Patents Examined by Steve Rowland
  • Patent number: 12290752
    Abstract: The present invention provides systems for and methods of playing a video game that includes providing a game character having a virtual appearance characteristic, receiving an input signal indicative of a user exercise performance level, and altering the virtual appearance characteristic in response to receiving the input signal. Numerous other aspects are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2023
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2025
    Assignee: Dugan Health, LLC
    Inventor: Brian M. Dugan
  • Patent number: 12290756
    Abstract: An agent that may assist a service provider of gaming services with registering/signing up users, with accepting funds/money from a user and depositing these funds in a gaming account of the user for the user to play games with, and/or with receiving requests from a user to withdrawal funds from the user's account and paying the user the withdrawn funds. The agent may also assist a user in obtaining a report of an account of the user, the account being associated with a service provider that provides gaming services.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 6, 2023
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2025
    Assignee: CFPH, LLC
    Inventor: Phillip L. Flaherty
  • Patent number: 12285696
    Abstract: A non-limiting example game system includes a main body apparatus, and the main body apparatus performs communication with another main body apparatus in a communication game to play a virtual game. The virtual game is a multiplayer game that a plurality of players compete against each other, and a place of an overall ranking is determined for each player. If a main story of the virtual game is ended, a ranking announcement screen including a ranking message and a praise screen including a praise message are displayed in this order for each place of the overall ranking. The praise message is selected from a praise message table of the first place of the overall ranking and a praise message table except the first place of the overall ranking.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2025
    Assignee: NINTENDO CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Toshiaki Suzuki, Misaki Hiraga, Rina Wegner, Karin Kawakami
  • Patent number: 12285678
    Abstract: Provided are a program, a control method, and an information processing apparatus which may provide an improved user interface on which a user may easily and efficiently execute various processes on a game content. The information processing apparatus may be caused to execute a game content specifying step of specifying a selected game content on the basis of first input operation data from an operation unit, a step of retrieving information from a storage unit, a step of specifying a direction from a start point to an end point of a second input operation on the basis of second input operation data from an operation unit, and an execution step of executing one process associated with the direction from the start point to the end point of the second input operation in the information from the storage unit on the selected game content.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2023
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2025
    Assignee: GREE, INC.
    Inventors: Junko Yamanokuchi, Masato Nozaki
  • Patent number: 12277868
    Abstract: In one aspect, a computerized method for collaborative content scoring in an online educational platform includes the step of provide an educational content via the online educational platform. The method includes the step of determining a genre of the educational content. The method includes the step of setting a base score for the educational content. The method includes the step of receiving an explicit user feedback with respect to the educational content. The method includes the step of receiving an implicit user feedback with respect to the educational content. The method includes the step of adjusting the base score of the educational content to a score based on the explicit user feedback and the implicit user feedback.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2025
    Assignee: EdCast Inc.
    Inventor: Karl Mehta
  • Patent number: 12277840
    Abstract: A gaming machine includes a display device and game-logic circuitry that causes the display device to: present cycle outcomes by populating a symbol array with randomly selected symbols; lock any trigger symbols from the randomly selected symbols in the symbol array; present a subset counter for an array subset with locked trigger symbols; in response to a modifier event associated with a first trigger symbol locked within the subset, present a first award value associated with the first trigger symbol; in response to a number of trigger symbols within the subset meeting a trigger amount, provide an award at least partially as a function of the first award value; and in response to the subset counter meeting a termination count, remove any locked trigger symbols from the subset.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2022
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2025
    Assignee: LNW Gaming, Inc.
    Inventors: George Bouvier, Richard Milosevich, Kenneth Shawn Soong
  • Patent number: 12263402
    Abstract: A trigger driving apparatus and hand-held terminal having said apparatus are provided. Wherein the trigger driving apparatus comprises a bracket (8) and a movable trigger housing arranged on the bracket, and further comprises: a drive device, wherein a drive shaft of the drive device is connected to one end of a link rod mechanism, the other end of the link rod mechanism is connected to the trigger housing, and the drive shaft is configured to drive the trigger housing to move; a detection device is configured to detect the state of the trigger housing; a control device is configured to receive the state signal detected by the detection device, and control the output torque of the drive device according to the state signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2025
    Assignee: GOERTEK INC.
