JP2015054020A - Game device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game machine having excellent durability and maintainability and capable of giving an operational feeling different from the feeling which is obtained by touching only a flat surface of a touch panel in a touching operation.SOLUTION: A haptics unit 30 uses a touch position detecting part 32 for detecting a touch position by an infrared interception. Its four side marginal parts are held by first to fourth holding parts 33a to 33d, and are fixed on an inside frame of a housing through an elastic member 34. A vibrating part 35 to be driven and controlled in response to a touch operation is fixed on a first holding part 33, and integrally vibrates the transparent plate 33 through the holding parts. What directly receives the touch operation is a transparent plate 32a, and the durability and the economical efficiency are superior to a touch panel of another type. Even if the vibration part 35 is troubled, it is only necessary to remove only the first holding part 33 and to replace only the vibration part 35, so that the maintainability and the economical efficiency for a failure correction are excellent.

Description

  The present invention relates to an amusement device.

  In recent years, as one of so-called “tactile feedback” and “haptic technology”, a technology that feeds back a tactile sensation that causes a user's finger to touch in response to a touch operation on the touch panel has attracted attention.

  For example, as a device, on a flat panel display capable of displaying an image, a sensor piezoelectric cell layer that emits a signal according to a touch operation position, and an actuator piezoelectric cell layer that receives a signal and operates by a piezoelectric effect to provide a tactile sense And the like have been devised (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2011-242386 A

  Now, one of the important requirements for developing game machines is the durability of the operation input device. In particular, the durability required for a commercial game device that is assumed to be used continuously by a large number of people is set to be extremely higher than a device that is intended for home use or personal use.

  As an example of a game device that requires high durability for an operation input device, an arcade game device that executes a music game can be cited. The music game is a game in which operation input is performed as if the key is pressed in accordance with the rhythm of the music emitted from the speaker, and the user can enjoy the operation that matches the rhythm. The number of operation inputs performed with one game play is enormous, and the operation force tends to be higher than that of an ordinary game because the player gradually gets excited while operating on the rhythm. For example, if you imagine playing high-beat rock and pop songs, it will be easy to understand how hard an operation input device is used in a single gameplay. The requirements for durability required for the operation input device are extremely high, and excellent maintenance is required that can be easily and quickly restored even if a failure occurs.

  However, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, in the configuration in which the sensor and actuator layers are provided on the display, both the sensor layer and the actuator layer need to be transparent so that the display screen can be seen through. Therefore, each layer must be thin, and in order to meet the high durability required even if it is thin, expensive and highly functional materials must be used, and the price of the device is inevitably high. End up. In addition, in the event of a failure, the expensive device must be replaced, and there is a problem that the cost and time required for repairing the failure increase.

  The present invention has been devised in view of such circumstances, and has excellent durability and a gaming device that can give a feeling of operation different from the feeling of just touching the flat surface of the touch panel when touched. The purpose is to provide maintainability and to realize it at a lower cost than in the past.

  1st invention for solving the subject mentioned above is a game machine provided with the touch panel comprised by arranging the transparent board for touch operations at intervals on the display screen of a display device, The above-mentioned transparent A game apparatus comprising: a holding unit that holds an edge of a plate; and a vibration unit fixed to the holding unit, wherein the vibration unit, the holding unit, and the transparent plate vibrate integrally.

  The transparent plate in this configuration is directly touched by the user's (same as the player) finger when performing a touch operation. According to the first invention, the vibration unit is attached to the holding unit that holds the edge of the transparent plate, and the transparent plate is vibrated integrally through the holding unit, so that the flat surface of the touch panel is touched. An operational feeling different from the touch can be given to the user.

  In this configuration, transparent plates are repeatedly overloaded with touch operations, but if high-performance materials such as tempered glass are mass-produced are appropriately selected, maintenance-free operation is achieved until the life of the device is completed. Can be realized with high cost performance. In addition, since the vibration part itself is only fixed to the holding part, and is not subjected to repeated load or impact associated with the touch operation, a vibration device having excellent durability can be selected. Even if the vibration unit breaks down, it is not necessary to replace the entire touch panel because a simple operation of removing the vibration unit in question from the holding unit and replacing it is sufficient. Therefore, the cost and time required for repairing the failure can be kept extremely low, and the maintenance is excellent.

  In addition, since the touch panel having a transparent layer structure as disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a special structure, the cost becomes very high as the screen size increases. However, according to the configuration of the present invention, it is possible to easily cope with an increase in screen size and at a low cost.

  According to a second aspect of the invention, the holding portion is fixed to the housing via an elastic member, and conduction of the integrated vibration to the housing by the vibration portion, the holding portion, and the transparent plate is suppressed by the elastic member. 1 is a game apparatus according to a first invention;

  According to the second invention, vibration transmission to the housing accompanying tactile feedback can be suppressed.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the holding part has first to fourth holding parts that hold edges of each of the four sides of the transparent plate, and at least the first holding part fixes the excitation part. A game device according to the first or second invention.

  According to the third invention, even if it is necessary to remove the holding part due to failure repair of the vibration part, it is sufficient to remove only the holding part to which the vibration part to be repaired is fixed, and even the transparent plate is removed. There is no need. Therefore, maintainability can be further improved.

  4th invention is a 3rd invention game apparatus with which the said 1st holding | maintenance part hold | maintains the edge part of the upper side of the said transparent plate.

  A space for accommodating the excitation unit must be provided at the outer edge of the touch panel. The amount of space required depends on the device size of the excitation unit. However, if the screen size is increased, naturally the required excitation force (vibration generating force) increases and the device size also increases. The space for accommodating the excitation unit is also increased. However, if the vibration unit is fixed to the holding unit that holds the upper side of the transparent plate as in the present invention, the space for housing the vibration unit is originally located away from the user, so the installation space This is unlikely to cause problems.

