Display control device, display control method and program

Abstract

To provide a technology capable of more reliably emphasizing an emphasis target while reducing the risk of impairing the visibility of the emphasis target and reducing the risk of diminishing the clearness of the range of the emphasis target.SOLUTION: A display control device includes a data acquisition part for acquiring the position of a view point of a user in a three-dimensional space, and the position and the size of an emphasis range having an ellipsoidal shape in the three-dimensional space, a processing part for determining an orientation of an ellipsoid such that one surface constituting the ellipsoid circumscribing the emphasis range is directed to the position of the view point of the user on the basis of the position of the view point of the user and the position and the size of the emphasis range, and a display control part for controlling the display of a plurality of sides constituting the ellipsoid after determining the orientation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a display control device, a display control method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, various techniques for emphasizing an object to be emphasized in a three-dimensional space have become known. For example, one such technique is disclosed in Patent Document 1, in which an attribute of a virtual object placed in a virtual three-dimensional space is changed to emphasize the object. Examples of changing the attribute of an object include blinking the object, changing the color or size of the object, etc. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-038631 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, a technology that changes the attributes of a virtual object itself cannot change the attributes of a real object. Therefore, when a real object that exists in real space is to be emphasized, the technology that changes the attributes of a virtual object itself cannot emphasize the object. Furthermore, a technology that changes the attributes of a virtual object itself cannot emphasize an area where no virtual object exists.

[0005] Furthermore, it is conceivable that the visibility of the highlighted object may be reduced by the highlighting. To prevent such a reduction in visibility, a technique of placing a highlight near the highlighted object may be envisioned. However, it is conceivable that the technique of placing a highlight near the highlighted object may reduce the clarity of the range of the highlighted object.

[0006] Therefore, it is desirable to provide a technology that enables more reliable highlighting of an object to be highlighted while reducing the possibility of reducing the visibility of the object to be highlighted and reducing the possibility of reducing the clarity of the range of the object to be highlighted. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problem, according to one aspect of the present invention, a display control device is provided, comprising: a data acquisition unit that acquires the position of a user's viewpoint in three-dimensional space and the position and size of an emphasis range having an ellipsoidal shape in the three-dimensional space; a processing unit that determines the orientation of a polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis range based on the position of the user's viewpoint and the position and size of the emphasis range so that one face of the polyhedron faces the position of the user's viewpoint; and a display control unit that controls the display of multiple edges of the polyhedron after the orientation has been determined.

[0008] The data acquisition unit acquires additional information, which is information displayed in addition to the multiple edges, and the display control device includes a display area determination unit that determines an area other than the front surface of a plane including the front surface, which is the surface closest to the user's viewpoint, among the multiple surfaces that make up the polyhedron, as a display area for the additional information, and the display control unit may control the display of the additional information in the display area.

[0009] The ellipsoid may be a sphere.

[0010] The polyhedron may be a rectangular parallelepiped.

[0011] The polyhedron may be a cube.

[0012] The display control unit may control the display of the plurality of sides by an AR display.

[0013] The processing unit may calculate a plane that circumscribes the emphasis range and is perpendicular to a straight line connecting the position of the user's viewpoint and the position of the emphasis range, and determine one of multiple rectangles contained in the plane, with the position through which the straight line passes as its center position, as the front or back surface of the polyhedron.

[0014] The processing unit may determine the direction of one side of the rectangle from a plurality of directions included in the plane based on the Y-axis direction of a camera coordinate system in the three-dimensional space that obtains an image of the three-dimensional space.

[0015] The processing unit may determine, as the direction of the one side, the direction closest to the Y-axis direction among a plurality of directions included in the plane.

[0016] In addition, according to another aspect of the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a display control method is provided, which includes acquiring the position of a user's viewpoint in three-dimensional space and the position and size of an emphasis range having an ellipsoidal shape in the three-dimensional space, determining the orientation of a polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis range based on the position of the user's viewpoint and the position and size of the emphasis range so that one face of the polyhedron faces the position of the user's viewpoint, and controlling the display of multiple edges of the polyhedron after the orientation has been determined.

