Wide Touchpad Patents from Apple

[MacRumors]

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Macsimumnews.com summarizes (http://www.macsimumnews.com/index.php/archive/apple_files_new_patent_for_wide_touchpad_for_notebooks/) a recent patent filed by Apple employees describing the implementation of a "wide touchpad". This particular patent has some age to it and was originally filed on August 25, 2004.

The patent describes ways to interpret the multiple contact points and provides several images as examples.

[yankeefan24]

will this be on the next ibooks, macbook pro's, or a new computer all together. this sounds cool. its been there for a while so all we can do is see how soon apple could make this. its definitely been out long enough for april:D

[twoodcc]

interesting. can't wait to see what happens in April!

[Josh396]

If this has something to do with laptops, which it appears it does, then I think it's becoming more obvious that the current Macbook Pros are just hold over machines until the real ones are ready. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

[iMeowbot]

That idea looks like it would be bad for usability. All those touchable surfaces in front the keyboard would be prone to accidental activation. Trackpads can be bad enough, but at least it's easy to avoid resting the palms there.

[Doctor Q]

That idea looks like it would be bad for usability. All those touchable surfaces in front the keyboard would be prone to accidental activation. Trackpads can be bad enough, but at least it's easy to avoid resting the palms there.They cover this in the details:The touchpad is able to distinguish when a user is contacting the touchpad for intended use or is merely resting his or her palms on a particular portion of the touchpad during a typing activity.

[iMeowbot]

They cover this in the details:
Yeah, I know they say they can do that, but they say that Mighty Mouse can do that too. It only works for some people.

[rockandrule]

Now, how do patents work like this being that it was filed two years ago? I'm not too familiar with patent workings. Is this really understandable for Apple to have put in a patent two years ago for a product they'd release now? :confused:

[amateurmacfreak]

Now, how do patents work like this being that it was filed two years ago? I'm not too familiar with patent workings. Is this really understandable for Apple to have put in a patent two years ago for a product they'd release now? :confused:
Yes, from my limited knowledge of patents, very understandable.

[nagromme]

There was a patent from Apple somewhat similar to this YEARS ago--with a the full wrist rest being a trackpad, but the center area being functionally different from the rest.

I don't have a link but I did turn up this image which I've had on my hard disk since 2001 (thank you Spotlight!). Anyone have a link to the rumor report it came from? (I'm thinking it was on powerpage.org or one of its past offshoots).

Anyway, remember that MANY Apple patents (like the one I've shown here) don't make it into shipping products. Cool ideas, but don't assume something's coming. And if MacBooks ARE in for some future changes, Merom this fall sounds like the earliest chance.

(Now, in a general sense, Apple does seem to be increasingly serious about touch-based computing, considering recent job openings.)

[InTheBand]

This multi-touch point input stuff looks really promising and i really look forward to seeing something from Apple designed for normal humans.

These patent images clearly depict a gecko, or possibly a racoon, using the interface, while the patents filed in early February show the hands of an evil sorceror.

[pdpfilms]

This multi-touch point input stuff looks really promising and i really look forward to seeing something from Apple designed for normal humans.

These patent images clearly depict a gecko, or possibly a racoon, using the interface, while the patents filed in early February show the hands of an evil sorceror.
I thought it was a gumby.

[Shamus]

2 years ago? BAH technological concepts were completely different back then.

[Dagless]

interesting! I was thinking about that the other day. but I rest my hands on the blank bits to the side of the touchpad so my mouse would end up dancing on screen.

[nagromme]

interesting! I was thinking about that the other day. but I rest my hands on the blank bits to the side of the touchpad so my mouse would end up dancing on screen.
The patent covers that: your hands resting would be ignored, and only "intentional" touches would be processed. And this works well, since the trackpad on a Mac laptop already does this (option in System Prefs). I brush my trackpad accientalaly while typing all the time, and the cursor never budges. But it responds instantly when I want to move it. Whatever algorithm they've come up with (which I think has to do with whether you've just been typing or not) seems to work.

Re the hands: they are a tree frog. See larger versions in the multitouch patents and you can clearly see the sticky pads for climbing bark!

