Dynamic display systems for gaming machines

• US 8,684,846 B2
• Filed: 11/10/2006
• Issued: 04/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Waxman, Thomas D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lewis, David L
• Assistant Examiner(s): Thomas, Eric M
• Application Number:
  US11/558,860
• Publication Number:
  US 20080113737A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,699 Days
• Field of Search: 463 16- 20, 463/30, 463/31, 463/46, 463/47
• US Class Current: 463/46
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3202 Hardware aspects of a gaming system, e.g. components, construction, architecture thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3234 about the performance of a gaming system, e.g. revenue, diagnosis of the gaming system

Abstract

Flexibly configurable button panels for electronic devices and dynamic display systems for wager based gaming machines are disclosed. Button panels include a flexible cable, surface mount or other cable connectors spaced along and coupled thereto, and button assemblies coupled thereto via the cable connectors to provide electrical access from buttons to circuit lines. Relative physical locations of buttons are then reconfigurable to form different button panel configurations while the buttons remain coupled to the flexible cable. A dedicated dynamic button panel controller for processing button functions and a button panel identification device having an identification code can also be provided. Buttons can be removably coupled to the cable connectors, and can also include dynamic displays thereupon. Other gaming machine dynamic displays can also be provided. Separate dynamic display controllers can be provided to control dynamic displays directly to alleviate processing burdens on the master gaming controller.

Claims

1. A gaming machine adapted for accepting a wager, playing a game based on the wager and granting a payout based on a result of the wager-based game, comprising:

an exterior housing arranged to contain a plurality of internal gaming machine components therein;

a master gaming controller in communication with at least one of said plurality of internal gaming machine components and configured to execute or control one or more aspects of said wager based game;

a primary display in communication with said master gaming controller and configured to present said result of said wager based game;

a plurality of dynamic displays located on or about said gaming machine and configured to display video data, said plurality of dynamic displays being separate display devices from said primary display and being coupled with a flexible cable at locations spaced along the flexible cable such that the plurality of dynamic displays may be arranged in a plurality of configurations; and

a plurality of dynamic display controllers located separately from said master gaming controller and configured to directly control video data displayed on said plurality of dynamic displays, wherein at least one of the plurality of dynamic display controllers is further configured to detect types of said plurality of dynamic displays, wherein at least one dynamic display controller of said plurality of dynamic display controllers is further configured to verify a configuration or location of said plurality of dynamic displays, and wherein said plurality of dynamic display controllers are in direct or indirect communication with said master gaming controller.

2. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein said plurality of dynamic displays comprises at least five dynamic displays.

3. The gaming machine of claim 2, wherein said plurality of dynamic displays comprises at least ten dynamic displays.

4. The gaming machine of claim 3, wherein said plurality of dynamic displays comprises at least 32 dynamic displays.

5. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein said plurality of dynamic displays are located on distinctly separate gaming machine components.

6. The gaming machine of claim 5, wherein at least two of said distinctly separate gaming machine components are selected from the group consisting of:

a top box display, a belly glass display, a dynamic button panel, a dynamic button, a bonus device display and a player tracking display.

7. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein said plurality of dynamic displays are adapted to display default images, diagnostic images, or both.

8. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein at least one of said plurality of dynamic display controllers is built into a respective dynamic display.

9. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein at least one of said plurality of dynamic display controllers is adapted to store static visual images, video, or both for use with its controlled dynamic display or displays.

10. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein at least one of said plurality of dynamic display controllers is adapted to control different types of dynamic displays simultaneously.

11. The gaming machine of claim 10, wherein said at least one of said plurality of dynamic display controllers adapted to control different types of dynamic displays simultaneously is further adapted to both detect and diagnose the types of dynamic displays with which it communicates.

12. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein at least one of said plurality of dynamic display controllers is adapted to receive directly downloaded static visual images, video, or both from an outside source.

13. The gaming machine of claim 12, wherein said outside source is said master gaming controller, an external server, or both.

14. The gaming machine of claim 1, further comprising:

a flexibly configurable button panel in direct communication with a button display controller selected from said plurality of dynamic display controllers and adapted to provide a plurality of input buttons that can be arranged into multiple distinct button panel configurations, said flexibly configurable button panel including the flexible cable, the flexible cable having a plurality of separate circuit lines running therethrough, a plurality of cable connectors spaced along and coupled to said flexible cable, and a plurality of button assemblies coupled to said flexible cable via said plurality of cable connectors, wherein one or more of said button assemblies includes a button having a dynamic display that is controlled by said button display controller.