Last week Apple filled a series of seven major patent filings directly related to advancing camera features that will be found in future iterations of Apple's iDevices such as the iPhone and iPad. The new patent applications cover gesture techniques and in-depth detailing of their advanced red-eye technology. Real camera buffs will have a feast in learning about what Apple is working on and we list all of the patent links so that you could dive right in to learn about every little twist and turn. If anything – we know that Apple always updates the iPhone's camera features each and every year like clockwork. Will any of Apple's latest advancements make it to the iPhone 6? Only time will tell. And lastly, we take a brief look at a simple legal update to Apple's original patent filing for Siri that doesn't advance Siri in any way whatsoever. 

According to news from Korea, the South Korean SK Telecom has been granted an unprecedented iPhone 5 feature and we'll tell you what it is. In other news, Apple filed for the new 'Passbook' trademark in Europe and Taiwan's Hon Hai acquires some interesting patents. Report Updated October 04, 2012

This year's Intel Developer Forum (IDF) has come and gone and the troops are all psyched up over yet another slick marketing slogan that Intel is so good at crafting. This year's theme was noted as being: The next era of computing: Transparent Computing. There was a definite disconnect between their slick new theme and what they actually delivered during their three main keynotes. Yet, there were a handful of points and future features worth noting, especially one integrating NFC into Ultrabook trackpads for ecommerce. Yet the big breakthrough that Intel shared with the world at IDF 2012, was their ongoing work in digital radios and how that will help wireless carriers save money building out their LTE infrastructure using the cloud and more importantly, eventually allowing carriers to implement next generation wireless standards quicker. Intel's Justin Ratner stated that "This software-defined radio design offers the versatility to add new radio protocols over time as they're introduced with a simple software upgrade." For tech buffs, that's certainly a breakthrough worth noting.

Texas based Data Engine Technologies has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Apple. Data Engine Technologies alleges that Apple is infringing on patent 5,463,724 which is a Borland International patent to which they claim in their complaint to "hold all the right, title and interest in." Specifically, Data Engine Technologies claims that Apple's spreadsheet application called "Numbers" infringes on their patent.  

Eric Schmidt had a lot to say in yesterday's news conference in Korea. The CEO of Google played it up for the Korean audience and slammed Apple at every turn. In other news, the Japanese site Macotakara is back with another apparent scoop with a supposed video of the iPad Mini and it's worth a look for sure

Yesterday the World IP Organization published a host of unique patents relating to flexible displays. Once you hear the words "flexible displays" your mind immediately conjures up all kinds of contorted smartphone designs because that's what the competition, like Samsung, have been promoting for some time now at tradeshows. And being a hardware centric company, you expect that from them. Yet Apple is a different cat. They're the guys who Think Different, remember? So while the competition is stuck in hardware overdrive, Apple is working diligently at finding unique ways to exploit flexible displays. That's really what yesterday's patents revealed once you got through the camouflage of concave and convex display detailing. Our report shows you a few of the little gems that came to light.

Yesterday we reported on Apple commissioning the production of a mysterious fiber carbon product. We were the only source to point out that Apple was also working on "glass" and/or "carbon" fibers for products ranging from the iPhone to a notebook. Today, Apple revealed information about a new notebook product entry that will have a laminate cover that would conceal a hidden camera and mini display on the backside of said notebook. The display won't be visible until it lights up when the user's hand hovers over it. It's simple a fascinating idea - more so because it could lead to an all-new product from Apple.

When it comes to the topic of Apple + TV, let's be frank. The world is waiting for an Apple HDTV to deliver the next great thing. But like with the iPhone, patents dated back to 1999 or eight years prior to seeing a real world product. It's just a fact of life that Great Products take time to work through the system. Today, Apple has revealed how a future Apple TV set-top-box will be able to access additional information about a TV show, event or movie that you're about to watch. It will be able to provide Apple TV users with contextual information on actors in a movie that you're about to watch or a summary of a keynote, for example. Interestingly, the additional context-base information will be sent to the user's iPad or iPhone that will work in sync with Apple TV and the content being presented on your television via your local cable or satellite provider. While today's invention is definitely not as ambitious as some TV oriented projects have been in the past, and there have been many of them over the years, it's probably a more realistic and humble starting point that seems to be only a stone's throw away. 

