IP Library Granted Patent US 10,962,738
Granted Patent B2
US 10,962,738 · App. 16/487,514 · Granted Mar 30, 2021

Information processing apparatus and information processing method to calibrate line-of-sight of a user

Inventors: Mari Saito (Kanagawa, JP); Kenji Sugihara (Kanagawa, JP)
Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
G02B7/287G02B7/003G06F3/013G06F3/016
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 10,962,738
App. No.
16/487,514
Granted
Mar 30, 2021
Kind
B2
Abstract

An information processing apparatus includes: a line-of-sight information acquisition unit that acquires line-of-sight information of a user and a calibration execution unit that executes calibration on the basis of a position of a target object in a visual field and the line-of-sight information, the target object has a visual attraction degree higher than a first threshold and a size in a predetermined direction smaller than a predetermined size, in a case where the target object has been detected from the visual field of the user.

Claims (38)

1. An information processing apparatus, comprising:

a line-of-sight information acquisition unit configured to acquire line-of-sight information of a user; and

a calibration execution unit configured to execute calibration of the line-of-sight information based on a position of a target object in a visual field and the line-of-sight information, wherein

the target object has a visual attraction degree higher than a first threshold degree,

the visual attraction degree is a numerical value indicating how much visual attention is paid by the user,

the target object has a size in a specific direction smaller than a specific size, in a case where the target object has been detected from the visual field of the user, and

the calibration is executed for a direction parallel to the specific direction.

2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a target object detection unit configured to detect the target object.

3. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the target object detection unit is configured to detect the target object in a case where motion of the visual field is less than a specific motion.

4. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the target object detection unit is configured not to detect one object as the target object in a case where another object is located at a distance from the one object shorter than a predetermined distance, the another object having a visual attraction degree higher than a second threshold degree.

5. The information processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the target object detection unit is configured to detect, as the target object, an object which exists at the position corresponding to a position at which a gesture has been made, in a case where the gesture of the user is a specific gesture.

6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the specific gesture includes at least one of a gesture of holding the object or a gesture of pointing at the object.

7. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured to control whether to execute the calibration based on prediction information regarding line-of-sight motion.

8. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7 , further comprising a prediction information generation unit configured to generate, as the prediction information regarding the line-of-sight motion, information in which respective positions of a plurality of objects are in a descending order of visual attraction degrees of the plurality of objects, in a case where the plurality of the objects are detected from the visual field of the user, the plurality of the objects having the visual attraction degrees higher than a third threshold degree.

9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured not to execute the calibration in a case where a matching degree between the prediction information regarding the line-of-sight motion and actual measurement information regarding the line-of-sight motion does not exceed a reference value.

10. The information processing apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured to execute the calibration in a case where the matching degree exceeds the reference value.

11. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured to execute the calibration in a case where a line-of-sight exists, over a period of time, in a region with the visual attraction degree lower than a fourth threshold degree.

12. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured to execute the calibration in a case where a state of manipulation by a line-of-sight of the user is a specific state.

13. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12 , wherein the calibration execution unit is configured to execute the calibration in a case where a selection operation based on the line-of-sight is not executed although the line-of-sight meets in a range over a period of time.

14. The information processing apparatus according to claim 12 , wherein the calibration execution unit is configured to execute the calibration in a case where same manipulation is performed more than a number of times within a period of time.

15. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured to execute the calibration based on a position of a display object and the line-of-sight information, in a case where the target object is not detected from the visual field of the user.

16. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured to execute the calibration based on a position of a manipulation target object manipulatable by the user and the line-of-sight information, in a case where the target object is not detected from the visual field of the user.

17. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the calibration execution unit is further configured to disable the calibration for the target object where a line-of-sight was meeting immediately before a cancel operation, based on the cancel operation by the user.

18. An information processing method, comprising:

in an information processing apparatus:

acquiring line-of-sight information of a user; and

executing calibration of the line-of-sight information based on a position of a target object in a visual field and the line-of-sight information, wherein

the target object has a visual attraction degree higher than a first threshold degree,

the visual attraction degree is a numerical value indicating how much visual attention is paid by the user,

the target object has a size in a specific direction smaller than a specific size, in a case where the target object has been detected from the visual field of the user, and

the calibration is executed for a direction parallel to the specific direction.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon, computer-executable instructions which, when executed by a computer cause the computer to execute operations, the operations comprising:

acquiring line-of-sight information of a user; and

executing calibration of the line-of-sight information based on a position of a target object in a visual field and the line-of-sight information, wherein

the target object has a visual attraction degree higher than a first threshold degree,

the visual attraction degree is a numerical value indicating how much visual attention is paid by the user,

the target object has a size in a specific direction smaller than a specific size, in a case where the target object has been detected from the visual field of the user, and

the calibration is executed for a direction parallel to the specific direction.

Assignments (2)
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Dec 17, 2025
From: SONY CORPORATION
To: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 073986/0571 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Aug 21, 2019
From: SAITO, MARI; SUGIHARA, KENJI
To: SONY CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 050114/0346 →