  5th invention is the game device of 4th invention by which the said touch panel is arrange | positioned with the upper side of the said transparent board made higher than a lower side.

  According to the fifth aspect, the screen is easy to see, the touch operation is easy, and the game can be played easily even for a relatively long time.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the game device according to the fourth or fifth aspect of the present invention, at least a pair of left and right excitation units are fixed to the first holding unit toward the display screen.

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to suppress the difference in tactile feedback sensation depending on the touched position by sharing the required excitation force with a plurality of excitation units rather than with a single excitation unit. it can. Moreover, each excitation part can be reduced in size.

  7th invention is a vibration control part (for example, the control board 50 of FIG. 1, the process part 200 of FIG. 6, the vibration control part which performs vibration control of the said vibration part when a touch operation is made | formed to the said touch panel. 210, steps S6 to S34) of FIG. 10, further comprising the first to sixth inventions.

  According to the seventh aspect, since the vibration control unit can be subjected to vibration control according to a touch operation, a so-called tactile feedback function can be realized.

  An eighth invention is the game device according to the seventh invention, wherein the vibration control unit performs vibration control based on a play situation when the touch operation is performed.

  According to the eighth aspect of the invention, for example, tactile feedback having a different touch depending on the play situation, or tactile feedback in a predetermined play situation can be realized. It can be said that information about the game play situation can be provided not only visually but also by tactile sense.

  A ninth aspect of the present invention is the game device according to the seventh or eighth aspect, wherein a plurality of the vibration units are provided, and the vibration control unit individually controls the vibration units.

  According to the ninth aspect, various types of excitation can be realized by individually controlling the excitation unit.

  In a tenth aspect of the invention, the excitation unit includes a vibration transducer, and the vibration control unit applies a sine wave signal having a predetermined frequency in a range of 20 to 40 Hz to the vibration transducer to generate vibration. The game device according to any one of the seventh to ninth inventions.

  According to the tenth invention, by making the waveform a sine wave and a frequency near the lower limit of the human audible range, the integrated vibration of the transparent plate can be prevented from generating noise. In addition, in terms of the tactile characteristics of the vibration in the frequency range, it is possible to provide a comfortable feeling with less discomfort. Moreover, since it is a sine wave signal, since it does not contain a high frequency component exceeding the said frequency, possibility that the sound of an audible range will be emitted by vibration is low.

  An eleventh aspect of the present invention is the game device according to any one of the seventh to tenth aspects, wherein the vibration control unit variably controls the vibration frequency and / or amplitude according to a touch position on the touch panel.

Even if the same vibration is generated in the excitation unit due to the characteristics and arrangement of the elastic member, the same vibration is not always generated everywhere on the transparent plate. In other words, it cannot be said that there is no difference in the feeling that the user feels depending on the touch position.
However, according to the eleventh aspect, since the frequency and amplitude can be variably controlled depending on the touch position, it is possible to suppress the difference in feel received by such a touch position. Conversely, it is possible to make a difference in the feeling received intentionally depending on the touch position.

  In a twelfth aspect of the present invention, the display device has a screen size of 14 inches or more, and the transparent plate has a larger size than the screen size of the display device. It is.

  If it becomes 14 inches or more, the price of a touch panel as in Patent Document 1 that includes a sensor and an actuator with a special layer structure to realize a tactile feedback function is likely to increase. The twelfth aspect of the invention can ensure excellent economic efficiency even with a screen size of 14 inches or more.

The perspective external view of a game device. The right view of a game device. The figure which shows the structural example of a haptic unit. The figure which shows the structural example of a haptic unit. The figure which shows the example of a game screen. The functional block diagram of a game device. The figure which shows an example of a data structure of play music candidate data. The figure which shows an example of a frequency calculation function. The figure which shows an example of an amplitude calculation function. The flowchart which shows the flow of a process of a game device. The figure which shows another example of the data structure of play music candidate data. The flowchart which shows another example of the flow of a process of a game device. The figure for demonstrating the individual control of a vibration part. The figure which shows the some example of arrangement | positioning structure of a vibration part. The figure which shows another example of the arrangement configuration of a touch panel.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a perspective external view of a game apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a right side view of the game apparatus 10 in the present embodiment. However, the right speaker support structure is not shown for easy understanding of the structure.

  The game device 10 of the present embodiment is designed as a commercial video game device for enjoying a music game using a touch operation. The game apparatus 10 includes 1) a base 12 having a touch panel 20, 2) a standing back 14 provided upward from the back of the base 12 when viewed from the user, and 3) an operation position from the standing back 14. And a speaker support 16 extending toward the vicinity of the head of a certain user 9.

  The standing back portion 14 includes a plurality of rows of light emitting effect portions 15 in which a plurality of light emitting elements (for example, light emitting diodes) are vertically arranged on the front surface (in front of the user as viewed from the user). The light emission effect unit 15 is controlled to emit light as an effect during the game.

  The speaker support portion 16 has a substantially U-shaped or substantially U-shaped concave shape when viewed from above, and is fixed to the back surface of the standing back portion 14 at the inner side corresponding to the bottom of the concave portion. The vertical width of the speaker support unit 16 is set to be larger than the assumed average size of the head of the user image (the vertical width).

  In the present embodiment, the speaker support portion 16 includes a left side portion 16L that supports the left speaker unit 17L near the left side of the user's head, and a right side portion 16R that supports the right speaker unit 17R near the right side of the user's head. Is provided.

  The left side portion 16L is located above the base portion 12, and is configured to reach the left side of the head of the user to be operated, more specifically, to the upper left of the left ear and slightly forward, and the left speaker on the inner surface side of the front end portion. A unit 17L is provided. Similarly, the right side portion 16R is located above the base portion 12 and is configured to be near the right side of the head of the user to be operated, more specifically, to reach the upper right position of the right ear and a slightly forward position. Includes a right speaker unit 17R.

  The left speaker unit 17L and the right speaker unit 17R have left-right inversion symmetrical shapes, and each has a speaker directed to the left and right ear positions of the user at the operation position. That is, the left speaker unit 17L and the right speaker unit 17R are arranged so as to sandwich the user's head from the left and right.

  The base 12 is a main part of the housing, and includes a touch panel 20 that serves as both an image display device and an operation input device, a body support unit 22 on which an operating user can lean, and a payment for a play price. A charging device 24, a woofer 26, and a control board 50 are provided.

  The touch panel 20 includes a display device 21 and a haptic unit 30 in the present embodiment, and is arranged on the upper end of the base 12 in a posture in which the display screen faces obliquely upward in front of the device so that the upper side is higher than the lower side. Is provided. In the present embodiment, the user plays by performing a touch operation including a slide operation toward the display screen while looking down the touch panel 20 from diagonally above. The operation range is assumed to be the full screen, and a style of dynamic play is assumed with the full screen being used to extend and contract both arms vertically and horizontally, and the size of the touch panel 20 is as large as possible. 14 inches or more, preferably 24 inches to 30 inches, but other sizes may be used.

  When a play style including a dynamic slide operation is assumed, it is feared that the user's hand performing the slide operation jumps out of the touch panel 20 and collides with the housing. Absent. Specifically, the standing back portion 14 is erected at a position away from the touch panel 20. In addition, as described above, the speaker support portion 16 extends the left side portion 16L and the right side portion 16R from the standing back portion 14 in an arm shape substantially horizontally to the front. That is, spaces are provided at the upper end of the base 12, that is, above and to the left and right of the touch panel 20. In other words, the standing back portion 14 and the speaker support portion 16 have a shape in which a range in which the user's hand excessively interferes is vacant, and is provided at a position avoiding the range. Therefore, there is no worry that the excessive user's hand hits the casing.

  The display device 21 is realized by an image display device such as a flat panel display, for example, and displays a game screen of the music game of the present embodiment.

3 and 4 are diagrams illustrating a configuration example of the haptic unit 30 in the present embodiment, in which FIG. 3 corresponds to a perspective external view, and FIG. 4 corresponds to a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in FIG.
The haptic unit 30 is provided on the display surface of the display device 21, and realizes detection of a touch operation toward the display screen and feedback of skin sensation accompanying the touch operation, so-called tactile feedback.

  The haptic unit 30 of the present embodiment includes: 1) a touch position detection unit 32 that is the same size or larger than the screen size of the display device 21 and can cover the entire display screen; and 2) an edge of the touch position detection unit 32 A holding portion 33 that holds the holding portion, 4) an elastic member 34 that supports the holding portion 33 on the inner frame 12f of the base portion 12 in an anti-vibration manner, and 5) an excitation portion 35 that is fixed to the holding portion 33.

  The touch position detection unit 32 according to the present embodiment includes a transparent plate 32a disposed immediately above the display surface of the display device 21, and a frame-like frame body 32b stacked on the transparent plate 32a.

  The transparent plate 32a is a substantially colorless and transparent flat plate made of synthetic resin such as tempered glass or acrylic, and serves as a surface that a user touches with a finger for touch operation. The transparent plate 32 a has a size larger than the screen size of the display device 21.

  Inside the frame 32b, a light emitting element that emits infrared light and the like and an optical sensor are arranged to face each other between the upper, lower, left and right frames, and the position of the touching user's finger is blocked by blocking the light. It is possible to detect and output position information to the control board 50.

  In the present embodiment, since the screen size of the display device 21 is set to 24 inches or more, the touch panel 20 is based on such an optical system from the viewpoint of cost and durability. Of course, it may be realized by a touch panel of a resistance film method, a capacitance method, a surface acoustic wave method, or the like. In this embodiment, since the screen size of the display device 21 is large (14 inches or more), the haptic unit 30 is provided as a separate body from the display device 21, and the haptic unit 30 vibrates. However, the display device 21 does not vibrate.

  The holding unit 33 collectively holds the edge of the touch position detection unit 32, that is, the transparent plate 32a and the frame body 32b. In the present embodiment, there are a first holding portion 33a to a fourth holding portion 33d that hold the edge portions of the four sides of the touch position detection portion 32 in the up, down, left, and right sides (FIG. 3), and each holding portion is long along the side. A flat support plate 33f and a bent holding plate 33g are fixed to one end of the elastic member 34 by fastening together (FIG. 4).

  The vibration unit 35 is an element that converts an electrical signal that operates in response to a drive signal from the control board 50 into mechanical vibration. For example, it can be realized by a vibration transducer such as a motor that rotates an eccentric rotating mass or a linear resonance actuator.

  One excitation unit 35 is controlled to generate vibration while the touch position is detected by the touch position detection unit 32. When the vibration unit 35 vibrates, the vibration is transmitted to the touch position detection unit 32 via the first holding unit 33a. That is, the vibration unit 35, the holding unit 33, and the transparent plate 32a vibrate together to give a skin sensation. That is, tactile feedback is provided. The vibration generated by the excitation unit 35 causes the touch position detection unit 32 and the holding unit 33 to vibrate integrally, but is attenuated and suppressed by the elastic member 34 so that the vibration is hardly transmitted to the internal frame 12f and the display device 21. It has become.