Many times in the past Steve Jobs had said that Apple had no interest in phones or tablets and thought that network computers were silly with this concept of data residing somewhere in a cloud in the sky. Everything that he said that Apple had no interest in eventually came to be. After Apple's special iPhone 5 event earlier this month, Phil Schiller tried to do the same thing in respect to wireless inductive charging. Was his "marketing speak" just another head-fake? Well, according to a new patent published by the US Patent and Trademark Office, Apple's engineers never got the memo on Apple not being interested wireless inductive charging. In fact the crazy ones in Cupertino hit a home run with a winning in-depth inductive charging dock this time around. This design doesn't have a funny-funky pole like past designs. No, this one has some pretty interesting twists and will come with a handy user interface and much, much more.  

The Japanese site Macotakara is reporting this morning that sources known to them are claiming that Apple and Foxconn engineers have commissioned production of a mystery product using carbon fiber, a lighter woven material that Apple has been working on for years.

New reports from Taiwan this morning state that updated iPhone order parts indicate that Apple's target for iPhone 5 sales in 2012 is 50 million units. On another front, suppliers point to Apple reducing the thickness of MacBook keyboards in 2013. And lastly, a reason for the Foxconn riots may have surfaced.

The US Patent and Trademark Office officially published a series of twenty newly granted patents for Apple Inc. today. In our second and final granted patent report of the day, we cover patents relating to integrated touch displays and Apple's famed gimballed scroll wheel. We close out our report with links to 5 additional granted patents with emphasis on one covering parallel computing which relates to Apple's OpenCL.

The US Patent and Trademark Office officially published a series of twenty newly granted patents for Apple Inc. today. In this particular report we primarily cover Apple's newly granted patents relating to smart iDevice keyboards and 4G OFDM channelization. To close out our report we cover five new design wins for Apple and more.  

Earlier this month, the Korean Times reported that Samsung officials had stated that the patent dispute with rival Apple has strengthened their innovation drive. Specifically, Yoon Boo-keun, the president of Samsung's consumer electronics division stated to media sources that "Becoming a software-driven company is the main initiative. We will raise the quality of our products and services by pressing further for software, design and solutions." Yet where they're beginning this great initiative is really hilarious if not ironic.  

A Delaware company by the name of B.E. Technology doing business in Memphis Tennessee is suing Apple for infringing on two of their patents relating to demographically targeted advertising. B.E Technology lists eight of Apple's products that are allegedly infringing upon their patents.

It took little more than five hours for the first Apple iPhone 5 to go on sale in the Chinese mainland after being smuggled across the border from Hong Kong, but supplies were short and prices high. That's the latest news from Taiwan this morning along with other tidbits about Hon Hai Precision's latest acquisition, a new camera technology coming to market in 2013 that's worth keeping an eye on and Apple files for the 'Mountain Lion' trademark.  

The Korean Times is reporting this morning that "Apple has reduced purchases of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels for tablet computers from Samsung Display amid the deepening patent disputes, said a leading market research firm, Friday. Market experts said that the move is aimed at minimizing its reliance on Samsung parts."  

A Reno Nevada company by the name of Unwired Planet Inc. (NASDAQ: UPIP), formerly Openwave Systems, appears to be gambling on a patent infringement suit against Apple. The company is claiming that most everything Apple sells in the way of products and services are in direct violation of ten specific patents that they own. According to information on their website, Unwired Planet filed a complaint in 2011 with the International Trade Commission (ITC) in Washington, DC, requesting that the ITC bar Apple Inc. from importing into the United States their smartphones and tablet computers that they believed infringed on Unwired Planet patents. Unwired Planet also simultaneously filed a similar complaint in federal district court in Delaware. Unwired Planet is asking the court to award them "reasonable royalties" and much more if Apple is found guilty. 

On September 20, 2012, the US Patent & Trademark Office published a series of 17 patent applications from Apple. In this report we cover three patent applications relating to various manufacturing processes related to iDevices. In our recent report titled Apple's Leadership and Magic Shine Through we presented a segment covering Sir Jony Ive on the iPhone 5 and the many manufacturing processes associated with it. Jony takes such pride in his work that it shines through in every product. And so it's always fascinating to see new processes being revealed in patent filings. If you happen to appreciate the making of products, like I do, then I think that you'll enjoy this report and the links to each patent. In other IP news, Apple has been granted a registered trademark for VoicePass.  

On September 20, 2012, the US Patent & Trademark Office published a series of 17 patent applications from Apple. In this report we briefly cover Apple's latest efforts at harnessing power through electromagnetic induction. Apple has something up their sleeve for better powering future devices longer. While I'm not sure that today's invention is the magic bullet, Apple's Phil Schiller thinks there's a better solution out there. He just doesn't want to spill the beans just yet … maybe. Time will tell.  

Just last week Apple introduced their new 'EarPods' for iPhone 5. The day prior to Apple's Special Event, the US Patent Office cued up Apple's trademark filing but didn't publish it until after Apple's event. To finalize it all, we get to actually see Apple's patent application detailing their invention today. To top off today's report, we'll take a brief look at a few of the key iPhone 5 patents that were fulfilled last week.  

On September 20, 2012, the US Patent & Trademark Office published a patent application from Apple that reveals a new facial recognition locking and unlocking iDevice system. In late 2011 we posted our report titled "Apple Envisions Face & Presence Detection Security for iOS Devices" which uncovered Apple's first patent application regarding the possible future use of facial recognition for unlocking an iDevice. That invention covered a method to recognize your presence and face to quickly turn on your device. Today's invention takes a few different twists that very interesting. I'm sure that die-hard Androiders will be up in arms today pointing to Google's feature and patent – but Apple's invention adds so much more depth. We'll point you to Google's patent for those wishing to compare the two inventions to be fair. Yet at the end of the day, Apple's invention – especially if they combine it with 'Presence' technology, will have a unique product that will simply outshine Google's implementation, plain and simple. 

Earlier this month we posted a rather exciting report titled "Microsoft Envisions where Gaming is going and its Wild" that gamers around the world responded to enthusiastically. In our first report we covered Microsoft's future immersive video gaming system whereby your gaming environment would be projected onto all of the walls of your family room. The example that we initially covered in our first report was that of a first person shooter. In a limited follow-up patent application, Microsoft reveals yet another wild scenario that could be very cool to play. Microsoft's patent filing is very interesting with their main focus being on their futuristic motion camera.

Korea IT News is reporting this morning that Korean firms have to learn a lesson from the patent litigation between Samsung Electronics and Apple and further their efforts for technological innovation while shifting the focus of their competition paradigm from enterprises to consumers.  

The Korean Times is reporting this morning that their legal executive source has confirmed that Apple will ask "Federal Judge Lucy H. Koh to triple the damages Samsung has been ordered to pay," to $3 billion for willfully copying the iPhone and iPad on Friday, September 21. Top Samsung lawyer John Quinn has reportedly said that the company will be asking Koh to toss the jury findings out. If she doesn't, the lawyer said he will appeal.  

PersonalWeb Technologies and Level 3 Communications have filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Apple. Their formal complaint states that Apple's iTunes and iCloud services infringe upon six of their patents.

Wow, out of nowhere newly granted patents for Apple reveal MacBooks, an iMac and possibly a TV having cellular and television circuitry built in. If that wasn't enough, Apple reveals a possible future iPad with a built-in stand that incorporates a cellular antenna. Why say more – take a look for yourself.

The US Patent and Trademark Office officially granted Apple a technically important LTE data services patent that specifically pertains to a method and system for estimating the wireless channel in the presence of inter-carrier interference. But let's be honest here; at this point in time, every LTE patent is going to be crucial for Apple who just released their new iPhone 5 with LTE. In early September Samsung began making statements in Korea that they would be suing Apple over LTE. Our report covering those statements also noted that Apple had amassed 434 LTE patents for their own LTE portfolio.

The US Patent and Trademark Office officially published a series of thirty-four newly granted patents for Apple Inc. today. In our first granted patent of the day, we focus on Apple's latest granted patent relating to one of the original 2007 iPhone touch technology patents. This type of touch related patents could potentially be used in future litigation. This particular patent relates to methods and devices that identify and discriminate multiple simultaneous hover or touch events such as, for example, two or more closely grouped fingers, palm heels from one or more fingers, fingers from thumbs, and fingers from ears and cheeks. Our report also covers a design win for Apple's Magic Trackpad along with links to another eleven utility patents worth noting.

Last week Apple delivered an incredible line up of new products at their special event with the iPhone 5 being its centerpiece. Apple's entire core executive team came out one by one to deliver a winning event that showed us once again, that the Crazy Ones of Cupertino still have their magic mojo. But not all agree with this view as one might expect. According to some visionless critics, the iPhone 5 marked the end of innovation for Apple. Not just for the iPhone but the iPad as well. Yet Tim Cook smacked the competition with a few realistic and humorous facts about the iPad and Phil Schiller took off his gloves and gave the competition a good black eye in respect to the new iPhone 5. Our report takes a look at what some of what these critics charged Apple with and provide you with over 30 quality photos from last week's event that were memorable.

China's Hong Kong IP Department has officially published a series of ten Apple Inc. registered designs which are the equivalent of US granted design patents. All ten of the designs relate to Apple's iOS intelligent personal assistant feature branded Siri. Siri is included on modern iDevices such as the iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPad (Gen 3), and the new iPod touch (Gen 5). Apple's designs cover both the Siri logo and user interface.  

