While we never found Apple's flying car patent that we keep hearing about, we did discover a tiny eclectic mix of practical patent applications worth noting. If appears that Apple may have at least two app upgrades in the works for iPod + Nike and Cards. Additionally, Apple may have a new Apple TV centric app that will allow us to nicely display our home movies, photos and digital post cards on. And lastly, Apple has invented a new way of wirelessly connecting iOS devices to modern car stereos and other accessories. If we're lucky, some of these ideas should be make their way to us in the not too-distant future.
Apple's Patent Background
While most people appreciate the importance of physical fitness, many have difficulty finding the motivation required to maintain a regular exercise program. Some people find it particularly difficult to maintain an exercise regimen that involves continuously repetitive motions, such as running, walking and bicycling.
Experienced athletes and trainers have found that feedback provides many people with motivation to maintain a regular exercise program. When a person could directly experience the results provided by an exercise program, that person typically will be encouraged to continue exercising. Recently the use of athletic information monitoring devices as represented by the Nike-iPod system has become commonplace. Typically, an athletic information monitoring device will incorporate a sensor for measuring parameters relating to the person being monitored and a portable computing device attached to or carried by the person for processing the parameters measured by the remote device. In many cases the sensor and computing device share a wireless communication channel used for passing information between the remote device and the computing device. In order to establish the wireless communication channel a handshaking process (also referred to as pairing) is performed. The pairing process is typically triggered automatically the first time a remote device wirelessly receives a connection request from the computing device with which it is not yet paired.
Many experienced athletes and trainers also have found that competition may provide an even stronger motivation to maintain a regular exercise program. Some athletes, for example, will be more motivated to exercise when competing against a partner than by exercising alone. These athletes may, for example, exercise with a partner, enter into athletic contests such as races, or even just compare their current performance ability with a friend's. Unfortunately, in those situations where more than one remote device is within wireless range of the computing device, the connection request sent by the computing device could be received by more than the target remote device each of which could respond resulting in pairing with a remote device that is not the target remote device.
Therefore, system, method, and apparatus for intelligently pairing wireless devices are desirable.
Apple's introduces the "Motion Signature" for iPod + Nike System
Apple's solution is about a method for establishing a wireless link between a first and a second device. In one aspect the shared information could take the form of a motion signature. The motion signature being motion data generated by at least a motion detector in response to movements applied to both the first and second devices. The first device is a personal media device (PMD) and the second device is a sport device (SD).
At times when you're in a gym, your iPod could have problems with either the machine you're working on or get interference from other devices nearby. Apple's new motion signature will all for information to include various encryption parameters, Quality of Service (QoS) parameters, device identifiers and so forth so that interference is a thing of the past. For More information on this, see patent 20120050153 titled: Intelligent Pairing of Electronic Devices.
Here's a temporary link to the patent that's only good for a day or two from this report's posting date. After that, the link will direct you to an incorrect patent.
Apple Invents New Techniques for Facilitating Communication between an iOS Device and an Accessory like a Car Stereo
In patent application 20120052807, Apple details new techniques that will work with modern in-car stereos so that the iPhone, for example, so that it could hook up quicker and provide more control of the content of the stereo.
Here's a temporary link to that patent that's only good for 24-48 hours.
An Update May be on the way for Apple's Card App
In a new patent application published today, we see that Apple's "Cards" Application may be in store for an update in the future. The interface illustrated in Apple's patent application 20120050788 appears to indicate that customization of cards is going to get more detailed, giving users the ability to really create fantastic greeting cards of one sort or another.
Here's a temporary link to Apple's patent application that will only be good for the next 24-48 hours.
Apple introduces a Digital Bookshelf for Mixed Media that's Just Right for Apple TV
Apple's patent application 20120050789 is about techniques, apparatus, systems and computer program products for providing an interface for displaying and organizing digital photo collections. The digital photo collections could include digital representations of books, greeting cards, post cards, and calendars. The digital photo collections could be arranged on a digital book shelf to allow users to readily organize and browse the digital photo collections.
Apple's patent FIG. 1 shown above illustrates a bookshelf displayed on a display screen which could be a TV, computer monitor or mobile device display screen. I could easily see this applying to Apple TV.
Notice: Patently Apple presents a detailed summary of patent applications with associated graphics for journalistic news purposes as each such patent application is revealed by the U.S. Patent & Trade Office. Readers are cautioned that the full text of any patent application should be read in its entirety for full and accurate details. Revelations found in patent applications shouldn't be interpreted as rumor or fast-tracked according to rumor timetables. Apple's patent applications have provided the Mac community with a clear heads-up on some of Apple's greatest product trends including the iPod, iPhone, iPad, iOS cameras, LED displays, iCloud services for iTunes and more. About Comments: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit comments.
Here are a Few Sites covering our Original Report: MacSurfer, Twitter, Facebook, Apple Investor News, Google Reader, Macnews, iPhone World Canada, MarketWatch, MacDailyNews, and more.
