Motorola patent filing details smartwatch with flexible display

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Like it or not, the smartwatch appears to be here to stay, but the best may be yet to come as companies like Motorola secure patents that would allow wearable devices with bendable displays.

The US Patent and TradeMark Office (USPTO) published a new Motorola Mobility patent application today (via Engadget) that outlines how the Google-owned company might introduce a wearable electronic device with a flexible display.

Patent application 13/526673 was first filed on June 19, 2012 and credits the inventor as Alberto R. Cavallaro, revealing that Motorola already had its sights on wearables well ahead of the current smartwatch craze.

Of course, Motorola has filed plenty of other patents and trademarks for wrist-friendly wearables as well as flexible displays, but the newly published application is the first time both have appeared in the same place.

Bending over backwards

Motorola's patent application specifically details a method whereby "a flexible chassis module including a front portion having a channel and a rear portion" can be coupled to a display module.

"This method allows flexing of an electronic device with a flexible display for curved viewing, if desired, or bending with minimal stress," the patent reads.

The technique described by Motorola is not unlike a traditional metal watch band, which connects a series of narrow links to provide the necessary flexibility.

The difference here is that the entire display of a smartwatch could bend with the chassis - but first Motorola will need to figure out how to make equally bendy circuit boards, if not sidestep the laws of physics entirely.

• Forget the smartwatch - we take a hands-on look at Google Glass!

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