Casino machine having emotive lighting structures

• US 10,019,868 B2
• Filed: 06/10/2015
• Issued: 07/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Bally Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Castro, Christian L., Garoufalis, Nicholas M., Glenn, II, Robert J., Lesley, Paul M., Loose, Timothy C.
• Primary Examiner(s): SKAARUP, JASON M
• Application Number:
  US14/735,931
• Publication Number:
  US 20160364941A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,126 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0006 Coupling light into the fibre in general G02B6/4298
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/0096 the lights guides being of the hollow type
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/322 Casino tables, e.g. tables having integrated screens, chip detection means

Abstract

A gaming machine includes a gaming cabinet, an electronic display device, and a front diffuser. The display device is positioned within the cabinet and includes an active area for displaying images of a casino wagering game and an inactive area lacking image display capability. The inactive area is immediately adjacent to the active area. The front diffuser receives light from a light source and diffuses at least a portion of the received light as indirect light viewable from a player position in front of the gaming machine. The diffuser overlaps the inactive area, is adjacent to the active area, and faces the player position.

Claims

1. A gaming machine primarily dedicated to playing at least one casino wagering game, the gaming machine comprising:

a gaming cabinet;

an electronic display device within the cabinet and configured to display the casino wagering game, the electronic display device being defined by a plurality of display edges and having

an active area with an image surface defined by a plurality of active edges and in which images of the casino wagering game are displayed, and

an inactive area adjacent to the active area and which lacks any display of images; and

a light source concealed from view relative to a player position in front of the gaming cabinet and emitting an initial light;

a lighting area within the cabinet and including

a diffused lighting area having a front diffused surface adjacent to the image surface of the active area, the diffused lighting area receiving at least some of the initial light and transmitting it through the front diffused surface towards the player as indirect light at an oblique angle relative to the image surface of the active area, and

a bright lighting area having a front bright surface adjacent to and generally co-planar with the front diffused surface and transmitting it through the front bright surface towards the diffused surface, the bright lighting area receiving at least some of the initial light and transmitting it through the front bright surface towards the player as direct light at an angle generally perpendicular to the image surface of the active area, wherein the front diffused surface is defined by an inner diffused edge and an outer diffused edge, the inner diffused edge being coincident, as viewed from the player position, with an active edge of the plurality of active edges to form a seamless transition between the images displayed on the image surface and the indirect light of the front diffused surface.

2. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein the front bright surface is defined by an inner bright edge and an outer bright edge, the inner bright edge being coincident with the outer diffused edge to form a seamless transition between the indirect light of the front diffused surface and the direct light of the front bright surface.

3. A gaming machine primarily dedicated to playing at least one casino wagering game, the gaming machine comprising:

a gaming cabinet;

an electronic display device within the cabinet and configured to display the casino wagering game, the electronic display device being defined by a plurality of display edges and having

an active area with an image surface defined by a plurality of active edges and in which images of the casino wagering game are displayed, and

an inactive area adjacent to the active area and which lacks any display of images; and

a light source concealed from view relative to a player position in front of the gaming cabinet and emitting an initial light;

a lighting area within the cabinet and including

a diffused lighting area having a front diffused surface adjacent to the image surface of the active area, the diffused lighting area receiving at least some of the initial light and transmitting it through the front diffused surface towards the player as indirect light at an oblique angle relative to the image surface of the active area, and

a bright lighting area having a front bright surface adjacent to and generally co-planar with the front diffused surface and transmitting it through the front bright surface towards the diffused surface, the bright lighting area receiving at least some of the initial light and transmitting it through the front bright surface towards the player as direct light at an angle generally perpendicular to the image surface of the active area, wherein the diffuser further has a front planar surface with an edge adjoining the front angled surface, the front planar surface being generally perpendicular to a line of sight between the player position and the image surface of the active area, the front planar surface and the front angled surface defining in part the internal area of the diffuser.

4. The gaming machine of claim 3, wherein the diffuser further has a rear surface with an edge adjoining the front angled surface, the rear surface having a reflector film receiving and reflecting some of the re-directed light towards the front planar surface.

5. A gaining machine comprising:

a gaming cabinet;

an electronic display device within the cabinet, the display device including an active area for displaying images of a casino wagering game and an inactive area lacking image display capability, the inactive area being immediately adjacent to the active area; and

a front diffuser for receiving light from a light source and diffusing at least a portion of the received light as indirect light viewable from a player position in front of the gaming machine, the diffuser overlapping the inactive area and being adjacent to the active area, the diffuser facing the player position, wherein the front diffuser includes opposing inner and outer edges, the inner edge of the front diffuser being coincident with an outer edge of the active area to form a seamless transition between the images displayed in the active area and indirect light emitted by the diffuser.

6. The gaming machine of claim 5, further including a bright strip for receiving the light from the light source and directing at least a portion of the received light towards the player position as direct light, the bright strip being positioned along the outer edge of the front diffuser to form a seamless transition between the direct light from the bright strip and the indirect light from the front diffuser.

7. The gaming machine of claim 6, further including a light pipe extending between the light source and the bright strip and conveying the light from the light source to the bright strip, the bright strip configured to refract a first part of the conveyed light towards the player position as the direct light and to reflect a second part of the conveyed light into the front diffuser as the indirect light.

8. The gaming machine of claim 7, wherein the bright strip includes a front angled surface oriented at an oblique angle relative to the player position, the front angled surface configured to refract the first part of the conveyed light and to reflect the second part of the conveyed light.

9. The gaming machine of claim 5, wherein the cabinet includes a rear wing having a front surface for receiving second light from a second light source and reflecting at least a portion of the received second light towards the player position as ambience light, the rear wing being positioned rearward of the electronic display device relative to the player position.

10. The gaming machine of claim 9, further including a first light pipe extending between the light source and a front exit area proximate the front diffuser and a second light pipe extending between the second light source and a rear exit area, the first light pipe conveying the light from the light source to the front exit area, the second light pipe conveying the second light from the second light source to the rear exit area and directing the second light onto the front surface of the rear wing.

11. The gaming machine of claim 10, wherein the first and second light pipes are respective first and second sections of a single light pipe, the light source including a first plurality of side-firing light-emitting diodes (LEDs) mounted on a first printed circuit board (PCB) at a first pitch, the second light source including a second plurality of side-firing LEDs mounted on a second PCB at a second pitch, the first pitch being smaller than the second pitch, the first plurality of LEDs transmitting the light into the single light pipe in a first direction, the second plurality of LEDs transmitting the second light into the single light pipe in a second direction generally opposite to the first direction.

12. The gaming machine of claim 9, wherein the light source and the second light source are disposed within a housing of the electronic display device.