[0017] In addition, according to another aspect of the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, a program is provided that causes a computer to function as a data acquisition unit that acquires the position of a user's viewpoint in three-dimensional space and the position and size of an emphasis range having an ellipsoidal shape in the three-dimensional space, a processing unit that determines the orientation of a polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis range based on the position of the user's viewpoint and the position and size of the emphasis range so that one face of the polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis range faces the position of the user's viewpoint, and a display control unit that controls the display of multiple edges that make up the polyhedron after the orientation has been determined. [Effects of the Invention]

[0018] As described above, the present invention provides a technology that enables more reliable highlighting of an object to be highlighted while reducing the possibility of reducing the visibility of the object to be highlighted and reducing the possibility of reducing the clarity of the range of the object to be highlighted. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0019] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of a display control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of a control unit 12A. [Figure 3] 1 is a diagram depicting a plane including the user's viewpoint position U1 and the position C1 of the highlight range. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the function of a processing unit 122. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of highlighting. [Figure 6] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the display control device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart showing a detailed example of an operation for calculating a circumscribed cube. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of a control unit 12B according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of highlighting. [Figure 10] 1 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of an information processing device 900 as an example of a display control device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification and drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0021] (0. Overview) First, an outline of an embodiment of the present invention will be described. In recent years, various techniques for emphasizing an emphasis target in a three-dimensional space have become known. Examples of the techniques for emphasizing an emphasis target in a three-dimensional space include the following first, second, and third examples.

[0022] A first example of a known technology is a technology that emphasizes a virtual object placed in a virtual three-dimensional space by changing the attributes of the object. Examples of changing the attributes of an object include blinking the object or changing the color or size of the object.

[0023] However, the technology according to the first example cannot change the attributes of a real object. Therefore, when a real object that exists in real space is to be emphasized, the technology according to the first example cannot emphasize the object. Furthermore, the technology according to the first example cannot emphasize an area where no virtual object exists.

[0024] As a second example of a technique, a technique is known in which an object to be emphasized is emphasized by displaying a three-dimensional surface or an outline frame surrounding the object to be emphasized. The three-dimensional surface surrounding the object to be emphasized can be a non-transparent surface or a transparent surface.

[0025] However, in the technology according to the second example, it is expected that the visibility of the highlighted object will be reduced due to the highlighting. For example, in a technology that displays the surfaces of a three-dimensional object surrounding the highlighted object, it is expected that the surface of the three-dimensional object surrounding the highlighted object will hide the highlighted object, reducing its visibility. Furthermore, in a technology that displays an outline frame of a three-dimensional object surrounding the highlighted object, the outline frame may hide the highlighted object depending on the position of the user's viewpoint, reducing the visibility of the highlighted object.

[0026] A third example of the technology is a technology for placing a highlighting mark near the highlight target. However, the technology of the third example is expected to reduce the clarity of the range of the highlight target.

[0027] Therefore, it is desirable to provide a technology that enables the object to be highlighted more reliably while reducing the possibility of reducing the visibility of the object to be highlighted and reducing the possibility of reducing the clarity of the range of the object to be highlighted.

[0028] The outline of the embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0029] (1. First embodiment) A first embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0030] (1-1. Display control system configuration) First, a configuration example of a display control system according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a functional configuration example of the display control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 1, the display control system includes a display control device 1, a network 30, and a database 20.

[0031] The display control device 1 includes an AR (Augmented Reality) display 11, a control unit 12A, and a position and orientation measurement unit 13. The control unit 12A is connected to a network 30 via a communication interface (communication unit) not shown, and is configured to be able to access a database 20 via the network 30. The display control device 1 is realized by a computer. The display control device 1 can also be referred to as a "highlighting display device" that highlights an object to be highlighted.

[0032] (AR Display 11) The AR display 11 is an example of a display unit and is worn by a user. For example, the AR display 11 is preferably a head-mounted display worn on the user's head. However, the type of the AR display 11 is not limited to a head-mounted display. For example, the AR display 11 may be a display other than a head-mounted display (a stationary display).

[0033] In the first embodiment of the present invention, it is assumed that the AR display 11 is a see-through display that provides a user with an image of real space. The see-through display may be an optical see-through display or a video see-through display. In this case, the AR display 11 uses AR technology to superimpose and display an image of a virtual three-dimensional space on the user's field of view.

[0034] However, the AR display 11 may be a non-transparent display that provides an image of a virtual three-dimensional space to the user. In this case, the AR display 11 displays an image of the virtual three-dimensional space using VR (Virtual Reality) technology.

