“Apple has been granted its first patent related to Liquidmetal, a space-age metal alloy,” Leander Kahney reports for Cult of Mac. “But the patent isn’t for a new iPad enclosure or iPhone antenna, as experts have predicted. Instead Apple’s Liquidmetal patent is for an internal component of a fuel cell.”
“Apple’s new patent describes ‘amorphous alloy’ collector plates for fuel cells, an electrochemical battery that uses hydrogen to generate electricity,” Kahney reports. “Although the patent doesn’t reference the Liquidmetal trademark, the material is an amorphous alloy or ‘metallic glass.'”
Kahney reports, “Of course, the ever-secretive company hasn’t hinted at its plans for the material. The possibilites are endless. Liquidmetal is a super lightweight, high-strength, scratch-proof metal that NASA says is ‘poised to redefine materials science as we know it in the 21st century.'”
There’s much more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Could it be that Apple’s innovation engine is just beginning to rev up? Such a suggestion should cause Apple’s so-called competitors to immediately stroke out.
fuel cell? enough portable power to keep a laptop going for several weeks/months without re-charging. now that would be a story!
Apple is just beyond anybody…
Nobody in the energy business is serious enough to produce battery/electric technology to fuel our gears since oil business is way too big. Oil is their comfort zone. At last a company that is very serious in battery technology – apple – is going to get it right. This is going to be big.
You know, people have been saying for a long time that Apple should build a car. Maybe that’s what the fuel cells could be used for. Just dreamin’
Although the patent doesn’t reference the Liquidmetal trademark, the material is an amorphous alloy or “ metallic glass.”
Ach, transparent aluminum!
Where do I find a copy of this patent? It does not show up on USPTO web site.
This “news” may be what is driving the AAPL market up right now. AAPL is at a new high og $333.01 and more to come.
@BurningZeppelin,
I know – my MacBook Pro needs a fill up with Premium almost weekly.
Apple has positioned itself to control the use of liquid metal in consumer electronics, and is clearly doing R&D – which could be huge for us stock holders…
Um, isn’t “space-aged” from 1957 or so? Why, 50+ years later, is “space-aged” used to to mean “cutting edge?”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Age
New Desktop Mac…The Energon Cube.
@Trvth
To whit:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Trek_materials
Apple is not the only innovator.
The ‘space age,’ depending on how you define it, started at least 53 years ago. Isn’t it a bit quaint to be using that term these days?
Most of the people alive today know nothing but the space age. Maybe I’m just getting old and have nothing better to do.
Um, because it gets the point across. You coin a better term, if you’re going to complain.
@voice of reason
I bet it hurts everytime Apple does something innovative. Don’t worry, I’m sure there will be some company that “innovates” by copying Apple….. Again.
..and lo, it came to pass that the liquid-metal technology evolved into the first cyborg governor of California.
Oh wait, that already happened.
“A mimetic polyalloy…I swear I will not kill anyone.”
@shawnpetriw,
How about the Apple Age?
@s:
The article links to it:
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7862957.html
On the USPTO website, at http://patft.uspto.gov/netahtml/PTO/srchnum.htm
Search for 7862957
Now that is innovative. To attach an electrochemical fuel cell to power your macbook pro. The hydrogen is generated by digestion of organic material by bacteria.
The innovation? You merely have to crap into the fuel cell to provide it with the hydrogen containing organic fuel!
With regards to the other headline at MDN, the senate will be able to power their laptops for free if the all switch to Apple considering the amount of potential fuel these guys are full of….
All of you stop being happy at this! This patent is just the first step on the path to the creation of the <ahref=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-1000>T-1000</a> and the beginning of the countdown to Judgement Day.
Finally! T-1000 iPhones!
Transparent Aluminum.
They have Scotty locked up in the attic. First the iPhone, iPad, and now Amorphous Liquid Metal.
I say the battery is the most critical point of development. If Apple can get higher energy density (which I think they are doing a pretty darn good job at it right now) it won’t matter how efficient the components are per-say. They could have quad processors, dual LED flash, on all the time backlighting, things that we wouldn’t consider due to power restrictions.
Um. the T1000 used Nuclear power source.
Either we already have this or we will never have it.