KR20020061332A - method of breeding robot pet using on-line and off-line systems simulaneously - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A game method for rearing a robot pet by linking an on-line with an off-line is provided to make various functions be added continuously. CONSTITUTION: After connecting to a game server(S510), a user initializes a robot pet, if necessary(S520), and a feed is downloaded(S530). If a feed download is succeeded, a predetermined amount is added to a power(S540). If the user succeeds an ampul download(S550), a predetermined amount is subtracted from the power(S560). It is desirable that the subtracted amount is more than the added amount. In the case of an ampul download, only when a download is succeeded, the power value is changed. It is judged whether the changed power value is more than a predetermined value necessary for increasing an age(S570). If the changed power value is more than a predetermined value, an age of the robot pet is increased by one year(S580).

Description

Method of breeding robot pet using on-line and off-line systems simulaneously}

The present invention relates to a robot pet upbringing game method linking online and offline.

Recently, games have been developed for raising virtual pets similar to actually raising pets. Tamagotchi is a typical pet in a game machine, and it is supposed to be raised by the owner while feeding and playing in time like a real pet. Tamagotchi reacts to various situations like a real pet and has the ability to get sick or die if not cared for and cared for.

Following Tamagotchi, a game was developed to raise virtual pets on the Internet, not on game consoles. Such a game is to create a virtual pet on a specific site on the Internet, and also raise a virtual pet as if it is a real pet. Since many users have a virtual pet on the same Internet site, You can play games and races.

On the other hand, games such as Digimon, which was recently developed as a game for developing cyber characters using game machines, are similar to Tamagotchi in terms of raising cyber characters using game machines, but can use two game machines to play battle games between two cyber characters. This was added.

The present invention has been made in view of the above, and its object is to provide a robot pet training game method that can be used in combination with the online and offline.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a robot pet training game method that can continuously add various functions.

1 is a network diagram showing an overall system for implementing a game method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a robot pet according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is an example of an initial screen provided to a user in a game service according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is an example of a download screen provided to a user in a game service according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a process of growing a robot pet in a game method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a process of downloading a game with age / gender restrictions in a game method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

7 is an example of a community service screen provided to a user in a game service according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, food, ampoules, and game data for nurturing robot pets can be downloaded from a game server through the Internet, the robot pets can be grown, and games can be enjoyed using robot pets. It provides a robot pet development game method that connects online and offline where mating and the like can be done.

That is, the robot pet training game method according to the present invention, the robot pet, the robot pet having a data interface for data communication with the external device and a memory for storing data and programs related to growth and operation and Robot pet development game server that can communicate and access the Internet through user terminal with internet access, user terminal, and transmit specific data related to the development of robot pet to robot pet through internet and user terminal A method for fostering a robot pet using the method, the method comprising: accessing a game server using a user terminal, initializing the robot pet by transmitting initialization data to the robot pet through the user terminal, and using the user terminal. Robot Ke into your game server Requesting download of data for nurturing a finished animal; transmitting data for nurturing a robot pet from a game server to a robot pet via a user terminal; and receiving the data, the robot associated with the data Activating a particular function of the pet.

Here, the data for nurturing the robot pet is the feed data of the robot pet, and the power of the robot pet to maintain the robot pet in an active state according to the feed data is transmitted can be increased by a certain amount. The data for nurturing the robot pet may be ampoule data for treating a disease of the robot pet, and the disease state of the robot pet may be eliminated according to the ampoule data being transmitted, or the robot pet may be nurtured. The data for the game is game data that enables the robot pet to play a specific game, and the game data may be activated to activate a function related to the game data of the robot pet.

Meanwhile, in the step of transmitting data for nurturing the robot pet from the game server to the robot pet, the robot pet transmits digital data in such a manner that a specific area of the display device of the user terminal blinks at a constant brightness. Preferably, the digital data is recognized.

In addition, in the step of transmitting data for nurturing the robot pet from the game server to the robot pet, a fee for data transmission may be charged.

