JP2003265858A - 3-d simulator apparatus and image-synthesizing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a 3-D simulator apparatus in which the viewpoint information for forming a view image in a virtual 3-D space can be changed continuously and its image-synthesizing method. <P>SOLUTION: An operation part 12 has a first input-part 4 to move a moving body and a second input-part 6 to change the viewpoint and the eye direction. The position and direction of the moving body in a virtual 3-D space is decided according to the operation information from the first input-part 4. The viewpoint information to specify the viewpoint position and eye direction is decided according to the operation information from the second input-part 6. If the moving body is in the decided position and direction, the view image to be seen at the position and direction based on the viewpoint information is synthesized. According to the operation information from the second input-part 6 and independently of the moving direction of the moving body, the eye direction is changed to an arbitrary direction and the viewpoint position is moved closer to a displayed item. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a three-dimensional simulator device and image synthesizing method capable of simulating a virtual three-dimensional space.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, various types of three-dimensional simulators have been known for use in, for example, three-dimensional games or flight simulators for airplanes and various vehicles. In such a three-dimensional simulator device, as shown in FIG.
The image information regarding the three-dimensional object 300 shown in FIG. This three-dimensional object 300
Represents a display object such as a landscape that the player (viewer) 302 can see through the screen 306.
Then, the pseudo-three-dimensional image (projection image) 308 is image-displayed on the screen 306 by performing perspective projection conversion on the image information of the three-dimensional object 300 that is the display object on the screen 306. In this device, the player 302
However, when an operation such as rotation or translation is performed by the operation panel 304, the position and direction of the player 302 or a moving body on which the player 302 is mounted change, and the three-dimensional object 3 changes with this change.
An arithmetic process is performed to determine how the 00 image looks on the screen 306. This arithmetic processing is performed in real time following the operation of the player 302. As a result, the player 302 can see in real time a change in the scenery or the like due to a change in the position or direction of the player or a moving body on which the player is riding as a pseudo three-dimensional image, and the virtual three-dimensional space is simulated. By experience Figure 18
(B) shows an example of a display image (game screen) formed by the above-described three-dimensional simulator device.

[0003]

In a three-dimensional simulator device of this type, in the case of a racing car game, the viewpoint position of the player is the rear position of the player car.
It was fixed at the driver's seat position or the like (in FIG. 18B, it is fixed at the rear position of the player car 900). Moreover, the line-of-sight direction is also fixed to the traveling direction of the player car. However, in this type of game, players have a wide variety of tastes, and there are many players who prefer that the viewpoint be fixed to the driver's seat position rather than the rear position of the player car, while some players prefer the opposite. There are many. Further, if the line-of-sight direction is always fixed to the traveling direction of the player car, the variety of the game cannot be increased. Therefore, the viewpoint information such as the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction can be changed independently of the position and direction of the player car.
A dimensional simulator device is desired.

As a method for changing the viewpoint information of the player, for example, a plurality of selection buttons for switching the viewpoint are arranged on the operation unit (operation panel) of the apparatus, and the player can be pressed by pressing any one of these selection buttons. A method of selecting a desired viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction is also conceivable. However, even with this method, the viewpoint information is selected only by the number of these selection buttons, and the number of select buttons that can be arranged is also limited. Therefore, such a number cannot meet the tastes of all players. Further, in this method, the player needs to feel the game screen while looking at the game screen and feel for the selection button. Therefore, even if the player tries to press the desired selection button, the wrong selection button is often pressed, which results in a lack of concentration of the player on the game play, resulting in a decrease in game satisfaction. .

Further, in a battle-type game in which, for example, a fighter and a fighter, or a fighter and a tank are played, a target is aimed and a missile or the like is fired in this aiming direction to attack the target. . However, in the conventional device, the aiming direction is fixed to the player's line-of-sight direction which is the traveling direction of the fighter, etc. Therefore, in order to attack the target, it is necessary to direct the fighter to the target. was there. For this reason, it is difficult to give an attack to the target desired by the player, and as a result, there is a problem that the game cannot be made more interesting.

Further, for example, in a role-playing game in which an enemy is defeated while exploring a 3-D (3D) dungeon, the player (or player character) operates a joystick or the like in the 3-D dungeon. Need to move. In this case, since the player's traveling direction and the line-of-sight direction match in the conventional device, if the player wants to see a different direction,
It was also necessary to change the player's direction of travel. For this reason, the operability of the game is deteriorated and the fun of the game is reduced.

The present invention has been made in order to achieve the above technical problems, and an object thereof is to continuously change viewpoint information when forming a view field image in a virtual three-dimensional space. It is to provide a three-dimensional simulator device and an image synthesizing method that can be performed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a three-dimensional simulator apparatus and an image synthesizing method capable of operating the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction independently of the operation of the position and direction of the viewer or a moving body on which the viewer rides. To provide.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an operating means and a virtual three-dimensional calculation for forming a virtual three-dimensional space based on operation information input from the operating means. A three-dimensional simulator device including a space calculation means and an image synthesizing means for synthesizing a visual field image visible in the formed virtual three-dimensional space, wherein the operating means continuously changes the viewpoint information. Calculation means for continuously changing the viewpoint information on a predetermined trajectory on the basis of the operation information input from the input means. And the image synthesizing unit synthesizes the view image based on the viewpoint information that has undergone the change calculation.

Further, the present invention is an image synthesizing method for synthesizing a visual field image visible in a virtual three-dimensional space on the basis of operation information inputted from the operating means, wherein the viewpoint is inputted by the input means included in the operating means. Operation information for continuously changing information is input, and based on the operation information input from the input means, a calculation for continuously changing the viewpoint information on a predetermined orbit is performed, and a change calculation is performed. The visual field image is synthesized on the basis of the viewpoint information which has been subjected to.

According to the present invention, a calculation for continuously changing the viewpoint information on a predetermined trajectory is performed based on the operation information input by the input means. That is, the viewpoint information is continuously changed as the input means is operated. Then, the visual field images are combined based on the changed viewpoint information, and the viewer (the person who views the image, for example, the player) can see the visual field images. This allows the viewer to
The viewpoint information can be continuously adjusted until the desired view image is obtained. Here, the viewpoint information refers to a viewpoint position, a line-of-sight direction, and the like. When changing the viewpoint information, the viewpoint position may be changed, and the line-of-sight direction may be fixed or changed in a predetermined pattern.

The present invention also provides an operating means, a virtual three-dimensional space calculating means for performing an operation to form a virtual three-dimensional space based on operation information input from the operating means, and the formed virtual three-dimensional space. A three-dimensional simulator device including image synthesizing means for synthesizing a visual field image visible in a space, wherein the operating means is continuously at least one of a position and a direction of a viewer or a moving body on which the viewer is riding. Includes first input means for inputting operation information for changing the target position, and second input means for inputting operation information for continuously changing at least one of the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction. Based on the operation information input from the first input unit, the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit determines at least one of the position and direction of the viewer or the moving body in the virtual three-dimensional space. The first designation information to be determined, and the second designation information that designates at least one of the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction is determined based on the operation information input from the second input unit to obtain the image. The synthesizing means synthesizes a visual field image visible in the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction designated by the second designation information when the viewer or the moving body is at the position and direction designated by the first designation information. It is characterized by performing.

Further, the present invention is an image synthesizing method for synthesizing a visual field image visible in a virtual three-dimensional space based on operation information input from the operating means, the first input included in the operating means. Means for inputting operation information for continuously changing at least one of a position and a direction of a viewer or a moving body on which the viewer rides, and a second input means included in the operation means for inputting a viewpoint position. And operation information for continuously changing at least one of the line-of-sight directions, and based on the operation information input from the first input means, in a virtual three-dimensional space of a viewer or a moving body. The first designation information designating at least one of the position and the direction is obtained, and at least one of the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction is designated based on the operation information input from the second input unit. The second asked for information, position observer or mobile is designated by the first designation information,
When the image is in the direction, the visual field images visible in the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction specified by the second specifying information are combined.

According to the present invention, the first designation information is obtained based on the operation information input from the first input means,
The second based on the operation information input from the second input means
Specified information is required. Then, when a viewer or a moving object is present at the position or direction specified by the first specification information, the view image specified by the second specification information or the visual field image seen in the line-of-sight direction is synthesized, The person can see this view image. That is, according to the present invention, the movement of the viewer or the moving body and the movement of the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction can be independently controlled, and the variety of operations can be increased.

Further, the present invention is characterized by including means for changing at least one of the position and the direction of aiming at the target in association with the change of at least one of the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction.

According to the present invention, when the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction are changed by the second input means, the aiming at the target is also changed in conjunction therewith. As a result, the viewer can attack the target without adjusting the traveling direction of the viewer or the moving body to the target direction.

Further, the present invention includes a three-dimensional simulator device including means for causing a viewer to recognize a position where a reference visual field image is combined, when the operation information is input by the input means. .

According to the present invention, for example, by providing a mechanical catching portion (clicking portion) or the like when the viewer operates the input means, a position where the reference view image is synthesized, for example, a driving game. For example, it is possible to make the viewer recognize the position where the view image that is viewed when the viewpoint position is set at the driver's seat, behind the car, above the car, or the like.

[0019]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 1. Outline of Game First, an example of a three-dimensional game realized by the present three-dimensional simulator device will be briefly described.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the present three-dimensional simulator device. In this three-dimensional simulator device, a plurality of independent simulator devices (game devices) 1-1, 1
-2, 1-3, 1-4 are connected to each other via a data transmission line. Of course, the present invention is naturally applicable not only to such a multi-player type game configuration but also to a one-player configuration.

As shown in FIG. 2, each simulator device is formed similarly to the driver's seat of an actual racing car. Then, the player sits on the seat 18 and looks at the game screen (the view image of the scenery seen from the driver's seat of the racing car) displayed on the display 10,
The game is performed by operating a fictitious racing car by operating the handle 14, the accelerator 15, etc. provided on the operation unit 12. Further, in the present invention, the operation unit 12 is further provided with the rotary encoder 16. The rotary encoder 16 is provided to continuously change the viewpoint information of the player on a predetermined orbit.

FIG. 3 shows a virtual 3 in this three-dimensional game.
An example of a dimensional space is shown. In this way, the three-dimensionally formed courses 20 are arranged in the virtual three-dimensional space in this three-dimensional game. Then, around the course 20, there are a building 60, an arch 62, a stand 64, and a cliff 6.
Three-dimensional objects such as 6, walls 68, tunnels 70, trees 72, bridges 74 are arranged. The player operates the racing car while looking at the display 10 showing these courses and the like. Then, starting from the start point 76, orbiting the course 20 and orbiting the course a predetermined number of times, it becomes a goal and the player's ranking is determined.

4A, 4B, 5A, 5B
In the figure, an example of a game screen (visual field image) displayed on the display 10 in the present three-dimensional game is shown.
Between these game screens, the viewpoint information (viewpoint position,
The visual line directions are different, and in FIG. 6, the viewpoint positions 20 to 23 and the visual line directions 24 to 24 corresponding to these respective game screens are shown.
27 is shown.

For example, FIG. 4A shows a player car 51.
7 is an example of a game screen in which viewpoint information is set for the driver's seat position (viewpoint position 20 and line-of-sight direction 24 in FIG. 6). In this case, the opponent racing car 52 is displayed on the game screen.
Only the player car is drawn, but the player can feel the same as actually driving the car,
The reality of the game can be increased. Also, FIG.
6B shows a case where the viewpoint information is set at the rear position of the player car 51 (the viewpoint position 21 and the line-of-sight direction 2 in FIG. 6).
It is an example of the game screen of 5). In this case, not only the opponent racing car 52 but also the player car 51 is drawn on the game screen. Therefore, the player can also see how the player car 51 operated by the player moves (for example, the player car 51 in the drift state can be seen), and the game can be more interesting. . Further, FIG. 5A is an example of the game screen when the viewpoint information is set at a position slightly above the rear of the player car 51 (the viewpoint position 22 and the line-of-sight direction 26 in FIG. 6). Further, FIG. 5B is an example of the game screen when the viewpoint information is set at the top (almost directly above) position of the player car 51 (the viewpoint position 23 and the line-of-sight direction 27 in FIG. 6). In such a driving game, for example, a game device that synthesizes a visual field image seen from the driver's seat,
It is established as a game device of a different genre from a game device or the like that synthesizes a view image seen from the top position of the player car. However, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to represent the visual field images of the game devices established as different genres in this way with one game device. Note that, for example, when the viewpoint is at the top position, the degree of bending of the course 20 can be better understood than when it is at the position of the driver's seat, which is suitable for beginners.

In the present embodiment, the viewpoint information can be changed continuously. For example, in FIG. 6, the viewpoint position in the viewpoint information can be continuously moved from the position of the driver's seat to the position of the top (from viewpoint position 20 to viewpoint position 23). In this case, the trajectory 30 along which the viewpoint position moves is predetermined, and the player operates the rotary encoder 16 shown in FIG. 2 to continuously move the viewpoint position on this trajectory 30. Therefore, the player can arbitrarily set the viewpoint information desired by the player and can see the game screen based on the set viewpoint information. This makes it possible to satisfy the demands of many players having various tastes. Further, since one rotary encoder 16 only needs to be operated in order to obtain a visual field image based on the viewpoint information desired by the player, the player is less likely to make a mistake in the operation, and as a result, the player concentrates on the game screen. be able to. Also, for example, if the rotary encoder 16 is turned counterclockwise, the viewpoint position 23
Since the viewpoint information can be changed to the side of the viewpoint position 20 by turning it to the right side, the operation for obtaining the desired image is intuitively very easy to understand. As described above, the commercialability of the device can be significantly improved.

In FIG. 6, the visual line directions 24 to 27 in the visual point information are set to be different at the visual point positions 20 to 23. For example, at the viewpoint position 20, the line-of-sight direction 24 is set to the traveling direction of the player car 51. At the viewpoint position 21, the line-of-sight direction 25 is slightly downward, and at the viewpoint positions 22 and 23, the line-of-sight directions 26 and 27 are further downward. As the viewpoint position is continuously changed, the line-of-sight direction 2
It is desirable to continuously change the orientations of 4-27. However, the direction of the line-of-sight direction is not limited to the setting shown in FIG. 6, and can be set to various settings such as always fixing in one direction. Further, the shape of the track is not limited to that shown in FIG.

