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Standard peripheral communications

1. 48 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the periph eral communication connections are at least one of USB compatible communication connections and IEEE 1394 compatible communication connections 49 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the same communication protocol used by the master gaming con troller to communicate with the peripheral controllers is at least one of a USB communication protocol and an IEEE 1394 communication protocol 50 A gaming machine comprising a master gaming controller that controls one or more games played on the gaming machine and that com municates with a plurality of gaming peripherals using a USB communication protocol and the plurality of gaming peripherals coupled to the gaming machine and in communication with the master gaming controller each of the plurality of gaming peripherals comprising a USB compatible communication connection one or more peripheral devices specific to each gaming peripheral and a peripheral controller designed or configured to con trol the one or more peripheral devices the periph US 6 443 839 B2 23 eral controller including i a control microprocessor separate from the master gaming controller designed or configured to control communication with the master gaming controller over the USB compatible communication connection using the USB commu nication protocol and ii a peripheral interface that directly connects to the one or more peripheral dev
2. 5 is a flow diagram depicting the post power up communication phase between the gaming peripheral and master gaming controller FIG 6 is a flow diagram depicting the details of a general communication process of a peripheral device via a standard peripheral interface as presented in FIG 5 FIG 7 is a flow diagram depicting the details of a general event transaction as presented in FIG 5 DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Turning first to FIG 1 a video gaming machine 2 of the present invention is shown Machine 2 includes a main cabinet 4 which generally surrounds the machine interior not shown and is viewable by users The main cabinet includes a main door 8 on the front of the machine which opens to provide access to the interior of the machine Typically the main door 8 and or any other portals which provide access to the interior of the machine utilize a locking mechanism of some sort as a security feature to limit access to the interior of the gaming machine Attached to the main door are player input switches 32 a coin acceptor 28 and a bill validator 30 a coin tray 38 a belly glass 40 and a monitor mask 42 Viewable through the main door is a video display monitor 34 and an information panel 36 The display monitor 34 will typically be a cathode ray tube high resolution flat panel LCD or other conventional electroni cally controlled video monitor The information panel 36 is a back lit silk screened glass pane
3. the top box 6 is replaced to repair a device within the top box 6 or to install a new top box 6 with a different set of devices When a user wishes to play the gaming machine 2 he or she inserts cash through the coin acceptor 28 or bill validator 30 At the start of the game the player may enter playing 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 6 tracking information using the card reader 26 the key pad 22 and the florescent display 26 During the game the player views game information using the video display 34 Usually during the course of a game a player is required to make a number of decisions which affect the outcome of the game The player makes these choices using the player input switches 32 During certain game events the gaming machine 2 may display visual and auditory effects that can be perceived by the player These effects add to the excite ment of a game which makes a player more likely to continue playing Auditory effects include various sounds that are projected by the speakers 10 12 14 Visual effects include flashing lights strobing lights or other patterns displayed from lights on the gaming machine 2 including lights behind the front glass 16 on the top box 6 or from lights behind the belly glass 40 After the player has com pleted a game the player may receive game tokens from the coin tray 38 or the ticket 20 from the printer 18 which may be used for further games Further
4. 13 202 peripheral controller hardware is specific to the different 6 071 190 A 6 2000 Weiss et al 463 25 types of gaming peripherals 6 088 802 A 7 2000 Bialick et al 713 200 6 104 815 A 8 2000 Alcorn et al 380 251 73 Claims 7 Drawing Sheets Gaming Peripheral 228 Camera ane Card Reader 240 Printer 238 l Light Panel 236 Peripheral 230 Contraller 234 Hub Main Cabinet 4 Romote Hub 210 Fiber Mester Gaming conos 3 Controller 204 Root Expansion Hub 208 Back Plane 202 201 224 21a o HR ooo 216 218 on am Button Panel Hopper Bill Validator U S Patent Sep 3 2002 Sheet 1 of 7 US 6 443 839 B2 38 FIG 1 U S Patent Sep 3 2002 Sheet 2 of 7 US 6 443 839 B2 Gaming Peripheral 228 Card Reader Light Panel 236 Peripheral Controller Main Cabinet 4 li Q Master Gaming I e 08 Controller Root Expansion Hub b 4 206 2 20 j Back Plane 202 U S Patent Sep 3 2002 Sheet 3 of 7 US 6 443 839 B2 Peripheral Controller 234 Control Microprocessor 312 Volatile Memory 308 Power Conversion 302 Master Gaming Timers Controller 314 Master 200 Controller ud Communication EL i Fail safe 306 Protector 304 315 Differential Signal Pair Fix
5. Chee aaah 463 16 463 29 Primary Examiner Joe H Cheng 58 Field of Search 463 16 24 29 Assistant Examiner Julie Brochetti 710 8 19 62 63 64 74 Attorney Agent or Firm Beyer Weaver amp Thomas 56 References Cited Ep 57 ABSTRACT U S PATENT DOCUMENTS 4 301 505 A 11 1981 Catiller et al 364 200 A disclosed gaming machine has a plurality of gaming 4 652 998 A 3 1987 Koza etal 364 412 Peripherals each communicating with a master gaming 5 367 644 A 11 1994 Yokoyama et al 395 325 controller via a standard peripheral interface such as the 5 379 382 A 1 1995 Work et al 395 275 USB Universal Serial Bus Further the gaming peripherals 5 559 794 A 9 1996 Willis et al 370 58 3 employ a standard peripheral controller and one or more 5 643 086 A 7 1997 Alcorn et al 463 29 specialized peripheral devices e g the actual lights bill 5 708 838 A 1 1998 Robinson w 395 800 validators ticket printers etc that perform the specific 5 721 958 A 2 998 Kikinis 395 888 functions of the gaming peripherals Much of the hardware 5 759 102 A 6 1998 Pease et al 2 22 463 42 associated with the peripheral controller is identical from SOLO eS lt 16 19387 Bushy oe 70540 one gaming peripheral to the next Only a portion of the 5 958 020 A 9 1999 Envoy et al 710 3 5978920 A 11 1999 Lee aaa
6. USB Hardware and Software John Garney Ed Solari Shelagh Callahan Kosar Jaff Brad Hosler published by Annabooks 11838 Bernado Plaza Court San Diego Calif 92128 copyright 1998 ISBN 0 929392 37 X which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes After establishing communication with the gaming peripheral the master gaming controller queries the gaming peripheral for peripheral devices This process is called the device enumeration sequence in block 440 One or more peripheral devices attached to the gaming peripheral may communicate with the master gaming controller or may be controlled by the master gaming controller during the course of a game In this step the master gaming controller requests US 6 443 839 B2 13 device information from the peripheral controller Again the information exchange between the master gaming controller and peripheral controller can be represented as a series of high level questions The format of the information exchange may vary depending on the communication pro tocol being used As an example the first question from the master gaming controller to the peripheral controller might be do you have any devices When the gaming peripheral replies yes the master gaming controller might ask what is the device The peripheral controller will then send information to the master gaming controller in some format or protocol established before the communication process began as
7. a device Further electronic or mechanical sensors includ ing evidence tape may be used on a particular port to determine whether a port has been accessed or not One or more of these security features as well as other security features may be used to secure specific ports on the root expansion hub 206 or any other ports used to connect devices Using the standard communication ports 208 and the root expansion hub 206 the master gaming controller 200 may be removed from the acceptor on the mother board which is attached to the back plane 202 without disconnecting or rewiring any of the devices connected to the standard communication ports 208 Also additional devices may be connected to the root expansion hub 206 on the mother board 202 without rewiring the mother board 202 and master gaming controller 200 For example when the remote hub 210 is disconnected from one of the communication ports 208 on the root expansion hub 206 and replaced with a connection to another device including but not limited to a camera 242 the coin hopper 212 the bill validator 214 or the coin acceptor 216 then the mother board 202 and the master gaming controller 200 would not need to be rewired Also the standard communication ports in the root expan sion hub 206 the hub 210 and the 230 may not accept connections to all types of devices to provide additional security For example the level of security on the standard communication port 224 might be highe
8. copy of the critical event information which may be encrypted is sent to the master gaming controller using the standard communication proto col and standard communication connections The critical event information may include a sequence number to avoid duplicate transactions In block 730 the master gaming controller receives the critical event information When the information is encrypted the master gaming controller decrypts the information All or a portion of the information received from the peripheral controller is stored in non volatile memory on the master gaming controller In block 740 the master gaming controller sends a notification back to the peripheral controller that the critical event sent from the peripheral controller was received In block 750 after receiving this notification message from the master gaming controller the peripheral controller may clear information from a previous critical event from its non volatile memory Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail for purposes of clarity of understanding it will be apparent that certain changes and modifications may be practiced within the scope of the appended claims For instance while the gaming machines of this invention have been depicted as having gaming peripherals physically attached to a main gaming machine cabinet the use of gaming peripherals in accordance with this invention is not so limited For example the peripheral featu
