Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ADJUSTING 3D GAMING IMAGES FOR
MOBILE GAMING
FIELD
[0001] Embodiments described herein relate to electronic gaming systems,
such as
gaming systems in casinos or other establishments, and, in particular, to a
gaming
systems where a player may remotely play a gaming machine using a mobile
gaming
device communicating wirelessly with the gaming machine.
INTRODUCTION
[0002] A player may play games on a gaming machine in a casino.
[0003] A wireless hand-held device, such as a tablet, may also be used to
remotely
play an otherwise conventional gaming machine in a casino. The gaming machine,
for
security and central monitoring/accounting purposes, may perform all the
processing to
deduct a bet from the remote player's stored bank of credits, randomly select
a game
outcome, determine the award to be paid to the player, and credit the player's
bank of
credits. The information processed by the gaming machine may be wirelessly
communicated to the tablet, and the predetermined outcome may be displayed to
the
player (such as by displaying stopped reels). The tablet may function as a
user interface
and display.
[0004] The tablet may display on its screen essentially what the player
would see if
the player was at the gaming machine, but the gaming machine makes all the
game
decisions. Virtually all player inputs are performed via the tablet's touch
screen.
[0005] When the tablet is in use, another player may not use the gaming
machine.
Alternatively, one player may play the gaming machine using the tablet, and
another
player may simultaneously and independently play the gaming machine in the
conventional way.
[0006] One type of tablet is described in US Patent No. 6,846,238 to Wells.
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[0007] Since the player may walk around the casino with the tablet and be
distracted,
various issues may arise. Some of these issues include actions to be taken in
the event
the communications link is broken during a game and actions to be taken if a
maximum
time between games is exceeded. The link can be broken by the player moving
beyond
the reception range, moving beyond an allowable range, interference, battery
failure, or
equipment malfunction.
[0008] In the Wells patent (column 20, lines 29-47), for example, the
gaming machine
internally stores video frames of the game outcome in the event there is a
communications link failure during the game, since the tablet could not
display the
outcome of the game and the outcome needs to be later verified. In case of
such a link
failure, it is very important to eventually prove or reveal to the player the
actual outcome
of the game. In the Wells patent, if the communications link is broken between
the time
the player initiated the rotation of the reels and the time that the outcome
should have
been communicated to the tablet to stop the reels, the game displayed on the
tablet
stops, and the player does not see the outcome. The game is thus terminated.
The player
becomes confused and agitated by the failure of the system. If the
communications link
was broken due to the player walking out the reception area, the player must
determine
this herself and walk back toward the gaming machine console. The tablet must
then re-
establish communications with the gaming machine. For the player to then
determine the
outcome of the game, the player must somehow view the stored video frames at
the
gaming machine. Wells describes the game being "terminated" once the
communications
link becomes inactive (see column 27, lines 1-2; column 29, lines 35-36;
column 31, lines
19-20; column 32, lines 44-47; and column 34, lines 1-3). Such termination of
the game
prior to the player seeing the result of the game is a significant drawback of
the Wells
tablet.
[0009] Losing the communications link between games, rather than during a
game, is
much less frustrating, and re-establishing the communications link does not
require any
verification of a game's outcome.
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[0010] Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved technique for
dealing with a
communications link being broken in the middle of a game, or at least a useful
alternative.
[0011] Further, in the Wells patent, there is no provision for allowing the
player to
temporarily suspend play without the system automatically terminating the
playing
session due to the period between games exceeding an allowable limit. A player
may not
be able to pause play for a legitimate reason and will lose rights to the
gaming machine
to another player.
[0012] Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved technique to allow
the player
to pause play on the tablet without the playing session being automatically
terminated
due to the period between games exceeding an allowable limit, or at least a
useful
alternative.
[0013] Another disadvantage of the Wells tablet is that it is customized
for use as a
gaming tablet to be used in conjunction with the licensed gaming machine (see
column
12, lines 11-21). In one embodiment, the Wells tablet is a modified version of
a
commercially available tablet. This adds cost to the system since the casino
must provide
the tablets, and the players will initially be unfamiliar with the operation
of the tablet,
inhibiting wide spread acceptance of the system.
[0014] Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved mobile gaming
device, such
as a tablet, that is an off-the-shelf commercially available device, running a
suitable
application, that may be personally owned by the players and which
communicates with
licensed gaming machines located in the same jurisdiction in which the mobile
gaming
device is located, or at least a useful alternative.
[0015] It is known to access a gaming site via the internet using any
suitable
computing device, but such an internet connection only connects the computing
device to
a server running a gaming program, typically located outside of the United
States. The
server is not a licensed gaming machine in the jurisdiction in which the
computing device
is located. Therefore, operating the computing device to carry out the game
may be
illegal in the jurisdiction in which it is operated. Additionally, even
operating such an
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internet-connected computing device in a jurisdiction that allows gaming does
not
typically authorize the player to operate the computing device for gaming
purposes since
the operation is not performed in an authorized venue.
[0016] There may be no provision to remotely select another gaming machine
and
automatically set up the communications link to the new machine. The remote
player has
no way of knowing which other games or other gaming machines are available for
play.
Further, the player may not be allowed to use the tablet for different gaming
machines/servers in different gaming venues. There exists a need for improved
recommendations of other games or other gaming machines that are available for
play,
or at least a useful alternative.
[0017] If the player does not have a central account, cashing out may not
convenient
since the player must either go to the gaming machine to receive a printed
ticket or
somehow identify the game on a separate printer terminal, such as by using a
keypad.
[0018] Gaming machines and tablets may incorporate 3D image viewing
capability,
such as by having a lenticular lens over the screen to direct two interlaced
stereoscopic
images to the player's respective left and right eyes. There may be no
provision for
converting the gaming machine's 3D format of the original stereoscopic image
to the
tablet's particular 3D or 2D format. If the tablet does not have 3D
capability, the original
stereoscopic images cannot be displayed on the tablet's screen without
appearing blurry.
Further, with a gaming machine, the 3D image is tuned for a particular viewing
distance,
while the viewing distance for the tablet may be different, typically closer
since the screen
is much smaller. Embodiments described herein may allow the remote player to
adjust
the 3D viewing distance (or image depth).
[0019] There may be no forced prevention of the player initiating a game
when the
battery power runs low. Therefore, an incomplete game may result if the
battery power
runs out during a game.
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SUMMARY
[0020] In a first aspect, there is provided a remote gaming method
comprising:
establishing a wireless communications link between the mobile gaming device
operated
by a player and a first gaming terminal, the gaming machine generating video
animation
in an original format when displaying a first game on the display screen;
receiving player
control signals by the first gaming terminal from the mobile gaming device to
initiate the
first game; detecting a required video animation second format for the mobile
gaming
device which is different from the original format; providing the video
animation second
format for the mobile gaming device; displaying the game to the player on the
mobile
gaming device using the second format; carrying out the first game by the
first gaming
terminal, including determining a final outcome of the first game and any
award for the
outcome; and transmitting signals from the first gaming terminal to the mobile
gaming
device identifying the final outcome of the first game and the award.
[0021] In some embodiments, the method further comprises converting the
video
animation from the original format to the second format for the mobile gaming
device.
[0022] In some embodiments, the method further comprises converting the
video
animation from the original format to the second format for the mobile gaming
device by
the gaming machine performing the converting.
[0023] In some embodiments, the method further comprises converting the
video
animation from the original format to the second format for the mobile gaming
device by
the mobile gaming device performing the converting.
[0024] In some embodiments, the method further comprises transmitting by
the mobile
gaming device to the gaming machine information used by the gaming machine to
determine whether converting the video animation from the original format to
the second
format is to be performed by the gaming machine or the mobile gaming device.
[0025] In some embodiments, the original format is a 3D format, wherein 3D
images
displayed on the display screen of the gaming machine have a first depth
determined by
an assumed viewing distance between the player and the display screen, and the
3D
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images displayed on the mobile gaming device are controlled by the player to
have a
selected depth based on the player's viewing distance from the mobile gaming
device.
[0026] In some embodiments, the method further comprises further comprising
identifying the video animation second format from a plurality of video
animation formats.
[0027] In some embodiments, the original format is a 3D format.
[0028] In some embodiments, the second format is a 3D format.
[0029] In some embodiments, the second format is a 2D format.
[0030] In some embodiments, the method further comprises providing a
stationary
registration terminal within a first regulated gaming venue, the registration
terminal having
a transceiver for communicating with a mobile gaming device, within the first
regulated
gaming venue, the registration terminal being connected in a network with a
plurality of
gaming machines including a first gaming terminal; and establishing the
wireless
communications link via the registration terminal.
[0031] In some embodiments, the method further comprises detecting the
player's real
time game play; based on detecting the player's real time game play,
determining a set of
recommended games available to be played on the mobile gaming device;
[0032] transmitting signals to the mobile gaming device identifying at
least a second
game of the set of recommended games; detecting a selection by the player of
the
second game, the gaming machine generating video animation in an original
format when
displaying the second game on the display screen; receiving player control
signals by the
first gaming terminal from the mobile gaming device to initiate the second
game;
providing a video animation second format of the second game for the mobile
gaming
device; displaying the second game to the player on the mobile gaming device
using the
second format; carrying out the second game, including determining a final
outcome of
the second game and any award for the outcome; and transmitting signals to the
mobile
gaming device identifying the final outcome of the second game and the award.
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[0033] In some embodiments, the method further comprises applying data from
the
player's real time game play to an algorithm to determine that the player is a
certain type
of player, then selecting the set of recommended games based on the certain
type of
player.
[0034] In some embodiments, the set of recommended games is associated with
a
gaming model of a plurality of gaming models, and wherein the method further
comprises: detecting a threshold amount of data for the player's real time
game play;
partitioning the data for the player's real time game play into a plurality of
game events;
and determining that the gaming model corresponds to the one or more events of
the
plurality of game events.
[0035] In some embodiments, the set of recommended games is associated with
a
gaming model of a plurality of gaming models, and wherein the method further
comprises: determining each of the plurality of models from collected game
play data
using cluster analysis; and associating a set of recommended games with each
of the
plurality of gaming models.
[0036] In some embodiments, the player's real time game play is associated
with
game factors, and wherein the gaming model comprises a collection of game
factors
representing a predetermined gaming and play behavior model of game player.
[0037] In some embodiments, the game factors comprise one or more members
selected from the grouping consisting of: game session length, play behavior,
game
behavior, game language, game location, game selection, elapsed time with one
game,
wagering behavior, game type, game theme, wager amounts, wager denominations,
play
rates, typical bonus values, game brand, prize distributions, amounts of
incremental
wagers, frequency of wagering, for instance the presence or absence of
multiple rounds
of wagering in a game, the number of rounds of wagers permitted in a game,
maximum
wager amounts permitted, minimum wager amounts permitted, amount of wagering,
elapsed time between selected events for instance starting a new game,
reaction to
bonus rounds, reaction to progressive outputs, pay table features, amount of
incremental
wagers, frequency of wagering, elapsed time for player reaction, amount of
wagering,
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elapsed time between wagers, frequency of player action, game rules, game
complexity,
ability for a player to control or have an effect on a game outcome, whether
an outcome
is predetermined, whether parallel wagering is provided, average game speed,
average
wager amounts, average wager rate, presence or frequency of bonus rounds,
presence
and frequency of progressive outputs, payout percentages, win rates, win
percentages,
loss rates, loss percentages, use of special features, frequency of use of
special features,
number of lines played, total amount wagered, and type of payment received.
[0038] In some embodiments, the set of recommended games is associated with
a
game player type, wherein the game player type is associated with a gaming
model of a
plurality of gaming models, and wherein the method further comprises:
detecting a
threshold amount of data for the player's real time game play; determining the
game
player type based on analysis of the data for the player's real time game play
determining
that the gaming model corresponds to the game player type.
[0039] In some embodiments, the player is playing anonymously, without the
use of a
player tracking card.
[0040] In some embodiments, the method further comprises periodically
controlling
the mobile gaming device to communicate between a plurality of transceivers in
a venue;
using Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) level signals derived by
communications
with the transceivers to determine whether the mobile gaming device is within
a
designated area within the venue; and if it is determined that the mobile
gaming device is
outside of the designated area, blocking the mobile gaming device from
carrying out the
first game.
[0041] In some embodiments, the method further comprises transferring game
assets
to the mobile gaming device, wherein the game assets comprise game content for
the
first game or the second game; if it is determined that the mobile gaming
device is
outside of the designated area, deleting the game assets on the mobile gaming
device.
[0042] In some embodiments, the first game or the second game comprises a
wagering mode and a free mode, wherein the method further comprises:
transferring
game assets to the mobile gaming device, wherein the game assets comprise game
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content for the first game or the second game; carrying out, using the game
assets, the
first game or the second game in the wagering mode; if it is determined that
the mobile
gaming device is outside of the designated area, continuing to carry out,
using the game
assets, the first game or the second game in the free mode.
[0043] In some embodiments the carrying out the first game by the first
gaming
terminal comprises displaying game animation on the mobile gaming device
conveying to
the player that the first game is presently occurring, and wherein the method
further
comprises: in the event of a communications link failure between the mobile
gaming
device and the first gaming terminal during the game, prior to receiving the
signals by the
mobile gaming device identifying the final outcome of the game and the award
but after
the game animation has begun, continuing the game animation by the mobile
gaming
device during the communications link failure for a time until the
communications link has
been re-established; once the communication link has been re-established,
transmitting
the signals to the mobile gaming device identifying the final outcome of the
first game and
the award, stopping the game animation; and displaying, by the mobile gaming
device,
the final outcome of the game and the award, such that the game perceived by
the player
is not interrupted during the communications link failure.
[0044] In some embodiments, the gaming terminal comprises game inactivity
rules
requiring game play within a maximum allowable time to prevent a remote gaming
session from being terminated, and wherein the method further comprises:
allowing the
player to pause the remote gaming session by entering a command via the mobile
gaming device to pause the remote gaming session for a certain time;
suspending the
game inactivity rules, by the first gaming terminal, for the certain time so
the remote
gaming session does not terminate due to game inactivity; receiving a first
signal by the
first gaming terminal indicating that the player is again using the mobile
gaming device to
play the first game; re-applying the game activity rules after the first
signal is received;
and terminating the gaming session if the player does not use the mobile
gaming device
to play the first game within the certain time.
[0045] In some embodiments, the method further comprises collecting game
play data
corresponding to the player's real time game play; determining one or more
processing,
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storing or transmitting actions permitted on the collected game play data
based on user
preferences and regulatory restrictions; and upon determining that the one or
more
processing, storing or transmitting actions are permitted on the collected
game play data,
performing the one or more processing, storing or transmitting actions that
are permitted
on the collected game play data.
[0046] In some embodiments, the method further comprises providing, on a
display of
the mobile gaming device using the second format, a designated area assigned
to the
player as part of the first game, wherein there are additional designated
areas assigned
to different players; receiving a signal initiated by the player that
identifies the player as
an active player in the first game; initiating the display of an individual
game in the
designated area assigned to the player as part of the first game using the
second format,
while the remaining players have an option to concurrently play a community
game
displayed on the additional designated areas; concurrently displaying, on the
mobile
gaming device using the second format, a plurality of icons in the designated
area
assigned to the player, each icon being associated with a particular wager
amount,
wherein the icons concurrently displayed are associated with a plurality of
different wager
amounts, and wherein at least some of the icons are associated with a hidden
prize;
receiving a signal identifying a particular icon being touched; deducting the
wager amount
associated with the icon touched by the player from a bank of credits
associated with the
first player; and granting any award to the player associated with the icon
touched by the
player.
[0047] In another aspect, there is provided a remote gaming system
comprising one
or more processors and one or more data storage devices storing one or more
sequences of instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors,
causes
the one or more processors to: establish a wireless communications link
between the
mobile gaming device operated by a player and a first gaming terminal, the
gaming
machine generating video animation in an original format when displaying a
first game on
the display screen; receive player control signals by the first gaming
terminal from the
mobile gaming device to initiate the first game; detect a required video
animation second
format for the mobile gaming device which is different from the original
format; provide
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the video animation second format for the mobile gaming device; display the
game to the
player on the mobile gaming device using the second format; carry out the
first game by
the first gaming terminal, including determining a final outcome of the first
game and any
award for the outcome; and transmit signals from the first gaming terminal to
the mobile
gaming device identifying the final outcome of the first game and the award.
[0048] In a further aspect, there is provided a computer-readable storage
medium
storing one or more sequences of instructions which, when executed by one or
more
processors, causes the one or more processors to perform a method of remote
gaming,
the method comprising: establishing a wireless communications link between the
mobile
gaming device operated by a player and a first gaming terminal, the gaming
machine
generating video animation in an original format when displaying a first game
on the
display screen; receiving player control signals by the first gaming terminal
from the
mobile gaming device to initiate the first game; detecting a required video
animation
second format for the mobile gaming device which is different from the
original format;
providing the video animation second format for the mobile gaming device;
displaying the
game to the player on the mobile gaming device using the second format;
carrying out
the first game by the first gaming terminal, including determining a final
outcome of the
first game and any award for the outcome; and transmitting signals from the
first gaming
terminal to the mobile gaming device identifying the final outcome of the
first game and
the award.
[0049] In one aspect, remote gaming using hand-held gaming devices and
operating
techniques are described herein. In one embodiment, the player's own tablet
(e.g., an
Apple iPadTM) may be used as the hand-held gaming device. In other
embodiments, any
suitable mobile device may be used, including the players' own smartphones,
personal
digital assistants, etc. A conventional tablet may be used for example.
[0050] The tablet may communicate wirelessly with a stationary gaming
machine
using encrypted signals. The tablet may act as a remote user interface for the
gaming
machine, while the gaming machine conducts the game itself and controls the
player's
account.
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[0051] The player registers the tablet for play with a particular gaming
machine and
establishes a session time, such as two hours. This may be done by the player
inserting
her player tracking card into the gaming machine and entering certain
information via the
gaming machine's touch screen. A communications link between the tablet and
the
gaming machine may then be established. Near Field Communication (NFC) may be
used to set up the link, where a link is automatically established (according
to established
protocols) when the tablet is brought near the gaming machine. The gaming
machine
may use the tablet's MAC address, serial number, or other hardware/software
signature
to uniquely identify the tablet. The player may create a bank of credits using
the player's
player tracking card, or by inserting money or a printed ticket (for cashless
gaming) into
the gaming machine, or by other means either at the gaming machine or via the
tablet.
[0052] In one embodiment, the gaming machine displays that the machine is
in use by
a remote player and also displays the remaining session time. Prospective
players may
register to reserve the machine by inserting their player tracking card into
the gaming
machine and registering via the gaming machine's touch screen. The queued
player then
gets a message on her own tablet stating when the gaming machine is available.
The
queued player only needs to respond via the tablet to begin the next session
if the player
has stored credits available. In another embodiment, the queued player must
return to
the gaming machine to register and begin the session.
[0053] The tablets may operate with any of a number of authorized gaming
machines.
In one embodiment, an application may need to be downloaded to the tablet
(such as via
the Internet) to allow the tablet to operate in accordance with embodiments
described
herein. The application may be specific for the gaming venue or generic for
multiple
gaming venues.
[0054] The tablet presents a user interface touch screen display to the
player. The
particular display presented by the tablet to the player may be identified by
commands
transmitted by the gaming machine.
[0055] In an example of the game being a video reels game, the player
places bets
and starts the video reels spinning via touch screen buttons on the tablet.
The tablet may
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include a stored spin-reels program that causes the tablet to display the
reels spinning.
The spin-reels program may be downloaded from the gaming machine or a server
prior to
the first game played on the gaming machine being initiated. Since different
gaming
machines may play different games and have different graphics, the spin-reel
program
may be different for each type of game and must therefore be customized for
the
particular gaming machine being played. In one embodiment, only the different
graphics
are downloaded before a game is initiated and other functions are generic to
all the
gaming machines.
