Samsung patent filings show gesture-controlled wearable device with round interface

Samsung unveiled a handful of new wearable devices earlier this year, but according to some recently discovered patent filings, the company still has some more ideas in the pipeline. First discovered by SammyToday, Samsung has recently filed for a plethora of patents relating to a new wearable device that strongly resembles the Moto 360 and its circular design. The patents detail a plethora of features about the device, as well as some basic mockups of its design.

One of the most innovative features shown off in the patent filings is the ability to control the watch with a variety of hand gestures. It looks as if any gestures made with your wrist can trigger the watch to perform some kind of task, or you could move your hand in the vicinity of the watch to trigger it, as well. Another patent also details how you could perform specific actions on the band of the watch to control it.

The patent files also revealed some mockups of the interface of the watch. As a whole it looks very similar to what we’ve already seen as part of Google’s Android Wear program and Motorola’s Moto 360 watch. When powered off, it looks as if the screen will simply display the time and upcoming calendar events. Unlocking the device will take you to what appears to be a series of circular tiles that can display things such as the weather, maps, contacts, and more.

Sensors also appear to be a big part of Samsung’s future wearable plans. Mockups in these patent filings show the device as being capable of scanning barcodes and automatically pulling up pricing information, reviews, and more for the product. As with most wearable devices, it will have some health features, as well. One mockup of the interface shows the device as counting the amount of calories you’ve burned during a workout. Finally, Samsung also intends on having the watch be capable of being worn on a variety of places on your body, including your wrist, bicep, and around your neck as a necklace.

It’s important to remember, however, that these are just patents and there’s no indications that a device like this even exists yet. Nevertheless, these patents do give us somewhat of an idea as to what Samsung is working on for future wearables. Samsung’s most recent Gear branded wearables ditched Android in favor of the company’s Tizen operating system. So with this circular watch and Android Wear, it could be possible that samsung is planning an Android Wear competitor running Tizen.