Apple applies for optical stylus patent, Hell reports coldest day on record

By +Frank B.
in Back Page News

 Share

Recommended Posts

Grand Master

+Frank B. Subscriber²

Posted
  • Subscriber²
Posted

Apple applies for optical stylus patent, Hell reports coldest day on record

applestylusitisapplied.jpg

Apple has famously shunned the humble stylus, so it's fair to say we're more than a little curious about why it's filed a patent application for one. The "optical stylus" mentioned seems simple enough. The claims outline the brains to interpret your doodlings, as well pressure and orientation. Beyond that, well, it's more or less just a stylus. While we suspected the team at Cupertino were fans of Draw Something, we didn't think they'd take it this seriously!

Source: Engadget

Link: The patent application at USPTO.gov

Grand Master

John S. Veteran

Posted
  • Veteran
Posted

It amazes me that people actually thing there are any original ideas out there...don't recall Apple claiming to have invented the stick

  • Glassed Silver and dead.cell
  • Like 2
Grand Master

Astra.Xtreme

Posted
Posted

It amazes me that Apple repeatedly has the balls to try and patent stuff that they blatantly copied from someone else.

Yeah this is clearly a direct copy of somebody else's property... Care to shed some proof for that hostile claim?

Grand Master

Vykranth

Posted
Posted

Yeah this is clearly a direct copy of somebody else's property... Care to shed some proof for that hostile claim?

to7stylo.jpg

ipad_thomson_to7.jpg

Thomson To-7, To-8 or To-9 micro-computer circa 1987 ...

You add an optical stylus integrated into the computer you used to select thing on the computer cathodic monitor.

I used these in school.

Grand Master

Astra.Xtreme

Posted
Posted

to7stylo.jpg

ipad_thomson_to7.jpg

Thomson To-7, To-8 or To-9 micro-computer circa 1987 ...

You add an optical stylus integrated into the computer you used to select thing on the computer cathodic monitor.

I used these in school.

Looks pretty cool actually.

Though the one Apple applied to patent is designed and implemented in an completely different way.

Grand Master

ILikeTobacco

Posted
Posted

Looks pretty cool actually.

Though the one Apple applied to patent is designed and implemented in an completely different way.

Yay. Someone else that understands that patents are not about the end effect, but rather how it is achieved.

Mentor

Jub

Posted
Posted

Oh, I hope they release it. Would be amazing to replace the notepad with this and the iPad, one thing less to carry around. The current styluses for the iPad aren't accurate enough for details in designs.

Grand Master

SirEvan

Posted
Posted

Looks pretty cool actually.

Though the one Apple applied to patent is designed and implemented in an completely different way.

you mean like How HTC/Samsung/everyone elses' phones are implemented differently? Apple had an issue with that...

  • dr_crabman and ahhell
  • Like 2
Proficient

szo

Posted
Posted

I'm sure the detailed description of the patent will specify their unique method for stylus use. I don't think just by reading the title of the patent will give you enough information. You can apply for patents for basic ideas, but the patents are given based on your unique method/technique to solving that problem.

Grand Master

Vykranth

Posted
Posted

Looks pretty cool actually.

Yes, It was fun to learn BASIC on these computers. Really, I am that damn old now.

Though the one Apple applied to patent is designed and implemented in an completely different way.

I would certainly hope so. This was designed using mid-eighties technology. I would expect that Apple can add some functionalities to that.

Still, I find that patent amusing because, even with plenty of user interaction research and development: Kinnect, touch interface, this is an old-fashionned pen that everybody is used to

Grand Master

FloatingFatMan

Posted
Posted

I've said it before and I'll say it again. You shouldn't be granted a patent unless you have a functional prototype, and if you don't bring it to market within 12-24 months max, it lapses. No more idea hogging.

  • Dashel, Elliott and ahhell
  • Like 3
Grand Master

Astra.Xtreme

Posted
Posted

you mean like How HTC/Samsung/everyone elses' phones are implemented differently? Apple had an issue with that...

Perhaps you need to brush up on the facts of those cases. All of which were based on actual patent infringement.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Posts

    • You've tried DuckDuckGo and Brave Search, now get serious with SearXNG

      By Skyfrog · Posted

      For some reason I suddenly have the urge to go shopping at Sears.
    • You've tried DuckDuckGo and Brave Search, now get serious with SearXNG

      By Nas · Posted

      So I did a quick test based on 3+ different public instances from the litany at searx.space ... and it spins everything rather differently. It seems that SearXNG is a meta-search engine (queries multiple search indexes rather than only Google's or Bing's or Wikipedia's or Reddit's) that operates in two modes: > public instances ... each instance opens itself to outside users who piggyback on its cached search history; this instance's own identity becomes known/tracked but end-users are hidden similar to an anonymization proxy; this instance's querying of major search indexes may be API based [rated limited, blocked, etc.]). > private instances ... your private install/instance that itself queries multiple (configurable) search indexes of crawled web content; every major Search Engine associates all traffic to your private instance (so your traffic is tracked via network usages) but client-side tracking (your own browser/computer specs) is flushed because it's a "server" doing the querying rather than your browser. My test asked the same 1 question to the 3+ engines and they all returned vastly different results: some had CAPTCHA failures against Google, some had failures against Wikipedia, and the actual results were also different -- some had auto-complete enabled, others returned a wikipedia highlighted excerpt despite the Wikipedia failure (hinting at results being cached from previous keyword matching), and others just gave an Are-You-Human non-CAPTCHA loop before returning random results. So this begs the caveat: Search query results will vary based on which instance is used because every instance queries the other search indexes separate (and thus its results are influenced on that instance's aggregate search history and index-access limitations). The major distinctions for SearXNG versus DDG or Brave: > The search UI is 'untracked' since no UI trackers are baked-in which would phone home or lay cookies into your browser (for DDG/Brave usage stats), > There is no 'crawler' that canvasses the Internet to discover fresh content (it leaves that to the major search indexes), > Queries multiple search indexes ("meta-search engine") based on the configurations and usage history of the server instance, > Privacy-friendly due to its ability to shield user tracking via standing up a non-local server instance connectable to major VPN providers: queries would all appear to come from general VPN/Proxy providers rather than your private instance (whether installed locally or on your own VPS in the cloud). PS: I've previously come across specialized search engines of this nature that indexes searches across media assets like YT, OF, etc. SearXNG seems to be a good backbone...if the rate-limiting/captcha/etc. issues were resolved.
    • The Trump administration doesn't want you to use OpenAI's GPT-5.6 without its approval

      By excalpius · Posted

      For a guy who claims to hate Farage and the ignorant, gullible, rightwing racist skinheads sponsored by Putin that his lies represent, you sure are quoting them time and time and time again, mate. I guess you're conveniently ignoring the fact that your country and commonwealth just happened to work much better when it was still part of the E.U.? Denial isn't just a river in Egypt.
    • The Trump administration doesn't want you to use OpenAI's GPT-5.6 without its approval

      By ad47uk · Posted

      Do you live in the U.K? Do any of the people here that are against the UK leaving the E.U, live in the U.K? If not then why are you bothered? If you do live here then it is a different thing . Brexit was a good idea, should have done it years before, it was done badly, but the idea was good. You are saying the same thing as remainers do, oh we did what Putin wanted, we listened to the lies and Farage. I hate Farage and never believed most of what he said, certainly did not believe the £350m a week for the NHS. But we did pay a lot of money to the E.U and yes some of it came back, but what is the point of paying it out for only some of it to come back? Get out of the E.U, no money to them and in theory we can use the money to do things in the country. I said in theory, but our governments are a total and complete waste of space. No matter what colour rosette they wear. You and others say it was a mistake and yet the two main parties in the U.K are not looking at rejoining the EU, I wonder why that is? I was not tricked by anyone. Makes no odds now, we are out and have been for 10 years, what we need is a decent government to run the country. All they do is shout at each other like a load of kids and seems to do nothing and make this country more into a police and nanny state. Getting more like China all the time.
    • 4TB TEAMGROUP MP44Q, 2TB T-Force G50, and 2TB WD My Passport SSDs drop to great prices

