Method, apparatus, and program product for presenting results in a bingo-type game

• US 7,766,741 B2
• Filed: 01/30/2002
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Everi Games Inc. (Everi Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Multimedia Games Incorporated
• Inventors: Willyard, Rodney L., Lind, Jefferson C., Enzminger, Joseph R., Loebig, Gary L., Graves, Gordon T., Lind, Clifton, Lannert, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Jones; Scott
• Assistant Examiner(s): Deodhar; Omkar
• Application Number:
  US10/060,643
• Publication Number:
  US 20020132661A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,107 Days
• Field of Search: 463 16- 20, 463/25, 463/29, 463/42, 463/13, 273/139, 273/169
• US Class Current: 463/19
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/323 wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3232 wherein the operator is informed
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3251 involving media of variable value, e.g. programmable cards, programmable tokens
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3258 Cumulative reward schemes, e.g. jackpots
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3262 Player actions which determine the course of the game, e.g. selecting a prize to be won, outcome to be achieved, game to be played
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3286 Type of games
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3288 Betting, e.g. on live events, bookmaking
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/329 Regular and instant lottery, e.g. electronic scratch cards

Abstract

Each bingo card representation matched with a game designation set in a given bingo game (a “matched bingo card representation”) represents a respective game play record providing a result in the bingo game. The result represented by a matched bingo card representation is displayed to a player in the bingo-type game through a result representation provided at a suitable player station. Each result representation is correlated to one or more game results in the bingo-type game so that each game result in the bingo-type game is associated with a result representation. According to the invention, each result representation includes a graphical representation unrelated to the bingo-type game. That is, although the game results are simply bingo game results defined by predetermined patterns of matches between the various card designations and the designation set produced or called for a particular bingo-type game, the game results are displayed to the players with a graphical display including a graphic that is not merely a graphical representation or reproduction of a bingo card. Displaying the result of the bingo-type game to the player thus involves displaying the result representation associated with the particular game result in lieu or at least in addition to the representation of the matched bingo-type game card.

Claims

1. A gaming method including:

(a) matching a set of bingo card representations for a bingo game with a game designation set to identify a first winning pattern for a first bingo card representation included in the set of bingo card representations, the first winning pattern being defined as a predetermined game ending arrangement of card locations produced upon matching the first bingo card representation with a final game designation of the game designation set to define an end of the bingo game, and the first winning pattern being associated with a first prize to be awarded for achieving the first winning pattern;

(b) identifying an additional winning pattern for an additional bingo card representation included in the set of bingo card representations other than the first bingo card representation, the additional winning pattern being defined as a predetermined additional winning arrangement of card locations matched to the game designations from the game designation set, the additional winning arrangement of card locations being dissimilar to the game ending arrangement of card locations, and the additional winning pattern being associated with an additional prize to be awarded for achieving the additional winning pattern, the additional prize being different from the first prize;

(c) displaying a first result representation at an electronic player station for a player associated with the first bingo card representation, the first result representation including a first graphical representation imitating a result in a game other than bingo, the first graphical representation being correlated with the first prize so that displaying the first graphical representation indicates that the first prize is being awarded for producing the first winning pattern with the first bingo card representation; and

(d) displaying an additional result representation at an electronic player station for a player associated with the additional bingo card representation, the additional result representation including an additional graphical representation imitating an additional result in the game other than bingo, the additional graphical representation being correlated with the additional prize so that displaying the additional graphical representation indicates that the additional prize is being awarded for producing the additional winning pattern with the additional bingo card representation, wherein the game other than bingo includes (i) a reel-type game in which a respective result is shown by a number of spinning reels which come to rest to display an array of indicia or (ii) a playing card game.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein matching the set of bingo card representations with the game designation set is performed prior to an assignment of bingo card representations from the set of bingo card representations to players in the bingo game.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the game other than bingo is limited to the playing card game.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the game other than bingo is limited to the reel-type game.

