Lockable security cabinet for casino game controllers

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6641483
  • Patent Number
    6,641,483
  • Date Filed
    Thursday, August 17, 2000
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, November 4, 2003
    20 years ago
Abstract
A lockable security cabinet for game controllers of the type used to operate electronic slot and card games in gambling casinos. The cabinet includes multiple key locking doors and key operated control switches to allow access to specific areas and controls of a main cabinet thereof housing the computers and other electronics only by authorized persons having the proper key for reach particular area or control switch. The cabinet is slidably mounted to a locking base which bolts into a recess in a gaming table allowing the main cabinet to also be recessed therein yet slide out in a cantilevered fashion to access the doors and controls. The base includes a side or rear cable locking enclosure allowing access to and disconnecting of ends of cables connected to the game controller only upon unlocking of the base and outward sliding of the main cabinet.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of Invention




The invention relates to game controllers for electronic gaming tables and devices, and more particularly to security enclosures and cabinets for such game controllers.




2. Description of Related Art




Modem casinos have a wide variety of gaming devices to entertain patrons and produce revenue. These gaming devices may include electromechanical slot machines and a variety of manually dealt card games such as poker, twenty-one, roulette, baccarat, and the like. In recent years, electronic versions of such games have replaced many of the manual versions. For example, many slot machines utilize electronic versions of spinning reels. These reels may be reproduced on a video display that is controlled by a video controller. Likewise, all of the major card games now appear in electronic form on similar video displays.




A controller generally operates electronic gaming devices. The controller can be built into the cabinet or housing of the gaming device or it can be connected to the gaming device from a remote location, such as a control room, by one or more cables. Game controllers can also be used to control a number of different gaming devices. For example, casino-type lottery systems generally utilize a number of separate gaming devices on the floor of a casino. The gaming devices request game outcomes from a central controller. The central game controller stores one or more pools of game outcomes that are transmitted to the gaming devices when appropriate.




One problem with electronic controllers is that various casino personnel need to access different portions and controls of the game controller at various times. However, because of the need for strict security in a gaming environment, it is often necessary to restrict access to sensitive components of the controller. For example, an operator might require only access to control certain game functions necessary to keep play going, while a management person might be the proper person to access more basic functions, such as resetting the game controller, and only maintenance personnel might be qualified to work on the electronics of the game controller. Likewise, the cable assemblies that connect the game controller to the gaming device being controlled tend to be loosened, removed, or stolen from time-to-time. Therefore, it is also desirable to restrict access to the cable assemblies to specifically authorized persons.




SUMMARY OF INVENTION




1. Advantages of the Invention




The lockable security cabinet for game controllers provides multiple levels of security wherein only authorized persons can access specific controls, electronics, and cable connections of the game controller. The security cabinet further provides convenient access to the game controller electronics and cable assemblies by means of the slide-out design of the main cabinet with the base recessed in the gaming table or other enclosure, a plurality of access doors, and the slide opening design of the cable enclosure.




These and other advantages of the present invention may be realized by reference to the remaining portions of the specification, claims, and abstract.




2. Brief Description of the Invention




The invention is a lockable security cabinet for game controllers such as used in gambling casinos to operate and control one or more gaming terminals. The security cabinet houses the electronics of the game controller, and the cable connectors at one end of respective cable assemblies connected thereto for communications with external devices. The security cabinet comprises a main cabinet having a plurality of interconnected walls defining an enclosable inner compartment for housing the electronic components of the game controller, and one or more lockable access devices, typically comprising one or more key switches which control access to specific game controller functions, and/or one or more lockable access members such as key lockable doors pivotally connected to the main cabinet. Each access member is movable upon unlocking thereof to provide access to at least a portion of the electronic components of the game controller within the main cabinet, preferably an access member disposed at the top of the main cabinet for access to the processor boards and the power supply, and an access member disposed at the front of the main cabinet for access to the user accessible components (i.e: those components of the game controller which must be accessed on a regular basis) such as keyboard and monitor ports which allow a keyboard and a monitor to be connected to the game controller to program, operate, and maintain the game controller. Other such user accessible components include ports for memory devices such as ROM cards, flash memory cards, and communications devices.




