EP0151376A1

EP0151376A1 - A calculator for recording and displaying selected numbers in roulette

Info

Publication number: EP0151376A1
Application number: EP84850038A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Reimond Bergwall
Original assignee: Elo-Game AB
Current assignee: ELO-GAME AB
Priority date: 1984-02-06
Filing date: 1984-02-06
Publication date: 1985-08-14
Also published as: ES531289A0; AU2876884A; PT79765A; JPS60185568A; ES8502792A1; ZA843936B

Abstract

A calculator to record and display the winning numbers in roulette. The calculator comprises displays (1,3) which are provided with numbered squares (2,4) arranged in a manner simulating the wheel and the tableau of roulette. The calculator likewise comprises a keyboad (10) with keys by means of which the winning numbers are fed into the calculator as the roulette game progresses. By depression of buttons (11,12) after a number of games the displays (1, 3) show the winning numbers of said games, thus allowing the player to evaluate the tendency of the game.

The calculator may also be used to play the game of roulette for entertainment.

Description

The subject invention concerns a calculator designed to compute numeric values relating to winning numbers in roulette for recording and display.
Roulette, comprising a wheel which is arranged to rotate in a horizontal plane and is provided on its upper face with squares arranged in a circle around the periphery of the wheel and numbered from 0 to 36, and a rectangular table or tableau divided into squares, likewise numbered from 0 to 36, is an internationally known and widely popular gambling game. The player participates in the game by buying chips or jetons by means of which he places his bets by positioning the jetons on the tableau according to the set rules of the game to indicate the number or numbers or combinations of numbers of his choice. The head of the gaming table, the croupier, supervises the game and sets a ball spinning in a circular motion in the roulette wheel, which wheel rotates in a direction opposite to the circular motion of the ball. The speed of the ball decreases gradually and finally the ball will come to rest in one of the 37 slots which are arranged in a circle concentric with and disposed interiorly of the circle of numbered squares. The number in the square opposite to the slot in which the ball rests is the winning number and the player or players who have placed their bets on this number - or on combinations containing this number - are the winners.
The roulette game seemingly is a game of pure chance. However, it is statistically proven that the winning numbers of the 37 involved to some extent follow a pattern which is sometimes discernable after comparatively few games but which it generally takes a considerable number of games to establish. Generally speaking, according to the laws of probability the winning numbers should be equally distributed after a sufficient number of games. The roulette game comprises 18 "red" and 18 "black" numbers. Statistics show that already after some hundred games a balance of distribution of the winning numbers is noticeable and after some thousand games the winning numbers have occurred with more or less equal frequency among the "red" numbers and the "black" ones.
The tableau of the roulette game comprises three dozen numbers, 1-12, 13-24 and 25-36. As an example may be mentioned that statistic tests have shown that it is extremely rare that winning numbers occur within one and the same dozen more than eight times in succession. For instance records from 57,000 games in succession over a period of six months made on one and the same gaming table show that eight winning numbers or more in succession within the same dozen only occurred five times.
During the same period was likewise recorded the outcome of the game-betting variety known as Transversale pleine. This variety of the game means that the player places his bets on three consecutive numbers arranged in a horizontal row on the tableau, for instance the numbers 4-5-6. During the recorded 57,000 games the same winning number occurred three times in succession within the same Transversale pleine 54 times, four times in succession three times and at no time did the same winning number occur five or more times in succession within the same Transversale pleine.
It should be apparent from the examples given above that it would be very advantageous and would increase the chances of winning if the player had an opportunity during the game to record the winning numbers in a convenient manner and thus on the basis of statistical experience be able to place his bets on the numbers where the chance of winning apparently is the greatest.
rlowever, hitherto the player has had to resort to recording the winning numbers manually with the aid of pen and paper. The bank of the game as a rule provides pre-printed recording sheets on which the player may note the winning numbers game by game and record "red" and "black" numbers. This aid is, however, a very faulty one and it is extremely difficult - partly owing to the considerable speed at which the games are sometimes played - on the basis of the recordings made from a series of games to be able to evaluate with any degree of certainty the probability of a certain number being the winning one in the immediately following game or games. As a rule, the interval between two consecutive games is so brief that there is no time to make but scanty notes and a rough estimate of the possible outcome of the immediately following game or games.
The invention provides a device which is a considerably more efficient aid than manually recorded series of numbers and which provides the player with immediate and as the game progresses increasingly detailed and revealing information as to the tendency of the outcome of winning numbers of a roulette game at a given moment. The device replaces all kinds of manually written recording means serving to provide statistic information on winning numbers.
