Implementing branching operations at processing intersections in interactive applications
First Claim
1. A computer-implemented process for handling branching operations during an interactive application, comprising the steps of:
- (a) identifying, by a computer, a possible processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application, wherein;
the processing intersection corresponds to two or more possible processing paths; and
each processing path is associated with one or more streams of signals;
(b) preprocessing, by the computer, each stream of signals of the processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application before reaching the processing intersection;
(c) selecting, by the computer, one of the processing paths upon reaching the processing intersection in response to flow of the interactive application; and
(d) further processing, by the computer, the one or more streams of signals associated with the selected processing path.
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Accused Products
Abstract
One or more streams of signals (e.g., audio/video sequences) are associated with the different possible processing paths of processing intersections of an interactive computer application. For example, in a computer-based video game, the flow of processing may approach an intersection where the user may select any one of a number of different paths, each path being associated with a different audio/video sequence corresponding to that path. As the flow of the application progresses towards the intersection, the different audio/video sequences associated with the different paths of that intersection are preprocessed. Preprocessing may include preloading the audio/video sequences and optionally partially decompressing the audio/video sequences. When the flow of the application reaches the intersection, one of the possible paths is selected based on the actions taken by the user. The application causes the audio/video sequence associated with the selected path to be played and the other sequences to be dropped. In this way, the interactive application is provided with smooth transitions at processing intersections. The invention avoids the delays that would otherwise result at a processing intersection from opening the audio/video file associated with the selected path and beginning to decompress the compressed signals contained in that file.
15 Citations
27 Claims
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1. A computer-implemented process for handling branching operations during an interactive application, comprising the steps of:
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(a) identifying, by a computer, a possible processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application, wherein; the processing intersection corresponds to two or more possible processing paths; and each processing path is associated with one or more streams of signals; (b) preprocessing, by the computer, each stream of signals of the processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application before reaching the processing intersection; (c) selecting, by the computer, one of the processing paths upon reaching the processing intersection in response to flow of the interactive application; and (d) further processing, by the computer, the one or more streams of signals associated with the selected processing path. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. An apparatus for handling branching operations during an interactive application, comprising:
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(a) means for identifying a possible processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application, wherein; the processing intersection corresponds to two or more possible processing paths; and each processing path is associated with one or more streams of signals; (b) means for preprocessing each stream of signals of the processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application before reaching the processing intersection; (c) means for selecting one of the processing paths upon reaching the processing intersection in response to flow of the interactive application; and (d) means for further processing the one or more streams of signals associated with the selected processing path. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A storage medium encoded with machine-readable computer program code for handling branching operations during an interactive application, comprising:
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(a) means for causing a computer to identify a possible processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application, wherein; the processing intersection corresponds to two or more possible processing paths; and each processing path is associated with one or more streams of signals; (b) means for causing the computer to preprocess each stream of signals of the processing intersection during real-time implementation of the interactive application before reaching the processing intersection; (c) means for causing the computer to select one of the processing paths upon reaching the processing intersection in response to flow of the interactive application; and (d) means for causing the computer to further process the one or more streams of signals associated with the selected processing path. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification