Card shuffler

• US 8,485,527 B2
• Filed: 07/27/2012
• Issued: 07/16/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Light & Wonder Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Savant Shuffler LLC
• Inventors: Sampson, David E., Forte, Steven L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Fernstrom, Kurt
• Assistant Examiner(s): COLLINS, DOLORES R
• Application Number:
  US13/560,826
• Publication Number:
  US 20130026709A1
• Time in Patent Office: 354 Days
• Field of Search: 273/149.R
• US Class Current: 273/149.R
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/12 Card shufflers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/14 Card dealers
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2009/2482 Electromotor

Abstract

A card shuffler that moves cards one-at-a-time from the bottom of a group that may be a deck in a deck-crib, to randomly designated single-card receptacles in a receiving or dealing rack. Either the deck-crib or the receiving rack is moved by a motor to align a receptacle, randomly selected from among remaining empty receptacles, with an outfeed slot of the deck-crib to receive each card to be moved from the deck-crib. A space is provided in the dealing rack in one embodiment, where a dealer'"'"'s hand can reach cards and remove them from the dealing rack. A controller can cause the dealing rack to move so as to allow a selected number of cards to be removed by the dealer for a player hand or a dealer hand. A card reader may be included, and positions in the receiving or dealing rack of cards identified by the card reader can be stored in memory in the controller.

Claims

1. A card shuffler comprising:

(a) a base;

(b) a deck-crib associated with said base and capable of containing a plurality of cards arranged in a pack parallel and in contact with one another;

(c) a receiving rack associated with said base and defining a plurality of single-card receptacles in a linear array adjacent one another and located adjacent to said deck-crib, one of said deck-crib and said receiving rack being movable in a straight line with respect to said base, and parallel with and along the other one of said deck-crib and said receiving rack;

(d) a card mover incorporated in the deck-crib and operable selectively to move a single one of said plurality of cards from said deck-crib to a selected one of said plurality of single-card receptacles;

(e) a motor associated with said base and arranged to move said one of said receiving rack and said deck-crib relative to the other; and

(f) a controller interconnected with said card mover and at least one of said deck-crib and said receiving rack and arranged to;

(i) randomly select an empty one of said single-card receptacles of said receiving rack;

(ii) thereafter cause said motor to move one of said deck-crib and said receiving rack relative to the other in a straight line and to align one of said card mover and said randomly selected empty one of said plurality of single-card receptacles with the other;

(iii) thereafter cause said card mover to move a single card from said deck-crib into said randomly selected empty one of said plurality of single-card receptacles while said card mover and said single card receptacle are aligned with each other; and

(iv) thereafter sequentially repeat steps (i), (ii), and (iii), until said deck-crib has been emptied of cards.

2. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein deck-crib includes an outfeed side that defines a card transfer slot having a gap width that is greater than a thickness of a card and less than twice said thickness of said card.

3. The shuffler of claim 2 wherein said deck-crib includes a card block wall and said card mover includes a frictional drive member having a drive surface and wherein said card transfer slot has a gap height, between said drive surface and a lower surface of said card block wall.

4. The card shuffler of claim 2 including a sensor located adjacent said deck-crib and arranged to provide a signal to said controller to enable said controller to count each card moved from said deck-crib through said card transfer slot to one of said single-card receptacles.

5. The card shuffler of claim 2 including a card block wall and a sensor located adjacent said card block wall and arranged to provide a signal to said controller to indicate that no card is present between the card transfer slot and the dealing rack, and that the dealing rack is thus free to be moved.

6. The shuffler of claim 3 wherein said receiving rack is separated from said card block wall by a distance in the range of 0.02-0.25 inch.

7. The shuffler of claim 3 wherein a card in said deck-crib has a dimension and the deck-crib and the receiving rack are located so that the card is required to move only a distance about equal to its own dimension in a direction of movement plus a thickness of said card block wall from said deck-crib into a single-card receptacle aligned with said card mover.

8. The shuffler of claim 6 wherein said distance is not more than about 0.09 inch.

9. The shuffler of claim 6 wherein said distance is not more than about 0.04 inch.

10. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said controller includes a memory including an indication of whether each of said single-card receptacles is empty, and a random number generator arranged to randomly select an empty one of said plurality of single-card receptacles.

11. The card shuffler of claim 1 including a card shield movable in a track located alongside said receiving rack, between a first position and a second position, and wherein said receiving rack includes a latch operable selectively to engage said card shield and thereby to move said card shield along with said receiving rack between said first and second positions when said latch is engaged.

12. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said receiving rack is movable to a position with respect to said base wherein at least one of said plurality of single-card receptacles is exposed in a position from which every card in each exposed one of said plurality of single-card receptacles can be slid out simultaneously to be dealt.

13. The card shuffler of claim 1 including a screw drive associated with said one of said receiving rack and said deck-crib and wherein said motor is a stepper motor interconnected with said controller so as to operate said screw drive to move said one of said receiving rack and said deck-crib to place said selected empty one of said plurality of single-card receptacles into alignment with said card mover.

14. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said receiving rack includes a plurality of partial shelves aligned with one another as pairs separated from one another by a card removal gap and defining said single-card receptacles between adjacent pairs.

15. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said receiving rack includes a horizontal top member and a comb-like array of leaves depending from said top member and defining said single-card receptacles.

16. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said receiving rack includes a pair of opposite ends, a base interconnecting said opposite ends, and a plurality of shelves arranged above one another along each of said opposite ends, each shelf of said plurality along one end being aligned opposite a shelf of said plurality at the opposite end, and said plurality of shelves at one end of said rack being separated from said plurality of shelves at the opposite end of said rack by a card removal gap, so that a card in one of said single-card receptacles bridges said card removal gap.

17. The shuffler of claim 16 defining a card removal cavity communicating with said card removal gap.

18. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said card mover includes a frictional drive member protruding with respect to a surface of a member of said deck-crib, in position to engage a surface of a bottom card located adjacent said member of said deck-crib.

19. The card shuffler of claim 18 wherein said deck-crib includes a deck follower and a motor arranged to urge said deck follower toward a card in said deck-crib.

20. The card shuffler of claim 18 having a deck follower including an idler roller, said deck follower being free to move so as to keep said idler roller in contact with and exerting pressure against a card in said deck-crib.

21. The card shuffler of claim 1 including a blocking wall located on and extending upward from said base, adjacent a side of said receiving rack spaced apart from and facing away from said card mover.

22. The card shuffler of claim 21 including a sensor mounted adjacent said blocking wall and arranged to provide a signal to said controller when a single-card receptacle of said receiving rack in a predetermined location is empty.

23. The card shuffler of claim 21 wherein said receiving rack is movable to a position with respect to said blocking wall in which at least one of said single-card receptacles is exposed beyond a margin of said blocking wall, and wherein said shuffler includes a sensor located adjacent said blocking wall and aligned with respect to an intended position of said at least one of said single-card receptacles exposed beyond said margin, so as to determine that all of said at least one single-card receptacles are empty of cards and to provide a corresponding signal to said controller.

24. The shuffler of claim 1 wherein said single-card receptacles in said receiving rack are stationary relative to said base of said shuffler and said deck-crib moves relative to said receiving rack during shuffling.

25. The shuffler of claim 24 wherein said plurality of single-card receptacles in said receiving rack is at least twice as great as said plurality of cards that said deck-crib is capable of containing.

26. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said receiving rack includes a card presentation tray having a horizontal base member that is a bottom of each of said plurality of single-card receptacles, the horizontal base member being arranged to move relative to said base of said shuffler and carry said plurality of cards away from said plurality of single-card receptacles as a group.

27. The shuffler of claim 1 wherein said deck-crib incorporates a shelf located so as to support said plurality of cards in said deck-crib where a portion of each card extends outside said shuffler through an opening and thus is visible from outside said shuffler.

28. The card shuffler of claim 1 including a sensor arranged to determine when a single-card receptacle that is located in alignment with said card mover contains a card and accordingly to provide a corresponding electronic signal to said controller.

29. The card shuffler of claim 1 wherein said receiving rack is a dealing rack and controller is arranged to receive an input signal and to cause said dealing rack to move a predetermined distance in response to said signal and thereby to place a predetermined number of single-card receptacles into a card presenting position in which said predetermined number of cards can be removed simultaneously from said predetermined number of single-card receptacles.

30. The card shuffler of claim 1 including a dealer manager switch interconnected electrically with said controller and capable of entering control signals into said controller without need for other controls, to commence, modify, interrupt, continue, and stop operation of said card shuffler.

31. The card shuffler of claim 1 including a sensor associated with said deck-crib and interconnected electrically with said controller so as provide a signal to said controller indicating whether there is a card in said deck-crib.

32. The card shuffler of claim 1, further comprising:

(a) a blocking wall mounted on said base and extending alongside a side of said receiving rack opposite from and spaced apart from said deck-crib when said receiving rack is in a first position; and

(b) a controller arranged to cause said motor in response to a predetermined condition to move said receiving rack to a second position in which at least one of said plurality of single-card receptacles is exposed beyond a margin of said blocking wall, thereby permitting every card held in said exposed at least one of said single-card receptacles to be removed therefrom by being moved over said margin of said blocking wall, while said blocking wall prevents removal of any card from any of said single-card receptacles not exposed beyond said margin of said blocking wall.

33. The card shuffler of claim 32 including a generally planar card shield located alongside said blocking wall, between said blocking wall and said receiving rack, and arranged for movement between a first position in which said card shield does not extend beyond said margin of said blocking wall and a second position in which said card shield extends beyond said margin of said blocking wall far enough to cover an adjacent side of said receiving rack when said receiving rack is in a farthest position of extension beyond said margin of said blocking wall required to place any of said single-card receptacles into alignment with said card mover.

34. The card shuffler of claim 32 wherein said receiving rack defines a card removal gap and wherein said card shuffler has a body cover that defines a card removal cavity above said deck-crib and communicating with said card removal gap.

35. The shuffler of claim 32 wherein said controller is arranged to cause said receiving rack to move a predetermined number of times to respective successive positions in each of which a selected successive number of said plurality of single-card receptacles is exposed beyond said margin of said blocking wall as a respective hand of cards.