No longer limited to iPhone, Apple's new patent implies that iPad, Mac, Apple TV and cars all support satellite emergency services.
CTOnews.com, January 11 (Xinhua) A heavyweight new feature / feature introduced by Apple on the iPhone 14 model is to support emergency satellite help, and according to a new technology patent obtained by Apple, iPad, Mac and Apple TV set-top boxes, televisions and cars can all support satellite emergency services in the future.
According to a list released today by the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office (USPTO), Apple has obtained a patent for satellite communications technology, including control circuits and antenna module arrays, covering medium-Earth orbit (MEO) and low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites.
Apple explicitly mentions "Satellite Connectivity Group" in its patent, which indicates that Apple will increase its support for satellite services in the future and develop more practical functions on this basis.
CTOnews.com learned that in remote wireless communication systems of satellite communication systems, communication terminals usually transmit radio frequency signals over distances of tens, hundreds or thousands of miles. Such a long distance makes the radio frequency signal suffer significant signal attenuation in the process of propagation. In addition, the communication terminal usually needs to maintain multiple concurrent wireless links with other communication terminals in the satellite communication system.
The wireless components that support this kind of remote communication will consume resources such as power, space and weight in the communication terminal. There are also great challenges in maintaining satisfactory wireless link quality between communication terminals, especially over long distances such as those associated with satellite communication systems.
Apple points out that the patents it granted relate to communication terminals in communication systems, such as satellite communications systems, which may include control circuits and antenna module arrays.
Each antenna module may include an antenna radiator array located on the substrate and a radio frequency lens overlapping with the radiator array. Each antenna module may include a transceiver chain, which includes a transceiver, a phase shifter and an amplifier shared by each radiator in the module. Each antenna module may include a switching circuit between the radiator and the transceiver chain.
The control circuit may control the switch circuit to activate a group of one or more radiators in a given module. The control circuit may control the transceiver chain in the module to transmit radio frequency signals at the selected phase using each active radiator (for example, by applying the selected phase shift using a phase shifter in the transceiver chain). Each active radiator can send and receive radio frequency signals through a signal beam oriented in different directions by a radio frequency lens above the module.
