Future Apple operating systems may offer virtual device overlay methods

Apple has filed for a patent (number 20220121358) for a “device, method, and graphical user interface for displaying user interfaces and user device overlay elements.”

About the patent filing

In the patent filing, Apple notes that using inputs for manipulating user interfaces of an electronic device has become ubiquitous. For example, Macs, iPhones, iPads and other devices use peripheral-type inputs such as a touchscreen input, mouse, or keyboard in order to affect the display of one or more user interfaces. 

However, Apple says that many of these inputs provide limited and inefficient control for manipulating the user interface. Repetitive, complex, and/or cumbersome inputs or input types may be needed to manipulate the user interface as desired.

Apple says there’s a need for electronic devices with faster, more efficient methods and interfaces for navigating and manipulating user interfaces. Such methods and interfaces optionally complement or replace conventional methods for navigating and manipulating user interfaces. Apple’s idea is for device overlay element.

Summary of the patent filing

Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent filing with technical details: “A method includes: displaying a first display region in a full-screen view that includes a first type of component displayed with a first set of display properties; detecting a first user input to display a second display region; and, in response to detecting the first user input: in accordance with a determination that the first user input corresponds to a request to display the second display region in the full-screen view, displaying the second display region in the full-screen view that includes the first type of component displayed with the first set of display properties; and in accordance with a determination that the first user input corresponds to a request to display the second display region in a partial-screen view, displaying the second display region in the partial-screen view that includes the first type of component displayed with a second set of display properties.”