Data-driven state machine for user interactive displays

• US 9,821,230 B2
• Filed: 04/06/2016
• Issued: 11/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zynga Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Zynga Incorporated
• Inventors: Chapman, Peter, Foster, Andrew, Capps, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): McCulloch, Jr., William H
• Application Number:
  US15/091,932
• Publication Number:
  US 20160239184A1
• Time in Patent Office: 594 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/49 Saving the game status; Pausing or ending the game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/60 Generating or modifying game content before or while executing the game program, e.g. authoring tools specially adapted for game development or game-integrated level editor
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/69 by enabling or updating specific game elements, e.g. unlocking hidden features, items, levels or versions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5526 Game data structure
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5533 using program state or machine event data, e.g. server keeps track of the state of multiple players on in a multiple player game
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/3644 by instrumenting at runtime
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4494 data driven
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking

Abstract

Systems and methods may be used to provide and implement a state machine in a display software user interface environment, and used to handle events and actions associated with the state machine. In one example embodiment, a virtual display environment provided by an engine is interfaced with a state machine that is configured to interpret various state machine definitions corresponding to states occurring in the virtual display environment. The state machine definitions may be used to determine how a particular state of a virtual item in the display environment may be represented, interacted with, and transitioned into another state. Use of the state machine definitions may enable representation of complex scenarios for virtual objects and events in the display environment in a unified definition format, without requiring specialized programming or scripting commands to implement the scenarios.

Claims

1. A method of providing a data-driven interactive display of a computer-implemented game on a client computing system using a state machine, the method comprising electronic operations executed by the client computing system, the operations including:

obtaining a state machine definition from a server computer system, wherein the state machine definition defines a plurality of states of a plurality of graphical objects in an interactive display for the game, and wherein the plurality of states control characteristics of the respective objects of the plurality of graphical objects;

loading the state machine definition within a client-implemented state machine, wherein the client-implemented state machine controls display of the plurality of graphical objects, and wherein the state machine definition includes tokenized strings that represent variable values in respective states applicable to respective graphical objects of the plurality of graphical objects;

in response to determination by the client-implemented state machine of a first state of a particular graphical object, generating display of the particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game;

identifying a runtime variable of the first state from parsing a particular tokenized string with the client-implemented state machine, wherein the runtime variable is determined during runtime of the interactive display of the game to identify a first display property of the first state of the particular graphical object, and wherein the client-implemented state machine uses the first display property of the first state to implement a requirement, a cost, or an effect corresponding with the display of the particular graphical object; and

in response to determination by the client-implemented state machine of a second state of a particular graphical object, generating an updated display of the particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, wherein the client-implemented state machine uses a second display property of the second state to implement a requirement, a cost;

or an effect corresponding with the updated display of the particular graphical object.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a user interaction with the particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, wherein the user interaction is defined by the first state of the particular graphical object, and wherein the user interaction causes a transition to the second state of the particular graphical object.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a script from the server computing system, the script invoked by the particular tokenized string in response to parsing the particular tokenized string with the client-implemented state machine.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

initializing a client-server state machine architecture in operation with the interactive display of the game;

wherein the client-server state machine architecture includes a server-implemented state machine operating on the server computing system and the client-implemented state machine operating on the client computing system; and

wherein the server-implemented state machine provides the machine definition and tracks the plurality of states of the plurality of graphical objects.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

communicating state information of the first state and the second state to the server-implemented state machine.

6. The method of claim 5,

wherein communicating state information to the server-implemented state machine includes providing a transaction object to the server computing system,

wherein the transaction object includes information to enable the server computing system to synchronize the server-implemented state machine to the client-implemented state machine, and

wherein the transaction object includes an identifier of the particular graphical object and an indication of the first state and the second state.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

generating state machine definitions for respective states of the plurality of states of the interactive display for the game, by;

defining information for the plurality of states that defines transitions among the respective states, display information for the respective states, and actions available to perform during the respective states; and

defining the actions available to perform during the respective states, the actions corresponding to requirements, costs, and effects of respective user interactions with respective graphical objects.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein loading the state machine definition includes evaluating conditions for respective actions defined in the generated state machine definitions, wherein action requirements and costs of each state are evaluated using the client-implemented state machine.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

determining if action requirements and costs of the first state are satisfied; and

transitioning to the second state of the particular graphical object using the client-implemented state machine, in response to successfully determining that the action requirement and the costs of the first state are satisfied.

10. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions, that when executed by one or more processors of a computing system, cause the computing system to:

obtain a state machine definition from a server computer system, wherein the state machine definition defines a plurality of states of a plurality of graphical objects in an interactive display for a computer-implemented game, and wherein the plurality of states control characteristics of the respective objects of the plurality of graphical objects;

load the state machine definition within a client-implemented state machine, wherein the client-implemented state machine controls display of the plurality of graphical objects, and wherein the state machine definition includes tokenized strings that represent variable values in respective states applicable to respective graphical objects of the plurality of graphical objects;

generate a display of a particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, in response to a first state of the particular graphical object determined using the client-implemented state machine;

identify a runtime variable of the first state from parsing a particular tokenized string with the client-implemented state machine, wherein the runtime variable is determined during runtime of the interactive display of the game to identify a first display property of the first state of the particular graphical object, and wherein the client-implemented state machine uses the first display property of the first state to implement a requirement, a cost, or an effect corresponding with the display of the particular graphical object; and

generate an updated display of the particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, in response to a second state of the particular graphical object determined using the client-implemented state machine;

wherein the client-implemented state machine uses a second display property of the second state to implement a requirement, a cost, or an effect corresponding with the updated display of the particular graphical object.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, the instructions further to cause the computing system to:

process a user interaction with the particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, wherein the user interaction is defined by the first state of the particular graphical object, and wherein the user interaction causes a transition to the second state of the particular graphical object.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, the instructions further to cause the computing system to:

process a script received from the server computing system, the script invoked by the particular tokenized string in response to parsing the particular tokenized string with the client-implemented state machine.

13. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, the instructions further to cause the computing system to:

initialize a client-server state machine architecture in operation with the interactive display of the game;

wherein the client-server state machine architecture includes a server-implemented state machine operating on the server computing system and the client-implemented state machine operating on the client computing system; and

wherein the server-implemented state machine provides the state machine definition and tracks the plurality of states of the plurality of graphical objects.

14. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, the instructions further to cause the computing system to:

communicate state information of the first state and the second state to the server-implemented state machine.

15. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 14,

wherein operations to communicate state information to the server-implemented state machine includes providing a transaction object to the server computing system,

wherein the transaction object includes information to enable the server computing system to synchronize the server-implemented state machine to the client-implemented state machine, and

wherein the transaction object includes an identifier of the particular graphical object and an indication of the first state and the second state.

16. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, the instructions further to cause the computing system to:

generate state machine definitions for respective states of the plurality of states of the interactive display for the game, by;

define information for the plurality of states that defines transitions among the respective states, display information for the respective states, and actions available to perform during the respective states; and

define the actions available to perform during the respective states, the actions corresponding to requirements, costs, and effects of respective user interactions with respective graphical objects.

17. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 16, wherein the operations to load the state machine definition include evaluation of conditions for respective actions defined in the generated state machine definitions, wherein action requirements and costs of each state are evaluated using the client-implemented state machine.

18. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 10, the instructions further to cause the computing system to:

determine if action requirements and costs of the first state are satisfied; and

transition to the second state of the particular graphical object using the client-implemented state machine, in response to successfully determining that the action requirement and the costs of the first state are satisfied.

19. A system, comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memory devices with instructions stored thereon, wherein the instructions are executed by the one or more processors to implement one or more modules, the one or more modules including;

a state machine client module including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors;

obtain a state machine definition from a server computer system, wherein the state machine definition defines a plurality of states of a plurality of graphical objects in an interactive display for a computer-implemented game, and wherein the plurality of states control characteristics of the respective objects of the plurality of graphical objects;

load the state machine definition within a client-implemented state machine, wherein the client-implemented state machine controls display of the plurality of graphical objects; and

wherein the state machine definition includes tokenized strings that represent variable values in respective states applicable to respective graphical objects of the plurality of graphical objects; and

a user interface display module including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors;

generate a display of a particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, in response to a first state of the particular graphical object determined using the client-implemented state machine;

identify a runtime variable of the first state from parsing a particular tokenized string with the client-implemented state machine, wherein the runtime variable is determined during runtime of the interactive display of the game to identify a first display property of the first state of the particular graphical object, and wherein the client-implemented state machine uses the first display property of the first state to implement a requirement, a cost, or an effect corresponding with the display of the particular graphical object; and

generate an updated display of the particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, in response to a second state of the particular graphical object determined using the client-implemented state machine, wherein the client-implemented state machine uses a second display property of the second state to implement a requirement, a cost, or an effect corresponding with the updated display of the particular graphical object.

20. The system of claim 19, further comprising:

a state machine data module including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors;

processes a user interaction with the particular graphical object in the interactive display of the game, wherein the user interaction is defined by the first state of the particular graphical object, and wherein the user interaction causes a transition to the second state of the particular graphical object, a state machine scripting module including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors;

process a script received from the server computing system, the script invoked by the particular tokenized string in response to parsing the particular tokenized string with the client-implemented state machine.

21. The system of claim 19, further comprising:

a state machine scripting module including instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors;

process a script received from the server computing system, the script invoked by the particular tokenized string in response to parsing the particular tokenized string with the client-implemented state machine.