Wagering game with simulated mechanical reels

• US 7,654,899 B2
• Filed: 08/30/2007
• Issued: 02/02/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Original Assignee: WMS Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Ralston, Samuel D., Fitzsimons, Matthew R., Gagner, Mark B., Thomas, Alfred, Rasmussen, James M., Mercado, Victor, Durham, Timothy J., Canterbury, Stephen A., Arezina, Vladimir I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Suhol; Dmitry
• Assistant Examiner(s): HENRY, THOMAS HAYNES
• Application Number:
  US11/847,560
• Publication Number:
  US 20080004104A1
• Time in Patent Office: 887 Days
• Field of Search: 463/30, 463/31, 463/34, 267/163, 267/140.11, 267/140.12, 267/140.13, 267/140.14, 267/140.15, 312/7.2
• US Class Current: 463/30
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3202 Hardware aspects of a gaming system, e.g. components, construction, architecture thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

A gaming machine for playing a wagering game includes a housing having a display region, a controller for conducting the wagering game, and a video projector coupled to the controller. The display region includes a plurality of projection surfaces secured to floating screen assemblies. The video projector simulates mechanical reels of a slot machine in the display region. The video projector displays images of a plurality of symbols that indicate a randomly selected outcome of said wagering game. The images are projected onto the projection surfaces within the display region.

Claims

1. A gaming machine for playing a wagering game, comprising:

a display region including a plurality of floating screen assemblies with respective arc-shaped projection surfaces, each of said projection surfaces having separated first and second ends, said floating screen assemblies connected to a housing or a display area of said gaming machine via resilient members such that at least one of said floating screen assemblies is configured to be movable in one or more of a x-direction, a y-direction, or a z-direction;

a controller for conducting said wagering game;

a video projector coupled to said controller for simulating mechanical reels of a slot machine in said display region, said video projector projecting images onto said projection surfaces, said projection surfaces being spatially separated from said video projector, said images including a plurality of symbols that indicate a randomly selected outcome of said wagering game; and

a plurality of mechanisms for imparting movement to said floating screen assemblies as said images are projected onto said projection surfaces.

2. The machine of claim 1, wherein said plurality of mechanisms include a plurality of motors.

3. The machine of claim 2, wherein said motors impart eccentric movement.

4. The machine of claim 2, wherein said images projected from said video projector move synchronously with said movement in said floating screen assemblies such that said images of said plurality of symbols displayed on said projection surfaces move in the same direction and the same distance as said floating screen assemblies.

5. The machine of claim 4, wherein said images projected from said video projector moving synchronously with said movement in said floating screen assemblies includes moving said projected images up to 2 millimeters on a plane defined by any one of said projection surfaces.

6. The machine of claim 5, wherein said movement is coordinated between adjacent floating screen assemblies to simulate imperfections between adjacent mechanical reels in a slots game.

7. The machine of claim 1, wherein said resilient members semi-rigidly connect one or more of said floating screen assemblies to said housing or said display area.

8. The machine of claim 1, wherein said resilient members include at least one spring.

9. A gaming system for playing a slots game, the system comprising:

a controller for conducting said slots game;

a display region having a plurality of floating screen assemblies with respective arc-shaped projection surfaces, each of the projection surfaces having separated first and second ends, the floating screen assemblies connected to a housing or a display area via one or more resilient members such that each of the floating screen assemblies is movable in a x-direction, a y-direction, a z-direction, or any combination thereof; and

a video projection device coupled to said controller, said video projection device projecting an image onto at least one of said projection surfaces, said projection surfaces being spatially separated from said video projection device, said image containing a plurality of symbols, said plurality of symbols indicating a randomly selected outcome of said slots game;

a plurality of mechanisms for imparting movement to the floating screen assemblies as said image is projected onto said at least one of said projection surfaces,

wherein said plurality of symbols in said projected image move to simulate mechanical reels of said slots game.

10. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein said projected image comprises a plurality of subareas with each subarea simulating a portion of said plurality of symbols of a mechanical reel on said projection surface.

11. The gaming system of claim 10, wherein a portion of said projected image surrounding said plurality of subareas is a solid color projected outside of said subareas.

12. The gaming system of claim 10, wherein said plurality of mechanisms include a plurality of motors.

13. The gaming system of claim 12, wherein said motors impart eccentric movements.

14. The gaming system of claim 12, wherein each subarea has a second movement within said projected image from said video projection device, said second movement is synchronized with said first movement in said floating screen assemblies such that said subareas of said projected image move on said projection surfaces in a direction and a distance that corresponds with said movement of said floating screen assemblies.

15. The gaming system of claim 14, wherein said second movement synchronized with said first movement includes moving said subareas of said projected image up to 2 millimeters along a plane defined by any one of said projection surfaces.

16. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein said projected image comprises five subareas displaying a plurality of symbols that simulate five mechanical reels of a slots game.

17. The system of claim 9, wherein said resilient member includes a spring.

18. A method of conducting a slots game, the method comprising:

conducting said slots game at a gaming terminal having a plurality of floating screen assemblies connected via one or more resilient members to a housing or a display area of said gaming terminal, said resilient members allowing said floating screen assemblies to each move independently in a x-direction, a y-direction, a z-direction, or any combination thereof;

projecting images of a plurality of symbols from one or more projection sources onto arc-shaped display surfaces of said floating screen assemblies, at least one of said one or more projection sources spatially separated from said arc-shaped display surfaces, said arc-shaped display surfaces having separated first and second ends, said plurality of symbols indicating a randomly selected outcome of said slots game; and

using a plurality of mechanisms, imparting movement to said floating screen assemblies during said projecting of images onto said arc-shaped display surfaces.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein said imparting movement includes eccentrically moving said floating screen assemblies.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising synchronously moving at least a portion of said projected images with said floating assemblies movement.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising dividing said projected images into a plurality of subareas, wherein each subarea simulates a portion of said plurality of symbols of a mechanical reel.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said synchronous movement of a portion of said projected images comprises movement of said subareas within said projected images.

23. The method of claim 18, where said one or more resilient members include a spring.