System and method for generation of 3D virtual objects

• US 10,228,836 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2017
• Issued: 03/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unity IPR ApS (Unity Software, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Unity IPR ApS (Unity Software, Inc.)
• Inventors: Palmaro, Gregory Lionel Xavier Jean
• Primary Examiner(s): Chow, Doon Y
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Le V
• Application Number:
  US15/603,311
• Publication Number:
  US 20170336951A1
• Time in Patent Office: 658 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/53 involving additional visual information provided to the game scene, e.g. by overlay to simulate a head-up display [HUD] or displaying a laser sight in a shooting game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/63 by the player, e.g. authoring using a level editor
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6018 where the game content is authored by the player, e.g. level editor or by game device at runtime, e.g. level is created from music data on CD
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/66 for rendering three dimensional images
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/20 Editing of 3D images, e.g. changing shapes or colours, aligning objects or positioning parts
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/24 involving graphical user interfaces [GUIs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2210/04 Architectural design, interior design
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2219/2004 Aligning objects, relative positioning of parts

Abstract

A system includes one or more hardware processors, a memory storing vosset data for a virtual object, the vosset data including a first displacement threshold and a first component, and a vosset module executable by the one or more hardware processors. The vosset module is configured to display the first component of the virtual object to a user in a virtual environment, display a manipulator object adjacent to the virtual object in the virtual environment, the manipulator identifies a pre-determined direction of displacement, detect a displacement event associated with the manipulator object, the displacement event being initiated by the user performing a grab event on the manipulator object and extending the manipulator object a displacement distance in the direction of displacement, determine that the displacement distance exceeds a displacement threshold, and alter the virtual object based on detecting the determining that the displacement distance exceeds the displacement threshold.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

one or more hardware processors;

one or more memories storing vosset data for a virtual object, the vosset data including a first displacement threshold and a first virtual object component associated with the virtual object, the first displacement threshold associated with a first direction of displacement; and

the one or more memories also storing a vosset module, executable by the one or more hardware processors, and configured to perform operations comprising;

including the first virtual object component for presentation as part of the virtual object in a three-dimensional virtual environment;

displaying a manipulator object adjacent to the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment, the manipulator object identifying the first direction of displacement;

detecting a displacement event associated with the manipulator object, the displacement event being initiated by the user performing a grab event on the manipulator object and extending the manipulator object a displacement distance in the first direction of displacement;

determining that the displacement distance exceeds a displacement threshold;

capturing scene data in the three-dimensional virtual environment in the direction of the displacement; and

altering the virtual object based on the determining that the displacement distance exceeds the displacement threshold, the altering including analyzing the scene data and performing one of a modular expansion operation or a replacement expansion operation on the virtual object based on a selected mode of expansion, the modular expansion operation or the replacement expansion operation causing a second virtual object component to be included for presentation as an additional part of the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the performing of the modular expansion operation includes merging the second virtual object component with the first virtual object for presentation as combined parts of the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment such that the second virtual object component is attached to the first virtual object component in the first direction of the displacement, the second virtual object component being of a same object theme type as the first virtual object component.

3. The system of claim 2, the operations further comprising selecting the second virtual object component from a set of virtual object components associated with the first direction of displacement based on the scene data.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein selecting of the second virtual object component is further based at least in part on placement constraints associated with adding the second virtual object component to the three-dimensional virtual environment.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the performing of the replacement expansion operation includes changing the first virtual object component to a second virtual object component associated with the virtual object, the second virtual object component being of a same object theme type as the first virtual object component, and using the scene data to influence selection of the second virtual object component.

6. The system of claim 1, the operations further comprising:

identifying one or more pre-configured manipulators associated with the virtual object, each of the one or more pre-configured manipulators including an associated displacement direction; and

displaying the one or more manipulator objects in the three-dimensional virtual environment, each of the one or more manipulator objects being displayed in the three-dimensional virtual environment adjacent to the virtual object based on the associated displacement direction.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the three-dimensional environment is visually overlaid on a view of the real world via a display device.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the user performs the grab event on the manipulator object from within the three-dimensional virtual environment and wherein the including of the second virtual object comprises editing the three-dimensional virtual environment such that the second virtual object component fills a space in the three-dimensional virtual environment for experiencing via a virtual reality interaction device.

9. A computer-implemented method comprising:

including a first virtual object component associated with a virtual object for presentation as part of the virtual object in a three-dimensional virtual environment, the virtual object associated with a first displacement threshold, the first displacement threshold associated with a first direction of displacement;

displaying a manipulator object adjacent to the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment, the manipulator object identifying the first direction of displacement;

detecting a displacement event associated with the manipulator object, the displacement event being initiated by the user performing a grab event on the manipulator object and extending the manipulator object a displacement distance in the direction of displacement;

determining that the displacement distance exceeds a displacement threshold;

capturing scene data in the three-dimensional virtual environment in the direction of the displacement; and

altering the virtual object based on detecting the determining that the displacement distance exceeds the displacement threshold, the altering including analyzing the scene data and performing one of a modular expansion operation or a replacement expansion operation on the virtual object based on a selected mode of expansion, the modular expansion operation or the replacement expansion operation causing a second virtual object component to be included for presentation as an additional part of the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the performing of the modular expansion operation includes merging the second virtual object component with the first virtual object for presentation as combined parts of the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment such that the second virtual object component is attached to the first virtual object component in the first direction of the displacement, the second virtual object component being of a same object theme type as the first virtual object component.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising selecting the second virtual object component from a set of virtual object components associated with the first direction of replacement based on the scene data.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein selecting of the second virtual object component is further based at least in part on placement constraints associated with adding the second virtual object component to the three-dimensional virtual environment.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein selecting of the second virtual object component is either random or based at least in part on an order associated with each of the set of virtual object components.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the performing of the replacement expansion operation includes changing the first virtual object component to a second virtual object component associated with the virtual object, the second virtual object component being of a same object theme type as the first virtual object component, and using the scene data to influence selection of the second virtual object component.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

identifying one or more pre-configured manipulators associated with the virtual object, each of the one or more pre-configured manipulators including an associated displacement direction; and

displaying the one or more manipulator objects in the three-dimensional virtual environment, each of the one or more manipulator objects being displayed in the three-dimensional virtual environment adjacent to the virtual object based on the associated displacement direction.

16. A non-transitory machine-readable medium storing processor-executable instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising:

including a first virtual object component associated with a virtual object for presentation as part of the virtual object in a three-dimensional virtual environment, the virtual object associated with a first displacement threshold, the first displacement threshold associated with a first direction of displacement;

displaying a manipulator object adjacent to the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment, the manipulator object identifying the first direction of displacement;

detecting a displacement event associated with the manipulator object, the displacement event being initiated by the user performing a grab event on the manipulator object and extending the manipulator object a displacement distance in the direction of displacement;

determining that the displacement distance exceeds a displacement threshold;

capturing scene data in the three-dimensional virtual environment in the direction of the displacement; and

altering the virtual object based on detecting the determining that the displacement distance exceeds the displacement threshold, the altering including analyzing the scene data and performing one of a modular expansion operation or a replacement expansion operation on the virtual object based on a selected mode of expansion, the modular expansion operation or the replacement expansion operation causing a second virtual object component to be included for presentation as an additional part of the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the performing of the modular expansion operation includes merging the second virtual object component with the first virtual object for presentation as combined parts of the virtual object in the three-dimensional virtual environment such that the second virtual object component is attached to the first virtual object component in the first direction of the displacement, the second virtual object component being of a same object theme type as the first virtual object component.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 17, the operations further comprising selecting the second virtual object component from a set of virtual object components associated with the first direction of displacement based on the scene data.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 18, wherein selecting of the second virtual object component is further based at least in part on placement constraints associated with adding the second virtual object component to the three-dimensional virtual environment.

20. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the performing of the replacement expansion operation includes changing the first virtual object component to a second virtual object component associated with the virtual object, the second virtual object component being of a same object theme type as the first virtual object component, and using the scene data to influence selection of the second virtual object component.

21. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 16, the operations further comprising:

identifying one or more pre-configured manipulators associated with the virtual object, each of the one or more pre-configured manipulators including an associated displacement direction; and

displaying the one or more manipulator objects in the three-dimensional virtual environment, each of the one or more manipulator objects being displayed in the three-dimensional virtual environment adjacent to the virtual object based on the associated displacement direction.