HAPTIC ACTUATORS HAVING PROGRAMMABLE MAGNETS WITH PRE-PROGRAMMED MAGNETIC SURFACES AND PATTERNS FOR PRODUCING VARYING HAPTIC EFFECTS

摘要

A haptic peripheral including a magnetic actuator coupled to a user input element for providing haptic effects to the user input element. The magnetic actuator includes at least two opposing programmable magnets, a first programmable magnet and a second programmable magnet, with pre-programmed patterns to control the motion of the user input element. Each programmable magnet has a pre-programmed pattern of magnetic elements. The pre-programmed patterns of the magnetic elements interact with each other to cause haptic effects. In order to vary to haptic effects output by the magnetic actuator, the second programmable magnet is spun, rotated, or otherwise moved to change the orientation or position of the pre-programmed pattern. The re-oriented pattern of the second programmable magnet changes the interaction between the first and second programmable magnets and thereby results in different haptic effects being output to the user input device.

主权项

1. A haptic peripheral comprising:
a housing; a user input element; and a magnetic actuator located within the housing and coupled to the user input element, the magnetic actuator including a first programmable magnet attached to the user input element and a second programmable magnet disposed within the housing,
wherein the first and second programmable magnets each have a pre-programmed pattern of magnetic elements and the pre-programmed patterns of magnetic elements interact with each other to output haptic effects to the user input element, andwherein the pre-programmed pattern of magnetic elements of the second programmable magnet is movable relative to the pre-programmed pattern of magnetic elements of the first programmable magnet such that when the second programmable magnet is in a first configuration, a first haptic effect is output to the user input element and when the second programmable magnet is in a second configuration, a second haptic effect is output to the user input element, the first and second haptic effects being different from each other.