Despite the fact that Apple released its iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus just three months ago, people are already talking about a possible release date and features for the iPhone 7.
A patent awarded to Apple last week hinted that the next iPhone could come equipped with technology that avoids screen damage.
The Cupertino giant filed a patent titled "Protective mechanism for an electronic device" created to make sure devices don't fall flat on its screen. The US Patent and Trademark Office awarded Apple with the patent, which means there is a good chance the technology could be featured for the first time in the upcoming iPhone 7.
"An electronic device including a processor, a sensor in communication with the processor and a protective mechanism. The protective mechanism is in communication with the processor and is configured to selectively alter a center of mass of the electronic device. Additionally, the electronic device also includes an enclosure configured to at least partially enclose the processor and the sensor," reads a statement on US Patent and Trademark Office website.
A vibration motor will be used to adjust to the gravity of the device, which prevents freefall on the screen, according to the patent. The accelerometer and gyroscope features will help calculate spinning frequency when a device falls. A vibration motor can then be used to adjust the center of gravity.
The next iPhone won't be released for another 10 months, so Apple has time to plan on implementation of the new technology.
The upcoming smartphone could debut in September 2015, considering the fact that the iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus were all released in September.
A number of analysts expects the iPhone 7 to come equipped with a quad-core A8 processor and come packed with 256GB internal memory, according to iPhone7update.com.
The device could have a screen made of sapphire glass, chassis made of liquid metal and a two-lens system camer.
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