Granted Patent B2

US 12,400,518 · App. 18/652,755 · Granted Aug 26, 2025

Inventors: Geoffrey M. Gelman (New York, NY); Ronald Rushin (Merritt Island, FL); Dean P. Alderucci (Westport, CT); Joseph M. Asher (Las Vegas, NV)

Assignee: INTERACTIVE GAMES LLC

G07F17/3241G07F17/32G07F17/3223G07F17/3225G07F17/3288H04L63/105H04L2463/102

Abstract

Claims (57)

1. A system, comprising:

a mobile phone configured to:

receive, from one or more server computers, an indication that the mobile phone is in a defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted;

detect a radio frequency (RF) signal from another mobile phone in the defined geographical area via at least one of a Bluetooth-based connection or a Wi-Fi-based connection between the mobile phone and the other mobile phone;

determine that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone based on detecting the RF signal;

enable a user to submit a wager for a gambling event via the mobile phone based on detecting that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone;

determine a name of a user associated with the other mobile phone based on the RF signal in response to detecting that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone, wherein, to determine the name of the user, the mobile phone is configured to:

match a pattern associated with the RF signal to a plurality of signal patterns maintained in a table stored on the mobile phone, wherein the table associates different names with different signal patterns; and

based on a match of the pattern to one of the plurality of signal patterns, obtain, from the table, the name of the user associated with the matched pattern; and

cause the name of the user to be displayed via the mobile phone.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the mobile phone is further configured to, based on detecting that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone, request information from the one or more server computers.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the defined geographical area is a geo-fenced region based in part on coverage areas of one or more transmitters.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the mobile phone is configured to determine that the mobile phone is in the defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted based on a signal strength associated with the mobile phone.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the mobile phone is configured to determine that the mobile phone is in the defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted based on Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates of the mobile phone.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the mobile phone is configured to determine that the mobile phone is in the defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted based on at least one of a base station or a mobile network to which the mobile phone is communicatively coupled.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the RF signal comprises encrypted information.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein to detect the RF signal from the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area, the mobile phone is configured to decrypt the encrypted information.

9. A method, comprising:

receiving, from one or more server computers, an indication that a mobile phone is in a defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted;

detecting a radio frequency (RF) signal from another mobile phone in the defined geographical area via at least one of a Bluetooth-based connection or a Wi-Fi-based connection between the mobile phone and the other mobile phone;

determining that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone based on detecting the RF signal; and

enabling an action based on detecting that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone, wherein the action comprises:

determining a name of a user associated with the other mobile phone based on the RF signal, wherein determining the name of the user comprises:

matching a pattern associated with the RF signal to a plurality of signal patterns stored in a table, wherein the table associates different names with different signal patterns; and

based on the matching of the pattern to one of the plurality of signal patterns, obtaining, from the table, the name of the user associated with the matched pattern; and

causing the name of the user to be displayed via the mobile phone.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein enabling the action based on detecting that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone further comprises requesting information from the one or more server computers.

11. The method of claim 9 , wherein enabling the action based on detecting that the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area is located nearby the mobile phone further comprises enabling a user of the mobile phone to submit a wager for a gambling event via the mobile phone.

12. The method of claim 9 , wherein the defined geographical area is a geo-fenced region based in part on coverage areas of one or more transmitters.

13. The method of claim 9 , wherein determining that the mobile phone is in the defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted is based on a signal strength associated with the mobile phone.

14. The method of claim 9 , wherein determining that the mobile phone is in the defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted is based on Global Positioning System (GPS) coordinates of the mobile phone.

15. The method of claim 9 , wherein determining that the mobile phone is in the defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted is based on at least one of a base station or a mobile network to which the mobile phone is communicatively coupled.

16. The method of claim 9 , wherein the RF signal comprises encrypted information.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein detecting the RF signal from the other mobile phone in the defined geographical area comprises decrypting the encrypted information.

18. A system, comprising:

means for detecting, by a mobile phone, one or more Bluetooth-based signals from one or more beacons;

means for determining information associated with the one or more Bluetooth-based signals;

means for providing, to one or more server computers, the information;

means for receiving, from the one or more server computers, an indication that the mobile phone is in a defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted, the indication being based on the information; and

means for performing, based on the indication, an action.

19. The system of claim 18 , wherein the means for performing the action comprises:

means for enabling a user to submit a wager for a gambling event via the mobile phone.

20. The system of claim 18 , wherein the defined geographical area is a geo-fenced region based on at least one coverage area of the one or more beacons.

21. The system of claim 18 , wherein the information is encrypted, and wherein the means for detecting the one or more Bluetooth-based signals comprises:

means for decrypting the encrypted information.

22. A method, comprising:

detecting, by a mobile phone, one or more Bluetooth-based signals from one or more beacons;

determining information associated with the one or more beacons;

providing, to one or more server computers, the information;

receiving, from the one or more server computers, an indication that the mobile phone is in a defined geographical area in which gambling is permitted, the indication being based on the information; and

performing, based on the indication, an action.

23. The method of claim 22 , wherein performing the action comprises:

enabling a user to submit a wager for a gambling event via the mobile phone.

24. The method of claim 22 , wherein the defined geographical area is a geo-fenced region based on at least one coverage area of the one or more beacons.

25. The method of claim 22 , wherein the information is encrypted.

26. The method of claim 25 , wherein detecting the one or more Bluetooth-based signals comprises:

decrypting the encrypted information.

Assignments (2)

Continuity (7)

References Cited (400)