Apple's Huge Glass Cube In NYC Has Now Been Granted A Patent

Apple has been granted a U.S. patent for the iconic cube design of its flagship New York store, 9to5Mac reports.

The patent is for the design of the 32-foot tall above-ground glass cube element of Apple's Fifth Avenue store in Manhattan. The self-supporting glass cube is completely free of structural steel. A 2011 redesign of the cube reduced the number of glass panels from 90 to just 13.

The patent application, which is listed as having been filed in 2012, was granted to Apple on Aug. 26, and will last for 14 years.

Late Apple founder Steve Jobs, who spearheaded the original design and manufacture of the Fifth Avenue store, is listed among the inventors on the patent filing.

Here's an illustration from the patent showing the cube's design:

United States Patent and Trademark Office

Research published in 2010 revealed that Apple's Fifth Avenue store is the fifth most photographed location in New York, behind the Empire State Building, Times Square, the Rockefeller Center, and Grand Central Station.

The glass is still, well, glass. In January, one of the cube's glass panels shattered after clean-up crews accidentally hit it with a snowblower.

You can see the shattered glass panel in the Instagram photo below:

As 9to5Mac reports, patenting the design of its stores is not unusual for Apple. In 2012 the company was granted a patent for the cylindrical exterior of its Shanghai store. See below:

Flickr/Jessica SpenglerThe glass cylinder above Apple's Shanghai store