JP4815546B2 - ANTENNA DEVICE, COMMUNICATION MODULE, PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE, AND COMMUNICATION METHOD USING THE SAME - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention mainly relates to an antenna device used as a part of a communication module in a portable electronic device.

  When a communication antenna is placed in a portable electronic device such as a cellular phone or other portable terminal, the antenna characteristics are affected by the influence of eddy currents generated in the metal casing of the portable electronic device or the conductor pattern on the circuit board in the portable electronic device. There is a risk of deterioration. In order to solve such a problem, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for arranging a magnetic body in the vicinity of an antenna.

  As technologies relating to RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification), there are those disclosed in Patent Documents 2 to 4. Patent Document 2 discloses a technique related to metal handling of an RFID tag, and Patent Document 3 and Patent Document 4 discuss a communication in a direction other than the main surface of the magnetic body.

JP 2005-275871 A JP 2007-325054 A Japanese Patent No. 3933191 JP-A-2005-33461

  The wireless communication function of recent portable electronic devices is used not only for telephone calls but also for personal authentication and settlement of commercial transactions in various everyday situations. Such personal authentication or the like is realized when the user brings the portable electronic device close to the reader / writer. In order to reduce the operational burden on the user during such personal authentication and complete the processing quickly, it is desirable that the angle at which the portable electronic device and the reader / writer face each other has a certain range when performing data communication. . Therefore, the antenna device provided in the portable electronic device is required to have a wider angle directivity.

  On the other hand, since the antenna device in the portable electronic device must be arranged together with other components in a limited space inside the portable electronic device, the antenna device is affixed to the outer periphery of the product or product that is the object. It differs greatly from the RFID tag in use. For this reason, if the configuration of the RFID tag is applied as it is to the antenna device in the portable electronic device, various problems occur.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an antenna device having a wide-angle directivity and a configuration suitable for use in a portable electronic device.

According to the present invention, as the first antenna device,
An antenna device in which a loop-shaped coil is provided on a substantially rectangular flat soft magnetic material,
The coil is made of a conductor pattern and is formed on an insulator sheet,
A region surrounded by the coil on the insulating sheet at least partially overlaps with a specific edge which is one of the four edges of the soft magnetic material, and does not include an opposing edge facing the specific edge. As described above, the coil is arranged from the front surface to the back surface of the soft magnetic material,
The coil of the conductor pattern, the area included in the region of the surface of the soft magnetic material is larger than the area included in the region of the back surface of the soft magnetic material,
The coil is provided to the vicinity of the opposing edge on the surface side of the soft magnetic body in order to obtain a wide-angle directivity from a direction orthogonal to the surface of the soft magnetic body to a direction orthogonal to the specific edge. An antenna device is obtained.

According to the present invention, the second antenna device is a first antenna device,
The insulator sheet is a step eliminating portion extending from the conductor pattern toward the opposing edge of the soft magnetic material on the back surface of the soft magnetic material, and the region when the antenna device is attached to an object In addition, an antenna device can be obtained that includes a step eliminating portion for eliminating a step between the region where the conductor pattern exists and the region where the conductor pattern does not exist .

According to the present invention, the third antenna device is a first or second antenna device,
An antenna device in which a slit extending along the longitudinal direction of the specific edge is formed in a portion of the insulator sheet located on the specific edge is obtained.

Further, according to the present invention, the fourth antenna device is a first or second antenna device,
An antenna device is obtained in which the insulator sheet is provided with an opening formed so as to include a region on the specific edge.

According to the present invention, as the fifth antenna device, any one of the first to fourth antenna devices,
An antenna device is obtained in which the insulator sheet extends on the front and back surfaces of the soft magnetic material from the specific edge to beyond the opposing edge.

According to the present invention, the sixth antenna device is any one of the first to fifth antenna devices,
An antenna device having a thickness of the soft magnetic material of 0.1 mm or more and 2.0 mm or less is obtained.

According to the present invention, as the seventh antenna device, any one of the first to sixth antenna devices,
Said region is at least partially comprise that the antenna device can be obtained an adjacent edge adjacent to the particular edge of the soft magnetic body.

  Furthermore, according to the present invention, a communication module including any one of the first to seventh antenna devices and a communication circuit connected to the antenna device is obtained.

Moreover, according to this invention, a portable electronic device provided with the above-mentioned communication module is obtained.

