FR3056343A1 - MULTIPLE ANTENNA FOR RAILWAY APPLICATIONS AND METHODS - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed is a 7-in-1 antenna pattern that includes 4 LTE antennas (162, 164, 168, 170), two WiFi antennas (160, 172), and a GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou (166) plate antenna. Four standard M10 holes that allow for simple mounting in existing installation holes may be present. Communication methods using a 7-in-1 antenna are also provided.

Description

® FRENCH REPUBLIC

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY © Publication number: 3,056,343 (to be used only for reproduction orders) (© National registration number: 17 58561

COURBEVOIE © IntCI ⁸

H01 Q 1/38 (2017.01), G 01 S 19/33

A1 PATENT APPLICATION

©) Date of filing: 15.09.17. © Applicant (s): TAOGLAS GROUP HOLDINGS © Priority: 16.09.16 US 62395779; 05.09.17 US LIMITED— IE. 15695569. @ Inventor (s): QUINLAN RONAN, O'SHEA DERMOT andZARIC ANDELA. (43) Date of public availability of the request: 23.03.18 Bulletin 18/12. ©) List of documents cited in the report preliminary research: The latter was not established on the date of publication of the request. (© References to other national documents © Holder (s): TAOGLAS GROUP HOLDINGS related: LIMITED. ©) Extension request (s): (© Agent (s): SANTARELLI.

MULTIPLE ANTENNA FOR RAILWAY APPLICATIONS AND METHODS.

©) Disclosed is a 7-in-1 antenna configuration which includes 4 LTE antennas (162, 164, 168, 170), two WiFi antennas (160, 172) and a GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou plate antenna (166). Four standard M10 holes that allow simple mounting into existing installation holes may be present. Communication methods using a 7-in-1 antenna are also provided.

FR 3 056 343 - A1

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to antenna assemblies, and more particularly assemblies adapted for use in the field of transport with trains, buses, and trams.

Prior art solutions

Currently available products have a maximum of 2 LTE antennas and possibly a GNSS plate antenna per unit. What is needed is an antenna configuration with four LTE antennas, two WiFi antennas and a GNSS plate antenna.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The disclosed 7-in-1 antenna is configured with 4 standard M10 holes that allow easy mounting into existing installation holes that may be present. The housing includes up to seven separate antenna components positioned within the housing, two or more antenna components that can be isolated from each other.

One aspect of the disclosure relates to antennas comprising: a housing having a lower component and an upper component; a plurality of antenna elements comprising a WiFi antenna, an LTE antenna positioned in the housing; a GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou plate positioned in the box on an M-shaped structure; and one or more insulation plates positioned in the housing between two or more of two antenna elements. In some configurations, the upper component has a curved upper surface and a length greater than a width. The upper component may also have a recess on each side of the upper component along its length. The lower component can be configurable so that the lower component is substantially planar with a length greater than a width. A plurality of anchoring elements can be provided. The anchoring elements can be used to fix the housing, for example, to a mobile device such as a vehicle, a tram or a railway wagon. Suitable anchors may be bolts. A seal can also be provided between the upper part and the lower part of the housing and / or between the antenna housing and the mobile device. The antenna elements can be provided such that the WiFi antenna is adjacent to a first LTE antenna and that the first LTE antenna is adjacent to a second LTE antenna. In at least some configurations, the GPS / GLONASS / Beidou plate is positioned between two LTE antennas. The GPS / GLONASS / Beidou plate can be positioned centrally in the housing along its length. The antenna elements can be arranged in an order from a first side to a second side, where a first WiFi antenna is adjacent to a first LTE antenna which is adjacent to a second LTE antenna, which is adjacent to the GPS plate / GLONASS / Beidou which is adjacent to a third LTE antenna which is adjacent to a fourth LTE antenna which is adjacent to a second WiFi antenna.

Another aspect of the disclosure relates to a method of communicating with multiple antennas comprising: providing an antenna housing having a lower component and an upper component; a plurality of antenna elements comprising a WiFi antenna, an LTE antenna positioned in the housing; a GPS / GLONASS / Beidou plate positioned in the box on an M-shaped structure; and one or more insulation plates positioned in the housing between two or more of two antenna elements; positioning the plurality of antenna elements such that the WiFi antenna is adjacent to a first LTE antenna and that the first LTE antenna is adjacent to a second LTE antenna; and attaching the antenna housing to a surface of a mobile device.

REFERENCES

See, for example:

Train-to-Ground Communication (Huber + Suhner) 12/2015;

SENCITY® Roof-top antenna for trains (Huber + Suhner);

TRNBG-TET Train Antenna (Panorama Antennas) June 11,

2017;

MiMo Rooftcp Antenna DataSheet (TE Connectivity);

Train Antenna 790-2700 (Kathrein);

Train Antenna 1710-3800 (Kathrein); and

Train Antenna 410-470 (Kathrein).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A better understanding of the characteristics and advantages of the present invention will be possible with reference to the following detailed description which describes illustrative embodiments, in which the principles of the invention are used, and to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view from above of a housing for antenna configurations according to the disclosure;

Figure 2 is a perspective view from below of a housing for antenna configurations according to the disclosure;

Figure 3 is a side view of a housing along a long axis for the antenna configurations according to the disclosure;

Figure 4 is a side view of a housing along a short axis for the antenna configurations according to the disclosure;

Figure 5 is a top view of a housing for antenna configurations according to the disclosure;

Figure 6 is an exploded view of the housing illustrating the interior; and Figure 7 is an interior sectional view of a housing for an antenna configuration according to the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As illustrated in Figures 1 to 7, an antenna housing 100 is provided which contains up to seven separate antennas inside the antenna housing 100. The antenna housing can be of a design in two pieces, with an upper cover or an upper part 102 which mates with a lower plate or a lower part 104. The antenna housing 100 is configurable to have a plurality of external surfaces. The upper part 102 has a front face 110, an upper face 112, a first lateral face 114, a second lateral face 116, and a rear face 118. The upper face 112 may be slightly arched, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3, with the first lateral face 114 and a second lateral face 116 extending from the upper face 112 at an angle to a planar or substantially planar lower surface 130 of the lower part 104.

The antenna housing 100 has a length along a long axis between 600 mm and 800 mm, a width of 80 mm to 120 mm, and a height of 100 mm to 125 mm and can be curved along an upper surface (illustrated in Figures 1 and 3) so that the height at a first end and a second end is less than a height at an intermediate point along its long axis. Figures 3 to 4 illustrate a side view of the antenna housing 100 illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 along a long axis (Figure 3) and a short axis (Figure 4). The sides of the antenna housing 100 are curved downwards from an upper face 112 towards an edge which meets the lower part 104.

The antenna housing 100 is made of a material which provides both resistance and protection against environmental elements. A suitable material includes, for example, polycarbonate resin such as LEXAN®. Other materials may be used if desired without departing from the scope of the disclosure. The antenna housing 100 may have a two-piece construction, as illustrated with an upper element 102 (formed for example from LEXAN) and a lower element 104 or base. The base can be formed, for example, of aluminum alloy. The use of an aluminum alloy provides protection against abrasion and corrosion. As illustrated, a pair of indentations 142, 144 is provided along the length of the upper member 102, which provides access to a fixture, such as bolts, which secure the antenna housing 100 to the device located below (such as a tram or train roof). A pair of indentations 142, 144 can be provided on both sides of the top 102 of the antenna housing 100 so that a total of four indentations are provided (two on each side). In other configurations, only one indentation can be provided on each side.

As appreciated in the exploded view of Figure 6, one or more N type plug connectors 120, 122, 124, 126 may be provided to fix the antenna housing 100 on the surface of a target (such as a bus, tram or train) using a corresponding M10 opening 121, 123. In addition, a seal (not shown) may be provided on the lower surface of the antenna housing 100 and / or between the upper part 102 and the lower part 104 of the housing 100. Washers (not shown) may also be provided. The antenna housing 100 can also be grounded.

The lower element 104 can have an outer thickness which is less than a thickness along the rest of the lower element 104, thus forming a lip 105. The upper element 102 can then be placed so that part of the sides interiors of the upper element 102 engage one side of a thicker part of the lower element 104 and the lower surface of the sides rests on the upper part of the upper surface of the lip 105 of the lower element 104.

