Gaming tables and methods for administering roulette bonus wagers using a roulette ball launching system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10546457-B2
Application number	US-201615276642-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 26, 2016
Priority date	Sep 25, 2015
Publication date	Jan 28, 2020
Grant date	Jan 28, 2020

Abstract

Methods of administering games of roulette may involve accepting a wager may from a player and using a ball launching system to launch at least one roulette ball into a track of a roulette wheel. A number and associated color may be randomly generated from within a range of numbers and associated colors. The triggering event may be identified by determining whether the randomly generated number is identical to a randomly generated number from an immediately preceding round. Upon identifying a triggering event, one or more additional special games of roulette may be played and a payout may be paid to the player according to a paytable associated with the outcome of the special game play. The amount of the wager may be collected for the house when the triggering event is not identified.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A gaming table for administering a game of roulette, comprising:
at least one roulette wheel;
at least one ball launching system mounted, by a mounting structure, to a table surface of the gaming table proximate the at least one roulette wheel, each of the at least one ball launching systems comprising:
a ball cup assembly supported from a distal end of the mounting structure, the ball cup assembly comprising a first cup wall opposite a second cup wall, at least one of the first cup wall and the second cup wall being movable relative to another of the first cup wall and the second cup wall; and
a rotary motion driver configured to impart rotary motion to the ball cup assembly, causing the ball cup assembly to rotate in a plane parallel to a ball track of the at least one roulette wheel, the ball cup assembly rotating from a home position, toward a launch position in which the ball cup assembly directs a roulette ball toward the ball track, and to then continue the ball cup assembly rotation full circle causing the ball cup assembly to return to the home position;

a remote signal button configured to wirelessly initiate a launch actuator of the at least one ball launching system to cause the at least one of the first cup wall and the second cup wall to move away from the other of the first cup wall and the second cup wall to release the roulette ball from the ball cup assembly at the launch position;
a playing surface comprising:
a wagering area illustrated with indicia associated with a range of numbers and colors of the at least one of the roulette wheel; and
at least one bonus wager area external to the wagering area; and

a display separate from the playing surface and comprising:
an area designated for displaying historical game outcomes;
an immediately preceding outcome area; and
a paytable defining a plurality of bonus payouts, the plurality of bonus payouts comprising multipliers applicable to a bonus wager, each of the multipliers corresponding to a respective one of a set of special roulette game outcomes.

2. The gaming table of claim 1 , further comprising an operator interface, a nontransitory memory, and at least one processor, the at least one processor programmed to:
interpret a randomly generated number and associated color within the range of numbers and colors;
determine winning outcome conditions, including determining a triggering event when the randomly generated number is identical to a randomly generated number from an immediately preceding round;
cause the display to display the winning outcome conditions in the area designated for displaying the historical game outcomes; and
upon the at least one processor determining the triggering event, and after random selection of at least one additional number and associated color producing a special roulette game outcome of the set of special roulette game outcomes, record in the nontransitory memory authorization of payment of a bonus payout, of the plurality of bonus payouts, to a player according to the paytable.

3. The gaming table of claim 1 , wherein the gaming table comprises a plurality of the at least one roulette wheel, each associated with one of a plurality of the at least one ball launching system.

4. The gaming table of claim 3 , wherein one of the plurality of the at least one roulette wheel is designated for resolving a wager received in the wagering area and another of the plurality of the at least one roulette wheel is designated for administering a special roulette game to resolve the bonus wager receivable in the at least one bonus wager area.

5. The gaming table of claim 1 , wherein the gaming table comprises three of the at least one roulette wheel, each associated with a separate ball launching system of the at least one ball launching system.

6. The gaming table of claim 1 , wherein the at least one ball launching system further comprises a cam lobe supported by the mounting structure and positioned to contact a cam follower connected to the at least one of the first cup wall and the second cup wall as the ball cup assembly approaches the launch position.

7. The gaming table of claim 1 , wherein the first cup wall and the second cup wall are each independently pivotally movable relative to one another.

8. The gaming table of claim 1 , wherein the first cup wall and the second cup wall are configured to counter-rotate about a common pivot access to release the roulette ball from the ball cup assembly at the launch position.

9. The gaming table of claim 1 , wherein the rotary motion driver is configured to impart the rotary motion about a rotor axis that is substantially perpendicular to a plane defined by a perimeter of the ball track, the plane defined by the perimeter of the ball track being parallel to the plane in which the ball cup assembly is caused to rotate.

10. The gaming table of claim 1 , wherein:
the ball cup assembly is supported from the distal end of the mounting structure by a rotor extending below the distal end of the mounting structure;
the rotary motion driver is offset from a rotor axis about which the rotor and the ball cup assembly are rotatable; and
the rotary motion driver is connected to the rotor by at least one of a belt, a chain, or a gear train.

11. A method of administering a game of roulette using the gaming table of claim 1 , the method comprising:
providing the gaming table of claim 1 ;
accepting, in the at least one bonus wager area, the bonus wager from a player;
using the at least one ball launching system to launch the roulette ball onto the at least one roulette wheel to randomly generate a randomly generated number and associated color within a range of numbers and associated colors defined in the at least one roulette wheel, comprising, upon receipt of a signal from the remote signal button:
the rotary motion driver rotating the ball cup assembly in the plane parallel to the ball track of the at least one roulette wheel from the home position to the launch position with the roulette ball captured between the first cup wall and the second cup wall of the ball cup assembly, and the rotary motion driver continuing to rotate the ball cup assembly full circle to return to the home position; and
upon the ball cup assembly rotating to the launch position, the launch actuator of the ball launching system causing the at least one of the first cup wall and the second cup wall to move away from the other of the first cup wall and the second cup wall to release the roulette ball from the ball cup assembly into the ball track when the ball cup assembly is at the launch position,
after release of the roulette ball from the ball cup assembly into the ball track, the roulette ball coming to rest in a space of the range of numbers and associated colors to randomly generate the randomly generated number and associated color;

identifying a triggering event by determining whether the randomly generated number and associated color is identical to the randomly generated number and associated color from an immediately preceding round; and
upon identifying the triggering event:
using the at least one ball launching system to launch the roulette ball onto the at least one roulette wheel to randomly generate at least one additional number and associated color to produce a special roulette game outcome; and
paying a payout to the player, an amount of the payout being equal to an amount of the bonus wager modified according to the paytable defining the plurality of bonus payouts.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein using the at least one ball launching system to launch the roulette ball onto the at least one roulette wh

Assignees

• Bally Gaming Inc

Inventors

• Snow Roger M
• Mercer Haven A
• Nelson Troy D
• Helgesen James P
• Scheper Paul K
• Kotifani Jamal Hani
• Fekete Georg

Classifications

• G07F17/3244

  Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes · CPC title

• G07F17/322 Primary

  Casino tables, e.g. tables having integrated screens, chip detection means · CPC title

• G07F17/3202

  Hardware aspects of a gaming system, e.g. components, construction, architecture thereof · CPC title

• G07F17/3216

  Construction aspects of a gaming system, e.g. housing, seats, ergonomic aspects · CPC title

• G07F17/34

  depending on the stopping of moving members {in a mechanical slot machine}, e.g. "fruit" machines · CPC title