[0035] An image of a virtual three-dimensional space is an image obtained by capturing an image of a virtual object placed in the virtual three-dimensional space using a virtual camera placed in the virtual three-dimensional space. The position of the virtual camera corresponds to the user's viewpoint in the virtual three-dimensional space. Furthermore, the direction of the virtual camera corresponds to the user's line of sight in the virtual three-dimensional space.

[0036] (Position and Orientation Measurement Unit 13) The position and orientation measurement unit 13 measures the position and orientation of the user. For example, when the position and orientation measurement unit 13 is incorporated in the AR display 11 that is worn on the user's head, the position and orientation measurement unit 13 measures the position and orientation of the user's head. The position and orientation measurement unit 13 may measure the position and orientation of the user based on sensor data detected by a sensor. The sensor may be an acceleration sensor or a gyro sensor, but the type of sensor is not particularly limited.

[0037] For example, the position and orientation measurement unit 13 may include a sensor that measures two-dimensional markers installed in the user's environment. In this case, the position and orientation measurement unit 13 may measure the user's position and orientation based on the measured shapes of the two-dimensional markers. Alternatively, the position and orientation measurement unit 13 may measure the user's position and orientation by combining a method of measuring the user's position and orientation based on sensor data detected by a sensor and a method of measuring the user's position and orientation based on the measured shapes of the two-dimensional markers.

[0038] (Control unit 12A) The control unit 12A controls the operation of the display control device 1. For example, the control unit 12A includes an arithmetic unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and its functions can be realized by the arithmetic unit expanding a program stored in a ROM (Read Only Memory) into a RAM and executing it. In this case, a computer-readable recording medium on which the program is recorded can also be provided.

[0039] The control unit 12A calculates the position of the user's viewpoint in the virtual three-dimensional space according to the user's position measured by the position and orientation measurement unit 13. Similarly, the control unit 12A calculates the user's line of sight direction in the virtual three-dimensional space according to the user's posture measured by the position and orientation measurement unit 13. This allows the image in the virtual three-dimensional space displayed by the AR display 11 to change according to the user's position and posture.

[0040] (Database 20) The database 20 stores playback data that is played back by the control unit 12A and displayed by the AR display 11. For example, the playback data may be moving image data or still image data.

[0041] Furthermore, information about the emphasis range in the virtual three-dimensional space (e.g., the position of the emphasis range, the size of the emphasis range, etc.) is associated with the playback data. One piece of information about the emphasis range may be associated with the entire playback data, or may be associated with the playback position of the playback data. The database is stored in a storage device (not shown).

[0042] (Network 30) The network 30 connects the display control device 1 and the database 20. The network 30 can function as a communication path between the display control device 1 and the database 20.

[0043] An example of the configuration of the display control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0044] (1-2. Functional configuration of the control unit 12A) Next, an example of the functional configuration of the control unit 12A will be described.

[0045] Fig. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the control unit 12A. As shown in Fig. 2, the control unit 12A includes a data acquisition unit 121A, a processing unit 122, and a display control unit 123A.

[0046] Examples of the operation of these blocks will be described with reference to Figures 3 to 7. In the following description, a sphere is used as an example of an ellipsoid, and a cube is used as an example of a polygon. As will be explained later, a sphere is a typical example of an ellipsoid, and a cube is a typical example of a polygon.

[0047] An example of the functional configuration of the control unit 12A has been described above.

[0048] (1-3. Example of display control system operation) Next, an example of the operation of the display control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0049] Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 are diagrams for explaining the function of the processing unit 122. Fig. 5 is a diagram showing an example of highlighting. Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of operation of the display control device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing a detailed example of operation of calculating a circumscribed cube.

[0050] (S11) The data acquisition unit 121A acquires the playback data from the database 20 via the network 30 (S11).

[0051] (S12) Furthermore, if the playback data is not associated with information about the highlight range in the virtual three-dimensional space (the position and size of the highlight range) (“NO” in S12), the playback data is displayed and the operation is terminated. On the other hand, if the playback data is associated with information about the highlight range in the virtual three-dimensional space (the position and size of the highlight range) (“YES” in S12), the data acquisition unit 121A also acquires information about the highlight range (the position and size of the highlight range) from the database 20.

[0052] The position of the highlight area is expressed by x, y, and z coordinates in a virtual three-dimensional space. Furthermore, it is mainly assumed that the size of the highlight area is expressed by the radius of a sphere. However, the size of the highlight area may also be expressed by the diameter of the sphere.

