US 6,066,075 · Granted 2000-05-23
The Patent Behind Force Feedback Gaming Controllers
Imagine a video game controller that doesn't just show you what's happening on screen—it actually pushes back on your hands, vibrates when you get hit, or gives you a jolt when something exciting happens. This patent covers the technology that lets a device track your movements and then respond with physical sensations in real time.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a coordinated system where a tracking device (with sensors for position, motion, temperature, heart rate, and more) communicates with a sensory interface device that produces stimuli—vibrations, sounds, lights, or tactile feedback—all synchronized by a microprocessor controller. What's protected here is the combination of sensing user input or condition, then automatically generating coordinated sensory responses based on that data.
Why it matters
This patent sits at the intersection of gaming, VR, and interactive fitness. By locking down the core idea of real-time sensory feedback coordinated with motion tracking, it became foundational for force-feedback controllers, haptic gaming devices, and interactive training systems. The ability to close the loop between what a user does and what they feel back is what makes modern gaming controllers and VR immersive rather than flat.
Real-world use
Every time you play a racing game and feel your controller rumble as you crash, or you wear a VR headset that vibrates when something hits you in-game, you're experiencing the feedback loop this patent describes.
Original USPTO abstract
An apparatus and method for providing stimuli to a user while sensing the performance and condition of the user may rely on a controller for programmably coordinating a tracking device and a sensory interface device. The tracking device may be equipped with sensors for sensing position, displacement, motion, deflection, velocity, speed, temperature, humidity, heart rate, internal or external images, and the like. The sensory interface device may produce outputs presented as stimuli to a user. The sensory interface device may include one or more actuators for providing aural, optical, tactile, and electromuscular stimulation to a user. The controller, tracking device, and sensory interface device may all be microprocessor controlled for providing coordinated sensory perceptions of complex events.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 6,066,075
- Filing date
- 1997-12-29
- Grant date
- 2000-05-23
- Assignee
- Poulton; Craig K.
- Inventor(s)
- POULTON; CRAIG K.
- CPC class
- A63B24/00
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