WO2004009256A1

WO2004009256A1 - Two stage sorting system suitable for gaming chips

Info

Publication number: WO2004009256A1
Application number: PCT/AU2003/000922
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rodney George Johnson
Original assignee: Rodney George Johnson
Priority date: 2002-07-19
Filing date: 2003-07-18
Publication date: 2004-01-29
Also published as: AU2002950319A0

Abstract

An article sorting apparatus (2) includes a rotatable transport member (8) comprising spaced article receiving recesses (14), the transport member having a lower portion in association with a hopper (4) for transportation of the articles to a transfer station (19), a sensor (20) aligned with an article transportation path at a position between the hopper and the transfer station, a microprocessor (13) coupled between the sensor and a plurality of ejectors (22) aligned with the article transportation path (7), a collection chute (24) associated with each ejector adapted in use to receive articles (6) therein upon selective actuation of a respective ejector, at least two collection magazines (26) communicating with each collection chute to collect articles directed thereinto under the influence of gravity, and a collection gate (30) associated with the at least two collection magazines to selectively direct articles into a selected one of the two or more collection magazines (26).

Description

TWO STAGE SORTING SYSTEM SUITABLE FOR GAMING CHIPS

FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention is concerned with sorting and/or collection of articles by physical property. The invention is particularly, although not exclusively, concerned with the sorting and/or collation of articles, which differ physically, only by colour or hue such as tokens or chips employed in the gaming industry.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In casino venues, catering for relatively large numbers of gamblers and having tables or facilities representing a wide variety of games, it is necessary to handle functions like playing card or gaming token counting and sorting in an efficient manner to avoid unnecessary delays to games which in turn limits the venue turnover.

At a blackjack table for example, a playing card sorting and/or collation apparatus may be employed to count and monitor cards from a multiplicity of decks and, if correct to shuffle and deliver those sorted and/or collated cards to a dealing shoe. While such an apparatus is effective in monitoring the playing cards in play and also avoiding delays whilst a dealer shuffles a plurality of packs of cards, gaming tokens employed on the table are nevertheless sorted and collated manually during play.

Examples of card sorting, collating and or shuffling apparatus are described in United States patents 5683085, 4513969, 5382024, 5000453, 4807884,

4586712, International Patent Application PCT/AU98/00157 and Australian Patent Application 48622/93.

On a roulette table however, a relatively large number of players may participate at any one time with the result that a large number of tokens, representative of a wide range of denominations, can be in continuous play. As each game is concluded, tokens representing losing bets are swept up with a rake or by hand and winning bets are paid with collated stacks of tokens of similar physical property. The stack of mixed tokens must then be separated into stacks of twenty tokens, each stack comprising tokens of the same physical property.

Sorting and collating of tokens, particularly in busy periods is often done by a second croupier to avoid game delays. This is relatively inefficient and represents a high labour overhead in table management.

To overcome the need for a second croupier just to sort and collate gaming tokens, sorting and collating machines have been proposed to collect a quantity of mixed tokens swept from a gaming table into a chute or hopper associated with the table. The mixed tokens generally are collected one by one by a sorting apparatus, identified by optical means and then transferred to a collating tube for delivery, in stacks of twenty, to the croupier operating the table. Typically, the most popular sorting and collating machines fit underneath the gaming table and are mobile so that when a malfunction occurs, they can be replaced quickly by another machine.

International Patent Application PCT/SE90/00880 describes a mobile apparatus having a receiving hopper for tokens swept from a gaming table. An inclined circular rotatable carrier has a plurality of recesses spaced adjacent a peripheral edge to collect individual tokens and to move them from a lower position in the hopper to an elevated position above a series of drop channels. An optical identifier coupled to a microprocessor identifies the denomination of each token as it passes an identification station located between the hopper and the drop channels.

A plurality of drop mechanisms, each associated with a respective drop channel, are coupled to the microprocessor to permit tokens of a particular physical property to be introduced selectively into a predetermined drop channel. At the base of each drop channel is an endless belt which transfers each token as it arrives to the base of a tubular magazine where a lifting device inserts each token into the bottom of a stack of tokens accumulating in the magazine. An elevator carriage, associated with the tubular magazine is activated to elevate a stack of twenty chips to the level of the gaming table and thereafter return to the base of the magazine to accumulate a further stack of twenty tokens of the same denomination. While generally effective for its intended purpose, this apparatus is limited in its capacity only to deal with up to ten predetermined token colours, each with a respective pre-assigned collection magazine.

Another type of sorting and collating apparatus is described in United States Patent 4157139. This apparatus withdraws tokens from a hopper by a conveyor and moves them in oriented succession along a sorting track where they are optically identified and then transferred to a respective collection magazine by deflecting the leading portion of a token out of the transfer plane onto a respective tapered collector at the base of each magazine whereby the conveyor drives the token into the bottom of a stack in that magazine. Again while generally effective for its intended purpose this apparatus suffers the particular disadvantage that it is prone to breaking or cracking the relatively brittle tokens. When cracking or breaking occurs, the conveyor can jam and cause further breakages in the row of tokens following and this necessitates removal of the apparatus for servicing. Alternatively, a cracked or broken token can be inadvertently delivered in a stack to the gaming table and this can disrupt play while the token is replaced.

Other token or coin sorting and/or collating devices are described in GB2333632, FR2752078A1 , W09623281 , AU679327B, EP0631260A, AU660061 B, WO9321606A1 , EP0636263B1, US5291980, EP0424355B1 and SE8804233A. Possibly the greatest disadvantages associated with prior art token sorting and/or collating apparatus include inflexibility of operation resulting from the physical size of the apparatus which, in turn is governed by the dimensions of a gaming table, limited optical recognition apparatus and the fixed sorting/collating rate irrespective of the turnover of the token denominations. Of the above prior art apparatus, the majority do not have the capacity to deal with more than ten stack receiving magazines and even then at least six to seven of these magazines are limited to collection of a token of respective denomination while the balance of the magazines are employed to collect the remainder of tokens in play. Accordingly, these prior art apparatus only partially solve the problem of sorting and collation of tokens of varying denominations and delivery to a gaming table of sorted tokens in stacks of a predetermined number. Another shortcoming arises from the limited capacity of prior art optical recognition systems to allow for a progressive change in colour of a token from when it is newly produced to a worn, well used state. Dirt, grease, scratches and/or any other surface defects or contaminants on the tokens either absorb some of the incident light used for recognition purposes or otherwise influence the reflected light. As a result, these prior art optical recognition devices result in the rejection of slightly soiled and/or worn, but otherwise legitimate tokens. The apparatus ultimately requires re-calibration, which necessitates temporary removal of the apparatus from the gaming table.

