2. Abstract
In this presentation we will be outlining why our design would be the most optimal
experience for players who have one hand. Our design is trying to tackle a way that
would allow the player to be able to game with ease, precision and also comfort. We
hope to receive positive results from our prototype and also find out if we could
potentially find any opportunities of improvement as well. We used our own designs as
well as design inspiration from other controllers in order to put our controller
together. By doing this, we will hopefully gain knowledge and experience on working
with a more diverse audience and also keeping in mind that not everyone is going to
have the same gameplay experience as others.
3. Introduction
When it comes to the use of controllers, a lot of designs are made mostly for people
who have two hands. It is important to have other options for people who don’t have
both of their hands in order to market to a broader audience. Accessibility is important
because then people feel as though we are listening to their needs and not just making
one type of product for able-bodied consumers. People with disabilities, such as having
only one hand, need a way to be able to have the same accessibility without sacrificing
comfort or efficiency.
4. Design Purpose
The purpose of our design is to focus on ergonomics, precision, and easy access in
order for new and seasoned gamers that have the use of only one hand to enjoy
playing video games. Our goal is to design a controller that caters to both, a left or
right handed person, while also being simple enough for players of any skill level to
learn. In addition, it will allow the user to play a variety of genres with the comfort of
being able to play for long periods of time.
5. Justin’s Inspiration
My design inspiration came from the
idea that the buttons and sticks would
be in the exact place that your fingers
rest if your hand was flat on the
controller. To help me determine
control placement, I simply placed my
hand on a piece of paper and put
markers where my fingers were resting.
In addition, I wanted the remainder of
the buttons to be well within finger
reach for easy access.
6. Raychel’s Inspiration
My controller design was inspired by one of
my speaker sets. With the addition of an
analog ball as well as buttons where your
fingers can comfortably rest, this speaker
made for a great controller design. This
simplistic and comfortable design would
allow for someone who had one hand to
not have to be too overwhelmed with
buttons as well as longer playing time since
they wouldn’t have to move their hand too
far to get to the controls they need. Not
only that but this would make it easier for
the person to quickly tap buttons while in
game.
7. Derrick’s Inspiration
My design inspiration came from
modern day competitive controllers.
Many of these controllers feature
raised thumb sticks for precision
aiming and back padels for easy
button access. The ability to
program any button on the
controler for any use is also a
feature many high end controller's
share. Taking all of these into
account I came up with my design.
8. Jason’s Inspiration
The inspiration for my controller
came from the comfort of the
controller I use when I play video
games. I wanted to design
something ergonomic for
someone with only one hand that
can be used by either right or left
handed people. A comfortable
grip and not overwhelming the
user with a whole bunch of
buttons was my goal for this
controller.
9. Design Method
Ergonomics: We felt this was very important when designing a controller and wanted to allow the user to play
for long periods of time without causing fatigue to their hand. We wanted to use soft padding for an easier grip
as well as comfortable playing experience for the player. With the handle design, players will also be able to
game longer without having to worry about cramping or their palms getting sweaty and slipping.
Precision: Having a tracking ball instead of analog sticks will allow for more precise aim and also will be a lot
easier to push or hold down for games that require that feature. We put a foot pedals in which will work well
for faster response times.
Easy to use: Easy access is important in a controller. We didn’t want to make the user awkwardly position their
hand to reach a button, or overwhelm them with so many components for one hand. With the addition to the
foot pedal, it will be easy for new players to pick up and use while not feeling overwhelmed by so many buttons
on the handle. It also will be easy for advanced players to be able to modify controls if they choose to use that
option. The tilt feature also allows the player to move with the controller for a more immersive playing
experience.
10. Schematic Diagrams: Rail Crane Controller
Our controller consists of a handle with a soft
padding on top for hand comfort. The handle has
360-degree tilt on the base to act as an analog
stick. There are buttons on the underside of the
handle for easy access for the user. Toward the
front of the handle is a trackball on each side for
the use of left or right-handed people, the
trackball acts as an analog stick. Next to each
trackball is a button. We also added a directional
pad on top of the segment that connects to the
base. These allow for easy access, as the user
simply needs to extend their fingers to push the
buttons. On the base of the controller we have
start/menu buttons, a system home button, and a
sync button to sync with the console. Our
controller is wireless and runs on only 2 AA
batteries.
11. Schematic Diagrams: Foot Pedals
Foot Pedals
We’ve added foot pedals to relieve the
hand of having to push so many buttons.
Users will be able to push four buttons
with their feet. The pedals are also
wireless and run on two AA batteries.
They automatically sync with the
controller so there is no need for any
other buttons.
15. Schematic Diagrams: Right or Left Handed Play
The controller caters to
either a right or left handed
player, simply by turning
the entire thing.
16. Justin’s Defense for Design Assumptions
I believe that the buttons on a controller should be positioned according to where the
hand naturally rests when it is flat on the controller. This would cause less stress and
minimize the finger movements needed to press various buttons. In addition, a good
symmetric controller with input customization synergizes well with button positioning
to allow comfortable left or right handed play that is tailored to the user’s preference.
The Configurable Single Handed Video Game Controller is a great example of a
modular system that caters to user preference and has symmetric input positioning to
reduce stress on the fingers (Epstein and Heckendorn, 2009).
17. Raychel’s Defense for Design Assumptions
Adding a trackball instead of having analog sticks will be a lot easier for someone with
one hand to control movement and also increase performance. A study was done that
replaced the analog sticks on a 360 controller with a trackball to find ways of
improvement for both novice and advanced gamers. The results showed that novice
and advanced users had a higher accuracy rate than that of the analog sticks. What’s
even more interesting is that once the analog sticks were replaced, novice users that
had the trackball controller actually outperformed advanced users using the standard
controller. I feel as though with a comfortable shape and also having a trackball on a
controller, the player will have a more enjoyable gaming experience.
(Natapov and MacKenzie, 2010)
18. Derrick’s Defense for Design Assumptions
I believe that the thumb sticks should be raised on a controller for precise aiming. This
would make it much easier for the user to aim with the use of only one hand. Also
having a customizable height of the thumb sticks to fit every individual user for max
comfort. Also having a symmetrical thumb stick design will make accessing the rest of
the controller more reliable. An advantage of the present invention are adapters that
will make gaming more comfortable by reducing stress, and will improve game
performance by enhancing the feel of the game and the accuracy of the user's
manipulation of the steering stick. (Cooper, 2011)
19. Jason’s Defense for Design Assumptions
The design and shape of a controller is important for the comfort of the user. It’s
critical that the user is able to hold and keep a grip without adding extensive fatigue to
the user’s hand. Adding an ergonomic shape that makes the controller comfortable in
both the left and right hands is another important aspect when designing a controller.
It’s also essential to the user if the buttons, sticks, or other components are within
reach without causing the hand to be in awkward positions; at the same time, a left-
handed user should be able to access all components on the controller with the same
ease as a right-handed user. The handle provides support for the user’s hands and
fingers while they are using the controller to prevent any cramping or stiffness.
(Reichow, 1991) Thus, creating an ergonomic controller is very important to make
sure users can play for long periods without interruption because their hand is
fatigued.
20. Use with Call of Duty
Call of Duty is one of, or if not, the most popular First Person Shooter series out in the
industry. The game has different mechanics such as player movement, camera
movement, and gun combat, among others. Our controller allows users to play these
games just as well as able-bodied users with traditional console controllers. Tilting the
handle allows the user to control player movement, and the trackball allows for
movement of the camera. The foot pad buttons allow the player to aim down the
sights with LR, shoot with RL, and throw their grenades with LL and RR. The A, B, C,
D buttons allow the player to swap weapons, reload, jump, and crouch. Users can
press the trackball in to sprint and the X button can be used to melee attack. The
directional pad allows for use of any killstreaks or equipment.
