US20120264515A1 - 3d videogame system - Google Patents

3d videogame system Download PDF

Info

Publication number
US20120264515A1
US20120264515A1 US13/529,718 US201213529718A US2012264515A1 US 20120264515 A1 US20120264515 A1 US 20120264515A1 US 201213529718 A US201213529718 A US 201213529718A US 2012264515 A1 US2012264515 A1 US 2012264515A1
Authority
US
United States
Prior art keywords
videogame
backbuffer
images
image
display
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Abandoned
Application number
US13/529,718
Inventor
Manuel Rafael Gutierrez Novelo
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
TDVision Corp de C V SA
Original Assignee
TDVision Corp de C V SA
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Family has litigation
First worldwide family litigation filed litigation Critical https://patents.darts-ip.com/?family=34699036&utm_source=google_patent&utm_medium=platform_link&utm_campaign=public_patent_search&patent=US20120264515(A1) "Global patent litigation dataset” by Darts-ip is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Application filed by TDVision Corp de C V SA filed Critical TDVision Corp de C V SA
Priority to US13/529,718 priority Critical patent/US20120264515A1/en
Publication of US20120264515A1 publication Critical patent/US20120264515A1/en
Priority to US14/162,592 priority patent/US20140307069A1/en
Priority to US15/090,897 priority patent/US20170056770A1/en
Priority to US16/795,237 priority patent/US20210008449A1/en
Abandoned legal-status Critical Current

Links

Images

Classifications

    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06TIMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
    • G06T17/00Three dimensional [3D] modelling, e.g. data description of 3D objects
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F13/00Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions
    • A63F13/40Processing input control signals of video game devices, e.g. signals generated by the player or derived from the environment
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F13/00Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions
    • A63F13/20Input arrangements for video game devices
    • A63F13/21Input arrangements for video game devices characterised by their sensors, purposes or types
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F13/00Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions
    • A63F13/20Input arrangements for video game devices
    • A63F13/24Constructional details thereof, e.g. game controllers with detachable joystick handles
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F13/00Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions
    • A63F13/50Controlling the output signals based on the game progress
    • A63F13/52Controlling the output signals based on the game progress involving aspects of the displayed game scene
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F13/00Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions
    • A63F13/50Controlling the output signals based on the game progress
    • A63F13/52Controlling the output signals based on the game progress involving aspects of the displayed game scene
    • A63F13/525Changing parameters of virtual cameras
    • A63F13/5252Changing parameters of virtual cameras using two or more virtual cameras concurrently or sequentially, e.g. automatically switching between fixed virtual cameras when a character changes room or displaying a rear-mirror view in a car-driving game
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06TIMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
    • G06T15/003D [Three Dimensional] image rendering
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06TIMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
    • G06T15/003D [Three Dimensional] image rendering
    • G06T15/005General purpose rendering architectures
    • GPHYSICS
    • G06COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06TIMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
    • G06T15/003D [Three Dimensional] image rendering
    • G06T15/10Geometric effects
    • G06T15/20Perspective computation
    • G06T15/205Image-based rendering
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N13/00Stereoscopic video systems; Multi-view video systems; Details thereof
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N13/00Stereoscopic video systems; Multi-view video systems; Details thereof
    • H04N13/30Image reproducers
    • H04N13/366Image reproducers using viewer tracking
    • H04N13/383Image reproducers using viewer tracking for tracking with gaze detection, i.e. detecting the lines of sight of the viewer's eyes
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H04ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04NPICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N13/00Stereoscopic video systems; Multi-view video systems; Details thereof
    • H04N13/30Image reproducers
    • H04N13/398Synchronisation thereof; Control thereof
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F2300/00Features of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions, e.g. on a television screen, showing representations related to the game
    • A63F2300/10Features of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions, e.g. on a television screen, showing representations related to the game characterized by input arrangements for converting player-generated signals into game device control signals
    • A63F2300/1043Features of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions, e.g. on a television screen, showing representations related to the game characterized by input arrangements for converting player-generated signals into game device control signals being characterized by constructional details
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F2300/00Features of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions, e.g. on a television screen, showing representations related to the game
    • A63F2300/60Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program
    • A63F2300/66Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program for rendering three dimensional images
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F2300/00Features of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions, e.g. on a television screen, showing representations related to the game
    • A63F2300/60Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program
    • A63F2300/66Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program for rendering three dimensional images
    • A63F2300/6661Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program for rendering three dimensional images for changing the position of the virtual camera
    • A63F2300/6669Methods for processing data by generating or executing the game program for rendering three dimensional images for changing the position of the virtual camera using a plurality of virtual cameras concurrently or sequentially, e.g. automatically switching between fixed virtual cameras when a character change rooms
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A63SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
    • A63FCARD, BOARD, OR ROULETTE GAMES; INDOOR GAMES USING SMALL MOVING PLAYING BODIES; VIDEO GAMES; GAMES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • A63F2300/00Features of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions, e.g. on a television screen, showing representations related to the game
    • A63F2300/80Features of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions, e.g. on a television screen, showing representations related to the game specially adapted for executing a specific type of game
    • A63F2300/8082Virtual reality

