Prompting a player of a dance game

• US 8,562,403 B2
• Filed: 06/10/2011
• Issued: 10/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Harmonix Music Systems Incorporated (Epic Games, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Harmonix Music Systems Incorporated (Epic Games, Inc.)
• Inventors: Boch, Matthew C., Crooker, Kasson D., Tate, Dean N., Adams, Isaac, Carriuolo, Adam, Glinert, Eitan
• Primary Examiner(s): Elisca, Pierre E
• Application Number:
  US13/158,050
• Publication Number:
  US 20110306398A1
• Time in Patent Office: 865 Days
• Field of Search: 463/7, 463/9
• US Class Current: 463/7
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/213 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. cameras, photodiodes or infrared cells A63F13/219, A63F13/655 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/428 involving motion or position input signals, e.g. signals representing the rotation of an input controller or a player's arm motions sensed by accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/44 involving timing of operations, e.g. performing an action within a time slot
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/46 Computing the game score
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/52 involving aspects of the displayed game scene
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/5375 for graphically or textually suggesting an action, e.g. by displaying an arrow indicating a turn in a driving game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/54 involving acoustic signals, e.g. for simulating revolutions per minute [RPM] dependent engine sounds in a driving game or reverberation against a virtual wall
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/67 adaptively or by learning from player actions, e.g. skill level adjustment or by storing successful combat sequences for re-use
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/814 Musical performances, e.g. by evaluating the player's ability to follow a notation
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1093 using visible light
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/305 for providing a graphical or textual hint to the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6009 for importing or creating game content, e.g. authoring tools during game development, adapting content to different platforms, use of a scripting language to create content
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/61 Score computation
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/638 according to the timing of operation or a time limit
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6607 for animating game characters, e.g. skeleton kinematics
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/69 Involving elements of the real world in the game world, e.g. measurement in live races, real video
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8047 Music games
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883

Abstract

Presented herein are methods, apparatuses, programs, and systems for prompting a player to perform a series of dance moves. A player is prompted to perform a series of dance moves by providing a timeline comprising at least a first time interval associated with a first dance move, and a second time interval associated with a second dance move; displaying an icon representing the first dance move at a first location on the display for the duration of the first time interval; and displaying an icon representing the second dance move at the first location on the display for the duration of the second time interval, wherein the icon representing the first dance move includes one or more representations of a body and indicates on the one or more representations of the body at least one body part whose position is important during the performance of the first dance move.

Claims

1. A method of prompting a player to perform a series of dance moves, the method executed on a game platform in signal communication with a display, the method comprising:

providing, using the game platform, a timeline comprising at least a first time interval associated with a first dance move, and a second time interval associated with a second dance move;

displaying, on the display, an icon representing the first dance move at a first location on the display for the duration of the first time interval; and

displaying, on the display, an icon representing the second dance move at the first location on the display for the duration of the second time interval;

wherein the icon representing the first dance move comprises one or more representations of a body and indicates on the one or more representations of the body at least one body part whose position is important during the performance of the first dance move.

2. A method of prompting a player to perform a series of dance moves, the method executed on a game platform in signal communication with a display, the method comprising:

providing, using the game platform, a timeline comprising at least a first time interval associated with a first dance move, and a second time interval associated with a second dance move;

displaying, on the display, an icon representing the first dance move at a first fixed location on the display for the duration of a third time interval, the third time interval associated with the first dance move; and

displaying, on the display, an icon representing the second dance move at the first fixed location on the display for the duration of a fourth time interval, the fourth time interval associated with the second dance move;

wherein, the icon representing the first dance move comprises one or more representations of a body and indicates on the one or more representations of the body at least one body part whose role is important during the performance of the first dance move.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the role of the at least one body part is at least one of:

the position, the velocity, the direction of movement, or any combination of the foregoing.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein the first time interval and the third time interval are substantially the same time interval and the second time interval and the fourth time interval are substantially the same time interval.

5. The method of claim 2 wherein the third time interval begins slightly before the beginning of the first time interval and ends slightly before the end of the first time interval.

6. The method of claim 2 further comprising:

performing, using the game platform, a table lookup using the first dance move before the third time interval to determine the icon representing the first dance move; and

retrieving, using the game platform, the icon representing the first dance move from a memory.

7. A method of providing dance instructions executed on a game platform in signal communication with a display, the method comprising:

displaying, on the display, a game play screen comprising a first region and a second region;

displaying in the first region a first icon representing a first dance move for the player to perform for a first time period associated with the first dance move; and

translating, using the game platform, into the first region from the second region, at the end of the first time period, a second icon depicting a second dance move for the player to perform;

wherein, the first icon representing the first dance move comprises one or more representations of a body and indicates on the one or more representations of the body at least one body part whose role is important during the performance of the first dance move.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising before the translating step, displaying, in the second region, the second icon for the first time period associated with the first dance move.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein each representation of the one or more representations depicts a pose associated with the first dance move.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein each of the one or more representations of a body is an outline of a body.

11. The method of claim 7, further comprising displaying, on the display in a third region of the game play screen, at a time associated with the second time interval, the icon representing the first dance move.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

determining, using the game platform, a score for the player'"'"'s performance of the first dance move; and

changing, using the game platform, an attribute of the icon representing the first dance move based on the score.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the attribute is one of a color, a brightness, a background, or a size.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising animating, using the game platform, a transition of the icon representing the first dance move to the third region.

15. The method of claim 7, further comprising animating, by the game platform, a transition of the icon representing the second dance move to the first region.

16. The method of claim 7, wherein indicating at least one body part whose position is important during the performance of the first dance move comprises highlighting the at least one body part on the icon representing the first dance move.

17. The method of claim 7, wherein the icon representing the first dance move comprises an indicia of motion for the at least one body part whose position is important during the performance of the first dance move.

18. The method of claim 7, wherein the icon representing the first dance move comprises an indicia of motion for the player'"'"'s body.

19. The method of claim 7, wherein the icon representing the first dance move comprises an indicia of repetition of motion.

20. The method of claim 7, wherein the icon representing the first dance move is animated.