U.S. patent application number 11/740785 was filed with the patent office on 2007-11-15 for network gaming system with bonus capability.
Invention is credited to David Curry, Alan Wong.
Application Number | 20070265066 11/740785 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 38283022 |
Filed Date | 2007-11-15 |
United States Patent
Application |
20070265066 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Curry; David ; et
al. |
November 15, 2007 |
NETWORK GAMING SYSTEM WITH BONUS CAPABILITY
Abstract
A bonus controller and method for controlling the award of a
bonus at a gaming terminal. In one embodiment game play data is
monitored and compared to a trigger event. A token is then sent to
the triggering gaming terminal dependent on any received response
the bonus is immediately awarded, or data defining the bonus and a
player identifier is stored to enable subsequent award of the
bonus. In another embodiment, the method includes communicating a
token over a wide area network and checking whether the gaming
machine is eligible to award the bonus.
Inventors: |
Curry; David; (New South
Wales, AU) ; Wong; Alan; (New South Wales,
AU) |
Correspondence
Address: |
MCANDREWS HELD & MALLOY, LTD
500 WEST MADISON STREET
SUITE 3400
CHICAGO
IL
60661
US
|
Family ID: |
38283022 |
Appl. No.: |
11/740785 |
Filed: |
April 26, 2007 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
463/26 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G07F 17/32 20130101;
G07F 17/3232 20130101; G07F 17/3258 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
463/026 |
International
Class: |
A63F 9/24 20060101
A63F009/24 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 26, 2006 |
AU |
2006902149 |
Claims
1. A programmed computational bonus controller for controlling the
award of a bonus at a gaming terminal, the bonus controller
comprising a communication interface and operating to: receive at
the communication interface data sent by a first gaming terminal
that comprises data defining a player identifier and data relating
to game play of the first gaming terminal, and receive
corresponding data from a plurality of other gaming terminals;
store in memory a definition of a trigger event, wherein occurrence
of the trigger event is determined dependent on the received data
related to game play; determine when occurrence of the trigger
event is attributable to the first gaming terminal; send via the
communication interface a token addressed to the first gaming
terminal and await a response from the first gaming terminal;
monitor for receipt at the communication interface of a response to
the token and dependent on any received response one of: a) cause
the immediate award of a bonus at the first gaming terminal; and b)
store data defining a bonus and the player identifier received from
the first gaming terminal to enable the subsequent award of the
defined bonus.
2. The bonus controller of claim 1, wherein when the bonus
controller stores data defining a bonus and the player identifier
received from the first gaming terminal, it subsequently monitors
for receipt at the communication interface of data defining that
player identifier, identifies from that data the gaming terminal
that generated the data, and in response communicates information
relating to the bonus to the identified gaming terminal.
3. The bonus controller of claim 2, wherein the information
relating to the bonus comprises data defining the bonus so as to
allow the identified gaming terminal to award the bonus.
4. The bonus controller of claim 3, wherein the bonus is a
progressive jackpot and following communication of information
relating to the bonus to the identified gaming terminal, the bonus
controller awaits acknowledgement from the first gaming terminal
that the bonus has been awarded and then one of resets and reduces
the value of the progressive jackpot.
5. The bonus controller of claim 1, wherein when the bonus
controller stores details of a bonus and the player identifier
received from the first gaming terminal, it subsequently outputs
information of use in sending a notification to the player
identified by the player identifier that he or she has won a
bonus.
6. The bonus controller of claim 5, wherein the information of use
in sending a notification to the player is only output if a certain
period of time has elapsed since the details of a bonus and the
player identifier received from the first gaming terminal were
stored and the bonus controller has not, prior to expiration of the
certain period, caused the award of the bonus.
7. A programmed computational bonus controller for controlling the
award of a progressive bonus in a gaming system, the bonus
controller comprising a communication interface and operating to:
receive at the communication interface data generated by a
plurality of gaming terminals that comprises data relating to game
play of the terminals and maintain a progressive jackpot; compare
data received from the gaming terminals to a definition of a
trigger event; when the trigger event occurs, select a gaming
terminal in a selection process that has comprises a random
selection of one of a plurality of eligible gaming terminals; send
via the communication interface a token addressed to the first
gaming terminal and await a response from the first gaming
terminal; monitor for receipt at the communication interface a
response to the token and dependent on any received response one
of: a) cause the award of a bonus at the selected gaming terminal
and reducing the value of the progressive bonus meter; and b)
without causing the award of a bonus at the selected gaming
terminal, select another one of the eligible gaming terminals; and
repeat the selection of eligible gaming terminals until the value
of the progressive bonus meter falls below a certain value, then
ceasing the selection of eligible gaming terminals until the next
occurrence of the trigger event.
8. The bonus controller of claim 7, wherein at least one of the
eligible gaming terminals comprises a gaming terminal that has
received a player identifier from a player and communicated data
relating to the player identifier to the bonus controller, wherein
if the selected gaming terminal is one that the bonus controller
has received a player identifier for, then under certain
circumstances the bonus controller stores a bonus award in memory
so as to be associated with the player identifier and reduces the
balance of the progressive jackpot.
9. The bonus controller of claim 8, wherein the certain
circumstances comprise the response to the token that causes the
bonus controller to, without causing the award of a bonus at the
selected gaming terminal, select another one of the eligible gaming
terminals.
10. The bonus controller of claim 9, wherein the response to the
token that causes the bonus controller to, without causing the
award of a bonus at the selected gaming terminal, select another
one of the eligible gaming terminals is a response that indicates
that a player that was playing the gaming terminal when the gaming
terminal was selected is no longer playing the gaming terminal.
11. A gaming network comprising a plurality of gaming terminals in
communication with at least one server over a communications
network comprising a wide area communications network, the at least
one server maintaining a progressive jackpot by receiving data
indicative of game play of the plurality of gaming terminals and
incrementing the jackpot in response to receive of said data, and
by causing the award of at least a portion of the progressive
jackpot to one of the gaming terminals on the occurrence of a
trigger event, wherein the process of causing the award of the
progressive jackpot comprises: a) selection of one of the plurality
of gaming terminals and sending a token to the selected gaming
terminal over the communications network, wherein the token does
not cause the gaming machine to make an award of the progressive
jackpot; b) awaiting notification from the selected gaming terminal
as to whether the gaming terminal is eligible to award the bonus;
c) if notification is received from the gaming terminal that it is
eligible, then communicating to that gaming terminal the amount of
the award to be awarded, awaiting acknowledgement from the gaming
terminal and then reducing the value of the progressive jackpot;
and d) if notification is received from the gaming terminal that it
is not eligible then repeating steps a) to c).
