Graphics images system and method

• US 20070018997A1
• Filed: 03/30/2006
• Published: 01/25/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Edwards, David
• Granted Patent: US 7,400,329 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/605
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/00 Video games, i.e. games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions gaming systems which provide a financial reward G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5375 for graphically or textually suggesting an action, e.g. by displaying an arrow indicating a turn in a driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• 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 2300/66 for rendering three dimensional images
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/147 using display panels
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/145 related to small screens

Abstract

A system for 3-dimensional gaming on a mobile handset is provided. The system includes a converter component operable to convert a pre-rendered 3-dimensional graphic image having 24-bit color resolution to a 3-dimensional graphic image having 16-bit color resolution. The component further operable such that the 3-dimensional graphic image having 16-bit color resolution is run length encoded. The system includes a mobile handset game operable to use the 3-dimensional run length encoded graphic image having 16-bit color resolution for display on a handset as part of the mobile handset game.

Claims

1. A system for 3-dimensional gaming on a mobile handset, comprising:

a converter component operable to convert a pre-rendered 3-dimensional graphic image having 24-bit color resolution to a 3-dimensional graphic image having 16-bit color resolution, the component further operable such that the 3-dimensional graphic image having 16-bit color resolution is run length encoded; and

a mobile handset game operable to use the 3-dimensional run length encoded graphic image having 16-bit color resolution for display on a handset as part of the mobile handset game.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a tool operable to create a 3-dimensional graphic image having 24-bit color resolution, the tool further operable to pre-render the 3-dimensional graphic image having 24-bit color resolution.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the tool is further operable to store the 3-dimensional graphic image having 24-bit color resolution as .tga file format, including 8-bits of transparency per pixel.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the converter is further defined as operable to convert the .tga file format to the 3-dimensional graphic image having 16-bit color resolution.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein converting the pre-rendered 24-bit 3-dimensional graphic image to an 16-bit 3-dimensional graphic image is further defined as converting 8-bit Red, 8-bit Green, and 8-bit Blue (24-bit 8-8-8 RGB) to 5-bit Red, 6-bit Green, 5-bit Blue (16-bit 5-6-5 RGB).

6. The system of claim 5, wherein converting the pre-rendered 24-bit 3-dimensional graphic image to an 16-bit 3-dimensional graphic image is further defined as using the first 5 most significant bits of the 8-bits of Red, using the 6 most significant bits of the 8-bits of Green, and using the 5 most significant bits of the 8-bits of Blue to convert from 8-8-8 RGB to 5-6-5 RGB.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein run length encoding the 16-bit 3-dimensional graphic image is further defined as including transition encoding to compress the 16-bit 3-dimensional graphics image.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile handset game is further defined as having a 360-degree view wherein a player is positioned in a fixed center of the 360-degree view and the player'"'"'s view is operable for 360-degree rotation about the fixed center position of the game.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising a mobile handset operable to play the mobile handset game and wherein the mobile handset is further defined one of a mobile phone and a personal digital assistant.

10. A method for 3-dimensional gaming on a mobile handset, comprising:

creating a 3-dimensional graphic image;

pre-rendering the graphics image;

run length encoding at least a portion of the pre-rendered graphics image; and

displaying the run length encoded pre-rendered graphic image on a mobile handset as part of a game on a mobile handset.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising converting the graphics image from a 24-bit color image to an 16-bit color image.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

creating 3-dimensional graphic images of each view of a character for a 3-dimensional game;

pre-rendering each of the graphics images of the character;

run length encoding at least a portion of each of the pre-rendered graphics images; and

displaying at least some of the run length encoded pre-rendered graphic images on the mobile handset as part of a game on mobile handset at about 15 frames per second.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising displaying at least some of the run length encoded pre-rendered graphic images on the mobile handset as part of the game on the mobile handset at a rate of at least 15 frames per second.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the game is further defined as a first person shooter game wherein player is provide in a center of a 360-degree scene and operable for substantially only about rotation about the center of the 360-degree scene.

15. A data file structure for graphics images for 3-dimensional gaming on a mobile handset, the data file structure obtained according to a method comprising:

converting a plurality of pre-rendered 3-dimensional images having 24-bit color resolution to 3-dimensional graphics images having 16-bit color resolution;

run length encoding the 3-dimensional graphics images having 16-bit color resolution; and

saving the 3-dimensional graphics images having 16-bit color resolution for display for the game on the mobile handsets.

16. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 15, further comprising:

using a tool to create a plurality of 3-dimensional graphic images having 24-bit color resolution for use in a game for mobile handsets; and

pre-rendering the 3-dimensional graphics images having 24-bit color resolution.

17. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 16, further comprising using the tool to pre-render the 3-dimensional graphic images having 24-bit color resolution.

18. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 17, further comprising saving the pre-rendered graphics file image as .tga file format.

19. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 15, wherein the pre-rendered 3-dimensional images having 24-bit color resolution further includes 8-bit per pixel for alpha channel anti-aliasing.

20. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 15, wherein the run length encoding is further defined as compressing the 3-dimensional graphics images having 16-bit color resolution at a compression rate of approximately 10 to 1 or greater.

21. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 15, wherein converting the pre-rendered 3-dimensional graphic images having 24-bit color resolution to 3-dimensional graphic images having 16-bit color resolution is further defined as converting 8-bit Red, 8-bit Green, and 8-bit Blue (24-bit 8-8-8 RGB) to 5-bit Red, 6-bit Green, 5-bit Blue (16-bit 5-6-5 RGB).

22. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 21, wherein converting the pre-rendered 3-dimensional graphic images having 24-bit color resolution to a 3-dimensional graphic images having 16-bit color resolution is further defined as using the first 5 most significant bits of the 8-bits of Red, using the 6 most significant bits of the 8-bits of Green, and using the 5 most significant bits of the 8-bits of Blue to convert from 8-8-8RGB to 5-6-5 RGB.

23. The data file structure obtained according to the method of claim 15, wherein the pre-rendered 3-dimensional images having 24-bit color resolution represent transparency using 8 bits per pixel and wherein the run length encoding is further defined as encoding the transparency information of the pre-rendered 3-dimensional images having 24-bit color resolution.