Definitions

  • the present invention is related to the display of three-dimensional television images, more specifically to a hardware and software design for viewing three-dimensional (3D) images, easy to be integrated to the existing television, personal computer and videogame system equipment.
  • the visual man-machine interface is constantly trying to improve the images for a wide range of applications: military, biomedical research, medical imaging, genetic manipulation, airport security, entertainment, videogames, computing, and other display systems.
  • Three-dimensional (3D) information is the key for achieving success in critical missions requiring realistic three-dimensional images, which provide reliable information to the user.
  • Stereoscopic vision systems are based on the human eye's ability to see the same object from two different perspectives (left and right).
  • the brain merges both images, resulting in a depth and volume perception, which is then translated by the brain into distance, surface and volumes.
  • red-blue polarization systems require, in order to be watched, a special projector and a large-size white screen; after a few minutes, collateral effects start appearing, such as headache, dizziness, and other symptoms associated to images displayed using a three-dimensional effect.
  • This technology was used for a long time in cinema display systems but, due to the problems mentioned before, the system was eventually withdrawn from the market. Collateral symptoms are caused by the considerable difference in the content received by the left eye and the right eye (one eye receives blue-polarized information and the other receives red-polarized information), causing an excessive stress on the optical nerve and the brain. In addition, two images are displayed simultaneously. In order to be watched, this technology requires an external screen and the use of polarized color glasses. If the user is not wearing red-blue glasses, the three-dimensional effect cannot be watched, but instead only double blurry images are watched.
  • the horizontal-vertical polarization system merges two images taken by a stereoscopic camera with two lenses; the left and right images have a horizontal and vertical polarization, respectively.
  • These systems are used in some new cinema theaters, such as Disney® and IMAX®3D theaters.
  • This technology requires very expensive production systems and is restricted to a dedicated and selected audience, thus reducing the market and field of action.
  • a special interest in the three-dimensional (3D) format has grown during the past three years; such is the case of Tom Hanks' productions and Titanic, which have been produced with 3D content by IMAX3D technology.
  • this technology also results in collateral effects for the user after a few minutes of display, requires an external screen and uses polarized glasses; if the user is not wearing these glasses, only blurred images can be watched.
  • VR3D virtual reality systems
  • the images are computer generated and use vector, polygons, and monocular depth reproduction based images in order to simulate depth and volume as calculated by software, but images are presented using a helmet as a displaying device, placed in front of the eyes; the user is immersed in a computer generated scene existing only in the computer and not in the real world.
  • the name of this computer-generated scene is “Virtual Reality”.
  • This system requires very expensive computers, such as SGI Oxygen® o SGI Onyx Computers®, which are out of reach of the common user.
  • the software includes specific instructions for toggling video images at on-screen display time at a 60 Hz frequency.
  • the videogame software or program interacts directly with the graphics card.
  • I-O SYSTEMS which displays multiplexed images in binocular screens by means of a left-right multiplexion system and toggling the images at an 80 to 100 Hz frequency, but even then the flicker is perceived.
  • Auto-stereoscopic displays are monitors with semi-cylindrical lines running from top to bottom and are applied only to front and back images; this is not a real third dimension, but only a simulation in two perspective planes. Philips® is currently working in this three-dimension technology as well as SEGA® in order to obtain a technological advantage. Results are very poor and there is a resolution loss of 50%. This technology is not compatible with the present technological infrastructure and requires total replacement of the user's monitor. Applications not specifically created for this technology are displayed blurred, making them totally incompatible with the inconveniencies of the current infrastructure.
  • the viewer In order to watch a 3D image, the viewer needs to be placed at an approximate distance of 16′′ (40.64 cm), which varies according to the monitor's size, and the viewer must look at the center of the screen perpendicularly and fix his/her sight in a focal point beyond the real screen. With just a little deviation of the sight or a change in the angle of vision, the three-dimensional effect is lost.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,591,019 uses the compression and decompression technique for the transformation of a matrix into 3D graphical systems generated by a computer.
  • This technique consists in converting real numbers matrixes into integer matrixes during the zeroes search within the matrix.
  • the compressed matrixes occupy a much smaller space in memory and 3D animations can be decompressed in real-time in an efficient manner.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,542,971 issued on Apr. 1, 2003, granted to David Reed, provides a memory access system and a method which uses, instead of an auxiliary memory, a system with a memory space attached to a memory which writes and reads once the data input from one or more peripheral devices.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,492,987 issued on Dec. 10, 2002, granted to Stephen Morein, describes a method and device for processing the elements of the objects not represented. It starts by comparing the geometrical properties of at least one element of one object with representative geometric properties by a pixels group. During the representation of the elements of the object, a new representative geometric property is determined and is updated with a new value.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,290 issued on Sep. 24, 2002, granted to Vimal Parikh et al., provides a graphical system interface for the application of a use and learning program.
  • the characteristic includes the unique representation of a vertex which allows the graphic line to retain the vertex status information, projection matrix and immersion buffer frame commands are set.
  • Any videogame is a software program written in some computer language. Its objective is to simulate a non-existent world and take a player or user into this world. Most videogames are focused in enhancing the visual and manual dexterity, pattern analysis and decision taking, in a competitive and improvement (difficulty level) environment, and are presented in large scenarios with a high artistic content.
  • a game engine most videogames are divided into the following structure: videogame, game library with graphics and audio engines associated, the graphical engine contains the 2D source code and the 3D source code, and the audio engine contains the effects and music code. Every block of the game engine mentioned is executed in a cyclic way called a game loop, and each one of these engines and libraries is in charge of different operations, by example:
  • Graphics engine displays images in general
  • 2D source code static images, “backs” and “sprites” appearing in a videogame screen.
  • 3D source code dynamic, real-time vector handled images, processed as independent entities and with xyz coordinates within the computer-generated world.
  • Audio engine sound playback
  • HDA Hardware Abstraction Layer
  • An object of the present invention is to solve the incompatibility problems of the technologies for a three-dimensional image display.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-purpose technology which allows the final user to watch video images, computer graphics, videogames and simulations with the same device.
  • An additional object of the present invention is to provide a technology which eliminates the collateral effects produced after watching the three-dimensional images provided by the present technologies, even for hours of constant use.
  • Is still other object of the present invention to provide a TDVision® algorithm to create highly realistic computer images.
  • FIG. 1 shows the TDVision® videogame technology map.
  • FIG. 2 shows the main structure for a videogame based on the previous art.
  • FIG. 3 shows the one embodiment of a three-dimensional element for constructing an object in a certain position in space.
  • FIG. 4 shows the development outline of a videogame program based on the OpenGL and DirecTX API functions technologies.
  • FIG. 4 a shows a block diagram of one embodiment of an algorithm for creating the left and right buffers, and additionally discriminating if TDVision technology is used.
  • FIG. 4 b shows a block diagram of a subroutine for setting the right camera view after drawing an image in the right backbuffer as a function of the right camera vector.
  • the subroutine also discriminates if the TDVision technology format is used.
  • FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of the computing outline of the modifications to the graphical adapter for compiling the TDVision technology. It also allows the communication and contains the programming language and allows the information handling of the data associated with the images set.
  • FIG. 6 represents a block diagram of an algorithm which allows the drawing of information in the TDVision backbuffer and presenting it on-screen in DirecTX 3D format.
  • FIG. 7 shows the display sequence using the OpenGL format.
  • FIG. 8 shows the block diagram of the on-screen information display by means of the left and right backbuffers using the OpenGL algorithm.
  • FIG. 9 shows the changes needed in the video card used for the TDVision technology.
  • Videogames are processes which start by providing a plurality of independently related logical states which include a set of programming options, where each programming option corresponds to different image characteristics.
  • the generic program instructions can be compiled into a code by several computing devices, without having to independently generate the object codes for each device.
  • the computer devices such as personal computers, laptops, videogames, etc., include central processing units, memory systems, video graphical processing circuits, audio processing circuits and peripheral ports.
  • the central processing unit processes software in order to generate geometric data referring to the image to be displayed and provides the geometric data to the video graphics circuit, which generates the pixel data stored in a memory frame where the information is sent to the display device.
  • the aforementioned elements as a whole are typically called the videogame engine.
  • Some video game engines are licensed to a third party, as in the case of the Quake III Arena® program, which has the QUAKE ENGINE game engine; this engine was licensed to the VOYAGER ELITE FORCE game which uses the quake engine. This way, the game developers can concentrate in the game metrics, instead of having to develop a game engine from scratch. Originally, videogames used only two-dimensional images, called “sprites”, which were the game's protagonists.
  • videogame consoles separated from the computer world, took the first step to incorporate 3D graphics as a physical graphics capability of the devices. Techniques later were adopted by the hardware used in PCs.
  • a circumstance-analysis element is also included, usually known as videogame applied artificial intelligence. This element analyzes the situation, positions, collisions, game risks and advantages, and based on this analysis, generates a response action for each object participating in the videogame.
  • a backbuffer is used, which is a memory location where the image to be displayed is temporarily “drawn” without outputting it to the video card. If this is done directly on the video memory screen, a flicker on the screen would be observed; therefore the information is drawn and processed quickly in the backbuffer.
  • This backbuffer is usually located within the physical RAM memory of the video or graphics acceleration card.
  • Doublebuffer or backbuffer create a memory location for temporary processing, called doublebuffer or backbuffer.
  • step 15 Go back to step 5 , unless the user wants to end the game (step 15 )
  • the CPU or Central Processing Unit which handles the game loop, user input from the keyboard, mouse or game devices as a gamepad or joystick and the game's artificial intelligence processing.
  • the GPU or Graphics Processing Unit handles the polygon modeling, texture mapping, transformations and lighting simulation.
  • the audio DSP or Digital Signal Processor handles the background music, sound effects and 3D positional sounds.
  • the graphics engine is the game section in charge of controlling and validating perspectives, assigning textures (metal, skin, etc.), lighting, positions, movements and every other aspect associated to each object participating in the videogame, for a videogame console or PC.
