JP3771621B2 - Small computer - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a small computer, and particularly to a small computer that requires virtual reality, such as for amusement and simulation.
[0002]
In recent years, computer graphics technology has improved significantly, and real-time images such as real-time three-dimensional images have been obtained. However, in the fields of amusement and simulation, such operators are rich in reality. It is now possible to enhance the sense of presence and urgency by experiencing vibrations simultaneously with video and sound.
[0003]
[Prior art]
FIG. 6 shows a conventional example of a small computer that allows an operator to experience vibration simultaneously with video and sound. FIG. 6 is an external view showing a conventional example. In the figure, 61 is a computer main body, 62 is a display device, 64 is a controller, and H is an operator's hand. The controller 64 is connected to the computer main body by a cable 63, and includes a base unit 65 and an operation unit 66, and mainly has a pointing function. A mouse switch 67 is provided at the end of the operation unit 66, and a vibration generating mechanism 68 is fixed inside. The vibration generating mechanism 68 is attached with a disc eccentric to the shaft of the motor.
[0004]
This small computer is an amusement computer (so-called game machine), and an operator (player) places his / her hand H on the operation unit 66 of the controller 64, moves the operation unit 66 back and forth, left and right with his palm, and presses the mouse switch 67 with his finger. Manipulate. This figure shows a state in which an aircraft air battle game is played. In the game, at the moment when the aircraft on board is hit by an enemy aircraft, a vibration command signal is sent from the computer main body 61 to the controller 64, the motor of the vibration generating mechanism 68 rotates, and the eccentric moment of the disc is rotated. The operation unit 66 vibrates, and a vibration simulating a shock transmitted to the hand holding the control stick is transmitted to the palm of the operator holding the operation unit 66.
[0005]
As another conventional example, there is one using body sonic. In this method, a speaker is attached to a human body, for example, an abdomen close to the center of gravity, and vibration caused by an acoustic signal is transmitted to the human body.
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the former example, application software having a vibration command signal and a controller that operates the vibration generation mechanism by receiving the vibration command signal are required, so the software lacks versatility and the hardware is expensive. There is a problem that it is difficult to reduce the size, and in the latter example, there is a problem that handling is inconvenient because it is necessary to attach a large vibration generating mechanism to the human body.
[0007]
The present invention solves such a problem, and does not require a special vibration command signal in software to transmit vibration for the purpose of improving the sense of presence to the operator, and a small computer that is easy to handle equipment. The purpose is to provide.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve this object, the first aspect of the present invention is a small computer having a display device, an audio output circuit, and a pointing device, and capable of experiencing vibration simultaneously with video and sound, and is incorporated in the small computer. A sound range separating unit that extracts a heavy bass region from a sound signal included in general-purpose application software for operating a computer, a signal amplifying unit that amplifies the sound signal in the heavy bass region, and a signal from the signal amplifying unit A vibration generating mechanism that causes an acoustic signal current to flow through a moving coil disposed in a magnetic field of a permanent magnet and vibrates a diaphragm fixed to the moving coil;
The vibration generating mechanism is mounted on or near the pointing device, and is a small computer that transmits vibrations from the vibration generating mechanism to the palm of an operator who operates the pointing device.
[0009]
That is, since vibration is generated using the acoustic signal included in the general-purpose application software, special application software lacking versatility having a vibration command signal is not required, and moreover, of the acoustic signal Because it uses the low frequency range, you can experience vibration efficiently. In addition, the vibration generating mechanism is attached to the pointing device of a small computer or in the vicinity thereof and transmits mechanical vibration to the palm of the operator who operates the pointing device, so that the user can feel the vibration without attaching / detaching special equipment to the human body. Can be handled easily.
[0010]
The vibration generating mechanism includes a permanent magnet, a moving coil disposed in a magnetic field of the permanent magnet, and a diaphragm fixed to the moving coil, and generates a current of an acoustic signal in a heavy bass region. The diaphragm is vibrated by using a driving force generated by flowing through the moving coil.
