JP2008033964A - Image generating apparatus and information storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image generating apparatus and information storage medium, which generate a real image in which the road status is reflected. <P>SOLUTION: A virtual camera 22 is moved following a mover 20, and the virtual camera 22 is vibrated in a given period, amplitude and waveform to generate an image at a third person's view point seen from the virtual camera 22. A part or the whole of the mover 20 is vibrated to be different in period, amplitude and waveform from the vibration of the virtual camera 22. When the mover 20 flew or fell to the ground, the vibration of the virtual camera 22 is stopped. As the speed of the mover 20 increases, the period of the vibration of the virtual camera 22 is shortened and the amplitude is enlarged. The period or the like of vibration of the virtual camera 22 is changed according to an area where the mover 20 moves. A polygon constituting a course 40 is given attribute data for specifying the period or the like of vibration, and the virtual camera 22 is vibrated based on the attribute data of the polygon where the mover 20 is located. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an image generation apparatus and an information storage medium that generate an image at a given viewpoint in an object space.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, image generation apparatuses that arrange a plurality of objects in an object space that is a virtual three-dimensional space and generate an image that can be viewed from a given viewpoint in the object space have been developed and put into practical use. It is popular as a way to experience reality. Taking an image generation apparatus that can enjoy a racing car game as an example, a player enjoys a three-dimensional game by running a moving body such as a car that the user operates in the object space.

  Now, with such an image generation device, there is a problem of improving the virtual reality of the player. For this purpose, it is desired to generate a realistic image reflecting the road surface condition and the like.

  However, with conventional image generation apparatuses, when a moving object generates an image from a third-person viewpoint displayed on the screen, it is impossible for the player to feel the rattling of the road surface or the change in the road surface. was there.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image generation apparatus and an information storage medium capable of generating a realistic image reflecting road surface conditions and the like. .

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention provides an image generation apparatus that generates an image at a given viewpoint in an object space, a unit that performs an operation of moving a moving object in the object space, and a virtual camera And a means for vibrating the virtual camera at a given period, a given amplitude, and a given waveform, and an image visible from the virtual camera, the moving body And a means for generating an image from a third-person viewpoint including the above-mentioned image.

  According to the present invention, an image at a third-person viewpoint from a virtual camera that moves so as to follow a moving object is generated. The virtual camera vibrates with a given period, amplitude, and waveform independently of the vibration of the moving body, for example. In this way, it is possible to generate an image that appears to vibrate not only for a moving object but also for a background such as a course. As a result, a realistic image reflecting the road surface condition and the like can be provided, and the virtual reality can be improved.

  According to the present invention, part or all of the moving body is vibrated so that at least one of a period, an amplitude, and a waveform is different from the vibration of the virtual camera. By doing so, the virtual camera and the moving body vibrate independently at different periods or the like. This makes it possible to reliably generate an image that makes the moving body appear to vibrate.

  Further, the present invention is characterized in that the vibration of the virtual camera is stopped when a given condition is satisfied. By doing in this way, the situation where an unnatural image is displayed can be prevented.

  In this case, it is desirable to stop the vibration of the virtual camera in at least one of the case where the moving body is flying and the case where the moving body is falling.

  Further, the invention is characterized in that the vibration period of the virtual camera is shortened as the speed of the moving body increases. By doing so, it is possible to give the player a feeling that the time interval such as up and down swings becomes shorter as the speed of the moving body increases.

  The present invention is characterized in that the amplitude of vibration of the virtual camera is increased as the speed of the moving body increases. By doing so, it becomes possible to give the player a feeling that the magnitude of the up and down shaking or the like increases as the speed of the moving body increases.

  In the invention, it is preferable that at least one of a vibration period, an amplitude, and a waveform of the virtual camera is changed according to an area in which the moving body moves. By doing so, it becomes possible to increase the variety of running feeling given to the player, and to improve the virtual reality of the player.

  Further, according to the present invention, attribute data for specifying at least one of a vibration period, an amplitude, and a waveform of the virtual camera is provided on each primitive surface constituting a map in which the moving body moves, and the moving body is positioned. The virtual camera is vibrated based on attribute data of the primitive surface. By doing in this way, it becomes possible to control the change of a road surface condition more finely.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following, a case where the present invention is applied to a bicycle game will be described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

  FIG. 1 shows an example of an external view when the image generation apparatus of the present embodiment is applied to a business game apparatus.

  Here, the riding case 16 is made by imitating an actual bicycle, and a player (not shown) sits on the saddle 17 of the riding case 16. The display 18 displays a moving body 20 that is a virtual bicycle, a course on which the moving body 20 runs, and surrounding scenery. The player determines the advancing direction of the moving body 20 displayed on the display 18 by operating the handle 32 left and right while viewing this image. Moreover, the moving body 20 is advanced in the course traveling direction by pedaling the pedal 30 as indicated by A1.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of a functional block diagram of the image generation apparatus of the present embodiment.

  Here, the operation unit 10 is for the player to input operation data by operating the handle 32 of FIG. 1 or by stroking the pedal 30, and the operation data obtained by the operation unit 10 is processed by the processing unit 100. Is input.

  The processing unit 100 performs processing for arranging a display object in the object space and processing for generating an image at a given viewpoint in the object space based on the operation data and a given program. The function of the processing unit 100 can be realized by hardware such as a CPU (CISC type, RISC type), DSP, and gate array IC.

  The information storage medium 190 stores programs and data. The function of the information storage medium 190 can be realized by hardware such as a CD-ROM, a game cassette, an IC card, an MO, an FD, a DVD, a hard disk, and a memory. The processing unit 100 performs various processes based on the program and data from the information storage medium 190.

  The processing unit 100 includes a game calculation unit 110 and an image generation unit 150.

  Here, the game calculation unit 110 performs a game mode setting process, a game progress process, a process for determining the position and direction of a moving body (bicycle or a character riding on a bicycle), a process for determining a viewpoint position and a line-of-sight direction, The process etc. which arrange | position is performed.

  The image generation unit 150 performs processing for generating an image at a given viewpoint in the object space set by the game calculation unit 110. The image generated by the image generation unit 150 is displayed on the display unit 12.

  The game calculation unit 110 includes a moving body calculation unit 112 and a virtual camera control unit 114.

  Here, the moving object calculation unit 112 selects a moving object operated by the player or a moving object whose movement is controlled by a given control program (computer) based on operation data input from the operation unit 10 or a given program. Then, an operation for moving on the course in the object space is performed. More specifically, a calculation for obtaining the position and direction of the moving body every frame (1/60 second) is performed.

For example, assume that the position of the moving body in the (k-1) frame is PMk-1, the speed is VMk-1, the acceleration is AMk-1, and the time of one frame is Δt. Then, the position PMk and the speed VMk of the moving body in k frames are obtained, for example, by the following equations (1) and (2).

PMk = PMk-1 + VMk-1 * .DELTA.t (1)

VMk = VMk-1 + AMk-1 * .DELTA.t (2)

The virtual camera control unit 114 performs a calculation for controlling the viewpoint position and the line-of-sight direction of the virtual camera based on the position and direction data of the moving body obtained by the moving body calculation unit 112. More specifically, the viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction of the virtual camera are controlled so as to follow the moving body operated by the player while having inertia, for example. The image generation unit 150 generates an image that can be seen from the virtual camera controlled by the virtual camera control unit 114.

  The first feature of the present embodiment is as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the virtual camera 22 is moved so as to follow the moving body 20, and the virtual camera 22 is vibrated with a given cycle, a given amplitude, and a given waveform. Then, an image that is visible at the viewpoint position 24 and the line-of-sight direction 26 of the virtual camera 22 and includes a third-person viewpoint including images of the moving body 20 and the course 40 is generated and displayed on the player. In this case, the process of vibrating the virtual camera 22 is performed by the virtual camera control unit 114 of FIG.

  FIG. 4 shows an example of an image generated by this embodiment. According to the present embodiment, by vibrating the virtual camera 22, as shown in FIG. 4, not only the moving body 20 but also the background such as the course 40 can be vibrated. Thereby, even if it is a 3rd person viewpoint, the image which reflected the road surface condition of the course 40 more realistically can be produced | generated, and the virtual reality given to a player can be improved markedly.

