Methods systems and computer program products for transporting users in three dimensional virtual reality worlds using transportation vehicles

• US 6,271,843 B1
• Filed: 05/30/1997
• Issued: 08/07/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 05/30/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Activision Publishing Incorporated (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Lection, David Bruce, Brush, II, Abbott Purdy, Schell, David Allen, Sizer, Kevin Baker
• Primary Examiner(s): Bayerl, Raymond J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Joseph, Thomas J.
• Application Number:
  US08/866,826
• Time in Patent Office: 1,530 Days
• Field of Search: 345/419, 345/427, 345/423, 345/355, 345/327, 345/326, 434/62, 434/69, 463/32
• US Class Current: 715/848
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/00 3D [Three Dimensional] image rendering

Abstract

Methods, systems and computer program products are provided which transport a user in a virtual reality environment from a first location to a second location by providing a transportation vehicle that receives the user at the first location, receiving a destination signal from the user which indicates the second location as a destination, transporting the user in the transportation vehicle to the second location independent of any user input, and providing customized information to the user when the user is in the transportation vehicle. The transportation may be inter-world or intra-world. The customized information can take any number of forms such as dynamic visual scenery, audio messages, static visual graphics, video images, or any combination thereof.

Claims

1. A method for transporting a representation of a user of a client in a virtual reality environment provided by a server from a first location to a second location, comprising the steps of:

providing a transportation vehicle from the server to the client that receives the representation of the user at the first location;

receiving, at the server, a destination signal from the client which indicates the second location as a destination;

transporting the representation of the user in the transportation vehicle through the virtual reality environment to the second location independent of user control while the second location is provided to the client; and

providing customized information to the client when the representation of the user is in the transportation vehicle.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of transporting the representation of the user includes transporting the representation of the user from the first location in a first virtual reality world and the second location in a second virtual reality world wherein at least one of the first virtual reality world and the second virtual reality world is received by the client from the server.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of transporting the representation of the user includes transporting the representation of the user from the first location in a first virtual reality world to the second location in the first virtual reality world.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of providing customized information includes providing dynamic visual scenery from the server to the client.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of providing customized information includes providing an audio message from the server to the client.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of providing customized information includes providing static visual graphics.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of providing customized information includes providing video images from the server to the client.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of providing customized information includes providing information that is selected based upon user preferences.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of providing customized information includes providing customized information for a period of time.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the period of time is predetermined.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the period of time is dependent upon when the second location is available to the client.

12. The method of claim 2, wherein said step of providing a transportation vehicle includes receiving, at the client, an intermediate world from the server comprising the transportation vehicle.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said step of receiving, at the client, the intermediate world includes downloading the intermediate world from a proxy.

14. An apparatus for transporting a representation of a user of a client in a virtual reality environment from a first location to a second location, comprising:

means for providing a transportation vehicle that receives the representation of a user of the client at the first location;

means for receiving, at the server, a destination signal from the client which indicates the second location as a destination;

means for transporting the representation of the user in the transportation vehicle through the virtual environment to the second location independent of user control while the second location is provided to the client; and

means for providing customized information to the client when the representation of the user is in the transportation vehicle.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said means for transporting the representation of the user include means for transporting the representation of the user from the first location in a first virtual reality world and the second location in a second virtual reality world wherein at least one of the first virtual reality world and the second virtual reality world are provided to the client by the server.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said means for transporting the representation of the user include means for transporting the representation of the user from the first location in a first virtual reality world to the second location in the first virtual reality world.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the customized information includes dynamic visual scenery.

18. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the customized information includes an audio message.

19. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the customized information includes static visual graphics.

20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the customized information includes video images.

21. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the representation of the user is an avatar.

22. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said means for providing customized information includes means for providing information that is selected based upon user preferences.

23. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said means for providing customized information includes means for providing customized information for a period of time.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the period of time is predetermined.

25. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the period of time is dependent upon when the second location is available to the client.

26. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein said means for providing a transportation vehicle includes means for downloading from the server to the client an intermediate world comprising the transportation vehicle.

27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein said means for downloading from the server to the client the intermediate world includes means for downloading the intermediate world from a proxy.

28. A computer program product for transporting a representation of a user of a client in a virtual reality environment provided by a server from a first location to a second location, the computer program product comprising:

a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code means embodied in said medium, said computer-readable program code means comprising;

computer readable program code means for providing to the client a transportation vehicle that receives the representation of the user at the first location;

computer readable program code means for receiving, at the server a destination signal from the client which indicates the second location as a destination;

computer readable program code means for transporting the representation of the user in the transportation vehicle through the virtual environment to the second location independent of user control while the second location is provided to the user; and

computer readable program code means for providing customized information to the client while the representation of the user is in the transportation vehicle.

29. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein said computer readable program code means for transporting the representation of the user include computer readable program code means for transporting the representation of the user from the first location in a first virtual reality world and the second location in a second virtual reality world wherein at least one of the first virtual reality world and the second virtual reality world are provided to the client by the server.

30. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein said computer readable program code means for transporting the representation of the user include computer readable program code means for transporting the representation of the user from the first location in a first virtual reality world to the second location in the first virtual reality world.

31. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein the customized information includes dynamic visual scenery.

32. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein the customized information includes an audio message.

33. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein the customized information includes static visual graphics.

34. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein the customized information includes video images.

35. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein the representation of the user is an avatar.

36. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein said computer readable program code means for providing customized information includes computer readable program code means for providing information that is selected based upon user preferences.

37. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein said computer readable program code means for providing customized information includes computer readable program code means for providing customized information for a period of time.

38. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the period of time is predetermined.

39. The computer program product of claim 37, wherein the period of time is dependent upon when the second location is available to the client.

40. The computer program product of claim 28, wherein said computer readable program code means for providing a transportation vehicle includes computer readable program code means for downloading from the server to the client an intermediate world comprising the transportation vehicle.

41. The computer program product of claim 38, wherein said computer readable program code means for downloading from the server to the client the intermediate world includes computer readable program code means for downloading the intermediate world from a proxy.