447 results about "Virtual position" patented technology

An image-based tele-presence system forward warps video images selected from a plurality fixed imagers using local depth maps and merges the warped images to form high quality images that appear as seen from a virtual position. At least two images, from the images produced by the imagers, are selected for creating a virtual image. Depth maps are generated corresponding to each of the selected images. Selected images are warped to the virtual viewpoint using warp parameters calculated using corresponding depth maps. Finally the warped images are merged to create the high quality virtual image as seen from the selected viewpoint. The system employs a video blanket of imagers, which helps both optimize the number of imagers and attain higher resolution. In an exemplary video blanket, cameras are deployed in a geometric pattern on a surface.

A virtual reality system initiates desired real world actions in response to defined events occurring within a virtual environment. A variety of systems, such as communications devices, computer networks, and software applications, may be interfaced with the virtual reality system and made responsive to virtual events. For example, the virtual reality system may trigger a communications system to establish a communications link between people in response to a virtual event. Users, represented as avatars within the virtual environment, generate events by interacting with virtual entities, such as other avatars, virtual objects, and virtual locations. Virtual entities can be associated with specific users, and users can define desired behaviors for associated entities. Behaviors control the real world actions triggered by virtual events. Users can modify these behaviors, and the virtual reality system may change behaviors based on changing conditions, such as time of day or the whereabouts of a particular user.

A method for organizing and presenting material content on a display to a viewer, the method comprising: mapping a plurality of display windows within a virtual three-dimensional space so that each display window is allocated a specific and predetermined position in the space, rendering each display window in three-dimensional perspective according to its position and angle relative to a viewer's virtual position in the virtual space, cross-referencing the position of each display window to a storage location of the material content that is designated to be rendered in that particular display window at a particular time based on at least one predetermined condition, allocating at least part of the three-dimensional virtual space to display windows whose content is not chosen or determined by the viewer, selecting, retrieving and preparing material content for possible subsequent display according to a predetermined algorithm, selecting and rendering prepared material content within its cross-referenced display window according to a predetermined algorithm, providing a means of virtual navigation that changes the viewer's position in the space in such a manner as to simulate movement through a plurality of predefined channels in the virtual space.

Systems, devices, and methods for eyebox expansion by exit pupil replication in wearable heads-up displays (“WHUDs”) are described. A WHUD includes a scanning laser projector (“SLP”), a holographic combiner, and an exit pupil selector positioned in the optical path therebetween. The exit pupil selector is controllably switchable into and between N different configurations. In each of the N configurations, the exit pupil selector receives a light signal from the SLP and redirects the light signal towards the holographic combiner effectively from a respective one of N virtual positions for the SLP. The holographic combiner converges the light signal to a particular one of N exit pupils at the eye of the user based on the particular virtual position from which the light signal is made to effectively originate. In this way, multiple instances of the exit pupil are distributed over the eye and the eyebox of the WHUD is expanded.

Disclosed are a system and method for creating multi-angle views of an object-of-interest from images stored in a dataset. A user specifies the location of an object-of-interest. As the user virtually navigates through the locality represented by the image dataset, his current virtual position is determined. Using the user's virtual position and the location of the object-of-interest, images in the image dataset are selected and interpolated or stitched together, if necessary, to present to the user a view from his current virtual position looking toward the object-of-interest. The object-of-interest remains in the view no matter where the user virtually travels. From the same image dataset, another user can select a different object-of-interest and virtually navigate in a similar manner, with his own object-of-interest always in view. The object-of-interest also can be “virtual,” added by computer-animation techniques to the image dataset. For some image datasets, the user can virtually navigate through time as well as through space.

An authoring tool supporting the creation, editing and use of a “Mobile Media Documentary” (MMD) is discussed. An MMD is an interactive tour of physical and virtual locations that is accompanied by multimedia content mapped to spatial data for a known path. The multimedia content includes character-driven audio narrative supplemented by graphics, text, video and interactive content.

A unique data label is affixed to each tracked asset and a unique data label for each location in the enterprise, both real and virtual locations. Location history data of the asset is related to other asset data in a relational data base. Assets typically include system components down to the least repairable/replaceable unit (LRU). The data label, in the preferred embodiment of the invention, is a code label using a code that ensures each label is unique to the asset or location to which it is attached. Here the word location is an inclusive term. It includes the geographical location and the identity of the building in which the asset is housed. Location also includes the identity of the system of which a component is a part and, if relevant, location within the system. It includes also any real or virtual location of interest for subsequent analysis and is ultimately defined by the nature of the system being tracked.People assigned to install, upgrade, maintain, and do other work on the system are identified and this identifying data is entered into the data base along with each activity performed on the system and its components. Preferably, in response to a scanned asset label, a menu of allowable activities is presented so that the person assigned to do a task associated with the asset can easily make entries into the data base of the code assigned to the task performed. With asset data, asset location, and task record (including the person performing the task), entered into the relational data base, it is relatively easy to track the components of complex systems in a large enterprise over time and build complex relational records.

