AU761283B2

AU761283B2 - Hidden meter display for gaming machine

Info

Publication number: AU761283B2
Application number: AU61356/00A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Errol D'souza; Vladimir Halic; Ian Frederick Johnson; Richard Sokolov
Original assignee: Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd
Priority date: 1999-10-01
Filing date: 2000-09-28
Publication date: 2003-05-29
Anticipated expiration: 2020-09-28
Also published as: AU6135600A

Description

1

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd t

S

ORIGINAL

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT

U..

*c S S

S

Invention Title: Hidden meter display for gaming machine The following statement is a full description of this invention including the best method of performing it known to us:- Field of the Invention The present invention relates to gaming machines of the type generally referred to as slot machines, fruit machines or poker machines, and in particular, the invention provides a meter display for use in such machines.

Background of the Invention Gaming or poker machines have been well known in the state of New South Wales for many years, and have more recently gained considerable popularity throughout Australia, with quite substantial amounts wagered on these machines. Such machines have also been popular in various casinos throughout the world for many years. There is a growing tendency for state governments to legalise the use of gaming machines by licensing operators, with resulting revenue gains through license fees and taxation of monies invested. The licensing and operation of gaming machines is the subject of 15 state legislation and regulations. The regulations almost always dictate a minimum percentage payout for a gaming machine, for example, a minimum of 85% of monies invested must be returned as winnings. To ensure that each gaming machine is operated within the regulations, and to allow auditing of gaming machines, meters are installed in gaming machines.

Gaming machines often include up to eight or more such meters. One meter may record the number of coins put into the machine. Other meters may record the number of coins paid out, the number of games won, the number of games played, the amount of cancelled credits, the total money in, and the *-total money out, respectively. The meters record such data and other data 25 relating to machine functions as required by the relevant regulations of the state or country in which the gaming machine is installed and operated.

Each item of data relating to a machine function which has to be recorded has its own associated meter. That arrangement, enables the gaming machine to be audited to check that the machine is being operated under the guidelines of that particular state or county and that the correct taxes are being paid for that machine. The meters must be "hard" i.e. they must retain their data when the machine is powered down.

Historically, the meters have comprised electromechanical counters which, as is well known, operate by stepping a series of reels bearing the numbers 0 to 9. To save space, the reels of the electromechanical counters commonly used in gaming machines, tend to very small and the size of the 2 figures on the reel can be as small as 1mm. The meters are located within the housing of the gaming machine, and a torch is usually required for an engineer or the like, to read the meter. In different machines, the meters may be located in different positions. Meter reading tends to be a time consuming and awkward process, particularly since eight such meters have to be read.

In some jurisdictions, use of electronic hard meters is permissible: these tend to have an illuminated LCD display which is easier to read than an electromechanical meter.

It is an object of the present invention, to provide a meter display for a gaming machine which quicker and simpler to read.

Summary of the Invention According to the present invention, there is provided a door for a gaming machine defining a front face, the door including a window having a reverse side, behind which electromechanical meters having reels, are located, wherein the window is darkened, tinted or otherwise treated so as to be substantially non-light transmissive when lit from the front and unlit from its reverse side, the door including means for providing illumination on the reverse side of the window so as to render the window generally transparent when viewed from the front, the arrangement being such that the meters may be read when the meters are lit, but that when the reverse side of the window ::is unlit the meters are substantially non-visible through the darkened window, wherein the rear of the meters are mounted and electrically connected to a circuit board, which forms part of a control means for S- 25 operating the electromechanical meters and wherein a series of light producing means are also mounted on the circuit board and a light transmission path way is provided for directing light from the light producing means along the sides of the meters towards the front of the meters to illuminate the reels.

Providing the meters in the front of the machine, makes the meters easy to read when the machine is inspected. At the same time, the meters are not visible to the general public which is generally undesirable as the players should not, ideally, be able to read the meters. The meters would also adversely affect the appearance of the gaming machine.

In one particularly preferred embodiment, white light LEDs are provided on the circuit board for illuminating the reels.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, two lines of four meters are mounted to the circuit board with the LEDs disposed between the two lines and a generally Y shaped light transmitting pathway preferably made of optical quality acrylic extends up between the two meters and towards the front of the meters where the pathway splits into two to direct light to the front of each opposed meter in the line.

Brief Description of the Drawings The invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a front view of a door for a gaming machine; Figure 2 is a schematic section through a meter display for the gaming machine door as shown in Figure 1; and Figure 3 is a perspective view of a light guide.

Detailed Description ofa Preferred Embodiment Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 shows a front door 10 for a gaming machine. At the top of the front of the door there is a panel 12 which comprises a darkened sheet of transparent material. The panel may be any suitable material which is either darkened or treated so that it is only transparent when back lit. Darkening of the transparent window is preferred to coating the reverse side of the window with a shiny reflective material such as is often used in office windows, as the darkened window is ascetically preferable. Further, if the door itself is a dark colour or is painted a dark colour, the window will tend to blend into the door and be almost indistinguishable from the door.

Positioning the window at the top of the door is preferred, although, it would be possible to locate the window at other locations on the front of the door.

Figure 2 is a schematic sectional view of a meter display which is located behind the window. The display comprises two lines of four electromechanical counters 14 each including a series of reels 16. The counters are electrically connected to a circuit board 18 which forms part of the control means for the electromechanical counters. Also mounted to the control board, is a series of cool white light emitting LEDs 20, at least one of which is located between each pair of electromechanical counters 14.

4 Extending between the sides of the electromechanical counters, is a generally Y shaped light guide 22 which is made of optical quality acrylic having a first portion 24 which is generally planar and is located between the sides of the opposed meters 14 and which splits into two branches 26, 28 so as to direct light to illuminate the reels in the electromechanical counters 14. The ends of the branches of the light guides should ideally be configured to direct most of their light onto the centre of the reels 16. The meter display components are located in a box 30. A perspective view of the light guide 22 is shown in Figure 3.

The present invention provides a meter display which is much easier to read for a service engineer or the like inspecting the machine. The hidden meter display can be consistently located in substantially the same area of the front of a gaming machine so that the service engineer is not required to hunt in the cabinet of the machine to find the meters. The built in back 15 lighting means that the engineer does not require a torch for lighting and further the position of the meters at the top of the front of the door is in a location which is easy for the service engineer to read as opposed to bending :down into the cabinet of a gaming machine.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.

Claims

1. A door for a gaming machine defining a front face, the door including a window having a reverse side, behind which electromechanical meters having reels, are located, wherein the window is darkened, tinted or otherwise treated so as to be substantially non-light transmissive when lit from the front and unlit from its reverse side, the door including means for providing illumination on the reverse side of the window so as to render the window generally transparent when viewed from the front, the arrangement being such that the meters may be read when the meters are lit, but that when the reverse side of the window is unlit the meters are substantially non-visible through the darkened window, wherein the rear of the meters are mounted and electrically connected to a circuit board, which forms part of a control means for operating the electromechanical meters and wherein a series of light producing means are also mounted on the circuit board and a light transmission path way is provided for directing light from the light producing means along the sides of the meters towards the front of the meters to illuminate the reels.

2. A door as claimed in claim 1 wherein the light producing means comprise white light LEDs.

3. A door for a gaming machine as claimed in claim 2, wherein two lines of four meters are mounted on the circuit board with the LEDs disposed between the two lines and wherein a generally Y shaped light transmitting pathway extends between the two meters and towards the front of the meters where the pathway splits into two to direct light towards the front of each opposed meter in the line.

4. A door as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the light transmission pathway comprises optical quality acrylic. A door for a gaming machine substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. DATED this twenty-seventh day of September 2000 Aristocrat Technologies Australia Pty Ltd Patent Attorneys for the Applicant: F.B. RICE CO.