JP2004065805A - Automatic mah-jongg table - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a distributed tile block and a two layered stacked tile block from one opening provided on a top plate. <P>SOLUTION: Tiles 10 are tentatively selectively sent into a top platform 703 and a bottom platform 702 by a sorting mechanism 600. These tiles 10 are pushed towards a stand-by mechanism 800 and the distributed tile block is formed and stand on a tile distribution platform 801 and the two layered stacked tile block is formed and stand on a stand-by platform 802. The distributed tile block and the two layered stacked tile block are selectively moved on an elevating platform 901 and each block is sequentially pushed onto the top plate 4 from the opening of the elevating platform 901 by a lifting motion. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
According to the present invention, after a set of tiles placed in the table is agitated, a tile for arrangement of tiles and a tile for stacking two tiles from which tiles are removed are formed. It relates to an automatic mahjong table that can be pushed up on a top plate.
[0002]
[Prior art]
At present, the automatic mahjong table in the market is to drop tiles after the game is finished into the mahjong table, pump up the tiles while stirring, form an equal number of two-tier tiles arranged in a square shape in each place, and make them stand by. In most cases, when starting the next play, the two-tiered tiles arranged in a square shape are pushed out onto the top plate. When such a conventional automatic mahjong table is used, at the start of the game, each player customarily flips the prize tiles or takes part of the castle wall tiles in turn by the roll of the dice rolled by the parent. You are placing tiles.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
As described above, in the conventional type of automatic mahjong table, it is necessary to perform the work of placing tiles manually, but such an operation is troublesome, and it is a problem that the operation is mistaken or the two-tiered tile is broken. have.
[0004]
To cope with such a problem, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. Sho 62-49879 and 58-152579 automatically form tiles for tile arrangement together with tiles for stacking two-tiered tiles. An automatic mahjong table that can be extruded onto a board is disclosed. However, each of these automatic mahjong tables pushes tiles and two-tiered tiles onto the top plate by two separate lifting mechanisms provided exclusively for them, and the structure is complicated and large. There is a problem that.
[0005]
Furthermore, since the tiles and the two-tiered tiles are pushed out onto the tabletop using another dedicated lifting mechanism, the tabletop needs to be provided with two openings in each place, and the strength of the tabletop is adjusted to a required level. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the thickness of the top plate or to attach a reinforcing material to the top plate, which also increases the cost of the apparatus. In the conventional device, the openings for pushing the tile blocks onto the top board are provided in front and rear rows when viewed from the athlete. There is also a problem that when the tiles are rearranged, the feeling is deteriorated by preventing smooth movement of the tiles.
[0006]
An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic mahjong table that can solve the above-mentioned problems in the conventional art.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The feature of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is that a main body having a top plate provided with four openings for supplying tiles to each place, and a main body for stirring the tiles with a magnetic material embedded therein are provided. An automatic mahjong table comprising: a stirrer provided at a position; and an automatic supply device provided corresponding to the four openings, for drawing tiles from the stirrer and supplying aligned tiles from the corresponding openings. The automatic supply device includes a pumping mechanism for pumping tiles from the stirring device, an alignment mechanism for aligning and sending tiles from the pumping mechanism, a first table and a second table, The tiles sent from the alignment mechanism are formed as tile distribution blocks on the first table and made to stand by, and the tiles sent from the alignment mechanism are formed as two-stage tile blocks on the second table and made to stand by. To keep A block forming / stand-by mechanism, and a lifting platform arranged to face a corresponding one of the four openings, and a lifting platform for raising and lowering the lifting platform between the top plate and a predetermined tile receiving position. And a transfer mechanism for selectively transferring the tile distribution block and the two-stage stacked tile block waiting on the first and second tables, respectively, to the elevator table at the tile receiving position. It is in the prepared point.
[0008]
Here, the block forming / standby mechanism can be configured to include a selective feeding mechanism for feeding tiles sent out from the alignment mechanism to one of the first and second tables. . Further, the selective feeding mechanism includes: a mounting member having an upper mounting table and a lower mounting table respectively corresponding to the first table and the second table; A distributing mechanism for selectively sending the tile to one of the placing tables, and a mechanism for transferring the tiles sent to the placing member to the corresponding one of the first or second tables. It is good also as a structure provided.
[0009]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0010]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an example of an embodiment of an automatic mahjong table according to the present invention. The automatic mahjong table 1 has a main body 2 supported by a stand 3, and a tile slot 4A for dropping tiles is formed in the center of a top plate 4 provided in the main body 2. The tile slot 4A can be opened and closed by a lid 5, and the lid 5 is opened and closed by an opening and closing mechanism (not shown). By operating the start switch 6A of the operation plate 6 provided at the center of the main body 2, the opening / closing mechanism is operated to move the lid 5 downward, and the tiles can be dropped from the tile slot 4A. Has become.
[0011]
On the top board 4, between the tile slot 4 A and the periphery of the top board 4, an arrangement tile for tile arrangement (hereinafter referred to as a tile distribution block) BA, and the player takes in in order after the play starts. Four elongated rectangular tile outlets (openings) for supplying a two-tiered tile (hereinafter referred to as a two-tier tile block) BB in which two tiles are stacked on the upper surface of the top plate 4 from inside the main body 2 7) 7A, 7B, 7C and 7D are formed so as to face each player, and these tile outlets 7A, 7B, 7C and 7D are opened only when supplying each block as described later. Has become.
[0012]
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of the tile 10 used in the automatic mahjong table 1. The tile 10 is formed as a molded body of a synthetic resin, and has a structure in which a magnetic material is embedded therein. In the present embodiment, a magnet 11 is used as the magnetic material, and the magnet 11 is embedded in the center of the tile 10. In the automatic mahjong table 1, two sets of tiles are used. One set of the tiles is competed, and the other set of tiles is agitated in the automatic mahjong table 1, so that the tile distribution block and the two-stage tile block are stacked. It is configured to be formed on two types of aligned tiles and kept on standby.
[0013]
Although not shown in FIG. 1, below the main body 2 of the automatic mahjong table 1, there are provided a tile selection / non-selection switch, a prize tile presence / absence selection switch, and a game selection switch. By appropriately operating these switches, a game suitable for the purpose can be played. In addition, the game selection switch allows selection of a total of six types of game modes, three types for three players and three types for four players, and an array pattern corresponding to each game mode is applied.
[0014]
FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the main body 2 of the automatic mahjong table 1 when the top plate 4 is removed for explaining the internal mechanism of the automatic mahjong table 1. A stirring mechanism 100 for stirring the dropped tiles is provided at a central portion in the main body 2, and a pumping mechanism for pumping the tiles stirred by the stirring mechanism 100 is provided at four corners of the main body 2. 200 are provided.
[0015]
The stirring mechanism 100 has a circular turntable 101 whose outer side is slightly lower than the center, an outer wall 102 formed so as to surround the turntable 101, and one end fixed to the vicinity of the center of the turntable 101, respectively. Two rod-shaped elastic bodies 103, 103, four tile reversing magnets 104 provided at equal intervals on the lower surface side of the turntable 101 along the periphery thereof, and a turntable driving mechanism 105. I have. A gear 106 is provided below the turntable 101, and the turntable 101 is configured to rotate in synchronization with the gear 106.
[0016]
The gear 106 meshes with each drive gear 201 of the four pumping mechanisms 200. The turntable drive mechanism 105 drives one of the four drive gears 201 to rotate, so that a drive motor 204 connected via a timing belt 203 and a timing pulley 202 that moves integrally with the drive gear 201. It has. Therefore, when the drive motor 204 is driven, its rotation is transmitted to the timing pulley 202 via the timing belt 203, and the driving gear 201 rotates integrally with the timing pulley 202, and the gear 106 meshed with the driving gear 201. Rotates, which causes the turntable 101 to rotate in the direction of the arrow. Then, by the rotation of the turntable 101, the other three driving gears 201 also rotate at the same time. FIG. 22 shows the meshing state between the gear 106 and the driving gear 201.
