how do analog sticks avoid counting “snapping back” as an input?

Question

When you let go of an analog stick it snaps back to the center, how is this not counted as an input? Is this an hardware or a software thing?

In: Technology

Answer 1

Most analog sticks don’t measure movement of the stick, they measure its position. Specifically its distance from center, and in which direction.

So the stick snapping back to center means the input is now zero.

If you ever had an old and worn Nintendo 64 controller, you’ll be familiar with how the system responds to an analog stick snapping back to not-quite-center. Your finger is off the stick, it’s not moving, but the controller still sends an input.