Patents by Inventor XIANWEI ZHAO

XIANWEI ZHAO has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10670786
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a color ambient light sensor. The color ambient light sensor may be used to measure an ambient light spectrum over a wavelength range of interest. Control circuitry in the electronic device can take actions based on the measured ambient light spectrum such as adjusting the brightness and color cast of content on a display. A display may have a display cover layer. The color ambient light sensor can be mounted under the display cover layer and may receive ambient light through the display cover layer. The color ambient light sensor may have a tunable wavelength filter such as an electrically adjustable Fabry-Perot resonator. A light collimator may be interposed between the display cover layer and the Fabry-Perot resonator to collimate ambient light that is passed to the Fabry-Perot resonator. A light detector measures the light passing through the Fabry-Perot resonator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2020
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Dong Zheng, Ove Lyngnes, Prashanth S. Holenarsipur, Serhan O. Isikman, Tianbo Sun, Tingjun Xu, Xianwei Zhao, Xingxing Cai
  • Patent number: 10591645
    Abstract: An electronic device may have transparent members such as display cover layers and camera windows. A transparent member such as a sapphire member may be provided with an antireflection coating. The antireflection coating may have a stack of dielectric thin-film interference filter layers that form a thin-film interference filter that suppresses visible light reflections. The stack of dielectric thin-film interference filter layers may have thicknesses and materials that provide the thin-film interference filter and coating with low light reflection properties while enhancing scratch resistance. An adhesion layer may be used to help adhere the stack of thin-film interference filter layer to the transparent member. An antismudge coating such as a fluoropolymer coating may be used to reduce smudging. Graded layers and layers with elevated hardness values may be used in the coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2020
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Zhenbin Ge, Xianwei Zhao, Wookyung Bae, Sunggu Kang, Ligang Wang, Avery P. Yuen, Stephen C. Cool, John Z. Zhong
  • Publication number: 20200015390
    Abstract: An electronic device may have transparent housing structures such as walls formed of glass or sapphire. Housing structures such as transparent housing structures may have a colored coating. The colored coating may include an absorptive layer and a metal layer. The coating may exhibit a color that can be adjusted by adjusting the thickness of the thin absorptive layer. A colored layer such as a layer of colored polymer may be incorporated into the colored coating to further adjust the color of the coating. The colored coating may be formed on an inner or outer housing structure surface. The surface may have a texture to provide the coating with a matte appearance. When formed on an outer surface, a diamond-like carbon layer may protect the colored coating. When formed on an inner surface, a passivation layer may be used to prevent oxidation of the metal layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 3, 2019
    Publication date: January 9, 2020
    Inventors: Khadijeh Bayat, Yoshitaka Matsui, Naomi Sugawara, Daisuke Nozu, Xianwei Zhao, Avery P. Yuen, Martin Melcher, James R. Wilson, Di Fan
  • Publication number: 20190317258
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a color ambient light sensor. The color ambient light sensor may be used to measure an ambient light spectrum over a wavelength range of interest. Control circuitry in the electronic device can take actions based on the measured ambient light spectrum such as adjusting the brightness and color cast of content on a display. A display may have a display cover layer. The color ambient light sensor can be mounted under the display cover layer and may receive ambient light through the display cover layer. The color ambient light sensor may have a tunable wavelength filter such as an electrically adjustable Fabry-Perot resonator. A light collimator may be interposed between the display cover layer and the Fabry-Perot resonator to collimate ambient light that is passed to the Fabry-Perot resonator. A light detector measures the light passing through the Fabry-Perot resonator.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 13, 2018
    Publication date: October 17, 2019
    Inventors: Dong Zheng, Ove Lyngnes, Prashanth S. Holenarsipur, Serhan O. Isikman, Tianbo Sun, Tingjun Xu, Xianwei Zhao, Xingxing Cai
  • Patent number: 10446112
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display mounted in a housing. The display may have an array of pixels that form an active area and may have an inactive area that runs along an edge of the active area. An opaque layer may be formed on an inner surface of a display cover layer in the inactive area of the display or may be formed on another transparent layer in the electronic device. An ambient light sensor window may be formed from the opening and may be aligned with color ambient light sensor. The ambient light sensor may have an integrated circuit with an array of photodetectors and may have a color filter layer forming a corresponding array of thin-film interference color filters with different respective pass bands. The color filter layer may have a shared dielectric stack and multiple color-filter-specific dielectric stacks on the shared dielectric stack.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2019
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Tingjun Xu, Ove Lyngnes, Avery P. Yuen, Xianwei Zhao, Sunggu Kang, John Z. Zhong
  • Patent number: 10395620
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display. The display may have an array of pixels that form an active area and may have an inactive area that runs along an edge of the active area. An opaque layer may be formed on an inner surface of a display cover layer in the inactive area of the display or may be formed on another transparent layer in the electronic device. An ambient light sensor window may be formed from the opening and may be aligned with color ambient light sensor. The ambient light sensor may have an integrated circuit with photodetectors. Ambient light passing through the ambient light sensor window may be diffused by a light diffuser having one or more light-diffusing layers. Diffused ambient light may be collimated using a light collimator having one or more light-collimating layers such as layers with inwardly facing protrusions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2019
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Ove Lyngnes, Tingjun Xu, Avery P. Yuen, Christopher M. Dodson, Tianbo Sun, Xianwei Zhao, Xingxing Cai, Sunggu Kang
  • Patent number: 10280504
    Abstract: A sapphire structure including an ion-implanted, anti-reflective layer and a method of forming an ion-implanted, anti-reflective layer within a sapphire component is disclosed. The method includes forming an ion-implanted layer in a sapphire material at a first depth, and annealing the sapphire material to a second depth. The second depth may be greater than or equal to the first depth. The ion-implanted layer may have a first index of refraction, and the sapphire material may have a second index of refraction different from the first index of refraction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2016
    Date of Patent: May 7, 2019
    Assignee: APPLE INC.
    Inventors: Matthew S. Rogers, Avery P. Yuen, Xianwei Zhao
  • Publication number: 20190096364
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display. The display may have an array of pixels that form an active area and may have an inactive area that runs along an edge of the active area. An opaque layer may be formed on an inner surface of a display cover layer in the inactive area of the display or may be formed on another transparent layer in the electronic device. An ambient light sensor window may be formed from the opening and may be aligned with color ambient light sensor. The ambient light sensor may have an integrated circuit with photodetectors. Ambient light passing through the ambient light sensor window may be diffused by a light diffuser having one or more light-diffusing layers. Diffused ambient light may be collimated using a light collimator having one or more light-collimating layers such as layers with inwardly facing protrusions.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 22, 2017
    Publication date: March 28, 2019
    Inventors: Ove Lyngnes, Tingjun Xu, Avery P. Yuen, Christopher M. Dodson, Tianbo Sun, Xianwei Zhao, Xingxing Cai, Sunggu Kang
  • Publication number: 20190095009
    Abstract: A transparent high-conductivity layer for providing electrostatic feedback to a user of an electronic device. The transparent high-conductivity layer is positioned over a capacitive input sensor and has a resistivity sufficiently high to prevent interference with the capacitive input sensor. As one example, the transparent high-conductivity layer can be formed from a layer of geometrically-separated regions of high-conductivity material. The average distance between geometrically-separated regions can substantially define the resistivity of the transparent high-conductivity layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 26, 2018
    Publication date: March 28, 2019
    Inventors: Alan Kleiman-Schwarsctein, Senem E. Emgin, Terrence L. Van Ausdall, Xianwei Zhao, Yuxi Zhao, Soyoung Kim
  • Publication number: 20190094069
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display. An opaque layer may be formed on an inner surface of a display cover layer in an inactive area of the display. An optical component window may be formed from the opening. A light guide may be aligned with the optical component window and may be used to guide light from the optical component window to an optical component such as an ambient light sensor. The light guide may have a core surrounded by a cladding. The core may be formed from a material such as blue glass that absorbs infrared light and that transmits visible light. Particles of titanium dioxide or other high-refractive-index material may be incorporated into the core to enhance the refractive index of the core. Thin-film interference filters may be formed on the light guide to enhance infrared light blocking.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 18, 2018
    Publication date: March 28, 2019
    Inventors: Tingjun Xu, Avery P. Yuen, James W. Hillendahl, Ligang Wang, Ove Lyngnes, Sunggu Kang, Xianwei Zhao, Xingxing Cai
  • Publication number: 20190088234
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display mounted in a housing. The display may have an array of pixels that form an active area and may have an inactive area that runs along an edge of the active area. An opaque layer may be formed on an inner surface of a display cover layer in the inactive area of the display or may be formed on another transparent layer in the electronic device. An ambient light sensor window may be formed from the opening and may be aligned with color ambient light sensor. The ambient light sensor may have an integrated circuit with an array of photodetectors and may have a color filter layer forming a corresponding array of thin-film interference color filters with different respective pass bands. The color filter layer may have a shared dielectric stack and multiple color-filter-specific dielectric stacks on the shared dielectric stack.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 20, 2017
    Publication date: March 21, 2019
    Inventors: Tingjun Xu, Ove Lyngnes, Avery P. Yuen, Xianwei Zhao, Sunggu Kang, John Z. Zhong
  • Publication number: 20190073079
    Abstract: An electronic device includes an input device. The input device has an input/output module below or within a cover defining an input surface. The input/output module detects touch and/or force inputs on the input surface, and provides haptic feedback to the cover. In some instances, a haptic device is integrally formed with a wall or structural element of a housing or enclosure of the electronic device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 13, 2018
    Publication date: March 7, 2019
    Inventors: Qiliang Xu, Alex J. Lehmann, Ming Yu, Xianwei Zhao, Xiaonan Wen, Shan Wu, Xiaofan Niu
  • Patent number: 10094963
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display. The display may have a display cover layer. The display may have an active area with pixels and an inactive area without pixels. An opaque masking layer such as a layer of black ink may be formed on the underside of the display cover layer in the inactive area. Windows may be formed from openings in the opaque masking layer. Optical components such as infrared-light-based optical components may be aligned with the windows. The windows may include coatings in the openings that block visible light while transmitting infrared light. The window coatings may be formed from polymer layers containing pigments, polymer layers containing dyes that are coated with antireflection layers, thin-film interference filters formed from stacks of thin-film layers, or other coating structures.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 10, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 9, 2018
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Marta M. Giachino, Naoto Matsuyuki, Matthew S. Rogers, Xianwei Zhao, Ligang Wang
  • Publication number: 20180081085
    Abstract: An electronic device may have transparent members such as display cover layers and camera windows. A transparent member such as a sapphire member may be provided with an antireflection coating. The antireflection coating may have a stack of dielectric thin-film interference filter layers that form a thin-film interference filter that suppresses visible light reflections. The stack of dielectric thin-film interference filter layers may have thicknesses and materials that provide the thin-film interference filter and coating with low light reflection properties while enhancing scratch resistance. An adhesion layer may be used to help adhere the stack of thin-film interference filter layer to the transparent member. An antismudge coating such as a fluoropolymer coating may be used to reduce smudging. Graded layers and layers with elevated hardness values may be used in the coating.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 11, 2017
    Publication date: March 22, 2018
    Inventors: Zhenbin Ge, Xianwei Zhao, Wookyung Bae, Sunggu Kang, Ligang Wang, Avery P. Yuen, Stephen C. Cool, John Z. Zhong
  • Publication number: 20180081086
    Abstract: An electronic device may have transparent members such as display cover layers and camera windows. A transparent member such as a sapphire member may be provided with an antireflection coating. The antireflection coating may have a stack of dielectric thin-film interference filter layers that form a thin-film interference filter that suppresses visible light reflections. The stack of dielectric thin-film interference filter layers may have thicknesses and materials that provide the thin-film interference filter and coating with low light reflection properties while enhancing scratch resistance. An adhesion layer may be used to help adhere the stack of thin-film interference filter layer to the transparent member. An antismudge coating such as a fluoropolymer coating may be used to reduce smudging. Graded layers and layers with elevated hardness values may be used in the coating.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 11, 2017
    Publication date: March 22, 2018
    Inventors: Ligang Wang, Zhenbin Ge, Xianwei Zhao, Avery P. Yuen, Stephen C. Cool
