Portable wireless repeater system for indoor wireless coverage enhancement of residential, small office, and vehicular applications
A portable wireless signal repeater module having embedded integrated patch antennas is installed on a window of a house or office or the interior surface of a vehicle's windshield. The module has two sets of embedded patch antennas, which, when mounted on a window, one set faces outdoors and another face indoors. Signals from nearby cellular service provider's transmitters are received by embedded patch antennas facing outdoors, filtered, amplified, and through a duplexer, passed on to the embedded patch antennas facing indoors for propagation within the indoor environment. Signals from handsets indoors are received by embedded patch antennas of the repeater module facing indoors, filtered, amplified, and through a duplexer, passed on to the embedded antennas facing outdoors for propagation toward nearby cellular service provider's receiver.
1. A repeater module for wireless communication, comprising:
a housing;
a first outdoor-facing patch antenna coupled to a first forward-path dual-band directional coupler;
a second outdoor-facing patch antenna coupled to the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler;
a first indoor-facing patch antenna coupled to a first reverse-path dual-band directional coupler; and
a second indoor-facing patch antenna coupled to the first reverse-path dual-band directional coupler;
wherein an output terminal of the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler is coupled to the first and second indoor-facing patch antennas; and an output terminal of the first reverse-path dual-band directional coupler is coupled to the first and second outdoor-facing patch antennas;
wherein the first outdoor-facing patch antenna and the second outdoor-facing patch antenna are disposed on a first surface of a first printed circuit board: the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler and the first reverse-path dual-band directional coupler are disposed on a second printed circuit board: the first indoor-facing patch antenna and the second indoor-facing patch antenna are disposed on a first surface of a third printed circuit board and the first, second and third printed circuit boards are disposed within the housing such that the first surface of each of the first and third printed circuit boards are facing away from the second printed circuit board.
2. The repeater module of claim 1 , further comprising:
a first duplexer having a receive bandpass filter and a transmit bandpass filter, the receive bandpass filter coupled to an input terminal of a first gain block; a first low-pass filter having an input terminal coupled to an output terminal of the first gain block, and the first low-pass filter having an output terminal;
wherein the first duplexer, the first gain block and the first low-pass filter are disposed in a path between the first outdoor-facing patch antenna and a first terminal of the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler.
3. The repeater module of claim 2 , wherein the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler comprises a first microstrip element having a length substantially equal to one-quarter of a wavelength of a first frequency, a second microstrip element having a length substantially equal to one-quarter of a wavelength of a second frequency, and a main microstrip element disposed between the first and second microstrip elements;
wherein a first end of the main microstrip element is connected to ground, and a second end of the main microstrip element is coupled to an input terminal of a first amplifier gain block.
4. The repeater module of claim 3 , wherein the first microstrip element is positioned relative to the main microstrip element such that a first end of the first microstrip element is disposed a distance from the first end of the main microstrip element, the distance being substantially equal to one-quarter of a wavelength of the first frequency.
5. The repeater module of claim 4 , wherein the first frequency is approximately equal to the midpoint of the passband of the receive bandpass filter of the first duplexer.
6. The repeater module of claim 3 , further comprising:
a second duplexer having a receive bandpass filter and a transmit bandpass filter, the receive bandpass filter coupled to an input terminal of a second gain block; a first high-pass filter having an input terminal coupled to an output terminal of the first gain block, and the first high-pass filter having an output terminal;
wherein the second duplexer, the second gain block and the first high-pass filter are disposed in a path between the second outdoor-facing patch antenna and a second terminal of the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler.
7. The repeater module of claim 6 , wherein the second microstrip element is positioned relative to the main microstrip element such that a first end of the second microstrip element is disposed a distance from the first end of the main microstrip element, the distance being substantially equal to one-quarter of a wavelength of the second frequency.
8. The repeater module of claim 7 , wherein the second frequency is approximately equal to the midpoint of the passband of the receive bandpass filter of the second duplexer.
9. The repeater module of claim 6 , wherein the passband of the receive bandpass filter of the first duplexer is 925 MHz to 960 MHz, and the passband of the receive bandpass filter of the second duplexer is 1805 MHz to 1880 MHz.
