Coordinate data generating apparatus

• US 5,287,120 A
• Filed: 10/02/1992
• Issued: 02/15/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Okada, Satoru, Yamano, Katsuya, Yamagami, Hitoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Weldon, Ulysses
• Assistant Examiner(s): Luu, Matthew
• Application Number:
  US07/955,455
• Time in Patent Office: 501 Days
• Field of Search: 340/710, 340/709, 340/706, 74/471 XY, 273/85 E
• US Class Current: 345/163
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry

Abstract

An X-axis counter (101) and a Y-axis counter (102) detect velocities of the movement of a mouse in X-axis and Y-axis directions, respectively. A comparator (103) detects which of the velocities of the movement of the mouse in the X-axis and Y-axis directions is higher. An X-axis displacement amount correction data ROM (106) and a Y-axis displacement amount correction data ROM (107) correct a detection result by the X-axis counter (101) and a detection result by the Y-axis counter (102) with the same correction rate based upon detection results by the comparator (103) to output displacements in the X-axis and Y-axis directions.

Claims

1. A coordinate data generating apparatus which has a ball rotatable in any direction and which is for converting the quantity of the rotation of said ball into distance data about X-axis and Y-axis directions orthogonal to each other in a two-dimensional plane, comprising

rotational quantity detecting means for detecting the quantities of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions for each predetermined period of time,

comparing means for comparing the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the predetermined period of time with the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the Y-axis direction for that period of time, both of which are detected by said rotational quantity detecting means, and

correcting means responding to comparison results from said comparing means for correcting displacements of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions corresponding to the rotational quantities of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions based upon only a first correction parameter determined in accordance with a variation in the rotational quantity of said ball in the X-axis direction when the rotational quantity of said ball in the X-axis direction for the predetermined period of time is larger than that in the Y-axis direction, or for correcting displacements of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions corresponding to the rotational quantities of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions based upon only a second correction parameter determined in accordance with a variation in the rotational quantity of said ball in the Y-axis direction when the rotational quantity of said ball in the Y-axis direction for the predetermined period of time is larger than that in the X-axis direction.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said correcting means includes

first X-axis distance data storing means for storing an X-axis direction distance data corrected based upon said first correction parameter,

second X-axis distance data storing means for storing an X-axis direction distance data corrected based upon said second correction parameter,

first Y-axis distance data storing means for storing a Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon said first correction parameter,

second Y-axis distance data storing means for storing a Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon said second correction parameter,

X-axis distance data reading means for reading the corrected X-axis direction distance data from said first X-axis distance data storing means when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the Y-axis direction, or for reading the corrected X-axis direction distance data from said second X-axis distance data storing means when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the Y-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the X-axis direction, and

Y-axis distance data reading means for reading the corrected Y-axis direction distance data from said first Y-axis distance data storing means when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the Y-axis direction, or for reading the corrected Y-axis direction distance data from said second Y-axis distance data storing means when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the Y-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the X-axis direction.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein there are a plurality of pairs of said first and second X-axis distance data storing means and a plurality of pairs of said first and second Y-axis distance data storing means,

said first correction parameter takes different values among the different pairs of said first X-axis distance data storing means and among the different pairs of said first Y-axis distance data storing means,

said second correction parameter takes different values among the different pairs of said second X-axis distance data storing means and among the different pairs of said second Y-axis distance data storing means, and

said apparatus further includes switch means for selectively switching the pairs used for correcting the distance data among said plurality of pairs of said first and second X-axis distance data storing means and among said plurality of pairs of said first and second Y-axis distance data storing means.

4. An apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said switch means responds to a switch command from the outside to practice its switching operation.

5. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the distance data read by said X-axis distance data reading means and said Y-axis distance data reading means are applied to an image processing device for processing data to represent an image on display means, and

the switch command applied to said switch means is output from said image processor.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising selecting means responding to a switch command from the outside for selecting either the X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data corrected by said correcting means or the X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data not corrected by said correcting means to output selected ones.

7. An apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data output from said selecting means are applied to an image processing device for processing data to represent an image on display means, and

the switch command applied to said selecting means is output from said image processing device.

8. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said correcting means includes

distance data storing means for storing X-axis direction distance data corrected based upon said first or second correction parameter and Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon said first or second correction parameter, and

distance data reading means responding to comparison results by said comparing means for reading the X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon only said first parameter from said distance data storing means as data of distances corresponding to the quantities of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the Y-axis direction, or for reading the X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon only said second parameter from said distance data storing means as data of distances corresponding to the quantities of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the Y-axis direction.

9. A coordinate data generating apparatus which has a ball rotatable in any direction and which is for converting the quantity of the rotation of said ball into distance data about X-axis and Y-axis directions orthogonal to each other in a two-dimensional plane, comprising

rotational quantity detecting means for detecting the quantities of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions for each predetermined period of time,

comparing means for comparing the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the predetermined period of time with the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the Y-axis direction for that period of time, both of which are detected by said rotational quantity detecting means,

distance data storing means for storing X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon a first correction parameter which is determined in accordance with a variation in the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction, and X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon a second correction parameter which is determined in accordance with a variation in the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the Y-axis direction, and

distance data reading means responding to comparison results by said comparing means for reading the X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon only said first parameter from said distance data storing means as data of distances corresponding to the quantities of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the Y-axis direction, or for reading the X-axis and Y-axis direction distance data corrected based upon only said second parameter from said distance data storing means as data of distances corresponding to the quantities of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis and Y-axis directions when the quantity of the rotation of said ball in the X-axis direction for the specified period of time is larger than that in the Y-axis direction.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9, wherein there are a plurality of pairs of said distance data storing means,

said first correction parameter takes different values among the different pairs of said distance data storing means,

said second correction parameter takes different values among the different pairs of said distance data storing means, and

said apparatus further includes switch means for selectively switching the pair used for correcting the distance data among said plurality of pairs of said distance data.