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Apple patent filing describes a charging cable that doesn't fray
Shredded Lightning cable casings may soon be a thing of the past.
Daily Update for January 16, 2014
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get some the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the player at the top of the page. The Daily Update has been moved to a new podcast host in the past few days. Current listeners should delete the old podcast subscription and subscribe to the new feed in the iTunes Store here.
Yup, Nokia's designing a watch too (update: video)
Plenty of companies have been noodling around with the idea of wearable tech, but Nokia's always offered up some of the most eye-popping concepts. The latest application to reach the Patent and Trademark Office, however, is a little more practical: a modular watch that you can customize to your heart's content. An even more outlandish idea is that each of the segments would contain a display tailored to a specific function -- and by turning the device around, you'd be able to access and use whichever was pointing upward. While you certainly can't draw any conclusions from the illustrative diagram, it's interesting to see that the doodles use a Windows Phone-style lock screen. Still, we imagine that Microsoft will want some say in this device's development if the Nokia Watch ever makes it as far as a working prototype. Update: Kent Lyons, one of the minds behind this device, got in touch to let us know a little bit more about it. Not only was this concept codenamed "Facet" but there's both an academic paper (available at the More Coverage link) and a video of the prototype in action, which we've embedded below.
Google applies for location-based security patent, locks down your phone on the go
Google's knack with location services helps us to get around, but hopefully, that same tech will serve to keep our devices safe in the future. Mountain View has applied to patent a system that modifies your smartphone's security depending on where you are. If you're at home or work, for instance, then swipe-to-unlock will suffice, but if you venture into the unknown, then your handset will demand you enter a code or, you know, offer up a DNA sample. The only issue that we can find, of course, is that you'd better hope that the person who lives above or below you in the apartment block doesn't have their eyes on your Nexus.
Apple applies for patent on 'audio hyperlinking' system for enhanced podcasts
Patently Apple provided some insight into an Apple patent application published today by the US Patent & Trademark Office for "audio hyperlinking." These hyperlinks can be audible or inaudible, and can be played back on podcasts, TV shows or in-store speaker systems to send messages to apps on your iPhone. As Apple notes in the application, hyperlinking has been limited to textual documents like web pages, and this process provides a way to allow hyperlinking of non-textual (video / audio) materials as well. As an example of how this could be used, imagine watching a recording of TUAW TV Live and having inaudible cues from the recording link you to the product pages of items we're talking about on the show. A hyperlink in one audio stream can even link to another audio stream -- for example, a hyperlink in a podcast could link to an advertisement audio stream that doesn't need to be embedded in the actual podcast, then return to the podcast once it has completed playback. As always with patent applications, there's no guarantee that Apple will ever use this technology in any forthcoming product or service.
Nintendo lands 'remotely controlled mobile device control' patent
You know those goofy tennis racket peripherals that allow for Wiimote insertion? Or, perhaps more sensibly, those Guitar Hero axes that wouldn't function without a Wiimote planted at the heart? Looks as if Nintendo's going to do us all one better. Based on a rambling new patent granted to the Big N this week, the company now holds the power to concoct a "remotely controlled mobile device control system." Distilled down, the verbiage describes a Wiimote-type controller being embedded within a "remote controlled toy," which would then be (unsurprisingly) used in conjunction with a game console. Essentially, this opens the door for Honda to develop a new variant of ASIMO that takes commands via an embedded Wii controller... or, for a Wii-infused robot to turn on its owner and commit unspeakable crimes against humanity. But hey, it'll probably be pretty cute.
Apple applies for patent on 'smart shoe' sensor
If an Apple patent application is any indication, athletic shoes may start telling us when they need replacing. In a patent filed back in July 2012, Curtis Vock and Perry Youngs are listed as the inventors of a "shoe wear-out sensor, body-bar sensing system, unitless activity assessment and associated methods," with Apple Inc. as the assignee. Vock is an intellectual property lawyer with Lathrop & Gage, a law firm based in Boulder, Colo. The idea of the patent is to warn users of athletic shoes when a "critical wear level has been reached," in which case the shoe may not supply support and could injure the wearer. While the patent may never end up being used for a real Apple product, it's fascinating to see the company is looking outside of the gadgets we use everyday to the "internet of things" like shoes. A full PDF of the patent filing is available for download here.
Sony patents tech to tie discs to user IDs
A new patent application by Sony, if developed into a real-world product, will make it impossible for game discs to be sold, shared, or traded, by tying each disc to a console or user account. The patented technology works by embedding an RFID tag in the disc, which a reader in the console can log against a user ID. "When the game is to be played, the reproduction device conveys the disk ID and a player ID to the use permission tag," which then determines whether it is permissible for the game to run.Diagrams included with the patent application show "temporary use information," showing that the system can be built to permit limited use of a disc, even if flagged. "The number of temporary uses is within the limits?" reads one of the checks.This is just a patent application, and may never make it into the real world. Therefore, we're not getting irritated about the erosion of rights ... yet.
