System for creating menu choices of video games on a display

• US 5,575,717 A
• Filed: 08/18/1995
• Issued: 11/19/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Megatouch LLC
• Original Assignee: Merit Industries Incorporated (AMI Entertainment Network, LLC)
• Inventors: Houriet, John W. Jr., Hassan, Kevin A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrison, Jessica
• Assistant Examiner(s): SCHAAF, JAMES CHARLES
• Application Number:
  US08/516,809
• Time in Patent Office: 459 Days
• Field of Search: 273/434, 273/138 A, 273/85 CP, 273/148 B, 364/410, 364/412, 463/1, 463/23, 463/29, 463/31, 463/36, 463/37
• US Class Current: 463/1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/10 Control of the course of the game, e.g. start, progess, end
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/2145 the surface being also a display device, e.g. touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/45 Controlling the progress of the video game
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/48 Starting a game, e.g. activating a game device or waiting for other players to join a multiplayer session
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/63 by the player, e.g. authoring using a level editor
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3262 Player actions which determine the course of the game, e.g. selecting a prize to be won, outcome to be achieved, game to be played

Abstract

A system for allowing a game operator to individually tailor parameters of a video game machine provides a plurality of user interactive video screen displays for selecting the parameters. The parameters include the selection of menu choices of video games from a library of video games which are available for play on the machine.

Claims

1. An apparatus for providing menu choices of video games on a display, the apparatus comprising:

(a) a mode selector for setting the apparatus in one of either a programming mode for selecting video game menu options or a menu choice selection mode for selecting video game menu choices for game activation;

(b) a video display for displaying and selecting the video game menu options and video game menu choices, the video game menu options being available for selection as video game menu choices; and

(c) a display controller for simultaneously displaying video game menu options and video game menu choices on the video display when the mode selector is in the programming mode, and for displaying video game menu choices when the mode selector is in the menu choice selection mode.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the video display includes a first region for displaying the video game menu options and a second region for displaying the video game menu choices.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the display controller removes a video game menu option from the first region of the video display after the video game menu option is selected as a video game menu choice.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the display controller displays the video game menu options only during the programming mode.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1 further comprising:

means for activating the video game menu choices only when the mode selector is in the menu choice selection mode.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein each video game menu choice includes a cost for selecting the choice, the apparatus further comprising:

(d) means for selecting and displaying the cost while the display controller is in the programming mode.

7. An apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the video display is a touch screen.

8. An apparatus for programming video game menu choices on a display from a group of video game menu options, the apparatus comprising:

(a) a video screen having

(i) a first region for displaying video game menu choices;

(ii) a second region for displaying video game menu options, the video game menu choices and video game menu options being simultaneously displayed; and

(b) a display controller for causing video game menu options selected from the second region to be displayed in the first region as a video game menu choice.

9. An apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the video screen is a touch display, each video game menu choice being associated with a predefined location of the touch display.

10. An apparatus according to claim 9 wherein there is a fixed number of locations of video game menu choices and the locations are visible on the video display, the display controller removing locations for which no video game menu choice is selected.

11. An apparatus according to claim 8 wherein the display controller removes a video game menu option from the first region of the video screen after the video game menu option is selected as a video game menu choice.

12. An apparatus according to claim 8 further comprising:

(c) a mode selector for setting the apparatus in one of either a programming mode for selecting video game menu options or a menu choice selection mode for selecting video game menu choices for game activation; and

(d) means for activating the video game menu choices only when the mode selector is in the menu choice selection mode.

13. A method for providing video game menu choices on a video display from a group of video game menu options, the video display including a programming mode for selecting video game menu options, a menu choice selection mode for selecting video game menu choices for game activation, and a menu choice selection display, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) setting the apparatus to the programming mode;

(b) displaying the video game menu options on the video display;

(c) selecting a video game menu option from the video display;

(d) placing the video game menu option in the menu choice selection display;

(e) repeating steps (c) and (d) until a desired number of video game menu options are selected; and

(f) exiting the programming mode and entering the menu choice selection mode wherein one of the video game menu choices may be selected for activation from the video game menu choice selection display.

14. A method according to claim 13 wherein the video display is a touch screen and the video display includes a fixed number of locations for video game menu choices which are visible on the video display, the step of selecting video game menu options being performed by touching a location for a video game menu choice and then touching a video game menu option on the display screen.

15. A method according to claim 14 further comprising the step of:

(h) removing unselected video game menu choice locations from the video display when the programming mode is exited.

16. A method according to claim 13 wherein each video game menu choice includes an activation cost, the method further comprising the steps of:

(g) selecting the activation cost after each video game menu option is placed in the video game menu choice selection display.

17. A method according to claim 16 wherein the activation cost is selected by stepping through incremental values until a desired value is reached.

18. A method according to claim 13 further comprising the step of:

(g) removing the video game menu options from the video display when the programming mode is exited.

19. A method according to claim 13 further comprising the step of:

(g) removing a video game menu option from the video display after each video game menu option is selected in step (c).

20. A method according to claim 13 wherein the video display is a touch screen and the step of selecting video game menu options is performed by touching the video game menu options on the display screen.

21. A method according to claim 13 wherein the video display includes a fixed number of locations for the video game menu choices, the method further comprising the step of:

(g) selecting a location for each video game menu choice prior to selecting a video game menu option for placement in the location.