Apple's new patent: Embedding the display screen into the car glass to block external light without taking up space

Apple Cars could embed displays into any piece of glass in the car, with laminated glass and a variety of other materials (a sandwich structure) to block external light, emit its own light, or display images. In most cases, modern cars still require a dedicated display for their various computer systems, and this screen is usually mounted on the dashboard or infotainment system and is a very obvious device when it is turned off.

(Image source: patentlyapple.com)

The need for displays constrains vehicle design, and the components used to produce them determine not only how big the display is and where it is installed in the vehicle, but also the space available for driving operations.

To this end, according to foreign media reports, the US Patent and Trademark Office recently granted Apple a patent called "System with windows". Apple envisions moving the physical display screen to the inside of the car window. Although this patent may be related to a dashboard unit made of glass, it also allows drivers and passengers to use such glass panels to observe the outside and surrounding conditions of the car.

(Image source: patentlyapple.com)

In Apple's patent application, a structured window layer and a chemically strengthened glass layer may be used to fix an "adjustable optical component layer." In short, the adjustable optical component layer may be some form of display screen, including an LCD panel with a backlight, an OLED panel, or an edge-lit light guide, that is, any display screen capable of displaying images, numbers, or other visual feedback.

To provide support for the optical component layer, Apple suggests that components could be added within the sandwich structure, either as an additional inner layer or as a treatment layer near the two glass panels. This layer could include an interlayer polymer layer with a coating to block solar heat and create an anti-reflective layer or a layer that blocks infrared light.

Since such layers may be scratched or altered if exposed in the assembly, embedding them in laminated glass ensures that they are fully protected in daily use.

As for the glass used, Apple suggests that the chemically strengthened layer can be made of tempered sodium glass layers or aluminosilicate glass. The minimum thickness of each layer of glass is at least 1.5 mm, resulting in a laminated glass panel that is the same thickness as the current automotive glass, or thinner than it.

In March 2019, Apple also involved glass in a "lighting system" patent, indicating that fiber optic rings can be used to display details of transparent or translucent panels and can be embedded in the glass. The patent indicates that before use, the fiber optic system can embed a display screen in the windshield without showing components or indicating that the display screen is located here.

In another patent related to an augmented reality system, Apple said it would overlay route data on a real view of the road ahead, and it also appears that the display system would be embedded in the windshield.

In a patent filed in April 2020, Apple suggested hiding the display in the car's interior panel so that when the screen is not in use, a huge gray reflective square will not be visible. In addition, the seat can provide some visual information, such as how to fasten the seat belt or how to change the seat position.