5. A gaming apparatus including:

(a) a back office component for matching a set of bingo card representations for a bingo game with a game designation set to identify a first winning pattern for a first bingo card representation included in the set of bingo card representations and to identify an additional winning pattern for an additional bingo card representation included in the set of bingo card representations, the first winning pattern being associated with a first prize to be awarded for achieving the first winning pattern and being defined as a predetermined game ending arrangement of card locations produced upon matching the first bingo card representation with a final game designation applied from the game designation set to define an end of the bingo game, and the additional winning pattern being associated with an additional prize to be awarded for achieving the additional winning pattern and being defined as a predetermined additional winning arrangement of card locations matched to the game designations from the game designation set, where the additional prize is different from the first prize, and where the additional winning arrangement of card locations is dissimilar to the game ending arrangement of card locations;

(b) a first player station and an additional player station, the first player station and the additional player station each being connected for communication with the back office component;

(c) a first display device associated with the first player station, the first display device for displaying a first result representation which includes a first graphical representation imitating a result in a game other than bingo, the first graphical representation being correlated with the first prize so that displaying the first graphical representation indicates that the first prize is being awarded for producing the first winning pattern with the first bingo card representation; and

(d) an additional display device associated with the additional player station, the additional display device for displaying an additional result representation which includes an additional graphical representation imitating an additional result in the game other than bingo, the additional graphical representation being correlated with the additional prize so that displaying the additional graphical representation indicates that the additional prize is being awarded for producing the additional winning pattern with the additional bingo card representation, wherein the game other than bingo includes (i) a reel-type game in which a respective result is shown by a number of spinning reels which come to rest to display an array of indicia or (ii) a playing card game.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the back office component matches the set of bingo card representations with the game designation set prior to an assignment of bingo card representations from the set of bingo card representations to players in the bingo game.

7. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the game other than bingo is limited to the reel-type game.

8. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the game other than bingo is limited to the playing card game.

9. A program product stored on a non-transitory computer readable medium, the program product including:

(a) matching program code that is executable for matching a set of bingo card representations for a bingo game with a game designation set to identify a first winning pattern for a first bingo card representation included in the set of bingo card representations and to identify an additional winning pattern for an additional bingo card representation included in the set of bingo card representations, the first winning pattern being associated with a first prize to be awarded for achieving the first winning pattern and being defined as a predetermined game ending arrangement of card locations produced upon matching the first bingo card representation with a final game designation applied from the game designation set to define an end of the bingo game, and the additional winning pattern being associated with an additional prize to be awarded for achieving the additional winning pattern and being defined as a predetermined additional winning arrangement of card locations matched to the game designations from the game designation set, where the additional prize is different from the first prize, and where the additional winning arrangement of card locations is dissimilar to the game ending arrangement of card locations;

(b) first display program code that is executable at a first player station for displaying a first result representation at the first player station, the first result representation including a first graphical representation imitating a result in a game other than bingo, the first graphical representation being correlated with the first prize so that displaying the first graphical representation indicates that the first prize is being awarded for producing the first winning pattern with the first bingo card representation; and

(c) second display program code that is executable at a second player station for displaying an additional result representation at the second player station, the additional result representation including an additional graphical representation imitating an additional result in the game other than bingo, the additional graphical representation being correlated with the additional prize so that displaying the additional graphical representation indicates that the additional prize is being awarded for producing the additional winning pattern with the additional bingo card representation, wherein the game other than bingo includes (i) a reel-type game in which a respective result is shown by a number of spinning reels which come to rest to display an array of indicia or (ii) a playing card game.

10. The program product of claim 9 wherein the matching program code is executable to match the set of bingo card representations with the game designation set prior to an assignment of bingo card representations from the set of bingo card representations to players in the bingo game.

11. The program product of claim 9 wherein the game other than bingo is limited to the reel-type game.

12. The program product of claim 9 wherein the game other than bingo is limited to the playing card game.