A SYSTEM FOR CREATING SETS OF CARDS

Abstract

A system for creating sets of cards is provided, and includes: a card supply means; a card moving system; a card collecting means to collect a set of cards, each card collecting means of the plurality of card collecting means being provided under the conveyor belt at different positions along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt; a card identifying means to identify the cards carried by the card moving system; and a controlling means to assign each of the identified cards carried by the card moving system to a card collecting means. For each card collecting means, a releasing means is positioned at the same position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt, the controlling means being adapted to activate the releasing means positioned at the card collecting means when a card passes the card collecting means it is assigned to.

Claims

1.-17. (canceled)

18. A system for creating sets of cards, the system comprising: a card supply means providing a plurality of cards; a card moving system, comprising a card-carrying means and at least one releasing means being an activatable releasing means to disconnect the card from the card carrying means; a plurality of card collecting means to collect a set of cards, each card collecting means of the plurality of card collecting means being provided under said conveyor belt at different positions along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt; a card identifying means to identify the cards carried by the card moving system; a controlling means to assign each of the identified cards carried by the card moving system to a card collecting means; wherein for each card collecting means, a releasing means is positioned at the same position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt, the controlling means being adapted to activate the releasing means positioned at the card collecting means when a card passes the card collecting means it is assigned to.

19. The system for creating sets of cards according to claim 18, wherein said system comprises a defect detection unit to detect defective cards.

20. The system for creating sets of cards according to claim 19, wherein said system further comprises a card extraction bin being provided under said conveyor belt at a given positions along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt, a releasing means is positioned at the same given position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt, the controlling means being adapted to activate the releasing means at the position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt when the defective card passes the card extraction bin.

21. The system for creating sets of cards according to claim 18, wherein for each releasing means, a first card detecting means is provided before the releasing means, a second card detecting means being provided after the releasing means in the direction of movement of the conveyor belt.

22. The system for creating sets of cards according to claim 18, wherein the card moving system comprising: a conveyor belt adapted to carry one or more cards individually connected the lower side of the conveyor belt; at least one releasing means for releasing the card from the conveyor belt being an interruption means to interrupt the connection of the card to the lower side of the conveyor belt and/or a gas blowing means to blow the connected card from the conveyor belt.

23. A card moving system according to claim 22, wherein the releasing means is an activatable releasing means.

24. The card moving system according to claim 22, wherein the width of the conveyor belt is less than the length of the carried cards.

25. The card moving system according to claim 24, wherein the card moving system comprises a card providing means, providing the cards to be displaced with the length of the card perpendicular to the direction of movement of the conveyor belt.

26. The card moving system according to claim 25, wherein the releasing means is a gas blowing means.

27. The card moving system according to claim 26, wherein the gas blowing means is an air blowing means comprising a first air knife.

28. The card moving system according to claim 26, wherein the gas blowing means is an air blowing means comprising a first pair of air knifes, the first and second air knife of this pair of air knifes being positioned at opposite sides of the conveyor belt and at the same position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt.

29. The card moving system according to claim 28, wherein the gas blowing means is an air blowing means comprising a plurality of pairs of air knifes, the first and second air knife of each pair of air knifes being positioned at opposite sides of the conveyor belt and at the same position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt.

30. A method to provide a set of randomly shuffled cards, the method comprises the steps of: providing a system for creating sets of cards according to claim 18; providing a series of randomly ordered cards to said system for creating sets of cards; identifying each of the cards sucked by the conveyor belt and assigning a card collecting means to each of the identified cards; displacing said identified cards along the conveyor belt to the plurality of card collecting means; for each identified card, activate the releasing means at the same position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt when a card passes the card collecting means it is assigned to; wherein the controlling means assigns a card collecting means to each card such that in each card collecting means, a set of one or more decks of cards is created.

31. The method according to claim 30, wherein the card supply system provides cards with the face side of the cards facing away from the conveyor belt.

