GAMES

Abstract

Apparatus for use in a game of tag (or variations of this, e.g. a variation of manhunt) that determines the length of period a player is Tag (or a value dependent upon this length) for each of a plurality of such periods, preferably aggregating these periods (or values) for players and/or for teams and displaying results centrally and using touch-sensitive means to detect touching, and a corresponding computer game. The touch-sensitive means may comprise sensing and indicating means carried by one player to sense and indicate a first touching of that player and to sense a next touching by that player of another player (which two touchings define a period of Tag of said one player) by cooperation with similar means carried by that other player, which means may comprise a signal generator, generating a different signal while a player is Tag.

Claims

1.-21. (canceled)

22. Apparatus for use in a game of tag, comprising timing means responsive to a first touching by a first player of a second player to determine a time for said first touching and responsive to a second touching by the second player of another player to determine a time for said second touching, the apparatus comprising association means constructed and arranged to associate the two determinations to enable the determination of a value which is the length of the period between said first and second touchings or is a quantity dependent on such length.

23. Apparatus as claimed in claim 22, comprising aggregating means constructed and arranged to aggregate said values for a player.

24. Apparatus as claimed in claim 23, comprising display means constructed and arranged to display such values and/or aggregates as the case may be for a plurality of players in association with IDs of the respective players and/or IDs of a plurality of teams comprising the players.

25. Apparatus as claimed in claim 22, comprising an article of wear responsive to a said touching.

26. Apparatus as claimed in claim 22, comprising proximity means constructed and arranged to be carried by a player and adapted to detect that another player is proximate when a said touching occurs.

27. Apparatus as claimed in claim 22, comprising validation means constructed and arranged to determine whether said other player is said first player and if so whether there has been a predetermined minimum interval between said first and second touchings and only if so to validate said second touching for determining said value.

28. Apparatus as claimed in claim 22, comprising skill means to define and detect features of skill exhibited by a said player, said association means being adapted for the said quantity to be dependent also upon one or more of these defined features.

29. Apparatus for use in a game of tag between player-controlled avatars, comprising timing means responsive to a first touching by a first player's avatar of a second player's avatar to determine a time for said first touching and responsive to a second touching by the second player's avatar of another player's avatar to determine a time for said second touching, the apparatus comprising association means constructed and arranged to associate the two determinations to enable the determination of a value which is the length of the period between said first and second touchings or is a quantity dependent on such length.

30. Apparatus as claimed in claim 29, comprising means constructed and arranged to aggregate said values for a player's avatar.

31. Apparatus as claimed in claim 30, comprising display means constructed and arranged to display such values and/or aggregates as the case may be for a plurality of players' avatars in association with the IDs of the respective players' avatars and/or IDs of a plurality of teams comprising the players' avatars.

32. Apparatus as claimed in claim 29, comprising validation means constructed and arranged to determine whether said other player's avatar is said first player's avatar and if so whether there has been a predetermined minimum interval between said first and second touchings and only if so to validate said second touching for determining said value.

33. Apparatus as claimed in claim 29, comprising skill means to define and detect features of skill exhibited by a said player's avatar, said association means being adapted for the said quantity to be dependent also upon one or more of these defined features.

34. A computer program or programming means, adapted to program computerised apparatus to operate as apparatus as claimed in claim 29.

35. A modified game of tag in which a first player touches a second player to transfer tag status thereto and the second player touches another player to transfer tag status thereto and a score is made in dependence upon the length of time said second player remains tag between the two touchings.

36. A game as claimed in claim 35, in which an aggregate is made of said scores for a said player.

Description

PARTICULAR DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0175] Reference will now be made by way of example to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0176] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of first and second embodiments of the invention, without and with a central unit 38, respectively;

[0177] FIG. 2 is a front view schematic diagram of a player wearing a first embodiment of the invention;

[0178] FIG. 3 is a side view schematic diagram of two such players, the back one about to touch the front one and transfer the tag to him;

[0179] FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic view of apparatus embodying a computerised game version of the invention;

[0180] FIG. 5 is a front view of a player wearing the first embodiment of the invention;

[0181] FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the first embodiment of the invention;

[0182] FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view of a field set up for manhunt in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; and

[0183] FIG. 8 is a schematic view of another embodiment of the invention comprising physical avatars (robots) on a field (shown in schematic plan view), each controlled as to position and/or action by a corresponding player (shown in schematic side view).

[0184] Referring to the drawings, identical references refer to the same item in the same Figure or different Figures or items that are identical or similar or have similar functions, and references with the same first two digits (or same first three digits) refer to items that are identical or similar or related or have similar or related functions.

[0185] Means 10 to enable scoring in a game of tag in dependence upon the time duration that a player remains Tag comprise means 12 constructed and arranged to detect the occurrence of a tagging event, being defined as an event at which tag passes from a first player 14 who is Tag until the event to a second player 16 who thereupon becomes Tag instead, and provide a signal 15 to indicate the detection. The signal 15 may be stored, together with the time of occurrence of the event, in a memory 36 carried by each player 14, 16 and/or may be transmitted to a memory 36 in central unit 38, described below. The means 12 to detect when a tagging event occurs comprise an article of wear 12 which is touch-sensitive and in this embodiment comprises a touch-sensitive bib 12, fastened in place by straps 13 interconnecting front and back parts 131, 132. The bib 12 of the second player 16 (just as for each other player) may have any suitable means 18 to sense when it is touched by the first player 14. For example, means 18 may be a touch-sensitive pad 18 that comprises a mosaic of independent small elements 20, e.g. piezoelectric elements, each of which is adapted to generate a current when touched, the bib 12 having means 22 connected to receive and detect any such current and thereupon generate the signal 15. Again, the small elements 20 may be such that adjacent elements 20 are of different electric potentials, or possibly of opposite electric polarity, such that touching two adjacent elements produces an electrical connection between them that causes a current to flow, again detected by means 22 to generate signal 15. For this purpose, player 14 is preferably provided with electrically conductive gloves 26. This alternative has the advantage that if player 16 accidentally touches a non-conductive object, e.g. a wall, no signal 15 will be generated. Again, to reduce or eradicate the possibility of a signal 15 being generated falsely, there may be proximity means 28 carried by each player, e.g. second player 16, adapted to cooperate with ID means 30 carried by each player, e.g. first player 14, and arranged to inhibit generation of the signal 15 unless simultaneously detecting a signal from a proximate ID means 30 carried by another player. Thus, generation of the signal 15 indicates a valid touching (i.e. tagging) event. Such ID means 30 can be very simple and indicate the same ID for all players, unless required to identify each player, e.g. to identify the players 14, 16 being the old Tag and the new Tag.

[0186] (Even without proximity means 28, ID means 30 of a touched player 16 may produce an ID signal 32 specifically indicative of that player and this signal 32 may be associated with the signal 15, and possibly with a timing signal 33 (from a timing means 331) indicating the time at which the tagging event took place.)

[0187] However, if the ID means 30 are distinctive of every player, or at least of the team identity of a player if the players are in designated teams, the proximity means 28 of a touched player 16 can be adapted to produce a signal 34 indicative of the distinctive ID (due to its distinctive signal 32) of the other player 14, the touching (previous) Tag.

[0188] Another possibility is to provide each player with a signal generator and receiver 28, which may be part of or replace proximity means 28, which generates one signal, say continuous 11 kHz, while a player (say, 14) is Tag and another signal, say continuous 10 kHz, when the player (say, 16) is not Tag. The bib 12 is electrically conductive. The output from signal generator 28 for each player 14, 16 is fed as an electrical signal to his bib 12. When Tag player 14 touches the bib 12 of not-Tag player 16, the receiver 28 of each player 14, 16 receives a combination of the two signals (i.e. a dual signal) and switches over its generator 28 to produce the other signal. This changeover upon touching is detected and used to terminate the Tag period for player 14 and to initiate a Tag period for player 16. Means included in receiver 28 can be used to obviate hunting, when Tag would pass from one player to the other repeatedly throughout the duration of a touching, e.g. a time delay of e.g. 5 seconds to allow a touch to be terminated before changing over the signals, or e.g. a delay in the changeover until the dual signal is no longer detected, which indicates that the touching has ceased. In such a case, it could be useful to enable a response immediately upon detecting the dual signal and before the changeover, e.g. by issuing a signal to indicate to either or each player that there has in fact been a touching. It will be in the Tag player's interest to terminate the touching as soon as possible, so as to minimise his time as Tag.

[0189] All of the equipment thus far described, being part of means 10 to enable scoring, could be carried by each player, as indicated, and produce a record in a recording means 36 carried by each player. At the end of a game, e.g. after a designated time, e.g. five minutes, the records of the different players can be collected and consolidated (aggregated) to determine the times at which each player became Tag and the duration that each such tag lasted, to enable a scoring to be evaluated as indicated above.

[0190] More conveniently (and interestingly, from the point of view of making this a spectator sport), the equipment 10 comprises a central unit 38, to which the signals 32 and 34 can be transmitted, that has central recording means 40 arranged to act in real time to record the time or times at which each player became Tag in conjunction with the ID of that player, possibly with a calculator 42 to perform a time subtraction between the time a player became Tag and the time that player succeeded in passing on the tag (or the time that another player became Tag, which would have the same effect but could be ascertained by different logical circuitry), possibly together with evaluation means 44 to evaluate a score for each player to include any non-linear dependence of score on time and/or to include any special points award (positive or negative) due to style manoeuvres or other point-scoring actions of a player, possibly in conjunction with display means 46, which preferably is arranged to present a running display 48 of the current score of each player, e.g. side-by-side for all the players.

[0191] Further to improve the game, as indicated above, means 50 which may be carried by the individual players or may preferably be arranged at the central unit 38, are constructed and arranged to make use of player-ID information signals as aforesaid to ensure a predetermined minimum interval before a newly tagged player can pass tag back to the previous player who tagged them.

[0192] Calculator 42 may also comprise means constructed and arranged to aggregate the times and/or scoring evaluations for a player or team.

[0193] The use of a central unit 38 presupposes means 52 constructed and arranged to transmit information denoting any such detection, time duration, score, aggregate, ID and/or tagging event, as the case may be. Such means 52 may be active and carried by each player, or again each player may have a device like an RFID device 52 which is passive and contains up-to-date information for the player carrying it and is interrogated (or read) at frequent intervals by the central unit 38, which does this in addition to serving as a central receiving means 38 adapted to receive such information.

[0194] As indicated, the central unit 38 preferably comprises a central processing means comprising calculator 42 and evaluation means 44 adapted to process such information, as well as display means 46 constructed and arranged to display by means of a running display 48 an indication of at least the players who have been tagged and the tagging score of each of them, and preferably also constructed and arranged to display the aggregates in a list in order of magnitude, preferably in order from lowest to highest.

[0195] Again, with a view to making this more interesting as a spectator sport, and also perhaps making it easier to play, the equipment 10 is provided with means 54, e.g. visual, e.g. LED means, to indicate which player is Tag, perhaps a cap or shoulder mounts 54 with a light, e.g. on top.

[0196] The signal units 36, 52, 331, 30, 28, 22 and 50 of bib 12 are contained in a control unit 121 fixed to a waist belt 13 of bib 12.

[0197] It will be seen that embodiments of the invention can provide a modified game of tag in which a score is made in dependence upon the time that a player is tag and provide means to enable scoring to put this into effect. As described above, the game preferably is made dependent also upon one or more defined features of skill exhibited by the Tag (or a player evading the Tag).

[0198] As also indicated above, there can be a computerised form of the game. This requires equipment and/or a computer programme for simulating a game of Tag comprising programme means 100 adapted and/or arranged: [0199] with an element 101 to provide a plurality of avatars 60 on a screen 62 and movable under the control of respective players 64 of the game via control means 641, and a number of obstacles 68, normally fixed but possibly movable or having controllable positions, [0200] with an element 102 to designate, or enable, initially one of the avatars 60 as Tag 601, [0201] with an element 103 arranged so as, when a Tag 602 touches another avatar 603, to transfer the Tag designation to the latter, and [0202] with an element 104 to evaluate a score dependent upon the time an avatar 60 is Tag.

[0203] The programme means 100 preferably comprises: [0204] an element 105 adapted and/or arranged to aggregate the time evaluations for an avatar 60; [0205] a program element 106 adapted and/or arranged to display the aggregates in an ordered list 66, preferably in order from lowest to highest; [0206] a program element 107 adapted and/or arranged to provide or associate a plurality of said avatars 60 with skill sets (which may differ from one avatar to another); and [0207] a program element 108 adapted and/or arranged to evaluate a said score dependent also upon one or more defined features of skill.

[0208] Thus, there can be provided equipment and/or a computer programme for simulating a game being a modified game of tag, as indicated above, adapted to provide a plurality of avatars 60 on a screen 62 representing players 64 of the game, adapted to respond to control means 641 to move the avatars 60 on the screen 62, adapted to ascertain when a designated one of the avatars 60 (herein called the Tag) touches another and thereby transfers the tag to the other, and adapted to time, or otherwise evaluate a score depending upon, the duration that one avatar is Tag until transferring the tag to another avatar.

[0209] Referring to FIG. 7, a field 70 is set up to play manhunt as described above in an embodiment of the invention, with a team of (Tag) hunters 14 and a team of hunted players 16. At the stage shown, two players 141 of the hunters 14 are Tags while the other hunters 14 are not yet in the game, and two players 161 of the hunted players 16 have been touched by players 141 and hence knocked out of the game. The game has been paused at the last touching and the players 14 and 16 have moved to their designated locations, as shown, and the game is just about to be re-commenced.

[0210] Referring to FIG. 8, another group of embodiments of the invention comprises physical avatars (robots) 14, 16 on a field 70 each controlled as to position and/or action by a corresponding player 64 by means of a control stick 641 on one or more control units 38 via non-wired signals 72. The method of play and required apparatus are otherwise as for any of the previously described embodiments.

[0211] In a simple embodiment, the apparatus 12 carried by a player 16, is e.g. a tunic with one or more touchable buttons arranged to respond to being touched to operate a signal generator 22 of the apparatus to cause the apparatus to generate and transmit a multiplex-type signal 15 that contains one element which is the player's ID and another which is possibly the timestamp. The central unit 38 receives such signals in succession. It has a differencer (part of calculator 42) which subtracts the last previously received signal's timestamp from the currently received signal's timestamp to provide a value which is a measure of the length of the period for which the previous player 14, i.e. the player whose apparatus 12 transmitted the previous signal 15, continued to have the status of tag after that signal's timestamp. The central unit 38 has a register, counter or other aggregator (part of calculator 42) for each player, to which it feeds all such values for the relevant player identified by the ID to aggregate those relevant values for that player. The central unit 38 also has a display 46 connected to the aggregators 42 that displays a bar for each player, such that the length of each bar increases in accordance with each such value received by the aggregator, preferably on a current-time basis. This apparatus 12 can be applied to a game in which the players on a playing field 70 are real people 14, 16, or to a game in which the players 14, 16, FIG. 7, on a playing field 70 are on-screen avatars controlled by players 64 who are real people, or to a game in which the players 14, 16, FIG. 8, on a playing field 70 are physical avatars (e.g. remotely controlled robots) controlled by players 64 who are real people. It is to be understood that the items 38, 72, 64, 641 shown in FIG. 8 are also present in the FIG. 7 embodiment, though omitted from the drawing for the sake of clarity.

[0212] It will be apparent, to one skilled in the art, that features of the different embodiments disclosed herein may be omitted, selected, combined or exchanged and the invention is considered to extend to any new and inventive combination thus formed. Where a preference or particularisation is stated, there is implied the possibility of its negative, i.e. a case in which that preference or particularisation is absent.

[0213] Many variations of the invention and embodiments hereinbefore described will be apparent to people skilled in the art and all such variations are to be considered as falling within the scope of the invention.