Method and apparatus for providing an environment to a patient

• US 20040168117A1
• Filed: 02/26/2003
• Published: 08/26/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 02/26/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Patrice Renaud
• Original Assignee: Patrice Renaud
• Inventors: Renaud, Patrice
• Granted Patent: US 7,128,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/500.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/016 Input arrangements with force or tactile feedback as computer generated output to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 23/28 for medicine

Abstract

A method and apparatus is disclosed for providing a virtual environment or a visual presentation to a user. A portion of interest is created and depending on a response of the user to the virtual environment or to the visual presentation, a feedback is preferably provided.

Claims

1. A method for providing a visual presentation to a user, comprising:

providing a visual presentation;

defining at least one portion of interest in said visual presentation;

selecting one of a plurality of functions outputting a value depending on a geometric relation between a body movement response of said user and said at least one portion of interest in said visual presentation;

displaying said visual presentation to said user; and

outputting said value of said function in response to said providing of said visual presentation to said user.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the body response movement is a point of regard of said user.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the providing of a visual presentation comprises selecting a visual presentation from a plurality of visual presentations stored in a visual presentation database.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the defining of at least one portion of interest in said visual presentation comprises the defining of any one of at least one point of interest and at least one zone of interest in said visual presentation.

5. The method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising amending the visual presentation using at least the value outputted by the selected one of a plurality of functions;

further comprising displaying the amended visual presentation to the user.

6. The method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising providing a feedback to the user in response to at least the value outputted by the selected one of a plurality of functions.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the feedback is at least one of an haptic feedback, a visual feedback, a sound feedback and an olfactory feedback.

8. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the user is a patient, further wherein the selecting of one of a plurality of functions is performed by a therapist in accordance with a behavior to monitor.

9. The method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising the step of storing said outputted value in a user response database.

10. The method as claimed in claim 2, further comprising sharing said value of said function with a remote storing unit via a Wide Area Network (WAN).

11. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein the visual presentation is provided by any one of a video source, a multimedia presentation, an animation sequence.

12. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said user is a trainee, further wherein the selecting of one of a plurality of functions is performed by a trainer in accordance with a training.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein said user is a spectator, further wherein the selecting of one of a plurality of functions is performed by an artist.

25. The method as claimed in claim 1S, wherein said user is a patient, further comprising processing said response collected from said patient to provide processed data representative of a behavior.

26. The method as claimed in claim 25, wherein said processing comprises filtering said response using at least one of a linear filter and a non-linear filter.

27. The method as claimed in claim 25, further comprising providing a feedback to said patient in response to said processed data.

28. The method as claimed in claim 27, wherein said feedback is provided by a therapist supervising said patient via feedback schedule editor.

31. The method as claimed in claim 27, wherein said feedback schedule editor is connected to a database comprising a plurality of feedback schedules.

14. A method for providing a flexible virtual environment to a user, comprising:

providing a virtual environment comprising a plurality of objects;

defining at least one portion of interest on an object of said plurality of objects;

displaying at least said virtual environment to a user; and

collecting from said user a response to said provided virtual environment, the response comprising an indication of a geometric relation between a body movement response of said user and a portion of interest of said at least one portion of interest.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein the response collected from said user comprises an indication of a geometric relation between a point of regard of said user and a portion of interest of said at least one portion of interest.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the providing of a virtual environment comprises selecting a virtual environment from a plurality of virtual environments stored in a virtual environment database.

17. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the defining of at least one portion of interest in said virtual environment comprises the defining of any one of at least one point of interest and at least one zone of interest on an object of said plurality of objects.

18. The method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising amending the virtual environment using at least the collected response from said user;

further comprising displaying said amended virtual environment to said user.

19. The method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising providing a feedback to said user in response to at least the response collected.

20. The method as claimed in claim 15, further comprising storing said response in a user response database.

21. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the collecting of said response is performed using a motion tracking unit providing a point of regard of said user and/or a position signal.

22. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the collecting of said response further comprises receiving a biological signal from at least one biosensor unit.

23. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the virtual environment is generated using VRML.

24. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the providing of a virtual environment comprises selecting a virtual environment from a plurality of virtual environments stored in a remote virtual environment database located on a remote network.

29. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein an object of said plurality of objects is invisible to said user, further wherein said at least one portion of interest is defined on said invisible object of said plurality of objects.

30. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein $aid user is any one of a trainee and a spectator.