Slashdot Mirror
Gibson Accuses Guitar Hero of Patent Violation
robipilot writes "Video game publisher Activision Inc. has asked a federal court to declare that its popular "Guitar Hero" game does not violate a patent held by real-guitar maker Gibson Guitar Corp. Gibson's 1999 patent covers a virtual-reality device that included a headset with speakers that simulated participating in a concert, according to a complaint filed on Tuesday by Santa Monica, Calif.-based Activision in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles."
http://www.google.com/patents?id=YAUZAAAAEBAJ
:-P
Note that Gibson was clearly not thinking about video games, as it's using a real guitar--kind of like an immersive Jamey Abersold experience
Here's a link: the patent
From the patent itself:
12. The system of either claim 10 or claim 11 wherein the video display and the audio playback transducer are combined in a stereoscopic head set wearable by the user.
14. The system of claim 13 wherein the audio portion of the pre-recorded musical performance comprises a separate instrument sound track and whereby the characteristic of the audio portion controlled by the source audio control circuit is a volume level of the instrument sound track played by the system.
19. The system of claim 13 further comprising a headset wearable by the user, the headset having left and right audio speakers and a stereoscopic video display, the left and right speakers operably connected to left and right channels on the source audio output and to the controlled audio output, and the video display operably connected to the source video output.
21. A system for allowing a player using a guitar to control simulated participation in a musical concert during synchronous playback of a pre-recorded concert video track, pre-recorded left and right concert sound tracks, and a separate pre-recorded guitar track, the system comprising:
27. The method of claim 26 wherein the musical instrument is a guitar.
I'm not sure which patent you were reading...
The Guitar Hero guitar is nothing but a guitar shaped controller. It sends button presses that is on no way different than a regular hand-held controller. Only its shape is different.
Now if the guitar did output MIDI, then I guess the patent would be marginally closer to applying, but it doesn't.
If I can't start with the patent and figure out how to build the "infringing" technology from it, it's a worthless patent.
If reading the patent doesn't give me some insight that makes building the "infringing" device easier, it's a worthless patent.
This is a worthless patent. They might as well have written "Play the guitar... on a computer!!! And see pictures!!! ZOMG!"
Expanding a vast wasteland since 1996.
If you are getting legal about it, the Guitar Hero guitar is not a guitar, its a [insert selected console here] controller, in a plastic shell that resembles a guitar. You dont need their guitar controller to play the game, although it does make it easier to play the game, and it makes you look manly infront of your male gaming friends when you mastered Through the Fire and Flames by DragonForce on expert....have fun finding a girlfriend, you losers.