Motorola Patent For Folding, Roll-Up Phone: Moto ROLR?

A newly unearthed patent application from Motorola has revealed a design for a mobile that features a foldable / roll-upable display and keypad. While the concept is nothing new, it appears that Motorola believes that it can overcome many of the structural problems that these devices face by incorporating a reservoir with electrorheological fluid beneath the foldable display or keypad. When electric current is applied, the fluid becomes solid. When the current is absent, the opposite occurs.

In other words, when a call comes in, electric current will be applied to the fluid and the display will roll out. Miraculously, the display will transform into a solid state similar to a normal phone. As mentioned previously, this technology could also be applied to the keyboard—resulting in a phone with a form factor small enough to make it a choking hazard. However, keep in mind that this is a patent application, and it could be nothing more than the fanciful musings of some Motorola employee. [Patent Application via Unwired View]