Moreover, according to the present invention, the portable electronic device described above,
A conductor and an insulator,
The conductor is a conductor pattern on a circuit board in a metal casing or portable electronic device,
A portable electronic device is obtained in which the communication module is arranged so that the back surface of the soft magnetic material faces the conductor and the antenna device is positioned on the conductor via the insulator. .

  Further, according to the present invention, the above-described portable electronic device is used to communicate with a counterpart communication device in a wide angle range from a direction orthogonal to the front surface and the back surface of the soft magnetic material to a direction orthogonal to the specific edge. A method is obtained.

  Furthermore, according to the present invention, a method of performing communication using the electromagnetic induction effect between the above-described portable electronic device and another portable electronic device can be obtained.

In the antenna device according to the present invention, the coil is arranged from the front surface to the back surface of the soft magnetic material so that the region surrounded by the coil (enclosed region) includes at least a specific edge of the soft magnetic material. Therefore, the antenna device can have directivity over a wide angle from the direction perpendicular to the surface of the soft magnetic material to the direction perpendicular to the specific edge.

  In addition, a coil is formed by providing a conductor pattern on an insulator sheet, and the antenna sheet is installed inside a portable electronic device using a double-sided tape or the like by extending the insulator sheet to a place where no coil exists. When attached to the antenna device, the antenna device can be securely fixed inside the electronic apparatus.

1 is a top perspective view schematically showing an antenna device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a bottom side perspective view which shows the antenna apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows the coil sheet | seat used for the antenna apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows the modification of the coil sheet | seat of FIG. It is a figure which shows the other modification of the coil sheet | seat of FIG. It is a figure which shows the further another modification of the coil sheet | seat of FIG. It is a side view which shows the modification of the antenna apparatus of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the other modification of the antenna apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows the further another modification of the antenna apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows the manufacturing process of the antenna apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows typically the magnetic field strength evaluation object containing the antenna apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows typically the magnetic field strength evaluation object containing the antenna apparatus by a comparative example. It is a figure which shows the spatial distribution of Z component of the magnetic flux density discharge | released in the evaluation object of FIG. It is a figure which shows the spatial distribution of X component of the magnetic flux density discharge | released in the evaluation object of FIG. It is a figure which shows the spatial distribution of the Y component of the magnetic flux density discharge | released in the evaluation object of FIG. It is a figure which shows the spatial distribution of Z component of the magnetic flux density discharge | released in the evaluation object of FIG. It is a figure which shows the spatial distribution of X component of the magnetic flux density discharge | released in the evaluation object of FIG. It is a figure which shows the spatial distribution of the Y component of the magnetic flux density discharge | released in the evaluation object of FIG. It is a figure which shows typically the communication form of a portable electronic device and a reader / writer. It is a figure which shows typically the communication form of a portable electronic device and a reader / writer. It is a figure which shows typically the communication form between portable electronic devices. It is a figure which shows typically the communication form between portable electronic devices. It is a figure which shows typically the communication form between portable electronic devices. It is a figure which shows typically the communication form between portable electronic devices. It is a figure which shows typically the communication form between portable electronic devices. It is a figure which shows the antenna apparatus of the comparative example 1 typically. It is a figure which shows typically the antenna apparatus of Example 1. FIG. It is a figure which shows the antenna apparatus of Example 2 typically. It is a figure which shows the antenna apparatus of Example 3 typically. FIG. 30 is a diagram for supplementing the antenna device in FIGS. 26 to 29. It is a figure which shows typically the evaluation system of the communication distance in a Z direction. It is a figure which shows typically the evaluation system of the communication distance in a X direction. It is a figure which shows typically the evaluation system of the communication distance in a Y direction.

  Hereinafter, antenna devices according to embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. This antenna device is connected to a communication circuit to constitute a communication module. Further, this communication module is provided on a conductor (a metal casing or a conductor pattern on a circuit board in the portable electronic device) via an insulator in the portable electronic device.

  Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the antenna device 100 according to the present embodiment includes a substantially rectangular flat-plate-shaped soft magnetic body 200 and a coil sheet 300. The soft magnetic body 200 may be a sheet having flexibility and may be a plate. Specifically, the soft magnetic body 200 has a front surface 212 and a back surface 214 as main surfaces, and has four edges. In the present embodiment, a specific one of the edges of the soft magnetic body 200 is defined as a specific edge 216, and an edge facing the specific edge 216 is defined as an opposing edge.

  Here, the thickness of the soft magnetic body 200 is 0 in order to prevent the influence of the eddy current on the antenna device 100 in a conductor (such as a metal housing or a conductor pattern on a circuit board) disposed in the vicinity of the antenna device 100. .1mm or more is required. On the other hand, if the thickness of the soft magnetic body 200 exceeds 2.0 mm, the antenna device 100 is also increased in size, which is contrary to the demand for thickness reduction of portable electronic devices and the like. Therefore, the thickness of the soft magnetic body 200 is preferably 0.1 mm or more and 2.0 mm or less.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the coil sheet 300 is so-called FPC (Flexible Printed Circuits), and is formed by forming a coil 330 made of a conductor pattern on an insulator sheet 310. Specifically, the coil 330 is formed on the insulator sheet 310 so as to include a part of the region 320 corresponding to the specific edge 216. That is, the enclosed region surrounded by the coil 330 and the region 320 partially overlap. Thereby, when the coil sheet 300 is bonded and fixed to the soft magnetic body 200, the coil 330 is soft magnetic body 200 so that the surrounding region surrounded by the coil 330 includes at least a part of the specific edge 216 and does not include the opposing edge 218. It is arranged from the front surface 212 to the back surface 214. The number of turns of the illustrated coil is two turns, but the present invention is not limited to this. However, since the inductance of the antenna device is restricted by the communication processing circuit in the portable electronic device, the number of turns is preferably in the range of 2 to 7 turns.

  1 to 3, in the present embodiment, the area included in the area surrounded by the coil 330 in the front surface 212 of the soft magnetic body 200 is based on the coil 330 in the back surface 214 of the soft magnetic body 200. The coil sheet 300 is configured to be larger than the area included in the surrounded region. In particular, since the coil 330 according to the present embodiment is configured to have as large an area as possible on the surface 212 side of the soft magnetic body 200, the coil 330 is provided to the vicinity of the opposing edge 218, and the insulator sheet 310 is also a coil. Corresponding to 330, it is formed up to the vicinity of the opposing edge 218.

  With such an antenna arrangement, it is possible to obtain wide-angle directivity from the direction orthogonal to the front surface 212 and the rear surface 214 of the soft magnetic body 200 to the direction orthogonal to the specific edge 216.

  Furthermore, the coil sheet 300 according to the present embodiment has a configuration suitable for mounting inside the portable electronic device. In particular, the insulator sheet 310 does not have only a size corresponding to the coil 330, but has a considerably larger size than the coil 330. More specifically, in the coil sheet 300 according to the present embodiment, the area surrounded by the coil 330 is greatly different between the front surface 212 side and the back surface 214 side of the soft magnetic body 200, but the size of the insulator sheet 310 is The front surface 212 side and the back surface 214 side of the soft magnetic body 200 are substantially equal. That is, the insulating sheet 310 is provided up to the vicinity of the opposing edge 218 on the back surface 214 side of the soft magnetic body 200. As described above, the portion of the insulator sheet 310 that extends from the end of the coil 330 toward the opposing edge 218 on the back surface 214 side of the soft magnetic body 200 and that does not have a coil is formed by the coil. It functions as a level difference elimination unit 312 that eliminates the level difference between the area where the coil is formed and the area where no coil is formed.

  The antenna device 100 according to the present embodiment is arranged in a portable electronic device such as a cellular phone so that the back surface 214 of the soft magnetic body 200 is opposed to the conductor with an insulator interposed. Here, the conductor includes, for example, a conductor pattern on a circuit board and a metal casing included in the portable electronic device. When performing such an arrangement, the back surface of the antenna device 100 is fixed in the device by a double-sided tape or the like, but if the above-described step eliminating part 312 is not provided, the adhesive surface of the double-sided tape does not become flat, Adhesive strength may be weak. On the other hand, when the level | step difference elimination part 312 as mentioned above is provided, since the adhesive surface of a double-sided tape becomes flat, high adhesive strength can be obtained.