2. Description of Entire Device FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a three-dimensional simulator device according to this embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1, the three-dimensional simulator apparatus of the present embodiment is a virtual three-dimensional operating unit 12 for a player to input operation information, and a virtual three-dimensional space for performing a calculation for forming a virtual three-dimensional space by a predetermined game program. It includes a space calculation unit 100, an image combination unit 200 that combines a view image at a viewpoint position determined by the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 100, and a display 10 that outputs the view image as an image.

For example, when the present three-dimensional simulator device is applied to a racing car game,
A steering wheel 14, an accelerator 15 and the like for driving a racing car are included, by which operation information is input.
Further, the operation unit 12 includes a rotary encoder 16 shown in FIG.
The input unit 2 corresponding to the above is included, whereby operation information for continuously changing the viewpoint information can be input.

In the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 100, a plurality of display objects in the virtual three-dimensional space shown in FIG. 3, such as the course 20, the building 60, the arch 62, the stand 64, and the cliff 6 are displayed.
6. A calculation for setting the position or position and direction of the player car, opponent racing car, computer car, etc. is performed. This calculation is based on operation information from the operation unit 12,
It is performed based on map information or the like that is set and stored in advance. Then, in the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 100,
A viewpoint information changing unit 107 is included. The viewpoint information changing unit 107 receives the viewpoint information (viewpoint position,
Operation information for continuously changing the line-of-sight direction is input, and based on this operation information, a calculation for continuously changing the viewpoint information is performed on a predetermined trajectory (trajectory 30 in FIG. 6). . Then, the viewpoint information that has undergone the change calculation is output to the image synthesizing unit 200.

The image synthesizing section 200 synthesizes the visual field image based on the calculation result from the virtual three-dimensional space calculating section 100. In this case, the viewpoint information such as the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction required when synthesizing the visual field images uses the information input from the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 100. Then, the combined view image is displayed on the display 10. As described above, it is possible to obtain a view field image when the viewpoint information is continuously changed on a predetermined trajectory.

FIG. 7 shows a virtual three-dimensional space computing unit 100,
A block diagram showing an example of a specific configuration of the image combining unit 200 and the like is shown. However, the configurations of the virtual three-dimensional space calculating means and the image synthesizing means in the present invention are not limited to the configurations shown in FIG.

3. Description of Virtual Three-Dimensional Space Operation Unit As shown in FIG. 7, the operation unit 12 includes first and second input units 4 and 6. The first input unit 4 corresponds to the steering wheel 14, the accelerator 15, etc., and the first input unit 4
Thus, the operation information for continuously changing the position or direction of the player car (or the player) or the position and direction is input. For example, when the steering wheel 14 is steered, the amount of change in the direction is input according to the steering angle. Also,
The amount of change in position is input according to the degree of depression of the accelerator 15.

The second input section 6 corresponds to the rotary encoder 16, and operation information for continuously changing the viewpoint position is input by the second input section 6. In addition, the second input unit 6 can also input operation information for continuously changing the line-of-sight direction. For example, when the rotary encoder 16 is rotated, the change amount of the viewpoint position or the like is input according to the rotation angle.

As the second input section 6, various types can be adopted. For example, in addition to the rotary encoder 16 shown in FIG. 8A, a potentiometer 32 shown in FIG. 8B is used. What is called can also be adopted. Although the rotary encoder 16 can input the relative change amount of the viewpoint information as the operation information, the potentiometer 3
According to 2, the absolute value of the viewpoint information can be input as the operation information. Then, in FIG. 8A, the viewpoint information is changed by rotating the rotating portion to the left and right using the operation concave portion 17, and in FIG. 8B, the viewpoint information is changed by sliding the knob 33. become. The shape is shown in FIG.
Not limited to those shown in (A) and (B), it is possible to employ, for example, a slide type rotary encoder or a rotary potentiometer.

When the rotary encoder 16 is used, the operation information obtained is digital data, and as shown in FIG.
It is input to the dimensional space calculation unit 100. On the other hand, when the potentiometer 32 is used, the obtained operation information is analog data, and thus the operation information is converted into digital data by the A / D conversion unit 34 as shown in FIG. It is input to the three-dimensional space calculation unit 100. However, when the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 100 has an analog interface, the operation information of analog data may be directly input.

Further, when the rotary encoder 16 is rotated, a portion (click portion) that is mechanically caught is provided, and as shown in FIG. 9A, for example, when the operation concave portion 36 is in the position of the displays 36 to 42. It is also possible to make the player feel caught. As a result, when the player inputs operation information using the rotary encoder 16, a visual field image as a reference (for example, FIG.
It is possible to let the player recognize the position where (A), (B), and the visual field images of FIGS. 5A and 5B are combined. As a result, the player can easily select the viewpoint information (for example, the viewpoint positions 20 to 23 and the line-of-sight direction 24 to 27 in FIG. 6) for synthesizing the reference view image, and the viewpoint information is used as a reference. It is also possible to perform a change operation to the viewpoint information desired by the player. Note that FIG. 9B shows an example of the case of the potentiometer 32. In this case, when the knob 33 is at the positions of the displays 44 and 46, the player feels a catch.

As shown in FIG. 7, the virtual three-dimensional space computing unit 100 includes a processing unit 102 and a virtual three-dimensional space setting unit 10.
4, a movement calculation unit 106, a viewpoint information changing unit 107, and a display object information storage unit 108 are included.

Here, the processing unit 102 controls the entire three-dimensional simulator apparatus. In addition, the processing unit 102
A predetermined game program is stored in a storage unit (not shown) provided therein. Virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 10
0 will perform the calculation of virtual three-dimensional space setting according to this game program and the operation signal from the operation part 12.

In the movement calculation unit 106, the amount of change in the position information and direction information of the player car in accordance with the operation information about the position of the player car input from the first input unit 4 and the instruction from the processing unit 102. (For example, △ Xm, △
A calculation for obtaining all or a part of Ym, ΔZm, Δθm, Δφm, Δρm) is performed. On the other hand, in the viewpoint information changing unit 107, for example, when a rotary encoder is used as the second input unit 6, according to the operation information input from the second input unit 6 and the instruction from the processing unit 102, A calculation for obtaining the amount of change (eg, ΔXk, ΔYk, ΔZk) along the trajectory 30 such as the viewpoint position is performed.

The display object information storage unit 108 has a storage area corresponding to the number of display objects forming a virtual three-dimensional space. In each area, position information / direction information of the display object and a display to be displayed at this position. Object numbers that specify object objects are stored (hereinafter, the stored position information / direction information and object numbers are referred to as display object information). In FIG. 10, the display object information storage unit 10 is shown.
An example of the display object information stored in 8 is shown. The position information and direction information in FIG. 10 are values in the world coordinate system (absolute coordinate system).

The display object information stored in the display object information storage unit 108 is read by the virtual three-dimensional space setting unit 104. In this case, the display object information storage unit 108 stores the display object information in the frame immediately preceding the frame. Then, in the virtual three-dimensional space setting unit 104, the read display object information and the change amount (ΔXm, ΔYm, ΔZm, Δθm, Δ) calculated by the movement calculation unit 106.
Based on (φm, Δρm), display object information (first designation information) in the frame is obtained, and the image synthesizing unit 2
Is output to 00. Since the display object information does not change for a stationary object, such processing is not necessary.

Also, in the viewpoint information changing unit 107,
A calculation for changing the viewpoint information is performed by using the viewpoint information in the immediately preceding frame, the calculated change amount (ΔXk, ΔYk, ΔZk) in the frame, the position information of the player car, and the like. Thereby, the viewpoint information in the frame is obtained. However, regarding the viewpoint information, for example, the change in the viewpoint position (ΔXj, ΔYj, ΔZj) from the position of the player car 51 is stored in one-to-one correspondence with the operation information input from the input unit 6. It is also possible to prepare the above table and obtain the viewpoint information using this table. By doing so, the calculation can be easily performed. Then, this calculation is performed by the viewpoint information changing unit 107. The viewpoint information obtained in this way is output to the image combining unit 200 as frame information (second designation information).

4. Description of Image Synthesizing Unit The image synthesizing unit 200 synthesizes a view image that can be seen in a virtual three-dimensional space. Therefore, the image composition unit 200
Is the image supply unit 210 and the image forming unit 2 as shown in FIG.
28, and the image supply unit 210 includes an object image information storage unit 212. Object image information storage unit 2
Image information of an object representing a display object is stored in 12, and this object is designated by an object number included in the display object information.

In the image supply section 210, various three-dimensional calculation processing is performed based on the display object information, the frame information from the virtual three-dimensional space calculation section 100 and the object image information read from the object image information storage section 212. Is done. That is, first, as shown in FIG. 11, objects 300, 333, 3 representing a racing car, a course, etc.
With respect to 34, arithmetic processing for arranging the polygons forming the polygon in a virtual three-dimensional space represented by the world coordinate system (absolute coordinate system) (XW, YW, ZW) is performed. Next, for each of these objects, the polygons that make up the object are arranged in the viewpoint coordinate system (X
v, Yv, Zv) coordinate conversion processing is performed. After that, so-called clipping processing is performed, and then perspective projection conversion processing to the screen coordinate system (XS, YS) is performed. Next, polygon format conversion processing is performed, and finally, sorting processing or the like is performed as necessary.