[hrmpf]

the patent application has some interesting things about figuring out how to ignore touches - the application suggests using the built-in iSight camera to see what your hands are doing (http://hrmpf.com/wordpress/64/apples-wide-trackpad)

[ScottB]

interesting. can't wait to see what happens in April!
And if MacBooks ARE in for some future changes, Merom this fall sounds like the earliest chance.
This seems like another patent that will be registered and then never used, I just wish one day they will begin putting in these kind of things.

[flyfish29]

I see a few uses for this additional space and think they could create software to recognize the a large amout of a palm is resting on it and when someone uses a fingertip.

As far as patents go a company files them as soon as the idea is created if they think it will or could be useful. Then they work on refining the technology if necessary to implement it- of course patent ideas don't always work out but that protects the idea/technology concept.

I would ike to see a small screen space on the laptops similar to a Ninetndo DS where you could input in an lcd screen on the wrist rest. I could see either using a stylus or it would be cool to be able to have a little lcd that you could turn into a data key entry pad or some other sort of input image. I could see some function type buttons being displayed on this lcd that would change depending on what software is being used. Again it would recognize a palm rest vs a stylus or finger. Just an idea!

[Shadow]

I would ike to see a small screen space on the laptops similar to a Ninetndo DS where you could input in an lcd screen on the wrist rest. I could see either using a stylus or it would be cool to be able to have a little lcd that you could turn into a data key entry pad or some other sort of input image. I could see some function type buttons being displayed on this lcd that would change depending on what software is being used. Again it would recognize a palm rest vs a stylus or finger. Just an idea!

I don't think that would be very good. The DS is incerdibly difficult to use without something to rest it on, and I just don't like the idea of fusing a PC/Mac with a PDA. Sounds to "Microsoft-y" to me.
"Microsoft is now introducing the PDA...which can run IE..."
Microsoft=bad
PDA=bad (for me)
IE=bad

There is nothing good about it.

[Flowbee]

The DS is incerdibly difficult to use without something to rest it on...

I've never had a problem holding my DS and using it. Just takes a little getting used to...

[flyfish29]

I don't think that would be very good. The DS is incerdibly difficult to use without something to rest it on, and I just don't like the idea of fusing a PC/Mac with a PDA. Sounds to "Microsoft-y" to me.
"Microsoft is now introducing the PDA...which can run IE..."
Microsoft=bad
PDA=bad (for me)
IE=bad

There is nothing good about it.
I am not talking about making our laptops a pda by any means. I am simply talking about having another option for inputting data or even viewing something on a small lcd type screen. I am sure there would be plenty of uses but of course I have not thought about it enough to think about if it would be worth the added expense to the consumer. Usually a laptop is not held in the hands like a DS but is either on a table or laptop.

I am also not a big fan of a stylus, but I could see it being used as a small drawing pad for artists or other uses. I would see the lcd as being a touchpad screen- could even have a click wheel image you could use like what they are talking about on the iPod in the future.

I am just trying to think outside the box a little here. Remember when they started putting an lcd on a video camera but also had a viewfinder as well. I am sure there were people saying why- if you want to view it you would use a tv, if you want to view it to film it you would use the viewfinder- especially in bright light. I know many also said it would be hard to film using an lcd as a viewfinder- in many ways it is, but it has revolutionized video camera use for the casual user.

Good to know that ideas are shot down so quickly here.:D Open up your minds- let them breathe a little- don't shoot down ideas- create! (even if they seem stupid at first (or just in fact are stupid) They often lead to other ideas- maybe even totally different but other ideas none-the-less.

[Macnoviz]

I think a touch LCD screen in a laptop would definitly add some cool options in your programs, and it would definitly make a tablet obsolete.

[Dark Horse]

Yes, from my limited knowledge of patents, very understandable.

wait. two years ago? couldn't this just be the patent relating to the two-finger scrolling track pad?

[weg]

Yeah, I know they say they can do that, but they say that Mighty Mouse can do that too. It only works for some people.

Totally agree. Furthermore, I don't see why my touchpad should have more functions that the whole keyboard.

