Even if Apple never develops anything with the majority of their patents, the documents themselves are always interesting looks into what the world’s biggest tech company might be up to in the future. On Thursday, the blog Patently Apple showed off documents that suggest the company is looking into embedding scanning technology within its displays. These sensors would have two settings: scanning mode and mouse mode.
Scanning mode would allow the device to read any printed information when placed up against its screen. Instead of using the camera on the back to read printed material, you could just hold the screen against a QR code or page of printed text and the i-whatever would scan it in. Unlike traditional handheld scanners, this patent lets the user selectively fill in the document, scanning in sections without the pain of maintaining a straight line and constant speed.
The patent also includes the ability to check the position of the device using the sensors, letting a face-down iPhone connect to a computer and be used as a mouse. Of course, this implies that there would have to be some way of clicking the mouse, and Patently Apple suggests a multi-touch surface on the rear of the device, in a similar style to Sony’s NGP.
Now, there’s no guarantee of any of these things showing up in the iPad 2 or iPhone 5, but it does provide a unique window into what Apple thinks might be part of the next generation of consumer electronics. And that future looks pretty cool.
Post a Comment