In the image forming section 228, the image supply section 210
The image information of all the dots in the polygon is calculated from the data such as the vertex coordinates of the polygon which has been subjected to the three-dimensional calculation processing in (3). As a result, a visual field image (pseudo three-dimensional image) that can be seen by the player is formed.

Now, FIGS. 12A and 12B show an example of the format of the data handled by the image synthesizing unit 200 of this embodiment. As shown in FIG. 12 (A), frame data is located at the beginning of this data string, and is followed by object data for each object. Further, each object data is linked with data of polygons forming the object. FIG. 12B shows an example of the format of this polygon data.

The viewpoint information such as the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction obtained by the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 100 is included in this frame data. The frame data also includes viewing angle information, monitor information, etc. in the frame. The image supply unit 210 uses the viewpoint information and the like to perform the three-dimensional calculation process. For example, the viewpoint position 301 of FIG. 11 is obtained based on the viewpoint position information, and the origin of the viewpoint coordinate system (Xv, Yv, Zv) is determined by this. Further, the direction of Zv is determined based on the line-of-sight direction information, and the directions of Xv and Yv are also determined by these. Then, in this embodiment, the viewpoint coordinate system is changed by continuously changing the viewpoint information, as shown in FIGS. 4A, 4B, 5A, and 5B. A field of view image can be obtained.

5. In the above, the case has been described in which the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction are continuously changed on the predetermined trajectory 30. However, in the present embodiment, besides this, the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction can be independently changed to arbitrary positions and directions. For example, in FIG. 13A, the control lever 48 is used as the first input unit for moving the moving body (or the player), and the joystick 50 is used as the second input unit for changing the line-of-sight direction to an arbitrary direction. To be That is, by steering the control lever 48, for example, a fighter or the like on which the player is mounted can be moved to a desired position and direction. Further, by tilting the joystick 50 in a desired direction, the line-of-sight direction can be changed to an arbitrary direction. In this way, the traveling direction of the fighter, which is a moving body, and the line-of-sight direction of the player can be independently changed, and the game can be more interesting.

For example, in FIG. 14A, the fighter 80 on which the player is boarding is about to attack the tank 82. In this case, the aim 84 for the target is located in the direction of the line of sight of the player and in the front direction. On the other hand, FIG. 14B shows a diagram when the tank 82 moves to the left. In such a case, in the conventional device, an attack cannot be applied unless the steering lever 48 is steered to direct the advancing direction of the fighter 80 toward the tank 82. On the other hand, in this embodiment, first,
By tilting the joystick 50 to the left, the player can change the direction of the line of sight of the player to the left on the game screen. Further, the sight 84 also moves in that direction in conjunction with this change in the line-of-sight direction. This will allow you to focus on the tank 82,
It becomes possible to attack against, and the game can be more interesting.

FIG. 15 shows an example of a block diagram of the three-dimensional simulator device in this case. Unlike FIG. 7 described above, the image combining unit 200 includes the aiming image generating unit 230. The aiming image generating section 230 is for generating an image of the aiming 84. Also, the first input unit 4 is
The steering lever or the like in FIG. 13A corresponds to this, and the second input unit 6 corresponds to the joystick 50 for inputting operation information regarding the line-of-sight direction. A viewpoint changing unit 108 and a line-of-sight changing unit 109 are provided in the virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit 100. The viewpoint changing unit 108 performs a calculation for continuously changing the viewpoint position. Further, the line-of-sight changing unit 109 performs a calculation for continuously changing the line-of-sight direction. Then, the obtained viewpoint information after the change is included in the frame information, and the image supply unit 210
And is input to the aiming image generation unit 230. Based on this viewpoint information, the aiming image generation unit 230 determines at which position on the game screen the aiming target 84 is to be displayed, and outputs the image in which the aiming target 84 is displayed to the image forming unit 228. The image forming unit 228 includes a field-of-view image formed by the image information from the image supply unit 210, and an aiming image generating unit 23.
The image from 0 is mixed, and display processing on the display 10 is performed. As a result, the sight 84 can be displayed as shown in FIGS. 13 (A) and 13 (B).

6.3 Application to 3-D Dungeon Game Next, an example in which this embodiment is applied to a 3-D dungeon game will be described. 16 (A) to (E),
An example is shown in which the player 86 gets lost in a so-called blind alley in the 3-D dungeon. Here, the direction 87 indicated by the solid line arrow represents the traveling direction of the player, and the direction 88 indicated by the dotted line arrow represents the line of sight of the player. In the conventional three-dimensional simulator device, FIG. 16 (A), (B)
As shown in, the line-of-sight direction 88 of the player 86 always coincided with the traveling direction 87 of the player. Therefore, in order for the player to find a direction in which the player can escape from this dead end when he / she gets lost in the dead end, the traveling direction 87 of the player must also be changed. When the player's moving direction 87 is also changed in this way, the player cannot know the direction in which the player was moving in the initial state (FIG. 16A), making it difficult to capture the 3-D dungeon. It was On the other hand, in the present embodiment, for example, the joystick 5 shown in FIG.
2 can be used to determine the traveling direction 87 of the player, and the joystick 53 can also be used to determine the player's line-of-sight direction 88. As a result, FIG.
As shown in (E), it is possible to independently change only the player's line-of-sight direction 88 without changing the player's traveling direction 87. As a result, it becomes easy to recognize the situation of such a dead end, and it becomes possible to improve operability and create a new event. This is equivalent to moving the player's body with the joystick 52 and moving the player's head with the joystick 53, which makes it possible to further enhance the virtual reality required for this type of game. In this case, in order to make the game closer to the real world, the line-of-sight direction 8
It is also possible to limit the range in which 8 can be moved to the range in which the actual head can be moved.

