Apple Glass could steal the Apple Watch’s best feature

Apple Glass concept
(Image credit: idropnews/Martin Hajek)

Apple’s VR headset and the Apple Glass smart glasses could be controlled by a take on the Digital Crown found on the Apple Watch and AirPods Max. 

That’s what we can posit from a new Apple patent, flagged by Patently Apple, which shows how a Digital Crown could be used to easily control functions like zooming on Apple’s much-rumored mixed and augmented reality headsets. 

That sounds like a neat way to control a VR or MR headset or pair of smart glasses, But the extra interesting feature here is the haptics Apple is proposing to put into such a “crown input.”

“The crown module can further include a feedback system that provides localized haptic feedback at the crown,” the patent explained. “The haptic feedback can be effectively perceived by the user at the crown without causing the entire head-mountable device to vibrate against the head and/or face of the user.” 

Such a system could allow for more tactile control. Going by our experience with VR headsets with integrated controls, having controls that offer a form of feedback that allows for initiative control when you can't actually look at the device you are controlling, would be welcome. Touch panels on VR headsets, for example, can occasionally be a little tricky to get used to. 

Apple Glass digital crown patent

(Image credit: USPTO)

According to the patent, this haptic feedback could be varied so that a wearer of an MR headset or AR glasses gets a distinct bit of feedback to detail when they are starting and when they are stopping interacting with something. For example, one vibration could signal the start of zooming into augmented reality map data with another signaling when they’ve reached the maximum practical zoom limit. 

Combined with audio and visual feedback, the haptic Digital Crown system patent somewhat describes an idealized MR and AR headset experience where a variety of sensors allow for better control and responses from a wearable device. 

“Other user sensors can perform facial feature detection, facial movement detection, facial recognition, eye tracking, user mood detection, user emotion detection, voice detection,” the patent noted. 

Patents often describe feature-rich devices and concepts that, if they become a reality, are not as well equipped as first envisioned, But Apple has a reputation for taking existing tech and refining it into killer products. 

And Cupertino could do this for an MR headset and the Apple Glass. However, all we have are leaks, rumors and speculation to go off, so it might be some time before we see such ideas detailed in Apple patents become a reality. 

TOPICS
Roland Moore-Colyer

Roland Moore-Colyer a Managing Editor at Tom’s Guide with a focus on news, features and opinion articles. He often writes about gaming, phones, laptops and other bits of hardware; he’s also got an interest in cars. When not at his desk Roland can be found wandering around London, often with a look of curiosity on his face. 

Read more
Apple Glass AR Glasses Release date, price, features and leaks
Apple Glasses: all the rumors so far
AirPods Pro 2
Apple reportedly working on AirPods with cameras — here’s what they could do
Apple Glasses render
Apple AR glasses tipped to use custom visionOS — here’s when it could launch
Apple Glasses render
Apple AR glasses for Mac reportedly cancelled — here’s why
Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses next to AirPods Pro 2
New report says Apple is working on Meta-style smart glasses and AirPods with cameras
Project Moohan
Project Moohan hands-on might have revealed the Samsung headset’s secret weapon
Latest in Smartwatches
Atari 2600 My Play Watch
It's not just Pebble — Atari is back with a watch that lets you play retro games on your wrist
Pebble Core 2 Duo and Core Time 2 smartwatches
Pebble is back with two new smartwatches starting at $149 — how to preorder
Garmin Fenix 8 Sleep
New data reveals the average Garmin sleep score — do you sleep better or worse than most people?
Garmin Fenix 8 deal
Act fast! Unexpected discount sees Garmin Fenix 8 drop to its lowest price on Amazon
The coolest things the Apple Watch can do
7 best Apple Watch features you're probably not using, but should
Close-up of the Amazfit Active 2 and Apple Watch SE next to each other on a user's wrist
I put the Apple Watch SE vs Amazfit Active 2 through a 7-round face-off — here's the winner
Latest in News
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 features on outer cover display
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip FE may arrive 'months' after the Z Flip 7 — here's why
ExpressVPN logo above mobile devices
ExpressVPN lays off undisclosed number of employees
Poster for The Sex Lives of College Girls
'The Sex Lives of College Girls' canceled by Max after 3 seasons
Google Gemini logo
You can now use Google Gemini without an account — here's how to get started
Park Hae-soo as Kim Beom-jun in "Karma" on Netflix
Netflix’s latest crime thriller show just got a new trailer — and I can’t wait to see this ‘Squid Game’ star back in action
Michaela Kell (Julianne Moore) petting a bird in a promotional still from Netflix's "Sirens"
Netflix just teased a new dark comedy series with Julianne Moore, Kevin Bacon, and Meghann Fahy — here's your first look