Storage medium having information processing program stored thereon, information processing device, information processing system, and attitude calculation method

• US 9,238,173 B2
• Filed: 10/31/2012
• Issued: 01/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Ohta, Keizo
• Primary Examiner(s): COSIMANO, EDWARD R
• Application Number:
  US13/664,870
• Publication Number:
  US 20140025335A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,175 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/21 characterised by their sensors, purposes or types
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/2145 the surface being also a display device, e.g. touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/428 involving motion or position input signals, e.g. signals representing the rotation of an input controller or a player's arm motions sensed by accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/105 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1075 using a touch screen
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 7/00 Measuring arrangements characterised by the use of electric or magnetic techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/40 Data acquisition and logging for input to computer G06F3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass

Abstract

An example information processing device calculates an attitude of an input unit having a magnetic sensor. The information processing device repeatedly obtains detected magnetic vectors detected by the magnetic sensor. The information processing device stores the detected magnetic vectors in a storage unit where each detected magnetic vector is classified based on a direction from a reference position to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector. The information processing device repeatedly estimates a center position of a spherical body having a curved surface which is estimated based on the end point positions of detected magnetic vectors obtained by extracting, from among the classified detected magnetic vectors, at least one detected magnetic vector for each class. The attitude of the input unit is calculated based on a direction vector representing a direction from the center position to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing an information processing program to be executed by a computer of an information processing device for calculating an attitude of an input device, the input device including a magnetic sensor therein, the information processing program causing the computer to execute:

obtaining detected magnetic vectors detected by the magnetic sensor;

storing the detected magnetic vectors in a storage where each detected magnetic vector is classified based on a direction from a reference position, which is determined based on the detected magnetic vector, to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector;

estimating a center position of a spherical body having a curved surface which is estimated based on the end point positions of detected magnetic vectors obtained by extracting, from among the classified detected magnetic vectors, at least one detected magnetic vector for each class; and

calculating the attitude of the input device based on a direction vector representing a direction from the center position to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector.

2. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

a plurality of categories are set based on a direction from the reference position to the end point positions of the detected magnetic vectors, and a newly-obtained detected magnetic vector is classified into one of the categories based on a direction from the reference position to the end point position of the newly-obtained detected magnetic vector.

3. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

the information processing program causes the computer to further execute setting the reference position on, or on an inner side of, a surface of the spherical body.

4. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

after the center position is calculated, each time a detected magnetic vector is obtained, the obtained detected magnetic vector is stored while using, as the reference position, a latest center position.

5. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 4, wherein

the center position is updated each time a detected magnetic vector is newly stored.

6. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein:

one detected magnetic vector obtained from each set of one or more detected magnetic vectors belonging to the same class is stored in the storage; and

a center position of a spherical body is estimated, the spherical body having a curved surface which is estimated based on the end point positions of the detected magnetic vectors stored in the storage.

7. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 6, wherein

when a newly-obtained detected magnetic vector is obtained and if a detected magnetic vector belonging to the same class as the newly-obtained detected magnetic vector has already been stored, the newly-obtained detected magnetic vector is stored, overwriting the already-stored detected magnetic vector.

8. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 6, wherein

when a newly-obtained detected magnetic vector is obtained and if a detected magnetic vector belonging to the same class as the newly-obtained detected magnetic vector has already been stored, a detected magnetic vector which is produced based on the already-stored detected magnetic vector and the newly-obtained detected magnetic vector is stored.

9. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 1, wherein

for each detected magnetic vector, a classification vector is selected from among a plurality of classification vectors extending in different directions from one another so that the selected classification vector extends in a direction closest to a direction from the reference position to the end point of the detected magnetic vector, and detected magnetic vectors for which different classification vectors are selected are classified into different categories.

10. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 9, wherein

where the plurality of classification vectors are arranged so that the start points thereof are at a center of a sphere, the classification vectors are arranged so that the end points of the classification vectors are evenly dispersed across a spherical surface of the sphere or across a half of the spherical surface.

11. The non-transitory storage medium according to claim 9, wherein

a classification vector is selected based on an absolute value of an inner product between the classification vector and a vector representing a direction from the reference position to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector, and detected magnetic vectors are classified into different categories depending on a sign of the inner product.

12. An information processing device for calculating an attitude of an input device, the input device including a magnetic sensor therein, comprising a computer configured to perform at least:

obtaining detected magnetic vectors detected by the magnetic sensor;

storing the detected magnetic vectors in a storage where each detected magnetic vector is classified based on a direction from a reference position, which is determined based on the detected magnetic vector, to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector;

estimating a center position of a spherical body having a curved surface which is estimated based on the end point positions of detected magnetic vectors obtained by extracting, from among the classified detected magnetic vectors, at least one detected magnetic vector for each class; and

calculating the attitude of the input device based on a direction vector representing a direction from the center position to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector.

13. An information processing system for calculating an attitude of an input device, the input device including a magnetic sensor therein, comprising a computer configured to perform at least:

obtaining detected magnetic vectors detected by the magnetic sensor;

storing the detected magnetic vectors in a storage where each detected magnetic vector is classified based on a direction from a reference position, which is determined based on the detected magnetic vector, to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector;

estimating a center position of a spherical body having a curved surface which is estimated based on the end point positions of detected magnetic vectors obtained by extracting, from among the classified detected magnetic vectors, at least one detected magnetic vector for each class; and

calculating the attitude of the input device based on a direction vector representing a direction from the center position to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector.

14. An attitude calculation method for calculating an attitude of an input device, the input device including a magnetic sensor therein, comprising:

obtaining detected magnetic vectors detected by the magnetic sensor;

storing the detected magnetic vectors in a storage where each detected magnetic vector is classified based on a direction from a reference position, which is determined based on the detected magnetic vector, to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector;

estimating a center position of a spherical body having a curved surface which is estimated based on the end point positions of detected magnetic vectors obtained by extracting, from among the classified detected magnetic vectors, at least one detected magnetic vector for each class; and

calculating the attitude of the input device based on a direction vector representing a direction from the center position to the end point position of the detected magnetic vector.