CA-3141114-C - SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MAPPING RESULTS FROM SPORTING EVENTS TO GAME INPUTS

Abstract

A computer betting system and operation thereof includes receiving at the computer betting system a first bet on a first game and a second bet on a different second game. Each bet has an associated unit stake. The computer betting system assigns the bets to a sporting event which has an associated pari-mutuel wager pool and includes the unit stake of each bet in the pari-mutuel pool. One or more event results of the sporting event are received in substantially real-time by the computer betting system. For each bet, the computer betting system determines a result of the first and second games based at least in part on the received one or more event results of the sporting event and if the result is a win, the computer betting system determines a distribution of at least a portion of the pari-mutuel pool.

Inventors

• Joseph M. Asher
• Howard W. Lutnick

Assignees

• CFPH, LLC

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20050429

Priority Date

20040429

Claims (18)

1. 50 CLAIMS 1. A method of operating a computer betting system, comprising: receiving at a communications interface of the computer betting system at least a first bet on a first game and a second bet on a second game that is different from the first game, and wherein each of the first bet and second bet has an associated unit stake; assigning at least one processor of the computer betting system the first bet and second bet to a sporting event, wherein the sporting event has an associated pari-mutuel wager pool, and wherein assigning the first bet and second bet to the sporting event includes including the unit stake of each of the first bet and second bet in the pari-mutuel pool; receiving at the communications interface in substantially real-time one or more event results of the sporting event; applying, by the at least one processor, a payment received to a wager of the first and second games as part of the pari-mutuel wager pool; maintaining, by at least one processor, the received payment at the computer betting system while preventing the payment from being transferred to a location associated with the sporting event external to the computer betting system; for each of the first bet and second bet, determining at the at least one processor a result of the respective first game and second game based at least in part on the received one or more event results of the sporting event; and for each of the first bet and second bet where the result of the respective first game and second game comprises a win, determining at the at least one processor a distribution of at least a portion of the pari-mutuel pool.
2. 2. The method of claim I, wherein each of the first game and second game comprises one of the following casino games: craps; blackjack; roulette; slots; keno; baccarat; war; money wheel; and poker.
3. 3. The method of claim I, wherein: the sporting event has a number of participants and a plurality of finishing positions; each of the participants in the sporting event has a numerical identifier; and the event results comprise the numerical identifier of the participant finishing in one or more of the finishing positions. Date Re9ue/Date Received 2024-04-19 51
4. 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the sporting event is one of a plurality of sporting events having various numbers of participants.
5. 5. The method of claim 4, the method further comprising assigning each of the first bet and second bet to the sporting event based at least in part on a time that each of the first bet and second bet is placed.
6. 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising analyzing at the at least one processor the received one or more event results using a selected set of rules as applied to the received one or more event results of the sporting event and to one or more bet parameters associated with the respective bet to determine one or more inputs for each of the first game and second game for each of the respective first bet and second bet.
7. 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more respective bet parameters associated with the first bet and second bet are selected by a user who placed the respective bet.
8. 8. The method of claim 6, wherein the one or more respective bet parameters associated with the first bet and second bet are determined randomly.
9. 9. The method of claim 6, wherein: the sporting event has a number of participants and a plurality of finishing positions; each of the participants in the sporting event has a numerical identifier; the one or more respective bet parameters associated with each of the first bet and second bet comprises an indication of one or more :finishing positions in the sporting event; the event results comprise the numerical identifier of the participant finishing in one or more of the finishing positions in the sporting event; and analyzing the received one or more event results comprises determining at the at least one processor based on the event results the participants that finished in each of the one or more finishing positions indicated by the one or more bet parameters associated with the respective bet.
10. 10. A computer betting system, comprising: at least one processor; a communications interface in operable communications with a network; and Date Re9ue/Date Received 2024-04-19 52 a memory electronically coupled to the at least processor and having instructions store thereon that when executed by the at least one processor direct the at least one processor to: receive at the communications interface at least a first bet on a first game and a second bet on a second game that is different from the first game, and wherein each of the first bet and second bet has an associated unit stake; assign the first bet and second bet to a sporting event, wherein the sporting event has an associated pari-mutuel wager pool, and wherein assigning the first bet and second bet to the sporting event includes including the unit stake of each of the first bet and second bet in the pari-mutuel pool; receive at the communications interface in substantially real-time one or more event results of the sporting event; apply a payment received to a wager of the first and second games as part of the parimutuel wager pool; maintain the received payment at the computer betting system while preventing the payment from being transferred to a location associated with the sporting event external to the computer betting system; for each of the first bet and second bet, determine a result of the respective first game and second game based at least in part on the received one or more event results of the sporting event; for each of the first bet and second bet where the result of the respective first game and second game comprises a win, determine a distribution of at least a portion of the pari-mutuel pool.
11. 11. The system of claim 10, wherein each of the first game and second game comprises one of the following casino games: craps; blackjack; roulette; slots; keno; baccarat; and poker.
12. 12. The system of claim 10, wherein: the sporting event has a number of participants each with a numerical identifier; and the event results comprise the numerical identifier of the participant :finishing in one or more of the :finishing positions.
13. 13. The system of claim 10, wherein the sporting event is one of a plurality of sporting events having various numbers of participants. Date Re9ue/Date Received 2024-04-19 53
14. 14. The system of claim 13, wherein the instructions further direct the at least one processor to assign each of the first bet and second bet to the sporting event based at least in part on a time that each of the first bet and second bet is placed.
15. 15. The system of claim 10, wherein the instructions further direct the at least one processor to analyze the received one or more event results using a respective set of rules as applied to the received one or more event results of the sporting event and to one or more bet parameters associated with the respective bet to determine one or more inputs for each of the first game and second game for each of the respective first bet and second bet.
16. 16. The system of claim 15, wherein the one or more respective bet parameters associated with the first bet and second bet are selected by a user who placed the respective bet.
17. 17. The system of claim 15, wherein the one or more respective bet parameters associated with the first bet and second bet are determined randomly.
18. 18. The system of claim 15, wherein: the sporting event is a race event having a number of participants, each participant having a numerical identifier; the one or more respective bet parameters associated with each of the first bet and second bet comprises an indication of one or more :finishing positions in the race event; the event results comprise the numerical identifier of the participant :finishing in one or more :finishing positions in the race event; and analyze the received one or more event results comprises determining based on the event results the participants that :finished in each of the one or more :finishing positions indicated by the one or more bet parameters associated with the respective bet. Date Re9ue/Date Received 2024-04-19

Description

1 SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR MAPPING RESULTS FROM SPORTING EVENTS TO GAME INPUTS This is a division of co-pending Canadian Patent Application 2,564,301 filed April 29, 5 2005. TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates in general to gaming systems and methods and, more particularly, to a system and method for mapping results from sporting events to game inputs. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Wagering in casinos, online, at racetracks, and at off-track betting ("OTB") parlors is a large and growing industry throughout the world. Various types of betting products and systems exist that facilitate betting on the outcome of a particular game. For example, a patron in a casino or a person using an online betting service may bet on a hand of blackjack, a spin on a slot machine, a roll of the dice, etc. The result of each bet, such as whether the bet 15 is a winning bet, a losing bet, or a "push" (i.e., a tie) is determined based on a number of inputs. For example, inputs for a blackjack game include the cards dealt to each player and the dealer, inputs for a craps game include each roll of the dice, and inputs for a roulette game include the each spin of the roulette wheel. Such inputs are typically determined by chance or by some combination of skill and chance. For example, in a roulette game, each spin of 20 the roulette wheel is determined by chance. However, in a blackjack game, the cards dealt to each player are determined by a combination of skill and chance: the player does not know which cards will be dealt from the deck but has some control over how many cards he wishes to draw for his hand. In certain games, such as blackjack, craps and roulette, the payout for each winning 25 bet is determined based on odds predetermined by the casino or online betting service provider. For example, in roulette, a winning bet on red or black typically pays 1-1 odds to the bettor, while a winning bet on a single number typically pays 35-1 odds to the bettor. For other types of betting, such as betting on horse races or dog races for example, the payout for each winning bet may be determined in a pari-mutuel manner. In a pari-mutuel betting 30 system, all bets regarding a particular event are aggregated, a commission (or "take-out") is taken by the track, and the remainder is distributed among the winning bettors in proportion to the amount of Date Reyue/Date Received 2021-12-06 2 each winning bet. Pari-mutuel betting systems are commonly used in North America (and other various places throughout the world) for betting on horse races. Gambling machines, Gaming machines, or amusement machines, or amusement-with-prizes machines, are well known. They range from slot machines, 5 "fruit machines", and other large, immobile, machines housed in a housing or carcass, to hand-held computer game machines, such as GA.J.\1EBOY™ machines. Other known betting, gaming and amusement apparatus include Internet gaming systems. Making and selling, and otherwise providing, gaming, gambling, and betting machines is a large industry. Similarly, making, selling and otherwise providing 10 systems for betting, including distributed network systems, is a known industry with known companies involved in it. It is also known that players of games, or people who bet on gambling systems or machines, can be interested in new experiences. The very novelty of a new machine, or new system bet and the functionality/game provided by the system or 15 machine, can attract certain players. Providing enhanced player-appeal is desirable. Gaming machines and Internet based gambling systems and Casino gambling machines, and on and off track betting systems, are known to have an initial flurry of interest when people play them a lot, and their frequency of use can then tail-off as people lose interest and move onto another new machine/experience. It is known to 20 move slot machines/fruit machines from venue to venue, so that at each particular venue, they are new, and exciting, to the players that frequent that venue. The industry that provides gambling/gaming and amusement machines and betting systems strives to provide machines with added interest for the player. Providing a new machine or system that provides a player with a new user-experience is a 25 problem for the industry. Many gambling machines are played by customers simply because they offer new experiences. A new machine/offering is attractive to customers. Manufacturers and the owners of gambling venues therefore try to appeal to customers by having forever-new games or bets to play. What might be thought as "gimmicks" by some are actually improvements in player interest, and player 30 engagement with the game or betting experience, and are added value enhancements to the machines and systems that offer them. One reason why some people bet is for the entertainment/interest: not necessarily just to win money. After all, most people Date Reyue/Date Received 2021-12-06 3 know in their minds that st