Card game with counting

• US 7,942,418 B2
• Filed: 01/10/2008
• Issued: 05/17/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/10/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: CFPH LLC (Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P.)
• Original Assignee: CFPH LLC (Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P.)
• Inventors: Burman, Kevin, Gambhir, Manu, Amaitis, Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim; Gene
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dennis; Michael D
• Application Number:
  US11/972,002
• Publication Number:
  US 20090179378A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,223 Days
• Field of Search: 272/292, 463/13, 463/16
• US Class Current: 273/292
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2001/003 Blackjack; Twenty one
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/00157 Casino or betting games horse races A63F3/00082
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3293 Card games, e.g. poker, canasta, black jack

Abstract

Various embodiments include determining a value of a statistic describing cards that have been dealt from a deck, and modifying the rules of a game based on the statistic.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a memory, having stored thereon, a set of instruction, in which, when executed by a computing device, the set of instructions cause the computing device to perform a method comprising;

determining a first value of a statistic describing a deck of cards;

determining at least one card used from the deck of cards in a game;

determining a second value of the statistic based on the first value and the at least one card;

determining that the second value is at least one of greater than a first threshold value and less than a second threshold value; and

in response to determining that the second value is at least one of greater than the first threshold and less than the second threshold, adjusting a rule of the game based on determining that the second value is at least one of greater than the first threshold value and less than the second threshold value.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the statistic represents a difference between a number of ten-value cards remaining in the deck and a number of cards remaining in the deck with point values of two through six.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the statistic represents a house edge associated with play of the game.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 in which adjusting the rule includes adjusting the rule to maintain a house edge associated with play of the game.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the rule includes at least one of a rule controlling payouts for winning the game, a rule controlling which outcomes are winning outcomes, a rule controlling which outcomes are tie outcomes, a rule controlling the decisions available to a player, a rule controlling the actions of a dealer, a rule controlling the procedures of a game, a rule controlling the value of cards in the game, and a rule controlling allowed bets.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the game includes a game in which rules for determining a winner of the game are defined by the rules of blackjack.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the rule includes a rule allowing at least one of discarded cards to be added to the deck and additional cards to be added to the deck.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the statistic represents a difference between a number of cards with point values of two through six removed from the deck and a number of ten-value cards removed from the deck.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 in which the first threshold is nine and in which the second threshold is negative eight.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 in which the first threshold is nine and in which the second threshold is negative nine.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 in which determining the second value of the statistic includes incrementing the first value if the at least one card has a point value of two through six, and decrementing the first value if the at least one card has a point value of ten.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 in which determining the at least one card occurs after the first value has been determined and in which determining a second value occurs after the at least one card has been determined.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 in which adjusting the rule includes transmitting, from the computing device, an indication that a rule adjustment is due.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the statistic includes on indication of a percentage of times the particular action resulted in a winning hand.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the method further comprises at least partially randomly determining the first threshold value.

16. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the rule includes a rule preventing surrender in the game.

17. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the method further comprises determining the adjusted rule based on the value of the statistic.

18. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the method includes determining the adjusted rule based on at least one statistic other than the statistic.

19. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the adjusted rule includes an adjusted rule configured to offset at least one of an increase and a decrease in an advantage of a house in the game.

20. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the adjusted rule includes a change to a probability of an outcome in the game.

21. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the statistic includes a card count.

22. The apparatus of claim 1, in which adjusting the rule includes adding at least one desired card to the deck.

23. The apparatus of claim 1, in which adjusting the rule includes revaluing at least one card in the deck.

24. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the method further comprises identifying the adjustment to a player.

25. The apparatus of claim 1, in which adjusting the rule includes adjusting an allowed bet amount.

26. The apparatus of claim 1, in which adjusting the rule includes adjusting the rule to maintain at least a minimum house edge in the game.

27. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the method comprises determining that the house edge is below a desired value based on the statistic and adjusting the rule includes adjusting the rule to increase the house edge above the desired value.

28. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the method further comprises determining that the player does not commit to playing the game with a particular strategy, and in which adjusting the rule includes adjusting the rule in response to determining that the player does not commit.

29. The apparatus of claim 6, in which adjusting the rule includes adjusting a payout for insurance.

30. The apparatus of claim 6, in which adjusting the rule includes adjusting a rule governing whether a player may double down.

31. The apparatus of claim 6, in which adjusting the rule includes adjusting a rule governing whether a player may split.

32. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising the computing device.