Machine having a card processing assembly

• US 8,070,594 B2
• Filed: 01/23/2009
• Issued: 12/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Hedrick, Joseph R., Wells, William R., Crivelli, Franco, Parrott, Greg
• Primary Examiner(s): Suhol, Dmitry
• Assistant Examiner(s): Grant, Michael
• Application Number:
  US12/358,882
• Publication Number:
  US 20090131157A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,047 Days
• Field of Search: 463/20, 463/25, 463/43
• US Class Current: 463/25
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3248 involving non-monetary media of fixed value, e.g. casino chips of fixed value
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3251 involving media of variable value, e.g. programmable cards, programmable tokens

Abstract

A machine having a card processing assembly. The machine has a plurality of card holders connectable to the card processing assembly. One card holder is configured to hold data cards associated with one condition. At least one other card holder is configured to hold data cards associated with another condition.

Claims

1. A machine comprising:

a housing;

a data card acceptor supported by the housing and configured to receive a plurality of data cards;

a card management assembly supported by the housing and including;

(a) at least one card processing assembly including a plurality of walls,

(b) a card transporter configured to receive the data cards from the data card acceptor and to transport the received data cards;

(c) a first card holder configured to store a first plurality of the data cards, the first plurality of the data cards having a used card condition, the first card holder being connectable to a first portion of the card management assembly, and

(d) a second card holder configured to store a second plurality of the data cards, the second plurality of the data cards having a new card condition, the second card holder being connectable to a second portion of the card management assembly,

at least one input device supported by the housing;

at least one processor which is operatively coupled to the card management assembly; and

at least one memory device operatively coupled to the at least one processor and storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

(a) operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to, after receiving one of the data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor;

(i) control the movement of said received data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder,

(ii) store said received data card having the used card condition in the first card holder, and

(iii) control the movement of said received data card having the used card condition from the first card holder back to the data card acceptor for distribution; and

(b) operate with the data card acceptor, the second card holder, and the card transporter to, in response to a first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution, the first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied when;

(i) a user cashes out of the machine, and

(ii) none of the data cards having the used card condition are stored in the first card holder.

2. The machine of claim 1, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to control the movement of one of the data cards having the used card condition received through the data card acceptor from the data card acceptor to the first card holder after a card retain condition is satisfied.

3. The machine of claim 2, wherein the card retain condition is satisfied when either one of a plurality of events occurs, the events including:

(a) a depletion of user funds; and

(b) a received one of the data cards having the used card condition being left in the card processing assembly for a period of time.

4. The machine of claim 1, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the data card acceptor and the card transporter to remove one of the data cards having the used card condition received through the data card acceptor from circulation when a card removal condition is satisfied.

5. The machine of claim 1, wherein the card management assembly includes at least one data card level sensor.

6. The machine of claim 1, wherein each of the data cards is configured to store data selected from the group consisting of fund data, fund tracking data, cash data and credit data, and wherein the card management assembly includes at least one data reader configured to read said stored data.

7. The machine of claim 1, which includes at least one display device operatively coupled to the at least one processor, and wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the at least one display device and the at least one input device to operate a game based on a wager.

8. The machine of claim 1, wherein each one of the data cards is thermally sensitive, and wherein the card management assembly includes a thermal graphics printing device configured to record graphics onto said thermally sensitive data cards.

9. A machine comprising:

a housing;

a data card acceptor supported by the housing and configured to receive a plurality of thermally rewritable data cards;

a card management assembly supported by the housing and including;

(a) a base,

(b) a card processing assembly supported by the base and including;

(i) a data reader,

(ii) a data writer,

iii) a thermal graphics printing device, and

(iv) a thermal graphics erasing device,

(b) a card transporter supported by the base and configured to receive the data cards from the data card acceptor and to transport the received data cards,

(c) a first card holder supported by the base and configured to store a first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards, the first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a used card condition, and

(d) a second card holder supported by the base and configured to store a second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards, the second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a new card condition,

at least one display device supported by the housing;

at least one input device supported by the housing;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

(a) operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor;

(i) control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder,

(ii) store said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition in the first card holder, and

(iii) control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the first card holder back to the data card acceptor for distribution,

(b) operate with the data card acceptor, the second card holder, and the card transporter to, in response to a first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution, the first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied when;

(i) a user cashes out of the machine, and

(ii) none of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition are stored in the first card holder, and

(c) operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder for storage when a card retain condition is satisfied.

10. The machine of claim 9, wherein the card retain condition is satisfied when either one of a plurality of events occurs, the events including:

(a) a depletion of user funds; and

(b) a received one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition being left in the card processing assembly for a period of time.

11. The machine of claim 9, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the data card acceptor and the card transporter to remove one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition received through the data card acceptor from circulation when a card removal condition is satisfied, the card removal condition being different than the card retain condition.

12. The machine of claim 9, wherein the card management assembly includes at least one data card level sensor.

13. The machine of claim 9, wherein each of the thermally rewritable data cards is configured to store data selected from the group consisting of fund data, fund tracking data, cash data and credit data, and wherein the data reader is configured to read said stored data.

14. The machine of claim 9, wherein the data reader and data writer are parts of a data reader-writer device.

15. The machine of claim 14, wherein the data reader-writer device includes a magnetic reader-writer device.

16. The machine of claim 9, wherein the thermal graphics printing device and thermal graphics erasing device are parts of a thermal graphics printer-eraser device.

17. The machine of claim 9, wherein the card management assembly includes at least one thermal energy source.

18. The machine of claim 9, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the at least one display device, the at least one input device, and the card management assembly to:

(a) receive a wager from the user;

(b) display a play of a game based on the received wager; and

(c) provide a payout depending upon an outcome of the play of the game.

19. A machine comprising:

a housing;

a display device supported by the housing and configured to display a game operable upon a wager;

a data card acceptor supported by the housing and configured to receive a plurality of thermally rewritable data cards, wherein each of the thermally rewritable data cards is thermally rewritable a predetermined number of times, the predetermined number of times being greater than one;

a read-write device supported by the housing;

a card transporter supported by the housing and configured to receive the thermally rewritable data cards from the data card acceptor;

a first card holder supported by the housing and configured to;

(a) receive and store each of a first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards from the card transporter, the first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a used card condition, and

(b) transport each of said received and stored thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition back to the card transporter for distribution by the card transporter;

a second card holder supported by the housing and configured to;

(a) store a second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards, the second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a new card condition, and

(b) transport each of said stored thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition to the card transporter for distribution by the card transporter;

a thermal energy supplier supported by the housing;

a thermal energy director coupled to the thermal energy supplier and configured to direct thermal energy toward each of a plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards received through the data card acceptor;

a processor configured to communicate with the read-write device and operatively coupled to the thermal energy supplier, the thermal energy director, the card transporter, the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the second card holder; and

a memory device storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

(a) operate with the first card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor;

(i) in response to a first condition being satisfied, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder for storage, and

(ii) in response to a second condition being satisfied, the second condition being different than the first condition, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the first card holder back to the data card acceptor for distribution, and

(b) operate with the second card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, in response to a first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution the first card holder empty and cash'"'"'out condition being satisfied when;

(i) a user cashes out of the machine, and

(ii) none of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition are stored in the first card holder.

20. The machine of claim 19, wherein the first condition is a zero balance condition, the zero balance condition being satisfied when a the user has zero credits remaining.

21. The machine of claim 19, wherein the second condition is a cash out condition, the cash out condition being satisfied when the user cashes out of the machine.

22. The machine of claim 19, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to operate with the first card holder, the second card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor, in response to a fourth condition being satisfied, the fourth condition being different than the first condition, the second condition, and the first card holder empty and cash out condition:

(a) control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder,

(b) store said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition in the first card holder, and

(c) thereafter, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution.

23. The machine of claim 22, wherein the fourth condition is a card retain condition, the card retain condition being satisfied when said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition has been thermally rewritten the predetermined number of times.

24. The machine of claim 19, wherein:

(a) the first card holder is positioned adjacent to the second card holder,

(b) the second card holder is configured to transport the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder through the first card holder to the card transporter for distribution by the card transporter, and

(c) the plurality of instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to operate with the first card holder, the second card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, in response to the first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder through the first card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution.

