The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officially published a series of 45 newly granted patents for Apple Inc. today. In this particular report we cover two patents. The first is about displays with unique openings that could be used for audio, wireless transmissions and beyond. The second patent of interest covers an advanced automotive access and control system. We wrap up this week's granted patent report with our traditional listing of the remaining granted patents that were issued to Apple today.

Granted Patent: Electronic Devices having Displays with Openings

Apple's newly granted patent covers their invention relating to flexible displays that have openings designed into the display. Signals associated with the electronic component may pass through the openings. The signals may include acoustic signals, electromagnetic signals such as radio-frequency electromagnetic signals, and light.

The electronic component may be a structure that uses light such as a camera, a light sensor, a light-based proximity sensor, a status indicator light, a light-based touch sensor array, or a secondary display that has display pixels that may be viewed through the openings.

The electronic component may also be a structure that uses radio-frequency signals such as an antenna. Antenna structures may, for example, include a near field antenna or other antenna structures. According to Apple there could be one or one-thousand holes designed into such a display.

One or more openings in the display may form a window through which a user of the device may view an external object. Display pixels in the portion of the display in which the window is formed may be used in forming a heads-up display, as noted in patent figure 18 below.

One aspect of Apple's patent Fig. 1 relates to accommodating acoustic signals. Last month Apple was granted a separate related patent for display-based speakers.

Apple credits Benjamin Rappoport, Jeremy Franklin, Fletcher Rothkopf, Scott Myers, Richard Howarth, Julian Hoenig, Christopher Stringer, John Ternus and Stephen Lynch as the inventors of granted patent 8,947,627 which was originally filed in Q4 2011 and published today by the US Patent and Trademark Office. To review today's granted patent claims and details, see Apple's patent.

Granted Patent: Accessing a Vehicle using Portable Devices

Apple's newly granted patent covers their invention relating to wireless communication between computing devices and more particularly to using portable computing devices to access a vehicle.

Apple's patent filing reveals that future iPhones will be able to open your car door, start your engine, shut off your engine for specific time frames, be able to program complete personalized car settings and much, much more.

Patently Apple extensively covered the original patent application back in April 2013 with many other graphics and details. To review the original report for more on this, click here.

Apple credits Brian Tucker, Emily Schubert, Jesse Dorogusker, Joakim Linde and Stephen Chick as the inventors of granted patent # which was originally filed in Q4 2011 and published today by the US Patent and Trademark Office.

The Remaining Patents granted to Apple Today

Patently Apple presents only a brief summary of granted patents with associated graphics for journalistic news purposes as each Granted Patent is revealed by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Readers are cautioned that the full text of any Granted Patent should be read in its entirety for full details. About Making Comments on our Site: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit any comments. Comments are reviewed daily from 5am to 7pm MST and sporadically over the weekend.