Game apparatus and game program

• US 8,353,769 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2011
• Issued: 01/15/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Okamura, Yuichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Hall, Arthur O.
• Application Number:
  US13/331,297
• Publication Number:
  US 20120094760A1
• Time in Patent Office: 392 Days
• Field of Search: 463 1- 5, 463 7- 9, 463 30- 34, 463 36- 39, 463 40- 43, 463 49- 57, 273/108.1, 273/127.R, 273/148.R, 273/148.B, 273/309, 273/317.1, 273/340, 273/348, 273361-367, 345 11- 34, 345/156, 345/157, 345/160, 345/419, 345473-475, 345618-619, 345/629, 345660-671, 715/706, 715/738, 715757-759, 715762-764, 715/766, 715781-783, 715/788, 715794-795, 715/798, 715801-802, 715/807
• US Class Current: 463/37
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/428 involving motion or position input signals, e.g. signals representing the rotation of an input controller or a player's arm motions sensed by accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/57 Simulating properties, behaviour or motion of objects in the game world, e.g. computing tyre load in a car race game A63F13/56 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/573 using trajectories of game objects, e.g. of a golf ball according to the point of impact
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/812 Ball games, e.g. soccer or baseball
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/105 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/64 for computing dynamical parameters of game objects, e.g. motion determination or computation of frictional forces for a virtual car
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8011 Ball

Abstract

The game apparatus obtains angular velocity data and acceleration data from an input device equipped with at least an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor, and determines whether or not a ball has been thrown in accordance with the angular velocity data. When it is determined that ball-throwing is fulfilled, the game apparatus calculates the intensity of swinging the input device and a curve amount. The game apparatus applies a force and a curve to a ball in accordance with the calculated intensity of swinging and the curve amount, and performs a process of causing the ball to move and curve in a predetermined direction.

Claims

1. A game apparatus which obtains operation data including angular velocity data and acceleration data from an input device equipped with an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor, and which performs a game process based on the operation data, the game apparatus comprising:

a determination unit configured to determine whether or not the angular velocity data satisfies a predetermined condition;

a movement control unit configured to change a moving direction of a predetermined object in a game space by applying a force to the predetermined object in accordance with the acceleration data obtained in a predetermined period of time prior to a point of time at which the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition; and

a display control unit configured to display, on a screen, the predetermined object whose movement is controlled by the movement control unit.

2. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the determination unit causes the object to start moving when the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition.

3. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the movement control unit changes the moving direction of the object in accordance with the magnitude and the direction of an acceleration in a first direction included in the acceleration data.

4. The game apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the movement control unit further obtains the angular velocity data during the predetermined period of time, and changes the moving direction of the object in accordance with an angular velocity around a first axis included in the angular velocity data and the acceleration in the first direction.

5. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the movement control unit changes the moving direction of the object in accordance with an acceleration indicated by the acceleration data and an angular velocity indicated by the angular velocity data, both data being obtained during a predetermined length of period before and after a determination time at which the determination unit has determined that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition.

6. The game apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

the movement control unit increases or decreases an amount of change in the moving direction of the object in accordance with the magnitude of the acceleration.

7. The game apparatus according to claim 5, wherein

the movement control unit determines a direction to which a moving direction of the object is to be changed in accordance with the angular velocity data obtained during the predetermined length of period before and after the determination time.

8. The game apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising

an orientation calculation unit configured to calculate an orientation of the input device in accordance with the angular velocity data, wherein,

the movement control unit determines a direction to which a moving direction of the object is to be changed in accordance with the orientation at a predetermined point of time after the determination time, the orientation being calculated by the orientation calculation unit.

9. The game apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

a position determination unit configured to determine a position of the object in accordance with the angular velocity data during a period of time until the determination unit determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition, wherein,

the movement control unit causes the object to start moving from a position determined by the position determination unit toward a predetermined direction, and changes the moving direction of the object after the object starts moving, when the determination unit determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition.

10. The game apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

angular velocity storage locations configured to sequentially store the angular velocity data, wherein,

the determination unit determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition in accordance with the angular velocity data stored in the angular velocity storage locations when the magnitude of an angular velocity indicated by the angular velocity data represents a local maximum value, and is greater than a predetermined threshold.

