6 ms·
Apple looks to protect dropped iPhones by shifting their orientation mid-flight
- xmpir 14y agoi wonder if this will be implemented...
- bonzoesc 14y agoI doubt it. They're trying to patent this because the economic incentive is to patent everything regardless of if you plan to use it.
- stcredzero 14y agoSays something about patents and their effect on society, doesn't it?
- andreyf 14y agoHe just did?
- stcredzero 14y agoThe gp commenter just said something about the company's motivations for patenting. I expanded it by pointing out the implications for society in general when all companies do that. (Kantian imperative) Yet another way to think about it: It turns IP into a zero-sum game, where it should be a positive-sum game.
- xmpir 14y agohere is a more readable article: http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/03/21/apple-looks-to-protect-dropped-iphones-by-shifting-their-orientation-mid-flight http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/03/21/apple-looks-to-pro...
- taylodl 14y agoI suppose if you can keep the device from falling on a corner then you're good. That seems to be the worst-case scenario. It'll probably be a couple years before we see this in any of their devices.
- StavrosK 14y agoI wonder if we'll get a deluge of jokes about which side a buttered iPhone would fall on.
- fyolnish 14y agoWell, it wouldn't be much of a joke since this patent makes it predictable.
- StavrosK 14y agoBut the claim is the butter also makes it predictable, since "toast always lands buttered side down".
- Lexarius 14y agoAfter toasting the iPhone, its electronics should no longer be in working order, so only the butter should be exerting its orientation preference.
- Scene_Cast2 14y agoYou could always glue/tape two iPhones together...
- gilesvangruisen 14y agoiPhone Cat coming soon.
- nevi-me 14y agoiCat Phone coming soon too
- Lost_BiomedE 14y agoSeriously, just allow the battery to eject on impact. The problem was solved; then apple made the problem again by having a non-removable battery.
- arrrg 14y agoWhat’s the battery got to do with it?
- justincormack 14y agoThe battery flying out absorbs most of the impact shock. Try it it works well.
- nevi-me 14y agoHave to agree with this. I have a Huawei from back in 2010, each time it falls it just falls apart. It's got a lot of scratches, but screen hasn't cracked. The worst fall was onto tarred road. I actually never thought that the reason why it just disassembles so easily when it falls would be the same reason why I still have a functional phone 2 years later
- StavrosK 14y agoMy Galaxy Nexus has fallen around 10 times now, it doesn't even have scratches. It does fly apart every time, though.
- jessaustin 14y agoThe battery historically was the most massive component. Letting it pop out of the chassis dissipated a great deal of the impact force, so the more delicate components were somewhat protected from the shock.
- Sharlin 14y agoDesigning an object to predictably disassemble into multiple parts helps soak up the impact energy. The fact that many cell phones used to break up when dropped was not accidental, it was a deliberate engineering decision.
- moe 14y agoWouldn't it be more effective to deploy a small parachute?
- deleted 14y ago[deleted]
- artursapek 14y agoSpeaking of obvious...
- ChuckMcM 14y agoNo, the amount of surface area the parachute would need would in order to apply sufficient braking force in time would be too large. That said, a bumper case where the "bumper" was an airbag would be eminently practical. If the phone could notify the case that it had been falling "too long" (which is to say the phone now believes it is travelling too fast to resist damage) a small electrical trigger to activate a chemical reaction and inflate a bumper cases 'edges' to 10x their size would effectively prevent any damage for most situations. Unlike the parachute the energy absorbing effects of airbags are available nearly instantly.
- outside1234 14y agoOr they could actually design the iPhone to actually have enough metal and thick enough glass. I've dropped my Samsung Nexus S a hundred times without damage. Just saying.
- ck2 14y agoIs apple trying to patent a gyroscope?
- cududa 14y agoNo, they're trying to patent a system in which one component is a gyroscope. They reference previous patents related to gyroscopes - if you bothered to look at the application.
- deleted 14y ago[deleted]