Apple Inc.

Other

Shravan Bharadwaj

Simon Regis Louis Lancaster-Larocque

David S Herman

Bartley K Andre

Michael D McBroom

Houtan R Farahani

Jonathan L Berk

Eric Andrew Knopf

Richard D Kosoglow

Christoph Matthias Pistor

James M Cuseo

Collin D Chan

Vincent Yan

Daniel David Hershey

Brian K Miehm

Rafael L Dionello

Christopher R Fagan

David C Parell

Seth G McFarland

Lucas Allen Whipple

Derrick Tek-Kien Jue

William R Allan, Ii

Ian S Theilacker

Keyboards and other electronic input devices have a key or keys with glyphs that are invisible to an unaided human eye in a first condition, such as when an underlying display attached to the key is not emitting light. The glyphs are visible through the key or keys when the display emits light. A one-way visibility layer or structure obscures the visibility of the display when viewed from above, but when the display emits light, the light penetrates through the one-way visibility layer, such as by passing through an array of microperforations in the key, and is visible to an onlooker.

One-way visibility keycaps

A rack system for one or more computing systems is described. The rack system may include support structures, or rack structures, and a housing affixed or un-affixed to the support structures. The rack system may include rails, including telescoping rails, affixed to the support structures and coupled to the computing system. When the rack system is in a closed position, the computing system is positioned within the housing. When the rack system is in an open position, the computing system is removed from the housing and the components of the computing system are accessible. In the open position, only components on one surface of the circuit board are accessible. However, the computing system can rotate, thereby placing the components on the opposing surface of the circuit board in an accessible position. Alternatively, the housing can be affixed to the computing system, and include modifications for access to the computing system.

Computing workstation with accessible in a rack environment

A multipole permanent magnet may be provided with a magnetic-field shunt. The multipole permanent magnet may be formed from compression-molded magnetic particles such as magnetically anisotropic rare-earth particles in an elastomeric polymer. The magnetic-field shunt may be formed from magnetic members in a polymer binder that are separated by gaps to allow the shunt to flex or from magnetic particles in a polymer binder. The magnetic particles in the polymer binder may be ferrite particles or other magnetic particles. The polymer binder may be formed from an elastomeric material and may be integral with the elastomeric polymer of the multipole permanent magnet or separated from the elastomeric polymer of the multipole permanent magnet by a polymer separator layer. Conductive particles may be formed in polymer such as the elastomeric polymer with the magnetic particles. The conductive particles may be configured to form electrical connector contacts and other signal paths.

Multipole elastomeric magnet with magnetic-field shunt

An electronic device may have a housing with first and second portions that move relative to each other. The housing may have a hinge that is configured to bend about a hinge axis. Control circuitry in the electronic device may adjust an electrically adjustable device to control resistance of the hinge to bending about the hinge axis. The electrically adjustable device may be an electroactive polymer that that adjusts pressure between two sliding layers of material, may be a magnetorheological device, may be an adjustable component formed from a shape memory material, or may be another electrically adjustable device. One or more sensors in the electronic device may gather sensor data such as touch input, force input, input related to movement of the housing, housing position information, and/or other data. During operation, the control circuitry can adjust the resistance of the hinge to bending based on the sensor data.

Electronic devices with adjustable hinges

Solid-state deposition of materials and structures formed thereof are described. In particular embodiments, solid-state deposition of materials may be utilized for integrated magnetic assemblies. The integrated magnetic assemblies may include a substrate having a cavity that is physically isolated from an environment external from the substrate and a magnetizable magnetic element formed of particles of magnetizable material. The magnetizable magnetic element may be carried within the cavity such that the magnetizable magnetic element fills the cavity and takes on a size and a shape of the cavity.

Solid state deposition of magnetizable materials

This application relates to a case for a portable electronic device. The case includes a housing having walls that define a cavity, where the walls are capable of carrying the portable electronic device within the cavity. The walls carry operational components that include a processor capable of providing instructions, a magnetic circuit capable of generating a magnetic field in response to receiving the instructions from the processor, and a magnetosensitive layer that includes (i) a matrix, and (ii) magnetic particles interspersed within the matrix according to a first distribution, where when the magnetosensitive layer is exposed to the magnetic field, the magnetic particles are rearranged according to a second distribution.

