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Apple Patent Could Herald Interchangeable iPhone Camera Lenses
concertina226 (2447056) writes with this excerpt from IBTimes: "Apple has been granted a patent for interchangeable camera lenses — which could be used on the up-coming iPhone 6. The application was granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office in remarkably quick time, according to Patently Apple. Patent No. 8,687,299 has been granted to Apple today for 'Bayonet attachment mechanisms,' i.e. a bayonet mount that is able to securely attach lenses to an iOS device, such as an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad. A bayonet mount is a fastening mechanism which is typically seen on cameras, used to attach lenses to the camera body. At the moment, there is no adjustable camera lens system in existence for smartphones, although there are lots of third party macro lens products that consumers can buy to clip onto their smartphone."
wow, you mean like the 5s
When apple wins a patent for "bayonet attachment mechanisms", why would you assume it would be used for camera lenses?
I'm an Apple shareholder but not a patent lawyer. Bayonet lenses are nothing new. I don't understand why USPTO would grant a patent for something I've been using since the 70s.
Can anyone shed some light on that?
Perfect for trench warfare!
No prior art here. A completely unique idea. I hand it to Apple for inventing the bayonet mount- on a computer.
Since when does taking a common connection technique (twist lock) make it patent worthy?
And there, right in the summary we have:
At the moment, there is no adjustable camera lens system in existence for smartphones, although there are lots of third party macro lens products that consumers can buy to clip onto their smartphone."
The need have been shown by third party, the next natural step is to integrate it.
There is no reason for this patent to be granted. Hopefully it is a joke but sadly enough it as obvious as it should be.
Lenses seem like a natural progression.
I dont understand how this could be patented if it is already a thing, just on a different piece of hardware. "A bayonet mount is a fastening mechanism which is typically seen on cameras." So it already exists...
Patent No. 8,687,299 has been granted to Apple today for 'Bayonet attachment mechanisms,' i.e. a bayonet mount that is able to securely attach lenses to an iOS device, such as an iPhone, iPod touch or iPad.
Great.
Stick a black synthetic stock and a large capacity SD card on that bad boy, and Diane Feinstein will demand it be banned.
An enigma, wrapped in a riddle, shrouded in bacon and cheese
You're still stuck with the shitty sensor and tiny lens on the camera itself, regardless of what hipster filter you stick on it.
I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
Why? Because patents don't necessarily mean ANYTHING. Here's one from a DOZEN YEARS AGO about an Apple patent on color-changing cases. Still waiting for those...
Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
Like they have been doing on regular cameras forever? I can't believe they got a patent granted for this. Prior art = Leica M3 with a bayonet was released in 1954, and followed by pretty well every camera manufacturer since.
Would the concept modular phone that was floating around some months ago constitute prior art? I remember it had just such a concept. It should at least be proof of non-originality (not that this would really matter legally speaking, unless it's actual prior art). How would this be affected by the recent patent changes where it's now "first to file" vs. "first to describe"?
Apple receives patent #999666 for "power adaptor allows handheld device to be charged from AC mains" and patent #666999 for "Handheld device User-interface buttons".
I hope this is an April Fools joke. How long have cameras had a bayonet lens mount?
there are 3 kinds of people:
* those who can count
* those who can't
I'm sorry but this has existed in one form or other on hundreds of different cameras for many decades! Simply adding one more camera to the list (iPhone) does not make it a new and patentable device! Clearly this is prior art and the patent should have been rejected by the patent office.
https://www.dx.com/p/4-in-1-10x-telescope-fisheye-macro-wide-angle-lens-set-for-samsung-galaxy-s3-i9300-black-306950
Sure looks like a bayonette connector integrated into a case to me :)
Petty drivel, then that's why they're still stuck on this earth.
I can't wait until Apple patents life, and all the technology that springs from it. Fuck Apple.
What is this bullshit title, whenever has a patent ever brought innovation? Never.
The title should be changed to "Apple patent could prevent any interchangeable camera lenses on phones."
I don't know why Apple would ever add a bayonet mount to a camera, it really messes with the smooth look they go for and makes for something really easy to break on a camera. Also anything recessed on a camera is going to get really dirty, and be very hard to clean - so this would mess with the camera for most people who never wanted to attach other lenses.
Instead I would expect them to do something like a magnetic mount - they could easily place a steel ring around the lens opening, even just under the surface, that lenses could clamp onto via magnets. External lenses don't need to be mounted in any particular orientation, just straight over the camera lens...
Also why is the story talking about adjustable lenses? That's not what the patent is about. It's only about the mount. Its not like I cannot already buy an iPhone case that has such a mount and attach lenses as it is.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Do key-ring sized, easily lost add on lenses covered in pocket lint secure a need here? The point of a camera phone is to have an all-in-one unit that does a good enough job. Beyond that, well established mature solutions exist: compact cameras and DSLRs. These have been around a long time and perfected.
It is true that sensors in top of the line phones get the latest technology. However, they also get low budget versions of that technology and they *are* tiny compared to full frame and medium format cameras.
One of the reasons people still use those bigger sensors is that the quality of the lens system used is less critical to prevent distortion if your sensor is bigger. If you use a 4*3 meter sensor (your wall) you can get amazing pictures with just a tiny hole in the curtains, you can do away with a lens completely. This scales up and down, so the more area, the better the image quality given the same quality of lens.
Also you can get a much better control over depth of field with larger sensors. If you have a larger aperture you get a more shallow depth of field, giving you the option to blur the back and foreground. Aperture sizes larger than your sensor aren't effective any more, so tiny sensors can only go so far when it comes to shallow DOF.
Lastly the "compression" of your subject (how big their nose is if you get closer to their face to fill the frame) gives more natural looks if you use bigger sensors. The same sort of physics apply here. Bigger sensors equal bigger focal lengths of the lenses to get the entire sensor exposed properly with the same composition. That means that you get less of a fish eye effect and people in general look more pleasing when photographed with a bigger sensor style camera.
Apart from all these reasons, I despise smart phone cameras because they aren't instant ready and I haven't found one phone+app that will let me control things like focus points, ISO sensitivity, white balance and such. Maybe they are out there, but they must be in telephones that cost way more than a much better dedicated camera so I have never looked at them. Horrible ergonomics make even the best sensor and lens totally useless for anything but casual snap shots. Given the same price, I'd rather have a decent camera with an older generation sensor and lens than the latest smart phone with a horrible user interface and the typical 300+ ms lag between grabbing the device and being able to take a picture.
I was promised a flying car. Where is my flying car?
I used to look forward annually to see what would come outâ¦why did they do away with it?
Seriously, one day of OMG Poniesâ¦was fun and funny.
RIP April Fools on Slashdot.
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
no? then no it's not prior art...
they're not patenting the idea of bayonet connectors, they're patenting *A* Bayonet connector... just as Canon Patented the EOS mount, Nikon patented the F mount...
patents have expired, and there are millions of lenses out there.
if this is supposed to be a new economy, how come they still want my old fashioned money?
when you can't tell whether an Apple patent story is serious or an April Fools joke.
Apple's patent was pretty specific - and probably intended to prevent third-party manufacturers from making attachable lenses for iJunk without cutting Apple in for a slice of the pie. If somebody were to devise a (similar but different) mechanism for a non-Apple smartphone, it would almost certainly differ sufficiently from Apple's mechanism to be allowed (but only after Apple attempted to sue and get an injunction, of course). Again - *Sigh*.
Let's also remember one other point - All the iPhones in existence were made by Apple, to the best of my knowledge. There are many manufacturers of Android devices. Apple may well be able to standardize their bayonet mount (their bat, their ball, their rules), but within the Android ecosystem such an item would require cooperation and buy-in from a majority of Android device manufacturers. Ever seen a horse designed by a committee? We call it a 'camel'.
"$PriorArt, on a phone."
Innovation worthy of a patent, indeed. >_>
The Christian Right is Neither (Christian nor right). See: Matthew 23, Matthew 25, Ezekiel 16:48-50
Ever seen a horse designed by a committee? We call it a 'camel'.
huhhhh?
Agreed. So far, the only truth I've read were modded -1. I think something is seriously wrong with the modding system.
it's plan b for the kill switch legislation
My God can beat up your God. Just kidding...don't take offense. I know there's no God.
Ever seen a horse designed by a committee? We call it a 'camel'.
huhhhh?
You know...one guy designs the toe, which makes the next guy want a hump...
Because of patent issues in the 1950s, Exacta 35mm cameras had the film on the right and the takeup reel on the left. You advance the firm with your left thumb.
Clockwise/counterclockwise lens mechanisms is trivial by comparison.
John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
or, "with a computer."
Credo sim. - I think I am.
Doesn't Nikon already own this patent?
It's a simple bayonet with the added feature of one of fittings clips being able to move outwards in the event the attachment is knocked so the clip doesn't snap off.
At the moment, there is no adjustable camera lens system in existence for smartphones
Really?
Unless the new phone has a lense that's more susceptible to damage, I'm not sure how useful this is. Almost every incident of damaged iPhones I've seen is a cracked front screen (digitizer/LCD), not a broken camera lense.
All the iPhones in existence were made by underpaid Chinese kids, to the best of my knowledge.
FTFY