Patent ID: 7394459

Claim:
A method for enabling interaction between a virtual environment and a physical object, comprising the steps of: (a) detecting the physical object and its location when the physical object is placed atop a display surface on which the virtual environment is displayed, said physical object being detected on the display surface by optically sensing light reflected from the physical object from below the display surface; (b) within the virtual environment, producing a response to the physical object as if the physical object were included in the virtual environment, enabling an interaction between the physical object and the virtual environment in two different modes, depending upon a type of the physical object placed atop the display surface, said two different modes including: (i) a first mode in which the virtual environment responds to a presence of the physical object on the display surface; and (ii) a second mode in which the physical object that is placed atop the display surface comprises an active object that is capable of performing an active function perceptible to a user, automatically in response to the virtual environment, and wherein the active object, which is placed atop the display surface, interacts with the virtual environment in the second mode by performing said active function atop the display surface automatically in response to the virtual environment; (c) tracking movement of the physical object relative to the display surface by sensing changes in location of the physical object on the display surface; and (d) changing a value of at least one parameter in the virtual environment in response to the movement of the physical object relative to the display surface.