[0053] (S13) Furthermore, the data acquisition unit 121A acquires the position of the user's viewpoint in the virtual three-dimensional space and the direction of the user's line of sight in the virtual three-dimensional space, which have been acquired by the control unit 12A as described above (S13).

[0054] (S14) Based on the position of the user's viewpoint in the virtual three-dimensional space and the position and size of the emphasis range, the processing unit 122 determines the orientation of the cube so that one face constituting the cube circumscribing the emphasis range faces the position of the user's viewpoint (S14). Note that the face facing the position of the user's viewpoint may mean that the foot of a perpendicular line drawn from the position of the user's viewpoint to the face coincides with the center position of the face.

[0055] (S141) 3 shows a position U1 of a user's viewpoint (hereinafter simply referred to as "user's viewpoint") in a virtual three-dimensional space and a position C1 of an emphasis range (hereinafter simply referred to as "position of the emphasis range") in the virtual three-dimensional space. That is, FIG. 3 is a diagram depicting a plane including the position U1 of the user's viewpoint and the position C1 of the emphasis range.

[0056] Based on the user's viewpoint position U1 and the position C1 of the emphasis range, the processing unit 122 calculates the equation of the line connecting the user's viewpoint position U1 and the position C1 of the emphasis range (hereinafter simply referred to as the "U1-C1 line"). The U1-C1 line corresponds to the first axis of the cube. Furthermore, the processing unit 122 calculates the equation of the emphasis range E1 based on the position C1 of the emphasis range and the size of the emphasis range.

[0057] Based on the equation of the U1-C1 line and the equation of the emphasis range E1, the processing unit 122 calculates equations of two planes F1 and B1 that circumscribe the emphasis range E1 and are perpendicular to the U1-C1 line. Hereinafter, of the two planes F1 and B1, the plane closer to the user's viewpoint position U1 will be referred to as the "front plane F1," and the plane farther from the user's viewpoint position U1 will be referred to as the "back plane B1." Figure 3 also shows the intersection H1 between the front plane F1 and the U1-C1 line (S141).

[0058] (S142) Consider a square in which the U1-C1 line passes through the center position (i.e., the intersection of the diagonals) and is included in the front plane F1. There can be multiple variations of such a square because it can be rotated around the U1-C1 line as the rotation axis. Similarly, there can be multiple variations of a square in which the U1-C1 line passes through the center position (i.e., the intersection of the diagonals) and is included in the back plane B1.

[0059] Therefore, the processing unit 122 determines one of the squares included in the front plane F1, through which the U1-C1 line passes the central position, as the front surface of the cube. Similarly, the processing unit 122 determines one of the squares included in the back plane B1, through which the U1-C1 line passes the central position, as the back surface of the cube. An example of determining the front and back surfaces of a cube will be described in more detail.

[0060] Referring to Figure 4, similar to the example shown in Figure 3, an intersection H1 between the front plane F1 and the U1-C1 line is shown. Also referring to Figure 4, the front plane F1 is shown. The Y-axis direction of the camera coordinate system (of the virtual camera) in the virtual three-dimensional space is shown as the vertical vector Y1 of the image. The side direction vector V1 starts from the intersection H1 between the front plane F1 and the U1-C1 line, and is one of the multiple directions included in the front plane F1.

[0061] The processing unit 122 determines, based on the vertical vector Y1 of the image, one side direction vector V1 from among multiple directions included in the front plane F1, starting from the intersection H1 between the front plane F1 and the U1-C1 line, as the direction of one side constituting the front face of the cube. The side direction vector V1 corresponds to the second axis of the cube (S142).

[0062] More specifically, the closer the side direction vector V1 is to the vertical direction vector Y1 of the image, the closer the vertical direction of the image and the front side of the cube will be, and the cube will be placed with less tilt as seen by the user. Therefore, it is desirable that the processing unit 122 sets the intersection H1 of the front side plane F1 and the U1-C1 line as the starting point, and determine the side direction vector V1 that is closest to the vertical direction vector Y1 of the image among multiple directions included in the front side plane F1 as the direction of one side that constitutes the front side of the cube.

