Patents by Inventor Kevin M. Higgins

Kevin M. Higgins has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20200090452
    Abstract: A system that utilizes an application running on a mobile device to provide a service window associated with a gaming establishment.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2018
    Publication date: March 19, 2020
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Dwayne R. Nelson
  • Publication number: 20190342292
    Abstract: An online gaming registration system allows online gaming patrons to register once and use this registration to create online gaming accounts with gaming Web sites, thereby avoiding having to show proof of residency, age and other requirements set by regulatory entities multiple times. Residency rules and other requirements vary from one jurisdiction to another and the present invention addresses some of the issues that arise from this. An online gaming Web site receives a login from an online player over the Internet. The site determines that the player has an account with the online gaming site and that the account is linked to an online gaming registration system account. The online gaming site receives claims-based data relating to the online player and accepts the player as verified for online gaming at the gaming Web site.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 19, 2019
    Publication date: November 7, 2019
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Erik B. Petersen, Steven G. LeMay
  • Patent number: 10362034
    Abstract: An online gaming registration system allows online gaming patrons to register once and use this registration to create online gaming accounts with gaming Web sites, thereby avoiding having to show proof of residency, age and other requirements set by regulatory entities multiple times. Residency rules and other requirements vary from one jurisdiction to another and the present invention addresses some of the issues that arise from this. An online gaming Web site receives a login from an online player over the Internet. The site determines that the player has an account with the online gaming site and that the account is linked to an online gaming registration system account. The online gaming site receives claims-based data relating to the online player and accepts the player as verified for online gaming at the gaming Web site.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 23, 2019
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Erik B. Petersen, Steven G. LeMay
  • Patent number: 10339753
    Abstract: The gaming system disclosed herein enables a player to simultaneously or concurrently play a plurality of games at a gaming device regardless or independent of if the gaming device accounting system in communication with the gaming device is configured to support such simultaneous or concurrent game play. The gaming system disclosed herein additionally or alternatively enables a player to simultaneously play a plurality of games wherein certain of the games are eligible to operate with a remote host and certain of the games are ineligible to operate with the remote host.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 2, 2019
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Dwayne R. Nelson, William R. Brosnan, Kevin M. Higgins, William Chad Little, Larry R. Hollibaugh, Erik B. Petersen, Adrian R. Marcu
  • Publication number: 20190188951
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates generally to gaming systems and methods for providing one or more incentives to a player in association with a mobile device facilitated transfer of funds to an electronic gaming machine and/or from the electronic gaming machine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2019
    Publication date: June 20, 2019
    Inventors: Dwayne R. Nelson, Kevin M. Higgins
  • Publication number: 20190102985
    Abstract: A system that interconnects multiple accounts associated with a gaming establishment.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 19, 2018
    Publication date: April 4, 2019
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Jeffery Shepherd, Erik Petersen, Lance Yuan, Mike Zarlenga, Dwayne A. Davis, Sina Miri
  • Patent number: 10217317
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates generally to gaming systems and methods for providing one or more incentives to a player in association with a mobile device facilitated transfer of funds to an electronic gaming machine and/or from the electronic gaming machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2019
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Dwayne R. Nelson, Kevin M. Higgins
  • Patent number: 9947170
    Abstract: Banked EGM light and sound shows which reduce the probability of appearing unsynchronized are described herein. A modified client time protocol on each EGM stores an offset from a time reference source. The time offset is used to schedule banked light and sound shows so that the performance of each EGM is synchronized, without requiring the actual clocks of the EGMs to be synchronized.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 17, 2018
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Dwayne R. Nelson, Steven G. LeMay, Derrick Price
  • Publication number: 20180089940
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates generally to gaming systems and methods which utilize a player identification device to provide to electronic gaming machines certain gaming system functionality and features otherwise not associated with or available in association with the electronic gaming machines existing gaming establishment management systems.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 16, 2017
    Publication date: March 29, 2018
    Inventors: Erik B. Petersen, Kevin M. Higgins, Matthew Levin
  • Publication number: 20180047249
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates generally to gaming systems and methods for providing one or more incentives to a player in association with a mobile device facilitated transfer of funds to an electronic gaming machine and/or from the electronic gaming machine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 9, 2016
    Publication date: February 15, 2018
    Inventors: Dwayne R. Nelson, Kevin M. Higgins
  • Patent number: 9685034
    Abstract: A system for interfacing with a third-party application is described. The system includes a third-party device, a server-based system configured to communicate with the third-party device, and a gaming device configured to communicate with the server-based system to display content of the product or service. The gaming device is configured to generate an outcome of a wager-based game independent of the content that is displayed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2017
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Reid M. Weber, William C. Little, Steven G. LeMay, Adrian R. Marcu, Warner R. Cockerille, IV, Nicole M. Beaulieu, David A. Gipp, Daniel De Waal, Vincent S. Manfredi, Bryan Bullard, Cara L. Iddings, Brad Robert Steinbach, Richard J. Schneider, Glen Keith Russell, Jacob Graham, Gregory A. Schlottmann, David C. Williams, Kurt M. Larsen, Jae Man Yi, Erik B. Petersen, Kevin M. Higgins, Gregory H. Parrott, David L. Salls
  • Publication number: 20170092054
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates generally to gaming systems and methods for facilitating funds to and from an electronic gaming machine via a mobile device.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 1, 2016
    Publication date: March 30, 2017
    Inventors: Erik B. Petersen, Kevin M. Higgins, Dwayne R. Nelson, Steven G. LeMay, Dwayne A. Davis, Dennis T. Kleppen, Warner R. Cockerille, IV, James A. Vasquez, Bradley Boudreau, Suzanne Cockerille, Marc A. Espin, Larry R. Hollibaugh
  • Publication number: 20170092040
    Abstract: Banked EGM light and sound shows which reduce the probability of appearing unsynchronized are described herein. A modified client time protocol on each EGM stores an offset from a time reference source. The time offset is used to schedule banked light and sound shows so that the performance of each EGM is synchronized, without requiring the actual clocks of the EGMs to be synchronized.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 28, 2015
    Publication date: March 30, 2017
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Dwayne R. Nelson, Steven G. LeMay, Derrick Price
  • Publication number: 20170026375
    Abstract: An online gaming registration system allows online gaming patrons to register once and use this registration to create online gaming accounts with gaming Web sites, thereby avoiding having to show proof of residency, age and other requirements set by regulatory entities multiple times. Residency rules and other requirements vary from one jurisdiction to another and the present invention addresses some of the issues that arise from this. An online gaming Web site receives a login from an online player over the Internet. The site determines that the player has an account with the online gaming site and that the account is linked to an online gaming registration system account. The online gaming site receives claims-based data relating to the online player and accepts the player as verified for online gaming at the gaming Web site.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 7, 2016
    Publication date: January 26, 2017
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Erik B. Petersen, Steven G. LeMay
  • Patent number: 9530276
    Abstract: When the player identifies herself to a gaming machine at a casino, for example by inserting a player tracking card into the card reader, she is, at generally the same time, logging onto a game provider's backend system (the game provider being different from the casino operator). This concurrent sign-on to the game provider's system is done in a non-intrusive, transparent, and passive manner. The player is not distracted from the normal steps leading to game play on the machine until she is ready to redeem points with the game provider or for some reason additional authentication is needed from the player. By virtue of this single sign-on to the game provider network, in addition to continuing game play across different casinos, the player can publish events to the Internet, such as on social networking sites, take advantage of offers targeted specifically for her, or facilitate responsible gaming programs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2016
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Erik B. Petersen, Kevin M. Higgins, Steven G. LeMay, William C. Little
  • Patent number: 9472046
    Abstract: Managing a plurality of electronic gaming machines includes receiving a designation at a first electronic gaming machine (EGM) that the first EGM is a service gateway, broadcasting to other EGMs of the plurality of EGMs that the first EGM is the service gateway, and performing at least one of: discovering the other EGMs, identifying the other EGMs as client EGMs, and obtaining data from all of the client EGMs and retrieving crash data from all of the client EGMs, and communicating with a server to request performance of the at least one of the operations on selected ones of the plurality of EGMs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2016
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Dwayne R. Nelson, Erik B. Petersen, Kevin M. Higgins
  • Patent number: 9465931
    Abstract: An online gaming registration system allows online gaming patrons to register once and use this registration to create online gaming accounts with gaming Web sites, thereby avoiding having to show proof of residency, age and other requirements set by regulatory entities multiple times. Residency rules and other requirements vary from one jurisdiction to another and the present invention addresses some of the issues that arise from this. An online gaming Web site receives a login from an online player over the Internet. The site determines that the player has an account with the online gaming site and that the account is linked to an online gaming registration system account. The online gaming site receives claims-based data relating to the online player and accepts the player as verified for online gaming at the gaming Web site.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 18, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2016
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Kevin M. Higgins, Erik B. Petersen, Steven G. LeMay
  • Publication number: 20160196717
    Abstract: The gaming system disclosed herein enables a player to simultaneously or concurrently play a plurality of games at a gaming device regardless or independent of if the gaming device accounting system in communication with the gaming device is configured to support such simultaneous or concurrent game play. The gaming system disclosed herein additionally or alternatively enables a player to simultaneously play a plurality of games wherein certain of the games are eligible to operate with a remote host and certain of the games are ineligible to operate with the remote host.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 17, 2016
    Publication date: July 7, 2016
    Inventors: Dwayne R. Nelson, William R. Brosnan, Kevin M. Higgins, William Chad Little, Larry R. Hollibaugh, Erik B. Petersen, Adrian R. Marcu
  • Publication number: 20160140803
    Abstract: When the player identifies herself to a gaming machine at a casino, for example by inserting a player tracking card into the card reader, she is, at generally the same time, logging onto a game provider's backend system (the game provider being different from the casino operator). This concurrent sign-on to the game provider's system is done in a non-intrusive, transparent, and passive manner. The player is not distracted from the normal steps leading to game play on the machine until she is ready to redeem points with the game provider or for some reason additional authentication is needed from the player. By virtue of this single sign-on to the game provider network, in addition to continuing game play across different casinos, the player can publish events to the Internet, such as on social networking sites, take advantage of offers targeted specifically for her, or facilitate responsible gaming programs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 20, 2016
    Publication date: May 19, 2016
    Inventors: Erik B. Petersen, Kevin M. Higgins, Steven G. LeMay, William C. Little
  • Patent number: 9293000
    Abstract: The gaming system disclosed herein enables a player to simultaneously or concurrently play a plurality of games at a gaming device regardless or independent of if the gaming device accounting system in communication with the gaming device is configured to support such simultaneous or concurrent game play. The gaming system disclosed herein additionally or alternatively enables a player to simultaneously play a plurality of games wherein certain of the games are eligible to operate with a remote host and certain of the games are ineligible to operate with the remote host.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: March 22, 2016
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Dwayne R. Nelson, William R. Brosnan, Kevin M. Higgins, William Chad Little, Larry R. Hollibaugh, Erik B. Petersen, Adrian R. Marcu