by Apple has received a patent from the US Patent Office regarding multi-touch contact. The patent, which covers apparatus and methods for tracking finger and palm contact “across a proximity-sensing, multi-touch surface,” was vital to the iPhone. It was initially filed on Nov. 14, 2006, before the iPhone’s release in 2007. Apple gained the patent upon acquiring gesture recognition company Fingerworks in 2005. [via Patently Apple]…
