Apple files for Smart Cover inductive charging patent for iPad

Apple’s new Smart Cover for the iPad has a lot of potential, and it seems the company thinks so as well. Case in point: Apple just applied for a patent that would see the Smart Cover being used as a wireless charger to charge up the iPad when the Smart Cover is closed. Both the iPad and Smart Cover would have induction coils to make the wireless charging possible.

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The Smart Cover itself would include battery cells to give the iPad some extra juice, and users would charge up the Smart Cover via a USB cable. This is different than most other wireless charging methods, in that the iPad wouldn’t use a stationary charging dock to wirelessly charge, but rather the iPad would use the Smart Cover to charge up, allowing to take it wherever without being tethered to a charging dock.

The patent also notes that solar cells could also be implemented into the Smart Cover, that way there would be no need to charge up the cover itself when the internal battery gets low. The Smart Cover already consists of magnets that have alternating polarities to ensure a perfect fit on the iPad every time, which is a technology that could be of assistance to wireless charging with the Smart Cover.

Of course, most patents never see the light of day, and it’s usually just a way for company’s to copyright their ideas just in case they want to use them in the future with no guarantees of actual implementation, but a wireless charging Smart Cover seems realistic enough that it would make complete since for it to come to the market at some point.

[via AppleInsider]


Apple files for Smart Cover inductive charging patent for iPad is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Apple proposes iPad wireless charging with a difference: power comes from the Smart Cover

Apple proposes iPad wireless charging with a difference power comes from the Smart Cover

Remember when Apple’s Phil Schiller mentioned he wasn’t into wireless charging? Well, what he specifically said was that he didn’t dig “having to create another [charging] device you have to plug into the wall.” In other words, Apple is probably looking for a simpler way to make the idea work — and that’s exactly what we’re looking at in the patent drawings above, which are currently being weighed up by the USPTO after having been submitted back in 2011. They show an iPad‘s Smart Cover tricked out with an “inductive power transmitter” arranged to “wirelessly pass power” to a receiver housed within the tablet itself. The application mainly focuses on the use of magnetic attachments to trigger charging when the cover is closed, but it looks like the ultimate goal might be to use the cover as an additional battery that can keep an iPad charged up while it’s on the move. That certainly sounds practical enough — and it’d do away with the need for an additional charging accessory, which ought to keep Schiller happy for a while.

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Source: USPTO

Nintendo slapped with $30.2 million in damages for infringing glasses-free 3D patent

Nintendo slapped with $30.2 million in damages for infringing glasses-free 3D patent

In 2011, former Sony employee Seijiro Tomita launched a suit against Nintendo, claiming the 3DS infringed on a patent he holds to display 3D visuals without glasses. Today, a federal court in New York decided to award Tomita with $30.2 million in damages for Iwata and Co.’s infringement. The house that Mario built unsuccessfully argued that it didn’t rely on key parts of the patent, and that Tomita was just one of several folks it met with when it was looking into 3D tech in 2003. Nintendo’s pockets are certainly deep enough to handle the sting, but we can’t imagine it’s a welcomed loss with sales forecasts taking dips.

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Source: Reuters

USPTO grants Google facial recognition unlock technology patent

The United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted Google a patent for its facial recognition unlock technology, which consumers have seen used as a security option to Android users. Those running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and/or a Nexus will likely be familiar with the feature, for which Google can now boast a full patent and hang it framed on the office wall.

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This information comes from the folks over at PatentBolt, which pointed out that the USPTO has published the patent and its various particulars today. Heading over to the patent office website, you can check out an abstract of the technology, as well as a detailed run down of the security feature and how it functions.

Google’s not the only company that has sought a patent for something like this, with Apple having pursued a patent for “face and presence detection” back in December of 2011. Although similar, both have their differences as well, and while Android was already utilizing the facial recognition at the time, Apple’s seemed to have originated with laptops being the primary device in mind.

Google’s facial recognition technology has been improved over time, although it is still very much a work-in-progress. In its earliest days, the security feature had its fair share of liabilities, with users being able to trick it using a photograph of the phone’s owner, for example. Additional measures were added to the technology to help prevent these issues, which are detailed in the patent, along with tidbits of info about other facial recognition creations.

[via Android Community]


USPTO grants Google facial recognition unlock technology patent is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Amazon Patents Gravity-Based Links, Helps Make The Buying Process Easier

Amazon Patents Gravity Based Links, Helps Make The Buying Process EasierIsn’t it annoying when you want to click a link, but because of your clumsiness or because the link is positioned badly, you end up clicking something else? This isn’t a big deal since you can always hit the back button, but what if you clicked away from a form page and thus had to fill up the page again, or if a recommended link you wanted is no longer there after you went back? Amazon apparently understands your frustrations and has patented a technology called gravity-based links. As its name implies, this technology creates links on websites that have a gravitational pull for your mouse cursor, thus drawing your mouse to certain links on a website. In Amazon’s case we expect that these gravity-based links will include links such as add to cart, checkout now, purchase, as well as other recommended links that will ultimately add more books/items to your cart, and add to Amazon’s revenue.

While seemingly nefarious in nature, Amazon claims in the patent that these gravity-based links have potential to help those who are disabled or have poor motor skills, stating, “Some users may lack the fine motor skills desired to operate a variety of input mechanisms due to declining health, injury, etc.” Seems legit. Since this is a patent, there’s no telling if and when Amazon will implement such a technology, or if it will be relegated to the files stored at the USPTO and collect dust in the years to come. However if you are surfing Amazon’s website one day and find your mouse cursor being dragged towards certain links, well, you have your answer there.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: BitTorrent Intros Live Streaming Service That Makes Buffering A Thing Of The Past, Facebook Likes Accurately Depict Your Personality Traits,

Apple asks to appeal patent-infringement case against Google

It looks like Apple is looking to stir up some old issues with Google. Apple has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington to reinstate the patent-infringement claims it had filed against Google’s Motorola Mobility unit. Apple stated that Google, and several companies, infringed on its touch-screen patents. Apple said that the touch screen was the key aspect that “drove the iPhone phenomenon and later the iPad.”

