Cashless computerized video game system and method

• US 5,800,269 A
• Filed: 04/25/1997
• Issued: 09/01/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 02/21/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Light & Wonder Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Oneida Indian Nation
• Inventors: Riolo, Frank J., Holch, Niels C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Harrison, Jessica
• Application Number:
  US08/840,695
• Time in Patent Office: 494 Days
• Field of Search: 463/28, 463/19, 463/22, 463/42, 463/25, 463/10, 463/16, 463/17
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/50 characterized by details of game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/081 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3237 about the players, e.g. profiling, responsible gaming, strategy/behavior of players, location of players
• 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 coinless video game system includes a plurality of electronic video game terminals, a game server corresponding to each player terminal, and a central control network for administering and controlling games and player accounts. A player initially establishes a player account in the central control network and receives a player I.D. card bearing the player'"'"'s account number and other relevant information. Players use these I.D. cards to-establish sessions at a player terminal. The server provides a random number to each player terminal at predefined intervals to determine wins and loses for each game selected by a player. Waged amounts are then debited or credited to a player'"'"'s account in the central control network. Players may redeem any account balance from a cashier associated with the central control network.

Claims

1. A system for operating several games for a plurality of players, comprising:

a plurality of player terminals coupled together, each terminal including

means for receiving player identification information from a participating one of the players,

means for receiving game selection information from the participating player indicating one of the plurality of games,

a video display for displaying a selected one of the games to the participating player,

means for receiving game input from the participating player, and

means for executing software application programs corresponding to a plurality of games of chance in response to the game input and a game-independent control input to determine the result of the games independent of player participation at other ones of the player terminals;

a game server, connected to the plurality of player terminals, and including

means for controlling the player terminals'"'"' execution of the games by generating the game-independent control input; and

a central controller, connected to each of the plurality of player terminals, and including

means for storing player account information for each of the players, and

means for adjusting the account information of the players according to the result of the games from the selected player terminal.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the adjusting means includes

means for crediting a player'"'"'s account when the player wins the selected game of chance, and

means for debiting the player'"'"'s account when the player loses the selected game of chance.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the controlling means in the game server includes a random number generator.

4. A method of operating games in a system comprising the steps of:

establishing a player account file at a central controller for a participating player;

receiving, at a player terminal coupled to the central controller, player identification information input by the participating player;

displaying, on a video display of the player terminal, a plurality of games of chance;

receiving, at the player terminal, information for a selected one of the plurality of games;

controlling the execution of the selected game by a game server coupled to the player terminals by generating a game-independent control input;

executing software application programs corresponding to the selected game by the player terminal in response to the game input and the game-independent control input to determine the result of the selected game independent of player participation at other ones of the player terminals; and

updating, by the central controller, the participating player'"'"'s account file according to the result of the games from the player terminal.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the step of updating the player'"'"'s account includes the steps of

crediting the player'"'"'s account file when the player wins the selected game of chance, and

debiting the player'"'"'s account file when the player loses the selected game of chance.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the controlling step includes the step of

generating a random number.

7. A system for operating several games for a plurality of players, comprising:

a plurality of groups of player terminals, each group of player terminals including a plurality of player terminals coupled together, each terminal including

means for receiving player identification information from a participating one of the players,

means for receiving game selection information from the participating player indicating one of the plurality of games,

a video display for displaying a selected one of the games to the participating player,

means for receiving game inputs from the participating player, and

means for executing software application programs corresponding to a plurality of games of chance in response to the game input and a game-independent control input to determine the result of the games independent of player participation at other ones of the player terminals;

a plurality of game servers, each game server connected to the player terminals in a different one of the groups of player terminals, and including

means for controlling the player terminals'"'"' execution of the games by generating the game-independent control input; and

a central controller, connected to each of the plurality of player terminals, and including

means for storing player account information for each of the players, and

means for adjusting the account information of the players according to the result of the games from the selected player terminal.

8. A player terminal for a video game system comprising:

means for executing a plurality of video games of chance;

means for receiving player identification information from a participating player;

means for receiving game selection information from the participating player indicating one of the plurality of games;

a video display for displaying a selected one of the games to the participating player;

means for receiving game input from the participating player;

means for receiving from a game server a game-independent control input;

means for using the game input and the game-independent control input to determine the result of the games independent of player participation at other ones of the player terminal; and

means for transmitting to a central controller the game result.