JP3369810B2 - Communication module - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a millimeter-wave band transceiver, for example, a communication module used in a local wireless transmission system.

2. Description of the Related Art At high frequencies such as millimeter waves, the thickness of the skin becomes thin, so that the transmission loss due to wiring arrangement becomes very large. For example, when the frequency is 60 GHz and the metal used for the wiring is gold, the skin thickness is about 0.3 μm. For this reason, in the transmission / reception module used for millimeter-wave wireless, the loss in the power supply line connecting the transmission / reception unit and the antenna is large. Therefore, in a transceiver used for millimeter-wave radio, an attempt has been made to form a module integrated with an antenna by forming a planar antenna on a millimeter-wave module IC, that is, MMIC. For example, an antenna-integrated MMIC disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-21203 is composed of an active element and a passive element,
An antenna is formed on the upper surface of the MMIC that performs functional operations such as amplification and modulation, with another insulating layer interposed. At this time, for example, a GaAs substrate is used for the MMIC, and polyimide is used for the insulating layer. With such a configuration, the power supply line for supplying power from the output circuit unit to the antenna can be short, and it is possible to suppress loss when power is supplied to the antenna even in a high frequency band such as a millimeter wave. On the other hand, there is also a problem due to the antenna being formed integrally with the MMIC. Once the MMIC is manufactured, the radiation pattern, the frequency band of the antenna, and the antenna impedance are fixed. Normally, impedance matching is performed so that the power supplied to the antenna is efficiently radiated into the space through the antenna, but once the antenna is integrally molded, it is difficult to adjust the impedance after creation.
R> difficult. It is difficult to remove the impedance mismatch due to the deviation from the design value of the circuit on the manufactured MMIC and the variation in the characteristics in the lot when mass-produced by adjusting the subsequent process. In addition, parasitic elements may be stacked on the antenna in order to change the directivity of the antenna or extend the frequency band. However, parasitic elements on the antenna, also called parasitic elements, generally have an active element area. Since it is larger than, it causes an increase in MMIC area,
It becomes a factor that hinders downsizing and price reduction. Further, since the MMIC and the antenna are integrally molded, the MMIC must be individually manufactured in order to realize a module having different radiation patterns and frequency bands. When millimeter waves are used for wireless transmission in a closed space like an office wireless LAN, the propagation environment such as the influence of multipath due to proximity reflection and the like is generally complicated. Therefore, as an antenna, it is necessary to meet various requirements such as directivity and frequency band. However, in the case where the antenna is formed integrally with the MMIC, it has been a great limitation in manufacturing the element or applying the element to the system for the above reason.

When an electromagnetic wave in the millimeter wave band is used for a wireless LAN on a premises, multiple reflections occur due to furniture, walls, ceilings, etc. in the room, which complicates the propagation environment and causes various antennas. Directivity, frequency band, etc. are required. On the other hand, MMICs with built-in antennas are being actively researched for the purpose of suppressing the problem peculiar to millimeter waves, that is, the loss on the feeder line to the antennas as much as possible. Was difficult to meet. The object of the present invention is to eliminate the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, without increasing the area of pellets, and
An object of the present invention is to provide a module incorporating an antenna having various directivities, frequency bands, and input impedances without changing the type of MMIC.

