PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-11175956-B2
Application Number: US-202016803657-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: System with multiple electronic devices

Abstract:
Multiple electronic devices may be used together in a system. The electronic devices may use sensor measurements and other information to detect when an edge of a first electronic device is adjacent to an edge of a second electronic device. In response to detection of adjacency between the edges of the first and second devices, the devices may transition from an independent operating mode in which each device operates separately to a joint operating mode in which resources of the devices are shared. In the joint operating mode, images may extend across displays in the devices, speakers in the devices may be used to play different channels of an audio track, cameras and other sensors may be used in cooperation with each other, and other resources may be shared. Magnetic components may hold devices together in a variety of orientations.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A system, comprising:
 a first electronic device having first control circuitry and a touch-sensitive display that receives touch input; and 
 a second electronic device having second control circuitry and a display that is not touch-sensitive, wherein:
 the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry determine whether the first and second electronic devices are within a given distance of one another; 
 the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry are configured to operate the first and second electronic devices in a joint operating mode when the first and second electronic devices are within the given distance of one another; and 
 in the joint operating mode, the touch input received by the touch-sensitive display is used to control the second electronic device while the touch-sensitive display displays first content and the display that is not touch-sensitive displays second content that is different from the first content, wherein the first and second electronic devices share resources when operating in the joint operating mode. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the second control circuitry comprises graphics circuitry that renders the first content displayed by the touch-sensitive display. 
     
     
       3. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the second content comprises an array of selectable icons. 
     
     
       4. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the first electronic device comprises a sensor that is used to control screen brightness of the second display. 
     
     
       5. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the first electronic device comprises a tablet computer and the second electronic device comprises a laptop computer. 
     
     
       6. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the first electronic device comprises a tablet computer and the second electronic device comprises a desktop computer. 
     
     
       7. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry exchange wireless communication signals to determine whether the first and second electronic devices are within the given distance of one another. 
     
     
       8. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the touch input is used to drag content on the touch-sensitive display to the second display. 
     
     
       9. The system defined in  claim 1  wherein the touch-sensitive display displays an image editing application associated with the second electronic device. 
     
     
       10. A system, comprising:
 a first electronic device having first control circuitry, a first display, and a keyboard that receives keyboard input; and 
 a second electronic device having second control circuitry and a second display, wherein:
 the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry determine whether the first and second electronic devices are within a given distance of one another; 
 the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry are configured to operate the first and second electronic devices in a joint operating mode when the first and second electronic devices are within the given distance of one another; and 
 in the joint operating mode, the keyboard input is used to control the second electronic device while the first display displays first content and the second display displays second content that is different from the first content, wherein the first and second electronic devices share resources when operating in the joint operating mode. 
 
 
     
     
       11. The system defined in  claim 10  wherein the keyboard input is used to adjust the second content on the second display. 
     
     
       12. The system defined in  claim 10  wherein the keyboard is a virtual keyboard displayed by the first display. 
     
     
       13. The system defined in  claim 10  wherein the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry exchange wireless communication signals to determine whether the first and second electronic devices are within the given distance of one another. 
     
     
       14. A system, comprising:
 a first electronic device having first control circuitry and a first display that receives drawing input from a stylus; and 
 a second electronic device having second control circuitry and a second display, wherein:
 the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry determine whether the first and second electronic devices are within a given distance of one another; 
 the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry are configured to operate the first and second electronic devices in a joint operating mode when the first and second electronic devices are within the given distance of one another; and 
 in the joint operating mode, the drawing input is used to control the second display and the first and second electronic devices share resources. 
 
 
     
     
       15. The system defined in  claim 14  wherein the first electronic device is a tablet computer. 
     
     
       16. The system defined in  claim 14  wherein the first control circuitry and the second control circuitry exchange wireless communication signals to determine whether the first electronic device and the second electronic device are within the given distance of one another. 
     
     
       17. The system defined in  claim 14  wherein the first display displays first content and the second display displays second content that is different from the first content. 
     
     
       18. The system defined in  claim 14  wherein the second control circuitry comprises graphics circuitry that renders the first content displayed by the first display.

