Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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System and Method for Remotely Controlling an Electronic Gaming Device from a
Mobile Device
Copyright:
[0001] Portions of this disclosure contain material in which copyright is
claimed by the
applicant. The applicant has no objection to the copying of this material in
the course
of making copies of the application file or any patents that may issue on the
application, but all other rights whatsoever in the copyrighted material are
reserved.
Background:
[0002] Electronic gaming machines ("EGMs") offer a variety of games such as
mechanical spinning reel games, video spinning reel games, video poker games,
roulette games, keno games and other types of wagering games that are commonly
deployed at a casino for use by players. Playing a particular EGM requires the
player
to physically sit at the machine and place a wager on the outcome of the game.
The
player then interacts with the game during the game cycle to make selections
as
directed for different options until the game cycle ends with the game outcome
being
selected and displayed to the player. If the outcome is a winner, the player
receives an
award corresponding to the outcome.
[0003] To date, to actively play a game on an EGM, a player must be physically
present at the EGM. Prior art exists for the use of mobile devices for certain
interactions with an EGM. For example, United States Patent Publication No.
2012/0315984A1, which is incorporated by reference herein, describes the use
of a
mobile device for developing and maintaining customer loyalty in the casino,
although
the player is unable to control game play operation of an EGM directly from a
mobile
device. This publication describes a technique for playing wager-based video
card or
slot games where game content, including game outcomes are generated on a
remote
device such as a server, and sent to a mobile device for display. The
publication
provides a description of an EGM configured to receive at least game outcomes
from
a remote device (server) where the EGM itself does not use a random number
generator ("RNG") to generate game outcomes locally. The game outcomes are
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instead generated remotely (from the server) in response to inputs made on the
mobile device such as an input indicating a wager amount and/or an input to
initiate
the game. The wager amount or initiation information can be sent from the
mobile
device to a remote device such as from a mobile gaming device to a server.
After
receiving the game outcomes from the remote device (server), a game
presentation
for the game outcomes generated remotely can be generated and displayed on the
mobile device. In some instances, the game presentation can also be generated
remotely (from the server) and then streamed for display to the mobile device.
(See
Paragraph [0092] of 2012/0315984A1).
Summary:
[0004] The present invention overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art by
providing a
system and method of using a mobile device to remotely control an EGM where
control may be switched between: (a) local control of the EGM by a player
physically
present at the EGM interacting with the EGM through the inputs on the EGM; and
(b)
remote control of the EGM by a player using a mobile device such as a
smartphone or
tablet computing device.
Brief Description of the Drawings:
[0005] For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show more
clearly
how it functions, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the
accompanying
drawings. The drawings show embodiments of the present invention in which:
[0006] FIGURE 1 shows an electronic gaming machine for playing a game of
chance;
[0007] FIGURE 2 shows a block diagram of an electronic gaming machine for
playing
a game and connected to a network controlled by a central server based system
with
an external system also connected to the network;
[0008] FIGURE 3 shows a block diagram of a group of electronic gaming machines
on
a network connected to a server based system and an external system;
[0009] FIGURES 4A-4B show examples of mobile devices;
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[0010] FIGURE 5 is a block diagram showing communication between a mobile
device
and an EGM;
[0011] FIGURE 6A is a block diagram of an EGM showing local and remote access
options;
[0012] FIGURE 6B is a block diagram of mobile device and an EGM connected
using
a remote gaming gateway;
[0013] FIGURE 6C is a block diagram of an EGM that may be switched between
remote access using a mobile device and local access by physically playing at
the
EGM;
[0014] FIGURE 7 is a flowchart of a hierarchy of actions available on the EGM;
[0015] FIGURE 8 is a flowchart of the states that an EGM may be in during
operation;
[0016] FIGURE 9 is a block diagram showing a mobile device in parallel play on
multiple EGMs;
[0017] FIGURE 10 is a block diagram showing the capture and transmission of
screenshots from an EGM to a mobile device during remote play;
[0018] FIGURE 11 is a block diagram of a group of electronic gaming machines
on a
network connected to a group of remote access devices through a group of
gateways;
and
[0019] FIGURE 12 is a block diagram of a group of electronic gaming machines
on a
network connected to a group of remote access devices together with a detailed
view
of the components of one gateway.
Detailed Description of the Invention:
[0020] The present invention will now be described in more detail with
reference to the
accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the invention may be
embodied
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in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the
embodiments set
forth herein. Throughout Figures 1-12, like elements of the invention are
referred to by
the same reference numerals for consistency purposes.