Worn tokens also cause the additional problem of erroneous counting of the tokens in the prior art apparatus. The tokens have an original thickness of approximately 3.2mm that may be reduced, through use, down to approximately 2.8mm before the tokens become unusable. In many of the prior art apparatus, a mechanical device is used to detect stacks of twenty tokens comprised of tokens of a certain thickness. Wearing of tokens necessitates re-calibration of the apparatus to accept tokens of reduced thickness and accurately count stacks of twenty tokens. Such re-calibration requires removal of the apparatus from the gaming table. The problem of token wear also means that old tokens and new tokens cannot be used together in a single sorting and/or collating apparatus because the apparatus can only be calibrated to a single token thickness.

A further disadvantage of the prior art apparatus is that the rate of sorting/collation of each denomination of tokens is the same irrespective of the turnover of the respective denominations. For example, if one token has a comparatively low denomination, a large number of the tokens may be required during the game in comparison with a token of higher denomination. However, since the prior art sorts/collates each denomination equally, there is likely to be a delay in sorting/collating a sufficient number of the low denomination tokens.

Yet another sorting and collating apparatus is described in European Patent Application 0424355, which comprises an endless conveyor belt positioned beneath a gaming table. Height-adjustable reception plates for the tokens are transported past a horizontal station with a colour identification and read head which controls lifting and displacement cylinders for feeding the chips to respective chip storage cylinders, each of a given denomination.

However, the apparatus of EP 0424355 displays many of the aforementioned disadvantages. An additional disadvantage of this apparatus stems from the fact that the apparatus is integral with the gaming table rather than being a mobile unit that may be removed. Hence, a malfunction of any of the many parts of the sorting/collating apparatus renders the table inoperable until the malfunction is fixed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an aim of the present invention to overcome or alleviate at least some of the problems associated with prior art gaming token sorting and/or collating apparatus.

According to one aspect of the invention there is provided an apparatus for sorting and/or collating articles according to a predetermined range of physical properties, said apparatus including: a collection hopper for articles of differing physical properties; a rotatable transport member including a plurality of spaced article receiving recesses located adjacent a peripheral edge thereof, said transport member having a lower portion thereof in association with said hopper for transportation of said articles to a transfer station, said transport member rotatable about an inclined axis; a sensor aligned with an article transportation path at a position between said hopper and said transfer station; a microprocessor coupled between said sensor and a plurality of ejectors aligned with said article transportation path; a collection chute associated with each ejector adapted in use to receive articles therein upon selective actuation of a respective ejector; at least two collection magazines communicating with each collection chute to collect articles directed thereinto under the influence of gravity; and, a collection gate associated with said at least two collection magazines to selectively direct articles into a selected one of said two or more collection magazines.

Suitably said rotatable transport member comprises a generally planar disc- like member.

If required said transport member may rotate about an axis inclined between about 10° and about 70° relative to a horizontal datum.

The article receiving recesses are adapted to permit only one article at a time to be transported therein. If required, the sensor may be adapted to sense one or more physical properties of the articles selected from shape, size, colour, indicia markings or any other visible attribute or any combination thereof.

Preferably the sensor comprises an optical sensor. Preferably the optical sensor comprises a digital camera. Alternatively, the sensor may be capable of detecting a signal emitted by the article. The signal may be a magnetic, an electric or an electromagnetic field or other form of detectable phenomenon. The signal may be generated by any suitable device capable of being implemented in the article.

Suitably said apparatus may include an article reject station located between said sensor and said transfer station in a direction of rotation.

Alternatively said article reject station may be located between said transfer station and said hopper remote from said sensor.

Suitably said reject station is actuable when said sensor detects an article having physical properties falling outside a predetermined range.

The reject station may comprise a reject gate actuable when an article recess containing a reject article is aligned with a reject chute.

If required, said ejectors may be spaced at a distance equal to the distance between said spaced receiving recesses. Preferably said ejectors are spaced at a distance less than the distance between said spaced receiving recesses.

In one embodiment, said ejectors are spaced at substantially half the distance between said spaced receiving recesses.

The ejectors may be selectively actuable by said microprocessor by reference to a predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member relative to a predetermined datum.

The predetermined datum may be the location of the sensor. The predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member may be determined by registration elements associated with said transport member. The predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member may be determined by the detection of registration elements associated with said transport member by a sensor.

The collection gate may be selectively actuable by a sensor having sensed the delivery of a predetermined number of articles to one of said two or more collection magazines.

Alternatively the collection gate may be selectively actuable by a sensor having sensed a physical attribute of an article to be directed to a selected one of said two or more collection magazines.

If required said two or more collection magazines may include a delivery member adapted to deliver a predetermined number of articles to a collection station.

Suitably each said delivery member is reciprocable in a respective collection magazine from a loading position to a delivery position. Preferably said collection gate is positioned between the loading position and the delivery position of said delivery member.

The collection gate may be selectively actuable by a mechanical device associated with the operation of said delivery member.

The collection gate communicates with a respective aperture in each of said two or more collection magazines, said respective aperture including an article orientation member adapted to guide an article passing therethrough into a desired orientation in said collection magazine.

According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a method of sorting and/or collating articles according to a predetermined range of physical properties, said method including: transporting an article from a collection hopper to a transfer station on an inclined rotatable transport member comprising a plurality of spaced article receiving recesses located adjacent a peripheral edge thereof; determining a physical property of said article using a sensor coupled to a microprocessor, said sensor aligned with an article transportation path at a position between said hopper and said transfer station; ejecting said article from one of said recesses by selective actuation of a respective ejector of a plurality of ejectors aligned with said article transportation path; directing said ejected article under the influence of gravity into one of a plurality of collection magazines via a collection chute in communication with one of said plurality of collection magazines and associated with each ejector; and selectively directing said article into a selected one of said plurality of collection magazines using an associated collection gate. Determining the physical property of the article may include determining one or more physical properties of the article selected from shape, size, colour, indicia markings or any other visible attribute or any combination thereof.

