Techniques to interact with an application via messaging

• US 9,553,832 B2
• Filed: 08/13/2013
• Issued: 01/24/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Inventors: Blayer, Oded, Golde, Ittai, Makavy, Ran, Rosenfeld, Amir
• Primary Examiner(s): YEN, JASON TAHAI
• Application Number:
  US13/965,662
• Publication Number:
  US 20150050993A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,260 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 13/795 for finding other players; for building a team; for providing a buddy list
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/87 Communicating with other players during game play, e.g. by e-mail or chat
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/537 for exchanging game data using a messaging service, e.g. e-mail, SMS, MMS
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/572 Communication between players during game play of non game information, e.g. e-mail, chat, file transfer, streaming of audio and streaming of video
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/18 Commands or executable codes

Abstract

Techniques to interact with an application via messaging are described. An apparatus may comprise an application support component and a communication component. The application support component may be operative to generate an image representing a state of an application and to update the state of the application according to a text command. The communication component may be operative to transmit the image to a client device via a messaging system as an image attachment to a first message and to receive a second message from the client device via the messaging system, the second message comprising the text command. Other embodiments are described and claimed.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

generating, by an application executing on a processing unit, an image representing a state of the application;

transmitting, by a communication component executing on the processing unit, the image from the application to a messaging client on a client device over a first messaging channel via a messaging system using a communications protocol;

receiving, by the communication component, a message from the client device over the first messaging channel via the messaging system;

determining, by the communication component, that a first portion of the message comprises a text command from a set of available commands for the application and a second portion of the message comprises text that does not comprise a text command from the set of available commands;

inputting the command of the first portion to the application, and updating, by the application, the state of the application according to the text command; and

automatically forwarding, by the communication component, the second portion of the message to a messaging client on a second client device over the first messaging channel via the messaging system.

2. The method of claim 1, the application comprising a game, the text command comprising a player'"'"'s move in the game.

3. The method of claim 1, the image including a legend visually indicating a set of available commands.

4. The method of claim 1, the image transmitted to the client device via the messaging system as an image attachment and the text command received from the client device via the messaging system as a message.

5. The method of claim 4, the messaging system comprising one of a text-messaging system, an instant-messaging system, or a social-networking messaging system.

6. The method of claim 1, the application comprising a multiplayer game, the text command comprising a first player'"'"'s move in the multiplayer game, further comprising:

generating a second image representing the updated state of the multiplayer game;

transmitting the second image to a second client device;

receiving from the second client device a second text command, the second text command comprising a second player'"'"'s move in the multiplayer game; and

updating the state of the application according to the second text command.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising:

generating a second image representing the updated state of the application; and

transmitting the second image to the client device.

8. The method of claim 1, the application comprising a multiuser application, comprising:

generating a second image representing the updated state of the application; and

transmitting the second image to a second client device.

9. An apparatus, comprising:

a processor circuit on a device;

an application support component operative on the processor circuit to generate an image representing a state of an application and to update the state of the application according to a text command; and

a communication component operative on the processor circuit to transmit using a communications protocol over a first messaging channel the image to a messaging client on a client device via a messaging system as an image attachment to a first message, to receive over the first messaging channel a second message from the client device via the messaging system, to determine that a first portion of the second message comprises a text command from a set of available commands for the application and a second portion of the second message comprises text that does not comprise a text command from the set of available commands, to provide the text command of the first portion to the application support component, and to forward automatically the second portion of the message over the first messaging channel to a messaging client on a second client device via the messaging system.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, the image including a legend visually indicating a set of available commands, the communication component operative to determine that the second message comprises the text command from the set of available commands.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, the messaging system comprising one of a text-messaging system, an instant-messaging system, or a social-networking messaging system.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, the application comprising a multiplayer game, the text command comprising a first player'"'"'s move in the multiplayer game, further comprising:

the application support component operative to generate a second image representing the updated state of the multiplayer game and to update the state of the application according to a second text command; and

the communication component operative to transmit the second image to a second client device and to receive from the second client device the second text command, the second text command comprising a second player'"'"'s move in the multiplayer game.

13. The apparatus of claim 9, comprising:

the application support component operative to generate a second image representing the updated state of the application; and

the communication component operative to transmit the second image to the client device as a third image attachment to a third message.

14. At least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

generate, by a game, an image representing a state of the game;

transmit the image to a messaging client on a client device over a first messaging channel via a messaging system using a communications protocol;

receive a message from the client device over the first messaging channel via the messaging system;

determine that a first portion of the message comprises a text command from a set of available commands for the game and a second portion of the message comprises text that does not comprise a text command from the set of available commands;

provide the first portion of the message to the game, input the command to the game, and update the state of the game according to the text command; and

automatically forward the second portion of the message over the first messaging channel to a messaging client on a second client device via the messaging system.

15. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, the image including a legend visually indicating a set of available moves in the game, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

determine that the second message comprises the text command from the set of available moves.

16. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, the image transmitted to the client device via the messaging system as an image attachment and the text command received from the client device via the messaging system as a message.

17. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, the messaging system comprising one of a text-messaging system, an instant-messaging system, or a social-networking messaging system.

18. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 14, the game comprising a multiplayer game, the text command comprising a first player'"'"'s move in the multiplayer game, comprising further instructions that, when executed, cause a system to:

generate a second image representing the updated state of the multiplayer game;

transmit the second image to a second client device;

receive from the second client device a second text command, the second text command comprising a second player'"'"'s move in the multiplayer game; and

update the state of the multiplayer game according to the second text command.