10. The repeater module of claim 6 , wherein the passband of the receive bandpass filter of the first duplexer is 869 MHz to 894 MHz, and the passband of the receive bandpass filter of the second duplexer is 1930 MHz to 1990 MHz.
11. A repeater module for wireless communication, comprising:
a housing;
a first patch antenna, the first patch antenna having a feed terminal;
a first duplexer, the first duplexer having a first common port and a first receive bandpass filter output terminal, the first common port coupled to the feed terminal of the first patch antenna;
a first amplifier gain block having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of the first amplifier gain block coupled to the first receive filter output terminal;
a first low-pass filter having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal coupled to the output terminal of the first amplifier gain block;
a first forward-path dual-band directional coupler coupled to the output terminal of the first low-pass terminal;
a second patch antenna, the second patch antenna having a feed terminal;
a second duplexer, the second duplexer having a second common port and a second receive filter output terminal, the second common port coupled to the feed of the second patch antenna;
a second amplifier gain block having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of the second amplifier gain block coupled to the second receive filter output terminal; and
a first high-pass filter having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal coupled to the output terminal of the second amplifier gain block, the output terminal of the first high-pass filter coupled to the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler;
wherein the first patch antenna and the second patch antenna are disposed on a first surface of a first printed circuit board, the first duplexer, the second duplexer, the first amplifier gain block, the second amplifier gain block, the first low-pass filter, the first high-pass filter, the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler, the first amplifier chain, the first diplexer, the first isolator, the second isolator, the third duplexer, and the fourth duplexer are disposed on a second printed circuit board, and the third patch antenna and the fourth patch antenna are disposed on first surface of a third printed circuit board, and the first, second and third printed circuit boards are disposed within the housing such that the first surface of each of the first and third printed circuit boards are facing away from the second printed circuit board.
12. The repeater module of claim 11 , wherein the second printed circuit board is disposed between the first and third printed circuit boards.
13. The repeater module of claim 12 , wherein a feed line of the first patch antenna is coupled to the first duplexer through a first subminiature snap-on connector, a feed line of the second patch antenna is coupled to the second duplexer through a second subminiature snap-on connector, a feed line of the third patch antenna is coupled to the third duplexer through a third subminiature snap-on connector, and a feed line of the fourth patch antenna is coupled to the fourth duplexer through a fourth subminiature snap-on connector.
14. The repeater module of claim 13 , further comprising a rechargeable battery pack disposed within the housing.
15. The repeater module of claim 13 , further comprising a means for removably attaching the housing to a surface of a window.
16. A method of extending an area in which cellular telephones are operable, comprising:
attaching a housing to a surface of a window, the housing having disposed therein:
a first patch antenna, the first patch antenna having a feed terminal;
a first duplexer, the first duplexer having a first common port and a first receive bandpass filter output terminal, the first common port coupled to the feed terminal of the first patch antenna;
a first amplifier gain block having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of the first amplifier gain block coupled to the first receive bandpass filter output terminal;
a first low-pass filter having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal coupled to the output terminal of the first amplifier gain block;
a first forward-path dual-band directional coupler coupled to the output terminal of the first low-pass terminal;
a second patch antenna, the second patch antenna having a feed terminal;
a second duplexer, the second duplexer having a second common port and a second receive bandpass filter output terminal, the second common port coupled to the feed of the second patch antenna;
a second amplifier gain block having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal of the second amplifier gain block coupled to the second receive bandpass filter output terminal; and
a first high-pass filter having an input terminal and an output terminal, the input terminal coupled to the output terminal of the second amplifier gain block, the output terminal of the first high-pass filter coupled to the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler.
17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the first patch antenna and the second patch antenna are disposed on a first surface of a first printed circuit board, the first duplexer, the second duplexer, the first amplifier gain block, the second amplifier gain block, the first low-pass filter, the first high-pass filter, the first forward-path dual-band directional coupler, the first amplifier chain, the first diplexer, the first isolator, the second isolator, the third duplexer, and the fourth duplexer are disposed on a second printed circuit board, and the third patch antenna and the fourth patch antenna are disposed on first surface of a third printed circuit board, and the first, second and third printed circuit boards are disposed within the housing such that the first surface of each of the first and third printed circuit boards are facing away from the second printed circuit board.