High volume electronic lottery ticket distribution system

• US 8,317,590 B2
• Filed: 01/12/2009
• Issued: 11/27/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Everi Games Inc. (Everi Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Multimedia Games Incorporated
• Inventors: Enzminger, Joseph R., Malle, Nimai C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Suhol, Dmitry
• Assistant Examiner(s): SKAARUP, JASON M
• Application Number:
  US12/352,424
• Publication Number:
  US 20090124324A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,415 Days
• Field of Search: 463 16- 20, 463/29, 463 40- 43, 705/1, 705/14, 705/14.3, 705/500
• US Class Current: 463/17
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3225 Data transfer within a gaming system, e.g. data sent between gaming machines and users
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/329 Regular and instant lottery, e.g. electronic scratch cards

Abstract

A game server communicates game record groups to a site controller associated with a gaming site, and the site controller stores the game record groups in associated data storage. The site controller selects one of the stored game record groups in response to a game availability request associated with a respective game presentation, and communicates the selected game record group from the site controller to a player station services controller associated with the gaming site. The player station services controller stores that respective game record group in its associated data storage device and communicates data from a respective game record to a player station in response to a game play request from the player station, thereby allowing the player station to present a player with a lottery game result for the game play request.

Claims

1. A method for making electronic lottery result information available to a player station in an electronic lottery system, the method including:

(a) storing a number of game record groups at a first data storage device of a first data processing device located at a gaming site, each game record group including a number of unused lottery game records of a type required for one or more game presentations provided through a respective player station at the gaming site, and each lottery game record in a respective game record group including result indicating data which indicates a result associated with the respective lottery game record;

(b) in response to a first game availability request for a first game presentation provided through a first player station at the gaming site, selecting a first game record group stored at the first data storage device, communicating the first game record group from the first data storage device to a second data storage device of a second data processing device located at the gaming site but separate from the first player station, and storing the first game record group at the second data storage device, the first game record group including lottery game records of a type required for the first game presentation;

(c) in response to a game play request for the first game presentation provided through the first player station, communicating result indicating data from a respective lottery game record included in the first game record group stored at the second data storage device to the first player station, the game play request being separate from the first game availability request; and

(d) communicating the first game record group from the second data storage device to the first data storage device in response to a determination through the electronic lottery system that no game presentation requiring unused lottery game records of the type included in the first game record group is available through a respective player station which is configured to provide game play requests to the second data storage device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein there are a number of game presentations provided through different player stations at the gaming site, each game presentation requiring lottery game records of at least one lottery game record type, and further including:

(a) maintaining a list in the electronic lottery system of the lottery game record types stored at the second data storage device.

3. The method of claim 2 further including in response to the first game availability request, electronically scanning the list of lottery game record types stored at the second data storage device for the lottery game record type required for the first game presentation, and wherein the first game record group is selected and communicated to the second data storage device upon a determination that the list of lottery game record types does not include the lottery game record type required for the first game presentation.

4. The method of claim 1 further including in response to a subsequent game availability request for lottery game records of the type included in the first game group, communicating the first game record group from the first data storage device to the second data storage device and storing the first game record group at the second data storage device.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the first game availability request is generated in response to an activation of the first player station in the electronic lottery system.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the activation of the first player station occurs when the player station first becomes available for play in the electronic lottery system.

7. An apparatus for making electronic lottery result information available to a player station in an electronic lottery system, the apparatus including:

(a) a site controller and associated site controller data storage device located at a gaming site, the site controller data storage device storing a number of game record groups wherein each game record group includes a number of unused lottery game records of a type required for one or more game presentations provided through a respective player station at the gaming site, and each lottery game record in a respective game record group includes result indicating data which indicates a result associated with the respective lottery game record; and

(b) a player station services controller and associated player station data storage device located at the gaming site and being separate from a first player station providing a first game presentation at the gaming site, the player station services controller for (i) receiving a first game record group from the site controller data storage device responsive to a first game availability request for the first game presentation, the first game record group including lottery game records of a type required for the first game presentation, for (ii) storing the first game record group at the player station services data storage device, for (iii) communicating the result indicating data for a respective one of the lottery game records in the first game record group to the first player station in response to a game play request from the first player station, the game play request being separate from the game availability request, and for (iv) communicating the first game record group from the player station services data storage device to the site controller data storage device in response to a determination through the site controller that no game presentation requiring unused lottery game records of the type included in the first game record group is available through a respective player station which is configured to provide game play requests to the player station services data storage device.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein there are a number of game presentations provided through different player stations at the gaming site, each game presentation requiring lottery game records of at least one lottery game record type, and wherein the site controller maintains a list of the lottery game record types stored at the player station services data storage device.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the player station services controller is also for, in response to the first game availability request, scanning the list of lottery game record types stored at the player station services data storage device for the lottery game record type required for the first game presentation, and wherein the first game record group is selected and communicated to the player station services data storage device upon a determination that the list of lottery game record types does not include the lottery game record type required for the first game presentation.

10. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the site controller is also for, in response to a subsequent game availability request for lottery game records of the type included in the first game record group, communicating the first game record group from the site controller data storage device to the player station services data storage device and storing the first game record group at the player station services data storage device.

11. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the first game availability request is generated in response to an activation of the first player station in the electronic lottery system.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the activation of the first player station occurs when the player station first becomes available for play in the electronic lottery system.

13. A program product stored on one or more non-transitory computer readable devices, the program product including:

(a) site controller program code being executable for storing a number of game record groups at a first data storage device of a first data processing device located at a gaming site, each game record group including a number of unused lottery game records of a type required for one or more game presentations provided through a respective player station at the gaming site, and each lottery game record in a respective game record group including result indicating data which indicates a result associated with the respective lottery game record; and

(b) player station services program code being executable for (i) receiving a first game record group from the first data storage device responsive to a first game availability request for the first game presentation provided through a first player station at the gaming site, the first game record group including lottery game records of a type required for the first game presentation, for (ii) storing the first game record group at a second data storage device at the gaming site separate from the first player station, for (iii) communicating the result indicating data for a respective one of the lottery game records in the first game record group from the second data storage device to the first player station in response to a game play request from the first player station, the game play request being separate from the game availability request, and for (iv) communicating the first game record group from the second data storage device to the first data storage device in response to a determination through the site controller program code that no game presentation requiring unused lottery game records of the type included in the first game record group is available through a respective player station which is configured to provide game play requests to the second data storage device.

14. The program product of claim 13 wherein there are a number of game presentations provided through different player stations at the gaming site, each game presentation requiring lottery game records of at least one lottery game record type, and wherein the site controller program code is also executable for maintaining a list of the lottery game record types stored at the second data storage device.

15. The program product of claim 14 wherein the player station services program code is also executable for, in response to the first game availability request, scanning the list of lottery game record types stored at the second data storage device for the lottery game record type required for the first game presentation, and wherein the first game record group is selected and communicated to the second data storage device upon a determination that the list of lottery game record types does not include the lottery game record type required for the first game presentation.

16. The program product of claim 13 wherein the site controller program code is also executable for, in response to a subsequent game availability request for lottery game records of the type included in the first game record group, communicating the first game record group from the first data storage device to the second data storage device and storing the first game record group at the second data storage device.