System and method for creating physical objects used with videogames

• US 10,349,250 B2
• Filed: 09/23/2015
• Issued: 07/09/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 09/23/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Activision Publishing Incorporated (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Activision Publishing Incorporated (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Reiche, Paul, Leyland, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Deodhar, Omkar A
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hall, Shauna-Kay
• Application Number:
  US14/862,976
• Publication Number:
  US 20170080333A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,385 Days
• Field of Search: 463 42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/25 Output arrangements for video game devices
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/355 Performing operations on behalf of clients with restricted processing capabilities, e.g. servers transform changing game scene into an encoded video stream for transmitting to a mobile phone or a thin client
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/95 Storage media specially adapted for storing game information, e.g. video game cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 10/00 Processes of additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 80/00 Products made by additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A user may create a customized virtual game character and the customized virtual game character may be physically substantiated. In some embodiments the virtual game character is physically substantiated by printing a representation of the virtual game character on a card, which in some embodiments has computer readable information regarding the virtual game character. In some embodiments the virtual game character is physically substantiated by making a toy in the form of the virtual game character, which in some embodiments has computer readable information regarding the virtual game character. In some embodiments the toy is made by way of 3-D printing, with for example character information uploaded from a user'"'"'s game machine to a 3-D printing facility, which may also receive additional detailed information about parts of the character from a third party server.

Claims

1. A method for creating and using a physical representation of a videogame character, comprising:

receiving information relating to a videogame character, the information including selections of physical attributes of different parts of the videogame character, ornamentation of the videogame character, and character capabilities of the videogame character from a game device;

substantiating the videogame character in a physical object in the form of a three-dimensional toy;

storing information relating to the videogame character in a machine readable/writeable storage component of the physical object;

and

providing for videogame play which includes reading the information relating to the videogame character from the machine readable/writeable storage component of the physical object, using the information relating to the videogame character to present the videogame character in the videogame, and providing game player control of the videogame character in the videogame.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein substantiating the videogame character in the three dimensional toy comprises printing the three dimensional toy by a 3-D printer.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the information relating to the videogame character is received by a first computer.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the information relating to the videogame character defines a visual appearance of the videogame character.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the information relating to the videogame character is identification information which identifies various parts of the videogame character;

and wherein substantiating the videogame character further comprises;

transmitting over the network, by the first computer, the identification information to a second computer.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising receiving selections of the videogame character capabilities from the game device.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the machine readable/writeable storage component comprises an RFID chip.