[0021] FIG. 1 shows an electronic gaming machine ("EGM") 100 with a number of
components. A primary display 105 is used to show game play and resulting
outcomes, and may be in the form of a video display (shown), or alternatively,
physical
reels. Touch screen displays are included on most EGMs and provide a flexible
interface for operation of EGM 100, including displaying symbols during game
play.
Other components include a bill validator (see Fig. 2) housed inside EGM 100
into
which bills may be inserted through bill slot 110. Buttons 115 on the exterior
of EGM
100 are used to initiate and control EGM operations in conjunction with touch
screen
display 105 by the player. EGMs may further include a secondary display 120
for
displaying other game functions including bonus screens. Either of primary
display 105
or secondary display 120 may be used to show information to the player such as
pay
tables, messages, advertising, entertainment screens or other types of
information.
Multiple meters 125 on display 105 are used for tracking credits available for
play,
amount won on a particular play, number of coins bet and other amounts are
typically
positioned near the bottom of screen 105. EGM 100 may also accept coins. In
those
cases, a coin tray 130 at the bottom of EGM 100 is used to catch coins as they
are
dispensed to a player.
[0022] It is common for EGM 100 to include a ticket-in, ticket-out ("TITO")
component
that includes a ticket reader and ticket printer housed inside of EGM 100 that
may
accept bar coded credits printed on a ticket through slot 110 and for which
the value of
the credits is displayed on meters 125 upon a ticket being inserted.
[0023] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of EGM 100 connected to a central server
based
system 200 and showing certain internal components of EGM 100. All operational
functions of EGM 100 are controlled by a controller 135 such as a
microprocessor
housed inside EGM 100 that is resident on a game board 140. The controller
executes
instructions that include operation of an EGM based random number generator
145
("RNG") that is typically implemented in software and stored in a memory 150.
Alternatively, a true hardware random number generator may be used. The
internal
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components of EGM 100 are well known to those of ordinary skill in the art.
Game
outcomes are determined based on the random numbers selected by RNG 145. A
bill
validator 155 for accepting paper currency is shown integrated with a ticket
reader and
ticket printer. Bill validator 155 accepts currency in the form of bills or
tickets from a
player and adds credit to meters 125 on EGM 100. A camera 160 may also be
included in EGM 100 for the purpose of recording images of game play and game
operations on either or both of screens 105 and 120. Camera 160 is preferably
capable of capturing both video and still images.
[0024] An external system 205 such as a player tracking system, a slot
accounting
system or a bonusing system may also be connected to EGM 100. These types of
systems are typically connected to EGM 100 either through a separate interface
board
(not shown) or directly to different components of EGM 100 including but not
limited to
game board 140. A player tracking system may also include other components
installed in EGM 100 such as a player tracking display 210, a keypad 215 and a
card
reader 220. These components allow for direct interaction between external
system
205 and the player to receive information from the player on keypad 215 or
through
information on a card inserted into card reader 220, and to display
information to the
player on display 210. A network is established between external system 205
and
EGM 100 by network connection 225. The network may be connected to all EGMs
100
in a casino or any smaller subset of EGMs 100.
[0025] Server based system 200 is also connected to EGMs 100 by a network
connection 230 which may be on a separate network or the same network as the
one
connecting EGM 100 to external system 205. Server based system 200 may be a
single server or it may represent a group of interconnected servers that are
configured
to be a single system interfacing with a group of EGMs.
[0026] It will be understood that the type of networks 225, 230 over which
data is
communicated can be one of several different types of networks. These include
a
Local Area Network (LAN), Wide Area Network (WAN), an intranet, the internet
or
other classes of networks. Any type of network technology could be used
without
departing from the principles of the invention. This would include
communication via
any protocol on any of the layers of the OSI model (ISO/IEC 7498-1) with or
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encryption (e.g. SSL encryption, VPN, etc). The time is synchronized on all
components of the system via a network protocol such as, for example, network
time
protocol ("NTP") to ensure that time stamps may be reliably compared.
[0027] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a group of EGMs 100 a-x on a network
connection 230 between central server based system 200 and each of EGMs 100 a-
x.
It should be understood that the network may be set up with any number of EGMs
that
may be in the thousands of machines. Each of EGMs 100 a-x is also connected to
external system 205 that may be a player tracking, slot accounting, bonusing
or other
type of system.
