The most popular and familiar iOS gesture is ‘Slide to Unlock’, that we have to perform every time we take our beloved iOS devices out of our pockets – or handbags in case of iPads. This easy to perform gesture not only makes unlocking iOS devices faster but it also eliminates the chances of unwillingly unlocking your iPhone while it is in your pocket. Apple filed a patent in 2005 in order to protect it from copycats and introduced this lockscreen gesture at original iPhone’s event back in 2007.
Due to the slow US patent system, Apple was not granted the patent of this unique gesture they created and many companies balantly copied it over the last few years. Now today United States Patent & Trademark Office issued to patent the Apple for ‘Slide to Unlock’ gesture. That means anyone who uses it without the permission of Apple infringes the patent.
Apple explains the patent in the following words:
A device with a touch-sensitive display may be unlocked via gestures performed on the touch-sensitive display. The device is unlocked if contact with the display corresponds to a predefined gesture for unlocking the device. The device displays one or more unlock images with respect to which the predefined gesture is to be performed in order to unlock the device. The performance of the predefined gesture with respect to the unlock image may include moving the unlock image to a predefined location and/or moving the unlock image along a predefined path. The device may also display visual cues of the predefined gesture on the touch screen to remind a user of the gesture. In addition, there is a need for sensory feedback to the user regarding progress towards satisfaction of a user input condition that is required for the transition to occur.
Scott Forstal among with Apple engineers Imran Chaudhri, Bas Ording, Freddy Allen Anzures, Marcel Van Os, Stephen O. Lemay and Greg Christie are listed as the inventor of this on-screen gesture.
The patent number for this issue is 7657849. You can learn more about this patent by going this page.
[via 9to5Mac]
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