9. having a level of security exceeding that of other ports on the hub The secure port is secured by one or more doors locks sensors evidence tapes or combinations thereof Further the master gaming controller may be configured to require that a specified gaming peripheral be connected only through the secure port Also the gaming machine may include a plurality of hubs each containing a plurality of standard communications ports for connecting to the plurality of gaming peripherals where one or more of the hubs is a secure hub having a level of security exceeding that of one or more other hubs The secure hub is secured by one or more doors locks sensors evidence tapes or combinations thereof Further the master gaming controller is configured to require that specified gaming peripherals be connected only through secure hubs In one embodiment the master gaming controller within the gaming machine includes a memory storing 1 software for a standard device identification protocol for at least some of the gaming peripherals 2 one more device drivers for at least some of the gaming peripherals 3 software for a standard communication protocol that allows communica tion with the gaming peripherals via the standard commu nications connection and 4 software for encrypting decrypting or encrypting and decrypting communications between the master gaming controller and at least one of the gaming peripherals The master gaming controlle
10. incorporated herein by reference BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to gaming peripherals for gaming machines such as slot machines and video poker machines More particularly the present invention relates to standard peripheral communication connections between the gaming peripheral and the gaming machine There are a wide variety of associated devices that can be connected to a gaming machine such as a slot machine or video poker machine Some examples of these devices are lights ticket printers card readers speakers bill validators coin acceptors display panels key pads and button pads Many of these devices are built into the gaming machine Often a number of devices are grouped together in a separate box that is placed on top of the gaming machine Devices of this type are commonly called a top box Typically the gaming machine controls various combi nations of devices These devices provide gaming features that augment the features of the gaming machine Further many devices such as top boxes are designed to be remov able from the gaming machine to provide flexibility in selecting the game features of a given gaming machine The features of any device are usually controlled by a master gaming controller within the gaming machine For example during a game the master gaming controller might instruct lights to go on and off in various patterns instruct a printer to print a ticket or send informat
11. microprocessor that controls communication with the master gaming controller over the peripheral con nection the controller microprocessor is substantially simi lar in each gaming peripheral and ii a peripheral interface that directly connects to one or more peripheral devices and is specific to the individual gaming peripheral In one embodiment the gaming machine includes a mother board with an acceptor for the master gaming controller and a hub containing a plurality of standard communications ports for connecting to the plurality of gaming peripherals The acceptor is configured to allow the master gaming controller to be removed from the mother board without requiring disconnection of the gaming peripherals from the hub Further the mother board is configured to allow additional gaming peripherals to be connected to the master gaming controller without requiring that the mother board be rewired In preferred embodiments the gaming machine is a mechanical slot machine a video slot machine a keno game US 6 443 839 B2 3 a lottery game or a video poker game One or more of the peripheral devices may be selected from the group consist ing of lights printers coin hoppers bill validators ticket readers card readers key pads button panels display screens speakers information panels motors mass storage devices and solenoids In preferred embodiments at least one of the standard communications ports is a secure port
12. on the signal needed to turn the motor off the response time of the motor the communication buffer size and the communication rate for the motor In block 410 the control microprocessor loads the state history of the gaming peripheral from the non volatile memory The state history includes game information that describes states of the peripheral devices of a gaming peripheral that occur while a game is being played on a gaming machine For example state information stored in the non volatile memory might include the amount of cash a player has entered into the machine each step of the game the choices a player has made during the game the position of reels or the status of lights When a gaming machine loses power or malfunctions during a game the information stored in the non volatile memory is used to restore the gaming machine to the state in the game that occurred just before the power loss or malfunction In general when a gaming machine is being powered up the gaming peripheral will initialize itself to a pre determined safe state until the master controller connects to it When communication is established between the gaming peripheral and master gam ing controller the control microprocessor may attempt to 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 12 transfer relevant state history information it has retrieved from its nonvolatile memory to the master gaming control ler In block 420 a
13. to a power conversion unit 302 The power conver sion unit 302 converts the voltage arriving from the master gaming controller 200 to voltages needed for the control microprocessor 312 of the peripheral controller 234 or any of the peripheral devices connected to the peripheral con troller 234 including but not limited to the motor 320 the lights 322 or the printer 324 The peripheral devices may also receive power directly from the power supply unit not shown with or without using the power conversion unit 302 The power supply unit is usually contained within the main cabinet of the gaming machine Hardware needed to connect the peripheral controller 234 to a specific peripheral device is located in the peripheral interface 318 At least one or more peripheral devices are connected to the peripheral interface 318 These peripheral devices may include the motor 320 the lights 322 the printer 324 card readers key pads button panels informa tion panels display screens bill validators and coin accep tors The configuration of the peripheral controller 234 which includes information about the types of peripheral devices controlled by the peripheral controller 234 is stored in a non volatile memory 316 When the peripheral devices on a gaming peripheral are changed the non volatile memory 316 can be replaced or reprogrammed to incorpo rate the new configuration The peripheral controller contains a control microproces sor 312 th
14. to the type of peripheral device This device identification protocol is distinct from the communication protocol For certain devices requiring a higher level of security including but not limited to bill validators and coin acceptors the master gaming controller might determine which port it is using Using the device identification pro tocol and the port information the master gaming controller may or may not communicate with the gaming peripheral It may issue an error message and prevent further operation if the device is not using a required port As a specific example the master gaming controller may require that an electronic key e g a software dongle be inserted into to a port prior to operation of that port as a security measure When a peripheral device is subsequently connected into the port where an electronic key has been used the master gaming controller may only communicate with certain types of devices that are allowed access into this port based on the information provided by the electronic key In block 450 the master gaming controller initializes one or more selected device drivers for the peripheral device identified in block 440 Using a device identification number or some other system for identifying the peripheral device the master gaming controller selects a software device driver which will operate the features of the peripheral device enumerated in block 440 The master gaming controller first searches for
15. 17 the device being removed The unenumeration of the periph eral device might proceed in the reverse of the enumeration process described in FIG 4 In the unenumeration process the master gaming controller would unload the device driver for the disconnected peripheral device and stop communi cation attempts with the device Depending on the peripheral device the gaming machine might continue operating with the peripheral device disconnected For example when a light panel is disconnected from the gaming peripheral for repair the gaming machine might continue operation with out the light panel The ability to unenumerate a device and keep operating is advantageous when the peripheral device can not be immediately repaired or replaced In block 545 in the event of a non critical error that is not the result of a planned disconnect the peripheral controller or master gaming controller may attempt to ignore reset or reinitialize the peripheral depending on the exact nature of the critical error Further the peripheral controller or master gaming controller may log this error in some type of event log For example in the process of printing a ticket the printer may malfunction When the printer malfunction is deemed a minor error the peripheral controller or master gaming controller might reset the printer in block 545 and then start the communication process again in block 505 in attempt to print the ticket again In another possible
16. 40 When all of the peripheral devices connected to all the peripheral controllers are enumerated the process shown in FIG 4 is complete One advantage of the enumeration and device driver initialization process in blocks 440 450 460 is that enu meration may occur at any time while the machine is running For example when lights connected to the gaming peripheral are not functioning the lights could be removed from the gaming peripheral for repair and replaced with a new set of lights while the gaming machine is running and the master gaming controller might unenumerate the old lights and then enumerate the new lights Potentially the power up and communication process in FIG 4 might be carried out by the master gaming controller without inter vention by an attendant or other maintenance person FIG 5 is a flow diagram depicting the post power up communication phase between the gaming peripheral and master gaming controller In this figure some of the possible communication and operational processes that occur between the master gaming controller and the gaming peripheral during the post power up operational phase of the gaming machine are described Some events that might occur during this phase include operating the gaming periph eral during the course of a game operating the gaming peripheral between games and operating the gaming periph eral during maintenance In block 505 communication with a peripheral device via a standa
