Rotatable antenna apparatus

Abstract

A rotatable antenna apparatus has a fixed unit for attachment of the apparatus to an external structure, and a rotatable unit mounted on the fixed unit for rotation relative to the fixed unit. The rotatable unit comprises both an antenna assembly and processing circuitry coupled to the antenna assembly for performing signal processing operations. The apparatus further includes a thermally conductive shaft connected to the rotatable unit and located for rotation within the fixed unit, and a thermally conductive coupling structure to conduct heat from one or more heat generating components of the processing circuitry into the thermally conductive shaft. A heat sink within the fixed unit is thermally coupled to the thermally conductive shaft to draw heat away from the thermally conductive shaft. This provides an efficient mechanism for removing heat from the rotatable unit, whilst still allowing the rotatable unit to be sealed against external environmental conditions.

Claims

1. A rotatable antenna apparatus comprising: a fixed unit for attachment of the apparatus to an external structure; a rotatable unit mounted on the fixed unit and comprising an antenna assembly and processing circuitry coupled to the antenna assembly for performing signal processing operations; a thermally conductive shaft connected to the rotatable unit and located for rotation within the fixed unit; a thermally conductive coupling structure to conduct heat from one or more heating generating components of the processing circuitry into the thermally conductive shaft; and a heat sink formed within the fixed unit and thermally coupled to the thermally conductive shaft.

2. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein: the thermally conductive coupling structure comprises a component interface structure thermally coupled to said one or more heat generating components, and an elongate member coupling the component interface structure to the thermally conductive shaft.

3. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the elongate member extends into a recess provided within the thermally conductive shaft.

4. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the elongate member extends into a further recess provided within the component interface structure.

5. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the component interface structure comprises a first part arranged for thermally coupling to said one or more heat generating components and a second part connected to the first part so as to clamp the elongate member between the first part and the second part.

6. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein thermal paste is applied between the elongate member and at least one of the component interface structure and the thermally conductive shaft.

7. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein the elongate member comprises a heat pipe.

8. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a heat pad sandwiched between said one or more heat generating components and the component interface structure in order to provide the thermal coupling between the component interface structure and said one or more heat generating components.

9. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat sink is thermally coupled to the thermally conductive shaft via a cooling fluid.

10. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the thermally conductive shaft is positioned in a locating recess within the fixed unit and the cooling fluid is provided in the locating recess.

11. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the heat sink is provided around a periphery of the locating recess.

12. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein the thermally conductive shaft is provided with a series of splines around its peripheral edge defining fluid receiving passages for the cooling fluid.

13. A rotatable antenna apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotatable unit includes a thermally conductive housing in which the processing circuitry is located, the thermally conductive housing being coupled to the thermally conductive shaft to provide an auxiliary path for conduction of heat to the heat sink.

14. A rotatable antenna apparatus comprising: fixed means for attachment of the apparatus to an external structure; rotatable means for mounting on the fixed means and comprising an antenna means and processing means coupled to the antenna means for performing signal processing operations; a thermally conductive shaft means connected to the rotatable means and located for rotation within the fixed means; a thermally conductive coupling means for conducting heat from one or more heating generating components of the processing means into the thermally conductive shaft means; and heat sink means within the fixed means for thermal coupling to the thermally conductive shaft means.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The present technique will be described further, by way of example only, with reference to embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a rotatable antenna apparatus in accordance with one embodiment;

(3) FIG. 2 illustrates a rotatable antenna apparatus of one embodiment;

(4) FIG. 3 illustrates the rotatable antenna apparatus of FIG. 2 with a radome fitted to enclose the rotatable portion of the antenna apparatus;

(5) FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing certain components provided within the rotatable antenna apparatus of one embodiment;

(6) FIG. 5 is a further cross-sectional view showing in more detail the thermal path provided within the apparatus to dissipate heat from heat generating components, in accordance with one embodiment;

(7) FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing certain components used to dissipate heat away from the heat generating components in accordance with one embodiment;

(8) FIG. 7 is an exploded view showing components provided to form a thermally conductive coupling structure in accordance with one embodiment;

(9) FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate the thermally conductive shaft used in one embodiment;

