Did Apple/Liquidmetal Patent Slavishly Copy From …?

In my previous blog entry, I presented an initial review of the Apple/LQMT patent 8485245 titled “Bulk amorphous alloy sheet forming processes” based on the prosecution history from the USPTO. In essence, the Apple/LQMT patent is about the use of float-glass process to make amorphous alloy sheets. Continue reading

An Analysis of the Apple/Liquidmetal Patent

The prosecution history indicates a hastily prepared application

The claimed subject matter is nothing novel and preempted by the prior art

The news of a joint patent by Apple and Liquidmetal caused significant buzz in the media and euphoria in the market. Suddenly, Liquidmetal alloys are deemed to be producible on a massive scale, and expectations of Liquidmetal alloy in the next iPhone or iPad became widespread. Continue reading

iPhone 5 and Unibody Design

Unibody design is one of the leading expectations on iPhone 5. A puzzling feature on the so-called leaked iPhone 5 pictures is the two-tone metal backplate as featured in Cult of Mac. Don Lehman wrote a detailed article on this and provided a good explanation on the reasons behind the two-tone metal backplate. Continue reading