Rca Inc.

Peripheral Dynamics, Inc.

John L Bradshaw

John S Garczynski

Bernard J McDevitt

Jeffrey C Hahn

Daniel Hampel

Robert A Hollinger

Kalman J Prost

A module for announcing when a dealer has blackjack without exposing the face of the dealer's down-card. The module scans a character from the dealer's face-down standard playing card, compares the result of the scan with a set of references, and identifies the down-card. The module also receives input from the dealer as to the identity of the dealer's up-card, and announces whether the dealer has blackjack or the hand continues. The module is designed to be mounted to a blackjack table such that the surface of the module on which the standard playing card rests while being scanned is in the plane of the surface of the blackjack table, allowing the dealer to slide the down-card across the table and onto the scanner without lifting, and potentially exposing, the card's face. The module also removes the noise generated by a casino's heat, dust, cigarette and cigar ashes, and lint from the felt of the blackjack table, during the scanning process. The module further optimizes the scan of the character on the standard playing card by controlling the light intensity emitted by the components of the module used to illuminate the character.

Blackjack scanner apparatus and method

A subranging A/D converter generates high and low voltages using first and second DACs. A voltage divider receives the high and low voltages to generate plural reference voltages. A bank of comparators compares the analog voltage which is to be converted to each of the reference voltages, and a clocked logic circuit generates an intermediate digital signal indicative of the analog value relative to the plural reference voltages. The intermediate signal is used to decrement the high voltage and increment the low voltage, so that the reference voltages produced by the voltage divider assume subrange values. The process is repeated for as many clock cycles as is required to converge the high and low voltages to equal the analog voltage.

Subranging A/D converter with converging digitally controlled voltages

A pattern recognition system includes a filter bank, coupled via rectifying elements to integrators which are coupled via different weighting elements to the summing nodes of a summing amplifier. The filter bank, integrators, and weighting elements include switched capacitors enabling the manufacture of the filters, rectifiers, integrators and weighting elements on a monolithic integrated circuit chip. The frequencies at which the capacitors are switched are programmable enabling the system to be easily 'retuned'.

Pattern recognition system using switched capacitors

One aspect of the invention includes an automatic gain control system (AGC) having a frequency controlled variable gain amplifier stage whose stage gain is a function of a frequency signal applied to a gain control input of the amplifier stage. An input signal to be processed is applied to an input of the amplifier stage. The output of the amplifier is sensed and compared to a reference potential to produce a frequency signal which is applied to the gain control input of the amplifier. Another aspect of the invention includes a frequency controlled variable gain amplifier embodying the invention comprised of an amplifier means having input and feedback networks and whose voltage gain is a function of the impedance of the feedback network with an impedance of the input network. The value of at least one of the feedback and input impedances is varied as a function of an applied sampling frequency signal and the voltage gain of the amplifier is controlled by varying the frequency applied to the feedback and input impedance network whose impedance varies as a function or frequency.

Growing community of inventors

Hatboro, PA, United States of America

John L Bradshaw