Video lottery system with improved site controller and validation unit

• US 5,505,449 A
• Filed: 01/27/1995
• Issued: 04/09/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 12/21/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: Video Lottery Technologies, Inc. (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Robertus, Bryan L., Eberhardt, Lyle N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Grieb, William H.
• Application Number:
  US08/379,853
• Time in Patent Office: 438 Days
• Field of Search: 273/138 R, 273/138 A, 273/139
• US Class Current: 463/29
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/71 using secure communication between game devices and game servers, e.g. by encrypting game data or authenticating players
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/79 involving player-related data, e.g. identities, accounts, preferences or play histories
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/208 for storing personal settings or data of the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/401 Secure communication, e.g. using encryption or authentication
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/532 using secure communication, e.g. by encryption, authentication
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5546 using player registration data, e.g. identification, account, preferences, game history
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/329 Regular and instant lottery, e.g. electronic scratch cards

Abstract

A video lottery system for playing electronic games on multiple video lottery terminals. The system includes a central computer at a central site and at least one gaming site remotely located from the central computer. The gaming site includes a plurality of video lottery terminals which play games and generate cash tickets representing an amount won during game play. The terminals are organized into groups, each of which is managed by a site controller connected thereto. The site controllers communicate with one another via a site management ring. A unique communications protocol used on the management ring allows multiple types of logical devices (also called ring devices) to communicate with one another along the ring. Each site controller authorizes terminals within a corresponding group of terminals to generate cash tickets and is capable of validating every cash ticket generated within the video lottery system. The site controllers emulate several logical devices including a cash ticket validation console, a terminal polling device and a ring issuing device. The site controllers and terminals communicate via encrypted messages for security purposes. This encryption system uses multiple encryption and decryption keys at each terminal and site controller. The site controllers perform triple redundancy information storage to ensure the integrity of the ticketing information therein.

Claims

1. A site controller for managing and controlling terminals playing electronic games at a gaming site, said terminals generating a cash ticket, representing an amount won during said games, said site controller comprising:

a CPU for controlling the terminals while playing games,

terminal input means for receiving communications packets from said terminals, said packets including a cash ticket request from a first terminal seeking authorization to generate a cash ticket,

authorization means for generating an authorization code directing said first terminal to generate a cash ticket, and

terminal output means for transmitting a communications packet to said first terminal containing said authorization code, said packet including a cash ticket response to said first terminal, said first terminal generating a cash ticket responsive to said authorization code.

2. A site controller according to claim 1, further comprising a security plate, fixedly mounted at a gaming site and including at least one guide hole therein which slidably receives a corresponding number of mounting heads, said mounting heads being mounted upon a backside of said site controller, said security plate further including a slot along one end thereof which lockingly receives a lock member mounted upon said site controller, said locking member and said mounting head fixedly mounting said site controller at said gaming site.

3. A site controller, according to claim 1, wherein said communications packets include one of a plurality of data formats, said authorization code including a random number.

4. A site controller, according to claim 1, wherein said communications packets contains a validation segment for storing said authorization code transmitted from the site controller to a terminal, said validation segment including a date/time stamp, a validation seed generated by the site controller and a validation code generated by the site controller based upon said validation seed, said validation code and seed being used to validate said packets.

5. A site controller, according to claim 1, wherein said site controller includes means for continuously polling said terminals to solicit a data response to said poll from each terminal.

6. A site controller, according to claim 1, further comprising means for generating and transmitting a data read request command to request a specific type of data from a uniquely identified terminal, and

means for receiving a data read reply from said requested terminal during a subsequent data transmission cycle.

7. A site controller, according to claim 1, further comprising:

means for generating a site information request command which is sent to a desired terminal to request a specific data type from said terminal; and

means for receiving a site information reply packet from said terminal containing desired data about said terminal.

8. A site controller, according to claim 6, further comprising means for transmitting a packet indicating that a transaction is currently being processed by the site controller.

9. A site controller, according to claim 6, wherein said transaction request and transaction reply packets contain a transaction number assigned by said terminal to confirm a transaction reply packet received from said site controller.

10. A site controller, according to claim 1, further comprising:

means for producing data and validation segments which are included within predefined communications packets, and

means for encrypting said data and validation segments prior to transmission to a terminal.

