Playing card dealing shoe with automated internal card feeding and card reading

• US 7,029,009 B2
• Filed: 07/17/2003
• Issued: 04/18/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2003
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LNW Gaming Incorporated
• Original Assignee: SHFL Entertainment Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Scheper, Paul K., Schubert, Oliver M., Kelly, James V., Stasson, James B., Grauzer, Atila
• Primary Examiner(s): LAYNO, BENJAMIN
• Application Number:
  US10/622,321
• Publication Number:
  US 20050012269A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,006 Days
• Field of Search: 273/149.R, 273/149.P, 273/148.A
• US Class Current: 273/149.00P
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/12 Card shufflers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/14 Card dealers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/18 Score computers; Miscellaneous indicators time-testing devices G07C
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2001/003 Blackjack; Twenty one
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2001/008 adapted for being playable on a screen

Abstract

A distinct dealing shoe having no shuffling functionality receives shuffled, randomized or ordered group of cards. The cards may be mechanically moved one at a time from a receiving area for the deck to a buffer area where more than one card is temporarily stored. The cards in the buffer area are then mechanically moved to a card delivery area where the cards may be manually removed, one-at-a-time, by a dealer. The cards are read one-at-a-time inside of the dealing shoe, either before the buffer area or after leaving the buffer area, but preferably before the cards are being manually removed from the card delivery area. The information from the card reading may be used for game tracking, hand tracking, player information, and other security issues at casino table card games.

Claims

1. A playing card delivery shoe from which cards may be dealt comprising

a) an area for receiving a first set of cards;

b) first card mover that moves cards individually, one at a time, from the first set to a card staging area wherein at least one card is staged in an order by which cards are removed from the first set of cards and moved to the card staging area;

c) second card mover that moves cards individually, one at a time, from the card staging area to a delivery area wherein cards removed from the staging area to the delivery area are moved individually one at a time, in the same order by which cards were removed from the first set of cards and moved to the card staging area; and

d) card reading sensors that read at least one element of information of card rank, card suit or card value of each card separately individually, one at a time after each card has been removed from the area for receiving the first set of cards and before removal from the card delivery area,

wherein the card delivery area includes a slot enabling removal of cards from the shoe individually, one at a time.

2. The shoe of claim 1 wherein at least one card but less then an entire deck of cards is present in the staging area.

3. The shoe of claim 2 wherein from 1 to 2 cards are present in the staging area.

4. The shoe of claim 1 wherein after completion of card reading of at least one card in step d), a system of comparison is present to compare the suit and rank of the at least one card to expected card information.

5. The shoe of claim 4 wherein the expected card information is present in a memory storage component in at least one of the shoe and an external computer for each shuffled set of cards inserted in the area for receiving a shuffled set of cards.

6. The shoe of claim 5 wherein the first set of cards comprises a shuffled set of cards.

7. The shoe of claim 4 wherein the system of comparison is present to compare the suit and rank of the cards read in step d) with the expected card information for each shuffled set of cards inserted in the area for receiving a shuffled set of cards.

8. The shoe of claim 1 wherein said at least one information is read in the device before the card is being removed from the storage device.

9. The shoe of claim 1 wherein a card position sensor is present that triggers operation of the card reading sensors so tat discontinuous signals of cards are provided by the card reading sensors.

10. The shoe of claim 1 wherein the slot is a finger slot in a wall over cards that are to be removed from shoe and the wall is sloped towards the area for receiving a first set of cards.