The Bridge Butler is still under development !
UKUSA is a small, private company and we are still refining the product for it's final availability. The owners of UKUSA however are financially well secured and have a host of hardware a software development skills along with an obsession in Bridge.
The illustrations and features outlined in these pages should not be taken as representative of the final product and have been provided here to provide some information to the numerous enquiries we are already receiving. We welcome approaches from anyone who might wish to make suggestions on features and also software developers or indeed manufacturing companies who might assist in our product.
Availability
I currently have built two complete systems each of 15 Butlers and they are undergoing continual ' user interface ' improvements along with the inevitable bug fixes at the local clubs at which I play - can anyone really go 13 down in a contract !
Shortly I shall build a few more complete systems for testing in other clubs. Inevitably the build cost ( & time ) in these small quantities is relatively high but if you are interested in being involved as a Beta club, please let me know.
I hope to present the product at the Computer Forum at this years EBU Brighton Congress and also possibly to exhibit the product generally there. General availability is anticipated during Q4 of this year.
Pricing
As always there is a trade off between features and cost. The useability of the product is at its' best using the two-way radio communication - but at a cost.
I am aiming for a target price of $150 per Butler, and $250 for a Master and the associated software. This would give an overall price for say a typical nine table club of $1600 or just about £1000. Some software options might be extra. I think we might even beat this price.
There are alternative solutions. Infra red bi directional communication, IRDA, single directional communication using infra red or radio or, lowest cost of all, a simple cable. Using some of these it would be more than possible to half the cost of the Butler units but it would become a poor mans solution. Indeed there are other products available that meet some of these needs but they have not provided a compelling case for adoption. I believe that two-way radio is the only acceptable solution.
Futures
The basic design of Bridge Butler has laid the foundation for it's use in many other applications as well. Perhaps the most exciting is when the product is used in an event where the dealt hand information is available on the host PC. This is frequent in events using pre-duplicated hands either simultaneous, Swiss or via a dealing machine like Duplimate.
In such an environment it would be possible to use the Butler devices as 'advisors' for example on bidding or leading.
In more complex adaptions the Butlers could even become players in an event. This would allow clubs always to find a partner for someone ( and one that doesn't get cross ! ) or even to field a Butler pair that could eliminate sit-outs for ever ! The implementation here is a problem of mechanics rather than technology. A satisfactory mechanism has to be found to manage the play of the cards in a way that is easy and harmonious with the club. I have some ideas and even the glimmers of a new product here but that's another story. If you are interested please contact me.
These adaptions would work in conjunction with the computer based Bridge bidding or playing programs already widely available. Indeed the program concerned would then achieve a ranking in a club as an individual. It could become very competitive. Avoiding the mechanics altogether a club could field opposing computer players that transparently played all the hands against each other and were scored in the overall field. A real measure for the performance of these programs as they would be continually rated against the club standards.