Another robot pet development game method according to the present invention, the communication with the robot pet, the robot pet having a data interface for data communication with the external device and a memory for storing data and programs related to growth and operation A robot pet development game server that can be connected to the Internet through a user terminal capable of accessing the Internet, a user terminal that can be connected to the Internet, and can transmit specific data related to the development of the robot pet to the robot pet through the Internet and the user terminal; A robot pet development game method using a database linked to a game server and storing information about a robot pet including an age of the robot pet and a power indicating a status of the robot pet, wherein the specific data is a robot. Pet's active state It is the ampoule data that can maintain the feeding data and the robot pet's disease state that can be maintained.It is a function that the game server transmits the feeding data and the ampoule data as a parameter whenever there is a transmission of the feeding data and the ampoule data. Changing the power of the robot pet to store the changed power value in the database; and if the power of the robot pet exceeds a predetermined value, increasing the age of the robot pet to store the increased age value in the database. It includes a step.

Here, after storing the increased age value in a database, the method may further include transmitting the increased age value from the game server to the robot pet.

In addition, the database stores the time at which the food data was most recently transmitted, and after the step of changing the power of the robot pet to store the changed power value in the database, the game server whenever the food data is transmitted. The method may further include changing the power of the robot pet as a function that takes a difference between a recent feeding data transmission time and a current time as a parameter, and stores the changed power value in a database.

On the other hand, another robot pet training game method of the present invention, a robot pet having a data interface for data communication with an external device and a memory for storing data and programs related to growth and operation, robot pet Robot pet cultivation game that can communicate with the user and can access the internet through the internet using the user terminal and the user terminal, and transmit specific data related to the function of the robot pet to the robot pet through the internet and the user terminal. This is a method of game to raise a robot pet using a database that is linked with a server and a game server and stores information about the robot pet including the age and gender of the robot pet. Specific data related to the function of the robot pet is a robot. Pets play certain games The game data includes game playable age information and / or gender information capable of playing a game, and accesses a game server using a user terminal to request download of the game data. Comparing the age and / or gender information of the robot pet stored in the database with the game playable age and / or gender information included in the game data requested to be downloaded; and, as a result of the comparison, the age and / or sex of the robot pet. If the information satisfies the conditions of age and / or gender information, the game server may transmit the game data from the game server to the robot pet via the user terminal, and if the game data is received, Activating a particular function.

Here, when the comparison result shows that the robot pet's age and / or gender information does not satisfy the conditions of the game playable age and / or gender information, a message indicating that the game data cannot be downloaded through the user terminal is displayed. It may further comprise the step of.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 is a network diagram showing an overall system for implementing a robot pet training game method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The system for a robot pet development game of the present invention includes a game server 300 for providing a robot pet development game service, and a database 400 for storing information about each robot pet. The user terminal 200 may be connected to the game server 300 via the Internet 500. The terminal 200 of the user that can be connected to the game server 300 includes a personal computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile phone, and the like. Through the game server 300 can be communicated through.

Now, the configuration of the robot pet 100 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 2.

First, the robot pet 100 includes a data communication interface 180 for data communication with the game server 300. As the data communication interface 180, an infrared communication interface, an acoustic coupled communication interface, a wireless communication interface such as a Bluetooth tooth, a wired communication interface using a wired connection means such as RS-232C, USB, and optical sensing ( Various means such as a communication interface using light sense) can be used, and these means are connected to the game server 300 via a user terminal 200 such as a computer, a mobile phone, or a PDA that can be connected to the Internet.

In addition, a communication means such as a modem and a LAN interface that can directly access the Internet to the robot pet 100 without using a computer, a mobile phone, a PDA, or the like is provided to the game server 300 directly through the Internet. It is also possible to make a connection.

In the case of using an infrared communication interface, a wireless communication interface, etc., an infrared communication interface and a wireless communication interface should be provided in the user terminal 200 such as a computer, a mobile phone, or a PDA. Then, the user transmits and receives data through the data communication interface 180 between the terminal 200 and the robot pet 100 while the user is connected to the game server 300 through the Internet using his terminal 200. The terminal 200 transmits and receives data to and from the game server 300 through the Internet.

