Apple's Latest Patent: Protecting the Honest, or Needlessly Invasive?

The good folks over at AppleInsider are reporting on a recent patent from Apple: "Consumer Abuse Detection System and Method." In short, and as the name implies, this would be a patented system allowing a device (say, an iPhone) to record when it is placed in perilous situations: extreme cold/heat, drops, liquid exposure, etc. Before we go any further, keep in mind this is simply a patent at this point, and we have no information on Apple planning to use this in any product at this time.

Apple already uses liquid sensors in the iPhone, but those low-tech stickers that change color when exposed to water, aren't perfect. There are reports that simply living in a humid climate over time, could change the color of the sensor.

Is Apple's patent aimed at simply making a more accurate recording of events they are already trying to record, or does this go further? How would one know whether they have voided the warranty? If I drop my iPhone onto the pavement, but it continues to function normally, later if there's a problem, would I be rejected because of single incident perhaps a year earlier? Would there be some unwritten rule about how many drops would be deemed acceptable? Would it be shrouded in mystery like the old dead pixel policies for Apple monitors?

I can tell you from working at the store that probably 90% of the time, it is obvious when an iPhone/iPod has been abused. Is catching that other 10% worth the expense and PR issue the new system could bring?