Gaming device having a replicating display that provides winning payline information

• US 6,695,696 B1
• Filed: 07/31/2000
• Issued: 02/24/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 07/31/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Kaminkow, Joseph E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sager, Mark
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ashburn, Steven L
• Application Number:
  US09/629,606
• Time in Patent Office: 1,303 Days
• Field of Search: 463/1, 463/16-20, 463/25, 463/30, 463/31, 463/40, 463/42, 463/43, 273/138.1, 273/143.R
• US Class Current: 463/16
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3213 Details of moving display elements, e.g. spinning reels, tumbling members
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

The present invention involves a gaming device that provides a second or replicating display that is an enlarged, preferably simulated replica of the actual display of the reels, paylines and indicia of the paystops of the gaming device. The second or replicating display can exactly recreate the actual rotation or random generation of the reels, represent the random generation of the reels, and do so by providing a slight delay. The present invention also contains a method by which the replicating display presents each of a plurality of award generating or winning paylines individually and sequentially for a predetermined amount of time before culminating in a display of the accumulated winning paylines. The method enables the player to easily see the source of an award, which would otherwise be difficult to discern from a multitude of paylines.

Claims

1. A gaming device comprising:

a cabinet;

means supported by the cabinet for displaying a plurality of symbols and a plurality of paylines;

a replicating device supported by the cabinet and operable to independently display said symbols and the plurality of paylines; and

a controller operable with the display means and the replicating device to cause the replicating device to independently mirror the symbols and movement of the symbols displayed by the display means, and upon said displayed symbols on at least two paylines yielding an award to a player, to cause the replicating device to sequentially and separately display each of the award yielding paylines and symbols thereon.

2. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the display means includes at least one mechanical reel and the replicating device is adapted to display at least a portion of a simulation of said mechanical reel.

3. The gaming device of claim 2, wherein said at least a portion of a simulation includes a representation of said mechanical reel.

4. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the display means includes at least one simulated reel and the replicating device is adapted to display at least a portion of said simulated reel.

5. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the display means includes at least one payline superimposed on said symbols, and the replicating device is adapted to display said payline.

6. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein the replicating device includes a monitor.

7. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein said symbols of said replicating display are larger than said symbols of said display means.

8. The gaming device of claim 1, wherein said replicating display includes at least one visual display of items other than said symbols.

9. The gaming device of claim 8, which includes an audio production relating to said at least one visual display of items other than said symbols.

10. The gaming device of claim 1, which includes means, disposed between the axis of rotation of said means for displaying a plurality of symbols and said plurality of symbols, for selectively illuminating at least one symbol of at least one reel.

11. A gaming device comprising:

a cabinet;

a first display supported by said cabinet and operable to display a plurality of symbols;

a plurality of paylines associated with the first display; and

a second display supported by said cabinet and operable to independently display each of said paylines and a plurality of the symbols along each of said paylines, whereby said second display sequentially and separately displays at least two of the paylines and the symbols along said paylines which yield an award for a player.

12. The gaming device of claim 11, wherein said second display includes a pay chart adapted to display the award associated with each of said paylines.

13. The gaming device of claim 11, wherein said second display includes at least one visual display of items other than said symbols.

14. The gaming device of claim 11, which includes means, disposed between the axis of rotation of said first display and said plurality of symbols, for selectively illuminating at least one symbol of at least one reel.

15. A method for displaying a gaming device outcome comprising the steps of:

(a) displaying a first display in a cabinet having a plurality of game generated symbols;

(b) independently replicating said first display of the plurality of game symbols on a second display in said cabinet; and

(c) sequentially and separately displaying on the second display at least two paylines and the game symbols on said paylines which yield an award to a player.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the first display includes a plurality of reels and replicating said first display includes replicating each reel of said first display.

17. The method of claim 15, which includes simultaneously replicating said first display.

18. The method of claim 15, which includes replicating said game symbols at a slower rate than a rate of said first display.

19. The method of claim 15, which includes representing said symbols of said replicating display.

20. The method of claim 15, which includes delaying said replicating display so that a combination of the game symbols appears on said first display before said combination appears on said replicating display.

21. The method of claim 15, which includes producing at least one display in addition to said replication, wherein said additional display does not include said game symbols.

22. The method of claim 15, wherein displaying a first display having a plurality of game generated symbols includes selectively illuminating said symbols.

23. A method for operating a gaming device comprising:

(a) displaying a plurality of movable symbols in a first display supported by a cabinet, wherein the first display includes at least one mechanical device; and

(b) independently replicating the first display of said plurality of movable symbols, including any movement of said plurality of movable symbols, in a second display supported by said cabinet, and then displaying at least one of said movable symbols in the second display to indicate an award associated with said movable symbol.

24. The method of claim 23, which includes displaying a plurality of paylines and at least one of said movable symbols along each payline in a second display to indicate an award associated with each payline.

25. The method of claim 24, which includes sequentially displaying said paylines in said second display.

26. The method of claim 24, which includes simultaneously displaying said paylines in said second display.

27. The method of claim 24, which includes sequentially displaying said paylines in said second display and then simultaneously displaying said paylines in said second display.

28. The method of claim 24, which includes displaying a pay chart of award values associated with each payline displayed in said second display.

