The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granted Apple 51 newly granted patents today. One of the key patents issued to Apple today is one relating to hybrid 2-way charging that some in the industry refer to as reverse charging. It was first commercially introduced with Huawei's 2018 Mate 20 Pro smartphone.

Apple's work on this invention goes back to 2016. We covered it in a report titled "A New Apple Invention Covers Inductive Charging Between iOS Devices & even a MacBook." You could review the original patent report for more details and patent figures here or review today's granted patent 10,505,386.

A rumor claims that Apple may possibly introduce a MacBook Pro with a mini-LED display sometime in the 2020-2021 timeline. Perhaps the next greatest feature that Apple could add is this 2-way charging as noted in our cover graphic and those below.

Apple's patent FIGS. 7A and 17 below illustrate how multiple inductive charging coils could be placed under the frame of a MacBook that could accommodate charging of multiple devices at one time.

Apple's patent FIGS. 18 and 20 above show how the lid or cover of a MacBook could be laced with inductive charging coils that could act as a charging plate and charge individual devices over a single coil or have sets of devices (iPad mini, iPhone and Apple Watch) being charged over multiple coils.

While Apple has received its second or third patent for this invention to date, Patently Apple just posted a new patent application advancing this technology on November 28 titled "Apple reveals more on their 2-Way Charging Feature that they describe as a 'Hybrid Wireless Charging System.'"

Other Wireless Charging Granted Patents

Although Apple cancelled their wireless charging pad branded AirPower, Apple continues to win patents for their work on this device that may or may not ever come to market.  Below are two of the latest patent wins granted today by USPTO. 

10,505,401 Wireless charging system with receiver locating circuitry and foreign object detection

10,505,403 Wireless charging system with temperature sensing