Patents

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Kodak sues Samsung and LG
For patent infringements 18 November 2008 9:34 GMT
Eastman Kodak is suing Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics for infringing its digital camera patents.

Kodak says cameraphones made by the Korean companies violate patents on its inventions related to image capture, compression and data storage, and a method...
Apple granted dock patent
After a 9-year wait 9 October 2008 9:17 GMT
Apple, with CEO Steve Jobs credited as the inventor, has been awarded a patent for the Mac operating system's "dock", an instantly recognisable feature of the software.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office granted the Mac maker patent number 7,434,177...
Nokia patent made real by Chinese co
Swiveling cam-phone gets real 2 September 2008 9:40 GMT
Back in December last year we brought you news of a Nokia patent for a slider phone that put the camera in a bar mounted sideways on the top of the phone, which was able to swivel.

It seems a Chinese manufacturer spotted the patent, clearly thought it looked...
Canon fuel cell patent uncovered
Plans to say goodbye to AAs 12 August 2008 13:03 GMT
It was back in May that it was discovered that MTI Micro was working with an "elusive Japanese developer of digicams" to get its Mobion fuel tech into products. With the discovery of this Canon Fuel Cell DSLR patent, it seems we now know who the elusive developer was.

From...
Apple files 34 touch patents
Should hold off the lawsuits for a while... 4 July 2008 13:09 GMT
34 lengthy new touchscreen-related patents from Apple published by the US Patent & Trademark Office have been revealed.

The patents, seen as the "definitive" list of all things Apple touch, cover such applications as recognising different parts of the body...
Apple patents Wiimote-like controller for Apple TV
3D remote system 8 May 2008 17:47 GMT
A new patent filing from Apple reveals the comapny is researching a 3D remote control system for the Apple TV that would mimic the functionality of the Nintendo Wii controller and also deliver some features similar to its multi-touch technology, reports AppleInsider.
Apple patents laser head display
iGlasses 17 April 2008 16:33 GMT
Apple has applied for a patent for a laser-based headset that could be used with iPods and iPhones.

This design is particularly lightweight and unbulky compared to similar solutions on the market as it has a seperate pack (to be clipped on belts, or the like)...
Apple patents entire fitness system
Your iPod as personal training assistant 27 March 2008 15:12 GMT
Apple is developing a digital fitness companion system based around its iPhone and iPod touch players aimed a helping people live a healthier lifestyle, AppleInsider has discovered.

A series of patent filings shows ideas for the system, including an iTunes-like...
Apple patents clamshell iPhone
With translucent trackpad 17 March 2008 16:16 GMT
A recent US Patent Office patent filing from Apple shows a new futuristic iPhone design that features a "dual sided trackpad".

Essentially a smaller iPhone with all the controls but half the size, the handset would have a see-through cover with a capacitive,...
HTC patents new QWERTY slider design
Will make for smaller smartphones 17 March 2008 9:17 GMT
By making the numeric keypad a part of the QWERTY keyboard plate and having the phone display covering most of QWERTY keyboard, except for the numeric bit in closed mode, this new patent design from HTC could slim down smartphones.

To open the device into the...
Nintendo goes Wiimote patent crazy
Gallery of weird and wonderful Wii ideas 7 February 2008 9:09 GMT
Looks like Nintendo is covering pretty much all the bases as far as Wiimote add-ons go.

Recently unveiled is a series of patents encompassing some pretty strange objects that could be given the Wii treatment.

A skateboard, helmet, golf club, baseball...
Sony Ericsson patents detachable phone screens
Detach and displace? 1 February 2008 15:01 GMT
A newly revealed Sony Ericsson patent has unveiled an interesting concept in mobile phone design.

As laid out in a patent application called "Detachable Housings for a Wireless Communication Device", future Sony Ericsson mobile phones could offer two detachable...
Apple patents back-lit scrollwheel touch pads
Illuminating... 25 January 2008 11:23 GMT
An Apple patent has been unearthed that could revamp the scrollwheel for the next generation of iPod offerings.

