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Microsoft XBox (Games) Entertainment Games

Microsoft Settles With Immersion Over Haptic Patent 28

Posted by CowboyNeal from the wheels-greased-with-cash dept.
Dolly_Llama writes "Immersion settled their lawsuit against Microsoft over the use of Haptic vibration technology in the XBox controllers. Microsoft paid Immersion $26M to settle and to license Immersion's haptic patents. Immersion has a similar lawsuit still pending with Sony."
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Microsoft Settles With Immersion Over Haptic Patent More

Microsoft Settles With Immersion Over Haptic Patent

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  • Repetitive Haptic Injury? (Score:4, Funny)

    by quinkin ( 601839 ) on Tuesday July 29, 2003 @01:48AM (#6557079)
    So at least we know who to blame now for the long term damage caused by vibrating console controls...

    Q.

  • Anybody else remember... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by NanoGator ( 522640 ) on Tuesday July 29, 2003 @01:50AM (#6557089) Homepage Journal
    ... when Sony was sued by ... uh.. I think it was Atari over vibration inside of controllers? Something about Nintendo not getting sued because the N64's vibration feature was a peripheral and not built into the controller.

    This ring a bell with anybody? Now I'm kinda curious what happened.
    • The Sony vibration is awsome.

      It does slow rotating and fast, it is so much better then any of the other ones I have used (except maybe the GC)
    • As I recall, it was Ninty who were after Sony for that.

      Japan got the Dual Analog Pad, complete with a small motor in one of the grips for the vibration, but Europe and the US the motor was missing (all the control circuitry was still there), and you could take it apart and add your own motor.

      What probably happened was that Ninty got annoyed (they seem to have a number of patents on the subject), Sony removed the motor for a while, and re-introduced it with TWO motors, rather than one probably to get rou

    • That would make sense, as Sega didn't get sued either, and theirs was an extra prehipheral. But then again, Nintendo hasn't gotten sued yet for the Gamecube controller.

  • In case of /.ing (Score:1, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Microsoft Licenses Immersion's Haptic Patent Portfolio
    Monday July 28, 4:07 pm ET

    Agreements Settle Legal Differences

    Provide Microsoft Broad Licensing Rights to Sense of Touch Patents on Multiple Platforms

    SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 28, 2003--Immersion Corp. (NASDAQ:IMMR - News) today announced a series of agreements with Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT - News), that grant Microsoft licensing rights for Immersion's patent portfolio, which is primarily directed to haptic technologies (the sen

  • Yet another strategic cave-in on a patent dispute (Score:3, Insightful)

    by PenguinOpus ( 556138 ) on Tuesday July 29, 2003 @08:26AM (#6558337)
    Immersion seems more likely to have a strong patent in haptic than SCO has any claims on Linux, but...

    This seems like a strategic settlement by Microsoft to punish Sony. Microsoft paying the settlement to Immersion gives Immersion fuel to feed its lawyers in their continued attack on Sony. You can be sure that when Sony settles or is taken to court the total will be $260M, not $26M.

  • Why didn't MS just buy them? (Score:4, Funny)

    by mhesseltine ( 541806 ) on Tuesday July 29, 2003 @10:29AM (#6559542) Homepage Journal

    Then, they would be the ones collecting royalties from SONY.

  • Immersion talks about force-feedback on their website, but I think either they or I have understood something wrong.

    To this date I've lived under the impression that force-feedback means "force, to give you feedback", which is to say, when driving car you feel the road, so to say, because the steering wheel (or whatever it's called) turns when the wheels turn. The same thing with aeroplanes. It's a great thing in gaming, since it's much easier to fly a plane if it resists with some force your attempts to

  • You only think it shakes. Great for GTA VC.
  • Maybe by settling first, Microsoft adds some validity/precedent to Immersion's case against Sony, and thus forces Sony to pay a higher patent tax?

    (It should be obvious by now that IANAL. Or ISBOBNTIANAL for short. Yes, Bob *is* NTI-Anal, thanks for asking.)
    • It makes sense. Better PR than to buy the company and sue sony themselves.. Anything to get an edge in the market. I wonder if it's the same thing with SCO?

  • Wow (Score:2)

    by Bruha ( 412869 )
    Werent vibrators invented long before Immersions's time?

    Probably not the best example but I'm sure there's plenty of prior art hehe on something like this..

    Howard stern had one that could be activated by whistling..
  • As I understand it, the "make-the-controller-vibrate" technology consists of a small electric motor with an off-centered weight attached. The motor is spun to create varying degrees of vibration. This is worthy of a patent? (I have prior art in my basement, typically during the Spin Cycle).

    When was the "wiggle pen" introduced? The vibrating massager? Various (ahem) adult toys?

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