DE68909992T2 - Device for progressive jackpot games. - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates generally to casino or game room gambling games having an increasing jackpot. More particularly, it relates to an increasing jackpot that can be played by players in various casino or game room table games.

It has become common practice in gaming establishments to provide an increasing jackpot component in conjunction with electronic or mechanical gaming devices such as slot machines, video poker machines or keno machines. Typically, a plurality or "bank" of machines are electronically linked together with a common increasing jackpot display. As chips are inserted into each machine, the amount shown on the increasing jackpot display increases incrementally until a lucky player displays the winning combination, such as three of four sevens in the same row on a slot machine. In video poker, a royal flush usually wins the jackpot, although some variants require a player to get a royal flush in the exact order, such as A-K-Q-J-10 (Ace-King-Queen-Jack-10) from left to right, or in a specific combination, such as spades. In video keno, a player must usually match 15 out of a set of 15 numbers to win the progressive jackpot.

As an example of these described devices, reference is made to US-A-4,837,728 with the filing date of January 25, 1984 and the publication of June 6, 1989. This document shows devices which were were in use in casinos in the United States prior to the priority date of the present application.

US-A-1,763,476 discloses a card table for playing a card game, which has a plurality of indicator lamps for displaying the dealer, the trump and the bid amount.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for providing the progressive jackpot component for casino or game room table games such as poker or "21" ("17-and-4"). To this end, the present invention provides an apparatus having the features of claim 1.

It is a feature of the present invention that it includes an incremental jackpot display electronically connected to one or more gaming tables to allow each player at his gaming station to participate in the incremental jackpot component by inserting a token which automatically activates a display reflecting the player's participation and which also automatically increments the incremental jackpot display.

It is an advantage of the present invention that the device makes it easy for any player to participate in the progressive jackpot component of the game.

For example, during the course of a game of "21" a player has the opportunity to place an additional bet in addition to his normal bet, which becomes part of the increasing jackpot and gives the player the opportunity to win the progressive jackpot. When the player's hand contains a certain predetermined arrangement of cards in the game of 21, the player wins all or part of the amount shown on the progressive jackpot. This progressive jackpot feature is also adaptable to any other casino or game room game such as draw poker, stud poker, lo-ball poker or Caribbean stud poker.

The apparatus used to carry out the present invention includes a gaming table, such as that used for "21" or poker, modified by the addition of a coin slot that is electronically connected to an incremental jackpot display. When a player inserts a coin into the coin slot, a light is turned on at the player's seat, indicating that he is participating in the incremental jackpot component of the game during that hand. At the same time, a signal is sent from the coin slot to the display to increase the amount displayed on the incremental jackpot display. At the end of play of each hand, the coin slot is reset for the next hand. If a player wins all or part of the incremental jackpot, the amount displayed on the incremental jackpot display is reduced by the amount won by the player. Any number of gaming tables can be connected to a single incremental jackpot display.

Short description of the drawings

Figure 1 shows the apparatus of the present invention using a casino gaming table with coin slots at each player position which are electronically connected to an increasing jackpot display.

Figure 2 shows an alternative embodiment of the present invention using a game room table with coin slots at each player position which are electronically connected to the progressive jackpot display.

Figure 3 shows a block diagram of the function of the present invention.

Figure 4 shows a schematic diagram of the electronic circuit of the present invention.

Detailed description of the preferred embodiments

As shown in Figure 1, a casino gaming table 10 is provided which has a plurality of player positions 12 for players participating in the game being conducted, for example "21". A dealer is positioned at the dealer position 14 adjacent a chip rack 16. A coin slot 20 is provided adjacent to each player position 12. Each coin slot 20 is electronically connected to a main control board 40 to which a number of of odometer-type counters 42 corresponding to the number of player positions 12 provided on the gaming table 10. As shown in Figure 1, preferably seven player positions 12 are provided, although the number of player positions may be more or less than seven. A reset switch 14 is disposed adjacent the dealer position 14 and is electronically connected to the main control board 40 and provides a device by which the dealer can reset the coin slots 20 prior to commencement of play of the next hand. A lockout switch 55 is also provided adjacent the dealer position 14 which is actuated by the dealer to prevent late betting as will be explained in more detail below.