[0056] The gaming machine receives the player inputs and controls all
aspects of the
game. The gaming machine instantly determines the outcome of the game (the
stop
positions of the reels) using a random number generator and determines the
resulting
award using a pay table. The gaming machine then transmits the outcome and
award
information to the tablet, and the tablet displays the reels eventually
stopping at the
predetermined positions and displays the award to the player. The length of
time the
reels appear to spin is irrelevant to the game. The gaming machine deducts or
adds
credits from/to the player's account, and such credits are displayed to the
player. The
player is typically unaware that the game outcome is determined by a random
number
generator prior to the reels stopping and believes that the ultimate displayed
stopped
positions of the reels determine the award paid. Therefore, the un-interrupted
display of
the reels spinning and stopping is very important to the player.
[0057] Since the player may roam with the tablet, the tablet may
occasionally be out of
the communication range of the gaming machine (or out of some other allowable
range).
Most of the time, the player will be actively engaged in a game. If the
communications
link is broken during a game, terminating the game may be terminated and
stopped.
Embodiments described herein may enable the tablet to display the continuing
spinning
of the reels using the tablet's internal spin-reels application program and
display a stored
message to the player that the player must re-enter the transmission reception
area
within a certain time limit (e.g., 15 seconds) to complete the game. When the
player re-
enters the transmission reception area, the tablet automatically re-
establishes contact
with the gaming machine (pursuant to stored protocols), and the tablet
receives the game
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outcome from the gaming machine. The tablet then stops the reels to display
the
predetermined outcome. The player is unaware that the game outcome had
previously
been determined and believes that the game was just extended. This may be much
more
satisfying to the player than the game being terminated due to the broken
communications link.
[0058] The link may also be broken due to interference or other issues, but
the display
of the spinning reels continues until the link is re-established or the
"reconnect timeout"
period has lapsed.
[0059] Since the player is actively playing the game a majority of the
time, there is a
substantial likelihood that a disruption in the communications link will occur
during the
game rather than between games.
[0060] If the player does not re-enter the transmission reception area
within the
allowable "reconnect timeout" period, the playing session is terminated, and a
stored
message appears that the player may review the results of the game by re-
registering
with the gaming machine
[0061] Another aspect of embodiments described herein relates to the gaming
machine automatically terminating the tablet's playing session after a period
of inactivity
(typically only a few minutes). Automatically terminating the gaming session
due to
inactivity is described in the Wells patent in column 25, lines 25-27.
However, since the
registered playing session may be a few hours, the player should be able to be
inactive
for a period of time without the gaming machine terminating the session, such
as if the
player needs to exit the play area for a washroom break, a smoking break,
eating dinner,
or go to her hotel room. Embodiments described herein may provide the player
with a
pause button on the tablet that allows the player to enter an allowable
inactive period
without penalty. The session still expires after the registered session time,
but the gaming
machine will not terminate the session within the period of inactivity
selected by the
player. The selectable inactive period will typically be limited to, for
example, 30 minutes
to limit the loss of revenue by the casino. However, the selectable times may
vary by day,
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time of day, or based on the number of people in the casino or waiting to play
the gaming
machine.
[0062] If the player does not begin playing a game on the tablet within the
allowable
inactivity period, and after a warning is given, the session will terminate.
[0063] The player may renew the session time, if there are no other players
queued
up for the machine, allowing for unlimited play on the tablet.
[0064] The session may automatically terminate if the communications link
is broken
for more than, for example, 60 seconds and the player has not responded within
15
seconds after the communications link has been restored. Stored warning
messages are
displayed to the player.
[0065] The gaming machine may display the queue of other players who have
registered to play the machine, either locally or via a tablet, once the
session time has
run out.
[0066] When the player wishes to cash out, the player may cash out at the
gaming
machine and receive a printed ticket to redeem at a cashier's window, or the
player's
account may store the remaining credits, or the ticket (with a bar code) may
be displayed
on the player's tablet. In another embodiment, the player may obtain the
printed ticket or
redeem her remaining credits at any suitable terminal. A separate printer
terminal (not a
gaming machine) may print out the player's coded ticket when the player wishes
to cash
out. The printer terminal may sense the proximity of the tablet using NFC and
automatically determine the gaming session code so that the player does not
need to
manually enter data into the printer to cash out. The player may redeem the
ticket for
cash at a redemption area. The printer terminal may also be a registration
terminal for the
tablet, so the player never has to physically be at the gaming machine to
register for play.
The communications between the tablet and the gaming machine may be via a
wireless
connection between the registration terminal and the tablet, then the
registration terminal
communicates to the gaming machine through the casino's existing network.
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0067] In another embodiment, the venue's system automatically recommends
other
games and gaming machines to the player. The player may receive a
recommendation
on a gaming machine or remotely via the player's tablet. The player may select
any
recommended game via the gaming machine or the tablet. If the player selects a
recommended game on another gaming machine then the player's credits may be
transferred to the new gaming machine via the venue's network. If the player
is playing
remotely via a remote gaming device then a communications link to the new
gaming
machine may be automatically established. In one embodiment, the same tablet
may
communicate with gaming machines or servers in different venues and the
revenue is
appropriately shared. Credits may even be transferred between venues.
[0068] In one embodiment, when a player uses a player tracking card, the
player's
past history of gaming may be used by the recommender algorithm to recommend
games
to the player. If the player does not use a player tracking card and thus
plays
anonymously, the recommender system detects the player's real time game play
(e.g.,
game selected, bet amount, etc.) and recommends other games to the player
consistent
with the real time game play. In other embodiments, recommendations may be
provided
to anonymous players after collecting real-time or near real-time gaming data.
[0069] If the gaming machines displays the game in 3D (requiring
stereoscopic
images to be generated), the system is capable of modifying the format of the
images to
be compatible with the tablet. For example, if the tablet can only display 2D
images, the
original images are converted to the format needed to be displayed by the
tablet in 2D.
Further, if the tablet has 3D capability, the original image format is
suitably changed, if
necessary, to be compatible with the tablet 3D format. Resolutions and 3D
image depth
may also be modified to be optimal for the tablet.
[0070] The remaining battery power is sensed by the tablet and, if the
power is below
a threshold, the tablet software prevents the player from initiating a new
game. The
remaining power may be used to cash out. A message is displayed to the player
allowing
the player to switch to another tablet or to recharge the tablet.
16
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0071] In one embodiment, the tablet communicates with any type of secure
terminal
that carries out the game, where the terminal is not necessarily a gaming
machine in a
casino or other gaming establishment but any terminal that can perform the
required
processing.
[0072] In another embodiment, the mobile gaming device may be connected to
the
gaming machine with a cable, either directly connected to a port of the gaming
machine
or via a network communicating with the gaming machine.
[0073] Any game may be presented on the tablet, including video reels,
video poker,
keno, roulette, blackjack, or other games.
[0074] The tablet itself may be a commercially available, such as an iPad,
Android
tablet, Windows tablet, or other commercially available tablet, that is
specifically
configured in the claimed manner using appropriate computing applications, and
the like.
The mobile gaming device may instead be any other portable computing device,
including smartphones, personal digital assistants, laptop computers, etc. By
the players
using their own devices, they are familiar with their operation. Further, the
casino does
not need to supply the mobile gaming devices. Therefore, the remote gaming
system
may be readily implemented at virtually no cost, and increased play activity
will bring in
added revenue to the casino.
[0075] The gaming machines with which the mobile gaming devices are
communicating may be licensed for the venue (e.g., a casino) in the particular
jurisdiction
(e.g., Nevada) in which they are operating. Since the mobile gaming device is
located in
the same jurisdiction, the gaming rules in that jurisdiction also apply to the
remote play.
Since the mobile gaming device performs no gaming function other than as a
user
interface, the mobile gaming device will typically not need a special license
by the
jurisdiction and thus the player may legally operate the mobile gaming device.
[0076] Since the tablet may not be licensed by the jurisdiction for gaming
outside the
casino (or other venue) or other designated area, it may be required to have
an enforced
boundary for the tablet. In one embodiment, a Geo-fence system is set up in
the venue,
which automatically detects that an active gaming tablet is within a
designated boundary.
17
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Since the tablet may be owned by the player, the system uses the existing
WiFi,
Bluetooth, and Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) capability of the
tablet to
determine whether the tablet is within a designated area. This test may be
performed
before a transmission by the tablet is authorized for use during a gaming
session. If the
tablet is determined to be within the designated area and the tablet is
authenticated,
communications between the tablet and the gaming terminal may then proceed.
[0077] Various other embodiments are described herein.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0078] Various embodiments will now be described, by way of example only,
with
reference to the following drawings, in which:
[0079] Fig. 1 illustrates a gaming machine console wirelessly communicating
with a
hand-held tablet (as one example of a mobile gaming device) in accordance with
embodiments.
[0080] Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the basic functional units in the
gaming
machine of Fig. 1.
[0081] Fig. 3 illustrates various functional units and program files in the
tablet that may
be used to carry out embodiments described herein.
[0082] Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing steps performed by the tablet and
gaming
machine in the event the communications link is broken during a game.
[0083] Fig. 5 illustrates the gaming machine displaying the remaining
session time.
[0084] Fig. 6 illustrates the tablet having touch screen buttons allowing
the player to
pause play without the gaming machine terminating the session due to a period
of
inactivity.
[0085] Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing steps performed by the tablet and
gaming
machine to allow the player to pause play without the gaming machine
terminating the
session due to a period of inactivity.
18
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[0086] Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing steps performed by the tablet and the
venue's
system for allowing the player to remotely switch from one gaming machine to
another.
[0087] Fig. 9 illustrates the interaction between the tablet and a printer
terminal for
issuing a ticket.
[0088] Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing steps performed for converting
original
stereoscopic images into a format (2D or 3D) compatible with the tablet.
[0089] Fig. 11 is a flowchart showing steps performed when the tablet
battery power
has fallen below a threshold so that a game is not interrupted.
[0090] FIG. 12 illustrates a remote gaming system according to some
embodiments.
[0091] FIG. 13 shows the main components of the computer system that
generates
the gaming and play behavior models according to some embodiments.
[0092] FIG. 14, there is shown a flowchart of a process for generating the
gaming and
play behavior models according to some embodiments.
[0093] FIG. 15 depicts components of an exemplary computer system for
recommending games.
[0094] FIG. 16 illustrates a flowchart of a method for recommending games.
[0095] FIG. 17 provides an example temporal representation of the gaming
session
data according to some embodiments.
[0096] FIG. 18 outlines an example construction process of clusters
according to
some embodiments.
[0097] FIG. 19 outlines the general procedure of a clustering algorithm
according to
some embodiments..
[0098] FIG. 20 shows two example clusters according to some embodiments.
[0099] FIG. 21 shows ROC Area under the Curve (AU C) graph.
19
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[0100] FIG. 22 shows a system for transferring game assets to a mobile
gaming
device 11 for remote gaming.
[0101] FIG. 23 shows a flowchart of a method for free-play of a game on a
mobile
device tethered to a gaming machine in accordance with some embodiments.
[0102] FIG. 24 illustrates a flowchart of a method for free-play with a
tournament style.
[0103] FIG. 25 shows a system for implementing distributed storage of
gaming data.
[0104] FIG. 26 shows a method for implementing distributed storage of
gaming data.
[0105] FIG. 27 shows an example gaming machine.
[0106] For simplicity and clarity of illustration, where considered
appropriate,
reference numerals may be repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding
or
analogous elements or steps. In addition, numerous specific details are set
forth in order
to provide a thorough understanding of the exemplary embodiments described
herein.
However, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that the
embodiments
described herein may be practiced without these specific details. In other
instances, well-
known methods, procedures and components have not been described in detail so
as not
to obscure the embodiments generally described herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0107] Throughout the following discussion, numerous references will be
made
regarding servers, services, interfaces, portals, platforms, or other systems
formed from
computing devices. It should be appreciated that the use of such terms is
deemed to
represent one or more computing devices having at least one processor
configured to
execute software instructions stored on a computer readable tangible, non-
transitory
medium. For example, a server can include one or more computers operating as a
web
server, database server, or other type of computer server in a manner to
fulfill described
roles, responsibilities, or functions. One should further appreciate the
disclosed
computer-based algorithms, processes, methods, or other types of instruction
sets can
be embodied as a computer program product comprising a non-transitory,
tangible
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
computer readable media storing the instructions that cause a processor to
execute the
disclosed steps. One should appreciate that the embodiments described herein
may
provide various technical effects such as by modifying hardware and
interfaces,
connecting a computing devices in improved and efficient ways, implementing
security
and privacy mechanisms for transmissions, controlling devices, improving
processing and
data management, improving resource usage, and other example technical effects
as
described herein.
[0108] The following discussion provides many example embodiments of the
inventive
subject matter. Although each embodiment represents a single combination of
inventive
elements, the inventive subject matter is considered to include all possible
combinations
of the disclosed elements. Thus if one embodiment comprises elements A, B, and
C, and
a second embodiment comprises elements B and D, then the inventive subject
matter is
also considered to include other remaining combinations of A, B, C, or D, even
if not
explicitly disclosed.
[0109] As used herein, and unless the context dictates otherwise, the term
"coupled
to" is intended to include both direct coupling (in which two elements that
are coupled to
each other contact each other) and indirect coupling (in which at least one
additional
element is located between the two elements). Therefore, the terms "coupled
to" and
"coupled with" are used synonymously.
[0110] The embodiments of the systems and methods described herein may be
implemented in hardware or software, or a combination of both. These
embodiments may
be implemented in computer programs executing on programmable computers, each
computer including at least one processor, a data storage system (including
volatile
memory or non-volatile memory or other data storage elements or a combination
thereof), and at least one communication interface. For example, and without
limitation,
the various programmable computers may be a server, network appliance, set-top
box,
embedded device, computer expansion module, personal computer, laptop,
personal
data assistant, cellular telephone, smartphone device, UMPC tablets and
wireless
hypermedia device or any other computing device capable of being configured to
carry
out the methods described herein.
21
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0111] Program code is applied to input data to perform the functions
described herein
and to generate output information. The output information is applied to one
or more
output devices, in known fashion. In some embodiments, the communication
interface
may be a network communication interface. In embodiments in which elements are
combined, the communication interface may be a software communication
interface,
such as those for inter-process communication (IPC). In still other
embodiments, there
may be a combination of communication interfaces implemented as hardware,
software,
and combination thereof.
[0112] Each program may be implemented in a high level procedural or object
oriented programming or scripting language, or both, to communicate with a
computer
system. However, alternatively the programs may be implemented in assembly or
machine language, if desired. The language may be a compiled or interpreted
language.
Each such computer program may be stored on a storage media or a device (e.g.,
ROM,
magnetic disk, optical disc), readable by a general or special purpose
programmable
computer, for configuring and operating the computer when the storage media or
device
is read by the computer to perform the procedures described herein.
Embodiments of the
system may also be considered to be implemented as a non-transitory computer-
readable storage medium, configured with a computer program, where the storage
medium so configured causes a computer to operate in a specific and predefined
manner
to perform the functions described herein.
[0113] Furthermore, the systems and methods of the described embodiments
are
capable of being distributed in a computer program product including a
physical, non-
transitory computer readable medium that bears computer usable instructions
for one or
more processors. The medium may be provided in various forms, including one or
more
diskettes, compact disks, tapes, chips, magnetic and electronic storage media,
volatile
memory, non-volatile memory and the like. Non-transitory computer-readable
media may
include all computer-readable media, with the exception being a transitory,
propagating
signal. The term non-transitory is not intended to exclude computer readable
media such
as primary memory, volatile memory, RAM and so on, where the data stored
thereon
22
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
may only be temporarily stored. The computer useable instructions may also be
in
various forms, including compiled and non-compiled code.
[0114] Fig. 1 illustrates a simplified stationary gaming machine 10
wirelessly
communicating with a mobile gaming device 11. The gaming machine 10 may be
licensed for use in the particular jurisdiction (e.g., Nevada) in which it is
operated. The
gaming machine 10 may instead be a server. In the example of Fig. 1, the
mobile gaming
device is a tablet 11, such as an iPad tablet. The gaming machine 10 may be
played in a
conventional manner as well as played remotely using the tablet 11.
[0115] Mobile gaming device 11 is operable by a user and may be any
portable,
networked (wired or wireless) computing device including a processor and
memory and
suitable for facilitating communication between one or more computing
applications of
mobile gaming device 11 (e.g. a computing application installed on or running
on the
mobile gaming device 11), the gaming machine 10. A mobile gaming device 10 may
be a
two-way communication device with advanced data communication capabilities
having
the capability to communicate with other computer systems and devices. The
mobile
device may include the capability for data communications and may also include
the
capability for voice communications, in some example embodiments. Depending on
the
functionality provided by the mobile gaming device 11, mobile device may be
referred to
as a portable electronic device, smartphone, a data messaging device, a two-
way pager,
a cellular telephone with data messaging capabilities, personal digital
assistant, a
wireless Internet appliance, a portable laptop computer, a tablet computer, a
media
player, an electronic reading device, a data communication device (with or
without
telephony capabilities) or a combination of these.
[0116] The gaming machine 10 in the example includes a bottom display 12
that may
be a thin film transistor (TFT) display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a
cathode ray tube
(CRT), or any other type of display. The display 12 may also be a transparent
area
revealing physical motor-driven reels. In the example shown, the main game in
display 12
is the conventional random selection of a 3x3 array of symbols, where an award
is
granted based on the combination of symbols across a pay line 13. The main or
primary
23
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game can be any game, such as a 5 column x 3 row array of symbols, a 5x4 array
of
symbols or any other size or shape array, a video card game, or other game.
[0117] A top display 14 is a video screen, which may be similar to the
display 12, that
displays a secondary game or a static display.
[0118] A coin slot 16 accepts coins or tokens in one or more denominations
to
generate credits within the machine 10 for playing games. An input slot 18
accepts
various denominations of banknotes, or machine-readable tickets, or player
tracking
cards and may output printed tickets for use in cashless gaming. A coin tray
20 receives
coins or tokens from a hopper upon a win or upon the player cashing out.
Player control
buttons 22 include any buttons needed for the play of the particular game or
games
offered by the machine 10 including, for example, a bet button, a spin reels
button, a
cash-out button, and any other suitable button. Buttons 22 may be replaced by
a touch
screen with virtual buttons.
[0119] The tablet 11 may include a touch screen 24 that displays a user
interface and
generally replicates what would normally be seen on the gaming machine's
display 12.
When playing in the remote mode, the gaming machine display 12 may not display
the
game, and the game may only be displayed on the tablet 11.
[0120] Fig. 2 illustrates basic circuit blocks in the gaming machine 10 of
Fig. 1. A
game controller board 30 includes a processor (CPU) that runs the gaming
program
(including the remote-gaming application) stored in a program ROM, such as a
CD. The
program ROM may include a pseudo-random number generator program for selecting
symbols and for making other random selections. At least the active portion of
the
program is stored in a RAM on the board 30 for access by the processor. A pay
table
ROM on the board 30 detects the outcome of the game and identifies awards to
be paid
to the player. A bill/ticket validator 45 and coin detector 46 add credits for
playing games.
A payout device 47 pays out an award to the player in the form of coins, a
printed ticket,
or a credit to the player's account at the end of a game or upon the player
cashing out.
Player control inputs 48 receive push-button inputs for playing the game and
touch
screen sensor inputs for playing the game. An audio board 49 sends signals to
the
24
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
speakers. A display controller 50 receives commands from the processor and
generates
signals for the various displays 51. The touch screen portion of the displays
51 provides
player selection signals to the processor.
