Apple did receive a patent for a rounded rectangle.

Design patent D670,286 ( PDF ) on the "portable display", issued on November 6, is entirely devoted to the notorious rounded corners of the iPad tablet. A patent consists of several illustrations with explanations. The key point is that all parts of the device in the illustrations, which are shown in broken lines, do not belong to the patented design. And the only continuous line in the figures is a rectangle with rounded corners, depicting the outer edge of the tablet.



Naturally, a design patent can be applied only for those types of devices that are specified in the application, and not for any items of similar form, so that legal apocalypse in all industries after the issuance of this patent does not occur. But now any tablet maker who has given his device a patented shape, regardless of the type of other elements of the design, is much more likely to repeat the fate of Samsung.