It wouldn't surprise us if Apple has their own special chair and office and the patent office in Los Angeles, today's patent refers to NFC or as we like to call at Gaj-it HQ no-one f****** cares, it is essentially the same tech you might find on your chip and pin card or Oyster card, but doesn't require physical touching of the receiver.
They have patented something that is called "Touchscreen RRID Tag Reader" not the most exciting name, but it’s something that all phone makers are looking into.
The design would allow the transfer of information between touch screen gadgets and sensor panels in shops, the tube and hotels.
In a similar way to Bluetooth, it's a new fangled way for devices to communicate with each other, we have seen working in practice.
Imagine you were going to a nice hotel, as you step through the door your phone would trigger the front desk to let them know that you had arrived, they would message your phone and you would be able to open your door with your phone - we know it doesn't sound too exciting, but there are some merits to the technology.
It's not the first time the concept of RFID has mentioned with Apple and it’s iPhone 5. As far back as October it was suggested Apple was in contact with the chip-makers Gemalto - a union between the two companies would enabled Apple to utilise Near Field Communications in iOS devices and a rumoured e-wallet service would certainly benefit from this.
Apple Insider revealed the diagrams of the patent - which you can view for yourself for a little bit more insight into the technical specifics behind the design on their website now.
We’ll probably get more info at the Worldwide Developers Conference, but for the moment it’s just a patent.
Are you excited about NFC or are you like us and think it probably the least exciting feature on future phones?