[0028] FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B show mobile devices that may be used to remotely
control
EGM 100. Fig. 4A is a smartphone 405 such as an iPhone sold by Apple while
Fig.
4B is a tablet computing device 410 such as an iPad sold by Apple . Either of
these
devices as well as other mobile handheld devices may be used to remotely
access
and control EGM 100 once EGM 100 is placed in a remote access mode. For ease
of
reference in this description, a mobile device will be generally referred to
as mobile
device 405. However, it should be understood, that mobile device 405 may be
substituted with mobile device 410, or any other electronic device with
communicative
connection capabilities that is remotely located from EGM 100 and from which
EGM
100 may be controlled. Such devices may include a dedicated remote electronic
gaming device specially designed and produced for remote gaming purposes, a
laptop
computer, a portable video gaming device such as an PlayStation Portable, or
PSP ,
sold by Sony , or any other general computing device that may be programmed or
loaded with application software to provide the necessary capabilities for
remotely
controlling EGM 100.
[0029] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing communication between a mobile device
405
and an EGM 100. To enable remote control, a player interacts with EGM 100 on
mobile device 405 using multi-channel communication. Actions are performed
using
physical buttons such as touchscreen 105 or buttons 115 on EGM 100 and the
touchscreen or buttons on mobile device 405. Actions include, but are not
limited to
the transfer of funds, game selection, switch to activate remote control by
the mobile
device and return local control to the EGM, along with all other functions
required to
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play a game and receive credit for player loyalty rewards. The multi-channel
communication allows for transmission of game content including streaming
video
screen states, individual JPEG screen states, and/or text messaging, as well
as audio
to be transmitted between EGM 100 and mobile device 405. Throughout the
process,
all gaming functions are performed by EGM 100 with status of those actions
transmitted to mobile device 405 for display to the player. The player
interacts with
EGM 100 by responding when necessary using inputs on mobile device 405. Since
the gaming functions are performed on EGM 100, there is not an opportunity for
a
compromise of data or security on mobile device 405, which merely acts to
display
information to the player and provide responses from the player when necessary
and
is in physical lock-out mode while EGM 100 is under remote control by mobile
device
405. Critical gaming functions such as running the RNG and determining game
outcomes are handled exclusively by the internal components of EGM 100
irrespective
of whether EGM is in local mode or remote access mode.
[0030] To ensure a secure connection between EGM 100 and mobile device 405
during a remotely controlled play session, a communication channel must be
established between EGM 100 and 405. A mobile device 405 is able to identify a
particular EGM by, for example, scanning a quick response code ("QR"), bar
code,
radio frequency ("RF") identification tag, or another code type that is
detectable by a
mobile device and displayed or detectable on or near the exterior surface of
EGM or
on one of the screens 105, 120 of EGM 100. Once mobile device 405 has the QR
code, it can specify the particular EGM with which to establish communication.
In an
alternative embodiment, the identification code representing respective EGMs
may be
provided by means of an RFID tag attached to the EGM from which the mobile
device
may be adapted to read or detect identification information using an RFID
communication protocol.
[0031] It should be understood that a specific identification code (which is
encoded into
QR or another code type) is associated with a particular EGM. It is a form of
a
certificate that is unique to the particular EGM and is paired with the EGM IP
address
in the remote play management system (see Fig. 12). The identification code is
attached to the EGM housing and linked with the EGM, including a visible
indicator on
the outside of the EGM housing so that a player can see the code. The
displayed code
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should also include a corresponding human readable form that can also be
displayed
on the screen of the mobile device for the player to confirm that the
established
connection is with the desired EGM.
[0032] Only authorized or registered mobile devices are enabled to access the
EGM
for private remote play using the network, which may be for example, be a WiFi
network. The RF link between the EGM and the WiFi network may be permanently
enabled or "on" so that when a mobile device accesses the WiFi network , the
scanned QR code of the EGM that the player wants to remotely access may be
used
to link the mobile device and the EGM. Once the identification code is
scanned, the
link may be established without login since the mobile device has been
authorized for
use on the network by the gaming operator in advance of establishing the link
between the EGM and the mobile device. Or, a login procedure may be required
for
additional security.
[0033] To start remote play on a mobile device, the player initiates a
connection
request from the mobile device. The mobile device is used to scan a particular
EGM
for the unique identification code that is transmitted to the remote play
management
system. The remote play management system checks the EGM registry to look up
the
identification code. If the EGM is found and remote access is not blocked for
any
reason, the remote play management system enables the remote play session for
the
mobile device. All mobile device requests are routed to the EGM and responses
from
the EGM are routed back to the mobile device.
