JP2018171455A - Display control method and program for causing computer to execute the method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a display control method capable of limiting viewing of a non-production region in a virtual space.SOLUTION: A display control method in a system including a head mount display (HMD) includes the steps of: generating virtual space data indicating a virtual space containing at least one object W including a virtual camera 300 and a non-production region NR; displaying a visual field image in the HMD on the basis of a visual field of the virtual camera 300 and the virtual space data; moving the virtual camera 300 according to an amount of travel of the HMD; determining the distance between the virtual camera 300 and the object W on the basis of the amount of travel of the HMD; and controlling a position of the virtual camera 300 so that the distance does not fall below a predetermined lower-limit value L2 when the distance is determined to be a predetermined threshold value L1 or lower.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 9

Description

  The present disclosure relates to a display control method and a program for causing a computer to execute the display control method.

  A head-mounted display (HMD: Head-Mounted Display) that is mounted on the user's head and can display a virtual space image as a virtual space such as a virtual reality (VR) space or an augmented reality (AR) space. It has been known. Patent Document 1 discloses a design support system with a viewpoint information display function for supporting design of an object such as a building using a virtual space. In Patent Document 1, as a means for changing the viewpoint position in real time, in addition to the conventional means in which a user walks through the virtual space in the virtual space, the viewpoint position is input on the plan view display unit. The means for instantaneously moving the viewpoint position by changing the viewing angle, or changing the magnification (scale) when converting the movement amount of the user in the real space into the movement amount in the virtual space by changing the viewing angle is described. ing.

JP 2000-172740 A

  When creating a game space by placing static objects such as background images and building objects in a three-dimensional virtual space, it is usually assumed that the game space is visually recognized in order to reduce the load of rendering processing. It is not assumed that the back side of the non-game space (for example, the back side of the background image or the inside of the static object) is not created, that is, rendered as a game screen. However, in such a game space, as described in Patent Document 1, when the viewpoint position is changed according to the movement of the user or the change of the viewing angle in the virtual space, the game space that is not supposed to be rendered. Even the back side (hereinafter referred to as “non-production area”) may be visually recognized by the user.

  An object of this indication is to provide the display control method which can restrict | limit the visual recognition of the non-production area | region in virtual space. Moreover, this indication aims at providing the program for making a computer perform the said display control method.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a display control method in a system including a head mounted display,
The display control method is
(A) generating virtual space data indicating a virtual space including a virtual camera and at least one object having a non-production area;
(B) displaying a visual field image on the head mounted display based on the visual field of the virtual camera and the virtual space data;
(C) moving the virtual camera in accordance with the amount of movement of the head mounted display;
(D) identifying a distance between the virtual camera and the object based on the amount of movement;
(E) controlling the position of the virtual camera so that the distance does not fall below a predetermined lower limit when it is determined that the distance is less than or equal to a predetermined threshold;
including.

  According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a display control method capable of restricting visual recognition of a non-production area in a virtual space.

It is the schematic which shows the head mounted display (HMD) system which concerns on this embodiment. It is a figure which shows the head of the user with which HMD was mounted | worn. It is a figure which shows the hardware constitutions of a control apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the process which displays a visual field image on HMD. It is xyz space figure which shows an example of virtual space. (A) is a yx plan view of the virtual space shown in FIG. 4, and (b) is a zx plan view of the virtual space shown in FIG. 4. It is a figure which shows an example of the visual field image displayed on HMD. It is a flowchart for demonstrating a process when a virtual camera approaches the target object which has a non-production area with the change of the visual field of HMD. (A) is a figure which shows a process when a virtual camera approaches the target object which has a non-production area | region, (b) is a graph which shows the change of the moving speed of the virtual camera in the case of (a). . It is a figure which shows a process when a virtual camera approaches the target object which has a non-production area in a modification. In another modification, it is a figure which shows a process when a virtual camera approaches the target object which has a non-production area | region. In still another modified example, it is a diagram illustrating a process when a virtual camera approaches an object having a non-production area. It is the figure which showed a mode that a warning message was displayed in a visual field image based on the virtual camera approaching to the target object.

