WO2006039556A2 - Appareil de jeux de hasard avec memoire de correction d'erreurs - Google Patents

Appareil de jeux de hasard avec memoire de correction d'erreurs Download PDF

Info

Publication number
WO2006039556A2
WO2006039556A2 PCT/US2005/035309 US2005035309W WO2006039556A2 WO 2006039556 A2 WO2006039556 A2 WO 2006039556A2 US 2005035309 W US2005035309 W US 2005035309W WO 2006039556 A2 WO2006039556 A2 WO 2006039556A2
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
ecc
gaming machine
memory
error
computer
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US2005/035309
Other languages
English (en)
Other versions
WO2006039556A3 (fr
Inventor
Mark B. Gagner
Original Assignee
Wms Gaming Inc.
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Wms Gaming Inc. filed Critical Wms Gaming Inc.
Priority to US11/576,368 priority Critical patent/US20080096631A1/en
Publication of WO2006039556A2 publication Critical patent/WO2006039556A2/fr
Publication of WO2006039556A3 publication Critical patent/WO2006039556A3/fr

Links

Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
    • G07F17/32—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for games, toys, sports, or amusements
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
    • G07F17/32—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for games, toys, sports, or amusements
    • G07F17/3202—Hardware aspects of a gaming system, e.g. components, construction, architecture thereof
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
    • G07F17/32—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for games, toys, sports, or amusements
    • G07F17/3225—Data transfer within a gaming system, e.g. data sent between gaming machines and users
    • G07F17/323—Data transfer within a gaming system, e.g. data sent between gaming machines and users wherein the player is informed, e.g. advertisements, odds, instructions
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G07—CHECKING-DEVICES
    • G07F—COIN-FREED OR LIKE APPARATUS
    • G07F17/00—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services
    • G07F17/32—Coin-freed apparatus for hiring articles; Coin-freed facilities or services for games, toys, sports, or amusements
    • G07F17/3241—Security aspects of a gaming system, e.g. detecting cheating, device integrity, surveillance