13C, in addition to the joysticks 52 and 53, a rotary encoder 55 (a potentiometer or the like may be used) for moving the viewpoint position is provided. By using the rotary encoder 55, the player can move not only the player's line-of-sight direction but also the player's viewpoint position. For example, in FIG. 17A, some character is written below the torch 90 provided on the wall, but the player cannot read this character at this viewpoint position.
In the present embodiment, in such a case, the rotary encoder 55 is operated to bring the viewpoint position of the player closer to the direction of the torches 90, and as shown in FIG.
You can read the letter 92 written below. By doing the above, it is possible to further increase the fun of solving the mystery of the game. In this case, in FIG.
In the block diagram of, the joystick 52 corresponds to the first input unit 4, and the joystick 53 and the rotary encoder 55 correspond to the second input unit 6. And
The operation information from the joystick 53 is the line-of-sight changing unit 10.
9 is input, and thereby calculation for changing the line-of-sight direction is performed. On the other hand, the operation information from the rotary encoder 55 is input to the viewpoint changing unit 108, and thereby the calculation for changing the viewpoint position is performed. Then, the information on the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction that has been subjected to these calculations is input to the image combining unit 200 as frame information, and the view field image based on these viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction information is combined.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

For example, in addition to the rotary encoder, potentiometer, and joystick described in the present embodiment, various input means in the present invention, such as those using a trackball and simple button operation, are adopted. it can.

Further, in the present invention, both the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction may be changed, or only one of them may be changed.

Further, the present invention can be applied not only to a game machine for business use but also to, for example, a home game machine, a flight simulator, a driving simulator used in a driving school, and the like. In particular, the principle of the invention is
Of course, it can be applied to home-use game machines, game cartridges used in personal computers, game program algorithms stored in a CD-ROM, and the like.
Further, it can be applied to a large attraction type game machine or simulation machine in which a large number of players participate.

In the present embodiment, a racing car game, a battle game, a role-playing game and the like have been described as examples, but the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to all kinds of games, for example, a three-dimensional map. It can also be applied to a spaceship game in which the is formed.

Further, in the present invention, the arithmetic processing performed in the virtual three-dimensional space arithmetic means, the image synthesizing means, etc. may be performed using a dedicated image processing device, or a general-purpose microcomputer, DSP or the like may be used. It may be processed by software.

Furthermore, the calculation processing performed by the virtual three-dimensional space calculating means, the image synthesizing means, etc. is not limited to that described in this embodiment.

[0061]

According to the present invention, the viewer can continuously change the viewpoint information until the desired view image is obtained.
This makes it possible to satisfy the demands of many viewers with various tastes. In addition, it is possible to reduce erroneous operations by the viewer and increase the degree of concentration of the viewer on the visual field image. Further, the change operation of the viewpoint information can be made intuitively easy to understand.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to independently control the movement of the viewer or the moving body and the change of the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction. As a result, it is not necessary to match the traveling direction of the viewer or the like with the line-of-sight direction, so that the variety of operations can be increased. Further, as a result, the viewer can operate his / her body motion by the first input means and the head motion by the second input means, and can further enhance the virtual reality. Further, by moving both the viewpoint direction and the line-of-sight direction, it is possible to perform an operation such as looking into a character written on a wall in a maze.

Further, according to the present invention, the viewer can attack the target without adjusting the traveling direction of the viewer or the moving body to the target direction, which facilitates the attack on the target. It is possible to increase the fun of games, etc.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to make the viewer recognize the position where the reference visual field image is combined. As a result, the viewer can easily select the viewpoint information for synthesizing the reference view image, and can also change the viewpoint information to the position of the viewpoint information desired by the viewer. Becomes Thereby, the operability can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an example of a block diagram of an embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of an external appearance of the present three-dimensional simulator device.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a virtual three-dimensional space in the present three-dimensional game.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are diagrams showing an example of a game screen image-synthesized by the present three-dimensional simulator device.

5A and 5B are diagrams showing an example of a game screen image-synthesized by the present three-dimensional simulator device.

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining continuous change of viewpoint information.