The robot pet 100 is also provided with a memory 190 for storing various programs and for storing the ID, current power, and the like of the robot pet 100. As the memory 190, nonvolatile memories such as read only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), and flash memory, and volatile memories such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and static random access memory (SRAM) may be used. Can be. In addition, a CD-ROM or a magnetic memory device may be used as the auxiliary storage device.

The robot pet 100 is further provided with a motor driving unit 120 so that the robot pet 100 can move forward, backward, left, and right. Infrared generation and detection unit 130 is used to automatically detect the object while moving the robot pet to prevent collision or move to a desired place. If it is not necessary to automatically correct the movement trajectory by detecting the object, it is not necessary to provide the infrared generation and detection unit 130.

The sound sensing unit 140 is provided for the function that the robot pet 100 detects the sound and responds accordingly. For example, if a person claps, they can move or stop accordingly. In addition, by providing a voice recognition function in the sound detection unit 140, it is also possible to respond to a command given by a person.

The mode setting unit 150 is used to set the operation mode of the robot pet 100. For example, it is used to set the game to be played in a game mode with other robot pets, or set to exercise mode to play alone. The mode setting unit 150 may be implemented using a general button, or may be implemented using a touch screen together with the display unit 160, or may be set to a remote controller by providing an infrared remote controller. It is not limited to.

The display unit 160 may use a device such as a light emitting diode (LED) or a liquid crystal display (LCD) to indicate a status of the robot pet 100 or to send a message to help a user use a function. In addition, the robot pet 100 may be used to communicate with the user.

The sound generator 170 is used when the robot pet 100 sends a message to the user. For example, when the robot pet 100 makes a hungry sound when hungry or sings when it feels good, it is used. The sound generator 170 includes a sound generator such as a buzzer, a piezo element, a speaker, and a sound source element such as a melody IC.

The controller 110 controls each component of the robot pet 100 according to the pre-programmed contents. The controller 110 may be implemented in software using a microprocessor, or may be implemented in hardware using a logic element.

The robot pet 100 is supplied with an ampoule for feeding or treating a disease from the game server 300, and grows and operates. In addition, the game server 300 stores a number of games that can be played using a robot pet, and the user accesses the game server 300 using his user terminal 200 and then plays these games on the user terminal. Downloaded to the robot pet 100 through the 200 can be a game using the robot pet (100). The game using the robot pet 100 includes rolling a ball, pushing each other, running race, and the like. The game server 300 may also use the information such as age or power of the robot pet 100 stored in the database 400, and the behavior of the robot pet 100 that changes according to age or power, or possible games. You can specify a range.

In addition, the information stored in the database 400 may be information of a user who is the owner of the robot pet and detailed information of the robot pet. As user information, user's personal information such as user ID, password and name, social security number, address, e-mail address, telephone number, etc. can be stored.In the information of robot pet, the serial number (product number) of robot pet , ID, age, gender, name, power, time of last feeding / ampoule download, and the type of game or song the robot pet has.

Now, a process of raising a robot pet using the game method of the present invention and playing a game using the robot pet will be described in detail.

First, a user owning a robot pet connects to a game server providing a game method of the present invention and registers as a member. Robot pets already have a built-in amount of food at the time of first purchase, but they consume food as they are active, so the necessary food must be downloaded from the game server. Therefore, in order to continue to grow robot pets and enjoy offline games using them, it is necessary to download necessary food or other data through the game server. For this purpose, the user connects to the game server and registers as a member. Can be used. In particular, people who raise a real pet often have activities such as exchanging or mating information by forming a group of fellows, and in the game method of the present invention, the community of owners of robot pets meet and exchange information. Services can be provided and membership is essential for such community services.

To register as a member, register a user ID and password, and register your own robot pet. When a user having a plurality of robot pets wants to register as a member, the user may have two member IDs, or may register with one member ID and register a plurality of robot pets. In the former method, since one robot pet corresponds to one user ID, the robot pet can also be identified using the user ID.