An access member can also be movably connected to the main cabinet to control access to the connection and disconnection of cable assemblies. This access member for the cables preferably comprises a portion of a base on which the main cabinet is movably mounted such as for sliding in a front-to-rear direction. The portion of the base, such as comprising an enclosure structure, preferably is at a rear portion of the base for connection of the cable assemblies at the rear of the main cabinet or at a side portion of the base for connection of the cables assemblies at the side of the main cabinet, in both cases with the cables exiting rearwardly therefrom, so as to substantially enclose and retain the connector of the cable assemblies connected to the game controller. The cable of the cable assembly attached thereto extends through an elongate gap while the main cabinet is in a retracted, or closed position on the base. The main cabinet is lockable in such a closed position by means of a key lock. A rear cable guide bracket can be affixed to the rear of the main cabinet for guiding cable assemblies during forward and backward movement of the main cabinet on the base. Other types of cables which can be locked include Ethernet, parallel, various communication, VGA (video), coax, audio, etc. Typically, to provide the various levels of security, each key lock requires a different key to unlock.











The above description sets forth, rather broadly, the more important features of the present invention so that the detailed description of the preferred embodiment that follows may be better understood and contributions of the present invention to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will be described below and will form the subject matter of claims. In this respect, before explaining at least one preferred embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the construction and to the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or as illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.




BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is substantially a front perspective view of a typical electronic gaming table of the type wherein a game controller can be housed in a security cabinet of the invention;





FIG. 2

is substantially a rear perspective view of such electronic gaming table showing a first embodiment security cabinet of the invention having a rear cable enclosure structure, as mounted in a recess therein;





FIG. 3

is substantially a front perspective view of such first embodiment security cabinet;





FIG. 4

is substantially a fragmentary front perspective view showing the details of the control panel;





FIG. 5

is substantially a fragmentary front perspective view corresponding to

FIG. 4

, wherein the front access door is shown in the unlocked and open position allowing access to the user accessible components;





FIG. 6

is substantially a fragmentary side perspective view wherein the top access door is shown in the unlocked and open position allowing access to the processor boards and the power supply;





FIG. 7

is substantially a rear perspective view of the main cabinet and the main circuit board, without the attached base;





FIG. 8

is substantially a fragmentary longitudinal vertical sectional view showing the details of the rear cable enclosure structure;





FIG. 9

is substantially a rear perspective view of an electronic gaming table similar to that of

FIGS. 1 and 2

, but modified to use a second embodiment security cabinet of the invention having a side cable enclosure structure;





FIG. 10

is substantially a front perspective view of such second embodiment security cabinet;





FIG. 11

is substantially a front perspective view corresponding to

FIG. 10

, but wherein the front access door is in the open position;





FIG. 12

is substantially a front perspective view corresponding to

FIGS. 10 and 11

wherein the top access door is in the open position and the main cabinet is in the forward or extended position; and





FIG. 13

is substantially a front perspective view corresponding to

FIG. 12

, wherein a processor board is partially removed.











DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT




Referring to

FIGS. 1 and 2

, therein is shown a typical electronic gaming table used in modern casinos of the type that can use the locking controller box of the present invention. Electronic gaming table


20


is used, for example, to play an electronic version of the card game twenty-one. Gaming table


20


comprises an upstanding, semi-cylindrical frame


23


having an arcuate wall


26


around which the players (not shown) stand or sit, a flat wall


29


adjacent which the dealer (not shown) stands, and a semi-circular table top


32


having an arcuate padded rail or rim


35


along the perimeter thereof. Extending through table top


32


is a dealer's video display


38


, typically being a cathode ray tube (CRT), which is centrally located on table top


32


, and a plurality of player's video displays


41


, also typically being of the CRT type, in an arcuate line adjacent padded rim


35


of table top


32


. A plurality of virtual cards (not shown) are presented on the dealer's video display


38


and on the player's video displays


41


, the virtual cards being electronic versions of regular playing cards, dealt from a virtual card deck (not shown) such as generated by a random number generator (not shown). The dealer's video display


35


and the player's video displays


41


can be covered with a polarized light filter or other such privacy filter or mechanical shield (not shown) which limits the visual range in which the dealer's and player's video displays


38


and


41


can be viewed by adjacent players, the dealer, and other such persons.




