Deferred Teleportation or Relocation in Virtual Worlds

• US 20110055135A1
• Filed: 08/26/2009
• Published: 03/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Kyndryl Incorporated (Kyndryl Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: McGinley, Robert C., Dawson, Christopher J., Hamilton, Rick A. II, Pickover, Clifford A.
• Application Number:
  US12/547,792
• Publication Number:
  US 20110055135A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 706/47
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/533 for prompting the player, e.g. by displaying a game menu
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5372 for tagging characters, objects or locations in the game scene, e.g. displaying a circle under the character controlled by the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/61 using advertising information
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/87 Communicating with other players during game play, e.g. by e-mail or chat
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/306 for displaying a marker associated to an object or location in the game field
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5553 user representation in the game field, e.g. avatar
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/556 Player lists, e.g. online players, buddy list, black list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/572 Communication between players during game play of non game information, e.g. e-mail, chat, file transfer, streaming of audio and streaming of video
• 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: G06N 5/02 Knowledge representation; Symbolic representation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

A user of a virtual universe system is provided with the option of deferring a response to an invitation for an avatar to be relocated (including relocation by performing a (exportation operation) by providing for selective storage of received invitations in a queue with a priority determined based on one or more rules which can preferably be developed by conversion from an invitation. Status of issuers of invitations can be monitored or the issuers polled and the current status can be displayed to a user to determine actions to be taken in manipulating priority in the queue. The user is also provided with the capability of editing priority of stored invitations including the ability to accept, reject or forward the invitation or convert the invitation to a landmark. Invitations having similarities may be grouped in accordance with any desired metadata contained in the invitation. Rules can also be set from the virtual universe system independently of a user in regard to priority and thus provides a new form of advertising.

Claims

1. A method of managing teleportation invitations in a virtual universe, said method comprising:

logically analyzing an incoming teleportation invitation on the basis of at least the sender and proposed teleportation location; and

responsive to results of said logically analyzing step, automatically performing one of;

accepting the invitation,

rejecting the invitation, and

deferring response to the invitation by placing the invitation in a queue at a queue location having a priority based on said logically analyzing step.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein said logically analyzing step is performed based on rules in regard to metadata corresponding to at least an issuer of the invitation and a destination of the invitation.

3. The method as recited in claim 2 wherein said rules are created based on metadata in an invitation.

4. The method as recited in claim 3 wherein a rule specifics how a user is alerted to receipt of an invitation.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein a landmark is selectively created in response to results of said logically analyzing step or by user manipulation of said queue.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, further including altering order of invitations or controlling grouping of invitations in said queue by a user.

7. The method as recited in claim 1, further including indicating status of issuers of respective invitations in said queue.

8. A computer program product comprising a computer readable medium or a communication link supplying signals comprising a computer program, said computer program, when run on a computer, causing said computer to perform:

logically analyzing an incoming teleportation invitation on the basis of at least the sender and proposed teleportation location; and

responsive to results of said logically analyzing step, automatically performing one of;

accepting the invitation,

rejecting the invitation, and

deferring response to the invitation by placing the invitation in a queue at a queue location having a priority based on said logically analyzing step.

9. The computer program product as recited in claim 8 wherein said logically analyzing step is performed based on rules in regard to metadata corresponding to at least an issuer of the invitation and a destination of the invitation.

10. The computer program product as recited in claim 9 wherein said rules are created based on metadata in an invitation.

11. The computer program product as recited in claim 10 wherein a rule specifies how a user is alerted to receipt of an invitation.

12. The computer program product as recited in claim 8, wherein a landmark is selectively created in response to results of said logically analyzing step or by user manipulation of said queue.

13. The computer program product as recited in claim 8, wherein said program further causes the computer to perform:

altering order of invitations or controlling grouping of invitations in said queue by a user.

14. The computer program product as recited in claim 8, wherein said program causes the computer to perform the further step of indicating status of issuers of respective invitations in said queue.

15. A virtual universe system including

comparison means to compare metadata in an invitation to a plurality of rules,

storage for containing a queue of said invitations,

means for storing an invitation in said queue with a priority determined in accordance with a rule of said plurality of rules, and

means for manipulating priority of invitations, accepting an invitation or rejecting an invitation stored in said queue whereby an invitation may be deferred.

16. The virtual universe system as recited in claim 15, further including

polling means for determining status of issuers of respective invitations in said queue and displaying said status to a user.

17. The virtual universe system as recited in claim 15, further including

means for converting an invitation to form a rule of said plurality of rules.

18. The virtual universe system as recited in claim 15, wherein a rule of said plurality of rules specifies how a user is notified of receipt of an invitation.

19. The virtual universe system as recited in claim 15, wherein a rule of said plurality of rules is specified from said virtual universe system independently of user action.

20. A method of advertising using a virtual universe system including

logically analyzing an invitation in accordance with a rule;

and

deferring response to said invitation by storing said invitation in a queue with a priority specified in said rule from said virtual universe system and independently of a user.

21. A method of operating a virtual universe (VU system on a plurality of networked data processors, said method comprising configuring at least one data processor of said plurality of data processors to provide comparison means to compare metadata in an invitation to a plurality of rules,

storage for containing a queue of said invitations,

means for storing an invitation in said queue with a priority determined in accordance with a rule of said plurality of rules, and

means for manipulating priority of invitations, accepting and invitation or rejecting an invitation stored in said queue whereby an invitation may be deferred.