Patent ID: 7887408

Claim:
A slot machine, comprising: a plurality of mechanical reels, each of the reels comprising: a plurality of electrically powered dynamically changeable electronic display devices, wherein each electronic display device comprises one or more photo-sensors coupled to a cylindrical peripheral surface of the reel, a first processor directly coupled to an interior surface of the reel, the first processor configured to determine a reel position based on the one or more photo-sensors, a liquid crystal display (LCD) attached to the cylindrical peripheral surface of the reel, a memory storing a plurality of available indicia, each electronic display device operable to selectably receive at least one of the available indicia from the memory and electronically display at least one indicium of the plurality of available indicia, the indicium defining an outcome for a game, in which each electronic display device is further operable to dynamically update displayed indicia based on a signal of the first processor to select a different one of the plurality of available indicia stored in the memory and transmit the selected indicium to the display device; and means for moving a first reel of the plurality of reels independently of a second reel of the plurality of reels.