12. The gaming network of claim 11, wherein selection of one of the
plurality of gaming terminals comprises the server selecting a
gaming system within the gaming network that comprises a plurality
of gaming terminals and causing a controller in the selected gaming
system to select one of the plurality of gaming terminals within
that gaming system, and wherein sending a token to the selected
gaming terminal over the communications network comprises sending
the token to the selected gaming terminal via the controller.
13. The gaming network of claim 12, wherein the controller randomly
selects one of the gaming terminals that it is in communication
with.
14. The gaming network of claim 12, wherein the controller selects
one of the gaming terminals in the gaming system based on a trigger
event occurring in the gaming system that is related to operation
of the gaming terminals in the gaming system.
15. The gaming network of claim 11, wherein selection of one of the
plurality of gaming terminals comprises making a selection from a
sub-group of the gaming terminals, the sub-group determined by the
at least one server dependent on play of the gaming terminals
during a period immediately preceding the selection process.
16. A gaming system comprising a plurality of gaming terminals in
communication with a programmed computational bonus controller for
controlling the award of a bonus at one of the gaming terminals,
the bonus controller operating to: receive data sent by the gaming
terminals that comprises data defining a player identifier and data
relating to game play of that gaming terminal; store in memory a
definition of a trigger event, wherein occurrence of the trigger
event is determined dependent on the received data related to game
play; determine when the trigger event occurs and then send a token
addressed to an identified one of the gaming terminals and await a
response from the identified gaming terminal; monitor for receipt
at the communication interface of a response to the token and
dependent on any received response one of: a) cause the immediate
award of a bonus at the identified gaming terminal; and b) store
data defining a bonus and the player identifier previously received
from the identified gaming terminal to enable subsequent award of
the defined bonus; and the gaming terminals operating to: generate
and send to the bonus controller the data comprising data defining
a player identifier and data relating to game play of that
terminal; receive the token and in response establish whether that
gaming machine is in play by an identified player, wherein if the
gaming terminal is in play by an identified player sending a
response that results in the bonus server causing the award of the
bonus and if the gaming terminal is not in play by an identified
player, sending a response that results in the bonus server storing
data defining a bonus and the player identifier previously received
from the identified gaming terminal.
17. The gaming system of claim 16, wherein the identified gaming
terminal is the gaming terminal that caused the trigger event to
occur.
18. The gaming system of claim 16, wherein the identified gaming
terminal is randomly selected following occurrence of the trigger
event.
19. A method of controlling the award of a bonus at a gaming
terminal, the method comprising: receiving at a bonus controller
data sent by a plurality of gaming terminals that comprises data
defining a player identifier and data relating to game play of that
gaming terminal; within the bonus controller determining when a
trigger event has occurred and attributing occurrence of the
trigger event to an identified one of the gaming terminals; using
the bonus controller to send a token to the identified gaming
terminal; and dependent on a response from the identified gaming
terminal one of: a) immediately awarding a bonus at the first
gaming terminal; and b) storing in memory data defining a bonus and
the player identifier received from the first gaming terminal to
enable subsequent award of the defined bonus.
20. A method of controlling the award of a progressive bonus in a
gaming system, comprising: receiving at a bonus controller data
generated by a plurality of gaming terminals that comprises data
relating to game play of the terminals; maintaining a progressive
jackpot using the received data; comparing data received from the
gaming terminals to a definition of a trigger event; when the
trigger event occurs, selecting a gaming terminal in a selection
process that comprises: a) a random selection of one of a plurality
of eligible gaming terminals; b) sending via the communication
interface a token addressed to the first gaming terminal; and
dependent on any received response one of: c) causing the award of
a bonus at the selected gaming terminal and reducing the value of
the progressive bonus meter; and d) without causing the award of a
bonus at the selected gaming terminal, selecting another one of the
eligible gaming terminals; and repeating the selection process
until the value of the progressive bonus meter falls below a
certain value, then ceasing the selection of eligible gaming
terminals until the next occurrence of the trigger event.
21. A method of awarding a bonus at a gaming terminal, the method
comprising: establishing a gaming network comprising a plurality of
gaming terminals and a bonus controller communicating over a wide
area communications network, maintaining a progressive jackpot by
receiving data indicative of game play of the plurality of gaming
terminals and incrementing the jackpot in response to receive of
said data; when a predefined trigger event occurs, selecting one of
the plurality of gaming terminals and sending a token to the
selected gaming terminal over the communications network, wherein
the token does not cause the gaming machine to make an award of the
progressive jackpot; at the gaming terminal, in response to receipt
of the token, determining if the gaming machine is eligible for
award of the bonus; if the gaming terminal is eligible, then
communicating from the bonus controller to that gaming terminal the
amount of the bonus to be awarded; and if the gaming terminal is
not eligible then selecting another one of the plurality of gaming
terminals and sending a token to the newly selected gaming
terminal.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to gaming apparatus and
methods of gaming. In particular, the present invention relates to
gaming systems implemented using one or more communications
networks and having a capability to provide a bonus award.
[0002] A gaming machine is designed to return to players, on
average, a fixed percentage of the money bet. The remaining portion
of the money bet is retained by the operator. Typically a gaming
machine might return to players between 86% and 92% of money
bet.
[0003] Bonus awards are often used to increase the attractiveness
of a gaming machine so that players are more likely to play that
gaming machine and consequently the machine's turnover is
increased. A gaming machine may have an average return to player
percentage of 90%. A bonus award may be offered on that machine
which returns on average a further 2% of the total money wagered.
Thus the standard pay schedule and the bonus award on average
result in 92% of the total money wagered being returned to
players.
[0004] Bonuses have also been provided by gaming systems that have
a plurality of linked gaming machines. Traditional linked bonus
award systems consist of a number of gaming machines linked by a
communications network to a bonus award controller. Bonus award
systems were typically one of two types: standard link progressive
systems and mystery link progressive systems.
