GB2404769A - Controlling amount of coins in a pay-out hopper of a gaming machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A coin-operated player operable gaming machine, such as a reel-type fruit machine, has a coin hopper (24) for storage of coins for pay-out to the player, a cash box (25) for storing retained stake coins, a feed device (26) to feed staked coins selectively to the hopper (24) and the cash box (25) according to whether the amount of coins stored in the hopper is at a predetermined limit, and an accumulation device (12a) for storing one or more award values accumulated over a number of successive games. The value of the predetermined limit increases by an amount corresponding to the award value stored in the accumulation device (12a).

Description

2404769

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ENTERTAINMENT MACHINES

This invention relates to coin-operated player operable entertainment machines of the gaming machine kind with which a game is played after actuation of the machine with a stake of one or more coins and an award value is made available for pay-out to the player in the event that the outcome of the game is of a predetermined winning nature.

As used herein the term coin is intended to cover any element which individually represents a predetermined credit or monetary value, including actual coins and tokens.

With known gaming machines of the above kind, provision may be made for paying out coins corresponding to the award value, and in this case the machine may have one or more reservoirs or hoppers containing a supply of coins of a common denomination, e.g. £1 coins, as well as a receptacle or cash box for storing retained staked coins.

It is usual practice for the hopper to store a maximum amount of coins, say £125 for a £1 coin hopper. The hopper is initially charged with this amount. Paid-out award value is deducted from the stored amount and staked coins of the same denomination are added to the stored amount up to the predetermined maximum. When the stored amount in the hopper is at the maximum further staked coins are diverted to the cash box.

It is common practice to allow the player to accumulate award values in a 'money bank' whilst playing successive games. When

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desired, the player can operate a control to obtain a pay-out of coins equal to the total of the accumulated values.

With this arrangement, if the hopper is already at its limit, retention of award value in the money bank whilst further games are played means 5 that coins for the further games cannot go to the hopper. Thus, the hopper can be much depleted by pay-out of a large accumulated total and if then a further large pay-out arises after only a small number of further games, it can occur that the hopper contains insufficient coins to meet the pay-out. It is then necessary for authorised personnel to top up the 10 hopper which is inconvenient and disruptive.

An object of the present invention is to avoid, or at least minimise depletion of the pay-out hopper when award values are accumulated for subsequent pay-out.

According to the invention therefore there is provided a 15 coin-operated player operable gaming machine of the kind with which a game is played after actuation of the machine with a stake of one or more coins and an award value is made available for pay-out to the player in the event that the outcome of the game is of a predetermined winning nature, said machine having at least one hopper for storage of coins for 20 pay-out to the player, a cash box for storing retained staked coins, a feed device operable for feeding staked coins selectively to the hopper and the cash box, a control device for controlling operation of the feed device to direct staked coins to the cash box when the coins stored in the hopper

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amount to a predetermined limit, an accumulation device for storing one or more said award values accumulated over a plurality of successive games, and a pay-out device operable to cause coins from said hopper to be paid out to the player corresponding to the total of said accumulated 5 award values, characterised in that the control device is operable to increase the said predetermined limit from a basic level thereof by an amount corresponding to the total of the accumulated values during play of said successive games until said pay-out device is operated.

With this arrangement, during a period of play in which successive 10 games are played resulting in one or more award values which are accumulated rather than being paid out when obtained, staked coins can continue to be added to the pay-out hopper, even if the hopper has already reached a standard predetermined limit. When the pay-out is eventually obtained the depletion of the hopper is thereby offset by the 15 staked coins which have been added to the hopper during play of the successive games.

By way of example, in the case where the hopper has reached its basic level of £125 and the player stakes 20 £1 coins to play 80 games which result in a number of wins totalling £75 which are accumulated in 20 the 'money bank', with a conventional machine, the staked coins would be fed to the cash box and the contents of the money bank when paid out would deplete the hopper to £50.

With the present invention, the arrangement may be such that the

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staked coins are all added to the hopper whereby the hopper is depleted only to £70 when the contents of the money bank are paid out.

The increase in the hopper limit may be no greater than, preferably equal to, the total of the accumulated values. In this way it can be 5 ensured that the hopper contents are never above the basic level after pay-out.

The (or each) hopper may be arranged for storage of a single predetermined coin denomination, whereby coins of other denominations are always fed to the cash box. Alternatively there may be a plurality of 10 hoppers for storage of coins of different denominations and in this case there may be a respective limit for each denomination of coins and each such limit may be subject to increase as aforesaid over a basic level.

With regard to the machine, this may be of any suitable kind.

