公开(公告)号：US10883203B2

公开(公告)日：2021-01-05

申请号：US16871531

申请日：2020-05-11

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Daniel A. Podhajny ,  Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Kathryn P. Crews

IPC: G06F1/16 ,  D03D1/00 ,  A41D1/00 ,  A41D31/02 ,  G06F3/0488 ,  G06F3/042 ,  G06F3/044 ,  D02G3/44

Abstract: A fabric-based item may include a housing that is covered in fabric. Areas of the fabric may overlap input circuitry such as button switches, touch sensors, force sensors, proximity sensors, and other sensing circuitry and may overlap other components such as light-emitting components and haptic output devices. The fabric-based item may include control circuitry that gathers user input from the input circuitry and wireless communications circuitry that the control circuitry uses to transmit remote control commands and other wireless signals in response information from the input circuitry. The fabric-based item may have a weight that is located in the housing to orient the housing in a desired direction when the housing rests on a surface. A movable weight may tilt the housing in response to proximity sensor signals or other input. Portions of the fabric may overlap light-emitting components and optical fiber configured to emit light.

公开(公告)号：US20200341570A1

公开(公告)日：2020-10-29

申请号：US16926569

申请日：2020-07-10

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Daniel A. Podhajny ,  Kathryn P. Crews ,  Daniel D. Sunshine

IPC: G06F3/044 ,  G06F3/045 ,  G06F3/041

Abstract: A touch-sensitive textile device that is configured to detect the occurrence of a touch, the location of a touch, and/or the force of a touch on the touch-sensitive textile device. In some embodiments, the touch-sensitive textile device includes a first set of conductive threads oriented along a first direction, and a second set of conductive threads interwoven with the first set of conductive threads and oriented along a second direction. The device may also include a sensing circuit that is operatively coupled to the first and second set of conductive threads. The sensing circuit may be configured to apply a drive signal to the first and second set of conductive threads. The sensing circuit may also be configured to detect a touch or near touch based on a variation in an electrical measurement using the first or second set of conductive threads.

公开(公告)号：US20200084886A1

公开(公告)日：2020-03-12

申请号：US16685846

申请日：2019-11-15

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Daniel D. Sunshine ,  David M. Kindlon ,  Michael B. Nussbaum ,  Andrew L. Rosenberg ,  Andrew Sterian ,  Breton M. Saunders ,  Christopher A. Schultz ,  David A. Bolt ,  Mark J. Beesley ,  Peter W. Mash ,  Steven Keating ,  Chang Liu ,  Lan Hoang

IPC: H05K1/03 ,  A41D1/00 ,  D03D1/00 ,  H01L23/498 ,  H05K1/02 ,  H01L23/31 ,  H05K1/11 ,  H05K1/18

Abstract: An item may include fabric having insulating and conductive yarns or other strands of material. The conductive strands may form signal paths. Electrical components can be mounted to the fabric. Each electrical component may have an electrical device such as a semiconductor die that is mounted on an interposer substrate. The interposer may have contacts that are soldered to the conductive strands. A protective cover may encapsulate portions of the electrical component. To create a robust connection between the electrical component and the fabric, the conductive strands may be threaded through recesses in the electrical component. The recesses may be formed in the interposer or may be formed in a protective cover on the interposer. Conductive material in the recess may be used to electrically and/or mechanically connect the conductive strand to a bond pad in the recess. Thermoplastic material may be used to seal the solder joint.

公开(公告)号：US10514772B1

公开(公告)日：2019-12-24

申请号：US15690119

申请日：2017-08-29

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Paul X. Wang ,  Chia Chi Wu ,  Qiliang Xu ,  Zheng Gao ,  Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Aidan N. Zimmerman

IPC: G06F3/02 ,  G06F1/16 ,  H03K17/98 ,  H03K17/96

Abstract: A keyboard may be provided that has keys overlapped by a touch sensor. The keyboard may have key sensor circuitry for monitoring switching in the keys for key press input. The keyboard may also have touch sensor circuitry such as capacitive touch sensor circuitry that monitors capacitive electrodes in the touch sensor for touch sensor input such as multitouch gesture input. The keyboard may include an outer layer of fabric that overlaps the keys. The fabric may have openings that are arranged to form alphanumeric characters. Light sources may emit light that passes through the openings and illuminates the alphanumeric characters. The touch sensor may have signal lines that are not visible through the openings. The signal lines may be transparent, may be covered by a diffuser, or may circumvent the openings so that they do not overlap.

公开(公告)号：US20190287910A1

公开(公告)日：2019-09-19

申请号：US16134839

申请日：2018-09-18

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Steven J. Keating ,  Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Benjamin J. Grena

IPC: H01L23/538 ,  D02G3/12 ,  D02G3/36 ,  D02G3/44 ,  G01D11/24 ,  H01L33/62 ,  H01L25/065 ,  H01L25/18 ,  H01L25/16 ,  H01L25/075

Abstract: A fabric-based item may include fabric formed from intertwined strands of material with embedded circuitry. The strands of material may be formed from dielectric materials such as polymers. The strands of material may be formed from joined segments of polymer strand material or other material. Each joined segment may contain a potentially distinct circuit. Some joined segments may include one or more conductive lines. The conductive lines may run parallel to each other along the length of the joined segments to form circuit interconnects. Conductive lines may be joined to contact pads on integrated circuits and other embedded components formed from semiconductor dies. Control circuitry formed from the integrated circuits embedded in strands of material in the fabric and other control circuitry may be used to control the circuitry embedded in the fabric.

