JP7630882B2 - Elevation adjustment unit - Google Patents

Description

Article 30, paragraph 2 of the Patent Act applies. Delivered (sold) to the Disaster Prevention Information Office, Disaster Prevention Division, Civil Protection and Disaster Prevention Department, Fire and Disaster Management Agency, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications on March 31, 2021. Delivered (sold) to the Information Infrastructure Center, Nara Institute of Science and Technology, National University Corporation on March 31, 2021.

This invention relates to an elevation angle adjustment unit that adjusts the elevation angle of a portable antenna such as a planar antenna.

Conventionally, portable antennas such as flat antennas have been transported to disaster sites or event venues, where various parts, components, and units are assembled and the antenna angles (horizontal, polarization, elevation, azimuth) are adjusted.

By the way, after a portable antenna is assembled and installed on-site, the angles must be adjusted. If the orientation of the antenna can be predicted in advance, the adjustment work can be completed in a short time. However, if the orientation of the temporarily installed antenna is not appropriate, the adjustment work takes a long time.

For this reason, a portable antenna has been developed that can be stored and deployed without the need to disassemble each part, component, unit, etc. (Patent Document 1).

JP 2005-333234 A

However, the portable antenna described in Patent Document 1 had to be made compact to be portable, which meant that only compact antennas could be mounted.

In general, the larger the antenna, the higher the gain, so it is desirable to ensure a certain degree of size. However, when installing a large antenna, the problem is that the antenna support mechanism, along with the tripod or head, requires a certain level of support force. In particular, many elevation adjustment mechanisms/units support the antenna at the central axis of the elevation adjustment, and adjusting and fixing the elevation angle places a great deal of strain on the elevation adjustment mechanism/unit.

Another problem was that it was not possible to use general-purpose products or equipment for the parts and materials that support the antenna, such as tripods and heads.

The object of this invention is to provide an elevation adjustment unit that can adequately support even a relatively large antenna and allows the use of general-purpose products and equipment.

In order to solve the above problem, the invention of claim 1 comprises a base member supported on a tripod, a holding member rotatably connected to the front end of the base member and holding a portable antenna, and a support member having one end slidably and rotatably connected to the rear end of the base member and the other end rotatably connected to the upper end of the holding member, characterized in that the one end of the support member is rotatably connected to a slide member provided to slide freely in the front-rear direction of the base member.

The invention of claim 2 is characterized in that, in the elevation angle adjustment unit described in claim 1, the base member is provided with a scale extending in the front-to-rear direction of the base member, and the slide member is provided with a pointer facing the scale.

The invention of claim 3 is characterized in that in the elevation angle adjustment unit described in claim 1 or 2, the holding member is provided with a scale for adjusting the polarization angle, and the sliding member is provided with a spirit level.

The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that, in the elevation angle adjustment unit of claims 1 to 3, the portable antenna is held by the holding member via a polarization angle adjustment unit having a polarization angle adjustment function, a notch that becomes wider toward the upper end is provided on the holding side surface of the holding member that holds the polarization angle adjustment unit, and a fitting member that fits into the notch is provided on the polarization angle adjustment unit.

According to the invention of claim 1, the elevation angle adjustment unit is a base member whose lower part extends in the front-rear direction, the lower end of the holding member that holds the antenna is connected to the front end of the base member, one end (lower end) of the support member is connected to the rear end of the base member via a slide member, and the other end (upper end) of the support member is connected to the upper end of the holding member, forming a so-called truss structure, which makes it possible to support even relatively large antennas.

In addition, the mechanism for adjusting the elevation angle is made into a truss structure unit, so by attaching fixtures, adapters, etc. to this, a tripod head that allows adjustment of azimuth angle, elevation angle, and polarization angle can be constructed inexpensively simply by attaching general-purpose parts and components such as a tripod and a pan head.

According to the invention of claim 2, by making the scale extend in the front-to-rear direction of the base member, i.e., by making the scale extend in a linear direction, the arc-shaped scale indicating the angle is converted into a scale in a linear direction, so that the intervals between the scales can be made wider, improving visibility and enabling fine adjustment of the elevation angle.

