In early 2015 Microsoft introduced HoloLens during a Windows 10 Special Event by Alex Kipman who is considered one of the 'Fathers of the Kinect' was assigned the HoloLens project. Today Microsoft was granted a design patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office titled "headset with Visor" which is' commercially known as the HoloLens.

Unlike "patent applications," design patents published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office don't reveal pertinent information about a particular design. We can look at the design and appreciate it for what it projects, but we'll never discover which materials may be used to construct the design. We'll never know what unique internal components may be hidden within the device or learn about any unique features. All we get is a simple visual like the one below for Microsoft's HoloLens.

Above is Microsoft's design patent FIG. 1 of the HoloLens. For more images, see our Patently Mobile report.

At the end of August we reported that Apple hired an audio engineer away from the HoloLens team. In context with Apple acquiring Metaio, a pioneer in Augmented Reality interfaces for wearable devices, it wouldn't be surprising to learn at some point in time that Apple has a similar project in the works. Apple has a few headset related patents on record and have been seeking to hire a Sr. Display System Engineers specializing in VR environments. Yet, will Apple pursue this avenue of wearables or is Apple more focused on developing AR and VR technologies in context with an advanced HUD (heads-up display) for a windshield of a future vehicle? Only time will tell.