Patent suggests Apple could bring Force Touch to Touch Bar.Apple could offer future MacBook Pro models with a Touch Bar supporting Force Touch sensors, according to a new patent. The patent application, which was first spotted by Patently Apple, talks of electronic devices where it includes “a primary and secondary display; at least the secondary display is force-sensitive and further has its force-sensing circuitry in-plane with the display.”
Force Touch sensors are already present in the latest MacBooks with the trackpad. In case you are unaware, Force Touch trackpad gives you access to different functionality in many apps and system features on a Mac by applying more pressure.
Apple first introduced this tech on Apple Watch, though it was also made available on iPhones and it was known as 3D Touch. Later with iPhone XR, Apple decided to replace 3D Touch with Haptic Touch for a better experience.
Now, the new patent application suggests a new version of Touch Bar with support for Force Touch. It reportedly shows new circuits that will detect different levels of force being applied to MacBook’s Touch Bar. The images shared by the cited source shows the touch-sensitive OLED strip surrounded by Force Touch circuits.
“The secondary display and force-sensing circuitry may be encapsulated between two glass layers that are bonded to one another by a frit. In some embodiments, the force-sensing circuitry is formed from, or constitutes part of, the frit,” reads the abstract of the patent application. If the models get support for Force Touch, then Apple is expected to offer more software features for better multitasking experience.
Given this a patent, Apple is still likely some time away from implementing this technology to the Touch Bar on the MacBook Pro series. Again not all patents make their way to final products.