Apple is Granted an iWallet Related Patent for Shopping
The US Patent and Trademark Office officially published a newly granted patent for Apple Inc. today that relates to their future iWallet in respect to shopping and shopping lists. Apple's published patents relating to their future iWallet began to roll out in 2010. At this year's World Wide Developer Conference, Scott Forstall, Apple's Senior VP of iPhone Software, revealed Passbook which was basically a sneak peek at an iWallet component. Apple's recent acquisition of AuthenTec falls into line with their iWallet project, as Apple had published an earlier patent covering a future iPhone with fingerprint scanning capabilities. Apple had previously acquired another fingerprint scanning patent back in 2010 which further strengthens this project. At this very moment nobody knows when Apple will officially launch their full iWallet application, but logic strongly suggests that it could be in the 2013/2014 timeline.
Apple Wins their First iWallet-Shopping App Patent
Apple has received their first Granted Patent relating to methods for conducting shopping-related transactions with a handheld electronic device. In some embodiments a mobile electronic device may be used to identify a product and obtain pricing information relevant to retailers of the product within a specified geographical location. In another embodiment, a mobile electronic device may be used to acquire pricing information for a shopping list of products. Embodiments may also include a variety of features that make the shopping experience quick and efficient while allowing the consumer to hunt for a better bargain. Furthermore, several embodiments also allow the product manufacturers and/or retailers to distribute relevant product information to targeted consumers who are known to be, or who may be, interested in buying a particular product.
To get the bigger picture, see our March 2010 report titled "Apple Reveals their e-Wallet Companion App Called "Shopping." Apple credits Gloria Lin and Amir Mikhak as the inventors of this patent which was originally filed in Q3 2008 and granted today by the US Patent and Trademark Office. Other iWallet related patent applications could be found in our iWallet-NFC Archives.
Patent Round-Up
Over and above the granted patent for shopping, we present you with links to 15 other granted patents published today by the US Patent and Trademark Office, as follows:
8,237,386:"Methods and apparatuses for operating a data processing system." The field of technology relates generally to data processing systems and more particularly but not exclusively to the management of power usage and temperature in the data processing systems.
8,235,756: Low profile plugs
8,239,749 Procedurally expressing graphic objects for web pages
8,239,748 Media stream synchronization using device and host clocks
8,239,735 Memory Device with adaptive capacity
8,239,734 Efficient data storage in storage device arrays
8,239,709 Managing extrinsic processes
8,239,688 Securely recovering a computing device
8,239,638 Store handling in a processor
8,239,605 Communication between a host device and an accessory via an intermediate device
8,239,595 Communication between a media player and an accessory with an extended interface mode
8,239,504 Synchronization methods and systems
8,239,356 Methods and apparatuses for data protection
8,239,351 Methods and systems for managing permissions data
8,239,234 Freeform communication in calendaring system
Other granted patents will be listed in this or other reports posted by Patently Apple today.
Notice
Patently Apple presents only a brief summary of granted patents with associated graphics for journalistic news purposes as each Granted Patent is revealed by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Readers are cautioned that the full text of any Granted Patent should be read in its entirety for full details. About Comments: Patently Apple reserves the right to post, dismiss or edit comments.
Apple Sites Supporting our Original Report
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MacFreak Netherlands, MacworldUK, Wall ST Cheat Sheet, and more.
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