Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US7909689?dq=6317900
Timestamp: 2017-10-20 09:57:39
Document Index: 310118501

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 112', 'Application No. 2004260994', 'Application No. 2004260994', 'Application No. 200480023898', 'Application No. 200480023898', 'Application No. 200480023898', 'Application No. 200480023898']

Patent US7909689 - Methods and apparatus for remote gaming - Google Patents
A gaming apparatus may include a display unit capable of generating video images, a first value input device, and a controller operatively coupled to the display unit and the value input device. The first value input device may be located at a first geographic location. The controller may comprise a...http://www.google.com/patents/US7909689?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US7909689 - Methods and apparatus for remote gaming
Publication number US7909689 B2
Application number US 11/873,378
Also published as CN1846237A, US20050026670, US20080176627, WO2005013215A1
Publication number 11873378, 873378, US 7909689 B2, US 7909689B2, US-B2-7909689, US7909689 B2, US7909689B2
Inventors Brant Lardie
Patent Citations (28), Non-Patent Citations (15), Referenced by (46), Classifications (22), Legal Events (1)
US 7909689 B2
A gaming apparatus may include a display unit capable of generating video images, a first value input device, and a controller operatively coupled to the display unit and the value input device. The first value input device may be located at a first geographic location. The controller may comprise a processor and a memory, and may be programmed to allow a person to make a wager, to cause a first video image to be generated on the display unit, and to determine a first value payout associated with an outcome of a game. The first video image may represent a first game wagered on the first value input device. The controller may also cause a second video image to be generated on the display unit. The second video image may represent a second game wagered on at a second value input device located at a second geographic location different from the first geographic location.
The present application is a continuation application of and claims priority to commonly assigned and co-pending U.S. Application Ser. No. 10/628,544, filed Jul. 28, 2003, by Lardie, titled “Method and Apparatus for Remote Gaming,” which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
This patent is directed to a casino gaming apparatus, which could be either an individual gaming unit or a casino gaming system having a plurality of gaming units, that is capable of providing a player viewing capability and control over a game initiated by the player at a different location.
In one aspect, the invention is directed to a gaming apparatus that may include a display unit capable of generating video images, a first value input device, and a controller operatively coupled to the display unit and the first value input device. The first value input device may be located at a first geographic location. The controller may comprise a processor and a memory, and may be programmed to allow a person to make a wager, cause a first video image representing a first game wagered on at the first value input device to be generated on the display unit, cause a second video image representing a second game wagered on at a second value input device to be generated on the display unit, and to determine an outcome of the first game and a first value payout associated with the outcome of the game. The second value input device may be located at a second geographic location different from the first geographic location. The first game may be a single-player game and the second game may be a multi-player game.
It should also be understood that, unless a term is expressly defined in this patent using the sentence “As used herein, the term ‘——————’ is hereby defined to mean. . . ” or a similar sentence, there is no intent to limit the meaning of that term, either expressly or by implication, beyond its plain or ordinary meaning, and such term should not be interpreted to be limited in scope based on any statement made in any section of this patent (other than the language of the claims). To the extent that any term recited in the claims at the end of this patent is referred to in this patent in a manner consistent with a single meaning, that is done for sake of clarity only so as to not confuse the reader, and it is not intended that such claim term by limited, by implication or otherwise, to that single meaning. Finally, unless a claim element is defined by reciting the word “means” and a function without the recital of any structure, it is not intended that the scope of any claim element be interpreted based on the application of 35 U.S.C. § 112, sixth paragraph.
Player tracking units 26 b, 26 c may be provided as stand-alone devices, including a kiosk 21 or a handheld device 23. Each may be provided with a display and a control panel to remotely monitor and wager on a remote multi-player game. A handheld device may include any portable electronic device such as a laptop computer, a personal digital assistant, a cellular phone and the like. While the following description will primarily discuss a gaming unit 20 comprising a player tracking unit 26 a, it should be understood that the functions of the player tracking unit 26 a may likewise be applied to the player tracking units 26 b, 26 c. In many cases, aspects of the gaming unit 20 described below may be applicable to the kiosk 21 and handheld device 23, such as each including a value input device such as a coin slot or acceptor, a paper currency acceptor, a ticket reader/printer and/or a card reader, which may be used to input value to the kiosk 21 or handheld device 23. A value input device may include any device that can accept value from a customer which may also include entering an account number and personal identification number for electronic funds transfer. As used herein, the term “value” may encompass gaming tokens, coins, paper currency, ticket vouchers, credit or debit cards, smart cards, electronic funds and any other object representative of value. However, unlike the gaming unit 20 the kiosk 21 and handheld devices 23 may or may not include routines for video poker, video blackjack, slots, video keno, video bingo or other gaming routines that are executed by the controller 100 described below, but rather be dedicated devices for remotely monitoring and wagering on remote multi-player games.
