Apple has filed for a patent (number US 20230350349 A1) for an “Electronic Watch With Barometric Vent” that involves possible future Apple Watches.
About the patent filing
In the patent filing, Apple notes that electronic devices use all manner of components to gather information about the surrounding environment, and to provide outputs to users of the devices. In some cases, the components require exposure to the surrounding environment in order to function effectively.
For example, a temperature sensor may need to be exposed to the surrounding environment in order to accurately detect an ambient air temperature, and a speaker may need to be exposed to the surrounding environment in order to be effectively heard by a user. Electronic devices may also benefit from environmental sealing, such as waterproofing, to help prevent damage to sensitive electrical components and circuits.
Sealing a device, however, may interfere with the operation of components that rely on exposure to the surrounding environment to function properly. Apple’s idea is for an Apple Watch with an interior cavity divided into at least a first volume and a second volume, a pressure-sensing component positioned within the first volume, a speaker positioned within the first volume, a processor positioned within the second volume, a battery positioned within the second volume, and a barometric vent that allows air pressure equalization between the first volume and an external environment. The speaker may include a speaker diaphragm that’s waterproof.
Summary of the patent filing
Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent filing: “An electronic watch may include a housing at least partially defining an interior cavity divided into at least a first volume and a second volume, a pressure-sensing component positioned within the first volume, a speaker positioned within the first volume, a processor positioned within the second volume, a battery positioned within the second volume, and a barometric vent that allows air pressure equalization between the first volume and an external environment.”
