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Posts Tagged ‘patent’

Apple patent shows off RFID in everything

By Brenda Stokes on Thursday, Oct 23rd 2008 No Comments

Apple is certainly good for filing patents. They have a ton of them, but this one is really interesting. It’s called the “Personal area network systems devices and methods for use thereof,” which doesn’t sound interesting, but trust me. It is.

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Apple non-linear Safari history patent suggests Visual Voicemail for browsing

By Chris Davies on Thursday, Sep 25th 2008 No Comments

Apple are planning a Safari update to take on Google’s new Chrome browser, with a non-linear history that would make tracking website visits more intuitive. That’s the suggestion from a new Apple patent application, which discusses a non-linear, timeline threaded display of a user’s browsing history that uses context and a timeline rather than simple forward and back. In a way, Apple make it sound like Visual Voicemail for your history.

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Apple patent shows future Nike+ shoes

By Brenda Stokes on Friday, Sep 12th 2008 No Comments

Another Apple patent has been uncovered that discloses some interesting information about a potential future product. It involves taking the Nike+ system to the next level with some high-tech running shoes.

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Apple credit UK man with initial iPod idea

By Chris Davies on Sunday, Sep 7th 2008 No Comments

We’re used to hearing claims from disappointed (and generally poor) people that they invented the iPod, but Apple have partially made one UK man’s day by crediting him as author of some of the original patents that outlined how today’s PMPs work. Kane Kramer sketched out a rudimentary media player back in 1979, but financial difficulties in 1988 meant he couldn’t renew the patent and it entered the public domain. Apple then used the concept as evidence in their legal case against Burst.com, who were accusing the company of patent infringement and looking for a slice of the iPod profits.

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Apple MultiTouch Fusion Patent mixes touch with voice & biometrics

By Chris Davies on Thursday, Sep 4th 2008 1 Comment

Apple has submitted a patent application describing a system whereby multitouch input is augmented with input from other media, for instance voice control, facial expression or even biometric data. Entitled “Multi-Touch Data Fusion“, the patent explains a system where sensors could be built into, or around, a multitouch panel, measuring voice, temperature, vibration, light and more. A possible implementation of this could be manipulating an on-screen control (for instance a dial) while saying “color change”; the dial would therefore control the hue.

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Apple Multi-Touch Patent suggests next-gen MacBook Tablet interface

By Chris Davies on Thursday, Aug 28th 2008 No Comments

Updated Apple patents documenting how the company envisages larger-scale multitouch displays reacting to all fingers of both of a user’s hands have added further fuel to the suspicion that a MacBook Tablet is in development. The patent, 52 pages in length, suggests a full-touchscreen Mac Tablet with window-based GUI as in OS X; controls would adapt to finger input, expanding to avoid accidental overlap presses, horizontal, vertical or circular scrolling would be supported, and a full on-screen QWERTY keyboard provided.

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Apple patents MacBook design, new iPhone stand & speech synthesis

By Chris Davies on Wednesday, Aug 6th 2008 2 Comments

A flurry of new Apple patents have been approved, covering a broad range of hardware and software that includes MacBook design, speech synthesis and the stand for the iPod Touch. While the hardware patents are generally ornamental – i.e. they protect Apple’s industrial design – the others are more technical.

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Sony ‘Tactile Pixels’ patent describes touchscreen PSP with haptic display

By Chris Davies on Monday, Jun 30th 2008 No Comments

Sony have been granted a patent for a portable, handheld device that uses a haptic feedback system. However, unlike the traditional so-called haptics available on a number of cellphones, which basically vibrate the handset whenever you press its touchscreen, the Sony system uses an array of individually controlled “tactile pixels” that physically press through the display. The company has described multiple potential applications, including game console, media player, cellphone and internet navigator.

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Microsoft Veda context-aware mobile device patent

By Chris Davies on Tuesday, Jun 17th 2008 No Comments

Achieving the balance between flexibility and ease of use isn’t straightforward, as Microsoft have found with their Windows Mobile OS. Yes, there’s bags of functionality and a whole army of developers creating add-ons, but the result can be intimidating and actually make completing simple tasks harder. The company appears to be going more context-specific with their latest patent, for the Veda “Multi-mode multimedia device and computing system” that plays the part of cellphone, PMP and mini-notebook.

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Canon DSLR fuel-cell patent; is MTI Micro their hardware partner?

By Chris Davies on Monday, May 19th 2008 No Comments

MTI Micro Mobion fuel cell DSLR grip Canon have filed a patent that describes a compact fuel-cell system primarily intended for DSLR cameras but that has potential for inclusion in other portable electronics. The filing details the company’s solution to dealing with variances in load currents, an issue in applications such as DSLRs where sudden surges in power draw are frequent. It uses a number of individual fuel cells combined, with a DC-DC converter that combines the voltages as required.