Apple has been granted 53 new patents by the US Patent and Trademark Office, nine of which being graphics-heavy design patents. The latter include graphical user interfaces, Touch ID, and Apple Watch bands.
The designs don’t shed any light on forthcoming, unreleased products, but merely solidify Apple’s intellectual property holdings in these areas. While the Touch ID design is now ubiquitous on the company’s new mobile devices, and to a great extent has been emulated by a range of rival smartphone makers, the Apple Watch band is somewhat less prolific, with that device being only a minor component of Apple’s product portfolio.
Nevertheless, the company is likely to be keen on cementing its hold on these intellectual properties as momentum continues to build for smartwatches and as the smartphone fingerprint sensor market continues to grow. Apple has also been keen to get patents for other design concepts, at least with respect to its Touch ID system, perhaps anticipating modifications for future products. For now, though, it has these basic design patents in its pocket.
Source: Patently Apple
Follow Us