Apple could integrate projectors directly into iOS devices

Your future iPhone or iPad could come with its own projector.

Granted to Apple on Tuesday by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, a patent called "Projected display shared workspaces" envisions a technology that would integrate small projectors into iOS devices and give users the ability to control their presentations with gestures.

The technology would rely on the built-in camera to detect the shadows and silhouettes created through gesturing at the projected areas. The projector technology also could work among multiple displays from multiple devices. Again using gestures, users could share and swap images from one projected display to another.

As the patent describes it:

In one embodiment, electronic devices each may include a projector that produces a projected display and a camera that detects gestures made with respect to the projected displays. The electronic devices may interpret gestures on the projected displays to identify image sharing commands for sharing images between the projected displays. The electronic devices may be connected through a communication link that allows the electronic devices to share image data for producing images on any of the projected displays included within the shared workspace.

There are gadgets on the market right now that can turn your iPhone into a mini projector. But Apple's integrated invention could take the technology a few steps further with its gesture-based image-sharing features.

Isn't technology amazing! 

new member

Thank you, Ron, for inviting me to the blog. I only have an iphone and am pretty good with it. My only problem has been that when I synced it to my PC I got all the pictures on my phone that were on my computer. I can't figure out how to delete them from my phone (I still want them on my computer). I will look at old posts and also look to see if anyone answers this post regarding this. Thanks, Mary

Give up on the finger!!

I couldn't help noticing that most of you with iPads attending the last users group meeting are still using your fingers to navigate around the touch screen. I've been an iPad and iPhone user for over a year now and fairly early on decided that my podgy (and sometimes sweaty!) fingers were not the ideal interface for these sophisticated machines, especially the iPhone where the alpha numerics are really difficult to pinpoint with any degree of accuracy.

I decided to buy a stylus and it made a huge difference, so my recommendation to all of you that are still struggling with the fingers is to do the same and invest in one. I bought a griffin which seems to be about one of the best and is reasonably priced. Their website is http://store.griffintechnology.com/stylus,  & although they advertise them for about $20 you can get better deals through Amazon or Ebay.

It makes typing a whole lot quicker and it is also much easier to select icons and text.

Give the finger the finger!!

Richard