METHODS OF HANDLING CARDS AND OF SELECTIVELY DELIVERING BONUS CARDS

• US 20120175841A1
• Filed: 03/16/2012
• Published: 07/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/05/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Original Assignee: SHFL Entertainment Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Blaha, Ernst, Krenn, Peter, Scheper, Paul K., Grauzer, Attila
• Granted Patent: US 8,931,779 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 273/149.R
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/12 Card shufflers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/14 Card dealers

Abstract

Methods of delivering groups of cards to a card game and, upon the occurrence of an event, dispensing a bonus card comprise feeding playing cards individually from an infeed area of a card handling device into an intermediate storage compartment designated for receiving playing cards. At least one bonus card may be fed from an infeed area of a card handling device into an intermediate storage compartment designated for receiving bonus cards. Groups of playing cards are selectively delivered. At least one bonus card may be selectively delivered.

Claims

1. A method of delivering groups of playing cards to a card game and delivering at least one bonus card, comprising:

feeding a plurality of playing cards from an infeed area of a card handling device into playing card intermediate storage compartments designated to receive playing cards;

feeding at least one bonus card from the infeed area into a bonus card intermediate storage compartment, the bonus card intermediate storage compartment being designated to receive only at least one bonus card and comprising an intermediate storage compartment other than the playing card intermediate storage compartments;

selectively delivering groups of playing cards from the playing card intermediate storage compartments to an output area; and

selectively delivering at least one bonus card from the bonus card intermediate storage compartment to the output area.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein selectively delivering the at least one bonus card comprises delivering the at least one bonus card at random.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein selectively delivering the at least one bonus card comprises delivering the at least one bonus card upon the occurrence of an event selected from the group consisting of a jackpot reaching a predetermined amount, reaching a preselected date and time, delivery of a selected group of playing cards, a player loyalty account reaching a predetermined balance, and receipt of a signal from a control system.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein feeding the at least one bonus card from the infeed area into a bonus card intermediate storage compartment designated to receive only at least one bonus card comprises feeding the at least one bonus card from the infeed area into a bonus card receiving compartment of a carousel of a shuffler.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein delivering the at least one bonus card comprises delivering the at least one bonus card upon delivery of a royal flush.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein feeding the at least one bonus card from the infeed area into a bonus card intermediate storage compartment designated to receive only at least one bonus card comprises feeding only one bonus card into the bonus card intermediate storage compartment.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein feeding the at least one bonus card from the infeed area into a bonus card intermediate storage compartment designated to receive only at least one bonus card comprises detecting a presence of the at least one bonus card using a card sensing system and automatically transferring the at least one bonus card into the bonus card intermediate storage compartment using a control system in response to detection of bonus card presence.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising maintaining the playing card intermediate storage compartments free of bonus cards and maintaining the at least one bonus card intermediate storage compartment free of playing cards.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising assigning at least one intermediate storage compartment of a movable card storage device to receive only bonus cards therein as a bonus card intermediate storage compartment before feeding the at least one bonus card into the bonus card intermediate storage compartment.

10. A method of handling playing cards and bonus cards in a card game, comprising:

placing at least one bonus card into at least one bonus card compartment of a movable card storage device, the at least one bonus card compartment being designated to receive only at least one bonus card therein;

placing playing cards into playing card compartments of the movable card storage device, the playing card compartments being designated to receive only playing cards therein and comprising compartments of the movable card storage devices other than the at least one bonus card compartment;

delivering groups of playing cards from the playing card compartments to a card output tray; and

delivering at least one bonus card from the at least one bonus card compartment to the card output tray.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein delivering the at least one bonus card comprises randomly delivering the at least one bonus card.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein delivering the at least one bonus card comprises delivering the at least one bonus card upon the occurrence of an event selected from the group consisting of a jackpot reaching a predetermined amount, reaching a preselected date and time, delivery of a selected group of playing cards, a player loyalty account reaching a predetermined balance, and receipt of a signal from a control system.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein delivering the at least one bonus card comprises delivering the at least one bonus card upon delivery of a royal flush.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein placing the at least one bonus card into the at least one bonus card compartment comprises detecting a presence of the at least one bonus card using a card sensing system and automatically transferring the at least one bonus card into the at least one bonus card compartment using a control system in response to detection of bonus card presence.

15. The method of claim 10, further comprising maintaining the playing card compartments free of bonus cards and maintaining the at least one bonus card compartment free of playing cards.

16. The method of claim 10, further comprising assigning at least one compartment of the movable card storage device to receive only bonus cards therein as a bonus card storage compartment before feeding the at least one bonus card into the at least one bonus card compartment.

17. A method of handling playing cards and bonus cards in a plurality of card games, comprising:

forming a network connecting a plurality of card handling devices to a server or computer in communication with each card handling device of the plurality of card handling devices;

placing at least one bonus card into at least one bonus card compartment of a movable card storage device of at least one card handling device of the plurality of card handling devices, the at least one bonus card compartment being designated to receive only at least one bonus card therein;

placing playing cards into playing card compartments of the movable card storage device, the playing card compartments being designated to receive only playing cards therein and comprising compartments of the movable card storage devices other than the at least one bonus card compartment;

delivering groups of playing cards from the playing card compartments to output trays of at least some card handling devices of the plurality of card handling devices; and

delivering at least one bonus card from at least one bonus card compartment to an output tray of at least one card handling device of the plurality of card handling devices.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein delivering the at least one bonus card from the at least one card handling device comprises delivering the at least one bonus card from the at least one card handling device in response to a signal from the server or computer.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein delivering the at least one bonus card from the at least one card handling device in response to the signal from the server or computer comprises randomly selecting the at least one card handling device from which the at least one bonus card is delivered.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein delivering the at least one bonus card from the at least one card handling device in response to the signal from the server or computer comprises selecting the at least one card handling device from which the at least one bonus card is delivered according to a schedule.