Abstract:
A method for automatically representing offline state and objects in a virtual representation. A user of this method can interact with objects in the real world in a natural way and automatically have a virtual representation of those objects updated. For example, a user may have a real toy with a virtual representation. When the user dresses the real toy with real clothes the virtual representation of the toy will automatically reflect the clothing and accessories placed on the toy. Similarly, when the user dresses in suitably adapted clothing, their own virtual representation will be automatically updated to reflect that clothing. Thus an automatic and seamless method is provided to have virtual representations of objects reflect their state in the real world.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/008,004, filed 2007 Dec. 17 by the present inventors. 
       FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM 
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    1. Field of Invention 
         [0005]    This invention generally relates to toys and play, specifically to the virtual representation of real toys and other play things. 
         [0006]    2. Prior Art 
         [0007]    Toys exist in either the real world where they are played with physically or the virtual world inside a computer system where they are played with via a computer interface. This separation denies the real world toy much of the flexibility and functionality that can be represented in a virtual toy, and denies the virtual toy the natural physical interaction that the owner enjoys with a real toy. 
         [0008]    Similarly a person will dress themselves in the real world and then may use a traditional computer interface to dress their online representation (“avatar”), or they may type a special sequence of characters to reflect their current real world state of mind or emotions (“emoticons”). Within a computer game a player may accumulate objects that empower their virtual representation with special abilities but the connection to real world objects does not exist. 
         [0009]    For centuries toys have been manufactured with clothing and accessories. The owner enjoys the process of dressing and accessorizing the toy. Build-A-Bear Workshop of Saint Louis, Mo. has an extensive retail chain where an assortment of plush along with clothing and accessories suitable for those plush can be purchased. 
         [0010]    More recently virtual toys have been created that also allow the owner of the virtual toy to dress their virtual toy in virtual clothing. Club Penguin of Kelowna, British Columbia has created such an online environment. 
         [0011]    For users who wish to represent themselves online, Yahoo! Avatars offers a broad range of clothing, styles and accessories that a user can choose to dress their avatar through an interface on the World Wide Web. These avatars can also be assigned emotions through a selection on screen or through typing a special sequence of characters. 
         [0012]    It is commonplace within computer games that the character that the player controls will collect objects within the virtual world. These objects will empower the character with additional abilities. 
         [0013]    In each of these situations there is a very clear distinction between the state and characteristics of objects in the real world and their representation in the virtual world. Reflecting the real world state into the virtual world requires manual configuration through a computer interface thereby reducing the fluidity of play along with the enjoyment and engagement felt by the user. 
         [0014]    Insofar as we are aware, for the use cases described above, no mechanism formerly developed provides the means to have an object&#39;s state, clothing and accessories in the real world automatically represented in a virtual or online world. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0015]    In accordance with one embodiment, a means to automatically detect an object&#39;s offline state and the other objects that may be around it, to automatically communicate such state and object information to an online system such that the state and objects may be reflected in virtual representations without further interaction from the user. 
     
    
     
       DRAWINGS 
       Figures 
         [0016]      FIG. 1  is a representation of the dressed toy in the real world, a potential embodiment of a means to detect the clothing, accessories and other objects associated with said toy, a potential embodiment of a means to transmit data with respect to said clothing, accessories and other objects to a potential embodiment of a computer system and a potential embodiment of the virtual reflection of said toy and associated objects on said computer system. 
           [0017]      FIG. 2  is a representation of the dressed child in the real world, a potential embodiment of a means to detect the clothing, accessories and other objects associated with said child, a potential embodiment of a means to transmit data with respect to said clothing, accessories and other objects to a potential embodiment of a computer system and a potential embodiment of the virtual reflection of said child and associated objects on said computer system. 
           [0018]      FIG. 3  is a representation of a potential embodiment of the emotion indicator board, a potential embodiment of a means to transmit data indicating the selected emotion to a potential embodiment of a computer system and a potential embodiment of the virtual reflection of said selected emotion on said computer system. 
           [0019]      FIG. 4  is a representation of a potential embodiment of a reward object in the real world, in this case a tooth reward pin/badge given by a dentist, a potential embodiment of a means to detect the presence of said reward object, a potential embodiment of a means to transmit data with respect to said reward object to a potential embodiment of a computer system and a potential embodiment of the virtual reflection of said reward object. 
           [0020]      FIG. 5  is a representation of a potential embodiment of the invention including RFID technology as a means of object detection and identification and a Zigbee network as a means of transmitting the state and presence of objects to the computer system representing the virtual world. 
           [0021]      FIG. 6  is a flowchart representing a program that could be run in the detector in the potential embodiment of the invention including RFID technology as a means of object detection and identification. 
           [0022]      FIG. 7  is a flowchart representing a program that could be run in the wireless receiver in the potential embodiment of the invention including Zigbee wireless connectivity to connect the detector to the computer. 
           [0023]      FIG. 8  is a flowchart representing a potential embodiment of a program that could be run in the computer system to receive information with respect to the objects seen and use that information to render the virtual representation. 
       