FIG. 7 is an example of a block diagram of a virtual three-dimensional space calculation unit and an image combination unit.

8A and 8B are examples of input means,
8C and 8D are connection diagrams of these input means.

9 (A) and 9 (B) are examples of input means provided with a mechanical catching portion.

FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining display object information stored in a display object information storage unit.

FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining a three-dimensional calculation process in this embodiment.

FIG. 12A and FIG. 12B are examples of data formats handled by the image synthesizing unit.

13A to 13C are diagrams showing a combination form of input means used in the present embodiment.

14 (A) and 14 (B) are examples of the game screen when the aim is changed in association with the viewpoint information.

FIG. 15 is another example of the block diagram of the present embodiment.

16 (A) to 16 (E) are diagrams for explaining a player's moving direction and line-of-sight direction in a 3-D dungeon.

17A and 17B are examples of game screens when the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction are independently changed.

FIG. 18 (A) is a schematic explanatory diagram for explaining the concept of the three-dimensional simulator device, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a screen formed by a three-dimensional simulator device.

[Explanation of symbols]

4 First input section 6 Second input section 10 display 12 Operation part 16 rotary encoder 32 Potentiometer 100 Virtual three-dimensional space operation unit 102 processing unit 104 Virtual three-dimensional space setting unit 106 movement calculation unit 107 Viewpoint information change unit 108 Viewpoint change part 109 Line-of-sight change unit 108 display object information storage unit 110 Map setting section 200 Image synthesizer 210 Image Supply Unit 212 Object Image Information Storage Unit 228 Image forming unit 230 Aiming image generator

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Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An operation means, a virtual three-dimensional space operation means for performing an operation to form a virtual three-dimensional space based on operation information input from the operation means, and a virtual three-dimensional space formed in the formed virtual three-dimensional space. A three-dimensional simulator device including image synthesizing means for synthesizing visual field images, wherein the operating means includes first input means for inputting operation information for moving the moving body, and the viewpoint position. And second input means for inputting operation information for continuously changing at least one of the line-of-sight directions, wherein the virtual three-dimensional space calculation means receives the operation input from the first input means. Means for obtaining the position and direction of the moving body in the virtual three-dimensional space based on information, and viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction based on the operation information input from the second input means. Viewpoint information changing means for obtaining viewpoint information designating at least one, and the image combining means, when the moving body is in the obtained position and direction, the viewpoint position designated by the viewpoint information. , Synthesizing a view field image seen in the line-of-sight direction, and the viewpoint information changing unit sets the line-of-sight direction to an arbitrary direction independently of the traveling direction of the moving body based on the operation information from the second input unit. A three-dimensional simulator device characterized in that the viewpoint position is brought closer to the direction of the display object while being changed to 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second input means includes a third input means for changing the line-of-sight direction to an arbitrary direction and a fourth input means for moving the viewpoint position. The viewpoint information changing unit changes the line-of-sight direction to an arbitrary direction based on the operation information from the third input unit, and changes the viewpoint position based on the operation information from the fourth input unit. A three-dimensional simulator device characterized in that it approaches a display object. 3. The joystick according to claim 2, wherein the third input means is a joystick, and the viewpoint information changing means is independent of a traveling direction of the moving body based on operation information from the joystick. A three-dimensional simulator device characterized in that the line-of-sight direction is changed to an arbitrary direction in accordance with the direction in which the is tilted. 4. An image synthesizing method for synthesizing a field-of-view image visible in a virtual three-dimensional space based on operation information input from the operating means, wherein the image is moved by a first input means included in the operating means. The operation information for moving the body is input, and the operation information for continuously changing at least one of the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction is input by the second input unit included in the operation unit. The position and direction of the moving body in the virtual three-dimensional space are obtained based on the operation information input from the first input means, and the viewpoint position is obtained based on the operation information input from the second input means. And viewpoint information designating at least one of the line-of-sight directions, and when the moving body is in the obtained position and direction, the viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction designated by the viewpoint information The visible image is synthesized, and based on the operation information from the second input means, the visual line direction is changed to an arbitrary direction independently of the traveling direction of the moving body, and the viewpoint position is displayed. An image synthesizing method characterized by bringing the image closer to the direction. 5. The method according to claim 4, wherein the second input unit includes a third input unit for changing the line-of-sight direction to an arbitrary direction and a fourth input unit for moving the viewpoint position. Changing the line-of-sight direction to an arbitrary direction based on the operation information from the third input means, and bringing the viewpoint position closer to the direction of the display object based on the operation information from the fourth input means. An image synthesizing method characterized by. 6. The joystick according to claim 5, wherein the third input means is a joystick, and is responsive to a direction in which the joystick is tilted, based on operation information from the joystick, independently of a traveling direction of the moving body. An image synthesizing method, characterized in that the line-of-sight direction is changed to an arbitrary direction.