[0017]
Referring to FIG. 22, a hole is provided at the center of the driving gear 201, and the driving gear 201 is rotatably held by a support shaft 205 inserted through the hole. A timing pulley 202 is fixed to the gear 201 below the driving gear 201. The projection formed on the upper portion of the torque limiter 206 fixed to the support shaft 205 is engaged with the depression formed below the driving gear 201. Therefore, when the driving gear 201 rotates with the rotation of the gear 106, the torque limiter 206 engaged with the driving gear 201 rotates, whereby the support shaft 205 rotates. The torque limiter 206 is provided for the purpose of reducing the impact when an excessive load is applied to the support shaft 205.
[0018]
Slightly above the turntable 101, rod-shaped elastic bodies 103, 103 each formed of a coil spring having appropriate flexibility are radially arranged by fixing one end to a holding member 112 at the center. . Since the holding body 112 does not rotate and remains stationary, when the turntable 101 rotates, the tiles 10 dropped on the turntable 101 from the tile slot 4A (see FIG. 1) and piled up form a stick-like elasticity. The tiles 10 are pushed down by the body 103 and are collected on the front side of the rod-shaped elastic body 103 and are stirred. In this case, the tile 10 gradually moves toward the outer wall 102 while pushing and bending the rod-shaped elastic body 103 by the rotation force of the turntable 101.
[0019]
Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, a pumping mechanism 200 for pumping tiles moved to the outer wall 102 side of the turntable 101 will be described.
[0020]
The four pumping mechanisms 200 are provided as described above, but since the four pumping mechanisms 200 are configured in exactly the same manner, only one of them will be described here. The pumping mechanism 200 is a mechanism for picking up the tiles 10 that have moved to the outer wall 102 side, and includes a cylindrical rotating body 401 for attracting the tiles 10 by magnetic force, and a cylindrical rotating body driving mechanism 404. I have.
[0021]
First, the cylindrical rotating body 401 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 6 is an elevation view of the cylindrical rotating body 401, and FIG. 7 is a plan view of the cylindrical rotating body 401. The cylindrical rotator 401 has a length (l) substantially equal to the vertical width of the tile 10. _L ) Made of a cylindrical resin material having a height dimension of (1), and having a length (l _s A groove 401A is formed at the position (). At the circumferential surface portion of the cylindrical rotating body 401, an adsorption surface 401B is formed at equal intervals at two locations, which is flattened off as much as the area of a flat tile, and has a slight embedding depth from the adsorption surface 401B at the center thereof. The magnet 401C is embedded at a distance.
[0022]
A relatively narrow flange portion 401E tapered to the inner end side is formed on the cylindrical rotary body 401, and the flange portion 401E is slightly inclined at the rear end at a portion corresponding to the suction surface 401B. The notch 401F is formed so as to be flush with the suction surface 401B except for the above.
[0023]
Referring again to FIGS. 4 and 5, a rotary shaft 405 is inserted into the center of the cylindrical rotary body 401, and the cylindrical rotary body 401 is fixed to the rotary shaft 405. It is rotatably supported by a guide member 501 sandwiching the body 401 and a base (not shown) for fixing a side wall provided on the opposite side.
[0024]
A timing pulley 405A is fixedly attached to the rotating shaft 405 to which the cylindrical rotating body 401 is fixed. Further, another rotating shaft 406 is provided above the driving gear 201, and a timing pulley 406A is fixedly attached to the rotating shaft 406. The timing pulley 405A of the rotating shaft 405 and the timing pulley 406A of the rotating shaft 406 are connected by a timing belt 407, and the rotating shaft 406 is connected to the support shaft 205 via a bevel gear 408. Here, the configuration is such that when the driving gear 201 makes one rotation, the cylindrical rotating body 401 makes one rotation. The cylindrical rotating body 401 protrudes so as to look into the inside of the turntable 101, and the gap between the cylindrical rotating body 401 and the turntable 101 is slightly wider than the thickness of the tile 10, and the flat surface passing through the gap The tiles 10 are sucked by a magnet 401C (see FIGS. 6 and 7) embedded in a cylindrical rotating body 401 so that the tiles can be pumped up.
[0025]
The relationship between the polarity of the magnet 401C embedded in the cylindrical rotator 401 and the polarity of the magnet 11 embedded in the tile 10 is determined such that the tile 10 is attracted to the cylindrical rotator 401 with the character face up. . For example, when the character side of the tile 10 is the S pole, the magnets are embedded so that the suction surface 401B side is the N pole.
[0026]
An entrance opening / closing mechanism 450 is provided close to the peripheral surface of the cylindrical rotary member 401 to enable control of permission and prohibition of the drawing of the tile 10 adsorbed to the cylindrical rotary member 401 as described above.
[0027]
The entrance opening / closing mechanism 450 is capable of positioning the partition piece 451 at an open position where the entry of the tile 10 is allowed or a closed position where the entry of the tile 10 is prohibited. The partition piece 451 is connected via a link mechanism 452. And is connected to the solenoid 453.
[0028]
The entrance opening / closing mechanism 450 will be described with reference to FIG. The partition 451 is a plate-like member, and is swingably attached to the support shaft 454 (see FIG. 5). A solenoid 453 for opening and closing the partition 451 is connected to the partition 451 via a link mechanism 452. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 8, a sleeve 455 is provided on the upper part of the partition 451, and the sleeve 455 passes through a support shaft 454 provided between the guide member 501 and a side wall provided on the opposite side. Thus, the partition 451 is swingably supported. The lower end 456A of the short link 456 of the link mechanism 452 is rotatably supported by the guide member 501, and the upper end 456B is provided with a support shaft 457. The support shaft 457 fits into the partition 451 at an appropriate depth. I have. A coil spring 453B is provided on the plunger 453A of the solenoid 453, and always pushes the long link 458 forward. Thus, when the solenoid 453 is energized, the long link 458 is pulled toward the solenoid 453, and the partition 451 rotates toward the solenoid 453, and is positioned at the closed position where entry of the tile 10 is prohibited. When the power supply to the solenoid 453 is stopped, the long link 458 is pushed forward by the coil spring 453B, and the partition 451 rotates in a direction away from the solenoid 453, so that the partition 451 is positioned at the open position allowing the tile 10 to enter.
[0029]
Here, a state until the tile 10 moves from the turntable 101 to the pumping mechanism 200 will be described with reference to FIG. The polarity of the tile inversion magnet 104 provided on the lower surface of the turntable 101 is determined so as to invert a tile with the character face down. In the case of the above example, it is installed with the S pole facing upward. By the action of the tile inverting magnet 104, the tiles 10 with the character face down among the tiles moving near the periphery of the turntable 101 receive a repulsive force above the tile inverting magnet 104, and are inverted. Is the upper surface side.
[0030]
A curved obstacle wall 113 projecting inward from the outer wall 102 is provided at a position slightly higher than the thickness of the tile from the turntable 101 in front of the cylindrical rotating body 401. Of the tiles 10 moving on the periphery of 101, the flat tiles can easily pass under the obstacle wall 113, and the tiles with the characters facing sideways are obstructed by the obstacle wall 113. It falls down or moves along the curved edge in the tile state. Then, the tile 10 with the character face up reaches below the cylindrical rotating body 401.