The gaming table


20


further comprises a centrally located chip tray


44


for holding the dealer's chips (not shown), a bill slot


47


for the dealer to place paper money into given by the players in exchange for chips, and a chip slot


50


for placing chips. The central chip tray


44


allows easy use of the chips so there is minimal disruption of the game as it is played, and the various bets are collected or paid. Other versions of gaming table


20


can accept cash, credit and debit cards, or VIP cards with a given cash value used in place of chips for betting. The dealer's video display


38


and the player's video displays


41


can be of the touch screen type. Adjacent each player's video display


38


is a first spot


53


associated with a respective proximity sensor (not shown) such as of the capacitive, radio frequency, optical, or pressure sensitive type mounted beneath table top


32


to sense when chips have been bet and the position active so as to deal virtual cards on the respective player's displays


38


. The gaming table


20


can therefore know whether a given player's station will participate in the next gaming round. Also adjacent each player's video display


38


is a second spot


56


also associated with a respective proximity sensor (not shown) of a similar type to sense when one or more chips have been bet such as for side bets. A first version game controller


59


incorporating a first embodiment security cabinet of the invention is mounted in a recess


62


through flat wall


29


of frame


23


. Game controller


59


houses the electronic components (not shown) which make the game work.




It is to be under stood that game table


20


is only one application for the game controller


59


. Many other uses are possible. For example, game controller


59


may be linked to a plurality of different gaming devices (not shown) by cables. In this application, game controller


59


may be placed on a table or stand.




Referring to

FIG. 3

, therein is shown a first version game controller


59


which comprises a first embodiment security cabinet


65


, a control panel


68


, a main circuit board


71


, a central game server (CGS) computer module


74


, a central accounting server (CAS) computer module


77


, and a power supply


80


. Security cabinet


65


comprises a main cabinet


83


, a base


86


, a ROM door or front access door


89


, and a processor board door or top access door


92


. Main cabinet


83


includes a sloped front wall


95


having a rectangular opening


98


, a pair of side walls


101


and


104


, a rear wall


107


, a bottom wall


110


interconnecting side walls


101


and


104


, a transverse mounting wall


113


, a rearwardly extending portion


116


, and a power supply support


119


.




Front access door


89


is pivotally mounted to bottom wall


110


by means of a first piano hinge


122


and which is retainable in a closed position by means of a first rotary key lock


125


having a body


128


mounted to a vertical face


131


of front wall


95


, and having a rotatable cylinder


134


into which a key (not shown) is inserted. A locking tab


137


rotates with cylinder


134


into a corresponding slot


140


of an upper cross member


143


of front access door


89


to lock front access door


89


. Top access door


92


is pivotally mounted to rear wall


107


by means of a second piano hinge


146


, and is retainable in a closed position by means of a second rotary key lock


149


having a body


152


mounted to top access door


92


. A rotatable cylinder


155


includes an attached locking tab


158


which rotates to a position under an edge portion


161


of front wall


95


to lock top access door


92


. A retaining strap (not shown) retains top access door


92


in the open position during access therein.




Base


86


comprises a lower wall


170


which interconnects a pair of side walls


173


and


176


having respective upwardly extending rear portions


179


and


182


which are interconnected by a partial top wall


185


and a rear wall


188


so as to comprise a cable enclosure structure


191


. Main cabinet


83


is slidably mounted to base


86


by means of a pair of slides such as ball bearing drawer slides


194


and


197


having respective upper slide members


200


and


203


and lower slide members


206


and


209


, upper slide members


200


and


203


being affixed to the exterior of respective side walls


101


and


104


of main cabinet


83


, and lower slide members


206


and


209


being affixed to the interiors of respective side walls


145


and


148


of base


86


. Main cabinet


83


can be retained in a closed position, wherein main cabinet


83


is enclosed except for a cable gap “G” (

FIG. 8

) between a front edge


212


of partial top wall


185


and rear wall


188


of base


86


, by means of a third rotary key lock


215


having a body


218


mounted to an upstanding front lip


221


of lower wall


170


and having a rotatable cylinder


224


with attached locking tab


227


which rotates into a transverse slot


230


through bottom wall


110


of main cabinet


83


.




Referring to

FIG. 4

, control panel


68


provides administration and configuration access as well as displays system status. Control panel


68


comprises a plate


233


, a vacuum fluorescent display (VFD)


236


, a keypad


239


, a plurality of rotary key switches


242


,


245


,


248


, and


251


, a power indicator light emitting diode (LED)


254


, and a plurality of status indicator LED's


257


. VFD display


236


is a four line by twenty character long display capable of displaying information such as the system operation and status, software revision information, configuration data, or any other message programmed into the software. Keypad


239


includes a plurality of function keys


260


, arrow keys


263


, digit keys


266


, and delete keys


269


. Keypad


239


is the primary input device for administration level data. Each rotary key switch


242


,


245


,


248


, and


251


are individually keyed (require a separate key to activate/deactivate the switch) and provide a means to switch to high security modes for administration and debugging. The power indicator LED


254


indicates whether the system has power, and the status indicator LED's


257


indicate communications and other status of the system. A control panel wire harness (not shown) extends rearwardly from control panel


68


interconnecting the various components thereof to the other electronics.




Main circuit board


71


includes a front portion


272


, a middle portion


275


, and a rear portion


278


. Front portion


272


includes compact flash ROM connectors


281


and


284


into which are plugged a pair of respective compact flash ROM cards


287


and


290


(one for each processor) which provide a means for information storage and custom game templates, and keyboard connectors


293


and


296


(one for each processor) which allow super user input to the processors. The rear portion


278


of main circuit board


71


is where all of the external connections are made to game controller


59


and main circuit board


71


. These include, for example, CAS printer parallel port connector


311


, which is a standard printer parallel port capable of operating most printers




Main circuit board


71


slides into main cabinet


83


and is secured therein such as by screws (not shown). In such mounted condition, front portion


272


of main circuit board


71


is adjacent front access door


89


and rear portion


278


thereof extends onto rearwardly extending portion


116


of main cabinet


83


. Therefore, just behind front access door


89


lies access to the wire harness (not shown) of front control panel


68


, as well as to the user accessible components such as the compact flash ROM cards


287


and


290


, and keyboard connectors


293


and


296


. At rearwardly extending portion


116


, connectors including CSA parallel printer port connector


265


are accessible when main cabinet


83


is in the open position.




Referring to

FIG. 8

, rear wall


107


and rearwardly extending portion


116


of main cabinet


83


work in conjunction with enclosure structure


191


to prevent the removal or theft of cables such as a parallel cable assembly


341


, which includes a parallel port connector


344


and a connected sleeved wire cable


347


. After unlocking base


86


, sliding main cabinet


83


forward, and connecting cable assembly


341


such as to CAS printer parallel port connector


311


, main cabinet


83


is moved to the closed position shown and locked. Cable


347


extends through a transverse opening


350


formed between rear wall


107


of main cabinet


83


and a downwardly directed lip


353


of end portion


356


of partial top wall


185


of base


86


. With main cabinet


83


in such closed position, opening


350


is slightly larger than the diameter of cable


347


so as not to be pinched, but small enough so as to not pass connector


344


, effectively retaining cable assembly


341


to main cabinet


65


until base


86


is unlocked and main cabinet


83


moved forward to open.




An angled bracket


359


having a plurality of generally vertically disposed, parallel slots


362


can be affixed to rear wall


107


of main cabinet


83


, with cable


347


bending into a respective slot


362


to laterally retain cable


347


as main cabinet


83


moves forward and backward during use.




Referring to

FIG. 9

, therein is shown gaming table


20


, but using a second version game controller of similar design to first version game controller


59


, but having side cable access and locking rather than rear, being disposed in a recess


363


of slightly modified design from recess


62


. As shown in

FIGS. 10-13

, the second version game controller


365


comprises a second embodiment security cabinet


386


, a control panel


371


, a main circuit board


374


, a central game server (CGS) computer module


377


, a central accounting server (CAS) computer module


380


, and a power supply


383


. Security cabinet


368


comprises a main cabinet


386


, a base


389


, a front access door


392


, and a top access door


395


. Main cabinet


386


comprises a front wall


398


having a rectangular opening


401


, a pair of side walls


404


and


407


, a rear wall


410


, a bottom wall


413


interconnecting side walls


404


and


407


, and a laterally extending portion


416


. Front access door


392


is pivotally mounted to bottom wall


413


by means of a first piano hinge


419


and which is retainable in a closed position by means of a first rotary key lock


422


having a body


425


mounted to front wall


398


, and a rotatable cylinder


428


into which a key (not shown) is inserted, with an attached locking tab


431


which rotates into a corresponding slot


434


of an upper cross member


437


of front access door


392


.




Top access door


395


is pivotally mounted to rear wall


410


by means of a second piano hinge


440


and which is retainable in a closed position by means of a second rotary key lock


443


having a body


446


mounted to top access door


395


, and having a rotatable cylinder


449


with attached locking tab


452


which rotates to a position under an edge portion


455


of front wall


398


. A gas spring


458


connected to respective pins


461


retains top access door


395


in the open position.




Base


389


comprises a lower wall


464


which interconnects a pair of side walls


467


and


470


, which are interconnected by a partial top wall


473


, and a rear wall


476


so as to comprise a cable enclosure structure


479


which, in conjunction with rear wall


410


of main cabinet


386


prevents the unauthorized removal or the theft of cables. Main cabinet


386


is slidably mounted to base


389


by means of a pair of slides such as ball bearing drawer slides


482


and


485


having respective upper slide members


488


and


491


and lower slide members


494


and


497


, upper slide members


488


and


491


being affixed to the exterior of respective side walls


404


and


407


of main cabinet


386


, and lower slide members


494


and


497


being affixed to the interiors of respective side walls


467


and


470


of base


386


. Main cabinet


386


can be retained in a closed position, by means of a third rotary key lock


503


having a body


504


mounted to an upstanding front lip


506


of lower wall


464


and having a rotatable cylinder


508


with attached locking tab


509


which rotates into a transverse slot


512


through lower wall


413


of main cabinet


386


.




Referring to

FIG. 11

, front wall


398


provides administration and configuration access as well as displays system status through a plurality of rotary key switches


515


,


518


,


521


, and


524


, a power indicator light emitting diode (LED)


527


, and a plurality of status indicator LED's


530


. Each rotary key switch


515


,


518


,


521


, and


524


are individually keyed and provide a means to switch to high security modes for administration and debugging. The power indicator LED


527


indicates whether the system has power, and the status indicator LED's


530


indicate communications and other status of the system. A control panel wire harness (not shown) extends rearwardly from front control panel


62


interconnecting the various components thereof to the other electronics.




Main circuit board


374


includes a front portion


533


, a middle portion


536


, and a rear portion


539


. Front portion


533


includes compact flash ROM connectors


542


and


545


into which are plugged a pair of respective compact flash ROM cards


548


and


551


(one for each processor) which provide a means for information storage and custom game templates, keyboard connectors


554


and


557


(one for each processor) allow super user input to the processors. Main circuit board


374


slides into main cabinet


386


and is secured therein. In such mounted condition, front portion


533


of main circuit board


374


is adjacent front access door


392


and side portion


539


thereof extends onto laterally extending portion


416


of main cabinet


386


. Therefore, just behind front access door


392


lies access to the wire harnesses (not shown), and the user accessible components such as compact flash ROM cards


548


and


551


, and keyboard connectors


554


and


557


. At laterally extending portion


416


of main cabinet


386


are connectors such as CAS printer port connector


572


which are accessible when main cabinet


386


is in the open position.




