Apple has been granted a patent for a “Conformable Facial Interface” with the goal of making the Vision Pro more comfortable to wear for long periods.
About the patent
The patent relates generally to facial interfaces of a head-mountable device. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to facial interfaces of a head-mountable device that can dynamically conform to provide increased comfort, flexure, and fitting.
When it comes to wearing head-mounted devices such as the Vision Pro, obviously, users have a myriad of different anatomical features, including head size, eye location, cheek and forehead bone structure, and so forth. Unfortunately, conventional head-mountable devices fail to provide a custom, comfortable fit for a fully immersive experience, according to Apple.
In fact, many such devices have rudimentary customization features, if any. For example, users of a conventional head-mountable device may have differing facial structures that the head-mountable device cannot accommodate. This user-to-user variation can create a poor user experience, causing too much or not enough pressure on a user’s face from the head-mountable device.
Therefore, Apple says that what’s needed is a head-mountable device capable of “comfortably and dynamically adapting to different user facial profiles.”
Summary of the patent
Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent: “A wearable electronic device including a display, a frame attachable to the display, a facial interface movably attached to the frame, and a linkage assembly movably connecting the facial interface to the frame. The linkage assembly can include a first arm pivotably attached to the frame, the first arm comprising a first end and a second end, a second arm pivotably attached to the first end and attached to the facial interface, and a third arm pivotably attached to the second end and attached to the facial interface.”
I hope you’ll help support Apple World Today by becoming a patron. Patreon pricing ranges from $2 to $10 a month. Thanks in advance for your support.