The physical property of the article may be determined using an optical sensor.

Alternatively, the physical property of the article may be determined by detecting a signal emitted by said article. The signal emitted by the article may be one of a magnetic field, an electric field or an electromagnetic field or other form of detectable phenomenon. The method may further include actuating an article reject station when the sensor detects an article having physical properties falling outside a predetermined range.

The method may further include actuating a reject gate when an article recess containing a reject article is aligned with a reject chute. The method may further include the microprocessor selectively actuating the ejectors by reference to a predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member relative to a predetermined datum.

The predetermined angle of rotation of the transport member may be determined by detecting registration elements associated with the transport member using a sensor.

The method may further include selectively actuating the collection gate in response to a sensor having sensed the delivery of a predetermined number of articles to one of said two or more collection magazines.

The method may further include selectively actuating the collection gate in response to a sensor having sensed a physical attribute of an article to be directed to a selected one of said two or more collection magazines.

The method may further include delivering a predetermined number of articles to a collection station using a delivery member associated with said two or more collection magazines. 10

The method may further include reciprocating each delivery member in a respective collection magazine from a loading position to a delivery position.

The method may further include selectively actuating said collection gate by a mechanical device associated with the operation of said delivery member. The method may further include guiding the article through a respective aperture in each of said two or more collection magazines, the aperture including an article orientation member for orienting said article into a desired orientation in said collection magazine.The method may further include optimising the selective direction of a plurality of the articles into selected ones of said plurality of collection magazines.

The optimisation may depend on one or more of the following factors: a number of different physical properties of said articles in use, a number of articles of one or more different physical property in use, a number of rejected articles, a handedness of a gaming table with which the method is employed. The method may further include a user influencing the sorting and/or collating of the articles via a remote interface. The user may accept or reject a proposed optimisation strategy via said remote interface, the proposed optimisation strategy communicated to the user via the remote interface.

Further features of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the invention may be more readily understood and put into practical effect, reference will now be made to a preferred embodiment described in the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of example only, and wherein:

FIG 1 shows schematically a perspective view of a portion of an article sorting and/or collating apparatus according to the invention;

FIG 2 shows a partial front elevation of the apparatus of FIG 1;

FIG 3 shows schematically a side elevation of the apparatus of FIG 1; FIG 4 shows schematically an enlarged plan view of a collection magazine assembly and associated delivery mechanism; and

FIG 5 shows a circuit schematic of the main elements of the detection and ejection system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS With reference to FIG 1 , the sorting/collating apparatus 2 of the present invention comprises a collection hopper 4 into which unsorted tokens 6 are deposited by a croupier though an opening in a gaming table surface. A rotatable transport member in the form of a rotatable, generally circular carrier 8 presents an inclined surface 10 that extends into the bottom of the hopper 4. The carrier 8 may be inclined between approximately 10° and approximately 70° relative to a horizontal datum. A drive means, such as an electric motor 12, causes the circular carrier 8 to rotate via a conventional gearing mechanism (not shown). The overall size of the sorting/collating apparatus 2 is such that it fits beneath the gaming table and the apparatus is mobile so that it may be easily installed and removed if necessary.

The carrier 8 comprises a plurality of article receiving recesses 14 in the surface 10, each recess capable of accommodating a single token 6. The recesses 14 are arranged adjacent a peripheral edge 9 of the circular carrier 8, which is more clearly shown in Fig 2. The tokens 6 tend to slide down an inner surface of the hopper 4 and the inclined surface 10 of the carrier 8 until they fall into one of the passing recesses 14. Once a token 6 is accommodated in a recess 14, the token can be removed from the hopper 4 by the rotatable carrier 8. The tokens are moved along a transportation path 7 by the rotatable carrier 8 in the direction of rotation represented by the arrow shown in Fig 2.

With reference to Fig 2, the peripheral edge 9 of the circular carrier 8 is a bi- level edge comprising a series of alternate steps 16. The presence or absence of a step 16 is detected at a particular point by a sensor in the form of carrier position sensor 18 mounted adjacent an upper portion of the inclined surface 10. The sensor 18 may be mounted such that its sensing face is substantially perpendicular to the inclined surface 10 or such that it is in the plane of the inclined surface 10. Any suitable sensor 18 known in the art may be employed, such as an optical sensor. It should be noted that although steps 16 partially overlap openings 15 to recesses 14, steps 16 do not impede accommodation of the tokens 6 by the recesses 14. The significance of the steps 16 and the sensor 18 will be described later below.

The tokens 6 are identified using a conventional digital camera 20 aligned with the transportation path 7 of the tokens 6 from the hopper 4. The digital camera is capable of continuously taking, for example, approximately 30 frames per second, which is in excess of the requirements for the present invention. In the prior art the identity of the tokens is determined by detecting the wavelength of incident light reflected by the tokens, which is susceptible to the aforementioned problems. In contrast, the digital camera 20 converts analogue signals representing an image of the tokens into digital numerical values. The digital numerical values more accurately represent the token imaged.

To calibrate the digital camera, a number of tokens, for example, 10-20, of a particular physical property, such as tokens of a single colour, are placed in an empty hopper 4. It does not matter whether the tokens are old or new or a mixture of tokens exhibiting a range of wear and therefore a range of, in this example, hues within a single colour. Each token is collected by a recess 14 of the carrier 8, raised from the hopper 4 and imaged by the digital camera 20. A numerical value is assigned to each different hue detected. The numerical value for the cleanest, newest, brightest hued token will occupy one end of the numerical range and the filthiest, oldest, weakest hued token will occupy the opposite end of the numerical range. Hence, tokens identified with a numerical value within the calibrated numerical range will be identified as tokens of that particular physical property. If the numerical value detected falls outside the calibrated range, the token is rejected. Rejection of tokens is described in detail later herein.

