Noida, Uttar Pradesh -- (SBWIRE) -- 08/28/2011 -- Apple, the makers of iPhone, has recently been awarded 16 patents including one related to solar-powered charging for Apple devices, reported a website.

It was earlier reported also that Apple was working on solar power panels, but now the company appears to be one step closer to its goal. It was reported the company was looking for a supplier for solar panels as well, but the news was never confirmed.

Meanwhile, among the patents, one is related to multi touch display in which the company has reported to have found a way to reduce the cost and improve the performance of these displays. Another patent is for improvement in the spread sheet app of iWork suite and then one is to change the display orientation of an image captured by the iOS devices camera.