/Patent Tracker
AppleGranted patentCameras & imagingInterest 5/10

Apple patents camera design using flexible plastic base for sensors

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Apple has been granted a patent for a camera system that uses a flexible organic circuit board as a base to hold the image sensor and infrared filter. This design allows the sensor to move relative to the lenses using an actuator, potentially aiding in focus or stabilization.

Why it mattersUsing flexible plastic boards instead of rigid materials could help Apple make thinner cameras or improve how the sensor moves for better image quality.

In the filing’s own words

A camera may include an organic substrate for placement of one or more components. An image sensor may be attached to the organic substrate to capture light passing through one or more lenses of the camera. The image sensor and the organic substrate may be moved, using an actuator, relative to the lenses in one or more directions. The organic substrate may be one single piece of an organic printed circuit board (PCB), or include multiple separate organic PCBs joined together. The organic substrate may include a first recess at a first side towards the lenses, and/or a second recess at a second side opposite the first side near an edge of the organic substrate.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A system, comprising: one or more lenses; an organic substrate formed as one single piece of an organic circuit board or multiple separate organic circuit boards joined together; an image sensor attached to the organic substrate and in contact with an image side surface of the organic substrate to communicate electrical signals over conductive traces routed at multiple layers of the organic circuit board or the multiple separate organic circuit boards; and an infrared (IR) light filter attached to the organic substrate at a second side opposite the image side surface, such that the IR light filter is positioned optically between the one or more lenses and the image sensor, wherein the organic substrate includes an opening between the IR light filter and the image sensor to allow light passing through the IR light filter to reach the image sensor through the opening.

Facts

Company
Apple (Apple Inc.)
Official title
Organic substrate for placing components of a camera
Patent number
US12756912B1
Application number
17934180
Filed
Sep 21, 2022
Granted
Oct 6, 2026
Inventors
5
Claims
20

Classified under

H04N 23/54 Electricity & electronicsG02B 5/208 Physics & computingG02B 27/646 Physics & computingG03B 5/00 Physics & computingG03B 11/00 Physics & computingH05K 1/0274 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

More from Apple in Cameras & imaging

Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.