Card shuffler

ES 2 632 773 T3

DESCRIPTION

Card shuffler

Technical field

[0001] The present application relates to the structure and use of mechanical card shufflers. Mechanical card shufflers have been known for over 100 years. Some mechanical shufflers in recent years had the ability to deal two or more cards together as one hand to each of various players, including the dealer.

Background of the technique

[0002] Card games played in casinos use one or more decks of cards, where each deck is typically made up of 52 to 54 cards. For some games special decks with fewer cards or decks that have one or two jokers in addition to the usual 52 cards are used. In other card games, cards are dealt to players from up to six or eight normal decks shuffled simultaneously as a large pool of random cards combined at the start of the game.

[0003] New decks are normally sent to a gaming table in a sequential arrangement ordered based on suit and numerical value, but the cards must be shuffled before starting to play so that their order is random and none of players know what it is.

[0004] Different mechanisms have been designed to place the cards of a deck in a different order once shuffled for use in a game. Sometimes using a random number generator to define a random card order for a “shuffled” deck, and then using a computer controlled mechanism to identify each card in the deck being shuffled and place it in the designated spot.

[0005] Casinos prefer to use mechanical card shufflers rather than having the dealer shuffle them manually for several reasons: the main reason is to save time by not having to shuffle the cards, as a casino's winnings depend on the number of hands that can be played during a game. Another reason is to be able to avoid or detect any type of deception. Partly for that reason, it is also desirable to review the order in which the cards have been dealt, and some available mechanical shufflers have the ability to determine the order of the cards in a shuffled deck and retain it in computer memory. However, known mechanical shufflers have suffered from some shortcomings, such as simply being slower than desired, or being so large that they prevent the supervisor from seeing the game table or players' hands, or obstructing the field of vision of the players. the surveillance camera of a casino security system. Other mechanical shufflers are frequently clogged and thus unable to shuffle a ready-to-use deck of cards in game without delay while the shuffler jam is cleared and a full deck of cards is shuffled. Casinos often change the decks of cards that are being played with, however nervous or careless players can fold them or spill drinks on them, causing the cards to stick together and cause the shuffler to jam.

[0006] What is desired then is an easy-to-use, reliable and efficient shuffler that can handle cards that have been bent or tend to stick together, and that is small enough not to require a specially constructed table for the same or a complex shuffler installation so that it can be used reliably in a casino, and a shuffler that can present shuffled cards either as a complete shuffled deck or as hands of a desired number of cards for each player or dealer. It is also desirable that such a deck has the ability to shuffle multiple decks of cards and make them available for play quickly enough that it is not necessary to use a multi-lot system for shuffling and dealing cards.

[0007] US patent 2003/042673 describes an apparatus and a method for moving the cards of a first group of cards into several hands of cards, where each of the hands contains a random arrangement of cards. The apparatus comprises a card receiver for receiving the first group of cards, a single deck of compartments for receiving the cards that is generally located next to the card receiver, the deck that generally moves vertically, an elevator for moving the deck, a card movement mechanism between the card catcher and the deck, and a microprocessor that controls the mechanism that moves the cards and the elevator so that only one card moves in an identified compartment. You can select the number of compartments that receive letters and the number of letters that are transferred to each compartment.

[0008] US patent 6250632 describes an apparatus and a method for shuffling cards in a predetermined sequence. One embodiment provides an area in which the deck is housed in which the cards remain to present a card to a read head to read the features on the face of the card. The apparatus also has a tray having a sequence of slots and a card moving mechanism for moving the displayed card from the area in which the deck is housed to one of the slots. The tray is connected to a tray positioning mechanism that selectively positions the tray to receive a letter in one of the slots of the letter moving mechanism. A controller is connected to the reading point, the letter moving mechanism, and the mechanism for placing the tray. The controller controls the reading of each of the cards by the read head and identifies the value of each card being read, and also controls the card movement mechanism to move each of the cards to a slot on the tray. placed by the mechanism

ES 2 632 773 T3 to position the tray based on the predetermined sequence of values. The method of sorting the cards includes the step of providing a tray having a sequence of slots, determining a predetermined sequence of values ​​for the cards, and reading the face of a card to determine its value. The method further includes moving the letter that has been read to one of the slots on the tray. The position of the slot in which the read card moves corresponds to the position of the value in the predetermined sequence.

[0009] EP 2228106 provides shuffled cards and eliminates the need for the person organizing the game to shuffle the cards before playing which saves time and further eliminates the possibility of cheating. The shuffled cards (1) that are obtained by shuffling a predetermined number of decks of playing cards (12) using a card shuffling machine are presented in an individual card pack. The shuffled cards (1) are packed and sealed with an adhesive label (13). A barcode (13a) representing a unique identifier of the shuffled card is printed on the adhesive label (13). The identifier of the shuffled card is recorded in a database by being associated with information that allows the identification of a shuffling machine used to shuffle the set of cards.

Description of the invention

The present invention provides a shuffler according to claim 1 and a method of shuffling cards according to claim 13.

[0010] Described herein is a mechanical shuffler which in one embodiment includes a computer controlled programmable mechanism for placing each card from a deck to be shuffled into a randomly selected receptacle from a remaining plurality of empty receptacles on a portion of a holder mechanism dealer and in which the cards can be removed from the dealer stand either as a complete shuffled deck or in a smaller predetermined number of cards such as a player's or dealer's hand, or a predetermined number of cards or individual cards for use at any stage of the game.

[0011] In one embodiment of the mechanism described herein, a shuffler includes a dealer support that defines a plurality of receptacles for individual cards; a magazine capable of containing a plurality of cards and which is located next to and aligned with the dealer support; a letter moving mechanism associated with the magazine and operable to move a series of letters individually from the magazine to one of the selected individual letter receptacles; a motor arranged to move the dealer support relative to the magazine so as to move one of the selected individual card receptacles into a position of alignment with the card moving device; and a controller arranged so that it can select a random receptacle from the plurality of empty receptacles of the dispenser holder and cause the motor to move the dispenser holder to place the randomly selected receptacle in a position of alignment with the card moving mechanism.

[0012] In one embodiment of the shuffler the controller can be programmed to move the dealer stand to a position presenting all the cards on the dealer stand where they can be simultaneously drawn as a full shuffled deck.

[0013] In one embodiment of the shuffler the controller can be programmed to present a hand consisting of one or more cards in a position where they can be individually or simultaneously drawn from the dealer stand to be delivered to a player or the dealer.

[0014] In one embodiment the shuffler can include a card reader that can identify each card as it moves or is about to move from the deposit to the dealer support, and the controller can be programmed to record in the memory of the digital computer. the location of the determined individual card receptacle on the dealer carrier to which each identified card in the depository is moved.

[0015] In one embodiment, the shuffler can be used to shuffle from two to eight decks of normal cards. In one embodiment, the shuffler has a movable magazine, which is used to place cards in randomly selected individual card receptacles on a horizontally oriented fixed dealer stand.

[0016] The present application also describes a method for shuffling a large number of cards in small groups that are shuffled sequentially and gradually increasing the number of cards that have already been played from a large group of shuffled cards.

The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood after taking into account the following detailed description of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures.

Brief description of the figures

[0018] FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a device for handling cards, or shuffler, which is an embodiment of at least one aspect of the present invention, where a deck of cards appears that begins to be shuffled and seen from above the left end of the part back of the device.

[0019] FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the shuffler shown in FIG. 1, from the top right of its front, or player-facing side, and showing a second deck of cards housed in a discard container.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0020] FIG. 3 is an isometric view taken from the front upper right of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, without the cover so that some of the shuffler's operating components are in view.

[0021] FIG. 4 is a view of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 1-3, from the upper left rear, with the deck removed and a deck placed in the shuffler's bin.

[0022] FIG. 5 is a partially isometric exploded view of the deck and card moving device parts of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 1-4, taken from the front upper right.

[0023] FIG. 6 is a partially isometric exploded view of the parts of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 1-5, including the dealer stand, an associated blocking wall, and a mechanism to protect the cards, taken from the upper right rear, on an enlarged scale.

[0024] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 1-5 taken at line 7-7 in FIG. 1, with the shuffler about to start shuffling a deck of cards in the bin.

[0025] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view, on an enlarged scale, of parts of the reservoir and dispenser bracket, taken on line 8-8 in FIG. 5.

[0026] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view, on an enlarged scale, of the reservoir and dispenser support, taken on line 9-9 in FIG. 5.

[0027] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 1-5 taken along line 7-7 in FIG. 1, with shuffled cards on the dealer stand and the card protector lowered.

[0028] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 in FIG. 1, with the dealer support in position to extract a complete shuffled deck.

[0029] FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken from the right end of the shuffler as shown in FIG. 1, in which you can see the positions of some components of the shuffler when the cards are shuffled.

[0030] FIG. 13 is a simplified diagram of the arrangement of the electrical components of the shuffler shown in FIG. 1.

[0031] FIG. 14 is a flow chart of the operation of the shuffler for shuffling a deck of cards.

[0032] FIG. 15 is a flow chart showing the operation of the shuffler when presenting shuffled cards.

[0033] FIG. 16 is a simplified flow chart of the shuffler's operation when performing the optional steps before presenting the hands of the cards.

[0034] FIG. 17 is a flow chart showing the operation of the shuffler to perform an incremental shuffling of a plurality of cards.

[0035] FIG. 18 is a simplified flow diagram of shuffling operation including the use of a card reader.

[0036] FIG. 19 is an isometric view of the front upper left of a shuffler for producing a shuffle in a group of several decks of cards.

[0037] FIG. 19A is a partially sectional isometric view of the front upper right of a shuffler with a slightly different configuration.

[0038] FIG. 20 is an isometric view similar to FIG. 19, but showing the open access cover and a card presentation tray, from which a group of shuffled cards is ready to be removed, in an extended position.

[0039] FIG. 21 is an isometric view taken in the same direction as the shuffler shown in FIG. 20, but with the shuffler decks removed and no cards in the card presentation tray.

<td>[0040] The withdrawals.</td><td>FIG.</td><td> 22</td><td>it is</td><td>a</td><td>sight</td><td>on</td><td>shuffler top floor</td><td>shown</td><td>on</td><td>the</td><td>FIGS.</td><td> 19-21,</td><td>with</td><td>the</td><td>covers</td>

<td>[0041] The withdrawals.</td><td>FIG.</td><td> 23</td><td>it is</td><td>a</td><td>sight</td><td>on</td><td>front elevation of the shuffler</td><td>shown</td><td>on</td><td>the</td><td>FIGS.</td><td> 19-21,</td><td>with</td><td>the</td><td>covers</td>

<td>[0042] The withdrawals.</td><td>FIG.</td><td> 24</td><td>it is</td><td>a</td><td>sight</td><td>on</td><td>rear elevation of shuffler</td><td>shown</td><td>on</td><td>the</td><td>FIGS.</td><td> 19-21,</td><td>with</td><td>the</td><td>covers</td>

[0043] FIG. 25 is a partially sectional left end elevational view of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 19-21, with covers removed.

[0044] FIG. 25A is a view similar to FIG. 25, where an alternative embodiment of a portion of the letter presentation tray is shown.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0045] FIG. 26 is a partially sectional right end elevational view of the shuffler shown in FIGS. 19-21, with covers removed.

[0046] FIG. 27 is an isometric view of the upper right side of the magazine and associated shuffler motors shown in FIGS. 19-26, with the covers and various parts of the mechanisms omitted for clarity.

[0047] FIG. 28 is a cross section taken along line 28-28 of FIG. 22, in which a letter is shown moving from the deposit to the dealer support.

[0048] FIG. 29 is a top plan view of a detail of the tank shown in FIG. 22, where a letter appears that begins to move to a single letter receptacle.

[0049] FIG. 30 is a cross section taken along line 30-30 of FIG. 20, with the shuffler covers omitted for clarity.

[0050] FIG. 31 is a detail view taken in the direction of line 31-31 in FIG. 22.

[0051] FIG. 32A is a detailed view similar to FIG. 31, but showing the card pusher bar in a raised position, ready to push a group of shuffled cards from the receiving stand with the card presentation tray.

[0052] FIG. 33 is a simplified diagram of the configuration of the electrical components of the shuffler shown in FIG. 19.

[0053] FIG. 34 is a flow chart of the operation of the shuffler shown in FIG. 21 to shuffle a group of cards from multiple decks.

[0054] FIG. 35 is a simplified flow chart showing the use of a card reader in conjunction with the shuffler.

Detailed description of the embodiments of the invention

[0055] One embodiment of a card handling device, which we will refer to here for convenience as a shuffler 10, is shown in FIGS. 1-5 designed to be a single deck shuffler that can be used in card games such as Blackjack, Poker, and other "novel" or unusual games such as Pai Gow Poker, Three Card Poker, Caribbean poker, and others. The shuffler 10 can be modified to support multiple decks for other games and formats, as described below under "Performing with Multiple Decks".

The shuffler 10 has two main components, a deposit 12 and a set with a dealer support 14, which work together and are associated with a base 16. The deposit 12 is the starting point for each deck or group of cards to shuffling and holding cards that are not shuffled from those that are face down in a deck of cards 13 during the card shuffling process. Dealer stand 14 receives all cards that are being shuffled and holds them until they are presented to be dealt, either as a full deck or as individual player hands, or until they have been drawn for re-shuffling. Therefore, the distributor support 14 can also be referred to as a receiving support. The distributor bracket assembly 14 may include a frame 18 with a pair of vertical members 20 and 22 at the opposite end interconnected by a horizontal bottom portion 24. Extending from each element 20 and 22 end-to-end are other respective sets of thin shelves 26 and 28 that define a set of, for example, 54 or 55 receptacles 30 for receiving a deck of 52 shuffled cards 32, as well as optionally a cut card and one or two jokers. (Shuffle 10 will be described from this point on as if only 52 cards were shuffled.) The two long sides of the distribution bracket 14 are open, as can be seen in FIGS. 1-4, which leaves room for the draw 33 of the cards shown in FIGS. 4 and 6 between the left shelves 26 and the right shelves 28 to facilitate removal of the letter. The center parts of the backs of the shuffled cards 32 can be seen in space 33 as the dealer support 14 moves during the shuffling process as shown in FIG. 1, and the shuffled cards 32 are on display after the shuffling process is complete. The dispenser support 14 is easily accessible from the top of the shuffler 10, through an opening in its cover 44, as can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2.

[0057] Reservoir 12 and distributor bracket 14 are closely aligned side by side, spaced, for example, by a minimum distance 35 preferably in the range of 0.508 to 2.286 mm (0.020 to 0.090 inches), or about 1.016 mm (0.040 inches) in one embodiment, although a distance as large as 6.5 mm (0.25 inches) can generally be satisfactory. As shown in FIG. 3, the tank 12 is a fixed component, supported at the base 16 by a pair of parallel vertical elements 34 and 36 that also act as ends of the tank 12. The tank 12 includes a lower element 38 that defines a pair of openings 40, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7.

