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ApplePatent applicationWearablesInterest 6/10

Apple patents head-mounted device with touch sensors on the frame

Patent drawing
Patent drawing from the official filing.

Apple describes a head-mounted device, such as smart glasses, that includes a curved glass layer and a ring-shaped housing. The design places finger sensors along the edges of the device to detect touch or force input from the user's finger. A physical button is also included on the housing for additional user input.

Why it mattersThis filing suggests Apple is exploring how to control head-mounted devices using touch gestures on the frame rather than just buttons or voice commands.

In the filing’s own words

An electronic device such as a head mounted device may have an inner display that displays an image for a user through lenses. Head-mounted support structures may be used to support the display and lenses. One or more external displays may be publicly viewable while the head-mounted device is being worn. The head-mounted support structures may have a front face on which an external display is mounted. One or more finger sensors that are configured to detect touch input, force input, and/or other input from an external object such as a user's finger may be included in the head-mounted device. A finger sensor may have an elongated shape that runs along a peripheral edge of an external display on the front face. Finger sensors may also be located on other portions of the support structures.

What exactly they claim (claim 1)

1. A head-mounted device having an outer surface, the head-mounted device comprising: a curved glass layer that forms at least part of the outer surface; a head-mounted housing that forms a ring-shaped border around the curved glass layer; displays and lenses supported by the head-mounted housing; and a button on the head-mounted housing that is configured to receive user input.

Facts

Company
Apple (Apple Inc.)
Official title
Electronic Devices With Finger Sensors
Publication number
US20260299736A1
Application number
19697412
Filed
Jun 3, 2026
Published
Oct 1, 2026
Inventors
2
Claims
20

Classified under

G06F 3/044 Physics & computingG06F 3/011 Physics & computingG06F 2203/04105 Physics & computing

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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.