´V-Pocket´ patent discovered?

Nintendo seems to have plans for a controller or handheld console to connect to cellphones. Product_Number_18 has come across a most interesting patent on the Japanese National Center for Industrial Property Information (NCIPI) homepage. Go there, enter ´Nintendo´ in the top field and click on search. Then click on ´Index Indication´. Choose the third entry entitled ´2005 - 253709 PORTABLE GAME SYSTEM´. Now click on ´detail´. It should be noted that the text is an automated translation from the Japanese original. In fact, there is a disclaimer in the beginning that proves the quality of the translation:

JPO and NCIPI are not responsible for any damages caused by the use of this translation.

So buckle up, put on your crash helmets and let´s try to get into the details of what is being claimed here. The abstract reads:

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique useful for improving the operability of a game and preventing sudden battery exhaustion at the time of carrying out a game in a portable terminal, especially in the case of carrying out the game of large power consumption.

SOLUTION: An auxiliary operation device suitable for the operation of the game to be mounted on the portable terminal is provided. In the auxiliary operation device, a rechargeable battery for supplying power to the portable terminal or charging the rechargeable battery of the portable terminal and a control circuit for controlling power supply or charging are incorporated. Power supply or charging is appropriately performed corresponding to the using conditions of the portable terminal and the state of the rechargeable battery.

This would suggest that one device hooks up to another device in order to supply it with extra battery power when its own batteries are drained. However, there are some intriguing pictures shown in the drawings section.


This shows a cellphone connected to a custom controller, featuring an SNES controller shape and a Gamecube controller button layout. However, I believe this is just meant to be a generic device. After all, the patent is entitled ´Portable Game System´, so it could very well deal with the DS, its new incarnation or a brand new handheld console. It could even concern the Revolution. I don´t think this is to do with the GBA, which can already connect to mobile phones for online play (albeit in Japan only), since this patent was filed March 2004 and doesn´t seem to be a mere renewal.

The claims seem to go beyond the abstract.

It is a pocket game system using the personal digital assistant which can perform a game program and has a message function with a remote place, (...) equipped with an operational control unit by the user at the time of the game program execution concerned (...). The game processing section for performing processing (...) advances a game based on the actuation data according to the actuation given by the control unit of said auxiliary operation equipment (...).

The 1st connection terminal (is used) for receiving transmission and reception of said auxiliary operation equipment and data, and supply of power (...). A wearing detection means (is used) to detect that the 1st connection terminal was equipped with said auxiliary operation equipment -- and when said wearing detection means detects, the power from said main power supply section is supplied only to said message processing section, and it has the power-source change control section changed to an electric power supply from the auxiliary operation equipment concerned to said game processing section (...).

The 2nd connection terminal (is used) for connecting with said 1st connection terminal and supplying transmission and reception and power of said personal digital assistant and data (...).

This is a brief simplification of the first claim, which seems to focus on battery supply, but is also concerned with some kind of data exchange. Naturally, this could only refer to the exchange of data relating to whether the second device is connected or not, but it could be more than that. After all, this patent is obviously showing a cellphone connected to a controller or portable gaming console. In the description under the ´Technical Field´ tab, this is specifically mentioned:

This invention relates to the pocket game system which combined the battery charger and the auxiliary operation equipment for games which were excellent in the operability of a game and are useful to performing the big game of power consumption, when playing a game about a pocket game system, for example using a personal digital assistant like a cellular phone especially.

This is obviously where the translation fails and without being able to read the Japanese original, we can only speculate about what this patent really concerns. However, the whole talk of ´personal digital assistants´ made me remember the ´V-Pocket´ trademark Nintendo registered some time ago. It was picked up upon by various websites, along with ´PCGP´, another rumoured trademark and logo.


If you want to verify the ´V-Pocket´ trademark, visit the Japanese Industrial Property Digital Library (IPDL) and click on ´Japanese Trademark Database´. In the field reading ´Trademark (for retrieval)´ enter ´V-Pocket´, click on ´Search´, then ´Index´. The ´Nintendo V-Pocket´ will be the only entry. It´s important to note that the ´PCGP´ cannot be verified this way, so I´ll disregard this for now.

SPOnG claimed to have found out what the ´V-Pocket´ could be about:

SPOnG learned from official Nintendo sources yesterday that the V-Pocket trademark concerns Nintendo’s licensing of the Palm OS based PDA software.

Nintendo will soon unveil a complete suit of personal organiser tools for its Nintendo DS platform, expected to be shown before E3. Nintendo believes that the functionality of the DS, combined with high-end PDA software, will give it an edge over Sony’s PSP, which is, and will remain a media-driven value-added console.

It’s worth noting that the logo offered for V-Pocket reflects the aesthetic employed in Nintendo’s DS branding.

So, in conclusion, the above patent could relate to the DS connecting to cellphones, using both their power supply as well as going online. This would fit with the rumours about the ´V-Pocket´ PDA software. Obviously, this could relate specifically to the DS´s new incarnation, which will be unveiled shortly, I have been told by Nintendo. Or, perhaps, this patent relates to some kind of new controller or handheld console we haven´t seen yet. It could even somehow concern the Revolution. Either way, it´s interesting stuff.

Source: NCIPI, IPDL
Thanks to: Product_Number_18