Apple Pencil With 'Trackball' Tip, Ability to Draw on Any Surface Described in Patent Document

The Apple Pencil Pro was unveiled in May 2024 with custom haptic response, a 'squeeze' function, and a built-in gyroscope. It is currently the flagship stylus available to customers who want to use a writing accessory with their iPad. Apple's stylus currently needs a touch sensitive surface for input, but this might not be a requirement in the future. The company could eventually offer an Apple Pencil with a trackball tip and optical sensors that would allow users to create content on any surface, without a touchscreen. The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted the tech giant a patent for an Apple Pencil that uses multiple technologies to offer the same functionality.

Apple Pencil Patent Hints at Technology That Enables Writing Without a Touchscreen

According to a patent document, first spotted by Patently Apple, the Cupertino company might have been working on a new Apple Pencil that can draw on any surface. The stylus would use a trackball tip and two optical sensors that would enable the rumoured Apple Pencil to create content on multiple surfaces, without requiring a touchscreen.

The patent reveals that the optical sensors that Apple is likely to use could either be an optical flow sensor and/or a laser speckle flow sensor. The patent design shows that the optical sensors would be placed on top of the trackball tip. To map the movement of the surface, it would detect spatial-temporal image brightness variation, according to the document.

Optical flow sensors could capture the image of the environment to detect light reflected from the surface on which a user is drawing, the patent document cited as an example. It further added that the laser speckle flow sensors can potentially detect speckle patterns emitting from coherent illumination to estimate motion of the input device or a device that does not have a touch sensitive screen.

The patent document also revealed that the optical sensors can be used for generating content or drawing on a makeshift input device, such as a tabletop or a wall. Additionally, Apple can utilise the optical sensors to detect characteristics of the surface including position, orientation, and motion of the input device.

If Apple decides to proceed with development of its patented stylus design, it could possibly be an upgrade from the current Apple Pencil Pro. For context, the US-based tech giant had launched the Apple Pencil Pro in 2024 with custom haptic feedback, squeeze function, a gyroscope, and support for Find My technology.