Image display gaming system and gaming house management system

• US 5,984,780 A
• Filed: 06/26/1996
• Issued: 11/16/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/1993
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Ace Denken
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Ace Denken
• Inventors: Takemoto, Takatoshi, Tsurumi, Masayuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Martin-Wallace, Valencia
• Assistant Examiner(s): SAGER, MARK ALAN
• Application Number:
  US08/666,455
• Time in Patent Office: 1,238 Days
• Field of Search: 463/1, 463/25, 463/29, 463/30, 463/31, 463/36, 463/40-43, 364/410, 364/411, 364/412, 273/138.1, 273/138.2, 273/139, 235/380, 235/382, 382/100, 382/115
• US Class Current: 463/20
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/213 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. cameras, photodiodes or infrared cells A63F13/219, A63F13/655 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/63 by the player, e.g. authoring using a level editor
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/655 by importing photos, e.g. of the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/1087 comprising photodetecting means, e.g. a camera
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/6018 where the game content is authored by the player, e.g. level editor or by game device at runtime, e.g. level is created from music data on CD
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/695 Imported photos, e.g. of the player
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 7/022 Pachinko
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/18 Testing for antimicrobial activity of a material
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/04 Dairy products
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/12 Meat; Fish
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/493 urine
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0002 Inspection of images, e.g. flaw detection
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means

Abstract

An image input section 1530 of a storage medium issuing system inputs image information and an image processing unit 420 performs image processing for the image information input through the image input section 1530. The image information processed by the image processing section is stored on a storage medium by an image write section 1500.

When the storage medium on which the image information is stored is inserted into a gaming machine, the image information is read by a read section of the gaming machine. A game execution section of the gaming machine executes a predetermined game in accordance with image information concerning the game stored in a game image storage section. A display control section controls display of the image information read from the storage medium instead of reading a specific symbol among the image information stored in the game image storage section. For example, appearances of a player are input as image information, whereby the input player'"'"'s appearances can be displayed in place of the specific symbol.

Claims

1. An image display gaming apparatus for displaying an image of a plurality of symbols and for a player to play a slot machine type game when said plurality of symbols match a predetermined symbol combination, comprising:

an insertion section through which a storage medium, on which image information is stored, is inserted;

a read section for reading the image information from said storage medium inserted through said insertion section;

a game execution section for executing said slot machine type game;

a display section having a display screen for displaying an image;

a display control section for a control for displaying at least a game image information concerning games, including said symbols;

detection means for detecting that a plurality of images match the predetermined combination during a game execution by said game execution section; and

a game image information storage for storing the game image information including at least image information of a group of symbols that are used in executing the slot machine type game, wherein

said display control section controls to sequentially read image information of any one of the symbols from said image information of a group of symbols stored in said image information storage and to display the image information on said display screen of said display section during the game execution, and when it is detected by said detection means that said plurality of symbols match said predetermined combination, the image information read out from said storage medium by said read section is displayed on said display section, instead of the symbols that match the predetermined combination.

2. The image display gaming apparatus as in claim 1 wherein said display control section displays a plurality of betting lines on the display screen of said display section for indicating positions on which a combination of symbols may be generated causing a player to win a game, and areas are provided respectively to an edge of the betting lines for displaying images read from said storage medium.

3. The image display gaming apparatus as in claim 2 wherein said display control section receives a selection of said betting lines and displays the image read from said storage medium in the areas for displaying the image respectively to an edge of at least one of the betting lines having been selected.

4. A storage medium issuing apparatus for issuing storage media used in an image display gaming apparatus being provided in a gaming house, for displaying an image of a plurality of symbols and for a player to play a slot machine type game, the player winning the game when said plurality of symbols match a predetermined symbol combination, said apparatus comprising:

image pickup apparatus for picking up an image of an object;

image processing means for performing an image processing on image information of the image picked up by said image pickup apparatus so as to change the image information to be displayed as a symbol used in said image display gaming apparatus;

write means for writing the image information, on which the image processing have been performed, into a storage medium prepared in advance; and

issuing means for issuing the storage medium on which the image information has been written.

5. The image display gaming apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said write means visibly writes on a surface of said storage medium the image information having been processed by said image processing means.

6. The image display gaming apparatus as claimed in claim 5 wherein said storage medium issuing apparatus performs writing said image information on said storage medium so as to be stored visibly thereon and deleting said image information therefrom, said writing and deleting being repeatedly performed on said storage medium.

7. The storage medium issuing apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said image pickup apparatus is a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) camera.

8. The storage medium issuing aparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein said CCD camera has an automatic focusing function.

9. The storage medium issuing apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said storage medium issuing apparatus further includes a specific-image display section for displaying the image information.

10. The storage medium issuing apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said storage medium issuing apparatus further includes a print section for printing out the image information which has been picked up by said image pickup apparatus.

11. The storage medium issuing apparatus as claimed in claim 10 wherein said storage medium further includes an area for storing visually discernible information concerning a holder of said storage medium, the visually discernible infomation including the image information.

12. The storage medium issuing apparatus as claimed in claim 4 wherein said storage medium has:

a substrate comprising an image information storing area; and

a fixed image display section being disposed on at least one surface of said substrate for fixedly displaying visualized information of the image information.

13. The storage medium issuing apparatus as claimed in claim 4, further comprising means for accepting an instruction from an insertion section to take out the storage medium inserted in said insertion section and for discharging the storage medium from said insertion section.