Computer method and apparatus for interacting with a physical system

• US 6,167,353 A
• Filed: 02/02/1998
• Issued: 12/26/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 07/03/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hanger Solutions, LLC (IP Investments Group LLC)
• Original Assignee: Interval Research Corporation
• Inventors: Piernot, Philippe P., Vescovi, Marcos R., Jordan, Adam, Schmidt, Chris, Granados, Rafael
• Primary Examiner(s): SHAH, KAMINI S
• Application Number:
  US09/018,023
• Time in Patent Office: 1,058 Days
• Field of Search: 702/94, 702/150, 702/152, 356/348, 356/347, 356/376, 345/158, 248/176.1, 250/550, 250/221, 324/207.17, 463/40, 463/39, 434/317, 434/308, 434/402
• US Class Current: 702/94
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/24 Electric games; Games using electronic circuits not otherwise provided for video games A63F13/00; computerized gaming systems G07F17/32
• 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 3/0425 using a single imaging device like a video camera for tracking the absolute position of a single or a plurality of objects with respect to an imaged reference surface, e.g. video camera imaging a display or a projection screen, a table or a wall surface, on which a computer generated image is displayed or projected tracking a projected light spot to determine a position on a display surface G06F3/0386

Abstract

A computer interface system and method is described which includes a way of interfacing with a physical game system. The game system may include a platform having a plurality of regions and a plurality of lots, a plurality of environmental objects positioned within an associated lot of the platform, and a movable object near at least one region. Additionally, each environmental object has an environmental identifier and is a global type or a local type, and each region has a region identifier and a plurality of subregions. The method includes the act of scanning the environmental objects and the movable object to extract data, where the extracted data includes a movable object position of the movable object and an environmental position for each environmental object and associated environmental identifier. The method also includes an act of determining which region is nearest to the movable object by analyzing the extracted data and computing the distance between the movable object and each region that is proximal to the movable object. Additionally the method includes an act of determining which region identifier is associated with the nearest region to the movable object by analyzing the extracted data, determining whether any of the environmental objects are associated with the nearest region by analyzing the extracted data, and determining whether any environmental identifiers are associated with the nearest region by analyzing the extracted data. The method further includes the act of running an audiovisual program based at least on the determinations of the region identifier associated with the nearest region and any environmental that are associated with the nearest region.

Claims

1. A method of interfacing with a physical game system that includes a platform having a plurality of regions and a plurality of lots, a plurality of environmental objects that are each stationatily position able within a selected one of the lots of the platform, and a movable object movable relative to the regions, wherein each environmental object has an environmental identifier and each region has a region identifier and a plurality of subregions, the method comprising the acts of:

a) scanning the environmental objects and the movable object positioned on the platform to extract data, the extracted data including a position of the movable object and a position for each environmental object positioned within an associated lot of the platform; and

b) running an audiovisual program based at least on the position of the movable object relative to the position of at least one of the environmental objects and its associated identifier.

2. The method recited in claim 1 wherein at least one of the environmental objects includes an interactive device that has a plurality of environmental states, the extracted data includes the environmental state of the interactive device of at least one the environment objects and wherein the art of running the audio-visual program is further based on which region is nearest the movable object and the associated environmental state of the interactive device of the environmental object that is associated with the nearest region.

3. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the act of running the audiovisual is further based on which region is nearest to the movable object, and which environmnental objects are associated with the nearest region, and a predetermined knowledge of the physical game system.

4. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the act of running the audiovisual program is further based on a subregion that is nearest to the movable object.

5. The method recited in claim 3, wherein the e environmental objects that are associated with the nearest region are within a predetermined distance from the nearest region.

6. The method recited in claim 1, wherein each environmental object is movable into and out of any one of the plurality of lots.

7. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the audiovisual program being run includes an inside perspective view of the environmental object that is associated with a region that is nearest to the movable object.

8. The method recited in claim 2, wherein the interactive device of the at least one environmental object has either a global type or a local type and the act of running the audiovisual program is further based on the environmental state of the interactive device when it has a global type.

9. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the extracted data includes an orientation for each environmental object and the act of running the audiovisual program is further based on the orientations of the environmnental objects that are associated with the nearest regions.

11. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the audiovisual program includes displaying a background image that is associated with a region that is nearest to the movable object.

12. The method recited in claim 4, wherein the audiovisual program includes:

displaying a background image that is associated with a region that is nearest to the movable object;

displaying a virtual environmental object that is associated with the environmental object associated with the nearest region; and

displaying a virtual movable object that is associated with the movable object, the virtual movable object being at a relative position to the displayed environmental objects or background image based on the nearest subregion to the movable object.

13. The method recited in claim 1 wherein the audiovisual program includes displaying a virtual movable object that is associated with the movable object.

14. The method recited in claim 12, wherein the audiovisual program includes displaying movement indicate when the movable object has been moved.

15. The method recited in claim 7, wherein the audiovisual program includes displaying a selected frame of a sequence of frames based on the nearest subregion.

16. The method recited in claim 12, wherein the virtual environmental object is a building.

17. The method recited in claim 12, wherein the audiovisual program includes displaying a movable object state associated with the virtual movable object based on the region identifier of the nearest region.

18. The method recited in claim 17, wherein the movable object state is one of the group comprising clean, dirty, damaged, undamaged, and gas level.

19. The method recited in claim 11, wherein the audiovisual program includes an interactive sequence with a virtual interactive object, wherein a user may interact with the virtual interactive object by manipulation of the interactive device of the environmental object associated with the nearest region or the interactive device of one of the environmental objects that has a global type.

20. The method recited in claim 12, wherein the audiovisual program includes displaying a virtual object associated with the environmental object.

21. The method recited in claim 1, wherein the extracted data includes a movable object identifier and the audiovisual program is based on the movable object identifier.

22. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising determining whether a particular one of the environmental objects is within one of the lots, and wherein the audiovisual program is based on the determination of whether a particular one of the environmental objects is within one of the lots.

23. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising the act of recording the extracted data and repeating acts a) and b), and wherein the repeated audiovisual program is based on the recorded data.

10. A method of interfacing with a physical game system that includes a platform having a plurality of regions and a plurality of lots, a plurality of environmental objects positioned within an associated lot of the platform, and a movable object positioned proximal to at least one region, wherein each environmental object has an environmental identifier and is a global type or a local type and each region has a region identifier and a plurality of subregions, the method comprising the acts of:

a) scanning the environmental objects and the movable object to extract data, the extracted data including a movable, object position of the removable object and an environmental position for each environmental object and associated environmental identifier;

b) determining which region is nearest to the movable object by analyzing the extracted data and computing the distance between the movable object and each region that is proximal to the movable object;

c) determining which region identifier is associated with the nearest region to the movable object by analyzing the extracted data;

d) determining whether any of the environmental objects are associated with the nearest region by analyzing the extracted data;

e) determining whether any environmental identifiers are associated with the nearest region by analyzing the extracted data; and

f) running audiovisual program based at least on the determinations of the region identifier associated with the nearest region and any environmental objects that are associated with the nearest region,

wherein the audiovisual program being run includes an inside perspective view of the environmental object that is associated with the nearest region,

wherein the audiovisual program includes displaying a sequence of transition images that begin with an outside perspective view of the environmental object that is associated with the nearest region and end with the inside perspective view of the environmental object that is associated with the nearest region.

24. A computer system for interacting with a game system that includes a platform that includes a plurality of regions and a plurality of lots, a plurality of environmental objects positioned within an associated lot of the platform, and a movable object positioned proximal to at least one region, wherein each environmental object has an environmental identifier and each region has a region identifier and a plurality of subregions, the computer system comprising:

a data input device for receiving data that is extracted from the physical system, the extracted data including a movable object position of the movable object and an environmental position for each environmental object and associated environmental identifier;

a data interpreter for analyzing the extracted data to determine which region is nearest to the movable object, which region identifier is associated with the nearest region, whether any of the environmental objects are associated with the nearest region, and which environmental identifiers are associated with the nearest region; and

a display device for outputting an interactive visual image that is related to the determined nearest region and corresponding region identifier, the environmental objects and environmental identifiers that are associated with the nearest region.

