Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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OBJECT DETECTION AND INTERACTION FOR GAMING SYSTEMS
BACKGROUND
[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of electronic gaming
systems,
such as on-line gaming and gaming systems in casinos.
[0002] Examples of gaming systems or machines include slot machines,
online
gaming systems (e.g., systems that enable users to play games using computer
devices
such as desktop computers, laptops, tablet computers, smart phones, etc.),
computer
1() programs for use on a computer device, gaming consoles that are
connectable to a
display such as a television, a computer screen, etc.
[0003] Gaming machines may be configured to enable users to play
different
types of games. For example, some games display a plurality of game components
that
are moving (e.g., symbols on spinning reels). The game components may be
arranged in
an array of cells, where each cell may include a game component. One or more
particular combinations or patterns of game components in such an arrangement
may be
designated as "winning combinations" or "winning patterns." Games that are
based on
winning patterns may be referred to as "pattern games" in this disclosure.
[0004] One example of a pattern game is a game that includes spinning
reels
arranged in an array, where each reel may have a plurality of game components
that
come into view successively as the reel spins. A user may wager on one or more
lines in
the array and activate the game (e.g., by pushing a button). After the user
activates the
game, the spinning reels may be stopped to reveal a pattern of game
components. The
game rules may define one or more winning patterns, which may be associated
with
different numbers or combinations of credits, points, etc.
[0005] Other examples of games include card games such as poker,
blackjack,
gin rummy, etc., where game components (e.g., cards) may be arranged in groups
to
form the layout of a game (e.g., the cards that form a player's hand, the
cards that form a
dealer's hand, cards that are drawn to further advance the game, etc.). As
another
example, in a traditional Bingo game, the game components may include the
numbers
printed on a 5x5 matrix which the players must match against drawn numbers.
The
drawn numbers may also be game components.
2
SUMMARY
[0006] Systems, methods and apparatus are provided for object
detection and
interaction for gaming systems.
[0007] In some embodiments, there is described a wagering gaming
apparatus
comprising: a 3-dimensional (3D) display device; at least one processor; and
at least one
computer-readable medium storing instructions which program the at least one
processor to
cause the 3D display device to display a 3D scene for a game, the 3D scene
comprising a
virtual 3D space in which a plurality of virtual game components are
displayed; and at least
one contactless sensor device configured to sense a location and a shape of a
physical object
in a physical 3D space and to generate 3D information indicative of the
location and the shape
of the physical object in the physical 3D space, wherein the at least one
processor is
programmed to: update, based at least in part on the 3D information indicative
of the location
and the shape of the physical object in the physical 3D space, a 3D model for
a virtual object
in the 3D scene, the virtual object corresponding to the physical object;
detect an interaction
between the virtual object and at least one virtual game component in the 3D
scene; and in
response to detecting an interaction between the virtual object and at least
one virtual game
component in the 3D scene, cause an action to be taken in the game, the action
being based at
least in part on the at least one virtual game component with which the
virtual object
interacted; wherein the location of the physical object comprises a sequence
of locations of
the physical object in the physical 3D space; wherein the at least one
contactless sensor
generates the 3D information indicative of the location of the physical
objection in the
physical 3D space by analyzing at least one aspect of a motion of the physical
object, the
motion corresponding to the sequence of locations, the at least one aspect
being one of a
distance, a direction, a speed and an acceleration; wherein analyzing at least
one aspect of a
motion of the physical object comprises: obtaining at least one measurement
for at least one
aspect of the motion of the physical object; determining whether the at least
one measurement
exceeds at least one selected threshold; and identifying the at least one
virtual game
component with which the virtual object interacted based on a determination
that the at least
one measurement for at least one aspect of the motion of the physical object
exceeds the at
least one threshold.
Date recue / Date received 2021-12-01
3
[0008] In some embodiments, there is described a method for
controlling a wagering
gaming apparatus, the wagering gaming apparatus comprising a 3-dimensional
(3D) display
device and at least one contactless sensor device, the method comprising:
causing, by at least
one processor, the 3D display device to display a 3D scene for a game, the 3D
scene
comprising a virtual 3D space in which a plurality of virtual game components
are displayed;
sensing, by the at least one contactless sensor device, a location and a shape
of a physical
object in a physical 3D space, and generating 3D information indicative of the
location and
the shape of the physical object in the physical 3D space; updating, based at
least in part on
the 3D information indicative of the location and the shape of the physical
object in the
physical 3D space, a 3D model for a virtual object in the 3D scene, the
virtual object
corresponding to the physical object; detecting an interaction between the
virtual object and at
least one virtual game component in the 3D scene; and in response to detecting
an interaction
between the virtual object and at least one virtual game component in the 3D
scene, causing
an action to be taken in the game, the action being based at least in part on
the at least one
virtual game component with which the virtual object interacted; wherein the
location
comprises a sequence of locations of the physical object in the physical 3D
space; wherein
generating the 3D information indicative of the location of the physical
objection in the
physical 3D space comprises analyzing at least one aspect of a motion of the
physical object,
the motion corresponding to the sequence of locations, the at least one aspect
being one of a
distance, a direction, a speed and an acceleration; wherein analyzing at least
one aspect of a
motion of the physical object comprises: obtaining at least one measurement
for at least one
aspect of the motion of the physical object; determining whether the at least
one measurement
exceeds at least one selected threshold; and identifying the at least one
virtual game
component with which the virtual object interacted based on a determination
that the at least
one measurement exceeds the at least one threshold.
[0009] In some embodiments, there is also described at least one
computer-readable
medium storing instructions which program at least one processor to perform a
method for
controlling a wagering gaming apparatus, the wagering gaming apparatus
comprising a 3-
dimensional (3D) display device and at least one contactless sensor device,
the method
comprising: causing, by the at least one processor, the 3D display device to
display a 3D
Date recue / Date received 2021-12-01
3a
scene for a game, the 3D scene comprising a virtual 3D space in which a
plurality of virtual
game components are displayed; sensing, by the at least one contactless sensor
device, a
location and a shape of a physical object in a physical 3D space; generating,
by the at least
one contactless sensor device, 3D information indicative of the location and
the shape of the
physical object in the physical 3D space; updating, by the at least one
processor, based at least
in part on the 3D information indicative of the location and the shape of the
physical object in
the physical 3D space, a 3D model for a virtual object in the 3D scene, the
virtual object
corresponding to the physical object; detecting, by the at least one
processor, an interaction
between the virtual object and at least one virtual game component in the 3D
scene; and in
response to detecting an interaction between the virtual object and at least
one virtual game
component in the 3D scene, causing, by the at least one processor, an action
to be taken in the
game, the action being based at least in part on the at least one virtual game
component with
which the virtual object interacted; wherein the location comprises a sequence
of locations of
the physical object in the physical 3D space; wherein generating the 3D
information
.. indicative of the location of the physical objection in the physical 3D
space comprises
analyzing at least one aspect of a motion of the physical object, the motion
corresponding to
the sequence of locations, the at least one aspect being one of a distance, a
direction, a speed
and an acceleration; wherein analyzing at least one aspect of a motion of the
physical object
comprises: obtaining at least one measurement for at least one aspect of the
motion of the
.. physical object; determining whether the at least one measurement exceeds
at least one
selected threshold; and identifying the at least one virtual game component
with which the
virtual object interacted based on a determination that the at least one
measurement exceeds
the at least one threshold.
[0010] It should be appreciated that all combinations of the
foregoing concepts and
additional concepts discussed in greater detail below (provided such concepts
are not
mutually inconsistent) are contemplated as being part of the inventive subject
matter disclosed
herein. In particular, all combinations of claimed subject matter appearing at
the end of this
disclosure are contemplated as being part of the inventive subject matter
disclosed herein.
Date recue / Date received 2021-12-01
3b
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0011] FIG.
lA is a perspective view of an illustrative electronic gaming machine
(EGM) where a gesture input interface may be provided, in accordance with some
embodiments.
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[0012] FIG. 1B is a block diagram of an illustrative EGM linked to a
host system,
in accordance with some embodiments.
[0013] FIG.1 C illustrates some examples of visual illusions created
using an
autostereoscopic display, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0014] FIG. 2A shows an illustrative 3D gaming system with a touch screen
that
allows a player to interact with a game, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0015] FIG. 2B shows an illustrative 3D gaming system with a gesture
input
interface, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0016] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative process that may be performed by a
gaming
system with a gesture input interface, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0017] FIG. 4A shows an illustrative virtual sphere that may be used in
a gesture
input interface, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0018] FIG. 4B shows an illustrative gaming system with a contactless
sensor
device placed under a player's hand to sense movements thereof, in accordance
with
some embodiments.
[0019] FIG. 5 shows an illustrative example in which a virtual sphere
is projected
out of a display screen into a 3D space between the display screen and a
player, in
accordance with some embodiments.
[0020] FIG. 6 shows an illustrative process that may be performed by a
gaming
system to provide a gesture input interface using a virtual sphere, in
accordance with
some embodiments.
[0021] FIG. 7 shows an illustrative example of a computing system
environment
in which various inventive aspects of the present disclosure may be
implemented.
[0022] FIG. 8 shows an illustrative example of a pattern game in which
a gesture
input interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in accordance
with some
embodiments.
[0023] FIG. 9 shows another illustrative example of a pattern game in
which a
gesture input interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in
accordance with
some embodiments.
[0024] FIG. 10 shows yet another illustrative example of a pattern game in
which
a gesture input interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in
accordance
with some embodiments.
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[0025] FIGs. 11A-B show an illustrative example of a bonus game in
which a
gesture input interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in
accordance with
some embodiments.
[0026] FIG. 12A shows an illustrative gaming system 1200, in accordance
with
5 some embodiments.
[0027] FIG. 12B shows the illustrative gaming system 1200 of FIG. 12A
at a
different point in time, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0028] FIG. 13 shows a top view of an illustrative 3D gaming system
1300, in
accordance with some embodiments.
[0029] FIG. 14 shows an illustrative process 1400 that may be performed by
a
gaming system, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0030] FIG. 15 illustrates an example of a visual illusion that may be
created by a
gaming system, in accordance with some embodiments.
[0031] FIGs. 16A-B show an illustrative gaming system 1600 comprising
at least
two displays and at least two sensor devices, in accordance with some
embodiments.
[0032] FIG. 17 shows an illustrative gaming system 1700 comprising at
least two
displays and at least two sensor devices, in accordance with some embodiments.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0033] Various input devices are used in electronic gaming systems to allow
players to take actions in games. For example, to play a card game on a
computer, a
player may use a pointing device to click on buttons displayed on the
computer's screen,
where each button may correspond to a particular action the player can take
(e.g.,
drawing a card, skipping a turn, etc.). The player may also use the pointing
device to
interact with a virtual object in a game (e.g., by clicking on a card to
discard it or turn it
over). Some pointing devices (e.g., joysticks, mice, touchpads, etc.) are
separate from
the display screen. Alternatively, a pointing device may be incorporated into
the display
screen (e.g., as in a touch screen), so that the player may interact with a
game component
by physically touching the display at a location where the game component is
shown.
[0034] The inventors have recognized and appreciated that conventional
input
devices for electronic gaming systems may have limitations. For instance, in
electronic
versions of games that are traditionally played using physical game
components, physical
interactions with the game components (e.g., throwing dice in a dice game,
pulling a
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lever on a slot machine, etc.) are often replaced by simple button clicking or
pressing.
The inventors have recognized and appreciated that clicking or pressing a
button may not
be sufficiently engaging to retain a player's attention after an extended
period of play,
and that a player may stay engaged longer if he could interact with the game
components
using the same gestures as if he were playing the traditional version of the
game.
[0035] Furthermore, in some gaming systems, game components are
visually
projected out of a display screen and into a three-dimensional (3D) space
between the
display screen and a player (e.g., using autostereoscopy), while the display
screen is a
touch screen that allows the player to interact with the game components. As a
result,
when the player reaches for the touch screen to select a game component, it
would
appear to him visually that he is reaching through the game component that he
intends to
select. The inventors have recognized and appreciated that such a sensory
mismatch may
negatively impact user experience in playing the game. Therefore, it may be
desirable to
provide an input interface that allows a player to virtually touch a game
component at the
same location where the game component appears visually to the player.
[0036] Further still, the inventors have recognized and appreciated
that the use of
some conventional input devices in games may involve repeated activities that
may cause
physical discomfort or even injury to players. For example, prolonged use of a
mouse,
keyboard, and/or joystick to play games may cause repetitive strain injuries
in a player's
hands. As another example, a casino game cabinet may include a touch screen
display
located at or slightly below eye-level of a player seated in front of the
display, so that the
player may need to stretch his arm out to touch game components shown on the
display,
which may be tiring and may cause discomfort after an extended period of play.
Therefore, it may be desirable to provide an input interface with improved
ergonomics.
[0037] Further still, the inventors have recognized and appreciated that
the use of
conventional input devices such as mice and touch screens requires a player to
touch a
physical surface with his fingers. In a setting where a game console is shared
by
multiple players (e.g., at a casino), such a surface may harbor germs and
allow them to
spread from one player to another. Therefore, it may be desirable to provide a
contactless input interface.
