Slim terminal gaming system

• US 6,409,602 B1
• Filed: 11/24/1998
• Issued: 06/25/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: New Millennium Gaming, LLC
• Original Assignee: New Millennium Gaming, LLC
• Inventors: Lisenbee, James J., Wiltshire, Timothy A., Karmarkar, Jayant S., Wiltshire, Michael S.
• Primary Examiner(s): HARRISON, JESSICA
• Application Number:
  US09/199,529
• Time in Patent Office: 1,309 Days
• Field of Search: 463/42, 463/12, 463/13, 463/16, 463/18, 463/19, 463/24, 463/26, 463/27, 463/29, 463/36, 463/37, 463/38, 463/39, 463/40, 463/41, 463/43, 707/1, 707/2, 707/3, 707/101, 707/102, 707/104, 707/501, 707/513, 700/91, 700/92, 700/93, 273/148.B
• US Class Current: 463/42
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/081 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/34 Betting or bookmaking, e.g. Internet betting
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3223 Architectural aspects of a gaming system, e.g. internal configuration, master/slave, wireless communication
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3288 Betting, e.g. on live events, bookmaking

Abstract

A computer gaming system and method of operation thereof are provided that both drastically reduce the cost of gaming stations and allow contemporaneous access to multiple game programs from a single gaming station. The computer gaming system of the present invention allows for transparent modifications and upgrades to the gaming programs by executing gaming programs on a server/host computer connected to a plurality of client/terminal computers via communication pathways. Each client/terminal computer comprises a client/terminal program that allows input and output streams of the gaming program executed on the server/host computer to be separated and redirected to the client/terminal computers. Since the gaming programs are executed entirely on the server/host computer, with only wagering input and display output operations being executed on the client/terminal computers, the cost of the hardware and software required for each client/terminal computer is greatly reduced. A patron of a client/terminal computer can access any of the gaming programs executed on the server/host computer. Modifications and upgrades of the gaming programs only need to be performed on the server/host computer. By using a stereo head-mounted display together with a joystick input device and wireless communication pathways, the present invention allows a patron to participate in a mobile gaming environment.

Claims

1. A computer gaming system comprising:

one or more server/host computers;

one or more client/terminal computers for connection to the server/host computers via communication pathways;

one or more computer gaming programs executed on at least one server/host computer but not on any of the client/terminal computers;

a server/host interface program executed on each server/host computer; and

a client/terminal program executed on each client/terminal computer;

wherein the computer gaming program executed on the server/host computer separates input and output streams at an application layer of a protocol stack, and redirects the input and output streams over the communication pathways to the client/terminal computers via the server/host interface program and the client/terminal program.

2. The computer gaming system of claim 1, wherein an input command detected during execution of the client/terminal program on one of the client/terminal computers is transmitted to the server/host computer executing the computer gaming program over the communication pathways and, in response to the input command, the execution of the computer gaming program on the server/host computer is altered.

3. The computer gaming system of claim 1, wherein the computer gaming program is a casino gaming program.

4. The computer gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least one client/terminal computer further comprises a touch screen display device.

5. The computer gaming system of claim 4, wherein at least one client/terminal computer further comprises a wager-acceptor device.

6. The computer gaming system of claim 1, wherein two or more computer gaming programs are executed on the server/host computers and the input and output streams of the computer gaming programs are redirected to one or more client/terminal computers.

7. The computer gaming system of claim 6, wherein the input and output streams of a first computer gaming program executed on one of the server/host computers are redirected to a first plurality of client/terminal computers and the input and output streams of a second computer gaming program executed on one of the server/host computers are redirected to a second plurality of client/terminal computers.

8. The computer gaming system of claim 7, wherein the input and output streams of both the first and the second computer gaming programs executed on one of the server/host computers are redirected to a same client/terminal computer.

9. The computer gaming system of claim 8, wherein the input and output streams of the first gaming program are redirected to a window displayed on a screen of the client/terminal computer and the input and output streams of the second gaming program are redirected to a sub-window of the window displayed on the screen of the client/terminal computer.

10. The computer gaming system of claim 1, wherein the communication pathways comprise a local area network or a wide area network.

11. The computer gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least one client/terminal computer further comprises:

a head-mounted display device;

a joystick input device; and

wireless communication pathways.

12. The computer gaming system of claim 1, wherein the communication pathways comprise a global network.

13. The computer gaming system of claim 12, wherein the client/terminal program is first downloaded from one of the server/host computers to one of the client/terminal computers over the global network.

14. The computer gaming system of claim 13, wherein a patron of one of the client/terminal computers requests that the client/terminal program be downloaded from one of the server/host computers by accessing a web page.

15. A method of operating a computer gaming system comprising one or more server/host computers, one or more client/terminal computers and communication pathways connecting the client/terminal computers to the server/host computers, the method comprising:

executing one or more computer gaming programs on at least one server/host computer;

executing a server/host interface program on at least one server/host computer;

executing a client/terminal program on each client/terminal computer; and

separating input and output streams of the computer gaming program and redirecting the input and output streams to the client/terminal computers via the server/host interface program and the client/terminal program.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

transmitting over the communications pathways an input command detected during execution of the client/terminal program on one of the client/terminal computers to the server/host computer executing the computer gaming program; and

in response to the input command, altering the execution of the computer gaming program on the server/host computer.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the computer gaming program is a casino gaming program.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein at least one client/terminal computer further comprises a touch screen display device.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein at least one client/terminal computer further comprises a wager-acceptor device.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

executing two or more computer gaming programs on the server/host computer; and

separating input and output streams of the computer gaming programs executed on the server/host computer and redirecting the input and output streams to the client/terminal computers.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

separating input an output streams of a first computer gaming program executed on one of the server/host computers and redirecting the input and output streams of the first computer gaming program to a first plurality of the client/terminal computers; and

separating input and output streams of a second computer gaming program executed on one of the server/host computers and redirecting the input and output streams of the second computer gaming program to a second plurality of the client/terminal computers.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the input and output streams of both the first and the second computer gaming programs are redirected to one of the client/terminal computers.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the input and output streams of the first computer gaming program are redirected to a window displayed on a screen of the client/terminal computer and the input and output streams of the second computer gaming program are redirected to a sub-window of the window displayed on the screen of the client/terminal computer.

24. The method of claim 15, wherein the communication pathways comprise a local area network or a wide area network.

25. The method of claim 15, wherein the communication pathways comprise a global network.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the client/terminal program is first downloaded from one of the server/host computers to one of the client/terminal computers over the global network.

27. The method of claim 26, further comprising:

a patron of one of the client/terminal computer requesting that the client/terminal program be downloaded from one of the server/host computers by accessing a web page.

28. A computer gaming system comprising:

a server/host computer executing an operating system program;

two or more display devices;

two or more input devices, each associated to one of the display devices for connecting to the server/host computer via communication pathways; and

one or more computer gaming programs executed on the server/host computer;

wherein multiple gaming threads for at least one of the computer gaming programs are executed on the server/host computer and input and output streams associated with each gaming thread are directed to separate display and input devices.

29. The computer gaming system of claim 28, wherein the operating system program is a multi-threading operating system program.