Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Computer graphics processing – Graph generating
Reexamination Certificate
1998-01-21
2001-02-20
Nguyen, Phu K. (Department: 2772)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Computer graphics processing
Graph generating
Reexamination Certificate
active
06191796
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates generally to a method and apparatus for defining rigid, plastically deformable, and visco-elastically deformable surfaces in a haptic virtual realty environment and more specifically to a method and apparatus for haptically manipulating these surfaces within a virtual reality environment.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Virtual Realty (VR) is an artificial environment constructed by a computer which permits the user to interact with that environment as if the user were actually immersed in the environment. Early VR devices permitted the user to see three dimensional (3D) depictions of an artificial environment and to move within that environment. Thus, a VR flight simulator incorporating such a device would allow a user to see a 3D view of the ground, which changed both as the virtual aircraft passed over the virtual ground and as the user's eyes looked in different directions. What the user saw in such a simulator is what a pilot would see when actually flying an aircraft.
The reality of the VR environment was enhanced by the ability of a user to manipulate virtual objects within the virtual environment using hand motions and gestures. Special gloves and devices were developed which permitted the user to interact with the virtual objects within the virtual environment. In such a system, the user typically saw an image of his or her hand within the virtual environment and was able to determine where in the virtual environment the user's hand was relative to the virtual object to be manipulated. Moving the glove or device resulted in a corresponding movement of the hand image in the virtual environment. Thus a user wearing the special gloves or using the special device would cause virtual objects to move, simply by moving the glove in such a way that the virtual object is touched by the image of the hand in the virtual environment.
The addition of force generators to the gloves or devices further enhanced the reality of VR by providing the user with a tactile response to interacting with virtual objects within the virtual environment. For example, a user moving such a force generation enhanced device in a direction such that the image of the device moved toward a virtual wall in the virtual environment, would experience a stopping force when the image of the device in the virtual environment collided with the virtual wall. Such tactile sensation creating systems, or haptic systems, thus provided a stimulus to another of the user's senses.
Although the early VR systems were oriented to providing realistic graphical interfaces, the progress in haptic VR systems has made it possible to define a haptic VR environment which may be completely independent of the graphical VR environment. As such, haptic VR environments may now be constructed which respond to manipulation by the user in the way that the early graphical VR environments responded to the visual actions of a user.
This ability to define a haptic VR space independently of a graphical, or other space, provides a greater degree of flexibility in the design and creation of such VR environments. The present invention seeks to further add to this flexibility.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Disclosed are methods for haptically deforming a virtual surface within a haptic virtual environment According to one embodiment of the invention, a haptic interactive representation including a virtual deformable surface is generated in a haptic interaction space. The virtual deformable surface may be represented by a mesh of polygons such as triangles. A position of a user in real space is sensed, for example using a haptic interface device. Next a haptic interface location is determined in the haptic interaction space in response to the position of the user in real space and a determination is made whether the virtual surface collides with the haptic interface location In the event the virtual surface does not collide with the haptic interface location, a first force is calculated and applied to the user in real space in response to this haptic interface location. The force may be nominally zero. Alternatively, if the virtual surface is determined to collide with the haptic interface location, an interaction force between the virtual surface and the user is calculated. In the event the calculated interaction force exceed a predetermined threshold force, the virtual surface is deformed and a force is calculated and applied to the user in real space in response to the interaction force.
In alternative embodiments, the step of generating a haptic interactive representation includes a virtual plastically deformable surface or a virtual visco-elastically deformable surface. According to the former method, the invention may be used to model permanently deformable surfaces in the development of industrial designs such as automobile body panels. According to the latter method, the invention may be used to model resilient compliant surfaces such as human body parts in the training of physicians and surgeons.
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Nguyen Phu K.
SensAble Technologies, Inc.
Testa Hurwitz & Thibeault LLP
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