17. ER 460 ANY MORE DEVICES TO ENUMERATE MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER 470 MORE PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER TO ENUMERATE MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER FIG 5 exo U S Patent Sep 3 2002 Sheet 6 of 7 US 6 443 839 B2 505 MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER SENDS HIGH LEVEL INSTRUCTION TO PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER 600 PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER CONVERTS HIGH LEVEL 610 INSTRUCTION TO PRECISE LOW LEVEL INSTRUCTIONS FOR PERIPHERAL DEVICE PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER 620 CONTROLS PERIPHERAL DEVICE VIA LOW LEVEL INSTRUCTIONS FIG 6 U S Patent Sep 3 2002 Sheet 7 of 7 US 6 443 839 B2 DEVICE DETERMINES CRITICAL EVENT PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER EVENT RECORDED IN NON VOLATILE MEMORY PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER ENCRYPT EVENT AND COMMUNICATE TO MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER ENCRYPTION OPTIONAL PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER DECRYPT RECIEVED EVENT AND RECORD IN THE MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER S NON VOLATILE MEMORY MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER NOTIFY DEVICE THAT EVENT IS RECIEVED MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER MAY SAFELY CLEAR NON VOLATILE MEMORY PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER FIG 7 700 710 720 730 740 750 US 6 443 839 B2 1 STANDARD PERIPHERAL COMMUNICATIONS RELATED APPLICATION DATA The present application is a continuation of U S patent application Ser No 09 414 659 for STANDARD PERIPH ERAL COMMUNICATION filed on Oct 6 1999 U S Pat No 6 251 014 the disclosure of which is
18. US006443839B2 a United States Patent 10 Patent No US 6 443 839 B2 Stockdale et al 45 Date of Patent Sep 3 2002 54 STANDARD PERIPHERAL 6 106 396 A 8 2000 Alcorn et al 463 29 COMMUNICATIONS 6 117 010 A 9 2000 Canterbury et al 463 20 6 135 887 A 10 2000 Pease et al 463 42 75 Inventors James Stockdale Clio CA US 6 149 522 A 11 2000 Alcorn et al 463 29 Steven G LeMay Reno NV US FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS 73 Assignee IGT Reno NV US EP 1189182 A2 3 002 G07F 17 32 EP 1 189 183 A2 3 2002 e G07F 17 34 Notice Subject to any disclaimer the term of this patent is extended or adjusted under 35 OTHER PUBLICATIONS U S C 154 b by 0 days 8x931 AA 8x931HA Universal Serial Bus Peripheral Con troller User s Manual Intel Corporation Sep 1997 see 21 Appl No 09 818 060 also http developer intel com design usb Jim Stockdale Description of the IGT Netplex Associated 22 Filed Mar 26 2001 Interface System pp 1 2 System used in public prior to Oct 6 1998 Members of B Link Technical Committee Summary of Comment Regarding Adoption of Internal Bus Standard for Related U S Application Data 63 Continuation of application No 09 414 659 filed on Oct 6 1999 now Pat No 6 251 014 Electronic Gaming Machines 2 Pages Oct 26 1999 51 Int Cl d sete necne GO06F 17 00 cited by examiner 52 UIS
19. a software driver which exactly corresponds to the peripheral device When the master gaming controller can not locate a software driver which exactly corresponds to the peripheral device the master gaming controller may search for a similar software driver that might operate all or some of the features of the peripheral device Examples of peripheral devices which might be operated by a master gaming controller using a software driver include lights printers video display screens coin counters coin acceptors bill validators ticket readers key pads motors and card readers After choosing a software driver the master gaming controller makes the software available for use Usually this is done by loading the software into memory When a software driver can not be located for a particular peripheral device the master gaming controller does not operate this device during the game When the peripheral device without a software driver is critical for operation of the gaming machine the master gaming con troller may generate an error message In block 440 to select the software driver the master gaming controller may use a device identification protocol As an example the device identification protocol might include a series of numbers which correspond to a specific peripheral device As an example combinations of the device class manufacturer device protocol and serial num ber information from a particular device might be used From
20. al controller that a card has been inserted Then in another step this message might be relayed to the master gaming controller in some format and a series of communication events between the gaming peripheral and master gaming controller might commence This type of process where the communication sequence starts in the peripheral device might be occur for a number of different peripheral devices connected to the gaming peripheral including card readers ticket readers coin acceptors bill validators key pads and button panels During the communication process in 505 a number of possible steps were identified where the peripheral controller might send information to the master gaming controller regarding the operation of a specific peripheral device This communication step is called process event in block 510 The details of this process are described later in FIG 7 When processing an event critical information from a peripheral device including but not limited to a coin being accepted by a coin acceptor a ticket being read by a ticket reader or a bill validator accepting a bill is transmitted between the gaming peripheral and master gaming controller so that the information is preserved in the event of a power failure or malfunction during operation of the gaming machine The communication step in block 510 requires that the peripheral controller and master gaming controller are communicating properly In block 508 the communication
21. all the devices connected to the gaming controller must be removed before the gaming controller can be removed After repair or replacement the master gaming controller must be rewired 10 15 20 25 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 2 to all of the devices This wiring process is time consuming and can lead to significant down time for the gaming machine Further the person performing the installation requires detailed knowledge of the mechanisms within the gaming machine Accordingly it would be desirable to provide a standard communication protocol and or connec tion system for installing or removing devices and master gaming controllers that simplifies this wiring process Another disadvantage of the current operation method of devices controlled by a master gaming controller involves the software for the devices When a new device is installed on a gaming machine software specific to the device must be installed on the master gaming controller Again the gaming machine must be shutdown and the person perform ing this installation process requires detailed knowledge of the gaming machine and the device Accordingly it would be desirable to simplify the software installation process SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention addresses the needs indicated above by providing a gaming machine having a plurality of gaming peripherals each communicating with a master gaming controller via a standard peripheral inte
22. aming peripherals in communication with the master gaming controller via the plurality of communications ports wherein each of the plurality of gaming peripherals employs a standard commu nications interface in a manner that requires certain of the separately designated gaming peripherals to communicate only over certain of the separately designated communica tions ports For additional security at least one of the plurality of separately designated communications ports may be a secure port having a level of security exceeding that of other ports on the hub Further some hubs may be made more secure than other hubs As mentioned additional security may be provided by for example one or more doors locks sensors evidence tapes electronic keys and combinations thereof These and other features of the present invention will be presented in more detail in the following detailed description of the invention and the associated figures BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG 1 is a perspective drawing of a gaming machine having a top box and other devices FIG 2 is a block diagram depicting a gaming peripheral and its connection to a master gaming controller US 6 443 839 B2 5 FIG 3 is a block diagram depicting a more detailed example of a gaming peripheral in accordance with this invention FIG 4 is a flow diagram depicting the gaming peripheral power up and communication process with the master gam ing controller FIG
23. at controls communication with the master gaming controller 200 Further the control microprocessor 312 converts high level instructions from the master gaming controller 200 requesting specific operations from the peripheral devices controlled by the peripheral controller 234 to low level instructions needed to perform the opera tion In one embodiment the control microprocessor 312 includes a fixed memory 310 a volatile memory 308 a timer 314 a fail safe 315 and a master controller communication 306 In other embodiments either the fixed memory 310 or the volatile memory 308 or both may be located outside of the control microprocessor The volatile memory 308 and fixed memory 310 may be upgraded using the volatile memory expansion 309 and the fixed memory expansion 311 The fixed memory expansion 311 might be in the form of an EPROM or flash memory When flash memory is used it may be possible to field 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 50 55 60 65 10 upgrade the operating code of the peripheral controller The volatile memory expansion 309 might be in the form of static RAM which uses a long life battery to protect the memory contents when power is removed In a preferred embodiment each gaming peripheral con taining a peripheral controller 234 contains an essentially identical control microprocessor 312 In such modular designs the power conversion circuitry 302 and surge transient protector circuitry will al
24. ation US 6 443 839 B2 21 protocol and ii a peripheral interface that directly connects to the one or more peripheral devices wherein the master gaming controller is designed or configured to a to enumerate each of the peripheral devices in the one or more gaming peripherals b to load software drivers used to operate the enumerated peripheral devices and c to communicate with each of the peripheral controllers using the same communica tion protocol 25 The gaming machine of claim 24 further comprising a mother board including an acceptor for the master gaming controller a root expansion hub containing a plurality of communi cations ports for connecting to the plurality of gaming peripherals 26 The gaming machine of claim 25 wherein the accep tor is configured to allow the master gaming controller to be removed from the mother board without requiring discon nection of the gaming peripherals from the root expansion hub 27 The gaming machine of claim 25 wherein the mother board is configured to allow additional gaming peripherals to be connected to the master gaming controller via the root expansion hub without requiring that the mother board be rewired 28 The gaming machine of claim 25 wherein at least one of the communications ports is a secure port having a level of security exceeding that of other ports on the hub 29 The gaming machine of claim 28 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to req
