MULTI-SYSTEM GAMING TERMINAL COMMUNICATION DEVICE

• US 20100167822A1
• Filed: 12/23/2009
• Published: 07/01/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Crumby, Hardy Lee
• Granted Patent: US 8,790,181 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 17/3202 Hardware aspects of a gaming system, e.g. components, construction, architecture thereof

Abstract

A gaming machine with a communication multiplexer device that allows communications between the gaming machine and one or more game service servers all within a single network interface is described. The single network interface may be a wireless or wired network interface. The communication multiplexer device converts messages in native communication protocols used by the gaming machine to a network communication protocol such as transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP) for transmission over the single wired or wireless network interface. The communication multiplexer is designed such that the gaming machine may receive messages that have been transmitted using the native communication protocols without modifying regulated gaming software on the gaming machine.

Claims

1. A method for using a communication multiplexer device, said method comprising:

connecting a plurality of communication ports of the communication multiplexer device to a multi-port communication board of the communication multiplexer device, wherein the plurality of communication ports are included within a first set;

facilitating, by each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a communication of a first message between a gaming machine and the communication multiplexer device in one or more application specific protocols used by a master gaming controller of the gaming machine, wherein the gaming machine is used to play a wager-based game;

accepting, by each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a physical communication connection compatible with the one or more application specific protocols;

determining, by a logic device of the communication multiplexer device, a destination device for the first message received at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, wherein the first message is formatted using one of the application specific protocols;

formatting, by the logic device, the first message in one of the application specific protocols into the second communication protocol; and

transmitting, by the communication multiplexer device, the first message formatted in the second communication protocol via only one output communication port of a second set of the communication multiplexer device to the destination device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining, by the logic device, a destination port from among the plurality of communication ports of the first set for a second message received at the only one output communication port of the second set, wherein the second message received at the only one output communication port is formatted using the second communication protocol;

formatting, by the logic device, the second message received in the second communication protocol into one of the application specific protocols that is compatible with the destination port;

transmitting, by the communication multiplexer device, the second message formatted in one of the application specific protocols via the destination port.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising transmitting, by the only one communication port of the second set, the first message addressed to one or more game service servers providing a plurality of game services.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising receiving, by the only one communication port of the second set, the second message from the one or more game service servers addressed to one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set by using a second communication protocol.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the game services include progressive game services, bonus game services, player tracking services, cashless ticketing services, game downloading services, prize services, entertainment content services, concierge services, lottery services, or money transfer services.

6. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

controlling the wager-based game played on the gaming machine by executing a regulated gaming software;

receiving a wager on an outcome for the wager-based game;

communicating with the one or more game service servers by using the one or more application specific protocols included in the regulated gaming software.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the regulated gaming software in a communication path between the gaming machine and the one or more game service servers is the same as when the communication multiplexer device is not in a communication path between the gaming machine and the one or more game service servers.

8. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

utilizing, by each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a physical communication protocol that allows a set of messages in the one or more application specific protocols to be parsed by the communication multiplexer device; and

storing information, within a memory device, regarding;

the one or more application specific protocols and the physical communication protocol used at each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set,

the second communication protocol, and

a mapping between each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set and the destination device, the mapping allowing the logic device to determine the destination device or the destination port for each message received by the communication multiplexer device.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

connecting the physical communication connection to one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set; and

connecting a network interface to the only one output communication port of the second set and to a network that communicates a set of messages using the second communication protocol.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein one of the application specific protocols includes a progressive game service protocol, a bonus game service protocol, a player tracking service protocol, a cashless ticketing service protocol, a game downloading service protocol, a prize service protocol, an entertainment content service protocol, a concierge service protocol, a lottery service protocol, or a money transfer service protocol.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of communication ports of the first set comprises a first communication port and a second communication port, said method further comprising:

communicating, via the first communication port, messages from a first game service server;

communicating, via the second communication port, messages from a second game service server.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

emulating, by the logic device, one of the application specific protocols by configuring one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set; and

communicating, by the logic device, with a boot server that sends configuration information to the communication multiplexer device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the configuration information specifies a mapping between one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set and the destination device, one of the application specific protocols to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a physical communication protocol to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, or combinations thereof.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the wager-based game played on the gaming machine includes a video slot game, a mechanical slot game, a lottery game, a video poker game, a video black jack game, or a video pachinko game.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the physical communication connection includes a recommended standard-422/485 (RS-422/485) compatible connection, a Fiber Optic compatible connection, an RS-232 compatible connection, a distributed control system (DCS) Current Loop compatible connection, a Link Progressive Current Loop compatible connection, an Ethernet compatible connection, a universal serial bus (USB) compatible connection, or combinations thereof.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising, translating, by the logic device, information received in a first one of the application specific protocols to a second one of the application specific protocols.

17. A method for using a communication multiplexer device, said method comprising:

connecting a plurality of communication ports of the communication multiplexer device to a multi-port communication board of the communication multiplexer device, wherein the plurality of communication ports are included within a first set;

facilitating, by each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a communication of a first message between a gaming machine and the communication multiplexer device in one or more application specific protocols used by a master gaming controller of the gaming machine, wherein the gaming machine is used to play a wager-based game;

accepting, by each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a physical communication connection compatible with the one or more application specific protocols;

determining, by a logic device of the communication multiplexer device, a destination port from among the plurality of communication ports of the first set for the first message received at only one output communication port of a second set of the communication multiplexer device, wherein the first message received at the only one output communication port is formatted using the second communication protocol;

formatting, by the logic device, the first message received in the second communication protocol into one of the application specific communication protocols that is compatible with the destination port;

transmitting, by the communication multiplexer device, the first message formatted in one of the application specific protocols via the destination port.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising receiving, by the only one communication port of the second set, the first message from one or more game service servers addressed to one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set by using the second communication protocol.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the one or more game service servers are configured to provide a plurality of game services that include progressive game services, bonus game services, player tracking services, cashless ticketing services, game downloading services, prize services, entertainment content services, concierge services, lottery services, or money transfer services.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

controlling the wager-based game played on the gaming machine by executing a regulated gaming software;

receiving a wager on an outcome for the wager-based game;

communicating with the one or more game service servers by using the one or more application specific protocols included in the regulated gaming software.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the regulated gaming software in a communication path between the gaming machine and the one or more game service servers is the same as when the communication multiplexer device is not in a communication path between the gaming machine and the one or more game service servers.

22. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

connecting the physical communication connection to one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set; and

connecting a network interface to the only one output communication port of the second set and to a network that communicates a set of messages using the second communication protocol.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein one of application specific protocols includes a progressive game service protocol, a bonus game service protocol, a player tracking service protocol, a cashless ticketing service protocol, a game downloading service protocol, a prize service protocol, an entertainment content service protocol, a concierge service protocol, a lottery service protocol, or a money transfer service protocol.

24. The method of claim 17, wherein the plurality of communication ports comprises a first communication port and a second communication port, said method further comprising:

communicating, via the first communication port, a set of messages from a first game service server;

communicating, via the second communication port, a set of messages from a second game service server.

25. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

emulating, by the logic device, one of the application specific protocols by configuring one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set; and

communicating, by the logic device, with a boot server that sends configuration information to the communication multiplexer device.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the configuration information specifies a mapping between one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set and a game service server, one of the application specific protocols to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a physical communication protocol to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, or combinations thereof.

27. The method of claim 17, wherein the wager-based game played on the gaming machine includes a video slot game, a mechanical slot game, a lottery game, a video poker game, a video black jack game, or a video pachinko game.

28. The method of claim 17, wherein the physical communication connection includes a recommended standard-422/485 (RS-422/485) compatible connection, a Fiber Optic compatible connection, an RS-232 compatible connection, a distributed control system (DCS) Current Loop compatible connection, a Link Progressive Current Loop compatible connection, an Ethernet compatible connection, a universal serial bus (USB) compatible connection, or combinations thereof.

29. The method of claim 17, further comprising, translating, by the logic device, information received in a first one of the application specific protocols to a second one of the application specific protocols.

30. A method of providing communications between a gaming machine and one or more game service servers in a communication device including a plurality of communication ports and only one output communication port in a communication path between the gaming machine and the one or more game service servers, the method comprising:

configuring the plurality of communication ports to receive information using one or more physical communication protocols compatible with physical connections from the gaming machine to the plurality of communication ports;

configuring the plurality of communication ports to receive messages in one or more application specific protocols used by the gaming machine;

mapping the plurality of communication ports to the one or more game service servers;

establishing communications between the plurality of communication ports of the communication device and the one or more game service servers using a second communication protocol and the only one output communication port;

receiving a first message at the gaming machine from one of the game service servers via the only one output communication port in the second communication protocol;

formatting information in the first message into one of the application specific protocols;

routing the first message to the gaming machine via one of the plurality of communication ports;

receiving a second message at one of the game service servers from the gaming machine, wherein the second message includes information formatted in one of the application specific protocols;

formatting the second message in the second communication protocol; and

sending the second message via the only one output communication port.

31. The method of claim 30, further comprising establishing communications with a boot server and receiving configuration information from the boot server.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the configuration information specifies at least one of the mapping between each of the plurality of communication ports and the one or more game service servers, one of the application specific protocols to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a physical communication protocol to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set.

33. The method of claim 30, further comprising translating information in a first one of the application specific protocols to a second one of the application specific protocols.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the first application specific protocol is a first player tracking communication protocol and the second application specific protocol is a second player tracking communication protocol.

35. A gaming machine comprising:

a master gaming controller configured to control a game played on the gaming machine by executing regulated gaming software and to receive a wager on an outcome of the game;

a communication multiplexer device comprising;

a plurality of communication ports connected to a multi-port communication board, where the plurality of communication ports are included within a first set, each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set configured to transmit and receive a set of messages between the gaming machine and the communication multiplexer device in one or more application specific protocols used by the master gaming controller, each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set is configured to accept a physical communication connection compatible with one of the application specific protocols;

only one output communication port of a second set;

a logic device configured to;

determine a destination device for a first message received at one of the plurality of communication ports, wherein the first message is formatted using one of the application specific protocols;

format the first message in one of the application specific protocols into the second communication protocol;

transmit the first message formatted in the second communication protocol via the only one output communication port to the destination device.

36. The gaming machine of claim 35, wherein the logic device is further configured to:

determine a destination port from among the plurality of communication ports of the first set for a second message received at the only one output communication port, wherein the second message received at the only one output communication port is formatted using the second communication protocol;

format the second message received in the second communication protocol into one of the application specific communication protocols that is compatible with the destination port; and

transmit the second message formatted in one of the application specific protocols via the destination port.

37. The gaming machine of claim 36, wherein the master gaming controller is further configured to communicate with one or more game service servers by using the one or more application specific protocols included in the regulated gaming software, the one or more game service servers configured to provide a plurality of game services, each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set is configured to utilize a physical communication protocol that allows messages in one of the application specific protocols to be parsed by the communication multiplexer device, the gaming machine further comprising:

a display for displaying the game played on the gaming machine;

a memory device for storing a) information regarding the one or more application specific protocols and the physical communication protocol used at each of the plurality of communication ports, b) the second communication protocol and c) a mapping between each of the plurality of communication ports and the destination device, the logic device configured to use the mapping to determine the destination device or the destination port for each message received by the communication multiplexer device;

a plurality of physical communication connections connected to the plurality of communication ports; and

a network interface connected to the only one output communication port and a network that communicates a set of messages using the second communication protocol.

38. The gaming machine of claim 37, wherein one of the game service servers includes a prize server, a game server, an entertainment content server, a cashless ticketing server, progressive game server, a bonus game server, a concierge service server, a lottery server, or a money transfer server.

39. The gaming machine of claim 37, wherein the regulated gaming software in a communication path between the gaming machine and the one or more game service servers is the same as when the communication multiplexer device is not in a communication path between the gaming machine and the one or more game service servers.

40. The gaming machine of claim 37, wherein the only one communication port of the second set is configured to transmit a set of messages addressed to the one or more game service servers and receive a set of messages from the one or more game service servers addressed to one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set by using the second communication protocol.

41. The gaming machine of claim 35, wherein the plurality of communication ports of the first set comprises a first communication port that receives and sends messages from a first one of the one or more game service servers and a second communication port that receives and sends messages from a second one of the one or more game service servers.

42. The gaming machine of claim 35, wherein one of the application specific protocols includes a progressive game service protocol, a bonus game service protocol, a player tracking service protocol, a cashless ticketing service protocol, a game downloading service protocol, a prize service protocol, an entertainment content service protocol, a concierge service protocol, a lottery service protocol, or a money transfer service protocol.

43. The gaming machine of claim 35, wherein the plurality of communication ports of the first set comprises a first communication port using a first application specific communication protocol and a second communication port using a second application specific communication protocol.

44. The gaming machine of claim 35, wherein the logic device is further configured to configure each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set to emulate one of the application specific protocols.

45. The gaming machine of claim 35, wherein the logic device is configured to communicate with a boot server that sends configuration information to the communication multiplexer device, the configuration information specifies a mapping between each of the plurality of communication ports and the destination device, one of the application specific protocols to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, a particular physical communication protocol to use at one of the plurality of communication ports of the first set, or combinations thereof.

46. A gaming machine comprising:

a master gaming controller configured to control a game played on the gaming machine by executing regulated gaming software and to receive a wager on an outcome of the game;

a communication multiplexer device comprising;

a plurality of communication ports connected to a multi-port communication board, wherein the plurality of communication ports are included within a first set, each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set configured to transmit and receive a set of messages between the gaming machine and the communication multiplexer device in one or more application specific protocols used by the master gaming controller, each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set is configured to accept a physical communication connection compatible with one of the application specific protocols;

only one output communication port of a second set;

a logic device configured to;

determine a destination port from among the plurality of communication ports of the first set for a first message received at the only one output communication port, wherein the first message received at the only one output communication port is formatted using the second communication protocol;

format the first message received in the second communication protocol into one of the application specific communication protocols that is compatible with the destination port; and

transmit the first message formatted in one of the application specific protocols via the destination port

47. The gaming machine of claim 46, wherein the master gaming controller is further configured to communicate with one or more game service servers providing a plurality of game services by using the one or more application specific protocols included in the regulated gaming software, each of the plurality of communication ports of the first set is configured to utilize a physical communication protocol that allows messages in one of the application specific protocols to be parsed by the communication multiplexer device, the gaming machine further comprising:

a display for displaying the game played on the gaming machine;

a memory device for storing a) information regarding the one or more application specific protocols and the physical communication protocol used at each of the plurality of communication ports, b) the second communication protocol and c) a mapping between each of the plurality of communication ports and the one or more game service servers, said mapping allowing the logic device to determine one of the game service servers or the destination port for each message received by the communication multiplexer device;

a plurality of physical communication connections connected to the plurality of communication ports; and

a network interface connected to the only one output communication port of the second set and a network that communicates messages using the second communication protocol.

48. The gaming machine of claim 47, wherein one of the game service servers includes a prize server, a game server, an entertainment content server, a cashless ticketing server, progressive game server, a bonus game server, a concierge service server, a lottery server, or a money transfer server.