11. A site controller, according to claim 1, further comprising:

means for encrypting and decrypting said communications packets based upon encryption keys, and

means for transmitting new encryption keys to said terminals to update encryption and decryption schemes to be used by said terminals.

12. A site controller, according to claim 1, wherein said communications packets include multiple segments, and wherein said site controller includes means for encrypting and decrypting each of said segments based upon a unique key associated with said segment.

13. A site controller, according to claim 1, wherein said communications packets include encrypted data and validation segments, said encrypted data and validation segments being encrypted and decrypted based upon a data segment key and a validation segment key, respectively.

14. A site controller, according to claim 1, further comprising:

means for encrypting and decrypting said communications packets based upon encryption keys, and

means for switching encryption keys to be used.

15. A gaming system for playing electronic games on multiple gaming terminals, said system comprising:

a plurality of video gaming terminals for playing electronic games, said terminals being separated into at least two groups, each group including at least one terminal;

at least one site controller for controlling and managing said terminals,

at least two communications buses for connecting said terminals within one group to one another, and

at least one bus expander connecting said communications buses to one another and to said at least one site controller.

16. A gaming system according to claim 15, further comprising, wherein said communications bus includes transmit and receive data transmission lines, said site controller driving said receive lines, said terminals driving continuously monitoring said receive lines and maintaining said transmit lines in a tri-state except when transmitting data along said transmit lines to said site controller to allow other terminals to communicate with said site controller.

17. A gaming system according to claim 15, wherein said bus expander includes optical and power isolation components to provide optical and power isolation between said communications buses and said site controller to limit an antennae effect created by any single communications bus.

18. A gaming system according to claim 15, wherein said bus expander further comprises drivers and receivers to transmit data upon, and to receive data from, transmit and receive data lines, respectively, in said communications buses.

19. A gaming system according to claim 15, wherein said communications bus transmits a request to send signal from one of a terminal and a site controller requesting to transmit data, and wherein bus expander further comprises at least two primary ports and at least one auxiliary port for interconnecting said communications buses and said site controller, said primary and secondary ports including corresponding pairs of drivers and receivers to transmit and accept data, each driver transmitting data accepted by a corresponding receiver when a corresponding request to send signal is received by said bus expander.

20. A video gaming system according to claim 15, wherein said communications buses and said site controller include transmit and receive lines to pass data therebetween and a request to send data line to control a direction of communication through said bus expander.

21. A video gaming terminal for playing electronic games at a gaming site, said terminal communicating with a remote system through a communications link by transmitting and receiving communications packets to and from said remote system, said terminal comprising:

a CPU for controlling a play of a game;

means for transmitting and receiving communications packets along said communications link, said packets containing a packet validation segment; and

means for determining a validity of said packet based upon a content of said packet validation segment, said CPU controlling said play of said game based upon a received packet when said received packet is determined to be valid.

22. A video gaming terminal according to claim 21, further comprising means for calculating a predicted validation code from a packet validation seed within said validation segment;

said determining means comparing said predicted validation code with a packet validation code within said validation segment to determine whether said received packet is valid.

23. A video gaming terminal according to claim 21, wherein said validation segment contains a validation code and validation seed and, wherein said determining means determines whether said packet validation code corresponds to said packet validation seed based upon a predefined calculation sequence followed by said remote system to generate said packet validation code and seed included within the received packet.

24. A video gaming terminal according to claim 21, wherein a received communications packet is encrypted based upon at least one encryption key, and wherein said terminal further comprises:

means for decrypting an encrypted communications packet prior to determining a validity thereof.

25. A video gaming terminal according to claim 24, further comprising:

means for storing multiple encryption keys,

said decryption means attempting to decrypt the received packet with each stored encryption key prior to determining that a received packet is invalid.

26. video A gaming terminal according to claim 21, wherein said received packet is encrypted based upon one of a plurality of encryption keys and wherein said terminal further comprises:

means for attempting to decrypt the received packet based upon each encryption key before determining that said received packet is invalid.

27. A video gaming terminal according to claim 25, wherein said decryption means switches from current to next encryption keys when attempting to decrypt said packet after said determining means determines that said packet is invalid when encrypted with said current encryption keys.