Patents Assigned to Apple, Inc.
  • Patent number: 12228411
    Abstract: Location information is used to build a database of locations having associated audio, video, image, or text data. In some implementations, a device includes a touch-sensitive display and collects data associated with a geographic location of interest. The geographic location of interest can be displayed on a map using an indicator. A touch selection of the indicator provides access to the data through an interface displayed on the touch-sensitive display. One or more locations of interest can be displayed and grouped together by an attribute.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Scott Forstall, Gregory N. Christie, Robert E. Borchers, Imran A. Chaudhri
  • Patent number: 12229657
    Abstract: Embodiments relate to a neural processor that include a plurality of neural engine circuits and one or more planar engine circuits. The plurality of neural engine circuits can perform convolution operations of input data of the neural engine circuits with one or more kernels to generate outputs. The planar engine circuit is coupled to the plurality of neural engine circuits. The planar engine circuit generates an output from input data that corresponds to output of the neural engine circuits or a version of input data of the neural processor. The planar engine circuit can be configured to multiple modes. In a pooling mode, the planar engine circuit reduces a spatial size of a version of the input data. In an elementwise mode, the planar engine circuit performs an elementwise operation on the input data. In a reduction mode, the planar engine circuit reduces the rank of a tensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2019
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Christopher L. Mills, Kenneth W. Waters, Youchang Kim
  • Patent number: 12229307
    Abstract: The disclosed technology provides for secure storage and usage of data at an electronic device. A device may include a hardened data manager that securely stores data associated with users of the device and/or another device. An application that does not have access to the securely stored data can still use the securely stored data by requesting that another system process at the device perform operations on the securely stored data and/or one or more updates to the securely stored data. For example, an application can request rendering of an avatar of a user. A rendering engine, separate from the application, can obtain securely stored base data from the hardened data manager, obtain updates to the securely stored base data, and render the avatar using the updates to the securely stored base data, without exposing the securely stored base data to the application.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 1, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Srinivas Vedula, Joel N. Kerr, Yuehhsun Lin
  • Patent number: 12229473
    Abstract: Systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for detecting a wearing status of a wearable device, the wearing status indicating whether a user is wearing the wearable device and sending wearing status data to a companion communication device to control a behavior of the companion communication device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Robert D. Watson, David John Shaw, Arun Dhyaneshwar Chawan, Matthew Gillette, Ganesha Adkasthala Ganapathi Batta, Jeffrey Chandler Moore, Patrick Ian Bernhard, Baek San Chang, Patrick Lee Coffman, Jonathan Anderson Bennett, Anthony Guetta, Jahan Christian Minoo, Keith Walter Rauenbuehler
  • Patent number: 12229167
    Abstract: A method and apparatus of a device that indexes donated content from an application on a device is described. In an exemplary embodiment, the device receives donated content for an application object from the application. The device further associates a metadata tag for a topic to the donated content. In addition, the device indexes the donated content with the metadata tag in a local search index of the device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Anubhav Malhotra, John M. Hörnkvist
  • Patent number: 12228655
    Abstract: This disclosure is directed to shared antenna tuning. An electronic device may receive a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) tune request to tune a shared antenna to a GNSS signal frequency. The electronic device may then tune the antenna to the GNSS signal frequency and enable a GNSS receiver. The electronic device may also receive a cellular tune request to tune the antenna to a cellular frequency. The electronic device may tune the antenna to a cellular frequency and may deactivate the GNSS receiver or blank the GNSS receiver. In some embodiments, the electronic device may also communicate with a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite. During LEO satellite communication, the electronic device may transmit a signal to blank a GNSS L1 receiver to avoid signal interference with the LEO satellite communication, and activate a GNSS L5 receiver to receive GNSS signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Glenn D. MacGougan, Aditya N. Srivastava, Harsha Shirahatti, Madhusudan Chaudhary, Ozgur Ekici, Sachin J. Sane, William J. Bencze
  • Patent number: 12229586