[flyfish29]

Furthermore, I don't see why my touchpad should have more functions that the whole keyboard.

because there is the average user that doesn't want to (or can't) remember all the key combinations that a power user might use, but they could easily see that there are 10 buttons available on thisLCD panel that they can simply tap to do simple tasks and save screen real estate.

I think there are two kinds of Mac users...keyboard junkies and mouse clickers. I am a mouse clicker for the most part. I use the mouse for most all of my navigation of menu items. I reserve my keyboard combinations for simple things like save, cut, copy past, new. Then there are those that know almost every shortcut combination to the menu items holding two, three or four fingers down to do different things without even touching the mouse very often. I think an LCD touch screen would appeal to both groups of people.

[Aztechian]

I didn't see any mention of this in the article, but it would be pretty slick to have the entire keyboard/mouse/rest area be replaced with a touch sensitive display. You'd end up with a sandwitch of LCD's, and the bottom one could be configured to be a virtual keyboard in any language, configuration, etc.
(There were "virtual keyboards" a while back with laser displays that could be configured for different tasks, were programmable and just projected onto any surface.)

It would be pretty cool to just touch a "button" and turn your laptop into a video editing setup, or a subset of keys for playing a game on... someday it'll happen...

[Amuraivel]

I didn't see any mention of this in the article, but it would be pretty slick to have the entire keyboard/mouse/rest area be replaced with a touch sensitive display. You'd end up with a sandwitch of LCD's, and the bottom one could be configured to be a virtual keyboard in any language, configuration, etc.
(There were "virtual keyboards" a while back with laser displays that could be configured for different tasks, were programmable and just projected onto any surface.)

It would be pretty cool to just touch a "button" and turn your laptop into a video editing setup, or a subset of keys for playing a game on... someday it'll happen...

As a translator, I work in several different languages....I am proficient with the Swiss and US keyboard, but trying to type Arabic is a bitch with the on screen keyboard.

I for one would welcome a touch interface, which could change to any keyboard/language.

Think of games like Microsoft Flight Simulator with 8 million shortcuts to do everything found on a commercial pannel....suddenly the keyboard becomes a cesna 170 control panel--pretty fly for a white guy like Jobs.

[TMay]

I'm working late, been reading up about all of this, want to buy a 3d connexion Space Pilot for Concepts Unlimited (CAD), and it occurs to me, that if the next ipod has a gestural touchscreen interface, why can't it be hacked to use it as an input device?

As an example, I could simulate a Garmin GPS panel for x-plane with an ipod connected to my powermac, or i could anchor it to my trackball and use it for a numeric keypad or scientific calculator. The possiblities are near endless.

[Aztechian]

that would be cool, but I doubt it would happen as you would have to hack the iPod software to give it the interface you want. You would also have to hack some software on the computer side (or write your own) to take the input. The biggest thing though would be making the iPod be recognized as in input device rather than a storage device.
Just my thoughts... it would be difficult but maybe someone has done all that hacking seperately and it just needs to be put together.

BTW, is there anything out there that modifies the iPod software UI? I was under the impression that it couldn't be done.

hey...if they can make windows run on a mac... nothing is impossible ;)

[iShane]

Ahh. All this speculation makes me feel all tingly inside. Anyways, based on what people have said it would look like it sounds pretty good.

[ssj300]

If this has something to do with laptops, which it appears it does, then I think it's becoming more obvious that the current Macbook Pros are just hold over machines until the real ones are ready. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.


well obviously, theres always gonna be a new and better one coming out?

[SmurfBoxMasta]

Now, how do patents work like this being that it was filed two years ago? I'm not too familiar with patent workings. Is this really understandable for Apple to have put in a patent two years ago for a product they'd release now? :confused:

But dont forget the #1 other reason for filing patents:

to keep OTHER companies from using the idea/technology and then saying they developed/invented it themselves..... :p

[mjstew33]

But dont forget the #1 other reason for filing patents:

to keep OTHER companies from using the idea/technology and then saying they developed/invented it themselves..... :p
Yeah.

Personally, I don't think Apple will use this.

[Cloudgazer]

I've see npics of the macbook pro, and in the photos it appears as if the trackpad is wider than that of the powerbook.

Is this the case?