21. Use With Halo Wars
Halo Wars was a very popular console RTS that was easy to learn, but hard to master.
Because RTS games are not common on consoles, this particular game used careful
design to make the controls as simple as possible while still allowing skilled users to
play at their max potential. When played with our controller, the main actions such as
select, cancel, attack, and special would be assigned to the A, B, C, and D buttons while
tilting the controller and using the trackball would correspond to moving and rotating
the crosshair. The foot pad buttons allow the player to cycle selected units with RL,
and select global and local units with LL and RR. Finally, all of the D-pad commands
for Halo Wars would use the D-pad on the base of the handle.
22. Use With Gran Turismo
Gran Turismo is a well renown racing simulator known for its sense of realism. With
this much depth comes a wide variety of techniques the player must master in order to
achieve glory. When Gran Turismo is played with our controller the player can use the
Foot Pedals (RR and RL) for the brake/gas. For steering the player would use the
Tracking Ball for precise movement, while using the X button would serve as an
emergency brake. If the player prefered to drive a manual transmission they would use
the A button for the clutch and the B and C buttons for shifting gears. And finally if
the user wanted to Change camera angles the D-Pad would take care of that.
28. Play Test Sessions
In our playtest sessions our tester had some valuable info about our product. The first
thing is that the pedals needed to be slanted to allow for comfort while playing.
Another was how many buttons were underneath the handle. He said it made holding
the controller hard to do without pressing the buttons. Other than these few critiques
he thought that the controller was very comfortable to hold and loved how the user
could use their feet for some of the controls.
29. Post Mortem: The Good
One of the best things that happened during the creation of this controller was the
cooperation and feedback that everyone had while coming up with a concept for it.
Each of us would spew out ideas that we thought would make for a good controller,
and the rest of the team would either agree with it or come up with ways to improve
upon it. It is certain that the communication on the pros and cons of the controller was
our greatest strength and made us connect more as a team.
30. Post Mortem: The Bad
The biggest issue we had was figuring out a way to set up all of the buttons in places
where they are easily reached without causing the user to have to awkwardly position
their hands. This was challenging, because there are so many buttons and it’s hard not
to overwhelm the user. Our solution was to bring in some foot pedals that the user can
use with their feet. It was also hard to agree on bringing in the foot pedals. Some said
it would be too difficult to set up for the user, but eventually we all thought it was a
great idea. Another issue we had was figuring out a way to add the left and right
analog sticks, on a traditional controller, to our controller. We came up with the idea
of adding a trackball to each side of the handle to be accessed by left or right-handed
users, and allowing the whole handle to tilt 360-degrees. This way, tilting the handle
acts as the left analog stick on a traditional controller, and the trackball acts as the
right analog stick.
31. Post Mortem: What Could Have Been Done Differently?
This assignment was no easy task. Even though there were a lot of disagreements, we
still came together as a team and made a very great controller. What we could’ve done
differently is listen to everyone’s design choices and weighed in on pros and cons
instead of directly looking at just the cons of the issue. Another thing that could’ve
been done differently in terms of the controller would be moving the directional pad
buttons on the side of the handle instead of directly down because then it would cause
the player to strain their fingers and not be easily accessible. Overall, this project was a
new and exciting learning experience that we hope to apply to future assignments.
32. References
Epstein, M. and Heckendorn, B. (2009). Configurable Single Handed Video Game Controller. Retrieved
from https://www.google.com/patents/US20090054146
Cooper, L. (2011). Patent US7993203 - Control stick adapter. Retrieved from https://www.google.
com/patents/US7993203
Reichow, J. (1991). Ergonomic handle for game controller. Retrieved from https://www.google.
com/patents/US5046739
Natapov, D. and MacKenzie, S. (2010). The Trackball Controller: Improving the Analog Stick. Retrieved
from http://www.yorku.ca/mack/FuturePlay1.html