On the other hand, a user who owns a robot pet is not obligated to sign up for membership, but it is possible to allow non-members to download and provide other additional services such as community to members. In this case, the game server does not store the user information, but only stores information about the robot pet using the serial number (product number) or ID of each robot pet.

3 illustrates an example of a service initial screen briefly showing functions provided by a game server of the present invention. As shown in Figure 3, there is a member registration 310 and the user guide 320 menu, so that you can directly access the game server to purchase robot pets and related peripheral devices (game tools, etc.) directly online. The shopping menu 330 may be prepared. The most important function provided by the game server is the download 340, which will be described in detail below. There is also a community menu 350 for community activities described above.

After accessing the game server and joining as a member, it is possible to download food, ampoules or games for robot pets.

An example of a screen presented to the user when the download function is selected in FIG. 3 is shown in FIG. 4. First, the robot pet must be initialized before the first download. Initialization can be performed by clicking the "Initialization" button 410 provided on the screen as shown in FIG. 4, and when the button is clicked, the robot pet 100 and the game server 300 communicate with each other through the user terminal 200 to play a game. The server 300 receives information about the robot pet 100, stores the information in the database 400, and sets the environment in which the robot pet 100 may download food or a game. In addition to the first download, the initialization should be performed when the specification of the user terminal 200 is changed or when the communication method between the user terminal 200 and the robot pet 100 is changed.

When the initialization is completed and the download environment is set, the user can download food or games to the robot pet. When the button indicating the desired item is clicked in FIG. 4, the process proceeds to a state in which the corresponding item can be downloaded.

The item to be downloaded may be downloaded only when the robot pet can download the item. For example, the amount of food a robot pet can have at one time is limited. Thus, when the robot pet already has the highest amount of food, the food can no longer be downloaded. Songs do not need to be downloaded again because they do not need to be downloaded again, and games may limit the types of games that can be played depending on the age of the robot pet. So you can download or not. Ampoules are used for the purpose of treating a disease, so they can be downloaded only when the disease is affected (for example, when there is no food and no disease).

In this way, the controlling of the download method may be performed by the game server to determine the status of the robot pet by communicating with the robot pet, and then determine whether to download the game server. It can also be controlled on the animal side.

Among the download items of FIG. 4, the love dity item is an item providing a mating function between robot pets having different genders.

On the other hand, when you want to download food, ampoules, new features, songs, etc. may be required to pay a certain fee for each download item.

As such, the user connects to the game server, initializes the robot pet, downloads the necessary items, grows the robot pet, heals the bottle of the robot pet, or uses the robot pet online / offline game. Enjoy. Since the robot pet's food is consumed as the robot pet is active, the user frequently connects to the game server to download the food, and registers a new game or song on the game server to provide the user with the robot pet. Additional functions can be given.

Meanwhile, the robot pet can be grown through activities such as feeding and playing with the user. Now, the growth algorithm of the robot pet will be described. The growth of the robot pet may have an algorithm that grows itself by using hardware or software functions in the robot pet, but it is preferable to control the growth using the information of the robot pet in the game server. The latter will be described below.

A flowchart illustrating the process of growing a robot pet is shown in FIG. 5. The growth of a robot pet can be done in many ways, but basically it is related to the amount of food the pet has downloaded. On the other hand, if the food is not given at the specified time, the robot pet is ill, and if the disease, before feeding the robot pet must first treat the robot pet, it is also related to the amount of ampoules downloaded. In other words, after setting the power to have a value according to the amount of download of the food and ampoule, if the power reaches a certain size (k) to increase the age, if the success in downloading the food is a certain amount of power ( Δn), and when the ampoule is downloaded, the power of the robot pet may be controlled by using a method of decreasing the power by a certain amount Δm.

That is, as shown in Figure 5, after the user accesses the game server (S510), and initializes the robot pet as needed (S520), and then download the food (S530). At this time, if the food download is successful, a predetermined amount Δn is added to the power (S540). Succeeding in food download means downloading food to the robot pet in a timely manner. In other words, if the robot pet already has the maximum amount of food, or if it is ill and cannot eat food, it will not increase its power even if it is downloaded again.

