Method of outputting design drawing of block object

Abstract

To provide a method for enabling a user to easily build a block object using block parts.SOLUTION: A method of outputting a design drawing of a block object comprising assemblable multiple kinds of block parts, is executed by a processing unit of a server terminal connected to a user terminal over a network. The processing unit of the server terminal acquires image data of an object model, analyzes the image data, determines a posing of the object model on the basis of a result of the analysis, determines a design drawing of a block object corresponding to the posing of the object model stored in a storage unit of the server terminal, and outputs the design drawing.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for outputting a design drawing of a block object. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Toys that allow a user to assemble block object models, such as animals, buildings, vehicles, etc., using block parts such as Lego bricks, are becoming popular.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a method for improving the efficiency of designing block parts that constitute a block object. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 5665872 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, while the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1 above makes it possible to realize efficient design and visualization of block parts, it does not disclose a method for visualizing an image of assembling block objects from a user's perspective.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a method that makes it easy for a user to assemble block objects using block parts. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for outputting a design drawing of an assemblable block object composed of multiple types of block parts, executed by a processing unit of a server terminal connected to a user terminal via a network, in which the processing unit of the server terminal acquires image data of an object model, analyzes the image data, determines a posing of the object model based on the analysis results, determines a design drawing of the block object corresponding to the posing of the object model stored in a memory unit of the server terminal, and outputs the design drawing. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a method that makes it easy for a user to assemble a block object using block parts. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a system for providing a method for recommending a block object according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a functional block diagram showing the server terminal 100 of FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] 2 is a functional block diagram showing a user terminal 200 of FIG. 1. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of object model information stored in the server 100. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of block part information stored in the server 100. [Figure 6] 10 is an example of a flowchart illustrating details of a method for outputting a design drawing of a block object according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] 4 is an example of image data of an object model and a block object displayed on a user terminal according to the first embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the embodiment described below does not unduly limit the contents of the present invention described in the claims. Furthermore, not all of the components shown in the embodiment are necessarily essential components of the present invention.

[0011] <Configuration> 1 is a block diagram showing a system that provides a method for outputting a design drawing of a block object according to a first embodiment of the present invention. This system 1 is composed of a server terminal 100 that determines a pose of an object model based on image data acquired from a user terminal 200, determines a design drawing of a block object corresponding to the pose, and outputs the design drawing, and user terminals 200A and 200B. For ease of explanation, the user terminals 200A and 200B will be collectively referred to as user terminal 200 below.

[0012] Examples of block objects made up of a plurality of block parts include, but are not limited to, animals, people, characters, robots, vehicles, and buildings.

[0013] The server terminal 100 and the user terminal 200 are connected to each other via a network NW. The network NW is configured by the Internet, an intranet, a wireless LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), or the like.

[0014] The server terminal 100 may be, for example, a general-purpose computer such as a workstation or a personal computer, or may be logically realized by cloud computing. In this embodiment, for convenience of explanation, one server terminal is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited to this and may be multiple servers.

[0015] The user terminal 200 is, for example, an information processing device such as a personal computer or a tablet terminal, but may also be configured as a smartphone, a mobile phone, a PDA, or the like.

[0016] In this embodiment, the system 1 is described as having a server terminal 100 and a user terminal 200, and a configuration in which a user uses the user terminal 200 to perform operations on the server terminal 100; however, the server terminal 100 may be configured as a stand-alone system, and the server terminal itself may have a function for each user to directly perform operations.

[0017] Fig. 2 is a functional block configuration diagram of the server terminal 100 of Fig. 1. The server terminal 100 includes a communication unit 110, a storage unit 120, and a control unit .

[0018] The communication unit 110 is a communication interface for communicating with the user terminal 200 via the network NW, and communication is performed according to a communication protocol such as TCP / IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol).

[0019] The storage unit 120 stores programs for executing various control processes and functions in the control unit 130, input data, etc., and is composed of a RAM (Random Access Memory), a ROM (Read Only Memory), etc. The storage unit 120 also has an object model information storage unit 121 that stores information related to the object model, etc., and a block part information storage unit 122 that stores information on block parts generated based on the object model, etc. A database (not shown) storing various data may be constructed outside the storage unit 120 or the server terminal 100.

[0020] The control unit 130 controls the overall operation of the server terminal 100 by executing a program stored in the storage unit 120, and is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), etc. Functions of the control unit 130 include an information receiving unit 131 that receives information such as image data and predetermined instructions from the user terminal 200, an object model information processing unit 132 that refers to and processes various information related to the object model, a block part information processing unit 133 that refers to and processes various information related to the block parts, and an output processing unit 134 that performs processing to transmit design drawing information related to the block objects to be output to the user terminal. The information receiving unit 131, the object model information processing unit 132, the block part information processing unit 133, and the output processing unit 134 are started by a program stored in the storage unit 120 and executed by the server terminal 100, which is a computer (electronic calculator).

[0021] The information receiving unit 131 receives information from the user terminal 200 via the communication unit 110 when the user makes a specified request (by inputting text, pressing an icon (button), etc.) via a user interface such as a screen provided by the server terminal 100 and displayed on the user terminal 200 via a web browser or application.

[0022] The object model processing unit 132 stores information related to the object model in the object model information storage unit 121 and performs processing for referring to the stored object model information.

[0023] The block parts information processing unit 133 stores information relating to block parts in the block parts information storage unit 122 and performs processing to refer to the stored block parts information.

[0024] The output processing unit 134 performs a process of transmitting necessary information to the user terminal 200 in order to display design drawing information related to the block object on the user terminal 200. At this time, the output processing unit 134 uses the image and text data stored in the storage unit 120 as material, and arranges various images and text in a predetermined area of ​​the user interface based on a predetermined layout rule, thereby generating screen information required to be displayed on the interface of the user terminal 200. This screen information generation process can also be executed by a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit).

[0025] Fig. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the user terminal 200 of Fig. 1. The user terminal 200 includes a communication unit 210, a display operation unit 220, a storage unit 230, and a control unit 240.

[0026] The communication unit 210 is a communication interface for communicating with the server terminal 100 via the network NW, and communication is performed according to a communication protocol such as TCP / IP. The communication unit 210 can also include a communication interface for communicating with the sensor device 300 via short-range wireless communication or the like.

[0027] The display operation unit 220 is a user interface used for inputting instructions by the user and displaying text, images, etc. according to input data from the control unit 240, and is composed of a display, a keyboard, and a mouse when the user terminal 200 is configured as a personal computer, and is composed of a touch panel, etc. when the user terminal 200 is configured as a smartphone or tablet terminal. This display operation unit 220 is started up by a control program stored in the storage unit 230 and executed by the user terminal 200, which is a computer (electronic calculator).

[0028] The storage unit 230 stores programs for executing various control processes and functions in the control unit 240, input data, etc., and is composed of a RAM, a ROM, etc. The storage unit 230 also temporarily stores the contents of communication with the server terminal 100.

[0029] The control unit 240 controls the overall operation of the user terminal 200 by executing the programs stored in the storage unit 230, and is composed of a CPU, a GPU, and the like.

[0030] The server terminal 100 may be configured to have the function of a display operation unit, in which case the user terminal 200 may not be included. Additionally, the user terminal 200 may be provided with a camera (not shown), in which case the camera can capture an image of an AR marker provided on a block part to identify the type of the block part (determined by its shape, color, etc.) and determine its coordinates in an augmented reality (AR) space.

[0031] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the object model information stored in the server 100. As shown in FIG.

[0032] The object model information 1000 shown in FIG. 4 stores information related to an object model generated by a service manager related to the server terminal 100 or a user related to the user terminal 200. In FIG. 4, for convenience of explanation, an example of one object model (a user identified by an object ID "10001") is shown, but information of a plurality of object models can be stored. The object model corresponds to a block object that can be assembled by a plurality of block parts, and is assumed to correspond to each of a plurality of types of block objects. Various data related to the object model can include information such as 3D model data of the object model, cross-sectional data of the object model, data related to one or a plurality of types of block parts and the number of parts required to assemble the object model, design drawing information related to block parts corresponding to each part of the object model, and design drawing information related to block parts arranged for each layer of the cross section. Here, the 3D model data can be polygon data of the object model, voxel data of the object model, and 2D model data converted into a 3D model by a predetermined process and stored. In addition, the design drawing information can be stored in advance as a design drawing of a block object corresponding to each of a plurality of posing patterns of the object model. In addition to posing patterns, it is also possible to store patterns related to the appearance and looks of the object model, such as a plurality of hairstyle patterns, facial expression patterns, clothing patterns, etc. Here, in the case where an object model is devised by a creator and posted (registered), it is also possible to record each object model in association with identification information, such as a creator ID, that identifies the creator.For example, a creator can register an object (animal, character, or other desired object) that he or she has devised in a voxel data format or any other data format for each of a plurality of patterns relating to appearance / look, including posing patterns, and for each posing pattern, a plurality of color combination patterns, or a service administrator can assign a theme (e.g., one's own pet, a specific character, etc.) to a plurality of creators and accept registration of objects from each creator. The server terminal 100 can convert the data accepted from the creators into voxel data and generate design drawing information based on the voxel data.

[0033] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of block parts information stored in the server 100. As shown in FIG.

[0034] Block part information 2000 shown in FIG. 5 stores information related to the shape, size, color, and weight of a block part. For convenience of explanation, FIG. 5 shows an example of one block part (a block part identified by ID "20001"), but information related to multiple block parts can be stored. The various data related to the block parts can include, for example, data related to block parts corresponding to components for assembling a block object (consisting of the shape, size, color of the block parts, the number of each block part, etc.). Here, each of the multiple types of block parts can be associated with a unique color, but is not limited to this.

[0035] FIG. 6 is an example of a flowchart showing a method for outputting a design drawing of a block object according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] As a preliminary process, the user accesses the server terminal 100 using a web browser of the user terminal 200 or an application (if an application is installed). A predetermined screen is displayed on a user interface via a website or an application. The user can transmit (upload) image data of an object model that the user wishes to assemble as a block object from the user terminal 200 to the server terminal 100. Here, the user watches an animation of an object model (e.g., a person) on the user terminal 200, and determines a pose of the person by performing a predetermined operation such as pressing a pause button or taking a screenshot from an animation image in which the person is moving, and selects it as the pose of the object model that the user wishes to assemble as a block object. Image data (e.g., voxel data, or voxel data converted from two-dimensional data) expressing the pose of this object model is transmitted from the user terminal 200 to the server terminal 100.

[0037] Then, as the process of step S101, the information receiving unit 131 of the control unit 130 of the server terminal 100 receives image data expressing a pose of an object model that the user wants to assemble from the user terminal 200 via the network and the communication unit 110. In this example, the user wants to assemble a bear block object in a certain pose expressed as image data as shown in FIG. 7(a), and selects image data of a specific pose scene from among animation images of a bear on the user interface screen displayed on the user terminal 200 and performs a send operation, whereupon the server terminal 100 receives the image data of the bear. Here, the image data can be data in any format such as polygon data, but may be, for example, voxel data, or data converted from another data format into voxel data, and may be converted into voxel data after this process.

[0038] Next, in step S102, the object model information processing unit 132 of the control unit 130 of the server terminal 100 starts a process of analyzing the received image data of the object model. The process of analyzing image data such as polygon data, voxel data, etc. can be realized by a known method, but the present embodiment is characterized in that the posture and posing of the object included in the image data are specified by determining the skeleton of the object.

[0039] Next, in the process of step S103, the object model information processing unit 132 of the control unit 130 of the server terminal 100 refers to the 3D model data of the object model stored in the object model information storage unit 121 of the storage unit 120. The object model information processing unit 132 analyzes the posture and posing of the object model included in the image data of the object model, and compares information on the posing of the object determined based on the posture and posing acquired as the analysis result with the 3D model data of the object model. Here, as the 3D model data, multiple types of 3D model data (voxel data of a specific object) corresponding to a block object that is composed of multiple block parts and performs a specific pose are stored. The specific object may include various types of animals (such as bears in this example), humans with various characteristics (male, female, adult, child), or virtual objects (characters, robots, etc.).

