COMPACT POINTING DEVICE

摘要

The pointing device[ 10] has a moveable puck[11] that moves over a surface in a puck field of motion[19]. A position detector[51-55, 59] measures the puck position in the puck field of motion[19]. In one embodiment, the puck[11] includes a user sensor[23, 24] that detects an interaction between a user and the puck[11]. A controller causes a cursor to move on a display in response to the puck[11] moving in the puck field of motion[ 19] when the user sensor[23, 24] senses the interaction between the user and the puck[ 11]. The magnitude and direction of motion of the cursor is determined by the magnitude and direction of motion of the puck[11] in the puck field of motion[ 19]. In another embodiment, a restoring mechanism is provided that returns the puck[11] to a predetermined area in the puck field of motion[ 19] when the user releases the puck[ 11].