The invention will be described in closer detail in the following with reference to the accompanying drawing figure which is a plan view of the calculator in accordance with the invention according to one preferred embodiment thereof.
The electronic equipment and components of the calculator are of prior-art type and therefore need not be described in detail herein. The essential features of the invention reside in the manner in which the calculator registers and displays the numerical data supplied to it.
For this purpose the calculator is provided with a number of different displays. A first display 1 comprises a number of squares 2 bearing 37 numbers ranging from 0 to 36, said squares being positioned in a circle similar to the lay-out of the roulette wheel. The squares which conventionally are red on the actual roulette wheel appear on the attached drawing figure as white whereas those that on the actual roulette wheel are black are shaded in the attached drawing. The square which on the actual roulette wheel is green and carries the digit 0 is more deeply shaded in the attached drawing figures than the rest of the shaded squares.
A second display 3 is positioned to the bottom left of the calculator. This display 3 consists of rows of squares 4 carrying the number 0-36 positioned and arranged in a manner entirely coinciding with the positions of the digits on the tableau of the roulette game. In addition, the squares are respectively white or shaded in a manner identical to the squares 2 in display 1.
In accordance with the illustrated embodiment of the calculator of the invention the display 1 also comprises an inner circle of empty squares 5, positioned concentrically with and internally of the circle of numbered squares 2,each empty square 5 being located adjacent to and aligned with a numbered square 2.
The display 1 also comprises a further circle of empty squares 6, positioned concentrically with and externally of the circle of numbered squares 2, each empty square 6 being located adjacent to and aligned with a numbered square 2.
A third display 7 positioned obliquely below and to the right of the first display 1 is arranged to indicate a number representing the number of games stored and recorded in the calculator.
A fourth display e is positioned at the top of the calculator. This display 8 indicates on a chart a series of winning numbers - in the chart illustrated thirty - from the latest thirty games. The chart is divided into horizontal rows, alternatingly white and shaded, which correspond to respectively red and black numbers in the same way as has been described above. When a new number is recorded in the calculator - thus representing the winning number from the thir^ty-first game - the corresponding number enters the display from the left at arrow 9a in the uppermost or second uppermost row of the chart depending on whether the new number is red or black and at the same time the first number of the series of thirty numbers exits at the bottom of the display to the right at arrow 9b while at the same time all intermediate numbers are advanced by one step in the chart .
The calculator also comprises a keyboard 10 comprising keys bearing digits 1 to 9 and in addition thereto one key representing zero and one key marked C. In addition, the calculator comprises a first butto: 11 designed to activate the squares 4 and 5, a second button 12 to activate the squares 4 and 6, and a third button 13 to store and record in the calculator the number corresponding to the digits of the keys depressed on the keyboard 10.
The calculator in accordance with the invention may be used in the following manner. As soon as one game is completed and a winning number has been drawn by the ball falling into one of the slots of the roulette wheel, for instance in the slot corresponding to number 12, the user depresses the keys symbolizing the digits one and two and then depresses the button 13. As a result of these depressions of the keys and the button a series of events takes place. Firstly, the winning number is stored in the memory of the calculator and is entered into and shown on the display 8, the number in the display 7 representing the number of games played is increased by one while at the same time the winning number is recorded simultaneously in the displays 1 and 3, preferably by illumination of the squares bearing number 12. In case the wrong keys are depressed accidentally and consequently a number which does not correspond to the winning number according to the ball-position on the roulette wheel is being fed into the calculator, the user depresses the C-key, the correction key, instead of button 13. In this case, the wrong number is not recorded and the user may re-start the operation and feed the calculator with the correct number by depressing the adequate keys.
When a large number of games has been concluded, say thirty games, and all the numbers corresponding to the winning numbers have been recorded in the calculator, the display 8 is filled and shows the latest thirty winning numbers. On the basis of this information the player may draw his conclusions regarding what number ur numbers is or are likely to be the winning ones in the immediately following game.
Depression of the button 11 results in indication of the squares 5 of the inner circle opposite the digits corresponding to the numbers which are visible in the display 8, said indication being for instance in the form of illumination of the relevant squares 5. Simultaneously, the corresponding numbers in the display 3 are indicated by illumination of the corresponding numbered squares 4. In this way the player receives a good over-all picture of in which sections of respectively the roulette wheel and the tableau that the latest thirty winning numbers have occurred.
Depression of the button 12 provides information in the squares 6 of the circle externally of the circle of number squares 2 in the form of digits representing the number of times the associated number has been the winning one during the total of the games recorded and stored in the calculator.
The same information simultaneously appears in display 3 by illumination of the squares of all winning numbers while at the same time the numbers 0-36 representing winning numbers are changed to digits indicating the number of times each number has won. As soon as the button 12 is no longer depressed the digital displays in the squares 6 disappear and the numbers 0-36 re-appear in the squares 4.
Thanks to these various arrangements an evaluation of the numbers most likely to be the winning ones in the future games can be made easily and rapidly. As regards the arrangement involving the button 12 and the squares 4 and 6 the information provided therefrom obviously becomes gradually more reliable as a basis for evalution of the outcome of the future games when a considerably larger number of games have been played, say 150 to 200 games.
The information provided in squares 5 and 6 is the most interesting and important one for the player who estimates his chances of winning on the basis of in which sector of the circle of numbered squares 2 that the winning numbers occur. This is particularly true for the player betting in accordance with the game-betting varieties known as "Great Series 0/2/3", "Small Series 5/8" and "0rphelins", each one of which relates to a sector on the roulette wheel comprising a series of numbered squares 2 located adjacent one another within that sector, as is illustrated in the drawing figure.
The information provided by the squares 4 is correspondingly highly important to the player who instead estimates his chances of winning on the basis of the occurrence of winning numbers on the tableau,for instance whether they occur within a particular Transversale pleine, i.e. as explained above, three consecutive numbers positioned transversely across the tableau, or within a particular carre, i.e. a quadrangle made up of four numbered squares 4 positioned adjacent one another on the tableau or within a Transversale simple, i.e. two rows of squares of three consecutive numbers each, positioned transversely across the tableau, and so on.
The calculator is a very efficient aid in that it makes it very easy for the player rapidly, in fact by simply depressing one or a few buttons: to receive extensive information on the tendency of the game of roulette in which he participates and he will have comparatively ample time at his disposal to decide which number or numbers he should place his bets on in the coming game or games.
In accordance with a further development of the calculator a further memory may be provided in which are stored the results from all games played over a longer period of time. With the aid of a separate push-button 14 positioned at the top left on the calculator and a further display 15 positioned at the top right the player can afterwards obtain information on all games that have been played over a period of time, say one day or one evening, this information becoming available in the display by recall of the winning numbers of all the games, one by one in succession. By recording manually on a chart or a table the numbers thus displayed the player is given ample time to study them and to form an idea of the outcome of the coming games at a particular gaming table. It is likewise possible to provide the calculator with a printer which upon depression of the push-button 14 gradually prints the winning numbers on a tape.
Instead of a separative switch to turn on the calculator it may be programmed to start only in response to the keying-in of a particular code on the keyboard, such as a certain series of digits, depression of the digit "0" a predetermined number of times, etcetera. The calculator may be switched off in the same manner.
The calculator in accordance with the invention is not limited to the embodiment as described herein and illustrated in the drawing but a number of modifications are possible within the scope of the appended claims. The indication of the numbered squares 2 and 4 as well as of squares 5 could be effected otherwise than by illumination. For instance, the indication could be effected by symbols of some kind in the form of e.g. liquid crystals appearing in the appropriate squares in response to depression of the buttons intended to provide the desired indication. Likewise it is possible to obtain distinguishing indication of a particular number in the respect that if the number in question happens to have turned out to be the winning one an unusually large number of times in the course of a comparatively small number of games the associated square displays this fact by means of a pulsed light or a pulsating-light symbol.
In a simplified version compared with the one described, the calculator in accordance with the invention may be used to play the game of roulette as a pastime entertainment. In this case only the circle comprising the numbered squares 2 and the inner circle comprising the empty squares 5 and for instance the button 11 are used. With the aid of electronic equipment depression of the button 11 may cause the squares 5 to be illuminated and turned off in a comparatively rapid sequence several times around the circle to simulate the rotation of the ball spinning around an actual roulette wheel. At the same time the numbered squares 2 are illuminated and turned off in a corresponding manner one by one in succession but in the opposite direction in order to simulate the spinning of the roulette wheel. The "rotation" of the circle of squares 5 as well as the circle of numbered squares 2 is thereafter stopped at random, possibly after deceleration of the speed of "rotation" in such a way that a chance square 5 and the numbered square 2 positioned opposite are illuminated by a steady light, which thus indicates that this is the winning number. This application of the invention requires the use of a separate large-size tableau and of chips, or jetons allowing the players to place their bets as the game progresses.

