A new patent for Microsoft’s long-rumored Surface phone has emerged, this time showing off the haptics of the device. The rumored handset will be a foldable tablet, codenamed Andromeda.
If Microsoft is indeed still planning to release a Surface phone, it’s among the worst kept secrets in technology at this point. Reports indicate that the device is still coming, and it seems that a new patent surfaces (pun intended) every week. Today is no different, as yet another patent has emerged showing off the haptic engine on the foldable tablet.
The document focuses on the engineering of haptic feedback between two separate housing units, and being that the device will be thin, only one of the units would actually house the haptic element. This could be placed near the hinge, which would seemingly be what allows for haptic feedback on both sides.
As with all of these patents for Microsoft’s alleged Andromeda tablet, it states that this technology could be used for any type of device, such as a mobile phone, tablet, a media player, a game console, an e-book reader, a wearable device, and so on. In other words, the patent doesn’t commit to this being part of the Andromeda device.
With that in mind, it’s still interesting to see in the drawing that one side seems to double as both a keyboard and a screen. This seems like a logical use for a dual-screen device when using it in a certain way, but haptic feedback in such a setup could simulate the act of pressing real keys, or clicking the trackpad.
The patent itself was filed in August 2016, so as always, it’s unclear if the technology will ever see the light of day. If Microsoft’s Surface phone is real though, we’ll likely see it in 2018.
Source: Patentscope via MSPoweruser
