“Seeking to improve its portable devices, Apple has applied for a patent that could lead to touch-sensitive Macs or handhelds which react to the level of force, rather than just contact,” Aidan Malley reports for AppleInsider.
“Originally submitted in March of last year but only published on Thursday, the patent for a ‘Force Imaging Input and Device System’ describes today’s touchscreens and touchpads as limited by their relatively simple input, which tracks just the location of the finger or stylus on the surface. A method of detecting the strength of the user’s input would add a new element of control, according to Apple,” Malley reports.
“One variant mentioned in the document would also allow for an LCD touchscreen with the same features, raising the possibility of an iPhone or other touch-sensitive computer with the new control scheme. Computers, phones, PDAs, and control panels are listed as candidates for the technique… The company notes that the system would recognize more than one source of input at the same time, allowing the firm’s existing multi-touch system to work,” Malley reports.
More details, link, and patent application illustration, in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Too Hot!” for the heads up.]
Preparing for the new future. One day, all of a sudden, everything else will look dated and old. As the iPhone did with the existing dullphones, err, smartphones.
Just imagine extra pressure for an uppercase, prolonged pressure for symbols, that would grease the lightining speed of data input no end!
Just don’t sit on the darn thing while driving, you could post an obscene blog without realizing it!!!:-)
Goodbye keyboard. Hello “wacom” times 10.
A KORG Piano interface? you can control instruments like organs or pianos, or lights controls for variable bright.
As much as I love Apple, how is this anything new? I have had a pressure sensitive tablet for about 6 years now. That there is not a visible screen behind it can’t be the “new and improved”.
Great! Now I can slap my iPhone or even wring its neck if it locks up.
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I can’t wait for Apple to come out with a pressure-sensitive screen for quadriplegics!!!