Installation and method for controlling a movable apparatus

• US 6,326,971 B1
• Filed: 01/26/1998
• Issued: 12/04/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Arie Van Wieringen Video Film Productions
• Original Assignee: Arie Van Wieringen Video Film Productions
• Inventors: Van Wieringen, Arie Hendrik Nicolaas
• Primary Examiner(s): Powell, Mark R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HARRISON, CHANTE E
• Application Number:
  US08/981,486
• Time in Patent Office: 1,408 Days
• Field of Search: 345/473, 345/474, 345/121, 345/418, 345/328, 345/302, 446/376, 446/140, 446/390, 446/397, 446/175, 446/268
• US Class Current: 345/474
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/42 Recording and playback systems, i.e. in which the programme is recorded from a cycle of operations, e.g. the cycle of operations being manually controlled, after which this record is played back on the same machine

Abstract

Installation and method for controlling a movable apparatus resembling a living being, or a two-dimensional simulation thereof, the apparatus being provided with artificial limbs, with a device for receiving a control signal and with a device for generating drive signals for the artificial limbs, which installation includes: a user interface provided with input device for the entering of commands by a user, a central processing unit which is connected via a first communications line to the user interface and includes a memory provided with movement data which are made up of series of atomic movements and can also be based on emotions, an editor for the calculation of sub-atomic movements required between the atomic movements read and the insertion of the sub-atomic movements between the atomic movements in order to make the apparatus perform a fluid movement.

Claims

1. Installation for controlling a movable apparatus (1) resembling a living being, or a two-dimensional simulation thereof, which apparatus is provided with artificial limbs, with means (3) for receiving a control signal and with means (2) for generating drive signals for the artificial limbs, which installation comprises:

a user interface (5) provided with input means (13) for the entering of commands by a user (4),

a central processing unit (6) which is connected via a first communications line (11) to the user interface and comprises;

first memory means (20) storing pre-recorded basic movement data of the apparatus (1);

read means (8) to read data from said first memory means (20);

editor means (7) to receive said data from said read means and to calculate transitional movements between subsequent basic movements and to move the apparatus accordingly, such that an orientation of an artificial limb at the end of a basic movement is equal to an orientation of said limb at the start of a subsequent transitional movement and that an orientation of an artificial limb at the end of said subsequent transitional movement is equal to an orientation of said limb at the start of a subsequent basic movement,

characterized in that said editor means (7) are also arranged to calculate said transitional movements such that the speed of change of the acceleration of the limbs is selected to have a minimum value for a desired speed.

2. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the installation is also provided with second memory means (21), provided with emotion movement data relating to pre-specified movements of the apparatus (1), which are linked to emotions of the being which the installation resembles, in that the read means (8) are also equipped to read from the second memory means (21) and in that the editor means (7) is also equipped to calculate the transitional movements in accordance with an emotion entered by the user (4).

3. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the installation is also provided with third memory means (22), provided with sound data, in that the read means (8) are also equipped to read sound data and in that the editor means (7) is also equipped to calculate the transitional movements in accordance with a sound entered by the user (4) and to provide a control signal, which also contains the sound data.

4. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the editor means (7) is arranged to receive commands from a user entered in everyday language and is loaded with fuzzy logic to translate said commands in machine codes.

5. Installation according to claim 4, characterized in that the editor means (7) uses seven basic emotions, i.e., neutral, sad, frightened, angry, happy, dislike and surprised, and is arranged to translate an emotion command of the user into a combination of said basic emotions using membership functions.

6. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the central processing unit is also provided with fourth memory means (19), equipped with software for simulating, on a monitor (13), expected movements to be made by the apparatus (1) on the basis of the control signal calculated by the editor means (7).

7. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the installation is also provided with an interface (15) for communication with an operator, which interface (15) is linked to the central processing unit (6) via a second communications line (16) and is equipped to supply data received to the central processing unit (6) for the first (20), second (21) and, respectively, third (22) memory means in accordance with predetermined movements, emotions and sounds, respectively.

8. Installation according to claim 7, characterized in that said installation is also provided with a data suit (18) for recording movements performed by living test beings, which data suit can be linked to the interface (15).

9. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that the first memory means are storing the following types of basic movements with increasing priority:

“

rest”

basic movements which are selected when no other basic movements are specified;

default basic movements;

basic movements of limbs induced by movement of another limb;

directly specified basic movements.

10. Installation according to claim 1, characterized in that any basic movement is stored in a number of frames and that the editor means (7) is arranged to calculate combined movements of basic movements by scaling the number of frames of the basic movements to be combined.

11. Method for controlling a movable apparatus (1) resembling a living being, or a two-dimensional simulation thereof, which apparatus is provided with artificial limbs, with means (3) for receiving a control signal and with means (2) for generating drive signals for the artificial limbs, which installation comprises:

receiving a command via a user interface (5) provided with input means (13),

reading pre-recorded basic movement data from first memory means (20);

calculate transitional movements between subsequent basic movements and move the apparatus accordingly, such that an orientation of an artificial limb at the end of a basic movement is equal to an orientation of said limb at the start of a subsequent transitional movement and that an orientation of an artificial limb at the end of said subsequent transitional movement is equal to an orientation of said limb at the start of a subsequent basic movement

characterized by the step of calculating said transitional movements such that the speed of change of the acceleration of the limbs is selected to have a minimum value for a desired speed.

12. Method according to claim 11, characterized by the additional step of reading from second memory means (21) provided with emotion movement data relating to predetermined movements of the apparatus (1) which are linked to emotions of the being which the installation resembles, and the calculation of the transitional movements in accordance with an emotion entered by the user (4).

13. Method according to claim 11, characterized by the further step of reading from third memory means (22) provided with sound data and the calculation of the transitional movements in accordance with a sound desired by the user (4) and the provision of the control signal, which also contains the sound data.

14. Method according to claim 11, characterized by receiving commands from a user entered in everyday language and using fuzzy logic to translate said commands in machine codes.

15. Method according to claim 11, characterized by the simulation, on a monitor (13), of expected movements to be made by the apparatus (1) on the basis of the control signal calculated by the editor means (7).

16. Method according to claim 15, characterized in that movements performed by living test beings are recorded with the aid of a data suit (18).