Dielectric covers for antennas
    131.
    发明授权

    公开(公告)号:US11121447B2

    公开(公告)日:2021-09-14

    申请号:US15717701

    申请日:2017-09-27

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with wireless communications circuitry and control circuitry. The wireless communications circuitry may include centimeter and millimeter wave transceiver circuitry and a phased antenna array. A dielectric cover may be formed over the phased antenna array. The phased antenna array may transmit and receive wireless radio-frequency signals through the dielectric cover. The dielectric cover may have first and second opposing surfaces. The second surface may face the phased antenna array and may have a curvature. The curvature of the second surface may include one or more recessed regions of the dielectric cover. The one or more recessed regions of the second surface may serve to maximize and broaden the coverage area for the phased antenna array. The first surface may be conformal to other structures in the electronic device.

    Capacitive wireless charging systems

    公开(公告)号:US11061490B2

    公开(公告)日:2021-07-13

    申请号:US16913948

    申请日:2020-06-26

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: A wireless power transmission system may include a wireless power transmitting device such as a tablet computer and a wireless power receiving device such as a computer stylus. A wireless power transmitting capacitor electrode may be formed in the tablet computer. A wireless power receiving capacitor electrode may be formed in the computer stylus. The transmitting capacitor electrode may be driven by a drive signal having a frequency of 900 MHz or greater to produce wireless power. The wireless power may be transmitted from the transmitting capacitor electrode to the receiving capacitor electrode on the stylus via near field capacitive coupling. The transmitting and receiving capacitor electrodes may each include conductive traces on dielectric substrates. The conductive traces may follow meandering paths to maximize the possible capacitive coupling efficiency between the capacitor electrodes and thus the end-to-end charging efficiency of the wireless power transmission system.

    Systems having windows with patterned coatings

    公开(公告)号:US10978777B1

    公开(公告)日:2021-04-13

    申请号:US16033010

    申请日:2018-07-11

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: A system such as a vehicle may have windows. A window may have a structural window layer formed from one or more glass layers. A conductive coating such as an infrared-light blocking coating or other optical filter layer may be formed on the window. The conductive coating may include one or more silver layers or other conductive material. Unpatterned portions of the conductive coating are conductive along orthogonal dimensions. A region of the conductive coating may have parallel line-shaped openings that render the coating conductive in only a single dimension while enhancing radio transparency. Another region of the conductive coating may have a two-dimensional pattern of openings such as a mesh-shaped opening formed from intersecting straight and/or curved lines. In this region, the coating is locally rendered insulating and radio-frequency transparent. Antennas and ohmic heating elements may be formed in the coating.

    Electronic Devices With Millimeter Wave Antennas And Metal Housings

    公开(公告)号:US20210083367A1

    公开(公告)日:2021-03-18

    申请号:US17108762

    申请日:2020-12-01

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with wireless circuitry. The wireless circuitry may include one or more antennas. The antennas may include millimeter wave antenna arrays. Non-millimeter-wave antennas such as cellular telephone antennas may have conductive structures separated by a dielectric gap. In a device with a metal housing, a plastic-filled slot may form the dielectric gap. The conductive structures may be slot antenna structures, inverted-F antenna structures such as an inverted-F antenna resonating element and a ground, or other antenna structures. The plastic-filled slot may serve as a millimeter wave antenna window. A millimeter wave antenna array may be mounted in alignment with the millimeter wave antenna window to transmit and receive signals through the window. Millimeter wave antenna windows may also be formed from air-filled openings in a metal housing such as audio port openings.

    Dual-polarization phased antenna arrays

    公开(公告)号:US10741933B2

    公开(公告)日:2020-08-11

    申请号:US16032953

    申请日:2018-07-11

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may include a phased antenna array mounted in a conductive cavity for conveying radio-frequency signals above 10 GHz. The cavity may include sidewalls extending from a rear wall. The array may include rectangular patches each having first and second perpendicular edges. Each of the first edges in the array may be aligned with a first axis. Each of the second edges in the array may be aligned with a second axis perpendicular to the first axis. The first and second axes may be oriented at 45 degrees with respect to each of the sidewalls of the cavity. Each patch may be fed using first and second positive antenna feed terminals that cover orthogonal linear polarizations. The cavity may prevent interference while symmetrically loading the impedance of both the first and second positive antenna feed terminals in each patch.

