Apple patent involves a wireless charging case for the Apple Watch

Apple has filed for a patent (number 9,901,147) for a “case for a wearable electronic device.” It’s for a wireless charging case for the Apple Watch.

The case can include first and second housing members foldably coupled together by one or more hinges between an open position and a closed position. A recess formed in one of the housing members is sized and shaped to hold the one or more bands within the case with an attachment mechanism positioned within the cavity. 

In the patent filing, Apple notes that smartwatches “can be part of a large ecosystem of interchangeable bands and devices such that a user may have two or more bands the user may want to use with their wearable electronic device.” And Apple would love for you to buy multiple bands for your Apple Watch.

Should such an accessory see the light of day, presumably it would offer an alternative to Apple’s upcoming AirPower charger.

Of course, Apple files for — and is granted — lots of patents by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Many are for inventions that never see the light of day. However, you never can tell which ones will materialize in a real product.