SHUFFLED PLAYING CARDS AND MANUFACTURING METHOD THEREOF

• US 20100327525A1
• Filed: 11/27/2008
• Published: 12/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Angel Group Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Angel Playing Cards Co Ltd (Angel Group Company Limited)
• Inventors: Shigeta, Yasushi
• Granted Patent: US 8,371,583 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 273/149R
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/02 Cards; Special shapes of cards card-printing methods B41K, B41M
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/062 Boxes or cases for cards
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/12 Card shufflers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2001/022 Manufacturing of cards

Abstract

The present invention provides shuffled playing cards which eliminate the need for a game host to shuffle cards before games by taking a lot of time as well as eliminate the possibility of cheating. A shuffled playing cards (1) obtained by shuffling a predetermined number of decks of playing cards (12) using a shuffling machine is packaged as an individual pack. The shuffled playing cards (1) is individually packaged and sealed with an adhesive label (13). A bar code (13a) which represents a unique shuffled card ID has been printed on the adhesive label (13). The shuffled card ID is registered in a database by being associated with information which allows identification of a shuffling machine used to shuffle the playing card set.

Claims

1. A manufacturing method of shuffled playing cards comprising:

a shuffling step of shuffling a predetermined number of decks of playing cards by a shuffling machine and thereby producing a set of shuffled playing cards;

a packaging step of individually packaging each set of shuffled playing cards after the shuffling step;

an ID generating step of creating a shuffled card ID in an information processor, the shuffled card ID being different for each set of shuffled playing cards after the shuffling step;

an ID affixing step of affixing the shuffled card ID as an ID code to a package of the shuffled playing cards; and

an ID registration step of registering the shuffled card ID in a database by associating the shuffled card ID with information which allows identification of the shuffling machine or a shuffling machine group which is/are involved in the shuffling step of the predetermined number of deck of playing cards with which the shuffled card ID is affixed.

2. The manufacturing method of shuffled playing cards according to claim 1, further comprising an inspection step of performing an inspection, by an inspection machine, to inspect that a predetermined number of playing cards which make up the shuffled playing cards are all present, during or after the shuffling step, wherein

in the ID registration step, the shuffled card ID is further associated with information which identifies the inspection machine.

3. The manufacturing method of shuffled playing cards according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a printing step of printing a face side and a back side of the playing cards by a printing machine, wherein

in the ID registration step, the shuffled card ID is further associated with information which identifies the printing machine.

4. The manufacturing method of shuffled playing cards according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising:

a step of packing a plurality of the individually packaged shuffled playing cards into a transport box;

a transport box ID generating step in which a different transport box ID is created in the information processor for each of the transport boxes; and

a transport box ID affixing step in which the transport box ID is affixed to the transport box;

wherein

in the ID registration step, the transport box ID of the transport box into which the shuffled playing cards are packed is further associated with the shuffled card IDs of the shuffled playing cards.

5. The manufacturing method of shuffled playing cards according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, in the ID registration step, the shuffled card ID is associated with at least any one of a lot number of base paper of the playing cards, manufacturing date of the shuffled playing cards, manufacturing date/time, product type, and delivery address information.

6. Shuffled playing cards wherein a predetermined number of decks of playing cards are shuffled and individually packaged, and wherein

a shuffled card ID is affixed as an ID code to a package of the shuffled playing cards, the shuffled card ID being for accessing, on a database, information which allows identification of a shuffling machine or a shuffling machine group which is/are used to shuffle the predetermined number of decks of playing cards.

7. The shuffled playing cards according to claim 6, wherein information which allows identification of an inspection machine can be accessed on a database by the shuffled card ID, the inspection machine having inspected that a predetermined number of playing cards which make up the shuffled playing cards are all present.

8. The shuffled playing cards according to claim 6 or 7, wherein information which allows identification of a printing machine can be accessed on a database by the shuffled card ID, the printing machine having printed a face side and a back side of the playing cards which make up the shuffled playing cards.

9. The shuffled playing cards according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the ID code is affixed to a sealing material on the package of the shuffled playing cards.

10. The shuffled playing cards according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein the ID code is a bar code or two-dimensional matrix code.