[Description of Embodiments Presented by the Present Disclosure]
An overview of an embodiment indicated by the present disclosure will be described.
(1) A display control method in a system including a head mounted display, wherein the display control method includes:
(A) generating virtual space data indicating a virtual space including a virtual camera and at least one object having a non-production area;
(B) displaying a visual field image on the head mounted display based on the visual field of the virtual camera and the virtual space data;
(C) moving the virtual camera in accordance with the amount of movement of the head mounted display;
(D) identifying a distance between the virtual camera and the object based on the amount of movement;
(E) controlling the position of the virtual camera so that the distance does not fall below a predetermined lower limit when it is determined that the distance is less than or equal to a predetermined threshold;
including.

  According to the above method, the position of the virtual camera is controlled so that the virtual camera can approach only a predetermined distance from an object having a non-production area. Thereby, for example, it is possible to prevent the virtual camera from slipping through the object in conjunction with an unexpected movement of the head mounted display and visually recognizing the non-production area. For this reason, it is not necessary to create the back of the game space.

(2) In the step (d), an assumed distance between the virtual camera and the object when the virtual camera is assumed to be moved based on the amount of movement of the head mounted display is specified,
In the step (e), when the assumed distance is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, an actual distance in the virtual space between the virtual camera and the object is not less than the predetermined lower limit value. The position of the virtual camera may be controlled.

  According to the above method, non-production is performed by limiting the actual distance between the virtual camera and the target with respect to the assumed distance between the virtual camera and the target when the virtual camera moves in the direction toward the target. The visual recognition of the area can be surely limited.

  (3) The predetermined lower limit value may be arbitrarily set within a range where the distance is zero or more.

  (4) The predetermined lower limit value may be set to be a position that coincides with the surface of the object.

  (5) The lower limit value may be set to be closer to the object than the threshold value.

  (6) The lower limit value may be set so as to be a position farther from the object than the threshold value.

  According to these methods, it is possible to arbitrarily set the extent to which the object can be approached according to the generated virtual space or the object.

  (7) In the step (e), the virtual camera may be instantaneously moved to a predetermined position maintaining a distance equal to or greater than the lower limit value.

  According to the above method, the virtual camera is instantaneously moved to a position keeping a certain distance from the object. Accordingly, it is possible to inform the user that the movement in the direction toward the target object is restricted while performing processing so that the non-production area is not visually recognized.

  (8) In the step (e), the conversion rate when the movement amount of the head mounted display is converted into the movement amount of the virtual camera is determined when the distance is determined to be greater than or equal to the predetermined threshold. You may lower than the said conversion rate.

  According to the above method, when moving in the direction toward the object, the visual field of the virtual camera is changed at a speed slower than the normal moving speed of the virtual camera. That is, the response speed of the virtual camera to the movement of the head mounted display is slowed. Accordingly, it is possible to inform the user that the movement in the direction toward the target object is restricted while performing processing so that the non-production area is not visually recognized.

  (9) In the step (e), the position of the virtual camera need not be changed.

  According to the above method, the position of the virtual camera is controlled so that the movement of the head mounted display in the direction toward the object is not reflected in the movement of the virtual camera. Accordingly, it is possible to inform the user that the movement in the direction toward the target object is restricted while performing processing so that the non-production area is not visually recognized.

  (10) The step (e) may further include a step of displaying a warning message in the visual field of the virtual camera or a step of reproducing a warning sound from an earphone attached to the head mounted display.

  According to the above method, the user can be notified of a message that the movement in the direction toward the object is restricted.

  (11) A program according to an embodiment is a program for causing a computer to execute the display control method according to any one of (1) to (10).

  According to this configuration, it is possible to provide a program capable of limiting the visual recognition of the non-production area in the virtual space.

