OPTICAL MACHINE-READABLE DATA REPRESENTATION IMAGE

• US 20110207531A1
• Filed: 11/11/2009
• Published: 08/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/12/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: WMS Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Gagner, Mark B., Loose, Timothy C., Shi, Victor T., Gura, Damon E., Thomas, Alfred, Rasmussen, James M.
• Granted Patent: US 8,419,548 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/30
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3225 Data transfer within a gaming system, e.g. data sent between gaming machines and users
• 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 17/3248 involving non-monetary media of fixed value, e.g. casino chips of fixed value
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3255 Incentive, loyalty and/or promotion schemes, e.g. comps, gaming associated with a purchase, gaming funded by advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02

Abstract

Club cards and tickets can be eliminated by providing an application that allows a player'"'"'s mobile phone to process an image of an optical machine-readable representation of data. At the end of a wagering session on a WGM, the WGM can display a barcode representing a player'"'"'s winnings, an achievement, game status, etc. The player takes a picture of the barcode with his or her mobile phone. The application on the phone processes the barcode image and automatically updates an account of the player in accordance with the data represented or carried by the barcode. For instance, the mobile phone sends a request to a wagering account server to electronically deposit the winnings, as represented by the barcode, in a wagering account associated with the player'"'"'s club profile.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a personal mobile device determining that a captured image depicts an optical machine-readable data representation, responsive to the personal mobile device capturing the image of the optical machine-readable data representation displayed by a wagering game machine at the conclusion of a gaming session;

determining that the optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that corresponds to a wagering game;

generating a request message with an identifier associated with an account of a player and the data that corresponds to the wagering game;

transmitting the request message to an account server to cause the account server to update the account of the player in accordance with the data that corresponds to the wagering game; and

displaying a representation that indicates update of the account responsive to one of receiving a confirmation message that the account of the player has been updated or capturing a second optical machine-readable data representation displayed by the wagering game machine.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the optical machine-readable data representation comprises at least one of a barcode, matrix code, graphical image, and text image.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that indicates at least one of a winnings at a wagering game machine, winnings at a wagering game machine and an identifier of the wagering game machine, an achievement granted to the player, current game progress by the player in a multi-stage game, a casino loyalty program account, and a non-wagering award granted to the player.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said generating the request message with the identifier associated with an account of the player comprises generating the request message with a phone number of the player, wherein the personal mobile device comprises a mobile phone.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said generating the request message further comprises generating the request message with a security credential for the account, wherein the security credential comprises at least one of a username and password combination, a password, a certificate, and biometric data.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the representation that indicates the update of the account comprises at least one of an account status, an account balance, and a confirmation number.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said determining that the optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that corresponds to the wagering game comprises decoding the barcode into at least one of a string of alpha-numeric characters and binary data.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the request message comprises one of an electronic mail message and a short message service message.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying the representation that indicates update of the account responsive to receiving the confirmation message that the account of the player has been updated comprises:

if the personal mobile device receives a confirmation message, then the personal mobile device,

determining that the confirmation message comprises a third machine-readable data representation;

decoding the third machine-readable data representation to determine a web page address; and

launching a browser on and navigating to the web page address;

if the second optical machine-readable data representation is captured, then the personal mobile device,

decoding the web page address from the barcode; and

launching the browser and navigating to the web page address.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining that a second optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that corresponds to diagnostic data about a malfunction of the wagering game machine responsive to capturing an image of the second optical machine-readable data representation;

transmitting a maintenance request message to a maintenance server to cause the maintenance server to return troubleshooting information based on the diagnostic data;

receiving the troubleshooting information; and

displaying the troubleshooting information.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the diagnostic data comprises at least one of an error code, a wagering game machine identifier, a status of the wagering game machine, and a network location.

13. The method of claim 10 further comprising the maintenance server determining that a software patch is available and appropriate for the wagering game machine based, at least in part, on the diagnostic data.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprises the maintenance server automatically sending the software patch to the wagering game machine.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein said displaying the troubleshooting information comprises at least one of launching a browser to navigate to a webpage, opening a text document and displaying a photo.