[0063] (S143) The processing unit 122 calculates a vector included in the front plane F1 that is orthogonal to the determined side direction vector V1 as an orthogonal vector that defines the direction of another side of the square. The orthogonal vector corresponds to the third axis of the cube. Based on the calculated orthogonal vector and the determined side direction vector V1, the processing unit 122 determines a square R1 whose center is the intersection H1 between the front plane F1 and the U1-C1 line (S143).

[0064] (S144) The processing unit 122 performs the same process on the plane B1 (FIG. 3) on the rear side to determine a square facing the square R1. The processing unit 122 then adjusts the size of each of the front and back sides of the cube formed by the two squares determined in this way so that the cube circumscribes the highlighting range E1 (FIG. 3). The cube is determined by the two squares after the size adjustment (S144). In FIG. 4, the square after the size adjustment of square R1 in this way is shown as square R2.

[0065] (S15) The display control unit 123A controls the display of the playback data on the AR display 11. The playback data may include an object to be highlighted. Furthermore, the display control unit 123A controls the display on the AR display 11 of a plurality of sides (12 in total) constituting a cube whose orientation has been determined and whose size has been adjusted by the processing unit 122. The object to be highlighted may be displayed in a highlighted manner by displaying the plurality of sides (hereinafter also referred to as "frame lines") constituting the cube.

[0066] An example of the operation of the display control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0067] (1-4. Effects) Referring to FIG. 5, an example of highlighting using multiple frame lines is shown. In the example shown in FIG. 5, the playback data includes a highlight target K1, so the highlight target K1 is displayed. Also referring to FIG. 5, a highlight range E1 is shown. This highlight range E1 is shown for ease of understanding and does not actually need to be displayed. On the other hand, a frame line P1 is displayed. Note that in the example shown in FIG. 5, the highlight target K1 is displayed, but the displayed highlight target K1 does not necessarily need to exist.

[0068] 5, the highlighted frame P1 does not obscure the highlight target K1. That is, the technology according to the first embodiment of the present invention reduces the possibility that the visibility of the highlight target K1 will be reduced. Furthermore, the frame P1 is positioned near the highlight target K1. Therefore, the technology according to the first embodiment of the present invention can also reduce the possibility that the clarity of the range of the highlight target will be reduced.

[0069] Furthermore, the technology according to the first embodiment of the present invention is different from a technology that emphasizes an object by changing the attributes of the virtual object. Therefore, the technology according to the first embodiment of the present invention makes it possible to set the emphasis target to a real object that exists in real space. Furthermore, the technology according to the first embodiment of the present invention can also emphasize an area where no virtual object exists. Therefore, the technology according to the first embodiment of the present invention makes it possible to more reliably emphasize the emphasis target K1.

[0070] The effects achieved by the display control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention have been described above.

[0071] (2. Second Embodiment) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0072] The following mainly describes the configuration of the display control system according to the second embodiment of the present invention that is different from the configuration of the display control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention. A detailed description of the configuration of the display control system according to the second embodiment of the present invention that is common to the configuration of the display control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be omitted.

[0073] (2-1. Functional configuration of the control unit 12B) Next, an example of the functional configuration of the control unit 12B will be described.

[0074] 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of the functional configuration of a control unit 12B according to the second embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated in FIG. 8, the control unit 12B includes a data acquisition unit 121B, a processing unit 122, a display area determination unit 124, and a display control unit 123B.

[0075] In the second embodiment of the present invention, the display control device 1 has a control unit 12B instead of the control unit 12A according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment of the present invention, the control unit 12B has a data acquisition unit 121B and a display control unit 123B instead of the data acquisition unit 121A and the display control unit 123A, and additionally has a display area determination unit 124.

[0076] Therefore, the following mainly describes the data acquisition unit 121B, the display area determination unit 124, and the display control unit 123B according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0077] An example of the functional configuration of the control unit 12A has been described above.

[0078] (2-2. Example of display control system operation) Next, an example of the operation of the display control system according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0079] 9 is a diagram showing an example of highlighting. If the playback data does not have information about the highlight range in the virtual three-dimensional space and additional information associated with it, the playback data is displayed and the operation ends. The additional information is information that is displayed in addition to the frame line P1.

[0080] On the other hand, when information about an emphasis range in a virtual three-dimensional space and additional information are associated with the playback data, the data acquiring unit 121B also acquires the information about the emphasis range and the additional information from the database 20. Here, it is assumed that the additional information is the character string "text."