    Abstract: A neural processor includes neural engines for performing convolution operations on input data corresponding to one or more tasks to generate output data. The neural processor also includes a data processor circuit coupled to external system memory. The data processor circuit includes a buffer for storing the output data from the neural engines. The neural processor further includes a task manager coupled to the data processor circuit. The task manager receives a context-switch task. The context-switch task specifies a switch of the data processor circuit from handling an outgoing task to an incoming task. The task manager sends configuration data of the context-switch task to cause the data processor circuit to transmit the output data corresponding to the outgoing task from the buffer to the external system memory. The data processor circuit also fetches data corresponding to the incoming task from the external system memory to the buffer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 22, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Christopher L. Mills, Kenneth W. Waters
  • Patent number: 12230361
    Abstract: An apparatus includes an in-memory compute circuit that includes a memory circuit configured to generate a set of products by combining received input values with respective weight values stored in rows of the memory circuit, and to combine the set of products to generate an accumulated output value. The in-memory compute circuit may further include a control circuit and a plurality of routing circuits, including a first routing circuit coupled to a first set of rows of the memory circuit. The control circuit may be configured to cause the first routing circuit to route groups of input values to different ones of the first set of rows over a plurality of clock cycles, and the memory circuit to generate, on a clock cycle following the plurality of clock cycles, a particular accumulated output value that is computed based on the routed groups of input values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Paolo Di Febbo, Mohamed H. Abu-Rahma, Jelam K. Parekh, Yildiz Sinangil, Mohammad Ghasemzadeh, Anthony Ghannoum, Chaminda N. Vidanagamachchi
  • Patent number: 12231132
    Abstract: To enhance phase-locked loop (PLL) performance, PLL duty-cycle calibration may be desirable. In some cases, higher reference clock frequency may assist in reducing phase noise and increasing power efficiency of the PLL. A frequency doubler may increase the PLL reference clock frequency, but the duty cycle error in the clock may result in a spur at a clock frequency offset. Low phase noise PLL architectures may include a static phase offset at the PLL input between the reference path and the feedback path, and the static phase offset may vary with PVT, which may limit the accuracy of duty cycle error detection. Correcting for the static phase offset may cause a disturbance at the PLL output. To address the duty cycle error caused by the higher reference clock frequency, a duty cycle calibration loop may be introduced. For the duty cycle calibration loop, phase offset information may be extracted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 13, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Karim M Megawer, Jongmin Park, Thomas Mayer
  • Patent number: 12231156
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to techniques for controlling Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) of radio energy transmission. In particular, the disclosure relates to a radio device and a method for controlling radio energy transmission of a plurality of radio entities to comply with a predefined SAR requirement. Such a radio device includes: a plurality of radio entities configured to transmit radio energy; and a controller configured to control the radio energy transmission of the plurality of radio entities to comply with a predefined Specific Absorption Rate, SAR, requirement, wherein the controller is configured to enable at least two radio entities of the plurality of radio entities operating concurrently based on a shared SAR transmission power restriction which allows the at least two radio entities transmitting concurrently at a predefined duty cycle, in particular at 100% duty cycle, without violating the SAR requirement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Oren Kaidar, Ehud Reshef, Nir Balaban, Wilfrid D'Angelo, Yuval Elad
  • Patent number: 12231199
    Abstract: Exemplary embodiments include methods performed by a user equipment (UE). The methods include transmitting two transmission (Tx) streams simultaneously, wherein the two Tx streams are transmitted by two distinct Tx polarization circuitries within a same UE antenna panel circuitry as two Tx polarizations. The methods also include identifying a first signal, identifying a second signal, transmitting the first signal in a first direction using a first polarization of an antenna panel and transmitting the second signal in a second direction using a second polarization of the antenna panel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jie Cui, Zhibin Yu, Yang Tang, Qiming Li, Qing Xu
  • Patent number: 12231044
    Abstract: A power management circuit for computer systems includes a power converter circuit that generates different voltage levels at different time periods. Multiple voltage regulator circuits are coupled to the output of the power converter circuit and to respective local power supply nodes. Switch devices are used to bypass the voltage regulator circuits during corresponding ones of the different time periods.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 11, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Victor Zyuban, Jay B. Fletcher, Hao Zhou
  • Patent number: 12232007