[0034] Once a player has decided to end a play session, the player presses an
end
play button on the mobile device. The mobile device scans the identification
code
again and a disconnect signal is sent to the remote play management system.
The
remote play session is then closed by the remote play management system.
[0035] Once a communication channel is established between EGM 100 and mobile
device 405, which may use Bluetooth, WiFi, near field communication ("NFC") or
any
other communication linking format, transmission of data between EGM 100 and
mobile device 405 may be carried out to send an audio/video stream 505 from
EGM
100 to mobile device 405 as shown in Fig. 5. The protocol is used to format
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transmissions which include video, images and audio. The protocol may be any
standard protocol such as real-time transport protocol ("RTP") over user data
protocol
("UDP") or an MPEG protocol such as MPEG2 video encoder. Any other codecs or
protocol may be used including a proprietary protocol specifically designed
for EGM-
mobile device communication. In one embodiment, an encoder known as VideoLAN
x264 encoder may be used in view of this protocol having very low latency for
video
streaming. Transmission of the state of EGM 510 is also transmitted from EGM
100 to
mobile device 405. This may include messaging related to the availability of
EGM 100
for play, the timing of game play, a waiting state indicating that EGM 100 is
awaiting
an input from the user or other messages related to EGM components such as
acceptor/printer 155, buttons 115, screens 105, 120, doors 520, keys 525, or
hopper/dispenser 530 on EGM 100. Operational instructions 515 are sent from
mobile
device 405 to EGM 100 to provide user input, a request to use EGM in remote
mode,
request to terminate remote mode or other user instructions.
[0036] It should be understood that EGM 100 may switch between local access by
a
player physically playing EGM 100 directly at EGM 100 and remote access by a
player
playing through mobile device 405. This concept is shown in FIG. 6A showing
the
options of local access 600 and remote access 601.
[0037] Once a communication connection is established between EGM 100 and
mobile device 405, a gateway 605 (or a proprietary connection service referred
to as
LightBridgetm or LightBridgetm service developed by the assignee of this
application)
as shown in FIG. 6B is deployed to switch modes between local access on EGM
100
and remote access on mobile device 405. Gateway 605 is controlled by EGM
controller 135, or a separate controller 135 as shown in FIG. 6C that is used
for the
purpose of running gateway 605 and controlling the connection between EGM 100
and mobile device 405. Upon establishing the connection, all signals from the
buttons
155 and other inputs on EGM 100 are blocked and only gateway signal
transmissions
are propagated. As can be seen in FIG. 6B, initially, the QR code is scanned
by
mobile device 405 and a signal is sent to EGM 100 to switch from local
operation
mode to remote access mode at step 1. Gateway 605 is then notified of the
switch
after receiving a signal from mobile device 405 at step 2, and mobile device
405 then
initiates a play session at step 3 that establishes two-communications between
EGM
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100 and gateway 605 at step 4, and between mobile device 405 and gateway 605
at
step 5.
[0038] Once in remote access mode, a hierarchy of actions 705 becomes
available, an
example of which is shown in FIG. 7, where actions can be executed by the
player on
mobile device 405 which are propagated to EGM 100. Screen actions 710 on
mobile
device 405 are activated by touchscreen clicks 715 and use of the mechanical
button
actions 720 performed by pressing button 725 on mobile device 405 are
implemented
during game play by EGM 100. Using software applications developed for a
smartphone, tablet or other mobile device for use with the gateway, it is
possible to
specify any button functionality on a touchscreen or physical buttons on
mobile device
405. Key actions 730 performed on a keyboard (not shown) on mobile device 405
can
turn on 735 or turn off 740 a particular functionality. Similarly, access
control 745 can
be turned on 750 or turned off 755 using any of the user interface options
previously
described (e.g. touchscreen clicks, button depressions, keyboard actions).
[0039] An example of the possible states 800 of EGM 100 are shown in FIG. 8.
