TWI866891B - Gaming Devices - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a gaming device that can avoid animation delays through P2P communication, and when a player is likely to commit a foul, can surely save evidence data for verifying the foul. The game device 20 is characterized in that it is connected to the server 10 and other game devices 20 via the communication network 2, and has: a memory unit 22; a display unit 24; a receiving unit 293, which receives animations generated by shooting the surroundings of other game devices 20; a memory processing unit 294, which causes the animations received by the receiving unit 293 to be stored in the memory unit 22; a display processing unit 295, which causes the animations received by the receiving unit 293 to be displayed on the display unit 24; a determination unit 296, which determines whether specific animation sending conditions are met; and a first sending unit 297, which sends at least a part of the animation stored in the memory unit 22 to the server 10 when the determination unit 296 determines that the above-mentioned specific animation sending conditions are met.

Description

Gaming Devices

The present invention relates to a game device.

Conventionally, a so-called online game is played by a plurality of players operating the game devices to play a game against each other using a server and a plurality of game devices connected via a network. In such online games, for reasons such as preventing players from committing fouls, a plurality of game devices performing the game send each other animations (including images) generated by photographing the players, and each game device displays the animation received from the other game device.

For example, Patent Document 1 describes a gaming device having a camera unit, a transceiver unit, and a display unit. The transceiver unit transmits the video of the player captured by the camera unit to the other gaming device, and receives the video of the other player from the other gaming device. The display unit displays the received video of the other player. [Prior Technical Document] [Patent Document]

[Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2015/173962

[The problem the invention is trying to solve]

However, since the capacity of animation data is generally large, the structure of sending animation from the client, i.e. the game device, to other clients, i.e. the other party's game device via the server will cause delays, which will damage the real-time nature of the game. Therefore, most online games such as the above adopt the structure of P2P (Peer to Peer) communication between game devices, and the structure of sending and receiving animations between game devices.

However, when P2P communication is used, if a player who is at a disadvantage breaks off communication and ends the game, it is difficult to verify whether it is a foul because the data that serves as evidence is not left on the server.

The present invention is completed to solve this problem. Its purpose is to provide a gaming device that can avoid animation delays through P2P communication and can accurately save evidence data for verifying foul behavior when a player is likely to commit a foul. [Technical means for solving the problem]

The game device of the present invention is characterized in that it is connected to a server and other game devices via a communication network, and has: a memory unit; a display unit; a receiving unit that receives a video generated by photographing the surroundings of other game devices; a memory processing unit that causes the video received by the receiving unit to be stored in the memory unit; a display processing unit that causes the video received by the receiving unit to be displayed on the display unit; a determination unit that determines whether a specific video transmission condition is satisfied; and a first transmission unit that transmits at least a portion of the video stored in the memory unit to the server when the determination unit determines that the specific video transmission condition is satisfied. [Effect of the invention]

According to the present invention, a gaming device can be provided, which can avoid animation delays through P2P communication, and when a player is likely to commit a foul, can surely save evidence data for verifying the foul.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the embodiments, but should focus on the invention described in the scope of the patent application and its equivalents.

(1) Configuration of the game system 1 Figure 1 is a network configuration diagram showing an example of the game system 1. The game system 1 is a system for executing a dart game as an example of an online game. The game system 1 has a server 10 and a plurality of game devices 20 connected to each other via a communication network 2 such as the Internet. The plurality of game devices 20 are, for example, installed in different stores. Alternatively, the plurality of game devices 20 may be installed in the same store.

(2) Configuration of each device (2-1) Configuration of server 10 Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of server 10. Server 10 is an information processing device for executing player matching-related processing and dart game-related processing. Server 10 has a server communication unit 11, a server memory unit 12, and a server processing unit 13.

The server communication unit 11 has a communication interface circuit for connecting the server 10 to the network 2 and communicates with the communication network 2. The server communication unit 11 supplies data received from the game device 20 and the like to the server processing unit 13. In addition, the server communication unit 11 sends the data supplied from the server processing unit 13 to the game device 20 and the like.

The server memory unit 12 has at least one of a tape device, a disk device, or an optical disk device. The server memory unit 12 stores operating system programs, driver programs, applications, and data used by the server processing unit 13. For example, as an application, the server memory unit 12 stores a program for executing a matching process for matching a plurality of players as opponents, or a program for playing a dart game, etc. The computer program can also be installed in the server memory 12 from a computer-readable portable recording medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read-Only Memory) or a DVD-ROM (Digital Video Disc Read Only Memory) using, for example, a well-known installation program. Alternatively, the computer program can also be installed in the server memory 12 by downloading from other information processing devices via the communication network 2 or the like.

The server processing unit 13 has one or more processors and their peripheral circuits. The server processing unit 13 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), which controls all actions of the server 10. The server processing unit 13 controls the actions of the server communication unit 11, etc., by executing various processes of the server 10 in an appropriate order based on the program stored in the server memory unit 12. The server processing unit 13 has a matching processing unit 131, a game progress unit 132, and an animation receiving unit 133. The matching processing unit 131 performs matching processing such as matching multiple players with each other as opponents. The game progress unit 132 performs processing related to the progress of a dart game, for example. The animation receiving unit 133 receives animations sent from the game device 20, for example.

(2-2) Configuration of the game device 20 Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the game device 20. Figure 4 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the game device 20. The game device 20 is a game device used by the player to play the dart game. The game device 20 includes: a game device communication unit 21, a game device memory unit 22, an operation unit 23, a display unit 24, a card slot CS, a card RW unit 25, a dart board DB, a detection unit 26, a coin input unit 27, a camera unit 28, and a game device processing unit 29. In the dart game, the player sets up a field in front of the game device 20 appropriately, aims at the dart board DB and throws the dart.

The game device communication unit 21 has a communication interface circuit for connecting the game device 20 to the communication network 2 and communicating with the communication network 2. The game device communication unit 21 supplies data received from the server 10 and other game devices 20 via the communication network 2 to the game device processing unit 29. In addition, the game device communication unit 21 sends data supplied from the game device processing unit 29 to the server 10 and other game devices 20 via the communication network 2.

The game device memory 22 has at least one of a tape device, a disk device, or an optical disk device. The game device memory 22 stores operating system programs, driver programs, applications, and data used by the game device processing unit 29. For example, as an application, the game device memory 22 stores a program for playing a dart game. In addition, for example, the game device memory 22 stores animations received from other game devices 20 via the communication network 2. Computer programs can also be installed in the game device memory 22 from a portable recording medium such as a CD-ROM or DVD-ROM that can be read by a computer, for example, using a well-known installation program. Alternatively, the computer program may be downloaded from the server 10 or other information processing device via the communication network 2 and installed in the game device memory 22.

The operation unit 23 is used for the player to perform various operations, for example, by operating buttons provided on the operation panel, etc. The operation unit 23 receives the player's operation and sends a signal corresponding to the operation to the game device processing unit 29, etc.

The display unit 24 may be any device as long as it can display images and pictures, such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display. The display unit 24 may be integrated with the operation unit 23 by, for example, a liquid crystal touch panel display. The display unit 24 displays pictures and animations corresponding to data supplied from the game device processing unit 29.

The card slot CS is an insertion port for inserting the game card held by the player. There are 4 card slots CS in the game device 20, which can be used for 4 people to play the game. In addition, more than 4 card slots CS can be provided, and more than 4 people can play the game.

The card RW unit 25 can read the card ID recorded on the game card held by the player, or write information obtained from the game results into the game card.

The dart board DB is a board that serves as a target for the dart game. The dart board DB is divided into a plurality of target areas, each of which has a plurality of small holes. The front end of the dart thrown by the player is received in any of the plurality of holes provided in the target area.

The detection unit 26 has: a membrane switch, which is provided corresponding to each target area in order to detect whether the dart penetrates the target area; and a vibration sensor, which is provided to detect whether the thrown dart deviates from the target area. The detection unit 26 detects where the dart penetrates the target area/whether it does not penetrate based on the signals of the membrane switch and the vibration sensor, and sends the detection signal to the game device processing unit 29.

The coin insertion part 27 has an insertion port for inserting coins and a sensor for detecting coins inserted from the insertion port. In the game device 20, a player can play a game by inserting a specific number of coins from the coin insertion port. In addition, the game device 20 can also be configured so that the game can be played even if coins are not inserted from the coin insertion port.

The camera unit 28 is composed of, for example, a camera, and generates a video by photographing the surroundings of the game device 29, and outputs the video to the game device processing unit 29. Here, the video refers to at least one image that is continuous in time series, and is used as a single image. The camera unit 28 photographs, for example, players, a dart game field, and the game device 20 as the surroundings of the game device 20. The camera unit 28 can also perform the photographing while zooming or panning under the control of the game device processing unit 29.

The game device processing unit 29 has one or more processors and their peripheral circuits. The game device processing unit 29 is, for example, a CPU, which controls the overall operation of the game device 20. The game device processing unit 29 controls the operation of the game device communication unit 21, etc., by executing various processes of the game device 20 in an appropriate order based on a program stored in the game device memory unit 22, etc.

The game device processing unit 29 includes a matching request unit 291, a game progress unit 292, a receiving unit 293, a memory processing unit 294, a display processing unit 295, a determination unit 296, a first sending unit 297, a second sending unit 298, and an instruction receiving unit 299. Each of these units is a functional module implemented by a program executed by a processor of the game device processing unit 29. Alternatively, each of these units may be installed in the game device 20 as firmware. The matching request unit 291, for example, sends a matching request from a player received by the game device 20 to the server 10 via the communication network 2. The game progress unit 292 performs processing related to the progress of a dart game, for example. The receiving unit 293 receives, for example, animations received from other game devices. The memory processing unit 294, for example, causes the animation received by the receiving unit 293 to be stored in the game device memory unit 22. The display processing unit 295, for example, synthesizes the data related to the progress of the dart game received by the receiving unit 293 and/or other animations and displays them on the display unit 24. The determination unit 296, for example, determines whether a specific animation sending condition is met. The specific animation sending condition is, for example, that the reception of the animation by the receiving unit 293 is cut off. The first sending unit 297, for example, sends at least a part of the animation stored in the game device memory unit 22 to the server 10. The second sending unit 298, for example, sends the animation generated by the camera unit 28 to other game devices. The instruction receiving unit 299, for example, receives instructions from the user.

(3) Actions of Game System 1 Next, the actions of game system 1 are described. Hereinafter, player A and player B are set as opponents of each other by matching, and the game device operated by player A is referred to as game device 20A, and the game device operated by player B is referred to as game device 20B. In addition, the symbol "A" is appropriately added to the end of each component of game device 20A, and the symbol "B" is appropriately added to the end of each component of game device 20B.

(3-1) Matching Processing and Game Progress Processing Figure 5 is a diagram showing an example of the action sequence of the matching processing and game progress-related processing of the game system 1. The action sequence is based on a program pre-stored in the server memory 12, the game device memory 22A, and the game device memory 22B, and is mainly executed by the server processing unit 13, the game device processing unit 29A, and the game device processing unit 29B in cooperation with the components of the server 10, the game device 20A, and the game device 20B.

(Step S101) First, the operation unit 23A of the game device 20A accepts the operation of the player A requesting a match. For example, the player A inputs information such as the player A's ID and the desired game type as information included in the match request.

(Step S102) Then, the matching request unit 291A of the game device 20A sends the matching request received in step S101 to the server 10.

(Step S103) Similar to step S101, the operation unit 23B of the game device 20B accepts the matching request operation from player B.

(Step S104) Then, the matching request unit 291B of the game device 20B sends the matching request received in step S103 to the server 10.

(Step S105) Then, the matching processing unit 131 of the server 10 performs matching processing. Here, through the matching processing, player A and player B are matched as each other's opponents.

(Step S106) Then, the matching processing unit 131 of the server 10 sends information indicating that player A and player B have become each other's opponents, i.e., a battle decision notification, to each of the game devices 20A and 20B.

(Step S107) Then, the server 10, the game device 20A, and the game device 20B execute the progress processing of the dart game. At this time, the score, the number of rounds, and other data related to the progress of the dart game (game data) are sent and received between the server 10, the game device 20A, and the game device 20B. Furthermore, the animation data of each of the game device 20A and the game device 20B is sent and received between the game device 20A and the game device 20B.

Specifically, the game progress unit 292A of the game device 20A sends data indicating the score of the player A to each of the server 10 and the game device 20B based on the detection signal generated by the detection unit 26A when the player A throws the dart. In addition, the camera unit 28A of the game device 20A generates an animation by photographing the surroundings of the game device 20A (player A, the field of the dart game, and the game device 20A, etc.), and outputs it to the game device processing unit 29A. In addition, the second sending unit 298A of the game device processing unit 29A sends the animation photographing the surroundings of the game device 20A to the game device 20B. In addition, the display processing unit 295A of the game device 20A synthesizes the data related to the progress of the dart game received from the server 10 and the game device 20B, and the animation of the surroundings of the game device 20B received from the game device 20B, so that the game screen described later is displayed on the display unit 24A.

Similarly, the game progress unit 292B of the game device 20B sends data indicating the score of the player B to each of the server 10 and the game device 20A based on the detection signal generated by the detection unit 26B when the player B throws the dart. In addition, the camera unit 28B of the game device 20B generates a video by photographing the surroundings of the game device 20B (player B, the dart game field, and the game device 20B, etc.), and outputs it to the game device processing unit 29B. And, the second sending unit 298B of the game device processing unit 29B sends the video of the surroundings of the game device 20B to the game device 20A. In addition, the display processing unit 295B of the game device 20B synthesizes the data related to the progress of the dart game received from the server 10 and the game device 20A, and the animation of the surroundings of the game device 20A received from the game device 20A, and displays the game screen described later on the display unit 24B.

Here, an example of a game screen 500 displayed on the display unit 24A of the game device 20A and the display unit 24B of the game device 20B is described using FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 6, the game screen 500 includes a game data area 501, an animation area 502A, and an animation area 502B. In the game data area 501, the scores, the number of rounds, and other data related to the progress of the dart game of each player A and player B are displayed. In the animation area 502A, an animation generated by shooting the surroundings of the game device 20A (player A and the game device 20A, etc.) by the camera unit 28A is displayed. In the player B animation area 502B, an animation generated by photographing the surroundings of the game device 20B (player B and the game device 20B, etc.) by the camera unit 28B is displayed.

(3-2) Animation transmission processing Figure 7 is a diagram showing an example of an action flow related to the animation transmission processing of the game device 20. The action flow is based on a program pre-stored in the game device memory unit 22, and is mainly executed by the game device processing unit 29 in cooperation with the various components of the game device 20. In the action flow, the determination unit 296 of the game device 20 determines whether the reception of the animation sent from other game devices by the receiving unit 293 is cut off. And, when it is determined that it is cut off, the first sending unit 297 of the game device 20 sends at least a part of the animation to the server 10.

The following describes an example in which, when a dart game is being played between game device 20A and game device 20B, game device 20A sends a video of the surroundings of game device 20B to server 10 or the like.

(Step S201) First, when the dart game starts, the determination unit 296A of the game device processing unit 29A resets the count value N (N→0).

(Step S202) Next, the determination unit 296A determines whether the receiving unit 293A has received the animation from the game device 20B.

(Step S203) In step S202, if it is determined that the receiving unit 293A receives an animation from the game device 20B (step S202; yes), the determining unit 296A resets the count value N (N→0).

(Step S204) Then, the memory processing unit 294A causes the receiving unit 293A to store the animation received from the game device 20B in the game device memory unit 22A. Then, the process returns to step S202.

(Step S205) On the other hand, in step S202, if it is determined that the receiving unit 293A has not received the animation from the game device 20B (step S202; No), the determining unit 296A increases the count value N by 1 (N→N+1).

(Step S206) Next, the determination unit 296A determines whether the count value N is greater than a specific threshold value. In step S206, if it is determined that the count value N is not greater than a specific threshold value (step S206; No), the process returns to step S202. Here, the specific threshold value can be set arbitrarily. By setting a specific threshold value, it can be set that when the receiving unit 293A does not receive the state of the animation for a specific time, the game device 20A sends the animation to the server 10.