Next, when the user successfully downloads the ampoule (S550), the user subtracts a predetermined amount (Δm) from the power (S560). It is preferable that the fixed amount [Delta] m reduced at this time is larger than the fixed amount [Delta] n added at the time of food download. In the case of ampoule download, the power value is changed only when the download is successful. In other words, when the robot pet is in a healthy state, even if it tries to download the ampoule, it does not download or does not reduce the power even when downloading.

In this way, it is determined whether the changed power value is equal to or greater than a predetermined value k required to increase age (S570). As a result of the determination, when the predetermined value (k) or more, the age of the robot pet is increased by one year (S580), otherwise it returns to the beginning again.

If the age increases, the robot pet may have a special movement as the age increases. The game server can increase the age by one year and send this result to the robot pet so that it can adjust its age in the robot pet, sing happy birthday songs, or dance a special dance.

On the other hand, in the growth of the robot pet, it is desirable to grow faster the more interaction between the user and the robot pet. Therefore, in addition to the amount of food downloaded, the time interval for downloading food can be added as a parameter to increase the age of the robot pet. To do this, the game server keeps the last time each robot pet downloaded the food, calculates the interval to download the next food, and uses this parameter together. However, since a robot pet usually consumes food according to its operation, in case of a frequently operated robot pet, that is, when the user plays with the robot pet frequently, the robot pet is not operated. Compared to this, the consumption of food is increased, which reduces the interval of downloading food. Therefore, the robot pets that have much time to download the same amount of food and reach a constant power are shorter than the robot pets that do not have the same amount of activity. As with the method, growth can be controlled to reflect user interaction.

On the other hand, there are various online / offline games that can be played using a robot pet through a game server, and among such games, there are restrictions depending on the age and gender of the robot pet. For example, as robot pets grow, their movements become more agile and their ability to accept input from the outside improves their ability to play with a certain amount of play, especially games involving mating. Robot pets can only be used when they are a certain age, and different programs can be used depending on gender. In this case, we explain how to restrict or allow the download of the game. 6 shows a flow chart of this method.

First, after connecting to the game server as in the normal download method (S610) and initializes the robot pet as needed (S620). Next, when the user requests a game download using his terminal (S630), the game server checks whether the game that the user has requested to download has a limitation of age or gender (S640), and if there is a limit, the database is downloaded. Reference is made to the age and gender of the robot pet (S650). As a result of the check, the robot pet requesting the download is allowed to download the game (S660). Otherwise, the message indicating that it cannot be downloaded (for example, "This game is only 3 years old or older." Available "," this game can only be used by female Titi ", etc.) (670).

When the information about the age or gender of the robot pet is not stored in the database, the game server may communicate with the robot pet to determine the age and sex of the robot pet and then do the same.

On the other hand, the game server of the present invention can provide a community service that can perform activities such as exchanging information, mating, etc. between the users owning the robot pets. Community service can be used by joining the game server of the present invention as a member, the service provided through the community, as shown on the screen of Figure 7, news 710, friend finder 720, pair finder 730, Messages 740, chat 750, and the like.

Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments, this embodiment has been presented for the purpose of understanding the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the technical idea of the present invention, and the scope of the present invention should be interpreted by the appended claims.

As described above, according to the present invention by linking online and offline to download food and games on-line to raise the robot pets on the offline or to play a game using the same can cause user's interest, new games or It can continue to provide functionality. In addition, in order to grow a robot pet must be connected to the game server online, it is possible to secure the revenue of the service provider by advertising using the same.