Description:
This application is a continuation of patent application Ser. No. 15/628,946, filed Jun. 21, 2017, which claims the benefit of provisional patent application No. 62/474,533, filed Mar. 21, 2017, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     This relates generally to electronic devices, and, more particularly, to systems that include multiple electronic devices. 
     Electronic devices such as cellular telephones are often used in isolation. For example, a user may present a video or book on the display of a single electronic device. Using devices in isolation can be unsatisfactory. For example, devices that operate independently are not able to help each other when presenting a video or book to a user. 
     SUMMARY 
     Multiple electronic devices may be used together in a system. The electronic devices may use sensor measurements and other information to detect when an edge of a first device is adjacent to an edge of a second electronic device. In response to detection of adjacency between the edges of the first and second devices, the devices may transition from an independent operating mode in which each device operates separately to a joint operating mode in which resources of the devices are shared. In the joint operating mode, images may extend across displays in the devices, speakers in respective devices may be used to play different channels of an audio track, cameras and sensors in different devices may be used in cooperation with each other, and other resources may be shared. 
     Magnetic components may hold devices together in a variety of orientations. The magnetic components may operate in cooperation with beveled housing edges and other structures to help hold devices in planar configurations in which the devices lie in a common plane and non-planar configurations in which the devices are oriented at a non-zero angle with respect to each other. 
     Control circuitry in the devices may alter the operating modes of the devices in response to user input, sensor measurements, and information on the previous operating states of the devices. When transitioning to independent operation following joint operation, some of the joint operating settings of the devices may be retained by the separated devices. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an illustrative electronic device in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram of an illustrative electronic device in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a diagram of a pair of adjacent electronic devices in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a side view of a pair of electronic devices supported by a bendable case with an internal hinge structure in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of a pair of electronic devices supported by a folded case in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  is a side view of a pair of electronic devices in a case that has been folded back on itself in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional side view of a pair of illustrative electronic devices with beveled housing sidewalls that have been joined at a desired angle with respect to each other using magnetic attraction and the angled surfaces of the sidewalls in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 8  is a cross-sectional side view of the pair of electronic devices with beveled housing sidewalls of  FIG. 7  in a planar configuration in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional side view of a pair of illustrative electronic devices with angled housing sidewalls that have been joined at a desired angle with respect to each other using magnetic attraction in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional side view of the pair of illustrative electronic devices of  FIG. 9  in a planar orientation in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional side view of a pair of adjacent electronic devices each of which has a display that covers housing sidewalls in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional side view of a pair of adjacent electronic devices each of which has a display that is borderless along at least its left and right edges in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 13  is a diagram showing how a system with multiple electronic devices may present content to a user in various contexts in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 14  is a cross-sectional side view of a system in which two devices are in a face-to-face configuration in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 15  is a cross-sectional side view of a system in which two devices are in a back-to-back configuration in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 16  is a cross-sectional side view of a system in which two devices are in a back-to-front configuration in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 17  is a flow chart of illustrative operations involved in using multiple electronic devices in accordance with an embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     One or more users may use multiple electronic devices together. The electronic devices may sometimes be operated independently. When brought together, content may be displayed across the displays of the devices and other joint operations may be performed. 
     An illustrative electronic device of the type that may be used in a system with multiple electronic devices is shown in  FIG. 1 . Electronic device  10  may be a computing device such as a laptop computer, a computer monitor containing an embedded computer, a tablet computer, a cellular telephone, a media player, or other handheld or portable electronic device, a smaller device such as a wrist-watch device, a pendant device, a headphone or earpiece device, a device embedded in eyeglasses or other equipment worn on a user&#39;s head, or other wearable or miniature device, a television, a computer display that does not contain an embedded computer, a gaming device, a navigation device, an embedded system such as a system in which electronic equipment with a display is mounted in a kiosk or automobile, equipment that implements the functionality of two or more of these devices, or other electronic equipment. In the illustrative configuration of  FIG. 1 , device  10  is a portable device such as a cellular telephone, media player, tablet computer, or other portable computing device. Other configurations may be used for device  10  if desired. The example of  FIG. 1  is merely illustrative. 
     In the example of  FIG. 1 , device  10  has opposing front and rear faces and peripheral sidewalls that run around the periphery of device  10 . Device  10  includes a display such as display  14  on the front face of device  10  mounted in housing  12 . Housing  12 , which may sometimes be referred to as an enclosure or case, may be formed of plastic, glass, ceramics, fiber composites, metal (e.g., stainless steel, aluminum, etc.), other suitable materials, or a combination of any two or more of these materials. Housing  12  may be formed using a unibody configuration in which some or all of housing  12  is machined or molded as a single structure or may be formed using multiple structures (e.g., an internal frame structure, one or more structures that form exterior housing surfaces, etc.). Housing  12  may have vertical sidewalls, curved sidewalls, sidewalls with one or more beveled (angled) portions, sidewalls that are uncovered by display  14 , sidewalls that are partly or fully covered by portions of display  14 , and/or other suitable sidewall structures. The rear face of device  10  may be covered with housing  12 . Configurations in which a display such as display  14  is formed on the rear face of housing  12  (e.g., in addition to display  14  on the front face of device  10 ) may also be used. 
     Display  14  may be a touch screen display that incorporates a layer of conductive capacitive touch sensor electrodes or other touch sensor components (e.g., resistive touch sensor components, acoustic touch sensor components, force-based touch sensor components, light-based touch sensor components, etc.) or may be a display that is not touch-sensitive. Capacitive touch screen electrodes may be formed from an array of indium tin oxide pads or other transparent conductive structures. 
