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]

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.

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]

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]

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.

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.

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]

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]

[via Unwired View]

Read - Patent 1
Read - Patent 2

Arguments have surely ensued over the iPhone's polarizing touchscreen keyboard, and while you just knew it was lurking out there somewhere, the patent application describing the aforementioned device has finally surfaced. Dubbed "Keyboards for Portable Electronic Devices," the documents outlines an adaptive board with multi-symbol icons, and aside from using it solely on the iPhone, it looks like the technology could be implemented on nearly any handheld gizmo. Of course, the verbiage does mention handset mainstays such as word recommendations and predictive text entry, so it's hard to believe that all of this stuff is completely Apple's creation. Regardless, who needs license agreements when you can just hack one for your own good? [Warning: PDF read link]

[Via UnwiredView]

Hey, it's no shocker that Apple's iPod is a coveted item even for those who acquire their wares in less than legal manners, but a recent patent application from Apple shows that someone at Cupertino cares about you rightful owners out there. Essentially, the technology would invoke a "guardian" recharge circuit, which would disable any further charging if the computer (or "other recharger") it was paired with was of the unauthorized variety. According to Apple, this type of limitation would "serve as a deterrent to theft," and while we can only assume that it would be applied first to the iPhone and iPod, the application does insinuate that other handheld, rechargeable devices could eventually benefit from the invention.

[Via Slashdot]

Apple, a funky little start-up based in Cupertino, has recently filed a couple of patents which will have hairs standing on end and eyebrows rising incredulously across the globe. Patent one describes a technology the company is working on called the "illuminated touchpad" -- a kind of input device which could track your movements and provide visual feedback via a lighted surface. The application suggests that the optic effects will be linked to input on the device's facade, and that the display might be capable of glowing, ambiguous color effects, as well as direct and specific reaction to motion. Patent two is something of a historical filing. With the launch of Panther (10.3, for you youngsters), Apple had plans to turn your iPod into a take-anywhere home folder, one which you could simply boot into using whatever OS X box you happened to have around. Clearly it never happened, but the company has re-filed for a variant of that system, so don't be surprised if you see this technology rearing its head again -- of course, who really knows what The Wizard is doing behind the silicon curtain?

[Via AppleInsider]

Read - Illuminated touchpad
Read - Method and apparatus rendering user accounts portable

As if learning about one new aspect of Windows today wasn't enough, a duo of recent patent applications may lend a hand in discovering a few new, um, features about the Windows of the future. Up first is a dubious filing that details an "advertising services architecture" which actually uses content stored on your hard drive to trigger advertisements when browsing the web, and while we're no expert on the matter, that sure reeks of adware to our untrained noses. Next, however, is a glimpse at a potentially updated taskbar function dubbed "clipping lists," which forms clippings of your internet windows, documents, etc. into "peripheral regions of the display." Of course, this idea is certainly not new, but apparently Redmond has a vision in mind that would deviate somewhat from existing creations. 'Course, we're fairly sure you brushed right over that second tidbit as you thought about how violated patent number one would make you feel, no?

[Via InformationWeek, image courtesy of KlondikeConsulting]
Read - Advertising services architecture patent
Read - Clipping lists patent

It's been a week since version 3 of the GPL was released, and the ripple effect is starting to make some pretty big waves: Microsoft -- which has been essentially selling Novell's SUSE Linux since last year -- released a terse statement today claiming that neither it nor its customers are parties to any terms of the revised license. Furthermore, "to avoid any doubt or legal debate on this issue," Microsoft will decline to support any GPL v3 code that might be distributed with SUSE. Microsoft does have a point: since Linux remains under GPL v2 (and probably will for the foreseeable future), there's very little binding them to the terms of GPL v3 -- specifically, the patent protection terms that would essentially undo the major element of the whole MS / Novell agreement. How the inclusion of GPL v3 code with SUSE affects the overall license is another matter entirely -- one that will result in a lot of legal chest-pounding until the GPL finally gets tested in an American court.

Disclaimer: While the author of this post is a copyright attorney, its contents are not meant to constitute legal advice or analysis.

[Via CNET]

Sony has recently applied for a patent on a new "liquid airbag" technology which the company hopes will protect data such as memory cards and hard drives from physical damage. Now, we've seen the word airbag tossed around (no pun intended) in regard to data protection before, but this concept differs a bit from systems that have been used in the past. The technology works by surrounding media with a liquid-filled case outfitted with "biasing units", used to maintain the orientation of the drive, and irises, which would detect movement and configure themselves -- using the liquid -- according to the direction of pressure. As the walls of the casing were subjected to force, the irises (which are created by small protrusions on the bag) move their protuberances closer together to provide increased shock absorption by adding resistance to the flow of fluid. No word on Sony's plans for the system, although we suspect the first order of business will be liquid-airbag protected Memory Sticks.

[Via ITworld]