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ApplePatent applicationPhones & computersInterest 4/10

Apple patents phone design with glass camera bumps and hidden seals

Apple describes a method for building phone housings where the camera lens sits within a raised glass area on the back. The design uses a molded plastic seal to attach the camera ring to the glass, keeping the inside of the device separated from the outside.

Why it mattersThis filing details how Apple might integrate camera hardware more seamlessly into the device's back glass, potentially improving the structural integrity around the lenses.

In the filing’s own words

Electronic devices may be provided with components such as displays and cameras. A display may be mounted in a housing. The housing may have a sidewall. A bent portion of the display may be embedded in epoxy that is separated from the sidewall by an air gap. Adhesive may attach the epoxy to the housing. A metal support that is chemically bonded to the epoxy may be welded to metal structures such as camera brackets and other metal supports. The housing may have a glass layer that forms a rear wall. The glass layer may have a protruding portion that forms a glass plateau with openings through which cameras operates. A camera may have a protruding portion that is received within one of the glass plateau openings. The protruding portion may extend into a metal camera trim in one of the openings that is attached to the glass plateau.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. An electronic device having an interior and an exterior, the electronic device comprising: a housing including a housing wall with a protruding portion forming a plateau with an opening; a camera configured to operate through the opening; a camera trim in the opening, wherein a portion of the camera protrudes into the camera trim; and a molded polymer that attaches the camera trim to the plateau, wherein the molded polymer separates the interior from the exterior.

Facts

Company
Apple (Apple Inc.)
Official title
Electronic Devices With Displays and Camera Windows
Publication number
US20260281220A1
Application number
19676461
Filed
May 13, 2026
Published
Sep 17, 2026
Inventors
4
Claims
20

Classified under

H04M 1/0264 Electricity & electronicsH04M 1/0268 Electricity & electronicsH04M 1/0277 Electricity & electronics
Read the full filing (official PDF) ↗ Open in the Patent Tracker

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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.