  The coil sheet 300 in the antenna device 100 is not limited to the form described above, and may be modified as follows in order to improve the adhesion between the coil sheet and the soft magnetic body 200. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, slits (cuts) 314 may be made in the insulator sheet 310a of the coil sheet 300a. In this case, the position of the slit 314 is in the enclosed region surrounded by the coil 330 and in the region 320 corresponding to the specific edge 216 of the soft magnetic body 200. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, slits (pores) 315 may be provided in the insulator sheet 310b of the coil sheet 300b. Also in this case, the position of the slit 315 is in the surrounded region surrounded by the coil 330 and in the region 320 corresponding to the specific edge 216 of the soft magnetic body 200. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6, an opening 316 may be formed in the insulator sheet 310c of the coil sheet 300c. In this case, the opening 316 is located in the surrounded region surrounded by the coil 330 and is formed so as to extend over the region 320 corresponding to the specific edge 216 of the soft magnetic body 200. That is, the opening 316 is formed so as to include a part of the specific edge 216 from the front surface 212 to the back surface 214 of the soft magnetic body 200. When such slits 314, 315 and openings 316 are provided, when the coil sheets 300a to 300c are bonded and fixed to the soft magnetic body 200, the coil sheets 300a to 300c can be prevented from being bent on the specific edge 216 side. 300c and the soft magnetic body 200 can be more closely attached.

  Further, like the coil sheet 300 d of the antenna device 100 d shown in FIG. 7, an insulating sheet 310 d configured to extend from the specific edge 216 to beyond the opposing edge 218 is attached to the soft magnetic body 200 by the adhesive layer 400. It is good as well. If comprised in this way, the powder fall from the edge part of the soft-magnetic body 200 can be received in the adhesion layer 400. FIG. Note that the effect of powder reception is higher when the adhesive layer 400 is interposed, but even if only the insulator sheet 310d is extended beyond the opposing edge 218 without the adhesive layer 400, the extended portion. Compared to the case where there is no powder, the effect of powder receiving can be obtained.

  Further, like the antenna devices 100e and 100f shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, at least partially, the adjacent edge 220 adjacent to the specific edge 216 is surrounded in the surrounded region of the soft magnetic body 200 surrounded by the coils 330e and 330f. You may comprise so that it may be included. In this case, in addition to the wide-angle directivity from the direction orthogonal to the front surface 212 and the back surface 214 of the soft magnetic body 200 to the direction orthogonal to the specific edge 216, it is adjacent from the direction orthogonal to the front surface 212 and the back surface 214 of the soft magnetic body 200. A wide-angle directivity in the direction orthogonal to the edge 220 can also be obtained. That is, in the case of the antenna devices 100e and 100f shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, it is possible to realize a three-axis communication direction. The antenna device 100f in FIG. 9 is configured by placing an insulator sheet 310f on which a coil 330f as shown in FIG. 10 is formed on the front surface 212 of the soft magnetic body 200 and partially folding and fixing it on the back surface 214 side. It is formed. Here, the step eliminating portion 312f in the insulator sheet 310f is not folded to overlap with the adjacent edge 220 side portion of the insulator sheet 310f when folded to the back surface 214 side of the soft magnetic body 200, so that a new step is not generated. It has the shape of notching the corresponding part.

  As shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, an evaluation object is produced by arranging the antenna device 100f shown in FIG. 9 and the antenna device 100x of the comparative example on a substrate 500, and verification is performed by electromagnetic field simulation. The results are shown in FIGS. 13 to 15 and FIGS.

  FIG. 13 shows a spatial distribution of a component perpendicular to the soft magnetic material (Z-direction component) in the magnetic field emitted from the antenna coil due to the current flowing in the antenna coil of the antenna device shown in FIG. 14 and 15 are spatial distributions of components (X direction and Y direction components) parallel to the soft magnetic material in the magnetic field emitted from the antenna coil due to the current flowing in the antenna coil of FIG. .

  FIG. 16 is a spatial distribution of a component perpendicular to the soft magnetic material (Z-direction component) in the magnetic field emitted from the antenna coil due to the current flowing in the antenna coil of the antenna device of the comparative example shown in FIG. 17 and 18 are spatial distributions of components (X direction and Y direction components) parallel to the soft magnetic material in the magnetic field emitted from the antenna coil due to the current flowing in the antenna coil of FIG. .

  Note that the number of turns of the antenna coil was 5 turns for both the antenna device of FIG. 11 and the antenna device of FIG. In addition, a simulation was performed by simulating a conductor corresponding to a circuit board of a portable electronic device under the soft magnetic material. The electromagnetic field simulator Maxwell3D manufactured by AnSoft was used for the placement electromagnetic field simulation.

  Regarding the intensity distribution of the component perpendicular to the soft magnetic material (Z-direction component) of the magnetic field emitted from the antenna coil, when the antenna device of FIG. 11 is compared with the antenna device of FIG. It has been. From this, when a communication target exists in the Z direction of the antenna device, the antenna device of FIG. 11 can obtain a communication distance equivalent to the antenna device of the comparative example of FIG.

  On the other hand, regarding the intensity distribution of the components (X direction and Y direction components) parallel to the soft magnetic material in the magnetic field emitted from the antenna coil, the antenna device of FIG. 11 is compared with the antenna device of FIG. In the antenna device of FIG. 12, the spread comparable to the spread of the magnetic field strength distribution in the Z direction is obtained, whereas in the antenna device of FIG. 12, the spread of the magnetic field strength distribution is extremely small. From this, when there is a communication target in the X direction or the Y direction of the antenna apparatus, the antenna apparatus of FIG. 11 dramatically increases the communication distance compared to the antenna apparatus of FIG. Here, the magnetic field strength distribution of the X direction component and the Y direction component does not only expand in the direction in which the opening is provided on the side surface, but also expands in the opposite side surface direction. Effect. If the coil is provided not only on the specific edge but also on the opposite edge, the expansion of the magnetic field strength distribution as described above cannot be achieved as in the conventional antenna device shown in FIG.

  Here, it is assumed that the conventional communication module or the communication module according to the present embodiment is mounted on a portable electronic device (for example, a mobile phone) 600 having a thin and long box-shaped casing. When the communication target of the portable electronic device 600 is the reader / writer 700 that is fixedly installed, the number of surfaces on the housing that can be used for communication of the portable electronic device 600 uses a conventional communication module. In such a case, there is only one surface (arrangement corresponding to FIG. 19). Such an arrangement between the portable electronic device 600 and the reader / writer 700 is often used when a payment using an IC card is replaced by the portable electronic device 600, and corresponds to the current main communication method.

  On the other hand, when the communication module according to the present embodiment is used, the number of surfaces on the housing that can be used for communication of portable electronic device 600 is two to three surfaces (corresponding to FIG. 19 or FIG. 20). Thus, when the user actually uses the operation load such as changing the portable electronic device 600 is reduced. In particular, when the floor area of the reader / writer 700 is limited, such as a vending machine for goods, a bus / tramway entrance / exit, etc., the reader / writer 700 will be installed vertically, so In view of the compatibility with the holding method, it is desirable that communication is possible between the portable electronic device 600 and the reader / writer 700 corresponding to those in FIG.

  Next, when communicating between portable electronic devices 600, the number of surfaces on the housing that can be used for communication of portable electronic devices 600 is only one when using a conventional communication module (see FIG. However, in the case where the communication module according to the present embodiment is used, a combination corresponding to the square of the number of communicable surfaces in the portable electronic device 600 (part of which is shown in FIG. 22 or FIG. 23) is permitted as an arrangement in which communication is possible between the portable electronic devices 600, leading to a reduction in the operation burden on the user.

  In the above, communication between portable electronic devices 600 having the same shape has been described as an example. However, when communication between portable electronic devices 600 having different external shapes, such as portable electronic device 600 and a game machine, is necessary, communication is performed. Since the effort to search each other's communicable surface is reduced by the increase of the possible surface, the degree of reduction of the user burden becomes more remarkable.

  Further, for example, when communication between portable electronic devices 600 placed on a table is necessary, it is difficult to secure the arrangement of portable electronic devices 600 corresponding to FIG. 21, which corresponds to FIGS. 22 to 25. It is essential to secure communication by arrangement. Furthermore, from the viewpoint of ensuring privacy during communication, communication with an arrangement as shown in FIG. 25 is desirable for the purpose of preventing other people from viewing the display surface of the portable electronic device 600.

  As described above, when communication between portable electronic devices 600 is assumed, communication according to the present embodiment is compared with communication between portable electronic device 600 and reader / writer 700 which is the current main usage. The advantage of installing a module is not only to improve convenience, but also to be essential for the establishment of functions. Of course, it is needless to say that the communication performance in FIG. 19, which is the current main usage, should be secured even in the portable electronic device 600 capable of communication between the portable electronic devices 600.

  In the following, various antenna devices are created by combining a sheet made of a soft magnetic metal powder having a flat shape and a resin, a loop antenna coil, and a variable capacitor for adjusting the resonance frequency, and the effects of the present invention are achieved. The verification result will be described together with the details of the implementation method.