  When an image is generated from a first-person viewpoint where the moving body 20 is not displayed on the screen, the position of the moving body 20 and the position of the virtual camera 22 are substantially the same. Therefore, if the moving body 20 vibrates, the screen also vibrates, and the road surface condition can be transmitted to the player without requiring much ingenuity.

  However, when an image is generated from a third-person viewpoint where the moving body 20 is displayed on the screen, the position of the moving body 20 and the position (viewpoint position) of the virtual camera 22 do not match. Therefore, how to control the virtual camera 22 when the moving body 20 vibrates becomes one technical problem.

  In this case, as shown in FIG. 5A, when a method of completely fixing the positional relationship between the virtual camera 22 and the moving body 20 is adopted, the background such as the course 40 appears to vibrate. The moving body 20 does not appear to vibrate. Therefore, according to this method, it is impossible to accurately convey to the player the feeling that the moving body 20 is traveling on an uneven road surface.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5B, the positional relationship between the virtual camera 22 and the moving body 20 is not completely fixed, and for example, the height (from the ground) of the virtual camera 22 is fixed. The moving body 20 appears to vibrate, but the background such as the course 40 does not appear to vibrate. Since the area occupied by the moving body 20 with respect to the entire area of the screen is small, even if only the moving body 20 vibrates, the player cannot feel the sense that the vehicle is traveling on an uneven road surface.

  As described above, according to the methods shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, it is impossible to sufficiently tell the player that the road surface condition is changing.

  In contrast, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, the virtual camera 22 is caused to follow the moving body 20 and the virtual camera 22 is vibrated with a given period and amplitude regardless of the vibration of the moving body 20. I am letting. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 4, not only the moving body 20 but also the background of the course 40 and the like appear to vibrate. Therefore, it is possible to sufficiently and accurately convey to the player how the road surface condition is changing, and the virtual reality feeling felt by the player can be significantly improved.

  The second feature of the present embodiment is that part or all of the moving body 20 is vibrated so that the period, amplitude, and waveform are different from the vibration of the virtual camera 22. That is, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, the virtual camera 22 is vibrated with a period T1 and an amplitude AP1, while the moving body 20 is vibrated with a period T2 and an amplitude AP2. In this way, the moving body 20 can appear to vibrate with respect to the screen, and the moving body 20 can appear to vibrate with respect to the virtual camera 22. . As a result, it is possible to inform the player that the road surface condition is changing more sufficiently and accurately.

  Instead of vibrating the entire moving body 20, only a part of the moving body 20, for example, a tire or the like may be vibrated. Further, instead of changing the period and amplitude of vibration, the type of waveform may be changed.

  The third feature of the present embodiment is that the vibration of the virtual camera is stopped when a given condition is satisfied. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, when the moving body 20 flies from the jump stand 42 (when the moving body 20 leaves the ground), the vibration of the virtual camera 22 is stopped. Alternatively, the vibration of the virtual camera 22 is also stopped when the moving body 20 falls.

  That is, in this embodiment, the virtual camera 22 is vibrated independently of the vibration of the moving body 20. Therefore, when the moving body 20 flies or falls and the vibration of the moving body 20 itself should stop, if no action is taken, only the virtual camera 22 vibrates, and an unnatural image is generated. Will be displayed on the player. In this embodiment, since the vibration of the virtual camera 22 stops in such a case, it is possible to effectively prevent the player from feeling unnatural.

  The given condition for stopping the vibration of the virtual camera 22 is not limited to jumping or falling of the moving body 20, and various conditions can be considered.

  A third feature of the present embodiment is that the vibration period of the virtual camera is shortened or the amplitude is increased as the speed of the moving body increases.

  That is, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8A, the vibration cycle of the virtual camera 22 is shortened as the speed of the moving body 20 increases. By doing so, it is possible to give the player a feeling that the time interval of the up and down swing of the road surface becomes shorter as the speed of the moving body 20 becomes higher. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8B, the amplitude of the virtual camera 22 increases as the speed of the moving body 20 increases. By doing in this way, it is possible to give the player a feeling that the magnitude of the up and down shaking of the road surface increases as the speed of the moving body 20 increases. With the third feature of the present embodiment as described above, it is possible to more realistically simulate changes in road surface conditions, and to further enhance the virtual reality of the player.

  The fourth feature of the present embodiment is that the vibration period, amplitude, and waveform of the virtual camera are changed according to the area in which the moving body moves.

  That is, as shown in FIG. 9, the course 40 is provided with a plurality of areas having different road surface conditions. When the moving body 20 is traveling, for example, in the asphalt area 50, the vibration amplitude of the virtual camera becomes almost zero. Further, when the moving body 20 is traveling in the rock area 51, the vibration has a large amplitude. Further, when traveling in the grass area 52, the vibration has a small amplitude with a long period. Further, when traveling in the gravel area 53, the vibration has a small amplitude in a short cycle, and when traveling in the soil area 54, the vibration has a smaller vibration in a shorter cycle.

  As described above, by changing the vibration period, amplitude, and waveform of the virtual camera for each area, it is possible to simulate a more realistic change in the road surface condition and further improve the virtual reality of the player.

  Note that FIG. 4 described above is an example of an image when the moving body 20 is traveling in a rock area. On the other hand, FIG. 10 shows an example of an image when the moving body 20 is traveling in the soil area. As described above, in the present embodiment, when the moving body 20 is traveling in a rock area or a soil area, first, an image representing the road surface condition of each area is displayed, thereby traveling in the rock area or the soil area. This gives the player a virtual reality. Further, the virtual reality feeling felt by the player is further improved by vibrating the moving body 20 and the background with a waveform corresponding to the unevenness of the road surface of each area.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the course 40 is constituted by a combination of primitive surfaces such as a plurality of polygons. The moving body 20 travels on the course 40 constituted by these polygons.

  The fifth feature of the present embodiment is as follows. That is, each polygon constituting the map such as a course is provided with attribute data for specifying the vibration period, amplitude, and waveform of the virtual camera. Then, the virtual camera is vibrated based on the attribute data of the polygon where the moving body is located.

  For example, in FIG. 12, the course 40 is composed of polygons 56-1 to 56-9. The polygons 56-1 to 56-3 are set with attribute data for specifying the vibration of the asphalt road surface. Similarly, attribute data for specifying the vibration of the rock road surface is set for the polygons 56-4 to 56-6, and attribute data for specifying the vibration of the grass road surface is set for the polygons 56-7 to 56-9. Yes. In FIG. 12, the moving body 20 is located at the location of the polygon 56-5. Therefore, in this case, attribute data for specifying the vibration of the rock road surface is read, and the virtual camera vibrates based on this attribute data.

  In this way, by vibrating the virtual camera based on the attribute data set for each polygon, it becomes possible to perform finer control of changes in road surface conditions. That is, the road surface condition can be changed between the left side and the right side of the course 40 as in the gravel area 53 and the soil area 54 of FIG. It is also possible to change the road surface condition on the left side, center, and right side.

  In the above description, the case where the course is configured by a polygon that is one of the primitive surfaces has been described as an example. However, the course may be configured by other forms of primitive surfaces such as a curved surface.

  Next, a detailed processing example of this embodiment will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  First, the moving object calculation unit 112 in FIG. 2 calculates the position and direction of the moving object (step S1). This calculation is performed for each frame.

  Next, the virtual camera control unit 114 in FIG. 2 calculates the viewpoint position and line-of-sight direction of the virtual camera based on the position and direction of the moving object (step S2). The viewpoint position of the virtual camera is set, for example, at a position away from the position of the moving body by a fixed coordinate value (ΔX, ΔY, ΔZ) in the world (X, Y, Z) coordinate system. In addition, the virtual camera follows the moving body with inertia so that it can smoothly follow even when the speed of the moving body changes rapidly.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the moving body is flying (away from the ground) (step S3). Then, when the moving body is flying as shown in FIG. 7, the process of vibrating the virtual camera in step S5 and subsequent steps is omitted.

  Next, it is determined whether or not the moving body is overturned (step S4). If the moving body is falling, the process of vibrating the virtual camera in step S5 and subsequent steps is omitted.

  Next, the polygon where the moving body is located (contacted) is searched, and attribute data of the polygon (data for specifying the vibration of the virtual camera) is read (step S5).

