Posted on 05/05/2015 10:19:15 PM PDT by Swordmaker
The patent -- which ensures the design for the Apple Watch cannot be copied by a competitor -- was filed in August of last year, just weeks ahead of its unveiling.
The Apple Watch's design is now officially protected by the US Patent and Trademark Office.
The USPTO on Tuesday issued a design patent on the Apple Watch look and feel. The design patent filing provides precious little information, but includes several sketches showing the device from all angles, including from the top, side and underneath the face where the sensor and charging apparatus sit.
Getting a design patent is an important step in protecting an invention. Apple's newly delivered patent means other companies cannot copy the design of its wearable. It doesn't, however, prevent other companies from delivering products that are similar, but not identical in design.
Interestingly, the design patent was filed with the USPTO in August 2014, just weeks before Apple unveiled its smartwatch at an event in September. Likely in an effort to hide its plans, Apple named its patent simply "Electronic device."
The Apple Watch, which requires an iPhone 5 or later to run basic apps and receive notifications, is Apple's first foray into the wearables space, and a pricey one at that. It tops out at $17,000 for the 18-karat gold edition, with more modestly priced options like the Apple Watch Sport, which starts at $349.
The smartwatch market had been ticking quietly for several years, with occasional flutters on rumors of an impending watch from Apple. The Apple Watch went on sale last month, and analysts have contended that it is the spark that the market has been waiting for.
Competitors include a range of new or updated smartwatches from companies including Sony, Samsung, Huawei, Motorola, LG and Pebble. The Apple Watch's health-tracking capabilities also mean that consumers will be weighing it against fitness bands from the likes of Fitbit and Microsoft.
Unlike with iPhone launches, Apple has not yet disclosed initial sales figures. The smartwatch has been back-ordered since presales started April 10, and many would-be buyers won't receive their Apple Watches until June or even July. It's unclear how much of the delay is due to the strength of the demand and how much is because of supply shortages and manufacturing issues.
Apple Watch's design has been generally viewed positively, with CNET's Reviews team saying it's "the most ambitious, well-constructed smartwatch ever seen." Like most smartwatches, the Apple Watch comes with a rectangular touchscreen and is offered in three flavors -- a low-cost Sport model, the standard model, and a gold-plated Edition version. Since the basic design and form factor are identical across the product line, the design patent covers all versions.
According to the design patent documentation, Apple's intellectual property is good for 14 years.
Apple declined to comment on the patent.
It looks like a generic watch from that pic
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it's a casio watch. seriously
square face. plastic strap. fairly useless gizmos.
i guess 0bama is the 2nd coming of carter. now we're moving into the 80s
This is the sort of thing that keeps me from being an Apple Fanboy.... it's just too stupid to join in with.
http://www.amazon.com/Mirror-Wristwatch-Square-Digital-Watch/dp/B007VLJJOO
Do you know anything about that rumored "hidden" and "undocumented" connector that lives where the wrist band connects to the body? The one that some band company claims they can charge the watch through?
Is that connector mentioned in the patent application?
What, that red isn't patented? My God, man, it -should- be. That's RED.
OTOH, it's a very good thing you mentioned what that picture is of. I stared at it for half a minute thinking it was a bizarre USB Flash drive, or possibly a tequila bottle from Hell, before I read your sentence.
They are going to develop a band that charges the watch off the body’s voltage and/or micro kinetic motions.
I am going to copyright the letter T!
Then they will patent the color and shape. lol
lol
Well they could patent the band charging system.
Of course my guess is only a guess. It might even be later on for a iphone-free capability to make phone calls without the iphone. Dunno.
Human sweat and all fine motor motions of the human body, including but not limited to translations, rotations, stretches, tics, spasms and all other movements voluntary and involuntary patent applied for by Apple Inc.
Sit very still or talk to our lawyers.
rofl
If it could make phone calls without an Iphone in your pocket, it might have a point - a reason for living!
Well right now it’s smart for them not to have it that way.
They have to establish a large watch user base first. To get people used to it and then to push for it to be a standalone device.
They need a better battery life ability and that’s why I think that port is for being body powered one or more ways.
See they want to get people used to paying with things electronically by their apple watch.
Apparently there’s some big move on credit card merchants to upgrade their systems to take more secure ways of payment. Apple is getting in right now as the upgrades take place. they have till october 2016 to get the new systems in place. Other wise merchants risk liability of fraudulent charges if they don’t and some customers’ accounts are hacked and if they find it’s due to the merchants’ in any way.
So there’s that.
Personally i think it’s paving the way to cashless society which I will not be a part of, 100%.
You'll be thrilled to know that you don't have to be an Apple Fanboy to enjoy Apple products.
Thanks to a radically new, dramatically improved way of looking at things available from Apple since March, you can now own as many as three Apple products without having to register as an Apple Fanboy. All you have to do is like a few Apple products better than their competition enough to purchase them instead.
Of course, this sometimes comes with a responsibility to pony up a little more cash than for the competition's products, but that's because you can't produce high quality products for the same cost as producing lesser ones. Apple charges only what the traffic will allow, in small unmarked bills, delivered to me, Ralph Icebag, in a plain brown wrapper, by a brown-shoed square in the dead of night!
No, wait, that's Firesign...
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