It’s been over two years since Microsoft released its latest Xbox One controller, the model 1708 controller, but it may release a new controller for the platform in the near future. According to TechRadar, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted Microsoft a patent for a new Xbox One controller in December 2018.
When designing the original Xbox One controller, Microsoft borrowed ideas from the Xbox 360 controller. Both controllers feature dual joysticks, triggers, a directional pad, four color-coded buttons, a “Menu” button and a “View ” button. However, the layout of these controls was altered to achieve a more natural, ergonomic design with the Xbox One. In fact, Microsoft reportedly spent more than $100 million in research and development to design the Xbox One controller.
Both the Xbox One and Xbox 360 controller feature an internal battery-powered motor that vibrates in response to certain input commands. When you’re playing a first-person shooter game on either the Xbox One or Xbox 360, for instance, firing your weapon may cause the controller to vibrate. Known as tactile feedback, it creates a more interactive and enjoyable gaming experience.
Microsoft’s newly patented Xbox One controller also uses vibrations for tactile feedback, but it expands on this concept by including it in the triggers. All current models of the Xbox One controller, as well as the Xbox 360 controller, only vibrate in the left- and right-hand side gripping areas. The patent, however, reveals a controller that’s able to vibrate in the triggers.
In the patent, Microsoft writes that the new Xbox One controller will feature “adjustable-tension” triggers. This presumably means that the vibration force produced inside the triggers can be altered.
When will Microsoft release its new trigger-vibrating Xbox One controller? Unfortunately, the company hasn’t given any details into the project. We only know that Microsoft filed a patent for the new controller in June 2017, which the USPTO granted last December. Microsoft could simply be patenting its new controller idea so that a competitor like Sony or Nintendo doesn’t release a similar controller.
Microsoft is also working on two new video game consoles. Code-named “Scarlet” and “Anaconda,” the next-generation consoles are expected to launch in 2020.
