RFID-enabled systems for facilitating table games

• US 10,201,745 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2017
• Issued: 02/12/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Walker Digital Table Systems LLC (Walker Innovation Inc. (f/k/a Patent Properties, Inc.))
• Original Assignee: Walker Digital Table Systems LLC (Walker Innovation Inc. (f/k/a Patent Properties, Inc.))
• Inventors: Moore, Stephen, Besterman, Brian, Bischoff, Jeff
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim, Kevin Y
• Application Number:
  US15/603,123
• Publication Number:
  US 20170259166A1
• Time in Patent Office: 630 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/06 Card games appurtenances
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2003/00164 Casino tables
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2009/2429 IC card, chip card, smart card
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2009/2489 by radio transmitters, e.g. using RFID
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/00157 Casino or betting games horse races A63F3/00082
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 9/24 Electric games; Games using electronic circuits not otherwise provided for video games A63F13/00; computerized gaming systems G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/322 Casino tables, e.g. tables having integrated screens, chip detection means
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3237 about the players, e.g. profiling, responsible gaming, strategy/behavior of players, location of players

Abstract

A gaming table provides for use of RFID technology to track chip movement on a table game and to infer an association between a wager and a player position based on a chip identifier of a chip placed on a particular position of the table. In some embodiments, previous position history of the chip is also taken into account in determining a player position associated with a wager.

Claims

1. A system for facilitating a card game, comprising:

a table apparatus, the table apparatus having positioned thereon a plurality of player positions, each player position for association with a respective player position RFID antenna;

a processor operable to communicate with each of the respective player position RFID antennas; and

a memory accessible to the processor, the memory storing (i) information about RFID-enabled chips usable on the table apparatus for a card game;

(ii) information about remote players that are not physically present at the table apparatus yet placing wagers on a card game conducted on the table apparatus; and

(ii) a program, wherein the processor is operable with the program to;

receive an indication that a first RFID-enabled chip has been acquired at an RFID antenna associated with a particular player position, the indication including an identifier of the particular RFID antenna that acquired the first RFID-enabled chip and a unique identifier of the first RFID-enabled chip, thereby determining a first specific RFID-enabled chip and a first acquiring antenna;

register, for a current event of the card game, a first wager as corresponding to at least one of a player position or a player associated with the first acquiring antenna;

receive, for the current event of the card game, data defining a second wager placed by a remote player that is not seated at a player position of the table;

register, for the current event of the card game, the second wager as corresponding to the remote player; and

resolve a result for the current event of the card game based on at least the first wager and the second wager.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor being operable with the program to register the first wager comprises the processor being operable with the program to register a type and a magnitude of the first wager based on at least one of a denomination and a placement of the first specific RFID-enabled chip.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is operable to receive data from a remote wagering device associated with the remote player and wherein the processor being operable with the program to register the second wager comprises the processor receiving, from the remote wagering device, an indication of a type and a magnitude of the second wager that the remote player has selected.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operable with the program to automatically configure betting options output to the remote player via the remote wagering device to accurately reflect live events of the card game at the table apparatus.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operable with the program to receive a selection of the current game event from the remote player via a user interface of the remote wagering device, and further wherein the remote wagering device is configured to output to the remote player an indication of at least one of a game event and a physical table on which the game event is occurring, such that the remote player can remotely join the game event.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the indication comprises at least one of an alert and a location service that assists the remote player in finding, based on at least one characteristic, game events and physical tables available for the remote player to remotely join.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one characteristic comprises at least one of trend information, wager information and number of bettors information.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor if further operable with the program to add a virtual player position to a representation of the table apparatus based on the data defining the second wager.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote player is a player located within an area of a casino in which the table apparatus is located but not seated at a player position of the table apparatus.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the remote wagering device is a device that is physically attached to a chair, cabinet, wall, podium or other physical element in the casino.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the remote player is located outside an area of a casino in which the table apparatus is located.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the remote wagering device comprises at least one of a tablet computer, a laptop or a smartphone.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first wager and the second wager comprises a re-characterization wager.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor is further operable with the program to:

recognize a plurality of distinct wagers as having been placed on a wager type identified in a particular area of a surface of the table apparatus.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the processor is further operable with the program to identify that at least one of the wagers of the plurality of wagers corresponds to the remote player.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the processor is operable to recognize the plurality of distinct wagers by recognizing, using at least one of RFID and an optical camera associated with the processor, at least two distinct stacks of RFID-enabled chips as having been placed within the particular area.

17. The system of claim 14, wherein the table apparatus further comprises, as associated with the particular area, two RFID antennas, one RFID antenna of the two RFID antennas being designated for recognizing wagers of a first player and the other RFID antenna of the two RFID antennas being designated for recognizing wagers of a second player.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the particular area is at least one player position of the plurality of player positions, the first player is a player that is seated at the player position, and the second player is a remote player that is not seated at the at least one player position.

19. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions for directing a processor of a table apparatus, the table apparatus having positioned thereon a plurality of player positions, each player position for association with a respective player position RFID antenna,

wherein the processor is operable to communicate with each of the respective player position RFID antennas;

and access a memory of the table apparatus, the memory storing (i) information about RFID-enabled chips usable on the table apparatus for a card game;

(ii) information about remote players that are not physically present at the table apparatus yet placing wagers on a card game conducted on the table apparatus,

the instructions, when executed by the processor, causing the processor to;

receive an indication that a first RFID-enabled chip has been acquired at an RFID antenna associated with a particular player position, the indication including an identifier of the particular RFID antenna that acquired the first RFID-enabled chip and a unique identifier of the first RFID-enabled chip, thereby determining a first specific RFID-enabled chip and a first acquiring antenna;

register, for a current event of the card game, a first wager as corresponding to at least one of a player position or a player associated with the first acquiring antenna;

receive, for the current event of the card game, data defining a second wager placed by a remote player that is not seated at a player position of the table;

register, for the current event of the card game, the second wager as corresponding to the remote player; and

resolve a result for the current event of the card game based on at least the first wager and the second wager.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

automatically configure betting options output to the remote player via the remote wagering device to accurately reflect live events of the card game at the table apparatus.