Gaming system and method employing multiple symbol generators utilized for multiple concurrently played games

• US 10,706,689 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2014
• Issued: 07/07/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Zielinski, John H., Ching, Erick, Sur, Stephanie A., Fengxing, Lin, Hallerbach, Boris
• Primary Examiner(s): Hu, Kang
• Assistant Examiner(s): Henry, Thomas H
• Application Number:
  US14/497,852
• Publication Number:
  US 20160093139A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,111 Days
• 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 17/326 Game play aspects of gaming systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

A gaming system including a plurality of concurrent or overlapping game plays. Each concurrent or overlapping game play is associated with or otherwise configured to activate one or more symbol generators, such as one or more wheels. Following a determination of which of the games to concurrently or overlappingly play, the gaming system activates each symbol generator associated with each concurrent or overlapping game play.

Claims

1. A gaming system comprising:

at least one display device;

at least one input device;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

cause the at least one display device to display;

a plurality of wheels, each wheel including a plurality of sections having a plurality of displayed symbols, and each wheel associated with at least one indicator, wherein the plurality of wheels include at least;

a first wheel including a first plurality of sections having a first plurality of symbols and a predetermined association with at least a first indicator, and

a second wheel including a second plurality of sections having a second plurality of symbols and a predetermination association with at least a second, different indicator, and

a modifier generator including a plurality of modifiers and associated with at least one modifier generator indicator which is distinct from any of the indicators associated with any of the wheels,

receive, via the at least one input device, a placement of a wager amount on at least one of the plurality of wheels, wherein different received wager amounts are associated with different quantities of the plurality of wheels, and

for each wagered on wheel;

cause the at least one display device to display each of the at least one indicator associated with said wagered on wheel indicating a randomly determined section,

determine any award associated with any symbol of the indicated section, and

cause the at least one display device to display any determined award associated with the symbol of the indicated section, and

responsive to a modifier generator initiation event occurring;

randomly determine, independent of any player selection after the placement of the wager amount, one of the plurality of modifiers, and

following an activation of the modifier generator, for each modifier generator indicator;

determine if that modifier generator indicator indicates any randomly determined sections of any of the wheels,

responsive to that modifier generator indicator not indicating any randomly determined sections of any of the wheels, not modifying, based on the randomly determined modifier, any determined awards associated with any symbols of any indicated sections of any of the wheels, and

responsive to that modifier generator indicator indicating a randomly determined section of one of the wheels;

 

modify, based on the randomly determined modifier, any determined award associated with the symbol of the indicated section of said wheel, and

 

cause the at least one display device to display the modified award.

2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the first plurality of sections of the first wheel and the second plurality of sections of the second wheel include different quantities of sections.

3. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein for at least one of the wheels, a quantity of the sections of said wheel is greater than a quantity of the displayed symbols of said wheel.

4. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least two of the wheels each have a predetermination association with a different quantity of indicators.

5. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the determined awards of at least one of the wagered on wheels is selected from the group consisting of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, a quantity of player tracking points, a progressive award, a modifier, a quantity of free plays of the game, a quantity of plays of at least one non-wagering game, at least one lottery based award, a wager match for at least one play of the game, an increase in an average expected payback percentage of the game, at least one comp, a quantity of credits usable for an online play of an online game, a quantity of virtual goods and an access code usable to unlock content on an internet.

6. The gaming system of claim 1, which includes an acceptor, wherein when executed by the at least one processor, the plurality of instructions cause the at least one processor to:

responsive to a physical item being received via the acceptor, establish a credit balance based, at least in part, on a monetary value associated with the received physical item, and responsive to a cashout input being received, cause an initiation of any payout associated with the credit balance.

7. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the at least one display device comprises a display device of a mobile device.

8. The gaming system of claim 7, wherein the at least one processor communicates with the mobile device over a wireless data network.

9. A gaming system server comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

cause a display, by at least one display device, of;

a plurality of wheels, each wheel including a plurality of sections having a plurality of displayed symbols, and each wheel associated with at least one indicator, wherein the plurality of wheels include at least;

a first wheel including a first plurality of sections having a first plurality of symbols and a predetermination association with at least a first indicator, and

a second wheel including a second plurality of sections having a second plurality of symbols and a predetermination association with at least a second, different indicator, and

a modifier generator including a plurality of modifiers and associated with at least one modifier generator indicator which is distinct from any of the indicators associated with any of the wheels,

receive data associated with a placement of a wager amount on at least one of the plurality of wheels, wherein different received wager amounts are associated with different quantities of the plurality of wheels, and

for each wagered on wheel;

cause a display, by the at least one display device, of each of the at least one indicator associated with said wagered on wheel indicating a randomly determined section,

determine any award associated with any symbol of the indicated section, and

cause a display, by the at least one display device, of any determined award associated with the symbol of the indicated section, and

responsive to a modifier generator initiation event occurring;

randomly determine, independent of any player selection after the placement of the wager amount, one of the plurality of modifiers, and

following an activation of the modifier generator, for each modifier generator indicator;

determine if that modifier generator indicator indicates any randomly determined sections of any of the wheels,

responsive to that modifier generator indicator not indicating any randomly determined sections of any of the wheels, not modifying, based on the randomly determined modifier, any determined awards associated with any symbols of any indicated sections of any of the wheels, and

responsive to that modifier generator indicator indicating a randomly determined section of one of the wheels;

 

modify, based on the randomly determined modifier, any determined award associated with the symbol of the indicated section of said wheel, and

 

cause a display, by the at least one display device, of the modified award.

