Card handling apparatus

IS 2 145 288 T3

DESCRIPTION

Apparatus for handling letters.

Technical sector

The present invention is related to an apparatus for handling cards, designed to shuffle cards in a specific aspect thereof.

Background

In establishments where cards are played, for example, for money, a series of decks of cards is usually used for each table dedicated to a specific game, for example, blackjack. The cards are usually shuffled by hand and then placed in a dealer box or other device from which the cards can be removed one by one by the dealer. It is clear that shuffling the cards by hand is a time-consuming and labor-intensive operation and also often does not ensure a complete and uniform shuffling of the cards. In addition, large numbers of decks of cards are used, often up to six decks or more per day at each table and these decks are discarded at the end of the day. An apparatus has previously been provided to facilitate the operation of shuffling cards, but such an apparatus only tends to shuffle in the same way as manual shuffling. Such an apparatus is very expensive and has not been shown to be very effective.

US Patent No. 4659082 describes a Monte Verde-type card dispenser or box that allows one or more decks of cards to be continuously shuffled so that a deck of cards with a finite number of cards effectively simulates a deck of an infinite number of cards. . The card dealer incorporates a rotating carousel containing a plurality of card compartments around its periphery. Cards are inserted into the carousel from an input hopper and ejected from the output hopper for use by the dealer. Summary of the invention

The present invention attempts to overcome or at least mitigate one or more of the foregoing disadvantages by providing a card handling apparatus that can be applied to shuffling cards for use in card games such as those commonly played for money. The present invention further seeks to provide an apparatus that works efficiently in a card shuffling application. Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.

In this sense, the present invention provides, in one of its aspects, an apparatus for the manipulation of cards, which includes a means to hold a deck or main pile of cards, a means to separate said cards in positions at different heights of said card. rode; a means for introducing respective cards in said pile in said respective positions and a means for extracting the cards from said pile to distribute them.

A loading station is preferably provided to hold additional cards in an additional or secondary amount, or individually, in order to place them in the main stack for later distribution. A suitable means is provided for transferring the additional card (s) or the respective card (s) at one end, usually the bottom card, of the additional pile to the main deck. Said means may include a reel or reels that hook (n) or may hook the additional card or the lower card of the additional pile so that, when the reel or reels rotate, the additional card or lower card of the additional pile move towards the main stack. Alternatively, a pusher can be used to move the cards from the additional pile. The apparatus can be provided with another pair of opposing collaborating rollers to hook the displaced card and insert it into the main stack.

In the draw position of the card from the main deck, an additional reel or reels can be arranged to move the bottom or end card from the main deck. The main amount can be held on the additional roller (s) so that as the additional roller (s) rotate, the bottom or final card is shifted from the main amount. Another pair of opposing mating rollers or pairs of opposing mating rollers may be provided to grab the offset bottom or final card and feed it from the main stock for distribution.

A means is provided to "cut" or separate the cards from the main pile into random or non-random positions at different heights in the pile to allow insertion. of the card from the loading station into the main pile at the cut or split position. . The cutting or separation of the cards can be achieved through a clamping or displacement mechanism capable of reaching a series of positions at different heights of the main pile in which it is activated to hold cards from the main pile or to extend to the main pile and separate the cards in that position from the rest of the cards in the amount. Preferably the main pile is arranged vertically and the holding or moving mechanism is arranged to hold or hook cards in a series of vertical positions spaced at different heights from the main pile and to lift or move said cards and any cards placed on top of them. said letters in order to define a space between the remaining letters for the reception of the letter introduced from the loading station. As an alternative to the clamping mechanism, you can insert some pivots or thin elements in the series of positions at different heights of the stack in order to divide the cards in the insertion position and later lift the cards up or to one side of said pivots. or elements in order to allow the insertion of the letters from the loading station.

The clamping or displacement mechanism can be supported for its movement by an endless belt that is operated in opposite directions to move it to different heights of the pile. The clamping or sliding mechanism can be supported for sliding movement along a guide rail. The clamping or displacement mechanism can in2

ES 2 145 288 T3 include a pair of arms adapted to be located on opposite sides of the pile and supported to allow their transverse movement over the pile. The holding arms can be solenoid movable to make them hold or divide the cards. To this end the clamping arms can be supported on respective skids and the solenoid can have its body supported on one skid with its actuator or armature connected to the other skid. The ends of the holding arms can be provided with pads to allow them to grip the cards in the pile or alternatively with pivots or thin elements for insertion into the pile.

