Claw arcade game with photo booth and method of making same

Abstract

A claw arcade game includes a housing; a claw assembly that is movable along a horizontal and vertical plane within the housing. In one embodiment, the claw assembly includes a plurality of flanges capable of being moved from an open position to a closed position. The claw arcade game may also include a claw control unit configured to control the movement of the claw assembly within the housing, wherein the claw control unit produces at least one unique signal that correlates to an event related to the movement of the claw assembly during a single game sequence. The claw arcade game may also include a camera assembly including a camera mounted within an upper portion of the housing; and a photo booth control unit configured to monitor at least a portion of the signals produced by the claw control unit, to sense the at least one unique signal, and to instruct the camera to take a photo in response to the sensing of the at least one unique signal.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A claw arcade game comprises:
 a housing;   a claw assembly that is movable within the housing;   a claw control unit configured to control the movement of the claw assembly within the housing, wherein the claw control unit generates at least one unique signal that correlates to an event related to the movement of the claw assembly during a single game sequence;   a camera assembly comprising a camera mounted within the housing; and   a photo booth control unit configured to monitor the at least one unique signal generated by the claw control unit, to sense the at least one unique signal that correlates to the event related to the movement of the claw assembly, and to instruct the camera to take a photo in response to the sensing of the at least one unique signal.   
     
     
         2 . The claw arcade game of  claim 1 , wherein the claw control unit is configured to produce a plurality of unique signals that each correlate to a unique event related to the movement of the claw assembly. 
     
     
         3 . The claw arcade game of  claim 2 , wherein at least one of the plurality of unique signals is configured to correlate to an initial activation of a joystick, a depression of a descend button, movement of a plurality of flanges on the claw assembly from an open position to a closed position, and movement of the plurality of flanges from the closed position to the open position. 
     
     
         4 . The claw arcade game of  claim 3 , wherein the photo booth control unit is also configured to monitor and sense signals received directly from a joystick, descent button, or other input device. 
     
     
         5 . The claw arcade game of  claim 4 , wherein the photo booth control unit is configured to instruct the camera to take a photograph upon sensing a signal from the claw control unit or the input device, retrieve the photographs from the camera, and store the photographs in memory disposed within the photo booth control unit. 
     
     
         6 . The claw arcade game of  claim 5 , wherein the photo booth control unit is configured to format the stored photographs and send the formatted photographs to a printer. 
     
     
         7 . The claw arcade game of  claim 1 , wherein distal ends of the plurality of flanges are each covered with a polymeric tip. 
     
     
         8 . The claw arcade game of  claim 1 , wherein the housing comprises an upper portion and a lower portion which are separated by a shelf; and wherein the housing further comprises a tray configured to support a plurality of miniature bottles. 
     
     
         9 . The claw arcade game of  claim 8 , wherein the tray comprises a upper portion, a middle portion, and a lower portion, and wherein the upper portion comprises a plurality of similarly sized opening. 
     
     
         10 . The claw arcade game of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one unique signal correlates to the activation of the claw arcade game, and wherein the photo booth control unit is configured to instruct the camera to take a photo upon sensing the at least one unique signal. 
     
     
         11 . The claw arcade game of  claim 10 , wherein the photo booth control unit is further configured to take at least one additional photo at a predetermined amount of time after sensing the at least one unique signal correlated to the activation of the claw arcade game. 
     
     
         12 . A method of interfacing a photo booth feature with a claw arcade game, the method comprising the steps of:
 providing a claw arcade game comprising a housing, a claw assembly that is movable within the housing, and a claw control unit configured to control the movement of the claw assembly within the housing, wherein the claw control unit generates at least one unique signal that correlates to a movement of the claw assembly during a single game sequence;   identifying at least one desired point during the single game sequence at which a photograph should be taken;   configuring a photo booth control unit to sense the at least one unique signal, and in response to sensing of the at least one unique signal, to instruct a camera to take a photograph.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 , wherein the at least one desired point during the single game sequence is selected from an initial activation of the claw arcade game, a depression of a descend button, movement of the plurality of flanges from the open position to the closed position, movement of the plurality of flanges from the closed position to the open position, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the at least one unique signal corresponds to the initial activation of the claw arcade game. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the photo booth control unit is further configured to take at least one additional photo at a predetermined amount of time after sensing the at least one unique signal correlated to the activation of the claw arcade game. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein the method further includes the step of configuring the photo booth control unit sense unique signals directly from an input device. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the input device is selected from a joystick, a descend button, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the method further includes the step of retrieving the photographs from the camera, storing the photographs in digital memory within the photo booth control unit, and formatting the photographs into a single collage. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the method further comprises sending the collage to an attached printer.