Mechanical wheel casino game of chance having a free-motion internal indicator and method therefor
First Claim
1. A method of operating a casino game of chance, the casino game of chance having a mechanical wheel oriented in a vertical direction, said mechanical wheel divided into a plurality of segments with each segment having an award value, the method comprising:
- spinning the mechanical wheel under control of a processor;
freely moving a ball within a housing of the mechanical wheel in response to spinning;
randomly selecting one set of possible outcome sets from a plurality of sets;
stopping spin of the mechanical wheel, under control of the processor, at said randomly selected one set at the bottom of the vertically oriented mechanical wheel;
randomly landing the freely moving ball in one possible outcome segment in the randomly placed one set of possible outcome segments as the mechanical wheel stops, the possible outcome segments in the randomly placed one set uniformly disposed upwardly from the bottom of the stopped vertically oriented mechanical wheel;
sensing, under control of the processor, the one possible outcome segment the ball landed in;
awarding a payout, under control of the processor, based on the award value of the one sensed possible outcome segment the ball landed in;
the award values of each set of the plurality of sets of possible outcome segments having a range of player expected values so that the casino game of chance has an overall range of player expected values for all play of the casino game.
10 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A mechanical wheel casino game of chance using a freely moving internal indicator such as a ball within a housing to randomly move and bounce into one possible outcome segment in a set of possible outcome segments. The expected value is controlled through a combination of geometrical and mathematical considerations. The set of possible outcome segments randomly picked and placed at the bottom of the wheel so that as the wheel stops, the freely moving, bouncing ball lands in one of the possible outcome segments. The segment the ball lands in is sensed and the award associated with the landed in segment is paid out to the player. A periodic testing method determines whether mechanical bias exists in the casino game of chance.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A method of operating a casino game of chance, the casino game of chance having a mechanical wheel oriented in a vertical direction, said mechanical wheel divided into a plurality of segments with each segment having an award value, the method comprising:
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spinning the mechanical wheel under control of a processor;
freely moving a ball within a housing of the mechanical wheel in response to spinning;
randomly selecting one set of possible outcome sets from a plurality of sets;
stopping spin of the mechanical wheel, under control of the processor, at said randomly selected one set at the bottom of the vertically oriented mechanical wheel;
randomly landing the freely moving ball in one possible outcome segment in the randomly placed one set of possible outcome segments as the mechanical wheel stops, the possible outcome segments in the randomly placed one set uniformly disposed upwardly from the bottom of the stopped vertically oriented mechanical wheel;
sensing, under control of the processor, the one possible outcome segment the ball landed in;
awarding a payout, under control of the processor, based on the award value of the one sensed possible outcome segment the ball landed in;
the award values of each set of the plurality of sets of possible outcome segments having a range of player expected values so that the casino game of chance has an overall range of player expected values for all play of the casino game. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of operating a casino game of chance, the casino game of chance having a mechanical wheel, with a radius and an outer periphery said mechanical wheel divided into a plurality of segments with each segment having an award value, the method comprising:
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spinning the mechanical wheel under control of a processor;
freely moving a ball within a housing of the mechanical wheel in response to spinning;
randomly selecting one set of possible outcome sets from a plurality of sets;
stopping spin of the mechanical wheel under control of the processor, at said randomly selected one set at the bottom of the mechanical wheel;
using the center of gravity of the ball to land the freely moving ball between adjacent pins on either side of one possible outcome segment in the randomly placed set as the mechanical wheel stops, the ball having a diameter, the adjacent pins located near the outer periphery of the mechanical wheel, the adjacent pins having a chord distance therebetween, the diameter of the ball and the chord distance between the adjacent pins at least determining the whether the ball lands between the adjacent pins, the possible outcome segments in the randomly placed one set uniformly disposed at the bottom of the stopped mechanical wheel;
sensing, under control of the processor, the one possible outcome segment the ball landed in;
awarding a payout, under control of the processor, based on the award value of the one sensed possible outcome segment the ball landed in. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A method of operating a casino game of chance, the casino game of chance having a mechanical wheel, said mechanical wheel divided into a plurality of segments with each segment having an award value, the method comprising:
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spinning the mechanical wheel under control of a processor;
freely moving a ball within a housing of the mechanical wheel in response to spinning;
randomly selecting one set of possible outcome sets from a plurality of sets;
slowing the spin of the mechanical wheel under control of the processor to randomly place said randomly selected one set near the bottom of the mechanical wheel;
releasing the mechanical wheel from control of the processor in response to the slowing spin as the randomly placed one set approaches the bottom;
randomly landing the freely moving ball in one possible outcome segment of the one set;
sensing, under control of the processor, the one possible outcome segment the ball landed in when the one possible segment stops at the bottom of the mechanical wheel;
awarding a payout, under control of the processor, based on the award value of the one sensed possible outcome segment the ball landed in.
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22. A method of operating a casino game of chance, the casino game of chance having a mechanical wheel, said mechanical wheel divided into a plurality of segments with each segment having an award value, the method comprising:
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spinning the mechanical wheel under control of a processor at a constant rate for a predetermined number of revolutions;
freely moving a ball within a housing of the mechanical wheel in response to spinning;
releasing the mechanical wheel from control of the processor when the predetermined number of revolutions have occurred;
randomly landing the freely moving ball in one of the plurality of segments;
sensing, under control of the processor, the one segment the ball landed in when the one segment stops at the bottom of the mechanical wheel;
awarding a payout, under control of the processor, based on the award value of the one sensed segment the ball landed in;
automatically tracking payouts from the casino game of chance over a set number of operations of the casino game of chance;
comparing the set number of tracked payouts with expected player values for the set number of operations;
raising an alert signal when the set number of tracked player payouts vary from the expected player values by a predetermined statistical amount so as to indicate the existence of mechanical bias in the play of the casino game of chance.
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Specification