Patents by Inventor Mark C. Nicely

Mark C. Nicely 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).

  • Patent number: 8827798
    Abstract: System and method providing reel sets for subsequent plays. A user playing a user device wagers a wager amount on a play of a game. The user device displays a base reel set spinning. A server determines an outcome for the current play and a second reel set for the next play of that game on which the user wagers that same wager amount. The server communicates second reel set data and outcome data to the user device. The reels are stopped in accordance with the determined outcome. When the user wagers that same wager amount on another play of that game, the user device displays the second play of that game using the second reel set, the server determines a third reel set for the next play of that game on which the user wagers that same wager amount, and communicates third reel set data to the user device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely
  • Publication number: 20140248936
    Abstract: Various embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to a gaming system and method providing a slot game employing a set of randomly selected reels. In one embodiment, the gaming system is configured to operate a slot game associated with a plurality of adjacently arranged reels including a plurality of symbols. Each of a plurality of the reels is associated with one of a plurality of different features and an indicator representing that feature. The gaming system begins sequentially displaying the reels and any corresponding indicators. The gaming system selects a set of two or more of the reels and stops sequentially displaying the reels such that the selected reels are displayed. The gaming system generates and displays a plurality of the symbols on the selected reels, determines whether any winning symbol combinations are displayed, determines any awards associated with any displayed winning symbol combinations, and displays any determined awards.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 4, 2013
    Publication date: September 4, 2014
    Applicant: IGT
    Inventors: Leandro Basallo, Timothy L. Isaacson, Jon M. Leupp, Brian F. Saunders, Mark C. Nicely, Nguyen T. Louie
  • Patent number: 8821252
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are techniques and equipment for providing state-based power-ups to a wagering game player. The state-based power-ups may be reused by the player until a game outcome condition is not met.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 2, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely
  • Patent number: 8821266
    Abstract: A method of linking gaming machine audio content to a player and network-based gaming system are provided. The system may include a gaming machine, a database, and a server system configured to be coupled to the gaming machine and the database. The server system may be associated with a server-based network configured to associate a connection identification (ID) with a listening device, receive an identification of the listening device through the gaming machine, and transmit an audio content generated by the gaming machine to the identified listening device using the connection ID.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 2, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely
  • Publication number: 20140243064
    Abstract: A gaming device provides a single player poker game including one or more opportunities for forming player hands. In one embodiment, for a play of the poker game, a player places a wager on each of a plurality of player hands. The gaming device provides the player with one or more opportunities to fold one or more of the player hands and withdraw the wager associated with the folded hand. A number of community cards are dealt. The gaming device determines and provides any awards associated with a ranking of each of the remaining player hands according to a paytable.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 5, 2014
    Publication date: August 28, 2014
    Applicant: IGT
    Inventors: Mark C. Nicely, Paul Baker Stroube, Steven Joseph Bazyl
  • Patent number: 8801519
    Abstract: Various embodiments of gaming systems, gaming devices, and methods of the present disclosure provide one or more alternative wagering propositions to a player when the player's credit balance is less than (or, in certain embodiments, less than or equal to) a designated wager amount. If the player accepts one of the alternative wager propositions, the player risks an amount of the player's remaining credit balance for a chance to win an alternative award. If the player wins the alternative award, the gaming system enables the player to play one or more plays of the wagering game at the designated wager amount. If the player does not win the alternative award, the gaming system reduces the player's credit balance by the amount risked.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Adam M. Singer, Mark C. Nicely
  • Patent number: 8801520
    Abstract: A method of gaming is disclosed wherein progressive award values may be increased in response to certain pre-established game outcomes, wager amounts or random events. The increased progressive award values may be based on a primary game or secondary game outcome. Another innovation is the resetting of progressive awards upon completion of a bonus event whether or not award actually won in said bonus event. Player tracking systems permit progressive award values to be linked to a particular player such that the progressive award values remain personal to the player. Re-setting increased progressive award values is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Ernie M. Lafky, Mark C. Nicely
  • Patent number: 8795049
    Abstract: A gaming system configured to operate a game associated with a plurality of game elements is provided. The gaming system provides a quantity of the game elements to a player and a dealer. The gaming system forms a first dealer hand and a second dealer hand from the provided game elements according to one of a plurality of element setting rules. The gaming system enables the player to manually form a first player hand and a second player hand from the provided game elements or to instruct the gaming system to automatically do so according to one of the element setting rules. If the player manually sets the player hands, the gaming system indicates whether the player's hands were formed in accordance with any of the element setting rules. The gaming system determines any awards based on a comparison of the player hands with the dealer hands.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 6, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Mark C. Nicely, Ernie M. Lafky, Timothy B. Richards
  • Patent number: 8795050
    Abstract: A gaming system configured to operate a game associated with a plurality of game elements is provided. The gaming system provides a quantity of the game elements to a player and a dealer. The gaming system forms a first dealer hand and a second dealer hand from the provided game elements according to one of a plurality of element setting rules. The gaming system enables the player to manually form a first player hand and a second player hand from the provided game elements or to instruct the gaming system to automatically do so according to one of the element setting rules. If the player manually sets the player hands, the gaming system indicates whether the player's hands were formed in accordance with any of the element setting rules. The gaming system determines any awards based on a comparison of the player hands with the dealer hands.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Mark C. Nicely, Ernie M. Lafky, Timothy B. Richards
  • Patent number: 8790173
