System and method for the interactive display of data in a motion capture environment

• US 8,599,194 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2008
• Issued: 12/03/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Textron Innovations Incorporated (Textron Inc)
• Original Assignee: Textron Innovations Incorporated (Textron Inc)
• Inventors: Lewis, George Steven, Valentino, John, Bothwell, Christopher Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): Tung, Kee M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cain, II, Leon T
• Application Number:
  US12/522,641
• Publication Number:
  US 20100053152A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,142 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 345/419
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/017 Head mounted
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/005 Input arrangements through a video camera
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/012 Head tracking input arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/014 Hand-worn input/output arrangements, e.g. data gloves
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0325 using a plurality of light emitters or reflectors or a plurality of detectors forming a reference frame from which to derive the orientation of the object, e.g. by triangulation or on the basis of reference deformation in the picked up image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/00 Manipulating 3D models or images for computer graphics
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/24 involving graphical user interfaces [GUIs]

Abstract

A system includes an analysis system for performing an analysis and a motion capture environment interfaced with the analysis system. The motion capture system includes at least one sensor-tracker for tracking a location of a tracked object within the motion capture environment and one or more computers collectively operable to generate a virtual reality environment corresponding to the analysis.

Claims

1. A system, comprising:

an analysis system for performing an analysis and generating an analysis data associated with the analysis; and

a motion capture environment interfaced with the analysis system, the motion capture system comprising;

at least one sensor-tracker for tracking a location of a tracked object within the motion capture environment; and

one or more computers collectively operable to generate a virtual reality environment, the virtual reality environment being generated by a studio, the studio being a three-dimensional space for containing the motion capture environment, an actor, and the tracked object, the one or more computers being further collectively operable to display the virtual reality environment to the actor that is physically present in the studio;

wherein the one or more computers are further collectively operable to generate and display the analysis data associated with the analysis to the actor so that the actor can interact with a virtual representation of the analysis data in the virtual reality environment;

wherein the analysis system interacts with the one or more computers through an interface to provide a virtual representation of the analysis data to be observed, the analysis system is configured to permit virtual modification of the analysis data in real time to achieve an interactive virtual experimentation;

wherein the actor interacts with the analysis system to determine conditions of the analysis;

wherein the tracked object is related to the actor and the one or more computers are further collectively operable to allow the actor to modify an element being analyzed by the analysis system; and

wherein modification of the element by the actor is accomplished by placing a virtual tuning weight on the element being analyzed, the virtual tuning weight being selected by the actor from among a plurality of virtual tuning weights in a virtual toolbox.

2. The system, according to claim 1, wherein the analysis system includes a computational fluid dynamics system.

3. The system, according to claim 1, wherein the analysis system includes a computational stress analysis system.

4. The system, according to claim 1, wherein the analysis system includes a finite element analysis system.

5. The system, according to claim 1, wherein the one or more computers are further collectively operable to:

generate a virtual reality environment including a virtual control panel having a virtual control that, when actuated, effects a predetermined result in the virtual reality environment;

determine a virtual location of the tracked object within the virtual reality environment; and

determine when the virtual location of the tracked object coincides with the location of the virtual control to actuate the virtual control.

6. A method for interactively displaying data in a motion capture environment, the method comprising:

performing an analysis through an analysis system configured to communicate through an interface with one or more computers, the analysis system generating an analysis data associated with the analysis;

generating a virtual reality environment including the analysis data associated the analysis, the virtual reality environment being generated by a studio, the studio being a three-dimensional space for containing the motion capture environment, an actor, and the tracked object, the one or more computers being further collectively operable to display the virtual reality environment to the actor that is physically present in the studio; and

displaying the virtual reality environment to an actor participating in the virtual reality environment; and

experimenting with the analysis data to determine solutions;

wherein the one or more computers are operable to generate and display the analysis data associated with the analysis to the actor so that the actor can interact with a virtual representation of the analysis data in the virtual reality environment;

wherein the analysis system is configured to permit virtual modification of the analysis data in real time to achieve real time solutions through an interactive virtual experimentation;

wherein the analysis system is configured to permit modification of the analysis system by the actor;

wherein experimenting with the analysis data includes;

modifying an element in the virtual reality environment analyzed by the analysis system; and

performing an analysis through the analysis system for the modified element; and

wherein modifying the element includes placing a virtual tuning weight on the element being analyzed, the virtual tuning weight being selected by the actor from among a plurality of virtual tuning weights in a virtual toolbox.

7. The method, according to claim 6, wherein performing the analysis includes performing a computational fluid dynamics analysis.

8. The method, according to claim 6, wherein performing the analysis includes performing a computational stress analysis.

9. The method, according to claim 6, wherein performing the analysis includes performing a finite element analysis.

10. The method, according to claim 6, further comprising:

generating a virtual control panel within the virtual reality environment, the virtual control panel including a virtual control that, when actuated, effects a predetermined result in the virtual reality environment;

determining a virtual location of a tracked object within the virtual reality environment that is associated with the actor; and

determining when the virtual location of the tracked object coincides with the location of the virtual control to actuate the virtual control.

11. The method, according to claim 10, further comprising:

providing information relating to the analysis to the actor via the virtual control panel.

12. Software for interactively displaying analysis data in a motion capture environment, the software embodied in a computer-readable medium and when executed operable to:

perform an analysis through an analysis system in communication with one or more computers and generate the analysis data associated with the analysis;

generate a virtual reality environment including results of the analysis;

display the virtual reality environment to an actor participating in the virtual reality environment;

the virtual reality environment being generated by a studio, the studio being a three-dimensional space for containing the motion capture environment, an actor, and the tracked object, the one or more computers being further collectively operable to display the virtual reality environment to the actor that is physically present in the studio;

generate and display the analysis data associated with the analysis to the actor so that the actor can interact with a virtual representation of the analysis data in the virtual reality environment and the actor can adjust conditions the analysis is based upon;

wherein the analysis system is configured to permit virtual modification of the analysis data in real time to achieve real time solutions through an interactive virtual experimentation;

the software being further operable to;

modify an element in the virtual reality environment analyzed by the analysis; and

perform an analysis for the modified element;

wherein modifying the element includes placing a virtual tuning weight on the element being analyzed, the virtual tuning weight being selected by the actor from among a plurality of virtual tuning weights in a virtual toolbox; and

wherein the computer-readable medium is non-transitory.

13. The software, according to claim 12, wherein the analysis includes a computational fluid dynamics analysis.

14. The software, according to claim 12, wherein the analysis includes a computational stress analysis.

15. The software, according to claim 12, wherein the analysis includes a finite element analysis.

16. The software, according to claim 12, further operable to:

generate a virtual control panel within the virtual reality environment, the virtual control panel including a virtual control that, when actuated, effects a predetermined result in the virtual reality environment;

determine a virtual location of a tracked object within the virtual reality environment that is associated with the actor; and

determine when the virtual location of the tracked object coincides with the location of the virtual control to actuate the virtual control.

17. The software, according to claim 16, further operable to:

provide information relating to the analysis to the actor via the virtual control panel.