New Nintendo Patent Hints at Wiimote Touchpad Accessory

Game Rant

By GR Staff

Published Nov 5, 2011

A Japanese patent application has been filed by Nintendo - and hints at the possibility of a new touchpad accessory for the Wii Remote. But how will it work?

The Nintendo Wii has seen a long shelf-life with its fifth-year release anniversary coming this Novemeber 19, rumors of a patent claimed to be filed by Nintendo purport the next accessory that will enhance the Wii Remote might be a touchpad.

Since the Wii U announcement at this year's E3, gamers have eagerly been waiting the official announcement of when the new Nintendo system will be available and how much it will cost. More recently, it was reported that the price and release date of the Wii U will not be unveiled until 2012. But murmurs in the woodwork may have uncovered a new patent that is believed to be the next greatest thing to attach itself to the Wii Remote.

Although not officially confirmed, a Japanese patent application was filed by Nintendo that hosts specifications for an accessory that is more or less a touchpad that can be attached to the Wii Remote. What this new accessory may be used for is unclear for now - but a description details how it will work:

"The device works through the use of mirrors. Touching the pad causes an LED to light, and the beams from it bounce off a mirror to be interpreted by the controller as positional information. Keeping your hands off the pad cause the Wii Remote to function normally."

Based on the Wii U's own controller, this new accessory to the Wii Remote feels a bit redundant if it were to launch within a close timeframe of the Wii U's release. The Wii Remote basically acts as a pointer and can be utilized to guide things on the screen via sensor bar, so what would be the point of this additional touchpad?

A diagram illustrated by NeoGAF users demonstrate how the attachment may look on the Wii Remote (click on the image to enlarge):

What happened to the days when there was just a D-Pad and two buttons? Sigh. Nintendo has had some funky game controllers in the past, but this new accessory may take the cake.

If this is truly a Nintendo patent, do you feel that the company is wasting its efforts on accessories when they should be focusing on the Wii U or other business ideas to help increase the company's profits and secure finances — especially after their reported second quarter losses?

Source: Siliconera [via GamePro]

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