Future Apple Pencils may recognize more gestures (and more)

Apple may add the ability to recognize gestures such as swiping in a  future version of the Apple Pencil. The tech giant has been granted a patent (number 11,340,716) for “touch-based input for stylus.” 

About the patent

In the patent filing, Appel notes that a stylus can be utilized to provide input by contacting a touch panel of an electronic device such as an iPad. The touch panel may include a touch sensitive surface that, in response to detecting a touch event, generates a signal that can be processed and utilized by other components of the electronic device. Apple wants users to be able to move the tip of an Apple Pencil across the touch panel in a pattern that an iPad translates into an input command. 

Summary of the patent

Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent: “Touch-based input devices, such as a stylus, can receive tactile input from a user. The tactile input functions can be performed by a touch sensor, such as a capacitive sensing device. A touch sensor can be integrated into a stylus in a low profile form. 

“Tactile input can be received at the user’s natural grip location. Furthermore, the stylus can effectively distinguish between tactile inputs from a user and disregard sustained tactile inputs that are provided while the user simply holds the stylus at the user’s natural grip location.”

Other potential features of future Apple Pencils

Apple has filed for, or been granted various patents involving new features for an Apple Pencil, such as

° The ability to sample colors;

° The ability to provide unique tactile sensations;

° iPhone and Apple Watch support;

° Mac support.