Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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MULTIVENUE JACKPOT SYSTEM
~ This invention relates to a multivenue jackpot system.
The object of the present invention is a multivenue jackpot system which ;~ s a
number of venues wherc ele.,~ullic gaming .,. ~h;.~ ~s (EGMs) are located and a central control
system which is remote from and controls the EGMs.
According to the present invention there is provided a multivenue ]ackpot system10 COll~y~ lg a central control system and a plurality of ~;aming venues, each gaming venue
inrlurling-
a jackpot controllcr coupled for col.llllu.-ication with said central control system by
way of a communications network;
a plurality of electronic gaming m~rhinPs (EGMs) each inrlll~ing hard meters and15 EGM logic for ge-lel~tillg input signals for the hard meters; and
a venue network coupled to said jackpot controller;
wherein each electronic gaming m~rhin~ includes a jackpot interface coupled to the
electronic gaming ",~rl,;"~ and the venue network, each said jackpot interface being coupled
to Illoni~or said hard meter input signals, and said ccntral control system including a jackpot
20 sum which is incremented and/or awarded to a selected electronic gaming m~rhinr in
acco~-ia.lce with said input signals.
Preferably, each second interface means compri~çs a circuit board which can be
coupled to an otherwise standard EGM.
The invention also provides a multivenue jackpot svstem comprising:
a central control system;
co....... il";r~ti-~n~ intPlf~re forcouplingthe central control system to a cn.,.. ,.ir~tirn~
ll~,Lw-~l h;
a plurality of gaming venues;
each gaming venue inrl~r1in~ a jackpot controller coupled for co,llic ~ jon with said
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central control system by way of the cl -, - " ", ~ .e ll~tWUlk, a plurality of electronic gaming
m~- hinrc (EGM) each inrln-ling hard meters and EGM logic for generating input signals for
thc hard meters, and a venue network and wherein each electronic gaming m~rhinr inrl--d~s
a jackpot interf~ce for coupling the electronic gaming m~chin~ to the venue ll~lwulk and
S wh~,lcill the jackpot int~rf~r~ is coupled to monitor said hard meter input signals and wherein
the central control system establishes a jackpot which is based upon the OCCullcllC~ of a
random event, and upon oc~;ullcillce of the random event the central control system selects a
winning venue and wllclGill the jackpot controller at the winning venue is arranged to select
a winning EGM by reference to hard meter input signals derived from the EGM logic.
In one form, the random event may c-".~ e the passing of a randomly selected time.
In another forrn, the random cvent may be triggering of a nl~ltly value and selecting the
venue that caused the trigger.
These and other novel features of the system will become apparent from the following
dcscli~tion of examples of the invention, in which:
Figurc 1 is a block diagram of an electronic gaming system of the invention;
hgure 2 is a block diagram of the venue config-lration;
Figure 3 is a ~ gT~mm~tic l~yl~s~ tion showing data flows at the central control20 system;
Figurc 4 is a block diagram of a jackpot interface board (JIB);
Figure 5 is a block diagram of the jackpot controller;
Figures 6 to 9 are circuit ~ gr~m~ for one impleml~nt~tinn of an IP module;
Figures 10 to 18 are block ~ ~m~ of glue logic in the IP module;
Figure 19 is a flow chart showing boot loading of the jackpot interface board;
Figure 20 is a ~ gr~mm~tjc lc~lesc..~ ~tion of the major process steps carried out by
the central controller (JCC);
Figure 21~ ;r~lly illllstr~tps ml~ ~s in the win se~ e of the system; and
Figure 22 is a flow chart illu~lldth~g the major functional steps of the jackpot30 controller.
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The illl-st~te~l gaming system of the i--~ ,llioll inrludes a jackpot control centre (JCC)
6 which is coupled to a wide area network (WAN) 4. The wide area llclw~.k may co.~
a public ~ele~.l.~...~ system. The JCC 6 may include a central co.llpulGr 8 which inrlll~es a real
time UNIX based opr ~ ; .g system which, gt~n~r~lly spe~ing, m~int~inc overall control of the
S system. The central co. ,.~ -r 8 is coupled by first and second local area l-elwu-h~ (LAN~ 10
and 19 to a ~ d~y central ~o...l.ulc. 12, which comes into operation should there be a fault
in the central cOlllyuler 8. Duplicate LANs are used for greater system ~c.l~ y. Thc
LANs 1-) and 19 are also conn~ctefl to a cn . . ~ l PC 14 which can be used for input and
output of instructions at a high level in the system and monitor progress jackpot applir~tinn~
10 The ICC 6 also includes a number of front end processing (FEP) devices 15 conn~cte~l to the
LANs 10 and 19. The front end processing devices 15 cs~e~ lly comprise high speed
modems for coupling the first and second LANs 10 and 19 to the wide area network 4.
The system may also include a m~n~emerlt information system 21 which ~lovides
5 mzm~ nnrnt ~ and account data plOcf c~ii g which may be carricd out on an off-line
basis. The m~n~g~men~ information system 21 also inr~ es a management i.lrollllalioll
system (MIS) computer 23 which olJeldtcs a jackpot data base (JDB) which for; ~I~ re can
be implemcnted on lNGRES data base. The co..-~uler '3 is coupled to the LANs 10 and 19
by means of a router 2~ Alternatively, the co.n~L~tGr 23 could be coupled directly to dual
20 LANs 10 and 19
The system includes a number of venues 26, one of which is shown in Figure 1. Inpractice there would be a number of venues 26 which are coupled to the JCC 6 by means of
the wide area ll~Lwolh 4 The venue 26 may cOlll~lisc a casino, gambling hall or other site at
25 which gambling is ~GIlllilled by the relevant ~uth~rities~ The venue includes a number of
~ cle~tlullic gaming machines (EGMs) 28 which are coupled to a venue jackpot LAN 30. The
EGMs 28 can be operated indepenriently for gaming such as by playing poker or the like or
may be CO.. f~-l.. 1 to anotherl.. ,lw~lh (notshown) for cf .. ~ tion~ within the venue. The
EGMs can also be conrle~l together within the venue or within a number of dir~elcllt venues
30 for playing jackpot games subject to the control of the JCC 6.
