AU642674B2

AU642674B2 - A game playing apparatus

Info

Publication number: AU642674B2
Application number: AU65346/90A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Lauri Martti
Original assignee: Raha Automaattiyhdistys
Current assignee: Raha Automaattiyhdistys
Priority date: 1989-11-07
Filing date: 1990-10-25
Publication date: 1993-10-28
Anticipated expiration: 2010-10-25
Also published as: BG96302A; SE9003518L; HUT63933A; EP0498814A1; JPH05503436A; FI94293B; FI895289A0; SE467126B; HU9201380D0; NO921788D0; AU6534690A; ATE106153T1; NO921788L; FI94293C; DK0498814T3; WO1991006931A1; SE9003518D0; EP0498814B1; DE69009191D1; CA2073044A1

Abstract

A game playing apparatus comprising a lottery-type lot drawing device which starts at least one lot drawing event by means of a coin, the lot drawing device drawing for each lot drawing event an individual outcome (11) among prize-winning and losing outcomes; and a display device (3) for displaying the outcome of the lot drawing. In order to make a lottery-type game more interesting, the display device (3) is arranged to visually display the outcome (11) of the lot drawing in terms of the rules of a card game (12) or other similar game known per se.

Description

a- WO 91/06931 PCT/FI90/00254 A game playing apparatus This invention relates to a game playing apparatus comprising a lottery-type lot drawing device starting at least one lot drawing event by means of a coin or other similar token, the lot drawing device drawing, for each lot drawing event, an individual outcome among prizewinning and losing outcomes; and a display device for displaying said outcome.

Various apparatuses for playing a game of skill are previously known in which a coin is used to initiate a game event and in which the course of the game affects the outcome of the game in such a way that the player either wins a prize or loses the coin. In this kind of game playing apparatuses, the player is able to influence the outcome of the game by his own skill so that in the worst case an unskillful player may constantly lose his stake.

For this reason, devices for playing games of skill of the type described above are not permitted in certain countries. In some of these countries, however, lotteries and other similar games, such as "scraping cards", are permitted. In lottery-type games, one lottery round includes a predetermined number of prizewinning as well as losing lots or marks appearing in random order. The outcome of the game is thereby usually shown as a sequence of numbers which indicates whether the player is entitled to a prize or not, or with words or symbols which indicate the amount to be paid out or the losing of the stake. A drawback of lottery-type games is, however, that the player knows in advance that he cannot influence the course of the game by his own skill but the outcome of the game is predetermined by L I I CC I ll -I WO 91/06931 PC/F190/00254 2 the random occurrence of the prizes. This is a factor which considerably reduces the interest of the player in this type of game.

The object of the present invention is to provide a lottery-type game playing apparatus which avoids the above-mentioned drawback and which is considerably more interesting for the player in spite of the fact that the player's skill does not actually influence the course of the game. This object is achieved by a game playing apparatus according to the invention, which is characterized in that the display device is arranged to visually display the outcome of the lot drawing in terms of the rules of a card game or other similar game known per se.

The invention is based on the idea that by combining a lottery event with a card playing event, the player's interest in a simple lottery game is considerably increased as the player in the first place has the feeling that he is playing a card game familiar to him. It is obvious that it is considerably more interesting for the player who has Sstarted the game to see the outcome of the game in terms of the rules of a well-known card game, such as poker ("full house", "pair", a non-winning combination of cards, etc.) instead of seeing the outcome indicated with such signs as "PRIZE or "NO PRIZE". In this way a less interesting lottery game is made more attractive by associating it with game playing apparatuses giving high prizes. The game itself, however, is a lottery game permitted in countries which do not permit lot machines, such as fruit machines, in which the player is able to Sinfluence the amount of money to be paid out as a prize.

In the following the invention will be den-r I: F e- WO W091/06931 PCT/F190/00254 3 scribed in greater detail with reference to the attached drawings, in which Figure 1 illustrates schematically the operating principle of one embodiment of a game playing apparatus of the invention; and Figure 2 shows the display panel of the game playing apparatus.

The main parts of the game playing device shown in the drawings include a coin slot i, a central processing unit 2, a display panel 3, a cash 4, a receipt machinery 5 and a lottery ticket delivering device 6.

The coin slot 1 is connected to the cash 4 and provided with means 7 for causing the processing unit 2 to effect one lot drawing event. The processing unit is connected through means 8 to the display panel 3 to display the outcome of the lot drawing on the display panel. The processing unit is also connected through means 9 to the receipt machinery 5 to write out a lottery ticket 10. The receipt machinery is connected to the delivering device 6, which delivers the lottery ticket to the player.

In this specific case, the outcome of the lot drawing is shown by five cards 11, and the prizes 12 follow the winning combinations of the poker game.

Other combinations of cards do not entitle to a prize. The' distribution of prizes between the different winning combinations, the amounts to be paid out, and the number of the prizes for the different combinations can be selected as desired with respect to the total number of lot drawing events included in one lottery round.

The winning scheme is permanently programmed in the memory of the central processing unit as well as the lot drawing program. The memory of the unit coni I I C WO'0 91/06931 PCT/F190/00254 4 tains a table which comprises one element for each lottery ticket and another table which shows the amount to be paid out as a prize. When one particular element has once been selected, it is marked so that it cannot be used again. The same applies to each prize which has already been won. If the outcome of the lot drawing does not entitle to a prize, the display panel shows five randomly selected cards which do not form a winning combination. A prizewinning iottery ticket causes a corresponding winning combination to appear in the display. The operation of the lot drawing program is all the time controlled by a random number generator 13 the state of which cannot be calculated from outside. When the lots are drawn, they are all of equal value. This kind of lot drawing devices are known per se.

For each lot drawing event, the receipt machinery writes out a lottery ticket in which the possible prize is indicated. The prize will be paid out to the player against the lottery ticket.

Prizewinning lot numbers can be distributed in two different ways.

The lot numbers included in one lottery round are fed to a data cassette 14 in the order in which they are selected by the random number generator. The cassette is then positioned in the processing unit.

When the player inserts a coin into the coin slot i, the unit applies a signal to the receipt machinery so that it writes out, on the lottery ticket to be given to the player, information on whether the player wins a prize or not. The information to be written on the lottery ticket is in each case positioned uppermost in the memory.

Instead of allowing the random number generator 35 to feed the lot numbers included in one lottery round

I-

W0O91/06931 PCT/FI90/00254 I in advance and in random order into the cassette, the random number generator can be positioned in the central processing unit to select the lot numbers at the moment when a coin is inserted into the device.

In ocher respects the device operates similarly as the first alternative. In both cases the lottery ticket is not printed until during the lot drawing, and the device does not comprise any preprinted lottery tickets which might tempt to theft.

It can be seen that as the outcome of the lot drawing is shown in terms of the rules of a card game requiring special skill, the player gets an idea that he is playing a game of skill. The lot drawing process itself is nevertheless controlled by a lotterytype game playing device.

The drawings and the descriptioi related thereto are only intended to illustrate the idea of the invention. In its details, the device of the invention may vary within the scope of the claims. In place of the card combinations of the poker game the outcome of the game can be shown in terms of any other well-known card game or other similar game. The receipt machinery may alternatively be controlled by the display device 3.

Even though the invention has been described above in connection with a game in which the outcome of the lot drawing is shown in terms of combinations of cards, the outcome can also be shown by means of combinations of numbers, letters or symbols. In some countries, certain numbers or combinations of K numbers, for instance, may be considered to bring luck or have some other favorable effects, whereas in some other countries certain figures or combinations !I 5 of figures may have a positive symbolic meaning. The definition 'card game or other similar game" is mT-m I a: i-IL I WO 91/06931 PCT/FI90/00254 6 therefore intended to also include such ways of displaying the outcome of the lot drawing.

The definition "coin or other similar token" is intended to include bank notes if the game playing apparatus can be started with a bank note for at least one lot drawing event.

III

Si! "i

A

Claims

1. A game playing apparatus comprising a lottery-type lot drawing device starting at least one lot drawing event by means of a coin or other similar token, the lot drawing device drawing for each lot drawing event an individual outcome (11) among a predetermined number of prizewinning and losing out- comes; and a display device for displaying said out- come, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the display device is arranged to visually display the outcome (11) of the lot drawing in terms of the rules of a card game (12) or other similar game known per se.

2. A game playing apparatus according to claim 1, I c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the display device (3) is arranged to display during each lot drawing event the outcome (11) drawn by the lot drawing device which outcome (11) is next among prizewinning (12) and losing outcomes positioned in an order selected by a randon num- ber generator (13).

3. A game playing apparatus according to claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the display device (3) is arranged to display during each lot drawing event the V outcome (11) drawn by the lot drawing device which outcome (11) is selected among prizewinning (12) and los- ing outcomes by a random number generator (13).

4. A game playing apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 3, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the display device displays the outcome (11) of the lot drawing in terms of the combinations of cards of the po- 4 ker game.

5. A game playing apparatus according to any of claims 1 to 3, ch a r a c t e r iz e d in that the 8 SUBSTI JTe SHEMET I I The Swedish Patent Cfice PCT/ F1 9 0 0 2 5 4 FCi lir-rnatonal Applicai;on i 1 -11- 2 7 8 display device displays the outcome (11) of the lot drawing by means of combinations of numbers, letters pf figures.

6. A game playing apparatus according to any of the preceding claims, ch a r a ct e r i z e d in that it is provided with a receipt machinery controlled by the lot drawing device and/or the display device whereby the outcome (11) of the lot drawing displayed on the display device is printed on a lottery ticket (10) by means of said receipt machinery. SUBSTITUTE SHEET