     Display  14  may include an array of display pixels formed from liquid crystal display (LCD) components, an array of electrophoretic display pixels, an array of plasma display pixels, an array of organic light-emitting diode display pixels or other light-emitting diodes, an array of electrowetting display pixels, or display pixels based on other display technologies. 
     Display  14  may be protected using a display cover layer such as a layer of transparent glass or clear plastic. Openings may be formed in the display cover layer. For example, an opening may be formed in the display cover layer to accommodate optional speaker port  18 . Openings may also be formed in housing  12  to form communications ports (e.g., an audio jack port, a digital data port, etc.), to form openings for buttons, etc. If desired, a touch sensor, fingerprint sensor, dome-switch button or other input device such as input device  16  may be formed on the front face of device  10  (e.g., within an opening in the display cover layer, under the display cover layer in a configuration in which the display cover layer does not contain any button openings, etc.). 
     Display  14  may have an active area and an inactive area. The active area may, as an example, be formed in a rectangular central portion of the front face of device  10 . The active area contains pixels that display images for a user of device  10 . Inactive border regions (areas without pixels) may be formed along one or more of the edges of the active area. For example, the active area may be bordered on the left and right and top and bottom by inactive display areas. In other configurations, the active area of display  14  may cover all of the front face of device  10 , may cover the front face of device  10  and some or all of the sidewalls of device  10 , may have inactive borders at the upper and lower ends of device  10  while being borderless along the left and right edges of device  10 , or may have other layouts. 
     Components such as light sensors (e.g., light-sensors in proximity sensors, ambient light sensors, etc.), cameras (e.g., digital image sensors that capture images), status indicator lights (e.g., light-emitting diodes), and other components may be mounted under windows in display  14  such as windows  20  or other portions of device  10 . Sensors such as proximity sensor light sensors may be mounted under a layer of visible-light-blocking and infrared-light-transparent material. Sensors such as ambient light sensors and other components that use visible light such as cameras and status indicator lights may be mounted under windows that are transparent to visible light. Light-based components such as these may also be mounted on the rear face of device  10 , on device sidewalls, or in other portions of structures of device  10 . 
       FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram of device  10 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , electronic device  10  may have control circuitry  22 . Control circuitry  22  may include storage and processing circuitry for supporting the operation of device  10 . The storage and processing circuitry may include storage such as hard disk drive storage, nonvolatile memory (e.g., flash memory or other electrically-programmable-read-only memory configured to form a solid state drive), volatile memory (e.g., static or dynamic random-access-memory), etc. Processing circuitry in control circuitry  22  may be used to control the operation of device  10 . The processing circuitry may be based on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, baseband processors, power management units, audio chips, application specific integrated circuits, etc. 
     Control circuitry  22  may be configured to execute instructions for implementing desired control and communications operations in device  10  and systems including multiple devices such as device  10 . For example, control circuitry  22  may be used in processing sensor data, processing user input, processing information received via wireless communications circuitry, and/or other information to determine when to operate device  10  in an independent mode or in a joint operating mode with other devices and to determine which capabilities device  10  and/or other devices should be provided with during these operating modes. 
     Control circuitry  22  may perform these operations using hardware (e.g., dedicated hardware or circuitry) and/or software code (e.g., code that runs on the hardware of device  10  such as control circuitry  22 ). Software code may be stored on non-transitory computer readable storage media (e.g., tangible computer readable storage media). The software code may sometimes be referred to as software, data, program instructions, instructions, or code. The non-transitory computer readable storage media may include non-volatile memory such as non-volatile random-access memory (NVRAM), one or more hard drives (e.g., magnetic drives or solid state drives), one or more removable flash drives or other removable media, other computer readable media, or combinations of these computer readable media or other storage. Software stored on the non-transitory computer readable storage media may be executed on the processing circuitry of control circuitry  22  during operation. 
     Device  10  may have input-output circuitry  24 . Input-output circuitry  24  may be configured to gather input from users, external devices, and the surrounding environment and may be configured to supply output to users, external devices, and the surrounding environment. As shown in  FIG. 2 , input-output circuitry  24  may include communications circuitry  26  and input-output devices  28 . 
     Communications circuitry  26  may include transceiver circuitry (transmitters and/or receivers) for supporting wired and wireless communications. For example, communications circuitry  26  may support data communications between device  10  and another electronic device over a serial or parallel data path. Device  10  may have communications ports (e.g., Universal Serial Bus ports, etc.) for receiving mating data cables. The data cables can be used to carry data between device  10  and other electronic equipment (e.g., peer devices, etc.). 
     Communications circuitry  26  may include also wireless communications circuitry for communicating wirelessly with external equipment. The wireless communications circuitry may include radio-frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry formed from one or more integrated circuits, power amplifier circuitry, low-noise input amplifiers, passive RF components, one or more antennas, transmission lines, and other circuitry for handling RF wireless signals. Wireless signals can also be sent using light (e.g., using infrared communications). 
     Communications circuitry  26  may include radio-frequency transceiver circuitry for handling various radio-frequency communications bands. For example, circuitry  26  may include transceiver circuitry that transmits and receives data in 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands for WiFi® (IEEE 802.11) communications and the 2.4 GHz Bluetooth® communications band. Circuitry  26  may include cellular telephone transceiver circuitry for handling wireless communications in frequency ranges such as a low communications band from 700 to 960 MHz, a midband from 1710 to 2170 MHz, and a high band from 2300 to 2700 MHz or other communications bands between 700 MHz and 2700 MHz or other suitable frequencies (as examples). Circuitry  26  may handle voice data and non-voice data. Wireless communications circuitry in circuitry  26  can include circuitry for other short-range and long-range wireless links if desired. For example, circuitry  26  may include millimeter wave communications circuitry (e.g., circuitry for supporting 60 GHz communications and communications in other millimeter wave bands), circuitry for receiving television and radio signals, paging system transceivers, near field communications (NFC) circuitry, etc. Circuitry  26  may also include global positioning system (GPS) receiver equipment for receiving GPS signals at 1575 MHz or for handling other satellite positioning data. In WiFi® and Bluetooth® links and other short-range wireless links, wireless signals are typically used to convey data over tens or hundreds of feet. In cellular telephone links and other long-range links, wireless signals are typically used to convey data over thousands of feet or miles. 
     Communications circuitry  26  may include one or more antennas. These antennas may be located at one or both ends of device  10 , along the sides of device  10 , at the corners of device  10 , in the middle of the rear face of device  10 , and/or at other locations within housing  12 . Antennas for device  10  may be formed using any suitable antenna types. For example, antennas in circuitry  26  may include antennas with resonating elements that are formed from loop antenna structures, patch antenna structures, inverted-F antenna structures, slot antenna structures, planar inverted-F antenna structures, helical antenna structures, hybrids of these designs, etc. Different types of antennas may be used for different bands and combinations of bands. For example, one type of antenna may be used in forming a local wireless link antenna and another type of antenna may be used in forming a remote wireless link antenna. Device  10  may include impedance sensors (e.g., impedance measurement circuitry that measures the impedance of antennas and/or other radio-frequency components in circuitry  26 ). These sensors may be used by the control circuitry of device  10  in detecting when external objects are in the vicinity of device  10  (e.g., when part of device  10  is being held in the hand of a user, when part of device  10  such as an edge of device  10  is adjacent to another electronic device, etc.). 
     Input-output devices  28  may include status-indicator lights (e.g., light-emitting diodes), light-emitting diodes for providing camera flash illumination and other light, buttons, joysticks, scrolling wheels, key pads, keyboards, audio components  34  such as microphones and speakers (e.g., an ear speaker located at an upper end of device  10  and/or one or more speaker-phone speakers at an opposing lower end of device  10  or elsewhere in device  10  that are used to play audio when device  10  is being held away from a user&#39;s head), tone generators, haptic devices such as vibrators, cameras such as camera  30  (e.g., front-facing and/or rear-facing cameras), sensors  32 , displays such as display  14 , and other input-output components that gather input and provide output from device  10 . Input-output devices  28  (e.g., sensors  32 ) may include touch sensors (e.g., stand-alone touch sensors for touch sensitive buttons and track pads and/or touch sensor panels that overlap display  14  and are used in gathering touch screen input from a user as selectable on-screen options are displayed on display  14 ). Sensors  32  may also include light sensors, orientation sensors (e.g., accelerometers, gyroscopes, compasses, and/or other components that can detect device motion and/or device orientation such as device orientation relative to the Earth), resistance sensors (e.g., sensors that can detect contact by a conductive sidewall of another device or other external object), switch-based sensors, capacitance sensors, proximity sensors (e.g., a capacitive proximity sensor and/or a light-based proximity sensor such as an infrared proximity sensor that makes proximity sensor measurements by emitting infrared light from an infrared light-emitting diode and measuring corresponding reflected light using an infrared light detector), magnetic sensors, force sensors (e.g., force sensors based on a capacitive force sensing arrangement, strain gauges, piezoelectric force sensors, and/or other transducers that convert force into electrical signals), gas pressure sensors (e.g., sensors for measuring air pressure), gas sensors (e.g., carbon dioxide sensors), particulate sensors, moisture sensors, a connector port sensor or other sensor that determines whether first device  10  is mounted in a dock, and other sensors and input-output components. 
     Devices such as device  10  can be used in isolation or, when brought into the vicinity of additional devices such as device  10  can be used in joint operating modes. An illustrative system in which two electronic devices have been placed adjacent to each other for use in a joint operating mode is shown in  FIG. 3 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , system  36  may include multiple electronic devices such as device  10  of  FIGS. 1 and 2 . System  36  may, as an example, include a pair of devices, two or more devices, three or more devices, four or more devices, five or more devices, 2-4 devices, fewer than five devices, fewer than four devices, or other suitable number of electronic devices  10 . 
     In the example of  FIG. 3 , system  36  includes first electronic device  10 A and second electronic device  10 B. Devices  10 A and  10 B may be peer devices (e.g., devices  10 A and  10 B may both be cellular telephones, may both be wristwatch devices, may both be tablet computers, may both be laptop computers, may both be desktop computers, etc.) or devices  10 A and  10 B may be different types of devices. For example, device  10 A may be a tablet computer and device  10 B may be a cellular telephone, device  10 A may be a laptop computer, and device  10 B may be a tablet computer, device  10 A may be a cellular telephone and device  10 B may be a wrist watch device, etc. In some configurations, devices  10 A and  10 B are of the same general type but have individual differences (e.g., devices  10 A and  10 B may be different cellular telephone models). Configurations for system  36  in which devices  10 A and  10 B have the same size and shape may sometimes be described herein as an example. This is however, merely illustrative. Devices  10 A and  10 B may have different shapes (e.g., outlines when viewed from the front that are circular, oval, triangular, hexagonal, rectangular, etc.) and/or may have different sizes (e.g., device  10 A may have a housing  12  and/or a display  14  that is larger or smaller than the housing and/or display of device  10 B, etc.). 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , devices  10 A and  10 B may be oriented on a tabletop or other surface so that devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent (e.g. so that one or more edges of housing  12 A of device  10 A abuts one or more edges of housing  12 B of device  10 B). In the example of  FIG. 3 , the right-hand edge of housing  12 A is aligned with and touching a corresponding left-hand edge of housing  12 B, so that display  14 A of device  10 A and display  14 B of device  10 B can effectively form a single larger display and so that other resources of devices  10 A and  10 B can be used together. Other arrangements in which devices  10 A and devices  10 B are placed adjacent to each other (e.g., so that the housing sidewall along the periphery of one device abuts at least some of the housing sidewall along the periphery of another device) can be used, if desired. 
     Devices  10 A and  10 B may contain components  38  that are located within housings  12 A and  12 B. Components  38  may be located along one or more edge of devices  10 A and  10 B and/or may be located elsewhere within the housings of devices  10 A and  10 B. For example, one or more components  38  may be located along each peripheral edge of devices  10 A and  10 B so that sensing circuitry associated with components  38  can detect external objects around the periphery of each device (e.g. by making sensor measurements through sidewalls of housing  12  or through other portions of housing  12 ). In some configurations, components  38  may make sensor measurements through display  14 . 
     If desired, components  38  may include magnetic components such as permanent magnets, electromagnets, and/or magnetic materials such as iron that are attracted to permanent magnets and electromagnets. These magnetic components help hold devices  10 A and  10 B adjacent to each other. If desired, components  38  and/or the housings of devices  10 A and  10 B may include interlocking male and female parts (e.g., pins and holes, interlocking grooves, or other engagement structures) that help hold devices  10 A and  10 B in desired positions relative to each other. Devices  10 A and  10 B may also be supported by removable sleeves, plastic or leather cases, covers that fold or bend, and/or other supporting structures. 
     Components  38  may include sensors such as sensors  32  of  FIG. 2  for detecting when devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent to each other. For example, components  38  may include magnetic sensors, force sensors, proximity sensors, antenna impedance sensors, light-based sensors, capacitive sensors, resistive sensors that measure resistance to determine when a metal object such as an electronic device housing is in contact with a given device, switch-based sensors, and/or other sensors that detect when the edge of one device housing abuts at least a portion of an edge of another device housing. Sensors in components  38  may also be configured to operate through the front and rear faces of the housings for devices  10 A and  10 B (e.g., to detect when devices  10 A and  10 B are overlapping in a front-to-front configuration, a back-to-back configuration, or a front-to-back configuration). 
     In general, devices  10  may have any suitable number of components  38  and these components may run along the edges of each device  10  (e.g., on the interior side of a housing sidewall formed from metal, plastic, and/or glass or other materials), and/or may be located at other locations within the interior of the housing for each device  10 ). The configurations of  FIG. 3  are illustrative. 
     Sleeves and other support structures for supporting devices  10 A and  10 B (sometimes referred to herein as covers or cases) may be formed from plastic, metal, fabric, leather or other natural materials, and/or other materials. In some configurations, covers for system  36  may be foldable. 
       FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional side view of system  36  in which devices  10 A and  10 B are supported by a foldable support structure such as cover  38 . Cover  38  of  FIG. 4  has hinge structures  40  that help hold cover  38  in a desired bent shape (e.g., to support device  10 B at an non-zero angle with respect to device  10 A, so that device  10 A can serve as a touch sensitive virtual keyboard while device  10 B serves as a display for presenting a document or other content to a user, etc.). Hinge structures  40  may be formed from interlocking rotatable structures (e.g., a clutch barrel assembly), may include bendable metal or plastic structures (e.g., bendable strip-shaped members that retain their shape when forced into a particular bent or flat position by a user), or other hinge mechanisms. Hinge structures  40  allow a user to place devices  10 A and  10 B in a planar configuration (e.g., lying flat on a table so that devices  10 A and  10 B and their respective displays lie in a common plane) or in a bent configuration of the type shown in  FIG. 4  in which the surface normal of the display of device  10 A is oriented at a non-zero angle with respect to the surface normal of the display of device  10 B and which devices  10 A and  10 B do not lie in a common plane). Attachment structures  42  (e.g., straps, magnets, adhesive, screws or other fasteners, clamps, etc.) may be used in removably attaching devices  10 A and  10 B to cover  38 . 
     As shown in the example of  FIG. 5 , cover  38  may have a foldable portion such as portion  38 F that can be folded into a shape that supports device  10 B at a non-zero angle with respect to device  10 A.  FIG. 6  shows how cover  38  may be folded 180° to allow the front faces of devices  10 A and  10 B to face each other. If desired, covers  38  of  FIGS. 5 and 6  may be provided with hinge structures such as hinge structures  40 . Configurations for cover  38  that support three or more devices  10 , that allow devices  10 A and  10 B to be placed into front-to-back and back-to-back configurations, and/or that allow devices  10 A and  10 B to be supported in other orientations relative to each other may also be used. In some arrangements, device  10 A may be coupled to cover  38  while magnetic components are used in oriented device  10 B relative to device  10 A or magnetic components and cover  38  may be used together in other configurations. For example, cover  38  may form a base to which device  10 A may be attached while magnetic components are used in coupling device  10 B to device  10 A at a desired angle (e.g., a non-zero angle). 
       FIGS. 7, 8, 9, and 10  show illustrative configurations in which devices  10 A and  10 B are oriented relative to each other using magnetic components (see, e.g., components  38  along the peripheral edges of devices  10 A and  10 B in  FIG. 3 ). When the edges of the housings of devices  10 A and  10 B are brought together with this type of arrangement, magnetic attraction between magnetic components in respective portions of devices  10 A and  10 B hold devices  10 A and  10 B together. Device housings  12 A and  12 B may have curved sidewalls, flat (vertical) sidewalls, or sidewalls with other suitable cross-sectional profiles. 
     In some configurations, the sidewall profile of devices  10 A and  10 B may help orient devices  10 A and  10 B relative to each other while the respective abutting edges of devices  10 A and  10 B are pulled together by magnetic attraction. As shown in  FIG. 7 , for example, housings  12 A and  12 B may have beveled sidewalls each of which has two beveled 45° sidewall surfaces  44  and one vertical sidewall surface  46 . In the configuration of  FIG. 7 , one of surfaces  46  bears against to one of surfaces  44  (e.g., magnetic attraction from magnetic components in housings  12 A and  12 B couple these surfaces together), so that device  10 B is oriented at 45° relative to device  10 A (e.g., so that device  10 A can serve as a touch sensitive virtual keyboard while device  10 B serves as a display for presenting a document or other content to a user, etc.). In the illustrative configuration of  FIG. 8 , one of vertical sidewall surfaces  46  of device  10 A abuts one of vertical sidewall surfaces  46  of device  10 B, so that devices  10 A and  10 B are held in a planar orientation relative to each other. 
     In the illustrative arrangement of  FIGS. 9 and 10 , device housings  12 A and  12 B have angled (outwardly sloped) sidewall surfaces  48  each of which is oriented at a non-zero angle with respect to surface normal n of displays  14 A and  14 B, respectively. When placed so that sidewall surfaces  48  press against each other and lie in the same plane as shown in  FIG. 9 , device  10 B is supported at a non-zero angle with respect to device  10 A. When placed so that sidewall surfaces  48  are not in direct contact, devices  10 A and  10 B may rest side-by-side in the adjacent device configuration of  FIG. 10  (e.g., so that displays  14 A and  14 B lie in the same plane). 
     Display  14  may cover some or all of the front face of device  10 . If desired, display  14  may have portions that extend over some or all of the sidewalls of housing  12 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , for example, display  14  may have left and right edges that fold down over the left and right sidewalls of each device. When placed adjacent to each other as shown in  FIG. 11 , abutting sidewall portions  14 A′ and  14 B′ of displays  14 A and  14 B, respectively, may be disabled. This allows content (e.g., videos, text, and/or other images) to be displayed in a seamless fashion across the exposed front face surfaces of displays  14 A and  14 B. The outermost portions  14 A′ and  14 B′ of the displays of  FIG. 11  (e.g., portion  14 A′ on the left of device  10 A and portion  14 B′ on the right of device  10 B) may be used to display extended portions of the image displayed on the front faces of devices  10 A and  10 B, may be used to display virtual buttons for system  36 , and/or may be temporarily deactivated. 
