METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR PROVIDING VISUAL FEEDBACK IN A VIRTUAL REALITY ENVIRONMENT

• US 20160019718A1
• Filed: 09/05/2014
• Published: 01/21/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Wipro Limited
• Original Assignee: Wipro Limited
• Inventors: Madhusudhanan, Manoj, Mukkamala, Sreenivasa Reddy
• Application Number:
  US14/478,277
• Publication Number:
  US 20160019718A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/012 Head tracking input arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/013 Eye tracking input arrangements G06F3/015 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0304 Detection arrangements using opto-electronic means constructional details of pointing devices not related to the detection arrangement using opto-electronic means G06F3/033; optical digitisers G06F3/042
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/60 Shadow generation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/204 using stereoscopic image cameras stereoscopic photography G03B35/00

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method of providing visual feedback to a user in a virtual reality environment is disclosed. The method may comprise: capturing position and depth information of the user using a depth sensor; determining a potential interaction point between the user and a 3D virtual object associated with the virtual reality environment based on the position and depth information of the user; determining, using a virtual depth camera, depth of the 3D virtual object at the potential interaction point; calculating a distance between the user and the 3D virtual object based on the position and depth information of the user and the depth of the 3D virtual object; and rendering a soft shadow of the user on the 3D virtual object based on the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object.

Claims

1. A method for providing visual feedback to a user in a virtual reality environment, the method comprising:

capturing, by the feedback management computing device, position and depth information of the user using a depth sensor;

determining, by the feedback management computing device, a potential interaction point between the user and a 3D virtual object associated with the virtual reality environment based on the position and depth information of the user;

determining, by the feedback management computing device, using a virtual depth camera, depth of the 3D virtual object at the potential interaction point;

calculating, by the feedback management computing device, a distance between the user and the 3D virtual object based on the position and depth information of the user and the depth of the 3D virtual object; and

rendering, by the feedback management computing device, a soft shadow of the user on the 3D virtual object based on the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the position and depth information of the user is determined from at least one of an image and a video captured by the depth sensor.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the position and the depth information of the user comprises at least one of body joints position information and head position information.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the soft shadow of the user corresponds to a body part of the user interacting with the virtual reality environment.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the soft shadow is rendered by looking-up a predefined color look-up table to convert the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object to a black color image with alpha transparency.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising applying, by the feedback management computing device, a spatially variant blur effect to the black color image, wherein the radius of the blur effect is based on the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object.

7. A feedback management computing device comprising:

a processor;

a memory, wherein the memory coupled to the processor which are configured to execute programmed instructions stored in the memory comprising;

receiving position and depth information of the user from a depth sensor;

determining a potential interaction point between the user and a 3D virtual object associated with the virtual reality environment based on the position and depth information of the user;

receiving depth of the 3D virtual object at the potential interaction point from a virtual depth camera;

calculating a distance between the user and the 3D virtual object based on the position and depth information of the user and the depth of the 3D virtual object; and

rendering a soft shadow of the user on the 3D virtual object based on the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the position and depth information of the user is determined from at least one of an image and a video captured by the depth sensor.

9. The device of claim 7, wherein the position and the depth information of the user comprises at least one of body joints position information and head position information.

10. The device of claim 7, wherein the soft shadow of the user corresponds to a body part of the user interacting with the virtual reality environment.

11. The device of claim 7, wherein the instructions comprise instructions to render the soft shadow by looking-up a predefined color look-up table to convert the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object to a black color image with alpha transparency.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the instructions further comprise instructions to apply a spatially variant blur effect to the black color image, wherein the radius of the blur effect is based on the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon instructions for providing visual feedback to a user in a virtual reality environment comprising machine executable code which when executed by at least one processor, causes the processor to perform steps comprising:

receiving position and depth information of the user from a depth sensor;

determining a potential interaction point between the user and a 3D virtual object associated with the virtual reality environment based on the position and depth information of the user;

receiving depth of the 3D virtual object at the potential interaction point from a virtual depth camera;

calculating a distance between the user and the 3D virtual object based on the position and depth information of the user and the depth of the 3D virtual object; and

rendering a soft shadow of the user on the 3D virtual object based on the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object.

14. The medium of claim 13, wherein the position and depth information of the user is determined from at least one of an image and a video captured by the depth sensor.

15. The medium of claim 13, wherein the position and the depth information of the user comprises at least one of body joints position information and head position information.

16. The medium of claim 13, wherein the soft shadow of the user corresponds to a body part of the user interacting with the virtual reality environment.

17. The medium of claim 13, wherein the operations comprise rendering the soft shadow by looking-up a predefined color look-up table to convert the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object to a black color image with alpha transparency.

18. The medium of claim 17, wherein the operations further comprise applying a spatially variant blur effect to the black color image, wherein the radius of the blur effect is based on the distance between the user and the 3D virtual object.