Apple is researching “Folding Feet” to improve the cooling of the MacBook Pro

Apple is investigating the use of “folding feet” on the MacBook Pro to facilitate cooling, according to a recently published patent application.

The patent application, first seen by Clearly Apple, is titled “Folding Feet for Screen Hinge and Thermal Performance” and describes how a MacBook Pro could include feet that move to elevate the back of the device. Apple’s folding feet can extend at least 3.8 millimeters, thus significantly increasing the airflow below the machine.

The presentation explains how, in one embodiment, the screen hinge of the MacBook Pro could be connected to the folding feet, so that the feet would unfold in relation to the mechanical movement of the cover.

In other embodiments, the feet could be deployed using a train of gears, tires, electromechanical, or simply thrown manually by a user. The presentation also suggests that the entire base of a MacBook Pro could be expanded, rather than individual feet.

The patent application explains that folding feet can be an “efficient means to cool the device” without taking up internal space with large components, such as fans, ensuring that the MacBook is “thin and light while including numerous features that offer high performance “.

As the number and performance of internal components increases, so do the thermal and other requirements of the electronic device. Therefore, there is a demand for efficient use of space within an electronic device and efficient means of cooling the device. Accordingly, it may be desirable for an electronic device to include drop-down functions that can increase the free space of the base portion and also improve the efficiency of the internal volume of the base portion, while maintaining a portable and elegant form factor.

In one embodiment where the drop-down section is larger, the patent states that “the drop-down function can at least partially define a respirator when deployed,” potentially adding a dedicated respirator and increasing the natural airflow under the device.

In addition, Apple explains how the drop-down feet attach to the Mac software. When in an unfolded position, the Mac’s processor may be allowed to heat up for better performance, due to increased airflow. On Macs that have a fan and fold-out feet, fan speed will be determined “at least partially” based on the extent of the deployment.

The electronic device may include a sensor that detects at least one temperature or processing speed of the electronic device and provides the signal in response to detection. The electronic device may also include a fan, in which the fan speed is based at least partially on a state of the drop-down function.

The presentation also addresses the potential loss of space within a MacBook that drop-down feet could cause. He proposes that, when in the deployed position, the internal space used to store the feet can be reused so that it is “usable by an antenna or speaker.”

The design has the added benefit of giving the screen hinge more space to rotate, as well as improving the angle of the device for typing and raising the height of the screen for greater comfort.

While Apple’s patent applications can’t be taken as reliable evidence of what the company intends to add to its devices, there may be good reasons to suggest that a feature such as folding feet is may be implemented at some point in the future on MacBooks.

Apple is showing interest in passive cooling. The company has explored passive-cooling laptops that began with the 12-inch MacBook in 2015 and, more recently, with the latest MacBook Air, which has no fans or fans in the base to cool. Also, as the internal components of MacBooks become more compact with the advent of Apple’s silicon, along with improved battery life, it’s likely that fold-out feet can be justified in a future Mac laptop. .

Apple is believed to be working on high-performance custom silicon processors for future MacBook Pro models. Unlike the M1 chip, which generally works very well and works with Apple’s entry-level Macs, it’s likely that Apple’s next-generation silicon coming to the MacBook Pro will have much more demanding thermal requirements.

Drop-down feet could be a way for Apple to be able to improve the thermals of its passively cooled MacBooks, as well as allow even higher performance on its Pro-Active cooling machines, sometime in the future.