29. The method of claim 23, which includes producing at least one display in the second display in addition to replicating said plurality of movable symbols, wherein said display does not include said payline having at least one movable symbol.

30. The method of claim 23, wherein displaying said plurality of movable symbols in the first display includes selectively illuminating said movable symbols.

31. A gaming device comprising:

a cabinet;

a plurality of symbols;

a first display device supported by the cabinet, said first display device including at least one mechanical device associated with the plurality of symbols;

a second display device supported by the cabinet, and operable to independently display the plurality of symbols; and

a processor operable with the first and second display devices to cause the second display device to independently mirror a display of the plurality of symbols and any movement of said symbols by the first display device.

32. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein the mechanical device includes a plurality of gaming reels.

33. The gaming device of claim 31, which includes at least one award associated with the plurality of symbols.

34. The gaming device of claim 31, which includes a plurality of awards associated with the plurality of symbols.

35. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein the processor causes said second display device to display a plurality of paylines and the symbols along said paylines which yield a plurality of awards for the player.

36. The gaming device of claim 35, which includes a pay chart for displaying the award associated with each of said paylines, wherein the processor causes the second display device to display said pay chart.

37. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein the second display mirrors the display of the plurality of symbols and any movement of the symbols of the first display device at a slower rate than a rate of the first display device.

38. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein said processor causes said second display device to display images other than said symbols.

39. The gaming device of claim 38, which includes an audio production relating to said images other than said symbols.

40. The gaming device of claim 31, wherein said symbols displayed by said second display are larger than said symbols displayed by the first display.

41. A gaming device comprising:

a game operable upon a wager by a player;

a cabinet;

a plurality of symbols in the game;

a plurality of random generating devices of the game supported by the cabinet, said random generating devices each operable to randomly generate at least one of said symbols; and

a replicating display supported by said cabinet, and operable to independently display a duplicate of the symbols, including any movement of said symbols, generated on each of the random generating devices.

42. The gaming device of claim 41, wherein the plurality of random generating devices includes a plurality of mechanical gaming reels.

43. The gaming device of claim 41, wherein the plurality of symbols is associated with at least one award.

44. The gaming device of claim 43, wherein the replicating display is operable to display the award and any of symbols associated with said award.

45. The gaming device of claim 41, wherein the replicating display includes at least one visual display of items other than said symbols.

46. A method for displaying a gaming device outcome, said method comprising:

(a) displaying a plurality of generated symbols in a first display supported by a cabinet;

(b) independently replicating said display of the generated symbols on a second display supported by said cabinet; and

(c) upon the occurrence of two winning symbol combination on two paylines in the first display, sequentially and separately displaying on the second display said paylines and the symbols on said paylines which yield an award to a player.

47. The method of claim 46, which includes replicating said generated symbols on the second display at a slower rate than a rate of said first display.

48. The method of claim 46, which includes delaying said replicating of said generated symbols so that a combination of the generated symbols appears on said first display before said combination appears on said second display.

49. The method of claim 46, which includes producing at least one display in addition to said replication, wherein said additional display does not include said generated symbols.

50. A gaming device comprising:

a cabinet;

a game operable upon a wager by a player;

a mechanical display device supported by a first portion of the cabinet;

a video display device supported by a second portion of the cabinet; and

a processor supported by the cabinet and operable to control the game, said processor operable upon a triggering event to cause the mechanical display device to provide a display to a player and to cause the video display device to independently replicate the display to the player of the mechanical display device, including any movement displayed by the mechanical display device.

51. The gaming device of claim 50, wherein the mechanical display device includes a plurality of gaming reels.

52. The gaming device of claim 50, wherein the triggering event is the wager made by the player.

53. A method for operating a gaming device comprising:

(a) displaying a plurality of symbols in a first display supported by a cabinet, wherein the first display includes at least one mechanical device, said display is part of a game operable upon a wager by a player and said mechanical device moves said symbols; and

(b) independently replicating the first display of said plurality of symbols including the movement of the symbols by the mechanical device in a second display supported by said cabinet, and then displaying sequentially a plurality of paylines and any of said symbols along said paylines in the second display to indicate any winning outcome associated with each payline.

54. The method of claim 53, wherein said mechanical device includes at least one reel.

55. The method of claim 53, wherein the gaming device is controlled through a data network.

56. The method of claim 55, wherein the data network is an internet.

57. The method of claim 53, wherein computer instructions for controlling steps (a) and (b) are stored on a memory device.

58. A method for operating a gaming device comprising:

(a) displaying a plurality of symbols in a first display supported by a cabinet, wherein the first display includes at least one mechanical device; and

(b) independently replicating the first display of said plurality of symbols in a secondary display supported by said cabinet, and the displaying sequentially and then simultaneously a plurality of paylines and at least one of said symbols along each of said paylines in a second display to indicate any award associated with each payline.

59. The method of claim 58, wherein said mechanical device includes at least one reel.

60. The method of claim 58, wherein the gaming device is controlled through a data network.

61. The method of claim 60, wherein the data network is an internet.

62. The method of claim 58, wherein computer instructions for controlling steps (a) and (b) are stored on a memory device.