    Antennas formed from conductive display layers

    公开(公告)号:US10734708B2

    公开(公告)日:2020-08-04

    申请号:US16032948

    申请日:2018-07-11

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device such as a wristwatch may be provided with wireless circuitry and a display having a display module and a cover layer. The display module may include a dielectric layer. Touch sensor electrodes may be formed from conductive traces on the dielectric layer. An antenna may be embedded within the display module. The antenna may include an antenna resonating element formed from a grid of intersecting conductive traces on the dielectric layer. The grid may have edges that define a lateral outline of the antenna resonating element. The outline may have a length that configures the antenna to radiate at a desired frequency. The antenna resonating element may be formed from indium tin oxide and may be substantially transparent.

    Electronic Devices Having Shielded Antenna Arrays

    公开(公告)号:US20200227821A1

    公开(公告)日:2020-07-16

    申请号:US15898164

    申请日:2018-02-15

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a dielectric cover and a phased antenna array for conveying millimeter wave signals. A conductive pocket may be mounted to the cover. The pocket may include a conductive rear wall and conductive sidewalls that extend from a periphery of the rear wall to the cover. The array may be mounted to the rear wall and may convey signals through the cover. The sidewalls may extend from the cover at non-zero angles with respect to the normal axis of the cover. The shape of the pocket and the cover may be selected so that the pocket is non-resonant at frequencies handled by the array, to mitigate destructive interference within the pocket, to block surface waves from propagating along the cover, and to tweak the radiation pattern of the array to exhibit a desired shape and directionality.

    Near-field microwave wireless power system

    公开(公告)号:US10714983B2

    公开(公告)日:2020-07-14

    申请号:US15902875

    申请日:2018-02-22

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: A wireless power system may use a wireless power transmitting device to transmit wireless power to a wireless power receiving device. The wireless power transmitting device may have microwave antennas that extend along an axis in a staggered arrangement. In the staggered arrangement, the microwave antennas are positioned on alternating sides of the axis. Each microwave antenna is elongated along a dimension that is perpendicular to the axis. Multiple antennas may overlap a wireless power receiving antenna in the wireless power receiving device. Control circuitry may use oscillator and amplifier circuitry to provide antennas that have been overlapped by the wireless power receiving antenna with drive signals. The drive signals may be adjusted based on feedback from the wireless power receiving device to enhance power transmission efficiency. The system may have a wireless power transmitting device with inductive wireless power transmitting coils.

    Electronic device with millimeter wave antennas

    公开(公告)号:US10680663B2

    公开(公告)日:2020-06-09

    申请号:US16138881

    申请日:2018-09-21

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with wireless circuitry. The wireless circuitry may include one or more antennas. The antennas may include phased antenna arrays each of which includes multiple antenna elements. Phased antenna arrays may be mounted along edges of a housing for the electronic device, behind a dielectric window such as a dielectric logo window in the housing, in alignment with dielectric housing portions at corners of the housing, or elsewhere in the electronic device. A phased antenna array may include arrays of patch antenna elements on dielectric layers separated by a ground layer. A baseband processor may distribute wireless signals to the phased antenna arrays at intermediate frequencies over intermediate frequency signal paths. Transceiver circuits at the phased antenna arrays may include upconverters and downconverters coupled to the intermediate frequency signal paths.

    Antennas Formed From Conductive Display Layers
    140.
    发明申请

    公开(公告)号:US20200021008A1

    公开(公告)日:2020-01-16

    申请号:US16032948

    申请日:2018-07-11

    Applicant: Apple Inc.

    Abstract: An electronic device such as a wristwatch may be provided with wireless circuitry and a display having a display module and a cover layer. The display module may include a dielectric layer. Touch sensor electrodes may be formed from conductive traces on the dielectric layer. An antenna may be embedded within the display module. The antenna may include an antenna resonating element formed from a grid of intersecting conductive traces on the dielectric layer. The grid may have edges that define a lateral outline of the antenna resonating element. The outline may have a length that configures the antenna to radiate at a desired frequency. The antenna resonating element may be formed from indium tin oxide and may be substantially transparent.

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