A method for supplying a randomly arranged set of cards.

Abstract

A method for supplying a randomly arranged set of cards is provided, the method comprising the steps of: preparing a device for supplying the set of cards; and distributing the cards from N card delivery units to M card storage means, each having P compartments, thereby supplying a randomly arranged set of cards in a series of steps, by supplying multiple identified cards from N card receiving points to each of the P randomly selected compartments in each of the M card storage means.

Description

Technical Field

[0001]

[01] The present invention generally relates to a device for supplying a card set, a method for supplying a card set, and a computer program product useful for a processing circuit to execute instructions for performing a method of building a card set. In this particular invention, the present invention generally relates to a device, method, and computer program product for supplying a card set including cards to be reused.

Background Art

[0002]

[02] Card games are well known today. The games are often based on cards being dealt or drawn from a randomly ordered pack or set of playing cards, where the order of the cards being drawn is unpredictable, and the set of playing cards includes a plurality of randomly ordered sets of playing cards at the set level.

[0003]

[03] For example, baccarat is played with eight randomly arranged decks of playing cards, totaling 416 randomly arranged cards. In some games, the order in which cards are drawn and set aside can be monitored, so once a card has been drawn from a deck, it can no longer be used. Used playing cards are often discarded. The longer a card is drawn from a deck, the more the identification information of the cards drawn from that deck can be monitored, so the identification information of the remaining cards in the deck can become more predictable, and the probability that a given card with identification information is one of the next cards in the deck increases with each card drawn. To keep the predictability of the next card drawn below a certain level, a deck of cards typically includes a so-called stop card, which is inserted at the end of the deck or forms part of the deck near the end. The stop card is not necessarily, but is typically placed in the last quarter of the deck. When this card is drawn from the set, the game ends immediately, or after only a few cards have been drawn from the set. Sometimes, the game even ends before the stop card is drawn. Therefore, a considerable number of unused cards remain in the set when it returns from the card game table. However, the predictability of the identification information of these remaining cards is likely to be fairly high.

[0004]

[04] High stakes are known to be involved when playing card games, and any potential source of information regarding the order of cards in a set, or any increase in the predictability of the order, must be avoided.

[0005]

[05] A system for creating a randomly arranged set of playing cards is described in International Application No. 2012042823. The system comprises several playing card collecting means for collecting playing cards and thereby supplying a set of playing cards from a deck of cards which may be randomly arranged, several card stockers for storing the created set of cards, and a card sorting device. Cards identified by rank and suit are sent to a first card stocker unless the number of cards of that rank and suit in that stocker exceeds a given number. If the number of cards of that rank and suit in this card stocker exceeds a given number, the cards are sent to an adjacent second card stocker. This method of sending cards from a supplied deck of cards does not significantly change the predictability of the order of cards in the generated set of cards compared to the predictability of the order of cards in the deck of cards. Thus, using the remainder of a set of cards from a card play table with increased predictability of the order of cards may not result in a newly created set of cards with sufficiently low predictability of the order of cards. [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0006]

[06] Therefore, there is still a need to provide a method and device for retrieving the remaining cards of a card set, i.e., any unused or undrawn cards remaining in a card set returning from a card play table. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007]

[07] Essentially, according to a first aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for supplying a set of randomly arranged cards, the method being • The step of preparing a device to supply the card set, The steps include: distributing cards from N card delivery units to M card storage means, each having P compartments; This includes supplying a randomly arranged set of cards in each of the M card storage means by a series of steps in which multiple identified cards are supplied from N card receiving locations to each of P randomly selected compartments.

[0008]

[08] According to a first aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for supplying a set of randomly arranged cards. This method is • A step of preparing a device to supply the card set, wherein the device is oN card supply units, where N≧1, and each unit is defined by a card supply unit number n, where 1≦n≦N, There are oM card storage means, where M≧1, each storage means is defined by a storage means number m, 1≦m≦M, and N+M>2. Each card storage means has P compartments, P > 1, and each compartment is defined by the compartment coordinates (m,p) of each card storage means, where 1 ≤ p ≤ P and 1 < + m ≤ M. N × M card receiving locations arranged in an oM x N matrix (each location defined by coordinates (n,m)), where 1 ≤ n ≤ N and 1 ≤ m ≤ M. A step of preparing a device that is equipped with, • Distributing cards from N card delivery units to M card storage means. Identifying each card supplied from one or more of oN card supply units, and assigning each of the identified cards to one of M card storage means, o Supplying each identified card to a card receiving location at coordinates (In,Im), wherein In is the nth of the N card delivery units from which the card emerged, and Im is the mth of the M card storage means to which the card should be supplied. For each of the N card receiving locations in row oM, stack the cards supplied to the N card receiving locations in row m, and move the stacked cards to the m-th card storage location. Steps to distribute by This includes, and thereby, in each of the M card storage means, a set of randomly arranged cards, If the im-th card storage method is empty, Ii In order to supply a stack of completed cards, the step of determining the total number Tm of cards to be stored, I.ii. A step of randomly assigning the number of cards to be stored in each of the P compartments of the empty card storage means, wherein the sum of the P card numbers Amp is equal to Tm. II. A step of randomly selecting one of the P partitions, III. A step of supplying multiple identified cards from N card receiving locations in the m-th row to a selected p-th section. Step IV. Randomly select another section from among IV.P sections in which the number of identified cards within the section is less than Amp. Repeat steps III through IV until all VP sections are supplied with a number of cards equal to Amp. VI. Remove the completed set from the card storage device and repeat steps I through VI. It is supplied by a series of steps.

[0009]

[09] Before proceeding to the next step IV, the number of identified cards supplied from the N card receiving locations in the m-th row to the selected p-th section may be a random number of cards, and each time a random selection is made, it may be a fixed number of cards, a number limited to a certain threshold, or an unlimited number, as long as it does not exceed Amp.

[0010]

[10] According to some embodiments, M>1 and / or N>1.

[11] The cards in the P compartments may be stacked randomly, or compartment number 1 may supply the bottom of the card set, the cards in compartment number 2 may be stacked on top of the last card in compartment number 1, and so on, with the Pth compartment supplying the cards that are at the top of the card set, and all cards may be stacked so that their faces are facing away from the top of the card set.

