Abstract: An interactive video computer system with a light sensitive peripheral device having a photosensitive transducer operating in conjunction with a personal computer platform. The gun or pen-shaped light-sensitive device is connected to a peripheral adapter coupled between the computer and a video monitor. The peripheral adapter captures the horizontal and vertical synchronization signals from the video adapter card in the computer and sends them to the light sensitive peripheral device so that processing circuitry therein can generate a peripheral position signal indicative of the position of the field of view of the photosensitive transducer relative to the screen. The light sensitive peripheral device also has means for transmitting the peripheral position signal to the computer means for further processing. This allows a light gun or pen to be used with a conventional personal computer without having to modify the computer with additional circuit boards and operating system changes.

Abstract: A modular video game controller device that can be adapted to operate with any of a number of various video game platforms such as a PC-based system or any of the commercially-available dedicated game consoles. The video game controller system of the present invention thus comprises a base unit such as a steering wheel and a plurality of game playing switches for use by the game player, a video game playing platform such as a PC-based platform or a dedicated console, and a video game controller interface adapter for interconnecting the base unit and the video game playing platform in accordance with the specific electrical and physical characteristics of the video game playing platform. A variety of interface adapters are contemplated, each of which interfaces in a standard manner to the base unit, and which interfaces in a dedicated manner to the particular video game playing platform for which it has been designed.

Abstract: A video game system with a light gun video game peripheral device having a photosensitive transducer operating in conjunction with a personal computer platform. The gun-shaped light-sensitive device is connected to a peripheral adapter coupled between the computer and a video monitor. The peripheral adapter captures the horizontal and vertical synchronization signals from the video adapter card in the computer and sends them to the light gun so that processing circuitry therein can generate a peripheral position signal indicative of the position of the field of view of the photosensitive transducer relative to the screen. The video game peripheral device also has means for transmitting the peripheral position signal to the computer means for further processing. This allows a light gun to be used with a conventional personal computer without having to modify the computer with additional circuit boards and operating system changes.

Abstract: A reconfigurable video game controller for use with a video game program running on a personal computer platform, wherein the controller may be reconfigured or reprogrammed directly by the user so that user-defined keycodes are obtained from a local memory and transmitted to the computer while playing the video game. The controller is reconfigured by selecting desired input switches and then entering keycodes via an attached computer keyboard while in a setup mode, and the keycodes and selected input switch codes are transmitted to the computer for display to the user under the supervision of a reconfiguration window program. The controller is also capable of storing local codes for use in controlling operation of the controller during the video game play mode. One type of local code is a delay code useful in controlling delay of individual keycode transmissions in a multi-keycode playback sequence.