(10) FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing in more detail the provision of the thermally conductive shaft within the fixed unit in accordance with one embodiment; and

(11) FIG. 10 shows a cross-section through the base unit and thermally conductive shaft in accordance with one embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

(12) FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a rotatable antenna apparatus in accordance with one embodiment. The apparatus 10 includes a fixed unit 20 that is arranged to be attached to an external structure, for example an item of street furniture such as a lamp post. A rotatable unit 25 is then mounted on the fixed unit 20 via a thermally conductive shaft 40 located in a recess of the fixed unit and free to rotate within that recess so as to allow the rotatable unit to rotate as indicated by the arrow 70.

(13) The rotatable unit includes an antenna assembly 30 containing one or more antennas used to transmit and/or receive wireless signals, the antenna assembly being connected to associated processing circuits 35 via a series of wired connections. The processing circuits may for example include transceiver circuits used to perform various signal processing operations on signals received by the antenna, and/or certain pre-transmission signal processing operations on signals to be transmitted by the antenna assembly 30.

(14) For the reasons discussed earlier, it is beneficial to include the processing circuits 35 in close proximity to the antenna assembly 30 within the rotatable unit 25. However, an issue that can arise from such an arrangement is that one or more of the components within the processing circuitry may generate a significant amount of heat during use. In one embodiment, the overall volume of the rotatable unit is relatively small, and further is entirely sealed against atmospheric conditions by a housing including a radome, and hence it is likely that a significant build up of heat will occur within the rotatable unit 25. Such a build up of heat could reduce the working life of the components, and potentially cause the antenna apparatus to shut down due to overheating.

(15) To alleviate this problem, whilst avoiding the need to compromise the seal against external environmental conditions provided by the housing of the rotatable unit 25, a thermally conductive coupling structure 45 is provided to draw heat away from one or more components of the processing circuits to the shaft 40. In addition, the shaft 40 is made of a thermally conductive material, so that the heat transferred by the thermally conductive coupling structure 45 is then transferred into the shaft 40.

(16) Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1, a heat sink 50 is provided around the thermally conductive shaft 40 in order to draw heat away from the thermally conductive shaft. The heat sink then allows the heat to be dissipated into the external environment. In particular, as will be discussed in more detail later with reference to the specific embodiments described, the heat sink can effectively form the main body of the fixed unit 20 and provide a direct contact with the external environment to allow the heat to be dissipated.

(17) To improve the thermal coupling between the rotating shaft 40 and the stationary heat sink 50, a cooling fluid 60 can be introduced at the interface between the thermally conductive shaft 40 and the heat sink 50.

(18) FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a rotatable antenna apparatus in accordance with one embodiment. An antenna assembly 100 is located on a first face of a housing 105, the housing 105 containing within it the processing circuits used to interface with the antenna assembly. In the example shown in FIG. 2 it is assumed that the antenna assembly 100 takes the form of an antenna array comprising an array of separate antennas, and in one embodiment the processing circuitry can communicate individually with each of the antennas in the array.

(19) In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, there is also a rear facing antenna assembly 110 which is also coupled to the processing circuits. The housing 105 and associated antenna assemblies 100, 110 are mounted on a support plate 115 which is connected to the thermally conductive shaft 40 shown in FIG. 1.

(20) As shown in FIG. 2, the fixed unit 125 can incorporate around its periphery a series of fins 130 forming part of the heat sink, providing a significant surface area from which heat can be dissipated into the environment.

(21) As also shown in FIG. 2, an interface unit 120 is provided between the fixed unit and the rotatable unit, this interface comprising a fixed part which in this embodiment includes an annular surface 127 having a series of vertically arranged teeth, and also includes within the fixed part a rotating part connected to the support plate 115. The overall configuration of the interface unit 120 in this embodiment is annular, with the interface unit being mounted on the thermally conductive shaft 40. Accordingly, the interface unit does not interfere with the operation of the thermally conductive shaft. The interface unit can serve a variety of purposes, and in one embodiment is used to enable the routing of cable between the fixed unit and the rotatable unit. In addition, the upstanding teeth provided by the annular service 127 can be used to engage with a drive belt that in turn is connected to a motor 135, such that when the motor is driven, this serves to rotate the rotatable part.