Active electro-mechanical materials for protecting portable electronic devices

An item may be provided with a body that forms an enclosure. The body may have a body portion that opens and closes along a seam. An elongated magnetic fastener may run along the seam. The magnetic fastener may have first and second strips of elastomeric material on opposing sides of the seam. Magnetic interlocking elements may be partially embedded in the first and second elastomeric strips. The fastener may be formed by injecting uncured elastomeric material having unmagnetized magnetic particles into a mold. While in the mold, a magnetic field may be applied to magnetize the magnetic particles and to align the magnetic particles into magnetized structures. After forming the magnetized structures within the elastomeric material, the elastomeric material may be cured. Once removed from the mold, portions of the elastomeric material may be removed to expose the magnetized structures, which may subsequently be shaped into interlocking fastener elements.

Magnetic closures

An electronic device may have input devices and/or output devices based on piezoelectric components. Piezoelectric components may include piezoelectric ink in which particles of piezoelectric material are dispersed in a binder. The piezoelectric ink may be printed or otherwise deposited onto a substrate to form piezoelectric ink traces. The piezoelectric ink traces may be deposited on flexible substrates such as elastic speaker diaphragms or flexible fabric layers. The piezoelectric traces may be part of a key in a keyboard or a stand-alone button. In arrangements where the piezoelectric trace forms part of a key in a keyboard, the piezoelectric trace may be coupled to a grid of horizontal and vertical signal lines. The signal lines may convey key press data from the piezoelectric trace to control circuitry and/or may supply control signals from the control circuitry to the piezoelectric trace to produce haptic output.

Electronic Devices with Piezoelectric Ink

A housing made from a circuit laminate includes first and second layers coupled together. Each includes a rigid, electrically insulating non-planar structural layer, flexible conductive traces disposed on surfaces of the structural layer, and flexible connector layers contacting to the flexible conductive traces. The housing may be formed from the circuit laminate using thermoforming or another process that co-molds the first and second layers. The structural layers stiffen the housing and/or form an environmental or other barrier so that the housing protects an internal component.

Housings formed from three-dimensional circuits

Items such as electronic devices, fabric-based items, and other items may include strands of magnetic material. The magnetic material may be formed from particles of a rare-earth alloy or other magnetic materials in a binder. Strands of magnetic material may have magnetic cores surrounded by one or more additional layers such as non-magnetic layers or may have non-magnetic cores surrounded by one or more additional layers including a magnetic layer. The strands of material may be uniform along their lengths or may be segmented into non-magnetic and magnetic portions. Items may include fabric formed from intertwined strands of magnetic material. Magnetic material may interact with permanent magnets and electromagnets. Magnetic sensors may monitor for the presence of magnetic portions of a fabric or other structure.

Magnetic fabric items

An electronic device may include intertwined strands of material such as strands forming fabric. A strand in the fabric may include a light-emitting core surrounded by a coaxial light modulator layer. The light-emitting core may be formed from an optical fiber, light-emitting diodes mounted to a polymer core, or a layer of light-emitting diodes sandwiched between coaxial inner and outer conductive layers. The light modulator layer may have coaxial transparent inner and outer electrodes and may have a light modulating material such as electrochromic material, liquid crystal material, or other material that exhibits optical properties such as color and/or light transmission that can be electrically controlled.

Devices having fabric with adjustable appearance

An electronic device can include a key and/or a keyboard system. In one embodiment, magneto-rheological materials are employed to provide a variable response keyboard of an electronic device.

Variable response key and keyboard

A unibody magnetic structure having layers of variably magnetized material is disclosed. The unibody magnetic structure can be formed by way of additive manufacturing, such as by a stereolithographic (SLA) process or a selective laser sintering (SLS) process. The SLA process can involve forming the structure from a molten pool of polymer material, with the material having a magnetic component dissolved therein. The SLS process can involve sintering the structure from a powder having a magnetic component. As each layer is formed, the layer can be selectively magnetized with a given polarity and strength. The magnetization of each formed layer can vary, such that the final structure comprises numerous layers having different shapes and sizes, as well as different levels and polarities of magnetization.

Additive manufacturing of magnets

A method and system for observing and monitoring thermal characteristics of a machining operation, such as a surface finishing operation, performed on a workpiece is disclosed. The surface finishing operation can be performed on the workpiece in order to remove a surface defect, e.g. a parting line, on a surface of the workpiece and/or to provide a mirror-like finish to the workpiece. In one embodiment, an emissive layer is applied to the workpiece to increase a thermal emissivity of the workpiece. In some embodiments, a finishing surface, such as a polishing or buffing wheel, and/or a lubricant used in a finishing operation is monitored. A thermal profile of the surface of the workpiece, finishing surface and/or lubricant can be obtained. The finishing operation can be modified in response to the monitored thermal characteristics to prevent the occurrence of defects and improve the efficacy of the finishing operation.

Growing community of inventors

San Jose, CA, United States of America

Shravan Bharadwaj