Gaming Machine with Externally Controlled Content Display

• US 20090098943A1
• Filed: 09/12/2008
• Published: 04/16/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 11/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: LeMay, Steven G., Marcu, Adrian R., Petersen, Erik B., Little, William C., Weber, Reid M.
• Granted Patent: US 9,311,774 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• 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 17/323 wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes

Abstract

A gaming system including a number of host devices each coupled to one or more gaming machines, wherein content provided by the host device is output on the gaming machine. To output the content provided by the remote host, a host-controlled process that is authenticated by the gaming machine and executed in a secure memory location such that it is isolated from other processes executing on the gaming machine may be utilized. The host-controlled processes may be decoupled from the process used to execute the game of chance played on the gaming machine such that the content output by the host-controlled process doesn'"'"'t alter the play of game of chance.

Claims

1. A gaming system comprising:

a host comprising;

a processor designed or configured to;

a) to receive information regarding a status of a media display device located on a gaming machine wherein the media display device is configured to execute content, said content comprising commands, instructions, data or combinations, thereof to generate at least a visual component for output on a display coupled to a gaming machine;

b) to send a request to load the content on the gaming machine wherein the request includes a network address specifying where the content is located in a network;

d) to send a request to activate the content on the gaming machine wherein said activation comprises executing the content within the media display device; and

e) to send a request to release the content on the gaming machine wherein released content is no longer executable via the media display device;

the gaming machine comprising;

the display configured to output the visual component;

a master gaming controller designed or configured a) to control a wager-based game played on the gaming machine;

b) to load a plurality of instances of content that are executable within the media display device;

c) to allow only loaded instances of content to be activated wherein said activation comprises executing one of the loaded instances of content within the media display device;

d) to allow only one of the loaded instance of content to be activated at a time;

e) to the receive the request to load the content and in response to the request, download the content via the network address and load the content;

f) to receive the request to activate the content and in response, activate the content; and

g) to receive the request to release the content and in response release the content;

an input mechanism for receiving cash or an indicia of credit for making wagers on the wager-based game; and

an output mechanism for outputting cash or an indicia of credit.

2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the content further comprises business logic that is executed within the media display device.

3. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the media display device comprises a flash player.

4. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the media display device is configured to output still images, video images, audio data, haptic data or combinations thereof via one or more peripheral devices coupled to the gaming machine.

5. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is further designed or configured to only store the loaded instances of content in a volatile memory source;

6. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is further designed or configured to release all the loaded instance of content in response to detecting an error condition.

7. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is further designed or configured to release all the loaded instance of content when power is cycled on the gaming machine.

8. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the content is stored on a network device separate from the host or the gaming machine.

9. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured 1) to receive a request to load a first instance of content from a first host and in response to load the first instance of content and 2) to receive a request to load a second instance of content from a second host and in response to load the second instance of content.

10. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein the first instance of content and the second instance of content are downloaded from a network device.

11. The gaming system of claim 9, wherein the master gaming controller is further designed or configure to receive a request to activate the first instance of content and the second instance of content at one time and to determine which of the first instance of content or the second instance of content to activate first.

12. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is further designed or configured to load instances of content that are less than a maximum size.

13. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is further designed or configured to load only a maximum number of instances of content.

14. The gaming system of claim 13, wherein the master gaming controller is further designed or configured to determine the maximum number of instances of loaded content is exceeded, and in response, to determine at least one instance of the loaded instances of content is associated with the host and to send a request to the host to release the one instance of loaded content.

15. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to maintain a log including information relating to each instance of content that is loaded and released on the gaming machine.

16. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to send information stored in the log to the host.

17. The gaming system of claim 15, wherein the log is stored in a non-volatile memory location.

18. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to receive a command from the host to lock out play of the wager-based game.

19. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to generate a window on the display to output the visual component.

20. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to scale the visual component to fit within the window.

21. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to receive a request from the host to show the window.

22. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to receive a request from the host to hide the window.

23. The gaming system of claim 19, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to detect an error condition and in response to hide the window.

24. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to generate a first window on the display to output a first visual component generated from a first instance of content loaded from a first media display device and to generate a second window on the display to output a second visual component generated from a second instance of content loaded from a second media display device.

25. The gaming system of claim 24, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to determine whether the first window and the second window overlap on the display.

26. The gaming system of claim 24, wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to determine that the first window and the second window overall on the display and to select the first window or the second to resize such that the first window and the second window no longer overlap.