Method and system for improving the efficiency of state information transfer over a wireless communications network

• US 8,380,829 B2
• Filed: 09/20/2011
• Issued: 02/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Cricket Communications Incorporated (AT&T, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hutcheson, S. Douglas, Robinson, Richard, Caliguri, Steven John
• Primary Examiner(s): Luu, Le H
• Application Number:
  US13/237,770
• Publication Number:
  US 20120072485A1
• Time in Patent Office: 518 Days
• Field of Search: 709/220, 709/221, 709/222, 709/223, 709/224, 709/225, 709/226, 455/518, 455/412.1, 455/414.1, 455/566, 455/414.2, 463/39, 463/40, 463/42, 340/573.1, 715/236, 370/465, 370/328, 370/310
• US Class Current: 709/221
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/217 using environment-related information, i.e. information generated otherwise than by the player, e.g. ambient temperature or humidity
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/235 using a wireless connection, e.g. infrared or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/34 using peer-to-peer connections
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/79 involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/408 Peer to peer connection
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5533 using program state or machine event data, e.g. server keeps track of the state of multiple players on in a multiple player game
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/104 Peer-to-peer [P2P] networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/131 Protocols for games, networked simulations or virtual reality
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/14 Session management for real-time applications in data packet communications networks H04L65/1066
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 28/0273 adapting protocols for flow control or congestion control to wireless environment, e.g. adapting transmission control protocol [TCP] wireless network protocols or protocol adaptations to wireless operation, e.g. wireless application protocol H04W80/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/24 Connectivity information management, e.g. connectivity discovery or connectivity update
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 40/248 Connectivity information update
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/00 Synchronisation arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/001 Synchronization between nodes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/18 : Processing of user or subscriber data, e.g. subscribed services, user preferences or user profiles; Transfer of user or subscriber data

Abstract

A system and method for managing state information related to an interactive application to accommodate one or more users participating in an interactive application session. The state information can include local state information specific to each of the one or more user'"'"'s unique view of the interactive application and global state information. The system can include a telecommunications network; an application server in communication with the telecommunications network for managing the global state information relative to all of the users participating in the interactive application session; and at least one mobile client device in communication with the application server over the telecommunications network for managing the local state information for each of the one or more users. The method can include structuring the state information for optimized delivery over the telecommunications network and transferring the state information over the telecommunications network.

Claims

1. A system for managing state information related to an interactive application, the system comprising:

an application server for managing the global state information relative to users participating in an interactive application session; and

at least one mobile client device associated with each participating user, the mobile client device being in communication with said application server over a wireless telecommunications network for managing the local state information for the corresponding participating user, wherein the local state information corresponds to a subset of the global state information based on an ability of the mobile client device to process global state information;

wherein the application server includes a communication interface for receiving the local state information from the mobile client device associated with each participating user and a global modeler for comparing the received local state information with the global state information and updating the global state information.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein said application server further comprises:

a server state manager for structuring the updated global state information for optimized delivery over said wireless communications network; and

said communication interface transmits the updated global state information to at least one mobile client device.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein said application server further comprises synchronization means for synchronizing the updated global state information delivered to a plurality of mobile client devices.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein said synchronization means comprises a server system clock.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the application server structures the updated global state information based upon degrees of freedom associated with the interactive application.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one mobile client device further comprises:

a local modeler for comparing the local state information to the global state information, wherein differences between the local state information and the global state information comprise changed state information;

a client state manager for structuring the changed state information for optimized delivery over said wireless communications network; and

communication means for delivering the changed state information to said application server over said wireless communications network.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein said at least one mobile client device further comprises synchronization means for synchronizing the changed state information delivered to said application server relative to the global state information.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein said client state manager structures the changed state information based upon degrees of freedom associated with the interactive application.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one mobile client devices is associated with a fixed rate for accessing the global state information.

10. A computing device for managing global state information related to an interactive application relative to local state information received from one or more mobile client devices over a wireless communications network during an interactive application session, comprising:

a communication interface for receiving the local state information from each of the one or more mobile client devices, wherein the local state information corresponds to a subset of the global state information based on an ability of the mobile client device to process global state information;

a global modeler for comparing the received local state information with the global state information and updating the global state information; and

a server state manager for structuring the updated global state information for optimized delivery over the wireless communications network.

11. The computing device of claim 10, wherein said communication interface delivers the updated global state information to each of the one or more mobile client devices.

12. The computing device of claim 11, further comprising synchronization means for synchronizing the updated global state information delivered to each of the one or more mobile client device over said wireless communications network.

13. The computing device of claim 12, wherein said synchronization means comprises a server system clock.

14. The computing device of claim 10, wherein said server state manager structures the updated global state information based upon degrees of freedom associated with the interactive application.

15. A mobile client device for managing local state information related to an interactive application relative to global state information maintained during an interactive application session between users over a wireless communications network, comprising:

a local modeler for comparing the local state information to the global state information, wherein differences between the local state information and the global state information comprise changed state information and wherein the local state information corresponds to a subset of the global state information based on an ability of the mobile client device to process global state information;

a client state manager for structuring the changed state information for optimized delivery over the wireless communications network; and

a communication interface for delivering the changed state information over the wireless communications network.

16. The mobile client device of claim 15, further comprising:

synchronization means for synchronizing the changed state information delivered to the application server over the wireless communications network.

17. The mobile client device of claim 15, wherein said client state manager structures the changed state information based upon degrees of freedom associated with the interactive application.

18. The mobile client device of claim 15, further comprising:

a memory for storing the interactive application; and

an input/output for interfacing with the interactive application.

19. The mobile client device of claim 15 wherein the mobile client device further includes

a communication interface for receiving the local state information from additional mobile client devices, wherein the local state information corresponds to a subset of the global state information based on an ability of the mobile client device to process global state information;

a global modeler for comparing the received local state information with the global state information and updating the global state information; and

a global server state manager for structuring the updated global state information for optimized delivery over the wireless communications network.

20. The mobile client device of claim 15, wherein said communication interface delivers the updated global state information to each of the additional mobile client devices in accordance with a peer-to-peer distribution model.