Patents Assigned to Apple
  • Patent number: 11295088
    Abstract: Systems and processes for modifying word predictions are provided. In one example, a user input is received including one or more words. A prediction of a word sequence corresponding to one or more words is obtained, and context information associated with the word sequence is obtained. In accordance with a determination, based on the context information, that the prediction of the word sequence corresponds to a predetermined semantic reference, the prediction of the word sequence is modified, and an output is provided corresponding to the modified prediction of the word sequence. In accordance with a determination, based on the context information, that the prediction of the word sequence does not correspond to a predetermined semantic reference, an output is provided corresponding to the prediction of the word sequence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventor: Jerome R. Bellegarda
  • Patent number: 11294089
    Abstract: A circuit includes a sensing circuit for a first antenna and a second antenna, the sensing circuit including an adjustable characteristic that is based on a proximity of an object to the first or second antenna used to transmit a transmit signal. An evaluation circuit is coupled to the sensing circuit. The evaluation circuit is configured to monitor the characteristic of the sensing circuit and to determine whether the characteristic fulfills a predetermined criterion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Mikko S. Komulainen, Saku Lahti
  • Patent number: 11295529
    Abstract: In one implementation, a method of including a person in a CGR experience or excluding the person from the CGR experience is performed by a device including one or more processors, non-transitory memory, and a scene camera. The method includes, while presenting a CGR experience, capturing an image of scene; detecting, in the image of the scene, a person; and determining an identity of the person. The method includes determining, based on the identity of the person, whether to include the person in the CGR experience or exclude the person from the CGR experience. The method includes presenting the CGR experience based on the determination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Daniel Ulbricht, Amit Kumar K C, Angela Blechschmidt, Chen-Yu Lee, Eshan Verma, Mohammad Haris Baig, Tanmay Batra
  • Patent number: 11294236
    Abstract: An electronic device may have a display with a backlight. The backlight provides backlight illumination for an array of pixels that is displaying images. The backlight may include an array of cells. Each cell may contain a light source with one or more light-emitting diodes and a cavity reflector that reflects light from the light source outwardly through a diffuser for use in forming the backlight illumination. The light sources may be mounted to a printed circuit. Support posts on the printed circuit may be used to maintain the diffuser at a fixed distance from the printed circuit. Sensors on the printed circuit may be used to measure separation distances between the printed circuit and diffuser. Adjustments to pixel gain profiles can be made based on the measured separation distances.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Rong Liu, Yu P. Sun, Erik A. Zweigle, Jun Qi, Victor H. Yin, Ziruo Hong, Sungwon Bae
  • Patent number: 11294479
    Abstract: Touch-based input devices, such as a stylus, can receive tactile input from a user. The tactile input functions can be performed by a touch sensor, such as a capacitive sensing device. A touch sensor can be integrated into a stylus in a low profile form. Wireless charging and magnetic coupling with a host device are also facilitated. The stylus can be provided with the above features in a small form factor that improves a user experience with the stylus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 11, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Joel N. Ruscher, Ryan P. Brooks, Henry N. Tsao, Wing-Shan Wong
  • Patent number: 11294974
    Abstract: An embedding associated with a query comprising one or more query terms is determined to be not stored in memory. An embedding is generated for the one or more query terms. One or more web documents that are similar to the generated embedding are determined. One or more content cards associated with the one or more web documents that are determined to be similar to the generated embedding are provided in a content feed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Anand Shukla, Derek Kisman, Kushal Tayal, Steven Baker, Vishnu Priya Natchu
  • Patent number: 11294911
    Abstract: Methods and systems for client side search ranking improvements are disclosed. In one example, a search query is received from a user on a client device. The local search results are filtered based on the received search query and one or more local ranking rules. Features for each filtered local search result are computed. The computed features of each filtered local search result are input to one or more machine learning (ML) models. Each ML model can generate a score for each filtered local search result. The filtered local search results are ranked based on the generated score within a category. In one example, local search results and remote server search results are obtained. The local search results and remote server search results are ranked using at least one machine learning (ML) ranking model. The ranked local search results and remote server search results are displayed on the client device by category.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: John M. Hornkvist, Anubhav Malhotra, Rene Chan, Stanley Hung
