Method and apparatus for providing secondary gaming machine functionality

• US 9,064,375 B2
• Filed: 08/12/2013
• Issued: 06/23/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/20/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Johnson, Sam, Ryan, Chad, Ward, Bradley G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hylinski, Steven J
• Application Number:
  US13/964,242
• Publication Number:
  US 20140221099A1
• Time in Patent Office: 680 Days
• Field of Search: 463/42
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3223 Architectural aspects of a gaming system, e.g. internal configuration, master/slave, wireless communication
• 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 17/3227 Configuring a gaming machine, e.g. downloading personal settings, selecting working parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3248 involving non-monetary media of fixed value, e.g. casino chips of fixed value
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3255 Incentive, loyalty and/or promotion schemes, e.g. comps, gaming associated with a purchase, gaming funded by advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3267 Game outcomes which determine the course of the subsequent game, e.g. double or quits, free games, higher payouts, different new games
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3272 Games involving multiple players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/329 Regular and instant lottery, e.g. electronic scratch cards
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/42 for ticket printing or like apparatus , e.g. apparatus for dispensing of printed paper tickets or payment cards

Abstract

A modified gaming machine includes a plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices for use in implementing one or more games to a player, and a master gaming controller configured to implement primary gaming machine functionality, including generating and transmitting information to the plurality of gaming machine peripherals. The modified gaming machine further comprises a secondary controller interposed between one or more of the plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices and the master gaming controller, whereby the secondary controller may forward information generated by the master gaming controller to the gaming machine peripheral devices and transmit secondary information to the peripheral devices.

Claims

1. A gaming machine comprising:

a plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices;

a master gaming controller configured to generate and transmit information to said plurality of gaming machine peripherals, said master gaming controller configured to operate with said plurality of gaming machine peripherals to randomly determine a game outcome for a play of a first game; and

a secondary controller interposed between at least one of said plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices and said master gaming controller, said secondary controller configured to;

(a) cause the at least one of said plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices to not display the randomly determined game outcome for the play of the first game,

(b) determine a game outcome for a play of a different second game, said determination being at least partially based on the randomly determined game outcome for the play of the first game, and

(c) cause said at least one of said plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices to display the game outcome for the play of the different second game.

2. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein the first game is associated with a first set of symbols and the second game is associated with a different second set of symbols.

3. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein the first game is a base game.

4. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein said master gaming controller is configured to operate with said plurality of gaming machine peripherals to receive a wager placed on the play of the first game.

5. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein the first game is associated with a first theme and the second game is associated with a second, different theme.

6. The gaming machine of claim 1, wherein the first game and the second game are associated with different gaming machine peripherals.

7. A method of operating a gaming machine, said method comprising:

(a) causing a master gaming controller to operate with a plurality of gaming machine peripherals to randomly determine a game outcome for a play of a first game;

(b) causing a secondary controller interposed between at least one of said plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices and said master gaming controller to cause the at least one of said plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices to not display the randomly determined game outcome for the play of the first game;

(c) causing the secondary controller to determine a game outcome for a play of a different second game, said determination being at least partially based on the randomly determined game outcome for the play of the first game; and

(d) causing the secondary controller to cause said at least one of said plurality of gaming machine peripheral devices to display the game outcome for the play of the different second game.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the first game is associated with a first set of symbols and the second game is associated with a different second set of symbols.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the first game is a base game.

10. The method of claim 7, which includes causing said master gaming controller to operate with said plurality of gaming machine peripherals to receive a wager placed on the play of the first game.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the first game is associated with a first theme and the second game is associated with a second, different theme.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the first game and the second game are associated with different gaming machine peripherals.

13. The method of claim 7, which is executed through a data network.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the data network is an internet.