Undoubtedly, tech giant Apple leads innovation and prefers to set new trends. Now, the company has been awarded a new patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, making it easier for iPhone users to use their devices in the rain.
The First
Patent
Known as “Modifying
functionality of an electronic device during a moisture exposure event,” this
patent will allow users to type on a wet display even when their fingers are
wet. Apple hopes the iPhone screen will adjust to moisture during light rain,
steady drenching, and even when the handset is being used underwater. False
taps will be added to the screen that the liquid will generate. They will be
detected by the technology listed in the patent and eliminated.
On-screen
buttons would also change and grow larger while moving farther apart from other
buttons. It will help improve the accuracy of pressing the right button whenever
the screen is wet. At the same time, the capacitive iPhone display would
automatically change to a pressure-sensitive screen that is very similar to
Apple’s no longer used Force Touch and 3D Touch technologies.
To prevent
liquid (like raindrops) from accidentally setting off touch inputs, Apple will
require the finger presses to have more force than a dynamic threshold which
would change depending on the kind of moisture event (like heavy or light rain)
which is making the touchscreen hard to type on with accuracy.
The patent filed
by Apple reads, “The electronic device can include a moisture detector capable
of detecting an amount of moisture present at the protective cover, where when
the amount of moisture is greater than a threshold amount, the processor
determines a position of the touch event based on detection signals provided by
the capacitance detector and the applied force detector.”
The patent also
mentions that the touch responses will have three modes, dry, wet and
underwater, so the phone can be used underwater and change UI accordingly. It
is useful for iPhone owners who prefer to click pictures or shoot videos
altogether.
The Second
Patent
Apple is also
working on a way to cut off another key aspect of tech devices, physical
buttons. The company has filed a patent for that. It proposes the creation of
dedicated surfaces on undetectable products under normal circumstances. These
circumstances will be riddled with micro-perforations enabling light to pass
through them.
The region will
be discernible whenever physical input is needed through illumination and
function as an input device. To facilitate the latter, the technology will
implement sensors that register touch or pressure and then respond to them as a
physical button.
When the sensors
aren’t in use, they will be disabled, and the entire surface will seamlessly fade
into the device.
As Apple
receives many patents over the course of a year and not each result in new
technology, it’s unclear whether the brand would be interested in implementing
these patents.
Sources:
https://www.retailnews.asia/apple-receives-patent-for-technology-that-helps-iphone-users-type-in-the-rain/
https://tech.hindustantimes.com/mobile/news/this-revolutionary-new-technology-coming-to-apple-iphones-71657205097737.html
https://www.phonearena.com/news/No-more-buttons-Apple-secures-patent-for-invisible-input-areas_id140279