25. between the master gaming controller and peripheral con troller is checked When normal communication between the master gaming controller and peripheral controller is verified the event is processed in block 510 When the transaction in block 510 has been processed successfully the communication between the peripheral controller and mas ter gaming controller continues starting in block 505 When a communication problem has been identified between the master gaming controller and peripheral controller the process branches to block 515 During opera tion of the gaming machine in block 515 the master gaming controller may send signals to one or more of the peripheral devices connected to the peripheral controller to determine whether the peripheral device is still connected For com munication purposes the master gaming controller views the peripheral controller and the peripheral device as one entity When the peripheral controller is disconnected from the master gaming controller the peripheral devices con nected to the peripheral controller through the peripheral interface are no longer able to communicate with the master gaming controller and the master gaming controller might assume all the peripheral devices were disconnected When a peripheral device is disconnected or no longer communi cating with the peripheral controller the peripheral controller which is still able to communicate with the master gaming controller might detect t
26. e the gaming peripheral or gaming machine into an error checking mode When the peripheral is connected and responding properly the periph eral controller loops back to block 505 for the next com munication event In block 525 when the peripheral controller or master gaming controller determines that a peripheral device may have been disconnected or that a peripheral device may be responding improperly a decision is made as to the type of error and response In block 530 when the peripheral controller or master gaming controller determines that a critical error has occurred the peripheral controller or master gaming controller will log the error and request attendant An attendant might be requested by lighting a light on the gaming machine or a message might be sent to a remote location requesting some response A critical error is an event that requires external intervention for the machine to clear the error For example errors resulting from possible tampering with the gaming machine might result in a critical error In block 535 when a non critical error occurs the peripheral controller or master gaming controller determines whether the error is the result of a planned disconnect In block 540 when a peripheral device 1s being removed as the result of a planned disconnect e g planned maintenance the master gaming controller will unenumer ate the peripheral device and adjust its operation to reflect US 6 443 839 B2
27. ed Memory Expansion Optional 311 Volatile Memory Expansion Optional 309 Peripheral Interface 318 Non Volatile Memory 316 FIG 3 U S Patent Sep 3 2002 Sheet 4 of 7 US 6 443 839 B2 COMMUNICATE WITH A PERIPHERAL DEVICE VIA A STANDARD PERIPHERAL INTERFACE LOG ERROR AND IGNORE RESET OR REINITIALIZE PERIPHERAL 545 505 COMMUNICATION PROBLEM 508 PROCESS EVENT 10 IS PERIPHERAL STILL CONNECTED 515 IS PERIPHERAL STILL RESPONDING PROPERLY 520 PLANNED DISCONNECT 335 DID A CRITICAL ERROR OCCUR 525 UNENUMERATE DEVICE AND REMOVE PERIPHERAL 540 LOG CRITICAL ERROR AND REQUEST ATTENDANT 530 FIG 4 U S Patent Sep 3 2002 Sheet 5 of 7 US 6 443 839 B2 EXECUTE SELF DIAGNOSTICS TO CONFIRM PERIPHERAL IS OPERATING PROPERLY PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER 400 LOAD PERIPHERAL S CONFIGURATION AND STATE HISTORY FROM NON VOLATILE MEMORY PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER 410 TEST DEVICES CONTROLLED BY 420 PERIPHERALCONTROLLER OPTIONAL PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER ESTABLISH COMMUNICATION BETWEEN MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER AND PERIPHERAL PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER 430 DEVICE ENUMERATION SEQUENCE PERIPHERAL CONTROLLER MASTER GAMING CONTROLLER 440 450 INITIALIZE DEVICE DRIVERS FOR DEVICE MASTER GAMING CONTROLL
28. et readers card readers key pads button panels display screens speakers information panels motors mass storage devices and solenoids 71 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to communicate with a plurality of gaming peripherals connected through hubs with the peripheral communication connections in the form of a daisy chain where at least one of the gaming peripherals is connected to the root expansion hub on the mother board which is connected to the master gaming controller 72 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the gaming peripheral includes a communications hub including the peripheral communications connection for communicating with the master gaming controller and a plurality of com munications ports for connecting to the plurality of devices within the gaming peripheral 73 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the com munication ports are at least one of USB compatible com munication ports and IEEE 1394 communication ports
29. example the master gaming controller might ignore the minor error and again request the operation from the device FIG 6 is a flow diagram depicting some details of the communication with a peripheral device via a standard peripheral interface in block 505 in FIG 5 In the power up phase described in FIG 4 the master gaming controller establishes communication with the gaming peripheral and selects software drivers for the peripheral devices the master gaming controller can operate In block 600 the master gaming controller may use the software driver to send the peripheral controller a highlevel instruction that requests the operation of a specific feature of the peripheral device This high level instruction is sent using the standard communi cation connection hardware and the standard communica tion protocol A possible hardware embodiment of this process was shown in FIG 2 For a light panel examples of a potential high level instructions might include strobe lights flash lights implement light pattern A or implement light pattern B For a ticket printer examples of potential high level instructions might include print a ticket for 10 game plays print a coupon for restaurant A or print a coupon for hotel A Further high level instruc tions might be sent to other types of peripheral devices including button panels video display screens card readers motors key pads bill validators coin accep
30. fter self diagnostics and initializing itself to some state the peripheral controller may test the periph eral devices that it controls This step is optional Examples of some tests the peripheral controller might execute include turning lights on and off on a light panel printing a test ticket from a printer displaying a test pattern on a video display screen or projecting a sound pattern from a speaker In block 430 the peripheral controller establishes com munication between the gaming peripheral and the master gaming controller Using the standard communication con nections and the standard communication protocol the peripheral controller establishes communication with the master gaming controller One embodiment of the hardware needed for this communication process between the periph eral controller and the master gaming controller is shown in FIG 3 One example of the initial communication sequence and data exchange between the peripheral controller and master gaming controller can be represented as a series of high level questions A typical sequence to establish com munication might proceed as a message from the master gaming controller including is anyone there The periph eral controller might respond yes and the master gaming controller might ask what type of device are you Then the peripheral controller might respond I am a gaming peripheral of some type To this question the master gaming contr
31. gaming machine includes a plurality of hubs each containing a plurality of communications ports for connecting to the plurality of gaming peripherals and wherein at least one of the hubs is a secure hub having a level of security exceeding that of one or more other hubs 59 The gaming machine of claim 58 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to require that a specified gaming peripheral be connected only through the secure hub 60 The gaming machine of claim 58 wherein the secure hub is secured by one or more doors locks sensors evi dence tapes and combinations thereof 61 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the gaming machine is a mechanical slot machine a video slot machine a keno game a lottery game or a video poker game 62 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for a standard device identification protocol for at least some of the gaming peripherals 10 15 30 35 45 50 55 24 63 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing one or more device drivers for at least some of the gaming peripherals 64 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for the communication protocol that allows communication with all the gaining peripherals via the peripheral commu nications connections 65 The gaming machine of clai
32. he control microprocessor in block 410 The non volatile memory stores information about the peripheral devices that are connected to the control microprocessor through the peripheral interface This information tells the standard control microprocessor what type of gaming peripheral it is controlling The control microprocessor loads the informa tion stored in the non volatile memory and loads code stored in the control microprocessor s fixed memory into volatile memory on the control microprocessor to operate the periph eral devices In FIG 3 the control microprocessor 312 the volatile memory 308 the fixed memory 310 the non volatile memory 316 and the peripheral interface 318 are one possible embodiment of the hardware needed to imple ment the process in block 410 One possible example of configuration information which might be stored in non volatile memory is information describing a light panel connected to the gaming peripheral The non volatile memory might store information including the type of light panel the number of lights the response time of the lights the signal needed to turn the light on the signal needed to turn the light off the communication rate and the commu nication buffer size for the light As another example the non volatile memory might store configuration information for a motor connected to the gaming peripheral this infor mation might include the type of motor the signal needed to turn the motor
33. he disconnect and could send a message to the master gaming controller that the peripheral device is no longer communicating or connected to the peripheral controller For example a peripheral device may be accidentally disconnected from the peripheral con troller as a result of faulty wiring between the peripheral controller and the peripheral device might cause a discon nection In another example a peripheral device might be intentionally disconnected from the gaming peripheral and peripheral controller for maintenance of the peripheral 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 16 device Further in another example the peripheral device might be disconnected from the gaming peripheral and peripheral controller and reconnected with another periph eral device to tamper with the gaming machine In each of the cases the master gaming controller is designed to detect the disconnection of the peripheral device As an example the USB communication protocol addresses this issue with the design of the communication bus and wiring The peripheral controllers may assist in detecting disconnects whenever possible The communication between the peripheral controller and the master gaming controller may use keep alive messages which are regularly sent to the master gaming controller at specified intervals When the master gaming controller does not receive this message after a specified interval it may put the ga