[0031]
A series of operations of the pumping mechanism 200 when the tiles are pumped from the turntable 101 will be described with reference to FIG. When the suction surface 401B of the cylindrical rotator 401 is opposed to the surface of the turntable 101, the tile 10 placed on the turntable 101 with the character face upward is attracted by the turntable 101 and the cylindrical rotator 401. When it enters between the surface 401B and the magnet 401C embedded below the suction surface 401B in the cylindrical rotary member 401 and the magnet 11 in the tile 10, the tile 10 is attracted. It is adsorbed on the surface 401B. The tile 10 is pumped up by the rotation of the cylindrical rotating body 401 that has absorbed the tile 10 on the suction surface 401B in the X direction.
[0032]
The alignment mechanism 500 for aligning the tiles 10 drawn by the pumping mechanism 200 in the vertical direction will be described. The alignment mechanism 500 includes a guide member 501 and a guide path 504. The tiles 10 drawn by the pumping mechanism 200 are sent to the guideway 504 by the guide member 501 while changing the direction so as to proceed in the vertically long direction.
[0033]
With reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, an operation in which tiles 10 sucked on suction surface 401B at various angles are aligned in the vertical direction by alignment mechanism 500 will be described. The side surface protruding from the suction surface 401B near the entrance of the guide member 501 comes into contact with the guide member tip 502 and receives resistance, but the center of the magnet 11 embedded in the tile 10 is embedded in the cylindrical rotating body 401. The magnet 401C is attracted by the center of the magnet 401C and changes its direction while rotating, and the side surface enters the alignment mechanism 500 in a state parallel to the inner wall surface 501A of the guide member 501.
[0034]
FIG. 10 shows a state in which the long side surface of the tile contacts the tip end 502 of the guide member. The tile 10 enters the alignment mechanism 500 in a vertically long state. The tile 10 that has entered in this state reaches the upper portion through a notch 503 provided in the middle of the guide member 501. The inner wall of the guide member 501 is gently outward in the vicinity of the upper part, and the tile 10 is turned outward and protrudes from the suction surface 401B. When the center of the tile 10 passes through the highest point, the tile 10 turns downward. At this time, the leading portion of the tile 10 reaches near the entrance of the taxiway 504. The guide path 504 includes a guide member 501 and a slope surrounded by side walls on both sides, and a part of the slope tip protrudes into the groove 401A as shown in the figure. The tip of the tile 10 that has deviated outward from the suction surface 401B by the guide member 501 enters the guideway 504 so as to straddle the slope tip.
[0035]
FIG. 11 shows a state in which the short side surface of the tile 10 contacts the leading end 502 of the guide member. The tile 10 rotates in the same manner as in the case of FIG. 10 with the short side surface in contact with the guide member tip 502, but the tile 10 enters the interior in a horizontally long state over the inclined portion 401D. At this time, since the center of the magnet 11 buried in the tile 10 is deviated to the outside from the center of the magnet 401C buried in the cylindrical rotating body 401, the tile 10 receives an attractive force inward and the side surface is guided. It enters the inside of the alignment mechanism 500 while being pressed against the inner wall surface 501A of the member 501.
[0036]
When the center of the tile 10 reaches the notch 503, the tile in contact with the inner wall receives resistance, so that the tile 10 rotates around the notch tip 505 and a part of the tile 10 enters the notch 503. At this time, one end of the tile 10 slightly raised by the inclined portion 401D slides down on the inclined portion 401D to accelerate the rotation of the tile 10. Note that the inclined portion 401D is for assisting the rotation and need not be particularly provided. When the tile 10 further advances in this state, the tile long side surface comes into contact with the notch rear end 506, rotates again, and moves forward by contacting the long side surface with the inner wall surface 501A of the guide member 501. As described above, the tiles 10 attracted to the cylindrical rotating body 401 at various angles are controlled in a fixed direction by the alignment mechanism 500.
