JP3872032B2 - Image generation program, image generation apparatus, image generation method, and video game apparatus - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
  The present invention relates to a technique for drawing an object in which, for example, a polygon is pasted on an articulated structure as a base, and further drawing as a moving image according to motion data.
[0002]
[Prior art]
  Conventionally, an object representing a person or the like is drawn on a monitor screen or the like so that it can be displayed graphically. For example, the position of the waist is used as a reference (ROOT), and the first joint (node position) is defined from the reference (ROOT). Then, the next joint is defined from this joint, the joint is obtained sequentially, the joints are connected to each other, a skeleton is generated, and a polygon is pasted on each skeleton. There is a technique in which the coordinates and rotation amounts of nodes, polygons, and the like are calculated and drawn in order from the ROOT) to the downstream side. When a motion (animation) is given to an object, the object is game-played by sequentially calculating according to the motion definition data prepared in advance for each motion and drawing the object at each time point so as to change over time. It was moving and displayed in space.
[0003]
  By the way, in the field of video games in recent years, there has been a demand for high-definition images, and accordingly, the amount of polygon data used for objects drawn in the game space, especially moving images of objects moving in the game space. The amount of motion definition data for drawing tends to increase significantly. Especially in the case of game devices, it is necessary to repeat drawing processing at high speed due to its characteristics, and if high-speed processing hardware equipped with a large capacity memory is installed, some requirements can be satisfied, but memory and arithmetic processing The resources of the department are limited, and further ingenuity is required for the development of the software part that can effectively use the hardware.
[0004]
  For example, as a technique for high-speed drawing of a character (object) that approaches / separates in the game space with respect to the virtual camera viewpoint, that is, the viewpoint position of the player, each of them is separately used for short distance, medium distance, and long distance An object prepared in advance has been proposed. In other words, three types of nodes that define the object are prepared according to the distance, and polygon data (further texture data) is prepared according to the number of nodes, and switched according to the distance from the virtual camera viewpoint. It is intended to be used. If the distance from the virtual camera viewpoint is a short distance, the finest object data is read and drawn, and if it is a long distance, the roughest object data is read and the drawing process is performed to reduce the computational load. is doing.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
  However, in the method of sequentially defining skeletons from the reference (ROOT) as described above, in the case of preparing the skeletons for short distance, medium distance, and long distance, the same movement, for example, “walking” action on the object When an animation (video display) is performed on the image, it is necessary to prepare separate motion definition data for each short-distance, medium-distance, and long-distance movement. In the current game field, where the number of animations is required, the number of types of animation is remarkably increased, and the amount of data cannot be ignored. In addition, it is necessary to have separate animation calculation program data for short distance, medium distance, and long distance in spite of the same movement.
[0006]
  In addition, in a type in which an object is defined by one type (ie, high-definition) skeleton regardless of the distance and the animation calculation is performed, the player cannot actually recognize the animation calculation particularly at a long distance. A large amount of unnecessary calculations such as calculations are performed for all polygons, and it is difficult to say that it is preferable for reducing the calculation load.
[0007]
  On the other hand, for example, there is a method in which a vector is defined for each joint based on the above-described reference, and a skeleton is generated from these nodes with the end point of this vector as a node. According to this method, it is possible to generate a skeleton directly rather than sequentially calculating from the above-mentioned reference, and it is possible to perform drawing of an object at a higher speed. The problem of preparing data and the problem of using one minute object regardless of distance cannot be solved.
[0008]
  The same improvement is desired not only in the case of drawing a character (object) whose size changes, but also in the game space from the virtual camera viewpoint. Also, when drawing a character (object) that moves from side to side, etc., at low speed to high speed, it is desirable to draw finely when the object moves at low speed, but it does not matter if the object moving at high speed is not so fine. Therefore, the same idea as described above is desired.
[0009]
  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and does not require a large amount of memory or a large amount of unnecessary computations. The distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object, the size of the object, An object of the present invention is to provide an image generation device, an image generation program, an image generation method, and a video game device that perform drawing according to object drawing conditions such as moving speed and enable high-speed drawing of still images and moving images of objects. To do.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
  The invention according to claim 1 is an image generation program for drawing an object having a multi-joint structure in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to a joint. Node definition data storage means for storing node definition data defining all nodes that can be used in the virtual space with reference to a specific position in the space;To store motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data defining motion for a predetermined time of the object in order to generate a moving image With motion data storage means, Node definition data selection means for selecting a node to be used according to the object drawing condition, and the selected nodeAccording to the motion dataSkeletonSequentiallyIt is made to function as a skeleton generation means for generating on the virtual space.
[0011]
  Claim9The described inventionAn image generation apparatus that draws an object having a multi-joint structure in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to a joint, and is used in the virtual space with a specific position in the virtual space as a reference Node definition data storage means for storing node definition data for defining all nodes to be obtained, and motion definition data for defining a predetermined time of motion of the object in order to generate a moving image Motion data storage means for storing motion data, node definition data selection means for selecting a node to be used according to the object drawing conditions, and a skeleton in the virtual space sequentially according to the motion data related to the selected node Image generating apparatus characterized by generatingIt is.
[0012]
  Claim 10The described invention generates an image in which an object having a multi-joint structure is drawn in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to the joint.MethodBecauseNode definition data storage meansNode definition data defining all nodes that can be used in the virtual space with reference to a specific position in the virtual space.Store in advance,Motion data storage means stores in advance motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data that defines motion for a predetermined time of the object in order to generate a moving image.,Node definition data selection meansSelect a node to use according to the object drawing conditions,Skeleton generation meansThe selected nodeSequentially generate skeletons in virtual space according to the motion data concerningImage generation characterized byMethodIt is.
[0013]
  Claim 11The described invention draws an object having a multi-joint structure in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to the joint.Video game equipmentAnd node definition data defining all nodes that can be used in the virtual space with reference to a specific position in the virtual space.Node definition data storage means for storing,Motion data storage means for storing motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data that defines motion for a predetermined time of the object to generate a moving image;Select the node to use according to the object drawing conditionsNode definition data selection means toThe selected nodeAccording to the motion dataSkeletonSequentiallyGenerate in virtual spaceSkeleton generating meansIt is characterized byVideo game equipmentIt is.
[0014]
  According to each of these inventions, node definition data for defining all nodes that can be used to generate and draw an image in the virtual space is stored, for example, the distance to the virtual camera viewpoint and the size of the object Select the node definition data for generating the skeleton used for drawing the object according to the object drawing conditions such as the moving speed of the object, and generate the skeleton based on the selected node definition data. A polygon according to the condition is pasted and drawn on, for example, a monitor. Therefore, since it is not necessary to have each node definition data for each object drawing condition, the data capacity is reduced and the calculation load can be reduced. In particular, when a moving image is generated / drawn using motion data, it is not necessary to have motion data for each object drawing condition, and the data capacity can be further reduced and the calculation load can be reduced.
[0015]
  Here, the skeleton generally connects the joints, but the skeleton is generated only from the selected node definition data among the node definition data based on the specific position in the virtual space. An appropriate skeleton is generated in the virtual space according to the object drawing conditions.
[0016]
  For example, a data table that assigns each joint position to a node number can be used as the node definition data.
[0017]
  furtherThe computer further functions as a motion data storage means for storing motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data defining motion for a predetermined time of the object to generate a moving image, The skeleton generating means sequentially generates skeletons in a virtual space according to the motion data related to the selected node. According to this invention, a skeleton is generated in the virtual space according to the motion data sequentially read from the motion data storage means, and as a result, the object is rendered as a moving image.
[0018]
  As the motion definition data, it is conceivable to use vector data consisting of a standard position vector (node position coordinates) and a standard direction vector (angle data) having a specific position in the virtual space as one end.
[0019]
  Here, with reference to FIG. 10, the relationship between the vector data selected when the vector data is included as the motion definition data, the node, and the polygon to be pasted on the node will be described. In FIG. 10, (n0), (n1), (n2), and (n3) represent vector data that defines a node position with a specific position Pb in the virtual space as a base point, and (N0), (N1), (N2) , (N3) represent node numbers. FIG. 10A shows a case where vector data (n0), (n1), (n2), and (n3) are all used (selected), and FIG. 10B shows vector data ( Figure when n0), (n1), and (n3) are used (selected). Figure 10 (c) shows the case where vector data (n0) and (n3) are used (selected) according to the object drawing conditions. FIG. In FIG. 10A, vector data (n0), (n1), (n2), and (n3) are used respectively (node numbers (N0), (N1), (N2), and (N3) are used). ) A skeleton is generated, and polygons (P0), (P1), and (P2) corresponding to that, that is, the shape and size corresponding to the object drawing conditions same as the skeleton generation object drawing conditions are pasted, and the texture is It is pasted and rendered as an image. In FIG. 10B, the node number (N1) excluding the vector data (n2) (excluding the node number (N2)) and other than the excluded node number (N2), for example, the node number (N3) A skeleton is generated between them, polygons (P0 ′) and (P1 ′) having shapes and sizes corresponding to the skeletons are pasted, textures are pasted, and an image is drawn. In FIG. 10C, the vector number (n1) and (n2) are excluded (except for the node numbers (N1) and (N2)), the node number (N0), the excluded node number (N1), A skeleton is generated between the node number (N3) other than (N2), for example, a polygon (P0 '') of the corresponding shape and size is pasted, and a texture is pasted to render it as an image The Rukoto. For example, in the case of a still image, it is as described above, and it is not necessary to use data representing a time change of vector data.
[0020]
  Furthermore, in the case of a moving image, one kind of node can be used without having to prepare definition data for each drawing condition as in the conventional method of sequentially specifying skeletons from a reference position. Store the definition data and motion definition data corresponding to each action (select necessary nodes according to the object drawing conditions, generate motion data from the selected nodes and motion definition data related to the actions, A skeleton is generated from the motion data, and polygons corresponding to the object drawing conditions are pasted together with the texture and drawn as an image, thereby reducing the data capacity and reducing the calculation load.
[0021]
  That is, according to the present invention, even if some of the nodes are not used, a skeleton is easily generated from the remaining (selected) nodes, and can be rendered as an image by pasting the corresponding polygon together with the texture. .
[0022]
  The node definition data may be data that defines all nodes. As the motion definition data, for example, a certain node A is defined by a direct position vector based on a specific position, and a plurality of nodes related to the node A are transferred from the node A to each node. Direction vector and standard skeleton length data may be used. When drawing a moving image, it is possible to obtain the skeleton of an image to be drawn from using angle data representing a predetermined time of movement and a coefficient representing the degree of expansion / contraction of the skeleton length data.
[0023]
  Claim2The described invention is claimed.1In the image generating program described in the item 1, the object drawing condition is a distance in the virtual space between a virtual camera viewpoint arranged in the virtual space and an object to be drawn. According to the present invention, if the distance from the virtual camera viewpoint of the object to be drawn is close, a fine image can be provided by using a large number of nodes. No.
[0024]
  Claim3The described invention is claimed.2In the image generation program described in the above, the node definition data selection means stores the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the drawn object and the node to be selected in association with each other in a lookup table format. And According to the present invention, by referring to the distance information in the lookup table, a node selection result can be obtained as an output. Therefore, the configuration is easy and high-speed processing is possible.
[0025]
  Claim4The described invention is claimed.2 or3. The image generation program according to claim 3, wherein the node definition data selection means divides the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the drawn object into a plurality of areas, and selects a node to be used according to each area. To do. According to the present invention, the object included in the near distance area is displayed as a fine image, and the object included in the far distance area becomes a long distance and is not easy to visually recognize on the monitor. It is displayed as a rough image with no image.
[0026]
  Claim5The described invention is claimed.2Thru4In the image generation program according to any one of the above, the node definition data selection means uses information for selecting a node to be used as masking information according to the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the drawn object. The skeleton generation means stores the skeleton in the virtual space from the definition data of the selected node by performing a masking process using the masking information. According to the present invention, since the selection state of each node corresponding to the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object is obtained as masking information, this masking information is acted like a gate (or AND logic processing). Thus, a skeleton is generated in the virtual space only from the selected node.