  In the present embodiment, two excitation units 35 are equally disposed on the left and right sides of the first holding unit 33 a that holds the upper side of the touch position detection unit 32. The display device 21 of the present embodiment is a relatively large size. Although the excitation force required for tactile feedback becomes relatively large, the excitation force required by using the plurality of excitation units 35 in this way rather than providing the excitation force required by the single excitation unit 35. Thus, the difference in touch of tactile feedback depending on the touched position can be suppressed.

  In addition, the possibility that the two exciting portions 35 fail at the same time is extremely low, and even if one of them fails, the other remains. The tactile feedback obtained when one of the devices breaks down is halved, but the function is not lost at all, and even if a failure occurs during game play, the tactile feedback can be maintained until the game ends. In other words, the use of the plurality of vibration units 35 increases the resistance to failure and the operating rate.

  Further, by adopting a configuration in which the holding of the touch position detection unit 32 is made independent for each side, even if it is necessary to remove the holding unit 33 due to failure repair of the vibration unit 35, the problem excitation unit 35 It is only necessary to remove the holding part 33 to which is fixed. It is not necessary to remove all the touch position detection units 32. Therefore, maintainability can be further improved.

  In addition, the vibration unit 35 is fixed to the first holding unit 33 a that holds the upper edge of the touch position detection unit 32, so that a space for accommodating the vibration unit 35 is provided on the upper side of the touch panel 20. It was better. In the present embodiment, since a relatively large screen size is adopted, the touch panel 20 becomes large and the transparent plate 32a becomes large and heavy accordingly. As a result, the vibration generating force required for the excitation unit 35 is also increased and the size is increased. If the vibration unit 35 is the third holding unit 33c, the space for accommodating the vibration unit 35 is between the user and the touch panel 20, and the user is moved away from the touch panel 20, thereby improving operability. There is a risk of damage. However, in this embodiment, since the space which accommodates the vibration part 35 is provided above the touch panel 20, there is no worry.

  Returning to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the body support unit 22 is set so that the user during operation can partially support the weight of the body by hitting the abdomen. Specifically, the body support portion 22 is fixed to the front end portion of the base portion 12, more specifically, near the front (hand front) lower end of the touch panel 20, and the surface that contacts the user has a convex curved surface toward the user. None, it is covered with a suitable elastic material so that it does not become a burden even if the user puts on the weight of the body. The surface (front end position of the convex curved surface) with which the user abuts the body support portion 22 is set so as to protrude toward the user side from the base portion 12, and the user supports the body below the body support portion 22. A space in which the toes can be stored when standing in a posture where the abdomen is placed against the part 22 is secured (FIG. 2).

  The billing device 24 is realized by a coin input device, a reader / writer such as a prepaid card or an IC card having an electronic money function.

  The woofer 26 is a third speaker unit in charge of the low sound range. The woofer 26 is installed toward the lower body of the user, more specifically toward the feet, and can emit a heavy bass toward the lower body of the user.

  The control board 50 includes various microprocessors such as a CPU 51, GPU, and DSP, and various IC memories 52 such as an ASIC, VRAM, RAM, and ROM. The touch panel driver IC 54, the voice synthesis IC 55 that generates and amplifies and outputs a voice signal, the vibration signal generation IC 56 that generates a drive signal for the vibration unit 35, and the interface IC 57 that controls the input and output of signals to and from the outside, A communication module 58 for connecting to a communication line and performing data communication with an external device is mounted. Each element mounted on the control board 50 is electrically connected via a bus circuit or the like, and is connected so as to be able to read and write data and transmit and receive signals. And the control board 50 reads the program and data memorize | stored in IC memory 52, performs arithmetic processing, controls each part of the game device 10 according to the operation input from the touch panel 20, etc., and can play a game To.

[Description of game contents]
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a game screen in the present embodiment. In order to facilitate understanding, in FIG. 5 (1), a so-called “music score display” portion that displays a marker for instructing an operation input in accordance with a given timing is extracted and shown. In (2), the background display other than the musical score display is extracted and illustrated, but actually, the game screen is such that FIG. 5 (1) is normally synthesized on FIG. 5 (2).

  As shown in FIG. 5 (1), the music game according to the present embodiment uses the markers 2 (2a, 2b,...) Displayed one after another on the screen along the reference line 1 as music scores. Play by touching the marker 2 along with the rhythm.

  The reference line 1 defines the directionality in which the marker 2 is arranged, but is a non-displayed line that is not visible to the user. For example, it is defined by a combination of a straight line, a curved line, a closed loop, a zigzag and the like.

  The markers 2 are arranged and displayed so as to appear and disappear one after another along the reference line 1. The marker 2 appears immediately above the reference line 1 a predetermined time before the “optimal operation timing (timing for correct answer matching the music rhythm)” of the touch operation. Alternatively, a distance from the reference line 1 is appropriately given, and it appears at a position slightly away from the reference line 1. A timing guide 4 is attached to the marker 2 and the timing guide 4 guides the timing at which the touch operation should be performed.

  In the present embodiment, the timing guide 4 (4a, 4b,...) Is displayed on the outer peripheral portion with the appearance of the corresponding marker 2. In the example of FIG. 5A, the timing guide 4 is configured as a set of four arcuate bodies, but other designs may be used.

  The timing guide 4 that has just appeared together with the marker 2 is large enough to have a predetermined distance (for example, a distance within 5 cm on the screen) from the outer edge of the marker 2 and is gradually reduced and displayed as time elapses. Display control is performed so as to overlap the outer edge of the marker 2 at the timing. In the example of FIG. 5 (1), the rightmost timing guide 4c is shown in a positional relationship when it appears, and the left timing guide 4a is reached through the state of the central timing guide 4b as time passes. And after overlapping with the marker 2 like the timing guide 4a, both are erase | eliminated from a screen in a short time from there.

