Patent ID: RE40698

Claim:
A symmetrical, miniature, hand-held trackball pointing device for interchangeable use in either a right hand or a left hand of a user, comprising: a) a symmetrical housing adapted and configured to fit interchangeably into a user's right or left hand, a front portion of said housing comprising at least three curved surfaces adapted to snugly fit into the first phalangal of the metacarpal portion of a an index, a middle, and a ring finger, respectively, of said user's right or left hand, said housing further comprising a rear curved surface adapted to snugly rest in a palm portion of said user's right or left hand, said housing being adapted for retention in said user's hand between said metacarpal regions of said index, middle, and ring fingers of said user's hand and a palm thereof, thereby freeing post-metacarpal regions of said index, middle, and ring fingers for tasks unrelated to said pointing device; b) a trackball disposed in a top, curved surface of said housing and configured for interaction with the thumb of said right or left hand of said user, and adapted for generating a trackball signal representative of a position thereof; c) at least one switch disposed in said housing and adapted and configured for manipulative interaction with the thumb of said metacarpal region of a finger of said right or said left hand of said user, and adapted for generating a trackball said at least one switch producing a switch signal representative of a position thereof state of said at least one switch ; d) circuitry disposed within said housing and operatively connected to said trackball element and said at least one switch and adapted to received receive at least said trackball signal and said switch signal, and generate an output signal representative of at least one of said trackball signal and said switch signal; and e) means for communicating operatively connected to said circuitry and adapted to communicate said output signal to an external device.