[0121] The game controller board 30 transmits and receives signals to and
from a
network 56 via a communications board 58. The network 56 includes servers and
other
devices that monitor the linked gaming machines 10 and GM1-GM-N and provide
communications between the machines 10 and GM1-GM-N.
[0122] The gaming machine may also include a wireless transceiver 60 that
communicates with the tablet 11 via, for example, standard WiFi or Bluetooth,
or other
protocol based on the wireless communication capabilities of tablet 11. When
the gaming
machine 10 is operating in its remote play mode, the user interfaces of the
gaming
machine 10 may be inactive, and the tablet 11 will display the appropriate
user interface
and game.
[0123] Fig. 3 illustrates some pertinent functional elements in the tablet
11 used for
the remote play.
[0124] The tablet 11 includes at least one CPU 62 for carrying out the game
and
support functions. A memory 64 (RAM and ROM) stores the game program files,
game
play data, and other files for remote gaming. Such files may be downloaded
from a
website or server, for example. The user interface files 66 for carrying out
the game, the
display message files 68, the reel spin routine files 69, user preferences 77
and final
result control files 70 are shown separately but are stored in the memory 64.
The display
messages files 68 contains messages that are displayed automatically if the
communications link between the tablet and gaming machine is broken, as well
as
contains other messages. User preferences 77 may store attributes about the
user such
as gender, location, registration number, user identifier, address, phone
number,
occupation, credit score, game preferences, privacy preferences, and so on.
[0125] The touch screen display 72 displays the game and user interface. A
display
processor 74 receives high level instructions from the bus 76 and generates
pixel control
signals for the touch screen display 70.
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0126] A transceiver 78 (e.g. WiFi and/or Bluetooth transceiver, or other
protocol)
generates and receives wireless signals for communicating with the transceiver
60 in the
gaming machine 10. A decoder 80 (e.g., a modulator/demodulator) converts
received
signals to digital (baseband) signals and converts signals to be transmitted
to the
appropriate format signals. The decoder 80, in combination with the CPU 62,
carries out
the required protocols for establishing the communications link, performing
encryption/decryption, etc.
[0127] A communications link detector 80 detects that the communications
link
between the tablet 11 and the gaming machine 10 has been broken, such as by
the
player moving out of the play area, interference, etc.
[0128] A game play collector 75 detects game play on tablet 11 and collects
raw game
play data in real-time or near-real time for provision to recommendation
system, as will be
described herein. The memory 64 may also contain historical game play data
files, or a
reference or index to historical game play data files stored on an external
server. The
historical game play data may also be used by recommendation system.
Preference data
stored as user preferences may also be used by recommendation system. The
recommendation system is operable to recommend available games and gaming
machines 10 to tablet 11 based on collected game play data, and other data.
MOBILE GAMING DEVICE CARRYING OUT UNINTERRUPTED GAME DESPITE
COMMUNICATIONS LINK DISRUPTION
[0129] Fig. 4 is a flowchart showing various steps for carrying out certain
processes in
accordance with embodiments described herein.
[0130] Initially, the player downloads the remote gaming application, such
as from a
website, and inserts her playing tracking card into the selected gaming
machine to
identify 10 the player and the player's account (step 84).
[0131] In step 86, a communications link is then created between the tablet
and the
particular gaming machine. No casino operator involvement is needed and no
customized tablet is needed. The player may use her own personal tablet. The
gaming
26
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
machine has a button or touch screen icon that the player presses to initiate
the
registration process. An NFC technique may instead be used to initiate the
registration
process. The gaming machine then may display the set-up instructions to the
player.
[0132] In one embodiment, the gaming machine contains a wireless
transceiver (e.g.,
a WiFi transceiver) and uses a protocol that detects the proximity of the
tablet's WiFi
signal, by detecting signal strength, and automatically establishes a
communications link
with the tablet. The program downloaded to the tablet contains the
communications set-
up program. This is a type of NFC technique. Appropriate handshaking is
performed to
establish the link. The tablet's MAC address (or other unique hardware or
software code)
may be used to identify the tablet and is linked to the player's account.
[0133] In another embodiment, the player sets up the communication link by
entering
the gaming machine's unique ID code displayed by the gaming machine.
[0134] In another embodiment, the casino (or other gaming establishment)
has a
central WiFi system identifier that is displayed on the player's tablet, and
the player
selects that WiFi system and enters the gaming machine code for setting up a
communications link with the gaming machine. The tablet then wirelessly
communicates
with a central server in the casino, which then communicates with the
addressed gaming
machine via the casino's network.
[0135] Once the communications link is set up between the tablet and the
gaming
machine, the player establishes a session time (step 88). A menu of allowable
session
times may be presented to the player, and the player selects one of the times,
such as 30
minutes. The sessions may be renewed a certain number of times.
[0136] In step 90, the player establishes credits in the gaming machine by
using the
player's account, depositing cash, inserting a printed ticket, or other means.
The player
may then roam within the allowable range while playing the game in a manner
that is
similar to the way the player would play if seated at the gaming machine.
[0137] In step 92, the gaming machine, pursuant to the machine's internal
gaming
program, then transmits instructions to the tablet to display the remaining
session time,
27
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the user interface for the game, and the game itself. In some scenarios, the
player may
choose a game from a menu of games. It is presumed that a video reels game
will be
played.
[0138] In step 94, the player uses the touch screen of the tablet to bet
and begin the
reel spin. The player inputs are transmitted to the gaming machine.
[0139] In step 96, a stored program in the tablet (reel spin routine files
69 in Fig. 3)
causes the tablet to display the reels spinning, which may be a generic
animation of
blurred symbols moving down vertically to simulate actual reels spinning. The
gaming
machine may command the animation to be initiated or the tablet may
automatically
initiate the animation after the spin-reel button is pressed. The spin-reels
program may be
downloaded from the gaming machine or a server after the communications link
is set up
and prior to the first game played on the gaming machine being initiated. The
spin-reel
program may be different for each type of game and may therefore have to be
customized for the particular gaming machine being played. In one embodiment,
only the
different graphics are downloaded by the gaming machine before a game is
initiated and
other functions are generic to all the gaming machines. Such generic functions
may be
part of the generic gaming program initially downloaded to the tablet.
[0140] In step 98, the gaming machine then predetermines the outcome of the
reel
spin using a pseudo-random number generator and a look-up table to identify
the
required stop positions of the reels. The gaming machine also determines the
resulting
award using a pay table in the ROM. The reel spin outcome and award are then
transmitted to the tablet.
[0141] During all steps, the gaming machine continually senses whether the
communications link is still up by, for example, receiving periodic signals
from the tablet
or receiving acknowledgements from the tablet that a command has been
received. The
communications link may be broken by the player moving out of the allowable
range,
interference, or other cause. All playing data is stored in the gaming machine
and/or
central server, so no information is lost in the event of a communications
link failure.
However, losing the communications link during the game, rather than between
games, is
28
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
particularly problematic since the player has already placed a bet and started
the reels
spinning. If game is terminated upon a communications link failure and the
tablet
animation is stopped, the player may then have to determine the outcome of the
game by
accessing the internal memory files in the gaming machine. This is
disconcerting to the
player. To overcome this drawback, embodiments described herein may perform
the
following routine upon the communications link being interrupted during a
game.
[0142] In step 100, if the communications link is still up, the final game
outcome is
transmitted by the gaming machine along with the award amount, and the
information is
received by the tablet (step 102). The tablet then displays the reels stopping
at the final
stop positions identified by the gaming machine. The tablet's internal program
is used to
animate the stopping of the reels at the predetermined stopping positions.
[0143] In step 104, the tablet displays the award amount determined by the
gaming
machine
[0144] If the communications link is broken in step 100 (such as due to the
player
roaming beyond the allowable range) between the time the player pressed the
spin-reels
button and the time that the gaming machine transmitted the final game
outcome, the
internal program in the tablet (part of the reel spin routine files 69 in Fig.
3) causes the
animated reels to keep spinning, so the player believes the game is still
occurring (step
106). The tablet also displays a stored message telling the player to return
to the play
area within a certain time, such as 5 seconds.
[0145] In step 108, the gaming machine re-transmits the final outcome and
award
and, assuming the player has re-entered the allowable range within the
allowable
"reconnect timeout" period (step 110), the tablet receives the final result
and stops the
reels at their final positions (step 102). Thus, the player perceives the
continuous
spinning of the reels as just an extended game rather than an interruption in
the game.
[0146] If the player does not re-enter the playing range within the
allowable "reconnect
timeout" period (step 110), the gaming machine suspends the game play (step
112). The
player must now re-establish the session at the gaming machine to complete the
game.
29
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The game may then be completed by a re-spinning of the reels and stopping of
the reels
at the predetermined stopping positions.
GEO-FENCE FOR DETERMINING IF TABLET WITHIN AN AUTHORIZE AREA
[0147] In one embodiment, the allowable range for play on the mobile device
(e.g., a
tablet or smartphone) is referred to as a Geo-fence, and the Geo-fence
application
program is downloaded to the mobile device, such as via the internet. In one
embodiment
of a Geo-fence system, the mobile device sends and receives signals to and
from WiFi
transceivers distributed around a designated area in the licensed venue. The
WiFi
transceivers transmit signals, including Received Signal Strength Indication
(RSSI) data,
which are received by the mobile device and processed by the mobile device.
The
processed signals encode the device's location relative to the transmitters.
The mobile
device then transmits the processed signals using the device's WiFi system,
and a server
determines whether the mobile device is within the designated area. A
classification
algorithm is used together with the RSSI data to accurately determine whether
the mobile
device is in or outside the gaming venue boundary with much higher precision
than GPS,
IP based location, Cell site or WiFi triangulation methods. In one embodiment,
the server
is networked to all the gaming machines and may control the gaming machines.
If the
mobile device is transported outside of the Geo-fence and the player does not
re-enter
the Geo-fence within a given time in response to a displayed warning message,
the
gaming machine is controlled to terminate the session. A Geo-fence system for
a mobile
gaming device is disclosed in provisional patent application 61/757,488, filed
on January
28, 2013. Mobile computing devices may be configured with the capability to
run the
Geo-fence application. The tablet's internal GPS capability may be used
instead of, or in
conjunction with, the Geo-fence, but GPS may be less accurate than the Geo-
fence.
[0148] Temporarily moving outside of the Geo-fence does not necessarily
cause a
communications link failure since there may be adequate signal strength
outside the
area.
[0149] More details of a suitable novel and inventive Geo-fence are
presented herein.
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0150] Since the tablet may not be licensed by the jurisdiction for gaming
outside the
casino (or other licensed venue) or other designated area, it may be required
to have an
enforced boundary for the tablet. The tablet may be blocked from carrying out
a game if it
is detected that the tablet is outside the designated area.
[0151] In one embodiment, a Geo-fence system is set up in the venue,
wherein WiFi
transceivers are distributed around the designated area. Bluetooth
transceivers or other
beacons may also be distributed for added accuracy, security and reliability.
The venue
may initially create models by moving mobile devices, such as different models
of tablets,
smartphone, etc., around the designated area, including along the border
areas, while
conducting communications between the mobile device and the various WiFi
transceivers. During this "calibration" phase, the mobile devices may transmit
Received
Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) signals (or processed RSSI data) to the
venue's system
that is stored and used to create the models, or the mobile devices create the
models
themselves using the RSSI information. The models identify sets of data that
are
consistent with various types of mobile devices being within the designated
area. The
models are stored in the venue's system. Mobile devices may be equipped with
an RSSI
system that detects and identifies the received signal's power. In one
embodiment, there
may be up to 256 levels designated by the mobile device.
[0152] During a gaming session with the player's own tablet or smartphone,
a test to
determine the location of the mobile device is periodically performed, such as
prior to a
game being commenced, where the mobile device receives signals from the
various WiFi
transceivers (or other types of transceivers), and the WiFi transceivers are
identified with
a code. The mobile gaming application, which has been previously downloaded to
the
mobile device, controls the mobile device to transmit the various RSSI levels,
each RSSI
level being associated with a WiFi transceiver using the transceiver's code,
to the
venue's Geo-fence system. By detecting the various RSSI levels associated with
each of
the WiFi transceivers, then performing a classification algorithm on these
levels to identify
a position or other data set for the mobile device with respect to the WiFi
transceivers,
and then comparing the location/data set to the models previously created by
the venue
for the player's particular mobile device, the Geo-fence system is able to
determine
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
whether the mobile device is within or outside of the designated area. In
another
embodiment, the mobile device itself processes the RSSI data and the processed
information is transmitted to the Geo-fence system for comparison to the
models.
[0153] In another embodiment, the mobile device also stores the models, and
determines whether it is within the designated area. Suitable algorithms may
be
implemented without undue experimentation. A similar test using Bluetooth or
other
protocols may also be performed for added accuracy (smaller area) security and
reliability.
[0154] If the mobile device is determined to be within the designated area
and the
mobile device is authenticated, communications between the mobile device and
the
gaming terminal may then proceed. Authentication may simply require the mobile
device
to transmit a unique code identifying the device or the playing session and
matching the
code to a previously stored code in the venue's system. In one embodiment, the
code is
a barcode initially scanned or otherwise received by the mobile device at the
beginning of
a playing session.
[0155] In another embodiment, the mobile application may require the mobile
device
to transmit an identifying signal at a certain power level, and the different
RSSI levels
detected at the various WiFi transceiver locations are used to identify the
position of the
mobile device to determine whether the mobile device is within the designated
area.
[0156] Although the Geo-fence system described above is believed novel and
inventive, other location systems may also be used for other inventive
embodiments.
GPS may not be suitable due to signal attenuation by the venue and the lack of
accuracy.
REMOTE GAMING METHOD ALLOWING TEMPORARY INACTIVATION WITHOUT
TERMINATING PLAYING SESSION DUE TO GAME INACTIVITY
[0157] Fig. 5 illustrates the gaming machine 10 displaying that the machine
is being
played remotely and shows the time left in the remote session. Players may use
the
touch screen of the gaming machine to establish a queue to play the machine
after the
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
current session. The waiting players may be notified via their tablets when
the gaming
machine is freed up.
[0158] Tablet communications may be continuously monitored to determine if
the
remote player is actively playing. If there is no activity within a few
minutes, the session
may be terminated. However, this may not give the player an opportunity to
briefly
suspend play for reasons such as a washroom break, a smoking break, a dinner
break,
or briefly going to the player's hotel room.
[0159] Figs. 6 and 7 are directed to a feature that allows the player to
pause the game
a certain number of times during the session without the session terminating
for inactivity.
[0160] Fig. 6 illustrates that the tablet 11 may display a pause game icon
120 and,
optionally, a time-set icon 122. Touching the pause game icon 120 may give the
player,
for example, a 5, 10, or 15 minute period of allowable inactivity without the
session being
terminated. During this time, the tablet may be taken out of the allowable
area without
any penalty. When the player re-enters the allowable area and sends a
communication to
the gaming machine 10, the session will commence. This feature is further
explained with
reference to the flowchart of Fig. 7.
[0161] In step 140, the remote game program rules require that the period
between
games (i.e., game inactivity) does not exceed a maximum time or else the
tablet will be
commanded to display a warning message to the player to resume play. If the
warning is
not heeded, the session will be terminated.
[0162] In steps 142 and 144, the player, at any time, may touch a pause
game icon on
the tablet to suspend the game-inactivity-rules for a certain period of time,
such as 5-15
minutes. The pause time may be selected by the player or fixed. The allowable
pause
time may change depending on the day, time of day, queued players waiting to
play the
gaming machine, etc.
[0163] In step 146, the tablet is now inactive (or locked) and the game
inactivity rules
enforced by the gaming machine are temporarily suspended. The pause does not
extend
the allowable session time.
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[0164] In step 148, the player touches an unlock icon to resume play. The
tablet
sends a signal to the gaming machine that the tablet is now unlocked. The game
inactivity rules are again applied. The player may be allowed a maximum number
of
pauses per session.
[0165] In step 150, if the player does not unlock the tablet within the
allowable
inactivity period, the session is terminated, the player is cashed out, and
the next player
in the queue may play the gaming machine.
[0166] Cashing out the player may be by crediting the player's account, or
by printing
a ticket by the gaming machine or other terminal, or by displaying a ticket on
the player's
tablet. A barcode on the ticket may be scanned at a redemption station to
verify it and
determine the amount. The verification code must match the player's tracking
card code
for the ticket to be redeemed.
[0167] Although a gaming machine has been used as the secure terminal that
performs all the gaming functions, a terminal or server that cannot be
directly played by a
player may also be used.
[0168] Any game may be presented on the tablet, including video reels,
video poker,
keno, roulette, blackjack, or other games.
REMOTE GAMING USING PLAYER' S OWN MOBILE DEVICE IN CONJUNCTION
WITH A GAMING TERMINAL
[0169] The tablet itself may be a commercially available tablet configured
with mobile
gaming application to couple with gaming terminal. The mobile gaming device
may be
any other portable computing device, including smartphones, personal digital
assistants,
laptop computers, etc. The players may use their own mobile device or other
unsecure
mobile device as the gaming device after the player has downloaded the
application for
the remote gaming program into their device memory (e.g. data storage device).
The
application may be available on-site or via the internet, such as from a
commercially
available application store such as the Apple, BlackBerry, or Google App
Store. The
communications link between the gaming machine and mobile gaming device may be
34
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
established by using the device's unique serial number, MAC address, or other
hardware
signature. It may be common for the player to leave the venue or transmission
reception
area while carrying their mobile gaming device. The encrypted communications
may be
by Bluetooth, WiFi, or other supported method.
[0170] By the players using their own devices, they are familiar with their
operation.
Further, the casino does not need to supply the mobile gaming devices.
Therefore, the
remote gaming system may be readily implemented at virtually no cost, and
increased
play activity will bring in added revenue to the casino.
[0171] Embodiments described herein also apply to tablets and other mobile
devices
where the screen is a foldable screen having two sections, where one section
of the
screen is used for the game display and the other section of the screen is
used for
advertisements or as a user interface or for a bonus game.
[0172] The gaming machines with which the mobile gaming devices are
communicating are licensed for the venue (e.g., a casino or video lottery
terminal (VLT)
establishment) in the particular jurisdiction (e.g., Nevada) in which they are
operating.
Since the mobile gaming device is located in the same jurisdiction, the gaming
rules in
that jurisdiction also apply to the remote play. For example, the rules for a
particular
jurisdiction may limit the number of gaming machines, including customized
remote
gaming devices. Since the mobile gaming device perform a user interface
function, the
mobile gaming device may not be classified as a gaming device and may need a
special
license by the jurisdiction. Thus the player may legally operate the mobile
gaming device
without it being licensed.
[0173] In one embodiment, a central server may also wirelessly communicate
with the
player's mobile gaming device, such as through the existing communications
link already
set up between the mobile gaming device and the gaming machine, or through a
communications link set up between the mobile gaming device and the central
server.
The player may set up the general communications link with the central server
by viewing
available WiFi networks and selecting the particular network.
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0174] The mobile gaming device may even wirelessly connect from within a
licensed
gaming zone (e.g., a casino), via the Internet and/or the casino's WiFi
network, to a
gaming machine that is located in another licensed gaming zone (e.g., another
casino).
This allows a player to play in a gaming zone of choice or convenience without
causing
either casino to exceed a regulated limit on the total number of authorized
gaming
machines in the casino. Therefore, the number of active players in a
particular casino
may exceed the physical number of gaming machines in that casino. Further the
player
may access games not available in the gaming zone where the player is located.
The
revenue in such case may be shareable using an agreed upon formula that
involves two
or more parties such as two casino owners or two VLT establishmentsNLT
operators.
The casinos' respective networks keep track of all the transactions on gaming
machines
located in the casino and identify the particular tablets as well as the
payouts for each
tablet. If the player is located in one casino and remotely playing a gaming
machine that
is located in another casino, the player may still cash out in the local
casino, since the
payout may be tracked to the proper gaming machine and casino for fee sharing
purposes. All the gaming machines are assumed to be linked via a network to
one or
more central servers in the gaming establishment or VLT operator
establishment. The
various casino networks may share information via the Internet or by other
channels.
[0175] An additional advantage of the mobile gaming device is that the
player may
walk to a casino staffer or kiosk for any help with the game rather than wait
at a gaming
terminal for a staffer to help.
REMOTE GAMING METHOD WHERE VENUE'S SYSTEM RECOMMENDS
DIFFERENT GAMES TO REMOTE PLAYER USING A MOBILE GAMING DEVICE
[0176] Fig. 8 is a flowchart illustrating another feature of the remote
playing system
relating to remotely switching gaming machines.
[0177] In step 160, the player remotely plays a first type of game on a
first gaming
machine, as described above. The first game, which may be a video reels type
game, will
typically have a certain theme and bonus game.
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0178] In step 162, a central server may advise the player on other games
offered by
available gaming machines that may be played remotely and the locations of
such
gaming machines. The central server may recommend certain games and machines
based on the player current live game data play, or based on other criteria.
Further
details of the recommendation process will be described herein. For example,
central
server may collect a pre-recommendation threshold amount of data prior to
recommended other games. That is, central server may collect a minimum amount
of
data in order to make a recommendation. When the minimum amount of data (e.g.
pre-
recommendation threshold amount) has not been collected then the central
server may
make recommendations based on default configurations. The defaults
configurations may
be based on the location of the mobile device 10, selected game, and so on.
[0179] If the player has not used a player tracking card to play remotely,
the player is
anonymous, there may be no stored history of the player's gaming patterns in
the
casino's network, on central server, or on a third party server. In such a
case, the server
monitors (in real time or near real time) the anonymous player's current game
factors,
game features or gaming habits for the current session, such as the type of
game being
played, the frequency of play, and the betting amounts. These are examples
only and
other game factors will be described herein. Based on this game play data, the
server
may identify the player as a certain type of player and accesses a look-up
table or an
algorithm is performed to identify other gaming machines and games that are
consistent
with the player's current gaming pattern. Details of the recommendation
process will be
described herein. Such recommendations are then transmitted to the player. If
the player
has used her player tracking card, then the player's stored past gaming
history (e.g.
historical game play data) may also be used by the server to recommend other
gaming
machines and games to the player. The mobile gaming device's own GPS
navigation
system may be used to find the gaming machines, or another type of navigation
system
may be used. In some example, the player may be required to physically go to
the new
gaming machine to set up a playing session.
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0180] In some embodiments, the player may be playing a game on gaming
machine
and may receive recommendations for additional games based on game play data,
as
described herein.
[0181] In step 164, the player may select one of the suggested or
recommended
games, offered by a second gaming machine 10, by touching a "select" icon on
the tablet
(or other mobile gaming device). The player may otherwise select a suggested
game
offered by a second gaming machine, such as via the first gaming machine 10
the player
was originally playing on.
[0182] In step 166, after the player selects a suggested or recommended
game
offered by a second gaming machine 10 at 164, the player's credits are
automatically
transferred from the first gaming machine to the second gaming machine, so
that the
player does not have to redeem any credit ticket from the first gaming
machine. In some
embodiments, a ticket or other transfer mechanism may be used to transfer
credits
between game machines. Further, for remote gaming, the communications link to
the
second gaming machine may be automatically set up without the player having to
physically register at the second gaming machine, since the communications
link
information is already known by the central server. The central server keeps
track of the
player's gaming history via the player's tracking card ID and data transferred
from the
networked gaming machines.
[0183] In another example of transferring credits, the remote player may
not use a
player tracking card and is, therefore, anonymous. The mobile gaming device
may be
linked to the first gaming machine at time T1 and the player may wish to
switch to an
available second gaming machine (based on the recommendation, for example),
since
the game the player wants to play may not be available on the first gaming
machine.
When the player selects to play the second gaming machine using the mobile
gaming
device, her credentials and registration of her mobile gaming device that were
used to
play the first gaming machine may be automatically migrated to the second
gaming
machine, such as through the casino's network or via wireless communications
between
the gaming machines and the mobile gaming device. The first gaming machine may
then
be unlocked (available) and the second gaming machine will be linked to the
mobile
38
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
gaming device. The migration may take place only if the player had enough
stored credits
in the first gaming machine to play the second gaming machine.
[0184] If the player had used her player tracking card to register with the
first gaming
machine and has an account with the gaming venue, the migration takes place
without
the need to check the credit balance on the first gaming machine.
[0185] In step 168, the player then remotely plays the second gaming
machine.
[0186] In another embodiment, the player selects a recommended game, and
the
selected game may be downloaded via the network to the gaming machine the
player is
already playing. Therefore, no transfer of credits is required. After the
player is finished
with the session, the gaming machine automatically reverts back to the
original game for
the next player.
[0187] Additional details regarding analyzing a player's gaming preferences
and
suggesting games to the player may be found in U.S. Applications Serial Nos.
13/387,780 and 13/387,790, both entitled Automated Discovery of Gaming
Preferences,
by Bharat Gadher et al.. The present recommendation system may use the systems
and
methods described in that application for example.
[0188] In some venues, different gaming machines are owned by different
entities. In
the event that the player switches to different machines owned by different
entities, a
software program run by a server or the gaming machines determines the fees to
be paid
to each entity.
[0189] In one scenario, some games (and gaming machines) recommended by the
server may not even be located in the same venue (e.g., casino) as the one in
which the
player is currently located. In such a case, the player may still select that
game and play
the game remotely. The local venue's network acts as an intermediary between
the
remote venue's network and the player's tablet. The various venues' networks
may
communicate via the internet or other system. A fee sharing agreement between
venues
may apply to the remote play. Therefore, if a casino is very crowded and the
player's
favorite gaming machines are being used, the player may remotely play a
similar game or
39
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
the same type gaming machine in another casino without leaving the first
casino.
Therefore, both casino's benefit from embodiments described herein, creating
synergy.
REMOTE GAMING SYSTEM USING SEPARATE TERMINAL TO SET UP REMOTE
PLAY WITH A GAMING TERMINAL
[0190] In one embodiment, as shown in Fig. 9, the gaming venue (e.g., a
casino)
provides a dedicated printer terminal 172 for the player to cash out and
obtain a printed
ticket 174 with a barcode encoding the player and monetary value. The player
may enter
a session ID into the terminal 172 via a touchscreen 176 or keypad, or the
information
may be entered via the tablet 11 to identify the player, session, or gaming
machine. In
another embodiment, a Near Field Communications (NFC) link is automatically
established between the terminal 172 and the tablet 11 when the tablet 11 is
brought
near the terminal 172. The required information may then be automatically
transferred
between the devices without the player being required to manually enter any
data into the
printer terminal 172. NFC is a standardized protocol, and both devices may be
programmed with the NFC protocol. The tablet's WiFi or Bluetooth transceiver
will
typically be utilized, and the terminal 172 has a similar capability. The
terminal 172 then
detects the credits via the venue's network 178 (coupled to the gaming
machines 180)
and generates the printed ticket 174 for the player. The player may then
redeem the
ticket 174 for cash at the venue's ticket redemption area.
[0191] Additionally, the terminal 172 may also serve as a registration
terminal for
setting up the link between the tablet 11 and any gaming machine connected to
the
network 178. Therefore, the player does not have to physically go to the
gaming machine
to set up the link. In one embodiment, the terminal 172 displays icons for
each type of
game offered. The player touches the desired icon, and the terminal 172 sets
up the
communications link between the tablet 11 and the gaming machine providing the
game.
Credits may be generated using a player tracking card and a casino account, or
the
player may deposit cash into the terminal 172. In one embodiment, the wireless
communication is between the tablet 11 and the selected gaming machine. In
another
embodiment, the wireless communication is between the tablet 11 and the
terminal 172,
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
where the terminal 172 communicates with the selected gaming machine via the
casino's
existing network 178.
[0192] Additionally, the terminal 172 may also allow the player to remotely
play games
supported by other licensed venues, where the different venues' networks
communicate
with each other via the internet or other communications system. All the
networks can
ultimately communicate with any gaming machine (and the terminal 172)
connected to a
network. The terminal 172 may display an assortment of games, some of which
are not
available in the local venue but which are available in other licensed venues.
The player
may select any of the games. If the player plays a game that is supported by a
different
venue, a fee sharing agreement between venues may determine how to allocate
any
revenue. Therefore, if a player wants to play a certain game but all the
associated
gaming machines in the local venue are being used, the player may remotely
play the
game on a gaming machine located in a separate casino. This effectively
increases the
number of gaming machines in the casino. Thus there is synergy since both
casinos
profit. The terminal 172 may act as a communications hub for the tablet (e.g.,
using WiFi
signals) or another communications method may be used.
[0193] The terminal 172 may also allow a player to play games anonymously,
such as
for example, without requiring registration of personal information. The
player may be
assigned a unique identifier, or other identification process, that enables
terminal 172 to
track the anonymous player's game play. This may include tracking the
anonymous
player's credits, for cash-out and transfer between gaming machines, while
still allowing
the player to play anonymously. Accordingly, a player can remain anonymous and
still
can be awarded credits, which will be associated with an indirect identifier,
for example.
[0194] In a remote multiplayer context (e.g. multiple players playing a
game together
via mobile gaming devices 11), as described herein, the terminal 172 may
associate each
mobile game device 11 with one or more regulated locations. The terminal 172
is
operable to dynamically construct a multiplayer gaming network between two or
more
mobile gaming devices 11 over one or more regulated locations. The terminal
172 may
generate an audit log and track the location of mobile gaming device 11 to be
able to
show that during the multi-player session each of the players was in regulated
location
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
during all of the time that they were part of the multi-player gaming session.
This may
provide be an audit trail for regulatory purposes. Geo-fencing, as described
herein, may
be used to track and monitor the location of players. That is, geo-fencing may
be used to
determine if a mobile gaming device 11 is inside or outside regulated area.
The terminal
may also be used to implement maximum number of player limits for a multi-
player game.
[0195] The terminal 172 may also provide a gaming session manager. The game
session manager may continuously monitor and validate the location of
participating
players (e.g. the location of the associated mobile gaming device 11). If one
or more of
the players ceases to be in a regulated location, then the session manager
terminate the
player's ability to continue participating in the session. If there are only
two players then
the whole multi-player gaming session is terminated, as only one player would
remain
active in the session. In some embodiments, each location may have a gaming
session
manager to monitor and validate players for that location. The terminal 172
may
coordinate the transfer of credits between gaming machines 10, locations 10,
venues,
players, and the like. In a multi-player session, the players may join the
session using a
gaming machine 10, a mobile gaming device 11, or a combination thereof.
[0196] The terminal 172 may implement continuity of service and the
uninterrupted
communication link functionality as described herein.
[0197] Terminals 172 may be at one or more networked locations/venues. Each
terminal 172 may create and provide communication links to mobile gaming
devices 11
and machines 10, to enable remote gaming between mobile gaming devices 11 and
gaming machines 10. Players can play at gaming machine 10 or on mobile gaming
device 11. Terminal 172 is operable to transfer credits between gaming
machines 10 and
mobile gaming devices 11.
REMOTE GAMING SYSTEM ALLOWING ADJUSTMENT OF ORIGINAL 3D IMAGES
FOR A MOBILE GAMING DEVICE
[0198] Fig. 10 identifies certain steps used when the gaming machine
generates
stereoscopic images for 3D viewing.
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0199] Video gaming formats may display the game on the gaming machine
screen in
3D (step 190). A standardized video format may be adopted for gaming machines.
Such
3D viewing may require a special lenticular lens on the screen so that the
player sees a
slightly different image with each eye. The screen contains narrow linear
lenses
extending in the vertical direction, where lenses that direct one image to the
right eye are
interposed between lenses that direct another image to the left eye. The image
generated
by the screen is a composite of two different offset images: one to be
perceived by the
right eye (behind one set of the lenses) and one to be perceived by the left
eye (behind
the other set of lenses). The two images are stereoscopic and are perceived by
the
viewer (at the correct distance) as a single 3D image. Such 3D image
generation is well
known. Other gaming machines may require the player to wear special glasses,
whether
they be polarized, or colored, or electrically synchronized with the display.
[0200] Some tablets 11 do not have the lenticular lens screen and are
unable to
display the 3D image. Therefore, such tablets must only display a 2D image.
Even a
tablet that has a lenticular lens may still display a 2D image if the two
offset images are
identical. Some tablets 11 or other mobile gaming devices 11 may display a 3D
image
but in a different format than the gaming machine 10. For illustrative
purposes 3D tablets
are provided by Qualcomm and GADMEI, as non-limiting examples. A tablet that
has a
lenticular lens may only be able to display 3D images in a particular format
for that tablet.
[0201] Therefore, when transmitting the 3D video display information by the
gaming
machine to a standard tablet (or other off-the-shelf mobile device), problems
arise since
the tablet may not be configured to display an image that can be viewed by the
player in
3D. Further, the video formats for the server or the gaming machine may be
different
from the format used by the tablet to display video.
[0202] In step 192 of Fig. 10, to solve such problems related to 3D video
if the tablet
does not have 3D capability, the server or gaming machine converts the
original 3D video
format into a standard 2-D format that can be processed by off-the shelf
mobile gaming
devices (tablets, smartphones, etc.). Alternatively, the remote gaming program
downloaded into the mobile gaming device includes one or more programs for
converting
the original 3D video format into the appropriate 2D video stream for the
mobile gaming
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
device. The mobile gaming device may not have the computing power to convert
the
formats in real time, however. If such is the case, the server or gaming
machine detects
the type of mobile gaming device used (based on specifications transmitted by
the mobile
gaming device) and, based on that information, determines that the server or
gaming
machine processor is required to convert the 3D video format into the
appropriate 2D
format and transmit the 2D format to the mobile gaming device.
[0203] In other embodiments, the gaming machine 10 or central server stores
different
3D versions or formats of the same game. As noted, mobile gaming device 11 may
include a 3D display that may display 3D images with or without glasses. The
gaming
machine 10 or central server may receive configuration data from the mobile
gaming
device 11 to determine a particular format optimized, compatible, or
preferable for the
mobile gaming device 11 from the available versions or formats of the game.
That is,
gaming machine 10 or central server detects configurations for the mobile
gaming device
11 and provides the appropriate 3D version. The gaming machine 10 or central
server
may include a library of device limitations and requirements to determine the
appropriate
3D version. Accordingly, gaming machine 10 or central server provides a
version
optimized for the capabilities and requirements of the mobile gaming device 11
from the
available versions of the game.
[0204] Some mobile gaming devices may be able to display a 3D video image
to the
player in a special format. For example, the tablet may have a lenticular lens
overlying
the screen. The tablet's required 3D video format may be identified to the
server or
gaming machine, and the conversion into the compatible format may be performed
by the
server or gaming machine. In some cases, the formats will be the same and no
conversion needs to take place.
[0205] In one embodiment, when the mobile gaming device connects to the
gaming
machine, the mobile gaming device's downloaded software controls the device to
send a
message to the server or gaming machine describing what type of 3D display it
supports,
if any, and what format it requires. The server or gaming machine then
determines
whether the mobile device is fast enough to do the work of the conversion on
its own or if
the server or gaming machine is required to convert the image for
transmission.
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[0206] Once the determination has been made, the server or gaming machine
either
converts the images and transmits them to the mobile device or sends the
original
images to the mobile gaming device to be converted to the required format.
[0207] In some systems, the mobile gaming device generates the video
signals
internally based on a locally stored graphic program and does not receive real-
time video
signals from the server or gaming machine. In that case, the mobile gaming
device just
receives high level commands from the server or gaming machine to display a
stored
user interface followed by displaying the running of the stored game routine,
the final
result, and any award. The server or gaming machine may initially upload the
required
displays and routines to the mobile device prior to the first game commencing.
Therefore,
what the remote player sees may be different from what a player would see if
playing at
the gaming machine in a conventional manner. In this situation, the mobile
device might
still require some format conversion of the original display information for
displaying in 2D
or 3D. This work could be done by either the mobile gaming device or the
server/gaming
machine, depending on the capabilities of the mobile gaming device. Like the
situation
presented before, the server/gaming machine may ask the mobile gaming device
what
format it supports and determine if it is required to do any needed
conversions.
[0208] In some embodiments, the player may need to use special glasses for
viewing
the 3D image, or a temporary lens overlay may be provided by the venue.
[0209] Further details regarding conversion of 3D formats between different
devices
(not for gaming) include US Publication 2011/0032329.
[0210] Generally, the gaming machine 10 screen is much larger than the
tablet 11
screen. The lens and 3D images on the gaming machines are optimized for a
particular
viewing distance. Typically, the remote player will be closer to the tablet
screen than the
typical viewing distance of the gaming machine screen. Accordingly, if the
original
stereoscopic images were displayed on the tablet 11, the resulting image would
not be an
accurate representation. In one embodiment (step 194 of Fig. 10), the tablet's
software
includes a provision for the player to select a viewing distance (which
directly
corresponds to the player selecting an image's depth). The image processing
adjusts the
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
image to be optimally displayed to the player at the desired viewing distance.
The optimal
viewing distance is affected by the lens system used and the distance between
the
player's left and right eyes. In an example, the tablet 11 displays a "viewing
distance"
menu and the player selects the desired viewing distance by selecting an
appropriate
icon, or the tablet software automatically determines the optimal viewing
distance. This
parameter is then used to adjust the original stereoscopic images to be
optimized for the
tablet. The adjustment may be performed by the tablet or by the gaming
machine/server.
[0211] Processing 3D images and videos requires more processing power than
for 2D
images (which translates to more battery usage). In one embodiment, the mobile
device
checks its available battery power or battery life and adjusts the 3D
processing, such as
by switching to a 2D display, or informs the player and gives the player the
option to
continue in 3D or switch to 2D. If the player selects to switch to 2D, the
gaming machine
may be commanded by the tablet to start sending only 2D images. Another option
is to
communicate the available power in the tablet to the gaming machine, and the
gaming
machine will send a message to the player identifying the optimal display
format and
automatically make the adjustment.
[0212] These embodiments apply to multiview 3D as well as to other formats
of 3D.
Multiview Video Coding (MVC) is a video compression standard that enables
efficient
encoding of sequences captured simultaneously from multiple cameras using a
single
video stream. MVC is intended for encoding stereoscopic (two-view) video.
[0213] Fig. 11 is a flowchart identifying various steps used when the
tablet's battery
power is low. It is important that the player is warned well ahead of time if
the tablet's
battery power is running out. The application (on the mobile gaming device)
will detect
the tablet's available power (step 198) and alert the player of the playing
time remaining
so that the player may exit the application in the proper way. Tablets may
already include
a battery level monitor. If the player continues to play after the warning, it
is important that
the application forces the termination of play between games rather than
during a game.
The term "during a game" refers to the time between the player initiating a
game and the
time that the player is informed of the outcome. Accordingly, the application
determines
when the battery life is below a threshold (e.g., 5 minutes) and prevents the
player
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initiating a new game (step 200). The remaining battery life should be
sufficient for the
player to cash out at a terminal or at the gaming machine. When the battery
power is low,
to allow the player to keep playing the same gaming machine without having to
again
reserve the gaming machine, the application displays a message offering the
player the
option of switching to another mobile gaming device (step 202). If the player
accepts, a
sequence of steps involving the player, the gaming machine, and the network is
carried
out, similar to steps already described, to switch the player to another
mobile gaming
device within the same playing session.
