Presenting and filtering objects in a virtual world
First Claim
1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
- receiving an indication of a requirement to present a plurality of elements to a user of a virtual world, wherein the user is represented by an avatar in the virtual world, wherein the plurality of elements include avatars representative of other users and other display objects representative of physical objects;
determining, for the plurality of elements, respective degrees of importance to the user, wherein the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements are specified in a user profile of the user or the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements is determined based on past interactions of the user with the each of the plurality of elements;
determining a density of elements to be presented to the user;
determining, based on the respective degrees of importance and the density of elements, one or more display characteristics for each element, wherein the one or more display characteristics indicate the degree of importance of each element to the user, and wherein determining one or more display characteristics for each element comprises sorting the plurality of elements according to their respective degrees of importance; and
presenting the sorted plurality of elements to the user, wherein each element is presented according to its respective one or more display characteristics.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Embodiments of the invention provide techniques for filtering and presenting elements of an immersive virtual environment. The elements may be filtered according to importance to the user, based on user-specified importance of each element, the number and type of past interactions with the elements, and the like. Further, the filtering may be performed on the basis of the user'"'"'s preference for density of element presentation. The user may then be presented with a view of the virtual world in which elements having a higher degree of interest to the user are highlighted visually, and in which elements having a lesser degree of interest to the user are made partially transparent or invisible.
97 Citations
21 Claims
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1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
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receiving an indication of a requirement to present a plurality of elements to a user of a virtual world, wherein the user is represented by an avatar in the virtual world, wherein the plurality of elements include avatars representative of other users and other display objects representative of physical objects; determining, for the plurality of elements, respective degrees of importance to the user, wherein the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements are specified in a user profile of the user or the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements is determined based on past interactions of the user with the each of the plurality of elements; determining a density of elements to be presented to the user; determining, based on the respective degrees of importance and the density of elements, one or more display characteristics for each element, wherein the one or more display characteristics indicate the degree of importance of each element to the user, and wherein determining one or more display characteristics for each element comprises sorting the plurality of elements according to their respective degrees of importance; and presenting the sorted plurality of elements to the user, wherein each element is presented according to its respective one or more display characteristics. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A computer-readable storage medium containing a program, which when executed on a processor performs an operation, the operation comprising:
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receiving an indication of a requirement to present a plurality of elements to a user of a virtual world, wherein the user is represented by an avatar in the virtual world, wherein the plurality of elements include avatars representative of other users and other display objects representative of physical objects; determining, for the plurality of elements, respective degrees of importance to the user, wherein the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements are specified in a user profile of the user or the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements is determined based on past interactions of the user with the each of the plurality of elements; determining a density of elements to be presented to the user; determining, based on the respective degrees of importance and the density of elements, one or more display characteristics for each element, wherein the one or more display characteristics indicate the degree of importance of each element to the user, and wherein determining one or more display characteristics for each element comprises sorting the plurality of elements according to their respective degrees of importance; and presenting the sorted plurality of elements to the user, wherein each element is presented according to its respective one or more display characteristics. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A system, comprising:
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a processor; and a memory containing a program, which when executed by the processor is configured to perform an operation, the operation comprising the steps of; receiving an indication of a requirement to present a plurality of elements to a user of a virtual world, wherein the user is represented by an avatar in the virtual world, wherein the plurality of elements include avatars representative of other users and other display objects representative of physical objects; determining, for the plurality of elements, respective degrees of importance to the user, wherein the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements are specified in a user profile of the user or the respective degrees of importance to each of the plurality of elements is determined based on past interactions of the user with the each of the plurality of elements; determining a density of elements to be presented to the user; determining, based on the respective degrees of importance and the density of elements, one or more display characteristics for each element, wherein the one or more display characteristics indicate the degree of importance of each element to the user, and wherein determining one or more display characteristics for each element comprises sorting the plurality of elements according to their respective degrees of importance; and presenting the sorted plurality of elements to the user, wherein each element is presented according to its respective one or more display characteristics.
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Specification