Claims (11)

A robot pet having a data interface for data communication with an external device and a memory for storing data and programs related to growth and operation, a user terminal capable of communicating with the robot pet and accessing the internet, the user terminal As a robot pet development game method using a robot pet development game server, which can be accessed through the Internet and transmits specific data related to the development of the robot pet to the robot pet through the Internet and the user terminal. , Accessing the game server using the user terminal, Initializing the robot pet by transmitting initialization data to the robot pet through the user terminal; Requesting download of data for nurturing the robot pet to the game server using the user terminal; Transmitting data for raising the robot pet from the game server to the robot pet via the user terminal; And activating a specific function of the robot pet associated with the data in response to receiving the data. The method of claim 1, The data for nurturing the robot pet is food data of the robot pet, Robot pet development game method of increasing a predetermined amount of power of the robot pet to maintain the robot pet in an activated state as the food data is received. The method of claim 1, Data for nurturing the robot pet is ampoule data for treating diseases of the robot pet, Robot pet development game method of removing the disease state of the robot pet in response to receiving the ampoule data. The method of claim 1, Data for nurturing the robot pet is game data that allows the robot pet to perform a specific game, Robot pet development game method that the function associated with the game data of the robot pet is activated in response to receiving the game data. The method of claim 1, In the step of transmitting data for nurturing the robot pet from the game server to the robot pet via the user terminal, And transmitting digital data in such a manner that the specific area of the display device of the user terminal blinks at a constant brightness so that the robot pet recognizes the digital data. The method of claim 1, In the step of transmitting data for nurturing the robot pet from the game server to the robot pet via the user terminal, Robot pet growth game method that charges a fee according to the data transmission. A robot pet having a data interface for data communication with an external device and a memory for storing data and programs related to growth and operation, a user terminal capable of communicating with the robot pet and accessing the internet, the user terminal It is connected to the robot pet development game server and the game server that can be connected via the Internet using the Internet and can transmit specific data related to the development of the robot pet to the robot pet through the Internet and the user terminal. A robot pet upbringing game method using a database that stores information about the robot pet including the age of the robot pet and a power indicating the state of the robot pet. The specific data is food data to maintain the active state of the robot pet and ampule data to remove the disease state of the robot pet, Whenever there is a transmission of the food data and the ampoule data, the game server changes the power of the robot pet as a function of using the number of transmissions of the food data and the ampoule data as parameters, and stores the changed power value in the database. To do that, And when the power of the robot pet is greater than or equal to a predetermined value, increasing the age of the robot pet and storing the increased age value in the database. The method of claim 7, wherein After storing the increased age value in a database, And transmitting the increased age value from the game server to the robot pet. The method of claim 7, wherein The database stores the time at which the food data was most recently transmitted. After changing the power of the robot pet to store the changed power value in the database, Whenever there is a transmission of the feed data, the game server changes the power of the robot pet as a function of the difference between the time of the latest feed data transmission and the current time as a parameter to store the changed power value in the database. Robot pet upbringing game method comprising more. A robot pet having a data interface for data communication with an external device and a memory for storing data and programs related to growth and operation, a user terminal capable of communicating with the robot pet and accessing the internet, the user terminal It is connected to the robot pet development game server and the game server that can be connected through the Internet using the Internet and can transmit specific data related to the function of the robot pet to the robot pet through the Internet and the user terminal. A robot pet upbringing game method using a database that stores information about the robot pet including the age and gender of the robot pet, The specific data related to the function of the robot pet is game data for enabling the robot pet to play a specific game, and the game data includes game playable age information and / or gender information capable of playing the game. Including, Requesting to download the game data by accessing the game server using the user terminal; Comparing the game playable age and / or gender information included in the game data requesting a download with the age and / or sex information of the robot pet stored in the database; As a result of the comparison, when the age and / or gender information of the robot pet satisfies the condition of the age and / or gender information capable of playing the game, the game data is transmitted from the game server to the robot pet via the user terminal. Transmitting step, And activating a specific function of the robot pet associated with the game data in response to receiving the game data. The method of claim 10, As a result of the comparison, if the age and / or gender information of the robot pet does not satisfy the conditions of the age and / or gender information available for playing the game, a message indicating that the game data cannot be downloaded through the user terminal is displayed. Robot pet development game method further comprising the step of displaying.