IP Library Granted Patent US 12,026,527
Granted Patent B2
US 12,026,527 · App. 17/740,570 · Granted Jul 2, 2024

World-controlled and application-controlled augments in an artificial-reality environment

Inventors: John Jacob Blakeley (Bothell, WA); Michal Hlavac (Seattle, WA); Pol Pla I Conesa (San Francisco, CA); Michael Ishigaki (Mountain View, CA); Jonathan Michael Proto (San Francisco, CA); Paul Mealy (Bellevue, WA); Kevin Harper (Redmond, WA); Jenny Kam (Seattle, WA); Jossie E Tirado Arroyo (Kenmore, WA)
Assignee: Meta Platforms Technologies, LLC
G06F9/451G06F3/0484G06T11/00
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,026,527
App. No.
17/740,570
Granted
Jul 2, 2024
Kind
B2
Abstract

The present disclosure provides world-controlled augments and application-controlled augments. World-controlled augments can be controlled directly by a shell in the artificial reality environment. To allow even inexperienced users to develop world-controlled augments, a world-controlled builder system is provided. Application-controlled augments may be resource intensive (e.g., using eye-tracking, social-media tie-ins, etc.), may support complicated interactions among themselves, may require or have extensive use of inputs and permissioned resources, and are controlled by their hosting application. When a running application is halted, the application closes its application-controlled augments but can choose to have the XR system run a “place-holder” world-controlled augment for as long as the application is not running. The place-holder world-controlled augment preserves the appearance of the application in the artificial reality environment but uses few system resources. Upon a user selecting a place-holder world-controlled augment, the XR system can run the associated application and close the place-holder world-controlled augment.

Claims (52)

1. A method for supporting world-controlled and application-controlled augments in a three-dimensional (3D) artificial reality environment provided by a head-mounted display (HMD) system, the method comprising:

running, in the 3D artificial reality environment from the HMD system, a first active application, wherein the first active application is associated with one or more application-controlled augments, wherein each of the one or more application-controlled augments, when run, is under the control of its associated application and inherits functionality and/or permissions from the first active application, wherein at least one world-controlled augment is associated with at least one of the one or more application-controlled augments, wherein the at least one world-controlled augment, when run, is under the control of a shell running in the 3D artificial reality environment and has less functionality than the corresponding application-controlled augment;

identifying a trigger for switching from the first active application to a second active application;

in response to a direction from the first active application, running, by the shell in the 3D artificial reality environment, the at least one world-controlled augment that is associated with the at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application such that the at least one world-controlled augment has less functionality than the associated at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application;

closing, by the first active application, one or more of its associated application-controlled augments that are currently running and the first active application; and

running, by the second active application in the 3D artificial reality environment, one or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the trigger for switching is one or more of:

a selection by a user in the 3D artificial reality environment of the second active application; or

a shortage of resources in the shell.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the running of the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application includes applying a state, to the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application, saved from a previous execution of the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one world-controlled augment was created based on an augment template customized with selected parameters.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

identifying a trigger for activating the first active application;

wherein the trigger for activating the first active application comprises a user interaction with the at least one world-controlled augment that is associated with at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising running, in the 3D artificial reality environment, both the first and the second active applications.

7. The method of claim 5 further comprising:

closing the second active application; and

running the first active application, in the 3D artificial reality environment, including re-running the one or more application-controlled augments.

8. A computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform a process for supporting world-controlled and application-controlled augments in a three-dimensional (3D) artificial reality environment provided by a head-mounted display (HMD) system, the process comprising:

running, for the 3D artificial reality environment and from the HMD system, a first active application that is associated with one or more application-controlled augments, wherein at least one world-controlled augment is associated with at least one of the application-controlled augments and has less functionality than the corresponding application-controlled augment;

identifying a trigger for executing a second active application;

in response to the trigger, running, by a shell for the 3D artificial reality environment, one or more of the at least one world-controlled augment that is associated with at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application, wherein the one or more, of the at least one world-controlled augment, are displayed with the same display characteristics as the associated one or more application-controlled augments and the at least one world-controlled augment has less functionality than the associated at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application;

closing the first active application and the application-controlled augments, associated with the first active application, that are currently running; and

running the second active application in the 3D artificial reality environment and one or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application.

9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8 , wherein the running of the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application includes applying a state, to the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application, saved from a previous execution of the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application.

10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8 , wherein the one or more application-controlled augments, associated with the first active application, inherit functionality and/or permissions from the first active application.

11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8 wherein the process further comprises:

identifying a trigger for activating the first active application;

wherein the trigger for activating the first active application comprises a user interaction with one of the at least one world-controlled augment that is associated with at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application.

12. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 8 ,

wherein each of the one or more application-controlled augments, when run, is under the control of its associated application; and

wherein the at least one world-controlled augment, when run, is under the control of the shell running in the artificial reality environment.

13. A computing system for supporting world-controlled and application-controlled augments in a three-dimensional (3D) an artificial reality environment provided by a head-mounted display (HMD) system, the computing system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memories storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing system to perform a process comprising:

running, for the 3D artificial reality environment and from the HMD system, a first active application that is associated with one or more application-controlled augments, wherein at least one world-controlled augment is associated with at least one of the application-controlled augments and has less functionality than the corresponding application-controlled augment;

identifying a trigger for executing a second active application;

in response to the trigger, running, by a shell for the 3D artificial reality environment, one or more of the at least one world-controlled augment that is associated with at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application, wherein the one or more, of the at least one world-controlled augment, are displayed to appear the same as the associated one or more application-controlled augments and the at least one world-controlled augment has less functionality than the associated at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application;

closing the first active application and the application-controlled augments, associated with the first active application, that are currently running; and

running the second active application in the 3D artificial reality environment and one or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application.

14. The computing system of claim 13 , wherein the running of the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application includes applying a state, to the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application, saved from a previous execution of the or more application-controlled augments associated with the second active application.

15. The computing system of claim 13 , wherein the one or more application-controlled augments, associated with the first active application, inherit functionality and/or permissions from the first active application.

16. The computing system of claim 13 , wherein the at least one world-controlled augment, associated with at least one of the application-controlled augments associated with the first application, were automatically created based on the at least one of the application-controlled augments associated with the first application.

17. The computing system of claim 13 , wherein the process further comprises:

identifying a trigger for activating the first active application;

wherein the trigger for activating the first active application comprises a user interaction with one of the at least one world-controlled augment that is associated with at least one application-controlled augment of the first active application.

18. The computing system of claim 17 wherein the process further comprises:

running, for the 3D artificial reality environment, both the first and the second active applications.

19. The computing system of claim 13 ,

wherein each of the one or more application-controlled augments, when run, is under the control of its associated application; and

wherein the at least one world-controlled augment, when run, is under the control of the shell running in the artificial reality environment.

20. The computing system of claim 13 , wherein the at least one world-controlled augment was created based on an augment template customized with user-selected parameters.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 27, 2023
From: BLAKELEY, JOHN JACOB; HLAVAC, MICHAL; PLA I CONESA, POL; ISHIGAKI, MICHAEL; PROTO, JONATHAN MICHAEL; MEALY, PAUL; HARPER, KEVIN; KAM, JENNY; TIRADO ARROYO, JOSSIE E.
To: FACEBOOK TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Reel/Frame 064068/0827 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jan 19, 2023
From: BLAKELEY, JOHN JACOB; HLAVAC, MICHAL; PLA I CONESA, POL; ISHIGAKI, MICHAEL; PROTO, JONATHAN MICHAEL; MEALY, PAUL; HARPER, KEVIN; KAM, JENNY; E TIRADO ARROYO, JOSSIE
To: FACEBOOK TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Reel/Frame 062427/0949 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Jun 15, 2022
From: FACEBOOK TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
To: META PLATFORMS TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Reel/Frame 060386/0364 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20230367611A1 · Nov 16, 2023
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