[0038] Accordingly, in some embodiments, an input interface for gaming
systems is provided that allows players to interact with game components in a
contactless
fashion. For example, one or more contactless sensor devices may be used to
detect
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gestures made by a player (e.g., using his hands and/or fingers), and the
detected gestures
may be analyzed by a computer and mapped to various actions that the player
can take in
a game. The designer of a game may define any suitable gesture as a gesture
command
that is recognizable by the gaming system. Advantageously, in defining gesture
commands, the designer can take into account various factors such as whether
certain
gestures make a game more interesting, feel more natural to players, are less
likely to
cause physical discomfort, etc.
[0039] In some embodiments, an input interface for gaming systems is
provided
that detects gestures by acquiring, analyzing, and understanding images. For
example,
.. an imaging device may be used to acquire one or more images of a player's
hand. The
imaging device may use any suitable combination of one or more sensing
techniques,
including, but not limited to, optical, thermal, radio, and/or acoustic
techniques.
Examples of imaging devices include, but are not limited to, the Leap Motion"'
Controller by Leap Motion, Inc. and the KinectTM by Microsoft Corporation.
[0040] The images that are acquired and analyzed to detect gestures may be
still
images or videos (which may be timed-sequences of image frames). Accordingly,
in
some embodiments, a gesture command may be defined based on location and/or
orientation of one or more anatomical features of a player at a particular
moment in time,
and/or one or more aspects of a movement of the one or more anatomical
features over a
period of time.
[0041] In some embodiments, images that are acquired and analyzed to
detect
gestures may be in any suitable number of dimensions, such as 2 dimensions
(2D) or 3
dimensions (3D). The inventors have recognized and appreciated that image data
in 3D
may provide additional information (e.g., depth information) that can be used
to improve
recognition accuracy. For example, if the imaging device is placed under a
player's
hand, a downward clicking gesture made by a finger may be more easily detected
based
on depth information (e.g., a change in distance between the fingertip and the
imaging
device). However, the use of 3D image data is not required, as 2D image data
may also
be suitable.
[0042] In some embodiments, a gaming system may include a contactless input
interface in combination with a 3D display to enhance a player's experience
with a game.
For example, a 3D display technique may be used to visually project game
components
(e.g., buttons, cards, tiles, symbols, figures, etc.) out of a screen of a
display device and
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into a 3D space between the screen and a player. The 3D display technique may
or may
not require the player to wear special glasses. The contactless interface may
allow the
player to interact with the game components by virtually touching them. For
example, to
virtually push a button, the player may extend his arm so his hand or finger
reaches a
location in the 3D space between the screen and the player where the button
visually
appears to the player. A corresponding action may be triggered in the game as
soon as
the player's hand or finger reaches the virtual button, or the player may
trigger the action
by making a designated gesture (e.g., a forward tap) in midair with his hand
or finger at
the location of the virtual button. As discussed above, any suitable gesture
may be
defined as a gesture command that is recognizable by the gaming system,
including,
without limitation, finger gestures such as forward tap, downward click,
swipe, circle,
pinch, etc., and/or hand gestures such as side-to-side wave, downward pat,
outward flick,
twist, moving two hands together or apart, etc. A gesture may involve a single
finger or
multiple fingers, and likewise a single hand or multiple hands, as aspects of
the present
disclosure are not limited to any particular number of fingers or hands that
are used in a
gesture.
[0043] While in various embodiments described herein a gaming system
includes
a 3D display, it should be appreciated that a 3D display is not required, as a
contactless
input interface may be also used in combination with a 2D display, or even a
non-visual
(e.g., auditory, tactile, olfactory, etc.) display, or no display at all.
[0044] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to track
a
movement of an anatomical feature of a player, such as the player's hand,
finger, etc.,
and analyze any suitable combination of one or more aspects of the movement to
identify
an input command intended by the player. For instance, the gaming system may
be
configured to analyze a sequence of image frames and determine a starting
location,
ending location, intermediate location, duration, distance, direction, speed,
acceleration,
and/or any other relevant characteristics of a motion of the player's hand or
finger.
[0045] In one non-limiting example, a player may throw a pair of dice
virtually,
and the gaming system may be configured to analyze a distance, direction,
speed,
acceleration, etc. of the motion of the player's hand to determine where and
on which
sides the virtual dice should land. In another example, a player may shoot a
roulette ball
virtually, and the gaming system may be configured to analyze a distance,
direction,
speed, acceleration, etc. of the motion of the player's hand to determine in
which slot the
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roulette ball should fall. In yet another example, a player may use his hand
to spin a
virtual wheel, and the gaming system may be configured to analyze a distance,
direction,
speed, acceleration, etc. of the motion of the player's hand to determine how
quickly the
wheel should spin. In yet another example, a player may use his hands and/or
fingers to
play a virtual musical instrument (e.g., piano, drum, harp, cymbal, etc.), and
the gaming
system may be configured to analyze the motion of the player's hand to
determine what
notes and/or rhythms the player played and the game payout may be varied
accordingly.
[0046] It should be appreciated that the-above described examples are
merely
illustrative, as aspects of the present disclosure are not limited to the use
of motion
analysis in determining an outcome of a game. In some embodiments, a player's
motion
may merely trigger an action in a game (e.g., to throw a pair of dice, to
shoot a roulette
ball, to spin a wheel, etc.), and the outcome may be randomized according to a
certain
probability distribution (e.g., a uniform or non-uniform distribution over the
possible
outcomes).
[0047] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to use one or
more thresholds to determine whether a detected motion is to be interpreted as
a gesture
command. Such thresholds may be selected to distinguish unintentional
movements
from movements that are actually intended by a player as gesture commands. For
instance, a combination of one or more thresholds may be selected so that a
sufficiently
high percentage of movements intended as a particular gesture command will be
recognized as such, while a sufficiently low percentage of unintentional
movements will
be misrecognized as that gesture command. As an example, a downward movement
of a
finger may be interpreted as a downward click only if the distance moved
exceeds a
selected distance threshold and the duration of the movement does not exceed a
selected
duration threshold. Thus, a quick and pronounced movement may be recognized as
a
click, while a slow or slight movement may not be.
[0048] The inventors have recognized and appreciated that different
players may
move their hands and/or fingers differently even when they intend the same
gesture
command. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured
to
dynamically adapt one or more thresholds for determining whether a detected
movement
is to be interpreted as a gesture command. In one non-limiting example, the
gaming
system may be configured to collect and analyze information relating to how a
particular
player moves his hands and/or fingers when issuing a particular gesture
command, and
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may adjust one or more thresholds for that gesture command accordingly. In
another
example, the gaming system may be configured to collect and analyze
information
relating to how differently a particular player moves his hands and/or fingers
when
issuing two confusable gesture commands, and may adjust one or more thresholds
for
5 distinguishing movements intended as the first command from those
intended as the
second command.
[0049] It should be appreciated that personal threshold values are
merely one
example of player-specific information that may be collected and used by a
gaming
system. Other examples include, but are not limited to, preference
information, history
10 .. information, etc. However, it should also be appreciated that aspects of
the present
disclosure are not limited to the collection or use of player-specific
information. In some
embodiments, no such information may be collected or used at all. In some
embodiments, player-specific information may only be collected and/or used
during the
same session of game play. For example, as long as a player remains at a
gaming station,
player-specific information such as personal threshold values may be collected
and used
to improve user experience, but no such information may be maintained after
the player
leaves the station, even if the player may later return to the same station.
[0050] In some embodiments, rather than identifying a player uniquely
and
accumulating information specific to that player, a gaming system may apply
one or
more clustering techniques to match a player to a group of players with one or
more
similarities. Once a matching group is identified, information accumulated for
that group
of players may be used to improve one or more aspects of game play for the
particular
player. Additionally, or alternatively, information collected from the
particular player
may be used to make adjustments to the information accumulated for the
matching group
of players (e.g., preferences, game playing styles or tendencies, etc.).
[0051] In some embodiments, a contactless input interface for gaming
systems
may include a virtual sphere having one or more game components (e.g.,
symbols,
numbers, buttons, pop-up lists, etc.) on the surface of the sphere. A player
may cause the
virtual sphere to move translationally and/or rotationally by turning one or
more of his
.. hands as if the virtual sphere were in his hands. For instance, in some
embodiments, a
contactless sensor (e.g., an imaging device) may be placed under the player's
hands to
sense movements thereof The gaming system may be configured to interpret the
movement of either or both of the player's hands and cause the virtual sphere
to move
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accordingly. For example, the gaming system may interpret the hand movement by
taking into account any suitable combination of one or more aspects of the
hand
movement, such as a distance and/or direction by which a hand is displaced, an
angle by
which a hand is twisted, etc.
[0052] In some embodiments, a virtual sphere may be rendered using a 3D
display technique so that it is projected out of a display screen. A player
may place his
hands where the virtual sphere appears visually, as if he were physically
manipulating
the sphere. Alternatively, or additionally, the virtual sphere may be
displayed elsewhere
(e.g., on a 2D screen), and a visual indicator (e.g., cursor) may be used to
indicate where
an index finger of the player would have been located relative to the virtual
sphere if the
virtual sphere were in the player's hands.
[0053] In some embodiments, a player may interact with a game component
on a
surface of a virtual sphere by turning his hands, which may cause the virtual
sphere to
rotate, until the desired game component is under the player's index finger.
In an
embodiment in which the virtual sphere is rendered in 3D and appears visually
under the
player's hands, the player may cause the game component to visually appear
under his
index finger. In an embodiment in which the virtual sphere is displayed
elsewhere, the
player may cause the game component to appear under a visual indicator (e.g.,
cursor)
corresponding to the player's index finger. The player may then use a gesture
(e.g., a
downward click) to indicate that he wishes to select the game component or
otherwise
trigger an action corresponding to the game component.
[0054] While a number of inventive techniques are described herein for
controlling a gaming system, it should be appreciated that embodiments of the
present
disclosure may include any one of these techniques, any combination of two or
more
techniques, or all of the techniques, as aspects of the present disclosure are
not limited to
any particular number or combination of the techniques described herein. The
aspects of
the present disclosure described herein can be implemented in any of numerous
ways,
and are not limited to any particular details of implementation. Described
below are
examples of specific implementations; however, it should be appreciated that
these
examples are provided merely for purposes of illustration, and that other
implementations are possible.
[0055] In some embodiments, one or more techniques described herein may
be
used in a system for controlling an electronic gaming machine (EGM) in a
casino (e.g., a
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slot machine). The techniques described herein may also be used with other
types of
devices, including but not limited to PCs, laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc.
Although
not required, some of these devices may have one or more communication
capabilities
(e.g., Ethernet, wireless, mobile broadband, etc.), which may allow the
devices to access
a gaming site or a portal (which may provide access to a plurality of gaming
sites) via the
Internet.
[0056] FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an illustrative EGM 10 where a
gesture
input interface may be provided, in accordance with some embodiments. In the
example
of FIG. IA, the EGM 10 includes a display 12 that may be a thin film
transistor (TFT)
display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a cathode ray tube (CRT) and LED
display, an
OLED display, or a display of any other suitable type. The EGM 10 may further
include
a second display 14, which may be used in addition to the display 12 to show
game data
or other information. In some embodiments, the display 14 may be used to
display an
advertisement for a game, one or more rules of the game, pay tables, pay
lines, and/or
any other suitable infoimation, which may be static or dynamically updated. In
some
embodiments, the display 14 may be used together with the display 12 to
display all or
part of a main game or a bonus game.
[0057] In some embodiments, one or both of the displays 12 and 14 may
have a
touch screen lamination that includes a transparent grid of conductors. A
human
fingertip touching the screen may change the capacitance between the
conductors at the
location of the touch, so that the coordinates of that location may be
determined. The
coordinates may then be processed to determine a corresponding function to be
performed. Such touch screens are known in the art as capacitive touch
screens. Other
types of touch screens, such as resistive touch screens, may also be used.
[0058] In the example of FIG.1 A, the EGM 10 has a coin slot 22 for
accepting
coins or tokens in one or more denominations to generate credits for playing
games. The
EGM may also include a slot 24 for receiving a ticket for cashless gaming. The
received
ticket may be read using any suitable technology, such as optical, magnetic,
and/or
capacitive reading technologies. In some embodiments, the slot 24 may also be
used to
.. output a ticket, which may carry preprinted information and/or information
printed on-
the-fly by a printer within the EGM 10. The printed information may be of any
suitable
form, such as text, graphics, barcodes, QR codes, etc.
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[0059] In the example of FIG. 1A, the EGM 10 has a coin tray 32 for
receiving
coins or tokens from a hopper upon a win or upon the player cashing out.
However, in
some embodiments, the EGM 10 may be a gaming terminal that does not pay in
cash but
only issues a printed ticket for cashing in elsewhere. In some embodiments, a
stored
value card may be loaded with credits based on a win, or may enable the
assignment of
credits to an account (e.g., via a communication network).
