JP2003088663A - Control device for game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a control device for a game machine, which can reduce an operational load on a manager of a game parlor and enhance security. SOLUTION: This control device for the game machine 4 is composed of the game machine 4 which is equipped with a microcomputer for controlling the game machine 4 with a communication facility, a terminal device 2 for establishing communication, and a data management device which collects data from the terminal device 2. Among the data acquired by the communication from the game machine 4, at lest the type of the game machine 4 and the machine number thereof, which is set in the game parlor, are managed to correspond to each other, so that the control device can reduce the operational load on the manager of the game parlor and enhance the security.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a game machine management system for managing a game machine, and more particularly to a game machine management device when the game machine is controlled by a microcomputer with a communication function (hereinafter referred to as CPU). is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Management of a plurality of gaming machines in a gaming store in which gaming machines such as pachinko machines are installed is performed by a gaming machine management device that collects and analyzes operation data of each gaming machine. The gaming machine management apparatus is a comprehensive gaming machine management apparatus in which a security function such as detecting and notifying the opening / closing of the door of the gaming machine is added.

FIG. 7 shows a typical example of a gaming machine management apparatus which has been conventionally used. In FIG. 7, the gaming machine management device 1
Is composed of a plurality of terminal devices 2 and a host computer (hall computer) 3 for information processing. The terminal device 2 is mainly composed of a CPU 21, and is connected to the gaming machine 4 via an interface circuit 22 and the host computer 3 via a network interface circuit 23.

The gaming machine 4 has a CPU 41 for controlling the gaming machine.
, And outputs data to the outside through the interface circuit 42. Although not shown, the CPU 41 of the gaming machine 4 is in charge of a plurality of functions necessary for the gaming machine such as a display function and a ball (or coin) payout function. The high-order computer 3 has a database 31 for managing the correspondence between the model data of the gaming machine and the machine number, and manages the data so that the data of the gaming machine in the gaming shop can be normally acquired.

The interface circuit 22 is connected to the gaming machine 4 via a connection cable 5, and also interfaces to receive signals from other peripheral devices (door sensor, radio wave sensor, sand sales signal, etc.) not shown. It is generally prepared. A network cable 6 connects between the terminal device 2 and the host computer 3. In such a conventional gaming machine management device 1, various set values for properly processing data are given to the terminal device 2 according to the type of gaming machine, and the database 31 is always set correctly so that the data can be taken correctly. Then need to manage. Then, when the terminal device 2 only collects data and does not have a processing function, the host computer 3 performs an operation of setting an appropriate parameter for each gaming machine.

Further, the place where each gaming machine 4 is installed is managed as a positional number of the gaming machine (hereinafter referred to as a machine number). In order to collect data correctly, the administrator of the amusement store sets the correspondence relationship between the machine number and the model of the gaming machine installed there in the gaming machine management device, and the parameters corresponding to the model of the gaming machine. Need to give.

[0007]

In the conventional game machine management apparatus, the manager of the game store needs to perform the relationship between the machine number and the model of the game machine, and this work occurs every time the machine is replaced. . In addition, similar work occurs when the game machine is moved within the game store. This work is a manual work,
Operational problems such as the inability to obtain proper information often occur due to work mistakes. Further, when the table is moved, there is no means to individually manage the gaming machines, so it is not possible to evaluate individual characteristics of each gaming machine. Therefore, it is practically impossible to analyze the dependency of the operating rate on the location of the gaming machine.

Regarding security, a fraud detection device such as a door sensor or a radio wave sensor is provided in the vicinity of the gaming machine, and signals from these are input to the terminal device for monitoring, thereby indirectly preventing unauthorized access. Or, by looking at the operation data of the gaming machine and finding a gaming machine that is operating abnormally, we are taking measures to detect fraud,
In actual operation, there were difficulties.

Further, in the conventional gaming machine management apparatus, the machine number can be easily created by setting the number of gaming machines, but regarding the model of the gaming machine corresponding to the machine number, the operation of the gaming machine management apparatus is performed. While checking the game machines actually installed by the administrator, although not shown in FIG. 7, the settings were made one by one using the display device and the keyboard. Since this work is done manually, human error is likely to occur and it takes time. Therefore, setting work always occurs during business activities such as replacement of a new table and movement of a table, which is a problem in the operation of a game store.

The present invention has been proposed in view of the difficulty in operating the above-mentioned gaming machine management apparatus, and provides a gaming machine management apparatus which reduces the operational burden on the administrator of the gaming machine and improves security. The purpose is to

[0011]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention as set forth in claim 1 provides a gaming machine equipped with a gaming machine control microcomputer with a communication function, a terminal device for communicating, and this terminal. In a gaming machine management device configured with a data management device that collects data from the device,
Among the data obtained by the communication with the gaming machine, at least the model of the gaming machine and the machine number of the gaming machine set at the gaming shop are managed in association with each other.

