Apple gamepad patent exposure, or using multiple designs
Apple gamepad patent exposure, or using multiple designs, Apple applied for related patents in Europe, which was published on March 31, 222, and Apple is testing three gamepad styles. Apple gamepad patent exposure, or adopt a variety of designs. Apple's gamepad patents are exposed, or multiple designs are adopted. 1
According to the recently published patents, Apple is developing gamepads that can be seamlessly connected to the iPhone or iPad. From the patent description, we can see that there are three styles of gamepads.
The shape of the first gamepad is similar to that of JoyCon on Nintendo Swtich, and like JoyCon, the function keys and cross keys of the two gamepads given by Apple are reversed, which is expected to be connected to iPhone or iPad by adsorption.
The second gamepad is similar in shape to Nintendo's 3DS handheld, with a cross key on the left, a function key on the right and an auxiliary screen in the middle, which can provide virtual keys for typing and other related operations. The connection method of this device can refer to Apple's wonderful keyboard and adopt magnetic attraction.
The appearance of the third gamepad is similar to that of the mainstream gamepad at present. It is designed with the left joystick and the right function key, and there is a sliding button in the middle, through which users can perform a series of quick operations. This kind of handle has the lowest learning cost for players, and it also reduces the difficulty of connecting the handle with the equipment.
At present, the above design is still in the patent stage. Generally, Apple will wait until the product is relatively mature before choosing to go public. According to some actions of Apple at present, it seems that it intends to return to the game console market. Apple's gamepad patents are exposed, or a variety of designs are adopted. 2
According to the latest patent, Apple may be building its own gamepad for iPhone and iPad.
According to Patently Apple, Apple applied for a related patent in Europe, which was published on March 31, 222 with the number of WO22267344.
The patent shows that Apple is testing three gamepad styles. The first one is 6A, 6B, 6F and 6J in the patent drawing, which looks a bit like the JoyCon handle of the Switch, and can turn the iPhone and iPad into a portable game device. Half of the handles can be connected to the Lightning interface, but it is not clear how the other half is paired with the iPhone, and Apple may connect wirelessly.
The other handle is a bit like Nintendo 3DS, and may have an auxiliary screen to help users communicate with each other through the pop-up keyboard.
The third handle style is more traditional, but since it is not a design patent, the actual commercial product may look very different. This controller can be used with Apple TV, and provides a slidable switch, allowing users to start the game mode, information transfer mode or telephone mode.
Of course, as a patent, whether Apple will actually launch a similar gamepad is still unknown, and we will keep an eye on it. Apple's gamepad patent is exposed, or a variety of designs are adopted. 3
For a long time, it has been widely rumored that Apple is brewing a game console based on ARM hardware. The latest exposure of a patent implies that the Cupertino technology giant is developing a gamepad that can be seamlessly connected to iPhone and iPad. Patently Apple pointed out that Apple may test three different styles of handles for various devices.
interestingly, Apple did not apply for a patent in the United States, but placed it in the European market with different rules, which was officially announced to the outside world on March 31, 222.
the patent document with the number of WO22267344 states that the electronic device can display the user interface related to the game in response to detecting the connected input device.
in some instances, the UI will reduce the coverage in response to detecting an external device. In other cases, it can project the interface of the input device and allow users to guide to different interfaces according to different operating modes.
It is said that Apple is currently testing three different styles of gamepads, and accessories such as FIG 6A, 6B, 6F and 6J can be easily attached to the iPhone, making it easy for the latter to become a portable game device.
However, WCCFTech pointed out that although it seems that one end can be connected to the Lighting port, it is still impossible to judge how the other end will be paired with the iPhone. One guess is that Apple may choose a communication pairing method similar to AirPods.
The second style of gamepad allows the iPhone to be used like a compact laptop. And it may have a secondary display screen, allowing users to type and communicate through a pop-up keyboard.
The third handle style is more traditional, but because they are not the final design patent, the actual commercial version may be quite different from that depicted on the way.
if you already have an Apple TV set-top box, you may be looking forward to using it-because it also provides a slidable switch control that allows users to start the game/message/phone mode.