[0060] In the example of FIG. 1A, the EGM 10 has a card reader slot 34
for
receiving a card that carries machine-readable information, such as a smart
card,
magnetic strip card, or a card of any other suitable type. In some
embodiments, a card
reader may read the received card for player and credit information for
cashless gaming.
For example, the card reader may read a magnetic code from a player tracking
card,
where the code uniquely identifies a player to the EGM 10 and/or a host system
to which
the EGM 10 is connected. In some embodiments, the code may be used by the EGM
10
and/or the host system to retrieve data related to the identified player. Such
data may
affect the games offered to the player by the EGM 10. In some embodiments, a
received
card may carry credentials that may enable the EGM 10 and/or the host system
to access
one or more accounts associated with a player. The account may be debited
based on
wagers made by the player and credited based on a win. In some embodiments, a
received card may be a stored value card, which may be debited based on wagers
made
by the player and credited based on a win. The stored value card may not be
linked to
any player account, but a player may be able to assign credits on the stored
value card to
an account (e.g., via a communication network).
[0061] In the example of FIG. 1A, the EGM 10 has a keypad 36 for
receiving
player input, such as a user name, credit card number, personal identification
number
(PIN), or any other player infommtion. In some embodiments, a display 38 may
be
provided above the keypad 36 and may display a menu of available options,
instructions,
and/or any other suitable information to a player. Alternatively, or
additionally, the
display 38 may provide visual feedback of which keys on the keypad 36 are
pressed.
[0062] In the example of FIG. 1A, the EGM 10 has a plurality of player
control
buttons 39, which may include any suitable buttons or other controllers for
playing any
one or more games offered by EGM 10. Examples of such buttons include, but are
not
limited to, a bet button, a repeat bet button, a spin reels (or play) button,
a maximum bet
button, a cash-out button, a display pay lines button, a display payout tables
button,
14
select icon buttons, and/or any other suitable buttons. In some embodiments,
any one or more
of the buttons 39 may be replaced by virtual buttons that are displayed and
can be activated
via a touch screen.
[0063] FIG. 1B is a block diagram of an illustrative EGM 20 linked to
a host system
41, in accordance with some embodiments. In this example, the EGM 20 includes
a
communications board 42, which may contain circuitry for coupling the EGM 20
to a local
area network (LAN) and/or other types of networks using any suitable protocol,
such as a
G2S (Game to System) protocol. The G25 protocols, developed by the Gaming
Standards
Association, are based on standard technologies such as Ethernet, TCP/IP and
XML.
[0064] In some embodiments, the communications board 42 may communicate
with
the host system 41 via a wireless connection. Alternatively, or additionally,
the
communications board 42 may have a wired connection to the host system 41
(e.g., via a
wired network running throughout a casino floor).
[0065] In some embodiments, the communications board 42 may set up a
communication link with a master controller and may buffer data between the
master
controller and a game controller board 44 of the EGM 20. The communications
board 42 may
also communicate with a server (e.g., in accordance with a G25 standard), for
example, to
exchange information in carrying out embodiments described herein.
[0066] In some embodiments, the game controller board 44 may contain
one or more
non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., memory) and one or more
processors for
carrying out programs stored in the non-transitory computer-readable media.
For example,
the processors may be programed to transmit information in response to a
request received
from a remote system (e.g., the host system 41). In some embodiments, the game
controller
board 44 may execute not only programs stored locally, but also instructions
received from a
remote system (e.g., the host system 41) to carry out one or more game
routines.
[0067] In some embodiments, the EGM 20 may include one or more
peripheral
devices and/or boards, which may communicate with the game controller board 44
via a bus
46 using, for example, an RS-232 interface. Examples of such peripherals
include, but are not
limited to, a bill validator 47, a coin detector 48, a card reader 49, and/or
player control inputs
50 (e.g., the illustrative buttons 39 shown in FIG. lA and/or a touch screen).
However, it
should be appreciated that aspects of the present disclosure are not
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limited to the use of any particular one or combination of these peripherals,
as other
peripherals, or no peripheral at all, may be used.
[0068] In some embodiments, the game controller board 44 may control
one or
more devices for producing game output (e.g., sound, lighting, video, haptics,
etc.). For
5 example, the game controller board 44 may control an audio board 51 for
converting
coded signals into analog signals for driving one or more speakers (not
shown). The
speakers may be arranged in any suitable fashion, for example, to create a
surround
sound effect for a player seated at the EGM 20. As another example, the game
controller
board 44 may control a display controller 52 for converting coded signals into
pixel
10 signals for one or more displays 53 (e.g., the illustrative display 12
and/or the illustrative
display 14 shown in FIG. 1A).
[0069] In some embodiments, the display controller 52 and the audio
board 51
may be connected to parallel ports on the game controller board 44. However,
that is not
required, as the electronic components in the EGM 20 may be arranged in any
suitable
15 way, such as onto a single board.
[0070] Although some illustrative EGM components and arrangements
thereof
are described above in connection with FIGs. 1A-B, it should be appreciated
that such
details of implementation are provided solely for purposes of illustration.
Other ways of
implementing an EGM are also possible, using any suitable combinations of
input,
output, processing, and/or communication techniques.
[0071] In some embodiments, an EGM may be configured to provide 3D
enhancements, for example, using a 3D display. For example, the EGM may be
equipped with an autostereoscopic display, which may allow a player to view
images in
3D without wearing special glasses. Other types of 3D displays, such as
stereoscopic
displays and/or holographic displays, may be used in addition to, or instead
of
autostereoscopic displays, as aspects of the present disclosure are not
limited to the use
of autostereoscopic displays. In some embodiments, an eye-tracking technology
and/or
head-tracking technology may be used to detect the player's position in front
of the
display, for example, by analyzing in real time one or more images of the
player captured
using a camera in the EGM. Using the position information detected in real
time by an
eye tracker, two images, one for the left eye and one for the right eye, may
be merged
into a single image for display. A suitable optical overlay (e.g., with one or
more
lenticular lenses) may be used to extract from the single displayed image one
image for
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the left eye and a different image for the right eye, thereby delivering a 3D
visual
experience.
[0072] FIG. IC illustrates some examples of visual illusions created
using an
autostereoscopic display, in accordance with some embodiments. In this
example, a
player 105 may be seated in front of an autostereoscopic display 110. Using
autostereoscopic techniques such as those discussed above, one image may be
shown to
the player's left eye and a different image may be shown to the player's right
eye. These
differently images may be processed by the player's brain to give the
perception of 3D
depth. For example, the player may perceive a spherical object 120 in front of
the
display 110 and a square object 125 behind the display 110. Furthermore,
although not
show, a perception that the spherical object 120 is moving towards the player
and/or a
perception that the square object is moving away from the player may be
created by
dynamically updating the combined image shown on the display 110.
[0073] In some embodiments, if the player moves to one side of the
screen (e.g.,
to the right), this movement may be detected (e.g., using an eye tracker) and
the display
may be dynamically updated so that the player will see the spherical object
120 offset
from the square object 125 (e.g., to the left of the square object 125), as if
the objects
were truly at some distance from each other along a z-axis (i.e., an axis
orthogonal to the
plane in which the display 110 lies).
[0074] Although an autostereoscopic display may facilitate more natural
game
play, it should be appreciated that aspects of the present disclosure are not
limited to the
use of an autostereoscopic display, or any 3D display at all, as some of the
disclosed
concepts may be implemented using a conventional 2D display. Furthermore,
aspects
the present disclosure are not limited to the autostereoscopic techniques
discussed above,
as other autostereoscopic techniques may also be suitable.
[0075] FIG. 2A shows an illustrative 3D gaming system with a touch
screen that
allows a player to interact with a game, in accordance with some embodiments.
In this
example, the display 110 functions as both a 3D display and a touch screen.
For
example, as shown in FIG. 2A, the player 105 may interact with the spherical
object 120
by touching the display 110 with his hand 130 at a location 135 where the
spherical
object 120 is displayed. However, because the spherical object 120 is
displayed in 3D,
the location 135 on the display 110 may be offset along the z-axis from where
the
spherical object appears to the player 105 visually. As a result, the player
105 may
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perceive that to select the spherical object 120 he is to put his hand 130
through the
spherical object 120. The gaming system may provide no response until the
player's
hand 130 reaches the display 110, which may feel unnatural to the player 105
because
the display 110 appears to him to be at some distance behind the spherical
object 120.
[0076] The inventors have recognized and appreciated that a more natural
experience may be delivered using an input interface that allows a player to
virtually
touch a game component at the same location where the game component appears
visually to the player, thereby reducing the above-described sensory mismatch.
[0077] FIG. 2B shows an illustrative 3D gaming system with a gesture
input
interface, in accordance with some embodiments. The gesture input interface
may be
contactless, and may be used in lieu of, or in combination with, a contact-
based interface
such as a keyboard, a mouse, a touch screen, etc.
[0078] In the example of FIG. 2B, the gaming system includes one or
more
contactless sensor devices, such as sensor device 135. The sensor devices may
use any
suitable combination of one or more sensing techniques, including, but not
limited to,
optical, thermal, radio, and/or acoustic techniques. In some embodiments, a
sensor
device may include one or more emitters for emitting waves such as sound waves
and/or
electromagnetic waves (e.g., visible light, infrared radiation, radio waves,
etc.) and one
or more detectors (e.g., cameras) for detecting waves that bounce back from an
object.
In some embodiments, a sensor device may have no emitter and may detect
signals
emanating from an object (e.g., heat, sound, etc.). One or more processors in
the sensor
device and/or some other component of the gaming system may analyze the
received
signals to determine one or more aspects of the detected object, such as size,
shape,
orientation, etc. and, if the object is moving, speed, direction,
acceleration, etc.
[0079] The sensor devices may be arranged in any suitable manner to detect
gestures made by a player. For example, as shown in FIG. 2B, the sensor device
135
may be placed between the display 110 and the player 105, so that a 3D field
of view 140
of the sensor device 135 at least partially overlap with a 3D display region
145 into
which objects such as the virtual sphere 120 are visually projected. In this
manner, the
sensor device 135 may -see" the player's hand 130 when the player reaches into
the
display region 145 to virtually touch the spherical object 120.
[0080] In some embodiments, the region 145 may be in close proximity
(i.e.,
within 3 feet) of a gaming apparatus. For instance, the region 145 may be in
close
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proximity to the screen 110 in the example of FIG. 2B. In this manner, the
player's hand
130 may also be in close proximity to the screen 110 when the player reaches
into the
display region 145 to virtually touch the spherical object 120. Thus, in some
embodiments, the player may be located (e.g., standing or sitting) at such a
distance from
the gaming apparatus that he is able to reach into the display region 145 with
his hand by
extending his arm. In some embodiments, the player may be located at such a
distance
from the gaming apparatus that he is also able to touch the screen 110
physically (e.g.,
where the screen 110 functions as both a 3D display and a touch screen).
[0081] In various embodiments, the region 145 and the player's hand may
be
within 33 inches, 30 inches, 27 inches, 24 inches, 21 inches, 18 inches, 15
inches, 12
inches, 11 inches, 10 inches, 9 inches, 8 inches, 7 inches, 6 inches, 5
inches, 4 inches, 3
inches, 2 inches, 1 inch, 0.75 inches, 0.5 inches, 0.25 inches, etc. of a
gaming apparatus
(e.g., the screen 110 in the example of FIG. 2B). However, it should be
appreciated that
aspects of the present disclosure are not limited to a display region or
player's hand
being in close proximity to a gaming apparatus. In some embodiments, the
display
region or player's hand may be further (e.g., 5 feet, 10 feet, etc.) away from
a gaming
apparatus.
[0082] In the example of FIG. 2B, the sensor device 135 is placed under
the
display region 145 and the field of view 140 may be an inverted pyramid.
However, that
is not required, as the sensor device 135 may be placed elsewhere (e.g., above
or to either
side of the display region 145) and the field of view 140 may be of another
suitable
shape (e.g., pyramid, cone, inverted cone, cylinder, etc.). Also, multiple
sensor devices
may be used, for example, to achieve an expanded field of view and/or to
increase
recognition accuracy.
[0083] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative process 300 that may be performed by a
gaming system with a gesture input interface, in accordance with some
embodiments.
For example, the gaming system may perform the process 300 to control a
wagering
gaming apparatus (e.g., the illustrative EGM 10 shown in FIG. 1A) to provide a
gesture
input interface.
[0084] At act 305, the gaming system may render a 3D display of a game, for
example, using an autostereoscopic display. In some embodiments, the display
may
visually project one or more game components (e.g., buttons, tiles, cards,
symbols,
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figures, etc.) out of a screen and into a 3D space between the screen and a
player (e.g., as
illustrated in FIGs. 2A-B).
