Darrell Ratliff, the developer of the innovative Smart Chip Tray, continues his efforts to cement his product as a staple at casinos despite all the difficulties he continues facing. A former US Marine, Ratliff hopes to leverage his product to eliminate cheating at casinos while reducing costs for gambling properties.
The Smart Chip Tray uses cutting-edge technology to count the chips inside it, eliminating the need to stop for tray counts. It also has a manual dropbox counter that calculates the number of the dropbox total. The tray can also be synchronized with electronic bill counters.
Ratliff’s game-changing product allows casinos to better monitor their tables and detect possible instances of fraud or cheating.
Unfortunately, Ratliff continues to struggle to get his product to market. He ended a relationship with an investment company after it told potential buyers that Ratliff wasn’t to be addressed during negotiations and later canceled an agreement with an engineering firm that was able to produce the trays. He also declined an agreement with a manufacturer that proposed selling the tray instead of leasing it.
Adding to Ratliff’s woes, he was eventually diagnosed with cancer, further jeopardizing his plans. Luckily, the man is now in remission and already making plans to push his product forward.
Ratliff Hopes to Help Casino Operators
As reported by CDC Gaming Reports, Ratliff eventually found out that another company had released a product that was eerily similar to his own. Even though Ratliff piously promised to God not to become arrogant and allow money to guide him, he still got angry when he learned that someone had stolen his patented technology.
Despite all hardship, however, the innovator is unwilling to give up and will continue pushing forward.
Justin Woodward, the chief revenue officer of Red Rock 1, tried to help Ratliff with advice and also introduced him to a patent attorney. He praised Ratliff’s ambition and said that he admired his efforts to break into the world of casino gaming. However, Woodward also acknowledged that breaking into the world of gambling from the outside can be very hard.
In any case, Ratliff continues to be driven by his confidence that his product can revolutionize gaming tables across the casino industry. While not greedy, he said that he hopes to find someone who is “willing to be truthful and honorable” and interested in taking the Smart Chip Tray to the market.