Recently, LetsGoDigital reported that after the latest release of the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra, the company has exposed an interesting under-screen flip camera design patent. Earlier this year, we have seen a concept phone with a quad-curved display + under-screen camera design. However, the new patent published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) last week shows that the company is still exploring a further solution for the under-screen flip camera.
In February 2020, Xiaomi submitted a “terminal equipment” design patent to WIPO. This 32-page document was officially released to the outside world on April 29, 2021.
The under-screen camera smartphone introduced by the company is expected to officially arrive later this year. But the detailed description in the new patent allows us to foresee another possibility.
From the renders, you can see a rear camera module containing multiple cameras. By default, this built-in lens that can be flipped back and forth points to the back, while the other lenses are fixed.
With the help of a magnetic or electric drive module, this special reversible camera can rotate the working direction as required. However, from the documentation, Xiaomi should be more likely to choose a lower cost and theoretically more durable magnetic design.
After users enable the front camera in the system, the lens can follow the instructions to flip. At the same time, in order to ensure that there is enough light to penetrate the screen, the display area near the front sensor will also be temporarily disabled.
As a reminder, the user will see a blue box around the camera. The rest of the screen can still be used for viewfinder and other operations.
Interestingly, the document also mentions a laser autofocus system (similar to the Mi 9) so that it can still focus quickly and accurately under harsh lighting conditions.
As for the type of screen panel, the patent mentions compatible solutions such as LCD or OLED. As for when this concept device will arrive, it is currently unknown.