[0027]
  Claim6The described invention is claimed.1In the described image generation program, the object drawing condition is an image size of an object to be drawn viewed from a viewpoint of a virtual camera arranged in the virtual space. According to this invention, for example, the display size of the target object, for example, at least one of vertical and horizontal (or height and width) based on the distance between the object to be displayed and the virtual camera viewpoint in the virtual space. Alternatively, the drawing area of the target object is calculated by the size calculation unit, and the node definition data selection unit executes the node selection process depending on the magnitude of the calculation result.
[0028]
  Claim7The described invention is claimed.1In the described image generation program, the object drawing condition is a moving speed of the drawn object in the virtual space. According to the present invention, for example, when an object moves at high speed to the left and right of the virtual camera viewpoint on the monitor, it is not easy to see on the monitor compared to moving at a low speed. ) Is displayed as a rough image.
[0029]
  Claim8The invention described in claims 1 toOne of 7In the image generating program described in the above, a polygon storage for storing an object by drawing a polygon by pasting the polygon to the skeleton generated by the skeleton generating means and storing a different polygon for each object drawing condition corresponding to a selected node It is characterized by having a means. According to the present invention, the node definition data and each motion definition data need only be one way, while each polygon is provided in a form corresponding to the node selected for each object drawing condition. Even if adjacent nodes are not selected, if the number of polygons and the shape of the model (obtained by one node) are set so as to compensate for them, an image with no unnaturalness is drawn on the rendered image. It becomes possible.
[0030]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
  FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a video game system to which the present invention is applied.
[0031]
  The game system shown in FIG. 1 includes a game machine body and a recording medium 30 on which program data is recorded. The game machine main body includes a CPU 1 connected to a bus 2 including an address, data, and control bus, and a graphics data generation processor 3, an interface circuit 4, a main memory 5, a ROM 6, and an expansion circuit 7 connected to the bus 2. , Parallel port 8, serial port 9, rendering processor 10 and buffer 11, audio processor 13 and buffer 14, decoder 17 and buffer 18, interface circuit 20, and memory 21. A television monitor 12 is connected to the drawing processor 10, a speaker 16 is connected to the audio processor 13 via the amplifier circuit 15, a recording medium driver 19 is connected to the decoder 17, a memory 21 and a controller are connected to the interface circuit 20. 22 is connected.
[0032]
  Here, the form of the game system differs depending on the application. That is, when the game system is configured for home use, the television monitor (hereinafter referred to as a monitor) 12 and the speaker 16 are separate from the game machine main body. When the game system is configured for business use, all the components shown in FIG. 1 are housed in a single casing. When the game system is configured with a personal computer or workstation as the core, the monitor 12 corresponds to the display for the computer, and the drawing processor 10, the audio processor 13, and the decompression circuit 7 are The interface circuit 4, the parallel port 8, the serial port 9 and the interface circuit 20 correspond to a part of program data recorded in the recording medium 30 or hardware on an expansion board mounted in an expansion slot of a computer. Corresponds to the hardware on the expansion board installed in the expansion slot of the computer. The buffers 11, 14, and 18 correspond to the areas of the main memory 5 or an expansion memory (not shown). In the present embodiment, the case where the game system is configured for home use will be described as an example.
[0033]
  Next, each component shown in FIG. 1 will be described. The graphics data generation circuit 3 serves as a coprocessor for the CPU 1. That is, the graphics data generation circuit 3 performs coordinate conversion and light source calculation, for example, calculation of a fixed point format matrix or vector by parallel processing. The main processing of the graphics data generation circuit 3 is based on the coordinate data, movement amount data, rotation amount data, and virtual camera viewpoint data of each vertex in the two-dimensional or three-dimensional image data supplied from the CPU 1. There are a process for obtaining an address on the display area of the target image and returning the address data to the CPU 1 again, a known process for calculating the brightness of the image in accordance with the distance from the virtually set light source, and the like.
[0034]
  The interface circuit 4 is for an interface of a peripheral device such as a pointing device such as a mouse or a trackball. The ROM 6 stores program data as an operating system of the game system. In terms of a personal computer, this corresponds to BIOS (Basic Input Output System).
[0035]
  The decompression circuit 7 performs decompression processing on a compressed image compressed by intra coding in accordance with MPEG (Moving Picture Engineering Group) for moving images and JPEG (Joint Picture Engineering Group) for still images. The decompression processing includes decoding processing (vlc: decoding of data encoded by Variable Length Code), inverse quantization processing, IDCT (Inverse Discrete Cosine Transform) processing, intra image restoration processing, and the like.
[0036]
  The drawing processor 10 performs drawing processing on the buffer 11 based on a drawing command issued by the CPU 1.
[0037]
  The buffer 11 includes a display area and a non-display area. The display area is a development area for data to be displayed on the display surface of the monitor 12, and the non-display area (memory) is taken into the main memory 5. This is an area where data development is performed based on the following various data.
[0038]
  The main memory 5 stores node definition data (data that defines all nodes), model data that defines polygons, and polygons that correspond to each skeleton in order to draw characters and the like for each distance area described later. The model data is stored, and each node definition data is specified for every predetermined time (for example, the frame period of the monitor 12; 1/60 seconds) to make the model such as a character perform the movement (coordinate data of the data base end). To select (position vector), axis rotation angle around the skeleton's extension axis, that is, rotation angle data (direction vector)) data (motion definition data) representing torsion, and node definition data for each distance region Only for the selected data and the nodes selected according to the selected data, the skeleton Stores and masking information for the masking processing for causing the open generation processing (mask data), further stores the texture data and color palette data.
[0039]
  In the above, drawing of an object in the case of a still image without a time axis can be generated using node definition data and not using motion definition data. On the other hand, for drawing an object in the case of a moving image, motion data (node position and angle data) is generated from node definition data and motion definition data, and drawing is actually performed from this motion data. In the case of movies, having motion definition data increases the number of processes for obtaining motion data, but compared to having all motions as motion data, the memory capacity can be significantly reduced depending on the type of motion. Become. Note that the motion data may be kept as it is.
[0040]
  The texture data is two-dimensional image data. The color palette data is data for designating a color such as texture data.
[0041]
  These data are recorded in the main memory 5 in advance by the CPU 1 from the recording medium 30 at once or divided into a plurality of times according to the progress of the game.