The US Patent & Trademark Office just published Apple's latest trademark application for "Apple Lightning" under application 85726560. Phil Schiller introduced the new lighting connector during Apple's special event this week. "The iPhone from its start used the iPod 30 pin connector which we launched originally in 2003 and it served us well for over a decade," stated Schiller who went on to point out several key attributes of the new 'Lightning' connector as presented in our cover graphic above. Report Updated February 05, 2013

Rick Oglesby of consulting firm Aite Group weighed in as to why Apple passed on including NFC into their latest iPhone-5. "Apple is likely to wait to enter the payments business aggressively. Apple took a similar approach to 4G LTE wireless technology – waiting until coverage was wide enough this year to unveil an iPhone that uses it." He added that "They won't do something until they know a lot of their customers will use the service."

Sometimes life is funnier than fiction. A new Microsoft invention published by the US Patent Office this week goes into great detail as to how you'll one day be able to silence your mobile device by simply whacking it off. I'm not trying to be offensive – it's just what it is. And believe it or not, it actually gets funnier as you follow their train of thought. I laughed so much that it was hard to finish the report. For a Friday, you couldn't ask for a funnier topic if you tried. 

During yesterday's special iPhone event, Eddy Cue, Senior VP of Internet Software and Services took to the stage to announce that a new version of iTunes. Cue pointed to dramatically simplifying iTunes across devices, building-in iCloud, redesigning the iTunes Store and more. Interestingly enough, the new iTunes won't ship with iPhone-5 but rather later in October. Is Apple prepping it to debut on a new iMac with the Lightning connector? I don't know. But what I do know is that a revised patent application published today by the US Patent Office clearly points to Voice Recognition coming to Apple's desktop. Translation: Siri is coming to a future iMac and the number one app that its being designed to work with is, you got it, iTunes. We'll point you to that patent application and a few other interesting ones that you may want to further explore on your own. 

Although some may say that Apple should have introduced their new "Lightning" connector with the updated MacBook Pro lineup that debuted in June so as to ensure that the new standard was on all new 2012 hardware by Christmas, the fact remains that it debuted during yesterday's iPhone-5 special event. One of the key points that Apple listed in their new marketing graphic above is that the new Lightning cabling is durable. Two new patent applications published today by at the US Patent Office cover the topic of cable durability with one detailing cables using metal-doped fibers. According to Apple, "This allows for a much more flexible cable and increased cable flex life because the metal-doped fibers are not as sensitive to bending fatigue as their all metal counterparts."

Right out of the gate Apple has filed for the new "EarPods" trademark in Europe under application number 01182532. Apple's trademark was filed under International Classes 9, 35, 38 and 41 which basically covers all hardware, phones, advertising, telecommunication services, digital audio and entertainment services. Apple's all new EarPods were introduced at yesterday's special iPhone event. The EarPods are part of Apple's improved audio for the iPhone which includes their patent pending beamforming technology. Second Update Oct, 05, 2012

Today's the big day. The iPhone 5 will debut later this morning and the new design by Jony Ive and company is bound to intrigue us all and hopefully depress the Samsung camp. The great, late Steve Jobs told his team back in 1997 to Think Different, and think different they did with the debut of the iPhone in 2007 and later with the iPad in 2010. Hon Hai Precision, better known as Foxconn, makes all of Apple's iDevices. They too have been excited to Think Different, but perhaps they took it too literally. Their latest invention will certainly not be debuting on stage with Tim Cook today; oh no. In fact, I'm not sure it'll ever get off the drawing board. But what the heck – take a look at what thinking too differently could actually look like. I bet you'll laugh.

The patent war between Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. is likely to extend into the fourth-generation wireless broadband sector, Daiwa Securities Capital Markets said in a note Tuesday. The Japanese brokerage believes long-term evolution (LTE) technology could be the next battleground in a patent war between the two electronics giants that has spanned four continents. But a new report out this morning indicates that the fiery Samsung may be reconsidering their war stance with Apple on LTE patents.

On September 12, 2012, the US Patent & Trademark Office published Apple's logo as an official registered trademark for social networking under number 5,206,562. Apple officially filed for their logo update on August 31, 2010. While Apple filed for their updated trademark to support their social networking service Ping that debuted in September 2010, the service is to officially end when the next version of iTunes is released. As John Paczkowski of AllThingsD put it, Apple is abandoning Ping and "using its partnerships with Twitter and Facebook to make its various software and service offerings social in a way that consumers actually care about." Whether Apple has another social networking project in the wings is unknown at this time.