When we use a pair of AirPods or an Apple Pencil we always feel a material that is totally solid. This may be totally different in a few years, since Apple is patenting different technologies that would allow to include deformed materials in these accessories. In this article we will tell you all about this patent and its recent update.
Compressible materials would reach Apple accessories
As we say, this is not a new patent but it was already registered a few months ago. The novelty is that it has now received an update from Apple that enriches it with new data and also shows that it is still in the company’s mind to continue on this path. Specifically, we speak of an input device that includes a casing made of deformable materials. When applying a force, it is deformed, a sensor inside the accessory would be activated that would generate a response. The answer that is offered will depend on the force that this input zone receives since the vacuum space generated inside it is measured in particular.
Obviously this characteristic will not be distributed throughout the entire accessory. There would be an area where this hyperelastic material enclosed between two inflexible discs would be located . In this way the pressure must always be located in the same area. This is something that can be roughly assimilated with 3D Touch technology where a response is received when applying a force. In this case, the area where the compression must be done would be very well defined. In the hole where the pressure would be applied there would be a compressible gas that would help the sensor to measure this force.
Practical applications of the patent
There are many users who can be given this technology in different accessories. In this case it is applied to Apple Pencil and AirPods for having a cylindrical shape and perfect for introducing this technology. With a slight pressure you could obtain a function such as changing the tool on the pencil or changing the song through the AirPods. Right now this type of interaction is carried out with touch surfaces but they do not offer any type of feedback. With this technology, this response could be received assimilating to the experience of having a physical button but that will vary in its response depending on the pressure.
And it even goes much further in the case of the Apple Pencil. Right now artists don’t have an easy way to quickly copy a color to continue making their artwork on iPad. The patent itself raises the possibility that the pencil detects the color on which the pencil is located through a laser and with a slight pressure it can be copied and worked with. This is something that would make this accessory much more attractive to artists by saving you this step that would require you to go through the touch panel and select the specific color. This is something that is not yet implemented, but the fact that Apple updates the patents indicates that they have it very present in their development, marking an important difference with the first and second generation Apple Pencil.