  Here, in the present embodiment, the polygon where the moving body is located is searched as follows. That is, as shown in FIG. 14A, in this embodiment, the course 40 is divided into a plurality of course blocks C0 to C1000. The course 40 is divided into course blocks at a distance of 1 m, for example, every 1 m. In FIG. 14B, it is determined from the arrangement data of the lines 60 and 62 whether or not the moving body 20 is located in the course block Cj. Thus, by specifying the course block where the moving body 20 is located, it is possible to determine the order of the moving body 20 and whether or not to extend the time. Further, as shown in FIG. 14C, each course block is divided into a plurality of polygons, for example, triangular polygons. In the present embodiment, the position of the moving body 20 is converted into the r and s coordinate systems set in the course block. Then, based on the position of the moving body 20 in the r, s coordinate system, it is determined to which triangular polygon the moving body 20 is located. As described above, the polygon where the moving body 20 is located is searched.

Returning to the description of FIG. After reading the attribute data, the waveform memory data read address RA is determined according to the following equation (3).

RA = MOD (RA + K1 × VM, WDL) (3)

Here, MOD (A / B) represents the remainder when A is divided by B. K1 is a constant, VM is the speed of the moving object, and WDL is the waveform data length. The read address RA is set to zero in the initial state.

  15A, 15B, and 15C show examples of various waveform data stored in the waveform data memory. FIG. 15A shows waveform data representing vibration of the asphalt road surface, FIG. 15B shows waveform data representing vibration of the rock road surface, and FIG. 15C shows waveform data representing vibration of the grass road surface. The WDL of all waveform data is the same at 256.

  As is clear from the above equation (3), the faster the moving object speed VM, the faster the waveform data reproduction speed, and the shorter the waveform oscillation period. That is, as shown in FIG. 8A, the vibration of the virtual camera can be controlled so that the cycle becomes shorter as the speed of the moving body becomes higher. The reason why RA + K1 × VM is divided by WDL in the above equation (3) and the remainder is set to RA is that the waveform data memory has finite waveform data as shown in FIGS. This is because only long waveform data is stored.

  Next, the amplitude AP is read from the waveform data memory based on the attribute data read in step S5 and the read address RA obtained in step S6 (step S7). That is, which waveform data is to be referred to is selected based on the attribute data obtained in step S5 as described with reference to FIG. For example, if the attribute data designates an asphalt road surface, the waveform data in FIG. 15A designates a rocky road surface. If the attribute data designates a rock road surface, the waveform data in FIG. 15B designates a grass road surface. For example, the waveform data in FIG. Also, the amplitude AP can be obtained by designating the read address RA obtained in step S6. For example, when RA = 200 is designated in FIG. 15B, AP = 2000 is obtained.

Next, the amplitude AP is corrected as shown in the following equation (4) (step S8).

AP = K2 × AP × VM (4)

Here, K2 is a constant. By correcting the above equation (4), it is possible to control the vibration of the virtual camera so that the amplitude AP increases as the velocity VM of the moving object increases, as shown in FIG. 8B. become.

Next, as shown in the following equation (5), the height (the height of the viewpoint position) HC of the virtual camera obtained in step S2 is corrected (step S9).

HC = HC + AP (5)

By doing as described above, the virtual camera can be vibrated with the amplitude, period, and waveform corresponding to various waveform data.

  Next, an example of a hardware configuration capable of realizing the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In the apparatus shown in the figure, a CPU 1000, a ROM 1002, a RAM 1004, an information storage medium 1006, a sound generation IC 1008, an image generation IC 1010, and I / O ports 1012, 1014 are connected to each other via a system bus 1016 so that data can be transmitted and received. A display 1018 is connected to the image generation IC 1010, a speaker 1020 is connected to the sound generation IC 1008, a control device 1022 is connected to the I / O port 1012, and a communication device 1024 is connected to the I / O port 1014. Has been.

  The information storage medium 1006 mainly stores programs, image data for expressing display objects, sound data, and the like. For example, a consumer game device uses a CD-ROM, game cassette, DVD, or the like as an information storage medium for storing a game program or the like. The arcade game machine uses a memory such as a ROM. In this case, the information storage medium 1006 is a ROM 1002.

