Apple Inc.

Other

Nanbo Jin

Mattia Pascolini

Hongfei Hu

Enrique Ayala Vazquez

Robert W Schlub

Matthew A Mow

Erica J Tong

Erdinc Irci

Ming-Ju Tsai

Yuehui Ouyang

Liang Han

Yijun Zhou

Han Wang

Ruben Caballero

Anand Lakshmanan

Scott A Myers

Robert J Hill

Tang Yew Tan

Dean F Darnell

Trent Weber

Josh Nickel

Richard Hung Minh Dinh

Thomas E Biedka

Salih Yarga

Hao Xu

Yiren Wang

Christopher T Cheng

James G Judkins

Yuancheng Xu

Xu Gao

Qingxiang Li

Jayesh Nath

David W Pratt

Benjamin Shane Bustle

Joshua G Nickel

Xu Han

Ming Chen

Victor C Lee

Georgios Atmatzakis

Jingni Zhong

Tyler B Cater

Richard Hung Dinh

Miguel C Christophy

Kevin M Froese

Juan Zavala

Peter I Bevelacqua

Matt A Mow

Yuan Tao

Tiejun Yu

Daisong Zhang

Harish Rajagopalan

Victor W Lee

Bilgehan Avser

Christopher J Durning

Devon A Monaco

Donald J Parr

Sherry Lee

Salome Bavetta

Matthew Anthony Mow

Denis J Lin

Nirali Shah

Benjamin Hane Bustle

Robert Walter Schlub

Peter Bevelacqua

Enrique Ayala Vasquez

This is directed to connecting two or more elements using an intermediate element constructed from a material that changes between states. An electronic device can include one or more components constructed by connecting several elements. To provide a connection having a reduced or small size or cross-section and construct a component having high tolerances, a material can be provided in a first state in which it flows between the elements before changing to a second state in which it adheres to the elements and provides a structurally sound connection. For example, a plastic can be molded between the elements. As another example, a composite material can be brazed between the elements. In some cases, internal surfaces of the elements can include one or more features for enhancing a bond between the elements and the material providing the interface between the elements.

High tolerance connection between elements

A radio frequency device has a multifunctional tuner that stores measurements of reflection coefficient parameter in a register. The radio frequency device also has a transceiver that has a transmitter. The transceiver may detect a transmitter signal from the transmitter to an antenna in an initial tuning state and then determine whether the transmitter signal is stable. In response to the transmitter signal being stable, the transceiver may measuring the reflection coefficient parameters at the multifunctional tuner. Furthermore, the radio frequency device has a baseband controller that has a memory to store instructions and a processor to execute the instructions. The instructions cause the processor to determine an antenna impedance based on the reflection coefficient parameters, and in response to determining that the antenna impedance is greater than or less than a threshold antenna impedance, iteratively tune the antenna using the multifunctional tuner.

Adaptive antenna tuning system

An electronic device may be provided with an antenna module. A phased antenna array of dielectric resonator antennas may be disposed within the antenna module. The dielectric resonator antennas may include dielectric columns excited by feed probes. A flexible printed circuit may include transmission lines coupled to the feed probes. The flexible printed circuit may have a first end coupled to the antenna module and extending towards peripheral conductive housing structures forming an additional antenna and a second end coupled to transceiver circuitry. Ground traces on the flexible printed circuit may be shorted to ground structures at the first and second ends to improve the antenna efficiency of the additional antenna. The flexible printed circuit may include an elongated slot with overlapping conductive structures and laterally surrounded by a fence of conductive vias to improve the flexibility of the flexible printed circuit while providing satisfactory antenna performance.

Electronic devices with coexisting antennas

An electronic device may be provided with wireless circuitry and a housing with upper and lower ends. The lower end may include first and second open slot antennas that are directly fed by respective feeds and that radiate in a cellular ultra-high band. The lower end may also include first and second inverted-F antennas. The upper end may include third and fourth inverted-F antennas. The first inverted-F antenna may have a first feed that conveys currents below 2700 MHz and a second feed that conveys antenna currents in the cellular ultra-high band, a wireless local area network band, and/or ultra-wideband frequency bands. If desired, the upper end may include a third open slot antenna that is directly fed by a corresponding antenna feed and that radiates in the cellular ultra-high band and/or in the ultra-wideband frequency bands.

Wireless devices having antennas for covering multiple frequency bands

An electronic device may include a housing and four antennas at respective corners of the housing. Cellular telephone transceiver circuitry may concurrently convey signals at one or more of the same frequencies over one or more of the four antennas using a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) scheme. In order to isolate adjacent antennas, dielectric-filled openings may be formed in conductive walls of the housing to divide the walls into segments that are used to form resonating element arms for the antennas. If desired, first and second antennas may include resonating element arms formed from a wall without any gaps. The first and second antennas may include adjacent return paths. A magnetic field associated with currents for the first antenna may cancel out with a magnetic field associated with currents for the second antenna at the adjacent return paths, thereby serving to electromagnetically isolate the first and second antennas.

Multiple-input and multiple-output antenna structures

A device with near-field communications (NFC) capabilities is provided. A housing may include first and second segments and a support plate separated from the segments by a slot. A first inductor may be coupled between the first segment and the plate. A second inductor may be coupled between the second segment and the plate. A transceiver may have a first signal terminal coupled to the first segment over a first path and a second signal terminal coupled to the second segment over a second path. The transceiver may convey differential signals in an NFC band over a loop path for an NFC antenna that includes the first conductive path, the first segment, the first inductor, a portion of the plate between the first and second inductors, the second inductor, the second segment, and the second conductive path. This may optimize wireless performance and volume for the NFC antenna.

Electronic devices having differential-fed near-field communications antennas

An electronic device may include a conductive housing and an antenna. The antenna may include an arm formed from a first segment of the housing. A gap may separate the first segment from a second segment. The antenna may include a feed coupled to a transmission line having a signal conductor. The feed may include first and second positive terminals on the first segment and a third positive terminal on the second segment. An adjustable component may be coupled between the first and third terminals. The signal conductor may be coupled to the first terminal. A wide conductive trace may be coupled between the signal conductor and the second terminal. A switch may be interposed on the signal conductor. The second terminal may cover a cellular low band when the switch is open. The first terminal may cover the cellular low band and higher bands when the switch is closed.

Electronic device antennas having switchable feed terminals

A disclosed antenna assembly includes a first flexible circuit having a first signal line, at least one first shielding layer, and a first attachment region. The first attachment region includes a first signal pad and first shielding pads disposed around the first signal pad. The antenna assembly further includes a second flexible circuit having a second signal line, at least one second shielding layer, and a second attachment region. The second attachment region includes a second signal pad and second shielding pads disposed around the second signal pad. The first attachment region is attached to the second attachment region.

Antenna assembly

An electronic device may include a conductive housing and an antenna. The antenna may include an arm formed from a first segment of the housing. A gap may separate the first segment from a second segment. Respective first and second slots may separate an antenna ground from the first and second segments. The antenna may have a first positive antenna feed terminal on the first segment and a second positive antenna feed terminal on the second segment. A transmission line may include a signal conductor having a first branch coupled to the first positive antenna feed terminal and a second branch coupled to the second positive antenna feed terminal. A switch may be interposed on the second branch for switching the antenna between a first mode in which the second slot is directly fed and a second mode in which the second segment is indirectly fed by the first segment.

Electronic device antennas having multiple signal feed terminals

An electronic device may have wireless circuitry with antennas. An antenna resonating element arm for an antenna may be formed from peripheral conductive structures running along the edges of a device housing. The peripheral conductive structures may form housing sidewalls. A slot may be machined into a metal housing that separates the housing sidewalls from a planar rear housing portion that forms a ground for an antenna. The slot may be filled with plastic filler. A parasitic antenna resonating element arm that supports an antenna resonance at high band frequencies may be embedded within the plastic filler. The parasitic antenna resonating element may be formed from a portion of the planar rear housing portion.

Electronic device antenna with embedded parasitic arm

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Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Nanbo Jin