An apparatus, system and method for telepresence communications at a virtual location between two or more participants at multiple locations (100, 200). First perspective data descriptive of the perspective of the virtual location environment experienced by a first participant at a first location and feature data extracted from features of a second participant at a second location (210, 220) are processed to generate a first virtual representation of the second participant in the virtual environment from the perspective of the first participant (250). Likewise, second perspective data descriptive of the perspective of the virtual location environment experienced by the second participant and feature data extracted from features of the first participant (230, 240) are processed to generate a second virtual representation of the first participant in the virtual environment from the perspective of the second participant (260). The first and second virtual representations are rendered and then displayed to the first and second participants, respectively (260, 270). The first and second virtual representations are updated and redisplayed to the participants upon a change in one or more of the perspective data and extracted feature data from which they are generated (290, 295). The apparatus, system and method are scalable to two or more participants.

A method and system for mapping a volume of an anatomical structure includes a processor for computing a contour of a medical device as a function of positional and/or a shape constraints, and to translate the contour into known and virtual 3D positions. The processor is configured to determine a spatial volume based on a virtual position, and to render a 3D representation of the spatial volume. A method and system of mapping a surface of an anatomical structure includes a processor configured to obtain an image of the structure. The processor is further configured to receive a signal indicative of a medical device contacting the surface of the anatomical structure, and to determine a position of the device upon when contact has been made. The processor is configured to superimpose marks on the image indicative of a contact points between the device and the structure.

A robot simulation device for simulating an operation of a robot having a vision sensor in an off-line mode. The device includes a working-environment model setting section for arranging a sensor model, a robot model and a plurality of irregularly piled workpiece models in a virtual working environment; and an operation simulating section for allowing the sensor model and the robot model to simulate a workpiece detecting operation and a bin picking motion. The operation simulating section includes a workpiece-model image generating section for allowing the sensor model to pick up the workpiece models and generating a virtual image thereof; a workpiece-model position detecting section for identifying an objective workpiece model from the virtual image and detecting a virtual position thereof; and a robot-model operation controlling section for allowing the robot model to pick out the objective workpiece model based on the virtual position.

A method of encoding a multi-channel 3-dimensional (3D) audio signal mixed with a multi-channel 3D object signal is provided. The method includes: obtaining a location parameter indicating a virtual location of the multi-channel 3D object signal on a multi-channel speaker layout based on a gain value of the multi-channel 3D object signal for each channel; and encoding the multi-channel 3D audio signal and the location parameter.

A method maps positions of a direct input device to locations of a pointer displayed on a surface. The method performs absolute mapping between physical positions of a direct input device and virtual locations of a pointer on a display device when operating in an absolute mapping mode, and relative mapping between the physical positions of the input device and the locations the pointer when operating in a relative mapping mode. Switching between the absolute mapping and the relative mappings is in response to control signals detected from the direct input device.

A method of processing batches of object-part-image data representing object-part images which are taken by one or more image-taking devices from parts of an object, respectively, and thereby obtaining one or more optical characteristic values of the object, the object-part images imaging the parts of the object such that a first object-part image images a first part and a second object-part image images a second part adjacent to the first part in the object and includes an overlapping portion imaging a portion of the first part, each of the batches of object-part-image data including optical characteristic values respectively associated with physical positions, and thereby defining a corresponding one of physical screens, the method including the steps of designating at least one virtual position on a virtual screen corresponding to the parts of the object, modifying, based on predetermined modifying data, the at least one virtual position on the virtual screen, and thereby determining at least one physical position corresponding to the at least one virtual position, on one of the physical screens, and obtaining at least one optical characteristic value associated with the at least one physical position on the one physical screen, as at least one optical characteristic value associated with the at least one virtual position on the virtual screen and as the at least one optical characteristic value of the object.

