Information processing program and information processing apparatus

• US 7,724,267 B2
• Filed: 12/11/2006
• Issued: 05/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited, Pokemon
• Original Assignee: Game Freak, Inc., Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Takahashi, Tomoya, Yoshihara, Kazuki, Watanabe, Tetsuya
• Primary Examiner(s): GOOD JOHNSON, MOTILEWA
• Application Number:
  US11/636,445
• Publication Number:
  US 20080122863A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,261 Days
• Field of Search: 345/184, 345/156, 345/157, 345/649, 345/650, 434/92
• US Class Current: 345/650
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2300/026 Video wall, i.e. juxtaposition of a plurality of screens to create a display screen of bigger dimensions
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/145 related to small screens

Abstract

An information processing apparatus has a pointing device for designating a position of an arbitrary point with respect to a reference point O, and a processor of the information processing apparatus detects a position of the point designated by the pointing device with respect to the reference point O at every unit of time, and calculates an operation vector AB respectively regarding a point A and a point B detected before and after as a starting point and an ending point. The calculated operation vector AB is orthogonally-projected onto a strait line vertical to a vector OA respectively regarding the reference point O and the point A as a starting point and an ending point. Information processing is performed on the basis of a component vector thus obtained from the operation vector AB.

Claims

1. A recording medium recording an information processing program, wherein said information processing program causes a processor of an information processing apparatus with a pointing device for designating a position of an arbitrary point to execute a method comprising:

detecting a position designated by said pointing device with respect to a reference point at every unit of time;

calculating an operation vector respectively regarding a first point and a second point detected before and after by said position detecting as a starting point and an ending point;

orthogonally-projecting the calculated operation vector onto a straight line vertical to the first vector respectively regarding said reference point and said first point as a starting point and an ending point; and

processing information on the basis of a component vector obtained from said operation vector by processing in said orthogonally-projecting.

2. A recording medium recording an information processing program according to claim 1, wherein said orthogonally-projecting includes calculating an unit vector vertical to said first vector;

and calculating an inner product between the calculated operation vector and the calculated unit vector.

3. A recording medium recording an information processing program according to claim 2, wherein

said information processing program causes said processor to further execute:

calculating an absolute value of the calculation by said inner product calculating; and

calculating an outer product between said first vector and a second vector regarding said reference point and said second point as a starting point and an ending point, and

said processing information includes performing information processing on the basis of the calculated absolute value and said calculated outer product.

4. A recording medium recording an information processing program according to claim 1, wherein

said information processing apparatus further comprising a display for displaying an image, and

said processing information includes moving an image displayed on said display in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an amount corresponding to the size of the component vector.

5. A recording medium recording an information processing program according to claim 4, wherein said processing information includes:

multiplying the size of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by a constant, and retaining the result of the multiplication as a reference velocity; and

performing deceleration processing on the reference velocity retained by said retaining the result of the multiplication at every unit of time.

6. A recording medium recording an information processing program according to claim 5, wherein said processing information further includes:

determining whether or not the reference velocity retained by said retaining is equal to or more than a threshold value; and

a changing the reference velocity to zero when the reference velocity is determined to be less than the threshold value.

7. A recording medium recording an information processing program according to claim 6, wherein said processing information includes:

determining whether or not said image exists at a defined position when said velocity determining determines that the reference velocity is less than the threshold value; and

moving said image to said defined position when said position determining step-determines that said image does not exist at said defined position, and then stopping it.

8. A recording medium recording an information processing program according to claim 4, wherein

said image includes a first image and a second image,

said processing information includes:

rotating said first image in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an angle corresponding to the size of said component vector; and

translating said second image in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by a distance corresponding to the size of the component vector.

9. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a pointing device for designating a position of an arbitrary point;

a position detector for detecting a position designated by said pointing device with respect to a reference point at every unit of time;

an operation vector calculator for calculating an operation vector respectively regarding a first point and a second point detected before and after by said position detector as a starting point and an ending point;

an orthogonally projector for orthogonally-projecting the operation vector calculated by said operation vector calculator onto a straight line vertical to the first vector respectively regarding said reference point and said first point as a starting point and an ending point; and

an information processor for processing information on the basis of a component vector obtained from said operation vector by the orthogonally-projecting processing in said orthogonally projector.

10. A information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

said information processing apparatus further comprising a display for displaying an image, and

said information processor moves an image displayed on said display in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an amount corresponding to the size of the component vector;

said information processor performs;

multiplying the size of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by a constant, and retaining the result of the multiplication as a reference velocity; and

deceleration processing on the reference velocity retained by said retaining at every unit of time.

11. A information processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said information processor performs:

determining whether or not the reference velocity retained by said retaining is equal to or more than a threshold value; and

changing the reference velocity to zero when it is determined that the reference velocity is less than the threshold value.

12. A information processing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said information processor performs:

determining whether or not said image exists at a defined position when said velocity determining determines that the reference velocity is less than the threshold value; and

moving said image to said defined position when said position determining determines that said image does not exist at said defined position, and then stopping it.

13. A information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein

said information processing apparatus further comprising a display for displaying an image, and

said information processor moves an image displayed on said display in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an amount corresponding to the size of the component vector;

said image includes a first image and a second image,

said information processor performs;

rotating said first image in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an angle corresponding to the size of said component vector; and

translating said second image in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by a distance corresponding to the size of the component vector.

14. A information processing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said orthogonally-projector calculates an unit vector vertical to said first vector;

and calculates an inner product between the calculated operation vector and the calculated unit vector.

15. An information processing method of an information processing apparatus with a pointing device for designating a position of an arbitrary point, comprising:

detecting a position designated by said pointing device with respect to a reference point at every unit of time;

calculating an operation vector respectively regarding a first point and a second point detected before and after by said position detecting as a starting point and an ending point;

orthogonally-projecting the calculated operation vector onto a straight line vertical to the first vector respectively regarding said reference point and said first point as a starting point and an ending point; and

processing information on the basis of a component vector obtained from said operation vector by processing in said orthogonally-projecting.

16. A method according to claim 15, wherein

said information processing apparatus further comprising a display for displaying an image, and

said processing information includes moving an image displayed on said display in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an amount corresponding to the size of the component vector;

said processing information includes;

multiplying the size of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by a constant, and retaining the result of the multiplication as a reference velocity; and

performing deceleration processing on the reference velocity retained by said retaining the result of the multiplication at every unit of time.

17. A method according to claim 16, wherein said processing information further includes:

determining whether or not the reference velocity retained by said retaining is equal to or more than a threshold value; and

changing the reference velocity to zero when the reference velocity is determined to be less than the threshold value.

18. A method according to claim 17, wherein said processing information includes:

determining whether or not said image exists at a defined position when said velocity determining determines that the reference velocity is less than the threshold value; and

moving said image to said defined position when said position determining determines that said image does not exist at said defined position, and then stopping it.

19. A method according to claim 15, wherein

said information processing apparatus further comprising a display for displaying an image, and

said processing information includes moving an image displayed on said display in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an amount corresponding to the size of the component vector;

said image includes a first image and a second image,

said processing information includes;

rotating said first image in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by an angle corresponding to the size of said component vector; and

translating said second image in a direction corresponding to the orientation of the component vector obtained from said operation vector by a distance corresponding to the size of the component vector.

20. A method according to claim 15, wherein said orthogonally-projecting includes calculating an unit vector vertical to said first vector;

and calculating an inner product between the calculated operation vector and the calculated unit vector.