25. A machine comprising:

a housing;

a display device supported by the housing and configured to display a game operable upon a wager;

a data card acceptor supported by the housing and configured to receive a plurality of thermally rewritable data cards, wherein each of the thermally rewritable data cards is thermally rewritable a predetermined number of times, the predetermined number of times being greater than one;

a read-write device supported by the housing;

a card transporter supported by the housing and configured to receive the thermally rewritable data cards from the data card acceptor;

a first card holder supported by the housing and configured to;

(a) receive and store each of a first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards from the card transporter, the first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a used card condition, and

(b) transport each of said received and stored thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition back to the card transporter for distribution by the card transporter;

a second card holder supported by the housing and configured to;

(a) store a second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards, the second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a new card condition, and

(b) transport each of said stored thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition to the card transporter for distribution by the card transporter;

a thermal energy supplier supported by the housing;

a thermal energy director coupled to the thermal energy supplier and configured to direct thermal energy toward each of a plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards received through the data card acceptor;

a processor configured to communicate with the read-write device and operatively coupled to the thermal energy supplier, the thermal energy director, the card transporter, the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the second card holder;

and a memory device storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to;

(a) operate with the first card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor;

(i) in response to a zero balance condition being satisfied, the zero balance condition being satisfied when a user has zero credits remaining, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder for storage, and

(ii) in response to a cash out condition being satisfied, the cash out condition being satisfied when the user cashes out of the machine, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the first card holder back to the data card acceptor for distribution, and

(b) operate with the second card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, in response to a first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution, the first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied when;

(i) the user cashes out of the machine, and

(ii) none of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition are stored in the first card holder.

26. The machine of claim 25, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to operate with the first card holder, the second card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor, in response to a fourth condition being satisfied, the fourth condition being different than the zero balance condition, the cash out condition, and the first card holder empty and cash out condition:

(a) control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder,

(b) store said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition in the first card holder, and

(c) thereafter, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution.

27. The machine of claim 26, wherein the fourth condition is a card retain condition, the card retain condition being satisfied when said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition has been thermally rewritten the predetermined number of times.

28. The machine of claim 25, wherein:

(a) the first card holder is positioned adjacent to the second card holder,

(b) the second card holder is configured to transport the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder through the first card holder to the card transporter for distribution by the card transporter, and

(c) the plurality of instructions, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to operate with the first card holder, the second card holder, the card transporter, and the data card acceptor to, in response to the first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder through the first card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution.

29. A machine comprising:

a housing;

a data card acceptor supported by the housing and configured to receive a plurality of data cards;

a card management assembly supported by the housing and including;

(a) at least one card processing assembly including a plurality of walls,

(b) a card transporter configured to receive the data cards from the data card acceptor and to transport the received data cards;

(c) a first card holder configured to store a first plurality of the data cards, the first plurality of the data cards having a used card condition, the first card holder being connectable to a first portion of the card management assembly, and

(d) a second card holder configured to store a second plurality of the data cards, the second plurality of the data cards having a new card condition, the second card holder being connectable to a second portion of the card management assembly, at least one input device supported by the housing;

at least one processor which is operatively coupled to the card management assembly; and

at least one memory device operatively coupled to the at least one processor and storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

(a) operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to, after receiving one of the data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor;

(i) in response to a zero balance condition being satisfied, the zero balance condition being satisfied when a user has zero credits remaining, control the movement of said received data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder and store said received data card having the used card condition in the first card holder, and

(ii) in response to a cash out condition being satisfied, the cash out condition being satisfied when the user cashes out of the machine, control the movement of said received data card having the used card condition from the first card holder back to the data card acceptor for distribution; and

(b) operate with the data card acceptor, the second card holder, and the card transporter to, in response to a first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution, the first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied when;

(i) the user cashes out of the machine, and

(ii) none of the data cards having the used card condition are stored in the first card holder.

30. The machine of claim 29, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to control the movement of one of the data cards having the used card condition received through the data card acceptor from the data card acceptor to the first card holder after a card retain condition is satisfied.