     In the arrangement of  FIG. 12 , displays  14 A and  14 B have borderless configurations, so that images can be displayed seamlessly across displays  14 A and  14 B when devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent (e.g., when the sidewalls of device housings  12 A and  12 B abut). Other configurations for devices  10 A and  10 B may be used, if desired (e.g., configurations in which one or more edges of display  14  has an inactive border). 
       FIG. 13  illustrates how devices  10 A and  10 B may behave when brought together and pulled apart. 
     Initially, devices  10 A and  10 B of system  36  may be in an independent operating mode represented by state  50 - 1 . In state  50 - 1 , devices  10 A and  10 B are separated by an air gap and are not adjacent to each other. Sensors in components  38  can apply measured sensor signals to predetermined adjacency thresholds (adjacency criteria such as a minimum separation distance, sidewall alignment criteria, angular orientation criteria, etc.) to determine whether devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent or are separated. When separated as shown in state  50 - 1 , each device can operate independently. A single user may operate both devices or each device may be operated by a respective user. 
     Components  38  may monitor whether devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent. Wireless communications (e.g., handshaking) between devices  10 A and  10 B to determine whether devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent and/or other techniques for determining adjacency may also be used. In response to detecting that devices are adjacent, system  36  may transition to a joint (adjacent) operating mode, as illustrated by state  50 - 2  of  FIG. 13 . 
     In state  50 - 2 , some or all of the functions of devices  10 A and  10 B may continue to operate independently. For example, devices  10 A and  10 B may display separate content on their respective displays (e.g. a first web page on device  10 A and a second web page on device  10 B) and/or may play separate audio. At the same time, the joint operating mode may allow at least some of the functions of devices  10 A and  10 B to be shared. As an example, a wireless communications circuit in device  10 A may transmit and receive data for both device  10 A and device  10 B (and this data may be exchanged locally between devices  10 A and  10 B using a wired or wireless link between devices  10 A and  10 B) or measurements from an ambient light sensor in device  10 A may be used in controlling screen brightness in the displays of both devices  10 A and  10 B. 
     If desired, devices  10 A and  10 B may operate in a coordinated fashion during the joint mode of state  50 - 2  so that most or all functions of the devices are coordinated. For example, images that are displayed may be expanded to stretch across displays  14 A and  14 B to provide a user with an expanded display area, stereo audio may be played from a first speaker in device  10 A and a second speaker in device  10 B, touch input may be gathered from displays  14 A and  14 B so that a user can drag on-screen items from display  14 A to display  14 B or can make touch gestures that extend across displays  14 A and  14 B, wireless communications capabilities of devices  10 A and  10 B may be combined to provide enhanced bandwidth and/or additional bands of coverage, etc. 
     In some arrangements, devices  10 A and  10 B may be operated in a master-slave (mother/child) configuration. In this type of arrangement, the operation of one device is used in controlling the operation of another device. As an example, device  10 A may display a virtual keyboard for system  36  and device  10 B may display documents or other content that is being controlled by input supplied to the keyboard. Device  10 A may also serve as video controller device, a color picker input area, brush selection area, or other input area for an image editing application that is displaying an edited image on device  10 A, may serve as a game controller pad or video playback controller pad with stop, pause, forward, and reverse button for device  10 B, or may otherwise serve as a touch controller for device  10 B. 
     Operations in each of these modes need not be mutually exclusive. For example, devices  10 A and  10 B may initially be operated independently in all respects (state  50 - 1 ). In joint mode (state  50 - 2 ), a first device function (e.g., use of wireless communications circuitry  26  to receive email messages) may remain separate on each device, a second device function (e.g., audio playback) may be shared (e.g., by presenting the audio in a synchronized stereo arrangement in which a speaker in device  10 A provide left channel audio for an audio track while a speaker in device  10 B simultaneously provides right channel audio for the same track), and a third device function (e.g., use of displays  14 A and  14 B) may be implemented using a master-slave arrangement (e.g., device  10 A may use display  14 A as a touch keyboard and device  10 B may use display  14 B as a display to present an edited image or other content to a user). 
     With the illustrative configuration of  FIG. 13 , devices  10 A and  10 B initially present separate content (respectively, content A and content B) to their respective users (or to a single user of both devices). When placed adjacent to each other so that system  36  operates in joint state  50 - 2 , content A is presented using both displays  14 A and  14 B, whereas content B is no longer presented. Content A may be, for example, a video whereas content B may be a desktop screen containing an array of selectable icons. A user may be playing the video on device  10 A when device  10 B is brought into contact with device  10 A. When this configuration is detected, devices  10 A and  10 B can operate together to display a first half of content A on device  10 A and a second half of content A on device  10 B. In this way, the user may benefit from an enlarged display area and expanded stereo sound (by using respective speakers in devices  10 A and  10 B to present stereo to the user). 
     During joint operating mode (state  50 - 2 ), devices  10 A and/or  10 B may use components  38  (e.g., sensors  32 ) and optional handshaking procedures (e.g., messages relayed between devices  10 A and  10 B wirelessly upon detection of adjacency using sensors  32 ) to determine whether devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent. In response to detecting that devices  10 A and  10 B are no longer adjacent, devices  10 A and  10 B may transition to an updated operating mode such as a mode corresponding to one of operating states  50 - 3 ,  50 - 4 , and  50 - 5  of  FIG. 13 . The behavior of devices  10 A and  10 B after devices  10 A and  10 B are separated (e.g., whether system  36  transitions to state  50 - 3 ,  50 - 4 , or  50 - 5 ) can depend on the configuration of devices  10 A and  10 B during operating state  36  and/or other criteria. 
     Consider, as an example, a first scenario in which devices  10 A and  10 B are displaying a video that stretches across displays  14 A and  14 B in state  50 - 2 . The video (content A in this example) originated from device  10 A (via streaming or a video stored in storage in the control circuitry of device  10 A). When devices  10 A and  10 B are separated, system  36  transitions to the operating mode of state  50 - 3 . In state  50 - 3 , device  10 A continues to display the same video with its audio track, so that the user&#39;s viewing of the video is not disrupted. Device  10 B reverts to its original operating mode and displays content B (which may be, for example, a list of selectable icons on a desktop, an email inbox, or other functionality that is potentially specific to device  10 B). 
     In a second illustrative scenario, devices  10 A and  10 B transition from state  50 - 2  to state  50 - 4  when separated. In state  50 - 2 , content for a video is spread across displays  14 A and  14 B. In this example, the content is being watched by two users who decided to share their screens during the joint operating mode of state  50 - 2 . When the two users need to separate their devices  10 A and  10 B (e.g., for more convenient viewing angles, because the users are departing for different destinations, etc.), both users desire to continue viewing the video. Accordingly, in this second operating scenario, the video (content A) is displayed separately (in its entirety) on each of displays  14 A and  14 B. If the video was initially stored locally on only one of the devices, the video can be transferred to the other device during state  50 - 2  (e.g., using a local communications link between devices  10 A and  10 B) or that other device can retain access to the video by automatically switching to an on-line video streaming delivery mode when the devices are separated. In scenarios in which the shared content on system  36  of state  50 - 2  is a website, the website can be displayed separately on both display  14 A and  14 B in state  50 - 4 . 
     In a third illustrative scenario, devices  10 A and  10 B transition from state  50 - 2  to state  50 - 5  when separated. The content displayed on displays  14 A and  14 B of system  36  in state  50 - 2  may correspond to a game with two users. In the combined display arrangement of state  50 - 2 , a first user&#39;s portion of the game (e.g., the first user&#39;s game controller and/or a first portion of a game playing space) is displayed on display  14 A, whereas a second user&#39;s portion of the game (e.g., the second user&#39;s game controller and/or a second portion of the game playing space) is displayed on display  14 B. Upon transitioning to state  50 - 5 , the first user&#39;s game controller and/or the first portion of a game playing space may continue to be displayed on display  14 A, whereas the second user&#39;s game controller and/or the second portion of the game playing space is displayed on display  14 B. This allows the two users to continue to play a shared game (perhaps in a mode in which it is desirable for each user&#39;s input to their game controller to not be revealed to the opposing user). At a later stage of game play, the users may recombine their devices to revert to state  50 - 2 . Local wireless communications links or communications links that pass through the internet may be used to allow the first and second user&#39;s to play the shared game in state  50 - 5 . 
     In some joint operating modes, devices  10 A and  10 B may be oriented so that they overlap each other in a front-to-front configuration in which their displays overlap and face each other (see, e.g., the arrangement of  FIG. 14 ), in a back-to-back configuration in which their displays overlap and face away from each other so that their rear faces are facing each other (see, e.g., the arrangement of  FIG. 15 ), or in a front-to-back configuration in which their displays are facing in the same direction (see, e.g.,  FIG. 16 ). The orientation of devices  10 A and  10 B in these scenarios can be detected by components  38  and operation of devices  10 A and  10 B adjusted accordingly. When, for example, devices  10 A and  10 B are in a front-to-front configuration, displays  14 A and  14 B may be powered down to conserve power. When devices  10 A and  10 B are in a back-to-back configuration, one or both of displays  14 A and  14 B may be active. For example, a display facing up may be on and a display facing down may be turned off. The orientation of devices  10 A and  10 B relative to the Earth may be detected using an accelerometer in device  10 A and/or device  10 B. In a back-to-front configuration, it may be desirable to turn on the exposed display while turning of the covered (downward facing) display. In each of these joint operation modes, devices resources such as audio resources, communications circuitry, sensors, and other input-output circuitry  24  can be shared, if desired. Magnetic components (see, e.g., components  38 ) may be used in coupling devices  10 A and  10 B together in overlapping configurations. 
     Illustrative operations involved in using multiple devices  10  (e.g., devices  10 A and  10 B) are shown in  FIG. 17 . During the operations of block  60 , devices  10 A and devices  10 B may be operated in an independent operating mode (see, e.g., state  50 - 1  of  FIG. 13 ). During this mode, device  10 A and/or device  10 B may use components  38  (e.g., sensors  32 ) to monitor for adjacency between devices  10 A and  10 B. If desired, output from components  38  in device  10 A and/or device  10 B may be used to initially detect that a sidewall along an edge of device  10 B is adjacent to one of the sidewalls along an edge of device  10 A and this initial detection may be confirmed using wireless communications between devices  10 A and  10 B (sometimes referred to as handshaking, authentication, or acknowledgement). For example, if device  10 A detects the presence of a possible adjacent device, device  10 A can issue a near-field communications request or other wireless request asking adjacent devices to identify themselves. In response, device  10 B can use its sensor(s)  32  to confirm adjacency and can wirelessly provide device  10 A with this information and/or information on the identity of device  10 B and/or other information confirming that device  10 B is authorized and desires to jointly operate with device  10 A. Configurations in which devices  10 A and/or  10 B generate confirmatory patterns of magnetic fields (e.g., a magnetic field produced by device  10 B that is detected by a magnetic sensor in device  10 A), acoustic signals or vibrations (e.g., a sound or vibration that is generated by device  10 B and detected by a microphone or accelerometer in device  10 A), light (e.g., light from a light-emitting diode in device  10 B that is detected by a light detector in device  10 A), and/or other in which devices  10 A and  10 B otherwise generate unidirectional and/or bidirectional localized confirmatory information may also be used in determining adjacency. Simultaneous accelerometer signatures (e.g., simultaneous bumps that are detected by the accelerometers in each device when the devices first contact each other) may also be used as part of an adjacency detection scheme. In general, adjacency between devices  10 A and  10 B can be determined by using data from adjacency detection sensors, receipt of wireless communications from an adjacent device, and/or other operations that take place in one of devices  10 A and  10 B or that take place in both devices  10 A and  10 B. Configurations in which adjacency status information (e.g., sensor readings indicative of device adjacency) is shared between devices  10 A and  10 B (e.g., when adjacency is confirmed when device  10 A detects the presence of device  10 B with a sensor in device  10 A and when device  10 B detects the presence of device  10 A with a sensor in device  10 B) may enhance adjacency detection reliability. In response to determining that devices  10 A and  10 B are not adjacent (from information gathered using one or more of sensors  32  and/or other detection mechanisms), monitoring may continue at block  60 , as indicated by line  62 . 
     In response to determining that devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent (e.g., in response to detection of adjacency by the control circuitry and sensors of either device  10 A or device  10 B or both and/or confirmation using other adjacency detection/confirmation mechanisms), devices  10 A and  10 B may transition to a joint operating mode (block  64 ). The transition to joint operation may take place automatically or may proceed in response to user confirmation by the user of device  10 A and/or the user of device  10 B that joint operation is desired and authorized. As an example devices  10 A and  10 B may display an on-screen interactive prompt asking each user (e.g., if there are two users) to enter a password and to confirm that joint operation is desired. Devices  10 A and  10 B may then proceed to operate in a joint operating mode, as described in connection with state  50 - 2  of  FIG. 13 . 
