Patents by Inventor Masato Okuaki

Masato Okuaki 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: 10242536
    Abstract: A gaming system provides a game to one or more players and includes a ball lottery machine. The ball lottery machine includes a frame, a lottery ball field, an image projection unit, and a control unit. The lottery ball field has a rotating field. The rotating field includes a plurality of ball pockets spaced on the rotating field. The ball pockets are configured to receive a lottery ball. The rotating field is rotatably coupled to the frame. The image projection unit is coupled to the frame and is configured to project a rotating image into an upper surface of the rotating field. The control unit is configured to establish a rate of rotation associated with the rotating field and to responsively control a rate of rotation of the rotating image using the image projection unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2019
    Assignee: KONAMI GAMING, INC.
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Ryu Sasaki, Daisuke Matsuki, Atsushi Inoue, Makoto Nakano
  • Patent number: 10019873
    Abstract: A game machine is provided with a center unit which holds a lottery to select at least one option from a plurality of options by a relative movement between a roulette ring having a plurality of pockets corresponding respectively to the plurality of options and a ball and a center monitor which makes predetermined effects to a lottery in the center unit. The game machine controls the center monitor so as to make the effects when a temporal condition which is a lapse of a predetermined time after the lottery is started and a positional condition under which a JP pocket corresponding to a specific option among the plurality of options and the ball are in a predetermined positional relationship are satisfied.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 31, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2018
    Assignee: KONAMI GAMING, INC.
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Tomoaki Hirai, Toru Omoto
  • Patent number: 9937411
    Abstract: A ball lottery apparatus include a discharger adapted for discharging individually multiple lottery balls, a lottery field including multiple holes in which the discharged lottery balls can enter, a host controller for executing various controls, a retrieval mechanism adapted for retrieving the lottery balls. When a bingo game is played, the host controller can set the ball lottery apparatus to a normal mode in which an input time point at which each of the lottery balls discharged from the discharger is input to the lottery field depends on a predetermined rule, and to a dealer mode in which the input time point depends on human action.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2018
    Assignee: KONAMI GAMING, INC.
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Takashi Uchiyama, Makoto Nakano, Shogo Azuma, Norifumi Kawai
  • Publication number: 20180082514
    Abstract: A gaming system provides a game to one or more players and includes a ball lottery machine. The ball lottery machine includes a frame, a lottery ball field, an image projection unit, and a control unit. The lottery ball field has a rotating field. The rotating field includes a plurality of ball pockets spaced on the rotating field. The ball pockets are configured to receive a lottery ball. The rotating field is rotatably coupled to the frame. The image projection unit is coupled to the frame and is configured to project a rotating image into an upper surface of the rotating field. The control unit is configured to establish a rate of rotation associated with the rotating field and to responsively control a rate of rotation of the rotating image using the image projection unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 16, 2016
    Publication date: March 22, 2018
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Ryu Sasaki, Daisuke Matsuki, Atsushi Inoue, Makoto Nakano
  • Patent number: 9619971
    Abstract: A game machine includes a roulette game unit that selects at least one of pockets each of which is associated with a predetermined privilege by a lottery using motion of a ball, and uses a lottery result of the roulette game unit for provision of the predetermined privilege so that a predetermined privilege associated with a pocket selected by the roulette game unit is provided. And, the game machine stops the provision of the predetermined privilege using the lottery result of the roulette game unit when the roulette game unit satisfies a predetermined stop condition, selects at least one of ball images each of which is associated with the predetermined privilege by an electronic lottery using a video lottery screen, and provides a predetermined privilege associated with a ball image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 11, 2017
    Assignee: KONAMI GAMING, INC.
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Masao Mizoguchi, Tomoaki Hirai
  • Publication number: 20160379448
    Abstract: A management system comprises: at least one gaming machine; and a management device that is communicably connected to the gaming machine with each other, in which the management device accumulates a value according to a betting operation by a player on the gaming machine in association with identification information of the player or identification information of a group that the player belongs to, and conducts bonus processing for a bonus corresponding to the accumulated value by using the identification information of the player or identification information of a member of the group when a predetermined condition associated with the player is satisfied.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 12, 2016
    Publication date: December 29, 2016
    Inventor: Masato Okuaki
  • Publication number: 20160379447
    Abstract: A management system comprises: at least one gaming machine; a jackpot controller that increases a progressive jackpot value according to a betting operation by a player on the at least one gaming machine and determines a winner of a progressive jackpot for the at least one gaming machine; and a management device that is communicably connected to the at least one gaming machine with each other and conducts bonus processing for a predetermined bonus by using identification information of the player on the gaming machine of the at least one gaming machine based on at least the progressive jackpot value being within a predetermined range.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 12, 2016
    Publication date: December 29, 2016
    Inventors: Sadaaki Kaneyoshi, Masato Okuaki
  • Patent number: 9381437
    Abstract: A game machine gives a predetermined favor when at least one ball moves on a table and the ball arrives at a ditch. And, the game machine includes a camera that acquires object information for distinguishing a state of the ball on the table, distinguishes the state of the ball on the table, based on the object information acquired by the camera, evaluates the state of the ball on the table based on a result of the distinguishing, and gives a change to the state of the ball on the table based on an evaluation result so that the evaluation result changes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 20, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 5, 2016
    Assignee: KONAMI GAMING, INC.
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Tomoaki Hirai, Toshiaki Shimizu
  • Patent number: 9216357
    Abstract: A game machine uses a center unit that utilizes a physical operation of a ball to select at least one pocket by a drawing, and includes: cameras that are placed to be able to take images of the pockets; a center monitor that can display a video picture taken by the camera; and, sensors that detects the pocket decided by the drawing. And, the game machine specifies a predetermined video picture range from the video picture taken by the cameras, based on a detection result of the sensors, so as to include the video picture of the selected pocket at a time when the selected pocket is selected, and, displays a predetermined video picture on the center monitor based on the video picture in the predetermined video picture range specified.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 8, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 22, 2015
    Assignee: KONAMI GAMING, INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Atsushi Inoue, Masato Okuaki, Tomoaki Hirai
  • Publication number: 20150348354
    Abstract: A game machine comprising a roulette game unit in which a lottery is executed by a roulette game, wherein a deceleration interval which is an interval to decelerate a roulette ring in the roulette game is changed so that lottery time which is time taken for one lottery of the roulette game unit falls within a predetermined target range. Further, the deceleration interval is changed based on the lottery time of past lottery executed by the roulette game unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 31, 2012
    Publication date: December 3, 2015
    Applicant: Konami Gaming, Inc.
    Inventors: Masato OKUAKI, Toru OMOTO, Daisuke MATSUKI, Tomoaki HIRAI
  • Publication number: 20150317865
    Abstract: A game machine is provided with a center unit which holds a lottery to select at least one option from a plurality of options by a relative movement between a roulette ring having a plurality of pockets corresponding respectively to the plurality of options and a ball and a center monitor which makes predetermined effects to a lottery in the center unit. The game machine controls the center monitor so as to make the effects when a temporal condition which is a lapse of a predetermined time after the lottery is started and a positional condition under which a JP pocket corresponding to a specific option among the plurality of options and the ball are in a predetermined positional relationship are satisfied.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 31, 2012
    Publication date: November 5, 2015
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Tomoaki Hirai, Toru Omoto
  • Publication number: 20150213671
    Abstract: A game machine includes a roulette game unit that selects at least one of pockets each of which is associated with a predetermined privilege by a lottery using motion of a ball, and uses a lottery result of the roulette game unit for provision of the predetermined privilege so that a predetermined privilege associated with a pocket selected by the roulette game unit is provided. And, the game machine stops the provision of the predetermined privilege using the lottery result of the roulette game unit when the roulette game unit satisfies a predetermined stop condition, selects at least one of ball images each of which is associated with the predetermined privilege by an electronic lottery using a video lottery screen, and provides a predetermined privilege associated with a ball image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 23, 2012
    Publication date: July 30, 2015
    Applicant: Konami Gaming, Incorporated
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Masao Mizoguchi, Tomoaki Hirai
  • Publication number: 20150045099
    Abstract: A game machine gives a predetermined favor when at least one ball moves on a table and the ball arrives at a ditch. And, the game machine includes a camera that acquires object information for distinguishing a state of the ball on the table, distinguishes the state of the ball on the table, based on the object information acquired by the camera, evaluates the state of the ball on the table based on a result of the distinguishing, and gives a change to the state of the ball on the table based on an evaluation result so that the evaluation result changes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 20, 2012
    Publication date: February 12, 2015
    Inventors: Masato Okuaki, Toshiaki Shimizu, Tomoaki Hirai
  • Publication number: 20150005068
    Abstract: A game machine uses a center unit that utilizes a physical operation of a ball to select at least one pocket by a drawing, and includes: cameras that are placed to be able to take images of the pockets; a center monitor that can display a video picture taken by the camera; and, sensors that detects the pocket decided by the drawing. And, the game machine specifies a predetermined video picture range from the video picture taken by the cameras, based on a detection result of the sensors, so as to include the video picture of the selected pocket at a time when the selected pocket is selected, and, displays a predetermined video picture on the center monitor based on the video picture in the predetermined video picture range specified.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 8, 2012
    Publication date: January 1, 2015
    Applicant: Konami Gaming, Incorporated
    Inventors: Atsushi Inoue, Masato Okuaki, Tomoaki Hirai
  • Patent number: 8790174
    Abstract: The present invention provides a drawing machine for jackpot game, etc., capable of preventing reduction of the game attractiveness even when one player wins the jackpot prize.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 9, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 29, 2014
    Assignee: Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Masato Okuaki
  • Patent number: D705363
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2014
    Assignee: Konami Gaming, Inc.
    Inventors: Atsushi Inoue, Tomoaki Hirai, Masato Okuaki, Shoki Kogure
  • Patent number: D707301
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2014
    Assignee: Konami Gaming, Inc.
    Inventors: Atsushi Inoue, Tomoaki Hirai, Masato Okuaki, Shoki Kogure
  • Patent number: D707302
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 17, 2014
    Assignee: Konami Gaming, Inc.
    Inventors: Atsushi Inoue, Tomoaki Hirai, Masato Okuaki, Shoki Kogure
  • Patent number: D719615
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Assignee: Konami Gaming, Inc.
    Inventors: Atsushi Inoue, Masato Okuaki
  • Patent number: D719616
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Assignee: Konami Gaming, Inc.
    Inventors: Atsushi Inoue, Masato Okuaki