The positions in which the holding or sliding mechanism engages the cards in the main deck can be randomly determined or, alternatively, they can be a series of fixed positions at different heights of the deck. A control means, preferably a programmable control means, can be arranged to move the clamping or displacement mechanism to certain or random positions at different heights of the amount before the clamping or displacement mechanism is activated to clamp or hook the cards. In a preferred concrete form, the clamping mechanism is moved to eleven fixed positions at different heights of the amount, although there can be any number of determined positions or, as already indicated, the positions can be selected randomly. The determined positions can be defined by respective sensors that define the determined positions at different heights of the mount. For example, a translatable light sensor can be incorporated with the clamping and displacement mechanism and a perforated member arranged in a fixed position adjacent to the light sensors. The perforated member may include a plurality of spaced holes arranged longitudinally with respect to the mount through which, as the light sensor is aligned with the respective holes, the detection of light causes the clamping mechanism to stop and activate it to grip the cards in said hole. position. Alternatively, the motor that moves the mechanism to different heights of the stack can be controlled in such a way that the mechanism stops at positions at different points in the stack.

Preferably, respective sensors are arranged in the apparatus to detect the presence or absence of letters in certain locations such as the loading station and the distribution station and to determine the activation of the apparatus mechanisms and motors according to the detected conditions of the devices. sensors. The control means can be used to control the apparatus according to the conditions detected by the sensors.

Although the apparatus according to the invention is particularly suitable for distributing cards one by one, the apparatus can be modified to shuffle and supply a single deck or several decks of shuffled cards to the distribution station. Brief description of the drawings

In order to make the understanding and materialization of the invention easier, it was referred to below to the accompanying figures, which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the invention and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation view of the apparatus according to the invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of the apparatus of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a section in elevation of the AA long-line apparatus of Figure 2, showing the card holding arm;

Figure 4 illustrates a letter holding device for use in the main stacking chamber of the apparatus according to Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a plan view of the preferred form of the fastening mechanism corresponding to the apparatus of the invention;

Figure 6 is a front view of the clamping mechanism of Figure 5; Y

Figures 7 to 10 illustrate the manner of operation of the apparatus by means of elevational views. Detailed description of the preferred realization

Referring to the figures and firstly to Figure 1, a card handling apparatus 10 according to the present invention is illustrated, which in this embodiment is applied to shuffle and manipulate cards for use in card game applications. The apparatus 10 incorporates a pair of separate, vertical and opposite flat side walls 11, which define a loading station 12, which, as shown in Figure 3, includes a flat platform or base 13 slightly inclined, on which it can be seating or at least partially placing individual cards or a pile of cards 14. Loading station 12 also includes a first set of rollers 15, incorporating separate rollers 16 located at the front of deck 13 on which cards placed at station 12 also rest. When actuated, the set of rollers 15 forces the card 17 (which may be the lower card of the amount 14), seated on top of and in contact with the rollers 16, to leave the loading station 12.

Likewise, another set of rollers 18 located in front of the set of rollers 15 rotates at the same time as the set of rollers 15. Said set of rollers 18 includes separate rollers 19 located between the rollers 16 of set 15 and serves to assist in the ejection. of letter 17 of loading station 12. A pair of sets of rollers capable of rotating in the opposite direction 20 and 21 are arranged in front of the loading station 12, which have respective pairs of rollers 22 and 23 aligned with their peripheries, mutually coupled or located adjacent to each other to define a narrowing. The roller assemblies 20 and 21 are adapted so that, when actuated, they grip between them the lower or displaced card 17 as it was being extracted by the roller assemblies 15 and 18 and expel it completely from the loading station.

A pair of deflector members 24 are disposed on the inside of the opposing side walls 11 and in the path of the displaced letter.

17. The deflector members 24, which can be simple blocks of a plastic or other material, define inclined surfaces ha3

ES 2 145 288 T3 downward 24 ', which, when hooked by the card 17, direct the card 17 downwards, towards the rollers 23 of the set of rollers 21, as shown by the dashed line in Figure 3, the which, when rotating in an anti-clockwise direction, direct the letter 17 towards the narrowing of the opposing roller sets 20 and 21 to facilitate their engagement by the rollers. This provision ensures that only one card is fed at a time from loading station 11, since the cards above the lower card 17 that come out due to friction adherence with the card 17 below them will be stopped by the presence of the deflector members 19.

