JP2001062051A - Game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game machine capable of preventing fatigue even at the time of holding a handle at a fixed position for a long time and placing an operation hand at an original position again even at the time of tentatively releasing the operation hand from a turning member when it is only for a short time. SOLUTION: On a front surface facing a played side in a pachinko machine main body, a handle main body 11 constituted of a handle base part 16 and a cap part is fixed. Between the handle base part 16 and the cap part 15, a handle ring 12 is turnably disposed. The holding part 17 of the cap part is deformed corresponding to the inner surface shape of the operation hand of a player and is formed of polyurethane rubber for keeping the deformed state for some time even at the time of tentatively releasing a hand from an abutting body.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a gaming machine for playing a game by launching a gaming ball such as a pachinko machine, and more particularly to a gaming machine characterized by a handle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A game machine such as a pachinko machine employs a game mode in which a game ball is fired from a game ball launching device onto a board by operating a handle. The speed of the game ball fired from the game ball launching device can be adjusted by operating the steering wheel, and operation of the handle properly leads to skill of the game, which is one of the interests of the pachinko game. Specifically, the firing speed is adjusted by adjusting the amount of rotation when the player rotates the handle ring as a rotating member with respect to the handle main body against the spring force. By slightly turning the handle ring, the ball force of the game ball becomes small and the firing speed becomes small, so that the game ball does not fly much. On the other hand, if the game ball is rotated greatly, the ball force of the game ball increases and the firing speed increases, and the game ball flies far. The player rotates the handle ring to adjust the firing speed of the game ball (actually, on the board, the player judges at the drop point where the player can easily enter the winning opening). It will lead the handle ring.

[0003]

By the way, when the handle ring is released, the handle ring returns to its original position, that is, a position where the game ball cannot be hit by the spring force. Therefore, once the player has successfully located the turning position of the handle ring where the game ball easily enters the winning opening, the player needs to hold the handle ring at that position without moving the handle ring. Are tired. In particular, the fingers and palms holding the handle ring are significantly fatigued.

[0004] Conventionally, illegal games in which a handle ring is pressed against a cap with a matching shaft or coin or other foreign matter sandwiched in a gap between the handle ring and the cap and the handle ring is fixed at a predetermined rotation position by friction are often seen. . This is because, for example, the player dislikes that he loses his operating hand and loses the optimal rotation position once set, for example, to go to the toilet or smoke tobacco. This is also to avoid the hassle that must be held for a long time without moving.
However, such fraudulent acts cause a failure of the pachinko machine and peeling of the plating of the handle ring due to the intrusion of foreign matter, and therefore, in general, care should be taken to stop immediately upon detection at the game arcade. Further, in a pachinko machine having a hold function, when the game ball is in the maximum hold state, it is useless to fire the game ball any more. Therefore, the firing of the game ball may be temporarily stopped to check the state of the board surface. In this case, since the operating hand must be released from the handle ring, the handle ring returns to the original position. For this reason, the player has to adjust the firing speed of the game ball again by turning the handle ring even though the player once finds the optimum turning position of the handle ring. The present invention has been made by paying attention to such problems existing in the conventional technology. The first object is to provide a gaming machine which is hard to be tired even if the steering wheel is held at a fixed position for a long time, and the second object is to provide a gaming machine which is short-time even if the operating hand is once released from the rotating member. It is another object of the present invention to provide a gaming machine in which an operation hand can be placed again at an original position.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the main body of the gaming machine is fixed to the front surface facing the player, and the inner surface of the operating hand of the player is A game from the game ball launching device according to the amount of rotation of the handle itself having a contacting body to be contacted and the game ball launching device built in the game machine body in conjunction with the turning itself. In a gaming machine provided with a handle having a rotating member for adjusting the firing speed of a ball, the gist of the invention is that a contact body of the handle body is formed of a flexible material. With this configuration, the player holds the rotating member at a predetermined position by rotating the gripping member while holding the inner surface of the operating hand in contact with the contact body of the handle body. At this time, the abutment body is formed of a flexible material, so that the abutment body is deformed according to the inner surface of the operator's hand, and is in contact with the operator's hand with elasticity. Is reduced.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the first aspect, the contact body of the handle main body is deformed according to the inner surface shape of the operating hand of the player, and the contact body is temporarily moved from the contact body. The gist is that the deformed state can be maintained for a while even if is released. With this configuration, in addition to the operation of the first aspect of the present invention, the handle returns to the original position when the hand is released from the handle for small use, but the contact body grips the rotating member. It is deformed according to the pressing force of the hand, and does not immediately return to the original stored shape. Therefore, if the operating hand is put in accordance with the deformed shape, the turning member can be held again at the turning position immediately before releasing the hand.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the abutting member is formed of a flexible material, the abutting member is deformed according to the inner surface of the operating hand, and is rotated at the same position for a long time because it abuts on the operating hand with elasticity. The fatigue of the operator holding the moving member will be reduced, and the player will be able to play the game more easily. The illegal act of preventing the rotating member from rotating by inserting the rotating member into the gap is also less likely to occur. Therefore, it is difficult for the gaming machine to fail due to the misconduct. According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the rotating member returns to the original position by once releasing the hand from the handle, but the contact body grips the rotating member. It is deformed according to the pressing force of the hand,
And it does not return to the original memorized shape immediately. Therefore, if the operating hand is put again according to the deformed shape, the turning member can be held again at the turning position immediately before releasing the turning member.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A pachinko machine according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the front direction refers to the direction facing the player when the pachinko machine is installed in the game hall. As shown in FIG.
The pachinko machine main body 1 has an outer frame 2. A game board (not shown) is detachably mounted in the outer frame 2. A front frame 3 is detachably mounted on the front surface of the outer frame 2. On the front surface of the front frame 3, a glass door 5 into which a substantially square transparent plate glass 4 is fitted is openably and closably mounted. On the front surface of the front frame 3 and below the glass door 5, an upper cover plate 6
Is installed. The upper cover plate 6 has an upper tray 7 projecting forward. A predetermined number of prize balls are paid out to the upper receiving tray 7 when a prize is won at a prize port (not shown). A lower cover plate 8 is mounted on the front surface of the front frame 3 and below the upper cover plate 6. The lower cover plate 8 has a lower tray 9 protruding forward. The lower tray 9 plays an auxiliary role of the upper tray 7. The handle 10 is on the right side of the lower tray 9.
Is installed.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 3 to 5, a handle 10 includes a handle body 11, a handle ring 12 as a rotating member, and a shaft 13. The handle body 11 includes a cap portion 15 and a handle base 16, and the handle base 16 is fixed to the lower cover plate 8. The handle ring 12 is disposed between the cap 15 and the handle base 16 and is relatively rotatable with respect to the cap 15 and the handle base 16. The shaft 13 made of a conductive metal is fixed to the handle ring 12 so as to be coaxial with the center of the handle ring 12 and rotates with the rotation of the handle ring 12. The base end of the shaft 13 is inserted into the lower cover plate 8 through the handle base 16 and is engaged with a game ball launching device 14 described later.

