Generating equirectangular imagery of a 3D virtual environment
AssigneeThe Boeing Company
InventorJames J. Troy
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An equirectangular image of a three-dimensional (3D) virtual environment is generated in a computer-automated fashion. In one example, a 3D virtual position of a virtual camera in a 3D virtual environment is specified. For each of a plurality of different yaw angles rotated about an axis extending through the 3D virtual position, the virtual camera is used to acquire an image strip of pixels parallel to the axis of rotation. Image strips of pixels of the 3D environment acquired at the different yaw angles are assembled to form an equirectangular image of the 3D virtual environment from the specified 3D virtual position.
Claims20
A computer-implemented method comprising:
- specifying a three-dimensional (3D) virtual position of a virtual camera in a 3D virtual environment;
- for each of a plurality of different yaw angles rotated about an axis of rotation extending through the 3D virtual position, using the virtual camera to acquire an image frame of the 3D virtual environment from the 3D virtual position and extract an image strip of pixels from the image frame, the image strip of pixels being parallel to the axis of rotation;
- assembling image strips of pixels of the 3D environment extracted from a sequence of image frames acquired at the plurality of different yaw angles side by side according to the sequence of image frames corresponding to the plurality of different yaw angles to form an equirectangular image of the 3D virtual environment from the specified 3D virtual position;
- and
- outputting the equirectangular image of the 3D virtual environment.
A computer comprising:
- a logic subsystem;
- a storage subsystem comprising instructions executable by the logic subsystem to:
- specify a three-dimensional (3D) virtual position of a virtual camera in a 3D virtual environment;
- for each of a plurality of different yaw angles rotated about an axis of rotation extending through the 3D virtual position, use the virtual camera to acquire an image frame of the 3D virtual environment from the 3D virtual position and extract an image strip of pixels from the image frame, the image strip of pixels being parallel to the axis of rotation;
- assemble image strips of pixels of the 3D environment extracted from a sequence of image frames acquired at the plurality of different yaw angles side by side according to the sequence of image frames corresponding to the plurality of different yaw angles to form an equirectangular image of the 3D virtual environment from the specified 3D virtual position;
- and
- output the equirectangular image of the 3D virtual environment.
A non-transitory computer-readable storage device holding instructions executable by a processor to:
- specify a three-dimensional (3D) virtual position of a virtual camera in a 3D virtual environment;
- for each of a plurality of different yaw angles rotated about an axis of rotation extending through the 3D virtual position, use the virtual camera to acquire an image frame of the 3D virtual environment from the 3D virtual position and extract an image strip of pixels from the image frame, the image strip of pixels being parallel to the axis of rotation:
- assemble image strips of pixels of the 3D environment extracted from a sequence of image frames acquired at the plurality of different yaw angles side by side according to the sequence of image frames corresponding to the plurality of different yaw angles to form an equirectangular image of the 3D virtual environment from the specified 3D virtual position;
- and
- output the equirectangular image of the 3D virtual environment.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.