(Step S207) In step S206, when it is determined that the count value N is greater than a specific threshold value (step S206; yes), the first sending unit 297A sends at least a portion of the animation around the game device 20B stored in the game device memory 22A to the server 10. At this time, the first sending unit 297A may also send all the animations stored in the game device memory 22 to the server 10. Alternatively, the first sending unit 297A may also send a portion of the animations stored in the game device memory 22 to the server 10. At this time, the part of the animation sent by the first sending unit 297A may be the latest part of the time sequence of the animation stored in the game device memory unit 22, or may be a non-latest part. In addition, when the instruction receiving unit 299 receives the instruction from the user, the first sending unit 297A may send at least a part of the animation around the game device 20B stored in the game device memory unit 22A to the server 10. The above is the end of the animation sending process.

As described above, the determination unit 296 of the game device 20 determines whether the reception of the animation sent from other game devices by the receiving unit 293 is cut off. And, when it is determined that it is cut off, the first sending unit 297 of the game device 20 sends at least a part of the animation to the server 10. And, the server 10 accepts the animation sent from the game device 20 through the animation receiving unit 133, etc. The server 10 can specify the cause of the communication failure based on the animation. Therefore, through this structure, animation delays can be avoided through P2P, and at the same time, when the player may commit a foul, the evidence data used to verify the foul can be accurately saved.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the specific animation sending condition determined by the determination unit 296 is set to the reception of the animation by the receiving unit 293 being cut off, but it is not limited to this. The specific animation sending condition may also be, for example, that the animation received by the receiving unit 293 contains a specific foul behavior of the player. Here, the specific foul behavior and the structure of the determination unit 296 used to determine the specific foul behavior are not particularly limited. For example, the specific foul behavior includes the behavior of the player covering the camera unit 28 with his hand, etc., which hinders the shooting. In this case, the determination unit 296 may also have an arbitrary structure for determining that the animation received by the receiving unit 293 contains the obstructing behavior. For example, the determination unit 296 may also include a mechanism for recognizing a pre-registered specific object (a part of the player's body such as the player's hand, fingerprint, or face, or a special or general-purpose accessory worn by the player), and determining whether the size of the recognized specific object in the image frame constituting the animation is greater than a specific threshold value, or whether the specific object cannot be recognized in the animation. With this configuration, the game device can send the animation to the server device when the player approaches the camera unit 28 to an unexpected distance during normal play in order to hinder the camera unit 28 from shooting the animation, or when the player is not present at a place where the player should be during normal play. Alternatively, the determination unit 296 may also include a mechanism for calculating information indicating the brightness of the image frame constituting the animation (which may be information calculated based on information such as the brightness of each pixel contained in the image frame, and includes information calculated based on a plurality of image frames contained in a specific period), and determining whether the information indicating the calculated brightness does not reach a specific threshold value. With this configuration, the game device can transmit the animation to the server device when the animation becomes darker to a certain extent, such as when the player covers the camera unit 28 with his hand or the like.

Furthermore, the specific animation sending condition may be, for example, that the specific normal game play behavior of the player is not included in the animation received by the receiving unit 293. Here, the specific normal game play behavior can be set arbitrarily according to the type of game. For example, in the case of a dart game, the specific normal game play behavior may be the player's dart throwing and other behaviors. Moreover, the determination unit 296 may also have a mechanism for determining whether the specific normal game play behavior is included in the animation received by the receiving unit 293 according to the state of the specific normal game play behavior. For example, when the specific normal game play behavior is dart throwing, the determination unit 296 may also have the following mechanism, that is, by analyzing the animation to detect the speed of the player's hand or dart, etc., if the detected speed is above a specific threshold value, it is determined that there is dart throwing as a normal game play behavior. Furthermore, the determination unit 296 may also include a mechanism for calculating a period during which a specific normal game play behavior is not recognized and determining whether the calculated period is greater than a specific threshold value. With this configuration, the game device can send an animation to the server device when the player does not perform the generally expected game play behavior for at least a specific period of time.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned implementation forms, and can be implemented in various other forms within the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the above-mentioned implementation forms are merely examples in all aspects, and are not to be interpreted restrictively. For example, the above-mentioned processing steps can be arbitrarily changed in order or executed in parallel within the scope that the processing content does not cause contradictions. In addition, other steps can be added between each processing step. In addition, a step recorded as one step can be divided into multiple steps for execution, and a step recorded as multiple steps can also be grasped as one step.