[Details of Embodiments Presented by the Present Disclosure]
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, about the member which has the same reference number as the member already demonstrated in description of this embodiment, the description is not repeated for convenience of explanation.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a head-mounted display (hereinafter simply referred to as HMD) system 1 according to an embodiment (hereinafter simply referred to as this embodiment) shown in the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1, the HMD system 1 includes an HMD 110 mounted on the head of the user U, a position sensor 130, a control device 120, and an external controller 320.

  The HMD 110 includes a display unit 112, an HMD sensor 114, and a headphone 116. Note that a speaker or headphones independent of the HMD 110 may be used without providing the headphones 116 on the HMD 110.

  The display unit 112 includes a non-transmissive display device configured to completely cover the field of view (field of view) of the user U wearing the HMD 110. Thereby, the user U can immerse in the virtual space by viewing only the visual field image displayed on the display unit 112. Note that the display unit 112 may include a display unit for the left eye projected on the left eye of the user U and a display unit for the right eye projected on the right eye of the user U.

  The HMD sensor 114 is mounted in the vicinity of the display unit 112 of the HMD 110. The HMD sensor 114 includes at least one of a geomagnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, and a tilt sensor (such as an angular velocity sensor and a gyro sensor), and can detect various movements of the HMD 110 mounted on the head of the user U.

  The position sensor 130 is composed of, for example, a position tracking camera, and is configured to detect the position of the HMD 110. The position sensor 130 is communicably connected to the control device 120 by wireless or wired communication, and is configured to detect information on the position, inclination, or light emission intensity of a plurality of detection points (not shown) provided in the HMD 110. . The position sensor 130 may include an infrared sensor and a plurality of optical cameras.

  The control device 120 acquires the position information of the HMD 110 based on the information acquired from the position sensor 130, and wears the position of the virtual camera in the virtual space and the HMD 110 in the real space based on the acquired position information. Thus, the position of the user U can be accurately associated.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 2, a method for acquiring information related to the position and inclination of the HMD 110 will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the head of the user U wearing the HMD 110. Information regarding the position and inclination of the HMD 110 that is linked to the movement of the head of the user U wearing the HMD 110 can be detected by the position sensor 130 and / or the HMD sensor 114 mounted on the HMD 110. As shown in FIG. 2, three-dimensional coordinates (uvw coordinates) are defined centering on the head of the user U wearing the HMD 110. The vertical direction in which the user U stands upright is defined as the v axis, the direction orthogonal to the v axis and connecting the center of the display unit 112 and the user U is defined as the w axis, and the direction perpendicular to the v axis and the w axis is the u axis. It prescribes as The position sensor 130 and / or the HMD sensor 114 is an angle around each uvw axis (that is, a yaw angle indicating rotation about the v axis, a pitch angle indicating rotation about the u axis, and a center about the w axis). The inclination determined by the roll angle indicating rotation) is detected. The control device 120 determines angle information for controlling the visual axis of the virtual camera that defines the visual field information based on the detected angle change around each uvw axis.

  Next, the hardware configuration of the control device 120 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of the control device 120. As shown in FIG. 3, the control device 120 includes a control unit 121, a storage unit 123, an I / O (input / output) interface 124, a communication interface 125, and a bus 126. The control unit 121, the storage unit 123, the I / O interface 124, and the communication interface 125 are connected to each other via a bus 126 so as to communicate with each other.

  The control device 120 may be configured as a personal computer, a tablet, or a wearable device separately from the HMD 110, or may be mounted inside the HMD 110. In addition, some functions of the control device 120 may be mounted on the HMD 110, and the remaining functions of the control device 120 may be mounted on another device separate from the HMD 110.

  The control unit 121 includes a memory and a processor. The memory includes, for example, a ROM (Read Only Memory) in which various programs are stored, a RAM (Random Access Memory) having a plurality of work areas in which various programs executed by the processor are stored, and the like. The processor is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), and / or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and a program specified from various programs incorporated in the ROM is expanded on the RAM. It is comprised so that various processes may be performed in cooperation with.