Claims

1. A calculator for recording and displaying winning numbers in roulette, characterized therein that it is provided with one or several displays (1, 3) in the form of a series of squares (2, 4) showing the numbers of the roulette game, and with a keyboard (10) by means of which said numbers may be fed into the calculator, said calculator being so arranged that when a number is thus fed into the calculator said number is stored in a memory provided in said calculator while at the same time said number is indicated in the display/displays (1, 3), preferably by illumination of the squares (2, 4) within which the corresponding number is positioned.

2. A calculator as claimed in claim 1, characterized therein that one of the displays is the first display (1) comprising the numbered squares (2) arranged in a circle in a manner simulating the numbers appearing on the face of a roulette wheel and in that the calculator additionally comprises a second display (3) comprising rows of numbered squares (4) simulating the tableau of the game of roulette, and in that when a number is fed into the calculator the corresponding number is indicated simultaneously in the two displays (1, 3), preferably by illumination of the respective one of the squares (2, 4), within which the corresponding number is positioned.

3. A calculator as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized therein that the first display comprises a second circle of empty squares (5), said circle being concentric with and positioned internally of the circle of numbered squares (2), each square (5) of said inner circle located opposite a numbered square (2), and in that the calculator is provided with a first button (11), said button, when depressed, causing indication both of those of the squares (4) of the second display (3) and of those of the empty squares (5), positioned opposite the corresponding number of squares (2), which represent the numbers which during a predetermined number of immediately preceding games have turned out to be the winning ones.

4. A calculator as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized therein that the first display (1) comprises an outer circle of empty squares (6) which is concentric with the circle of numbered squares (2) and is located externally thereof, each one of said empty squares (6) positioned opposite a numbered square (2), and in that the calculator is provided with a second button (12), said button, when depressed, causing indi- dicetion both of a number of squares (4) in the second display (₃) and of a number of empty squares (6) positioned opposite the corresponding number of numbered squares (2), said indication being in the form of a digit representing the number of times out of the total of numbers which have been fed into and stored in the calculator during the course of the game the number positioned in the respective one of the squares (4) in the second display (3) and in the respective one of the numbered squares (2) has been the winning number.

5. A calculator as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized therein that it is provided with a third display (7) showing a number representing the number of games recorded and stored in said calculator.

6. A calculator as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized therein that it is provided with a fourth display (8) which in the form of a chart shows the winning numbers during a predetermined number of immediately preceding games, any number additionally registered and stored in the calculator appearing at one side of said chart while the first number of the predetermined number of games registered and stored in the calculator disappears at the opposite side of the chart whereas all numbers between said last and said first numbers are advanced in the chart by one step.

7. A calculator as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized therein that it is switched on by a code being keyed-in on the keyboard (10).

8. A calculator as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized therein that it is provided with a third button (13), said button, when depressed, serving to register in the calculator the number keyed-in on the keys of the keyboard (10) and to indicate said number on the various displays (1, 3, 7, 8).

9. A calculator as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized therein that it is provided with an extra memory in which is successively stored the winning numbers from two or more game sessions, and also with a fourth button (14) and a fifth display (15) and in that when said fourth button (14) is depressed one number at a time representing the winning numbers appears one by one in sequence on said fifth display (15).

10. A calculator as claimed in claim 9, characterized therein that it is provided with a printer arranged, when the fourth button (14) is depressed, to print the winning numbers in sequential order on a tape.

11. A calculator as claimed in claim 3, characterized therein that it comprises electronic components, said components, upon depression of a button (11), causing illumination and switching-off of the squares (5) of the inner circle in sequence for the purpose of creating artificial rotation in one direction and at the Sdme time similarly illumination and switching-off of the numbered squares (2) for the purpose of creating artificial rotation in the opposite direction, and after a period of time of random length, interruption of the artificial rotation of said squares (5) of the inner circle and of said numbered squares (2) and indication of the winning numbers by steady illumination of an arbitrary square (5) of the inner circle and of the numbered square (2) positioned opposite said illuminated square (5) of the inner circle.