Vertical conductive structures may extend from the conductive layer to the substrate and may laterally surround the spacer. A phased antenna array may be formed on the substrate and aligned with the opening. The cover layer may have a dielectric constant and thickness that are selected to form a quarter wave impedance transformer for the array at a wavelength of operation of the array. The spacer and the conductive structures may exhibit a cavity resonance at the wavelength. The array and the conductive structures may radiate radio-frequency signals at millimeter wave frequencies through the dielectric cover layer.
Abstract:
An electronic device may include an antenna having a resonating element, an antenna ground, and a feed. First and second tunable components may be coupled to the resonating element. Adjustable matching circuitry may be coupled to the feed. Control circuitry may use the first tunable component to tune a midband antenna resonance when sensor circuitry identifies that the device is being held in a right hand and may use the second tunable component to tune the midband resonance when the sensor circuitry identifies that the device is being held in a left hand. For tuning a low band resonance, the control circuitry may place the antenna in different tuning states by sequentially adjusting a selected one of the matching circuitry and the tunable components, potentially reverting to a previous tuning state at each step in the sequence. This may ensure that antenna efficiency is satisfactory regardless of antenna loading conditions.
Abstract:
An electronic device may be provided with antenna structures and control circuitry. The antenna structures may include an antenna resonating element arm, an antenna ground, and an antenna feed coupled between the antenna resonating element arm and the antenna ground. The electronic device may include a tunable component configured to tune a frequency response of the antenna structures. The electronic device may also include a substrate, a radio-frequency transceiver on the substrate, control circuitry configured to generate control signals, a flexible printed circuit, and a connector. The connector may mechanically secure the flexible printed circuit to the substrate and may be electrically coupled to the transceiver and the control circuitry. The flexible printed circuit may include a radio-frequency transmission line coupled between the antenna feed and the connector and a control signal path coupled between the tunable component and the connector.
Abstract:
Antenna structures at a given end of an electronic device may include antenna structures that are shared between multiple antennas. The device may include an antenna with an inverted-F antenna resonating element formed from portions of a peripheral conductive electronic device housing structure and may have an antenna ground that is separated from the antenna resonating element by a gap. A short circuit path may bridge the gap. The short circuit path may be a split return path coupled between a first point on the inverted-F antenna resonating element arm and second and third points on the antenna ground. The electronic device may include an additional antenna that includes the antenna ground and metal traces that form an antenna resonating element arm. The antenna resonating element arm of the additional antenna may be parasitically coupled to the inverted-F antenna resonating element and a portion of the split return path.
Abstract:
An electronic device may include an antenna having a resonating element, an antenna ground, and a feed. First and second tunable components may be coupled to the resonating element. Adjustable matching circuitry may be coupled to the feed. Control circuitry may use the first tunable component to tune a midband antenna resonance when sensor circuitry identifies that the device is being held in a right hand and may use the second tunable component to tune the midband resonance when the sensor circuitry identifies that the device is being held in a left hand. For tuning a low band resonance, the control circuitry may place the antenna in different tuning states by sequentially adjusting a selected one of the matching circuitry and the tunable components, potentially reverting to a previous tuning state at each step in the sequence. This may ensure that antenna efficiency is satisfactory regardless of antenna loading conditions.
Abstract:
A housing for a personal electronic device is described herein. The housing may include at least one modular subassembly configured to be arranged within an internal cavity of the housing. The at least one modular subassembly is aligned with a feature external to the housing, is affixed to an interior surface of the internal cavity, and is configured to function both as an antenna and as an internal support member of the housing.
Abstract:
A housing for a personal electronic device is described herein. The housing may include at least one modular subassembly configured to be arranged within an internal cavity of the housing. The at least one modular subassembly is aligned with a feature external to the housing, is affixed to an interior surface of the internal cavity, and is configured to function both as an antenna and as an internal support member of the housing. A hybrid antenna is also described herein. The hybrid antenna can include first and second flexible members capable of facilitating wireless communication, where the first and second flexible members are affixed to one another via a metal member.
Abstract:
Custom antenna structures may be used to improve antenna performance and to compensate for manufacturing variations in electronic device antennas. An electronic device antenna may include an antenna tuning element and conductive structures formed from portions of a peripheral conductive housing member and other conductive antenna structures. The antenna tuning element may be connected across a gap in the peripheral conductive housing member. The custom antenna structures may be used to couple the antenna tuning element to a fixed custom location on the peripheral conductive housing member to help satisfy design criteria and to compensate for manufacturing variations in the conductive antenna structures that could potentially lead to undesired variations in antenna performance. Custom antenna structures may include springs and custom paths on dielectric supports.
Abstract:
An electronic device may be provided with first and second sidewalls, a rear wall, and a display. Multiple antenna panels may be used to convey radio-frequency signals at frequencies greater than 10 GHz. A first antenna panel may radiate through the display while second and third panels radiate through the first and second sidewalls. The second and third panels may be tilted at non-zero angles with respect to the sidewalls. The non-zero angles may be of opposite sign. The non-zero angles may have the same magnitude. The magnitude may be equal to 15 degrees, as one example. Tilting the panels in this way may allow the panels to collectively cover as much of a sphere around the device as possible, including out of coverage areas behind the rear wall caused by conductive material in the rear wall, without requiring additional panels to be disposed within the device.
Abstract:
An electronic device may be provided with an antenna module having a substrate. A phased antenna array of dielectric resonator antennas and a radio-frequency integrated circuit for the array may be mounted to one or more surfaces of the substrate. The dielectric resonator antennas may include dielectric columns excited by feed probes. The feed probes may be printed onto sidewalls of the dielectric columns or may be pressed against the sidewalls by biasing structures. A plastic substrate may be molded over each dielectric column and each of the feed probes in the array. The feed probes may cover multiple polarizations. The array may include elements for covering multiple frequency bands. The dielectric columns may be aligned a longitudinal axis and may be rotated at a non-zero and non-perpendicular angle with respect to the longitudinal axis.