Patent

While we do hesitate to read too much into Apple's patent applications, a couple of new applications published earlier today are gaining some attention for their connections to other Apple-related people and events that have raised the level of intrigue. Last week, we noted that Apple had finally been revealed as the owner of the applepico.com domain name, as public registration information...

As noted by Patently Apple, a newly-published patent application from Apple reveals an interesting take on the idea of using metaphorical gestures to share data between devices. Building upon file transfer mechanisms found in such iOS apps as Bump that allow users to exchange contact information, photos, and other data between devices in close proximity, Apple proposes a number of gestures...

As briefly noted by Patently Apple yesterday, Apple has finally been awarded a key patent related to the iOS user interface as implemented on the original iPhone. Originally filed in December 2007, the patent application incorporated several previous provisional patent applications dating back to January 2007 when Apple first unveiled the iPhone six months ahead of its launch. While the...

Patently Apple reports that another newly-published patent application from Apple reveals a hint at what could be the future of the company's "Find My iPhone" functionality. The proposed enhancements offer a device's owner a great deal more control over how it can be used once it is lost or stolen, as well as providing the device with smarter capabilities for detecting unauthorized usage. Among ...

With the explosive growth of Facebook and Twitter, social networking has been the biggest trend in the recent years. Apple has already tried delve into this market a bit with its iTunes network Ping, though with limited success. Based on a new patent application published today, it seems Apple has been exploring far more ambitious attempts using the iPhone, location-based services and...

As noted by AppleInsider, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office today published a patent application from Apple describing a system for eliminating delays in streaming media by storing small portions of the content locally on a user's mobile device. The content covered in the patent application, which is entitled "Local Storage of a Portion of Streamed Media Items" and was filed in November...

Patently Apple points to a newly published patent application which could show one possible reason Apple is so interested in Nuance's speech recognition technology. Apple is rumored to be in negotiations with Nuance for the use of their speech recognition engine in iOS 5. The patent application offers a possible solution to two different scenarios where it would be hard for someone to...

Patently Apple reports on an interesting new patent application from Apple describing the use of environmental sensors to generate screen saver content for mobile devices such as the iPod nano. As an example, the device could sense such environmental characteristics as motion, sound, temperature, or even camera input, using that information to provide the users with screen saver content...

As noted by AppleInsider and Patently Apple, the U.S. Patent and Trademark today published a patent application from Apple describing an iOS application designed to support fitness and personal training functionalities. The integrated application can provide a full fitness center experience by introducing potential new customer to a fitness center and then motivating them to return to the...

The other interesting patent application coming out of Apple yesterday was one of a hybrid e-Paper/Video iOS display. Apple's second patent surprise of the day is all about Apple devising a next generation iPhone that would effectively offer us a smart hybrid display that could switch between a standard LCD and an e-Paper display. In fact, it's so smart that the display could actually...

PatentlyApple reveals a new Apple patent application which details how the iPhone might get a new "smart bezel" which offers the ability to display additional indicators in the device's border. Apple intends to introduce a method that employs a very cool secondary display scheme that utilizes a printed segmented electroluminescence display. Apple intends to use the secondary display to introduce ...

PatentlyApple reveals a new patent granted to Apple from the US Patent and Trademark Office. The patent describes what appears to be a new dock connector that can support both DisplayPort/USB 3.0. Apple has been granted a powerful patent that packs quite the wallop. Somehow they snuck a secret patent application through the system for an all-new high speed connector that will combine at least...

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office yesterday published a remarkable volume of new Apple patent applications, offering another look at technologies the company has at least been thinking about, even if they may never see the light of day. Here are a couple of the interesting ones that made their appearances yesterday. One patent application detailed by Patently Apple describes a concept for...

Patently Apple details a recent Apple patent application which describes a new Mac OS X feature called "Safe Deposit Box": Apple's patent is about a safe deposit box for securing important user files. In one aspect, when a user drags-and-drops a file representation onto a safe deposit box icon, the file is secured. In another aspect, when a user selects the safe deposit box icon and verifies his ...

A number of reports today are highlighting possible technical improvements for future Apple products, and while much of the information is based on patent applications that may or may not ever see the light of day, it does provide an interesting glimpse into some of Apple's areas of research. First, 9 to 5 Mac reports on a recent job posting from Apple looking for a host of new engineers...