3D videogame system

• US 8,206,218 B2
• Filed: 02/22/2010
• Issued: 06/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/19/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TDVision Corporation S.A. De C.V.
• Original Assignee: TDVision Corporation S.A. De C.V.
• Inventors: Gutierrez Novelo, Manuel Rafael
• Primary Examiner(s): Hall, Arthur O.
• Application Number:
  US12/710,191
• Publication Number:
  US 20100151944A1
• Time in Patent Office: 855 Days
• Field of Search: 463 1- 5, 463 7- 9, 463 30- 34, 463 36- 39, 463 40- 43, 463 49- 57, 273/108.1, 273/127.R, 273/148.R, 273/148.B, 273/309, 273/317.1, 273/340, 273/343, 273/348, 273361-367, 273/461, 345 11- 13, 345 21- 23, 345 31- 34, 345/24, 345/419, 345467-469, 345/473, 345/539, 345543-544, 345/625, 345/636, 345/638, 345653-656, 345664-666, 345682-683, 345/686, 345949-950, 345/FOR.139, 345/FOR.153, 348/14.15, 348/39, 348/42, 348 47- 52, 348/115, 348/117, 348/121, 348135-137, 348/141, 348/211.2, 348/211.4, 3482117-2118, 348/211.14, 348/211.99, 348/576, 348588-589, 348/719, 348/721, 348/734, 348/E13.004, 348E13064-E13067, 37524015-24016, 375/240.25, 434 37- 38, 434 43- 44, 434/69, 434/118, 434/240, 434256-257
• US Class Current: 463/30
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/21 characterised by their sensors, purposes or types
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/24 Constructional details thereof, e.g. game controllers with detachable joystick handles
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/40 Processing input control signals of video game devices, e.g. signals generated by the player or derived from the environment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/52 involving aspects of the displayed game scene
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5252 using two or more virtual cameras concurrently or sequentially, e.g. automatically switching between fixed virtual cameras when a character changes room or displaying a rear-mirror view in a car-driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1043 being characterized by constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/66 for rendering three dimensional images
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6669 using a plurality of virtual cameras concurrently or sequentially, e.g. automatically switching between fixed virtual cameras when a character change rooms
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8082 Virtual reality
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/00 3D [Three Dimensional] image rendering
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/005 General purpose rendering architectures
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/205 Image-based rendering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/383 for tracking with gaze detection, i.e. detecting the lines of sight of the viewer's eyes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 13/398 Synchronisation thereof; Control thereof

Abstract

A 3D videogame system capable of displaying a left-right sequences through a different, independent VGA or video channel, with a display device sharing a memory in an immerse manner. The system has a videogame engine controlling and validating the image perspectives, assigning textures, lighting, positions, movements and aspects associated with each object participating in the game; creates left and right backbuffers, creates images and presents the information in the frontbuffers. The system allows handling the information of data associated to the xyz coordinates of the object'"'"'s image in real-time, increases the RAM for the left-right backbuffer, with the possibility to discriminate and take the corresponding backbuffer, whose information is sent to the frontbuffer or additional independent display device sharing a memory in an immerse manner.

Claims

1. A method in a videogame system for displaying three-dimensional images, comprising the computer implemented steps of:

providing left and right backbuffers;

calculating first position coordinates of a first eye view;

storing a first eye view image captured virtually from the calculated first position coordinates of the first eye view of an object in the videogame into the left backbuffer;

calculating, with a processor of the videogame system, second position coordinates of a second eye view of the object in three dimensional space using the calculated first position coordinates of the first eye view;

determining a second eye view image of the object captured virtually from the calculated second position coordinates of the second eye view;

storing the second eye view image in the right backbuffer; and

displaying the first eye view image and the second eye view image to the user to provide a three dimensional perspective of the object from the videogame system to a user.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first eye view image corresponds to a first virtual object in the videogame.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating the second position coordinates comprises calculating the x and z coordinates of the second eye view only so that there is no deviation in the height of the second eye view in relation to the height of the first eye view.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating the second position coordinates of the second view image comprises calculating the coordinates of a right eye camera view position.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein calculating the second position coordinates of the second eye view comprises obtaining spatial coordinates by coordinate transformation equations given the location of a first virtual camera corresponding to the first eye view.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein displaying the images in the left and right backbuffers comprises generating left and right images on different video channels.

7. A method in a videogame system for displaying three-dimensional images, comprising the computer implemented steps of:

providing first and second buffers;

calculating first position coordinates of a first eye view;

storing a first eye view image captured virtually from the calculated first position of the first eye view of a virtual object in the videogame into the first buffer;

calculating, with a processor of the videogame system, second spatial coordinates of a second eye view of the virtual object in the videogame in three dimensional space by coordinate transformation equations using the calculated first position coordinates of the first eye view and the position of the virtual object in the videogame;

determining a second eye view image of the virtual object based on the calculated second spatial coordinates;

storing the second eye view image in the second buffer; and

outputting the first eye view image from the first buffer and the second eye view image from the second buffer to a display to provide a three dimensional perspective of the virtual object from the videogame system to a user.

8. The method according to claim 7, further comprising increasing the first and second buffer memory size prior to generating the first eye view image and second eye view image in the videogame.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein calculating the second spatial coordinates comprises calculating the x and z coordinates only so that there is no deviation in the height of the second eye view of the virtual object with respect to the first eye view of the virtual object.

10. The method according to claim 7, wherein calculating the second spatial coordinates of the second view image of the virtual object comprises calculating the spatial coordinates of a right eye camera view position.

11. The method according to claim 7, wherein the first and second buffers are located in the memory of a video graphics card.

12. The method according to claim 7, wherein storing the first eye view image to the first buffer and storing the second eye view image to the second buffer reduces flicker of the images on the display.

13. The method according to claim 7, further comprising:

cleaning the first and second buffers;

closing the first and second buffers;

redrawing a scene comprising the virtual object;

getting coordinates of a new perspective of the virtual object; and

redisplaying the virtual object at the new perspective.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein the calculation of the second spatial coordinates of the second eye view comprises placing the second eye view at a virtual position that is 6.5 to 7.0 cm apart from the calculated position coordinates of the first eye view.

15. The method of claim 7, wherein calculating the second spatial coordinates of the second eye view comprises calculating the slope of a line from a virtual camera positioned at the second spatial coordinates of the second eye view to the virtual object.

16. A videogame system for displaying three-dimensional images, comprising:

first and second buffers;

means for calculating first position coordinates of a first eye view of a virtual object in the videogame system;

means for storing a first eye view image captured virtually from the calculated first position of the first eye view of the virtual object in the videogame into the first buffer;

means for calculating second spatial coordinates of a second eye view of the virtual object in the videogame in three dimensional space by coordinate transformation equations using the calculated first position coordinates of the first eye view and the position of the virtual object in the videogame;

means for determining a second eye view image of the virtual object captured virtually from the calculated second spatial coordinates of the second eye view;

means for storing the second eye view image in the second buffer; and

means for outputting the first eye view image from the first buffer and the second eye view image from the second buffer to a display to provide a three dimensional perspective of the virtual object from the videogame system to a user.

17. The videogame system of claim 16, wherein the first and second buffers are part of a memory of a video graphics card.

18. The videogame system of claim 16, wherein the means for calculating second spatial coordinates comprises a programmable processor.

19. The videogame system of claim 16, wherein the display is a stereoscopic visor.