[0058] A small shelf 42 can extend outward as a part of the casing or cover 44 of the shuffler 10, next to the bottom 38 of the magazine 12, to receive and support a deck or deck 13 of cards placed in the magazine 12 through an opening 46 defined by the outer casing or cover 44. The shelf 42 can be located at the same level as the lower part 38 of the magazine 12 and protects and hides the identity of the card that is lower than the deck 13 during the shuffling of cards, while maintaining part of the deck

ES 2 632 773 T3 visible at all times through aperture 46, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 7. The shelf 42 may have a notch 48 for inserting the finger to facilitate removal of the deck 13 if necessary.

[0059] A letter moving mechanism associated with the magazine 12 includes a drive shaft 50 disposed on suitable bearings mounted alongside the posts 34 and 36, below the lower member 38 of the magazine 12, and a pair of rollers of Drive 52 are mounted on drive shaft 50 for rotation thereof. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the drive rollers 52 are aligned with the openings 40 in the lower element 38 so that they protrude slightly, such as approximately 0.762 mm (0.030) inches radially above the upper surface of the lower element 38 and thus have an upper surface 53, a portion of drive roll 52 above bottom member 38 in position to engage the bottom surface of the bottom card or last card of deck 13 without shuffling. This relationship is shown somewhat exaggerated in FIGS. 7-11. The drive rollers 52 should have a high friction surface that may be made of a rubber-like plastic-like material, such as a 55A hardness urethane, or a suitable silicone rubber.

[0060] The rollers 52 are positioned under the long edge of the cards that are closest to the dealer support 14, so that they drive the bottom or last card of the deck 13 without shuffling into one of the receptacles 30 of the dealer support 14.

The drive shaft 50 is driven by a motor 54, which can be a two-phase stepper motor, and which can be coupled to the drive shaft 50 of the card moving device by means of a suitable coupling 56. A power supply 57 may be located in base 16 below reservoir 12, as can be seen in FIGS. 7, 10 and 11. By placing a power source with a suitable battery, the shuffler 10 can be manufactured in a portable version (not shown). A simplified diagram of the electrical and electronic arrangement of the shuffler 10 is shown in FIG. 13.

[0062] A vertical letter stop 58, a vertical partial wall, seen more clearly in FIG. 5, extends upward over the lower member 38 as an interior wall of the tank 12 and separates the tank 12 from the distributor support 14. The card abutment wall 58 may have a thickness 59 in the range of, for example, 2.032 to 5.08 mm (0.08-0.2 inches), if it is made of plastic resin, or less if it is of metal, and has a surface with a lower edge or margin 60 located at a predetermined distance over the upper surfaces 53 of the drive rollers 52, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. Thus, card top 58 defines an upper side of a card transfer or exit slot 62 large enough for a single card from deck 13 to pass through magazine 12 to dealer support 14, yet sufficiently small, that is, with the bottom margin 60 positioned close enough to the upper surfaces 53 of the drive rollers, to prevent more than one card from the deck 13 from passing through the slot 62 at the same time. For example, for a standard deck of cards with a thickness of 0.3048 mm (0.012) inches the effective opening or height of gap 64 of slot 62 should be approximately 0.4572 to 0.5842 mm (0.018-0.023 inches) above the upper surfaces 53 of the drive rollers 52, thus allowing a single card to pass through the slot 62, although originally slightly bent, but preventing two cards from passing together. A ramp or flange 63 can be provided as shown by the dotted line at the bottom end; 38, below the margin 60 of the card abutment wall 58 to establish a bottom of the slot 62. Each time an empty individual card holder 30 is aligned with the card 13 below the unshuffled deck 13, rollers 52 impart sufficient speed to drive a card from deck 13 through slot 62 into aligned pocket 30. Reels 52 can immediately be reversed briefly to hold the next lower card in place in deck 13 until dealer bracket 14 moves and another randomly selected receptacle 30 is aligned with slot 62.

[0063] Alternatively, the drive rollers 52 may not need to propel the bottom card of the unscrambled deck 13 into the receptacle 30, but simply far enough not to obstruct the rollers 52 and deck 13 and then the rollers 52 would move the next lower card in the deck 13 a short distance to push the previous card that has not been removed into the receptacle 30. Therefore, for this embodiment of the shuffler 10 the full action of the reels 52 would begin with a forward turn to propel the card, a brief backward movement to square the deck 13, a short forward turn, moving the next card a short distance to push the previous letter into the receptacle 30, and a final short pushback, after which the delivery support 14 can move freely to present the next empty receptacle 30 selected to receive a letter.

[0064] To keep the cards from a deck or deck 13 in the deck 12 flat and together, a deck push plate including two slow rollers 66 applies constant pressure to the top of deck 13 ensuring that each card is keep flat when propelled into an empty receptacle 30, even if heavily warped. Due to the proximity of the magazine 12 with respect to the dispenser support 14, there is not enough space or occasion for a card to fold, as it moves from a forced flat position and immediately into an empty pocket 30. The pair of rollers 66 it may be supported by suitable bearings arranged on a free arm 68 with an appropriate weight. Free arm 68 may have a deep groove 70 defined in an upper, outer margin, and may be received by a pivot rod 72 in groove 70, so that free arm 68 can pivot unobstructed and move pivot rod 72. The rod pivot 72 may be mounted parallel to the bottom; 38 and the top 58 of the letter, with their ends in the corresponding holes defined in the posts 34 and 36. The posts 34 and 36

ES 2 632 773 T3 may define respective slots 74, and suitable pins such as screws 76 may extend through slots 74 in free arm 68. Slots 74 thus guide free arm 68 toward down along card abutment wall 58 to keep rollers 66 in contact with the card on top of a deck 13 in magazine 12. The rollers 66 may be located in alignment with the openings 40 and the drive rollers 52 to keep the cards in the deck 13 in contact with the drive rollers 52.

[0065] The distribution support assembly, shown in FIG. 1-6 and in cross-sectional view in FIG. 7, is located next to the tank 12, with the opposite ends 20 and 22 of the frame 18 of the distributor bracket 14 aligned with the uprights 34 and 36 of the tank 12, so that a card from the deck 13 can be moved across the slot 62 below letter stop 58 in one of receptacles 30 defined by corresponding alignments of left and right shelves 26 and 28.

The distributor bracket 14 is moved up and down by stepper motor technology, within a range defined by a lifting tower 80 mounted on the base 16. The lifting tower 80 supports a guide bar 82 extending from base 16 upward to a support bearing 84 mounted on top of lifting tower 80, as can be seen in FIGS. 6 and 7. A lead screw 86 is supported in relevant bearings mounted on base 16 and bearing bearing 84 and extends parallel to guide bar 82 through a block 88 to lift the carrier including lead nut 90. The block 88 for lifting the carrier is securely attached to the end member 22 of the distributor bracket 14 and is guided along the guide bar 82 by suitable bearings, so that the movement of the lead screw 86 in the locknut advance 90 causes distributor bracket 14 to move up or down along guide bar 82. A suitable stepper motor 92 mounted to base 16 as shown in FIGS. 4, 10, 11, and 12 is operably connected with lead screw 86, by a suitable endless belt 94 and pulleys 96 at the bottom of base 16.

The dealer support 14 may include in the illustrative embodiment, a normal deck intended for shuffling of 52 cards and possibly one or two jokers or a cut card, 55 left shelves 26 and 55 right shelves 28, establishing 55 receptacles 30 each of which can receive and host a single letter. For clarity, fewer shelves 26 and 28 are shown in the figures, so that the shuffled cards 32 can be displayed more clearly in some of the receptacles 30 in the figures. An upper protection element 98 may extend from each of the ends 20 and 22 towards the opposite end, above the respective shelves 26 and 28. Each shelf 26 and 28 extends longitudinally with respect to a letter and the bottom 24 of the dispenser bracket 14, towards the element 20 or 22 at the opposite end with a length 99 of, for example, approximately 12.7 mm (0.5 inches). This length 99 is sufficient to guarantee even the reception of a warped letter, so that it lies flat in any of the receptacles 30 between the shelves. Since each shuffled card 32 is kept in a separate receptacle 30, a wet card is less likely to contaminate other cards so that a deck of cards can be used longer before changing. Each shelf 26 and 28 can be manufactured with a minimum thickness, so that the height 100 of the entire dealer support 14 is kept to a minimum, so that the dealer can easily remove the entire deck of shuffled cards 32. So, for example, each shelf 26 or 28 can have a thickness 102 of about 4,572 mm (0.18 inches), for example, if it needs to have a lot of strength depending on the material from which the spreader bracket was made 14.

[0068] It is desirable that the distributor support be made of a material that is of low density, in order to minimize the mass that has to be raised and lowered when the shuffler 10 is in operation. Distributor bracket 14, for example, can be made of aluminum, such as 7075-T6 aluminum alloy, machined to form single letter receptacles 30. Obviously, other materials could also be used. For example, the bottom 24 can be made of aluminum while the ends 22 and 24 and the shelves 26 and 28 can be made of a strong plastic resin that has a low coefficient of friction and is elastic enough to resist resistance. . pressures given when the dealer takes and draws a deck of shuffled cards 32. For example, a suitable material that can be molded and machined to satisfactory tolerances is a polyoxymethylene resin sold by DuPont under the name Delrin. As another option, the spreader bracket 14 can be constructed as an assembly with shelves 26 and 28 modeled separately and attached to frame 18. For example, a laminate composed of alternate spacers and shelves 26 or 28 can be mounted on alignment posts (not shown) and attached to the base 24.

Desirably, the spacing between successive shelves of shelves 26 or 28 will be approximately equal to the height of gap 64 of slot 62, in a range of at least 0.3556 mm (0.014 inches), at least 0 , 6096 mm (0.024 inches), or approximately 0.4572 mm (0.018 inches), therefore, greater than the thickness of an individual playing card, and less than twice the thickness of an individual playing card, but not less than the height of the gap 64 from slot 62. To facilitate receipt of a letter in a receptacle 30 an edge 104 of each shelf closest to the magazine 12 may be rounded or tapered as shown in FIG. 8 to hold a card within the receptacle 30. Based on the above measurements, the total height of the dealer support 14 may be only about 50.8 mm (2 inches), that is, small enough to allow the dealer to withdraw. A whole deck of cards shuffled from the dealer stand 14.

Referring now also to FIGS. 6 and 10, adjacent to the assembly of the distributor support 14, on an outlet side of the distributor support 14, opposite the location of the tank 12, there is a blocking wall 106 mounted by

ES 2 632 773 T3 above the base 16 and extending upwards thereof. A movable card protector 108 in the form of a generally flat panel may be slidably disposed within a pair of channels 110 that extend vertically along the inside face of the locking wall 106. The guard 108 is movable between a lowered position, in which an upper margin of the guard 108 is aligned with the margin 112 of the top of the locking wall 106, and a raised position, in which the guard 108 is It extends upward along the entire height of the spreader bracket 14 when the spreader bracket 14 is in a higher position, as shown in FIGS. 1-4. The card protector 108 is located very closely, along the opposite side or the far side of the dealer stand, away from the deck 12, and serves to prevent a card 32 that has been shuffled from protruding from the side farthest from the dealer stand. 14 because the drive rollers 52 have moved it too far.

The card protector 108 can be moved between the raised and lowered position by being moved along the dispenser support 14, since the controller 134, through an electrical signal, produces a suitable closure, and the plunger of a bistable solenoid 114 shown in FIGS. 6, 10, 11, and 12 extend into a cavity or hole 116 in shield 108. Shield 108 may be stable in each of these parts, as a pair of magnets 118 in locking wall 106 can act on ferromagnetic screws 119 in shield 108 to hold it in the raised position when solenoid plunger 114 is pulled. retracts from hole 116, and gravity or other magnets (not shown) or other means will hold it in the lowered position. During the shuffling process of a deck of cards or when a completely shuffled deck of cards 32 is on the dealer stand 14, the guard 108 is normally in the raised position as shown in FIGS. 1,2, 3, and 4, where it hides the shuffled cards 32 on the dealer stand so that the players do not see them during the shuffling process. When the shuffling process is complete, distributor bracket 14 is raised, solenoid plunger 114 engages in hole 116, and distributor bracket 14 automatically moves guard 108 to its lowered position next to locking wall 106. Then , solenoid plunger 114 retracts from cavity 116 to release the shield. Whenever the dealer support 14 runs out of cards, and a deck or deck 13 is in the deposit 12 and ready to be shuffled, at the beginning of shuffling the cards the dealer support 14 automatically holds the protector 108 and raises it so that it is not watch the vertical movement of the dealer stand 14 as the cards are shuffled. Other mechanisms could also be used to move the card protector 108 at appropriate times, but should be small and easy to manufacture and operate.

[0072] When the housing cover 44 is positioned as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 an opening in a cavity 120 for card removal is available above a deck or deck 13 of cards in deck 12, so that the top card of a deck 13 remaining in deck 12 can be seen looking down into cavity 120 for card extraction. The opening provides the dealer with access to the shuffled cards 32, and the card draw pocket can be defined by tilting the faces 122 inward to guide the dealer's fingers to a position aligned with the exposed edges of the shuffled cards 32 in gap 33 (see FIGS. 4 and 6). To verify that a full shuffle has been done, the dealer or supervisor or some players depending on their locations in relation to shuffler 10 can see the entire dealer bracket 14 and the back of deposit 12 and can see deposit 12 from the front to the pocket 120 for card extraction. The casing 44 may also include a discard holder 126 as a suitable place to store cards that have already been played until the appropriate time to put them back in the deck 12. Since some games do not use discard cards before To reshuffle, the discard holder 126 may be a separate piece that can be disassembled.

[0073] As best seen in FIGS. 6, 7, 8, and 9, there are various sensors on the shuffler 10 to monitor and help control the operation of the shuffler 10. A deck sensor 130, which may be located in or below an opening 131, in the lower element 38 of the magazine 12, detects the presence or absence of one or more cards to be shuffled and can be connected to provide a signal to a controller 134 , to inform controller 134 when to start or finish shuffling. Controller 134 is shown as a circuit board in FIGS. 7 and 12. The deck sensor 130 as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, for example, can be an SMT reflector sensor with an LED emitter and a Schmitt activator, such as OSRAM no. reference SFH 9240.

[0074] A card counting sensor 132, which may be similar to sensor 130, is aligned with a corresponding aperture 133 in bottom member 38 next to abutment wall 58, where it can detect the presence of a card 32 on the slot 62, (FIGS. 8, 9) and can therefore be used to detect whether slot 62 is open or blocked by a card. It can also provide a signal to controller 134 that can be used to count each card as it travels from magazine 12 and passes through slot 62 into dealer bracket 14.

[0075] A third sensor, an empty tank sensor 136, best seen in FIG. 6, may include an emitter 136e and a detector 136d mounted to the blocking wall 106 on opposite sides of the distributor bracket 14, aligned with the location where the lower receptacle 30 of the distributor bracket 14 will be located when the distributor bracket is in position. higher. A similar, receptacle status sensor and alignment sensor 138 including a paired emitter 138e and detector 138d may be located below the pair of sensors 136 and aligned with the height of the outlet slot 62 of reservoir 12, where it can detect and informing controller 134 if a receptacle 30 is aligned with slot 62 and thus provides information to controller 134 to move distributor bracket 14 to align receptacle 30. The receptacle position sensor 138 can also detect if a receptacle 30 is empty or if a letter is present in a receptacle 30 of the dispenser holder 14 aligned with the slot 62 at a certain time, to indicate to the controller 134 if it can be moved.

