Patent · US Expired

Player operated win checker appended to lottery agent terminal

US5417424A · kind A · utility

324Cited by
26References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateSep 28, 1993
Grant dateMay 23, 1995
Priority date
Expiry dateSep 28, 2013

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG07F17/329
  • WIPO fieldControl
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A wagering system such as a lottery with a central computer communicating with agent terminals at which tickets are issued, for example in convenience stores and the like, has a player-operated win-checking system coupled to the communications network, preferably as a peripheral to the agent terminal but possibly as a separate network terminal. Player choices and game identifications are bar coded on the tickets. A player scans the ticket automatically to trigger comparison of the bar coded data with winning entry data kept in a past game memory, such that the system need not resort to stored data on individual wager transactions to check for wins. This reduces the burden on the agent and the network because most issued tickets need not be checked by attempting to validate them for a payout. A limited number of past games are stored, e.g., the most recent thirty Keno game cycles of a game run at five minute intervals. One or more of the win checking system, the agent terminal and the central computer can hold the past game memory. Winning choice data is downloaded after each game, or scanned player choices are uploaded, to effect the comparison. If a ticket is too old for the corre…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.