Information Presenting Apparatus, Method, and Computer Program Product

• US 20110140994A1
• Filed: 07/26/2010
• Published: 06/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Noma, Tatsuyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 8,094,091 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/8
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0134 of stereoscopic type
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/014 comprising information/image processing systems
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2027/0187 slaved to motion of at least a part of the body of the user, e.g. head, eye
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• 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

Abstract

According to one embodiment, an information presenting apparatus includes: point-of-view position identifying module; line-of-sight direction identifying module; visibility range indentifying module; memory module; placement module; image generating module; and display control module. The visibility range identifying module identifies visibility range o based on a point-of-view position and a line-of-sight direction. The memory module stores a virtual object and its position. The placement module reads the virtual object at a position included in the visibility range and to virtually place the virtual object at a corresponding position in the real-world space. The image generating module generates an image for left eye and an image for right eye. The display control module displays the image for left eye on the display module disposed for the left eye and to display the image for right eye on the display module disposed for the right eye.

Claims

1. An information presenting apparatus for presenting information using a transmissive head-mounted display equipped with a display module for each eye of a wearer, the information presenting apparatus comprising:

a point-of-view position identifying module configured to identify a point-of-view position of the wearer based on position of existence and height of the head-mounted display in real-world space;

a line-of-sight direction identifying module configured to identify a line-of-sight direction of the wearer by making use of a tilt of the head-mounted display;

a moving-object position identifying module configured to identify a position of existence of a moving object that the wearer is boarding in the real-world space;

a relative coordinate system setting module configured to set a relative coordinate system representing a relative position relation between the position of existence of the head-mounted display and the position of existence of the moving object;

a visibility range identifying module configured to identify visibility range of the wearer in the relative coordinate system based on the point-of-view position and the line-of-sight direction;

a memory module configured to store, in a corresponding manner, a virtual object representing a predetermined target and a position of placement in the relative coordinate system of the virtual object;

a placement module configured to read, from the memory module, a virtual object at a position of placement that is included in the visibility range and is represented in the relative coordinate system and, based on the position of placement associated with the virtual object, to virtually place the virtual object at a corresponding position in the relative coordinate system;

an image generating module configured to generate an image for left eye and an image for right eye that represent a placement status of the virtual object when viewed from a left eye and a right eye, respectively, of the wearer; and

a display control module configured to display the image for left eye on the display module disposed for the left eye of the wearer and to display the image for right eye on the display module disposed for the right eye of the wearer.

2. The information presenting apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a manipulation position identifying module configured to identify a manipulation position in the visibility range at which the wearer performs predetermined manipulation;

a placement relation determining module configured to determine whether the virtual object placed virtually by the placement module is present at the manipulation position; and

an operation module configured to perform, when the placement relation determining module determines that the virtual object is present at the manipulation position, an operation on the virtual object according to details of the manipulation.

3. The information presenting apparatus of claim 2, wherein, when manipulation on the virtual object results in a placement change with respect to the virtual object, the operation module stores, in the memory module, a post-placement-change manipulation position identified by the manipulation position identifying module as a new position of placement.

4. The information presenting apparatus of claim 2, further comprising:

an image capturing module configured to capture an image within the visibility range;

a hand image determining module configured to determine whether the image captured by the image capturing module include a hand image representing a hand of the wearer; and

a distance measuring module configured to measure a distance from the head-mounted display to a physical object present within the visibility range, wherein

when the hand image determining module determines that the hand image is present, the manipulation position identifying module sets, as the manipulation position, a position of the hand of the wearer in the real-world space identified based on a position of the hand image in the captured image and based on the distance measured by the distance measuring module.

5. The information presenting apparatus of claim 4, further comprising a superimposing module configured to superimpose, when the placement relation determining module determines that the manipulation position lies between the point-of-view position of the wearer and the position of placement of the virtual object, the hand image at a position corresponding to the manipulation position in each of the image for left eye and the image for right eye.

6. The information presenting apparatus of claim 4, further comprising a clipping module configured to clip, when the placement relation determining module determines that the manipulation position lies between the point-of-view position of the wearer and the position of placement of the virtual object, a region equivalent to shape of the hand image from a position corresponding to the manipulation position in each of the image for left eye and the image for right eye.

8. The information presenting apparatus of Claim [[7]] 1, further comprising a moving-object identification information obtaining module configured to obtain, from the moving object, moving object identification information used in identifying the moving object, wherein

the memory module is configured to store therein the virtual object in a corresponding manner with the moving object identification information, and

the placement module is configured to read, from the memory module, a virtual object that corresponds to the moving object identification information obtained by the moving-object identification information obtaining module and that lies at a position of placement included in the visibility range and represented in the relative coordinate system.

9. The information presenting apparatus of claim 1, wherein

the memory module is configured to store therein an angle of placement in a corresponding manner with each of the virtual object, and

the placement module is configured to place the virtual object as a placement target at an angle of placement associated with the virtual object.

7. (canceled)

10. An information presenting method for presenting information using a transmissive head-mounted display equipped with a display module for each eye of a wearer, the information presenting method comprising:

first-identifying, by a point-of-view position identifying module, that includes identifying a point-of-view position of the wearer based on position of existence and height of the head-mounted display in real-world space;

second-identifying, by a line-of-sight direction identifying module, that includes identifying a line-of-sight direction of the wearer by making use of a tilt of the head-mounted display;

third-identifying, by a moving-object position identifying module, that includes identifying a position of existence of a moving object that the wearer is boarding in the real-world space;

setting, by a relative coordinate system setting module, that includes setting a relative coordinate system representing a relative position relation between the position of existence of the head-mounted display and the position of existence of the moving object;

fourth-identifying, by a visibility range identifying module, that includes identifying visibility range of the wearer in the relative coordinate system based on the point-of-view position and the line-of-sight direction;

placing, by a placement module, that includes reading, from a memory module storing, in a corresponding manner, a virtual object representing a predetermined target and a position of placement in the relative coordinate system of the virtual object, a virtual object at a position of placement that is included in the visibility range and is represented in the relative coordinate system and, based on the position of placement associated with the virtual object, virtually placing the virtual object at a corresponding position in the relative coordinate system;

generating, by an image generating module, an image for left eye and an image for right eye that represent a placement status of the virtual object when viewed from a left eye and a right eye, respectively, of the wearer; and

display-controlling, by a display control module, that includes displaying the image for left eye on the display module disposed for the left eye of the wearer and displaying the image for right eye on the display module disposed for the right eye of the wearer.

11. A computer program product having a computer readable medium including programmed instructions that, when executed by a computer of an information presenting apparatus for presenting information using a transmissive head-mounted display equipped with a display module for each eye of a wearer, cause the computer to perform:

first-identifying, by a point-of-view position identifying module, that includes identifying a point-of-view position of the wearer based on position of existence and height of the head-mounted display in real-world space;

second-identifying, by a line-of-sight direction identifying module, that includes identifying a line-of-sight direction of the wearer by making use of a tilt of the head-mounted display;

third-identifying, by a moving-object position identifying module, that includes identifying a position of existence of a moving object that the wearer is boarding in the real-world space;

setting, by a relative coordinate system setting module, that includes setting a relative coordinate system representing a relative position relation between the position of existence of the head-mounted display and the position of existence of the moving object;

fourth-identifying, by a visibility range identifying module, that includes identifying visibility range of the wearer in the relative coordinate system based on the point-of-view position and the line-of-sight direction;

placing, by a placement module, that includes reading, from a memory module storing, in a corresponding manner, a virtual object representing a predetermined target and a position of placement in the relative coordinate system of the virtual object, a virtual object at a position of placement that is included in the visibility range and is represented in the relative coordinate system and, based on the position of placement associated with the virtual object, virtually placing the virtual object at a corresponding position in the relative coordinate system;

generating, by an image generating module, an image for left eye and an image for right eye that represent a placement status of the virtual object when viewed from a left eye and a right eye, respectively, of the wearer; and

display-controlling, by a display control module, that includes displaying the image for left eye on the display module disposed for the left eye of the wearer and displaying the image for right eye on the display module disposed for the right eye of the wearer.