Definitions

  • the present invention relates generally to gaming devices, and more particularly to a gaming device having an error correcting memory.
  • Today's gaming machine typically comprises a computerized system controlling a video display or reels that provide wagering games such as slots, video card games (poker, blackjack etc.), video keno, video bingo, video pachinko and other games typical in the gaming industry.
  • wagering games such as slots, video card games (poker, blackjack etc.), video keno, video bingo, video pachinko and other games typical in the gaming industry.
  • the popularity of such machines with players is dependent on the likelihood (or perceived likelihood) of winning money at the machine and the intrinsic entertainment value of the machine relative to other available gaming options.
  • Players also appreciate the reliability of a gaming machine, as do the casino operators. Shrewd operators consequently strive to employ the most entertaining, exciting, and reliable machines available because such machines attract frequent play and hence increase profitability to the operator.
  • RAM Random Access Memory
  • RAM is immediately accessible by the processor with no additional software required (as in the case of disk drives).
  • the content of this memory is typically critical to the operation of the gaming machine and is continuously changing as it is read and written, as when game play occurs, hi addition, many jurisdictions require that critical data be maintained across power cycles and resets of the gaming machine.
  • One drawback of RAM is that it is power dependent and does not retain the current state of the computer's operation when power is removed.
  • a further drawback with many forms of RAM is that errors may occur in the memory that corrupt the data.
  • One aspect of the systems and methods includes providing a data store in the ECC memory.
  • the data store may be a pool of data blocks, a file system, or a database.
  • Critical data generated during the course of the operation of the gaming machine is stored in the database. Errors in accessing the data in the ECC may be corrected and logged. In addition, errors in accessing the data in the ECC may cause the system to shut down.
  • the present invention describes systems, methods, and computer- readable media of varying scope, hi addition to the aspects and advantages of the present invention described in this summary, further aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent by reference to the drawings and by reading the detailed description that follows.
  • FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gaming machine embodying the present invention
  • FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a gaming control system suitable for operating the gaming machine in FIG. 1;
  • FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating the interaction between the control system and the ECC memory of a gaming machine according to varying embodiments of the invention
  • FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for utilizing ECC memory on a gaming machine according to various embodiments of the invention.
  • FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary gaming machine 10, also referred to as a Video Lottery Terminal (VLT), in which embodiments of the invention may be implemented.
  • gaming machine 10 is operable to conduct a wagering game such as mechanical or video slots, poker, keno, bingo, or blackjack.
  • the gaming machine 10 includes a video display 12 such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), liquid crystal display (LCD), plasma, or other type of video display known in the art.
  • a touch screen preferably overlies the display 12.
  • the gaming machine 10 is an "upright” version in which the display 12 is oriented vertically relative to a player.
  • the gaming machine may be a "slant-top” version in which the display 12 is slanted at about a thirty-degree angle toward the player.
  • the gaming machine 10 includes a plurality of possible credit receiving mechanisms 14 for receiving credits to be used for placing wagers in the game.
  • the credit receiving mechanisms 14 may, for example, include a coin acceptor, a bill acceptor, a ticket reader, and a card reader.
  • the bill acceptor and the ticket reader may be combined into a single unit.
  • the card reader may, for example, accept magnetic cards and smart (chip) cards coded with money or designating an account containing money.
  • the gaming machine 10 includes a user interface comprising a plurality of push-buttons 16, the above-noted touch screen, and other possible devices.
  • the plurality of push-buttons 16 may, for example, include one or more "bet” buttons for wagering, a "play” button for commencing play, a "collect” button for cashing out, a help" button for viewing a help screen, a "pay table” button for viewing the pay table(s), and a “call attendant” button for calling an attendant. Additional game specific buttons may be provided to facilitate play of the specific game executed on the machine.
  • the touch screen may define touch keys for implementing many of the same functions as the push-buttons.
  • Other possible user interface devices include a keyboard and a pointing device such as a mouse or trackball.
  • a processor controls operation of the gaming machine 10. hi response to receiving a wager and a command to initiate play, the processor randomly selects a game outcome from a plurality of possible outcomes and causes the display 12 to depict indicia representative of the selected game outcome. In the case of slots for example mechanical or simulated slot reels are rotated and stopped to place symbols on the reels in visual association with one or more pay lines. If the selected outcome is one of the winning outcomes defined by a pay table, the processor awards the player with a number of credits associated with the winning outcome.
  • FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a control system suitable for operating the gaming machine 10.
  • Money/credit detector 22 signals a processor 20 when a player has inserted money, tickets, tokens, cards or other mechanism for obtaining credits for plays on the gaming machine through credit mechanisms 14.
  • the player may select any variables associated with the wagering game and place his/her wager to purchase a play of the game.
  • the processor 20 generates at least one random event using a random number generator (RNG) and provides an award to the player for a winning outcome of the random event.
  • RNG random number generator
  • the random event may be generated by a remote computer using an RNG or pooling schema and then transmitted to the gaming machine.
  • the processor 20 operates the display 12 to represent the random event(s) and outcome(s) in a visual form that can be understood by the player.
  • the control system may include one or more additional slave control units for operating the display 12 and any secondary displays.
  • System memory 24 stores control software, operational instructions and data associated with the gaming machine.
  • the system memory 24 comprises a separate read-only memory (ROM) and battery-backed random-access memory (RAM).
  • ROM read-only memory
  • RAM battery-backed random-access memory
  • the system memory 24 may be implemented on any of several alternative types of memory structures or may be implemented on a single memory structure.
  • a payoff mechanism 26 is operable in response to instructions from the processor 20 to award a payoff to the player.
  • the payoff may, for example, be in the form of a number of credits.
  • the number of credits is determined by one or more math tables stored in the system memory 24.
  • ECC (Error Correction Code) memory 28 in addition to system memory 24, provides storage for software and data associated with the gaming machine.
  • ECC memory is capable of detecting single-bit and multiple-bit errors.
  • ECC memory uses an algorithms to encode information in a block of bits that contains sufficient detail to permit the recovery of a single bit error in the protected data.
  • ECC memory may use groupings of 7 bits to protect 32 bits, or 8 bits to protect 64 bits.
  • the ECC memory may correct single-bit errors on the fly, that is, the error is corrected with no notification to the operating system or application. Thus the correction of single-bit errors occurs transparently to the system. In alternative embodiments, the correction of single-bit errors may be reported to the operating system.
  • Many forms of ECC memory are available for use by those skilled in the art.
  • ECC memory may detect, but not correct, errors of 2, 3 or even 4 bits, in addition to detecting and correcting single-bit errors.
  • ECC memory handles these multi-bit errors by generating a non ⁇ maskable interrupt (NMI).
  • NMI non ⁇ maskable interrupt
  • ECC memory 28 may comprise battery backed RAM, including battery backed SRAM (Static RAM).
  • ECC memory 28 may comprise MRAM (magnetoresistive or magnetic RAM).
  • MRAM magnetoresistive or magnetic RAM
  • NVRAM 308 may be FRAM (Ferroelectric RAM). MRAM and FRAM are desirable, because they do not require battery backup in order for the memory to retain data. It should be noted that any of these memory types may also be used for general purpose memory 24.
  • FIG. 3 is a block diagram providing further details regarding the interrelationship between the processor 20, system memory 24 and ECC memory 28 components in a gaming machine.
  • system memory 24 includes one or more gaming applications 302 executable by processor 20.
  • gaming applications 302 may need to read and write data to system memory 24 and to a data store 306 maintained on ECC memory 28.
  • the data stored in data store 306 may include critical data.
  • Critical data is generally data that is maintained across reboots or power cycles for the gaming machine.
  • Critical data may also include data that must be reported to one or more of the various regulatory agencies that control gaming in a jurisdiction. Examples of critical data may include one or more of the following:
  • Wagering details e.g. number of lines wagered, number coins wagered etc.
  • data store 306 may be treated as a single memory directly available to a gaming application, as is the illustrated by gaming application 302.3 directly accessing data store 306.
  • data store 306 may be organized as a set of one or more data pools that may be allocated to gaming applications 302.
  • data store 306 is managed by a data store manager 304. In these embodiments, access to data store 306 by applications 302 is through the data store manager, as illustrated by gaming applications 302.1 and 302.3. In some embodiments, data store 306 comprises a file system. Data store 304 may be a file system component of an operating system.
  • data store 306 is a database and data store manager 304 is a database manager.
  • data store 306 may be a relational database, a hierarchical database, an object orient database, or an XML (extensible Markup Language) database.
  • FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method 400 for using an ECC memory on a gaming machine.
  • the method to be performed by the operating environment constitutes computer programs made up of computer-executable instructions. Describing the method by reference to a flowchart enables one skilled in the art to develop such programs including such instructions to carry out the method on suitable processors for gaming machines (the processor or processors of the computer executing the instructions from computer-readable media). The method illustrated in FIG.
  • Method 400 begins by accessing the ECC memory (block 402).
  • the access may be by a gaming application, by a data store manager, or by an operating system.
  • the access may be to read data from the ECC memory or write data to the ECC memory.
  • critical data may written to the ECC Memory.
  • the control system may receive a notification of an error in accessing the ECC memory (block 404).
  • the error may be a single bit error or a multiple bit error (block 406).
  • notifications regarding single bit errors may not be received, but may be queried by the control system.
  • the system may log the error (block 408).
  • the log may then be used to determine if there is a pattern of single-bit errors indicating that a portion or all of the ECC memory is unreliable.
  • various actions may be performed in order to insure the integrity of a data store on the ECC memory.
  • the control system may initiate a shutdown of the gaming machine (block 410). A shutdown may be necessary in order to prevent further corruption of the memory and to preserve the critical data that has already been written to the memory.
  • the system may mark a portion of the ECC memory that includes the memory location having the multiple-bit error as "bad” whereby future writes to the ECC memory will not be attempted to the marked portion (block 412).
  • the portion may be added to a "bad block” list for those embodiments where data store 306 is a file system.
  • the system may attempt to retry the access (block 414). Retrying an access may be useful in those situations where the multiple bit error is a transient error that does not necessarily mean the ECC memory is unreliable. It should be noted that the actions described above are not necessarily mutually exclusive. For example, the control system may mark an area in the ECC memory as bad, and also attempt to retry the access using a different portion of the ECC memory. y

