System and method of conducting games of chance with enhanced payouts based on cash in amount

• US 10,460,559 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2018
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sean Malek
• Original Assignee: Sean Malek
• Inventors: Malek, Sean
• Primary Examiner(s): Torimiro, Adetokunbo O
• Application Number:
  US16/051,308
• Publication Number:
  US 20180336762A1
• Time in Patent Office: 455 Days
• Field of Search: 463 13, 463 71, 463 20, 463 21, 463 22, 463 24, 463 25
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3209 Input means, e.g. buttons, touch screen
• 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 17/323 wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3241 Security aspects of a gaming system, e.g. detecting cheating, device integrity, surveillance computer security G06F21/00
• 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 17/3246 involving coins and/or banknotes
• 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 17/326 Game play aspects of gaming systems
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3269 Timing aspects of game play, e.g. blocking/halting the operation of a gaming machine
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3272 Games involving multiple players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3293 Card games, e.g. poker, canasta, black jack
• 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 system and method of providing a player loyalty program to award a player of an electronic gaming machine, including conducting games with enhanced payouts based on a cash in or initial investment amount. In response to a player'"'"'s initial investment or cash in amount, a payout schedule is selected. The larger the initial investment the better the selected payout schedule for the player. Live games facilitated by electronic gaming machines or devices and server-based games may utilize the method disclosed herein. Players may also receive enhanced awards such as enhanced player points based on the amount of the initial investment. Awards and bonuses may also be provided to players who exhaust an initial investment exceeding a threshold amount.

Claims

1. A method of conducting a player loyalty program to award a player of a game on an electronic gaming machine, the electronic gaming machine being operatively associated with a display, a memory unit and a processor, the method comprising the steps of:

said processor accepting an initial investment from a player to participate in said game on said electronic gaming machine, the electronic gaming machine being configured to use a first payout schedule and a second payout schedule to determine payouts from instances of play of a game of chance, the first and second payout schedules being stored in the memory unit operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine and the first payout schedule having a greater overall payout percentage than the second payout schedule, wherein any payout is distributed to a player account stored in the memory unit of the electronic gaming machine;

said processor operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine facilitating the crediting said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit operatively associated with said electronic gaming machine an amount equivalent to said initial investment, wherein said crediting of the player'"'"'s account is stored in the memory unit;

said processor operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine facilitating the counting of a number of times the first payout schedule is used to determine a payout of none or one or more credits for crediting to said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit operatively associated with said electronic gaming machine from instances of play of the game; and

responsive to said processor operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine facilitating the determination of the counted number of times said first payout schedule is used to determine a payout to said player'"'"'s account being equal to or greater than a first threshold value, said processor operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine facilitating the assigning an award for display on the display operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine; and

responsive to said processor operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine facilitating the determination of the counted number of times said first payout schedule is used to determine a payout to said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit being less than said first threshold value, said processor using one of the first and second payout schedules stored in the memory unit to determine a payout amount to be credited to said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit from an instance of play of the game on the electronic gaming machine.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the award is a monetary amount.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the award is a non-monetary item.

4. The method as recited in claim 3, wherein the award is an amount of free play of the game.

5. The method as recited in claim 3, wherein the award is an amount of player loyalty program points.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

said processor accepting an additional investment from a player to participate in said game on said electronic gaming machine; and

said processor crediting said player'"'"'s account on said electronic gaming machine an amount equivalent to said additional investment.

7. The method as recited in claim 6, further comprising the steps of:

comparing the amount of the additional investment with a threshold amount; and

responsive to the additional investment being greater than the threshold amount, said processor using the first payout schedule to determine a payout amount to be credited to said player'"'"'s account from an instance of play of the game.

8. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

comparing the amount of the initial investment with a threshold amount; and

responsive to the initial investment being greater than the threshold amount, said processor using the first payout schedule to determine a payout amount to be credited to said player'"'"'s account from an instance of play of the game.

9. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of said processor receiving a first threshold value and storing said first threshold value in the memory unit.

10. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein responsive to the counted number of times said first payout schedule is used to determine a payout to said player'"'"'s account being less than said first threshold value, said processor using the second payout schedule to determine a payout amount to be credited to said player'"'"'s account from an instance of play of the game.

11. An electronic gaming machine operatively associated with a display, a memory unit and a processor, the processor being configured to execute and conduct a player loyalty program involving the provision of awards to players of a game on the electronic gaming machine, comprising:

said processor detecting an initial investment received by the electronic gaming machine from a player to participate in said game on said electronic gaming machine, the electronic gaming machine being configured to use one of a first payout schedule and a second payout schedule to determine payouts from instances of play of the game, the first payout schedule and the second payout schedule being stored in the memory unit operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine and the first payout schedule having a greater overall payout percentage than the second payout schedule, wherein any payout determined by the processing device is distributed to a player account stored in the memory unit operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine;

said processor crediting said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit operatively associated with said electronic gaming machine an amount equivalent to said initial investment, wherein said crediting of the player'"'"'s account is stored in the memory unit;

said processor counting a number of times the first payout schedule is used by the processor in connection with play of the game on the electronic gaming machine to determine a payout to said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit operatively associated with said electronic gaming machine from instances of play of the game; and

responsive to said processor determining the counted number of times said first payout schedule is used to determine a payout to said player'"'"'s account as being equal to or greater than a first threshold value, the first threshold value being stored in the memory unit, said processor assigning an award for display on the display operatively associated with the electronic gaming machine; and

responsive to said processor determining the counted number of times said first payout schedule is used to determine a payout to said player'"'"'s account as being less than said first threshold value, said processor using one of the first and second payout schedules to determine a payout amount to be credited to said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit from an instance of play of the game.

12. The electronic gaming machine as recited in claim 11, further comprising an input device in communication with the electronic gaming machine and operatively associated with the processor for receiving the initial investment.

13. The electronic gaming machine as recited in claim 11, wherein the award comprises one or more of a monetary amount, a non-monetary item, an amount of free play of the game and player loyalty program points.

14. The electronic gaming machine as recited in claim 11, further comprising the processor comparing the amount of the initial investment with a threshold amount;

and responsive to the initial investment being greater than the threshold amount, said processor using the first payout schedule to determine a payout amount to be credited to said player'"'"'s account from an instance of play of the game.

15. The electronic gaming machine as recited in claim 11, further comprising said processor receiving a first threshold value and storing said first threshold value in the memory unit.

16. The electronic gaming machine as recited in claim 11, wherein responsive to the counted number of times said first payout schedule is used to determine a payout to said player'"'"'s account being less than said first threshold value, said processor using the second payout schedule to determine a payout amount to be credited to said player'"'"'s account from an instance of play of the game.

17. A method of conducting a player loyalty program to award a player of a game on an electronic gaming machine, the electronic gaming machine being operatively associated with a display, a memory unit and a processor, the method comprising the steps of:

said processor detecting receipt by the electronic gaming machine of an initial investment from a player to participate in said game on said electronic gaming machine, said electronic gaming machine being configured to use at least one of a first payout schedule and a second payout schedule to determine payouts to said player'"'"'s account from instances of play of the game, the first payout schedule and the second payout schedule being stored in the memory unit, wherein upon being implemented by the electronic gaming machine, the first payout schedule includes one or more higher payouts than one or more payouts included in the second payout schedule;

said processor crediting said player'"'"'s account stored in the memory unit on said electronic gaming machine an amount equivalent to said initial investment, wherein said crediting of the player'"'"'s account is stored in the memory unit;

said processor receiving a first threshold value associated with the amount of said initial investment credited to said player'"'"'s account for implementation on the electronic gaming machine and storing said first threshold value in the memory unit;

responsive to the detection by the processor of the amount of said initial investment credited to said player'"'"'s account being greater than said first threshold value, said processor using the first payout schedule to determine any payout amounts to be credited to said player'"'"'s account from instances of play of the game;

said processor receiving a threshold number of times the first payout schedule is used to determine any payout amounts to be credited to said player'"'"'s account and storing said first threshold number of times in the memory unit;

said processor counting a number of times the first payout schedule is used for said player'"'"'s account on said electronic gaming machine;

responsive to the processor counting said count of the number of times said first payout schedule is used being less than said threshold number of times and said initial investment being exhausted, said processor assigning an award to said player'"'"'s account on said electronic gaming machine; and

responsive to the processor counting said count of the number of times said first payout schedule is used being equal to or greater than said threshold number of times, said processor using the second payout schedule to determine any payout amounts to be credited to said player'"'"'s account from instances of play of the game thereafter.

18. The method as recited in claim 17, wherein the award comprises one or more of a monetary amount, a non-monetary item, an amount of free play of the game and player loyalty program points.

19. The method as recited in claim 17, further comprising the steps of:

said processor accepting an additional investment from a player to participate in said game on said electronic gaming machine; and

said processor crediting said player'"'"'s account on said electronic gaming machine an amount equivalent to said additional investment.

20. The method as recited in claim 19, wherein the amount of the additional investment is compared with the first threshold value as the initial investment.