Acting as a reminder of how careful Apple is about its intellectual property and other things, a patent application filed by the Mac maker a while ago has emerged. The iPod / iPhone packaging filing describes a base with a ledge formed on its interior, a holder disposed within the base for holding an item, and a lid above the base, according to MacsimumNews.
There's more. The holder, base, as well as the lid may be transparent. Also, the holder may suspend the item above the surface to give the impression that the iPod is floating within the packaging. That's pretty much what Apple considers an "invention," which it wants to be known as its own, and no one else's. And there it is, pictured left (first image up).
"The present invention relates, in one embodiment, to packaging comprising a base having an interior space for receiving an item; a ledge formed along an interior surface of the base; a transparent holder disposed on said ledge of said base for holding an item; and a lid disposed above the base for closing said interior space formed in said base," goes a summary of the patent filing, according to the aforementioned source.
"The present invention relates, in another embodiment, to packaging for an item comprising a transparent enclosure and a retaining mechanism for retaining an item, wherein the item to appear to be floating inside of the transparent enclosure," the description continues. "The present invention relates, in another embodiment, to a holder for retaining an item comprising a flexible tray and a pair of clips disposed on said flexible tray; wherein the tray has a flexed position and an un-flexed position; wherein the item is trapped by the clips when the tray is in the un-flexed position; and wherein the item is released by the clips when the tray is in the flexed position."
The inventors are: Bartley K. Andre, Daniel J. Coster, Daniele De Iuliis, Richard P. Howarth, Jonathan P. Ive, Steve Jobs, Duncan Robert Kerr, Shin Nishibori, Matthew Dean Rohrbach, Peter Russell-Clarke, Douglas B. Satzger, Calvin Q. Seid, Rico Zorkendorfer and Vincent Keane Seid. Ive and Jobs (Apple CEO) are also the minds behind the iPod's design. Needless to point out, the two couldn't have been overlooked on this list of inventors for the new packaging.
It is possible that Apple will be crafting some new iPhone / iPod packages with the help of PaperFoam, a company that specializes in office, consumer electronics and media packaging. According to a recent statement coming from PaperFoam CEO Hans Arentsen, Apple has ordered "millions of PaperFoam packages" for its new iPhone 3G. Committed to reducing its environmental impact, Apple has chosen paper tray (made of potato or tapioca starch) packaging for its devices.
The patent (number 20080169218) was filed with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.
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