MULTI-PLAYER GAMING USING MOBILE GAMING DEVICES
[0214] A group of players entering a gaming establishment together may like
to play a
social, tournament, community, or progressive game. Such multi-player games
conventionally require the players to sit in front of different linked gaming
machines. The
group of players would therefore be separated. By using the tablets, the
players may sit
together around a gaming table, at the bar, or in a specific area. The game
could be
played within an area designated by the tablet. The area may have a large
overhead
screen that displays social, tournament, community, or progressive elements of
linked
gaming such as a leader board, progressive meters, social/community/ bonusing,
etc.
The various tablets would wirelessly communicate via the associated linked
gaming
machine, the local host, or through cellular communications to the central
system hosted
in the data center. The central server, or one of the gaming machines acting
as a server,
may accumulate the data for the common display. If the primary communication
is lost,
then the game can continue temporarily with local buffering in the tablets or
a backup
communications method can be used, such as cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth, etc. The
central
bank (a memory) for the players' credits could be on the site server and the
ability to
continue playing when there is a communication break would be very useful.
[0215] A group of players in a casino could use their mobile devices to
construct a
network to play a multiplayer game. A central server (e.g. terminal 172) may
manage
network creation, discovery of players and games, joining a multi-player game,
and
players leaving network. This may apply to real-time multiplayer games.
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[0216] This multi-player gaming can employ various combinations of
tethering aspects
and recommendation aspects in regulated gaming venues detailed herein.
EXAMPLE SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR RECOMMENDING DIFFERENT GAMES
[0217] Further embodiments for recommending different games to players,
such as at
step 162 of FIG. 8 will be described herein. The recommendations may be
provided to a
remote player using a mobile gaming device. The recommendations may also be
provided via a gaming machine or other mechanism in some example embodiments.
[0218] FIG. 12 illustrates a gaming system 210 for providing
recommendations of
suitable games for a player according to some embodiments. The gaming system
210
may be used for remote gaming where the player access a gaming machine 10 via
a
mobile gaming device 11 as described herein.
[0219] The computer system may operate anonymously, for instance, where the
game
player is unidentified or unrecognized by the gaming system. Alternatively,
the game
player may be identified to the gaming system, for instance through a game
player
account, a responsible gaming account, a social network account, or other
suitable
indicia of identification.
[0220] In one embodiment, player game session data is used by gaming system
210
to build a gaming and play behavior model that represents different aspects
such as play,
game and wagering behavior. As used herein, gaming and play behavior is
represented
data related to any one or more of a plurality of different game features.
Game features
may include, for instance: game session length; wager denominations, play
rates
(number of games played per time segment), typical bonus values, and other
features as
described below. For example, the model could include a cluster of games that
are suited
to players that like to play games for a shorter time with large amounts of
money
wagered. Another cluster includes games that are more suitable for players
that like to
play for longer times with smaller amounts of money. In one embodiment, when a
player
begins to play a game, data related to the player's game playing behavior is
detected in
real-time from a mobile gaming device 11 or gaming machine 10, and the
detected data
is analyzed. Based on the analysis of this data, the player can be classified,
in real time,
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into one of the existing clusters. Once classified, the games associated the
most relevant
cluster are suggested to the player via a mobile gaming device 11, or gaming
machine
10, for example.
[0221] The data analysis allows the gaming computer system 210 to create at
least
one game player type. In one embodiment, the game player type is an
association or
collection of one or more game factors. The game player type may be associated
with a
cluster or model, where the model may be collection of one or more game
factors. This
association or collection may represent a particular model of playing
behavior. For
instance, the data analysis may show that certain players prefer games that
are quickly
resolved (from start to finish) and have small wager amounts. Data suggesting
this trend
could be used to create a game player type or model based on this trend. In
one
embodiment, the game player type or model is a collection of data including an
identifier
that allows the computer system to identify the collection of data, and,
optionally, that the
data provides a game player type or model. The game player type or model may
also
include data which indicates the game factors defining the particular features
of the
games to be affiliated with the game player type. These features may be
identified in the
affirmative, for instance as features that should or are preferably present in
the games to
be affiliated with the game player type. Alternatively, or additionally, some
features may
be identified in the negative, for instance features that should not be or are
preferably not
present in the games to be affiliated with the game player type.
[0222] A central system 212 may establish a wireless connection with mobile
gaming
device 11, gaming machine 10, or both to collect game play data and provide
recommended games. The central system 212 includes a gaming server 214 and a
recommendation server 216. The central system 212 may be coupled to a network
218.
The mobile gaming device 11 and gaming machine 10 may also be coupled to the
network 218. The network 218 may include a social media network or other
suitable
network such as a WAN or LAN. The network 218 may include wireless
capabilities to
connect to one or more of mobile gaming device 11, gaming machine 10, and
central
system 212. Game play data may be collected from the gaming machines 10 or
mobile
gaming devices 11 and sent through the network 218 infrastructure back to the
central
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system 212. The gaming machines 10 may be wired or wireless mobile gaming
devices
in any type of gaming setting, for instance dedicated electronic gaming
machines as are
commonly found in casinos and other venues.
[0223] FIG. 13 shows the main components of the computer system 220 that
generates the gaming and play behavior models 222, including a preprocessor
224, a
game session delimiter 226, an event partitioner 228, a filterer 230, a
clusterer 232, and a
game classifier 234. The system 220 may be provided with access to two data
storage
devices, a games database 238 and a game play data database 236. The game play
data database 236, may include raw historical transaction records collected
from gaming
machines 10 and mobile gaming devices 11 during past sessions and real time or
near
real time data collected from gaming machines 10 and mobile gaming devices 11
during
current game sessions. In one embodiment, the data for the historical
transaction records
may be stored in the form of journal files and includes historical raw play
data. In
particular, the raw historical transaction records may include data related to
player
wagering and other real-time game play characteristics including game
selection;
amounts of incremental wagers; wagering frequency; elapsed time; reaction to
bonus
rounds; reaction to progressive output as well as others. The games database
40
includes information on game titles available to players along with game data
and
features such as themes, denominations, characteristics, etc. The game titles
may be
associated with gaming machines 10, venues, locations, and the like to
determine
whether the game titles are available to the mobile gaming device 11 based on
its
location. Game characteristics that may be stored in the games database 40 may
include
average game speed; average wager amounts; average wager rate; presence and
frequency of bonus rounds; presence and frequency of progressive outputs; odds
of
winning; prize distributions, and others.
[0224] The computer system 220 performs a training process to generate the
gaming
and play behavior model 222 using a game play data database 236. This training
may
use a temporal representation of the gaming session data within the game play
data
database 236. A gaming session may be partitioned into session events. The
session
events may be of equal size or length. The size or length may be based on a
number of
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
game actions. For example, each session event may include 12 actions. The size
or
length may also be based on a period of time. For example, each session event
may
include data for be a predetermined time period. This may enable comparisons
between
sessions events for cluster analysis despite the corresponding gaming sessions
having
differing and varying lengths of time or number of game actions. That is,
computer
system 220 partitions or chunks gaming session data into session events of
equal size or
length. The gaming session data for an individual session may be represented
as a data
structure that appends many consecutive session events to create records of
gaming
behavior over time. The time of an individual session will vary depending on
the number
of appended session events.
[0225] FIG. 17 provides an example temporal representation of the gaming
session
data. In this exemplary process, the game play data is pre-processed (by
preprocessor
224) and partitioned into different individual gaming sessions 290a, 290b (by
game
session delimiter 226). In this embodiment, each gaming session 290 represents
a
continuous game play, meaning a series of games that were played in a
generally
uninterrupted fashion. Alternately, each session might represent a particular
time period
of game play, for instance 15 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour, or another
suitable time
period. In another alternative, each session may represent a particular number
of rounds
of a game, for instance 5, 10, 20 or another suitable number of rounds of a
game. A
gaming session 290 may be represented by data structure that appends many
consecutive session events (or windows) to create records of gaming behavior
over time
[0226] The session events 292 may be represented using a window style or
other
graphical approach which includes a variety of different "game features" (y-
axis, f0...fn).
In one embodiment, data for 28 different game features is tracked for each
gaming
session. Exemplary game features include: game session length, play behavior,
game
behavior, game language, game location, game selection, elapsed time with one
game,
wagering behavior, game type, game theme, wager amounts, wager denominations,
play
rates, typical bonus values, game brand, prize distributions, amounts of
incremental
wagers, frequency of wagering, for instance the presence or absence of
multiple rounds
of wagering in a game, the number of rounds of wagers permitted in a game,
maximum
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wager amounts permitted, minimum wager amounts permitted, amount of wagering,
elapsed time between selected events for instance starting a new game,
reaction to
bonus rounds, reaction to progressive outputs, pay table features, amount of
incremental
wagers, frequency of wagering, elapsed time for player reaction, amount of
wagering,
elapsed time between wagers, frequency of player action, game rules, game
complexity,
ability for a player to control or have an effect on a game outcome, whether
an outcome
is predetermined, whether parallel wagering is provided, average game speed,
average
wager amounts, average wager rate, presence or frequency of bonus rounds,
presence
and frequency of progressive outputs, payout percentages, win rates, win
percentages,
loss rates, loss percentages, use of special features, frequency of use of
special features,
number of lines played, total amount wagered, and type of payment received.
[0227] The x-axis represents time in the gaming session. The game features
may be
organized into session events or time windows wO, w1 showing the occurrence of
the
game features over time. The occurrence of game features may be referred to as
a game
actions and may be used to partition individual gaming sessions in game
events.
Collectively the representation of the data allows for analysis and detection
of "play
patterns" through the data and through the various sessions. The size of the
events is
adjustable and defines a minimum number of incidents or actions necessary to
categorize behavior. For instance, in one embodiment, the event size may be
set to, for
instance, 12 play actions, so that whenever there are 12 play actions in an
game event
the game features may be used as part of the characterization of the game play
behavior.
This representation has several advantages: 1) Captures behavior as temporal
patterns
of the play features; 2) Variations in session length are not a factor (so
long as sessions
meet the minimum length) as the sessions are partitioned into game events. 3)
Game
titles can be introduced to map player behavior into game preferences.
[0228] Referring now to FIG. 14, there is shown a flowchart of a process
240 for
generating the gaming and play behavior models 222 of FIG. 13.
[0229] At 242, the preprocessor 224 is operable to clean and sort data. The
game
play data 236 may be collected in a format that is not intended for cluster
analysis. For
example, the game play data 236 may be in a format suitable to communication
and
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exchange between gaming machines 10, mobile gaming devices 11, or a
combination
thereof. The preprocessor 224 may filter out extraneous data points and fill
in missing
data points. For example, timestamp data points may include milliseconds which
may not
be required for the cluster analysis. The preprocessor 224 may filter out the
milliseconds.
As another example, the game title may be another data point but it may be in
a format
suitable for processing by the gaming machine 10 but not for cluster analysis.
The
preprocessor 224 may modify game title and break apart sub data points to
construct a
game title suitable for cluster analysis. The preprocessor 224 is further
operable to sort
the mass amounts of game play data 236 by gaming machine 10 identifier,
timestamp,
game title, venue, and the like. Preprocessing the data may involve any one or
more of
the following subtasks: noise reduction or removal, identification and removal
of outlying
data entries, and resolving inconsistencies in the data. Preprocessing may
also refer to
taking data in a raw or uncleaned state or form and converting the data into a
form that is
better suited for a mining or modeling task. For instance, preprocessing may
include
processing or removal of extraneous or unnecessary data such as meta data,
tags, or
empty fields.
[0230] At 244, the game session delimiter 226 is operable to delimit
multiple gaming
sessions from the game play data 236 into individual sessions. The game
session
delimiter 226 partitions the game play data 236 into individual sessions using
heuristics
and rules. For example, the partitioning may be based on machine identifier,
time
stamps, time outs, cash in actions, and so on. A gaming session is a sequence
of game
actions over time. An individual session may include multiple games, or a
single game.
An individual session is associated with a player. The player may be anonymous
or
known to system 220. An anonymous player may be identified based on a machine
identifier associated with the mobile device 11. The machine identifier may be
used to
connect sessions involving the anonymous player. The machine identifier may
act as a
thread between games and gaming machines 10.
[0231] At 246, event partitioner 228 is operable to partition the
individual gaming
sessions into session events. This may also be referred to as applying a tap
delay line to
session events. A tap delay line, window or session event may comprise a set
of game
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actions (spins, bets, outcomes, etc.) that take place consecutively over time.
Each
window or session event forms a record that the clustering algorithm can
accept to
recommend games. As noted above, each session may include an equal number of
actions. The event partitioner 228 generates a data structure by appending
consecutive
session events to create a record of the session over time. The clustering
algorithm is
applied to the session events. If an individual gaming session does not
partition equally
into session events then the extra actions may be excluded or discarded from
the cluster
analysis. For example, if there are 38 actions in an individual session and
each session
event includes 12 actions then the remaining 2 actions may be discarded or
excluded.
[0232] At 248, filterer 230 is operable to filter outlier game play data
points of session
events from prototypical game play data points of session events. The cluster
algorithm
may only be interested in typical behavior and not bizarre or atypical
behavior.
[0233] At 250, clusterer 232 is operable to apply a cluster algorithm to
filtered session
events to generate clusters or models 22 based on the analyzed game play data.
A set of
clusters may be a set of centroids that represent the most typical play
patterns. The
clustering approach is designed to be a flexible tool, that scale and needs no
choice of
number of centroids a priori. As described herein, a cluster or model is
collection of game
features. A cluster may also be associated with a game player type, as
described herein.
[0234] Clusterer 232 is a software application or computer program
component used
to perform a statistical data analysis. In one embodiment, the clusterer 232
is configured
to perform a cluster analysis, for instance to group session events into
different clusters.
Additionally, the clusterer 232 may be configured to analyze the session
events and
identify the different clusters based on this analysis, before grouping the
data into the
different clusters. Any suitable clustering algorithm may be used for
performing the
statistical data analysis and grouping the data into appropriate clusters to
form a cluster
model. Preferably, a scalable clustering approach that allows for a selection
of the
number of clusters and support for automatic game feature (also referred to as
game
factors herein) selection is used. In one embodiment, a cluster model is
developed
automatically using clustering techniques operative for handling and working
with large
datasets. Preferably the data analysis techniques support streaming (i.e.,
where the
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
cluster model is updated as new data supports development or modification to
the
clusters, for instance based on drift in the underlying game play data and
behavioral
concepts). As used herein, the cluster model includes the identification of
different
clusters as well as the features relied on to distinguish these clusters.
[0235] In one embodiment a two stage hierarchical training process is
employed. The
clusterer 232 generates a gaming and behavior models 222. The models 22
includes a
number of clusters where each cluster represents a set of game features.
Suitable game
features are described throughout this disclosure. Groups of clusters may be
assembled
and assigned to particular gaming trends or behaviors. For instance, a group
of clusters
may be assembled to identify game players that prefer short games with
relatively low
wagers. Another group may be assembled for game players that prefer games with
multiple rounds of betting or larger wager amounts.
[0236] As an alternative to or in addition to clustering, the statistical
analysis may
employ other data analytic techniques such as factor or regression analysis.
[0237] At 252, game classifier 234 is operable to associate clusters with
game titles of
games database 238. Each game title may be associated with a set of game
features.
Game classifier 234 is operable to map the set of game features for a game
title to the
clusters or models (which are in turn a collection of game features) to
associated a set of
games with each cluster or model. The game titles may be associated with
gaming
machines 10, venues and locations. This may enable of further filtering or
processing to
provide recommended games that are available to specific mobile game devices
11.
[0238] An anonymous recommendation may be possible using the session events
as
only a small amount of collected real time game play data (e.g. a single
session event, or
a few session events) is required to start the recommendation process. As
cluster
analysis is built using session events once a session event is collected it
can be used to
determine the closest cluster or model to start recommending games to the
player. As
additional session events are collected the recommendations may be refined as
different
clusters may be closer models of the player's gaming behavior. The data
representation
append many consecutive session events to create records of what happens over
time. A
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
large database of the data representations are used to determine cluster
models. By
looking at which games are typically played 'near' each centroid the system
then knows
what to recommend as an unseen player progresses through time.
[0239] A detailed example implementation of parts of the method 240 (FIG.
14) for
generating the gaming and play behavior models 222 will be described herein.
This is a
non-limiting example for illustrative purposes.
[0240] A Symbiotic Evolutionary Subspace Clustering Algorithm (ESC) may be
used
as means for multi-objective optimization. ESC is based on a multi-objective
algorithm
which searches for optimal trade-off solutions within the two or more
objectives, rather
than converting multi-objectives problem to a single objective problem as done
in more
traditional methods. In the case of ESC, a two-population model may be used to
generate
candidate cluster solutions from a pool of subspace cluster centroids. The
subspace
cluster centroids may be generated in a pre-processing stage, whereby the game
play
data input is broken down to 1-dimensional attribute files (e.g. game features
or game
factors), each of which fed into a clustering algorithm and the resultant 1-
dimensional
attribute-by-attribute centroids are then outputted to a grid that forms the
basis for the
subspace cluster centroids.
[0241] The second stage involves the construction of subspace cluster
centroids
(SCC) that may be representative of the attributes (e.g. game features or game
factors)
and 1-d clusters in the grid. A typical SCC would randomly sample a 1-d
centroid from
the grid's attributes, thus would be composed of two main entries, a centroid
index
corresponding to the index of the 1-dimensional centroid in the grid and it's
matching
attribute index. The combination of the SCC representations are what forms the
final
Candidate Clustering Solutions (CCS), which in turn are evaluated based on the
multi-
objective evolutionary algorithm. FIG. 18 outlines an example construction
process of
single SCC and CCS.
[0242] The solutions that "dominate" the dominated solutions will be ranked
at the top,
and those with the best combinations of subspace cluster centroids will be
considered as
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
the final clustering solution(s) for the algorithm. FIG. 19 outlines the
general procedure of
the ESC algorithm.
[0243] The ESC Algorithm, in example implementations, can take up to 4
different
objectives for its multi-objective evaluations: Connectivity, Compactness,
Cluster Count,
and Attribute count. Compactness refers to cluttered, densely packed clusters.
The
higher the compactness score a cluster has, the more points are packed inside
and vice
versa.
q 1SCC I
COM (CS) =1 SCC,)
[0244] In Connectivity, the distances between all points are evaluated and
weights are
given to the subspace clusters that assign more neighboring points within the
same
subspace cluster.
[0245] The remaining two objectives, Attribute & Cluster count, may not be
as
accurate as the aforementioned compactness and connectivity but provide an
efficient
way of accounting for the difference between compactness and connectivity.
Cluster
Count is the measure of how many clusters does a given candidate solution has.
The
less clusters a given solution has, the better. Similarly, Attribute count
accounts for the
number of attributes used in a given candidate solution, with a minimizing
preference.
Attribute count, as we will demonstrate later, has no effective use for our
work, as we
need to utilize all attributes.
[0246] ESC has been designed and tested for datasets with large attributes,
however
the dimensionality and scalability of the algorithm is unaccounted for. The
largest dataset
used had a large number of attributes (3814) but relatively low number of
entries (100).
ESC may be modified to take inputs larger than 2 million entries.
[0247] Furthermore, ESC does not take the whole attribute space when
constructing
SSCs, as its original primary objective was to retain the optimal solution
with the lowest
number of possible attributes. Thus, the resultant SCCs were variant in sizes
and
inconclusive of the whole attribute set. This is not-feasible for datasets
that have non-
57
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
reducible attributes; therefore, ESC was modified to have all SCCs set to a
constant size
and include centroids from each single attribute.
[0248] Removing variable-sized SCCs meant that we have to modify the
mutation
operator of the ESC algorithm. In the original implementation, mutation occurs
in both the
SCC and CCS levels. In the CCS level, a new SCC link can be added or replace
an
existing link within a single Candidate Solution, or an existing link can be
removed all
together. In the SCC-level, an attribute can be added, removed or a centroid
of single
attribute be replaced of another centroid from within the same attribute's 1-d
centroids.