11. The game apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an orientation calculation unit configured to calculate an orientation of the input device in accordance with the angular velocity data; and

an orientation determination unit configured to determine whether or not the orientation of the input device calculated by the orientation calculation unit is a predetermined orientation, wherein

after the determination unit determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition, and when the orientation determination unit determines the orientation of the input device is the predetermined orientation, the movement control unit decreases an amount of change in the moving direction of the object.

12. The game apparatus according to claim 11, wherein

when the magnitude of an angular velocity indicated by the angular velocity data is lower than a predetermined threshold, or when the magnitude of an acceleration indicated by the acceleration data is in a predetermined range, the movement control unit decreases the amount of change in the moving direction of the object.

13. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored thereon a game program executed by a computer of a game apparatus which obtains operation data including angular velocity data and acceleration data from an input device equipped with an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor, and which performs a game process in accordance with the operation data, the computer being caused to perform:

determining whether or not the angular velocity data satisfies a predetermined condition;

movement control for changing a moving direction of a predetermined object in a game space by applying a force to the predetermined object in accordance with the acceleration data obtained in a predetermined period of time prior to a point of time at which the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition; and

display control for displaying, on a screen, the predetermined object, whose movement is controlled by the movement control.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 13, wherein

the determining causes the object to start moving when the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 13, wherein

the movement control changes the moving direction of the object in accordance with the magnitude and the direction of an acceleration in a first direction included in the acceleration data.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 15,

wherein the movement control further obtains the angular velocity data during the predetermined period of time, and changes the moving direction of the object in accordance with an angular velocity around a first axis included in the angular velocity data and the acceleration in the first direction.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 13,

wherein the movement control changes the moving direction of the object in accordance with an acceleration indicated by the acceleration data and an angular velocity indicated by the angular velocity data, both data being obtained during a predetermined length of period before and after a determination time at which the determining has determined that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition.

18. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 17, wherein

the movement control increases or decreases an amount of change in the moving direction of the object in accordance with the magnitude of the acceleration.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 17, wherein

the movement control determines a direction to which a moving direction of the object is to be changed in accordance with the angular velocity data obtained during the predetermined length of period before and after the determination time.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 17, further causing the computer to perform

calculating an orientation of the input device in accordance with the angular velocity data, wherein,

the movement control determines a direction to which a moving direction of the object is to be changed in accordance with the calculated orientation at a predetermined point of time after the determination time.

21. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 13, further causing the computer to perform

determining a position of the object in accordance with the angular velocity data during a period of time until the determining determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition, wherein,

the movement control causes the object to start moving from a determined position toward a predetermined direction, and changes the moving direction of the object after the object starts moving, when the determining determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition.

22. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 13, further causing the computer to perform

angular velocity storage for sequentially storing the angular velocity data, wherein,

the determining determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition in accordance with the stored angular velocity data when the magnitude of an angular velocity indicated by the angular velocity data represents a local maximum value, and is greater than a predetermined threshold.

23. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 13, further causing the computer to perform

orientation calculation for calculating an orientation of the input device in accordance with the angular velocity data;

and

orientation determination for determining whether or not the orientation of the input device calculated by the orientation calculation is a predetermined orientation, wherein

after the determining determines that the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition, and when the orientation determination determines the orientation of the input device is the predetermined orientation, the movement control decreases an amount of change in the moving direction of the object.

24. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon the game program, according to claim 23, wherein

when the magnitude of an angular velocity indicated by the angular velocity data is lower than a predetermined threshold, or when the magnitude of an acceleration indicated by the acceleration data is in a predetermined range, the movement control decreases the amount of change in the moving direction of the object.

25. A method for performing a game process according to a game program executed by a computer of a game apparatus in accordance with operation data including angular velocity data and acceleration data from an input device equipped with an angular velocity sensor and an acceleration sensor, the method comprising:

determining whether or not the angular velocity data satisfies a predetermined condition;

changing a moving direction of a predetermined object in a game space by applying a force to the predetermined object in accordance with the acceleration data obtained in a predetermined period of time prior to a point of time at which the angular velocity data satisfies the predetermined condition; and

displaying, on a screen, the predetermined object whose movement is controlled by the movement control unit.