The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 26, 2000
Filed:
Feb. 02, 1998
Philippe P Piernot, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Marcos R Vescovi, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Adam Jordan, San Francisco, CA (US);
Chris Schmidt, Fairfax, CA (US);
Rafael Granados, Albany, CA (US);
Interval Research Corporation, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Abstract
A computer interface system and method is described which includes a way of interfacing with a physical game system. The game system may include a platform having a plurality of regions and a plurality of lots, a plurality of environmental objects positioned within an associated lot of the platform, and a movable object near at least one region. Additionally, each environmental object has an environmental identifier and is a global type or a local type, and each region has a region identifier and a plurality of subregions. The method includes the act of scanning the environmental objects and the movable object to extract data, where the extracted data includes a movable object position of the movable object and an environmental position for each environmental object and associated environmental identifier. The method also includes an act of determining which region is nearest to the movable object by analyzing the extracted data and computing the distance between the movable object and each region that is proximal to the movable object. Additionally the method includes an act of determining which region identifier is associated with the nearest region to the movable object by analyzing the extracted data, determining whether any of the environmental objects are associated with the nearest region by analyzing the extracted data, and determining whether any environmental identifiers are associated with the nearest region by analyzing the extracted data. The method further includes the act of running an audiovisual program based at least on the determinations of the region identifier associated with the nearest region and any environmental that are associated with the nearest region.