2009年6月6日 星期六

利用人體動作操作指令的專利

從任天堂利用搖桿控制器操作遊戲的成功,接著看到各家大廠積極投入的趨勢,其實此類專利早於2001年初期就已有雛型

從最近的新聞得知微軟Xbox 360也推出利用玩家的姿態控制的遊戲

甚至找了關鍵報告的導演史蒂芬史匹柏來站台
從資料顯示,微軟是採用一家這方面的領導廠商-GestureTek的技術


從GestureTek的專利來看,Gesture主要是提供利用攝影機(利用兩台以上產生3D影像)辨識玩家姿勢的技術,透過姿勢的變化與辨識,控制電腦中的虛擬人物,甚至產生之間的互動,這應該就是Xbox 360最近推出的遊戲方式,利用攝影機拍攝玩家的動作,進而推論出控制指令

GestureTek專利代表圖示


微軟自己的相關專利就沒那麼多(GestureTek與Microsoft的公開待審查的專利申請案是更多),如果利用virtual, hand等關鍵字找微軟的專利,其實只有一件US7,519,223,雖我只有看到這件核准專利,但是專利範圍仍頗精彩,這件專利主要解決問題是,如果利用手勢去控制物件,則會遇到手指(finger)與手部(hand)判斷混淆的困難,若要精確得出手指的位置,則必然要解決手指與鄰近部位分辨不清的問題,這也就聯想到關鍵報告中Tom Cruise操作影像分析的畫面:

專利範圍如下:
1. A method for using a gesture in connection with an interactive display system on which images are displayed and objects disposed on or proximate thereto are optically detectable, comprising the steps of:
(a) forming an image with light reflected from an object that is disposed above a display surface of the interactive display system, the light that is thus reflected being detected after passing through the display surface;
(b) processing the image to distinguish between touch objects physically touching the display surface and hover objects proximate to the display surface and to recognize a gesture that was made by the user using the object, said gesture being recognized in response to detecting at least one connected component within the image, said connected component comprising adjacent pixels having an intensity within a predefined threshold; and
(c) as a function of the gesture that was recognized, automatically producing a response that has previously been associated with the gesture, said response changing a state of the interactive display system.
先不論此案在答辯過程有什麼歷史,就範圍而言,包括利用光反射形成影像,接著透過影像處理,利用設定的門檻限制分辨姿態,之後產生相對的指令改變顯示狀態,算是頗廣的範圍

另一主要範圍則在多了以下要件:
a) analyzing temporal patterns of a plurality of sets of touch connected components as the touch connected components change over time;
d) identifying appendages of each of a plurality of different users, where the appendages are hovering adjacent to the display surface; and
c) determining that groupings of multiple fingers in contact with the display surface belong to specific ones of the appendages, and thus, belong to specific users, based on an orientation of each appendage, and on the temporal patterns.
包括分析使用者特定部位的改變,再辨識「附加物(如手掌、手肘、指頭等)」,來判斷與顯示平面接觸的各部位

當然,為了搶下任天堂的市場,Sony應該也不會放棄這個機會,再來就是看誰有更好的創意,我覺得Sony Erricsson發展用於手機上的控制技術算是個超棒的Idea,直接用照相機的拍攝功能,辨識使用者手部的姿勢,直接從遠端利用手部姿勢控制照相機的拍攝動作,其他還可應用於播放音樂,或是開關特定設備上:


Ron
參考資料:xbox網、gesturetek網

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