A main board 40 is electronically connected to an incremental jackpot controller 60 which receives signals from each coin slot 20 and increments the incremental jackpot display 70 in response to those signals, as will be explained in more detail below. Also electronically connected to the incremental jackpot controller 60 is the jackpot reset controller 80 which provides a means for resetting the amount displayed on the incremental jackpot display each time a player has won all or part of the amount displayed on the incremental jackpot display 70.

In operation, the present invention operates as follows. A conventional "21" game is played on a game table 10. At the beginning of each hand, each player, in addition to his usual wager for the play of the "21" hand, may also make an additional wager to select whether to participate in the progressive jackpot component of the game during that hand. To do so, a player inserts a chip into the coin slot 20 associated with that player's slot 12. As will be explained in more detail later, the coin slot 20 detects that a chip has been inserted and an indicator signal 22, preferably a light, is activated adjacent the coin slot 20 indicating that a particular player is participating in the progressive jackpot component of the game during the play of that hand.

In addition to activating the indicator signal 22, the coin slot 20 also sends an electronic signal to the main control board 40. This signal is sent from the main control board 40 to the odometer-type counter 42 associated with the particular player location 12 to obtain a sequential count of the number of tokens that have been inserted into the particular coin slot 20.

The main control board 40 also activates the progressive jackpot controller 60, which in turn controls the progressive jackpot display 70. Each token inserted into a coin slot 20 results in an increase in the amount shown on the progressive jackpot display by a predetermined amount. For example, if each token has a value of one dollar then the amount shown on the progressive jackpot display is increased by any amount up to one dollar for each token inserted into the coin slot 20. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the progressive jackpot is increased by between 93% to 97% of the amount of each token wagered, the difference representing the house's share of the amount wagered to provide the progressive jackpot game component.

When each player has had a sufficient opportunity to make a bet on the progressive jackpot, the dealer activates the elimination switch 55, which deactivates every coin slot 20. Any chip inserted into a coin slot 20 after the elimination switch 55 has been activated will not be displayed. This prevents late betting after the cards have been dealt.

The amount shown on the progressive jackpot display continues to increase for each chip wagered until a player receives a winning hand. Preselected winning hands result in a player winning all or part of the amount shown on the progressive jackpot display. In a preferred embodiment, the preselected winning hands and payout amounts in the "21" game are as follows: Winning hand Jackpot amount Four fives and an ace Ace, two, three, four, five and six Six, seven and eight of the same suit Three sevens Tokens

The invention is not limited to these particular combinations of winning hands or payout amounts; other winning hand combinations or payout amounts may be used.

When a player receives a winning hand, the jackpot reset control 80 is manually activated by pressing a button corresponding to the type of winning hand the player has received. The amount won by the player is thus electronically deducted from the amount displayed on the incremental jackpot display.

When a particular winning hand has been completed on the gaming table 101, the dealer presses the reset switch 50 which deactivates the display signal 22. The elimination switch 55 is also manually deactivated by the dealer. The coin slot 20 is thus ready to accept another chip for the next hand.

The progressive jackpot component of the present invention may also be used in conjunction with other types of casino games, such as a poker game branded "Caribbean Stud Poker" which is described in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 182,374 filed April 18, 1988. "Caribbean Stud Poker" is a modification of conventional five-card stud poker. Each player makes a bet and a dealer deals five cards to each player and himself. The players' cards are dealt face down and of the dealer's cards, four cards are dealt face down and one card is dealt face up. Each player looks at his hand and then decides whether to continue playing by making an additional bet or to fold or fold his hand, thereby losing his bet. The dealer then reveals his entire hand; if the dealer's hand does not have a poker value of at least Ace-King, the dealer may not continue play. In this case, the dealer pays even money on the bets of the remaining players and returns their bets to them. If the dealer's hand has a poker value of Ace-King or better, the dealer compares his hand with each player's hand and pays or collects the bets accordingly. The dealer also pays "odds" of more than the same amount of money for each winning player's hand that is two pair or better, according to a bonus pay plan. This game may be played using the game table shown in Figure l. Each player places a bet in the progressive jackpot by placing a chip in the coin slot 20 which causes the player to be selected to participate in the amount of the progressive jackpot shown on display 70. The winning hands and amounts for Caribbean Stud Poker are preferably as follows: Hand Amount Royal Flush Straight Flush Four of a Kind Full House Flush Chips

Here too, the invention is not limited to these particular hand combinations or payout amounts; other hand combinations or payout amounts can be used.

The invention can also be adapted to other casino or game room poker games such as stud poker, draw poker or lo-ball poker. The game table 100 used to play each of these games is modified as shown in Figure 2 by the addition of coin slots 120 and indicator signals 122 at each player station 112. The electronics are the same as shown in Figure 1 and include a main control board 140, an odometer-type counter 142, an incremental jackpot control 160, an incremental jackpot indicator 170 and a jackpot reset control 180. A reset switch 150 and a knockout switch 155 are located adjacent the dealer station 114 near the chip rack 116.

The incremental jackpot indicator 170 is incremented in the same manner as described in connection with Figure 1 by each player inserting a token into the coin slot 120.

The winning hands and payout amounts are preselected according to the type of game played. In a preferred embodiment, the winning hands and payout amounts are as follows: I. Draw Poker with Five Cards Hand Amount Royal Flush Straight Flush Four of a Kind Full House Chips II. Stud Poker with Five Cards Hand Amount Royal Flush Straight Flush Four of a Kind Full House Chips III. Stud Poker with Seven Cards Hand Amount Royal Flush Straight Flush Four of a Kind Full House Chips IV. Lo-Ball Poker Hand Amount Chips

These winning hands and payout amounts are merely preferred embodiments, and the invention can also be implemented using any suitable combinations of winning hands and payout amounts.

As an alternative embodiment, the progressive jackpot game component may be used as a consolation prize payout for a player who otherwise loses while playing the regular game. For example, suppose the regular game being played is five-card stud. Players A and B are both selected to participate in the progressive jackpot amount because each has placed a chip in the coin slot prior to the start of play of that hand. Player A holds a four of a kind hand. Player B holds a full house. Because Player A's hand is higher according to the standard poker hand order priority, Player A wins the pot bet on the five-card stud game. However, as a consolation prize, Player B receives a payout from the progressive jackpot for his full house, such as 25 chips. Player A does not receive a payout from the progressive jackpot because he has already won the pot from the regular five-card stud game. Thus, in this alternative embodiment, a player will only receive a payout from the progressive jackpot if a player both holds a hand of the preselected kind and loses because of a higher hand in the same game played.

In another modification, the two players share the amount of the progressive jackpot: the player with the hand of the pre-selected type receives a percentage of the amount of the progressive jackpot and the player with the higher poker hand receives the remainder of the amount of the progressive jackpot. Referring to the example above, Player B would receive 80% of the amount of the progressive jackpot for a full house and Player A would receive 20% of the amount of the progressive jackpot for a full house.

Figure 3 shows the operation of the present invention in a block diagram. Each player position has a coin slot 210 into which a player inserts a token to select the amount of the increasing jackpot. When all players have had sufficient time to decide whether they wish to participate in the progressive jackpot for that hand, the dealer activates the lockout switch 220 which prevents late bets. Each chip inserted into a coin slot 210 energizes the progressive output control 230 which in turn activates three separate devices. An integrated timer circuit is energized which causes an indicator light 250 to illuminate at the coin slot location in front of the player. This gives the dealer a visual indication that the player is participating in the progressive jackpot during the play of that hand. The signal from the progressive jackpot control 230 also activates an odometer-type counter 255 which is incremented by one for each chip placed by the coin slot. This allows the gaming device to maintain an accurate count of the number of bets on the progressive jackpot.

The third signal from the progressive jackpot controller 230 goes directly to the progressive jackpot display 270. The progressive jackpot display 270 shows the total amount available to be won by a player who receives one of the preselected winning hands. The amount of the progressive jackpot display 270 automatically increases by a predetermined amount for each chip inserted into a coin slot. The progressive jackpot display 270 is programmed to show a specific percentage of the amount wagered in the coin slot 210. In the preferred embodiment, the increasing jackpot display is increased between approximately 93% to 97% of the amount inserted into the coin slot 210.

The dealer then deals the cards to each player and his hand is played 280. If a player has a pre-selected winning hand, the player is paid the amount corresponding to the type of winning hand that player has. The jackpot reset control 290 is manually activated, causing the payout amount to be automatically deducted from the amount shown on the increasing jackpot display 270.

After the winning players have been paid, the dealer activates the reset switch 295 which turns off both the integrated circuit timer 240 and the indicator lamp 250, and the dealer deactivates the elimination switch 297 which activates the coin slot 210 for the next hand.

Figure 4 illustrates the electronic circuit for operating the apparatus of the present invention in schematic form. The coin feed circuit 300 is operated when a chip is inserted into the slot on the gaming table on which the coin feed is mounted. The chip passes between an ultraviolet transmitter DSI and an optical receiver Q1 (transistor model #MRD 300). This causes a pulse to be passed from the collector of Q1 to the base of the receiver Q2. Q2 is a transistor model #2N3906 and acts as an emitter follower and sends a pulse which is received by integrated circuit 322,324 of main control board 320. Integrated circuit 322,324 is a timer of type #LM-556. The pulse from Q2 is received at pin 325 of lower section 324 of the integrated circuit and this pulse causes pin 326 of lower section 324 to go high and diode DS2 (a diode of type P367) to turn on. This diode DS2 is the indicator light 22 shown in Figure 1 and this indicator light 22 remains on until the reed play is completed.

The pulse from Q2 is also received by pin 323 of the upper section 322 of the integrated circuit, and this pulse produces a pulse on pin 327 of the upper section 322 which causes transistor Q3 (a transistor of type #TlP120) to turn on and then off for the duration of the pulse produced on pin 327. Turning transistor Q3 on and off causes the odometer-type counter 42 shown in Figure 1 to increment by one digit. The odometer-type counter 330 is a six-digit, non-resettable, 12-volt DC electronic meter, WICO Model #31-443400.

The pulse generated at pin 327 of the upper section 322 of the integrated circuit also goes to the opto-isolator 340, which is a model #H11A16E opto-isolator. The opto-isolator 340 passes this pulse to the base of transistor Q4 (a model #2N3906 transistor), turning on transistor Q4 for the duration of one pulse. When transistor Q4 is turned on, the impulse is passed to the progressive jackpot display 350 where the amount displayed on the display 350 is increased by a predetermined percentage of the value of the token inserted into the coin slot 300. The progressive jackpot display 350 may typically be a "Game Technology Model" having 3" (7.62 mm) LED letters on a single 44" (111.76 cm) long progressive display.

After all bets have been made, the dealer manually presses a lockout switch 316 which sets the output of transistor Q2 to a low level, ensuring that no late bets can be made through the coin slot 300. Once the output of transistor Q2 is set low, a chip inserted into the coin slot 300 will not provide a pulse flowing through the rest of the circuit.

The game is then played and once the game is complete, the dealer will manually depress the reset switch 370 which produces a reset pulse which activates pin 328 which resets the lower section (324) of the integrated circuit. This reset causes pin 326 to go low, turning off diode DS2 which extinguishes indicator light 22 on the game table. The dealer also manually depresses the lockout switch 360 to open the circuit and remove the emitter holding load from transistor Q2 allowing another hand to be played. The players begin the next hand by inserting their tokens into the coin slot 300 and the process repeats. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, various resistors and capacitors may be provided to complete the circuit. The specifications of the resistors and capacitors shown in Figure 4 are as follows: Resistors Capacitors

While the invention has been described with reference to various specific embodiments of this invention, these embodiments are to be considered as illustrative rather than limiting. Various modifications and additions may be envisaged and will occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited to the foregoing description, but is defined only by the following claims.

Claims (5)

1. A progressive jackpot device as an additional feature in a real casino table game comprising a gaming table (10) having a plurality of player positions (12) at which a player receives playing cards from a dealer, comprising: a) a device for the insertion of a token (20) by the player at each player position in order to participate in the additional increasing jackpot of the real casino table card game, (b) means for displaying the amount of the increasing jackpot on an incremental jackpot display (70), c) means (40, 60) for increasing the amount shown on the increasing jackpot display by a predetermined amount of the value of the token for each token inserted, and d) means (80, 60) for reducing the amount shown on the increasing jackpot display by the amount won by a player when the player achieves a predetermined combination of playing cards. 2. Device according to claim 1, characterized in that a signal display device (22) is provided at each player position (12) to indicate that the token has been inserted. 3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a blocking switch device (55) is provided in order to prevent a late insertion of the token. 4. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a reset switch device (50) is provided in order to reset the device for inserting a token (20) at the end of each game played. 5. Device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the device for inserting a token is a coin acceptor (20) arranged at each player position (12), and that the display device is a numerical display (70) associated with each coin acceptor (20).