  • This image set is processed in relation to the assigned origin point and calculating the distance, depth and position perspectives. This is made in two steps, but it is a complex process due to the mathematical operations involved, namely, the object translation process (offset from origin), and the object rotation process (rotation angle in relation to the current position).
  • the minimum image units are comprised of minimum control units called a “vertex”, which represent one point in the xyz space.
  • the minimum geometrical unit allowed is the triangle constructed by a minimum of three points in space; from the triangle base unit larger objects are formed, comprised of thousands of smaller triangles, as the Mario Sunshine character. This representation is called “Mesh” and texture, color and even graphical display characteristics can be associated to each mesh or even to each triangle. This information is denominated 3D graphics.
  • GAAPHICS API Graphics Applications Programming Interface
  • WINDOWS API a series of graphics handling functions is available within an application-programming interface provided by Windows®, called WINDOWS API.
  • FIG. 4 shows a schematic of the flowchart starting with the software implementation with the adequate metrics for the videogame ( 40 ), the software is developed in any appropriate programming language (such as C, C++, Visual Basic, Others) ( 41 ), the source code for the videogame ( 42 ), game logic and object characteristics, sounds, events, etc. are entered. ( 43 ), in ( 44 ) the event selector is located, which does this by means of the Windows API ( 45 ), OpenGL ( 46 ), or DirecTX ( 47 ), and is finally sent to the video display ( 48 ).
  • any appropriate programming language such as C, C++, Visual Basic, Others
  • the source code for the videogame 42
  • game logic and object characteristics, sounds, events, etc. are entered.
  • the event selector is located, which does this by means of the Windows API ( 45 ), OpenGL ( 46 ), or DirecTX ( 47 ), and is finally sent to the video display ( 48 ).
  • DirecTX provides many functions, and Microsoft® achieved that even when initially some functions required specific hardware.
  • the DirecTX API itself is capable of emulating the hardware characteristics by software, as if the hardware was actually present.
  • Embodiments of the present invention maximize and optimize the use of the OpenGL® and DirecTX® technologies, resulting in a software with certain specific characteristics, algorithms and digital processes in order to meet the specifications set by TDVision used in the present application.
  • the Hal and the direct interface can be analyzed by drivers for each card, and in order to implement the TDVision technology the minimum specifications and requirements are analyzed, as well as any possible changes in the technology which allow it to obtain real 3D in TDVision's 3DVisors.
  • the information generated by the software and stored in the Graphic Device Context or Image Surface is transmitted directly to the last stage of the graphics card, which converts the digital video signal into analog or digital signals (depending on the display monitor), and the image is then displayed on screen.
  • the current display methods are:
  • the output type(s) depend on the video card, which should be connected to a compatible monitor.
  • FIG. 4 a shows the creation of memory locations for the temporary graphics processing (left and right backbuffers) in which basically it adds an extra memory location, i.e., sets a right buffer in ( 400 ) and discriminates in ( 401 ) if TDVision technology is present; in an affirmative case, it sets the left buffer in ( 402 ) and ends in ( 403 ); when TDVision technology is not present the process ends at ( 403 ), as there was nothing to discriminate.
  • FIG. 4 b shows the flowchart for the discrimination and display of the left camera and right camera image
  • the subroutine jumps to the final stage ( 417 ) and ends, as there is no need to calculate other coordinates and display parallel information.
  • the present application refers to the graphics-processing unit shown in FIG. 5 (GPU HARDWARE), and to the graphics engine (GRAPHICS ENGINE, SOFTWARE)
  • the backbuffer's RAM memory and the video card's frontbuffer are large enough to support the left and right channels simultaneously. In current embodiments, this requires a minimum of 32 MB in order to support four buffers with a depth of 1024 ⁇ 768 ⁇ 4 color depth bytes each.
  • the video output signal is dual-ported (two VGA ports), or has the capability of handling multiple monitors, as it is the case of the ATI RADEON 9500® card, which has two output display systems, one VGA and one S-Video video ports to choose from.
  • a graphics card is used which has a dual output only to meet the 60 frames per second display per left-right channel in order to be connected to a 3DVisor, these outputs are SVGA, S-Video, RCA or DVideo type outputs.
  • the computing scheme is presented with modifications for TDV compilation as described in FIG. 5 .
  • a CPU ( 50 ), the memory driver ( 52 ), and the extended memory ( 52 ) feeds the audio driver ( 53 ) and the speakers ( 54 ).
  • the input and output driver ( 55 ) which in turn control the disk ports ( 56 ) and the interactive elements with the user ( 57 ) as the mouse, keyboard, gamepad and joystick.
  • the graphics driver interacts directly with the monitor ( 59 ) and the three-dimensional visors 3DVISORS ( 59 b ).
  • Load meshes information ( 601 )
  • TDVision backbuffer ( 602 ) in which a left backbuffer is created in memory, if it is TDVision technology then it creates a right backbuffer in memory.
  • a pair of buffers corresponding to the left eye and right eye are created, which, when evaluated in the game loop get the vectorial coordinates corresponding to the visualization of each right camera (current) and the left camera (complement calculated with the SETXYZTDV function) shown below.
  • said screen output buffers or front buffers are assigned from the beginning to the video display surface (device context) or to the surface in question (surface), but for displaying the information in a TDVision 3Dvisor two video outputs should be physically present.
  • the right output (normal VGA) and the left output (additional VGA, digital complement or S-Video) should be present in order to be compatible with TDVision.
  • DirecTX is used, but the same process and concept can be applied to the OpenGL format.
  • FIG. 7 shows an outline of the algorithm ( 70 ) conducting a display line of the graphical applications communications interface, effectively, by means of trigonometry ( 72 ) with the vertex operations ( 77 ), the image is constructed ( 71 ) and by means of pixel operations or image elements ( 75 ) through the commands ( 73 ), the display list ( 74 ) and a memory which assigns a texture to the image ( 76 ), resulting in the display being sent to the memory frame ( 70 F) by the operations ( 79 ).
  • the Windows software ( 700 ) communicates with ( 702 ) and the graphic language card ( 701 ), which in turn contains a graphic information library, which is useful to feed ( 703 ) and ( 704 ).
  • FIG. 8 shows the TDVision technology using the OpenGL algorithm ( 80 ) to display the left and right image for the object, it cleans the backbuffer ( 81 ), gets the pointer for the backbuffer ( 82 ), closes the backbuffer ( 83 ), redraws the scene ( 84 ), opens the backbuffer ( 85 ), unlocks the backbuffer pointer ( 86 ), sends the image to the left display surface; in ( 800 ) it discriminates if it is TDVision technology and in an affirmative case it cleans the memory ( 801 ) and gets a pointer for the backbuffer ( 802 ), closes the backbuffer ( 803 ), gets the coordinates for the new perspective ( 804 ), redraws the scene ( 805 ), opens the memory ( 806 ), unlocks the backbuffer pointer ( 807 ), and sends the image to the right display surface ( 808 ).
  • FIG. 9 shows the changes ( 90 ) that can be made in the video card to compile TDVision technology.
  • the left normal backbuffer ( 91 ) preceding the normal left primary backbuffer ( 92 ) which in turn is connected to the monitor's VGA output ( 95 ) and should have another VGA output so it can receive the right primary backbuffer ( 94 ), which in turn has the TDVision technology backbuffer as a precedent.
  • Both left and right backbuffers can be connected to a 3DVisor ( 96 ) with a dual VGA input to receive and display the information sent by the backbuffers ( 91 ) and ( 93 ).
  • a pair of buffers corresponding to the left eye and right eye are created, which, when evaluated in the game loop get the vectorial coordinates corresponding to the visualization of the right camera and the left camera (complement calculated with the SETXYZTDV function) by means of the usual coordinate transform equations.
  • the screen output buffers or front buffers are assigned from the beginning to the device context or to the surface in question , but for displaying the information in a TDVision 3Dvisor it is necessary that two video outputs are physically present, the right output (normal VGA) and the left output (additional VGA, digital complement or SVIDEO) in order to be compatible with TDVision.
  • the example was made using DirecTX, but the same process and concept can be applied for the OpenGL format shown in FIG. 8 .
  • the backbuffer's RAM memory and the video card's frontbuffer should be large enough to support the left and right channels simultaneously. Thus, they should use a minimum of 32 MB in order to support four backbuffers with a color depth of 1024 ⁇ 768 ⁇ 4 bytes each.
  • the video output signal is preferably dual (two VGA ports), or has the capability to handle multiple monitors, as it is the case of the ATI RADEON 9500® card, which has two output display systems, one VGA and one S-Video and one DVideo port to choose from.
  • a graphics card is created which has a dual output only to meet the 60 frames per second display per left-right channel in order to be connected to a 3DVisor, these outputs can be SVGA, S-Video, RCA or DVideo type outputs.
  • the images corresponding to the camera viewpoint in both left and right perspectives can be obtained and the hardware will recognize the information to be displayed in two different and independent video outputs, without multiplexing and displayed in real-time.
  • all the technologies use multiplexion and software simulation.
  • real information can be obtained and while using the 3Dvisors.
  • the image can be displayed from two different perspectives and the brain will associate the volume it occupies in space, without any flickering on screen, effect associated to the current state-of-the-art technologies.
  • a coordinate calculation method of the secondary stereoscopic camera allows obtaining three-dimensional computer visual systems for the generation of stereoscopic images by animation, display and modeling in software programs.
  • This method allows obtaining spatial coordinates (x, y, z) that are assigned to two computer-generated virtual visualization cameras to obtain a stereoscopic vision by using any software program that simulates the third dimension and generates the images by means of the object's movement, or by the “virtual camera” movement observed at that moment by the computer-generated object. Examples include: Autocad, Micrografix Simply 3D, 3Dmax Studio, Point, Dark Basic, Maya, Marionette, Blender, Excel, Word, Paint, Power, Corel Draw, Photo paint, Photoshop, etc. However, all of these programs are designed to display only one camera with one fixed or moving perspective.
  • the exact position is calculated for a second or secondary camera, directly linked to the first camera and by this means two simultaneous images are obtained from different perspectives simulating the human being's stereoscopic visual perspective.
  • This procedure calculates in real-time the position of the secondary camera to place it in the adequate position, and to obtain the modeling image and representation of the second camera, achieved using the coordinate transforming equations, taking the camera to the origin the angle and distance between the secondary camera and the object or objective are calculated, then the primary camera, objective and secondary camera are repositioned in the obtained position.
  • the fourth parameter is the equivalent distance to the average separation of the eyes (6.5 to 7.0 cm), and the three coordinates of the objective's position when observed by the cameras.
  • the output parameters will be the coordinates of the secondary camera observing the same objective point, i.e., (X s , Y s , Z s ), obtained following these steps:
  • the coordinates for the primary camera are taken to the (0, ys,0) position.
  • the quadrant to which it belongs for the application of special considerations in the angle's calculation is classified by an inverse tangent function.
  • New coordinates are obtained, rotating the whole coordinate system from its axis in the same angle between the axis and the vector, a new coordinate system is obtained in which the object is placed on the ‘z’ axis and the primary camera will remain at the origin of the new coordinate system.
  • the coordinates of the secondary camera are obtained by placing it in the human eyes' average distance position
  • the procedure can be implemented in languages as Delphi, C, C++, Visual C++, Omnis, etc., but the result will be the same.
  • This algorithm must be implemented in any existing software which handles two dimensions but has been developed for stereoscopic vision applications.

