Apple patents video tech that adds virtual objects to real-world footage
Apple describes a method for capturing video of a physical environment and adding a dynamic virtual overlay to the footage. The system uses a camera with a wide field of view to record real objects, then applies a narrower virtual layer containing digital items that appear on top of the physical items in the video.
In the filing’s own words
A device obtains a video of a physical environment from a camera that is associated with a first field-of-view. The video includes respective representations of a plurality of physical articles that are in the physical environment. The device determines a dynamic virtual overlay for the video based on a second field-of-view that is smaller than the first field-of-view. The dynamic virtual overlay includes a set of virtual objects. The device generates a modified video by overlaying the dynamic virtual overlay onto the video. The modified video includes the set of virtual objects overlaid onto the respective representations of one or more of the plurality of physical articles.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. A method comprising: at a device including a non-transitory memory and one or more processors: obtaining a video of a physical environment from a camera that is associated with a first field-of-view, wherein the video includes respective representations of a plurality of physical articles that are in the physical environment; determining a dynamic virtual overlay for the video based on a second field-of-view that is smaller than the first field-of-view, wherein the dynamic virtual overlay includes a set of virtual objects; and generating a modified video by overlaying the dynamic virtual overlay onto the video, wherein the modified video includes the set of virtual objects overlaid onto the respective representations of one or more of the plurality of physical articles.
Facts
- Company
- Apple (Apple Inc.)
- Official title
- IMMERSIVE VIDEO CAPTURE OF A PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT
- Publication number
- US20260311436A1
- Application number
- 19630065
- Filed
- Mar 26, 2026
- Published
- Oct 8, 2026
- Inventors
- 1
- Claims
- 20
Classified under
G06T 19/006 Physics & computingMore from Apple in AR, VR & displays
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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.