EP3335773A1

EP3335773A1 - Device for counting score in a card game

Info

Publication number: EP3335773A1
Application number: EP17207236.5A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Fabio Larussa
Original assignee: Effelle Sagl
Current assignee: Effelle Sagl
Priority date: 2016-12-16
Filing date: 2017-12-14
Publication date: 2018-06-20
Anticipated expiration: 2037-12-14
Also published as: IT201600127768A1; EP3335773B1

Abstract

A device for counting the score in a game (10) of cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ...) is described, said device comprising:
• at least one tray (2) for deposition of the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) by a player in the game (10);
• a reading head (3) for reading the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) of the player in the game (10);
• a drive member (4) for subjecting the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) in the tray (2), one by one, to reading by the head (3);
• means (5) for counting and means (6) for storing the points totalled by the player in the game (10), the points being counted taking into account all the readings carried out by the head (3) on the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) of the player.

Description

Field of application

The present invention relates to method for counting the score in a card game.
The invention also relates to a device for counting the score in a card game.

Prior art

It is known that in a card game it is required to keep count of the score at the end of a game in accordance with the predefined rules of the game. In most card games, for each playing round, it is envisaged mixing and dealing out the cards or a predetermined number of cards to each player taking part in the game, again in accordance with the rules, and counting is carried out at the end of the game, generally when the cards of each player have been played and, where applicable, all the cards in the pack have been used.
Said counting is performed manually, based on a value or score associated with each card in the game in question and, where applicable, also a value or score associated with a combination of cards which each player has in his/her possession at the end of the playing round. The points won in each round may be added to the points won in one or more following rounds, until the game has been finished. It may also happen that the players who are keeping score are not fully acquainted with the rules of the game and that, therefore, involuntarily, they may assign more points or fewer points to themselves or to other players.
Manual counting methods are relatively time-consuming, with the result that the players are kept busy at the end of each game for several minutes depending on the complexity of the method for assigning the points. Moreover, it may happen that various players may wish to check calculation of the score, such that each of them must therefore repeat the counting process.
The aforementioned drawbacks become more problematic in the case where the players are also participants in a card game tournament, especially one where there is a prize for the winner of the tournament. There in fact exists, especially in circles where card games are played more seriously, the need for an automatic counting method which reduces the risk of error in the assignment of points and speeds up the counting process.
However, the technical problems of providing such a counting method or device are many, including the need to consider the rules of the game which, as mentioned, may involve the assignment of a value to a combination of cards which a player has available at the end of the game and not only the assignment of a value to each single card.
The technical problem underlying the present invention is therefore that of providing a device and a method for calculating the score in a card game which solves the aforementioned problems and in particular which is quick and error-free and suitable for use in both professional tournaments and on an amateur level and is therefore able to overcome all the drawbacks associated with manual counting of the score.

Summary of the invention

The idea underlying the present invention is that of providing a device able to receive a set of cards of a player in a card game, namely the cards which said player has in his/her possession at the end of a playing round or game, and that of being able to identify each card in the set of cards held by the player and assigning a score to the player on the basis of the value of each card or each combination of cards for which a score or value is to be assigned in the game in question.
According to the proposed solution mentioned above, the technical problem is solved by a device for counting the score in a game of cards, comprising:

at least one tray for deposition of the cards by a player in the game;
a reading head for reading the cards of the player in the game;
a drive member for subjecting the cards in the tray, one by one, to reading by the head;
means for counting and means for storing the points totalled by the player in the game, the points being counted taking into account all the readings carried out by the head on the cards of the player.

