Patent Publication Number: US-2013241147-A1

Title: Apparatus For Dispensing Playing Cards

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to apparatus for holding and dispensing playing cards for dealing out the playing cards. The dealing devices may be such as are commonly known as card shoes or dealer&#39;s shoes, or occasionally as card sabots. The apparatus may also be a playing card shuffler. 
     BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION 
     Card shoes, or dealer&#39;s shoes or sabots, are used, primarily in casino establishments, for the delivery of playing cards in cards games such as Blackjack and Punto Banco. The conventional card shoe is normally a container that can hold multiple decks of cards and which allows the cards to be dispensed one by one through a delivery aperture (or tongue) at the front end from where the cards can be pulled for use in casino card games used daily in casinos across the globe. The design and material used in construction hardly vary. The standard version is normally black in colour, made from a Perspex resin which offers a fair degree of durability and a smooth frictionless surface. The playing cards are placed within the shoe as a block substantially on edge but in a landscape orientation. The shoe has a dispensing aperture that enables each card to be pulled from the shoe by one or more fingers. An example of a prior art manual card shoe is shown in US patent application US2010/0013152. 
     The generic features of the conventional manual card shoe and its use are illustrated in  FIGS. 1 ,  3  and  16  to  19  of the drawings herein. The manual card shoe  1  comprises an elongate box with a rear wall  2 , elongate sidewalls  3 , front wall  5  and a floor  6 . The box forms a chamber  7  for holding the cards, often with an open-top for insertion of the decks of cards. The floor  6  of the chamber slopes downwardly towards the dispensing delivery aperture  8  at the front. At the front end of the card shoe  1  the floor  6  of the shoe is extended forwardly to project beyond the side walls  4 , front wall  5  and delivery aperture  8  of the shoe and there forms a thin flat ledge  9  over which each card being dispensed slides as it is taken by the dealer. The front wall  5  of the shoe  1  is inclined downwardly in the forward direction and the gap between the lower edge of the front wall  5  and the floor  6  of the shoe defines the delivery aperture  8 . An upwards arched cut-out  10  formed in the front wall  5  contiguous with the delivery aperture  8  provides access for the dealers fingers to drag the card out though the delivery aperture  8 . 
     Commonly a wedge  4  is provided in the chamber  2  to acts as an adjustable backstop/rest for the rearmost card of the decks in the shoe and which can be re-positioned forwardly as the stored decks are dealt and diminish in size. The cards are held in the shoe resting on one of their long edges L so that they are dispensed from the shoe in a ‘landscape’ orientation, ie where the long edge L of each card emerges first and they must be flexed upwardly at one end/short edge S to be gripped to deal them. The conventional manual card shoe  1  does not facilitate secure covert dealing since the cards are necessarily flexed upwardly as they are dealt. 
     The conventional manual card shoes are generally used for card games in which the cards are dealt face up and visible immediately to the player/s such as in Blackjack or Punto Banco (modern casino version of Baccarat) and despite claims made by applicants in earlier patent applications, casinos do not generally use manual card shoes for cards games such as Poker or Texas Hold&#39;em. Poker and its variations such as Texas Hold&#39;em are only played using a single deck of cards which can be easily handled by a human hand whereas Blackjack and Punto Banco (the two most popular casino card games) use multiple decks of cards, in most cases four decks or more which cannot be practicably held in a human hand or be distributed from such a configuration to the player/s in a secure and covert/secret manner. 
     The more recent prior art relating to card shoes focuses predominately on assisting the operator, using the aid of modern electronics, to read the card/s whilst in the shoe or when a card exits the shoe or relates to use in devices that automatically shuffle the playing cards or both. Mostly these are aimed at translating the information about the card/s to a remote display screen or for use in automatic card shuffling machines. Like manual card shoes these automatic card shuffling machines are largely used in Blackjack or variations of Blackjack to ensure a constant game without the need to pause the game for the dealer to shuffle the cards. Automatic shuffling machine&#39;s attraction to the casino industry is the elimination of the pause every time the dealer has to shuffle the cards. Far more hands of the game can be dealt without the need to reshuffle every twenty minutes or so. 
     Automatic shuffling machines require high maintenance as dust and fibres from the table cloth interfere with their workings rendering them inoperable on a regular basis. Casinos that use automatic shuffling machines retain manual card shoes in the event of these breakdowns. Automatic shuffling machines primary function and key selling point concerns their ability to mimic the actions of a conventional manual card shoe in every way, without the need to shuffle the cards. Automatic shuffling machines are not commercially viable when dealing with games that require only one deck of playing cards, like Poker and its variants, which is why they are not used on these games; the dealer can easily shuffle one deck of cards. 
     There is a variation of Blackjack offered in casinos known as “Double Deck Blackjack” that uses two decks of playing cards. This game is the only variation of Blackjack (21) offered in casinos where the cards are dealt face down to the player. This game is aimed at players who prefer a pontoon style variation of blackjack. In this game no card shoe is used because the conventional “landscape” playing card shoe is designed for games that require the cards to be laid face up; and a conventional card shoe is thus of no use in this variation. This results in the dealer having to continually hold the deck of cards in their left hand throughout the game, producing a slower, less secure game, because the dealer has only one hand free to for chips manipulation, to make payouts and to collect lost bets. 
     It is amongst objects of the present invention to provide a playing card shoe that overcomes the above-described drawbacks of the prior art and enables playing cards to be dealt continuously face down by an operator in a covert (secret) but efficient manner. The playing card shoe may nevertheless be used for face up dealing too if desired. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a playing card shoe for holding and dispensing a plurality of playing cards, the shoe having a delivery aperture at a dispensing end for dispensing playing cards individually, the dispensing end having a platform that extends from the delivery aperture for supporting cards being manually removed, the platform as viewed in plan from above being rounded and/or with truncated corners and being of a height sufficient to allow a card dealer to insert their thumb or finger below a corner of the card as the card is dispensed. This allows the dealer to grip and pull the card away substantially without flexing the card at all and thereby avoiding risk of disclosing the front face of the card while dispensing the card for dealing it. 
     The shoe is suitably mounted in use on the top of a playing surface such as a card table top onto which device dispenses cards and the height of the platform is the height from the table top. 
     The cards are preferably held and dispensed in portrait orientation, with one of the short edges of the playing card emerging from the delivery aperture first as the card is dispensed. Accordingly the proportions of the shoe&#39;s chamber—and most especially the width of the shoe at the delivery aperture—suitably correspond substantially to the width of the playing cards not their length. 
     The card shoe of the present invention enables the storage and delivery of playing cards in a highly efficient continuous and secret manner. It is ideally suited for card games that require the playing cards to remain unseen by others except the player for whom the cards are intended. Nevertheless the card shoe is versatile and can also be used for card games where the cards are revealed immediately such as Blackjack and Punto Banco, if desired. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
         FIG. 1  is an elevated frontal view of a conventional manual shoe of the prior art. 
         FIG. 2  is an elevated slightly off centre frontal view of a manual card shoe of a first preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a close up front end view of the  FIG. 1  prior art conventional card shoe. 
         FIG. 4  is a close up front end view of the card shoe of the  FIG. 1  embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a view of the first preferred embodiment viewed from the left perspective. 
         FIG. 6  is a frontal perspective end view of the first preferred embodiment viewed from the right. 
         FIG. 7  is a near overhead view of the first preferred embodiment of shoe. 
         FIG. 8  is an elevated frontal view of the first preferred embodiment of shoe. 
         FIG. 9  is an elevated perspective view of the first preferred embodiment of shoe viewed from the left side. 
         FIG. 10  is an elevated perspective view of the first preferred embodiment of shoe viewed from the right side. 
         FIG. 11  is an elevated perspective view of the first preferred embodiment of shoe viewed from behind. 
         FIG. 12  shows the initial drawing of a card from the first preferred embodiment of shoe. 
         FIG. 13  shows the sequence following on from  FIG. 12  when drawing a card from the shoe. 
         FIG. 14  shows the next stage in the sequence from  FIG. 13 . 
         FIG. 15  shows the final dealing stage, of placing the card face down on a playing surface. 
         FIG. 16  shows the prior art method of dealing, showing the initial drawing of a card from the  FIG. 1  prior art card shoe. 
         FIG. 17  is the second stage (from  FIG. 16 ) where the playing card face first touches the playing surface as it exits the shoe. 
         FIG. 18  illustrates an operator dragging the card in a toward and upwards motion in preparation to be transferred to the dealing hand. 
         FIG. 19  illustrates the transfer of the card from the pulling hand to the dealing hand to be placed face up on the playing surface. 
         FIG. 20  illustrates a second embodiment of the present invention where the card shoe is a generic style of electronic or automatic card shuffler adapted for dealing playing cards face up or face down. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 4  to  15 , the first preferred embodiment of the invention is a manual card shoe  11  that is substantially the same as the prior art manual card shoe  1  of  FIGS. 1 ,  3  and  16  to  19  but has a unique dispensing end arrangement. The reference numerals in  FIGS. 2 and 4  to  15  that are the same as in  FIGS. 1 ,  3  and  16  to  19  are used to designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views. 
     The manual card shoe  11  comprises an elongate box with a rear wall  2 , elongate sidewalls  4 , front wall  5  and a floor  6 . The box forms a chamber  7  for holding the cards with an open-top for insertion of the decks of cards. The floor  6  of the chamber  7  is overall higher than that in the prior art and slopes downwardly towards the delivery aperture  8  at the front. At the front end of the card shoe  11  the floor  6  of the shoe is extended forwardly to project beyond the side walls  4 , front wall  5  and delivery aperture  8  of the shoe and there forms a tall platform  12  over which each card being dispensed slides as it is taken by the dealer. 
