Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Limited

Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc.

Sony Interactive Entertainment Europe Limited

Sharwin Winesh Raghoebardayal

Ian Henry Bickerstaff

Simon Mark Benson

Oliver Wright

A head mountable display (HMD) is operable to detect the HMD's overall motion relative to its current orientation, and to display extra image material so that the extra image material moves in the same general direction as real objects would be seen by the user to move if the user were not wearing the HMD.

Change nature of display according to overall motion

A method of rendering an image based upon a first stereoscopic image comprising a pair of images is provided. The method includes generating a virtual three-dimensional model of the scene depicted in the first stereoscopic image responsive to distances derived from the first stereoscopic image, detecting one or more free edges in the three dimensional model, and generating one or more textures for the virtual three-dimensional model from at least one of the pair of images of the first stereoscopic image. The method also includes applying at least one texture to a respective part of the three dimensional model, and rendering the virtual three dimensional model from a different viewpoint to that of the first stereoscopic image. Rendering the virtual three dimensional model comprises modifying a transparency of rendered pixels of an applied texture as a function of the pixel's distance from that free edge.

System and method of image rendering

An imaging system includes a video camera having a wide field of view lens, an imaging sensor operable to form a first image having a first pixel area, and an interface operable to receive commands from a host entertainment device. The video camera is operable to receive a command requesting at least one secondary image having a second pixel area for a 3D mapping of a portion of the first image. The system includes a graphics processor operable to perform the 3D mapping to generate the at least one each secondary image from the first image. The 3D mapping transforms a section of the first image depicting a surface having a normal in a first direction to form a secondary image in which the normal of that surface faces directly out of the secondary image.

System and method of imaging

A method of image reconstruction is provided. The method includes capturing a stereoscopic pair of images of a scene, generating a disparity map for the pair of images, and defining a series of value ranges corresponding to disparity with each value range in the series having an end point corresponding to a greater disparity than an end point of preceding value ranges in the series. For each value range in the series, and progressing in order through the series from the first value range in the series, the method includes selecting points in the disparity map falling within the respective value range and generating a mesh responsive to those selected points. The method also includes subsequently merging the series of generated meshes to form a 3D model of the scene.

System and method of image reconstruction

An angular detection arrangement for a head mountable display (HMD) comprising a light source or reflective marking and an optical detector, one of the light source or reflective marking and the optical detector being disposed at the HMD and the other being disposed at a fixed point, the light source or reflective marking comprising a directional light source or reflective marking and a substantially non-directional light source or reflective marking such that the separation between the directional and non-directional light sources or reflective markings as detected at the optical detector is dependent upon the relative orientation of the HMD and the fixed point.

Directional light beams for angle detection

A method of augmenting a first stereoscopic image, comprising a pair of images, is provided. The method includes generating a disparity map from the pair of images of the first stereoscopic image. The disparity map is indicative of distances in the first stereoscopic image. The method further includes generating a virtual three-dimensional model responsive to the distances indicated by the disparity map, modeling an interaction of a virtual object with that three dimensional model, and outputting, for display, an image corresponding to the first stereoscopic image that comprises a visible effect of the interaction of the virtual object with the three dimensional model.

System and method of image augmentation

A head mountable display (HMD) system comprises an eye position detector comprising one or more cameras configured to detect the position of each of the HMD user's eyes; a dominant eye detector configured to detect a dominant eye of the HMD user; and an image generator configured to generate images for display by the HMD in dependence upon the HMD user's eye positions, the image generator being configured to apply a greater weight to the detected position of the dominant eye than to the detected position of the non-dominant eye.

Electronic correction based on eye tracking

A method of augmented reality interaction for repositioning a virtual object on an image of a surface comprises capturing successive video images of the surface and first and second control objects and defining an interaction start area over the surface with respect to the virtual object. The method detects the control objects in successive video images, detects whether the control objects are brought together over the interaction start area, and if so, analyzes a region of successive video images using optical flow analysis to determine the overall direction of motion of the control objects and augmenting the video image to show the virtual object being held by the control objects. Augmenting the video image itself comprises superposing a graphical effect on the video image prior to superposition of the virtual object, such that the graphical effect visually disconnects the virtual object from the video image in the resulting augmented image.

Apparatus and method of augmented reality interaction

A method captures a video image frame of a book, estimates a position of at least a first endpoint of the book's spine, applies an edge detection operation to the video image frame to generate an edge image, applies a Hough transform to a first region in the edge image to obtain a plurality of line estimates, and rejects line estimates that do not substantially intersect with an estimated endpoint of the book's spine. For line estimates that are not rejected, detecting one or more clusters of angles of the line estimates with respect to an estimated endpoint of the book's spine, and generating an average angle from the cluster of angles. An average angle is selected, and an angular position of the turning leaf in the book's image responsive to the currently selected average angle is estimated.

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London, United Kingdom

Sharwin Winesh Raghoebardayal