Gaming machine

• US 9,978,204 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2014
• Issued: 05/22/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Konami Gaming Incorporated (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Konami Gaming Incorporated (Konami Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Shimizu, Toshiaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim, Kevin Y
• Application Number:
  US15/021,227
• Publication Number:
  US 20160225222A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,348 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3213 Details of moving display elements, e.g. spinning reels, tumbling members
• 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 17/34 depending on the stopping of moving members in a mechanical slot machine, e.g. "fruit" machines

Abstract

A gaming machine includes a controller and a spinnable reel having a plurality of symbols. The controller determines a symbol to be displayed when the reel stops and determines a spinning manner of the reel displaying the symbol when stopped based on the symbol. The controller spins the reel in the determined spinning manner and stops the reel so that the determined symbol is displayed.

Claims

1. A gaming machine, comprising:

a spinnable reel having a plurality of symbols; and

a memory device including a spinning manner distribution table including a plurality of spinning manners associated with the plurality of symbols, each symbol of the plurality of symbols including a corresponding selection probability associated with each of the spinning manners;

a controller configured to;

determine a symbol to be displayed when the reel stops;

access the spinning manner distribution table and determine the selection probabilities of each spinning manner associated with the determined symbol;

randomly determine a spinning manner of the reel based on the determined symbol and the determined selection probabilities of each spinning manner associated with the determined symbol; and

spin the reel in the determined spinning manner and stop the reel so that the determined symbol is displayed.

2. A gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the spinning manner includes at least one of a spinning time, a spinning direction, and a spinning speed.

3. A gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the controller determines the spinning manner from either a predetermined spinning manner or a spinning manner for rendering differing from the predetermined spinning manner based on the determined symbol and a predetermined probability.

4. A gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein each of the selection probabilities of each spinning manner associated with the determined symbol is different.

5. A gaming machine according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of the reels, wherein the controller determines a stopping order of each of the reels and the symbol to be displayed when each of the reels stops based on a predetermined probability.

9. A gaming machine according to claim 2, wherein the controller determines the spinning manner from either a predetermined spinning manner or a spinning manner for rendering differing from the predetermined spinning manner based on the determined symbol and a predetermined probability.

10. A gaming machine according to claim 9, wherein each of the selection probabilities of each spinning manner associated with the determined symbol is different.

11. A gaming machine according to claim 2, further comprising a plurality of the reels, wherein the controller determines a stopping order of each of the reels and the symbol to be displayed when each of the reels stops based on a predetermined probability.

12. A gaming machine according to claim 3, further comprising a plurality of the reels, wherein the controller determines a stopping order of each of the reels and the symbol to be displayed when each of the reels stops based on a predetermined probability.

13. A gaming machine according to claim 4, further comprising a plurality of the reels, wherein the controller determines a stopping order of each of the reels and the symbol to be displayed when each of the reels stops based on a predetermined probability.

14. A gaming machine according to claim 9, further comprising a plurality of the reels, wherein the controller determines a stopping order of each of the reels and the symbol to be displayed when each of the reels stops based on a predetermined probability.

15. A gaming machine according to claim 10, further comprising a plurality of the reels, wherein the controller determines a stopping order of each of the reels and the symbol to be displayed when each of the reels stops based on a predetermined probability.

6. A gaming machine comprising:

a display unit configured to display a plurality of reels, each of the reels having arranged symbols;

a memory device including a spinning manner distribution table including a plurality of spinning manners associated with the plurality of symbols, each symbol of the plurality of symbols including a corresponding selection probability associated with each of the spinning manners; and

a controller coupled to the display unit and the memory device, and configured to award a payout for a combination of symbols formed on the display unit by spinning and stopping the reels,

wherein when the formed combination of symbols satisfies a predetermined condition, the controller provides a bonus game that repeats a process of awarding the payout in response to the symbols displayed on the display unit by spinning and stopping at least one of the plurality of reels, and

wherein the controller during the bonus game determines the symbol to be displayed when the at least one of the plurality of reels stops,

accesses the spinning manner distribution table and determines the selection probabilities of each spinning manner associated with the determined symbol, randomly determines a spinning manner of the at least one of the plurality of reels based on the determined selection probabilities of each spinning manner associated with the determined symbol, and spins at least one of the plurality of reels in the determined spinning manner.

7. A gaming machine according to claim 6, wherein the spinning manner includes at least one of a spinning time, a spinning direction, and a spinning speed.

8. A gaming machine according to claim 6, wherein the plurality of spinning manners includes a normal spinning manner and a reverse spinning manner, the normal spinning manner having a different selection probability that the reverse spinning manner.

16. A gaming machine according to claim 7, wherein the controller displays the bonus game using the plurality of reels, the controller is configured to execute the bonus game including:

randomly determine a bonus award provided during the bonus game;

determine a number of prize symbols to be displayed during the bonus game and determine a number of symbol display events based on the number of prize symbols, each symbol display event including one of the plurality of reels being stopped to display a corresponding prize symbol;

for each symbol display event;

determine a prize symbol displayed during the corresponding symbol display event;

select a reel of the plurality of reels to display the determined prize symbol; and

select the spinning manner from a plurality of spinning manners for spinning the selected reel based on the determined prize symbol and the determined selection probabilities of each spinning manner associated with the determined prize symbol; and

sequentially display each of the determined number of symbol display events to display the bonus game.