TightWind is written by Kyle Baxter. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Brian Ford:

Apple references the diagram (Fig. 6) and says that it includes features that are made available as the embodiment of the invention. I’m not exactly sure what “the invention” is, but it doesn’t seem to be referring to Fig 6. 

The other clue that this isn’t about an underhanded attempt to patent the Where To app is that various pictures showing several completely unrelated app designs are all used to describe this same patent. None of the other drawings are consistent.

What’s worrying about the patent for me isn’t that Apple included existing application designs as illustrations, but that they are trying to patent types of applications. Perhaps they are doing so to defend the iOS platform (if other companies panted certain applications, they could be off-limits for the iPhone) and have no intention of using them against others, but patents absolutely shouldn’t be awarded for types of applications. It’s like patenting the sports car.