ES 2 632 773 T3 the distributor bracket 14. Vertical grooves 140 can be defined, which are also shown in FIG. 6, at ends 20 and 22 of distributor bracket 14 to provide an unobstructed path through distributor bracket 14 between the emitters and detectors of sensors 136 and 138.

[0076] The empty support sensor 136 is after the shuffling is completed to detect and provide a signal to the controller 134 that a hand of cards has been removed from the dealer support 14, or that an entire deck of cards 32 shuffled has been removed. of the dealer support 14 after shuffling. Since the shuffled cards on the dealer stand 14 are close together, when multiple cards are presented above the upper margin 112 of the blocking wall 106, the lower card, which is held in the receptacle 30, is aligned with the empty holder sensor 136 , it can be removed reasonably easily by the dealer just by removing all the cards on top. The absence of the card 32 from the lower exposed receptacle 30, detected by the empty holder sensor 136, therefore, indicates the removal of all cards that have been presented.

[0077] Controller 134 can be programmed so that the dealer can control all pre-game settings, live game functions, and special features and security functions of shuffler 10 through the use of a single switch. , for example, a button which may be referred to as a dealer manager button or "DM" button 144 (see FIGS. 1 and 2), and which is electrically connected to controller 134. The DM button 144 may incorporate light signals to indicate the status of the shuffler 10 during operation. For example, the DM button 144 may include light signals in the form of LEDs 146, 148, and 150 that display green, red, and yellow lights, respectively, each indicating a different status of shuffler 10. For example, For example, a green light 146 can be used to indicate that the shuffler 10 is in normal operating mode. A red light 148 may indicate that the shuffler 10 has a "problem" or is in a "safe" mode of operation and that the dealer must press the DM button 144 for the shuffler 10 to return to normal mode of operation. A yellow light 150, if present, can be used to indicate that the shuffler 10 is in standby mode, waiting for the dealer to press the dM button 144 to place the shuffler 10 back in normal operating mode.

[0078] Controller 134 of shuffler 10 can be programmed so that shuffler 10 operates in one of several shuffling modes, including batch processing mode with two decks, traditional mode with one deck, incremental mode. with a deck, and continuous full mode with a deck. Shuffled cards can be presented to the dealer in a number of ways, including a full deck draw mode, a programmed single hand draw mode, and a random number one hand draw mode.

[0079] The shuffler 10 must be preset before playing live, establishing different parameters of the shuffler 10 functions for the game in which it is to be used. In a pre-game settings mode, several sub modes can be selected and defined, including the deal sequence (and define, for example, up to three additional betting phases that may involve dealing more cards), the way the cards are shuffled, the card draw mode, card cut mode, card "burn" mode, starting position for deal mode, and so on.

[0080] Once preconfigured and activated, shuffler 10 requires only the "dealer manager button" or DM button 144, for live game use. The DM button 144 can be configured to use only the green light 146 and the red light 148 for Poker and Blackjack, and you can also use the yellow light 150 for newer games. The DM button 144 is used to direct the sequence of cards that are dealt based on the pregame setup, and instructs the controller 134 to move the dealer support as needed, in accordance with the programming of the controller 134.

[0081] Optionally, five binary DIP switches shown schematically in FIG. 3 can provide inputs to preset controller 134 for all games and cast sequences, one switch 156 to provide controller 134 with input regarding players, and four switches 158, 160, 162, and 164 to provide inputs regarding dealer, including three additional betting rounds if necessary. Using a 5-position binary format (up / down, in / out, etc.) each switch can be set for the numbers 0 to 15, in order to provide extensive flexibility in setting the number of cards to be dealt, although one to eight on the first two switches 156 and 158 (players and dealer) and one to five on the last three switches 160, 162, and 164 (betting rounds) would probably be more than enough.

Controller 134, as shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, includes a computer such as a digital microcomputer 170, suitably programmed, electrically interconnected with the DM button 144, the sensors 130, 132, 136, and 138, the light signals 146, 148, and 150, and the switches 156, 158, 160, 162, and 164, (see FIGS. 3 and 13) and programmed to control motors 54 and 92, and solenoid 114. To provide a truly random shuffling and facilitate approval by the relevant gaming labs, a Random Number Generator (RNg), such as the RNG known as the "Mother of All Random Number Generators" can be incorporated into the controller 134 alongside with the microcomputer 170.

[0083] As an optional feature, shuffler 10 may also be equipped with a card reader 180 that may be located below lower member 38 of magazine 12, as shown in FIGS. 7, 10, and 11. Such a card reader can incorporate various technologies, including barcode technology, Optical Character Recognition (OCR), Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR), Optical Character Recognition (OCR),

ES 2 632 773 T3 marks (OMR), marked or encoded letters, digital camera technology, and others. A suitable opening 182 can be provided, as shown in FIG. 5, or multiple openings in the bottom member 38 of the magazine 12 to expose a portion of each card including suit and numerical value markings or special markings. Each letter downstream in the magazine 12 can be scanned by the letter reader 180, either before or while moving to a receptacle 30. The letter reader 180 can be electrically connected to the microcomputer 170 of the card controller 134. so that it can store in the memory of the computer the identity of each shuffled card 32 and correlate the identity of the card with the location of the particular receptacle 30 into which it is moved from the magazine 12. Finally, the identity of a card dealt to a given player or dealer can be determined through the use of microcomputer 170 and using shuffler 10 to present groups of cards 32 as player hands, as will be described in more detail below.

[0084] For some games, the dealer will normally use the full deck draw mode and will draw the entire deck of shuffled cards 32 from the dealer stand 14 before starting the game. When shuffler 10 is configured for full deck removal mode, after shuffling is complete, protector 108 lowers to rest alongside blocking wall 106 and dealer bracket 14 rises to its fully raised position as shown in Fig. FIG. eleven. Card removal pocket 120 communicates with gap 33 between left partial shelves 26 and right partial shelves 28 of dealer support 14 so that the dealer can insert fingers into card removal pocket 120 to hold the edges of all the shuffled cards 32 in the gap 33 and slide the entire deck of shuffled cards 32 out onto the top 112 of the locking wall 106.

[0085] Once the entire deck of shuffled cards 32 has been removed from the dealer support 14, the signal from the empty support sensor 136 sent by the microcomputer 170 is received that the lower receptacle 30 of the dealer support 14 is empty, and then the shuffling process begins if there is another deck 13 of cards in deck 12.

The open and visible structure of the magazine 12 and the dealer support 14, combined with the locations of the deck sensor 130, the card counting sensor 132, the empty support sensor 136 and the alignment sensor of the dealer support 138 , make it easy to find and clear a jam or detect a fault. In the event that a letter does not move completely from magazine 12 to a receptacle 30 of individual letters, the sensor 132 must provide an indication by an electrical signal to the controller 134. If a controller malfunction results in a receptacle selection error, the dealer stand 14 can be raised to its highest position to allow all cards to be drawn easily, and all cards can always be easily drawn from the deck 12.

[0087] The card shuffling steps are directed by controller 134 as shown in simplified form in the flow charts in FIGS. 14 and 15. Controller 134 prepares to begin shuffling by lowering dealer stand 14 to its lowest position, and there extends solenoid plunger 114 to engage pocket 116, followed by raising card protector 108 to its raised position above locking wall 106 and then retracting solenoid plunger 114 so that card protector 108 is held up by the attraction of magnets 118 by screws 119, while cards can be shuffled in deck 12. Referring also to FIGS. 4-11, to shuffle the cards in deck 12, For the first card 13 in the deck or the one at the bottom, the random number generator associated with or incorporated into the microcomputer controller 170 randomly selects a receptacle 30 of the 52 empty receptacles 30 on the dispenser bracket 14 and does stepper motor 92 to travel the required distance as tabulated in the microcomputer to drive lead screw 86 far enough to move the bracket distributor 14 along guide bar 82 acting on lead screw nut 90 connected with lead screw 86 and mounted on block 88 to guide elevation. Dealer support 14 moves to randomly selected receptacle 30 directly adjacent to slot 62, aligning receptacle 30 in position to receive the bottom or last card of the unscrambled deck 13.

[0088] The alignment of the dispenser support 14 with respect to the magazine 12 can be monitored through shuffling. To precisely align each receptacle 30, laser sensor 138 can detect the bottom or top of a shelf 26 or 28 and send a signal to microcomputer 170 as alignment data. From that data, the microcomputer 170 may instruct the stepper motor 92 to move up or down a number of steps to align the center of the respective receptacle 30 with the slot 62 of the reservoir 12. Alternatively, there may be a data related to a given receptacle 30 and controller 134 may move distributor bracket 14 up or down a series of time steps the number of receptacles 30 in the data to align distributor bracket 14 in an aligned position. with the next receptacle 30 selected. Calibration adjustments may need to be made throughout the shuffle, and those adjustments can be tabulated in the memory of microcomputer 170. The distributor support 14 can therefore have initial position data in a given receptacle 30 and be programmed so that the alignment is slightly short for any other receptacle 30 so that the sensor 138 will always be blocked by the shelf 26 or 28 when to get. The stepper motor 92 would then adjust the position of the distributor bracket 14 in increasing incremental steps until the ledge no longer blocks the signal from the sensor emitter 138e. When the sensor detector 138d has the signal, it indicates to the controller 134 that the receptacle 30 is aligned with the magazine 12 and a card can be moved from the deck 13 to the dealer 14, and the position tabulation can be updated in the microcomputer 170 .

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0089] When motor 92 has traveled the commanded distance and sensor 138 determines that randomly selected receptacle 30 is aligned with slot 62, sensor 138 sends a signal to microcomputer controller 170. In response to receiving that signal, the microcomputer controller 170 causes the stepper motor 54 of the letter moving device to rotate, driving the feed mechanism shaft 50 and the drive rollers 52, in contact with the face, or the bottom side of the bottom card in deck 12, far enough to move the bottom card in deck 12 away from deck 13, through slot 62, and in the aligned receptacle 30 of the distribution bracket 14. Controller 134 can be optionally programmed to cause motor 54 to rotate drive rollers 52 far enough immediately afterwards to move the next lower card back from deck 13 a short distance if necessary, pushing the card that has been drawn completely. before reservoir 12 a short distance to remove it from slot 62, and then reverse motor 54 to move the back card back to its position at the bottom of deck 13. Dealer support 14 is then removed to be moved up or down to place another receptacle 30 in a position alignment with slot 62 to receive a new card from deck 13.

[0090] Once the first card has been shuffled on the dealer stand 14, only 51 empty pockets 30 remain, and the microcomputer 170 randomly selects a pocket 30 for the next card, out of the remaining 51 empty pockets. The microcomputer 170 again directs the stepper motor 92 to drive the lead screw 86 to move the distributor bracket 14 to align the socket 30 designated for the second card with the slot 62, and once it is has determined that the receptacle is aligned with the slot 62, the microcomputer controller 170 again causes the motor 54 to move the bottom card of the deck 13 into the receptacle as described above. This sequence is repeated until each of the 52 cards has been inserted into the respective randomly selected receptacle 30, one card at a time and one card per receptacle. As a safety measure to prevent card tracking, controller 134 can be configured to cause delivery bracket 14 to move to position a receptacle 30 aligned with slot 62, as a dummy insert, without moving a card in the slot. receptacle one or more times during card shuffling.

[0091] Once the entire deck 13 has been moved from the magazine 12 onto the dispenser support 14, a memory component of the microcomputer 170 contains a record of the sequence of placing cards in the receptacles 30. If the shuffler 10 also includes In a card reader 180, the suit and numerical value of each card may also have been stored in memory along with the location on the dealer carrier 14 to which the card has been moved.

[0092] Since the distances through which the dealer support 14 has to move are short, each movement of the dealer support 14 during card shuffling is not greater than about 50.8 mm (2 inches) and the Most movements are significantly less, from the location of one receptacle 30 to the location of the next receptacle 30 in which a letter is to be placed, the total time for shuffling the 52 cards of a complete deck of cards 13, placing each one in a randomly selected receptacle 30, can be approximately 15 seconds. When the last card in a deck 13 is moved from the deck 12, the deck sensor 130 sends a signal to the controller 134, whose microcomputer 170 then determines, based on the signals received from the card counter sensor 132 (see FIGS. 8-9, and 11), if the deck has been apparently well shuffled.

[0093] Once all 52 receptacles 30 are full and shuffling has been completed, in "full deck draw mode" the card protector 108 lowers and the dealer support 14 automatically raises up above the deck wall. lock 106 so that the 52 receptacles 30 are accessible from the front and the rear, as shown in FIG. eleven. The dealer can then slide the 52 shuffled cards 32 out of the dealer bracket 14 onto the top 112 of the blocking wall 106 on the side of the dealer bracket 14 facing the deposit 12 and separated from it as a complete deck that is now You can present the players for the cut (Blackjack) or you can cut the dealer (Poker). Play continues as usual and the dealer does so with the deck shuffled.

[0094] To prevent the cards from being seen before they are shuffled and to avoid the cards on the dealer support 14 from being seen during shuffling, before placing the deck in deposit 12, the deck can be placed, face down, on a plastic cut card, and the deck and cut card can be placed in the bin 12 together. Controller 134 can be programmed to always place the cut card in the upper pocket 30 of the dealer stand 14 before moving the cards to randomly selected pockets 30.

[0095] As a further option, when the shuffler is in the full deck draw mode, the controller 134 can be programmed to slice the shuffled deck 32, which is also shown in FIG. 16. When the shuffling is complete, and when the shuffler 10 presents the shuffled cards 32, the controller 134 will automatically select a randomly selected number of cards to be cut from the deck of shuffled cards 32, within an acceptable range, which can be defined and program to comply with applicable regulations, as too small or too large a cut may not be considered a valid cut. Controller 134 would cause the dealer stand 14 to rise to present the randomly selected number of cards above the blocking wall 106 for the dealer to draw, and the dealer would draw these cards, constituting the top of the deck. Immediately after the removal of these cards, controller 134 would raise the dealer support 14 to its highest position for the removal of the remaining cards, the bottom of the shuffled deck, so that it was placed on top of the top of the deck. , thus emulating the

ES 2 632 773 T3 classic cut. Optionally, the cut could be initiated instead by the dealer's signal using the DM 144 button based on a programmed protocol.

Alternatively, in an interactive deck cutting mode, upon completion of the shuffling of the cards, the controller 134 causes the dealer stand 14 to slowly rise or rise and fall through a range of positions waiting for a player says "cut." Once this has been said, the dealer presses the DM button 144 to stop the dealer stand 14, allowing the cards to be cut at this point. The player has thus 'cut the cards' without the controller 134's random number generator intervening. Calling out 'cut' (or if the player makes a hand signal) is simply a way for the players to interact with shuffler 10 in this regard. Another option, for example, is that the player making a cut could use a small remote control similar in shape and size to half a billiard ball with a button on top. Pressing the button would remotely stop the dealer support 14 as it slowly rises, allowing the shuffled cards 32 to be cut at a point chosen by a player.

[0097] In the extraction of the entire deck in a two-deck batch game mode, once the shuffling of cards has been finished and another deck 13 is placed in deposit 12, the signal from the empty support sensor 136 to controller 134, indicating that the shuffled deck has been removed from the dealer stand 14 causes controller 134 to begin the procedure of shuffling the cards for the subsequent deck 13.

