iPhone may shoot underwater without gear: What Apple’s patent reveals
Apple to change iPhone camera design (photo: Unsplash)
Apple has registered a new patent for a unique optical system that will allow iPhones to take high-quality underwater photos without the need for bulky third-party accessories. The technology is designed to eliminate image distortion and protect camera modules from moisture, according to an Apple patent.
What the problem is
Users have long relied on third-party accessories for underwater photography with iPhones, but all of them have significant drawbacks. Traditional dome ports used for lenses are too large, inconvenient, and often cause optical distortions when submerged.
In a patent titled “Plurality Of Optical Centers In A Unified Free Form, Hemispherical Optic,” Apple engineers proposed a solution — to create an “extremely thin and elegant protective system that can easily fit into a standard smartphone case.”
How the new seamless technology works
Instead of installing separate protective domes for each of the iPhone’s multiple cameras, Apple suggests using a single continuous protective layer. This element would simultaneously act as an external lens for all of the smartphone’s existing cameras.
Patent detail showing a thin additional layer placed over the lenses for protection (screenshot: Apple)
Key features of the invention
Universal shape: if the cameras are placed on a flat surface, the protective optic will be mostly flat. If the modules are placed on a curved surface, the single piece of glass will precisely follow that curvature.
Seamless design: the part will be made from a single piece of material, eliminating glue, seams, or other joining elements.
Maximum sealing: the absence of joints reduces the risk of water entering the device and removes image distortions that usually appear due to glue or seams.
Apple proposes using multiple lenses together and protecting them with a single shared water barrier (screenshot: Apple)
Who is developing the new optics?
According to the documentation, which includes six pages of diagrams and four pages of detailed description, Apple has created a compact protection format. Due to the design specifics, the company is unlikely to integrate such an element into every production iPhone, but the technology is well-suited for proprietary thin underwater cases.
The patent lists two engineers — Ryan M. Sheridan and Benjamin D. Buckner. Buckner is notably known for Apple's research focused on reducing optical distortion, such as the fisheye effect.
