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Apple continues to work on a possible future MacBook with a Glass Construction, Virtual Keyboard and Trackpad

1-cover-Glass-MacBook

Over the years Apple's engineers have patented concepts relating to a possible future MacBook with a glass base supporting a virtual keyboard and trackpad along with a touch display (examples 01 and 02).

Today the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office officially published a patent application from Apple that relates to a possible future MacBook that is thinner. In addition, this MacBook may include a lid portion including a housing structure, a glass cover positioned coupled to the housing structure and defining a concave region, and a display positioned below the concave region of the glass cover.

The base portion may include a glass top member, and the glass top member may at least partially define the convex region. The glass top member may define, at the convex region, a trackpad. The glass top member may further define, at the convex region, a virtual keyboard.

The haptics may provide haptic outputs in response to key inputs applied to a virtual (e.g., touchscreen based) keyboard, and/or to inputs applied to a virtual trackpad.

(Click  on  image  to  Enlarge)     2Future-MacBook-Patent

Apple further notes that the front cover may be formed by molding the glass using a slumping operation (or any other suitable molding technique). For example, a sheet of glass (e.g., a planar sheet of glass) may be placed on a mold. The sheet of glass may be pre-heated, or it may be heated once in contact with the mold (e.g., by placing the mold and sheet in a kiln or furnace). The heat softens the glass such that the glass conforms to the shape of the mold. The glass may conform to the mold due to gravity. The mold may contact either surface of the glass sheet (e.g., the interior or the exterior surface of the front cover). In some cases, a two-part mold may contact both surfaces of the sheet. In such cases, a force may be applied to the glass sheet via the mold parts.

After being molded or otherwise formed to produce the concave configuration, the front cover may be subjected to further processing and/or finishing steps. For example, the front cover may be thermally and/or chemically strengthened, polished, singulated (e.g., from a mother sheet), machined, lapped, tinted, coated, or the like.

The non-planar overall shape of the front cover may also enhance the stiffness of the lid portion as compared to a planar front cover. For example, the concave shape of the front cover has a greater area moment of inertia than a planar front cover, and thus has a greater resistance to certain deflections and/or deformations (e.g., bending or twisting) than a planar front cover. Accordingly, the shaped front cover 122 facilitates a reduction in the overall thickness of the device, while also offering a high degree of resistance to bending, twisting, or other deformations that could damage internal components or otherwise lead to a weaker and less durable device.

To review the full details of this invention, check out patent application 20240210990.

A secondary patent on this subject matte4r was published under the title "Electronic Device including a hybrid housing assembly." It describes a front cover assembly that may include a front cover member which may be formed from a glass material, a glass ceramic material, a polymer material, or combinations thereof. For example, the front cover member may include layers of glass and/or glass ceramic material bound together with a polymer material. For more, review patent application 20240210993

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