A future foldable iPhone could protect its display when it takes a tumble by automatically closing itself, a patent suggests.

Apple has long been said to have designs on a foldable iPhone with companies like Samsung and Motorola having been doing it for years. Now, a patent appears to suggest that Apple might have found a way around one foldable problem - a display that can easily be damaged.

The patent, reported on by Insider, appears to show a system whereby a sensor would detect when an iPhone has been dropped and then trigger a built-in mechanism that would close the device to prevent its display from being damaged.

Foldable displays are often susceptible to being damaged and it's possible that such a worry is behind Apple's belated entry into the foldable market. Apple tends to only enter markets when it is convinced that it has fixed any issues that other devices might have. This could be one instance of that happening.

Even falls from a relatively low height that wouldn't give the iPhone time to fully close could still be protected against, the patent suggests. The application says that "even folding the display to an angle less [than] 180 degrees can afford some protection because the mobile device can strike edges of the mobile device instead of the display itself."

When Apple will announce its own foldable phone still remains a mystery, however. There have been ongoing rumours of a foldable tablet of sorts, with a release maybe happening in 2025. But talk of an actual foldable iPhone continues to be elusive. with Apple seemingly content to continue to release slabs of glass and metal that are as rigid as ever.

Not that any of this is getting in the way of the likes of Samsung, however. The company is expected to release a number of foldable devices in 2023 including the Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Galaxy Z Flip 5.