32. The method according to claim 30, wherein at least part of the cards provided to the system for creating sets of cards are reclaimed cards.

33. The method according to claim 30, wherein the cards provided to the system for creating sets of cards are randomly ordered.

34. The method according to claim 30, wherein the controlling means creates a sequence of the identities of the cards for each set of cards created in each card collecting means.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0065] FIG. 1 illustrates schematically a system for creating sets of cards according to the invention.

[0066] FIGS. 2 and 3 show a detail of a card moving system being part of the system for creating sets of cards of FIG. 1.

[0067] The same reference figures refer to the same of identical features.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT(S)

[0068] A system for creating sets of cards 100 is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The system 100 comprises three card supply means 101, 102, 103 providing a plurality of cards 200. It is understood that the system may comprise only one card supply means, two card supply means or more than three card supply means. The card supply means may comprise a system to recuperate reclaimed cards, e.g. cards from a cartridge comprising playing cards having been used to play a card game at a card game table. The card supply means may comprise a printing unit, e.g. a digital printing unit, printing virgin cards.

[0069] Cards, new or reclaimed, may be provided by these card supply means 101, 102, 103. The card supply means 101, 102, 103 organise the cards with the face side down as a train of cards on a conveyor belt 104. The conveyor belt 104 brings the train of cards to a vacuum conveyor belt 105, being the card carrying means. The cards sucked by the vacuum belt 105 may extend over the belt at both rims of the vacuum belt, in case the width of the belt 105 is less than the length of the card.

[0070] The system 100 comprises a plurality of card collecting means, in this embodiment five card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, to collect a set of cards. The card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 are provided under said vacuum conveyor belt 105 at different positions along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt 105. Other number of card collecting means may be provided.

[0071] For each card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, a releasing means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 is positioned at the position along the direction of movement of the conveyor belt identical to the position of the related card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110. The release means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 are activatable releasing means, more particularly air knifes, which blow a stream of compressed air downward to the edges of the cards extending beyond the rim of the vacuum belt 105. The release means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 are positioned at the front end of the card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110. The card to be removed from the belt is blown of the vacuum belt 105 and falls down. At the opposite rim of the vacuum belt, at the same position in the direction of movement of the vacuum belt 105, for each release means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, a second pairing release means is positioned (not shown on FIGS. 1 and 2). The release means works synchronically in pairs, the pairs being the release means at the same position in the direction of movement of the vacuum belt 105. As such, both sides of the card hanging to the vacuum belt 105, the extending part of the card is blown down. Due to its velocity in the direction of the vacuum belts moving direction, the card will fall obliquely downwards into the card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110.

[0072] This provision of a vacuum belt 105 and release means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 cause the cards to be manipulated without any mechanical element to grip or hit the surfaces or edges of the card. As such this vacuum belt 105 and release means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 handles the cards gentler and avoids damage to cards being sorted in the card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110.

[0073] The system 100 further comprises a card identifying means 117 to identify the cards carried by the vacuum belt 105. The card identifying means 117 may comprise at least one, and optionally more than one, cameras. The images of the face sides captured by the camera or cameras, are converted and/or analysed, such that card identification element or elements on the face side of the cards are identified. These card identification element or elements may be the rank and suit in case of playing cards. Optionally the card identifying means 117 may obtain the card identity code which is readable on the face side of the card. Optionally the card identifying means 117 may read the card identity code by means of UV light only. The card identifying means 117 may be a UV sensible camera, or may cooperate with a UV lighting device. The system 100 may comprise a defect detection unit 118 to detect defective cards, which may optionally form a whole with the card identifying means 117. The defect detection unit 118 may be adapted to detect defects both on the face and backside of the cards. The card identifying means 117 and the defect detection unit 108 may be united in one and the same means. The card identifying means 117 and the defect detection unit 108 may be one and the same camera. To check for defects on the backside of the cards, optionally a further camera (not shown) is provided above the conveyor belt 104 immediately before the point where the cards are passed from the conveyor belt 104 to the vacuum belt 105. The system 100 further comprises a controlling means 120 being adapted to assign each of the identified cards carried by the card moving system 105 to a card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 and to activate the releasing means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 positioned at the card collecting means when a card passes the card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 it is assigned to.