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Each venue 26 inrl~ cs a jackpot controller 32 which is coupled to the venue jackpot
LAN 30 and to a n~ lwolh ~ n device (N~I'LJ) 34 via a bus 33. The l~ wulk It....;..,it;n"
device 34 may c~ .. ;ce a modem and is coupled to the wide area network 4. Each of the
EGMs 28 inrlll~lPs a jackpot inteR~ce board (JIB) 56 which provides cou~ g to the venuc
S jackpot LAN 30 in a manner which permits the EGMs to participate in jackpots which arc
~pplir~ble to a selected number of EGMs at the venue, all EGMs at thc venue, or scl~et.,d
EGMs at dirr~.~,.lt venues, as will be fir 5~ ri below. The venue 26 includes jackpot displays
38 and 40 which are controlled by the jackpot controller 32. The display 38 may c~ ,. ;ce one
or more LED displays which are located in ~ lllhlcllt positions at the venue to display prize
10 money and other i . .r ~ io.- relating to jackpots. The display 40 may comprise video display
monitors which display similar information. The displays 38 and 40 are of course dirrc~
to the video displays (not shown) which form part of the EGMs 28.
Figure shows in more detail an alldl~gclllent for the hardware configuration at a
15 venue. In this ~rr~n~ment, the video displays 40 are driven by a video display interface 46.
.~imil7~rly, the LED displays 38 are driven by LED display interfaces 48. Tntçrf~res 46 and/or
48 may be embodied in a PC. The alld~ ,ent inrl~ es a slip printer 50 and bar code reader
52 which are r~ol~pl~ rl by means of a ~-i~h~,~dl int~ re 54 to the venue jackpot LAN 30. Thc
slip printer 50 and bar code reader 52 can be used as part of a jackpot win procedure which
20 will be described below.
~ n the prcferred implç~nrnt~tion of the invention, the JIBs 56 are jnt~lli~nt devices
which greatly f~ciiit~tc linking together of the EGMs 28 to participate in a jackpot game which
is subject to the control of the jackpot controller 32 as well as the JCC 6.
The main functions of the JCC 6 are:
1. To configurc and reconfigure jackpot controllers 32 and peripherals.
2. To start, stop and restart jackpots.
3. To ..~ .;.. software coullltls for co~ contributions from EGMs.
30 4. To identify when a jackpot has been won and take a~uy~iat~ action.
5. To check the illt~ y of the software and ha~dwalG in the jackpot system at any timc.
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6. To log information packets that are sent by the jackpot controllers 32.
7. To issue jackpot tickets.
8. To validate jackpot tickets.
9. To be able to provide any ;llf~ tion about the status of any part of the jackpot
S system as required.
The EGMs 28 can be of standard types apart from the inclusion of the JIB board 56.
EGMs normally include logic means for playing the normal games on the EGM such as poker,
black jack or the like. The logic g~n~ ~tl-s hard meter input signals for hard meters which arc
10 provided in the EGM. The hard meters inrli~~~te such things as credit played (which is the
amount of cash which has been wagered), cash out (which is the amount of cash which has
been paid out by the EGM), cash in (which is the amount of cash inserted into the m~t~hin~.),
and credit won (which is the amount of money which has been won on that m~chine) In the
system of the invention, the JIBs 56 are responsive to the hard meter input signals and
lS c.~..,...,..,;. 1~ relevant ~ g~s to the jackpot controller 32 at the venue via the venuc jackpot
LAN 30. The jackpot controller 3 ~ co,..",~ tes with the JCC 6 via the network 4 so that
in accoldal.ce with the h~e--lio-l, a jackpot game can be carried out by effectively mo" ;1o- ;"~v
the hard meter input signals at a number of venues. A jackpot can be configured in the JCC
6 to have a random jackpot value and a jackpot pool is established and is incremented in
O accordance with hard meter input signals which have been ~ at~d by the variouspartiriratin~ EGMs. When a hard meter input signal increments the jackpot pool so that it
rcaches or exceeds the random jackpot value, that conslilul~s a jackpot win and the systcm
Opf ~ .1. s to identify the EGM which g~ ... ".~1 the hard meter input signal which ~ ..r~t~ ~1 the
win.
''S
e
An even simpler jackpot game is to make the jackpot a fixed amount and to g.,.~ te
a random time within a specified time frame (1 hr, 24 hrs, etc...). When that time arrives a
venue is r~n~ mly selected and then the jackpot controller 32 at that venue makes the next
31~ EGM to make a contribution the winner. A slightly fairer model is to randomly select the
venue from a list that is weighted according to each venue's average total co-~ ulion rates
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over a sel~rtecl period. Again the jackpot controller 32 is notified and the next EGM to make
a contribution is the winner.