According to the invention of claim 3, the scale for adjusting the elevation angle of the elevation angle adjustment unit, the scale for adjusting the polarization angle, and the level on the slide member are all concentrated in a position that can be seen from the rear of the base member, so that the visibility of the scales for the horizontal, polarization angle, elevation angle, and azimuth angle is improved, the adjustment work can be speeded up, and the assembly and operability can be improved.

According to the invention of claim 4, the portable antenna is held by the holding member via a polarization angle adjustment unit having a polarization angle adjustment function, a notch that becomes wider toward the upper end is provided on the holding side surface of the polarization angle adjustment unit of the holding member, and a fitting member that fits into the notch is provided on the polarization angle adjustment unit, so that the fitting member of the polarization angle adjustment unit can be uniquely positioned in the notch of the holding member, and assembly of the tripod head can be performed simply and easily.

FIG. 2 is an overall perspective view of a portable planar antenna mounted on a tripod, seen obliquely from the rear. 11 is a perspective view of the elevation angle adjustment unit with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected thereto, as viewed obliquely from behind. FIG. FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the elevation angle adjustment unit as viewed from a position slightly above that of FIG. 2 . FIG. 13 is a front view of the elevation angle adjustment unit with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected thereto. FIG. 13 is a plan view of the elevation angle adjustment unit with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected thereto. FIG. 13 is a right side view of the elevation angle adjustment unit with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected thereto. FIG. 13 is a bottom view of the elevation angle adjustment unit with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected thereto. FIG. 13 is a rear view of the elevation angle adjustment unit with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected thereto. FIG. 4 is a rear view of the polarization angle adjustment unit alone. 13 is a rear view showing the elevation angle adjustment unit slightly above the tripod head with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected thereto. FIG.

The present invention will be described below based on the illustrated embodiment. For ease of explanation, in the following description, the longitudinal direction of the base member 11 is defined as the front-rear direction, the direction perpendicular to the front-rear direction in a horizontal plane is defined as the left-right direction, and the direction perpendicular to the plane formed by the front-rear direction and the left-right direction (i.e., the horizontal plane) is defined as the up-down direction.

Figure 1 is an overall perspective view of a planar antenna 1 (portable antenna) attached to a tripod 2, seen from diagonally behind; Figures 2 to 8 show the elevation angle adjustment unit with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected; Figure 2 is a rear perspective view; Figure 3 is a rear perspective view seen from above, closer to Figure 2; Figure 4 is a front view; Figure 5 is a plan view; Figure 6 is a right side view; Figure 7 is a bottom view; Figure 8 is a rear view; Figure 9 is a rear view of the polarization angle adjustment unit alone; and Figure 10 is a rear view showing the elevation angle adjustment unit slightly above the tripod head with the polarization angle adjustment unit connected.

The elevation angle adjustment unit 10 of the present invention is for adjusting the elevation angle of the planar antenna 1, and performs one function of the tripod head 4 that is attached to the pan head 3 provided at the top of the tripod 2. In addition to the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 described above, the tripod head 4 is composed of an azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 and a polarization angle adjustment unit 30.

The azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 is a gear head that can rotate freely around a vertical axis while maintaining horizontality, and is attached to the head 3 of the tripod 2.

The azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 has a fixed platen 21 attached to the pan head 3 and a rotating platen 22 rotatably mounted on the upper surface of the fixed platen 21. Although not shown in the figure, the peripheral surfaces of the fixed platen 21 and the rotating platen 22 have a scale formed on one side and a pointer formed on the other side, and the azimuth angle can be adjusted by rotating the rotating platen 22 relative to the fixed platen 21 and aligning the pointer with the scale.

In addition, a locking means (not shown) is provided between the fixed platen 21 and the rotating platen 22, which can prevent the rotating platen 22 from rotating when the desired azimuth angle is adjusted.

A relatively wide dovetail groove 23 is formed on the top surface of the rotating plate 22, allowing the elevation adjustment unit 10 to be attached.

