	US 9,269,231 C2 (12,555th)
	Facilitating use of a financial transaction device in a cashless wagering system in a gaming system
John L. Curtin, Reno, NV (US); Kelsy Grace, Reno, NV (US); Leisa Glantz, Reno, NV (US); Paul Heenan, Reno, NV (US); Benjamin R. Holsclaw, Sparks, NV (US); Jami Horner, Reno, NV (US); Brent Merritt, Reno, NV (US); Marcus J. Schwendener, Reno, NV (US); Anthony Sofran, Swedesboro, NJ (US); Shenea Strader, Reno, NV (US); and Brittany York, Sparks, NV (US)
Filed by IGT, Reno, NV (US)
Assigned to IGT
Reexamination Request No. 90/019,188, Apr. 13, 2023.
Reexamination Certificate for Patent 9,269,231, issued Feb. 23, 2016, Appl. No. 14/019,707, Sep. 6, 2013.
Reexamination Certificate C1 9,269,231, issued Jan. 23, 2023.
Ex Parte Reexamination Certificate issued on Mar. 25, 2024.
Int. Cl. G07F 17/32 (2006.01); A63F 13/332 (2014.01); G06Q 20/32 (2012.01)

CPC G07F 17/3237 (2013.01) [G06Q 20/325 (2013.01); G07F 17/3225 (2013.01); G07F 17/3244 (2013.01); G07F 17/3251 (2013.01); A63F 13/332 (2014.09)]

AS A RESULT OF REEXAMINATION, IT HAS BEEN DETERMINED THAT:

The patentability of claims 14-15, 21-22, 24-28, 34-35 and 37-39 is confirmed.

Claims 1, 3, 7, 10, 16, 20, 23, 29, 33 and 36 are determined to be patentable as amended.

Claims 2, 4-6, 8-9, 11-13, 17-19 and 30-32, dependent on an amended claim, are determined to be patentable.

New claims 40-73 are added and determined to be patentable.

1. A method for facilitating use of a financial transaction device of a cashless wagering system in a gaming system having at least one processor device, the method comprising:

providing the financial transaction device, having at least an account identifier linking the financial transaction device to at least one financial account of at least one financial institution associated with the gaming network, for one of depositing a financial amount into the at least one financial account, cashless wagering in an electronic gaming machine (EGM) having a payment acceptor for funding a bet associated with the financial transaction device, ~~and,~~ and use by a plurality of gaming and non-gaming venues for payment of goods and services, wherein providing the financial transaction device readies the financial transaction device for one of depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account, cashless wagering in the EGM, and payment of the goods and the services;

loading and storing on the financial transaction device the financial amount of credit available for play on the EGM, wherein the financial amount of the credit being one of a financial amount dynamically loaded onto the financial transaction device via the at least one financial institution, a credit determined by at least one of a plurality of outcomes of the EGM, an amount inputted into the EGM; and

using the financial transaction device for one of depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account of the at least one financial institution associated with the gaming network by one of the EGM and an automated teller machine (ATM), cashless wagering in the EGM, and purchasing the goods and services.

3. The method of claim 2, further including performing one of:

recognizing and validating one of paper currency and coin currency for being the financial amount loaded and stored onto the financial ~~card~~ [ transaction ] device,

retaining a permanent storage record of the financial amount on the financial transaction device,

reading the financial amount on the financial transaction device using one of the bar code, the magnetic strip, and the account identifier linking the financial transaction ~~card~~ [ device ] to the at least one financial account of the financial institution, and

representing the financial amount on the financial transaction device as the financial amount of the paper currency and the coin currency that is recognized and validated.

7. The method of claim 1, further including performing at least one of:

charging a fee associated with the use of the financial transaction ~~card~~ [ device] , and charging the fee associated with the use of the financial transaction ~~card~~ [ device ] to be allocated based on a plurality of allocation protocols between the at least one financial institution and a gaming venue.