    
    
     DRAWINGS 
     Reference Numerals 
       [0000]    
       
           12  plush 
           14  plush clothing 
           16  RFID tag 
           17  RFID identifier code 
           18  RFID antenna (detector) 
           20  detector 
           22  Zigbee antenna (detector) 
           23  Zigbee antenna (computer system) 
           24  computer system with additional capability 
           26  virtual representation of plush 
           28  user 
           30  user clothing 
           32  doorway 
           34  mirror 
           36  virtual representation of user 
           38  emotion selector 
           40  emotion representation 
           42  reward pin/badge 
           44  virtual representation of plush 
           46  RFID electromagnetic field 
           48  twisted pair connection  56  Zigbee connection 
           50  Skyetek M1-mini RFID reader  58  Jennic 5139 evaluation board 
           52  TTL connection  60  TTL connection 
           54  Jennic 5139 evaluation board 
       
     
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     FIGS.  1 - 8   
       [0048]      FIG. 1  represents a potential embodiment of the invention. A plush  12  is dressed in items of clothing  14 . Each item of clothing  14  has an associated RFID tag  16 . Each RFID tag has an associated RFID identifier code  17 . Embedded within the plush  12  is a detector  20 . Through RFID antenna  18  the detector  20  detects the RFID tags  16  and transmits data indicating the presence of each RFID tag  16  to a computer system  24  via Zigbee antenna  22 . Receiving said data via Zigbee antenna  23 , the computer system  24  renders a representation of the plush  26  with each of the items of clothing  14 . Should an item of clothing  14  be removed from the plush  12  then the detector  20  will similarly transmit this fact to the computer system  24  and the representation of the plush  26  will change automatically. Should an item of clothing  14  be added to the plush  12  the detector will transmit this fact to the computer system  24  and the representation of the plush  26  will change automatically. 
         [0049]      FIG. 2  represents a potential embodiment of the invention. A user  28  is dressed in items of clothing  30 . Each item of clothing  30  has an associated RFID tag  16 . Each RFID tag has an associated RFID identifier code  17 . When the RFID tags  16  worn by the user  28 , pass within range of the RFID antenna  18  attached to a detector  20 , which may, for example, be embedded in a doorway  32  or mirror  34 , the detector  20  will detect the presence of the RFID tags  16  and via Zigbee antenna  22  transmit data indicating their presence to a computer system  24  such that a virtual representation of the user  36  may reflect the user clothing  30 . 
         [0050]      FIG. 3  represents a potential embodiment of the invention. An emotion selector  38  is provided as a means to select an emotion by indicating one of the emotion representations  40 . Examples of means to make such a selection may be through an electronic push-button, a magnetic proximity switch or a voice recognition mechanism built into the emotion selector  38 . The emotion selector  38  includes a detector  20  which will transmit via Zigbee antenna  22  data representing the selected emotion representation  40  to a computer system  24 . The computer system  24  will update a virtual representation of the user  36  based on the emotion selected. 
         [0051]      FIG. 4  represents a potential embodiment of the invention. Suppose that a user has been rewarded for visiting a dentist and has received a reward pin/badge  42  which includes an RFID tag  16  with an embedded RFID identifier code  17 . When the reward pin/badge  42  is placed on a plush  12  a detector  20  will, via RFID antenna  18 , detect the presence of the reward pin/badge  42  and transmit data indicating that fact to a computer system  24 . The computer system  24  will automatically update to reflect a virtual representation of the plush with additional capability  44  corresponding to that reward pin/badge  42 . 
         [0052]      FIG. 5  represents a schematic of the potential embodiment prototype constructed by the inventors. A detector  20  includes RFID antenna  18  connected via a twisted pair connection  48  to a Skyetek M1-mini RFID reader  50  in turn connected via TTL connection  52  to a Jennic 5139 evaluation board  54 . Detector  20  detects the presence of RFID tag  16  and transmits via Zigbee antenna  22  data related to the RFID identifier code  17  over Zigbee connection  56  to Jennic 5139 evaluation board  58  in turn connected via TTL connection  60  to computer system  24 . 
         [0053]    Present prototypes make use of the Skyetek M1-mini RFID reader and Jennic 5139 microprocessor but other devices are suitable and within the scope of the invention An alternative embodiment would see RFID reader  50  connected directly over TTL connection  52  to computer system  24 . This would reduce the component count and cost but result in a wired solution that would not enable wireless motion of the detector  20 . One potential embodiment of the computer system  24  comprises a single computer running software sufficient to render the virtual representation. An alternative embodiment of the computer system  24  comprises the entire Internet where any particular computer connected to the Internet could receive data representing information to be reflected into the applicable virtual representation. 