If only a small variation of hues of the tokens are used for calibration, e.g., if all the tokens used for calibration are worn to the same or a similar extent, the range of numerical values assigned to the tokens may be expanded to cover old and new tokens. Therefore, tokens that are both older and newer than the tokens used for calibration may be added after calibration without the need for re- calibration.

The aforementioned calibration process is repeated for each token with a different physical property for the tokens that will be in play. Calibration of the digital camera 20 may be carried out with the sorting/collating apparatus 2 in situ and may be conducted by the croupier. This is in contrast to the prior art, which requires the sorting/collating apparatus to be calibrated by skilled technicians prior to installation of the apparatus at the table.

It will be appreciated that the calibration process may be carried out to enable the apparatus to identify indicia on the tokens, such as those indicating token denomination or those indicating the origin of the tokens, such as to which casino the tokens belong. Calibration is carried out with tokens that are known to be authentic. Therefore, any counterfeit or otherwise alien tokens that are introduced to the gaming table during play can be identified, since they will fall outside the calibrated range, and can be rejected.

As an alternative to implementing the digital camera 20 to identify the tokens, the tokens may comprise a device capable of emitting a signal indicative of the identity of the token. For example, the token may comprise a device capable of emitting an electromagnetic field, the frequency of which being indicative of the token identity. Alternatively, the field may be an electric or magnetic field or other form of detectable signal. Where the token comprises such an embedded device, instead of the digital camera 20, the detector will be one capable of at least detecting and possibly also measuring the signal emitted by the token. The detector may be any conventional type of transducer. 14

With reference to Figs 2 and 3, the sorting/collating apparatus 2 further includes a transfer station 19 comprising a plurality of ejectors, such as solenoids 22, or nozzles through which a jet of air may be passed, or other ejection device, mounted in fixed locations behind the rotatable, circular carrier 8. Each solenoid, for example, is capable of ejecting a token 6 via an aperture 23 from a recess 14 providing the recess is aligned with the solenoid. An embodiment of the invention will be described wherein the ejectors are solenoids. However, it will be appreciated that alternative ejectors may be employed.

It will be noted that the separation x of solenoids 22 is less than the separation y between each token recess 14. Preferably, the solenoid spacing x is substantially half the spacing y between adjacent recesses 14. Tokens may therefore be ejected at each half position occupied by the solenoids 22, rather than only at each full position occupied by the tokens. This arrangement contributes to enabling the present invention to sort/collate more than ten predetermined token properties. For example, the present invention is capable of dealing with more than 10 different token colours. Furthermore, the rate of sorting/collating the tokens is increased compared with the prior art because the ejection rate is not limited by the physical size of the tokens 6.

With reference to Fig 5, the solenoids 22 are coupled to and selectively actuable by a microprocessor 13. The microprocessor 13 is also coupled to sensor 18 and digital camera 20, to selectively eject tokens 6 from recesses 14. Selective ejection of the tokens will now be described.

The carrier 8 rotates clockwise raising the tokens from the hopper 4 in the recesses 14. However, it will be appreciated that the apparatus may be adapted such that the carrier rotates anticlockwise. As previously described, the digital camera may be set to continuously capture images of the tokens as they are transported past the position of the digital camera. When sensor 18 detects the presence of an edge 17 of step 16, a number of images are captured by digital camera 20 of a single token located in the recess 14 following the detected edge 17. Software selects and processes one image from the number of captured images to determine the physical property of the token on the basis of the previously described calibration process. For example, the colour and/or denomination of the token can be determined. The image of the token selected for processing is the image captured when the sensor 18 detects edge 17 of step 16, or the image captured nearest to that point in time. Processing of the image for determination of the token property requires approximately 20ms.

Once the token property has been determined, one of the solenoids 22 is assigned to eject the token from the recess 14 in the carrier 8 when the recess accommodating the token is aligned with the assigned solenoid. The rotation of the carrier is monitored in order to determine the point in time at which the identified token is aligned with the solenoid 22 assigned to eject it.

In one embodiment, the alignment and timing of the ejection operation is controlled by the microprocessor 13 via the sensor 18 and detection of edges 17 of steps 16 of the carrier 8. For example, if the token 11 beneath camera 20 shown in Fig 2 is to be ejected by the solenoid 22a , this corresponds to the carrier 8 rotating a distance of two token spacings 2y from its current position, which is equivalent to approximately four solenoid spacings 4x or equivalent to the detection of four consecutive edges 17 by the sensor 18 as the carrier 8 rotates. At the position shown in Fig 2, the sensor 18 is about to detect an edge 17 by virtue of an absence of a step 16. As the carrier 8 rotates clockwise from this position, sensor 18 will detect a number of edges 17. As the fourth edge 17 is detected, the identified token 11 will be aligned with the solenoid 22a assigned to eject the token 11 from the carrier 8 and the microprocessor 13 will send a signal to the solenoid to eject the token from the recess.

It is envisaged that there are alternative methods of coordinating the rotation of the carrier 8 and the ejection of the tokens from the carrier by prescribed ejectors that are nonetheless with the scope of the present invention. For example, the sensor may be mounted in the plane of the carrier 8 facing the edge 9 of the carrier. The edge 9 of the carrier may comprise registration elements such as detectable markings that may be counted in order to determine the angular distance through which the carrier has turned. The markings may comprise, for example, adjacent vertical bands, such as black and white bands similar to a conventional barcode. Once a token has been identified and a solenoid has been assigned to eject the token, the sensor can detect a number of markings corresponding to a required angle of rotation of the carrier 8. Upon detecting the required number of markings, the token will be aligned with the assigned solenoid and a signal may be transmitted to the assigned solenoid to eject the token. Upon ejection of the identified token from the carrier 8 by the selected solenoid, the token is transferred to a respective collection chute 24, as shown in Fig 3. The collection chute 24 is shaped to receive the ejected token and communicate the token to one of a plurality of collection magazine assemblies 28. The collection chute 24 may comprise a flared opening to accept the ejected token whatever its orientation. The collection chute 24 is tapered from the flared opening to a narrow channel to urge the token into an end-on orientation to enable the token to be communicated to one of the collection magazine assemblies 28 under the influence of gravity. For example, the token may be able to roll toward the collection magazine assembly 28 on its edge along the collection chute 24. The collection magazine assembly 28 is positioned such that, when the sorting/collating apparatus 2 is in place at a gaming table, the top 34 of the collection magazines 26 substantially coincides with the surface of the gaming table.