Abstract

A 3D videogame system capable of displaying a left-right sequences through a different, independent VGA or video channel, with a display device sharing a memory in an immerse manner. The system has a videogame engine controlling and validating the image perspectives, assigning textures, lighting, positions, movements and aspects associated with each object participating in the game; creates left and right backbuffers, creates images and presents the information in the frontbuffers. The system allows handling the information of data associated to the xyz coordinates of the object's image in real-time, increases the RAM for the left-right backbuffer, with the possibility to discriminate and take the corresponding backbuffer, whose information is sent to the frontbuffer or additional independent display device sharing a memory in an immerse manner.

Description

    RELATED APPLICATIONS
  • This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/710,191, filed Feb. 22, 2010, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/471,280, filed Jun. 19, 2006, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,666,096 on Feb. 23, 2010, titled “3D Videogame System,” which is a continuation of PCT Application No. PCT/MX2003/000112, filed on Dec. 19, 2003, published in the Spanish language. The disclosures of all the above-referenced applications, publications, and patents are considered part of the disclosure of this application, and are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
  • FIELD OF THE INVENTION
  • The present invention is related to the display of three-dimensional television images, more specifically to a hardware and software design for viewing three-dimensional (3D) images, easy to be integrated to the existing television, personal computer and videogame system equipment.
  • BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
  • The visual man-machine interface is constantly trying to improve the images for a wide range of applications: military, biomedical research, medical imaging, genetic manipulation, airport security, entertainment, videogames, computing, and other display systems.
  • Three-dimensional (3D) information is the key for achieving success in critical missions requiring realistic three-dimensional images, which provide reliable information to the user.
  • Stereoscopic vision systems are based on the human eye's ability to see the same object from two different perspectives (left and right). The brain merges both images, resulting in a depth and volume perception, which is then translated by the brain into distance, surface and volumes.
  • In the state-of-the-art, several attempts have been made in order to achieve 3D images, e.g., the following technologies have been used:
  • Red-blue polarization
  • Vertical-horizontal polarization
  • Multiplexed images glasses.
  • 3D virtual reality systems
  • Volumetric displays
  • Auto-stereoscopic displays
  • All of the aforementioned technologies have presentation incompatibilities, collateral effects and a lack of compatibility with the current existing technology.
  • For example, red-blue polarization systems require, in order to be watched, a special projector and a large-size white screen; after a few minutes, collateral effects start appearing, such as headache, dizziness, and other symptoms associated to images displayed using a three-dimensional effect. This technology was used for a long time in cinema display systems but, due to the problems mentioned before, the system was eventually withdrawn from the market. Collateral symptoms are caused by the considerable difference in the content received by the left eye and the right eye (one eye receives blue-polarized information and the other receives red-polarized information), causing an excessive stress on the optical nerve and the brain. In addition, two images are displayed simultaneously. In order to be watched, this technology requires an external screen and the use of polarized color glasses. If the user is not wearing red-blue glasses, the three-dimensional effect cannot be watched, but instead only double blurry images are watched.
  • The horizontal-vertical polarization system merges two images taken by a stereoscopic camera with two lenses; the left and right images have a horizontal and vertical polarization, respectively. These systems are used in some new cinema theaters, such as Disney® and IMAX®3D theaters. This technology requires very expensive production systems and is restricted to a dedicated and selected audience, thus reducing the market and field of action. A special interest in the three-dimensional (3D) format has grown during the past three years; such is the case of Tom Hanks' productions and Titanic, which have been produced with 3D content by IMAX3D technology. However, this technology also results in collateral effects for the user after a few minutes of display, requires an external screen and uses polarized glasses; if the user is not wearing these glasses, only blurred images can be watched.
  • Systems using multiplexed-image shutting glasses technology toggle left and right images by blocking one of these images, so it cannot get to the corresponding eye for a short time. This blocking is synchronized with the image's display (in a monitor or TV set). If the user is not wearing the glasses, only blurred images are seen, and collateral effects become apparent after a few minutes. This technology is currently provided by (among others), BARCO SYSTEMS for Mercedes Benz®, Ford® and Boeing® companies, by providing a kind of “room” to create 3D images by multiplexing (shutter glasses) in order to produce their prototypes before they are assembled in the production line.
  • 3D virtual reality systems (VR3D) are computer-based systems that create computer scenes that can interact with the user by means of position interfaces, such as data gloves and position detectors. The images are computer generated and use vector, polygons, and monocular depth reproduction based images in order to simulate depth and volume as calculated by software, but images are presented using a helmet as a displaying device, placed in front of the eyes; the user is immersed in a computer generated scene existing only in the computer and not in the real world. The name of this computer-generated scene is “Virtual Reality”. This system requires very expensive computers, such as SGI Oxygen® o SGI Onyx Computers®, which are out of reach of the common user. Serious games and simulations are created with this technology, which generates left-right sequences through the same VGA or video channel, the software includes specific instructions for toggling video images at on-screen display time at a 60 Hz frequency. The videogame software or program interacts directly with the graphics card.
  • There is a technology called I-O SYSTEMS, which displays multiplexed images in binocular screens by means of a left-right multiplexion system and toggling the images at an 80 to 100 Hz frequency, but even then the flicker is perceived.
  • Only a few manufacturers, such as Perspectra Systems®, create volumetric display systems. They use the human eye capability to retain an image for a few milliseconds and the rotation of a display at a very high speed; then, according to the viewing angle, the device shows the corresponding image turning the pixels' color on and off, due to the display's high speed rotation the eye can receive a “floating image”. These systems are very expensive (the “sphere” costs approximately 50,000 USD) and require specific and adequate software and hardware. This technology is currently used in military applications.
  • Auto-stereoscopic displays are monitors with semi-cylindrical lines running from top to bottom and are applied only to front and back images; this is not a real third dimension, but only a simulation in two perspective planes. Philips® is currently working in this three-dimension technology as well as SEGA® in order to obtain a technological advantage. Results are very poor and there is a resolution loss of 50%. This technology is not compatible with the present technological infrastructure and requires total replacement of the user's monitor. Applications not specifically created for this technology are displayed blurred, making them totally incompatible with the inconveniencies of the current infrastructure. In order to watch a 3D image, the viewer needs to be placed at an approximate distance of 16″ (40.64 cm), which varies according to the monitor's size, and the viewer must look at the center of the screen perpendicularly and fix his/her sight in a focal point beyond the real screen. With just a little deviation of the sight or a change in the angle of vision, the three-dimensional effect is lost.
  • In the state-of-the-art, there are several patents, which are involved in the development of this technology, namely:
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,593,929, issued on Jul. 15, 2003 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,556,197, issued on Apr. 29, 2003, granted to Timothy Van Hook, et al., refer to a low cost video game system which can model a three-dimensional world and project it on a two-dimensional screen. The images are based on interchangeable viewpoints in real-time by the user, by means of game controllers.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,591,019, issued on Jul. 8, 2003, granted to Claude Comair et al., uses the compression and decompression technique for the transformation of a matrix into 3D graphical systems generated by a computer. This technique consists in converting real numbers matrixes into integer matrixes during the zeroes search within the matrix. The compressed matrixes occupy a much smaller space in memory and 3D animations can be decompressed in real-time in an efficient manner.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,542,971, issued on Apr. 1, 2003, granted to David Reed, provides a memory access system and a method which uses, instead of an auxiliary memory, a system with a memory space attached to a memory which writes and reads once the data input from one or more peripheral devices.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,492,987, issued on Dec. 10, 2002, granted to Stephen Morein, describes a method and device for processing the elements of the objects not represented. It starts by comparing the geometrical properties of at least one element of one object with representative geometric properties by a pixels group. During the representation of the elements of the object, a new representative geometric property is determined and is updated with a new value.
  • U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,290, issued on Sep. 24, 2002, granted to Vimal Parikh et al., provides a graphical system interface for the application of a use and learning program. The characteristic includes the unique representation of a vertex which allows the graphic line to retain the vertex status information, projection matrix and immersion buffer frame commands are set.
  • Any videogame is a software program written in some computer language. Its objective is to simulate a non-existent world and take a player or user into this world. Most videogames are focused in enhancing the visual and manual dexterity, pattern analysis and decision taking, in a competitive and improvement (difficulty level) environment, and are presented in large scenarios with a high artistic content. As a game engine, most videogames are divided into the following structure: videogame, game library with graphics and audio engines associated, the graphical engine contains the 2D source code and the 3D source code, and the audio engine contains the effects and music code. Every block of the game engine mentioned is executed in a cyclic way called a game loop, and each one of these engines and libraries is in charge of different operations, by example:
  • Graphics engine: displays images in general
  • 2D source code: static images, “backs” and “sprites” appearing in a videogame screen.
  • 3D source code: dynamic, real-time vector handled images, processed as independent entities and with xyz coordinates within the computer-generated world.
  • Audio engine: sound playback
  • Effects code: when special events happen, such as explosions, crashes, jumps, etc.
  • Music code: background music usually played according to the videogame's ambience.
  • The execution of all these blocks in a cyclic way allows the validation of current positions, conditions and game metrics. As a result of this information the elements integrating the videogame are affected.
  • The difference between game programs created for game consoles and computers is that originally, the IBM PC was not created for playing in it. Ironically, many of the best games run under an IBM PC-compatible technology. If we compare the PCs of the past with the videogames and processing capabilities of the present, we could say that PCs were completely archaic, and it was only by means of a low-level handling (assembly language) that the first games were created, making direct use of the computer's graphics card and speaker. However, the situation has changed. The processing power and graphics capabilities of present CPUs, as well as the creation of cards specially designed for graphics processes acceleration (GPUs) have evolved to such a degree that they surpass by far the characteristics of the so-called supercomputers in the 1980s.
  • In 1996, a graphics acceleration system known as “hardware acceleration” was introduced which included graphics processors capable of making mathematical and matrix operations at a high speed. This reduced the main CPU's load by means of card-specific communications and a programming language, located in a layer called a “Hardware Abstraction Layer” (HAL). This layer allows the information handling of data associated to real-time xyz coordinates, by means of coordinate matrixes and matrix mathematical operations, such as addition, scalar multiplication and floating point matrix comparison.
  • BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
  • An object of the present invention is to solve the incompatibility problems of the technologies for a three-dimensional image display.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-purpose technology which allows the final user to watch video images, computer graphics, videogames and simulations with the same device.
  • An additional object of the present invention is to provide a technology which eliminates the collateral effects produced after watching the three-dimensional images provided by the present technologies, even for hours of constant use.
  • It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a technologically advanced integration in software by the creation of a pair of buffers corresponding to the left eye and the right eye, and hardware with an additional, independent display device which shares the memory in an immerse form, along with digital video image processors.
  • It is another object of the present invention to display the image physically on-screen by means of two front buffers created by graphics process units or GPUs.
  • Is still another object of the present invention to obtain brain perceptions of depth and volume with highly realistic images, even if they are created by computer graphics software.
  • Is still other object of the present invention to provide a TDVision® algorithm to create highly realistic computer images.
  • It is another object of the present invention to make changes in the current technological base to create a new digital imaging process with optical techniques in order to achieve a real image perception by setting the view of a right side camera.
  • It is another object of the present invention to achieve digital media convergence, wherein a DVD-playing computer, a movie-producing laptop, the video-image transmission capability of the internet, and PC and video game consoles can be used in the internet structure.
  • It is another object of the present invention to provide a new assembly language algorithm, analog and digital hardware to obtain the best adaptation to the existing technologies' 3D equipment.
  • It is still another object of the present invention to provide three-dimensional visual computer systems for the generation of stereoscopic images by means of animation, display and software modeling.
  • BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
  • FIG. 1 shows the TDVision® videogame technology map.
  • FIG. 2 shows the main structure for a videogame based on the previous art.
  • FIG. 3 shows the one embodiment of a three-dimensional element for constructing an object in a certain position in space.
  • FIG. 4 shows the development outline of a videogame program based on the OpenGL and DirecTX API functions technologies.
  • FIG. 4 a shows a block diagram of one embodiment of an algorithm for creating the left and right buffers, and additionally discriminating if TDVision technology is used.
  • FIG. 4 b shows a block diagram of a subroutine for setting the right camera view after drawing an image in the right backbuffer as a function of the right camera vector. The subroutine also discriminates if the TDVision technology format is used.
  • FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of the computing outline of the modifications to the graphical adapter for compiling the TDVision technology. It also allows the communication and contains the programming language and allows the information handling of the data associated with the images set.
  • FIG. 6 represents a block diagram of an algorithm which allows the drawing of information in the TDVision backbuffer and presenting it on-screen in DirecTX 3D format.
  • FIG. 7 shows the display sequence using the OpenGL format.
  • FIG. 8 shows the block diagram of the on-screen information display by means of the left and right backbuffers using the OpenGL algorithm.
  • FIG. 9 shows the changes needed in the video card used for the TDVision technology.
  • DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
  • Videogames are processes which start by providing a plurality of independently related logical states which include a set of programming options, where each programming option corresponds to different image characteristics. The generic program instructions can be compiled into a code by several computing devices, without having to independently generate the object codes for each device.
  • The computer devices, such as personal computers, laptops, videogames, etc., include central processing units, memory systems, video graphical processing circuits, audio processing circuits and peripheral ports. Typically, the central processing unit processes software in order to generate geometric data referring to the image to be displayed and provides the geometric data to the video graphics circuit, which generates the pixel data stored in a memory frame where the information is sent to the display device. The aforementioned elements as a whole are typically called the videogame engine.
  • Some video game engines are licensed to a third party, as in the case of the Quake III Arena® program, which has the QUAKE ENGINE game engine; this engine was licensed to the VOYAGER ELITE FORCE game which uses the quake engine. This way, the game developers can concentrate in the game metrics, instead of having to develop a game engine from scratch. Originally, videogames used only two-dimensional images, called “sprites”, which were the game's protagonists.
  • Most of the videogames and technologies have evolved and now allow working with simulated objects in a three-dimensional environment or world, giving each object xyz position properties, surrounded by other objects with the same characteristics and acting together within a world with a (0,0,0) origin.
  • At first, videogame consoles, separated from the computer world, took the first step to incorporate 3D graphics as a physical graphics capability of the devices. Techniques later were adopted by the hardware used in PCs. A circumstance-analysis element is also included, usually known as videogame applied artificial intelligence. This element analyzes the situation, positions, collisions, game risks and advantages, and based on this analysis, generates a response action for each object participating in the videogame.
