TRACKING DEVICE FOR USE IN OBTAINING INFORMATION FOR CONTROLLING GAME PROGRAM EXECUTION

• US 20060274032A1
• Filed: 05/08/2006
• Published: 12/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Marks, Richard L., Zalewski, Gary M., Mao, Xiadong
• Granted Patent: US 10,086,282 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/212 using sensors worn by the player, e.g. for measuring heart beat or leg activity
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/213 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. cameras, photodiodes or infrared cells A63F13/219, A63F13/655 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/215 comprising means for detecting acoustic signals, e.g. using a microphone
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/424 involving acoustic input signals, e.g. by using the results of pitch or rhythm extraction or voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/428 involving motion or position input signals, e.g. signals representing the rotation of an input controller or a player's arm motions sensed by accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1006 having additional degrees of freedom
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1012 involving biosensors worn by the player, e.g. for measuring heart beat, limb activity
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/105 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1081 Input via voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1087 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. a camera
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6072 of an input signal, e.g. pitch and rhythm extraction, voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/00 Measuring acceleration; Measuring deceleration; Measuring shock, i.e. sudden change of acceleration
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 2015/0805 being provided with a particular type of spring-mass-system for defining the displacement of a seismic mass due to an external acceleration

Abstract

A tracking device for use in obtaining information for controlling an execution of a game program by a processor for enabling an interactive game to be played by a user and related apparatus are disclosed.

Claims

1. A tracking device for use in obtaining information for controlling an execution of a game program by a processor for enabling an interactive game to be played by a user, comprising:

a body;

an inertial sensor operable to produce information for quantifying a movement of the body through space.

2. The tracking device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the body is mountable to a game controller, the game controller including a game controller body and at least one input device assembled with the game controller body, the input device manipulable by a user to register an input from the user.

3. An apparatus including the tracking device and the game controller as claimed in claim 2.

4. The tracking device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the body of the tracking device is mountable to the user'"'"'s body.

6. The tracking device as claimed in claims 1, 3, 4 or 5, wherein the inertial sensor is operable to produce information for quantifying a first component of the movement of the body along a first axis.

7. The tracking device as claimed in claim 6, wherein the inertial sensor is operable to produce information for quantifying a second component of the movement along a second axis orthogonal to the first axis.

8. The tracking device as claimed in claim 7, wherein the inertial sensor is operable to produce information for quantifying a third component of the movement along a third axis orthogonal to the first and second axes.

9. The tracking device as claimed in claims 6, 7 or 8, wherein the inertial sensor includes at least one accelerometer.

10. The tracking device as claimed in claims 6, 7 or 8, wherein the inertial sensor includes at least one mechanical gyroscope.

11. The tracking device as claimed in claim 10, wherein the inertial sensor includes at least one laser gyroscope.

12. The tracking device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the inertial sensor is operable to produce information for quantifying the movement of the body in at least three degrees of freedom.

13. The tracking device as claimed in claim 12, wherein the three degrees of freedom include pitch, yaw and roll.

14. The tracking device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the three degrees of freedom include an x-axis, a y-axis, and a z-axis, each of the x-axis, y-axis and the z-axis being orthogonal with respect to each other of the to the x-axis, a y-axis, and z-axis.

15. The tracking device as claimed in claim 14, wherein the inertial sensor is operable to quantify the movement in six degrees of freedom, the six degrees of freedom including the three degrees of freedom and pitch, yaw and roll.

16. The tracking device as claimed in any of claims 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15, the tracking device being further operable to obtain a series of samples representative of acceleration of the body along at least one axis at different points in time from the information produced by the inertial sensor.

17. The tracking device as claimed in claim 16, further comprising a processor operable to determine a velocity of the body using the series of samples.

18. The tracking device as claimed in claim 17, wherein the processor is operable to determine the velocity by integrating acceleration values obtained from the series of samples over an interval of time.

19. The tracking device as claimed in claim 16, wherein the processor is operable to determine a displacement of the body in space by first integrating acceleration values obtained from the series of samples over an interval of time and then integrating a result of the first integrating over the interval of time.

20. The tracking device as claimed in claim 19, wherein the processor is operable to determine the displacement in relation to a prior-determined position to determine a present position of the body in space.

21. An apparatus including the tracking device as claimed in claim 16, the apparatus further comprising:

a processor operable to execute a program to provide an interactive game playable by the user in accordance with input obtained by processing the information produced by the inertial sensor.

22. The tracking device as claimed in claims 1, 2 or 3, further comprising a communications interface operable to conduct digital communications with at least one of the processor, the game controller or both the processor and the game controller.

23. The tracking device as claimed in claim 22, wherein the communications interface includes a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (“

UART”

).

24. The tracking device as claimed in claim 23, wherein the UART is operable to perform at least one of receiving a control signal for controlling an operation of the tracking device, or for transmitting a signal from the tracking device for communication with another device.

25. The tracking device as claimed in claims 22 or 23, wherein the communications interface includes a universal serial bus (“

USB”

) controller.

26. The tracking device as claimed in claim 25, wherein the USB controller is operable to perform at least one of receiving a control signal for controlling an operation of the tracking device, or for transmitting a signal from the tracking device for communication with another device.

27. The apparatus as claimed in claim 21, wherein the processor is operable to determine a velocity of the body using the series of samples.

28. The apparatus as claimed in claim 21, wherein the processor is operable to determine the velocity by integrating acceleration values obtained from the series of samples over an interval of time.

29. The apparatus as claimed in claim 21, wherein the processor is operable to determine a displacement of the body in space by first integrating acceleration values obtained from the series of samples over an interval of time and then integrating a result of the first integrating.

30. The apparatus as claimed in claim 21, the processor is operable to determine a position of the body in space by determining the displacement in relation to a previously determined position.