[0042]
  The drawing command includes a drawing command for drawing a stereoscopic image using a polygon and a drawing command for drawing a normal two-dimensional image. Here, the polygon is a polygonal two-dimensional image, and in this embodiment, a triangle or a quadrangle is used.
[0043]
  The drawing command for drawing a stereoscopic image using polygons is polygon vertex address data on the display area of the buffer 11, texture address data indicating the storage position of the texture data to which the polygon is pasted on the buffer 11, texture It consists of color palette address data indicating the storage position on the buffer 11 of color palette data indicating the color of the data and luminance data indicating the luminance of the texture.
[0044]
  Among these data, the polygon vertex address data on the display area is obtained by the graphics data generation processor 3 from the polygon vertex coordinate data in the three-dimensional space from the CPU 1 as vector data in the three-dimensional space of the corresponding skeleton. Is converted to polygon vertex coordinate data in two dimensions by performing coordinate conversion based on the above. Also, the luminance data is determined based on the distance between the light sources virtually arranged from the position indicated by the polygon vertex coordinate data after the coordinate conversion from the CPU 1 by the graphics data generation processor 3.
[0045]
  The polygon vertex address data indicates an address on the display area of the buffer 11. The drawing processor 10 writes texture data corresponding to the range of the display area of the buffer 11 indicated by 3 or 4 polygon vertex address data.
[0046]
  When the character (object) is moved on the display surface by the operation of the controller 22, in other words, when the movement of the character itself is expressed or when the position where the character is viewed (virtual camera viewpoint) is changed, the following processing is performed. Is done. The CPU 1 converts vector data (position data, rotation angle data) in the node definition data on the non-display area into movement amount data and rotation amount data in the virtual camera viewpoint and three-dimensional space by the graphics data generation processor 3. Based on the coordinate conversion, the skeleton is expanded and generated in a three-dimensional space. The coordinate data of each polygon in the three-dimensional space is stored in the main memory 5 in association with the corresponding node. Then, the graphics data generation processor 3 obtains the three-dimensional coordinate data after the movement and rotation of each polygon corresponding to each node in accordance with a command from the CPU 1. Of the three-dimensional coordinate data of each polygon obtained in this way, the coordinate data in the horizontal and vertical directions are supplied to the drawing processor 10 as address data on the display area of the buffer 11, that is, polygon vertex address data. Is done. The drawing processor 10 writes the texture data indicated by the pre-assigned texture address data on the triangular or quadrangular display area of the buffer 11 indicated by the 3 or 4 polygon vertex address data. As a result, an object (object) in which texture data is pasted on a large number of polygons is displayed on the display surface of the monitor 12.
[0047]
  A drawing command for drawing a normal two-dimensional image indicates vertex address data, texture address data, color palette address data indicating the storage position of the color palette data indicating the color of the texture data on the buffer 11, and the luminance of the texture. Consists of luminance data. Among these data, the vertex address data is obtained by the graphics data generation processor 3 converting the vertex coordinate data on the two-dimensional plane from the CPU 1 based on the movement amount data and the rotation amount data from the CPU 1. Coordinate data. Hereinafter, the drawing process is described in a simplified manner such as “issue a drawing command”.
[0048]
  The audio processor 13 writes the ADPCM data read from the recording medium 30 in the buffer 14, and uses the ADPCM data stored in the buffer 14 as a sound source. Then, the voice processor 13 reads out ADPCM data with a clock having a frequency of 44.1 KHz, for example. The audio processor 13 performs processing such as pitch conversion, noise addition, envelope setting, level setting, and reverb addition on the ADPCM data read from the buffer 14. When the audio data read from the recording medium 30 is PCM data such as CD-DA (Compact Disk Digital Audio), the audio processing processor 13 converts the audio data into ADPCM data. Further, the processing by the program data for the PCM data is directly performed on the main memory 5. The PCM data processed on the main memory 5 is supplied to the audio processor 13 and converted into ADPCM data. After the above-described various processes are performed, the PCM data is output as audio from the speaker 16.
[0049]
  The recording medium driver 19 is, for example, a hard disk drive, an optical disk drive, a flexible disk drive, a silicon disk drive, a cassette medium reader, or the like. The recording medium 30 is, for example, a hard disk, an optical disk, a flexible disk, a semiconductor memory, or the like. The recording medium driver 19 reads images, sounds, and program data from the recording medium 30 and supplies the read data to the decoder 17. The decoder 17 performs error correction processing by ECC (Error Correction Code) on the reproduction data from the recording medium driver 19 and supplies the data subjected to the error correction processing to the main memory 5 or the audio processing processor 13.
[0050]
  The memory 21 includes, for example, a holder and a card type memory. The card-type memory is for holding various game parameters, for example, holding the state at the end time.
[0051]
  The controller 22 is an operation instruction unit for causing the object to perform a required movement, and is a cross key composed of a left trigger button 22L, a right trigger button 22R, a start button 22a, an up key U, a down key D, a left key L, and a right key R. 22b, a cancel button 22c, a select button 22d, a button unit 22e, an analog stick 22f, although not shown, a decision button is further provided on the back of the controller.
[0052]
  The cross key 22b and the analog stick 22f are operation instruction members that give commands to the CPU 1 to move the object up, down, left, and right on the screen or to cause a part of the object to move. The up and down movement refers to, for example, a jump (JUMP), and the left and right movement refers to, for example, a walking movement or a running movement. Each of the left and right modes can be instructed so that they can be distinguished from each other, for example, by simultaneously operating direction indicating members such as the left trigger button 22L and the right trigger button 22R. The start button 22 a is used by the game player to instruct the CPU 1 to start a game program loaded from the recording medium 30. Also, a cancel button 22c for canceling the determined items and returning to the previous stage, a select button 22d for instructing the CPU 1 to make various selections regarding the game program data loaded from the recording medium 30 to the main memory 5, A button unit 22e for instructing the CPU 1 to switch the viewpoint is provided. The functions of the left trigger button 22L, the right trigger button 22R, and the back button are different depending on the game program loaded from the recording medium 30. For example, in a fighting game, the functions correspond to various attacks.
