ANONYMOUS PLAYER TRACKING

• US 20090118002A1
• Filed: 11/05/2008
• Published: 05/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Martin S. Lyons, Robert Linley Muir
• Original Assignee: Martin S. Lyons, Robert Linley Muir
• Inventors: Lyons, Martin S., Muir, Robert Linley
• Granted Patent: US 9,646,312 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/29
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0255 based on user history
• 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 17/3239 Tracking of individual players

Abstract

An enhanced method of Casino and hotel probable customer and customer demographic identification, game selection, advertising and customer service based on the identification.

Claims

1. A method of tracking and/or identifying persons within a casino using a tracking system, comprising:

sensing a biometric characteristic of one of the persons using the tracking system;

sensing one or more electronic devices, using the tracking system, within the vicinity of the one of the persons; and

,

correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices and identifying the tracked person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic and the sensed electronic devices.

2. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the step of sensing a biometric characteristic of one of the persons includes the steps of:

sensing at least one of a facial characteristic or a voice characteristic of the one of the persons; and

,

analyzing the at least one of a facial characteristic or a voice characteristic of the one of the persons and identifying a potential sub-group of the persons to which the one of the persons belongs.

3. A method, as set forth in claim 2, wherein the step of correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices includes the step of excluding persons from the sub-group as a function of the sensed electronic devices.

4. A method, as set forth in claim 3, wherein the step of excluding persons from the sub-group includes the step detecting a location of other electronic devices in other locations within the casino and excluding an associated person with each of the other electronic devices from the sub-group.

5. A method, as set forth in claim 3, wherein the step of excluding persons from the sub-group includes the step of using check-in/check-out data from a hotel reservation system to exclude persons from the sub-group.

6. A method, as set forth in claim 3, wherein the tracking system allows persons playing gaming machines to log-in and log-out to the gaming machines issuing a player tracking card and wherein the step of excluding persons from the sub-group includes the step excluding persons who are logged onto gaming machines in other locations within the casino.

7. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the electronic devices may include one or more of a cell phone, a personal digital assistant, and a RFID device.

8. A method, as set forth in claim 1, including the steps of:

establishing a particular person'"'"'s identity through another process; and

,

sensing one or more electronic devices near the particular person during the another process and associating the one or more electronic devices with the particular person.

9. A method, as set forth in claim 8, wherein the another process is a check-in process of the particular person at a hotel associated with the casino.

10. A method, as set forth in claim 9, wherein the another process is the user, by the particular person, of a credit card.

11. A method, as set forth in claim 8, where the step of associating one or more electronic devices with a particular person includes the step of tracking the movement of the one or more sensed electronic devices as the particular person moves away from a location associated with the another process and associating the one or more sensed electronic devices with the particular person, if the one or more electronic devices cannot be associated with the particular person at the location.

12. A method, as set forth in claim 9, including the step of assigning the particular person to a room in the hotel away from other persons checking in at the same time.

13. A method, as set forth in claim 10, wherein the step of assigning the particular person to a room away from other persons includes the step of assigning the particular person a room on a different floor from other persons.

14. A method, as set forth in claim 1, including the step of associating one or more electronic devices with a particular person when the particular person uses a credit card and is identified.

15. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the step of sensing one or more electronic devices within the vicinity of the one of the persons includes the step of tracking the one or more electronic devices.

16. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein one or more electronic devices may include a cell phone, personal digital assistant, and/or RFID tag, and the step of sensing one or more electronic devices within the vicinity of the one of the persons is performed using cell phone location and/or Bluetooth and/or wifi and/or other wireless communications protocol and/or signal strength.

17. A method, as set forth in claim 16, wherein an identity of the one of the persons may be established using cell phone companies records if one of the one or more electronic devices includes a cell phone.

23. A method, as set forth in claim 1, wherein the step of correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices and identifying the tracked person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic and the sensed electronic devices, includes the steps of:

establishing a first biometric probability of a match with a first person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic; and

,

establishing a first electronic device probability of a match with the first person as a function of the sensed electronic devices.

24. A method, as set forth in claim 23, wherein the step of correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices and identifying the tracked person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic and the sensed electronic devices, includes the steps of:

establishing a second biometric probability of a match with a second person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic; and

,

establishing a second electronic device probability of a match with the second person as a function of the sensed electronic devices.

25. A method, as set forth in claim 24, including the steps of:

multiplying the first biometric probability and the first electronic probability together and establishing a first probability;

multiplying the second biometric probability and the second electronic probability together and establishing a second probability; and

comparing the first and second probability and identifying the tracked person as the one of the first and second persons that has the greater associated probability.

18. A method of tracking and/or identifying persons within a casino using a tracking system, comprising:

sensing a biometric characteristic of one of the persons using a tracking system;

analyzing the biometric characteristic of the one of the persons and identifying a potential sub-group of the persons to which the one of the persons belongs.

sensing one or more electronic devices within the vicinity of the one of the persons; and

,

correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices and identifying the tracked person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic and the sensed electronic devices.

19. A method, as set forth in claim 18, wherein the step of sensing a biometric characteristic of one of the persons includes the step of sensing at least one of a facial characteristic or a voice characteristic of the one of the persons.

20. A method, as set forth in claim 18, wherein the step of correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices includes the step of excluding persons from the sub-group as a function of the sensed electronic devices.

21. A method, as set forth in claim 18, wherein the electronic devices may include one or more of a cell phone, a personal digital assistant, and a RFID device.

26. A method, as set forth in claim 18, wherein the step of correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices and identifying the tracked person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic and the sensed electronic devices, includes the steps of:

establishing a first biometric probability of a match with a first person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic; and

,

establishing a first electronic device probability of a match with the first person as a function of the sensed electronic devices.

27. A method, as set forth in claim 26, wherein the step of correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices and identifying the tracked person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic and the sensed electronic devices, includes the steps of:

establishing a second biometric probability of a match with a second person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic; and

,

establishing a second electronic device probability of a match with the second person as a function of the sensed electronic devices.

28. A method, as set forth in claim 27, including the steps of:

multiplying the first biometric probability and the first electronic probability together and establishing a first probability;

multiplying the second biometric probability and the second electronic probability together and establishing a second probability; and

comparing the first and second probability and identifying the tracked person as the one of the first and second persons that has the greater associated probability.

22. A method of tracking and/or identifying persons within a casino using a tracking system, the tracking system for storing information related to the persons including one or more electronic devices which may be carried by each person, comprising:

associating one or more electronic devices with a particular person during a process when the particular person has been identified at an associated location;

tracking the movement of the one or more sensed electronic devices as the particular person moves away from the location and associating the one or more sensed electronic devices with the particular person, if the one or more electronic devices cannot be associated with the particular person at the location;

storing the one or more sensed electronic devices in the tracking system as being associated with the particular person, the tracking system including biometric data and/or related electronic device information for at least some of the persons;

sensing a biometric characteristic of one of the persons using a tracking system;

analyzing the at biometric characteristic of the one of the persons and identifying a potential sub-group of the persons to which the one of the persons belongs;

sensing one or more electronic devices within the vicinity of the one of the persons; and

,

correlating the sensed biometric characteristic of the tracked person and the sensed electronic devices and identifying the tracked person as a function of the sensed biometric characteristic and the sensed electronic devices.