Following earlier reports that Apple was working with LG on a future foldable iPhone, the company has filed a patent application for a yet-unnamed foldable device that can be "opened and closed like a book".

Apple logo. Image: Reuters.

"An electronic device may have a flexible portion that allows the device to be folded. The device may have a flexible display. The flexible display may have a bending region that allows the display to bend along a bend axis when the device is folded," said a patent application published by the US Patent and Trademark Office.

This follows earlier rumours that the company was working with LG on a future foldable iPhone.

Earlier, reports said Apple has decided to go with LG and not Samsung (Samsung OLED displays are the best in the industry) owing to the fear that specifications could be leaked as Samsung is its arch-rival. According to the patent, all types of displays such as LCD, OLED and microLED are covered.

The foldable iPhone panel production could start from 2020.

Meanwhile, LG has reportedly completed its own foldable OLED panel prototype and has been upgrading the durability and the yield rate. Apple has also decided to invest in LG to speed up its OLED production, even as Samsung supplies the panels for the iPhone X.

Image: US Patent and Trademark Office

Currently, some smartphones that feature OLED screens are iPhone X, Samsung Galaxy S8, Samsung Galaxy S8+, Samsung Galaxy Note 8, OnePlus 5, LG V30, and Vivo X9s. The "Galaxy X", Samsung's foldable display phone is likely to make an appearance during the CES consumer technology show in January 2018 according to online chatter.

The company recently started its first OLED production for phones at its E5 plant in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province.

With inputs from IANS