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Samsung pays Qualcomm $1.3 billion to secure wireless licenses

by Vladislav Savov posted Nov 9th 2009 at 6:11AM

Samsung and Qualcomm have wrapped up a cross-licensing deal with ten figures of US currency in it, which will permit the Korean giant to continue producing 3G- and 4G-enabled wireless devices for the next 15 years. In exchange, Samsung is letting Qualcomm make use of its own 57 patents on mobile technology and splashing out a further $1.3 billion as a down payment. Further royalty payments are involved, but not detailed, but just as a reference point, that's more than the new Dallas Cowboys stadium and its ultra-huge scoreboard cost to build. The move is a renewal of the two companies' current arrangement and Samsung has boldly claimed the terms of the new contract are more favorable to it, but we get the feeling the champagne will be flowing in San Diego this week.

[Via MobileTechWorld]

Sony Ericsson's facial recognition patent plays the perfect song to complement your mood

by Ross Miller posted May 21st 2009 at 11:43PM

We don't expect this to be indicative of any near-term projects for the now financially hindered phone maker, but one of Sony Ericsson's recently unearthed patents paves the way for some interesting uses. From what we gather, while listening to music on your device, a picture of your face would be taken. That image would then be run through software that interprets your mood, and an appropriate next song based on those emotions would be picked -- so much for the art of mixtapes. Presumably, it'd also require a phone or device with a camera mounted on the same side as the screen, so unless mobile video conferencing takes off in a huge way, we can't see people paying extra for a phone or device with this configuration. And if you just got dumped over SMS, we hope it doesn't intepret those tears as a good time to play that Damien Rice song you two fell in love with. Hit up the read link for the full patent details.

[Via Slash Gear]

IBM patents bullet dodging bionic armor

by Ross Miller posted Feb 14th 2009 at 12:24AM

Your science fiction fantasy may be coming a reality, if IBM has anything to say about it. The company was recently granted a patent for bionic body armor, originally filed last March, that's intended to bestow the wearer the power to dodge bullets. The device works by constantly emitting electromagnetic waves that bounce off any fast-moving projectiles, and it uses the data to calculate risky trajectories. If the object in question is determined to be a threat, muscle stimulators activate and cause the wearer's body to contort in such way to avoid being hit. It works under the idea that a sniper typically fires from a distance, given the armor time to detect the oncoming bullet and react accordingly. Check out an image of from IBM's filing after the break. Here's hoping it can detect lasers, too.

[Via The Firearm Blog; thanks, Chris!]

Continue reading IBM patents bullet dodging bionic armor

Apple patent reveals 'iPhone gloves' for warmer hands-on experience

by Ross Miller posted Jan 2nd 2009 at 2:16PM

A new Apple patent has been found that will assuredly warms the hearts (and hands) of many iPhone users currently enduring a cold winter. Originally filed a day before the iPhone's June 28, 2007 launch, it details a glove with a thin, electrically conductive, "anti-sticky" inner layer that is able to function with a capacitive touchscreen. It also suggests the glove could have apertures on the fingertips for opening and closing the more protective outer layer. Of course, the concept is far from new -- just do a quick Google search for "iPhone gloves" to see a wide variety of choices -- and Apple doesn't really dabble in this sort of iPhone / iPod accessory, but if Phil keeps his hands in his pockets for the first half of the Macworld keynote, we're gonna start to get ideas.

[Via Apple Insider; thanks, Shawn]

Lawsuit whirligig: Spansion and Kodak sue Samsung, LG sued only by Kodak

by Darren Murph posted Nov 17th 2008 at 11:50PM

Mark it down as a coincidence if you'd like, but a flurry of lawsuits revolving around the same companies just became public knowledge. For starters, Eastman Kodak has decided to sue Samsung and LG, alleging infringement of digital camera patents relating to image capture, compression and data storage; the suit is asking for "unspecified damages, and both cases seek injunctions prohibiting Samsung and LG from further imports and sales of the products." Just hours later, Samsung hit back with this response: "Samsung plans to respond actively to these litigations and will remain committed to serving our customers by ensuring that accurate and reliable delivery of our products is not compromised in any way." Got all that? Good. Moving on, we've also got chipmaker Spansion tossing a suit in Samsung's direction, which is asking for "billions" in damages for patent infringement presumably related to flash memory. Who says it's a slow period in the courtroom?

