Microsoft
Microsoft · Input & haptics · Filed May 8, 2025 · USPTO published Nov 12, 2026 · This week's release
Microsoft Files Patent for a Controller Thumbstick You Can Swap With One Screw
A new Microsoft patent application describes a game controller thumbstick that pops out and back in with a single screw that never falls out of the module.
- Publication number
- US 2026/0362619 A1(US20260362619A1)
- Applicant
- Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
- Filed · Published
- May 8, 2025 · Nov 12, 2026
- Inventors
- Bruce James SANDMEYER, Todd Baker MCCARTHY, Daniel Calvert CANFIELD, Alexander Berton MARINOS, James David WAHL, Kent Allen CAMPBELL, Isadora Helena PEREIRA COSTA
- Status when we published
- Examiner raised objections; the company can respond
- Document
- 20 claims
- US classification
- 361/728
- Examiner
- DANG, HUNG Q (Art Unit 2841)
What Microsoft's swappable thumbstick actually is
Today, the thumbstick on many controllers is hard to replace. It can take up a lot of space inside the shell, wear out, and be fastened in ways that leave it loose. The filing says that when a module uses several screws, you can end up with rattle and a stick that doesn't sit in exactly the same spot each time.
Microsoft's answer is a self-contained thumbstick module that slots into the side of a controller like a puzzle piece. One captive screw, one that stays attached to the module so you can't lose it, holds the whole thing in place.
The module's shape also shows you which way it goes in, so you are unlikely to force it in backward and damage something.
a seating protrusion configured to be removably received in a seating aperture defined in the input device; a fastener retention aperture defined in the housing and configured to receive a fastener; and a locating pin; …
Translation: The module uses a peg to align the part and a screw hole to lock it into the controller body.
How the thumbstick module locks into the controller
The claims cover a replaceable input module: a small housing with a control stick on top and a transducer inside (a sensor that turns the stick's movement into directional signals the controller can send to a console). The filing says the sensor could be potentiometers, magnetic sensors, or another position sensor.
The housing has three parts that work together. A seating protrusion (a small lip) hooks into an opening in the controller's side wall. A locating pin on the opposite end slides into a matching hole to line everything up. A fastener retention aperture (a hole for the screw) lets one captive screw pull the module down into place.
Tightening that screw presses the flat bottom of the module against a flat surface inside the controller. It also pushes angled surfaces on the lip against matching angled surfaces on the controller, which the filing says keeps the module from shifting.
On the bottom are several electrical contacts. The filing says they can be redundant, so the signal still gets through if one contact is dirty. The module can also send an ID signal so the controller knows which type of stick is installed. The housing has one flat side and one curved side, so the correct orientation is obvious.
Why a one-screw thumbstick matters for repairs
For you, the pitch is simple: if a thumbstick wears out or gets damaged, you could swap the module yourself instead of sending in the whole controller. The captive screw means no tiny part to lose, and the module shape makes it hard to put in wrong. The same design could also let a future controller accept a different style of stick.
The filing says using one screw frees up space inside the module for other sensor types, and the module ID signal could change controller settings automatically. The application was rejected in the examiner's first review, a routine step that usually leads to amendments. The filing's main example is a game controller, though it also mentions keyboards, laptops and drone controllers.
Microsoft's ninth filing we've tracked in input and haptics since May follows work on tuning vibration pitch and a spring-mounted trackpad.
Source: US 2026/0362619 A1 at the USPTO (PDF). Full patent text and figures are in the official publication.
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The drawings · 6 sheets
6 drawing sheets from US 2026/0362619 A1 · click any drawing to enlarge
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