[0011]

[12] The first card supply means may be configured to supply 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or more sets of cards, possibly a randomly arranged set of cards. Preferably, each of the N card supply units is configured to supply a set of randomly arranged cards, such as a set of cards from a used card cartridge, from which there are still undealed cards present, from which these undealed cards are drawn one by one. Accordingly, according to some embodiments, with respect to a card supply means that supplies a plurality of sets of randomly arranged cards, the plurality of randomly arranged sets of cards may include cards to be reused. Optionally, all of the sets of randomly arranged cards may include cards to be reused, or all but one of the sets of randomly arranged cards may include cards to be reused.

[0012]

[13] According to some embodiments, the method may supply a set of playing cards, each set comprising Q sets of playing cards, such that Q sets of playing cards constitute Tm cards.

[0013]

[14] In the contact of this invention, each set may include multiple sets of playing cards.

[15] Unless otherwise specified, the term “card” may hereafter refer to a playing card in which each card is identifiable by its rank and suit, or to any card in which each card is identifiable by one or more identifying elements and / or card identification codes, and each card forms part of a set of cards having such identifying elements and / or card identification codes. A set of cards may include several sets of cards, such as a deck of playing cards. A deck of cards is several identical or different cards that together form a card pack. A deck of playing cards includes 52 different playing cards in four suits (hearts, diamonds (or tiles), clubs (or clubs), and spades (or pikes)) and 13 ranks. Each suit includes an ace (depicting the single symbol of that suit), a king, a queen, and a jack (each depicting the symbol of that suit), as well as ranks 2 through 10. A deck of playing cards may include multiple decks of playing cards, such as 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12 decks, and may further include one or more special cards, such as jokers or stop cards, which have a special effect in games played using the deck of playing cards.

[0014]

[16] The playing cards are preferably cards whose faces show the rank and suit.

[17] Each set thus contains a multiple of 52 distinct playing cards, thereafter Q may have Q, where Q is an integer greater than 1. These groups of 52 distinct playing cards constitute a set of playing cards. Each set thus contains Q sets, that is, Q cards of each suit among the 52 distinct cards.

[0015]

[18] Q is preferably in the range of 2 to 15, such as 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, or 15. Most preferably, Q is in the range of 6 to 10.

[0016]

[19] According to some embodiments, identifying each card may include obtaining information regarding the rank and suit of the card, and the method further includes counting the number of cards of a given rank and suit assigned to each of the M card storage means, and for this card type having the identified rank and suit, assigning the identified card to one of the card storage means only if the number of cards of this type in this card storage means is less than Q.

[0017]

[20] Thus, counters called Qmrs, where M×52 of them are defined. In Qmrs, m is an integer from 1 to M, r is the rank and ranges from 1 to 13, where 11 is the rank "Jack", 12 is the rank "Queen", and 13 is the rank "King", and s is the suit, namely hearts, spades, diamonds, or clubs.

[0018]

[21] This method further includes step 1.4 of setting all counters Qmrs to zero when the first step is executed. By counting each type or variety of card for each set to be made up, the card set will be supplied with Q×52 mutually different cards.

[0019]

[22] When a card is identified, since the identified card can be assigned to a plurality of the M card sets accordingly, each of the M card storage means may be assigned a priority number Rm in the range from 1 to M, where conventionally the priority number "1" is called the highest priority and the priority number "M" is called the lowest priority, and each set has a unique priority number Rm.

[0020]

[23] If the identified card can be assigned to a plurality of the M card storage means available, the method may include the step of assigning the identified card to the card storage means having the highest priority number.

[0021]

[24] The priority numbers may be randomly assigned to the card storage means at the time of activation of the device that executes this method, but it is preferable that the first card storage means is given the priority number "1", the second card storage means is given the priority number "2", and it continues in the same manner until the last card storage means is given the priority number "M".

[0022]

[25] When a card set is completed within a card storage means, the priority number of this emptied card storage means is set to M, and all priority numbers greater than the previous priority number of the completed set, and thus of the card storage means, are reduced by 1.

[0023]

[26] According to some embodiments, the device may comprise card identification means for identifying a card by the rank and suit of the card, and / or one or more identification elements and / or a card identification information code.

[0024]

[27] The card identification means identifies a card by the rank and suit of the card, and / or one or more identification elements and / or card identification information, and this information can be attributed to the position of the card within a continuous series of cards from each of a series of randomly arranged series of cards passing through the card identification means. Each card passing through the card identification means may generate a data set including the position of the card within a series of a series of randomly arranged series of cards, and also the rank and suit of this card, and / or one or more identification elements and / or card identification information.

[0025]

[28] The card identification means comprises an optical system for identifying cards, for example, at least one optical system or one optical system for each randomly arranged set of cards, and optionally comprises one or more cameras per optical system. Images of the card surface captured by one or more cameras are transformed and / or analyzed so as to identify one or more card identification elements or identification information on the card surface. Such one or more card identification elements may be, in the case of playing cards, rank and suit. The card identification means optionally obtains a card identification information code that is readable on the card surface, for example, a barcode. The card identification means optionally reads the card identification information code only by using UV light. The card identification means may therefore comprise a UV-sensing camera and / or cooperate with a UV illumination device. The card identification means may check suspicious cards based on the read card identification information code. The card identification means may, for each read card identification code, check whether the card having this unique card identification code is likely to be part of a set of randomly arranged cards, for example by comparing the read card identification code with a list of authorized card identification codes stored in a database. If a card having a read card identification code is likely not part of a set of randomly arranged cards, then such card cannot be part of any set of cards generated by the device. The card identification means may identify this card as a suspicious card that needs to be removed from a set of randomly arranged cards. The card identification means may identify this card as a card that should be removed.

[0026]

[29] The card identification means may identify a card that has a special function, such as a stop card, within a set of cards to be created, such as a set of playing cards. The card identification means may identify this card as a card to be removed, or as a card to be treated as a card that needs to be part of one of the sets of cards to be created by the device.

