Bowling center

• US 6,623,369 B1
• Filed: 05/01/2000
• Issued: 09/23/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/01/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Michael J Shea
• Original Assignee: Michael J Shea
• Inventors: Shea, Michael J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pierce, William M.
• Application Number:
  US09/561,928
• Time in Patent Office: 1,240 Days
• Field of Search: 463/1, 463/23, 463/43, 473/54, 473/57, 473/64, 473/65, 473/67, 473/73, 473/70, 473/71
• US Class Current: 473/57
• CPC Class Codes: A63D 1/00 Installations for bowling games, e.g. bowling-alleys or bocce courts bowling greens A63C19/00
• CPC Class Codes: A63D 5/08 Arrangements for setting-up or taking away pins

Abstract

A bowling center system includes a pinsetter for setting pins on a bowling lane. A control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set a configuration of pins on the bowling lane based on performance data of a bowler if the bowler fails to knock down all the pins of the configuration.

Claims

1. A lane control system comprising:

a control circuit which is in communication with a pinsetter for setting pins on a pin deck of a bowling lane and which is supplied with pinfall data; and

a memory accessible by the control circuit for storing performance data of a bowler, wherein;

the control circuit, based on the pinfall data supplied thereto, determines whether the bowler knocks down all the pins of a pin configuration;

if the bowler fails to knock down all the pins of the pin configuration, the control circuit determines, using the bowler'"'"'s stored performance data, whether to re-set the pin configuration; and

if a determination is made to re-set the pin configuration, the control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the performance data comprises the bowler'"'"'s scoring average.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the performance data comprises data indicative of the bowler'"'"'s past successes and failures at knocking down pins arranged in the pin configuration.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the performance data comprises data indicative of the bowler'"'"'s past successes and failures at knocking down pins arranged in the pin configuration relative to the successes and failures of one or more other bowlers at knocking down pins arranged in the same pin configuration.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the memory is a portable memory module.

6. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a communication circuit for, in use, accessing the memory via the Internet.

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck a plurality of times.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit controls the pinsetter to repeatedly re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck until the bowler knocks down all the pins in a single roll.

9. The system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an automatic scoring system configured to maintain a score for the bowler that does not include the number of pins of the re-set pin configuration that are knocked down by the bowler.

10. The system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an automatic scoring system configured to maintain a first score for the bowler based on the number of pins knocked down prior to the re-setting of the pin configuration and to maintain a second score for the bowler based on the number of pins knocked down after the re-setting of the pin configuration.

11. The system according to claim 1, further comprising:

an automatic scoring system configured to maintain a single score and to permit the single score to be based on either the number of pins knocked down prior to the re-setting of the pin configuration or on the number of pins knocked down after the re-setting of the pin configuration.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein the control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set the pin configuration only if the pin configuration is one of a plurality of predetermined pin configurations.

13. A lane control method comprising:

accessing a computer-readable memory storing performance data of a bowler;

determining based on pinfall data whether the bowler knocks down all the pins of a pin configuration on a pin deck of a bowling lane;

if the bowler fails to knock down all the pins of the pin configuration, determining, using the bowler'"'"'s stored performance data, whether to re-set the pin configuration; and

if a determination is made to re-set the pin configuration, controlling a pinsetter to re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the performance data comprises the bowler'"'"'s scoring average.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the performance data comprises data indicative of the bowler'"'"'s past successes and failures at knocking down pins arranged in the pin configuration.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein the performance data comprises data indicative of the bowler'"'"'s past successes and failures at knocking down pins arranged in the pin configuration relative to the successes and failures of one or more other bowlers at knocking down pins arranged in the same pin configuration.

17. The method according to claim 13, wherein the computer-readable memory is a portable memory module.

18. The method according to claim 13, further comprising connecting to the Internet to access the computer-readable memory.

19. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:

maintaining a score for the bowler based on the pins of the re-set pin configuration that are knocked down by the bowler.

20. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:

controlling the pinsetter to re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck a plurality of times.

21. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:

controlling the pinsetter to repeatedly re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck until the bowler knocks down all the pins of the pin configuration in a single roll.

24. The method according to claim 21, wherein the pin configuration is repeatedly reset only if the pin configuration is one of a plurality of predetermined pin configurations.

25. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:

providing a display informing the bowler that the pin configuration is being re-set.

22. A lane control system comprising:

a control circuit which is in communication with a pinsetter for setting pins on a pin deck of a bowling lane and which is supplied with pinfall data; and

a memory accessible by the control circuit for storing performance data of a bowler, wherein;

the control circuit, based on the pinfall data supplied thereto, determines whether the bowler knocks down all the pins of a pin configuration;

if the bowler fails to knock down all the pins of the pin configuration, the control circuit determines, using the bowler'"'"'s stored performance data, whether to re-set the pin configuration;

if a determination is made to re-set the pin configuration, the control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck; and

if the pin configuration is one of a plurality of predetermined pin configurations, the control circuit further controls the pinsetter to repeatedly re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck until the bowler knocks down all the pins in a single roll.

23. A lane control system comprising:

a control circuit which is in communication with a pinsetter for setting pins on a pin deck of a bowling lane and which is supplied with pinfall data; and

a memory accessible by the control circuit for storing performance data of the bowler, wherein;

the control circuit, based on the pinfall data supplied thereto, determines whether the bowler knocks down all the pins of a pin configuration;

if the bowler fails to knock down all the pins of the pin configuration, the control circuit determines, using the bowler'"'"'s stored performance data, whether to re-set the pin configuration; and

if a determination is made to re-set the pin configuration, the control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck,

wherein the control circuit controls the pinsetter to repeatedly re-set the pin configuration on the pin deck until the bowler knocks down all the pins in a single roll, and

wherein the control circuit generates display signals for a display informing the bowler that the pin configuration is being re-set.

26. A lane control system comprising:

a control circuit which is in communication with a pinsetter for setting pins on a pin deck of a bowling lane; and

a memory accessible by the control circuit for storing performance data of the bowler,

wherein the control circuit controls the pinsetter to set pin configurations on the pin deck based on performance data indicative of the bowler'"'"'s past successes and failures at knocking down all the pins of various pin configurations.

27. The system according to claim 26, wherein the control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set one or more of the pin configurations on the pin deck a plurality of times.

28. The system according to claim 26, wherein the control circuit controls the pinsetter to re-set one or more of the pin configurations on the pin deck until the bowler knocks down all the pins of those one or more pin configurations in a single roll.

29. The system according to claim 26, wherein the memory comprises a portable memory module.