Apple patent application describes Apple Pencil that can sample real-world colors and textures

Apple has filed a patent for an Apple Pencil stylus that can identify and digitally replicate colors and textures from real-world objects. Patently Apple spotted the application last week (which we saw via MacRumors), which describes a stylus equipped with a color sensor, light detector, and light emitter within its “pencil” tip. According to the patent doc, the stylus can wirelessly transmit “color sensor measurements, texture measurements, and associated angular orientation measurements” to external devices like an Apple iPad.

The patent says that the stylus is capable of measuring texture by detecting how lighting and angles affect an object’s surface. Similarly, a combination of optical sensors can be used to measure how reflective...

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