[0098] In Blackjack and Poker it is normally dealt in the "whole deck draw mode". Once the shuffler 10 has started, as long as the dealer support 14 is empty, placing a deck 13 in the magazine 12 will automatically produce the shuffling of cards after the controller 134 has measured a preset time, for example, three seconds. Since the time it takes to shuffle the cards is so short (10-15 seconds), it is not necessary to stop the shuffling of cards in the middle and manually clear Deposit 12 and Dealer Holder 14 before resuming play afterwards. of an interruption.

[0099] Card shuffling for the batch system with two decks to play in full deck draw mode can continue without any dealer interaction, since deck sensor 130 alerts controller 134 each time a deck 13 is introduced into tank 12. The deck sensor 130 also detects when the magazine 12 is empty again, and the controller 134 in response causes the dealer support 14 to lower the card protector 108 and then move it to its highest position for the extraction of cards. The deck. When sensor 136 then detects that dealer rack 14 is empty and ready to receive cards, controller 134 automatically causes shuffler 10 to raise guard 108 from the deck and begin shuffling the cards. Alternatively, card shuffling can be started manually, using the DM 144 switch.

[00100] Controller 134 can be programmed so that, if for any reason the game has to be stopped, by pressing button DM 144 in a programmed sequence, such as, for example, twice in a programmed time such as one second, instruct the controller 134 to illuminate the red LED 148, stop shuffling the cards, and move the dealer stand 14 to its highest position. In this mode, shuffler 10 will not operate until DM button 144 is pressed again, instructing controller 134 to continue, causing controller 134 to turn on green LED 146.

[00101] For Poker and Blackjack, the green light 146 is always on unless the game is stopped, by pressing the DM button 144 twice, for security reasons; or if the controller 134 detects that there are too many cards or missing cards in response to the card count signals from the sensor 132, and the shuffler 10 stops automatically in response; or when there is a jam or a fault occurs and the shuffler 10 stops automatically, in response to excess current drawn from one of the motors 54 and 92.

[00102] A two-deck batch system allows one deck to be shuffled and cards from the other deck to be dealt simultaneously while the game is being played. Instead, the 10 shuffler can be used for traditional single-deck Blackjack and other games where multiple rounds are dealt before the cards are shuffled instead of using the batch system that requires two rotating decks. For this mode, the controller 134 can also be programmed to shuffle the cards of each round, fewer cards than a full deck, incrementally, immediately after a round has been played, starting the shuffling of cards that will gradually increase as soon as the cards of a round are placed in deposit 12 and a pre-programmed time delay has elapsed, or the dealer has pressed the button MD 144, placing the cards from each round in randomly selected 30 receptacles on the dealer stand 14. This is done unlike the traditional procedure in any multi-round game where the cards from each round are placed on the discard stand, and after one or more more rounds are combined with the rest of the cards that have not been played and are shuffled as a complete deck. Shuffling the cards for each round after it has been played has the effect of shuffling parts of the deck as the game progresses. After all the rounds have been played with the deck being used, for the process of shuffling the cards it is no longer necessary to use the 52 cards but only the remaining cards that have not been dealt and the cards of the last round that has been played. The same incremental method of shuffling the cards could be used to shuffle the cards as they are played in a multi-deck sabot, to reduce the time required to complete the shuffling process and thus make it unnecessary. use a multi-deck batching system. Also, in a multi-deck system, the final part of the shuffled multi-deck pool of cards is normally not played, and that part of the pool of cards could be placed in the shuffler and shuffled as the first increment even

ES 2 632 773 T3 before starting to deal a round from the front end of the multi-deck pool. The same could be done with the cards at the bottom of a single deck after it has been cut.

[00103] For example, as shown in the form of a simplified flow chart in FIG. 17, if the first round uses 15 cards, these cards are inserted directly into deposit 12 (instead of discard holder 126), and after, for example, a programmed delay, or after a signal initiated by the dealer, using button DM 144, they are automatically and randomly distributed on dealer support 14 (when the second round is dealt). If the second round consists of 11 cards, then 11 more cards are put into deck 12 and randomly distributed to open 30 receptacles (while the third round is being dealt). Assuming a third and final round is dealt before the cards are shuffled, since 26 (15 + 11) have already been shuffled, it is only necessary to shuffle 26 more cards, including the cards from the third round, to complete the entire shuffling process. shuffle the cards and make the full deck of cards available to play.

[0104] With this approach, the greatest savings in card shuffling speed will occur with one player as a full round can be comprised of only 5 or 6 cards. If the dealer deals them face down to the fortieth card before the last round is dealt, shuffler 10 would only have to shuffle the remaining 12 cards to complete the shuffling of the cards. At a crowded table where typically only two rounds are dealt before the cards are shuffled again, and assuming 26 cards are used to deal in one round, shuffler 10 would only have to shuffle all 26 cards from the second round to complete the process.

[0105] By using the shuffler 10 for such gradually increasing card shuffling in such a single deck system the dependent nature of Blackjack or other games can be maintained. If all four aces have been played in the first round, they cannot be dealt in subsequent rounds before the entire deck has been shuffled.

[0106] The shuffler 10 can be used, in what could be called a continuous shuffling manner, to provide a complete shuffled deck for each round of play, where in the game currently being played there is no need to deal more cards during that game. As soon as a hand has been dealt to each player and the dealer, the remaining shuffled cards can be placed in deck 12 and controller 134 can start shuffling the cards automatically upon receipt of a signal from deck sensor 130 and a programmed delay, or if the dealer presses button DM 144. The cards that are not dealt for the round being played are already shuffled when the game round has been completed and the cards that have been used in the game can then be placed in deck 12 and shuffled. This completes the shuffling of the entire deck, which can then be used for the next round of play, in significantly less time than waiting for an entire deck to be shuffled.

[0107] In one embodiment of shuffler 10 the DM button 144 can be used for the entire pre-game process of configuring shuffler 10 for a given fashion game. Controller 134 could be programmed to enter a pre-game settings mode, in response to a selected pattern and the durations of pressing the DM button 144. Other patterns can be used in the pre-game settings mode to configure the shuffler 10 for use in a card game by entering the pre-game settings via the MD button 144 to set the mode in which the shuffler 10 is intended to be used. works for a given game. For example, settings for a hand draw mode can be specified in controller 134 to cause shuffler 10 to present serially to the dealer, during play, a desired number of cards for each player, and for the dealer, to a game like one of the many games called novelty games, where a certain number of cards is dealt to each player and either the same number of cards or a different number can be dealt to the dealer, and in which a set number of additional cards can be dealt one or more times later.

[0108] Once in pre-game settings mode, in one embodiment of shuffler 10 a deck 13 could be placed in bin 12 and shuffled, and the supervisor could then press the DM 144 button once for each card required in one hand for each of the players; therefore, in a game where each player is dealt three cards, button DM 144 would be pressed three times. After a set delay, after for example three seconds, the dealer support 14 can move and present three cards that can be removed and spread on the table for confirmation, thus ending the first phase. In the second phase, the same procedure is followed to configure the controller 134 for the dealer's hand. If there are no more phases or betting rounds where additional cards are required, the DM 144 button would be pressed twice and held for a longer predetermined period of time to exit pre-game settings mode (same procedure used to enter the pre-game setting mode). Controller 134 in such an embodiment could be programmed to allow up to five additional phases to be managed as described, for example. If the dealer support 14 is made to present the desired number of cards after setting the number of cards to be presented for each subsequent hand or phase, visual confirmation is obtained.

[0109] With another alternative embodiment of controller 134, once shuffler 10 is in pre-game settings mode, controller 134 could be delayed for a time such as three seconds and then have a light turn on. flash, such as green LED 146, once every three seconds thereafter. To set up a game where each of the players is dealt three cards, after the third flashing light, the supervisor would then press the MD 144 button twice to establish a setting of 'three cards for each of Players". Subsequently, after another three second delay, the programmed controller 134 could cause the green LED 146 to flash again. If the dealer receives

ES 2 632 773 T3 five cards, after the fifth blink, the supervisor would press the DM 144 button twice to set "five cards to the dealer". If there were no more additional betting rounds, the supervisor could press button DM 144 twice to remove "additional betting round number 1", and then two more times to remove "additional betting round number 2". , and two more times to remove the "last additional betting round number 3". That is, after the appropriate number of blinks equal to the number of cards required for a given stage of the deal sequences (five stages in total), the MD button 144 is pressed twice to set a number of cards or remove a stage. After the fifth (and last) has been set or removed, the shuffler 10 would return to normal game mode and would be ready to play. The aforementioned is just one of several ways to enter this information, and as another option the controller 134 could also be programmed to respond to a configuration by flashing one of the colored LEDs 146, 148, or 150, or a fast flashing sequences could mean "removed" or be used for verification.

[0110] In one embodiment of the shuffler 10 that includes the five switches 156, 158, 160, 162, and 164, mentioned above, they can be used with the shuffler 10 in the pre-game settings mode. Switch 156 can then be used to configure shuffler 10 to deal a specified number of cards for each player, and switch 158 can be used to configure the number of cards to be presented to the dealer. The three additional similar switches 160, 162, and 164 can be configured to instruct the controller 134 to deal additional card numbers to the dealer or players in a sequence set according to the rules of the game to be played. For example, switch 156 can be configured to make a three card hand available to each player. Switch 158 can also be configured to provide three cards to the dealer. In a game where no additional cards will be dealt, switches 160, 162, and 164 can all be set to zero. For a different game, for example Texas Hold'em Bonus, switch 156 can be set to provide two cards to each player and switch 158 to provide two cards to the dealer, followed by switches 160 set to provide three community cards which will be placed on the table as «The Flop» and switches 162 and 164 each set to provide one more card when prompted using the DM 144 button, a single card for “El Turn when requested and another single card for“ El Río ”when requested a second time. Controller 134 can be programmed so that after the "Rio" card has been dealt, completing the deal for a round, controller 134 will cause the dealer support 14 to automatically rise to its highest position, and allow them to turn back. to shuffle the rest of the cards.

[0111] The shuffler 10 can deal the novel games in a "hand draw mode", in which cards can be drawn one "hand" at a time. This mode can be set for shuffler 10 as described above, by pre-game settings of switches 156-164, or by use of DM button 144. In the event that the shuffler 10 is set to the hand draw mode for a novel game, the card numbers previously set in the controller 134 can be dealt to individual players and to the dealer as hands. Once the deck 13 has been completely transferred from the magazine 12 to the randomly selected receptacles 30 of the dispenser bracket 14, the protector 108 is placed in its lowered position, in which an upper edge of the protector 108 can be aligned along the top margin. 112 from locking wall 106, and distributor bracket 14 is initially held in its lowest position adjacent to locking wall 106. Controller 134 may be programmed so that at that time a different light than those associated with DM button 144, eg, yellow LED 150, illuminates. In that case, once the dealer presses the DM button 144 the yellow LED 150 turns off and the green LED 146 lights up. Next, controller 134 causes stepper motor 92 to actuate lead screw 86, and dealer bracket 14 raises to a position displaying a number of pockets 30 containing the number of cards to be dealt to a player. (Alternatively and typically, the controller 134 would be programmed to raise the dealer support 14 as soon as a programmed delay time has elapsed after the shuffling of the cards has taken place.) The dealer can then removing these cards from the dealer stand 14 by sliding them through the top margin 112 of wall 106 and placing them on the table before the first player. Once the first player's cards have been removed from the dealer rack 14, the empty rack sensor 136 can detect that the lower receptacle 30 above the top 112 of the wall 106 is empty. Sensor 136 then sends a signal to controller 134, which raises deck 14 to present receptacles 30 containing the number of cards selected for the next player's hand, ready to fold. Alternatively, the dealer could press the DM button 144 to indicate to the controller that it is appropriate to raise the dealer stand 14 to present the receptacles 30 containing the number of cards selected for the next player's hand. As other alternatives, an additional sensor (not shown) could be located in the card draw pocket 120 to detect the dealer's hand when he removes the cards from the dealer stand 14, or a sensor could be located where it can detect the passage of cards. the cards off the dealer stand and send an electrical signal to the controller to initiate the lift of the dealer stand 14.

[0112] The microcomputer 170 may be programmed in one embodiment so that for each round in which it has been dealt, the dealer must press the DM button 144 before dealing to the last player. This action instructs the shuffler 10 to present a hand to the last player followed finally by the dealer's hand. After the dealer's hand is removed, controller 134 moves the dealer bracket 14 to its highest position so that the remaining shuffled cards 32 that have not been played can be removed and placed on the discard bracket 126 or in tank 12.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0113] After the dealer removes each hand from dealer bracket 14, sensor 136 signals controller 134 to raise dealer bracket 14 again, and present another full hand to deal to the player. Once all hands (including the dealer's) have been dealt, after a programmed delay, or when the dealer presses the DM button 144, the dealer stand 14 is automatically raised to its highest position, as shown in FIG. 11, allowing all remaining cards to be removed and placed in Discard Holder 126 or Deposit 12. Immediately after Dealer Holder 14 has been emptied of all remaining cards that have not been played and while players are making decisions On your hands, if the shuffler 10 operates in the two-deck batching mode, the next shuffling of cards is started.

[0114] In this hand draw mode of operation the controller 134 may provide a visual signal change during the card dealing procedure. That is, after finishing shuffling the cards, the green light 146 turns off and the controller 134 turns on the yellow light 150 at the moment the dealer support presents the hand of the first player. The yellow light serves as a reminder to the dealer to press the DM 144 button once before dealing to the last player. Once the DM button 144 has been pressed, the green light 146 turns on and shows that the shuffler 10 has returned to the normal mode of operation. Next, the shuffler 10 presents the last player's hand, and when the empty support sensor 136 detects that the hand has been withdrawn or when prompted after pressing the DM button 144, the controller 134 raises the dealer support 14 to present the dealer's hand.

[0115] Previously known card shufflers can deal hands in which the deal sequence is defined and predictable and therefore easy to program in advance. However, to play certain games, the shuffler 10 can be configured to present cards in a "dynamic game" mode. For example, some games (such as Baccarat) may not require the players or the dealer to receive individual hands. Shuffler 10 can be programmed to present rounds of one or more cards to be dealt in the center of the table where players bet different outcomes, and shuffler 10 can continue dealing these rounds without being affected by programmed delays. until a certain result ends the hand, or until the dealer presses the DM 144 button to manually end the hand, or until the shuffler 10 reaches a predetermined point in the deck of shuffled cards 32 and automatically moves the dealer stand 14 to its highest position to end the hand. By way of another example, for the phases of the game that follow a first deal of a predetermined number of cards to the players and the dealer, the controller 134 can be configured to present three cards (to be used by all players) for a Additional betting round, and then to keep presenting three cards for subsequent betting rounds until a series of rounds is completed using one of the methods described. Said round may even consist of a random number of cards selected by controller 134, or there may be multiple draw phases for each player. It is also possible to use other formats. Furthermore, with a card reader 180 included in the shuffler 10, a particular card combination or any other event identified by the rules of the game can be used as a trigger to signal the controller 134 to end the hand and automatically raise the stand. dealer 14 so that the remaining cards can be shuffled again. Therefore, dynamic game functions can be configured during pregame settings, and the shuffler 10 can handle games with more than five stages, and games in which the exit path or the number of cards required to complete a hand, phase, or round cannot be predicted or programmed in advance.