25. The computer system recited in claim 24, further comprising:

a audio system for outputting sounds associated with the visual image, nearest region and corresponding identifier, or environmental objects and environmental identifiers that are associated with the nearest region.

26. The computer system recited in claim 24, wherein the data input device is configured to receive data that is output from a video camera that scans the environmental objects and the movable objects.

27. The computer system recited in claim 24, wherein the data input device is configured to receive data that is output from a electromagnetic sensing apparatus that senses the environmental objects and the movable objects.

28. The computer system recited in claim 24, wherein the movable object position is extracted in three dimensions.

29. A computer interface device for receiving input from a game system that includes a platform, a movable object, and a plurality of environmental objects, each environmental object having a defined type and for outputting a plurality of images to a audiovisual device, the computer system comprising:

input device for receiving extracted data from the physical system, the extracted data including a current position for each environmental object and a current position of the movable object relative to the positions of the plurality of environmental objects and associated defined type;

an interface processor for selecting one of the images based on an analysis of the extracted data, the interface processor being operable to output a first image having a first perspective view and a second image having a second perspective view that is different than the first perspective view; and

an output device for receiving input from the interface processor and for outputting the selected image to the audiovisual device.

30. The computer interface device of claim 29, wherein the first perspective view is an inside view that is representative of an inside of one of the environmental objects, and the second perspective is an outside view that is representative of the movable object and an outside of one of the environmental objects.

31. A machine readable medium storing program instructions for interfacing with a physical game system that includes a platform having a plurality of regions and a plurality of lots, a plurality of environmental objects that are each stationarily position able within a selected one of the lots of the platform, and a movable object movable relative to the regions wherein each environmental object has an environmental identifier and each region has a region identifier and a plurality of subregions, the program instructions comprising the following steps:

providing input from a scan of the environmental objects, and the movable objects to extract data, the extracted data including a position of the movable object and a position for each environmental object positioned within an associated lot of the platform; and

running an audiovisual program based at least on the position of the movable object relative to the position of at least one of the environmental objects and its associated identifier.

32. A method of interfacing with a physical game system that includes a platform and a plurality of physical objects placeable upon the platform, each physical object being associated with an identifier, the method comprising the acts of:

passively detecting a first position of a first one of the plurality of physical objects;

passively detecting a second position of a second one of the plurality of movable objects; and

running an audiovisual program based at least on a distance between the first and second positions of the first and second movable objects.

33. A method as recited in claim 32, wherein the positions of the first and second physical objects are detected utilizing a camera system.

34. A method as recited in claim 32, wherein the positions of the first and second physical objects are detected utilizing an electromagnetic detection system.

35. A machine readable medium storing program instructions for interfacing with a physical game system that includes a platform and a plurality of physical objects placeable upon the platform, each physical object being associated with an identifier, the program instructions comprising the following steps:

passively detecting a first position of a first one of the plurality of physical objects;

passively detecting a second position of a second one of the plurality of physical objects; and

running an audiovisual program based at least on a distance between the first and second positions of the first and second physical objects.

36. A machine readable medium storing program instructions for interfacing with a physical game system that includes a platform and a plurality of physical objects placeable upon the platform, each physical object being associated with an identifier, the program instructions comprising the following steps:

at different times, detecting a plurality of positions of a first one of the plurality of physical objects;

at different times, detecting a plurality of positions of a second one of the plurality of physical objects;

storing the plurality of positions of the first physical object and the second physical object; and

running an audiovisual program based at least on the stored positions of the first physical object relative to the stored positions of the second physical object.

37. A machine readable medium as recited in claim 36 wherein the audiovisual program is further based on the identity of the first physical object and the identity of the second physical object.

38. A machine readable medium as recited in claim 36 wherein the audiovisual program displays a representation of a current position of the first physical object and the representation varies with different past positions of the first physical object.