The apparatus 10 further includes a main shuffling chamber 25 for supporting in a manner described in detail below a vertical or substantially vertical stack 26 of shuffling cards. Chamber 25 includes substantially vertical front and rear walls 27 and 28 that extend between opposing side walls 11 and define chamber 25 with a cross section slightly greater than the perimeter dimensions of the cards, so that the latter can be placed in the same in a well adjusted way. Chamber 25 also has at its lower end two sets of rollers 29 and 30, the first set 29 composed of a pair of separate rollers 31 and the second set 30 composed of another pair of separate rollers 32 located axially towards the interior of the rollers. 31. The pile 26 of cards was arranged to rest on the rollers 31, which, once actuated, serve to extract the lower card 33 from the pile in a similar way to the actuation of the loading station 12. The front wall 27 also includes a transverse groove aligned with the constriction of the roller assemblies 20 and 21 through which the cards from the loading station 12 pass to the chamber 25.

The stack of cards 26 can also be supported within the chamber 25 on a removable angle bracket 35. The bracket 35, shown more clearly in Figure 4, includes a side plate 36 and a bottom plate 37 that extend perpendicularly relative to each other. with plate 36 on which letters 26 rest. A tab 38 extends forward from bottom plate 37. The upper end of side plate 36 may include hooks 39 that engage on top of wall 28 to allow the bracket to be suspended in position. When bracket 35 is inside chamber 26, tab 38 was positioned between rollers 31 but slightly below their upper periphery, so that lower card 33 of amount 26 sits on rollers 31 and plate 37 and it can move when the set of rollers 29 and therefore the rollers 31 rotate. The rollers 32 also collaborate in the extraction of the card 33 from the amount 26 when the card 33 is moved and put in contact with them. Holder 35 can be removed from the top of chamber 25 to allow removal of cards or a stack of cards from chamber 25.

Three sets of rollers 40, 41 and 42 are arranged to hold the lower card 33, displaced from the amount 26, and feed it so that it reaches a distribution station 43 available to the dealer. Each set of rollers 40, 41 and 42 includes upper and lower pairs of opposed rollers 44 and 45, 46 and 47 and 48 and 49 respectively. The pairs of rollers have their peripheries located adjacent to each other and are adapted to cooperate with and hold respective cards. At least one roller of each pair is capable of being driven in the manner described below.

The dispensing station 43 includes a downward sloping bottom wall 50 and a separate, substantially parallel and partially sloping top wall 51, which defines a slot 52 in which the cards are distributed (shown in dashed line in Figure 3). The bottom wall 50 supports a sensor 53, preferably a light sensor, which detects the presence or absence of a card at the distribution station 43. The upper wall 51 also incorporates a downwardly open slot 54 that allows a pivot or pivots to be inserted to engage the card located in the slot 52 and that rests on or adjacent to the lower wall 50, facilitating movement of the card from said card. position. Another wall 55 is attached to the wall 50 to define a neck to help direct the card to the dispensing station 43 from the roller assemblies 40, 41 and 42.

Associated with chamber 25 is a letter holding mechanism 56, also shown in Figures 5 and 6, which includes a pair of separate upper and lower rollers 57 and 58 on one side of chamber 25 around which it rests. an endless belt 59. The rollers 57 and 58 may consist of toothed rollers and the belt 59 may consist of a toothed belt to cooperate with the teeth of the rollers 57 and 58. A carriage 60 was attached to the belt 59 to move therewith and arranged for sliding movement along a guide rail 61 arranged vertically on the outside of the rear wall 28 of the chamber 25.

Carriage 60 supports a crosshead 62 that supports two free runners 63 and 64 only to slide between respective spaced stops 65 and 66 at opposite ends of arm 62. A clamping arm 67 is connected to a leg 63 through a bracket 68 and has a clamping member 69 at its outer end. The other leg 64 also supports by means of an angle bracket 70 another clamping arm 71 with a clamping member 72 at its outer end. Angle bracket 70 also supports a solenoid 73 with an actuator or armature 74 pressed by a spring 75 into an extended position. An arm 76 connects the actuator 74 and the pin 63.