The once iconic scrollwheel design is seen to have taken a back seat to Apple's new touch pad user interfaces, but the new patent would give the...
Apple patent for iPod police system
System that turns your music down for you (if you want it or not!) 29 December 2007 10:41 GMT
According to press reports, Apple wants to keep tabs on iPod users with a new system it is currently applying to patent.

The system would allow Apple to calculate a "maximum volume parameter" during "the playing back of the media by the media player" based on...
Sony Ericsson patents wipers for phone displays
Screen cleaning solution 17 December 2007 11:33 GMT
This idea from a Sony Ericsson patent application is to add a cleaning slider to the display and couple it to the opening mechanism of the phone itself, Unwired View reports.

When the phone is open, the slider just sits at the top of the screen, as and when...
Nokia patents swivelling cameraphone
Design for 6-megapixel Nseries device? 5 December 2007 15:26 GMT
A patent filing published recently has revealed some futuristic Nokia cameraphone plans. The design puts the camera in a bar mounted sideways on the top of the phone, which is able to swivel.

Similar to the cameras that can be found in the hinge of clamshell...
Banking industry confirms plans for contactless card payment
Just wave card to pay for transactions under £10 from September 10 May 2007 10:42 GMT
The UK banking industry confirms plans for the national introduction of contactless technology on UK credit and debit cards. Contactless is a new option being introduced on many payment cards, from September 2007.

Contactless technology will be available for...
Dawn breaks over Google Earth
New sunrise layer takes you to daybreak across the globe 29 January 2007 22:16 GMT
A special layer dedicated to sunrise across the world has been added to Google Earth to bring the light of day to your desktop.

The layer points to a set of video produced by Discovery HD Theater's “Sunrise Earth” program. To view them, you simply open Google...
Taiwanese company sues Apple for damages from patent case
Everyone wants a piece of the Apple pie 5 January 2007 15:13 GMT
Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Luxpro is suing Apple for $100 million in damages after a court case to stop production of its Shuffle-esque MP3 players was overturned.

Apple took Luxpro to court alleging that the company had copied the design of the Shuffle....
Nokia, Samsung, and Panasonic sued for patent infringement
Three companies allegedly violate Bluetooth patents 3 January 2007 12:29 GMT
Apple isn't the only one facing patent disputes at the moment. Nokia, Samsung, and Panasonic are all named in a lawsuit over Bluetooth technology brought by The Washington Research Foundation.

The institute named products that used Bluetooth chips made by CSR,...
Apple faces Nike+ iPod patent lawsuit
And ten more cases 3 January 2007 10:35 GMT
Apple is facing a number of class-action lawsuits in the US that were filed toward the end of last year.

Apart from the continuing investigation into stock option backdating allegations, Apple is also fighting off a case that claims Apple has created a monopoly...
Google and NASA to team up for Google moon
They plan to make it easier for you to virtually explore space 19 December 2006 18:34 GMT
If you thought Google Earth made use of some amazing technology, wait until Google adds NASA to the mix.

NASA and the web search company have announced plans to develop software that makes it easier for you to view details of Mars and the moon similar to the...
Google launches Google Patent Search in beta
Look through the full text, with illustrations, of patents in the US 14 December 2006 10:13 GMT
Google's latest search tools allows you to search the database of the US Patent Office, thanks to a project similar to Google Book Search.

The beta of Google Patent Search lets you look through the full text of the US patent corpus to find what interests you....
Online videogame developer raises capital for new game
Another new online world is in development 12 December 2006 12:11 GMT
Online gamers will be pleased to hear there's another online game in development by a company led by some of the people who helped to design “World of Warcraft”.

Red 5 Studios has raised around $18.5 million in venture capital from Benchmark Capital and Sierra...
NTP goes after Palm in patent infringement lawsuit
Forget BlackBerry, Palm latest victim 6 November 2006 20:57 GMT
NTP the company who famously and successfully sued BlackBerry for breach of patents has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Palm, maker of the Treo smartphone.

NTP said its suit asserts that Sunnyvale, CA-based Palm's "products, services, systems and...