The elevation angle adjustment unit 10 is configured as a mechanism with a truss structure, and is composed of a base member 11 that is fixed to the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 and placed horizontally, a holding member 12 that has one end (front end) rotatably connected to the front end of the base member 11 and the other end (rear end) arranged obliquely so as to be located higher than the one end (front end) and holds the polarization angle adjustment unit 30, and a support member 13 that has one end (lower end) slidably and rotatably connected to the rear end of the base member 11 and the other end (upper end) rotatably connected to the upper end of the holding member 12.

The base member 11 is made of a metal material (e.g., an aluminum plate) with a U-shaped cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (front-to-back direction), and is arranged with the top side open. A mounting fixture 14 is provided on the underside near the front end to be attached to the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20.

The left and right edges of the mounting fixture 14 are formed with tenons 14a that fit into dovetail grooves 23 formed in the turntable 22 of the azimuth adjustment unit 20. The elevation adjustment unit 10 is attached to the azimuth adjustment unit 20 by sliding the tenons 14a into the dovetail grooves 23 of the turntable 22.

The azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 is provided with a locking mechanism 24 that expands or contracts the spacing of the dovetail grooves 23, and the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 can be fixed to the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 by fitting the tenon 14a of the mounting fixture 14 into the dovetail groove 23 and locking it at a predetermined position, thereby completing the holding of the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 to the elevation angle adjustment unit 10. In addition, scales and pointers are provided near the dovetail grooves 23 of the turntable 22 and near the tenon 14a of the mounting fixture 14, allowing the position of the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 relative to the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 to be adjusted.

A long screw 15 is disposed in the front-to-rear direction inside the base member 11 of the elevation angle adjustment unit 10, at a position rearward from the center. A crown (knob) 15a is provided at the rear end of the long screw 15, and the front part of the crown 15a is rotatably supported by a receiver 16 fixed to the base member 11.

The threaded shaft of the long screw 15 is screwed into the slide member 17 placed on the base member 11, and the slide member 17 is formed with a width slightly smaller than the internal dimension of the base member 11 (the distance between the two side pieces).

A long hole 11a is formed in the bottom plate of the base member 11 at a portion located below the long screw 15, and a lock screw 17a is screwed into the slide member 17 from the underside of the base member 11 through this long hole 11a.

As a result, by gripping the crown 15a and rotating the long screw 15, the slide member 17 slides in the front-to-rear direction on the bottom plate of the base member 11, and at that time, the slide member 17 slides smoothly with little or no rattling.

A scale 11b is provided on the upper edge of one side piece of the base member 11, and a pointer 17b is provided on the slide member 17. The scale 11b on the base member 11 indicates the elevation angle of the holding member 12 (and thus the elevation angle of the planar antenna 1), as described below.

A spirit level 18 is provided on the top of the slide member 17, and allows the horizontality to be checked when the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 is attached to the tripod 2. Note that the spirit level 18 is not a required component of this invention, and a spirit level that is originally provided on, for example, a gear head or panoramic head as the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 may be used.

As will be described in detail later, the support members 13 are rotatably connected to both sides of the slide member 17.

The holding member 12 that holds the polarization angle adjustment unit 30 is made of a metal material (e.g., an aluminum plate) that has a U-shaped cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and is disposed so that the rear end is located higher than the front end and the bottom/rear side is open. The width of the holding member 12 is slightly larger than that of the base member 11, and is large enough to clamp both side pieces of the base member 11 from the outside with both side pieces.

The lower end of the holding member 12 is pivotally connected to the front end of the base member 11 while clamping it, and the upper end is pivotally connected to the upper end of the support member 13.

A roughly V-shaped notch 12a that opens on the upper edge side is formed in roughly the upper half of the upper plate of the holding member 12 (i.e., the portion facing the planar antenna 1), and a bridge plate 12b is provided to bridge between both side pieces of the upper end, and a predetermined gap is provided between the upper plate and the bridge plate 12b in a cross section perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the holding member 12.

In addition, a locking means 12c for fixing the polarization angle adjustment unit 30 is provided on the bridge plate 12b.

