System and method for capturing images from mobile devices for use with patron tracking system

• US 7,693,306 B2
• Filed: 02/23/2006
• Issued: 04/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Konami Gaming Incorporated (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Konami Gaming Incorporated (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Huber, Doug
• Primary Examiner(s): Seth; Manav
• Application Number:
  US11/276,310
• Publication Number:
  US 20060205458A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,503 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/103, 382/115, 382/118, 382/209, 382217-219, 382305-306, 348129-130, 348/143, 463 13- 29
• US Class Current: 382/115
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3218 wherein at least part of the system is portable
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players

Abstract

A system and method of tracking a patron in a gaming environment uses a database that stores known images and known text descriptions of existing patrons. An image of a patron is captured by an image capture device, and a text description of the patron is obtained. The image and the text description are transmitted to the database. A comparator compares the image or the text description to those on the database. The image is stored in a patron folder if the image or the text description is found to match an existing patron. The image is stored in a temporary folder if the image or the text description fails to match one of the existing patrons, and once the patron has been identified, the image is transferred from the temporary folder to the patron folder.

Claims

1. A method of tracking a patron in a gaming environment to distinguish between existing patrons and new patrons to track their gaming activities, said method utilizing at least one database having a patron folder and a temporary folder with a plurality of known images and known text descriptions stored in the patron folder, said method comprising the steps of:

photographing the patron to create an image,

obtaining a text description of the patron,

linking the image and the text description together into an electronic communication,

transmitting the electronic communication to the database,

comparing at least one of the image and the text description to determine if the at least one of the image and the text description is equivalent to one of the plurality of known images and known text descriptions stored in the database, and

storing at least one of the image and the text description in the temporary folder if at least one of the image is different than the known images and the text description is different than the known text descriptions stored in the database to distinguish an existing patron from a new patron and to track the gaming activities of the patron.

2. A method as set forth in claim 1 further including the step of locating the new patron in the gaming environment.

3. A method as set forth in claim 2 further including the step of opening a new patron folder in the database that corresponds to the new patron after locating the patron.

4. A method as set forth in claim 3 further including the step of transferring at least one of the image and the text description from the temporary folder to the new patron folder.

5. A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of transmitting the electronic communication to the database is further defined as wirelessly transmitting the electronic communication to the database.

6. A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of photographing the patron to create the image is further defined as remotely photographing the patron to create the image.

7. A method as set forth in claim 1 wherein said step of transmitting the electronic communication to the database is further defined as electronically mailing the electronic communication to the database.

8. A method as set forth in claim 1 further including the step of saving at least one of the image and the text description in the patron folder if at least one of the image is equivalent to the known images and the text description is equivalent to the known text descriptions stored in the database to distinguish the patron between an existing patron and a new patron and to tracking the gaming activities of the patron.

9. A patron tracking system comprising:

an image capture device for capturing an image of a patron,

a text input device in communication with said image capture device for providing a text description associated with the image,

a communication software program in communication with said image capture device and said text input device for combining the image and the text description into an electronic communication,

a database having a patron folder and a temporary folder in communication with said image capture device and said text input device and having a plurality of known images and known text descriptions,

an image filer in communication with said database for filing the image in said database at a file location,

a comparator in communication with said database and at least one of said image capture device and said text input device for comparing at least one of said image to the known images and said text description to the known text descriptions stored on said database, and

the image filer for storing at least one of the image and the text description in the temporary folder if at least one of the image is different than the known images and the text description is different than the known text descriptions stored in the database to distinguish an existing patron from a new patron and to track the gaming activities of the patron.

10. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 9 wherein said database has a patron folder for storing the image of an existing patron.

11. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 10 wherein said database has a temporary folder for storing the image of a new patron.

12. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 11 further including a transfer software program in communication with said patron folder and said temporary folder on said database for moving at least one of the image and the text description from the temporary folder to the patron folder.

13. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 9 wherein the electronic communication is an email.

14. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 9 wherein the image capture device is a cellular phone.

15. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 9 wherein the text input device is a cellular phone.

16. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 9 wherein the image capture device is a personal digital assistant.

17. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 9 wherein the text input device is a personal digital assistant.

18. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 9 further including a gaming station in communication with said database.

19. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 18 further including an activity accumulator in communication with said gaming station for collecting activity data about the patron.

20. A patron tracking system as set forth in claim 18 wherein said gaming station is in wireless communication with said database.