Referring to

FIGS. 10-13

, laterally extending portion


416


of main cabinet


386


acts as a lock to prevent the removal or theft of cables such as a parallel cable assembly


602


, which includes a parallel port connector


605


connected to a sleeved wire cable


608


. After unlocking base


389


and connecting parallel cable assembly


602


such as to CAS printer parallel port connector


572


, main cabinet


386


is moved to the closed position shown and locked. Cable


608


extends through a vertical opening


611


formed between rear wall


476


of base


389


and rear wall


410


of main cabinet


386


. With main cabinet


386


in such a closed position, vertical opening


611


is of a gap “GI” which is slightly larger than the diameter of cable


608


so as not to be pinched, but small enough so as to not pass connector


605


, effectively retaining cable assembly


602


to game controller


365


until base


389


is unlocked and main cabinet


386


is moved forward to open.




An angled bracket (not shown) having a plurality of generally vertically disposed, parallel slots of similar design to bracket


359


can be affixed to rear wall


410


of main cabinet


386


, with cable


608


bending into a respective slot thereof to laterally retain cable


608


as main cabinet


386


is moved forward and rearward on base


389


during use.




Many variations of the of the lockable security cabinet can be made while staying within the same inventive concept. For example, the access members can be plates which are removably, lockably connectable to the main cabinet rather than being doors pivotally connected thereto. The access members can be located anywhere desired to access the desired components therein. Other locks can be used than the cylinder type rotary key locks, with electronic locks which use a code rather than a physical code can likewise be used.




CONCLUSION




The lockable security cabinet for casino game controllers provides access security never before available in prior art enclosures for game controllers by permitting only authorized persons to access specific controls, electronics, and cable connectors inside the game controller. This high security is provided in an easily accessible package with convenient access to the game controller electronics and cable assemblies by means of the slide-out design of the main cabinet with the base recessed in the gaming table or other enclosure, the plurality of access doors, and the slide opening design of the cable enclosure.




Although the description above contains many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of presently preferred embodiments of this invention. Thus, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents rather than by the examples given.



Claims
  • 1. A lockable security cabinet for game controllers such as used in gambling casinos to operate and control one or more gaming terminals comprising:(A) a main cabinet having a plurality of interconnected walls defining an enclosable inner compartment for housing electronic components; (B) a lockable access member connected to the main cabinet, the access member being movable upon unlocking thereof to provide access to at least a portion of the electronic components within the main cabinet; (C) a lockable access member key, the lockable access member key configured to lock and unlock the lockable access member; (D) a base, wherein the main cabinet is slidably connected to the base for frontward and rearward movement thereof, and wherein at least the electronic components positioned within the main cabinet are configured to slide with the main cabinet for convenient access thereof; and (E) a control panel having at least one rotary key switch, wherein the at least one rotary key switch is activated by a key that is unique to the rotary key switch, and which is different than the lockable access key.
  • 2. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 1, further comprising an access door disposed on a top portion of the main cabinet.
  • 3. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 2, wherein the access door provides access to at least one computer for removal and maintenance thereof.
  • 4. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 3, wherein the access door is pivotally connected to the main cabinet, the door being lockable in a closed position prohibiting access by means of a first and second key lock attached to a free end of the door, the key locks being operatively engagable with the main cabinet.
  • 5. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 4, wherein the key locks each require a different key to unlock.
  • 6. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 1, wherein the main cabinet is lockable to the base in a closed position by means of a key lock.
  • 7. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 1, wherein connection for the cable assemblies is at the rear portion of the main cabinet.
  • 8. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 7, further comprising a cable guide which is affixed to the rear portion of the main cabinet for guiding cable assemblies during movement of the main cabinet on the base.
  • 9. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 7, wherein the rear portion of the main cabinet and a rear portion of the base substantially enclose and retain the connectors of the cable assemblies connected to the electronics.
  • 10. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 1, wherein the connection for the cable assemblies is at one side of the main cabinet.
  • 11. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 10, wherein a side portion of the base and a side portion of the main cabinet substantially enclose and retain the connectors of the cable assemblies connected to the electronics.
  • 12. A lockable security cabinet for game controllers such as used in gambling casinos to operate and control one or more gaming terminals, comprising:(A) a main cabinet comprising a plurality of interconnected walls defining an enclosable inner compartment for housing at least one electronic component, a portion of the main cabinet having a cable connector; (B) a base to which the main cabinet is slidably connected, the main cabinet being slidable between a first and a second position; (C) an enclosure structure defined by the base, the enclosure structure and at least one of the plurality of walls of the main cabinet defining a cable gap, the cable gap being a size capable of preventing a cable connector from passing through the gap when the main cabinet is in the first position, wherein the main cabinet and the base substantially enclose and retain the cable assembly when the main cabinet is in the first position and the cable assembly may be removed from the enclosure structure when the main cabinet is in the second position; and (D) a cable connected to the cable connector, the cable passing from the interior of the main cabinet and base and through the cable gap, wherein the cable is adapted to be connected to a device external to the security cabinet.
  • 13. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 12, wherein the cable connector is at a side portion of the main cabinet.
  • 14. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 12, wherein the cable connector is at a rear portion of the main cabinet.
  • 15. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 12, further comprising a cable guide attached to the main cabinet for guiding cable assemblies during movement of the main cabinet on the base.
  • 16. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 12, further comprising at least one door attached to the main cabinet, wherein the door selectively provides and prohibits access to an electronic components inside the main cabinet.
  • 17. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 15, wherein the door is lockable in a closed position prohibiting access by means of a key lock attached to a free end of the door, the key lock being operatively engageable with the main cabinet.
  • 18. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 15, wherein the door is lockable in a closed position prohibiting access by means of a first and second key lock attached to a free end of the door, the first and'second key locks being operatively engageable with the main cabinet, wherein the key locks each require a different key to unlock.
  • 19. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 12, wherein the main cabinet is lockable to the base in a closed position by means of a key lock.
  • 20. A lockable security cabinet for game controllers such as used in gambling casinos to operate and control one or more gaining terminals, the game controller having a plurality of electronic components including at least one computer which controls the gaming terminals, at least one user accessible component requiring periodic access by a user, and one or more cable connectors to which respective cable assemblies are connectable such as for communications with external devices, the lockable security cabinet comprising:(A) a main cabinet having a plurality of interconnected walls defining an enclosable inner compartment for housing the electronic components; wherein the main cabinet is linearly slideably connected to a base for frontward and rearward movement thereof, said base being mountable with said main cabinet substantially completely within a recess of a structure in a recessed position, and wherein said main cabinet is slidable to a cantilevered position generally extending from the recess for easy access thereto; and (B) a lockable access device selected from the group consisting of an access member and a key switch, wherein the lockable access device is connected to the main cabinet, said access member being movable upon unlocking thereof to provide access to at least a portion of the electronic components within said main cabinet, and which is movably connected to the main cabinet and which selectively provides and prohibits access for connection and disconnection of at least one cable to the electronic components, said access device comprising the base to which the main cabinet is movably connected; and said key switch being operatively connected to the electronics for control thereof.
  • 21. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 20, wherein the connection for the cable assemblies is at the rear portion of the main cabinet.
  • 22. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 21, further comprising a cable guide which is affixed to the rear portion of the main cabinet for guiding cable assemblies during movement of said main cabinet on the base.
  • 23. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 21, wherein the rear portion of the main cabinet and a rear portion of the base substantially enclose and retain the connectors of the cable assemblies connected to the electronics.
  • 24. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 20, wherein the connection for the cable assemblies is at one side of the main cabinet.
  • 25. A lockable security cabinet according to claim 24, wherein a side portion of the base and a side portion of the main cabinet substantially enclose and retain the connectors of the cable assemblies connected to the electronics.
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application claims priority of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. Nos. 60/149,522, filed on Aug. 17, 1999, 60/149,525, filed Aug. 17, 1999, 60/153,895, filed on Sep. 14, 1999, and Ser. No. 60/191,898, filed on Mar. 23, 2000.

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Provisional Applications (4)
Number Date Country
60/149522 Aug 1999 US
60/149525 Aug 1999 US
60/153895 Sep 1999 US
60/191898 Mar 2000 US