Input device
Provided is an input device including an exterior member; a light source housed in the exterior member; a tracked portion that is a part of the exterior member and includes a light emitting portion having an outer surface that emits light toward an outside; and a light guide tube that has an incident surface that receives light of the light source and guides the light of the light source to the light emitting portion, in which a curved surface that widens an angle range of light emitted from the outer surface of the light emitting portion is formed at a boundary surface between light media in an optical path from the incident surface of the light guide tube to the outer surface of the light emitting portion.
1. An input device comprising:
a housing containing mechanisms operating to enable the input device to receive inputs from a user and transmit same to a computer for use as inputs in an application program executing on the computer to cause the application program to manipulate objects within a moving image to provide the user with an interactive visual experience;
an exterior member;
a light source housed in the exterior member;
a tracked portion that is a part of the exterior member and includes a light emitting portion having a planar inner surface and an opposing planar outer surface that emits light toward an outside, where the tracked portion facilitates tracking a position and posture of the input device by the computer; and
a light guide tube having an incident surface that receives light of the light source and guides the light of the light source to an incident surface of the planar inner surface of the light emitting portion, wherein:
the light guide tube includes a recessed and curved surface disposed at an opposite end from the incident surface and in an optical path from the incident surface of the light guide tube toward the outer surface of the light emitting portion, and the recessed and curved surface causes a widening of an angle range of light emitted from the outer surface of the light emitting portion, and
the planar inner surface of the light emitting portion includes a plurality of recesses directed to receive light rays from the recessed and curved surface of the light guide tube, and
the plurality of recesses include curved cross-sections, and are arranged into the planar inner surface of the light emitting portion in two directions perpendicular to each other such that the light rays are refracted by the planar inner surface and spread in a radial direction.
2. The input device according to claim 1 , wherein the light guide tube has an exit surface that emits light, the recessed and curved surface is the exit surface of the light guide tube, and the recessed and curved surface is smoothly curved.
3. The input device according to claim 1 , wherein light guide tube has a protruding surface within the recessed and curved surface.
4. The input device according to claim 1 , wherein the light guide tube has a protruding surface surrounding the recessed and curved surface that extends around a periphery of the recessed and curved surface.
5. The input device according to claim 1 , wherein the planar inner surface receives light from the light guide tube.
6. The input device according to claim 5 , wherein at least one recessed surface that is the recessed curved surface is formed on the inner surface of the light emitting portion.
7. The input device according to claim 6 , wherein a plurality of recesses are formed on the inner surface of the light emitting portion, and an inner surface of each of the plurality of recesses is the at least one recessed surface that is the recessed curved surface.