INTERACTIVE GAMING TABLE

• US 20080113767A1
• Filed: 11/10/2006
• Published: 05/15/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Olivas, Connie E. M., Nguyen, Binh T., Michaelson, Richard E., Paulsen, Craig A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,157,652 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/25
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements

Abstract

Interactive gaming tables and systems adapted to facilitate the automated administration of gaming table events are provided. Tables can have a playing surface, an outer circumference with active player positions, a slave controller for each active player position adapted to facilitate automated gaming activities, a master gaming table controller to synchronize communications and activities between slave controllers, access interfaces for communications with networked devices located away from the table, cameras and other tracking devices adapted to track gaming events at the table, and a specialized gaming table bolster distributed about the outer circumference. Bolster devices can include player friendly peripherals, including visual displays, speakers, open jacks, player tracking devices, and lights or other display elements to indicate table game statuses or the presence or absence of players. Tables can communicate with each other, a remote host, and/or player controlled auxiliary or hand-held wireless devices, which may be adapted for backbetting.

Claims

1. An interactive gaming table adapted for hosting table gaming events involving accepting wagers, playing table games based on the wagers and granting monetary awards based on the results of the table games, comprising:

a first surface adapted for the play of one or more wager-based table games;

an outer circumference adapted for the presence of one or more active players at said interactive gaming table, said outer circumference having a plurality of active player positions distributed thereabout;

a plurality of slave controller devices adapted to facilitate one or more table activities at said active player positions, wherein each of said plurality of active player positions includes at least one dedicated said slave controller device;

a master gaming table controller in communication with each of said plurality of slave controller devices and adapted to control a plurality of interactive gaming table functions, and also adapted to synchronize communications and activities between said plurality of slave controller devices;

at least one access interface in communication with said master gaming table controller and adapted for communications with one or more networked devices located away from said interactive gaming table;

one or more gaming table tracking devices in communication with said master gaming table controller and adapted to facilitate the tracking of one or more gaming events or transactions at said interactive gaming table; and

a specialized gaming table bolster distributed about said outer circumference, said specialized gaming table bolster including a plurality of bolster display devices adapted to indicate one or more status items regarding table game activities, the presence or absence of players, or both, at said interactive gaming table.

2. The interactive gaming table of claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of active player positions further includes:

a touchscreen in communication with a respective slave controller device selected from said plurality of slave controller devices and adapted to display visual information to an active player at said active player position;

a sound output device in communication with said respective slave controller device and adapted to display sound information to said active player;

a microphone in communication with said respective slave controller device and adapted to accept sound input from said active player;

a button panel having a plurality of buttons adapted to accept input from said active player; and

a player tracking reader in communication with said respective slave controller device and adapted to read one or more identifying indicia assigned to said active player.

3. The interactive gaming table of claim 1, wherein said at least one access interface comprises a plurality of access interfaces in communication with said master gaming table controller and adapted to facilitate communications with one or more auxiliary devices located at or near said interactive gaming table.

4. The interactive gaming table of claim 3, wherein said master gaming table controller is adapted to administer automated backbetting on table games at said interactive gaming table via said plurality of access interfaces, wherein said backbetting is facilitated through backbettor use of said one or more auxiliary devices located at or near said interactive gaming table.

15. The interactive gaming table of claim 1, further including:

a player tracking reader at each of said plurality of active player positions distributed about said outer circumference, said player tracking reader being adapted to read one or more identifying indicia assigned to an active player.

16. The interactive gaming table of claim 15, wherein said one or more identifying indicia assigned to said active player comprises a player tracking card.

5. An interactive gaming table adapted for hosting table gaming events involving accepting wagers, playing table games based on the wagers and granting monetary awards based on the results of the table games, comprising:

an outer circumference adapted for the presence of one or more active players at said interactive gaming table, said outer circumference having a plurality of active player positions distributed thereabout;

a first surface adapted for the play of one or more wager-based table games;

one or more gaming table tracking devices adapted to facilitate the tracking of one or more gaming events or transactions associated with said one or more active players at said interactive gaming table; and

at least one annunciator disposed thereupon and adapted to indicate one or more status items regarding main table game activities, the presence or absence of players, or both, at said interactive gaming table.