  In particular, the controller 121 develops a display control program (to be described later) for causing the computer to execute the display control method according to the present embodiment on the RAM, and executes the program in cooperation with the RAM. May control various operations of the control device 120. The control unit 121 provides a virtual space (view image) to the display unit 112 of the HMD 110 by executing a predetermined application (game program) stored in the memory or the storage unit 123. Thereby, the user U can be immersed in the virtual space provided on the display unit 112.

  The storage unit (storage) 123 is a storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a USB flash memory, and is configured to store programs and various data. The storage unit 123 may incorporate a display control program. In addition, a user authentication program, a game program including data on various images and objects, and the like may be stored. Furthermore, a database including tables for managing various data may be constructed in the storage unit 123.

  The I / O interface 124 is configured to connect the position sensor 130, the HMD 110, and the external controller 320 to the control device 120 in a communicable manner. For example, the I / O interface 124 includes a USB (Universal Serial Bus) terminal, a DVI (Digital Visual Bus), and the like. An interface) terminal, an HDMI (registered trademark) (high-definition multimedia interface) terminal, and the like. Note that the control device 120 may be wirelessly connected to each of the position sensor 130, the HMD 110, and the external controller 320.

  The communication interface 125 is configured to connect the control device 120 to a communication network 3 such as a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), or the Internet. The communication interface 125 includes various wired connection terminals for communicating with an external device via the communication network 3 and various processing circuits for wireless connection. The communication interface 125 conforms to a communication standard for communicating via the communication network 3. Configured to fit.

  Next, processing for displaying a field-of-view image on the HMD 110 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a process for displaying the visual field image V on the HMD 110. FIG. 5 shows an xyz space diagram showing an example of the virtual space 200. 6A is a yx plan view of the virtual space 200 shown in FIG. 5, and FIG. 6B is a zx plan view of the virtual space 200 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 4, in step S1, the control unit 121 (see FIG. 3) generates virtual space data indicating the virtual space 200 in which the virtual camera 300 is arranged. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the virtual space 200 is defined as a celestial sphere centered on the center position 21 (only the upper half celestial sphere is shown in FIGS. 5 and 6). In the virtual space 200, an xyz coordinate system with the center position 21 as the origin is set. In the initial state of the HMD system 1, the virtual camera 300 is disposed at the center position 21 of the virtual space 200.
The uvw coordinate system that defines the visual field of the virtual camera 300 is determined so as to be linked to the uvw coordinate system that is defined around the head of the user U in the real space. Further, the virtual camera 300 may be moved in the virtual space 200 in conjunction with the movement of the user U wearing the HMD 110 in the real space.

  Next, in step S2, the control unit 121 specifies the field of view CV (see FIG. 6) of the virtual camera 300. Specifically, the control unit 121 acquires information on the position and inclination of the HMD 110 based on data indicating the state of the HMD 110 transmitted from the position sensor 130 and / or the HMD sensor 114. Next, the control unit 121 determines the position and orientation of the virtual camera 300 in the virtual space 200 based on information regarding the position and inclination of the HMD 110. Next, the control unit 121 determines a reference line of sight L corresponding to the visual axis of the virtual camera 300 from the position and orientation of the virtual camera 300, and specifies the field of view CV of the virtual camera 300 from the determined reference line of sight L. Here, the visual field CV of the virtual camera 300 coincides with a part of the virtual space 200 visible to the user U wearing the HMD 110 (in other words, a part of the virtual space 200 displayed on the HMD 110). To match). The field of view CV is a first region CVa set as an angular range of the polar angle α around the reference line of sight L in the xy plane shown in FIG. 6A, and in the xz plane shown in FIG. 6B. And a second region CVb set as an angle range of the azimuth angle β with the reference line of sight L as the center.

  As described above, the control unit 121 can specify the visual field CV of the virtual camera 300 based on the data from the position sensor 130 and / or the HMD sensor 114. Here, when the user U wearing the HMD 110 moves, the control unit 121 specifies the visual field CV of the virtual camera 300 based on the data indicating the movement of the HMD 110 transmitted from the position sensor 130 and / or the HMD sensor 114. be able to. That is, the control unit 121 can move the visual field CV according to the movement of the HMD 110.

  Next, in step S <b> 3, the control unit 121 generates visual field image data indicating the visual field image displayed on the display unit 112 of the HMD 110. Specifically, the control unit 121 generates visual field image data based on virtual space data defining the virtual space 200 and the visual field CV of the virtual camera 300.

  Next, in step S <b> 4, the control unit 121 displays a field image on the display unit 112 of the HMD 110 based on the field image data. As described above, the visual field CV of the virtual camera 300 is changed according to the movement of the user U wearing the HMD 110, and the visual field image V displayed on the HMD 110 is changed, so that the user U is immersed in the virtual space 200. be able to.

  Note that the virtual camera 300 may include a left-eye virtual camera and a right-eye virtual camera. In this case, the control unit 121 generates left-eye visual field image data indicating a left-eye visual field image based on the virtual space data and the visual field of the left-eye virtual camera, and the virtual space data and the visual field of the right-eye virtual camera. Based on the right eye field image data indicating the right eye field image. Then, the control unit 121 displays the left-eye view image and the right-eye view image on the display unit 112 of the HMD 110 based on the left-eye view image data and the right-eye view image data. In this manner, the user U can visually recognize the visual field image as a three-dimensional image from the left-eye visual field image and the right-eye visual field image. In this specification, for convenience of explanation, the number of virtual cameras 300 is one, but the embodiment of the present disclosure is applicable even when the number of virtual cameras is two or more.

FIG. 7 shows an example of the visual field image V displayed on the display unit 112 of the HMD 110.
In the visual field image V shown in FIG. 7, the wall portion of the room is composed of a background image (hereinafter referred to as a wall image W) attached to a celestial sphere (see FIGS. 5 and 6) forming the virtual space 200. . In addition, furniture objects F such as a table, a sofa, and a bed are arranged inside the room surrounded by the wall image W. When creating such a field-of-view image V, the back side of the wall image W, which is a background image, and the inside of the furniture object F are not normally viewed by the user, and are not assumed to be rendered as a game screen. In the present embodiment, an area that is not supposed to be rendered as such a game screen is referred to as a non-production area NR (see FIG. 9A).

Next, with reference to FIG. 8 and FIG. 9, a process when the virtual camera 300 approaches an object having a non-production area in accordance with the change in the field of view CV of the HMD 110 (the process of step S <b> 2 in FIG. 3) will be described. To do.
As shown in FIG. 8, in step S21, the control unit 121 determines whether or not the user U wearing the HMD 110 has moved, that is, whether data indicating the movement of the HMD 110 has been received from the position sensor 130 and / or the HMD sensor 114. Determine whether or not. Then, when receiving data indicating the movement of the HMD 110 from the position sensor 130 and / or the HMD sensor 114, the control unit 121 determines that the HMD 110 has moved (Yes in Step S21). In Step S22, the data Based on the above, the virtual camera 300 is moved in the virtual space. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, when the user U wearing the HMD 110 moves in a direction approaching a wall image W (an example of an object) having a non-production area NR, control is performed. The unit 121 moves the virtual camera 300 in the direction approaching the wall image W (the direction of the arrow A) at the first movement speed V1 according to the movement amount of the HMD 110.

  Next, in step S <b> 23, the control unit 121 determines whether or not the virtual camera 300 has reached a point (a processing start point L <b> 1 in FIG. 9) that is away from the wall image W by a certain distance. And when it determines with the virtual camera 300 having reached | attained the process start point L1 (Yes of step S23), the control part 121 makes the virtual camera 300 slower than 1st moving speed V1 in step S24. The second moving speed V2 (see FIG. 9B) is moved in the direction approaching the wall image W (the direction of arrow A ′ in FIG. 9A).

  Next, in step S <b> 25, the control unit 121 determines whether or not the virtual camera 300 has reached a deadline L <b> 2 (an example of a predetermined lower limit value) that is a point slightly in front of the surface of the wall image W. Then, when it is determined that the virtual camera 300 has reached the deadline L2 (Yes in Step S25), the control unit 121 stops the movement of the virtual camera 300 in Step S26. Note that the deadline L2 may be set so as to coincide with the surface of the wall image W.

