U.S. patent application number 16/017342 was filed with the patent office on 2019-12-19 for casino card handling system with game play feed.
The applicant listed for this patent is Bally Gaming, Inc.. Invention is credited to Feraidoon Bourbour, Attila Grauzer, Todd M. Haushalter, Mark L. Yoseloff.
Application Number | 20190385415 16/017342 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 40095126 |
Filed Date | 2019-12-19 |
View All Diagrams
United States Patent
Application |
20190385415 |
Kind Code |
A9 |
Grauzer; Attila ; et
al. |
December 19, 2019 |
CASINO CARD HANDLING SYSTEM WITH GAME PLAY FEED
Abstract
A card game monitor manages play of a game with a video feed of
casino table game play. A dealer deals a game using a card-handling
device that randomizes and dispenses cards, which may be grouped
into sets of hands by the card-handling device. A card recognition
system recognizes card information including rank and suit of each
card dispensed by the card handling device while each card is under
control of the card-handling device. A camera captures a video feed
of casino table game play, which is transmitted to a computing
device operated by a player. A control system receives the card
information from the card recognition device and manages control of
the game using hand information associated with players. Player
action elections from the computing device are displayed to a
dealer The player provides a player action through the computing
device, which is used to facilitate play of the casino table
game.
Inventors: |
Grauzer; Attila; (Las Vegas,
NV) ; Bourbour; Feraidoon; (Eden Prairie, MN)
; Yoseloff; Mark L.; (Henderson, NV) ; Haushalter;
Todd M.; (Las Vegas, NV) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Bally Gaming, Inc. |
Las Vegas |
NV |
US |
|
|
Prior
Publication: |
|
Document Identifier |
Publication Date |
|
US 20180308319 A1 |
October 25, 2018 |
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|
Family ID: |
40095126 |
Appl. No.: |
16/017342 |
Filed: |
June 25, 2018 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15601415 |
May 22, 2017 |
10008076 |
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16017342 |
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15151340 |
May 10, 2016 |
9659461 |
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15601415 |
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14662618 |
Mar 19, 2015 |
9339723 |
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15151340 |
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14034281 |
Sep 23, 2013 |
8986091 |
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14662618 |
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13311166 |
Dec 5, 2011 |
8777710 |
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14034281 |
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11810864 |
Jun 6, 2007 |
8070574 |
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13311166 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63F 13/80 20140902;
G07F 17/3216 20130101; G06Q 10/10 20130101; G07F 17/322 20130101;
G16H 40/00 20180101; G07F 17/32 20130101; A63F 2001/005 20130101;
H05K 999/99 20130101; A63F 9/24 20130101; A63F 1/12 20130101; G06F
19/325 20130101; G16H 40/20 20180101; G07F 17/3225 20130101; G07F
17/3293 20130101; A63F 1/14 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G07F 17/32 20060101
G07F017/32; G16H 40/00 20180101 G16H040/00; A63F 13/80 20140101
A63F013/80; A63F 9/24 20060101 A63F009/24; A63F 1/14 20060101
A63F001/14; A63F 1/12 20060101 A63F001/12; G06Q 10/10 20120101
G06Q010/10 |
Claims
1. A gaming system configured to conduct a casino table game with a
live dealer at a table and one or more players located remotely
from the live dealer, each of the one or more players participating
in the casino table game via a respective mobile device connected
for communication with the gaming system via a network, the gaming
system comprising: a card-handling device configured to randomize
one or more decks of cards; a card-recognition system configured to
read card information of cards under control of the card-handling
device, the card information including card rank and card suit; and
game-logic circuitry configured to: direct the card-handling device
to dispense cards of a player hand for each of the one or more
players to a table position associated with the respective player;
transmit, to the mobile device of each of the one or more players,
the card information corresponding to the player hand of the
respective player, video image data of the live dealer at the table
during play of the casino table game, and/or voice or text
communication from the live dealer; and receive, from an input
device of each mobile device, an input indicative of a player
election responsive to the transmitted card information; wherein
the gaming system is further configured to optionally transmit
sounds between the dealer and one or more remote players.
2. The gaming system of claim 1, further comprising a camera
configured to capture the video image data of the live dealer at
the table.
3. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the card-handling device
is configured to dispense the cards of the player hand to the live
dealer for distribution to the table position associated with the
respective player.
4. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the game-logic circuitry
is further configured to receive a user-selection of a
pre-programmed set of executable instructions for conducting one or
more different casino table games, wherein the pre-programmed set
includes instructions for one or more of randomizing cards,
dispensing cards of one or more player hands, or reading card
information of cards in the dispensed hands.
5. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the gaming system is
further configured to provide two-way voice communication between
the live dealer and the one or more players via the mobile devices
of the one or more players.
6. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein at least one mobile device
is a cell phone.
7. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the gaming system is
further configured to receive, from an input device of each mobile
device, a player selection of at least one of a live dealer from a
plurality of live dealers, a casino table game from a plurality of
casino table games, or a table position from a plurality of table
positions.
8. A computer-implemented method of conducting a casino table game
by a gaming system, the casino table game including a live dealer
at a table and one or more players located remotely from the live
dealer, the gaming system being connected for communication over a
network, the gaming system including a card-handling device, a
card-recognition system, and a network interface, the method
comprising: connecting, via the network interface, to a mobile
device associated with each of the respective one or more players
to a gaming system; receiving, from an input device of each mobile
device, a player-selection of a table position at the table;
randomizing, via the card-handling device, one or more decks of
cards; reading, via the card-recognition system, card information
including card rank and card suit of the cards under control of the
card-handling device; dispensing, via the card-handling device,
cards of a player hand for each of the one or more players to the
table position associated with the respective player; transmitting,
via the network interface to each mobile device, the card
information corresponding to the player hand of the respective
player, video image data of the live dealer at the table during
play of the casino table game, and/or voice or text communication
from the live dealer; and receiving, from an input device of each
mobile device, an input indicative of a player election responsive
to the transmitted card information; wherein the gaming system is
further configured to optionally transmit sounds between the dealer
and one or more remote players.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein each mobile device includes one
or more of a video display device and a microphone.
10. The method of claim 8, wherein at least one mobile device
associated with a player is a cell phone.
11. The method of claim 8, wherein the transmitted card information
is displayed to a respective player via a display device of the
player's mobile device.
12. The method of claim 8, wherein voice communication between the
live dealer and at least one of the one or more players is
transmitted via a microphone and speaker proximal the table and a
microphone and speaker of the respective mobile device.
13. The method of claim 8, wherein the transmitted card information
is displayed as images of the dealt cards on a display device of
the player's mobile device.
14. A gaming system configured to conduct a casino table game with
a live dealer at a table and one or more players located remotely
from the live dealer, each of the one or more players participating
in the casino table game via a respective mobile device configured
to communicate with the gaming system via a network, the gaming
system comprising: a card-handling device at the table configured
to randomize one or more decks of cards; a card-recognition system
configured to read card information of cards under control of the
card-handling device, the card information including card rank and
card suit; a table-management system configured to monitor video
image data and/or sound data at the table; and a control system
configured to: direct operations of the table-management system,
the card-handling device, and the card-recognition system; execute
user-selected functions including one or more of shuffling
operations, sorting operations, dealing operations, or recalling
card information; transmit, to the mobile device of each of the one
or more players, (i) the card information corresponding to the
player hand of the respective player, (ii) video image data of the
live dealer at the table during play of the casino table game,
and/or (iii) voice or text communication from the live dealer; and
receive, from an input device of each mobile device, an input
indicative of a player election responsive to the transmitted card
information; wherein the gaming system is further configured to
transmit sounds between the dealer and one or more remote
players.
15. The gaming system of claim 14, wherein the control system is
further configured to receive, from an input device of each mobile
device, a player selection of at least one of a live dealer from a
plurality of live dealers, a casino table game from a plurality of
casino table games, or a table position from a plurality of table
positions.
16. The gaming system of claim 14, wherein the card-handling device
is configured to dispense the cards of the player hand to the live
dealer for distribution to the respective player position at the
table.
17. The gaming system of claim 14, wherein the gaming system is
further configured to provide two-way voice communication between
the live dealer and the one or more players via the mobile devices
of the one or more players.
18. The gaming system of claim 14, wherein at least one mobile
device is a cell phone.
19. The gaming system of claim 14, wherein each mobile device
includes one or more of a video display device and a
microphone.
20. The gaming system of claim 14, wherein voice communication
between the live dealer and at least one of the one or more players
is transmitted via the table-management system and a microphone and
speaker of the respective mobile device.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 15/601,415, filed May 22, 2017, pending, which
is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/151,340
filed May 10, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,659,461, issued May 23,
2017, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 13/311,166, filed Dec. 5, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No.
8,777,710, issued Jul. 15, 2014, which is a continuation
application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/810,864 filed
Jun. 6, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,070,574, the disclosure of each
of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety
herein.
[0002] The present application is also related to U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 11/558,823, titled "CASINO CARD SHOES,
SYSTEMS, AND METHODS FOR A NO PEEK FEATURE," now abandoned, and
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/481,407, titled "CARD SHUFFLER
WITH ADJACENT CARD INFEED AND CARD OUTPUT COMPARTMENTS," now U.S.
Pat. No. 8,342,525, the disclosure of each of which is hereby
incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0003] Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to the
field of gaming and the field of casino table card gaming. More
particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to the use of
equipment for the delivery of playing cards.
BACKGROUND
[0004] Wagering games based on the outcome of randomly generated
arrangements of cards are well known. Such games are widely played
in gaming establishments and, often, a single deck of 52 playing
cards is used to play the game. Some games use multiple decks of
cards (typically six or eight decks), such as blackjack and
baccarat. Other games use two decks of cards, such as double deck
blackjack. Many specialty games use single decks of cards, with or
without jokers and with or without selected cards removed. Examples
of such games include the THREE CARD POKER.RTM., LET IT RIDE.RTM.,
CARIBBEAN STUD POKER.RTM., SPANISH 21.RTM., FOUR CARD POKER.RTM.,
CRAZY 4 POKER.RTM. games and others. As new games are developed,
card shufflers are modified to be used in connection with the new
games.
[0005] From the perspective of players, the time the dealer must
spend in shuffling diminishes the excitement of the game. From the
perspective of casinos, shuffling time reduces the number of hands
played and specifically reduces the number of wagers placed and
resolved in a given amount of time, consequently reducing casino
revenue. Casinos would like to increase the amount of revenue
generated by a game without changing the game or adding more
tables. One approach is to simply speed up play. One option to
increase the speed of play is to decrease the time the dealer
spends shuffling.
[0006] The desire to decrease shuffling time has led to the
development of mechanical and electromechanical card shuffling
devices. Such devices increase the speed of shuffling and dealing,
thereby increasing actual playing time. Such devices also add to
the excitement of a game by reducing the amount of time the dealer
or house has to spend in preparing to play the game.
[0007] Dealers appreciate using card shufflers that place the
minimum strain on the dealer's hands, back and arms. Some existing
shuffler designs put unnecessary strain on the muscles of the
users. Dealers prefer shufflers that are low profile, especially
when the shuffler dispenses cards directly into a game rather than
shuffle batches of cards for shoe games.
[0008] Numerous approaches have been taken to the design of card
shufflers. These approaches include random ejection designs (e.g.,
U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,959,925; 6,698,756; 6,299,167; 6,019,368;
5,676,372; and 5,584,483), stack separation and insertion (e.g.,
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,683,085 and 5,944,310), interleaving designs
(e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,275,411 and 5,695,189), for example, random
insertion using a blade (U.S. Pat. No. 5,382,024) and designs that
utilize multiple shuffling compartments.
[0009] One such example of a compartment shuffler is disclosed in
U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,712 to Lorber et al. The automatic shuffling
apparatus disclosed is designed to intermix multiple decks of cards
under the programmed control of a computer. The apparatus is a
carousel-type shuffler having a container, a storage device for
storing shuffled playing cards, a removing device and an inserting
device for intermixing the playing cards in the container, a
dealing shoe and supplying means for supplying the shuffled playing
cards from the storage device to the dealing shoe. The container
includes multiple card-receiving compartments, each one capable of
receiving a single card.
[0010] Another shuffler having mixing compartments arranged in a
carousel is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,267,248 to Johnson et al.
Cards are loaded into an infeed tray, fed sequentially past a
card-reading sensor and are inserted into compartments within a
carousel to either randomize or sort cards into a preselected
order. The carousel moves in two directions during shuffling. U.S.
Pat. No. 6,676,127 to Johnson et al. describes another variation of
the shuffler, in which cards are inserted into and removed from a
same side of the carousel, with the card infeed tray being located
above the discard tray (see FIG. 3).
[0011] U.S. Pat. No. 3,897,954 to Erickson et al. discloses a
device for delivering cards, one at a time, into one of a number
vertically stacked card-shuffling compartments. A logic circuit is
used to determine the sequence for determining the delivery
location of a card. The card shuffler can be used to deal stacks of
shuffled cards to a player.
[0012] U.S. Pat. No. 4,770,421 to Hoffman discloses a
card-shuffling device including a card loading station with a
conveyor belt. The belt moves the lowermost card in a stack onto a
distribution elevator whereby a stack of cards is accumulated on
the distribution elevator. Adjacent to the elevator is a vertical
stack of mixing pockets. A microprocessor preprogrammed with a
finite number of distribution schedules sends a sequence of signals
to the elevator corresponding to heights called out in the
schedule. Single cards are moved into the respective pocket at that
height. The distribution schedule is either randomly selected or
schedules are executed in sequence. When the microprocessor
completes the execution of a single distribution cycle, the cards
are removed a stack at a time and loaded into a second elevator.
