Pachinko stand-alone and bonusing game

• US 6,220,593 B1
• Filed: 07/14/1999
• Issued: 04/24/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: Mikohn Gaming Corporation (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Vancura, Olaf, Pierce, Jesse E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chapman, Jeanette
• Assistant Examiner(s): Collins, Dolores R.
• Application Number:
  US09/353,550
• Time in Patent Office: 650 Days
• Field of Search: 273/138.1, 273/122, 273/121.B, 273/126, 463/20
• US Class Current: 273/138.1
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2007/0064 Ball games combined with other games
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 7/022 Pachinko
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes

Abstract

A Pachinko bonus game system for an underlying game machine. The Pachinko bonus game has a playing field with a plurality of rows of pegs. A ball is launched onto the playing field by a launch mechanism when an initiate condition occurs during play of the underlying game. A row of lanes are provided on the playing field. The ball, after traversing among the pegs on the playing field, eventually travels through one of the lanes. At each lane is randomly displayed a bonus payoff value. The lane the ball travels through senses the presence of the ball and the value displayed for that lane is added to the credit meter in the underlying game. The bonus payoff values are randomly changed from game to game which eliminates any mechanical bias present in the Pachinko game. A stand-alone Pachinko game as well as using a Pachinko game as a coin dispenser is also provided.

Claims

1. A Pachinko game comprising:

a playing field, said playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

a play piece;

a launch mechanism, said launch mechanism propelling said play piece onto said playing field;

lanes on said playing field, said play piece after traversing said plurality of deflection devices in the playing field traveling through one of said lanes;

a payoff display at each of said plurality of lanes on said playing field;

a credit meter incremented by the amount of the payoff value on said display at said lane said play piece traveled through;

a play piece sensor in each of said lanes;

a controller, said controller (1) randomly selecting said payoff values from a pay table for display in said payoff displays, (2) activating said launch mechanism, (3) receiving a signal from the sensor at said lane said play piece traveled through, and (4) incrementing said credit meter by said amount.

2. The Pachinko game of claim 1 wherein said launch mechanism is randomly initiated.

3. The Pachinko game of claim 1 wherein said randomly selected payoff values are the same so that the amount said credit meter is incremented is independent of which lane said play piece travels through.

4. The Pachinko game of claim 1 wherein said randomly selected payoff values change in said payoff displays according to:

8. The Pachinko game of claim 1 wherein said randomly selected payoff values are moved to another lane with each new random selection.

9. The Pachinko game of claim 8 wherein said movement to another lane is rotation so that with each random selection the payoff values are moved to the adjacent lanes.

10. The Pachinko game of claim 9 wherein said movement to another lane is random.

11. The Pachinko game of claim 1 wherein said play piece is non-metallic.

12. The Pachinko game of claim 1 wherein said play piece is about one inch in diameter.

13. The Pachinko game of claim 1 wherein each payoff display is flush mounted on said playing field in each said lane so as not to interfere with the movement of said play piece.

5. A Pachinko game comprising:

a playing field, said playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

a play piece;

a launch mechanism, said launch mechanism propelling said play piece onto said playing field;

lanes on said playing field, said play piece after traversing said plurality of deflection devices in the playing field traveling through one of said lanes;

a payoff display at each of said plurality of lanes on said playing field;

a credit meter incremented by the amount of the payoff value on said display at said lane said play piece traveled through;

a play piece sensor in each of said lanes;

a controller, said controller (1) randomly selecting said payoff values from a pay table for display in said payoff displays, (2) activating said launch mechanism, (3) receiving a signal from the sensor at said lane said play piece traveled through, and (4) incrementing said credit meter by said amount, wherein said randomly selected payoff values in said payoff displays are randomly selected from a weighted probability pay table after an initiate condition occurs and before said play piece travels through said lane.

6. The Pachinko game of claim 5 wherein the weighted probability pay table is based upon:

 

EV_l=Σ

_k(w_l,k×

P_l,k)≡

a constant

where EV_l=Expected Value for lane l of said lanes,

P_l,k=Set of payoff values for lane l of said lanes,

w_l,k=Weights associated with payoff values per said lane l

and wherein the EV_l for each of said lanes is constant so as to eliminate any bias in said Pachinko game system.

7. A Pachinko game comprising:

a playing field, said playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

a play piece;

a launch mechanism, said launch mechanism propelling said play piece onto said playing field;

lanes on said playing field, said play piece after traversing said plurality of deflection devices in the playing field traveling through one of said lanes;

a payoff display at each of said plurality of lanes on said playing field;

a credit meter incremented by the amount of the payoff value on said display at said lane said play piece traveled through;

a play piece sensor in each of said lanes;

a controller, said controller (1) randomly selecting said payoff values from a pay table for display in said payoff displays, (2) activating said launch mechanism, (3) receiving a signal from the sensor at said lane said play piece traveled through, and (4) incrementing said credit meter by said amount, wherein the time a payoff value is displayed in a payoff display is proportional to the weight associated with the aforesaid payoff value.

14. A Pachinko game comprising:

a playing field, said playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

a play piece;

a launch mechanism, said launch mechanism propelling said play piece onto said playing field;

lanes on said playing field, said play piece after traversing said plurality of deflection devices in field traveling through one of said lanes;

a fixed payoff value at each of said plurality of lanes on said playing field;

a credit meter incremented by the amount of the fixed payoff value at said lane said play piece traveled through;

a play piece sensor in each of said lanes;

a controller, said controller (1) activating said launch mechanism, (2) receiving a signal from the sensor at said lane said play piece traveled through, and (3) incrementing said credit meter by said amount.

15. A method for playing a game comprising the steps of:

selecting a random payoff value from a pay table for each of a plurality of payoff lanes;

displaying the selected random payoff value at each of the plurality of payoff lanes for a display time, T_D;

delivering a playing piece onto a playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

the playing piece travelling through the plurality of deflection devices into one of the plurality of payoff lanes; and

issuing the payoff displayed at the payoff lane the playing piece traveled through.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the pay table is a weighted probability pay table based on:

17. A method for playing a game comprising the steps of:

selecting a random payoff value from a pay table for each of a plurality of payoff lanes;

displaying the selected random payoff value at each of the plurality of payoff lanes for a display time, T_D wherein the display time, T_D, is the same for each of the plurality of payoff lanes;

delivering a playing piece onto a playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

the playing piece travelling through the plurality of deflection devices into one of the plurality of payoff lanes; and

issuing the payoff displayed at the payoff lane the playing piece traveled through.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the payoff values are chosen proportional to weight.

19. A method for playing a game comprising the steps of:

selecting a random payoff value from a pay table for each of a plurality of payoff lanes;

displaying the selected random payoff value at each of the plurality of payoff lanes for a display time, T_D wherein the display time, T_D, is different for each of the plurality of payoff lanes;

delivering a playing piece onto a playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

the playing piece travelling through the plurality of deflection devices into one of the plurality of payoff lanes; and

issuing the payoff displayed at the payoff lane the playing piece traveled through.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the display time, T_D, is staggered for each payoff lane.

21. The method of claim 19 wherein the display time, T_D, is proportional to the weight of the payoff value being displayed in each payoff lane.

22. The method of claim 21 wherein the probability of selecting the payoff values is constant.

23. A method for playing a game comprising the steps of:

selecting a random payoff value from a pay table for each of a plurality of payoff lanes;

displaying the selected random payoff value at each of the plurality of payoff lanes for a display time, T_D wherein the display time, T_D, is based upon a game event;

delivering a playing piece onto a playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

the playing piece travelling through the plurality of deflection devices into one of the plurality of payoff lanes; and

issuing the payoff displayed at the payoff lane the playing piece traveled through.

24. A method for playing a game comprising the steps of:

selecting a random payoff value from a pay table for each of a plurality of payoff lanes;

displaying the selected random payoff value at each of the plurality of payoff lanes;

delivering a playing piece onto a playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

sensing when the playing piece travels through a designated area of the playing field, the designated area having a change value associated therewith;

the playing piece travelling into one of the plurality of payoff lanes;

changing the payoff displayed at the payoff lane the playing piece traveled through by the change value in response to the step of sensing; and

issuing the changed payoff.

25. A method for playing a game comprising the steps of:

selecting a random payoff value from a pay table for each of a plurality of payoff lanes;

displaying the selected random payoff value at each of the plurality of payoff lanes;

delivering a playing piece onto a playing field having a plurality of deflection devices;

sensing when the playing piece travels through a designated area of the playing field, the designated area having a change value associated therewith;

the playing piece travelling into one of the plurality of payoff lanes;

changing the payoff displayed at the payoff lane the playing piece traveled through by the change value in response to the step of sensing;

wherein the changed payoff is one of the following;

a multiplier, addition, double or nothing and

issuing the changed payoff.