Since the SSC have constant sizes and account for all attributes, attribute-
manipulation
within the mutation process is not practical. Thus we limit the mutation
operator to switch
attribute centroids during each call.
[0249] In terms of objectives used, Connectivity and Cluster Count are the
most
computationally efficient. Attribute Count is not useful when all attributes
are used and
the scope of the algorithm no longer becomes optimal attribute number in a
given
solution. Compactness produces the best results out of all possible
objectives, however,
due to the computational resources and time consumed, it is not suited for
handling
extremely large dataset; more so when it's 0(n2).
[0250] While modifications to ESC enable processing data of high-
dimensionality,
there remains a problem of efficiently scaling the algorithm without
compromising
efficiency or speed. A data filtering procedure may eliminate unnecessary data
overhead.
Eliminating points that are redundant or insignificant in position (outliers)
can greatly
reduce the size of the dataset fed to the clustering algorithm without
compromising the
quality of the results. Nearest-neighbor based calculations can classify
points into outliers
("untypical points") and prototypes ("significantly typical points"). The
three major
measures outlined by the paper are as follows:
Kappa: The distances between point x and its nearest k neighbor, defined as:
K(X) -= X ¨Zk(X)
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
Gamma: The sum of all distances between the nearest k points and x divided by
lc
defined as:
k
x -z (x)
Delta: The length of mean of distances between x and its nearest k neighbors.
A(x) = ¨1E(x ¨ z (x))
k J=1
[0251] Taking the weighted average, defined below, of all three measures
gives a
threshold to identify outliers and prototypes. The weights can be changed to
reflect the
significant of specific measures, or the weights may be equally distributed.
K(x) +F(x) + A(x)
Average(x)=
3
[0252] FIG. 20 shows two example clusters of Gaussian-distributed points
where the
average of the 3 measures have been applied. Prototypes with a cut-off
threshold of 0.2
are displayed in "black" while outliers with distances ranging from 0.2 ¨ 0.4
are in "red".
Outliers in "blue" are further away as those belong in the 0.4- 0.6 range,
while those
highlighted in "cyan" and "yellow" are furthest away (belong in0.6 ¨ 0.8 & 0.8
< ranges
respectively).
[0253] An example key to the filtering method is computing the appropriate
value of k
(number of points in consideration) and the cut-off threshold that separates
outliers from
prototypes. Percentile distribution of calculated distances between points of
given radius
k is used as a measurement to separate both classes. Thus our initial step
involves
running a random sample of a given dataset with a range of k values, over a
range of cut-
off thresholds. Once the distances between all points have been calculated,
each point is
evaluated using the three aforementioned measures on a given value of k. The
next step
involves separating all entries into outliers and prototypes based on the sum
of the three
measures. In other words, if the sum of the three measures is less than a
given cut-off
59
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
threshold, the entry would be classified as a prototype or else treated as an
outlier. The
points are then fed to confusion matrix, which in turn uses cluster
memberships
generated by a standard clustering algorithm to evaluate True Positives, True
Negatives,
False Positives and False Positives. If a given set has more than 2 clusters,
a single
cluster is chosen as a prototypes cluster, then based on that classification,
a True
Positive is scored when an entry is correctly identified as belonging to that
cluster. A
False Positive is scored when an entry is falsely identified as a prototype.
Likewise, a
True Negative is scored when an entry is correctly identified as an outlier
and a False
Negative is scored when an entry is falsely identified as an outlier. As an
example, ROC
Area Under the Curve (AUC) may be used for final evaluation, where the True
Positive
and False Positive Rates may be calculated as such:
True Positzue rate (TProte) = _____
+
False, Fositzve -rate (FPrate) = __
FF +TN
[0254] This process may be repeated for all cut-off threshold values, after
then the
calculated TPrate & FPrate are then fed to a AUC graph such as the one shown
in FIG.
21.
[0255] Most datasets have more than 2 clusters in most cases, ROC graphs
may be
generated for each given cluster through the same process detailed herein. The
AUC
gives an indication of the classification performance of a given k value. An
AUC value of
0.5 or below indicates a failed classification, while graphs with areas above
0.5 are those
taken in consideration. An area of 1.0 is considered "perfect", thus the
higher the AUC
area is, the more favorable is its k-value. With clusters more than 2, the ROC
AUG may
be generated for each, then take the mean of all cluster areas for final
consideration,
before repeating the same process for the rest values of k. The best k-value
is that with
the highest mean ROC AUG value.
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0256] The following example pseudo-code may describe the full process of
this
stage:
Read input from file
// Calculate Distances between all points
For (i = ; I < number of records ? J; i++)
For (z = ; z < number of records ? ,; z++)
For (j = ; j < number of attributes; j++)
Calculate Euclidean Distance between records[i][j] & [z][j]
For ( k = I to k = '30)
//Calculate Kappa, Delta & Gamma
For ( i = ; i < number of records; i++)
Sort Distances vector for given i
Get nearest k points to i
Calculate Kappa, Gamma, Delta and Average
Lowerlimit = Lowest Numeric Distance
Upperlimit = Greatest Numeric Distance
For ( j = ; j < ; j++) 7/ increment in 5%
Threshold = (lowerlimit + j *(upperlimit-lowerlimit/ ))
If ( given record < threshold)
Store in Prototypes Array
Else
Store in Outliers Array
// Evaluate Classifications
ConfusionMatrix(Prototypes, Outliers, Clustermemberships)
Repeat for the next values of k
[0257] Once the ideal value of k is retrieved, the whole dataset is passed
through the
second stage of the filtering algorithm, where the dataset is separated into
prototypes &
outliers. The initial part of the second stage is similar to that of the first
stage's, where the
same Euclidean distances and consequent measures calculations are executed,
however
this time, applied on all dataset entries and using the calculated k value
from the previous
stage. The Euclidean distances between a given entry i and the rest of the
entries are
calculated then sorted in ascending order with the nearest k points taken into
consideration for the three measures calculations. The final measurement, the
weighted
average of Kappa, Gamma and Delta is then compared with the cut-off threshold
for file
output. Any entry that has an average lower than the threshold is outputted
into the
prototypes file, otherwise to the outliers file. For datasets of large
dimension space,
processing them in a single run may be unfeasible; this is when breaking such
sets into
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
smaller blocks for separate processing can induce a huge speed increase. The
following
pseudo code describes the second stage:
ReadInputFromFile();
for (int i =r; i < Number_of_records ; i++)
Calculate Euclidean Distance between all records and record[i]
Sort_All_Distances_of_given_record[i] ();
for ( int j j < kradius + J; j++)
gammatemp = gammatemp + sorted_distances[j];
deltatemp = deltatemp + powf(sorted_distances[j],_. );
kappatemp = sorted_distances[j];
float gamma = gammatemp/kradius;
float delta = sqrt(deltatemp/kradius);
float average = (gamma + delta + kappatemp)/z;
if (average < threshold)
Output record[i] into prototypes file
else
Output record[i] into outliers file
[0258] FIG. 15 depicts components of an exemplary computer system 260 for
recommending games. FIG. 16 illustrates a flowchart of a method 280 for
recommending
games.
[0259] In this embodiment, at 282, a game play collector 262 collects real
time or near
real time data related to actions taken by a player during game play. Game
play collector
262 may real time or near real time data from mobile gaming device 11 or
gaming
machine 10. This data may include various game features or game factors, where
suitable game features are described throughout this disclosure. The data may
also
relate to the player. The game play collector 262 may collect a pre-
recommendation
threshold amount of game play data which may be the minimum amount of game
play
data that may be required by system 260 in order to provide recommendations.
For
example, game play collector 262 may collect data equivalent to one or more
session
events. A session event may be a number of game actions, such as 5 game
actions for
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
example. A pre-recommendation threshold may specify that the collected game
play data
must include at least 5 actions before a recommendation may be made. If the
pre-
recommendation threshold has not be collected then default configurations may
be used
to make recommendations, such as the location of the mobile gaming device 11,
the
location of the gaming machine 10, the type of gaming machine 10, the current
game
being played that the collected game data relates to, and so on. For example,
the
location may be used to suggest or recommend the most popular games for that
location.
Game play collector 262 may collect additional attributes about the game play
and the
player such as the location of the mobile gaming device 11, the location of
the gaming
machine 10, the type of gaming machine 10, the current game being played that
the
collected game data relates to, gaming machine 10 identifier, mobile gaming
device 11
identifier, available credits, and the like.
[0260] In one embodiment, the player may identify themselves using a player
action
card, or other identification such as a username and password. In other
embodiments,
the player may be anonymous. Game play collector 262 may collect player data
and
game play data from the moment a player inserts a player card or begins a
wagering
game, for instance by inserting a wager, or pressing a start button or
otherwise providing
an indication of a player's desire to play a wagering game. In certain
embodiments, the
player data comes directly from the mobile gaming device 11. In other
embodiments, the
player data comes directly from the gaming machine 10. The computer system 262
may
be configured to collect data for a predetermined or preset length of time or
amount,
which time period may be adjustable by the game operator.
[0261] Preprocessor 264 may be programmed to perform a preprocessing step,
involving cleaning the data collected by game play collector 262. Cleaning the
data may
involve any one or more of the following subtasks: noise reduction or removal,
identification and removal of outlying data entries, and resolving
inconsistencies in the
data. Cleaning may also refer to taking data in a raw or uncleaned state or
form and
converting the data into a form that is better suited for a mining or modeling
task. For
instance, cleaning may include processing or removal of extraneous or
unnecessary data
such as meta data, tags, or empty fields. Preprocessor 264 may also be
configured to
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
filter the data from the game play collector 262. In this context, filtering
refers to a specific
approach to feature extraction where redundancies (i.e., attributes carrying
less
information) are eliminated by a function or ranking process. Other techniques
for data
manipulation may also be used or they may be used in the alternative, for
instance
wrapper, embedded and search based models of data management and manipulation.
The preprocessing and feature extracting step may be performed separately, in
sequence or in parallel, or they may be performed together.
[0262] At 284, event partitioner 266 is operable to partition collected
game play data
into session events. That is, event partitioner 266 partitions the stream of
game play data
into equal chunks corresponding to session events. Session events may include
a set
number of player actions or may be for a pre-defined time period. A threshold
amount of
game play data may be required to be collected prior to event partitioner 266
partitioning
into session events. For example, game play data equivalent to at least one
session
event may be required.
[0263] In one embodiment, in a pre-defined time period, for instance a time
period
beginning from the start of game play, or after the collected game play data
corresponds
to at least one session event, at 286, the player classifier 268 finds the
nearest model
centroid, or cluster. The player classifier 268 begins to attempt to match the
player's
session gaming behavior with one or more specific clusters of game content
that have
previously been identified by the model building steps, described herein
(those steps
involved in cluster model generation or other suitable analysis). The result
of this
matching are used to determine which of the one or more previously identified
clusters of
game content are most closely matched with the player and game wagering
behavior
defined by the sampled game play data.
[0264] In one embodiment, each previously identified cluster of game
content is
matched to at least one unique game player type. In this way, the player may
be
assigned one of several game player types. The matching and determination of a
game
player type may be determined by a player classifier 268 in a classifying or
determining
step where the game player is classified into a game player type.
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0265] In another embodiment, a player may provide and the computer system
may
receive a selection of a game to play from the game player. This selection may
be used
in the determination of the at least one game player type or cluster.
[0266] In another embodiment, a player may provide or the computer system
may
receive (either from the player or otherwise) geographical data related to the
location of
the game. This geographical data may be provided by the game operator. This
geographical data may be used in the determination of the at least one game
player type
or cluster.
[0267] In another embodiment, a player may provide or the computer system
may
receive (either from the player or otherwise) data related to the language of
the game.
This language data may be provided by the game operator or a game itself. This
language data may be used in the determination of the at least one game player
type or
cluster. Other game features may also be collected and used to determine at
least one
game player type or cluster.
[0268] After or responsive to the determination of a game player type or
nearest
centroid, at 288, game selector 270 provides the player with a plurality of
games from
which to choose from (e.g. a set of recommended games). The plurality of games
may be
associated with the cluster (nearest centroid) or game player type. The
plurality of games
may be filtered based on availability to the mobile gaming device 11. For
example, only a
subset of games may be available to the mobile gaming device 11 based on its
location,
available gaming machines 10, licensing regulations, and the like. The
plurality of games
may be filtered based on availability of gaming machines 10 in other
embodiments.
[0269] The plurality of games may be provided to the player through a real-
time
window on the gaming machine. The player may be offered a choice on whether
they
would like to be informed of new games before initiating the first game play.
The
recommender system 260 may send an alert message to the gaming machine during
the
game play or at the end of a game. The alert message may provide new or
different
game selections expected to satisfy the player experience for the identified
nearest
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
cluster or game player type. Alternatively, or additionally, the selection of
different games
may be provided to the player on a video screen between rounds of a game.
[0270] Alternatively, the player may be offered a choice of selected games
based on
the identified nearest cluster or game play type through a separate area on
the screen of
the gaming machine. In such an embodiment, the new game may run and operate
and
be displayed in the same separate area on the screen of the gaming machine. In
this
embodiment, the player has the option of playing the pre-loaded game on the
machine
and, at the same time, trying out one or more games suggested based on the
identified
game player type. The new games suggested to the player could be different
themes and
genre (linked, community, social, progressive, tournament, episodic etc.) than
the pre-
loaded games on the gaming machines.
[0271] In addition, in another embodiment the system 260 may recommend
games
based one or more time slices, where a time slice represents a discrete
duration of
activity, such as game play. For instance analysis of a 7 day time slice may
provide a
different cluster or game player type and selection of games than an analysis
for the
same player based on a longer time slice, for instance a 10 day time slice.
The computer
system 260 may be configured to calculate the differences between the two
analyses (the
7 day time slice and the 10 day time slice). The computer system 260 may then
recommend games based wholly or in part on only the more recent or longer
duration
time slice. Alternatively, the computer system 260 may recommend games based
on a
combination of the recent time slice match and the longer time slice match.
Further, the
computer system 260 is configured to have the ability to store and partition
data to later
defined time slice based patterns. In this instance, the system is configured
to allow for
time slicing a data set into discrete time slices, as an example, 1 hour
slices, or 1 day
slices, or whatever time period is deemed desirable by the game operator.
[0272] In another embodiment, a player, either unregistered or registered,
may be
prompted, at least once, by an electronic gaming machine, to agree to the
computer
system 260 monitoring his game playing and collecting game play data.
Alternatively, or
additionally, the player may be prompted to agree to the system 260 collecting
game play
data related to the activity of the player. Accordingly, the method 280 may
include the
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
steps of: receiving an indication of agreement to monitoring of game play from
the game
player, and/or receiving an indication of agreement to collection of game play
data from
the game player.
[0273]
According to subsequent live game playing data collection and analysis, the
player may then be presented with a set of games selected to match the
player's gaming
preferences. Further, the computer system 260 may update or change the
player's game
player type based on live or near live game playing data or metrics by
repeating steps of
method 280 after additional game play data is available for collection and
analysis. The
results of the analysis may be the same or different set of recommended games.
As more
data is collected about a player's activities the more tailored the
recommendations may
be as more intelligence about the player is gathered.
[0274]
In one embodiment, the computer system 260 may update the nearest cluster
or player's game player type after a predetermined number of games are played,
after a
predetermined number of player actions (or session events) are collected, or
after a
predetermined length of time. The predetermined number of games, predetermined
number of player actions (or session events), or predetermined length of time
may be set
by a game operator or administrator, for instance a casino of electronic
gaming machine
operator or by the game player, for instance by requesting that the game
player input
how often or frequently they would like to be presented with a new selection
of games.
The unregistered player may be prompted again to agree to the system 260
monitoring
his game playing at another electronic gaming machine within the same
establishment
(for instance a casino or a video lottery terminal system with geographical
limits, or within
geographical limits, for instance, by an online gaming system).
[0275]
In another embodiment, a registered player having an account or other method
by which the player might be identifiable to a gaming system is logged into
the computer
system, for instance with an electronic gaming machine, or online, and is
prompted for
approval at least once, at the electronic gaming machine or online, to agree
to the system
monitoring his game playing. According to subsequent live game playing data
collection
and analysis the player may then be presented with a set of games selected to
match the
player's gaming preferences. For instance, the computer system 260 may have
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
previously assigned the player a cluster or game player type based on
historical game
play data. Further, the computer system 260 may update or change the player's
cluster
or game player type based on live or near live game playing data or metrics.
In one
embodiment, the computer system 260 may update the player's game player type
after a
predetermined number of games are played or after a predetermined length of
time. The
predetermined number of games or predetermined length of time may be set by a
game
operator, for instance a casino of electronic gaming machine operator or by
the game
player, for instance by requesting that the game player input how often they
would like to
be presented with a new selection of games.
[0276]
In one embodiment, a registered player has a responsible gaming account or
profile. In such an embodiment, the system 260 is configured to consider data
or other
information from the responsible gaming account in determining the profile for
the player
or in adjusting a game selection previously offered to a player or previously
determined
without consideration of the existence of a responsible gaming account or data
associated with that account. In adjusting a game selection, the computer
system 260
may take a selection of games based on a determined player profile and then
add or
remove games, the addition or subtraction of games being based on the data
associated
with or the presence of the player registration or the responsible gaming
account. In one
embodiment, the computer system 260 may recommend a selection of games in
whole or
in part also due to the existence of the responsible gaming profile of the
player, in
addition to, or as an alternative to, data associated with the responsible
gaming profile.
The responsible gaming data may be processed by the computer system 260 but
stored
separately, for instance in a separate responsible gaming database or module.
In one
embodiment, the methods include the step of determining that the wagering game
system has responsible gaming data related to registered game players and
including the
responsible gaming data in the determination of the at least one game player
type.
Additionally, the computer system may recommend at least one game to the
current
player that has previously been recommended to registered game players having
the
same game player type, a similar game player type or a substantially similar
game player
type.
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
[0277] For a non-registered player, or a player that is unidentified to the
gaming
system, if the player profile resulting from a live session based analysis
falls within a
particular risk category, or otherwise identifies certain risk factors, then
the computer
system 260, may, in part or whole, recommend a selection of games which it
would
otherwise recommend to registered players also having that risk category.
[0278] In another embodiment, the player may request to be presented with a
new
selection of games, for instance at any time during game player. In one such
embodiment, the player would press a button or other indicator to cause the
machine to
present a new selection of games based on recent or historical game play
behavior. This
would trigger an updated set of recommendations and initiate the method 400.
[0279] Additionally, the gaming preferences of a player and even game
player type
may be derived or obtained from a player's social networking accounts. In this
instance,
the computer system 260 would customarily request permission to access the
player's
social networking account. This embodiment where social networking information
or data
is factored in to the selection of games or the determination of the nearest
cluster or
game player type may be used only with registered players, or it may also be
used with
players that are unregistered or unidentified or even those that do not have a
player
account. In such instance, the system 260 may hold or have no access to
information or
any player account identifying the player. The persona may be derived through
proprietary software or third party available software. The persona may be
used in part to
recommend games to registered players or even to players which have patterns
similar to
registered players being offered the selections. In addition, eligible games
may be offered
for selections which are non-wagering games, online games as well as wagering
games
for electronic gaming machines.
[0280] The collected game play data relates to game factors or features for
game play
in an ongoing game by a current game player. This collection of data is
performed during
a game player's actual game play, in real time or near real time. These game
factors may
be the same as or a larger set or subset of the game factors described with
respect to
analyzing the larger data set used to generate clusters or game player types.