[0027]

[30] According to some embodiments, the device may include defect detection means for detecting defective cards. The front and back surfaces of the cards may be checked for defects such as dirt, scratches, tears, or spots. Defective cards cannot be part of a set of cards generated by the device and must be removed from a set of randomly arranged cards being made up. The defect detection means may optionally provide information to a card identification means to identify the defective card as one of the cards to be removed.

[0028]

[31] The defect detection means may comprise one or more optical systems, for example, one for each randomly arranged set of cards, and optionally, one or more cameras per optical system. Front and back images captured by one or more cameras are analyzed to identify defects. In some cases, the optical systems of the card defect detection means, or some of the cameras of the optical systems, may be shared with the optical systems of the card identification means. The device used to carry out this method may comprise a card removal means configured to receive a card to be removed from a set of randomly arranged sets of cards.

[0029]

[32] The card identified from a set of cards is assigned to one of a set of card storage means, for example, by a control means.

[33] The control means may not only control the execution of the movement of the movable parts of the device, but may also keep track of the identification information and number of cards distributed to the various card storage means. The control means may control, increment, or reset a counter Qmrs that counts the types of cards supplied to each of the M card grouping means. The control means may also keep track of the order of cards supplied to the P compartments of the M card grouping means, and since the control unit has information about the mechanical configuration of the device, such as the relative positions of the N card supply units, N × M card receiving locations, and the relative positions of the P compartments of the M card storage means, the control unit can even keep track of the order of cards supplied to each of the M card storage means. The control unit may therefore generate a dataset for each assembled card set that reflects the order of the cards in the assembled card set.

[0030]

[34] The control unit may further control a value Tm, a value Amp for the number of cards, a random assignment of such value Amp, a random selection of the next empty compartment from the P compartments of each of the M card storage means, the priority of the M card storage means, other counters used to control the execution of this method, as well as the identification of a card from each of the N card supply means, and the assignment of one of the M card storage means for each identified card.

[0031]

[35] P may be an integer of any choice, ranging from 4 to 10.

[36] P is therefore preferably 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10. P may be the same or different for each of the M card storage means. Optionally, each card storage means may have P compartments, but this method may optionally include the step of determining, randomly and optionally, for each empty card storage means the number of compartments to be used to make a card set. The number of compartments used may be an integer between a lower threshold Pmin and P, where Pmin is preferably 4 or greater.

[0032]

[37] N may be an integer of any choice in the range of 4 to 12. N is therefore preferably 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12.

[38] Preferably, all N card supply units may themselves be card supply units that supply a randomly arranged set of cards.

[0033]

[39] Each card supply unit may include a holder for holding a cartridge of cards and a extraction system for drawing cards from the cartridge. The cartridge may be one that has been returned from a play table where the rest of the card set is still present, and from which no remaining cards were drawn during the game.

[0034]

[40] The extraction system may include fingers that make contact with the back of the card in the cartridge and push the card down as if it were being extracted by a dealer. The fingers may grip the card or use a vacuum that sucks the back of the card with a cup.

[0035]

[41] The finger may bring the card surface in front of a camera which may take an image of the card surface, or further, read the rank and suit immediately. The camera may be part of a card identification means. If the card is provided with an invisible identification number or identification means, the camera may further read the identification number or identification means, and the control system may determine how far in the set of reusable cards in the cartridge the card is expected to be in this position, or whether the card is flagged as a damaged card.

[0036]

[42] There may be an additional (N+1) card supply unit, which may, in some cases, be a unit that supplies a specific type of card, such as cut cards.

[0037]

[43] The N+1th card supply unit may, in some cases, not have identification means, and the number of cards supplied from this card supply unit may be controlled in a different manner than with respect to the N card supply units. For example, if the total number of arbitrarily and randomly selected cards that already exist is assigned to the mth card set, then one such special card is supplied to the mth card set, and by extension to the mth card storage means.

[0038]

[44] According to some embodiments, M may be an integer in the range of 4 to 10. M is therefore preferably 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10.

[45] When this method is performed, it is preferable that there be an additional M+1 card storage means to which identified cards that cannot be assigned to any of the M card storage means are assigned. Cards supplied to this M+1 card storage means are called overflow cards and may be later recovered and returned to this method via one of the N card supply units.

[0039]

[46] This M+1 card storage means may not have compartments and may be a simple box into which overflow cards are pushed.

[47] According to some embodiments, each amp may be in the range of 0.5 × Tm / P to 1.5 × Tm / P.

[0040]

[48] ​​The method according to the first embodiment has several advantages. The order of one or more card sets during the continuous execution of this method over a long period of time, which is made up in all of the card storage means by a number of randomly selected parameters in this method, remains completely unpredictable, even if some information about the order of cards supplied from the N card supply means is known.

[0041]

[49] If the system does not use the three steps of creating a set within a card storage means using multiple P compartments, relatively few cards (hereinafter referred to as rare cards) among a series of cards repursued and / or randomly arranged from N card supply means tend to be relatively likely to be at the top of a card set created by simply stacking cards from a card receiving point. This may not be immediately noticeable in the first few sets created, but by observing the order in which cards are drawn from these sets, it may become apparent that in subsequent card sets, these "rare" cards appear to be more numerous in the initial cards that are also drawn. Thus, there may be predictability in the randomness of cards in the card sets being created.

[0042]

[50] According to a second particular aspect of the present invention, a computer program product is provided, the computer program product includes instructions for performing a method for performing a method for performing a set of M cards such that M≧1 when the computer program is executed on a controller having at least one processor, the method comprising the steps of: identifying cards that will be part of one set of the M sets; assigning the identified cards to one set of the M sets; controlling the supply of the assigned cards to the assigned set; and for each of the cards in the M sets, I. A step of determining the total number Tm of cards to be stored in order to supply a set of cards, II. A step of determining the number of cards Amp for P card groups, wherein the sum of the P card numbers Amp is equal to Tm, III. For each of the P card groups, the step of setting the value Bmp of the first card counter to 0, IV. A step of randomly selecting a section p of a group of P cards, For each card supplied to the Vp-th card group, the value Bmp is incremented by 1. The step of randomly selecting another group from among VI.P groups, VII. Repeat steps V and VI until all Bmps are equal to Amp. This includes the step of controlling the creation of the M-group cards.

[0043]

[51] It is clear that the computer program product may store instructions to be executed by a processing circuit, the instructions being instructions for performing the method according to the first aspect of the present invention. Accordingly, the functions described in consideration of this first aspect of the present invention may be applied to, or combined with, instructions and computer program products according to the second aspect of the present invention.

[0044]

[52] According to some embodiments, the instructions may further include identifying a card from one or more sets of cards.

[53] According to some embodiments, M > 1. According to some embodiments, N > 1.

[0045]

[54] According to some embodiments, the instruction may further include assigning an identified card from one or more sets of cards to the m-th card set of M card sets, before incrementing the value Bmp by 1.

[0046]

[55] The cards in the P compartments may be stacked such that compartment number 1 supplies the bottom of the card set, the cards in compartment number 2 are stacked on top of the last card in compartment number 1, and so on, with the Pth compartment supplying the top card of the card set, and all cards are stacked so that the faces of all cards face away from the top of the card set.

[0047]

[56] A computer program product may identify a card drawn from a set of N cards, possibly a randomly arranged set of cards, where N is 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, or more, and assign the identified card. Preferably, each set of cards is a set of randomly arranged cards, such as a set of cards drawn from a used card cartridge, from which there are still undealed cards, from which these undealed cards are drawn one by one.

[0048]

[57] Unless otherwise specified, the term “card” may hereafter mean a playing card in which each card is identifiable by its rank and suit, or any card in which each card is identifiable by one or more identifying elements and / or a card identification code, and each card forms part of a set of cards having such identifying elements and / or a card identification code. A set of cards may include several sets of cards, such as a deck of playing cards. A deck of cards is several identical or different cards that together form a card pack. A deck of playing cards includes 52 different playing cards in four suits (hearts, diamonds (or tiles), clubs (or clubs), and spades (or pikes)) and 13 ranks. Each suit includes an ace (depicting the single symbol of that suit), a king, a queen, and a jack (each depicting the symbol of that suit), as well as ranks 2 through 10. A deck of playing cards may include multiple decks of playing cards, such as 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12 decks, and may further include one or more special cards, such as jokers or stop cards, which have a special effect in games played using the deck of playing cards.

[0049]

[58] The playing cards are preferably cards whose faces show the rank and suit.

[59] Each set thus contains a multiple of 52 distinct playing cards, thereafter Q may have Q, where Q is an integer greater than 1. These groups of 52 distinct playing cards constitute a set of playing cards. Each set thus contains Q sets, that is, Q cards of each suit among the 52 distinct cards.

[0050]

[60] Q is preferably in the range of 2 to 15, such as 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, or 15. Q is most preferably in the range of 6 to 10.

[0051]

[61] According to some embodiments, the instruction may be an instruction for performing a method of making M sets of playing cards, where each set of playing cards includes Q sets of playing cards, and the instruction is In the step performed between step 1 and step 2, set M × 52 counters Qmrs to 0, where 1 ≤ m ≤ M, 1 ≤ r ≤ 13, each r corresponding to a rank of a playing card, and 1 ≤ s ≤ 4, each s corresponding to a suit of a playing card. When identifying a card, the rank and suit of the card being identified must be identified. When Bmp is incremented by 1, the counter Qmrs is incremented by 1, where m corresponds to the card set to which the identified card is assigned, r corresponds to the rank of the identified card, and s corresponds to the suit of the identified card. Includes.

[0052]

[62] According to some embodiments, an identified card may be assigned to the m-th card set only when the counter Qmrs is less than Q, where m corresponds to the card set, r corresponds to the rank of the identified card, and s corresponds to the suit of the identified card.

[0053]

[63] According to some embodiments, each of the M card sets may be assigned a priority number Rm, where m is in the range of 1 to M, and each set has its own priority number Rm, and the instruction comprises assigning an identified card to the card set having the highest priority among the group of card sets for each of the counters Qmrs less than Q, where m corresponds to a card set, r corresponds to the rank of the identified card, and s corresponds to the suit of the identified card.

[0054]

[64] Once a card is identified, it can be assigned to any of the M corresponding card sets. Each of the M card storage means may be assigned a priority number Rm ranging from 1 to M, where priority number "1" is conventionally called the highest priority and priority number "M" is called the lowest priority, and each set has its own unique priority number Rm.

[0055]

[65] If an identified card can be assigned to more than one of the M corresponding card storage means, the method may include the step of assigning the identified card to the card storage means having the highest priority number.

[0056]

[66] Priority numbers may be randomly assigned to the card storage means when the device performing this method is started, but it is preferable that the first card storage means is assigned priority number "1", the second card storage means is assigned priority number "2", and so on until the last card storage means is assigned priority number "M".

[0057]

[67] When a card set is completed in a card storage container, the priority number of the emptied card storage container is set to M, and all priority numbers of the completed set, and by extension the card storage containers, that were higher than the previous priority number are reduced by 1.

[0058]

[68] According to some embodiments, P may be an integer in the range of 4 to 10.

[69] P is therefore preferably 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10. P may be the same or different for each of the M card storage means. Optionally, each card storage means may have P compartments, but this method may optionally include the step of determining, randomly and optionally, the number of compartments to be used to make a card set for each empty card storage means. The number of compartments used may be an integer between a lower threshold Pmin and P, where Pmin is preferably 4 or greater.

[0059]

[70] The number N of a set of cards, which may be randomly arranged in some cases, is more preferably an integer in the range of 4 to 12. N is therefore preferably 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, or 12.

[0060]

[71] According to some embodiments, M may be an integer in the range of 4 to 10. M is therefore preferably 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10.

[72] According to some embodiments, each of the Amp may be in the range of 0.5 × Tm / P to 1.5 × Tm / P.

[0061]

[73] A computer program product according to this second aspect of the present invention has the same or similar advantages as the method according to the first aspect.

[74] According to a third distinct aspect of the present invention, a device for supplying a card set is provided, the device is o A set of N card supply units that supply a series of cards, where N > 1, and each unit is defined by a card supply unit number n, and 1 ≤ n ≤ N. A matrix of M rows and N columns with N x M card receiving locations, where M ≥ 1, N + M > 2, each location is defined by coordinates (n, m), 1 ≤ n ≤ N, 1 < + m ≤ M, and each of the N card receiving locations is configured to receive a card from one of the N card supply units. oM card storage means, each storage means is determined by a storage means number m, and 1 ≤ m ≤ M, A card delivery means that supplies the cards supplied to each of the card receiving locations in row oM to one of the M card storage means. The card delivery means comprises M card delivery points, each of the M card storage means having one card delivery point, each of the M card storage means having P compartments, where P > 1, and the card delivery points and compartments are positionable relative to each other so that, for each of the M card storage means, cards from the delivery points are supplied to each of the compartments.

[0062]

[75] The card supply units are preferably configured to supply a randomly arranged set of cards.

[76] According to some embodiments, M > 1. According to some embodiments, N > 1.

[0063]

[77] According to some embodiments, each card storage means may comprise P rows of boxes, each box having a compartment, and the card delivery locations and compartments are locatable relative to each other by moving the card delivery locations and / or rows of boxes in the direction of the row.

[0064]

[78] The rows of compartments are rows of boxes, all of which are preferably parallel to each other and have openings (hereafter referred to as surfaces) that are optionally even coplanar. The rows of compartments are preferably aligned substantially vertically, thereby forming a pile of compartments.

[0065]

[79] In some cases, each of the M card storage means has an opening surface (hereafter referred to as a surface) in which the rows of compartments are rows of boxes, all of which are parallel to each other and optionally even coplanar. The number of compartments in the M card storage means may all be the same or different.

[0066]

[80] The card delivery locations and compartments are relative to each other, which may be achieved by moving the card delivery locations in the direction in which the openings of the rows of boxes are aligned, i.e., in the direction of the rows.

[0067]

[81] According to some embodiments, the card delivery locations and the rows of boxes may be positioned relative to each other by moving the rows of boxes in the row direction.

[82] According to some embodiments, two adjacent boxes may each be separated by a partition.

[0068]

[83] The separating or dividing partition may be a common partition, one side of which forms the side of the first box and the other side of which forms the side of the second box. If the boxes are oriented substantially vertically, the separating partition may form the lower upper partition of the two partitions and the upper bottom of the two boxes.

[0069]

[84] According to some embodiments, the dividers may be removable from the rows.

[85] This is particularly useful when a card set is completed within a card storage means by removing a separating divider, and card packs in different boxes may be placed side by side or on top of each other by simply putting the card packs together within the remaining partition structure of the box, and the card set can be physically accommodated and removed from the card storage means, this is especially true for compartments provided as a pile of boxes. By removing the separating divider, card packs in different boxes fall in on top of each other and a card set is made. If the cards are supplied into the compartment with the card faces facing downward, the card set can be removed from the card storage means, with the bottom card of the card set not visible at a glance.

[0070]

[86] According to some embodiments, a row may comprise two outermost boxes, the first outermost box of a row of boxes comprising a movable partition opposite to a dividing partition separating the box, the movable partition being movable along the length of the row toward a second outer box. Optionally, the second row of boxes comprises an opening or movable partition opposite to a dividing partition separating the box, the movable partition of the first box being movable along the length of the row toward a second outer box, at least to the position of the opening or movable partition of the second outer box. The row may, in some cases, be a substantially vertically oriented pile, with the first outermost box being the bottom box.

[0071]

[87] When the cards are supplied into the compartment with their face side down, and the card set is moved upward while it is supported on the lower divider of the first outer box, the card set can be removed from the card storage means, and the bottom card of the card set is not visible at first glance.

[0072]

[88] According to some embodiments, each card delivery location and compartment of the M card storage means may be able to be positioned relative to each other independently of the other of the M card storage means.

[0073]

[89] The card delivery means may, for each of the M card storage means, supply cards to be delivered to the corresponding delivery location of the mth card storage means in groups. This may be done by stacking or combining cards that are present in the N card receiving locations in the mth row of the card receiving locations in an N × M matrix of card receiving locations.

[0074]

[90] The card receiving locations may collectively form a card receiving means, and the card receiving locations are distributed in a matrix manner substantially across a planar surface. The receiving locations may thus be constructed such that N card supply units are aligned in the row direction of the matrix. In some cases, each of the N card supply units comprises a card supply location, and cards supplied from the card supply unit can be transferred to one of the card receiving locations. The N card supply locations may be aligned linearly in the row direction of the matrix. Each of the M card receiving locations in N columns may move a card receiving location relative to a corresponding card supply location. For example, M card receiving locations in one column of card receiving locations may be moved below a corresponding card supply location, and even below a card supply unit. The corresponding card supply location may transfer cards supplied from the card supply unit to a card receiving location which is part of the row of card receiving locations that corresponds to an assigned card storage location among the M card storage means.

[0075]

[91] Thus, each of the M card receiving locations in the N column may have M positions aligned in the column direction of the matrix distribution, and a card supply unit may, at each position, transport one or more cards supplied by the card supply unit to one of the M card receiving locations in that column of the M card receiving locations. A card receiving location is in a basic position if, at one of the positions hereafter referred to as the basic position, the card receiving location is linearly aligned with the delivery location of the row of card receiving locations to which the card receiving location belongs in the matrix distribution.

[0076]

[92] The M card handover points and M rows of card receiving points of the M card storage means may be linearly aligned in the column direction of the matrix distribution. The card handover points may be located in front of the M card storage means, adjacent to the Nth column of the card receiving points.

[0077]

[93] The card delivery means may be configured to transfer a card supplied to one or more of the card receiving locations in the m-th row toward the m-th card storage means.

[94] For example, each card receiving area is defined by two vertically upright partitions having a continuous top surface, the upper surface configured to receive a card. These top surfaces define a plane inclined with respect to the vertical plane. The top surfaces are therefore inclined upward from the bottom to the top towards the adjacent receiving area that is closer to the card restoring means.

