Patent application number | Description | Published |
20130019916 | SOLAR CONCENTRATOR ASSEMBLY AND METHODS OF USING SAME - A solar concentrator assembly includes a tripod, a base, a reflective dish, a receptacle, and a thermoelectric module or a heat transfer module. The tripod includes legs and a top tripod connector coupled to top portions thereof. The base includes a rod coupled to the tripod; a bottom support structure coupled to the rod; a top support structure coupled to the bottom support structure; an extension coupled to the bottom support structure and the top support structure; and a cap with recesses mounted to the top support structure. The reflective dish includes support rods received within the recesses; a pliable material forms panels, wherein the support rods are inserted into seams between the panels; and a reflective material disposed on the pliable material. The receptacle is connected to the base and disposed within the reflective dish. The thermoelectric module or the heat transfer module is partially disposed within the receptacle. | 01-24-2013 |
20130342495 | Tape-Based Grounding Structures - An electronic device housing may have conductive walls and planar metal internal housing structures. A display in the electronic device may have a touch sensor layer such as an array of capacitive touch sensor electrodes. The display may have display layers in a plastic chassis structure and a metal chassis structure. A display layer may have a conductive surface. Conductive tape may be used to couple the touch sensor to the metal chassis structure and a metal radio-frequency shielding structure. Conductive tape may also be used to short the conductive surface of the display layer to the internal metal housing structure. Segments of conductive tape may run along each of the four edges of a display and may overlap at display corners. Conductive foam structures may be used to short the segments to adjacent portions of the conductive housing walls. | 12-26-2013 |
20130342970 | LOW-FORCE DUST SEAL - An electronic device may have polarizer layers, color filter layers, thin-film-transistor layers, and other display layers. A display layer may be separated from structures such as a display cover layer formed from clear glass or plastic and a touch sensor layer mounted on an inner surface of the display cover layer by an air gap. Cavities within an electronic device housing may serve as a source of dust and other contaminants. The air gap may be sealed against dust intrusion from a cavity within an electronic device using a dust sealing structure. The dust sealing structure may have a rectangular ring shape that runs around a rectangular peripheral portion of a display layer. The dust sealing structure may be formed from a tape-based structure, an elastomeric structure, a compressible foam structure, or a cured liquid structure. | 12-26-2013 |
20130343085 | Electronic Device Display Chassis - An electronic device display may include display layers mounted in a display chassis. The display chassis may have a plastic chassis structure and a metal chassis structure. Backlight structures may include a rectangular light guide plate. Light-emitting diodes within the backlight structures may emit light that is coupled into the light guide plate. The display chassis may have four edges that surround a rectangular opening. The rectangular opening may be configured to receive display layers such as the light guide plate. The metal chassis may have a C-shaped cross-section that forms a cavity in which the light-emitting diodes are mounted. The metal chassis structure may have engagement features such as holes and bent tabs. The plastic chassis structure may be overmolded on the metal chassis structure in engagement with the engagement features. Mounting structures may be formed from protruding portions of the plastic chassis structure. | 12-26-2013 |
20140078412 | Exposed Glass Article with Inner Recessed Area for Portable Electronic Device Housing - Transparent articles for use as outer surfaces of electronic devices and methods therefor are disclosed. A transparent cover can be provided over a display of portable electronic device to provide a protective outer cover over the display. The transparent cover can include material to mark, mask or color a portion of the transparent cover, such portion thereupon becoming opaque. The material can be provided in a recessed portion of an inner surface of the transparent cover, such portion being a portion of the transparent cover that is not over a usable portion of the display. The electronic device can, for example, be a portable electronic device. | 03-20-2014 |
20140092034 | Electronic Devices With Flexible Circuit Light Shields - Electronic devices may include displays. A display may include backlight structures that generate light and display layers that generate images using the generated light. An electronic device may include an opaque flexible printed circuit that is wrapped around one or more edges of the backlight structures. The opaque flexible printed circuit may prevent light from the backlight structures from reaching other electronic components or escaping from the device. The opaque flexible printed circuit may include signal lines that communicate signals between a printed circuit board and the display. The opaque flexible printed circuit may be a layer of the printed circuit board that extends from an edge of the printed circuit board. The printed circuit board may include an additional flexible extended printed circuit layer that wraps around a surface of the printed circuit board and forms a portion of a conductive shield over that surface. | 04-03-2014 |
20140092342 | Electronic Devices With Displays Having Optical Films - Electronic devices may include displays having backlight structures that include optical films. The optical films may help guide light from the backlight structures to display layers that generate display images using the light. The optical films may be attached together at one or more locations. The optical films may be attached to a structural member of the backlight structures. The structural member may be formed along each edge of the optical films and prevent the optical films from sliding within the display. Each optical film may be designed to expand to a common lateral size when the display is operated at a display operating temperature. The optical films may each include an elongated opening such as a slot through which a pin can be placed to partially constrain the movement of the optical films while allowing the optical films to expand or contract under changing thermal conditions in the display. | 04-03-2014 |
20140092583 | Electronic Device with Display Backlight Alignment Structures - Electronic devices may include displays having backlight structures and display layers. The display layers may include alignment features. The backlight structure may include alignment features. The alignment features on the backlight structures may include transparent portions of the backlight structures. The alignment features on the display layers may include alignment marks that are visible through the transparent portions of the backlight structures. The transparent portions of the backlight structures may include openings that extend from a first surface of the backlight structures to an opposing second surface of the backlight structures. The openings may be filled by transparent members formed from plastic or glass. The transparent members may include additional alignment marks. The transparent members may include lensing portions that magnify the alignment marks on the display layers when viewed through the lensing portions. | 04-03-2014 |
20140092630 | Backlight Structures and Assemblies for Electronic Device Displays - Electronic devices may include displays. A display may include backlight components such as a light guide plate that distributes light from a light source across the display. The light source may include a plurality of light-emitting diodes mounted on a printed circuit substrate. A portion of the light guide plate may be attached to the printed circuit substrate using adhesive. The adhesive may be a supported adhesive that includes a lining of reflective material. A reflective coating such as a layer of white coverlay may be formed on the surface of the printed circuit substrate and may be configured to reflect light into the light guide plate. The reflective coating may serve as a solder mask. The printed circuit substrate may be attached to a metal display chassis using adhesive. A shim may be used to raise the height of the light source relative to the printed circuit substrate. | 04-03-2014 |
20140118531 | Methods for Assembling Display Structures - Electronic devices may include displays. A display may include a display unit that includes an array of display pixels and a backlight unit that provides backlight illumination for the display pixels. An automated alignment system may be used to align the display unit to the backlight unit. The alignment system may include a camera, a control unit, and computer-controlled positioners. The control unit may gather alignment feature location information from the display unit and the backlight unit using the camera. The control unit may determine a centroid of the backlight unit based on the alignment feature location information. The alignment feature location information may include the respective locations of openings in the backlight unit. The control unit may operate computer-controlled positioners to align the display unit with respect to the backlight unit using the centroid and to subsequently attach the display unit to the backlight unit. | 05-01-2014 |
20140133174 | Displays and Display Chassis Structures - Electronic devices may include displays. A display may include backlight components that provide backlight illumination for the display. Backlight components may include a light guide plate that distributes light from a light source across the display. A plastic display chassis may be used to support display layers and backlight components. A light blocking material such as a layer of metal or opaque coating material may be formed on a surface of the plastic display chassis and may be used to reduce light leakage from the backlight components to the exterior of the electronic device. A metal barrier structure may be formed on a surface of the support structure and may be used to ground a conductive display layer to a conductive support structure such as a metal display chassis or a metal housing member. The plastic display chassis may be insert molded around a light barrier structure. | 05-15-2014 |
20140133179 | Electronic Device with Display Chassis Structures - Electronic devices may include displays. A display may include backlight components that provide backlight illumination for the display. Backlight components may include a light guide plate that distributes light from a light source across the display. Display chassis structures may be used to support display layers and backlight components. A metal chassis may include a portion that partially surrounds the light source. Openings or perforations in the metal chassis may allow the portion that surrounds the light source to flex about a flex axis. A portion of a display layer may be mounted to a plastic chassis. The plastic chassis may be insert molded over a light source, may form part of a package for a light source, may be adhered to a light source, or may wrap around the light source. An encapsulant may be formed over the light source to protect the light source from vibrations and contaminants. | 05-15-2014 |
20140354900 | Flexible Printed Circuit Cables With Slits - An electronic device contains electrical circuits. The circuits may include circuitry on printed circuit boards and components such as a touch screen display and buttons. Signal paths for routing signals between the electrical circuits may be formed from metal traces on flexible printed circuit cables. The flexible printed circuit cables may be bent around one or more bend axes. A flexible printed circuit cable may be formed from a flexible polymer substrate having one or more layers of polymer. Upper and lower ground layers may be supported by the flexible polymer substrate. The metal traces for the signal paths may lie between the upper and lower ground layers. Longitudinal slits within the flexible printed circuit may be formed that pass through the ground layers and the polymer layers. Vias may be formed that couple the ground layers together. The vias may run along the edges of the slits. | 12-04-2014 |
20150049285 | Non-Planar Display Backlight Structures - An electronic device may be provided with a display. The display may include display layers characterized by an active area and backlight structures that provide backlight to the active area. To accommodate components such as a button, an edge portion of a light guide plate in the backlight structures that does not overlap the active area is bent out of the plane of the light guide plate. The bent edge portion of the light guide plate may be formed by molding clear plastic in a die or by bending a flexible sheet of clear polymer. Flared structures may be formed on the flexible sheet of clear polymer to help guide light from light-emitting diodes into the flexible sheet of clear polymer. The flared structures may be formed by applying resin coating layers to the flexible sheet of clear polymer. | 02-19-2015 |
20150065208 | FEATURES AND MANUFACTURING METHODS FOR A CASE FOR A PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE - An accessory unit for use with an electronic device is described. Accessory unit includes a front flap and a rear cover. The rear cover includes a recessed portion that defines a chamber and a lip portion. The chamber is configured to receive a consumer electronic device, and the lip portion is configured to hold the consumer electronic device therein by an interference fit that exposes substantially all of a display portion of the consumer electronic product. The front flap can include segments formed from panels with folding regions therebetween, which allow the front flap to fold. Further, an end region of the front flap pivotally couples the front flap to the rear cover, such that the front flap may be moved between open and closed configurations. The front may include magnetic elements. | 03-05-2015 |