According to the present invention, there is provided a communication signal processing section, a feeding antenna layer provided on the communication signal processing section side, and a parasitic antenna layer non-directly coupled to the feeding antenna layer. Provided is a communication module configured with a configured multi-layered antenna. According to the present invention, in an antenna having a multi-layered planar structure, an antenna pattern, which is DC-connected to a power supply line for supplying power to the antenna from an output circuit on a millimeter wave module IC (MMIC), is formed on the MMIC. And a part or the whole of the layer not connected to the power supply line and the direct current is formed in a part of the module in which the MMIC is mounted or an external part having a mechanism to be attached to the module. Alternatively, a transmission / reception module, that is, a communication module is provided. According to the present invention, in the communication module with a built-in antenna, the antenna is composed of a multi-layered plane, and the parasitic element to which the feeding line is not connected, that is, the parasitic element is formed in a layer spatially separated from the MMIC. The directivity and frequency band of the antenna can be changed without changing the above configuration, and it becomes possible to cope with various radio wave propagation environments. In addition, by forming a parasitic element, which is not connected in a direct current manner by a power supply line that forms a part of the antenna, that is, a parasitic element outside the MMIC, the advantage of the antenna-integrated MMIC is that the power is fed from the output circuit to the antenna. It is possible to reduce the area of the MMIC while keeping the effect of minimizing the transmission loss on the line.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a communication module, particularly a millimeter wave module, according to an embodiment of the present invention. According to this embodiment, the patch antenna 1 is provided on the millimeter wave module IC, that is, the MMIC 11, which performs processing of communication signals for transmission and reception.
2 and a circuit (not shown) including an active element are integrally formed. The MMIC 11 is mechanically connected to the module base 14 with solder or resin adhesive. Further, it is electrically connected to the circuit of the base 14 by the thin metal wire 15. The parasitic element 16 is formed on the module lid body 13. By mounting the lid body 13 on the module base body 14, the parasitic element 16 of the lid body 13 and the module base body 1 are mounted.
4 is combined with the patch antenna 12 on the MMIC 11 to complete the antenna. According to the above-mentioned antenna, the position and shape of the parasitic element 16 on the lid 13, or the patch antenna pattern 12 on the MMIC 11 and the lid 1 are used.
By appropriately setting the distance to the parasitic element 16 formed in No. 3, the antenna directivity, gain, frequency band, etc. can be obtained in a good state with a high degree of freedom. Therefore, unlike the conventional case where all the antennas are fixedly configured on the MMIC 11, various characteristics of the antenna can be changed to desired values at the stage of attaching the lid even after the MMIC is manufactured. It is possible to realize a transmission / reception or transmission / reception module that can support various propagation environments. The parasitic element 16 may be provided on the front surface of the lid body 13, that is, on the outer surface of the module as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, or on the back surface of the lid body 13, that is, as shown in FIG. It may be provided on the inner surface of the module. Although not shown in the drawing, they may be provided on both the front and back surfaces of the lid 13. The parasitic element 16 is formed and arranged so as to be displaced with respect to the patch antenna pattern 12 formed on the MMIC 11 so that the directivity changes when the lid 13 is rotated. In FIGS. 1 to 3, the parasitic element 16 forming a part of the antenna is the lid 13 of the module.
However, the present invention is characterized in that a part of the planar antenna including the feed line is formed on the MMIC and the remaining parasitic elements are formed on the module on which the MMIC is mounted. The surface on which the parasitic element is formed does not have to be the lid. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, a substrate 17 provided with a parasitic element 16 separately from the lid 13 for sealing the MMIC may be movably attached to the top of the lid 13.
In addition, the antenna directivity, gain, frequency band, etc. are automatically adjusted so that the lid 13 provided with the parasitic element 16 and the parasitic element substrate 17 can be automatically driven by a driving device such as a motor. It may be configured. Further, the module base body 14 or the lid 13 may be provided with a thread cut so as to facilitate synchronization, and may be fixed at an appropriate position. Furthermore, it is possible to prepare a plurality of lids and substrates each having a parasitic element, and to replace them according to the place of use. 1 to 3, the thin metal wire 1
Although the electrical connection between the MMIC 11 and the module base 14 is made by using 5, the flip chip connection method may be adopted. That is, as shown in FIG.
The electrode 20 for electrical connection formed on the module base 14
To be connected to the wiring of the base 14. In this case, the connection is generally made with solder. Further, the present invention is characterized in that a part of the planar antenna including the feed line is formed on the MMIC and the remaining parasitic elements are provided on the module on which the MMIC is mounted. It may be provided on the back surface of 14. FIG. 6 shows an embodiment in which the patch antenna coupled by the slot 22 is integrated with the module. In FIG. 6, the feeding plate 22 having the feeding line 21 and the slot 2
The slot plate 24 having the number 3 and the lid body 26 on which the parasitic element 25 is disposed are arranged to face each other. In this embodiment, in the example of FIG. 7, the portion up to the feed line 21 is formed in the MMIC 11, and the slot 23 and the patch type parasitic element 25 are provided in the lid 26. In the example of FIG. 8, the portion up to the ground plane where the slot 23 is located is the MMIC.
11, the patch-type parasitic element 25 is provided on the lid body 2.
6 is formed. FIG. 9 shows an example of a slot-coupled patch antenna corresponding to two discrete frequencies.
When the slot-coupled antenna is applied to the present invention as described with reference to FIG. 6, for example, the lowermost feed line 21 is MMI.
Provided on C11, the uppermost parasitic patch, that is, the parasitic element 25 is provided on the module, that is, the module base 14. Even if the intermediate second and third layers, that is, the slot plates 24a and 24b are provided on the MMIC 11, the module substrate 1
4 may be provided. According to the present invention, for example, the fourth-layer feed line 21 and the third-layer slot plate 24b are connected to the MMIC1.
When it is provided in No. 1, an antenna compatible with two frequencies can be realized by configuring the first and second layers, that is, the lid (parasitic element plate) 26 and the slot plate 24a on the module.
An antenna compatible with a single frequency can be realized by configuring only the layer on the module. By increasing the number of layers, it is possible to support multiple frequencies. Also, by setting the shape and position of the slot to appropriate values, the input impedance and frequency of the antenna can be changed over a wide range. In addition to this, by combining the present invention with a known planar multilayer antenna, it is possible to realize an antenna-integrated transmission or reception or transmission / reception module equipped with an antenna having a wide range of radiation patterns, frequency bands, and input impedances. Although FIG. 1 illustrates the embodiment using the leadless chip carrier type module, the present invention is not limited to this. That is, the shape of the module may be a quad flat package or a transfer mold type package.

