Remote management of a gaming machine through retrieval of an inventory of assets

• US 8,192,288 B2
• Filed: 08/14/2006
• Issued: 06/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: WMS Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Sylla, Craig J., Gagner, Mark B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Milap
• Application Number:
  US11/997,610
• Publication Number:
  US 20080318658A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,122 Days
• Field of Search: 707/705, 711/170, 463 16- 29, 463 40- 42
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3232 wherein the operator is informed

Abstract

Systems, apparatus and methods for remote management of a gaming machine are described herein. In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a host platform having a host processor controlled by a host operating system. The host platform has a host storage and a host power state, wherein the host processor is to execute instructions that includes a wagering game. The apparatus also includes a subsystem that is operable independent of the host operating system and the host power state. The subsystem includes a processor that is separate from the host processor. The subsystem also includes a nonvolatile data store that is separate from the storage of the host platform.

Claims

1. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions which when executed by a machine cause the machine to perform operations comprising:

receiving a request, from a game server, for discovery for an inventory of assets in a gaming machine having a host platform, the host platform having a host processor;

retrieving a list of the inventory of assets from a data store in a subsystem that is independent of a power state or an operating system state of the host platform, the subsystem having a subsystem processor that operates independent of the host processor; and

transmitting the list of the inventory of assets back to the game server.

2. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein retrieving the list of the inventory of assets comprises retrieving the list of the inventory of assets during a time when the power state of the host platform is off.

3. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein retrieving the list of the inventory of assets comprises retrieving the list of the inventory of assets during a time when the operating system state of the host platform is non-operational.

4. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein retrieving the list of the inventory of assets comprises retrieving a list of games installed on the host platform of the gaming machine.

5. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein retrieving the list of the inventory of assets comprises retrieving a list of hardware assets of the host platform of the gaming machine.

6. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the data store comprises a nonvolatile data store that is separate from the storage of the host platform.

7. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions further comprise storing in the data store at least one of:

an identification of a wagering game, an identification of a version of the wagering game, or an identification of the host platform.

8. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions further comprise storing a log entry in the nonvolatile data store for a loggable event.

9. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the loggable event includes one or more of:

a corruption of data in the storage of the host platform, an installation of a new version of the host operating system, or an award above a monetary amount in the wagering game.

10. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions further comprise:

querying the host platform for the list of the inventory of assets; and

updating the data store with the list of the inventory of assets.

11. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 10, wherein querying the host platform includes reading the list of the inventory of assets from a host platform data store.

12. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions further comprise controlling, by the subsystem, access to resources of the host platform.

13. A method comprising:

receiving a request, from a requestor, for discovery for an inventory of assets in a gaming machine having a host platform, the host platform having a host processor;

retrieving a list of the inventory of assets from a data store in a subsystem that is independent of a power state or an operating system state of the host platform, the subsystem having a subsystem processor that operates independent of the host processor; and

transmitting the list of the inventory of assets back to the requestor.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein retrieving the list of the inventory of assets comprises retrieving the list of the inventory of assets during a time when the power state of the host platform is off.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein retrieving the list of the inventory of assets comprises retrieving the list of the inventory of assets during a time when the operating system state of the host platform is non-operational.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein retrieving the list of the inventory of assets comprises retrieving one or more of:

a list of games installed on the host platform of the gaming machine or a list of hardware assets of the host platform of the gaming machine.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the data store comprises a nonvolatile data store that is separate from the storage of the host platform.

18. The method of claim 13, and further comprising storing in the data store at least one of:

an identification of a wagering game, an identification of a version of the wagering game, or an identification of the host platform.

19. The method of claim 13, and further comprising storing a log entry in the nonvolatile data store for a loggable event.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the loggable event includes one or more of:

a corruption of data in the storage of the host platform, an installation of a new version of the host operating system, or an award above a monetary amount in the wagering game.

21. An apparatus comprising:

a host platform having a host processor controlled by a host operating system, the host platform having a host storage and a host power state, wherein the host processor is configured to execute instructions that include a wagering game; and

a subsystem having a processor that is separate from the host processor and executes independently of the host operating system and the host power state, the subsystem further having a nonvolatile data store that is separate from the storage of the host platform, the subsystem operable to;

receive a request from a requestor for discovery of an inventory of assets in the host platform,

retrieve a list of the inventory of assets from the nonvolatile data store, and

transmit the list of the inventory of assets to the requestor.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the subsystem retrieves the list of the inventory of assets during a time when the power state of the host platform is off.

23. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the subsystem retrieves the list of the inventory of assets during a time when the operating system state of the host platform is non-operational.

24. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the list of the inventory of assets comprises one or more of:

a list of games installed on the host platform of the gaming machine or a list of hardware assets of the host platform of the gaming machine.

25. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the nonvolatile data store is further to store at least one of:

an identification of a wagering game, an identification of a version of the wagering game, or an identification of the host platform.

26. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the subsystem further stores a log entry in the nonvolatile data store for a loggable event.

27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the loggable event includes one or more of:

a corruption of data in the storage of the host platform, an installation of a new version of the host operating system, or an award above a monetary amount in the wagering game.