Figure 4 is a block ~ ~m showing the main L~ l blocks of the JIB 56. Briefly,
S the J~B 56 carried out a variety of functions but its main function however is to enable the
EGM 28 to which it is co....c~ l via hard meters to participate in a jackpot game involving
a number of EGMs which are linked together at a venue 26 and at a number of venues 26. The
JIB 56 monitors input signals to hard meters of the EGM via connPct-)r 120 and enables
t~ Ç~l of hard meter input signals to the jackpot controller 3 It also enables the jackpot
10 controller to check the status of logic seal switches, audit keys and door seals and the like
which are normally provided on the EGMs 28. It also ~uyeli~ oses mes~gt s on the EGM
display relevant to the jackpot in which the EGM is particir~tin~
The JIB 56 co~ a llliclo~loccssol 16, a scrial ch.............. ~.;f ~I;r,n~ port 18, a memory
15 20 and a network interface 2''. The IIB inrlu-l~s a system bus 78 coupled between the
microprocessor 16 and the llelw...h interface 22. The nctwork hlt~lrdcc 22 may co.n~ c
known forms of interfaced device such as ethemet cards or the like. The ll~wo~k interface
''2 is coupled to the vcnue jackpot LAN 30. Data flows behveen the EGM and venue jackpot
LAN 30 through the interface device ~2 and is formatted by the microprocessor 16 in
20 accul~k~llce with hlr ~ "".tiO~l stored in the ~llellloly 20. The memory 20 also inr~luc~e$ softwarc
for impl~m~nt~tion of ploce~ss;..g steps by the l..ic.o~locessor relating to jackpot
implemçntAtion, data co.. ~ tion and video displays. The JIB 56 also i~ es a
c~.. l.. ;cations bus 29 which can enable additional serial co.. ...~iC~tinnc.
The int~rf~r~ port also inrl~ s a video mixing device 42 which receives video in data
from the EGM logic and provides video out data for the EGM display. The vidco mixing
dcvice 42 is coupled to the mi~lo~loc~ssor 16 which provides a control l~e~ ig... for
controlling video mixing of the video signals applied to the EGM display. The devicc 42 is
30 ~rr~n~;ecl tO ~uy~ yOSe jackpot i,lrollliation on thc normal EGM display. ~It~ n~l ivc.ly~ it
can be arranged to blank out the normal display when the jackpot i..ro~ tion is displayed.
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Reference is made to a co~ ; . .g Australian patent ~ppliC~tion filed
c~.~ ;.... ol.~ly herewith in respect of an invention entitled "Jackpot Display System for
an Electronic G~min~ Machine", the content of which is h~colyoldtcd herein by lGf.,l~nee.
The co~ g applic~tinn describes an example of cil~uilly for the 3IB 56 in greater detail.
Figure S is a block r~ m of the jackpot controller 3 ~. The jackpot controller can be
implemented on a PC platform. It co~ .ises a processor 60 which preferably c~...~ s a
Motoroia MVME 162-223A which is similar in some ,e;,l.e~ l~ to a PC ~1~OS;~ 1 for spc~..rle
applications. The processor 60 inrlucles a CPU 62, flash memory 64 (e.g. lMB), DRAM
10 ~ .,y 66 (e.g. 1-~MB parity DE~AM and 16-3~MB ECC DRAM~ and SRAM memory 68
(e.g. 128K - MB SRAM with battery backup~. The processor 60 inr~ s a serial portcontroller 70 such as an 85230 serial I/O controller, coupled to a serial port Co,.,lccLor 74. The
processor 60 also includes an ethernet controller 76 (e.g. 182596CA) coupled to a DB--15
ethernet conn~ct(!r 78. The processor 60 also inrlu~ies a coprocessor 80, such as a 53C710
15 SCSI coprocessor, coupled to a SCSI corm~ctor 82. The ylocesaor 60 also inrllldes two IP
ports 84 and 86. The lP ports are for receipt of "industry pack" modules which are particular
circuit modules designed to assist the processor 60 in a~ordd.lce with the ~~ uilGd
application.
In the iiluctr~t.o~i embodiment of the jackpot controller 3 ', an IP module 88 is couplecl
to the IP port 86. The IP module 88 is coupled to the network t~rrnin~tion device 34 via the
bus 33 for C~ --- ;rstion with the JCC 6. The processor 60 cn....l-llllicates with the JIBs 56
through the ethernet co.,..P~-tor 78 which is co.~l~ruled to the venue jackpot LAN 30. The
~.vc.,;,so. 60 also is coupled to a disk drive 90 via the co..l~r.l~r 82. The O~Ud~illg system and
25 the oper~tinn~l software of the jackpot controller 3 ~ are stored on the disk drive in UNIX file
system format.
~ The IP module 88 can be implemented in a number of ways d~,pc.. di,lg on the
UiL~ lllC~l~S for eaLl~ out the jackpot system. In particular, the IP modulc can consist of
30 two physically se~,~.,.te boards with di~r~,~nt funr~inn~ that are covci.~d below. Figure 6 is a
more detailed block diagram of the IP module 88.
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The IP module 88 inrlucles a cnnn~ctor 92 which is co~ clcd to the IP port 86 of the
processor 60. The conn~ctor 92 is coupled to an IP module address bus 94, IP module data
bus 96 and an IP module control bus 98. The buses 94, 96 and 98 are coupled to a DUART
device 10û (e.g. AM85C30) which is ,.. ,.. ~ ~9 to control serial co.. ications with the JCC
6. Serial cr.. ~ o~ can be made at an RS 232 co~ P~Lor 102 via a level cO~ .k,. 104.
Alternatively, serial c-.. l.. ications can be made through an RS 422 co.lne~lol 106 via a
level and protocol converter 108. The IP module 88 includes a memory 110 which is co..l.lecl
to the buses 94, 96 and 98. Software and data is stored in the memory for enabling the jackpot
controller to participate in multivenue ~ackpots as explained below. A memory ~U~ iso,
10 circuit 11'~ is coupled to the memory 110 to provide for battery backup should the power
supply fail. The IP module 88 includes an electronically programable logic device (EPLD)
114 (e.g. EPM7064LC84) which provides various "glue logic" functions for the module 88.