  As described above, the control unit 121 specifies the assumed distance between the virtual camera 300 and the wall image W based on the movement amount of the HMD 110, and when it is determined that the assumed distance is equal to or less than the processing start point L1. Controls the position of the virtual camera 300 so that the virtual camera 300 does not exceed the deadline L2, that is, the actual distance between the virtual camera 300 and the wall image W does not fall below the lower limit value. Thereafter, the control unit 121 generates visual field image data based on the position of the virtual camera 300, and displays the visual field image V on the display unit 112 of the HMD 110 based on the generated visual field image data (FIG. 4). (See Steps S3 and S4).

  According to this embodiment, the position of the virtual camera 300 can be approached only to a predetermined distance with respect to an object having a non-production area (for example, a wall image W whose back side is the non-production area NR). Be controlled. Thereby, for example, it is possible to restrict the virtual camera 300 from passing through the wall image W in conjunction with an unexpected movement of the HMD 110 and viewing the non-production area NR. For this reason, it is not necessary to create the assumed game space, and the load of rendering processing can be reduced.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 121 determines the conversion rate when converting the movement amount of the HMD 110 into the movement amount of the virtual camera 300, and the distance between the virtual camera 300 and the wall image W is a processing start point. Control is performed so as to lower the conversion rate when it is determined to be L1 or more. As a result, as shown in FIG. 9B, when the virtual camera 300 moves in the direction toward the wall image W, the field of view of the virtual camera 300 is changed at a speed V2 that is slower than the normal movement speed V1. In this way, by slowing the response speed of the virtual camera 300 to the movement of the HMD 110, the movement in the wall image W direction is restricted with respect to the user U while processing is performed so that the non-production area NR is not visually recognized. I can tell you exactly.

  Note that the same processing as described above may be performed not only when the virtual camera 300 approaches the wall image W but also when the virtual camera 300 approaches the furniture object F. That is, the control unit 121 may control the position of the virtual camera 300 so that the virtual camera 300 can approach only a predetermined distance from the furniture object F having a non-production area. Thereby, it is not necessary to create the furniture object F, and the load of the rendering process can be reduced.

  In addition, in order to implement various processes executed by the control unit 121 by software, a display control program for causing a computer (processor) to execute the display control method according to the present embodiment is incorporated in the storage unit 123 or the ROM in advance. It may be. Alternatively, the display control program can be a magnetic disk (HDD, floppy disk), optical disk (CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, Blu-ray disk, etc.), magneto-optical disk (MO, etc.), flash memory (SD card, USB memory, It may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium such as SSD. In this case, the program stored in the storage medium is incorporated into the storage unit 123 by connecting the storage medium to the control device 120. Then, the display control program incorporated in the storage unit 123 is loaded on the RAM, and the control unit 121 executes the display control method according to the present embodiment by executing the loaded program.

  The display control program may be downloaded from a computer on the communication network 3 via the communication interface 125. Similarly in this case, the downloaded program is incorporated in the storage unit 123.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this indication was described, the technical scope of this invention should not be limitedly interpreted by description of this embodiment. This embodiment is an example, and it is understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made within the scope of the invention described in the claims. The technical scope of the present invention should be determined based on the scope of the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9B, the control unit 121 moves the virtual camera 300 at a constant moving speed (second speed) until the virtual camera 300 reaches the deadline L2 from the processing start point L1. Although it is made to move at the moving speed V2), it is not limited to this example. For example, the control unit 121 may control the moving speed of the virtual camera 300 so that the moving speed gradually decreases as it approaches the deadline L2.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the control unit 121 may set the processing start point L1 and the deadline L2 at the same position. That is, when it is determined that the virtual camera 300 has reached the processing start point L1, the control unit 121 performs control so that the position of the virtual camera 300 is not changed. As described above, even if the movement of the HMD 110 in the direction toward the wall image W is not reflected in the movement of the virtual camera 300, the movement in the direction toward the wall image W is restricted with respect to the user U. Can be conveyed accurately.

  In the above embodiment, the deadline L2 is set so as to coincide with the surface of the wall image W or to be slightly in front of the surface of the wall image W, but is not limited thereto. For example, as shown in FIG. 11, the deadline L2 may be set so as to be located farther from the wall image W than the processing start point L1. According to such a setting, when the HMD 110 moves so as to approach the wall image W, the virtual camera 300 that has reached the processing start point L1 moves to the deadline L2, so that the virtual camera 300 is, for example, a wall It behaves as if it is rebounded by a barrier covering the periphery of the image W. Accordingly, it is possible to inform the user U that the movement in the direction toward the wall image W is restricted.

  When it is determined that the virtual camera 300 has reached the processing start point L1, the control unit 121, as shown in FIGS. 12 (a) and 12 (b), maintains a predetermined position at a distance equal to or greater than the deadline L2. Alternatively, the virtual camera 300 may be controlled to move instantaneously. By moving the virtual camera 300 to a position at a certain distance from the wall image W, the movement in the direction toward the wall image W is restricted with respect to the user U while processing is performed so that the non-production area is not visually recognized. I can tell you exactly what is being done.

  Furthermore, as illustrated in FIG. 13, the control unit 121 may display a warning message M in the visual field image V when it is determined that the virtual camera 300 has reached the deadline L2. Alternatively, a warning sound can be reproduced from an earphone attached to the HMD 110. This method can also accurately tell the user U that the movement in the direction toward the wall image W is restricted.

1: HMD system 3: Communication network 21: Center position 110: Head mounted display (HMD)
112: Display unit 114: HMD sensor 116: Headphone 120: Control device 121: Control unit 123: Storage unit 124: I / O interface 125: Communication interface 126: Bus 130: Position sensor 200: Virtual space 300: Virtual camera L1: Processing start point L2: deadline (lower limit)
F: Furniture object M: Warning message U: User V: View image W: Wall image (object)

Claims (11)

A display control method in a system including a head mounted display,
(A) generating virtual space data indicating a virtual space including a virtual camera and at least one object having a non-production area;
(B) displaying a visual field image on the head mounted display based on the visual field of the virtual camera and the virtual space data;
(C) moving the virtual camera in accordance with the amount of movement of the head mounted display;
(D) identifying a distance between the virtual camera and the object based on the amount of movement;
(E) controlling the position of the virtual camera so that the distance does not fall below a predetermined lower limit when it is determined that the distance is less than or equal to a predetermined threshold;
Including a display control method. In the step (d), an assumed distance between the virtual camera and the object when the virtual camera is assumed to be moved based on the movement amount of the head mounted display is specified,
In the step (e), when the assumed distance is equal to or less than a predetermined threshold value, an actual distance in the virtual space between the virtual camera and the object is not less than the predetermined lower limit value. The display control method according to claim 1, wherein the position of the virtual camera is controlled.   The display control method according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined lower limit value can be arbitrarily set in a range where the distance is zero or more.   The display control method according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined lower limit value is set so as to coincide with a surface of the object.   The display control method according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined lower limit value is set so as to be closer to the object than the threshold value.   The display control method according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined lower limit value is set such that the predetermined lower limit value is positioned farther from the object than the threshold value.   The display control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein in the step (e), the virtual camera is instantaneously moved to a predetermined position maintaining a distance equal to or greater than the predetermined lower limit value.   In the step (e), the conversion rate when the movement amount of the head mounted display is converted into the movement amount of the virtual camera is the conversion rate when it is determined that the distance is equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold. The display control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the display control method is lower.   The display control method according to claim 1, wherein, in the step (e), the position of the virtual camera is not changed.   The step (e) further includes a step of displaying a warning message in the visual field of the virtual camera, or a step of reproducing a warning sound from an earphone attached to the head mounted display. The display control method according to item.   The program for making a computer perform the display control method as described in any one of Claims 1-10.

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