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Apple Patents a Foldable Device with a Flexible Transparent Wall
Apple was just granted a patent back in April 2021 and last week their continuation patent 20210223904 revealed the addition of 20 new patent claims. Below are four of the key additions. In Apple's new patent, the display and/or touch layers have curved shapes that match the curved profiles of curved sidewalls. The next figure is a perspective view of an illustrative folding electronic device of the type that may be provided with display and touch sensor structures.
Apple was just granted a patent back in April 2021 and last week their continuation patent 20210223904 revealed the addition of 20 new patent claims. Below are four of the key additions. In Apple's new patent, the display and/or touch layers have curved shapes that match the curved profiles of curved sidewalls. The next figure is a perspective view of an illustrative folding electronic device of the type that may be provided with display and touch sensor structures.
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Future iPhone w/Touch Surfaces Extending to Sidewalls and the figure above is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative electronic device with two flexible portions to allow the device to fold along two respective bend axes; FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative electronic device with three or more flexible portions to allow the device to fold along three or more respective bend axes. Patent claims include:
To review the remaining 16 new patent claims, check out Apple's continuation patent here.
- Claim #1: "An electronic device, comprising: an enclosure having opposing front and rear surfaces and sidewalls, wherein the sidewalls have an opaque portion; touch sensor structures having a first portion that gathers touch input on the front surface, a second portion that gathers touch input on the rear surface, and a third portion between the first and second portions that is overlapped by the opaque portion of the sidewalls; and a display layer that emits light through the front surface of the enclosure."
- Claim #10: The electronic device defined in claim 1 wherein the opaque portion of the sidewalls comprises metal.
- Claim #11: "An electronic device, comprising: an enclosure having front and rear walls coupled by a sidewall; a touch sensor layer having first and second planar portions and a bent portion between the first and second planar portions, wherein the first planar portion gathers touch input on the front wall, the second planar portion gathers touch input on the rear wall, and the bent portion is at least partially covered by an opaque portion of the sidewall; and display structures that emit light through the front and rear walls."
- Claim #16: "An electronic device, comprising: an enclosure having first and second opposing planar surfaces coupled by a side surface with an opaque portion; a touch sensor layer that gathers touch input on the first and second opposing planar surfaces and that is at least partially covered by the opaque portion of the side surface; and a display layer that emits light through the first and second opposing planar surfaces and that is at least partially covered by the opaque portion of the side surface."
To review the remaining 16 new patent claims, check out Apple's continuation patent here.