Have you imagined how an iPhone of the future would look like? What you see above is from the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and that might be how Apple’s handset might look like sometime in the coming years.

According to the details available, it’s an “electronic device with wrap around display”. The device has a flexible AMOLED screen “rolled up” and placed inside a conical transparent enclosure. The screen real estate available will be way more than what is available with current smartphones and tablets as the device’s display wraps around it. Facial recognition tech will be used to make sure that content is displayed in the user’s field of vision.

Among other features, there will be no physical buttons and gestures will be used to perform actions such as unlocking the handset. Although they are talking about a transparent housing, it is very unlikely that the processor and parts will be visible to a user. And as you can see above, the folks over at Apple have several versions of the design in mind.

It’s a very innovative and cool design, but certainly don’t expect to see something like this anytime soon. There is also always the chance that others will beat Apple to it.

What are your thoughts on Apple’s new design idea, like it or not?

[Source]

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As great as touchscreens may be, they are inherently rigid and must take on a completely flat form. Or do they? Atmel is challenging that notion with the development of its XSense bendable touchscreen technology, flexing its way around all kinds of surfaces.

The obvious application would include tablet and smartphone devices that can then have curved edges and other kinds of designs, but Atmel is quick to point out that the possibilities are limitless. You can create interesting wristwatches with full touchscreen tech, as well as wraparound coffee-maker displays. The tech itself is a flexible, film-based touch sensor that is ultra-thin. I’d imagine that combining XSense with flexible OLED display tech could make for some gorgeous products. Looking at the video, edgeless displays are a distinct possibility.

Atmel isn’t exactly new to this game either, having contributed to the touchscreens of devices like the Galaxy Note. Even so, I almost feel like this is a product pitch that belongs on Dragons’ Den or Shark Tank. “Today, dragons, I’d like to present to you an idea I have for flexible touchscreen technology. I am prepared to offer 5% of my company in exchange for $200,000.”

[Source via Atmel]

The post Atmel’s XSense Flexible Touchscreen Tech Has All The Right Curves appeared first on Mobile Magazine.

It’s inventions like this that make me so proud to be a Canadian. Maksim Skorobogatiy and his colleagues at the Polytechnic School of Montreal have come up with a way that has flat, flexible batteries built right into garment fabric.

This is quite different from what we already see in some other clothing. Those t-shirts with the flashing LEDs have a battery pack sewn onto them. Vests with solar panels have batteries laid over top (or underneath) them. What these Canadian scientists have been able to create is a flexible fabric where the batteries are actually integrated in the fabric itself.

In order to build their battery, they sandwich a solid polyethylene oxide electrolyte between a lithium iron phosphate cathode and lithium titanate anode. All of these are thermoplastic materials, which can be stretched under mild heating.

It’s fully wearable and fully flexible without using any liquid electrolytes. The trouble is that the artificial leather-like material is not yet waterproof or washable. When it is, they expect to see all sorts of application, from portable debrillating to medical monitoring.  I wonder if that liquipel technology would help?

Photo Top: Tron [ Source: PDF Link ]

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