Patent · US Expired

Method and apparatus for producing animation data

US6151033A · kind A · utility

18Cited by
2References
22Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMay 10, 1996
Grant dateNov 21, 2000
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 10, 2016

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG06T13/20
  • WIPO fieldComputer technology
  • WIPO sectorElectrical engineering

Abstract

An animation data producing system having a key frame management unit for managing key frame data to form pictures of key frames having principal changes of motion in an animation of plural frames and obtained by laying out component elements of the animation in a three-dimensional space; and a data interpolation unit for forming, by interpolation for each component element, picture data for the frames required between two adjacent key frames by using the key frame data obtained from the key frame management unit. The data interpolation unit includes a rotation angle calculator means, wherein, when the process of interpolating the component element relates to a rotation thereof around a single axis, the rotation angle in the frame for interpolation is calculated while the component element is considered to be rotated around an arbitrary axis between the key frames anterior and posterior to the relevant frame to be obtained by interpolation. The data interpolation unit further includes a means for calculating a rotational matrix on the basis of the rotation angle obtained. The apparatus is capable of realizing, in production of animation data with interpolation between key frames, a…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.