The EPLD 114 is coupled to a battery monitor circuit 116, an over lt"lpe,ature circuit 118 and
an alarm circuit 1''0. The EPLD 114 is also coupled to an LED indicating device l~.
15 Control signals for controlling the LED are ge"~rdt~:d by the EPLD 114 from signals whieh
could include MEMSEL and from the logic seal latch 139 and voltage co.l.paldtors 147 and
148 (Figure 9).
The IP module 88 also includes logic seal detection ~;h~;uiLl~ 1''3 coupled to a logic
'~0 seal switch (not shown) via connector 124. The jackpot controller 3'' is located within a
secure holl~in~ which, when opened, c~ s the state of the logic seal switch coupled to the
co.,.~r~-lo~ 124 and this will be sensed by the logic seal circuit 123 and this causes the jackpot
controller to stop the jackpot game by senllinE a~lupliate m~ss~ges to the particir~ti
EGMs. To restart the jackpots at the venue, a special collllllal.d will be sent from the JCC 6
''5 and received by the jackpot controller 32. The IP module 88 also inrlu~les an ûptional
EPROM 125 (e.g. 27519) which can be used for further enha-lc~---e..ts.
Figures 7, 8 and 9 show more detai!s of the IP module 88. It will be seen that the lûgic
bus 93 extends from the co....f~-~Ol 92 to the DUART 100 and EPROM 1'75. The bus 93 is also
3û conrl~-l to the EPLD 114 which, as ll-~ iolled above, is ~ ngef~ to provide glue logic for the
circuit colll~ll~,llls for the IP mod~ale 88. The EPLD 114 provides six main functional blocks:
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_9 _
ac~owledge signal ~ , VO and lll.,lllGly read si~l ~e~ luyl achlowledgc
signal generation; VO and memory write signal ~ on; memory decode, control signal
generation; and status ;l~ro~ n storagc. The acknowledge signal is ~ene~teci from the
trailing edges of the read and write signals. It is an open coll~ctor output. On reset the
5 achl~ wledge output is tri-stated. An i.-l~ read signal is ~ atcd when eithcr IOSEL
or MEMSEL is active and the R/W signal is in read state. The INTSEL signal is delayed
before generating the read output; this is to allow the hllelluyt source to clear its hllLllu~t
output before reading the h.~ u~l vector. The intermediate read signal is combined with the
reset line to produce the I/O read signal. This is required because the serial co.. ;r~tif nc
10 controller ~~ u..c~. both its read and write lines to be held low to reset it. The VO and l-le~llo~y
write signals are generated when either a MEMSEL or IOSEL is active and the R/W line is
in the writc state. The r/O write line is combined with the reset line beca~lse the serial
c~ u..ications controller requires both its read and write lines to be held low during rcset.
The DUART provides serial c~ uicntions with JCC6. It is selected when an VO
read or write occurs or an i..le~.u~t acknowledge occurs, provided rOSEL is active.
The memory 110 co...~.ises first and second SRAMs 126 and 1''7 and is selccted by
the lines MEMO and MEM1. MEM0 is gentor~te~i from a combination of BS0, D13, D14 and
20 MEMSEL. MEM1 is g-,ne~dlt;d in a similar manner except BS1 is used instead of BS0. The
m~norirS 126 and 1'~7 can store data .cp.es~ g hard meter input signals from the various
EGMs which are coupled to the jackpot controller 32. Normally the hard meter input to the
credit played hard meter will be stored and this inform~ti~n is vital to correct playing of the
jackpot and acco.diulgly the l,.c.l~olies are .lupl jr~tes of one another so as to provide se~;u,ily
25 should one of them fail. Some gaming authorities require that certain ;..fo....i.l;n.. be
m~int~in~-l in two physical locations and three logical locations. The SRAMs 126 and 127
provide the physical locations. One of these SRAMs has two copies of the data, the other
SRAM has a single copy of the data. ~h~. L~.. ~ are used to m~int~in the integrity of the data.
If a single copy of the sensilivc data becomes col~uyk~d~ then it is lcco~eled by using onc of
30 the other good copies. If for some reason there are three good copies, but they are ~l.rrC~
a majority vote is used to decide which copy to replace. The memories 126 and 127 are
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eoupled to memory suyelvi~or eireuits 128 and 129 (e.g. DS1210) whieh opcrate with the
A~:jO~ t~d baekup to bc~ . ;. c to m~int~in high signal levels at the CE inputs of the memnri~S
should power fail so as to prevent data held in the memories being collu~lcd when power is
r.n"". .;I~,d The DUART 100 is u~ d via the logie bus 93 to interfaee eireuits 130 and
5 131 (e.g. SN75173) whieh eonvert RS 4~ signals from the co....rclor 106. The eireuit also
;"~ t~lf s a CO1lVC1~1 132 (e.g. SN75172) whieh eollvcll~ TTL signals to RS 422 signals whieh
are o..~ cl to the co.~lc~u. 106. Inputs and outputs from the coll~/elLtl~ 130, 131 and 133
are eoupled to the comlc~lor 106 via proteetion diodes 134, t~ linn l~ si~lul~ 135 and
current limiting resistors 136.
In some appliratinn~ it may be applopliate to coll.lllullicate with the ICC 6 at RS 232
levels and in this case, the ~P module 88 in~hld.os a converter 137 (e.g. MAX211) whieh is
arranged to convert signals from TTL to RS 232 and vice ~ ersa for coupling to the RS 232
output connector 102.