In one embodiment the machine is of a 'fruit' or 'poker' or 'slot' 15 machine which has a main display device used in a main or primary game to display a selected combination of symbols at a win zone. The display device may comprise multiple actual or video-simulated side-by-side reels which are rotatable about a common horizontal axis within a housing behind a window at the win zone. Each reel has symbols at equally 20 spaced positions around its periphery and the reels can be brought to rest with one symbol on each reel displayed through the window on a win line. An award is made available to the player if the displayed combination of symbols constitutes a predetermined winning combination.

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The invention will now be described further by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:-Figure 1 is a front perspective view of one form of a machine according to the invention;

5 Figure 2 is a diagrammatic representation of a control system of the machine; and

Figure 3 is a schematic view of internal constructional parts of the machine.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 shows a fruit machine having a 10 floor-standing box shaped housing 1 having a front wall which includes upper and lower glass panels 2, 3, a number of operating buttons 4, 5, 6, a coin slot 7 and a pay-out opening 8.

Within the housing 1 there are three axially aligned reels 9 having say 20 symbols at regularly spaced positions around their peripheries. 15 The reels 9 are axially rotatable and are drivably connected to respective stepper motors 10. The reels 9 are arranged behind a window 11 defined by a printed region of the lower glass panel 3. Each reel 9 can be arrested (on a random or pseudo random basis) by the respective stepper motor 10 in any of 20 stopping positions in which one symbol is in 20 precise registration with a horizontal win line in the centre of the window 11 and two further symbols are visible above and below the win line.

The stepper motors 10 are connected to a microprocessor-based control unit 12. This unit is also connected to a coin-mechanism 13, a

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pay-out mechanism 14 and the buttons 4, 5, 6.

The upper panel 2 has a conventional supplementary feature game display 15 comprising a series of sections arranged in a closed loop trail which can be back-illuminated with lamps 20 to indicate progression 5 around the trail, and a selector reel 19 having numbers corresponding to progression steps around its periphery visible through a window in the panel 2.

In use, the player inserts coins into the coin mechanism 13 through the slot 7 sufficient to generate credit for one or more games. A 10 predetermined stake value, is required to play a game. The credit value available for playing games (or the number of such games credited) is shown on an alphanumeric display 16 on the panel 2 connected to the unit 12. A game commences after a start button 4 has been pressed and the reels 9 spin and then come to rest so as to display a combination of 15 symbols on the win line. The displayed symbol combination is assessed by the control unit 12 and a win indication is given in the event that the combination is of a predetermined winning nature. Winning combinations are indicated on a win chart printed on the top panel 2.

In conventional manner, provision may be made for the player to 20 seek to influence selection of the displayed symbol combination, by pressing 'hold' or 'nudge' buttons 5. Also on occasions play may transfer to the supplementary feature game display 15 whereby further, or enhanced wins can be attained by progression around the trail of the

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display 15 using the start button 4 to initiate selection of progression steps displayed with the feature game selector reel 19.

Provision may also be made for attained wins to be gambled using a gamble display 17 and a gamble button 18.

5 At the end of a game, consisting of initial play involving spin of the reels 9, and any play with the supplementary feature game display 15, and play of any further feature such as with the gamble feature display 17, there is an outcome which may be a losing outcome whereby the player's game stake is lost, or which may be a winning outcome in which 10 case an award value is computed, stored in a 'money bank' memory 12a, and indicated to the player by appropriate incrementation of a win award value section of the digital display 16.

The player can now play one or more further games, as long as there is sufficient stake credit for this, and if any such further game (or 15 games) results in a winning outcome a further award value (or values) is computed and the digital display 16 is further incremented to show the total accumulated win award value.

When desired the player can press a pay-out button 6 to obtain pay-out of coins to the value of the accumulated win award value. 20 Within the machine cabinet 1, as indicated schematically in

Figure 3 the coin-mechanism 13 has an outlet chute 21 which has branches 22, 23 leading respectively to one or more hoppers 24 in an upper part of the cabinet 1 and also to a cash box 25 within a lower part

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of the cabinet 1.

The branches 23, 24 are linked to the chute 21 via a multi-position solenoid-operated deflector device 26 which is connected to the control unit 12.

5 The hopper or hoppers 24 are connected to an outlet chute 27

leading to the outlet tray 8 via a motorised feed device 29 connected to the control unit 12.

The hopper or hoppers 24 incorporate coin sensors 30 which determine the contents of the hopper and can be pre-set for a 10 predetermined limit. The sensor may operate by counting coins entering and leaving the hopper 24. Alternatively this function may be performed by the coin mechanism 13 in conjunction with the discharge device 29, or with stored win award value data or otherwise.

In use, coins inserted into the coin slot 7 are assessed by the 15 coin mechanism 13 to determine their correct value. The solenoid-operated deflector device 26 is then operated to direct the coins down the appropriate branch or branches 22, 23 to the cash box 25, the hopper or hoppers 24, and (in the case of an incorrect coin) to the outlet tray 8.

