Wheel display with moveable segments
View Patent ↗Gaming systems, methods, and machines provided herein may include wheel displays with movable wheel segments that may be caused to have at least portions thereof that at least translate along axes parallel to a center axis of the wheel display when the wheel is in a “spin” mode.
1. A system comprising:
a wheel display assembly including:
a support structure;
multiple sets of wheel segments, the wheel segments in each set of wheel segments arranged in a corresponding ring around a common center axis; and
an actuation mechanism configured to be transitioned between a plurality of actuated configurations, wherein:
the wheel segments in each set of wheel segments are supported, at least in part, by the support structure,
the actuation mechanism has one or more first portions that are fixed relative to the support structure and one or more second portions that are movable relative to the support structure to transition the actuation mechanism between the plurality of actuated configurations,
the wheel segments are each movably connected with the support structure and are each interfaced with a second portion of the one or more second portions of the actuation mechanism such that each of the wheel segments is at least movable between at least two corresponding wheel segment configurations, including a corresponding first wheel segment configuration and a corresponding second wheel segment configuration, relative to the support structure in response to the actuation mechanism transitioning to a corresponding one of the actuated configurations, and
transitioning of each wheel segment between the corresponding first wheel segment configuration and the corresponding second wheel segment configuration causes at least a first sub-portion of that wheel segment to at least translate along a direction parallel to the center axis.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the rings of wheel segments include exactly two rings of wheel segments.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the rings of wheel segments include exactly three rings of wheel segments.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein:
the actuation mechanism includes a plurality of linear actuators,
each wheel segment is connected with a different subset of one or more linear actuators of the plurality of linear actuators, and
each of the subsets of one or more linear actuators is configured to be able to be selectively actuated to cause the wheel segment connected therewith to transition between at least the first wheel segment configuration and the second wheel segment configuration for that wheel segment.
5. The system of claim 1 , wherein each wheel segment is interfaced with a corresponding linear guide that constrains movement of the wheel segment interfaced therewith to translation along a translation axis within 10° of parallel to the center axis.
6. The system of claim 5 , wherein:
the actuation mechanism includes a plurality of rotary cam structures each configured to rotate about the common center axis,
each rotary cam structure corresponds with a different one of the rings of wheel segments, and
each rotary cam structure, when rotated about the common center axis while at a first position along the common center axis, causes the wheel segments in the corresponding ring of wheel segments to momentarily displace along a direction parallel to the common center axis and in a sequential manner about the circumference of the corresponding ring of wheel segments.
7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the actuation mechanism further includes one or more motors, each motor configured to cause at least one of the rotary cam structures to rotate about the common center axis responsive to receipt of one or more control signals.
8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the one or more motors includes a separate motor for each rotary cam structure and the motor for each rotary cam structure is configured to cause that rotary cam structure to rotate independently of each other rotary cam structure.
9. The system of claim 7 , wherein:
each wheel segment extends through a corresponding segment of arc centered on the center axis and having a wheel segment sweep angle defined by an acute angle between two radii perpendicular to the common center axis and intersecting the endpoints of that corresponding segment of arc,
each of the rotary cam structures has a corresponding annular cam surface,
the actuation mechanism further includes one or more motors, each motor configured to cause at least one of the rotary cam structures to rotate about the common center axis responsive to receipt of one or more control signals,
each wheel segment includes a corresponding cam follower structure,
the cam follower structures of the wheel segments in each ring of wheel segments are configured to contact the annular cam surface of the corresponding rotary cam structure for that ring of wheel segments when that corresponding rotary cam structure is in the first position along the common center axis,
each of the annular cam surfaces includes one or more corresponding base regions, a plurality of corresponding flanking regions, and one or more corresponding cam nose regions,
each flanking region of each annular cam surface is circumferentially interposed between one of the one or more corresponding base regions of that annular cam surface and one of the one or more corresponding cam nose regions of that annular cam surface,
each cam nose region extends through a corresponding segment of arc centered on the common center axis and having a corresponding cam nose region sweep angle defined by an acute angle between two radii perpendicular to the common center axis and intersecting the endpoints of that corresponding segment of arc, and
each cam nose region sweep angle of the annular cam surface of each rotary cam structure is less than a smallest wheel segment sweep angle of the wheel segment sweep angles for the wheel segments of the ring of wheel segments that corresponds with that rotary cam structure.
10. The system of claim 9 , wherein:
the actuation mechanism further includes, for each rotary cam structure, a corresponding linear actuator configured to translate that rotary cam structure along the center axis between at least the first position and a second position,
the base region or regions of each rotary cam structure, when that rotary cam structure is in the second position, do not contact the cam follower structures of the wheel segments in the corresponding ring of wheel segments for that rotary cam structure.
11. The system of claim 9 , wherein at least one of the rotary cam structures further includes at least one pointer indicator that is aligned with at least one of the one or more cam nose regions of that rotary cam structure.
12. The system of claim 1 , wherein each wheel segment includes an outer surface that has a sector-shaped or annular sector-shaped appearance when viewed along the center axis.
13. The system of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the wheel segments includes an outer surface that includes a first display panel with a first display surface.
14. The system of claim 13 , wherein, for at least one of the rings of wheel segments:
each of the wheel segments in that ring of wheel segments is circumferentially interposed between two adjacent wheel segments of that ring of wheel segments,
each wheel segment in that ring of wheel segments includes a corresponding first side portion and a corresponding second side portion,
each corresponding first side portion includes a corresponding second display panel with a corresponding second display surface,
each corresponding second side portion includes a corresponding third display panel with a corresponding third display surface, and
the corresponding second and third display surfaces of each wheel segment in that ring of wheel segments each face towards a different one of the two wheel segments of that ring of wheel segments that are adjacent to that wheel segment at least when the that wheel segment and the wheel segments adjacent thereto are all in the corresponding first wheel segment configurations.
15. The system of claim 1 , wherein each wheel segment includes an outer surface that includes a first illumination device.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein, for at least one of the rings of wheel segments:
each of the wheel segments in that ring of wheel segments is circumferentially interposed between two adjacent wheel segments of that ring of wheel segments,
each wheel segment of that ring of wheel segments includes a corresponding first side portion and a corresponding second side portion,
the corresponding first side portion of each wheel segment in that ring of wheel segments includes a corresponding second surface including a corresponding second illumination device,
the corresponding second side portion of each wheel segment in that ring of wheel segments includes a corresponding third surface including a corresponding third illumination device, and
the corresponding second and third surfaces of each wheel segment in that ring of wheel segments each face towards a different one of the two wheel segments of that ring of wheel segments adjacent to the that wheel segment at least when that wheel segment and the wheel segments adjacent thereto are all in the corresponding first wheel segment configurations.
17. The system of claim 1 , wherein each ring of wheel segments has the same number of wheel segments.
18. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a housing;
one or more display units; and
a game controller that includes one or more processors and one or more memory devices, wherein:
the wheel display assembly is supported by the housing,
the one or more processors, the one or more memory devices, the one or more display units, and the wheel display assembly are operably connected, and
the one or more memory devices store computer-executable instructions for controlling the one or more processors to:
present a wagering game on the one or more display units,
determine that a bonus event condition has been met, and
cause, responsive at least in part to determining that the bonus event condition has been met, the actuation mechanism actuate to cause one or more of the wheel segments to move.