SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR LIMITING THE NUMBER OF CHARACTERS DISPLAYED IN A COMMON AREA

• US 20110201423A1
• Filed: 08/31/2010
• Published: 08/18/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ganz
• Original Assignee: Ganz
• Inventors: Borst, Karl Joseph, Larsen, John Alexander
• Granted Patent: US 9,403,089 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/31
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/358 Adapting the game course according to the network or server load, e.g. for reducing latency due to different connection speeds between clients
• 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 13/98 Accessories, i.e. detachable arrangements optional for the use of the video game device, e.g. grip supports of game controllers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/308 Details of the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5553 user representation in the game field, e.g. avatar
• 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

Abstract

A system providing a graphical chat room and/or virtual world on a website in which users can control avatars or other characters to participate in activities and interact with other users'"'"' avatars/characters. The chat room or virtual world has a large common location where a large number of users might participate with their characters/avatars, but where because display of all of the participants and/or all of the area becomes impractical or otherwise unwieldy, the system determines an appropriate portion of the area and a limited number of avatars/characters to display based on some criteria.

Claims

1. A method for providing characters for efficient display in a common room of an online entertainment system including at least one server, said method comprising the steps of:

providing a common area for participation by a plurality of characters engaging in the online entertainment system, said plurality of characters including a specific character of a particular user;

receiving input which enables selecting a portion of said common area for display to said particular user using said server;

determining a set of local characters from said plurality of characters that are stored in said server and are linked to users, wherein said set of local characters are characters that are present in said portion of said common area;

analyzing information in said server that is linked to said set of local characters or linked to a corresponding user of said set of local characters for matching a selected criteria linked to said specific character or linked to said particular user;

determining a subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area, wherein said subset is generated using said selected criteria to determine said subset from said set and where said subset includes fewer characters than said set; and

said server outputting data for displaying said subset of said set of local characters to a user computer associated with said particular user, wherein

said data has said subset of said set of local characters for display on the user computer with fewer characters than said set of local characters, thereby resulting in displaying less than all of those of said plurality of characters that are present in said portion of said common area.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said selected criteria includes whether each one of said characters or their corresponding user is on a friend'"'"'s list of said specific character or said particular user.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said subset of said set of local characters for display is selected to be less than or equal to a predetermined maximum number of characters for display in a particular display area.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein said subset of said set of local characters for display includes said specific character.

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising the step of further determining said subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area by also using another selected criteria to determine said subset only if the subset determined by using said selected criteria is less than said maximum.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising the step of further determining said subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area by also using another selected criteria to determine said subset only if the subset determined by using said selected criteria is more than said maximum to further reduce the number of characters in said subset to be at or below said maximum.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein, if said subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user is less than said maximum, said server selects additional character(s) from said set of local characters for providing in said subset such that the number of characters provided in said subset is equal to said maximum.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein said additional character(s) are selected from said set of local characters using another selected criteria.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein said additional character(s) are randomly selected from said set of local characters by said server.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein, for a different particular user using a different specific character in said portion of said common area, said server outputs data for displaying a different subset of said set of local characters to the user computer associated with said different particular user, said different subset having at least one character different than the characters of said subset.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein said server updates said subset on a periodic basis to accommodate changes in the set of local characters due to one or more of said plurality of characters arriving and/or leaving from said portion of said common area.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein said server updates said subset to accommodate changes in the set of local characters due to said specific character moving out of a previous portion of said common area to a new portion of said common area and/or due to other characters of said set of local characters moving into or out of said portion of said common area, wherein said subset is determined based on those of said set of local characters found in the portion of said common area where said specific character is currently present.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of further determining said subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area by also using another selected criteria to determine said subset.