The logie seal eircuit 123 is iilnstr~t~(l in more detail in Figure 9. The input cn....f ~
124 is rnnnrete~ to a logie seal switch (not shown) which is eouplç~ via line 138 to an cight
bit latch 139. The latch 139 is coupled to the logic bus 93 so that an eight bit number ean be
written into and read from the latch by the CPU 62 of the processor 60. ~f the logic seal switch
20 ~ ..~s state, the lateh 139 will be reset and this will be sensed by the CPU 62 thus in~lir~ting
tha!t the logic seal has been broken. This information will also be collllllullic~te~l to the JCC
which will suspend participation of the EGMs in the jackpot game which are eoupled to the
jaekpot eontroller having its logic seal switch open. The lateh 139 is eoupled to a lllClllOly
supervisor ehip 140 (e.g. DS1210) which OpLlatCS to provide power to the latch 139 and also
25 to eonnect a battery baekup thereto if the normal power supply is low. The eireuit 140 also
O~ldl~S to prevent co,lu~,Lion to the number stored in the latch 139 if power fails. The CPU
62 ean be alldllg~,d to write the eight bit number on lines do-d7 onee but preferably it is
~rl to write dirrtlcl~t numbers periodieally so as to provide for ~d-litinn~l seeurity.
Figure 9 also illustrates in more detail the over lelllpelature eireuit 118. It inrlurles a
e~ lQr 141 whieh is eo.~n~ ed to a lelllpclature sensing deviee (not shown) which is
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located at a str~te~ic location, say on a hcat sink courled to the CPU 64. The co~ . 141
is coupled to one input to a comr~r~t-)r 142 which has a reference level applied to its other
input from a zener diode 143. The con~ aLoL 142 produces an output signal TEMPOV on
line 144 when an over ~ -ature is sensed. The COlll~alalOl could be ~e~ to trip at
5 65~C and reset at about 60~C, for example.
Figure 9 also illl-ctr~tec the battery monitor circuit 116. It co~ es first and second
co~ o~s 145 and 146 which are coupled to receive inputs on lines 147 and 148 from the
backup bd~ i. s for the memories 126 and 1 '7. Other inputs to the comr~r~to~ 145 and 146
10 CQII~ e a reference level derived from a zener diode 149. When the co.~ d~UlS 145 or 146
detect a low battery condition, a LOWBAT signal is produced on output line 150.
Figure 9 also illl~ s the alarm circuit 120. The alarm circuit 1 0 has inputs 151 and
152 from the EPLD 114. The input 151 can be select~cl for muting an audible alarm produccd
15 by alarm lo~ pe~k~-r 153 whereas signals on the line 152 from the EPLD 114 can be used to
change the frequency of the audible alarm in accordance with thc type of alarm which is
fl-otecterl The alarm circuit includes a timer 157 (such as an LM555) which is nonn~lly held
in a reset state by a mute signal on input 151. When an over~ cl~ture fault is ~letçcted or
the logic area seal is broken, the alarm is set off. The alarm can only be reset under the
20 control of sorlwdic~. The two tone feature is implel~le-l~. d by switching in or out dirr~,~ent
value capacitors, into the timer circuit, by means of lldllsi~lol 159.
Figures 10 to 18 ~i~a~ lly illustrate some of the glue logic functions yl~vidcd
by the EPLD 114. It will be a~ . iated that these functions could be implemented by
25 providing discrete logic con.~,ol.c~ in the circuitry but it is preferred that they be
implemerlte-l in an electronically programmable device for simplicity and flexibility should
the circuit parameters need to be modified.
.
The EPLD 114 is programmed so as to provide an address latch circuit 160 which
30 stores the address i.lro.l,lation from the multiplexcr address/data lines. Figure 11 shows the
memory latch 160 in greater detail. It will be seen that the memory latch 160 IIIII~ AIIY
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inrl~lcles two eight bit latehes 164 and 165.
The EPLD 114 inrh-cie5 status logic 167 (shown in greater detail in Figure 12) whieh
has an input 168 for receipt of LAREA signals from the logie seal cil~;uill~ 123. The logie 167
S includes an input 169 for receipt of TEMPOV signals from the cireuit 118. The logie 167
inrllllles an input 170 for reeeipt of LOWBAT signals from the battery monitor eireuit 116.
The logic 167 produces an LED signal output on line 171 for eoupling to the status in~lir~tir~g
LED 127. It has an output on line 177 for produeing MUTE signals on line 151 for muting the
alarm circuit 120. It also produces FREQSEL for selecting the tone produced by the
10 lou-lcpe~ker 153, as shown in Figures 9 and 17.
The EPLD 114 also inrludes a memory select logic 173 which has inputs on lines 174
from the CPU 62 via eontrol bus 98. The input signals on lines 174 del~ lc how data is
stored in the m~mori~S 126 and 177. The memory logie ch~;uill~ 173 iS shown in more dehil
15 in Figure 13.
The EPLD 114 inrlnf1~s DUART selector logic 176 which enables the CPU 62 to
address the DUART 100 whenever it writes to it or reads from it. The selector logie 176 is
shown in more detail in Figure 14. Output on output line 176 has an 8530 output signal whieh
20 is eoupled to the CE input of DUART 180 to enable the ap~ liate selection to be made, as
seen in Figure 7.
The EPLD 114 inrl~l~es write select ~,hc~ ly 178 which has inputs from the logie bus
75 93 to produee outputs on lines 179 and 180 for ~~n~l~ling writing of data to the DUART 100 and
memories 126 and 127 l~,;,pc. ~ ly. This eireuit is shown in more detail in Figure 15.
The EPLD 114 ;"rl,l~ S aeknowledge signal logie 181 whieh has inputs derived from
the logie bus 93 and produees an input acknowle~lgm~nt signal on output line 182 for
30 providing an aeknowl~m~nt signal for the DUART 100 for in-lir~ting to the CPU 62 that the
current read or write function has been completed. The logic 181 is shown in more detail in
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Figure 16.