The set of four antennas with long-term evolution technology (LTE) and multiple input / multiple output (ΜΙΜΟ) allows to use one, two or four service providers at the same time, as illustrated in the figure 7. The antenna design is configurable to also cover the legacy 2G and 3G bands for devices that fall back when 4G is unavailable. In addition, the antennas are configured to ensure the best possible insulation between the same elements; for example, the two central ΜΙΜΟ antennas are configured to prevent self-interference. Two WiFi antennas are provided at each end of the box and a GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou plate is provided in the center. The position and orientation of the illustrated antennas provide optimized performance. The antennas can be provided between the first lateral face 114 and the second lateral face 116 in order to include a first WiFi antenna 160 positioned in the flat lower surface 130 and facing an interior of the housing, a first LTE antenna 162 extending between the planar lower surface 130 and the interior of the housing having an interior surface 182 and a mounting bracket, a second LTE antenna 164 extending between the planar lower surface 130 and the interior of the housing with an interior surface 184, a plate GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou 166 positioned on an M-shaped mounting plate 186, a third LTE antenna 168 extending between the flat bottom surface 130 and the interior of the housing with an interior surface 188, a fourth LTE 170 s antenna extending between the flat bottom surface 130 and the interior of the housing with an interior surface 192, and a second WiFi antenna 172 positioned in the surface i flat bottom 130 and facing an interior of the housing. The positioning of the antenna elements in the interior housing, as illustrated in FIG. 7, allows optimum performance of each of the antennas due to a high degree of insulation between the elements of the same technology. Power connectors 132, 134, 138, 140 are provided from the antenna elements. The power connectors 132, 134, ± 38, 140 are connected to a power cable which passes through the opening 136. The power cable (not shown) connects the antenna elements to the electronics located in the railway wagon below, for example. In addition, one or more insulation plates 190 may be provided inside the antenna housing 100 in order to isolate an antenna element from another antenna element. A variety of connectors can be used for connection to the antenna, including but not limited to RA SMA connectors. As will be appreciated, other connectors may be used without departing from the scope of the disclosure. The interface connection is not shown. However, one or more cable interface connections can be provided, if desired.

An advantage of the disclosure design is a reduction in the number of installations required. The disclosed configuration with 4 LTE antennas provides for a single installation on the roof, for example, of a means of rail transportation to provide a single antenna with seven distinct frequency ranges having a wide variety of frequency coverage. During operation, the antenna can operate on two or more of two multiple frequencies at the same time. In some embodiments, the antenna can operate on all seven at the same time.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, 4G LTE applications require an uplink and a high speed data downlink. High-efficiency, high-gain ΜΙΜΟ antennas are necessary to obtain the required signal-to-noise ratio and the throughput required to solve these problems. The additional WiFi antennas would allow communication between the means of transport, generally for security applications mainly.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described in this specification, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these embodiments are intended by way of example only. Several variations, modifications and replacements will appear to those skilled in the art without departing from being understood that different embodiments of the invention described in this specification can be used in the practice of the invention.

II to

Invention, alternatives must modes

Claims (12)

1. Antenna (100) comprising: a housing having a lower component (104) and an upper component (102); a plurality of antenna elements comprising a WiFi antenna (160), an LTE antenna (162) positioned in the housing; a GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou plate (166) positioned in the housing on an M-shaped structure; and one or more insulation plates (190) positioned in the housing between two or more of two antenna elements. 2. An antenna according to claim 1, in which the upper component has a curved upper surface and a length greater than a width. 3. An antenna according to claim 2, in which the upper component has a recess on each side of the upper component along its length, 4. An antenna according to claim 1, in which the substantially planar with a lower component is longer than a width. 5. An antenna according to claim 1, in addition to a plurality of anchoring elements. 6. An antenna according to claim 5, the anchoring elements are bolts. 7. Antenna according to claim 1, in addition to a seal. 8. An antenna according to comprising in which comprising in which claim 1, the antenna elements are arranged so that the WiFi antenna is adjacent to a first LTE antenna and that the first LTE antenna is adjacent to a second LTE antenna . 9. An antenna according to claim 1, in which the GPS / GLONASS / Beidou plate is positioned between two LTE antennas. ίο 10. An antenna according to claim 1, in which the GPS / GLONASS / Beidou plate is positioned centrally in the housing along its length. 11. An antenna according to claim 1, in which the antenna elements are arranged as follows: a first WiFi antenna, a first LTE antenna, a second LTE antenna, the GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou plate, a third LTE antenna, a fourth LTE antenna and a second WiFi antenna. 12. A method of communication with several antennas comprising: providing an antenna housing having a lower component and an upper component; a plurality of antenna elements comprising a WiFi antenna, an LTE antenna positioned in the housing; a GPS / GLONASS / BeiDou plate positioned in the box on an M-shaped structure; and one or more insulation plates positioned in the housing between two or more of two antenna elements; positioning the plurality of antenna elements such that the WiFi antenna is adjacent to a first LTE antenna and that the first LTE antenna is adjacent to a second LTE antenna; and attaching the antenna housing to a surface of a mobile device.