Patently Apple

Apple Surprises us with iTravel for Cruise Line Services

 
Apple first introduced us to their iTravel App in April of this year which packed quite the punch. In July, Apple followed up with two new iTravel services relating to Airline and hotel services and the travel industry went wild on this news. Today, Apple's next iTravel direction takes us to the cruise line industry. Apple knows that researching and putting together a cruise itinerary could be a daunting experience for consumers. Trying to figure out where to go, what excursions and/or off-shore activities to take or sifting through an endless list of cruise line services, could be intimidating. Planning a cruise with Apple's iTravel for cruise lines will greatly simplify that process from pre-cruise to post-cruise. Apple's future iTravel app will take advantage of NFC and location based technologies to enhance your cruise line experience with such services as social networking, interactive ship maps, the ability to purchase onboard tickets to shows or restaurants and even to act as a universal remote to control in-cabin electronics and climate control. Apple's latest patent even surprises us with a very strong hint of providing a future iPhone with a pico projector so as to possibly enhance your travel experience by being able to show off your excursion iMovies to an audience.  

One Step Closer to Reality: Apple's iWallet Application

 
Apple's leading trend in patent based research in 2010 was without a doubt concerning all things related to the use of Near Field Communications or NFC in all of Apple's hardware. The iPhone will no doubt emerge as the most crucial device in Apple's NFC ecosystem because it will serve as your future means of electronic payment. A trend that will allow your future iPhone to act as electronic currency, your credit card, your debit card, your electronic coupon and all the while acting as a means of holding electronic tickets for such things as concerts, air travel, bus or subway. Today, we're one step closer to that reality with the formation of a National Mobile Commerce Network called ISIS, backed by AT&T and Verizon, Apple's current wireless partners. Report Updated.     

Apple Patent: iPhone Display May Double as an RFID Transponder

 
Patently Apple first noted Apple's NFC patent trend back in late 2009. Then the patent downpour arrived in April and May of 2010 which covered everything from embedding NFC/RFID technology into home appliances and devices right on through to the iWallet. But a European patent filing of Apple's that was published late last week provided us with a little background. It appears that Apple's work on bringing this technology to the iPhone and iPod touch actually began right after the iPhone debuted in 2007. Today's report covers this patent which discusses using a cellphone (iPhone) and Audio/Video Player (iPod touch) as both an RFID tag reader and a tag. At the heart of this patent, Apple states that "the RFID antenna could be placed in the touch sensor panel, such that the touch sensor panel could now additionally function as an RFID transponder." This is the technology that could be at the heart of Apple's future iWallet and iKey.

 

Apple's iTravel App to Plug into Hotel Servers for In-Room Services

 
Apple's iTravel application services are already expanding and the app hasn't even launched yet. In our first report this morning, we covered a detailed travel itinerary application that will cover every aspect of your travel while the second report focuses on how your iPhone will be able to tap into a hotel's own servers to access multiple in-room services. For starters, your iPhone will act as your hotel key and from there you'll be able to control room settings such as lighting, bath settings, room temperature and so forth. Your iPhone will be able to be your hotel room's TV and stereo remote. You'll also be able to access other services like booking a visit to the hotel's spa or reserving a conference room all from the convenience of your iPhone or other iOS device. You'll even be allowed to check-out via your iPhone or check your room charges before leaving. When it comes to future travel – Apple is out to cover you every step of the way from travel arrangements right through to in-room services conveniently and in style.

 

Apple Expanding Services for their Future iTravel Application

 
Apple first introduced us to an exciting future iPhone application dubbed iTravel back in April 2010 which certainly shook things up in the travel industry. In today's patent, Apple introduces us to a more detailed view of a "travel itinerary application" which will be available to walk a traveler through everything step of a flight from preflight activities at the virtual service counter to activities at the airport as well as in-flight and post-flight activities. You'll be able to reserve restaurants at your destination, order a video game for in-flight entertainment, order special in-flight meals, order a specific type of movie while on flight or set-up sightseeing tours – just for starters. Apple has been working with partners like Telus and Air Canada on test marketing various aspects of iTravel – and today's patent application reveals that Apple is still expanding the nature and capabilities of iTravel as was first revealed  - with more is on the way! Stay tuned for part two. 

 

Apple working on a Hot New NFC-iPhone App with Hidden Surprises

 
In May 2010 we were shown Apple's iPhone roadmap in respect to their forthcoming e-Wallet and Shopping companion Apps. Applications that will require Apple to present the market with new NFC (Near Field Communications) enabled iPhones sometime in 2011 (if we're lucky). In todays patent report we'll explore a new Apple patent that reveals that NFC is going even deeper into the next generation iPhone. Today, Apple introduces "Products +" a generic name for a future "benefit management application." The idea behind the patent is that Apple will work with participating vendors – be they a trendy coffee vendor or electronics or book retailer – so that their packaging will sport an NFC tag. This tag will be able to be read by a user's NFC enabled iPhone which could in return surprise the user with hidden benefits ranging from free merchandise to free music and a lot of options in-between. The benefits angle to an NFC enabled iPhone could tip the scale in a any given sale and I think that this has the potential of being an explosively hot feature to kick off the NFC revolution on the iPhone. Today's report presents you with a ton of benefit-related examples.

