Patent US6573824B1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US6573824B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Combination paging and gaming system and apparatus
Assignee: Long Range Solutions LLC
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Filing: 2000-05-03
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Granted: 2003-06-03
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Expires: 2020-05-03
Abstract
Abstract A combination paging and gaming system and apparatus enabling a user to utilize a pager to play an electronic game while waiting for a page. May be used as an on-premises paging system in a restaurant. A centralized control station includes a page transmitter and a plurality of buttons which may be pressed individually to send a page to one of an associated plurality of game pagers. The control station also includes a game transmitter and a text generator. A game input device inputs game questions and game answers to the control station. The game questions are sent to the text generator and to a television screen or scrolling display for display to all users. The game answers ate transmitted by the game transmitter to the game pagers. Alternatively, game questions may also be transmitted to the game pagers for display on an LED display. Each user enters an answer on a keypad on the game pager, and the pager then indicates whether the entered answer was right or wrong. Other games may be fully contained within the pager. With an optional transmitter in the game pager, games may be played competitively or interactively with other users.
Inventors
- 👤 Kenneth J. Lovegreen
- 👤 Russell P. Blink
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 13:52
CPC Classifications
A; A63; A63F; A63F13/00; A63F13/80; A63F13/12; A63F13/25; A63F13/30; A63F13/33; A63F13/332; H; H04; H04M; H04M1/00; H04M1/72; H04M1/724; H04M1/72403; H04M1/72427; H04M3/00; H04M3/42; H04M3/487; H04M3/493; A63F13/28; A63F2300/00; A63F2300/40; A63F2300/406; A63F2300/80; A63F2300/8023; A63F2300/8064; H04M2203/00; H04M2203/10; H04M2203/1066; H04M2203/65; H04M2203/658; H04W; H04W68/00
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 17
Claim 1
Independent Claim
170 words
A combination on-premises paging and gaming system enabling a user to play an electronic game while waiting for an on-premises page, said system comprising: a page transmitter for transmitting paging signals on the premises; a game transmitter for transmitting game answers on the premises; and a combination on-premises pager and electronic game device comprising: a receiver for receiving the on-premises paging signals and the game answers; an alerting mechanism connected to the receiver for alerting the user that a page has been received; an electronic game contained within the on-premises device for playing by the user while waiting for a page; and a signal analyzer connected to the receiver that distinguishes received paging signals from received game answers, said signal analyzer being adapted to: send a received game answer to an indicator that indicates the received game answer to the user, upon determining that a received signal is a game answer; and send a page indication to the alerting mechanism, upon determining that the received signal is a paging signal.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
170 words
A combination on-premises paging and gaming system enabling a user to play an electronic game while waiting for an on-premises page, said system comprising: a page transmitter for transmitting paging signals on the premises; a game transmitter for transmitting game answers on the premises; and a combination on-premises pager and electronic game device comprising: a receiver for receiving the on-premises paging signals and the game answers; an alerting mechanism connected to the receiver for alerting the user that a page has been received; an electronic game contained within the on-premises device for playing by the user while waiting for a page; and a signal analyzer connected to the receiver that distinguishes received paging signals from received game answers, said signal analyzer being adapted to: send a received game answer to an indicator that indicates the received game answer to the user, upon determining that a received signal is a game answer; and send a page indication to the alerting mechanism, upon determining that the received signal is a paging signal.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
25 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 1 further comprising a public display screen electronically linked to the transmitter station for displaying game questions.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
17 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 2 wherein the public display screen is a television.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
19 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 2 wherein the public display screen is a scrolling alpha-numeric display.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
53 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 2 wherein the electronic game includes: a user input device for inputting user answers to the game questions; and an answer analyzer connected to the signal analyzer for receiving game answers from the signal analyzer and comparing the game answers to the input user answers.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
53 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 5 wherein the electronic game also includes: a correct answer indicator connected to the answer analyzer for indicating that the input user answer is correct; and a wrong answer indicator connected to the answer analyzer for indicating that the input user answer is not correct.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
33 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 6 further comprising a game input device for sending game questions to the public display screen and for sending game answers to the game transmitter.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
58 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 7 wherein the game input device also includes means for keeping score for a plurality of pager and electronic game devices, and each combination pager and game device also includes a user-input transmitter connected to the user input device for transmitting input user answers to the means for keeping score.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
48 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 7 wherein the game input device is selected from a group of game sources consisting of: a satellite transmission; a radio frequency (RF) broadcast; a cable connection to a remote source; a personal computer (PC); and a dedicated game device.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
111 words
The combination paging and gaming system of claim 1 wherein the game transmitter also transmits game questions, and the electronic game contained within the on-premises device includes: a display screen for displaying the game questions; a user input device for inputting user answers to the game questions; an answer analyzer connected to the signal analyzer for receiving game answers from the signal analyzer and comparing the game answers to the input user answers; a correct answer indicator connected to the answer analyzer for indicating that the input user answer is correct; and a wrong answer indicator connected to the answer analyzer for indicating that the input user answer is not correct.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
138 words
A combination pager and electronic game device comprising: a radio frequency (RF) receiver, wherein the RF receiver receives paging signals from an external page transmitter and receives game answers from an external game transmitter; an alerting mechanism connected to the receiver for alerting a user that a paging signal has been received; an electronic game contained within the device for playing by the user while waiting for a page; and a signal analyzer connected to the receiver that distinguishes received paging signals from received game answers, said signal analyzer being adapted to: send a received game answer to an indicator that indicates the received game answer to the user, upon determining that a received signal is a game answer; and send a page indication to the alerting mechanism, upon determining that the received signal is a paging signal.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
138 words
A combination pager and electronic game device comprising: a radio frequency (RF) receiver, wherein the RF receiver receives paging signals from an external page transmitter and receives game answers from an external game transmitter; an alerting mechanism connected to the receiver for alerting a user that a paging signal has been received; an electronic game contained within the device for playing by the user while waiting for a page; and a signal analyzer connected to the receiver that distinguishes received paging signals from received game answers, said signal analyzer being adapted to: send a received game answer to an indicator that indicates the received game answer to the user, upon determining that a received signal is a game answer; and send a page indication to the alerting mechanism, upon determining that the received signal is a paging signal.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
78 words
The combination pager and electronic game device of claim 11 wherein the electronic game contained within the device generates game questions, and the combination pager and electronic game device further comprises: a display screen for displaying the game questions; a user input device for inputting user answers to the game questions; and an answer analyzer connected to the signal analyzer for receiving game answers from the signal analyzer and comparing the game answers to the input user answers.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
80 words
The combination pager and electronic game device of claim 11 wherein the RF receiver also receives game questions from the external game transmitter, and the combination pager and electronic game device further comprises: a display screen for displaying the game questions; a user input device for inputting user answers to the game questions; and an answer analyzer connected to the signal analyzer for receiving game answers from the signal analyzer and comparing the game answers to the input user answers.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
50 words
The combination pager and electronic game device of claim 13 further comprising: a correct answer indicator connected to the answer analyzer for indicating that the input user answer is correct; and a wrong answer indicator connected to the answer analyzer for indicating that the input user answer is not correct.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
44 words
The combination pager and electronic game device of claim 12 further comprising: a user input device for inputting user answers to the game questions; and a user-input transmitter connected to the user input device for transmitting input user answers to an external game controller.
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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) | 2006-06-02 | 2006-12-02 | 2007-06-03 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2010-06-02 | 2010-12-02 | 2011-06-03 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2014-06-02 | 2014-12-02 | 2015-06-03 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |