The basic stargate concept is that it has at least two devices in distant positions, and when active, the rings of each become similar to a physical, singular gateway or door-frame between the two locations. The concept was developed by the writers of the feature film "Stargate", Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich. Similar devices had been seen in previous fiction, and there has been contention as to whether they plagiarized the idea from a previous script submission from a student of Egyptology named Omar Zuhdi, who submitted a screenplay to them about ten years before the movie was made. Zuhdi pursued legal action regarding this, and the case was eventually settled out of court.