[0074] One of the card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 may function as a card extraction bin (or discard bin or removal bin). The defective cards are assigned and are guided to this card extraction bin by the controlling means 120. The defective cards may be removed, disposed or used for another purpose.

[0075] One of the card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 may function as a card evacuation bin. The cards for which the controlling means 120 cannot assign a card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 in which a set of cards is compiled or gathered, the cards are assigned and are guided to this card evacuation bin by the controlling means 120. This may occur in case all card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110 already comprise a threshold number of cards with the same card identification element or elements (like rank and suit). These evacuated cards may later be reintroduced in the card train again to enable these cards to become part of a set of cards.

[0076] Optionally a first card detecting means is provided before each releasing means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116, and a second card detecting means being provided after the releasing means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 in the direction of movement of the vacuum conveyor belt 105. As such, the controlling means 120 may check if a card, assigned to a given card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, is deposited in the assigned card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110. This can be checked by verifying if the card detecting means upstream the releasing means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 detects a card, while the card detecting means downstream the releasing means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 does not detect a card.

[0077] The controlling means 120 may keep track of the number of cards with given card identification element or elements (like rank and suit) which are stacked in each of the card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110. When a given threshold number of cards with given card identification element or elements is already provided to a given card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, a next card with this card identification element or elements will no longer be assigned to this card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110. When for each card with given card identification element or elements, a threshold number of such cards is collected in the given card collecting means 106, 107, 108, 109, 110, a set of cards, with a given (threshold) number of decks of cards, is created. The cards in this set of cards will be randomly ordered at set level. the controlling means may also generate a data set comprising the card identities in the order the cards are present in the set of cards.

[0078] FIGS. 2 and 3 show schematically some details of a card moving system. The system comprises a conveyor belt adapted to carry one or more cards individually connected the lower side of the conveyor belt. This conveyor belt is the vacuum belt 105. The system comprises a plurality of releasing means, being the activatable releasing means 205 in FIGS. 2 and 3. FIG. 2 is a schematical side view of such release means 205, FIG. 3 shows schematically a top view of such release means 205.

[0079] Each of the release means 112, 113, 114, 115, 116 of FIG. 1 may be such activatable releasing means 205, more particularly air knifes 201. These air knifes are gas blowing means to blow the connected card from the conveyor belt, in this embodiment the vacuum belt 105. Each air knife 201 blows a stream or pulse 206 of compressed air downward to the edges 203 of the cards 200 extending beyond the rim 204 of the vacuum belt 105. Due to the force applied by the air streams, the card 200 will detach from the vacuum belt 115 and fall into the corresponding card collecting means 202.

[0080] Although the present invention has been illustrated by reference to specific embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing illustrative embodiments, and that the present invention may be embodied with various changes and modifications without departing from the scope thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein. In other words, it is contemplated to cover any and all modifications, variations or equivalents that fall within the scope of the basic underlying principles and whose essential attributes are claimed in this patent application. It will furthermore be understood by the reader of this patent application that the words comprising or comprise do not exclude other elements or steps, that the words a or an do not exclude a plurality, and that a single element, such as a computer system, a processor, or another integrated unit may fulfil the functions of several means recited in the claims. Any reference signs in the claims shall not be construed as limiting the respective claims concerned. The terms first, second, third, a, b, c, and the like, when used in the description or in the claims are introduced to distinguish between similar elements or steps and are not necessarily describing a sequential or chronological order. Similarly, the terms top, bottom, over, under, and the like are introduced for descriptive purposes and not necessarily to denote relative positions. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances and embodiments of the invention are capable of operating according to the present invention in other sequences, or in orientations different from the one(s) described or illustrated above.