[0081] The display area determination unit 124 determines, among the multiple faces constituting the cube, a plane including the front face (in the example shown in FIG. 9, the front face of the cube defined by frame line P1), which is the face closest to the user's viewpoint in the virtual three-dimensional space, as a display area G1 for additional information. In the example shown in FIG. 9, the area to the right of the front face is determined as display area G1. Then, the display control unit 123B controls the display of additional information T1 in the display area G1 determined by the display area determination unit 124.

[0082] An example of the operation of the display control system according to the second embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0083] (2-3. Effects) The technology according to the second embodiment of the present invention can achieve the same effects as those achieved by the technology according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Furthermore, referring to Fig. 9, the highlighted frame line P1 does not obscure the additional information T1 displayed in the display area G1. In other words, the technology according to the second embodiment of the present invention reduces the possibility that the visibility of the additional information T1 will be reduced.

[0084] The effects achieved by the display control system according to the second embodiment of the present invention have been described above.

[0085] (3. Hardware configuration example) Next, an example of the hardware configuration of the display control device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0086] Hereinafter, an example of the hardware configuration of an information processing device 900 will be described as an example of the hardware configuration of a display control device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Note that the example of the hardware configuration of the information processing device 900 described below is merely one example of the hardware configuration of the display control device 1. Therefore, the hardware configuration of the display control device 1 may be such that unnecessary components are deleted from the hardware configuration of the information processing device 900 described below, or new components are added.

[0087] 10 is a diagram showing a hardware configuration of an information processing device 900 as an example of a display control device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The information processing device 900 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 901, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 902, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 903, a host bus 904, a bridge 905, an external bus 906, an interface 907, an input device 908, an output device 909, a storage device 910, and a communication device 911.

[0088] The CPU 901 functions as an arithmetic processing unit and control unit, and controls the overall operation of the information processing device 900 in accordance with various programs. The CPU 901 may also be a microprocessor. The ROM 902 stores programs used by the CPU 901, calculation parameters, etc. The RAM 903 temporarily stores programs used in the execution of the CPU 901, parameters that change as appropriate during the execution, etc. These are interconnected by a host bus 904 that is composed of a CPU bus, etc.

[0089] The host bus 904 is connected to an external bus 906, such as a PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect / Interface) bus, via a bridge 905. It is not necessary to configure the host bus 904, bridge 905, and external bus 906 separately, and these functions may be implemented on a single bus.

[0090] The input device 908 is composed of input means such as a mouse, keyboard, touch panel, buttons, microphone, switches, and levers that allow the user to input information, and an input control circuit that generates an input signal based on the user's input and outputs it to the CPU 901. By operating this input device 908, the user operating the information processing device 900 can input various data to the information processing device 900 and instruct the information processing device 900 to perform processing operations.

[0091] The output device 909 includes, for example, a display device such as a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) display device, a liquid crystal display (LCD) device, an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) device, or a lamp, and an audio output device such as a speaker.

[0092] The storage device 910 is a device for storing data. The storage device 910 may include a storage medium, a recording device for recording data on the storage medium, a reading device for reading data from the storage medium, and a deletion device for deleting data recorded on the storage medium. The storage device 910 is configured, for example, with an HDD (Hard Disk Drive). This storage device 910 drives a hard disk and stores programs executed by the CPU 901 and various data.

[0093] The communication device 911 is, for example, a communication interface configured with a communication device for connecting to a network, etc. The communication device 911 may be compatible with either wireless communication or wired communication.

[0094] An example of the hardware configuration of the display control device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention has been described above.

[0095] (4. Summary) Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to these examples. It is clear that a person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains can conceive of various modifications and alterations within the scope of the technical ideas set forth in the claims, and it is understood that these also naturally fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0096] For example, in the above description, a cube has been mainly used as an example of a polyhedron circumscribing the highlight range. However, a rectangular parallelepiped other than a cube may be used instead of a cube. Furthermore, other polyhedrons may be used instead of a cube. For example, a regular polyhedron, a regular octahedron, or a regular tetrahedron may be used as a polyhedron circumscribing the highlight range. However, a cube is considered to be the most desirable polyhedron circumscribing the highlight range.

[0097] Although the above description mainly describes an example in which the display control system according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied to AR technology, the display control system according to the embodiment of the present invention may also be applied to VR technology.

