Managing controller pairing in a multiplayer game

• US 10,150,028 B2
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Issued: 12/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Mikhailov, Anton, Marks, Richard, Larsen, Eric
• Primary Examiner(s): Ahmed, Masud
• Application Number:
  US13/842,872
• Publication Number:
  US 20130324244A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,097 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/213 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. cameras, photodiodes or infrared cells A63F13/219, A63F13/655 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/22 Setup operations, e.g. calibration, key configuration or button assignment
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/235 using a wireless connection, e.g. infrared or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/24 Constructional details thereof, e.g. game controllers with detachable joystick handles
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/424 involving acoustic input signals, e.g. by using the results of pitch or rhythm extraction or voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/428 involving motion or position input signals, e.g. signals representing the rotation of an input controller or a player's arm motions sensed by accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5252 using two or more virtual cameras concurrently or sequentially, e.g. automatically switching between fixed virtual cameras when a character changes room or displaying a rear-mirror view in a car-driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/843 involving concurrently two or more players on the same game device, e.g. requiring the use of a plurality of controllers or of a specific view of game data for each player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1093 using visible light
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6072 of an input signal, e.g. pitch and rhythm extraction, voice recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/012 Head tracking input arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10152 Varying illumination
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/90 Dynamic range modification of images or parts thereof

Abstract

A method for managing multi-player interactivity with an interactive application is provided, including the following method operations: determining a location of a first controller; determining a location of a second controller; determining a location of a biometric identifier of a first user; determining a location of a biometric identifier of a second user; pairing the first controller to the first user based on the location of the first controller and the location of the biometric identifier of the first user; pairing the second controller to the second user based on the location of the second controller and the location of the biometric identifier of the second user.

Claims

1. A method for managing multi-player interactivity with an interactive application, comprising:

determining a location of a first controller, the first controller having an illuminated portion that is controlled to display a first color, wherein determining the location of the first controller includes identifying the first color displayed by the illuminated portion of the first controller;

determining a location of a second controller, the second controller having an illuminated portion that is controlled to display a second color, the second color being a different color than the first color, wherein determining the location of the second controller includes identifying the second color displayed by the illuminated portion of the second controller;

determining a location of a face of a first user, wherein determining the location of the face of the first user includes identifying, in captured images of an interactive environment, a first search region limited to proximate to the first controller in the captured images, and searching the first search region in the captured images to identify the face of the first user;

determining a location of a face of a second user, wherein determining the location of the face of the second user includes identifying in the captured images a second search region limited to proximate to the second controller in the captured images, and searching the second search region in the captured images to identify the face of the second user;

pairing the first controller to the first user based on the location of the first controller and the location of the face of the first user;

pairing the second controller to the second user based on the location of the second controller and the location of the face of the second user;

in response to determining that the location of the first controller is proximate to the location of the face of the second user, changing the pairing of the first controller from the first user to the second user, and changing the illuminated portion of the first controller from the first color to the second color;

in response to determining that the location of the second controller is proximate to the location of the face of the first user, changing the pairing of the second controller from the second user to the first user, and changing the illuminated portion of the second controller from the second color to the first color;

wherein the method is executed by a processor.

2. The method of claim 1,

wherein determining the location of the first controller includes identifying the illuminated portion of the first controller;

and

wherein determining the location of the second controller includes identifying the illuminated portion of the second controller.

3. The method of claim 1,

wherein identifying the first search region includes identifying, in the captured images of the interactive environment, a predefined region shape oriented about the first controller that defines the first search;

and

wherein identifying the second search region includes identifying in the captured images a predefined region shape oriented about the second controller that defines the second search region.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising,

presenting a split-screen view of the interactive application, the split-screen view including a first view defined for the first user and a second view defined for the second user;

wherein locations of the first view and the second view in the split-screen view are determined based on one or more of the location of the first controller, the location of the second controller, the location of the biometric identifier of the first user, or the biometric identifier of the second user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the method is defined in the form of program instructions embodied on a computer readable medium.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the method is defined in the form of program instructions embodied on a computer readable medium.