[0005] A standard link progressive system operates by a jackpot
server counting the number of a preselected type of event on the
link progressive system. Typically a percentage of wagers placed on
each gaming machine in the system is used to increase the
progressive jackpot. Each gaming machine is able to generate a
progressive win combination in its game. When this occurs, the
gaming machine informs the jackpot server of this event and the
jackpot is awarded to a player at the gaming machine that generated
the progressive win combination. The progressive jackpot is then
typically reset to a predetermined seed value and increases with
play of the gaming machines until the next time one of the gaming
machines generates a progressive win combination.
[0006] Mystery link progressive systems also operate by counting
the number of a preselected type of event occurring on the mystery
link progressive system. The events are typically a type which
related to the credits wagered on the linked machines. Typically
the type of events counted are either credits wagered or games
played on the linked gaming machines. An event counter stored in
the bonus controller is used to count the number of the events as
they occurred.
[0007] The bonus controller counts the events until the event
counter reaches a predetermined event count. When the event counter
reaches the predetermined event count, the bonus controller awards
the payment of the mystery prize pool to the linked gaming machine
which caused the event counter to reach the predetermined event
count. The predetermined event count is typically generated by
randomly selecting a number within pre-defined upper and lower
limits.
[0008] There exists a need in the industry for alternative methods
of providing a bonus in a network gaming system.
[0009] A problem with central determination of the awarding of a
bonus is that there is a chance that the player that caused the
awarding of the bonus by playing a gaming machine may leave the
gaming machine in the time it takes for the gaming machine to
communicate to a server a message indicating a coin-in event at the
gaming machine and for the server to send back a message indicating
the award of a bonus. This problem may be more likely to occur when
a wide area network is used in the communication path between the
gaming machine and the server.
[0010] Any reference in this specification to the prior art does
not constitute an admission that such prior art was well known or
forms part of the common general knowledge in any jurisdiction.
[0011] Copyright Notice Permission: A portion of the disclosure of
this patent document contains material which is subject to
copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the
facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document as it
appears in patent office records once publicly available, but
otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] According to a first aspect of the invention, there is
provided programmed computational bonus controller for controlling
the award of a bonus at a gaming terminal, the bonus controller
comprising a communication interface and operating to: [0013]
receive at the communication interface data sent by a first gaming
terminal that comprises data defining a player identifier and data
relating to game play of the first gaming terminal, and receive
corresponding data from a plurality of other gaming terminals;
[0014] store in memory a definition of a trigger event, wherein
occurrence of the trigger event is determined dependent on the
received data related to game play; [0015] determine when
occurrence of the trigger event is attributable to the first gaming
terminal; [0016] send via the communication interface a token
addressed to the first gaming terminal and await a response from
the first gaming terminal; [0017] monitor for receipt at the
communication interface of a response to the token and dependent on
any received response one of: [0018] a) cause the immediate award
of a bonus at the first gaming terminal; and [0019] b) store data
defining a bonus and the player identifier received from the first
gaming terminal to enable subsequent award of the defined
bonus.
[0020] The bonus controller may store data defining a bonus and the
player identifier received from the first gaming terminal,
subsequently monitor for receipt at the communication interface
data defining that player identifier, identify from that data the
gaming terminal that generated the data, and in response
communicate information relating to the bonus to the identified
gaming terminal. In one embodiment, the information relating to the
bonus may comprise data defining the bonus so as to allow the
identified gaming terminal to award the bonus. In one embodiment,
the bonus may be a progressive jackpot and following communication
of information relating to the bonus to the identified gaming
terminal, the bonus controller awaits acknowledgement from the
first gaming terminal that the bonus has been awarded and then one
of resets and reduces the value of the progressive jackpot.
[0021] When the bonus controller stores details of a bonus and the
player identifier received from the first gaming terminal, it may
subsequently output information of use in sending a notification to
the player identified by the player identifier that he or she has
won a bonus. The information of use in sending a notification to
the player may only be output if a certain period of time has
elapsed since the details of a bonus and the player identifier
received from the first gaming terminal were stored and the bonus
controller has not, prior to expiration of the certain period,
caused the award of the bonus.
[0022] According to a second aspect of the invention, there is
provided a programmed computational bonus controller for
controlling the award of a progressive bonus in a gaming system,
the bonus controller comprising a communication interface and
operating to: [0023] receive at the communication interface data
generated by a plurality of gaming terminals that comprises data
relating to game play of the terminals and maintain a progressive
jackpot; [0024] compare data received from the gaming terminals to
a definition of a trigger event; [0025] when the trigger event
occurs, select a gaming terminal in a selection process that has
comprises a random selection of one of a plurality of eligible
gaming terminals; send via the communication interface a token
addressed to the first gaming terminal and await a response from
the first gaming terminal; [0026] monitor for receipt at the
communication interface a response to the token and dependent on
any received response one of: [0027] a) cause the award of a bonus
at the selected gaming terminal and reducing the value of the
progressive bonus meter; and [0028] b) without causing the award of
a bonus at the selected gaming terminal, select another one of the
eligible gaming terminals; and [0029] repeat the selection of
eligible gaming terminals until the value of the progressive bonus
meter falls below a certain value, then ceasing the selection of
eligible gaming terminals until the next occurrence of the trigger
event.
[0030] At least one of the eligible gaming terminals may comprise a
gaming terminal that has received a player identifier from a player
and communicated data relating to the player identifier to the
bonus controller, wherein if the selected gaming terminal is one
that the bonus controller has received a player identifier for,
then under certain circumstances the bonus controller stores a
bonus award in memory so as to be associated with the player
identifier and reduces the balance of the progressive jackpot. The
certain circumstances may comprise the response to the token that
causes the bonus controller to, without causing the award of a
bonus at the selected gaming terminal, select another one of the
eligible gaming terminals. In one embodiment the response to the
token that causes the bonus controller to, without causing the
award of a bonus at the selected gaming terminal, select another
one of the eligible gaming terminals, is a response that indicates
that a player that was playing the gaming terminal when the gaming
terminal was selected is no longer playing the gaming terminal.
[0031] According to a third aspect of the invention, there is
provided a gaming network comprising a plurality of gaming
terminals in communication with at least one server over a
communications network comprising a wide area communications
network, the at least one server maintaining a progressive jackpot
by receiving data indicative of game play of the plurality of
gaming terminals and incrementing the jackpot in response to
receive of said data, and by causing the award of at least a
portion of the progressive jackpot to one of the gaming terminals
on the occurrence of a trigger event, wherein the process of
causing the award of the progressive jackpot comprises:
[0032] a) selection of one of the plurality of gaming terminals and
sending a token to the selected gaming terminal over the
communications network, wherein the token does not cause the gaming
machine to make an award of the progressive jackpot;
[0033] b) awaiting notification from the selected gaming terminal
as to whether the gaming terminal is eligible to award the
bonus;
[0034] c) if notification is received from the gaming terminal that
it is eligible, then communicating to that gaming terminal the
amount of the award to be awarded, awaiting acknowledgement from
the gaming terminal and then reducing the value of the progressive
jackpot; and
[0035] d) if notification is received from the gaming terminal that
it is not eligible then repeating steps a) to c).
[0036] Selection of one of the plurality of gaming terminals may
comprise the server selecting a gaming system within the gaming
network that comprises a plurality of gaming terminals and causing
a controller in the selected gaming system to select one of the
plurality of gaming terminals within that gaming system, and
wherein sending a token to the selected gaming terminal over the
communications network comprises sending the token to the selected
gaming terminal via the controller.
[0037] In one embodiment the controller randomly selects one of the
gaming terminals that it is in communication with. In another
embodiment the controller selects one of the gaming terminals in
the gaming system based on a trigger event occurring in the gaming
system that is related to operation of the gaming terminals in the
gaming system.
[0038] Selection of one of the plurality of gaming terminals may
comprise making a selection from a sub-group of the gaming
terminals, the sub-group determined by the at least one server
dependent on play of the gaming terminals during a period
immediately preceding the selection process.
[0039] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a gaming system comprising a plurality of gaming
terminals in communication with a programmed computational bonus
controller for controlling the award of a bonus at one of the
gaming terminals, the bonus controller operating to: [0040] receive
data sent by the gaming terminals that comprises data defining a
player identifier and data relating to game play of that gaming
terminal; [0041] store in memory a definition of a trigger event,
wherein occurrence of the trigger event is determined dependent on
the received data related to game play; [0042] determine when the
trigger event occurs and then send a token addressed to an
identified one of the gaming terminals and await a response from
the identified gaming terminal; [0043] monitor for receipt at the
communication interface of a response to the token and dependent on
any received response one of: [0044] a) cause the award of a bonus
at the identified gaming terminal; and [0045] b) store data
defining a bonus and the player identifier previously received from
the identified gaming terminal;
[0046] and the gaming terminals operating to: [0047] generate and
send to the bonus controller the data comprising data defining a
player identifier and data relating to game play of that terminal;
[0048] receive the token and in response establish whether that
gaming machine is in play by an identified player, wherein if the
gaming terminal is in play by an identified player sending a
response that results in the bonus server causing the award of the
bonus and if the gaming terminal is not in play by an identified
player, sending a response that results in the bonus server storing
data defining a bonus and the player identifier previously received
from the identified gaming terminal.
[0049] In one embodiment the identified gaming terminal may be the
gaming terminal that caused the trigger event to occur.
[0050] In another embodiment, the identified gaming terminal may be
randomly selected following occurrence of the trigger event.
[0051] According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a method of controlling the award of a bonus at a
gaming terminal, the method comprising: [0052] receiving at a bonus
controller data sent by a plurality of gaming terminals that
comprises data defining a player identifier and data relating to
game play of that gaming terminal; [0053] within the bonus
controller determining when a trigger event has occurred and
attributing occurrence of the trigger event to an identified one of
the gaming terminals; [0054] using the bonus controller to send a
token to the identified gaming terminal; and dependent on a
response from the identified gaming terminal one of: [0055] a)
immediately awarding a bonus at the first gaming terminal; and
[0056] b) storing in memory data defining a bonus and the player
identifier received from the first gaming terminal to enable
subsequent award of the defined bonus.
[0057] According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a method of controlling the award of a progressive
bonus in a gaming system, comprising: [0058] receiving at a bonus
controller data generated by a plurality of gaming terminals that
comprises data relating to game play of the terminals; [0059]
maintaining a progressive jackpot using the received data; [0060]
comparing data received from the gaming terminals to a definition
of a trigger event; [0061] when the trigger event occurs, selecting
a gaming terminal in a selection process that comprises: [0062] a)
a random selection of one of a plurality of eligible gaming
terminals; [0063] b) sending via the communication interface a
token addressed to the first gaming terminal; and dependent on any
received response one of: [0064] c) causing the award of a bonus at
the selected gaming terminal and reducing the value of the
progressive bonus meter; and [0065] d) without causing the award of
a bonus at the selected gaming terminal, selecting another one of
the eligible gaming terminals; and [0066] repeating the selection
process until the value of the progressive bonus meter falls below
a certain value, then ceasing the selection of eligible gaming
terminals until the next occurrence of the trigger event.
[0067] According to a seventh aspect of the present invention,
there is provided a method of awarding a bonus at a gaming
terminal, the method comprising: [0068] establishing a gaming
network comprising a plurality of gaming terminals and a bonus
controller communicating over a wide area communications network,
[0069] maintaining a progressive jackpot by receiving data
indicative of game play of the plurality of gaming terminals and
incrementing the jackpot in response to receive of said data;
[0070] when a predefined trigger event occurs, selecting one of the
plurality of gaming terminals and sending a token to the selected
gaming terminal over the communications network, wherein the token
does not cause the gaming machine to make an award of the
progressive jackpot; [0071] at the gaming terminal, in response to
receipt of the token, determining if the gaming machine is eligible
for award of the bonus; [0072] if the gaming terminal is eligible,
then communicating from the bonus controller to that gaming
terminal the amount of the bonus to be awarded; and [0073] if the
gaming terminal is not eligible then selecting another one of the
plurality of gaming terminals and sending a token to the newly
selected gaming terminal.
[0074] The present invention also comprises a computer program
product or computer media storing a computer program product to,
when executed, implement the methods describes herein.
[0075] Further aspects of the present invention will also become
apparent from the following description, given by way of example
and with reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0076] FIG. 1: shows diagrammatically, a view of a gaming machine
suitable for implementing an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0077] FIG. 2: shows a block diagram of gaming apparatus suitable
for implementing an embodiment of the present invention.
[0078] FIG. 3: shows a block diagram of components of the memory of
the gaming apparatus represented in FIG. 2.
[0079] FIG. 4: shows diagrammatically, a network gaming system
suitable for implementing an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0080] FIG. 5: shows a flow diagram of a process to be performed by
the network gaming system of FIG. 4 in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0081] FIG. 6: shows a flow diagram of a process to be performed by
the network gaming system of FIG. 4 in accordance with another
embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0082] In FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings, a gaming machine
suitable for use in a network gaming system of an embodiment of the
present invention is generally referenced by arrow 10.
[0083] The gaming machine 10 includes a console 12 having a display
14 on which is displayed representations of a game 16, that can be
played by a player. A mid-trim 20 of the gaming machine 10 houses a
bank of buttons 22 for enabling a player to play the game 16. The
mid-trim 20 also houses a credit input mechanism 24 including a
coin input chute 24A and a bill collector 24B. A top box 26 may
carry artwork 28, including for example, pay tables and details of
bonus awards and other information or images relating to the game.
Further artwork and/or information may be provided on the front
panel 29 of the console 12. A coin tray 30 is mounted beneath the
console 12 for cash payouts from the gaming machine 10.
[0084] The display 14 shown in FIG. 1 is in the form of a video
display unit, particularly a cathode ray tube screen device.
Alternatively, the display 14 may be a liquid crystal display,
plasma screen, any other suitable video display unit, or the
visible portion of an electromechanical device. In this latter
respect, if the game 16 is a spinning reel game, the display 14 may
use a stepper motor to control the position of physical reels. The
top box 26 may also be a display, for example a video display unit,
which may be the same type as the display 14, or a different type
of display.
[0085] FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a gaming apparatus,
generally referenced by arrow 100, suitable for implementing an
embodiment of the present invention. The gaming apparatus 100 may
operate as a networked gaming machine, communicating with other
network devices, such as one or more servers or other gaming
machines. The gaming apparatus 100 may have distributed hardware
and software components that communicate with each other directly
or through a network. Accordingly, different reference numerals
have been used in FIG. 2 from FIG. 1 for components that may be
equivalent.
[0086] The gaming apparatus 100 includes a game controller 101,
which in the illustrated example includes a microprocessor,
microcontroller, programmable logic device or other computational
device 102. Instructions and data to control operation of the
computational device 102 are stored in a memory 103, which is in
data communication with the computational device 102. Typically,
the gaming apparatus 100 will include both volatile and
non-volatile memory and more than one of each type of memory, with
such memories being collectively represented by the memory 103. In
addition, the computational device 102 may include two or more
computational devices that each perform computational functions and
which may be located locally or remotely from each other. The
instructions to cause the game controller 101 to implement games
will be stored in the memory 103.
[0087] The gaming apparatus may include meters 104 for the purposes
of regulatory compliance and also include an input/output (I/O)
interface 105 for communicating with the peripheral devices of the
gaming apparatus 100. The input/output interface 105 and/or the
peripheral devices may be intelligent devices with their own memory
for instructions and data.
[0088] In the example shown in FIG. 2, the peripheral devices that
communicate with the controller are one or more displays 106, user
interfaces 107, a card and/or ticket reader 108, a printer 109, a
bill acceptor and/or coin input mechanism 110 and a coin output
mechanism 111. Additional devices may be included in the gaming
apparatus 100 or devices omitted as required. One or more of the
peripheral devices may be an intelligent peripheral device, having
its own memory containing instructions and data.
[0089] The gaming apparatus 100 includes a communications
interface, for example a network card 112, to communicate with a
network for such purposes as sending status information, accounting
information and the like to a central controller, allowing
communication from the central controller to the gaming apparatus
100 or for other purposes. In one embodiment, the functions of the
computational device 102 may be split between a remote device and a
local device, for example with game outcomes generated remotely and
game graphics for the display 106 generated locally. In another
embodiment, the peripheral devices only may be provided locally
together with a network interface, in which case all, or nearly all
intelligent devices may be located remotely of the display 106.
[0090] FIG. 4 shows a gaming system 200. The gaming system 200
includes a network 201, which for example may be an Ethernet
network. Gaming terminals 202, shown arranged in three banks 203 of
two gaming terminals 202 in FIG. 3, are connected to the network
201. The gaming terminals 202 may be gaming machines 10, as shown
in FIG. 1 or form part or all of another gaming apparatus 100.
Single gaming terminals 202 and banks 203 containing three or more
gaming terminals 202 may also be connected to the network 201.
[0091] One or more displays 204 may also be connected to the
network 201. The displays 204 may, for example, be associated with
a bank 203 of gaming devices. The displays 204 may be used to
display representations associated with game play on the gaming
terminals 202, and/or used to display other representations, for
example promotional or informational material.
[0092] Servers may also be connected to the network 201. For
example, a game server 205 may generate game outcomes for games
played on the gaming terminals 202, a database management server
206 may be connected to a database (not shown) containing game
programs and associated data for downloading or access by the
gaming terminals 202 and a jackpot server 207 may control one or
more jackpots associated with the gaming terminals 202.
[0093] Further servers may be provided to assist in the
administration of the gaming system 200, including for example a
gaming floor management server 208, and a licensing server 209 to
monitor the use of licenses to particular games. An administrator
terminal 210 is provided to allow an administrator to run the
network 201 and the devices connected to the network.
[0094] The gaming system 200 may communicate with other gaming
systems, other local networks, for example a corporate network
and/or a wide area network such as the Internet. The communications
may be through a firewall 211, particularly where the connection
includes a public network. A web server (not shown) or other
appropriate communications device for the network 212 may be
provided inside the firewall 211 to receive and send communications
from and to the network 212 respectively. In FIG. 4 the various
options for the network outside the firewall 211 are collectively
represented by the network 212. A second game server 213, second
database management server 214 and second jackpot server 215 may be
provided and perform similar functions to the servers 205-207, but
form a part of a plurality of gaming systems 200, each gaming
system 200 connected to the network 212 and having the servers
205-207 in common. The other gaming systems may or may not have the
same configuration as the gaming system 200 shown in FIG. 4.
[0095] Certain embodiments of the present invention will be
described primarily with reference to the gaming system 200 shown
FIG. 4. However, those skilled in the relevant arts will appreciate
that there are numerous alternative configurations of gaming
systems that may implement embodiments of the present
invention.
[0096] The gaming system 200 implements at least one bonus. A bonus
may be a mystery jackpot, progressive jackpot, initiation of a
special feature game that has a high return to player or another
enhanced gaming event or characteristic. The bonus is implemented
primarily using the gaming machines and one or both of the jackpot
servers 207, 215. Each of the jackpot servers 207, 215 may
implement separate bonuses, with the jackpot server 207
implementing a bonus that can be won by one of the gaming terminals
202 and the jackpot server 215 implementing a bonus that can be won
by any one of the gaming terminals 202 and other gaming machines
that form part of another gaming system 200 and that are in
communication with the jackpot server 215, either directly or
indirectly.
[0097] FIGS. 5A and 5B show a flow diagram of an example process to
be completed by the gaming system 200 to award a bonus. The steps
performed by a gaming terminal 202 are located to the left of FIG.
5 and the steps performed by a jackpot server 207, 215 are located
to the right of FIG. 5. For the purposes of illustration, it is
assumed that both of the jackpot servers 207, 215 maintain one or
more separate bonuses in the form of jackpots. However, in
alternative implementations only one of the jackpot servers 207,
215 may maintain a jackpot, or further jackpot servers may be
provided.
[0098] FIGS. 5A and 5B shows a process if a "Mystery Jackpot" is
implemented by the gaming system 200. A Mystery Jackpot is of the
type where a random number is selected as a trigger threshold and
when a monitored value, typically the collective coin-in from the
gaming machines eligible to win the Mystery Jackpot reaches the
trigger threshold, the jackpot is awarded. However, those skilled
in the relevant arts will appreciate that alternative bonus award
trigger events may be used, for example at a randomly selected time
within a bonus time window, in which case it may not be necessary
for the coin-in of the gaming terminals 202 to be monitored.
[0099] The process starts at steps 50 and 70. In step 50, a gaming
terminal 202 displays play of a game to a player. The gaming
terminal 202 may control the game play, or the game play may be
controlled centrally at the game server 205, in which case the
gaming terminal 202 may control the images displayed on its
display. During play of the game, a player makes wagers and the
game machine captures this information and in step 51 sends a
message to one or both of the jackpot servers 207, 215. This allows
the jackpot servers 207, 215 to award a bonus based on the turnover
of the gaming terminals 202 and any other gaming machines that
jackpot servers 207, 215 manage a bonus for.
[0100] In step 70, the jackpot servers 207, 215 set their
respective mystery jackpot trigger amounts and initial values for
any jackpots that have just been awarded or are new. Because the
server 207 is maintaining a jackpot for fewer gaming machines than
the server 215, it may have a correspondingly smaller possible
range of values for the jackpot trigger and a smaller initial
value. With each coin-in message received from a gaming terminal
202 (step 71), the value of the actual jackpot is increased (step
72), by incrementing a counter maintained at the jackpot server
207, 215.
[0101] While the gaming terminals 202 may each send coin-in
messages onto the network 201 which are detected by the jackpot
server 207 and forwarded by the network 201 to the jackpot server
215 for each coin-in event, the coin-in events may alternatively be
batched. For example, each gaming terminal 202 may send a coin-in
message only for every tenth actual coin-in. In addition or
instead, the jackpot server 207 may collect coin-in signals both
for itself and for the jackpot server 215 and then send a coin-in
message to the jackpot server 215 for every hundredth coin-in
message received from a gaming machine. In some implementations,
bank controllers or concentrators (not shown) for groups of gaming
machines may receive data for a plurality of gaming machines and
forward this to the jackpot server 207 and/or jackpot server 205.
The gaming system 200 may optionally switch from batch to
continuous coin-in messages once the mystery jackpot event is
close, which may be indicated to the gaming system 200 by an
appropriate message transmitted by the jackpot server 207, 215 over
the network 201.
[0102] The jackpot server 207, 215 compares the current jackpot
value with the mystery amount selected in step 70 (step 73) and
based on the comparison a decision is made (step 74). If the
mystery amount has not been reached, the process returns to step
71. If the mystery amount has been reached, then the gaming system
proceeds to step 75.
[0103] In step 75, the jackpot server 207, 215 randomly selects a
gaming machine from a list of gaming machines that are eligible to
win the jackpot. For the jackpot server 207 the eligible gaming
machines may be all of the gaming terminals 202, whereas the
eligible gaming machines for the jackpot server 215 will also
include other gaming machines. The jackpot server 207, 215 then
transmits a token that is addressed to the selected gaming machine
onto the network 201 (step 76). The jackpot server 207 can do this
directly, but the server 215 must send the token as part of a
message formatted using the transport protocol of the network 212,
which may then be parsed and the token transmitted on the network
201.
[0104] In an alternative embodiment, the jackpot server 215 may in
step 75 select a gaming system instead of an individual gaming
machine in a gaming system. The selection of the individual gaming
machine may then be performed by a jackpot server in the gaming
system 200. For example, if the jackpot server 215 selected the
gaming system 200, it would send a token to the gaming system 200,
which is received by the jackpot server 207. The jackpot server 207
would then randomly select a gaming terminal 202 and transmit onto
the network 201 a token addressed to the selected gaming terminal
202. In this alternative embodiment, the jackpot server 215, which
could potentially manage a jackpot for hundreds or even thousands
of gaming machines need not maintain a list of every single gaming
machine.
[0105] For the purposes of explanation, it is assumed that the
randomly selected gaming machine is one of the gaming terminals
202, although as explained herein, at least jackpot server 215 is
not restricted to selecting one of the gaming terminals 202. The
selected gaming terminal 202 receives the token (step 52) and then
checks if it is currently being played (step 53). If the gaming
machine not currently being played, then the gaming machine sends a
message back to the jackpot server 207, 215 (whichever one sent the
token to it) that indicates to the jackpot server 207, 215 that the
gaming terminal 202 is not currently being played (step 54). The
jackpot server 207, 215 receives the message (step 77) and then
returns to step 75 to select another gaming machine.
[0106] The gaming terminal 202 may determine that it is not being
played in a number of ways. One example of when a gaming terminal
202 will return a message indicating that it is not being played
may be when the gaming machine has a zero balance in its credit
meter and has not had a positive balance in the credit meter in the
last 5 seconds.
[0107] If the gaming terminal 202 determines in step 53 that the
game is being played, it then sends a message back to the server
207, 215 indicating this and preferably locks up, so that the
player can not continue play of the gaming terminal 202 (step 55).
The gaming terminal 202 may display a message to the player
informing them that they have won a prize and requesting that the
player await notification of the prize amount.
[0108] The jackpot server 207, 215 receives the message from the
gaming terminal 202 (step 78) and then determines the amount of the
jackpot to award (step 79). The jackpot may optionally have
continued to increase up to this point on the receipt of coin-in
messages at the jackpot server 207, 215, or alternatively may have
frozen once the mystery amount was won, with the subsequent coin-in
messages causing an increase in another jackpot to be awarded at a
later time. The jackpot server 207, 215 then sends a message to the
gaming terminal 202 that contains data indicating the amount of the
jackpot that has been won (step 80). The gaming terminal 202
receives the message (step 56) and causes the jackpot to be awarded
(step 57), for example by increasing a credit meter, printing a
ticket or calling for an attendant. The gaming terminal 202 also
sends an acknowledgement to the jackpot server 207, 215 (step 58),
which is received by the jackpot server 207, 215 (step 81) and in
response the jackpot is reset to its initial value (step 82) and
any coin-in messages that were received in the interim between
steps 79 and 82 may be added to the initial value. The process then
returns to step 70.
[0109] In one embodiment of the present invention, step 75 involves
selecting a single gaming machine from all of the gaming machines
that contribute to the jackpot that is due to be awarded. In an
alternative embodiment, the selection is made from a subset of
these gaming machines. For example, in the gaming system 200, the
gaming terminals 202 may be separated into groups. If a coin-in
message from a gaming terminal 202 in a particular group causes the
jackpot to reach the mystery amount, then the step 75 may involve
randomly selecting one of the gaming terminals 202 in that
particular group. A display 204 associated with a the particular
group and/or a display on each gaming terminal 202 in the group may
optionally announce that one of the gaming machines 204 is about to
win a jackpot immediately prior to the completion of the selection
and awarding process. In another example, the selection may be made
from a list of gaming machines that have contributed to the jackpot
recently, perhaps in the last 10 seconds or alternatively since the
mystery amount was reached. If the latter option is used, then step
75 may be delayed to allow a pool of eligible machines to be
formed. In this embodiment of the invention it is of course more
likely that the gaming machine that is selected will be being
played when it receives the token.
[0110] FIGS. 5A and 5B show a currently preferred form of the
present invention in which the award of a jackpot is performed in
two stages, namely sending a token (step 76) to find the winning
gaming machine and then notifying the gaming machine of the amount
won (step 80). Alternatively, the token may also notify the gaming
machine of the amount won, in which case the first gaming machine
that is being played that receives the token can immediately notify
the player of the amount won. However, a disadvantage of this
method is that when a gaming machine receives a token it has not
yet been established that two way communication between the jackpot
server 207, 215 and the gaming machine that received the token has
been established. If the gaming machine can not acknowledge receipt
of the token, then difficulties may arise in avoiding duplicate
award of the same jackpot.
[0111] FIGS. 6A and 6B show a flow diagram of a process according
to another aspect of the present invention. Again, steps performed
by a gaming machine are located to the left and steps performed by
the jackpot server 207, 215 are located to the right. Many of the
steps in FIG. 6 are identical or similar to the steps performed in
the process described previously with reference to FIG. 5 and these
steps are numbered with the same reference numerals.
[0112] The gaming terminals 202 operate in the same way, to play a
game and send coin-in messages to the jackpot server 207 or jackpot
server 215. The coin-in messages include a unique gaming machine
identifier (ID) of the sending gaming machine and a unique player
identifier (ID) of the player at the gaming machine that sent the
coin-in message. The player ID may be determined by the gaming
machine from a smart card, magnetic swipe card or other information
carrier that is inserted into or otherwise read by an appropriate
reader of the gaming machine, or may be information entered using a
user interface of the gaming machine or otherwise. When the mystery
jackpot amount is exceeded, the jackpot server 207, 215 in step 90
records the player ID in memory.
[0113] Instead of randomly selecting a gaming machine, in the
process shown in FIG. 6 the jackpot server sends a token to the
gaming machine that is identified by the gaming machine ID in the
coin-in message that caused the jackpot to exceed the mystery
amount. This may be achieved by looking up the gaming machine ID in
a look-up table to find the address of the gaming machine, or the
coin-in message may contain the network address. If after sending
the token in step 76, the gaming terminal 202 responds that it is
still being played by the same player, then steps 78 to 80 at the
jackpot server 207, 215 and steps 56 to 58 at the gaming terminal
202 proceed as for the process shown in FIG. 5.
[0114] If the player is no longer playing the gaming machine, the
previously recorded player ID and the jackpot amount are stored
(step 91). The jackpot server 207, 215 may monitor coin-in messages
from that gaming machine, other gaming machines and optionally also
other devices that it is in communication with for the stored
player ID and perform step 76 if the player ID is detected, sending
a token to the gaming machine to ensure that the player has not
left and attempting again to award the jackpot. If the jackpot has
not been awarded within a time limit, as determined in decision
step 93, an expired jackpot action (step 94) is taken. Step 94 may
involve looking up the player details in a database and mailing
notification of the win to the player or otherwise attempting to
contact the player, distributing the win to players of gaming
machines that were eligible to win the unclaimed jackpot as
described in more detail herein below, or some other action.
[0115] In an alternative embodiment, the coin-in messages may be
associated with a player ID without the player ID accompanying each
message. For example, a gaming machine may communicate the player
identifier when it is provided and communicate when the player
leaves the gaming machine. In this embodiment the jackpot server
207, 215 has all the information required to associate the coin-in
messages with the player ID.
[0116] In another aspect of the present invention, awarding a
jackpot may involve distributing the jackpot amongst eligible
gaming machines. The award process may take place over a period of
time, the only limit being that the balance of the jackpot
generally decreases over time during an award event. For example, a
jackpot of $100,000 may be separated into ten $10,000 jackpots,
each jackpot being awarded in intervals of 15 minutes, so that the
jackpot awarding process takes two and half hours.
[0117] In this aspect of the invention, steps 75 to 82 shown in
FIG. 5 may be repeated multiple times by the jackpot server 207,
215 for a single jackpot, the jackpot being effectively sub-divided
into a number of smaller sub-jackpots, each being awarded
individually to a randomly selected gaming terminal 202. Again, the
selection may be made from all gaming machines that contributed to
the jackpot, or a sub-set of gaming machines that are determined to
be eligible, for example due to being played recently. In one
embodiment, the process may further involve checking that the same
identified player is playing the gaming terminal as when that
gaming terminal was selected, using a process described in relation
to steps 53-58 and 77 to 94 of FIGS. 6A and 6B.
[0118] Table 1 shows an exemplary header of a packet that may be
sent by the jackpot server 207 to the machine communication
interface of a gaming machine, which may be the network card 112
described previously herein. The header contains three fields, a
"cmd" field, a "id" field and a "anetAddr" field". The "cmd" field
identifies the message to the network as a command, specifically a
jackpot token, the "id" field identifies the jackpot server 215
that sent the packet and the "anetAddr" field contains the network
address of the destination gaming machine. The "id" and "anetAddr"
fields are used by the network to route the packet to the
destination gaming machine. TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 header of a
token <head> Tag Format Value Description cmd Number 40 Send
Jackpot Token Id Number Identifier of originating jackpot server.
anetAddr Number Identifier of the destination gaming machine on the
gaming floor.
[0119] Table 2 shows an exemplary body of a token packet, which
also includes three fields. The "cmd" field identifies the packet
as a jackpot token to the destination gaming machine, the "tokenld"
field provides the gaming machine with the identifier of the token,
the identifier having been generated by the jackpot server 215
prior to sending the token, and the "acceptID" field specifies to
the gaming machine which algorithm to use to process the token. For
example, one "acceptID" value may specify that the process of FIG.
5 is to be implemented and another may specify that the process of
FIG. 6 is to be implemented. There may be several variations of
algorithms on or available to each gaming machine, with the jackpot
server 215 specifying which one to use in the token. TABLE-US-00002
TABLE 2 body of a token <body> Tag Format Value Description
cmd Number 1 Send Jackpot Token to EGM tokenId Number Token
Identifier acceptId Number Identifier of the algorithm to use to
process the token.
[0120] Table 3 shows an exemplary header of a response message from
a gaming machine to a token. The response message may be sent as
part of step 54 or step 55 of the processes shown in FIGS. 5 and
6.
[0121] The header includes the same fields as the header of the
token, the only difference being that the destination address is
now the network address of the jackpot controller and the source
address is the network address of the gaming machine.
TABLE-US-00003 TABLE 3 header of a response message <head>
Tag Format Value Description cmd Number 40 Send Jackpot Token id
Number Identifier of the destination jackpot server anetAddr Number
Identifier of source gaming machine
[0122] Table 4 shows an exemplary body of a response message, which
includes four fields. The "cmd" and "tokenld" fields identify to
the jackpot server that the message is a response message to a
token and the specific token that message relates to respectively.
The "acceptStatus" field indicates to the jackpot server whether
the gaming machine has accepted the token, or rejected it, and the
"rejectReason" field provides the reason for rejection, if any.
[0123] The "rejectReason" field will contain: [0124] A "0" if the
"acceptStatus" filed is a "1"; [0125] A "1" if the gaming machine
is already locked up awaiting further action following a previous
acceptance of a token with the same identifier (which may occur,
for example, if a previous response message was not received by the
jackpot server for some reason and therefore the jackpot server
retransmitted the token); [0126] A "2" if the gaming machine is not
in play as determined by the gaming machine and the "acceptID" of
the token specified that the gaming machine should use its own
algorithm to determine whether it is in play; [0127] A "3" if the
gaming machine is not in play and the "acceptID" of the token
specified that the gaming machine should report the duration that
the machine has remained unplayed, which allows the jackpot
controller to take varying action depending on the reported
duration;
[0128] A "4" if an identified player is not currently playing the
gaming machine, which may be useful where a jackpot is only
available to players who have identified themselves. TABLE-US-00004
TABLE 4 body of a response message <body> Tag Format Value
Description cmd Number 1 Send Jackpot Token to EGM tokenId Number
Token ID acceptStatus Number Acceptance result. 0 = No acceptance
of token, rejection 1 = Accept Token rejectReason Number Rejection
Reason. 0 = no reject reason 1 = already in a jackpot hit for this
jackpot ID 2 = EGM not in play 3 = EGM not in play for N seconds 4
= No player identifier available
[0129] Exemplary XML code for sending a token is: TABLE-US-00005
<msg> <head> <cmd>40</cmd>
<id>2</id> <anetAddr>12</anetAddr>
</head> <body> <cmd>1</cmd>
<tokenId>1234456789</tokenId>
<acceptId>2</acceptId> </body> </msg>
[0130] Exemplary XML code for sending a response message is:
TABLE-US-00006 <msg> <head> <cmd>40</cmd>
<id>2</id> <anetAddr>12</anetAddr>
</head> <body> <cmd>1</cmd>
<tokenId>1234456789</tokenId>
<acceptStatus>1></acceptStatus>
<rejectReason>0</rejectReason> </body>
</msg>
[0131] If a token is sent by the jackpot server 215, then the
message will be contained within a message suitable for
transmission over the network 212, for example using TCP/IP if the
network 212 includes the Internet.
[0132] While the foregoing description has been provided by way of
example of certain embodiments of the present invention as
presently contemplated, which utilise gaming apparatus and
machines, those skilled in the relevant arts will appreciate that
certain embodiments of the present invention also may have
application to internet gaming and/or have application to gaming
over a telecommunications network, where handsets are used to
display game outcomes and receive player inputs.
[0133] Where in the foregoing description reference has been made
to integers having known equivalents, then those equivalents are
hereby incorporated herein as if individually set forth.
[0134] Those skilled in the relevant arts will appreciate that
modifications and additions to the embodiments of the present
invention may be made without departing from the scope of the
present invention.
[0135] It will be understood that embodiments of the invention
disclosed and defined in this specification extend to all
alternative combinations of two or more of the individual features
mentioned or evident from the text or drawings. All of these
different combinations constitute various alternative aspects of
the invention.
[0136] It will also be understood that the term "comprises" (or its
grammatical variants) as used in this specification is equivalent
to the term "includes" and should not be taken as excluding the
presence of other elements or features.
* * * * *