Former Apple engineer wants credit for contributions to Find My iPhone, Passbook tech

Another day, another lawsuit. As noted by AppleInsider, Darren Eastman, a former Apple engineer, is suing the tech giant for failing to include his name as an inventor of five patent applications filed by the company, including the ideas behind the “Find My iPhone” and Apple’s Passbook technology. 

He wants to be acknowledged as an inventor for five Apple patent applications, according to filings with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Filed on Thursday, the complaint alleges how Eastman’s ideas were accepted and then employed by Apple in its products and filings, but without his crediting. 

Find My iPhone is a default app included with iOS and it can be used for much more than simply finding a lost iPhone. The app is at the core of Apple’s phone security if you lose your iPhone or it is stolen. You can log onto Find My iPhone from another iOS device signed into your Apple ID or with a web browser at http://www.icloud.com. 

Passbook was the forerunner of the Wallet app in iOS. It allowed you to store coupons, boarding passes, event tickets, public transportation tickets, store cards and credit cards, loyalty cards, and debit cards via Apple Pay.