GAMING SYSTEM DOWNLOAD NETWORK ARCHITECTURE

• US 20080162729A1
• Filed: 11/09/2007
• Published: 07/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Bally Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Ruppert, Ryan
• Granted Patent: US 9,508,218 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 709/249
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/323 wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions

Abstract

Download distribution points are geographically distributed throughout the at least one casino property and a download and configuration management server determines relatively optimal download distribution points for downloading to gaming machines and points the gaming machines to the optimal download distribution point. Optimization may be based on one or more of geographic location, network location, availability, connection speed, and/or availability of a given package of gaming machines instructions at the download distribution point. A map, directory or library may be maintained indicative of where specific packages of gaming machine instructions reside.

Claims

1. A download and configuration management system to manage a plurality of gaming machines distributed throughout at least one casino property, the download and configuration management system comprising:

a plurality of download distribution points geographically distributed throughout the at least one casino property; and

a download and configuration management server that is configured to determine a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points for at least one of the gaming machines and configured and communicatively coupled to provide an indication to the at least one of the gaming machines that indicates the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points to be used by the at least one of the gaming machines to download configuration instructions.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein each of the download distribution points is a respective server.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein each of the download distribution points is a respective secured server.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the download distribution points include a computer-readable memory that stores a plurality of configuration files, at least some of the configuration files including executable instructions to be downloaded to selected ones of the gaming machines that define the operation of any of the gaming machines that execute the executable instructions.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the download distribution points include a computer-readable memory that stores a secured library of a plurality of software packages that are downloadable to the gaming machines and executable by the gaming machines to control operation of the gaming machines.

6. The system of claim 1 wherein the download distribution points include a firewall.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the download and configuration management server is configured to determine a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points based at least in part on a network location of the download distribution points with respect to a network location of the at least one of the gaming machines.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the download and configuration management server is configured to determine a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points based at least in part on an availability of the respective ones of the download distribution points with respect to an availability of other ones of the download distribution points.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the download and configuration management server is configured to determine a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points based at least in part on a connection speed between respective ones of the download distribution points and the at least one gaming machine relative to a connection speed between other ones of the download distribution points and the at least one gaming machine.

10. The system of claim 1 wherein the download and configuration management server is configured to determine a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points for a collection of the gaming machines that includes at least two different ones of the gaming machines.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein the download and configuration management server is configured to provide the indication to the at least one of the gaming machines that indicates the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points to be used in the form of a port identifier and an Internet protocol address.

12. The system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of download distribution points cache a plurality of packages of instructions that are downloadable to the gaming machines to configure the operation of the gaming machines, some of the packages of instructions cached by less then all of the download distribution points, and wherein the download and configuration management server stores information indicative of which of the packages of instructions are available on which of the download distribution points.

13. A method of managing a plurality of gaming machines distributed throughout at least one casino property, the method comprising:

determining a relatively optimal one of a plurality of download distribution points geographically distributed throughout the at least one casino property for at least one of the gaming machines; and

providing an indication to the at least one of the gaming machines that indicates the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points to be used by the at least one of the gaming machines to download configuration instructions.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein determining a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points includes determining the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points based at least in part on a physical location of the download distribution points with respect to a physical location of the at least one of the gaming machines.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein determining a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points includes determining the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points based at least in part on an availability of respective ones of the download distribution points with respect to an availability of other ones of the download distribution points.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein determining a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points includes determining the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points based at least in part on a connection speed between respective ones of the download distribution points and the at least one gaming machine relative to a connection speed between other ones of the download distribution point and the at least one gaming machine.

17. The method of claim 13 wherein determining a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points includes determining the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points for a collection of the gaming machines that includes at least two different ones of the gaming machines.

18. The method of claim 13 wherein determining a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points includes determining the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points based on a combination of a connection speed between respective ones of the download distribution points and the at least one gaming machine relative to a connection speed between other ones of the download distribution point and the at least one gaming machine and an availability of respective ones of the download distribution points with respect to an availability of other ones of the download distribution points.

19. The method of claim 13 wherein providing an indication to the at least one of the gaming machines that indicates the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points to be used by the at least one of the gaming machines to download configuration instructions including providing an Internet protocol address.

20. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

caching at the plurality of download distribution points a plurality of packages of instructions that are downloadable to the gaming machines to configure the operation of the gaming machines, some of the packages of instructions cached by less than all of the download distribution points; and

storing information at the download and configuration management server indicative of which of the packages of instructions are available at which of the download distribution points.

21. A gaming system, comprising:

a plurality of gaming machines distributed throughout at least one casino property;

a plurality of download distribution points geographically distributed throughout the at least one casino property; and

a download and configuration management server that is configured to determine a relatively optimal one of the download distribution points for at least one of the gaming machines and configured and communicatively coupled to provide an indication to the at least one of the gaming machines that indicates the relatively optimal one of the download distribution points to be used by the at least one of the gaming machines to download configuration instructions.

22. The gaming system of claim 21, further comprising:

at least one wide area network communicatively coupling at least some of the gaming machines, the download distribution points and the download and configuration management server.

23. The gaming system of claim 21 wherein each of the download distribution points includes a respective server and a respective computer-readable memory that stores a plurality of configuration files, at least some of the configuration files including executable instructions to be downloaded to selected ones of the gaming machines that define the operation of any of the gaming machines that execute the executable instructions.

24. The gaming system of claim 21 wherein each of the download distribution points includes a respective server including a firewall and a respective computer-readable memory that stores a library of software packages downloadable to and executable by the gaming machines.

25. The gaming system of claim 21 wherein the download distribution points are configured to download specified game information to the gaming machines over the wide area network via a secure transmission protocol.