公开(公告)号：US10338755B2

公开(公告)日：2019-07-02

申请号：US15514452

申请日：2015-09-16

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Daniel A. Podhajny ,  Kathryn P. Crews ,  Daniel D. Sunshine

IPC: G06F3/045 ,  G06F3/044 ,  G06F3/041

Abstract: A touch-sensitive textile device that is configured to detect the occurrence of a touch, the location of a touch, and/or the force of a touch on the touch-sensitive textile device. In some embodiments, the touch-sensitive textile device includes a first set of conductive threads oriented along a first direction, and a second set of conductive threads interwoven with the first set of conductive threads and oriented along a second direction. The device may also include a sensing circuit that is operatively coupled to the first and second set of conductive threads. The sensing circuit may be configured to apply a drive signal to the first and second set of conductive threads. The sensing circuit may also be configured to detect a touch or near touch based on a variation in an electrical measurement using the first or second set of conductive threads.

公开(公告)号：US10191550B1

公开(公告)日：2019-01-29

申请号：US15592049

申请日：2017-05-10

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Michael B. Nussbaum ,  Mark J. Beesley ,  Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Christopher A. Schultz ,  Daniel A. Podhajny

IPC: G06F3/01 ,  G06F3/044

Abstract: An electronic device may have haptic output devices based on shape memory alloy wire. The electronic device may have control circuitry that supplies current to the shape memory alloy wire to heat and thereby contract the shape memory wire to create vibrations for a user's finger. The vibrations may serve as haptic feedback in a device such as a keyboard, a strap with embedded buttons, or other electronic devices. The shape memory alloy wire may run between upper and lower fabric layers in a spacer fabric, may form loops that attached to a fabric layer, or may be tensioned across an opening in a printed circuit or other rigid support structure.

公开(公告)号：US20190013275A1

公开(公告)日：2019-01-10

申请号：US15752480

申请日：2015-08-20

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Paul S. Drzaic ,  Daniel A. Podhajny ,  David M. Kindlon ,  Hoon Sik Kim ,  Kathryn P. Crews ,  Yung-Yu Hsu

IPC: H01L23/538 ,  H01L23/31 ,  H01L25/075 ,  H01L33/62 ,  H01L33/56 ,  D02G3/44 ,  G01D11/30

Abstract: A fabric-based item may include fabric layers and other layers of material. An array of electrical components may be mounted in the fabric-based item. The electrical components may be mounted to a support structure such as a flexible printed circuit. The flexible printed circuit may have a mesh shape formed from an array of openings. Serpentine flexible printed circuit segments may extend between the openings. The electrical components may be light-emitting diodes or other electrical devices. Polymer with light-scattering particles or other materials may cover the electrical components. The flexible printed circuit may be laminated between fabric layers or other layers of material in the fabric-based item.

公开(公告)号：US20180364804A1

公开(公告)日：2018-12-20

申请号：US15940876

申请日：2018-03-29

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Storrs T. Hoen ,  Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Aidan N. Zimmerman ,  Daniel A. Podhajny ,  Maurice P. May

IPC: G06F3/01 ,  A61B5/00 ,  G06F1/16 ,  G06F3/045 ,  D03D1/00 ,  A41D1/00 ,  A41D31/02 ,  G06F3/041 ,  G06F3/044 ,  G06F3/0488

CPC classification number: G06F3/014 ,  A41D1/005 ,  A41D31/02 ,  A61B5/6806 ,  A61B5/6843 ,  D02G3/441 ,  D03D1/0082 ,  D03D1/0088 ,  D10B2401/16 ,  D10B2401/18 ,  G01L1/146 ,  G06F1/163 ,  G06F3/0414 ,  G06F3/044 ,  G06F3/045 ,  G06F3/04883 ,  G06F2203/04102

Abstract: A fabric-based item such as a fabric glove may include force sensing circuitry. The force sensing circuitry may include force sensor elements formed from electrodes on a compressible substrate such as an elastomeric polymer substrate. The fabric may include intertwined strands of material including conductive strands. Signals from the force sensing circuitry may be conveyed to control circuitry in the item using the conductive strands. Wireless circuitry in the fabric-based item may be used to convey force sensor information to external equipment. The compressible substrate may have opposing upper and lower surfaces. Electrodes for the force sensor elements may be formed on the upper and lower surfaces. Stiffeners may overlap the electrodes to help decouple adjacent force sensor elements from each other. Integrated circuits can be attached to respective force sensing elements using adhesive.

公开(公告)号：US10097924B2

公开(公告)日：2018-10-09

申请号：US15206144

申请日：2016-07-08

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Jonathan R. Peterson ,  Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Jahan C. Minoo

IPC: H04R1/10 ,  H04R5/033 ,  H04R5/04

Abstract: An electronic device such as a pair of headphones may be provided with left and right speakers for playing audio to a user. Control circuitry in the electronic device may play audio through the speakers in an unreversed configuration in which left channel audio is played through a first of the speakers that is adjacent to a left ear of the user and right channel audio is played through a second of the speakers that is adjacent to a right ear of the user or a reversed configuration in which these channel assignments are reversed. A grip sensor may be used to distinguish between the user's left hand and the user's right hand. A motion sensor may detect movement as the headphones are placed on the user's head or on someone else's head. Control circuitry may use grip information and motion information to determine left and right channel assignments.