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Patent application 12/002,148 filed in Dec 14, 2007 reveals several ways of using a “remote wand” to control the “operations of [an] electronic device.”  To make things more clear, let’s rename the “remote wand” with iPhone and “electronic device” with Apple TV.   We already know that the “Remote” application installed on an iPhone will allow you to control iTunes and Apple TV.  However, this patent application reveals a completely different methodology for using your iPhone as a remote control.  Rather than selecting the media on your iPhone, you purely use the iPhone as an input device for selecting on the big screen.  Several methods are described, including the use of the iPhone’s acceleraometers, gyroscopes, and motion detection components.  This would indeed allow you to use the iPhone as a wand.  Methods for controlling a cursor on the big screen using the iPhone’s touchscreen is also included (as seen in the second image).

Interestingly, the claims of the patent application are all limted to controlling a “screen saver.”  Presumably, using your iPhone as a “remote wand” is not novel and/or unobvious enough to be claimed independently.

Update: Looks like several other patent application also filed on Dec 14, 2007 by Apple share the same specification as 12/002,148 mentioned above.  Each of course has its own set of claims.  This is not surprising as the Specifications is rather lengthy and there may be more than one invention in there.   Apparently, Apple isn’t limiting claims to a “screen saver.”  See all the fun details of the 12/002,197, 12/002,063, 12/002,198, and 12/002,053 claims by following the links.

Research in Motion (the maker of Blackberry) filed a patent application titled “PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND CAPACITIVE CHARGER PROVIDING DATA TRANSFER AND ASSOCIATED METHODS” - titles with all caps are not uncommon in patent applications, don’t ask us why.  What really catches our eye is the “data transfer” part.  Imagine being able to not just lay your phone down next to your computer on a pad for charging, but also for syncing with your computer.  Now, why doesn’t Touchstone support that for the Palm Pre?  Palm, you got $500mm from Elevation Partners and you missed this?  If Research In Motion has it their way, this may be a Blackberry exclusive for years to come.

eBay is undoubtedly the champion of selling used goods.  Those who follow Amazon closely know all too well that Amazon launched their own online auction system and failed miserably.  Well, it looks like Amazon may be ready to do battle once again.  Amazon recently filed a continuation patent application (12/332,246) which has a priority date that goes as far back as Oct 2001.  The invention is for marketplace where users can sell to one another.  Sort of like a classifieds, but with a twist.  The marketplace is tied into their catalog system, which is pretty much Amazon’s primary model. 

The images do a pretty good job of describing the system.  For example, say you own a Canon SD1100IS and would like to sell it.  You can search for the product on Amazon and click to sell yours.  This will add a link to your used camera (which will be listed in the marketplace) from the Canaon SD1100IS page in the catalog.  You set a price and specify the condition.  Future visitors to the catalog page will see the link and may follow it to the marketplace and purchase your used camera.  Also interesting is the ability for buyers to post that they are willing to buy it used and post the price and condition they are looking for.  This is then also linked from the catalog page.  Could this be a better way to sell used?  It’s already available for merchants selling used, but will it work for user to sell used goods like eBay does?

This patent application by Google may be on to something.  As we’re all intricately aware, Google has done more than anyone else to capitalize off PPC (pay per click).  Their patent application, 11/948,171 brings the same concept to telephone calls.  As coined in the patent application, advertisers would be charged based on a “cost-per-call amount.”  Here’s how the “cost-per-call” advertisement works.  Let’s say an advertiser has a phone number for consumers to place an order, and let’s call this a “second telephone number.”  The “first telephone number” is a number created for an advertisement that is associated with the “second telephone number” - i.e., calls to the “first telephone number” are forwarded to the “second telephone number.”  When an ad is displayed, and somebody calls the “first telephone number,” Google is able to track this call and charge the advertiser the “cost-per-call.”  To prevent call fraud, Google also discusses the concept of a “call-through event” which would make sure that the advertiser wasn’t charged for more than say 5 phone calls from the same number.

Have you ever installed the Skype plug-in which recognizes phone numbers whether you’re browsing the web or reading email, and lets you call via Skype immediately?  Well, eBay is applying a similar concept for making payments.  We just covered eBay’s patent application for sending payment over a social network last week.  Not surprisingly, they appear very focused on making their payment system ubiquitous.

In one embodiment of their recent patent application 11/940,403, you’ll be able to right click on an email address and have the option to send payment to that individual.  Simple enough, right?  Just be sure you don’t misclick and accidentally send money to that random email address.

Tired of taking forever to scroll through that 1000+ contact list of yours on your iPhone?  You could clean up your outdated contact list and remove the 8 out of 10 “Tom” that you no longer recognize, or you could get a future Sony Ericsson phone with scroll speed control.  Sony Ericsson’s patent application 11/941,306 covers the concept of adjusting the scroll speed based on where you swipe.  Swipe in the left region, up or down, and it will scroll at 1x (normal).  If you want accelerated scroll, swipe using the center region.  If you want even faster scroll, and your eyes can handle 5x, go ahead and use the right region.  We think this is pretty nifty.

If your massive multiplayer gaming character is more popular than you are, Sony’s patent application 12/360,070 may be of great interest to you.  It looks like Sony will be making it much easier for you to capture video clips of your game play and posting to your website.  The patent application covers:

• Manually or automatically triggering the start of a recording.  Automatic triggering can occur by a criteria you specify.
• Capturing the video prior to the start trigger (which is cached for this purpose) and after the end trigger.
• Uploading to a blog, web page, or social networking site

The figures reveal what the application might look like.  As seen in one of the figures, this could be a universal video capture application across all of Sony’s games.

If I am reading Sony’s patent application 12/270,924 correctly, I’d have to say it has dubious applications.  From my take, it appears that Sony is desperating trying to catch up in the motion sensing arena and seems forced to figure out something not yet done with motion sensing game controllers.  Here’s what they came up with.  A game controller that vibrates when you pull a trigger (such as firing a gun), wherein the vibration is detected by the motion sensor in the controller and sent to the gaming device.  I suppose that is how the gaming device will know you pulled the trigger.  I can’t seem to wrap my head around how this is better than just sending a signal from the controller to the gaming device to say the trigger has been pulled.  Perhaps I’m not getting something, but a second read didn’t help.  Anybody else want to take a stab at interpreting?

Motorola is down but not out (yet).  They continue innovating as witnessed by their steady stream of patent filings.  Their recent patent application (11/937,830)  titled “Viewable Surface Having Unnoticeable Smudges” caught our attention.  Below is the abstract of the patent application.

A device (110, 151, 200) with a viewable surface (201) including a plurality of transparent pedestals (210) having a reflective material (406) disposed on its sides (408) make smudges forming thereon unnoticeable by taking advantage of optical characteristics including contrast and the user’s visual acuity. The pedestals (210) generally have a width (412) of less than 50 microns, a height (414) equal to twice the width (412), and a spacing (416) between adjacent pedestals (210) equal to the width (412). The device (110, 151, 200) may be an electronic device, and more particularly a portable electronic device such as a cell phone.

The application goes on to further explain that smudges are generally not observable when the display is on.   Smudges are also not very noticable when viewing the display dead on.  I.e., smudges are more noticable when viewing the display at an angle.  Thus, the “pedestal structure” of the invention “reduces the likelihood of the smudges being seen at these angles when the display is off.” 

Our iPhone and Treo Pro could definitely use this technology.  Let’s keep our fingers crossed that this helps with the glossy body as well as the screen.

As our previous blog notes, Microsoft has done its share to advance the mouse.    A new patent application discloses a mouse with a ring-shaped scroll wheel.  Wait, don’t we already have that you ask?  Well, sort of.  We have a scroll wheel, but it’s typically a solid wheel, and not hollow in the center as the “ring-shaped” signifies.  Here’s Microsoft’s explanation:

Prior scroll wheels are generally solid circular wheels with a hub positioned at the center. These prior scroll wheels are rotatably mounted to a mouse body by an axle extending through a center hub of the scroll wheel. The center hub, axle, and associated support structure for the scroll wheel occupy valuable space inside the mouse, and their shape are accommodated by the mouse body, resulting in a relatively standardized appearance, including height profile, among many prior computer mouse designs.

Patent application 11/938,798 may provide marginal improvement for the mouse, but the true significance may be with other controllers.  As the patent application points out, a gaming controller with a ring-shaped scroll wheel may be next.