[0053]
  Next, the operation of the game system will be described. When a power switch (not shown) is turned on, the game system is powered on. At this time, if the recording medium 30 is loaded in the recording medium driver 19, the CPU 1 reads program data from the recording medium 30 to the recording medium driver 19 based on the operating system stored in the ROM 6. Instruct. As a result, the recording medium driver 19 reads the image, sound, and program data from the recording medium 30. The read image, sound and program data are supplied to the decoder 17 where error correction processing is performed. The image data that has been subjected to error correction processing in the decoder 17 is supplied to the expansion circuit 7 via the bus 2, where it is supplied to the drawing processor 10 after being subjected to the expansion processing described above. The data is written in the non-display area of the buffer 11 by the processor 10. Note that the audio data subjected to the error correction processing in the decoder 17 is supplied to the main memory 5 or the audio processing processor 13 and written into the main memory 5 or the buffer 14.
[0054]
  The program data that has been subjected to error correction processing in the decoder 17 is supplied to the main memory 5 and written to the main memory 5. Thereafter, the CPU 1 proceeds with the game based on the program executed based on the game program data stored in the main memory 5 and the content instructed by the game player via the controller 22. That is, the CPU 1 appropriately controls image processing, audio processing, and internal processing based on the instruction content instructed by the game player via the controller 22. In the present embodiment, the image processing control is the calculation of the coordinates of each skeleton in the graphics data generation processor 3 from the motion data corresponding to a series of movements instructed by the character, the virtual camera viewpoint data, and the like. Or a command for calculating the vertex coordinate data of the polygon, and a drawing command including address data and luminance data on the display area of the buffer 11 from the obtained three-dimensional coordinate data. The voice processing control is the issuing of a voice output command to the voice processor 13, designation of level, reverb, and the like. The internal process control is, for example, calculation according to the operation of the controller 22.
[0055]
  FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a function execution unit of the CPU 1 shown in FIG. The CPU 1 has the function shown in FIG. 2 by reading the program data read from the recording medium 30 shown in FIG. 1 and stored in the main memory 5. The function of the CPU 1 shown in FIG. 2 is that a button operation detection unit 101 that detects which button of the controller 22 is operated, a predetermined rule prepared in advance for a virtual camera viewpoint in the three-dimensional game space. Virtual camera viewpoint position data setting unit 102 set based on the above, display range information extraction unit 103 that determines the display range on the television monitor 12, and node definition used according to the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object In addition to a node definition data selection unit 104 as a node definition data selection means for selecting data, a skeleton generation calculation command unit 105 that executes vector calculation using the node definition data, a polygon calculation command unit 106, a drawing command issue unit 107, And a luminance processing unit 108.
[0056]
  In this embodiment, as described below, the character is displayed on the television monitor 12 by controlling the amount of rotation with respect to the node.
[0057]
  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment showing a connection relation of nodes defining an object simulating a human body, and FIG. 4 shows an example of a table of node definition data defining each node of FIG.
[0058]
  In FIG. 3, a long line indicates a skeleton and a point indicates a joint (a “node” serving as a base point of the skeleton). As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the node number (N0) indicates Hips, and the left foot side is l-hip (N1), l-hip-roll (N2), l-knee (N3), l-knee- roll (N4), l-ankle (N5), l-foot (N6), l-toe (N7), then left foot side is r-hip (N8), r-hip-roll (N9), r-knee (N10), r-knee-roll (N11), r-ankle (N12), r-foot (N13), r-toe (N14), and the upper body side is spin0 (N15), spine1 (N16) , ..., and then the left arm and then the last node of the right arm are sequentially defined. Each node includes data such as its parent node number and length.
[0059]
  FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of mask data stored as masking information in the node definition data selection unit. The mask data A is used when the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object to be drawn is a short-distance region having a predetermined value or less, and “0” and “1” for n digits of the mask value are The node numbers correspond in order from the first. For example, the first “1” indicates that the node (N0) is used.
[0060]
  The mask data B is used when the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object is a middle distance area up to an intermediate distance exceeding a predetermined value. For example, the mask data B is the third digit or the fifth digit of the mask value. "0" in the eye indicates that the nodes (N2) and (N4) are not used.
[0061]
  The mask data C is used when the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object is a long-distance area where the distance exceeds the intermediate distance. The fact that “0” in the mask value increases in the order of mask data A, B, and C corresponds to a certain amount of node definition data, that is, a skeleton generated by this as the object moves away from the virtual camera. This is because even if the polygon to be performed is omitted (not used), the player will not recognize it as a rough image. When the skeleton generation calculation command unit 105 draws this object, if the node definition data according to the node number is mask value “0” on the mask data, the skeleton generation calculation command unit 105 performs gate processing to skip (skip) the processing, Shifts to the processing for the node with the mask value “1”. M is motion data. Although it depends on the processing procedure, if a mask is actually applied at the stage of motion definition data instead of motion data, the expansion processing of unused nodes can be omitted.
[0062]
  FIG. 6 is an example of polygon vertex coordinate data prepared for each short distance (A), medium distance (B), and long distance (C). As shown in FIG. 6, each polygon is defined in association with a node.
[0063]
  At the short distance (A), all node definition data is used, that is, vertex coordinate data of a predetermined number of polygons for forming an associated model for each of the nodes (N0) to (Nn) that are all joints. Is stipulated. The node (N0) has polygons P01, P02,..., The node (N1) has polygons P21, P22,..., The node (N2) has polygons P21, P22,. , P32,... Correspond to polygons P71, P72 and node (Nn) correspond to polygons Pn1, Pn2,.
[0064]
  At medium distance (B), the associated model is formed only for all joints, that is, nodes corresponding to mask value “1” in FIG. 5B among nodes (N0) to (Nn). The vertex coordinate data of the polygon is defined. The node (N0) has polygons P01 ′, P02 ′,..., The node (N1) has polygons P11 ′, P12 ′,..., The node (N2) has no nodes, and the node (N3) has polygons P31 ′, P32. ', ... and the node (Nn) correspond to polygons Pn1', Pn2 ', ....
[0065]
  In the long distance (C), an associated model is configured only for all joints, that is, nodes corresponding to the mask value “1” in FIG. 5C among the nodes (N0) to (Nn). The vertex coordinate data of the polygon is defined. The node (N0) has no polygons P01 '', P02 '', ..., the nodes (N1), (N2) are not, and the node (N3) has polygons P31 '', P32 '', ... ) To (N6), polygons P71 ″, P72 ″,... Correspond to the node (N7), and polygons Pn1 ″, Pn2 ″,.
