Apple's iGlove patent revealed

For iPhoners in cold climes

Apple's iGlove patent revealed
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2 January 2009 13:59 GMT / By Amy-Mae Elliott

Good news for iPhone owners in colder climes, it's been revealed that Apple has previously filed a patent for what's effectively a pair of "iGloves".

Originally filed a day before the original iPhone's launch, the patent covers a means of using a multi-touch device with gloves.

Capacitive touchscreens like those on the iPhone are described as "problematic" in colder weather as they depend on the electrical response from a user's fingertips, which is blocked off when the user wears gloves.

Apple's idea would give gloves a second, inner layer, exposed on the fingertips, that is said to simulate the electrical feedback of human fingers.

Just a patent application for now, there's no word on a launch for the iGloves as yet.

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Comments

  • Think these may be different to what you think they are for. Surely multi touch works both ways, if you put the touchpads on the tips of the gloves, and add feedback as appears to be happening here, you have a pair of gloves that work on any smoothish surface, like a hand mouse. Think of graphics where you normally have to use a touch sensitive tablet? With gloves, which I suspect will not have woolly glove look, the gloves replace the tablet for most uses and allow an unlimited size of input area as the input dpi could be scaled. Posted by ajbooker-Consultant, UK
  • If you're looking for gloves that allow you to use an iPhone touchscreen, then these gloves from North Face work well - they have conductive fingertips:

    http://www.thenorthface.com/catalog/tnf-catalog-master/etip-glove.html?parent_category_rn=


     Posted by se1Kid, UK

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