Tilted Touch Panel 3D Direction Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional game systems using pointing devices struggle to intuitively specify directions in three-dimensional spaces, particularly with touch panels or touch pads, as they can only determine two-dimensional positions and lack the ability to specify directions in a three-dimensional environment.
Innovation Solution
A game system that includes a hand-held device with touch and movement data output sections, transmitting operation data to a game device, which calculates the attitude of a control surface based on movement data and touch data to determine control directions in a three-dimensional game space, allowing players to specify directions using both device movement and input surface operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a touch panel or touch pad is used as the pointing device, then it is possible to specify a two-dimensional position on the screen, but it is not possible to specify a direction in a three-dimensional space
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dimensionality change by transforming the two-dimensional touch panel into a three-dimensional control interface. The control surface is tilted at a predetermined angle relative to the display surface, allowing the touch panel to detect not only horizontal and vertical positions but also depth information through the tilt angle. This enables the system to specify directions in three-dimensional space while maintaining the use of a touch panel, thus resolving the contradiction between maintaining 2D position specification and adding 3D direction specification capability.
2Measurement precision
If an optical pointing device having an image-capturing mechanism is used, then it is possible to calculate the distance from the marker to the optical pointing device and identify the position with respect to the depth direction, but it was difficult to specify a direction in a three-dimensional space displayed in the screen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the complex optical image-capturing mechanism with a simpler mechanical solution. Instead of using an image-capturing device to detect depth and calculate distances, the system uses a tilted touch panel where the tilt angle itself encodes depth information. The touch panel's inclination relative to the display surface allows direct mechanical detection of three-dimensional control directions without requiring optical sensors or image processing, thus improving ease of operation while maintaining depth specification capability.
3Device complexity
If movement data and touch data are processed separately, then the control system remains simple, but the player cannot simultaneously control object movement and attitude in three-dimensional space
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the processing of movement data and touch data into a unified control framework. The attitude calculation section integrates both movement data (from the tilted touch panel's inclination) and touch data (from finger positions on the control surface) to calculate comprehensive three-dimensional control directions. This unified approach allows the system to simultaneously control object movement and attitude in 3D space without requiring separate complex processing systems, thus resolving the contradiction between system simplicity and control versatility.
Data Source
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AI summary
A game system includes a game device, and a hand-held device having a predetermined input surface. The hand-held device transmits operation data which includes touch data representing a player input position on the predetermined input surface and movement data whose value changes in accordance with movement of the hand-held device. The game device controls an attitude of a control surface placed in a three-dimensional game space based on the movement data. The game device calculates a control direction in the game space based on the attitude of the control surface and the touch data, and performs a game process based on the control direction. The first game image representing the game space is output to and displayed on a display device which is separate from the hand-held device.