# US 8,751,944 B2 · Communication system, communication apparatus, communication program, and computer-readable storage medium stored with the communication program > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 8,751,944 B2 - Document ID: US8751944B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 12/140,360 - Filed: 2008-06-17 - Published: 2009-01-22 - Granted: 2014-06-10 - Earliest claimed: 2007-07-19 - Assignees: Sony Corporation; Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. - Applicants: Keigo Tamura - Inventors: Keigo Tamura - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8751944B2 ## CPC - H04N 7/147: {Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals (selecting H04Q)} - H04L 12/1827: {Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation} - H04N 21/4788: communicating with other users, e.g. chatting {(arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104)} - H04N 7/157: {defining a virtual conference space and using avatars or agents (computer conference optimisation or adaptation H04L12/1827)} - H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract The client apparatus 1 is connected to a network and includes a communication packet reception unit 13 and a texture processing unit 18. The communication packet reception unit 13 receives image data, audio data, and image type information designating type of the image data, which are transmitted from another client apparatus connected to the network. The texture processing unit 18 renders an image for the received image data. Moreover, the texture processing unit 18 subjects the image for the image data to a predetermined processing when the image type information received by the communication packet reception unit 13 is information of a predetermined image. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A communication system and a first and a second communication apparatus, include a processor and a memory, connected to a network, wherein: said first communication apparatus, comprises: an audio input unit; and a transmitter, which transmits to the second communication apparatus image data designating a user of the first communication apparatus, audio data for a voice entered from the audio input unit, the audio data including voice level information that designates an input level of the voice and that designates a detected voice value, and image type information designating a type of the image data selected from a plurality of image types, where the plurality of image types include at least two of the following types of images: video image, avatar image, and picture image, and where the image data and the image type information are associated with one another and the image data is arranged in an identical data structure for all image types and then transmitted over the network, and said second communication apparatus, comprises: a receiver, which receives the image data, the audio data, and the image type information transmitted from the first communication apparatus, an audio output control unit, which outputs from an audio output unit a voice represented by the audio data received, and a display control unit, which displays on a display screen an image for the image data received, the display control unit: (i) when the image type information received is information designating a predetermined image type, subjects the image to a predetermined rendering process corresponding to the predetermined image type and then displays the resulting image, (ii) when the image type information received is information designating an avatar image, determines whether or not the detected voice value is a predetermined value or greater, (iii) when the detected voice value is the predetermined value or greater, compares a present alpha value for a present avatar image that is already displayed to a predetermined first value, (iv) when the present alpha value is less than the predetermined first value, changes the present avatar image in accordance with gradually changing the present alpha value to reach the predetermined first value, (v) when the present alpha value is at least equal to the predetermined first value, changes the present avatar image such that an image size gradually reaches a maximum size, and (vi) when the detected voice value is less than the predetermined value, changes the present avatar image in accordance with gradually changing the present alpha value to reach a predetermined second value and for the image size to reach a predetermined minimum size smaller than the maximum size. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit performs a common image rendering process to the received image data regardless of the image type of the image data, and the display control unit, when the image type information received is information designating the predetermined image type, adds a predetermined rendering process corresponding to the predetermined image type to the common image rendering process and then displays the resulting image. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit, when the image type information received is information designating a picture, adds a frame around a picture image for the image data and displays the resulting image in the display screen. ### Claim 4 A communication apparatus, including a processor and a memory, connected to a network, comprising: a receiver, which receives image data, audio data, and image type information, which have been transmitted from another communication apparatus connected to the network, where the image type information designates a type of the image data selected from a plurality of image types, where the plurality of image types include at least two of the following types of images: video image, avatar image, and picture image, where the image data and the image type information are associated with one another and the image data has identical data structure for all image types, and where the audio data is for a voice entered from an audio input unit of the other communication apparatus, the audio data including voice level information that designates an input level of the voice and that designates a detected voice value; an audio output control unit, which outputs from an audio output unit a voice represented by the audio data received; and a display control unit, which displays on a display screen an image for the image data received, the display control unit: (i) when the image type information received is information designating a predetermined image type, subjects the image to a predetermined rendering process corresponding to the predetermined image type and then displays the resulting image, (ii) when the image type information received is information designating an avatar image, determines whether or not the detected voice value is a predetermined value or greater, (iii) when the detected voice value is the predetermined value or greater, compares a present alpha value for a present avatar image that is already displayed to a predetermined first value, (iv) when the present alpha value is less than the predetermined first value, changes the present avatar image in accordance with gradually changing the present alpha value to reach the predetermined first value, (v) when the present alpha value is at least equal to the predetermined first value, changes the present avatar image such that an image size gradually reaches a maximum size, and (vi) when the detected voice value is less than the predetermined value, changes the present avatar image in accordance with gradually changing the present alpha value to reach a predetermined second value and for the image size to reach a predetermined minimum size smaller than the maximum size. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The communication apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the display control unit performs a common image rendering process to the received image data regardless of the image type of the image data, and the display control unit, when the image type information received is information designating the predetermined image type, adds a predetermined rendering process corresponding to the predetermined image type to the common image rendering process and then displays the resulting image. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The communication apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the display control unit, when the image type information received is information designating a picture, adds a frame around a picture image for the image data and displays the resulting image in the display screen. ### Claim 7 A non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a communication program, which instructs a computer, to perform a predetermined processing, said predetermined processing comprising: receiving, at the computer, image data, audio data, and image type information, which have been transmitted from another communication apparatus via a network, where the image type information designates a type of the image data selected from a plurality of image types, where the plurality of image types include at least two of the following types of images: video image, avatar image, and picture image, where the image data and the image type information are associated with one another and the image data has been arranged in an identical data structure for all image types and then transmitted over the network, and where the audio data is for a voice entered from an audio input unit of the other communication apparatus, the audio data including voice level information that designates an input level of the voice and that designates a detected voice value, displaying an image for the image data received on a display screen, and outputting a voice represented by the audio data received from an audio output unit; wherein the displaying step includes: (i) when the image type information received is information designating a predetermined image type, subjecting the image to a predetermined rendering process corresponding to the predetermined image type and then displays the resulting image, (ii) when the image type information received is information designating an avatar image, determining whether or not the detected voice value is a predetermined value or greater, (iii) when the detected voice value is the predetermined value or greater, comparing a present alpha value for a present avatar image that is already displayed to a predetermined first value, (iv) when the present alpha value is less than the predetermined first value, changing the present avatar image in accordance with gradually changing the present alpha value to reach the predetermined first value, (v) when the present alpha value is at least equal to the predetermined first value, changing the present avatar image such that an image size gradually reaches a maximum size, and (vi) when the detected voice value is less than the predetermined value, changing the present avatar image in accordance with gradually changing the present alpha value to reach a predetermined second value and for the image size to reach a predetermined minimum size smaller than the maximum size. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined rendering process is based at least on the image type information associated with the received predetermined image. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium of claim 7, wherein the displaying step includes: (i) performing a common image rendering process to the received image data regardless of the image type of the image data, and (ii) a step in which, when the image type information received is information designating a predetermined image type, adding a predetermined rendering process corresponding to the predetermined image type to the common image rendering process.