Apple Reveals their e-Wallet Companion App Called "Shopping"

 
Let's be honest here. Finding a sales person in a department store these days is getting harder and harder to find, let alone finding one that's well informed or product savvy. So what's the next best thing? Well, according to a new Apple patent, the answer will likely come in the form of a new e-Wallet companion application that will act as your very own private shopping guide. Apple's future e-wallet companion application is simply identified as "Shopping" for now. The app is designed to read RFID tag on products and then on-demand - send you to the manufacturer's web site to get a fuller explanation of what product xyz is all about. It could come in the form of a brochure, presentation or video. Apple introduces us to the concept of creating active shopping lists and will eventually offer us the ability to get in-store maps which is a great idea when you're shopping at mega stores such as IKEA. Yet, it must be said that this application could be mildly controversial in that it taps into the whole privacy debate that is front and center in technology news cycles these days. Although Apple is only one of a few companies that I still trust in the marketplace today, there's still cause to be a little cautious.

Exploring Apple's New e-Wallet Patent on ATM Transactions

 
In the first two chapters of this series describing Apple's forthcoming e-wallet functionality, we covered such matters as Apple's iPhone transaction system, the overview of various transactions, the NFC-iPhone tap operation, credit cards, smart/debit cards, check handling and split-billing. In the third part of our series we present you with an overview of Apple's financial patent which focuses on a future iPhone interacting with Automatic Teller Machines or ATMs. Our report walks you through the basics of Apple's Transaction Application interface while exploring some of the more interesting security features it will be offering, such as advanced gestural and voice signature capabilities and a very unique ever-changing numeric pad interface for PINs. There's no doubt that the e-Wallet revolution is on the horizon and with every Apple patent that we are privileged to explore on this subject, we are actually peering through the peep hole of Apple's engineering lab and seeing but a glimpse of the grandeur of Apple's vision of the e-wallet of tomorrow.

iAds: An Apple Patent Focuses on a New Targeting Ad System

On May 20, 2010, the US Patent & Trademark Office published a patent application from Apple that reveals various concepts behind a newly advanced targeting advertising system that is likely associated with Apple's forthcoming iAd service. Apple's patent generally relates to providing dynamically priced advertisements to all manner of electronic devices. The new targeting ad system describes relationships between advertisers, an infrastructure owner and a user that may be the target of advertisements from the advertisers. The heart of the patent details the system itself and then provides us with examples of how it will be implemented. Many of the scenarios involved in the patent are based on a future iPhone with built-in NFC capabilities.

A New Social Workflow Patent from Apple Highlights Facebook

 
Last Wednesday the Business Insider reported that a mobile industry insider confirmed to them that Apple was building Facebook features into iPhone OS 4. Perhaps "Apple's new hooks into Facebook," reported Frommer "will make this sync process part of the phone's operating system and not just a feature of the Facebook app." Coincidentally, a recently published Apple patent sheds light on this very subject under the scope of a fuller social networking application concerning various workflows including an "Add Contact" workflow and a "Social Networking" workflow which specifically highlights an exemplary Facebook example. This report covers Apple's "Workflow" patent that is indeed presented as a possible future iPhone OS upgrade consideration.

 

Transaction: Apple's e-Wallet App Finally Surfaces in a Patent

 
On April 16, 2010 a savvy investor posted a great report on The Motley Fool investor site in which he stated that "Mobile purchases [and] p2p payments using phones - is a utopia that many telcos, banks, and scheme operations have been looking at for years." On May fourth, the news broke that Visa and DeviceFidelity have been working with Apple on turning your iPhone into a credit card that could be used in restaurants and other retail establishments. Market trials actually begin this summer. At the heart of all this news, of course, is Near Field Communications (NFC) technology. Patently Apple has reported on several new NFC related Apple patents targeting concert tickets, travel and others in recent weeks and today we're finally beginning to roll out a new series of Apple patents relating to financial transactions. In fact, that's the generic branding associated with a new Apple Application shown on iPhone patent figures: Transaction. Today, Patently Apple presents you with two reports covering "Transaction" beginning with Transaction 101. Yeeees – Welcome to Transaction: The financial utopia of tomorrow.

Transaction 2: Apple's e-Wallet App Finally Surfaces in a Patent

 
In part one of this series we provided you with a basic overview of Apple's forthcoming financial application code named Transaction. In part two you'll see a multitude of screenshots related to financial instruments like credit and debit/smart cards, check handling and even group invoicing or split-billing – a common social interaction of splitting a restaurant bill with friends. Patently Apple's report is simply an overview of the iPhone Transaction application patent. For those of you who are bankers, accountants and/or retailers wanting to know a little more about Apple's new financial centric application, we provide you with direction as to where you could find more in-depth patent detailing on each and every topic covered here today.