[0066]
  As the distance increases, the number of polygons corresponding to one node can be reduced. Therefore, even in the same node, the short distance (A), the middle distance (B), and the long distance (C) Some polygons are gradually decreasing. In addition, since all node definition data is not used at medium distance (B) and long distance (C), the same polygon as in the case of short distance (A) is used as it is for the node to be used. There is a possibility that the continuity of is unnatural. Therefore, as a polygon corresponding to at least one adjacent node with respect to the missing node, a polygon that covers the part drawn with the polygon attached to this missing node as necessary is a medium distance. If it is specified at (B), a long distance (C), it can be rendered as a natural image without a sense of incongruity. In this way, by setting polygons correspondingly according to object drawing conditions, for example, the short distance (A), the middle distance (B), and the long distance (C), a more appropriate image can be drawn.
[0067]
  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of motion definition data for an object. As shown in FIG. 6, a plurality of types of data MD1, MD2,... MDm are stored in association with node numbers to define movement for a certain object. There are various movements such as jumping, walking, running, lying down, swimming, etc. Further, even in the same walking, a more detailed way of walking such as walking (type 1) or walking (type 2) may be expressed. The motion definition data MD1 is defined as .tau.1, .tau.2,... .Tau.n1 for a predetermined time in the order of node numbers and every frame time (1/60 seconds) in the case of a game. Similarly, the motion definition data MD2 is defined as τ1, τ2,... Τn2 (s1 and s2 are the number of frames of each motion). Each motion definition data is data (rxτi, ryτi, rzτi) (i is an arbitrary frame number in the number of frames s) representing a change in the direction vector. The time required for one motion is set for each type of motion. As described above, the motion definition data MD1 is up to τs1, and the motion definition data MD2 is up to τs2.
[0068]
  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of motion data for an object. The motion data M1, M2,... Mm is obtained from the node definition data and the motion definition data MD1, MD2,... MDm, that is, by expanding the node definition data based on each node number of the motion definition data MD1, MD2,. It is required. Each motion data M is coordinate data (txτi, tyτi, tzτi) and rotation angle data (r00τi, r01τi, r02τi, r10τi, r11τi, r12τi, r20τi, r21τi, r22τi) for representing the extending direction of the skeleton. In this way, by adopting a method for obtaining the motion data M using the motion definition data MD, it is not necessary to have motion data for each motion, which is a preferable aspect in terms of reducing the memory capacity.
[0069]
  In addition, it is good also as an aspect in which the data showing the standard length of a skeleton is included as node definition data, and in that case, when adopting a rotation angle data and a coefficient showing the degree of expansion and contraction of the length data of the skeleton as motion data Well, according to this, although the calculation itself is slightly larger than when vector data is used, the same animation (moving image) display as described above can be performed with a smaller amount of data.
[0070]
  FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a routine of an object animation display process processed by the CPU.
[0071]
  When designation of motion Mk (motion Mk (k = 1, 2,..., M) shown in FIG. 7) is issued to the object by the controller 22 or in accordance with the game program (step ST1), the current virtual The distance in the game space between the camera viewpoint and the specific position Pb of the object is calculated, and it is determined whether the distance is far, medium, or near (step ST3). The mask data A shown is designated (step ST5), the mask data B is designated if the distance is medium (step ST7), and the mask data C is designated if the distance is long (step ST9).
[0072]
  Next, the motion definition data (time τ1) of the designated motion Mk is read out, and the motion data is obtained by developing this data, and is guided to the skeleton generation calculation command unit 105 via the designated mask data. That is, a node to be used is selected, a skeleton generation calculation command is issued (step ST11), and a skeleton generation calculation process is performed by the graphics data processor 3.
[0073]
  During the end of the process or during the process, one of the short distance (A), medium distance (B), and long distance (C) shown in FIG. 6 corresponding to the distance determination result in step ST3. One polygon data is designated (step ST13). Next, a polygon calculation command is issued using the result of the skeleton generation calculation and the polygon data for the designated distance (step ST15). This polygon calculation processing is performed by the graphics data processor 3. When the calculation is completed, the result is sent out to be temporarily stored in the buffer 11 (step ST17), and it is determined whether or not there is motion data for the remaining time τ in the motion Mk (step ST19). If a predetermined time has elapsed (step ST21), the process returns to step ST11 to command to read motion data for the next predetermined time τ (for example, if the previous time is τ1, then τ2). On the other hand, if the data reading for all the time for expressing the animation has been completed, this flow ends. If the mask is applied at the stage of the motion definition data before obtaining the motion data as described above, it is possible to omit the process of expanding unused nodes.
[0074]
  The present invention can also employ the following aspects.
(1) The node definition data selection unit 104 may be executed by software, but performs distance determination between the virtual camera viewpoint and the specific position Pb, and associates addresses with the far, middle, and near results. Then, masking processing for setting use or non-use for each node may be performed by adding the information of the Mask value shown in FIG. 5 to those addresses (gate or AND logic processing).
(2) In the present embodiment, the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object of interest, that is, the perspective, is adopted as the selection condition of the node definition data. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the drawing is viewed from the virtual camera viewpoint. A node that should be adopted based on the determination result, comprising means for determining at least one of the vertical and horizontal (height, width) dimensions of the target object or the size of the drawing area of the target object. May be selected.
[0075]
  In this case, address data on the display area of the buffer 11 of each polygon of each model is obtained by the graphics data generation processor 3 using reference or standard node data and accompanying polygon data in advance. A dimension or area is obtained by using a drawing size calculation unit or a drawing area calculation unit which is employed as a function of the CPU 1. This calculated value is an object drawing condition with respect to the virtual camera viewpoint, for example, the ratio of the drawing horizontal (or width) dimension to the horizontal dimension of the entire image, and the higher this ratio, the more node definition data is selected. do it. Similarly, the node definition data may be selected for the area.
(3) The moving speed of the object may be adopted as the selection condition of the node definition data, that is, the object drawing condition. For example, when the moving speed detecting unit detects the moving speed of the object and draws the stopped object, the moving speed of the object is set so as to be the finest, that is, the most node definition data is selected. The higher the speed, the rougher the drawing, that is, the selected node definition data may be reduced.
