INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS, STORAGE MEDIUM HAVING INFORMATION PROCESSING PROGRAM STORED THEREIN, INFORMATION PROCESSING SYSTEM, AND DISPLAY RANGE CONTROL METHOD

• US 20100225582A1
• Filed: 02/25/2010
• Published: 09/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Sato, Kenta, Ohta, Keizo
• Granted Patent: US 8,614,672 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/158
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/219 for aiming at specific areas on the display, e.g. light-guns
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/22 Setup operations, e.g. calibration, key configuration or button assignment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/428 involving motion or position input signals, e.g. signals representing the rotation of an input controller or a player's arm motions sensed by accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5255 according to dedicated instructions from a player, e.g. using a secondary joystick to rotate the camera around a player's character
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1018 Calibration; Key and button assignment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1031 using a wireless connection, e.g. Bluetooth, infrared connections
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/105 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1087 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. a camera
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6676 by dedicated player input
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors

Abstract

An information processing apparatus inputs an angular rate detected by a gyroscope included in an input device and displays an image on a display device. The information processing apparatus initially calculates an orientation of the input device based on the angular rate. Then, the information processing apparatus calculates a coordinate point at an intersection between a line extending from a predetermined position in a predetermined space toward a vector representing the orientation and a predetermined plane within the predetermined space. A display range of a display target that is to be displayed on the display device is controlled based on the coordinate point.

Claims

1. An information processing apparatus for inputting an angular rate detected by a gyroscope included in an input device and displaying an image on a display device, the apparatus comprising:

an orientation calculation portion for calculating an orientation of the input device based on the angular rate;

a coordinate calculation portion for calculating a coordinate point at an intersection between a line extending from a predetermined position in a predetermined space toward a vector representing the orientation and a predetermined plane within the predetermined space; and

a display control portion for controlling a display range of a display target that is to be displayed on the display device based on the coordinate point.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control portion controls the display range by changing a direction and/or a position of a virtual camera within a virtual space in which the display target is arranged based on the coordinate point.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein,

the information processing apparatus further inputs operation information indicating a directional instruction operation on operation means provided in the input device, and

the display control portion controls the display range by changing the direction of the virtual camera based on the coordinate point and changing the position of the virtual camera based on the operation information.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control portion changes the display range when the coordinate point indicates a position outside a given area of the predetermined plane.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a screen position calculation portion for calculating a position on a screen of the display device based on the coordinate point such that the given area corresponds to a screen area of the display device.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising:

an instruction image display portion for displaying a predetermined instruction image in the position on the screen that is calculated by the screen position calculation portion; and

a process execution portion for performing predetermined information processing based on the position of the instruction image.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the display control portion determines a direction in which to change the display range in accordance with a direction from the given area toward the position indicated by the coordinate point.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the display control portion determines a degree to which the display range is changed based on a degree to which the position indicated by the coordinate point is distanced from the given area.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the display control portion determines a degree to which the display range is changed based on a moving speed of the coordinate point positioned outside the given area.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the display control portion determines a speed at which to change the display range at least using a maximum value of the moving speed of the coordinate point during a predetermined period of time since exit of the coordinate point from the given area.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control portion changes the display range based on the coordinate point in a period of time specified by a user using the input device.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the display control portion moves the display range in a direction corresponding to a direction of movement of the coordinate point by an amount corresponding to an amount of movement of the coordinate point.

13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the display control portion moves the display range in a direction corresponding to a direction from a predetermined reference position in the predetermined plane toward the position indicated by the coordinate point at a speed corresponding to a distance from the predetermined reference position to the position indicated by the coordinate point.

14. A computer-readable storage medium having stored therein an information processing program to be executed by a computer in an information processing apparatus for inputting an angular rate detected by a gyroscope included in an input device and displaying an image on a display device, the program causing the computer to function as:

orientation calculation means for calculating an orientation of the input device based on the angular rate;

coordinate calculation means for calculating a coordinate point at an intersection between a line extending from a predetermined position in a predetermined space toward a vector representing the orientation and a predetermined plane within the predetermined space; and

display control means for controlling a display range of a display target that is to be displayed on the display device based on the coordinate point.

15. The storage medium according to claim 14, wherein the display control means controls the display range by changing a direction and/or a position of a virtual camera within a virtual space in which the display target is arranged based on the coordinate point.

16. The storage medium according to claim 15, wherein,

the information processing apparatus further inputs operation information indicating a directional instruction operation on operation means provided in the input device, and

the display control means controls the display range by changing the direction of the virtual camera based on the coordinate point and changing the position of the virtual camera based on the operation information.

17. The storage medium according to claim 14, wherein the display control means changes the display range when the coordinate point indicates a position outside a given area of the predetermined plane.

18. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the information processing program causes the computer to further function as screen position calculation means for calculating a position on a screen of the display device based on the coordinate point such that the given area corresponds to a screen area of the display device.

19. The storage medium according to claim 18, wherein the information processing program causes the computer to further function as:

instruction image display means for displaying a predetermined instruction image in the position on the screen that is calculated by the screen position calculation means; and

process execution means for performing predetermined information processing based on the position of the instruction image.

20. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the display control means determines a direction in which to change the display range in accordance with a direction from the given area toward the position indicated by the coordinate point.

21. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the display control means determines a degree to which the display range is changed based on a degree to which the position indicated by the coordinate point is distanced from the given area.

22. The storage medium according to claim 17, wherein the display control means determines a degree to which the display range is changed based on a moving speed of the coordinate point positioned outside the given area.

23. The storage medium according to claim 22, wherein the display control means determines a speed at which to change the display range at least using a maximum value of the moving speed of the coordinate point during a predetermined period of time since exit of the coordinate point from the given area.

24. The storage medium according to claim 14, wherein the display control means changes the display range based on the coordinate point in a period of time specified by a user using the input device.

25. The storage medium according to claim 24, wherein the display control means moves the display range in a direction corresponding to a direction of movement of the coordinate point by an amount corresponding to an amount of movement of the coordinate point.

26. The storage medium according to claim 24, wherein the display control means moves the display range in a direction corresponding to a direction from a predetermined reference position in the predetermined plane toward the position indicated by the coordinate point at a speed corresponding to a distance from the predetermined reference position to the position indicated by the coordinate point.

27. An information processing system for inputting an angular rate detected by a gyroscope included in an input device and displaying an image on a display device, the system comprising:

an orientation calculation portion for calculating an orientation of the input device based on the angular rate;

a coordinate calculation portion for calculating a coordinate point at an intersection between a line extending from a predetermined position in a predetermined space toward a vector representing the orientation and a predetermined plane within the predetermined space; and

a display control portion for controlling a display range of a display target that is to be displayed on the display device based on the coordinate paint.

28. A display range control method for inputting an angular rate detected by a gyroscope included in an input device and displaying an image on a display device, the method comprising:

an orientation calculation step for calculating an orientation of the input device based on the angular rate;

a coordinate calculation step for calculating a coordinate point at an intersection between a line extending from a predetermined position in a predetermined space toward a vector representing the orientation and a predetermined plane within the predetermined space; and

a display control step for controlling a display range of a display target that is to be displayed on the display device based on the coordinate point.