System for trade-in bonus

• US 10,388,114 B2
• Filed: 02/01/2018
• Issued: 08/20/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Acres Technology
• Original Assignee: Patent Investment & Licensing Company
• Inventors: Acres, John F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Milap
• Application Number:
  US15/885,991
• Publication Number:
  US 20180158284A1
• Time in Patent Office: 565 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/24 Electric games; Games using electronic circuits not otherwise provided for video games A63F13/00; computerized gaming systems G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3225 Data transfer within a gaming system, e.g. data sent between gaming machines and users
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3246 involving coins and/or banknotes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3255 Incentive, loyalty and/or promotion schemes, e.g. comps, gaming associated with a purchase, gaming funded by advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/326 Game play aspects of gaming systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3265 Influencing the position of stopped moving members to achieve a winning arrangement, e.g. nudging, shuffling, holding
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3267 Game outcomes which determine the course of the subsequent game, e.g. double or quits, free games, higher payouts, different new games
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3293 Card games, e.g. poker, canasta, black jack
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to gaming systems that allow customers to wager, or “trade-in” an object of value or winning situation for a chance to win an even more valuable award. The chance for valuable award may be a bonus game or chance to win a bonus game. Bonus awards are “funded” by the savings achieved from the players trading in their wins in the base game, which would otherwise be paid. Players who do not trade-in see no changes from the base game paytable, while those players who participate in the trade-in bonus have a different gaming experience.

Claims

1. An electronic gaming device having a paytable stored in at least one memory device and a display device, on which randomly determined outcomes are displayed, the electronic gaming device comprising:

an accepting device configured to accept a physical item associated with a monetary value, the monetary value establishing a credit balance, the credit balance being increasable and decreasable based at least on wagering activity;

a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance;

an actuator for initiating a game played on the electronic gaming device; and

a computing processor programmed to;

generate a first randomly determined outcome as a set of predefined symbols;

track one or more of the set of predefined symbols traded in by a player of the electronic gaming device after the first randomly determined outcome is displayed;

determine when at least two symbols of the set of predefined symbols are traded in by the player;

determine if the at least two symbols comprise one of a plurality of winning outcomes in the paytable;

add bonus points to a bonus point total if it is determined that the at least two symbols comprise one of the plurality of winning outcomes in the paytable; and

provide a bonus to the player of the electronic gaming device when the bonus point total exceeds a predefined threshold to earn the bonus.

2. The electronic gaming device of claim 1 wherein the electronic gaming device further includes at least one of a mechanical wheel or an image of a wheel stored in the at least one memory device, the bonus being a wheelspin of the at least one wheel in which the player is awarded an amount spun.

3. The electronic gaming device of claim 1 wherein the electronic gaming device further includes a bonus symbol accumulator, the bonus being a bonus symbol stored in the bonus symbol accumulator.

4. The electronic gaming device of claim 3 in which the computing processor is further programmed to draw a matching symbol and compare the drawn symbol to a bonus symbol stored in the bonus symbol accumulator.

5. The electronic gaming device of claim 4 in which the computing processor is further programmed to award a second bonus to a player who holds a bonus symbol in the bonus symbol accumulator that matches the matching symbol.

6. The electronic gaming device of claim 1 wherein the set of predefined symbols appear on playing cards.

7. The electronic gaming device of claim 1 wherein the electronic gaming device is a slot machine.

8. An electronic gaming device having a paytable stored in a memory device and a display device, on which randomly determined outcomes are displayed, the electronic gaming device comprising:

an accepting device configured to accept a physical item associated with a monetary value, the monetary value establishing a credit balance, the credit balance being increasable and decreasable based at least on wagering activity;

a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance;

an actuator for initiating a poker game played on the electronic gaming device; and

a computing processor programmed to;

display a plurality of predefined symbols on the display device as a first randomly determined outcome comprising a set of the predefined symbols representing an interim holding after a first stage of the poker game;

offer to a player of the poker game to surrender only a portion of the interim holding after the first stage, wherein the portion includes a quantity of symbols less than a total quantity of symbols in the set;

provide an opportunity for a bonus award in exchange for surrender by the player if the surrendered portion has at least two symbols comprising one of a plurality of winning outcomes in the paytable, wherein the bonus award comprises one or more bonus points added to a bonus point total for the player;

provide awards, if any, after completion of the poker game, according to the paytable when the player elects not to surrender any of the interim holding; and

print a ticket on a ticket printer reflecting an amount cashed out from the electronic device.

9. The electronic gaining device of claim 8 in which a cost of the bonus award is at least partially supported by a savings from not paying on the surrendered interim holding.

10. The electronic gaming device of claim 8 in which the bonus award is a plurality of bonus points.

11. The electronic gaining device of claim 10 wherein the computing processor is further programmed to initiate a bonus eligibility session after the bonus point total exceeds a pre-defined number of bonus points.

12. The electronic gaming device of claim 8 wherein the plurality of predefined symbols appear on playing cards.

13. The electronic gaming device of claim 8 wherein the electronic gaming device is a slot machine.

14. An electronic gaming device having a paytable stored in a memory device and a display device, on which randomly determined outcomes are displayed, the electronic gaming device comprising:

an accepting device configured to accept a physical item associated with a monetary value, the monetary value establishing a credit balance, the credit balance being increasable and decreasable based at least on wagering activity;

a cashout device configured to receive an input to cause an initiation of a payout associated with the credit balance;

an actuator for initiating a game played on the electronic gaming device; and

a computing processor programmed to;

generate a first randomly determined outcome comprising a set of predefined symbols;

display the set of predefined symbols on the display device;

accept only a portion of the displayed set of predefined symbols as discards selected by a player of the game, wherein the portion comprises at least two symbols and less than a total quantity of symbols in the set of predefined symbols;

compare the accepted discards to a plurality of predefined winning outcomes of the paytable; and

generate an award for the player when the accepted discards match one of the plurality of winning outcomes the paytable, wherein the award comprises one or more bonus points to be added to a bonus point total for the player.

15. The electronic gaming device of claim 14 in which the set of predefined symbols appear on playing cards.

16. The electronic gaming device of claim 14 in which the computing processor is further programmed to award a first award for accepting a discard of any two dissimilar symbols.

17. The electronic gaming device of claim 14 in which the computing processor is further programmed to award a second award for accepting a discard of any pair of symbols having a first value, the second award being greater than the first award.

18. The electronic gaming device of claim 17 in which the computing processor is further programmed to award a third award for accepting a discard of any pair of symbols having a second value greater than the first value, the third award being greater than the second award.

19. The electronic gaming device of claim 14 wherein the electronic gaming device is a slot machine.