New Sony Remote in the works
Sony has always been at the forefront of bringing innovative ideas to the gaming industry. However, sometimes these innovative ideas can be quite extraordinary. A new patent published by Sony is working on a new Sony controller that is fully customizable for gamers. This patent states that users will be able to hand-draw the button layout, spacing, and shape using electrical ink.
New Sony Controller: Conductive Ink Will Allow You to Draw Your Own Buttons
Called “USER-CUSTOMIZED FLAT COMPUTER SIMULATION CONTROLLER FIELD”, this legal document explores providing full control so that users can fully customize a controller. According to the technical details, the user will need a regular Sony controller to install the customizable controller. During setup, the hand-drawn buttons of the customized controller will need to be pressed along with the buttons on the regular controller. This will allow the customized controller to know which drawn button corresponds to which button on the regular Sony remote.
The patent states that users can also choose the shape of the controller. In some examples, a parallelepiped device is mentioned, but the possibility of spherical and other shape options is also discussed.
A player with a customized controller base can use conductive ink to draw the layout, size and shape of the buttons as desired. The document also mentions that the controller has a special “anti-fatigue” key that can change the way certain buttons work. For example, users can press and release a button a single time, but the system can assume it is still held down. Or a player can press a button a single time, making the system think it has been pressed twice. This feature will offer more customization and opportunities during gameplay.
Sony argues that current controllers may not meet everyone’s needs. This could be due to a multitude of issues, including gamers having disabilities. Having already addressed these concerns with the Access Controller, Sony could offer a more intuitive solution with the ability to draw buttons by hand. The proposed controller could also feature audio feedback to help gamers with certain disabilities.
The patent images are available here.
