The overall field of invention relates to the field of board and tabletop games for remote gameplay including dynamic item tracking and physical manipulation of remote game items.
Board games are typically played by a group of two or more players on a single playing surface such as a tabletop board or map. Items such as game pieces or markers are placed by individual players on the playing surface and moved or manipulated throughout the course of gameplay.
Because of the physicality involved in moving items, players of traditional board games must be physically present in the same locale as the playing surface. Often, groups of players who desire to play together cannot do so because a player is not able to be physically present at the playing surface location.
The limitation that all players must be in the same location can be problematic for a variety of reasons. Often, groups of players will prefer to play together on regular or semi-regular bases, and the absence of a given player can disrupt tradition. Similarly, the issue can be problematic for games with lengthy campaigns that may take place over extended periods, a common occurrence with role-playing games. In these cases, it can be important for all of the players to be present for each gameplay session, and absence of any given player can interrupt or derail a campaign.
Groups that have been physically separated have attempted to solve this issue through use of remote communication. Typically, a single board will be set up in a location, and remote users will have virtual presence, as in a video conference. Remote players would rely on local players to do any physical tasks related to gameplay, such as drawing cards or moving items. While this type of gameplay can be functional, it significantly detracts from the gameplay experience. In other cases, physically separated groups have resorted to playing virtual or simulated versions of the games on display screens without any physical gaming surface or physical markers. Online chess is a good example of this type of play. For many players and groups, however, the elimination of the physical board and markers is detrimental to their enjoyment and can potentially limit gameplay.
A need exists for a system that will allow tabletop game players to participate in a game from remote locations. The goal of this invention is to provide multiple instances of a single game with live syncing such that every instance remains essentially identical to every other instance. Such a system would allow players at remote locations to freely interact with a board game and with one another through remote gameplay.
The object of the invention is to provide a system that will allow multiple participants in remote locations to participate in a board game. The disclosure presented herein relates to a remote gameplay platform. Multiple instances of the platform may be combined to form a platform network, or a platform may be combined with virtual instances of the platform that would allow remote users to physically manipulate the board from remote locations.
A platform comprises a playing surface, camera system for image recognition, a positioning system for item manipulation, and a processor combined with transient memory for system and network integration.
A platform will recognize a playing surface, markers placed thereon, and states thereof, through a camera system comprising cameras, processors, and memory devices. A player can move an item on the playing surface, and the camera system will recognize that move. Similarly, a player may change the state of the playing surface, and the camera system will recognize that change.
A platform positioning system is capable of physically manipulating items and item locations on the playing surface. The positioning system is comprised of a 2D positioner and an effector head capable of grasping an item, moving, and releasing the item. Users may command the positioner to grasp an item and move the item to a different location.
When the platform is networked with a virtual instance, the virtual instance will display the playing surface in a remote location and allow a remote user to command the platform to move an item, typically via a graphic user interface. Alternatively, multiple instances of the platform may be networked together. In this configuration, users may command item movement in remote locations by simple movement of an item on the local platform.
If the configuration status changes for one platform in a platform network, the platform camera system will detect that change, generate movement command data, and when networked with other platforms, will relay the movement command data to other platforms in the network, which will then physically reproduce that change.
In this configuration, the invention will allow a first player to physically move a first item on a first gaming surface in a first location and have that move be reproduced by a similar second item on a similar second gaming surface in a second remote location. Similarly, a second player could move an item at the second location to have the move reproduced by a similar item at the first location. A system of this type will effectively collect item and board configuration status for each location instance and sync that configuration status with other instances of the game. When a plurality of platforms are networked, the platform network has the capability of detecting the configuration of any given playing surface and items placed thereon, and syncing or reproducing that configuration on every other platform in the network.
Furthermore, the camera system has the capability to recognize things other than items. The platform has optical object recognition capability, which can be used to detect markings that are drawn on the playing surface. The drawn markings can then be reproduced on other networked platforms by having the effector-head grasp an item adapted for marking and moving it across the playing surface. By this method, the network is able to reproduce a given drawn map in every location. Similarly, remote users of virtual instances can command the platform to draw maps from their remote locations via the remote user interface.
Embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below with reference to the following drawings. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings. The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Also, the drawings included herein are considered by the applicant to be informal.
The disclosure presented herein relates to a remote gaming platform. As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, aspects of the present invention may be embodied as a system, method, or computer program product. Accordingly, aspects of the present invention may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects that may all generally be referred to herein as a “circuit,” “module” or “system.” Furthermore, aspects of the present invention may take the form of a computer program product embodied in one or more computer readable medium(s) having computer readable program code embodied thereon.
Any combination of one or more computer readable medium(s) may be utilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. A computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readable storage medium would include the following: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. In the context of this document, a computer readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.
A computer readable signal medium may include a propagated data signal with computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, in baseband or as part of a carrier wave. Such a propagated signal may take any of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to, electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. A computer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium that is not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate, propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.
Program code embodied on a computer readable medium may be transmitted using any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless, wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination of the foregoing. Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of the present invention may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programming languages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).
Aspects of the present invention are described below with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable medium that can direct a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readable medium produce an article of manufacture including instructions which implement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or other devices to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide processes for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.
In the Summary above and in this Detailed Description, and the claims below, and in the accompanying drawings, reference is made to particular features (including method steps) of the invention. It is to be understood that the disclosure of the invention in this specification includes all possible combinations of such particular features. For example, where a particular feature is disclosed in the context of a particular aspect or embodiment of the invention, or a particular claim, that feature can also be used, to the extent possible, in combination with and/or in the context of other particular aspects and embodiments of the invention, and in the invention generally.
The term “comprises” and grammatical equivalents thereof are used herein to mean that other components, ingredients, steps, among others, are optionally present. For example, an article “comprising” (or “which comprises”) components A, B and C can consist of (i.e., contain only) components A, B and C, or can contain not only components A, B, and C but also contain one or more other components.
Where reference is made herein to a method comprising two or more defined steps, the defined steps can be carried out in any order or simultaneously (except where the context excludes that possibility), and the method can include one or more other steps which are carried out before any of the defined steps, between two of the defined steps, or after all the defined steps (except where the context excludes that possibility).
The term “at least” followed by a number is used herein to denote the start of a range beginning with that number (which may be a range having an upper limit or no upper limit, depending on the variable being defined). For example, “at least 1” means 1 or more than 1. The term “at most” followed by a number (which may be a range having 1 or 0 as its lower limit, or a range having no lower limit, depending upon the variable being defined). For example, “at most 4” means 4 or less than 4, and “at most 40%” means 40% or less than 40%. When, in this specification, a range is given as “(a first number) to (a second number)” or “(a first number)-(a second number),” this means a range whose limit is the second number. For example, 25 to 100 mm means a range whose lower limit is 25 mm and upper limit is 100 mm.
While preferred and alternate embodiments have been illustrated and described, as noted above, many changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the nesting deterrence device. Accordingly, the scope of the remote gaming platform is not limited by the disclosure of these preferred and alternate embodiments. Instead, the scope of the remote gaming platform should be determined entirely by reference to the claims. Insofar as the description above and the accompanying drawings (if any) disclose any additional subject matter that is not within the scope of the claims below, the inventions are not dedicated to the public and Applicant hereby reserves the right to file one or more applications to claim such additional inventions.
The reader's attention is directed to all papers and documents that are filed concurrently with this specification and which are open to public inspection with this specification, and the contents of all such papers and documents are incorporated herein by reference.
All the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.
Any element in a claim that does not explicitly state “means for” performing a specified function, or “step for” performing a specific function is not to be interpreted as a “means” or “step” clause as specified in 35. U.S.C. § 112 ¶6. In particular, the use of “step of” in the claims herein is not intended to invoke the provisions of U.S.C. § 1129 ¶6.
The control system 400 operates to integrate data collected by the camera system 300, positioner 200 data, data supplied by additional networked instances, and stored data using a microprocessor in combination with transient memory and a processor program. The control system is capable of receiving data inputs from a local instance camera system 300 and positioner system 200 as well as similar data from other remote instances, to process the data, output move command data to the positioner control 260, and transmit local instance data to other network instances.