[0116] Another example, Blackjack is a game that normally deals from the hand received, even though the machine has shuffled the cards first. Blackjack has a dynamic playing format as it is impossible to predict how players will play their hands, for example, if they will hit cards, stand, double the bet and split the cards, or predict how many cards will be needed to play. complete each player's turn. Assuming that shuffler 10 presents two cards at a time for each player the first time it is dealt, controller 134 would be configured to present one card at a time for an additional first round of betting and would be locked in the dynamic format procedure. Therefore, after the players and the dealer are dealt two cards, the shuffler would subsequently present one card at a time and continue to present one card each time until the process is complete.

[0117] With the microcomputer 170 of the controller 134 programmed in a slightly different way, in any novel game where the players and the dealer are dealt the same number of cards, the dealer does not need to press button DM 144 at any time during the deal of cards. letters or after it. If the shuffler 10 is programmed to deal three-card hands, for example, the dealer bracket 14 will rise to present three cards to each player, and three cards to the dealer, simply presenting three cards each time the empty support sensor 136 detect that the lower receptacle 30 above the upper margin 112 of the blocking wall 106 is empty. After removing the dealer's hand, the dealer support 14 will rise again to present three cards, but these cards will not be dealt. If these cards are not removed from the dealer rack 14 when detected by the empty rack sensor 136 for a programmed delay time, such as 3-5 seconds, the dealer rack 14 will automatically raise the remainder of the run to its highest point to draw all of them. the remaining 32 shuffled cards. That is, the amount of delay time programmed immediately after the dealer's hand is drawn, or the dealer's pressing of the DM button 144, instructs the controller 134 to automatically raise the dealer support 14 to its highest position.

[0118] In one embodiment of shuffler 10 the controller 134 can also be programmed for hand draw mode, so that in any game where the pre-game settings of shuffler 10 are that the players and the dealer receive different numbers cards, button DM 144 must be pressed before

It is 2 632 773 T3 that the dealer's hand is removed. For example, in a game where three cards are dealt to each of the players and the dealer receives five cards, the dealer support 14 would present three cards for each player, and three cards for the dealer, although before removing these cards the dealer he would press the DM button 144, thus signaling the dealer support 14 to present two additional cards, depending on the pre-game configuration, which would allow the dealer to fold a full five-card hand. With the pre-game settings made for a game that requires the dealer to receive fewer cards than the players, the dealer support 14 would drop as needed once the dealer pressed the DM 144 button. As a further security option, the controller can present an additional card to the dealer, and "burn", or discard the bottom card, so that the dealer's bottom card cannot be briefly revealed.

[0119] Shuffler 10 can allow new interactive games in which matching hands of different numbers of cards can be instantly provided. For example, a game can have two phases. In the first phase, each player receives the necessary number of cards. In the second phase, each player decides whether to give up their bet and finish the hand, or increase their bet and fold one to three cards. As each player verbally expresses his decision to draw cards or indicates a decision by making hand signals, the dealer, as necessary, presses the DM 144 button one to three times within a programmed time period, and introduces himself. the right number of cards to deal. A remote player console (not shown) connected to shuffler 10 could also take care of this task.

[0120] In another example where shuffler 10 would be useful, three cards are dealt to all players and the dealer and then at the stage of removing the cards, the dealer stand 14 is raised to present one to three randomly selected cards by controller 134; shuffler 10 would be set to pre-game settings mode to present three cards to each player and the dealer, and then go into "random" mode. In the random mode, each time the DM button 144 is pressed, the shuffler 10 randomly presents one to three cards.

[0121] In another example, a game could include dealing each player one to three cards, determined randomly by controller 134. Players would still have a chance to win with just one card, and winning with one card would provide higher profitability, while receiving three cards improves your chances. The shuffler 10 can be easily programmed to deal the required number of cards to each player for that game.

[0122] Shuffler 10 could be programmed in another game where the rules indicate that the community cards, which would be used by all players in Hold'em, should be presented in a certain number, for example, from one to five cards, randomly selected by shuffler 10. That is, shuffler 10 can be programmed and driven by pre-game settings to present the cards in random numbers.

[0123] In some card games, immediately after the cards are shuffled and cut, one or more cards may be burned (discarded) before starting to deal. Shuffler 10 offers four options for burning a card: (a) not burning any cards (default); (b) burn a card, the usual game in Blackjack, assuming shuffler 10 deals them in hand draw mode. Otherwise, it is easier to burn a letter manually; (c) burn one to ten cards in Baccarat: put the top card face up; if the card is a 3, the dealer presses the DM 144 button three times to add three cards, which are removed and burned; if the card is a 9, the dealer presses the DM 144 button nine times to burn nine cards; and if the card is a card whose value is 10 (10, J, Q, K), the button DM 144 must be pressed ten times to burn ten cards; and (d) as a correction function, in the event that the dealer makes a mistake, he could provide a programmed signal via the DM button 144 to present an appropriate number of cards for discard, at any point in the game. The first few cards in Baccarat can be burned, without a card reader 180, by pressing the DM button 144 as necessary, for example, five times, each time in one second; then, after a delay of one second, the dealer support 14 would automatically add five cards. This procedure could be automatic using a card reader 180; Dealer Stand 14 would present a card as the burned card indicator that would be drawn and turned face up and then automatically raised to present the number of cards to burn as indicated (and determine controller 134 based on whether knows the numerical value of the top card). The ability to burn cards during live play has many advantages. For example, when the dealer does so by skipping a live player, but the player insists on receiving a hand, or when a supervisor, for whatever reason, decides to step in and ask the dealer to burn three cards. A supervisor could put the shuffler 10 into this special burn card mode using the MD button 144. For example, by pressing the MD button 144 three times and holding it down until the red LED 148 lights up. The dealer would then be instructed to press the DM 144 button as many times as corresponds to the number of cards required to rectify a situation. Dealer stand 14 presents these cards and they are dealt to the player. The supervisor would press the DM button 144 three times again and keep it pressed until the green LED 146 lights, thus restoring the game to normal mode.

[0124] Shuffler 10 can be used to randomly designate when the deal will start. If the shuffler 10 has been preconfigured for dealing at Pai Gow Poker, once the cards have been shuffled, instead of automatically presenting seven cards, the dealer stand 14 presents a randomly selected number from one to seven cards. The dealer removes these cards and places them face down in front of everyone to count. If a card is presented, the starting point for the deal is position number "1" (the dealer). If two cards are presented to be dealt, the starting point for the deal is position number '2' (usually the player to the right of the

ES 2 632 773 T3 dealer). The number of cards Randomly Increased (from one to seven) determines the position where the first hand to be dealt will be received. Instead of discarding these cards, they are used as part of the first seven-card hand that is dealt. Therefore, the controller 134 of the shuffler 10 is programmed so that, if a card is initially selected, at the moment this card is removed from the dealer stand 14, the dealer stand 14 rises and presents six more cards to complete the first hand. (seven cards) to be dealt. If two cards are initially presented, at the time these cards are removed from the dealer stand 14, the dealer stand 14 rises to present five more cards to complete the first hand, and so on. In the event that seven cards were initially presented, no additional cards are required for the first hand. So one to seven cards are initially presented to determine the player's position to receive the first hand dealt, and then the number of cards needed to complete a seven-card hand is presented, if necessary, to complete. the cast of the hand. Once the first full hand has been folded from there, Dealer Stand 14 automatically presents seven cards for each of the other hands until a predetermined delay time has passed without the next hand having folded, or until the dealer presses button DM 144 (after last hand). Although dealer bracket 14 would have automatically presented another seven-card hand, they will not be used, and dealer bracket 14 will be raised to its highest point to present all remaining cards for draw, in order to shuffle them for the next round of the game. play.

[0125] Controller 134 can also be programmed to automatically request that a deck be re-shuffled, so that when playing a single-deck game, such as Blackjack, where more than one round can be played before returning to shuffle the cards, once a predetermined number of cards have been dealt from the shuffled cards 32, by pressing the DM button 144 to indicate to the controller 134 that a round has been completed, Dealer Stand 14 automatically rises to its highest position so that the remaining cards 32 can be removed from Dealer Stand 14 and placed in Deposit 12. This automatic prompt to re-shuffle the cards allows players to be assured that the dealer will not you are choosing the best time to shuffle the cards.

Mode of operation and additional features

[0126] The shuffler 10 can also be manufactured with a distributor stand (not shown) whose sides can be moved. Once the cards have been shuffled and the dealer stand has been filled and raised to its highest position, the sides 20, 22 can be separated by a motor such as a solenoid controlled by the controller 134, allowing the 32 shuffled cards are grouped into a traditional deck ready so that the entire deck can be drawn to begin dealing the cards, for example, in games such as Blackjack and Poker. Alternatively, the deck can be raised to a certain height and only present the desired number of cards that can be removed and dealt while the other cards are held in the deck.

[0127] The shuffler 10 can also be manufactured for use in games that use multiple decks, for example, to shuffle from two to eight decks. Converting shuffler 10 to a two-deck shuffler would require a simple workshop modification. However, converting the shuffler to mix four to eight decks would require the shuffler to be mounted to the side of the table so that it was inconspicuous and concealed most of the vertical movement of the dealer stand. Alternatively, the shuffler can be reoriented by basically turning it on its side, to cause the dealer stand 14 to move horizontally, with the cards resting on their sides in the deck 12 of the deck. The cards would be available to the side, rather than the top, of the reoriented shuffler.

[0128] Alternatively, the magazine 12 and the dealer support 14 can be rotated ninety degrees and aligned so that they handle the cards in a "short end to short end" configuration thus expanding and reducing the width of the shuffler 10, although this This arrangement would require each card to be moved further to empty magazine 12 and occupy a receptacle 30.

[0129] The shuffler 10 can be manufactured in a somewhat smaller version but still fully valid for use in Poker. Since individual hands are not dealt from shuffler 10 for Poker and there is no reason to facilitate the deal action in single hand draw mode, motors 54 and 92 and DM button 144 could be on the right. same side without using the 10 shuffler so it is not uncomfortable for the dealer. There would be no need for the card protector 108 to be lowered for the presentation of the player's hand, and spring-open doors like those in western movie rooms (or a similar door design) would suffice. The DM 144 button would be used rarely and should only display two colors. Neither a discard holder 126 nor internal presets switches 156, 158, 160, 162, and 164 are necessary. Only 52 receptacles 30 are needed in the distribution support 14. In summary, a model to play Poker could have only the minimum benefits without having to give up anything; A Poker shuffler only needs to shuffle the cards and allow easy loading and unloading of the cards.

[0130] For this version of the shuffler 10 that only allows playing Poker, given its small size, a possible installation option is for the shuffler 10 to be directly integrated into the poker chip tray. Since the containers or holders that are traditionally integrated into Poker chip trays would not be necessary, the shuffler 10 could be installed in its usual place in a custom made chip tray. The shuffler 10 could be integrated into said chip tray at a sufficient distance so that the card opening 12 is at the same level as the chip tray, directly facing the dealer's torso, comfortably available to the dealer.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0131] Rakes are standard components of equipment found on poker tables, used to allow chips to fall into drawers underneath the table. For a casino type poker table, another possible installation is to mount the shuffler 10 on a special base or complementary base (not shown) that occupies the area of ​​the rake. This base would support the shuffler 10 above the rake in a configuration that would not interfere with the normal operation of the rake.

[0132] For another embodiment the shuffler 10 could also include a deck (not shown) that can be moved over the open top and card removal cavity 120 and the open front of the casing 44, to protect the front part and higher, perhaps molded around the DM 144 button and arranged so that it automatically slides out of the dealer and can extend beyond the machine to allow the shuffled cards 52 to be disposed of, once the process of shuffling the cards is complete.

[0133] In one embodiment, the shuffler 10 could be mounted in a defined gap or cavity in a gaming table. With the base 16 of shuffler 10 seated below table level, locking wall 106 and opening 46 to reservoir 12 would be exposed slightly above table level. This would allow the cards to be inserted into the deck 12 and removed from the dealer stand 14 practically level with the mat, a desirable security measure that prevents the cards from being accidentally visible.

[0134] As an alternative to rollers 52, a card feed belt can be used to push the bottom card of deck 13 using an elongated "caterpillar" type card feed endless belt with protruding protrusions with a thickness lower than that of a card and that, therefore, they can only push a single card, or that they can come into contact with the face of the card that is lower with this same design and one or more contact points of some kind. The belt drive wheels may be driven by stepper motor 54 to control the letter feed belt.

[0135] The shuffler 10 can utilize video projection devices in conjunction with programming input devices. For example, a standard trackpad or touchpad 176 that uses a touch sensor could be included in the housing 44 of the shuffler 10 and a small opening would allow the output to be projected onto a clipboard, screen, piece of paper, or other suitable device, allowing you to manage and view pre-game settings, diagnostics, hand history, as well as other tasks.

[0136] If the shuffler 10 is equipped with a card reader 180, it has several additional functions. If a player receives a jackpot hand, shuffler 10, if equipped with a 180 card reader, can be programmed to re-deal the cards it had presented to the player who has declared that he has a hand of jackpot. jackpot, from the 'second deck' of the batch game, or from a separate deck, for visual confirmation of the initial deal sequence that led to the jackpot.

[0137] In one embodiment of the shuffler 10 equipped with the card reader 180, the position after shuffling of all cards 32 can be retrieved from the memory of the controller microcomputer 170, as shown in the form of a simplified flow chart in the FIG. 18. During shuffling, each card is identified as it is moved to the respective randomly selected receptacle 30 on the dispenser holder 14, and the location, or identity, of the receptacle is associated with the identity of the card in the memory component of the microcomputer 170 in the controller 134. This means that not only can the shuffler 10 identify individual cards for deck verification, but it can also be programmed to evaluate the deck's card order after shuffling the cards, and retain "hand history" for periods of time. as required by government regulatory authorities. Therefore, in a game where each player is dealt five cards (standard poker ranking), the controller software 134 could be designed to consider the suit and the numerical value of each of the five cards in the top five receptacles 30 of the dealer bracket 14 after shuffling the cards, the next group of five cards, the next group of five cards, etc. In the event that a player hits a jackpot (maximum prize), to verify that everything is legal, the supervisor could ask the dealer to press button DM 144 in a set pattern, for example, three times. Controller 134 can be programmed so that if green light 146 rapidly begins to flash this means that a jackpot hand was "present" in the last order in which the cards were shuffled. Controller 134 can also be programmed so that green light 147 flashes slowly to show the number of players required for the cards being dealt including a jackpot hand. If the red light 148 starts to flash rapidly, there is a problem as shuffler 10 is indicating that there was no jackpot hand in the last order in which the cards were shuffled.

[0138] In the game of Blackjack, two cards are dealt to the players and the dealers, and one of the cards dealt to the dealer is face up (open card) while the other is kept face down, ie covered (cover letter). To prevent or detect cheating, devices are used to determine the value of the covered card when Blackjack is possible, that is, whenever the open card is an Ace or a card with a value of 10. When the shuffler 10 is equipped with a card reader 180, the controller 134 can be configured to memorize the location of each card that is placed on the dealer support 14, and the shuffler 10 can dispense with independent devices to peek at the cards that are being placed. currently use. The use of card-flipping functions in shuffler 10 requires that card reader 180 be able to determine their numerical value and requires that the shuffler 10's pre-game settings establish a hand draw and draw mode. Deal the cards to the players and the dealer from the dealer stand 14, presenting two cards together for each player and the dealer.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0139] Traditionally, the first card to be dealt to the dealer manually is the "open card" although a safer procedure of using shuffler 10 is to reverse the functions of the dealer's cards and make the open card the lowest of the cards. the two cards that have been removed from the dealer stand 14. Since it will be turned face up anyway, showing the bottom card of a pair drawn from the dealer bracket 14 is irrelevant, and the bottom card hides the identity of the top card.

[0140] Each round of the Blackjack game consists of two phases. In the first phase, two cards are dealt to each player and the dealer, and the dealer turns the lowest card face up. The second phase is the phase in which decisions are made and players can ask for cards, double the bets, and depart; This phase ends when the dealer draws his hand if required by house rules.

[0141] After shuffler 10 presents two cards and they are dealt to all players and the dealer, dealer bracket 14 will automatically and instantly raise to present two more cards, as it does not know how many players are present. With controller 134 properly programmed, a two second delay during the deal without drawing these next two cards will indicate to controller 134 that the initial phase is over (the players and dealer have received two cards).

[0142] At the end of the initial phase, indicated by the two-second delay mentioned above, after the dealer support 14 has presented two more cards, the dealer support 14 will automatically prepare for the next phase, moving down by a single card receptacle 30 and leaving only a single card available to the dealer for the decision phase where cards are dealt one at a time, if the value of the dealer's open card is between 2 and 9.

[0143] When the dealer's open card is a card with a value of ten (10, Jack, Queen, or King) the dealer must take a look, that is, immediately determine if he has a blackjack; When the dealer's open card is an ace, the dealer must first offer insurance to players before peeking at the card for blackjack.

[0144] Since the controller 134 has available in the memory of the microcomputer 170 the order of the cards after shuffling them and how much the dealer support has moved since it has been shuffled, it knows how many hands have been dealt. If the dealer support 14 has raised five times, the controller 134 knows that there are three players, the dealer, and an additional rejected two-card presentation. Consider the following sequence after shuffling the cards: 2-5, 7-A, 4-J, 6-K. . .

[0145] Once the shuffler 10 determines the number of players in the game, he checks the sequence and sees that the dealer has a K (the King) in the open card position and a 6 in the deck card. Since the dealer does not have blackjack, play continues normally after the two second delay, and controller 134 may provide a signal to everyone, such as the green light on the DM button 146 flashing three times to indicate that the dealer game continue (GO).

[0146] Now consider the following sequence: 2-5, 7-A, 4-J, AK. . .

[0147] This time the dealer has blackjack (King is the open card and the ace is the covered card) so play must be stopped; the hand ends and the dealer must flip the covered card to reveal blackjack. In this case, once the microcomputer considers the dealer's hand, the controller 134 provides a signal so that the light of the DM button 148 flashes red three times to stop (STOP).

[0148] In all rounds where the dealer's open card is an ace, players must be offered insurance, a process that can take several seconds. Controller 134 should be programmed so that the dealer's open card is an ace, after all players have made their insurance decisions, the dealer should press DM button 144 to ask controller 134 for the dealer's status. Specifically, is the covered card a card with a value of ten? Only when the dealer has an open card that is an ace is it necessary to activate shuffler 10, since the rest of blackjack combinations (open card with a value of ten) are managed automatically and without interaction by the dealer.

[0149] As players ask for cards, double bets, and split cards, one card is dealt for each player's decision. After the last player has acted, the dealer's hand is revealed and additional cards are removed to the dealer if the rules so require. Controller 134 can be programmed so that the dealer can signal the end of the round to controller 134 by pressing the DM button 144 as the cards played are drawn and placed on the discard holder 126 or deposit 12. When this happens, the dealer support 14 will have already presented a single card, but pressing the Dm 144 button instructs the controller to make the dealer support 14 go up to also present another card so that two cards are ready to be drawn for start the next round.

[0150] Shuffler 10 can also be used to sort a deck to facilitate confirmation that it is complete, by placing shuffler 10 in the required mode and placing a randomly ordered deck in bin 12. Card reader 180 it identifies the lower card and always places it in the upper receptacle 30, so that the dealer support 14 hardly has to move when it begins to shuffle or sort already in the lowest starting position. For example, suppose the bottom card is the six of diamonds. Next, suppose the next card is the ten of clubs; it is placed in the fifth receptacle 30, leaving the second, third and fourth receptacles 30 open for the other six. The next face up card is the ace of spades. It is placed in ninth

ES 2 632 773 T3 position, leaving the sixth, seventh and eighth receptacles 30 for the other ten. If the next face-up card is one of the remaining sixes, it goes to the 30 second pocket, and if the next card is one of the remaining ten, it goes to the sixth 30 pocket, and so on. When the process is complete, the deck will have been arranged into groups of equal rank, but without any particular order or sequence of ranks. When sorted and grouped by rank, and without any particular rank order, it is just as easy to check a complete deck of cards as when sorting in a new deck sequence. The cards can be arranged in any desired order, more or less specific, also in sequence. For example, the cards could be arranged in a "new deck", or arranged in groups based on rank, eg, all aces, all kings, etc .; up to all deuces, but without considering the suit order in each rank

[0151] As a security tool to detect betting opportunities for card counters, shuffler 10 can use the location of each of the shuffled cards 32, identified by card reader 180 and with identity and location after shuffling the cards. cards stored in digital memory by microcomputer 170, to evaluate the complete order after shuffling the cards before the first card is dealt. As a security screening function, the shuffler 10 can evaluate the entire shuffled deck by using the location information of the card in the digital memory of the microcomputer 170 to inform the supervisory staff of the house or playing area of ​​"rich decks." »Imminent (that is, containing more cards with a value of ten and aces than usual and thus providing mathematical advantages to card counters) long before they occur, which gives the house management the opportunity to draw their attention conveniently, before the rich deck can be played instead of waiting for it to happen. This can make a significant difference, as each gambling hall supervisor is responsible for monitoring multiple games, all guarding operators are responsible for monitoring multiple monitors, and such advance notices can aid in time management.

[0152] Knowing what the order of all the cards is after shuffling can also be used in new games that players can bet on. For example, a game that uses a single deck might have players bet the number of aces that will appear on the first 20 cards. Controller 134 could be programmed so that after shuffling the cards, if all four aces are among the first 20 cards, the DM button 144 will flash four times, alerting players to this fact. If there are only three aces in the first 20 cards, the DM 144 button might flash three times and so on. Depending on the number (zero to four) of aces shuffled randomly in the top 20 cards, the game could have five different routes, based on knowledge of the shuffled order, and each route could offer a different betting opportunity. This is an example of a game that relies on knowing what the order of the cards is after shuffling them, and is therefore an example of a game that could be dealt by shuffler 10 including a card reader 180.

[0153] Image recognition computer technology, such as Tangam System, is used in casino surveillance systems to identify cards as they are dealt, the number of active players in a hand, player ID cards player, markers, etc. This technology, which includes surveillance cameras or any other surveillance structure, connected to the shuffler 10 via a standard wireless or wired connection, could be used to control certain aspects of the shuffler, resulting in a format or platform for shuffling cards by control. remote. For example, in a game where the dealer and the players are dealt a different number of cards, controller 134 would be told in advance how many players there are to be dealt hands to, and could automatically adjust the dealer support, without the intervention of the dealer. dealer, to present the correct number of cards to the dealer at the appropriate time. It also has other benefits. Using this system to control the shuffler 10 would not require the participation of the dealer. Systems like Tangam use camera image capture and video recording to reconstruct everything that happens in a game.

[0154] The shuffler 10, equipped with a card reader 180, could handle all televised poker games, or other games, and the resulting combined system would be able to handle any number of players, any rule, or any singularity of the procedure , at the same time that it would get the same point of view as the public without having a special table with a camera. A single camera, or the card reader 180 built into the shuffler 10 could replace the two to eleven cameras currently used to broadcast players' hands on television, and at any table, poker could be played on television now. other games where players cannot normally see other players' hands and broadcast it conveniently.

[0155] Shuffler 10, in one embodiment, could include a simple digital signal connection from controller 134 to a properly programmed computer at a control station. This could provide not only a more modern and efficient way to observe and record the progress of the games, but it could also provide a perspective never seen before, since the shuffler 10 could show all possible results, even the hands that are not They have played. For example, a player who discards his hand before the last card is dealt will often ask the dealer to turn over the last card to see what would have happened. Although this custom is frowned upon, the shuffler 10 could cope with such a request easily and without having to expose the card, simply by referring to the order of the shuffled cards 32 stored in the memory of the controller 134.

[0156] Pai Gow Poker is a popular Asian game played in most casinos. Seven cards are dealt to the players and the dealer. Players arrange their cards in two poker hands: a five-card hand and a two-card hand. The most important rule that governs the game is that the five-card hand must always be

ES 2 632 773 T3 the hand with the highest value (traditional poker values ​​apply). After the players establish their hands, the dealer turns their cards face up and sets the hand according to the house rules. If both of a player's hands win, the player wins; if both hands of a player lose, the player loses; and winning one hand while losing the other results in a draw (called a "copy"). In the event that the player's hand and the dealer's hand have the same value, the house wins.

[0157] In Pai Gow Poker, the dealer's seven-card hand is dealt and the dealer deals and disposes it in the usual way according to house rules after being turned face up. This can be done in several steps depending on the complexity of the hand. For example, consider a very simple hand AAK-9-8-5-4 and a corresponding house rule. House rules may dictate that for any hand with a pair, the pair must be played in the five-card hand (referred to as the "high hand" or "back hand"), with the highest odd cards being played. they must place in the two-card hand (referred to as the "low hand" or "front hand"). According to the house rules, this hand would look like this: AA-8-5-4 ..... K-9.

[0158] In a simpler hand with two pairs and a straight of spades: Ace of spades, Jack of spades, Jack of diamonds, two, three or ten of spades, two, three or ten of hearts, six of spades, three of spades, the house rule is to always play a straight in the back hand (the five-card hand) unless you have two pairs and both are tens or higher, and then play two pairs (a pair in the front hand and a pair in the back hand). According to the house rules, the straight of spades is not played and the hand would be arranged like this: Jack of spades-Jack of diamonds-Ace of spades-Six of spades-Three of spades ..... Two, three or ten of spades-Two, three or ten of hearts. Casinos want to power both hands as much as possible as this produces a higher average of front and back hands, and has proven to be more profitable as both sides of the hand must win to win a round. Playing the straight on the back hand leaves Jack of Diamonds - two, three or ten of hearts for the front hand, a very weak front hand and one that is usually lost.

[0159] The microcomputer 170 of the shuffler 10 equipped with the card reader 180 can be programmed to set the dealer's hand according to house rules. If the dealer has little experience with Pai Gow Poker, this could be very useful. The layout of the dealer's hand according to the house rules can be presented by the properly programmed shuffler 10 by typing in the two cards to be played as the front hand, and having the dealer support 14 present the hand in steps, if necessary. , from one to three lifts of the dealer support 14, and then removing and stacking the cards in the proper order. For example, if the dealer's hand consists of seven shuffled cards 32 arranged in the seven top occupied receptacles 30 on the dealer stand 14, the shuffler 10, by the card reader 180, knows the order of the cards and knows how to you must lay out the dealer's hand according to the house rules. In the simplest case, if the two cards that are the "front" hand are presented in the first and last position (cards number 1 and number 7 from the top of the dealer bracket 14), the dealer's hand can be removed. seven dealer cards in one group, resulting in the desired order FXXXXXF ("F" refers to the cards in the front hand).

[0160] If the two front cards fall together randomly, but are in any other position, the dealer's hand can be dealt in two steps simply by raising the dealer support 14 in the first step to present enough cards that include, such as the card bottom presented on the dealer stand 14, the front hand card that is on top of the dealer's seven-card hand. That group of one to six cards is removed from the dealer bracket 14 and left face down on the table. The dealer support 14 is then raised to present the remainder of one to six cards that are needed to complete the dealer's seven-card hand. These cards are drawn and dropped on top of previously drawn cards, still face down, so that the second card from the front hand will be on top of the dealer's seven-card hand as it will be stacked on the face-down table. under. For the XXFFXXX dealer's hand, as in the seven occupied 30 receptacles at the top, the dealer support 14 would first present XXF, followed by FXXX, which would cause the hand to finally stack on the table in this order: FXXXXXF.

[0161] Even when the cards in the front hand are spread apart, the controller 134 can cause the shuffler 10 to present them so that they are in the desired order when stacked. For XFXXXFX, dealer support 14 would present XF, followed by XXX, followed by FX, resulting in this order: F-XX-XXXF. For XXXXFXF, dealer support 14 would present the cards XXXXF, followed by X, followed by F, resulting in this order: FXXXXXF when all three presentations are stacked on the table.

[0162] In these examples, the two cards from the front hands end up on the top and bottom of the dealer's hand when stacked on the table. In this arrangement, the dealer can take the top card and slide it under the other six cards and then turn the entire seven-card hand face up. When the seven cards have been spread from left to right, the two rightmost cards can always be played in advance according to the house rules. The same principle can be applied to arrange a dealer hand in a certain order for other card games.

[0163] In Poker, the dealer would remove the entire deck from the dealer stand and cut it manually (approximately half of the deck is cut to the cutting card and the other half is placed on top to complete the cut). If it were allowed to cut a single card, a random cut produces one of 51 possible orders. But if the identity of a single card exposed at a predetermined position in the hand is communicated to controller 134, the card position and identity reduce the possible orders to just ten in Hold'em (from two to eleven players). , or seven in stud (two to eight players), etc.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0164] Imagine a Hold'em game with a round of bad bets or bad-beat jackpot (for example, two players split the jackpot when one has four of the same type and loses with a straight flush or a higher value) . Let's imagine that the "River" card, the last card dealt in Hold'em, is the exposed card or "key card." If this card is the ace of spades, shuffler 10 could reconstruct the orders of two to eleven players given the position of this card. With two players, the ace of spades would have to be the twelfth card in the order after shuffling since two cards are dealt to each player, the "community cards", also known as the board (the cards face up on the table) are made up of five cards, and there are three burned cards. For three players, the ace of spades would have to be the fourteenth position card after shuffling the cards, and so on. By knowing the identity and location of a single card (played or not played), it is possible to "go back" and rebuild the hands for two to eleven players. To provide the necessary jackpot confirmation, the dealer, for example, could press the DM 144 button three times, or as programmed, to place shuffler 10 in jackpot verification mode, and if a jackpot hand was identified , the DM button 144 would flash a signal, for example, it would flash the green light 146 quickly for a second or two, stop it for a second or two, and then it would flash slowly two to eleven times to indicate the number of players that must be present for the jackpot to be valid.

[0165] With the ability of the shuffler 10 to record in memory the entire order after shuffling the shuffled cards 32, it is possible to use this ability to verify a jackpot hand even in games where the players (Blackjack), or the dealer (Poker) cut the cards randomly after shuffling them, as long as the identity of a key card can be identified and communicated to microcomputer 170.

