Samsung Files For Ebook Page Turning Patent

Samsung has filed for a patent on paging turning in ebooks, specifically on those fancy page curling/rolling effects that aim to give digital paper a realistic feel. The filing appeared at the US Patent and Trademark Office last week, and reveals a decidedly involved and thought-driven look at the art of turning digital pages. You can check out a diagram of the page-turning after the jump.

According to the folks over at The Digital Reader, Samsung's patent application, which is filed under number 20130104017 in case you want to check it out for yourself, is serious about its page-turning effect, delving into the physics of such a phenomenon for real-world effects in a digital-world medium. In essence, Samsung is going for realism.

Not only that, but the patent also details in both words and images the different effects that would result from the various possible ways one might flip a page, such as from the middle of the outer edge, the bottom corner, the top corner, etc. Each turn will have its own effect, which is again based on the physics of a real-paper page turn and aims to be realistic.

Of course, one can't help but notice that such a filing follows a similar one from Apple, which now holds a patent on the page turning effect iOS users can see in iBooks. Only time will tell if Samsung is granted its patent, but somewhere in the midst of this one can't help but be tempted to make a tongue-in-cheek remark on the possible future of page-turning patent wars.

[via The Digital Reader]