Systems, methods and articles to facilitate playing card games with selectable odds

• US 8,100,753 B2
• Filed: 06/30/2006
• Issued: 01/24/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sg Gaming, Inc. (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Bally Gaming Incorporated (Scientific Games Corporation)
• Inventors: Soltys, Richard
• Primary Examiner(s): Laneau, Ronald
• Assistant Examiner(s): TORIMIRO, ADETOKUNBO OLUSEGUN
• Application Number:
  US11/428,264
• Publication Number:
  US 20070287535A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,034 Days
• Field of Search: 463/12, 463/21, 463/22
• US Class Current: 463/21
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/00 Card games aspects of games using an electronically generated display having two or more dimensions showing representations related to the game A63F13/00; card games played on a gaming machine G07F17/32
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 1/06 Card games appurtenances
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2003/00164 Casino tables
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 3/00157 Casino or betting games horse races A63F3/00082

Abstract

A system and method may provide playing cards which are selected based on a desired set of payout or house odds and/or house advantage. The system and method may display payout odds for respective player positions. The system and method may operate a playing card handling device to provide the playing cards in a random or pseudo-random fashion, based at least in part on the selected payout or house odds and/or house advantage.

Claims

1. A gaming system, comprising:

an input device operable to receive selections indicative of at least one of a set of odds or a house advantage for at least one hand to be played by at least one player of a card game;

a playing card handling system responsive to the selections received at the input device to provide the at least one hand of playing cards, where the playing cards forming the at least one hand of playing cards are physical playing cards and correspond to at least one set of virtual playing card values pseudo-randomly generated based at least in part on the received selections indicative of the at least one of the set of odds or the house advantage, wherein at least one of the selections received by the input device identifies the set of odds or house advantage for the respective hand of playing cards, and the at least one set of virtual playing card values is pseudo-randomly generated based at least in part on the at least one of the set of odds or house advantage identified by the at least one of the selections; and

at least a first display operable to display a set of odds for at least one player based on at least one of the received selections.

2. The gaming system of claim 1, wherein the first display is operable to display the set of odds for the at least one player before a dealing of the at least one hand.

3. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the selections received by the input device are indicative of respective sets of odds, and wherein the at least one set of virtual playing card values is pseudo-randomly generated at least in part based on a respective house advantage indicated by a respective one of the sets of odds.

4. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the first display is visible to a number of participants at a gaming table.

5. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the input device is positioned at a gaming table within three feet of a dealer position.

6. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the input device is positioned at a gaming table within two feet of a participant other than a dealer.

7. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the playing card handling system comprises at least one set of playing card holding receptacles.

8. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the playing card handling system comprises at least one processor and at least a first set of playing card holding receptacles, and where the processor generates sequences of the virtual playing card values based at least in part on selections received at the input device and wherein the playing cards are removed from the playing card holding receptacles in an order based at least in part on the sequence of virtual playing card values.

9. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the playing card handling system comprises at least one processor and at least a first set of playing card holding receptacles, and where the processor generates a sequence of virtual playing card values based at least in part on selections received at the input device and wherein the playing cards are placed in the playing card holding receptacles in an order based at least in part on the sequence of virtual playing card values.

10. The gaming system of claim 1 wherein the playing card handling system comprises at least one processor and at least one print mechanism, and where the processor generates a sequence of virtual playing card values based at least in part on selections received at the input device and wherein the print mechanism is operable to print playing card markings on playing card media in an order based at least in part on the sequence of virtual playing card values.

11. A method of operating a gaming system, the method comprising:

receiving via at least one input device selections indicative of at least one of a set of odds or a house advantage for at least one hand to be played by at least one player of a card game;

pseudo-randomly generating by a processor at least one set of virtual playing card values based at least in part on the at least one of the set of odds or the house advantage indicated by at least one of the received selections;

providing via a card handling mechanism the at least one hand of playing cards, where the playing cards forming the at least one hand of playing cards are physical playing cards and correspond to the at least one set of virtual playing card values pseudo-randomly generated at least in part based on the received selection indicative of the at least one of the set of odds or the house advantage; and

displaying the set of odds for at least one player based on at least one of the received selections.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein displaying the set of odds for at least one player includes displaying the set of odds for at least one player before a dealing of the at least one hand.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein receiving selections indicative of at least one of a set of house odds or a house advantage for at least one hand to be played by at least one player of a card game includes receiving a set of house odds selected by a player.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

determining a total number of playing card values from which the set of virtual playing card values will be generated from based on the received selection; and

pseudo-randomly generating the set of virtual playing card values from the number of playing card values.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein pseudo-randomly generating the set of virtual playing card values from the number of playing card values includes pseudo-randomly generating the set of virtual playing card values from an integer multiple of fifty-two playing card values corresponding to respective ones of playing cards in a standard deck of playing cards.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

determining a domain of playing card values from which the set of virtual playing card values will be generated from based on the received selection; and

pseudo-randomly generating the set of virtual playing card values from the domain of playing card values.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein pseudo-randomly generating the set of virtual playing card values from the domain of playing card values includes pseudo-randomly generating the set of virtual playing card values from a non-integer multiple of fifty-two playing card values.