(22) It will be appreciated however that any suitable mechanism may be provided for rotating the rotatable unit of the antenna apparatus, and for provisioning any cabling between the rotatable unit and the fixed unit, and the interface unit 120 is an optional feature not related to the thermal conduction mechanism of the described embodiments.

(23) FIG. 3 illustrates the rotatable antenna apparatus of FIG. 2 with a radome 150 secured over the rotatable portion, hence sealing the rotatable portion of the antenna from external environmental conditions. As mentioned earlier, this enables standard, low cost, components to be used within the rotatable portion of the antenna, due to those components not needing to withstand exposure to external environmental conditions, and the thermal conduction mechanism of the described embodiments allows the heat generated by components provided within the space enclosed by the radome 150 to be drawn away and dissipated through the fins 130 of the heat sink.

(24) FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view, showing certain components provided within the rotatable antenna apparatus of one embodiment, and in particular illustrates the thermally conductive path provided. As shown, a circuit board 200 is provided within the housing 105, the circuit board providing a series of processing circuits, including one or more processing circuits that generate a significant amount of heat. A component interface structure formed in this embodiment by the parts 205, 210 is then provided at a location enabling it to provide a very efficient thermal coupling with those heat generating components, so that the heat generated by those components is transferred into the component interface structure.

(25) As also shown in FIG. 4, the component interface structure formed by the two parts, including in this example a heat block 205 and a heat block clamp 210, clamps around a first end of an elongate member, which in one embodiment is formed by a heat pipe 215, the heat pipe providing a very efficient mechanism for transferring the heat conducted into one end of the heat pipe (from the component interface structure) to the other end of the heat pipe.

(26) As can be seen, the other end of the heat pipe is received within a recess in the thermally conductive shaft 40, and accordingly this mechanism provides an efficient way to route the heat from the components into the shaft, from where it can then be dissipated into the heat sink 50 that surrounds the shaft, so that the heat can be dissipated from the series of fins 130 provided in direct contact with the atmosphere.

(27) As shown in FIG. 4, a series of bearings 220 are provided to allow the shaft 40 to rotate freely within the fixed unit 125. As shown, a narrow gap exists between the outer peripheral edge of the thermally conductive shaft 40 and the heat sink 50. If desired, to improve the thermal transfer between the shaft 40 and the heat sink 50, a cooling fluid can be introduced into the gap.

(28) FIG. 5 illustrates another sectional view taken parallel with the plane of the circuit board 200. In this cross-sectional view, only the first part of the component interface structure is shown, this also being referred to herein as a heat block 205. As clearly shown, the heat pipe 215 is received within a recess of the heat block 205, and passes down into a recess within the shaft 40.

(29) An entry point below the shaft 40 is provided for introducing the cooling fluid into the apparatus during assembly, whereafter a threaded plug 240 is introduced to seal the cooling fluid within the unit, the cooling fluid then providing a thermally efficient heat transfer junction between the rotating shaft 40 and the fixed heat sink 50 with its associated fins 130.

(30) FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of some of the components within the antenna apparatus, and particularly provides more detail of the component interface structure. In particular, the heat block 205 is shaped so as to overlap with the heat generating components on the circuit board 200, and at the interface between the heat block 205 and those components, a series of heat pads 218 can be located to effectively provide direct contact between the heat generating components and the heat pad 205 in order to improve the thermal transfer properties. The second part of the component interface structure is also shown in FIG. 6, and acts to clamp the heat pipe 215 between the heat block 205 and this second part, which is also referred to herein as the heat block clamp 210.

(31) FIG. 7 shows an exploded view of the various parts forming the component interface structure. The heat block 205 and heat block clamp 210 are clamped together by suitable fastening means such as screws or bolts, and serve to clamp one end of the heat pipe 215 within the recesses provided within the heat block 205 and heat block clamp 210. Thermal paste may be applied between the heat block components 205, 210 and the heat pipe 215 in order to further improve the thermal transfer properties.

(32) As also shown in FIG. 7, in the areas of the heat block 205 positioned to overlap with surfaces of heat generating components on the circuit board 200, a surface pattern can be applied to produce a roughened surface against which thermal pads 250 can be adhered. The thermal pads are then pressed directly onto the surface of the relevant components on the circuit board whose heat is to be dissipated via the heat dissipation mechanism described herein.

(33) FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate the construction of the thermally conductive shaft 300 in one embodiment. As shown in FIG. 8A, a recess 315 is provided in the top end of the shaft to receive the heat pipe 215. Further, a series of screw holes 318 are provided to enable the top end of the shaft to be affixed to the support plate 115 supporting the various rotatable components of the antenna apparatus. As shown in both FIGS. 8A and 8B, the shaft has a series of bearings 310, 320 provided thereon to facilitate smooth rotation of the shaft within the heat sink 50.

(34) Further, in one embodiment a series of splines 305 are provided around the outer peripheral edge of the thermally conductive shaft 40 that is thermally coupled to the heat sink 50. The provision of the splines 305 increases the volume of cooling fluid that can be introduced in the gap between the shaft 40 and the heat sink 50, hence improving the effective surface area of the cooling fluid, and hence improving the thermal transfer between the rotating shaft and the heat sink. As also shown in FIG. 8B, a chamber 330 can be provided at the lower end of the shaft to further increase the volume of cooling fluid that can be introduced.

(35) FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing in more detail the various components provided at the interface between the shaft 40 and heat sink 50. As discussed previously, heat passes through the heat pipe 215 into the splined rotating shaft 300 mounted via the bearings 310, 320 for rotation within the heat sink 50. A threaded hole 360 in the bottom bearing plate is provided to allow a predetermined volume of cooling fluid to be administered in an upright position, this hole then being sealed for example using the thread plug 240 discussed earlier with reference to FIG. 5. Various O-ring seals 350 within the design are then used to stop the coolant from escaping. This allows the coolant to act as a thermally conductive media between the thermally conductive shaft and the heat sink 50.

(36) The splined rotating shaft 300 and the heat sink 50 can be made of any suitable thermally conductive material, but in one embodiment both components are formed from aluminium.

(37) FIG. 10 is a cross-section taken through the fixed unit and viewed from underneath. It shows the splined rotating shaft 300 incorporated within the heat sink, which in this embodiment takes the form of a central hub 390 around which a series of splines 385 are provided. As schematically shown by the block 395, other functionality can also be incorporated within the fixed unit, in this example a cable interface 393 to allow power and data connectivity to be provisioned to the fixed unit, from where it can then be routed to components within the rotatable unit. In addition, mounting features 397 can also be provided to enable the fixed unit to be mounted to an external structure such as a lamp post.

(38) From the above described embodiments, it will be seen that such embodiments provide an efficient mechanism for conducting heat away from heat conducting components within the rotatable unit of a rotatable antenna apparatus, by drawing the heat via a thermally conductive coupling structure into the shaft upon which the rotatable unit is mounted. The shaft is made of a thermally conductive material, and is also enclosed by a heat sink that is exposed to the external environment, hence providing an efficient route for dissipating the heat to the external environment. Such an approach does not compromise the sealed nature of the rotatable unit, hence enabling the components within the rotatable unit to continue to be sealed from the external environment, allowing the use of low cost components.

(39) It should further be noted that the heat dissipating mechanism of the described embodiments places no restriction on the manner in which, and the extent to which, the rotatable unit can be rotated.

(40) It has been found that a rotatable antenna apparatus incorporating the heat dissipation mechanism of the above described embodiments can be manufactured in high volumes at low cost, and hence provides an attractive solution for many deployment scenarios requiring rotatable antenna apparatus. In one particular embodiment, such a rotatable antenna apparatus can be deployed in a wireless backhaul network used to connect an access network such as a mobile phone network with the wired telecommunications infrastructure. In one embodiment, such rotatable antenna apparatus can be used at any of the nodes in the backhaul network, and due to the relatively low cost can be readily deployed in a small-cell system.

(41) Although particular embodiments have been described herein, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited thereto and that many modifications and additions thereto may be made within the scope of the invention. For example, various combinations of the features of the following dependent claims could be made with the features of the independent claims without departing from the scope of the present invention.