Read - Kodak sues Samsung / LG
Read - Samsung's reply to lawsuits
Read - Spansion sues Samsung

US Appeals court sez Qualcomm infringed on two Broadcom patents

by Darren Murph posted Sep 24th 2008 at 3:39PM

We could start off by telling you just how much this decision will hurt Qualcomm and just how celebratory the mood must be at Broadcom, but instead, we'll key you in on this quote: "The appeals court also rejected Qualcomm's request for a new trial." At long last, we may have actually heard the end of what has seemed like a never-ending battle between the aforementioned parties. Today, a US Appeals court upheld an earlier ruling that Qualcomm had indeed infringed upon two Broadcom patents while ruling that a third patent in question was invalid. The ruling is obviously a huge win for Broadcom, who will soon be bathing in Benjamins as Qualcomm is forced to pay mandatory royalties for the chips it sells during the "sunset period" ending January 31, 2009.

[Via Reuters]

Canon patents fuel cell DSLR, we're ready

by Joshua Fruhlinger posted Aug 11th 2008 at 9:56AM

Back in May, we heard that MTI Micro was working with "an elusive Japanese developer or digicams" to get its Mobion fuel cell tech into actual products. Given this Canon Fuel Cell DSLR patent, it looks like we can no-so elusively safely say where the camera is being developed. The patent itself is straight up enough: "The present invention related to an electronic equipment system having fuel cells, and more particularly, to a camera system in which fuel cells are provided to a camera body and a connection device connected to the camera body." It looks as though the fuel cells will power the entire camera system, including flashes and other motors, complete with a separate power management system, sort of like having your own mini generator. As for when this system will be available, no word.

[Via Photographybay]

Philips invents breath test for diabetics

by Evan Blass posted Feb 12th 2008 at 10:58PM

As anyone who has a regular date with a needle knows, poking oneself on the daily can be a real pain -- in the ass or otherwise. Well there appears to be good news on the horizon for at least some of us self-stabbers: Philips is attempting to patent a method for diabetic glucose detection that eschews the finger prick for a simple breath test. Based on recent research linking blood glucose levels to the concentration of carbon dioxide in exhaled breath, Philips claims to have built a non-invasive device significantly more accurate than past attempts based on sugar's spectroscopic signature. No word yet on FDA approval, commercial release, or anything of that sort, but with diabetes continuing to plague more and more individuals, let's hope this product gets put on the fast track.

[Via New Scientist]

RIM patents tilt-and-slide, multitouch BlackBerrys

by Paul Miller posted Feb 8th 2008 at 10:04AM

Despite the clear advantage of a physical keyboard in a business handheld, Apple's iPhone is obviously making just about everyone in smartphone land a tad uncomfortable -- even if they won't admit it -- which means we could be seeing some new BlackBerry form factors from RIM in the coming months to keep consumers interested. Of course, there's no telling if those new form factors will have a tilt-and-slide mechanism, or multitouch, but these here patents are certainly a start. The tilting mechanism aims at giving users the best of both worlds: a true keyboard and a big display, but the multitouch mechanism is interesting as well, and uses a different tech than the capacitive touch in the iPhone. Only time -- and hopefully Mobile World Congress next week -- will tell if these patents are going to be put to good use (hopefully as a team) in your next BlackBerry, but we're certainly intrigued.

Broadcom wins major injunction against Qualcomm

by Evan Blass posted Dec 31st 2007 at 8:59PM

In the latest major twist in this epic battle between wireless chipmakers, a US District Judge has slapped a permanent injunction on any products containing those Qualcomm 3G chips ruled to be infringing on Broadcom's so-called '686 patents. Not only can Qualcomm no longer offer infringing devices nor the chips themselves in the US, the retroactive nature of the ruling means that the company can't even provide service or technical support for '686 products already on the market. At this point, with a voluntary licensing agreement seemingly off the table, the next move for Qualcomm is establishing a plan of action to show Judge James Selna how it plans to redesign its products into compliance. [Warning: PDF link]

[Via Reuters]

Intel and Transmeta settle patent dispute for $250M

by Nilay Patel posted Oct 24th 2007 at 4:28PM

Looks like it's all hugs and kisses and millions of dollars in licensing fees for Intel and Transmeta after all, as the two companies finalized a settlement agreement in their year-long patent dispute today. The agreement calls for Intel to license Transmeta's patents for $150M upfront and $20M a year for the next five years, and Intel can't do anything except pout if Transmeta decides to license its LongRun tech to any other company at the same time. That's a fun little chunk of change for Transmeta, which was about to get de-listed from the NASDAQ back in March before turning things around -- and getting a $7.5M vote of confidence from AMD. No word on how the company plans to serve its two competing masters, but it's got to feel nice to be wanted.

[Thanks, Jon]

Patent investigation could force hard drives off US market

by Nilay Patel posted Oct 11th 2007 at 7:15PM

This one's still a ways off, but the International Trade Commission has just launched a patent investigation into five manufacturers that could result in a ban on hard drive imports if the agency finds evidence of infringement. The patents, which are owned by Californians Steven and Mary Reiber, cover a method of using "ceramic bonding tips" on the internal wiring of the drives, and the couple claims Western Digital, Seagate, Toshiba, Hewlett-Packard, and Dell have all infringed by importing the drives. Much like the Qualcomm case, the ITC has a variety of ways of dealing with the situation and the parties have a lot of methods of appeal, but products that infringe on US patents are barred from being imported, so this initial determination will set off a lot of dominoes when it gets made in 45 days. Details are still pretty sketchy on what exactly the ITC is investigating, but we'll definitely keep you updated as we get more info.

Disclaimer: Although this post was written by an attorney, it is not meant to be legal advice or analysis and should not be taken as such.

Apple patent app describes force-sensitive touchpads

by Darren Murph posted Oct 5th 2007 at 1:35PM

It's no secret that Apple loves its touchscreens, and a freshly published patent application provides a little reinforcement to that belief. The documentation explores a method for tossing in pressure-sensitivity to touchpads in order to add functionality, or as Cupertino puts it, "a new element of control." Furthermore, it's noted that "force information may be used as another input dimension for purposes of providing command and control signals to an associated electronic device," and it goes on to explain how spring membranes could be placed under the surface to detect force. Notably, the verbiage tends to "describe a touchpad like those used for the company's MacBook lines," but it does leave open the possibility for the newfangled pads to be used in mobile / portable devices such as the outfit's own iPhone.

Microsoft's files Zune patent for "automatic delivery of personal content"

by Joshua Topolsky posted Sep 25th 2007 at 9:03AM

Worried that you weren't getting any phantom downloads to your Zune? Fear not, readers, as Microsoft has plans to get you seriously covered. In a new patent application unearthed last week, the boys in Redmond outline a scheme wherein new media -- whether it be podcasts, individual tracks, or albums -- would be downloaded to your Zune via WiFi if relevant new content appeared on the company's servers. What's relevant content, you ask? Well, say you had a number of Foo Fighters records in your playlist, and you had set your preferences to grab any new music by the band that was put online. Tracks (or maybe just freebies like singles) might be downloaded directly to your player and added to a playlist. The system might also make suggestions for downloads based on your listening habits, possibly suggesting a Probot record, or Queens of the Stone Age. Whatever the implementation may be, we can all be assured of one thing: Dave Grohl will somehow be involved.

[Via ZDNet]

Anti-projectile net could protect soldiers

by Darren Murph posted Sep 24th 2007 at 1:04PM

We've seen a wide array of devices that tip off the good guys to approaching enemies, hunt down IEDs, and send back live video of opposing camps, but a new patent application lays out plans to construct a specialized net that could actually detonate incoming grenades or rockets before they strike their intended target(s). More specifically, the app calls for a "protection system featuring a flexible packaged net" that could be attached to a military vehicle, which could then be deployed if onboard sensors pick up "incoming threats" such as an RPG. Another perk would be the relatively low cost of manufacturing and the ease of moving from one tank to another, but as these things always go, there's no telling when (or if) we'll see this technology in action.

[Via NewScientist]