Apple files anti-theft patent that uses accelerometers to detect theft-like movement
What kind of movement does a theft entail? Apple's in the process of figuring that out, today filing a patent application for a, "acceleration-based theft detection system for portable electronic devices." Apple pickers: you've just been put on watch. According to the patent filing, said device would activate an alarm of some form after determining, "whether a theft condition is present." It'll apparently figure that out based on the accelerometer built into many of Apple's mobile devices -- the same thing that figures out which way you're holding your phone. Beyond just the hardware, said theft protection system would work in concert with software to determine if the movement matches a pre-determined "profile characteristic of theft." Of course, Apple's not the only one worried about mobile device theft, as Google already patented just such a device pertaining to its Project Glass concept. But the you'd have to be pretty brazen to steal the glasses off of someone's face without "accidentally" socking them in the eye.
Nikon patent would perfect the art of camera tossing, protect us from our folly
If you're one of the more daring (or foolhardy) photographers out there, you've tried camera tossing: hurling your camera into the air in the hopes that a timed shot will catch either a unique perspective or an artistic spin. Nikon might not want to stop those shooters from throwing caution to the wind, but its recently published Japanese patent would at least keep those throws to a minimum. Cameras based on the patent could use a built-in accelerometer not just for timing the shot, but to brace for a fall by covering the lens and retracting its barrel on the way down. In theory, the photographer gets a perfect aerial portrait without all the guesswork and a minimum of damage. Call us skeptical that we'll ever see the patent reach a shipping product, though -- even if it was limited to rugged cameras, a mode built almost exclusively around voiding the warranty probably wouldn't sit well with Nikon's accountants. [Image credit: Zoli B, Flickr]
Apple files patent application for fingerprint sensor that can be transparent or opaque
While Apple has flirted with biometric-based patents before, we've yet to see them implemented in real-world technology. That hasn't stopped it from filing yet another one though, as the latest application reveals a fingerprint sensor apparently embedded into the iPhone itself. The patent describes a hardware "window" that can become selectively "transparent or opaque." When transparent, it would reveal a component comprised of an "image capture device, a strobe flash, a biometric sensor, a light sensor, a proximity sensor, or a solar panel, or a combination thereof" as a method of unlocking the phone. According to the filing, the biometric sensor in question might indeed be a fingerprint reader. The document goes on to describe an alternative method using face or eye recognition technology that can be used not just for security purposes, but for possible e-commerce solutions like completing an online transaction. Of course, take any of these patent applications with a generous pinch of salt -- we haven't seen an Apple stylus yet, for example -- but perhaps this is the reason Apple bought fingerprint sensor maker AuthenTec back in July.
Samsung files patent for auto-generating life diary, Mayans didn't see it coming
If the minutiae of people's lives crowd your feeds and drive you to frustration, you really won't be wanting this Samsung patent application to be approved. The USPTO filing outlines a process for creating a "life diary" by collecting all manner of information about your daily routine from your smartphone. Data such as where you've been, what the weather was like, what you've been listening to, et cetera, would be spun out in computer-generated sentences and compiled into a story of your day. Although it would lack the romanticism of a traditional, hand-written diary, we could see it having some use as a mundane log -- as long as you're happy for all that info to be recorded, that is. However, if this ever comes to fruition with sharing options, to boot, all the pictures of food, coffee house check-ins and FarmVille updates would seem insignificant in comparison. Some things, like the last time we sang along with the Bieb, are better left unshared.
Apple files patent application for 'intelligent automated assistant,' sounds like Siri
Siri's managed to make it into several Apple devices now, so it doesn't shock us to spy the company's attempt to patent the polite (somewhat frosty) tones of its voice navigation system. A pretty deep patent application filed today describes an "intelligent Automated Assistant," with the claims describing an application that is guided through the user's speech -- and all wrapped in a "conversational interface." So far, so Siri. The filing elaborates on Apple's earlier filings, explaining how this digital assistant furthers the users' demands with additional requests for speech-based information -- hopefully resulting in that map location or a movie booking you were after. This "user intent" is then put to use, launching an additional app or performing the specified function, while non-speech input (presumably like the ability to correct your requests in text form) get a brief mention. We do get plenty of description on commands though, with some pretty thorough response tables and examples of "anchor text" -- something that the automated assistant tries to pluck from your ramblings in order to make sense of them. The full version resides at the source below, if you're looking for 51 verbose pages explaining Siri's inner workings.
Apple trying for patent on electromotive charging, could use that confident stride to charge iPhones
We've seen the concept of electromotive (movement-based) charging before, but it usually comes at the cost of either a clunky design or a limitation to very low-power devices like watches. Apple has been experimenting with a concept that could power gadgets as big as iPhones and iPods with that spring in your step -- and without the bulk of any extra wires. A newly published patent application uses flat, printed coils to generate electromagnetic induction through movable magnets; as the device bounces around in your pocket, the magnets slide past the coils and run them through the magnetic fields they need to build electricity. It all sounds grand, but it's hard to tell from the very recent June filing whether the technology is enough to keep devices completely powered or simply delays the inevitable. We'd still suggest getting back into shape, though, in the event that morning run can one day save you from hunting down a wall outlet.
