Image displaying method and apparatus

• US 20050024388A1
• Filed: 07/26/2004
• Published: 02/03/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Takemoto, Kazuki
• Granted Patent: US 7,830,334 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/633
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/006 Mixed reality object pose determination, tracking or camera calibration for mixed reality G06T7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2219/024 Multi-user, collaborative environment

Abstract

Image exhibiting method of exhibiting an image of mixed reality space is provided. A three-dimensional visual-field area of an observer in the mixed reality space is calculated, a virtual visual-field object representing the visual-field area is generated, and the virtual visual-field object is superimposed on the image of the mixed reality space to be exhibited.

Claims

1. An image exhibiting method of exhibiting an image of mixed reality space, comprising:

a calculating step of calculating a three-dimensional visual-field area of an observer in the mixed reality space;

a generating step of generating a virtual visual-field object representing the visual-field area; and

a superimposing step of superimposing the virtual visual-field object on the image of the mixed reality space to be exhibited.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein in said generating step, a virtual boundary object representing a line of intersection between a surface of an object placed in reality space and a surface constituting the visual-field area is generated, and

in said superimposing step, the virtual visual-field object and the virtual boundary object are superimposed on the image of the mixed reality space to be exhibited.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the virtual visual-field object and the virtual boundary object are not superimposed on the image observed by the observer.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the image of the mixed reality space, obtained by superimposing a virtual image on a reality space image sensed by an image sensing unit, is exhibited to the observer, and

in said calculating step, the visual-field area is calculated based on a position and orientation of the image sensing unit and a camera internal parameter of the image sensing unit.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the visual-field area is an area limited by a front clipping surface and a rear clipping surface.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein an image of mixed reality space, obtained by superimposing a virtual image on a reality space image stereoscopically sensed by two image sensing units, is exhibited to the observer,

in said calculating step, respective visual-field areas of the two image sensing units are calculated, and

in said generating step, the virtual visual-field object is generated with an overlapping region of the two calculated visual-field areas.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein in a case where there are a plurality of the observers, a plurality of visual-field areas respectively corresponding to the plurality of the observers are calculated in said calculating step, and

the virtual visual-field object is generated based on the plurality of visual-field areas in said generating step.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein in said generating step, the virtual visual-field object is generated with an overlapping region of the plurality of visual-field areas.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein in said generating step, a plurality of virtual visual-field objects respectively corresponding to the plurality of visual-field areas are generated, and

the plurality of virtual visual-field objects are selectively displayed.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein in said generating step, a plurality of virtual visual-field objects respectively corresponding to the plurality of visual-field areas are generated, and

the plurality of virtual visual-field objects are displayed in different colors.

12. A computer program which causes a computer apparatus to execute the image exhibiting method described in claim 1.

13. A computer-readable storage medium characterized by storing the computer program described in claim 12.

11. An image exhibiting apparatus for exhibiting an image of mixed reality space, comprising:

a calculating unit for calculating a three-dimensional visual-field area of an observer in the mixed reality space;

a generating unit for generating a virtual visual-field object representing the visual-field area; and

a superimposing unit for superimposing the virtual visual-field object on the image of the mixed reality space to be exhibited.

14. An image exhibiting method of exhibiting an image of mixed reality space to first and second users, comprising:

a calculating step of calculating a three-dimensional visual-field area of the first user in the mixed reality space;

a generating step of generating a virtual visual-field object representing the visual-field area; and

a superimposing step of superimposing the virtual visual-field object on the image of the mixed reality space to be exhibited to the second user.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein in said generating step, a virtual boundary object representing a line of intersection between a surface of an object placed in reality space and a surface constituting the visual-field area is generated, and

in said superimposing step, the virtual visual-field object and the virtual boundary object are superimposed on the image of the mixed reality space to be exhibited.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the virtual visual-field object and the virtual boundary object are not superimposed on the image observed by the first user.

17. The method according to claim 15, wherein the image of the mixed reality space, obtained by superimposing a virtual image on a reality space image sensed by an image sensing unit, is exhibited to the first user, and

in said calculating step, the visual-field area is calculated based on a position and orientation of the image sensing unit and a camera internal parameter of the image sensing unit.

18. The method according to claim 15, wherein the visual-field area is an area limited by a front clipping surface and a rear clipping surface.