Storage medium having input processing program stored thereon and input processing device

• US RE44,658 E1
• Filed: 01/29/2013
• Issued: 12/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/19/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Konno, Hideki, Ajioka, Yoshitaka, Ebisawa, Yasushi, Mizuki, Kiyoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Beck, Alexander S
• Assistant Examiner(s): STEINBERG, JEFFREY S
• Application Number:
  US13/752,792
• Time in Patent Office: 329 Days
• Field of Search: 345156-173, 178 1801- 1811, 463 30- 34
• US Class Current: 345/157
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1075 using a touch screen
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/301 using an additional display connected to the game console, e.g. on the controller
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0488 using a touch-screen or digitiser, e.g. input of commands through traced gestures

Abstract

An input processing device comprises a display screen and a pointing device for inputting corresponding 2-dimensional coordinates on the display screen. A 3-dimensional space is displayed on the display screen and the 2-dimensional coordinates inputted from the pointing device are detected. Next, shift amounts, per unit of time, of the detected 2-dimensional coordinates are calculated based on a predetermined calculation start condition. And the calculated shift amounts are converted to 3-dimensional coordinate shift amounts in the 3-dimensional space.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon an input processing program to be executed by a computer in an input processing device including a display screen and a pointing device that inputs corresponding coordinates on the display screen, the input processing program causing the computer to execute:

a display control step that displays a virtual 3-dimensional space on the display screen;

an input coordinate detection step that detects input coordinates from the pointing device;

an on-virtual-plane moving step that, when inputting from the pointing device is continuously performed, moves an object on a predetermined virtual plane based on the input coordinates detected in the input coordinate detection step; and

an in 3-dimensional-space moving step that, when a state where inputting from the pointing device is continuously performed shifts to a state where inputting from the pointing device is not performed, causes the object to leave the virtual plane and to move in the virtual 3-dimensional space,

wherein the in 3-dimensional-space moving step determines, based on the detected input coordinates, an initial setting which is used to calculate the movement of the object in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, according to claim 1, the input processing program further causing the computer to execute:

an immediately-before-input-change-value-calculation step, when the state where inputting from the pointing device is continuously performed shifts to the state where inputting from the pointing device is not performed, that calculates values of representing a change of the input coordinates detected in the input coordinate detection step immediately before shifting to the state where inputting from the pointing device is not performed, wherein the in-3-dimensional-space moving step moves the object in the virtual 3-dimensional space based on the values of representing the change detected immediately before the shifting.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, according to claim 2, wherein based on the values of representing the change detected immediately before the shifting, the input processing program causes the computer to execute the in-3-dimensional-space moving step that determines a direction in which the object moves in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, according to claim 2, wherein based on the values of representing the change detected immediately before the shifting, the input processing program causes the computer to execute the in-3-dimensional-space moving step that determines a velocity at which the object moves in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, according to claim 2, wherein based on values of representing the change with respect to a first direction and a second direction on the virtual plane calculated in the immediately-before-input-change-value-calculation step, the input processing program causes the computer to execute the in-3-dimensional-space moving step calculates valves of values representing the change with respect to a third direction perpendicular to the virtual plane and moves the object in the virtual 3-dimensional space based on the respective values of representing the change with respect to the first direction, the second direction, and the third direction.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, according to claim 2, wherein based on the input coordinates, the input processing program causes the computer to execute the in-3-dimensional-space moving step determines a direction in which the object moves in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

7. An input processing device, comprising:

a display screen;

a pointing device that inputs corresponding coordinates on the display screen;

display controller that displays a virtual 3-dimensional space on the display screen;

input coordinate detector that detects input coordinates from the pointing device;

an on-virtual-plane mover that, when inputting from the pointing device is continuous performed, moves an object on a predetermined virtual plane based on the input coordinates detected by the input coordinate detector; and

an in-3-dimensional-space mover that, when a state where inputting from the pointing device is continuously performed shifts to a state where inputting from the pointing device is not performed, causes the object to leave the virtual plane and to move in the virtual 3-dimensional space,

wherein the in 3-dimensional-space mover determines, based on the detected input coordinates, an initial setting which is used to calculate the movement of the object in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

8. The input processing device according to claim 7, further comprising an immediately-before-input-change-value-calculator that, when the state where inputting from the pointing device is continuously performed shifts to the state where inputting from the pointing device is not performed, calculates values of representing a change of the input coordinates detected by the input coordinate detector immediately before shifting to the state where inputting from the pointing device is not performed, wherein

the in-3-dimensional-space mover moves the object in the virtual 3-dimensional space based on the values of representing the change detected immediately before the shifting.

9. The input processing device according to claim 8, wherein based on the values of representing the change detected immediately before the shifting, the in-3-dimensional-space mover determines a direction in which the object moves in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

10. The input processing device according to claim 8, wherein based on the values of representing the change detected immediately before the shifting, the in-3-dimensional-space mover determines a velocity at which the object moves in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

11. The input processing device according to claim 8, wherein based on values of representing the change with respect to a first direction and a second direction on the virtual plane, calculated by the immediately before input change value calculator, the in 3-dimensional space mover calculates values of representing the change with respect to a third direction perpendicular to the virtual plane and moves the object in the virtual 3-dimensional space based on the respective values of representing the change with respect to the first direction, the second direction, and the third direction.

12. The input processing device according to claim 8, wherein based on the input coordinates, the in 3-dimensional-space mover determines a direction in which the object moves in the virtual 3-dimensional space.

13. An input processing method comprising;

;

a coordinate input step that inputs corresponding coordinates on a display screen;

a display control step that displays a virtual 3-dimensional space on the display screen;

an input coordinate detection step that detects the input coordinates inputted in the coordinate input step;

;

an on-virtual-plane moving step that, when inputting in the coordinate input step is continuously performed, moves an object on a predetermined virtual plane based on the input coordinates detected in the input coordinate detection step; and

an in-3-dimensional-space moving step that, when a state where inputting in the coordinate input step is continuously performed shifts to a state where inputting in the coordinate input step is not performed, causing the object to leave the virtual plane and to move in the virtual 3-dimensional space,

wherein the in-3-dimensional-space moving step determines, based on the detected input coordinates, an initial setting which is used to calculate the movement of the object in the virtual 3-dimensional space.