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Gaming machine virtual player tracking and related servicesRelated Patent Categories: Amusement Devices: Games, Including Means For Processing Electronic Data (e.g., Computer/video Game, Etc.), With Communication Link (e.g., Television Broadcast, Etc.), Network Type (e.g., Computer Network, Etc.)Gaming machine virtual player tracking and related services description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070178970, Gaming machine virtual player tracking and related services. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
RELATED APPLICATION DATA [0001] This application claims priority under U.S.C. 120 and is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/642,192, titled "GAMING MACHINE VIRTUAL PLAYER TRACKING AND RELATED SERVICES," filed Aug. 18, 2000, which is incorporated by reference and for all purposes. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] This invention relates to game playing services for gaming machines such as slot machines and video poker machines. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods of providing player tracking game services to casinos and game players. [0003] There are a wide variety of associated devices that can be connected to a gaming machine such as a slot machine or video poker machine. Some examples of these devices are lights, ticket printers, card readers, speakers, bill validators, ticket readers, coin acceptors, display panels, key pads, coin hoppers and button pads. Many of these devices are installed within the gaming machine or components associated with the gaming machine such as a top box which usually sits on top of the gaming machine. [0004] Typically, utilizing a master gaming controller, the gaming machine controls various combinations of devices that allow a player to play a game on the gaming machine and also encourage game play on the gaming machine. For example, a game played on a gaming machine usually requires a player to input money or indicia of credit into the gaming machine, indicate a wager amount, and initiate a game play. These steps require the gaming machine to control input devices, including bill validators and coin acceptors, to accept money into the gaming machine and recognize user inputs from devices, including touch screens and button pads, to determine the wager amount and initiate game play. After game play has been initiated, the gaming machine determines a game outcome, presents the game outcome to the player and may dispense an award of some type depending on the outcome of the game. [0005] For gaming machine operators, an important aspect of gaming machine operations is determining the game playing habits of individual game players. When the game playing habits of an individual player are known, the gaming machine operator may provide incentives corresponding to the game playing habits of the individual game player to encourage additional game play. For example, the gaming machine operator may provide an individual player with coupons for free meals, free rooms or discounted game play depending on their game playing habits. The game playing habits of individual game players are typically determined by monitoring game usage on a gaming machine using a player tracking device. [0006] Currently, player tracking devices are manufactured as separate units before installation into a gaming machine. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a gaming machine with a player tracking unit connected to a server providing player tracking services. A top box 130 is mounted on top of the main cabinet of the gaming machine. The player tracking unit 120 is mounted within the main cabinet of the gaming machine 100. However, the player tracking unit is usually mounted within the top box 130. The player tracking unit 120 is connected via the device connections 130 to three player tracking devices, a card reader 115, a key pad 110, and a display 105, all mounted within the top box 130. The gaming machine is connected to two servers, 150 and 155, via the network connections 140 and 145. The player tracking unit communicates with the player tracking server 150 via the network connections 140. The gaming machine communicates with the slot accounting server 155, independently of the player tracking unit 120, via the network connections 145 using a communication protocol of some type [0007] The player tracking unit 120 is connected to the master gaming controller 125 via a serial connection 135. The gaming machine communicates with the player tracking unit 120 using a communication protocol of some type. For example, the master gaming controller 125 may employ a subset of the Slot Accounting System (SAS protocol) developed by International Game Technology of Reno, Nev. to communicate with the player tracking unit 120. Using a different serial connection from 135, the gaming machine may communicate with a host accounting system using the SAS protocol. For example, the master gaming controller 125 may communicate with the slot accounting server 155. [0008] Typically, when a game player wants to playa game on a gaming machine and utilize the player tracking services on the gaming machine, a game player inserts a magnetic striped card into the card reader 115 mounted in the top box 130. A player's incentive for using the player tracking services are awards provided by the gaming machine operator. After the magnetic striped card has been inserted into the card reader 115, the player tracking unit may detect this event and receive certain information contained on the card. For example, a player's name and address, encoded on the magnetic striped card, may be received by the player tracking unit 120. The player tracking unit 120 may command the display 105 to display the game player's name on the display 105 with a message requesting the game player to validate their identity by entering an identification code using the key pad 110. [0009] Once the game player's identity has been validated, the player tracking information is relayed to the player tracking server 150. The player tracking unit 120 may capture some of the game player's game playing habits and forward this player tracking information to the player tracking server 150 using the network 140 for storage and processing. For example, the player tracking unit 120 may poll the master gaming controller 125 to determine how much money the game player has wagered on each game, the time when each game was initiated and the location of the gaming machine. [0010] The player tracking information, gathered by the player tracking unit 120, is usually converted into a communication format according to a communication protocol used by the player tracking server 150 or a communication protocol used by equipment comprising the network 140. For example, the network 140 may include concentrators that employ a different communication protocol than the player tracking server 150. Thus, translators may be employed that convert the communication protocol used by the concentrator to the communication protocol used by the player tracking server 150. [0011] The servers, 150 and 155, may use the information from the player tracking unit to provide a player a game playing incentive or may be used to provide accounting services for the gaming machine 100. The information received by the servers may be sent by the player tracking unit 120 using the player tracking protocol or the information may be sent from the master gaming controller 125 using a machine accounting protocol (e.g. SAS). Some of the accounting services provided by the player tracking unit may be independent of whether a player utilizes the player tracking services. For example, each time a game player plays a game on the gaming machine 100, the player tracking unit 120 may send the amount wagered to one or both of the servers, using the player tracking protocol, although the game player's identity may have not been validated by the player tracking unit 120. [0012] There are a number of disadvantages of using a separate hardware player tracking unit 120 to provide player tracking services. A first disadvantage is the player tracking unit is expensive. The cost of the player tracking unit is a significant fraction of the total cost of the gaming machine. A second disadvantage is the large number of companies that manufacture player tracking units. Currently, there are many different companies (as many as 19) that manufacture player tracking units that may be mounted in a gaming machine and many different types of player tracking units manufactured by each company. Some manufacturers of player tracking equipment include 1) Acres Gaming, Inc., Las Vegas, Nev., 2) Alliance Gaming Corporation (Bally's Gaming Systems), Las Vegas, Nev., 3) Aristocrat, Inc., Reno, Nev., 4) Casino Data Systems, Las Vegas, Nev., 5) Gaming Systems International, Las Vegas, Nev., 6) IGT, Reno, Nev., 7) Mikhon Gaming Corporation, Las Vegas, Nev., 8) Sigma Game, Inc., Las Vegas, Nev., 9) Silicon Gaming, Inc., Palo Alto, Calif., and 10) WMS Gaming, Inc., Chicago, Ill. [0013] Typically, each of these companies use different hardware and several different communication protocols to design the player tracking unit. The variations of the player tracking units from manufacture add to the complexity of the design of the gaming machine. For example, mounting brackets within the gaming machine 100 are needed that can accommodate different player tracking hardware from each of the manufacturers of player tracking units. As another example, communication interfaces within the gaming machine are needed that allow the gaming machine to communicate with a particular player tracking unit using the communication protocol of the particular playing tracking unit. The communication protocols used by each player tracking unit tend to vary according to the manufacturer of the player tracking unit. Further, the different player tracking units typically have different power supply requirements which need to be accommodated. Also, player tracking units main separate connections to the host service. The separate connections require separate wiring for accounting and player tracking services. [0014] A third disadvantage of separate hardware player tracking units is that the devices utilized by the player tracking unit, including the display 105, key pad 110, and card reader 115, are not accessible to the master gaming controller 125 within the gaming machine. Typically, the player tracking functions performed by the player tracking unit 120 are opaque to the master gaming controller 125. The player tracking unit 120 only communicates with the master gaming controller 125 to obtain information necessary for player tracking. Thus, the master gaming controller 125 can not typically use the card reader 115 for other gaming applications requiring a card reader. Therefore, in some instances, a second card reader may have to be installed on the gaming machine for gaming applications requiring a card reader. Since one card reader may be sufficient for use in multiple gaming applications, the installation of a second card reader would be very inefficient. [0015] In view of the above, it would be desirable to provide a less expensive, less complicated and more efficient method and apparatus of providing player tracking services for a gaming machine. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0016] This invention addresses the needs indicated above by providing a gaming machine with a plurality of software units providing player tracking services. The player tracking software eliminates the need for a separate hardware player tracking unit. The player tracking devices, including the card reader, are accessible to the master gaming controller on the gaming machine and may be utilized by the master gaming controller for other gaming applications. The player tracking software incorporates communication protocols for communicating with a variety of player tracking devices. Communication protocols, device interfaces and device drivers for operating the player tracking device and performing the player tracking services may be added or upgraded by loading the player tracking software to a memory mounted within the gaming machine. [0017] One aspect of the present invention provides a gaming machine with player tracking services. The gaming machine may be characterized as including the following elements: 1) at least one input device for inputting player tracking information into the gaming machine, 2) a communication interface for transmitting at least the player tracking information to a site outside the gaming machine 3) a master gaming controller that controls one or more games played on the gaming machine and receives player tracking events from the input device and the site outside the gaming machine and 4) a memory storing player tracking software that allows the master gaming controller to operate on the player tracking events as a player tracking unit and provide gaming services. The input device may be a card reader, a key pad, a touch screen, a microphone, a wire-less communication interface, or a bar code reader. [0018] In specific embodiments, the gaming machine may be a slot machine, a video slot machine, a keno game or a video poker game. Additionally, the gaming machine may include at least one display device for displaying the player tracking information where the display device is a monitor, a LCD, a fluorescent display or a sound projection device. The communication interface may be connected to a network where the network is a casino area network, wide area progressive network, bonus game network or a cashless system network [0019] In specific embodiments, the memory may store software for one or more device drivers that allow the master gaming controller to operate at least some of the input devices. The device driver may use a communication protocol including Netplex, USB, Ethernet, Firewire, direct memory map, PCI, serial and parallel. The memory may store software for one or more device interfaces that allow the master gaming controller to detect the player tracking events from the input device where the device interface may be for a card reader, a monitor, a display, or key pad. The master gaming controller may include a memory storing software, which may be separate from the memory identified in item 4 above, that allows the master gaming controller to detect power-failures. To protect against power-failures the master gaming controller may store some player tracking events to a non-volatile memory. [0020] In specific embodiments, the site outside the gaming machine may be a server where the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for receiving the player tracking events from the site outside the gaming machine. Additionally, the memory may store software that allows the master gaming controller to receive player tracking information from the site outside the gaming machine and to send player tracking information to the site outside the gaming machine using one or more communication protocols. The player tracking information may be at least on of a player name, a time, a date, an amount wagered, a location, and a type of game and the communication protocol may be a TCP/IP communication protocol and a manufacturer player tracking protocol. The player tracking information may be input from a magnetic card, a smart card, a personal digital assistant, a finger print reader, a wire-less device, a sound device and a bar-coded ticket. [0021] Another aspect of the invention provides a method for providing player tracking services on a gaming machine with a master gaming controller, an input device, and a communication interface. The method may generally be characterized as including: 1) loading player tracking software into a memory utilized by the master gaming controller on the gaming machine, 2) receiving a player tracking related event, 3) evaluating the player tracking event using the player tracking software and 4) sending player tracking information to at least one site outside the gaming machine using the communication interface. Additionally, the method may include one or more of the following: a) translating the player tracking information to a communication protocol used by the site outside the gaming machine, b) displaying player tracking information to a display screen, c) storing a player tracking event to a non-volatile memory and d) operating a player tracking device where the player tracking device is a card reader, a touch screen, a key pad, or a display. In specific embodiments, the player tracking software may include player tracking device interfaces, player tracking device drivers, player tracking event evaluators, and player tracking communication protocol translators. Continue reading about Gaming machine virtual player tracking and related services... Full patent description for Gaming machine virtual player tracking and related services Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Gaming machine virtual player tracking and related services patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. 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