INTERACTIVE ANIMATION

• US 20110043529A1
• Filed: 11/01/2010
• Published: 02/24/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Original Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Inventors: Maine, Jon, Pridmore, David, Bridger, Nicholas, Brown, Andy, Humphries, Matthew, Bainbridge, Ed, Williams, Jon, Navvarro, David
• Granted Patent: US 7,952,585 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/474
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/10 Control of the course of the game, e.g. start, progess, end
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/45 Controlling the progress of the video game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/57 Simulating properties, behaviour or motion of objects in the game world, e.g. computing tyre load in a car race game A63F13/56 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/833 Hand-to-hand fighting, e.g. martial arts competition A63F13/837 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/64 for computing dynamical parameters of game objects, e.g. motion determination or computation of frictional forces for a virtual car
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8029 Fighting without shooting
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/00 Animation
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2213/12 Rule based animation

Abstract

An interactive animation environment. The interactive animation environment includes at least one user-controlled object, and the animation method for providing this environment includes determining a position of the user-controlled object, defining a plurality of regions about the position, detecting a user input to move the position of the user-controlled object, associating the detected user input to move the position of the user-controlled object with a region in the direction of movement, and providing an animation of the user-controlled object associated with the mapped region. A system and controller for implementing the method is also disclosed. A computer program and computer program product for implementing the invention is further disclosed.

Claims

1. A video game system for controlling an interactive animation environment including at least one user-controlled object, the system comprising:

a video game device monitor for displaying animation corresponding to the interactive animation environment;

data storage storing a set of pre-rendered animations of the user-controlled object; and

a controller in communication with the data storage operating to;

determine a position of the user-controlled object;

define a plurality of regions about said position;

detect a user input via a user input device to move the position of the user-controlled object;

associate the detected user input to move the position of the user-controlled object with a region in the direction of movement that includes an active element with which the user-controlled object may interact;

select a subset of the stored animations from the storage device for the user-controlled object; and

provide an animation of the user-controlled object using the selected subset of the stored animations for display on the video game device monitor,

wherein the providing the animation comprises providing an animation of the user-controlled object and the active element and

wherein the selected subset of the stored animations are chosen by the controller based on a state of the user-controlled character and a state of the active element.

2. The video game system of claim 1, wherein the controller further operates to queue, for use in the providing of the animation, additional subsets of the pre-rendered animations of the user-controlled object and a subset of the pre-rendered animations of the active element in the data storage associated with choreographed states of the user-controlled object and of the active element that sequentially follow the states used by the controller to choose the selected subset of the stored animations.

3. The video game system of claim 1, wherein the position of the active element is adjusted prior to the providing of the animation of the user-controlled object and the active element to match the position of the user-controlled character and active element for the step of providing the animation.

4. The video game system of claim 1, wherein the providing of an animation includes receiving user input for controlling the user-controlled object and wherein the selecting of the subset of the stored animations is performed by the controller in response to the received user input.

5. The video game system of claim 4, wherein the received user input relates to a movement of the user-controlled object relative to the region.

6. The video game system of claim 1, wherein the active element is a non-user-controlled object and wherein the non-user-controlled object is controlled by an artificial intelligence agent.

7. The video game system of claim 1, wherein the providing an animation by the controller includes receiving information identifying a behavior of the active element.

8. The video game system of claim 1, wherein the providing an animation by the controller includes providing an animation of interaction of the user-controlled object with the active element, the animation of interaction including a set of stored animations for the active element selected in response to a user input for controlling the user-controlled object.

9. A storage medium storing computer readable code for controlling an interactive animation environment of a video game that includes at least one user-controlled object, the computer readable code comprising:

computer readable program code devices configured to cause a computer to effect storing a set of pre-rendered animations of the user-controlled object in a storage device and storing a set of pre-rendered animations of an active element in the interactive animation environment;

computer readable program code devices configured to cause the computer to effect selecting a state of the user-controlled object based on user input via a user input device;

computer readable program code devices configured to cause the computer to effect selecting subsets of the stored animations from the storage device for the user-controlled object and the active element based on the selected state; and

computer readable program code devices configured to cause the computer to effect providing an animation of the user-controlled object and the active element using the selected subsets of the stored animations for display on a video game device monitor.

10. The storage medium of claim 9, wherein the selected subset of the stored animations for the active element are chosen based on a state of the active element.

11. The storage medium of claim 10, further including computer readable program code devices configured to cause the computer to effect queuing, for use in the providing of the animation, additional subsets of the pre-rendered animations of the user-controlled object and of the pre-rendered animations of the active element in the memory associated with choreographed states of the user-controlled object and the active element sequentially following the states used to choose the selected subsets of the stored animations.

12. The storage medium of claim 9, wherein the providing of an animation includes receiving user input for controlling the user-controlled object by selecting the state from at least two predefined states for a choreographed next state and wherein the selecting of the subset of the stored animations is performed by the controller in response to the received user input.

13. The storage medium claim 9, wherein a position of the active element is adjusted prior to rendering of the animation of the user-controlled object and the active element and wherein the adjustment is to ensure that the position of the user-controlled character and active element is matched up in readiness for the step of providing the animation.

14. A method for providing a choreographed interactive animation environment including a user-controlled object, comprising:

in a storage device, storing a first set of animations associated with a first state of the user-controlled object;

in a storage device, storing a second set of animations associated with a second state of the user-controlled character;

after the storing, operating a controller to detect a user input via a user input device selecting one of the first and second states;

with the controller, retrieving one of the first and second sets of animations corresponding to the selected one of the first and second states; and

with the controller, providing an animation of the user-controlled object using the retrieved one of the sets of animations for display on a monitor of a video game device.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising, after the operating of the controller to detect selection of one of the first and second states:

in a storage device, storing third and fourth sets of animations associated with third and fourth states, respectively, of the user-controlled object;

operating the controller to detect a user input via the user input device selecting one of the third and fourth states;

with the controller, retrieving one of the third and fourth sets of animations corresponding to the selected one of the third and fourth states; and

with the controller, providing an animation of the user-controlled object using the retrieved one of third and fourth sets of animations for display on the monitor.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the third and fourth sets of animation are selected for storage by the controller based on whether the first state or the second state is selected with the user input and a predefined sequence of selectable states for the user-controlled object.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the selectable states are chosen from the group consisting of prepare attach/parry, parry, attack, hit, turn attack, and back to idle.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the interactive animation environment includes an active element and wherein the method further includes:

in a storage device, storing a first set of animations associated with a first state of the active element;

in a storage device, storing a second set of animations associated with a second state of the active element; and

based on the selected one of the first and second states of the user-controlled object, operating the controller to select and retrieve one of the first and second sets of animations,

wherein the providing of the animation includes providing a combined animation of the user-controlled object and the active element using the retrieved sets of animations.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the first and second sets of animations are selected for storage by the controller after determining a present state of the user-controlled object.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the first and second sets of animations are selected by the controller based on a predefined sequence of selectable states for the user-controlled object, the predefined sequence further defining additional states, each having an associated set of animations stored in memory accessible by the controller, for the user-controlled object that are selectable after selection of the first and second states.