Apple patents iPhones with infrared sensors

One of the more interesting patents from Apple discovered at the US Patent Office this week has got to be this infrared sensor for the iPhone camera. Apple has filed a patent that covers infrared technology on its upcoming iPhones. But no, it’s not what you’re thinking – these won’t be infrared sensors that will let your iPhone shoot images in the dark. Instead, they act like versatile triggers to control different functions of the iPhone. I.e. At a concert, if they transmit infrared signals out and the iPhone receives them, it could disable the cameras for the duration of the concert. Or even better – add a watermark on it to any videos taken with the camera.

Other situations could be disabling the camera in a movie theater, or launching an audio tour in the museum. It could also be used to put phones into silent mode while in the library and so on. Sounds like a useful feature to have, and a great way to deal with folks who forget to put their phones in silent mode when required.

George Wong
Categories: Apple, Cellphones
Tags: Apple Inc, Camera, iPhone, Patent