Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 022139~4 1997-08-26
.. Description
A MANUALLY OPERATED CONTROLL~R APPARATUS
Field of Invention
This invention relates in general to hand controllers and more particularly to am~n~ ly operated controller apparatus for reducing hand muscle and arm muscle fatigue.
Back~round of the Invention
Prolonged use of a hand controller or computer mouse causes the muscles of the hand
and the arm to become fatigued. Fatigue and stress in the user's hand and arm are caused
by the current designs of hand controllers. These hand controllers often have the buttons
horizontally mounted so that the buttons are pressed from the top down. Since the buttons
are right under the user's fingers, the buttons can inadvertently be pressed if the user's
fingers relax and rest on the buttons. As a result, there is a constant and unconscious effort
by the user to keep their fingers off the buttons. This effort must be m~int~ined during
prolonged use of the hand controller. As a result, the user's hand and arm muscles become
fatigued and stressed while sustaining this unconscious effort.
Contributing to the hand and arm muscle fatigue, is the stress on the user's arm from
being in an unnatural position while operating the hand controller. The various designs of
current hand controllers usually require the users to twist their arm into an unnatural position
to be able to grasp and operate the hand controller. The twisting occurs because most hand
controllers do not allow the user's palm to rest in the horizontal plane in a natural position.
Another problem associated with hand controllers, is the inability to accuratelyposition the associated cursor when altering the information displayed on the display device
of a computer. This problem is particularly apparent when the required movement is a
minimllm displacement.
Prior art hand controllers have been devised to address the aforenoted problems. For
example, U.S. patent No. 5,287,090 issued February 15, 1994, relates to a combined mouse
and track ball contained within an ergonomically shaped housing that fits the palm of the
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hand. U.S. patent No.- S,252;970 issued October 12, 1993, relates to a m~ml~lly operated
ergonomic multi-axis controller such as those used for controlling the cursor position along
~ and y axes and for entering the x, y, and/or z coordinate information into a conl~u~el or
the like.
s
U.S. patent No. 5,157,381 issued on October 20, 1992, relates to a computer mouse
with a unique button information which enhances button flexibility while rem~ining user
friendly. U.S . patent No. 4,862,165 issued August 29, 1989, relates to an ergonomically
shaped mouse that reduces fatigue.
U.S. patent No. 4,595,070 issued on June 17, 1986, relates to a housing for a
computer mouse device which supports the mouse above a working surface on a cushion of
air or other gaseous fluid. U.S. patent No. 4,550,316 issued October 29, 1985, relates to
a housing with sliding movement on a nonspecific work surface, and a stylus depending from
15 the housing and contacting the work surface.
Thus a hand controller device which would reduce hand and arm muscle fatigue is
desirable.
20 Summary of the Invention
An object of the present invention is to provide an improved hand controller
apparatus.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention there is provided a m~n~ y
operated controller apparatus, for reducing hand muscle and arm muscle fatigue, comprising
25 of a continuous hollow housing having a plurality of integrally arranged surfaces. The
surfaces consist of a tilted arched palm support surface to reduce the twisting of the lower
arm, a sloping concave index finger support surface, a concave middle finger surface, a
concave ring finger surface, a concave little finger support surface, a vertical concave thumb
support surface, and a substantially planar member enclosing the housing.
Preferably, the m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus will have a downwardly tilted
arched palm support surface that will reduce hand and arm muscle fatigue.
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Conveniently, the~m~n~ y operated controller apparatus will comprise of depressible
switches on the sloping concave index finger support surface, the concave middle finger
surface, the concave ring finger surface, and the vertical concave thumb support surface.
S Preferably the depressible switch on the vertical concave thumb support surface will
be a fine tuner that is movable along orthogonal directions.
Advantages of the present invention are: the tilted arched palm support surface to
reduce hand and arm muscle fati~ue; vertically placed buttons which allow the user's fingers
to hang in a more relaxed position; and a fine tuner button which will allow for the accurate
positioning of the cursor when miniml~m displacement of the cursor is required.
Brief Description of the Drawin~s
A detailed description of the preferred embodirnent is provided herein below with
reference to the following drawings, in which:
Figure 1, in a front plan view, illustrates a m~n1l~lly operated controller apparatus in
accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2, in a top plan view, illustrates the m~n~ ly operated controller apparatus
of Figure 1.
Figure 3, in a right side view, illustrates the m~nl-~ll,v operated controller apparatus
of Figure 1.
Figure 4, in a left side view, illustrates the m~nll~lly operated controller apparatus
of Figure 1.
Figure S is one example of the ~me tuning ~ ui
In the drawings, preferred embodiments of t~e invention are illustrated by way of
example. It is to be expressly understood that the description and drawings are only for the
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purpose of illustration and as an aid to underst~n~ing, and are not intended as a definition
of the limits of the invention.
Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiment
l~eferring to Figures 1 and 2, there is illustrated in a front plane view and a top plan
view, a m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus 10 in accordance with the preferred
embodirnent of the present invention. The m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus 10
includes a continuous hollow housing 11 having a plurality of surfaces comprising of a tilted
arched palm support surface 12 to reduce twisting of the lower arm, a sloping concave index
10 finger support surface 13, a concave middle finger surface 14, a concave ring finger surface
15, a concave little finger support surface 16 and a vertical concave thumb support surface
17. The housing 11 is enclosed by a substantially planar member 18. The m~ml~llyoperated controller apparatus 10 has a tilted arched palm support surface 12 that is tilted
downwardly ~rom the horizontal plane at an angle "a" or range between 20 to 35 degrees.
The m~nn~lly operated controller apparatus 10 further comprises of two vertically
positioned depressible switches 19 and 20 on the concave middle finger surface 14 and the
concave ring finger surface 15, respectively. A depressible switch 22 is positioned on the
sloping concave index finger support surface 13. The m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus
20 10 further comprises of a depressible switch 23 positioned on the vertical concave thumb
support surface 17.
In Figures 3 and 4, the m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus 10 is illustrated in
right and left side views respectively. Figure 3 illustrates the m~ml~lly operated controller
25 apparatus 10 and all of its features as described in Figures 1 and 2. The m~ml~lly operated
controller apparatus 10 further comprises of a concave little finger support surface 16 that
allows the little finger to rest comfortably while the m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus
10 is being used as indicated in Figure 3 by the smooth curved lines. The sloping concave
index finger support surface 13 is disposed relative to the tilted arched palm support surface
30 12 at an obtuse angle "b". The tilted arched palm support surface 12 allows the user's back
portion of the palm to comfortably rest on the table or mouse pad at an angle "c" as indicated
by the smooth curved lines in Figure 2.
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Figure 4 illustrates the m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus 10 and all of its
features as described in Figures 1 and 2. The m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus 10
further comprises of the depressible switch 23 positioned vertically on the concave thumb
support surface 17. The depressible switch 23 can be used as a fine tuner that is movable
S along orthogonal directions.
In operation, the m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus 10 can reduce hand muscle
and arm muscle fatigue. How this is achieved is explained hereinbelow with reference to
Figures 1-4. The continuous hollow housing 11 comprises of a plurality of integrally
10 arranged surfaces that consist of a tilted arched palm support surface 12, a sloping concave
index finger support surface 13, a concave middle finger surface 14, a concave ring finger
surface 15, a concave little finger support surface 16 and a vertical concave ~umb support
surface 17.
These surfaces are arranged in such a way that the user's palm, fingers and arm are
supported so as to reduce muscle fatigue in the hand and arm. In particular, the tilted arched
palm support 12 is tilted dowllw~ldly from the horizontal plane at an angle "a" that allows
the user's hand posture to be in as natural position as possible. This position reduces the
amount of hand muscle and arm muscle fatigue the user experiences, since the user's lower
20 arm does not have to rotate or twist from its natural position. The arrangement of these
surfaces also allows for the user's fingers to rest in a natural and relaxed position.
The depressible switches 19 and 20 are positioned vertically on the concave middle
finger surface 14 and the concave ring finger surface 15 respectively. This allows the user's
25 fingers to rest or hang in a relaxed position, yet remain in a ready position to easily trigger
the depressible switches 19 and 20. Finally, a depressible switch 23 on the vertical concave
~umb support surface 17 is movable by the user along orthogonal directions. Depressible
switch 23 acts as a fine tuner, which allows the user to move the cursor a minimllm
displacement on a display device associated with a computer. The hollow housing 11 is
30 enclosed by a substantially planar member 18 which is removable to provide selective access
to the interior of the housing 11 where a microprocessor and an electronic circuit design are
housed.
-
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Generally speaking the cursor movement controlled by a computer mouse or hand
controller is usually determined by two pairs of train of pulses (one pair for horizontal, and
the other for vertical movement) that are generated by the motion of the mouse in a manner
well known by those persons skilled in the art. Each pulse causes the cursor to move a
5 minimllm displacement, and the direction of the movement is determined by the relative
phase of a pulse train in relation to its companion pulse train (90 degrees lead or lag) which
is determined by the direction of the mouse movement.
It is not uncommon for a user of a mouse to experience difficulties in moving a
10 mouse over an incremental distance when the cursor needs to be moved or displaced by an
extremely small ~ t:~n~e. Accordingly, a fine tuner button 23 is provided at the vertical
concave thumb support surface 17. When it is pushed in an orthogonal direction (i.e. either
left/right and/or up/down), it will produce a pulse or pulses equivalent to those which would
be produced by the motion of the mouse in the same direction. The pulses generated by this
15 button may be either a single pulse per push, or a series or pulses (if the button is kept
pushed for an extended period of time) at a relatively low rate which is equivalent to a slow
motion of the mouse. This will allow the user to move the cursor an incremental distance
without moving the mouse. One example of accomplishing the fine tuning feature of this
invention is shown in Figure 5, although other circuits could be used with the m~ml~lly
20 operated controller apparatus described herein.