Game play
collector 262 may be provided in any suitable location or device, for
instance, a gaming
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
device, a controller in a gaming venue, a local computer system in the gaming
venue, a
computer system in a data center, a computer system in a social media network
or in a
private cloud, public cloud, hybrid cloud or community cloud.
[0281] Player classifier 268 may weight certain game factors, or
indicators, or the
dimensions of measurement adjusted so that they are more important or less
important
than other factors in the overall analysis of the data. In one embodiment, the
data
analysis is performed using a cluster analysis of the collected set of data.
Additionally, or
alternatively, the analysis may simply involve identification of particular
game factors, the
frequency of these game factors, any trends in the appearance of the game
factors (for
instance, whether particular actors tend to appear closer together in time),
or a
combination of these different indicators.
[0282] Instead of matching the player directly to a cluster, the method may
also
include determining at least one game player type for the current game player
based on
the analysis of the collected set of data. As described above, for instance,
the analysis
may reveal that a game player continually selects different games. The system
260 may,
for instance, interpret and determine this as an indicator that the player
does not favor
games of the type that he stopped playing and use this information to assign
the player
an appropriate game player type. In another example, if the game player
continues to
play longer games with multiple rounds of wagers, then the system 260 would
identify a
game player type that exhibits these features. Each cluster may be associated
with one
or more game player types or a set of game features. The clusters may also be
associated with a set of games, where each game is associated with a set of
game
features.
[0283] The system 260 may then transmit data for display, on a video
display,
representing the selection of games identified for the nearest cluster or game
player type
determined by the analysis of the collected set of data. The player may then
make a
selection of the one of the displayed games and the game machine presents the
selected
game to the player. For instance, the selection of games may be presented on a
video
lottery terminal, electronic gaming machine, personal computer, laptop
computer, tablet,
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
mobile phone, or a functional equivalent of one of the foregoing. The
selection may be
collected as additional game play data for further recommendations.
[0284] The method 400 may repeat steps to collect a second or additional
set of data
related to game factors for game play in an ongoing game by a current game
player.
Thus, this collection of data is performed at or near real time during ongoing
actual game
play by a game player. The second or additional set of data may be provided in
a time
period separate from (for instance after) or overlapping the first set of
data. The second
set of data may relate to a longer period of time than the first set of data.
Alternatively,
the second set of data may relate to a different set of game factors than the
first set of
data. The second set of data may be used for additional session events, where
the data
representation may append consecutive session events to generate a record of
play
behavior over time.
[0285] These game factors may be the same as or a larger set or subset of
the game
factors described above with respect to analyzing the larger data set used to
generate
clusters and game player types and suitable game factors are described
throughout this
disclosure. Additionally, the second set of data may be larger than the first
set of data.
[0286] The second or additional set of data may be partitioned into events,
used to
find the nearest cluster to game play type, and then used to recommend
additional
games. This may be repeated for further additional sets of collected game play
data.
Certain game factors may be weighted or the dimensions of measurement adjusted
so
that they are more important or less important than other factors in the
overall analysis of
the data. In one embodiment, the data analysis is performed using a cluster
analysis of
the second set of data. Additionally, or alternatively, the analysis may
simply involve
identification of particular game factors, the frequency of these game
factors, any trends
in the appearance of the game factors (for instance, whether particular actors
tend to
appear closer together in time), or a combination of these different
indicators.
[0287] Thus, in this way, the computer system 260 may continually monitor,
collect
data, and update the player's previously-determined nearest cluster or current
game
player's previously-determined game player type. In one embodiment, the step
of
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
determining the nearest cluster or at least one game player type for the
current game
player includes factoring and/or updating a previously identified clusters or
game player
type.
[0288] The updated cluster or game player type may be different from a
previously
identified cluster or game player type. In this embodiment, the method may
further
include the step of changing the previously identified cluster or game player
type for the
current game player to the updated cluster or game player type to make
additional
recommendations.
[0289] In another embodiment, a cluster or game player type may be updated
based
on an analysis of an additional set of not just one, but a plurality of game
play periods,
data sets, factors, or a combination of any of the foregoing.
[0290] In another embodiment, the computer system 260 may request and
receive
feedback from the game player related to the player's rating of the recently
played game.
For instance the computer system 260 may be configured so that a player can
assign a
numeric rating to the recently played game. Data from this rating may be
combined with
data about the recently played game to update a previously-determined cluster
or game
player type. In another embodiment, the method involves updating a previously-
determined cluster or game player type based on an additional set of data, the
additional
set of data related to game player feedback reflecting a player indication of
how often the
player would play the game. The indication of how often the player would play
the game
may be received from the player in the form of a selected set of responses,
for instance
indicating the player would play often, sometimes, or never.
[0291] A set of game player types may be created by system 220, 260 for use
recommending games. The game player types may be associated with clusters,
which
may in turn be associated with a set of games. System 220, 260 may collect a
set of data
related to one or more game factors or game features, for instance based on
actual,
simulated or historical game play. In another embodiment, the set of data
related to one
or more game factors may be previously available so that the step of
collecting the data
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may not be required. Suitable game factors, also referred to herein as game
features, are
described throughout this disclosure.
[0292] An optional step involves partitioning the set of data into one or
more game
play periods or session events. Each game play period may represent a
continuous or
relatively continuous period of game play, for instance, a series of
consecutive games
played by a player in one sitting at an electronic gaming machine. Each
session event
may represent a number of consecutive game actions over a time period. This
may be
combined with collecting the data and analyzing the data. In addition, gaming
data may
be held in a central repository and be partitioned based on geo zones which
may reflect
local or country based partitioning. The computer system 220, 260 may offer a
mix of
selection from within various partitions based upon language; geo zones as
well as time
sliced processed data.
[0293] The data is analyzed to identify instances of the game factors
described above,
including the frequency of appearance of the game factors, their distribution
within the
data set, and clusters, trends or other patters are identified. Certain game
factors, or
indicators, may be weighted or the dimensions of measurement adjusted so that
they are
more important or less important than other factors in the overall analysis of
the data. In
one embodiment, the data analysis is performed using a cluster analysis of the
set of
data within each game play period. Additionally, or alternatively, the
analysis may be
performed against the set of data without partitioning into game play periods.
[0294] The data analysis allows the computer system to create at least one
game
player type and/or associated cluster representing a collection of game
factors. In one
embodiment, the game player type or cluster is an association or collection of
one or
more game factors. This association or collection may represent a particular
model of
game player. For instance, the data analysis may show that certain players
prefer games
that are quickly resolved (from start to finish) and have small wager amounts.
Data
suggesting this trend could be used to create a cluster or game player type
based on this
trend. In one embodiment, the cluster or game player type is a collection of
data including
an identifier that allows the computer system to identify the collection of
data, and,
optionally, that the data provides a game player type. The cluster or game
player type
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may also include data which indicates the game factors defining the particular
features of
the games to be affiliated with the game player type. These features may be
identified in
the affirmative, for instance as features that should or are preferably
present in the
games to be affiliated with the game player type. Alternatively, or
additionally, some
features may be identified in the negative, for instance features that should
not be or are
preferably not present in the games to be affiliated with the game player
type.
[0295] In one embodiment, computer system 260 may select games for the
cluster
game player type based at least in part on the analysis of data from one or
more game
play periods or from analysis of the data set at large, without any
partitioning or
consideration of partitioning of the data into game play periods. The
selection or
identification is based on data related to the games and the information or
data from the
game player type or cluster. For instance, if the game player type is for
players that like
longer games with multiple rounds of wagers, then the computer system would
identify a
selection of games that exhibit these features. Data related to a game could
be provided
manually or it could be generated in a separate data analysis step, for
instance analysis
of data representative of game play activity, for instance, live, virtual or
historical play of a
given game. The data related to the games could include a combination of data
entered
manually, for instance game theme data, as well as other data collected or
assembled
through analysis of game play activity. Alternatively, the computer system may
identify a
selection of games based directly on the analysis of the set of data, without
any creation
of a game player type. In this embodiment, the selection of games may be based
directly
on the results of the cluster or trend analysis.
LOADING AND UNLOADING GAME ASSETS
[0296] As described herein, a connection may be established between a
mobile
gaming device 11 and a gaming machine 10 to enable remote gaming by player.
The
game may be selected from a set of recommended games. In order to configure
and
control the mobile gaming device 11 to remotely play a game associated with a
gaming
machine 10 game assets may be transferred to the mobile gaming device 11.
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[0297] Referring now to FIG. 22 there is shown a system 300 for
transferring game
assets to a mobile gaming device 11 for remote gaming. For remote gaming,
multiple
issues may be addressed, including for example, how to load game assets to a
mobile
device 11 and what to do with the loaded game assets after a game ends and the
player/mobile device 11 leaves a venue or predefined area (e.g. geo-fence). A
venue,
game developer or operator may not want players to have subsequent access to
game
assets that may cost a lot to produce. Further, licensing regulations may
prohibit access
to games via loaded game assets once a player leaves a licensed area.
[0298] The game assets may be download to the mobile gaming device 11 from
the
gaming machine 10. In some embodiments, the mobile gaming device 11 and the
gaming
machine 10 may be coupled to an asset server 302 to enable transfer to the
mobile
gaming device 11 from the gaming machine 10. The game assets may also be
stored on
a content storage device 304 (e.g. dedicated game asset server(s)) storing all
game
assets available. The game assets may be downloaded to the mobile gaming
device 11
from the content storage device 304. The asset server 302 and/or content
storage device
304 may be represented in FIG. 12 as gaming server 214 in some embodiments.
The
asset server 302 and/or content storage device 304 may also form part of
system 220 of
FIG 13 and system 260 of FIG. 15 in some embodiments. These are examples only
and
other configurations may be used to transfer game assets to mobile device 11.
[0299] The game asset transfer may be triggered by selection of a game
(e.g. from a
set of recommended games), after registration by a player, initiation of game
play,
progression through a game, and so on.
[0300] The asset server 302 and/or content storage device 304 may be per
venue or
shared per jurisdiction or in the cloud serving multiple jurisdictions. The
asset server 302
and/or content storage device 304 may be partitioned based on geographic
location and
licensing restrictions, for example.
[0301] In some embodiments, the mobile player may need to register to be
able to
down load the game assets to their corresponding mobile device 11. In other
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
embodiments, the mobile player may download the assets to their corresponding
mobile
device 11 if he/she are within the geo-fenced zone without the need for
registration.
[0302] In some embodiments, the game assets may contain the images and
sounds
for the game, but may not include the gameplay engine code. This may be
downloaded
to the mobile device 11 via a separate server or application. In other
embodiments, the
gameplay engine code may reside on the gaming machine 10 or a separate server
and
the mobile device may display an interface of certain aspects of the game and
the final
results. The game play may be carried out by the engine on the gaming machine
10 or
separate server. The game assets can download to the mobile device 11 from a
web
server, data storage device 304, asset server 302, or other server.
[0303] The game assets may be scaled for different target devices and
display
configurations on the host server side (e.g. asset server 302) and sent to the
mobile
device 11 depending on its screen resolution and hardware capability. Example
conversions are described herein.
[0304] When the mobile device 11 leaves the geo-fenced zone the assets may
be
deleted or a free play version of the game may be enabled.
[0305] Accordingly, asset server 302 is operable to detect when the mobile
device 11
leaves a geo-fenced zone to trigger deletion of the game assets, in accordance
with
some embodiments.
[0306] In other embodiments, a free-paly feature may be enabled. Asset
server 302
may implement hierarchal concentric geo-fenced zones. When the mobile device
11
leaves the inside zone, the game assets may remain on the mobile device 11 but
the
player may be limited to play without wagering (free-play). In some
embodiments, when
the player leaves an outside zone, the game assets will be deleted to prohibit
wagering
and free-play.
[0307] In some embodiments, the game assets may remain on the mobile device
11
for a certain amount of time. After the amount of time has passed the game
assets may
be deleted.
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FREE PLAY MODE
[0308] Referring now to FIG. 23 there is shown a flowchart of a method 310
for free-
play of a game on a mobile device tethered to a gaming machine in accordance
with
some embodiments.
[0309] With mobile tethered play (e.g. connection between the gaming
machine 10
and the mobile device 11), if a player or mobile device 11 leaves the geo-
fenced area,
the system may disable gameplay. In other embodiments, the game may have a
wagering mode and a free play mode. If a player or mobile device 11 leaves the
geo-
fenced area, the system may switch to a free-to-play version of the game to
continue
play. The system may receive a warning that the mobile device 11 has left the
geo-
fenced area, but instead of exiting the game, it could switch to an internally
run version of
the game (provided via the loaded game assets). For example, fake reel strips
may be
displayed and the player may be allowed to play for free. Once back in the geo-
fence
area, the player may have the option to play in the wagering mode again.
[0310] In accordance with some embodiments, in the geo-fence area, if all
the gaming
machines 10 are taken, the player can play for free using mobile device 11
(e.g. game
assets may be downloaded to mobile device 11 and free-play may be enabled).
Once a
gaming machine 10 becomes available, the mobile device 11 will receive a
notification
that a gaming machine 10 is free and ask if they wish to play.
[0311] At 312, mobile device is operable to initiate a connection to a
gaming machine
(e.g. terminal) to play one or more games associated with the gaming machine
10.
[0312] If the player is unable to connect to gaming machine 10, such as if
the player is
outside the geo-fenced zone or otherwise cannot connect to gaming machine 10,
then at
314 the player may play the desired game in free-play mode.
[0313] At 316, the player may register for the gaming machine 10. The
player may set
a spending limit in some example embodiments for responsible gaming.
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[0314] At 318, it is determined whether the desired gaming machine is
available. If a
player registers on a gaming machine 10 that is not available and is queued to
play, at
314, they can play for free on their mobile device 10 until the gaming machine
10 (e.g.
terminal) is available.
[0315] Once the gaming machine 10 is available, at 320, a popup may appear
on the
screen display of the mobile device asking if they want to play for real (e.g.
wagering
mode), or cash out the gaming machine 10 and continue to play for free.
[0316] At 322, it is determined whether the player is inside the geo-fence
area while
playing for free.
[0317] If the player plays for free in the venue or geo-fenced area, then
they may be
rewarded with player loyalty points at 324. The free play acts may act as an
advertisement or enticement for the establishment. If they play for free
outside the geo-
fence area, they may not receive any loyalty points. If the player is playing
for free
because the gaming machine 10 is not available, at 326, it is determined
whether the
gaming machine is available. If the gaming machine 10 is available, at 328, it
is
determined whether the player registers to play the game in the wagering mode.
[0318] The free game acts may operate in the same manner as the regular
tethered
game, where a difference may be that logic of the game in free-play may come
from the
mobile device 11 itself (e.g. via loaded assets) in some example embodiments.
The
mobile device 11 may communicate with the asset server 302 or gaming machine
10
through wireless communication, for example, but may not transmit outcomes in
some
example embodiments. When in the geo-fence area, game information may be
transmitted to track how much and what games are played, to determine who much
loyalty points to award, to recommend games, and so on. The system may keep
track of
the number of loyalty points and display them on the mobile device.
[0319] This system can be used as a responsible gaming feature. At the
first of a
session, the player may choose how much their spending limit is (e.g. at 316).
At 330, it
is determined whether the player has reached their spending limit. If the
player
overspends their budget, at 332, they can switch to free-play to continue
their experience,
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but without spending more money. At 334, the player is unregistered from the
gaming
machine 10. This frees up the gaming machine 10 for another party to play the
game and
may help curve overspending.
[0320] The core logic for free-play may be stored in the game assets, but
may
disabled while in tethered wagering mode, only activating once the free-play
mode is
enabled. During wagering play, at any time, the player may switch to free play
mode at
332, but may be cashed out of and unregistered from gaming machine 10 at 334
to allow
the next player to take over. They can re-queue again to play via the gaming
machine 10
after the next player, for example.
[0321] At 336, it is determined whether the player is inside or outside the
geo-fence
area to in turn determine whether the player can continue playing in wagering
mode, or
whether the game should switch to free play mode.
TOURNAMENT
[0322] Another feature of the free-play is the use a tournament style
system. FIG. 24
illustrates a flowchart of a method for free-play with a tournament style.
Players with
mobile gaming devices 11 loaded with the remote gaming application may
participate in
mini-tournaments. In some embodiments, the winner may receive a prize of some
sort.
The prize may be advertised. For example, the tournament system may run a
simple reel
game with very high return percentage math. The gaming machine 10 may be
switched
to tournament play, via e.g. the back office of the venue. Each mobile device
10 would be
then be registered with one or more gaming machines 10. The tournament may
support a
time limit, a credit limit or a combination of the both. Once the tournament
commences,
each player plays until time has elapsed or run out of credits, whichever
comes first. The
tournament can run on the same gaming machine 10 to increase the number of
participants.
[0323] The player rankings may be displayed on all of the gaming machines
10
involved in the tournament. The winner of the tournament is then determined
and may be
awarded a prize by the venue. The prize can be free food or drink, loyalty
points, for
example.
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[0324] Once the tournament is finished, the player can return to regular
play either in
wagering mode or free play.
[0325] At 342, mobile device 11 is operable to initiate a connection to a
gaming
machine 10 (e.g. terminal) to play one or more games associated with the
gaming
machine 10.
[0326] At 346, it is determined whether the mobile device 11 has registered
with the
gaming machine 10 to participate in a tournament.
[0327] At 348, the game assets for the game are loaded to the mobile device
11, as
described herein, for free play mode.
[0328] At 350, a central tournament system (e.g. central system 212 of FIG.
12)
configures a tournament between all mobile devices 11 registered for the
tournament.
The tournament starts at 352 and the players via mobile devices 11 play the
tournament
game at 354 using the loaded game assets.
[0329] At 356, central tournament server determines whether the tournament
has
ended based on conditions and rules programmed for the tournament. At 358, the
rankings for the tournament are displayed on each mobile device 11
participating in the
tournament. The rankings may also be displayed on the associated gaming
machines 10
the mobile devices 10 registered with.
[0330] At 360, a prize is awarded to the winner(s) of the tournament and at
362 the
tournament completes.
DISTRIBUTED DATA STORAGE
[0331] In accordance with embodiments described herein, game play data used
for
recommendations and model generation may be stored in a distributed
configuration
across a variety of data storage devices. The data storage devices may be
located in
different jurisdictions and may contain different subsets of game play data.
The data
storage devices may store overlapping game play data in some example
embodiments.
The data may be exported to other servers due to the large amount of playing
data and
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
the resource restrictions of a single server. Further, data may be exported to
generate a
collective pool of data for data mining and analysis. For example, the
collective pool of
data may be used for cluster model generation, recommendations, and so on.
[0332] Game play data may be collected from game play by players located in
a
jurisdiction and stored locally on data storage devices. The game play data
may include
player data including private information about a player, such as their name,
credit score,
credit card number, citizenship, residency, address, phone-number, total
spending
amount, and the like. This information may be collected during registration
for example.
Gaming and privacy regulations may govern and restrict where the private data
may be
stored and which locations the private data may be transferred to. User
preferences may
also restrict access and export of private data.
[0333] It may be desirable to pool game play data at a central server or a
collection of
distributed central servers to collect a large amount of game play data for
model
generation and recommendations. The central server(s) may coordinate analytics
for
model and recommendation generation between different servers and
jurisdictions. This
provides increased processing power, increased memory resources for large
amounts of
game play data, and access to a larger data set.
[0334] If the central server is located in one or more different
jurisdictions than where
the data was originally collected then the gaming and privacy regulations and
user
preferences may restrict the export of the private data (a subset of the game
play data) to
the central server. Accordingly, the private data may be separated from the
non-private
gaming behavior data, where only the non-private data may be transferred.
Further, a
summary of private data may be generated such that the summary abstracts from
and
summarizes the private data to generate non-private summary data. The non-
private data
may be anonymous data but may include game factors used to generate models and
recommendations. The data may also be separated to reduce the amount of data
to be
stored on a single data storage device.
