Apple Filed A Patent For A New Type Of iPad Cover That Displays Notifications

The patent details an "accessory device for a tablet device" that can illuminate and communicate information.

Apple Insider first spotted the patent.

The iPad cover would be able to communicate with the tablet so that information from the device could transfer to the cover and result in different lights being illuminated in varying formations depending on the notification.

This would mean that you wouldn't have to open the iPad case in order to see if you have any new notifications. You wouldn't have to neurotically check every few seconds to make sure you didn't miss anything. All you would need to do is wait for the case to flash, and then you'd know it was time to check your tablet.

HTC and Samsung have both already dabbled in displaying notifications on cases. Some of Samsung's phones have cases with a tiny window that can display notifications. HTC's new One phone has an optional case called Dot View that displays notifications through a bunch of holes punched into the cover.

While not all Apple patents translate to actual hardware, this at least shows that Apple has the ability to jump in the game if it wants.

Here are two of the images from the patent: