Future iPad Could Have 3D Gesture Controls, Patent Shows

Ever, may not be the only way you control your iPhone. The iPads in the future could be manipulated by 3D gesture, a patent discovered by openly Apple suggests.

A patent application filed by Apple in the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office shows that you could cursors, icons, files, lists, text, images, etc. control various hand signals. There are a series of movements that can be applied to these elements as symbols such as check marks or question marks to manipulate letters or preset patterns, a pattern of the user, or combinations of these.

If Apple adds this feature to the iPhone, it means that you would be able to make your tablet from across the room, similar to the way Xbox Kinect works. The patent is called Siri, debuted integrated voice controlled Apple iPhone 4S, but also to the service with 3D movements can make future devices more attractive.

The patent filing also includes video editing and annotation using a gesture-controlled toolbar. It would provide a range of predefined gesture-based commands for beginners, but advanced users can customize their own controls.

Gestures would work through the front-facing camera on the iPhone, which means that it may not be exclusive to a future iPhone. If Apple chooses to feature in a newer version of IOS, it can work with other devices with two cameras, like the iPad iPhone 2 or iPhone 4 or 4S. But apparently Apple noted that older gadgets may not have the processing power to support this technology.

There is no evidence if 3D gestures will be added to the iPhone, but it is widely rumored iPad 3 will debut in March 2012.

Apple originally filed the patent in the second quarter of 2010.