[0335] Local servers may be configured with parsing rules to implement
regulatory
restrictions and user preferences to govern export of data to the central
server(s). That is,
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local servers may be configured with parsing rules to process player and game
play data
stored thereon to generate export data for transmission to the central server.
The local
export servers may be configured with parsing rules specific to regulatory
requirements of
relevant jurisdictions (e.g. privacy regulation) and user preferences (current
location of
data, location that data will be exported to). For example, player and game
play data may
include private and non-private data, and the local servers may separate the
private and
non-private data based on the parsing rules and apply tags to the exported
data. To
separate the private data (e.g. personal information about players) from the
non-private
data (e.g. playing behavior) a hashing algorithm may be used to create an
index or tag
linking the private and non-private data. That is, a tag for the non-private
data may
identify (directly or indirectly) associated private data. The tag or index
may otherwise
provide relevant information about the non-private data such as the location
or jurisdiction
it is coming from. This may enable central server(s) to aggregate data based
on the tag.
For example, the non-private data may be aggregated based on location or
jurisdiction.
[0336] The collective pool of data on central server(s) may be partitioned
by
jurisdiction, tag, game, and the like. The tag may include jurisdictional
data. When the
collective pool of data is used to generate models and recommendations
different
weightings can be applied to the data based on jurisdiction. For example, a
game
recommendation to a Canadian playing a game in the United States may be
generated
by weighting Canadian data more than data from other jurisdictions. The
collective pool
of data may provide a larger data set (e.g. playing data from multiple
countries) in
improve models and recommendations. Trends and playing behavior may be
analyzed
using the collective pool of data.
[0337] Referring now to FIG. 25 there is shown a system 300 for
implementing user
preferences, privacy and regulatory restrictions on export and use of game
play data.
Player and game play data may be stored in a distributed fashion on local game
play
data storage devices 374, 376 and central data storage servers 378. The game
play data
storage devices 374, 376 and central data storage servers 378 may be in
different or the
same jurisdictions. The game play data may be exported from local game play
data
storage devices 374, 376 to central data storage servers 378 using parsing
rules. The
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parsing rules may be in accordance with privacy and regulatory restrictions
implemented
by data management server 362 using parsing rules.
[0338] Data management server 362 provides a middleware component and
mechanism (e.g. in a cloud computing configuration in this example) which will
enables
owner of personal data (e.g. game player) to monitor use of personal data and
implement
regulatory restrictions on personal data export.
[0339] Data management server 362 enables a game player to agree or
disagree to
the location where his / her data are stored, by whom data are accessed and
how, how
and by whom data are processed, when and how data are transferred, and so on.
[0340] Data management server 362 would give players the possibility to
fully control
processing, storing or transmitting of their gaming data and to agree/disagree
with
processing, storing or transmitting of their gaming data. To a regulator and
auditor this
may help to increase confidence in transparency how data are treated.
[0341] Data management server 362 includes a Privacy Manager 364 which
enables
a user to access and set his / her preferences for: where his data may be
stored
physically, who can access their data and which level of access they can have,
who can
process data, who can transmit data (transfer), what data may be transferred
allowed,
what actions need permission and approval, and so on. Privacy manager 364 may
interact with a device-based privacy manager 380 residing on mobile device 11.
The
preferences may be used to define parsing rules.
[0342] In other words, Privacy Manager 364, 380 collects, stores, and
manages
privacy preferences requested by the game players. In addition, privacy
manager 364
may allow a player to monitor processing, storing or transmitting actions on
their data.
For example, privacy manager 364 may generate a log of all actions and changes
and
present to the player on request or in a report.
[0343] Access Control Preference Manager 366 determines what processing,
storing
or transmitting actions are required of personal data in order for the
recommendation
system, export software or other component to perform required or desired
functions. The
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required processing, storing or transmitting actions may be implemented as
parsing rules.
Access Control Preference Manager 366 serves as the component managing cloud
service attributes required for the remote evaluation of access control
policies. That is,
Access Control Preference Manager 366 determines desired or required
processing,
storing or transmitting actions with respect to game play data.
[0344] Negotiation Manager 368 may serve as mediator for negotiation
between
Privacy Manager 364 and Access Control Preference Manager 366 so actions can
occur
or be prevented because of privacy limitations. In other words, Negotiation
Manager 368
acts as an interface between Privacy Manager 364 and Access Control Preference
Manager 366 to map required or desired actions to privacy restrictions based
on user
preferences. Negotiation Manager 368 provides negotiation functionalities and
protocols.
[0345] Regulatory Requirements Manager 370 may implement regulatory
requirements on game play data through restriction rules (e.g. parsing rules).
For
example, Regulatory Requirements Manager 370 may receive and process relevant
privacy regulations governing use of private data to generate restriction
rules for types of
data and export thereof. Regulatory Requirements Manager 370 will serve to
manage
functions related to regulator and specific standards or jurisdictions.
Negotiation Manager
368 may serve as mediator for negotiation between Regulatory Requirements
Manager
370 and Access Control Preference Manager 366 to consider required or desired
actions
in view of regulatory restrictions.
[0346] Tag manager 372 is operable to implement hashing algorithms and add
tags to
game play data, when separated for export and pooling purposes, for example.
For
tagging data, hashing algorithms may be used. Tag manager 372 can add tags
which will
protect data due to tampering together with tamper proof time stamping and
logging.
Coupled also with low level access controls and monitoring / alerting
technologies tag
manager 372 can help to prevent or, at least, alert unauthorized change or
moving data.
Tag manager 372 may add tags that provide relevant information about game play
data,
such as the location the data was collected in. For hashing, Tag manager 372
may
implement a variety of hashing algorithms, such as SHA 3 (Keccak) hashing
algorithm
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which recently. Additional level hashing would be to "seed" data with some
proprietary
system which than will give ownership and control over the data.
[0347] Referring to FIG. 26 there is shown a method 400 for distributing
storage of
game play data using parsing rules (e.g. based on user preferences, privacy
and
regulatory restrictions on game play data).
[0348] At 402, data management server 362 receives player and game play
data
corresponding to players' real time game play for storage on local game play
servers
376.
[0349] At 404, data management server 362 is operable to generate export
data from
player and game play data stored on local game play servers 376. The data
management
server 362 is operable to generate the export data using parsing rules. The
export data
includes filtered the player and game play data. For example, as noted herein,
private
data (e.g. personal player data) may be filtered from the player and game play
data to
generate the export data. The parsing rules may implement user preferences (as
received by privacy manager 364), required processing, storing or transmitting
actions
(as determined by access control manager 366), and regulatory requirements (as
per
regulatory manager 370). The negotiation manager 368 may generate a subset of
parsing relevant to generating particular export data in consideration of the
local game
play server 376 where the player and game play data originally resides, and
the
destination of the export data, e.g. the central play data server 378 or
another local game
play server 376. The tag manager 372 is operable to tag export data with a tag
or index
to provide a link between the export data and the original player and game
play data it
was originally generated from.
[0350] At 406, the export data is transmitted from the local game play
server 376 to a
central server 378 (or other local game play server 376). In other words, the
export data
is received at a central server 378.
[0351] The central server 378 may receive export data from multiple local
game play
servers 376 or other central server 378 (e.g. organized in a tiered manner).
The central
server 378 stores received export data as part of a collective pool of game
play data. The
CA 02821175 2016-03-24
collective pool of game play data includes data received from multiple
sources. This may
provide a larger collection of data from which to generate cluster models and
make
recommendations.
[0352] At 408, recommendation server 216 generates a set of game
recommendations, as described in detail herein. The set of game
recommendations may
be generated using received export data and the collective pool of game play
data. For
example, the received export data may identify a jurisdiction which may be
used by
recommendation server 216 to generate recommendations specific to that
jurisdiction
using the collective pool of game play data.
[0353] The recommendation server 216 (or central play data server 378) may
receive
additional player and game play data corresponding to a player's real time
game play in a
game on a gaming machine 10 (or tablet 11). This additional player and game
play data
may be used in connection with the collective pool of game play data at
central play data
server 378 to make recommendations for the player. The recommendations
leverage the
increased size of the collective pool of data. The collective pool of game
play data may
be used to generate the cluster models as described herein. The models may be
applied
to real time game data to make game recommendations for players, as described
herein.
The detailed description of game recommendations herein applies to generating
game
recommendations using the collective pool of data on the central server 378.
[0354] At 410, the recommendation server 216 provides the set of game
recommendations. The set of game recommendations may be received at a local
gaming
device 10 or tablet 11 from recommendation server 216. The set of game
recommendations may be received via another local computing device for
provision to
the player.
[0355] The player may select a game from the set of game recommendations,
and the
method 400 may return to 402 where additional player and game play data
corresponding to a player's real time game play will be received, for export
or further
recommendations, for example. Accordingly, some or all of the steps of method
400 may
repeat for additional data collection, recommendations, or a combination of
both.
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MICROGAMING
[0356] A mobile device 11 may establish a connection to a variety of types
of gaming
machines 10, such as for example an electronic gaming table 10 that enables
community
or individual games.
[0357] FIG. 27 is a top down view of a substantially horizontal gaming
table 10
showing a particular icon-selection game in progress. In this example, four
mobile
devices 11 are coupled to the gaming table 10. A user interface on the mobile
devices 11
may replicate the surface of the gaming table 10, receive input data from
players, and
provide output data to players. There may be physical players 392 at the
gaming table 10
to play with one or more players using mobile gaming devices 11. The entire
top surface
of the gaming table 10 may be a touch screen 390 which may be replicated on
user
interface of mobile gaming device 11, which may also have a touch screen.
[0358] The touch screen 390 technology may be conventional, such as a flat
screen
monitor with a capacitive-type touch screen overlay. The touch screen 390 is
preferably
square to make all the players' positions equivalent; however, rectangular
touch screens
are more commercially available. The position of the player's may be less
relevant with
remote gaming configurations as the players need not be physically present at
gaming
table 10. All player controls may be via the touch screen 390 or through user
interface of
mobile device 11.
[0359] When a player arrives at the gaming table 10 or connects thereto via
a mobile
device 11, the player creates a bank of credits, which are displayed at screen
areas 394.
The screen areas 394 may be replicated on user interface of mobile gaming
device 11.
The player may use a player tracking card, cash, a paper ticket, or other
means to create
the bank of credits. A conventional card reader or cash/ticket receiver may be
located in
the table 10 support structure or on a registration terminal as described
herein.
[0360] In the game illustrated in FIG. 27, a variety of icons 396 are
displayed having
different wager amounts (or denominations). At least some of the icons 396 are
associated with a randomly selected hidden prize. Other ones of the icons 396
may be
losing icons awarding no prize. Generally, the awards for the higher wager
icons 396 are
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higher than the lower wager icons 396. Examples of the wagers are 5 cents, 10
cents, 25
cents, and one dollar. When an icon 20 is touched (which may be via user
interface of
mobile gaming device 11), the advertised wager is deducted from the player's
bank and
the hidden prize is revealed and credited to the player's bank. The wager may
even be a
fraction of a single credit, and the fractions are added by the processor in
the gaming
system when deducting from or adding credits to the player's bank. The
fractions may
displayed in an area of the screen 390 (or on user interface of mobile gaming
device 11).
[0361] So that the gaming system knows which player made the icon
selection, the
selecting player touches a "player active" button 398 on the screen (or on
user interface
of mobile gaming device 11) to briefly lock out other players until the
selection is made.
The button 398 may need to be touched while the player touches the icon 396
(or user
interface of mobile gaming device 11), or the button 398 remains activated
once touched
until the player makes the selection. In one example, each player is
associated with a
different color and, when a player touches the button 398, all icons 396 turn
that color to
indicate to the other players who is the active player.
[0362] In one embodiment, players that concurrently touch their buttons 398
(or user
interface of mobile gaming device 11) effectively select the same icon 396
that is touched
by any one of the active players. This allows the players to truly share in
the same
gaming experience. Each player then wins a prize as if the players separately
touched
the icon 396 (or user interface of mobile gaming device 11).
[0363] The players may play independently in a random order so as to play
at their
own comfortable rate. Any player may join the game or cash out without
affecting the
other players. Cash-out may be by printed ticket, chips, crediting the
player's central
account (if the player uses a player tracking card), or other suitable means
such as NEC
based credit transfer on a smart phone.
[0364] Any or all players may elect to play an individual game on a portion
399 of the
large screen 390. Any game may remain as the community game or any other game,
and
the community game is not affected by any player choosing to play an
individual game.
The gaming system may adapt the community game, as needed, due to the portion
399
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not being used for the community game. The player may select from a variety of
games
(including any community game) by touching a selection button (or user
interface of
mobile gaming device 11), which displays a menu of available games in the
portion 399
(or on user interface of mobile gaming device 11). The player then selects any
available
game, such as a conventional video poker game, a conventional video reels type
game,
etc., and plays the game in a conventional way. Any number of players may play
individual games. Even a single player may be able to player the "community
game,"
since it is desirable that no action by any player can adversely affect
another player's
enjoyment of all the games offered by the gaming table 10. In one embodiment,
a player
playing an individual game may also simultaneously participate in a community
game by
selecting a community game to join.
[0365] In another embodiment, the player may choose to initiate another
community
game in portion 399, and additional players may elect to join the community
game by
menu selection (or via user interface of mobile gaming device 11). The
community game
screen display would then expand to the other players' locations (e.g., from
25% of the
screen 18 to 50% of the screen 390). None of the players' gaming experiences
are
interrupted by such selections. The players may even elect to simultaneously
participate
in multiple community games.
OTHER FEATURES
[0366] In alternative embodiments, the mobile gaming device may be
connected to
the gaming machine with a cable, either directly connected to a port of the
gaming
machine or via a network communicating with the gaming machine.
[0367] The software used to program the gaming machines and servers in
accordance with the embodiments described herein may be initially stored on a
ROM,
such as a CD or an electronic memory device. Such CDs and devices are non-
transitory
computer readable mediums having the appropriate computer instructions stored
thereon. The programming may also be downloaded to the gaming machines via the
casino's network.
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[0368] It should be appreciated that the terminals, processors, or
computers described
herein may be embodied in any of a number of forms, such as a rack-mounted
computer,
a desktop computer, a laptop computer, or a tablet computer. Additionally, a
computer
may be embedded in a device perhaps not generally regarded as a computer but
with
suitable processing capabilities, including an electronic gaming machine, a
Web TV, a
Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a smart phone or any other suitable portable
or fixed
electronic device.
[0369] Also, a computer may have one or more input and output devices.
These
devices can be used, among other things, to present a user interface. Examples
of output
devices that can be used to provide a user interface include printers or
display screens
for visual presentation of output and speakers or other sound generating
devices for
audible presentation of output. Examples of input devices that can be used for
a user
interface include keyboards, and pointing devices, such as mice, touch pads,
and
digitizing tablets. As another example, a computer may receive input
information through
speech recognition or in other audible format.
[0370] Such computers may be interconnected by one or more networks in any
suitable form, including as a local area network or a wide area network, such
as an
enterprise network or the Internet. Such networks may be based on any suitable
technology and may operate according to any suitable protocol and may include
wireless
networks, wired networks or fiber optic networks. As used herein, the term
"online" refers
to such networked systems, including computers networked using, e.g.,
dedicated lines,
telephone lines, cable or ISDN lines as well as wireless transmissions. Online
systems
include remote computers using, e.g., a local area network (LAN), a wide area
network
(WAN), the Internet, as well as various combinations of the foregoing.
Suitable user
devices may connect to a network for instance, any computing device that is
capable of
communicating over a network, such as a desktop, laptop or notebook computer,
a
mobile station or terminal, an entertainment appliance, a set-top box in
communication
with a display device, a wireless device such as a phone or smartphone, a game
console,
etc. The term "online gaming" refers to those systems and methods that make
use of
such a network to allow a game player to make use of and engage in gaming
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CA 02821175 2016-03-24
through networked, or online systems, both remote and local. For instance,
"online
gaming" includes gaming activity that is made available through a website on
the Internet.
[0371] Also, the various methods or processes outlined herein may be coded
as
software that is executable on one or more processors that employ any one of a
variety
of operating systems or platforms. Additionally, such software may be written
using any
of a number of suitable programming languages and/or programming or scripting
tools,
and also may be compiled as executable machine language code or intermediate
code
that is executed on a framework or virtual machine.
[0372] In this respect, embodiments may provide a tangible, non-transitory
computer
readable storage medium (or multiple computer readable storage media) (e.g., a
computer memory, one or more floppy discs, compact discs (CD), optical discs,
digital
video disks (DVD), magnetic tapes, flash memories, circuit configurations in
Field
Programmable Gate Arrays or other semiconductor devices, or other non-
transitory,
tangible computer-readable storage media) encoded with one or more programs
that,
when executed on one or more computers or other processors, perform methods
that
implement the various embodiments discussed above. The computer readable
medium
or media can be transportable, such that the program or programs stored
thereon can be
loaded onto one or more different computers or other processors to implement
various
aspects as discussed above. As used herein, the term "non-transitory computer-
readable
storage medium" encompasses only a computer-readable medium that can be
considered to be a manufacture (i.e., article of manufacture) or a machine and
excludes
transitory signals.
[0373] The terms "program" or "software" are used herein in a generic sense
to refer
to any type of computer code or set of computer-executable instructions that
can be
employed to program a computer or other processor to implement various aspects
of as
discussed above. Additionally, it should be appreciated that according to one
aspect of
this embodiment, one or more computer programs that when executed perform
methods
need not reside on a single computer or processor, but may be distributed in a
modular
fashion amongst a number of different computers or processors to implement
various
aspects of embodiments described herein.
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[0374] Computer-executable instructions may be in many forms, such as
program
modules, executed by one or more computers or other devices. Generally,
program
modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc.
that
perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types.
Typically the
functionality of the program modules may be combined or distributed as desired
in
various embodiments.
[0375] Also, data structures may be stored in computer-readable media in
any
suitable form. For simplicity of illustration, data structures may be shown to
have fields
that are related through location in the data structure. Such relationships
may likewise be
achieved by assigning storage for the fields with locations in a computer-
readable
medium that conveys relationship between the fields. However, any suitable
mechanism
may be used to establish a relationship between information in fields of a
data structure,
including through the use of pointers, tags, addresses or other mechanisms
that establish
relationship between data elements.
[0376] Various aspects of embodiments described herein may be used alone,
in
combination, or in a variety of arrangements not specifically discussed in the
embodiments described in the foregoing and the concepts described herein are
therefore
not limited in their application to the details and arrangement of components
set forth in
the foregoing description or illustrated in the drawings. For example, aspects
described in
one embodiment may be combined in any manner with aspects described in other
embodiments.
[0377] Also, embodiments described herein may provide a method, of which an
example has been provided. The acts performed as part of the method may be
ordered in
any suitable way. Accordingly, embodiments may be constructed in which acts
are
performed in an order different than illustrated, which may include performing
some acts
simultaneously, even though shown as sequential acts in illustrative
embodiments.
[0378] While embodiments have been described with reference to certain
exemplary
features thereof, those skilled in the art may make various modifications to
the described
embodiments. The terms and descriptions used herein are set forth by way of
illustration
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only and not meant as limitations. In particular, although embodiments have
been
described by way of examples, a variety of devices would practice the
inventive concepts
described herein. Embodiments have been described and disclosed in various
terms, the
scope of the embodiments is not intended to be, nor should it be deemed to be,
limited
thereby and such other modifications or embodiments as may be suggested by the
teachings herein are particularly reserved, especially as they fall within the
breadth and
scope of the claims here appended. Those skilled in the art will recognize
that these and
other variations are possible as defined in the following claims and their
equivalents.
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