20 Considering the case where, by way of example, the player can insert £1 coins into the coin slot 7 to pay for games at 25p per game, and there is a hopper 24 for £1 coins having a pre-set 'standard' maximum content of £125:

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If the player inserts a £1 coin and the hopper 24 contains less than £125, the coin is diverted into the hopper 24, and this continues with further coins until the hopper 24 reaches it maximum content of £125.

If the player inserts a £1 coin and the hopper 24 is already at its 5 maximum content of £125 and there is no accumulated win award value shown on the digital display 16, the £1 coin is diverted to the cash box 25 where it is retained for eventual removal by an authorised collection person.

If the player now wins and an award value, say £25, is credited 10 and indicated on the digital display 16 the player can immediately obtain pay-out of this by pressing the button 6. In this case 25 £1 coins are discharged from the hopper 24 to the outlet 8 by the motor driven discharge device 29, thereby depleting the hopper 24 to £100.

The player may instead decide to leave the £25 in the machine and 15 continue playing games. The win award value (£25) is stored in the machine 'money bank' 12a and is indicated on the display 16.

If the player now inserts say 20 £1 coins to provide credit for playing 80 games (at 25p per game) the 20 £1 coins are diverted into the hopper 24, even though the contents are at the 'standard' limit of £125, 20 instead of being diverted to the cash box 25.

This occurs as a consequence of the relationship between the stored win award value in the money bank 12a and the inserted coin value as monitored by the control unit 12. The coins are diverted to the

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hopper 24 as long as their value is no greater than the current accumulated win award value in the money bank. That is, when play continues with value stored in the 'money bank' the pre-set limit for the hopper is effectively increased by the amount of the stored value. Any 5 coins inserted in excess of the accumulated win award value are diverted to the cash box.

If the player now plays 80 games and wins a further £50 the position is that the hopper contains £125 + £20 = £145 and the money bank contains £25 + £50 = £75. If the player now operates the 10 pay-out button 6, 75 £1 coins are discharged from the hopper leaving stored contents of £145 - £75 = £70. The pre-set limit for the hopper now reverts to the 'standard' level of £125.

If the same player, or another player, now inserts 2 £1 coins and plays 8 games resulting in a win of £60 which is then paid out: the two 15 £1 coins are added to the hopper 24 which now contains £72, and the pay-out reduces this to £72 - £60 = £12.

Thus the hopper 24 still contains coins available for pay-out.

In the case of the above example, with a conventional arrangement in which the hopper 24 is never allowed to exceed its pre-determined limit 20 of £125, the hopper 24 would be depleted from £125 to £50 after the first accumulated win, it would then increase to £52 on insertion of the 2 £1 coins, and the £60 win could not then be paid out. There would be an £8 shortfall and it would be necessary for an authorised person to open

the machine and top up the hopper 24.

The above described embodiment avoids or minimises the need for play to be disrupted in this way.

It is of course to be understood that the invention is not intended to be restricted to the details of the above embodiment which are described by way of example only.

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Claims (1)

1. A coin-operated player operable gaming machine of the kind with which a game is played after actuation of the machine with a stake of one or more coins and an award value is made available for payout to the player in the event that the outcome of the game is of a predetermined winning nature, said machine having at least one hopper for storage of coins for pay-out to the player, a cash box for storing retained staked coins, a feed device operable for feeding staked coins selectively to the hopper and the cash box, a control device for controlling operation of the feed device to direct staked coins to the cash box when the coins stored in the hopper amount to a predetermined limit, an accumulation device for storing one or more said award values accumulated over a plurality of successive games, and a pay-out device operable to cause coins from said hopper to be paid out to the player corresponding to the total of said accumulated award values, characterised in that the control device is operable to increase the said predetermined limit from a basic level thereof by an amount corresponding to the total of the accumulated values during play of said successive games until said pay-out device is operated.

   A machine according to claim 1 characterised in that the increase in the hopper limit is no greater than the total of the accumulated values.

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   A machine according to claim 1 or 2 characterised in that the increase in the hopper limit is equal to the total of the accumulated value.

   A machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3 characterised in that the (or each) hopper is arranged to store a single predetermined coin denomination.

   A machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3 characterised in that there are a plurality of hoppers arranged to store coins of different denominations.

   A machine according to claim 5 characterised in that there is a respective limit for each denomination of coin.

   A machine according to any one of claims 1 to 6 characterised in that the machine is of the kind having a main display device comprising multiple actual or video-simulated side-by-side reels arranged to display selected symbols through a window. A coin-operated player operable gaming machine substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.