  • A backbuffer is used, which is a memory location where the image to be displayed is temporarily “drawn” without outputting it to the video card. If this is done directly on the video memory screen, a flicker on the screen would be observed; therefore the information is drawn and processed quickly in the backbuffer. This backbuffer is usually located within the physical RAM memory of the video or graphics acceleration card.
  • A typical sequence within a videogame's algorithm would be:
  • Display title screen
  • Load characters, objects, textures and sounds into memory
  • Create a memory location for temporary processing, called doublebuffer or backbuffer.
  • Display background
  • Record the image under each element participating in the game
  • Clean all elements from memory (doublebuffer)
  • User input verification and player's position update
  • Enemy position processing by means of artificial intelligence (AI)
  • Move every participant object to its new position
  • Objects collision verification
  • Animation frame increment
  • Draw objects in backbuffer memory
  • Transfer backbuffer data to the screen
  • Go back to step 5, unless the user wants to end the game (step 15)
  • Delete all objects from memory
  • End game.
  • The most commonly used devices in a video game console are: The CPU or Central Processing Unit, which handles the game loop, user input from the keyboard, mouse or game devices as a gamepad or joystick and the game's artificial intelligence processing.
  • The GPU or Graphics Processing Unit handles the polygon modeling, texture mapping, transformations and lighting simulation.
  • The audio DSP or Digital Signal Processor handles the background music, sound effects and 3D positional sounds.
  • The graphics engine is the game section in charge of controlling and validating perspectives, assigning textures (metal, skin, etc.), lighting, positions, movements and every other aspect associated to each object participating in the videogame, for a videogame console or PC. This image set is processed in relation to the assigned origin point and calculating the distance, depth and position perspectives. This is made in two steps, but it is a complex process due to the mathematical operations involved, namely, the object translation process (offset from origin), and the object rotation process (rotation angle in relation to the current position).
  • It is important to note that the minimum image units (FIG. 3) are comprised of minimum control units called a “vertex”, which represent one point in the xyz space. The minimum geometrical unit allowed is the triangle constructed by a minimum of three points in space; from the triangle base unit larger objects are formed, comprised of thousands of smaller triangles, as the Mario Sunshine character. This representation is called “Mesh” and texture, color and even graphical display characteristics can be associated to each mesh or even to each triangle. This information is denominated 3D graphics. It should be noted that even when it is called a 3D graphic due to its nature, constructed by xyz vectors, the final display to the user is generally in 2D, in a flat engine with content based on 3D vectors seen by the user as if they were in front of him, they only appear to have some intelligent depth and lighting characteristics, but for the brain they do not appear to have a volume in space.
  • Originally, it was necessary for the videogame programs to communicate directly with the graphics card to execute acceleration and complex mathematics operations, which meant that a game had to be practically rewritten in order to support a different video card. Facing this problem, Silicon Graphics® focused in developing a software layer (OpenGL®) which communicated directly with the hardware, with a series of useful functions and subroutines which, independently of the hardware, could communicate with it only in the graphical aspects. Microsoft® also developed a similar function group called DirecTX 3D, very much like OpenGL® but with a more complete functionality, as it included sound control and network gaming areas, among others.
  • These functions and subroutines set are called Graphics Applications Programming Interface (GRAPHICS API). These APIs can be accessed from different programming languages, as C, C++, Visual .Net, C# and Visual Basic, among others.
  • Every virtual reality system mentioned currently uses a left-right sequence through the same VGA or video channel scheme. These types of systems require software which includes specific instructions for alternating video images at on-screen display time in the backbuffer, applying a known offset algorithm using offsets and simulation-like angles.
  • Additionally to the functions provided by the OpenGL® and DirecTX® API, a series of graphics handling functions is available within an application-programming interface provided by Windows®, called WINDOWS API.
  • The development of a videogame program based on these technologies is shown in FIG. 4, in which the videogame software developed in the present application by TDVision® Corp. implementation is included. FIG. 4 shows a schematic of the flowchart starting with the software implementation with the adequate metrics for the videogame (40), the software is developed in any appropriate programming language (such as C, C++, Visual Basic, Others) (41), the source code for the videogame (42), game logic and object characteristics, sounds, events, etc. are entered. (43), in (44) the event selector is located, which does this by means of the Windows API (45), OpenGL (46), or DirecTX (47), and is finally sent to the video display (48).
  • Although all of this refers to the software, something interesting is that DirecTX provides many functions, and Microsoft® achieved that even when initially some functions required specific hardware. The DirecTX API itself is capable of emulating the hardware characteristics by software, as if the hardware was actually present.
  • Embodiments of the present invention maximize and optimize the use of the OpenGL® and DirecTX® technologies, resulting in a software with certain specific characteristics, algorithms and digital processes in order to meet the specifications set by TDVision used in the present application.
  • Regarding the hardware, the Hal and the direct interface can be analyzed by drivers for each card, and in order to implement the TDVision technology the minimum specifications and requirements are analyzed, as well as any possible changes in the technology which allow it to obtain real 3D in TDVision's 3DVisors.
  • Regarding the display or representation systems, the information generated by the software and stored in the Graphic Device Context or Image Surface is transmitted directly to the last stage of the graphics card, which converts the digital video signal into analog or digital signals (depending on the display monitor), and the image is then displayed on screen.
  • The current display methods are:
  • Analog monitor with digital computer signal
  • Digital monitor
  • Analog monitor with TV signal
  • 3D virtual reality systems.
  • The output type(s) depend on the video card, which should be connected to a compatible monitor.
  • FIG. 4 a shows the creation of memory locations for the temporary graphics processing (left and right backbuffers) in which basically it adds an extra memory location, i.e., sets a right buffer in (400) and discriminates in (401) if TDVision technology is present; in an affirmative case, it sets the left buffer in (402) and ends in (403); when TDVision technology is not present the process ends at (403), as there was nothing to discriminate.
  • FIG. 4 b shows the flowchart for the discrimination and display of the left camera and right camera image; the left view is set in (410), the image is drawn in the left backbuffer (411) as a function of the camera position, the image is displayed in the left screen (412), then it is discriminated if it has TDVision format in (413) and in the affirmative case the right view position coordinates are calculated (414), the image is drawn in the right backbuffer as a function of the left camera position (415), then the image is displayed in the right screen (416), the process ends at (417). If it is not necessary to discriminate in (413) as the image is provided in a current state-of-the-art format, the subroutine jumps to the final stage (417) and ends, as there is no need to calculate other coordinates and display parallel information. In one embodiment of hte invention, the present application refers to the graphics-processing unit shown in FIG. 5 (GPU HARDWARE), and to the graphics engine (GRAPHICS ENGINE, SOFTWARE)
  • The hardware modifications are:
  • RAM increase for the left and right backbuffers
  • Implementing an additional independent display device in the display buffer but sharing the memory in an immense manner so it takes the corresponding backbuffer.
  • In this case the backbuffer's RAM memory and the video card's frontbuffer are large enough to support the left and right channels simultaneously. In current embodiments, this requires a minimum of 32 MB in order to support four buffers with a depth of 1024×768×4 color depth bytes each. Additionally, the video output signal is dual-ported (two VGA ports), or has the capability of handling multiple monitors, as it is the case of the ATI RADEON 9500® card, which has two output display systems, one VGA and one S-Video video ports to choose from. A graphics card is used which has a dual output only to meet the 60 frames per second display per left-right channel in order to be connected to a 3DVisor, these outputs are SVGA, S-Video, RCA or DVideo type outputs.
  • The computing scheme is presented with modifications for TDV compilation as described in FIG. 5. A CPU (50), the memory driver (52), and the extended memory (52) feeds the audio driver (53) and the speakers (54). Also the input and output driver (55) which in turn control the disk ports (56) and the interactive elements with the user (57) as the mouse, keyboard, gamepad and joystick. The graphics driver interacts directly with the monitor (59) and the three-dimensional visors 3DVISORS (59 b).
  • Concerning specifically the graphics hardware (HAL), changes are needed to compile the TDVision technology. For example, the application (500) sending the information to the graphics drivers (501) operating due to the graphics hardware support (502) effectively needs physical changes to be compiled with the TDVision technology. In order to implement the TDVision technology by means of OpenGL and DirecTX, modifications can be made in parts of the software section of a videogame as mentioned earlier, in some hardware sections.
  • Regarding the software, some special characteristics are added within a typical work algorithm, as well as a call to a TDVision subroutine, as it is shown in FIG. 6.
  • Load surfaces information (600)
  • Load meshes information (601)
  • Create TDVision backbuffer (602) in which a left backbuffer is created in memory, if it is TDVision technology then it creates a right backbuffer in memory.
  • Apply initial coordinates (603)
  • Apply game logic (604)
  • Validation and artificial intelligence (605)
  • Position calculation (606)
  • Collision verification (607)
  • Drawing the information in the TDVision backbuffer and display on screen (608), in which the right camera view is set. Drawing the image in the right backbuffer as a function of the current right camera vector, and displaying the image on the right screen (front buffer). If it is TDVision technology, then: Calculate the left pair coordinates, set the left camera view, draw the image in the left backbuffer as a function of the current vector of the left camera, display the information on the right screen (front buffer) which may use hardware modification.
  • Thus, a pair of buffers corresponding to the left eye and right eye are created, which, when evaluated in the game loop get the vectorial coordinates corresponding to the visualization of each right camera (current) and the left camera (complement calculated with the SETXYZTDV function) shown below.
  • It should be realized that said screen output buffers or front buffers are assigned from the beginning to the video display surface (device context) or to the surface in question (surface), but for displaying the information in a TDVision 3Dvisor two video outputs should be physically present. The right output (normal VGA) and the left output (additional VGA, digital complement or S-Video) should be present in order to be compatible with TDVision. In the example DirecTX is used, but the same process and concept can be applied to the OpenGL format.
  • FIG. 7 shows an outline of the algorithm (70) conducting a display line of the graphical applications communications interface, effectively, by means of trigonometry (72) with the vertex operations (77), the image is constructed (71) and by means of pixel operations or image elements (75) through the commands (73), the display list (74) and a memory which assigns a texture to the image (76), resulting in the display being sent to the memory frame (70F) by the operations (79). The Windows software (700) communicates with (702) and the graphic language card (701), which in turn contains a graphic information library, which is useful to feed (703) and (704).
  • FIG. 8 shows the TDVision technology using the OpenGL algorithm (80) to display the left and right image for the object, it cleans the backbuffer (81), gets the pointer for the backbuffer (82), closes the backbuffer (83), redraws the scene (84), opens the backbuffer (85), unlocks the backbuffer pointer (86), sends the image to the left display surface; in (800) it discriminates if it is TDVision technology and in an affirmative case it cleans the memory (801) and gets a pointer for the backbuffer (802), closes the backbuffer (803), gets the coordinates for the new perspective (804), redraws the scene (805), opens the memory (806), unlocks the backbuffer pointer (807), and sends the image to the right display surface (808).
  • FIG. 9 shows the changes (90) that can be made in the video card to compile TDVision technology. Namely, the left normal backbuffer (91) preceding the normal left primary backbuffer (92) which in turn is connected to the monitor's VGA output (95) and should have another VGA output so it can receive the right primary backbuffer (94), which in turn has the TDVision technology backbuffer as a precedent. Both left and right backbuffers can be connected to a 3DVisor (96) with a dual VGA input to receive and display the information sent by the backbuffers (91) and (93).
  • This software modifications use the following API functions in Direct X:
  • TDVision backbuffer creation:
  • FUNCTION CREATE BACKBUFFERTDV( )
    Left buffer
    Set d3dDevice = d3d.CreateDevice(D3DADAPTER_DEFAULT,
    D3DDEVTYPE_HAL,hWndL,
    D3DCREATE_SOFTWARE_VERTEXPROCESSING, d3dpp)
    If GAMEISTDV then
    Right Buffer
    Set d3dDeviceRight =
    d3d.CreateDevice(D3DADAPTER_DEFAULT,
    D3DDEVTYPE_HAL,hWndR,
    D3DCREATE_SOFTWARE_VERTEXPROCESSING, d3dpp2)
    Endif
    END SUB
  • Draw image in TDVision backbuffer:
  • FUNCTION DRAWBACKBUFFERTDV( )
    DRAW LEFT SCENE
    d3dDivice.BeginScene
    d3dDivece.SetStreamSource0, poly 1_vb, Len(poly1.v1)
    d3dDevice.DrawPrimitiveD3DPT_TRIANGLELIST,0,1
    d3dDevice.EndScene
     Copy backbuffer to frontbuffer, screen
    D3dDivice.Present By Val 0,By Val 0, 0, By Val 0
    ‘VERIFIES IF IT IS A TDVISION PROGRAM BY
    CHECKING THE FLAG
     IF GAMEISTDV THEN
     ‘CALCULATE COORDINATES RIGHT CAMERA
    SETXYZTDV ( )
    ′ Draw right scene
     d3dDevice2.BeginScene
    d3dDevice2.Set StreamSource 0, poly2_vb,
     Len(poly1,v1)
     d3dDevice2.DrawPrimitive
     D3DPT_TRIANGLELIST,0,1
    d3dDevice2.EndScene
    d3dDevice2.Present ByVal 0, ByVal 0, 0, ByVal
    END SUB.
  • Modifications to xyz camera vector:
  • VecCameraSource.z = z position
    D3DXMatrixLook AtLH matView, vecCameraSource,
    VecCameraTarget, Create Vector (0,1,0)
    D3dDevice 2.SetTransform D3DTS_VIEW, matView
    VecCameraSource.x = x position
    D3DXMatrixLook AtLH matView, vecCameraSource,
    VecCameraTarget, Create Vector (0,1,0)
    D3dDevice 2.SetTransform D3DTS_VIEW, matView
    VecCameraSource.y = y position
    D3DXMatrixLook AtLH matView, vecCameraSource,
    VecCameraTarget, Create Vector (0,1,0)
    D3dDevice 2.SetTransform D3DTS_VIEW, matView
  • Thus, a pair of buffers corresponding to the left eye and right eye are created, which, when evaluated in the game loop get the vectorial coordinates corresponding to the visualization of the right camera and the left camera (complement calculated with the SETXYZTDV function) by means of the usual coordinate transform equations.
  • It should be realized that the screen output buffers or front buffers are assigned from the beginning to the device context or to the surface in question , but for displaying the information in a TDVision 3Dvisor it is necessary that two video outputs are physically present, the right output (normal VGA) and the left output (additional VGA, digital complement or SVIDEO) in order to be compatible with TDVision.
  • The example was made using DirecTX, but the same process and concept can be applied for the OpenGL format shown in FIG. 8.
  • In this case the backbuffer's RAM memory and the video card's frontbuffer should be large enough to support the left and right channels simultaneously. Thus, they should use a minimum of 32 MB in order to support four backbuffers with a color depth of 1024×768×4 bytes each. As it was mentioned before, the video output signal is preferably dual (two VGA ports), or has the capability to handle multiple monitors, as it is the case of the ATI RADEON 9500® card, which has two output display systems, one VGA and one S-Video and one DVideo port to choose from.
  • A graphics card is created which has a dual output only to meet the 60 frames per second display per left-right channel in order to be connected to a 3DVisor, these outputs can be SVGA, S-Video, RCA or DVideo type outputs.
  • Therefore, the images corresponding to the camera viewpoint in both left and right perspectives can be obtained and the hardware will recognize the information to be displayed in two different and independent video outputs, without multiplexing and displayed in real-time. Presently, all the technologies use multiplexion and software simulation. In the technology proposed by the present application real information can be obtained and while using the 3Dvisors. The image can be displayed from two different perspectives and the brain will associate the volume it occupies in space, without any flickering on screen, effect associated to the current state-of-the-art technologies.
  • A coordinate calculation method of the secondary stereoscopic camera (SETXYZTDV( )) allows obtaining three-dimensional computer visual systems for the generation of stereoscopic images by animation, display and modeling in software programs. This method allows obtaining spatial coordinates (x, y, z) that are assigned to two computer-generated virtual visualization cameras to obtain a stereoscopic vision by using any software program that simulates the third dimension and generates the images by means of the object's movement, or by the “virtual camera” movement observed at that moment by the computer-generated object. Examples include: Autocad, Micrografix Simply 3D, 3Dmax Studio, Point, Dark Basic, Maya, Marionette, Blender, Excel, Word, Paint, Power, Corel Draw, Photo paint, Photoshop, etc. However, all of these programs are designed to display only one camera with one fixed or moving perspective.
  • An additional 3D modeling and animation characteristic is added to the previous programs by means of the coordinate transformation equations, namely:

  • x=x′ cos φ−y′ sin φ

  • y=x′ sin φ+y′ cos φ
  • The exact position is calculated for a second or secondary camera, directly linked to the first camera and by this means two simultaneous images are obtained from different perspectives simulating the human being's stereoscopic visual perspective. This procedure, by means of an algorithm, calculates in real-time the position of the secondary camera to place it in the adequate position, and to obtain the modeling image and representation of the second camera, achieved using the coordinate transforming equations, taking the camera to the origin the angle and distance between the secondary camera and the object or objective are calculated, then the primary camera, objective and secondary camera are repositioned in the obtained position. Then, seven parameters need to be known, namely, the first coordinates (Xp, Yp, Zp) of the primary camera in the original coordinate system, the fourth parameter is the equivalent distance to the average separation of the eyes (6.5 to 7.0 cm), and the three coordinates of the objective's position when observed by the cameras.
  • The output parameters will be the coordinates of the secondary camera observing the same objective point, i.e., (Xs, Ys, Zs), obtained following these steps:
  • Knowing the coordinates of the primary camera in the original coordinate system (Xp, Yp, Zp),
  • Knowing the objective's coordinates (xt, yt, zt)
  • Only the “x” and “z” coordinates are transformed, as the coordinate and/or height of the camera is kept constant (there is no visual deviation for the observer)
  • The coordinates for the primary camera are taken to the (0, ys,0) position.
  • The objective is also translated
  • The slope for the line connecting the camera and the objective is calculated
  • The angle between the axis and the vector joining the primary camera with the objective is created.
  • The quadrant to which it belongs for the application of special considerations in the angle's calculation is classified by an inverse tangent function.
  • New coordinates are obtained, rotating the whole coordinate system from its axis in the same angle between the axis and the vector, a new coordinate system is obtained in which the object is placed on the ‘z’ axis and the primary camera will remain at the origin of the new coordinate system.
  • The coordinates of the secondary camera are obtained by placing it in the human eyes' average distance position
  • These coordinates are rotated in the same initial angle
  • The “x” and “z” offsets are added, which were originally substracted to take the primary camera to the origin
  • Finally, these two new Xs y Zs coordinates are assigned to the secondary camera and the yp coordinate is maintained, which determines the height for the same value of a final coordinates point (Xs, Yp, Zs) to be assigned to the secondary camera.
  • The procedure can be implemented in languages as Delphi, C, C++, Visual C++, Omnis, etc., but the result will be the same.
  • The generalized application of this algorithm will be used in any program requiring to obtain in real-time the position of a secondary camera.
  • This algorithm must be implemented in any existing software which handles two dimensions but has been developed for stereoscopic vision applications.
  • The particular embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, for the technical experts it will be evident that several modifications or changes can be made without exceeding the scope of the present invention. The attached claims intend to cover the aforementioned information so that all the changes and modifications are within the scope of the present invention.

Claims (1)

1. A method in a videogame system for displaying three-dimensional videogame images to a user, comprising:
determining the spatial coordinates of a target object in the videogame;
determining the spatial coordinates of a primary virtual camera with respect to the target object in the videogame;
determining the angle created by a coordinate axis and a line from the primary virtual camera to the target object;
recalculating the primary virtual camera to the origin;
calculating, with a processor of the videogame system, the coordinates of a second virtual camera by placing the second virtual camera at the same angle as the primary virtual camera and in a position corresponding to 6.5-7.0 cm apart from the primary virtual camera; and
displaying a three-dimensional view of the target object corresponding to the view from the primary virtual camera and the secondary virtual camera.
US13/529,718 2003-12-19 2012-06-21 3d videogame system Abandoned US20120264515A1 (en)

Priority Applications (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US13/529,718 US20120264515A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2012-06-21 3d videogame system
US14/162,592 US20140307069A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2014-01-23 3d videogame system
US15/090,897 US20170056770A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2016-04-05 3d videogame system
US16/795,237 US20210008449A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2020-02-19 3d videogame system

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
PCT/MX2003/000112 WO2005059842A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2003-12-19 3d videogame system
US11/471,280 US7666096B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2006-06-19 Method for generating the left and right perspectives in a 3D videogame
US12/710,191 US8206218B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2010-02-22 3D videogame system
US13/529,718 US20120264515A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2012-06-21 3d videogame system

Related Parent Applications (2)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US12/710,191 Division US8206218B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2010-02-22 3D videogame system
US12/710,191 Continuation US8206218B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2010-02-22 3D videogame system

Related Child Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US14/162,592 Division US20140307069A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2014-01-23 3d videogame system

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US20120264515A1 true US20120264515A1 (en) 2012-10-18

Family

ID=34699036

Family Applications (6)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US11/471,280 Expired - Lifetime US7666096B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2006-06-19 Method for generating the left and right perspectives in a 3D videogame
US12/710,191 Active 2024-06-04 US8206218B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2010-02-22 3D videogame system
US13/529,718 Abandoned US20120264515A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2012-06-21 3d videogame system
US14/162,592 Abandoned US20140307069A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2014-01-23 3d videogame system
US15/090,897 Abandoned US20170056770A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2016-04-05 3d videogame system
US16/795,237 Abandoned US20210008449A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2020-02-19 3d videogame system

Family Applications Before (2)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US11/471,280 Expired - Lifetime US7666096B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2006-06-19 Method for generating the left and right perspectives in a 3D videogame
US12/710,191 Active 2024-06-04 US8206218B2 (en) 2003-12-19 2010-02-22 3D videogame system

Family Applications After (3)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US14/162,592 Abandoned US20140307069A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2014-01-23 3d videogame system
US15/090,897 Abandoned US20170056770A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2016-04-05 3d videogame system
US16/795,237 Abandoned US20210008449A1 (en) 2003-12-19 2020-02-19 3d videogame system

Country Status (11)

Country Link
US (6) US7666096B2 (en)
EP (1) EP1727093A1 (en)
JP (1) JP4841250B2 (en)
KR (2) KR101041723B1 (en)
CN (1) CN100456328C (en)
AU (1) AU2003291772A1 (en)
BR (1) BR0318661A (en)
CA (1) CA2550512C (en)
HK (1) HK1103153A1 (en)
MX (1) MXPA06007015A (en)
WO (1) WO2005059842A1 (en)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US11070781B2 (en) * 2017-02-03 2021-07-20 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Rendering extended video in virtual reality

Families Citing this family (38)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8253729B1 (en) * 1983-05-09 2012-08-28 Geshwind David M Trimming depth buffer during 2D to 3D conversion
US9958934B1 (en) * 2006-05-01 2018-05-01 Jeffrey D. Mullen Home and portable augmented reality and virtual reality video game consoles
US8758020B2 (en) * 2007-05-10 2014-06-24 Grigore Burdea Periodic evaluation and telerehabilitation systems and methods
US7884823B2 (en) * 2007-06-12 2011-02-08 Microsoft Corporation Three dimensional rendering of display information using viewer eye coordinates
AU2008202315A1 (en) * 2007-06-14 2009-01-08 Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Limited A method of providing a player interface in a gaming system
JP2009245349A (en) * 2008-03-31 2009-10-22 Namco Bandai Games Inc Position detection system, program, information recording medium, and image generating device
US8487927B2 (en) * 2008-05-19 2013-07-16 Microsoft Corporation Validating user generated three-dimensional models
US9324173B2 (en) 2008-07-17 2016-04-26 International Business Machines Corporation System and method for enabling multiple-state avatars
US8957914B2 (en) 2008-07-25 2015-02-17 International Business Machines Corporation Method for extending a virtual environment through registration
US10166470B2 (en) 2008-08-01 2019-01-01 International Business Machines Corporation Method for providing a virtual world layer
CN101599182B (en) * 2009-07-29 2012-10-03 威盛电子股份有限公司 Three-dimensional object rotating method, and corresponding computer system thereof
US20110055888A1 (en) * 2009-08-31 2011-03-03 Dell Products L.P. Configurable television broadcast receiving system
US8619122B2 (en) * 2010-02-02 2013-12-31 Microsoft Corporation Depth camera compatibility
JP5800501B2 (en) * 2010-03-12 2015-10-28 任天堂株式会社 Display control program, display control apparatus, display control system, and display control method
JPWO2011125368A1 (en) * 2010-04-05 2013-07-08 シャープ株式会社 Stereoscopic image display device, display system, driving method, driving device, display control method, display control device, program, and computer-readable recording medium
US10786736B2 (en) * 2010-05-11 2020-09-29 Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC Placement of user information in a game space
CN104717484B (en) * 2010-11-26 2017-06-09 联发科技(新加坡)私人有限公司 Carry out method, video processing circuits and the video display system of video display control
WO2012068742A1 (en) * 2010-11-26 2012-05-31 Mediatek Singapore Pte. Ltd. Method for performing video display control within a video display system, and associated video processing circuit and video display system
CN102611899B (en) * 2011-01-25 2014-11-05 上海渐华科技发展有限公司 Three-dimensional video game information processing method and device based on OPENGLES platform
US8866898B2 (en) 2011-01-31 2014-10-21 Microsoft Corporation Living room movie creation
TWI486052B (en) * 2011-07-05 2015-05-21 Realtek Semiconductor Corp Three-dimensional image processing device and three-dimensional image processing method
US9342817B2 (en) 2011-07-07 2016-05-17 Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC Auto-creating groups for sharing photos
US9189880B2 (en) 2011-07-29 2015-11-17 Synaptics Incorporated Rendering and displaying a three-dimensional object representation
CN104011788B (en) 2011-10-28 2016-11-16 奇跃公司 For strengthening and the system and method for virtual reality
CN103150756A (en) * 2012-02-22 2013-06-12 林善红 Digital city three dimensional (3D) active stereo display system and manufacture method thereof
TWI489856B (en) * 2012-09-03 2015-06-21 Dimensional image processing method
CN102881271A (en) * 2012-09-29 2013-01-16 深圳市华星光电技术有限公司 Method and system for driving liquid crystal display device
CN103942987B (en) * 2014-05-09 2016-09-07 山东建筑大学 Solid figure spatial vision memory training method
CN103942983B (en) * 2014-05-09 2016-09-07 山东建筑大学 Chinese character visual memory training method and device
CN103942985B (en) * 2014-05-09 2016-09-28 山东建筑大学 Common items is utilized to carry out the method and device of visual memory training
CN103942984B (en) * 2014-05-09 2016-08-03 山东建筑大学 Color vision memory training device
CN104113704A (en) * 2014-07-01 2014-10-22 深圳市欢创科技有限公司 Game image processing method and device
US9599821B2 (en) 2014-08-08 2017-03-21 Greg Van Curen Virtual reality system allowing immersion in virtual space to consist with actual movement in actual space
US9779633B2 (en) 2014-08-08 2017-10-03 Greg Van Curen Virtual reality system enabling compatibility of sense of immersion in virtual space and movement in real space, and battle training system using same
CN106354247A (en) * 2015-07-17 2017-01-25 上海乐相科技有限公司 Display control method and device for headset intelligent glasses
US10290149B2 (en) * 2016-04-08 2019-05-14 Maxx Media Group, LLC System, method and software for interacting with virtual three dimensional images that appear to project forward of or above an electronic display
CN108211354A (en) * 2017-12-29 2018-06-29 网易(杭州)网络有限公司 The generation method and device of virtual resource in 3D scene of game
TWI779336B (en) * 2020-08-24 2022-10-01 宏碁股份有限公司 Display system and method of displaying autostereoscopic image

