JP2001104566A - Game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prolong the service life of a light and to reduce the power consumption of a game machine. SOLUTION: To the anodes of respective light, lighting signals are impressed from a CPU 401 for display control through an output port 511 and driving circuits 178A, 178B and 178C. The emits light when the lighting signal is impressed to the anode in the state where a heater driving voltage is applied and a filament is heated. Since all the white light of left, right and center drum lamps 151A-151C are controlled by one heater driving signal and all the red light are controlled by one heater driving signal, control is simplified and a circuit scale is reduced. The CPU 401 for the display control turns a switching circuit 178D to an OFF state at the time of not using the red.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a game machine such as a pachinko game machine, and more particularly, to a game machine having a variable display device including a drum, a belt, and the like on which identification information is arranged.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a gaming machine such as a pachinko gaming machine, a plurality of types of identification information (hereinafter, referred to as symbols) are variably displayed on a plurality of columns of display portions of a variable display device, and a combination of symbols at the time of stopping is previously determined. In some cases, a specific game state (big hit game state) is generated when the combination with a predetermined big hit symbol combination is reached. In the specific game state, a player is given an opportunity to generate a large number of winning balls in a short time.

[0003] As a variable display device, there is a variable display device configured to rotate a fluctuation mechanism such as a drum or a belt on which symbols are arranged. In such a variable display device, in order to enhance a gaming effect, a light that irradiates a drum, a belt, or the like with light when rotating the fluctuation mechanism is often used.

[0004] Since the variable display device is a relatively large mechanism, a light having a relatively high light quantity is used as a light for irradiating light. For example, a hot cathode tube is used. In addition, in order to enhance the interest of the game, the light that emits light is often used by blinking (repetition of lighting and extinguishing).

[0005]

As described above, the power consumption of the game machine is increased due to the use of the light having a high light quantity. In addition, the blinking is frequently repeated, so that the life of the light is shortened. That is, in a game machine having a light for irradiating the variable display device, reduction of power consumption and extension of the life of the light are issues.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a gaming machine capable of extending the life of a light and reducing power consumption.

[0007]

A gaming machine according to the present invention comprises:
Including a variable display device having a plurality of display areas whose display state can be changed, starting change of identification information in the display area according to satisfaction of a condition for starting change, and displaying a display result of the identification information in a predetermined display A gaming machine which can be controlled to a specific game state advantageous to a player on condition that the mode is set, in which a light emitting element is provided in association with the variable display device, and the light emitting element has an input terminal for heating and a lighting control. And a heater voltage control means for controlling a voltage input to the heating input terminal of the light emitting element, wherein the heater voltage control means comprises a heating input terminal at least when the light emitting element is not used. Is turned off.

When a plurality of light emitting elements are provided,
The heater voltage control means may be configured to control the voltage applied to the heating input terminal by one voltage control signal for a plurality of light emitting elements having the same use timing.

The heater voltage control means may be configured to start applying a voltage to the heating input terminal a predetermined time before the start of use of the light emitting element. The start of use means that input of a control signal for lighting or blinking to an input terminal for lighting control is started.

In the gaming machine, the variable display control means for performing the variable display control of the variable display device is mounted on a display control board different from the board on which the game control means for controlling the progress of the game is mounted, and the heater voltage control is performed. The means may be configured to be mounted on the display control board.

Further, the variable display control means may be configured to output a lighting control signal to an input terminal for controlling lighting of the light emitting element.

The game control means sends to the variable display control means a command capable of specifying the fluctuating time and the stop identification information at the start of the change of the identification information, and the variable display control means sends a command for instructing the stop at the stop of the identification information. The variable display control means determines the variation pattern of the identification information based on the command capable of specifying the variation time, and the variable display control means turns on the light emitting element by the lighting control signal according to the determined variation pattern. It may be configured to perform control.

The variable display control means is configured to independently determine the game effect contents other than the variation pattern of the identification information, and to perform the lighting control of the light emitting element by the lighting control signal according to the determined game effect contents. Is also good. Here, there is, for example, a notice as a game effect content.

[0014]

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, the overall configuration of the pachinko gaming machine 1 as an example of the gaming machine will be described. FIG. 1 is a front view of the pachinko gaming machine 1 as viewed from the front, FIG. 2 is a front view of the gaming board 10 of the pachinko gaming machine 1 as viewed from the front, FIG.
Is a rear view of the pachinko gaming machine 1 as viewed from the rear.

The pachinko gaming machine 1 has an outer frame (not shown) formed in a vertically long rectangular shape, a front frame 2 supported on the left side of the outer frame to be openable and closable, and provided on the front frame 2 so as to be openable and closable. The glass plate holding frame 3 is provided. On the front frame 2, a game board 10, an upper plate 12, a lower plate 16 including an ashtray 18,
An operation handle (operation knob) 19, a mechanism plate 70, and a hit ball launching device 87 are also provided.

The glass plate holding frame 3 is provided with a circular see-through window 4 for allowing the game area 25 of the game board 10 to be seen through, and a glass plate (not shown) is mounted from the back of the circular see-through window 4. . At the upper part of the glass plate holding frame 3, along the outer periphery of the circular see-through window 4, there are provided a decorative LED 6 and decorative lamps 5 a, 5 b arranged on both left and right sides thereof. The decorative LED 6 and the decorative lamps 5a and 5b
It is lit or flashed according to the game state to excite the atmosphere of the game. In particular, the occurrence or continuation of the specific game state is notified to the player. Furthermore, a predetermined number of prize balls have been paid out on the upper side of the support side of the glass plate holding frame 3 based on the occurrence of an out-of-ball lamp 7 and a prize ball that notify that the prize balls to be paid out are insufficient. A prize ball lamp 8 for informing is provided, and speakers 9a and 9b for generating sound effects in accordance with the progress of the game are provided on the upper left and right sides of the glass plate holding frame 3, respectively.

An openable and closable upper plate 11 is provided below the glass plate holding frame 3, and an upper plate 12 formed by fixing a plurality of plate members is formed on the surface of the upper and lower plate 11. Is provided. In addition, a ball-pulling operation lever 13 that can move in the left-right direction is provided at an upper portion on the open side of the upper plate opening / closing plate 11. When the ball removal operation lever 13 is moved in one direction, the balls stored in the upper plate 12 flow downward through a ball removal path (not shown) formed on the back surface of the upper plate opening and closing plate 11. Guided to dish 16.

The upper plate 12 has a built-in piezoelectric buzzer 14. The piezoelectric buzzer 14 emits a notification sound to notify a user of an abnormal lending of a game ball or a loan of a game ball. Furthermore, in the upper plate 12,
Although not shown, an operation unit (ball lending switch, return switch, balance display, etc.) for operating the card unit 20 provided adjacent to the pachinko gaming machine 1 is provided.

The lower plate 16 attached to the lower portion of the front frame 2 stores excess balls that cannot be stored in the upper plate 12, and an operation lever 17 slides on the front wall of the lower plate 16. Mounted as possible. When the operation lever 17 is operated, the balls stored in the lower plate 16 flow down, and the player or the like can transfer the dropped balls to a portable carton. An ashtray 18 is provided on the left side of the lower plate 16, and an operation handle 19 is provided on the right side. The operation handle 19 is used for a hitting ball firing device 8 described later.
A switch for starting the driving of the drive motor 88 is built in and the resilience is adjusted.

The card unit 20 provided adjacent to the pachinko gaming machine 1 is controlled by a unique control circuit, but a ball lending switch, a return switch, a balance display provided on the upper plate 12, Must be connected to the board built in the prize ball control board box 83
The mechanical plate 70 provided on the back of the pachinko gaming machine 1 includes:
A card unit connection relay board 84 is provided (see FIG. 3). Wiring from a connector of the card unit 20 is connected to the card unit connection relay board 84. Note that the card unit 20 may be built in the pachinko gaming machine 1.

Next, the front structure of the game board 10 will be described with reference to FIG. An arc-shaped guide rail 24 is attached to the surface of the game board 10. The inside of the guide rail 24 is a game area 25. In the gaming area 25, a variable display device 26 and a variable winning ball device 51 are provided,
A prize hole that simply wins a hit ball, a windmill that changes the flow direction and speed of the hit ball, and a number of obstacle nails are provided. At the bottom of the game area 25, there is provided an out port 64 into which a hit ball which does not win any of the winning areas is taken.

The variable display device 26 includes a mounting board 27 mounted on the front of the game board 10 and a variable display drive section 100 including a plurality of rotating drums 122A to 122C mounted on the back of the game board 10. . The configuration and operation of the variable display device driving unit 100 are described in FIGS.
This will be described later in detail with reference to FIG.

When the hit ball falling in the game area 25 wins the start winning port 48 arranged below the variable display device 26 and the start port switch 50 is turned on, the rotating drum 12
2A to 122C start rotating, and after a predetermined time has elapsed, stop in the order of left, middle, and right. When the combination of symbols (special symbols) drawn on the outer circumference of the rotating drums 122A to 122C displayed at the time of stop matches a predetermined big hit symbol, a big hit game state is set. In the big hit game state, the open cycle in which the opening / closing plate 53 of the variable winning ball device 51 is opened a predetermined number of times until a predetermined time (for example, 25 to 29 seconds) elapses or until a predetermined number (for example, 15) of prizes is won. (Eg, 16 times) is repeated.

Display windows 28a to 28c are formed on the mounting board 27 of the variable display device 26 so that the rotating drums 122A to 122C can be seen through. Display windows 28a to 28
An upper obstacle protrusion 31 is provided on the upper part of c. Further, the decoration lamp 33 is built in the upper obstacle projection 31. Further, decorative LEDs 34, 35, 36, and 37 are also incorporated. The rotating drum 12 is provided below the mounting board 27.
A start storage indicator 29 is provided to notify that the right to rotate 2A to 122C has been reserved. Further, on the left and right sides of the start storage indicator 29, lower guiding protrusions 38 are provided.
The lower guiding projection 38 receives the ball flowing from the left and right sides of the variable display device 26 and drops the ball toward the starting winning opening 48. Also, the decorative lamp 39 is provided on the lower guiding protrusion 38.
Is built-in.

The variable display device 26 is installed substantially at the center of the game area 25, and the variable winning ball apparatus 51 is installed at the lower part of the game area 25 and above the out port 64.
A windmill 40 having a built-in lamp 41 is provided above and below the variable display device 26, and passage ports 42 and 46 are provided above and below the variable display device 26. A gate switch 43 that detects the passage of a hit ball is
A normal symbol display 44 and a pass storage display 45 are built in.

When a hit ball is detected by the gate switch 43, the display result of the normal symbol display 44 is derived after a predetermined time, and when the display result matches a predetermined hit symbol, the solenoid 49 of the starting winning opening 48 is activated. Is turned on, and it becomes easy to win the start winning port 48. The passage memory display 45 informs that the right to derive the display result of the ordinary symbol display 44 is reserved. The other passage opening 46 is provided with a decoration LED 47 that merely exerts a decoration effect.

The game area 2 at the tip of the guide rail 24
A backflow prevention device 63 is provided at the entrance portion to 5 so that the hit ball reaching the game area 25 does not flow back into the guide rail 24.

The variable winning prize ball device 51 has an arc-shaped decorative plate 6 corresponding to the lower half of the circular game area 25.
2 A rectangular winning area 52 is formed substantially at the center of the decorative plate 62. The winning area 52 is opened and closed by an opening and closing plate 53. The opening and closing plate 53 is opened and closed by a solenoid 54. The winning area 52 is divided into two areas. When a hit ball wins in one area, the hit ball is detected by the V count switch 55. The detection by the V count switch 55 guarantees the start of the next opening cycle in the big hit game state. When a hit ball wins in the other area, the hit ball is detected by the count switch 56.

A protruding obstacle member is provided below the opening / closing plate 53. On the front surface of the protruding obstacle member, a frequency indicator 5 for displaying the number of open cycles in the big hit game state.
7 and a winning number display 58 for displaying the number of winning balls in the opening / closing plate 53 in one opening cycle. The decorative plate 62 includes a plurality of decorative LEDs 59 and 6.
0, and an attacker lamp 61 are provided.

As shown in FIG. 3, a drum storage box 101 of a variable display device driving unit 100, which is a rear structure of the variable display device 26, is fixed to the back surface of the game board 10. In addition, a prize-winning ball set cover (not shown) is attached so as to surround the drum storage box 101. In the winning ball collecting cover body, there are formed a guiding path and a winning ball collecting gutter for guiding a winning ball which has won various winning ports and a winning ball device according to a predetermined flow path.

On the back of the winning ball set cover, a game board 1
A switch connected to a winning opening, a winning ball device, or the like, which is arranged at No. 0, and a first wiring to which wiring of electric components of a light emitting source for decoration are connected.
The relay board 72 and the second relay board 73 are attached. The first relay board 72 and the second relay board 73 are used to relay various electrical components provided on the game board 10 and a game control circuit board (main board) housed in the game control circuit board box 82. Is provided. The drum storage box 101, the first relay board 72, and the second relay board 73 are provided so as to protrude from a window opening 71 provided substantially at the center of the mechanism plate 70 or to be visible from the outside.

Next, the structure of the mechanism plate 70 will be described with reference to FIG. The mechanism plate 70 is provided so as to cover the back surface of the game board 10, and a prize ball tank 74 for storing a large amount of balls serving as prize balls is attached to the top of the back side of the mechanism plate 70. ing. Below the prize ball tank 74, a prize ball guide rail 75 for causing balls flowing out of the prize ball tank 74 to flow down while being arranged in a plurality of rows (for example, two rows) is provided in an inclined manner. Premium ball guide rail 7
At the end of 5, a ball dispensing device 76 is provided which is arranged on the side of the window opening 71, receives aligned balls from the prize ball guide rail 75, and pays out a predetermined number of prize balls based on a winning ball signal. Have been. In addition, an out-of-ball detection switch 77 is provided on the upstream side of the ball payout device 76. When the burnout detection switch 77 is turned on, the burnout lamp 7 is turned on.

The game balls paid out from the ball payout device 76 are guided to the upper plate 12 or the lower plate 16 via the prize ball payout passage. The ball payout device 76 is activated when a prize ball detector 79 included in a prize ball processing device (not shown) that processes prize balls collected in the prize ball collecting gutter one by one detects a prize ball. Is done. When the winning ball detector 79 is turned on, the prize ball lamp 8 is turned on for a predetermined period. Further, a full tank switch 78 is provided on one side of the payout passage on the upstream side of the lower plate 16. When the full tank switch 78 is turned on, the driving of the driving motor 88 of the hit ball firing device 87 is stopped.

A terminal box 80 is provided on the upper rear surface of the mechanism plate 70. The terminal box 80 houses a board provided with a power supply line for supplying power to the pachinko gaming machine 1 and an information input / output terminal 81 for exchanging information signals with a management computer of the game arcade. Further, a game control board box 82 is detachably mounted below the window opening 71. Below the game control board box 82, a prize ball control board box 83
Is attached.

As shown in FIG. 3, a ball launching device 87 is attached to one side of the lower portion of the rear surface of the front frame 2. The hitting ball firing device 87 includes a hitting rod 89 for firing a hitting ball and a drive motor 88 for reciprocating the hitting rod 89. On the side opposite to the installation position of the hit ball launching device 87, an illumination component (decoration lamp 5) provided on the glass plate holding frame 3 is provided.
a, 6b and the decorative LED 6) are installed.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a game control circuit formed on a game control circuit board (main board) 331 housed in the game control board box 82. The main board 331 is electrically connected to the terminal box 80, the prize ball control board 98 accommodated in the prize ball control board box 83, the sound control board 97, and the lamp control board 85. The main board 331 is also connected to the display control board (sub-board) 165 shown in FIG. Hereinafter, the operations of the game control circuit and the rotary drum control circuit will be described with reference to FIGS.

On the main board 331, a basic circuit 353 for controlling the pachinko gaming machine 1 according to a program, a gate switch 43, a starting port switch 50, a V count switch 55, a count switch 56, a full tank switch 78, and a burnout detection switch are provided. A switch circuit 358 for supplying signals from the winning ball detector 77 and the winning ball detector 79 to the basic circuit 53, a solenoid 49 for opening the starting winning port 48 and a solenoid 21 for opening and closing the opening and closing plate 53 are driven in accordance with commands from the basic circuit 353. Lamp / LED circuit 360 for turning on / off the solenoid circuit 359, the start storage display 29 and the passage storage display 45, and driving the ordinary symbol display 44, the number display 57 and the winning number display 58. And are installed.

According to the data supplied from the basic circuit 353, jackpot information indicating the occurrence of a jackpot, effective start information indicating the number of start winning balls used to start variable display of the variable display device 26, and probability fluctuation have occurred. And an information output circuit 364 that outputs probability change information and the like indicating the fact to the terminal box 80.

The basic circuit 353 includes a ROM 354 for storing a game control program and the like, a RAM 355 used as a work memory, a CPU 356 for performing a control operation according to a control program, and an I / O port unit 357.
including. The RAM 355, the ROM 354, and the I / O
The O port unit 357 may be externally mounted or may be built in the CPU 356.

Further, the main board 331 has an initial reset circuit 365 for resetting the basic circuit 353 when the power is turned on, and a CPU 356 periodically (for example, every 2 ms).
Reset circuit 366 for giving a reset pulse to the CPU and causing the program for game control to be executed again from the beginning
And decodes an address signal provided from basic circuit 353 to output any one of I / O ports 357.
An address decode circuit 367 for outputting a signal for selecting the O port is provided.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a circuit configuration in the display control board 165 by using drum motors 200A to 200C for rotating the rotating drums 122A to 122C, and rotating drums 122A to 122C.
Drum lamps 151A- installed inside 22C
FIG. 151C is a block diagram illustrating the configuration of the main substrate 151C together with a part thereof. The drum lamps 151A to 151C
Is, in fact, multiple lunalites (hot cathode tubes)
including.

The display control CPU 401 controls the control data R
When the strobe signal (INT signal) is input from the output ports 571 and 572 of the main board 331 and the output buffer circuit 573 via the noise filter 407 and the input buffer circuit 405, the input is performed. The display control command is received via the buffer circuit 405. Input buffer circuit 405
For example, a 74HC244, which is a general-purpose IC, can be used.

Then, the display control CPU 401 responds to the received display control command by using the drum motor 200A.
Drive control and drum lamps 151A-1
A signal for controlling the lighting of 51C is output to output port 51.
1 to the motor drive circuit 176 and the write drive circuit 178. The motor drive circuit 176 and the light drive circuit 178 drive the drum motors 200A to 200C and the drum lamps 151A to 151C according to a signal from the display control CPU 401.

The input buffer circuit 405 includes a main board 331
Can be passed only in a direction from the display control board 165 to the display control board 165. Therefore, there is no room for a signal to be transmitted from the display control board 165 to the main board 331. Even if the circuit in the display control board 165 is tampered with, the signal output by the tampering is not transmitted to the main board 331 side. The outputs of the output ports 571 and 572 may be output to the display control board 165 as they are. However, by providing an output buffer circuit 573 capable of transmitting a signal only in one direction, the output from the main board 331 to the display control board 165 is provided. One-way signal transmission can be further ensured.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the variable display device driving unit 100 of the variable display device 26, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the variable display device driving unit 100. In addition, FIG.
FIG. 7 shows one of the rotating drum units 120A to 120C as a representative. In FIG. 7, the rotating drum units 120A to 120C and the printed wiring board 121A are shown.
To 121C and the rotating drums 122A to 122C are shown as a rotating drum unit 120, a printed wiring board 121, and a rotating drum 122.

As shown in FIG. 6, the variable display device driving section 100 of the variable display device 26
A to 120C and a drum storage case 1 for storing them
01. The drum storage case 101 is formed in a box shape with an open front. After the rotary drum units 120A to 120C are inserted from the openings, they are supported. That is, the upper and lower parts of the drum storage case 101 are provided with the respective rotating drum units 120A-1A.
An engagement groove 105 corresponding to 20C is formed. On the other hand, the engagement protrusion 123 is formed on the printed wiring board 121A to 121C in each of the rotary drum units 120A to 120C, and the engagement protrusion 123 engages with the engagement groove 105 provided in the drum storage case 101.

A mounting piece 103 and an engaging piece 104 are provided above and below the opening of the drum housing 101. The attachment piece 103 and the engagement piece 104 are formed by bending the tip of a metal attachment band 102 applied from the upper part of the drum storage case 101 to the rear and the bottom. The whole of the variable display device driving unit 100 is mounted on the game board 10 by mounting the mounting pieces 103 and the engagement pieces 104 on a frame-shaped mounting plate (not shown) fixed to the back surface of the game board 10. It is attached.

A connection opening 112 corresponding to each of the rotary drum units 120A to 120C is provided on the bottom surface of the drum storage case 101, and a connection protrusion 127 of the printed wiring mounting boards 121A to 121C is provided through the connection opening 112. And the connector 167 provided on the display control board 165 are connected. Further, the drum storage case 10
1, the rotating drum units 120A to 120C
A locking opening (not shown) through which the mounting portion 125 faces when is mounted.

Then, the mounting portion 12 facing the locking opening
7, the screw 111 is screwed into a hole 109 formed in the drum storage case 101, so that the rotary drum units 120A to 120C are fixed to the drum storage case 101. At this time, the heat sink 1
10 is also screwed together with the mounting portion 125. The heat radiating plate 110 is made of metal, and the heat accumulated in the printed wiring mounting substrates 121A to 121C is released to the outside via the heat radiating plate 110 by coming into contact with the metal printed wiring mounting substrates 121A to 121C.

On the lower back surface of the drum storage case 101,
Mounting boss 10 for screwing display control board 165
6 are provided. Then, with the display control board 165 attached to the mounting boss 106, the display control board 1
A display control board box 160 for protecting the box 65 is attached to the drum storage case 101. For mounting, an engaging hole 10 is provided at the front of the bottom of the drum storage case 101.
8, and a mounting hole 107 is formed at the lower end of the rear surface.

The rotary drums 122A to 122C in the rotary drum units 120A to 120C are formed in a drum shape including a cylindrical symbol display surface having a plurality of symbols. The reel support of the reel frame formed in a hexagonal diagonal shape from the symbol display surface toward the center is the rotor 14.
It is fixed to the 0 D-shaped cut projection 143 with screws. From the upper side to the rear side of the printed wiring mounting boards 121A to 121C to which the drum motors (stepping motors) for rotatingly driving the rotating drums 122A to 122C are mounted, reinforcing projections are provided to increase the rigidity of the printed wiring mounting boards 121A to 121C themselves. 124 are formed.

A mounting portion 125 having a mounting hole 126 is formed at a lower portion of the rear end, and a connecting projection 1 having a conductive terminal portion formed by printed wiring is formed at a rear portion of the bottom.
27 are provided. Further, mounting holes 128 for mounting a lamp cover 153 for accommodating and supporting the drum lamp 151 are provided on the printed wiring mounting boards 121A to 121A.
It is provided in the front part of C. Printed wiring mounting board 1
A shaft mounting hole for fixing a bearing 137 that rotatably supports the shaft of the rotor 140 is provided at a substantially central portion of the shafts 21A to 121C.

Printed circuit board 121A-121C
A cylindrical coil case 135 containing a driving coil of a stepping motor is attached to a substantially central portion of the coil case 135.
The coil case 135 is a printed circuit board 121A-
The end of the drive coil is soldered to the conductive part of the printed wiring. A spring washer 141 and a flat washer 142 are sandwiched between the rotor 140 and the bearing 137. Further, a portion that penetrates through the bearing 137 and protrudes to the rear side of the printed wiring mounting boards 121A to 121C is a part of the E-ring 1
Fixed at 47.

The rotating drums 122A to 122C are
A motor cover 148 is attached from the front while the shaft of the rotor 140 is supported by the bearing 137.
The rotary drums 122A to 122C are fitted to the D-shaped cut protrusions 143 protruding forward from 8 and screwed, so that the rotary drums 122A to 122C are mounted on the printed circuit board 121A to 121C.

The drum lamp 151 has a lamp cover 153.
The lamp cover 153 has a lamp receiving base 156 that receives each drum lamp 151. With the lamp receiving base 156 supporting the drum lamp 151, the mounting holes 154 formed above and below the drum receiving base 156 are fixed to the mounting holes 128 with screws 155, so that the lamp cover 153 is mounted on the printed wiring mounting substrates 121A to 121A.
Fixed to 1C. In addition, the drum lamp 151 irradiates light from behind to a design that can be visually recognized by a player in order to enhance the decoration effect. In FIG. 6, the drum lamp 1
Although three lights are shown as 51, more lights may be used to enhance the gaming effect.
For example, FIG. 7 illustrates five lights.

As shown in FIG. 6, the sub-board box 160 is formed in a box shape with an open top. A large number of heat dissipation holes 161 are provided over the entire circumference of the side wall. An engagement claw 162 that engages with the engagement hole 108 of the drum storage box 101 is provided in front of the display control board 165. A mounting hole 163 corresponding to the mounting hole 107 of the drum storage box 101 is provided behind the display control board 165. After the engagement claws 162 are inserted into the engagement holes 108, the sub-board box 160 is set in the drum storage box 10 with screws 164 in a state where the positions of the attachment holes 163 match the positions of the attachment holes 107.
1 is attached.

The display control board 165 stored in the sub-board box 160 is provided with mounting holes 166 corresponding to the mounting bosses 106 of the drum storage box 101.
And on the upper surface side, each rotating drum unit 120A ~
A plurality of connectors 167 connected to the connection protrusion 127 of 120C are mounted. On the lower surface side, a connector 173, a CPU 401, a transistor 171 and the like connected to a main board 331 housed in the game control board box 82 are mounted. FIG. 8 shows four transistors 1
Although 71 is illustrated, a large number of transistors and ICs are actually mounted.

Next, the operation of the gaming machine will be described. FIG.
Is a flowchart showing a game control operation executed by the CPU 356 on the main board 331 according to the game control program. This process is activated by a reset pulse generated by the periodic reset circuit 66, for example, every 2 ms. When the CPU 356 is activated, the CPU 356 first sets the clock monitor control to an operable state.
The clock monitor register built in the CPU 356 is set to the clock monitor enable state (step S1). Note that the clock monitor control means that when a decrease or stop of the input clock signal is detected, the CPU 35
6 automatically generates a reset.

Next, the CPU 356 performs a stack setting process for setting the designated address of the stack pointer (step S2). In this example, 00FFH is set in the stack pointer. Then, a system check process is performed (step S3). In the system check processing, the CPU 356 determines whether or not the RAM 355 contains an error.
Processing such as initializing the AM 355 is performed.

Next, after processing for setting command data sent to the display control board 165 to a predetermined area of the RAM 355 is performed (display control data setting processing: step S
4) Perform processing for outputting command data as a display control command (display control data output processing: step S)
5).

Next, a process of outputting the contents of the storage area for various output data to each output port is performed (data output process: step S6). Further, the lamp timer is decremented by one, and when the lamp timer times out (when it becomes 0), the lamp data pointer is updated and a new value is set in the lamp timer (lamp timer processing: step S7).

Further, output data setting processing for setting output data such as data of the address indicated by the lamp data pointer, jackpot information, start information, and probability variation information output to the hole management computer in the storage area is performed (step S8). ). Further, various abnormality diagnosis processes are performed by a self-diagnosis function provided inside the pachinko gaming machine 1, and an alarm is issued if necessary according to the result (error process: step S9).

Next, a process of updating each counter indicating each random number for determination, such as a random number for determining a jackpot, used for game control is performed (step S10).

Next, the CPU 356 performs a special symbol process (step S11). In the special symbol process control, a corresponding process is selected and executed according to a special symbol process flag for controlling the pachinko gaming machine 1 in a predetermined order according to a gaming state. Then, the value of the special symbol process flag is updated during each processing according to the gaming state. Further, a normal symbol process is performed (step S12). In the normal symbol process process, a corresponding process is selected and executed according to a normal symbol process flag for controlling the normal symbol display 44 in a predetermined order. Then, the value of the normal symbol process flag is updated during each process according to the gaming state.

Further, the CPU 356 includes the switch circuit 3
The state of each switch is input via 58, and necessary processing is performed according to the switch state (switch processing: step S13). In addition, a process of transmitting a sound control command specifying a sound generation pattern to the sound control board 97 as the game progresses is performed (voice processing: step S14).

The CPU 356 further performs a process of updating the display random number (step S15). CPU3
56 performs signal processing with the award ball control board 98 (step S16). That is, when a predetermined condition is satisfied, a prize ball control command indicating the number of prize balls is output to the prize ball control board 98. The prize ball control CPU mounted on the prize ball control board 98 drives the ball payout device 97 in accordance with the received number of prize balls. After that, the basic circuit 53 repeats the display random number updating process in step S17 until the next reset pulse is given from the periodic reset circuit 66.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of a special symbol process program executed by the CPU 356. The special symbol processing shown in FIG.
Is a specific process of step S11 in the flowchart of FIG. When performing the special symbol process processing, the CPU 356 performs any one of steps S300 to S309 shown in FIG. 10 according to the internal state. In each process, the following processes are performed.

The special symbol change waiting process (step S30)
0): The starting prize opening 48 is hit and the starting opening switch 5
Wait for 0 to turn on. When the starting port switch 50 is turned on, if the number of stored start winnings is not full, the number of stored starting winnings is incremented by one, and a random number for determining a big hit is determined for determining whether or not to make a big hit.

Special symbol determination processing (step S301):
When a state in which the variable display of the special symbol can be started on the variable display device 26 is started, the number of start winning storages is confirmed. If the starting prize storage number is not 0, it is determined whether to make a big hit or a non-big hit according to the value of the extracted big hit determining random number.

Stop symbol setting processing (step S302):
The stop symbol of the left and right middle symbols is determined.

Reach operation setting processing (step S30)
3): Determine whether or not to perform the reach operation according to the value of the random number for determining whether to reach or not, and determine the fluctuation period at the time of reach according to the value of the random number for determining the type of reach. I do.

All symbols change start processing (step S30)
4): The variable display device 26 is controlled so that all symbols start to change. At this time, the right and left final stop symbols and information instructing a change period are transmitted to the display control board 165.

All symbols stop waiting processing (step S30)
5): After a predetermined time has elapsed, control is performed so that all symbols displayed on the variable display device 26 are stopped. If the stop symbol is a combination of big hit symbols, the internal state (process flag) is updated so as to shift to step S306. If not, the internal state is updated to shift to step S300.

Big hit display processing (step S306): Control for notifying the big hit to the player is performed.

Opening process of opening the special winning opening (step S30)
7): Control for opening the special winning opening is started. Specifically, the counter and the flag are initialized, and the solenoid 54 is driven to open the special winning opening.

Processing during opening of the special winning opening (step S30)
8): Monitor the count switch 56 and display the winning number display 5
Control such as updating the display number of 8 is performed. When the final closing condition of the special winning opening is satisfied, the internal state is updated so as to shift to step S309.

Big hit end processing (step S309): Control for notifying the player that the big hit gaming state has ended is performed. After that, the internal flags etc. are returned to the initial state,
The internal state is updated so as to shift to step S300.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of display control command data based on 8-bit data transmitted from the main board 331 to the display control board 165. As shown in FIG. 11, for example, the upper 4 bits of the 8 bits indicate the type of control, and the lower 4 bits indicate the specific control content. For example, in this example, the upper 4 bits are [0,
[0, 0, 1], the lower four bits of the numerical value indicate the symbol change period, stop all symbols, and the like. If the upper 4 bits are [1, 0, 0, 0], the stop symbol of the left symbol variably displayed on the variable display device 26 is indicated by the numerical value of the lower 4 bits.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing signal lines of a display control command transmitted from the main board 331 to the display control board 165. As shown in FIG. 12, in this embodiment, the display control command is the display control command data D0.
The signal is transmitted from the main board 331 to the display control board 165 by eight signal lines of D7 to D7. A signal line for a display control INT signal for transmitting a strobe signal and a signal line for supplying a ground level are also provided between the main board 331 and the display control board 165.

FIG. 13 is a timing chart showing an example of the transmission timing of the display control command given from the main board 331 to the display control board 165. In this example, when the display control command data is output, as shown in FIG.
The INT signal goes low for a short period (for example, 5 μs). The display control CPU 401 can fetch the display control command data by, for example, an interrupt process based on the INT signal.

Note that, when a display control command data transmission request is generated, the CPU 356 of the main board 331 outputs the display control command data to the output port 571 only once and outputs the INT signal only once. Therefore, the load required for command transmission of the game control means does not increase so much.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the transmission timing of each control command relating to symbol variation in the variable display device 26. In this embodiment, the C
When starting the symbol change, the PU 356 controls the display control board 165, the sound control board 97, and the lamp control board 85.
Is sent to each of. The display control board 165 further sends a symbol designating command indicating a fixed symbol of the left and right middle symbols.

When the symbol variation is determined, a variation stop command is sent to each of the display control board 165, the sound control board 97, and the lamp control board 85. Each CPU mounted on the display control board 165, the sound control board 97, and the lamp control board 85 performs display control, sound generation control, and lamp lighting control according to the variation mode designated by the variation start command. The change start command includes information indicating the change time.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a portion related to driving of the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C in the display control board 165. As shown in FIG. 15, a power supply board provided separately from various control boards such as the main board 331 and the display control board 165 is used to drive the drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C.
A voltage of 30 V is supplied to the display control board 165. +
The 30V voltage is applied to each of the drum motors 200A, 200B, 2
Switching circuit 191 provided for 00C
A, 191B, 191C and the AD converter 410.

Switching circuits 191A, 191B, 1
91C has a +30 V pulse waveform (PW) according to a switching signal from a built-in output port of the display control CPU 401.
M waveform). For example, the switching circuit 191
In A, during the period when the high level is output from the output port, the transistors Tr1 and Tr2
Are both conducted, and the VA output terminal becomes 0V. In addition, during the period when the low level is output from the output port, both the transistor Tr1 and the transistor Tr2 are turned off, and +30 V is applied to the VA output terminal via the diode.
Appears (ignoring the voltage drop due to the diode).

FIG. 15 shows a switching circuit 191.
Although only the configuration example of A is shown, the switching circuit 1
The configuration of 91B and the switching circuit 191C is the same as the configuration of the switching circuit 191A.

The display control CPU 401 monitors the +30 voltage via the AD converter 410. When the value deviates from +30 V, the switching circuit 191A,
The duty ratio of the switching signal provided to 191B and 191C is adjusted.

Also, the display control CPU 401 sends the drum motors 200 A, 200 A through the output port 511.
A motor drive signal for driving each of the drive coils B and 200C is output. Motor drive signals from the output port 511 are supplied to drive circuits (amplifier circuits) 176A, 176B,
176C via the drum motors 200A, 200B, 2
00C is applied to one end of each drive coil. Switching circuits 191A, 191B,
The PWM waveform generated by 191C is applied.
The PWM waveform is an effective power supply voltage for each drive coil. The driving circuits 176A, 176B, 176C
And switching circuits 191A, 191B, 191C
Are drum motors 200A, 200B,
This is a drive control circuit that controls 200C.

Drum motors 139A, 139B, 13 for position detection are provided on the drum motors 200A to 200C.
9C is installed. Drum sensors 139A, 139
The detection signals of B and 139C are input to the display control CPU 401 via the amplifier circuit 177 and the input port 521. The drum sensors 139A, 139B, 139
C is supplied with a +12 V voltage from a power supply substrate.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a portion related to driving of the drum lamps 151A to 151C on the display control board 165. In this example, each of the drum lamps 151A to 151C includes three white lunar lights (hot cathode tubes) and two red lunar lights.

One of the two terminals on the filament side of each lunar light is grounded, and a heater drive voltage is applied to the other. The anode is connected to the output port 511 and the drive circuit (amplifier circuit) 17 from the display control CPU 401.
Lighting signals are applied via 8A, 178B, 178C. The lunar light emits light when a lighting signal is applied to the anode while the heater drive voltage is being applied and the filament is being heated.

As shown in FIG. 16, in this embodiment, the heater drive voltage of the three white luna lights and the heater drive voltage of the two red luna lights in each of the drum lamps 151A to 151C are controlled by different systems. Have been. In this example, a control signal for driving a red lunar light and a control signal for driving a white lunar light are independently output from a built-in output port of the display control CPU 401. Further, all the filaments of the white lunar light of each of the drum lamps 151A to 151C are driven by one heater driving voltage, and all the filaments of the red lunar light are driven by one heater driving voltage. In this embodiment, all the white Luna lights blink synchronously and all the red Luna lights blink synchronously. Therefore, there is no problem even if all the white lunar lights and all the red lunar lights are each driven by one heater driving voltage.

The control signal for driving the red lunar light from the display control CPU 401 becomes a switching signal of the switching circuit 178D. The switching circuit 178D supplies +
A 5.4V voltage is supplied to or cut off from the red lunarite filament of each of the drum lamps 151A to 151C. The white luna light drive control signal is a switching signal of the switching circuit 178E. The switching circuit 178E applies the + 5.4V voltage supplied from the power supply board to each of the drum lamps 15 according to the switching signal.
It feeds or blocks filaments of white lunarite from 1A to 151C. The switching circuit 178
D and 178E are heater voltage control means for the lunar light which is a light emitting element.

Next, the rotation control of the drum motors 200A to 200C will be described with reference to FIG. 17 and FIGS.
This will be described with reference to the waveform diagram of FIG. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
From 1, a change start command indicating a change period and a symbol designating command indicating a fixed symbol in the left and right are transmitted to the display control board 165. The display control CPU 401 of the display control board 165 independently selects one variation pattern from a plurality of variation patterns defined according to the variation period specified by the received variation start command. Then, according to the selected variation pattern, the rotating drum 122A
Drum motors 200A-200 for rotating ~ 122C
The driving of C is controlled.

As an example, assume that a variation pattern as shown in FIG. 17A is selected. That is, the left and right middle drums start low-speed rotation (actually, the rotation gradually increasing in speed), and then shift to high-speed constant speed rotation in the left-right middle order, and then low-speed rotation in the left-right middle order ( In practice, the rotation shifts so that the speed gradually decreases. Then, the left and right drums stop. Furthermore, the middle drum rotates again at a high speed, and then stops at a low speed (actually, the speed gradually decreases).

When realizing such a fluctuation pattern,
The switching circuits 191A, 191B, and 191C first output a high-duty PWM waveform having a long on-period as shown in FIG. 17B in response to a switching signal from the display control CPU 401. That is, a high voltage is applied to the drive coils of the drum motors 200A to 200C. At the start of rotation, a high torque is required, so that a high voltage is first applied to the drive coils of the drum motors 200A to 200C.

Thereafter, the display control CPU 401 switches the switching circuits 191A, 191B, 191C according to the rotation speeds of the respective drum motors 200A to 200C.
Are instructed as to whether the duty is high or low. Therefore, the switching circuit 1
Each of the switching circuits 91A, 191B, and 191C outputs a low-duty PWM waveform when the corresponding drum rotates at a low speed, and outputs a high-duty PWM waveform when the corresponding drum rotates at a high speed, independently of the other switching circuits. Therefore, a high voltage is applied to a drive coil of a drum motor that drives a high-speed rotating drum, and a low voltage is applied to a drive coil of a drum motor that drives a low-speed rotating drum.

As described above, the rotational speed (variable speed)
When the speed is high or when high torque is required, FIG.
8, the drum motors 200A, 200B, 2
A PWM waveform having a long ON period is applied to the drive coil of 00C. When the fluctuation speed is slow or low torque is sufficient, a PWM waveform with a short ON period is applied. A PWM waveform having a long ON period corresponds to a in FIG. 18, and a PWM waveform having a short ON period corresponds to b in FIG. 18.

The display control CPU 401 determines that the fluctuation speed is high when the fluctuation speed is equal to or less than 20 ms / step, and determines that the fluctuation speed is low when the fluctuation speed exceeds 20 ms / step. judge. However, this value is merely an example value, and fast / slow is determined according to the model or drum type applied.

As described above, equivalently, when the motor rotates at a high speed or when a high torque is required, the high voltage is applied to the drum motor 2.
00A to 200C are applied to the drive coil, and a low voltage is applied to the drive coil during low-speed rotation.

Further, the display control CPU 401 controls the driving circuits 176A, 176B, and 17 via the output port 511.
6C is supplied with a motor drive signal for driving the drum motor. The drive circuits 176A, 176B, and 176C amplify the motor drive signal from the output port 511 and drive the respective drive coils of the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C.

FIG. 19 is a timing chart showing an example of a motor drive signal for the drum motor 200A and an effective drive voltage. When rotating the drum motor 200A at a high speed, the display control CPU 401 gives a high duty switching signal to the switching circuit 191A. Therefore, a +30 V pulse having a long ON period is output from the switching circuit 191A. Therefore, the effective drive voltage for the drum motor 200A is high.

In this state, the display control CPU 401
A motor drive signal of a predetermined frequency is output to drive circuit 176A via output port 511. The predetermined frequency is a frequency corresponding to the rotation speed of the drum motor 200A. For example, if there are 20 symbols on the rotating drum 122A that is driven to rotate by the drum motor 200A and it takes eight steps to change one symbol, when changing one symbol in 0.2 seconds, it is equivalent to 40 steps / second. And outputs a motor drive signal of the desired frequency.

When the drum motor 200A is rotated at a low speed, the display control CPU 401 supplies a low-duty switching signal to the switching circuit 191A.
Therefore, a +30 V pulse with a short ON period is output from the switching circuit 191A. Therefore, the drum motor 2
The effective drive voltage for 00A is low. In that state,
The display control CPU 401 outputs a motor drive signal having a frequency corresponding to the low-speed rotation to the drive circuit 176A via the output port 511.

As described above, the display control CPU 401
Supplies a high-duty switching signal to the switching circuit 191A when outputting a high-frequency motor drive signal, and supplies a low-duty switching signal to the switching circuit 191A when outputting a low-frequency motor drive signal. Therefore, during high-speed rotation, a high voltage is applied to the drum motor 200A, and the drum motor 200A
Rotates stably. On the other hand, during low-speed rotation, a low voltage is applied to the drum motor 200A, and power consumption is reduced.

The display control CPU 401 supplies a high-duty switching signal to the switching circuit 191A even at the start of motor rotation requiring high torque, and controls the drum motor 200A to start rotating stably. Also, the control related to the drum motor 200A has been described here, but the drum motors 200B and 200B are not described.
C is similarly controlled.

Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 19, each of the drum motors 200 is operated at both high speed and low speed.
The drive coils of A, 200B, and 200C are two-phase excited, but may use a 1-2-phase excitation method.

In this embodiment, the switching circuits 191A, 191B, and 191C are provided corresponding to the respective drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C, so that step-out occurs for each of the drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C. It is possible to perform a stable control that does not cause the like. As a result, the rotating drums 122A, 12A
2B and 122C always rotate stably, and the interest of the game is not spoiled.

For example, even in the case where rotary drums having different inertia are mixed in one variable display device 26, that is, even when rotary drums having different drum diameters exist, the switching circuits 191A, 191B,
191C is each drum motor 200A, 200B, 200
C is provided so that appropriate speed control and torque control can be performed for each rotating drum.

In this embodiment, the display control C
The PU 401 is connected to the drive circuit 17 via the output port 511.
Motor drive signals are given to 6A, 176B and 176C.
Therefore, even if an abnormality occurs on the side of the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C, its influence is not affected by the display control CPU 40.
It does not pass to one. That is, the display control CPU 4
01 can be protected.

Further, as shown in FIG. 20, the speed can be easily switched smoothly. That is, when the display CPU 401 shifts from the high-speed rotation to the low-speed rotation, as shown in FIG.
Duty ratio P1 intermediate between duty ratio P2 at low speed
Is output. By doing so, the drum motors 200A, 200
0B and 200C rotate, a current suitable for the rotation is supplied to the drum motor 2
00A, 200B, and 200C.

Therefore, in the conventional case, even when a motor drive signal causing step-out occurs, it is possible to freely change the current applied to the drive coils of the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C by PWM control. As a result, step-out can be prevented, and switching of the fluctuation speed is smoothly performed. Also, an appropriate current can be supplied depending on the time, heat generation of the coil due to overcurrent or the like can be suppressed, and an efficient current can be supplied. For example, if the drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C are controlled to generate high torque at low speed rotation, idling will occur, and if the drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C are controlled to generate low torque at high speed rotation, step-out and the like will occur. However, in this embodiment, it is possible to perform control such that high torque is generated at high speed rotation and low torque is generated at low speed rotation.
0C always rotates stably.

Therefore, compared to the conventional case, many types of variation patterns can be realized. This makes it possible to realize a gaming machine that gives the player a sense of expectation. Further, when driving a rotary drum having a different inertia due to a change in a game machine or the like, it is not necessary to change the motor to match the rotary drum to be used, so that a versatile gaming machine can be realized.

FIG. 21 is a waveform diagram for explaining the operation of the AD converter 410. The A / D converter 410 converts the value of the power supply voltage into a corresponding digital value and provides the digital value to the display control CPU 401. The display control CPU 401 includes:
A value corresponding to a regular power supply voltage (reference voltage) is compared with a conversion value from the A / D converter 410. When the conversion value from the A / D converter 410 is smaller than the value corresponding to the reference voltage, that is, when the actual power supply voltage is lower than the normal power supply voltage, as shown in FIG. And PW
The ON period of the M waveform 211 is lengthened. When the conversion value from the A / D converter 410 is larger than the value corresponding to the reference voltage, that is, when the actual power supply voltage is higher than the normal power supply voltage, FIG. As shown, the ON period of the PWM waveform 211 is shortened.

By controlling as described above, the current waveform applied to the drive coils of the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C is changed as shown in FIGS. 21 (B), (D) and (F). Even at this time, the current value can be kept constant. That is, the torque of the drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C becomes constant irrespective of the fluctuation of the power supply voltage, and more stable symbol fluctuation is realized.

As described above, in this embodiment, A-
Since the D converter 410 is provided, the display control CP
U401 creates the PWM waveform 211 based on both the symbol fluctuation speed and the conversion value from the A / D converter 410. The display control CPU 401 may always monitor the conversion value from the AD converter 410, or may monitor the conversion value at predetermined time intervals.

In the above embodiment, the display control CPU 401 determines a specific symbol variation pattern based on a display control command that can specify the variation time received from the main board 331. In other words, one out of a plurality of fluctuation patterns determined for the same fluctuation time
The two fluctuation patterns. Although the determined fluctuation pattern includes a plurality of fluctuation periods of different speeds, the display control CPU 401 determines the fluctuation pattern by itself, so that the PWM waveform 21 corresponding to each speed in the fluctuation pattern is displayed.
1 can be determined immediately.

That is, the display control CPU 401 determines a specific variation pattern from the received display control command, and sets the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C.
Is configured to generate a PWM waveform for performing PWM control of the drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C while providing a pulse-shaped motor drive waveform to the The appropriate duty ratio of the PWM waveform can be immediately determined from the fluctuation speed in each fluctuation period.
Therefore, the motor control program executed by the display control CPU 401 is not complicated, and various effects such as easy maintenance of the program can be obtained.

In the above embodiment, the case where the variable display device 26 having the rotating drum is used has been described. However, the present invention can be applied to a variable display device having another structure. For example, even when a belt-type variable display device that rotates a belt on which a pattern is drawn is used, if the switching circuits 191A, 191B, and 191C are provided corresponding to the stepping motors for driving each belt, each belt can be used. Appropriate speed control and torque control can be performed. Also, the AD converter 41
An appropriate PWM waveform corresponding to the output of 0 can be generated.

Further, the present invention can be applied to a case where a variable display device other than the drum type or belt type variable display device is used. That is, as long as the game machine has a variable display device in which a symbol is changed by a stepping motor, the present invention can be applied to a gaming machine having a variable display device of another method. Further, in the above embodiment, the case where the stepping motor is used has been described, but the motor is not limited to the stepping motor. A servo motor, a DC motor, or the like may be used.

Next, lighting control of a lunar light used as the drum lamps 151A to 151C will be described. As described above, the lunar light emits light when a lighting signal is applied to the anode in a state where the heater driving voltage is applied and the filament is heated. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG.
The heater drive voltages of the three white lunar lights and the heater drive voltages of the two red lunar lights in 51A to 151C are controlled by different systems. That is, the control signal for driving red luna light and the control signal for driving white luna light are output independently from the built-in output port of the display control CPU 401.

The display control CPU 401 includes a main board 331.
The specific variation pattern is determined based on the display control command received from, but it is also determined whether or not to execute various game effects other than the variation pattern. For example,
It is also determined whether or not to perform a notice effect for notifying the player of the possibility of a big hit. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the announcement effect is performed by blinking the red lunar light. Also, it is assumed that the white lunar light blinks during the rotation of the rotating drums 122A to 122C and is used as one that enhances the game effect.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing the main processing executed by the display control CPU 401. When the power is turned on, the display control CPU 401 first executes initialization processing for performing processing such as initializing a RAM and an output port (step S701). Then, it waits until the timer interrupt flag becomes 1 (step S702).
When the timer interrupt flag becomes 1, the timer interrupt flag is cleared (step S703), and the display control process (step S704) is executed. Step S
In the initialization processing of 701, initialization is also performed such that the internal timer of the display control CPU 401 repeatedly times up at a predetermined interval (for example, 2 ms).

In the initialization process, each drum lamp 1
The setting to start supplying the heater drive voltage for heating the filament of white lunarite in 51A to 151C is also made. That is, a signal for turning on the switching circuit 178E is output (see FIG. 16).

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing the timer interrupt processing. In the timer interrupt processing, the display control CPU
401 sets a timer interrupt flag (step S
711). In this embodiment, since the timer interrupt occurs at a predetermined interval such as every 2 ms, the display control process of step S704 is restarted at a predetermined interval. If it is not possible to set the internal timer to repeat the time-up,
The timer setting process is performed again. Further, the display control process may be executed by a timer interrupt process.

FIG. 24 shows a display control process (step S70).
It is a flowchart which shows the display control process process which is an example of 4). In the display control process, steps S720 to S840 are performed according to the value of the display control process flag.
Is performed. In each process,
The following processing is executed.

Display control command reception waiting processing (step S720): It is confirmed whether or not a display control command capable of specifying the fluctuation time has been received from the main board 331.

Reach operation setting processing (step S75)
0): At the time of the reach, which of the fluctuation patterns determined as the reach mode is used is determined. In addition, it is determined whether or not to perform the jackpot notice, and if it is determined to perform the notice, the type of the notice is determined.

All symbols change start processing (step S78)
0): Control is performed so that the change of the middle left and right symbols is started.
That is, the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C
Circuit 191A, 1 for supplying a PWM waveform to
91B and 191C are turned on.

Symbol change processing (step S810): The switching timing of each change state (change speed) constituting the change pattern is controlled, and the end of the change time is monitored. Also, stop control of the left and right symbols is performed.

All symbols stop wait setting process (step S84)
0): At the end of the fluctuation time, if a display control command instructing to stop all the symbols has been received, the fluctuation of the symbols is stopped and the rotating drums 122A to 122A are stopped at the final stopped symbol (fixed symbol).
Control to stop C is performed.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the jackpot announcement random number and the jackpot announcement of the display random numbers handled by the display control CPU 401. The display random numbers include a reach type determination random number and a jackpot announcement random number. The reach type determination random number is used to determine a fluctuation pattern (reach type), and the jackpot announcement random number is used to determine whether or not to perform a jackpot announcement.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing the reach operation setting process (step S750). In the reach operation setting process, the display control CPU 401 determines from the display control command that can specify the fluctuation time whether or not it is out of reach (step S751).

If it is a miss, it is checked whether the left and right stop symbols (stop symbols specified by the display control command) are different (step S752). If they match, the right stop symbol is assumed to be shifted by one symbol (step S753). Then, the left and right stopped symbols are stored in a predetermined storage area (step S754).

If it is determined in step S751 that there is no loss, it is checked whether the left and right symbols are the same (step S755). If not, the right stop symbol is made the same as the left stop symbol (step S756). Then, the left and right middle stop symbols are stored in a predetermined storage area (step S757). Also, the display control CPU 401
Determines the reach type, that is, the fluctuation pattern (step S758). In addition, it is determined whether or not to perform the big hit notice (step S759).

As described above, in this embodiment, the display control CPU 401 contradicts the command sent from the main board 331 when the variable display of the symbol is started with the received right and left middle symbol. Sometimes stop symbols are corrected. Therefore, even if an error occurs in the display control command designating the left and right middle stop symbol for some reason, the error is corrected. The error is, for example, a case in which noise is present on the cable from the main board 331 to the display control board 165 and a bit error occurs in the command. As a result,
The display of the fixed symbol inconsistent with the loss / reach determined by the game control means is prevented.

In this embodiment, it is assumed that the fluctuation control of the symbols, that is, the speed control of the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C is performed using a process table corresponding to the selected fluctuation pattern. The process table contains
Information indicating the speed switching timing and the speed after the switching is set. Therefore, in the reach operation setting process, it is also determined to use a process table corresponding to the selected variation pattern. Then, the display control CPU 401 changes the value of the display control process flag to a value corresponding to the all symbol variation start processing (step S780) (step S76).
0).

FIG. 27 is a flowchart showing the reach mode determination processing in step S758. In the reach mode determination process, the display control CPU 401 first extracts a reach type determination random number (step S758a).
Then, the reach type is determined using the table in which the relationship between the random number value and the variation pattern is described (step S7).
58b).

FIG. 28 is a flowchart showing the jackpot announcement determination process in step S759. In the jackpot announcement determination process, the display control CPU 401 first extracts a jackpot announcement random number (step S759a). Then, it is confirmed whether or not to make a big hit (step S759)
b). The confirmation is performed using a display control command indicating a left and right middle stop symbol received from the main board 331. If a big hit is not to be made, it is determined whether or not to make a big hit notice using the table shown on the right side of FIG. 25, and if a big notice is to be made, the mode of the notice is determined (step S759c). If a big hit is to be made, it is determined whether or not to make a big hit notice using the table shown on the left side of FIG. 25, and if a big notice is to be made, the mode of the notice is determined (step S75).
9d).

If it is determined that the big hit notice should be given, the big hit notice start time determination timer is started (steps S759e and S759f). The big hit notice start time determination timer is a timer that determines the time from the start of the symbol change to the start of the big hit notice 1 mode. In the embodiment of the big hit notice 1, in this embodiment, the red lunar lights of the drum lamps 151A to 151C are blinked and displayed.

Then, the display control CPU 401 starts the red lunar light lighting preparation timer (step S).
759 g). The red lunar light lighting preparation timer is for setting a timing to start supplying a heater driving voltage for heating the filament of the red lunar light in each of the drum lamps 151A to 151C. When the red lunar light lighting preparation timer times out, the display control C
The PU 401 outputs a signal for turning on the switching circuit 178D (see FIG. 16). In this embodiment, the setting is made such that the red lunar light lighting preparation timer times out two seconds earlier than the big hit notice start time determination timer times out.

FIG. 29 is a diagram showing a process during symbol change (step S8).
It is a flowchart which shows 10). In the symbol variation processing, the display control CPU 401 checks whether the red lunar light lighting preparation timer has timed out (step S811). If it has timed out, the switching circuit 17 for heating the filament of red lunarite
8D is turned on (step S81)
2). The switching circuit 178D applies + 5.4V to the non-ground side of the two terminals of the filament of each red lunar light according to the signal.

Also, it is confirmed whether or not the big hit notice start time determination timer has timed out (step S81).
3). If the timeout has occurred, the flashing control of each red lunar light is started so that the mode of the big hit notice 1 is performed (step S814). More specifically, the output port 511 and the driving circuits 178A, 178 at a predetermined blinking interval.
B and 178C (see FIG. 16), an ON signal and an OFF signal are repeatedly applied to the anode of each red lunar light.

If it is determined that the announcement by the jackpot announcement 2 is to be performed (step S815),
The big hit notice 2 start time determination timer is started (step S816). In this embodiment, the jackpot notice 2
Is a development of jackpot notice 1. Accordingly, the announcement by the jackpot announcement 2 is performed a predetermined time after the announcement by the jackpot announcement 1 is started (until the timeout of the jackpot announcement 2 start time determination timer).

The display control CPU 401 checks whether or not the big hit notice 2 start time determination timer has timed out (step S817). If the timeout has occurred, the drum motors 200A, 200B, and 200C are controlled so that the display according to the big hit notice 2 is performed (step S818). The mode of the big hit notice 2 will be described later.

Next, the display control CPU 401 checks whether or not the process timer has timed out (step S819). When the process timer times out, the pointer indicating the data in the process table is set to +
3 is performed (step S820). The reason for adding +3 is that, in the process table, information indicating each fluctuation period constituting the fluctuation pattern is described in 2 bytes, and information indicating the fluctuation speed in that period is described in 1 byte.

Then, it is determined whether or not the data in the area pointed to by the pointer is an end code (step S821).
If it is not the end code, the drum motors 200A, 200B, 200C are based on the data indicating the fluctuation speed set in the third byte of the process data indicated by the pointer.
And the drive signal for the drive coil is controlled (step S822). For example, if the data indicating the fluctuation speed indicates a high-speed fluctuation, the duty ratio of the PWM waveform is increased and a motor drive signal having a frequency corresponding to the fluctuation speed is output. Further, the timer is started with the process timer value set in the first and second bytes (step S823).

At step S821, if it is the end code, the rotating drum 122A, 1
After performing the control to stop 22B and 122C (step S824), the value of the display control process flag is changed to a value corresponding to the display control command reception waiting process (step S720) (step S825).

As described above, the rotating drum 122A,
The fluctuation control of the symbol based on the rotation of 122B and 122C is performed, and during this time, if it is determined to perform the jackpot announcement, the jackpot announcement effect by blinking the red lunar light is executed.

FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the jackpot announcement effect and the rotation of the rotating drums 122A, 122B, 122C in this embodiment. FIG. 30 (A) is an example of a case where the big hit notice 1 is executed. As shown in the figure, when a predetermined time has elapsed from the start of the fluctuation, the filament heating control of red lunalite is started. As described above, in this embodiment, the predetermined time is a period in which the start of heating is two seconds before the start of the big hit announcement effect.

Therefore, two seconds after the filament heating of the red lunar light is started, the display control CPU 401 starts blinking control of the red lunar light. Then, at the end of the flashing control of the red lunar light, the display control CPU 401 releases the heating of the filament of the red lunar light. That is, the switching circuit 178D shown in FIG. 16 is turned off. In this example, the white lunar light is always set to a blinking state while the symbol is changing. The flashing control method is the same as in the case of the red lunar light.

FIG. 30 (B) shows an example of the case where the big hit notice 2 is made. In the big hit notice 2, the left and right rotating drums 122A and 122C for changing the left and right symbols rotate after a predetermined time has elapsed after the red lunar light starts blinking. Same as in the case.

As described above, according to this embodiment,
When the red lunar light does not blink, the heating of the red lunar light filament is stopped. Therefore, power consumption can be reduced and the life of the lunar light can be extended.

More specifically, the heating of the filament is started a predetermined time before the flashing of the red lunar light is started, that is, since the filament is preheated, the light emission amount rises immediately, and the light amount is insufficient at the start of the flashing. I haven't. Therefore, the interest of the game is not spoiled.

As shown in FIG. 16, all the white lunar lights of the left and right drum lamps 151A to 151C are controlled by one heater driving signal, and all the red lunar lights are controlled by one heater driving signal. Therefore, the control can be simplified and the circuit scale can be reduced.

Further, in this embodiment, the display control CPU 401 determines whether or not to perform the jackpot notice, and performs the preheating start control and the anode on / off control (flashing control) of the red lunar light used in the jackpot notice. The display control CPU 401
Can determine immediately the preheating start timing and the anode ON / OFF control start timing when it is determined to perform the jackpot notice. Accordingly, the drum lamps 151A to 151A
Control of 51C is easy. Further, since the game control means does not control the drum lamps 151A to 151C at all, the load on the game control means is reduced.

Although the present embodiment has been described with reference to the case where a big hit notice is given, a reach notice may be given. In addition, the notice effect was illustrated as a use form of the lunar light in which the heater heating is turned off when not in use,
The mode of use of Lunalight is not limited to notice production. The present invention can be applied to lunar lights that are used only for a specific period during the game, regardless of the purpose of using the lunar lights. For example, when the fluctuation pattern determined by the display control CPU 401 is a specific fluctuation pattern such as super reach, a usage method of deciding to use a specific lunar light (for example, red lunar light) during the fluctuation period is adopted. You can also.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the lunar light mounted inside the variable display device or in the vicinity of the variable display device has been described as an example. However, the lunar light is installed at other positions on the game board or around the game board for the purpose of decoration or the like. In this case, the present invention can be applied.

Further, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to lunar lights, and is applicable to light emitting elements used in gaming machines, which have an input terminal for controlling heating and the like in addition to an input terminal for controlling blinking. The present invention can be applied to the light emitting element of the above.

[0160]

As described above, according to the present invention, a gaming machine is provided with heater voltage control means for controlling a voltage input to a heating input terminal of a light emitting element, and the heater voltage control means comprises: At least when the light emitting element is not used, the voltage input to the heating input terminal is turned off, so that the life of the light emitting element can be extended and the power consumption of the gaming machine can be reduced. There is.

When the heater voltage control means is configured to control the voltage applied to the heating input terminal by one voltage control signal for a plurality of light emitting elements having the same use timing, A circuit relating to lighting control of the light emitting element can be simplified, and the cost of the gaming machine can be reduced.

In the case where the heater voltage control means is configured to start applying a voltage to the heating input terminal a predetermined time before the start of use of the light emitting element,
Since the light emitting element is preheated, the light emitting element rises immediately, and there is no shortage of light at the start of lighting.

The variable display control means for performing the variable display control of the variable display device is mounted on a display control board different from the board on which the game control means for controlling the progress of the game is mounted. When the game control means is configured to be mounted on the control board, the game control means does not need to control the voltage of the light emitting element, and the control load of the game control means can be reduced.

When the variable display control means is configured to output a lighting control signal to a light-emitting element lighting control input terminal, the game control means does not need to perform control relating to the light-emitting elements. The control load on the control means can be reduced.

The variable display control means determines a variation pattern of the identification information based on a command from the game control means capable of specifying a variation time, and the variable display control means uses a lighting control signal according to the determined variation pattern. When configured to perform lighting control of the light emitting element, based on the variation pattern uniquely determined by the variable display control means,
The lighting control pattern can be determined immediately.

The variable display control means is configured to independently determine the game effect contents other than the variation pattern of the identification information, and to control the lighting of the light emitting element by the lighting control signal according to the determined game effect contents. In this case, based on the game effect contents determined independently by the variable display control means, the lighting control pattern corresponding thereto can be immediately determined.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a pachinko gaming machine viewed from the front.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the gaming board of the pachinko gaming machine as viewed from the front.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the pachinko gaming machine as viewed from the rear.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a game control circuit.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a display control circuit.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a configuration example of a variable display device driving unit of the variable display device.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a variable display device driving unit.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a display control board.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a game control operation executed by a CPU on a main board according to a game control program.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a special symbol process process.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a configuration example of display control command data.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing signal lines of a display control command.

FIG. 13 is a timing chart showing an example of transmission timing of a display control command.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of transmission timing of each control command relating to symbol fluctuation.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a portion related to driving of a drum motor in the display control board.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of a portion related to driving of a drum lamp on the display control board.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a relationship between symbol fluctuation and a duty ratio of a PWM waveform.

FIG. 18 is a waveform chart for explaining motor drive control.

FIG. 19 is a timing chart showing an example of a motor drive signal and an effective drive voltage.

FIG. 20 is a waveform chart for explaining an operation at the time of speed switching of motor drive control.

FIG. 21 is a waveform chart for explaining the operation of the motor drive control when the power supply voltage fluctuates.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart illustrating a main process executed by a display control CPU.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart showing a timer interrupt process of the display control CPU.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing a display control process.

FIG. 25 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between random numbers for jackpot announcement and jackpot announcement modes.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart showing a reach operation setting process of a display control process process.

FIG. 27 is a flowchart illustrating reach mode determination processing.

FIG. 28 is a flowchart showing a jackpot notice determination process.

FIG. 29 is a flowchart showing an all symbol stop waiting process of the display control process process.

FIG. 30 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the jackpot announcement effect and the rotation of the rotary drum.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Pachinko gaming machine 26 Variable display device 100 Variable display device drive unit 122A to 122C Rotary drum 165 Display control board (sub-board) 176 Motor drive circuit 178 Light drive circuit 178D, 178E Switching circuit 191A, 191B Switching circuit 200 Drum motor (Stepping) Motor) 331 CPU 401 Display control CPU 410 A / D converter

Claims (7)

[Claims] A variable display device having a plurality of display areas whose display states can be changed, wherein the change of the identification information is started in the display area in response to a condition for starting the change, and a display result of the identification information is displayed. A gaming machine that can be controlled to a specific game state advantageous to a player on condition that a predetermined specific display mode is set, wherein a light emitting element is provided in association with the variable display device, and the light emitting element is A heater voltage control unit that includes a heating input terminal and a lighting control input terminal, and controls a voltage input to the heating input terminal of the light emitting element; A gaming machine characterized by turning off a voltage input to a heating input terminal when an element is not used. 2. When a plurality of light emitting elements are provided, the heater voltage control means applies a voltage applied to a heating input terminal by one voltage control signal for a plurality of light emitting elements having the same use timing. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the gaming machine performs control. 3. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the heater voltage control means starts applying a voltage to the heating input terminal a predetermined time before the start of use of the light emitting element. 4. A game machine in which the variable display control means for performing variable display control of the variable display device is mounted on a display control board different from the board on which the game control means for controlling the progress of the game is mounted. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the heater voltage control means is mounted on the display control board. 5. The gaming machine according to claim 4, wherein the variable display control means outputs a lighting control signal to an input terminal for lighting control of the light emitting element. 6. The game control means sends to the variable display control means a command capable of specifying a fluctuating time and stop identification information at the start of the change of the identification information, and sends the command for instructing the stop at the stop of the identification information to the variable display control means. A gaming machine which sends the variable display control means to the display control means, wherein the variable display control means determines a change pattern of the identification information based on a command capable of specifying a change time, wherein the variable display control means The gaming machine according to claim 5, wherein lighting control of the light emitting element is performed in accordance with the lighting control signal. 7. The variable display control means independently determines a game effect content other than the variation pattern of the identification information, and performs lighting control of the light emitting element by a lighting control signal according to the determined game effect content. The gaming machine according to claim 6.