Disclosure of Invention
In this context, the invention provides an antenna assembly comprising:
-at least a first pair of terminals and a second pair of terminals;
-a first coil antenna connected to a first pair of terminals, the first coil antenna being stamped;
-a second coil antenna connected to the second pair of terminals,
wherein the first coil antenna and the second coil antenna are arranged in a first antenna layer comprising at least the first coil antenna and in a second antenna layer comprising at least the second coil antenna and being different from the first antenna layer, respectively, wherein the first coil antenna and the second coil antenna at least partially overlap, and wherein the second coil antenna has a quality factor in empty air that is greater than the first coil antenna.
The use of different types of coil antennas for the first and second antennas, respectively, is predictably ineffective. For example, a first (stamped) coil antenna is expected to be less meaningful than a second coil antenna with a higher quality factor; the first (stamped) coil antenna is considered problematic because it is detrimental to the quality factor of the second coil antenna.
On the contrary, the structure proposed above is relatively balanced when considering the Quality Factor (QF) of the two coil antennas, and achieves satisfactory good results at reduced cost.
According to possible optional functions:
-the first antenna layer comprises at least a third coil antenna (and possibly additional coil antennas) adjacent to the first coil antenna in the first antenna layer;
the third coil antenna (and possibly each additional coil antenna) is stamped;
the second coil antenna has an in-air quality factor higher than 60 (possibly higher than 100, for example in the case of the litz coil antenna mentioned below);
-the second coil antenna comprises at least one wound insulated wire;
-the second coil antenna is a litz coil antenna;
the second coil antenna is formed by a conductive track of a flexible printed circuit;
-the second antenna layer comprises an additional coil antenna contiguous with the first coil antenna in the second antenna layer;
-the first coil antenna is located on a first side on the printed circuit board;
-the second coil antenna is arranged at least partially overlapping the first coil antenna;
generally, the coil antenna layers are located on the first side of the printed circuit board in a non-specified order;
a second face of the printed circuit board opposite to the first face carries a reradiating antenna.
The present invention also provides an antenna assembly comprising:
-at least a first pair of terminals and a second pair of terminals;
-a stamped coil antenna connected to the first pair of terminals;
-a litz coil antenna connected to the second pair of terminals;
wherein the stamped coil antenna and the litz wire coil antenna are arranged in a first antenna layer comprising at least the stamped coil antenna and in a second antenna layer comprising at least the litz wire coil antenna and being different from the first antenna layer, respectively, wherein the stamped coil antenna and the litz wire coil antenna at least partially overlap.
As described above, the first antenna layer may include an additional stamped coil antenna (connected to the third pair of terminals of the antenna assembly). The further stamped coil antenna and the litz coil antenna may also partially overlap.
The invention also provides a wireless charging device which comprises the antenna assembly.
The wireless charging device may further comprise a driver circuit for delivering an alternating current and/or a selection circuit for selecting at least one pair of terminals among at least a first pair of terminals and a second pair of terminals and/or a switching circuit for applying said alternating current across the selected pair of terminals.
Other features and advantages of embodiments of the present invention will be better understood by reading preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Detailed Description
Fig. 1 and 2 show anantenna component 2 according to the invention; 102, two possible embodiments.
Anantenna component 2; 102 includes aprinted circuit board 4; 104 and a plurality ofcoil antennas 6,8, 10; 106,108,110.
Here, thecoil antennas 6,8, 10; 106,108,110 are located on a first side of the printedcircuit board 4. The second side of the printedcircuit board 4, located opposite the first side, may carry other electrical and/or electronic circuitry, such as a reradiating antenna (not shown) in the first embodiment shown in fig. 1, or aconnector 124 such as in the second embodiment shown in fig. 2.
Coil antennas 6,8, 10; 106,108,110 are arranged in a plurality of layers, here firstlayer coil antennas 6, 10; 106,110 are located on the printedcircuit board 4; 104 and a second layer of coil antennas (here comprising asingle coil antenna 8; 108) is located on the first layer ofcoil antennas 6, 10; 106,110 (such that the first layer is interposed between the second layer and the printedcircuit board 4; 104, although the invention is not limited to this configuration, as shown below).
In a first embodiment (as shown in fig. 1), thecoil antennas 6,10 of the first layer are in contact with the printedcircuit board 4.
In a second embodiment (as shown in fig. 2), aferrite plate 105 is interposed between the first layer of coil antennas 106,110 and the printedcircuit board 104.
According to a possible variant, the antenna assembly may comprise at least one further antenna layer comprising one or more coil antennas placed on a second layer of coil antennas (the second layer then comprising a plurality of coil antennas).
A first layer ofcoil antennas 6, 10; 106,110 is a stamped-type coil antenna. In the embodiment described, the two firstlayer coil antennas 6, 10; 106,110 are both stamped coil antennas. The stamped-type coil antenna is a coil antenna stamped in a coil shape from a metal plate, and is therefore made of a common metal.
Such stamped-type coil antennas for wireless charging devices have an in-air quality factor of typically less than 60.
Acoil antenna 8 of a second layer; 108 are litz wire coil antennas. Such litz wire coil antennas are coil antennas formed by wound litz wire, i.e. an insulated wire comprising a plurality of strands insulated from each other.
