Method and apparatus for awarding trophies

• US 10,213,693 B2
• Filed: 12/01/2016
• Issued: 02/26/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Lindquist, Timothy, Weising, George, Norton, Geoffrey Piers Robert, Stine, Jacob P., Tolstov, Dmitri, Kazama, Takayuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Harper, Tramar
• Application Number:
  US15/366,776
• Publication Number:
  US 20170157517A1
• Time in Patent Office: 817 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/69 by enabling or updating specific game elements, e.g. unlocking hidden features, items, levels or versions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/798 for assessing skills or for ranking players, e.g. for generating a hall of fame computing the game score A63F13/46
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/95 Storage media specially adapted for storing game information, e.g. video game cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/22 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures

Abstract

A computer-implemented method assigns one or more trophies to a user. A game is emulated in response to a request from a client device. A trophy trigger is detected during emulation of the game by comparing a current program counter value to a predetermined value and comparing a stored instruction in an instruction storage location to a predetermined instruction when the current program counter value matches the predetermined counter value. The one or more trophies are assigned to a user account that is associated with the user when the current program counter value matches the predetermined value and the instruction in the instruction storage location matches the predetermined instruction.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for assigning one or more trophies to a user, comprising:

emulating a game in response to a request from a client device;

detecting a trophy trigger during emulation of the game by comparing a current program counter value to a predetermined program counter value and comparing a stored instruction in an instruction storage location to a predetermined instruction value when the current program counter value matches the predetermined program counter value;

performing one or more additional checks for validity before assigning the one or more trophies, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for recognition of a particular string within a frame image, API call, or frame image; and

assigning the one or more trophies to a user account that is associated with the user when the current program counter value matches the predetermined program counter value and the instruction in the instruction storage location matches the predetermined instruction value.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for a particular screen, audio, haptic, or IP Stack configuration.

3. The method claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes comparing an image corresponding to a current frame displayed by the game to a predetermined image.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein comparing the image corresponding to the current frame displayed by the game to the predetermined image includes comparing a hash of the image corresponding to the current frame displayed by the game to a hash of the predetermined image.

5. The method claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking a level ID or number of lives.

6. The method claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for recognition of a particular filename accessed by the game.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes comparing a list trophies won by the user to a predetermined sequence of trophies.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking media access of a particular storage medium associated with the game.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for access of a particular sector of a disk.

10. The method according to claim 1, performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for access of a plurality of sectors of a disk in a particular sequence.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for access of a plurality of sectors in a particular sequence based on previous triggered disk access.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the user views the files and selects a trophy trigger among a plurality of potential trophy triggers.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the file names on the disk determine a corresponding file.

14. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

storing trophies that have been assigned in a database.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein each of the one or more trophies is assigned to a single user.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein when a sequence of triggers is required to trigger a trophy.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein partially earned trophies are stored in the database.

18. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

scanning the content of the disk; and

identifying the file format, thereby making the content viewable in a tool.

19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the user defines a trigger by actuating a command at a particular time during media content access when tracking in-game disk reading patterns.

20. A system, comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor containing computer executable instructions configured to implement a computer-implemented method for assigning one or more trophies to a user when executed by the processor, the method comprising;

emulating a game in response to a request from a client device;

detecting a trophy trigger during emulation of the game by comparing a current program counter value to a predetermined program counter value and comparing a stored instruction in an instruction storage location to a predetermined instruction value when the current program counter value matches the predetermined program counter value;

performing one or more additional checks for validity before assigning the one or more trophies, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for recognition of a particular string within a frame image, API call, or frame image; and

assigning the one or more trophies to a user account that is associated with the user when the current program counter value matches the predetermined program counter value and the instruction in the instruction storage location matches the predetermined instruction value.

21. A non-transitory computer readable medium having computer executable instructions embodied therein, the computer executable instructions being configured to implement a computer-implemented method for assigning one or more trophies to a user when executed, the method comprising:

emulating a game in response to a request from a client device;

detecting a trophy trigger during emulation of the game by comparing a current program counter value to a predetermined program counter value and comparing a stored instruction in an instruction storage location to a predetermined instruction value when the current program counter value matches the predetermined program counter value;

performing one or more additional checks for validity before assigning the one or more trophies, wherein performing the one or more additional checks includes checking for recognition of a particular string within a frame image, API call, or frame image; and

assigning the one or more trophies to a user account that is associated with the user when the current program counter value matches the predetermined program counter value and the instruction in the instruction storage location matches the predetermined instruction value.