Forget iPhone 12 — the iPhone Flip could repair itself

(Prototype credit: #iOS beta news)

When Apple tree's rumored foldable iPhone Flip phone finally appears, it could have a self-repairing display to get rid of those annoying scratches and mark on your screen.

Co-ordinate to a patent found by AppleInsider, this brandish could be used on a number of different mobile devices, from smart watches to laptops, or fifty-fifty for non-foldable devices. But the most obvious usage, and the one the patent spends the most time on, is a foldable telephone.

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In the patent "Electronic Devices With Flexible Brandish Cover Layers," Apple details a display fabricated of two stock-still panels joined past a flexible ane in the middle, potentially using elastomer parts. But more interesting is the mention of a "self-healing fabric" layer, which would cover the other layers and minimize the appearance of scratches and dents in the flexible area or the whole display.

Because foldables tin can't use the normal toughened glass outer layer that stock-still phones practise, they're more liable to be damaged by normal employ or debris. Even if this doesn't terminate the phone's touchscreen from working, information technology yet makes your very expensive device await less than its best.

The patent besides suggests using light, heat or other stimuli to brand the layer to reform instead. In the case of using heat, the phone could use a layer of heating elements running through the display that will activate when the phone is charging or switched on manually by a user. You won't discover a lot of specific particular on how exactly this organisation works, merely it would certainly be useful to take this layer on a folding iPhone.

A basic diagram of how the three parts fit together. (Paradigm credit: USPTO)

The patent isn't specific about how the phone would fold either. While we'd expect the phone to fold screen-in, like the Milky way Z Flip 5G or Motorola Razr, the patent also mentions the display being visible around the exterior of the folded device. This has been done earlier, for example by the Huawei Mate X and Mate Xs or the Royole FlexPai, but it's a lot less common, in part because at that place'south a greater risk of dissentious the display.

A cross section of the display. (Prototype credit: USPTO)

Because patents are just for reserving buying of a design, there's no way to confirm if any future product would use this tech. Hoping it'll get reality isn't unreasonable though, as the numerous patents Apple has already filed relating to foldable devices seem to suggest nosotros'll go a foldable iPhone sooner or subsequently.

In the meantime, we tin expect forward to the iPhone 12 instead. It can't fold, just information technology will have 5G, iii new size options and some new photography tricks thanks to a LiDAR sensor on the 2 Pro models. We're expecting it to launch equally before long as October 13, which is the rumored date of the side by side large Apple upshot.

Richard is a Tom's Guide staff author based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, gaming, audio and whatever else people demand advice on. Post-obit on from his MA in Mag Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he'south too written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at piece of work, he's probable thinking nigh how to mash the perfect loving cup of specialty coffee.