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Computer Security & Cryptography (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Slot Machines And Peripheral Devices (AREA)

Abstract

L'invention porte sur des systèmes et sur des procédés de fonctionnement d'un appareil de jeux de hasard possédant une mémoire à code de correction d'erreurs. Selon un mode de mise en oeuvre, les systèmes et les procédés de cette invention consistent à créer un magasin de données dans la mémoire à code de correction d'erreurs. Le magasin de données peut-être un pool de blocs de données, un système de fichiers ou une base de données. Des données critiques générées lors du fonctionnement de l'appareil de jeux de hasard sont stockées dans le magasin de données. Des erreurs d'accès aux données dans la mémoire à code de correction d'erreurs peuvent être corrigées et introduites dans le système. De plus, des erreurs d'accès aux données dans la mémoire à code de correction d'erreurs peuvent entraîner l'arrêt du système.
PCT/US2005/035309 2004-10-02 2005-09-30 Appareil de jeux de hasard avec memoire de correction d'erreurs WO2006039556A2 (fr)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US11/576,368 US20080096631A1 (en) 2004-10-02 2005-09-30 Gaming Device With Error Correcting Memory

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US52244504P 2004-10-02 2004-10-02
US60/522,445 2004-10-02

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2006039556A2 true WO2006039556A2 (fr) 2006-04-13
WO2006039556A3 WO2006039556A3 (fr) 2006-07-27

Family

ID=36143108

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/US2005/035309 WO2006039556A2 (fr) 2004-10-02 2005-09-30 Appareil de jeux de hasard avec memoire de correction d'erreurs

Country Status (2)

Country Link
US (1) US20080096631A1 (fr)
WO (1) WO2006039556A2 (fr)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8360871B2 (en) 2007-09-26 2013-01-29 Wms Gaming Inc. Wagering game machines with non-volatile memory

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8495438B2 (en) * 2007-12-28 2013-07-23 Texas Instruments Incorporated Technique for memory imprint reliability improvement

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6142872A (en) * 1998-03-31 2000-11-07 Walker Digital, Llc Method and apparatus for team play of slot machines
US6443839B2 (en) * 1999-10-06 2002-09-03 Igt Standard peripheral communications
US6620047B1 (en) * 1995-06-29 2003-09-16 Igt Electronic gaming apparatus having authentication data sets
US6641484B2 (en) * 2001-09-21 2003-11-04 Igt Gaming machine including security data collection device

Family Cites Families (16)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4251863A (en) * 1979-03-15 1981-02-17 Sperry Corporation Apparatus for correction of memory errors
JPS6051749B2 (ja) * 1979-08-31 1985-11-15 富士通株式会社 エラ−訂正方式
US4493081A (en) * 1981-06-26 1985-01-08 Computer Automation, Inc. Dynamic memory with error correction on refresh
JPS61166653A (ja) * 1985-01-19 1986-07-28 Panafacom Ltd アドレス変換エラー処理方法
US4740968A (en) * 1986-10-27 1988-04-26 International Business Machines Corporation ECC circuit failure detector/quick word verifier
US4862463A (en) * 1987-07-20 1989-08-29 International Business Machines Corp. Error correcting code for 8-bit-per-chip memory with reduced redundancy
US5307356A (en) * 1990-04-16 1994-04-26 International Business Machines Corporation Interlocked on-chip ECC system
US5233616A (en) * 1990-10-01 1993-08-03 Digital Equipment Corporation Write-back cache with ECC protection
US5289477A (en) * 1991-06-06 1994-02-22 International Business Machines Corp. Personal computer wherein ECC and partly error checking can be selectively chosen for memory elements installed in the system, memory elements enabling selective choice of error checking, and method
US5313475A (en) * 1991-10-31 1994-05-17 International Business Machines Corporation ECC function with self-contained high performance partial write or read/modify/write and parity look-ahead interface scheme
US5384788A (en) * 1992-10-26 1995-01-24 Dell Usa, L.P. Apparatus and method for optimal error correcting code to parity conversion
EP0600137A1 (fr) * 1992-11-30 1994-06-08 International Business Machines Corporation Procédé et dispositif pour la correction d'erreurs dans une mémoire
US6078942A (en) * 1996-04-25 2000-06-20 Microsoft Corporation Resource management for multimedia devices in a computer
US6128713A (en) * 1997-09-24 2000-10-03 Microsoft Corporation Application programming interface enabling application programs to control allocation of physical memory in a virtual memory system
US6085296A (en) * 1997-11-12 2000-07-04 Digital Equipment Corporation Sharing memory pages and page tables among computer processes
US6088777A (en) * 1997-11-12 2000-07-11 Ericsson Messaging Systems, Inc. Memory system and method for dynamically allocating a memory divided into plural classes with different block sizes to store variable length messages

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6620047B1 (en) * 1995-06-29 2003-09-16 Igt Electronic gaming apparatus having authentication data sets
US6142872A (en) * 1998-03-31 2000-11-07 Walker Digital, Llc Method and apparatus for team play of slot machines
US6443839B2 (en) * 1999-10-06 2002-09-03 Igt Standard peripheral communications
US6641484B2 (en) * 2001-09-21 2003-11-04 Igt Gaming machine including security data collection device

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
KENT D.: 'Partity and ECC-How They Work' REAL WORLD TECHNOLOGIES, [Online] Retrieved from the Internet: <URL:http://www.realworldtech.com/page.cfm? ArticleID=RWT061300000000> *

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US8360871B2 (en) 2007-09-26 2013-01-29 Wms Gaming Inc. Wagering game machines with non-volatile memory

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2006039556A3 (fr) 2006-07-27
US20080096631A1 (en) 2008-04-24

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US7610462B2 (en) Gaming machine with secure fault-tolerant memory
US7470182B2 (en) Computerized gaming system, method and apparatus
US7063615B2 (en) Electronic gaming apparatus with authentication
EP1496419B1 (fr) Appareil de jeu avec authentification ciblé du logiciel en temps d&#39;exécution
US8113933B2 (en) Gaming machine providing multiple poker games with a push up feature
US8109823B2 (en) Gaming machine with wild symbol feature
AU2001245529B2 (en) Computerized gaming system, method and apparatus
US8070580B2 (en) Conversion of lowest value symbols into special symbols in a gaming machine
US9171423B2 (en) Linear scatter jackpot method and system
JP6803968B2 (ja) ゲーミングマシン、マシンの制御方法、およびゲーミングマシン用のプログラム
US10810827B2 (en) Gaming system having shifting accumulation of bonus wilds
US10275991B2 (en) Multi-slot game within slot game
WO2012061560A2 (fr) Jeux de casino électroniques comprenant des jeux principaux et des jeux accessoires
WO2007078654A2 (fr) Machine de jeu de pari comportant un système de fichier copié d&#39;image
US8206216B2 (en) Gaming machine with auto-detect feature activation
US20070281793A1 (en) Gaming machine with journaling
US20080293499A1 (en) Gaming System Peripherals With Automatic System Configuration
US9916716B2 (en) Gaming system and method of gaming
US20080096631A1 (en) Gaming Device With Error Correcting Memory
US20080085774A1 (en) Gaming Device with Embedded Data System
US8123621B2 (en) Storing data in wagering game systems
US20240203199A1 (en) Game state reset feature for gaming machine fault
US20090083188A1 (en) Secure Data Systems and Methods
AU768482B2 (en) Improved electronic gaming apparatus
AU2012200847B2 (en) A gaming system and a method of gaming

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
AK Designated states

Kind code of ref document: A2

Designated state(s): AE AG AL AM AT AU AZ BA BB BG BR BW BY BZ CA CH CN CO CR CU CZ DE DK DM DZ EC EE EG ES FI GB GD GE GH GM HR HU ID IL IN IS JP KE KG KM KP KR KZ LC LK LR LS LT LU LV LY MA MD MG MK MN MW MX MZ NA NG NI NO NZ OM PG PH PL PT RO RU SC SD SE SG SK SL SM SY TJ TM TN TR TT TZ UA UG US UZ VC VN YU ZA ZM ZW

AL Designated countries for regional patents

Kind code of ref document: A2

Designated state(s): GM KE LS MW MZ NA SD SL SZ TZ UG ZM ZW AM AZ BY KG KZ MD RU TJ TM AT BE BG CH CY CZ DE DK EE ES FI FR GB GR HU IE IS IT LT LU LV MC NL PL PT RO SE SI SK TR BF BJ CF CG CI CM GA GN GQ GW ML MR NE SN TD TG

DPE1 Request for preliminary examination filed after expiration of 19th month from priority date (pct application filed from 20040101)
121 Ep: the epo has been informed by wipo that ep was designated in this application
WWE Wipo information: entry into national phase

Ref document number: 11576368

Country of ref document: US

NENP Non-entry into the national phase

Ref country code: DE

122 Ep: pct application non-entry in european phase