INPUT DEVICE AND GAME SYSTEM INCLUDING THE INPUT DEVICE

• US 20120135806A1
• Filed: 08/02/2010
• Published: 05/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Konami Digital Entertainment Company Limited (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Konami Digital Entertainment Company Limited (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Hayasaka, Hiroshi, Aono, Takuya, Takada, Hiroyuki, Yokoyama, Kazunori, Nakano, Hideyasu, Sakai, Toyokazu, Mito, Yasushi, Shimizu, Hidekazu, Takahashi, Hyogo, Ikeuchi, Miho, Inami, Tomohiro, Aoshima, Nayuta, Shamoto, Masayuki, Iikawa, Takehiro, Saeki, Shigeharu, Horie, Ryo, Nasuhara, Naoko
• Granted Patent: US 8,409,005 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/36
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/245 specially adapted to a particular type of game, e.g. steering wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/44 involving timing of operations, e.g. performing an action within a time slot
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/46 Computing the game score
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5375 for graphically or textually suggesting an action, e.g. by displaying an arrow indicating a turn in a driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/54 involving acoustic signals, e.g. for simulating revolutions per minute [RPM] dependent engine sounds in a driving game or reverberation against a virtual wall
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/814 Musical performances, e.g. by evaluating the player's ability to follow a notation
• 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 2300/1062 being specially adapted to a type of game, e.g. steering wheel
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/638 according to the timing of operation or a time limit
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8047 Music games
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/342 for guitar-like instruments with or without strings and with a neck on which switches or string-fret contacts are used to detect the notes being played electric guitars in which the tones are generated by the vibration of strings G10H3/18
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/135 Musical aspects of games or videogames; Musical instrument-shaped game input interfaces game background music G10H2210/026; musical game scoring or performance evaluation G10H2210/091

Abstract

An input device is provided which can input operations corresponding to play techniques used in stringed instruments. A guitar controller (10), which comprises a body part (31), a neck part (32) extending from the body part (31) and a head part (33) provided at the front end of the neck part (32), has, in the head part (33), a triaxial acceleration sensor (40) that can detect accelerations.

Claims

1. An input device imitating a stringed instrument, and comprising:

a body portion;

a neck portion extending from the body portion;

a head portion provided to a leading end of the neck portion; and

wherein,

the head portion is provided with an acceleration detecting device that can detect acceleration.

2. The input device according to claim 1, wherein the input device imitates a guitar as the stringed instrument.

3. The input device according to claim 1, wherein a triaxial acceleration detecting device that can detect the acceleration in directions of three axes orthogonal to each other including an extending direction of the neck portion is used as the acceleration detecting device.

4. A music game system comprising:

the input device according to claim 1 provided with at least one operation portion;

a display device that outputs and displays a game screen;

an audio output device that outputs and plays back game sounds;

a music composition data storage device that stores music composition data for playing back music;

a music playback device that plays back the music from the audio output device based on the music composition data;

a sequence data storage device that stores sequence data describing operation moments of the operation portion during the game; and

an operation guiding device that guides a operation of the operation portion to a player by determining the operation moments of the operation portion included in a predetermined time period from a current time toward future in the music based on the sequence data, displaying an operation instruction sign corresponding to each determined operation moment and an operation reference sign corresponding to the current time arranged in a layout along a time axis on the game screen, and producing a relative displacement between the operation reference sign and the operation instruction sign according to progress of time in the music so that a location of the operation instruction sign coincides with a location of the operation reference sign at the operation moments to be indicated by the operation instruction sign, and

wherein the operation guiding device includes a motion guiding device that guides a predetermined motion to the player by displaying a motion instruction sign corresponding to an motion moment at which the player should carry out the predetermined motion for the input device displayed in a layout along the time axis on the game screen, and producing a relative displacement between the motion instruction sign and the operation reference sign according to the progress of time in the piece of music so that a location of the motion instruction sign coincides with a location of the operation reference sign at the motion moment to be indicated by the motion instruction sign.

5. The music game system according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined motion includes a motion in a Y-axis direction which is parallel to an upper face of the body portion and orthogonal to the extending direction of the neck portion.

6. The music game system according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined motion includes a motion in a Z-axis direction which is orthogonal to an upper face of the body portion and orthogonal to the extending direction of the neck portion.

7. The music game system according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined motion includes a motion of the head portion from a position beside the player to a position in front of the player.

8. The game system according to claim 4, wherein the predetermined motion includes a motion for moving the neck portion from such a position that the neck portion extends toward a side of the player into such a position that the neck portion extends upward in a vertical direction.

9. The game system according to claim 4, further comprising a determining device that determines the predetermined motion based on a detection result of the acceleration detecting device provided to the input device.