Physics simulation-based interaction for surface computing

• US 8,502,795 B2
• Filed: 02/29/2012
• Issued: 08/06/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Wilson, Andrew David, Izadi, Shahram, Garcia-Mendoza, Armando, Kirk, David, Hilliges, Otmar
• Primary Examiner(s): SHERMAN, STEPHEN G
• Application Number:
  US13/408,972
• Publication Number:
  US 20120162117A1
• Time in Patent Office: 524 Days
• Field of Search: 345173-178, 178 1801- 1809, 178/18.11, 463/30, 340/4.12, 340/407.1, 340/407.2
• US Class Current: 345/173
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/214 for locating contacts on a surface, e.g. floor mats or touch pads
• 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: G06F 2111/10 Numerical modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04104 Multi-touch detection in digitiser, i.e. details about the simultaneous detection of a plurality of touching locations, e.g. multiple fingers or pen and finger
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/20 Design optimisation, verification or simulation optimisation, verification or simulation of circuit designs G06F30/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30196 Human being; Person
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/20 Analysis of motion motion estimation for coding, decoding, compressing or decompressing digital video signals H04N19/43, H04N19/51

Abstract

The claimed subject matter provides a system and/or a method that facilitates enhancing interactive surface technologies for data manipulation. A surface detection component can employ a multiple contact surfacing technology to detect a surface input, wherein the detected surface input enables a physical interaction with a portion of displayed data that represents a corporeal object. A physics engine can integrate a portion of Newtonian physics into the interaction with the portion of displayed data in order to model at least one quantity related associated with the corporeal object, the quantity is at least one of a force, a mass, a velocity, or a friction.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

under control of one or more processors configured with executable instructions;

detecting a surface input;

modeling a contour of the detected surface input using one or more virtual objects, the one or more virtual objects enabling interaction between the detected surface input and a displayed object or data on a display; and

integrating a portion of physics laws via the one or more virtual objects into the interaction between the detected surface input and the displayed object or data to model a quantity related to the displayed object or data.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the quantity comprises a force, a mass, a velocity, a torque, and/or a friction.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

generating a proxy object for the detected surface input; and

calculating a motion of the proxy object by tracking a motion of the proxy object between a first frame and a second frame.

4. The method as recited in claim 3, further comprising kinetically controlling the proxy object to match the movement of the detected surface input.

5. The method as recited in claim 3, further comprising applying an amount of a force proportional to a number of proxies applied to the displayed object or data on the display.

6. The method as recited in claim 5, wherein the number of proxies is related to a surface area of the detected surface input.

7. The method as recited in claim 5, further comprising:

sensing a surface pressure; and

transducing the surface pressure to the force on the number of proxies.

8. A system comprising:

one or more processors;

memory, communicatively coupled to the one or more processors, storing executable instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, configure the one or more processors to perform acts comprising;

detecting a surface input;

modeling a contour of the surface input using one or more virtual objects; and

applying a physics update related to a portion of physics laws to at least one of the one or more virtual objects between a first frame and a second frame of surface input detection.

9. The system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising:

generating a proxy object for the surface input; and

calculating a motion of the proxy object by tracking a motion of the proxy object between the first frame and the second frame.

10. The system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising:

enacting a collision force and/or a friction force with the physics update; and

/or

enacting a gathering and/or a pilling of a plurality of objects with the physics update.

11. The system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising enabling support for a soft body simulation, a cloth body simulation and/or a fluid simulation.

12. The system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising:

displaying an object or data on a surface or display; and

enabling an interaction between the surface input and at least a portion of the displayed object or data on the surface or display.

13. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein the display comprises a monitor, a television, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma, a rear-projection display, a front-projection display, a cathode ray tube (CRT) monitor, a flat-panel, a display for a computing device, a portable digital assistance (PDA) screen, a laptop display, a computer monitor, a smartphone display, a cellular device screen, a mobile communication device display, or a portable gaming device display.

14. The system as recited in claim 8, the acts further comprising calculating a velocity of a virtual object of the one or more virtual objects using a block matching related to an optical flow.

15. One or more computer storage media storing executable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, configure the one or more processors to perform acts comprising:

detecting a surface input;

modeling a contour of the surface input using one or more virtual objects; and

applying a physics update related to a portion of physics laws to at least one of the one or more virtual objects between a first frame and a second frame of surface input detection.

16. The one or more computer storage media as recited in claim 15, the acts further comprising:

generating a proxy object for the surface input, and

calculating a motion of the proxy object by tracking a motion of the proxy object between the first frame and the second frame.

17. The one or more computer storage media as recited in claim 15, the acts further comprising:

enacting a collision force and/or a friction force with the physics update; and

/or

enacting a gathering and/or a pilling of a plurality of objects with the physics update.

18. The one or more computer storage media as recited in claim 15, the acts further comprising enabling support for a soft body simulation, a cloth body simulation and/or a fluid simulation.

19. The one or more computer storage media as recited in claim 15, the acts further comprising:

displaying an object or data on a surface or display; and

enabling an interaction between the surface input and at least a portion of the displayed object or data on the surface or display.

20. The one or more computer storage media as recited in claim 19, wherein the display comprises a monitor, a television, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma, a rear-projection display, a front-projection display, a cathode ray tube (CRT) monitor, a flat-panel, a display for a computing device, a portable digital assistance (PDA) screen, a laptop display, a computer monitor, a smartphone display, a cellular device screen, a mobile communication device display, or a portable gaming device display.