  The optimum operation timing is basically matched with a rhythm such as a melody line of music that is controlled to emit sound at the start of game play. The user imagines the reference line 1 that is not visible from the position of the marker 2 that appears one after the other, so that the timing at which the timing guide 4 overlaps the marker 2 is estimated while predicting the position where the next marker 2 appears. Touch to play the game. In the present embodiment, the control board 50 functions as the vibration control unit of the vibration unit 35 of the haptic unit 30 in response to a touch operation.

[Description of functional block]
FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration example of the game apparatus 10 in the present embodiment.
The game apparatus 10 of the present embodiment includes an operation input unit 100, a processing unit 200, a vibration generation unit 340, a sound output unit 350, an image display unit 360, a communication unit 370, and a storage unit 500.

  The operation input unit 100 outputs an operation input signal to the processing unit 200 in accordance with various operation inputs made by a user (same as a player). For example, it can be realized by a push switch, a joystick, a touch pad, a track ball, an acceleration sensor, a gyro, a CCD module, or the like. The touch panel 20 of FIG. 1 corresponds to this.

  The processing unit 200 is realized by, for example, a microprocessor such as a CPU or a GPU, an electronic component such as an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an IC memory, and the like, and is connected to each functional unit including the operation input unit 100 and the storage unit 500. To control data input / output. Then, various arithmetic processes are executed based on a predetermined program and data, an operation input signal from the operation input unit 100 and various data, and the operation of the game apparatus 10 is controlled. In the example of FIG. 1, the control board 50 corresponds to this.

  The processing unit 200 in this embodiment includes a game calculation unit 202, a drive signal generation unit 240, a sound generation unit 250, an image generation unit 260, and a communication control unit 270.

The game calculation unit 202 executes various processes related to the progress control of the game.
For example, the music output control unit 204 executes music playback processing of a play song, and the marker display control unit 206 performs display control related to musical score display such as the marker 2 in accordance with music playback while displaying the background. When a touch operation to the position where the marker 2 is displayed is detected, the timing evaluation unit 208 determines an evaluation score by comparing the optimal operation timing set for the touch-operated marker 2 with the touch timing. To do. The accumulation of the evaluation points becomes the user's game score.

  And the game calculating part 202 of this embodiment has the vibration control part 210 which performs vibration control when a touch operation is made on the touch panel 20.

  The vibration control unit 210 includes a frequency determination unit 211 that determines a frequency of vibration generated for tactile feedback and an amplitude determination unit 213 that determines an amplitude that is the magnitude of the vibration.

  The frequency determination unit 211 performs a process of determining a frequency in a range of 20 Hz to 40 Hz, for example, according to a frequency calculation function f as shown in FIG. The frequency range of 20 Hz to 40 Hz is 80 Hz or less, which is said to be a range in which a person can clearly feel vibration as a skin sensation, and is close to the lower limit of the human audible range. Therefore, the vibration generated for tactile feedback provides a favorable skin sensation as an operational feeling of the music game, but is still difficult to be recognized as noise.

  Specifically, the frequency calculation function f of the present embodiment includes an elapsed time k1 from the start of play, a BPM (Beats Per Minute) k2 of the play song, and its frequency so that the frequency can be varied according to the game progress. It is defined by a function having an evaluation point k3 given to a higher value as it approaches the optimum timing according to the operation input timing of the occasional touch operation.

  The frequency calculation function f is defined so that the frequency increases as the elapsed time k1 from the start of play elapses. Since the frequency increases as the game play progresses, a more tense skin sensation is fed back in the second half of the game. Therefore, it is possible to expect the effect of further increasing the excitement that continues to rise as the game progresses, and the feeling that the sensibility is sharpened as you play. Note that the relationship between the elapsed time k1 and the frequency may be defined so that the frequency becomes the highest in the rust portion of the song.

  The frequency calculation function f is defined such that the higher the BPM (k2), the higher the frequency. Thereby, the sense of tactile feedback can be matched with the impression of the beat of the music that can be heard from the ear.

  The frequency calculation function f is set such that the higher the input timing evaluation point k3, the higher the frequency. The user can feel the quality of his / her play from the difference in touch when touched.

  Note that the variable of the frequency calculation function f is not limited to a configuration including all these variables, and can be appropriately selected. Furthermore, parameter values that vary according to other play situations can be used as function variables.

  The amplitude determination unit 213 performs processing for determining the amplitude according to an amplitude calculation function g as shown in FIG. 9, for example. Specifically, the amplitude calculation function g of the present embodiment has a deviation m1 between the optimum operation timing and the detected touch start time of the touch operation, the touch position, and the touch position so that the amplitude can be varied according to the game progress status. A distance m2 from the vibration unit 35 and a determination value m3 indicating whether the touch position is included / not included in the specific area (“1” when included, “0” when not included) , Defined as a function with a variable.

  More specifically, when the deviation m1 exceeds a predetermined allowable value in the positive and negative directions with reference to “0 (no deviation)”, the amplitude is defined to be small. Thereby, the user can know whether or not the timing is appropriate based on the strength of the tactile sensation felt when the touch operation is performed.

  Further, the amplitude is defined such that the larger the distance m2, the larger the amplitude. As a result, the tactile sensation felt by the user is not weakened as the touch position is further away from the vibration generation source due to attenuation or the like.

  The specific region related to the determination value m3 is a region in which vibration becomes smaller than others due to reflection of vibration waves or interference, and is mapped by a prior test. The shape and number of the specific region will vary depending on the specifications of the haptic unit 30 (for example, size, number of elastic members 34, damping characteristics, etc.). The determination value m3 is “1” if the detected touch position is included in any one of the specific areas, and is “0” if it is not included. The amplitude calculation function g is defined so that the amplitude is larger when the determination value m3 is “1” than when it is “0”. This corrects the difference in how the vibration is generated between the specific area and the other area, so that the mottle of the vibration intensity according to the touch position does not occur.

