Gaming system with rewritable display card and LCD input display for reading same

• US 7,329,186 B2
• Filed: 08/20/2004
• Issued: 02/12/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Griswold, Chauncey W., Wilder, Richard L., Mattice, Harold E., Gadda, Christian E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hotaling, II; John M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hylinski; Steven J.
• Application Number:
  US10/923,568
• Publication Number:
  US 20060040741A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,271 Days
• Field of Search: 463/1, 463/25, 463/29, 463 30- 33, 463 36- 37, 463 39- 43
• US Class Current: 463/29
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3206 Player sensing means, e.g. presence detection, biometrics
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3223 Architectural aspects of a gaming system, e.g. internal configuration, master/slave, wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players

Abstract

Systems and methods for conducting cashless gaming or player tracking within a gaming environment are disclosed. Players with associated player accounts are provided player tracking instruments having rewriteable displays. Also provided are gaming devices or machines having display panels adapted to display content and scan input through set display and read regions. Data on player tracking instruments is updated and displayed thereupon, and the input display panels of the gaming devices are used to read this data. These input display panels can also be used to read biometric information from players to confirm proper player account associations. The player tracking instruments may contain an RFID tag to receive communications from a transceiver associated with the gaming device or machine. A feedback loop from a master gaming controller to a transceiver to a player tracking instrument to an input display panel and back to the master gaming controller can be created.

Claims

1. A method of providing one or more gaming events at a gaming event location involving the placement of wagers, the play of games, and the possibility of monetary awards based upon the outcomes of the games, the method comprising:

permitting a player at said gaming event location to check in with a player tracking instrument, wherein said player tracking instrument contains a radio frequency identification tag therein and a rewritable display thereupon;

reading said player tracking instrument through a display device having a display and read region, wherein said display device is adapted both to display gaming related information and to read player related information through said display and read region;

associating information read from said player tracking instrument with an account assigned to said player;

prompting said player to provide a player specific biometric identifier at said gaming event location;

reading said provided biometric identifier through said display and read region of said display device;

verifying that said biometric identifier corresponds to biometric information previously stored for said player;

allowing funds from said account assigned to said player to be available to said player for the play of said one or more gaming events;

accepting one or more wagers from said player for the play of said one or more gaming events at said gaming event location, wherein at least a portion of said one or more wagers involves funds from said account assigned to said player;

playing said one or more gaming events at said gaming event location;

tracking a monetary balance for said player with respect to the outcome or outcomes of said one or more gaming events;

prompting said player to check in again with said player tracking instrument;

sending a radio frequency communication to said player tracking instrument;

rewriting at least a portion of said rewritable display on said player tracking instrument in response to said radio frequency communication;

reading said rewritten portion of said rewritable display through said display and read region of said display device;

confirming that said rewritten portion of said rewritable display is correct in accordance with said radio frequency communication; and

crediting at least a portion of said monetary balance to said account assigned to said player.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of said one or more gaming events is played on a gaming machine, and wherein said gaming event location comprises the gaming machine location.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein said step of playing said one or more gaming events includes displaying gaming related information through said display and read region of said display device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said display device comprises an LCD panel having a built-in scanner, said LCD panel being adapted to display images thereupon and also read images of objects placed thereto.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said LCD panel comprises a plurality of pixel groupings, wherein one or more of said pixel groupings consists of three output display pixels and one input scanning pixel.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein said rewritable display of said player tracking instrument comprises one or more elements selected from the group consisting of electronic ink, thermal imprints and organic light emitting diodes.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein said account assigned to said player resides on said player tracking instrument, and wherein said crediting step includes storing said at least a portion of said monetary balance on said player tracking instrument.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said account assigned to said player resides on a remote server, and wherein said crediting step includes transferring said at least a portion of said monetary balance to said remote server.

9. The method of claim 1, further including the steps of:

granting a monetary award based upon the outcome of one of said one or more gaming events, said monetary award being larger than the amount of cash available at said gaming event location to pay off said monetary award; and

crediting at least a portion of said monetary award to said account assigned to said player, wherein said crediting step obviates any need for a manual hand pay of said monetary award.

10. A method of administering a wager based gaming event, comprising:

permitting a player at the location of said gaming event to check in with a player tracking instrument;

reading said player tracking instrument through a display device having a display and read region, wherein said display device is adapted both to display gaming related information and to read player related information through said display and read region;

associating information read from said player tracking instrument with an account assigned to said player;

allowing funds from said account assigned to said player to be available to said player for the play of said gaming event;

accepting a wager from said player for the play of said gaming event at said gaming event location, wherein at least a portion of said wager involves funds from said account assigned to said player; and

playing said gaming event at said gaming event location.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said gaming event is played on a gaming machine, and wherein said gaming event location comprises the gaming machine location.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein said step of playing said gaming event includes displaying gaming related information through said display and read region of said display.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein said display device comprises an LCD panel having a built-in scanner, said LCD panel being adapted to display images thereupon and also read images of objects placed thereto.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein said LCD panel comprises a plurality of pixel groupings, wherein one or more of said pixel groupings consists of three output display pixels and one input scanning pixel.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein said player tracking instrument contains a radio frequency identification tag therein and a rewritable display thereupon.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein said rewritable display of said player tracking instrument comprises one or more elements selected from the group consisting of electronic ink, thermal imprints and organic light emitting diodes.

