Tag: patent

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Apple patent shows periscope camera design possibly for iPhone or an AR headset

Apple filed a new patent with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for a new “folded” camera system that could enable higher zoom capabilities.

Spotted by Patently Apple (via iPhone in Canada), the patent outlines what’s described as a folded camera system that uses a prism or mirrors to bend light at a 90° angle. If that sounds familiar, it’s because the tech isn’t exactly new — commonly called ‘periscope cameras,’ the tech is common in several smartphones as a way to include more advanced lens systems for telephoto cameras that otherwise wouldn’t fit in a smartphone.

Moreover, Patently Apple explains that the described folded camera system would use lenses with adjustable positions, allowing for variable magnification. That would be a particularly interesting addition since most smartphone cameras use fixed lenses and rely on software to handle magnification, which often results in degraded image quality.

Finally, the patent makes it clear that the folded camera tech could make it into more than just a future iPhone, with possible applications being personal computer systems, handheld computers, set-top boxes, mobile devices, augmented reality and/or virtual reality headsets, and more.

Overall, it sounds like Apple has plans for a fairly robust camera system. That said, and as with any patent, it’s worth keeping in mind that it might not appear in any actual products. Many companies (and especially Apple) like to patent designs they might use, even if they never actually use them.

However, it’d be neat to see Apple’s take on a periscope-style camera in an iPhone, and how it’d stack up to existing periscope cameras on the market already.

Source: USPTO Via: Patently Apple

Categories
Mobile Syrup

PlayStation patent points to coaching system for gamers who need to ‘git gud’

PlayStation may be working on a system that helps coach players to step up their game.

In a U.S. patent filed by Sony Interactive Entertainment in June 2021 and published six months later, the tech giant outlines “systems and methods for coaching a user for game play.”

Specifically, Sony proposes a way to gauge when the player has “fallen below a skill threshold,” at which time assistive gameplay recordings and images will be played. According to Sony, this could “reduce frustration of players of various game genres in learning a new game.”

It’s worth noting that the PlayStation 5 already offers a similar feature called ‘Game Help,’ through which players can access hints and videos as they play. However, this is only available in supported games and is exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers. Game Help is also a bit more limited in that it features pre-prepared tips for specific sections the developer. By contrast, the new Sony patent proposes a system that studies a player’s moment-to-moment gameplay and provides personalized assistance accordingly.

It’s important to stress that, as with any patent, this coaching system may very well not see the light of day. That said, it points to a larger trend of PlayStation filing patents for various tools that can help the player. Over the past couple of years alone, the company has patented everything from a Siri-esque ‘PlayStation Assistant’ to an Uber-like real-time game help service.

Image credit: PlayStation

Source: United States Patent and Trademark Office Via: VideoGamesChronicle

Categories
Mobile Syrup

Microsoft patent details three-screen Surface smartphone concept

Microsoft may still be struggling to get its dual-screen Surface Duo smartphone right, but the company’s new patent for a triple-screen phone suggests it could be looking forward to the inevitable Surface Trio (that name’s on the house, Microsoft).

Spotted by Patently Apple (via Gizmodo), the Microsoft patent shows a phone with three screens and two hinges. Gizmodo describes it as a trifold wallet or ‘triptych,’ but the patent concept is basically just a Surface Duo with an extra hinge and panel.

While the patent illustration looks quite sleek, given how thick current foldables are, there’s no way that a three-screen device like this wouldn’t be massive. It’d also likely be quite heavy with all that extra material. Microsoft has so far done an impressive job of making the individual panels of its Surface Duo devices thin, but when you fold the device (thus stacking the panels), it becomes much thicker. And of course, one of the two sets of hinges would need to be much larger to accommodate folding over an extra panel.

It’s also worth noting that Microsoft isn’t the only company considering a triple-screen device. LetsGoDigital reported on a Samsung patent filed in mid-June describing a similar device — you can check out a concept model in the video below. TCL has a trifold concept as well.

I’m looking forward to trying a wild three-screen concept like what Microsoft has patented, although I’m already confident I’ll hate it. Having tested both the Surface Duo and Duo 2, I found that I liked the idea of multi-screen phones, but not the execution. Plus, I had a hard enough time finding two apps I wanted to run side-by-side — how will I ever come up with three to run on a triple-screen device?

Source: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Via: Patently Apple, Gizmodo