  Note that the variable of the amplitude calculation function g is not limited to a configuration including all these variables, and can be appropriately selected. Furthermore, parameter values that vary according to other play situations can be used as function variables.

  Returning to FIG. 6, the vibration control unit 210 drives the signal according to the frequency determined by the frequency determination unit 211 and the signal according to the amplitude determined by the amplitude determination unit 213 while generating tactile feedback. The signal is output to the signal generator 240.

  The drive signal generation unit 240 generates a drive signal for causing the vibration generation unit 340 to generate vibration for tactile feedback. In the present embodiment, a sine wave having a frequency in the range of 20 Hz to 40 Hz is generated and output so that noise is not generated from the vibrated transparent plate 32a. Since it is a sine wave, a high frequency component exceeding the frequency is not included. As a result, vibration within the range of 20 Hz to 40 Hz is generated, and the possibility of generating audible sound exceeding this range can be suppressed. In the example of FIG. 1, the excitation signal generation IC 56 corresponds to the drive signal generation unit 240.

  The vibration generating unit 340 is an element or device that generates vibration according to a drive signal. The method of generating vibration is not particularly limited, such as a method of rotating the eccentric load, a coil vibration method using a resonance phenomenon due to electromagnetic force or a piezoelectric phenomenon. The vibration unit 35 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 corresponds to this.

  The sound generation unit 250 is realized by, for example, a processor such as a digital signal processor (DSP), a voice synthesis IC, an audio codec that can play back an audio file, and the sound signals of sound effects, BGM, and various operation sounds as the game progresses. Is output to the sound output unit 350. In the example of FIG. 1, the speech synthesis IC 55 corresponds to this.

  The sound output unit 350 is realized by a device that outputs sound effects, BGM, and the like based on the sound signal input from the sound generation unit 250. The speaker units 17L and 17R in FIG. 1 correspond to this.

  The image generation unit 260 is realized by, for example, a processor such as a GPU or a digital signal processor (DSP), a program such as a video signal IC or a video codec, an IC memory for a drawing frame such as a frame buffer, or the like. The image generation unit 260 generates an image of one game screen in one frame time (for example, 1/60 seconds) according to the progress of the game, and outputs the generated image signal of the game screen to the image display unit 360.

  The image display unit 360 displays various game images based on the image signal input from the image generation unit 260. For example, it can be realized by an image display device such as a flat panel display, a cathode ray tube (CRT), a projector, or a head mounted display. In the present embodiment, the touch panel 20 in FIG. 1 and the display device 21 in FIG. 2 correspond to this.

  The communication control unit 270 executes data processing related to data communication, and realizes data exchange with an external device via the communication unit 370. The communication unit 370 is realized by a device that communicates with a communication line, for example, a wireless communication device, a modem, a TA (terminal adapter), a wired communication cable jack, a control circuit, or the like. The communication module 58 in FIG. 1 corresponds to this.

  The storage unit 500 stores a system program for realizing various functions for causing the processing unit 200 to control the game apparatus 10 in an integrated manner, a program necessary for game execution, that is, game play, various data, and the like. Further, it is used as a work area of the processing unit 200, and temporarily stores calculation results executed by the processing unit 200 according to various programs, input data input from the operation input unit 100, and the like. Such a function is realized by, for example, an IC memory such as a RAM or a ROM, a magnetic disk such as a hard disk, or an optical disk such as a CD-ROM or DVD. The IC memory 52 mounted on the control board 50 in FIG. 1 corresponds to this.

  The storage unit 500 stores a system program 501 and a game program 502. The system program 501 is a program for realizing input / output basic functions as a computer of the game apparatus 10. The game program 502 is application software for realizing the function as the game calculation unit 202 by being read and executed by the processing unit 200. A configuration incorporated as part of the system program 501 may also be used.

  If the game of the present embodiment is realized in the form of an online game, the game program 502 may be a dedicated client program according to a technical technique for realizing the online game, a web browser program, and interactive image display. It may be configured by a plug-in that realizes the above. That is, a part or all of the functions of the game calculation unit 202 can be realized by an online game server, and the game apparatus 10 can function as a player terminal having a function for paying a price for game play. is there.

  In addition, the storage unit 500 stores in advance a plurality of play song candidate data 510 prepared for each piece of music provided for game play. Of course, these may be updated periodically. The storage unit 500 also stores game progress data 550 including various data describing the progress of the game along with the game play. In addition, information such as various flags and a counter of the history is also stored as appropriate.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data configuration of the play song candidate data 510.
The play song candidate data 510 includes a music name 512 to be played at the time of play, music data 514 for playing music, a BPM 515 indicating the speed of music tempo, and a background of a musical score display. It includes background data 516, difficulty 518, optimum operation timing list 520, reference line setting data 522, frequency calculation function 524, and amplitude calculation function 526.

  The optimum operation timing list 520 is a list of correct timings that match the music rhythm. When the marker 2 is provided with a type (for example, a marker requesting a flick operation even with a touch operation or a marker requesting to continue touching), the type of the marker 2 to be displayed at that timing is also associated. Store.

  The reference line setting data 522 defines the line pattern of the reference line 1. For example, a function that defines the reference line 1 or a plurality of passing points.

[Description of operation]
Next, operation | movement of the game apparatus 10 in this embodiment is demonstrated.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart for explaining the processing flow of the game apparatus 10. A series of processing flow in the flowchart is realized by executing the game program 502 in a state where the processing unit 200 executes the system program 501.