The second elevator delivers cards to an output reservoir.
[0013] U.S. Pat. No. 5,275,411 to Breeding discloses a machine for
automatically shuffling and dealing hands of cards. Although this
device does not shuffle cards by distributing cards to multiple
compartments, the machine is the first of its kind to deliver
randomly arranged hands of cards to a casino card game. A single
deck of cards is shuffled and then cards are automatically
dispensed into a hand-forming tray. The shuffler includes a
deck-receiving zone, a carriage section for separating a deck into
two deck portions, a sloped mechanism positioned between adjacent
corners of the deck portions, and an apparatus for snapping the
cards over the sloped mechanism to interleave the cards. The
Breeding shuffler was originally designed to be used in connection
with single deck poker style games such as LET IT RIDE.RTM. Stud
Poker and a variant of Pai Gow Poker marketed as WHO'S FIRST.RTM.
Pai Gow Poker.
[0014] In an attempt to speed the rate of play of specialty table
games equipped with a shuffler, the ACE.RTM. card shuffler as
disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,149,154, 6,588,750, 6,655,684 and
7,059,602 was developed. This shuffler operates at faster speeds
than previously known shuffler devices described above, has fewer
moving parts, and requires much shorter set up time than the prior
designs. The shuffler includes a card infeed tray, a vertical stack
of shuffling compartments and a card output tray. A first card
moving mechanism advances cards individually from the infeed tray
into a compartment. A processor randomly directs the placement of
fed cards into the compartments, and an alignment of each
compartment with the first card mover, forming random groups of
cards within each compartment. Groups of cards are unloaded by a
second card-moving mechanism into the output tray.
[0015] Another compartment shuffler capable of delivering randomly
arranged hands of cards for use in casino card games is the
ONE-2-SIX.RTM. shuffler (developed by Casino Austria Research &
Development (CARD)). This shuffler is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos.
6,659,460 and 6,889,979. This shuffler is capable of delivering
randomly arranged hands of cards when a first delivery end is
attached, and is capable of delivering a continuous supply of cards
from a shoe-type structure when a second delivery end is attached.
Cards are fed from a feeder individually into compartments within a
carousel to accomplish random ordering of cards.
[0016] Most of the shuffler designs mentioned above are high
profile and require loading cards into the rear of the machine, and
then removing cards from the front of the machine. The cards must
be lifted over the top of the machine to return spent cards to the
infeed tray, causing a dealer to lift his arm over the top of the
machine at the conclusion of each round of play. Newer shuffler
designs are flush-mounted into a gaming table surface. One such
shuffler of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,651,982.
[0017] One particular type of card shuffling device is referred to
as a batch type shuffler. One characteristic of a (single or double
deck) batch type shuffler is that when all of the cards are
dispensed in a round of play, the remaining cards in the pack (one
or two decks) are removed and then reinserted. In use, while the
game is being dealt using a first deck, a second deck of cards is
being randomized and arranged into groups. A discard rack is
typically provided on the table so that cards removed from the game
are staged in the rack while the other deck of cards is being
processed. Following this procedure avoids the possibility that
cards will be returned to the input tray and that the two decks
will be intermingled. The use of two separate decks (one at a time)
speeds game play because shuffling of a first deck occurs during
play with a second deck.
[0018] Continuous shufflers, in contrast, are not unloaded at the
end of a round of play. Spent cards are returned and inserted, and
new cards dispensed without removing the entire set.
[0019] U.S. Pat. No. 6,959,925 to Sines discloses a single deck
continuous card shuffler known in the trade as the POKER-ONE.RTM.
shuffler. This shuffler avoids the alternating use of two different
decks of cards during a specialty card game by providing a
continuous supply of cards to a card game. Although this shuffler
uses only one deck of cards, the shuffler does not verify that the
correct number of cards (typically 52) are present prior to each
shuffle, and consequently player cheating by inserting extra cards
would go undetected.
[0020] Shufflers that communicate with network-based game systems
have been described in the art. An example is described in U.S.
Patent Publication No. 2003/0064798A1. A shuffler with an on board
microprocessor and communication port communicates with a local
processor and/or a central processor. The local or central
processor may manage a game system.
[0021] Using these card-handling devices, there are still many
variables that can affect a Casino's margin of profit, one of which
is the accuracy of a dealer in settling bets during any game play.
Each table game in a casino is designed with a certain house
advantage. The payouts for any winning hand are pre-determined by
the game developer based on rigorous math analysis. Although it is
a requirement that a dealer must be able to recognize all winning
hands (of all different card combinations) and pay out appropriate
amounts, it is common that a dealer makes mistakes by either
misreading a hand or paying the wrong amount to a player with a
winning hand.
[0022] Therefore, there is a need for a shuffler that has all of
the performance attributes of known shufflers and enables checking
the accuracy of casino games by detecting, storing, and retrieving
information about the composition of present and past hands of
cards in a casino table game.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0023] The present invention, in various embodiments, comprises
methods, devices, systems, and computer-readable media configured
for detecting, storing, and retrieving information about the
composition of present and past hands of cards dispensed in a
casino table game.
[0024] An embodiment of the invention includes an apparatus that
includes a card-handling device, a card recognition system, a
control system, and a display. The card-handling device may be used
for randomizing and dispensing cards during a casino table game
play. The cards may be dispensed as a plurality of hands, each hand
including one or more cards. The card recognition system identifies
card information including a rank and a suit of each card while
each card is under the control of the card-handling device. The
control system includes one or more processors and a memory. The
control system is configured to control the card-handling device
and receive the card information for each card from the card
recognition system. The control system is also configured to
maintain a play history including a card composition of a plurality
of rounds. The card composition includes card information for each
hand of each round. Finally, the card information of at least one
hand from at least one round of play is presented on the
display.
[0025] Another embodiment of the invention comprises a system that
includes: (1) a card-handling device, (2) an object recognition
device, and (3) a table manager. The card-handling device may be
used for randomizing and dispensing cards during a casino table
game play wherein the cards may be dispensed as a plurality of
hands, each hand including one or more cards. The card-handling
device includes a card recognition system for recognizing card
information including a rank and a suit of each card while each
card is under control of the card-handling device. The system also
includes one or more processors for receiving the card information
for each card from the card recognition system and determining the
cards in each hand of a current round. The object recognition
device identifies at least one betting object indicating at least
one active player position for the current round. The table manager
includes a computer and a display and is configured to receive
position information about the at least one active player position
from the object recognition device. The table manager also receives
the card information from within the card-handling device and
analyzes the card information and the position information to
display the card information for the at least one active player
position. In other embodiments, card information is determined in a
processor external to the card-handling device.
[0026] Yet another embodiment of the invention includes a method of
providing cards during casino table game play. The method includes
causing a card-handling device to substantially automatically
generate a plurality of hands wherein each hand includes one or
more cards. The method also includes identifying card information
including a rank and a suit of each card as the card moves through
the card-handling device. The method further includes maintaining a
play history including a card composition for a plurality of rounds
wherein the card composition of each round includes the cards in
each hand of the round. Finally, the method includes displaying the
card information of at least one hand from at least one round. The
display may be mounted to the card-handling device or may be a
separate system component.
[0027] Yet another embodiment of the invention includes a card game
monitoring apparatus for managing cards and play of a game with a
video feed of casino table game play. The apparatus includes a
card-handling device, a card recognition system, a camera, a
communications interface, and a control system. The card-handling
device randomizes and dispenses cards. The card recognition system
recognizes card information including rank and suit of each card
dispensed by the card handling device while each card is under
control of the card-handling device. The camera captures a video
feed of casino table game play. The control system receives the
card information from the card recognition device and transmits the
card information and video feed to a computing device associated
with a player. The player provides a player action through the
computing device, which is used to facilitate play of the casino
table game.
[0028] Yet another embodiment of the invention includes a
computer-readable medium including computer-executable instructions
which, when executed on one or more computers, perform the method
recited above.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0029] In the drawings:
[0030] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a
card-handling device;
[0031] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a
card-handling device;
[0032] FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the card-handling device shown
in FIG. 1;
[0033] FIG. 4A is a view of a first side elevational view of the
card-handling device shown in FIG. 1 with the cover removed to
facilitate illustration of active components of the card-handling
device;
[0034] FIG. 4B is a simplified version of FIG. 4A, illustrating
only selected elements to facilitate description of those
elements;
[0035] FIG. 5 is an enlarged partial side view of a card infeed
tray, card feed roller, and dual function gate of the card-handling
device shown in FIG. 1;
[0036] FIG. 6 is an enlarged detailed view of a packer arm assembly
of the card-handling device shown in FIG. 1;
[0037] FIG. 7 is a view of a second, opposite side elevational view
of the card-handling device shown in FIG. 4A;
[0038] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a control system that may
be used in card-handling devices that embody teachings of the
present invention, such as that shown in FIG. 1;
[0039] FIG. 9 illustrates a casino table game layout and possible
placement of player positions;
[0040] FIG. 10 illustrates a layout of a casino table game and
possible placement of elements of an integrated monitoring system
used to monitor gaming at a casino table in accordance with
embodiments of the present invention;
[0041] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a method of recognizing card
information and maintaining a play history;
[0042] FIG. 12 is a table manager that manages play of a game being
played remotely by a player using a computing device;
[0043] FIG. 13 is an interface displayed on the computing device
including a video feed of the table;
[0044] FIG. 14 shows is an environment of implementing a table
manager in accordance with embodiments of the present invention;
and
[0045] FIG. 15 shows a block diagram of a method of an embodiment
of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0046] The present invention, in various embodiments, comprises
methods, devices, and systems configured for detecting, storing,
and retrieving information about the composition of present and
past hands of cards in a casino table game.
[0047] The following provides a more detailed description of
embodiments of the present invention. In this description, circuits
and functions may be shown in block diagram form in order not to
obscure the present invention in unnecessary detail. Conversely,
specific implementations shown and described are exemplary only and
should not be construed as the only way to implement the present
invention unless specified otherwise herein. Additionally, block
definitions and partitioning of functions between various blocks is
exemplary of a specific implementation. It will be readily apparent
to one of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention may
be practiced by numerous other partitioning solutions.
[0048] Further, the term "module" is used herein in a non-limiting
sense and solely to indicate functionality of particular circuits
and assemblies included within embodiments of the invention, and
may not be construed as requiring a particular physical structure,
or particular partitioning between elements of the invention
performing indicated functions.
[0049] In this description, some drawings may illustrate signals as
a single signal for clarity of presentation and description.
Persons of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the
signal may represent a bus of signals, wherein the bus may have a
variety of bit widths and the present invention may be implemented
on any number of data signals including a single data signal.
[0050] Software processes illustrated herein are intended to
illustrate representative processes that may be performed by the
systems illustrated herein. Unless specified otherwise, the order
in which the process acts are described is not intended to be
construed as a limitation, and acts described as occurring
sequentially may occur in a reverse sequence, or in one or more
parallel process streams. Furthermore, the processes may be
implemented in any suitable hardware, software, firmware, or
combinations thereof.
[0051] When executed as firmware or software, the instructions for
performing the processes may be stored on a computer-readable
medium. A computer-readable medium includes, but is not limited to,
magnetic and optical storage devices such as disk drives, magnetic
tape, CDs (compact disks), DVDs (digital versatile discs or digital
video discs), and semiconductor devices such as RAM, DRAM, ROM,
EPROM, and Flash memory.
[0052] The disclosures of all patents, published patent
applications, and other documents cited in this entire application
are incorporated by reference in their respective entireties
herein, whether or not such incorporation is specifically asserted
in association with such citation.
[0053] Card-handling devices that embody teachings of the present
invention may include major components that are physically arranged
(for example, in a linear arrangement) in the following order: a) a
playing card input compartment; b) a playing card retrieval
compartment; and c) a playing card-handling zone. Playing cards may
be moved from the playing card input compartment into the playing
card-handling zone and from the playing card-handling zone into the
playing card retrieval compartment. Furthermore, card-handling
devices that embody teachings of the present invention may be
configured to enable a user to either shuffle or selectively sort
cards into a predefined order using the card-handling devices.
[0054] A perspective view of a card-handling device 10 according to
embodiments of the present invention is shown in FIG. 1. The
card-handling device 10 includes a card infeed tray 12, a card
output tray 14, and a card-handling system or mechanism, which is
described in further detail below. In some embodiments, the card
output tray 14 may be removable for maintenance.
[0055] In some embodiments, the card infeed tray 12 and the card
output tray 14 may be disposed adjacent one another. Furthermore,
the card infeed tray 12 and the card output tray 14 each may be
located near a first end 22 of the card-handling device 10. In some
embodiments, the card infeed tray 12 and the card output tray 14
may each include a recessed area in the card-handling device 10, as
shown in FIG. 1.
[0056] A major portion of the card-handling system may be located
within a card-handling zone 16 of the card-handling device 10. The
card-handling system may be enclosed within a cover 18, which, in
this embodiment, has a curved upper surface 19 that is arched to
enclose an upper portion of a carousel member (which is part of the
card-handling system described in further detail below). The cover
18 may include a lock 20 to secure the cover 18 to a frame (not
shown) of the card-handling device 10 to prevent unauthorized
access to cards in the card-handling device 10. This locking
feature advantageously allows a casino operator to shut down a
table with cards loaded into the card-handling device 10. When the
table is reopened, the operator can be assured that the cards held
in the machine are secure. The key to the lock may be held by pit
management, and the fact that the cover is, and has been, locked
may eliminate any need to unload and verify the rank and suit of
each card before play is resumed. Securing the cards within the
card-handling device 10 when the machine is not in use is a
valuable time and labor saving feature. The lock 20 may be located
proximate a second end 24 of the card-handling device 10. Although
an exemplary lock is a simple mechanical lock with rollers and a
key, other locking systems may be used, such as, for example,
electronic locks with keypad controls, locking systems that receive
radio frequency identification (RFID) signatures, and
computer-controlled locks.
[0057] Additional card-handling devices according to embodiments of
the present invention may not include an outer cover that is
intended to be opened or removed by a user. For example, FIG. 2
illustrates another card-handling device 10A according to
embodiments of the present invention that includes an outer cover
18A that is not intended to be opened or removed by a user. The
card-handling device 10A may be otherwise substantially similar to
the card-handling device 10, and may include a card infeed
compartment 112, a card delivery compartment 114 near a first end
122 of the card-handling device 10A, and a card-handling zone 116
and a display 134 near a second end 124 of the card-handling device
10A. A card-handling mechanism comprising a carousel (not shown) is
enclosed within the outer cover 18A. The outer cover 18A may be
secured to the frame 21 and may be removable for maintenance, but
may not be configured for removal by a user. In some embodiments,
the outer cover 18A may be secured to the frame 21 with sheet metal
screws. The card-handling device 10A may further include a flange
30A that intersects an upper edge 126 of the card infeed
compartment 112 and an upper edge 128 of the card delivery
compartment 114 and extends a portion of the way through the
card-handling zone 116. This flange 30A may be mounted on a gaming
table surface such that a portion of the card-handling zone 116 is
positioned within the outside perimeter of the gaming table. A
display 134 may be positioned at an elevation below the gaming
table surface when the card-handling device 10A is mounted on or in
a gaming table. The card-handling device 10A may be supported by
the flange 30A, a table extension (not shown), a pedestal, a
combination of the above, or by any other support technique.
[0058] Referring back to FIG. 1, the card infeed tray 12 and the
card output tray 14 may be surrounded by a substantially flat
flange 30 that intersects the upper edge 26 of the card infeed tray
12 and the upper edge 28 of the card output tray 14. In this
configuration, the flat flange 30, the upper edge 26 of the card
infeed tray 12, and the upper edge 28 of the card output tray 14
may be disposed in substantially the same plane. In other words,
the upper edge 26 of the card infeed tray 12 and the upper edge 28
of the card output tray 14 may be substantially co-planar. In such
a configuration, the card-handling device 10 may be mounted for use
on or in a gaming table such that the flat flange 30, the upper
edge 26 of the card infeed tray 12, and the upper edge 28 of the
card output tray 14 are substantially flush with the upper surface
of the gaming table.
[0059] In one mounting arrangement, a gaming table surface may be
provided with a notch cut into an edge of the table facing the
dealer. The first end 22 of the card-handling device 10 may include
a recess 32 that has a size and shape that is configured to receive
the side of the table therein along the notch. The remainder of the
card-handling device 10 (e.g., the second end 24 of the
card-handling device 10) may be supported by a support bracket
beneath the table surface. In this configuration, the portion of
the card-handling device 10 that is inserted into the gaming table
may be flush mounted with the upper surface of the table.
[0060] In the arrangement described above, the first end 22 of the
card-handling device 10 may be nearest the players and the second
end 24 of the card-handling device 10 may be nearest the pit when
the card-handling device 10 is mounted on or in a gaming table.
Furthermore, the card-handling zone 16 may be located behind or to
the side of the dealer and out of the way when the card-handling
device 10 is mounted on or in the gaming table.
[0061] Because the card infeed tray 12 and the card output tray 14
are located on the same side of the card-handling zone 16 (near the
first end 22 of the card-handling device 10), the cards may be more
accessible to the dealer, and the dealer need not lift cards over
the card-handling zone 16 to place spent cards back into the
card-handling zone 16. The present design, therefore, may be
relatively more ergonomically beneficial to the user (dealer) than
known designs. Positioning the card infeed tray 12 at the table
level also may reduce the possibility that card faces will be
accidentally shown to players.
[0062] The placement of an upper edge 26 of the card infeed tray 12
and an upper edge 28 of the output tray 14 substantially in the
same plane lying on, or proximate to, the gaming surface also may
provide distinct ergonometric advantages. If the dealer moves his
or her hands smaller distances during card handling, he or she is
likely to experience fewer repetitive stress or strain injuries.
Therefore, delivering spent cards to the card-handling device 10 at
the gaming surface and retrieving freshly handled cards from
substantially the same location or nearby offers distinct user
advantages.
[0063] The placement of the infeed tray 12 and the output tray 14
on the same side of a carousel-type playing card-handling zone
(discussed in further detail below) also allows the user to place
spent cards--face down in the infeed tray 12, and at the same time
receive fresh cards from the output tray 14 in a face-down
configuration. This attribute has been previously described in U.S.
Pat. No. 6,676,127 to Johnson et al. This feature improves the
security of a carousel card-handling device 10, since no cards are
exposed during loading, shuffling, or unloading.
[0064] A horizontally disposed centerline intersecting the card
infeed tray 12 and the card output tray 14 may also advantageously
intersect a centerline of the card-handling zone 16, as will be
discussed in more detail below. This arrangement allows the machine
to be fairly narrow in width and permits both card tray areas (but
not the more bulky card-handling zone 16) to be located on or near
the playing table surface.
[0065] The card-handling zone 16 of the card-handling device 10 may
include card-moving elements located below the card infeed and
output trays. The card-handling zone 16 may be capable of
performing at least one of the following functions: a) shuffling,
b) arranging cards into a desired order, c) verifying completeness
of a group of cards, d) reading special markings on cards (such as,
for example, a casino identification mark, a manufacturer
identification mark, a special bonus card identification mark, a
deck identification mark, etc.), e) scanning cards for unauthorized
markings, f) identifying cards lacking required markings, g)
measuring card wear, h) decommissioning cards, i) applying markings
to cards, j) scanning cards for unauthorized electronic devices, k)
delivering special cards such as, for example, bonus cards,
promotional cards, or wild cards, and many other useful
functions.
[0066] In some embodiments of the present invention, the
card-handling zone 16 may comprise a card-handling system or
mechanism comprising a temporary card storage device or system 244
(FIG. 8), a card infeed mechanism or system 240 (FIG. 8) for moving
cards from the card infeed tray 12 to the temporary card storage
system 244 (FIG. 8), and a card output mechanism or system 242
(FIG. 8) for moving cards from the temporary card storage system
244 (FIG. 8) to the card output tray 14. In some embodiments of the
present invention, the temporary card storage system 244 (FIG. 8)
may comprise a carousel device having multiple compartments for
receiving cards therein, as discussed in further detail below. Many
types of card-handling systems or mechanisms that include other
types of temporary card storage devices may be utilized in
card-handling devices that embody teachings of the present
invention. Some non-limiting examples of such other types of
card-handling systems or mechanisms include the card-handling
system described in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 6,959,925 to Baker et
al., the vertical compartment card-handling system described in
U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,154 to Grauzer et al., and the card-handling
system described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,651,981 to Grauzer et al.
[0067] FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the card-handling device 10
shown in FIG. 1. The card infeed tray 12 and the card output tray
14 may be positioned on the same side of the card-handling device
10 and in substantially a common plane. For example, the card
infeed tray 12 and the card output tray 14 each may be positioned
proximate the first end 22 of the card-handling device 10.
Furthermore, the card infeed tray 12 and the card output tray 14
each may be positioned on the same side of the card-handling zone
16 (which may include, for example, a carousel 120, as discussed in
further detail below). In some embodiments of the present
invention, the card infeed tray 12 and the card output tray 14 each
may be bisected by a centrally located longitudinal axis 36.
Furthermore, in some embodiments, the card infeed tray 12 and the
card output tray 14 each may be substantially symmetrically
bisected by the longitudinal axis 36. As also shown in FIG. 3, the
card infeed tray 12 may be equipped with a gate member 98 whose
functions will be described in more detail below. The card infeed
tray 12 also may include a sensor 38 configured to detect the
presence of any card provided in the card infeed tray 12.
[0068] Declining finger cut-outs 33A or recesses may be provided in
the interior surfaces of the card infeed tray 12, and declining
finger cut-outs 33B or recesses may be provided in the interior
surfaces of the card output tray 14. The finger cut-outs 33A and
33B may have a size and shape configured to receive or accommodate
at least one digit of the hand of a person therein to facilitate
handling of cards in the card infeed tray 12 and the card output
tray 14 by a user.
[0069] FIG. 4A is a side view of the card-handling device 10 shown
in FIG. 1 with the cover 18 removed. FIG. 4B is a simplified
version of FIG. 4A, illustrating only certain elements of the
card-handling device 10 to facilitate description thereof.
Referring to FIGS. 4A and 4B in combination, the card-handling
device 10 may include a card infeed system 240 (FIG. 8) comprising
a first drive system and a second drive system.
[0070] The first drive system may include a first card infeed motor
40 (FIG. 4B) that is configured to drive rotation of a card feed
roller 42 using a first endless toothed belt 43 coupled to both a
drive sprocket 44, which is mounted on a drive shaft 41 of the
motor 40, and the card feed roller 42. A lowermost card in a stack
of spent cards placed in the card infeed tray 12 will come into
contact with card feed roller 42. The first card infeed motor 40 is
also configured to rotationally drive a first advancing roller 48
using the first endless toothed belt 43. A second endless toothed
belt 52 meshes with a sprocket 50 as well as a sprocket 54 on a
shaft carrying a second advancing roller 56. In this configuration,
as the first card infeed motor 40 drives rotation of the card feed
roller 42 and the first advancing roller 48 with the first endless
toothed belt 43, the first card infeed motor 40 will also drive
rotation of a second advancing roller 56 with a second endless
toothed belt 52. First opposing idler roller 58 adjacent the first
advancing roller 48 forms a first nip 60 (FIG. 4A), and second
opposing idler roller 62 adjacent roller 56 forms a second nip 64
(FIG. 4B). The first opposing idler roller 58 may be adjustable in
the vertical direction of FIG. 4A. Cards provided in the card
infeed tray 12 (FIG. 4B) may be sequentially moved in the
horizontal direction of FIGS. 4A and 4B by the card feed roller 42
into the first nip 60, and subsequently into the second nip 64.
[0071] The second drive system may include a second card infeed
motor 70 (FIG. 4B) that is configured to drive rotation of a third
advancing roller 72 and a fourth advancing roller 74 using a third
endless toothed belt 76 that is coupled to a pulley 78 mounted on a
drive shaft 71 of the motor 70, a pulley 80 mounted on a shaft
carrying the third advancing roller 72, and a pulley 82 mounted on
a shaft carrying the fourth advancing roller 74. A third opposing
idler roller 84 adjacent the third advancing roller 72 forms a
third nip 86 (FIG. 4A), and a fourth opposing idler roller 88
adjacent roller 74 forms a fourth nip 90 (FIG. 4B). The fourth
opposing idler roller 88 and the fourth nip 90 may be oriented and
configured to deflect a card passing therebetween upwardly and into
a compartment 127 or other card storage area of a carousel 120 or
other temporary card storage device.
[0072] The first card infeed motor 40 and the second card infeed
motor 70 each may be operatively controlled by a control system 220
(FIG. 8), which is described in further detail below.
[0073] In additional embodiments of the present invention, the card
infeed system 240 (FIG. 8) may include only one motor, or more than
two motors. Additionally, the card infeed system 240 (FIG. 8) may
include any number of advancing rollers and corresponding idler
rollers. Furthermore, any means for rotationally driving the card
feed roller 42 and the advancing rollers 48, 56, 72, 74 may be used
including, for example, gears, sprockets, chains, belts, etc. In
yet additional embodiments, the card feed roller 42 and each of the
advancing rollers 48, 56, 72, 74 may be directly mounted on a drive
shaft of a corresponding motor.
[0074] Referring to FIG. 5, in some embodiments of the present
invention, the card infeed system 240 (FIG. 8) of the card-handling
device 10 may further include a gate member 98 operatively
associated with the card infeed tray 12. The gate member 98 may
comprise an extension arm 100 having a first end that is connected
to a shaft 102. The shaft 102 may be rotationally driven by an
infeed gate motor 108 and an endless belt 110. A roller 104 may
extend substantially transversely from the extension arm 100 (i.e.,
into the plane of FIG. 5), and may be used to reduce frictional
contact with cards 115 in the card infeed tray 12. The roller 104
may be rotationally coupled to the second end of the extension arm
100, and may extend substantially across a width of any cards 115
in the card infeed tray 12 (or a length of any cards 115 in the
card infeed tray 12, depending on the orientation of the cards 115
in the card infeed tray 12). In this configuration, the extension
arm 100 will pivot about the shaft 102 as the infeed gate motor 108
drives rotation of the shaft 102 using the endless belt 110. The
extension arm 100 and roller 104 may be positioned in an upright
and retracted pivotal position (not shown) in which the roller 104
does not engage any cards 115 in the card infeed tray 12, to a
downwardly angled engaged position in which the roller 104 engages
and abuts against the cards 115 in the card infeed tray 12.
[0075] The gate member 98 may serve a number of functions. For
example, as the number of cards 115 in the card infeed tray 12 is
reduced, the weight of the stack of cards 115 in the card infeed
tray 12 is reduced, which may reduce the frictional force between
the lowermost card 115 in the card infeed tray 12 and the card feed
roller 42. The reduced frictional force between the lowermost card
115 in the card infeed tray 12 and the card feed roller 42 may
impair the ability of the card feed roller 42 to move the lowermost
card 115 to the first advancing roller 48 and to other elements of
the card infeed system 240 (FIG. 8). Therefore, the gate member 98
may be used to apply a downward force to the cards 115 in the card
infeed tray 12 to maintain the frictional force between the
lowermost card 115 in the card infeed tray 12 and the card feed
roller 42 above a threshold level. In some embodiments, the gate
member 98 may be used to apply a downward force to the cards 115 in
the card infeed tray 12 that increases as the number of remaining
cards 115 decreases to provide a substantially constant force to
the lowest card 115 in the card infeed tray 12. In other words, the
gate member 98 provides additional weight against the cards 115 in
the card infeed tray 12, which may improve the reliability by which
the cards 115 in the card infeed tray 12 are taken into the first
nip 60 (FIG. 4A) by the card feed roller 42.
[0076] The gate member 98 also may be used to provide a physical
separation barrier between cards 115 in the card infeed tray 12
belonging or corresponding to different decks, or between different
types of cards (such as regular cards and bonus cards, for
example). When the card infeed system 240 (FIG. 8) of the
card-handling device 10 is actively moving cards 115 from the card
infeed tray 12 to the carousel 120 or other card storage device,
the gate member 98 may be in the previously described downwardly
engaged position. At the same time, the dealer may be collecting
spent cards 115 from the playing table. Because the gate is in the
downwardly engaged position, the dealer may put the spent cards
(which may correspond to a first deck) in the card infeed tray 12
on top of or over at least a portion of the gate member 98, while
the cards previously placed in the card infeed tray 12 (which may
correspond to a second, different deck) are being moved from the
card infeed tray 12 to the carousel 120 by the card infeed system
240 (FIG. 8). Therefore, in some embodiments of the present
invention, a dealer or other user may load cards 115 from a first
deck into the card infeed tray 12 while at least some cards 115
from a second deck remain in the card infeed tray 12 without
causing or allowing the card-handling device 10 to mix cards from
the first deck with cards from the second deck. As a result, the
use of the gate member 98 may permit a casino to eliminate use of
discard racks (which are typically mounted on gaming table surfaces
for holding spent cards until they can be fed into a card-handling
device), as spent cards may be placed without delay directly into
the card infeed tray 12.
[0077] Once the last of the cards 115 below the gate member 98 in
the card infeed tray 12 has been removed from the card infeed tray
12 by the card infeed system 240 (FIG. 8), the gate member 98 may
be caused to rotate about the shaft 102 to the previously described
retracted position to allow any cards 115 previously placed over
the gate member 98 in the card infeed tray 12 to fall to the bottom
of the card infeed tray 12 adjacent the card feed roller 42. In the
retracted position, the gate member 98 may not obstruct the user
from inserting additional cards 115 into the card infeed tray
12.
[0078] The shaft 102 may be located a selected distance below the
upper edge 26 of the card infeed tray 12 (FIG. 1) so that the
roller 104 does not extend substantially above the upper edge 26 of
the card infeed tray 12 when the gate member 98 is in the
previously described retracted position. Furthermore, the shaft 102
may be located a selected distance above the bottom surface 118 of
the card infeed tray 12 to enable at least one entire deck of cards
115 to be received in the card infeed tray 12 and allow the roller
104 to abut against the top card 115 in the at least one entire
deck of cards 115. Furthermore, the extension arm 100 may have a
selected length to provide a distance between the rotational axis
of the shaft 102 and the rotational axis of the roller 104 that is
short enough that cards 115 provided over the gate member 98 in the
card infeed tray 12 will lift and fall to the bottom of the card
infeed tray 12 without flipping over as the gate member 98 pivots
upwardly in the counterclockwise direction of FIG. 5. A currently
preferred gate length is about one-third the length of the cards
115 (or the width of the cards 115, depending on the orientation of
the cards 115 in the card infeed tray 12.
[0079] The infeed gate motor 108, which is used to selectively
rotate the gate member 98, may be operatively controlled by a
control system 220, which is described in further detail below.
[0080] Referring again to FIG. 4A, the card infeed system 240 (FIG.
8) of the card-handling device 10 may further include a packer arm
device 140 for assisting the insertion of a card into a compartment
127 of the carousel 120 or other card storage device. As shown in
FIGS. 4A and 4B, each compartment 127 of the carousel 120 may
include a leaf spring member 125. As a result, the force of each
leaf spring member 125 may need to be overcome as a card is
inserted into each compartment 127. The packer arm device 140 may
be used to provide additional force to the card as it leaves the
fourth advancing roller 74 and corresponding opposing idler roller
88 and enters a compartment 127 of the carousel 120.
[0081] FIG. 6 is an enlarged stand-alone view of one embodiment of
a packer arm device 140 that may be used in card-handling devices
that embody teachings of the present invention, such as the
card-handling device 10. As shown in FIG. 6, the packer arm device
140 may include a packer arm motor 142, which may be mounted to the
frame 21 of the card-handling device 10. The packer arm motor 142
may be configured to rotate a shaft 144. An eccentric cam member
145 may be mounted to the shaft 144. An elongated packer arm 146
configured as a lever member may be pivotally coupled at a first
end 148 thereof to the eccentric cam member 145. The packer arm 146
also may be pivotally attached to a first end of a pivot arm member
152 at an intermediate location 151 along the packer arm 146
between the first end 148 and a second end 150 thereof. A second
end of the pivot arm member may be pivotally attached to a frame 21
of the card-handling device 10 or another stationary element of the
card-handling device 10.
[0082] In this configuration, as the packer arm motor 142 drives
rotation of the shaft 144 and eccentric cam member 145 in the
direction indicated by the directional arrows shown on the
eccentric cam member 145 in FIG. 6, the second end 150 of the
elongated packer arm 146 may rock back and forth along an
arc-shaped path in the directions indicated by the directional
arrows shown proximate the second end 150 of the elongated packer
arm 146 in FIG. 6.
[0083] The packer arm device 140 may be located in the
card-handling device 10 such that the second end 150 of the
elongated packer arm will abut against a trailing edge of a card
and force the card completely into an aligned compartment 127 of
the carousel 120. As the eccentric cam member 145 continues to
rotate, the second end 150 of the elongated packer arm 146 may
retract to a position that will allow a subsequent card to move
past the packer arm device and into position for insertion into a
compartment 127 of the carousel 120. In some embodiments of the
present invention, the subsequently described control system 220
may cause the packer arm 146 to retract while the carousel 120 is
rotating and to extend when the carousel 120 is stationary.
[0084] The packer arm motor 142, which is used to selectively move
the packer arm 146, also may be operatively controlled by a control
system 220, which is described in further detail below.
[0085] Referring again to FIG. 4A, as previously discussed, the
carousel 120 may include a plurality of compartments 127, each of
which may include a leaf spring 125 for holding cards securely
within the compartment 127 after insertion. In this configuration,
the cards may remain secured within the compartments 127 as the
carousel 120 rotates in either the clockwise or counterclockwise
direction of FIG. 4A. Each compartment 127 also may have at least
one beveled surface 123 for deflecting cards into the aligned
compartment 127 during insertion. In some embodiments of the
present invention, the compartments 127 of the carousel 120 may be
substantially equally sized, and each may be capable of holding up
to ten conventional playing cards. By way of example and not
limitation, the carousel 120 may include thirty-eight (38)
compartments 127. In additional embodiments, the carousel 120 may
include fewer than thirty-eight (38) compartments 127 or more than
thirty-eight (38) compartments 127.
[0086] In some embodiments of the present invention, the previously
described card infeed system 240 (FIG. 8) may be capable of
selectively inserting a card into a compartment 127 of the carousel
120 either below or above any cards previously inserted and still
disposed within that respective compartment. For example, each
compartment 127 may have two corresponding card insertion
rotational positions of the carousel 120. When the carousel 120 is
rotationally positioned in the first of the card insertion
rotational positions, any card inserted into the compartment 127
may be inserted below or under any cards previously inserted and
still disposed within that respective compartment. When the
carousel 120 is rotationally positioned in the second of the card
insertion rotational positions, however, any card inserted into the
compartment 127 may be inserted above or over any cards previously
inserted and still disposed within that respective compartment.
[0087] The path that is traveled by a card as it moves from the
card infeed tray 12 to a compartment 127 of the carousel 120 is
substantially straight and substantially horizontal. In this
configuration, the distance traveled by the cards along the path is
the shortest distance between the cards in the card infeed tray 12
and the compartment 127 of the carousel 120. The length of this
path traveled by the cards may be minimized to minimize the length
of the card-handling device 10, and to maximize the speed by which
cards may be delivered from the card infeed tray 12 to the carousel
120.
[0088] When the card-handling device 10 is mounted on a gaming
table such that the flange 30 is substantially flush with the upper
gaming surface of the table, approximately the lower half of the
carousel 120 may be located beneath the table surface. As a result,
the card-handling device 10 may have a relatively low profile on
the table.
[0089] With continued reference to FIG. 4A, the card-handling
device 10 may further include a carousel drive system configured to
selectively drive rotation of the carousel member about a shaft
121, by which the carousel 120 is rotatably mounted to the frame
21. The shaft 121 may be mounted to the frame 21 by means of
threaded hand screws or a locking releasable mechanism, which may
provide for easy removal and replacement of the carousel 120.
[0090] The carousel drive system may include, for example, a
carousel drive motor 126 that is mounted to the frame 21, as shown
in FIG. 4A. FIG. 7 is a view of a second, opposite side of the
card-handling device shown in FIG. 4A. By way of example and not
limitation, a pulley 130 may be mounted to a drive shaft 128 of the
carousel drive motor 126 (FIG. 4A), and another pulley (not shown)
may be mounted to a drive shaft 135. An endless belt 132 may be
provided around both the pulley 130 and the pulley mounted to the
drive shaft 135. In this configuration, as the carousel drive motor
126 drives rotation of the drive shaft 128, the drive shaft 135
will also be rotationally driven by the carousel drive motor 126
and endless belt 132. A pinion gear 136 also may be mounted to the
drive shaft 135. The pinion gear 136 may be sized, positioned, and
otherwise configured to mesh with a toothed edge or surface 138
provided on the carousel 120. In this configuration, the carousel
drive motor 126 may be used to selectively drive rotation of the
carousel 120 about the shaft 121 in either the clockwise or
counterclockwise direction.
[0091] In additional embodiments of the present invention, the
carousel drive system may include any means for driving rotation of
the carousel 120 including, for example, gears, sprockets, chains,
belts, etc.
[0092] The carousel drive motor 126, which is used to selectively
drive rotation of the carousel 120, also may be operatively
controlled by a control system 220, which is described in further
detail below.
[0093] Referring again to FIG. 4A, the card-handling device 10 may
further include a card output system 242 (FIG. 8) for moving cards
out from the carousel 120 or other card storage device and into the
card output tray 14. The card output system 242 (FIG. 8) may
include, for example, an elongated swing arm 160 having a first
lower end that is pivotally coupled to the frame 21 using a pin
member 162. The swing arm 160 may be configured to pivot about the
pin member 162. The second upper end of the elongated swing arm 160
may be equipped or otherwise provide with a retractable inwardly
projecting tab 163 (extending into the plane of FIG. 4A) that is
configured to extend into a compartment 127 of the carousel 120
while the swing arm 160 is swinging toward the output tray 14, but
that retracts before and/or while the swing arm 160 swings back to
a resting position in which the swing arm 160 is positioned near an
inner circumference 164 of the compartments 127 of the carousel
120. In the extended position, the inwardly projecting tab 163
contacts any cards positioned within the aligned compartment 127 of
the carousel 120. The inwardly projecting tab 163 of the swing arm
160 retracts as it comes into contact with a stationary tab 182
mounted to the frame 21.
[0094] Referring to FIG. 4B, the card-handling device 10 may
include a swing arm drive system, which may include a swing arm
drive motor 166, an endless belt 168, a first idler pulley 170, and
a second idler pulley 172. The first idler pulley 170 and the
second idler pulley 172 may be mounted to the frame 21. The endless
belt 168 may extend around a pulley 174 that is mounted to a drive
shaft 176 of the swing arm drive motor 166, the first idler pulley
170, and the second idler pulley 172. The endless belt 168 is also
securely attached to the swing arm 160 at a location between the
first idler pulley 170 and the second idler pulley 172 using, for
example, a clamp 178. In this configuration, the swing arm 160 may
be selectively swung towards the card output tray 14 by selectively
jogging the endless belt 168 around the pulleys 170, 172, 174 in
the clockwise direction in FIG. 4B using the swing arm drive motor
166, and the swing arm 160 may be selectively swung away from the
card output tray 14 by selectively jogging the endless belt 168
around the pulleys 170, 172, 174 in the counterclockwise direction
in FIG. 4B using the swing arm drive motor 166.
[0095] The swing arm drive motor 166, which is used to selectively
move the swing arm 160, also may be operatively controlled by the
control system 220 subsequently described herein.
[0096] Referring to FIG. 4B, as the swing arm 160 is caused to
swing towards the card output tray 14 and eject a card or cards out
from a compartment 127 of the carousel 120, the card may be at
least partially forced between a card output roller 186 and an
opposing card output idler roller 188. The card output roller 186
may be mounted on a shaft 187. As shown in FIG. 7, a pulley 190
also may be mounted on the shaft 187, and a card output roller
drive motor 192 that is attached to the frame 21 may be used to
drive rotation of the shaft 187 using an endless belt 194. The
endless belt 194 may extend around a pulley 190 mounted on the
shaft 187 and another pulley 196 mounted on a drive shaft 193 of
the card output roller drive motor 192. In some embodiments of the
invention, intermeshing gears may be provided on both the shaft 187
of the card output roller 186 and a shaft 189 of the opposing card
output idler roller 188 to ensure that the card output roller 186
and opposing card output idler roller 188 are driven in unison. In
this configuration, the card output roller drive motor 192 may be
caused to spin the card output roller 186 and opposing card output
idler roller 188 as the swing arm 160 is caused to eject a card or
cards out from a compartment 127 of the carousel 120 and force the
card or cards between the card output roller 186 and the opposing
card output idler roller 188. The rotation of the card output
roller 186 and an opposing card output idler roller 188 may force
and advance the card or cards therebetween into the card output
tray 14, where the card or cards may be accessible to a dealer or
other user of the card-handling device 10. A sensor 200 (FIG. 4A)
may be located and configured to sense or detect when no cards are
present in the card output tray 14, and to convey such information
to the control system 220 subsequently described herein.
