Avatar service system and method for animating avatar on a terminal on a network

• US 10,839,023 B2
• Filed: 11/08/2017
• Issued: 11/17/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LY Corp. (A Holdings Corp.), Z Intermediate Global Corporation
• Original Assignee: LINE Corporation (A Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Lee, Seung Young, Shin, Changhoon, Eom, Suk Kyoung
• Primary Examiner(s): Syed, Farhan M
• Application Number:
  US15/806,973
• Publication Number:
  US 20180068020A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,105 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/583 using metadata automatically derived from the content
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/95 Retrieval from the web
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management

Abstract

Provided is an avatar service system and method that are provided through a network. The avatar service system may include a request receiving unit to receive a request for an avatar to perform an action, a data extracting unit to extract metadata and image data corresponding to the request from the database storing the metadata with respect to the action of the avatar and the image data for a plurality of layers forming the avatar, and an avatar action processing unit to generate and provide action data for applying, to the avatar, the action of the avatar corresponding to the request using the extracted metadata and the extracted image data.

Claims

1. An avatar service server configured to cause a plurality of avatars associated with a plurality of users in a chat stage to be displayed on a plurality of display screens associated with a plurality of mobile terminals, the avatar service server comprising:

a memory configured to store computer-readable instructions; and

one or more processors configured to execute the computer-readable instructions such that the one or more processors are configured to,

receive a first request from a first user for a first avatar among the plurality of avatars to perform an animated action, the first request requesting applying the animated action to the first avatar associated with the first user,

record first information on the animated action of the first avatar to a database,

receive a chat input from a second user,

record second information on the chat input to the database,

receive a second request for a chat log with respect to the chat stage via a chat log viewing interface of a mobile terminal,

extract the first information and the second information from the database, and

send the chat log for displaying on a display screen of the mobile terminal using the first and second information, the chat log including the animated action of the first avatar and the chat input, wherein

the avatar service server further includes or is connected to a word database configured to store a plurality of words in association with a plurality of action tags that are associated with a plurality of actions of an avatar, and

the one or more processors are further configured to communicate with the word database and execute the computer-readable instructions such that the one or more processors are further configured to,

store the plurality of words in the word database, and

verify an action tag of the first avatar from among the plurality of action tags by searching for one or more words, from among the plurality of words, corresponding to a chat word in a chat content, in the word database, in response to receiving the chat content from the first user.

2. The avatar service server of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to send the chat log for displaying chronologically based on the first information and the second information.

3. The avatar service server of claim 1, wherein the animated action of the first avatar includes at least one of an emotion or a motion.

4. The avatar service server of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to, in response to the first request for the first avatar:

extract metadata and image data corresponding to the first request from the database, the image data including a plurality of layers forming a plurality of parts of the first avatar, each of the plurality of layers being stored in the database as a plurality of rotated images of a corresponding portion of the first avatar, the plurality of layers having a plurality of central axes about which corresponding ones of the plurality of layers rotate, respectively, and the metadata identifying each of the plurality of layers, an angle of each of the plurality of layers relative to a corresponding one of the plurality of central axes, and a coordinate of the corresponding one of the plurality of central axes, and

generate first action data for applying the animated action to the first avatar using the metadata and the image data.

5. The avatar service server of claim 4, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to cause the first avatar to move to a different location on the display screen of the mobile terminal by integrally adjusting coordinates of the plurality of central axes about which corresponding ones of the plurality of layers of the first avatar rotate.

6. The avatar service server of claim 4, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to cause the first avatar to move to a different location on the display screen of the mobile terminal by uniformly changing coordinates of the plurality of central axes of the plurality of layers.

7. The avatar service server of claim 1, wherein

the one or more processors are further configured to store action data in a database in advance, the action data including the plurality of actions associated with respective metadata and respective image data, and

the one or more processors are further configured for the first user to select the animated action from among the plurality of actions and apply the selected animated action to the first avatar.

8. The avatar service server of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to

cause the first avatar associated with the first user to be displayed on the display screen of the mobile terminal by performing an action, from among the plurality of actions, corresponding to the verified action tag.

9. The avatar service server of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are further configured to,

verify an existence of a requester for a random chat, and

create a random chat room as the chat stage in response to the requester being verified to exist.

20. The avatar service server of claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to extract the first information and the second information from the database in response to the second request.

10. An avatar service method performed by an avatar service server, which includes a memory and one or more processors, over a network, the method comprising:

receiving, by the one or more processors, a first request from a first user for a first avatar among a plurality of avatars to perform an animated action, the first request requesting applying the animated action to the first avatar associated with the first user;

recording, by the one or more processors, first information on the animated action of the first avatar to a database;

receiving, by the one or more processors, a chat input by a second user;

recording, by the one or more processors, second information on the chat input to the database;

receiving, by the one or more processors, a second request for a chat log with respect to a chat stage via a chat log viewing interface of a mobile terminal;

extracting, by the one or more processors, the first information and the second information from the database;

causing, by the one or more processors, the chat log to be displayed on a display screen of the mobile terminal using the first and second information, the chat log including the animated action of the first avatar and the chat input;

storing, by the one or more processors, a plurality of words in association with a plurality of action tags that are associated with a plurality of actions of an avatar, in a word database included in or connected to the avatar service server; and

verifying, by the one or more processors, an action tag of the first avatar from among the plurality of action tags by searching for one or more words, from among the plurality of words, corresponding to a chat word in a chat content, in the word database, in response to receiving the chat content from the first user.

11. The avatar service method of claim 10, wherein the causing includes causing the chat log to be displayed chronologically based on the first information and the second information.

12. The avatar service method of claim 10, wherein the animated action of the first avatar includes at least one of an emotion or a motion.

13. The avatar service method of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises, in response to the first request for the first avatar:

extracting, by the one or more processors, metadata and image data corresponding to the first request from the database, the image data including a plurality of layers forming a plurality of parts of the first avatar, each of the plurality of layers being stored in the database as a plurality of rotated images of a corresponding portion of the first avatar, the plurality of layers having a plurality of central axes about which corresponding ones of the plurality of layers rotate, respectively, and the metadata identifying each of the plurality of layers, an angle of each of the plurality of layers relative to a corresponding one of the plurality of central axes, and a coordinate of the corresponding one of the plurality of central axes; and

generating, by the one or more processors, first action data for applying the animated action to the first avatar using the metadata and the image data.

14. The avatar service method of claim 13, wherein the causing includes causing, by the one or more processors, the first avatar to move to a different location on the display screen of the mobile terminal by integrally adjusting coordinates of the plurality of central axes about which corresponding ones of the plurality of layers of the first avatar rotate.

15. The avatar service method of claim 13, wherein the causing includes causing, by the one or more processors, the first avatar to move to a different location on the display screen of the mobile terminal by uniformly changing coordinates of the plurality of central axes of the plurality of layers.

16. The avatar service method of claim 10, wherein the method further comprises:

storing, by the one or more processors, action data in a database in advance, the action data including the plurality of actions in association with respective metadata and respective image data;

selecting, by the one or more processors, the animated action for the first user from among the plurality of actions; and

applying, by the one or more processors, the selected animated action to the first avatar.

17. The avatar service method of claim 10, further comprising:

communicating, by the one or more processors, with the word database and executing computer-readable instructions to,

perform the storing and the verifying, and

cause the first avatar associated with the first user to be displayed on the display screen of the mobile terminal by performing an action corresponding to the verified action tag.

18. The avatar service method of claim 10, wherein the method further comprising:

verifying, by the one or more processors, an existence of a requester for a random chat; and

creating, by the one or more processors, a random chat room as the chat stage in response to the requester being verified to exist.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a computer program, which when executed by a computer, configures the computer to:

receive a first request from a first user for a first avatar among a plurality of avatars to perform an animated action, the first request requesting applying the animated action to the first avatar associated with the first user;

record first information on the animated action of the first avatar to a database;

receive a chat input by a second user;

record second information on the chat input to the database;

receive a second request for a chat log with respect to a chat stage via a chat log viewing interface of a mobile terminal;

extract the first information and the second information from the database;

causing the chat log to be displayed on a display screen of the mobile terminal using the first and second information, the chat log including the animated action of the first avatar and the chat input;

storing a plurality of words in association with a plurality of action tags that are associated with a plurality of actions of an avatar, in a word database included in or connected to an avatar service server; and

verifying an action tag of the first avatar from among the plurality of action tags by searching for one or more words, from among the plurality of words, corresponding to a chat word in a chat content, in the word database, in response to receiving the chat content from the first user.