Apple researching exchangeable backplates that could extend Apple Watch battery life
Your Apple Watch could run longer than 18 hours on a single charge if the latest invention from Apple’s Cupertino labs is anything to go by.
USPTO
Apple awarded crucial patent for TrueDepth camera’s 4-element infrared optics
iPhone X’s TrueDepth camera uses 4-element near-infrared light optics to achieve pattern-based depth mapping.
Siri may someday detect the difference between a whisper and regular speech
Siri could whisper back when you need quiet.
Apple granted patent for acoustic fingerprint imaging technology
Apple’s sub-display technology would read a user’s fingerprint by using an acoustic pulse and an array of ultrasonic piezoelectric transducers.
Apple patent details AR mapping and headsets with semi-transparent screens
Apple’s new patent application would enhance today’s two-dimensional maps by adding augmented reality point of interest to the mix.
Future AirPods might gain advanced noise cancellation sans unwanted occlusion effects
Apple’s invention promises to bring advanced noise cancellation and audio passthrough features to future AirPods without the unpleasant occlusion or isolation effects.
Apple granted patent for iPhone-compatible Apple Pencil
Apple Pencil could soon gain iPhone compatibility, if a newly granted Apple patent is anything to go by.
Apple awarded key iPhone 8 patents for in-screen Touch ID, edge-to-edge display and 3D scanner
USPTO awarded Apple patents for three key features expected from iPhone 8: a bezel-less edge-to-edge display design, an in-screen Touch ID sensor and a depth mapping system.
Siri could soon recognize your voice & let you customize “Hey Siri” hotword
The United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO) recently published a patent application from Apple, uncovered by PatentlyApple, that’s interesting on many levels. It basically hints at a new security feature that may or may not come to Siri in the future. In a nutshell, Apple’s proposed solution would let Siri recognize the voice of the device owner.
The invention has the potential to prevent unauthorized Siri interactions on the Lock screen and across CarPlay and HomeKit devices.
Apple patent envisions a MacBook powered by your iPhone or iPad
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on Thursday published Apple’s patent application for an “Electronic accessory device” acting as a dock that would turn your iPhone or iPad into a touchscreen-enabled Mac notebook, something many people have been craving for. The patent application outlines an ultra-portable MacBook of sorts with a special dock into which an iOS device could be inserted to provide compute power, software, storage and other features.
As with many other Apple patents, there’s no telling when this particular invention might see the light of day, if ever.
Apple granted yet another patent for in-screen fingerprint reader ahead of iPhone 8
Apple has been granted yet another patent for a fingerprint reader embedded underneath the display itself, a feature widely expected to debut on iPhone 8.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) this morning awarded the iPhone maker a patent for an “electronic device including finger biometric sensor carried by a touch display and related methods”. The company first applied for this patent on January 27, 2015.
New AirPods patent reveals exactly how seamless Bluetooth pairing method functions
A new patent application for “Wireless audio output devices,” published Thursday by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), describes exactly how Apple’s new W1 chip inside AirPods enables zero-configuration Bluetooth pairing. In a nutshell, the charging case that comes with AirPods doubles as a physical pairing interface.
Aside from a built-in battery, the case features its own microprocessor and communications stack, a motion-detecting lid for starting the seamless pairing process with an Apple device and a physical button for manual Bluetooth pairing with non-Apple hardware, like Android handsets.