Data processing: database and file management or data structures – Database design – Data structure types
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-16
2002-04-16
Amsbury, Wayne (Department: 2171)
Data processing: database and file management or data structures
Database design
Data structure types
C707S793000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06374255
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to force-feedback and haptic devices and, in particular, to the authoring of world models which incorporate haptic and visual integration.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Specialized force-feedback devices originated in the 1960's with the introduction of teleoperations, wherein, typically, a smaller controller or master robot was moved by an operator to control the movements of a larger slave robot. Forces detected at the slave were then fed back to the operator through actuators at the location of the master. Such prior art is discussed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,389,865, 5,459,382 and 5,629,594 to Jacobus, et al, and also described elsewhere in the literature.
In the late 1980's, NASA funded several programs using force feedback devices which were not identically configured as miniature versions of a slave device. This advance enabled an operator such as an astronaut to control a number of different space-based robots and cranes from a “universal” controller. To realize this concept, the master controller was logically connected to the slave through a network of computers which were capable of translating the master kinematics typically into Cartesian coordinates and from Cartesian to slave kinematics (and back again).
With such computer translation in place on the master side of the system, it becomes possible to send inputs from the master, be it a joystick, wheel, yoke, or other type of manipulator, to a simulated slave rather than to a real one, and to accept forces from the simulation for application to the master as well. The simulation need not represent a real device, like a crane or robot, but may be a simulated vehicle, weapon or other implement. The simulation may also reside in a person performing a task in a virtual world such as walking, handling objects, and touching surfaces. Such innovations are among those disclosed in the patents referenced above.
As force-feedback technology proliferates, haptic interfaces will need to accommodate numerous different controllers and environments. The issued patents referenced above disclose multi-degree of freedom controllers for use in various representative configurations, including totally self-contained configurations. At the same time, tools and techniques will need to be created to provide consistency in developing and improving haptic applications.
Toward these ends, co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 08/859,157 provides means for adjusting behavioral attributes associated with haptic device control, whether during development or execution, and co-pending U.S. application Ser. No. 08/861,080, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,844,392 discloses architectures and features relating to “browsers,” wherein common geometrical descriptions are shared among visual and haptic rendering functions. Both of these applications are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference. The need remains, however, for methods, data structures, and control strategies to organize the development of world models driven by these integrated haptic/visual environments.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention resides in authoring tools which allow a user to create or import existing geometry files, attach haptic or other attributes to the object components of the files, and browse file contents in final or intermediate states of composition. The final edited world files may be written to disk or exported over networks, preferably in standardized formats, including hyperlinks over the world-wide web, to applications programs which incorporate visual, haptic, and/or sound capabilities, enabling other users view, touch, attached to, and manipulate the objects.
In a preferred embodiment, the invention incorporates a distinct set of facilities for reading, writing, browsing, navigating, and/or editing databases which encode hierarchical geometric data, so as to combine surface attribution and touch or haptic attribution. To enhance these functions, visual/haptic avatar may be provided to assist in designating a user's position in the virtual world being edited.
Applied forces may be used to aid a user in a number of ways, including the following:
moving a point to a particular discrete grid position (snap to grid);
moving to a geometrical object control point of feature (end points of a line, center of a circle, radius of a circle, control points of a b-spline, etc.);
to resist stretching or compression of a feature (i.e., programmable stiffness or elasticity);
to resist user actions (through viscosity, friction, repulsive force);
to help in aligning a new object with respect to an existing one (with or without knowledge of coordinate values needed for most equivalent operations); or
to support material removal, as in carving or scraping operations.
Forces may also be used to demark the locations of menu items, dialog response locations, and icons (similar to use of forces to aid in locating control points or grid locations), or to maintain orientation or positional constraints while performing another operation.
