Physical-virtual environment interface
AssigneePalo Alto Research Center Incorporated
InventorsMichael Roberts, Nicolas B. Ducheneaut
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Apparatus, methods, and computer-program products are disclosed for automatically interfacing a first physical environment and a second physical environment to a virtual world model where some avatar controller piloting commands are automatically issued by a virtual world client to a virtual world server responsive to the focus of the avatar controller.
Claims20
A computer-controlled method for automatically interfacing a first physical environment and a second physical environment to a virtual world model, said virtual world model including a first avatar representing a first avatar controller in said first physical environment, a second avatar representing a second avatar controller in said second physical environment, and a third avatar representing a third avatar controller in the first physical environment, said first physical environment including a gaze-tracker and a first viewport, said second physical environment including a second viewport, said first avatar and said second avatar including a first avatar eye and a second avatar eye respectively, said method comprising:
- detecting, within said first physical environment, a gaze from said first avatar controller to a gaze target, wherein the gaze target is the third avatar controller in the first physical environment;
- determining that the third avatar is associated with said gaze target in the first physical environment;
- and
- automatically emitting a focus-on piloting command to said virtual world model, said focus-on piloting command configured to aim said first avatar eye to said third avatar in said virtual world model responsive to determining.
An apparatus having a central processing unit (CPU) and a memory coupled to said CPU for automatically interfacing a first physical environment to a virtual world model, said virtual world model including a first avatar representing a first avatar controller in said first physical environment, a second avatar representing a second avatar controller, and a third avatar representing a third avatar controller in the first physical environment, said first avatar and said second avatar including a first avatar eye and a second avatar eye respectively, said apparatus comprising:
- a network connection logic configured to communicate with said virtual world model;
- a machine vision system logic configured to enable monitoring of one or more real-world objects in said first physical environment, said memory configured to maintain a local physical environment model of said first physical environment responsive to the machine vision system logic, the machine vision system logic further configured to enable a gaze-tracker, said gaze-tracker configured to detect a gaze from said first avatar controller to a gaze target, wherein the gaze target is the third avatar controller in the first physical environment;
- a target determination logic configured to determine that the third avatar is associated with said gaze target in the first physical environment;
- and
- a pilot logic configured to automatically emit a focus-on piloting command over the network connection logic to said virtual world model, said focus-on piloting command configured to aim said first avatar eye to said third avatar in said virtual world model responsive to the target determination logic.
A computer-program product for automatically interfacing a first physical environment and a second physical environment to a virtual world model, said virtual world model including a first avatar representing a first avatar controller in said first physical environment, a second avatar representing a second avatar controller in said second physical environment, and a third avatar representing a third avatar controller in the first physical environment, said first physical environment including a gaze-tracker and a first viewport, said second physical environment including a second viewport, said first avatar and said second avatar including a first avatar eye and a second avatar eye respectively, comprising:
- a non-transitory computer-usable storage medium providing instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause said computer to perform a method comprising:
- detecting, within said first physical environment, a gaze from said first avatar controller to a gaze target, wherein the gaze target is the third avatar controller in the first physical environment;
- determining that the third avatar is associated with said gaze target in the first physical environment;
- and
- automatically emitting a focus-on piloting command to said virtual world model, said focus-on piloting command configured to aim said first avatar eye to said third avatar in said virtual world model responsive to determining.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.