The invention relates to lottery systems for use in connection with point of sale promotions. More particularly, the invention provides a promotional lottery system for generating lottery numbers and verification of the accuracy of lottery numbers on receipts generated at the point of purchase.
In conventional lottery games a contestant receives a lottery ticket which has a lottery number inscribed on it. Each lottery number is unique and serves to distinguish the ticket from every other ticket. The winning number or numbers are selected at a date after distribution, preferably in a random manner to defeat prediction upon the part of the contestants. It is known for the lottery ticket to have both a serial number and a lottery number. In some systems a complex mathematical relationship exists between the serial number and the lottery number. Execution of an algorithm on the serial number allows verification of the lottery number as the winning number. This serves to discourage tampering with the ticket.
In instant lotteries, the winning number is determined before sale of the ticket. This allows a contestant to determine virtually immediately whether he or she has a winning ticket. Instant lottery systems require a high degree of security to prevent tampering with tickets and to prevent discovery of the lottery number of the tickets prior to sale. The location of the winning ticket or tickets is also kept secret.
Prevention of fraud in a lottery system can consume a great deal of administrative time. Such burdens can make use of lottery like systems for point of sale promotions burdensome. The invention disclosed herein provides a relatively secure lottery system, using common inventory tracking equipment used in merchandising operations.