Yesterday the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published a newly granted patents for Apple relating to electronic device enclosures that include "textured glass components." Apple's patent appears to advance a similar patent that we covered back in January 2020. The new glass finishes that Apple offered on their iPhone 11 and now on the iPhone 12 aren't natural glasses but rather custom designed finishes that Apple's customers absolutely love.  

Apple states that it may be difficult to form a texture or shape of an enclosure component formed from a material like glass or ceramic. The techniques and articles described in their invention are directed to forming a texture and other surface features on a glass component of an enclosure.

According to Apple's invention, a glass component such as a glass cover member may have a texture configured to provide a desired appearance to an exterior surface of the electronic device. The texture may also be configured to provide a particular "feel" to the electronic device.

The texture may be configured to provide particular optical properties to the glass component. In some cases, the texture may be configured to provide particular levels of transmissive haze, clarity, gloss, graininess, or combinations thereof.

For example, a decorative coating viewed through a textured glass cover member having a low graininess value may have a substantially uniform appearance.

An exterior surface of a glass component may define a textured region including surface features configured to provide the desired optical and other properties. A textured glass cover member may be included in a cover assembly for an electronic device enclosure.

The cover assembly may further include a smudge-resistant coating provided over the surface features, a decorative coating disposed along an interior surface of glass cover member, or a combination thereof.

The disclosure provides an electronic device comprising a display and an enclosure at least partially surrounding the display and at least partially defining an internal volume of the electronic device.

The cover assembly may be a rear cover assembly defining a rear surface of the electronic device and the glass cover member may be a rear glass cover member.

The rear cover assembly may further comprise a multilayer decorative coating visible through the rear glass cover member.

Apple's patent FIG. 1B below shows a rear view of an electronic device with a texture added to a glass component; FIG. 3 shows an alternate rear view of another example of an electronic device that provides a multiple camera set up.

Click on image below to Enlarge

Apple's patent FIG. 11 above shows a flow chart of an example process for forming a textured glass component. In some cases, the process 1100 may commence after a glass workpiece has been formed to a desired profile shape, such as with a machining, molding or a slumping process.

Apple further notes in their granted patent, that the glass cover members may comprise a glass material. The glass material may be a silica-based material. The glass material of the glass cover member may have a network structure, such as a silicate-based network structure.

For example, the glass material may comprise an aluminosilicate glass or a boroaluminosilicate glass. As used herein, an aluminosilicate glass includes the elements aluminum, silicon, and oxygen, but may further include other elements.

Similarly, a boroaluminosilicate glass includes the elements boron, aluminum, silicon, and oxygen, but may further include other elements. For example, an aluminosilicate glass or a boroaluminosilicate glass may further include monovalent or divalent ions which compensate charges due to replacement of silicon ions by aluminum ions.

In January 2020 Patently Apple posted a report titled "Apple Patent Reveals the iPhone 11 Pro's Strengthened Glass Process…"  

In yesterday's granted patent, Apple brings this into focus once again by noting that "the chemical strengthening process involves exposing the glass cover member to a medium containing the larger ion, such as by immersing the glass cover member in a bath containing the larger ion or by spraying or coating the glass with a source of the ions. The image relating to an ion bath for glass below is from Apple's January patent that shows both patents are covering some of the same processes.

Apple's granted patent 10,827,635 was originally filed in Q3 2019 and published yesterday by the US Patent and Trademark Office. You could review for more details, here.