System and method for displaying images using anamorphic video

• US 6,549,215 B2
• Filed: 12/27/2001
• Issued: 04/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Compaq Computer Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Compaq Computer Corporation (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Jouppi, Norman P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Matthew
• Application Number:
  US10/033,403
• Publication Number:
  US 20020063726A1
• Time in Patent Office: 474 Days
• Field of Search: 345/660, 345/667, 345/668, 345/669, 700/245, 700/246
• US Class Current: 345/660
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0246 using a video camera in combination with image processing means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0255 using acoustic signals, e.g. ultra-sonic singals sonar systems designed for anti-collision purposes G01S15/93
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/027 comprising intertial navigation means, e.g. azimuth detector inertial navigation G01C21/16; inertial navigation combined with non-inertial navigation instruments G01C21/165
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/144 camera and display on the same optical axis, e.g. optically multiplexing the camera and display for eye to eye contact

Abstract

An image is displayed using anamorphic video. A first portion of an image is displayed on a display at a first scale. At least one second portion of the image is displayed on the display. The at least one second portion is adjacent the first portion of the image. The second portion is displayed at a second scale higher than the first scale.

Claims

1. A robotic telepresence system, comprising:

a station at a first geographic location, the station having a display; and

a robot at a second geographic location, wherein the robot is responsive to the station, senses predetermined types of information, and communicates that information back to the station, the robot including;

at least one first sensor to sense first image information; and

at least one second sensor to sense second image information, wherein the robot transmits the sensed information from the at least one first sensor and from the at least tone second sensor to the station;

wherein the first image information from the at least one first sensor is displayed on the display at a first scale, and

the second image information from the at least one second sensor is displayed on the display, the second image information being displayed adjacent the first image information, wherein at least a portion of the second image information is displayed at a second scale higher than the first scale.

2. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is displayed at the first scale.

3. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 whercin the second scale is geometrically increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale as a function of image position.

4. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein the second scale is linearly increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale as a function of image position.

5. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein the second scale is increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale using a predetermined weighting function as a function of image position.

6. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is scaled in one dimension.

7. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is scaled in two dimensions.

8. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein the first image information and the second image information form an image of a contiguous field of view obtained from the at least one first sensor and the at least one second sensor, respectively, that capture overlapping subsets of the contiguous field of view.

9. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein the robot is mobile.

10. The robotic telepresence system of claim 9 wherein the at least one first sensor is physically aligned with the robot in a forward direction of travel and transmits first image information in the direction of travel to the user station.

11. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein the station includes an immersion room including:

a curved screen;

a first projector for projecting the first image information sent from the robot onto a center portion of the curved screen; and

at least one second projector for projecting onto a portion of the curved screen the second image information sent from the robot.

12. The robotic telepresence system of claim 1 wherein the station includes an immersion room including:

a curved screen;

a first projector for projecting the first image information sent from the robot onto a center portion of the curved screen;

at least one second projector for projecting the second image information sent from the robot; and

at least one mirror for receiving the projected second image information and reflecting the projected second image information onto a portion of the curved screen.

13. A robotic telepresence system, comprising:

a station at a first geographic location, the station having a display; and

a robot at a second geographic location, wherein the robot is responsive to the station, senses predetermined types of information, and communicates that information back to the station, the robot including;

at least one first sensor to sense first image information at a predetermined high resolution level; and

at least one second sensor to sense second image information at a predetermined low resolution level, wherein the robot transmits the sensed information from the at least one first sensor and from the at least one second sensor to the station;

wherein the first image information from the at least one first sensor is displayed on the display at a first scale, and

the second image information from the at least one second sensor is displayed on the display, the second image information being displayed adjacent the first image information, wherein at least a portion of the second image information is displayed at a second scale higher than the first scale.

14. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is displayed at the first scale.

15. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the second scale is geometrically increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale as a function of image position.

16. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the second scale is linearly increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale as a function of image position.

17. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the second scale is increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale using a predetermined weighting function as a function of image position.

18. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is scaled in one dimension.

19. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is scaled in two dimensions.

20. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the first image information and the second image information form an image of a contiguous field of view obtained from the at least one first sensor and the at least one second sensor, respectively, that capture overlapping subsets of the contiguous field of view.

21. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the at least one first sensor is comprised of a first high resolution camera that senses a high resolution image and the at least one second sensor is comprised of a first low resolution camera and a second low resolution camera that sense a first low resolution image and a second low resolution image, respectively.

22. The robotic telepresence system of claim 21 wherein the display presents the high resolution image and the two low resolution images as a single displayed image, partially high resolution, partially low resolution, wherein the first low resolution image and the second low resolution image contain different image information for different portions of the displayed image, the high resolution image partially overlapping and partially not overlapping the first low resolution image and partially overlapping and partially not overlapping the second low resolution image.