  The processing unit 200 of the game device 10 first executes a play music selection process (step S2). For example, the music name 512, the BPM 515, and the difficulty level 518 are read from the play song candidate data 510, displayed in a list by song on the touch panel 20, and a song to be played is determined according to a touch operation on the list. The music selection result is stored in the game progress data 550.

  Next, the processing unit 200 starts a game (step S4). For example, the reproduction processing of the music data 514 of the previously selected play song is started, and sound is emitted from the speaker units 17L and 17R. Moreover, the display control for displaying the musical score on the touch panel 20 is started, and the time counting process of the elapsed time k1 from the play start time is started.

  When a touch operation on the touch panel 20 is detected (YES in step S6), the processing unit 200 detects the X coordinate value (m2; touch position detection unit) of the touch position detected as information corresponding to the distance from the excitation location. (Distance from the upper side of 32) is calculated (step S10).

  Next, it is determined whether the touch position is in the specific area, and the determination value m3 is determined (step S12). Further, the deviation m1 between the optimum operation timing and the touch timing is calculated (step S14), and the evaluation point k3 of the touch timing is determined based on the deviation m1 (step S16).

  Next, the processing unit 200 calculates the frequency of vibration generated as tactile feedback, that is, the frequency to be vibrated by the vibration unit 35 according to the frequency calculation function 524 associated with the play music (step S18), and plays the amplitude. Calculation is performed according to the amplitude calculation function 526 associated with the song (step S20).

Then, a drive signal for outputting a sine wave having the calculated frequency and amplitude is generated, and the signal is output to the excitation unit 35. That is, tactile feedback is generated (step S22). The output of the drive signal is continued until the touch detected in step S6 is released, and stopped when the release is detected (YES in step S30) (step S34).
Steps S6 to S34 are repeated until the game end condition is satisfied (NO in step S36).

As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to realize tactile feedback by vibrating the transparent plate 32a directly touched by the user's finger during the touch operation by the vibration unit 35 via the holding unit 33.
In the configuration of the present embodiment, it is the transparent plate 32a that is repeatedly abused by being repeatedly subjected to a touch operation, and the display device 21 does not vibrate. If the transparent plate 32a is appropriately selected from high-performance materials such as tempered glass, maintenance-free until the life of the apparatus is completed can be realized with an appropriate cost performance. Further, the vibration unit 35 itself is only fixed to the holding unit 33, and is not subjected to repeated load or impact accompanying the touch operation. Therefore, it is possible to appropriately select a commercially available vibration device for the vibration unit 35. Further, even if the vibration unit 35 breaks down, it is only necessary to remove the vibration unit 35 in question from the holding unit 33 and replace it, so there is no need to replace the entire touch panel 20. Therefore, the cost and time required for repairing the failure can be kept extremely low. Further, in a touch panel having a special layer structure as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the cost becomes very high as the screen size increases. However, according to the configuration of the present invention, since the display device 21 and the haptic unit 30 can be configured separately, it is possible to easily cope with an increase in screen size at low cost.

  Further, the frequency and amplitude of vibration generated by the vibration unit 35 can be changed based on parameters describing the game progress. Therefore, the haptic feedback realized in the present embodiment exceeds the conventional haptic feedback that makes it appear as if the physical button switch is pressed even though the touch panel 20 is touched. It is possible to realize tactile feedback suitable for video games, such as telling from other than the visual sense.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, the left speaker unit 17L and the right speaker unit 17R can be arranged at positions where the user's head is sandwiched from side to side, so that the user can hear the sound more clearly even in a noisy environment. . In addition, since the vertical width of the speaker support unit 16 is set to be larger than the assumed vertical width of the average user image head, it acts as a screen and from other surrounding devices. The effect of blocking the sound is brought about, and the acoustic effect can be further enhanced. It is possible to give the user a feeling as if the whole body is wrapped in music as if listening to a live performance at a live house. The bass emitted by the woofer 26 will be transmitted to the user's lower body, further enhancing the effect.

[Modification]
As described above, the embodiment to which the present invention is applied has been described. However, the application form of the present invention is not limited to this, and additions, omissions, and changes of components can be appropriately made.

[Part 1]
For example, in the above-described embodiment, the music game of the video game is given as an example of the game, but it can be a game of another genre. Furthermore, the category of games is not limited to video games, but can be pachinko, pachislot, slot machines, medal games, karaoke, and the like.

[Part 2]
Moreover, in the said embodiment, although it comprised so that the vibration part 35 might be driven according to detecting the touch to the touch panel 20, it can also be comprised so that it may drive irrespective of the presence or absence of a touch.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 11, the vibration timing setting data 528 is added to the play song candidate data 510. The data stores an excitation timing, which is a timing at which vibration is generated by the excitation unit 35, and the excitation duration in association with each other. The excitation timing is the same as or slightly earlier than the optimum operation timing.

  Then, the operation is performed as shown in FIG. That is, step S6 of the above embodiment is replaced with step S8 for determining the arrival of the timing defined by the excitation timing setting data 528. If step S8 is affirmative, the step is changed to step S10 in the above embodiment, and the X coordinate of the display position of the marker 2 corresponding to the arrival excitation timing is obtained to calculate the distance m2 from the excitation location. (Step S11). Specifically, the optimum operation timing closest to the arrival excitation timing is obtained from the optimum operation timing list 520, and the marker 2 corresponding to the arrival excitation timing is obtained from the obtained optimum operation timing and the reference line setting data 522. The display position of is calculated. Alternatively, if the display position coordinates and the display start timing are managed in association with each marker 2 in the game progress status data 550, the display position coordinates of the marker 2 that has been displayed at the timing closest to the arrival excitation timing. Please refer to.