FIG. 3A illustrates one possible embodiment of the control panel 68, which may be used where the gaming unit 20 is a slot machine having a plurality of mechanical or “virtual” reels. Referring to FIG. 3A, the control panel 68 may include a “See Pays” button 72 that, when activated, causes the display unit 70 to generate one or more display screens showing the odds or payout information for the game or games provided by the gaming unit 20. As used herein, the term “button” is intended to encompass any device that allows a player to make an input, such as an input device that must be depressed to make an input selection or a display area that a player may simply touch. The control panel 68 may include a “Cash Out” button 74 that may be activated when a player decides to terminate play on the gaming unit 20, in which case the gaming unit 20 may return value to the player, such as by returning a number of coins to the player via the payout tray 67.
If the gaming unit 20 provides a slots game having a plurality of reels, the control panel 68 may be provided with a plurality of selection buttons 78 each of which allows a player to specify a wager amount for each pay line selected. For example, if the smallest wager accepted by the gaming unit 20 is a quarter ($0.25), the gaming unit 20 may be provided with five selection buttons 78, each of which may allow a player to select one, two, three, four or five quarters to wager for each pay line selected. In that case, if a player were to activate the “5” button 76 (meaning that five paylines were to be played on the next spin of the reels) and then activate the “3” button 78 (meaning that three coins per pay line were to be wagered), the total wager would be $3.75 (assuming the minimum bet was $0.25).
The control panel 68 may include a “Max Bet” button 80 to allow a player to make the maximum wager allowable for a game. In the above example, where up to nine paylines were provided and up to five quarters could be wagered for each pay line selected, the maximum wager would be 45 quarters, or $11.25. The control panel 68 may include a spin button 82 to allow the player to initiate spinning of the reels of a slots game after a wager has been made.
In FIG. 3A, a rectangle is shown around the buttons 72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 82. It should be understood that that rectangle simply designates, for ease of reference, an area in which the buttons 72, 74, 76, 78, 80, 82 may be located. Consequently, the term “control panel” should not be construed to imply that a panel or plate separate from the housing 60 of the gaming unit 20 is required, and the term “control panel” may encompass a plurality or grouping of player activatable buttons.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a number of components that may be incorporated in the gaming unit 20. However, as mentioned above, many aspects of the gaming unit 20 may be included in the kiosk 21 and handheld devices 23. The following description of the controller 100 electronics may be equally applicable to the kiosk 21 and handheld device 23, as will be recognized by those or ordinary skill in the art. Referring to FIG. 4, the gaming unit 20 may include a controller 100 that may comprise the player tracking unit 26 a, a program memory 102, a microcontroller or microprocessor (MP) 104, a random-access memory (RAM) 106 and an input/output (I/O) circuit 108, all of which may be interconnected via an address/data bus 110. It should be appreciated that although only one microprocessor 104 is shown, the controller 100 may include multiple microprocessors 104. Similarly, the memory of the controller 100 may include multiple RAMs 106 and multiple program memories 102. Although the I/O circuit 108 is shown as a single block, it should be appreciated that the I/O circuit 108 may include a number of different types of I/O circuits. The RAM(s) 104 and program memories 102 may be implemented as semiconductor memories, magnetically readable memories, and/or optically readable memories, for example.
One manner in which one or more of the gaming units 20 (and one or more of the gaming units 30) may operate is described below in connection with a number of flowcharts which represent a number of portions or routines of one or more computer programs, which may be stored in one or more of the memories of the controller 100. The computer program(s) or portions thereof may be stored remotely, outside of the gaming unit 20, and may control the operation of the gaming unit 20 from a remote location. Such remote control may be facilitated with the use of a wireless connection, or by an Internet interface that connects the gaming unit 20 with a remote computer (such as one of the network computers 22, 32) having a memory in which the computer program portions are stored. Additionally, the computer program(s) or portions thereof may control the operation of the multi-player gaming server 58 and an input terminal 54 from a remote location such as the gaming unit 20, a kiosk 21 or handheld device 23. Such remote control may be facilitated with the use of a wireless connection, or my an Internet interface that connects the player tracking unit 26 a (or the player tracking units 26 b, 26 c) with the multi-player gaming server 58, the input terminal 54 or the multi-player gaming network 50 generally. The computer program portions may be written in any high level language such as C, C++, C#, Java or the like or any low-level assembly or machine language. By storing the computer program portions therein, various portions of the memories 102, 106 are physically and/or structurally configured in accordance with computer program instructions.
To allow the player to control the play of the slots game, a plurality of player-selectable buttons may be displayed. The buttons may include a “Cash Out” button 456, a “See Pays” button 458, a plurality of pay line-selection buttons 460 each of which allows the player to select a different number of paylines prior to “spinning” the reels, a plurality of bet-selection buttons 462 each of which allows a player to specify a wager amount for each pay line selected, a “Spin” button 464, and a “Max Bet” button 466 to allow a player to make the maximum wager allowable.
FIG. 13 is a flowchart of the slots routine 230 shown schematically in FIG. 11. Referring to FIG. 13, at block 470, the routine may determine whether the player has requested payout information, such as by activating the “See Pays” button 458, in which case at block 472 the routine may cause one or more pay tables to be displayed on the display unit 70. At block 474, the routine may determine whether the player has pressed one of the pay line-selection buttons 460, in which case at block 476 data corresponding to the number of paylines selected by the player may be stored in the memory of the controller 100. At block 478, the routine may determine whether the player has pressed one of the bet-selection buttons 462, in which case at block 480 data corresponding to the amount bet per pay line may be stored in the memory of the controller 100. At block 482, the routine may determine whether the player has pressed the “Max Bet” button 466, in which case at block 484 bet data (which may include both pay line data and bet-per-pay line data) corresponding to the maximum allowable bet may be stored in the memory of the controller 100.
FIG. 17 is a flowchart of a player identification routine 205 shown schematically in FIG. 5 and may be used to determine whether to display the remote multi-player game and allow the player to control the remote multi-player game from the gaming unit 20. The following description of the player identification routine 205 may likewise be applied to the player identification routine 305 of FIG. 6. The player identification routine 205 may be stored in a memory of the controller 100 and executed by the player tracking unit 26 a. Referring to FIG. 17, the player identification routine 205 may begin operation at block 702 during which a player's identification may be validated. The player identification routine 205 may cause the player tracking unit 26 a to issue a request to the player tracking server 26 to compare the player's identification to a list of player identifications stored by the player tracking server 26. The player tracking server 26 may transmit a result to the player tracking unit 26 a as to whether the player identification matches one of those stored by the player tracking server 26. The player's identification may be encoded on a player identification device which may be in the form of a player tracking card such as a magnetic or optical card including credit cards or a card issued by a casino through a gaming unit 20, an input terminal, an attendant, etc. The player identification device may also be a radio-wave device such as a memory device coupled with a transceiver worn or carried by the player, or other wireless devices including cellular phones, personal digital assistants, etc. The player's identification may be the player identification as assigned by the player tracking server 26 which may be a unique alphanumeric code, a binary code, etc. The player identification may also be the player's name, credit card number, social security number, etc. The player identification may be read by the gaming unit 20 using an identification reader such as radio transceiver, optical transceiver, card reader 64, control panel 68, or any other device capable of reading player identification information encoded on the player identification device. The player may also enter the player identification using the control panel 68. If the player identification does not match one of those stored by the player tracking server 26, control may loop back to recheck the player identification or the player identification device may be rejected by the gaming unit 20. If the player identification is valid, control may pass to block 704.
FIG. 18 is a flowchart of the registration routine 708 shown schematically in FIG. 17. The registration routine 708 may be performed by the player tracking unit 26 a as part of the player identification routine 205 or by an input terminal 54 when placing a wager on a remote multi-player game at an input terminal 54. Beginning at block 802, the player may be prompted with a visual message to register or decline to register for a remote multi-player game. During the prompt at block 802, if the player makes any input to the gaming unit 20 or input terminal 54 as determined at block 804, the visual message may be terminated. If the player input at block 804 is to decline to register for the remote multi-player game, control may pass to block 806 where a determination is made that the player declined to register. The registration routine 708 may then exit at block 808 and return to the player identification routine 205. If the registration is taking place at the input terminal 54, the player may be allowed to continue placing a wager on the remote multi-player game without registering though the player may not be permitted to view a display of or control the remote multi-player game from the gaming unit 20.
FIG. 19 is a flowchart of the remote gaming routine 706 shown schematically in FIG. 17. The remote gaming routine 706 may be performed by the player tracking unit 26 a as part of the player identification routine 205. Beginning at block 902, a two-way information link may be established between the gaming unit 20 and the multi-player gaming server 58 for updating information concerning multi-player games wagered on by the player. The link may initially be established by having the player tracking unit 26 a request player information from the player tracking server 26, which may include having the player tracking server 26 retrieve multi-player gaming information from the multi-player gaming server 58 via the bridge 40 a. The multi-player gaming information may include wagers made by the player for a multi-player game, the amount of the wagers, the player's selections, etc. The information link may also supply updated information concerning the multi-player game. For example, with a sporting event, the status of the sporting event (e.g., a score) may be supplied and updated as the sporting event progresses. For a lottery game, the multi-player gaming information may include the randomly-selected game numbers selected by the multi-player gaming controller 52, including the randomly-selected game numbers as they are selected.
To allow the player to control the play of the remote multi-player game, a plurality of player-selectable buttons may be displayed. The buttons may include some or all of the options presented with the display menu at block 904. The buttons may include a “Play Favorites” button 1004, a “Download Credits” button 1006, a “New Wager/New Game” button 1008, a “View New Game” button 1010, a “Select Ticket” button 1012, and an “Exit” button 1014. Additional buttons may include a “Cash Out” button 1016, a “See Pays” button 1018, a “Bet One” button 1020, a “Bet Max Credits” button 1022, and a “Select Number” button 1024. The display 1000 may also include an area 1026 in which the number of remaining credits or value is displayed. The number of remaining credits or value may relate to the credits or value for the remote multi-player game being viewed or all credits/value held by the player for all wagers, games, etc. A further button or buttons 1028 may be provided to allow the player to control the size of the video display 1000, which may include minimizing the size of the video display 1000, closing the video display 1000 and resizing the video display 1000. If the display unit 70 is provided with a touch-sensitive screen, the buttons 1004, 1006, 1008, 1010, 1012, 1014, 1016, 1018, 1020, 1022, 1024, 1028 may form part of the video display 1000. Alternatively, one or more of those buttons may be provided as part of a control panel that is provided separately from the display unit 70.
US20030050114 Jul 12, 2002 Mar 13, 2003 Leen Fergus A. System and method for providing game event management to a user of a gaming application
US20050005127 * Nov 13, 2002 Jan 6, 2005 Rowe Richard E. Method of verifying entitlement to participate in a gaming event from a remote location
AU2004260994A1 Title not available
GB2419098A Title not available
WO2001075825A2 Mar 22, 2001 Oct 11, 2001 Ods Properties, Inc. Interactive wagering system
1 Australian Examination Report dated Oct. 15, 2007 for corresponding Australian Patent Application No. 2004260994.
2 Australian Examination Report dated Sep. 25, 2008 for corresponding Australian Patent Application No. 2004260994.
3 Chinese Office Action dated Apr. 10, 2009 for corresponding Chinese Patent Application No. 200480023898.9, 4 pgs.
4 Chinese Office Action dated Sep. 4, 2009 for corresponding Chinese Patent Application No. 200480023898.9, 14 pgs.
5 Chinese Office Action dated Sep. 5, 2008 for corresponding Chinese Patent Application No. 200480023898.9.
6 Chinese Office Action mailed Apr. 22, 2010, from Application No. 200480023898.9.
7 Examination Report dated Feb. 7, 2008 for corresponding UK Patent Application No. GB0602499.6.
8 Examination Report dated Jan. 8, 2008 for corresponding UK Patent Application No. GB0602499.6.
9 Examination Report dated Jul. 6, 2007 for corresponding UK Patent Application No. GB0602499.6.
10 Examination Report dated May 16, 2006 for corresponding UK Patent Application No. GB0602499.6.
11 Examination Report dated Oct. 31, 2006 for corresponding UK Patent Application No. GB0602499.6.
12 International Preliminary Report on Patentability dated Jan. 30, 2006 for corresponding PCT Patent Application No. PCT/US2004/021906.
13 International Search Report and Written Opinion dated Nov. 22, 2004 for corresponding PCT Patent Application No. PCT/US2004/021906.
14 Office Action dated Apr. 16, 2007 for related U.S. Appl. No. 10/628,544.
15 Office Action dated Jun. 20, 2006 for related U.S. Appl. No. 10/628,544.
U.S. Classification 463/16, 710/20, 902/10, 902/23, 463/20, 273/139, 709/203, 463/42, 273/138.1, 709/219, 463/13, 463/17
International Classification A63F9/24, G07F17/32, A63F13/00, A63F13/12
Cooperative Classification G07F17/3239, G07F17/3262, G07F17/32
European Classification G07F17/32, G07F17/32M2, G07F17/32E6D2