http://www.macnn.com/articles/10/12/15/filings.cover.itunes.time.machine.concepts/
Apple wins claims on 19 US patents
updated 04:05 pm EST, Wed December 15, 2010
Filings cover iTunes, Time Machine concepts
Apple has won 19 patents from the US Patent and Trademark Office, reports say. Some of the more prominent ones document the iPhone's treatment of audio playback and conference calls, as well as display, sale and downloading of media at the iTunes Store. A few of the iTunes concepts are noted to have been implemented as far back as 2004.
Several patents are connected to Time Machine, specifically means of navigating through backups, and how to handle conflicts when restoring files. In the former case, for example, Apple illustrates searching through backup snapshots. Other patents deal with ideas related to flash memory, encoding transparency channels in video streams, and RF pulse sync for data acquisition.
