Apple Secures Patent For Upcoming Foldable Device
Apple, reportedly, has managed to secure as many as 61 patents linked to a bunch of foldable devices and technologies it plans to develop for the Apple Watch. These patents have been provided by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
A particular patent, which has been registered by Apple, indicates towards the company developing a foldable smartphone that will have a lot of similarities with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3. The patent reads, “Electronic devices may be provided that contain multiple housing portions. The housing portions may be coupled together using hinges”.
The patent further states, “When the housing portions in a device are rotated relative to each other, the flexible display may bend. The hinge may be configured to allow the flexible display to be placed in a front-to-front configuration in which an active side of the display faces itself or a back-to-back configuration”.
The pictures in the patent application offer a glimpse of a device featuring a clamshell-style foldable display. The device, as visible in the patent, seems to be quite different from the foldable device patents that Apple had secured in the past. This one comprises two housing portions that are connected to a hinge. The patent also sheds some light on the location of some of the parts in the device like speakers, charging port, microprocessors, sensor batteries, and more.
Since it happens to be one of the many foldable device patents from Apple, one is not sure whether this design will be used in the foldable smartphone that Apple eventually launches. The first time Apple filed an application for a foldable device patent was in the year 2011. It has been 12 years and the company hasn’t officially spoken about launching a foldable device.
A couple of days ago, prominent Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo posted a series of tweets to substantiate his claims that the Cupertino-based tech giant is developing a device that will feature a foldable OLED display. As per the analyst, the company is currently testing a device that has a 9-inch wide foldable display.
