REMOTE GAME PLAY IN A WIRELESS GAMING ENVIRONMENT

• US 20150356818A1
• Filed: 06/15/2015
• Published: 12/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Bally Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Rajaraman, Arun, Anantharaman, Sathish Kumar, Lewis, William
• Granted Patent: US 9,898,889 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3206 Player sensing means, e.g. presence detection, biometrics
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/322 Casino tables, e.g. tables having integrated screens, chip detection 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 17/3227 Configuring a gaming machine, e.g. downloading personal settings, selecting working parameters
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3237 about the players, e.g. profiling, responsible gaming, strategy/behavior of players, location of players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3272 Games involving multiple players

Abstract

A system employs a server computing system with an integrated database and wireless communications devices. The wireless communications devices permits players to take a position on a potential outcome of a game and includes remote game play and remote backline playing (taking a position on a potential outcome of a position on game outcome taken by a primary player occupying a player position at a gaming table) and other types of positions not involving money. In response to the electronic indication that the primary player is no longer occupying the player position at the gaming table the system automatically initiates a period locking out players taking positions on the potential outcome of the game such as a position on game outcome lock out period for such proposed backline positions on game outcome and modifies the user interface on a wireless device of the dealer accordingly.

Claims

1-24. -24. (canceled)

25. A method of operation in a table gaming automation system, the method comprising:

receiving, by one or more gaming servers via one or more first electronic communications sent over one or more computer networks from a client computing device associated with a user to at least one of the one or more gaming servers, a query regarding a wagering game that specifies one or more of a group that includes a casino pit, a gaming location, a gaming table, and an identifier of a primary player that is distinct from the associated user;

causing, by the one or more gaming servers via one or more second electronic communications sent over the one or more computer networks at a first time to the client computing device and based at least in part on the received query, at least a portion of a user interface of the client computing device to display search results that include an indication of one or more gaming tables and of one or more primary player identifiers that are each associated at the first time with a respective one of the one or more gaming tables;

based on the displayed search results, receiving, by the one or more gaming servers via one or more third electronic communications sent over the one or more computer networks from the client computing device, an indication that the user has selected one of the primary player identifiers; and

in response to receiving the indication of the selected primary player identifier, causing, by the one or more gaming servers via one or more fourth electronic communications sent over the one or more computer networks to the client computing device, the user interface of the client computing device to display one or more user-selectable backline wagering controls that enable the user to place one or more wagers on possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay in a wagering game of a primary player associated with the selected primary player identifier.

26. The method of operation of claim 25 further comprising, at a second time that is later than the first time, receiving an indication that the primary player associated with the selected primary player identifier has moved to a gaming table other than the gaming table associated at the first time with the selected primary player identifier, and providing one or more notifications to the user of the client computing device regarding the move of the primary player to the other gaming table.

27. The method of operation of claim 26 wherein providing one or more notifications to the user of the client computing device regarding the move of the primary player to the other gaming table includes causing the client computing device to display one or more additional user-selectable backline wagering controls that enable the user to place one or more wagers on possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay of at least the primary player at the other gaming table.

28. The method of operation of claim 25 wherein the user of the client computing device is located within a gaming location that includes the one gaming table associated at the first time with the selected primary player identifier, and wherein the one or more computer networks are internal to the gaming location.

29. The method of operation of claim 25 wherein the user is remotely located with respect to a gaming location that includes the gaming table associated at the first time with the selected primary player identifier, and wherein the one or more computer networks include at least one computer network that is external to the gaming location.

30. The method of operation of claim 25 wherein the gaming table associated at the first time with the selected primary player identifier includes at least one occupied primary player position and at least one unoccupied primary player position, and wherein causing the user interface of the client computing device to display the one or more user-selectable backline wagering controls includes preventing a user selection of the at least one unoccupied primary player position.

31. The method of operation of claim 25 wherein the gaming table associated at the first time with the selected primary player identifier is further associated at the first time with one or more additional primary player identifiers corresponding to one or more additional primary players, and wherein causing the user interface of the client computing device to display the one or more user-selectable backline wagering controls includes causing the user interface to display user-selectable backline wagering controls that enable the user to place one or more additional wagers on possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay of the one or more additional primary players.

32. The method of operation of claim 25, further comprising entering a wager associated with the user regarding at least one of the possible secondary game outcomes based on one or more interactions of the user with the displayed backline wagering controls and, after the conclusion of one or more rounds of gameplay at the gaming table associated with the selected primary player identifier, evaluating the associated wager.

33. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored contents that, when executed, configure a gaming automation client computing device to:

transmit, to one or more gaming servers via one or more first electronic communications sent over one or more computer networks, a query regarding a wagering game, the query specifying one or more of a group that includes a gaming location, a gaming table, and an identifier of a primary player who is distinct and separate from a user of the client computing device;

display, based at least in part on one or more second electronic communications sent over the one or more computer networks in response to the transmitted query by the one or more gaming servers to the client computing device at a first time, search results via a user interface of the client computing device indicative of one or more gaming tables and of one or more primary player identifiers that are each associated at the first time with a respective one of the one or more gaming tables;

monitor the user interface of the client computing device for a user selection of at least one of the primary player identifiers; and

based at least in part on a user selection of the at least one primary player identifier, display, via at least a portion of the user interface, one or more user-selectable backline wagering controls that enable a user of the client computing device to place one or more wagers on possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay of at least one primary player respectively associated with the selected at least one primary player identifier.

34. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 33 wherein the stored contents further configure the gaming automation client computing device to, based at least in part on information received from the one or more gaming servers at a second time that is later than the first time, display a notification via the user interface that a primary player associated with one of the selected at least one primary player identifiers has moved to a gaming table other than the gaming table associated at the first time with the at least one primary player identifier.

35. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 34 wherein the stored contents further configure the gaming automation client computing device to display one or more additional user-selectable backline wagering controls that enable the user to place one or more wagers on possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay of the associated primary player at the other gaming table.

36. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 33 wherein the gaming automation client computing device is located within a gaming location that includes the respective one gaming table associated at the first time with the selected at least one primary player identifier, and wherein the one or more computer networks are also located within the gaming location.

37. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 33, wherein the user of the gaming automation client computing device does not occupy any primary player position of the respective one gaming table associated at the first time with the selected at least one primary player identifier.

38. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 33 wherein the gaming automation client computing device is remotely located with respect to a gaming location that includes the respective one gaming table associated at the first time with the selected at least one primary player identifier, and wherein the one or more computer networks include at least one computer network that is external to the gaming location.

39. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 33 wherein the respective one gaming table associated at the first time with at least one of the selected primary player identifiers includes at least one occupied primary player position and at least one unoccupied primary player position, and wherein the display of the one or more user-selectable backline wagering controls includes display of a user-selectable backline wagering control corresponding to each of the at least one occupied primary player positions without display of any user-selectable backline wagering control corresponding to the at least one unoccupied primary player positions.

40. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 33, wherein the stored contents further configure the gaming automation client computing device to transmit, based at least in part on a selection by the user of a displayed backline wagering control, information indicative of a wager directed to at least one of the possible secondary game outcomes.

41. A system, comprising:

one or more processors; and

at least one memory, the memory including instructions that, upon execution by at least one of the one or more processors, cause the system to;

receive, via one or more first electronic communications sent over one or more computer networks from a processor-based client computing device associated with a user, a search query that specifies one or more of a gaming location, a wagering game, a physical gaming table, and a primary player that is distinct and separate from the associated user;

provide, via one or more second electronic communications sent over the one or more computer networks to the client computing device and based at least in part on the search query, search results that include an indication of one or more physical gaming tables and of one or more primary player identifiers that are each currently associated with a respective one of the one or more physical gaming tables;

in response to receiving information indicative of a user selection based on the displayed search results, cause the client computing device to display one or more user-selectable secondary wagering controls that enable the associated user to place one or more wagers on a plurality of possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay of a selected primary player.

42. The system of claim 41 wherein the instructions further cause the system to receive an indication that the selected primary player has moved to a physical gaming table other than the physical gaming table associated with the selected primary player identifier at the time the search results were provided, and to provide one or more notifications to the client computing device indicating that the selected primary player is associated with the other physical gaming table.

43. The system of claim 42 wherein the one or more notifications include one or more additional user-selectable secondary wagering controls that enable the user to place one or more wagers on possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay of the selected primary player at the other physical gaming table.

44. The system of claim 41 wherein the physical gaming table currently associated with the primary player identifier of the selected primary player includes at least one occupied primary player position and at least one unoccupied primary player position, and wherein the instructions further cause the system to prevent selection of the at least one unoccupied primary player position.

45. The system of claim 41 wherein the physical gaming table currently associated with the primary player identifier of the selected primary player is further associated with one or more additional primary player identifiers corresponding to one or more additional primary players, and wherein the one or more user-selectable secondary wagering controls include user-selectable secondary wagering controls that enable the associated user to place one or more additional wagers on possible secondary game outcomes regarding gameplay of the one or more additional primary players.