公开(公告)号：US11315880B2

公开(公告)日：2022-04-26

申请号：US17118392

申请日：2020-12-10

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: H05K1/00 ,  H01L23/538 ,  D03D1/00 ,  D03D11/02 ,  A41D27/20 ,  B81B7/00 ,  H01L23/00 ,  H01L33/62

Abstract: A fabric-based item may include fabric such as woven fabric having insulating and conductive yarns or other strands of material. The conductive yarns may form signal paths. Electrical components can be embedded within pockets in the fabric. Each electrical component may have an electrical device such as a semiconductor die that is mounted on an interposer substrate. The electrical device may be a light-emitting diode, a sensor, an actuator, or other electrical device. The electrical device may have contacts that are soldered to contacts on the interposer. The interposer may have additional contacts that are soldered to the signal paths. The fabric may have portions that form transparent windows overlapping the electrical components or that have other desired attributes.

公开(公告)号：US20210407917A1

公开(公告)日：2021-12-30

申请号：US17472223

申请日：2021-09-10

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 ,  H05K1/18 ,  H05K1/03 ,  D02G3/44 ,  G01D11/30 ,  H01L23/31 ,  H01L25/075 ,  H01L33/56

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：US11183459B2

公开(公告)日：2021-11-23

申请号：US16935088

申请日：2020-07-21

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 ,  H05K1/18 ,  H05K1/03 ,  D02G3/44 ,  G01D11/30 ,  H01L23/31 ,  H01L25/075 ,  H01L33/56 ,  A41D1/00 ,  H05K1/02 ,  H05K3/28 ,  F21Y115/10 ,  H01L21/48 ,  H01L23/00 ,  H01L33/62

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：US10910315B2

公开(公告)日：2021-02-02

申请号：US15752476

申请日：2016-08-10

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: H05K1/00 ,  H01L23/538 ,  D03D1/00 ,  D03D11/02 ,  A41D27/20 ,  B81B7/00 ,  H01L23/00 ,  H01L33/62

Abstract: A fabric-based item may include fabric such as woven fabric having insulating and conductive yarns or other strands of material. The conductive yarns may form signal paths. Electrical components can be embedded within pockets in the fabric. Each electrical component may have an electrical device such as a semiconductor die that is mounted on an interposer substrate. The electrical device may be a light-emitting diode, a sensor, an actuator, or other electrical device. The electrical device may have contacts that are soldered to contacts on the interposer. The interposer may have additional contacts that are soldered to the signal paths. The fabric may have portions that form transparent windows overlapping the electrical components or that have other desired attributes.

公开(公告)号：US20200344886A1

公开(公告)日：2020-10-29

申请号：US16926565

申请日：2020-07-10

Applicant: Apple Inc.

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

IPC: H05K1/18 ,  D03D1/00 ,  D03J1/00 ,  H01L23/13 ,  H01L23/31 ,  H01L23/498 ,  H05K1/03 ,  H05K3/34

Abstract: Electrical components may have plastic packages. Contacts may be formed on exterior surfaces of the plastic packages. A plastic package for an electrical component may have an elongated shape that extends along a longitudinal axis. A first groove may run parallel to the longitudinal axis on a lower surface of the plastic package. A second groove may run perpendicular to the first groove on an opposing upper surface of the plastic package. The electrical components may be coupled to fibers in a fabric such as a woven fabric. A first solder connection may be formed between the first groove and a first fiber such as a weft fiber. A second solder connection may be formed between the second groove and a second fiber such as a warp fiber.

公开(公告)号：US20200270777A1

公开(公告)日：2020-08-27

申请号：US16871531

申请日：2020-05-11

Applicant: Apple Inc.

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

IPC: D03D1/00 ,  A41D1/00 ,  A41D31/02 ,  G06F3/041 ,  G06F3/044 ,  G06F3/0488 ,  G06F3/042

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：US10739924B2

公开(公告)日：2020-08-11

申请号：US16417414

申请日：2019-05-20

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：US10732728B1

公开(公告)日：2020-08-04

申请号：US15467986

申请日：2017-03-23

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Daniel A. Podhajny ,  David M. Kindlon

IPC: G06F3/02 ,  G06F3/041 ,  G06F3/044

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 touch sensor may be formed from a layer of fabric. The fabric may be woven fabric or other fabric in which conductive strands of material serve as the electrodes for the touch sensor.

公开(公告)号：US20200029429A1

公开(公告)日：2020-01-23

申请号：US16582485

申请日：2019-09-25

Applicant: Apple Inc.

Inventor： Daniel D. Sunshine ,  Daniel A. Podhajny ,  Kathryn P. Crews ,  Kirk M. Mayer ,  John Arthur Maasberg

IPC: H05K1/03 ,  H01B13/00 ,  C23C18/16 ,  C25D7/06

Abstract: Strands of material may be intertwined using weaving techniques, knitting techniques, non-woven or entanglement techniques, or braiding techniques. Fabric that is formed from the strands of material may be used in forming a fabric-based item. The fabric based item may include electrical components. The strands may include conductive strands that form signal paths. The signal paths can carry electrical signals associated with operation of the electrical components. Each strand may have an elongated core and a coating. Strands may also include intermediate layers between the cores and coatings. The cores, intermediate layers, and coatings may be formed from polymer without conductive filler, polymer with conductive filler, and/or metal. A polymer core may be provided with recesses to help retain subsequently deposited layers such as a metal coating layer. The recesses may be grooves that extend along the longitudinal axis of the core.

公开(公告)号：US20190354179A1

公开(公告)日：2019-11-21

申请号：US16524741

申请日：2019-07-29

Applicant: Apple Inc.

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

IPC: G06F3/01 ,  A41D31/02 ,  G06F3/0488 ,  D03D1/00 ,  G06F3/045 ,  G06F3/041 ,  A61B5/00 ,  G01L1/14 ,  A41D1/00 ,  G06F3/044

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.