Patent ID: 8366109

Claim:
A playing card handling system, comprising: a playing card input receiver sized and positioned to receive a number of playing cards to be handled by the playing card handling system; a playing card output receiver sized and positionable to receive a number of playing cards handled by the playing card handling system, the playing card output receiver comprising a playing card support surface, a ceiling at least partially disposed relatively over the playing card support surface, and at least one member physically extending from the ceiling to the playing card support surface for movement therewith; at least one playing card transport path between the playing card input receiver and the playing card output receiver, along which at least some of the playing cards pass from the playing card input receiver to the playing card output receiver; at least one intermediary playing card receiver positioned in the at least one playing card transport path between the playing card input receiver and the playing card output receiver, wherein the at least one intermediary playing card receiver receives at least one of the number of playing cards received at the playing card input receiver via a first portion of the at least one transport path, and wherein at least one of the number of playing cards received at the playing card output receiver is transported from the at least one intermediary playing card receiver to the playing card output receiver via a second portion of the at least one transport path; an elevator mechanism physically coupled to the playing card output receiver, to selectively move the playing card output receiver between a lowered position and a raised position, where in the lowered position the ceiling limits access from an exterior of the playing card handling system to the playing cards carried by the card support surface of the playing card output receiver and in the raised position the ceiling is at least partially disposed relatively over the playing card support surface and does not limit access from the exterior of the playing card handling system to at least some of the playing cards carried by the playing card output receiver; and means for providing playing cards to the playing card output receiver in an order, wherein the order is at least one of a sorted order or a random order.