Apple's New Touchscreen Tech Revealed in Patent Application [PICS]
By Ben Parr 2010-01-07 15:15:52 UTC
A new patent published this morning by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reveals that Apple has some big plans for its already-innovative touchscreen technology.
The filing, first uncovered by Patently Apple, goes into detail about not only brighter, crisper displays, but also technology that recognizes when you touch the sides of the device.
If you want the deep analysis, we highly suggest reading Jack Purcher's great post (warning: This isn't simple stuff). However, the patent boils down to the following:
1. The touch screen can detect if you're touching the sides on top of the screen. The touch screen would include metal traces in the borders, which could theoretically be used to create actions based on your hand movements on the side of the device. Imagine your phone unlocking when you just grab it out of your pocket. That's what this could do.
2. Smarter and easier-to-view screens. One of the things this patent addresses is in-plane switching (IPS), which was developed in the '90s by Hitachi to fix the problem of not being able to see a screen when it's not at an ideal angle. This patent essentially makes it easier to see the screen.
3. Thinner screens. As the NYT Bits Blog discusses in a piece, the patent is also looking to merge LDC and touch panel screens for one seamless device.
We'll be honest — some of this technology is beyond us (something Venturebeat and other publications also admit), so we'll leave you to look through the patent applications and discuss them in the comments. We'd love to drill down into this patent and figure out what Apple has up its sleeves, so comment if you have any insights for us.
Patent Images
All images courtesy of Patently Apple:
Topics: Apple, patent, Tech