AppleInsider has the scoop on two new patent applications from Apple. The first is a new method for adding tamper-resistant labels to devices. It’s meant to prevent users from opening their hardware for repair, hacking, and other tweaks. Primarily, Apple wants to put a stop to this because it voids your warranty, and they don’t want to be responsible for fulfilling warranties from tampered devices.

According to the patent, Apple will accomplish this by developing a specialized label that gets attached to several locations within your device. Opening up the hardware rips the label, and makes it readily apparent to Apple that your warranty is voided.

The second patent application details plans to bring increased accelerometer functionality to iPods and the iPhone. It will apparently allow you to flip through cover flow mode, find songs, and choose playback content entirely with accelerometer gestures.

The patent reads:

The physical stimuli can take any form, including an acceleration event, such as a flicking motion. The present invention can utilize an accelerometer to detect and measure the acceleration event, and even determine the direction and magnitude of the acceleration event.

I could see this being a useful option for sifting through iPod content, but it’s not something that will be usable in all scenarios. It’s definitely not the sort of thing that Apple could introduce as the only interface method for an iPod.

[Source: AppleInsider]