US Patent Issued to Faurecia Interior Systems on July 1 for "Vehicle interior panel with shape-changing surface" (California Inventor)

ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 3 -- United States Patent no. 12,344,172, issued on July 1, was assigned to Faurecia Interior Systems Inc. (Auburn Hills, Mich.).

"Vehicle interior panel with shape-changing surface" was invented by Hugo Piccin (Cupertino, Calif.).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A vehicle interior panel includes an electromagnet configured to add a localized recess to a base contour of the panel when activated. The recess can provide a visual and tactile feature along the outer surface of the panel to allow a user to interact with the panel. The panel may be touch sensitive and/or include a proximity sensor that triggers formation of the recess."

The patent was filed on March 25, 2024, un...