Systems, methods, and devices for playing wagering games with location-triggered game features

• US 8,616,981 B1
• Filed: 02/26/2013
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: WMS Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Guinn, Andrew C., Vann, Jamie W., Smith, Pamela S., Louie, Daniel P., Moll, Jeremie D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ahmed, Masud
• Application Number:
  US13/776,871
• Time in Patent Office: 308 Days
• Field of Search: 463 16- 43, 273/191, 273/292, 273/143.R
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3237 about the players, e.g. profiling, responsible gaming, strategy/behavior of players, location of players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

Gaming devices, gaming systems, methods of conducting wagering games, and computer programs for executing wagering games are disclosed. A gaming system for playing a wagering game is disclosed which includes one or more processors and one or more memory devices storing instructions that, when executed by at least one of the processors, cause the gaming system to: receive an indication of a physical location of a mobile computing device; determine if the physical location of the mobile computing device corresponds to or is within a predetermined proximity of a designated hotspot location; and, if so, determine a location-based gaming feature associated with the designated hotspot location and automatically triggering the location-based gaming feature without requiring an input from a user of the mobile computing device. Automatically triggering the location-based gaming feature includes, in some embodiments, initiating play of at least a portion of the wagering game.

Claims

1. A gaming system for conducting a wagering game with a mobile computing device, the mobile computing device being configured to wirelessly communicate information with the gaming system via a network, the gaming system comprising:

one or more processors; and

one or more memory devices storing instructions that, when executed by at least one of the one or more processors, cause the gaming system to;

receive an indication of a physical location of the mobile computing device;

determine if the physical location of the mobile computing device corresponds to or is within a predetermined proximity of a designated hotspot location; and

responsive to the physical location of the mobile computing device corresponding to or being within the predetermined proximity of the designated hotspot location, determine a location-based gaming feature associated with the designated hotspot location and automatically trigger the location-based gaming feature without requiring an input from a user of the mobile computing device,

wherein automatically triggering the location-based gaming feature includes initiating play of at least a portion of the wagering game.

2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions that cause the gaming system to communicate to the mobile computing device a dedicated, standalone mobile software application for the mobile computing device.

3. The gaming system of claim 2, wherein the dedicated, standalone mobile software application is configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device information related to the designated hotspot location and the location-based gaming feature associated with the designated hotspot location.

4. The gaming system of claim 2, wherein the dedicated, standalone mobile software application is configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device a map of all designated hotspot locations within a predetermined proximity of the physical location of the mobile computing device.

5. The gaming system of claim 2, wherein the dedicated, standalone mobile software application is configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device a history of hotspot locations visited by the user or the location-based gaming features accumulated as a result of the user visiting those designated hotspot locations, or both.

6. The gaming system of claim 2, wherein the mobile software application is configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device a randomly determined outcome of the play of the wagering game and to redeem any awards associated therewith.

7. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions that cause the gaming system to save in a database a list of designated hotspots, a respective location of each of the designated hotspots, and one or more corresponding location-based gaming features associated with each hotspot on the list of designated hotspots.

8. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions that cause the gaming system to receive an input from the user of the mobile computing device to view a randomly determined outcome of the play of the wagering game and to redeem any awards associated therewith.

9. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions that cause the gaming system to receive requisite player information to create a player account associated with the user of the mobile computing device.

10. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions that cause the gaming system, responsive to receiving the requisite player information, to create a player account and store in a database the player account associated with an indicator of the mobile computing device.

11. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the one or more memory devices store additional instructions that cause the gaming system to output a notification to the user of the mobile computing device that the location-based gaming feature was automatically triggered.

12. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the wagering game is a slot game, and the location-based gaming feature is a reel-spin-triggering event for the slot game.

13. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the designated hotspot location is associated with a business entity, and wherein at least a portion of the location-based gaming feature is sponsored by the business entity.

14. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the physical location of the mobile computing device is determined using at least one of a global positioning system, triangulation of a signal output by the mobile computing device, a comparison of a signal output by the mobile computing device between at least two different receivers, an RFID tag, an NFC tag, a short range wireless connection between the mobile computing device and a stationary receiver, or a short range wireless connection between the mobile computing device and a mobile receiver.

15. One or more physical non-transitory computer-readable storage media including instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

receive an indication of a physical location of a mobile computing device configured to wirelessly communicate information with a gaming system configured to conduct a wagering game;

determine if the physical location of the mobile computing device corresponds to or is within a predetermined proximity of a designated hotspot location; and

responsive to the physical location of the mobile computing device corresponding to or being within the predetermined proximity of the designated hotspot location;

determine a location-based gaming feature associated with the designated hotspot location, and

automatically trigger the location-based gaming feature without requiring an input from a user of the mobile computing device, the automatically triggering the location-based gaming feature including initiating play of at least a portion of the wagering game.

16. A computer-implemented method of conducting a wagering game with a mobile computing device configured to wirelessly communicate information with a gaming system, the method comprising:

receiving an indication of a physical location of the mobile computing device;

determining if the physical location of the mobile computing device corresponds to or is within a predetermined proximity of a designated hotspot location; and

responsive to the physical location of the mobile computing device corresponding to or being within the predetermined proximity of the designated hotspot location;

determining a location-based gaming feature associated with the designated hotspot location, and

automatically triggering the location-based gaming feature without requiring an input from a user of the mobile computing device, the automatically triggering the location-based gaming feature including initiating play of at least a portion of the wagering game.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising communicating to the mobile computing device a dedicated, standalone mobile software application for the mobile computing device, wherein the dedicated, standalone mobile software application is configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device information related to the designated hotspot location and the location-based gaming feature associated with the designated hotspot location.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising communicating to the mobile computing device a dedicated, standalone mobile software application for the mobile computing device, wherein the dedicated, standalone mobile software application is further configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device a map of all designated hotspot locations within a predetermined proximity of the physical location of the mobile computing device.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising communicating to the mobile computing device a dedicated, standalone mobile software application for the mobile computing device, wherein the dedicated, standalone mobile software application is further configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device a history of hotspot locations visited by the user or the location-based gaming features accumulated as a result of the user visiting those designated hotspot locations, or both.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising communicating to the mobile computing device a dedicated, standalone mobile software application for the mobile computing device, wherein the mobile software application is further configured to display on a display of the mobile computing device a randomly determined outcome of the play of the wagering game and redeem any awards associated therewith.