Preferably, the storage means store a plurality of card types for which counting of the points may be performed and an image for each card of the plurality of card types, the device comprising a selector for selecting one of said card types for which counting is to be performed; the counting means comprise a comparator for comparing an image of a card acquired by the reading head and the images of the cards of the selected card type, and the storage means store the card where the comparator finds that it corresponds to one of the cards of the selected type.
A plurality of trays are provided for deposition of the cards by a plurality of players taking part in the game, the plurality of trays being associated with a single reading head or with respective pluralities of reading heads.
According to one aspect of the invention, the drive member comprises a conveyor belt for transporting playing cards, and the belt is displaceable across the tray via an opening through which the playing cards of the player are extracted, one by one, from the tray and undergo reading by the head.
Preferably, the drive member comprises a card straightener for turning over one or more cards deposited in the tray in the opposite direction to a reading direction of the head, said straightener being operated by the counting means if none of the images stored in the storage means corresponds to the image detected by the reading head on the card deposited in the wrong direction; in this case the straightener deposits the card again straightened inside the tray for reading by the head. Other means for transporting or moving the cards may be provided instead of the conveyor belt. For example, the drive member may comprise a roller system which transports the cards, one by one, towards the reading head. Obviously it is also possible for the reading head to be positioned above the tray and for the cards to be moved from the tray, for example by means of the roller system, after reading. According to another aspect of the invention, the storage means store a plurality of card games for which the points may be counted and a score to be associated with each card and/or each predetermined set of cards in each game of a plurality of games. The device further comprises a selector for selecting one of the games for which the points are to be counted.
The counting means count the points for the player in the game, associating, with each card and/or each predetermined set of cards of the player, the score assigned to the card and/or to the predetermined set of cards in the selected game. Preferably, the device comprises a user interface comprising the game selector and the selector of the card type, said user interface comprising preferably a touch screen and, even more preferably, a section for displaying an identifier of each player in the game and the score counted.
The aforementioned technical problem is also solved by a counting method according to the present invention and in particular by a method for counting the score in a card game, comprising the steps of:

deposition of the cards by a player in the game in at least one tray;
subjecting, by means of a drive member, the cards in the tray, one by one, to reading by a reading head;
reading of the cards in the tray by means of the card reading head;
counting and storing the points totalled by the player in the game, the points being counted taking into account all the readings carried out by the head on the cards of the player.

Further characteristic features and advantages of the device and the method according to the present invention are described in the following description below provided purely by way of a non-limiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief description of the figures

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a device for counting the score according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a top plan view of a device for counting the score according to another embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 3 is a front elevation view of the device for counting the score according to Figure 1;
Figures 3a and 3b are, respectively, a front elevation view and a perspective view of the counting device according to two variations of embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 4 is a schematic view of a drive member of the device for counting the score according to another embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 5 is a schematic view of a further variation of embodiment of the counting device according to the present invention;

Detailed description

With reference to the attached figures, a device for counting the score in a game 10 of cards 20 is schematically shown and indicated by the reference number 1. The playing cards 20 are for example rectangular shaped cards made of heavy-duty paper or plastic. A complete and predefined series of playing cards 20 forms a deck or pack of cards. One side of each card 20, called the front side or face, comprises the symbols which distinguish it from the other cards 20 in the pack and determine the use thereof according to the rules of a given game 10; the other side, also called rear side or back, which has an abstract design, is identical for all the cards 20 in the pack.
Solely by way of example, the playing cards 20 may form a pack of 54 (fifty four) cards which includes 13 (thirteen) cards for each of 4 (four) suits, for example spades (
), hearts (
), diamonds (◆) and clubs (
) and two jokers. Obviously, the pack of cards in the above example is not in any way limiting for the purposes of protection of the present invention, which is applicable to any type of pack, having a different number of cards, different suits or different number of jokers.
Still with reference to the example given above, the 13 (thirteen) cards for each suit are composed of ten numerical cards, from 1 (ace) to 10 (ten), each of which shows a number of symbols of the respective suit corresponding to its numerical value, and a knight, queen and king. Generally, in two opposite corners, i.e. the top left-hand corner and bottom right-hand corner, and in some cases in all four corners, the value of the card 20 is shown, to facilitate identification thereof, when the cards are held splayed in the hand.
As will become clear from the description below, the counting device 1 according to the present invention is intended also for the counting of other types of playing cards 21, 22, for example cards which form a pack comprising a different number of cards (greater or less than fifty four), and figures and suits which are different (from the figures and suits mentioned above).
Moreover, the same playing cards 20 in a pack may be used to play one or more games 10, 11, 12 which have different and predetermined rules. For example, purely by way of example, a same pack of 40 (forty) cards may be used for the game "Briscola" 10 or the game "Scopa" 11, and in one game 10, each card 20 and/or predefined set of cards has a different value from the value of the same card 20 and/or predefined set of cards in another game 11, depending on the rules of the game 10, 11 in question.
Still based on the rules of the game 10, the players in the game 10 may be for example two or more and may be grouped in teams. In the description below, for the sake of simplicity, the term "player" will be used, this term being intended to include also a team composed of several players. In other words, where it is specified that the counting device 1 according to the present invention performs counting of the score for a player, it is understood that the device 1 may also perform counting for several players belonging to a same team.
Still based on the rules of game 10, the game takes place starting with an initial phase where the cards 20 are mixed and dealt out to the players, and ending with a final phase where it is necessary to count the points totalled by each player during a game.
According to the present invention, the counting device 1 comprises at least one tray 2 for deposition of the cards by a player taking part in the game, at the end of a playing round. The tray 2 is designed to group a player's cards 20 together at the end of the round, the cards being piled up in a stack, preferably (but not necessarily) already sorted with the front side of a card 20 higher in the stack facing the back of a card 20 lower in the stack. Figure 1 is a view from above of counting device 1 where the top card in the stack deposited in the tray 2 is a 2 (two) of clubs.
Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the device of Figure 1, which shows in schematic form a part 200a of the stack of cards 20 of the player in the tray 2, with the top card 20b having its back facing the front side of a card 20m underneath it; the card at the bottom of the stack 200a is indicated by 20v; a remaining part 200b of the player's stack of cards has already been moved from the tray 2 to the tray 9, in the manner described more fully below, and has a top card 20c with its back facing the front side of the card 20n underneath it; the card at the bottom of the stack 200b is indicated by 20z.
The front side of the card 20c is also shown in Figure 1, for example a 1 (ace) of hearts The remaining part 200b of the stack is preferably grouped together in a second tray 9.
The device comprises a reading head 3 for reading the cards 20 of a player. The reading head is designed to read one card at a time in the tray 2. For example, the head 3 comprises a scanner for acquiring an image associated with a playing card 20a, situated in a given position 100 of the device 1. The position 100 for acquiring the image, in the example provided with reference to Figure 1, is situated alongside the tray 2.
According to this embodiment, one card at a time is extracted from the tray 2 and is positioned in the position 100 for acquiring the image, above which the reading head 3 operates. The head 3 is preferably supported by an arm 11, which is preferably hinged and fixed to a base 12 of the device 1. The hinged arm 11 may be folded up onto itself by means of the hinges 13 fixed between sections 14 of the arm 11 so as to be enclosed inside the device, together with the reading head, at the end of use. Preferably, the arm 11 can be extracted from the base 12. According to another embodiment, the head 3 is applied, preferably removably, to a base or to a frame of the device, for example on a lateral flank.
Obviously, there is nothing to prevent the image acquisition position 100, as well as the position of the reading head 3, from being different. For example, the acquisition position 100 may be associated with the tray 2 or the tray 9, in which case the head 3 can be operationally associated with the tray 2 or the tray 9, respectively. In one embodiment, the head reads the front side 2b of the card at the top of the stack 200a inside the tray 2.
A drive member is provided for moving the cards from the tray 2 or into the tray 9. In particular, the drive member 4 is designed to subject the cards of the tray 2, one by one, to reading by the head 3. In the example provided with reference to Figure 1, the card 20a, visible also in Figure 3, has been moved by the drive member 4 underneath the reading head 3, into the acquisition position 100.
Other means for transporting or moving the cards may be provided instead of the conveyor belt.
In this connection, the schematic view in Figure 3a shows a device for counting the score according to a variation of embodiment of the present invention, in which a roller system 16 is designed to transport the cards.
A part 200a of the stack of cards 20 of the player is in the tray 2, with the top card 20b having its back facing the front side of a card 20m underneath it; the card at the bottom of the stack 200a is indicated by 20v and, in a similar manner to that already described with reference to Figure 3, a remaining part 200b of the player's stack of cards has already been moved from the tray 2 to the tray 9 and has a top card 20c with its back facing the front side of a card 20n underneath it. The card at the bottom of the stack 200b is indicated by 20z. Also according to the second embodiment of Figure 3a, the device 1 comprises the reading head 3 for reading the cards 20 of a player, designed to read one card at a time inside the tray 2. In fact, in this case also, the cards are extracted one at a time from the tray 2 and positioned in the image acquisition position 100 above which the reading head 3 operates, for example supported by the arm 11, which is preferably hinged and can be folded up and fixed to the base 12 of the device 1.