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Apple claims that the iPhone’s “magic touch screen” was the groundbreaking feature that made the device a success. It also claimed that Motorola Mobility tried its hand at creating touch-screen devices, but failed to do so. Motorola stated to the U.S. International Trade Commission that one of Apple’s patents were invalid and the other one wasn’t infringed on. The Commission’s lawyer, Megan Valentine backed Motorola’s claim and stated that there were several touch-screen technologies, like the one from Sony called “SmartSkin”, that was patented earlier than Apple’s touch-screen technology.

Motorola stated that Apple’s claims were partly fictitious and that it “borrowed copiously from the work of others” because many of the major components used to create Apple’s iPhones and iPads were all created by other manufacturers before they decided to enter the mobile marketplace. Valentine also stated that the success of the iPhone wasn’t due to the uniqueness of its patent. Many people already knew that Apple’s iPhone would be popular because of the huge pull Apple’s branding has.

Apple’s lawyer, Joshua Rosenkranz, stated that Apple knew what happened once they released the iPhone. They knew that other companies “copied” the iPhone in order to compete with it, and that’s why Apple has been filing patent-infringement lawsuits all around the world. This has been an ongoing battle with Apple going against the world. It has already (and is stilling battling) many companies, including HTC, LG, and currently Samsung.

[via Business Week]


Apple asks to appeal patent-infringement case against Google is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Google patents rear-touch controls 6 years after Apple

A patent application has just revealed that Google is going to be implementing rear-touch controls for its future Android smartphones. The patent is similar to a patent filed by Apple in 2006, which it planned on using to implement the rear-touch feature in its future iPads. However, it’s been 7 years since Apple was granted the patent, and yet there are still no iPads with rear-touch controls. Perhaps Apple will begin production on that project now that Google is gunning for it too.

Google patents rear-touch controls 6 years after Apple

The rear-touch controls will allow users to navigate through various content. They will be able to flip through pages in a magazine or an e-book, navigate through their music selection by skipping or replaying their songs, scroll around through web pages, and more. There are a ton of possibilities that can come with rear-touch controls, and most will be utilized in order to create a much more pleasant one-handed user experience.

Google patents rear-touch controls 6 years after Apple 1

While Google has just received its patent, and Apple had the patent since 2006, they’re still way behind Sony. Sony was the first to implement rear-touch controls in its PlayStation Vita device. The device utilizes the rear-touch feature in many games. The touch-pad is used in many games to perform tasks like lobbing grenades, performing silent kills, controlling the camera, selecting multiple targets, navigating through maps, and more.

Google patents rear-touch controls 6 years after Apple 2

Google will not be limiting rear-touch controls on just Android smartphones however. It says that it may bring it to its Android tablets and Chromebook as well. Hopefully Google follows through with implementing its rear-touch controls, unlike Apple. We could see the use of rear-touch controls be used in so many ways other than just flipping a page. Developers would probably have a field day with the feature, integrating it within their apps and their games for a much better user experience.

[via Patent Bolt]


Google patents rear-touch controls 6 years after Apple is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Great Expectations: Patents Are the Concept Cars of Tech

Great Expectations: Patents Are the Concept Cars of Tech

The latest BlackBerry 10 handsets could have been really cool dual-screen smartphones. Instead, they’re the same ol’ rectangle everyone else is using.

Apple Patents A System That Allows For Resale Of Digitally Bought Products

Apple Patents A System That Allows For Resale Of Digitally Bought ProductsUnlike buying physical goods, returning digital purchases can get a bit tricky. Purchasing songs and movies on iTunes, for example, pretty much tie you to the product and you can’t sell it once you’re done with it. This is compared to physical purchases of CDs or DVDs where you can always resell them when you think you no longer plan to listen or watch it. However a recently discovered Apple patent reveals that perhaps one day in the future, Apple will allow us to resell our digital purchases made on iTunes. It’s actually a pretty interesting system and it’s quite complex. (more…)

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: iPhone Breathalyzer Calls You A Cab If You’re Too Drive To Drunk, Apple Reportedly Looking To Pay Half The Royalty Rates That Pandora Does,

The Engadget Interview: EFF’s Julie Samuels talks patents, podcasting and the SHIELD Act

We’ve heard it shouted from the mountaintops more times than we’d care to mention: the patent system is fundamentally broken. But that manner of righteous indignation can often fail to make an impression on those attempting to live their lives unaffected on the sidelines, as hardware behemoths level a seemingly endless string of suits based on often overly broad language. One’s perspective shifts easily, however, when targets change and the defendants themselves are no longer aggressively litigious corporations with an arsenal of filing cabinets spilling over with intellectual property, as was the case when one company used a recently granted patent to go after a number of podcasting networks.

When we wanted to get to the bottom of this latest example in a long line of arguably questionable patent litigation, we phoned up Julie Samuels, a staff attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation who has also been designated the organization’s Mark Cuban Chair to Eliminate Stupid Patents. Samuels has been fighting the battle against dangerously broad patents for some time now, recently traveling to DC to support passage of the SHIELD Act (Saving High-tech Innovators from Egregious Legal Disputes), a congressional bill that would impose heavy fines against so-called patent trolls.

We spoke to Samuels about supposed trolls, podcasts, SHIELD and how those with microphones can make their voices heard.

Note: The owner of the podcasting patent in question declined to comment on the matter.

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