The invention further supports the use of transform and object hierarchy for coding haptic world and object databases, as well as machine independent program description languages for haptic authoring system communications interfacing and control algorithms, independent of computer/operating system, control device type and communications systems.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3919691 (1975-11-01), Noll
patent: 4604016 (1986-08-01), Joyce
patent: 4795296 (1989-01-01), Jau
patent: 4982918 (1991-01-01), Kaye
patent: 5004391 (1991-04-01), Burdea
patent: 5007300 (1991-04-01), Siva
patent: 5018922 (1991-05-01), Yoshinada et al.
patent: 5044956 (1991-09-01), Behensky
patent: 5062594 (1991-11-01), Repperger
patent: 5103404 (1992-04-01), McIntosh
patent: 5116180 (1992-05-01), Fung et al.
patent: 5142931 (1992-09-01), Menahem
patent: 5143505 (1992-09-01), Burdea et al.
patent: 5146566 (1992-09-01), Hollis, Jr. et al.
patent: 5180351 (1993-01-01), Ehrenfried
patent: 5185561 (1993-02-01), Good et al.
patent: 5186629 (1993-02-01), Rohen
patent: 5386507 (1993-02-01), Teig et al.
patent: 5220260 (1993-06-01), Schuler
patent: 5223776 (1993-06-01), Radke et al.
patent: 5264768 (1993-11-01), Gregory et al.
patent: 5382885 (1995-01-01), Salcudean et al.
patent: 5396265 (1995-03-01), Ulrich et al.
patent: 5405152 (1995-04-01), Katanics et al.
patent: 5389865 (1995-05-01), Jacobus et al.
patent: 5451924 (1995-09-01), Massimino et al.
patent: 5459382 (1995-10-01), Jacobus et al.
patent: 5482051 (1996-01-01), Reddy et al.
patent: 5506605 (1996-04-01), Paley
patent: 5513100 (1996-04-01), Parker et al.
patent: 5515919 (1996-04-01), Araki
patent: 5562572 (1996-10-01), Carmein
patent: 5576727 (1996-11-01), Rosenberg et al.
patent: 5583478 (1996-12-01), Renzi
patent: 5587937 (1996-12-01), Massie et al.
patent: 5588139 (1996-12-01), Lanier et al.
patent: 5589828 (1996-12-01), Armstrong
patent: 5589854 (1996-12-01), Tsai
patent: 5619180 (1997-04-01), Massimino et al.
patent: 5623582 (1997-04-01), Rosenberg
patent: 5623642 (1997-04-01), Katz et al.
patent: 5625576 (1997-04-01), Massie et al.
patent: 566473 (1997-09-01), Wallace
patent: 5691898 (1997-11-01), Rosenberg
patent: 5709219 (1998-01-01), Chen et al.
patent: 5714978 (1998-02-01), Yamanaka et al.
patent: 5721566 (1998-02-01), Rosenberg et al.
patent: 5729249 (1998-03-01), Yasutake
patent: 5734373 (1998-03-01), Rosenberg et al.
patent: 5742278 (1998-04-01), Chen et al.
patent: 5742748 (1998-04-01), Sever, Jr.
patent: 5755577 (1998-05-01), Gillio
patent: 5759044 (1998-06-01), Redmond
patent: 5767836 (1998-06-01), Rosenberg
patent: 5769640 (1998-06-01), Jacobus et al.
patent: 5790108 (1998-08-01), Salcudean et al.
patent: 5802353 (1998-09-01), Avila et al.
patent: 5805140 (1998-09-01), Rosenberg et al.
patent: 5825308 (1998-10-01), Rosenberg
patent: 5844392 (1998-12-01), Peurach et al.
patent: 5889670 (1999-03-01), Schuler et al.
patent: 6057846 (2000-05-01), Sever, Jr.
patent: 6131097 (2000-10-01), Peurach et al.
patent: WO9520788 (1995-08-01), None
patent: WO95/20
Haanpaa Douglas
Jacobus Charles J.
Peurach Thomas M.
Yocum Todd
Amsbury Wayne
Immersion Corporation
Riegel James R.
LandOfFree
Haptic authoring does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Haptic authoring, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Haptic authoring will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2839588