The Massive Role of Tiny Antennas
March 9, 2018
This article first appeared onNetwork World, by IDG contributor Brent Dietz.
TheShannon-Hartley定理expresses “the maximum rate at which information can be transmitted over a communications channel of a specified bandwidth in the presence of noise.”
译文：无线数据只能如此快。但如果数据速率是有限的，我们如何支持千兆LTE的推出one billion new 5G connectionsby 2025?
Over the next few years, wireless connections will become ubiquitous – not only in our phones, tablets and PCs – but in our home, car and cities, thanks to an unglamorous and often-forgotten RF enabler: the antenna. Far from the laughably chunky antennas of early mobile phones, today’s nearly-invisible antenna systems make high-speed networking possible. They’re evolving as new wireless technologies emerge to satisfy our demand for content on the move.
天线的解剖学
天线解决接收的古老问题，允许设备有效地发送和接收无线信号。增加数据流量在手机的天线上施加压力，减少接收质量，排水电池和令人沮丧的用户。
看，“I See Dead Zones“我的妻子跑到厨房窗户进行小区服务。
The antenna itself is a commodity, a strip of metal embedded within printed circuit boards in a device. Antenna tuning is where the magic happens…
...put on your propeller hats, and keep all hands, arms and legs inside the vehicle.
Like tuning a radio, RF engineers tune antennas to focus on the right frequency at the right time, and when to transmit or receive. Antenna tuning maximizes performance of the antenna, and ultimately, boosts connectivity and performance of the device.
当有多个天线,射频engineers need them to perform in unison. This is calledimpedance matching,requiring adjacent antennas to transmit and receive at the same level. Again, this optimizes performance and efficiency for networking.
When choosing antennas, device manufacturers must account for constantly evolving challenges like increasing frequency bands, thinner metal cases and new ways users interact with their devices. Maximizing the efficiency of antenna solutions is critical for maximizing battery life and delivering the fast user experience we’ve all come to expect.
Trends in antenna solutions
无论设备如何，整体趋势都是朝向更多天线，以满足增加的数据需求。这解释了为什么最新的Wi-Fi路由器看起来像外星人产卵，八个天线的透明管阵列。但是天线并不总是可见的......平均智能手机包括两到四个天线，而最新的尖端智能手机集成了四到七个。
这一趋势在所有类型的网络中都脱颖而出，包括cellular,汽车andWi-Fi.
Cellular networking
Each new smartphone presents a unique set of challenges for antennas. Antennas typically sit near the earpiece and mouthpiece of the phone. Metal frames, edge-to-edge screens and limited antenna real estatemake network connections in a smartphone a daunting challenge. Manufacturers must embed antennas carefully and make sure they’re operating efficiently through methods such as antenna and impedance tuning.
添加到复杂性是频段的增殖。移动运营商和制造商正在使用称为技术carrier aggregationto combine multiple frequency bands – or “carriers” – to increase network performance, requiring antennas to operate across multiple bands at the same time.
With great RF complexity comes great responsibility (that’s how it goes, right?).
To address demand for metal phone cases, edge-to-edge screens and thinner devices, we’re starting to see“天线丛”技术that enables more bands or radio standards with a given number of antennas. Look for additional innovation in this space, as the industry seeks to fit high-performance antenna technology into smaller and smaller packages.
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汽车网络
Antenna innovation has made its way into automobiles too.汽车连接spans GPS satellite navigation, digital satellite radio, Wi-Fi, cellular 4G LTE connections, all routed through – you guessed it – antennas.
大多数汽车天线坐在shark fin on the roof. As with cellular antennas, the goal is always to balance network reception and performance with design and style. Antenna technology is especially important in the era of the autonomous vehicle, where low latency is a must-have to keep self-driving cars from becoming bumper cars.
Wi-Fi networking
天线是什么文章without Wi-Fi? The biggest Wi-Fi trend affecting antennas ismulti-user multiple-input, multiple-output (MU-MIMO)technology.
这对“更多天线”来说是一个相当复杂的术语。
MU-MIMO involves equipping internet routers with more antennas to extend network capacity in the home, without requiring more spectrum. This approach is similar tomassive MIMO，网络运营商将正常数量的天线数量增加了十倍的天线。
Both are typically combined withbeamforming technology,which drives signals directly to the point of use. Beamforming focuses the Wi-Fi signal from the antenna directly to the device to improve signal strength and range.
天线真正是无线网络的微小，无缀合的英雄。无论您是在家，在车内，还是在口袋里用手机走路，那就是保持联系的天线。
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