[0098] Furthermore, the above description has mainly been given of the case where data recorded in the database 20 is reproduced and displayed by the display control device 1. However, the data displayed by the display control device 1 does not have to be data that has been recorded once in the database 20. For example, the data displayed by the display control device 1 may be data received in real time from another device. Furthermore, the location where the data to be displayed is recorded does not have to be the database 20 at the other end of the network 30, but may be inside the display control device 1.

[0099] The display control device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention can be used in combination with a commonly available technology for placing a highlight near an object to be highlighted. In this case, the display control device 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention is considered to have a higher affinity with such a commonly available technology.

[0100] The additional information T1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention does not have to be a character string. For example, the additional information T1 may be an operation unit capable of receiving user operations. Furthermore, the display area G1 of the additional information T1 may be an area (e.g., a left area, an upper area, a lower area, etc.) other than the right side of the front surface of a plane including the front surface (in the example shown in FIG. 9, the front surface of the cube defined by the frame line P1), which is the surface closest to the user's viewpoint in the virtual three-dimensional space, among the multiple surfaces constituting the cube.

[0101] The above description has mainly focused on the case where the emphasis range E1 is a sphere. However, the emphasis range E1 may be an ellipsoid or the like. In this case, the polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis range E1 may be a rectangular parallelepiped. Furthermore, the method for determining the polyhedron is not limited. For example, the method for determining the cube is not necessarily limited to the method described above. [Explanation of symbols]

[0102] 1 Display control device 11 AR Display 12A Control unit 12B Control section 121A, 121B Data acquisition section 122 Processing section 123A, 123B Display control unit 124 Display area determination section 13 Position and Orientation Measurement Unit

Claims

1. a data acquisition unit that acquires the position of a user's viewpoint in a three-dimensional space and the position and size of an emphasis area having an ellipsoid shape in the three-dimensional space; a processing unit that determines an orientation of a polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis area based on the position of the user's viewpoint and the position and size of the emphasis area, so that one face of the polyhedron faces the position of the user's viewpoint; a display control unit that controls display of a plurality of edges that form the polyhedron after the orientation has been determined; A display control device comprising:

2. the data acquisition unit acquires additional information that is information to be displayed in addition to the plurality of sides; the display control device includes a display area determination unit that determines, as a display area for the additional information, an area of ​​a plane including a front surface that is the surface closest to a viewpoint of the user among a plurality of surfaces that constitute the polyhedron, other than the front surface; the display control unit controls display of the additional information in the display area. The display control device according to claim 1 .

3. The ellipsoid is a sphere. The display control device according to claim 1 .

4. The polyhedron is a rectangular parallelepiped. The display control device according to claim 1 .

5. The polyhedron is a cube. The display control device according to claim 4 .

6. the display control unit controls the display of the plurality of sides by an AR display. The display control device according to claim 1 .

7. the processing unit calculates a plane that circumscribes the emphasis range and is perpendicular to a line connecting the position of the user's viewpoint and the position of the emphasis range, and determines one of a plurality of rectangles included in the plane, the rectangle having a center position at which the line passes, as the front or back surface of the polyhedron. The display control device according to claim 1 .

8. the processing unit determines a direction of one side of the rectangle from a plurality of directions included in the plane based on a Y-axis direction of a camera coordinate system in the three-dimensional space that obtains an image of the three-dimensional space. The display control device according to claim 7 .

9. the processing unit determines, as the direction of the one side, a direction closest to the Y-axis direction among a plurality of directions included in the plane. The display control device according to claim 8 .

10. Obtaining a position of a user's viewpoint in a three-dimensional space and a position and a size of an emphasis range having an ellipsoid shape in the three-dimensional space; determining an orientation of a polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis range based on the position of the user's viewpoint and the position and size of the emphasis range, so that one face of the polyhedron faces the position of the user's viewpoint; Controlling the display of a plurality of edges constituting the polyhedron after the orientation has been determined; A display control method comprising:

11. Computer, a data acquisition unit that acquires the position of a user's viewpoint in a three-dimensional space and the position and size of an emphasis area having an ellipsoid shape in the three-dimensional space; a processing unit that determines an orientation of a polyhedron circumscribing the emphasis area based on the position of the user's viewpoint and the position and size of the emphasis area, so that one face of the polyhedron faces the position of the user's viewpoint; a display control unit that controls display of a plurality of edges that form the polyhedron after the orientation has been determined; A program that functions as a

Images