[0085] At act 310, the gaming system may receive information from one
or more
sensor devices (e.g., the illustrative sensor device 135 shown in FIG. 2B). In
some
embodiments, the received information may indicate a location of a detected
object, such
as an anatomical feature of a player (e.g., hand, finger, etc.) or a tool held
by the player
(e.g., pen, wand, baton, gavel, etc.). The location may be expressed in any
suitable
coordinate system (e.g., Cartesian, polar, spherical, cylindrical, etc.) with
any suitable
units of measurement (e.g., inches, centimeters, millimeters, etc.). In one
non-limiting
example, a Cartesian coordinate system may be used with the origin centered at
the
sensor device. The x-axis may run horizontally to the right of the player, the
y-axis may
run vertically upwards, and the z-axis may run horizontally towards the
player.
However, it should be appreciated that other coordinate systems may also be
used, such
as a coordinate system centered at a display region into which game components
are
visually projected.
[0086] In some embodiments, a detected object may be divided into
multiple
regions and a different set of coordinates may be provided for each region.
For example,
where the detected object is a human hand, a different set of coordinates may
be
provided for each fingertip, each joint in the hand, the center of the palm,
etc. In some
embodiments, multiple objects may be detected, and the received information
may
indicate multiple corresponding locations.
[0087] Location information is merely one example of information that
may be
received from a sensor device. Additionally, or alternatively, a sensor device
may
provide gesture information, which may include static gesture information such
as a
direction in which a fingertip or palm is pointing, a location of a particular
join in the
hand, whether the fingers are curled into the palm to form a first, etc. In
some
embodiments, a sensor device may also have processing capabilities for
identifying
dynamic gestures, which may include finger gestures such as forward tap,
downward
click, swipe, circle, pinch, etc., and/or hand gestures such as side-to-side
wave,
downward pat, outward flick, twist, etc. Such processing capabilities may be
provided
by one or more processors onboard the sensor device and/or a driver installed
on a
general-purpose computing device configured to receive signals from the sensor
device
for further processing.
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[0088] In some embodiments, a sensor device may provide motion
information in
addition to, or in lieu of, position and/or gesture information. As discussed
further
below, motion information may allow the gaming system to detect dynamic
gestures that
neither the sensor device nor its driver has been configured to detect.
5 [0089] Returning to FIG. 3, the gaming system may, at act 315,
analyze the
information received at act 310 to identify an input command intended by the
player. In
some embodiments, the received information may indicate a location of a
detected object
(e.g., a hand or finger of the player or a tool held by the player), and the
gaming system
may determine whether the location of the detected object matches an expected
location
10 to which the display is configured to visually project a game component
(e.g., a button, a
tile, a card, a symbol, a figure, etc.).
[0090] In some embodiments, the display of a game may be refreshed
dynamically, so that the expected location of a game component may change over
time,
and/or the game component may disappear and may or may not later reappear.
15 Accordingly, the gaming system may be configured to use state
information of the game
to determine whether the location of the detected object matches the expected
location of
the game component with appropriate timing.
[0091] If at act 315 it is determined that the location of the detected
object
matches the expected location of a game component, the gaming system may
determine
20 that the player intends to issue an input command associated with the
game component.
At act 320, the gaming system may cause an action to be taken in the game, the
action
corresponding to the identified input command.
[0092] In one non-limiting example, the game component may be a button
(or
lever) in a slot machine game, and the information received from the sensor
device may
indicate that the player made a forward tap gesture at a location to which the
button is
visually projected (or a downward pull gesture at a location to which the
lever is visually
projected). The gaming system may be configured to interpret such a gesture as
an input
command to spin the reels of the slot machine game. In another example, the
game
component may be a card in the player's hand, and the information received
from the
sensor device may indicate that the player made a forward tap gesture at the
visual
location of the card. The gaming system may be configured to interpret such a
gesture as
an input command to discard the card. In another example, the game component
may be
a card on the top of a deck, and the gaming system may be configured to
interpret a
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forward tap gesture at the visual location of the card as an input command to
draw the
card. In yet another example, the game component may be a card in the player's
hand,
and the information received from the sensor device may indicate that the
player made a
swipe gesture at the visual location of the card. The gaming system may be
configured
to interpret such a gesture as an input command to move the card to another
position in
the player's hand.
[0093] It should be appreciated that the above-described gestures and
corresponding input commands are merely illustrative, as other types of game
components and virtual manipulations thereof may also be used and the gaming
system
may be configured to interpret such manipulations in any suitable way.
[0094] In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to
update
the 3D display of the game based on the action taken in the act 320. Updating
the
display may include changing an appearance of an object in an existing scene
(e.g.,
spinning a wheel, turning over a card, etc.). Updating the display may also
include
generating a new scene, for example, by generating a new 3D mesh.
[0095] In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to use
motion information received from the sensor device to identify an input
command
intended by the player. For instance, the gaming system may be configured to
analyze a
sequence of image frames and determine a starting location, ending location,
duration,
distance, direction, speed, acceleration, and/or any other relevant
characteristics of a
movement of an anatomical feature of the player (e.g., the player's hand,
finger, etc.) or a
tool held by the player. In one non-limiting example, a player may spin a
wheel virtually
in a wheel of fortune game, and the gaming system may be configured to analyze
a
distance, direction, speed, acceleration, duration, etc. of the motion of the
player's hand
to determine how fast and in which direction the wheel should be spun. The
player may
also touch the wheel virtually while the wheel is spinning, and the gaming
system may
be configured to analyze a location, duration, etc. of the touch to determine
how quickly
the wheel should slow to a stop.
[0096] It should be appreciated that the wheel of fortune example
described
above is merely illustrative, as aspects of the present disclosure are not
limited to the use
of motion analysis in determining an outcome of a game. In some embodiments, a
player's motion may merely trigger an action in a game (e.g., to throw a pair
of dice, to
shoot a roulette ball, to spin a wheel, etc.). The outcome of the action may
be
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randomized according to a certain probability distribution (e.g., a uniform or
non-
uniform distribution over the possible outcomes).
[0097] In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to use
one
or more thresholds to determine whether a detected motion is to be interpreted
as a
gesture command. Such thresholds may be selected to distinguish unintentional
movements from movements that are actually intended by a player as gesture
commands.
For instance, a combination of one or more thresholds may be selected so that
a
sufficiently high percentage of movements intended as a particular gesture
command will
be recognized as such, while a sufficiently low percentage of unintentional
movements
will be misrecog-nized as that gesture command. In one non-limiting example, a
downward movement of a finger may be interpreted as a downward click only if
the
distance moved exceeds a selected distance threshold and the duration of the
movement
does not exceed a selected duration threshold. Thus, a quick and pronounced
movement
may be recognized as a click, while a slow or slight movement may simply be
ignored.
[0098] In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to
dynamically adapt one or more thresholds for determining whether a detected
movement
is to be interpreted as a gesture command. In one non-limiting example, the
gaming
system may be configured to collect and analyze information relating to how a
particular
player moves his hands and/or fingers when issuing a particular gesture
command, and
may adjust one or more thresholds for that gesture command accordingly. In
another
example, the gaming system may be configured to collect and analyze
information
relating to how differently a particular player moves his hands and/or fingers
when
issuing two confusable gesture commands, and may adjust one or more thresholds
for
distinguishing movements intended as the first command from those intended as
the
second command.
[0099] In some embodiments, one or more thresholds specifically adapted
for a
player and/or other player-specific information may be stored in a manner that
allows
retrieval upon detecting an identity of the player. For example, each player
may be
associated with an identifier (e.g., a user name, alphanumeric code, etc.),
which the
player may use to sign on to a gaming system. The gaming system may use the
identifier
to look up player-specific information (e.g., threshold values, preferences,
history, etc.)
and apply all or some of the retrieved information in a game. The application
of such
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information may be automatic, or the player may be prompted to confirm before
anything takes effect.
[00100] Any suitable method may be used to detect an identity of a
player. In
some embodiments, prior to starting a game, a player may be prompted to
produce a card
carrying an identifying code, which may be read using a suitable sensing
technology
(e.g., magnetic, optical, capacitive, etc.). The card may be issued to the
player for
gaming purposes only (e.g., by a casino or gaming website), or for more
general
purposes. For example, the card may be a personal debit or credit card. If the
player is
visiting a gaming establishment (e.g., a casino), he may be promoted to
insert, swipe, or
other provide the card to a special-purpose reader located at a gaming station
such as a
gaming cabinet, table, etc. If the player is playing a game remotely (e.g., by
accessing a
gaming website from his home computer) and does not have access to a special-
purpose
reader, a general-purpose device may be used to obtain identifying information
from the
card. For example, an image of the card may be captured using a camera (e.g.,
a webcam
or cellphone camera) and one or more optical recognition techniques may be
applied to
extract the identifying information.
[00101] Rather than producing a card to be read physically by a reader,
a player
may provide identifying information in some other suitable fashion. For
example, the
player may type in a user name, identifying code, etc. In another example, the
player
may speak a user name, identifying code, etc., which may be transcribed using
speech
recognition software. In yet another example, a combination of one or more
biometric
recognition techniques may be used, including, but not limited to, voice,
fingerprint,
face, hand, iris, etc.
[00102] In some embodiments, a gesture input interface for gaming
systems may
include a virtual sphere having one or more game components (e.g., symbols,
numbers,
cards, tiles, buttons, pop-up lists, etc.) arranged on the surface of the
sphere. FIG. 4A
shows an illustrative virtual sphere 405 that may be used in a gesture input
interface, in
accordance with some embodiments. In this example, a plurality of buttons,
such as a
button 410, are arranged in a grid on the surface of the virtual sphere 405.
Some buttons
(e.g., the button 410) may be raised above the surface of the sphere 405 to
various
heights, while other buttons may be flush with or below the surface. The
height of a
button may indicate its status (e.g., a raised button may be one that is
available for
activation). However, buttons of varying heights are not required, as the
buttons may be
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arranged in any suitable way on the surface of the sphere 405, with or without
status
indication. Also, although in the example of FIG. 4A the surface of the sphere
405 is
covered by the grid of buttons, in other implementations fewer buttons may be
arranged
on a sphere and the surface thereof may not be entirely covered.
[00103] In some embodiments, a player may cause the virtual sphere 405 to
move
translationally and/or rotationally by turning one or more of his hands as if
the virtual
sphere 405 were in his hands. For instance, as shown in FIG. 4B, a contactless
sensor
device 435 (e.g., an imaging device) may be placed under a player's hand 430
to sense
movements thereof, in accordance with some embodiments. In that respect, the
sensor
device 435 may be placed at a location where the player can hold out his hand
430 over
the sensor device 435, so that the hand 430 is in a 3D field of view 440 of
the sensor
device 435 and the sensor device 435 can "see" the movements of the hand 430.
[00104] In the example shown in FIG. 4B, the gaming system may be
configured
to map a movement of the hand 430 to a corresponding movement of an imaginary
sphere 420 held in the hand 430. The gaming system may be configured to
interpret
such a movement of the hand 430 as an input command to cause the virtual
sphere 405 to
move accordingly. In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to
analyze hand movement by analyzing any suitable combination of one or more
aspects of
the movement, such as a distance and/or direction by which the hand 430 is
displaced, an
angle by which the hand 430 is twisted, etc.
[00105] In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to
render
the virtual sphere 405 using a 3D display, for instance, as described above in
connection
with FIG. 2B. FIG. 5 shows an illustrative example in which the virtual sphere
405 is
visually projected out of a display screen into a 3D space between the display
screen (not
shown) and the player, in accordance with some embodiments. In this example,
the 3D
field of view 440 of the sensor device 435 overlaps with a 3D region in which
the virtual
sphere 405 is displayed, so that the player may place his hands where the
virtual sphere
405 appears visually, as if the player were physically manipulating the
virtual sphere
405. Thus, with reference back to FIG. 4B, the visual location of the virtual
sphere 405
may coincide with the location of the imaginary sphere 420 in the hand 430.
Alternatively, or additionally, the virtual sphere 405 may be displayed on a
screen (e.g.. a
2D or 3D screen) outside the field of view 440 of the sensor device 435.
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[00106] In some embodiments, the 3D region into which the virtual sphere
405 is
projected may be in close proximity (i.e., within 3 feet) of a gaming
apparatus. For
instance, the 3D region may be in close proximity to the display screen
displaying the
virtual sphere 405. In this manner, the player's hand may also be in close
proximity to
5 .. the display screen when the player reaches into the 3D region to
virtually manipulate the
virtual sphere 405. In various embodiments, the 3D region and the player's
hand may be
within 33 inches, 30 inches, 27 inches, 24 inches, 21 inches, 18 inches, 15
inches, 12
inches, 11 inches, 10 inches, 9 inches, 8 inches, 7 inches, 6 inches, 5
inches, 4 inches, 3
inches, 2 inches, 1 inch, 0.75 inches, 0.5 inches, 0.25 inches, etc. of a
gaming apparatus
10 (e.g., the display screen in the example of FIG. 5). However, it should
be appreciated
that aspects of the present disclosure are not limited to a display region or
player's hand
being in close proximity to a gaming apparatus. In some embodiments, the
display
region or player's hand may be further (e.g., 5 feet, 10 feet, etc.) away from
a gaming
apparatus.
15 [00107] In some embodiments, a player may interact with a game
component on a
surface of a virtual sphere by turning his hands, which as discussed above may
cause the
virtual sphere to rotate, until the desired game component is under the
player's index
finger. The player may then use a gesture (e.g., a downward click) to indicate
he wishes
to select the game component or otherwise trigger an action corresponding to
the game
20 component.
[00108] In an embodiment in which the virtual sphere is rendered in 3D
and
appears visually under the player's hands (e.g., as in the example of FIG. 5),
the player
may cause the game component to visually appear under his index finger. In an
embodiment in which the virtual sphere is displayed elsewhere, the player may
cause the
25 game component to appear under a visual indicator corresponding to the
player's index
finger. For instance, in the example shown in FIG. 4A, an illustrative cursor
415 is used
to indicate where an index finger of the player would have been located
relative to the
virtual sphere 405 if the virtual sphere 405 were in the player's hand. Thus,
the location
of the cursor 415 on the virtual sphere 405 in FIG. 4A may correspond to the
location on
the imaginary sphere 420 indicated by an arrow 450 in FIG. 4B.
[00109] In some embodiments, two visual indicators (e.g., cursors) may
be
displayed, corresponding to a player's left and right index fingers,
respectively. In some
embodiments, only one visual indicator may be displayed, and a player may
configure
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the gaming system to display the visual indicator on the left or right side of
the virtual
sphere (e.g., depending on the player's handedness). For example, if the
player wishes to
click with his left index figure, the player may configure the gaming system
to display
the visual indicator on the left side of the virtual sphere, and vice versa.
Additionally, or
alternatively, the gaming system may be configured to detect which hand the
player
favors and change the visual indicator from left to right, or vice versa.
[00110] It should be appreciated that the examples described above in
connection
with FIGs. 4A-B and 5 are merely illustrative, as aspect of the present
disclosure are not
limited to the use of a virtual sphere in a gesture input interface. For
example, one or
more other shapes such as a cube, a star, a diamond, a cylinder, etc. may be
used in
addition to, or instead of, a sphere.
[00111] FIG. 6 shows an illustrative process 600 that may be performed
by a
gaming system to provide a gesture input interface using a virtual sphere, in
accordance
with some embodiments. For example, the gaming system may perform the process
600
to control a wagering gaming apparatus (e.g., the illustrative EGM 10 shown in
FIG. 1A)
to provide a gesture input interface similar to those described above in
connection with
FIGs. 4A-B and 5.
[00112] At act 605, the gaming system may render a display of a game. In
some
embodiments, the display may include a plurality of game components (e.g., the
illustrative button 410 of FIG. 4A) located on a surface of a virtual sphere
(e.g., the
illustrative virtual sphere 405 of FIG. 4A).
[00113] At act 610, the gaming system may receive from one or more
contactless
sensor devices (e.g., the illustrative sensor device 435 of FIG. 4B) hand
location
information indicative of where a player's hand (e.g., the illustrative hand
430 of FIG.
4B) is located.
[00114] At act 615, the gaming system may analyze the hand location
information
received at act 610, and may determine based on that analysis that the player
intends to
issue an input command to cause a certain movement of the virtual sphere. For
instance,
in some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to determine a
direction in
which the player's palm is pointing, and to use a detected change in the palm
direction to
infer an angle by which the player intends to rotate the virtual sphere.
Likewise, the
gaming system may be configured to determine a location of the player's palm,
and to
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use a detected change in the palm location to infer an intended translational
displacement
of the virtual sphere.
[00115] In some embodiments, the gaming system may determine a movement
of
the virtual sphere that matches the hand movement, as if the virtual sphere
were held in
the hand. In some embodiments, the gaming system may determine a different
type of
movement for the virtual sphere. For example, the gaming system may interpret
the
hand movement as an input command to cause the virtual sphere to spin about an
axis.
Thus, the angle by which the virtual sphere is spun may be greater than the
angle by
which the player turned his hand, to mimic the effect of inertia. For example,
the virtual
sphere may continue to spin for some time after the player used his hand to
start the
spinning and may slow down gradually as if being slowed down by friction.
[00116] At act 620, the gaming system may update the display of the game
to
reflect the intended movement of the virtual sphere as determined at act 615.
This may
take place within a sufficiently small time delay following the player's hand
motion to
deliver a realistic experience. An acceptable response time may be several
seconds (e.g.,
1 sec, 2 sec, 3 sec, ...) or fractions of a second (e.g., 0.5 sec, 0.3 sec,
0.2 sec, 0.1 sec,
0.05 sec, ...).
[00117] At act 625, the gaming system may receive from the sensor device
(and/or
a different sensor device) finger location information indicative of where a
player's
finger (e.g., index finger) is located.
[00118] At act 630, the gaming system may analyze the finger location
information received at act 625, and may determine based on that analysis that
the player
intends to issue an input command to select one of the game components
arranged on the
surface of the virtual sphere. In some embodiments, the finger location
information may
include a sequence of locations of the finger, and the gaming system may be
configured
to determine that the sequence of locations correspond to a certain gesture
(e.g.,
downward click). The gaming system may be further configured to determine that
the
player intends to select the game component having a location on the virtual
sphere that
matches the location where the finger gesture is detected. For example, in an
embodiment in which the virtual sphere is virtually projected into a 3D space
under the
player's hand (e.g., as shown in FIG. 5), the gaming system may be configured
to
determine that the location at which the finger gesture is detected matches an
expected
28
location to which a game component is to be visually projected, and may
therefore identify
that game component as the one selected by the player.
[00119] In some embodiments, one or more thresholds may be used to
determine
whether the player made a certain finger gesture such as downward click. In
one non-limiting
example, the gaming system may be configured to determine, based on
measurements taken
by the sensor device, a distance by which the player moved his finger. The
gaming system
may be configured to recognize the gesture only if the distance exceeds a
certain threshold
(e.g., 25mm, 20mm, 15mm, lOmm, 5mm, ...).
[00120] At act 635, the gaming system may cause an action to be taken
in the game. In
some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to determine the action
to be taken
based at least in part on the selected game component as determined at act
630. In some
embodiments, the action to be taken may be determined based at least in part
on one or more
characteristics of the movement. For example, the gaming system may be
configured to
distinguish between a single click and a double click, and may take different
actions
accordingly.
[00121] As discussed throughout this disclosure, a gesture input
interface may be used
in conjunction with any suitable system, including, but not limited to, a
system for playing
wagering games. Some non-limiting examples of such games are described below.
Other
non-limiting examples can be found in US Patent No. 9,454,879, entitled
"Enhancements to
Game Components in Gaming Systems," filed on September 17, 2013, claiming
priority to
US Provisional Application No. 61/746,707 of the same title, filed on December
28, 2012.
Further examples can be found in US Patent No. 9,672,269, entitled "Gaming
System and
Method Incorporating Winning Enhancements," filed on September 28, 2012, and
PCT
Application No. PCT/CA2013/050053, entitled "Multi-Player Electronic Gaming
System,"
filed on January 28, 2013..
[00122] FIG. 8 shows an illustrative example of a pattern game in
which a gesture input
interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in accordance with
some
embodiments. In this example, the game display includes an array of cells,
where each cell
may display one of several different symbols. The symbols displayed in each
cell may move,
for example, as if they were on a spinning reel. The player may win if a
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winning pattern is displayed, e.g., with matching symbols aligned vertically,
horizontally, diagonally, etc.
[00123] In some embodiments, the display may include at least one
multifaceted
game component that is displayed in 3D. In the example of FIG. 8, a game
component
412 has one or more faces, such as faces 416A and 418B. Additional symbols
(e.g. wild
and/or scatter symbols) may be provided on these faces. In some embodiments, a
gesture
input interface such as one of those described in connection with FIG. 2B may
be used to
allow a player to use his hand to spin a multifaceted game component along any
suitable
axis (e.g., the x- and/or y-axes as shown in FIG. 8). In an example in which
multiple
multifaceted game components are used, such game components may be spun by the
player at different speeds and/or different directions.
[00124] FIG. 9 shows another illustrative example of a pattern game in
which a
gesture input interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in
accordance with
some embodiments. In this example, a display shows a grid of 20 game
components
arranged in five columns and four rows. In some embodiments, one or more of
the game
components may be visually projected out of the display screen and into a 3D
space
between the screen and a player. In the example of FIG. 9, a game component
902 in the
form of a sphinx figure is so projected, and the player may be prompted to use
his hand
to virtually touch the game component 902 to trigger a bonus game. A gesture
input
interface such as one of those described in connection with FIG. 2B may be
used to
detect the player's hand movement (e.g., virtually touching the sphinx
figure's face) and
in response cause the bonus game to start.
[00125] FIG. 10 shows yet another illustrative example of a pattern game
in which
a gesture input interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in
accordance
with some embodiments. In this example, a game component 1002 in the form of a
treasure chest is visually projected out of the display screen and into a 3D
space between
the screen and a player. The player may be prompted to use his hand to
virtually open
the treasure chest to trigger a bonus feature. A gesture input interface such
as one of
those described in connection with FIG. 2B may be used to detect the player's
hand
movement (e.g., virtually lifting the lid of the treasure chest) and in
response cause
additional game components 1004 to be stacked on top of other displayed game
components, which may increase payout.
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[00126] FIGs. 11A-B show an illustrative example of a bonus game in
which a
gesture input interface may be used to enhance a player's experience, in
accordance with
some embodiments. In this example, the bonus game involves a player selecting
3D
symbols in the shape of stars (e.g., as shown in FIG. 11A). It should be
appreciated that
5 the use of stars is merely illustrative, as any other suitable symbols or
combinations of
symbols may also be used.
[00127] In some embodiments, the stars may be visually projected out of
the
display screen and may be moving in a 3D space between the screen and a
player. The
player may be prompted to use his hand to virtually capture one or more of the
stars. A
10 gesture input interface such as one of those described in connection
with FIG. 2B may be
used to detect the player's hand movement. The gaming system may be configured
to
determine whether the location of the player's hand matches the location of a
moving
star at some moment in time. If a match is detected, the gaming system may
determine
that the player has virtually caught a star and may display the star at a
separate portion of
15 the screen (e.g., as shown in FIG. 11B).
[00128] In some embodiments, the stars may be of different types, where
each
type may be of a different color, shape, size, etc. The player may win a prize
for
collecting a particular number of stars of the same type. For example, the
player may
need to collect five stars of a certain type to win a corresponding level. The
stars of a
20 higher level (e.g., a level associated with higher payout) may be
animated differently so
as to make them more difficult to capture. For example, such stars may move
more
quickly, take more turns, etc.
[00129] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to detect
a
physical object. In response to detecting the physical object, the gaming
system may
25 generate a model for a virtual object corresponding to the physical
object, and may use
the model to render a display of the virtual object. For example, the physical
object may
be a player's hand, and the virtual object may be a virtual hand corresponding
to the
player's hand. Other types of objects may also be detected, as aspects of the
present
disclosure are not limited to the detection of any particular type of object.
30 [00130] A physical object may be detected using any combination
of one or more
sensing techniques, including, but not limited, an optical camera-based
technique, an
infrared camera-based technique, a laser-based technique, and/or an ultrasound-
based
technique. For example, the gaming system may include one or more sensor
devices
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configured to detect the physical object and output sensor information
regarding one or
more characteristics of the physical object. In some embodiments, a sensor
device may
include one or more onboard processors configured to process raw sensor data
and
output processed information. As one example, an onboard processor may be
configured
to apply one or more signal processing techniques such as filtering and/or
noise
reduction. As another example, an onboard processor may be configured to
process
multiple sensor signals (e.g., from two or more different sensors in a sensor
array) and
output a derived signal (e.g., with improved signal quality and/or additional
information
such as depth information). However, it should be appreciated that aspects of
the present
disclosure are not limited to the use of an onboard processor, as in some
embodiments a
sensor device may output raw sensor data instead of, or in addition to,
processed
information.
[00131] A sensor device may be configured to detect any suitable
characteristic or
combination of characteristics of a physical object. As one example, a sensor
device
may be configured detect one or more geometric characteristics of the physical
object
(e.g., shape and/or size in 2D or 3D). As another example, a sensor device may
be
configured to output non-geometric information such as color and/or texture.
However,
it should be appreciated that aspects of the present disclosure are not
limited to the
detection of any particular characteristic, as a gaming system may be
configured to detect
any information about a physical object that may be useful in generating a
model for a
virtual object corresponding to the physical object.
[00132] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to use
information detected from a physical object to generate a model for a virtual
object so as
to replicate the physical object in a virtual environment. For instance, the
model for the
virtual object may be constructed so that the virtual object, when rendered on
a display,
exhibits one or more geometric and/or non-geometric characteristics of the
physical
object. As an example, the physical object may be a player's hand, and the
virtual object
may be a virtual hand that matches the detected physical hand in size, shape,
skin tone,
etc. As another example, the physical object may be a player's head, and the
virtual
object may be a virtual head that matches the detected physical head in size,
shape, facial
expression, gender, race, skin tone, hair style, hair color, etc. As yet
another example,
the physical object may be an inanimate object, such as a pen, cup, card, etc.