Litz wire coil antennas for wireless charging devices typically have an in-air quality factor of greater than 100 (and thus greater than the in-air quality factor of stamped-type coil antennas).
According to a possible variant, thecoil antenna 8 may be formed by conductive tracks of a flexible printed circuit. Such antennas typically have an in-air no-load quality factor of about 70 (and thus higher than that of the ram-type coil antennas).
As described above, thecoil antenna 8; 108 here thecoil antennas 6,10 placed on the first layer; 106,110, i.e. in the stamped-type coil antenna 6, 10; 106, 110.
Precisely, thecoil antennas 6, 10; 106,110 are arranged adjacent to each other in a first layer and thecoil antennas 8; 108 are placed in thecoil antennas 6, 10; 106,110 so that they are in electrical communication with thecoil antennas 6, 10; 106,110 overlap.
According to possible variants, the order of the layers (starting from the printedcircuit board 4; 104) can be changed without departing from the invention.
Anantenna component 2; 102 includes a plurality of pairs ofterminals 12, 14; 16, 18; 20, 22; 112, 114; 116, 118; 120,122 connected to the plurality ofcoil antennas 6,8, 10; 106,108, 110.
In the first embodiment shown in fig. 1, theterminals 12,14,16,18,20,22 are electrically conductive pads of the printedcircuit board 4 to which the ends of the associatedcoil antennas 6,8,10 are soldered.
Specifically, thecoil antenna 6 is connected to the first pair ofterminals 12,14, thecoil antenna 8 is connected to the second pair ofterminals 16,18, and thecoil antenna 10 is connected to the third pair ofterminals 20, 22.
In the first embodiment shown in fig. 1, theantenna assembly 2 further comprises aconnector 24, so that each pair ofterminals 12, 14; 16, 18; 20,22 are connected to other electronic components of the wireless charging device equipped with theantenna assembly 2, as further explained below.
With this structure, theantenna assembly 2 is assembled, for example, to a different (main) printed circuit board (not shown) such that thecoil antenna 8 faces a ferrite plate that may be carried by the main printed circuit board, and such that theconnector 24 connects theantenna assembly 2 to the electronic circuitry of the main printed circuit board.
In a second embodiment shown in FIG. 2,coil antenna 106 is connected to a first pair of terminals 112,114,coil antenna 108 is connected to a second pair of terminals 116,118, andcoil antenna 110 is connected to a third pair ofterminals 120, 122.
In this case, the coil antennas 106,108,110 may be connected to the electronic circuitry on the second side of the printedcircuit board 104 through holes in theferrite plate 105, as shown in fig. 2.
Fig. 3 shows elements of a possible electronic circuit for use in thewireless charging device 30 according to the invention.
The electronic circuit is described in the context of the first embodiment shown in fig. 1, but is also applicable to the second embodiment shown in fig. 2.
The electronic circuit is intended to control the current injection in the coil antenna of the antenna assembly. Several methods are known in the art to perform such control of the current injected in the coil antenna, and therefore the electronic circuit now described should be understood as an exemplary and non-limiting solution to perform this control.
In this example, thewireless charging device 30 includes theantenna assembly 2 as described above (or, as a possible variation, theantenna assembly 102 described above), aprocessor 32, adriver circuit 34, and aswitching circuit 36.
Thedriver circuit 34 comprises two terminals P, N for delivering an alternating current, which energizes one of thecoil antennas 6,8,10 (via the switching circuit 36), as described below.
The switchingcircuit 36 includes a firstcontrollable switch 38 and a second controllable switch 40 that are simultaneously controlled by a command signal C generated by theprocessor 32.
The firstcontrollable switch 38 connects the first terminal P (of the two terminals P, N of the driver circuit 34) to any one of thefirst terminals 12,16,20 of the pair of terminals of theantenna component 2 in accordance with a command signal C received from theprocessor 32.
At the same time, the second controllable switch 40 connects the second terminal N (of the two terminals P, N of the driver circuit 34) to any one of thesecond terminals 14,18,22 of the pair of terminals of theantenna component 2 according to a command signal C received from theprocessor 32.
As shown in fig. 3, this arrangement makes it possible to connect one of thecoil antennas 6,8,10 with thedriver circuit 34 such that thedriver circuit 34 excites the coil antenna with an alternating current (the connected coil antenna is determined on the basis of the command signal C received from the processor 32).
The excitation alternating current injected into the connected coil antenna generates an alternating magnetic field, which is used to wirelessly charge the electronic device placed on thewireless charging device 30.
Theprocessor 32 is programmed to select one of thecoil antennas 6,8,10 and to generate a command signal C suitable for controlling the switchingcircuit 36 such that it connects the driver circuit 34 (precisely, its terminals P, N) to the selected coil antenna (precisely, the respective pair of terminals associated with the selected coil antenna).
In this regard, theprocessor 32 is programmed, for example, to select a coil antenna that provides the best coupling for charging an electronic device placed on thewireless charging apparatus 30. The coil antenna that provides the best coupling is determined, for example (by the processor 32) based on measurements made in thedriver circuit 34 and transmitted to theprocessor 32.