[0097] As shown in FIG. 7, one or more sensors 156 may also be
provided and configured to detect a relative position of the
carousel 120 so as to enable the control system 220 (FIG. 8)
subsequently described herein to identify which compartment 127 is
aligned to receive a card from the card infeed system 240 and which
compartment 127 is aligned for ejection of any cards therein by the
card output system 242. By way of example and not limitation, the
card-handling device 10 may include one magnetic sensor 156 that is
configured to detect a magnet 157 positioned on the carousel 120,
as shown in FIG. 7. The position of the carousel 120 when the
magnet 157 is positioned adjacent the magnetic sensor 156 may be
designated as a "home" position of the carousel 120. The
card-handling device 10 may be configured to position the carousel
120 in the home position when the card-handling device 10 is
powered on. An encoder that is associated with at least one of the
carousel drive motor 126 or the carousel 120 itself then may be
used to keep track of the rotational movement of the carousel 120
from the home position, and the information received from the
encoder may be used by the control system 220 (FIG. 8) to identify
the relative rotational position of the carousel 120 at any given
time.
[0098] In the embodiment described above, the path each card
travels as the card moves from a selected compartment 127 of the
carousel 120 into the card output tray 14 (i.e., the card output
path) is substantially horizontal and above the path each card
travels as the card moves from the card infeed tray 12 to a
selected compartment 127 of the carousel 120 (i.e., the card infeed
path). In additional embodiments of the present invention, the card
infeed path may be positioned vertically above the card output
path. This vertical stacking or layering of the card infeed path
and the card output path allows both the card infeed tray 12 and
the card output tray 12 to be positioned on the same side of the
card-handling device 10 (relative to the carousel 120 or other card
storage device). In yet additional embodiments, the card infeed
path and the card output path may be disposed in substantially the
same plane and laterally side by side one another.
[0099] Referring to FIGS. 4A and 4B, in embodiments of the present
invention, the card-handling device 10 further includes a card
sensing system (also referred to as a card recognition system) that
is configured to sense at least one identifying characteristic or
feature (also referred to as card information) of each card before
the card is placed into a compartment 127 of the carousel 120 or
other card storage device. By way of example and not limitation,
the card recognition system may include a card sensor 210 that is
configured to identify at least a rank (e.g., 2, 3, 4 . . . 10,
jack, queen, king, ace) and suit (e.g., spade, club, diamond,
heart) of a conventional playing card. The sensor 210 may be
configured and positioned, for example, to detect the rank and suit
of each card as the card passes between the previously described
first drive system and second drive system of the card infeed
system 240 (FIG. 8) (e.g., as the card passes between the second
advancing roller 56 and the third advancing roller 72), as shown in
FIGS. 4A and 4B. Of course, those of ordinary skill in the art will
recognize that the sensor 210 may be placed at other suitable
locations along the path the card travels within the card-handling
device 10.
[0100] By way of example and not limitation, the card recognition
system may include a two-dimensional image sensor comprising, for
example, a camera device that includes a complementary metal oxide
semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor or a charge-coupled device (CCD)
image sensor. For example, the card recognition system may include
a video camera imaging system as described (or substantially
similar to that described) in U.S. patent application Ser. No.
10/623,223, filed Jul. 17, 2003 (which was published Apr. 8, 2004
as U.S. Patent Publication No. US2004/0067789A1), the disclosures
of each of which are incorporated herein in their entirety by this
reference. As described therein, one suitable card recognition
system comprises the camera sold under the trademark
"DRAGONFLY.RTM." and available from Point Grey Research Inc. of
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The DRAGONFLY.RTM. camera
includes a 6-pin IEEE-1394 interface, and an asynchronous trigger.
This camera can be used to acquire images using multiple frame
rates, to acquire 640.times.480 or 1024.times.724 24-bit true color
images, or to acquire 8-bit gray scale images. Furthermore, the
DRAGONFLY.RTM. camera is typically provided with image acquisition
software and exhibits plug-and-play capability. Such a commercially
available camera may be combined with commercially available symbol
recognition software, which may be executed using an external
computer (not shown). Such commercially available image recognition
software may be "trained" to identify conventional playing card
symbols and to classify and report each acquired image pattern as a
specific card suit and rank. The graphics used to identify rank and
suit of each card are not identical or standard and may vary
between decks of cards. Once an image recognition software program
for identifying rank and suit has been developed, the software
program may be configured to allow the software program to be
trained for each particular deck of cards to be handled by the
card-handling device 10 to enable the software program to
accurately identify rank and suit of the particular cards used.
Such training of the software program may be done at the casino
table or by a security team before the card-handling device 10 is
placed on a table.
[0101] As yet another example, the sensor 210 may include a
one-dimensional image sensor such as a line scanning system or
device that includes a contact image sensor (CIS), as disclosed in
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/152,475, filed Jun. 13, 2005,
now U.S. Pat. No. 7,769,232, issued Aug. 3, 2010, and U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 11/417,894, filed May 3, 2006, now U.S. Pat.
No. 7,593,544, issued Sep. 22, 2009, the disclosures of each of
which are incorporated herein in their entirety by this reference.
Such line scanning systems may operate in conjunction with
additional card position sensors. Sensors that may be used to
identify a card position at the time a line scan is performed by
the line scanning system are commercially available. Such line
scanning systems may be small enough to be entirely incorporated
into the card-handling device 10 without requiring used of an
external computer for executing an image recognition software
program.
[0102] The sensor signals may be processed by a separate hardware
element (not shown) such as a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA)
or an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) using the
methodology described in U.S. Patent Publication US 2005/0242500
A1, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,769,232, issued, Aug. 3, 2010, the content
of which is incorporated by reference herein. Alternatively, the
sensor signals may be processed by a processor 222 (FIG. 8) within
the card-handling device 10 or by an external computer system, such
as, for example, a table manager 450 (FIG. 10).
[0103] In some applications, the cards to be handled by the
card-handling device 10 may be standard unmarked conventional
cards, and the sensor 210 may be configured to sense and identify
only a conventional rank and suit of each card. In additional
applications, the cards to be handled by the card-handling device
10 may be marked with ultraviolet (UV), infrared (IR), near
infrared (near-IR), or visible wavelength inks or may have embedded
radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, magnetic coding, bar
codes, embedded electronic devices, or any other marking means, and
the sensor 210 may be configured to detect at least one such
marking in addition to, or instead of, identifying a rank and suit
of each card. The card recognition system also may be configured to
sense, detect, and identify cards that have been physically damaged
(e.g., due to wear) and/or cards that have been marked in any way
that facilitates cheating. The card recognition system may be
configured to sense and identify cards that include one or more of
cuts, abrasions, bends, dirt, debris, and/or to verify that each
card exhibits an expected, predefined color, thickness,
reflectivity, mass, or other identifying characteristic or
feature.
[0104] The card recognition system may be configured to communicate
electrically with the subsequently described control system. In
addition, multiple sensors 210 may be useful for redundancy, better
overall image fidelity, or simply for advantageous placement of the
type of sensor. For example, a 2-dimensional sensor may be more
practical in a position where it may read the card in a stationary
position. On the other hand, the CIS module may be more practical
in a position where it reads the card while it is in motion to
enable the line scans at various positions along the rank and suit
designators on the card.
[0105] The card-handling device 10 may further include a control
system 220. The control system may configured to receive input
signals from a user, to receive input signals from one or more of
the various sensors described herein, and/or for selectively
controlling one or more of the various previously described active
components of the card-handling device 10.
[0106] FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram of one example of a
control system 220 that may be used with the card-handling device
10 shown in FIG. 1 to create a card-handling and analysis system
250. In some embodiments, the entire control system 220 may be
physically located within the card-handling device 10. In other
embodiments, one or more components of the control system 220 may
be physically located outside the card-handling device 10. Such
components may include, for example, a computer device (e.g., a
desktop computer, a laptop computer, a handheld computer (e.g.,
personal data assistant (PDA), network server, etc.). Such external
components may be configured to perform functions such as, for
example, image processing, bonus system management, network
communication and the like.
[0107] As shown in FIG. 8, the control system 220 may include at
least one processor 222 (e.g., a microprocessor or
microcontroller). The control system 220 also may include memory
224 for storing information such as software and data to be read or
written by the processor 222. The control system 220 also may
include one or more input devices 226 and one or more output
devices 228. By way of example and not limitation, the one or more
input devices 226 may include a keypad, a keyboard, a touchpad, a
button, a switch, a lever, and the like. An input device 226 may
include an authorization element. An authorization element may be
used to limit access to some of the functions, such as, for
example, recalling the content of current or past hands. As a
non-limiting example, authorization element input device 226 may be
configured to read the information on a magnetic card strip and
send that information to the control system 220. The information on
a magnetic card strip may include a user identification. The
control system 220 can verify that the card information belongs to
a database of authorized users. Other non-limiting examples of
authorization elements include a fingerprint scan, a Radio
Frequency Identifier (RFID) scan, and a retina scan. A general
security element for identifying an authorized user may include one
or more authorization elements or it may include one or more
authorization elements in combination with the entry of a password
by the authorized user.
[0108] The authorization element input device 226 may be integrated
as a part of the control system 220 or it may be configured as a
stand-alone device in communication with the control system 220
across a wired or wireless communication medium.
[0109] The one or more output devices 228 may include a graphical
display 230 (i.e., a screen or monitor), a printer, one or more
light-emitting diodes (LEDs), a device for emitting an audible
signal, etc. In some embodiments of the present invention, the
input devices 226 and the output devices 228 may be integrated into
a single unitary structure, such as, for example, with the display
230 configured as a touch screen display 230.
[0110] The touch screen display 230 may be located below the gaming
table surface when the card-handling device 10 is mounted to a
gaming table in the manner previously described herein. The display
230 may be used to output information to a dealer or other user
regarding information such as the identity of the cards that have
been dealt into each hand, which may allow the dealer to assess
whether the cards shown or played by that player are different
(indicating that the cards have been changed or swapped) without
alerting the player. For example, if a deviation between a dealt
hand and a displayed or played hand were to occur, indicating a
confirmed case of card switching, the dealer would be able to
notify security without the player's knowledge, which may allow the
cheating player to be apprehended. By providing or locating the
display 230 below the surface of the table and/or facing away from
the players at the table, the display 230 may be concealed to the
players, and important information may be conveyed to and from
casino personnel without the knowledge of the players. Touch screen
controls on the display 230 also may provide a larger number of
input options for the user, as compared to more standard push
button controls. The display 230 may be capable of displaying
alphanumeric information, graphical information, animation, video
feed, and the like.
[0111] As another input option, the touch screen may be used to
present login information for an authorized user. Such information
may include a user identification, a password, or a combination
thereof. As a non-limiting example, the touch screen may prompt a
user to enter a user identification and a password. As another
non-limiting example, the presentation and acceptance of login
information may be used in combination with the authorization
element input device 226 such that the user identification is
received from the magnetic card or other authorization element and
the password is entered by the authorized user. In this
combination, the database of authorized users may be checked to
determine that the entered password corresponds with the user
identification on the magnetic strip.
[0112] As another non-limiting example, the control system 220 may
be configured with a factory default password. After entry of the
factory default password, custom password information may be
entered, such as, for example, to create authorized user passwords.
In some embodiments, the default password may only allow access to
operations for entering the custom passwords. In these embodiments,
entry of a custom password may be required to access hand
information.
[0113] As shown in FIG. 8, the control system 220 may be configured
to communicate with each of the previously described card infeed
system 240, card output system 242, temporary card storage system
244 or device, and card recognition system 246. In this
configuration, the control system 220 may be configured to receive
input signals from a dealer or other user, signals from the various
sensors of the card-handling device 10, and to coordinate and
control operation of the card infeed system 240, the card output
system 242, the temporary card storage system 244, and the card
recognition system 246 so as to perform various card-handling
operations such as, for example, shuffling of cards placed in the
card infeed tray, sorting cards placed in the card infeed tray,
and/or forming and sequentially dispensing playing hands from cards
placed in the card infeed tray.
[0114] The control system 220 may be configured to communicate
across any wired or wireless communication medium 380 to a network
440. By way of example, and not limitation, communication media may
include serial data links, parallel data links, Ethernet, a Wide
Area Network (WAN), a Local Area Network (LAN), BLUETOOTH.RTM.,
Wi-Fi, WiMax, and other suitable communications links. In some
embodiments, communication on the communication medium may be
implemented with a substantially stand-alone hardware element (not
shown). In other embodiments, the communication may be accomplished
with a combination of hardware and firmware/software.
[0115] The network 440 also may be used to collect and/or process
data from other data collection devices on a gaming table such as,
for example, radio frequency identification (RFID) wager amount
sensors, object sensors, chip tray inventory sensors, and the like,
as is explained more fully below in the description of FIG. 10.
Data may be collected by the control system 220 and sent to a
remote database for later analysis and processing, or the data may
be analyzed in real time.
[0116] The processors 222 may be implemented as microcontrollers
including memory for storage of data and firmware/software for
execution thereon. The processors 222 also may be implemented as
microprocessors with separate memory 224 for storage of the data
and firmware/software. In addition, the processors 222 may
incorporate an ASIC, Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), multiple
Programmable Logic Devices (PLD), and combinations thereof.
[0117] In some embodiments, the processors 222 may be configured as
two separate processors configured to perform different functions.
A first processor may be configured for operating and controlling
the functions of the shuffler, including operation of electrical
devices such as motors, controlling the images displayed on the
display 230, processing signals received from all internal sensors
such as optical object presence sensors, motion sensors and the
like. Thus, during operation, the first processor 222 may determine
the random order in which cards are loaded into the compartments of
the card-handling device 10.
[0118] The first processor may also control the display 230
including touch screen controls and may be configured as a further
user interface for programming the processors to display additional
game names and to dispense cards according to user inputted
data.
[0119] A second processor (not shown) may be used to interpret
information received from the card recognition system 246 to
determine rank, suit, other card information, or combinations
thereof. The first processor and the second processor may
communicate with each other and collaborate so that the identity of
each card and the compartment in which it is placed are
associated.
[0120] Of course, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize
that with multiple processors 222, the task load may be allocated
differently depending on performance characteristics and features
of each of the processors 222. For example, a microcontroller may
include features well suited for controlling and interfacing with
external devices and a microprocessor may be well suited for
performing signal processing functions such as image
recognition.
[0121] In operation of embodiments of the present invention, the
dealer will "deal" the hands from the card output tray to each
player, such as in a preset order or by player position. Thus,
embodiments of the present invention can track the cards from the
shuffler to the player to determine the contents of each player's
hand. In other words, through data manipulation, information
relating to the content of each hand the shuffler dispenses is
formed and is retrievable. The information collected from the
card-handling device may be time stamped and stored accordingly.
Moreover, this information may be stored internally on the
card-handling device or on an external computer to provide a recall
feature for any hand during a number of completed rounds of play.
In some embodiments, a large database outside the shuffler may be
maintained so that more history of hands dealt can be stored and
later retrieved or analyzed.
[0122] As shown in FIG. 8, and as was described earlier, in some
embodiments of the present invention, the card recognition system
246 may include a separate controller 212 (e.g., a separate signal
processor, such as, for example, an FPGA for receiving signals from
the sensor 210 (e.g., camera device or line scanning device)) to
determine rank and/or suit of each card being read or sensed by the
card recognition system 246. In additional embodiments, such
functions may be performed by the processor 222 of the control
system 220, or the controller 212 may be a separate controller that
is integrated with the control system 220 and located remote from
the sensor 210.
[0123] The control system 220 of the card-handling device 10 may be
configured under control of a computer program to enable a dealer
or other user of the card-handling device 10 to perform any one of
a number of functions or operations on a deck of cards using the
card-handling device 10. The display 230 (or other input device) of
the card-handling device 10 may include a menu that allows the
dealer or other user to select what functions or operations the
card-handling device 10 is to perform on a deck of cards placed in
the card infeed tray 12. The functions or operations may include
one or more of shuffling operations, sorting operations, and
dealing operations, and recall of card information from various
hands, rounds, or combinations thereof, as will be explained more
fully below.
[0124] By way of example and not limitation, one function or
operation that may be performed by the card-handling device 10 is a
shuffling operation that includes a deck shuffle with the entire
shuffled deck output to the card output tray 14. In other words,
the control system 220 of the card-handling device 10 may be
configured under control of a program to cause the card-handling
device 10 to randomly shuffle an entire deck of cards placed in the
card infeed tray 12, and to dispense the entire deck of shuffled
cards into the card output tray 14.
[0125] By way of example and not limitation, the card-handling
device 10 may be used to shuffle cards placed in the card infeed
tray 12, the control system 220 of the card-handling device 10 may
be configured to read or sense one or more identifying
characteristics or features of each card as the card is carried
past the card recognition system 246, as previously described
herein, and to randomly rotate the carousel 120 while inserting the
cards to insert cards sequentially into the next compartment 127 of
the carousel 120. After all the cards have been randomly placed
into compartments 127 of the carousel 120, the control system 220
may cause the carousel 120 to spin or rotate in a step-wise motion
as the card output system 242 ejects cards out from the
compartments 127 of the carousel 120 either randomly or
sequentially. In other words, the cards may be placed in a
randomized or shuffled sequence as they are placed into the
carousel 120. In this manner, the cards or groups of cards may be
provided in the card output tray 14 in a random, shuffled
sequence.
[0126] Yet another function or operation that may be performed by
the card-handling device 10 is a dealing operation that includes a
sequential output of randomly generated playing hands (or other
subsets of cards) to the card output tray 14, each hand or subset
of cards comprising a predetermined number of cards. In other
words, the control system 220 of the card-handling device 10 may be
configured under control of a program to cause the card-handling
device 10 to dispense a first randomly generated playing hand or
subset into the card output tray 14. A second randomly generated
playing hand may be output to the card output tray 14 after the
control system 220 receives a signal from the sensor 200 indicating
that the first randomly generated playing hand has been removed
from the card output tray 14. This process may continue until a
selected number of randomly generated playing hands has been
dispensed and removed from the card output tray 14. If the game
being played requires other sets of playing cards, such as, for
example, a set of flop cards, dealer cards, common cards, extra
player cards, etc., such sets of cards also may be generated and
dispensed into the card output tray 14 in the sequential manner
described above to prevent the sets of cards from being mixed with
other playing hands or sets of cards. After the last playing hand
or set is delivered, any cards from the deck or decks that remain
in compartments 127 of the carousel 120 may be automatically
unloaded to the card output tray 14, or the remaining cards may be
unloaded to the card output tray 14 upon receiving an input signal
from the dealer or other user (for example, an input signal
generated by touching a predefined button on the touchpad display
230).
[0127] In some embodiments of the present invention, the control
system 220 (FIG. 8) of the card-handling device 10 may be
programmed to handle a particular deck of cards, such as, for
example, a conventional deck of 52 playing cards comprising suits
of spades, clubs, diamonds, and hearts, each suit comprising cards
ranking 2, 3, 4 . . . 10, jack, queen, king, and ace. By way of
example and not limitation, when such a deck of cards is placed
into and detected within the card infeed tray 12 of the
card-handling device 10, the control system 220 (FIG. 8) may be
configured under control of a program to electronically generate a
random or shuffled sequence of the deck, and to identify the
playing hands (or other subsets of playing cards) that would be
generated and dealt if the electronically shuffled deck of cards
were actually physically dealt to the players (and the dealer
himself) by the dealer. The control system 220 then may assign one
compartment 127 of the carousel 120 to each of those hands or
subsets of playing cards (which may be referred to as "hand
compartments.") Then, as the cards are fed into the card-handling
device 10 and identified by the card recognition system 246, the
control system 220 may cause the carousel 120 to selectively rotate
such that any cards corresponding to the hands or subsets are
placed within the corresponding hand compartments 127 of the
carousel 120. Other cards not corresponding to hands or subsets of
cards may be placed in one or more of the other compartments 127 of
the carousel 120 not designated as hand compartments. The control
system 220 then may cause the card output system to dispense the
first hand or subset of cards within the first hand compartment 127
into the card output tray 14. After the dealer has removed the
first hand from the card output tray 14 and given that hand to the
corresponding first player, the control system 220 then may cause
the card output system to dispense the second hand or subset of
cards within the second hand compartment 127 into the card output
tray 14. This process may continue until a selected number of
randomly generated playing hands has been dispensed and removed
from the card output tray 14 and dealt to the table.
[0128] The display 230 may include a touch screen or other user
controls that may be used to program the control system 220 of the
card-handling device 10. For example, the card-handling device 10
may be programmed to sequentially deliver a specified number of
hands each comprising a specified number of players. Furthermore,
the card-handling device 10 may be programmed to deliver a
specified number of cards to a dealer, a specified number of flop
cards, a bonus hand, common cards, or any other card or cards used
in the play of a casino card game. The touch screen or other user
controls of the display 230 also may be used to input a name of a
game for which the card-handling device has been programmed, so
that the name of the programmed game appears on the display 230 in
a menu of user selectable games. By employing a control system 220
that is programmable by an end user as described herein, the need
for factory programming or re-programming of the card-handling
device 10 every time a new casino card game is developed may be
eliminated, which may save time, eliminate the need for
re-submission of software to various gaming agencies for approval
before implementation in a casino, and eliminate the need for
upgrading software in the field.
[0129] By way of example and not limitation, the card-handling
device 10 may be programmed by an end user to deliver cards in a
pattern or sequence corresponding to the game of THREE CARD
POKER.TM., which requires that the players and dealer each receive
three cards. If a new game that utilizes three player cards (each)
and three dealer cards were to be developed in the future, and end
user would be able to input information including the new game name
into the card-handling device 10 and the card-handling device 10
would be configured for playing such a game without requiring a
software change.
[0130] As shown in FIG. 9, and also with reference to FIG. 8, the
display 230 may be configured to display an image of a game table
405 with various player positions 425, such as the THREE CARD
POKER.TM. game layout configuration.
[0131] In one embodiment with a touch screen display 230, the
card-handling and analysis system 250 may be configured such that
the user may touch a region near a specific player position 425 and
the display 230 may display card information 230A for the hand at
that specific player position 425. Alternatively, each of the
player positions 425 may display the card information of the hand
at each player position 425.
[0132] As a non-limiting example, the content of the graphic may
include the name of the game, player positions, dealer position,
and even game rules. A user may touch a specific player position
that is displayed on the touch screen to reveal the hand to which
this position was dealt. The display may also show the result of
the game, and the associated payouts, for example, a flush on
"Three Card Poker" table may pay 5 to 1.
[0133] As another non-limiting example, the touch screen display
content may include navigation buttons such as "past rounds,"
"current round," played hands," "unused hands," "back," "forward,"
and "exit." The Played hands button may be used to display the
hands that were actually dealt and bet upon in the current or a
previous round. Similarly the unused hands button may be used to
display hands that may have been processed by the shuffler but
never used in a round of play.
[0134] As non-limiting examples, the back button and forward button
may be used to navigate among unused hands or played hands.
Similarly, the back button and forward button may be used to
navigate among previously played rounds that are stored in a
database of rounds.
[0135] FIG. 10 is a block diagram of an integrated monitoring
system 400 (also referred to as a table management system) used to
monitor a gaming table 405 (shown in FIG. 7). The integrated
monitoring system 400 includes a card-handling and analysis system
250 coupled to a table manager 450 through a local table network
440. Some embodiments of the integrated monitoring system 400 may
also include one or more table image units 420 and object
recognition device 430 (e.g., chip readers) coupled to the table
manager 450 through the local table network 440. The table manager
450 may be coupled to a server (not shown) through a communication
network 460. By way of example, and not limitation, the
communication network 460 may be configured to couple multiple
table managers 450 to a central database or server by creating a
network for a specific pit area, a specific casino floor area, or
the entire casino.
[0136] The overhead imaging equipment and other hardware and/or
software is used to extract game information from a live gaming
table. Data from the overhead imaging equipment may be processed to
extract game play information. Non-limiting examples of game play
information include but are not limited to: player position
occupied, wager placed at a given player position, movement of a
card or group of cards from a shuffler (or card-reading shoe) to a
player position, movement of a card or cards to a common card area,
movement of a card or cards to a dealer card area, movement of a
card or cards to a bonus card area, placement of a side wager,
withdrawal of a wager, rolling of a dice, spinning of a wheel,
moving of cards from one area to another area on the table, the
collection of cards at the conclusion of a round of play, dealer
hand signals, the payment of payouts and the taking of lost wagers,
etc.
[0137] U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/558,810, filed Nov. 10,
2006, and titled "Casino Table Game Monitoring System," pending,
describes comprehensive card game monitoring systems, including
suitable hardware and software for performing the overhead imaging
function. Data such as the card composition (for games dealt--face
up) and wager information from such a system is collected and used
in combination with the hand composition information derived from
the card-reading system of shufflers of the present invention to
form data records of historical hand composition for a given player
position. The content of this application is incorporated by
reference in its entirety.
[0138] Card composition data from the overhead imaging system may
be compared to the card composition information collected in the
shuffler to determine if illegal card swapping has occurred. The
data from the overhead imaging system can also be used to associate
the hand with a particular player position on the table.
Additionally, data from the overhead system may be used to verify a
hand composition prior to making a large payout.
[0139] The combined data may be stored in memory associated with a
processor within the card shuffler or transmitted via a hardwire,
wireless or network connection to an external database. In one
example of the invention, a finite number of hands (i.e., 8-10) per
player position is stored in the internal memory of the shuffler
and can be displayed on the display associated with the shuffler.
Any information that is not stored in the shuffler memory may be
instead stored in the external database of an external computer and
may be displayed on a display associated with the external
computer. In some embodiments, the information stored in the
external database may be recalled and displayed using the user
inputs of the shuffler, allowing the previously stored information
to be displayed on the shuffler display.
[0140] A layout of a blackjack table 405 is shown as a non-limiting
example of another possible casino table game to which embodiments
of the present invention may be applied. The layout illustrates one
contemplated, suitable arrangement of elements of the integrated
monitoring system 400 in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention. The integrated monitoring system 400 may include many
components for determining various forms of information about the
game being played at the table 405, the players playing the game,
wager amounts and payouts, and the dealer responsible for the game.
As is described below in more detail, the information may be
captured, processed, and acted upon (e.g., generation of alerts) in
substantially real time.
[0141] In system 400, the table 405 is used for blackjack and is
equipped with the card-handling and analysis system 250 (FIG. 8)
described earlier. The card-handling and analysis system 250 with
display 230 is configured for communications via communication
medium 380 and the local table network 440 with the table manager
450. The system 400 may include an object recognition device 430.
As one example of an object recognition device 430, FIG. 10
illustrates object recognition devices 430 that may be configured
as Radio Frequency Identifier (RFID) antennas/transmitters for each
wagering area. In an embodiment with RFID transmitters 430 and RFID
tagged chips (not shown), the RFID transmitters 430 are located
within or underneath the table 405. The RFID antennas/transmitters
respectively read the values of the game chips and then transmit
the chip information to the table manager 450 via the communication
medium 380 and local table network 440. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,651,548
and 5,735,742 describe RFID chips and chip reading systems that may
be used as the game chips and RFID transmitters 430. Although not
shown, the RFID transmitters 430 may be configured to extend into
an insurance area 435 of the table 405 to obtain the chip values of
insurance wagers. In another embodiment, additional individual RFID
transmitters connected to the communication medium 380 may be
placed in the insurance area 435, one RFID transmitter associated
with each player wagering area.
[0142] The system 400 may also include overhead cameras 420 (also
referred to as image units) connected to a ceiling of the casino,
mounted on a pole to the table, or in the vicinity of the table
405. These cameras 420 process the images received by the cameras
420 respectively and communicate with the table manager 450 over
the communication media and the local table network 440.
[0143] The table manager 450 processes, and may transmit, images of
items viewed by the cameras 420 in substantially near real time.
Dealt card values, wagers, and other table activity can be imaged
and determined using the cameras 420 in cooperation with the table
manager 450. The table manager 450 may be implemented as a
general-purpose computer system, a server, or other processor
system as is generally known in the art. The table manager 450 will
contain computer implemented processing that may be stored on a
computer-readable medium of the general-purpose computer system. As
such, the processing and functions of the table manager 450 may be
stored as a computer program on a computer-readable medium, or
downloaded from the server (not shown) over the communication
network 460.
[0144] As can been seen from FIG. 10, the cameras 420 are
positioned to achieve a full view of the gaming table surface, and
may be positioned to give the best vantage point for the desired
application. An optical or magnetic synchronizing sensor can be
used to detect the presence of an object on the gaming surface of
the table 405. The sensor, if used, may activate the cameras 420
and trigger image acquisition. The images are processed and
transmitted to the table manager 450.
[0145] As with the control system 220 (FIG. 8) of the card-handling
device 10 (FIG. 1), the integrated monitoring system 400 may be
configured with an authorization element input device (not shown).
As a non-limiting example, the authorization element may be in
communication with the table manager 450. Thus, in the integrated
monitoring system 400, the table manager 450 may be configured for
handling the authorization process of gathering a user
identification, a password, or a combination thereof. The result of
the authorization process may then be sent to the card-handling and
analysis system 250.
[0146] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a method of recognizing card
information and maintaining a play history in accordance with
embodiments of the present invention. Many of the operations
illustrated in FIG. 11 may be performed anywhere within the process
and are shown in the sequential order of FIG. 11 only for ease of
description. At operation 502 the cards are moved from the infeed
of the card-handling device and through at least part of the
card-handling device. At operation 504, the card recognition system
identifies information for each card as it moves through the
card-handling device or at some specific location within the
card-handling device. Any suitable location within the
card-handling device may be used as long as the card information
collected may be associated with a specific card and a specific
hand or group of cards.
[0147] Operation 506 indicates that the card information from the
card recognition system may be analyzed to determine card features,
such as, for example, rank and suit, and the card information is
stored in the control system.
[0148] Decision block 510 determines whether another card should be
processed for the current round. If so, control returns to
operation 504 to process the next card. If after loading and the
proper number of cards are present for the current round, control
continues on to operation 511. The loop controlled by decision
block 510 may be used, as a non-limiting example, to process each
card in a standard 52 card deck to verify that the deck is
complete. This may be done by comparing the rank and suit of each
card with a library of stored information. If a card is missing
from the deck, the rank and suit of that card may be displayed and
the shuffle may be aborted.
[0149] In other words, as each card is processed by the device, a
processor (or process) associated with controlling the
card-handling device can track where each card that is handled ends
up in the carousel 120 (FIG. 4A). In addition, another processor
(or another process) can keep track of the card information for
each card. As a result, the loop controlled by decision block 510
can verify a full deck is present based on the card information
(e.g., rank and suit).
[0150] At this point, some embodiments may maintain the process of
identifying which card went where in the carousel separate from the
process of identifying the card information for each card. As a
non-limiting example, suppose the cards are numbered sequentially
with a card number as they are delivered to the carousel. The first
process may track the random distribution of cards. For example,
the first process could track that card 1 is delivered to
compartment 8, card 2 is delivered to compartment 3, card 3 is
delivered to compartment 1, and so on. The second process may track
that card 1 is a two of diamonds, card 2 is a king of clubs, card 3
is a five of hearts and so on. With this tracking, as a security
feature, the overall process 500 may not know complete information
about what each hand contains. Rather, one process may know that a
hand contains delivered cards 3, 8, and 51. The other process may
know the specific rank and suit of each card in the sequence of
card numbers.
[0151] After completion of verification of the deck and recording
of card information for each sequential card, control passes to
operation block 511.
[0152] In operation block 511 the card information for each
sequential card may be associated with the hand information of
which card numbers are in which compartments of the carousel. In
other words, as a non-limiting example, the information that
compartment four contains cards 3, 8 and 51 is combined with the
information that card 3 is a queen of hearts, card 8 is a ten of
clubs, and card 51 is a nine of spades.
[0153] Some embodiments may perform this operation of associating
the hand information with the card information as late as possible
in the round to prevent cheating where the information may be known
before the hands are actually dealt to the players. Thus, the
association may be made at different point in execution of playing
the round, such as, for example, after the hands are complete in
the carousel, as a hand as it is removed from the card-handling
device, as a hand is placed in a player position, or after all
hands have been dealt.
[0154] In other embodiments of the invention, instead of
associating the card information of all cards with all the card
numbers, the association process may only be performed for the card
information associated with cards that are dealt into compartments
forming hands. The rank/suit information of the unused cards (i.e.,
the cards that go into discard compartments) may not be matched
up.
[0155] In still other embodiments, the card information may be
associated directly with the compartment number rather than keeping
track of the card information and hand information separate. Either
way, after all cards have been distributed, the hand compositions
are known by the processor. As a matter of design choice, this
information is not viewable to the end user until after the cards
have been distributed into the delivery tray.
[0156] Optional operation 512 indicates that the hand positions may
be identified for the hands before, after, or when they are dealt
from the card-handling device. If the embodiment is configured with
an object recognition device, the hand position may be determined
based on active player positions as is described above with
reference to FIG. 10.
[0157] Operation 514 indicates that all card information and player
position information may be stored for the entire round after the
round is complete. As a non-limiting example, such information may
include, the type of game, player position, card rank and suit of
each card in each player position's hand, size of bet at each
player position, and anticipated payout based on the rules.
[0158] Decision block 516 indicates whether a query is made for
history information. This history information may include card
information and player position information for the current round
or for past, completed rounds. If display of history information is
desired, operation 518 displays the desired information. Otherwise,
control transfers to decision 520. The display information may
include a display of all hands for the current round or only hands
at active player positions. Furthermore, the display may be
configured to display a single player's current hand or past
hands.
[0159] In some embodiments, the display may display the card
information by presenting some type of graphical representation or
symbol for the card information such as rank and suit. In other
embodiments, all or part of a stored image of the card may be
displayed rather than just the rank and suit symbols. For example,
a graphic image of a one-eyed Jack of diamonds can be displayed
rather than a "J" and a diamond symbol. In a preferred embodiment,
only a portion of the graphic image is displayed (e.g., 25% of the
card face).
[0160] In addition, the shuffler or an external game controller in
communication with the shuffler processor may be programmed with
the game rules such that the shuffler can display the game result
information or send data to an external display. In a preferred
format, the game rules are programmed into the shuffler processor
such that the winning hand can be identified on the shuffler
display. Even if an external processor determines a game result,
the data can be transmitted back to the shuffler so that the game
outcome can be displayed on the shuffler display and so that the
display can indicate to the dealer who should be paid and the
correct payment amount.
[0161] Decision 520 indicates whether another round is desired; if
so, control transfers back to operation 502, otherwise, control
transfers to operation 522. Optional operation 522 indicates that
the history information gathered and stored in the control system
220 (FIG. 8) or table manager (FIG. 10) may be transferred to
another computer for archiving or additional processing. As a
non-limiting example, the control system may include a history of
about 10 rounds. If the control system is in communication with an
external computer, the control system may send the round
information for rounds older than the past 10 rounds to the
external computer. Otherwise, the control system may simply drop
off the oldest round beyond the 10th round.
[0162] Optional operation 524 indicates that additional processing
on the history may be performed. Additional processing may include,
as non-limiting examples, review of the history in an attempt to
find dealer errors, cheating, and statistical review of the history
to find betting patterns or to verify randomness of the game.
Furthermore, this additional processing may be performed on an
external computer, the table manager 450 (FIG. 10) or the control
system 220 (FIG. 8). In one embodiment, historical hand composition
information is stored within control system 220, and is accessible
by the user by inputting a request on user input device 226. A
touch screen display 230 displays historical hand information upon
request. In one embodiment, multiple historical hand compositions
for each player position are viewable.
[0163] In another embodiment, historical hand composition
information is stored on table manager 450 (e.g., controller) and
is displayed on either a separate monitor 451 or on the shuffler
display 230.
[0164] In some embodiments, a shuffler may be configured to deliver
no more hands or other card combinations (such as dealer hands,
community cards, bonus hands, bonus cards, etc.) than is necessary
to administer the game. For games that do not require the dealer to
deal hands to all table positions (regardless of whether there is
an active player), the shuffler may receive a signal from the wager
sensors (or other sensor denoting an active player position) and
limits the hand output to only what is necessary to administer the
game. As a non-limiting example, if there are only two players, the
shuffler will sense that state and deliver only two hands.
[0165] FIG. 12 shows another embodiment of a table manager 450 that
manages play of a game being played remotely from the table by a
player using a computing device 600. The table manager 450 in this
embodiment provides the player at the computing device 600 with a
video feed of a dealer 610 dealing the game from a card handling
system 250 and enables the player to interact with a live table of
the game without being physically present at the table. The table
405 in this embodiment includes a card-handling and analysis system
250 that includes card shuffling capabilities as described above as
well as a card recognition system 246 that identifies the suit and
rank of cards dispensed from the card handling system 250. The
table 405 also includes a camera 620 and a microphone 625. The
camera and microphone are positioned to capture video and audio
signals of the game play. The table includes a play area 630 for
dealing cards for play of the game. The camera 620 captures the
play of the game on the play area 630 as well as the dealer 610 and
card handling system 250, while the microphone 625 captures any
interaction provided by the dealer 610 during play of the game,
such as prompts to any players, instructions on the game, and any
social interactions. The card handling system 250, camera 620, and
microphone 625 are operatively connected to the table manager 450
and communicate information and receive commands from the table
manager 450.
[0166] The table 405 also includes a dealer display 640 and a
player action indicator 650. The dealer display 640 displays
information to the dealer related to the play of the game, for
example administration of the game. Examples of displayed
information include identifying the player whose action it is, the
number of players in the game, or a subsequent action for the
dealer to perform (e.g., deal a card to player 3, or reveal cards
to conclude a round). The dealer display 640 is typically located
near camera 620, such as above or below the camera, such that while
the dealer 610 views and receives information about the game, the
dealer is also able to interact with the camera 620.
[0167] The table 405 in one embodiment also includes a player
action indicator 650. One player action indicator 650 may be
included for each player position in the game, for example on a
gaming table. For example, the player action indicator 650 may be
an additional display or indicator at a player's position
indicating a user's action in a round. For example, in blackjack
the indicator may indicate the player wishes to hit or stand. The
player action indicator 650 may also include a textual readout
indicating a player's name or username associated with that
position. The dealer display 640 and player action indicator 650
are operatively connected to the table manager 450 and receive
commands from the table manager 450. The table manager 405 is
coupled to the various devices at the table 405 through any
suitable communication means, such as a local area network using a
wired or wireless protocol. In some embodiments, the table manager
450 is also a part of the table 405.
[0168] The table manager 450 controls the operation of the game
play by providing a video and audio feed to the computing device
600 and providing player actions to the dealer 610. The table
manager 450 is in communication with the computing device 600 and
transmits, receives, and updates game and wagering information as
each round of a game progresses and is concluded.
[0169] The table manager 450 also receives the card information
from the card handling system 250 and associates the cards from the
card handling system 250 with the appropriate hands of the game. In
some embodiments, the processing system of the card handling system
250 collects hand information as hands are formed in compartments,
and prior to delivery of a hand of cards to an output tray. The
hand information may be retained in memory associated with the card
handling system 250, or in memory associated with the table manager
450 or in another memory device associated with the system. In
other embodiments, cards may be read as individual cards are being
delivered to a delivery tray. For example U.S. Pat. No. 6,698,756,
the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its
entirety describes a shuffler structure that captures images of
cards as hands of cards are formed in the tray. This structure
could be adapted to extract rank and suit information from the
cards and store hand data for use in the disclosed system. As
described above, the table manager 450 determines player hands
based on cards dealt by the card handling system 250. The hand
information may be determined from receiving the information from
the processing system of the card handling system 250, or the hand
information may be determined from receiving card information and
associating the card information with a hand in the table manager
450.
[0170] Since in many games the order of cards dealt is defined by
the rules of the game, the table manager 450 may use the game rules
to determine the appropriate player, player position or other game
entity with which to associate the card. For example, if an initial
card in a game is always discarded, or a "burn" card, the table
manager 450 associates the first received card from the card
handling system 250 with a discard. If the second card is
associated with a first player's hand according to the game rules,
the second received card is associated with the first player's
hand, and so forth. Thus, in some embodiments, for a game such as
three-card poker, described above, where a set of a fixed number of
cards is dealt to each player position, the table manager 450
automatically associates the set of cards with a player position as
the cards are dealt. The set of cards may be a partial player hand
of cards, a complete hand of player cards, a partial hand of dealer
cards, a complete hand of dealer cards, a set of community cards, a
set of replacement cards or another set of cards used in the game.
In one embodiment, as card information relating to various cards
and card sets is received from the card handling system 250, an
indication may be placed on the dealer display 640 indicating the
location for each card or each set of cards to assist the dealer
610 in administering the game and preventing errors.
[0171] The table manager 450 also manages requesting and receiving
actions by a player for the game play. When a decision is presented
to a player according to the rules of the game, such as a dealer
610 requesting a wagering election by announcing the request
through microphone 625, or electronically requesting an election
through a dealer interface (not shown), the table manager 450
signals the computing device 600 to present or display the user
with the options available to the user. In embodiments, the dealer
610 verbally requests an election and receives an option election
verbally. In other embodiments, the option selected is made by
inputting an election into an input device of the computing device
600. The option selected by the user is returned to the table
manager 450, which presents the player's option to the dealer 610
using the player action indicator 650 or the dealer display 640. In
some embodiments, a camera and microphone (not shown) may be
associated with the player's computing device 600 and a video and
audio feed of the player may be received by the table manager 450
and transmitted to and displayed on the dealer display 640.
[0172] Cards dispensed and card information provided by the card
handling system 250 may be dispensed responsive to a dealer action
610, such as by taking a card from the card handling system 250, or
the dealer pressing a button on the card handling system 250.
Alternatively, the card handling system 250 dispenses a card
responsive to a control signal sent by table manager 450. The
control signal may be send, for example, when rules of the game
indicate a card is to be dealt. For example, in a game with
community cards, when all players have provided an election, the
table manager 450 may automatically signal to the card handling
system 250 that an additional community card is to be dealt.
[0173] The table manager 450 manages wagers placed by a player and
according to the game rules, awards winnings and collects losses
accordingly. Thus, the amount available to wager is stored in one
embodiment by the table manager 450. In other embodiments, the
table manager may be responsible for determining wins and losses of
a single wager only, and a separate entity, such as a financial
institution or a casino maintaining player accounts, manages
adjusting the players accounts based on the game results determined
by table manager 450.
[0174] The table manager 450 also coordinates presentation of
information to the user by transmitting the received video and
audio of the camera 620 and microphone 625 to the computing device
600 for display to the user. When suitable for the game rules, the
table manager also transmits card information such as rank and suit
of cards, hand composition information, hands in a round
information and historical hand and round information to the
computing device, permitting the computing device 600 to separately
display cards to the user that may or may not be viewable on the
play area 630. While shown here as relating to a single computing
device 600, many computing devices 600 may communicate with the
table manager 450 for playing at the table 405.
[0175] For example, in one embodiment, the gaming table 405 has
five distinct player positions. Players may select a particular
table that has a player position that is not being accessed by a
computing device 600. The table manager 450 may receive an input
from computing device 600 indicating a player has selected a
specific position, such as position 2 and play a game with other
players who have selected different positions on the same
table.
[0176] The table manager 450 in one embodiment transmits card
information viewable by the player position played by the computing
device 600. For example, in certain games, player cards are not
permitted to be shared between players, and may be dealt face-down
by the dealer 610 in the play area 630. The card information, as
read by the card handling system 250 is transmitted to the table
manager 450, and the cards viewable by each player position is
transmitted by the table manager 450 to the computing device
associated with that player position. As wagers are resolved, the
face-down cards are overturned by the dealer 610 and players can
confirm that the cards shown by the computing devices 600 are
matched by the cards that were actually dealt to the play area 630
by viewing representations of the cards on a display associated
with the computing device. In other embodiments, the player only
sees a live video feed of the physical cards on the table, and the
card and hand rank and suit information is used to determine wins
and losses by the table manager 450.
[0177] In certain games, multiple computing devices 600 may be
associated with a single player position. In these games, player
decisions do not affect a player's hand, but rather affect only
whether the player continues in the hand. For example, in
three-card poker, a player's three-card hand is not changed during
the round of play, as a player makes a decision whether to make a
play bet or to fold. When multiple players are associated with a
single player position, these players share the same hand. For the
players that decide to fold, their wager is resolved based on the
fold decision, while for players that decide to play, their wager
is resolved based on the play decision. Since the player decisions
do not affect the strength of a player's hand or the gameplay
results, many players can share the same player position while
allowing each player full control over the gaming play. In this
embodiment, the table manager 450 waits for all players associated
with a player position to select an action at each decision point
in the round. After each player associated with the player position
makes a decision, the table manager 450 signals the dealer 610 to
continue. In some embodiments, back betting is permitted at each
player position. The player position is first elected by an active
player, and then all other players associated with the same
position are passive back betters. If the game requires a player
election, players back betting on the same hand must accept the
active player's play elections. For example, if the game is a Three
Card Poker.TM. game and the active better elects to fold, the
passive players must also fold.
[0178] In additional embodiments, the table manager 450 manages
multiple player positions for a same game, and transmits
information viewable to each player position to the player
associated with that position. Actions taken by one player in a
game can have an impact on options available to another player,
which adds a social aspect to the games and makes the games more
interesting to players.
[0179] The table manager 450 may also maintain and transmit
information to the computing devices 600 related to prior hands of
play, for the player or multiple players, as described above.
[0180] The table manager 450 communicates with the computing device
600 through a suitable network (not shown). The network may be any
networking communications system, such as a TCP/IP network, and in
typical configurations is the internet. The computing device 600
typically establishes a connection to the table manager 450 through
at least one intermediary system, as shown in subsequent figures,
and is shown directly connected to the table manager 450 in this
figure for convenience.
[0181] The computing device 600 is a computing device with a
processor, memory, and other features for providing gaming services
to a user of the computing device 600. The computing device 600 may
be a desktop or laptop computer, a tablet, handheld computer, a
mobile device, or any other suitable machine for communicating with
the table manager 450. The computing device 600 receives the video
and audio feed from the table manager 450 and displays the video
and audio feed to the user of the computing device 600 along with
an interface for selecting actions in the game and placing wagers.
The computing device 600 executes computer code on the processor
for providing these functions. The computing device may execute a
full-featured client or may execute a thin client, according to the
implementation of the invention. In one embodiment, the computing
device 600 executes a thin client that does not maintain any game
rules, instead receiving instructions regarding game element
interactions from the table manager 450 as game events that change
the status of game elements, such as wagers or cards. In another
embodiment, the computing device 600 executes an application
associated with a third-party casino that includes an interface in
the application for connecting with table manager 450.
[0182] In this way, the camera 620 can show the remote dealer at
the computing device 600 video feed of the play of the game, and
allows the player to view the game as it is played, in addition to
visually verifying the dealing of cards by the card handling system
250. In addition, as the card information is automatically read for
each card by the card handling system 250, it reduces the risk of
error by the dealer 610 in the game where users are located
remotely from the display of the game, while allowing users to
engage is a dealer-dealt game with a live person administering the
game rather than playing a virtual computer-dealt game. In
addition, reading the card information at the card handling system
250 prevents user error or delay in providing card information
after the cards have been dealt.
[0183] FIG. 13 illustrates one embodiment of an interface 700
displayed on the computing device 600 including a video feed of the
table 405. The interface 700 includes a table video feed 710 and a
user interface 720. The table video feed 710 provides the video
that was captured by camera 620 trained on the dealer. In this
example, a play area 630 for three-card poker is shown, though any
suitable game may be played using this system. The play area in
this example includes a three-card hand area for the player and a
three-card hand area for the dealer. While a single player's hand
is shown in this embodiment, in other embodiments where multiple
player positions are played, each player position's hand may be
shown. As the dealer receives cards from the card handling system
250, the dealer deals the cards to play area 630. Using the video
feed, the player can view the dealer, card handling system, and
play area during the gameplay through the table video feed 710,
allowing a more realistic feeling to the game. In various
embodiments, the card information may also be presented to the
user. This is particularly useful where the cards have been placed
face-down, but may also be useful to the user even when the cards
are visible in the table video feed 710.
[0184] The table video feed 710 also includes betting areas 730.
The betting areas 730 are a portion of the interface added by the
computing device 600 as a layer on the table video feed 710. When a
player wishes to place a bet, the player selects a chip
denomination 722 from the user interface 720 and places the bet in
the betting area 730. In this example of three-card poker, to
initiate a game, the player may select a $5 clip from the chip
denominations 722 and places the $5 chip in the ante and pair plus
betting areas 730. The user interface 720 includes additional
interface elements for the player to interact with the computing
device 600. When the computing device 600 receives an indication
from the table manager 450 that the player must make a decision,
actions 724 become available for the player to respond to the
decision. In various embodiments, the actions 724 for a player are
presented in different ways. For example, the actions 724 may be a
pop-up in a dedicated window to draw attention to the action
724.
[0185] The user interface 720 in this embodiment includes a chat
window 726. The chat window 726 permits communications between
players, and between the players and the dealer 610. The chat
messages entered by players are received by the table manager 450
and provided to the dealer display 640, enabling the players and
dealer to interact with one another.
[0186] FIG. 14 shows one embodiment of an environment of
implementing a table manager 450. In this embodiment, a computing
device 600 communicates with a networked casino system 810. While
depicted here separate systems, gaming provider 800 and networked
casino system 810 are implemented in some embodiments in the same
system. The gaming provider 800 provides a gateway for a group of
tables (and associated table managers 450) to be accessed by other
systems. When players request to join a game, the gaming provider
800 selects a table manager 450 for the player to join. As shown,
the gaming provider 800 may receive requests to provide tables from
several networked casino systems 810, and may provide tables that
are joined by members of various networked casino systems 810.
[0187] The gaming provider 800 also receives an indication from
networked casino system 810 indicating money available for the
player to wager in a particular game. In one embodiment, the gaming
provider does not take possession of wagering funds, and rather
reports results from table manager 450 to the networked casino
system 810. In one embodiment, the gaming provider 800 takes
possession of wagering funds. In one embodiment, the gaming
provider 800 associates received funds with a screen name or handle
and does not maintain financial details associated with the
player.
[0188] The networked casino system 810 maintains an account
relating to the user, including a user name and financial
information. The financial information may include a bankroll or
other budget associated with money available for gaming, or may
include financial details such as a credit card or bank information
for obtaining or securing such money. The networked casino system
810 may also have a relationship with many gaming providers,
permitting users associated with the networked casino system to
select a provider desired by the player, and permitting the
networked casino system 810 to select gaming providers 800 that
provide a variety of games.
[0189] FIG. 15 is a method for facilitating game play by the table
manager 450 according to one embodiment. The table manager 450
receives 900 a video feed of the gaming table from a camera and
receives an initial player wager 910. The game is initiated 920,
and the video feed is provided to the user device, which may be
provided prior to receiving the initial player wager. Initiating
920 the gaming round includes clearing memory related to the
current round of a game play and receiving information from the
card handling device that it has shuffled cards related to the
game. Received information can include the number of hands dealt,
hand composition, card information, partial hand information, etc.
Next, the card handling device deals cards, either under the
direction of the table manager 450 or because it received an
indication from a dealer, e.g., by a button press, to begin
dealing. As cards are dealt, card information is sent by the card
handling device to the table manager 450 which receives 930 the
card information. Using the card information and game rules, the
card information is associated with the appropriate location. That
is, the card may be associated with a hand, burned, community
cards, or another aspect of the game.
[0190] The video feed is transmitted to the computing device, and
when applicable, the card information is also transmitted 950.
Next, the rules of the game determine what options are available to
the players and whether additional cards must be dealt. When there
are additional cards to deal, the additional cards are dealt and
the card information is received 930 and associated 940 with the
appropriate designation. When there is a player action remaining,
the computing device is signaled 970, which provides a received
response based on the actions available to the user. Finally, after
the round is complete, the user's wager is resolved 990.
[0191] Systems of the present invention advantageously deliver live
video feed of a live dealer dealing a game on a gaming table to a
player who can observe the dealer and dealer actions through a
computing device. Combining the live dealer interactions with data
acquired from the automatic card shuffler provides the player with
a more secure gaming experience, and provides the player with more
information that can be used for analysis and game play election
decisions. For example, a player may have the ability to arrange a
virtual hand of cards on a player display associated with the
computing device 600 when the hand composition is derived from the
shuffler and the data is transmitted to the computing device 600.
Manipulating cards is not possible when the only indication of the
hand is on a live dealer feed. Additionally, when the remote dealer
delivers a hand of cards to a player position on the table, the
system already has knowledge of the hand composition, making it
impossible for the player to collude with the dealer and switch
cards. This extra level of security therefore prevents some forms
of cheating and therefore presents a more secure and fair gaming
environment for the player.
[0192] Although the embodiments of the invention may have been
described with reference to particular card games, it should be
appreciated that they may be applicable to any other casino
communal or non-communal card games.
[0193] While the embodiments of the invention have been described
in detail in connection with preferred embodiments known at the
time, the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments.
Rather, the invention can be modified to incorporate any number of
variations, alterations, substitutions, or equivalent arrangements
not heretofore described, but which are commensurate with the scope
of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited by the
foregoing description or drawings, but is only limited by the scope
of the appended claims, including equivalents thereof.
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