The invention according to claim 2 comprises a gaming machine equipped with a gaming machine control microcomputer with a communication function, a terminal device for communication, and a data management device for collecting data from this terminal device. In the gaming machine management device, the data obtained by communicating with the gaming machine
It is characterized by managing a unique number of a gaming machine control microcomputer, which is unique data of the gaming machine.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a gaming machine equipped with a gaming machine control microcomputer having a communication function, a terminal device for communication, and a data management device for collecting data from the terminal device. In the gaming machine management device, the unique number of the gaming machine control microcomputer, which is the data unique to the gaming machine, and the model of the gaming machine, among the data obtained by communication with the gaming machine, are set at the gaming shop. It is characterized in that it is managed in correspondence with the machine number.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a gaming machine equipped with a gaming machine control microcomputer having a communication function, a terminal device for communication, and a data management device for collecting data from the terminal device. In the gaming machine management apparatus described above, a set value corresponding to a model obtained by communication with the gaming machine is set to a terminal device corresponding to the gaming machine.

[0015]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a gaming machine management apparatus showing a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a gaming machine management apparatus showing a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining the operation of the second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a gaming machine management device showing the third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a gaming machine management showing the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the apparatus, and FIG. 6 is a flow chart for explaining the operation of the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, the same components as those in FIG. 7 are designated by the same reference numerals, and their detailed description will be omitted. The gaming machine 4 in FIG. 1 is a gaming machine having a gaming machine control CPU with a communication function and is controlled by the CPU 43 with a communication function. The CPU 43 is configured to output game data as an external signal through the interface circuit 42 as in the conventional game machine, and to communicate with the outside through another interface circuit 44.

The terminal device 2 has a game machine CPU 4 in addition to an interface circuit 22 for collecting data of the game machine.
3 has an interface circuit 24 for communicating with
It is connected to the gaming machine via the connection cable 7, and the data is input to the CPU 21. By adding the communication interface circuit 24, the terminal device 2 can be easily connected to a CPU-equipped gaming machine with a communication function. There is no need to physically change between the terminal device 2 and the host computer 3, and it can be realized simply by adding a protocol for transmitting and receiving data to and from each other.

The host computer 3 instructs the terminal device 2 corresponding to the machine number N to acquire the gaming machine property of the gaming machine 4 via the network cable 6. This is generally notified as a command from the host computer 3 to the terminal device 2. The CPU 21 of the terminal device 2
Request the gaming machine property (data that uniquely determines the characteristics of the gaming machine, hereinafter referred to as gaming machine property) to the gaming machine CPU 43 via the interface circuit 24, the cable 7, and the interface circuit 44, and from the gaming machine CPU 43 In response, get the gaming machine properties. As a result, the host computer 3 can acquire the characteristics of the gaming machine with the unit number N (generally, the data corresponding to the model name of the gaming machine), and the database 31 stores the characteristics.
Save to.

By counting up the machine number N from 1 and acquiring the data of all the game machines, the characteristics of the game machines corresponding to the machine numbers of all the game machines are acquired. That is, the model of the gaming machine and the machine number of the gaming machine set at the gaming shop are automatically associated. Gaming machine management device 1 of the present invention
By using, such a correspondence table can be set automatically and surely. Further, the work associated with the table exchange and the table movement can be realized very easily and surely by the game machine management device by only the actual work, which can contribute to the rationalization of the operation of the game store.

That is, each gaming machine is uniquely identified by the ID of the gaming machine CPU 41 mounted on the gaming machine, and the characteristics of the gaming machine 4 are determined by the gaming machine properties. These functions are realized by communication between the terminal device 2 and the CPU 41,
It is acquired as information on the gaming machine 4 corresponding to the terminal device 2. On the other hand, the gaming machine management device 1 manages which number of the gaming machine 4 the terminal device 2 is connected to. Therefore, the gaming machine management device 1 can be located at any place depending on the unit number.
It is possible to determine what type of gaming machine 4 there is. Furthermore, the gaming machine 4 can be individually identified by the ID of the gaming machine CPU 41 incorporated in the gaming machine 4.
In this way, since the gaming machine management device 1 can individually manage the gaming machines 4, the operation can be automated and rationalized.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Although the first embodiment is focused on streamlining the operation, another embodiment in which the present invention is applied to secure security is shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, the same components as those of the conventional example and the first embodiment of FIG. 1 are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. In FIG. 2, the basic configuration is the same as that of the first embodiment. The structural difference between the first embodiment and the second embodiment is that the database 31 in which the game machine type and the machine number are associated in the first embodiment.
Is changed to the database 32 for security.

