Game providing server and game providing system

• US 20030003994A1
• Filed: 06/28/2002
• Published: 01/02/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Washio, Kazuto
• Granted Patent: US 6,846,239 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/40
• 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 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/335 using Internet
• 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 13/45 Controlling the progress of the video game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/407 Data transfer via internet

Abstract

The game providing server and game providing system allow a user to enjoy games using a desired image on his/her portable terminal. There are provided a recording device which records game programs and other information, a transmitting/receiving device which transmits information about types of game programs to a personal computer and receives information specifying a type of game program and an image used for the game from the personal computer, an image processing device (information processing device) which resizes the received image as required, and a transmitting/receiving device which transmits the specified game program and the converted image to a portable telephone.

Claims

1. A game providing server which receives an image used for a game run on a portable terminal of a user from a communications terminal of the user and sends the image and a game program that uses the image to the portable terminal, the game providing server comprising:

a recording device which records game programs run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal and information about types of the game programs by associating them with each other;

a first transmitting device which reads the information about the types of game program run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal out of the recording device and transmits the read information to the user'"'"'s communications terminal;

a receiving device which receives information specifying a type of game program to be run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal and an image to be used for the game from the user'"'"'s communications terminal;

an image processing device which converts the received image to be used for the game into a display image compatible with display capacity or display specifications of a display device installed on the user'"'"'s portable terminal; and

a second transmitting device which reads the specified game program from the recording device and transmits the read game program to the user'"'"'s portable terminal together with the display image.

2. A game providing system which sends an image used for a game run on a portable terminal of a user from a communications terminal of the user to a game providing server, receives the image used for the game run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal from a game providing server together with an appropriate game program, and runs the game program on the user'"'"'s portable terminal and displays game content using the image, the game providing system comprising:

a game providing server which comprises;

a first recording device which records game programs run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal and information about types of the game programs by associating them with each other;

a first transmitting device which reads the information about the types of game program run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal out of the first recording device and transmits the read information to the user'"'"'s communications terminal;

a first receiving device which receives information specifying a type of game program to be run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal and an image to be used for the game from the user'"'"'s communications terminal; and

a second transmitting device which reads the specified game program from the first recording device and transmits the read game program to the user'"'"'s portable terminal together with the received image to be used for the game;

a user'"'"'s communications terminal which comprises;

a second recording device which records images used for games;

a second receiving device which receives information about the types of game program run on the user'"'"'s portable terminal from the game providing server;

a first display device which displays the received information about the types of game program as well as images used for games read out of the second recording device;

an input device for the user to specify a desired game program and an image to be used for the game from among those displayed on the display device; and

a third transmitting device which transmits information about the type of game program with the image to be used for the game to the game providing server as specified by the user; and

a user'"'"'s portable terminal which comprises;

a third receiving device which receives the specified type of game program and the image to be used for the game from the game providing server;

an information processing device which runs the game program using the received image; and

a second display device which displays game content using the received image.