Touchscreen Joystick With Curved Biasing Arms for Tactile Centering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile gaming experiences are hindered by the lack of tactile feedback from virtual buttons on touchscreens, and existing solutions like handheld controllers are bulky and costly.
Innovation Solution
A joystick device with a center-stick or control-stick that provides tactile feedback by using a plurality of biasing curved arm members to return to its original position after movement, allowing for lateral movement and rotation, and is designed for attachment to touchscreens with a hollow housing that can be temporarily secured using adhesive or suction elements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If handheld controllers are used to provide tactile feedback, then user experience is improved, but device size and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The joystick device is segmented into separate functional components: a control stick with biasing curved arm members for tactile feedback, and a hollow housing that attaches to the touchscreen. This segmentation allows the tactile feedback mechanism to be integrated directly into the touchscreen interface rather than requiring a separate bulky controller unit.
Solution Approach 2:
The control stick and biasing curved arm members are nested within the hollow housing, which itself attaches to the touchscreen. This nested structure consolidates multiple functions into a compact integrated unit that eliminates the need for external controllers while maintaining tactile feedback capability.
2Reliability
If handheld controllers are used to provide tactile feedback, then user experience is improved, but device cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the tactile feedback mechanism with the touchscreen interface by integrating the control stick and biasing curved arm members directly onto the touchscreen surface. This consolidation eliminates the need for separate controller hardware, reducing overall system cost while maintaining tactile feedback functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The biasing curved arm members are designed to automatically provide tactile feedback and centering force without requiring external power sources or complex electronic components. This self-service mechanism reduces manufacturing complexity and cost compared to electronically-driven tactile feedback systems.
3Reliability
If biasing curved arm members are used to provide tactile feedback, then tactile feel is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The biasing curved arm members utilize curved geometric shapes that naturally provide the necessary mechanical biasing and centering forces through their geometry alone. This curvature-based design achieves tactile feedback functionality without requiring complex mechanical linkages, springs, or electronic control systems.
4Adaptability or versatility
If the control-stick is allowed to move laterally and rotate, then operational versatility is improved, but structural stability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The control stick is designed with dynamic characteristics that allow it to move laterally and rotate freely for versatile input, while the biasing curved arm members continuously apply centering forces to maintain structural stability. This dynamic balance enables both movement freedom and structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The biasing curved arm members provide continuous mechanical feedback to the control stick, automatically centering it after lateral movements or rotations. This feedback mechanism ensures the control stick returns to its neutral position, maintaining structural stability while allowing versatile movement during operation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enhances the gaming experience by providing tactile feedback without the bulk and cost of traditional controllers, ensuring reliable and durable operation through the use of resilient biasing curved arm members that reduce fatigue and deformation.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of biasing curved arm members extending outwardly from the stem portion (324) of the control-stick (320) in a manner so as to be movable with the control-stick (320) as a whole
Implementation Method 2
designed for attachment to touchscreens with a hollow housing that can be temporarily secured using adhesive or suction elements
Implementation Method 3
designed for attachment to touchscreens with a hollow housing that can be temporarily secured using adhesive or suction elements
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 3A~3B
AI summary
A joystick device including a hollow housing having an endless boundary structure and a ceiling structure with an opening; a control-stick having a head portion and a stem portion, the hollow housing surrounding the stem portion with the head portion outside the hollow housing; and a plurality of biasing curved arm members extending outwardly from the stem portion and movable with the control-stick as a whole relative to the hollow housing along a plane at least substantially perpendicular to the stem portion. Each of the plurality of biasing curved arm members having a curved segment with a convex side directed towards a respective corresponding portion of the endless boundary structure so as to bias the stem portion when the control-stick is being moved towards said portion. The plurality of biasing curved arm members being distributed around the stem portion so as to cooperate with each other to centre the control-stick.