Opto-electronic locking assembly for electronic gaming machines

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12188261-B2
Application number	US-202318139327-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 25, 2023
Priority date	Sep 9, 2020
Publication date	Jan 7, 2025
Grant date	Jan 7, 2025

Abstract

An electronic gaming machine including a cabinet defining an interior space. The electronic gaming machine also includes a door releasably fastened to the cabinet operable to move between a locked state preventing access to the interior space and an unlocked state permitting access to at least a portion of the interior space. A security housing comprising a locking assembly and an optical switch coupled to a processor. The locking assembly includes an actuator defining a channel. The optical switch comprises a transmitter and a receiver. When the door engages the locking assembly, the actuator is operable to move the channel to align with the transmitter and the receiver to form an optical path between the transmitter and the receiver through the channel and the optical switch is operable to communicate the locked state to at least one of the processor, the server computer, and the gaming system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic gaming system comprising:
a cabinet having an interior;
a door having a state comprising a locked state, in which the interior is inaccessible, and an unlocked state, in which the interior is accessible; and
a security housing comprising a locking assembly and an optical switch coupled to a processor, the locking assembly having an actuator defining a channel, the optical switch comprising a transmitter and a receiver, the security housing operable to releasably fasten the door to the cabinet, wherein, when the door has engaged the locking assembly, the actuator has not been pulled, the channel is aligned with the transmitter on a first side of the channel and the receiver on a second side of the channel to complete an optical path, the processor is operable to communicate the state from the optical switch, wherein the state communicated is the locked state.

2. The electronic gaming system of claim 1 , wherein, when the door is disengaged from the locking assembly, the actuator is operable to move the channel to block the optical path between the transmitter and the receiver through the channel thereby discontinuing the optical path and the optical switch is operable to communicate the state, wherein the state communicated is the unlocked state.

3. The electronic gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is operable to:
monitor the optical path, wherein the optical path is: a) formed between the transmitter and the receiver when the door is in the locked state, and b) discontinued when the door is in the unlocked state; and
communicate the state as the locked state or the unlocked state based on the optical path that is formed or the optical path that is discontinued.

4. The electronic gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the locking assembly includes a latch, and the door includes a striker, wherein, when the striker engages the latch, the latch rotates and secures the striker in the locked state.

5. The electronic gaming system of claim 4 , wherein the actuator is coupled to the latch, when the door engages the latch, the latch and the actuator are operable to align the channel with the transmitter and the receiver to form the optical path between the transmitter and the receiver through the channel.

6. The electronic gaming system of claim 1 , further comprising a cable coupled to the door, the locking assembly includes a latch, and the door includes a striker, and wherein when the door moves from the locked state to the unlocked state, disengages the striker from the latch, thereby rotates the actuator to discontinue the optical path through the channel.

7. The electronic gaming system of claim 1 , wherein the locking assembly further includes a latch rotatably coupled to the actuator, and the door includes a striker, wherein, when the striker engages the latch, the latch rotatably actuates the actuator to form the optical path through the channel when the door is in the locked state.

8. A method of monitoring an electronic gaming system having a cabinet having an interior accessible via a door having a state comprising a locked state preventing access to the interior and an unlocked state permitting access to the interior, a security housing comprising a locking assembly and an optical switch coupled to a processor, the locking assembly having an actuator defining a channel, the optical switch comprising a transmitter and a receiver, the security housing operable to releasably fasten the door to the cabinet, the method comprising:
determining whether the door is engaged with the locking assembly;
in response to determining the door is engaged with the locking assembly, determining if the actuator has been pulled;

in response to determining the actuator has not been pulled, determining whether the channel is aligned with the transmitter on a first side of the channel and the receiver on a second side of the channel;
in response to the channel being aligned with the transmitter on the first side of the channel and the receiver on the second side of the channel, completing an optical path between the transmitter and the receiver through the channel; and
communicating the state from the optical switch to the processor, wherein the state communicated is the locked state.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising: in response to determining the door is disengaged from the locking assembly, discontinuing the optical path, thereby communicating the state, when the optical path between the transmitter and the receiver through the channel is blocked, wherein the state communicated is the unlocked state.

10. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
monitoring the optical path, wherein the optical path is: a) completed between the transmitter and the receiver when the door is in the locked state; and b) discontinued when the door is in the unlocked state; and
communicating the state as the locked state or the unlocked state based on the optical path that is completed or the optical path that is discontinued.

11. The method of claim 8 , wherein the locking assembly includes a latch, and the door includes a striker, further comprising, engaging the striker with the latch to secure the door is in the locked state.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the actuator is coupled to the latch, further comprising, when the door engages the latch, completing the optical path between the transmitter and the receiver through the channel.

13. The method of claim 8 , wherein the electronic gaming system further comprises a cable coupled to the door, the locking assembly includes a latch, and the door includes a striker, further comprising, when the door moves from the locked state to the unlocked state, disengaging the striker from the latch, thereby rotating the actuator to discontinue the optical path through the channel.

14. The method of claim 8 , wherein the locking assembly further includes a latch rotatably coupled to the actuator, and the door includes a striker, further comprising, when the striker engages the latch, the latch rotatably actuating the actuator to form the optical path through the channel when the door is in the locked state.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising a plurality of instructions, for monitoring an electronic gaming system having a cabinet having an interior accessible via a door moveable between a locked state, in which the interior is inaccessible, and an unlocked state, in which the interior is accessible, a cable coupling the door to a security housing that includes a locking assembly and an optical switch, the locking assembly having an actuator defining a channel, the optical switch comprising a transmitter and a receiver, the security housing operable to releasably fasten the door to the cabinet, and a processor, and the instructions, which, when executed, cause the processor to perform the steps of:
monitoring whether the door has engaged the locking assembly;
monitoring whether the cable and the actuator have been pulled responsive to the door having been engaged the locking assembly;
detecting whether the receiver on one side of the channel receives an optical signal transmitted from the transmitter on a different side of the channel thereby forming an optical path; and
activating the optical switch when the optical path is formed.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to perform the step of, when the door is disengaged from the locking assembly, communicating the unlocked state, wherein the unlocked state ind

Assignees

• Aristocrat Technologies Au

Inventors

• Abali Muharrem
• Kim Calvin
• SKEEN Jeffrey
• Chaudhari Deepak

Classifications

• E05Y2999/00

  Subject-matter not otherwise provided for in this subclass · CPC title

• E05C3/16

  with operating handle or equivalent member moving otherwise than rigidly with the latch {(E05C3/122 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• E05Y2400/445

  Switches · CPC title

• E05Y2201/654

  Cables · CPC title

• H04Q11/0005

  Switch and router aspects · CPC title