COMPUTER-READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM HAVING INFORMATION PROCESSING PROGRAM STORED THEREIN AND INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS

• US 20110077899A1
• Filed: 12/07/2009
• Published: 03/31/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: HAYASHI, Yugo, Sumiyoshi, Nobuhiro
• Granted Patent: US 9,480,918 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/142
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/214 for locating contacts on a surface, e.g. floor mats or touch pads
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/218 using pressure sensors, e.g. generating a signal proportional to the pressure applied by the player
• 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 13/44 involving timing of operations, e.g. performing an action within a time slot
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1056 involving pressure sensitive buttons
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1068 being specially adapted to detect the point of contact of the player on a surface, e.g. floor mat, touch pad
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8064 Quiz

Abstract

A game apparatus calculates a load value detected by a load controller, and a center-of-gravity position of a player, at predetermined time intervals. Based on the calculated center-of-gravity position, the game apparatus firstly determines whether or not the center of gravity moves, and determines the direction of the movement. Then, the game apparatus determines a change of the load of the player within a predetermined time period. When the amount of increase of the load is equal to or higher than a threshold value, the game apparatus determines that the player swings his/her hip in the direction in which the center of gravity moves.

Claims

1. A computer-readable storage medium having stored therein an information processing program executable by a computer of an information processing apparatus for processing a signal supplied from an input device which includes a load sensor for detecting a load of a user, the information processing program causing the computer to function as:

load information acquisition means for acquiring load information concerning the load of the user or a change of the load over time, based on the signal supplied from the input device;

center-of-gravity information acquisition means for acquiring center-of-gravity information concerning a center-of-gravity position of the user or a direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, based on the signal supplied from the input device;

load determination means for determining whether or not the load information satisfies a first condition; and

action determination means for determining a predetermined action of the user, based on the center-of-gravity information obtained when a result of the determination performed by the load determination means is affirmative.

2. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the load determination means determines whether or not the load of the user increases, based on the load information.

3. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein the load determination means determines whether or not a rate of increase of the load is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value.

4. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the center-of-gravity information acquisition means acquires the center-of-gravity information concerning the direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, based on the signal supplied from the input device, and

the action determination means determines the predetermined action of the user, based on the center-of-gravity information concerning the direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, which is acquired by the center-of-gravity information acquisition means and obtained when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is affirmative.

5. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the center-of-gravity information acquisition means acquires the center-of-gravity information concerning the center-of-gravity position, based on the signal supplied from the input device, and

when the absolute value of a coordinate value, with respect to a direction of a predetermined axis, of the center-of-gravity position which is obtained when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is negative, is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value, the action determination means determines that the user performs the predetermined action.

6. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the center-of-gravity information acquisition means acquires the center-of-gravity information concerning the center-of-gravity position and the direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, based on the signal supplied from the input device,

the information processing program causes the computer to function further as first threshold value determination means for determining whether or not the absolute value of a coordinate value of the center-of-gravity position with respect to a direction of a first axis is equal to or greater than a first threshold value, and

the action determination means determines the predetermined action of the user, based on the direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, which is obtained when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is affirmative and a result of the determination performed by the first threshold value determination means is affirmative.

7. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 6, wherein

the information processing program causes the computer to function further as second threshold value determination means for determining whether or not the absolute value of the coordinate value of the center-of-gravity position with respect to the direction of the first axis is equal to or greater than a second threshold value which is greater than the first threshold value, and

the action determination means determines the predetermined action of the user, based on the center-of-gravity position obtained when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is negative and a result of the determination performed by the second threshold value determination means is affirmative.

8. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the center-of-gravity information acquisition means acquires the center-of-gravity information concerning the center-of-gravity position, based on the signal supplied from the input device,

the information processing program causes the computer to function further as region determination means for determining whether or not the center-of-gravity position exists in a predetermined region which is set at a predetermined position on an input plane which is provided in the input device and to which the load is applied by the user, and

when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is affirmative and a result of the determination, at that time, performed by the region determination means is negative, the action determination means determines that the user performs the predetermined action.

9. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the center-of-gravity information acquisition means acquires the center-of-gravity information concerning the center-of-gravity position and the direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, based on the signal supplied from the input device,

the information processing program causes the computer to function further as threshold value determination means for determining whether or not the absolute value of a coordinate value of the center-of-gravity position with respect to a direction of a first axis is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value, and

when a result of the determination performed by the threshold value determination means is affirmative, the action determination means determines the predetermined action of the user based on the center-of-gravity position, which is obtained when the result is affirmative, and

the action determination means determines the predetermined action of the user based on the direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, which is obtained when the result of the determination performed by the threshold value determination means is negative and the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is affirmative.

10. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the information processing program causes the computer to function further as:

movement speed calculation means for calculating a speed at which the center-of gravity position of the user moves, based on the center-of-gravity information acquired by the center-of-gravity information acquisition means; and

movement speed determination means for determining whether or not the speed at which the center-of-gravity position moves, which is calculated by the movement speed calculation means, satisfies a second condition, and

when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is affirmative and a result of the determination, at that time, performed by the movement speed determination means is affirmative, the action determination means determines the predetermined action of the user, based on the center-of-gravity information.

11. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

a plurality of first regions and a plurality of second regions provided at boundaries of the first regions are in advance set on an input plane which is provided in the input device and to which the load is applied by the user, and

when the center-of-gravity position, which is acquired by the center-of-gravity information acquisition means and obtained when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is negative, exists in the first region, the action determination means determines that the user performs the predetermined action.

12. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the action determination means determines whether or not the user performs the predetermined action in a predetermined direction.

13. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the action determination means repeatedly determines whether or not the user performs the predetermined action in a predetermined direction,

the information processing program causes the computer to function further as determination result storage means for, when the action determination means determines that the user performs the predetermined action in the predetermined direction, storing therein a determination result indicating the direction in which the user performs the predetermined action, and

the action determination means determines that the user performs the predetermined action, only when the direction in which the user performs the predetermined action, which is obtained based on the center-of-gravity information, is different from the direction indicated by an immediately preceding determination result stored in the determination result storage means.

14. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 13, wherein

a plurality of regions each indicating a direction in which the user performs the action is in advance set on an input plane which is provided in the input device and to which the load is applied by the user, and

the action determination means determines that the user performs the predetermined action in the direction indicated by the region, on the input plane, where the center-of-gravity position exists.

15. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 14, wherein the action determination means determines that the user performs the predetermined action in the direction indicated by the region, on the input plane, where the center-of-gravity position exists, the center-of-gravity position being obtained when the result of the determination performed by the load determination means is negative.

16. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, wherein the information processing program causes the computer to function further as display control means for displaying, on a display device, an appearance in which the user performs the predetermined action, when a result of the determination performed by the action determination means is affirmative.

17. An information processing apparatus for processing a signal supplied from an input device which includes a load sensor for detecting a load of a user, the information processing apparatus comprising:

load information acquisition means for acquiring load information concerning the load of the user or a change of the load over time, based on the signal supplied from the input device;

center-of-gravity information acquisition means for acquiring center-of-gravity information concerning a center-of-gravity position of the user or a direction in which the center-of-gravity position moves, based on the signal supplied from the input device;

load determination means for determining whether or not the load information satisfies a first condition; and

action determination means for determining a predetermined action of the user, based on the center-of-gravity information obtained when a result of the determination performed by the load determination means is affirmative.