Apple Inc.

James W Bilanski

Kyle H Yeates

Dennis R Pyper

Matthew D Hill

Benjamin J Pope

Sawyer Isaac Cohen

Lucy Elizabeth Browning

Nicholas Unger Webb

Amir Salehi

Eric N Nyland

Ihtesham H Chowdhury

Michael Eng

Connor Raymond Duke

James H Foster

Jeffrey M Thoma

Devon A Monaco

Kieran Poulain

Nicholas W Ruhter

Sherry Lee

Arun R Varma

Bryan D Keen

Mingzhe Li

David A Karol

Sung Woo Yoo

Sean M Gordoni

Amanda R Rainer

Abhishek Choudhury

Miguel Alejandro Lara-Pena

Ramamurthy Chandhrasekhar

Daniel J Morizio

Weng Choy Foo

Yaodong Wang

A portable electronic device includes a housing defining an internal volume and a circuit board assembly within the internal volume. The circuit board assembly includes a first circuit board, a wall structure soldered to the first circuit board, and a second circuit board soldered to the wall structure and supported above the first circuit board by the wall structure. The second circuit board defines an exterior top surface of the circuit board assembly. A processor is coupled to the first circuit board and positioned within an internal volume defined between the first circuit board and the second circuit board and at least partially surrounded by the wall structure. A memory module is coupled to the exterior top surface of the circuit board assembly.

Handheld electronic device

An electronic device may be provided with integrated circuits and electrical components such as capacitors that are soldered to printed circuit boards. Liquid polymer adhesive such as encapsulant and underfill materials may be deposited on the printed circuit. Electrical components such as capacitors may be coated with the encapsulant. The underfill may be deposited adjacent to an integrated circuit, so that the underfill wicks into a gap between the integrated circuit and the printed circuit board. The encapsulant may be more viscous than the underfill and may therefore prevent the flowing underfill from reaching the electrical components. Some of the encapsulant may be located between the electrical components and the printed circuit board. The encapsulant can be cured to form an elastomeric material covering the electrical components that helps damp vibrations. The elastomeric material may be less stiff than the underfill.

Electronic device with printed circuit board noise reduction using elastomeric damming and damping structures

Electronic components on a substrate may be shielded using electromagnetic shielding structures. Insulating materials may be used to provide structural support and to help prevent electrical shorting between conductive materials and the components. The shielding structures may include compartments formed using metal fences that surround selected components or by injection molding plastic. The shielding structures may be formed using metal foil wrapped over the components and the substrate. Electronic components may be tested using test posts or traces to identify components that are faulty. The test posts or traces may be deposited on the substrate and may be used to convey test signals between test equipment and the components. After successful testing, the test posts may be permanently shielded. Alternatively, temporary shielding structures may be used to allow testing of individual components before an electronic device is fully assembled.

Electromagnetic shielding structures for selectively shielding components on a substrate

Multi-part substrate arrangements that yield low profile configurations are disclosed. One aspect pertains to portable electronic devices are able to have low profiles through use of multi-part substrate arrangements. Another aspect pertains to methods for assembling two or more separate substrates into a multi-part substrate. By use of multi-part substrate arrangements according to the invention, portable electronic devices are able to be thinner and more compact.

Multi-part substrate assemblies for low profile portable electronic devices

Growing community of inventors

Palo Alto, CA, United States of America

James W Bilanski