The positioner controller 260 is adapted for controlling actuator motors 222. Actuator motors 220 may be servo motors, stepper motors, or any other motor capable of controlled motion. The actuator motors 222 drive the actuators and provide 2D positioning of the effector head 240. The effector head 240 is capable of controlling a magnetic field that extends through the playing surface 100. In the preferred embodiment, the effector head 240 is electromagnetic. When electric current is supplied to electrical coils at the effector head, a magnetic field results. In the preferred embodiment, the electric current can be controlled to produce magnetic fields of varying strength. In alternative embodiments, the current may be controlled to be in binary on or off states. In other embodiments, the magnetic field is produced by a permanent magnet, and the degree to which the magnetic field extends through the playing surface is controlled by actuating the magnet toward or away from the playing surface. In this manner, the effector head may move proximal to the 2D coordinate position of an item 140 and grasp the item by actuating the permanent magnet. Similarly, the effector head could release by actuating the permanent magnet away from the playing surface. In alternative embodiments, grasping and releasing items may be achieved by altering the orientation of the magnet, by shunting the magnetic field, or by other means for controlling magnetic field.
In an embodiment, the magnetic field may be controlled to non-binary states for varying purposes. A magnetic field has a “grasping” state, used for moving or dragging an item across the playing surface. The magnetic field will also have a “free motion” state, for use in moving the effector head beneath the playing surface without interaction with items. In alternative embodiments, the magnetic field will have one or more “actuation” states that can be used to actuate items and achieve some desired effect.
Items may be markers, such as game pieces that are typically used in board games and moved about the playing surface to track play progression. Items may also have other purposes or functions. In an embodiment, an item may be a drawing tool. A drawing tool may be used to create markings on the map. A drawing tool will have a marking point for depositing ink or other marking media. In an embodiment, a drawing tool will deposit ink along any path across which it is moved. In alternative embodiments, a drawing tool will have a mechanism to control the marking media, such that the magnetic field of the effector head can be modulated to cause the marking point to move in or out of contact with the map, thereby controlling whether marking media is deposited on the map as the drawing tool is moved across the playing surface.
In the networked configuration, all instances should have matching items. Each physical instance 410 should have similar items 140, and each virtual instance should have similar representative virtual items 141.
The system is adapted to allow a user to draw on their local map and to have those drawings 411 be reproduced at remote instances. The drawing tool 419 allows users to draw on other remote instances. When drawing a user's local map, however, the user may simply draw on the map with a pen, marker, or the like. The local instance camera system will recognize the drawing 411 and send command data to remote instances to create reproduction drawings on the remote maps. In the case of remote physical instances, the drawing is reproduced using the drawing tool 419, while on remote virtual instances 420, the virtual drawing 421 is reproduced via the graphical user interface.
In an embodiment, drawing or marking sync state is also polled in a manner similar item location. Drawings are reproduced through a subroutine similar to the basic item sync subroutine. Drawing tools may be multiple and varied at a given instance, such that drawings having more than one color or line-type could be created.
While preferred and alternate embodiments have been illustrated and described, as noted above, many changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention is not limited by the disclosure of these preferred and alternate embodiments. Instead, the scope of the invention should be determined entirely by reference to the claims. Insofar as the description above and the accompanying drawings disclose any additional subject matter that is not within the scope of the claims below, the inventions are not dedicated to the public and Applicant hereby reserves the right to file one or more applications to claim such additional inventions.
The reader's attention is directed to all papers and documents which are filed concurrently with this specification and which are open to public inspection with this specification, and the contents of all such papers and documents are incorporated herein by reference.
All the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract, and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.
Any element in a claim that does not explicitly state “means for” performing a specified function, or “step for” performing a specific function is not to be interpreted as a “means” or “step” clause as specified in 35. U.S.C. § 112 ¶6. In particular, the use of “step of” in the claims herein is not intended to invoke the provisions of U.S.C. § 112 ¶6.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/641,392 filed on Mar. 11, 2018 and U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/680,727 filed on Jun. 5, 2018. The content of the above applications are incorporated by reference in their entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
62680727 | Jun 2018 | US | |
62641392 | Mar 2018 | US |