GAMING SYSTEM HAVING AWARDS PROVIDED BASED ON RATE OF PLAY

• US 20080076527A1
• Filed: 08/22/2006
• Published: 03/27/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Low, Michael N., Davis, Dwayne A., Oberberger, Michael M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,012,014 B2
• 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 17/3227 Configuring a gaming machine, e.g. downloading personal settings, selecting working parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3237 about the players, e.g. profiling, responsible gaming, strategy/behavior of players, location of players
• 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 17/3258 Cumulative reward schemes, e.g. jackpots
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3272 Games involving multiple players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3276 wherein the players compete, e.g. tournament
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3295 Games involving skill, e.g. dexterity, memory, thinking

Abstract

A gaming system and method for operating a gaming system is provided. The gaming system includes a central server that is linked to a plurality of gaming devices. The central server monitors wager and play activity on the gaming devices during a period of time. Based at least in part on the wager and play activity, the central server determines a ranking for one or more players or for one or more gaming devices in the gaming system. The central server selects which player(s) will be provided one or more awards based on the determined ranking. The determined ranking is based, at least in part, on the speed, skill and/or wagering activity of the one or more players.

Claims

1. A method for operating a gaming system including a plurality of gaming devices in communication with a controller, the method comprising:

(a) acquiring a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity or play activity from the plurality of gaming devices during a designated period of time;

(b) determining a ranking for each of a plurality of players of the plurality of gaming devices based on the acquired ranking components;

(c) positioning each ranked player along a ranking scale relative to other ranked players based on the determined rankings;

(d) causing a triggering event to occur;

(e) selecting at least one player from the plurality of ranked players based on the ranking scale; and

(f) providing an award to the selected player, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking.

2. The method of claim 1, which includes displaying to the plurality of ranked players an indicator which constantly moves between a first point of the designated period of time and a second point of the designated period of time to display the ranking components acquired from the ranked players.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the award is independent of the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking prior to the triggering event.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the award is partially independent of the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking prior to the triggering event.

5. The method of claim 1, which includes selecting a plurality of ranked players and providing the award to all of the selected players.

6. The method of claim 1, which includes displaying the determined rankings.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the ranking components include at least one of the following:

(i) a total amount wagered on each gaming device;

(ii) a total amount wagered by each player;

(iii) a number of games played on each gaming device;

(iv) a number of games played by each player;

(v) an amount of each wager placed on each play of each gaming device;

(vi) an amount of each wager placed by each player on each play of a game;

(vii) an amount of time between each play of each game on the gaming devices;

(viii) an amount of time between each play of each game by each player; and

(ix) a quality of play of each player.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the award includes a progressive award.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the award includes a fixed-value award.

10. The method of claim 1, which includes acquiring the ranking components during the designated period of time.

11. The method of claim 10, which includes accumulating the ranking components during the designated period of time.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the designated period of time is randomly determined.

13. The method of claim 1, which is provided through a data network.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the data network is an internet.

15. A gaming system comprising:

a controller;

a plurality of gaming devices in communication with the controller;

a plurality of ranking components acquired by the controller from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity from the plurality of gaming devices during a designated period of time; and

a ranking for each of a plurality of the gaming devices determined by the controller based on the acquired ranking components, wherein the controller (i) positions each ranked gaming device along a ranking scale relative to other ranked gaming devices based on the determined rankings, (ii) selects at least one gaming device based on the ranking scale after a triggering event occurs and (iii) causes the selected gaming device to provide an award to the player of the selected gaming device, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected gaming device'"'"'s determined ranking.

16. The gaming system of claim 15, which includes an indicator displayable to a plurality of players of the ranked gaming devices, the indicator constantly moving between a first point of the designated period of time and a second point of the designated period of time to display the ranking components acquired from the ranked gaming devices.

17. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the award is independent of the selected gaming device'"'"'s determined ranking prior to the triggering event.

18. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the award is partially independent of the selected gaming device'"'"'s determined ranking prior to the triggering event.

19. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the controller selects a plurality of ranked gaming devices and provides the award to all of the players of the selected gaming devices.

20. The gaming system of claim 15, which includes a display in communication with the controller and adapted to display the determined rankings.

21. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the ranking components include at least one of the following:

(i) a total amount wagered on each gaming device;

(ii) a total amount wagered by each player;

(iii) a number of games played on each gaming device;

(iv) a number of games played by each player;

(v) an amount of each wager placed on each play of each gaming device;

(vi) an amount of each wager placed by each player on each play of a game;

(vii) an amount of time between each play of each game on the gaming devices;

(viii) an amount of time between each play of each game by each player; and

(ix) a quality of play of each player.

22. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the award includes a progressive award.

23. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the award includes a fixed-value award.

24. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the controller acquires the ranking components during the designated period of time.

25. The gaming system of claim 24, wherein the controller accumulates the ranking components during the designated period of time.

26. The gaming system of claim 24, wherein the designated period of time is randomly determined.

27. The gaming system of claim 15, which includes a data network in communication with the controller and the plurality of gaming devices.

28. The gaming system of claim 27, wherein the data network is an internet.

29. A gaming system comprising:

a controller; and

a plurality of gaming devices, wherein at least one gaming device includes;

a display device; and

a gaming device processor programmed to operate with the controller and the display device to;

acquire a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking component includes wager activity from the plurality of gaming devices during a designated period of time;

determine a ranking for each of a plurality of gaming devices based on the acquired ranking components;

position each ranked gaming device along a ranking scale relative to other ranked gaming devices based on the determined rankings;

cause a triggering event to occur;

select at least one gaming device from the plurality of ranked gaming devices based on the ranking scale; and

cause the controller to provide an award to a player of the selected gaming device, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected gaming device'"'"'s determined ranking.

30. A memory device which includes a plurality of instructions, that when executed by at least one processor, cause a gaming system including a plurality of gaming devices to:

(a) acquire a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity from the plurality of gaming devices during a designated period of time;

(b) determine a ranking for each of a plurality of gaming devices based on the acquired ranking components;

(c) position each ranked gaming device along a ranking scale relative to other ranked gaming devices based on the determined rankings;

(d) cause a triggering event to occur;

(e) select at least one gaming device from the plurality of ranked gaming devices based on the ranking scale; and

(f) cause the processor to provide an award to a player of the selected gaming device, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected gaming machine'"'"'s determined ranking.

31. The memory device of claim 30, which is selected from the group consisting of a detachable cartridge, a disk, a random access memory, a read only memory and an application-specific integrated circuit.

32. A method for operating a gaming system including a plurality of gaming devices in communication with a controller, the method comprising:

(a) acquiring a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity from the plurality of gaming devices during a designated period of time;

(b) determining a ranking for each of the plurality of gaming devices based on the acquired ranking components;

(c) positioning each ranked gaming device along a ranking scale relative to other ranked gaming devices based on the determined rankings;

(d) causing a triggering event to occur; and

(e) selecting at least one gaming device from the plurality of ranked gaming devices based on the ranking scale; and

(f) providing an award to a player of the selected gaming device, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected gaming device'"'"'s determined ranking.

33. A method for ranking a plurality of players of a plurality of gaming devices playing a game, the method comprising:

(a) acquiring a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of players, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity from the plurality of players during a designated period of time;

(b) determining a ranking for each of the plurality of players based on the acquired ranking components;

(c) positioning each ranked player along a ranking scale relative to other ranked players based on the determined rankings;

(d) causing a triggering event to occur;

(e) selecting at least one player from the plurality of ranked players based on the ranking scale; and

(f) providing an award to the selected player, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking.

34. The method of claim 33, which includes displaying to the plurality of ranked players an indicator which constantly moves between a first point of the designated period of time and a second point of the designated period of time to display the ranking components acquired from the ranked players.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein the award is at least partially independent of the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking prior to the triggering event.

36. The method of claim 33, which includes selecting a plurality of ranked players and providing the award to all of the selected players.

37. The method of claim 33, which includes displaying the determined rankings to the plurality of players.

38. The method of claim 33, wherein the ranking components include at least one of the following:

(i) a total amount wagered on each gaming device;

(ii) a total amount wagered by each player;

(iii) a number of games played on each gaming device;

(iv) a number of games played by each player;

(v) an amount of each wager placed on each play of each gaming device;

(vi) an amount of each wager placed by each player on each play of a game;

(vii) an amount of time between each play of each game on the gaming devices;

(viii) an amount of time between each play of each game by each player; and

(ix) a quality of play of each player.

39. The method of claim 33, which includes acquiring the ranking components during the designated period of time.

40. The method of claim 39, which includes accumulating the ranking components during the designated period of time.

41. The method of claim 39, wherein the designated period of time is randomly determined.

42. The method of claim 33, which is provided through a data network.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the data network is an internet.

44. A gaming system comprising:

a controller;

a game operated by the controller and playable upon a wager by a player, wherein the game is playable by a plurality of players;

a plurality of ranking components acquired by the controller from each of a plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity of a player associated with each gaming device during a designated period of time; and

a ranking for each of a plurality of the players determined by the controller based on the acquired ranking components, wherein the controller (i) positions each ranked player along a ranking scale relative to other ranked players based on the determined rankings, (ii) selects at least one player based on the ranking scale after a triggering event occurs and (iii) provides the selected player an award, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking.

45. The method of claim 44, which includes displaying to the plurality of ranked players an indicator which constantly moves between a first point of the designated period of time and a second point of the designated period of time to display the ranking components acquired from the ranked players.

46. The method of claim 44, wherein the award is independent of the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking prior to the triggering event.

47. The method of claim 44, wherein the award is partially independent of the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking prior to the triggering event.

48. The gaming system of claim 44, wherein the controller selects a plurality of ranked players and provides the award to all of the selected players.

49. The gaming system of claim 44, which includes a display in communication with the controller and adapted to display the determined rankings.

50. The gaming system of claim 44, wherein the ranking components include at least one of the following:

(i) a total amount wagered on the game;

(ii) a total amount wagered by each player;

(iii) a number of the games played;

(iv) a number of the games played by each player;

(v) an amount of each wager placed on each play of the game;

(vi) an amount of each wager placed by each player on each play of the game;

(vii) an amount of time between each play of the game;

(viii) an amount of time between each play of the game by each player; and

(ix) a quality of play of the game by each player.

51. The gaming system of claim 44, wherein the controller acquires the ranking components during the designated period of time.

52. The gaming system of claim 51, wherein the controller accumulates the ranking components during the designated period of time.

53. The gaming system of claim 51, wherein the designated period of time is randomly determined.

54. The gaming system of claim 44, which includes a data network in communication with the controller and the plurality of gaming devices.

55. The gaming system of claim 54, wherein the data network is an internet.

56. A gaming system comprising:

a controller; and

a plurality of gaming devices, wherein at least one gaming device includes;

a display device; and

a gaming device processor programmed to operate with the controller and the display device to;

acquire a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity of a player associated with each gaming device during a designated period of time;

determine a ranking for each of a plurality of players based on the acquired ranking components;

position each ranked player along a ranking scale relative to other ranked players based on the determined rankings;

cause a triggering event to occur;

select at least one player from the plurality of ranked players based on the ranking scale; and

cause the processor to provide an award to at least one selected player, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking.

57. A memory device which includes a plurality of instructions, that when executed by at least one processor, cause a gaming system including a plurality of gaming devices to:

(a) acquire a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity of a player associated with each gaming device during a designated period of time;

(b) determine a ranking for each of a plurality of players based on the acquired ranking components;

(c) position each ranked player along a ranking scale relative to other ranked players based on the determined rankings;

(d) cause a triggering event to occur;

(e) select at least one player from the plurality of ranked players based on the ranking scale; and

(f) cause the processor to provide an award to at least one selected player, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking.

58. The memory device of claim 57, which is selected from the group consisting of a detachable cartridge, a disk, a random access memory, a read only memory and an application-specific integrated circuit.

59. A method for operating a gaming system including a plurality of gaming devices in communication with a controller, the method comprising:

(a) acquiring a plurality of ranking components from each of the plurality of gaming devices, wherein the ranking components are based on wager activity of a player associated with each gaming device during a designated period of time;

(b) determining a ranking for each of a plurality of players based on the acquired ranking components;

(c) positioning each ranked player along a ranking scale relative to other ranked players based on the determined rankings;

(d) causing a triggering event to occur;

(e) selecting at least one player from the plurality of ranked players based on the ranking scale; and

(f) causing the processor to provide an award to at least one selected player, wherein the award is based, at least in part, on the selected player'"'"'s determined ranking.