The collection magazine assembly 28 comprises a collection gate 30, shown in Fig 4, and at least one token sensor 32, shown in Fig 3, that detects and registers the arrival of each token from the collection chute 24. The tokens are to be collated in batches of twenty at the bottom of each collection magazine 26 for delivery to the croupier at the gaming table playing level. The token is guided into a collection magazine 26 by an article orientation member in the form of collection gate 30 or angled guide means 27. The article orientation member ensures that the token tips over from a vertical orientation to a horizontal orientation for acceptance by the collection magazine 26. The article orientation member ensures that the token does not enter the magazine 26 in a vertical orientation, which could interrupt the collation process if the token did not fall into a horizontal orientation.

When the gate 30 is in position 30a shown in Fig 4, the tokens are guided into a first collection magazine 38. When the gate 30 is in position 30b the tokens are guided into a second collection magazine 40. Initially, tokens may be guided into the first collection magazine 38 until twenty tokens have been collated at the bottom of the magazine on a delivery member in the form of platform 42, the correct number being ensured by the sensor 32. The platform may then be elevated from a loading position to a delivery position at the top 34 of the first collection magazine 38 by drive means 39 for collection at a collection station by the croupier at approximately the playing level of the gaming table. As shown in Fig 3, the drive means 39 may be a belt drive comprising an electric motor 41 and an endless belt 43. Alternatively, the drive means may comprise a rack and pinions or a worm drive or the like.. The gate 30 may then be automatically switched from position 30a to position 30b to enable tokens arriving from collection chute 24 to bypass a first collection magazine 38 and to be collated in a second collection magazine 40 on a platform 44. Once twenty tokens have been collated in the second collection magazine 40, one or more token batch sensors 45at the top 34 of the first collection magazine 38 detect whether the initial batch of twenty tokens have been collected by the croupier. The one or more sensors 45 may be, for example, optical sensors or pressure sensors. If so, the drive means reverses its drive direction such that platform 44 is elevated from a loading position to a delivery position at the top 46 of the second collection magazine 40. At the same time, platform 42 from which the tokens have been removed is lowered from the delivery position to the loading position at the bottom of the first collection magazine 38 in preparation for receiving tokens. Gate 30 is switched from position 30b to position 30a to enable tokens to again be collated in the first collection magazine 38. If the croupier has not collected the initial batch of tokens at the collection station, platform 44 remains at the bottom of the second collection magazine 40. As shown in Fig 3, collection gate

30 is located between the loading positions and the delivery positions of platforms 42, 44.

If a single collection magazine assembly 28 is being used to collate tokens of a single physical property, platform 44 remains at the bottom of the second collection magazine 40 until the tokens are removed by the croupier from platform 42. In the meantime, tokens of that physical property are rejected since more tokens of that physical property are not yet required.

If more than one collection magazine assembly 28 is being used to collate tokens of a single physical property, tokens are initially collated in the first collection magazine 38 of a first collection magazine assembly. Once twenty tokens have been collated therein, the next batch of twenty tokens is collated in the first collection magazine 38 of a second collection magazine assembly and then any subsequent collection magazine assemblies. Thereafter, tokens are collated in the second collection magazine 40 of the first collection magazine assembly, followed by a second collection magazine of the second and then any subsequent collection magazine assemblies. The present invention is not limited to two collection magazines 26 being provided for tokens of a particular physical property. A plurality of collection magazine assemblies 28 may be aligned to increase the collation capacity available to each collection chute 24. Thus, a higher turnover of tokens and/or a larger number of differing tokens may be dealt with. The collection magazine assemblies 28 connect together, or otherwise link by any suitable means known in the art such that any required number of collection magazine assemblies may be linked. For example, three collection magazine assemblies 28 may be connected in a row and tokens may be collated in any of the six collection magazines 26. Tokens may be collated, for example, in a third collection magazine out of a total of six by bypassing the first collection magazine assembly 28 and being guided into the first collection magazine 38 of the second collection magazine assembly 28.

In the embodiment shown in Fig 4, only the first collection magazine 38 comprises an associated gate 30. However, in the case where more than one collection magazine assemblies 28 are to be connected together, the second collection magazine 40 will also have an associated gate to enable a token to bypass the second collection magazine 40 and pass into the attached collection magazine assembly.

It will be appreciated that each solenoid 22 may have a respective collection chute 24 for collecting tokens ejected thereby and a respective collection magazine assembly 28 for collating tokens of a particular physical property.

It can be seen from Fig 4 that the collection magazine assemblies 28 have a width only marginally greater than the diameter of the tokens 6 and therefore, the compact collection magazine assemblies 28 may be placed next to each other with a spacing less than the spacing between the tokens on the carrier 8. Hence, this is another way in which the sorting/collating apparatus 2 of the present invention overcomes the problem of the prior art sorting/collating apparatus only being able to handle tokens of 10 different physical properties.

In the previously described calibration procedure, calibration is carried out for each token of a different physical property and the order in which the calibration is carried out initially corresponds to the order the solenoids 22 are assigned to eject the token from the carrier 8. For example, if the first calibration procedure is carried out with blue tokens, blue tokens will be ejected by the first solenoid into a first collection magazine assembly. If the second calibration procedure is for red tokens, the second solenoid will eject red tokens into a second collection magazine assembly and so on.

However, assignment of the solenoids 22 to eject particular token physical properties is not fixed. For example, if there is a high turnover of one particular token colour, the solenoid ejecting that colour from the carrier 8 may be changed so that the solenoid closest to the croupier ejects that colour token. Therefore, the batches of twenty tokens of that colour are returned to the surface of the gaming table nearest the croupier, thus increasing efficiency. This optimisation may also ensure that the next busiest colour is returned to the next nearest position to the croupier and so on.

Another form of efficiency optimisation offered by the sorting/collating apparatus 2 may occur, for example, when a smaller number of different token properties are in play. For example, if only five differently coloured tokens are in play, more than one collection magazine assembly 28 may be allocated to collate each colour. For example, two collection magazine assemblies 28, i.e., four collection magazines 26, may collate tokens of a single physical property.