[0011]
This vibration generation mechanism can generate vibration easily by flowing the current of the acoustic signal in the heavy bass region through the moving coil inserted in the magnetic gap, and is relatively small and simple in structure. Suitable for mounting on or near the device.
[0012]
According to a second aspect of the present invention , the controller is provided with a controller having a pointing function independently from the computer main body, and the vibration generating mechanism is a small computer mounted on a portion where the palm of the controller contacts .
[0013]
In a small computer in which a controller having a pointing function is independent from the computer main body, a vibration generating mechanism is attached to the controller, so that vibration can be transmitted to the palm of an operator who operates the pointing device.
[0014]
According to a third aspect of the present invention , the computer main body is provided with a pointing device, and the vibration generating mechanism is a small computer mounted on a palm rest portion on which a palm of the computer main body hits .
[0015]
In a small computer having a pointing device in the computer main body, a vibration generating mechanism is mounted on the palm rest portion (the portion on which the palm of the operator who operates the pointing device is placed) of the computer main body, so that the operator operating the pointing device Vibration can be transmitted to the palm.
[0016]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the vibration generating mechanism is a small computer connected to the case by a floating elastic body for floating the vibration generating mechanism from the case of the vibration generating mechanism mounting body . Since the vibration generating mechanism has a floating structure for floating from the case of a device (computer main body, controller independent of the main body, etc.) on which the vibration generating mechanism is mounted, these resonances are prevented.
[0017]
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a small computer that has two of the vibration generating mechanisms, and the two vibration generating mechanisms generate vibrations whose phases are mutually inverted.
Since the two vibration generating mechanisms generate vibrations whose phases are mutually inverted and these are transmitted to the palm of the operator, the vibrations can be felt more greatly.
[0019]
A vibration can be generated using an acoustic signal included in general-purpose application software of a small computer, and the vibration can be transmitted to the palm of an operator who operates the pointing device.
[0020]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 17 denotes a vibration generating mechanism (details will be described later), which is attached to a pointing device or its vicinity. First, an acoustic signal (for example, from an amusement application software) input to an acoustic output circuit of a small computer is guided from the acoustic signal input unit 11 to the heavy bass extraction unit 12, and a heavy bass region (for example, a frequency of 15 to 60 Hz) is filtered. ) Is extracted.
[0021]
This signal is processed by the processor unit 13 to improve force (improves the sense of presence), and is further D / A converted by the D / A converter unit 15, and then the signal amplifier unit 16 reduces the dynamic range of the acoustic signal from about 70 dB. For example, signal processing is performed to increase the dynamic range of a normal sound source to about 200 dB. This signal is guided to the vibration generating mechanism 17 to generate mechanical vibration, and this vibration is transmitted to the palm of the operator who operates the pointing device. In addition, as signal processing for improving the above-described presence, processing such as intermittent or fading out signals is effective.
[0022]
Next, the vibration generating mechanism 17 will be described in detail. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the vibration generating mechanism in the small computer of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the vibration generating mechanism of FIG. In both figures, 21 is a vibration transmitting member, 22 is a diaphragm, 23 is a moving coil, 24 is a yoke, 25 is a pole piece, 26 is a permanent magnet, 27 is a supporting elastic body, and the above is the vibration generating mechanism in FIG. It corresponds to 17. Reference numeral 28 denotes a case of a device (computer main body, controller independent of the main body, etc.) to which the vibration generating mechanism is attached, and 29 is a floating elastic body.
[0023]
The vibration transmission member 21 contacts the palm and transmits the vibration of the diaphragm 22 to the palm, and has an appropriate shape. The moving coil 23 is inserted into a magnetic gap formed by the yoke 24 and the pole piece 25, and when a current of an acoustic signal in the above-described deep bass region is supplied thereto, a driving force is generated and vibrates up and down. The support elastic body 27 is, for example, a rubber bellows, and flexibly connects a movable part (vibration transmitting member 21, diaphragm 22, moving coil 23) and a fixed part (yoke 24, etc.). The floating elastic body 29 is, for example, a rubber damper, and the entire vibration generating mechanism is lifted from the case 28 to prevent resonance.
