Mobile phone game interface

• US 8,641,531 B2
• Filed: 06/11/2012
• Issued: 02/04/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 06/05/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Computer Entertainment Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Patil, Pramod P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Laneau, Ronald
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILLIAMS, ROSS A
• Application Number:
  US13/493,832
• Publication Number:
  US 20120244952A1
• Time in Patent Office: 603 Days
• Field of Search: 463/36, 463/37, 273/148.B, 709/222, 709/228, 717/178
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/214 for locating contacts on a surface, e.g. floor mats or touch pads
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/235 using a wireless connection, e.g. infrared or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/323 between game devices with different hardware characteristics, e.g. hand-held game devices connectable to game consoles or arcade machines
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/327 using wireless networks, e.g. Wi-Fi® or piconet
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/35 Details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/533 for prompting the player, e.g. by displaying a game menu
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/77 involving data related to game devices or game servers, e.g. configuration data, software version or amount of memory
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/843 involving concurrently two or more players on the same game device, e.g. requiring the use of a plurality of controllers or of a specific view of game data for each player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/92 Video game devices specially adapted to be hand-held while playing
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1031 using a wireless connection, e.g. Bluetooth, infrared connections
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1068 being specially adapted to detect the point of contact of the player on a surface, e.g. floor mat, touch pad
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/204 the platform being a handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/209 characterized by low level software layer, relating to hardware management, e.g. Operating System, Application Programming Interface
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/308 Details of the user interface
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/403 Connection between platform and handheld device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/405 being a wireless ad hoc network, e.g. Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Pico net
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/50 characterized by details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/552 : for downloading to client devices, e.g. using OS version, hardware or software profile of the client device
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6045 : for mapping control signals received from the input arrangement into game commands
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8088 : involving concurrently several players in a non-networked game, e.g. on the same game console

Abstract

Systems, apparatus and methods for enabling a mobile station to control a virtual world being executed on a console system are described. The method can include establishing a communication link between the mobile station and a console system, identifying user interface characteristics of the mobile station, and providing a game controller application to the mobile station, the game controller application being based on the identified user interface characteristics and configured to transform user interface inputs into game controller commands. The method can further include receiving signals containing data representing the game controller commands from the mobile station over the communication link and determining game results based on the received game controller commands. In one aspect, the system includes a controller application server storing multiple game controller applications for mobile stations characterized by different user interfaces.

Claims

1. A method of enabling a mobile station to control a game, the method comprising:

identifying a user interface characteristic of a mobile station;

selecting a game controller application for the mobile station for controlling a game console system, the selection based on the identified user interface characteristic and a game playable on the game console system;

providing the game controller application to the mobile station, the game controller application configured to execute on the mobile station in order to transform user interface inputs into game controller commands for use with the game console system and the game;

receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands from the mobile station over a communication link; and

determining game results based on the received data representing the game controller commands.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands further comprises receiving signals including data representing input as registered by a user interface.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands further comprises receiving signals including data representing game controller commands translated from input as registered by a user interface.

4. A method of enabling a mobile station to control a game, the method comprising:

at a time during execution of a game on a game console system when a player is invited to be included in the game;

identifying a user interface characteristic of a mobile station;

selecting a game controller application for the mobile station for controlling the game console system, the selection based on the identified user interface characteristic;

providing the game controller application to the mobile station, the game controller application configured to execute on the mobile station in order to transform user interface inputs into game controller commands for use with the game console system and;

receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands from the mobile station over a communication link; and

determining game results based on the received data representing the game controller commands.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein communicating with a game controller application on a mobile station further comprises communicating with the game controller application after the game controller application has been started on the mobile station.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the game controller application is provided after accepting an invitation to be included in the game.

7. A method of enabling a mobile station to control a game, the method comprising:

identifying a user interface characteristic of a mobile station;

selecting a game controller configuration file for a game controller application on the mobile station for controlling a game console system, the selection based on the identified user interface characteristic;

providing the game controller configuration file to the mobile station, the game controller application configured to execute on the mobile station and use the game controller configuration in order to transform user interface inputs into game controller commands for use with the game console system;

receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands from the mobile station over a communication link; and

determining game results based on the received data representing the game controller commands.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein identifying the user interface characteristic of the mobile station further comprises communicating with the game controller application.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein communicating with the game controller application comprises receiving make and model information of the mobile station over the communication link, and identifying the user interface characteristics corresponding to the make and model of the mobile station.

10. A method of enabling a mobile station to control a game, the method comprising:

communicating with a game controller application executing on a mobile station to identify a user interface characteristic of a mobile station;

selecting game controller code for the mobile station for controlling a game console system, the selection based on the identified user interface characteristic;

providing the game controller code to the game controller application executing on the mobile station, the game controller application with game controller code configured to transform user interface inputs into game controller commands for use with the game console system;

receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands from the mobile station over a communication link; and

determining game results based on the received data representing the game controller commands.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the game controller application is downloaded from a remote server to the mobile station.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the game controller code is selected from at least one of a configuration object or an executable object.

13. A method of enabling a mobile station to control a game, the method comprising:

identifying a user interface characteristic of a mobile station;

selecting a game controller configuration file for a game controller application executing on the mobile station for controlling a game console, the selection based on the identified user interface characteristic, the game controller application having been downloaded from a remote server;

providing the game controller configuration file to the mobile station, the game controller application configured to execute on the mobile station in order to transform user interface inputs into game controller commands for use with the game console;

receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands from the mobile station over a communication link; and

determining game results based on the received data representing the game controller commands.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the remote server forms at least a portion of a remote supplier of applications to the mobile station.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein identifying the user interface further comprises communicating with the game controller application to identify a user interface characteristic of the mobile station.

16. A method of enabling a mobile station to control a game, the method comprising:

identifying a user interface characteristic of a mobile station;

selecting a game controller application for the mobile station for controlling a game console system, the selection based on the identified user interface characteristic;

providing a network address to retrieve the game controller application for the mobile station from a remote server, the game controller application configured to execute on the mobile station in order to transform user interface inputs into game controller commands for use with the game console system;

receiving signals including data representing the game controller commands from the mobile station over a communication link; and

determining game results based on the received data representing the game controller commands.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising providing network access to the mobile station over the communication link.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein providing network access further comprises providing network access to the network address to download the game controller application.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein in the network address resolves to a remote supplier that provides applications to the mobile station.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein identifying the user interface characteristic of the mobile station is based upon identifying a make and model of the mobile station.