Display techniques for three-dimensional virtual reality

• US 6,504,535 B1
• Filed: 11/12/1998
• Issued: 01/07/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Edmark, John T.
• Primary Examiner(s): Zimmerman, Mark
• Assistant Examiner(s): Santiago, Enrique L
• Application Number:
  US09/191,012
• Time in Patent Office: 1,517 Days
• Field of Search: 345/132, 345/427, 345/428, 345/419, 345/423, 345/426, 345/473, 345/629, 345/632, 345/634, 345/638, 345/639, 345/640, 345/641, 345/646, 345/647
• US Class Current: 345/419
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/10 Geometric effects

Abstract

A limitation of using two-dimensional images, such as videos or photographs, to represent portions of a three-dimensional world occurs when the user moves within the world and views the world from a location different than from the original context of the two-dimensional image, i.e., from a location different than the image'"'"'s ideal viewing point (IVP). View changes result in the image not aligning well with the surrounding objects of the three-dimensional world. This limitation is overcome by distorting the two-dimensional image so as to adjust the image'"'"'s vanishing point(s) in accordance with the movement of the user using a pyramidic panel structure. In this manner, as the user moves away from the ideal viewing point, the distortions act to limit the discontinuities between the two-dimensional image and its surroundings. To minimize the depth profile of the pyramidic panel structure, the structure may be segmented into sections and each section translated towards, or away from, the user'"'"'s viewpoint. Also, a hierarchical image resolution may be used, with portions of the image near the center or vanishing point having a higher resolution than the portions of the image near its perimeter.

Claims

1. A method for use in processing a view of a three-dimensional world in which a first portion of said world is modeled as computer graphics and a second portion of said world is represented by a two-dimensional image texture-mapped on a panel, said two-dimensional image including an object depicted in perspective, said image being such that features of the object closer to a predetermined point of the image are farther away from a user'"'"'s viewpoint, comprising the steps of:

segmenting the two-dimensional image into a plurality of sections;

setting the pixel resolution of each of said plurality of sections according to its location within the two-dimensional image;

determining a vector, {overscore (C)}, corresponding to the direction of said perspective object in the three-dimensional world;

projecting towards said panel the vector, {overscore (C)}, from the two-dimensional image'"'"'s ideal viewing point, IVP, the intersection of said vector, {overscore (C)}, with the panel being denoted as the image'"'"'s vanishing point, P;

segmenting said panel into triangular regions intersecting at the image'"'"'s vanishing point, P;

determining the current viewpoint, V, of the user and projecting a vector, {overscore (T)}, from the image'"'"'s ideal viewing point, IVP, to the current viewpoint, V;

determining a new vanishing point for the two-dimensional image in accordance with the following relationship P′

=P+{overscore (T)};

distorting the triangular regions in the space of the three-dimensional world such that they intersect at the new vanishing point, P′

;

texture-mapping the two-dimensional image in the triangular regions onto said distorted triangular regions; and

displaying the computer graphics along with the two-dimensional image.

2. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein the pixel resolution of each of said plurality of sections is set according to its location relative to the center of the two-dimensional image.

3. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein the pixel resolution of each of said plurality of sections is set such that sections closer to the center of the two-dimensional image have a higher pixel resolution than sections farther away.

4. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein each of said plurality of section is substantially rectangular in shape.

5. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein the vanishing point is located at or near the center of the two-dimensional image.

6. A method for use in processing a view of a three-dimensional world in which a first portion of said world is modeled as computer graphics and a second portion of said world is represented by a two-dimensional image texture-mapped on a panel, comprising the steps of:

determining the current viewpoint of the user, V;

dividing the panel into triangular regions;

distorting the triangular regions to form pyramidic panels such that a corresponding vanishing point, P, of a portion of the two-dimensional image moves as a function of the current viewpoint of the user;

segmenting each of said pyramidic panels into a plurality of sections;

translating each of said plurality of sections of said pyramidic panels towards, or away from, said current viewpoint of the user, V;

segmenting the two-dimensional image into sections;

adjusting the pixel resolution in each of said sections of the two-dimensional image according to its location relative to the center of the two-dimensional image;

texture-mapping the two-dimensional image onto the plurality of sections of the pyramidic panels;

scaling each of said plurality of sections of said pyramidic panels in accordance with the following relationship S_t=S_pT_t/T_p, where S_p is the size of the section;

S_t is the size of the translated section;

T_p is distance to the section from the user'"'"'s viewpoint, V; and

T_t is the distance to the translated section from the user'"'"'s viewpoint, V; and

displaying the computer graphics along with the two-dimensional image.

7. The invention as defined in claim 6 wherein the pixel resolution of each of said plurality of sections is set such that sections closer to the center of the two-dimensional image have a higher pixel resolution than sections farther away.

8. The invention as defined in claim 6 wherein each of said plurality of section is substantially rectangular in shape.

9. The invention as defined in claim 6 wherein said segmenting step includes resegmenting said pyramidic panels into a greater number of smaller sections until the depth profile of the pyramidic panel structure formed from said panels reaches a predetermined level.

10. The invention as defined in claim 6 wherein an outer edge of each of said plurality of sections of said pyramidic panels is located on the surface of a predetermined plane.

11. The invention as defined in claim 10 wherein said predetermined plane is the panel onto which the two-dimensional image is texture-mapped.

12. The invention as defined in claim 6 wherein the center of each of said plurality of sections of said pyramidic panels is substantially located at the surface of a predetermined plane.

13. The invention as defined in claim 12 wherein said predetermined plane is the panel onto which the two-dimensional image is texture-mapped.

14. The invention as defined in claim 6 further comprising determining a vector, {overscore (C)}, corresponding to the direction of a portion of a path contained within the two-dimensional image, and projecting toward the panel the vector, {overscore (C)}, from the image'"'"'s ideal viewing point, IVP, the intersection of said vector, {overscore (C)}, with the panel being denoted as the image'"'"'s vanishing point, P.

15. The invention as defined in claim 6 wherein said distorting of the triangular regions in said distorting step includes determining a new vanishing point, P′

, for said two-dimensional image in accordance with the following relationship P′

=P+{overscore (T)}, wherein {overscore (T)} is a vector from the image'"'"'s ideal viewing point, IVP, to the current viewpoint, V.