[0078]

[95] Between each of the two upright partitions of the card receiving area, a rod-shaped, or similar extrusion means may move from the lower end to the upper end. The card delivery means may thus comprise M extrusion means, each configured to push a card received at each of the N card receiving areas in one row of the M rows of card receiving areas toward a corresponding card delivery area of ​​the M card storage means. The extrusion means will move while being located in the gap defined by the two partitions of the card receiving area.

[0079]

[96] The card delivery means may further comprise M push means, each configured to push the card received by the nth card receiving location of the N card receiving locations to the (n+1)th card receiving location of the N card receiving locations as it moves from the first to the last of the N card receiving locations in a row of card receiving locations, and then, for all N card receiving locations except the nth card receiving location, from the nth card receiving location to the card delivery location corresponding to the card storage means. In order to enable this pushing from one card receiving location to an adjacent card receiving location, the nth and (n+1)th card receiving locations of the N card receiving locations in this row of card receiving locations must be in the basic position of the card receiving location. While a card receiving location is not participating in the pushing operation, the row of card receiving locations to which the non-participating card receiving location belongs may move relative to the card supply location from which the card receiving location is to receive a card.

[0080]

[97] The card delivery means may further include M push means, each configured to retract from the gap between each of the two partitions of a card receiving location when moving from the Nth of the N card receiving locations in a row of card receiving locations to the first card receiving location.

[0081]

[98] In some cases, all M extrusion means move simultaneously between the first and last card receiving locations of a row of N card receiving locations. All M extrusion means may be mounted on a common bar or rail and move above or below card receiving locations distributed in a matrix.

[0082]

[99] According to some embodiments, the device may further include means for emptying a card storage means, configured to remove all card sets from the card storage means. The means for emptying a card storage means may utilize a robot or automated system that captures and removes card sets from the card storage means.

[0083]

[0100] According to a fourth distinct aspect of the present invention, a device for supplying a card set is provided, the device is o A set of N card supply units that supply a series of cards, where N > 1, and each unit is defined by a card supply unit number n, and 1 ≤ n ≤ N. A matrix of M rows and N columns with N x M card receiving locations, where M ≥ 1, N + M > 2, each location is defined by coordinates (n, m), 1 ≤ n ≤ N, 1 < + m ≤ M, and each of the N card receiving locations is configured to receive a card from one of the N card supply units. oM card storage means, each storage means is determined by a storage means number m, and 1 ≤ m ≤ M, A card delivery means that supplies the cards supplied to each of the card receiving locations in row oM to one of the M card storage means. The present invention is characterized by comprising the following: each of the N card supply units is provided with a card supply location; a row of card receiving locations is movable relative to the card supply locations for each of the N card supply units; and cards from the card supply units are supplied to each of the card receiving locations in the row of card receiving locations.

[0084]

[0101] Each card supply unit is preferably configured to supply a randomly arranged set of cards.

[0102] According to some embodiments, M > 1. According to some embodiments, N > 1.

[0085]

[0103] According to some embodiments, the card supply locations may be collinear. The card receiving locations may optionally be substantially coplanar. The card supply locations may be collinear along lines that are parallel to, but not coplanar with, the plane defined by the card receiving locations. The plane defined by the card receiving locations may be oriented substantially horizontally.

[0086]

[0104] The rows of card receiving locations and card supply locations may be positioned relative to each other by moving the card supply locations above the card receiving locations in the rows of card supply locations. The rows of card receiving locations and card supply locations may, in some cases, be positioned relative to each other by moving the rows of card receiving locations below the card supply locations in those rows. According to some embodiments, the card supply locations and card receiving locations may be positioned relative to each of the N card supply units, independently of the other N card supply units.

[0087]

[0105] It is clear that the functions of the fourth aspect of the present invention can be combined with one or more of the functions of the third aspect of the present invention.

[0106] A device according to a third and / or fourth aspect of the present invention may also include a control unit or control means configured not only to control the movement of all movable elements of the device, but also to ensure that the device supplies a set of cards in a random order. Ensuring that the device supplies a set of cards in a random order may be achieved by including a device according to a third and / or fourth aspect that performs the method according to a first aspect of the present invention, and / or by including a processing circuit within the control means in which a processing unit may execute instructions present in a computer program product according to a second aspect of the present invention.

[0088]

[0107] Therefore, the function of one aspect of this invention may be combined with one or more functions of any other aspect of the invention.

[0108] A device according to a third and / or fourth aspect of the present invention may be used to carry out a method according to a first aspect of the present invention. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0089] [Figure 1]

[0109] This is a schematic diagram showing the device according to the present invention. [Figure 2]

[0110] This figure schematically shows a card storage means, which is part of the device in Figure 1. [Figure 3]

[0111] Figure 3a is a schematic diagram showing the card storage means of Figure 2. Figure 3b is a schematic diagram showing the card storage means of Figure 2. [Figure 4]

[0112] This is a schematic diagram showing the card receiving area of ​​the device in Figure 1. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0090]

[0113] In different diagrams, the same reference numeral refers to the same or similar function.

[0114] Figure 1 schematically shows a card set supply device 100. The device 100 comprises a device having N card supply units 200, each card supply unit configured to supply a set of cards, in particular a set of cards arranged randomly. In this embodiment, there are seven card supply units numbered 1 to 7. The device 100 further comprises eight card storage means 300, each storage means designated by storage means number 1 to 8. Details of each card storage means 300 are schematically shown in Figure 2. The card supply units 200 are mounted above a table-like frame 110, and all are aligned along the first side 111 of a substantially rectangular table surface 112. The card storage means are also aligned along the second side 113 of the table surface 112, adjacent to the second side 113. Sides 111 and 113 are non-parallel. On the table surface 112, 56 card receiving points 400 are provided arranged in a matrix of 8 rows 410 and 7 columns 420, with each of the 8 card receiving points 400 in each of the 7 columns configured to receive cards from a corresponding card supply unit. The card receiving points 400 in column 420 are interconnected and may slide parallel to the table surface in direction 210 between themselves and the corresponding card supply unit 200. The column 420 of card receiving points may slide beneath the card supply points 202 of the card supply unit.