18. The method of claim 11 wherein providing the at least one hand of playing cards includes placing playing cards into respective ones of a first set of playing card holding receptacles based on the set of virtual playing card values that are pseudo-randomly generated.

19. The method of claim 11 wherein providing the at least one hand of playing cards includes retrieving playing cards from respective ones of a first set of playing card holding receptacles based on the set of virtual playing card values that are pseudo-randomly generated.

20. The method of claim 11 wherein providing the at least one hand of playing cards includes printing playing card markings on playing card media in an order based at least in part on the set of virtual playing card values that are pseudo-randomly generated.

21. A gaming system, comprising:

at least one input device operable to receive selections indicative of respective sets of odds for each of a number of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game, wherein the playing cards of the number of hands of playing cards are physical playing cards;

a processor that generates a set of virtual playing card values based on the respective sets of odds indicated by at least one of the received selections;

a card handler mechanism operable to deliver the number of hands of playing cards, wherein at least one of the number of hands of playing cards includes playing cards that correspond to the set of virtual playing card values generated by the processor; and

at least one display responsive to the at least one input device to display respective house odds for each of the hands of playing cards to be played during a card game.

22. The gaming system of claim 21, wherein the at least one input device is positioned proximate a dealer position at a gaming table.

23. The gaming system of claim 21, wherein the at least one display is positioned to be within a line-of-sight from each of a plurality of player positions at a gaming table.

24. The gaming system of claim 21, wherein the at least one display is positioned to be within a line-of-sight from each of a plurality of player positions at each of a plurality of a gaming tables in a pit.

25. The gaming system of claim 21, wherein there are at least a two displays, each of the displays positioned proximate a respective one of a number of player positions at a gaming table.

26. The gaming system of claim 21, wherein there are at least a plurality of displays, each of the displays positioned proximate a respective one of a plurality of player positions at a gaming table, and wherein there are a plurality of input devices, each of the input devise proximate a respective one of the plurality of player positions at the gaming table.

27. The gaming system of claim 21, wherein the plurality of input devices each comprises an array of touch sensitive switches associated with a respective one of the displays.

28. The gaming system of claim 21,

wherein the processor pseudo-randomly generates the virtual playing card values based on the set of odds indicated by the selections received via the at least one input device.

29. A method of operating a gaming system, the method comprising:

receiving via at least one input device a respective selection indicative of respective sets of odds for each of a plurality of hands of physical playing cards to be played during a card game;

generating by a processor a set of virtual playing card values based on the respective sets of odds indicated by the at least one of the received selections;

providing by a card handling mechanism at least one of the plurality of hands of physical playing cards, where the physical playing cards forming at least one of the plurality of hands of playing cards correspond to the set of virtual playing card values generated by the processor; and

displaying house odds for each of the plurality of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game based at least in part on the plurality of received selections.

30. The method of claim 29 wherein displaying house odds for each of the plurality of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game includes displaying the house odds visible from a dealer position at a gaming table.

31. The method of claim 29 wherein displaying house odds for each of the plurality of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game includes displaying the house odds to visible only from a respective player position at a gaming table.

32. The method of claim 29 wherein displaying house odds for each of the plurality of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game includes displaying the house odds to visible from more than one player positions at a gaming table.

33. The method of claim 29 wherein displaying house odds for each of the plurality of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game includes displaying the house odds at each of a number of touch-sensitive displays proximate respective ones of a number of player positions at a gaming table.

34. The method of claim 29,

wherein generating a set of virtual playing card values includes pseudo-randomly generating the set of virtual playing card values based on the set of odds indicated by the received selections.

35. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions for causing a computer to operate a gaming system, by:

receiving a respective selection indicative of respective sets of odds for each of a plurality of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game;

generating a set of virtual playing card values based on the respective sets of odds indicated by the at least one of the received selections;

providing the at least one hand of playing cards, where the playing cards forming the at least one hand of playing cards are physical playing cards and correspond to the set of virtual playing card values pseudo-randomly generated based on respective sets of odds indicated by the at least one of the received selections; and

displaying house odds for each of the plurality of hands of playing cards to be played during a card game based at least in part on the plurality of received selections.

36. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 35 wherein the instructions cause the computer to operate the gaming system by:

receiving the respective selection indicative of respective sets of odds for each of the plurality of hands of cards via a touch screen display device; and

displaying the house odds via the touch screen display device.