The EPLD 114 inrlllries read logie ~h~;uill~ 183 which has inputs from the logie bus
93 and yl~luecs outputs on output lines 184 and 185 for enabling reading of signals from the
S logie bus to the DUART 100 and for reading signals from the bus into the IllclllGl;CS 126 and
127 ll s~e~ liv~ily. The read logic 181 is shown in more detail in Figure 17.
The EPLD 114 includes acknowledge signal logic 186 which gcl~erates acknowledge
signals ACK on its output line 187. The logic 186 has inputs derived ~om the logie bus 93
10 and its output line 187 is direetlv coupled to the conneetor 92 (pin 48) to provide
aeknowledgment signais to the CPU 62 to provide an indieation that reading or writing
sequences have been completed. The logic 186 is shown in more detail in Figure 18.
~t will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the various logieal
15 carried out by the EPLD 114 ean be implenle..l~d in a variety of ways.
The JIB software collsi~ls of three basie parts:
1. The Boot Loader Program
2. The Main Mode Program
3. The laekpot Interface Module (JIM)
The first two parts are executed physieally by the microprocessor 16 from its software
stored in memory 20 and lGfcl. ncc is made to the afo,c,..~.~lioned patent application. The JIM
is an interfaee between the IrB and a Jaekpot Application Program and is eYer~e~ on the
25 jackpot controller 3 ' together with the lackpot Application Program.
The Boot Loader Program opel~Ltes to boot load the JIB 56. A flow chart of the
~O~ll is shown in Figure 19. When the JIB starts up it c,~e~ales as a eut down or ~;...~-iil;~d
JIB. It does not support the full range of cr~mm~nrl~ but instead the set of co.. ~ rcquired
30 to ~lrO~ software integrity (including signature) checks and sorlwale download. The boot
is always to be present in the memory 20 of the JIB; and for it to contain the ability
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to download new versions of the main code, which is the fully functional software, whieh is
inruttçd thereto from time to time by the JCC 6.
The Boot Loader Program inchl(lçs a loop which performs the following main
5 filnrtion~ as dia~ .~ tic~lly shown in Figure 19:
1. ~Cen~ling an '~ am awake' mr~s~gte every 10 secon~
2. ~ntinll~lly ~l~r~Li~g forreceived ethemet p~rl~etc;
3. ~hP.'L ;..g that a packet has been iecciv. d recently from the jackpot controller,
and
4. Patting a watchdog (The watchdog circuit reboots the processor should it hang.
Also provided is a power failure detect. This enables important data to be stored in battery
backed memory 20 before the power fails completely).
The JIB issues an 'I am awake' message regularly and, when the jackpot controller 32
15 receives these, it will send down series of inisi~ tion m~SSZ~geS and may also begin software
download to its memory 20. If software download proceeds then this is fully ~luccs~cd within
the boot code. Once the boot code receives the start colllllland it immediately jumps to the
main code, which has the responsibility of acknowledging the start comm~n~ The Boot
Loader Program may also include provision of a procedure for initiating ell~ly~lion of
20 c~ ----------ir~tions between the JIB 56 and jackpot controller 32 in response to an "e,l~ly~t"
m-sc~ and ~ ly~,lion key from the jackpot controller 3 '.
The Main Mode Program inrllldçs code which supports all possible co.~ c from
the jackpot controller 32, in~lllfiing signature, display comm~nllc, event ~rtion~, state setting,
25 version, configuration and software download.
When a start cOl~ ,. . .~ . ..~ is issued to the JIB boot program by the jackpot controller 32,
the main code of the JIB is ç~çcl-tecl and an acknowledge signal is sent back to the jackpot
controller 32 acknowledging the start cr~.. ~A~ The Main Mode Program ~,lrOlllls the
30 following functions:
1. Receiving network packets and procçcsing the co.. ~ lc a~plu~ tely;
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2. ~hrrking if a paeket has been reeeived from the jackpot eontroller within the
ll collllll~ ie~tions idle time;
3. C~h~cl~ing for any displays whieh have had expired ~ tion;
4. t~hPl~king for events whieh have oeeurred and subsequently pclÇo..lls the
5 configllred actions for those events;
5. ~hrrking that the m~imllm cf "..",..,ir~tit nc idle time is not e~reer~e~l sinee
the last time the IIB tr~n~mittecl a n~,lw~ paeket. The JIB will ll,~ a status mçc~c
before the m;~;....l... col.l...~.~irations idle time is ç~ ee.1
6. Operating the on board LEDIs; and
7. Preventing the loops from proc~erling if a power failure h~lt~ t oeeurs.
Figure 3 (1izl~,l ~111 11 11~1~ ic~lly illllstT~t~s major data flows within the JCC 6. In partieular,
the eentral en.~ . r 8 imple..\. ..lc a jaekpot application module 170, a ~ w~h m~nz~m~nt
module 17 and r~icting nelwolh games sueh as a KENO module 174. The eentral C'~ JI' r
15 8 also ex~c~tec a LAN control module 176 which su~,-vises and eontrols access to the LANs
10 and 19. The module 176 eontrols data flows to the front end processors 15 as shown.
Figure 20 is a flow chart showing major software steps performed by the JCC 6.
Preferably the jaekpot controller 3 will have the option to aecept its applieation
20 sonwd.c downlo~ d from ICC 6 for carrying out a jackpot game at the venue. The following
security measu.~,s can be implemented for the download: secure e..~ ed links through the
WAN 4; the ~ G of the ~OÇlwalc is verified by central C~ 8 before allowing normal
operational mode of the jackpot controller 3'~; and the jackpot eontroller keeps a history log
of every download.
