Amusement devices: games – Including means for processing electronic data – In a chance application
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-29
2003-03-25
Sager, Mark (Department: 3714)
Amusement devices: games
Including means for processing electronic data
In a chance application
C463S025000, C463S042000, C463S020000, C273S138200, C273S269000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06537150
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to the field of gaming, and provides a system and method which enhances the entertainment value of a game. The invention is especially adapted for use with, but not necessarily limited to, lottery-based games.
Conventional gaming machines employ direct mapping between the symbols displayed to the player, and the award paid out. As used in this specification, the term “direct mapping” means that the system first determines the displayed symbol, and then maps that symbol to an award level. A simple example of a conventional direct-mapped gaming machine is an ordinary mechanical slot machine. The slot machine contains a plurality of wheels, each wheel bearing a set of symbols. The configuration of symbols on each wheel determines a probability of obtaining any particular combination of symbols when playing the machine. Each combination is mapped, or associated with, an award. The machine includes, implicitly or explicitly, a “pay table” which shows the award associated with each combination. When a player achieves a given combination, the machine maps that combination to the appropriate award (which may be zero), and pays the player accordingly.
The above-described mechanical slot machine can be replaced by an electronic version, but the principle of operation is still the same. Through appropriate random number generators, the machine derives a combination of symbols, and this combination is mapped directly to an award which is then paid to the player.
The direct-mapped systems of the prior art have several disadvantages. First, the games have limited variety. A conventional mechanical or electronic slot machine can function in essentially one way only, and the games playable on such machines tend to become boring to the player. Secondly, some direct-mapped systems of the prior art allow little or no opportunity for a player to exercise a degree of skill. In the example of the slot machine, the player has no role in the determination of the eventual award, other than by inserting money and pushing a button to operate the machine.
A third disadvantage of the direct-mapped systems of the prior art relates to legal requirements. Some jurisdictions permit only gaming devices which function as lotteries, i.e. games in which there is a finite pool of prizes from which to draw. A pure slot machine, of the type which spins a set of wheels (either mechanical or virtual) to obtain a combination of symbols, is not a true lottery, as described above, because the number of potential prizes of a particular category is, at least in theory, unlimited. While a direct-mapped system can be used with a true lottery, such systems are difficult to implement, at least in part because the probability of each possible outcome changes as the pool of awards is depleted, and this changing probability must be appropriately modeled by the system.
Another disadvantage of systems of the prior art results from legal restrictions on “bonus” awards. Some jurisdictions effectively limit the use of bonus or secondary event awards, by requiring that such awards not be counted in determining the net payout of a gaming device. These rules tend to limit the flexibility available to the designer of a game. The reverse-mapped system of the present invention provides more flexibility, and can be more easily tailored to comply with local regulations while still providing a varied and entertaining game, through the use of bonus and secondary event simulations that are reverse-mapped from pre-determined award outcomes.
It has been known to provide a lottery-type game which includes a pool of a fixed number of plays, all having pre-selected winning and losing outcomes. U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,035, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein, describes such a system. Due to the fact that all of the outcomes and displays are pre-selected, the entertainment value of the game is limited. Such games also do not lend themselves to the application of skill in determining the outcome.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,494,197, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein, discloses an electronic lottery system. In one embodiment, the latter system simulates a bowling game, and presents a display to the player corresponding to a winning or losing play, depending on whether the system has electronically selected a win or a loss. The latter system, however, is limited in the variety of games that can be constructed. Also, the patented system does not provide a convenient means for incorporating an element of player skill into the game, or for providing one or more bonus awards to players. The present invention comprises a substantial improvement over the above-described patents.
The present invention provides a gaming system and method which solves all of the problems mentioned above. The system of the present invention provides games which are more exciting, and more varied, as perceived by the player. The present invention makes it more feasible to incorporate aspects of skill into the play. The invention also makes it possible to provide multiple award sequences. simulated secondary awards, and/or bonus awards to players. The present invention provides games which can be easily modified, by simple software changes only, to change the character of the games. Finally, the present invention is especially suitable for use with lottery-type games, and is therefore suitable for use in jurisdictions which require finite pools of awards in a gaming system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention comprises a gaming system and method in which the outcome of a play is determined first, and then the outcome is mapped to a symbol suitable for display to the player. The method is called “reverse mapping” because the outcome is determined first, and is then associated with, or mapped to, a symbol which corresponds to that outcome. In most cases, the outcome can be reverse-mapped to any one of a plurality of symbol combinations, so the mapping function is, in general, not one-to-one.
The invention can be practiced with lottery-type games, or with other games. An example of a non-lottery game, which, by definition, uses an infinite “pool” of awards, could be an electronic slot machine. In the latter case, the system determines an outcome, without depleting any pool of awards, using a predetermined probability distribution. The system then reverse-maps that outcome to a symbol combination which is displayed to the player. If each of a plurality of symbols corresponds to the same outcome, then the system must choose randomly among them, to determine which symbol is to be displayed. Because the “pool” is not depleted, the probability of obtaining a particular award does not change from play to play.
When using the present invention in a lottery-type game, having a finite pool of awards, the system chooses a game set element from the finite pool. Each game set element is coded for a particular award, and/or for a bonus award, so the choice of the game set element determines what award can be won by the player. Then, the system associates (reverse-maps) that award with a symbol to be displayed to the player, consistent with the value of the award. For each play, the game set element is withdrawn from the pool, so the probability of selecting a particular game set element in the pool varies from play to play. By contrast, in a game which uses an infinite game set, a game set element is selected randomly for each play, and the probability of selecting a particular game set element does not vary from play to play.
The reverse-mapped game can be combined with an element of skill to provide an even more varied and entertaining game. For example, in a lottery-type game based on video poker, the system selects a game set element, from a pool, the game set element representing a “best” hand achievable by the player on that particular play. The system deals cards to the player, and gives the player the chance to hold or replace each card, according to the rules of poker. If the player chooses an o
Bertram William K.
Luciano Robert A.
Ashburn Steven
Marsden Russ F.
Sager Mark
Sierra Design Group
Velasco Jonathan T.
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