Today the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officially published a series of 61 newly granted utility patents for Apple Inc. In this particular report we briefly cover extensive set-up GUIs for setting up Spatial Audio on an iPhone; for Apple Watch cardio activity monitoring; and an Apple Store Display design patent. And as always, we wrap up this week's granted patent report with our traditional listing of the remaining granted patents that were issued to Apple this week.

Graphical User Interfaces for Selecting Spatial Audio Output for AirPods

Apple notes that conventional methods for playing audio on wearable audio output devices are limited in the types of audio output modes in which the wearable audio output devices can output audio. For example, conventionally-used audio output modes, such as stereo and mono audio output modes, provide audio with respect to a frame of reference that is tied to the audio output devices, which can make the listening experience less immersive and less realistic than the listening experience provided when outputting audio using a spatial audio output mode, which simulates a more realistic listening experience in which audio seems to come from sources of sound in a separate frame of reference, such as the physical environment surrounding the user.

Apple's granted patent covers improved methods and interfaces for selecting between different audio output modes for a set of one or more wearable audio output devices, and for providing feedback to aid a user in making such a selection. Such methods and interfaces optionally complement or replace conventional methods for selecting audio output modes. Such methods and interfaces reduce the number, extent, and/or nature of the inputs from a user and produce a more efficient human-machine interface. For battery-operated systems and devices, such methods and interfaces conserve power and increase the time between battery charges. Below are three patent figures from Apple's patent illustrating in-part, a set-up process for turning on Spatial Audio on AirPods.

For full details, review Apple's granted patent number 11941319.

Detecting The End Of Cardio Machine Activities On Apple Watch

Apple's granted patent covers embodiments that include wearable devices and techniques for detecting cardio machine activities, estimating user direction of travel, and monitoring performance during cardio machine activities. By accurately and promptly detecting cardio machine activities and automatically distinguishing between activities performed on different types of cardio machines, the disclosure enables wearable devices to accurately calculate user performance information when users forget to start and/or stop recording activities on a wide variety of cardio machines. In various embodiments, cardio machine activity detection techniques may use magnetic field data from a magnetic field sensor to improve the accuracy of orientation data and device heading measurements used to detect the end of a cardio machine activity.

Apple's patent FIG. 2 below is a block diagram showing exemplary components that may be found within an Apple Watch; FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a method for determining a user level of exertion during a cardio machine activity; FIG. 14 are graphs showing exemplary heading, heart rate, and step count data used to detect the end of a treadmill  activity.

Apple's patent FIG. 25B above depicts inertial frame of reference in a context where a user is running on a treadmill and gripping the handrails. as shown in FIG. 25B, the orientation or the Apple Watch may remain constant because the user's arm/wrist pose may not change. Therefore, the rotational data and or the device orientation may not change for the period of time during the treadmill activity when the user maintains this position. During periods of zero or little change in device orientation, motion data indicating a stepping motion may not be detected.

Apple's patent walks through different workout data collected for those rowing, using an elliptical machine and more. For more details, review Apple's granted patent number 11937904.

Design Patent

Apple was granted a design patent for a "Retail Display." While design patent figures from the Hong Kong Patent Office are always presented in crisp graphics, the U.S. Patent Office usually provides subpar quality images as the ones presented below. It's very difficult to ascertain exactly what this retail display is for – though it looks to be associated with the iPhone. 

This Week's Remaining Granted Patents