Plastic electronic technology has opened up a whole new genre of research and development, especially when it comes to personal gadgets such as smartphones. The charge has been led by companies such as Plastic Logic, who have set the benchmark when it comes to devising new and exciting applications for flexible plastic display screens in particular. From wraparound watches and wearable devices to advertising display hoardings using e-paper, the use of flexible plastic technology has plenty of options – but has yet to really find its primary route to market. That could be about to change with a newcomer into the game – the mighty Apple.

It was only a matter of time before Apple became involved in flexible plastic display screens, as the technology is perfectly suited to almost any of Apples’ stable of gadgets. But Apple has gone a stage further, and has currently submitted a patent application (pending) for a smartphone with a transparent body and a flexible screen ‘wrapped’ around the whole device.

The patent has been worded so that the technology could be applied to any Apple device, such as an iPod or iPhone.

One particularly interesting aspect of the Apple design is the potential for a 3D application by positioning one flexible plastic display screen above another. This would produce a slightly ‘shifted’ effect that could give the illusion of a three-dimensional surface image.

However, none of the technology currently under consideration in the patent is unique to Apple, and industry watchers suggest that once the US patent office has picked the bones out of it, Apple may find its application is rejected. The tech they’re trying to lay claim to has already been patented by other companies. What is different is the way that the flexible screen technology is being applied by Apple into its designs, and it is this that could ultimately be a more profitable and achievable angle for the company.

But now that the idea is out in the public domain, other companies may start to think outside the box and develop new ways of using flexible screen technology too. The 3D idea is certainly an interesting one, and seeing as 3D on mobile devices is still in its infancy it could certainly be a viable route to explore for R&D departments.

Apple may have unwittingly started a ‘goldrush’ of other companies, all eager to exploit the potential of flexible screen technology. While the wraparound idea has great marketing potential, it also has a few bugs that need to be ironed out, not least of which is the trouble that such a screen would have in determining a person’s location. Face recognition technology and the camera could be used to monitor the movement and position of the user’s face and then adjust the display accordingly, but there is potential for glitches that users would find irritating at best. Wraparound and flexible plastic screen technology could herald a new generation not just of Apple products, but a fundamental redesign of the smartphone in general. The winner will, ultimately, be the consumer.