Apple Granted 51 Patents Today Covering an iPhone with a Glass Housing, a Borderless OLED Display, a Lighting System & More
In early November Patently Apple posted a patent report titled "Apple Updates 'Glass Fused Device Housing' Patent by shining a light on a Possible Illumination Feature." Apple's patent application was filed in Taiwan and discovered at the European Patent Office. The cover graphic illustrates an all glass iPhone with an illuminated mid-section. Today the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officially published one of Apple's granted patents covering a glass based iPhone embodiment with added transparent layers. This is only of interest because of rumors about the 2017 anniversary iPhone having a glass body, away from today's iPhone 7 metal casing.
Granted Patent: Multi-layer Transparent Structures for Electronic Device Housings
Apple's newly granted patent covers their invention relating to transparent structures for portions of electronic device housings beyond the display.
Apple further notes that "Embodiments of the invention can relate to apparatus, systems and methods for improving strength of a glass article for a consumer product, such as a consumer electronic device. In one embodiment, the glass article may be an outer surface of a consumer electronic device. For example, the glass article may, for example, correspond to a glass cover that helps form part of a display area of the electronic device (i.e., situated in front of a display either as a separate part or integrated within the display).
As another example, the glass article may form a part of a housing for the consumer electronic device (e.g., may form an outer surface other than in the display area).
For more details, see Apple's granted patent 9,516,149. In-part, the foundation of the invention covered Apple's iPhone 4s design but could be further advanced without the medal mid-section in a future design.
Apple was also granted two patents relating to a narrow border OLED display which supports an iPhone with edge-to-edge displays which again is something that may surface in the 2017 OLED based iPhone. A second patent was granted to Apple on electronic devices with a 'reduced border region."
Apple Granted Nine Design Patents Today
Apple was granted nine design patents today. The key designs noted below cover an Apple Store lighting system, the Magic Keyboard with lighting port, an iPhone with a lightning port, an iPad within a case cover. Not shown are a series of user interface elements such as the live Siri image that appears on an iPhone display when calling up Siri and a regular iPad cover.
The Remaining Patents granted to Apple Today
Note: In order to see a clearer image of the list above, simply click on the image above to enlarge it. Some browsers may require that you click on the image and then a second click on the image to enlarge it fully.
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.
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