Such an
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object may, although need not, be held in a player's hand and placed into a
field of view
of a sensor device.
[00133] A model generated by a gaming system may have any suitable
number of
dimensions, such as 2D or 3D. Likewise, a virtual object may be displayed in
any
suitable number of dimensions, such as 2D or 3D. It should be appreciated that
the
display of a virtual object need not have the same dimensionality as a model
for the
virtual object. For example, the gaming system may generate a 3D model for the
virtual
object and use the 3D model to render a 2D display of the virtual object.
[00134] In some embodiments, an output from a sensor device may include
a
sequence of data sets. For instance, each data set may correspond to a
particular point in
time. A time stamp may, although need not, be provided for each data set.
Alternatively, or additionally, an absolute and/or relative time may be
derived for a data
set using information such as the sensor device's sampling rate.
[00135] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to track
one
or more aspects of a detected physical object over time. As one example, the
physical
object may be a player's hand, and the gaming system may be configured to
track
movement of the hand over time. For instance, the gaming system may be
configured to
recognize a point on the hand as a certain joint defined in a skeleton model,
and track
movement of the point over time. Alternatively, or additionally, the gaming
system may
be configured to recognize a segment between two points on the hand as a
certain bone
defined in a skeleton model, and track movement of the segment over time. Any
suitable
type of movement may be tracked, including, but not limited to, translational
movement,
rotational movement, and/or one or more transformations (e.g., opening and/or
closing of
the hand).
[00136] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to use
information detected from a physical object to update a model for a virtual
object so as to
replicate, in a virtual environment, the physical object's behavior. For
instance, the
model for the virtual object may be updated so that the virtual object, when
rendered on a
display, mimics one or more behaviors detected from the physical object.
[00137] As an example, the physical object may be a player's hand, and the
virtual
object may be a virtual hand. The gaming system may be configured to use
movement
information detected from the player's hand (e.g., tracked movement of one or
more
points, segments, etc.) to update the model for the virtual hand so that the
virtual hand
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mimics the movement of the physical hand (e.g., pointing, opening palm, etc.).
As
another example, the physical object may be a player's head, and the virtual
object may
be a virtual head. The gaming system may be configured to use movement
information
detected from the player's head (e.g., tracked movement of one or more facial
features)
to update the model for the virtual head so that the virtual head mimics the
movement of
the physical head (e.g., blinking, smiling, nodding, shaking, etc.).
[00138] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to match
a
detected physical object to an object type from multiple recognizable object
types. For
instance, the gaming system may be configured to match the physical object to
an object
type based on one or more geometric characteristics of the physical object. As
one
example, the gaming system may receive sensor information representing an
image of
the physical object and apply one or more image processing techniques (e.g.,
edge
detection) to determine a shape of the physical object (e.g., cube, sphere,
cylinder, disk,
etc.). The shape may then be compared against multiple known shapes to
identify one or
more best matches.
[00139] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to
generate a
model for a virtual object based on an object type of a physical object. For
instance, a
gaming system may be configured to match the physical object to an object type
from
multiple recognizable object types, and use the object type to identify a
suitable model
for the virtual object. Any suitable object types may be available, including,
but not
limited to, hand, wand, racket, club, bat, paddle, rod, card, and/or
smartphone. It should
be appreciated that a selected object type need not accurately represent a
detected
physical object. For instance, a gaming system may match a physical pen held
in a
player's hand to an object type of "wand."
[00140] In some embodiments, a gaming system may include one or more model
templates, for example, a different model template for each object type among
multiple
recognizable object types. The gaming system may be configured to select a
model
template based on an object type matching a detected physical object, and
instantiate the
selected template with one or more parameters obtained from sensor
information. For
instance, the physical object may be a player's hand and may be matched to an
object
type "human left hand" or "human right hand." A model template may be selected
accordingly, and may be instantiated based on one or more detected geometric
characteristics (e.g., distances between identified joints) and/or non-
geometric
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characteristics (e.g., skin tone). However, it should be appreciated that
aspects of the
present disclosure are not limited to the use of model templates, as in some
embodiments
a model for a virtual object may be generated without using any stored
template.
[00141] In some embodiments, a gaming system may be configured to detect
an
interaction between a virtual game component and a virtual object
corresponding to a
physical object. For example, the gaming system may be configured to detect
movement
of the physical object and update a model for the virtual object according to
the
movement of the physical object. In some embodiments, the gaming system may be
further configured to monitor the location of the virtual game component and
the
location of the virtual object, and to determine whether there is a collision
between the
virtual game component and the virtual object. For instance, the physical
object may be
a player's hand and the virtual object may be a virtual hand that mimics
movement of the
player's hand, and the virtual game component may be a virtual coin falling
from a
virtual coin fountain. The gaming system may be configured to monitor the
location of
the virtual coin and the location of the virtual hand, and to determine
whether the virtual
coin is going to hit the virtual hand.
[00142] In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to
associate
a vector field (e.g., a magnetic field) with a virtual object corresponding to
a physical
object. In this manner, a virtual game component moving towards the virtual
object may
change speed and/or direction as if being influenced by forces according to
the vector
field. As one example, the virtual game component may slow down (respectively,
speed
up) as if being pushed (respectively, pulled) by a greater and greater force
as the virtual
game component approaches the virtual object. For instance, the behavior may
be
similar to that between opposite magnetic poles (respectively, that between a
magnet and
iron filings), As another example, the virtual game component may stay
attached to the
virtual object after initial contact with the virtual object as if being
attracted by a magnet.
[00143] Additionally, or alternatively, the gaming system may be
configured to
associate a vector field (e.g., a magnetic field) with the virtual game
component. If the
virtual game component and the virtual object both have a vector field
associated there
to, the respective vector fields may be the same or different, and the virtual
game
component and the virtual object may behave according to interactions between
virtual
forces of the two vector fields.
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[00144] In some embodiments, the virtual game component may be a 3D
virtual
game component in a 3D scene of a game, and the virtual object may be a 3D
virtual
object. Accordingly, a vector field associated with the virtual game component
or the
virtual object may be a 3D vector field. However, aspects of the present
disclosure are
5 not limited to any particular dimensionality, as in some embodiments the
scene of the
game, the virtual game component, the virtual object, and/or the vector field
may be in
2D. It should also be appreciated that aspects of the present disclosure are
not limited to
the use of a vector field.
[00145] FIG. 12A shows an illustrative gaming system 1200. in accordance
with
10 some embodiments. In this example, the gaming system 1200 includes a
display 1205,
which may be a 2D or 3D display. The gaming system 1200 may be configured to
cause
the display 1205 to display a 2D or 3D scene of a game, such as an
illustrative roulette
game with a roulette wheel 1210 as shown in FIG. 12A, However, it should be
appreciated that aspects of the present disclosure are not so limited, as any
suitable game
15 may be displayed, such as any pattern game or card game.
[00146] In the example of FIG. 12A, the gaming system 1200 includes a
sensor
device (not shown) configured to detect objects within a field of view of the
sensor
device. Depending on a sensing technology used by the sensor device, a range
of
detection may be on the order of a few millimeters, centimeters, decimeters,
or meters.
20 Moreover, the field of view may be above, below, or at any suitable
angle relative to the
sensor device, In some embodiments, a player may place his hands 1215A and
1215B
within the field of view of the sensor, and the gaming system may be
configured to
process information output by the sensor device (e.g., coordinate information
for the
physical hands 1215A and 1215B), and render on the display 1205 virtual hands
1220A
25 and 1220B corresponding, respectively, to the physical hands 1215A and
1215B.
[00147] FIG. 12B shows the illustrative gaming system 1200 of FIG. 12A
at a
different point in time, in accordance with some embodiments. In this example,
the
player has moved his hands 1215A and 1215B so that the palms are pointing
down, as
opposing to pointing up as in FIG. 12A. The gaming system may be configured to
detect
30 such movements by processing information output by the sensor device
over time, and to
update models for the virtual hands 1220A and 1220B to mimic the movements of
the
physical hands 1215A and 1215B.
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[00148] It should be appreciated that the techniques described herein
are not
limited to being used in connection with the illustrative gaming system 1200
shown in
FIG. 12A-B. Any one or more of such techniques may be used in connection with
any
gaming system, including, but not limited to, the illustrative electronic
gaming machine
10 shown in FIG. 1A.
[00149] FIG. 13 shows a top view of an illustrative 3D gaming system
1300, in
accordance with some embodiments. In this example, the gaming system 1300
includes
a 3D display 1305 and is configured to cause the display 1305 to display one
or more 3D
game components within a 3D display region 1310. The display region 1310 may
extend
towards a player and/or behind the display 1305. For instance, a virtual ball
1315 may
appear to be hovering in front of the display 1305, when viewed from viewing
positions
1320A and 1320B (for the player's left eye and right eye, respectively).
[00150] In the example of FIG. 13, the gaming system 1300 includes
sensors
1325A and 1325B, which may be incorporated into a common housing, or may be
separately housed. The sensors 1325A and 1325B may use any suitable
combination of
one or more sensing techniques, including, but not limited to, optical,
thermal, radio,
and/or acoustic techniques. For example, each of the sensors 1325A and 1325B
may
include one or more emitters for emitting waves such as sound waves and/or
electromagnetic waves (e.g., visible light, infrared radiation, radio waves,
etc.), and/or
one or more detectors (e.g., cameras) for detecting waves that bounce back
from an
object.
[00151] The sensors 1325A and 1325B may be arranged in any suitable
manner.
For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the sensors 1325A and 1325B may be placed
between
the display 1305 and the player, so that a 3D field of view of the sensors
1325A and
1325B at least partially overlap with the display region 1310. In this manner,
the sensors
1325A and 1325B may -see" the player's hand 1330 when the player reaches into
the
display region 1310 to virtually touch the virtual ball 1315.
[00152] In some embodiments, the gaming system 1300 may be configured to
process information output by the sensors 1325A and 1325B (e.g., coordinate
information for the physical hand 1330) and generate a model for a virtual
hand based on
the sensor information. Rather than causing the virtual hand to be displayed
visibly, the
gaming system 1300 may, in some embodiments, simply use the model for the
virtual
hand to induce interactions with game components. For example, the locations
of the
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sensors 1325A and 1325B relative to the display 1305 may be known, and the
gaming
system 1300 may be configured to used that location information along with the
sensor
information to determine a location of the physical hand 1330 relative to the
display
1305. The virtual hand, although not visibly rendered, may be placed at the
same
location as the physical hand 1330. In this manner, the gaming system 1300 may
be able
to use techniques such as collision detection to allow the physical hand 1330
to interact
with one or more game components, such as the virtual ball 1315. For example,
the
player may move the physical hand 1330 towards the virtual ball 1315, and the
gaming
system 1300 may be configured to update the position of the virtual hand
accordingly.
When the physical hand 1330 reaches the virtual ball 1315, the virtual hand
may also
reach the virtual ball 1315, and a collision between the virtual hand and the
virtual ball
1315 may be detected.
[00153] In some embodiments, the gaming system 1300 may be configured to
activate a game rule or otherwise trigger an event in response to detecting an
interaction
between the virtual ball 1315 and the virtual hand. For instance, the gaming
system 1300
may be configured to update a model for the virtual ball 1315 so as to cause
one or more
changes in the appearance of the virtual ball 1315. As one example, the gaming
system
1300 may be configured to update the model for the virtual ball 1315 so that
an
indentation appears where the collision between the virtual ball 1315 and the
virtual hand
is detected. As another example, the gaming system 1300 may be configured to
update
the model for the virtual ball 1315 so that the virtual ball 1315 is deformed
as if being
squished. As another example, the gaming system 1300 may be configured to
update the
model for the virtual ball 1315 so that the virtual ball 1315 changes color.
The change in
color may take place uniformly over the virtual ball 1315, or with a gradation
(e.g.,
changing most drastically where the collision between the virtual ball 1315
and the
virtual hand is detected, and fading radially outward from that location).
[00154] In some embodiments, the gaming system 1300 may be configured to
update the model for the virtual ball 1315 so as to animate a change to the
appearance of
the virtual ball (e.g., size, shape, color, etc.). However, that is not
required, as in some
embodiments one or more changes may be shown instantaneously.
[00155] It should be appreciated that the specific example of a virtual
ball is
shown in FIG. 13 and discussed above solely for purposes of illustration, as
the
techniques described herein may be used to allow a player to interact with any
suitable
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game component in any suitable manner. As one example, a gaming system may
allow a
player to use his physical hand to push one or more virtual buttons, where a
virtual
button may be activated when the gaming system detects a collision between the
virtual
button and a virtual hand corresponding to the physical hand. The gaming
system may
be further configured to activate a game rule or otherwise trigger an event
when such a
collision is detected. Likewise, in some embodiments, a gaming system may
allow a
player to use his physical hand to pull one or more virtual levers (or turn
one or more
virtual knobs) by detecting a collision between the virtual level (or knob)
and one or
more fingers of a virtual hand corresponding to the physical hand, and/or
rotational
movement of the physical hand in a direction corresponding to the virtual
lever being
pulled (or the virtual knob being turned).