  The control device 1022 corresponds to a game controller, an operation panel, and the like, and is a device for inputting a result of a determination made by the player in accordance with the progress of the game to the device main body.

  In accordance with a program stored in the information storage medium 1006, a system program stored in the ROM 1002 (such as device initialization information), a signal input by the control device 1022, the CPU 1000 controls the entire device and performs various data processing. . The RAM 1004 is a storage means used as a work area of the CPU 1000 and stores the given contents of the information storage medium 1006 and the ROM 1002 or the calculation result of the CPU 1000. In addition, a data structure having a logical configuration for realizing the present embodiment (for example, the waveform data in FIGS. 15A, 15B, and 15C) is constructed on this RAM or information storage medium. become.

  Further, this type of apparatus is provided with a sound generation IC 1008 and an image generation IC 1010 so that game sounds and game images can be suitably output. The sound generation IC 1008 is an integrated circuit that generates game sounds such as sound effects and background music based on information stored in the information storage medium 1006 and the ROM 1002, and the generated game sounds are output by the speaker 1020. The image generation IC 1010 is an integrated circuit that generates pixel information to be output to the display 1018 based on image information sent from the RAM 1004, the ROM 1002, the information storage medium 1006, and the like. As the display 1018, a so-called head mounted display (HMD) can be used.

  The communication device 1024 exchanges various types of information used inside the game device with the outside. The communication device 1024 is connected to other game devices to send and receive given information according to the game program, and to connect a communication line. It is used for sending and receiving information such as game programs.

  Various processes described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 12 and FIGS. 14A to 15C are performed according to an information storage medium 1006 that stores a program for performing the process shown in the flowchart of FIG. This is realized by the operating CPU 1000, image generation IC 1010, sound generation IC 1008, and the like. The processing performed by the image generation IC 1010, the sound generation IC 1008, and the like may be performed by software using the CPU 1000 or a general-purpose DSP.

  FIG. 1 described above shows an example in which the present embodiment is applied to an arcade game machine. In this case, a CPU, an image generation IC, a sound generation IC, and the like are mounted on a system board 1106 built in the apparatus. Then, information for performing an operation for moving the moving object in the object space, moving the virtual camera so as to follow the moving object, and moving the virtual camera at a given period, given amplitude, given waveform. Information for vibrating, an image that can be seen from a virtual camera, and information for generating an image from a third-person viewpoint including an image of a moving object, a vibration of a virtual camera is a period of a part or all of the moving object The information for vibrating such that at least one of the amplitude and the waveform is different is stored in a memory 1108 which is an information storage medium on the system board 1106. Hereinafter, these pieces of information are referred to as stored information. The stored information includes at least one of program code, image information, sound information, display object shape information, table data, list data, player information, and the like for performing the various processes described above.

  FIG. 17A shows an example in which this embodiment is applied to a home game device. The player enjoys the game by operating the game controllers 1202 and 1204 while viewing the game image displayed on the display 1200. In this case, the stored information is stored in a CD-ROM 1206, IC cards 1208, 1209, etc., which are information storage media detachable from the main unit.

  FIG. 17B shows an example in which the present embodiment is applied to a game device including a host device 1300 and terminals 1304-1 to 1304-n connected to the host device 1300 via a communication line 1302. Show. In this case, the stored information is stored in an information storage medium 1306 such as a magnetic disk device, a magnetic tape device, or a memory that can be controlled by the host device 1300, for example. When the terminals 1304-1 to 1304-n have a CPU, an image generation IC, and a sound generation IC and can generate a game image and a game sound stand-alone, the host device 1300 receives a game image and a game A game program or the like for generating sound is delivered to the terminals 1304-1 to 1304-n. On the other hand, if it cannot be generated stand-alone, the host device 1300 generates a game image and a game sound, which is transmitted to the terminals 1304-1 to 1304-n and output at the terminal.

  The present invention is not limited to the one described in the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made.

  For example, as the method for vibrating the virtual camera, the method described with reference to FIGS. 13 to 15C and the like is particularly desirable, but various other modifications are possible.

