Wireless pointing device for remote cursor control

• US 6,727,887 B1
• Filed: 01/05/1995
• Issued: 04/27/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/1995
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wistron Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Schappert, Michael Alan, Levine, James Lewis
• Primary Examiner(s): LAO, LUNYI
• Application Number:
  US08/369,011
• Time in Patent Office: 3,400 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/157, 345/158, 345/169, 345/173, 345/175, 345/176, 345/177, 345/178, 345/180, 178/18, 178/19, 178/18-1-, 178/19-1-, 348/114, 348/135, 348/734, 248/148.B, 463/37, 463/39
• US Class Current: 345/158
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0308 comprising a plurality of distinctive and separately oriented light emitters or reflectors associated to the pointing device, e.g. remote cursor controller with distinct and separately oriented LEDs at the tip whose radiations are captured by a photo-detector associated to the screen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/44 Receiver circuitry for the reception of television signals according to analogue transmission standards H04N5/14 takes precedence

Abstract

There is provided a hand held cursor controller system for use particularly with interactive television and computer presentation graphics. The system uses a hand held device with infrared light emitting diodes which transmits to a detector attached to a processor. The information from the processor is transmitted to a television or video cassette recorder. The system allows for the positioning of a cursor on a television screen with the only input of the user being the aiming of the controller. It includes push-button activation and provides for the transmission of the usual controller codes.

Claims

1. A hand-held pointing device for remotely controlling a cursor on a display device comprising:

at least three infrared light emitting diodes (IRLEDs), each of said IRLEDs aimed off a main or pointing axis of the device in different directions;

at least one activating device on said hand-held pointing device; and

a circuit connected to each of said IRLEDs for sequentially pulsing said IRLEDs with pulse trains so as to cause the IRLEDs to individually and sequentially emit modulated infrared light signals to position said cursor.

2. The hand-held pointing device of claim 1 wherein said activating device transmits a control signal to cause an action to occur.

3. The hand-held pointing device recited in claim 2 further comprising a plurality of activating devices and wherein said circuit is additionally responsive to said plurality of activating devices to generate additional control signals.

4. The hand-held pointing device recited in claim 1 wherein said circuit is responsive to said activating device to transmit a control code before said IRLEDs are sequentially pulsed, said control code indicating that position pulses are to follow.

5. The hand-held pointing device recited in claim 1 further comprising an optical diffusing filter positioned to pass infrared light signals emitted from said IRLEDs to improve linearity.

6. The hand-held pointing device recited in claim 1 wherein said circuit includes programmable means for storing calibration information for said plurality of IRLEDs, said circuit controlling an amplitude of pulse trains to individual IRLEDs according to the stored calibration data so as to cause said IRLEDs to emit approximately equal amplitude infrared light signals.

7. A hand-held pointing device for remotely controlling a cursor on a display device as recited in claim 1 wherein a signal from each of said IRLEDs is identified by a position of said signal in a sequence of signals from said IRLEDs.

8. A hand-held pointing device for remotely controlling a cursor on a display device as recited in claim 1 wherein an actual orientation of said hand-held pointing device is directly related to a position of said cursor.

9. A remote pointing system for controlling a cursor location on a display device comprising:

a hand-held pointing device for remotely controlling the cursor on the display device, said pointing device comprising;

at least three infrared light emitting diodes (IRLEDs), each of said IRLEDs aimed off a main or pointing axis of the device in different directions; and

a circuit connected to each of said IRLEDs responsive to a user input for sequentially pulsing said IRLEDs with pulse trains so as to cause the IRLEDs to individually and sequentially emit modulated infrared light signals;

a receiver and controller located proximate to said display device, said receiver and controller comprising;

an infrared detector and amplifier tuned to a predetermined pulse frequency;

a demodulator to convert received signals to analog base-band pulses;

an analog-to-digital convertor to digitize the analog base-band pulses; and

a digital processor to process the digitized analog base-band pulses as data representing a point of aim on the display device by the hand-held pointing device, said digital processor determining the position of a cursor on the display device.