17. The method of claim 15, further including the steps of:

prompting said player to check in again with said player tracking instrument;

sending a radio frequency communication to said player tracking instrument;

rewriting at least a portion of said rewritable display on said player tracking instrument in response to said radio frequency communication;

reading said rewritten portion of said rewritable display through said display and read region of said display; and

confirming that said rewritten portion of said rewritable display is correct in accordance with said radio frequency communication.

18. The method of claim 10, further including the steps of:

prompting said player to provide a player specific biometric identifier at said gaming event location;

reading said provided biometric identifier; and

verifying that said biometric identifier corresponds to biometric information previously stored for said player.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of reading said provided biometric identifier includes reading said biometric identifier through said display device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the location on said display device where said biometric identifier is read is separate from the location on said display device where said player tracking instrument is read.

21. The method of claim 10, wherein said account assigned to said player is a remotely administered account, and further including the steps of:

transferring funds automatically from said remotely administered account to said gaming event location; and

crediting said transferred funds to said player for the play of said gaming event at said gaming event location.

22. The method of claim 10, further including the steps of:

playing one or more additional gaming events at said gaming event location;

tracking a monetary balance for said player with respect to the outcomes of said gaming event and said one or more additional gaming events; and

crediting at least a portion of said monetary balance to said account assigned to said player.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein said account assigned to said player resides on said player tracking instrument, and wherein said crediting step includes storing said at least a portion of said monetary balance on said player tracking instrument.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein said account assigned to said player resides on a remote server, and wherein said crediting step includes transferring said at least a portion of said monetary balance to said remote server.

25. The method of claim 10, further including the steps of:

granting a monetary award based upon the outcome of one of said one or more gaming events, said monetary award being larger than the amount of cash available at said gaming event location to pay off said monetary award; and

crediting at least a portion of said monetary award to said account assigned to said player, wherein said crediting step obviates any need for a manual hand pay of said monetary award.

26. A gaming system for use in conjunction with gaming events involving the placement of wagers, the play of games, and the possibility of monetary awards based upon the outcomes of the games, the gaming system comprising:

a computer server adapted to facilitate the tracking of information associated with a plurality of said gaming events;

a gaming device in communication with said computer server and adapted for use in association with one or more of said plurality of gaming events, wherein said gaming device includes a display panel having a display and read region adapted both to display gaming related information therethrough and to read player related information therethrough;

a plurality of player tracking instruments for use by one or more players within said gaming system, wherein at least one of said plurality of player tracking instruments contains a radio frequency identification tag therein and a rewritable display thereupon; and

a radio frequency communication device in communication with said gaming device and adapted to communicate via radio frequency waves with one or more of said plurality of player tracking instruments.

27. The gaming system of claim 26, further comprising:

a database in communication with said computer server, said database containing data with respect to a plurality of players.

28. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said gaming device comprises a gaming machine.

29. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said display panel comprises an LCD panel having a built-in scanner, said LCD panel being adapted to display images thereupon and also read images of objects placed thereto.

30. The gaming system of claim 29, wherein said LCD panel comprises a plurality of pixel groupings, wherein one or more of said pixel groupings consists of three output display pixels and one input scanning pixel.

31. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said rewritable display of said at least one player tracking instrument comprises one or more elements selected from the group consisting of electronic ink, thermal imprints and organic light emitting diodes.

32. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said at least one player tracking instrument comprises a storage unit adapted to store information regarding a specific player account thereupon.

33. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said computer server comprises a storage unit adapted to store information regarding a specific player account thereupon.

34. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said gaming device, said radio frequency communication device and said at least one player tracking instrument are all adapted to form a feedback loop involving the communication of data from said gaming device to said radio frequency communication device to said at least one player tracking instrument and back to said gaming device.

35. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said at least one player tracking instrument comprises a player tracking card.

36. The gaming system of claim 26, wherein said at least one player tracking instrument is selected from the group consisting of a credit card, a debit card, a smart card, a magnetic striped card, a printed ticket, a room key, a keychain, a bracelet, a wristwatch, a lucky token and a portable wireless device.

37. An electronic gaming machine adapted for accepting wagers, playing games thereupon and granting monetary awards, comprising:

a master gaming controller adapted to provide one or more gaming events at said electronic gaming machine and control a plurality of functions associated with the operation of said electronic gaming machine;

an external cabinet defining an interior region of said electronic gaming machine, said external cabinet adapted to house a plurality of gaming machine components within or about said interior region;

at least one display device located within or about said external cabinet, said at least one display device having a display and read region adapted to display gaming related information therethrough and to scan player related information from a substantially flat surface of a player tracking instrument therethrough;

a communication link or path between said master gaming controller and said at least one display device;

a radio frequency communication device located within or about said external cabinet, said radio frequency communication device being adapted to communicate via radio frequency waves with said player tracking instrument; and

a communication link or path between said master gaming controller and said radio frequency communication device.

38. The electronic gaming machine of claim 37, wherein said master gaming controller is located within said external cabinet.

39. The electronic gaming machine of claim 37, wherein said at least one display device comprises an LCD panel having a built-in scanner, said LCD panel being adapted to display images thereupon and also read images of objects placed thereto.

40. The electronic gaming machine of claim 39, wherein said LCD panel comprises a plurality of pixel groupings, wherein one or more of said pixel groupings consists of three output display pixels and one input scanning pixel.

41. The electronic gaming machine of claim 37, wherein said master gaming controller, said at least one display device and said radio frequency communication device are all adapted to form a feedback loop with said player tracking instrument, wherein data is communicated from said master gaming controller to said radio frequency communication device to said player tracking instrument to said at least one display device and back to said master gaming controller.