Newly revealed Nintendo patent supports possibility of NX detachable controllers

We’re getting closer to the inevitable reveal of Nintendo’s NX and now a new patent has surfaced supporting some of the Eurogamer report.

These patents, first filed in January of this year have only just now been made public. The patent details detachable controllers for a device, however the interesting part isn’t that these patents exist but that the controllers have minimal electrics in them. Instead the concept here is that the console itself detects inputs using an infrared camera, there’s no actual connection to the console.

Please note because these are patents, they’re just ideas and concepts. Don’t expect any real controller to look as ugly or as uncomfortable as this. 

Sound familiar? Nintendo used the same concept for the Circle Pad Pro for the Nintendo 3DS. That device added a second circle pad to the console, something that was later corrected with the New 3DS which added one to the console.

But this patent goes one further, the right side of the console doesn’t just have an infrared camera, it also has a distance measuring sensor an ‘irradiation section’ which projects light into any add-on and finally a projector. There’s also only sensors on one side of the system, the right side – so that throws some water on the ‘two detachable controllers’ rumour.

The patent also describes alternative controllers, instead of just buttons there could technically be one with dials or even analog sticks as well. This of course all means these controllers do not work unless they’re attached to the device.

But wait there’s more.

When there is no controller attachments detected the device can still recognise hand movements using the sensors. The patent shows a game of rock papers scissors being demonstrated as the kind of stuff the cameras can detect. So what about that projector? The patent even details the ability to project text and other game data onto you hand or another surface. However it’s more likely this will be used to project ‘buttons’ into attachments or could create secondary displays with information.

Finally the patent mentions that these detachable controllers don’t just work with this one device and could work with others. Theoretically this could mean then these detachable controllers could work with a stand-alone home controller and augment that.

Naturally this could not be for the NX at all and just another pie in the sky idea from Nintendo – but there’s a lot coincidences here with what we’ve heard before regarding the NX and its something no one else is doing yet.

Could this be the the idea Nintendo want people to steal?

Source: NeoGAF