[0091]

[0115] Each card supply unit 200 includes a holder for holding a cartridge 500 that is at least partially filled with cards, for example, remaining undealed cards left in the cartridge after the cartridge has been used to play a card game. The cartridge is returned to the game table as is, so device 100 is suitable for recovering the remaining cards from the used cartridge. The card supply unit 200 includes, for example, a card extraction means, in this embodiment a movable finger 204, which can pull out cards one by one from the cartridge 500.

[0092]

[0116] Cards pulled from the cartridge are scanned and identified by a camera system (not shown in Figure 1) that identifies the card by its rank and suit, and / or an identification code present on the card's surface that is optionally invisible without UV light. Identified cards are then made available at card supply point 202.

[0093]

[0117] The identified card is assigned to the top of the eight card storage means 300, and column 420 of the card receiving area 400 moves below the supply area 202 of the corresponding card supply means 200 so that the card receiving area 400 with the same row number as the assigned card storage means is positioned below the card supply area. The card supply area then transfers the identified card vertically 701 to the card receiving area 400.

[0094]

[0118] Meanwhile, the card delivery means 600 of the device moves in a direction 610 toward the card storage means 300. As further presented, in this embodiment, a card pushing means of the card delivery means 600, called a finger 620, moves together with a beam 622 that moves over the card receiving area 400. The finger 620 transports cards toward the card storage means 300, from one card receiving area to an adjacent card receiving area until one or more cards are supplied to the delivery area 320 of the card storage means 300. By ensuring that the rows 420 of the card receiving areas 400 are aligned with adjacent rows 420 of the card receiving areas 400 during such movement of the card delivery means 600, that is, by ensuring that card receiving areas with the same row number are adjacent to each other, the cards supplied to the delivery area are cards assigned to the same card storage means corresponding to the card delivery area. When the fingers of the card delivery means 600 reach the card handover point, the fingers are lifted or removed from the path to the card collection point, and the card delivery means is moved back to its position in front of the first row of the card collection point. The fingers are lowered again, and the delivery process resumes.

[0095]

[0119] The control unit may, when assigning identified cards, count how many cards of each rank and suit have been supplied to each card storage means, and therefore the control unit may control the number and order of cards supplied to the card storage means, and thus ensure that a card set is formed in each card storage means, comprising a given number of card sets, and the control unit may always know where cards of each rank and suit are located within the device, so that each set may be randomized at the set level, and the control unit may generate data regarding the order of the cards within the card set.

[0096]

[0120] A device having these functions may simultaneously supply multiple sets of cards arranged randomly, in this embodiment, eight sets.

[0121] Alternatively or additionally, as clearly shown in Figures 2, 3a, and 3b, each card storage means 300 may be provided with a plurality of compartments 310. In this embodiment of Figures 2, 3a, and 3b, each card storage means 300 is provided with seven compartments 310 numbered 1 through 7, with compartment 1 being the lowest vertically positioned and cartridge 7 being the uppermost compartment. It should be understood that different numbers of compartments, such as 5, 6, 8, 9, or 10, may also be used. The card storage means includes a mover 312 for moving the card storage means 300 upward or downward 350 relative to the card delivery point. As schematically shown in Figure 3a, a card at the card delivery point may be inserted into each of the compartments by moving the card storage means upward or downward before transferring the card from the card delivery point to the compartment 310. The compartment into which one or more cards at the delivery point of the card storage means are transferred may also be randomly selected. Therefore, the randomness of the cards within the card set may be increased.

[0097]

[0122] When the required number of cards are present in the card set supplied to the card storage means, the dividers 330 separating adjacent compartments may be removed from the stack of cards by the drawer means 340, or for example, pulled out, as shown in Figure 3b. In this way, the cards present in the compartments may be stacked, and the card set is completed. The lifting means may lift the corresponding card set upward to allow the card set 800 to be removed from the card storage means, as shown in Figure 3b.

[0098]

[0123] To further enhance the unpredictability of the card order, especially over longer periods and compared to subsequent card sets supplied by device 100, specific methods and algorithms are used to fill each compartment of the card storage means. First, the total number of cards Tm that should be present in the card set to be made up in the m-th card storage means is determined. This is usually a given number Q of cards. The control unit may count the number of cards of each kind identified by card rank and suit for each card storage means, so a series of counters Qmrs are set to 0. The control unit may then randomly select the number of compartments that will be used when making the next card set. However, it is preferable that as many compartments as possible are used, and all compartments are used. Here, the control unit randomly selects the number of cards that should be supplied to each of the compartments used, Amp, where Amp is the number of cards in the p-th compartment of the m-th card storage means. Obviously, the sum of Amp for each card storage means must be equal to Tm.

[0099]

[0124] The control unit then randomly selects a section from which the first empty cartridge, i.e., the first card out of several, will be supplied. From the N card receiving points in the m-th row, the identified multiple cards supplied to the selected p-th section are supplied to the delivery points of the card storage means before another section of the card storage means is selected. The randomness of the card sets being made up is increased by changing the section from which further identified cards are supplied. This iteration continues until all sections contain Amp cards. Once this is achieved, stacks of cards within the sections are made up, thereby forming a card set in the card storage means. Stacks within different sections may be stacked in a random order or in a known fixed order. In this embodiment, stacks are combined by drawing a common divider from between the sections, thereby allowing the stacks to overlap each other.

[0100]

[0125] When a computer program is executed on a controller having at least one processor, instructions in the computer program product, including instructions that control how to assemble the M-set cards, may be executed on the control units of the devices shown in Figures 1 to 4.

[0101]

[0126] The control unit may define counters and values, randomly select and assign or choose elements of the device, and control the movement of various elements of the device.

[0127] As an example, looking at the card receiving area 400 shown in Figure 4, each card receiving area is defined by two vertically upright partitions 401 having a continuous upper surface 402 configured so that the upper surface receives a card 700. These upper surfaces define a plane inclined with respect to the vertical plane 701. The upper surfaces are therefore inclined upward from the lower end 403 to the upper end 404 toward the adjacent receiving area that is closer to the card re-storage means.

