US6007427A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method and apparatus for playing a gambling game with athletic game features
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1997-09-10
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Granted: 1999-12-28
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Expires: 2017-09-10
Abstract
Abstract The present invention discloses casino baseball gambling games played on electronic video gaming devices including a microprocessor, computer memory chips, programming software or firmware, a video display, control input buttons, and a coin acceptor. In a first embodiment of the invention, multiple players make wagers and compete against each other to win a pot formed by player wagers by scoring the greatest amount of runs in an allotted number of innings of play. Player scores are determined by various simulated "at bat" events such as singles, doubles, strike outs, steals, bunts, and home runs, which occur under program control based upon probabilities for the actual "at bat" events derived from major league baseball statistics. Preferably, players are afforded an option at an intermediate step in game play, after a first one-half inning, to either drop out and forfeit their initial wager, or to continue play by placing a second wager. In a second embodiment, an electronic video slot type machine intended for play by a single player, or by multiple players taking turns in succession, operates under program control to display baseball "at bat" events, associated odds, and separate wagering options on first and second portions of a video display. The second portion of the video display provides an optional "home run" attempt and associated wager which does not affect play of the game on the first display portion.
Inventors
- 👤 Herbert Wiener
- 👤 Michael Steven Budlow
- 👤 Robert D'Alessio
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-05 14:31
CPC Classifications
A; A63; A63F; A63F13/00; A63F13/80; A63F13/812; G; G07; G07F; G07F17/00; G07F17/32; G07F17/326; G07F17/3272; G07F17/3276
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 61
Claim 1
Independent Claim
136 words
An electronic gaming device for playing a baseball gambling game, comprising: a microprocessor; an electronic memory operationally connected with said microprocessor; a graphical display operationally connected with said microprocessor; at least one wager acceptor operationally connected with said microprocessor by which a player places a wager to participate in said baseball gambling game; and a program operationally associated with said microprocessor, said program being operative to simulate at least one turn at bat in a baseball game, said program being operative to display indicia on said display, said indicia designating points earned during said at least one turn at bat, said program being operative to determine whether a player is a winning player by evaluating points earned by a player pursuant to predetermined criteria, said program being operative to award a prize to a winning player.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
136 words
An electronic gaming device for playing a baseball gambling game, comprising: a microprocessor; an electronic memory operationally connected with said microprocessor; a graphical display operationally connected with said microprocessor; at least one wager acceptor operationally connected with said microprocessor by which a player places a wager to participate in said baseball gambling game; and a program operationally associated with said microprocessor, said program being operative to simulate at least one turn at bat in a baseball game, said program being operative to display indicia on said display, said indicia designating points earned during said at least one turn at bat, said program being operative to determine whether a player is a winning player by evaluating points earned by a player pursuant to predetermined criteria, said program being operative to award a prize to a winning player.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
29 words
The device of claim 1, wherein said program generates at bat events corresponding to a probability of occurrence of said at bat events derived from major league baseball statistics.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
33 words
The device of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of electronically interlinked electronic gaming devices affording a plurality of players an opportunity to compete against each other using said interlinked electronic gaming devices.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
27 words
The device of claim 3, wherein said plurality of interlinked electronic gaming devices are mounted in a single table including a plurality of peripherally spaced player positions.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
40 words
The device of claim 1, wherein said program displays indicia reflecting game score and status information in a first zone of said display and also displays a graphical representation of a baseball field in a second zone of said display.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
32 words
The device of claim 1, wherein said program is operative to display at bat events including singles, doubles, triples, home runs, walks, strikeouts, bunts, steals, double plays, sacrifice flies, and caught balls.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
37 words
The device of claim 1, wherein said program provides for a plurality of players to participate and compete against one another for a prize comprising at least a portion of a pot formed by pooling player wagers.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
23 words
The device of claim 1, further comprising control inputs to permit a player to select STEAL and BUNT options in preselected game conditions.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
267 words
An electronic gaming device for playing a baseball gambling game, comprising: a microprocessor; an electronic memory operationally connected with said microprocessor; a graphical display operationally connected with said microprocessor; and at least one wager acceptor operationally connected with said microprocessor by which a player places a wager to participate in a first component of said baseball gambling game, a program operationally associated with said microprocessor, said program being operative to simulate at least one turn at bat in a baseball game for said first component of said baseball gambling game, said program being operative to display indicia on said display, said indicia designating points earned during said at least one turn at bat in said first component of said baseball gambling game, said program being operative to determine whether a player is a winning player by evaluating points earned by a player in said first component of said baseball gambling game pursuant to predetermined criteria, said program being operative to award a winning player a prize, said wager acceptor and said microprocessor being operatively connected with a user input device by which a player may select to participate in a second component of the game by placing a second wager after said at least one turn at bat in said first component of said baseball gambling game, said program being operative to simulate on said display at least one attempt to hit a home run for said second component of the game, said program being operative to award a player a prize for said second component of said game if a player hits a simulated home run.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
