Apparatus and method for automatically shuffling cards

• US 20080284096A1
• Filed: 05/06/2008
• Published: 11/20/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/21/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AGS LLC (PlayAGS, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Shuffle Tech International, LLC
• Inventors: Toyama, Hirohide, Jones, Stephen C.
• Granted Patent: US 7,971,881 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 273/149R
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/12 Card shufflers

Abstract

An apparatus and method of automatically shuffling a deck of playing cards is described. The apparatus includes three compartments disposed laterally with respect to each other and at least one compartment movable vertically with respect to another other compartment. Cards placed in one of the compartments are dispensed into the other two compartments so as to cut or strip the deck, and are returned to the original compartment by interleaving cards from the other compartments. The process may be repeated to substantially randomize the deck for use in playing a game of cards. The cards may be removed either through a top aperture through which the cards were introduced into the apparatus or using a removable tray.

Claims

1. A device for shuffling a deck of cards, comprising:

a first compartment, a second compartment, and a third compartment;

a card delivery compartment;

wherein a transport mechanism of the first compartment is operable to dispense cards of the deck of cards disposable in the first compartment from the first compartment to at least one of the second or third compartments, and a transport mechanism of the second compartment and of the third compartment is operable to dispense cards from at least one of the second and third compartments to the first compartment.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the cards are dispensed from at least one of the first, second or third compartments to the card delivery compartment.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the card delivery compartment is disposed in an aperture in a side of the device.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the card delivery compartment includes a tray, sized and dimensioned to receive a deck of cards.

5. The device of claim 4, wherein the tray is removable from the device.

6. The device of claim 1, further comprising a switch located on an exterior surface thereof, the switch operable to configure the device so that the cards are located in one of the card delivery compartment or one of the first, second or third compartments when the cards are removable from the device.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the one of the first, second or third compartments where the cards are located when the cards are removable from the device is disposable proximal to an upper surface of the device housing.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the compartment containing the cards that are removable is the same compartment used to insert the cards into the device.

9. The device of claim 1, wherein the cards are dispensed from the bottom of at least one of the first, the second, or the third compartment.

10. A card shuffling device, the device comprising:

a central compartment;

a right-hand compartment;

a left hand compartment;

wherein the central compartment is movable in a vertical direction with respect to the right-hand and left-hand compartments, and each of the central compartment, the left-hand compartment and the right hand-compartment has a transport mechanism for moving cards insertable in the compartment from the bottom of the compartment to a top aperture in another of the compartments.

11. The card shuffling device of claim 10, wherein a deck of cards is insertable into the central compartment through an aperture in a top surface of the device.

12. The card shuffling device of claim 10, further comprising a card delivery compartment.

13. The card shuffling device of claim 12, wherein the card delivery compartment has a tray sized and dimensioned to receive cards of the deck of cards from one of the central, the right-hand, or the left-hand compartments.

14. The card shuffling device of claim 13, wherein the tray is removable from the device through an aperture in a side surface of the device.

15. The card shuffling device of claim 13, wherein a lower surface of the tray has pair of openings on opposing side edges of bottom surface thereof, and a pair of openings in side walls contiguous thereto, sized and dimensioned and cooperating so that opposing fingers of a hand may be inserted so as to grasp the cards for removal from the tray.

16. The card shuffling device of claim 13, wherein opposing side walls have openings, sized and dimensioned so that opposing fingers of a hand may be inserted so as to grasp the cards for removal from the tray.

17. The card shuffling device of claim 10, further comprising a switch disposed on an exterior surface of the device, operable to configure the device so that after being shuffled, a deck of cards is positioned for removal from the device through one of the central compartment, or a card delivery compartment accessible through an aperture in a side of the device.

18. The card shuffling device of claim 17, wherein the card delivery compartment further comprises a tray, sized and dimensioned to receive the deck of cards, and the tray is removable from the device.

19. The card shuffling device of claim 10, further comprising a card deflector disposed such that cards moved from the right-hand and left-hand compartments to the central compartment are deflected downward into the central compartment.

20. The card shuffling device of claim 19, wherein the card deflector is disposed such that cards may be inserted into the central compartment when the central compartment is disposed proximal to an aperture in a top surface of the device.

21. The card shuffling device of claim 20, wherein a vertical movement of the central compartment configures the disposition of the card deflector.

22. The card shuffling device of claim 19, wherein the card deflector is a structure journalled with respect to a stationary portion of the device and disposed so as to project into a region above the top of the central compartment, when the central compartment is positioned so as to be capable of receiving cards from at least one of the right-hand or the left-hand compartment.

23. The card shuffling device of claim 22, wherein the structure has a part projecting from the structure into a volume defined by the bottom surface and side walls of the central compartment, and operable to deflect cards into the central compartment.

24. The card shuffling device of claim 10, wherein a belt drive is coupled to the central compartment and operable to raise and lower the central compartment with respect to the left-hand compartment and the right-hand compartment.

25. The card shuffling device of claim 24, wherein the belt is tensioned between a drive pulley and an idler pulley.

26. The card shuffling device of claim 24, wherein at least one of the drive pulley and the idler pulley is displaceable by a vertical force applied to a lower plane of the central compartment such that the tension of the pulley is reduced sufficiently for the drive belt to slip with respect to the pulleys.

27. The card shuffling device of claim 25, wherein the belt is tensioned by a coil spring.

28. The card shuffling device of claim 25, wherein the drive belt and the drive pulley have engagable toothed surfaces.

29. A method for shuffling a deck of cards, the method comprising:

providing a first, a second and a third compartment;

transferring a portion of a deck of cards from the a bottom of the first compartment into the second compartment;

transferring a portion of a deck of cards from the bottom of the first compartment into the second compartment; and

transferring cards from a bottom of the second compartment and a bottom of third compartment to the first compartment.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein a number of cards in each of the portions is approximately half of a number of cards in the deck of cards, and the sum of the number of cards in the two portions is equal to a number of cards in the deck of cards, so as to cut the deck of cards.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the step of transferring the cards from the second and third compartments to the first compartment is controlled such that the transfer begins first from the one of the second or third compartment that last received a card from the first compartment.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein the cards are transferred from the second and the third compartments to the first compartment in a substantially interleaved sequence, so as to riffle the cards.

33. The method of claim 29, wherein a number of cards in each of the portions is less than one third of the number of cards in the deck, and the portions are alternately transferred to the second compartment and the third compartment until the first compartment is void of cards, so as to strip the deck of cards.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the number of cards in each portion is less than approximately 11.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein the portions of cards in the second compartment and the third compartment are transferred to the first compartment in sequence, beginning with the portions of the cards in the compartment of the second and the third compartments into which the first of the portions was transferred, so as to re-form the deck of cards.

36. The method of claim 35, further comprising cutting and riffling the deck of cards.

37. The method of claim 36, further comprising transferring the cards transferred from the second and third compartments into the first compartment into fourth compartment.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein the fourth compartment has a removable tray.

39. A method of shuffling cards, the method comprising:

providing a card shuffling device, the device comprising;

a receiving compartment sized and dimensioned to receive a deck of cards;

a presentation compartment having a tray, the tray being removable from the device.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein the cards are dispensed from a bottom of the receiving compartment substantially one at a time.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein the deck of cards inserted in the receiving compartment is effectively randomized before being dispensed into the presentation tray.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein the deck of cards is a plurality of decks of cards.