Patents Examined by Anh Vo
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Patent number: 8651930Abstract: An apparatus for table poker games aims to increase odds of the table poker games. The apparatus includes an electronic display panel which has at least one display zone to represent a corresponding betting zone and display a dynamic raising odds. Banker can pay player's bets according to the dynamic raising odds. Thus an expected value of the table poker games can be increased to give players extra award, thereby can increase the attraction of the table poker games and also enhance utilization of the poker tables.Type: GrantFiled: June 17, 2011Date of Patent: February 18, 2014Inventor: Tien-Shu Hsu
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Patent number: 8641512Abstract: An apparatus for dice table games aims to dynamically increase odds of a dice table game. The apparatus includes an electronic display panel which has at least one display zone to indicate a corresponding betting area and display dynamic raised odds. Banker can give a player a payout for his/her bet according to the dynamic raised odds. By providing the dynamic raised odds which might be greater than the payout odds of the betting area, the expected value of the dice table game is higher and players can expect extra awards from the disc table game, thus the appeal of the dice table game increases. As a result higher utilization of dice table game can be achieved and idle time can be reduced to avoid wastes.Type: GrantFiled: November 17, 2011Date of Patent: February 4, 2014Inventor: Tien-Shu Hsu
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Patent number: 8632410Abstract: A method by which a streaming interactive video user session is handed off from one streaming interactive video server to another without noticeable disruption to the video stream or the user interactivity.Type: GrantFiled: February 15, 2012Date of Patent: January 21, 2014Assignee: OL2, Inc.Inventors: Stephen G. Perlman, Roger van der Laan
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Patent number: 8591337Abstract: Techniques for playing a game of chance providing networking opportunities for large groups of players are described herein. During the game, to qualify for a prize, a player should have one or more partners chosen from the players playing the game. A winner of the prize shares a prize with his/her respective prize partner who would have been selected from at least one partner already chosen by the winner or, based on player's information, by a game computer. The game may be played by groups of on-site players or remote (e.g., online) players, in live and virtual gaming environments or a combination thereof.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2007Date of Patent: November 26, 2013Inventor: Thomas Creaven
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Patent number: 8591336Abstract: Techniques for playing a game of chance providing networking opportunities for large groups of players are described herein. During the game, to qualify for a prize, a player should have one or more partners chosen from the players playing the game. A winner of the prize shares a prize with his/her respective prize partner who would have been selected from at least one partner already chosen by the winner or, based on player's information, by a game computer. The game may be played by groups of on-site players or remote (e.g., online) players, in live and virtual gaming environments or a combination thereof.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2007Date of Patent: November 26, 2013Inventor: Thomas Creaven
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Patent number: 8591335Abstract: Techniques for playing a game of chance providing networking opportunities for large groups of players are described herein. During the game, to qualify for a prize, a player should have one or more partners chosen from the players playing the game. A winner of the prize shares a prize with his/her respective prize partner who would have been selected from at least one partner already chosen by the winner or, based on player's information, by a game computer. The game may be played by groups of on-site players or remote (e.g., online) players, in live and virtual gaming environments or a combination thereof.Type: GrantFiled: October 31, 2007Date of Patent: November 26, 2013Inventor: Thomas Creaven
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Patent number: 8439733Abstract: Band members use their own performance during a song to reinstate a band member who has failed during the course of the song. Once a band member has failed, options are given to other members of the band who have achieved a predetermined bonus or performance level to save the fallen band member. Once saved, the failed member returns to normal play of the song. In this manner, failure still has the consequence of removing a player from a song at least temporarily, and perhaps permanently if bandmates are unable or unwilling to save the fallen member. However, by providing the option of reinstatement, band members can prevent their friends from long stretches of inactivity following a failure. This may have the added benefit of encouraging band members to perform strongly in order to be able to save their friends.Type: GrantFiled: June 16, 2008Date of Patent: May 14, 2013Assignee: Harmonix Music Systems, Inc.Inventors: Robert Kay, Daniel Teasdale, Chris Foster, Dan Schmidt
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Patent number: 8425323Abstract: Method and system are disclosed for operating a wagering game terminal where players are allowed to transfer game assets that they may have accumulated to other players. The game assets may be transferred as part of an on-line auction won by one of the other players, as a gift to a preselected player, or as part of a trade with a preselected player. Neither the transferring player nor the receiving player is required to be present at a wagering game terminal at the time of the transfer. The transfer may be an anonymous transfer or it may be an identity-based transfer. For identity-based transfers, a predefined list of selected players may be used to facilitate the transfers.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 2005Date of Patent: April 23, 2013Assignee: WMS Gaming Inc.Inventors: Daniel P. Fiden, Lisa M. Helfer, Matthew J. Ward
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Patent number: 8393950Abstract: The player makes a wager to receive a plurality of primary game arrays. Winning primary game outcomes occur when specific primary game array positions, designated by paylines, are randomly assigned winning combinations of indicia. The winning game outcomes of a plurality of primary game arrays are converted to symbols corresponding to the winning primary game outcomes to form a secondary game array. Winning secondary game outcomes occur when winning combinations of symbols occur on the secondary game array paylines.Type: GrantFiled: September 4, 2009Date of Patent: March 12, 2013Assignee: Primo Innovo, LLCInventor: Michael L. White
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Patent number: 8333662Abstract: An input device incorporating a motion sensor which detects a motion of the input device is worn on the body of a player, and in accordance with motion data detected by the input device, the player object is caused to move along a predetermined route on a course set in a virtual three-dimensional space. The course includes at least one branch point at which the course branches off into a plurality of routes. The motion data outputted from the motion sensor is successively acquired, and a moving speed of a player character is set in accordance with the motion data. Further, at the branch point on the course, a branching direction of the player object is set in accordance with the motion data. The player object is then caused to move along a route in the set branching direction at the set moving speed.Type: GrantFiled: December 4, 2007Date of Patent: December 18, 2012Assignee: Nintendo Co., Ltd.Inventor: Keizo Ohta
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Patent number: 8192271Abstract: Reel-type games are described in which a player's progress towards an award of a bonus game is displayed to the player. The required triggering event for an award of a bonus game may be accumulated over multiple turns of the game. A bonus indicator (e.g., icon) is provided on the display in association with each reel of the reels. After a spin of the reels, the bonus indicator for a given reel is activated if a symbol associated with an award of a bonus game is presented on the given reel. As the player continues to play, whenever the symbol associated with the bonus game appears for the first time on a given reel, the associated bonus indicator is activated and remains activated. When all the indicators have become activated, a bonus game is awarded to the player.Type: GrantFiled: October 29, 2007Date of Patent: June 5, 2012Assignee: Waterleaf, Ltd.Inventors: Theo Naicker, Terence Igesund, Richard Vermaak
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Patent number: 5984454Abstract: A color image forming system allows color image formation using a color (special color) except for yellow (Y), magenta (M), cyan (C), and black (BK) normally used in color image recording. Palette tables in which data defining use of the special colors (S1 to S4) in addition to Y, M, C, and BK are supplied from a host image data supply apparatus to a printer. At the same time, image data is transmitted in the form of data for allowing selection of the defined data in the palette tables. The printer uses Y, M, C, and BK heads and heads of the special colors S1 to S4. A control unit in the printer stores each palette table for each color (508) and outputs a driving signal to the corresponding head on the basis of the corresponding palette table.Type: GrantFiled: May 25, 1993Date of Patent: November 16, 1999Assignee: Canon Kabushiki KaishaInventors: Kazuyoshi Takahashi, Takashi Watanabe, Toshiyuki Yanaka
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Patent number: 5825392Abstract: A head holder incorporating a thermal printing head is detachably mounted in a printing position defined in a thermal transfer printer by use of guide means. The head holder secured by the guide means is vertically moved by means for vertically moving the head holder so as to be positioned at a stand-by point in non-operation of printing, and at a print working point in operation of printing. When the head holder demounted for exchanging or other possible purposes is replaced in the printing position, the head holder is restrained by lateral and longitudinal spring members, thus being placed in an adequate printing position, so as to enable excellent printing on a recording medium such as ID cards to be successfully performed without marring the essential printing quality.Type: GrantFiled: November 12, 1996Date of Patent: October 20, 1998Assignee: NISCA CorporationInventor: Tatsuo Mochizuki
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Patent number: 5801742Abstract: A printing image is transferred onto a first fabric tape (1), which can be wetted with a liquid (19), at a printing image transfer point (3) as a result of the partial evaporation of the included liquid (19). At a subsequent transfer printing point (12), the first fabric tape (1) is located between a heating device (10) and a second fabric tape (4). Printing ink (11) is included in the second fabric tape (4). This printing ink (11) is expelled from the second fabric tape (4) by the liquid (19), which remained in the first fabric tape (1) and represents the printing image and which evaporates at the transfer printing point (12), and is transferred onto a recording medium (9).Type: GrantFiled: August 20, 1996Date of Patent: September 1, 1998Assignee: Oce Printing Systems GmbHInventor: Manfred Wiedemer