Virtual Camera Control via Touch Region Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional game apparatuses require players to study how to operate various button switches and a touch panel, making it difficult to intuitively move the viewpoint position and direction of a virtual camera in a virtual 3D space.
Innovation Solution
An image generation apparatus that sets a virtual camera at a player character's viewpoint in a virtual 3D space, using a touch position detector to move and rotate the camera's line of sight based on user input, with predefined regions and coefficients for intuitive operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple button switches and touch panel operations are used to control the virtual camera, then the camera control functionality is comprehensive, but the operation complexity increases and requires player pre-study
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple camera control functions (movement along line of sight and rotation) into a single touch panel interface. By dividing the screen into a central region and outer regions, both translation and rotation operations can be performed on the same touch panel without requiring separate physical buttons, thus maintaining comprehensive functionality while improving ease of operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The touch panel serves multiple functions: it detects both the position for camera translation (when touched within the central region) and the position for camera rotation (when touched in outer regions). This multi-functional design eliminates the need for separate control devices, reducing operational complexity while maintaining full camera control capability.
2Measurement precision
If separate buttons are provided for camera movement and rotation, then the control precision is high, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The screen is segmented into distinct functional regions: a central region for translation operations and outer regions for rotation operations. This spatial segmentation allows the system to determine the intended operation type based on touch position, maintaining control precision while using a single unified interface instead of multiple separate buttons.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adds a spatial dimension to the control interface by using screen position (2D coordinates) to differentiate between translation and rotation commands. Instead of using separate buttons for different functions, the system uses the position dimension of the touch panel to encode different operation types, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining precision.
Data Source
AI summary
It is an object of the present invention to move a viewpoint position and a direction of a line of sight a player character with an intuitive operation method without requiring pre-study. In a case where a player touches a point within a movement determination region, a virtual 3D spatial image moved forward in the direction of the line of sight is displayed. In a case where a player touches a point at the left side outside the movement determination region, a virtual 3D spatial image as viewed by a virtual camera panned to the left is displayed, whereas in a case where a player touches a point at the right side, a virtual 3D spatial image as viewed by a virtual camera panned to the right is displayed. Furthermore, in a case where a player touches an upper point, a virtual 3D spatial image as viewed by a virtual camera tilted in the upper direction is displayed, whereas in a case where a player touches a lower point, a virtual 3D spatial image as viewed by a virtual camera tilted in the lower direction is displayed.