     As in the conventional shoe  1 , in this shoe  11  the front wall  5  of the shoe  11  is inclined downwardly in the forward direction and the gap between the lower edge of the front wall  5  and the floor  6  of the shoe defines the delivery aperture  8 . An upwards arched cut-out  10  formed in the front wall  5  contiguous with the delivery aperture  8  provides access for the dealers fingers to drag the card out though the delivery aperture  8 . A wedge  4  is provided in the chamber  2  to acts as an adjustable backstop/rest for the rearmost card of the decks in the shoe and which can be re-positioned forwardly as the stored decks are dealt and diminish in size. As illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the card shoe  11  has a capacity of 250 cards. The manual card shoe  10  is suitably at least 34 cm in length for that but might be less or more in length to accommodate less or more cards. 
     The playing cards in this shoe  11  are, unlike those in the prior art shoe  1 , not held in the shoe  11  resting on one of their long edges L and are not dispensed from the shoe in a ‘landscape’ orientation. The manual card shoe  11  of the  FIG. 2  preferred embodiment is narrower and taller than the prior art card shoe of  FIG. 1 . It is uniquely adapted to hold and dispense the playing cards in a portrait configuration, ie with one of the two short edges S of the playing card lowermost and emerging first through the dispensing aperture  8 . Furthermore the tall platform  12  of the card shoe  11  of the preferred embodiment is of the order of at least 1 cm in height above the bottom/underside of the shoe  11  and preferably is 1.5 cm to 2.5 cm in height. It provides a corresponding height stand-off from the playing surface of the card gaming table on which the card shoe  11  stands for the card being dispensed. The tall platform  12  is substantially semi-circular or more particularly it is a partial ellipse or flattened semi circle as viewed in plan from above and the rim/perimeter  13  of the platform  12  is radiused/rounded or chamfered in profile too. 
     The shape and height of the platform  12  enables cards to be removed in a favourable position for a hand to grasp the card without having to substantially tilt or flex it upwardly, and to be able to directly lay it face down on the card table. The tall, curved shape and radiused edged platform  12  enables the dealer to comfortably insert their thumb or a finger between the table top and the underside of the card being dispensed at a corner of the card in order to grip the card without needing to tilt or flex the card upwardly as will be further described shortly below with respect to  FIGS. 12 to 15 . 
     The prior art shoe of  FIG. 1  and  FIGS. 16 ,  17   18  and  19  is incapable of emulating this function as demonstrated in  FIGS. 16 to 19 . The correct way to pull a card from the conventional manual “landscape” shoe  1  is demonstrated in sequence in  FIGS. 16 to 19 . In  FIG. 16  the dealer places two or three fingers over the card where a minimal amount of pressure is exerted to drag the card in a downward motion out of the delivery aperture  8  and over the thin flat ledge  9 .  FIG. 17  illustrates the following action in this sequence wherein when the card comes into contact with the card gaming table surface or layout the uppermost part of the card is warped upwards. With part of the card lifted the dealer&#39;s thumb (not seen) is positioned under the upper right corner.  FIG. 18  illustrates the next step in the sequence where the card has left the shoe  1  with the lower left corner of the card pressed against the layout with the dealer&#39;s fingers supporting the upper right corner of the card, the lower right corner is raised free of the layout.  FIG. 19  shows the final step of the sequence where the dealer&#39;s right hand grasps the lower right corner of the card ready to lay the card face up on the layout. 
     Turning back to the invention,  FIGS. 12 to 15 , show the dispensing sequence for the card shoe  11  of the present invention. Again the dealer&#39;s hand grasps the lead card with two or three fingers but this time includes the dealer&#39;s thumb under the lower left corner of the card.  FIG. 13  illustrates the next step in the sequence where the card is close to exiting the shoe  11 .  FIG. 14  illustrates the card clear of the shoe  11  with the dealer&#39;s three fingers resting on the back of the card and the thumb (not seen) supporting the card from underneath ensuring the card remains unseen.  FIG. 15  shows the transfer from the dealer&#39;s left hand to the right hand ready to be laid face down on the table. The difference between the two sequences should be readily apparent to the reader, since at no time in  FIG. 12 ,  13 ,  14  or  15  is the card revealed or visible to any party, including the dealer. Nevertheless, the shoe  11  is versatile and should the card game require the cards to be visible as in Blackjack etc, the dealer&#39;s left hand in  FIG. 14  could simply lift the card upwards towards the dealer with the right hand grasping the lower right corner enabling the dealer to mimic  FIG. 19  and reveal the card straightaway. 
     Turning to  FIG. 20 , this illustrates a second embodiment of the present invention where the card holding and dispensing apparatus is not a manual card shoe but instead a generic style electronic or automatic card shuffler  14  adapted for dealing playing cards face up or face down. The dispensing aperture  15  of the card shuffler  14  has the same round-edged part-ellipsoidal raised dispensing platform  12  integral to or attached to its card dispensing aperture  8  so that each card can be taken and dealt covertly, without risk of showing the front face of the card. Suitably the dispensing aperture is adapted to dispense the cards in portrait orientation just as in the first embodiment. 
     Although described and illustrated herein with respect to two preferred embodiments, numerous alternative variants and embodiments are conceivable within the scope of the present invention as defined by the claims hereinafter.