Citations (59)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4559555A (en) * 1982-02-24 1985-12-17 Arnold Schoolman Stereoscopic remote viewing system
US4825393A (en) * 1986-04-23 1989-04-25 Hitachi, Ltd. Position measuring method
US4870600A (en) * 1986-06-11 1989-09-26 Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba Three-dimensional image display system using binocular parallax
US4925294A (en) * 1986-12-17 1990-05-15 Geshwind David M Method to convert two dimensional motion pictures for three-dimensional systems
US4962422A (en) * 1988-06-23 1990-10-09 Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon Stereoscopic image display apparatus
US5430474A (en) * 1993-11-24 1995-07-04 Hines; Stephen P. Autostereoscopic imaging system
US5510832A (en) * 1993-12-01 1996-04-23 Medi-Vision Technologies, Inc. Synthesized stereoscopic imaging system and method
US5523886A (en) * 1994-01-04 1996-06-04 Sega Of America, Inc. Stereoscopic/monoscopic video display system
US5594843A (en) * 1992-04-24 1997-01-14 Depth Enhancement, Inc. Method and apparatus for creating three-dimensionality in a projected television image
US5694530A (en) * 1994-01-18 1997-12-02 Hitachi Medical Corporation Method of constructing three-dimensional image according to central projection method and apparatus for same
US5717415A (en) * 1994-02-01 1998-02-10 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. Display system with 2D/3D image conversion where left and right eye images have a delay and luminance difference base upon a horizontal component of a motion vector
US5734807A (en) * 1994-07-21 1998-03-31 Kabushiki Kaisha Sega Enterprises Image processing devices and methods
US5745126A (en) * 1995-03-31 1998-04-28 The Regents Of The University Of California Machine synthesis of a virtual video camera/image of a scene from multiple video cameras/images of the scene in accordance with a particular perspective on the scene, an object in the scene, or an event in the scene
US5751927A (en) * 1991-03-26 1998-05-12 Wason; Thomas D. Method and apparatus for producing three dimensional displays on a two dimensional surface
US5801705A (en) * 1995-11-14 1998-09-01 Mitsudishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha Graphic display unit for implementing multiple frame buffer stereoscopic or blinking display, with independent multiple windows or blinking regions
US5801717A (en) * 1996-04-25 1998-09-01 Microsoft Corporation Method and system in display device interface for managing surface memory
US5867210A (en) * 1996-02-09 1999-02-02 Rod; Samuel R. Stereoscopic on-screen surgical microscope systems
US5872590A (en) * 1996-11-11 1999-02-16 Fujitsu Ltd. Image display apparatus and method for allowing stereoscopic video image to be observed
US5877840A (en) * 1996-09-20 1999-03-02 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. Binocular view function inspecting apparatus and inspecting method
US5905499A (en) * 1995-07-05 1999-05-18 Fakespace, Inc. Method and system for high performance computer-generated virtual environments
US5929859A (en) * 1995-12-19 1999-07-27 U.S. Philips Corporation Parallactic depth-dependent pixel shifts
US5973704A (en) * 1995-10-09 1999-10-26 Nintendo Co., Ltd. Three-dimensional image processing apparatus
US5976017A (en) * 1994-02-09 1999-11-02 Terumo Kabushiki Kaisha Stereoscopic-image game playing apparatus
US5982375A (en) * 1997-06-20 1999-11-09 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Floating point processor for a three-dimensional graphics accelerator which includes single-pass stereo capability
US5986667A (en) * 1994-12-22 1999-11-16 Apple Computer, Inc. Mechanism for rendering scenes using an object drawing subsystem
US6005607A (en) * 1995-06-29 1999-12-21 Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. Stereoscopic computer graphics image generating apparatus and stereoscopic TV apparatus
US6031564A (en) * 1997-07-07 2000-02-29 Reveo, Inc. Method and apparatus for monoscopic to stereoscopic image conversion
US6104402A (en) * 1996-11-21 2000-08-15 Nintendo Co., Ltd. Image creating apparatus and image display apparatus
US6108029A (en) * 1997-08-22 2000-08-22 Lo; Allen Kwok Wah Dual-mode 2D/3D display system
US6151060A (en) * 1995-12-14 2000-11-21 Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. Stereoscopic video display apparatus which fuses real space image at finite distance
US6175371B1 (en) * 1995-06-02 2001-01-16 Philippe Schoulz Process for transforming images into stereoscopic images, images and image series obtained by this process
US6352476B2 (en) * 1997-11-20 2002-03-05 Nintendo Co., Ltd. Video game apparatus having direction pointing marks and player object displayed on game screen
US6384859B1 (en) * 1995-03-29 2002-05-07 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. Methods for creating an image for a three-dimensional display, for calculating depth information and for image processing using the depth information
US6388666B1 (en) * 1998-10-27 2002-05-14 Imax Corporation System and method for generating stereoscopic image data
US6466208B1 (en) * 1999-12-20 2002-10-15 Silicon Integrated Systems Corporation Apparatus and method for adjusting 3D stereo video transformation
US6466206B1 (en) * 1998-02-17 2002-10-15 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Graphics system with programmable real-time alpha key generation
US20020154214A1 (en) * 2000-11-02 2002-10-24 Laurent Scallie Virtual reality game system using pseudo 3D display driver
US6496187B1 (en) * 1998-02-17 2002-12-17 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Graphics system configured to perform parallel sample to pixel calculation
US6496598B1 (en) * 1997-09-02 2002-12-17 Dynamic Digital Depth Research Pty. Ltd. Image processing method and apparatus
US6496183B1 (en) * 1998-06-30 2002-12-17 Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. Filter for transforming 3D data in a hardware accelerated rendering architecture
US6501468B1 (en) * 1997-07-02 2002-12-31 Sega Enterprises, Ltd. Stereoscopic display device and recording media recorded program for image processing of the display device
US6515662B1 (en) * 1998-07-16 2003-02-04 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Computer apparatus for providing stereoscopic views from monographic images and method
US6556195B1 (en) * 1998-06-02 2003-04-29 Sony Corporation Image processing device and image processing method
US6559844B1 (en) * 1999-05-05 2003-05-06 Ati International, Srl Method and apparatus for generating multiple views using a graphics engine
US6573928B1 (en) * 1998-05-02 2003-06-03 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Display controller, three dimensional display, and method of reducing crosstalk
US20030112327A1 (en) * 2001-12-17 2003-06-19 Jeong Se Yoon Camera information coding/decoding method for synthesizing stereoscopic real video and a computer graphic image
US6583793B1 (en) * 1999-01-08 2003-06-24 Ati International Srl Method and apparatus for mapping live video on to three dimensional objects
US20030152264A1 (en) * 2002-02-13 2003-08-14 Perkins Christopher H. Method and system for processing stereoscopic images
US6614927B1 (en) * 1998-06-04 2003-09-02 Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. Visual image system
US20030179198A1 (en) * 1999-07-08 2003-09-25 Shinji Uchiyama Stereoscopic image processing apparatus and method, stereoscopic vision parameter setting apparatus and method, and computer program storage medium information processing method and apparatus
US6753828B2 (en) * 2000-09-25 2004-06-22 Siemens Corporated Research, Inc. System and method for calibrating a stereo optical see-through head-mounted display system for augmented reality
US6760020B1 (en) * 1998-06-30 2004-07-06 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Image processing apparatus for displaying three-dimensional image
US6760034B2 (en) * 2001-10-30 2004-07-06 Emagin Corporation Three dimensional display emulation method and system
US6765568B2 (en) * 2000-06-12 2004-07-20 Vrex, Inc. Electronic stereoscopic media delivery system
US6816158B1 (en) * 1998-10-30 2004-11-09 Lemelson Jerome H Three-dimensional display system
US20050131924A1 (en) * 2003-12-15 2005-06-16 Quantum Matrix Holding, Llc System and method for multi-dimensional organization, management, and manipulation of data
US6985162B1 (en) * 2000-11-17 2006-01-10 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. Systems and methods for rendering active stereo graphical data as passive stereo
US7219352B2 (en) * 2002-04-15 2007-05-15 Microsoft Corporation Methods and apparatuses for facilitating processing of interlaced video images for progressive video displays
US7254265B2 (en) * 2000-04-01 2007-08-07 Newsight Corporation Methods and systems for 2D/3D image conversion and optimization

Family Cites Families (15)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPH02109493A (en) * 1988-10-18 1990-04-23 Nec Corp Stereoscopic display device
US5355181A (en) 1990-08-20 1994-10-11 Sony Corporation Apparatus for direct display of an image on the retina of the eye using a scanning laser
US5467104A (en) 1992-10-22 1995-11-14 Board Of Regents Of The University Of Washington Virtual retinal display
JP3524147B2 (en) * 1994-04-28 2004-05-10 キヤノン株式会社 3D image display device
JP3234420B2 (en) * 1994-11-25 2001-12-04 松下電工株式会社 Video image stereoscopic device
US6331856B1 (en) * 1995-11-22 2001-12-18 Nintendo Co., Ltd. Video game system with coprocessor providing high speed efficient 3D graphics and digital audio signal processing
JP3952319B2 (en) * 1995-12-29 2007-08-01 株式会社セガ Stereoscopic image system, method thereof, game device, and recording medium
US5867621A (en) * 1997-04-23 1999-02-02 Siecor Corporation Adapter and guide pin assembly for coupling of fiber optic connectors
DE19806547C2 (en) * 1997-04-30 2001-01-25 Hewlett Packard Co System and method for generating stereoscopic display signals from a single computer graphics pipeline
KR100381817B1 (en) * 1999-11-17 2003-04-26 한국과학기술원 Generating method of stereographic image using Z-buffer
JP2002157607A (en) 2000-11-17 2002-05-31 Canon Inc System and method for image generation, and storage medium
US6765572B2 (en) * 2001-04-23 2004-07-20 Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. Virtual modeling by voxel-clipping shadow-cast
US6759998B2 (en) * 2001-10-19 2004-07-06 Intel Corporation Method and apparatus for generating a three-dimensional image on an electronic display device
JP2003067784A (en) * 2002-07-30 2003-03-07 Canon Inc Information processor
US7427996B2 (en) * 2002-10-16 2008-09-23 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Image processing apparatus and image processing method

