A pair of recently granted Apple patents show a MacBook wirelessly carrying an iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. They describe two-way charging coils that can be used to charge the MacBook itself, but also to allow the MacBook to charge other devices.
The patents also show an iPad carrying an iPhone and a watch (right) and follow a separate patent application for a MagSafe battery case, which can charge an iPhone and a set of AirPods …
The pair of patents, both granted today, was located by Patently Apple.
Apple starts by noting that while it is working with standard cables – with only the iPhone left to transition to USB-C – each device may require its own power supply, which can be less than convenient, especially when traveling.
Some electronic devices include one or more rechargeable batteries that may require external power to recharge. These devices can often be charged using a standard or standard electrical connector or cable. For example, some devices can be charged using a universal serial bus (“USB”) connector or cable. However, despite having standardized connectors and cables, each device may require a separate or dedicated power supply to charge. In some cases, having separate power supplies for each device can be costly to use, store and / or transport.
Patents have the usual complicated patent language, in order to ensure that the claims are as broad as possible.
Portable electronic device, characterized by the fact that it comprises: a housing forming a posterior surface of the portable electronic device; a display coupled to the housing and forming a front surface of the portable electronic device that is opposite to the rear surface of the portable electronic device; a battery inside the enclosure and supplying electrical power to the display and an inductive transmission coil positioned inside the enclosure and between the display and the rear surface of the enclosure, the inductive transmission coil being configured to transmit wireless energy across the rear surface of the enclosure to an external device that is positioned close to the rear surface of the case […]
Electronic devices can include inductive coils that can be configured to be in electrical communication with inductive coils of external electronic devices. In some modalities, electrically communicative inductive coils can act as transmission coils and / or receiving coils capable of transmitting energy between electronic devices. This transmission of energy can increase the charge of a battery of the electronic device that receives the energy, while decreasing the charge of a battery that transmits the energy. The inductive coils of electronic devices capable of transmitting energy to external electronic devices can allow the charging of the battery of an electronic device using only another electronic device. As such, only a single power cord or no power cord may be required to charge one or more of a group of devices that include electrically communicating inductive coils.
But the bottom line is that you use a single power cord or a basic wireless charger to charge your MacBook – with the MacBook carrying other Apple wireless devices, placing them on the front or back of the MacBook.
Of course, using a MacBook as a wired charger for multiple Apple devices is already possible: this is the approach I started using when traveling when I bought the 16-inch MacBook Pro, which offers 15 watts of power instead of the 4.5 or 5.5 watts of previous models.
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