Method of rendering an image and a method of animating a graphics character

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of rendering an image and a method of animating a graphics character ( 13 ) in response to rendered image information. More particularly, but not exclusively, the present invention relates to a method of rendering an image viewed by an autonomous computer generated character and a method for controlling behaviour of the character based upon the rendered image. The present invention may find particular application in autonomous computer generated character animation for video games and to produce visual effects for film or video. The invention may also find application in simulation and robot navigation applications. The invention employs one or more fuzzy processing layers ( 23, 32, 24 ).

1 . A method of generating behavior of a graphics character within an environment including a selected graphics character and one or more graphics elements, the method comprising: 
 generating an image of the environment from a perspective of the selected graphics character; and    processing the image using an artificial intelligence engine with one or more layers to determine an activation value for the graphics character wherein at least one of the layers is a fuzzy processing layer.    
     
     
         2 . A method as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the image comprises pixels and each pixel is processed by a fuzzy processing layer according to a fuzzy membership function to obtain fuzzy logic values to be used to determine an activation value.  
     
     
         3 . A method as claimed in  claim 2  wherein fuzzy rules are applied by a second fuzzy processing layer to the fuzzy logic values for each pixel to obtain output values.  
     
     
         4 . A method as claimed in  claim 2  wherein a neural network utilizes the fuzzy logic values to obtain output values.  
     
     
         5 . A method as claimed in  claim 2  wherein processing further comprises using middle layer to process input values to obtain activation values.  
     
     
         6 . A method as claimed in  claim 5  wherein the fuzzy logic values are the input values processed by the middle layer.  
     
     
         7 . A method as claimed in  claim 5  wherein the middle layer is a fuzzy logic network.  
     
     
         8 . A method as claimed in  claim 5  wherein the middle layer is a neural network.  
     
     
         9 . A method as claimed in  claim 5  wherein the middle layer is a binary logic network.  
     
     
         10 . A method as claimed in  claim 7  wherein a defuzzifying output  
     
     
         11 . A method as claimed in  claim 1  wherein image and sound information is processed to determine an activation value  15  for a character.  
     
     
         12 . A method as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the image is rendered using a scanline rendering technique.  
     
     
         13 . A method as claimed in  claim 1  wherein the image is generated by rendering images for a plurality of adjacent sub space areas, wherein the images are rendered as viewed from a common viewpoint and different orientations.  
     
     
         14 . Canceled  
     
     
         15 . A method of rendering an image from three dimensional graphical information comprising: 
 rendering images for a plurality of adjacent image sub space regions, wherein the images are rendered as viewed from a common view point and different viewing orientations.    
     
     
         16 . A method as claimed in  claim 15  wherein the images rendered are derived from a plurality of adjacent image sub space regions and combined to  5  form a single image.  
     
     
         17 . A method as claimed in  claim 15  wherein a scanline rendering technique is employed.  
     
     
         18 . A method as claimed in  claim 15  wherein the image sub space areas are vertically subdivided.  
     
     
         19 . A method as claimed in  claim 15  wherein the image sub space areas are horizontally subdivided.  
     
     
         20 . A method of rendering an image from graphic information comprising: 
 performing a polar transformation to determine at least one position of one or more vertices of a graphics primitive;    projecting the graphics primitive into sub images;    clipping the graphics primitive against the sub images to form clipped primitives;    performing polar transformations of the vertices of the clipped images;    interpolating across the surface of the clipped primitives to form pseudo polar sub images; and    combining the pseudo polar sub images to form an image.    
     
     
         21 . A method as claimed in  claim 20  wherein the sub images are in the form of a rectangular grid.  
     
     
         22 . A method as claimed in  claim 20  wherein the image formed is rendered in image space utilising the two polar angles as axes.  
     
     
         23 . Canceled  
     
     
         24 . Canceled