Integrating wagering games and environmental conditions

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8968092-B2
Application number	US-201013510875-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 19, 2010
Priority date	Nov 20, 2009
Publication date	Mar 3, 2015
Grant date	Mar 3, 2015

Abstract

A wagering game system and its operations are described herein. In embodiments, the operations can include detecting characteristics of at least one environmental condition in an external environment that is external to a wagering game machine in a casino (e.g., detect activity that occurs in the casino, detect appearance of people and objects in the casino, detect light and sound events, etc.). The operations can further include generating an animated wagering game effect in a wagering game animation, using the detected characteristics of the environmental condition. The animated wagering game effect can affect one or more wagering game objects within the wagering game animation in a way that emulates the environmental condition.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A system comprising:
one or more processors; and
one or more memory storage devices configured to store instructions, which when executed by at least one of the one or more processors, cause the system to perform operations to
detect that a physical object is within view of an image capture device associated with a wagering game machine, wherein the physical object is within a physical environment external to the wagering game machine in a casino,
generate an animated wagering game object within an animated environment, based on the physical object, wherein the animated environment is presented via a display of the wagering game machine as a virtual representation of the physical environment for a wagering game application,
determine, while the physical object is in view of the image capture device, real-time movement of the physical object,
present, via the display of the wagering game machine, the animated wagering game object moving about the animated environment to match the real-time movement of the physical object relative to the physical environment,
detect, via sensors associated with the wagering game machine, an environmental condition external to the wagering game machine,
in response to detection of the environmental condition external to the wagering game machine, generate an animated effect within the animated environment,
present, within the animated environment, the animated effect, and
cause the animated wagering game object to move within the animated environment based on the animated effect within the animated environment.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more memory storage devices are configured to store instructions, which when executed by at least one of the one or more processors, cause the system to further perform operations to:
detect an environmental condition associated with the physical object in the physical environment;
determine an animation object construction rule for the wagering game application that relates to the environmental condition;
determine a three-dimensional effect that the environmental condition would have on the animated wagering game object based on the animation object construction rule; and
apply the three-dimensional effect to the animated wagering game object.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the three-dimensional effect relates to one or more of shadowing of the animated wagering game object based on a position of a light in the physical environment relative to the physical object, color gradients of the animated wagering game object based on a color of a light within the environment, depth perspective of wagering game object geometries of the animated wagering game object based on a distance of the physical object to the wagering game machine within the environment, and reflections off of the animated wagering game object of one or more of the physical object and additional physical objects in the physical environment.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the environmental condition is a sound.

5. The system of claim 4 , wherein the operation to cause the animated wagering game object to move within the animated environment based on the animated effect within the animated environment comprises one of an attraction and a repulsion of the animated wagering game object to the sound.

6. One or more non-transitory machine-readable storage media having instructions stored thereon, which when executed by a set of one or more processors cause the set of one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
receiving input of images of a physical object within an environment external to a wagering game machine within a casino, wherein the images of the physical object are taken from multiple perspectives around the wagering game machine;
generating a three-dimensional animated object in an animated environment of a wagering game animation for a wagering game application presentable via the wagering game machine, wherein the animated environment is a virtual representation of the environment external to the wagering game machine, and wherein the three-dimensional animated object within the animated environment has an animated appearance of the images of the physical object within the environment external to the wagering game machine according to the multiple perspectives;
detecting real-time movement of the physical object in relation to a boundary in the environment external to the wagering game;
causing presentation, on the wagering game machine, of the three-dimensional animated object moving within the animated environment to match the real-time movement of the physical object in relation to the boundary;
detecting, via sensors associated with the wagering game machine, an environmental condition external to the wagering game machine;
in response to detecting the environmental condition external to the wagering game machine, generating an animated effect within the animated environment;
presenting, within the animated environment, the animated effect; and
causing the animated wagering game object to move within the animated environment based on the animated effect within the animated environment.

7. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable storage media of claim 6 , wherein the operation for generating the three-dimensional animated object comprises generating animated reflective surfaces of the three-dimensional animated object, wherein the animated reflective surfaces appear to reflect the images of the physical object within the environment external to the wagering game machine.

8. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable storage media of claim 7 , wherein the operation for generating the three-dimensional animated representation includes operations further comprising:
generating an internal light source, internal to the wagering game application, that possesses one or more internal light source properties equivalent to one or more external light source properties associated with the environment external to the wagering game machine; and
using the internal light source properties of the internal light source to generate the animated reflective surfaces.

9. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable storage media of claim 7 , said operations further comprising:
presenting reflections of additional animated objects within the wagering game animation on the reflective surfaces of the three-dimensional animated object.

10. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable storage media of claim 9 , wherein the environmental condition is a sound.

11. The one or more non-transitory machine-readable storage media of claim 9 , wherein the physical object is an additional wagering game machine in the environment external to the wagering game machine, and said operations further comprising:
presenting an animated character in the wagering game animation that represents a player associated with the additional wagering game machine;
detecting player input at the additional wagering game machine; and
presenting, based on the player input, movement of the animated character from a viewing perspective associated with a location of the wagering game machine in relation to the additional wagering game machine.

12. An apparatus comprising:
a processor; and
an animation integration module configured to
receive input that characterizes a visual perspective of a casino environment and one or more casino objects in the casino environment,
generate an animated wagering game setting that emulates an appearance of the casino environment based on the visual perspective characterized by the input,
generate one or more animated wagering game objects tha

Assignees

• Gomez Benjamin T
• Gronkowski Timothy T
• Massing Scott A
• Morgan Iii Robert W
• Thomas Alfred
• Wms Gaming Inc

Inventors

• Gomez Benjamin T
• Gronkowski Timothy T
• Massing Scott A
• Morgan Iii Robert W
• Thomas Alfred

Classifications

• G07F17/3206

  Player sensing means, e.g. presence detection, biometrics · CPC title

• G07F17/32 Primary

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

• G07F17/3211

  Display means · CPC title