EZ pay smart card and ticket system

• US 20050124407A1
• Filed: 01/21/2005
• Published: 06/09/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Rowe, Richard E.
• Application Number:
  US11/040,697
• Publication Number:
  US 20050124407A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/25
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/323 wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3251 involving media of variable value, e.g. programmable cards, programmable tokens

Abstract

A disclosed smart card includes a processor and memory configured to execute a number of gaming applications, such as a bonus game application, a progressive game application, a voucher application and a paytable application, and communicate with a master gaming controller on the gaming machine. Gaming instructions, generated during the execution of one or more of the gaming application on the smart card, may be used to affect game play on the gaming machine. The gaming instructions for various gaming services may be supplied to gaming machines operating in a “stand alone” mode or gaming machine connected to some type of dedicated network. In addition, the smart card may store game components including audio game components and video game components that may be downloaded into a gaming machine and incorporated into a game presentation on the gaming machine. The smart card may be utilized at many different venues including casinos, hotels, bars, restaurants and retail stores.

Claims

1. A portable electronic device for providing gaming services, said portable electronic device comprising:

a processor configured to execute a gaming application for generating gaming instructions;

a memory for storing the gaming applications; and

an interface located on said substrate for allowing communication with a master gaming controller on a gaming machine wherein the master gaming controller is adapted for controlling a game of chance including wagering played on the gaming machine by executing game code that uses gaming instructions generated by the processor wherein the gaming instructions generated by the processor include commands and/or data compatible with the game code executed by the master gaming controller.

2. The portable electronic device of claim 1, wherein the gaming application is selected from the group consisting of a bingo bonus game application, a bonus game application, a progressive game application, a voucher application allowing a player to cash out a certain amount of winnings;

and a paytable application for selecting a particular paytable from among a plurality of paytables, a lottery game application, a keno game application, a pull tab game application and a bingo progressive game application.

3. The portable electronic device of claim 1, wherein said memory stores one or more of player tracker information, loyalty points, paytables, game components, game play history information, bonus game information, progressive game information and voucher information.

4. The portable electronic device of claim 3, wherein the portable electronic device is adapted to be accepted at multiple venues and wherein at least one of the vouchers and loyalty points are transferable across said venues.

5. The portable electronic device of claim 4, wherein the multiple venues are selected from the group consisting of casinos, hotels, restaurants, retail stores and bars.

6. The portable electronic device of claim 1, wherein said memory stores one or more communication protocols allowing the portable electronic device to communicate with at least one of a gaming machine, a game service server and a gaming peripheral.

7. The portable electronic device of claim 1, further comprising:

one or more shared memory locations located in said memory wherein said one or more shared memory locations store data utilized by a plurality of gaming applications executed on said portable electronic device.

8. The portable electronic device of claim 1, wherein the portable electronic device is a smart card or a personal digital assistant.

9. In a portable electronic device, a method for executing a game play on a gaming machine, the method comprising:

establishing communications with the gaming machine;

determining that a gaming application is to be executed by the portable electronic device;

executing the gaming application using a processor on the portable electronic device; and

sending the gaming instructions generated during execution of the gaming application to the gaming machine via a communication interface on the portable electronic device wherein the gaming machine provides play of a game of chance including wagering by executing game code that uses gaming instructions generated by the processor wherein the gaming instructions generated by the processor include commands and/or data compatible with the game code executed by the gaming machine.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

sending a list of gaming applications available on the portable electronic device to the gaming machine.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

sending authentication information to the gaming machine that allows the gaming machine to authenticate the portable electronic device.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving gaming machine identification information from the gaming machine.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the gaming machine identification information includes a gaming machine identifier and a list of gaming applications supported by the gaming machine.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving game play information from the gaming machine.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

establishing communications with a game service server.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the game service server is selected from the group consisting of an accounting server, a bonus game server, a progressive server, a player tracking server and a cashless system server.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the communications are routed to the game service server via the gaming machine.

18. The method of claim 9, wherein the gaming application is selected from the group consisting of a bingo bonus game application, a bonus game application, a progressive game application, a voucher application allowing a player to cash out a certain amount of winnings;

and a paytable application for selecting a particular paytable from among a plurality of paytables, a lottery game application, a keno game application, a pull tab game application and a bingo progressive game application.

19. The method of claim 9, wherein the gaming instructions include:

player tracker information, loyalty points, paytables, game component information, game configuration information, game play history information, bonus game information, progressive game information and voucher information.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the game component information includes at least one of graphical game component and an audio game component.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein the game configuration information is selected from the group consisting of a game type, a game version, a game background, a game denomination and a game wager amount.

22. A gaming machine for executing a game play with the aid of a portable electronic device, the gaming machine comprising:

a master gaming controller designed or configured to control a game of chance played on the gaming machine by executing game code that uses gaming instructions generated by a processor on the portable electronic device wherein the gaming instructions generated by the processor include commands and/or data compatible with the game code executed by the master gaming controller, said master gaming controller including a first memory for storing the gaming instructions received from the portable electronic device, a first processor, separate from the processor on the portable electronic device, for executing the game code and a communication interface for allowing communications with the portable electronic device and for receiving the gaming instructions from the portable electronic device;

the portable electronic device operable to execute one more gaming applications to generate the gaming instructions, said portable electronic device including;

the processor for executing the gaming applications, an input/output interface for allowing communications with the master gaming controller and a second memory for storing the gaming applications executed by the processor;

an input mechanism, connected to and under control of the master gaming controller, for receiving cash or indicia of credit for wagers on the game of chance played on the gaming machine; and

an output mechanism, connected to and under control of the master gaming controller.

23. In a gaming machine, a method for executing a game play on the gaming machine with the aid of a portable electronic device, the method comprising:

receiving a signal indicating the portable electronic device is attempting to establish communications with the gaming machine wherein the signal is received in a master gaming controller designed to control a game of chance played on the gaming machine;

establishing communications, under control the master gaming controller, with said portable electronic device;

receiving, under control of a master gaming controller, first gaming instructions from at least one of a plurality of gaming applications executed by a processor on the portable electronic device wherein the first gaming instructions generated by the processor include commands and/or data compatible with game code for controlling the game of chance that is executable by the master gaming controller;

storing the first gaming instructions on a memory device on the master gaming controller;

receiving a wager on the game of chance; and

executing game code, under control of the master gaming controller, to generate generating the game of chance on the gaming machine using the first gaming instructions provided from the portable electronic device.