The circuitry to the right of the dashed line of Figure S represents circuitry normally
found in prior art mouses. The circuitry includes power supply PS from a computer to
power a processor, light emitting diodes LED and photo transistors Ql 1, Q12, Q13 and Q14.
25 ~ small disc having radial slots is disposed between each LED and photo transistor. As the
cursor is moved, the small disc between each LED and photo transistor rotates thereby
causing the light travelling from the LED to the photo transistor to be intermittently
hltell.lL)ted, which causes the photo transistor to emit a pulse current in a manner well known
in the art. The photo transistor will produce a current when excited by light from the LED,
30 and will produce a nil current when light is blocked by the discs. Accordingly, a square
wave pulse train is produced by each photo transistor. One pair, Ql 1 and Q12, and another
pair Q13 and Q14, will each produce a pair of pulse trains. One pulse train of a pair is
always out of phase by 90 degrees, either leading or lagging in relation to the other pulse
CA 022139~4 1997-08-26
train of a pair, depending on the direction the mouse is moved. The new ~ ;Ui~ly added to
the mouse is shown to the left of Figure 5.
.When the fine tuner button 100 is not pushed, all of the Z3 inputs as well as its output
5 remain low, causing the Q3 to conduct and consequently all LEDs to be on, and the optical
pulse generator is enabled. The optical pulse generator consists of pairs of LED with pairs
of photo transistors Qll and Q12 and pairs of LED with pairs of photo transistors Q13 and
Q14.
At the same time, the inputs Z32 and Z34 as well as their outputs will also remain
low. Since the outputs of these are the gate inputs to the NAND gates Zll through Z14, the
outputs of the NAND gates remain high, which cause Q21 through Q24 to be open,
rendering the internal pulse generator ineffective.
When the fine tuner button 100 is pushed in any direction, one of the inputs to the
Z3 as well as its output will go high causing Q3 to open Consequently the LEDs will be
turned off. The photo-transistors Qll through Q14 will remain open, thereby the optical
pulse generating section to the right of the dashed lines of Figure S is disabled, rendering the
normal motion of the mouse ineffective.
At the same time, depending on the direction toward which the fine tuner button 100
in pushed, onç of the inputs to either Z32 or Z34 (or both if direction is diagonal) as well
as its (or their) output(s) will go high, enabling either pair of the NAND gates Zll and Z12,
or Z13 and Z14 (or both). Then the enabled pair of the gates will pass the pulses from the
25 internal pulse generator to their outputs which, in turn, turns the respective transistor pair
Q21 and Q22, or Q23 and Q24 on and off, sim~ ting the optical pulse generator.
The direction of the movement is determined by the relative phase of a pulse train (90
degrees leading or lagging) in relation to its companion pulse train, and the simulation is
30 implemented as described below.
CA 022139~4 1997-08-26
The fine tuning-circuitry includes a frequency oscillator OSC generating a square
pulse train as marked by OSC. The oscillator includes a variable resistor VR to adjust the
frequency of the pulses.
As an example, if the fine tuner button 100 is pushed upward, that is the button U is
pressed while the gate Z13 receives the pulse train from flip flap FFl-Q, Z14 receives the
pulse train from flip flap FF2-Q through Z23, the phase of which is 90 degree lagging with
respect to that of flip flap FFl-Q. However, if the fine tuner button 100 is pushed
dowllward, that is the button D is pressed, Z14 will receive the pulse train from FF2-Q
through Z24, the phase of which is 90 degrees leading with respect to that of FFl-Q. It
works the same way for horizontal movement as well.
While the buttons U and D (or L and R) cannot be pressed at the same time, it ispossible to press two buttons, one for horizontal and the other for vertical movement, if the
fine tuner button 100 is pushed diagonally.
As long as the fine tuner button 100 is kept pushed in a direction, the cursor will
continue moving to that direction. The speed of the cursor movement (the pulse rate) is
adjustable by the setting of the variable resistor VR on the oscillator OSC which determines
the frequency of the pulses.
The advantage of this method is that the mouse is compatible with any existing
mouse, requiring no modification to the driver. However, various alternative methods are
conceivable.
In summary, a m~ml~lly operated controller apparatus is provided with improved
design for reducing hand muscle and arm muscle fatigue.
Other variations and modifications of the invention are possible. All such
modifications or variations are believed to be within the sphere and scope of the invention
as defined by the claims appended hereto.