    Abstract: A card game includes a plurality of rounds playable upon at least one base wager and at least one supplemental wager. Each one of the rounds results in an outcome, where a base award is associated with at least one of the outcomes. A pattern condition is fulfillable when a pattern of the outcomes corresponds to one of a plurality of designated patterns. Different supplemental awards are provided based on the fulfillment of the pattern condition.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 12, 2013
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely
  • Patent number: 8790177
    Abstract: A gaming system and method for exchanging one or more triggered individual bonus games for one or more current plays of a community game or one or more future plays of a community game. If an individual bonus game is triggered in association with an individual gaming device, the gaming system enables the player to: (i) play the triggered individual bonus game, (ii) skip the individual bonus game and play or participate in a community or group game, or (iii) skip the individual bonus game and save an entry to play or participate in a future community or group game. In these embodiments, the gaming system determines one or more features or attributes of the available community game (which the player may play or defer play of) based, at least in part, on which of a plurality of different individual bonus games are triggered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Mark C. Nicely, Carmen Tan, Alan R. Weiss
  • Patent number: 8784183
    Abstract: A gaming system, gaming device, and method which provide a display of one or more missed awards based on one or more numbers generated by a random number generator (“RNG”) for possible use in determining a randomly generated outcome for a play of a game, but which are not used to determine any outcome for the play of the game. The unused or unemployed RNG numbers: (a) may be the numbers generated by the RNG before the numbers which are actually used or employed for that play of the game (i.e., the employed numbers); (b) may be the numbers generated by the RNG after the numbers which are used or employed for that play of the game; or (c) if no plays of the game are occurring, the numbers unused numbers generated by the RNG at one or more points in time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 22, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely
  • Patent number: 8777726
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are techniques and equipment for providing state-based power-ups to a wagering game player. The state-based power-ups may be reused by the player until a game outcome condition is not met.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 15, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely
  • Publication number: 20140194171
    Abstract: The disclosed gaming system, gaming device and method provide a game including a plurality of awards, each of the awards associated with a plurality of award characteristics, including an award value and a level of difficulty. Based at least in part on the award characteristics associated with the awards, a player strategically chooses which award or awards to play for (i.e., which award or awards to attempt to collect) in the game. In certain multiplayer embodiments, two or more players can work together to obtain awards.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 11, 2014
    Publication date: July 10, 2014
    Applicant: IGT
    Inventors: Mark C. Nicely, Binh T. Nguyen, Scott A. Caputo, Ernie M. Lafky
  • Patent number: 8758117
    Abstract: The disclosed gaming system, gaming device and method provide a selection game having a plurality of selectable positions and a plurality of awards interdependently distributed or associated with the selectable positions. For one, a plurality, or all the selectable positions, the award associated with such selectable position is interdependent in that such award has a relationship to one or more of the awards associated with the selectable positions bordering such position. In various embodiments, the value of the award associated with such selectable position has a relationship to one or more of the values of the awards associated with the selectable positions bordering such position. Based on these interdependencies, when each of the selectable positions is selected, the award, or value of the award, associated with the position provides certain information which can be subsequently used to make better informed position selections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 24, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Mark C. Nicely, Binh T. Nguyen, Bryan D. Wolf, Paul D. Miltenberger, Scott A. Caputo
  • Patent number: 8753187
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are techniques and equipment for providing state-based power-ups to a wagering game player. The state-based power-ups may be reused by the player until a game outcome condition is not met.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely
  • Publication number: 20140155143
    Abstract: A gaming system and method including a plurality of gaming devices that may participate in a shared secondary or bonus game and a controller operable to communicate with said plurality of gaming devices. At least one of the plurality of gaming devices is programmed to generate and accumulate collectors upon an occurrence of a first triggering event. Upon an occurrence of a second triggering event at one of the gaming devices, the controller enables a player of said gaming device to redeem a quantity of accumulated collectors in a bonus event. The controller also enables the player to invite other gaming devices from the plurality of gaming devices to redeem accumulated collectors and participate in said bonus event. The odds of each player earning a higher-valued total award in the bonus event increases with the total number of accumulated collectors redeemed in the bonus event.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 6, 2014
    Publication date: June 5, 2014
    Applicant: IGT
    Inventors: Scott A. Caputo, Mark C. Nicely, Gregory H. Parrott
  • Patent number: 8740691
    Abstract: A gaming device provides a free spins game wherein a plurality of modifiers are each associated with one of a plurality of paylines. During the free spins game, each modifier modifies awards won on the particular payline with which it is associated. In one embodiment, the payline multipliers increase in each of the free spins depending on whether a given payline scores a win or not in the free spin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 3, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Scott A. Caputo, Mark C. Nicely, Ryan M. Griffin
  • Patent number: 8727851
    Abstract: A gaming device provides a single player poker game including one or more opportunities for forming player hands. In one embodiment, for a play of the poker game, a player places a wager on each of a plurality of player hands. The gaming device provides the player with one or more opportunities to fold one or more of the player hands and withdraw the wager associated with the folded hand. A number of community cards are dealt. The gaming device determines and provides any awards associated with a ranking of each of the remaining player hands according to a paytable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventors: Mark C. Nicely, Paul Baker Stroube, Steven Joseph Bazyl
  • Patent number: 8721426
    Abstract: Disclosed herein are techniques and equipment for providing state-based power-ups to a wagering game player. The state-based power-ups may be reused by the player until a game outcome condition is not met.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2014
    Assignee: IGT
    Inventor: Mark C. Nicely