34. herein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for encrypting decrypting or encrypting and decrypting com munications between the master gaming controller and at least one of the gaming peripherals 17 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to communicate high level instructions that do not specify precise control of the periph eral devices of one of the gaming peripherals and wherein the peripheral controller of the one gaming peripheral pro vides low level instructions precisely controlling the opera tion of its peripheral devices and following the high level instructions 18 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the periph eral controller includes a non volatile memory arranged to store at least one of a configuration parameters specific to the individual gaming peripheral and b state history infor mation of the peripheral 19 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the periph eral controller includes a power converter arranged to con vert a voltage coming from the gaming machine to voltages used by the gaming peripheral 20 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the one or more peripheral devices are selected from a group consisting of lights printers coin hoppers bill validators ticket readers card readers key pads button panels display screens speakers information panels motors mass storage devices and solenoids 21 The gaming machine of clai
35. hubs 8 The gaming machine of claim 7 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to require that a specified gaming peripheral be connected only through the secure hub 9 The gaming machine of claim 7 wherein the secure hub is secured by one or more door locks sensors evidence tapes and combinations thereof 10 The gaming machine of claim 8 wherein the plurality of hubs are USB hubs 11 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the gaming machine is a mechanical slot machine a video slot machine a keno game a lottery game or a video poker game 12 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for a device identification protocol for at least some of the gaming peripherals 13 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing one or more device drivers for at least some of the gaming peripherals 10 15 20 25 35 40 45 50 60 65 20 14 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for the communication protocol that allows communication with each of the gaming peripherals 15 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the same communication protocol used by the master gaming con troller and the gaming peripherals is at least one of a USB communication protocol and a IEEE 1394 communication protocol 16 The gaming machine of claim 1 w
36. ices and is specific to the individual gaming peripheral 51 The gaming machine of claim 50 further comprising a mother board including an acceptor for the master gaming controller a root expansion hub containing a plurality of communi cations ports for connecting to the plurality of gaming peripherals 52 The gaming machine of claim 51 wherein a portion of the communication ports are USB compatible communi cation ports 53 The gaming machine of claim 51 wherein the accep tor is configured to allow the master gaming controller to be removed from the mother board without requiring discon nection of the gaming peripherals from the root expansion hub 54 The gaming machine of claim 51 wherein the mother board is configured to allow additional gaming peripherals to be connected to the master gaming controller via the root expansion hub without requiring that the mother board be rewired 55 The gaming machine of claim 51 wherein at least one of the communications ports is a secure port having a level of security exceeding that of other ports on the hub 56 The gaming machine of claim 55 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to require that a specified gaming peripheral be connected only through the secure port 57 The gaming machine of claim 56 wherein the secure port is secured by one or more doors locks sensors evidence tapes and combinations thereof 58 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the
37. ion to be displayed on a display screen For the master gaming controller to perform these operations connections from the device are wired directly into some type of electronic board e g a back plane or mother board containing the master gaming controller To operate a device the master gaming controller requires parameters operation features and configuration informa tion specific to each peripheral device This information is incorporated into software and stored in some type of memory device on the master gaming controller This device specific software operates the features of the device during a game As an example to operate a set of lights the software for the master gaming controller would require information such as the number and types of lights features of the lights signals that correspond to each feature and the response time of the lights One disadvantage of the current operation method for devices controlled by a master gaming controller is that each time a device is replaced the gaming machine must be shutdown Then the wires from the device are disconnected from the master gaming controller and the master gaming controller is rewired for the new device A device might be replaced to change the game features or to repair a malfunc tion within the device Similarly if the circuit board con taining the master gaming controller or the master gaming controller itself needs repair then the wiring from the
38. l with lettering to indicate general game information including for example the num ber of coins played The bill validator 30 player input switches 32 video display monitor 34 and information panel are devices used to play a game on the game machine 2 The devices are controlled by circuitry not shown housed inside the main cabinet 4 of the machine 2 Many possible games including traditional slot games video slot games video poker keno and lottery may be provided with gaming machines of this invention The gaming machine 2 includes a top box 6 which sits on top of the main cabinet 4 The top box 6 houses a number of devices including speakers 10 12 14 a glass panel with display lamps 16 a ticket printer 18 which prints bar coded tickets 20 a key pad 22 for entering player tracking information a florescent display 24 for displaying player tracking information and a card reader 26 for entering a magnetic striped card containing player tracking informa tion The top box 6 may house different or additional devices than shown in the FIGS 1 and 2 The devices housed in the top box 6 add features to a game played on the machine 2 During a game these devices are controlled in part by circuitry not shown housed within the main cabinet 4 of the machine 2 Peripheral control circuitry in top box 6 also provides some control functions for the top box devices The top box 6 is designed to be removable from the machine 2 Typically
39. m 1 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to communicate with a second plurality of gaming peripherals connected through hubs in the form of a daisy chain wherein at least one of the hubs is connected to the root expansion hub on the mother board which is connected to the master gaming controller 22 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein at least one of the plurality of gaming peripherals further comprises a communications huo including a plurality of communication ports 23 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein one or more of the peripheral communication connections is at least one of a USB compatible communication connection and a IEEE 1394 compatible communication connection 24 A gaming machine comprising a master gaming controller that controls one or more games played on the gaming machine and a plurality of gaming peripherals coupled to the gaming machine and in communication with the master gaming controller said gaming peripheral comprising a peripheral communications connection compatible with a communication protocol one or more peripheral devices and a peripheral controller designed or configured to con trol the one or more peripheral devices the periph eral controller including i a control microprocessor separate from the master gaming controller designed or configured to control communication with the master gaming controller over the peripheral com munications connection using the communic
40. m 50 wherein the same communication protocol used by the master gaming con troller to communicate is a USB communication protocol 66 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for encrypting decrypting or encrypting and decrypting com munications between the master gaming controller and at least one of the gaming peripherals 67 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to communicate high level instructions that do not specify precise control of the periph eral devices of one of the gaming peripherals and wherein the peripheral controller of the one gaming peripheral pro vides low level instructions precisely controlling the opera tion of its peripheral devices and following the high level instructions 68 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the periph eral controller includes a nonvolatile memory arranged to store at least one of a configuration parameters specific to the individual gaming peripheral and b state history infor mation of the peripheral 69 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the periph eral controller includes a power converter arranged to con vert a voltage coming from the gaming machine to voltages used by the gaming peripheral 70 The gaming machine of claim 50 wherein the one or more peripheral devices are selected from a group consisting of lights printers coin hoppers bill validators tick
41. ming machine or gaming peripheral into an error checking mode Also when the peripheral controller believes that a peripheral device has been disconnected the gaming peripheral may be placed into an error checking mode by the peripheral controller In block 520 the master gaming controller may send a message to the peripheral device at specified intervals asking whether it is operating properly or the peripheral device may send a message to the master gaming controller at specified intervals affirming it is operating properly The message may be in response to a request by the master gaming controller to perform a specific operation For example when the master gaming controller sends a message to a light panel to strobe its lights which is interpreted by the peripheral controller and sent to the light panel the light panel might send a message back to the peripheral controller verifying that it is strobing its lights As another example the light panel or any other peripheral device may send regular messages to peripheral controller including ready opera tional or performing operation In the event the periph eral controller stops receiving these messages or similar messages the peripheral controller may decide that the peripheral device is not responding properly and place the gaming peripheral into an error checking mode Further the peripheral controller may relay this message to the master gaming controller which may plac