(Create a thin sheet with a loop antenna pattern)
The loop antenna coil was formed by adhering a flat rectangular conductor having a conductor cross section of 0.1 mm in length and width on the surface of a soft magnetic sheet. The distance between the copper wires is 1.5 mm and the number of turns is 5 turns.

(Preparation of soft magnetic sheet made of a mixture of soft magnetic metal powder and resin having a flat shape)
As a soft magnetic material sheet made of a mixture of a soft magnetic metal powder having a flat shape and a resin, Basterade (registered trademark) manufactured by NEC TOKIN was used. This soft magnetic sheet is a square with a side of 40 mm and a thickness of 0.2 mm. The relative magnetic permeability in the plane of the soft magnetic material at room temperature was 130 at a measurement frequency of 13.56 MHz.

(Fabrication of an antenna device in which a soft magnetic sheet and a loop antenna sheet are integrated)
The soft magnetic sheet and the loop antenna sheet obtained as described above are assembled by bonding the soft magnetic sheet and the loop antenna so that the structure shown in FIGS. Antenna devices 100y and 100g to 100i in which the loop antenna sheet was integrated were created.

  In such antenna devices 100y, 100g to 100i, a capacitor 410 for adjusting the resonance frequency is attached between the ends of the loop antenna coil in parallel with the loop antenna, and at the same time, lead wires 420 are connected using lead-free solder. (See FIG. 30). The total number of antenna devices 100y and 100g to 100i is two.

(Impedance matching)
An evaluation system for matching impedances in the antenna devices 100y and 100g to 100i obtained as described above will be described below.

  The antenna devices 100y and 100g to 100i are attached to the portable electronic device 600. Specifically, for evaluation, a circuit board of a simulated mobile phone simulating a portable electronic device is arranged below the antenna devices 100y, 100g to 100i, and an eddy current is placed on the simulated circuit board. A substrate pattern serving as a generation source is formed. The antenna was attached to the antenna mounting position via a 30-micron adhesive layer, and impedance matching was confirmed. For the measurement, a vector network analyzer 8753ES manufactured by Agilent Technologies was used.

  The impedance matching conditions are a resonance frequency of 13.56 MHz and an impedance of 50Ω at the frequency in S11 of the network analyzer.

(Configuration of measurement system for evaluating communication distance)
As a reader / writer 700 used for evaluation of the communication distance, an HF band non-contact IC card reader / writer ICT-3039-1 manufactured by NEC TOKIN was used. In order to create a pseudo IC tag using the antenna device of the present invention, an HF band IC chip conforming to ISO / IEC15693 is connected to the lead wire in the antenna device mounted on a simulated mobile phone. Thus, a simulated portable electronic device 600 is obtained. If a communication distance of 20 mm can be obtained under the measurement environment of the present embodiment, the communication distance in the standard is satisfied even in a field test using an actual mobile phone that is powered on.

  In the measurement of the communication distance, as shown in FIGS. 31 to 33, the reader / writer 700 and the portable electronic device 600 are opposed to each other, and the maximum distance between the two capable of communication is measured.

  Table 1 shows the results of measuring the communication distance for the measurement system configured as described above.

  As shown in Table 1, in Comparative Example 1, which is a standard technique of the conventional example, a sufficient communication distance is obtained in the Z direction, but there is a difficulty in that the communication distance is 0 mm in the X direction.

  In Example 1, although the opening of the antenna coil in the magnetic sheet flat plate surface is insufficient, the communication distance in the Z direction is 21 mm.

  With the configurations of the second and third embodiments, the communication distance in the Z direction is deteriorated compared to the first embodiment, but a communication distance of 50 mm or more is obtained. Is sufficient. On the other hand, in the communication distance in the X direction, a significant expansion is recognized in any case. That is, the directivity is improved in each stage, and the desired purpose of expanding the antenna directivity in the present invention is achieved.

  Furthermore, only in the configuration of the third embodiment, communication in the Y direction is realized, and the desired purpose of expanding the antenna directivity in the present invention is achieved at a higher level.