  • Patent number: 11296802
    Abstract: An electronic device may include a harmonic rejection mixer with a delay line, mixer array, and load. The delay line may generate LO phases. Each mixer in the array may have a first input that receives an LO phase and a second input coupled to an input switch and the first input of the next mixer circuit through an inter-mixer switch. The load may include a set of switches. In a transmit mode, the input switches and set of switches may be closed while the inter-mixer switches are open. In a self-calibration mode, the input switches and set of switches may be open while the inter-mixer switches are closed. A controller may sweep through phase codes for the programmable delay line while storing a digital output from the load. The controller may calibrate the phase code based on the digital output.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 24, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Hongrui Wang, Abbas Komijani, Saihua Lin, Sohrab Emami-Neyestanak
  • Patent number: 11294532
    Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed that can selectively route actions, such as notifications, to cause activations of one or more applications based on data associated with the actions and based on activation conditions specified at a scene level by each of the applications.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventor: Kenneth A. Ferry
  • Patent number: 11295754
    Abstract: A first device obtains, from the array, several audio signals and processes the audio signals to produce a speech signal and one or more ambient signals. The first device processes the ambient signals to produce a sound-object sonic descriptor that has metadata describing a sound object within an acoustic environment. The first device transmits, over a communication data link, the speech signal and the descriptor to a second electronic device that is configured to spatially reproduce the sound object using the descriptor mixed with the speech signal, to produce several mixed signals to drive several speakers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Christopher T. Eubank, Lance Jabr, Matthew S. Connolly, Robert D. Silfvast, Sean A. Ramprashad, Carlos Avendano, Miquel Espi Marques
  • Patent number: 11294443
    Abstract: A sensor circuit in a computer system measures a frequency of an oscillator circuit and uses the measured frequency to determine an operating condition of the computer system. The accuracy of the operating condition is limited by various sources of noise, including device noise, that introduce error into frequency measurements, limiting the accuracy to which the frequency of the oscillator signal may be measured. To improve the accuracy of the frequency measurement of the oscillator signal, the sensor circuit disables the oscillator between successive measurements, in order to reduce the correlation of error between the successive measurements. The sensor circuit combines the multiple measurement results to determine the frequency of the oscillator signal to a higher degree of accuracy, thereby improving the accuracy to which the operating condition is determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 11, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jafar Savoj, Robert S. Brandt, II, Bruno W. Garlepp
  • Patent number: 11297410
    Abstract: An earbud design is disclosed that is configured to sit securely within an ear of a user. The earbud can be secured within the ear by an anchoring feature formed from an elastomeric material. The anchoring feature has a size and shape in accordance with an interior geometry of an ear of a user. Because the anchoring feature positions the earbud with respect to the ear, geometries of the earbud can be focused upon audio performance and/or device aesthetics. In some embodiments, the earbud housing can have a linear design which allows an audio driver within the earbud housing to be positioned close to an opening defined by the earbud housing. In this way, acoustic degradation associated with a long audio path from the audio driver to the opening can be avoided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Glenn K. Trainer, Craig M. Stanley, Scott C. Grinker
  • Patent number: 11297691
    Abstract: Embodiments of interference coordination for aerial vehicle user equipment (UE) are described. In some embodiments, a base station (BS) is configured to select a subset of time-frequency resources dedicated for use in serving aerial vehicle UEs and communicate with the aerial vehicle UEs via the subset of time-frequency resources. In some embodiments, the BS may transmit signaling to a neighbor BS that indicates the BS has dedicated the subset of time-frequency resources for serving aerial vehicle UEs and the subset of time-frequency resources to be used. The BS may receive an indication from the neighbor BS that a neighbor BS is to dedicate the subset of time-frequency resources to serve aerial vehicle UE, and based on the indication, the BS may reduce transmission activities in the subset of time-frequency resources, including refraining from transmitting or reducing an amount of information or power level of signaling to the aerial vehicle UEs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Victor Sergeev, Seunghee Han, Feng Xue, Alexei Davydov, Gregory Morozov