10. The gaming system server of claim 9, wherein the first plurality of sections of the first wheel and the second plurality of sections of the second wheel include different quantities of sections.

11. The gaming system server of claim 9, wherein for at least one of the wheels, a quantity of the sections of said wheel is greater than a quantity of the displayed symbols of said wheel.

12. The gaming system server of claim 9, wherein at least two of the wheels each have a predetermination association with a different quantity of indicators.

13. The gaming system server of claim 9, wherein at least one of the determined awards of at least one of the wagered on wheels is selected from the group consisting of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, a quantity of player tracking points, a progressive award, a modifier, a quantity of free plays of the game, a quantity of plays of at least one non-wagering game, at least one lottery based award, a wager match for at least one play of the game, an increase in an average expected payback percentage of the game, at least one comp, a quantity of credits usable for an online play of an online game, a quantity of virtual goods and an access code usable to unlock content on an internet.

14. The gaming system server of claim 9, which transmits and receives data over a data network.

15. The gaming system server of claim 14, wherein the data network is an internet.

16. The gaming system server of claim 9, wherein the placed wager amount causes a decrease of a credit balance which is increasable via an acceptor of a physical item associated with a monetary value.

17. The gaming system server of claim 9, wherein the at least one display device comprises a display device of a mobile device.

18. The gaming system server of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor communicates with the mobile device over a wireless data network.

19. A method of operating a gaming system, said method comprising:

causing a display, by a display device, of;

a plurality of wheels, each wheel including a plurality of sections having a plurality of displayed symbols, and each wheel associated with at least one indicator, wherein the plurality of wheels include at least;

a first wheel including a first plurality of sections having a first plurality of symbols and a predetermination association with at least a first indicator, and

a second wheel including a second plurality of sections having a second plurality of symbols and a predetermination association with at least a second, different indicator, and

a modifier generator including a plurality of modifiers and associated with at least one modifier generator indicator which is distinct from any of the indicators associated with any of the wheels,

receiving a placement of a wager amount on at least one of the plurality of wheels, wherein different received wager amounts are associated with different quantities of the plurality of wheels,

for each wagered on wheel;

causing a display, by the display device, of each of the at least one indicator associated with said wagered on wheel indicating a randomly determined section,

determining, by at least one processor, any award associated with any symbol of the indicated section, and

causing a display, by the display device, of any determined award associated with the symbol of the indicated section, and

responsive to an occurrence of a modifier generator initiation event;

randomly determining, by the at least one processor and independent of any player selection after the placement of the wager amount, one of the plurality of modifiers, and

following an activation of the modifier generator, for each modifier generator indicator;

determining, by the at least one processor, if that modifier generator indicator indicates any randomly determined sections of any of the wheels,

responsive to that modifier generator indicator not indicating any randomly determined sections of any of the wheels, not modifying, based on the randomly determined modifier, any determined awards associated with any symbols of any indicated sections of any of the wheels, and

responsive to that modifier generator indicator indicating a randomly determined section of one of the wheels;

modifying, by the at least one processor and based on the randomly determined modifier, any determined award associated with the symbol of the indicated section of said wheel, and

causing a display, by the display device, of the modified award.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the first plurality of sections of the first wheel and the second plurality of sections of the second wheel include different quantities of sections.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein for at least one of the wheels, a quantity of the sections of said wheel is greater than a quantity of the displayed symbols of said wheel.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein at least two of the wheels each have a predetermination association with a different quantity of indicators.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein at least one of the determined awards of at least one of the wagered on wheels is selected from the group consisting of:

a quantity of monetary credits, a quantity of non-monetary credits, a quantity of promotional credits, a quantity of player tracking points, a progressive award, a modifier, a quantity of free plays of the game, a quantity of plays of at least one non-wagering game, at least one lottery based award, a wager match for at least one play of the game, an increase in an average expected payback percentage of the game, at least one comp, a quantity of credits usable for an online play of an online game, a quantity of virtual goods and an access code usable to unlock content on an internet.

24. The method of claim 19, which is executed through a data network.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the data network is an internet.

26. The method of claim 19, wherein the received wager amount causes a decrease of a credit balance which is increasable via an acceptor of a physical item associated with a monetary value.

27. The method of claim 19, wherein the display device comprises a display device of a mobile device.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the at least one processor communicates with the mobile device over a wireless data network.