Electronic gaming machine with wireless communication capabilities

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12249208-B2
Application number	US-202318234463-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 16, 2023
Priority date	Feb 10, 2020
Publication date	Mar 11, 2025
Grant date	Mar 11, 2025

Abstract

The present disclosure relates generally to gaming machines, systems, and methods. As an example, a method is disclosed that includes enabling a user to interact with a game of chance via a user interface device of the electronic gaming machine, storing an amount of credit available for the player to play the game of chance in a credit meter, presenting the amount of credit available to the user via the user interface device, providing information from the credit meter to a wireless communication assembly, and transmitting, with the wireless communication assembly, the information from the credit meter to a game management system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic gaming machine, comprising:
a user interface device;
a processor coupled with the user interface device;
a wireless communication assembly;
a computer-readable storage medium coupled with the processor and comprising instructions that:
enable a user to interact with a game via the user interface device;
update machine state information as the user interacts with the game;
store the updated machine state information while the user interacts with the game;
determine one of: (i) a predetermined amount of time has passed since the machine state information has been shared with a cloud-based game management system and (ii) the machine state information has changed with respect to a particular state; and
in response to determining that the one of the predetermined amount of time has passed and the machine state information has changed with respect to the particular state, executing activity reporting instructions to provide the updated machine state information to the cloud-based game management system via the wireless communication assembly;
wherein the wireless communication assembly comprises:
a data interface that receives, from the processor, the updated machine state information;
memory that temporarily stores the updated machine state information; and
an antenna that wirelessly transmits the updated machine state information to the cloud-based game management system.

2. The electronic gaming machine of claim 1 , wherein the wireless communication assembly further comprises:
a Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card that stores a mobile number associated with the wireless communication assembly and a key, wherein the mobile number and the key are used by the wireless communication assembly to enable the cloud-based game management system to identify and authenticate the electronic gaming machine from among other electronic gaming machines.

3. The electronic gaming machine of claim 2 , wherein the wireless communication assembly communicates with the cloud-based game management system via a cellular connection and wherein control data is provided from the cloud-based game management system to the wireless communication assembly via the cellular connection.

4. The electronic gaming machine of claim 3 , wherein the control data comprises game configuration data, wherein the game configuration data is communicated from the wireless communication assembly to the processor via the data interface, and wherein the computer-readable storage medium further comprises instructions that:
update the game of chance based on the game configuration data received from the wireless communication assembly.

5. The electronic gaming machine of claim 3 , wherein the control data comprises an output of a Random Number Generator (RNG) and wherein the output of the RNG is provided from the cloud-based game management system to the processor to control an action of the game.

6. The electronic gaming machine of claim 1 , wherein the updated machine state information is transmitted in response to determining that the predetermined amount of time has passed since the machine state information has been shared with the cloud-based game management system.

7. The electronic gaming machine of claim 1 , wherein the updated machine state information is transmitted in response to determining that the machine state information has changed with respect to the particular state.

8. The electronic gaming machine of claim 7 , wherein the machine state information is changed in response to the machine state changing into the particular state.

9. The electronic gaming machine of claim 7 , wherein the machine state information is changed in response to the machine state changing out of the particular state.

10. The electronic gaming machine of claim 7 , wherein the particular state comprises one of available and in use.

11. The electronic gaming machine of claim 1 , wherein the machine state information describes one of: whether the user is currently interacting with the game, an amount of time that the user has been interacting with the game, whether the electronic gaming machine is currently sitting idle, and betting levels of the user.

12. The electronic gaming machine of claim 1 , wherein the computer-readable storage medium further comprises:
instructions that enable the user to login to the cloud-based game management system prior to interacting with the game; and
instructions that transmit player profile information to the wireless communication assembly for further transmission to the cloud-based game management system when the user is logging into the cloud-based game management system.

13. The electronic gaming machine of claim 1 , wherein the computer-readable storage medium further comprises instructions that:
present, via the user interface device, an interaction window that facilitates communications between the user and support personnel located remotely with respect to the electronic gaming machine, wherein communication data exchanged between the user and the support personnel passes through the data interface and the antenna.

14. The electronic gaming machine of claim 1 , wherein the data interface comprises a bi-directional data interface and wherein system updates are received at the antenna from the cloud-based game management system and then provided to the processor via the bi-directional data interface to enable the processor to update the electronic gaming machine with the system updates.

15. A system, comprising:
a first data interface;
a processor coupled with the first data interface;
a computer-readable storage medium coupled with the processor and comprising instructions stored thereon that are executable by the processor, wherein the instructions comprise instructions that:
enable a user to interact with a game via a user interface device;
update machine state information as the user interacts with the game;
store the updated machine state information while the user interacts with the game;
determine one of: (i) a predetermined amount of time has passed since the machine state information has been shared with a cloud-based game management system and (ii) the machine state information has changed with respect to a particular state; and
in response to determining that the one of the predetermined amount of time has passed and the machine state information has changed with respect to the particular state, executing activity reporting instructions to provide the updated machine state information to the cloud-based game management system; and
a wireless communication assembly, comprising:
a second data interface that receives the updated machine state information;
memory that stores the updated machine state information; and
an antenna that wirelessly transmits the updated machine state information to the cloud-based game management system.

16. The system of claim 15 , further comprising:
a data transmission medium that couples the first data interface with the second data interface; and
a Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) card that stores a mobile number associated with the wireless communication assembly and a key, wherein the mobile number and the key are used for identification and authentication with the cloud-based game management system.

17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the wireless communication assembly communicates with the cloud-based game management system via a cellular connection and wherein control data is provided from the cloud-based game management system to the wireless communication assem

Assignees

• Igt Reno Nev

Inventors

• Idris Fayez
• Keilwert Stefan
• Aurich Sven
• Froy Jr David
• Russ Michael
• Small David
• Tang yue hang

Classifications

• G07F17/3241

  Security aspects of a gaming system, e.g. detecting cheating, device integrity, surveillance (computer security G06F21/00) · CPC title

• G07F17/3293

  Card games, e.g. poker, canasta, black jack · CPC title

• G07F17/3209 Primary

  Input means, e.g. buttons, touch screen · CPC title

• G07F17/3239

  Tracking of individual players · CPC title

• G07F17/34

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