[0037]
As shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 9, an entrance sensor 403 composed of a reflection type photo sensor is provided in a hole provided in the inner wall near the top of the guide member 501, and the tile 10 is located at the entrance. The entry is electrically detected by the sensor 403. Then, the tile 10 sent by the cylindrical rotator 401 is caught by one end 504A of the guide path 504 near the top of the cylindrical rotator 401, peeled off from the suction surface 401B as the cylindrical rotator 401 rotates, and directed downward. It is configured to fall naturally by its own weight along the inclined guide path 504 and to advance toward the distribution mechanism 600.
[0038]
On the extension of the guide path 504, a tile reversing mechanism 650 including a movable piece 601 having one end rotatably supported and a solenoid is provided. The tile inversion mechanism 650 is used to invert the tile 10, and the movable piece 601 driven by the solenoid 620 is usually at the position shown in the figure. A magnet 602 is embedded in the movable piece 601, and the tiles 10 that fall with the character face down are attracted by the magnet 602 and stop on the movable piece 601. The operation of the tile reversing mechanism 650 will be described later.
[0039]
Next, the distribution mechanism 600 will be described. The sorting mechanism 600 is for selectively sending the tiles 10 sent from the alignment mechanism 500 via the tile inverting mechanism 650 to either the lower mounting table 702 or the upper mounting table 703 described later in detail. Mechanism. The distribution mechanism 600 includes a disk rotator 603 and a driving mechanism for moving the tiles, and a distribution plate 604 and a driving mechanism for controlling the trajectory of the tiles.
[0040]
The disk rotator 603 will be described with reference to FIG. The disk rotating body 603 has a cylindrical base 605, a thin plate 606 is formed in a flange shape on a side surface of the base 605, and a rod-shaped pressing piece 607 having a thickness similar to that of the base 605 is formed on the thin plate 606. Two are arranged at equal intervals, and the center of the base 605 is fixed to the support shaft 406 (see FIG. 5).
[0041]
Next, the distribution plate 604 will be described with reference to FIG. The distributing plate 604 includes an oval base 608 having the same radius as the base 605 (see FIG. 12) of the disk rotator 603. A flat base 609 extending one end of the oval base 608 has a side wall 610. The upper plate 611 is formed as shown in the figure, and the stopper 612 is provided at the position shown in the figure. A hole 613 is formed at the center of the base 608, and a support shaft 406 (see FIG. 5) is inserted into the hole 613, whereby the distribution plate 604 is rotatably supported by the support shaft 406.
[0042]
Here, referring also to FIG. 4, the interval between the thin plate 606 of the disk rotating body 603 and the side wall 610 of the distribution plate 604 is maintained to be slightly larger than the width of the tile. The distribution plate 604 is always directed downward by a spring 630 and is connected to a solenoid 614 via a link 615. By driving the solenoid 614, the exit of the tile is changed to an upward direction. , The tiles 10 can be sorted and placed on either the lower mounting table 702 or the upper mounting table 703 of the mounting section 701 of the pushing mechanism 700 described later.
[0043]
The operation of sorting tiles by the sorting mechanism 600 configured as described above will be described. FIG. 13 shows a state in which the sorting plate 604 is directed to the lower mounting table 702, and the rear end is pushed by the tiles 10 being pumped, the tiles 10 on the taxiway 504, and the bar-shaped pushing pieces 607. The tile 10 being transferred is shown. Here, a state is shown in which the phase relationship between the magnet 401C and the bar-shaped push piece 607 is substantially 90 degrees.
[0044]
FIG. 14 shows a state in which the tile 10 pushed by the rod-shaped push piece 607 in FIG. 13 is pushed into the lower mounting table 702. At this time, the tile 10 on the taxiway 504 is a movable piece. The tile 10 that has been attracted by the magnet 602 in the 601 and is being pumped is being pumped onto the cylindrical rotating body 401.
