Systems and methods for reducing jitter associated with a control device

• US 8,096,880 B2
• Filed: 08/15/2006
• Issued: 01/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Jawad, Mark, Rabin, Steve
• Primary Examiner(s): Lewis, David L
• Assistant Examiner(s): MOSSER, ROBERT E
• Application Number:
  US11/504,108
• Publication Number:
  US 20080051197A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,981 Days
• Field of Search: 463 36- 38, 345156-157
• US Class Current: 463/36
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/213 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. cameras, photodiodes or infrared cells A63F13/219, A63F13/655 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/219 for aiming at specific areas on the display, e.g. light-guns
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/24 Constructional details thereof, e.g. game controllers with detachable joystick handles
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/285 Generating tactile feedback signals via the game input device, e.g. force feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/40 Processing input control signals of video game devices, e.g. signals generated by the player or derived from the environment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/803 Driving vehicles or craft, e.g. cars, airplanes, ships, robots or tanks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1006 having additional degrees of freedom
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1037 being specially adapted for converting control signals received from the game device into a haptic signal, e.g. using force feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1043 being characterized by constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/105 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1087 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. a camera
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8017 Driving on land or water; Flying

Abstract

An example system and method is provided for filtering input values associated with movement of a hand-held control device. A current input value is compared with an average input value and, based on the comparing, an output value is generated in a range between the current input value and a prior output value.

Claims

1. A method for filtering outputs of a sensor of a handheld video game controller, the method comprising:

comparing, using a processing system, a current sensor output value with an average of multiple prior sensor output values; and

based on the comparing, generating, using the processing system, a filtered sensor value used as a video game input and which is in a range determined by the current sensor output value and a prior sensor output value.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the filtered sensor value is generated based on whether a scaled difference between the current sensor output value and the average sensor output value exceeds a specified value.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining the average sensor output value by averaging sensor output values stored in a ring buffer.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the averaging comprises a weighted averaging.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sensor output comprises an accelerometer output indicative of movement or orientation of the video game controller.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sensor output is indicative of a direction in which the video game controller is pointing.

7. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

applying hysteresis to the filtered sensor value.

8. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining the average sensor output value by averaging a dynamically varying number of sensor output values.

9. A computer-readable medium having computer program code embodied thereon which, when executed, causes a processor to perform a method of filtering outputs of a sensor of a hand-held video game controller, the method comprising:

comparing a current sensor output value with an average of multiple prior sensor output values; and

based on the comparing, generating a filtered sensor value used as a video game input and which is in a range determined by the current sensor output value and a prior sensor output value.

10. The computer-readable medium according to claim 9, wherein the sensor output comprises an accelerometer output indicative of movement or orientation of the handheld video game controller.

11. The computer-readable medium according to claim 9, wherein the sensor output is indicative of a direction in which the video game controller is pointing.

12. The computer-readable medium according to claim 9, wherein hysteresis is applied to the filtered sensor value.

13. The computer-readable medium according to claim 9, wherein the average sensor output value is determined by a weighted averaging.

14. The computer-readable medium according to claim 9, wherein the average sensor output value is determined by averaging a dynamically varying number of input values.

15. A system for filtering output values of a sensor for a controller for a video game system, the system comprising:

a ring buffer for storing a plurality of prior sensor output values; and

a processing system for determining an average of the sensor output values in the ring buffer, comparing a current sensor output value with the average sensor output value, generating, based on the comparing, a filtered sensor value which is in a range determined by the current sensor output value and a prior sensor output value and using the filtered sensor value as an input to a video game program executed by the processing system.

16. The system according to claim 15, wherein the filtered sensor value is generated based on whether a scaled difference between the current sensor output value and the average sensor output value exceeds a specified value.

17. The system according to claim 15, wherein the average is determined as a weighted average.

18. The system according to claim 15, wherein the sensor output comprises an accelerometer output indicative of movement or orientation of the controller.

19. The system according to claim 15, wherein the sensor output is indicative of a direction in which the controller is pointing.

20. The system according to claim 15, wherein the processing system applies hysteresis to the filtered sensor value.

21. The system according to claim 15, wherein the average sensor output value is determined by averaging a dynamically varying number of sensor output values in the ring buffer.

22. The system according to claim 15, wherein the processing circuitry is part of the controller.

23. The system according to claim 15, wherein the processing circuitry is part of a console of the video game system.