Apple explores wireless charging ecosystem for MacBook, iPad, iPhone and Apple Watch

Apple is investigating the integration of multiple inductive charging coils into MacBooks and iPads to use them as wireless chargers for other devices, according to a patent filed by Apple.

The patent, spotted by Apple Patent, is titled “Inductive Charging Between Electronic Devices” and has been awarded by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Apple has been investigating device-to-device inductive charging technology since March 2016, when the newly granted patents were filed around it. It is noteworthy that Apple is apparently particularly interested in this area, and that they are applying for multiple patents regarding the technology, and that they are now filing 40 new claims.

This patent highlights how all Apple mobile devices, including Apple Watches, iPhones, iPads, and MacBooks, can use a wireless charging ecosystem together. Images included in the patent contain a significant number of different coil placements for a range of portable Apple devices to facilitate this system.

Apple offers a wide range of possible implementations for wireless charging from device to device. For example, the lid of a MacBook may contain a series of upward-facing inductive coils that allow devices to charge by resting on it. Coils can also be placed on the wrist rests and trackpad of a MacBook.

Importantly, the wireless charging system is bidirectional, with devices that can receive and transmit power via inductive coils, enabling users to choose which device to charge. It can also be automatically determined by software based on which device has a greater amount of cost.

Apple’s proposed strategy seems to be to take care of inductive charging coils on every Apple mobile device. The patent explains, for example, how coils can be placed along the front and back of an iPad so that it can be charged wirelessly from one side while transferring the charge to another device on the other side. The proposed system is therefore highly interchangeable, with a large number of devices and combinations possible.

There is even the suggestion that a collection of Apple devices can be charged together from one power source. An image shows an Apple Watch charging from an iPhone, the ‌iPhone‌ from a ‌iPad‌, the ‌iPad‌ from a MacBook and the MacBook from a power cable. In the text that appears next to the image, ‘only a single power cord or no power cords are needed to charge one or more of a group of devices that contain electrical communicative inductive coils.’

Apple has also considered a variety of software integrations for the device-to-device wireless charging system. When a smaller device is placed on the screen of a larger device, such as an Apple Watch on the front of a ‌iPad‌, the displayiPad die screen may indicate the “alignment state” and charge percentage.

Another more ingenious software integration suggests that if the screen of a ‌iPad‌ is obstructed by loading a ‌iPhone‌ on it, the IiPad‌’s UI can be customized to display only content on the unobstructed part of the screen. There are also provisions for scenarios in which the ‌iPhone‌ can be used to display the obstructed content on the ‌iPad ob screen, such as a series of home screen applications.

The patent also repeatedly refers to a system of magnets that can be used to charge devices to each other, strikingly similar to Apple’s MagSafe system that premiered with the iPhone 12 series.

In some embodiments, the electronic device includes an alignment magnet placed next to the inductive coil. The alignment magnet can be set to position the external device relative to the electronic device …

The patent implies that this magnetic alignment system can be used on any of its portable devices to provide a better experience when charging wirelessly, and it would certainly make sense to extend ‘MagSafe’ or a MagSafe-like system to more devices to support this ecosystem of devices – device inductive charging. AgMagSafe‌ is currently only available on the ‌iPhone 12‌ and iPhone 12 Pro.

If Apple were to integrate the proposed technology, it would create a uniform system of wireless charging on all Apple portable devices. The device-to-device inductive charging system seems feasible and will help Apple synthesize its otherwise fragmented range of charging methods, but it is not clear how Apple would address the inevitable thermal, penetration or efficiency issues it would cause.

The arrival of agMagSafe‌ charging on the ‌iPhone 12‌ demonstrates Apple’s interest in wireless charging solutions, and the depth of the company’s research shows how carefully such systems are considered. Despite this, patents can only serve as evidence of what Apple is investigating. It does not necessarily indicate what the business may implement and the content of many patents never reaches final consumer products.