4. Rotating iPhone screen patent: gas canister
When in free fall a “thrust mechanism” may deploy compressed gas external from a “canister” to alter a device's momentum or orientation.
This one is a little far-fetched for us. In terms of theory though, it is possibly one of the most sound. However an iPhone with an internal and refillable gas canister is impractical and very improbable.
5. Rotating iPhone screen patent: aerodynamics
The aerodynamics entry is a little vague, but essentially the patent describes a mobile electronic device activating an “air foil” to reduce the velocity of the fall. The accompanying drawing details a flap being created to increase drag.
Data collection
Interestingly, the patent also describes that it would collect fall and impact data such as drop height, frequency, orientation and velocity. Such data would be used to “better estimate a predicted free fall orientation and activate a particular protective mechanism”.
This data alone could be the biggest step towards stronger smartphones as design teams could and should react accordingly.
This article originally appeared at pcpro.co.uk
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