Presenting lighting content in wagering game systems

• US 9,547,952 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2014
• Issued: 01/17/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Bally Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Brunell, Edward G., Radek, Paul J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Shah, Milap
• Application Number:
  US14/446,081
• Publication Number:
  US 20140335956A1
• Time in Patent Office: 903 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3211 Display means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3216 Construction aspects of a gaming system, e.g. housing, seats, ergonomic aspects
• 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

Abstract

Some embodiments of the inventive subject matter include operations for presenting a lighting show in a wagering game system. The operations can include receiving, over a first network, a playlist identifier that identifies a playlist, where the playlist is associated with a first group of lighting commands for presenting lighting effects on lighting devices in the wagering game system. The operations can also include generating the first group of lighting commands, and receiving, over the first network, a second group of lighting commands for presenting the lighting effects on the lighting devices in the wagering game system. The operations can also include generating, based on the first and second groups of lighting commands, instructions specific to the lighting devices, and transmitting, over a second network, the instructions for execution by one or more lighting controllers connected to the lighting devices, wherein the execution causes the lighting effects.

Claims

1. A wagering game system comprising:

a host lighting controller including a first processor and a first non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing first computer usable program code, the first computer usable program code executable by the first processor to cause the host lighting controller to perform first lighting operations, the first computer usable program code comprising;

program code to receive, from a plurality of non-host lighting controllers, lighting commands associated with a lighting presentation;

program code to generate, based on the lighting commands associated with the lighting presentation, host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation, wherein the host lighting instructions configure the host lighting controller to perform the first lighting operations that illuminate one or more lighting devices of the wagering game system; and

program code to transmit, to the plurality of non-host lighting controllers and a network lighting controller, a first portion of the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation;

the plurality of non-host lighting controllers, wherein each of the plurality of non-host lighting controllers includes a second processor and a second computer readable storage medium storing second computer usable program code, the second computer usable program code executable by the second processor to cause each of the plurality of non-host lighting controllers to perform second lighting operations, the second computer usable program code comprising;

program code to transmit, to the host lighting controller, the lighting commands associated with the lighting presentation;

program code to receive, from the host lighting controller, the first portion of the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation;

program code to receive, from others of the non-host lighting controllers, the lighting commands associated with the lighting presentation; and

program code to detect, by one of the non-host lighting controllers, that the host lighting controller is unavailable;

program code to, in response to detection that the host lighting controller is unavailable, transmit a second portion of the host lighting instructions to the network lighting controller to illuminate one or more of the one or more lighting devices of the wagering game system.

2. The wagering game system of claim 1, wherein the program code to detect that the host lighting controller is unavailable includes:

program code to determine that the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation have not been received within a predetermined period of time; and

program code to transmit, to a wagering game server, an indication of availability to acquire a role of host lighting controller.

3. The wagering game system of claim 1, wherein the second computer usable program code of the plurality of non-host lighting controllers further comprises:

program code to generate, based on the lighting commands associated with the lighting presentation, local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation; and

program code to store locally, the local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation.

4. The wagering game system of claim 3, wherein the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation and the local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation adhere to a DMX512 standard.

5. The wagering game system of claim 1, wherein the one or more lighting devices include lighting devices on wagering game machines and lighting devices separate from wagering game machines.

6. A method for controlling a lighting presentation in a wagering game system, the method comprising:

transmitting, by a plurality of non-host lighting controllers to a host lighting controller, lighting commands associated with a lighting presentation;

receiving, by the host lighting controller from the plurality of non-host lighting controllers, the lighting commands associated with the lighting presentation;

generating, by the host lighting controller and based on the lighting commands, host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation, wherein the host lighting instructions configure the host lighting controller to perform operations that illuminate one or more lighting devices of the wagering game system;

transmitting, to the plurality of non-host lighting controllers and a network lighting controller by the host lighting controller, a first portion of the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation;

receiving, by the plurality of non-host lighting controllers from the host lighting controller, the first portion of the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation;

detecting, by one of the non-host lighting controllers, that the host lighting controller is unavailable; and

transmitting, by the one of the non-host lighting controllers in response to detection that the host lighting controller is unavailable, a second portion of the host lighting instructions to the network lighting controller to illuminate one or more of the one or more lighting devices of the wagering game system.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the detecting that the host lighting controller is unavailable further comprises:

determining, by the one of the non-host lighting controllers, that the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation have not been received within a predetermined period of time; and

transmitting, by the one of the non-host lighting controllers to a wagering game server, an indication of availability to acquire a role of host lighting controller.

8. The method of claim 6 further comprising:

generating, by the non-host lighting controllers and based on the lighting commands, local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation; and

storing locally at each of the non-host lighting controllers the local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising:

discarding, upon receipt of the host lighting instructions, the local lighting instructions.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation and the local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation adhere to a DMX512 standard.

11. The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more lighting devices include lighting devices on wagering game machines and lighting devices separate from wagering game machines.

12. One or more non-transitory machine-readable mediums including program code stored thereon for controlling a lighting presentation in a wagering game system, the program code executable on one or more processors, the program code comprising:

program code to transmit, by a plurality of non-host lighting controllers to a host lighting controller, lighting commands associated with the lighting presentation;

program code to receive, by the host lighting controller from the plurality of non-host lighting controllers, the lighting commands associated with the lighting presentation;

program code to generate, by the host lighting controller and based on the lighting commands, host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation, wherein the host lighting instructions configure the host lighting controller to perform first lighting operations of the lighting presentation that illuminate one or more lighting devices of the wagering game system;

program code to transmit, to the plurality of non-host lighting controllers and a network lighting controller by the host lighting controller, a first portion of the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation;

program code to receive, by the plurality of non-host lighting controllers from the host lighting controller, the first portion of the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation;

program code to detect, by one of the non-host lighting controllers, that the host lighting controller is unavailable; and

program code to transmit, by the one of the non-host lighting controllers in response to detection that the host lighting controller is unavailable, a second portion of the host lighting instructions to the network lighting controller to illuminate one or more of the one or more lighting devices of the wagering game system.

13. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable mediums of claim 12, wherein the program code to detect, by one of the non-host lighting controllers, that the host lighting controller is unavailable further comprises:

program code to determine, by one or more of the non-host lighting controllers, that the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation have not been received within a predetermined period of time; and

program code to transmit, by one or more of the non-host lighting controllers to a wagering game server, an indication of availability to acquire a role of host lighting controller.

14. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable mediums of claim 13 further comprises:

program code to generate, by the non-host lighting controllers and based on the lighting commands, local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation; and

program code to store locally at each of the non-host lighting controllers the local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation.

15. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable mediums of claim 14 further comprising:

program code to discard, upon receipt of the host lighting instructions, the local lighting instructions.

16. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable mediums of claim 14, wherein the host lighting instructions for the lighting presentation and the local lighting instructions for the lighting presentation adhere to a DMX512 standard.

17. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable mediums of claim 12, wherein the one or more lighting devices includes lighting devices on wagering game machines and lighting devices separate from wagering game machines.