10. The method of claim 1, further including reading the financial amount on the financial transaction ~~card~~ [ device ] using a financial transaction device reader associated with one of the gaming network and a non-gaming network.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the at least one processor device performs one of:

recognizing and validating one of paper currency and coin currency for being the financial amount loaded and stored onto the financial ~~card~~ [ transaction ] device,

retaining a permanent storage record of the financial amount on the financial transaction device,

representing the financial amount on the financial transaction device as the financial amount of the paper currency and the coin currency that is recognized and validated.

20. The system of claim 14, wherein the at least one processor device performs at least one of:

charging a fee associated with the use of the financial transaction ~~card,~~ [ device,] and

charging the fee associated with the use of the financial transaction ~~card~~ [ device ] to be allocated based on a plurality of allocation protocols between the at least one financial institution and a gaming venue.

23. The system of claim 14, wherein the at least one processor device readies the financial amount on the financial transaction ~~card~~ [ device ] using a financial transaction device reader associated with one of the gaming network and a non-gaming network.

29. The computer program product of claim 28, further including a third executable portion that performs one of:

recognizing and validating one of paper currency and coin currency for being the financial amount loaded and stored onto the financial ~~card~~ [ transaction ] device, retaining a permanent storage record of the financial amount on the financial transaction device,

representing the financial amount on the financial transaction device as the financial amount of the paper currency and the coin currency that is recognized and validated.

33. The computer program product of claim 27, further including a third executable portion that performs at least one of:

charging a fee associated with the use of the financial transaction ~~card,~~ [ device] , and

36. The computer program product of claim 27, further including a third executable portion that reads the financial amount on the financial transaction ~~card~~ [ device ] using a financial transaction device reader associated with one of the gaming network and a non-gaming network.

[ 40. The method of claim 1, wherein, as part of the providing, the financial transaction device has a control number for verifying validity of the financial transaction device.]

[ 41. The method of claim 1, wherein, as part of the providing, the financial transaction device has player identification information.]

[ 42. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing occurs in response to a command entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 43. The method of claim 1, wherein the account identifier is provided by data entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 44. The method of claim 1, wherein the depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account occurs following a cash out command entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 45. The method of claim 1, further comprising, after performing the cashless wagering in the EGM and responsive to a cash out command, updating the financial amount on the financial transaction device.]

[ 46. The method of claim 45, further comprising using the financial transaction device with the updated financial amount for cashless wagering at another EGM.]

[ 47. The method of claim 1, further comprising, after performing the cashless wagering in the EGM and responsive to a cash out command, loading and storing a portion of credits representing the at least one outcome of the EGM on the financial transaction device, and storing another portion of the credits representing the at least one outcome of the EGM on another financial transaction device.]

[ 48. The computer program product of claim 27, further comprising another executable portion that provides, on the financial transaction device, a control number for verifying validity of the financial transaction device.]

[ 49. The computer program product of claim 27, further comprising another executable portion that provides, on the financial transaction device, a player identification code for identifying a player's wagering activity.]

[ 50. The computer program product of claim 27, wherein the providing occurs in response to a command entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 51. The computer program product of claim 27, wherein the account identifier is provided by data entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 52. The computer program product of claim 27, wherein the depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account occurs following a cash out command entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 53. The computer program product of claim 27, further comprising another executable portion that, after cashless wagering occurs in the EGM and responsive to a cash out command, updates the financial amount on the financial transaction device.]

[ 54. The computer program product of claim 27, further comprising another executable portion that, after performing the cashless wagering in the EGM and responsive to a cash out command, loads and stores a portion of credits representing the at least one outcome of the EGM on the financial transaction device, and stores another portion of the credits representing the at least one outcome of the EGM on another financial transaction device.]

[ 55. A method for facilitating use of a financial transaction device of a cashless wagering system in a gaming network having at least one processor device, the method comprising:

providing the financial transaction device, having at least an account identifier linking the financial transaction device to at least one financial account of at least one financial institution associated with the gaming network, for depositing a financial amount into the at least one financial account and for cashless wagering in an electronic gaming machine (EGM) having a payment acceptor for funding a bet associated with the financial transaction device, wherein providing the financial transaction device readies the financial transaction device for depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account and for cashless wagering in the EGM;

loading and storing on the financial transaction device a financial amount of credit available for play on the EGM, wherein the financial amount of the credit is one of a financial amount dynamically loaded onto the financial transaction device via the at least one financial institution and a credit determined by at least one of a plurality of outcomes of the EGM when a cash out operation is performed on the EGM; and

[ 56. The method of claim 55, wherein the financial transaction device is at least one of a ticket-in/ticket-out (TITO) system, a pre-paid card device, a players club card, an identification card, a financial account deposit device, and the financial transaction device has at least one of a bar code, a magnetic strip, the financial amount, and the account identifier, and is provided by at least one of the EGM, the at least one financial institution, and a gaming venue.]

[ 57. The method of claim 55, further including using the financial transaction device for depositing the loaded and stored financial amount into the at least one financial account.]

[ 58. The method of claim 55, further including performing a cashless wagering operation using the financial transaction device at the EGM.]

[ 59. The method of claim 55, wherein, as part of the providing, the financial transaction device has a control number for verifying validity of the financial transaction device.]

[ 60. The method of claim 55, wherein, as part of the providing, the financial transaction device has player identification information.]

[ 61. The method of claim 55, wherein the providing occurs in response to a command entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 62. The method of claim 55, wherein the account identifier is provided by data entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 63. The method of claim 55, wherein the depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account occurs in response to a command entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 64. The method of claim 55, further comprising, after performing the cashless wagering in the EGM and responsive to the cash out command, updating the financial amount on the financial transaction device.]

[ 65. The method of claim 64, further comprising using the financial transaction device with the updated financial amount for cashless wagering at another EGM.]

[ 66. The method of claim 55, further comprising, after performing the cashless wagering in the EGM and responsive to a cash out command, loading and storing a portion of credits representing the at least one outcome of the EGM on the financial transaction device, and storing another portion of the credits representing the at least one outcome of the EGM on another financial transaction device.]

[ 67. A method for facilitating use of a financial transaction device of a cashless wagering system in a gaming network having at least one processor device, the method comprising:

providing the financial transaction device, having at least an account identifier linking the financial transaction device to at least one financial account of at least one financial institution associated with the gaming network, for depositing a financial amount into the at least one financial account, and for cashless wagering in an electronic gaming machine (EGM) having a payment acceptor for funding a bet associated with the financial transaction device, wherein providing the financial transaction device readies the financial transaction device for depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account and for cashless wagering in the EGM;

loading and storing on the financial transaction device a financial amount of credit available for play on the EGM, wherein the financial amount of the credit is a financial amount dynamically loaded onto the financial transaction device via the at least one financial institution;

using the financial transaction device for cashless wagering in the EGM, the cashless wagering generating a plurality of outcomes on the EGM; and

after the cashless wagering on the EGM:

loading and storing on the financial transaction device an updated financial amount of credit determined by at least one of the plurality of outcomes of the EGM, and

using the financial transaction device for depositing the updated financial amount of credit into the at least one financial account of the at least one financial institution associated with the gaming network.]

[ 68. The method of claim 67, wherein the financial transaction device is at least one of a ticket-in/ticket-out (TITO) system, a pre-paid card device, a players club card, an identification card, a financial account deposit device, and the financial transaction device has at least one of a bar code, a magnetic strip, the financial amount, and the account identifier, and is provided by at least one of the EGM, the at least one financial institution, and the gaming venue.]

[ 69. The method of claim 67, wherein, as part of the providing, the financial transaction device has a control number for verifying validity of the financial transaction device.]

[ 70. The method of claim 67, wherein, as part of the providing, the financial transaction device has player identification information.]

[ 71. The method of claim 67, wherein the providing occurs in response to a command entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 72. The method of claim 67, wherein the account identifier is provided by data entered via a personal mobile device.]

[ 73. The method of claim 67, wherein the depositing the financial amount into the at least one financial account occurs following a cash out command entered via a personal mobile device.]