[00156] As another example, a gaming system may allow a player to use
his
physical hand to collect one or more virtual coins falling from a virtual coin
fountain,
where a virtual coin may be deemed to have been collected by the player when
the
gaming system detects a collision between the virtual coin and the palm of a
virtual hand
corresponding to the physical hand.
[00157] As another example, a gaming system may allow a player to use
his
physical hand to draw a virtual curtain by detecting a collision between the
virtual
curtain and one or more fingers of a virtual hand corresponding to the
physical hand,
and/or translational movement of the physical hand in a direction
corresponding to the
virtual curtain being opened or closed.
[00158] As another example, a gaming system may allow a player to use
his
physical hand to spin a virtual wheel of fortune by detecting a collision
between the
virtual wheel and one or more fingers of a virtual hand corresponding to the
physical
hand, and/or movement of the physical hand in a direction corresponding to the
virtual
wheel being spun. In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to
control the spinning of the virtual wheel according to a virtual acceleration
calculated
based on a detected acceleration of the physical hand. However, that is not
required, as
in some embodiments a virtual acceleration of the virtual wheel may be
randomly
determined.
[00159] As another example, a gaming system may allow a player to use
his
physical hand to move a virtual game component (e.g., a virtual 3D symbol) and
place
the game component at a designated location within a virtual scene of a game
(e.g., a
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virtual receptacle shaped to receive the virtual 3D symbol), by detecting a
collision
between the virtual game component and one or more fingers of a virtual hand
corresponding to the physical hand, and/or movement of the physical hand
consistent
with moving the virtual game component from a current location to the
designated
location.
[00160] As another example, a gaming system may allow a player to use
his
physical hand to move a physical object (e.g., a physical cube) and place the
physical
object at a designated location within a virtual scene of a game (e.g., where
a first virtual
cube shaped to match the physical cube is displayed). For instance, the gaming
system
may be configured to generate a model for a second virtual cube, and cause the
second
virtual cube to move in the virtual scene in a manner that matches detected
movement of
the physical cube. The gaming system may activate a game rule or otherwise
trigger an
event in response to detecting that the position and/or orientation of the
first virtual cube
matches that of the second virtual cube.
[00161] Another example, a gaming system may allow a player to use his
physical
hand to unlock a virtual lock using a physical object. For instance, in some
embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to detect a physical object
held in
the player's hand (e.g., pen, key, wand, etc.) and link the physical object to
a model of a
virtual key. As movement of the physical object is detected, the gaming system
may be
configured to update the model of the virtual key to mimic the movement of the
physical
object, such as being inserted into the virtual lock and/or turning.
[00162] Another example, a gaming system may allow a player to use his
physical
hand to unlock a virtual lock using a virtual key. For instance, in some
embodiments, the
gaming system may be configured to detect a collision between the virtual key
and one
or more fingers of a virtual hand corresponding to the physical hand, and/or
movement
of the physical hand corresponding to the virtual key being inserted into the
virtual lock
and/or turning.
[00163] It should be appreciated that in all of the examples discussed
above in
connection with FIG. 13, the virtual object corresponding to a detected
physical object
may be visible or invisible, as aspects of the represent disclosure are not so
limited.
Also, a location of the virtual object may or may not coincide with a location
of the
corresponding physical object.
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[00164] FIG. 14 shows an illustrative process 1400 that may be performed
by a
gaming system, in accordance with some embodiments. For example, the process
1400
may be performed by the illustrative gaming systems 1200 and 1300 described
above in
connection with FIGs. 12A-B and 13, respectively, to allow a player to
interact with one
5 or more virtual game components.
[00165] At act 1405, the gaming system may cause a scene of a wagering
game to
be displayed, for example, on a 3D display such as a thin film transistor
(TFT) display.
In some embodiments, the 3D display may be configured to cause a player to
visually
perceive one or more virtual game components in a display region (e.g., the
illustrative
10 display region 1310 shown in FIG. 13) that extends towards the player
and/or behind the
3D display.
[00166] At act 1410, the gaming system may update a model (e.g., a 3D
volumetric model) for a virtual object corresponding to a detected physical
object, such
as an anatomical feature of a player (e.g., hand, finger, etc.) or a tool held
by the player
15 (e.g., cup, pen, wand, baton, gavel, etc.). For example, the detected
physical object may
be a physical hand, and the model may be a skeleton model comprising a wrist
joint, a
palm, and/or one or more joints and/or bones for one or more fingers. However,
it
should be appreciated that aspects of the present disclosure are not limited
to the use of a
skeleton model, as in some embodiments a hand may be modeled as 3D body having
a
20 certain contour.
[00167] In some embodiments, the gaming system may receive information
from
one or more sensor devices (e.g., the illustrative sensors 1325A-1325B shown
in FIG.
13) and may use the received information to update the model for the virtual
object. For
example, the received information may indicate a location of the detected
physical
25 object. The location may be expressed in any suitable coordinate system
(e.g., Cartesian,
polar, spherical, cylindrical, etc.) with any suitable units of measurement
(e.g., inches,
centimeters, millimeters, etc.).
[00168] In some embodiments, multiple physical objects may be detected,
and the
received sensor information may indicate multiple corresponding locations. For
30 example, the game may be a multi-player game, and objects associated
respectively with
different players may be detected by a same sensor device or different sensor
devices.
[00169] It should be appreciated that location information is merely one
example
of information that may be received from a sensor device. Additionally, or
alternatively,
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a sensor device may provide information indicative of a non-geometric
characteristic of
the detected physical object, such as color and/or texture.
[00170] In some embodiments, updating the model of a virtual object may
include
updating a location occupied by the virtual object within the display region.
For
example, the gaming system may be configured to use information detected from
the
physical object to update the model for the corresponding virtual object so as
to replicate
the physical object's behavior. For instance, the model for the virtual object
may be
updated so that the virtual object mimics one or more behaviors detected from
the
physical object.
[00171] Returning to FIG. 14, the gaming system may, at act 1415, detect an
interaction between a virtual game component and a virtual object
corresponding to a
detected physical object. For instance, the gaming system may be configured to
monitor
the location of the virtual game component and the location of the virtual
object, and to
determine whether there is a collision between the virtual game component and
the
virtual object. As one example, the physical object may be a player's hand and
the
virtual object may be a virtual hand that mimics movement of the player's
hand, and the
virtual game component may be a virtual roulette ball. The gaming system may
be
configured to monitor the location of the virtual roulette ball and the
location of the
virtual hand, and to determine whether the virtual hand is picking up the
virtual roulette
ball. The gaming system may be further configured to monitor a movement of the
virtual
hand (which may mimic the movement detected from the physical hand) to
determine
whether and how the virtual hand is tossing the virtual roulette ball into a
roulette wheel.
For example, the gaming system may be configured to use a direction and/or
acceleration
of the virtual hand's movement to determine a trajectory and/or speed of the
virtual
roulette ball.
[00172] As another example, the virtual game component may include one
or
more virtual gaming chips. The gaming system may be configured to monitor the
location of the one or more virtual gaming chips and the location of the
virtual hand, and
to determine whether the virtual hand is moving the one or more virtual gaming
chips,
which may indicate that the player intends to place a bet. In some
embodiments, the
gaming system may be configured to monitor the movement of the virtual hand
(which
may mimic the movement detected from the physical hand) to determine where the
one
or more virtual gaming chips are being moved, which may indicate on what the
player is
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placing the bet (e.g., one or more numbers in a roulette game). In some
embodiments,
the gaming system may be configured to determine how many virtual gaming chips
are
being moved by the virtual hand, which may indicate an amount of the player's
bet.
[00173] At act 1420, the gaming system may cause one or more actions to
be
taken in the wagering game based on the interaction detected at act 1415. For
instance,
in the roulette wheel example discussed above in connection with act 1415, an
action
may include a bet being placed on behalf of the player on a number, and in an
amount,
determined at act 1415. As another example, the wagering game may be a
juggling
game in which the player is to toss multiple virtual objects in the air and
catch the virtual
objects as the objects fall back down. The gaming system may be configured to
detect
collisions between virtual hands corresponding respectively to the player's
left and right
hands to determine a number of times the player successfully tosses and/or
catches a
virtual object, and an action may include awarding a number of points to the
player
according to the number of times the player successfully tosses and/or catches
a virtual
.. object.
[00174] In some embodiments, the gaming system may be configured to
update
the display of the wagering game based on the action taken in the act 1420.
Updating the
display may include changing an appearance of a virtual object in an existing
scene (e.g.,
spinning a wheel, turning over a card, etc.). Updating the display may also
include
generating a new scene, for example, by generating a new 3D mesh.
[00175] It should be appreciated that the process 1400 shown in FIG. 14
and
described above are provided solely for purposes of illustration, as aspects
of the present
disclosure are not limited to the performance of any particular act or
combination of acts
described herein. As one example, the wagering game may be a multi-player rock-
.. paper-scissors game (e.g., as a bonus game), and the gaming system may be
configured
to detect each player's hand gesture and update a model for a respective
virtual hand.
The gaming system may be configured to match each player's hand gesture to one
of
three patterns, "rock," "paper," or "scissors," and to determine which, if
any, player is a
winner. There may be no interaction between a virtual hand and virtual game
component. However, the virtual hand associated with a player may be displayed
to one
or more other players. In this manner, the rock-paper-scissors game may be
played
between players who may not be able to see each other (e.g., because the
players are
playing from different locations). As another example, the wagering game may
be a
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music-related game in which a player is to clap his hands to a rhythm to win a
prize. The
gaming system may be configured to detect collisions between virtual hands
corresponding respectively to the player's left and right hands to determine
how well the
player is able to match the rhythm. In some embodiments, the prize amount may
vary
depending on a complexity of the rhythm and/or the player's performance.
[00176] FIG. 15 illustrates an example of a visual illusion that may be
created by a
gaming system, in accordance with some embodiments. In this example, a player
is
using his hand 1505 to hold a physical cup 1510. The physical cup 1510 may be
within a
field of view of a sensor device of the gaming system, and the gaming system
may be
configured to detect the present of the physical cup 1510 based on the sensor
device's
output, and create a model for a virtual cup, for example, using one or more
of the
techniques described above in connection with FIGs. 13-14. The gaming system
may be
further configured to position the virtual cup at a same location as the
physical cup 1510,
and to move the virtual cup according to a detected movement of the physical
cup 1510.
[00177] In some embodiments, the gaming system may detect an interaction
between the virtual cup and a virtual game component, such as a virtual sphere
1515.
The gaming system may be configured to adjust an appearance of the virtual
sphere 1515
based on the detected interaction, for example, by making the virtual sphere
1515
gradually disappear as if being scooped up by a cup. The virtual cup may be
made
invisible, so as to create an illusion of the virtual sphere 1515 being
scooped up by the
physical cup 1510. Other virtual game components may also be used, in addition
to, or
instead of the virtual sphere 1515, such as virtual coins.
[00178] FIG. 16A shows an illustrative gaming system 1600 comprising at
least
two displays and at least two sensor devices, in accordance with some
embodiments. For
example, the gaming system may include two electronic gaming machines
configured to
communicate with each other, where each electronic gaming machine includes at
least
one display (shown as 1605 and 1610, respectively, in FIG. 16A) and at least
one sensor
device (not shown). The two electronic gaming machines may, although need not,
be
placed side by side.
[00179] In the example shown in FIG. 16A, the two electronic gaming
machines
may be used by two different players. For instance, a first player may place
his hand
1615 into a field of view of the sensor device of the first electronic gaming
machine,
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while a second player may place his hand 1620 into a field of view of the
sensor device
of the second electronic gaming machine.
[00180] In some embodiments, the two electronic gaming machines may be
configured to allow the two players to participate in a multi-player game. For
example,
the first electronic gaming machine may be configured to detect an interaction
between a
virtual game component (e.g., a virtual ball 1625), and to create a virtual
hand to mimic
movement of the physical hand 1615. For example, the first electronic gaming
machine
may be configured to detect that the physical hand 1615 is moving as if
attempting to
toss the virtual ball 1625. The first electronic gaming machine may be
configured to
determine a trajectory and/or speed of the virtual ball 1625 and transmit that
information
to the second electronic gaming machine. The second electronic gaming machine
may
display the virtual ball 1625 as if the virtual ball 1625 was tossed from the
first electronic
gaming machine over to the second electronic gaming machine, for example, as
shown in
FIG. 16B. The first electronic gaming machine, on the other hand, may show the
virtual
ball 1625 disappearing as if being tossed outside a display region of the
display 1605.
[00181] Any suitable game action may result from a virtual game
component
being "tossed" from one machine to another. For example, an equal reward may
be
given to each of the two players. Alternatively, a greater reward may be given
to the first
player who tossed the virtual game component than to the second player who
received
the virtual game component, or vice versa.
