Amusement devices: games – Including means for processing electronic data – In a chance application
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-16
2002-11-12
Harrison, Jessica (Department: 3713)
Amusement devices: games
Including means for processing electronic data
In a chance application
C463S016000, C463S017000, C463S019000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06478677
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates primarily to a live or electronic video keno game, and more particularly to a live or electronic video keno game in which the player wagers on what the final numerical total of the twenty selected numbers will be.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Keno is a well known game and has been played in gaming establishments for many years. In conventional keno, there are eighty numbers in the pool of numbers that may be drawn in any one round of the game. In the typical keno game, eighty keno balls are numbered 1 through 80 and are placed in an air blower device that circulates the keno balls. Twenty of the eighty keno balls are selected each game.
Each player marks a keno ticket that is a 10×8 matrix having ten columns and eight rows. The keno numbers from one through eighty are printed on the keno ticket with each number having its own numbered spot. Prior to the start of a round of the keno game, a player selects between one and fifteen numbered spots that the player thinks will be drawn during the game. Typically a player uses a crayon-like pencil to mark the numbered spots he wishes to play on his keno ticket and the player takes his marked keno ticket to a keno station. The player makes an appropriate wager and turns in his marked keno ticket and the money at the keno station. The player receives back a stamped and receipted ticket showing the amount of the player's wager and the numbered spots that the player has selected.
The keno game operator then proceeds to draw twenty numbers from the eighty keno balls. Depending on the number of matches between the twenty numbers drawn and the numbered spots selected by the player, the player wins or loses. The more numbers that match, the higher the payoff to the player.
In a live keno game, multiple players participate each game and no players may win, some players may win or all players may win. In traditional live keno, players may select between one and fifteen numbers and wagers can range from as little as 35¢ a game to $5, $10 or even higher dollars per game. Typically each establishment operating a keno game will provide a group of payout charts showing the amount that it is possible for the player to win based on the amount wagered, the number of numbered spots selected by the player and the number of matches achieved by the player when the twenty keno balls are selected. For example, if the player wagers $1 and selects one number, the player will typically win $3 if his selected numbered spot is one of the twenty numbered keno balls drawn during the play of the game. Similarly, if the player selects fifteen numbers, the player will typically be paid if anywhere between a total of eight and fifteen of his numbered spots match the twenty numbered keno balls drawn. The highest payout will be made for matching fifteen out of fifteen, with lower payouts made for matching fourteen out of fifteen, thirteen out of fifteen and so on down to eight out of fifteen. Any matches of seven or less are typically losing plays. Similar payout schemes are provided when the player marks between one and fifteen numbered spots during any round of a keno game.
When the player plays an electronic video keno gaming machine, a single player plays against the keno gaming machine for each round of the game and the player either wins or loses each round. The player wagers a coin, token or credit and selects the quantity of numbered spots that the player is attempting to match during that round of the game. All eighty numbers are displayed on a video screen with a 10×8 matrix similar to that of a keno ticket. The numbers are selected by the player using by a light pen, or by pressing the numbers on a selection panel or by touching the numbers selected using conventional touch screen technology.
In the typical electronic keno format, the player may select between one and ten numbered spots to attempt to match. After the player has completed selecting the numbered spots that the player wishes to match and has made the appropriate wager, the player presses the “Start” button. This causes the electronic controls of the gaming machine to randomly select twenty numbers from the pool of eighty numbers and the selected numbers are displayed to the player. The electronic controls of the gaming machine determine whether the player has achieved a winning payout at the conclusion of each round of the game. Just as in live keno, the player wins when he matches all or a predetermined minimum number of his selected numbered spots. If the player matches less than the predetermined minimum number of his selected numbered spots, then the player loses his wager. Payouts are made by accruing credits on the credit meter of the gaming machine or dispensing coins or tokens into a payout tray.
The basic principles of the play of keno are set out in Scarne's New Complete Guide to Gambling, by John Scarne, at pages 490-499.
Variations of keno have been presented on electronic gaming machines used in casinos. In a game known as “Top/Bottom Keno”, the player wagers on either the keno numbers 1-40, which are in the top number section on a keno display, or the numbers 41-80, which are in the bottom number section on a keno display. The traditional twenty keno numbers are drawn electronically and the selected numbers are highlighted on the keno display. At the conclusion of drawing the numbers, the amount of numbers drawn that are in the top section and in the bottom section are displayed. The player wins or loses based on how many numbers are in the section (either the top section or the bottom) that the player chose at the start of the game. For example, if all twenty numbers chosen are in the top section (and therefore there are no numbers chosen in the bottom section), the player wins a large payout such as 5000-for-1 odds on the amount of the players wager. If there are ten numbers in the top section and ten numbers in the bottom section, the player loses. A pay table is displayed to the player showing the various odds payouts depending on how many numbers are selected in the top section and the bottom section, respectively.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,108,089 (Wood) discloses a lottery summing game in which the numerical total of the numbers drawn in the lottery is summed and the player wagers on what the numerical total will be. The player is provided with a wagering slip upon which the player marks which numerical totals the player thinks the selected lottery numbers will total. The wagering slip shows various winning number groups from which the player may select one, some or all of the wagering number groups with each wagering number group requiring a separate wager. Each wagering number group has its associated payout odds. As disclosed in this patent, the pool of lottery numbers range from 0 to 9 and there are three groups of lottery numbers, with one number being drawn from each group. The three lottery numbers are drawn and the numerical value of the drawn lottery numbers is totaled. This final sum total is then compared to the player slips and any player who has selected the correct final sum total is a winner. A winning player is awarded odds based on the amount of his wager depending on what the final sum total is. The odds range from 250-for-1 down to 1.75-for-1. Other betting possibilities are disclosed, such as wagering that all three numbers are odd; all three numbers are even; two numbers are odd and one number is even; or two numbers are even and one number is odd.
The drawback of this method of play in the Wood 089 patent is that the player is limited to a very narrow range of possible winning combinations and the pool of numbers from which the numbers are drawn is quite small.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved keno game that offers the player the opportunity to win large payouts depending on what the final numerical total of the selected keno numbers is when all of the selected keno numbers are added up.
It is a feature of the present invention to provide a plurality of ranges of numerical totals that
Cherubin Yveste
Harrison Jessica
Roethel John Edward
LandOfFree
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