Multiplayer Gaming Data Distribution via Proximity-Based Relay
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current multiplayer gaming systems require significant network resources due to the need to send all game data to each client, leading to increased bandwidth load, especially in massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs) with large numbers of players.
Innovation Solution
A system that identifies a suitable player within a gaming session to act as a data distributor, using weighted values based on connectivity, location, and avatar status to minimize bandwidth usage by only sending common data to that player, who then relays it to others in the group, while non-common data is sent directly to relevant players.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If all game data is sent to each client in multiplayer gaming sessions, then each player receives complete game information, but bandwidth consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by determining player proximity to avatars and selectively distributing data based on spatial relationships. Players receive full game data only for avatars within their proximity threshold, while data for distant avatars is omitted or reduced, creating localized data quality variations that match player needs
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments game data distribution by dividing players into groups based on avatar proximity. The server identifies which players are near which avatars and distributes data in segments accordingly, rather than sending complete data sets to all players. This segmentation reduces overall bandwidth consumption while maintaining data completeness for each player's relevant context
2Reliability
If game servers send complete data to all players, then all players have access to all game information, but server load increases
Solution Approach 1:
The server implements local quality by assessing which players need which data based on avatar proximity. Instead of uniformly distributing complete data sets, the server provides locally optimized data quality - full information for nearby avatars, reduced information for distant ones - thereby maintaining information availability where needed while improving server efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The server segments its data distribution workload by identifying proximity relationships between players and avatars. This segmentation allows the server to process and transmit only relevant data subsets to each player, reducing overall server load while ensuring that each player receives complete information for their specific gaming context
3Reliability
If data is distributed to all players regardless of proximity, then all players receive updates, but network resources are wasted on unnecessary transmissions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by making data delivery dependent on spatial proximity. Players receive complete data delivery only for avatars within their proximity threshold, while data delivery for distant avatars is selectively reduced or eliminated. This ensures reliable data delivery where it matters while avoiding wasteful network transmissions
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments network transmissions by dividing data delivery into proximity-based groups. The server identifies which players are near which avatars and segments data transmissions accordingly, sending complete data only to players who need it based on proximity. This segmentation eliminates unnecessary network transmissions to players who cannot utilize the data, reducing energy loss
Data Source
AI summary
A computer identifies a group of players that are participating in a gaming session that is hosted by the computer. The computer identifies the location of an avatar of a first player included in the group of players. The computer identifies the location of a second avatar of a second player included in the group of players and determining the proximity between the first avatar and the second avatar. The computer determines if the proximity exceeds a threshold. Responsive to the determination that the proximity does not exceed the threshold, the computer sends data for the gaming session to the first player and the first player passes that data to the second player.