[0040] Next, in the process of step S104, the object model information processing unit 132 of the control unit 130 of the server terminal 100 compares the object determined based on the image analysis of the two-dimensional data with the object stored as the 3D model data, and determines the object performing a predetermined pose as an object model (3D model) corresponding to a block object that can be assembled with block parts. For example, if voxel data of an object model performing a bear pose exists as the stored 3D model data, the pose matches the pose of the object determined from the image data, so the object model information processing unit 132 determines the object to be assembled as a block object as the block object performing the bear pose. The output processing unit 134 of the control unit 130 of the server terminal 100 transmits the 3D model data of the determined object model to the user terminal 200 for the image data of the object model transmitted from the user terminal 200, and can display it. Here, the control unit 130 can refer to the design drawing data in the memory unit 120 and transmit the color configuration pattern of the block object to the user terminal 200 and display it, and can also accept a color selection of the block object from the user terminal 200.

[0041] Next, as the process of step S105, the object model information processing unit 132 refers to the object model information storage unit 121 of the storage unit 120, transmits the design data presenting the assembly method of the determined object model (block object) to the user terminal 200, and can display it in a form such as that shown in FIG. 7(b). As described above, the storage unit 120 stores object models and design information corresponding to a plurality of posing patterns for a given object model, and determines the design information of the block object corresponding to the posing of the determined object model from the design information stored in advance as the design information to be provided. Alternatively, design information corresponding to the posing of the object model determined as a result of image analysis according to image data acquired from the user terminal 200 can be generated in real time. At this time, the design information is generated based on a predetermined rule while referring to the stored information on the block parts including the color and shape based on the voxel data of the object model including the posing. Although extracting design information from pre-stored design information may save computational time, the latter configuration may allow a user to expand the range of object models (and their poses) that they wish to assemble into block objects.

[0042] Next, as the process of step S106, the output processing unit 134 transmits the determined or generated design information to the user terminal 200, and displays it on the user interface screen of the user terminal 200 as a design corresponding to the pose of the object model selected by the user. Here, as data included in the design information, parts constituting a block object are classified and identified by shape and color. When the user terminal 200 selects a color of a block object, it may happen that the user does not have any surplus block parts (i.e., there is a shortage) for assembling a block object of the selected color. In such a case, as shown in FIG. 7(b), in association with the display of information about parts included in the design information, information about identifying the object model, information about identifying the shape and color of the block parts, and information about the number of block parts may be encrypted into information such as a two-dimensional code (e.g., QR Code (registered trademark), etc.) and displayed as identification information for purchase so that the user can purchase the required number of parts for each shape and color. Here, the identification information may be generated for each block part, or may be generated as a combination of multiple block parts for the convenience of the user's purchase. Then, by making the identification information readable, the user can purchase the required number of missing block parts online or at a store. The user stores the purchase information of the block parts as a history in the storage unit 120 of the server terminal 100 together with membership information such as a user ID in advance. The server terminal 100 can automatically determine the missing block parts for the block object to be assembled based on the purchase information, and can display the identification information to encourage the purchase together with information on the determined block parts. As described above, if the object model is devised by a specific creator, by associating the identification information of the creator with the above identification information, it is also possible to easily perform a process of returning a remuneration amount according to the purchase amount to the creator later.

[0043] As described above, according to this embodiment, a user can be provided with an object model that he or she wishes to assemble and design drawings corresponding to the poses of the object model in an efficient manner, and the user can enjoy assembling object models in various poses, rather than being limited to assembling object models with prescribed poses.

[0044] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, they can be embodied in various other forms and can be implemented with various omissions, substitutions, and modifications. These embodiments and modifications, as well as omissions, substitutions, and modifications, are included in the technical scope of the claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0045] 1 System 100 Server terminal, 110 Communication unit, 120 Storage unit, 130 Control unit, 200 User terminal, NW network

Claims

1. A method for outputting a design drawing of an assembleable block object composed of a plurality of types of block parts, the method being executed by a processing unit of a server terminal connected to a user terminal via a network, the method comprising: The processing unit of the server terminal Obtaining image data of the object model; Analyzing the image data; determining a posing of the object model based on the analysis results; determining a design drawing of a block object corresponding to a posing of the object model stored in a storage unit of the server terminal; A method for outputting the design drawing.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the server terminal prestores design drawings of block objects corresponding to each of a plurality of posing patterns of the object model.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the image data is voxel data of the object model.

4. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the image data is selected from among animation images of the object model by a predetermined operation on a user terminal.

5. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining a design drawing of a block object corresponding to a posing of an object model stored in a memory unit of the server terminal is determined based on the pre-stored design drawing.

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