Apple Files Patents for Dual Mode Computer

Another Apple patent claim has been made public by the World Intellectual Property Organization. This time it’s for a computer design which has the ability to switch between the traditional function of a computer and a touch-based input with an adjustable stand.

Resembling a mashup of the classic iMac G4 and the current designs, the new design uses a combination of sensors to detect its orientation to determine which mode of input should be activated, according to Patently Apple.

Ever since releasing the iPhone in 2007, innovation in the Mac space has been far and few in between. The majority of upgrades and changes to the Mac hardware has been mostly slight and composed of little more than adding better processors, hard drives, RAM, and the move to unibody design for the notebooks and the Mac mini. Apple’s signature iMac hasn’t seen much change since the introduction of the iMac G5 in 2004.

There has always been speculation as to whether Apple will move towards a touch based interface for all its Mac products given how iOS and Mac OS X share the same underlying code. What becomes the issue is the fact that Mac OS X was not designed and is not appropriate for a touch based interface. Many of its elements are dependent on mouse-specific capabilities, an interface that dates back to 1983 with the Apple Lisa. A move towards a touch-based input will require a massive reworking of the interface.

With the increased popularity of touch-based interface, it’s in Apple’s best interest to move the technology forward and to somehow find a way to implement this into their Mac hardware. It would also deliver a way to reduce the inefficiency of having to develop for two diverging operating systems, one for mobile and one for stationary. It is clear that Apple’s focus on the iOS since 2007 has taken much away from Mac OS X development and innovations, having delayed Mac OS X Leopard and Snow Leopard released.

Should the next Mac OS X version, 10.7 be a hybrid OS, it would spark a lot of interest back to the Mac scene and potentially be the start of a gradual merger between Apple’s two operating systems.

Apple holds tens of thousands of patents and regularly files new patents for any kind of work or innovation that they have developed in their labs. There is no guarantee that this is something that they will devote time and resources on and if it will even see the light of day but it’s certainly something for the rest of us to think about.