Patent Citations (60)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4559555A (en) * 1982-02-24 1985-12-17 Arnold Schoolman Stereoscopic remote viewing system
US4825393A (en) * 1986-04-23 1989-04-25 Hitachi, Ltd. Position measuring method
US4870600A (en) * 1986-06-11 1989-09-26 Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba Three-dimensional image display system using binocular parallax
US4925294A (en) * 1986-12-17 1990-05-15 Geshwind David M Method to convert two dimensional motion pictures for three-dimensional systems
US4962422A (en) * 1988-06-23 1990-10-09 Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon Stereoscopic image display apparatus
US5751927A (en) * 1991-03-26 1998-05-12 Wason; Thomas D. Method and apparatus for producing three dimensional displays on a two dimensional surface
US5594843A (en) * 1992-04-24 1997-01-14 Depth Enhancement, Inc. Method and apparatus for creating three-dimensionality in a projected television image
US5430474A (en) * 1993-11-24 1995-07-04 Hines; Stephen P. Autostereoscopic imaging system
US5510832A (en) * 1993-12-01 1996-04-23 Medi-Vision Technologies, Inc. Synthesized stereoscopic imaging system and method
US5523886A (en) * 1994-01-04 1996-06-04 Sega Of America, Inc. Stereoscopic/monoscopic video display system
US5694530A (en) * 1994-01-18 1997-12-02 Hitachi Medical Corporation Method of constructing three-dimensional image according to central projection method and apparatus for same
US5717415A (en) * 1994-02-01 1998-02-10 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. Display system with 2D/3D image conversion where left and right eye images have a delay and luminance difference base upon a horizontal component of a motion vector
US5976017A (en) * 1994-02-09 1999-11-02 Terumo Kabushiki Kaisha Stereoscopic-image game playing apparatus
US5734807A (en) * 1994-07-21 1998-03-31 Kabushiki Kaisha Sega Enterprises Image processing devices and methods
US5986667A (en) * 1994-12-22 1999-11-16 Apple Computer, Inc. Mechanism for rendering scenes using an object drawing subsystem
US6384859B1 (en) * 1995-03-29 2002-05-07 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. Methods for creating an image for a three-dimensional display, for calculating depth information and for image processing using the depth information
US5745126A (en) * 1995-03-31 1998-04-28 The Regents Of The University Of California Machine synthesis of a virtual video camera/image of a scene from multiple video cameras/images of the scene in accordance with a particular perspective on the scene, an object in the scene, or an event in the scene
US6175371B1 (en) * 1995-06-02 2001-01-16 Philippe Schoulz Process for transforming images into stereoscopic images, images and image series obtained by this process
US6005607A (en) * 1995-06-29 1999-12-21 Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. Stereoscopic computer graphics image generating apparatus and stereoscopic TV apparatus
US5905499A (en) * 1995-07-05 1999-05-18 Fakespace, Inc. Method and system for high performance computer-generated virtual environments
US5973704A (en) * 1995-10-09 1999-10-26 Nintendo Co., Ltd. Three-dimensional image processing apparatus
US5801705A (en) * 1995-11-14 1998-09-01 Mitsudishi Denki Kabushiki Kaisha Graphic display unit for implementing multiple frame buffer stereoscopic or blinking display, with independent multiple windows or blinking regions
US6151060A (en) * 1995-12-14 2000-11-21 Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. Stereoscopic video display apparatus which fuses real space image at finite distance
US5929859A (en) * 1995-12-19 1999-07-27 U.S. Philips Corporation Parallactic depth-dependent pixel shifts
US5867210A (en) * 1996-02-09 1999-02-02 Rod; Samuel R. Stereoscopic on-screen surgical microscope systems
US5801717A (en) * 1996-04-25 1998-09-01 Microsoft Corporation Method and system in display device interface for managing surface memory
US5877840A (en) * 1996-09-20 1999-03-02 Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd. Binocular view function inspecting apparatus and inspecting method
US5872590A (en) * 1996-11-11 1999-02-16 Fujitsu Ltd. Image display apparatus and method for allowing stereoscopic video image to be observed
US6104402A (en) * 1996-11-21 2000-08-15 Nintendo Co., Ltd. Image creating apparatus and image display apparatus
US5982375A (en) * 1997-06-20 1999-11-09 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Floating point processor for a three-dimensional graphics accelerator which includes single-pass stereo capability
US6501468B1 (en) * 1997-07-02 2002-12-31 Sega Enterprises, Ltd. Stereoscopic display device and recording media recorded program for image processing of the display device
US6031564A (en) * 1997-07-07 2000-02-29 Reveo, Inc. Method and apparatus for monoscopic to stereoscopic image conversion
US6108029A (en) * 1997-08-22 2000-08-22 Lo; Allen Kwok Wah Dual-mode 2D/3D display system
US6496598B1 (en) * 1997-09-02 2002-12-17 Dynamic Digital Depth Research Pty. Ltd. Image processing method and apparatus
US6352476B2 (en) * 1997-11-20 2002-03-05 Nintendo Co., Ltd. Video game apparatus having direction pointing marks and player object displayed on game screen
US6466206B1 (en) * 1998-02-17 2002-10-15 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Graphics system with programmable real-time alpha key generation
US6496187B1 (en) * 1998-02-17 2002-12-17 Sun Microsystems, Inc. Graphics system configured to perform parallel sample to pixel calculation
US6573928B1 (en) * 1998-05-02 2003-06-03 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Display controller, three dimensional display, and method of reducing crosstalk
US6556195B1 (en) * 1998-06-02 2003-04-29 Sony Corporation Image processing device and image processing method
US6614927B1 (en) * 1998-06-04 2003-09-02 Olympus Optical Co., Ltd. Visual image system
US6496183B1 (en) * 1998-06-30 2002-12-17 Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. Filter for transforming 3D data in a hardware accelerated rendering architecture
US6760020B1 (en) * 1998-06-30 2004-07-06 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Image processing apparatus for displaying three-dimensional image
US6515662B1 (en) * 1998-07-16 2003-02-04 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Computer apparatus for providing stereoscopic views from monographic images and method
US6388666B1 (en) * 1998-10-27 2002-05-14 Imax Corporation System and method for generating stereoscopic image data
US6816158B1 (en) * 1998-10-30 2004-11-09 Lemelson Jerome H Three-dimensional display system
US6583793B1 (en) * 1999-01-08 2003-06-24 Ati International Srl Method and apparatus for mapping live video on to three dimensional objects
US6559844B1 (en) * 1999-05-05 2003-05-06 Ati International, Srl Method and apparatus for generating multiple views using a graphics engine
US20030179198A1 (en) * 1999-07-08 2003-09-25 Shinji Uchiyama Stereoscopic image processing apparatus and method, stereoscopic vision parameter setting apparatus and method, and computer program storage medium information processing method and apparatus
US6466208B1 (en) * 1999-12-20 2002-10-15 Silicon Integrated Systems Corporation Apparatus and method for adjusting 3D stereo video transformation
US7254265B2 (en) * 2000-04-01 2007-08-07 Newsight Corporation Methods and systems for 2D/3D image conversion and optimization
US6765568B2 (en) * 2000-06-12 2004-07-20 Vrex, Inc. Electronic stereoscopic media delivery system
US6753828B2 (en) * 2000-09-25 2004-06-22 Siemens Corporated Research, Inc. System and method for calibrating a stereo optical see-through head-mounted display system for augmented reality
US20020154214A1 (en) * 2000-11-02 2002-10-24 Laurent Scallie Virtual reality game system using pseudo 3D display driver
US6985162B1 (en) * 2000-11-17 2006-01-10 Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. Systems and methods for rendering active stereo graphical data as passive stereo
US6760034B2 (en) * 2001-10-30 2004-07-06 Emagin Corporation Three dimensional display emulation method and system
US20030112327A1 (en) * 2001-12-17 2003-06-19 Jeong Se Yoon Camera information coding/decoding method for synthesizing stereoscopic real video and a computer graphic image
US20030152264A1 (en) * 2002-02-13 2003-08-14 Perkins Christopher H. Method and system for processing stereoscopic images
US7219352B2 (en) * 2002-04-15 2007-05-15 Microsoft Corporation Methods and apparatuses for facilitating processing of interlaced video images for progressive video displays
US20050131924A1 (en) * 2003-12-15 2005-06-16 Quantum Matrix Holding, Llc System and method for multi-dimensional organization, management, and manipulation of data
US7433885B2 (en) * 2003-12-15 2008-10-07 Quantum Matrix Holdings, Llc System and method for multi-dimensional organization, management, and manipulation of data

Non-Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
Halnon et al., IS&T/SPIE "Stereoscopic Displays and Applications" Jan 1998, pp. 12-22. *
Metacritic review of Sonic Adventure 2 http://www.metacritic.com/game/gamecube/sonic-adventure-2-battle *
Nieder et al., "OpenGL Programming Guide" (a.k.a. the Red Book), (c) 1994 by Silicon Graphics, Inc., Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, chapter 3. *
Youtube video of Sonic Adventure 2 in Stereoscpic 3D Uploaded by disolitude X Published on Aug 25 2013 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Bf0F8plnmY *

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US11070781B2 (en) * 2017-02-03 2021-07-20 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Rendering extended video in virtual reality
US11503265B2 (en) 2017-02-03 2022-11-15 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Rendering extended video in virtual reality

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CA2550512C (en) 2012-12-18
US7666096B2 (en) 2010-02-23
US20170056770A1 (en) 2017-03-02
CN1910619A (en) 2007-02-07
EP1727093A1 (en) 2006-11-29
KR101101570B1 (en) 2012-01-02
US8206218B2 (en) 2012-06-26
US20070035831A1 (en) 2007-02-15
CN100456328C (en) 2009-01-28
JP2007528518A (en) 2007-10-11
KR20060128922A (en) 2006-12-14
US20210008449A1 (en) 2021-01-14
JP4841250B2 (en) 2011-12-21
KR101041723B1 (en) 2011-06-14
US20100151944A1 (en) 2010-06-17
CA2550512A1 (en) 2005-06-30
BR0318661A (en) 2006-11-28
KR20110017019A (en) 2011-02-18
AU2003291772A1 (en) 2005-07-05
HK1103153A1 (en) 2007-12-14
US20140307069A1 (en) 2014-10-16
MXPA06007015A (en) 2007-01-30
WO2005059842A1 (en) 2005-06-30

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US20210008449A1 (en) 3d videogame system
US7905779B2 (en) Video game including effects for providing different first person experiences of the same video game world and a storage medium storing software for the video game
US7868847B2 (en) Immersive environments with multiple points of view
EP1353296B1 (en) Image with depth of field using z-buffer image data and alpha blending
EP3531244A1 (en) Method, apparatus and system providing alternative reality environment
US20040021680A1 (en) Image processing method, apparatus and program
CN105007477A (en) Method for realizing naked eye 3D display based on Unity3D engine
JP2009064356A (en) Program, information storage medium, and image generation system
RU2339083C2 (en) System of three dimensional video games
JP5236051B2 (en) 3D video game system
JP7030010B2 (en) Stereoscopic image depth compression device and stereoscopic image depth compression program
JP2009064355A (en) Program, information storage medium, and image producing system
US11880499B2 (en) Systems and methods for providing observation scenes corresponding to extended reality (XR) content
Raskar Projectors: advanced graphics and vision techniques
Bourke et al. Immersive Gaming in a Hemispherical Dome Case study: Blender Game Engine
Gonzalez Garza GPS-MIV: The General Purpose System for Multi-display Interactive Visualization
JP2018112885A (en) Program and image generation system

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
STCB Information on status: application discontinuation

Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION