MIMO antenna system
View Patent ↗A wireless local area network (“WLAN”) antenna array (“WLANAA”) includes a circular housing having a plurality of radial sectors and a plurality of primary antenna elements configured as Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output (MIMO) antennas. Each primary antenna element, which includes multiple antennas connected to a single radio, being positioned within a radial sector of the plurality of radial sectors.
1. A wireless local area network (“WLAN”) antenna array (“WLANAA”) comprising:
a circular housing having a plurality of radial sectors; and
at least one radio in each radial sector, each of the at least one radio having:
a plurality of transceivers configured to send and receive wireless communications via a plurality of antenna elements configured as Mulitple-Input, Multiple-Output (“MIMO”) antennas wherein each of the plurality of antenna elements are positioned within an individual radial sector of the plurality of radial sectors; and
a baseband processor configured to process baseband signals to be sent or received by the plurality of transceivers.
2. The WLANAA of claim 1 further including at least one absorber element between each radial sector.
3. The WLANAA of claim 2 further including a plurality of absorber elements where each absorber element of the plurality of the absorber elements is located between an adjacent pair of primary antenna elements.
4. The WLANN of claim 1 where the plurality of radios are coupled to MIMO antennas that are of:
a first type of MIMO antennas for communicating signals that conform to the IEEE 802.11bg standard; or
a second type of MIMO antennas for communicating signals that conform to the IEEE 802.11a standard.
5. The WLANAA of claim 4 where the first type of MIMO antennas include three dual-monopole antennas substantially evenly spaced along a perimeter of the radial sector of the radio connected to the first type of MIMO antennas.
6. The WLANAA of claim 4 where the second type of MIMO antennas include two dual-polarized antennas configured at the +45° and −45° polarizations and one two-element dipole antenna orthogonal to the dual-polarized antennas.
7. The WLANAA of claim 6 where the two-element dipole antenna is embedded on a main RF printed circuit board (“PCB”) and the two dual-polarized antennas are printed on an antenna printed circuit board (“antenna PCB”) mounted substantially vertical relative to the main RF PCB.
8. The WLANAA of claim 7 where the two dual-polarized antennas are two element patch antenna sub-arrays configured at the +45° and −45° polarizations.
9. The WLANAA of claim 4 where the second type of MIMO antennas include two linearly polarized antennas and one two-element dipole antenna orthogonal to the two linearly polarized antennas.
10. The WLANAA of claim 9 where the two-element dipole antenna is embedded on a main RF printed circuit board (“PCB”) and the two dual-polarized antennas are printed on an antenna printed circuit board (“antenna PCB”) mounted substantially vertical relative to the main RF PCB.
11. The WLANAA of claim 9 where the two linearly polarized antennas are two 1×2 dipole element sub-arrays.
12. The WLANAA of claim 9 further comprising a reflector between the two 1×2 dipole element sub-arrays.
13. The WLANAA of claim 1 where the at least one radio in each radial sector communicates over a first type of MIMO antennas for communicating signals that conform to the IEEE 802.11bg standard, the WLANAA further including:
a second plurality of radial sectors within the same circular housing, each of the second plurality of radial sectors including a second type of radio for communicating via a second plurality of antenna elements configured as second-type MIMO antennas for communicating signals that conform to the IEEE 802.11a standard.