[0166] The suit and numerical value of the Rio card, or of any other key card that would provide the shuffler 10 with a point of reference, can be entered into the microcomputer 170 using a keyboard 184 which is either incorporated in the shuffler 10, or it is supplied separately and connected using a suitable digital communication cable or wireless connection. Identification in controller 134 of a single card at a key position allows confirmation that a jackpot hand was present in the order of the cards after shuffling them.

[0167] Also using keyboard 184 (see FIG. 2), entering the number of hands dealt in a given round into microcomputer 170 allows the single applicable jackpot hand to be verified.

[0168] As can be understood from the foregoing, the shuffler 10, especially when equipped with a card reader 180, is very versatile and flexible. By using appropriate programming of the microcomputer 170 the shuffler 10 can be configured to use appropriate patterns of numbers and duration of presses of button DM 144, to select from various options at different levels. Thus, the shuffler 10 can be configured to simply shuffle a deck to be dealt from the dealer's hand or so that the shuffler 10 can present the cards for complex games such as Pai Gow Poker, as described below. Therefore, with a programmed sequence of pressing button DM 144 to specify the desired pre-game setup mode, a desired setting can be specified for different options within a category by pressing button DM 144 the number of times required. within an available period of time, such as two or three seconds. Below is a list of some possible categories of configuration options in a possible order of entering the selections to configure the shuffler 10, and the related options within the categories:

[0169] SHUFFLE (In each category of configuration options, for example, to select an available option from the following, the supervisor would press the button DM 144 one, two, three or four times.) (1) batch with two decks (default) (2) one deck - traditional (3) one deck - increasing (4) one deck - continuous [0170] CUT THE CARDS (1) without cutting ( default) (2) shuffler randomly cuts cards (3) interactive player cut [0171] BURN ONE OR MULTIPLE CARDS (1) no burned cards (default) (2) one burned card - Blackjack (3) of one to ten burned cards as indicated by the top card - Baccarat [0172] DEAL FROM POSITION INITIAL

ES 2 632 773 T3 (1) traditional deal - always start from the dealer's left (default) (2) randomly assign starting hand position in Pai Gow Poker [0173] DEAL DIRECTION (1) traditional - clockwise (default) (2) Asian style - counterclockwise

[0174] DEAL SEQUENCE (hot games - single hand draw mode only) (1) number of cards in players' hands (2) number of cards in dealer's hand (3) if necessary , number of cards in additional betting round number "1" (4) if necessary, number of cards in additional betting round number "2" (5) if necessary, number of cards in additional betting round number '3' (6) any game with a phase or a random deal conducted by RANDOM MODE [0175] DEALER HAND (1) there is no special dealer hand distribution ( default) (2) dealer hand layout according to house rules for Pai Gow Poker (using included 180 card reader) (3) European blackjack (using included 180 card reader)

[0176] AUTOMATIC SHUFFLE MODE (1) the dealer uses the DM 144 button to raise the dealer support 14 in order to draw cards for the next mix (default)

<td></td><td> (2)</td>

<td>presented</td><td></td>

<td></td><td> (3)</td>

<td>presented</td><td></td>

<td></td><td> (4)</td>

<td>presented</td><td></td>

[0177] RANDOM MODE (1) sets the number of cards or range of card numbers to be presented to players (2) sets the number of cards or range of card numbers to be presented to the dealer.

(3) if necessary, set the number of cards or range of card numbers to be presented in the additional betting round number '1'.

(4) if necessary, set the number of cards or range of card numbers to be presented in the additional betting round number "2".

(5) if necessary, set the number of cards or range of card numbers to be presented in the additional betting round number "3".

[0178] SECURITY MODES (1) normal pre-game settings (default) (2) false insert mode (3) extra card that is dealt to the dealer's hand (4) the dealer's hand is not dealt until all players have intervened (5) false insert mode AND extra card that is dealt to the dealer's hand (6) false insert mode AND the dealer's hand is not dealt until all players have intervened

[0179] ADDITIONAL GAME FUNCTIONS (1) without special functions (default)

ES 2 632 773 T3 (2) jackpot query (3) new jackpot deal (4) arrangement (5) evaluation of deck composition before dealing (6) dynamic game deal [0180] MULTIPLE DEALING

[0181] As mentioned above, shuffler 10 can be manufactured for use in games that utilize multiple decks, modifying dealer support 14 to include a greater number of single-card receptacles 30. However, due to the resulting increase in height of the shuffler 10, it may be desirable instead to move the dealer stand 14 to a horizontal orientation, to mix two or more decks of cards 32 together.

[0182] In a multi-deck shuffler 210 shown in FIGS. 19-26, there is a tank 212 that moves relative to a receiving support 214, similar to the distribution support 14 of the shuffler 10, but which is not actually used to distribute in this shuffler 210, with the receiving support 214 oriented at 90 degrees of the configuration of the dealer support 14 in the shuffler 10, such that the cards 32 in the deck 212 and the receiving support 214 are on the edge of a horizontal deck. The multi-deck shuffler 210 includes a base 216 that supports a frame 218 of the receiver stand 214. The receiver stand 214 is larger than the dealer stand 14 of the shuffler 10 and has enough single-card receptacles to receive multiple decks of cards of standard size. For example, in shuffler 210 as shown herein, there may be 314 individual single card receptacles 220, to receive six decks of cards 32, as well as a pair of cut cards 222, with all playing cards and cards. cutting cards 222 on the edge and their flat surfaces facing each other. The frame 218 of the receiver stand 214 is fixedly mounted on the base 216, and the magazine 212 is arranged to move along the receiver stand 214 as necessary to place individual cards from a group of cards that are shuffled in. randomly selected single letter receptacles 220, as will be explained below.

[0183] In the multi-deck shuffler 210, as can be seen in the illustration, each card 32 and cut card 222 is clamped by the edge, with one of its longest sides facing down and with the upper edges Shorter and lower edges of each card extending vertically, although cards can be arranged with the top or bottom edges facing down and the side edges extending vertically. The orientation shown in the drawings results in a group of multiple shuffled card decks that are presented in the conventional orientation used in a casino dealing sabot.

[0184] As shown in FIG. 19, the multi-deck shuffler 210 includes an outer cover 224 to which an access cover 226 is attached, via hinges, so that it can be raised as shown in FIG. 20 to provide access to the magazine 212. An opening 228 is defined by the access cover 226, to allow groups of cards 32 to be inserted through the opening 228 in the magazine 212 for shuffling. A fin-shaped stopper 229 extends upward on the deck 224 along the opening 228 to prevent the cards from being seen.

[0185] A discard tray or holder 230 may be located on top of access cover 226 adjacent to opening 228, which may have a recessed area on top of adjacent access cover 226 and extending below the discard tray to facilitate the collection of cards from the discard tray 230.

[0186] A card display tray 232, a part of receiving holder 214, has an outer wall 234 that forms part of the front side of shuffler 210, as best seen in FIG. twenty. The height 236 of the multi-deck shuffler 210, not including the discard tray 230, can be, for example, approximately 139.7 mm (5.5 inches), less than three times the width of a card, and the shuffler 210, therefore, is not likely to interfere with the dealer's or game table supervisor's vision when the multi-deck shuffler 210 is in a normal location to the dealer's right. The depth 238 of the card shuffler 210, with the card display tray 232 retracted as shown in FIG. 19, may be, for example, about 215.9 mm (8.5 inches), or less than three times the length of a playing card. The width 240 of the shuffler 210 depends on the number of cards for which the receiving support 214 has been designed, and in the embodiment shown in the figures of this application, in which the receiving support 214 is designed for six decks of playing cards. 32, the width 240 can be approximately 406.4 mm (sixteen inches). Including the card display tray 232 extended as shown in FIG. 20, the depth 238a of the multi-deck shuffler 210 may be, for example, about 317.5 mm (12.5 inches). The depth 238 of the shuffler 210 between the dealer and the shuffled cards 32 can be approximately 210.82 mm (8.3 inches). The size of the shuffler 210 is therefore small enough not to interfere excessively.

[0187] The multi-deck shuffler 210 is intended to shuffle six decks of cards into a randomly shuffled arrangement of 312 cards and to do so with minimal delay in the game by shuffling six or more smaller increments from a large pool of cards 32 sequentially before presenting the entire group of shuffled cards. Therefore, the resulting group of multiple decks of shuffled cards 32, is arranged equally and

ES 2 632 773 T3 randomly as it would happen if the 312 cards had been shuffled simultaneously in a single operation. Since in multi-deck playing systems the tail end of a group of multiple decks of shuffled cards is normally not played, that part of the pool of multi-deck cards that have been shuffled can be put back into the shuffler. and shuffle even before you start dealing from the front end, and the cards 32 from each game round can be shuffled while the game continues using the remainder of a large pool of shuffled cards 32 that has been previously shuffled. The shuffling operation, although not continuous, is uniform and the final placement of each card 32 on the receiving rack 214 is random, as if all 312 cards 32 were placed on the deck 212 at one time. However, using a magazine 212 of a smaller size allows the multi-deck shuffler 210 to have a smaller overall size, since a larger magazine 212 would require a greater width 240.

[0188] After the entire pool of various decks of cards has been shuffled, the card display tray 232 is extended to the position shown in FIG. 20, and the shuffled letters, which are no longer separated from each other in the single letter receptacles 220, can be manually removed from the letter display tray 232, simply by dragging them together horizontally to the far left or farthest from display tray 232. A boss 241 in the upper left corner of wall 234 causes cards 32 to tilt toward the opposite right end of display tray 232 as it moves. Shuffled cards 32, for example, can be pulled out and placed on the mat, on a deal sabot, or on a ramp that can be attached to the base of the multi-deck shuffler 210 or attached to the deck presentation tray. cards 232 and can be moved along it. Thus, the cards 32 are presented and removed from the display tray 232 in the usual orientation, along their long edges, ready to be cut, if desired, and without being in a vertical deck. A mechanical pusher may be provided to push the shuffled cards together and toward one end of the card display tray 232, if desired, although such additional accessories and mechanisms are not required for the present invention and therefore are not required. shown in the figures or described in detail.

[0189] With reference to FIGS. 21-26, in which the main cover 224 and the access cover 226 have been removed, the base 216 supports the frame 218 of the receiver bracket 214. An upper member 242 of frame 218 supports a series of comb-like dividing members 244 in the form of flat, dependent, thin sheets extending downwardly from upper member 242 at a height 248 of approximately 44.45 mm (1 , 75 inches), or about ¾ of the width of a letter. The top member 242 has a length determined by the number, thickness, and spacing of the sheets 244 that define the single card receptacles 220, and each sheet 244 has a depth from front to back 249 that can be less than the length of a card but large enough to align each card 32 in one of the single card receptacles 220 so that the shuffled cards are parallel to each other. For example, the depth 249 can be about 48.26 mm (1.9 inches), or about half the length of a letter 32. The sheets 244 can be thick and made of a material similar to that of the shelves. parts 26 and 28 of shuffler 10, and may be similarly spaced. Sheets 244 can also be thinner, for example they can be about 0.254mm (0.010 inches) thick, since they don't need to support the weight of a letter 32, and a sheet 244 just has to be stiff enough so that it does not bend into a position that obstructs an adjacent single card receptacle 220 if a card 32 rests against it.

[0190] A rear face 250 of the receiving support 214 can be defined by the rear margin of the upper element 242 of the frame 218 and the vertical rear edges of the sheets 244. All the rear edges are aligned and coplanar to each other, in a plane vertical extending parallel to the width 240 of the shuffler 210, slightly forward of half its depth 238.

[0191] The magazine 212 is supported for movement parallel with the rear face 250 of the receiver support 214, through a range that allows a part of the device for moving letters in the magazine 212 to place a letter 32 in any of the receptacles of a single letter 220. The reservoir 212 is supported by and slides along a guide bar 252 that extends parallel to the rear face 250, supported by a pair of vertical end walls 254 and 256, and is also supported, and moved by a lead screw 258 which extends parallel to guide bar 252 and is supported to rotate in suitable bearings in end walls 254 and 256.

[0192] Mounted on end wall 256 and with its axis extending through an opening defined in end wall 256 is a motor 260, such as a stepper motor, arranged to drive lead screw 258 through an endless belt 262 and corresponding pulleys as best seen in FIG. 21. Lead screw 258 moves magazine 212 along receiver bracket 214 to align it with a selected single card receptacle 220.

[0193] Reservoir 212 generally includes a horizontal base portion 268 that generally has a flat top surface and includes bearings 270 disposed around guide bar 252 to keep the base portion aligned therewith. A locknut 272 connects to the threads of lead screw 258, so that when stepper motor 260 rotates lead screw 258 reservoir 212 moves along guide bar 252.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0194] An element of the flat end 274 of the tank 212, corresponding to the lower element 38 of the tank 12 in the shuffler 10 described above, extends upward from the right end of the base 268. A vertical flat element or wall 276 is mounted at the base 268 parallel to the end member 274 and spaced therefrom toward the left or opposite end of the base 268. A flat push plate 278 is mounted to slide over a pair of horizontal guide bars 280 that are supported and extend between end member 274 and vertical flat member 276. A motor 282 that can be precisely controlled, which can be a linear drive stepper motor, can be mounted on the vertical wall 276 and connected with the push plate of the deck 278, to move the push plate of the deck 278 towards and away from the end element 274. A pressure sensor 284 is arranged to measure the force used to drive the thrust plate 278 toward the vertical flat end member 274. The motor 282 is controlled to provide an appropriate amount of pressure to propel a group of cards 32, which are located in the space 286 between the deck pusher plate 278 and the vertical flat end element 274, towards each other and towards the end member 274, to allow a card moving mechanism 288 to move individual card 32, that is, the one closest to the flat end member 274, referred to for convenience as the bottom card, from magazine 212 to a receptacle selected from the single letter receptacles 220 with which magazine 212 is aligned.

[0195] The letter movement mechanism 288 includes a motor, such as a stepper motor 290 mounted on the base 268 of the tank 212. Two groups of frictional drive elements 292 and 294, which can be O-rings of a material Elastic suitable as silicone rubber, are located near the front of the fixed vertical end wall 274 of the reservoir 212. Drive elements 292 and 294 have drive surfaces facing the card pusher plate 278 and protruding slightly beyond the plane of the end wall 274, similar to drive rollers 52 of shuffler 10, for example, protruding approximately 0.762 mm (0.030 inches). Frictional drive elements 292 and 294 extend around respective sets of pulleys 296 and 298 carried on a free shaft 300, and respective sets of pulleys 304 and 306 are carried and driven by a drive shaft to move cards 302 Shafts 300 and 302 are parallel and arranged for shaft 302 to drive frictional drive elements 292 and 294. Drive elements 292 and 294 can therefore drive a letter 32 along drive surfaces that are as long as the center-to-center spacing between shafts 300 and 302. Drive shaft 302 extends toward down through bearings mounted in the base 268 of the reservoir 212. The motor 290 has a rotary shaft that extends vertically downward through an opening in the base 268. A traction sheave 304 mounted on the lower end of the drive shaft 302 is driven by a belt 310 driven by a sheave 312 on the motor shaft 290.

[0196] A pair of movable rollers 314 are carried on a shaft 316 mounted on the front of the slide card pusher plate 278. Movable rollers 314 are aligned with and opposite drive elements 292 and 294, projecting radially beyond the deck push plate surface a short distance, similar to rollers 66 of shuffler 10, and can rotate freely when actuated by the actuation elements to move the cards 292 and 294 or by the movement of a card between them and the movable rollers 314.

[0197] A tank face plate 318 is vertical and perpendicular to end wall 274 and vertical wall 276 and is attached to base 268 and vertical wall 276 so that they can be held together as a rigid assembly. The face plate 318 acts as a card stop, similar to the card stop 58 of the shuffler 10 described above, and includes a right end face 320 positioned so that together with the frictional actuation elements 292, 294 defines an outlet. or card transfer slot 322 having a gap width 324 similar to the gap height 64 of shuffler 10, large enough to allow a single card to pass through slot 322 at a time, from the space 286 between the end member 274 and the slide card pusher plate 278. A portion 325 of the end face 320 may be serrated to prevent friction due to contact with a card 32 passing through the slot. exit 322.

[0198] The front or top plate of the card 318 is separated from the rear edges of the sheets 244 of the receiving support 214 by a gap 326, equivalent to the gap 35 of the shuffler 10 and which can be of a similar size, as in the range of 0.508 to 6.35 mm (0.020 - 0.25 inches), or more preferably 0.508 to 2.286 mm (0.020 - 0.090), or about 1.016 mm (0.040 inches), to optimize the distance through which the move a card 32.

[0199] The letter display tray 232 is located below a series of single letter receptacles 220 of the receiving holder 214 and is moved from its retracted position, which is shown in FIG. 19, where it is located during the shuffling process, to a card presentation position shown in FIG. 20, by moving a pair of support rails 328 and 330, which may be rods extending forward from supports 332 mounted on base 216 below reservoir 212 on supports 334 mounted near the front of base 216 Display tray 232 includes a flat, rigid horizontal bottom member 336 that extends between and is supported by end walls 338 and 340, above support rails 328 and 330. The outer wall 234 is mounted on the lower member 336. The end walls 338 and 340 extend a distance below the lower member 336 and rearward toward the reservoir 212, and include slide bearings that connect to the rail rails. bracket 328 and 330 and thus support the card display tray 232. End wall 340 can extend upward above bottom member 336 at a

ES 2 632 773 T3 distance of approximately 15.24 mm (0.6 inches), to hold and hold a group of shuffled cards 32. One of the edges of each shuffled card 32 always rests on the bottom element 336, and the cards they are kept separate from each other in the respective single card receptacles 220 until the card display tray 232 is extended after an entire group of cards 32 has been shuffled.

[0200] With reference to FIGS. 22 and 30-32, a precisely controlled motor such as a stepper motor 346 is mounted on the base 216 below the guide bar 252 and is connected to drive a horizontally aligned lead screw 348 and extending forward below the lower member 336 of the letter display tray 232 when the letter display tray 232 is in the retracted position shown in FIG. 22. Lead screw 348 connects to stepper motor 346, which is mounted on a bracket 350. An outer or front end of lead screw 348 extends through a lock nut 352 mounted on a bracket 354 that It is located at the bottom of the rear margin of the bottom element 336.

[0201] A letter pusher bar 358 is attached to the rear edge of bottom member 336, by a pair of locking mechanisms such as screws 360 mounted on bottom member 336 and extending through vertically oriented elongated holes 362. The letter pusher bar 358 can be raised or lowered relative to the lower member 336 by a cam 364 actuated by the lead screw 348 through an angle defined by limit stops, such as the ends of an arcuate slot 366 in the cam and an element such as a screw 368 mounted on the bracket 354 and extending into the slot 366. It is understood that the rotation of the cam can be limited in other ways, such as, for example, by molding parts of the cam to contact parts of the bracket 354. The shape of the cam 364 is designed so that the rotation of the lead screw 348 in the direction necessary to drive the letter display tray 232 outward toward the letter display position shown in FIG. 19 raise the card pusher bar 358 before the tray moves too far. A washer attached to cam 364 and surrounding lead screw 348 may include a sliding safety coupling 369, which may be a simple screw with a spring tip adjusted to exert pressure on lead screw 348 just enough to carry the torque. cam 364 through the required angle of movement and then slide on the lead screw while still turning in the required direction to move the card display tray 232. An upper margin of the card pusher bar 358 may be beveled, to connect the rounded corners of the cards 32 and move them forward if necessary as the bar is raised. The card pusher bar 358, when raised, will exert pressure on the rear corners and a portion of the vertical ends of the shuffled cards 32 to push them forward from the single card receptacles 220 as the display tray of cards Cards 232 is moved forward in the direction of the presentation position so that the dealer can remove the cards from the card presentation tray 232. The raised letter pusher bar 358 is low enough, and the bottoms of the dependent blades 244 defining the single card receptacles are high enough to provide space under the blades 244 for the letter pusher bar. 358. Once the cards have been removed from the card display tray 232, turning the lead screw 348 in the reverse direction will move the cam 364 in the opposite direction through the available angle of movement, allowing the bar 358 to stop. pushing the cards down as the card display tray 232 retracts under frame 218.

[0202] As shown in FIGS. 24, 25, and 26 the letter pusher bar 358 in its lowered position is flush with the top surface of the bottom member 336 of the letter presentation tray. In a variation, as shown in FIG. 25A, instead of the letter pusher bar 358 and the associated cam arrangement, a raised ridge 359 may be provided at the rear end of the lower member 336. The ridge 359 may have a height of approximately 6.35 mm (0.25 inches), for example, above the top face of the bottom member 336, with the top face of the ridge aligned with or slightly less than the height of the ridge. the top of the base 268 of the tank 212, so that a card 32 that is inserted into one of the single card receptacles 220 with sufficient speed will advance past the edge 359 and settle on its lower edge resting on the upper surface of the lower element 336, to be carried forward with the presentation tray 232. This configuration requires that the upper face of the lower member 336 be lower, at least at the edge, than it should be in the configuration shown in FIGS. 25 and 26.

[0203] A controller 370 can be located in base 216, along with the necessary power supplies. Controller 370 is electrically connected to various motors 260, 282, 290, and 346, and is also electrically connected to a dealer manager button DM 372 located on main deck 224 on controller 370.

[0204] The operation of the shuffler 210 is similar in many respects to the operation of the shuffler 10 described above.

[0205] An empty tray sensor 376 can be used to provide an electrical signal to controller 370 indicating that a group of six shuffled cards has been removed from the card display tray 232, and controller 370 can be programmed or to retract the card display tray 232 after a predetermined delay time, or to accept a command from the dealer's manager button 372 to retract the card presentation tray 232 after a predetermined time delay. The card presentation tray is retracted by operation of motor 346, which drives lead screw 348.

ES 2 632 773 T3

[0206] Once the card presentation tray 232 has been retracted and the cards are present in the magazine 212, the controller will begin the process of shuffling the cards that are in the magazine 212. An optical sensor 390, for example an IR detector / laser pair located in the receiver bracket 214, determines if the gap 326 is obstructed, and once it has verified that the gap is not obstructed, it sends an electrical signal to the controller 370, which confirms that reservoir 212 is free to move to a different position along receiver support 214.

[0207] A status indication can be provided by a separate status indication light, such as an LED light 374 located on the main deck 224, or by a similar indication provided by indicator lights included in the dealer manager button 372, similar to dealer manager button 144 of shuffler 10 described above. Said indicator could be shown in red while the process of shuffling the cards is carried out with respect to a group of cards that have been placed in the deck 212, and green when the deck 212 is ready to allow a group of cards to be inserted. 32.

[0208] An optical sensor 380 is located in the magazine 212. When a group of cards is inserted into the magazine 212 for the purpose of mixing them, the sensor 380 detects the presence of at least one card and provides an electrical signal to the controller 370 , which, after a programmed delay time of, for example, three seconds, activates motor 282 to move push plate 278 toward end wall 274. The pressure sensor 284 sends a pressure signal to the controller 370, and when the controller 370 determines that the cards are propelled toward the end wall 274 with sufficient pressure to ensure that the frictional actuators 292 and 294 engage the face from adjacent lower card 32, the controller stops motor 282. Once a card 32 has been moved from reservoir 212, controller 370 will determine if the pressure, detected by sensor 284, is still appropriate and, based on signals from sensor 284, will cause motor 282 to move the plate. push 278 as needed from time to time.

[0209] With the empty letter receiving holder 214, for example 314 empty single letter receptacles 220 are available. As with shuffler 10 described above, a random number generator in controller 370 randomly selects one of the empty single card receptacles 220 and sends an appropriate signal to stepper motor 260, causing the stepper motor 260 to turn the lead screw 258 appropriately to move the magazine 212 so that the slot 322 is aligned with the selected single card receptacle 220 from the receiver bracket 214.

[0210] A letter pocket alignment sensor 386 with magazine 212 determines whether the card transfer or output slot 322 is correctly aligned with the selected single letter pocket 220. If the alignment is not correct, the controller 370 will send additional command signals to the stepper motor to move the magazine 212 until the letter cassette alignment sensor 386 indicates that the alignment is satisfactory.

[0211] Once the card output slot 322 is correctly aligned, the controller 370 will cause the motor that moves the cards 290 to move the drive shaft 302, and with it the frictional drive elements 292 and 294, far enough to move the bottom card 32 out of the magazine 212 through the slot 322 with enough speed to continue through the gap 326 between the magazine 212 and the receiving bracket 214 and into the single card receptacle 220 selected as far enough to pass efficiently over and beyond card pusher 358, where the outer wall 234 of the card display tray 232 will prevent the card 32 from going too far. Controller 370 is programmed to limit the amount of rotation of drive shaft 302 in order to prevent the rear bottom card 32 of the reservoir from moving in the gap between reservoir 212 and receiving bracket 214.

[0212] Once a card 32 has been placed in one of the single card receptacles 220 the controller 370 causes the random number generator to select another single card receptacle 220 from among the remaining receptacles that are empty. The re-open gap sensor 390 verifies that the magazine 212 can move again and the next lower card 32 is then placed in the next selected single card receptacle 220 following the same steps described above. This sequence of steps is repeated, with one of the remaining open single card receptacles 220 being randomly selected, after each 32 card has been moved, until all cards that have been deposited 212 have been moved. to the respective randomly selected single card receptacles 220 and the magazine 380 detects and sends a signal to the controller 370 indicating that there are no more letters left in the magazine 212. The controller then directs the stepper motor 260 to move the magazine 212 to the letter receiving position at the left end of the shuffler 210 and sends a signal directing the motor 282 to retract the push plate. from deck 278 so that there is space 286 available for the next group of cards 32 to be placed in deck 212 for shuffling. Therefore, most of the cards in a large pool are shuffled as smaller pools as play continues, and shuffling the final pool will result in greater availability to continue playing than the time it takes to load and unload two sets of cards. six decks in a batch rotation system.

[0213] Controller 370 can be programmed so that when the card display tray 232 retracts first being empty, a pair of cut cards 222, plastic cards similar to playing cards but without the faces, inserted at the bottom of the first group of letters 32 inserted in the deposit 212, they will be placed in the two single card receptacles 220 at the end ends of the receiving holder 214 before any playing cards are placed in the randomly selected single card receptacles 220. The controller is also

ES 2 632 773 T3 can program for the shuffler to insert a cut card 222 at the bottom; and a cut-off card 222 at a precise cut-off point directed by the manager, offering a controllable function that ensures that the percentage of cards dealt out of the entire group of cards 32 that has been shuffled is a shuffling constant shuffled.

[0214] In addition to the controls for the card shuffler 210 to function as described above, an additional sensor 392 may be provided in the magazine 212 to count the number of cards transferred from the magazine 212 to the receiving holder 214 to determine that the correct number of cards has been shuffled and the multi-deck pool is therefore complete. An optical scanner 394 may also be associated with the magazine 212 to determine the identity, rank or suit, or both, of each card as it is transferred from the magazine 212 to the receiving carrier 214, and to communicate each identity of the card to the controller 370. The identity of each card can be associated with the selected single card receptacle 220 to which that letter has been sent and the association can be stored in the memory of the controller 370.

[0215] For Blackjack, the shuffler 210, equipped to identify and store card locations in the computer memory, can be advantageously used in conjunction with the deal sabot (not shown) equipped with a counter to provide the controller 370 the number of cards that have been dealt at any one time. The dealer could query the order of the cards in the pool of multiple shuffled decks that are dealt from the sabot, by pressing the dealer manager button 372 in a predetermined way, and the shuffler 210 could flash the dealer manager button 372 if the last card that was dealt, which is always the dealer's covered card in Blackjack, was a card with a value of ten or not. The red light on the dealer manager button 372 may flash to indicate that the hand is over and that the dealer can reveal the covered card and reveal a Blackjack. If the last card dealt is not a ten value card, the green light on the dealer's manager button may flash, indicating that the hand can continue because there is no Blackjack in the dealer's hand. If the dealer shows a ten, the dealer manager button 372 can be pressed in a different sequence to see if the last card dealt was an ace. In such a system, the shuffler 210 in conjunction with a card counting sabot enables the European Blackjack function as long as the pool of six shuffled decks is not cut before it is dealt from the sabot.

[0216] In a multi-deck shuffler 396 shown in FIG. 19A which is another embodiment of the shuffler 210, the stepper motor 346 and the lead screw 348 can be located near one end of a portion of the base, generally similar to a face of the card presentation tray, of So the guide bar and lead screw for the card presentation tray can be positioned lower and closer to the base to reduce the overall height of the shuffler. The width of the shuffler 396 in such a configuration is greater than that of the shuffler 210, to provide space at the end for the stepper motor that drives the card presentation tray. Other chart display tray motion configurations may also be provided using, for example, scissor-shaped or pantograph connection mechanisms with a minimum height, or connections attached to the chart display tray 232 in a end, so that the tank and the dispenser support can be mounted lower and closer to the base 216 of said shuffler, although such variations are not shown or described in detail herein.

[0217] As another alternative (not shown) to shuffler 210 as described above, divider sheets 244 could be replaced by dividers with a shallower depth, as well as additional dividers that extend upward from the card display tray, leaving an opening between the upper and lower dividers through which a shuffled card pusher mechanism 32 could be moved forward on a display tray. The dividers defining the individual single card receptacles 220 could also be bottom mounted only, leaving space above the dividers for a card ejection mechanism.

[0218] Although opening a new multi-deck card game in a casino can be time consuming using conventional methods, the multi-deck shuffler 210 can greatly reduce the time required, as each deck of cards, after being inspected, spread out on the table and mixed and subsequently square, can be placed directly in shuffler 210, and each card will be placed in a single card receptacle 220 randomly selected from 312 randomly available positions. Thus, there is no interrelation between the original position of an individual card and a new deck and the eventual position after shuffling using the multi-deck shuffler 210, but the process of shuffling the cards can take place gradually, without wait until all six decks have been prepared.

[0219] The terms and expressions that have been used in the above specification are used herein as descriptive and non-limiting terms, and there is no intention in the use of such terms and expressions to exclude equivalents of the characteristics shown. and describe or parts thereof, it being recognized that the scope of the invention is defined and limited only by the claims set forth below.