In operation, and when the cards of the amount 26 (shown in dashed line in Figure 5) are to be held and lifted, current is supplied to the solenoid 73 to withdraw the actuator 74 against the pressure of the spring 75. This will move the valves. skates 63 and 64 and therefore arms 67 and 71 and associated clamping members 69 and 72 relative to each other to hook and hold cards of stack 26. The arrangement of the skids 63 and 64 that slide on the arm 62 during said movement ensures that equal forces are exerted and

ES 2 145 288 T3 opposites on the cards. Thus, if a clamping member 69 or 72 contacts one side of the cards first, so as to stop the movement of its associated skate, the other clamping member 69 or 72 moved inward to clamp the opposite side of the cards. When the power supply to solenoid 73 is cut off, spring 75 will cause runners 63 and 64 to separate and clamp members 69 and 72 to separate from opposite ends of the cards. The arrival of skates 63 and 64 at their adjacent stop 66 ensured that both clamping members 69 and 72 clear away from opposite ends of the cards. For example, if the lug 63 first reaches a stop 66, the spring 75 will cause the solenoid body 73 and the connected arm 71 and the clamping member 72 to separate from the cards. The holding members 69 and 72 are preferably provided with holding pads 77 of rubber or other material with similar properties to improve the holding of the cards. As an alternative to clamping members 69 and 72, arms 67 and 71 may support in place of members 69 and 72 thin inwardly directed fingers or pivots 78 (shown by dashed lines in Figure 5) which, when actuate solenoid 73, enter the amount 26 between respective cards to divide the stack 26.

Each set of rollers is in the form of a rod or shaft supported on the opposite side walls 11 in bearings or the like. The axes of the roller assemblies 20, 21, 44, 45, 46 and 49 extend past a side wall 11 and support respective pulleys 79, 80, 81, 82, 83 and 84 respectively, around which a endless belt 85 (see Figure 1). Likewise, belt 85 extends around a pulley 86 connected to the shaft of a drive motor 87. The respective guide pulleys 88 and 89 guide the belt to the selected pulleys. Preferably belt 85 would be a toothed belt to cooperate with the teeth or grooves in the pulleys. It will be apparent from this arrangement that when motor 87 is actuated, the drive is transmitted through belt 85 to opposing sets of rollers 20 and 21 so that they each rotate in counter-rotation. In the same way, the impulse was transmitted to the opposing rollers 44 and 45 to effect the counter-rotating movement thereof. The drive is also transmitted to rollers 46 and 49 of the respective roller sets 41 and 42.

The roller assemblies 15 and 18 are arranged to be driven by an additional motor 90 mounted on a side wall 11 and whose axis extends through said side wall 11 into the apparatus 10. The shafts of the respective roller assemblies 15 and 18 and the motor shaft 90 support pulleys around which an endless transmission belt 91 passes, so that when the motor 90 is driven, the roller assemblies 15 and 18 rotate. in the same direction (anti-clockwise in Figure 3).

An additional motor 92 is arranged to drive the roller sets 29 and 30 by means of a similar transmission system, that is, with pulleys on the axis of each set of rollers 29 and 30 and on the motor shaft 92, interconnected by a belt without end 93. When motor 92 is driven, roller assemblies 29 and 30 are simultaneously driven in the same direction (clockwise in Figure 3). Of course, the motors 91 and 92 can be coupled to the respective roller assemblies by means of gears or any other transmission system. Another motor 94 is coupled to the pulley 58 so that, once activated, the impulse is transmitted to the pulley 58 and thus to the belt 59 to cause the movement of the card holding mechanism 56 along the rail. 61 and, therefore, for the entire height of the deck of cards 26.

A programmable control unit 95 is incorporated to control the operation of apparatus 10 and its drive motors in accordance with conditions sensed in the apparatus. Therefore, in addition to sensor 53 at the card distribution station 43, another sensor 96 is provided to detect the presence of cards at the loading station 12 and a sensor 97 to detect the presence of cards between the sets of rollers 20 and 21. Another sensor 98 is incorporated adjacent to the roller assemblies 29 and 30 to detect the exit of letters from the chamber 25.