10. The remote pointing system recited in claim 9 wherein said digital processor is programmed to calculate cursor position (Xc, Yc) as a function of rotation angles (Ax, Ay).

11. The remote pointing system recited in claim 9 wherein the hand-held pointing device further comprises one or more activating devices and wherein said circuit is additionally responsive to said one or more activating devices to generate control codes, said circuit pulsing all or some of said IRLEDs with pulse trains in accordance with said control codes subsequent to first sequentially pulsing said IRLEDs with pulse trains.

12. The remote pointing system recited in claim 11 wherein the activating devices of said hand-held pointing device comprise one or more pushbutton switches.

13. The remote pointing system recited in claim 9 wherein said circuit of the hand-held pointing device includes programmable means for storing calibration information for said plurality of IRLEDs, said circuit controlling the pulse widths of said pulse trains to individual IRLEDs according to the stored calibration data so as to cause said IRLEDs to emit approximately equal power infrared light signals.

14. A remote pointing system for controlling a cursor location on a display device as recited in claim 9 wherein a signal from each of said IRLEDs is identified by a position of said signal in a sequence of signals from said IRLEDs.

15. A remote pointing system for controlling a cursor location on a display device as recited in claim 9 wherein an actual orientation of said hand-held pointing device is directly related to a position of said cursor.

16. A remote pointing system for controlling a cursor location on a display device comprising:

a hand-held pointing device for remotely controlling the

cursor on the display device, said pointing device comprsing;

at least three infrared light emitting diodes (IRLEDs), each of said IRLEDs aimed off a main or pointing axis of the device in different directions; and

a circuit connected to each of said IRLEDs responsive to a user input for sequentially pulsing said IRLEDs with pulse trains so as to cause the IRLEDs to individually and sequentially emit modulated infrared light signals;

a receiver and controller located proximate to said display device, said receiver and controller comprising;

an infrared detector and amplifier tuned to a predetermined pulse frequency;

a demodulator to convert received signals to analog base-band pulses;

an analog-to-digital convertor to digitize the analog base-band pulses;

a digital processor to process the digitized analog base-band pulses as data representing a point of aim on the display device by the hand-held pointing device, said digital processor determining the position of a cursor on the display device,

said digital processor is programmed to calculate cursor position (Xc, Yc) as a function of rotation angles (Ax, AY) and to calculate cursor velocity (Vx(t), Vy(t)) as;

17. The remote pointing system recited in claim 16 wherein said digital processor is programmed to apply a digital filter to cursor position data, said digital filter having a degree of filtering which decreases smoothly with cursor velocity.

18. The remote pointing system recited in claim 17 wherein said digital filter calculates X and Y filtered coordinates as:

$\mathrm{Xf}<br><br>\left(t\right)=\mathrm{Xf}<br><br>\left(t-\mathrm{Ts}\right)+\frac{(\mathrm{Xc}<br><br>\left(t\right)-\mathrm{Xf}<br><br>\left(t-\mathrm{Ts}\right)}{\mathrm{Nx}},\text{\hspace{1em}<br><br>}<br><br>\mathrm{and}$$\mathrm{Yf}<br><br>\left(t\right)=\mathrm{Yf}<br><br>\left(t-\mathrm{Ts}\right)+\frac{(\mathrm{Yc}<br><br>\left(t\right)-\mathrm{Yf}<br><br>\left(t-\mathrm{Ts}\right)}{\mathrm{Ny}},$

where Nx and Ny are calculated as;

$\mathrm{Nx}=\frac{\left(A+\mathrm{Vx}\right)}{\left(B+\mathrm{Vx}\right)},$

where for $\mathrm{Nx}-><br><br>\frac{A}{B},$

Vx<

<

B, and for Nx→

1, Vx>

>

A, and $\mathrm{Ny}=\frac{\left(A+\mathrm{Vy}\right)}{\left(B+\mathrm{Vy}\right)},$

where for $\mathrm{Ny}-><br><br>\frac{A}{B},$

Vy<

<

B, and for Ny→

1, Vy>

>

A.