Yet another form of efficiency optimisation is the assignment of different numbers of collection magazine assemblies 28 to collate different token physical properties. For example, three collection magazine assemblies may be assigned to collate the token colour with the highest turnover, two collection magazine assemblies may be assigned to collate the token colour with the next highest turnover and the remaining collection magazine assemblies assigned to the remaining token colours to be collated.

When a large number of tokens of different physical properties are in play, more than one collection magazine assembly 28 may be assigned to the busiest token type and the remaining collection magazine assemblies assigned to the remaining different tokens in play.

It is not necessary for a collection magazine assembly 28 to be entirely assigned to each token type. Since tokens can be selectively collated in either a first collection magazine 38 or a second collection magazine 40 of a collection magazine assembly 28 by virtue of the gate 30, a single collection magazine 26 may be assigned to a particular token type. For example, within a single collection magazine assembly 28, red tokens may be collated in a first collection magazine 38 and blue tokens may be collated in a second collection magazine 40. In this situation, once twenty tokens of one physical property have been collated in one collection magazine and elevated to the playing level of the gaming table to await collection by the croupier, tokens of that physical property may be rejected thereafter until the initial batch of twenty tokens has been collected by the croupier. Meanwhile, tokens of another physical property may be collated in the other collection magazine of the collection magazine assembly 28. Thus, any number of different token physical properties may be collated by a single collection magazine assembly 28.

Alternatively, if collation demands allow, rather than rejecting tokens, tokens of the same physical property as those awaiting collection by the croupier may be collated in a different collection magazine assembly 28.

This is yet another way in which more than ten different token physical properties may be accommodated by the sorting/collating apparatus 2 of the present invention. The forms of optimisation described above may be combined in any way to optimise sorting/collation of the tokens in play. Optimisation is controlled by the microprocessor 13 in real time. The microprocessor 13 evaluates the situation on the basis of feedback derived from sensors and suggests optimisation strategies to the croupier. The croupier can then either accept or reject the optimisation strategies.

Gaming tables, and specifically roulette tables, have a handedness, i.e., the table is either right-handed or left-handed. At a right-handed roulette table, bets are placed on the left of the croupier and the croupier takes batches of tokens with their right hand. The sorting/collating apparatus 2 of the present invention may be used at either a left or right handed table and the delivery of the tokens to the croupier can be optimised as described above according to the handedness of the table.

Rejection of tokens will now be described. There are two categories of rejected tokens. Tokens may be rejected when two or more different token physical properties are being collated in a single collection magazine assembly, as described above. Alternatively, tokens are rejected if they are identified with a numerical value that falls outside the calibrated range. Rejected tokens may be ejected from the carrier 8 at an article reject station 21 located between the sensor 20 and the transfer station 19, by one of the solenoids 22 assigned for this purpose, and returned to the hopper 4. After a period of time, the tokens remaining in the hopper 4 that have been rejected because their numerical value falls outside the calibrated range will represent a high percentage of the total number of tokens in the hopper and they can be removed manually from the apparatus 2 for sorting or disposal. Alternatively, the article reject station 21 may be located between the transfer station 19 and the hopper 4 such that one of the solenoids 22 may eject the rejected tokens into a designated collection magazine via a collection chute 24 designated as a reject chute. In this case, gate 30 may function as a reject gate actuable when directing reject articles into the designated collection magazine. The collection magazine may be located in a convenient position with respect to the apparatus 2 and the gaming table to allow manual removal of the rejected tokens.

It is not necessary that the collection magazine 26 designated to collect the rejected tokens be permanently designated for this purpose. When a specified number of rejected tokens are detected, for example, per revolution of the carrier 8, a collection magazine 26 may be temporarily designated to collect the rejected tokens and deliver them to the croupier.

Maintenance of the sorting/collating apparatus of the present invention may be carried out efficiently by virtue of the modular construction of the apparatus, which minimises interruption to play. For example, the collection magazine assemblies 28 are self-contained units and may easily be replaced in the event of a malfunction. If a collection magazine assembly 28 for a particular token colour malfunctions during a game and requires replacement, that collection magazine assembly will be isolated during play and another collection magazine assembly will be assigned to collate tokens of that colour. This may involve reassignment of the collection magazine assemblies for other token colours, which is controlled and optimised by the microprocessor.

Any malfunctions in the apparatus may be detected by feedback from sensors positioned throughout the apparatus. Malfunctions are communicated to the croupier or to maintenance staff by the microprocessor. For example, once a token is identified and a solenoid 22 is assigned to eject the token, if, for example, the gate sensor 32 of the corresponding collection magazine assembly 28 does not detect the token, this could indicate a problem with the solenoid 22. The solenoid 22 and corresponding collection magazine assembly 28 will be temporarily isolated and tokens of that physical property will be ejected by a different solenoid and collated by a different magazine assembly 28, as described above. The redundant solenoid may be easily replaced.

This redundancy is repeated by other sections of the collection magazine assembly 28 and elsewhere in the apparatus 2. Individual components may be checked for normal operation by reference to other components. For example, a malfunction of the platform lifting mechanism may be detected by a sensor not detecting a batch of tokens at the playing level of the gaming table following the transmission of a signal for such an operation to be executed. Hence, the apparatus 2 comprises built-in multiple redundancy to minimise any disruptions to the game caused by malfunction. Communication between the sorting/collating apparatus 2 and the croupier is via a dedicated interface. The interface may be a handheld/portable device 50 and may be in hard wire or wireless communication with the microprocessor of the apparatus 2. The device comprises a screen 52 on which optimisation strategies and the like may be displayed. The screen 52 may be a touch screen to allow the croupier or other operator to input/confirm instructions to the microprocessor 13, such as accepting or overriding a proposed optimisation strategy. Alternatively or additionally, a separate input device, such as a keyboard 54 or a switchboard may be provided.

