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US 2010/0165169 A1Published application
Embedded camera with privacy filter
AssigneeApple Inc.
InventorBrett Bilbrey
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus includes a housing having an integrated camera. A panel is positioned in front of at least a portion of the camera and is operable to selectively switch between at least a substantially transparent state and at least a substantially opaque state.
Claims30
An apparatus, comprising:
- a housing adjacent at least a portion of a display of a device;
- a camera integrated into the housing and oriented to capture images proximate the device display;
- and
- a panel positioned in front of at least a portion of the camera and operable to selectively switch between at least a substantially transparent state and at least a substantially opaque state, the substantially opaque state substantially prevents the camera from detecting images of a user of the device when interacting with the device display.
1 more element
A method, comprising:
- constructing a device having a bezel operable to secure a screen within the device, the device including a camera oriented to capture images proximate the device screen;
- forming a window in the bezel;
- and
- integrating a panel in the window, the panel positioned in front of at least a portion of the camera and operable to selectively switch between at least a substantially transparent state and at least a substantially opaque state, the substantially opaque state substantially prevents the camera from detecting images of a user of the device when interacting with the device display.
1 more element
An article comprising a machine-readable medium storing instructions for causing data processing apparatus to:
- receive a request to activate an opaque state of a filter of a device, the filter located within a housing adjacent at least a portion of a display and being operable to transform between a transparent state in which the filter is at least substantially transparent and an opaque state in which the filter is at least substantially opaque, the transparent state enables an image sensor to detect images through the filter, the opaque state at least substantially prevents the image sensor from detecting images of a user of the device when interacting with the device display;
- and
- send a control signal to the filter to switch to the opaque state.
A system comprising:
- a housing;
- and
- means for selectively transforming a surface between at least a substantially transparent state and at least a substantially opaque state, the substantially transparent state for enabling light from a viewable object on a first side of the surface to pass through the surface to a second side of the surface and the substantially opaque state for preventing light from the viewable object from passing through the surface to the second side of the surface, wherein the surface in the substantially opaque state has a substantially similar appearance as at least a portion of the housing adjacent to the surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.