42. ming peripheral on a gaming machine The method may be characterized as including the following steps 1 sending a high level instruction for controlling the gaming peripheral from the master gaming controller to a peripheral controller associated with the gaming controller via a standard peripheral connection where the high level instruction does not precisely specify how the gaming 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 4 peripheral must perform an operation associated with the high level instruction 2 converting the high level instruc tion to one or more low level operating instructions at the peripheral controller for controlling the operation of one more peripheral devices provided with the gaming peripheral 3 controlling operation of the one or more peripheral devices with the low level operating instructions In one embodiment to send instructions the master gaming controller a confirms that the gaming peripheral is commu nicating with the master gaming controller b sends instruc tions to configure the gaming peripheral via the standard peripheral connection c prior to sending the high level instruction identifies the features of a peripheral device using a standard device identification protocol d prior to sending the high level instruction loads or initializes a device driver for the peripheral device at the master gaming controller e determines when the master gaming controller has
43. no device driver precisely matching the gaming periph eral and attempts to identify an available device driver that meets at least some requirements for controlling the gaming peripheral and f determines when the gaming peripheral has been disconnected or is no longer communicating with the master gaming controller and removes the device driver The master gaming controller communicates with one or more peripheral devices selected from the group consisting of lights printers coin counters bill validators ticket readers card readers key pads button panels display screens speakers information panels motors mass storage devices and solenoids After receiving instructions the gam ing peripheral i sends a keep alive message to the master gaming controller where the keep alive message specifies a current operation that is being executed by the gaming peripheral and ii stores in non volatile memory state history information in the gaming peripheral where the state history information specifies a recent operating state of the gaming peripheral iii transmits the stored state history information to the master gaming controller Another aspect of the invention provides a gaming machine that may be characterized by the following fea tures a a master gaming controller that controls one or more games played on the gaming machine b a plurality of separately designated communications ports and c a plurality of separately designated g
44. of claim 24 wherein the periph eral controller includes a non volatile memory arranged to store at least one of a configuration parameters specific to the individual gaming peripheral and b state history infor mation of the peripheral 44 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the periph eral controller includes a power converter arranged to con vert a voltage coming from the gaming machine to voltages used by the gaming peripheral 45 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the one or more peripheral devices are selected from a group consisting of lights printers coin hoppers bill validators ticket readers card readers key pads button panels display screens speakers information panels motors mass storage devices and solenoids 46 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to communicate with a plurality of gaming peripherals connected through hubs with the peripheral communication connections in the form of a daisy chain where at least one of the gaming peripherals is connected to the root expansion hub on the mother board which is connected to the master gaming controller 47 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the gaming peripheral includes a communications hub including the peripheral communications connection for communicating with the master gaming controller and a plurality of com munications ports for connecting to the plurality of devices within the gaming peripheral
45. oller might respond what is your communi cation rate and buffer size The peripheral controller would send this information to the master gaming controller and the devices would continue to communicate The questions described above are representative of the type of information that is passed between devices using a standard communi cation protocol The actual information passed by the devices corresponding to the questions will be specific to the particular protocol There are many different standard communication proto cols including USB or IEEE1394 and the like Each of these protocols utilizes a standard communication sequence But the standard communication sequence may vary depending on the type of protocol that is used When the master gaming controller is using a USB protocol to communication over the standard communication the following information or a portion of this information might be exchanged between the master gaming controller and peripheral controller 1 release specification number 2 device class 3 subclass e g version 4 device communication protocol and revision 5 Maximum receive and send packet sizes 6 vendor identification 7 product identification 8 device release number 9 manufacturer string 10 product string 11 device descriptor 12 device protocol 13 serial number and 14 number of configuration interfaces The USB stan dard is widely known and described in various references such as
46. ommunicates with devices con nected through the system of standard communication ports and connections The master gaming controller 200 includes a memory storing software for executing a standard com munication protocol that allows communication with the various devices using the standard communication connec tions This communication protocol may include encryption capability for communicating with one or more devices The master gaming controller 200 communicates with devices to obtain information about a device including whether it is operating properly or whether it is still connected In FIGS 4 5 6 and 7 this communication process is described in detail During a game the master gaming controller 200 controls devices Using the standard communication connections and the standard communication protocol the master gaming controller 200 may send instructions to a device to perform a specific operation These instructions may be in the form of low level or high level instructions The master gaming controller 200 sends low level instructions to devices that it directly controls Examples of low level instructions might include turning on a specific light turning off a specific light starting a motor or stopping a motor The master gaming controller may send high level instructions to the gaming peripheral 228 A gaming peripheral 228 is a device that contains for example a hub 230 with standard communi cation connections a periphe
47. ored in non volatile memory on both the peripheral controller and the master gaming controller to ensure that in the event of a power failure or some other malfunction within the gaming machine during a game critical event information is not lost In the event of a power failure or some other malfunction within the gaming machine which interrupts a game this critical event information can be used to determine the state of the gaming machine and game before the interruption In block 700 the first step in an event transaction between the peripheral controller and the master gaming controller is shown In block 700 the peripheral device sends some information to the peripheral controller through the periph eral interface The peripheral controller receives the data from the peripheral device and decides whether the infor mation constitutes a critical event A few possible examples of critical events might be the coin acceptor acknowledging a coin drop the bill validator acknowledging receiving cash or the ticket reader receiving a ticket for game play In block 710 when the peripheral controller decides the information from the peripheral device is a critical event the peripheral controller may send all or portion of the data for storage in non volatile memory on the peripheral controller A poten tial hardware embodiment of this process is shown in FIG 3 In block 720 after recording the critical event information in non volatile memory a
48. r 234 After this information is stored in non volatile memory it will be available to determine the state of the machine 2 when any subsequent malfunctions occur FIG 4 is a flow diagram depicting an example of the gaming peripheral power up and communication process with the master gaming controller This process is described US 6 443 839 B2 11 for one gaming peripheral For a plurality of gaming peripherals this process is implemented for each gaming peripheral When a gaming peripheral loses power which may include an accidental power loss or planned mainte nance for the gaming peripheral the process in FIG 4 is usually followed When a gaming peripheral first receives power the standard control microprocessor as an example see 312 in FIG 3 executes self diagnostics to confirm the peripheral is operating properly in block 400 The control microprocessor will load software stored in its fixed memory With this software the control microprocessor will execute a series of self diagnostics to determine that its various components are operating properly These tests may include testing the processor timer fail safe and master communication controller functions of the control micro processor After the control microprocessor completes its self diagnostics in block 400 the gaming peripheral s configu ration and state history is loaded into the control micropro cessor s volatile memory from non volatile memory outside of t
49. r board 202 The root expansion hub 206 which is integrated into the back plane 202 provides breakout connections for devices within the gaming cabinet without requiring additional hard ware or non integrated communication port expansion including the remote hub 210 or the hub 230 Typically the connections to the root expansion hub 206 are from a connection to a root port within the circuitry of the master gaming controller 200 i e the root port provided by cir cuitry incorporated into the master gaming controller 200 When the root expansion hub is connected to a root port on the master gaming controller 200 the root expansion hub 206 may be provided with a higher level of security than the other remote hubs including the hubs 210 and 230 In general any hub can be provided with more or less security than other hubs in the gaming machine The security for the hub may be provided by limiting access to the interior of the gaming machine using one or more doors with mechanical and or electrical locking mechanisms These locks may be monitored by the master gaming controller 200 using sensor devices including electric switches Further the ports 208 and 224 within the root expansion hub may have additional security features For example access to the ports may be limited using an electronic key or covers with mechanical locks which prevent access Further devices connected to these ports may be locked down to prevent the disconnection of
50. r is con figured to communicate with a plurality of gaming periph erals connected through hubs with standard peripheral com munication connections in the form of a daisy chain where at least one of the gaming peripherals is connected to the hub on the mother board connected to the master gaming con troller Further the master gaming controller is configured to communicate high level instructions that do not specify precise control of the peripheral devices of one of the gaming peripherals Following the high level instructions the peripheral controller of at least one gaming peripheral provides low level instructions precisely controlling the operation of its peripheral devices In preferred embodiments the peripheral controller includes a non volatile memory arranged to store at least one of a configuration parameters specific to the individual gaming peripheral and b state history information of the peripheral Further the peripheral controller may include a power converter arranged to convert the voltage coming from the gaming machine to voltages used by the gaming peripheral Also the gaming peripheral may include a com munications hub including the standard peripheral commu nications connection for communicating with the master gaming controller and a plurality of standard communica tions ports for connecting to the plurality of devices within the peripheral Another aspect of the invention provides a method for controlling a ga
51. r than the other standard communication ports 208 on the root expansion hub 206 Thus the standard communication port 224 on the root expansion hub 206 might accept connections only from devices requiring a higher level of security including but not limited to the bill validator 214 the coin acceptor 216 and the gaming peripheral 228 In this example the master gaming controller 200 would not recognize input from the bill validator 214 the coin acceptor 216 or the gaming peripheral unless these devices were connected through a standard communication port with a higher level of security including 224 This security may be provided by 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 8 mechanical electronic or software means or combinations thereof For example port 224 may be housed within a secure locking enclosure to ensure that no one can connect or disconnect through that port without having the necessary key As another example the master gaming controller includes a temporary port or hub 201 Usually this port 201 is used for an electronic key and is used for diagnostics and other secure operations on the master gaming controller During operation of the gaming machine a device is not typically connected through this port Secure ports and data encryption help to meet the necessary security requirements for a gaming machine During the operation of the gaming machine 2 the master gaming controller 200 c
52. ral controller 234 and connec tions to one or more peripheral devices Typically the peripheral controller controls one or more peripheral devices Also when the communication connections and the standard communication protocol are used the peripheral controller 234 enables communication between the master gaming controller 200 and one or more peripheral devices Examples of some peripheral devices which might be included as part of gaming peripheral 228 are the lights 236 printer 238 smart card reader 240 the bill validator 214 the coin acceptor 216 the button panel 218 in FIG 2 and the speaker 10 the video display screen 34 the key pad 22 and the florescent display 24 in FIG 1 The peripheral controller 234 controls the peripheral devices connected to the periph eral controller 234 including the lights 236 the printer 238 and the smart card reader 240 When the master gaming controller 200 sends the high level instruction to the gaming peripheral 228 requesting an operation from a peripheral device controlled by the peripheral controller 234 the peripheral controller 234 receives a high level instruction and converts it to the low level instructions specific to the operation requested from the master gaming controller 200 For example the master gaming controller 200 might send a high level instruction to the gaming peripheral 228 to strobe its lights 236 The peripheral controller 234 would receive this high level instr
53. rd 202 with a master gaming controller 200 include fiber optic conversion 204 a remote hub 210 a coin acceptor 216 a bill validator and a gaming peripheral 228 These devices may be housed within the main cabinet 4 of the gaming machine 2 or may reside outside of the main cabinet 4 Other examples of devices which might incorporate a standard communication port 208 that communicate with the master gaming controller 200 include the coin hopper 212 the bill validator 214 the coin acceptor 216 the button panel 218 the light array 236 the printer 238 the card reader 240 the camera 242 in FIG 2 and the speaker 10 which is part of an audio system the display screen 34 the information panel 36 the key pad 22 in FIG 1 These devices might be connected directly to the mother board 202 containing the root expansion hub 206 using one or more of the standard communication ports 208 or through one or more devices containing standard com munication ports which are connected to the root expansion hub 206 on the mother board 202 For example the coin hopper 212 is connected to a standard communication port 222 on the bill validator 214 The bill validator 214 is connected to the root expansion hub 206 on the mother US 6 443 839 B2 7 board 202 containing the master gaming controller 200 As another example the camera 242 is connected to the hub 230 on the gaming peripheral 228 which is connected to the root expansion hub 206 on the mothe
54. rd peripheral interface occurs In one possible embodiment this step may be initiated when the master gaming controller requests an operation or information from one of the peripheral devices comprising the gaming periph eral In a preferred embodiment the peripheral controller receives this message as a high level instruction and con verts the instruction to one of more low level instructions needed to operate or communicate with the peripheral device The details of this step are described in FIG 6 The low level instructions from the peripheral controller are sent to the peripheral device via the peripheral interface The peripheral device receives the instructions and performs the requested operation As an example a light panel might turn on a specific light or turn its lights on in a specific pattern including strobing or flashing After performing the operation the peripheral device may signal to the peripheral controller that the operation has been completed In another step the peripheral controller may verify to the master US 6 443 839 B2 15 gaming controller that the requested operation was per formed In another possible embodiment this step may be initiated when a peripheral device on the gaming peripheral is utilized For example a player wishing to start a game might insert a player tracking card into a card reader connected to the gaming peripheral In this example the card reader might send a message to the peripher
55. res commonly provided on a top box may be included in a stand along cabinet proximate to but unconnected to the main gaming machine chassis What is claimed is 1 A gaming machine comprising a master gaming controller that controls one or more games played on the gaming machine a mother board connected to the master gaming controller said mother board comprising a root expansion hub containing a plurality of communications ports designed to connect to a peripheral communications connection US 6 443 839 B2 19 a plurality of gaming peripherals coupled to the gaming machine and in communication with the master gaming controller via communication ports in the root expan sion hub each of the plurality of gaming peripherals comprising the peripheral communications connection one or more peripheral devices specific to each gaming peripheral and a peripheral controller designed or configured to con trol the one or more peripheral devices the periph eral controller including i a control microprocessor separate from the master gaming controller designed or configured to control communication with the master gaming controller over the peripheral com munications connection using a communication protocol and ii a peripheral interface that directly connects to the one or more peripheral devices and is specific to the individual gaming peripheral wherein the master gaming controller and each of the plurality of gaming pe
56. rface such as the USB Universal Serial Bus For some gaming peripherals the communication between the master gaming controller and the gaming peripheral may include various security features such as encryption secure ports and secure hubs Further the gaming peripherals of this invention preferably employ a standard peripheral controller and one or more specialized peripheral devices e g the actual lights bill validators ticket printers etc that perform the specific functions of the gaming peripherals Much of the hardware associated with the peripheral controller is identical from one gaming peripheral to the next Only a portion of the peripheral controller hardware is specific to the different types of gaming peripherals One aspect of the present invention provides a gaming machine that generally can be characterized as including 1 a master gaming controller that controls one or more games played on the gaming machine and 2 a plurality of gaming peripherals coupled to the gaming machine and in commu nication with the master gaming controller As described above the gaming peripheral should include a a standard peripheral communications connection which may be iden tical in each gaming peripheral b one or more peripheral devices specific to the individual gaming peripheral and c a peripheral controller that controls the one or more periph eral devices The peripheral controller preferably includes i a control
57. ripherals communicate using the same communication protocol and wherein the mother board is configured to allow additional gaming periph erals to be connected to the master gaming controller via the root expansion hub without requiring that the mother board be rewired 2 The gaming machine of claim 1 further comprising a mother board including an acceptor for the master gaming controller 3 The gaming machine of claim 2 wherein the acceptor is configured to allow the master gaming controller to be removed from the mother board without requiring discon nection of the gaming peripherals from the root expansion hub 4 The gaming machine of claim 2 wherein at least one of the communications ports is a secure port having a level of security exceeding that of other communication ports on the root expansion hub 5 The gaming machine of claim 4 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to require that a specified gaming peripheral be connected only through the secure port 6 The gaming machine of claim 4 wherein the secure port is secured by one or more doors locks sensors evidence tapes and combinations thereof 7 The gaming machine of claim 1 wherein the gaming machine includes a plurality of hubs each containing a plurality of communications ports for connecting to the plurality of gaming peripherals and wherein at least one of the hubs is a secure hub having a level of security exceeding that of one or more other
58. safe 315 does not receive a message including do not reset after a specified interval the fail safe 315 resets the gaming periph eral The fixed memory 310 is a read only memory which is not lost when the control microprocessor 312 loses power The fixed memory 310 stores general code that the control microprocessor 312 uses while operating The code stored in the fixed memory 310 may be identical in every peripheral controller 234 To control a specific peripheral device the control microprocessor 312 uses code stored in the fixed memory 310 in conjunction with peripheral device specific information stored in the non volatile memory 316 The volatile memory 308 stores code parameters data from the peripheral devices and data from the master gaming con troller 200 that the control microprocessor 312 needs to operate The data in volatile memory 308 is lost when the control microprocessor 312 loses power Critical informa tion including the current state of peripheral devices is stored in the non volatile memory 316 The nonvolatile memory might be an EEPROM flash card memory or a battery powered RAM In the event of a power failure or some other malfunction the information in non volatile memory 316 is used to restore the gaming peripheral to its state before the malfunction occurred For example when a player enters cash into the gaming machine 2 this informa tion can be stored in non volatile memory 316 on the peripheral controlle
59. so be essentially identical from peripheral to peripheral The only distinctions between peripheral controllers in individual peripherals will reside in the peripheral interface 318 and the information stored in non volatile memory 316 This allows for rapid design and reduced maintenance of gaming machine peripherals Within the control microprocessor 312 the master con troller communication 306 controls the communication between the peripheral controller 234 and the master gaming controller 200 The control microprocessor may be an off the shelf device including an Infineon Technologies C541U family of microcontrollers The master controller commu nication 306 performs the communication using a standard communication protocol Essentially it implements the pro tocol associated with a standard communications protocol such as USB IEEE1394 or the like The timer 314 sends signals to the control microprocessor 312 which controls execution of code The fail safe 315 contains code which is independent of the code in the control microprocessor 312 When code within the control microprocessor 312 is lost or malfunctions the fail safe 315 will reset the entire gaming peripheral As an example the fail safe 315 might expect a message from the control microprocessor 312 which includes do not reset When the fail safe 315 receives this message the fail safe 315 will wait a specified interval for the next do not reset message When the fail
60. some of the gaming peripherals 38 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing one or more device drivers for at least some of the gaming peripherals 39 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for the communication protocol that allows communication with all the gaming peripherals via the peripheral commu nications connections 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 22 40 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the same communication protocol used by the master gaming con troller to communicate is at least one of a USB communi cation protocol and an IEEE 1394 communication protocol 41 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for encrypting decrypting or encrypting and decrypting com munications between the master gaming controller and at least one of the gaming peripherals 42 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to communicate high level instructions that do not specify precise control of the periph eral devices of one of the gaming peripherals and wherein the peripheral controller of the one gaming peripheral pro vides low level instructions precisely controlling the opera tion of its peripheral devices and following the high level instructions 43 The gaming machine
61. the player may receive a ticket 20 for food merchandise or games from the printer 18 FIG 2 is a block diagram depicting a gaming peripheral and its connection to a master gaming controller The master gaming controller 200 shown in FIG 2 is housed within the main cabinet 4 of the gaming machine 2 shown in FIG 1 The master gaming controller 200 controls one or more games played on the gaming machine 2 Typically the master gaming controller is connected to a mother board or back plane 202 which is attached to the back of the main cabinet 4 of the gaming machine 2 The back plane 202 may include an acceptor not shown for mechanically engaging or latching to the master gaming controller 200 and a root expansion hub 206 containing one or more standard com munications ports 208 The standard communication ports 208 are used to connect to other devices containing standard communication ports The standard communication ports 208 root expansion hub 206 hub 210 and hub 230 and the connections to the devices comprise a communication system that allows the master gaming controller 200 to communicate with devices connected to this system The devices and the connections shown in the figure are only one embodiment of the present invention Typically a device is not required to be plugged into a particular port Examples of devices which might be connected to a root expansion hub 206 with standard com munication ports 208 on a mother boa
62. these numbers the master gaming controller would be able identify the type of the peripheral device and its features Related peripheral devices with similar features 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 14 might have similar numbers For example two versions of a peripheral device device A and device B might share in common one or more numbers including 11112 to denote device A and 11113 to denote device B This is similar to the concept of an address mask in network technology This selection process may vary depending on the peripheral s manufacturer and the driver implementation In block 460 the master gaming controller determines whether the device enumeration sequence is completed When more devices need to be enumerated the master gaming controller returns to block 440 In block 460 the master gaming controller might determine whether more devices need to be enumerated by querying the peripheral controller or the master gaming controller might know the number of peripheral devices connected to the gaming peripheral by its type The type of the gaming peripheral was identified when communication was established in block 430 In block 470 when the enumeration process is com pleted for all the peripheral devices connected to a periph eral controller the master gaming controller may look for additional peripheral devices connected to other peripheral controllers to enumerate and return to block 4
63. tors and infor mation panels In block 610 the peripheral controller receives a high level instruction for a peripheral device and converts the high level instruction into to one or more low level instructions that are needed to perform the specific operation on the peripheral device For example a high level instruction from the master gaming controller to strobe lights on a light panel with 3 lights connected to the gaming peripheral might be converted to a sequence low level instructions including turn on light 1 wait 100 milliseconds turn off light 1 turn on light 2 wait 100 milliseconds turn off light 2 turn on light 3 In block 620 the peripheral controller sends the device specific low level instructions through the peripheral interface to the peripheral device The sequence of low level instructions sent from the peripheral controller allow the peripheral device to perform the operation requested by the master gaming controller 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 18 FIG 7 is a flow diagram depicting the details of the EVENT TRANSACTION step in block 510 in FIG 5 While the gaming machine is operating and particularly when a player is playing a game the peripheral controller and master gaming controller may attempt to store informa tion on some events that occur on one or more of the peripheral devices Typically the critical events are st
64. uction and send out a series of low level instructions to the lights 236 including instruc tions to turn on and off specific lights at specified intervals US 6 443 839 B2 9 As another example the master gaming controller might send an instruction to the gaming peripheral 228 to print a coupon the peripheral controller 234 would receive this high level instruction and convert it to a series of low level instructions for the printer 238 including start motor print string advance to new line advance paper stop motor The high level instruction set that allows the master gaming controller 200 to operate a peripheral device on a gaming peripheral 228 with a peripheral controller 234 is stored as device driver software on a memory device on the master gaming controller 200 FIG 3 is a block diagram depicting a more detailed example of a gaming peripheral in accordance with this invention The master gaming controller 200 is connected to the hub 230 which includes standard communication con nections on the gaming peripheral The peripheral controller 234 is connected to the hub 230 using a peripheral connec tion 300 The peripheral connection 300 is connected to a transient and surge protector 304 The transient and surge protector 304 protects the peripheral controller from signals arriving on the peripheral connections which might damage a control microprocessor 312 Power from the master gaming controller 200 is trans mitted
65. uire that a specified gaming peripheral be connected only through the secure port 30 The gaming machine of claim 28 wherein the secure port is secured by one or more doors locks sensors evidence tapes and combinations thereof 31 The gaming machine of claim 25 wherein the com munication ports are at least one of USB compatible com munication ports and IEEE 1394 communication ports 32 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the gaming machine includes a plurality of hubs each containing a plurality of communications ports for connecting to the plurality of gaming peripherals and wherein at least one of the hubs is a secure hub having a level of security exceeding that of one or more other hubs 33 The gaming machine of claim 32 wherein the master gaming controller is configured to require that a specified gaming peripheral be connected only through the secure hub 34 The gaming machine of claim 32 wherein the secure hub is secured by one or more doors locks sensors evi dence tapes and combinations thereof 35 The gaming machine of claim 32 wherein the plu rality of hubs are USB hubs 36 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the gaming machine is a mechanical slot machine a video slot machine keno game a lottery game or a video poker game 37 The gaming machine of claim 24 wherein the master gaming controller includes a memory storing software for a standard device identification protocol for at least

Standard peripheral communications

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