Display device for a gaming machine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10909797-B2
Application number	US-201816000349-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 5, 2018
Priority date	Jun 28, 2007
Publication date	Feb 2, 2021
Grant date	Feb 2, 2021

Abstract

A display, as for an electronic gaming machine, includes one or more rotatable mechanical reels including at least one variable displaying position at which the display may be varied. Content is displayed at the variable displaying position when the variable displaying position registers with the display. One or more reels can include a reel strip which includes at one location a pre-printed symbol and at another location a window. A video display can be arranged, configured and controlled by a processor to cast a display at the inside of the reel to impart light and video effects to pre-printed symbol locations or to cast video content through the reel strip window.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A display device for an electronic gaming machine comprising:
a support structure;
a video display secured to the support structure;
a mechanical reel rotatably mounted to the support structure for rotational movement relative to the video display and having an outer side and inner side, the outer side defining a plurality of symbol positions, including a first symbol position, a second symbol position, and at least one variable displaying position at which the video display may be varied; and
a processor operable to control the video display to cast a video onto the inner side of the mechanical reel through the at least one variable displaying position, when the mechanical reel stops rotational movement to register the at least one variable displaying position with the video display, activate at different times from behind the first symbol position at least one of a color and backlighting and from behind the second symbol position a different one of the color and backlighting, when the mechanical reel stops the rotational movement to register the first symbol position and the second symbol position with the video display, and activate the video display to intermittently flash the color and backlighting timed with the rotational movement during the rotational movement.

2. The display device of claim 1 , wherein at least a part of the video display is mounted behind the mechanical reel.

3. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the mechanical reel comprises a plurality of variable displaying positions.

4. The display device of claim 1 further comprises a plurality of video displays.

5. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the video display is selected from a group comprising a TFT, an OLED, and an LCD.

6. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the video display includes a projector component that projects directly to the inner side of the mechanical reel.

7. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the video display includes a projector component that projects into the variable displaying position via one or more reflectors.

8. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the video display spans across at least two symbol positions of the plurality of symbol positions of the mechanical reel.

9. The display device of claim 1 , wherein, when the mechanical reel and the video display align with the at least one variable displaying position, the processor controls the video display to display one or more of an animated video symbol, a special symbol, an instruction, a video sequence or video content.

10. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the video display is operable to go dark or to display the video that backlights one or more of symbols printed on the outer side of the mechanical reel at the plurality of symbol positions.

11. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the at least one variable displaying position is defined by an opening or a light transmissive portion in the mechanical reel.

12. The display device of claim 1 , wherein at least one symbol position of the plurality of symbol positions is at least partially defined by a light transmissive portion in the mechanical reel.

13. The display device of claim 1 further comprising a display controller that controls content to be displayed by the video display.

14. The display device of claim 1 further comprising a reel controller that controls a stopping position of each reel.

15. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the processor controls the video display to cast a flashing effect or generate color video effect onto the inner side of the mechanical reel during rotation of the mechanical reel.

16. The display device of claim 15 , wherein the processor controls the video display to cast the flashing effect that is timed with the rotational movement of the mechanical reel, a presentation of at least one of a symbol at the plurality of symbol positions, or the variable displaying position during rotation.

17. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the processor controls the video display to continuously or intermittently cast a color background onto the mechanical reel.

18. A method for controlling a video display of a mechanical reel assembly comprising a mechanical reel, the mechanical reel having an inner side and an outer side, the outer side defining a plurality of symbol positions, including a first symbol position, a second symbol position, and at least one variable displaying position at which the video display may be varied, the method comprising:
determining, via a game controller, a stop position for the mechanical reel based on reel symbol data and a video to cast from the video display onto the inner side of the mechanical reel based on display data;
communicating to a player interface, via the game controller, the stop position for the mechanical reel and the video to display at the video display;
stopping the mechanical reel at the stop position;
displaying the video, cast from the video display, onto the inner side of the mechanical reel through the at least one variable displaying position, when the mechanical reel stops rotational movement to register the at least one variable displaying position with the video display,
activating the video display at different times from behind the first symbol position at least one of a color and backlighting and from behind the second symbol position a different one of the color and backlighting, when the mechanical reel stops the rotational movement to register with the first symbol position and the second symbol position with the video display; and
activating the video display to intermittently flash the color and backlighting timed with the rotational movement during the rotational movement.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the video displayed is a lighting effect to backlight one or more symbols on the outer side of the mechanical reel.

20. The method of claim 18 , wherein the video displayed is a color cast onto one or more symbols on the outer side of the mechanical reel in front of the video display.

21. The method of claim 18 , wherein the method further comprises the steps of:
receiving a player input at the player interface;
spinning the mechanical reel; and
casting from the video display a color background onto the mechanical reel while the mechanical reel rotates.

22. The method of claim 18 , wherein the step of displaying further comprises casting a flash effect or video color effect onto the inner side of the mechanical reel during rotation of the mechanical reel.

23. The method of claim 18 , wherein displaying the video, cast from the video display, is a continuous or intermittent color background.

24. The method of claim 18 , wherein the step of displaying further comprises the video casting across at least two adjacent symbols of the plurality of symbol positions.

25. The method of claim 18 , wherein the mechanical reel comprises at least three mechanical reels and the step of displaying further comprises casting a video effect across at least two adjacent mechanical reels.

Assignees

• Aristocrat Technologies Au

Inventors

• Anderson Philip Jeffery
• Mckay Linn Anthony
• Stewart Scott Monroe
• Bond Anthony Wayne

Classifications

• G07F17/3211

  Display means · CPC title

• G07F17/3216

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

• G07F17/32 Primary

  for games, toys, sports, or amusements · CPC title