Motorola wants a foldable phone different from anything we’ve seen

What do small motors, shape-shifting metal, and powerful sensors have in common? They are part of a possible foldable phone. Motorola. Foldable phones are nothing new, but their designs and capabilities have come a long way since the first foldable phones. And now 91Mobiles has spotted a patent application from Motorola that offers an interesting design unlike anything we’ve seen before.

According to 91mobiles, the patent is titled “Autonomous control of a foldable mobile device form factor.” Don’t worry, they won’t test you on this. Essentially, this boils down to a phone that can adjust the position of the hinge to keep the user centered in the frame, similar to Apple’s Center Stage feature, except it’s controlled by hardware rather than software.

A series of small motors will control the phone’s hinge, adjusting its up and down position depending on where it is on the frame. The way this all works is a bit technical, so stay with us for a minute. An LRA, or linear resonant actuator, is a motor that operates much like a spring. The “shape-changing metal” mentioned above is actually a shape memory alloy (SMA), first developed for use in spacecraft. It is a type of metal that changes shape when exposed to heat, such as through an electrical charge.

The whole setup works by measuring whether you’re moving closer to or further away from the phone. If you move closer, the camera will tilt upward, and when you move away, the opposite will happen. The motion isn’t as robust as a dedicated device like the Echo Show 10, but it’s still impressive for a small phone.

One potential use case is to attend desk meetings during the workday. You can lean back or forward, adjust your chair, or simply change your position. The phone will move so that you can see the screen and, in turn, so that other participants can see you.

It is not yet known when or whether this phone will appear on the market. Motorola has filed a patent, meaning it has some idea for this design, but it could be a year or two before we see a working product.