[0024]
Next, an embodiment of a small computer having this vibration generating mechanism will be described. FIG. 4 is an external view showing a first embodiment of the present invention. This figure shows only an amusement computer controller divided into a computer main body, a display device, and a controller. In the figure, 41 is a controller, 42 and 43 are switches, 44 is a vibration generating mechanism, and 45 is a vibration transmitting member of the vibration generating mechanism 44.
[0025]
The controller 41 has a pointing function, and operates the switch 42 with the finger of the right hand and the switch 43 with the finger of the left hand. Each of the left and right vibration transmitting portions 45 is in a position where the finger touches the palm with the finger in contact with the switches 42 and 43. In addition, the phase of the vibration is reversed between the two vibration transmitting portions 45 by making the two vibration generating mechanisms 44 face each other or by giving an acoustic signal whose phase is reversed to one of the two vibration generating mechanisms 44. Vibration can be felt greatly.
[0026]
FIG. 5 is an external view showing a second embodiment of the present invention. This example is a portable computer (laptop / computer) in which a display device, a speaker, a pointing device, etc. are incorporated in a computer main body. In the figure, 51 is a computer main body, 52 is a display device, 53 is a speaker, and 54 is a keyboard. , 55 is a pointing device, and 56 is a vibration generating mechanism. The vibration generating mechanism 56 is attached to the palm rest portion of the computer main body 51 and transmits vibrations to the palm of the operator.
[0027]
In the case of an amusement, it is possible to further enhance the sense of presence by generating an alarm sound in addition to this vibration. For example, in an aerial battle game, an alarm sound may be emitted from the speaker 53 informing that an enemy aircraft has approached the aircraft immediately before the vibration caused by the bullet.
[0028]
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and can be implemented with various modifications.
[0029]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a small computer that does not require a special vibration command signal in software and is easy to handle in order to transmit vibration for the purpose of improving the sense of presence to an operator. I can do it.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a vibration generating mechanism in the small computer of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the vibration generating mechanism of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is an external view showing a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5 is an external view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is an external view showing a conventional example.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Acoustic signal input part 12 Heavy bass extraction part 13 Processor part 14 Pulse generation part 15 D / A conversion part 16 Signal amplification part 17,44,56,68 Vibration generating mechanism 21,45 Vibration transmission member 22 Diaphragm 23 Moving coil 24 Yoke 25 Pole piece 26 Permanent magnet 27 Support elastic body 28 Case 29 Floating elastic body 41, 64 Controller 42, 43 Switch 51, 61 Computer main body 52, 62 Display device 53 Speaker 54 Keyboard 55 Pointing device 63 Cable 65 Base part 66 Operation part 67 Mouse switch H Operator's hand

Claims (5)

In a small computer having a display device, an audio output circuit, and a pointing device, and capable of experiencing vibration simultaneously with video and audio ,
A sound range separation unit for extracting a heavy bass region from a sound signal included in general-purpose application software for operating the small computer, and signal amplification for amplifying the sound signal of the heavy bass region And a vibration generating mechanism for causing the acoustic signal current from the signal amplifying unit to flow in a moving coil disposed in a magnetic field of a permanent magnet and vibrating a diaphragm fixed to the moving coil,
The vibration generating mechanism is mounted on or near the pointing device, and transmits the vibration from the vibration generating mechanism to the palm of an operator who operates the pointing device.   2. The small computer according to claim 1, wherein a controller having a pointing function is provided independently of the computer main body, and the vibration generating mechanism is attached to a portion where the palm of the controller contacts.   2. The small computer according to claim 1, wherein a pointing device is provided in a computer main body, and the vibration generating mechanism is mounted on a palm rest portion on which a palm of the computer main body hits.   4. The small computer according to claim 2, wherein the vibration generating mechanism is connected to the case by a floating elastic body for floating the vibration generating mechanism from a case of the vibration generating mechanism mounting body.   5. The small computer according to claim 1, wherein the two vibration generation mechanisms have two vibration generation mechanisms, and the two vibration generation mechanisms generate vibrations whose phases are mutually inverted.

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