COMPUTER-READABLE STORAGE MEDIUM, IMAGE PROCESSING APPARATUS, IMAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM, AND IMAGE PROCESSING METHOD

• US 20120219179A1
• Filed: 08/02/2011
• Published: 08/30/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: OSAKO, Satoru
• Granted Patent: US 8,571,266 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/103
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6676 by dedicated player input
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/69 Involving elements of the real world in the game world, e.g. measurement in live races, real video
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/20 Analysis of motion motion estimation for coding, decoding, compressing or decompressing digital video signals H04N19/43, H04N19/51

Abstract

A position of a predetermined object or design is sequentially detected from images. Then, an amount of movement of the predetermined object or design is calculated on the basis of: a position, in a first image, of the predetermined object or design detected from the first image; and a position, in a second image, of the predetermined object or design detected from the second image acquired before the first image. Then, when the amount of movement is less than a first threshold, the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or design detected from the first image is corrected to a position internally dividing, in a predetermined ratio, line segments connecting: the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or design detected from the first image; to the position, in the second image, of the predetermined object or design detected from the second image.

Claims

1. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon an image processing program causing a computer of an information processing apparatus to function as:

image acquisition means for sequentially acquiring images;

detection means for sequentially detecting a position of a predetermined object or a predetermined design from the images;

amount-of-movement calculation means for calculating an amount of movement of the predetermined object or the predetermined design on the basis of;

a position, in a first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image acquired by the image acquisition means; and

a position, in a second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image acquired before the first image;

comparison means for comparing the amount of movement with a first threshold;

correction means for, when the amount of movement is less than the first threshold, correcting the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image, to a position internally dividing, in a predetermined ratio, line segments connecting;

the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image;

to the position, in the second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image;

virtual camera setting means for, on the basis of the position corrected by the correction means, setting a virtual camera placed in a virtual space; and

display control means for displaying on a display device a virtual space image obtained by capturing the virtual space with the virtual camera.

2. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, the image processing program further causing the computer to function as:

size calculation means for calculating a size of the predetermined object or the predetermined design in the first image or the second image; and

threshold correction means for correcting the first threshold on the basis of the size calculated by the size calculation means.

3. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 2, wherein

the threshold correction means sets the first threshold such that the smaller the size calculated by the size calculation means, the smaller the first threshold.

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

when the amount of movement is equal to or greater than the first threshold, the virtual camera setting means sets the virtual camera on the basis of the position, in the second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image.

5. The computer-readable storage medium according to claim 1, the image processing program further causing the computer to function as:

motion vector calculation means for sequentially calculating motion vectors from the images, the motion vectors each indicating a moving direction of the predetermined object or the predetermined design; and

ratio change means for changing the predetermined ratio on the basis of the motion vectors.

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

the ratio change means includes determination means for, on the basis of the plurality of motion vectors, determining whether or not the predetermined object or the predetermined design is continuously moving in a constant direction, and changes the predetermined ratio in accordance with a determination result of the determination means.

7. An image processing apparatus comprising:

image acquisition means for sequentially acquiring images;

detection means for sequentially detecting a position of a predetermined object or a predetermined design from the images;

amount-of-movement calculation means for calculating an amount of movement of the predetermined object or the predetermined design on the basis of;

a position, in a first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image acquired by the image acquisition means; and

a position, in a second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image acquired before the first image;

comparison means for comparing the amount of movement with a first threshold;

correction means for, when the amount of movement is less than the first threshold, correcting the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image, to a position internally dividing, in a predetermined ratio, line segments connecting;

the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image;

to the position, in the second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image;

virtual camera setting means for, on the basis of the position corrected by the correction means, setting a virtual camera placed in a virtual space; and

display control means for displaying on a display device a virtual space image obtained by capturing the virtual space with the virtual camera.

8. An image processing method comprising:

an image acquisition step of sequentially acquiring images;

a detection step of sequentially detecting a position of a predetermined object or a predetermined design from the images;

an amount-of-movement calculation step of calculating an amount of movement of the predetermined object or the predetermined design on the basis of;

a position, in a first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image acquired in the image acquisition step; and

a position, in a second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image acquired before the first image;

a comparison step of comparing the amount of movement with a first threshold;

a correction step of, when the amount of movement is less than the first threshold, correcting the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image, to a position internally dividing, in a predetermined ratio, line segments connecting;

the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image;

to the position, in the second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image;

a virtual camera setting step of, on the basis of the position corrected in the correction step, setting a virtual camera placed in a virtual space; and

a display control step of displaying on a display device a virtual space image obtained by capturing the virtual space with the virtual camera.

9. An image processing system comprising:

image acquisition means for sequentially acquiring images;

detection means for sequentially detecting a position of a predetermined object or a predetermined design from the images;

amount-of-movement calculation means for calculating an amount of movement of the predetermined object or the predetermined design on the basis of;

a position, in a first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image acquired by the image acquisition means; and

a position, in a second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image acquired before the first image;

comparison means for comparing the amount of movement with a first threshold;

correction means for, when the amount of movement is less than the first threshold, correcting the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image, to a position internally dividing, in a predetermined ratio, line segments connecting;

the position, in the first image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the first image;

to the position, in the second image, of the predetermined object or the predetermined design detected from the second image;

virtual camera setting means for, on the basis of the position corrected by the correction means, setting a virtual camera placed in a virtual space; and

display control means for displaying on a display device a virtual space image obtained by capturing the virtual space with the virtual camera.

10. An image processing system including an image processing apparatus and a marker in which a design is drawn, the image processing apparatus comprising:

a capturing section for capturing the marker;

image acquisition means for sequentially acquiring images from the capturing section;

detection means for sequentially detecting a position of a marker or a design from the images;

amount-of-movement calculation means for calculating an amount of movement of the marker or the design on the basis of;

a position, in a first image, of the marker or the design detected from the first image acquired by the image acquisition means; and

a position, in a second image, of the marker or the design detected from the second image acquired before the first image;

comparison means for comparing the amount of movement with a first threshold;

correction means for, when the amount of movement is less than the first threshold, correcting the position, in the first image, of the marker or the design detected from the first image, to a position internally dividing, in a predetermined ratio, line segments connecting;

the position, in the first image, of the marker or the design detected from the first image;

to the position, in the second image, of the marker or the design detected from the second image;

virtual camera setting means for, on the basis of the position corrected by the correction means, setting a virtual camera placed in a virtual space; and

display control means for displaying on a display device a virtual space image obtained by capturing the virtual space with the virtual camera.