Apple's New Patent Reveals Future iPhones Could Predict When a Battery Will Run Out, Underwater Features

Apple may add a new feature to future iPhones that could predict its battery would likely die out, ditching the old system that displays battery percentages.

According to Apple Insider's report on Tuesday, Apr. 6, a newly granted patent suggests that the tech company moved from concerning about prolonging battery life to minimizing the inconvenience brought by running out of battery power.

Apple's Smart Advice to Charge Notification: How Does It Work?

The patent named "Smart advice to charge notification," which was granted on Apr. 6, offers a system that informs users when to charge their phones far in advance.

The system will base its prediction on historic data gathered from the user's charging habits and the state of the phone's charge over time.

Unlike the current system used in smartphones where it displays the percentage of remaining battery charge, the Smart Advice would ultimately give users the freedom to plan and minimize any potential inconveniences.

Once the phone had collected the user's charging pattern and its historic state of charge information, it would send a notification informing the user if the phone's charge would make it until the next high probability charge time.

"If analysis of the current, and stored, state of charge information indicates that the user will not make it to their next high probability charge time without running out of energy," the patent reads. "The computing device can display an advice to charge notification."

The patent continued that the system would use methods such as "measuring and storing, at a plurality of regular intervals," to gather the state of charge information, which the system could time stamp.

Apple Granted More Patents Including Underwater User Interface

The US Patent & Trademark Office had been granting Apple a series of patents since the start of 2021, and one of them would arm future iPhones with a specialized user interface while the phone is underwater.

Named "Underwater user interface," the design allows users to continue using a phone while working underwater.

Patently Apple reported on Tuesday, Apr. 6, that the patent suggests that the feature may be geared towards divers or snorkelers who loves taking photos and videos underwater.

The illustrations on the patent also suggest that the phone's interface would be simplified while it is underwater, with two buttons dedicated to turning on the camera and flashlight respectively.

"Devices are provided with faster, more efficient methods for accessing underwater user interfaces and interfaces for interacting with an electronic device while the electronic device is underwater, thereby increasing the effectiveness, efficiency, and user satisfaction with such devices," the patent reads.

The document added that the patent may replace or complement existing methods to accessing a device's user interface while both it and its user is underwater.

This article is owned by Tech Times

Written by Lee Mercado