Apple has patented an app-controlled, color-changing Apple Watch band.
According to Patently Apple(opens in new tab)the US Patent and Trademark Office formally granted the patent to Apple on Tuesday.
Apple Receives Patent for Apple Watch with Camera
An application published on the government’s website details how the technology works. The band “includes an electrochromic feature that provides adjustable color control based on applied voltage, offering a wide variety of colors and color combinations displayed in a single band.” Apple Through what appears to be a Watch or iPhone interface, users are able to “control, select, and/or adjust the color of the watch band.”
Illustrations in the patent show how the Apple Watch controls the color and style of the band.
Credit: Apple
Electrochromic materials are best known as the technology behind anti-glare mirrors in cars and smart glass windows that adjust heat to become tinted or opaque. The patent describes how the filament or fiber of the band can contain conductors and electrochromic layers that respond when a voltage is applied. The filaments are woven into the fabric just like regular fabric bands. The figure shows his three stripes of fabric that can display different colors independently.
The patent also describes how users can manually change colors or automatically adjust colors based on time, date, text, icons, and notifications. So your watch band may change color when you receive a new text or an alarm sounds. So it’s like a very sophisticated mood ring.
Weaving this technology, which is primarily used in glass, into fabric is a pretty amazing achievement. Worth it.
Apple and other big tech companies have moonshot research and development programs that often file for patents and never come to fruition. Additionally, the Apple Watch’s interchangeable bands are an advantage for Apple and offer opportunities for brand collaboration.
That said, Apple recently patented a built-in smartwatch camera, so those patents could be the seeds of some big changes coming with the Apple Watch.