According to the present invention, the directivity, frequency band, and impedance of the antenna can be adjusted after manufacturing the MMIC, so that the radiation pattern can be optimized and the impedance matching can be easily performed according to the propagation environment.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a millimeter wave module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a cross-sectional view of the millimeter wave module of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a millimeter wave module which is a modification of the embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a millimeter wave module according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view of a millimeter wave module according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a main part of a millimeter wave module of another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a slot coupling antenna.

7 is a sectional view of the millimeter wave module of the embodiment of FIG.

8 is a cross-sectional view of a millimeter wave module that is a modification of the embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a main part of a millimeter wave module of another embodiment applied to a slot-coupled antenna.

[Explanation of Codes] 11 ... MMIC, 12 ... Antenna, 13 ... Lid, 14 ...
Module base 15 ... Metal thin wire, 16 ... Parasitic element, 17 ... Parasitic element substrate 21, Feed line, 22 ... Slot, 25 ... Parasitic element,
26 ... Lid

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Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A communication module having a built-in antenna and performing at least one of transmission and reception: a communication signal processing section; and a parasitic element composed of a single layer or a plurality of layers including an uppermost layer of a multilayer planar antenna. And a non-direct current-coupled parasitic element to the parasitic antenna constituting the remaining layers of the multilayer planar antenna, the parasitic element being arranged so as to be displaceable with respect to the parasitic antenna element. And a multi-layered structure antenna. 2. The feeding antenna element has a patch antenna pattern formed on a millimeter wave module IC as the communication signal processing section, and the parasitic element is formed on a lid mounted on the millimeter wave module IC. The communication module according to claim 1, wherein the communication module is provided. 3. A communication module having a built-in antenna and performing at least one of transmission and reception, comprising: a communication signal processing section; a feeding antenna element and a parasitic element non-directly coupled to the feeding antenna element. The multi-layered antenna described above, wherein the feeding antenna element has a patch antenna pattern formed on a millimeter wave module IC as the communication signal processing unit, and the parasitic element is the millimeter wave module IC.
A communication module, characterized in that it is formed on a lid mounted on, and the lid is movable with respect to the millimeter wave module IC.