EP-4741026-A2 - CAGE SYSTEM, AND CHIP MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Abstract

A cage (10) is divided into a plurality of locations, including a cashier room (14). The gaming chip (70) has an RFID tag (71) storing a chip ID. The cage system (501) that manages the movement of the gaming chips within the cage (10) of the casino hall (1) comprises: a chip reader (123) that reads a chip ID from an RFID tag (71) of a gaming chip (70) moving between multiple locations within the cage (10); a chip reader (133, 143) that reads the chip ID from the RFID tag (71) of the gaming chips (70) that exit the cage (10) to the casino hall (1); and a chip management database (101) that records the chip IDs read by the chip reader (123, 133, 143) as the movement history of the gaming chips (70).

Inventors

• SHIGETA, YASUSHI

Assignees

• ANGEL GROUP CO., LTD.

Dates

Publication Date

20260513

Application Date

20210608

Claims (14)

1. A cage system for managing movement of gaming chips within a cage in a casino hall, the gaming chips each have an RFID tag that store a chip ID of the gaming chip, the cage system comprising: a first reading device configured to read a chip ID from an RFID tag of a gaming chip moving between a plurality of locations; a second reading device configured to read the chip ID of the gaming chip leaving the cage into the casino hall; and a recording device configured to record the chip IDs read by the first and second reading devices as a movement history of the gaming chip, wherein the cage is divided into the plurality of locations including a cashier, and wherein the recording device is configured to record the movement history of the gaming chip in a database.
2. The cage system according to claim 1, wherein the recording device is configured to record a destination and/or a source of movement of the gaming chip together with the chip ID in the movement history.
3. The cage system according to claim 1, further comprising a management device configured to determine whether a movement of the gaming chip is appropriate based on the movement history.
4. The cage system according to claim 3, wherein the management device is configured to record, in the recording device, information that indicates that the gaming chip with the movement history that does not conform to one or more predetermined movement history possibilities is fraudulent or suspected of being fraudulent.
5. The cage system according to claim 1, further comprising a third reading device configured to read the chip ID from the RFID tag of the gaming chip entering the cage from the casino hall.
6. The cage system according to claim 3, wherein the management device is configured to issue an alert or record a destination based on the gaming chip not being received at the destination in the case where the destination is recorded in the movement history of the gaming chip leaving the casino hall.
7. The cage system according to claim 6, wherein the management device is configured to issue an alert or record an alert based on the gaming chip not being received at the destination within a predetermined time.
8. A chip management system, comprising: a cage system according to claim 1; and a fourth reading device installed at a game table and configured to read the chip ID from the RFID tag of the gaming chip.
9. The chip management system according to claim 3, wherein the management device is configured to calculate a total amount of gaming chips possessed by a player in the casino hall.
10. The chip management system according to claim 3, wherein the management device is configured to record date and time information in the movement history.
11. The chip management system according to claim 10, wherein the management device is configured to detect suspicious movement of the gaming chip based on the date and time information.
12. The chip management system according to claim 3, wherein the management device is configured to record information associated with a staff member involved in the movement in the movement history.
13. The cage system according to claim 1, further comprising a management device configured to investigate the gaming chip going out of the cage from inside the cage.
14. The cage system according to claim 1, further comprising a management device configured to determine, for the gaming chip to be used at a game table, whether the movement history has a history indicating that the gaming chip used to be in the cage by referring to the database.

Description

Cross-reference to Related Applications This application claims the benefit of Patent Application No. 2020-102729 filed in Japan on June 12, 2020, the contents of which application are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field The present invention relates to a cage system for managing gaming chips in cages in casinos and a chip management system including the cage system. Background Art As a system for managing gaming chips in casinos, a gaming chip tracing system is known that monitors which user has which gaming chip by embedding an RFID tag that stores at least a gaming chip ID in the gaming chip and associating the gaming chip ID with a user ID. Also known is a gaming chip security system that stores valid gaming chip IDs in a database and determines the validity or authenticity of a gaming chip by reading the gaming chip ID from the RFID tag of the gaming chip in the casino (e.g., at a table) and checking it against the database (see, for example, Patent Publication No. JP2019-5565). Summary of Invention Gaming chips are brought into the casino through a cage inside the casino, and gaming chips to be disposed of are also taken out of the cage. Conventional gaming chip tracing systems do not necessarily monitor all movements of gaming chips within the casino, including the movement of gaming chips inside the cage and between the cage and each location in the casino. Therefore, the present invention provides a cage system for monitoring the movement of gaming chips in the cage and between the cage and each location in the casino, and a gaming chip management system that includes the cage system and manages gaming chips in the casino. A cage system of the present invention is a cage system for managing movement of gaming chips within a cage in a casino hall, wherein the cage being divided into a plurality of locations including a cashier, and the gaming chips have an RFID tag that stores an ID, the cage system comprises: a first reading device configured to read the chip ID from the RFID tag of the gaming chip moving between the plurality of locations; a second reading device configured to read the chip ID of the gaming chip leaving the cage into the casino hall; and a recording device configured to record the chip IDs read by the first and second reading device as the movement history of the gaming chips. This configuration enables the movement of gaming chips in the cage to be managed. In the cage system described above, the recording device may record the destination and/or the source of the movement together with the chip ID in the movement history. This configuration allows the user to ascertain whether the movement is being performed accurately. The cage system described above may be further provided with management device configured to determine whether the movement is appropriate based on the movement history. This configuration allows for the detection of inappropriate moves. In the cage system described above, the management device may record, in the recording device, the fact that a gaming chip with a movement history that does not conform to the predetermined movement history possibilities is fraudulent or suspected of being fraudulent. The cage system described above may further comprise a third reading device configured to read the chip ID from the RFID tag of the gaming chip entering the cage from the casino hall. This configuration allows for complete control of the gaming chips in the cage. In the cage system described above, the management device may issue an alert or record a destination when the gaming chips are not received at the destination in the case where the destination is recorded in the movement history of the gaming chips leaving the casino hall. This configuration allows detection that the transfer from the cage to a predetermined location in the casino hall was not completed successfully. In the cage system described above, the management device may issue an alert or record an alert when the gaming chips are not received at the destination within a predetermined time. With this configuration, it can be determined that there is an abnormality when the transfer is not completed within the predetermined time. A chip management system in an aspect of the present invention comprises: a cage system of any of the above; and a fourth reading device installed at a game table and configured to read the chip ID from the RFID tag of the gaming chip. This configuration enables management of gaming chips in a casino hall including cages. In the above chip management system, the management device may calculate the total amount of gaming chips possessed by players in the casino hall. This configuration allows for real-time total casino debt. In the above chip management system, the management device may record date and time information in the movement history. This configuration allows the movement history to be recorded in more detail. In the above chip management system, the man