The downloading can be used for ..,l.Orlll...g the jackpot eontroller software when it
is required to update the software. The jackpot eontroller controls the slip printer 50 and bar
code reader 52 through the int~rf~-~e 54. The slip printer 50 is used to produce the jackpot win
tickets. The bar code reader 52 is used to validate the jackpot tiekets.
Normally, the p~r~metçrs of the jaekpot are established in the jaekpot data base
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.1 in the MIS c~ 23 and then t.~ d to thc various venues by JCC 6 wherc
they are initially proces~e~l by the jackpot controllers 32. These inputs can be made through
by a JDB tenninAI (not shown) by an ~ , ;.ced officer. The jackpot ~-t....ett.~ may include
the period for the random time g~ ation, the upper limit of the jackpot, lower limit of the
5 jackpot, percentage contribution from each EGM, restart values etc. After cl.~c~ and
verification, the ~ , can be frozen by a special c-.. ~ -~l issued from the JDB
terminal. The locked configuration is then Ll~lllsrt~l~d to the jackpot application software
module 170 of the central c~ 8. The llal~r~,l is initiated by a comm~n-1 issued from the
cl mmAn~l PC 14.
The jackpot configuration is then trAn~rnitted to the jackpot controllers 32 of the
various venues 26. The j~ckpot controllers receive the jackpot configltr~tion, ~clrL~
dependency checks and store it in a battery backed RAM 110. The jackpot controller 32
acknowledges the reception of the confi~lration to the JCC 6 which acknowledges it to the
15 mAnA~m~nt ;~r~ t~ system 21, which in~lnrles thc JDB. From this moment the cntcred
confi~nr~tion becomes "active". Any further chAn~es of the p~ le.s on the JDB will be
stored in the "pending" state and need to be activated using the process described above.
When the jackpot controller 3 ' receives the jackpot configuration it converts it to the
0 form that is acceptable by the JIBs 56 of the particiratin~ EGMs. When a J~B 56 is coming
on-line, the jackpot controller 3 2 transmits the jackpot confi~ dlion thereto via its eth~rn~t
ol 78 and venue jackpot LAN 30. Each JIB 56 receives the configuration, stores it in
its RAM 20 and sends an acknowledgment to the jackpot controller 32 via the venue jackpot
LAN 30. If a JrB 56 is already on-line, a new jackpot configuration can be tr~n~mittl--l to it
~5 by the jackpot controller. Once a J~B 56 receives its jackpot confi~llrAtion, its mi~;,o~loce;.sol
16 causes the video mixing device 42 to overlay the unique number of the EGM on the screen
of the EGM.
Once the confi~lration of a jackpot is su~c~f~ y set up in parfi~ jackpot
30 controllers and EGMs, a start coll,~nal,d mess~e can be issued from thc co..,."i."-1 PC 14 at
the JCC 6. Once the jackpot controller 32 receives the start command from the JCC 6, it
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activates the JIBs 56 of particir~ting EGMs and if ~tt~3ch~1, the interfaces 48 and 54 fôr
jackpot displays 38 and 40. ~fter all the jackpot controllers 32 have acknowledged the
.cc~ of the hidden prize value, the JCC 6 will cause the jackpot controllers 3Z to activate
the JIBs 56 of partirir~ting EGMs and the intrrf~rçc 48 and 54 for jackpot displays 38 and 40
S at the various venues. At each venue, the jackpot controller 32 bro~lr~ctc a jackpot open
comm~nti together with a COll- ~poll.lillg mrC~:aF,e to be displayed. All the m~ eS for thc
JIBs 56 and interfaces 46 and 48 are identified by m~-ss~e i(l~ntifir~tion signals (m~cc~e
IDs) during the configl.ration stage. The jackpot controller 32 therefore need only bloadc~
the message ID to cause the display of the a~ploylial~ m-~.s~ge. The JIBs 56 will overlay the
10 m~c~g~s on thc EGM's screen and messages will be displayed on the monitors 40 and LED
displays 38.
For every $1 played on an EGM, a hard meter input pulse is generated by the EGM
logic to increment its amount played hard meter. The JrB 56 receives this input pulse via
15 c~ IQ~ 120 and increm~nts the software counter that contains the ~cc~nm-1~f~d llUIII'O~ of
pulses (~7ns~lnte value). The jackpot software ~cnt~d by the ,l,i- ,o~,ocessor 16 COIIVG1 l:, the
counter value into cents by adding 100 for every one detected pulse. The JCC 6 configures
the mi..;...ln.. number of contributions before the JIB 56 will report to the jackpot controller
3 '. This is also controlled by a timeout period. For example, if the JIB 56 is configured to
20 report a - ;- -;. - .. -. - co"L~ ulion of, say, $3 with a time out of 5 seconds, once more than $3 has
been incrcm~nt.o~l (i.e. 3 pulses to the hard meters) the JIB 56 sends a co.~,.. i-~ti--n packet
to the jackpot controller 32 which con~inc the current time stamp and the software counter
value. If the venue jackpot LAN 30, is busy, the JrB 56 will retry next time. This means that
the software counter can be incremented more than once between each l~ ...icsion.
7s
If a Cu"l,il,u~ion of less than the cnnfi~-red m i~.; .n 1~ ~ . . limit (e.g. $3) has been received
by the JIB 56 but the time since the first of the u~cL~ol~ed contributions was received is
- greater than the liLlcoul period (e.g. S seconds) then the unsent contrihutionc are fO~vaJ~lled
to the jackpo. controller 32 in any event.
