All-glass apple

September 2, 2014 the US Patent Office issued a patent US8824140B2 «Glass Enclosure» corporation Apple, Inc., guarding completely or partially transparent glass enclosure for portable gadgets.



The first claim of the invention describes a portable computing device comprising a single, substantially seamless casing surrounding and protecting the elements located within the portable computing device, wherein the housing comprises a tubular substrate formed by extrusion of glass, providing wireless communication therethrough, an inner glass layer and an outer glass layer, wherein the coefficient of thermal expansion of the outer layer of glass above the coefficient of thermal expansion of the internal glass layer.

Ninth claims describe portable computing device comprising a single, substantially seamless casing surrounding and protecting the elements located within the portable computing device, wherein the housing comprises at least one outer wall and at least one internal wall disposed inside the outer wall, the outer wall and inner wall are made of an extruded glass, the coefficient of thermal expansion of at least one outer layer of glass above the coefficient of thermal expansion of at least one inner layer of glass.

Seventeenth claims describe corresponding method of manufacturing such a portable computing device.
Description of the invention clearly indicates the possibility of using such devices the housing in the mobile voice communication and mobile data communication.

This patent seems logical in a number of other patents and patent applications Apple. For example, published March 4, 2014 US8665236B2 patent protects "consumer electronic products with a transparent body and a flexible display inside the transparent body."

Given that the timing of patenting in the US (application for both patents were filed in September 2011), comparable to the duration of the process of development (R & D) and technological preparation of production (NPI), and related technologies are already commercially available in contract electronics manufacturers (EMS) it can be assumed that the glass iPhone (for example, a display front and back, and maybe even partially and ends with that (in principle) also can be transparent or translucent) has a chance to be the appearance in the foreseeable future.

Source: habrahabr.ru/post/236193/