[0045]
FIG. 15 and FIG. 16 are for explaining the transfer state of tiles when the sorting plate 604 is directed to the upper mounting table 703. In FIG. 15, the tile 10 on the movable piece 601 is peeled off from the magnet 602 such that the lower end of the tile 10 is pushed up by the bar-shaped pushing piece 607, and is pushed out onto the flat plate base 609 of the sorting plate 604. Then, as shown in FIG. 16, the tile 10 is pushed forward by the push piece 607 on the flat base 609, and further pushed by the push piece 607 so that the tip of the tile 10 is placed on the upper mounting table 703. When the robot advances to the center, it is attracted by the magnet 705 embedded in the upper piece 704 of the mounting portion 701 with the S pole down, and is mounted at a predetermined position on the upper mounting table 703.
[0046]
Next, with reference to FIGS. 17 to 19, an operation in the case where the tile 10 is inverted by the tile inversion mechanism 650 before entering the sorting mechanism 600 will be described. First, in FIG. 17, when the tile 10 is pumped up by the cylindrical rotating body 401 and the pumping of the tile 10 is detected by the entrance sensor 403, the solenoid 410 is operated in response to the detection result, and the partition piece 402 is moved to the tile 10 Is a closed position that prohibits the passage of That is, when the tile 10 is inverted by the tile inversion mechanism 650, the entrance opening / closing mechanism 450 is operated to switch the partition piece 402 to the closed position in response to the tile to be inverted being detected by the entrance sensor 403. . At this time, the solenoid 620 of the tile reversing mechanism 650 is operated, and the movable piece 601 is retracted to the position shown in the drawing, and is located below the guiding path 504 to form a gap 616. In this state, the partition 402 is in the open position, and the tiles 10 sliding down the guide path 504 for pumping the tiles 10 fall into the gap 616.
[0047]
FIG. 18 shows a state in which the tile 10 that has fallen into the gap 616 is received by the stopper 612. As shown in FIG. 18, the stopper 612 is configured to be inclined upward to the right shoulder, and to stand still with the tile 10 inclined to the left when the tile 10 is received. In addition, a magnet may be buried at an appropriate position on the back side of the tree-shaped base 608 of the distribution plate 604 as a supplement.
[0048]
FIG. 19 shows a state in which the tile 10 placed on the stopper 612 is transferred along the tree-shaped base 608 with the character surface 10B facing up by the bar-shaped pushing piece 607. The tile 10 is moved with the character face 10B up, and becomes a prize tile. Thereafter, the tile 10 moves on the flat base 609 and is mounted on the lower mounting base 702. The movement of the tile 10 from the flat base 609 to the lower mounting base 702 is described with reference to FIGS. Is exactly the same as the case described above, and a detailed description is omitted here.
[0049]
As described above, the tiles 10 are placed from the sorting mechanism 600 on the lower placing table 702 or the upper placing table 703 of the placing section 701 of the pushing mechanism 700. Referring to FIG. 4, the tiles 10 sorted by the sorting mechanism 600 are transferred from the sorting mechanism 600 to an extruding mechanism 700 provided in the traveling direction of the tiles 10.
[0050]
20 is a perspective view of the mounting portion 701 of the pushing mechanism 700, FIG. 21 is a perspective view of the pushing mechanism 700, and FIG. 22 is an elevation view of the pushing mechanism 700. The pushing mechanism 700 will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0051]
The pushing mechanism 700 includes a placing section 701 and a pushing section 730. The mounting section 701 of the pushing mechanism 700 has a two-layer structure section including a lower mounting table 702 and an upper mounting table 703 for mounting the tiles 10, and a stopper is provided at the end of the lower mounting table 702 and the upper mounting table 703. A side wall 706 is provided which acts as a side wall. The tiles 10 pushed into any of the mounting tables 702 and 703 by the rod-shaped pushing pieces 607 are stopped by the side walls 706. An upper piece 704 is provided above the upper mounting table 703 with an interval slightly larger than the thickness of the tile 10. In this way, the upper space 741 and the lower space 742 for accommodating the tiles 10 are formed in the mounting portion 701.
