NUMERICAL COMPUTER PERIPHERAL INTERACTIVE DEVICE WITH MANUAL CONTROLS

• US 3,729,129 A
• Filed: 06/22/1971
• Issued: 04/24/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Arthur I. Zygielbaum, Stanley S. Broki
• Original Assignee: Arthur I. Zygielbaum, Stanley S. Broki
• Inventors: Zygielbaum, Arthur I., Broki, Stanley S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wilbur, Maynard R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gnuse, Robert F.
• Application Number:
  US05/155,565
• Time in Patent Office: 672 Days
• Field of Search: 235/92CV,92 DN/ 235/92MT 35/151.27,10.2
• US Class Current: 377/17
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04892 Arrangements for controlling cursor position based on codes indicative of cursor displacements from one discrete location to another, e.g. using cursor control keys associated to different directions or using the tab key arrangements for controlling cursor position based on coordinate signals G06F3/038

Abstract

A computer peripheral device is disclosed which includes a joystick whose displacement from a center position along two axes X and Y in either a plus (+) or a minus (-) direction is sensed. The displacement magnitude in either direction controls the rate of clock pulses provided by a variable frequency clock. The clock pulses from the two clocks are accumulated in two separate counters, whose contents are displayed. The contents of the counters are suppliable to a computer to update the contents of specific cells which define the position of a cursor on a display which is under computer control.

Claims

1. For use with a computer, a computer peripheral device for manually updating the numerical content of the computer, comprising:

a joystick defining a quiescent reference position and being manually pivotable from said reference position so as to be displaced in either first or second opposite directions along each of first and second orthogonal axes;

sensing means coupled to said joystick for providing at four distinct output terminals of said sensing means first, second, third and fourth control signals, whose amplitudes are respectively functions of the magnitudes of displacement of said joystick in said first and second directions along said first axis and in said first and second directions along said second axis;

a first source responsive to either of said first and second control signals for providing pulses at a rate which is a function of the magnitude of the displacement of said joystick in said first axis;

a second source responsive to either of said third and fourth control signals, for providing pulses at a rate which is a function of the magnitude of the displacement of said joystick in said second axis;

a first reversible counter for counting the pulses received from said first source;

a second reversible counter for counting the pulses received from said second source;

control means responsive to said control signals for controlling said first counter to respectively increment and decrement the count therein with the pulses from said first source when said joystick is displaced in said first and second directions along said first axis, and for controlling said second counter to respectively increment and decrement the count therein with the pulse from said second source when said joystick is displaced in said first and second directions along said second axis, whereby the numerical contents of said first and second counters are functions of the manual displacements of said joystick;

means for supplying the numerical contents of said first and second counters to said computer; and

display means for visually displaying the numerical contents of said first and second counters.

2. In a device as described in claim 1 further including means for coupling said first and second counters to said computer to initialize the numerical contents of said counters by said computer.

3. In combination with a system responsive to the numerical contents of counters, a peripheral device for manually controlling the numerical contents supplied to said system, comprising:

a joystick defining a quiescent reference portion and being manually pivotable from said reference position so as to be displaced in either first or second opposite directions along first and second orthogonal axes;

a first source for providing pulses at a rate which is a function of the displacement of said joystick in said first axis;

a second source for providing pulses at a rate which is a function of the displacement of said joystick in said second axis;

a first reversible counter for counting the pulses received from said first source;

a second reversible counter for counting the pulses received from said second source;

control means for controlling said first counter to respectively increment and decrement the count therein with the pulses from said first source when said joystick is displaced in said first and second directions along said first axis, and for controlling said second counter to respectively increment and decrement the count therein with the pulses from said second source when said joystick is displaced in said first and second directions along said second axis, whereby the numerical contents of said first and second counters are functions of the manual displacements of said joystick;

means for supplying the numerical contents of said first and second counters to said system, said system being a display system incLuding a cursor movable thereon from a reference point, with the numerical contents of said counters being used by said system to control the position of said cursor along two orthogonal axes with respect to said reference point; and

display means for visually displaying the numerical contents of said first and second counters, to thereby provide a visual indication of the distance of said cursor from said reference point along the two orthogonal axes.