6. The interactive gaming table of claim 5, wherein said at least one annunciator comprises a specialized gaming table bolster distributed about said outer circumference, said specialized gaming table bolster including a plurality of bolster display devices adapted to indicate said one or more status items.

7. The interactive gaming table of claim 6, wherein said plurality of bolster display devices includes at least one bolster light at each of said plurality of active player positions distributed about said outer circumference.

8. The interactive gaming table of claim 7, wherein said at least one bolster light at one or more of said plurality of active player positions comprises a light that covers substantially all of the bolster surface area for its respective active player position.

9. The interactive gaming table of claim 6, wherein said at least one bolster light at one or more of said plurality of active player positions is adapted to indicate whether its respective active player position is occupied by an active player or is open and available for a new player.

10. The interactive gaming table of claim 6, wherein said at least one bolster light at one or more of said plurality of active player positions is adapted to indicate whether it is the turn of an active player at its respective active player position.

11. The interactive gaming table of claim 6, wherein said at least one bolster light at one or more of said plurality of active player positions is adapted to indicate whether a winning game outcome has occurred for an active player at its respective active player position.

12. The interactive gaming table of claim 6, wherein said at least one bolster light at one or more of said plurality of active player positions is adapted to light up in a plurality of different colors, different patterns, or both, to indicate two or more different gaming table statuses selected from the group consisting of:

whether its respective active player position is occupied by an active player or is open and available for a new player, whether it is the turn of an active player at its respective active player position, and whether a winning game outcome has occurred for an active player at its respective active player position.

13. The interactive gaming table of claim 5, wherein said plurality of bolster display devices includes a touchscreen at each of said plurality of active player positions distributed about said outer circumference.

14. The interactive gaming table of claim 5, further including:

at least one microphone and at least one sound output device at each of said plurality of active player positions distributed about said outer circumference.

17. The interactive gaming table of claim 5, further including:

one or more open plug in jacks at one or more of said plurality of active player positions distributed about said outer circumference, wherein said one or more open plug in jacks are adapted to permit an active player to plug in a personal electronic device and accept downloaded content from said interactive gaming table to said personal electronic device.

18. The interactive gaming table of claim 17, wherein said downloaded content comprises additional game related visual display items, sound display items, or both, for presentation on said personal electronic device.

19. The interactive gaming table of claim 17, wherein said downloaded content comprises advertising or promotional content for presentation on said personal electronic device.

20. An interactive table gaming system, comprising:

a plurality of interactive gaming tables adapted for hosting table gaming events involving accepting wagers, playing table games based on the wagers and granting monetary awards based on the results of the table games, wherein each of said plurality of interactive gaming tables includes

a first surface adapted for the play of one or more wager-based table games,

an outer circumference adapted for the presence of one or more active players at said interactive gaming table, said outer circumference having a plurality of active player positions distributed thereabout,

a master gaming table controller adapted to control a plurality of interactive gaming table functions and to communicate with one or more networked devices located away from its respective interactive gaming table,

at least one access interface in communication with said master gaming table controller and adapted for communications with said one or more networked devices, and

one or more gaming table tracking devices in communication with said master gaming table controller and adapted to facilitate the tracking of one or more gaming events or transactions at its interactive gaming table; and

an interactive gaming table host server located remotely from at least one of said plurality of interactive gaming tables and in direct or indirect communication with each of said plurality of interactive gaming tables, said host server being adapted to synchronize coordinated gaming activities between at least two of said plurality of interactive gaming tables.

21. The interactive table gaming system of claim 20, wherein each of said plurality of interactive gaming tables further includes:

a specialized gaming table bolster distributed about said outer circumference, said specialized gaming table bolster including a plurality of bolster display devices adapted to indicate one or more status items regarding table game activities, the presence or absence of players, or both, at said interactive gaming table.

22. The interactive gaming table system of claim 20, wherein each of said plurality of active player positions further includes:

a touchscreen adapted to display visual information to an active player at said active player position;

a sound output device adapted to display sound information to said active player;

a microphone in communication with said respective slave controller device and adapted to display sound information to said active player; and

a player tracking reader adapted to read one or more identifying indicia assigned to said active player.

