JP2000279622A - Granule separator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the separation performance of granules from game media by providing a game media passage opening downward at the downstream of the outlet of a polishing device that polishes while mixedly agitated with granules smaller than the game media and providing a vibration provision means that provides vibration to the passage. SOLUTION: By the rotation of a spiral 12, pachinko game balls (hereinafter called 'balls') that are transported upward while being polished by being mixed with pellets 16 and agitated are discharged onto a ball passage from the outlet 14 of a lift sending pipe 11. Some of the pellets discharged from the outlet 14 together with the balls drop into a hopper 18 through gaps of a plurality of rail members 20 and returned to the lift sending pipe 11 through a hose 19. On this occasion, with the vertical movement of the moving shaft 27 of an electromagnetic solenoid 26, a butting plate 28 contacts the upper ends of separators 24 in which holds allowing the passage of the balls are formed, and vibrates the rail members 20, and surely drops off the pellets 16 adhering to the surfaces of the balls into the hopper 18.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention mainly relates to a game medium polished by a polishing device provided on a game island stand in which a plurality of game machines are arranged, and a granular material mixed and stirred with the game medium. The present invention relates to a granular material separation device for separating the particles.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a pachinko ball used in a pachinko island stand in which a plurality of pachinko machines as a game machine are arranged in a row has been used for a long period of time. Many. Leaving the dirty pachinko balls in the pachinko island stand and refluxing them may not only cause discomfort to the player, but also a transfer tube for transferring the pachinko balls and a lifting device for lifting the pachinko balls. For example, there is a possibility that foreign matter adhering to the pachinko balls may be mixed into various devices and cause clogging or failure of the devices.

Therefore, as disclosed in, for example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-25664, a spiral coil is inserted into a hollow lifting pipe, and a pachinko ball in the lifting pipe and a pump for polishing the pachinko ball are ground. In many cases, a paving machine and the like are provided in the pachinko island stand by stirring and mixing the granular material mixed in the feeding pipe with the rotation of the helical coil, thereby feeding the pachinko balls while polishing.

A discharge port formed at the upper part of the lifting pipe of such a lifting and polishing apparatus is provided with a ball-shaped ball passage as a separating device, and the pachinko balls discharged from the discharge port are used for this ball. By passing through the passage, only the granular material discharged together with the pachinko balls is dropped downward, and the pachinko balls and the granular materials are separated.

[0005]

However, when the particulate matter adheres to the pachinko ball due to factors such as static electricity generated at the time of mixing and stirring, the pachinko ball can be reliably removed from the pachinko ball simply by passing the ball through the ball path. In some cases, the ball was not released and flowed down with the pachinko balls. In such a case, the particulates are mixed with the pachinko balls into the transfer pipe or the apparatus on the downstream side, and the particulates cause clogging of the apparatus and failure of the apparatus.

Therefore, the pachinko balls are passed through a ball path made of a conductive member appropriately grounded to remove electricity from the pachinko balls, or by providing an electrostatic eliminator or the like in a separation device, thereby forming pellets into pachinko balls. Although a method of preventing adhesion is conceivable, in the former case, the surface of the pachinko ball passing over the ball path is coated with resin due to mixing and stirring with resin pellets, so that the pachinko ball is used. There has been a problem that the ball and the ball passage are in a non-conductive state, and the charge cannot be removed properly. In the latter case, there are problems that not only the structure becomes complicated but also the device itself becomes expensive.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for separating a granular material capable of reliably separating a game medium and a granular material for polishing the game medium. The purpose is to provide.

[0008]

According to the present invention, there is provided a granular material separating apparatus for polishing a game medium used in playing a game with a gaming machine while mixing and stirring the same with a smaller granular material than the game medium. Downstream of the discharge port in the polishing device for the game medium, a game medium passage opening downward is provided so as to be able to move the game medium, and vibration applying means for applying vibration to the game medium passage is provided. It is characterized by having. According to this feature, when the game medium path is vibrated by the vibration applying means, the vibration is transmitted to the game medium flowing down on the game medium path, and the vibration causes the granular material adhered to the surface of the game medium due to a factor such as static electricity. Is shaken off from the game medium.

In the granular material separating apparatus according to the present invention, it is preferable that the vibration applying means applies vertical vibration to the game medium passage. In this way, in addition to vibration,
The granular material is reliably shaken off from the game medium by the impact when the game medium on the game medium path jumps up due to vibration and falls on the game medium path.

In the granular material separating apparatus according to the present invention, it is preferable that a part of the members forming the game medium passage is supported in an unfixed state. In this way, the game medium path can be vibrated greatly, so that the vibration can be reliably transmitted to the game medium.

In the granular material separating apparatus according to the present invention, the game medium passage is pivotally supported so as to be swingable about a horizontal axis, and a vibration is applied to one end of the game medium passage in a longitudinal direction. Preferably, the means is provided so as to be accessible. With this configuration, the end of the game medium passage swings up and down by bringing the vibration imparting means into contact with the game medium passage, so that the game medium passage can be vibrated with a simple structure.

In the granular material separating apparatus according to the present invention, a separating plate having a hole slightly larger than an outer shape of the game medium is provided in the game medium passage, and the game medium passes through the hole. It is preferred that With this configuration, even when the vibration is not properly transmitted to the game medium passage due to a failure or the like of the vibration applying unit,
When the game medium passes through the hole of the separation plate, it comes into contact with the peripheral edge of the hole to restrict the passage of the hole, so that the game medium is reliably separated from the game medium.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, FIG. 1 shows a main part of a pachinko island stand 1 as a game island stand to which the present invention is applied. ,
Reference numeral 2 denotes a pachinko machine as a gaming machine arranged in a pachinko island stand 1, and 3 denotes an upper tank for storing pachinko balls as a spherical game medium used in each pachinko machine 2 at an upper portion of the pachinko island stand 1, 4. Denotes lower tanks for collecting and storing pachinko balls discharged from each pachinko machine 2.

The pachinko balls stored in the upper tank 3 are separated from a main flow gutter 5 arranged in the longitudinal direction of the pachinko island stand 1.
The supply chute 6 is provided at regular intervals in the main flow gutter 5, passes through the supply bellows 7 extending from the lower end of the supply chute 6 to each pachinko machine 2, and passes through a supply counter (not shown). It is supplied to the pachinko machine 2.

Pachinko balls discharged from each pachinko machine 2 as out-balls are discharged through an out-ball counter 8 into a lower tank 4 laid in a longitudinal direction below the pachinko island stand 1. ing. The pachinko balls stored in the lower tank 4 are collected in a lifting device 9 as a transfer device for lifting into the upper tank 3, transferred upward by the lifting device 9, and then again in the upper tank 3. An appropriate amount of pachinko balls is reduced.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the lifting apparatus 9 mainly includes a lifting pipe 11 extending from the lower part to the upper part of the pachinko island stand 1, an upper end of the lifting pipe 11, It is composed of spiral bodies 12, 12 'fitted respectively from the lower ends, and driving devices 13, 13' for rotating these spiral bodies 12, 12 ', respectively. This lifting pipe 11
An opening (not shown) is formed in the lower part of the box, through which pachinko balls collected from the lower tank 4 flow. Further, a discharge port 14 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 is formed in the upper part of the discharge pipe 11, and the pachinko balls discharged from the discharge port 14 flow down in a separation device 15 described later. It is supplied to the upper tank 3. As described above, the pachinko balls are circulated in the pachinko island 1 through various transfer paths.

The lifting pipe 11 of the lifting device 9 in this embodiment.
Inside, together with the pachinko balls, pellets 16 (granules) as abrasives smaller than the pachinko balls are mixed, so that the pachinko balls are transported upward by the rotation of the spirals 12 and 12 ′, By mixing and stirring with the pellets 16, dust and dirt attached to the surface are polished by the pellets 16. As described above, the lifting device 9 according to the present embodiment also has a function as a pachinko ball polishing device.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the separating device 15 transfers the pachinko balls discharged from the discharge port 14 into the upper tank 3 and pellets 16 discharged from the discharge port 14 together with the pachinko balls. A ball-shaped ball passage 17 for dropping the ball, and a hopper 18 for collecting pellets 16 is provided below the ball passage 17. At the lower end of the hopper 18, a hose 19 communicating with a predetermined portion of a lower portion of the lifting pipe 11 is hung, and the collected pellets 16 are returned into the lifting pipe 11.

As shown in FIG. 2, the ball passage 17 has a plurality of rail members 20 inclined downward from the discharge port 14 toward the downstream side so as to be separated from each other by a predetermined width in the left-right direction as shown in FIG. And are provided in the shape of a cage that opens downward. Since the width L1 between the adjacent rail members 20, 20 is at least larger than the outer shape of the pellet 16 and smaller than the outer diameter width L2 of the pachinko balls, the left and right rail members 20 adjacent to the pachinko balls are required. , 20 without falling, and only the pellets 16 smaller than the pachinko balls are dropped.

The width L3 of the rail member 20 is such that a width L4 larger than at least the pellets 16 can be formed between adjacent pachinko balls. Accordingly, adjacent left and right pachinko balls do not come close to each other, and a gap is formed between these pachinko balls so that the pellet 16 can be dropped.

The ball passage 17 is not limited to the one formed by the rail member 20 as described above, but is opened downward so that the pachinko ball cannot be dropped and only the pellet 16 can be dropped. If it is
For example, it may be a ball passage made of a plate material having a plurality of holes of a predetermined size. Further, in the present embodiment, the rail member 20 is provided so as to be inclined toward the downstream side, and the pachinko balls are moved on the ball passage 17 by natural flow, but the power is appropriately adjusted without inclining the rail member 20. It may be transferred by using a ball path, and the form of the ball path is not limited as long as only the pachinko balls can move.

As shown in FIG. 3, the rail member 20 on which the separation plate 24 is fixed as described above has ball passages 17 at both ends.
The upstream end portion and the downstream end portion are provided so as to swing vertically about a horizontal shaft 31 pivotally attached to a side plate 32 constituting the side surface. The horizontal shaft 31 is provided at a position slightly upstream from a substantially central position in the longitudinal direction of the rail member 20.

An electromagnetic solenoid 2 as a vibration applying means is provided above the uppermost separation plate 24 in the side plate 32.
The contact plate 28 attached to the tip of the moving shaft 27 can contact the upper end surface of the separation plate 24 at the most upstream position when the moving shaft 27 moves downward. It is provided in. Therefore, the moving shaft 27 moves downward,
When the upper end of the separation plate 24 is pressed downward by the contact plate 28, the upstream end and the downstream end of the rail member 20 swing vertically about the horizontal shaft 31. . Note that the electromagnetic solenoid 26 in this embodiment is set so that the moving shaft 27 repeats up and down movement five times per second in conjunction with driving of the spiral body 12.

The operation of the separating device 17 constructed as described above will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3. The rotation of the spiral body 12 causes the pachinko balls to be conveyed upward while being polished by being mixed and stirred with the pellets 16. Is discharged onto the ball passage 17 from the discharge port 14 of the lifting pipe 11. A part of the pellets 16 discharged from the discharge port 14 together with the pachinko balls falls into the hopper 18 from between the plurality of rail members 20 and is returned to the lifting device 11 via the hose 19.

The vibration generated in the rail member 20 is transmitted to the pachinko balls flowing down on the rail member 20 by the contact plate 28 contacting the upper end of the separation plate 24 by the vertical movement of the moving shaft 27 of the electromagnetic solenoid 26. As a result, the pellets 1 adhered to the surface due to factors such as static electricity due to this vibration.
6 is dropped into the hopper 18.

The contact between the contact plate 28 and the separation plate 24 causes the upstream end and the downstream end of the rail member 20 to swing up and down about the horizontal shaft 31, thereby further increasing vibration. Since the pachinko balls are effectively transmitted to the pachinko balls and the pachinko balls repeatedly collide with the rail member 20, the pellets 16 are reliably shaken down by the impact.

Further, the pachinko balls are inserted into the round holes 23 of the separation plate 24.
When passing through the inside, the pellets 16 are securely separated from the pachinko balls by contacting the peripheral edge of the round hole 23, fall into the hopper 18, and pass through the round holes 23 of the plurality of separation plates 24. Each time, the pellets 16 are surely separated from the pachinko balls.

More specifically, the plurality of separation plates 24
If the separation distance between the pachinko balls is made different from each other, the contact phase between the surface of the pachinko ball flowing down while rolling on the rail member 20 and the peripheral edge of the round hole 23 in each separation plate 24 is different. The pellets 16 adhered to the peripheral surface of the ball can be separated without fail.

As described above, by causing the pachinko balls to flow down on the vibrating ball passage 17, the pellets 16 can be reliably prevented from entering various devices downstream of the pachinko balls. Is less likely to occur. The pachinko balls that have passed through the separation plate 24 are supplied into the upper tank 3.

Each element in the above embodiment corresponds to the present invention as follows.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, a spherical game medium (pachinko ball) used in a game is polished with a granule (pellet 16) smaller than the game medium (pachinko ball) while mixing and stirring. Downstream of the discharge port (14) in the polishing device (lifting device 9) of the game medium (pachinko ball), a game medium passage (ball passage 17) that opens downward allows the game medium (pachinko ball) to move. In addition, a vibration applying means (electromagnetic solenoid 26) for applying vibration to the game medium passage (ball passage 17) is provided.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the vibration applying means (electromagnetic solenoid 26) applies vertical vibration to the game medium passage (ball passage 17).

According to a third aspect of the present invention, some members forming the game medium passage (ball passage 17) are supported in an unfixed state.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the game medium passage (ball passage 17) is rotatably supported about a horizontal shaft (31), and the game medium passage (ball passage 17).
A vibration imparting means (electromagnetic solenoid 26) is provided so as to be in contact with any one end in the longitudinal direction.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a separation plate (2) in which a hole (23) slightly larger than the outer shape of the game medium (pachinko ball) is formed in the game medium path (ball path 17).
4) is provided so that the game medium (pachinko ball) passes through the inside of the hole.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and even if there are changes and additions without departing from the gist of the present invention. Included in the invention.

For example, "game media" in the claims of the present invention
Corresponds to a pachinko ball in the embodiment, but is not limited to such a spherical game medium, but also includes a thin small piece medium such as a coin.

The "vibration imparting means" in the claims of the present invention may be any one which imparts vibration to the game medium passage.
The electromagnetic solenoid 26 or the like is not limited to a device that applies an impact to the game medium passage to vibrate, but also includes a unit that transmits its own vibration to the game medium passage using, for example, a vibrator.

Although the rail member 20 in this embodiment is provided so that both ends swing vertically about the horizontal shaft 31, the horizontal shaft 31 can be moved either upstream or downstream of the rail member 20. It may be provided near one end and provided so that only the other end swings. Alternatively, the vibration may be applied in a state where the entire rail member 20 is immovably fixed.

The ball passage 17 is not limited to the vertical direction,
It is also conceivable to apply vibration in the left-right direction.

In this embodiment, the electromagnetic solenoid 26
The contact plate 28 attached to the tip of the moving shaft 27 is provided so as to contact the upper end of the separation plate 24 when the moving shaft 27 moves downward. It may be connected to the plate 24. Further, the contact plate 28 may be provided so as to be able to directly contact the rail member 20, or the moving shaft 27 may be directly connected to the rail member 20.

[0042]

The present invention has the following effects.

(A) According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the game medium path vibrates by the vibration applying means, the vibration is transmitted to the game medium flowing down on the game medium path, and the vibration causes the game to occur due to factors such as static electricity. The particulate matter attached to the surface of the medium is shaken off the game medium.

(B) According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the vibration, the game medium on the game medium passage bounces up due to the vibration and the impact when the game medium falls on the game medium passage causes the granular material to be formed. It is surely shaken off the game media.

(C) According to the invention of claim 3, since the game medium passage can be vibrated greatly, the vibration can be transmitted to the game medium reliably.

(D) According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the end of the game medium passage swings up and down by bringing the vibration imparting means into contact with the game medium passage, so that the game medium passage has a simple structure. Can be vibrated.

(E) According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, even when the vibration is not well transmitted to the game medium passage due to a failure of the vibration imparting means, the game medium passes through the hole of the separation plate. As a result, the passage of the hole portion is restricted by contacting the peripheral edge portion of the hole portion, so that the hole is reliably separated from the game medium.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a main part front view showing a pachinko island stand to which an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a separation device provided in the pachinko island stand of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic sectional view showing a main part of the separation device of FIG.

FIG. 4 is an AA end view of FIG. 3;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pachinko island stand 2 Pachinko machine 3 Upper tank 4 Lower tank 5 Main flow gutter 6 Supply chute 7 Supply bellows 8 Out ball counter 9 Lifting device 11 Lifting pipe 12, 12 'Spiral body 13, 13' Drive device 14 Discharge port 15 Separation Apparatus 16 Pellet 17 Ball passage 18 Hopper 19 Hose 20 Rail member 23 Round hole 24 Separator 26 Electromagnetic solenoid 27 Moving shaft 28 Contact plate 31 Horizontal shaft 32 Side plate

Claims (5)

[Claims] Claims: 1. A game medium used when playing a game in a game machine, which is polished while mixing and stirring with a granular material smaller than the game medium, downstream of an outlet in a polishing apparatus for the game medium, A granular medium separating device, characterized in that a game medium passage that opens downward is provided so as to move the game medium, and a vibration imparting unit that imparts vibration to the game medium passage is provided. 2. The granular material separating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the vibration applying means applies vertical vibration to the game medium passage. 3. The granular material separating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a part of the members forming the game medium passage is supported in a non-fixed state. 4. The game medium passage is pivotally supported so as to be swingable about a horizontal axis, and a vibration imparting means is provided so as to be able to contact one end of the game medium passage in a longitudinal direction. The granular material separating apparatus according to claim 3. 5. A separation plate having a hole slightly larger than the outer shape of the game medium is provided in the game medium passage, so that the game medium passes through the hole. 5. The granular material separation device according to any one of items 1 to 4.