Apple patents dynamic, motion-sensing iOS interface & 3D video editing

On Tuesday, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granted Apple two separate patents.

Filed in 2007, Apple U.S. Patent No. 8,631,358 defines a “variable device graphical user interface,” which would compensate for movement of a (presumably iOS) device with software adjustments.

The patent mentions accelerometers, gyroscopes, and proximity sensors as input methods it could use to determine how to dynamically adjust the size or placement of various user interface elements. Apple notes it could match the measured changes to predefined criteria — say, patterns suggesting walking or riding in a car — to help people use their mobile devices while in motion.

The second patent, Apple’s U.S. Patent No. 8,631,047, was filed in 2010 and outlines a method for editing 3D video in an application like Final Cut Pro.

The patent describes how a video editing application could associate pairs of clips taken from one or more sources by examining its metadata. If someone made an edit to one clip, the other would be updated automatically. (Stereoscopic 3D requires two slightly offset images, which when viewed selectively by each eye, produce what appears to be a 3D image).

Unlike Adobe Premiere and Sony Vegas Pro, two competing non-linear editing platforms, Apple’s Final Cut Pro application does not currently support 3D editing out of the box. You can add 3D editing to FCP with aftermarket plugins, however.

Neither patent implies that these functions will appear in consumer products down the line, as Apple patents often sit unused. But even as interest in 3D wanes, adding more options to Final Cut Pro seems like a common-sense move — and Apple has demonstrated interest in fitness applications for the iPhone, which could potentially benefit from a dynamic interface.

Hat tip: AppleInsider