  As described above, in the antenna device according to the present invention, the flat surface of the soft magnetic material while ensuring a communication distance in a direction perpendicular to the flat surface of the soft magnetic material plate which is the main communication direction in actual use. The communication distance in the direction parallel to the direction can be dramatically increased. At the same time, since the main part of the antenna coil is formed on the flat surface of the soft magnetic plate, the coil is wound so that the coil axis of the antenna coil is parallel to the flat surface of the soft magnetic plate. In comparison, it is suitable for thinning.

  In the above-described embodiments, a mixture of flat metal powder and resin is used as the soft magnetic material, and a flat wire is used as the coil. However, other soft magnetic materials such as ferrite may be used as the soft magnetic flat plate. The coil pattern may be printed directly on the surface of the soft magnetic material or FPC (Flexible Printed Circuits) may be used.

  In the above-described embodiment, transmission / reception between a simulated mobile phone and a reader / writer has been described. However, in communication between portable electronic devices equipped with the antenna device according to the present invention, the directivity expansion effect is also achieved. It goes without saying that it can be obtained.

  The above description is for explaining the effect in the case of the embodiment of the present invention, and does not limit the invention described in the claims or reduce the scope of the claims. . Further, it goes without saying that the configuration of each part of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the technical scope described in the claims.

100, 100d, 100f, 100g, antenna device 100h, 100i, 100x, 100y
200 Soft magnetic material 212 Front surface 214 Back surface 216 Specific edge 218 Opposing edge 220 Adjacent edge 300, 300a, 300b, 300c, Coil sheet 300d, 300e, 300f
310, 310a, 310b, 310c, 310d, 310f Insulator sheet 312 Step elimination part 314, 315 Slit 316 Opening 320 Area 330, 330e, 330f Coil (conductor pattern)
400 Adhesive layer 410 Capacitor 420 Lead wire 500 Substrate 600 Portable electronic device 700 Reader / writer

Claims (12)

An antenna device in which a loop-shaped coil is provided on a substantially rectangular flat soft magnetic material,
The coil is made of a conductor pattern and is formed on an insulator sheet,
A region surrounded by the coil on the insulating sheet at least partially overlaps with a specific edge which is one of the four edges of the soft magnetic material, and does not include an opposing edge facing the specific edge. As described above, the coil is arranged from the front surface to the back surface of the soft magnetic material,
The coil of the conductor pattern, the area included in the region of the surface of the soft magnetic material is larger than the area included in the region of the back surface of the soft magnetic material,
The coil is provided to the vicinity of the opposing edge on the surface side of the soft magnetic body in order to obtain a wide-angle directivity from a direction orthogonal to the surface of the soft magnetic body to a direction orthogonal to the specific edge. its dependent <br/> antenna device. The antenna device according to claim 1,
The insulator sheet is a step eliminating portion extending from the conductor pattern toward the opposing edge of the soft magnetic material on the back surface of the soft magnetic material, and the region when the antenna device is attached to an object And a step eliminating portion for eliminating a step between the region where the conductor pattern is present and the region where the conductor pattern is not present.
Antenna device. The antenna device according to claim 1 or 2 ,
The antenna apparatus by which the slit extended along the longitudinal direction of the said specific edge is formed in the part located on the said specific edge of the said insulator sheets. The antenna device according to claim 1 or 2 ,
The antenna device is provided with an opening formed in the insulator sheet so as to include a region on the specific edge. An antenna device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 ,
The antenna sheet extends on the front surface and the back surface of the soft magnetic material from the specific edge to beyond the opposing edge. An antenna device according to any one of claims 1 to 5 ,
The antenna device has a thickness of the soft magnetic material of 0.1 mm to 2.0 mm. The antenna device according to any one of claims 1 to 6 ,
The antenna device, wherein the region at least partially includes one adjacent edge adjacent to the specific edge of the soft magnetic material. A communication module comprising the antenna device according to claim 1 and a communication circuit connected to the antenna device. A portable electronic device comprising the communication module according to claim 8 . The portable electronic device according to claim 9 , comprising a conductor and an insulator,
The conductor is a conductor pattern on a circuit board in a metal casing or portable electronic device,
A portable electronic device in which the communication module is arranged such that the back surface of the soft magnetic body faces the conductor and the antenna device is positioned on the conductor via the insulator. A method for communicating with a counterpart communication device in a wide-angle range from a direction orthogonal to the front surface and the back surface of the soft magnetic material to a direction orthogonal to the specific edge using the portable electronic device according to claim 9 . A method for performing communication using an electromagnetic induction effect between the portable electronic device according to claim 9 and another portable electronic device.