  The method described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 12 is particularly preferable as a method of changing the vibration period, amplitude, and waveform of the virtual camera in accordance with the area in which the moving body moves. Is possible. For example, attribute data for specifying the vibration period and the like may be set in each of the course blocks described with reference to FIG. 14A, and the vibration period and the like may be switched based on the attribute data.

  For example, in the present embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a bicycle competition game has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this and can be applied to various games (other competition games, sports games, battle games, etc.).

  The present invention is not limited to home and business game devices, but also various image generation devices such as a simulator, a large attraction device in which a large number of players participate, a personal computer, a multimedia terminal, and a system board for generating game images. It can also be applied to.

It is an example of the external view of the image generation apparatus of this embodiment. It is an example of the functional block diagram of the image generation apparatus of this embodiment. It is a figure for demonstrating the principle of this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the image produced | generated by this embodiment. 5A and 5B are diagrams for explaining various methods related to control of the virtual camera. It is a figure for demonstrating the method of making the vibration period etc. of a virtual camera differ, and the vibration period of a moving body. It is a figure for demonstrating the method of stopping the vibration of a virtual camera when a moving body flies. 8A and 8B are diagrams for explaining a method of changing the vibration period and amplitude of the virtual camera in accordance with the speed of the moving body. It is a figure for demonstrating the method of varying the vibration period etc. of a virtual camera for every area. It is a figure which shows the example of the image produced | generated by this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example of the course comprised by a some polygon. It is a figure for demonstrating the setting of the attribute data to each polygon. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the detailed process example of this embodiment. FIGS. 14A, 14B, and 14C are diagrams for explaining the course block. FIGS. 15A, 15 </ b> B, and 15 </ b> C are diagrams for explaining examples of various waveform data. It is a figure which shows an example of the structure of the hardware which can implement | achieve this embodiment. FIGS. 17A and 17B are diagrams illustrating examples of various types of apparatuses to which the present embodiment is applied.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Operation part 12 Display part 16 Riding housing | casing 17 Saddle 18 Display 20 Mobile body (bicycle)
22 Virtual camera 24 View point position 26 Gaze direction 30 Pedal 32 Handle 40 Course 100 Processing unit 110 Game calculation unit 112 Moving body calculation unit 114 Virtual camera control unit 150 Image generation unit 190 Information storage medium

Claims (9)

An image generation device that generates an image at a given viewpoint in an object space,
Means for performing an operation of moving the moving object in the object space;
Means for moving the virtual camera to follow the moving body and vibrating the virtual camera at a given period, a given amplitude, and a given waveform;
An image generation apparatus comprising: an image that is visible from the virtual camera, and that generates an image from a third-person viewpoint including the image of the moving object. In claim 1,
An image generating apparatus, wherein a part or all of the moving body is vibrated so that at least one of a period, an amplitude, and a waveform is different from the vibration of the virtual camera. In claim 1 or 2,
An image generating apparatus, wherein vibration of the virtual camera is stopped when a given condition is satisfied. In claim 3,
An image generation apparatus, wherein vibration of a virtual camera is stopped in at least one of a case where a moving object is flying and a case where a mobile object is falling. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 4,
The image generation apparatus characterized by shortening the period of vibration of the virtual camera as the speed of the moving body increases. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 5,
An image generating apparatus characterized by increasing the amplitude of vibration of the virtual camera as the speed of the moving body increases. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 6.
An image generating apparatus, wherein at least one of a vibration period, an amplitude, and a waveform of the virtual camera is changed according to an area in which the moving body moves. In claim 7,
Each primitive surface constituting the map on which the moving body moves has attribute data for specifying at least one of the vibration period, amplitude, and waveform of the virtual camera,
An image generating apparatus characterized in that the virtual camera is vibrated based on attribute data of a primitive surface on which a moving body is located. An information storage medium for generating an image at a given viewpoint in an object space,
Information for performing an operation to move the moving object in the object space,
Information for moving the virtual camera to follow the moving body and vibrating the virtual camera at a given period, a given amplitude, and a given waveform;
An information storage medium comprising: an image visible from the virtual camera, and information for generating an image from a third-person viewpoint including the image of the moving object.

Images