- Number
- 10265621
- Published
- 2019-04-23
- Filed
- 2015-01-20
- Assignee
- Disney Enterprises, Inc.
- Inventors
- Goslin; Michael P., Olson; Joseph L., Haseltine; Eric C.
- CPC
- A63F13/428; G06F3/017; A63F13/245; A63F13/211; G06F3/011; G06F3/0346; A63F13/833
- Verdict
- Medium Notable software
- Source
- Google Patents · FreePatentsOnline
The keeper's note
Tracking specific gestures relative to user movement.
Abstract
Techniques are disclosed for distinguishing user movements in an immersive play environment. A first tracking device is provided that measures first tracking data. A second tracking device is also provided to measure second tracking data. A controller device is also provided to receive tracking data from the second tracking device. The second tracking device measures movement of a user by receiving the first tracking data from the first tracking device and determining third tracking data movement based on a combination of the first tracking data and the second tracking data.
Background
BACKGROUND(1) Field(2) Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to inter-device communications, and more specifically to techniques for distinguishing specific gestures in user movements in an immersive play environment.(3) Description of the Related Art(4) Many approaches exist for delivering a play experience to a user. For instance, video games engage participants using interactive game play using a video game console, a hand-held controller, and a display (e.g., a television, a monitor on the video game system, etc.). A participant interacts with the controller to send commands to the video game system to control a video game or other simulation. However, while video games allow participants to interact directly with the video game system, such interactions are often limited to the graphical depiction shown on the display and rarely influence any other objects outside of the world provided by the video game.(5) An immersive playtime environment addresses such limitations by simulating a play experience in a physical environment (e.g., a living room, a car, a city park) using a combination of devices, such as a controller device, wearable sensors, etc. For example, a controller device could detect that a user has performed a particular action (e.g., swinging a toy sword at an interactive object) and, in response, cause a plurality of interactive devices to perform audiovisual effects, creating a feeling of sensory immersion for the user, thus providing an enh
Claims
1. A platform providing an immersive play environment, the platform comprising: a controller device configured to transmit instructions to an interactive toy device in the immersive play environment; a plurality of tracking devices of a user during a play experience in a physical space, the plurality of tracking devices including a handheld device configured to be held by the user and a wearable device configured to be worn by the user, wherein the handheld device and the wearable device include at least one of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, and a magnetometer, wherein each of the handheld device and the wearable device is configured to capture movement of the user in the physical space over time as first tracking data and second tracking data, respectively, wherein a virtual object is extrapolated from the handheld device in a three-dimensional vector space corresponding to the physical space, wherein the virtual object is substantially linear, wherein the wearable device is configured to receive the first tracking data from the handheld device, generate combined tracking data based at least in part on the first tracking data and the second tracking data, and transmit the combined tracking data to the controller device, whereupon the controller device: determines that the combined tracking data reflects a movement sequence that triggers a hit event, based on determining: (i) that the movement sequence is within a predefined range of the interactive toy device and (ii) that the movement sequence defines an arc in the three-dimensional vector space with a rotational velocity exceeding a specified threshold velocity; and upon determining that the movement sequence triggers the hit event, causes the interactive toy device to perform, in the physical space, an action simulating collision between the virtual object and the interactive toy device absent a physical collision therebetween, the action comprising an effect selected from an audio effect, a visual effect, and an audiovisual effect.
7. A computer-implemented method for monitoring movement of a user during a play experience in a physical space, the computer-implemented method comprising: receiving combined tracking data associated with a plurality of tracking devices of the user, the plurality of tracking devices including a handheld device configured to be held by the user and a wearable device configured to be worn by the user, wherein the handheld device and the wearable device include at least one of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, and a magnetometer, wherein each of the handheld device and the wearable device is configured to capture the movement of the user in the physical space over time as first tracking data and second tracking data, respectively, wherein a virtual object is extrapolated from the handheld device in a three-dimensional vector space corresponding to the physical space, wherein the virtual object is substantially linear, wherein the wearable device is configured to receive the first tracking data from the handheld device and generate combined tracking data based at least in part on the first tracking data and the second tracking data, wherein the combined tracking data is received from the wearable device; determining, by a controller device, that the combined tracking data reflects a movement sequence that triggers a hit event, based on determining: (i) that the movement sequence is within a predefined range of an interactive toy device and (ii) that the movement sequence defines an arc in the three-dimensional vector space with a rotational velocity exceeding a specified threshold velocity; and upon determining that the movement sequence triggers the hit event, causing the interactive toy device to perform, in the physical space, an action simulating collision between the virtual object and the interactive toy device absent a physical collision therebetween, the action comprising an effect selected from an audio effect, a visual effect, and an audiovisual effect.
16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions executable to perform an operation for monitoring movement of a user during a play experience in a physical space, the operation comprising: receiving combined tracking data associated with a plurality of tracking devices of the user, the plurality of tracking devices including a handheld device configured to be held by the user and a wearable device configured to be worn by the user, wherein the handheld device and the wearable device include at least one of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, and a magnetometer, wherein each of the handheld device and the wearable device is configured to capture the movement of the user in the physical space over time as first tracking data and second tracking data, respectively, wherein a virtual object is extrapolated from the handheld device in a three-dimensional vector space corresponding to the physical space, wherein the virtual object is substantially linear, wherein the wearable device is configured to receive the first tracking data from the handheld device and generate combined tracking data based at least in part on the first tracking data and the second tracking data, wherein the combined tracking data is received from the wearable device; determining that the combined tracking data reflects a movement sequence that triggers a hit event, based on determining: (i) that the movement sequence is within a predefined range of an interactive toy device and (ii) that the movement sequence defines an arc in the three-dimensional vector space with a rotational velocity exceeding a specified threshold velocity; and upon determining that the movement sequence triggers the hit event, causing the interactive toy device to perform, in the physical space, an action simulating collision between the virtual object and the interactive toy device absent a physical collision therebetween, the action comprising an effect selected from an audio effect, a visual effect, and an audiovisual effect.