In the present embodiment, the gaming machine CPU 41 has a number unique to the CPU itself (hereinafter referred to as an ID),
As additional information, game machines such as models and manufacturers 4
It has a gaming machine property that is data that uniquely determines the characteristics of, and has a function of notifying this to the outside. The present invention has been made in order to reasonably implement the management and operation of a gaming machine using such a CPU. The present invention is intended for a gaming machine 4 using a CPU that can be uniquely determined, and automatically obtains data for determining the ID and the characteristics of the gaming machine 4 from the gaming machine 4, and using this data The gaming machine 4 is managed.

The second embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The software for performing the operations described in this follow chart is executed by the host computer 3 when exchanging the platform or performing the security check. First, in step S1, the machine number is set to 1, and the terminal device 2 corresponding to the machine number 1 is instructed to acquire data. In step S2, the terminal device 2 communicates with the gaming machine and acquires an ID from the gaming machine. First, in step S3, it is determined whether or not the game machine is abnormal depending on whether the ID can be acquired. Here, CPU for game machine with correct communication function
If it is a game machine equipped with, communication should be possible, and if communication is not possible, it can be determined to be abnormal. In addition,
Such a case may occur when normal game machines coexist, but this can be processed by skipping communication with the corresponding game machine on the host computer side.

Next, when the ID is acquired, step S
At 4, it is confirmed whether the ID is already registered in the database. If it is a new ID, it needs to be a new one, so in step S5 it is confirmed with the manager of the game shop whether or not it is a new one. If it is determined in step S6 that it is a new machine, it is newly registered in the database. If it is not a new machine, it is determined that the security is abnormal in step S7. If the ID already exists, it is determined in step S8 whether or not it matches the already registered vehicle number.
If they match, the platform is normal and nothing is done (it is considered normal), and the next platform is inspected. If they do not match, it is possible that the platform has been moved, so step S9
At the game shop manager, it is confirmed whether the machine has been moved. If there is a movement, the database is updated and a new ID and machine No are managed in step S11. If there is no movement of the table, there is a possibility that an illegal table such as a copy of the ID has been set up, so that it is processed as a security abnormality in step S7.

By repeating the above process in step S12 for all the platforms, the host computer can surely execute the security confirmation of all the platforms in a short time. The first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 simplifies the data processing by acquiring the model instead of the ID and registering it in the database without making a determination.

The database is managed by associating the ID with the table No., but if only managing the security, it is possible to obtain only the ID and manage that there is no duplication. An effective function can be realized by associating with No.

FIG. 4 shows a third embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2
Constituent parts that are the same as those in FIG. 4 has basically the same configuration as FIG. 2,
The data structure of the database 33 of the upper computer 3 is different. That is, the data is the ID and the unit number.
And the date are related and managed. The date management can be easily realized by using the system date of the host computer 3. In addition, by inserting the date as an item in the database, managing the data of the gaming machine for each day together with the date in this way provides the following advantages. (1) It is possible to easily determine in which place (identified by the unit number) the specific unit (identified by the ID) is installed for each date. (2) As the function of the host computer, the operation data is held in units of units.

Therefore, since the operation data of a specific platform can be aggregated using the date and the location of the platform as parameters, it is possible to analyze the dependency by date and time and the dependency by location even on the same platform. It is possible to create such data for all machines with a conventional gaming machine management device,
It is necessary to manage each unit when moving it,
It was impossible in reality. However, the third aspect of the present invention
In the embodiment described above, these processes can be automatically managed, and the dependency by date and time and place of each unit can be analyzed and put to practical use for amusement store management.

FIG. 5 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the host computer 3 is
By having the correspondence database 31 between o and model, the characteristics of each gaming machine are grasped. Further, in the host computer 3, the values of various parameters to be set in the terminal device 2 according to the characteristics of the gaming machine (for example, the number of payout balls per pulse of the payout signal, the ON / OFF delay of the signal, various abnormality determination Numerical values etc.) are held as the database 34.

The values of these parameters are generally set from the host computer 3 to the terminal device 2 via the network IF when the game machine is changed. When a new game machine comes out, the database 34 usually confirms its characteristics from actual shooting and specifications, and the administrator sets the most appropriate data collection method as a parameter to be set in the terminal device 2. It is common. Moreover, already in FIG.
As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to automatically and surely configure the database 31. Therefore, the model corresponding to the machine number can always be held as the latest status using the database 31.

Furthermore, by using the database 34 shown in FIG. 5, it becomes possible to retrieve the values of various parameters to be set in the terminal device 2 in correspondence with the model.
It is possible to always hold the parameter to be set for the terminal device 2 corresponding to each unit No. FIG. 6 shows a flow chart for explaining the operation of the fourth embodiment.
As shown in FIG. 6, in step S20, first, the table No = 1
Set to. In step S21, in accordance with an instruction from the host computer 3, the terminal device 2 corresponding to the machine No. 1 communicates with the gaming machine and tries to acquire the model that is the gaming machine property.

In step S22, it is determined whether or not the model is successfully acquired. If the acquisition is unsuccessful, in step S27 the game machine does not support communication, the connection cable is disconnected, the communication circuit is broken, or the like. Since it is conceivable, a warning screen will be displayed on the screen of the higher-level computer to prompt the response. In the case of a model that does not support communication, the parameters are read from the corresponding data of the machine No .: model manually set from the database 31 and set in the terminal device 2 (this is the function of the current gaming machine management device). Has been realized).

Further, in the case of a model that supports communication, there is some problem, so an investigation will be conducted. When the communication is completed, the information of the model can be acquired from now on, and the database 34 is searched in step S25 to acquire the corresponding parameter. When the parameter can be acquired, the parameter is set in the terminal device 2 and the process is completed.

If the parameter cannot be obtained from the database 34, there is no data of model: terminal device setting parameter in step S28. In this case, therefore, it is necessary to separately register the data. When the administrator completes the registration of data, the setting is completed by executing the data again for this gaming machine. It is also possible to set a generally applicable default value in the terminal device 2 in consideration of the case where the parameter value is not immediately known. Step S2
At 6, the above operation is executed for all the machines, and appropriate parameters are set for the terminal devices 2 corresponding to all the gaming machines.

The present invention has been described above based on a plurality of embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without changing the constituent elements described in the claims. It can be applied.

[0036]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the model can be acquired through communication, it is possible to automatically and surely set the correspondence between the base and the model, which was conventionally set manually.
Since it is possible to manage the gaming machines individually by using, it is possible to significantly improve the operation of the gaming machine management device that manages the gaming shop.

According to the present invention, it is possible to always automatically and correctly grasp the latest configuration of the game store. As a result, it is possible to significantly reduce the load on the employees of the amusement arcade, prevent the occurrence of mistakes in the inspection by the competent regulatory agency, and contribute to the rationalization of the inspection work. Furthermore, illegal R that has become a problem in recent years but is extremely difficult to detect
It is possible to surely prevent the illegality of the gaming machine due to the OM preparation by managing the ID.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the structure of the game shop can be managed accurately and precisely, and the security can be improved, so that the operation of the game shop can be rationalized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a gaming machine management device showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a gaming machine management device showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the second embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a gaming machine management device showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a gaming machine management device showing a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the operation of the fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of a conventional gaming machine management device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 gaming machine management device 2 terminal devices 3 Host computer (hall computer) 4 game machines 5 connection cable 6 network cable 7 connection cable 21 CPU for terminal device 22, 23, 24 Interface circuit 31, 32, 33, 34 database 41 CPU for gaming machines 42,44 Interface circuit 43 CPU for gaming machines with communication function

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A gaming machine equipped with a gaming machine control microcomputer with a communication function, and a terminal device for communication.
In a gaming machine management device comprising a data management device that collects data from this terminal device, at least the model of the gaming machine among the data obtained by communication with the gaming machine, and the gaming set in the gaming shop. A gaming machine management device characterized in that it is managed by associating with a machine number. 2. A gaming machine equipped with a microcomputer for controlling a gaming machine having a communication function, and a terminal device for performing communication.
In a gaming machine management device comprising a data management device for collecting data from this terminal device, a gaming machine control microcomputer, which is data unique to the gaming machine among data obtained by communication with the gaming machine. A gaming machine management device characterized in that the unique number of the game machine is managed. 3. A gaming machine equipped with a microcomputer for controlling a gaming machine having a communication function, and a terminal device for performing communication.
In a gaming machine management device comprising a data management device that collects data from this terminal device, among the data obtained by communication with the gaming machine, a unique number of the gaming machine control microcomputer that is unique to the gaming machine. A gaming machine management device, wherein the gaming machine model is managed by associating the gaming machine model number with the machine gaming machine number set at the gaming shop. 4. A gaming machine equipped with a microcomputer for controlling a gaming machine having a communication function, and a terminal device for performing communication.
In a gaming machine management device comprising a data management device that collects data from this terminal device, a set value corresponding to a model obtained by communication with the gaming machine is set to the terminal device corresponding to the gaming machine. A gaming machine management device characterized in that