Apple has been granted a patent (number 10,742,051) for “wireless charging systems with multiple power receiving devices” that hints that the discontinued AirPower project/device could be revived.
The AirPower was originally announced in September 2017 alongside the iPhone X. It was supposed to be able to charge a Qi-compatible iPhone, an Apple Watch, and a pair of AirPods (in a special wireless charging case) at the same time regardless of where they were placed on the pad. However, there was constant rumors of production, engineering, and manufacturing difficulties. Seems those rumors were right.
However, in March 2019, Dan Riccio, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering, declared the project dead. “After much effort, we’ve concluded AirPower will not achieve our high standards and we have cancelled the project,” he said. “We apologize to those customers who were looking forward to this launch. We continue to believe that the future is wireless and are committed to push the wireless experience forward.”
In June Apple leaker Jon Prosser tweeted that Apple is working on a product that sounds a lot like the late, lamented AirPower. He shared photos of an alleged prototype codenamed “C68″that would have an A11 chip inside to prevent overheating.
Here’s the summary of the newly granted patent: “A wireless charging system may include a wireless power transmitting device that receives multiple wireless power receiving devices. A primary power receiving device that is used to display battery charge status information for other power receiving devices on the power transmitting device may be referred to as a hero device. The other wireless power receiving devices may be referred to as paired devices.
“When a paired device is added to a wireless power transmitting device where a hero device is already present, the hero device may verify that the paired device is on the same mat as the hero device. The hero device and paired device may then synchronously output a user notification. When a paired device is present on a wireless power transmitting device, the paired device may send battery charge status information to the wireless power transmitting device at predetermined intervals.”