The interface also allows some programming or selection of modes for pre- programmed operation of the apparatus. For example, prior to commencing a game, more than one collection magazine assembly 28 may be assigned to the first three differently coloured tokens in play. The handedness of the table may also be selected. At any time during play, the casino may wish to know the profit or loss for a particular gaming table and/or the monetary amount of the tokens currently on the table. This can be calculated with the apparatus of the present invention. At any point during play, the croupier may instruct the apparatus 2 via the interface to elevate all tokens in the collection magazines 26 to the playing level of the gaming table. The total number of tokens in play is known and from the number of tokens in the apparatus and the number of tokens on the table, a profit or loss can be calculated.

Although the carrier 8 is described as rotating clockwise in the embodiments, it will be appreciated by an addressee skilled in the relevant art that an apparatus rotating anticlockwise is within the scope of the invention.

Hence, the present invention also relates to a method of sorting and/or collating articles according to a predetermined range of physical properties in which articles 6 are transported from the collection hopper 4 to the transfer station 19 on the inclined rotatable carrier 8 which comprises the plurality of spaced article receiving recesses 14 located adjacent the peripheral edge 9 of the carrier 8. The physical property of the articles is determined using the sensor 20 coupled to the microprocessor 13, the sensor 20 being aligned with the article transportation path 7 at a position between the hopper 4 and the transfer station 19. Each article is ejected from a recess 14 by selective actuation of a respective ejector 22 of the plurality of ejectors aligned with the article transportation path 7. The ejected article is directed under the influence of gravity into one of a plurality of collection magazines 26 via a collection chute 24, which is in communication with one of the plurality of collection magazines 26 and which is associated with each ejector 22. The ejected article is selectively directed into a selected one of the plurality of collection magazines 26 using an associated collection gate 30.

The method includes determining one or more physical properties of the articles 6, which may be selected from shape, size, colour, indicia markings or any other visible attribute or any combination thereof. The physical property of the article may be determined using an optical sensor in the form of digital camera 20. Alternatively, the method may involve determining the physical property of the article by detecting a signal emitted by the article 6. The signal emitted by the article may be a magnetic field, an electric field or an electromagnetic field or other form of detectable phenomenon. The method of the present invention further includes actuating an article reject station 21 when the sensor 20 detects an article 6 having physical properties falling outside a predetermined range. The reject gate is actuated when an article recess 14 containing a reject article is aligned with a reject chute, which may be the collection chute 24. The ejectors 22 are selectively actuated by microprocessor 13 by reference to a predetermined angle of rotation of the carrier 8 relative to a predetermined datum, which may be sensor 18. The predetermined angle of rotation of the carrier 8 may alternatively be determined by registration elements associated with the carrier as described above. The method further includes selectively actuating the collection gate 30 in response to the sensor 32 having sensed the delivery of a predetermined number of the articles to one of the two or more collection magazines 26. The collection gate 30 may also be selectively actuated in response to the sensor 20 having sensed a physical attribute of an article to be directed to a selected one of the two or more collection magazines 26.

A predetermined number of the articles 6 are delivered to the collection station using the delivery member in the form of platforms 42, 44 associated with the two or more collection magazines 26. The platforms 42, 44 are reciprocated in a respective collection magazine from a loading position at the bottom of the magazine 26 to a delivery position at the top of the magazine 26 and the collection gate 30 may be selectively actuated by a mechanical device associated with the operation of the platforms 42, 44.

The method further includes guiding the articles through a respective aperture in each of the two or more collection magazines 26, the apertures including an article orientation member for orienting the articles 6 into a desired orientation in the collection magazines 26.

The method may further include optimising the selective direction of a plurality of the articles 6 into selected ones of said plurality of collection magazines 26, and the optimisation may depend on one or more of the following factors: a number of different physical properties of the articles in use, a number of articles of one or more different physical property in use, a number of rejected articles, a handedness of a gaming table with which the method is employed, as described above. The croupier may influence the sorting and/or collating of articles via the remote interface 50 by accepting or rejecting a proposed optimisation strategy via the remote interface 50, the proposed optimisation strategy being communicated to the croupier via said remote interface 50.

It is apparent from the foregoing that the sorting/collating apparatus and method of the present invention address the problems exhibited by the prior art. By virtue of the features and steps described herein, the apparatus 2 and method are capable of dealing with more than the industry-perceived standard of ten predetermined token properties, unlike any of the prior art mobile sorting/collating apparatus and unlike most of the prior art stationary sorting/collating apparatus. The apparatus and method may be used at both left and right handed gaming tables and the dynamic allocation of the collection magazines 26 and the collection magazine assemblies 28 enables sorting/collation of tokens to be optimised at the table according to the gaming conditions. Interruptions to games are minimised by virtue of the multiple redundancy and modular construction of the apparatus. The 27 microprocessor 13 automatically compensates for any malfunctions that occur. Game interruptions are further minimised by the token identification means of the present invention, whereby a broader range of token qualities are tolerated resulting in fewer rejected tokens and therefore fewer delays, versus the prior art. Furthermore, manipulation and transportation of the tokens in the apparatus and by the method of the present invention is such that the risk of damaging the tokens, and thus causing the apparatus to malfunction, is reduced in comparison with the prior art. The apparatus 2 sorts and collates tokens at rates that effectively cope with traffic encountered at gaming tables, even at the busiest times. Although the apparatus and method have been described in , relation to sorting/collating tokens for roulette and other games, it is envisaged that the apparatus and method may be adapted to other applications, whilst remaining within the scope of the present invention. For example, the apparatus and method may be employed to sort/collate coins or other disc-shaped articles. Alternatively, the apparatus and method may be used to sort/collate articles of other shapes such as to grade fruit or eggs or the like. In such applications, it will be apparent to the skilled addressee that alternative sensors, such as mass sensitive and/or size sensitive detectors will be required and that the configuration of the recesses, the hopper, the collection chutes and magazines and the like will need to be adapted to the articles being sorted.