However, according to this embodiment of the invention, the displacement of the cards from the tray 2 to the tray 9 is performed by means of the roller system 16 and not by means of the conveyor belt. The rollers 16 are intended to come directly into contact with the playing cards and are situated underneath the tray 2. In particular, the rollers 16 can be rotationally driven about an associated axis of rotation x, all in the same direction (clockwise direction in the example of Figure 3a). The axis of rotation x of one roller 16 is situated at a predefined distance from the axis of rotation x of a roller 16 adjacent to it, preferably at a distance smaller than or equal to half the length of a playing card, so that each card is in contact with - and supported by - a portion of the side surfaces of at least two rollers 16 which project from the base 12. Preferably, the side surfaces of the rollers 16 are lined with a material suitable for adhering to the surface of the playing cards, for example rubber, thus ensuring a rapid displacement of the card, without slipping. With rotation of the roller 16, the card at the bottom of the stack 200a is transported towards the reading head 3, underneath which at least one other roller 16 operates so as to transport the card into the tray 9. In this embodiment, the side surface of the rollers 16 intended to come into contact with the cards projects completely from the base 12.
In another embodiment, schematically shown in Figure 3b, the roller system 16 is mounted on a base 12 which leaves the side surfaces of the rollers 16 exposed along two parallel grooves s1, s2 which are formed in the top cover S of the base 12. In Figure 3b the other components of the device, for example the trays 2 and 9, the reading head 3 or the playing cards are not shown. but form part of the device, as already explained in connection with the other embodiments. As a result of rotation of the rollers 16, the playing cards move along the grooves s1, s2 as though travelling on two rails. Further means for transporting or moving the cards may be provided instead of the rollers shown in Figures 3a or 3b.
For example, with reference to Figure 4, the drive member 4 comprises a hopper 300 inside which a pile of cards 200a of a player is positioned. The hopper 300 acts as a tray 2 for depositing the cards to be counted. Preferably, a sensor 301 associated with the hopper 300 detects the presence of at least one card 20b at the bottom of the pile of cards 200a and activates a roller system (said roller system has a configuration different from that of the roller system shown in Figures 3a and 3b). If such a sensor is not present, it is possible to operate the roller 302 manually.
The roller system comprises, for example, a first roller 302 which transports the card 20b onto a second roller 303. The roller 303 rotates at a speed faster than that of the first roller 302 and is provided with low-friction flanges 304 which ensure that only one card 20b at a time is picked up. Fanned opening wheels 305 pick up separately the cards 20b, 20c, 20d, 20f transported by the rollers 302, 303 and deposit the cards, one by one, underneath the reading head 3 (not shown in Figure 4). The cards already read by the head therefore enter in an orderly manner into an outlet stacker 500, situated at the front of the device. The stacker 500 acts as a collection tray 9.
Different variations of embodiment of the device shown in Figure 4 are possible; the opening wheel 305 and/or the rollers 302, 303 may be operated at predetermined time intervals, with a timing which allows the reading head 3 to record the image of the image of the card positioned in the reading seat, downstream of the wheel 305 and the rollers 302, 303. According to another embodiment, it is the reading head 3 which sends a signal for reactivating the rollers 302, 303 and the opening wheel 305, after acquisition of the image. The drive member may also be realized by adapting a playing card mixer. The known card mixer is provided with two side trays inside which two stacks to be mixed are placed, a central tray, situated between the side trays, and means for pushing the cards from the side trays into the central tray. The pushing means act randomly on one of the stacks in the side trays, pushing one card from one stack or the other stack into the central tray.
For the purposes of the present invention, the card mixer may be adapted, for example, using one of the side trays as a tray 2 for collecting the cards to be counted and the central tray as a reading seat with which the reading head may be associated. Preferably, the reading head reads the card at the top of the pile deposited inside the central tray which, in this case, also acts as a tray for collecting the counted cards. The image may be acquired by a micro camera 77 mounted in a position where the recording angle of the micro camera 77 captures at least one corner portion of the playing card which distinguishes the card. In Figure 4, the micro camera is shown in two of the possible mounting positions where two different recording angles may be obtained. Advantageously, according to this aspect of the invention, reading is performed very rapidly since only the corner portion of the card must be identified. Consequently, counting of the score is much faster.
By way of a further variation of embodiment of the present invention a device for counting the score comprising a drive member able to extract a playing card from above the tray 2 is provided. For example, according to one aspect of this variation of embodiment, the tray 2 may be a box-shaped, substantially parallelepiped body, without a side wall or shoulder, as shown in Figure 5. The drive member operates above the tray 2 and comprises a head 44 movable in at least two directions, from the top downwards and laterally. The head 44 is preferably provided with a presser pad 44a. Moving from the top downwards, the movable head 44 comes into contact with the playing card at the top of the stack 200a in the tray 2, exerting on this card a predefined pressure controlled by means of a sensor on the movable head 44; moving laterally and remaining in contact with the playing card, the head 44 moves the playing card laterally towards a reading position where the reading is performed. Obviously there is nothing to prevent the reading from being performed when the card is still inside the tray 200a, for example by means of a reading head incorporated in the movable head 44. Following reading, the movable head 44 displaces the card into the tray 9 situated alongside the tray 2. In an embodiment schematically shown in Figure 5, but nevertheless subject to various modifications which will be evident to the person skilled in the art based on the other embodiments already described, the tray 2 and the tray 9 are situated on the opposite sides of a single tray 66, in the middle of which there is a platform 55 on which reading is performed.
Still in the counting device 1, means 5 for counting and means 6 for storing the points totalled by the player in the game 10 are provided. The points are counted based on all the readings of the player's cards performed by the head 3 and not just the reading of a single card, taking into account all the rules of the game.
For example, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the storage means 6 receive, one by one, the images of the cards in the set belonging to a player and store all the images. The storage means 6 also store the rules of the game, for assignment of the points, for example a value or score to be assigned to each card and/or value or score to be assigned to each combination of cards. Once all the images have been stored, the counting means become operative. For each image, the counting means 5 identify the card associated with the image by means of a comparison with predetermined images of the complete pack of cards stored in the memory 6; after identification of all the cards, the counting means 5 assign the score or value to each card and/or combinations thereof.
In another embodiment, the counting means 5 assign the score or value to each card immediately after identification of the card and assign the score or value to the combination of cards only after all the cards have been identified.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the device is able to perform counting of the points of a game played using several possible packs of cards of a different type.
In particular, the storage means 6 store a plurality of card types 20, 21, 22 for which the points may be counted and an image of each card 20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e of the plurality of card types 20, 21, 22. One type of card 20 forms a pack of cards of a first type and another type of card forms another pack of cards of another type. In order to be able to count the points on the basis of a specific card type selected, the counting device 1 is provided with a selector 7a. In the example shown in Figure 1, the selector 7a for selecting the card type 20 is shown in schematic form in the top left-hand corner.
The selector 7a selects one (in Figure 1 the card type 20 has been selected) of the card types 20, 21, 22 for which counting is to be performed.
Once the card type 20 has been selected, the counting means 5 perform a comparison between an image of a card 20a acquired by the reading head 3 and the images of the cards 20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ... of the card type 20 selected by the selector 7a. For this purpose a comparator 8 is provided.
The selector 7a may be operated manually or by means of an automatic image recognition procedure. For manual selection, an angularly rotatable knob may be provided, said knob being associated, for each angular displacement, with one of n possible input values corresponding to a playing card type.
For automatic selection, the selector 7a may be set automatically to the card type 20 based on recognition of the image from among the images of one or more cards inside the tray 2 and respective one or more images of the cards 20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e stored in the storage means 6. Automatic recognition means recognize the card in the tray in one only of the stacks 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21 stored in the memory 6 and select this stack on the basis of said recognition.
In a manner similar to that described above for selection of the playing card type, the counting device 1 according to the present invention also allows selection of the game 10 for which counting of the score is to be performed, from among a plurality of preset games for which the storage device 6 stores the respective game rules. More particularly, the storage means 6 store a plurality of games 10, 11, 12 of cards 20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ... for which it is possible to perform counting of the points and a score to be associated with each card 20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ... and/or with each predetermined set of cards in each game of the plurality of games 10, 11, 12, and the device 1 comprises a selector 7b for selecting one 10 of the games 10, 11, 12 for which counting of the score is to be performed, as schematically shown in Figures 1 and 2.
In these figures the game selection device 7b is shown as being separate from the device 7a for selecting the type of playing card. In fact, it is envisaged that the two selectors are associated with a respective input peripheral device, for example a first knob and a second knob which can be rotated angularly for respective selection of the cards or game, or an electronic interface, such as a display with keyboard. However, there is nothing to prevent the same selection device, for example the same knob, being used both to select the type of cards and to select the game, in one of two selection functions possible with the same selection device.
Preferably, the counting device 1 comprises a user interface comprising the game selector and the selector of the card type, said user interface comprising preferably a touch screen and, even more preferably, a section for displaying an identifier of each person playing the game and the score counted.
For example, the user interface allows one to enter the name of the players (teams) taking part in the game, the score of each round and/or the score accumulated following several rounds played, for each player. Once the game 10 has been selected, the counting means 5 count the points for the player in the game 10, associating, with each card 20, 20a, 20b, 20c,... and/or each predetermined set of cards of the player, the score assigned to the card and/or to the predetermined set of cards in the selected game 10.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, particularly advantageous for simultaneously counting the points of several players, the counting device 1 comprises a plurality of trays 2a, 2b (Fig. 2) in which several players of the game 10 can deposit the cards 20, this plurality of trays being associated with a single reading head 3 which is selectively used for the cards supplied from one tray or from another tray, or with respective pluralities of reading heads 3a, 3b.
The drive member 4 is designed to displace the cards from the tray 2. The drive member may be realized in different ways and in the description below a specific, although non-limiting example of embodiment thereof will be provided.
The drive member 4 comprises for example a conveyor belt for transporting playing cards, the belt being displaceable across the tray 2 via an opening through which the playing cards of the person playing are extracted, one by one, from the tray and undergo reading by the head 3. With reference to Figure 3, the conveyor belt 4 is mounted on one or more rollers 16 rotatable on a pin fixed to a body 12 of the device, for example to opposite side walls of the device 1. The belt comprises a strip with a width preferably greater than the width of the tray 2; preferably, the belt 2 is made of rubber or a material suitable for adhering to the playing card 20. The playing card 20v at the bottom of the stack 200a is in contact with the conveyor belt, preferably with its rear side making contact with the belt and its opposite front side directed towards the top of the tray 2.
The belt travels, for example in a clockwise direction in Figure 3, through two slots at the base of the tray 17, 18. At least the slot 18 has a width smaller than the thickness of two cards, but greater than the thickness of a single card. In one embodiment, the tray does not have a bottom, i.e. consists for example of a square hollow body.
The device comprises means for operating the belt, for example at predefined time intervals and for predetermined linear displacements of the belt. When the belt is operated, the card 20v at the bottom of the stack 200a is displaced out of the tray 2, into the reading position 100 where the belt stops for the predetermined time interval; within said time interval, the reading head 3 is operated so as to record the image of the card. In the reading position 100, in Figure 1, the card which has been displaced is the card 20a.
At the end of reading, the operating means activate again the belt, displacing forwards the card which has already been read in the reading position 100, for example towards the collection tray 9, and at the same time displacing out of the tray 2 another card to be read. The collection tray 2 may be arranged alongside the conveyor belt, but may be situated lower than it so that the cards which have already been read may fall by means of gravity inside it.
The timed operation of the conveyor belt is performed until the tray 2 has been emptied. A sensor may be provided in the tray 2 in order to detect the presence of cards; if no cards are present, the sensor stops the belt operating means.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the device comprises a card straightener for turning over one or more cards which have been deposited in the tray in a direction opposite to a direction of reading of the head. For example, the straightener is operated by the counting means 5 if none of the images stored in the storage means 6 corresponds to the image detected by the reading head on the card deposited in the wrong direction, said straightener depositing the card again straightened inside the tray for reading by the head 3.
Different constructional forms of the straightener are however possible. For example, with reference to the example shown in Figure 1, the straightener may be associated with the reading head 3. In this case, it is envisaged that the conveyor belt is stopped in the reading position for a period of time at least sufficient for:

a) recording the image;
b) comparing the image with the predetermined images of the cards inside the memory 6;
c) rotating the card through 180° (rear side/front side), if the image compared does not correspond with any of the stored images;
d) recording again the image on the card which has been turned over.

According to another embodiment, the step b) is replaced by a step where the image recorded under point a) is compared with images on the rear side of the playing cards or patterns of regular images representing the images of said rear sides.
The straightener comprises, for example, a suction cup or aspirator mounted on a retractable surface, for example slidable between two guides associated with the sides of a support of the reading head. The retractable surface, for example a sliding shutter, is normally retracted inside the guides of a square frame and does not interfere with the reading head and the reading position; in this position, the suction cup or aspirator also do not interfere.
In order to straighten the card, the retractable surface is extended above the reading position 100, the suction cup is applied to the card, or the aspirator is operated, so as to raise the card from the position 100 by a predetermined amount. The square frame is rotated through 180°, so as to turn the card over. The aspirator or the suction cup are deactivated, the retractable surface is retracted again, leaving the card again in the reading position 100, straightened.
A program is stored inside the memory 6 or in a firmware of the device and allows operation of all the mechanical and electrical devices of the present invention, including the reading head, the straightener, the counting means, the drive means, etc.
The counting device 1 and the counting method according to the present invention achieve various advantages. Firstly, the score may be counted automatically, i.e. without carrying out a manual count, and with absolute precision, since the rules of the game are stored in the device and counting is performed by a program which accesses the game rules, stored in the memory 6 of the device, and the cards which the players have available, at the end of the game.
Moreover, the device may be set according to specific parameters, so that it is able to count the score of a game played with a pack of cards chosen from a plurality of card types or count the score for different games, the rules of which are stored in the memory 6. Finally, the device speeds up considerably the counting process, also straightening the cards which may have been wrongly positioned inside the tray.

Claims

Device (1) for counting the score in a game (10) of cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ...), comprising:
• at least one tray (2) for deposition of the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) by a player in the game (10);

• a reading head (3) for reading the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) of the player in the game (10);

• a drive member (4) for subjecting the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) in the tray (2), one by one, to reading by the head (3);

• means (5) for counting and means (6) for storing the points totalled by the said player in the game (10), said points being counted taking into account all the readings carried out by the head (3) on the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) of the player.
Device according to Claim 1, characterized in that said storage means (6) store a plurality of card types (20, 21, 22) for which counting of the points may be performed and an image for each card (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e, ..., 21, 21a, 21b, 21c, 21d, 21e) of said plurality of card types (20, 21, 22), said device comprising a selector (7a) for selecting one (20) of said card types (20, 21, 22) for which counting is to be performed, and characterized in that said counting means (5) comprise a comparator (8) for comparing an image of one card (20a) acquired by said reading head (3) and the images of the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ...) of the selected card type (20), said storage means (6) storing the card (20a) where the comparator (8) finds that it corresponds to one (20a) of the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ...) of the selected type (20).
Device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of trays (2a, 2b) for deposition of the cards by a plurality of players, said plurality of trays being associated with a single reading head (3) or with respective pluralities of reading heads (3a, 3b).
Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said drive member (4) comprises a conveyor belt for transporting playing cards, said belt being displaceable across the tray (2) via an opening through which the playing cards of the player are extracted, one by one, from the tray and undergo reading by the head (3).
Device according to Claim 2, characterized in that said drive member comprises a card straightener for turning over one or more cards deposited in the tray in the opposite direction to a reading direction of the head, said straightener being operated by the counting means (5) if none of the images stored in the storage means (6) corresponds to the image detected by the reading head on the card deposited in the wrong direction, said straightener depositing the card again straightened inside the tray for reading by the head (3).
Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said storage means (6) store a plurality of games (10, 11, 12) of cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ...) for which counting of the points may be performed and a score to be associated with each card (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ...) and/or with each predetermined set of cards in each game of said plurality of games (10, 11, 12), said device (1) further comprising a selector (7b) for selecting one (10) of said games (10, 11, 12) for which counting of the points is to be performed, and characterized in that said counting means (5) count the points of the player in the game (10) associating, with each card (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) and/or with each predetermined set of cards of the player, the score envisaged for the card and/or for the predetermined set of cards in the selected game (10).
Device according to claims 2 or 6, characterized in that it comprises a user interface comprising said game selector and said selector of the card type, said user interface comprising preferably a touch screen and, even more preferably, a section for displaying an identifier of each player in the game and the score counted.
Device according to claim 1, characterized in that said drive member comprises a roller system.
Device according to claim 8, characterized in that said roller system comprises a plurality of rollers (16) each having an associated axis of rotation (x), the axis of rotation (x) of one roller being parallel to the axis of rotation (x) of the other rollers and being at a predefined distance from the axis of rotation (x) of a roller adjacent thereto, said distance being preferably smaller than half the length of one playing card, and said rollers (16) all rotating in a same direction.
Method for counting (1) the score in a game (10) of cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, 20d, 20e, ...), comprising the steps of:
• deposition of the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) by a player in the game (10) in at least one tray (2);

• subjecting, by means of a drive member (4), the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) in the tray (2), one by one, to reading by a reading head (3);

• reading of the cards in the tray by means of the card reading head (3);

• counting (5) and storing (6) the points totalled by said player in the game (10), said points being counted taking into account all the readings carried out by the head (3) on the cards (20, 20a, 20b, 20c, ...) of the player.