System and method for multiplayer mobile games using device surrogates
First Claim
1. A distributed computing system comprising:
- a capable network environment;
a plurality of remote computing devices in communication with the capable network environment; and
a plurality of surrogates operating within the capable network environment;
wherein each of the remote computing devices is associated with one of the surrogates and the surrogates are logically organized into groups allowing the remote devices related to the grouped surrogates to participate in an activity together.
6 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A system and method allows multiple remote devices to form ad hoc groups over a network to participate in an activity. Each remote device is represented by a software surrogate, that is usually specific to the activity, device and communication channel. Where the remote device has limited computational power its surrogate can handle much of the computation necessary to participate in the activity. The surrogate can also queue communication to and from a remote device to make up for communication lapses common in wireless networks. The surrogate can also track usage information and persist the state of the activity. One embodiment is for multi-player gaming over cellular data networks using telephones, PDAs or the like. Another embodiment is for communication between emergency first responders.
37 Citations
52 Claims
-
1. A distributed computing system comprising:
-
a capable network environment;
a plurality of remote computing devices in communication with the capable network environment; and
a plurality of surrogates operating within the capable network environment;
wherein each of the remote computing devices is associated with one of the surrogates and the surrogates are logically organized into groups allowing the remote devices related to the grouped surrogates to participate in an activity together. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
-
-
11. A method of operating a multi-user activity comprising the steps of:
-
a first remote device contacting a capable network environment and requesting to participate in the activity;
the network environment instantiating a first surrogate assigned to the first remote device;
a second remote device contacting the capable network environment and requesting to participate in the activity;
the network environment instantiating a second surrogate assigned to the second remote device;
arranging the first surrogate and the second surrogate into a group; and
the first remote device and the second remote device participating in the activity together. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
-
-
21. A computer readable medium containing instruction for controlling a computer system to perform a method of operating a multi-user activity comprising the steps of:
-
a first remote device contacting a capable network environment and requesting to participate in the activity;
the network environment instantiating a first surrogate assigned to the first remote device;
a second remote device contacting the capable network environment and requesting to participate in the activity;
the network environment instantiating a second surrogate assigned to the second remote device;
arranging the first surrogate and the second surrogate into a group; and
the first remote device and the second remote device participating in the activity together. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
-
-
31. A multiplayer gaming system for wireless telephone networks comprising:
-
a wireless telephone network;
a capable network environment connected to the telephone network;
a plurality of mobile devices wirelessly connected to the telephone network; and
a plurality of surrogates operating within the capable network environment;
wherein each of the remote computing devices is associated with one of the surrogates and the surrogates are logically organized into groups allowing the remote devices related to the grouped surrogate to participate in an activity together. - View Dependent Claims (32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
-
-
40. A method of operating a multi-user game comprising the steps of:
-
a first mobile device contacting a capable network environment and requesting to participate in the game;
the network environment instantiating a first surrogate assigned to the first mobile device;
a second mobile device contacting the capable network environment and requesting to participate in the activity;
the network environment instantiating a second surrogate assigned to the second mobile device;
arranging the first surrogate and the second surrogate into a group; and
the first mobile device and the second mobile device participating in the game together. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42, 43, 44, 45)
-
-
46. A computer readable medium containing instruction for controlling a computer system to perform a method of operating a multi-user game comprising the steps of:
-
a first mobile device contacting a capable network environment and requesting to participate in the game;
the network environment instantiating a first surrogate assigned to the first mobile device;
a second mobile device contacting the capable network environment and requesting to participate in the activity;
the network environment instantiating a second surrogate assigned to the second mobile device;
arranging the first surrogate and the second surrogate into a group; and
the first mobile device and the second mobile device participating in the game together. - View Dependent Claims (47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
-
Specification