Wireless communication game system

• US 10,086,277 B2
• Filed: 09/21/2015
• Issued: 10/02/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Tanaka, Shoya, Kuwahara, Masato, Oe, Toru, Yoshioka, Teruyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Fayyaz
• Application Number:
  US14/859,494
• Publication Number:
  US 20160008719A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,107 Days
• Field of Search: 455 412, 455 413, 455507, 455508, 455 88, 455100
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/00 Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions gaming systems which provide a financial reward G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/235 using a wireless connection, e.g. infrared or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/31 Communication aspects specific to video games, e.g. between several handheld game devices at close range
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/77 involving data related to game devices or game servers, e.g. configuration data, software version or amount of memory
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/402 Communication between platforms, i.e. physical link to protocol
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM

Abstract

A wireless communication game system includes a plurality of mobile game apparatuses, which function as a parent device or a child device and are capable of making a communication with each other, and broadcasts from the parent device a parent device packet including a parent device PID, a user name UserName, a game name GameName, an OC flag, an E slot, a U slot, and a payload. All the parent device packets are received from the parent device existing within a communicationable range of a user'"'"'s own apparatus, and the user'"'"'s own apparatus creates a parent device list, and displays the parent device list on an LCD. Therefore, a user or a player of his own apparatus looks at the game name of the parent device list, for example, and operates a cross key included in an operation key so as to select one desired parent device. Then, transmitting a child device number CID of the user'"'"'s own apparatus at the E slot designated by the parent device packet, the user'"'"'s own apparatus transmits a connection request to the parent device.

Claims

1. An information processing system including a first computing device and a second computing device, each of which includes a wireless transceiver and a processing system that includes a memory coupled to at least one hardware processor,

the processing system of the first computing device programmed to:

execute a first application program in accordance with input provided by a user to the first computing device;

transmit, via the wireless transceiver of the first computing device, to unspecified apparatus(es), while the first application program is being executed, identification information that identifies the first application program and/or a routine of the first application program, and

the processing system of the second computing device programmed to;

receive, via the transceiver of the second computing device, the identification information transmitted from the first computing device to the unspecified apparatus(es); and

responsive to reception of the identification information, initiate execution, from among a plurality of programs or a plurality of routines stored in the memory of the second computing device and not currently being executed by the second computing device, of at least one of the plurality of programs or at least one of the plurality of routines that corresponds to the received identification information.

2. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein the identification information is communicated as part of a packet at predetermined intervals.

3. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein data communicated between the first and second computing devices is data related to performance of a shared application.

4. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein execution of the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines also depends on user input confirming that the execution is to be initiated.

5. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein:

data used by the program or the routine is transmitted together with the identification information to the unspecified apparatus(es),

the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines is executed using the data transmitted from the first computing device.

6. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein:

the processing system of the second computing device programmed to;

transmit, while the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines is being executed, first data used in the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines together with identification information for identifying the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines to unspecified apparatus(es),

the first application program is executed based on the first data transmitted from the second computing device.

7. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein the program or the routine is a program or a routine for a game process.

8. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein at least some data communicated from the second computing device to the first computing device is used in executing the first application program.

9. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein at least some data communicated from the first computing device to the second computing device is sent via connectionless or broadcast transmissions and is used in executing the at least one program or the at least one routine.

10. The information processing system of claim 1, wherein the processing system of the second computing device is further programmed to, responsive to reception of the identification information and prior to initiating execution, receive the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines to be executed from another computing device different from the second computing device.

11. The information processing system of claim 10, wherein the another computing device is the first computing device.

12. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having stored therein an information processing program for use with a second computing device configured to communicate with a first computing device, each of the first and second computing devices including a wireless transceiver and a processing system that includes a memory coupled to at least one hardware processor, the first computing device configured to at least (a) execute a first application program in accordance with provided input, and (b) transmit to unspecified apparatus(es), while the first application program is being executed, identification information that identifies the first application program and/or a routine of the first application program, the information processing program comprising instructions which cause the processing system of the second computing device to:

receive, via the transceiver of the second computing device, the identification information which is transmitted from the first computing device to the unspecified apparatus(es); and

responsive to reception of the identification information, initiate execution, from among a plurality of programs or a plurality of routines stored in the memory of the second computing device and not currently being executed by the second computing device, of at least one of the plurality of programs or at least one of the plurality of routines that corresponds to the received identification information.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein responsive to reception of the identification information and prior to initiating execution, the processing system of the second computing device is further caused to receive the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines to be executed from another computing device different from the second computing device.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 12, wherein at least some data communicated from the second computing device to the first computing device is used in executing the first application program.

14. An information processing method performed in connection with at least a first information processing device and a second information processing device, each of the first and second information processing devices including a wireless transceiver and a memory coupled to at least one hardware processor, the information processing method comprising:

executing, in the first information processing device, a first application program in accordance with input provided by a user to the first computing device;

transmitting, by using the wireless transceiver of the first information processing device and to unspecified apparatus(es), while the first application program or the routine is being executed, identification information that identifies the first application program and/or a routine of the first application program;

prompting the transceiver of the second information processing device to receive the identification information transmitted from the first information processing device to the unspecified apparatus(es); and

initiating execution, at the second processing device, of at least one program or at least one routine that corresponds to the received identification information from among a plurality of programs or a plurality of routines stored in the memory of the second information processing device and not currently being executed by the second information processing device, by virtue of the prompted reception of the identification information.

15. The information processing method of claim 14, wherein the initiated execution is preceded by receipt and local storage of the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines to be executed.

16. A computing apparatus configured to communicate with another computing apparatus that is configured to at least (a) execute a first application program in accordance with provided input, and (b) transmit to unspecified apparatus(es), while the first application program is being executed, identification information that identifies the first application program and/or a routine of the first application program, the computing apparatus comprising:

a wireless transceiver; and

a processing system that includes a memory coupled to at least one hardware processor, the processing system configured to at least;

receive, via the wireless transceiver, the identification information transmitted from the another computing apparatus to the unspecified apparatus(es); and

responsive to reception of the identification information, initiate performance, from among a plurality of programs or a plurality of routines stored in the memory of the processing system and not currently being performed by the processing system, of at least one of the plurality of programs or at least one of the plurality of routines that corresponds to the received identification information.

17. The computing apparatus of claim 16, wherein in the initiated performance of the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines in response to reception of the identification information, the computing apparatus and the another computing apparatus communicate with one another data regarding performance of (a) the first application program, and (b) the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines.

18. The computing apparatus of claim 16, wherein as part of performance of the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines, the computing apparatus and the another computing apparatus communicate data regarding performance of (a) the first application program, and (b) the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines.

19. The computing apparatus of claim 16, wherein the initiated performance is preceded by receipt of the at least one of the plurality of programs or the at least one of the plurality of routines to be performed from the another computing apparatus.