---
key: mechanic/phone-microphone--family-device
type: mechanic
id: phone-microphone--family-device
lang: en
title: Contact with the phone and microphone
summary: >-
  In a design scenario, tapping or touching the case creates a microphone
  impulse. A rule maps that signal to an action.
updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
status: active
url: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/phone-microphone--family-device/
jsonUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/phone-microphone--family-device.json
markdownUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/phone-microphone--family-device.md
aliases: []
tags:
  - Phone microphone interactions
  - Mechanics catalog
sourceIds:
  - source-e660d296156bdfcf
  - source-3cd3d0111315b387
  - source-05406165a9082e0a
sources:
  - id: source-e660d296156bdfcf
    title: 'CMU: TapSense'
    url: 'https://hcii.cmu.edu/hcii-impacts/tapsense'
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-3cd3d0111315b387
    title: 'CMU/Disney: Acoustruments'
    url: >-
      https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2015/april/acoustruments-for-handheld-devices.html
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-05406165a9082e0a
    title: Scream Go Hero
    url: 'https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scream-go-hero/id1212039074?uo=4'
    verifiedAt: null
relations: []
placements:
  - catalogId: phone-microphone
    id: family-device
    title: Phone microphone interactions
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/phone-microphone/#family-device'
    categoryIds:
      - section-1
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
    title: Contact with the phone and microphone
    description: >-
      In a design scenario, tapping or touching the case creates a microphone
      impulse. A rule maps that signal to an action.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/sensor-scream-go-0.webp
      width: 810
      height: 1440
      game: Scream Go Hero
      sourceUrl: 'https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scream-go-hero/id1212039074?uo=4'
      originalUrl: >-
        https://is1-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Purple113/v4/55/be/ca/55becae8-2635-2e86-cea6-491bb90c2418/mzl.erwphtle.jpg/1280x1440bb.jpg
      credit: Ketchapp
      rights: >-
        © Ketchapp. Developer-distributed App Store screenshot. All rights
        reserved; excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.
      caption: 'Scream Go Hero: an example of input-level control'
      alt: 'Scream Go Hero: an example of input-level control'
      markers:
        - x: 65
          'y': 50
          label: Voice level controls the jump between platforms
    tips:
      - Do not present contact noise as a precise force measurement.
    examples:
      - title: Scream Go Hero
        url: 'https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scream-go-hero/id1212039074?uo=4'
endsAt: null
provenance: >-
  Original editorial design catalog consolidated from project discussions on
  2026-10-20. Complete discussion item lists and contextual limitations are
  preserved; linked primary sources support specific techniques, not the entire
  classification. English translation was prepared with machine assistance and
  editorial review.
license: CC-BY-4.0
codeLicense: MIT
attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors
catalogKey: catalog/phone-microphone
---
# Contact with the phone and microphone

id: phone-microphone--family-device
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/phone-microphone--family-device
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/phone-microphone--family-device/

In a design scenario, tapping or touching the case creates a microphone impulse. A rule maps that signal to an action.

## At a glance

![Scream Go Hero: an example of input-level control](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/sensor-scream-go-0.webp)

[Scream Go Hero](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scream-go-hero/id1212039074?uo=4) · © Ketchapp. Developer-distributed App Store screenshot. All rights reserved; excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.

1. Voice level controls the jump between platforms

- Do not present contact noise as a precise force measurement.

- [Scream Go Hero](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scream-go-hero/id1212039074?uo=4)

## How it works

The case, grip, hole placement, and entry treatment make a big difference in the outcome. Special accessories are listed separately.

## Variants

### Variants and applications

<a id="family-device-variants"></a>

- Covering the microphone. Signal: Change in level and spectrum when overlapped. Application: Close the game “window”, hide the signal, turn on the silence mode. Access level: D. <a id="variant-mic-073"></a>
- Cover and release. Signal: Sequence of spectrum changes. Application: Operate an acoustic valve or transmit a code. Access level: D. <a id="variant-mic-074"></a>
- Touching near the microphone. Signal: Contact impulse through the housing. Application: Get an additional button on the edge of the device after calibration. Access level: D. <a id="variant-mic-075"></a>
- Knocking on different parts of the body. Signal: Difference in acoustic responses. Application: Divide the cover and side into two game actions. Access level: R. <a id="variant-mic-076"></a>
- Screen touch type. Signal: Distinction between pad, nail, knuckle. Application: Associate a light action with a finger, a heavy action with a knuckle; need touch input. Access level: D. <a id="variant-mic-077"></a>
- Body friction. Signal: Noise and its time profile. Application: “Stroke” a game creature or warm up a virtual object. Access level: D. <a id="variant-mic-078"></a>
- Phone on the surface. Signal: Change in transmitted vibrations and response. Application: Convert a table into a gaming surface after customizing a specific device. Access level: R. <a id="variant-mic-079"></a>
- Passive acoustic accessory. Signal: Channel response between speaker and microphone. Application: Add a tube, valve or nozzle with a game regulator. Access level: R. <a id="variant-mic-080"></a>

## Context and limits

Author's design map for mobile games and interactive applications. 144 techniques in 18 groups, including basic signals, rules and combinations. Applications are design ideas and not a list of released games.

## Connected materials


## Sources and provenance

Original editorial design catalog consolidated from project discussions on 2026-10-20. Complete discussion item lists and contextual limitations are preserved; linked primary sources support specific techniques, not the entire classification. English translation was prepared with machine assistance and editorial review.

- [CMU: TapSense](https://hcii.cmu.edu/hcii-impacts/tapsense) (id: source-e660d296156bdfcf)
- [CMU/Disney: Acoustruments](https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2015/april/acoustruments-for-handheld-devices.html) (id: source-3cd3d0111315b387)
- [Scream Go Hero](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/scream-go-hero/id1212039074?uo=4) (id: source-05406165a9082e0a)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors