Method and apparatus for generating and displaying hotlinks in a panoramic three dimensional scene

Abstract

In a panoramic scene represented by a first environment map comprising a plurality of elements each associated with a color value representing color of the corresponding element, hotlink areas in the scene are defined by a second environment map comprising a plurality of elements. The elements of the second environment map correspond to the elements of said first environment map according to a mapping function. At least one element of the second environment map is associated with hotlink data identifying an action to be performed upon user selection of at least one element of the first environment map that correspond to the at least one element of the second environment map. Preferably, the hotlink data associated with the at least one element of the second environment map includes a color value associated with the element of said second environment map and an entry in a table associating the color value with data identifying the action to be performed upon selection of the at least one element of the first environment map. The hotlink areas defined by the second environment map are displayed by identifying the at least one element of the second environment map, modifying the color value of the elements of the first environment that correspond to the at least one element of the second environment, thereby producing a modified first environment map. The modified first environment map is then rendered for display.