The handle 10 will be described in more detail. The cap 15 has a grip 17 made of urethane foam. The grip portion 17 is formed substantially in the shape of a bun and has a concave portion 18 at the top. Inside the grip 17, two insertion holes 19 communicating from the bottom of the recess 18 to the back of the grip 17 are formed. In this embodiment, the grip 1
Numeral 7 is made of urethane rubber which is a flexible foam material having shape maintaining characteristics. The grip portion 17 has a delayed recovery characteristic, and deforms slowly without responding immediately to the pressing force, and also slowly deforms when recovering the original shape. Therefore, even if the player grips the grip portion 17, the grip portion 17 is not immediately deformed according to the inner shape of the operating hand, and the operating hand is stopped at a predetermined position by rotating the handle ring 12. In the state, it slowly deforms according to the inner surface shape of the operating hand. The grip 17 is attached to an attachment plate 21 by an attachment cover 20. The mounting cover 20 made of ABS resin includes a cover body 22 also serving as an emblem and two fixed legs 23. A flange 25 having an inner peripheral curved surface corresponding to the curved surface shape of the periphery of the concave portion 18 of the grip portion 17 is formed on the outer periphery of the cover main body 22. Both fixed legs 23 of the mounting cover 20 are inserted into the insertion holes 19 of the grip portion 17, and the cover body 22 is fitted into the concave portion 18. The flange 25 covers the periphery of the recess 18. The fixing leg 23 is a mounting plate 21 disposed on the back side of the grip portion.
Are fixed by bolts 26. Mounting plate 2
Three bosses 28 for fixing the cap portion 15 to the handle base 16 are formed on the back surface of one.

The handle base 16 is made of ABS resin.
A cylindrical portion 30 and a table 31 formed in front of the cylindrical portion 30
It is composed of A flange 32 is formed on the periphery of the table 31 so as to protrude forward. Flange 3
Notch 32a is formed in a part of 2. Tube part 3
0 is an insertion hole 33 communicating from the bottom surface of the table 31 to the back surface.
The shaft 13 is inserted through the insertion hole 33.
Is inserted. A boss 28 formed on the back surface of the mounting plate 21 on the cap portion 15 side is provided on the table 31.
And three mounting cylinders 34 corresponding to the above are erected. A micro switch 35 and a stop button 36 are provided on the table 31. The micro switch 35 includes a switch body 37 and a sensor unit 38. The sensor unit 38 outputs a detection signal by detecting contact of the contact point with the sensor unit 38. The stop button 36 includes an operation unit 39, a pressing unit 40, and a claw 41. Operation unit 39
Is exposed to the outside through a notch 32a formed in the flange 32. Stop button 36 is on table 3
The bearing 45 is rotatably supported by a bearing 45 formed on the bearing 1. The pressing section 40 is a contact point to the sensor section 38.

A handle ring 12 is provided between the cap 15 and the handle base 16. The handle ring 12 is formed of ABS resin, and has a conductive metal plating on the entire surface. Handle ring 12 is outer ring part 4
6 and a shaft fixing plate 47.
The outer ring portion 46 has a double structure of an outer wall surface 48a and an inner wall portion 48b. A first finger hook projection 46a, a second finger hook projection 46b, and a third finger hook projection 46c are formed on the outer ring portion 46 so as to protrude outward. In the center of the shaft fixing plate 47, a fitting hole 49 cut out in a D-shaped section is provided.
Is formed, and the tip of the shaft 13 is fitted. As shown in FIG. 5, an outer wall surface 48a of the outer ring portion 46 is provided.
The flange 32 on the periphery of the table 31 on the handle base 16 side is fitted between the inner wall surface portion 48b and the inner wall surface portion 48b, and is guided by the wall surfaces 48a and 48b to rotate. Cap part 15
The boss 28 on the back surface of the mounting plate 21 on the side of the cap 15 is fitted to a mounting cylinder 34 formed on a table 31 on the side of the handle base 16, and the handle base 16 is connected to the handle base 16 by jointly tightening with bolts (not shown). I have.

The handle ring 12 and the handle base 1
6, a coil spring 43 and a contact plate 4
4 is provided in a state of being inserted through the shaft 13. The coil spring 43 and the contact plate 44 are formed from a conductive metal. As will be described later, the shooting ring is not allowed to be fired unless an operator's hand or the like touches the handle ring 12. Thus, the shaft 13, the coil spring 43 and the contact plate 4
The electric continuity is ensured via 4 to allow the launching of the game ball when the operator's hand or the like touches. Also,
By the urging force of the coil spring 43, the handle ring 12 and the shaft 13 are maintained in a steady position with respect to the cap portion 15 and the handle base 16 (the handle body 11), that is, the state in which the rotation amount of the handle ring 12 is zero.
Note that a collar 50 is provided between the contact plate 44 of the shaft 13 and the stop button 36. When the handle ring 12 is in the normal position, the pawl 41 of the stop button 36 is pushed by an engaging projection (not shown) on the handle ring 12 side, and as a result, the sensor 38 of the microswitch 35 pushes the stop button 36. Part 4
0 touches. Therefore, the micro switch 35 is turned on, and the firing of the game ball in this state is prohibited. When the handle ring 12 is rotated by the player, the engaging projection is separated from the claw 41 and the pressing portion 4 of the stop button 36 is pressed.
The pressing of 0 is released, and as a result, the sensor unit 38 of the microswitch 35 and the pressing unit 40 are not in contact with each other. Therefore, the micro switch 35 is turned off, and in this state, the launch of the game ball is permitted. Further, when the stop button 36 is pressed in the rotating state of the handle ring 12, the pressing portion 4
By 0, the sensor unit 38 is pressed, and the microswitch 35 is also turned on. In this state, firing of the game ball is prohibited.

As shown in FIG. 2, a game ball launching device 14 is provided on the back of the game board (not shown). The game ball launching device 14 includes a base 55 for hitting a ball and a motor 56. A pulley 57 connected to the base end of the shaft 13 is mounted on the hitting base 55. A wire 58 is wound around the pulley 57, and the tip thereof is
9 and is connected to the base end of a coil spring 60 disposed above the hitting base 55. The tip of the coil spring 60 is connected to the firing hammer 61. The motor 56 rotates at a rate of 100 times per minute on condition that the player is touching the handle ring 12. A firing cam 62 is fixedly mounted on the rotation shaft of the motor 56.
2 rotates the firing hammer 61 against the urging force of the coil spring 60. By being disengaged from the rotated firing cam 62, the firing hammer 61 attempts to return to the original position by the urging force of the coil spring 60. A game ball is fired by the momentum at this time. On the other hand, when the shaft 13 rotates along with the rotation of the handle ring 12, the extension amount of the coil spring 60 via the pulley 57 and the wire 58 increases. That is, the urging force of the coil spring 60 increases, and the firing hammer 61
Will be faster.

Next, the operation of the pachinko machine constructed as described above will be described. The player sits facing the pachinko machine main body 1 and usually operates the handle 10 with the right hand as the operating hand. First, in a state where the handle ring 12 is in a steady position where the handle ring 12 is not rotated at all (FIG. 6A), the thumb is arranged on the left side toward the first finger hook 46a, and the second
The index finger is arranged on the left side of the finger hook projection 46b, and the middle finger and the ring finger are arranged on the left and right of the third finger hook projection 46c. Then, the handle ring 12 is gradually rotated clockwise while checking the falling point of the game ball from which different habits (e.g., a subtle difference in the shooting speed) are fired by the machine. During this rotation, the pressing force of the operator's hand is not concentrated at a fixed position of the grip portion 17, so the grip portion 17 is not deformed by the pressing force of the operator's hand. As shown in FIG. 6B, in a state where the handle ring 12 is held at the optimum rotation position, the grip portion 17 is gradually deformed by the pressing force of the operating hand. When the player releases his hand in this deformed state, the handle ring 12 returns to the normal position (original position) due to the urging force of the coil spring 43. However, in such a state where the palm and finger marks of the operating hand remain, the grip portion 17 does not immediately return to the original memorized shape but recovers while slowly deforming. The time for the grip 17 to completely recover to its original shape can be set from several seconds to several minutes by changing the composition of the urethane rubber of the grip 17. If the handle ring 12 is rotated again before the grip portion 17 is completely restored to the original shape and the finger is placed at the position of the finger mark of the operator's hand, the optimum rotation position immediately before the handle ring 12 is released is obtained. You can play again.

With this configuration, the present embodiment has the following effects. (1) Since the grip portion 17 is made of flexible urethane rubber, it is deformed according to the inner shape of the operator's hand as compared with a conventional hard grip portion, so that the operator's hand is easy to grip. . (2) The handle ring 12 returns to its original position when the hand is released from the handle 10, but the grip portion 17 is deformed in accordance with the pressing force of the operating hand holding the handle ring 12, In addition, since it has a delay recovery characteristic, it does not immediately return to the original stored shape. Therefore, if the operating hand is put again according to the deformed shape, the handle ring 12 can be held again at the rotation position immediately before the hand is released. Therefore, the player is released from the waste and trouble of rotating the handle ring 12 to an optimum position while actually firing the game ball again, and the interest of the game is further increased. (3) Since the grip 17 is pressed against the mounting plate 21 by the cover body 22 and the flange 25 of the mounting cover 20, it does not become loose. Further, two fixing legs 23 are inserted into two insertion holes 19 of the grip portion 17. If this is the relationship between one insertion hole 19 and one fixed leg 23, the grip portion 17 may be forcibly extended so as to enlarge the insertion hole 19 and removed from the mounting cover 20, depending on the flexibility of the grip portion 17. It may be. But,
With such a configuration, even if the player intends to remove the grip portion 17 from the mounting cover 20, it will never come off. Also, the grip 17 does not rotate. (4) When the grip portion 17 has deteriorated, the bolt 26 can be loosened to be easily attached to and detached from the mounting plate 21.

The present invention can be embodied with the following modifications. In the above-described embodiment, since the two fixing legs 23 of the mounting cover 20 are inserted through the grip portion 17, the grip portion 17 cannot be removed. A plurality of the fixed legs 23 may be provided. In addition, even one fixing leg 23 is provided with a protrusion 65 for preventing removal as shown in FIG.
(Or the mounting plate 21), and the insertion holes 66 corresponding to the protrusions 65 may be formed in the grip portion 17. Thereby, the swelling due to the lateral pull of the grip portion 17 is prevented. Further, the grip 17 may not necessarily be provided with a means for preventing removal. In the above embodiment, the grip portion 17 is made of urethane rubber having shape maintaining characteristics as the material. However, it may be made of another flexible material. For example, other synthetic rubbers, elastomers, and foamed plastics may be used. Further, a material that does not necessarily have the delay recovery characteristic as in the above embodiment may be used. This is because the grip portion is deformed according to the shape of the inner surface of the operator's hand if it has at least flexibility, so that a large effect can be obtained as compared with the related art. -The present invention is applicable not only to pachinko machines but also to game machines such as areaches and arrangement balls. In addition, the shape of the grip portion, the mounting cover, and the shape of the handle ring are not limited to the above embodiment, and can be changed.
The present invention can be freely implemented without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Other technical ideas of the present invention that can be understood from the above embodiment will be described below. (1) The device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein a detachment preventing means for preventing the contact body from being detached from the handle body is provided between the contact body and the handle body side. Gaming machine.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a game board of a pachinko machine main body according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a handle and a game ball launching device in the same embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the handle in the same embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the handle in the same embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the handle in the same embodiment.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are front views of the handle in the same embodiment, wherein FIG. 6A is a state before rotation and FIG.

FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional side view of a handle according to another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Pachinko machine main body as a game machine main body, 11 ... Handle main body, 12 ... Handle ring as a rotating member, 15
... Cap part as handle body, 16 handle base as handle body, 17 grip part as contact body.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A handle body fixed to a front surface of a gaming machine body facing a player side, the handle body having a contact body with which an inner surface of a player's operating hand abuts, and a handle body built in the gaming machine body. A gaming machine having a handle having a rotating member that adjusts the firing speed of a game ball from the game ball launching device according to the amount of rotation when the player rotates in conjunction with the game ball launching device. A game machine wherein the contact body of the handle body is formed of a flexible material. 2. The contact body of the handle main body is deformed according to the inner surface shape of the operating hand of the player, and the deformed state can be maintained for a while even after the hand is released from the contact body. Item 7. The gaming machine according to Item 1.