14. A method for providing characters for efficient display in a common room of an online entertainment system including at least one server, said method comprising the steps of:

providing a common area for participation by a plurality of characters engaging in the online entertainment system, said plurality of characters including a specific character of a particular user;

receiving input which enables selecting a portion of said common area for display to said particular user using said server;

determining a set of local characters from said plurality of characters that are stored in said server and are linked to users, wherein said set of local characters are characters that are present in said portion of said common area;

analyzing information in said server that is linked to said set of local characters or linked to a corresponding user of said set of local characters for matching a selected criteria linked to said specific character or linked to said particular user;

determining a subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area, wherein said subset is generated using said selected criteria to determine said subset;

said server outputting data for displaying said subset of said set of local characters to a user computer associated with said particular user;

updating said subset on a periodic basis to accommodate changes in the set of local characters due to one or more of said plurality of characters arriving and/or leaving from said portion of said common area; and

regularly updating said subset to accommodate changes in the set of local characters due to said specific character moving out of a previous portion of said common area to a new portion of said common area and/or due to other characters of said set of local characters moving into or out of said portion of said common area, wherein said subset is determined based on those of said set of local characters found in the portion of said common area where said specific character is currently present, wherein

said subset of said set of local characters for display on the user computer has fewer characters than said set of local characters, thereby resulting in displaying less than all of those of said plurality of characters that are present in said portion of said common area, wherein

for a different particular user using a different specific character in said portion of said common area, said server outputs data for displaying a different subset of said set of local characters to the user computer associated with said different particular user, said different subset having at least one character different than the characters of said subset.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said selected criteria includes whether each one of said characters or their corresponding user is on a friend'"'"'s list of said specific character or said particular user.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein said subset of said set of local characters for display is selected to be less than or equal to a predetermined maximum number of characters for display in a particular display area.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising the step of further determining said subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area by also using another selected criteria to determine said subset only if the subset determined by using said selected criteria is less than said maximum.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising the step of further determining said subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area by also using another selected criteria to determine said subset only if the subset determined by using said selected criteria is more than said maximum to further reduce the number of characters in said subset to be at or below said maximum.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein, if said subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user is less than said maximum, said server selects additional character(s) from said set of local characters for providing in said subset such that the number of characters provided in said subset is equal to said maximum.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said additional character(s) are selected from said set of local characters using another selected criteria.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein said additional character(s) are randomly selected from said set of local characters by said server.

22. A method for providing characters for efficient display in a common room of an online entertainment system including at least one server, said method comprising the steps of:

providing a common area for participation by a plurality of characters engaging in the online entertainment system, said plurality of characters including a specific character of a particular user;

receiving input which enables selecting a portion of said common area for display to said particular user using said server;

determining a set of local characters from said plurality of characters, that are stored in said server and are linked to users, wherein said set of local characters are one or more of said plurality of characters that are present in said portion of said common area;

analyzing information in said server that is linked to said set of local characters or linked to a corresponding user of said set of local characters for matching a first selected criteria linked to said specific character or linked to said particular user;

analyzing information linked to each one of said set of local characters or linked to the corresponding user of said set of local characters for matching a second selected criteria linked to said specific character or linked to said particular user;

determining a subset of said set of local characters for display to said particular user as being present in said portion of said common area, wherein said subset is generated using both said first selected criteria and said second selected criteria to determine said subset; and

said server outputting data for displaying said subset of said set of local characters to a user computer associated with said particular user, wherein

said subset of said set of local characters for display on the user computer has fewer characters than said set of local characters, thereby resulting in displaying less than all of those of said plurality of characters that are present in said portion of said common area.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein said first selected criteria and said second selected criteria are selected from the group consisting of:

characters with whom the particular user is currently grouped or is actively chatting,

characters controlled by friends of the particular user,

characters controlled by users with the same home as the particular user,

characters currently visible to the particular user to provide a sense of temporal consistency,

characters controlled by friends of the particular user'"'"'s friends,

characters who were recently seen by the particular user,

characters who can see the particular user,

characters who speak the same dialect as the particular user,

characters who speak the same language as the particular user, and

characters from the same part of the world as the particular user.

24. A method of interacting with a common room in an internet system, comprising:

establishing from a client computer, a specific character for a user;

interacting over the internet in a common area with a plurality of characters, from the client computer, said interacting including the specific character;

selecting a portion of said common area for display; and

displaying a subset of local characters from among a total plurality of characters in said portion of said common area, said subset of local characters being less than all of said total plurality of characters, and said subset being based on a criteria associated with said interacting.

25. A method as in claim 24, wherein said criteria includes the subset that is associated with a friend'"'"'s list.