Touch Panel Input Direction Update for Joystick Emulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing game controllers using touch panels face challenges in emulating joystick inputs, leading to confusion in controllability and requiring constant visual confirmation of the origin, which differs from traditional joystick operations.
Innovation Solution
A game program that utilizes a pointing device to output coordinate information, allowing for initial input direction setting, designated coordinate setting, drag direction calculation, and input direction updating to match joystick controllability, thereby improving response and reducing the need for visual confirmation of the origin.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a touch panel is used to emulate joystick inputs using traditional origin-based coordinate systems, then the touch panel can provide digital input capabilities, but the operation becomes confusing and requires constant visual confirmation of the origin position
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of calculating input direction from a fixed origin point (traditional approach), the patent inverts the approach by calculating drag direction from the movement between consecutive touch points. This inversion eliminates the need for a fixed origin reference, making the operation more intuitive and consistent with natural joystick movement patterns.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic origin tracking where the reference point moves with the user's finger rather than remaining fixed. By continuously updating the origin to the current touch position and calculating drag direction based on movement from the previous origin, the system adapts to the user's motion, eliminating the need for visual confirmation of a static origin point.
2Device complexity
If a fixed origin coordinate system is used for touch panel inputs, then coordinate calculation is straightforward, but the user must constantly visually confirm the origin position, interrupting game flow
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary action by pre-calculating and storing the previous touch point coordinates before computing the current drag direction. This allows the system to maintain continuous game control by having the reference data ready in advance, eliminating the need for visual confirmation during the gaming flow while keeping coordinate calculation straightforward.
3Device complexity
If traditional touch panel input methods are used without drag direction calculation, then the system can process simple point inputs, but it cannot provide smooth joystick-like continuous control
Solution Approach 1:
The patent ensures continuity of useful action by continuously calculating drag direction based on the movement from the previous touch point to the current touch point. This continuous calculation of directional vectors provides smooth joystick-like control while maintaining relatively simple input processing, as it only requires storing and comparing consecutive touch coordinates.
Data Source
AI summary
Designated coordinates in a coordinate system are set based on coordinate information outputted from a pointing device, and a drag direction from the designated coordinates having been previously set toward the designated coordinates being currently set is set, and an input direction is updated, based on both an input direction being currently stored and the drag direction, to be stored, and a game is controlled based on the input direction being currently stored.