Player wagering account and methods thereof
View Patent ↗A system for adding funds to a handheld gaming machine. The system includes a portable digital wallet that wirelessly communicates with a handheld gaming machine (“handheld”). The digital wallet stores an amount of funds or funds associated with a remotely stored player account, and is used by the player to add credits to a handheld. The credit meter may be stored remotely, though the player perceives that the funds are actually being transferred via the digital wallet. Other funding techniques include a kiosk that accepts cash or credit/debit cards and dispenses tickets or other media that encodes information representing an amount of funds. The player uses this media to add credits to the handheld. The media may be player-dependent such that the player's identity is somehow linked to the media or it may be player-agnostic such that the player's identity is not linked to the funds associated with the media.
1. A method of transferring funds for playing a wagering game, comprising:
storing a player account associated with a player in an account server;
capturing an image of a ticket via a sensor on a portable handheld device carried by the player, the portable handheld device being remotely located from the account server;
obtaining, by one or more processors, an amount of funds associated with the ticket based on the captured image of the ticket;
communicating the amount of funds to the account server via the portable handheld device; and
increasing a balance of the player account in the account server by the amount of funds; and
responsive to a wager drawn from the player account, conducting the wagering game via the portable handheld device.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sensor is a full image scanner.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the portable handheld device interprets the image to determine the amount of funds.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the portable handheld device sends the image of the ticket to the account server and the account server interprets the image to determine the amount of funds.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the portable handheld device includes an identity recognition module to receive identity information from the player.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the communicating is performed via a wireless communication link between the account server and the portable handheld device.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ticket is encoded with a barcode associated with the amount of funds.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the funds include cash.
9. A method of disbursing funds to players carrying portable handheld devices, the method comprising:
storing a player account associated with a player in an account server;
obtaining, by one or more processors, an amount of funds associated with a ticket based on a captured image of the ticket from a sensor on a portable handheld device carried by a player, the portable handheld device being remotely located from the account server;
receiving the amount of funds by the account server from the portable handheld device; and
increasing a balance of the player account by the amount of funds in the account server; and
responsive to a wager drawn from the player account, allowing the conducting of a wagering game via the portable handheld device.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the sensor is a full image scanner.
11. The method of claim 9 , wherein the portable handheld device interprets the image to determine the amount of funds.
12. The method of claim 9 , wherein the portable handheld device sends the image of the ticket to the account server and the account server interprets the image to determine the amount of funds.
13. The method of claim 9 , wherein the portable handheld device includes an identity recognition module to receive identity information from the player.
14. The method of claim 9 , wherein the communicating is performed via a wireless communication link between the account server and the portable handheld device.
15. The method of claim 9 , wherein the ticket is encoded with a barcode associated with the amount of funds.
16. The method of claim 9 , wherein the funds include cash.
17. An account system to disburse funds to players carrying portable handheld gaming devices, the account system comprising:
a memory device storing a player account associated with a player;
a communications interface for accepting a communication from a portable handheld gaming device, wherein the portable handheld device includes a sensor that captures an image of a ticket, the portable handheld device being remotely located from the memory device; and
one or more processors to obtain an amount of funds associated with the ticket based on the communication from the portable handheld device, the one or more processors increasing a balance of the player account stored in the memory device by the amount of funds and authorizing drawing of a wager from the player account to conduct a wagering game on the portable handheld gaming device.
18. The account system of claim 17 , wherein the ticket is encoded with a barcode associated with the amount of funds.
19. The account system of claim 17 , wherein the funds include cash.
20. A portable handheld gaming device comprising:
a sensor to capture an image of a ticket;
one or more processors to obtain an amount of funds associated with the ticket based on the captured image of the ticket;
a communications module to communicate the amount of funds to an account server being remotely located from the portable handheld gaming device;
an input device to input a wager based on a player account including the amount of funds in the account server remotely located from the portable handheld gaming device; and
a display displaying a wagering game playable in response to the input wager.