Bingo Game Manager Virtual Card Generation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing Class II bingo gaming systems face issues such as 50% hit frequency requirements, pattern overload, bingo ties leading to fractional credits, and delayed gameplay due to concurrent player requirements, which affect the gaming experience and the ability to mimic Class III game feel.
Innovation Solution
An electronic bingo gaming system with a single game ending pattern and a common interim prize pattern, managed by a bingo game manager that generates unique virtual bingo cards and balls, allowing players to join in progress games and calculate interim prizes based on a mathematical product of ball indices, reducing delays and player confusion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple winning patterns are provided to enable multiple winners and progressive jackpots, then prize variety and player engagement are improved, but pattern overload and player confusion increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the bingo game into distinct phases: an initial phase with multiple winning patterns (rows, columns, diagonals, corners, boxes) that can produce multiple winners, and a subsequent phase with a single game-ending pattern. This segmentation allows the system to provide prize variety through multiple patterns while eliminating confusion by transitioning to a simple, unambiguous ending condition.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically changes the winning pattern configuration during game play. Initially, multiple pattern types are active allowing various winning conditions. As balls are drawn and patterns are completed, the system transitions to a single designated game-ending pattern, making the complexity dynamic rather than static, thus providing variety when needed while simplifying when clarity is needed.
2Reliability
If concurrent player requirements are enforced to ensure fair gameplay, then game integrity is improved, but gameplay delays and player waiting time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses preliminary random determination of the game-ending pattern and the sequence of drawn balls before the actual game play begins. This preliminary action allows the system to pre-calculate game outcomes and manage multiple players independently, eliminating the need to wait for concurrent players while maintaining game integrity through predetermined fair outcomes.
Solution Approach 2:
Each player's gaming device independently evaluates its own bingo card against the predetermined ball sequence and winning patterns. The system allows players to play at different times without requiring concurrent participation, as each player's outcome is self-determined based on the pre-established game parameters, thus eliminating waiting time while preserving fairness.
3Ease of operation
If traditional bingo card systems are used with manual or automated ball-draw, then game simplicity and player accessibility are improved, but game speed and productivity decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical ball-draw system with an electronic random number generator that determines the sequence of balls and winning patterns. This substitution maintains player accessibility through familiar bingo mechanics while dramatically increasing game speed and throughput, allowing many more games to be played per hour without complicating the player experience.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses electronic copies of bingo cards displayed on gaming device screens instead of physical paper cards. These electronic cards can be automatically updated and evaluated, maintaining the simplicity and accessibility of traditional bingo while enabling faster game play and automated pattern recognition, thus improving productivity without sacrificing ease of operation.
4Adaptability or versatility
If Class II bingo prize determination is used with entertainment mechanisms, then player engagement and revenue potential are improved, but system complexity and programming requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent preliminarily determines all prize amounts and winning conditions through random selection before the game begins. The system pre-establishes which patterns will pay and what those prizes will be, then simply evaluates player cards against these predetermined outcomes during play. This approach provides the flexibility of varied prize determination while keeping the actual game play simple and reducing programming complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic bingo gaming system enables the entertainment mechanisms in Class II gaming machines to mimic the look and feel of the Class III games on which those entertainment mechanisms are based. The system is constructed to minimize any wait times by players that commence a bingo game or join a bingo game already in progress. To create consistency in what players are hoping to see on their bingo cards, the bingo game may use a single interim prize pattern required to win an interim prize that is the same for all players and is the same as a game ending pattern that ends the bingo game.