The locking means 12c is a plunger type, and when the gripping part is pulled in the axial direction, the locking pin retracts from the space between the upper plate and the crossing plate 12b, and when the gripping part is released, the locking pin protrudes into the space between the upper plate and the crossing plate 12b.

The support member 13 has a ladder structure, with a horizontal plate spanning between two opposing side plates in the left-right direction, and the distance between the two side plates is approximately the same as the distance between the two side pieces of the base member 11.

The upper end of the side piece of the support member 13 is rotatably connected to the side piece of the holding member 12 at a position near the upper end of the holding member 12, and the lower end of the side piece of the support member 13 is rotatably connected to the side of the sliding member 17.

As a result, the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 has the base member 11 as its lower part (in other words, its lower side), the lower end of the holding member 12 is connected to the front end of the base member 11, the rear end of the base member 11 is connected to the lower end of the support member 13 via the slide member 17, and further, the upper end of the holding member 12 is connected to the upper end of the support member 13, forming a truss structure.

The polarization angle adjustment unit 30 is attached to the back of the planar antenna 1 and has a polarization angle adjustment function. It consists of a holding plate 31 that holds the planar antenna 1, a rotating scale plate 32 for adjusting the polarization angle that is rotatably provided at the center of the holding plate 31 on the back side opposite the holding surface, and a held member 34 that is fixed to the rotating scale plate 32 and has a V-shaped plate 33 for attachment to the elevation angle adjustment unit 10.

The holding plate 31 is roughly rectangular with a slightly bulging width at the center, and has mounting screws 35 at each of the four corners. The holding plate 31 is attached to the planar antenna 1 by screwing the mounting screws 35 into small holes formed on the back of the planar antenna 1.

A relatively large circular flat recess 31a is formed on the back surface of the central portion of the holding plate 31, and the rotary scale plate 32 is supported in this flat recess 31a so that it can rotate freely.

The rotating scale plate 32 has a scale 32a formed on its periphery within a central angle of approximately 270 degrees, and a pointer 31b is formed on the periphery of the flat recess 31a of the holding plate 31.

A flat case body 34a containing a rotation lock mechanism 36 that locks the rotation of the rotating scale plate 32 and a retained member 34 having a V-shaped plate 33 attached to the back surface of the case body 34a are attached to the rotating scale plate 32 so as not to hide the scale 32a.

The V-shaped plate 33 is formed to be slightly larger than the V-shaped notch 12a formed in the holding member 12, and a step is formed on the entire periphery on the side that contacts the case body 34a, so that a groove 33a is formed when the plate is attached to the case body 34a.

This groove 33a is formed to be approximately the same size as the V-shaped notch 12a when viewed from the out-of-plane direction, and the thickness of the periphery forming the groove 33a of the V-shaped plate 33 is formed to be approximately the same as the distance between the upper plate of the retaining member 12 and the cross plate 12b.

In addition, a small hole 33b is formed in the center near the edge of the wide side of the V-shaped plate 33.

The polarization angle adjustment unit 30 configured in this manner slides the V-shaped plate 33 of the held member 34 between the holding member 12 and the crossing plate 12b of the elevation angle adjustment unit 10, and engages the groove 33a of the V-shaped plate 33 into the V-shaped notch 12a. The shape of this groove 33a when viewed from the out-of-plane direction is substantially the same as the V-shaped notch 12a, and functions as a fitting member that fits into the V-shaped notch 12a.

At this time, the groove 33a of the V-shaped plate 33 and the V-shaped notch 12a narrow toward the bottom end and have the same shape, so they are uniquely positioned.

Then, the V-shaped plate 33 is slid to a predetermined position, and once it is positioned, the lock pin of the locking means 12c is inserted into the small hole 33b, completing the retention of the polarization angle adjustment unit 30 to the elevation angle adjustment unit 10.

In this way, the tripod head 4 is formed by attaching the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 to the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 and holding the polarization angle adjustment unit 30 to the elevation angle adjustment unit 10.

Azimuth angle adjustment is performed by rotating the rotating plate 22 of the azimuth angle adjustment unit 20 relative to the fixed plate 21 and aligning a pointer (not shown) with the scale, and polarization angle adjustment is performed by rotating the holding plate 31 of the polarization angle adjustment unit 30 relative to the rotating scale plate 32 and aligning the pointer 31b of the holding plate 31 with the scale 32a of the rotating scale plate 32.

The elevation angle can be adjusted by rotating the long screw 15 of the elevation angle adjustment unit 10, which adjusts the length (distance between the connection points) of one side of the truss structure (base member 11), displacing the angles of the other two sides (holding member 12 and support member 13). The angle of one side (holding member 12) is the elevation angle, allowing the elevation angle to be adjusted.

Specifically, when the long screw 15 is rotated, the slide member 17 moves back and forth, changing the angle between the holding member 12 and the support member 13, and adjusting the inclination of the holding member 12, i.e., the elevation angle.

The elevation angle scale 11b of the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 in this embodiment is a scale that extends in a linear direction on the base member 11, converting the arc-shaped scale indicating the angle into a linear scale, allowing the scale intervals to be made wider, improving visibility and enabling fine adjustment of the elevation angle.

Note that because the angle scale is converted into a linear scale, the intervals between the scale marks are not constant, and the smaller the elevation angle, the greater the intervals between the scale marks 11b. Therefore, in areas with a small elevation angle (closer to horizontal), the intervals between the scale marks become larger, allowing for finer adjustments.

As described above, the elevation angle adjustment unit 10 of this embodiment has a truss structure consisting of the base member 11, the holding member 12, and the support member 13, so that it can hold even a relatively heavy and large planar antenna, and can support the planar antenna even when a large wind pressure is applied to it due to bad weather, etc., and can also accommodate larger planar antennas.

The elevation angle adjustment unit 10 and the polarization angle adjustment unit 30 are held in place by fitting the V-shaped plate 33 into the V-shaped notch 12a, so both units 10 and 30 can be positioned uniquely, making assembly simple and easy.

The elevation angle adjustment unit 10, azimuth angle adjustment unit 20, and polarization angle adjustment unit 30 are each made into a unit, making them separable and easy to transport, and they can be separated and assembled without compromising the adjustments within each unit, making them easy to use.

The scales 11b, 32a and spirit level 18 for checking the angle adjustment of each unit 10, 30 are positioned so that they can be seen from one direction, improving the visibility of these scales and improving assembly and operability.

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the specific configuration is not limited to the above embodiment, and even if there are design changes within the scope of the present invention, they are included in the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, the means for sliding the slide member is a long screw and a nut member that are screwed together, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various slide mechanisms such as a rack and pinion or a ball screw can be used.

1. Planar antenna (portable antenna)
2 tripod 10 elevation angle adjustment unit 11 base member 11a long hole 11b scale (elevation angle)
12 Holding member 12a V-shaped notch (notch)
13 Support member 17 Slide member 17b Pointer (elevation angle)
18 Level 20 Azimuth angle adjustment unit 30 Polarization angle adjustment unit 33a Groove (fitting member)

Claims (4)

a base member supported by a tripod; a holding member rotatably connected to a front end of the base member and holding a portable antenna; and a support member having one end slidably and rotatably connected to a rear end of the base member and the other end rotatably connected to an upper end of the holding member,
The one end of the support member is rotatably connected to a slide member that is slidably provided in the front-rear direction of the base member.
An elevation angle adjustment unit. A scale extending in a front-rear direction of the base member is provided on the base member, and a pointer facing the scale is provided on the slide member.
2. The elevation angle adjustment unit according to claim 1 . The holding member is provided with a scale for adjusting a polarization angle, and the sliding member is provided with a level.
3. The elevation angle adjustment unit according to claim 1 or 2. the portable antenna is held by the holding member via a polarization angle adjustment unit having a polarization angle adjustment function,
a notch that becomes wider toward an upper end on a surface of the holding member that holds the polarization angle adjustment unit,
The polarization angle adjustment unit is provided with a fitting member that fits into the notch.
4. An elevation angle adjustment unit according to claim 1, wherein the elevation angle adjustment unit is a unit for adjusting an elevation angle of the vehicle

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