11. (canceled)

16. A method comprising:

a wagering game account server receiving a first message comprising an image of an optical machine-readable data representation from a personal mobile device;

determining that the optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that corresponds to a wagering game machine;

updating an account of a player in accordance with the data that corresponds to the wagering game machine, wherein the first message comprises data for accessing the account of the player; and

transmitting a second message that confirms update of the account.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the data that corresponds to the wagering game machine comprises one of winnings at a wagering game machine and an identifier of the wagering game machine, an achievement granted to the player, current game progress by the player in a multi-stage game, and a non-wagering award granted to the player.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the first message comprises one of an e-mail message, a short message service message, and a protocol message.

19. The method of claim 16 further comprising validating the data that corresponds to the wagering game.

20. The method of claim 16 further comprising determining that a second optical machine-readable data representation encodes the data for accessing the account for the player, wherein the first message comprises the second optical machine-readable data representation.

21. One or more machine-readable storage media having instructions stored therein, which, when executed by a set of one or more processors, causes the set of one or more processors to perform operations that comprise:

determine that a captured image depicts an optical machine-readable data representation, responsive to capturing the image of the optical machine-readable data representation displayed by a wagering game machine at the conclusion of a gaming session;

determine that the optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that corresponds to a wagering game;

generate a request message with an identifier associated with an account of a player and the data that corresponds to the wagering game;

transmit the request message to an account server to cause the account server to update the account of the player in accordance with the data that corresponds to the wagering game; and

display a representation that indicates update of the account responsive to one of receiving a confirmation message that the account of the player has been updated or capturing a second optical machine-readable data representation displayed by the wagering game machine.

22. The machine-readable media of claim 21, wherein the optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that indicates at least one of a winnings at a wagering game machine, winnings at a wagering game machine and an identifier of the wagering game machine, an achievement granted to the player, current game progress by the player in a multi-stage game, a casino loyalty program account, and a non-wagering award granted to the player.

23. (canceled)

24. (canceled)

25. (canceled)

26. A personal mobile device comprising:

a set of one or more processors;

a network interface;

a camera operable to capture an image of an optical machine-readable data representation; and

an optical machine-readable data representation recognition unit operable to,

determine that an image captured by the camera depicts an optical machine-readable data representation;

determine that the optical machine-readable data representation encodes data that corresponds to a wagering game;

generate a request message with an identifier associated with an account of a player and the data that corresponds to the wagering game;

transmit the request message to an account server to cause the account server to update the account of the player in accordance with the data that corresponds to the wagering game; and

display a representation that indicates update of the account responsive to one of receiving a confirmation message, via the network interface, that the account of the player has been updated or the camera capturing a second optical machine-readable data representation displayed by the wagering game machine.

27. The personal mobile device of claim 26, wherein the optical machine-readable data representation recognition unit comprises machine-readable storage media.

28. The personal mobile device of claim 26, wherein the optical machine-readable data representation recognition unit is further operable to,

determine that a second captured image depicts a second optical machine-readable data representation;

determine that the second optical machine-readable data representation encodes an identifier of a loyalty program account of the player; and

transmit the identifier to a server that manages an online account of the player.

29. The personal mobile device of claim 28, wherein the online account of the player comprises one of a portal and a digital wallet.

30. A wagering game machine comprising:

a set of one or more processors;

a network interface; and

an optical machine-readable data representation recognition unit operable to,

determine that an optical machine-readable data representation encodes first data that indicates a multi-stage wagering game and second data that indicates progress in the multi-stage a wagering game responsive to capturing an image of the optical machine-readable data representation displayed from a personal mobile phone;

launch the multi-stage wagering game based on the first data for a wagering game session; and

resume the multi-stage wagering game at a stage in accordance with the progress indicated by the second data.

31. The wagering game machine of claim 30, wherein the optical machine-readable data representation recognition unit is further operable to:

determine that a second optical machine-readable data representation encodes third data that indicates a player account and a set of one or more security credentials to access the player account responsive to capturing an image of the second optical machine-readable data representation displayed from the personal mobile phone; and

link the wagering game session with the player account based on the third data.