  • Publication number: 20180067245
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display. The display may have a display cover layer. The display may have an active area with pixels and an inactive area without pixels. An opaque masking layer such as a layer of black ink may be formed on the underside of the display cover layer in the inactive area. Windows may be formed from openings in the opaque masking layer. Optical components such as infrared-light-based optical components may be aligned with the windows. The windows may include coatings in the openings that block visible light while transmitting infrared light. The window coatings may be formed from polymer layers containing pigments, polymer layers containing dyes that are coated with antireflection layers, thin-film interference filters formed from stacks of thin-film layers, or other coating structures.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 10, 2017
    Publication date: March 8, 2018
    Inventors: Marta M. Giachino, Naoto Matsuyuki, Matthew S. Rogers, Xianwei Zhao, Ligang Wang
  • Publication number: 20180067212
    Abstract: An electronic device may be provided with a display. The display may have a display cover layer. The display may have an active area with pixels and an inactive area without pixels. An opaque masking layer such as a layer of black ink may be formed on the underside of the display cover layer in the inactive area. Windows may be formed from openings in the opaque masking layer. Optical components such as infrared-light-based optical components may be aligned with the windows. The windows may include coatings in the openings that block visible light while transmitting infrared light. The window coatings may be formed from polymer layers containing pigments, polymer layers containing dyes that are coated with antireflection layers, thin-film interference filters formed from stacks of thin-film layers, or other coating structures.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 13, 2017
    Publication date: March 8, 2018
    Inventors: James R. Wilson, Kenichi Nakajima, Ligang Wang, Mark T. Winkler, Matthew S. Rogers, Naoto Matsuyuki, Xianwei Zhao
  • Patent number: 9843014
    Abstract: An electronic device may have a display that is protected by a transparent cover layer. The transparent cover layer may include a laser-annealed sapphire coating on the outer surface of a glass substrate or other transparent substrate. The sapphire coating may provide the display with a hard, scratch-resistant outer surface. The sapphire coating may be formed by coating a glass substrate with a thin film of amorphous aluminum oxide. The aluminum oxide thin film may be locally heated to transform the amorphous aluminum oxide into alpha-phase aluminum oxide (sapphire). Local heating may be achieved by laser annealing the aluminum oxide coating with a carbon dioxide laser. The laser may produce laser light having a wavelength that is absorbed in the aluminum oxide coating without being absorbed by the glass substrate so that the glass substrate is not damaged during the laser annealing process.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 12, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2017
    Assignee: Apple Inc.
    Inventors: Tingjun Xu, Xianwei Zhao, Wookyung Bae, Sunggu Kang, John Z. Zhong
  • Patent number: 9812303
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for a magnetron assembly are provided herein. In some embodiments, a magnetron assembly includes a first base plate; a second base plate movable with respect to the first base plate between a first position and a second position; an outer magnetic pole in the shape of a loop and comprising an outer magnetic pole section coupled to the first base plate and an outer magnetic pole section coupled to the second base plate; and an inner magnetic pole disposed within the outer magnetic pole, wherein the outer and inner magnetic poles define a closed loop magnetic field, and wherein the closed loop magnetic field is maintained when the second base plate is disposed in both the first position and a second position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2017
    Assignee: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC.
    Inventors: Alan Ritchie, Ryan Hanson, Xianwei Zhao
  • Publication number: 20170267581
    Abstract: A bonding operation to increase the bond between a coating layer and substrate is described. The coating layer may be designed to resist residue on a substrate that covers a display of an electronic device. An adhesion layer including silica (SiO2) and a catalyst or dopant, such as zirconium, may be used to bond the coating layer with the substrate. The dopant can alter the chemical nature of the adhesion layer and increase the number of chemical bonding sites at a bonding surface of the adhesion layer, thereby creating an activated bonding surface. One activated surface of the adhesion layer can be bonded with the substrate, while another activated surface of the adhesion layer can be bonded with the coating layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 2, 2017
    Publication date: September 21, 2017
    Inventors: Xianwei ZHAO, Avery P. YUEN, Lei YU, Li ZHANG, Wookyung BAE, Matthew S. ROGERS, Naoto MATSUYUKI, Sunggu KANG, Enkhamgalan DORJGOTOV, Cheng CHEN, John Z. ZHONG