Card Shooter Apparatus

Abstract

A card shooter apparatus comprises a card shooter unit including a card housing for containing a plurality of cards and a card reading unit. The card reading unit has a card guide unit which guides cards pulled out one by one from the card shooter unit and reads at least the number of the card pulled out from the card shooter. A control unit determines the result of a card game based on information about the numbers of the cards sequentially read by the card reading unit. A display unit indicates the result determined by the control unit.

1 . A card shooter apparatus comprising: 
 a card shooter unit including a card housing for containing a plurality of cards;    a card reading unit having a card guide unit which guides cards pulled out one by one from the card shooter unit and reads at least the number of the card pulled out from the card shooter;    a control unit that determines the result of a card game based on information about the numbers of the cards sequentially read by the card reading unit; and    a display unit which indicates the result determined by the control unit.    
     
     
         2 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the control unit invalidates a reading of a card from the card reading unit when the card being taken from the card shooter unit is not properly read by the card reading unit.  
     
     
         3 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the control unit disregards a cut card that is taken from the card shooter unit, the cut card not being used for a game.  
     
     
         4 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising: 
 an invalid mode setting means that sets a first card invalid mode in which the reading of the first card that is pulled out of the card shooter unit in each game is invalidated.    
     
     
         5 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising: 
 first and second card detecting sensors that are arranged along a guiding direction of the card guide unit to detect the existence or non-existence of a card.    
     
     
         6 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 5 , wherein the control unit determines whether or not a card has normally passed along the card guide surface of the card guide unit on the basis of detection signals from the first and second card detecting sensors.  
     
     
         7 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 5 , wherein the reading of a card from the card reading unit is invalidated on the basis of detection signals from the first and second card detecting sensors when the card being taken from the card shooter unit slips back toward the card shooter unit.  
     
     
         8 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the control unit determines whether or not a code indicating at least the number of a card read by the card reading unit is normal.  
     
     
         9 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 8 , further comprising: 
 means of emitting an alarm sound when the code of the card is not normal.    
     
     
         10 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the card shooter unit, the card reading unit, the control unit and the display unit are able to be set on the game table.  
     
     
         11 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the display unit includes a first display unit which is provided on an upper part of the housing and a second display unit which is provided on a side part of the housing.  
     
     
         12 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the card guide unit includes one or more black light sensors that read an ultraviolet-ray reaction code from a card guided by the card guide unit, the ultraviolet-ray reaction code indicating card information of the card.  
     
     
         13 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , further comprising a number specifying means that specifies the number of a card.  
     
     
         14 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the card shooter unit, the card reading unit and the control unit are integrated.  
     
     
         15 . A card shooter apparatus comprising: 
 a card shooter unit including a card housing for containing a plurality of cards; and    a card reading unit having a card guide unit which guides cards pulled out one by one from the card shooter unit onto the game table and reads the number of the card pulled out from the card shooter.    
     
     
         16 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 15 , further comprising: 
 a measurement validity determining sensor which invalidates a reading of a card from the card reading unit when a card being taken from the card shooter unit is not properly read by the card reading unit.    
     
     
         17 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 15 , wherein the card shooter unit and the card reading unit are integrated.  
     
     
         18 . A card shooter apparatus comprising: 
 a card shooter unit including a card housing for containing a plurality of cards;    a card reading unit having a card guide unit which guides cards pulled out one by one from the card shooter unit and reads card information of the card pulled out from the card shooter;    a control unit that determines the result of a card game based on the card information from the cards sequentially read by the card reading unit; and    a display unit which indicates the result determined by the control unit.    
     
     
         19 . The card shooter apparatus according to  claim 18 , wherein the card shooter unit, the card reading unit and the control unit are integrated.