Textures and other spatial sensations for a relative haptic interface device
US6448977B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Feb 15, 2000 |
| Grant date | Sep 10, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Feb 15, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04L69/329
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A low-cost haptic feedback device that provides spatially-based sensations such as textures in correlation with a displayed graphical environment. The device includes a housing, a sensor device, and an actuator for applying a force to the user. A local processor reports relative sensor data to the host processor and receives force information from the host processor. The host force information causes a texture sensation to be output by the actuator, the texture sensation providing forces to the user at least approximately spatially correlated with predefined locations in the graphical environment as determined by a local processor. In some embodiments, the local processor can model a position of the cursor while the cursor interacts with the texture field, where the modeled position is used for determining the force output to the user, and the force information from the host can include a gating command to activate or deactivate the texture sensation when the cursor enters or exits the texture field.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.