Patent documents submitted by Apple have revealed details related to a Siri-like digital assistant in a desktop environment with an interesting function being described as “Using Digital Assistant as a Third Hand.”

“Methods and systems related to interfaces for interacting with a digital assistant in a desktop environment are disclosed,” says the documents. “In some embodiments, a digital assistant is invoked on a user device by a gesture following a predetermined motion pattern on a touch-sensitive surface of the user device.”

This feature has long been expected of Apple, however users of Apple’s next operating system OS X Yosemite have not reported seeing Siri on their computer. Despite this, Apple could be saving it for the final release of the upcoming operating system.

Siri was first released to Apple’s iPhone 4S back in 2011, and since then has become a very popular feature for Apple’s phones. Apple has not incorporated Siri into their desktop computers, but we have seen hints towards that happening.

“Siri makes everyday tasks less tasking. It figures out which apps to use for which requests, and it finds answers to queries through sources like Yelp and WolframAlpha. It plays the songs you want to hear, gives you directions, wakes you up, even tells you the score of last night’s game. All you have to do is ask,” says Apple’s ad campaign for Siri.

Since Apple first released Siri, a number of competing companies have tried to come up with their own version. Recently Windows included Cortana in its mobile phones, which is in direct competition to Apple’s Siri.