[0076]
  As described above, the present invention can adopt a mode in which selection processing of node definition data is performed under the object drawing conditions for the virtual camera viewpoint such as the distance from the virtual camera viewpoint of the object of interest, the drawing size (ratio), and the moving speed. is there.
(4) In the present embodiment, all node definition data is used for short distance, and the node definition data is selected in the form of thinning out the middle distance and long distance sequentially, so to speak, but it is not limited to this. The following modes can also be adopted. For example, all node definition data adopted according to all object drawing conditions adopted is prepared as basic node definition data in advance, and appropriate requirements for each object drawing condition such as distance or drawing area size are prepared. The selection method may be different from the thinning-out method in which a selection method is set in advance so that selection of different node definition data is made. Thereby, it is possible to draw the best object suitable for each object drawing condition. The object drawing conditions and the selected node definition data do not need to be set in a fixed correspondence relationship, and a predetermined selection operation is executed by the node definition data selecting unit upon receiving the object drawing conditions. The necessary node definition data may be selected by providing flexibility and changeability. Further, in any case, information such as a game scene (scene), a game time, a player operation state, and the like can be used in addition to the object drawing conditions. For example, in a form using a mask, it is conceivable to use a mask prepared in advance or obtained by calculation according to such information. With such a configuration, it is possible to perform drawing with appropriate accuracy with a calculation load corresponding to each scene.
(5) Although the present invention has been illustrated with an example of a character imitating a human being as an object, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to various moving objects, and in particular, a character that moves in a game space. It is suitable to apply to.
(6) In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the vertex coordinate data of polygons prepared for each short distance (A), medium distance (B), and long distance (C) is provided. May be drawn with a single polygon. In the case where the polygon is defined corresponding to the node selection condition, there is an advantage that a more suitable image with less unnaturalness can be provided. Further, it is not always necessary to correspond to the node definition data selection condition. For example, polygon data may be provided for the node definition data selection condition and the latter two categories.
(7) In the present embodiment, an example in which a mask is used as the node definition data selection unit 104 in the thinning-out format is shown, but a counter system as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 can also be used.
[0077]
  FIG. 11 shows an operation principle and a data table necessary for the operation. (A) is a table showing an example of a mask table composed of object drawing conditions and node numbers indicating the order of node definition data, and (b) is a table. For the example of (a), a number table indicating the number of node definition data to be adopted. (C) is a counter for the example of (a) in descending order of node definition data adopted in order of near to far. A node number correspondence table with values is shown. More specifically, FIG. 11A shows an example in which there are a total of nine node definition data from node number 0 to node number 8 (actually there are many, but here for convenience of explanation, 9 In the short distance, all node definition data, that is, nine are adopted, and in the middle distance, six node numbers 0, 1, 3, 4, 7, and 8 are adopted. This is an example in which three node numbers 0, 4, and 8 are employed at a long distance. Therefore, the number table 1041 as shown in (b) can be created.
[0078]
  Next, as shown in FIG. 11C, the node numbers in the descending order of the node definition data adopted in the order from near to far are extracted. Here, since node number 0 is adopted in all (object drawing) conditions of near, middle, and far distance, this node number 0 is stored in correspondence with count value 1 in the table. Similarly, since node numbers 4 and 8 are adopted under all conditions, they are stored in this order corresponding to count values 2 and 3. Next, the node numbers adopted under the near and medium distance conditions are the node numbers 1, 3, and 7 in ascending order, and are stored corresponding to the count values 4, 5, and 6, respectively. Finally, since the node numbers adopted under the long distance conditions are node numbers 2, 5, and 6 in ascending order, they are stored corresponding to the count values 7, 8, and 9, respectively. As a result, a node number correspondence table shown in (c) is created.
[0079]
  FIG. 12 shows an example of a configuration diagram of a node definition data selection unit based on a counter method. When the object drawing condition is determined, the determined object drawing condition is input to the number table 1041, and a value corresponding to the condition is output to the counter 1042. The counter 1042 sets the output value, starts a count operation, and functions as a readout for sequentially reading the node number correspondence data stored corresponding to the corresponding count value in the node number correspondence table 1043 until the set value is reached. To do. The rearrangement unit 1044 rearranges the node numbers output from the node number correspondence table 1043 in ascending order and outputs the node numbers in order to the skeleton operation command unit 105 (see FIG. 2).
[0080]
  The operation will be described with an example. Now, assuming that the intermediate distance is determined as the object drawing condition, the value 6 is output from the number table 1041. When the value 6 is set in the counter 1042, the counter 1042 performs a counting operation from the value 1 to 6. By this count operation, node numbers 0, 4, 8, 1, 3, and 7 corresponding to the count values 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 are output from the node number correspondence table 1043 to the rearrangement unit 1044. The rearrangement unit 1044 rearranges the node numbers 0, 4, 8, 1, 3, and 7 in ascending order, that is, 0, 1, 3, 4, 7, and 8 and outputs them to the skeleton operation instruction unit 105.
(8) Although the present embodiment has been described with reference to drawing using motion prepared in advance, the present invention is not limited to this, and the same applies to the case where an object is moved by an operation unit or by a game program. It is applicable to.
[0081]
【The invention's effect】
  Claim 1,9, 10, 11According to the described invention, data defining all the nodes is stored, a necessary node is selected according to the object drawing condition, and drawing is performed using this, and only processing related to the node to be used by this is selected. Therefore, the processing load and the stored data capacity can be reduced, and the calculation load can be reduced.Moreover,It is only necessary to store one type of motion definition data without preparing the motion data related to the object for each animation, which is necessary for the conventional method of specifying nodes in order. , Can reduce the data capacity.
[0082]
  Claim2According to the described invention, it is possible to provide a fine image by using a large number of nodes if the distance from the virtual camera viewpoint of the object to be drawn is short, and to reduce the number of nodes if the distance is far, and to draw unnaturalness. Can provide no image.
[0083]
  Claim3According to the described invention, since the selection result of the node definition data can be obtained as an output by referring to the distance information in the lookup table, easy configuration and high-speed processing can be realized.
