Methods and systems for enabling depth and direction detection when interfacing with a computer program

• US 7,874,917 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2005
• Issued: 01/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Computer Entertainment Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Marks, Richard L., Deshpande, Hrishikesh R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Laneau; Ronald
• Application Number:
  US11/302,511
• Publication Number:
  US 20070060336A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,870 Days
• Field of Search: 463/36, 463/31, 463/37, 463 2- 6, 345/156, 348169-172, 382/313
• US Class Current: 463/36
• 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 13/245 specially adapted to a particular type of game, e.g. steering wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/52 involving aspects of the displayed game scene
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5372 for tagging characters, objects or locations in the game scene, e.g. displaying a circle under the character controlled by the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1062 being specially adapted to a type of game, e.g. steering wheel
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1087 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. a camera
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/306 for displaying a marker associated to an object or location in the game field
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/66 for rendering three dimensional images
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/012 Head tracking input arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0304 Detection arrangements using opto-electronic means constructional details of pointing devices not related to the detection arrangement using opto-electronic means G06F3/033; optical digitisers G06F3/042
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0325 using a plurality of light emitters or reflectors or a plurality of detectors forming a reference frame from which to derive the orientation of the object, e.g. by triangulation or on the basis of reference deformation in the picked up image
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence

Abstract

A method for detecting direction when interfacing with a computer program is provided. The method includes capturing an image presented in front of an image capture device. The image capture device has a capture location in a coordinate space. When a person is captured in the image, the method includes identifying a human head in the image and assigning the human head a head location in the coordinate space. The method also includes identifying an object held by the person in the image and assigning the object an object location in coordinate space. The method further includes identifying a relative position in coordinate space between the head location and the object location when viewed from the capture location. The relative position includes a dimension of depth. The method may be practiced on a computer system, such as one used in the gaming field.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for detecting depth and direction when interfacing with a computer program, comprising:

(a) capturing one or more images with at least one depth camera, wherein each depth camera has a capture location in a coordinate space and the image includes a person;

(b) identifying a human head of the person in the image and assigning the human head a head location in the coordinate space;

(c) identifying an object held by the person in the image and assigning the object an object location in coordinate space;

(d) identifying a relative position in coordinate space between the head location and the object location when viewed from the capture location, wherein identifying the relative position includes computing an azimuth angle and an altitude angle between the head location and the object location in relation to the capture location, wherein the relative position includes a dimension of depth with respect to the coordinate space, wherein the dimension of depth is determined from analysis of the one or more images; and

(e) displaying the pointing direction of the object on the display screen.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the relative position defines a pointing direction of the object when viewed by the image capture device.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the relative position is identified by computing an azimuth angle and an altitude angle between the head location and the object location in relation to the capture location.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the dimension of depth is determined by taking first and second images with first and second image capture devices located at spaced-apart positions and measuring distances of an object in each image relative to a reference in each image.

5. A method for detecting direction when interfacing with a computer program as recited in claim 1, wherein the capture location is at a proximate location of a display screen and the display screen is capable of rendering interactive graphics.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the pointing direction is toward the display screen.

7. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

repeating (a)-(d) continually to update the pointing direction; and

displaying the continually updated pointing direction on the display screen.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

enabling selection of particular interactive graphics using the displayed pointing direction.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the selection is in response to a detected trigger event.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the detected trigger event is identified in the image, the identification comprising,

identifying a first characteristic of the object held by the person at a first point in time;

and

identifying a second characteristic of the object held by the person at a second point in time,

wherein the trigger event is activated when a degree of difference is determined to have existed between first characteristic and the second characteristic when examined between the first point in time and the second point in time.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the trigger even being activated is indicative of interactivity with the interactive graphics.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the interactivity can include one or more of selection of a graphic, shooting of a graphic, touching a graphic, moving of a graphic, activation of a graphic, triggering of a graphic and acting upon or with a graphic.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the human head is processed using template matching in combination with face detection code.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying the object held by the person is facilitated by color tracking of a portion of the object.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein color tracking includes one or a combination of identifying differences in colors and identifying on/off states of colors.

16. The method of claim 6, wherein identifying the object held by the person is facilitated by identification of changes in positions of the object when repeating (a)-(d).

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the computer program is a video game.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising synchronizing the image capture devices.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein synchronizing the image capture devices includes providing a strobe signal that is visible to each image capture device.

20. A method for detecting depth and direction when interfacing with a computer program, comprising:

(a) capturing an image presented in front of one or more image capture devices, wherein the image capture device has a capture location in a coordinate space;

when a person is captured in the image,

(b) identifying a human head in the image and assigning the human head a head location in the coordinate space;

(c) identifying an object held by the person in the image and assigning the object an object location in coordinate space;

(d) receiving at a plurality of microphones at known positions relative to the image capture device a sound signal originating from the object;

(e) identifying a relative position in coordinate space between the head location and the object location when viewed from the capture location, wherein the relative position in coordinate space is determined from relative times of arrival of the sound signal at different microphones, wherein the relative position includes a dimension of depth with respect to the coordinate space.

21. A method for detecting pointing direction of an object directed toward a display screen that can render graphics of a computer program, comprising:

(a) capturing two or more stereo images of a scene presented in front of a depth camera having a capture location in a coordinate space that is proximate to the display screen;

when a person is captured in the image,

(b) identifying a first body part of the person in the image and assigning the first body part a first location in the coordinate space;

(c) identifying a second body part of the person in the image and assigning the second body part a second location in coordinate space; and

(d) identifying a relative position in coordinate space between the first location and the second location when viewed from the capture location, wherein identifying the relative position includes computing an azimuth angle and an altitude angle between the head location and the object location in relation to the capture location wherein the relative position includes a dimension of depth determined by the depth camera.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the relative position defines a pointing direction of the second body part when viewed by the image capture device at the capture location that is proximate to the display screen.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the first body part is a human head and the second body part is a human hand.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein particular shape changes trigger interactivity with interactive graphics of the computer program.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the interactivity can include one or more of selection of a graphic, shooting of a graphic, touching a graphic, moving of a graphic, activation of a graphic, triggering of a graphic and acting upon or with a graphic.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein the second body part is identified by way of an object held by the human hand.

28. The method of claim 21, wherein the object includes color.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the color is capable of switching between states to trigger interactivity with interactive graphics of the computer program.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein additional colors are present on the object, the colors capable of being switched to trigger interactivity with interactive graphics of the computer program.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein the color can switch from on/off states to trigger interactivity with interactive graphics of the computer program.

32. The method of claim 21, wherein the computer program is a video game.

33. The method of claim 21, wherein the relative position is identified by computing an azimuth angle and an altitude angle between the head location and the object location in relation to the capture location.

24. The method of 21, wherein (a)-(d) is repeated continually during execution of the computer program, and

examining a shape of the human hand during the repeating of (a)-(d) to determine particular shape changes.

34. A method for detecting pointing direction of an object directed toward a display screen that can render graphics of a computer program, comprising:

(a) capturing an image presented in front an image capture device, the image capture device having a capture location in a coordinate space that is proximate to the display screen;

when a person is captured in the image,

(b) identifying a first body part of the person in the image and assigning the first body part a first location in the coordinate space;

(c) identifying a second body part of the person in the image and assigning the second body part a second location in coordinate space;

(d) receiving at a plurality of microphones at known positions relative to the image capture device a sound signal originating from the object; and

(e) identifying a relative position in coordinate space between the first location and the second location when viewed from the capture location, wherein the relative position includes a dimension of depth, wherein the relative position in coordinate space is determined from relative times of arrival of the sound signal at different microphones.