On Sunday, June 18, 2023, the submarine Titan, which was on a trip to the Titanic shipwreck, disappeared in the ocean with five people on board. Later information revealed that the submarine had suffered a severe catastrophic explosion due to pressure imbalance.
But there was another detail about the submarine that was on the agenda. This life-bearing submarine, which dives thousands of meters deep into the ocean, was controlled by Logitech’s F710 controller, which was launched in 2010. But controlling a submarine with a game controller is actually not such a strange thing.
Game controllers are used in many places, including advanced weapons of the US military:
- The USS Ponce is the ship where the laser gun, which we will talk about shortly, will be placed.
The task of a player control is more control and comfort in the game for a standard user. The same goes for any company or institution that develops a weapon, builds a machine, or wants to have a control mechanism in a virtual environment. Of course, the environment here is not a game.
We have encountered many examples of usage areas where game controllers are used and the world seems strange. In December 2014, the United States announced that it would put laser weapons on an amphibious ship in the Persian Gulf.
Even this weapon, which actually sent out a death ray, was controlled by an object with which today’s children are very familiar: a game controller-like controller whose model has not been disclosed. Moreover, the US navy announced this.
Another example comes from the US Navy. In the image above, which includes the US army drone operator, there is a HOTAS system developed specifically for gamers for flight simulators. In other words, not only joysticks, but also many other vehicles produced for entertainment purposes can be used in different areas.
Let’s go back to the USA, to 2014. What you see above is a vehicle made by Boeing for the US military and has a huge laser on it. Its mission is to destroy drones and other small flying objects in mid-air.
So, what do you think this vehicle was controlled by the critical weapon that will protect that life? A laptop and an Xbox controller. Of course, it is unknown whether the components inside this controller have been changed.
Want a much larger sample?
The USS Colorado submarine you see above, which belongs to the US army, is actually controlled like this with the Xbox controller you see below:
Of course, not the submarine itself, but some of its systems and especially its periscopes are controlled.
Another example is from a familiar name:
Yusuf Karlı, who helped us share quantum technology with you before and currently continues his doctoral studies on quantum optics and photonics at the University of Innsbruck, also had something to say about the selected controllers.
Karlı shared on Twitter that they control quantum dots with a value of more than 300 thousand euros with a PlayStation 4 controller.
Well, we thought we’d get some more details from him:
Why not use a custom made handle and why PlayStation 4 handle?
Prof. Dr. Karlı emphasized that controllers are widely used in scientific studies and that controllers are the simplest and most efficient options for equipment that needs to be remotely controlled.
Of course, it’s not that there are negative situations from time to time…
Let’s mention that Karlı managed to be on the cover of ACS Nano Letters magazine with his work in 2022, in which he made the first successful experimental demonstration of a theory called SUPER Method, which changed what we know with quantum mechanics.
We also thank him for this information he has given us.
Ready-made arms can also be a reference:
Ready-made controllers are not always used in weapon systems. However, these controllers can also be a reference for specially developed controllers to be used in systems.
The controller of the US Army’s M-SHORAD air defense system, which you can see above, is very similar to the layout of the Xbox controller (of course the N64). The vehicle controlled by this controller looks like this:
But why don’t even armies develop their own controller and apply to these arms?
The answer to this question may not be as complicated as you think. It may even surprise you a little. However, one should not think of everything too complicated. Without further ado, we can list the advantages of using a game controller that is already in production:
- There is a generation that grew up with games and controllers, their hands are prone to these controllers. No extra training or hand habits are required.
- The cost is too low to count.
- It eliminates the bureaucracy required when developing a new system, especially in armies.
- The number of them is very easy to find, and in case of a problem, even the smallest part can be replaced thanks to plenty of spare parts.
- These controllers have been developed for the comfort of millions, and plenty of R&D has already been done. Why do it in the first place?
- It is now a universal design known to the whole world. There’s no need for a controller schema that didn’t exist in the first place.
- These controllers mostly don’t break even after thousands of hours of gaming sessions. Even with regular replacement, many risks are eliminated.
- The software for the controllers is now even built into all computers. No need to write new software from scratch.
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