In operation, a stack of cards 14 or individual cards can be placed in station 12 to rest on platform 13 and set of reels 15, and a stack of cards 26 can be placed inside chamber 25. It is activated A starter switch and sensor 53, detecting the absence of letters in the dispensing station 43, started the apparatus 10 by means of the control unit 95, starting the motors 92 and 87. If a stack of cards 26 is located within chamber 25, the drive of roller sets 29, 30 removed the bottom card 33 from stack 26 and delivered it to roller sets 40, 41, and 42, where it is clamped and transported. to the distribution station 43, as shown by the discontinuous line in Figure 3. Sensor 98 detects the movement of a letter as it exits chamber 25, and after a timed delay, control unit 95 has stopped driving motor 93 to prevent more than one letter from being delivered to dispensing station 43, while the sensor 53, upon detecting a letter in the distribution unit 43, sent the signal for the control unit 95 to stop the running of the motor 87.

When a card or a pile of cards 14 is placed in the loading station 12, the sensor 96, upon detecting the presence of said cards, will give the signal to the control unit 95 to start the drive motor 90 to cause the displacement of said letter or lower letter 17 from stack 14 towards chamber 25 due to the rotation of sets of rollers 15 and 18. Sensor 96 further determines that control unit 95 starts main drive motor 87 to drive roller sets 20 and 21, which hold the card moved from station 12 by roller sets 15 and

18. When sensor 97 detects a card passing between the taper of roller sets 20 and 21, it will cause motor 90 to stop running to prevent other cards from being fed

ES 2 145 288 T3 from station 12. Likewise, the sensor 96, upon detecting letters at station 12, determined the start of the motor 94, which drives the roller 58. The drive of the roller 58 forces the belt 59 to move the car 60 to a position at the height of mount 26 where motor 94 was stopped according to Figure 7. In said position the solenoid 73 is activated to translate the arms 67 and 71 inwards towards opposite sides of the stack 26, determining that the clamping members 69 and 72 engage and hold the cards in said position as already described.

The motor 94 is then activated again to move the carriage 60 vertically in order to lift a sub-pile 99 of the pile 26 of the cards above the remainder 100 of the pile 26 and above the opening 34 as shown in Figure 8. Card 17 displaced from station 12 is carried by roller assemblies 20 and 21 through aperture 34 and between sub-mount 99 and the remainder of mount 100 as shown in Figure 9. In this way the card 17 falls on top of the stack 100. The sensor 97, upon detecting the passage of the card 17 to the chamber 25, will determine, after a timed delay, that the control unit 96 activates the motor 94 in reverse gear. and lower the sub-amount 99 over the remainder 100 of the heap, as shown in Figure 10.

Alternatively, or when amount 99 is lowered, the power supply to solenoid 73 is cut off, so that spring 74 forces arms 67 and 71 to extend outward to release the sub-stack 99 of cards, which falls on top. of or is released on the inserted card 17 and the amount 100 below it. Mechanism 56 then returns to the position of Figure 1. This procedure continued as the cards are removed from the distribution station 43 while the apparatus is on and letters remain at the loading station 12. However, each activation of the motor 94 moves the carriage 60 and the arms 67 and 71 to different positions. or to a series of positions at different heights of the stack 26, so that the cards 17 introduced from the loading station 12 are placed within the stack 26 at different positions for shuffling.

When the apparatus is used at a card game table, for example, in the game of blackjack, the dealer is limited to selecting the cards from the distribution station 43 to distribute to each player. When respective cards are withdrawn from the distribution station 43, the apparatus 10 operates automaotically to supply another letter from the lower end of the principal amount 26 to the distribution station 43 for the dealer to select. At the end of a hand, the cards used are collected by the dealer and placed in an amount at loading station 12, activating the action of shuffling them, incorporating the cards from the loading station one by one in the main stack 26 and in different positions throughout the height of the main stack as determined by the positions in which the card holding and moving mechanism 56 holds and lifts the cards to in order to create holes in the main stack 26 to house the cards.

The positions in which the arms 67 and 71 are activated to hold and lift the cards of the stack 26 can be a series of determined positions or randomly selected positions. The series of established positions can be determined by a member 101 provided with a series of vertically spaced openings 102 therein. A light sensor 103, capable of moving with the carriage 60, detects the alignment with the respective openings 102 by the light passing through them to determine that the motor 94 stops operating. In one position, arms 67 and 71 can be moved to lift the entire stack 26 to place the inserted card on top of stack 26. Furthermore, the apparatus 10 can be repeatedly activated to place the inserted card 17 on top of the pile 26. Of course, the insertion of a card in this position does not require lifting the pile 26 or parts of it. If the carriage 60 stops at random positions throughout the height of the mount 26, the random positions are selected by the control unit 95.

