Apple granted patent for smart ring that can control other devices by pointing at them

Cupertino-based tech goliath Apple was first granted a patent for a smart ring back in 2016. However, the company recently filed another patent for its smart "Apple Ring" in October 2019 that aimed to improve its capability.

The new patent was recently published and suggests that the smart ring might use gesture control to send commands to compatible devices (Example – Apple TV) when pointed in their direction. In a previous patent, the company had implied that the Apple Ring would come with a biometric sensor, Siri connectivity, and a tiny touchscreen with a mention of gesture controls.

The patent published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) reads; “Devices, methods, and graphical user interfaces for a wearable electronic ring computing device.” The patent describes the benefit of the ring over existing Apple devices like the iPhone and MacBook Pro.

The Abstract reads; “A user controls an external electronic device with wireless ring device; the ring is disposed on one or more fingers of a hand of the user, detects an input, and, in response: in accordance with a determination that a predefined hand gesture directed toward a first external electronic device was performed, using the ring device, prior to detecting the input, the ring device transmits instructions to change an output of the first external electronic device based on the input; and, in accordance with a determination that the predefined hand gesture directed toward a second external electronic device was performed, using the ring device, prior to detecting the input, the ring device transmits instructions to change an output of the second external electronic device based on the input.”

It is worth noting that receiving a patent for new technology does not confirm a new product launch in the market. Companies regularly file patents to protect their intellectual property. However, smart rings aren’t uncommon among the big tech giants; Amazon launched one in September last year.