Patent ID: 8075406
Filing Date: 2011-12-13
Classification: G07F

Abstract:
1. A method for configuring a gaming network comprising a network switch and a plurality of gaming machines, wherein the network switch includes a first set of data ports and a second set of data ports, and wherein the gaming machines each include a network interface and a serial interface, the method comprising: providing a networked gaming system in which the plurality of gaming machines are connected to the network switch to form a peer-to-peer gaming network; connecting the network interfaces of the gaming machines to the first set of data ports of the network switch, wherein the network switch includes at least twice as many data ports as there are gaming machines in the gaming network; generating a first virtual local area network by configuring the first set of data ports of the network switch to communicate with network devices external to the gaming network; connecting the serial interfaces of the gaming machines via serial-to-network adapters to the second set of data ports of the network switch; generating a second virtual local area network by configuring the second set of data ports of the network switch to communicate with network devices internal to the gaming network; and facilitating execution of multi-machine gaming applications in a casino environment, wherein the gaming applications communicate through a virtual local area network to set up group play games, tournament games, or progressive networked games across several gaming machines, wherein the gaming applications use the virtual local area network to exchange messages for synchronizing jackpot values, notify each other about winnings, and exchange other game-related information, and wherein gaming machines within each virtual local area network are able to directly communicate with each other in the peer-to-peer network.