[0102]

[0128] Between each of the two upright partitions 401 of the card receiving area, a rod-shaped, or similar, optionally finger-shaped, extrusion means 620 may move from the lower end to the upper end. Each extrusion means 620 is therefore configured to push a card 700 received by each of the N card receiving areas in one row of the M rows of card receiving areas toward a corresponding card delivery or handover area in one of the M card storage means. The extrusion means 620 may therefore move while occupying the gap defined by the two partitions of the card receiving area.

[0103]

[0129] While the present invention has been illustrated with reference to specific embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the details of the aforementioned exemplary embodiments, and that the present invention may be embodied with various changes and modifications without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments are therefore illustrative and not restrictive in all respects, and the scope of the invention should be interpreted as being indicated by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description, and all changes within the meaning and equivalence of the claims are therefore intended to be encompassed in the claims. In other words, it is intended to cover all modifications, variations, or equivalents that are within the scope of the fundamental underlying principles and whose essential attributes are claimed in this patent application. It will be further understood by readers of this patent application that the words “comprising” or “comprise” do not exclude other elements or steps, the words “a” or “an” do not exclude plurals, and that a single element, such as a computer system, processor, or another integrated unit, may perform the actions of multiple means enumerated in the claims. No reference numeral in the claims shall be construed as limiting the respective claim. Terms such as “first,” “second,” “third,” “a,” “b,” and “c,” as used in the specification or claims, are introduced to distinguish between similar elements or steps and do not necessarily describe a sequential or chronological order. Similarly, terms such as “top,” “bottom,” “over,” and “under” are introduced for descriptive purposes and do not necessarily indicate relative positions. These terms are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances, and embodiments of the invention may operate in a different order or orientation than those described or illustrated above.

Claims

1. A method for supplying a set of cards arranged randomly, wherein the method is - A step of preparing a device for supplying the card set, wherein the device is A card supply unit of oN, where N≧1, and each unit is defined by a card supply unit number n, and 1≦n≦N. There are oM card storage means, where M ≥ 1, each storage means is determined by a storage means number m, 1 ≤ m ≤ M, and N + M > 2. Each card storage means has P compartments, P > 1, and each compartment is defined by the compartment coordinates (m, p) of the card storage means, where 1 ≤ p ≤ P and 1 < + m ≤ M. N × M card receiving locations arranged in an M x N matrix (each location defined by coordinates (n, m)), where 1 ≤ n ≤ N and 1 ≤ m ≤ M. A step of preparing a device that is equipped with, - Distribute the cards from the N card delivery units to the M card storage means. o Identify each of the cards supplied from one or more of the N card supply units, and assign each of the identified cards to one of the M card storage means, o Supplying each of the identified cards to a card receiving location at coordinates (In, Im), wherein In is the nth of the N card delivery units from which the card emerged, and Im is the mth of the M card storage means to which the card is to be supplied. For each of the N card receiving locations in the M row, stack the cards supplied to the N card receiving locations in the m-th row, and move the stacked cards to the m-th card storage means. Steps to distribute by This includes, thereby, in each of the M card storage means, a set of cards arranged randomly, I. If the m-th card storage means is empty, I. i. A step of determining the total number of cards Tm to be stored in order to supply a stack of completed cards, I. ii. A step of randomly assigning the number of cards to be stored in each of the P compartments of the empty card storage means, wherein the sum of the P card numbers Amp is equal to Tm. II. A step of randomly selecting one of the P sections, III. A step of supplying multiple identified cards from the N card receiving locations in the m-th row to the selected p-th section. IV. A step of randomly selecting another section from the P sections in which the number of identified cards within the section is less than Amp. V. Repeat steps III to IV until all P compartments are supplied with a number of cards equal to Amp. VI. Remove the completed set from the card storage means and repeat steps I through VI. A method supplied by a series of steps.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein M > 1.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein N > 1.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the method supplies a set of playing cards, each set comprising Q sets of playing cards, and the Q sets of playing cards comprise the Tm cards.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein identifying each of the cards includes obtaining information relating to the rank and suit of the card, the method further comprising the steps of counting the number of cards of a given rank and suit assigned to each of the M card storage means, and assigning the identified card to one of the card storage means only if, for a card type having the identified rank and suit, the number of cards of that type in the card storage means is less than Q.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein P is an integer in the range of 4 to 10.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein N is an integer in the range of 4 to 12.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein M is an integer in the range of 4 to 10.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein each of the Amp is in the range of 0.5 × Tm / P to 1.5 × Tm / P.

10. The device that serves the card set, o A set of N card supply units that supply a series of cards, wherein N > 1, and each unit is defined by a card supply unit number n, and 1 ≤ n ≤ N. A card receiving location comprising N × M card receiving locations arranged in an M x N matrix, wherein M ≥ 1, N + M > 2, each location defined by coordinates (n, m), 1 ≤ n ≤ N, 1 < + m ≤ M, and each of the N card receiving locations is configured to receive a card from one of the N card supply units. oM card storage means, where each storage means is determined by a storage means number m, and 1 ≤ m ≤ M, Card delivery means that supplies the cards supplied to each of the card receiving locations in the M rows to one of the M card storage means. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, comprising: the card delivery means comprising M card delivery locations, each of the M card storage means having one card delivery location, each of the M card storage means comprising P compartments, P > 1, and the card delivery locations and the compartments being positionable relative to each of the M card storage means so that cards from the delivery locations are supplied to each of the compartments.

11. The device that serves the card set, o A set of N card supply units that supply a series of cards, wherein N > 1, and each unit is defined by a card supply unit number n, and 1 ≤ n ≤ N. A card receiving location comprising N × M card receiving locations arranged in an M x N matrix, wherein M ≥ 1, N + M > 2, each location defined by coordinates (n, m), 1 ≤ n ≤ N, 1 < + m ≤ M, and each of the N card receiving locations is configured to receive a card from one of the N card supply units. oM card storage means, where each storage means is determined by a storage means number m, and 1 ≤ m ≤ M, Card delivery means that supplies the cards supplied to each of the card receiving locations in the M rows to one of the M card storage means. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, comprising: each of the N card supply units having a card supply location; a row of card receiving locations being movable relative to the card supply location for each of the N card supply units; and enabling cards from the card supply units to be supplied to each of the card receiving locations in the row of the card receiving locations.

Images