Virtual space communication system, three-dimensional image display method, and apparatus therefor

• US 6,437,778 B1
• Filed: 06/15/1999
• Issued: 08/20/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Matsui, Kazuki, Harada, Hiroaki, Ohno, Takashi, Iwakawa, Akinori, Kawaguchi, Naohisa
• Primary Examiner(s): Jankus, Almis R.
• Application Number:
  US09/333,516
• Time in Patent Office: 1,162 Days
• Field of Search: 345/419, 345/420, 345/426-428, 345/812, 345/473-475
• US Class Current: 345/419
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1454 involving copying of the display data of a local workstation or window to a remote workstation or window so that an actual copy of the data is displayed simultaneously on two or more displays, e.g. teledisplay
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/20 using video object coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

Plural client computers 10 manipulates by individual users, a data management computer 200, and a host computer 100 are mutually connected through a network NW. The data management computer 200 manages the VRML file expressing a virtual space, and also transfers the VRML file to each client computer 10 through the network NW according to the request from each client computer 10. Each client computer 10 displays the virtual space according to the VRML file, and also displays in inside of the virtual space the object capable of updating the property data by the manipulation of the user. The host computer 100 manages the property data (position, shape, speech text, etc.) of the object changed by the operation inputted by the user at each client computer 10, so that the users of the client computers 10 sharing the same virtual space can communicate with each other through the behavior and speech of the objects in the virtual space.

Claims

1. A three-dimensional image display method for displaying a three-dimensional image seeing the inside of a space in which a viewpoint is located from said viewpoint, on the basis of data stored in storing means for displaying the inside of plural independent three-dimensional spaces having a connection point with at least one other, and information showing sight line orientation, comprising steps of:

a first processing for reading out from said storing means the data displaying the inside of the space in which said viewpoint is located, and displaying a three-dimensional image seen from said viewpoint corresponding to the move of the position of said viewpoint and sight line orientation;

a second processing for predicting a possibility of move of said viewpoint from the space in which it is located to other space through a connection point; and

a third processing for preliminarily reading form said storing means the data expressing the inside of the space of the moving destination when it is predicted that said viewpoint may move to other space,

wherein said second processing is executed on the basis of the distance from said viewpoint to a connection point possessed by the space in which said viewpoint is located, and presence or absence of the connection point included in the space in which said viewpoint is located within a predetermined visual field centered on an orientation of the sight line of said viewpoint.

2. A moving destination prediction method for, at the displaying a three-dimensional image seeing the inside of a space in which a viewpoint is located from said viewpoint, on the basis of data for displaying the inside of plural independent three-dimensional spaces each having at least one connection point with an other, and information showing the position of said viewpoint movable arbitrarily in said plural spaces, predicting a space which has possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located through a connection point, comprising steps of :

sequentially retrieving all connection points possessed by a space in which said viewpoint is located on the basis of the position of said viewpoint in a space in which said viewpoint is located;

calculating a distance between said viewpoint and each retrieved connection point;

obtaining a minimum value among calculated values less than a predetermined value; and

predicting a space to which said viewpoint can move through the connection point corresponding to the obtained minimum value, as the space which has a possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located.

3. A moving destination prediction method for, at the displaying a three-dimensional image seeing the inside of a space in which a viewpoint is located from said viewpoint, on the basis of data for displaying the inside of plural independent three-dimensional spaces each having at least one connection point with an other, and information showing the position of said viewpoint movable arbitrarily in said plural spaces and information showing sight line orientation, predicting a space which has possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located through a connection point, comprising steps of:

setting a visual field of a cone which is set by a predetermined around the sight line orientation from said viewpoint as the central axis;

judging whether any of connection points exist or not in the visual field of said cone;

calculating a distance between said viewpoint and each connection point when any of connection points exist;

obtaining a minimum value among calculated values; and

predicting a space to which said viewpoint can move through the connection point corresponding to the obtained minimum value, as the space which has a possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located.

4. A three-dimensional image display apparatus comprising:

storing means for storing data expressing the inside of plural independent three-dimensional spaces having a connection point with at least one other;

data reading means for reading out from said storing means the data expressing the inside of the space in which said viewpoint is located;

inputting means for inputting a position of the viewpoint arbitrarily movable in said plural spaces and an orientation of a sight line;

three-dimensional image storing means for storing three-dimensional images;

three-dimensional drawing means for making said three-dimensional image storing means draw and store a three-dimensional image seen from said viewpoint corresponding to the move of the position of said viewpoint and the orientation of the sight line, on the basis of the data being read out by said data reading means from said inputting means;

displaying means for displaying an image drawn in said three-dimensional image storing means;

predicting means for predicting a possibility of move of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located to other space thorough the connection point; and

temporary storing means for storing temporarily the data being read out by said reading means from said storing means;

wherein said reading means reads out, when said predicting means predicts possibility of move of said viewpoint to other space, the data displaying the inside of the space of the moving destination of the predicted result from said storing means, and stores it in said temporary storing means.

5. The three-dimensional image display apparatus as set forth in claim 4,

wherein said predicting means predicts possibility of move of said viewpoint to other space when the distance from said viewpoint to the connection point possessed by the space in which said viewpoint is located is less than a predetermined value.

6. The three-dimensional image display apparatus as set forth in claim 4,

wherein said predicting means predicts possibility of move of said viewpoint to other space when the distance from said viewpoint to the connection point possessed by the space in which said viewpoint is located is less than a predetermined value, and the connection point possessed by the space in which said viewpoint is located is present in a predetermined visual field centered on the orientation of the sight line of said viewpoint.

7. A moving destination predicting apparatus for, at the displaying a three-dimensional image seeing the inside of a space in which a viewpoint is located from said viewpoint, on the basis of data for displaying the inside of plural independent three-dimensional spaces each having at least one connection point with an other, and information showing the position of said viewpoint movable arbitrarily in said plural spaces, predicting a space which has possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located through a connection point, comprising:

means for sequentially retrieving all connection points possessed by a space in which said viewpoint is located on the basis of the position of said viewpoint in a space in which said viewpoint is located;

means for calculating a distance between said viewpoint and each retrieved connection point;

means for obtaining a minimum value among calculated values less than a predetermined value; and

means for predicting a space to which said viewpoint can move through the connection point corresponding to the obtained minimum value, as the space which has a possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located.

8. A moving destination prediction apparatus for, at the displaying a three-dimensional image seeing the inside of a space in which a viewpoint is located from said viewpoint, on the basis of data for displaying the inside of plural independent three-dimensional spaces each having at least one connection point with an other, and information showing the position of said viewpoint movable arbitrarily in said plural spaces and information showing sight line orientation, predicting a space which has possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located through a connection point, comprising:

means for setting a visual field of a cone which is set by a predetermined around the sigh line orientation from said viewpoint as the central axis;

means for judging whether any of connection points exist or not in the visual field of said cone;

means for calculating a distance between said viewpoint and each connection point when any of connection points exist;

means for obtaining a minimum value among calculated values; and

means for predicting a space to which said viewpoint can move through the connection point corresponding to the obtained minimum value, as the space which has a possibility of moving next of said viewpoint from the space in which said viewpoint is located.