As evidenced by a recent Apple patent application published last week, a future version of the Animoji feature could play appropriate sound effects for each avatar that could be triggered easily by the user making specific facial expressions.
Apple Watch is a great fitness tracker that, with the right app, can even track your sleep patterns so it's a bit unusual that Apple doesn't offer its own sleep-tracking functionality in the watchOS software. But as indicated by a new patent application published yesterday, it looks like the Cupertino company could be researching sleep monitoring hardware of its own.
No one likes when Siri gives up on them just because their iPhone cannot establish a network connection or the cellular signal is weak, but Apple may have a solution for this: offline Siri.
A recently published patent application suggests Apple is hard at work on developing high-voltage battery power converters for electronic cars. The U.S. patent for “Converter Architecture” explains how power from a high voltage source could be transferred downward to a lower voltage.
As AppleInsider explains, electric and hybrid cars are usually powered by a high voltage battery, which is mostly used to get the vehicle moving. The same energy sources are then used to fuel other parts of the automobile, such as the infotainment display, dashboard, and air conditioning system.
Unfortunately, Apple believes current systems that convert high voltage power to a lower voltage are “inefficient and suffer from load transients that are absorbed by and may cause damage to a low voltage battery.”
The company's solution:
In one implementation, an unregulated DC-to-DC converter is electrically connected to a first energy source to down convert a first voltage supplied by the first energy source. A load is electrically connected to the unregulated DC-to-DC converter to receive the down converted first voltage. A regulated DC-to-DC converter is electrically connected to the unregulated DC-to-DC converter to regulate the down converted first voltage to a second voltage. A second power source is electrically connected to the regulated DC-to-DC converter to charge the second power source using the second voltage, and the second power source is switchably connectable to the load.
Improving battery efficiency for electric and hybrid cars is a worthwhile goal, especially as these type of vehicles become more popular. What's not yet known, however, is whether this patent has to do with the company's secretive Project Titan and how.
What do you think? Let us know your thoughts below.
Late last week, the United States Patent & Trademark Office published two patent applications that relate to Apple Watch either remotely or specifically. Put together, online chatter now suggests an always-on display mode could soon be coming for the wearable device.
Three new patent applications published on Thursday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office suggest Apple could be rethinking MacBook keyboards for future devices. The patents, which share the name "Device having integrated interface system," discuss ways to improve the MacBook typing experience in connected ways.
Non-practicing patent licensing entity WiLan announced yesterday that it has been awarded by a Southern California jury $145.1 million in an ongoing patent dispute with Apple related to wireless communications technology.
How many Apple devices do you have? If the number is more than one, you have probably run into the scenario where some devices have lots of power while another is in desperate need of a charge. A new Apple patent suggests that future devices could share power wirelessly. In doing so, you could transfer power from one mobile device to another.
It took seven long years, but Apple and Samsung have resolved their long-simmering design patent dispute. In a Thursday filing with the Northern District Court of California, both sides agreed to drop and settle the remaining claims and counterclaims.
Apple's long-running licensing dispute with Qualcomm landed in the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office on Thursday. The iPhone maker filed petitions challenging four Qualcomm Inc. patents that it says don't cover new ideas, according to Bloomberg.
The seven-year battle between Samsung and Apple over iPhone patent infringement isn't over. The Galaxy S9 smartphone maker has rejected the verdict in a recent case that saw a jury award Apple $539 million in damages. Instead, Samsung has filed a motion to have the decision thrown out, according to Law360.
A jury has told Samsung it must pay Apple $539 million for infringing on three design patents with Android phones sold between 2010 and 2011. The unanimous decision was made in U.S. District Court, Northern District of California in San Jose, California. The number is significant because it's higher than what Apple was likely to get based on past court decisions, according to Bloomberg.