Method for operating a virtual reality system, and virtual reality system

• US 10,359,840 B2
• Filed: 01/25/2017
• Issued: 07/23/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Audi AG (Volkswagen AG)
• Original Assignee: Audi AG (Volkswagen AG)
• Inventors: Kuhne, Marcus
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Priyank J
• Application Number:
  US16/075,373
• Publication Number:
  US 20190041982A1
• Time in Patent Office: 909 Days
• 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: G06T 19/003 Navigation within 3D models or images

Abstract

A speed at which a person who has donned a pair of virtual reality glasses performs a change of position within a detection space is detected in a virtual reality system. If it is detected that the change of position takes place within a prescribed subregion of the detection space, a virtual speed that is greater by a prescribed factor than the detected speed of the person is prescribed and a virtual observation position within a virtual environment is changed in accordance with the prescribed virtual speed, during which the virtual reality glasses are used to display a virtual object arranged within the virtual environment from the changing virtual observation position.

Claims

1. A method for operating a virtual-reality system, comprising:

capturing a velocity at which a person wearing virtual-reality glasses moves within a capture space;

when the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within a predetermined portion of the capture space, predetermining a virtual velocity that is greater than the captured velocity of the person by a predetermined factor;

changing a virtual observation position within virtual surroundings according to the predetermined virtual velocity to enable the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses to virtually move around a virtual object disposed within the virtual surroundings without leaving the capture space, the virtual object having relatively large virtual dimensions in comparison with real dimensions of the capture space; and

displaying, by using the virtual-reality glasses, the virtual object from the changing virtual observation position while the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within the virtual surroundings at the predetermined virtual velocity.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising:

when the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves outside of the predetermined portion of the capture space, predetermining a second virtual velocity which corresponds to the captured velocity of the person;

changing the virtual observation position according to the predetermined second virtual velocity; and

displaying, by using the virtual-reality glasses, the virtual object from the changing virtual observation position while the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within the virtual surroundings at the predetermined second virtual velocity.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein

the capture space includes an inner region and an outer region which surrounds the inner region, and

the predetermined portion corresponds to the outer region.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising displaying, by the virtual-reality glasses, a virtual portion corresponding to the predetermined portion within the virtual surroundings.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein changing the virtual observation position occurs at least substantially synchronously in time with the movement of the person within the capture space.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a value of the predetermined factor increases as the virtual dimensions of the virtual object increases.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a value of the predetermined factor increases as the virtual dimensions of the virtual object relative to the real dimensions of the capture space increases.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a virtual movement direction, along which the virtual observation position is changed, corresponds to a movement direction of the person within the capture space.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein predetermining the virtual velocity comprises:

increasing only a horizontal velocity component of the captured velocity of the person by the predetermined factor to determine a horizontal velocity component of the predetermined virtual velocity, and

using a vertical velocity component of the captured velocity of the person as a vertical velocity component of the predetermined virtual velocity.

10. A virtual-reality system, comprising

virtual-reality glasses;

a capture device to capture a velocity at which a person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within a capture space; and

a controller configured to;

predetermine a virtual velocity which is greater than the captured velocity of the person by a predetermined factor when the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within a predetermined portion of the capture space;

change a virtual observation position within virtual surroundings according to the predetermined virtual velocity to enable the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses to virtually move around a virtual object disposed within the virtual surroundings without leaving the capture space, the virtual object having relatively large virtual dimensions in comparison with real dimensions of the capture space, and

control the virtual-reality glasses to display the virtual object from the changing virtual observation position while the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within the virtual surroundings at the predetermined virtual velocity.

11. The virtual-reality system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the controller is further configured to:

predetermine a second virtual velocity which is less than the predetermined virtual velocity when the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves outside of the predetermined portion of the capture space,

change the virtual observation position according to the predetermined second virtual velocity, and

control the virtual-reality glasses to display the virtual object from the changing virtual observation position while the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within the virtual surroundings at the predetermined second virtual velocity.

12. The virtual-reality system as claimed in claim 10, wherein

the capture space is a space within which a position of the wearer of the virtual-reality glasses is capturable by the capturing device,

the capture space is defined by the controller to include an inner region and an outer region which surrounds the inner region, and

the predetermined portion corresponds to the outer region.

13. The virtual-reality system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the controller is further configured to:

predetermine a second virtual velocity which is less than the predetermined virtual velocity when the person moves from the outer region to the inner region of the capture space,

change the virtual observation position according to the predetermined second virtual velocity, and

control the virtual-reality glasses to display the virtual object from the changing virtual observation position while the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses moves within the virtual surroundings at the predetermined second virtual velocity and remains within the inner region of the capture space.

14. The virtual-reality system as claimed in claim 12, wherein the virtual-reality glasses is configured to display a virtual portion corresponding to the outer region so as to visually inform the person wearing the virtual-reality glasses where an accelerated movement within the virtual surroundings at the predetermined virtual velocity occurs.

15. The virtual-reality system as claimed in claim 10, wherein

the virtual object is a motor vehicle including at least one of an automobile or a truck having a larger size than automobile, and

the controller is configured to set the predetermined factor to a first value when the virtual object is the automobile, and is configured to set the predetermined factor to a second value when the virtual object is the truck, the second value being greater than the first value.

16. The virtual-reality system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the controller is configured to set the predetermined factor to a first value when a size of the virtual dimensions of the virtual object compared to the real dimensions of the capture space is a first ratio, and is configured to set the predetermined factor to a second value when the size of the virtual dimensions of the virtual object compared to the real dimensions of the capture space is a second ratio, the second value being greater than the first value when the second ratio is greater than the first ratio.

17. The virtual-reality system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the controller is configured to predetermine the virtual velocity by:

increasing a horizontal velocity component of the captured velocity of the person by the predetermined factor to determine a horizontal velocity component of the predetermined virtual velocity, and

using a vertical velocity component of the captured velocity of the person as a vertical velocity component of the predetermined virtual velocity.