Game system with gaming machine interconnected to a cellular phone

• US 7,341,522 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2003
• Issued: 03/11/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Folio Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Junichi Yamagishi, Unirec Company Limited
• Inventors: Yamagishi, Junichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Laneau; Ronald
• Assistant Examiner(s): HARPER, TRAMAR YONG
• Application Number:
  US10/394,534
• Publication Number:
  US 20040185935A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,817 Days
• Field of Search: 463/20, 463/25, 463/29, 463/42
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/12 involving interaction between a plurality of game devices, e.g. transmisison or distribution systems protocols for networked virtual reality, networked games H04L29/06034
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/30 Interconnection arrangements between game servers and game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game devices; Interconnection arrangements between game servers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/323 between game devices with different hardware characteristics, e.g. hand-held game devices connectable to game consoles or arcade machines
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/332 using wireless networks, e.g. cellular phone networks
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/792 for payment purposes, e.g. monthly subscriptions
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/406 Transmission via wireless network, e.g. pager or GSM

Abstract

A game system correlates games played on cellular phones with games played on arcade game machines. The game system includes a game machine installed in an amusement arcade, to run a game based on at least points, a floor management unit installed in the amusement arcade, to manage the game machine and be connectable to the Internet, a game content providing unit to provide game content via the Internet, a mobile communication terminal to receive the game content via the Internet and run a game based on the received game content, and a point data management unit to store and update data on points to be won or lost by playing the game on the mobile communication terminal. The floor management unit receives points related to an authenticated person from the point data management unit and enables the game machine for the authenticated person.

Claims

1. A game system comprising:

a game content providing unit configured to provide, via an Internet connection, game content data enabling a game to be played on a cellular phone in which points are won and loss;

a cellular phone configured to receive said game content data via a connection including an Internet connection, storing said game content data, and executing said game content data to perform operation of said game permitting a user to play said game;

a master management unit connected to the internet and having a point of sales database, said master management unit being configured as an application service provider storing and transferring via the internet point of sales application software for enabling operation of a device as a point of sales system using said point of sales database and a management system of game machines, and said master management unit storing and updating an amount of said points for cellular phone games won and lost in said game played and executed on said cellular phone, said points being stored associated with said user;

a game machine installed in an amusement arcade and running a stored game stored thereon based on at least said points stored in said master management unit and won and lost in said game played on said cellular phone;

said cellular phone being configured to interconnect with said game machine;

said game machine being configured to interconnect with said cellular phone and read in authentication data of said user from said cellular phone via the interconnection;

a floor management unit installed in the amusement arcade connected to the game machine via a local area network, connected to the Internet, and connected to the master management unit; and

the floor management unit having said point of sales application software downloaded via an internet connection thereon from said master management unit and being configured by said point of sales application software to serve as a point of sales terminal, to receive points data of said points, stored in association with said user, from said point data management unit in response to authentication of said authentication data received by said game machine, and to manage the game machine in real time including enabling the game machine for operation by said user based on receipt of said points data, wherein

the cellular phone is configured such that the authentication data is input through the cellular phone interconnected with the game machine and is transferred from the game machine to the master management unit through the floor management unit relaying between the game machine with which the cellular phone is interconnected and the master management unit, and

the floor management unit is configured to download the points of an authenticated user from the master management unit on the basis of the authentication of the authentication data provided by the user and in response thereto place the game machine into an enabled gaming state.

2. The game system of claim 1, wherein:

points are purchasable with the cellular phone; and

an accounting server is provided to charge for the purchased points.