JP2002224424A - Game medium conveying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game medium conveying device which can be easily bent by any angle in a horizontal plane at a connection of a belt conveyor, thereby preventing game mediums from dropping down and preventing the conveyor from getting clogged with the mediums. SOLUTION: The game medium conveying device includes a first (belt) conveyor 1 located on a conveying line on the upstream side, a second (belt) conveyor 2 located on the downstream side, the starting end of the conveyor 2 being upwardly inclined, and a chute 3, which is connected to the upper surface of the terminal end of the first conveyor so as to extend closely to the upper surface of the starting end of the conveyor 2, thereby guiding game balls from the conveyor 1 to the conveyor 2. The downstream side edge of the chute 3 has an arcuate shape, while the conveyors 1, 2 are connected to each other so that the conveying direction of the game balls can be turned laterally by any angle. A bendable metal connection side plate 28 is provided on a side surface of a connection part of the conveyors 1, 2. A rotational axis 23 is provided on a frame bottom wall at the terminal end of the conveyor 1, while a rotational axis bearing groove 26 is provided on a frame bottom wall at the starting end of the conveyor 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a game medium transport device constructed by connecting a plurality of belt conveyors at an arbitrary angle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A transfer path for a game medium, for example, a medal used in a slot machine or the like, must be provided so that the middle of the path is bent in a substantially horizontal plane due to the arrangement of the game machines and the relationship with other devices. Often have to. For this reason, several belt conveyors that can only perform linear conveyance by themselves are connected in sequence and bent at the connection portion for use. The connecting portion, for example, conventionally, when providing a game medium transport device along the transport path of the bent game island, the starting end of the downstream belt conveyor is disposed below the upstream belt conveyor,
The connection was made by bending at an angle along the transport path.
An apparatus having such a configuration is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 5-48989.
Is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. HEI 9-203 (1995). The schematic configuration of the bent portion is a relative posture in which two ends of the belt conveyor forming the transport path are positioned such that one end is located above the other start.
It is configured to be connected in a series so as to be relatively swingable about a vertical axis passing through the terminal end and the start end.

[0003]

However, in the configuration described in the above publication, the step between the connected end of the upstream belt conveyor and the start of the downstream belt conveyor is relatively large. It is a space. Therefore, the game medium conveyed drops from the upper surface of the upstream end of the belt conveyor and reaches the upper surface of the start end of the downstream belt conveyor. As a result, when the game medium is conveyed to the connecting portion of the belt conveyor, noise may be generated, and the game medium may jump, spill, or become jammed. The present invention can easily connect the belt conveyor by rotating the belt conveyor at an arbitrary angle in the lateral direction with respect to the transport direction, and the game medium is not jammed or spilled at the connecting portion of the belt conveyor. It is intended to provide a game medium transport device.

[0004]

Means of the present invention include a first belt conveyor located upstream of a transport path on which game media are transported, and a first belt conveyor located downstream of a transport path on which game media are transported, A second belt conveyor whose starting end is inclined upward,
The second belt conveyor is continuous with the upper surface of the terminal end,
A chute provided to be close to the upper surface of the start end of the belt conveyor and guiding a game medium from the first belt conveyor to the second belt conveyor, wherein the chute is provided on a conveyance path. The downstream edge of the first belt conveyor is arc-shaped, and the first belt conveyor and the second
The belt conveyor is configured such that the conveying direction of the game medium is rotatably connected to an arbitrary angle in a lateral direction.

[0005] By providing the chute, it is not always necessary to dispose the starting end of the second belt conveyor below the end of the first belt conveyor, so that the height of the conveyor can be reduced, and the game to be conveyed can be reduced. The state in which the medium falls in the air at the connecting portion of the conveyor is eliminated. As a result, jumping, spilling, noise, jamming, and the like of the game medium can be prevented. In addition, since the downstream edge of the chute has an arc shape, when the angle of the subsequent conveyance direction of the second belt conveyor is changed, the variation of the gap between the chute and the second belt conveyor is suppressed, and Delivery is performed smoothly. That is, if the downstream edge of the chute is a straight edge like a normal chute, for example, if it is a straight edge perpendicular to the transport direction, if the transport path is linear, the downstream edge of the chute and the It is possible to adjust the gap between the belt and the upper surface of the start end of the two conveyors to be uniform and small with full width. However, when the conveyance direction is changed, the position is adjusted so as not to interfere with the belt surface of the start end of the second conveyor which is inclined upward. Is adjusted, a triangular gap is formed between the downstream edge of the chute and the second conveyor belt, and the gap increases on one side as the change angle increases. On the other hand, if the downstream edge of the chute has an arc shape, when the position is adjusted so as not to interfere with the belt surface at the start end of the second conveyor, even if the transport path is linear or the transport direction is changed, the width is not changed. In a state where there is a relatively small gap slightly enlarged on both sides in the direction, the size can be kept from changing so much. Therefore, even when the angle in the transport direction is changed, the size of the gap is small and the size of the gap does not change so much, and the delivery of the game medium is performed smoothly.

[0006] In the means of the present invention, it is preferable that a bendable connection side plate is provided on a side surface of a connection portion where the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor are connected. In this configuration, by providing a bendable connecting plate, when connecting at an angle between the belt conveyors, the connecting plate is bent and installed according to the bending angle of the side surface of the transport path, and the guiding function is also used for this. It is possible to prevent the game media from spilling from the side surface of the bent connecting portion.

In the means of the present invention, it is preferable that the connecting side plate is made of metal and has a plurality of slit-shaped cuts provided in a direction perpendicular to the conveying surface of the belt conveyor. In this configuration, since the connecting side plate is made of metal, it is possible to prevent destruction due to collision of the game medium, and when the connecting side plate is bent at the position of the slit due to the provision of the slit, the end having no slit is provided. Since it is only necessary to bend only the portion, it can be easily bent.

In the means of the present invention, the first belt conveyor is provided at one of an end portion of the first belt conveyor and a start end portion of the second belt conveyor.
A rotating shaft that is a center of rotation when the belt conveyor rotates at an arbitrary angle in the transverse direction with respect to the transport direction, and is provided at the other end of the first belt conveyor or the starting end of the second belt conveyor. A rotating bearing groove for connecting the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor by fitting the rotating shaft, wherein the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor are lateral to the conveying direction. It is preferable that the rotating shaft slides within the range of the rotating bearing groove when rotating at an arbitrary angle in the direction.

In this configuration, since the rotating shaft of the belt conveyor slides in the rotating bearing groove, the gap between the chute and the second belt conveyor can be easily adjusted, and the angle between the belt conveyors can be easily adjusted. .

[0010]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a game medium transport path in a gaming machine island, for example, a position close to each slot machine in an upper space and a lower space on the back surface of a row of slot machines constituting an island. The game media transport device is configured to form a game media transport path that extends from the top, supplies medals as game media to each slot machine from the upper side, and collects medals from the lower side of each slot machine. is there. This game medium transport device is configured by sequentially connecting several belt conveyors, and has a feature in the connecting portion. Hereinafter, the connecting portion will be mainly described. 1 to 3 show one of the connecting portions, but the other connecting portions have the same configuration. This connecting portion is a terminal portion of the first belt conveyor 1 on the upstream side in the transport direction,
Downstream end of second belt conveyor 2 and chute 3
It is composed of

A first belt conveyor (hereinafter, referred to as a first conveyor) 1 and a second belt conveyor (hereinafter, referred to as a second conveyor) 2 have substantially the same configuration, although not shown in their entirety. The parts that appear in the figure are denoted by reference numerals. The first conveyor 1 rotates around a transport belt 10 that transports medals M that are game media, a drive roller 11 that winds and drives the transport belt 10, and a drive roller 11 that rotates. It has a motor 12 for applying force, a frame 13 in which these are assembled, a driven roller (not shown), a tension device, and the like. The second conveyor 2 includes a transport belt 14, a driven roller 15,
6. Tension device 1 for applying tension to transport belt 14
7, a frame 18 to which these are assembled, a driving roller, a motor, and the like not shown in the figure.

Frame 1 of first and second conveyors 1 and 2
Reference numerals 3 and 18 have guide side surfaces 19 and 20 for guiding game media to be transported corresponding to both sides of the transport belts 10 and 14, respectively. Further, the frame 13 of the first conveyor 1 has a bottom wall 21 and is formed in an arc-shaped protruding portion 22 such that the downstream end protrudes downstream, and a width direction slightly inward from the protruding tip end. A short columnar rotating shaft 23 protruding upward is protruded from the center. Correspondingly, the frame 18 of the second conveyor 2 also has a bottom wall 24, and the arc-shaped protrusion 2 whose upstream end protrudes upstream.
5, and a rotation bearing groove 26 in which the rotation shaft 23 of the first conveyor 1 is fitted in the protruding portion 25 in a conveyor connected state is provided vertically penetrating the bottom wall 24. The direction of the rotation bearing groove 26 is a direction along the transport direction of the second conveyor 2, and the protrusions 22 and 25 overlap each other in a conveyor connected state, and the rotation shaft 23 fits into the rotation bearing groove 26. I have. In the figure, reference numeral 27 denotes a leaf spring which is fixed to the bottom wall 24 of the second conveyor 2, sandwiches the projection 22 between the bottom wall 24 and the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2 via the projection 22. The relative movement in the vertical direction is restricted. Therefore, although there is no relative movement in the vertical direction, the rotating shaft 23 and the rotating bearing groove 26 are maintained in the engaged state, and when the first conveyor 1 is fixed, the second conveyor 2 moves around the rotating shaft 23. It is rotatable and movable in the transport direction within the range of the length of the rotary bearing groove 26.

The first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2 are connected separately by using two connection side plates 28 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the connecting side plate 28 is formed by providing a slit 29 and mounting holes 30 and 31 in a flat plate member in which one corner of a substantially rectangular shape is cut off. A screw hole (not shown) for attaching the connection side plate 28 is provided in the frame 1.
3, a long hole 33 is drilled in the frame 18, and the screw 3
By being attached by 4, 35, the conveyor is brought into a connected state, and a guide surface of a medal M which is a game medium conveyed to both side surfaces of the connecting portion is formed. This connection side plate 2
Numeral 8 is formed of a stainless steel plate having a thickness that can be bent relatively easily, and the slits are provided to make bending operation easier.

As shown in FIG. 4, the chute 3 has a flat guide surface 36 for supporting and guiding the game medium M,
6, the upstream end 38 of the guide surface 36 is a straight edge, but the downstream end 3
9 is formed in an arc shape that protrudes to the downstream side.
The chute 3 is attached to the frame 13 of the first conveyer 1 together with the connection side plate 28 with the screw 34 by an attachment portion 37, and the upstream edge 38 of the guide surface 36 is the upper surface of the conveyer belt 10 of the first conveyer 1. The trailing edge approaches the trailing end, the guide surface 36 descends, and the downstream edge 39
Is approaching the middle of the rising slope 40 of the second conveyor 2. The arcuate shape of the downstream side edge 39 is determined so that the gap formed between the downstream side edge 39 and the rising slope 40 of the second conveyor 2 is small enough that the game medium M cannot fit in even at both ends. .

The connecting portion between the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2 thus configured is a virtual line bent at a desired angle, for example, about 45 degrees from a straight line state shown by a solid line in FIGS. To change to the state shown, the screws 35 fixing the connection side plates 28 on both sides to the frame 18 of the second conveyor 2 are removed, and the second conveyor 2 is rotated around the rotation shaft 23 to the desired angle. While being bent, the transport belt 14 of the second conveyor 2 is slightly slid in the transport direction along the rotary bearing groove 26 so that the transport belt 14 does not interfere with the downstream edge 39 of the chute 3, and the connection side plates 28 on both sides are first and second. The two conveyors 1 and 2 are smoothly bent in accordance with the bending angle and fixed by screws 35. At this time, the connecting side plate 28 is fixed to the frame 18 of the second conveyor 2 at a position corresponding to the bending angle using the long hole 33 of the frame 18. Thus, the operation of bending the connecting portion between the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2 is completed.

The state of the connection between the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2 after bending is determined by the downstream edge 3 of the chute 3.
9 is located in the middle of the ascending slope 40 of the second conveyor 2 and the closest point 41 is the downstream edge 3
9 is slightly offset from the center in the width direction, but is substantially the center of the second conveyor 2 in the width direction. Therefore, the state of the gap between the upper surface of the conveyor belt 10 of the second conveyor 2 and the downstream edge 39 of the chute 3 is substantially the same as that in the straight state where the conveyor is not bent at both the center and both ends. As a result, the medal M, which is a game medium transferred to the end of the first conveyor 1, moves to the chute 3 and is guided by the guide surface 36, and moves to the rising slope 40 at the start end of the second conveyor 2.
At this time, the medals M are transported obliquely to the second conveyor 2 at an angle bent with respect to the transport direction, but are guided by the connecting side plate 28 on one side and surely rest on the rising slope 40.

Since the chute 3 is interposed, the start end of the second conveyor 2 does not have to be inserted under the end of the first conveyor 1 as compared with the conventional one, so that the heights of both conveyors are reduced. Can be reduced, and since the game medium M moving between the conveyors does not move in the air, noise generation and spillage due to jumping are eliminated. The connection between the first conveyor 1 and the second conveyor 2 can easily change the conveying direction to a desired angle in the lateral direction, so that the conveyor can be easily installed. In addition, the gap between the chute 3, which is a joint of the game medium supporting surfaces when the game medium M moves to the second conveyor 2, and the conveyor belt 14 of the second conveyor 2 is connected to the first and second conveyors 1, 2. Even if it is bent at the part, it can be made almost as small as the straight state,
Since the game medium cannot enter this gap, the game medium always moves smoothly without clogging in a straight state or a bent state.

[0018]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the provision of the chute allows the game medium to jump, spill, noise,
Jamming can be prevented and the size of the gap does not change much when the angle of the conveyance direction is changed between the belt conveyors, so that the game media can be smoothly transferred between the conveyors. The invention described in claim 2 has an effect that the game media can be prevented from spilling from the side surface of the bent connecting portion. The invention according to claim 3 has an effect that it is possible to prevent the destruction of the connection side plate due to the collision of the game medium and to easily make the connection side plate according to the bending of the transport path. The invention described in claim 4 is
It is possible to easily adjust the gap between the chute and the second belt conveyor, and to easily adjust the angle between the belt conveyors.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a main part showing a connection state between a terminal end of a first belt conveyor and a start end of a second belt conveyor according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic bottom view substantially corresponding to FIG. 1 of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of the chute of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged front view of a connecting side plate of the embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 First conveyor 2 Second conveyor 3 Chute 10 Conveyor belt 11 Drive roller 12 Motor 13 Frame 14 Conveyor belt 15, 16 Follower roller 17 Tension device 18 Frame 19, 20 Guide side surface 21 Bottom wall 22 Projection 23 Rotating shaft 24 Bottom wall 25 Projection 26 Rotation bearing groove 27 Leaf spring 28 Connecting side plate 29 Slit 30, 31 Mounting hole 33 Slot 34, 35 Screw 36 Guide surface 37 Mounting portion 38 Upstream edge 39 Downstream edge 40 Ascending slope 41 points

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A first belt conveyor located upstream of a transport path on which a game medium is transported, and a second belt conveyor located downstream of the transport path on which a game medium is transported, the start end of which is inclined upward. A belt conveyor, provided so as to be continuous with an upper surface of an end portion of the first belt conveyor and close to an upper surface of a start end portion of the second belt conveyor, and guide game media from the first belt conveyor to the second belt conveyor; A chute having an arc shape at a downstream end of a conveyance path, and wherein the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor are arranged in a conveying direction of the game medium. Is a game medium transport device that is rotatably connected to an arbitrary angle in the lateral direction. 2. The game medium transport device according to claim 1, wherein a bendable connection side plate is provided on a side surface of a connection portion where the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor are connected. 3. The game medium transport device according to claim 2, wherein the connection side plate is made of metal, and a plurality of slit-shaped cuts are provided in a direction perpendicular to a transport surface of the belt conveyor. 4. An end portion of the first belt conveyor and a second end portion of the second belt conveyor.
A rotation shaft provided at one of the start ends of the belt conveyor, and serving as a rotation center when the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor rotate at an arbitrary angle in a lateral direction with respect to a conveyance direction; A rotation bearing groove that is provided at the other end of the first belt conveyor or the start end of the second belt conveyor and that connects the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor when the rotation shaft is fitted; The rotation shaft slides within the range of the rotation bearing groove when the first belt conveyor and the second belt conveyor rotate at an arbitrary angle in a lateral direction with respect to a conveyance direction. A game medium transport device according to claim 2 or claim 3.