Information processing system

• US 9,170,664 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2011
• Issued: 10/27/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Interactive Entertainment Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Computer Entertainment Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Takahashi, Masaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Kundu, Sujoy
• Assistant Examiner(s): Casey, Liam R
• Application Number:
  US13/230,293
• Publication Number:
  US 20120065917A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,506 Days
• Field of Search: 702/104
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• 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 13/22 Setup operations, e.g. calibration, key configuration or button assignment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry

Abstract

An information processing system, including: a portable communication device including a sensor that measures predetermined information and outputs a measurement result, the sensor having output characteristics varying depending on a place of use; and a information processing device for indoor use, which is communicatively connectable to the portable communication device, the information processing device being configured to: acquire the measurement result of the sensor from the communicatively-connected portable communication device; execute calibration of the sensor by using the acquired measurement result; execute an application program that uses the measurement result of the sensor; and performs determination as to whether or not the calibration has been executed for the communicatively-connected portable communication device when the application program is executed.

Claims

1. An information processing system, comprising:

a plurality of portable communication devices; and

an information processing device for indoor use that is communicatively connectable to the plurality of portable communication devices, wherein;

each of the plurality of portable communication devices comprises a sensor that measures an orientation of the portable communication device, and outputs measurement results, the sensor having output characteristics causing the measurement results to vary in response to one or more sources of ambient interference within a given place of use of the portable communication device; and

the information processing device comprises;

a section for acquiring the measurement results of the sensors from the communicatively-connected portable communication devices;

a calibration section for executing calibration of the sensors by using the acquired measurement results;

an application execution section for executing an application program that receives the measurement results of the sensors as user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution of the application program;

a flag information storing section for storing respective flag information when the calibration section executes the calibration, each flag information indicating whether or not the information processing device has executed the calibration for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices, and the flag information storing section storing the respective flag information in a storage unit in association with the respective portable communication devices; and

a determination section for performing respective determinations as to whether or not the calibration section has executed the calibration for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices by referencing the respective flag information in the storage unit, the respective determinations being made at a time after the application execution section opens and starts executing the application program and before the application program receives the measurement results of the sensors as the user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution.

2. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein:

the information processing device further comprises a connection destination information acquisition section for acquiring connection destination information necessary to establish a respective communicative connection to each of the portable communication devices;

the flag information storing section stores the respective flag information in the storage unit when the connection destination information acquisition section acquires the respective connection destination information on the portable communication devices; and

the connection destination information acquisition section reacquires one or more of the connection destination information on one or more of the portable communication devices in a case where the information processing device is again to establish a respective communicative connection to the one or more portable communication devices after the one or more portable communication devices have been communicatively connected to another information processing device.

3. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the determination section performs the determination when the application execution section newly starts execution of the application program.

4. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the determination section performs the respective determinations when the respective communicative connections to the respective portable communication devices start to be established while the application execution section executes the application program.

5. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein:

each of the plurality of portable communication devices further comprises a section for receiving, when the calibration section executes the calibration, device identification information that identifies the information processing device that has executed the calibration from the information processing device and storing the device identification information; and

the determination section uses the device identification information stored in the communicatively-connected portable communication device to perform the determination.

6. An information processing device for indoor use, which is communicatively connectable to a plurality of portable communication devices, each of the plurality of portable communication devices comprising a sensor that measures an orientation of the portable communication device, and outputs measurement results, the sensor having output characteristics causing the measurement results to vary in response to one or more sources of ambient interference within a given place of use of the portable communication device, comprising:

a section for acquiring the measurement results of the sensors from the communicatively-connected portable communication devices;

a calibration section for executing calibration of the sensors by using the acquired measurement results;

an application execution section for executing an application program that receives the measurement results of the sensors as user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution of the application program;

a flag information storing section for storing respective flag information when the calibration section executes the calibration, each flag information indicating whether or not the information processing device has executed the calibration for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices, and the flag information storing section storing the respective flag information in a storage unit in association with the respective portable communication devices; and

a determination section for performing respective determinations as to whether or not the calibration section has executed the calibration for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices by referencing the respective flag information in the storage unit, the respective determinations being made at a time after the application execution section opens and starts executing the application program and before the application program receives the measurement results of the sensors as the user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution.

7. A portable communication device, which is communicatively connectable to an information processing device for indoor use, comprising:

a sensor that measures an orientation of the portable communication device, and outputs a measurement results, the sensor having output characteristics causing the measurement results to vary in response to one or more sources of ambient interference within a given place of use of the portable communication device; and

a section for receiving calibration data from the information processing device and storing the calibration data, the calibration data being generated by the information processing device executing calibration by using the measurement results of the sensor, wherein;

the portable communication device is subjected to determination as to whether or not the calibration data generated by the information processing device is stored in the portable communication device when the information processing device executes an application program that uses the measurement result of the sensor as user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution of the application program,

the information processing device includes a flag information storing section for storing respective flag information when the calibration section executes the calibration, each flag information indicating whether or not the information processing device has executed the calibration for respective ones of a plurality of portable communication devices, of which the portable communication device is one, and the flag information storing section storing the respective flag information in a storage unit in association with the respective portable communication devices; and

the information processing device includes a determination section for performing respective determinations by referencing the respective flag information in the storage unit, the respective determinations being made at a time after the application execution section opens and starts executing the application program and before the application program receives the measurement results of the sensors as the user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution.

8. A control method for an information processing device for indoor use, which is communicatively connectable to a plurality of portable communication devices, each of the plurality of portable communication devices comprising a sensor that measures an orientation of the portable communication device, and outputs measurement results, the sensor having output characteristics causing the measurement results to vary in response to one or more sources of ambient interference within a given place of use of the portable communication device, comprising:

acquiring the measurement results of the sensors from the communicatively-connected portable communication devices;

executing calibration of the sensors by using the acquired measurement results;

executing an application program that receives the measurement results of the sensors as user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution of the application program;

storing respective flag information when executing calibration, each flag information indicating whether or not the information processing device has executed the calibration for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices, and storing the respective flag information in a storage unit in association with the respective portable communication devices; and

performing respective determinations as to whether or not calibration has been executed for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices by referencing the respective flag information in the storage unit, the respective determinations being made at a time after executing the application program starts and before the application program receives the measurement results of the sensors as the user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable information storage medium having a program stored therein, the program controlling an information processing device for indoor use, which is communicatively connectable to a plurality of portable communication devices, each of the plurality of portable communication devices comprising a sensor that measures an orientation of the portable communication device, and outputs a measurement results, the sensor having output characteristics causing the measurement results to vary in response to one or more sources of ambient interference within a given place of use of the portable communication device, to function as:

a section for acquiring the measurement results of the sensors from the communicatively-connected portable communication devices;

a calibration section for executing calibration of the sensors by using the acquired measurement results;

an application execution section for executing an application program that receives the measurement results of the sensors as user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution of the application program;

a flag information storing section for storing respective flag information when the calibration section executes the calibration, each flag information indicating whether or not the information processing device has executed the calibration for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices, and the flag information storing section storing the respective flag information in a storage unit in association with the respective portable communication devices; and

a determination section for performing respective determinations as to whether or not the calibration section has executed the calibration for respective ones of the plurality of portable communication devices by referencing the respective flag information in the storage unit, the respective determinations being made at a time after the application execution section opens and starts executing the application program and before the application program receives the measurement results of the sensors as the user-initiated inputs for manipulating outcomes of the application program during execution.