Dynamic Camera Viewpoint Adjustment for Obstacle Avoidance in Virtual Spaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing game technologies cause a strange and pressurizing effect on players due to sudden changes in camera orientation and position when obstacles are present, and the technique of making obstacles transparent impairs the immersive feeling in virtual spaces.
Innovation Solution
An image processing apparatus that sets a gaze point in front of the player character and adjusts the virtual viewpoint to maintain a certain distance behind the character, determining if a line segment from the gaze point to the viewpoint crosses an obstacle, and increasing the view angle when it does, to prevent the player from feeling strangeness and pressure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the position of the virtual camera and the gaze point are moved in accordance with the existence of an obstacle, then the player character can be displayed on the screen, but the orientation and the position of the player character in the screen dramatically change, making the player feel strangeness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment of the virtual camera position and view angle based on obstacle detection. When an obstacle is detected between the player character and the original camera position, the system dynamically moves the camera to an alternative position and adjusts the view angle to maintain player character visibility while avoiding dramatic orientation changes that would cause player discomfort
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes multiple parameters simultaneously - the virtual camera position coordinates, the view angle, and the gaze point position - in a coordinated manner. This ensures that when obstacles are present, the player character remains visible while the changes are distributed across multiple parameters to avoid sudden dramatic shifts in any single parameter that would cause player strangeness
2Reliability
If the virtual camera is set at the position at which the virtual camera collides with the obstacle, then the player character can be displayed, but when the player character moves backward, the distance between the player character and the virtual camera becomes smaller, making the player feel pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of obstacle positions and pre-calculates alternative virtual camera positions before the player character moves. By anticipating potential collision scenarios and preparing alternative camera positions in advance, the system ensures that when the player character moves backward, the camera maintains an appropriate distance, preventing the player from feeling pressure while still keeping the player character visible
3Reliability
If processing to make the obstacle transparent is executed, then the player character can be displayed on the screen, but an image that is actually unable to see is created, impairing the player's immersive feeling to the game in the virtual space
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of making obstacles transparent, the patent introduces an intermediary solution - an alternative virtual camera position - that allows the player character to be seen while maintaining the obstacle's visual presence in the game world. The obstacle remains opaque and visually intact, preserving the immersive feeling, while the camera is positioned at an alternative location where the player character is still visible
Data Source
AI summary
A view frustum, based on a virtual viewpoint, a gaze-point, and a view-angle, is formed in a virtual space in which objects including a player character and an obstacle are arranged. The gaze-point is set to be in a front area of the player character. The virtual viewpoint is set to be at a position separated from the player character by a certain distance in a rear area of the player character. Whether or not a line segment from the gaze-point to the virtual viewpoint crosses the obstacle is determined. The virtual viewpoint is reset to be at a position of a crossing coordinate nearest to the gaze-point. Such coordinate is from among crossing coordinates at which the line segment crosses the obstacle when the line segment crosses the obstacle to increase the view-angle from a preset reference angle.