  • Patent number: 11297670
    Abstract: Methods performed by a first sink device, a source device, or a second sink device. The first sink device is connected to a source device via a first communication link and a second sink device via a second communication link, wherein the second sink device is configured to eavesdrop on communications between the first sink device and the source device on the first communication link. The methods include determining an occurrence of a trigger event and modifying an operation of at least one of the first sink device, the second sink device or the source device based at least on the trigger event occurring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Lei Li, Xiaojun Chen, Camille Chen, Siegfried Lehmann, Vusthla Sunil Reddy, Peter M. Agboh
  • Patent number: 11297732
    Abstract: An electronic device includes an outer housing having an upper enclosure and a foot coupled thereto, a heat generating component, and a fan assembly integrated into the foot and situated proximate a bottom surface of the heat generating component. The foot can include inlet and outlet vents. The fan assembly can include an inlet, outlet, impeller with blades, shroud and fin stack. The electronic device can also include a heat pipe, a heat transfer stage, a PCB, and a bottom shield. Airflow through the electronic device can be directed across the fin stack, heat pipe, heat transfer stage, and bottom shield. Airflow can occur over a substantially level path through the electronic device from the inlet to outlet vents.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Eric R. Prather, Clark E. Waterfall, Reuben J. Williams, Vinh H. Diep
  • Patent number: 11297369
    Abstract: In some implementations, a system can be configured to allow remote control devices to quietly obtain status information related to various audio/video playback devices. For example, a streaming device (e.g., a user device, phone, etc.) can establish a streaming connection to a playback device. The playback device can be configured to only accept a single streaming connection (i.e., master connection). A remote control device (e.g., a user device, phone, etc.) can quietly connect (i.e., control connection) to the playback device without interrupting the master connection to obtain status information related to the playback device and or the media being streamed to the playback device. The remote control device can provide commands through the control connection to adjust the playback of the streamed media at the playback device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Deepak Iyer, Thomas Alsina, Edward T. Schmidt, Elena Leyfman, David P. Saracino, Astrid Yi, Adam A. Sonnanstine, Jonathan A. Bennett, Gregory R. Chapman, Aparna S. Akella, Shreyas Nandagudi Sreesha, Johannes P. Schmidt
  • Patent number: D947839
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jody Akana, Bartley K. Andre, Shota Aoyagi, Anthony Michael Ashcroft, Jeremy Bataillou, Brad G. Boozer, Makiko Kawamura Brzezinski, Tyler Scott Bushnell, Daniel J. Coster, Daniele De Iuliis, Colin Ely, M. Evans Hankey, Phillip M. Hobson, Julian Hoenig, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Eric Steven Jol, Benjamin Jordan Kallman, Duncan Robert Kerr, David Nazzaro, Trevor Jordan Ness, Marc A. Newson, David Pelletier, Matthew Dean Rohrbach, Fletcher Rothkopf, Peter Russell-Clarke, Jason Christopher Sauers, Benjamin Andrew Shaffer, Anna-Katrina Shedletsky, Mikael Silvanto, Christopher J. Stringer, Samuel Bruce Weiss, Christopher M. Werner, Eugene Antony Whang, Michael Benjamin Wittenberg, Stephen Paul Zadesky, Rico Zörkendörfer
  • Patent number: D947840
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jody Akana, Bartley K. Andre, Shota Aoyagi, Anthony Michael Ashcroft, Jeremy Bataillou, Daniel J. Coster, Daniele De Iuliis, M. Evans Hankey, Julian Hoenig, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Duncan Robert Kerr, Marc A. Newson, Matthew Dean Rohrbach, Peter Russell-Clarke, Benjamin Andrew Shaffer, Mikael Silvanto, Christopher J. Stringer, Eugene Antony Whang, Rico Zörkendörfer
  • Patent number: D947842
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jody Akana, Molly Anderson, Bartley K. Andre, Shota Aoyagi, Anthony Michael Ashcroft, Marine C. Bataille, Jeremy Bataillou, Markus Diebel, M. Evans Hankey, Julian Hoenig, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Julian Jaede, Duncan Robert Kerr, Peter Russell-Clarke, Benjamin Andrew Shaffer, Mikael Silvanto, Sung-Ho Tan, Clement Tissandier, Eugene Antony Whang, Rico Zörkendörfer
  • Patent number: D947850
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2019
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2022
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Jody Akana, Molly Anderson, Bartley K. Andre, Shota Aoyagi, Anthony Michael Ashcroft, Marine C. Bataille, Jeremy Bataillou, Lucy E. Browning, Abidur Rahman Chowdhury, Clara Geneviève Marine Courtaigne, Markus Diebel, Richard Hung Minh Dinh, Jonathan Gomez Garcia, M. Evans Hankey, Julian Hoenig, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Julian Jaede, Duncan Robert Kerr, Peter Russell-Clarke, Benjamin Andrew Shaffer, Sung-Ho Tan, Clement Tissandier, Eugene Antony Whang, Luman Zhang, Xiao Ying Zhao, Rico Zörkendörfer