The
states 800, or a subset thereof, may be propagated from EGM 100 to mobile
device
405, which is adjusted according to the states. This may happen at any time
appropriate within the session. A set of touchscreen buttons displayed on the
touchscreen of mobile device 405 reflect the particular screen state 805 as
being
screen 1 (810) to screen n (815). The screen states cover any given time and
provide
the player with the opportunity to make selections with respect to input and
interaction
with EGM 100. The states of these buttons are configured to simulate the
states of
EGM buttons 115 during play. It should be understood, that for smaller
screens, it may
be required or desirable to show only certain subgroups of buttons on the
touchscreen
of a mobile device at any given time, particularly if the mobile device is a
smartphone.
For a larger device like a tablet or laptop with a larger screen, it may be
possible to
show the screen of EGM 100 as it would appear on touchscreen 105 at any
particular
time. In that case, all buttons may be shown, while some may be operational or
not
depending on the input required at that point in the game play cycle.
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[0040] Similar to screens state 805, the state of the speakers 820 on EGM 100
is also
propagated to mobile device 405. However, for speakers, state 820 in the
present
case is simply whether there is audio being played or not without any
additional states.
[0041] As described earlier, messages related to other functionality on EGM
100 may
also be communicated to mobile device 405. For example, the state of the
cabinet 825
may provide indications related to the state of buttons 830, doors 835, keys
840 and
any other components 845 on EGM 100.
[0042] FIG. 9 shows an embodiment in which multiple EGMs 100a-x may be
controlled
simultaneously, or in parallel. In this case, the display of screens from each
controlled
EGM would be alternated on mobile device 405 as player input and the display
of
game outcomes is required. For the control of multiple EGMs simultaneously, it
will be
necessary to clearly indicate to the player the particular current screen and
the game
in play on each particular remotely accessed EGM that is being viewed at any
given
time. A selection screen may be provided on the mobile device 405 on which are
arranged a number of icons, each icon representing a respective EGM being
controlled. A thumbnail picture may be shown at each icon to represent a
screen state
of the respective EGM. Alternatively a miniaturized video stream may be shown.
[0043] FIG. 10 is an embodiment where captured still image screenshots or
streaming
video of game play content may be in use. In the case of screenshots, EGM 100
sends screenshots of the particular game play screen to mobile device 405. In
doing
so, the image of a screenshot that in local operation mode on EGM 100 would be
shown on screen 105 is captured by a remote session capture component in the
form
of screengrabber program or hardware 1005. The captured screenshot image is
encoded by encoder 1010 and input to a multiplexer 1015 before it is
transmitted to
mobile device 405. Upon being received by mobile device 405, the image is
input to a
demultiplexer 1020 and decoded by a decoder 1025 before it is displayed to the
player
on screen 1030 of mobile device 405. Within EGM 100, the screenshot image for
a
video screen may be captured using a program to freeze the needed screenshot.
A
host of freely available screenshot programs are available for this purpose,
or a
proprietary program may be used. Also, a program for handling multimedia such
as
FFmpeg may be used to handle the image during processing while a media player
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such as FFmpeg+ may be used to display the image on screen 1030 of mobile
device
405. In the event that it is necessary to capture a set of spinning reels at
one or more
particular points during the game play cycle as opposed to an image on a video
screen, a remote session capture component in the form of camera 160
positioned
inside of the EGM cabinet may be used for this purpose.
[0044] In the case where streaming video of game play content is in use, it
should be
understood that the system works as described above for still image
screenshots
except that screenshots are taken continuously to generate a video. For
example,
screenshots may be captured sixty times per second. The individual frames are
encoded into video using a video format such as mpeg2 video stream, h264 or
any
other video encoding format. The video is input to multiplexer 1015 which may
combine video, audio and metadata into one stream that is then extracted by
demultiplexer 1020 when the stream is received at mobile device 405.
[0045] FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a group of EGMs 100a-f on a network
connected
to a group of remote access devices 405 a-f through a group of gateways a-n.
This
diagram shows the scalability and flexibility of a system of EGMs connecting
to remote
access devices while routing communications through a set of gateways 605a-n.
As
can be seen in Fig. 11, it is not necessary for an individual gateway 605 to
be
employed for each EGM-mobile device pairing. Instead a single gateway 605 may
handle communications for large numbers of EGM-mobile device pairings provided
each session established between an EGM and a mobile device is handled
according
to the procedures described herein. When a particular gateway reaches
capacity, a
pairing is established at another gateway. It should be understood that for
the greatest
level of flexibility, any EGM 100 in the system may be paired with any mobile
device
405 across any gateway 605 with all gateways being configured in the network
to be
connectable to any EGM 100 and any mobile device 405.
