System for machine reading and processing information from gaming chips

Abstract

A fully automatic table game player tracking system for Blackjack and other casino games wherein players have individual betting positions on the table is disclosed. An individual B&W CCD chip reading turret is placed inches in front of each player's betting position to scan wagered chips using ambient casino lighting. The turret also has a “comp” light to indicate to the player at the beginning of every hand that his bet was read credited for his complimentaries (meals, room, entertainment, etc.), thus delivering to the player extra gaming satisfaction every hand. Patterns of repeated coding around the playing chips' peripheral surface represent with light and dark contrasting colors the dollar value and particular casino issuer of the chips. The aesthetically pleasing chip identifying coding patterns are comprised of unique referenceless error controlled self-clocking (n,k) code words, which are repeated around the chip's periphery without space therebetween, for improved efficiency and accuracy no matter the orientation of the wagered chip placed on the table.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 10 / 321,020 filed Dec. 17, 2002, which is a divisional of U.S. Pat. No. 6,514,140, filed Jun. 17, 1999.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] The invention disclosed herein relates generally to machine reading information from gaming chips, and more particularly to such machine reading during play of casino table games such as blackjack and baccarat. The invention has particular application to machine reading information from gaming chips for the purpose of ascertaining player betting, where the information read from the chips includes at least the denomination of the chips. That application allows a casino to rate players' betting activities in order to identify players that the casino wants to encourage to gamble in the casino, and to provide them with a commensurate level of free services, meals and merchandise such as accommodations, transportation, entertainment, food and bev...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0018] It is another object of the invention to enhance casino-style game play while providing for automatic reading of information from gaming chips during game play for the purpose of determining player comps.

[0019] It is another object of the invention to provide a system which accomplishes one or more of the foregoing objects which is simple to manufacture and operate and which is inexpensive to manufacture.

[0021] The invention disclosed herein accomplishes the above and other objects as described herein. The invention provides for automatically obtaining, i.e., machine reading, optical information from the periphery of single or stacked gaming chips placed in betting locations on a gaming table during play using small optical devices unobtrusively mounted to the table to at least collect the optical information from the peripheries of the chips. The chips need not be placed in racks, and the optical devices are independent of any chip rack. Respective optical devices are positioned spaced from but close to respective chip betting locations on respective tables to more reliably receive the optical information from the peripheries of the chips. In the preferred embodiment, an optical device does not face in the direction of the respective player whose chips for which that optical device is collecting optical information, and for a table having players stations on only one side, the cameras all face away from the side on which the players are stationed.

[0025] In order to improve reliability and performance, the invention provides sets of unique n,k self-clocking bar code words which do not require start / stop patterns or quiet zones, and when repeated about the periphery of a gambling chip can be read in any rotated position of the chip about its axis relative to a reader.

Problems solved by technology

However, even though casinos have attempted to track table player betting accurately, by pit bosses observations, a substantial portion of the comping inevitably goes to undeserving players while some deserving players go uncomped.

Though both the “PitTrak Player Tracking System” and the system described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,936 machine read player identification information and facilitate entry of betting information, since they do not machine read information from the gambling chips but instead require a manual data entry step, they do not truly automate data collection for player comping.

However, the embodiment of the system described in this patent publication which does not include a chip deposit area for each player, does not provide for automatic entry of bet values for each bet.

Thus, in one embodiment, exact bet information is not provided, and in the other, the dealer must be careful to associate chips won and lost by a player only with the specific deposit area of the chip rack assigned to that player, which precludes the dealer from mixing chips from losing bets to pay winning bets, as is typically done, and therefore substantially slows game play.

However, a system relying on a single ceiling-mounted camera to monitor all chip locations on a table below likely would not be able to determine how many chips (and their denomination) players bet because multiple chip bets are placed in vertical stacks and only the top chip can be seen.

However, other than a schematic association of the readers with a gaming table in a block diagram, there is no disclosure of what the readers are, or where or how they are mounted.

Because the SafeJack system requires special gaming chips that each include an integrated circuit, and electronics which transmit, receive and process electromagnetic energy, the SafeJack system is relatively complex and its overall cost is high and it involves exposure to rf energy.

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