Apple Wins Multi-Touch Screen Patent

[HunkyLuke]

Apple was granted 24 new patents by the US Patent and Trademark Office yesterday, including one entitled "Multipoint touchscreen" that could potentially be big trouble for manufacturers of other multi-touch devices, ie, practically every other smartphone and tablet on the market.

The abstract of this patent reads:
"A touch panel having a transparent capacitive sensing medium configured to detect multiple touches or near touches that occur at the same time and at distinct locations in the plane of the touch panel and to produce distinct signals representative of the location of the touches on the plane of the touch panel for each of the multiple touches is disclosed."

The full patent, which also contains references to over 400 other existing patents dating back to 1956, can be viewed at http://patft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-...8+AND+AN/Apple)

This could spell big trouble for non-Apple smart phones and tablets everywhere, as recent patent fights have even forced some products off the shelves!

[gumdrop]

:taco::img78::shit:

[Bec]

This could get really messy with all of the touch screen devices that have been out and about for years now .... my TomTom uses a touch screen. So do you think they'll want companies to pay for the right to use the technology?

This reminds me of those guys with the video player patent thing a few years ago. Whatever happened with that anyways? I don't think everyone with a website that can display videos caved in and paid a fee to use it.

[abostonboy]

It's about time they finally approved these patents.

[abostonboy]

This could get really messy with all of the touch screen devices that have been out and about for years now .... my TomTom uses a touch screen. So do you think they'll want companies to pay for the right to use the technology?

It's not about touch screen. It's about multi-touch. The gestures etc.

Apple is on record as saying they don't want to license non essential patents. Let other companies invent their own. Apple recently forced Samsung to change the way user unlock their phones (slide to unlock.)

[abostonboy]

:taco::img78::shit:

. Just imagine what the tech world would be like if the Android OS market actually innovated and forced Apple to really think different.



btw... All Apple's multi-touch patents are here -

http://www.patentlyapple.com/.servic...+touch+patents

[gumdrop]

:vaccuum: meanwhile think of the Chinese child slaves cleaning those touch screens with N-hexane getting poisoned to death.
http://www.bgr.com/2012/02/22/poison...n-open-letter/