In this way the apparatus according to the invention allows the action of shuffling cards by loading respective cards in a pile in random or selected positions, distributing the cards below from the bottom of the pile.

The primary use of the apparatus described above is to manipulate and shuffle cards for use in card games. However, the apparatus can be used to shuffle or randomly select other planar members. Also, although the mount has been shown in a vertical orientation, it can be arranged horizontally or in any other orientation, such as a slanted orientation, for example.

A means other than rollers can be used to move the cards from the respective piles, such as pushers, for example. Movement of roller 58 may be by means of any suitable drive mechanism, such as stepper motors or motors precisely controlled in other ways whose rotation is achieved by control of an appropriate electronic and / or programmable means.

Carriage 60 can be carried by other actuation mechanisms such as pneumaotic pistons or mechanical actuators and arms 67 and 71 can be actuated by any appropriate mechanism.

The blocks 24 may be replaced by an alternative card dispensing means such as a downwardly extending tab of a flexible material such as rubber that is disposed on the rear wall of station 12 in a centered manner relative to the cards. Furthermore, the loading station 12 can be arranged with the base 12 inclined, so that the offset card 17 is in contact with the upper surface of the lower roller 23 below the nip between the roller assemblies 20 and 21. Thus, When the roller assembly 15 is activated, the lower card 17 will be displaced and hooked on the tab 19, causing it to rise.

An additional movement of the lower card meant that it contacted the surface of the lower roller 23, forcing the front end of the card.

ES 2 145 288 T3 displaced letter 17 to be raised, so that it is held by both rollers 22 and 23. The tongue will also rise during this movement and will then flex back to its original position, once the displaced letter 17 has passed.

Clamp arms 67 and 71 may be mounted on carriage 60 to achieve pivotal movement about a substantially vertical axis inward and outward, relative to each other, and under the control of an actuation mechanism that may consist of the solenoid 73. The actuation of the solenoid will pivot arms 67 and 71 towards opposite sides of the stack 26 of cards to hold or divide the same.

Although the walls 27 and 28 defining the main card holding and shuffling chamber 25 are shown vertical and substantially parallel in the embodiment, the rear wall 28 may be slightly inclined from the vertical and separated from the wall 27, as shown. the dashed line in Figure 3. A typical inclination of wall 28 will be two degrees from vertical. With said inclination, the chamber 25 has a slightly conical cross section from top to bottom. Said arrangement avoids or reduces the risk of jamming of the cards inside the chamber 25 between the side walls 27 and 28 when they are inserted from the loading station 12. The guide rail 61 of the holding arms 67, mounted on the wall 28 It is also slightly inclined with respect to the vertical.

In this way the stack of cards 26 is also slightly inclined to the same extent with respect to the horizontal, since the stack 26 is supported by the angle bracket 35 mounted on the wall 28. Therefore, the holding arms 67 will be arranged in a substantially parallel extended position in relation to the cards of amount 26, to hold them.

The described apparatus is primarily intended for use in card games in which cards are withdrawn one by one from station 43. However, apparatus 10 can shuffle and supply one or multiple decks of cards. To this end, the control of apparatus 10 is modified so that apparatus 10 continues to operate continuously for shuffling cards and supplying a full deck at station 43. This can be achieved by overriding the action of sensor 53 so that feed rollers 29 and 30 and roller assemblies 41, 42 and 43 continue to operate, so that the cards from chamber 25 are continuously fed to dispensing station 43. or to an equivalent receiving chamber until a deck of shuffled cards is obtained.

The apparatus according to the present invention is capable of being applied, specifically, to shuffle the cards for use in card games. However, the apparatus is equally applicable to shuffling and manipulating other thin planar members in a similar way, and therefore the term "card", as used throughout the specification and claims, includes playing cards and all others. similar thin planar members.

The foregoing is disclosed as an illustrative embodiment of the invention. However, all modifications and variations thereof that are apparent to those skilled in the art will be deemed to be within the scope of the invention as defined in the accompanying claims.