Apple patent application has iPhones text when calls don't reach spotty coverage areas
If you're already using Android 4.0 or iOS 6, you're likely familiar with the option to send a pre-made text reply to incoming calls you can't take. But what if it's your own call that won't go through, at no fault of your own? Apple may have that covered through a patent application that could keep the accusations to a minimum. If flaky reception at the destination prevents your call from connecting, the proposed idea has your iPhone automatically send a text message indicating that you've at least tried to get in touch. Recipients with Apple's hardware contribute to their own solution in this world: the message code is a cue to measure the signal strength and flag the location as a weak point in the carrier's network. Whether or not Apple acts on its concept is as much of a mystery as with most other patents, although we're hoping it becomes real. If anything's going to strain a relationship, it shouldn't be dodgy coverage.
Could this be Apple's solution to the iPhone letterboxing issue?
As things stand, empty voids at the top and bottom of an iPhone or iPad display come as standard with every widescreen video you might care to watch -- a problem that almost persists with the iPhone 5, since that phone's elongated panel is still a few pixels off 16:9. However, judging from paperwork recently filed with the USPTO, which mentions both mobile and TV displays, Cupertino thinks it has a general workaround: using a Photoshop-style technique to copy colors from each frame of video and use them to sympathetically fill in the letterbox bars, mimicking the appearance of full-screen footage. The latest application -- filed in January of this year -- actually builds on an earlier one that Apple first submitted in 2006, when the original iPhone was in development. Since then, various other companies have had success with similar display-extending ideas, such as Ambilight on Philips TVs and the illuminated strip on an Xperia U smartphone, but nothing exactly like this smart-fill concept has so far taken off. Ultimately, the question is whether messing with the borders of a video clip in this manner would look better or just plain awkward. As yet, thorough testing in our mind's eye remains inconclusive, but it's almost easier to imagine this curing letterboxed apps (of which we'll soon see plenty on iOS) rather than video.
Apple patent application details method for detecting and displaying hand position on screen
We've had a glimpse at Apple's conception of a sensor-based keyless layout, and the latest patent application from Cupertino shows the company looking to further refine the input experience -- this time using a camera and other sensors to detect hand position and overlay that hand position on a device's screen. The filing details three methods to this end. The first shows a user's hands on a traditional hardware keyboard projected in an on-screen representation (as background, Apple mentions the ergonomic strain of looking down to check your hand placement, so perhaps that's the thinking behind this one). A second scenario involves a laptop with unlabeled keys, where the marked keyboard is displayed on the screen, and the final, most intriguing, setup shows backside controls on a tablet a la the PS Vita, with a user's fingers projected as if the device was transparent. Of course, this is just a patent application at this point, so don't expect to see this tech make its debut September 12th.
RIM applies for patent on tablet with concealable keyboard, keeps your QWERTY love a secret
RIM just can't quit keyboards, and neither can many of its fans: even the BlackBerry PlayBook has an official Mini Keyboard case. It almost shouldn't be a surprise, then, that the company is applying for a patent on a tablet design with a stealthy keyboard built-in. The layout hides a full, hinge-attached QWERTY keyboard from critics (and accidental key presses) underneath a back-mounted cover. When an owner's urge to use physical buttons becomes overwhelming, the keyboard swings into action and relies on the cover as a kickstand. It's a clever solution to lugging around a separate keyboard or specialized case, but it's hard to say if RIM will implement what it's learning into a finished product -- the firm isn't in the best position to experiment with new tablet concepts, and we've already seen a few imminent solutions to the concealed keyboard problem from other vendors. That said, the patent does show that the folks in Waterloo would like to keep a love of keyboards alive in the tablet era, even if it requires some subterfuge.
Motorola trying to patent smart ads in navigation apps
There are few places left in this world safe from advertising. Your apps have em, your train is plastered with them (inside and out), even your premium video subscription service pelts you with sales pitches. So, why should getting from one place to another be any different? Motorola (and, we suppose by extension, Google) doesn't see any reason it shouldn't feed you ads while you're navigating about, using your phone's turn-by-turn directions app. Of course, all these ads would be tailored specifically to your tastes and locale. Obviously, there might be something to the idea of popping up small and unobtrusive alerts for nearby businesses -- maybe even ones you didn't known existed. But, when you're trying to navigate a busy roundabout or a confusing set of on-ramps (we're looking at you, New Jersey), perhaps it's best not to crowd your vision with popups for Mabel's MuumuuMart.
Amazon applies for dual-display device patent, where e-ink and LCD play nice together
Been holding out on that Kindle Fire purchase because you just can't wean yourself off the eye-friendly e-ink? Well, this patent application from the folk at Amazon suggests this is something they're not unaware of. The patent outlines a device incorporating two or more displays, one being static in nature (a-la e-ink) and the other more suitable for video (that'd be LCD or OLED etc). If you're thinking this sounds like a fast route to flat-battery town, the patent argues to the contrary. The static display would save power by offloading the workload from the LCD, when its slow moving nature was more suitable to the content. Will we see something like this popping up next week? One can but dream.