31. The machine of claim 30, wherein the card retain condition is satisfied when either one of a plurality of events occurs, the events including:

(a) a depletion of user funds; and

(b) a received one of the data cards having the used card condition being left in the card processing assembly for a period of time.

32. The machine of claim 29, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the data card acceptor and the card transporter to remove one of the data cards having the used card condition received through the data card acceptor from circulation when a card removal condition is satisfied.

33. The machine of claim 29, wherein the card management assembly includes at least one data card level sensor.

34. The machine of claim 29, wherein each of the data cards is configured to store data selected from the group consisting of fund data, fund tracking data, cash data and credit data, and wherein the card management assembly includes at least one data reader configured to read said stored data, and wherein the data reader is configured to read said stored data.

35. The machine of claim 29, which includes at least one display device operatively coupled to the at least one processor, and wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the at least one display device and the at least one input device to operate a game based on a wager.

36. The machine of claim 29, wherein each one of the data cards is thermally sensitive, and wherein the card management assembly includes a thermal graphics printing device configured to record graphics onto said thermally sensitive data cards.

37. A machine comprising:

a housing;

a data card acceptor supported by the housing and configured to receive a plurality of thermally rewritable data cards;

a card management assembly supported by the housing and including;

(a) a base,

(b) a card processing assembly supported by the base and including;

(i) a data reader,

(ii) a data writer,

(iii) a thermal graphics printing device, and

(iv) a thermal graphics erasing device,

(b) a card transporter supported by the base and configured to receive the data cards from the data card acceptor and to transport the received data cards,

(c) a first card holder supported by the base and configured to store a first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards, the first plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a used card condition, and

(d) a second card holder supported by the base and configured to store a second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards, the second plurality of the thermally rewritable data cards having a new card condition,

at least one display device supported by the housing;

at least one input device supported by the housing;

at least one processor; and

at least one memory device which stores a plurality of instructions, which when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to;

(a) operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor;

(i) in response to a zero balance condition being satisfied, the zero balance condition being satisfied when a user has zero credits remaining, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder and store said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition in the first card holder, and

(ii) in response to a cash out condition being satisfied, the cash out condition being satisfied when the user cashes out of the machine, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the first card holder back to the data card acceptor for distribution,

(b) operate with the data card acceptor, the second card holder, and the card transporter to, in response to a first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied, control the movement of one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the new card condition stored in the second card holder from the second card holder to the data card acceptor for distribution, the first card holder empty and cash out condition being satisfied when;

(i) the user cashes out of the machine, and

(ii) none of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition are stored in the first card holder, and

(c) operate with the data card acceptor, the first card holder, and the card transporter to, after receiving one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition through the data card acceptor, control the movement of said received thermally rewritable data card having the used card condition from the data card acceptor to the first card holder for storage when a card retain condition is satisfied.

38. The machine of claim 37, wherein the card retain condition is satisfied when either one of a plurality of events occurs, the events including:

(a) a depletion of user funds; and

(b) a received one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition being left in the card processing assembly for a period of time.

39. The machine of claim 37 wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the data card acceptor and the card transporter to remove one of the thermally rewritable data cards having the used card condition received through the data card acceptor from circulation when a card removal condition is satisfied, the card removal condition being different than the card retain condition.

40. The machine of claim 37, wherein the card management assembly includes at least one data card level sensor.

41. The machine of claim 37, wherein each of the thermally rewritable data cards is configured to store data selected from the group consisting of fund data, fund tracking data, cash data and credit data.

42. The machine of claim 37, wherein the data reader and data writer are parts of a data reader-writer device.

43. The machine of claim 42, wherein the data reader-writer device includes a magnetic reader-writer device.

44. The machine of claim 37, wherein the thermal graphics printing device and thermal graphics erasing device are parts of a thermal graphics printer-eraser device.

45. The machine of claim 37, wherein the card management assembly includes at least one thermal energy source.

46. The machine of claim 37, wherein the plurality of instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to operate with the at least one display device, the at least one input device, and the card management assembly to:

(a) receive a wager from the user;

(b) display a play of a game based on the received wager; and

(c) provide a payout depending upon an outcome of the play of the game.