23. The interactive gaming table system of claim 20, wherein said at least one access interface comprises a plurality of access interfaces in communication with said master gaming table controller, and further including:

a plurality of auxiliary devices adapted to accept player input regarding one or more gaming activities at one or more of said plurality of interactive gaming tables, wherein said plurality of access interfaces at said plurality of interactive gaming tables are adapted to facilitate communications with one or more of said plurality of auxiliary devices when said one or more auxiliary devices are located at or near a respective interactive gaming table.

24. The interactive gaming table system of claim 23, wherein at least one of said plurality of auxiliary devices is adapted to administer automated backbetting on table games at said interactive gaming table via at least one of said plurality of access interfaces, wherein said backbetting is facilitated through backbettor use of said at least one of said one or more auxiliary devices located at or near said interactive gaming table.

25. The interactive gaming table system of claim 23, wherein said plurality of access interfaces comprise a plurality of wireless access interfaces, and wherein said plurality of auxiliary devices include at least one handheld wireless device.

26. A method of providing a networked gaming event at an interactive gaming table adapted for hosting table gaming events involving accepting wagers, playing table games based on the wagers and granting monetary awards based on the results of the table games, comprising:

providing a first interactive gaming table adapted for hosting table gaming events involving wagers, the play of table games based on the wagers and monetary awards based on the results of the table games, said first interactive gaming table including a first surface adapted for the play of one or more wager-based table games, an outer circumference adapted for the presence of one or more active players, said outer circumference having a plurality of active player positions distributed thereabout, a master gaming table controller adapted to control a plurality of interactive gaming table functions and to communicate with one or more networked devices located away from said first interactive gaming table, and at least one access interface in communication with said master gaming table controller and adapted for communications with said one or more networked devices;

establishing a first communication connection between said at least one access interface and a first networked device;

sending instructions to said master gaming table controller from said first networked device via said communication connection;

presenting a gaming event at said interactive gaming table based at least in part on said sent instructions;

awarding a prize or monetary payout to an active player at said interactive gaming table based on said gaming event;

collecting automatically game event information from the play of table games at said interactive gaming table; and

establishing a second communication connection between said at least one access interface and a second networked device;

forwarding said game event information to said second networked device.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein said at least one access interface comprises one or more wireless interfaces and wherein at least one of said first communication connection and said second communication connection is a wireless connection.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein said first networked device comprises an interactive gaming table host server located remotely from said first interactive gaming table.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein said sent instructions include instructions for changing a display atop said first surface from a first gaming formatted layout to a second different formatted gaming layout, and further including the step of:

changing said display atop said first surface from said first gaming formatted layout to said second different formatted gaming layout, such that a different table game can be played at said interactive gaming table.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein said first networked device comprises a second interactive gaming table adapted for hosting table gaming events involving wagers, the play of table games based on the wagers and monetary awards based on the results of the table games, said second interactive gaming table also including a surface adapted for the play of one or more wager-based table games, an outer circumference adapted for the presence of one or more active players, a master gaming table controller adapted to control a plurality of interactive gaming table functions and to communicate with one or more networked devices located away from said second interactive gaming table, and at least one access interface in communication with said master gaming table controller and adapted for communications with said one or more networked devices.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein a plurality of additional interactive gaming tables are adapted to communicate with said first gaming table.

32. The method of claim 30, further including the step of:

sending said instructions from an interactive gaming table host server located remotely from said first and second interactive gaming tables to said second interactive gaming table,

wherein said step of sending instructions to said master gaming table controller from said first networked device involves said second interactive gaming table relaying said instructions from said gaming table host server to said first interactive gaming table.

33. The method of claim 26, wherein said first networked device comprises a player controlled auxiliary device adapted to accept and forward player input regarding one or more gaming activities at said first interactive gaming table.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein said sent instructions comprise instructions regarding a backbet of a player using said player controlled auxiliary device.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein said player controlled auxiliary device comprises a wireless device.