According to the latest list published by the U.S. Trademark and Patent Office, Apple today obtained a new technology patent that extends the existing wonderful control keyboard for the iPad Pro, through a new hinge system can be equipped with a keyboard, touch panel and a second screen and so on.
In contrast to today’s single-angle design, the new multi-roller hinge system will provide users with greater flexibility to adjust the angle of their iPad to their liking.
The patent description and design sketches that the next-generation Wonder Keyboard may have multiple rollers, spacer elements and a retention structure that balances and counteracts the weight of the iPad by increasing the friction between the rollers and spacer elements.
The hinge assembly joins one or more and spacer elements (or connecting elements) into a roller element (including a cylinder), where the spacer element is positioned between adjacent roller elements.
Apple describes in the patent that the Wonder Keyboard can provide reaction or retention forces depending on the angle of use of the iPad. And the force provided by the hinge assembly changes as the angle of the iPad changes. This means that the new hinge system described in the patent provides a more stable and greater range of support than the existing Wonder Keyboard.
