What are game controllers made of?
Game controllers take 11 things directly, among them ABS plastic, polycarbonate, printed circuit board, microchip, solder and silicone. Trace them back and you pass 71 made things on the way to 31 raw materials.
How game controllers are made See it on the map
What goes straight in
- ABS plasticat Mold the shell halves
- Polycarbonateat Mold the shell halves
- Printed circuit boardat Populate the main board
- Microchipat Populate the main board
- Solderat Populate the main board
- Siliconeat Lay the rubber domes
- Carbon blackat Lay the rubber domes
- Vulcanized rubberat Fit the thumbsticks
- Electric motorat Mount the rumble motors
- Lithium-ion cellat Connect battery and screw shut
- Screwat Connect battery and screw shut
From the ground: 31 raw materials
- Air through carbon black
- Water through carbon black
- Silica sand through silicone
- Crude oil through carbon black
- Natural rubber latex through vulcanized rubber
- Sulfur through vulcanized rubber
- Natural gas through ABS plastic, ethylene
- Iron ore through ABS plastic, pigment
- Rock salt through polycarbonate, chlorine
- Copper ore through lithium-ion cell, copper
- Limestone through printed circuit board, fiberglass
- Quartz through microchip, silicon wafer
- Tin ore through solder, tin
- Coal through lithium-ion cell, aluminum
- Gold ore through microchip, gold
- Lead ore through solder, silver
- Silver ore through solder, silver
- Zinc ore through solder, silver
- Timber through silicone, metallurgical silicon
- Lithium brine through lithium-ion cell, lithium carbonate
- Spodumene through lithium-ion cell, lithium carbonate
- Cobalt ore through lithium-ion cell, cobalt
- Nickel ore through lithium-ion cell, nickel
- Manganese ore through lithium-ion cell, manganese
- Titanium ore through ABS plastic, pigment, titanium dioxide
- Trona through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash
- Bauxite through lithium-ion cell, aluminum, alumina
- Dolomite through lithium-ion cell, steel, magnesium
- Corn through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash, carbon dioxide
- Sugarcane through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash, carbon dioxide, baker's yeast, molasses
- Sugar beet through printed circuit board, fiberglass, soda ash, carbon dioxide, baker's yeast, molasses
Made along the way: 60 things
Metals 19
CopperTinAluminumGoldLeadSilverSheet steelCopper wireSteelCobaltNickelManganeseSteel wireZincCokeAluminaPig ironMagnesiumSteel scrap
Metal goods 1
Chemicals and fuels 27
NaphthaPropyleneAmmoniaBenzeneEthyleneStyrenePigmentPhenolAcetoneCaustic sodaChlorineOxygen gasMethanolHydrochloric acidSynthetic graphiteHydrogenTolueneTitanium dioxideSulfuric acidSoda ashArgonPetroleum cokeQuicklimeCharcoalCarbon dioxideFormaldehydePropane