With a method for optically scanning and measuring an environment by means of a laser scanner, which has a center, and which, for making a scan, optically scans and measures its environment by means of light beams and evaluates it by means of a control and evaluation unit, wherein a color camera having a center takes colored images of the environment which must be linked with the scan, the control and evaluation unit of the laser scanner, to which the color camera is connected, links the scan and the colored images and corrects deviations of the center and/or the orientation of the color camera relative to the center and/or the orientation of the laser scanner by virtually moving the color camera iteratively for each colored image and by transforming at least part of the colored image for this new virtual position and/or orientation of the color camera, until the projection of the colored image and the projection of the scan onto a common reference surface comply with each other in the best possible way.

A system, method, and computer-readable instructions for virtual real-time computer simulation of visual images of perspective scenes. A plurality of 2D spherical images are saved as a data set including 3D positional information of the 2D spherical images corresponding to a series of locations in a 3D terrain, wherein each 2D spherical image comprises a defined volume and has an adjacency relation with adjacent 2D spherical images in 3D Euclidean space. As the input for a current virtual position changes based on simulated movement of the observer in the 3D terrain, a processor updates the current 2D spherical image to an adjacent 2D spherical image as the current virtual position crosses into the adjacent 2D spherical image.

An apparatus for generating an audio output signal to simulate a recording of a virtual microphone at a configurable virtual position in an environment includes a sound events position estimator and an information computation module. The former is adapted to estimate a sound source position indicating a position of a sound source in the environment, wherein the sound events position estimator is adapted to estimate the sound source position based on first and second direction information provided by first and second real spatial microphones, respectively, located at first and second real microphone positions in the environment, respectively. The information computation module is adapted to generate the audio output signal based on a first recorded audio input signal, on the first real microphone position, on the virtual position of the virtual microphone, and on the sound source position.

Indicating a spatial location of a virtual sound source by determining an output for each of one or more physical speakers as a function of an orientation of corresponding virtual speakers that track the position and orientation of a virtual listener relative to the virtual sound source in a virtual environment or game simulation. A vector distance between the virtual sound source and each virtual speaker is used to determine a volume level for each corresponding physical speaker. Each virtual speaker is specified at a fixed location on a unit sphere centered on the virtual listener, and the virtual sound source is normalized to a virtual position on the unit sphere. All computations are performed in Cartesian coordinates. Preferably, each virtual speaker vector distance is used in a nonlinear function to compute a volume attenuation factor for the corresponding physical speaker output.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a system and method for enhanced rendering of a virtual environment. The system may include a portable electronic device having a video camera with a lens that faces the user, and a display. A speaker system is in communication with the portable electronic device. A head tracking application uses face detection to render a user's virtual position in the virtual environment. A video portion of the virtual environment may be rendered on the display. An audio portion of the virtual environment may be rendered in the speaker system in a manner that imitates the directional component of an audio source within the environment. The speaker system may be part of a headset in wireless communication with the portable electronic device. In one embodiment, the system is used with a 3D video gaming application.

The present invention relates to a method for estimating location of a moving object in a navigation system, which is capable of accurately estimating location of the object in a shadow area of GPS location data so that navigation service is provided. A method for estimating location of a moving object in a navigation system includes the steps of: (a) receiving GPS location data from a moving object; (b) determining GPS shadow area by using the received GPS location data; (c) calculating moving straight distance of the moving object with reference to a last GPS location data in visible regions when the moving object is in a GPS shadow area; (d) calculating virtual location data by using the calculated moving straight distance of the moving object; and (e) calculating estimated location on a digital numeric map positioned nearest from the virtual location data, and performing a map-matching to provide a navigation service.

A unified experiential multimedia inducement and entertainment system, computer program and method for providing broadcasts of multimedia content from a plurality of providers to one or more users. The system, computer program and method provide for experience-based entertainment and inducement to individual users over one or more diverse communications medium, inducing the users to visit, frequent, or stay longer at a provider's physical or virtual location.

There is a provided a method and apparatus for enabling a user to amend an audio file, via a user interface for controlling a driver for re-authoring the audio file. The method comprises the following steps: a) associating an icon on said user interface with one or more instruments or sets of instruments in said audio file; b) providing a selection of possible trajectories for each said icon, each trajectory defining the virtual path, relative to said user, of the associated instrument or set of instruments; c) providing a display on said user interface for showing the position of each said icon, each position defining the virtual position, relative to said user, of the associated instrument or set of instruments; d) the user selecting an icon; e) the user assigning a position and/or a trajectory from the selection, to the selected icon; and g) indicating, on said display, the position of the selected icon and whether a trajectory has been assigned to the selected icon. The invention relates in particular to a method for enabling a user to amend a MIDI file, via a user interface for controlling a driver for applying three-dimensional audio data to the MIDI file.