Apple today was granted a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that would allow future Apple Watch bands to interface with the Apple Watch using NFC technology to activate specialized software commands.

The use of NFC technology for the band identification system allows this system to operate without the need for the band itself to have its own power source.

The new patent (US 11611372 B1) details the use of near-field communication (NFC) components that would be built into Apple Watch bands, enabling Apple Watch devices the ability to identify distinct information about specific bands once they are connected including color, style, material, and more according to reporting firm Patently Apple.

More specifically, an integrated NFC module in the tip of an Apple Watch band would allow an attached Apple Watch to instantly optimize its interface to take on the color of a respective band, open a specific app, or enable certain features such as Water Lock on a band meant for swimming.

The patent additionally details a number of possible implementations that would see some Apple Watch bands gain standalone sensor technology, including “environmental sensors, biometric sensors, gesture sensors, inertial sensors, or the like), processing circuitry, additional communications circuitry, input components, audio and/or haptic output components, a battery, and/or one or more display components”.

Apple Watch bands have continued to utilize the same connection mechanism since the original Apple Watch released back in 2015. It remains to be seen whether Apple will opt to one day fundamentally change the band connection mechanism eventually eliminating backwards compatibility for existing bands.