Every defined period of time the jackpot controller 3 also sends all individual EGM
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cullhil~ulions to the JCC 6 for ri"~ l reco~riliation purposes. At the JCC 6 all the received
contributions are stored in a tr~n~ction file 109.
The jaclcpot controller 3'' must continue to co~ llicate with the JCC 6 to colllillUC
5 participation in the jackpot. If the jackpot controller 32 loses the cn...."l...ic~ti->n~ with the
JCC 6, the jackpot will be suspended and a~ro~,-iate message will be displayed by all JIBs
56 and optional displays 38 and 40. Likewise, the JIBs must continue to cr~.. ;c~te with
the jackpot controller 3~. If a JIB loses co.... ~ ation with the jackpot controller 3~, the J~B
stops accepting contributions from the EGM and can, for example, display a mess~;e. to
10 inform the player that their EGM is no longer in the jackpot.
In the case of a jackpot win, the jackpot controller 3r~ ~.elr(jlllls the following actionc
display jackpot win message on a monitor of the jackpot controller for the venue
~tt~nri~nt;
comnn~n-l~ the intlorf~res 46 and 48 to display jackpot win mes-c~;es on the venue
displays, the win mecc~ge including EGM identification number as is displayed by the JIB;
r~"""i."~l the JlBs of all non-winning EGMs to display to the players that the jackpot
was won by another EGM, this being carried out bv bro~ ctin~ a particular message ~D to
the JIBs; and
request the JCC 6 to generate a special jackpot win ticket which is printed on the slip
printer 50, the ticket being delivered by the venue ~ to the player of the winning EGM.
There are two possible ways to clear the jackpot win condition on an EGM: (1) the
venue attendant will clear the error condition that disabled the EGM; or (2) the EGM will
S remain disabled until a special clear c~ has been received from the jackpot controller
32 and ori~in;-ting in the JCC 6.
Information relating to the jackpot win ticket will be stored on the JCC 6 so that the
player can redeem the ticket any time after the win. An ~nth~ntiratinn number on the ticket
30 can bc ~ c~ d in two formats - a numbcr and a bar code. The bar code reader 52 enables
easy ticket validation.
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Figure 22 is a flow chart whieh dia~a.,....~fir~lly sets out the major f~mrti-~n~l steps
of the software carried out in the jackpot controller 22 to give effect to the steps ~esclilxd
above.
S The lackpot Interface Module (IIM) exec~te.l in jackpot controller 3'' provides a
cn~ f~ g interf~r~ between the lackpot Applieation Program exeeuted at the ICC 6 and the
IIBs 56. Briefly, the I~B soft~,vare and the jackpot controller software can be viewed as
C"~ i"e of the following functional blocks:
1. interface functions used by the rllctom~r ~rpli~tion, this is the set of f~lnr~ion~
10 used by the lackpot Application to co..""ll"icate with the JIB network;
within the IIM, a set of functions used to process most of the interfaee
functions;
3. a process which recei-~es network packets on bus 33 and processes them;
4. a process which periodically checks to see if mescages need to be leh ..~ rA
15 and also checks timing of broadcast by the jackpot controller 32 of 'I am alive' mPss~es and
5. a set of support modules which provide fl~t~b~e, ethemet, queue interface
functions.
An ~Itçm:ltive jackpot scheme is a mystery jackpot value and in this arrangement the
~0 mystery jackpot value is generated and m~int~ined by the ICC 6.
Data l~ senli..g contributions ~OWdldS that jackpot are ll .n~".illed to the JCC 6 via
the jackpot controllers 32 at the various venues 26. The JCC 6 operates a software counter
to effectively sum data signals r~ .sGl~ g EGM contributions. Whén the JCC 6 ~1e l~ ~ ", i, .~ c
5 that the jackpot total is reached, it i~lrntifi~s the site where the collllibulion which lead to
reaching the jackpot value. The JCC 6 then lldll~lllils a signal to the jackpot controller 32 at
the site. The jackpot 32 at that site then declares that the next EGM at that venue to make a
col~llil)uLion is the winner of the jackpot.
Figure 21 illustrates a preferred system of the invention which includes display of a
Provisional Win me~S~ge at the venue whilst various checks are carried out. In this system
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whcn a random timc occurs, the JCC 6 randomly selects a venue (using venue weighting list)
and sends a Select EGM message to the jackpot controller 32 at the s~1Cct~l venue. The
jackpot controller then waits for the next hard meter input signals from any EGM connPcted
thereto (and ~l;r;~ i. .g in the jackpot) and checks if the col.c~ 1;, ,g JIB sorlwa~-c passes
5 software intcgrity tests. If yes, a Provisional Win m~ss~t is displayed at the venue and
details of the identity of the EGM are sent to the JCC 6. The plo~ iu~lal winning EGM details
are sent to the ICC 6 by the jackpot controller 3'~ and the JCC 6 dis~alclles a Win Tickct
message to all of the jackpot controllers. Thc jackpot controller receives the Win Tickct
mPss~ge and causes an a~lul.liate message to be displayed on the winning EGM screen.
10 Also a message such as lackpot Won is displayed on all other EGM screens at the venue. The
jackpot controller also sends an acknowledge (ACK) message to the JCC 6. The jackpot
controller causes the w.,.,~g ticket to be printed and displayed on a screen coupled to a venue
PC (if provided). The jackpot controller then causes the winning EGM to be disabled so that
it cannot proceed with normal play. After th~ jackpot is won, the JCC is ~t-m:ltir~ily
15 rcstarted by a start c~ lllland. The winning EGM will be cleared by a comm~ntl which
ori~in~tes in the JCC 6.
Many mo lili~ will be apparent to those skilled in the art without dcp~ulillg from
the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the claims appended hereto.
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