[0046] FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a group of EGMs 100a-d on a network
connected
to a group of remote access devices 405a-c together with a detailed view of
the
components of a gateway 605. Gateway 605 is responsible for remote play
management by providing access control, session management and monitoring of
the
remote play activities. Gateway 605 includes a number of software components
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including access point 1205, router 1210, EGM proxy 1215, session manager
1220,
monitor 1225, access control 1230, remote devices registry 1235, EGMs registry
1240
and management console 1250. The software components of gateway 605 forward,
monitor and transform requests communicated between remote access devices 405a-
c and EGMs 100a-d.
[0047] In operation, access point 1205 is the entry point for all
communications flowing
between a particular remote access device and a particular EGM. Router 1210 is
used
to determine which EGM has been selected to be connected to a particular
remote
access device and to route communications accordingly between those two
devices.
EGM proxy 1215 transforms the messages back and forth between the proprietary
protocols used by EGMs 100 and remote access devices 405. Session manager 1220
manages the remote play session from beginning to end while monitor 1225 is
responsible for monitoring the state of the system and access control 1230
controls
access to the system from the particular remote access device in use. Remote
devices
registry 1235 holds a list of registered remote access devices 405 available
on the
system so that a connection may be established between a particular remote
access
device in use by a player and a selected EGM from all EGMs available on the
system,
a list of which is held in EGMs registry 1240. And, management console 1245 is
a
web-based application or other software interface that allows a system
operator to
access all aspects of the system software to manage operations and settings of
the
system, including for example, setting up remote access device registry 1235
and
EGM registry 1240. Management console 1245 may also be used by an operator to
track and review game play by players using remote access devices 405.
[0048] In a preferred embodiment a method is provided of using an electronic
gaming
machine ("EGM") among a plurality of electronic gaming machines ("EGMs") by
enabling the playing of an electronic game remotely using a mobile device,
comprising:
operating at least one mobile device to control an EGM in a remote access
mode;
providing a plurality of EGMs on a network, each EGM comprising:
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a random number generator for generating or receiving random numbers
that determine the outcome of the game and that correspond to a predefined
set of game outcomes including winning and losing outcomes;
a display for displaying game play including game outcomes to a player;
a set of inputs on the EGM for interfacing with the EGM;
an EGM controller for controlling game play on the EGM;
a mode controller for switching exclusively between:
a local access mode in which a player interacts with the EGM
using the set of inputs;
a remote access mode in which a player interacts with the EGM
using a mobile device; and
an identification code associated with the EGM; and
initiating operation of a selected EGM among the plurality of
EGMs on a particular mobile device through at least one gateway
connected between the EGM and the mobile device wherein the
gateway is configured to propagate communication between the EGM
and the mobile device.
[0049] The method may further comprise activating at least two remote access
play
sessions on a mobile device on at least two corresponding EGMs in parallel.
[0050] The method may further comprise that the game play content is provided
in a
form that comprises one or more among the group comprising: (a) screenshot
images;
(b) video content; or (c) audio content.
[0051] The method may further comprise that any of the at least one mobile
devices is
pairable with any one of the plurality of EGMs in the system.
[0052] The method may further comprise that a particular mobile device
displays game
states on a screen of the mobile device and buttons operable by a player
corresponding to a particular state of the game.
[0053] The method may further comprise that a user interface on the mobile
device
detects screen size of the mobile device and adjusts game functions displayed
to the
player during remote play on the mobile device.
14
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[0054] The method may further comprise capturing images of game play at an EGM
and transmitting captured images to a mobile device for display on a screen of
the
mobile device.
[0055] The method may further comprise initiating pairing between a mobile
device
and an EGM at a second gateway if a first gateway reaches operational capacity
for
communications between paired mobile devices and EGMs.
[0056] The method may further comprise thatthe mobile device is from among the
group comprising: (a) a smartphone; (b) a tablet computer; (c) a laptop
computer; (d) a
portable video gaming device; and (e) a dedicated device on which a player may
access an EGM in a remote access mode.
[0057] The method may further comprise that the identification code is of a
type from
the group comprising: (a) a quick response code ("QR"); (b) a bar code; (c) a
RF
identification tag; or (d) another code that is detectable by a mobile device.
[0058] While the invention has been described with respect to the figures, it
will be
appreciated that many modifications and changes may be made by those skilled
in the
art without departing from the spirit of the invention. Any such variation and
derivation
from the above description and drawings are included in the scope of the
present
invention as defined by the claims.
