There was a time when Patents were considered a bridge that linked the present with futuristic technology. However, the developments in the recent past have clearly shown that patents are merely being used as tools by different companies in order to increase their money pool and also to put their competition out of business. However, companies still continue to produce patents for more reasons that one, as mentioned before.
Apple has filed a patent, which governs the illumination of a touchpad in response to varying pressure levels. Better known as the illuminated touchpad, the Cupertino based company applied for the patent back in April. The patent, which was published only today, describes several improved mechanisms for feedback in a touchpad. This new technology also allows illumination when a person is not interacting with the device. The patent also provides a method by which the user knows the position of his touch pad in low lighting conditions.
The feature that stands out the most in this patent is the response to motion and pressure characteristics i.e. depending on how hard a person presses or how he moves his finger across the touch pad, the illumination will change in appearance. The implementation sounds a little farfetched, but it will be interesting to see how this technology is optimized for power. There is another method that maps the changing intensity through different motion or pressure characteristics and provides it as feedback at the touch pad.
There are several such patents which end up in the company’s archives and Apple is particularly famous for doing so. Hence it remains to be seen whether this technology actually reaches devices like the iMac or the iPhone. Apple wasn’t the only company to be publishing a patent today. Popular mobile firm and patent company Nokia also released a noteworthy patent. This new patent promises to add a whole new dimension of “haptic feedback” to the user experience. Nokia will fundamentally use a matrix of haptic devices which will remain stationary and independent of each other.
However these will work in tandem to create linear and circular movement. This would surely revolutionize the existent visual and auditory feedback system, and provide a new level of interaction with the software interface. The company is clearly dedicating itself to improving the haptic systems technology. The concept is certainly exciting, but it’ll have to undergo many litmus tests before its ready for the real world.
