BACKGROUND

The field of disclosure relates generally to electronic gaming, and more particularly to systems and methods relating to play of an electronic game on a gaming machine having a dynamic display.

Electronic gaming machines (“EGMs”) or gaming devices provide a variety of wagering games such as slot games, video poker games, video blackjack games, roulette games, video bingo games, keno games and other types of games that are frequently offered at casinos and other locations. Play on EGMs typically involves a player establishing a credit balance by inputting money, or another form of monetary credit, and placing a monetary wager (from the credit balance) on one or more outcomes of an instance (or single play) of a primary or base game. In many games, a player may qualify for secondary games or bonus rounds by attaining a certain winning combination or triggering event in the base game. Secondary games provide an opportunity to win additional game instances, credits, awards, jackpots, progressives, etc. Awards from any winning outcomes are typically added back to the credit balance and can be provided to the player upon completion of a gaming session or when the player wants to “cash out.”

“Slot” type games are often displayed to the player in the form of various symbols arrayed in a row-by-column grid or matrix. Specific matching combinations of symbols along predetermined paths (or paylines) through the matrix indicate the outcome of the game. The display typically highlights winning combinations/outcomes for ready identification by the player. Matching combinations and their corresponding awards are usually shown in a “pay-table” which is available to the player for reference. Often, the player may vary his/her wager to include differing numbers of paylines and/or the amount bet on each line. By varying the wager, the player may sometimes alter the frequency or number of winning combinations, frequency or number of secondary games, and/or the amount awarded.

Typical games use a random number generator (RNG) to randomly determine the outcome of each game. The game is designed to return a certain percentage of the amount wagered back to the player (RTP=return to player) over the course of many plays or instances of the game. The RTP and randomness of the RNG are critical to ensuring the fairness of the games and are therefore highly regulated. Upon initiation of play, the RNG randomly determines a game outcome and symbols are then selected which correspond to that outcome. Notably, some games may include an element of skill on the part of the player and are therefore not entirely random.

SUMMARY

Disclosed herein are various dynamic wheel displays, or simply “wheel displays,” in which segments of the wheel are used to indicate various outcomes that may be selected in response to “spinning” the wheel (such “spinning” may be virtual, i.e., there may be no rotation of the wheel itself, but segments may be successively selected and deselected to give the appearance that the “selection” occurs in a rotating manner, e.g., similar to spinning a wheel relative to a fixed pointer or spinning a pointer relative to a fixed wheel). In such wheel displays, an actuation mechanism may be provided that causes the wheel segments to translate, pivot, or otherwise move in concert with such a wheel spin such that the “selected” wheel segment (s) at any given time is indicated through the relative displacement of the wheel segments (or portions thereof) in directions parallel to a center axis of the wheel display.

In some implementations, a system may be provided that includes a wheel display assembly including: a support structure, a set of first wheel segments radially arranged around a common center axis, and an actuation mechanism configured to be transitioned between a plurality of actuated configurations. In such a wheel display assembly, the first wheel segments in the set of first wheel segments may be supported, at least in part, by the support structure, the actuation mechanism may have a first portion that is 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 first wheel segments may each be movably connected with the support structure and may each be interfaced with a second portion of the one or more second portions of the actuation mechanism such that each of the first wheel segments is at least movable between at least two corresponding wheel segment configurations, including a first wheel segment configuration and a 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 first wheel segment between the corresponding first wheel segment configuration and the corresponding second wheel segment configuration may cause at least a first sub-portion of that first wheel segment to at least translate along a direction parallel to the center axis.

In some such implementations, the wheel display assembly may further include one or more sets of second wheel segments radially arranged around the common center axis. In such implementations, each set of second wheel segments may encircle the set of first wheel segments and N sets of second wheel segments, N may be greater than or equal to zero and may be different for each set of second wheel segments, the second wheel segments in each set of second wheel segments may be supported, at least in part, by the support structure, the second wheel segments may each be movably connected with the support structure and may each be interfaced with a second portion of the one or more second portions of the actuation mechanism such that each of the second wheel segments is at least movable between at least two corresponding wheel segment configurations, including a first wheel segment configuration and a 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 second wheel segment between the corresponding first wheel segment configuration and the corresponding second wheel segment configuration may cause at least a first sub-portion of that second wheel segment to at least translate along a direction parallel to the center axis.

In some implementations of the system, each first wheel segment may include an outer face that has a sector-shaped or annular sector-shaped appearance.

In some implementations of the system, the actuation mechanism may include a plurality of linear actuators, each first wheel segment may be 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 may be configured to be able to be selectively actuated to cause the first wheel segment connected therewith to transition between at least the first wheel segment configuration and the second wheel segment configuration for that first wheel segment.

In some implementations of the system, each first wheel segment may be interfaced with a corresponding linear guide that constrains movement of the first wheel segment interfaced therewith to translation along a translation axis within 10° of parallel to the center axis.

In some implementations of the system, each first wheel segment may extend 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 center axis and intersecting the endpoints of that corresponding segment of arc, the actuation mechanism may include a rotary cam structure configured to rotate about a rotation axis, the rotary cam structure may have an annular cam surface, the actuation mechanism may further include one or more motors configured to cause the rotary cam structure to rotate about the rotation axis responsive to one or more control signals, each first wheel segment may include a cam follower structure that is configured to contact the annular cam surface when the annular cam surface is located at a first distance from a reference plane that is a) perpendicular to the center axis and b) located such that the set of first wheel segments is interposed between the rotary cam structure and the reference plane, the annular cam surface may include one or more base regions, a plurality of flanking regions, and one or more cam nose regions, each flanking region may be circumferentially interposed between one of the one or more base regions and one of the one or more cam nose regions, each cam nose region may be located closer to the reference plane than the one or more base regions adjoining the two flanking regions between which that cam nose region is interposed, each cam nose region may extend through a corresponding segment of arc centered on the rotation axis and having a cam nose region sweep angle defined by an acute angle between two radii perpendicular to the rotation axis and intersecting the endpoints of that corresponding segment of arc, and the cam nose region sweep angle may be less than a smallest wheel segment sweep angle of the wheel segment sweep angles.

In some such implementations of the system, the actuation mechanism may further include a linear actuator configured to translate the rotary cam structure along the center axis between at least a first position and a second position, the annular cam surface may be located at the first distance from the reference plane when the rotary cam structure is in the first position, the annular cam surface may be located at a second distance from the reference plane when the rotary cam structure is in the second position, the second distance may be greater than the first distance, and when the rotary cam structure is in the second position, none of the cam follower structures may contact the base regions.

In some additional or alternative such implementations, the rotary cam structure may further include at least one pointer indicator that is aligned with at least one of the one or more cam nose regions.

In some implementations, each first wheel segment may be connected with the support structure by a corresponding rotational joint having a rotation axis that is perpendicular to a corresponding radial axis that intersects with and is perpendicular to the center axis, and the rotation axes of the rotational joints may each be parallel to a plane that is perpendicular to the center axis.

In some implementations, each first wheel segment may extend 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 center axis and intersecting the endpoints of that corresponding segment of arc, the actuation mechanism may include a rotary cam structure configured to rotate about a rotation axis, the rotary cam structure may have an annular cam surface, the actuation mechanism may further include one or more motors configured to cause the rotary cam structure to rotate about the rotation axis responsive to one or more control signals, each first wheel segment may include a cam follower structure that overlaps the annular cam surface when viewed along the rotation axis and that may be configured to contact the annular cam surface when the annular cam surface is located at a first distance from a reference plane that is a) perpendicular to the center axis and that is b) located such that the set of first wheel segments is interposed between the rotary cam structure and the reference plane, the annular cam surface may include one or more base regions, a plurality of flanking regions, and one or more cam nose regions, each flanking region may be circumferentially interposed between one of the one or more base regions and one of the one or more cam nose regions, each cam nose region may be located closer to the reference plane than the one or more base regions adjoining the two flanking regions between which that cam nose region is interposed, each cam nose region may extend through a corresponding segment of arc centered on the rotation axis and having a cam nose region sweep angle defined by an acute angle between two radii perpendicular to the rotation axis and intersecting the endpoints of that corresponding segment of arc, and the cam nose region sweep angle may be less than a smallest wheel segment sweep angle of the wheel segment sweep angles.

In some such implementations, the actuation mechanism may further include a linear actuator configure to translate the rotary cam structure along the center axis between at least a first position and a second position, the annular cam surface may be located at the first distance from the reference plane when the rotary cam structure is in the first position, the annular cam surface may be located at a second distance from the reference plane when the rotary cam structure is in the second position, the second distance may be greater than the first distance, and none of the cam follower structures may contact the base regions when the rotary cam structure is in the second position.

In some implementations, each first wheel segment may include an outer surface that has a sector-shaped or annular sector-shaped appearance when viewed along the center axis. In some implementations, each first wheel segment may include an outer surface that includes a first display panel with a first display surface.

In some such implementations, each of the first wheel segments may be circumferentially interposed between two adjacent first wheel segments of the set of first wheel segments, each first wheel segment may include a first side portion and a second side portion, the first side portion may include a second display panel with a second display surface, the second side portion may include a third display panel with a third display surface, and the second and third display surfaces of each corresponding first wheel segment may each face towards a different one of the two first wheel segments adjacent to the corresponding first wheel segment at least when the corresponding first wheel segment and the first wheel segments adjacent thereto are all in the corresponding first wheel segment configurations.

In some implementations, each first wheel segment may include an outer surface that includes a first illumination device. In some such implementations, each of the first wheel segments may be circumferentially interposed between two adjacent first wheel segments of the set of first wheel segments, each first wheel segment may include a first side portion and a second side portion, the first side portion may include a second surface including a second illumination device, the second side portion may include a third surface including a third illumination device, and the second and third surfaces of each corresponding first wheel segment may each face towards a different one of the two first wheel segments adjacent to the corresponding first wheel segment at least when the corresponding first wheel segment and the first wheel segments adjacent thereto are all in the corresponding first wheel segment configurations.

In some implementations, each first wheel segment may include an outer surface that includes an illumination device.

In some implementations, the systems discussed above may further include a housing, one or more display units, and a game controller that includes one or more processors and one or more memory devices. In such implementations, the wheel display assembly may be 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 may be operably connected, and the one or more memory devices may 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 first wheel segments to move.

These and other implementations will be evident from the discussion below, and the disclosure is not limited to the above-listed specific implementations.

