Apple patent filing involves ‘social reminders’ on its various devices

Apple has applied for a patent (number 20180343557) for “social reminders” based on social interactions between users of electronic devices such as iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches, and Macs. In the patent filing, Apple notes that conventional reminders aren’t as helpful when it’s “infeasible” for you to specify a date and/or time ahead of time. 

Per the invention, social reminders can be set to trigger based on social interactions of users. For example, a user may request to be reminded to discuss a certain discussion topic with a particular phonebook contact, when the user next encounters the contact.

Social reminders don’t have to created based on a pre-determined date and time. For example, a social reminder can be set to display when the user comes within range of another user (e.g., when the devices of both users come within a threshold range). 

Of course, Apple files for — and is granted — lots of patents by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Many are for inventions that never see the light of day. However, you never can tell which ones will materialize in a real product.