    Abstract: An electronic device may transmit a communication request to a base station having an indication of a number of its receive branches and an indication of whether the communication request is designated as an urgent service fulfillment. The base station may delay a denial of the communication request until receiving the indication of whether the communication request is designated as using the urgent service fulfillment to reduce a likelihood of prematurely rejecting the communication request. The base station may also handover the communication request to a base station that supports the urgent service fulfillment. The base station may also be barred from transferring the user equipment to a frequency layer preferred by the base station when the communication request of the user equipment is designated as an urgent service fulfillment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Anatoliy S Ioffe, Ronald W Dimpflmaier, Alexander Sayenko, Fucheng Wang
  • Patent number: 12231753
    Abstract: A camera includes a lens group, an image sensor, an actuator to move the image sensor relative to the lens group, and a flexure that suspends the image sensor from a stationary structure of the camera and that allows motion of the image sensor enabled by the actuator. The flexure includes a dynamic platform to which the image sensor is connected such that the image sensor moves with the dynamic platform, a static platform connected to a static portion of the camera, a plurality of flexure arms that mechanically connect the dynamic platform to the static platform, and one or more elastic spacers positioned between at least two flexure arms of the plurality of flexure arms.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Phillip R Sommer, Seyed Mohammad Javid Mahmoudzadeh
  • Patent number: 12231787
    Abstract: Embodiments relate to image signal processors (ISP) that include binner circuits that down-sample an input image. An input image may include a plurality of pixels. The output image of the binner circuit may include a reduced number of pixels. The binner circuit may include a plurality of different operation modes. In a bin mode, the binner circuit may blend a subset of input pixel values to generate an output pixel quad. In a skip mode, the binner circuit may select one of the input pixel values as the output pixel pixel. The selection may be performed randomly to avoid aliasing. In a luminance mode, the binner circuit may take a weighted average of a subset of pixel values having different colors. In a color value mode, the binner circuit may select one of the colors in a subset of pixel values as an output pixel value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2024
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Sheng Lin, D. Amnon Silverstein, David R. Pope
  • Patent number: 12232176
    Abstract: Techniques are provided for implementing backhaul communications for an integrated access and backhaul node (IAB) operating in a wireless network. For example, an IAB node determines a first random access channel (RACH) configuration for a child node in the wireless network that is served by the IAB node. The IAB transmits a RACH configuration request message including the first RACH configuration to a parent IAB node, and receives, from the parent IAB node, a second RACH configuration complete message that includes a second RACH configuration that is based on the first RACH configuration for the child node. The IAB then performs backhaul communication with the parent IAB node using the second RACH configuration.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2020
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventor: Honglei Miao
  • Patent number: 12231913
    Abstract: Systems and methods for using integrated access and backhaul (IAB) nodes configured to provide multi-access edge computing (MEC) functionality are disclosed herein. An TAB node includes a distributed unit (DU) having a local application instance of a MEC-enabled application. The local application instance is configured for communication with a first user equipment (UE) connected to the TAB node. A mobile termination functionality (MT) of the IAB node uses a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer to transport data of the local application instance between the MT and an IAB donor. Further, data of the local application instance is transported between the UE and the TAB node via one of a variety of methods, including the use of a second PDCP layer at the DU (and optionally the use of service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layers at each of the DU and the MT), and/or via sidelink.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Sarma V. Vangala, Sudeep Manithara Vamanan, Fangli Xu, Haijing Hu, Krisztian Kiss, Mona Agnel, Naveen Kumar R Palle Venkata, Ralf Rossbach, Sethuraman Gurumoorthy, Yuqin Chen, Zhibin Wu
  • Patent number: 12231836
    Abstract: An electronic device can include a housing including a sidewall having an interior surface defining a first aperture and an internal volume. The device can also include a microphone port disposed in the internal volume. The microphone port can include a structure having a cylindrical sidewall and a shelf extending radially inward from the cylindrical sidewall. The microphone port can also include a mesh fixed to the shelf.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 14, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Megan L. Banh, William C. Lukens
  • Patent number: D1062772
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Andrez Enrrique Aguayo, Benjamin Thomas Christie, Anton Davydov, Frank De Jong, Andrey Lifinskiy, Marcello Luppi
  • Patent number: D1062776
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: Apple, Inc.
    Inventor: Imran Chaudhri