Over the weekend, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman highlighted that Apple is experimenting with tiny cameras for AirPods to further integrate Visual Intelligence into its wearable ecosystem. Today the U.S. Patent Office published a patent application of Apple's that relates to optical modules and, in particular, to optical modules with a lens for future AirPods. Today's patent application is the closest yet to support the latest rumor.'

An optical module #104 may be positioned within the earbud (AirPods) #100 proximate to a wall of the housing #102. While the optical module #104 is shown as positioned within the main body of the earbud, the optical module may alternatively be positioned within the stem of the earbud or at any suitable location. The optical module 104 may be used to determine a proximity of the user to the earbud, to receive input from a user, to distinguish types of matter (e.g., whether the earbud is positioned in a user's ear or lying on an object), and so on. Processors and other electrical components may receive signals from one or more components of the optical module. These signals may be used to adjust settings of the earbud, provide outputs to the user, and/or convey other information to additional devices and/or to a network.

In some cases, the optical system may include a lens mounted to the housing over at least one of the first aperture or the second aperture and an adhesive layer between the housing and the lens.

The optical module may also include a lens mounted over the first aperture, an adhesive layer positioned between the lens and the housing, a light emitter positioned within the first region, and a light detector positioned within the second region.

Each of the apertures may include optical elements, such as a lens (e.g., a cylindrical lens array or other light-diffusing optical elements) configured to increase the field of illumination of the optical module.

The optical module may be additionally mounted within a portable electronic device behind a cover (e.g., an optically-clear cover such as glass) via an optically-clear adhesive (OCA). Each of the lens, the OCA, and the cover may have the same or different indices of refraction, which affect how the light is transmitted from the optical emitters to the optical detector.

A Few of Apples Inventors

• Xi Chen: Optical Sensing Hardware Engineer
• Arifin Ang: Physicist, Engineer
• Xiaoyang Zhang:  Manager, Display Quality Engineering @ Apple | Ph.D, Electrical Engineering