MSFT Gets Touch Cover Keyboard Patent for Surface Tablet
Microsoft has received patents for touch keyboard and magnetic coupling.
Ever since the Surface tablet was launched by Microsoft, the company has been busy trying to lock down the best aspect of its product. For those who don't know, the Surface is a tablet from Microsoft that runs on either Windows 8 or Windows 8 RT and has a kickstand and a smart cover. The smart cover is, however, not just any old cover. It outdoes every other cover available, featuring a magnetically attached touch keyboard with a capacitive touch tracker pad.
This cover has turned into something rather iconic for Surface tablets. Microsoft is making sure it stays that way, as it has now obtained patents for both the touch keyboard cover and the magnetic coupling. While Microsoft might be a bit paranoid about its design being stolen, you can't fault the company for trying to secure it as its own, especially as this type of technology is highly desirable to other tablet makers. If you are still in the dark about what the fuss is all about, we would recommend you look back to the original commercial for the tablet.
Do you think that this move by Microsoft is going to stop the development of cover keyboards by other companies due to potential lawsuits? Hopefully, we will see some development in alternative input methods, such as advanced gestures, eye tracking or even laser projected keyboards.
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WithoutWeakness This is actually something I'm not upset about someone patenting. Although other tablets have keyboard cases from third-party manufacturers, the Touch Cover's capacitive design, the purpose-specific magnetic connectors on the tablet, and the inclusion/use of the kickstand were really the most innovative implementation that any manufacturer has come up with to marry a keyboard to a tablet. I wouldn't be surprised if Apple was on their heels thinking of how to develop one of their Smart Covers to mimic the keyboard design of the Surface.Reply -
everlast66 WithoutWeakness... really the most innovative implementation that any manufacturer has come up with ...Wasn't it Apple that first come up with the idea to have a magnetically attached cover ?!?Reply
Now all of a sudden M$ most innovative, M$ and innovative do not belong to one and the same sentence. -
tokencode everlast66Wasn't it Apple that first come up with the idea to have a magnetically attached cover ?!?Now all of a sudden M$ most innovative, M$ and innovative do not belong to one and the same sentence.Reply
Except Apple's covers weren't 1/2 as functional... This is far nicer than any Apple cover... -
everlast66 WithoutWeakness... really the most innovative implementation that any manufacturer has come up with ...And Apple is also the only manufacturer that I know of that uses and has used for years magnetically attached connectors on their laptops.Reply -
Chairman Ray everlast66Wasn't it Apple that first come up with the idea to have a magnetically attached cover ?!?Now all of a sudden M$ most innovative, M$ and innovative do not belong to one and the same sentence.Reply
Magnetic covers have been used for devices since early handheld calculators. Although keyboards being embedded in covers isn't new either, the way Microsoft implemented it is something very innovative.
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everlast66 I am yet to see at least 1 of these so innovative devices in the wild !Reply
Stupid people aren't they realizing what are they missing by not buying one of these masterpieces /sarcasm -
jhansonxi everlast66Wasn't it Apple that first come up with the idea to have a magnetically attached cover ?!?Now all of a sudden M$ most innovative, M$ and innovative do not belong to one and the same sentence.It may have but I think these patents are design patents which protect the specific design (regardless of who invented the "magnetic latch"), not utility patents which protect the functionality (against any design): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design_patentReply
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everlast66 otacon72..either does the word intelligent and your name....while yours goes very well with moronReply