3D Map Navigation with Locked North Orientation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Navigating around a three-dimensional, geographic coordinate system representation of the Earth in mapping applications is challenging due to the disorienting drift of the North-South and East-West orientation when using the pan function, unlike in two-dimensional Mercator projections where the orientation remains fixed.
Innovation Solution
The solution involves determining a spin-axis and swing-axis angle of revolution to move the globe within a viewport between two points while keeping the North pole orientation locked, using a method that computes spin and swing angles based on three-dimensional coordinate system data to simulate a smooth pan function similar to two-dimensional navigation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a pan function is used to navigate around a three-dimensional geographic coordinate system representation, then the user can move between different views, but the North-South and East-West orientation drifts and becomes disorienting
Solution Approach 1:
The navigation system is segmented into two independent functional components: a pan function for moving between views and a lock function for maintaining North pole orientation. This segmentation allows each function to operate independently without interfering with the other, resolving the contradiction between navigation smoothness and orientation stability.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of allowing the North pole orientation to drift naturally during panning (conventional approach), the invention inverts the approach by actively constraining the North pole to maintain its orientation while implementing the pan function. This inversion resolves the contradiction by making the orientation stable despite the panning motion.
2Stability of the object's composition
If the North pole orientation is locked during panning, then the orientation remains stable, but the navigation becomes more complex requiring additional computational calculations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary calculations to determine the spin-axis and swing-axis angles of revolution before executing the panning motion. By pre-computing the necessary rotational parameters, the system simplifies the real-time computation required during panning while maintaining North pole orientation stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces angular dimension parameters (spin-axis angle and swing-axis angle) to control the panning motion. By expressing the panning operation in terms of rotational angles around specific axes rather than direct coordinate transformations, the system manages the complexity of maintaining orientation stability during navigation.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to navigating around geographic maps within a map viewport display. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to navigating around a surface of a 3D, geographic coordinate system representation of a body using a pan feature while North is locked. In response to a user activating a pan feature of a navigation interface, a spin angle and, or a swing angle is calculated and the globe is revolved around a spin-axis and/or a swing-axis while revolution around a rotate-axis is locked.