1. Game system 2. Communication network 10. Server 11. Server communication unit 12. Server memory unit 13. Server processing unit 20, 20A, 20B. Game device 21. Game device communication unit 22. Game device memory unit 23. Operation unit 24. Display unit 25. Card RW unit 26. Detection unit 27. Coin insertion unit 28. Camera unit 29. Game device processing unit 131. Matching processing unit 132. Game progress unit 133. Animation reception unit Processing unit 291‧‧‧Matching request unit 292‧‧‧Game progress unit 293‧‧‧Receiving unit 294‧‧‧Memory processing unit 295‧‧‧Display processing unit 296‧‧‧Judgment unit 297‧‧‧First transmission unit 298‧‧‧Second transmission unit 299‧‧‧Instruction receiving unit 500‧‧‧Game screen 501‧‧‧Game data area 502A‧‧‧Animation area 502B‧‧‧Animation area A, B‧‧‧Player CS‧‧‧Card slot DB‧‧‧Dart board S101～S107‧‧‧Step S201～S207‧‧‧Step

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a network configuration of an example of a game system 1 of the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a server 10. FIG. 3 is a schematic external view of a game device 20. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of a game device 20. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the sequence of actions for matching processing and game processing of the game system 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a game screen. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the flow of actions for animation sending processing of the game device 20.

20‧‧‧Gaming equipment

21‧‧‧Gaming Device Communication Department

22‧‧‧Gaming device memory

23‧‧‧Operation Department

24‧‧‧Display Department

25‧‧‧Card RW Department

26‧‧‧Testing Department

27‧‧‧Coin input department

28‧‧‧Photography Department

29‧‧‧Gaming Device Processing Department

291‧‧‧Matching Requirement Department

292‧‧‧Game progress department

293‧‧‧Receiving Department

294‧‧‧Memory Processing Department

295‧‧‧Display Processing Department

296‧‧‧Judgment Department

297‧‧‧1st Distribution Department

298‧‧‧2nd delivery department

299‧‧‧Instruction Receiving Department

CS‧‧‧Card slot

DB‧‧‧Dart board

Claims (5)

A gaming device is characterized in that it is connected to a server and other gaming devices via a communication network, and has: a memory unit; a display unit; a receiving unit, which receives a video generated by shooting the surroundings of the other gaming devices by a first camera unit of the other gaming devices via the communication network; a memory processing unit, which stores the video received by the receiving unit in the memory unit; a display processing unit, which displays the video received by the receiving unit on the display unit; and a determination unit, which determines whether a specific video transmission condition is satisfied, wherein the specific video transmission condition is a determination of whether the video transmission condition is satisfied. The first sending unit sends at least a portion of the animation stored in the storage unit to the server via the communication network when the determination unit determines that the specific animation sending condition is met, and the server is configured to store at least a portion of the animation to determine whether the foul has been committed; the second camera unit captures the surroundings of the game device; and the second sending unit sends the animation generated by the second camera unit capturing the surroundings of the game device to the other game devices. As in the game device of claim 1, the specific animation sending condition is that the receiving unit is cut off from receiving the animation. For example, in the gaming device of claim 1 or 2, the specific animation sending condition is that the animation received by the receiving unit contains the player's specific foul behavior, or the animation received by the receiving unit does not contain the player's specific normal game behavior. As in claim 3, the display processing unit displays the animation generated by the second camera unit photographing the surroundings of the game device on the display unit. The game device of claim 1 or 2 further comprises an instruction receiving unit for receiving instructions from a player, and the first sending unit sends at least a portion of the animation stored in the storage unit to the server when the instruction receiving unit receives the instructions from the player.