      By Fiza Ali · Posted

      4TB TEAMGROUP MP44Q, 2TB T-Force G50, and 2TB WD My Passport SSDs drop to great prices by Fiza Ali Prime Day may be over, but there are still worthwhile storage deals available, including discounts on SSDs for shoppers who missed the event or are looking to upgrade their storage solution. Particularly, 2TB Western Digital My Passport, 2TB TEAMGROUP T-Force G50, and 4TB TEAMGROUP MP44Q SSD are selling at great prices with up to 23% off. The 2TB TEAMGROUP T-Force G50 is an M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD with sequential read speeds of up to 5,000MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 4,500MB/s. The drive has an endurance rating of 1,300 TBW (terabytes written) and features a DRAM-less design. The company specifies a mean time between failures (MTBF) of 3 million hours. The drive includes an "ultra-thin" graphene heat spreader that helps dissipate heat without significantly increasing the drive's thickness. It also supports S.M.A.R.T. monitoring, allowing compatible software to monitor drive health and operating status. The SSD is rated for operating temperatures from 0°C to 70°C, with a storage temperature range of -40°C to 85°C. The drive is backed by a five-year limited warranty as well. 2TB TEAMGROUP T-Force G50 SSD: $269.99 (Amazon US) The TEAMGROUP MP44Q is an M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe SSD that delivers sequential read speeds of up to 7,000MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 5,900MB/s. It uses 3D QLC NAND flash memory to provide 4TB of storage capacity for games, applications, media files, and other data. The drive has an endurance rating of 2,000 TBW and an MTBF of 1.6 million hours. The SSD features a DRAM-less design and supports TEAMGROUP's S.M.A.R.T. monitoring software, allowing users to monitor drive health, temperature, and remaining lifespan. For thermal management, the MP44Q also includes an "ultra-thin" graphene heat spreader. It is designed to operate at temperatures between 0°C and 70°C and can be stored at temperatures ranging from -40°C to 85°C. The SSD is also backed by a five-year limited warranty. 4TB TEAMGROUP MP44Q SSD: $478.99 (Amazon US) The 2TB WD My Passport SSD connects via a USB-C port using the USB 3.2 Gen 2 interface. It delivers sequential read speeds of up to 1,050MB/s and sequential write speeds of up to 1,000MB/s through NVMe technology. In terms of security features, the drive includes password protection with 256-bit AES hardware encryption. The SSD is also designed to resist shock and vibration and is rated to withstand drops from heights of up to 6.5 feet. The recommended operating temperature range is 5°C to 35°C, while the non-operating temperature range is -20°C to 65°C. This drive is also backed by a five-year limited warranty. 2TB Western Digital My Passport SSD: $279.99 (Amazon US) Good to know This Amazon deal is U.S. specific, and not available in other regions unless specified. We only use first-party seller links (at the time of article publishing); ensure that you purchase from a first-party seller link only. Check out Today's Deals on Amazon | or our recent tech deals. Become a Prime member (for Students or SNAP) via Neowin Get Prime Access - Prime for half price (for qualifying Medicaid, EBT, SNAP) Subscribe to Prime Video, Audible Plus, Music Unlimited or Kindle Unlimited via Neowin As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

  • Recent Achievements

    • Week One Done
      flexorcist earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Month Later
      Woland13 earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      Woland13 earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Year In
      bernmeister earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Week One Done
      Scoobystu earned a badge
      Week One Done

  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      491
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      225
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      147
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      74
    5. 5
      FloatingFatMan
      71
    Show More

  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!