Initiate events through hidden interactions

• US 10,279,272 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2015
• Issued: 05/07/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Original Assignee: Disney Enterprises Incorporated (The Walt Disney Company)
• Inventors: Hoomani, Cyrus, Crocker, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Fibbi, Christopher J
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tsai, James T
• Application Number:
  US14/947,380
• Publication Number:
  US 20160074758A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,264 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/10 Control of the course of the game, e.g. start, progess, end
• 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 13/30 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 13/45 Controlling the progress of the video game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/847 Cooperative playing, e.g. requiring coordinated actions from several players to achieve a common goal
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/87 Communicating with other players during game play, e.g. by e-mail or chat
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5533 using program state or machine event data, e.g. server keeps track of the state of multiple players on in a multiple player game
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/52 for supporting social networking services

Abstract

System, method, and computer program product to perform an operation comprising defining a plurality of associations between each of a plurality of triggers and a respective event, of a plurality of events, monitoring a communication in a virtual environment between a first user represented by a first avatar and a second user represented by a second avatar, the communication having an explicit meaning to the first and second users, determining that the communication has a predefined meaning between the first user and the second user, determining that the communication is defined as a first trigger, of the plurality of triggers, based on the communication having the predefined meaning, identifying a first association, of the plurality of associations, between the first trigger and a first event, of the plurality of events, and triggering the first event in the virtual environment based on the first association.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method to trigger events in a virtual environment based on communications with predefined semantic meanings specifically between users, the computer-implemented method comprising:

defining a plurality of associations between each of a plurality of triggers and a respective event, of a plurality of events, wherein the plurality of associations comprises at least one of;

(i) one or more predefined associations;

(ii) one or more associations dynamically generated responsive to detecting any new trigger; and

(iii) one or more user-defined associations;

monitoring a communication in a virtual environment between a first user represented by a first avatar and a second user represented by a second avatar, the communication having an explicit meaning to the first and second users;

determining that the communication has a predefined semantic meaning specifically between the first and second users and not discernible from the explicit meaning, by;

monitoring communications between the first and second users, computing an interaction score based on the monitored communications, and determining that the interaction score exceeds a relationship threshold;

upon determining that the communication is a new trigger in the virtual environment based on the communication having the predefined semantic meaning, dynamically defining, based on the new trigger, a first association, of the plurality of associations, between the new trigger and a first event, of the plurality of events; and

upon identifying a relationship between the first and second users in a user profile of one of the first and second users, triggering the first event in the virtual environment by operation of one or more computer processors and based on the first association and the identified relationship in the user profile, wherein an indication of the triggered first event is output.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the communication comprises at least one of:

(i) a text communication between the first user and the second user and (ii) a gesture from one of the first avatar and the second avatar to the remaining one of the first avatar and the second avatar.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first event is triggered by a virtual world application, wherein the virtual world application is configured to individually trigger each event comprising:

(i) a predefined activity in which the first user and the second user participate;

(ii) a predefined group activity in which the first user, the second user, and a third user participate, wherein the third user is invited responsive to user input from at least one of the first user and the second user;

(iii) a predefined graphical effect; and

(iv) a predefined audio effect.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first event is triggered upon determining that the first avatar and the second avatar are in a first predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the first predefined location is specific to the event, wherein a second event is triggered upon determining the first avatar and the second avatar are in a second predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the second event is different from the first event, wherein the second predefined location is different from the first predefined location.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first event is triggered by a virtual world application, wherein the communication comprises:

(i) a text communication between the first user and the second user and (ii) a gesture from one of the first avatar and the second avatar to the remaining one of the first avatar and the second avatar.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the first event can only be invoked in the virtual environment by occurrence of the communication, wherein the plurality of associations comprises:

(i) the one or more predefined associations;

(ii) the one or more associations dynamically generated responsive to detecting any new trigger; and

(iii) the one or more user-defined associations.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, further comprising:

storing an indication that the new trigger is one of the plurality of triggers; and

dynamically defining the first association, of the plurality of associations, between the new trigger and at least one of the plurality of events in a table storing the plurality of associations, wherein the table comprises a plurality of entries, wherein each entry specifies a respective;

(i) association identifier, (ii) trigger identifier, (iii) trigger name, (iv) trigger location, (v) event identifier, and (vi) event name.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 17, wherein the virtual world application is configured to trigger events based individually on each of a plurality of event characteristics, the plurality of event characteristics including:

(i) a first event characteristic comprising a user-defined event associated with the communication;

(ii) a second event characteristic comprising a location of the first avatar and the second avatar in the virtual environment; and

(iii) a third event characteristic comprising a number of avatars participating in the communication.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 18, wherein the virtual world application is configured to individually trigger each of a plurality of events including:

(i) a predefined activity in which the first user and the second user participate;

(ii) a predefined group activity in which the first user, the second user, and a third user participate, wherein the third user is invited responsive to user input from at least one of the first user and the second user;

(iii) a predefined graphical effect; and

(iv) a predefined audio effect.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 19, wherein the first event is triggered upon determining that the first avatar and the second avatar are in a first predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the first predefined location is specific to the event, wherein a second event is triggered upon determining the first avatar and the second avatar are in a second predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the second event is different from the first event, wherein the second predefined location is different from the first predefined location.

5. A computer program product to trigger events in a virtual environment based on communications with predefined semantic meanings specifically between users, the computer program product comprising:

a non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-readable program code embodied therewith, the computer-readable program code executable by one or more computer processors to perform an operation comprising;

defining a plurality of associations between each of a plurality of triggers and a respective event, of a plurality of events, wherein the plurality of associations comprises at least one of;

(i) one or more predefined associations;

(ii) one or more associations dynamically generated responsive to detecting any new trigger; and

(iii) one or more user-defined associations;

monitoring a communication in a virtual environment between a first user represented by a first avatar and a second user represented by a second avatar, the communication having an explicit meaning to the first and second users;

determining that the communication has a predefined semantic meaning between the first and second users and not discernible from the explicit meaning, by;

monitoring communications between the first and second users, computing an interaction score based on the monitored communications, and determining that the interaction score exceeds a relationship threshold;

upon determining that the communication is a new trigger in the virtual environment based on the communication having the predefined semantic meaning, dynamically defining, based on the new trigger, a first association, of the plurality of associations, between the new trigger and a first event, of the plurality of events; and

upon identifying a relationship between the first and second users in a user profile of one of the first and second users, triggering the first event in the virtual environment based on the first association and the identified relationship in the user profile, wherein an indication of the triggered first event is output.

6. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the communication comprises at least one of:

(i) a text communication between the first user and the second user and (ii) a gesture from one of the first avatar and the second avatar to the remaining one of the first avatar and the second avatar.

7. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the first event is triggered by a virtual world application, wherein the virtual world application is configured to trigger events based individually on each of a plurality of event characteristics selected from:

(i) a first event characteristic comprising a user-defined event associated with the communication;

(ii) a second event characteristic comprising a location of the first avatar and the second avatar in the virtual environment; and

(iii) a third event characteristic comprising a number of avatars participating in the communication.

8. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the first event is triggered by a virtual world application, wherein the virtual world application is configured to individually trigger each event comprising:

(i) a predefined activity in which the first user and the second user participate;

(ii) a predefined group activity in which the first user, the second user, and a third user participate, wherein the third user is invited responsive to user input from at least one of the first user and the second user;

(iii) a predefined graphical effect; and

(iv) a predefined audio effect.

9. The computer program product of claim 5, wherein the first event is triggered upon determining that the first avatar and the second avatar are in a first predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the first predefined location is specific to the event, wherein a second event is triggered upon determining the first avatar and the second avatar are in a second predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the second event is different from the first event, wherein the second predefined location is different from the first predefined location.

10. A system to trigger events in a virtual environment based on communications with predefined semantic meanings specifically between users, the system comprising:

one or more computer processors; and

a memory containing a program which, when executed by the one or more computer processors, performs an operation comprising;

defining a plurality of associations between each of a plurality of triggers and a respective event, of a plurality of events, wherein the plurality of associations comprises at least one of;

(i) one or more predefined associations;

(ii) one or more associations dynamically generated responsive to detecting any new trigger; and

(iii) one or more user-defined associations;

monitoring a communication in a virtual environment between a first user represented by a first avatar and a second user represented by a second avatar, the communication having an explicit meaning to the first and second users;

determining that the communication has a predefined semantic meaning specifically between the first and second users and not discernible from the explicit meaning, by;

monitoring communications between the first and second users, computing an interaction score based on the monitored communications, and determining that the interaction score exceeds a relationship threshold;

upon determining that the communication is a new trigger in the virtual environment based on the communication having the predefined semantic meaning, defining, based on the new trigger, a first association, of the plurality of associations, between the new trigger and a first event, of the plurality of events; and

upon identifying a relationship between the first and second users in a user profile of one of the first and second users, triggering the first event in the virtual environment based on the first association and the identified relationship in the user profile, wherein an indication of the triggered first event is output.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the communication comprises at least one of:

(i) a text communication between the first user and the second user and (ii) a gesture from one of the first avatar and the second avatar to the remaining one of the first avatar and the second avatar.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the first event is triggered by a virtual world application, wherein the virtual world application is configured to individually trigger each event comprising:

(i) a predefined activity in which the first user and the second user participate;

(ii) a predefined group activity in which the first user, the second user, and a third user participate, wherein the third user is invited responsive to user input from at least one of the first user and the second user;

(iii) a predefined graphical effect; and

(iv) a predefined audio effect.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein the first event is triggered by a virtual world application, wherein the virtual world application is configured to trigger events based individually on each of a plurality of event characteristics selected from:

(i) a first event characteristic comprising a user-defined event associated with the communication;

(ii) a second event characteristic comprising a location of the first avatar and the second avatar in the virtual environment; and

(iii) a third event characteristic comprising a number of avatars participating in the communication.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein the first event is triggered upon determining that the first avatar and the second avatar are in a first predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the first predefined location is specific to the event, wherein a second event is triggered upon determining the first avatar and the second avatar are in a second predefined location in the virtual environment, wherein the second event is different from the first event, wherein the second predefined location is different from the first predefined location.