Physical Building Blocks Mapped to Virtual Game Structures
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Solution Overview
Problem
Video gaming applications provide limited physical stimulation, leading to reduced player engagement and entertainment value, especially in multiplayer and construction-based games.
Innovation Solution
A system that constructs virtual structures based on the arrangement of physical building blocks, using contact traces and internal computing modules to determine relative positions and generate corresponding virtual layouts, allowing players to interact with both physical and virtual elements, including digital resources and creatures, and facilitating multiplayer interactions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If video gaming applications use traditional controllers or touchscreens, then the device complexity is reduced, but the physical stimulation and player engagement are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines physical building blocks with virtual gaming elements by integrating contact traces and internal computing modules into the physical blocks. This merging allows the physical structure itself to become an input device, providing tactile engagement while maintaining system integration. The physical blocks with embedded electronics communicate block arrangement data to the gaming system, creating a unified physical-virtual interaction experience.
2Adaptability or versatility
If physical building blocks with contact traces and internal computing modules are used, then player engagement and physical stimulation are enhanced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The physical building blocks serve multiple functions: they are construction elements for physical structures, input devices through contact traces that detect block arrangements, and communication nodes via internal computing modules that transmit data to the gaming system. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated components, making the added complexity worthwhile by delivering enhanced player engagement and tactile feedback.
3Adaptability or versatility
If virtual structures are constructed based on physical block arrangements, then the integration of physical and virtual gameplay is improved, but the measurement precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates a virtual copy of the physical block arrangement by detecting the positions and configurations of physical blocks through contact traces and transmitting this data to generate corresponding virtual structures. This copying approach maintains precise correspondence between physical and virtual representations without requiring complex real-time measurement systems, as the block arrangements themselves serve as the measurement reference.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided are systems and methods for video gaming elements that engage players with gameplay elements combining physical elements and virtual elements of a gaming environment. For instance, players can collect physical blocks that are associated with digital resources such as creatures. Players can advance, battle, and/or trade their digital resources by interacting with the physical blocks in the real world. Additionally and/or alternatively, players can construct at least a portion of a virtual world based on real-world arrangements of physical blocks. Players can then interact with the virtual world they have constructed in the gaming environment.