Apple patent for a new home for Liquidmetal button
The apple is awarded a new patent that describes a number of implementations of the home button using the particular metal alloy Liquidmetal.
The US Patent Office has recognized in a series of 40 new Apple patents, including one that describes various implementations of a home button for iPhone and iPad made of Liquidmetal.
The Liquidmetal alloy, described as ” crude solidifying amorphous alloy ” in the patent, has a number of distinctive properties including a high strength, corrosion resistance, a low weight and a good malleability.
Apple renews every year its exclusive rights to use Liquidmetal since 2010, but it is still not particularly clear how it intends to use this metal alloy. The first speculation concerned the possibility of the use of Liquidmetal for small awl used for the removal of the drawer for the SIM, while other patents related to Liquidmetal buttons have been disclosed since 2014. Meanwhile, Steve Zadesky, which appears in this and Liquidmetal other patents.
The patent explains how the high elasticity of the Liquidmetal render it an ideal material for a home button sensitive to the pressure able to deform slightly when pressed, and capable of returning to its original shape when it ceases to exert force on it.
Liquidmetal always retain its elasticity, while other materials such as titanium or steel would deform irreversibly over time compromising the operation of the button.
A second example represented in the patent describes a home button, including a small actuator placed next to an element in Liquidmetal, with the actuator pressure that goes to deform the alloy. This would allow Apple to facilitate the production of their devices than is the case with conventional pressure-sensitive buttons used today.
It does not seem that the next Apple devices, including the elusive iPhone SE, the iPhone 7 and the iPad Pro 9.7-inch, adopt elements in Liquidmetal, although the continuous renewal of the rights to the material from Apple emphasizes the interest of Apple.
