Systems and methods for managing a persistent virtual avatar with migrational ability

• US 10,406,441 B2
• Filed: 11/11/2014
• Issued: 09/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Botanic Technologies, Inc., Ogg Trading, LLC (OTC Exchange Network, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Botanic Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Nathan, Paco Xander, Cox, Cathi Joann, Leibert, Florian Thomas, Meadows, Mark Stephen, Mallis, Jan Susan
• Primary Examiner(s): Lu, Hua
• Application Number:
  US14/538,192
• Publication Number:
  US 20150082205A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,764 Days
• Field of Search: None
• 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 13/352 involving special game server arrangements, e.g. regional servers connected to a national server or a plurality of servers managing partitions of the game world
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/63 by the player, e.g. authoring using a level editor
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/85 Providing additional services to players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/51 Server architecture
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5553 user representation in the game field, e.g. avatar
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6009 for importing or creating game content, e.g. authoring tools during game development, adapting content to different platforms, use of a scripting language to create content
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6018 where the game content is authored by the player, e.g. level editor or by game device at runtime, e.g. level is created from music data on CD
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34

Abstract

Systems and methods for managing a virtual avatar with migrational ability, and brokering information, are provided. The persistent avatar exists in a plurality of virtual environments and includes attributes generated by an attribute generator, an enabler for enabling virtual environments to access the stored attribute data, and a migrator for allowing the avatar to migrate from one virtual environment to another while the attributes of the persistent avatar remain substantially constant. The enabler utilizes at least one client based on protocol suite. Stored attribute data is modifiable by experiences in any virtual environment. User of the persistent avatar is notified when events occur in any virtual environment, or within real life, by monitoring for events with a monitor, assessing importance of the event with an assessor, and notifying the owner with an informer of the event if it exceeds a threshold of importance.

Claims

1. An autonomous persistent avatar management system for managing autonomous persistent avatars across a plurality of virtual environments, comprising:

a memory that stores computer executable components and at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute for an autonomous persistent avatar,

wherein the intellectual attribute includes data indicative of a backstory, a history, and a memory associated with the autonomous persistent avatar, and

wherein the emotional attribute includes data indicative of an emotional disposition, a reaction algorithm, and a response algorithm associated with the autonomous persistent avatar; and

a processor that executes at least the following computer executable components stored in the memory;

a first enabler to access the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute and transpose the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar to be compatible with a user interface of a first virtual environment among a plurality of virtual environments to enable rendering of the autonomous persistent avatar in the first virtual environment using the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute; and

a second enabler to access the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute and transpose the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar to be compatible with a user interface of a second virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments to enable rendering of the autonomous persistent avatar in the second virtual environment using the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute.

2. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, further comprising another enabler configured to transpose the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar to be compatible with another interface of another virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments thereby enabling the another virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments to utilize the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar.

3. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 2, further comprising a migrator configured to migrate the autonomous persistent avatar from the virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments to the another virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments, wherein the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar remains substantially consistent from the virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments to the another virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments.

4. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, wherein the enabler includes at least one client module, and wherein the at least one client module is based on a protocol suite.

5. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, wherein the autonomous persistent avatar management system is hosted within a network operation center.

6. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, wherein the autonomous persistent avatar is associated with a user while the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute remains autonomous of any user, and wherein the autonomous persistent avatar management system is hosted by the user.

7. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, further comprising an attribute generator configured to generate the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar.

8. The autonomous persistent avatar management system as recited in claim 7, wherein the attribute generator generates the at least one attribute from a plurality of pre-selectable attributes.

9. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, wherein the autonomous persistent avatar further includes at least one social attribute.

10. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, wherein the intellectual attribute of the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute is updated as the autonomous persistent avatar experiences events within the virtual environment.

11. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, wherein an update to the intellectual attribute of the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute is rendered by another enabler of another virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments to be compatible with a user interface of the other virtual environment.

12. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

a physical attribute including any of strength data and appearance data;

wherein the enabler is configured to render the physical attribute to be compatible with the user interface of the virtual environment.

13. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to:

parse natural language components of the backstory to generate an editable grid concept-map; and

provide the editable grid concept-map to a user for editing.

14. The autonomous persistent avatar management system, as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

a personal information access broker configured to authenticate a virtual environment based on a trust ranking associated with the virtual environment to determine an access level to personal information of a user, wherein the access level is one of full access, limited access, or restricted access.

15. A method for managing an autonomous persistent avatar, the method comprising:

rendering the autonomous persistent avatar in a first virtual environment of a plurality of virtual environments using an intellectual and/or emotional attribute;

receiving attribute data indicating a change made to the intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar in a second virtual environment of the plurality of virtual environments;

transposing the changed intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar to be rendered in a format compatible with a user interface of the first virtual environment to enable rendering of the autonomous persistent avatar in the virtual environment among the plurality of virtual environments using the changed intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar,

wherein the intellectual attribute includes data indicative of a backstory, a history, and a memory associated with the autonomous persistent avatar,

wherein the emotional attribute includes data indicative of an emotional disposition, a reaction algorithm, and a response algorithm associated the autonomous persistent avatar, and

wherein the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar is used in other virtual environments among the plurality of virtual environments.

16. The method, as recited in claim 15, further comprising transposing the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar to be rendered in a format compatible with another interface of another virtual environment thereby enabling the another virtual environment to utilize the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar.

17. The method, as recited in claim 16, further comprising migrating the autonomous persistent avatar from the first virtual environment to the second virtual environment, wherein the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar remains substantially consistent from the first virtual environment to the second virtual environment.

18. The method, as recited in claim 16, wherein each of the first and the second of virtual environments includes at least one of an online game, a social network, a web community, a shared simulation based on user-created content, a virtual overlay on physical world data, and a telecommunication device.

19. The method, as recited in claim 15, wherein the autonomous persistent avatar includes at least one of a character, a non-player character, a quasi-player character, an agent, a personal assistant, a personality, a guide, an educator and a representation.

20. The method, as recited in claim 19, wherein the autonomous persistent avatar is editable.

21. The method, as recited in claim 20, further comprising modifying the at least one intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar, wherein the modifying is triggered by an experience in one of the first and the second virtual environments.

22. The method, as recited in claim 15, wherein the autonomous persistent avatar represents a plurality of persistent avatars.

23. An autonomous persistent avatar management system for managing an autonomous persistent avatar rendered in a plurality of virtual environments, comprising:

a memory that stores computer executable instructions; and

a processor that executes the computer executable instructions stored in the memory, the computer executable instructions when executed by the processor causing the processor to;

render the autonomous persistent avatar in a first virtual environment of the plurality of virtual environments using an intellectual and/or emotional attribute;

receive attribute data indicating a change made to the intellectual and/or emotional attribute of the autonomous persistent avatar in a second virtual environment of the plurality of virtual environments;

transpose the changed intellectual and/or emotional attribute to be compatible with a user interface of the first virtual environment; and

render the autonomous persistent avatar in the first virtual environment using the transposed intellectual or emotional attribute.