Device and method for continuously shuffling and monitoring cards

• US 7,137,627 B2
• Filed: 10/29/2004
• Issued: 11/21/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Light & Wonder Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: SHFL Entertainment Incorporated (Light & Wonder Incorporated)
• Inventors: Swanson, Ronald R., Bourbour, Feraidoon, Grauzer, Attila, Nelson, Troy D., Rynda, Robert J., Scheper, Paul K., Stasson, James B., Helgesen, James P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Layno, Benjamin
• Application Number:
  US10/978,049
• Publication Number:
  US 20050062229A1
• Time in Patent Office: 753 Days
• Field of Search: 273/149.R, 273/149.P
• US Class Current: 273/149.00R
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/06 Card games appurtenances
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/12 Card shufflers
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/07 Line spectrum pair [LSP] vocoders
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2019/0001 Codebooks

Abstract

The present invention provides an apparatus and method for moving playing cards from a first group of cards into a second group of cards, wherein the second group of cards is randomly arranged or shuffled. The apparatus comprises a card receiver for receiving the first group of cards, a single stack of card-receiving compartments generally adjacent to the card receiver, the stack generally vertically movable, an elevator for moving the stack, a card-moving mechanism between the card receiver and the stack for moving cards one at a time into a selected one of the compartments, another card moving mechanism for moving cards from one of the compartments to a second card receiver and a microprocessor that controls the card-moving mechanisms and the elevator. A count of cards within specified areas of the card handling system is maintained and card handling is halted and all cards counted by adding a count of all cards not within the specified areas to the total of cards counted within the specified areas.

Claims

1. A method of performing a security check on a card handling device comprising a card shuffler having a card shuffling area within the card shuffler used at a gaming table having a gaming table area comprising a method performed in the card shuffler of:

providing a first card receiver for receiving cards;

providing cards in an initial card count;

providing a card-receiving area generally adjacent to the first card receiver;

providing a card-moving mechanism between the first card receiver and the card-receiving area and moving cards from the first card receiver to the card-receiving area;

providing a second card receiver for receiving cards after the cards have been moved to the card receiving area;

providing a second card moving mechanism for moving cards from the card-receiving area to the second card receiver; and

counting cards within specified areas within the card handling device;

wherein card removal from the shuffling area is deactivated card movement from the card receiving area to the second card receiver is halted, all cards in the area of the gaming table and the cards within the second card receiver are retrieved and inserted into the first card receiver for receiving cards to be processed, the cards inserted into the first card receiver for receiving cards to be processed are counted as they move to the card-receiving area, the cards counted as they move defining retrieved cards, and the number of retrieved cards are added to the number of cards counted in the card receiving area within the card handler to provide a final count of cards, the final count being compared to the initial count.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein a total number of cards to be used in the play of a hand of a game on the casino gaming table is identified to a microprocessor prior to starting play of the game.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the final count of cards is compared to the total number of cards identified to the microprocessor prior to starting play of the game.

4. The method of claim 2 wherein only cards within the card-receiving area are counted.

5. The method of claim 2 wherein cards are counted within the card-receiving area and the second card receiving area.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the card shuffling apparatus comprises a plurality of movable compartments and a compartment moving mechanism that is capable of moving the compartments relative to a feed mechanism.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the card shuffling apparatus comprises a random ejection system.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the card shuffling apparatus comprises a plurality of movable compartments arranged in a carousel.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein the card removing area comprises at least 4 compartments that receive cards.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the card removing area comprises 17 to 19 compartments.

11. A method of performing a security check on an automatic card handling device comprising:

Providing a card shuffling apparatus;

Providing cards in an initial card count;

Providing a card feed mechanism for delivering cards into the card shuffling apparatus;

Providing an unloading mechanism for removing cards from the card shuffling apparatus;

Maintaining a current count of cards in the card shuffling apparatus;

Halting the card shuffling process;

Loading all cards outside of the card shuffling apparatus into the card shuffling apparatus;

Counting cards loaded into the card shuffling apparatus after halting the shuffling process;

Displaying a sum of the number of cards present in the card shuffling apparatus prior to halting and

the cards loaded into the card shuffling apparatus after halting; and

Comparing the sum to the initial count.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the card removing area comprises at least 4 compartments that receive cards.

13. The method of claim 11 wherein the card removing area comprises 17 to 19 compartments.

14. A method of performing a security check on an automatic card handling device that performs a card handling process comprising:

providing cards in an initial card count;

providing a current count of cards in a selected area of the automatic card handling device;

halting the card handling process;

loading all cards outside of the selected area of the automatic card handling device into a card receiving area of the automatic card handling device;

transferring all cards loaded into the card receiving area into the selected area of the automatic card handling device;

counting all cards transferred into the card receiving area after halting the card handling process; and

displaying a sum of the number of cards present in the specific area of the automatic card handling device at the time of halting the card handling process and the cards loaded into the selected area of the automatic card handling device after halting the card handling process, and comparing the sum to the initial count.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the card handling device is a card randomizing system.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the selected area comprises a shuffling chamber.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the selected area comprises a shuffling chamber and a card holding area.

18. A method of performing a security check on an automatic playing card handling device that performs a card handling process of card randomization comprising:

providing cards in an initial card count;

providing a current count of cards in a selected area of the automatic playing card handling device;

halting the card handling process;

loading all cards from a single gaming table outside of the selected area of the automatic playing card handling device into a card receiving area of the automatic playing card handling device;

transferring all cards in the card receiving area into the selected area;

counting all cards transferred from the card receiving area to the selected area after halting the card handling process process; and

indicating on a display that a sum of a number of cards present in the specific area of the automatic playing card handling device at the time of halting the card handling process and a number of cards loaded into the selected area after halting is equal to a predetermined number of cards, and wherein the predetermined number of cards is the initial count.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the predetermined number is a whole number multiple of 52.

20. The method of claim 18 wherein the predetermined number is a number of cards originally inserted into the card handling system.

21. The method of claim 18 wherein the card removing area comprises at least 4 compartments that receive cards.

22. The method of claim 18 wherein the card removing area comprises 17 to 19 compartments.