Throughout the specification the aim has been to describe the invention without limiting the invention to any one embodiment or specific collection of features. Persons skilled in the relevant art may realize variations from the specific embodiments, in addition to those envisaged and described above, which will nonetheless fall within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. An apparatus for sorting and/or collating articles according to a predetermined range of physical properties, said apparatus including: a collection hopper for articles of differing physical properties; a rotatable transport member including a plurality of spaced article receiving recesses located adjacent a peripheral edge thereof, said transport member having a lower portion thereof in association with said hopper for transportation of said articles to a transfer station, said transport member rotatable about an inclined axis; a sensor aligned with an article transportation path at a position between said hopper and said transfer station; a microprocessor coupled between said sensor and a plurality of ejectors aligned with said article transportation path; a collection chute associated with each ejector adapted in use to receive articles therein upon selective actuation of a respective ejector; at least two collection magazines communicating with each collection chute to collect articles directed thereinto under the influence of gravity; and, a collection gate associated with said at least two collection magazines to selectively direct articles into a selected one of said two or more collection magazines.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said rotatable transport member comprises a generally planar disc-like member.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said rotatable transport member rotates about an axis inclined between about 10° and about 70° relative to a horizontal datum.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said article receiving recesses are adapted to permit only one article at a time to be transported therein.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said sensor is adapted to sense one or more physical properties of said articles selected from shape, size, colour, indicia markings or any other visible attribute or any combination thereof.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said sensor comprises an optical sensor.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein said optical sensor comprises a digital camera.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said sensor is capable of detecting a signal emitted by said article.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said signal emitted by said article is one of a magnetic field, an electric field or an electromagnetic field or other form of detectable phenomenon.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said signal is generated by any suitable device capable of being implemented in said article.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , further including an article reject station.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said article reject station is located between said sensor and said transfer station in a direction of rotation of said rotatable transport member.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said article reject station is located between said transfer station and said hopper remote from said sensor.

14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein said article reject station is actuable when said sensor detects an article having physical properties falling outside a predetermined range.

15. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein said article reject station comprises a reject gate actuable when an article recess containing a reject article is aligned with a reject chute.

16. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said ejectors are spaced at a distance equal to the distance between said spaced receiving recesses.

17. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said ejectors are spaced at a distance less than the distance between said spaced receiving recesses.

18. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said ejectors are spaced at substantially half the distance between said spaced receiving recesses.

19. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said ejectors are selectively actuable by said microprocessor by reference to a predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member relative to a predetermined datum.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said predetermined datum is the location of said sensor.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member is determined by registration elements associated with said transport member.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein said predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member is determined by the detection of registration elements associated with said transport member by a sensor.

23. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said collection gate is selectively actuable by a sensor having sensed the delivery of a predetermined number of articles to one of said two or more collection magazines.

24. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said collection gate is selectively actuable by a sensor having sensed a physical attribute of an article to be directed to a selected one of said two or more collection magazines.

25. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said two or more collection magazines include a delivery member adapted to deliver a predetermined number of articles to a collection station.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein each said delivery member is reciprocable in a respective collection magazine from a loading position to a delivery position.

27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein said collection gate is positioned between the loading position and the delivery position of said delivery member.

28. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein said collection gate is selectively actuable by a mechanical device associated with the operation of said delivery member.

29. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein said collection gate communicates with a respective aperture in each of said two or more collection magazines, said respective aperture including an article orientation member adapted to guide an article passing therethrough into a desired orientation in said collection magazine.

30. A method of sorting and/or collating articles according to a predetermined range of physical properties, said method including: transporting an article from a collection hopper to a transfer station on an inclined rotatable transport member comprising a plurality of spaced article receiving recesses located adjacent a peripheral edge thereof; determining a physical property of said article using a sensor coupled to a microprocessor, said sensor aligned with an article transportation path at a position between said hopper and said transfer station; ejecting said article from one of said recesses by selective actuation of a respective ejector of a plurality of ejectors aligned with said article transportation path; directing said ejected article under the influence of gravity into one of a plurality of collection magazines via a collection chute in communication with one of said plurality of collection magazines and associated with each ejector; and selectively directing said article into a selected one of said plurality of collection magazines using an associated collection gate.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein determining said physical property of said article includes determining one or more physical properties of said article selected from shape, size, colour, indicia markings or any other visible attribute or any combination thereof.

32. The method of claim 30, wherein said physical property of said article is determined using an optical sensor.

33. The method of claim 30, wherein said physical property of said article is determined by detecting a signal emitted by said article.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein said signal emitted by said article is one of a magnetic field, an electric field or an electromagnetic field or other form of detectable phenomenon.

35. The method of claim 30, further including actuating an article reject station when said sensor detects an article having physical properties falling outside a predetermined range.

36. The method of claim 35, further including actuating a reject gate when an article recess containing a reject article is aligned with a reject chute.

37. The method of claim 30 wherein said ejectors are selectively actuated by said microprocessor by reference to a predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member relative to a predetermined datum.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein said predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member is determined by registration elements associated with said transport member.

39. The method of claim 37, wherein said predetermined angle of rotation of said transport member is determined by the detection of registration elements associated with said transport member by a sensor.

40. The method of claim 30, further including selectively actuating said collection gate in response to a sensor having sensed the delivery of a predetermined number of articles to one of said two or more collection magazines.

41. The method of claim 30, further including selectively actuating said collection gate in response to a sensor having sensed a physical attribute of an article to be directed to a selected one of said two or more collection magazines.

42. The method of claim 30, further including delivering a predetermined number of articles to a collection station using a delivery member associated with said two or more collection magazines.

43. The method of claim 42, further including reciprocating each said delivery member in a respective collection magazine from a loading position to a delivery position.

44. The method of claim 42, further including selectively actuating said collection gate by a mechanical device associated with the operation of said delivery member.

45. The method of claim 30, further including guiding said article through a respective aperture in each of said two or more collection magazines, said aperture including an article orientation member for orienting said article into a desired orientation in said collection magazine.

46. The method of claim 30, further including optimising said selective direction of a plurality of said articles into selected ones of said plurality of collection magazines.

47. The method of claim 46, wherein said optimisation depends on one or more of the following factors: a number of different physical properties of said articles in use, a number of articles of one or more different physical property in use, a number of rejected articles, a handedness of a gaming table with which the method is employed.

48. The method of claim 30, further including a user influencing the sorting and/or collating of articles via a remote interface.

49. The method of claim 48, wherein said user accepts or rejects a proposed optimisation strategy via said remote interface, said proposed optimisation strategy communicated to said user via said remote interface.