7. A method for managing multi-player interactivity with an interactive application, comprising:

capturing images of an interactive environment;

analyzing the captured images to determine a location of a first controller;

analyzing the captured images to determine a location of a second controller;

analyzing the captured images to determine a location of a biometric identifier of a first user;

analyzing the captured images to determine a location of a biometric identifier of a second user;

pairing the first controller to the first user based on the location of the first controller and the location of the biometric identifier of the first user;

pairing the second controller to the second user based on the location of the second controller and the location of the biometric identifier of the second user;

wherein analyzing the captured images to determine the location of the biometric identifier of the first user includes identifying in the captured images a predefined region shape oriented about the first controller, that defines a first search region limited to proximate to the first controller in the captured images, and searching the first search region in the captured images to identify the biometric identifier of the first user; and

wherein analyzing the captured images to determine the location of the biometric identifier of the second user includes identifying in the captured images a predefined region shape oriented about the second controller, that defines a second search region limited to proximate to the second controller in the captured images, and searching the second search region in the captured images to identify the biometric identifier of the second user;

wherein the method is executed by a processor.

8. The method of claim 7,

wherein analyzing the captured images to determine the location of the first controller includes identifying an illuminated portion of the first controller;

and

wherein analyzing the captured images to determine the location of the second controller includes identifying an illuminated portion of the second controller.

9. The method of claim 8,

wherein identifying the illuminated portion of the first controller includes identifying a first color defined by the illuminated portion of the first controller;

and

wherein identifying the illuminated portion of the second controller includes identifying a second color defined by the illuminated portion of the second controller, the second color being a different color than the first color.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising,

determining a previous pairing of the first controller to the second user;

determining a previous pairing of the second controller to the first user;

changing the illuminated portion of the first controller from the first color to the second color;

changing the illuminated portion of the second controller from the second color to the first color.

11. The method of claim 7,

wherein the biometric identifier of the first user is defined by a face of the first user;

and

wherein the biometric identifier of the second user is defined by a face of the second user.

12. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

in response to identifying a previous pairing of the first controller to the second user and a previous pairing of the second controller to the first user, switching a color of an illuminated portion of the first controller with a color of an illuminated portion of the second controller.

13. A method for managing multi-player interactivity with an interactive application executing on a cloud processing server, comprising:

receiving image data captured from an interactive environment;

processing the captured image data to determine a location of a first controller, a location of a second controller, a location of a biometric identifier of a first user, and a location of a biometric identifier of a second user;

pairing the first controller to the first user based on the location of the first controller and the location of the biometric identifier of the first user;

pairing the second controller to the second user based on the location of the second controller and the location of the biometric identifier of the second user;

wherein processing the captured image data to determine the location of the biometric identifier of the first user includes identifying in the captured image data a predefined region shape oriented about the first controller, that defines a first search region limited to proximate to the first controller in the captured images, and searching the first search region in the captured image data to identify the biometric identifier of the first user; and

wherein processing the captured image data to determine the location of the biometric identifier of the second user includes identifying in the captured image data a predefined region shape oriented about the second controller, that defines a second search region limited to proximate to the second controller in the captured images, and searching the second search region in the captured image data to identify the biometric identifier of the second user;

wherein the method is executed by a processor.

14. The method of claim 13,

wherein determining the location of the first controller includes analyzing the captured image data to identify an illuminated portion of the first controller;

and

wherein determining the location of the second controller includes analyzing the captured image data to identify an illuminated portion of the second controller.

15. The method of claim 14,

wherein identifying the illuminated portion of the first controller includes identifying a first color defined by the illuminated portion of the first controller;

and

wherein identifying the illuminated portion of the second controller includes identifying a second color defined by the illuminated portion of the second controller, the second color being a different color than the first color.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising,

determining a previous pairing of the first controller to the second user;

determining a previous pairing of the second controller to the first user;

sending an instruction to change the illuminated portion of the first controller from the first color to the second color;

sending an instruction to change the illuminated portion of the second controller from the second color to the first color.

17. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

changing a color exhibited by the first controller to match a prior color associated to the first user; and

,

changing a color exhibited by the second controller to match a prior color associated to the second user.