Apple Inc.

Steven C Roach

Sameer Pandya

Erik G De Jong

Erik L Wang

Steven P Cardinali

William C Lukens

Colin M Ely

Maegan K Spencer

Michael Benjamin Wittenberg

Brian Richards Land

Naoto Matsuyuki

Martin Melcher

Adam Thomas Clavelle

Zhipeng Zhang

Tobias J Harrison-Noonan

Michael R Parker

Peter J Kardassakis

YoungHoon Kim

Eric T Chiang

Ross L Jackson

Christopher Matthew Werner

Henry Hung Yang

Benjamin G Jackson

Jorge L Rivera Espinoza

Derek Fujio Iwamoto

Neeloy Roy

Yue Chen

Tyler S Atura Bushnell

Scott D Morrison

Siddharth Nangia

Jared P Ostdiek

Venkatesh Rajendran

Xiaofang Mu

Timothy D Koch

Patrick J Crowley

Christopher D Guichet

Daniela M Deschamps

Alvin T Chang

Woojin Jung

Peter Kardassakis

Kevin A Klenk

Zhiwei Gu

Annie Manuja

Dylan L Magida

Lei Ma

An electronic device can include a housing defining an aperture and a display assembly at least partially positioned in the aperture. The display assembly can include a substrate having a conductive portion, a display layer having pixels, a touch sensitive layer positioned on a first side of the substrate, an operational component positioned on a second side of the substrate opposite the first side, and a flexible electrical connector electrically coupled with the conductive portion and the operational component. The flexible electrical connector can include an electromagnetic antenna. A transparent cover can overlay the display assembly and can be secured to the housing.

Electronic device structure with housing

An electronic watch may include a housing defining a side wall having a through-hole and a crown assembly including an actuation member. The actuation member may include a crown shaft extending through the through-hole and having an exterior portion defining an input surface and a crown ring coupled to the exterior portion of the crown shaft and electrically isolated from the crown shaft. The crown assembly may further include an optical encoder component attached to the actuation member and defining a group of optical features. The electronic watch may further include an optical detector configured to detect rotation of the crown assembly by detecting motion of the group of optical features and an electrocardiograph sensor comprising a sensing component. The sensing component may be conductively coupled to the actuation member via a conductive path at least partially defined by the crown shaft.

Crown assembly for an electronic watch

An electronic device, such as a watch, has a crown assembly having a shaft and a user-rotatable crown. The user-rotatable crown may include a conductive cap that is mechanically and electrically coupled to the shaft and functions as an electrode. The conductive cap may be coupled to the shaft using solder or another conductive attachment mechanism. The shaft may electrically couple the conductive cap to a processing unit of the electronic device. One or more additional electrodes may be positioned on the exterior surface of the electronic device. The conductive cap is operable to be contacted by a finger of a user of the electronic device while another electrode is positioned against skin of the user. The processing unit of the electronic device is operable to determine a biological parameter, such as an electrocardiogram, of the user based on voltages at the electrodes.

Conductive cap for watch crown

An electronic device, such as a watch, has an input mechanism, such as a crown, that may receive translational inputs, rotational inputs, and/or touch inputs. Inputs received at the crown may result in changes in operation of the electronic device and/or outputs, such as graphical outputs, provided by the electronic device. In various embodiments, the crown includes a retainer that couples an outer crown body to an inner crown body and secures an isolator between the outer crown body and the inner crown body. The embodiments of the crown described herein provide a simple and robust input mechanism for receiving rotational, translational, and touch inputs as described above, while simplifying part alignment, ensuring consistent rotation, and allowing for efficient manufacturing.

Watch crown having a conductive surface

An electronic device can include a housing defining an aperture and at least partially defining an internal volume of the electronic device, an electromagnetic radiation emitter and an electromagnetic radiation detector disposed in the internal volume, and an optical component disposed in the aperture. The optical component can include a first and second transparent portions disposed above the electromagnetic radiation detector and the electromagnetic radiation emitter, and an opaque portion disposed between the first and second transparent portions and extending a thickness of the optical component. The first transparent portion, the second transparent portion, and the opaque portion can define a flush exterior surface of the electronic device.

Opaque splits embedded in transparent media for optical emitter/detector isolation

An electronic device can include a housing defining an aperture and at least partially defining an internal volume of the electronic device, an electromagnetic radiation emitter and an electromagnetic radiation detector disposed in the internal volume, and an optical component disposed in the aperture. The optical component can include a first and second transparent portions disposed above the electromagnetic radiation detector and the electromagnetic radiation emitter, and an opaque portion disposed between the first and second transparent portions. A conductive component can be in electrical communication with the opaque portion and one or more components of the electronic device.

A portable electronic device may include a housing member defining a side surface of the portable electronic device, a portion of the housing member defining a side wall of a hole extending through the housing member, a button member positioned along the side surface and defining a chassis portion and a hollow post extending into the hole defined through the housing member, and a first waterproof seal defined between the hollow post and the side wall of the hole. The portable electronic device may also include a biometric sensing component coupled to the chassis portion, a flexible circuit element extending through the hollow post and conductively coupling the biometric sensing component to a component within the housing, and a second waterproof seal defined within the hollow post.

Electronic device having a sealed biometric input system

A wireless communication system may include an electronic device having a wireless communication module. The wireless communication module may include an antenna radiating element on a first surface, a ground ring surrounding the antenna radiating element on the first surface, and a radio component mounted to a second surface. The wireless communication module may be incorporated into a system package that also includes other components. Encapsulation material may cover the wireless communication module and other components. A shielding material may cover the encapsulation material and be coupled to the ground ring. An opening in the shielding material may be aligned with the antenna radiating element. If desired, the wireless communication system may include external equipment having a wireless communication module communicatively coupled to the wireless communication module to convey firmware testing, debugging, restore, and/or other data.

Wireless communication devices

Electrical connectors for electronic devices

An electronic device, such as a watch, has a housing to which a carrier is attached. The carrier has a first surface interior to the electronic device, and a second surface exterior to the electronic device. A set of electrodes is deposited on the exterior surface of the carrier. An additional electrode is operable to be contacted by a finger of a user of the electronic device while the first electrode is positioned against skin of the user. The additional electrode may be positioned on a user-rotatable crown of the electronic device, on a button of the electronic device, or on another surface of the housing of the electronic device. A processor of the electronic device is operable to determine a biological parameter of the user based on voltages at the electrodes. The biological parameter may be an electrocardiogram.

Wearable electronic device with electrodes for sensing biological parameters

An input component for an electronic device can include a dial that defines an exterior surface and a shaft affixed to the dial. The dial and the shaft can be rotatable about a central axis of the shaft and the shaft can include a protruding portion that defines a channel. A collar can surround a portion of the shaft and can be at least partially disposed in the channel. A bushing can be positioned between the collar and the protruding portion of the shaft, with the bushing defining a groove.

Electronic device

Growing community of inventors

San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Steven C Roach