Patent ID: 8745090

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for responding to spatial queries about a real-world object of interest using a real-world reference object to identify the object of interest, comprising the steps of: (A) generating a query statement relating to at least one real-world object of interest with an electronic pointing device associated with a user, with the query statement including at least a query topic and a spatial preposition, and determining a geodetic position and a pointing direction of the pointing device, and transmitting the query statement, the geodetic position and the pointing direction to a system server; (B) mapping a projective three-dimensional representation of a real-world scene including at least the object of interest and the reference object, and transmitting the three-dimensional representation to the system server; (C) a system server performing substeps of, (1) generating a real-world two-dimensional digital representation of the three-dimensional scene mapped at step (B), with the two-dimensional digital representation including at least a digital representation of the object of interest and the reference object, (2) identifying the reference object and the reference object position according to the pointing device geodetic position and the pointing direction applied to the two-dimensional digital representation, wherein the pointing device geodetic position is according to a latitude, longitude, elevation, pitch, and yaw of the pointing device, (3) annotating the two-dimensional digital representation for identifying the object of interest according to the position of the reference object, the query topic, and the spatial preposition, (4) identifying the object of interest according to annotated two-dimensional digital representation at substep (C) (3) by linking the query topic and the spatial preposition of the query statement to a particular object in the two-dimensional digital representation, wherein the spatial preposition including an egocentric frame of reference expressing at least a point of view of the user according to the pointing device geodetic position, and (5) the system server communicating with the pointing device and transmitting at least an identification of the particular object as the object of interest to the pointing device.