23. The robotic telepresence system of claim 21 wherein the display presents the high resolution image and the two low resolution images as a single displayed image, partially high resolution, partially low resolution, wherein the first low resolution image and the second low resolution image contain different image information for different portions of the displayed image, the high resolution image at least partially not overlapping the first low resolution image and at least partially not overlapping the second low resolution image.

24. The robotic telepresence system of claim 21 wherein the display presents the high resolution image and the two low resolution images as a single displayed image, partially high resolution, partially low resolution, the high resolution image at least partially overlapping at least one of the low resolution images on the display.

25. The robotic telepresence system of claim 24 herein the high resolution image is aligned with at least one of the low resolution images.

26. The robotic telepresence system of claim 24 wherein the edges of the high resolution image is blended with at least one of the low resolution images.

27. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the robot is mobile.

28. The robotic telepresence system of claim 27 wherein the at least one first sensor is physically aligned with the robot in a forward direction of travel and transmits first image information in the direction of travel to the station.

29. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the station includes an immersion room including:

a curved screen;

a first projector for projecting the first image information sent from the robot onto a center portion of the curved screen; and

at least one second projector for projecting onto a portion of the curved screen the second image information sent from the robot.

30. The robotic telepresence system of claim 13 wherein the station includes an immersion room including:

a curved screen;

a first projector for projecting the first image information sent from the robot onto a center portion of the curved screen;

at least one second projector for projecting the second image information sent from the robot; and

at least one mirror for receiving the projected second image information and reflecting the projected second image information onto a portion of the curved screen.

31. A robotic telepresence system, comprising:

a user station at a first geographic location, the user station being responsive to a user and communicating information to and from the user, the user station having a user display; and

a robot at a second geographic location, wherein the robot is responsive to the user station, provides an image of the user transmitted from the user station, senses predetermined types of information, and communicates that information back to the user station, the robot including;

at least one first sensor to sense first image information at a predetermined high resolution level; and

at least one second sensor to sense second image information at a predetermined low resolution level, wherein the robot transmits the sensed information from the at least one first sensor and from the at least one second sensor to the user station;

wherein the first image information from the at least one first sensor is displayed on the user display at a first scale, and

the second image information from the at least one second sensor is displayed on the user display, the second image information being displayed adjacent the first image information, wherein at least a portion of the second image information is displayed at a second scale higher than the first scale.

32. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is displayed at the first scale.

33. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the second scale is geometrically increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale.

34. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the second scale is geometrically increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale as a function of image position.

35. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the second scale is increased from a minimum predetermined scale to a maximum predetermined scale using a predetermined weighting function as a function of image position.

36. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is scaled in one dimension.

37. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein at least a portion of the second image information is scaled in two dimensions.

38. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the first image information and the second image information form an image of a contiguous field of view obtained from the at least one first sensor and the at least one second sensor, respectively, that capture overlapping subsets of the contiguous field of view.

39. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the at least one first sensor is comprised of a first high resolution camera that senses a high resolution image and the at least one second sensor is comprised of a first low resolution camera and a second low resolution camera that sense a first low resolution image and a second low resolution image, respectively.

40. The robotic telepresence system of claim 39 wherein the user display presents the high resolution image and the two low resolution images as a single displayed image, partially high resolution, partially low resolution, wherein the first low resolution image and the second low resolution image contain different image information for different portions of the displayed image, the high resolution image partially overlapping and partially not overlapping the first low resolution image and partially overlapping and partially not overlapping the second low resolution image.

41. The robotic telepresence system of claim 40 wherein the user display presents the high resolution image and the two low resolution images as a single displayed image, partially high resolution, partially low resolution, wherein the first low resolution image and the second low resolution image contain different image information for different portions of the displayed image, the high resolution image at least partially not overlapping the first low resolution image and at least partially not overlapping the second low resolution image.

42. The robotic telepresence system of claim 40 wherein the user display presents the high resolution image and the two low resolution images as a single displayed image, partially high resolution, partially low resolution, the high resolution image at least partially overlapping at least one of the low resolution images on the user display.

43. The robotic telepresence system of claim 42 wherein the high resolution image is aligned with at least one of the low resolution images.

44. The robotic telepresence system of claim 42 wherein the edges of the high resolution image is blended with at least one of the low resolution images.

45. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the robot is mobile.

46. The robotic telepresence system of claim 45 wherein the at least one first sensor is physically aligned with the robot in a forward direction of travel and transmits first image information in the direction of travel to the user station.

47. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the image of the user is a three dimensional representation of the user comprising front and profile views of the user'"'"'s head.

48. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the station includes an immersion room including:

a curved screen;

a first projector for projecting the first image information sent from the robot onto a center portion of the curved screen; and

at least one second projector for projecting onto a portion of the curved screen the second image information sent from the robot.

49. The robotic telepresence system of claim 31 wherein the user station includes an immersion room including:

a curved screen;

a first projector for projecting the first image information sent from the robot onto a center portion of the curved screen;

at least one second projector for projecting the second image information sent from the robot; and

at least one mirror, disposed between the user and the curved screen, for receiving the projected second image information and reflecting the projected second image information onto a portion of the curved screen.