Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

Sony Corporation

Hiroki Ogata

Teiyu Goto

Kazusato Tagawa

Hiroyuki Nakazawa

Toru Akazawa

Akihisa Ono

Youtaro Sakakura

Koji Mita

Yasuhiro Ootori

Shigehisa Miyasaka

Nobuhiro Komata

Satoshi Shinohara

An operating device used in a game machine for playing a television game includes a main body and first and second finger-manipulatable operating units positioned symmetrically on the main body. The operating device may include first and second grips projecting at spaced positions from the main body, with the first and second operating units being positioned adjacent the first and second grips. The operating device may further include vibration-imparting units for imparting vibrations to the user's hands.

Operating device for game machine

An operating device used in a game machine for playing a television game includes a main body portion and first and second grip portions protruding from one side of the main body portion. A first operating unit is mounted on one end of the main body portion and a second operating unit is mounted on the opposite end of the main body portion. The first and second operating units are each provided with at least one signal input element operable to generate a signal. A third operating unit and a fourth operating unit are mounted to the main body portion adjacent the first and second grip portions. Each of the third and fourth operating units has at least one signal input element operable to generate a signal. When the first and second grip portions are gripped, the third and fourth operating units can be manipulated by the thumb of the hand gripping the first or second grip portion, respectively. The operating device further includes a vibration imparting mechanism for imparting vibrations to the user's hands.

The invention relates to a system including a machine capable of retrieving data from a recording medium and of executing a program retrieved from the recording medium in response to an instruction given by an operator to the machine. Particularly, the invention relates to a system which comprises of such machine and a control unit connected to the machine for controlling the machine. The control unit includes: a housing; a pair of diverging grips which are molded integral with said housing and are supportable by both palms of the operator; a plurality of finger-manipulatable controllers mounted on the housing; and a vibration motor mounted within at least one of the grips via a adapter. The vibration motor includes: a casing; a freely rotatable shaft supported by the casing; an eccentric member, mounted on the shaft, having a rotor mounted on the shaft and a plurality of coils mounted on the rotor. Accordingly, when the coils are activated by the electric current, the motor is set in vibration caused by the rotation of the eccentric member. The vibrations of the motor is transmitted to the operator via the grips, thereby providing the operator with enhance virtual reality in the game.

Control unit and system utilizing the control unit

A control apparatus includes a pressure-sensitive device for providing an analog signal responsive to an applied pressure, a level segmenting unit for segmenting the analog signal into output levels and an analog-to-digital (A/D) converting unit for converting the segmented analog signal into a digital signal having a plurality of bits.

Control apparatus and detecting device

An analog operation is possible by a pressing operation of a controller which is normally used for conventional digital operation. A detecting device (e.g., a pressure-sensitive device) for outputting an analog signal corresponding to the pressing operation by the controller is provided, the analog signal which is outputted by the detecting device is segmented into levels by a level segmenting unit, and the segmented analog signal is converted into a digital signal having a plurality of bits corresponding to the output level by an A/D converting unit. A segmenting-range setting unit (such as a memory) for setting the range of output levels of the analog signal which is segmented by the level segmenting unit is also provided. The level segmenting unit segments the output level of the analog signal which is outputted by the detecting device within the range which is set by the segmenting-range setting unit.

Control apparatus and outputting signal adjusting method therefor

An operating device is capable of both digital operation and analog operation by using a pressing operation continuously. The operating device has detecting elements (e.g., pressure-sensitive elements) for outputting analog signals according to the pressing operations of operators, and is configured such that the analog signals output from the detecting elements are subjected to level dividing by a level dividing unit and converted into multi-bit digital signals corresponding to the output levels thereof by an A/D converting unit. The operating device is also configured so as to output single-bit digital signals according to a change in the analog signals output from the detecting element. A switching unit outputs one or the other of the multi-bit digital signals and single-bit digital signals.

Operating device

A manual controller has a main body and a pair of grips detachably mounted on the main body. The grips are made of a shape memory synthetic resin and can be deformed into a shape which is complementary to the palms of the user of the manual controller.

Manual controller

An operating device used in a game machine for playing a television game includes a main body portion of the operating device and first and second grip portions protruding from one side on respective end parts of the main body portion. A first operating unit is mounted on one end of the main body portion and a second operating unit is mounted on the opposite end of the main body portion. The first and second operating units are provided with a plurality of thrusting operators protruding from the upper surface of the main body portion and a plurality of signal input elements actuated by the thrusting operators. A third operating unit and a fourth operating unit are arranged facing each other on the proximal ends of the first and second grip portions. Each of the third and fourth operating units has a rotation member and a plurality of signal input devices actuated by the rotation member. When the first and second grip portions are gripped, the third and fourth operating units can be manipulated by a thumb finger of a hand gripping the first or second grip portion. The operating device further includes a vibration imparting mechanism for imparting vibrations to the user's hands.

An operating apparatus and a signal-output modulating method therefor allow analogous operations to be implemented by use of press-operational operation elements that have conventionally been used for digital operations. In the operating apparatus, detecting elements are provided, each of which is formed of a resistant material and a conductive material. The detecting elements individually output analog signals corresponding to press-operations performed on the operation elements. An output-level range of an analog signal outputted from the detecting element is divided by a level divider into multiple levels, and an analog-digital (A-D) converter performs conversion thereof to digital signals corresponding to the output levels. In addition, the output levels of the individual digital signals outputted from the A-D converter are shifted by a level corrector according to a predetermined corresponding reference, and the digital signals are thereby output.

Operating apparatus and signal-output-modulating method for the same

A remote control device for remotely controlling an AV (audio visual) device includes an analog switch ( ) formed of an operating element ( or ) and a pressure-sensitive resistor ( ) which outputs a signal with various levels depending upon a pressing force applied to the operating element ( or ). By employing the analog switch ( ) in a control button of the remote control device, it becomes possible to output a signal having various levels depending upon a pressing force applied to the control button ( or ). This allows a single control button to be used for a plurality of functions. Thus, it is possible to reduce the number of buttons, and a user can easily operate the remote control device in a simpler fashion.

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Chiba, Japan

Hiroki Ogata