267 words
An electronic gaming device for playing a baseball gambling game, comprising: a microprocessor; an electronic memory operationally connected with said microprocessor; a graphical display operationally connected with said microprocessor; and at least one wager acceptor operationally connected with said microprocessor by which a player places a wager to participate in a first component of said baseball gambling game, a program operationally associated with said microprocessor, said program being operative to simulate at least one turn at bat in a baseball game for said first component of said baseball gambling game, said program being operative to display indicia on said display, said indicia designating points earned during said at least one turn at bat in said first component of said baseball gambling game, said program being operative to determine whether a player is a winning player by evaluating points earned by a player in said first component of said baseball gambling game pursuant to predetermined criteria, said program being operative to award a winning player a prize, said wager acceptor and said microprocessor being operatively connected with a user input device by which a player may select to participate in a second component of the game by placing a second wager after said at least one turn at bat in said first component of said baseball gambling game, said program being operative to simulate on said display at least one attempt to hit a home run for said second component of the game, said program being operative to award a player a prize for said second component of said game if a player hits a simulated home run.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
29 words
The device of claim 9, wherein said program generates at bat events corresponding to a probability of occurrence of said at bat events derived from major league baseball statistics.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
33 words
The device of claim 9, further comprising a plurality of electronically interlinked electronic gaming devices affording a plurality of players an opportunity to compete against each other using said interlinked electronic gaming devices.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
27 words
The device of claim 11, wherein said plurality of interlinked electronic gaming devices are mounted in a single table including a plurality of peripherally spaced player positions.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
40 words
The device of claim 9, wherein said program displays indicia reflecting game score and status information in a first zone of said display and also displays a graphical representation of a baseball field in a second zone of said display.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
32 words
The device of claim 9, wherein said program is operative to display at bat events including singles, doubles, triples, home runs, walks, strikeouts, bunts, steals, double plays, sacrifice flies, and caught balls.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
37 words
The device of claim 9, wherein said program provides for a plurality of players to participate and compete against one another for a prize comprising at least a portion of a pot formed by pooling player wagers.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
23 words
The device of claim 9, further comprising control inputs to permit a player to select STEAL and BUNT options in preselected game conditions.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
36 words
The device of claim 9, wherein said program determines the value of the prize for said second component of said baseball gambling game dependent on game conditions in said first component of said baseball gambling game.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
160 words
An electronic gaming device for playing a baseball gambling game, comprising: a table including a plurality of peripherally spaced player positions; a microprocessor; an electronic memory operationally connected with said microprocessor; at least one graphical display operationally connected with said microprocessor; at least one wager acceptor operationally connected with said microprocessor by which players place a wager to participate in said baseball gambling game; and a program operationally associated with said microprocessor, said program being operative to simulate at least one turn at bat in a baseball game, said program being operative to display indicia on said display, said indicia designating points earned during said at least one turn at bat, said program being operative to determine whether a player is a winning player by evaluating points earned by a player pursuant to predetermined criteria, said program being operative to award a prize comprising at least a portion of a pot formed by pooling player wagers to a winning player.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
160 words
An electronic gaming device for playing a baseball gambling game, comprising: a table including a plurality of peripherally spaced player positions; a microprocessor; an electronic memory operationally connected with said microprocessor; at least one graphical display operationally connected with said microprocessor; at least one wager acceptor operationally connected with said microprocessor by which players place a wager to participate in said baseball gambling game; and a program operationally associated with said microprocessor, said program being operative to simulate at least one turn at bat in a baseball game, said program being operative to display indicia on said display, said indicia designating points earned during said at least one turn at bat, said program being operative to determine whether a player is a winning player by evaluating points earned by a player pursuant to predetermined criteria, said program being operative to award a prize comprising at least a portion of a pot formed by pooling player wagers to a winning player.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
29 words
The device of claim 18, wherein said program generates at bat events corresponding to a probability of occurrence of said at bat events derived from major league baseball statistics.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
23 words
The device of claim 18, further comprising control inputs to permit a player to select STEAL and BUNT options in preselected game conditions.
Claim 24
Independent Claim
70 words
A method for playing a game on a gambling device that includes athletic game features, comprising: affording an opportunity to at least one player to place a wager; simulating an event related to the athletic game; displaying a result of the event simulation; determining a payoff of the simulated event; and awarding the payoff to the at least one player when the at least one player is a winning player.
Claim 25
Independent Claim
70 words
A method for playing a game on a gambling device that includes athletic game features, comprising: affording an opportunity to at least one player to place a wager; simulating an event related to the athletic game; displaying a result of the event simulation; determining a payoff of the simulated event; and awarding the payoff to the at least one player when the at least one player is a winning player.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
20 words
The method of claim 21, wherein the displaying of the result comprises visually displaying the result of the event simulation.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 21, wherein the displaying of the result of the event simulation comprises displaying the result on a display device.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 21, wherein the simulating of the event comprises simulating an at bat event of a baseball game.
Claim 29
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 24, wherein the simulating of the at bat event comprises simulating at least one of a single, a double, a triple, and a home run.
Claim 30
Dependent Claim
29 words
The method of claim 25, wherein the simulating of the at bat event further comprises simulating at least one of a strikeout, a fly out, and a ground out.
Claim 31
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of claim 21, wherein the displaying of the event simulation result comprises displaying an advancement of a baseball player on an associated baseball diamond.
Claim 32
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 21, wherein the at least one player is a winning player when the simulated event is a predetermined event.
Claim 33
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 28, wherein the predetermined event comprises at least one of a home run and a predetermined number of runs.
Claim 34
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of claim 21, wherein the determining of the payoff comprises determining the payoff based upon a predetermined event and an amount of the wager.
Claim 35
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 30, wherein the predetermined event comprises at least one of a home run and a predetermined number of runs.
Claim 36
Dependent Claim
23 words
The method of claim 31, wherein the displaying of the result of the event simulation comprises displaying the result on a video display.
Claim 37
Dependent Claim
62 words
A gaming device including athletic event features, comprising: a wager placing device by which at least one player of said gaming device places a wager; a processing unit that simulates an event related to an athletic game; an indicator that indicates said event simulated by said processing unit; and a payoff device that awards a payoff in accordance with said simulated event.
Claim 38
Dependent Claim
62 words
A gaming device including athletic event features, comprising: a wager placing device by which at least one player of said gaming device places a wager; a processing unit that simulates an event related to an athletic game; an indicator that indicates said event simulated by said processing unit; and a payoff device that awards a payoff in accordance with said simulated event.
Claim 39
Dependent Claim
13 words
The gaming device of claim 33, wherein said processing device determines said payoff.
Claim 40
Dependent Claim
33 words
The gaming device of claim 33, wherein said payoff is provided to said at least one player when said at least one player is determined by said processor to be a winning player.
Claim 41
Dependent Claim
19 words
The gaming device of claim 33, wherein said processing unit simulates an at bat event of a baseball game.
Claim 42
Dependent Claim
26 words
The gaming device of claim 36, wherein said at bat event comprises at least one of a single, a double, a triple, and a home run.
Claim 43
Dependent Claim
26 words
The gaming device of claim 32, wherein said at bat event further comprises at least one of a strikeout, a fly out, and a ground out.
Claim 44
Dependent Claim
27 words
The gaming device of claim 33, wherein said processing unit additionally controls said indicator in response to said simulated event to change said indication of said indicator.
Claim 45
Dependent Claim
13 words
The gaming device of claim 36, wherein said indicator comprises a video display.
Claim 46
Dependent Claim
13 words
The gaming device of claim 32, wherein said indicator comprises a video display.
Claim 47
Dependent Claim
14 words
The gaming device of claim 33, wherein said indicator comprises a visual display unit.
Claim 48
Dependent Claim
15 words
The gaming device of claim 42, wherein said visual display unit comprises a video display.
Claim 49
Dependent Claim
53 words
The gaming device of claim 33, wherein said indication on said indicator is altered in response to said event simulated by said processing unit, said processing unit determining whether said at least one player is a winning player, said processing unit instructing said payoff device to issue said payoff to said winning player.
Claim 50
Dependent Claim
26 words
The gaming device of claim 33, wherein said wager placing device comprises a coin acceptor that accepts at least one of a coin and a token.
Claim 51
Independent Claim
86 words
A method for operating a gambling device that includes baseball event features, comprising: enabling a wager to be placed by at least one player of the gambling device; generating at least one at bat event after the wager is placed; displaying the at least one at bat event on a video display; determining a payoff in accordance with the generated at least one at bat event; and awarding the payoff to the at least one player, when said at least one player is a winning player.
Claim 52
Independent Claim
86 words
A method for operating a gambling device that includes baseball event features, comprising: enabling a wager to be placed by at least one player of the gambling device; generating at least one at bat event after the wager is placed; displaying the at least one at bat event on a video display; determining a payoff in accordance with the generated at least one at bat event; and awarding the payoff to the at least one player, when said at least one player is a winning player.
Claim 53
Dependent Claim
39 words
The method of claim 46, wherein generating the at least one at bat event comprises generating the at least one at bat event based upon statistics, stored in the gambling device, for at bat events derived from actual statistics.
Claim 54
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 46, wherein generating the at least one at bat event comprises randomly generating the at least one at bat event.
Claim 55
Dependent Claim
70 words
The method of claim 46, further comprising: enabling a supplemental wager to be placed by the at least one player after the at least one at bat event is displayed; generating a supplemental at bat event after the supplemental wager is placed; and displaying a result, corresponding to the at least one at bat event and the supplemental at bat event, on the video display prior to determining the payoff.
Claim 56
Dependent Claim
36 words
The method of claim 49, further comprising: maintaining a record of baseball runs after a plurality of at bat events occur; and awarding the prize upon an occurrence of a predetermined number of recorded baseball runs.
Claim 57
Dependent Claim
38 words
The method of claim 50, further comprising: awarding the prize based upon the predetermined number of recorded baseball runs and a total wager amount, the total wager amount representing a sum of the wager and the supplemental wager.
Claim 58
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of claim 49, wherein the actual statistics are associated with the play of at least one major league baseball team.
Claim 59
Dependent Claim
104 words
A gaming device having baseball event features, comprising: a wage acceptor device that accepts a wager placed by at least one player of said gambling device; a processing unit that generates at least one at bat event after said wager is placed; a video display that displays said at least one at bat event; and a prize awarding device that awards a payoff to the at least one player in accordance with said at least one at bat event, generated by said processing unit, when the at least one player is a winning player, said processing unit determining said payoff to the winning player.
Claim 60
Dependent Claim
104 words
A gaming device having baseball event features, comprising: a wage acceptor device that accepts a wager placed by at least one player of said gambling device; a processing unit that generates at least one at bat event after said wager is placed; a video display that displays said at least one at bat event; and a prize awarding device that awards a payoff to the at least one player in accordance with said at least one at bat event, generated by said processing unit, when the at least one player is a winning player, said processing unit determining said payoff to the winning player.
Claim 61
Dependent Claim
75 words
The gaming device of claim 53, wherein said wage acceptor device accepts a supplemental wager from the at least one player after said at least one at bat event is displayed, a supplemental at bat event being generated after said supplemental wager is placed, a result, corresponding to said at least one at bat event and said supplemental at bat event being displayed on said video display prior to said processing device determining said payoff.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2002-12-27 | 2003-06-28 | 2003-12-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2006-12-27 | 2007-06-28 | 2007-12-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2010-12-27 | 2011-06-28 | 2011-12-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |