Method and apparatus for gaming promotional printer

Abstract

A method and apparatus for a gaming promotional printer for use within a cashless enabled gaming machine are disclosed. A gaming promotional printer includes a coupon database describing a stack of coupons that are specified using a template based couponing printer language. A coupon is selected for creation and issued to the player based on a matrix of event-based triggers involving factors or parameters known to the gaming promotional printer directly or supplied by master promotional controller. Triggers may include the time of day, the date or amount of a cash-out voucher to be issued to a player, the duration of play on a gaming machine, a player classification, the amount of money or credits added to a game, or a random frequency of coupon issuance having satisfied any or all of the aforementioned factors. The gaming promotional printer may further include the ability to store all of the coupons, trigger conditions, and related information resident in the gaming promotional printer in a non-volatile fashion thus enabling a host system to download a promotional environment into the gaming promotional printer which will run promotional campaigns on behalf of the hosting system.

1 .- 30 . (canceled) 
     
     
         31 . A promotional controller, comprising:
 a processor constructed to transmit;   coupon data to a gaming promotional printer via a communications network, the coupon data including a coupon template;   wherein the gaming promotional printer comprises:
 a main communication port coupling the gaming promotional printer to a gaming machine controller, the main communication port constructed to receive voucher data from the machine controller; 
 an auxiliary communication port, separate from the main communication port, coupling the gaming promotional printer to the promotional controller via the communications network, the auxiliary communication port constructed to receive the coupon data directly from the promotional controller separately of the gaming machine controller: and 
 a printer processor constructed to:
 receive the voucher data from the gaming machine controller via the main communication port and generate a voucher using the voucher data: and 
 receive the coupon data from the promotional controller via the auxiliary communication port and generate a coupon using the coupon data. 
 
   
     
     
         32 . The promotional controller of  claim 31 , wherein the gaming promotional printer stores coupon issuance data, the processor further constructed to receive the coupon issuance data from the gaming promotional printer via the communications network. 
     
     
         33 . The promotional controller of  claim 31 , wherein the processor is further constructed to transmit variable data to the gaming promotional printer via the communications network, the variable data for use by the gaming promotional printer when generating the coupon. 
     
     
         34 . The promotional controller of  claim 31 , wherein the processor is further constructed to transmit trigger data to the gaming promotional printer whereby the gaming promotional printer generates the coupon using the coupon data in response to the trigger data. 
     
     
         35 . The promotional controller of  claim 34 , wherein the trigger data includes a date. 
     
     
         36 . The promotional controller of  claim 34 , wherein the trigger data includes a time of day. 
     
     
         37 . The promotional controller of  claim 34 , wherein the trigger data includes a frequency of issuance of the coupon. 
     
     
         38 . The promotional controller of  claim 34 , wherein the trigger data includes a time of play by a player of a gaming machine.