         [0054]      FIG. 6  represents one potential flow of control in the program running on a Jennic 5139 evaluation board  54  in detector  20  as used in the potential embodiment described above and represented in  FIG. 5 . Following initialization of the systems, Jennic 5139 evaluation board  54  sends a command to query for RFID tags  16  over TTL connection  52  to Skyetek M1-mini RFID reader  50 . Should said RFID reader detect the presence of RFID tag  16  then the program will send data representing the RFID identifier code  17  over Zigbee connection  56  ultimately to the computer system  24 . If no RFID tag  16  is detected then the program waits and queries said RFID reader again after a suitable period. Naturally many more sophisticated flows could be used in alternative embodiments within the scope of the invention. For example, the wait time between queries to the RFID reader could be adjusted dynamically to respond more quickly when the toy is being played with or at night. Doing so could make the toy responsive and save battery life in a battery operated toy. 
         [0055]      FIG. 7  represents one potential flow of control in the program running on a Jennic 5139 evaluation board  58  as used in the potential embodiment described above and represented in  FIG. 5 . 
         [0056]    Following initialization of the system, Jennic 5139 evaluation board  58  receives data corresponding to RFID identifier codes  17  corresponding to RFID Tags  16  detected by detector  20  and transmitted over Zigbee connection  56 . Each RFID identifier code  17  received is then transmitted to computer system  24  over TTL connection  60 . 
         [0057]      FIG. 8  represents one potential flow of control in the program running on computer system  24  as used in the potential embodiment described above and represented in  FIG. 5 . Following initialization of the system, computer system  24  waits to receive data corresponding to RFID identifier code  17  over TTL connection  60 . Computer system  24  determines which RFID identifier codes  17  have not been detected within a predetermined time. RFID identifier codes  17  that have not been seen are deleted from memory. Computer system  24  uses the RFID identifier codes  17  corresponding to individual RFID tags  16  to determine the corresponding virtual object representations that are then combined in order to render the virtual representation. 
       OPERATION 
     FIGS.  1 - 8   
       [0058]    In operating the potential embodiment represented in  FIG. 1  a user plays with plush  12  normally. Dressing and undressing plush  12  with plush clothing  14  seamlessly results in a virtual representation of plush  26  reflecting the corresponding presence or absence of plush clothing  14 . 
         [0059]    In operating the potential embodiment represented in  FIG. 2  a user  28  dresses normally with user clothing  30 . When dressed as desired user  28  approaches detector  20 , which may, for example, be located within doorway  32  or mirror  34 . Detector  20  automatically detects RFID tags  16  in user clothing  30  and transmits the appropriate information to a computer system  24  so that a virtual representation of user  32  can be updated based on the presence of user clothing  30 . 
         [0060]    In operating the potential embodiment represented in  FIG. 3  a user simply indicates their emotional state through selecting the appropriate emotional representation  40  on emotion selector  38 . Possible ways to make this selection could include mechanical push-buttons, capacitive sensors, magnetic switches etc. A detector  20  associated with emotion selector  38  transmits the user&#39;s selection to a computer system  24  and a virtual representation of user  36  is updated as appropriate. 
         [0061]    In operating the potential embodiment represented in  FIG. 4  a user would receive a reward pin/badge  42  with embedded RFID tag  16 . On attaching the reward pin/badge  42  to a plush  12 , a detector  20  would automatically detect the RFID Tag  16  and transmit the corresponding RFID identifier code  17  ultimately to a computer system  24  so that the computer system  24  may render a virtual representation of plush with additional capability  44 . 
       CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE 
       [0062]    Accordingly the reader will see that, according to one embodiment of the invention, I have provided means to reflect the state of offline objects and changes thereto in a virtual representation. 
         [0063]    While the above description contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of any embodiment, but as exemplifications of the presently preferred embodiments thereof. Many other ramifications and variations are possible within the teachings of the various embodiments. Thus the scope of the inventions should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, and not by the examples given.