[00182] It should be appreciated that the multi-player game described
above in
connection with FIGs. 16A-B are provided solely for purposes of illustration,
as the
techniques disclosed herein are not limited to being used with any particular
game. For
example, the two electronic gaming machines may be used to play a game in
which a
first player manipulates a series of virtual game components (e.g., by pushing
one or
more of the virtual game components and/or pulling one or more of the virtual
game
components), and the second player is to perform the same sequence of
manipulations to
obtain a reward.
[00183] In some embodiments, a multiple-player game may be played on a
single
machine. For instance, with reference to the example shown in FIGs. 16A-B, the
hands
1615 and 1620 may be placed into the field of view of the sensor device of the
first
electronic gaming machine, which may be configured to allow the hands 1615 and
1620
to interact with one or more game components at the same time. For example,
the two
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players may toss a game component back and forth, or the first player may toss
a game
component towards a receptacle such as a pot, while the second player may
attempt to
block the game component from entering the pot.
[00184] FIG. 17 shows an illustrative gaming system 1700 comprising at
least two
5 displays and at least two sensor devices, in accordance with some
embodiments. The
gaming system 1700 may be similar to the gaming system 1600 shown in FIG. 16.
In
some embodiments, the two electronic gaming machines may be placed back to
back, or
at different locations. The first electronic gaming machine may be configured
to detect
movement of a first player's hand 1705A and transmit information to the second
10 electronic gaming machine to allow the second electronic gaming machine
to create a
virtual hand 1705B that mimics the movement of the physical hand 1705A.
Likewise,
the second electronic gaming machine may be configured to detect movement of a
second player's hand 1710A and transmit information to the first electronic
gaming
machine to allow the first electronic gaming machine to create a virtual hand
1710B that
15 mimics the movement of the physical hand 1710A. In this manner, when the
physical
hand 1705A pushes a virtual game component away from the first player, the
second
player may see the virtual game component being pushed towards the second
player. In
some embodiments, both players may get points if both players push on the same
virtual
game component at the same time.
20 [00185] In some embodiments, a multi-player game may be played on
multiple
electronic gaming machines. A player may interact with a virtual game
component on
that player's machine, and a result of the interaction (e.g., a change in
appearance of the
virtual game component) may be shown at one or more other machines. This
technique
may be used, for example, during a bonus game to allow one player to give a
hint to
25 another player, or to influence an outcome of the bonus game. As another
example, a
multi-player poker game may be played on multiple electronic gaming machines,
in
which each player may hold a respective hand of virtual cards, tilt his hand
to look at the
virtual cards, push chips towards the center of a virtual table to place a
bet, etc.
Moreover, in some embodiments, each player may see the chips and/or cards of
the other
30 players.
[00186] In some embodiments, a gaming system may include an optical
sensor
such as a barcode (or QR code) reader. A player may place a card, such as a
scratch
card, having a barcord (or QR code) within a field of view of the barcode (or
QR code)
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reader. The gaming system may be configured to process the information read
from the
code, for example, to determine if the code represents a winning combination.
If it is
determined that the code represents a winning combination, the gaming system
may
create a virtual card and integrate the virtual card into a scene of a game.
Additionally,
or alternatively, the gaming system may initiate a bonus playoff, where the
information
read from the card may be used to select a type of bonus playoff and/or one or
more
bonus rules.
[00187] It should be appreciated that the various concepts disclosed
above may be
implemented in any of numerous ways, as the concepts are not limited to any
particular
manner of implementation. For instance, the present disclosure is not limited
to the
particular arrangements of components shown in the various figures, as other
arrangements may also be suitable. Such examples of specific implementations
and
applications are provided solely for illustrative purposes.
[00188] FIG. 7 shows an illustrative example of a computing system
environment
700 in which various inventive aspects of the present disclosure may be
implemented.
This computing system may be representative of a computing system that allows
a
suitable control system to implement the described techniques. However, it
should be
appreciated that the computing system environment 700 is only one example of a
suitable computing environment and is not intended to suggest any limitation
as to the
scope of use or functionality of the described embodiments. Neither should the
computing environment 700 be interpreted as having any dependency or
requirement
relating to any one or combination of components illustrated in the
illustrative operating
environment 700.
[00189] The embodiments are operational with numerous other general
purpose or
special purpose computing system environments or configurations. Examples of
well-
known computing systems, environments, and/or configurations that may be
suitable for
use with the described techniques include, but are not limited to, personal
computers,
server computers, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessor systems,
microprocessor-
based systems, set top boxes, programmable consumer electronics, network PCs,
minicomputers, mainframe computers, distributed computing environments that
include
any of the above systems or devices, and the like.
[00190] The computing environment may execute computer-executable
instructions, such as program modules. Generally, program modules include
routines,
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programs, objects, components, data structures, etc., that perform particular
tasks or
implement particular abstract data types. The embodiments may also be
practiced in
distributed computing environments where tasks are performed by remote
processing
devices that are linked through a communications network. In a distributed
computing
environment, program modules may be located in both local and remote computer
storage media including memory storage devices.
[00191] With reference to FIG. 7, an illustrative system for
implementing the
described techniques includes a general purpose computing device in the form
of a
computer 710. Components of computer 710 may include, but are not limited to,
a
processing unit 720, a system memory 730, and a system bus 721 that couples
various
system components including the system memory to the processing unit 720. The
system bus 721 may be any of several types of bus structures including a
memory bus or
memory controller, a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety of
bus
architectures. By way of example, and not limitation, such architectures
include Industry
Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus,
Enhanced
ISA (EISA) bus, Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and
Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus also known as Mezzanine bus.
[00192] Computer 710 typically includes a variety of computer readable
media.
Computer readable media can be any available media that can be accessed by
computer
.. 710 and includes both volatile and nonvolatile media, removable and non-
removable
media. By way of example, and not limitation, computer readable media may
comprise
computer storage media and communication media. Computer storage media
includes
both volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented
in any
method or technology for storage of information such as computer readable
instructions,
data structures, program modules or other data. Computer storage media
includes, but is
not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-
ROM, digital versatile disks (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic
cassettes,
magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any
other
medium which can be used to store the desired information and which can
accessed by
computer 710. Communication media typically embodies computer readable
instructions,
data structures, program modules or other data in a modulated data signal such
as a
carrier wave or other transport mechanism and includes any information
delivery media.
The term "modulated data signal" means a signal that has one or more of its
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characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in
the signal.
By way of example, and not limitation, communication media includes wired
media such
as a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as
acoustic, RF,
infrared and other wireless media. Combinations of the any of the above should
also be
.. included within the scope of computer readable media.
[00193] The system memory 730 includes computer storage media in the
form of
volatile and/or nonvolatile memory such as read only memory (ROM) 731 and
random
access memory (RAM) 732. A basic input/output system 733 (BIOS), containing
the
basic routines that help to transfer information between elements within
computer 710,
such as during start-up, is typically stored in ROM 731. RAM 732 typically
contains
data and/or program modules that are immediately accessible to and/or
presently being
operated on by processing unit 720. By way of example, and not limitation,
FIG. 7
illustrates operating system 734, application programs 735, other program
modules 736,
and program data 737.
[00194] The computer 710 may also include other removable/non-removable,
volatile/nonvolatile computer storage media. By way of example only, FIG. 7
illustrates
a hard disk drive 741 that reads from or writes to non-removable, nonvolatile
magnetic
media, a magnetic disk drive 751 that reads from or writes to a removable,
nonvolatile
magnetic disk 752, and an optical disk drive 755 that reads from or writes to
a
removable, nonvolatile optical disk 756 such as a CD ROM or other optical
media.
Other removable/non-removable, volatile/nonvolatile computer storage media
that can be
used in the illustrative operating environment include. but are not limited
to, magnetic
tape cassettes, flash memory cards, digital versatile disks, digital video
tape, solid state
RAM, solid state ROM, and the like. The hard disk drive 741 is typically
connected to
the system bus 721 through a non-removable memory interface such as interface
740,
and magnetic disk drive 751 and optical disk drive 755 are typically connected
to the
system bus 721 by a removable memory interface, such as interface 750.
[00195] The drives and their associated computer storage media discussed
above
and illustrated in FIG. 7 provide storage of computer readable instructions,
data
structures, program modules and other data for the computer 710. In FIG. 7,
for
example, hard disk drive 741 is illustrated as storing operating system 744,
application
programs 745, other program modules 746, and program data 747. Note that these
components can either be the same as or different from operating system 734,
application
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programs 735, other program modules 736, and program data 737. Operating
system
744, application programs 745, other program modules 746, and program data 747
are
given different numbers here to illustrate that, at a minimum, they are
different copies. A
user may enter commands and information into the computer 710 through input
devices
such as a keyboard 762 and pointing device 761, commonly referred to as a
mouse,
trackball or touch pad. Other input devices (not shown) may include a
microphone,
joystick, game pad, satellite dish, scanner, touchscreen, or the like. These
and other
input devices are often connected to the processing unit 720 through a user
input
interface 760 that is coupled to the system bus, but may be connected by other
interface
and bus structures, such as a parallel port, game port or a universal serial
bus (USB). A
monitor 791 or other type of display device is also connected to the system
bus 721 via
an interface, such as a video interface 790. In addition to the monitor,
computers may
also include other peripheral output devices such as speakers 797 and printer
796, which
may be connected through an output peripheral interface 795.
[00196] The computer 710 may operate in a networked environment using
logical
connections to one or more remote computers, such as a remote computer 780.
The
remote computer 780 may be a personal computer, a server, a router, a network
PC, a
peer device or other common network node, and typically includes many or all
of the
elements described above relative to the computer 710, although only a memory
storage
device 781 has been illustrated in FIG. 7. The logical connections depicted in
FIG. 7
include a local area network (LAN) 771 and a wide area network (WAN) 773, but
may
also include other networks. Such networking environments are commonplace in
offices,
enterprise-wide computer networks, intranets and the Internet.
[00197] When used in a LAN networking environment, the computer 710 is
connected to the LAN 771 through a network interface or adapter 770. When used
in a
WAN networking environment, the computer 710 typically includes a modem 772 or
other means for establishing communications over the WAN 773, such as the
Internet.
The modem 772, which may be internal or external, may be connected to the
system bus
721 via the user input interface 760, or other appropriate mechanism. In a
networked
environment, program modules depicted relative to the computer 710, or
portions
thereof, may be stored in the remote memory storage device. By way of example,
and
not limitation, FIG. 7 illustrates remote application programs 785 as residing
on memory
device 781. It will be appreciated that the network connections shown are
illustrative
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and other means of establishing a communications link between the computers
may be
used.
[00198] The above-described embodiments can be implemented in any of
numerous ways. For example, the embodiments may be implemented using hardware,
5 software or a combination thereof When implemented in software, the
software code
can be executed on any suitable processor or collection of processors, whether
provided
in a single computer or distributed among multiple computers. It should be
appreciated
that any component or collection of components that perform the functions
described
above can be generically considered as one or more controllers that control
the above-
10 .. discussed functions. The one or more controllers can be implemented in
numerous ways,
such as with dedicated hardware, or with general purpose hardware (e.g., one
or more
processors) that is programmed using microcode or software to perform the
functions
recited above.
[00199] In this respect, it should be appreciated that one
implementation
15 .. comprises at least one processor-readable storage medium (i.e., at least
one tangible,
non-transitory processor-readable medium, e.g., a computer memory (e.g., hard
drive,
flash memory, processor working memory, etc.), a floppy disk, an optical disc,
a
magnetic tape, or other tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium)
encoded
with a computer program (i.e., a plurality of instructions), which, when
executed on one
20 or more processors, performs at least the above-discussed functions. The
processor-
readable storage medium can be transportable such that the program stored
thereon can
be loaded onto any computer resource to implement functionality discussed
herein. In
addition, it should be appreciated that the reference to a computer program
which, when
executed, performs above-discussed functions, is not limited to an application
program
25 running on a host computer. Rather, the term "computer program" is used
herein in a
generic sense to reference any type of computer code (e.g., software or
microcode) that
can be employed to program one or more processors to implement above-discussed
functionality.
[00200] The phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose
of
30 description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of
"including,"
"comprising," "having," "containing," "involving," and variations thereof, is
meant to
encompass the items listed thereafter and additional items. Use of ordinal
terms such as
"first," "second," "third," etc., in the claims to modify a claim element does
not by itself
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connote any priority, precedence, or order of one claim element over another
or the
temporal order in which acts of a method are performed. Ordinal terms are used
merely
as labels to distinguish one claim element having a certain name from another
element
having a same name (but for use of the ordinal term), to distinguish the claim
elements.
[00201] Having described several embodiments of the invention, various
modifications and improvements will readily occur to those skilled in the art.
Such
modifications and improvements are intended to be within the spirit and scope
of the
invention. Accordingly, the foregoing description is by way of example only,
and is not
intended as limiting. The invention is limited only as defined by the
following claims
and the equivalents thereto.
[00202] What is claimed is:
