Virtual environment viewpoint control

• US 6,241,609 B1
• Filed: 01/11/1999
• Issued: 06/05/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: US Philips Corporation (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: US Philips Corporation (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Rutgers, Job
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheng, Joe H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Christman, Kathleen M.
• Application Number:
  US09/228,220
• Time in Patent Office: 876 Days
• Field of Search: 463/30, 463/31, 463/32, 273/148.B, 345/112
• US Class Current: 463/31
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5258 by dynamically adapting the position of the virtual camera to keep a game object or game character in its viewing frustum, e.g. for tracking a character or a ball
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/407 Data transfer via internet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/50 characterized by details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6653 for altering the visibility of an object, e.g. preventing the occlusion of an object, partially hiding an object
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6661 for changing the position of the virtual camera
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6684 by dynamically adapting its position to keep a game object in its viewing frustrum, e.g. for tracking a character or a ball
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8082 Virtual reality
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70

Abstract

A multi-user interactive virtual environment system wherein each user is provided with data to generate a respective image of the virtual environment and characters therein, including an assigned character particular to that individual user, from a respective virtual camera viewpoint determined at least partially by the user-directed motion of their assigned character. Each character has an interaction zone of predetermined size and shape maintained about its current virtual environment location. When the respective interaction zones of two or more user-assigned characters overlap, their respective virtual cameras are controlled to move from first- to third-person viewpoints for as long as the overlap remains. In a refinement, at least one further interaction zone at a given location within the virtual environment, and independent of any particular character within the virtual environment, takes control of all character virtual cameras as those characters enter the zone.

Claims

1. A multi-user interactive virtual enviromnent system comprising:

a first data store containing data defining a virtual environment;

a second data store containing data defining the external appearance of a plurality of characters; and

one or more processors configured to;

receive input commands from a plurality of users,

access the first and second stores,

generate for each user a respective image of the virtual environment and characters therein, including an assigned character particular to that individual user, from a respective viewpoint at a position and orientation within the virtual environment determined at least partially by the user-directed motion of the users assigned character;

provide updated coordinates for a respective interaction zone of predetermined size and shape about the current virtual environment location for each character; and

determine when the respective interaction zones of two or more user-assigned characters overlap;

wherein

the determination of respective viewpoint location and orientation for each such user-assigned character is based at least partially on a predetermined set of rules applied by the processor for as long as the overlap remains.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the processor maintains at least one further interaction zone at a fixed location within the virtual envirornment,

the at least one further interaction zone being independent of any particular character within the virtual environment.

3. A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the at least one further interaction zone comprises a concentric arrangement of at least two partial zones with only a part of the set of rules being applied by the processor when a character interaction zone overlaps only the outer partial zone.

4. A system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the processor applies at least one further interaction zone at a selected location within the virtual enviromnent,

the at least one further interaction zone being independent of any particular character within the virtual environment but located at a position where it is determined that a number of character-assigned interaction zones overlap.

5. A system as claimed in claim 4, wherein

the processor applies the at least one further interaction zone at a position where it is determined that five or more character-assigned interaction zones overlap.

6. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the predetermined size and shape about the current virtual enviromnent location for each character is based on a preference of the corresponding user.

7. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the processor is further configured to effect a communication between corresponding users when the respective interaction zones of the two or more user-assigned characters overlap.

8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein

the communication between the corresponding users is dependent upon an amount of the overlap.

9. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein

the interaction zone of each user comprises regions, and

the communication between the corresponding users is dependent upon the regions of the respective interaction zones that overlap.

10. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the interaction zone of each user comprises regions, and

the predetermined set of rules is dependent upon the regions of the respective interaction zones that overlap.

11. A computer program for operation on a processing system, which is configured to:

determine a location and orientation of each of a plurality of characters,

the location and orientation of at least one character of the plurality of characters being determined based on user-directed motions of the at least one character by a corresponding user;

determine an interaction zone associated with each of the plurality of characters;

the interaction zone being based on;

the location and orientation of the corresponding character, and

an interaction region of predetermined size and shape associated with the corresponding character;

determine overlaps of the interaction regions of the plurality of characters; and

effect actions among the plurality of characters based on the overlaps.

12. The computer program of claim 11, further configured to

effect actions among the plurality of characters based on the locations of the plurality of users relative to a common interaction zone.

13. The computer program of claim 12, wherein

the common interaction zone has a location that is independent of the locations of the plurality of users.

14. The computer program of claim 11, wherein

the predetermined size and shape of the interaction zone for the at least one character is based on a preference of the corresponding user.

15. The computer program of claim 11, further configured to effect communications between users based on the overlaps.

16. The computer program of claim 15, wherein

the communication between the users is dependent upon an amount of the determined overlap between the users.

17. The computer program of claim 15, wherein

the interaction region of each character includes sub-regions, and

the communication between the users is dependent upon the sub-regions of the respective interaction zones that overlap.

18. The computer program of claim 11, wherein

the interaction region of each user comprises sub-regions, and

the actions that are effected are dependent upon the sub-regions of the respective interaction zones that overlap.

19. A method for effecting actions in a multi-character event, comprising:

determining a location and orientation of each of a plurality of characters,

the location and orientation of at least one character of the plurality of characters being determined based on user-directed motions of the at least one character by a corresponding user;

determining an interaction zone associated with each of the plurality of characters;

the interaction zone being based on;

the location and orientation of the corresponding character, and

an interaction region of predetermined size and shape associated with the corresponding character; and

determining overlaps of the interaction regions of the plurality of characters;

effecting the actions based on the overlaps.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein

the predetermined size and shape of the interaction zone for the at least one character is based on a preference of the corresponding user.