  Next, instead of step S12 in the above embodiment, the processing unit 200 determines a determination value m3 as to whether or not it is included in the specific region based on the marker display position corresponding to the arrival excitation timing (step S13). And step S14 and S16 of the said embodiment are abbreviate | omitted, and step S18-S22 are performed, and when the excitation duration corresponding to the said excitation timing passes after an affirmation determination by step S6 (step S32) YES), the output of the drive signal is stopped (step S34).

[Part 3]
Further, in the above-described embodiment, the two excitation units 35 (FIG. 3) are subjected to excitation control in synchronization, but a configuration in which drive control is performed individually is also possible.

  Based on the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, the left and right vibration units 35 viewed from the user are first and second vibration units 35 a and 35 b, respectively. When the detection area is viewed from the user, the upper left part is defined as a first area, the upper right part is defined as a second area, and the lower part straddling the left and right is defined as a third area.

  Then, a drive signal output process is executed instead of step S22. That is, it is determined whether the touch position detected in step S6 corresponds to any of the first region to the third region (step S22a), and the excitation unit to be driven is determined according to the determined region (step S22a). S22b). For example, if it is the first region, the first vibration unit 35a is the driving target, if it is the second region, the second vibration unit 35b is the driving target, and if it is the third region, the first vibration unit 35a and the second vibration unit are driven. Both the parts 35b are driven. Then, a drive signal is selectively output to the determined vibration target to be driven (step S22c).

According to this configuration, when an area that is relatively close to an excitation location is touched, either the first excitation unit 35a or the second excitation unit 35b is selectively excited. However, when an area far from the excitation location is touched, the two excitation units can be driven simultaneously to vibrate more strongly. Therefore, the effect of reproducing similar tactile feedback regardless of the distance from the excitation location to the touch position can be further enhanced.
Note that when the configuration is applied to “No. 2” of the above-described modification, the determination may be made based on the display position of the marker corresponding to the excitation timing that has arrived instead of the touch position in step S22a.

[Part 4]
Moreover, in the said embodiment, although it was set as the structure which uses two vibration parts 35, as shown in FIG. 14, the structure which uses only one (FIG. 14 (1)), or the structure which uses three or more (FIG. 14 (2)). (3)) is also possible. The arrangement position of the vibration unit 35 is not limited to the upper side of the touch position detection unit 32 as in the above embodiment.
Further, the holding unit 33 is not configured to be held independently for each side of the touch position detection unit 32 as in the above-described embodiment, but may be configured to integrally hold a plurality of adjacent sides.

[Part 5]
In the above embodiment, the mounting posture of the touch panel 20 is an obliquely upward posture with the display surface facing the user side. However, as shown in FIG. Also good.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Base line 2 ... Marker 4 ... Timing guide 9 ... User 10 ... Game device 12 ... Base part 12f ... Internal frame 20 ... Touch panel 21 ... Display apparatus 30 ... Haptics unit 32 ... Touch position detection part 32a ... Transparent board 32b ... Frame Body 33 ... Holding part 33f ... Flat support plate 33g ... Holding plate 34 ... Elastic member 35 ... Excitation part 50 ... Control board 51 ... CPU
52 ... IC memory 54 ... Touch panel driver IC
55. Speech synthesis IC
56 ... Excitation signal generation IC
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Operation input part 200 ... Processing part 202 ... Game calculating part 204 ... Music output control part 206 ... Marker display control part 208 ... Timing evaluation part 210 ... Excitation control part 211 ... Frequency determination part 213 ... Amplitude determination part 240 ... Drive Signal generation unit 340 ... Vibration generation unit 350 ... Sound output unit 360 ... Image display unit 500 ... Storage unit 502 ... Game program 510 ... Play song candidate data 512 ... Music name 514 ... Music data 520 ... Optimal operation timing list 524 ... Frequency calculation Function 526 ... Amplitude calculation function 528 ... Excitation timing setting data 550 ... Game progress status data f ... Frequency calculation function g ... Amplitude calculation function

Claims (12)

A game device including a touch panel configured by arranging a transparent plate for touch operation with a space on a display screen of a display device,
A holding part for holding an edge of the transparent plate;
An excitation unit fixed to the holding unit;
A game apparatus in which the excitation unit, the holding unit, and the transparent plate vibrate together.   The said holding | maintenance part is fixed to a housing | casing via an elastic member, The conduction to the housing | casing of the integrated vibration by the said vibration part, the said holding | maintenance part, and the said transparent plate is suppressed by the said elastic member. Amusement equipment. The holding part has first to fourth holding parts for holding edges of the four sides of the transparent plate,
At least the first holding unit has the excitation unit fixed,
The game device according to claim 1 or 2. The first holding unit holds an edge of the upper side of the transparent plate.
The game device according to claim 3. The touch panel is arranged with the upper side of the transparent plate higher than the lower side,
The game device according to claim 4. The first holding unit has at least a pair of left and right excitation units fixed toward the display screen.
The game device according to claim 4 or 5. A vibration control unit that performs vibration control of the vibration unit when a touch operation is performed on the touch panel;
The game device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising: The vibration control unit performs vibration control based on a play situation when the touch operation is performed.
The game device according to claim 7. A plurality of the excitation units are provided,
The vibration control unit individually controls the excitation unit.
The game device according to claim 7 or 8. The excitation unit includes an excitation unit,
The vibration control unit generates a vibration by giving a sine wave signal having a predetermined frequency in a range of 20 to 40 Hz to the excitation unit.
The game device according to any one of claims 7 to 9. The vibration control unit variably controls the vibration frequency and / or amplitude according to the touch position on the touch panel.
The game device according to any one of claims 7 to 10. The display device has a screen size of 14 inches or more;
The transparent plate has a size larger than the screen size of the display device;
The game device according to any one of claims 1 to 11.

Images