Virtual Item Tagging in Head-Mounted Displays

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current systems for virtual reality environments lack effective methods for user tagging and content interaction, leading to confusion and inefficiency in sharing and accessing virtual item information.

Innovation Solution

A system and method for tagging virtual items within a virtual environment using head-mounted displays (HMDs), allowing users to associate content with virtual items through voice commands, dynamic categorization, and filtering based on user preferences, enabling asynchronous communication and presentation of relevant content.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If users can freely tag and interact with virtual items in shared virtual reality spaces, then user engagement and content richness improve, but system complexity and information management difficulty increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveuser engagementVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments tagging functionality into distinct components: virtual tags as separate objects that can be independently created, attached to items, and managed. Each tag contains specific data structures for content, user identification, and interaction tracking, allowing the system to handle complex tagging operations through modular, manageable units rather than monolithic operations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces virtual tags as intermediary objects that mediate between users and virtual items. These tags serve as intermediate data structures that store content, track interactions, and facilitate communication between multiple users without requiring direct complex interactions between all system components.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Quantity of substance

If multiple users can interact with and add content to the same virtual items, then content richness and collaborative value improve, but information organization and retrieval difficulty increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontent richnessVSAvoidinformation organization

Core Design Contradiction:

Quantity of substanceVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary organization by automatically associating each user's content with their identification data and the specific virtual item when a tag is created. This preliminary structuring of information occurs at the moment of tag creation, establishing an organized framework that simplifies subsequent retrieval and management operations.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements feedback mechanisms where tag data is automatically updated and stored on servers, providing real-time feedback to users about their interactions. This feedback loop maintains organized information by continuously syncing user actions with the central database, ensuring information remains structured and retrievable despite multiple user contributions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Adaptability or versatility

If the system tracks and stores all user interactions with virtual items, then user preference personalization and content relevance improve, but data storage requirements and processing time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovepersonalizationVSAvoidprocessing time

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements partial tracking by focusing on specific interaction types that are most valuable for personalization, such as tag creation, viewing, and modification. Rather than tracking every possible user action, the system selectively captures the most relevant interaction data, reducing processing overhead while maintaining effective personalization capabilities.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

4Loss of information

If virtual tags display all associated content to users, then information completeness improves, but user experience and information clarity deteriorate due to information overload

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveinformation completenessVSAvoiduser experience

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies local quality by allowing different levels of content visibility and access rights associated with different tags and users. Content can be structured with varying degrees of detail and accessibility, enabling the system to present appropriate information quantities to different users based on their permissions and context, rather than uniformly displaying all content to everyone.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS10430018B2Systems and methods for providing user tagging of content within a virtual scene

Publication Date: 2019.10.01 SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT LLC

AI summary

Systems and methods for providing user tagging of content within a virtual scene are described. One of the methods includes sending data for display of a virtual environment on a head-mounted display. The virtual environment includes a virtual item. The method further includes receiving an indication of a selection associated with the virtual item. The method includes sending option data for allowing entry of content regarding the virtual item upon receiving the indication of the selection, receiving the content, associating the content with the virtual item, and sending tagged data for displaying a tag associated with the virtual item.