    Inventors: Xuefang Teng, Yanlong Liu, Dong Liang, Lin Geng, Xing Zhang
  • Patent number: 12260777
    Abstract: Simulated tissue structures and methods of making them are disclosed. An elastic first material is placed in tension. An elastic second material is adhered to the first material while the first material is in tension. The adhered second material and the first material in tension forms a first shape of the simulated tissue structure. Tension on the first material is released. In releasing the tension of the first material, a force is exerted on the adhered second material bring the combination of the first material and the second material into a second shape. The first shape is maintained by a mold or mandrel and the second shape is the desired shape of the simulated tissue structure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2025
    Assignee: Applied Medical Resources Corporation
    Inventor: Gregory K. Hofstetter
  • Patent number: 12251632
    Abstract: Gaming systems that provide a tile selection and award determination sequence for a gaming environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 24, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2025
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: David Twomey, Raymond Latham
  • Patent number: 12253386
    Abstract: Systems, methods and computer-readable media are provided for determining an effective altitude in relation to a moving sports object. In some examples, a method includes determining respective values for an air temperature, an air pressure, and a relative humidity of an environment of interest. Based on the determined respective values of the air temperature, the air pressure, and the relative humidity, an air density for the environment of interest is calculated to derive a first air density value. A second air density value is derived for a reference environment. An absolute value of a difference between the first and second air densities is compared against a preset comparison value and, based on the comparison being equal to or smaller than the preset comparison value, an output including an indicator of the effective altitude is generated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 20, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2025
    Assignee: EDH US LLC
    Inventor: Henri Johnson
  • Patent number: 12254741
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention are directed to distributed systems that include networked master and slave circuits that are each connected to a plurality of electronic gaming machines on a casino floor. Each circuit receives digital information from a data port on an electronic gaming machine to which it is connected and also transmits commands, such as TITO commands, to the electronic gaming machine via the data port. A slave circuit can also function as the master circuit, e.g., when a master circuit fails.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 4, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2025
    Assignee: Acres Technology
    Inventors: John F. Acres, Mark Dailey
  • Patent number: 12254747
    Abstract: Systems and methods which employ one or more reels that expand and contract responsive to the occurrence of (or lack thereof) different events.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 17, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 18, 2025
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Yu Chong, Nick Hillstrom, Nathan Ajhar, Chris Peterson
  • Patent number: 12246250
    Abstract: A system that incorporates the subject disclosure may include, for example, a gaming system that cooperates with a graphical user interface to enable user modification and enhancement of one or more audio streams associated with the gaming system. In embodiments, the audio streams may include a game audio stream, a chat audio stream of conversation among players of a video game, and a microphone audio stream of a player of the video game. Additional embodiments are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2023
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2025
    Assignee: STEELSERIES ApS
    Inventors: Jeffrey Nicholas Mahlmeister, Simon Duffy, Battsengel Lopez, Michael John Lelli, Damien Kevin Granger
  • Patent number: 12246255
    Abstract: In an example of a game program, a ground boarding target object or an air boarding target object is selected by a selection operation, and a player character is caused to board the selected boarding target object. If the player character aboard the air boarding target object moves toward the ground, the player character is automatically changed to the state where the player character is aboard the ground boarding target object, and brought into the state where the player character can move on the ground.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2022
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2025
    Assignees: NINTENDO CO., LTD., THE POKÉMON COMPANY
    Inventor: Kazumasa Iwao
  • Patent number: 12236005
    Abstract: Apparatus, systems, and methods are provided for generating a quantified indicator of cognitive skills in an individual. In certain configurations, the apparatus, systems, and methods can be implemented for enhancing cognitive skills in an individual.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 22, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2025
    Assignee: Akili Interactive Labs, Inc.
    Inventors: Titiimaea Alailima, Jeffrey Bower, Jason Johnson, Ashley Mateus, Elena Cañadas Espinosa, Adam Piper, Matthew Omernick, David Collins
  • Patent number: 12237199
    Abstract: Methods and systems allow a user or operator to easily create cyber-training environments for use in a cyber-training system. In one embodiment, the environments are configured as missions. The missions may have a plurality of features, such as training objectives, a mission storyline, a mission order and mission objectives, relative to a mission environment. The mission environment comprises a virtual environment, such as defined by a virtual network having virtual machines or devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 2, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2025
    Assignee: CIRCADENCE CORPORATION
    Inventors: Laura Lee, Raymond C. Prouty, Joseph T. Kowtko, Ryan Pressley
  • Patent number: 12236748
    Abstract: In one embodiment, a system to authorize a mobile electronic device to play games of chance includes a gaming system manager and a docking station, The docking station can be configured to: (i) detect whether the mobile electronic device is connected to a receiver of the docking station; (ii) receive device information from the mobile electronic device if it is detected that the mobile electronic device is connected to the receiver; (iii) determine whether a game of chance can be played on the mobile electronic device based on the received device information; (iv) authorize the mobile electronic device to play the game of chance; and (v) transmit gaming data to the mobile electronic device if it is determined that the game of chance can be played on the mobile electronic device and if the mobile electronic device is authorized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 25, 2025
    Assignee: Aristocrat Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Binh T. Nguyen
  • Patent number: 12226693
    Abstract: An object prompting method includes: displaying a virtual scene picture and superimposing and displaying compass information on the virtual scene picture, a first azimuth scale in the compass information indicates an orientation of the first virtual object in the virtual scene; and displaying an object prompt identifier in response to a sound source object producing a sound in the virtual scene, the object prompt identifier indicates a presence of a sound source producing a sound in a direction corresponding to a second azimuth scale in the compass information. The foregoing method overcomes issues associated with a display of an object prompt identifier being limited by a display region area, a display effect of an object prompt identifier of a sound source object is improved, such that an interaction efficiency of a virtual scene interface is also improved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 13, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: TENCENT TECHNOLOGY (SHENZHEN) COMPANY LIMITED
    Inventor: Lingyun Lin
  • Patent number: 12226691
    Abstract: A system that incorporates the subject disclosure may include, for example, a gaming system that cooperates with a graphical user interface to enable user modification and enhancement of one or more audio streams associated with the gaming system. In embodiments, the audio streams may include a game audio stream, a chat audio stream of conversation among players of a video game, and a microphone audio stream of a player of the video game. Additional embodiments are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2023
    Date of Patent: February 18, 2025
    Assignee: STEELSERIES ApS
    Inventors: Jeffrey Nicholas Mahlmeister, Simon Duffy, Battsengel Lopez
  • Patent number: 12223797
    Abstract: An electronic gaming system is described. The electronic gaming system includes an upper assembly including a chair and at least one sensor. The electronic gaming system also includes a lower assembly coupled to the upper assembly by a support structure wherein the lower assembly includes a centering system and wherein the centering system is configured to return the chair to a predefined home position in response to the at least one sensor of the upper assembly detecting a weight below a predefined threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2022
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2025
    Assignee: Aristocrat Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Rena Schoonmaker, Mathew Wion, Daniel Waller, Wendell Davis, Jr., Edmond Abadie, Dylan Nettenstrom