[0084]
  Claim4According to the described invention, an object included in a far distance area becomes a far distance and is not easy to visually recognize on a monitor, so that it can be displayed as a rough image with no sense of incongruity (unnaturalness).
[0085]
  Claim5According to the described invention, the selection state of each node corresponding to the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the object can be obtained as masking information. By doing so, only the skeleton from the selected node can be generated in the virtual space.
[0086]
  Claim6According to the described invention, the display size of the object, that is, the drawing dimension of at least one of vertical and horizontal (or height and width) is calculated from the target object and the distance between the object and the virtual camera viewpoint, Alternatively, by calculating the drawing area of the object, the node definition data selection means can execute node definition data selection processing depending on the magnitude of the calculation result.
  Claim7According to the described invention, when an object moves at high speed to the left and right of the virtual camera viewpoint, for example, it is not easy to see on the monitor as compared to moving at low speed. ) Can be displayed as a rough image with no).
[0087]
  Claim8According to the described invention, each node definition data may be one way, while each polygon is provided in a form corresponding to a node selected for each object drawing condition, so that an adjacent node is selected depending on the object drawing condition. Even if it is not done, if the number of polygons and the shape of the model (obtained by one node) are set so as to make up for it, it is possible to draw an image with no unnaturalness on the drawn image. .
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a video game system to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a function execution unit included in the CPU shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment showing a connection relation of nodes that define an object simulating a human body.
FIG. 4 shows an example of node definition data that defines the node of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of mask data that functions as node definition data selection means.
FIG. 6 is an example of polygon vertex coordinate data prepared for each of a short distance (A), a medium distance (B), and a long distance (C).
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of motion definition data for an object.
FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of motion data for an object.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a routine of animation display processing of an object processed by a CPU.
FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining the relationship between a selected node and a generated skeleton. (A) is used by vector data (n0), (n1), (n2), and (n3) (selected) (B) is a diagram when vector data (n0), (n1), (n3) is used (selected), (c) is a vector data (n0), (n3) is used ( It is a figure when it is selected.
11A and 11B show an operation principle and a data table necessary for the operation. FIG. 11A shows an example of a mask table including object drawing conditions and node numbers indicating the order of node definition data. FIG. For the example of (a), a number table indicating the number of node definition data to be adopted. (C) is a counter for the example of (a) in descending order of node definition data adopted in order of near to far. It is a figure which shows the node number corresponding | compatible table which attached | subjected the value.
FIG. 12 shows a configuration diagram of a node definition data selection unit by a counter method.
[Explanation of symbols]
  1 CPU
  3 Graphics data generation processor
  10 Drawing processor
  11 Buffer non-display area
  12 Television monitor
  101 Button operation detector
  102 Virtual camera viewpoint position data setting unit
  103 Display range information extraction unit
  104 Node definition data selection part
  105 Skeleton generation calculation command section
  106 Polygon calculation command section
  107 Drawing command issuing unit

Claims (11)

An image generation program for drawing an object having a multi-joint structure in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to a joint,
Node definition data storage means for storing node definition data defining all nodes that can be used in the virtual space with reference to a specific position in the virtual space;
Motion data storage means for storing motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data that defines motion for a predetermined time of the object to generate a moving image ;
Node definition data selection means for selecting a node to be used according to the object drawing condition;
An image generation program that functions as skeleton generation means for sequentially generating skeletons in a virtual space according to the motion data relating to the selected node. The object drawing conditions, the image generating program according to claim 1, wherein the distance der Rukoto in the virtual space between the object to be drawn and arranged virtual camera viewpoint in the virtual space. The node definition data selecting means, the distance between the object to be drawn between the virtual camera viewpoint, according to claim 2, characterized that you store in association with each other should be selected nodes in a look-up table form Image generation program. The node definition data selecting means divides the distance between the object to be drawn with the virtual camera view point into a plurality of regions, claim 2, characterized that you selected node definition data used in response to each region Or the image generation program of 3. The node definition data selection means stores information for selecting a node to be used as masking information according to the distance between the virtual camera viewpoint and the drawn object, and the skeleton generation means is the masking information. by executing the masking process by using the information, the generated image according to any one of only the definition data of the selected node according to claim 2 to 4, characterized that you generate a skeleton on said virtual space program. The object drawing conditions, the image generating program according to claim 1 Oh, wherein Rukoto image size of the object that is drawn as viewed from the virtual camera viewpoint disposed in the virtual space. The image generation program according to claim 1, wherein the object drawing condition is a moving speed of the drawn object in the virtual space . Wherein by polygon is pasted to the generated skeleton by the skeleton generation unit objects are drawn, further Yusuke Rukoto polygon storage means for storing different polygons said each object drawing condition corresponds to a node to be selected image generating program according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in. An image generation apparatus that draws an object having a multi-joint structure in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to a joint,
Node definition data storage means for storing node definition data defining all nodes that can be used in the virtual space with reference to a specific position in the virtual space;
Motion data storage means for storing motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data that defines motion for a predetermined time of the object to generate a moving image;
Node definition data selection means for selecting a node to be used according to the object drawing condition;
Image generating apparatus and generating sequentially on the virtual space of the skeleton according to the motion data related to selected the said node. An image generation method for drawing an object having a multi-joint structure in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to a joint,
Node definition data storage means stores in advance node definition data that defines all nodes that can be used in the virtual space with reference to a specific position in the virtual space;
Motion data storage means stores in advance motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data that defines motion for a predetermined time of the object in order to generate a moving image,
The node definition data selection means selects a node to be used according to the object drawing condition,
Skeleton generation unit, an image generating method which is characterized that you created on sequential virtual space skeleton in accordance with the motion data about the selected by said node. A video game apparatus that draws an object having a multi-joint structure in a three-dimensional virtual space according to an object drawing condition using a node corresponding to a joint,
Node definition data storage means for storing node definition data defining all nodes that can be used in the virtual space with reference to a specific position in the virtual space;
Motion data storage means for storing motion data generated from the node definition data and motion definition data that defines motion for a predetermined time of the object to generate a moving image;
Node definition data selection means for selecting a node to be used according to the object drawing condition;
A video game apparatus comprising: skeleton generation means for sequentially generating skeletons in a virtual space according to the motion data relating to the selected node.

Images