When Samsung first introduced the Phablet, many mocked the crazy large smartphone display until it caught on with the public. That gave Samsung the needed edge over Apple and until the iPhone 6 debuted, Samsung had a real winning design. Now that the Phablet has been copied by everyone in the industry, Samsung is searching for the next killer form factor.
Over the last few years Samsung has filed for many patents covering new design ideas from bendable phones to those with roll-out displays and even dual displays (one, two, three, four and many more).
A new Samsung patent filing published by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office yesterday shows us yet another flexible display invention concept from Samsung that illustrates a smartphone that could provide consumers with the ability to extend their displays when needed for certain content. It's a concept that plays off of their rollable display concept yet retains more of a traditional smartphone look.
Samsung's patent FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 5 that are presented below illustrate a new Samsung electronic device invention such as a smartphone that may include a main body #101, a flexible display element #123, and a support unit 103.
Samsung notes that the flexible display element is supported by a slide unit #121 to be slidable on the main body. The slide unit may be slidably coupled to the main body and may protrude to the other side of the main body, for example, the side opposite to the curved surface 'R'.
The support unit #103 may be formed by support poles #131 (FIG. 3). The support poles extend in a direction perpendicular to the sliding direction of the flexible display element and may be arranged to be adjacent to each other.
Opposite ends of each of the support poles may be formed with guide projections #133 (FIG. 5 Below), respectively. The support poles may be deformed to correspond to the shape of the curved surface 'R' (FIG. 3) and one end of the support unit may be connected to the slide unit to be movable on the main body together with the slide unit.
In Samsung's FIGS. 9 and 10 presented below we're able to see that the electronic device uniquely has a structure in which the flexible display element #223 is able to be extended in the longitudinal direction.
According to Samsung, 'the device' concept could be applied to a future smartphone, tablet, mobile phone, video phone, smartwatch, electronic book (e-book) reader, mobile medical appliance, camera, wearable device, head-mounted-device (HMD) such as electronic glasses, electronic clothes and beyond.
Samsung filed their U.S. patent application back in Q3 2015. Considering that this is a patent application, the timing of such a product to market is unknown at this time.
One thing is for sure, Samsung is going all out to find new form factors that could once again differentiate their future smartphones from the competition. They have to shake things up quickly because their shareholders have expressed their anger and want action in the form of new profitable devices.
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