System and method of accumulating and recording outcomes generated by a gaming device

• US 20080070681A1
• Filed: 10/18/2007
• Published: 03/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: PTT LLC
• Original Assignee: PTT LLC
• Inventors: Marks, Howard, Singer, Anthony, Marks, Daniel
• Granted Patent: US 8,851,975 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/27
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3213 Details of moving display elements, e.g. spinning reels, tumbling members
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

The present invention provides a variety of systems and methods of playing a slot machine game in which players accumulate elements during one or more spins and at the conclusion of any spin may record the accumulation of said elements for future use at the same or different slot machine game. In three preferred embodiments, a player accumulates: the cumulative number of times one or more predetermined symbols appear in the symbol matrix; the cumulative number of points awarded by the game for winning symbol combinations appearing in the symbol matrix; or a set of predetermined winning symbol combinations.

Claims

1. A method of playing a slot machine game in which players accumulate elements generated by the game during one or more spins and, at the conclusion of any spin, the accumulation of said elements may be recorded for future use at the same or different slot machine game.

2. A method of claim 1 in which the player accumulates specific symbols appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

3. A method of claim 1 in which the player accumulates points based upon the symbol combinations appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

4. A method of claim 1 in which the player accumulates members of a set of predetermined symbol combinations appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

5. A system of operating a gaming device in which the elements generated by the gaming device are accumulated by a player during the play of one or more games on said gaming device and, upon the conclusion of any game, all said accumulated elements are recorded on printed or electromagnetic media, and/or stored as electronic data.

6. A system of operating a gaming device in which the elements generated by the gaming device are accumulated by a player during the play of one or more games on said gaming device and, upon the conclusion of any game, all occurrences of said accumulated elements are stored in a database on said gaming device.

7. A system of claim 6 in which a gaming device also stores a unique identifier specific to a player, gaming machine, time and date, location, and/or validation code for each occurrence of a predetermined element in the database.

8. A system of claim 6 in which the predetermine element(s) are symbols appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

9. A system of claim 6 in which the predetermined element(s) are points based upon the symbol combinations appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

10. A method of claim 6 in which the predetermined elements(s) are members of a set of predetermined symbol combinations appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

11. A system of claim 6 in which a gaming device provides the player with a record of any accumulated elements, via printed, electromagnetic, or electronic media, by using the information stored in the database on said device.

12. A system of claim 6 in which a gaming device validates a record of accumulated elements, as recorded printed, electromagnetic, or electronic media, against the information stored in the database on said device.

13. A system of operating a gaming device in which the elements generated by the gaming device are accumulated by a player during the play of one or more games on said gaming device and, upon the conclusion of any game, all occurrences of said accumulated elements are transmitted via network communication and stored in a database on a central server computer.

14. A system of claim 13 in which a central server also stores a unique identifier specific to a player, gaming machine, time and date, location, and/or validation code for each occurrence of a predetermined element.

15. A system of claim 13 in which the predetermine element(s) are symbols appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

16. A system of claim 13 in which the predetermined element(s) are points based upon the symbol combinations appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

17. A method of claim 13 in which the predetermined elements(s) are members of a set of predetermined symbol combinations appearing in the symbol matrix of a slot machine game.

18. A system of claim 13 in which a gaming device provides the player with a record of any accumulated elements, via printed, electromagnetic, or electronic media, by using the information stored in the database on the central server.

19. A system of claim 13 in which a gaming device validates a record of accumulated elements, as recorded on printed, electromagnetic, or electronic media, against the information stored in the database on the central server.