Hasta La Gadget!

Samsung has forayed into the world of Android-powered cameras in recent times, what with the Samsung Galaxy Camera range that some thought would never take off, but it has attracted its fair share of fans over the weeks and months. Could there be other camera manufacturers that are looking to jump aboard the Android bandwagon? Perhaps, as Microsoft as well as Nikon have already signed a patent-licensing agreement, and this particular agreement is said to provide “broad coverage under Microsoft’s patent portfolio for certain Nikon cameras running the Android platform.”

So far, both Microsoft and Nikon have agreed not to disclose any specific details on the situation, but Microsoft did say that they will receive undisclosed royalties from Nikon under this agreement. Similar to Microsoft’s other Android, Linux and Chrome OS patent deals, we have no idea the exact nature of Microsoft-patented technologies that the vendors are licensing. Let’s see what the future holds for Android and Nikon from now on. [Press Release]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Nikon Laser Rangefinder Coolshot AS Targets Golfers, Google Glass Coming In 2013 For Less Than $1,500,

We’ve all seen that touchscreen device in the store that’s covered with fingerprints (and possibly contagions) from curious shoppers. While it’s unlikely that we’ll get sick from all that touching, Microsoft is trying for a patent that would set our minds at ease. The method would send ultraviolet light bouncing through a film on or inside a touchscreen, disinfecting fingertips and contact areas without blasting the person directly. Processing inside the gadget could also dictate just when and for how long the UV blast would run. It could kick in only after a user was done, for example, and last just long enough to kill common germs. There’s no clues that Microsoft is about to use the technology in real-world products. Still, we wouldn’t mind touching an extra-sanitary Windows phone or tablet — or rather, someone else’s.

Update: Microsoft applied for a UV cleaning approach before, but that depended on coupling UV with the backlight; this newer patent would give Microsoft considerably more flexibility.

Filed under: Cellphones, Displays, Tablets, Microsoft

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Source: USPTO

Rumors about the potential for an Apple iWatch continue to build, and adding fuel to the fire is a patent filing from Apple discovered by Apple Insider which shows off a curved, touchscreen display which could be worn on the wrist.

The U.S. Patent filing, originally submitted in August 2011, but updated as recently as today, starts off as follows:

A wearable video device arranged to be worn by an end-user, comprising: a flexible substrate having a flat state and a curled state; a flexible display disposed upon a first surface of the flexible substrate, wherein in the curled state the flexible substrate conforms to an appendage of the end-user, the flexible substrate further comprising: an electronic module in communication with the flexible display, the electronic module providing information to the display, at least a part of which is presented in real time for presentation by the flexible display; and a mechanism for detecting an end portion of the flexible display, the detection for adjusting the arrangement of information shown on the flexible display to match the size of the appendage the wearable video device is mounted on.

…or in layperson’s terms – a watch with a flexible touchscreen and flexible electronics.

The design would wrap around its wearer’s wrist, and automatically adjust the display UI based on their wrist size – pretty slick stuff. The capacitive touch display would be wrapped around a “bi-stable spring substrate,” which would allow the watch to conform to its wearer’s wrist, much like a slap bracelet. In addition curved screen and bracelet, the patent describes the inclusion of an inertial orientation  sensor which would automatically reorient the display based on how the user is looking at it.

In order to keep the patent sufficiently broad, they don’t specify all of the potential use cases for the watch, but one example sounds like it could offer smartphone connectivity similar to that found in other smartwatches already on the market:

…the end user could respond to alerts sent from the portable electronic device and even direct the operations of the portable electronic device to an extent limited by the accessory device user interface. With a touch screen user input a user can accomplish a number of different tasks including adjusting the order of a current playlist, and reviewing a list of recent phone calls. A response to a current text message can even be managed given a simple virtual keyboard configuration across the face of the flexible display.

The patent also describes the potential for using a kinetic energy device as well as an ambient light energy collector to help keep its battery charged. It also envisions a possible configuration which would include bright edge-lighting for displaying alerts with increased peripheral visibility. They also hint that the device could support both 5GHz 802.11n Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth connectivity, with Wi-Fi being used for content like video streaming, and Bluetooth for smaller data payloads.

While it’s always possible that Apple won’t bring any or all of these ideas to market, it clearly shows that there’s still innovative thinking going on within the walls at Apple, and that if they do release an iWatch, it won’t be like any other watch you’ve seen.

You can read the full patent application here.

[via Apple Insider]

Apple has a number of patents on wearable computing, but a new application spotted by AppleInsider blends some old and some new tech to provide a vision of what it might conceivably look like as a shipping product. The patent in question describes a wrist-mounted flexible screen, built on a support structure that closely resembles the “slap bracelets” children of the nineties will likely recall. When worn, the screen could provide an unbroken display that wraps all the way around the wearer’s wrist.

Apple even uses the slap bracelet directly as an example of how the device would work in its patent filing. Besides provoking nostalgia in people my age, the design would make it possible to use the device in both curled (worn) and flattened forms, acting as a different kind of display in either scenario. When on the wrist, Apple describes a sensor that would allow the watch to recognize where the end is, so that it can manage universal sizing while still wrapping a display around the wrist without any overlapping visuals.

The patent describes some software functionality, which begins to get at what an Apple iWatch might offer that others building smart watches can’t or don’t yet do. It could be used to “adjust the order of a current playlist,” review “a list of recent phone calls,” type out a message reply via a “simple virtual keyboard configuration across the face of the flexible display.” Apple even suggests using it as an input device for controlling and navigating apps like Maps. If you had trouble conceiving how an iWatch might actually revolutionize wearable computing, this patent’s description of features begins to answer that.

Apple’s patent describes making use of solar power and kinetic energy to help prolong battery life, and it includes provisions for a number of other ways to affix it to a user’s wrist, including snaps and velcro, meaning the slap bracelet look could give way to something much more in keeping with traditional watch design. But what’s most interesting is the functionality described in the patent: it shows how Apple, working with its own hardware and software in ways that third-party manufacturers aren’t able to could greatly extend the usefulness of a wrist-mounted, smartphone connected device.

The iWatch is rumored to be in production, with reports from Bloomberg, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal all surfacing recently. We’ve seen iWatch-related patents before, including ones that describe elements of this slap bracelet system, but this is the most complete patent to date and the timing feels more than coincidental as a result.

Apples and oranges watches. Today’s bumper pack of patent applications from Cupertino included this nugget, outlining a small flexible screen that’s paired with a “bi-stable spring.” In normal lexicon, we’re talking about one of those slap bracelets that go from completely straight to wrap-around in an instant. Interestingly enough, Apple isn’t the only tech company sniffing around these bracelets as a possible holster for their tech — Nokia mused on slightly similar notions back in March 2012.

This is an application, so most of what today’s filing tells us is certainly not set in stone, but new ideas include a “kinetic energy gathering component” within the band — like the trickle charge feature found on watches — to pump energy back into the device. One example embodiment of the idea includes a touchscreen interface that will allow music browsing, phone call reviews and even text input through a “simple virtual keyboard.” The concept also mentions AMOLED screen tech, as those deactivated (so, black) pixels would assist in eking out battery life in a device where space is definitely at a premium. The filing also suggests that the device could house an end-detection sensor, allowing the wearable to configure itself to each user, regardless of differing wrist measurements, and deactivate sections of the flexible display that aren’t on show. This particular application was made in August 2011 — a fair while before the recent increase in iWatch murmurings. As is the case with Apple’s patent contributions, however, we’ll wait to see whether the patent is granted and whether these ideas will ever crystallize into a genuine product. In the meantime, maybe it’s time to buy up some snap bracelets on eBay: they might just be making a comeback.

Filed under: Wearables, Apple

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Source: USPTO