     In the joint operating mode, one or more resources in device  10 A may be shared with one or more corresponding resources in device  10 B. As an example, graphics circuitry in the control circuitry of each device may be shared so that images can be displayed across a combined display formed from each of the adjacent displays. During image presentation operations, the graphics circuitry (e.g., a graphics processing unit) in one device may, as an example, render content for both displays and may transfer this content to respective display driver circuitry in each device for displaying on the display of that device. A local wireless link between devices  10 A and  10 B can be used to transfer content to be displayed from device  10 A to device  10 B (as an example) or, in some configurations, devices  10 A and  10 B may independently gather their portions of the content to be displayed from an on-line source or other remote source. Local rendering operations performed based on shared information (e.g., when each part of the shared content corresponds to a user&#39;s game controller and/or game playing space) may also be used. In some embodiments, content to be displayed across both displays may be divided before graphics rendering operations and a graphics processing unit in each device may handle rendering operations for its portion of the split content. Each device may have its own display driver circuitry coupled to a pixel array in its own display. The display driver circuitry of each device may be used in displaying an appropriate portion of the content for that device on its display. 
     As further examples, first and second microphones in devices  10 A and  10 B may be used jointly to capture stereo audio input, first and second cameras in devices  10 A and  10 B respectively may be used to capture stereo (e.g., three dimensional) images, first and second respective cameras may be used to gather user free-space gestures (e.g. using triangulation to gather three-dimensional gesture input), or first and second respective cameras may be used to capture image recognition images of a user&#39;s face from first and second respective perspectives. Touch screen functionality may be merged across displays  14 A and  14 B (e.g., to allow icons and other items to be dragged from one display to another, to allow a user touch gesture to extend across multiple displays, to allow a stylus, finger, or other input device to draw a line that extends across multiple displays, etc.). Wireless circuitry in devices  10 A and  10 B may be used jointly (e.g., to double downloading and uploading bandwidth by combining data streams from the two devices), wired circuitry in devices  10 A and  10 B may be used jointly (e.g., to allow multiple accessories to be coupled to system  36 —one of which is coupled to a port in device  10 A and another of which is coupled to a port in device  10 B), and other communications and control functions can be operated jointly. 
     If desired, sensors such as ambient light sensors and proximity sensors may be used jointly. For example, if an ambient light sensor in device  10 A is shadowed by a user&#39;s hand, readings from an ambient light sensor in device  10 B may be used in adjusting the screen brightness for the combined display formed from displays  14 A and  14 B. Proximity sensor measurements may be gathered from respective proximity sensors in devices  10 A and  10 B (e.g., to determine whether a user is placing the user&#39;s ear next to an ear speaker in either device  10 A or device  10 B). 
     To conserve power, some circuitry may be disabled in one device while the circuitry of the other device is used for both devices  10 A and  10 B. For example, when devices  10 A and  10 B are used jointly, global positioning system circuitry in one device may be disabled to conserve power while global positioning system circuitry in the other device is enabled to gather satellite navigation system readings. 
     Displays  14 A and  14 B may, if desired, use common brightness and color balance (white point) settings so that content appears uniform across displays  14 A and  14 B. Devices  10 A and  10 B can revert to their original settings when separated or can (at least temporarily) retain shared joint operating mode settings. 
     Components  38  (e.g., sensors  32 ) in devices  10 A and/or  10 B can monitor for device adjacency during the joint operations of block  64 . For example, one or both devices may make sensor measurements to detect when devices  10 A and  10 B are pulled apart and/or wireless communications between devices  10 A and  10 B may be used in determining when devices  10 A and  10 B are no longer adjacent. So long as devices  10 A and  10 B are positioned so that devices  10 A and  10 B are adjacent (e.g., so that the edges of devices  10 A and  10 B abut one another in a side-by-side or overlapping arrangement) and a wired or wireless communications link is supported between devices  10 A and  10 B so that the control circuitry of devices  10 A and  10 B can share information and otherwise operate cooperatively to support joint operation, processing may continue at block  64 , as indicated by line  66 . In response to detecting that devices  10 A and  10 B have been separated, system  36  may transition from a joint operating mode (e.g., state  50 - 2  of  FIG. 13 ) to an appropriate separate (independent) operating mode (see, e.g., states  50 - 3 ,  50 - 4 , and  50 - 5  of  FIG. 13 ). During the operations of block  68 , it may be determined which, if any, of the operating settings from the joint state are to persist on each of the separate devices before operation loops back to the independent operations of block  60 . As an example, if devices  10 A and  10 B were jointly displaying a web page during the operations of block  64 , the web page may continue to be displayed on each device after device separation (e.g. each device may display a browser window with the same web page). As another example, if devices  10 A and  10 B were playing stereo music through respective first and second speakers in devices  10 A and  10 B, device  10 A (but not device  10 B) may continue to play the music through its speakers upon device separation. In general, all joint operating parameters may be retained when devices  10 A and  10 B are separated, some joint operating parameters may be retained, or no joint operating parameters may be retained. 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative and various modifications can be made to the described embodiments. The foregoing embodiments may be implemented individually or in any combination.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20200227
Publication Date: 20211116
Grant Date: 20211116
Priority Date: 20170321
Inventors: WILSON, JAMES R.
PAKULA, DAVID A.
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H04M1/724095", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72412", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72409", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F9/5061", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72454", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F9/5061", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F9/5027", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01F7/02", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72454", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01F7/0252", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/04", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01F7/02", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72409", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F9/5027", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72454", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72409", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01F7/02", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F9/5061", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/72412", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/0268", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04M1/724095", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 69723534