[0052]
In the upper space 741, the tiles 10 are pushed into the upper space 741 by the sorting mechanism 600 from the opening facing the side wall 706, and are placed on the upper mounting table 703.
[0053]
Similarly, in the lower space 742, similarly, the tiles 10 are pushed into the lower space 742 by the sorting mechanism 600 from the opening facing the side wall 706, and are placed on the lower mounting table 702. The side walls 706 are provided with reflection type photo sensors 707 and 708, and the tiles 10 placed on the lower mounting table 702 are reflected by the reflection type photo sensor 707, and the tiles 10 mounted on the upper mounting table 703 are The light is detected by the reflection type photo sensor 708.
[0054]
An extruding portion 730 is disposed adjacent to the placing portion 701 and on the left side with respect to the entering direction of the tile 10. The push-out portion 730 includes an upper push-in piece 709 and a lower push-in piece 710, and each push-in piece 709 and 710 faces one end of the L-shaped connecting arm 712 to the upper space 741 and the lower space 742, respectively. , And the other end of the connecting arm 712 is connected to a sliding piece 711. The sliding piece 711 is horizontally slidably fitted to a horizontally supported support rod 713, while a roller 714 is provided below the connecting arm 712 to maintain the horizontal movement of the connecting arm 712. As shown in FIG. 22, one end of the connecting arm 712 to which the pushing pieces 709 and 710 are attached is inserted through a support rod 712A horizontally held on the mounting portion 701, and the pushing pieces 709 and 710 We restrain sideways. (See FIG. 9).
[0055]
Referring also to FIG. 4, a rotating plate 716 in which two rollers 715 are arranged at equal intervals is fixed to the support shaft 205 above the driving gear 201, while the rotating plate 716 is below the sliding piece 711. The sliding piece 711 advances to the position shown by the dotted line while the roller 715 rotates in the direction of the arrow and is in contact with the applying plate 717. A return spring 718 is provided above the sliding piece 711, and at the same time when the roller 715 comes off the backing plate 717, the sliding piece 711 retreats to its original position. The phase relationship between the roller 715 and the rod-shaped pushing piece 607 is such that the roller 715 comes into contact with the abutment plate 717 when the rod-shaped pushing piece 607 becomes almost horizontal immediately after the rod-shaped pushing piece 607 pushes the tile 10 onto the lower mounting table 702. It is configured as follows.
[0056]
Since the pushing mechanism 700 is configured as described above, the tile 10 placed on the upper mounting table 703 has the upper pushing piece 709 in the X direction (see FIG. 22) immediately after being pushed onto the upper mounting table 703. Since it moves horizontally and advances to the position shown by the dotted line, it escapes from the upper space 741 on the upper mounting table 703 and is pushed out from the pushing mechanism 700. When the tile 10 is placed on the lower mounting table 702 in the lower space 742, immediately after the tile 10 is pushed onto the lower mounting table 702, the lower pressing piece 710 moves horizontally in the X direction and is indicated by a dotted line. Since it advances to the position, it escapes from the lower space 742 on the lower mounting table 702 and is pushed out from the pushing mechanism 700.
[0057]
As shown in FIG. 22, in order to sequentially receive and align the tiles 10 extruded from the pushing mechanism 700, a standby mechanism 800 is provided on the pushing side of the tile 10 of the pushing mechanism 700.
[0058]
The standby mechanism 800 will be described with reference to FIG. The standby mechanism 800 receives the pushed tiles 10 when the tiles 10 once placed on the placement unit 701 are pushed out by the pushing unit 730, and sequentially arranges the tiles 10 in one or two stages. This is a mechanism for forming a required tile distribution block or a two-stage tile block and waiting. The waiting mechanism 800 is provided with a tile table 801 on which a one-layer tile block is formed and a standby table 802 on which a two-layer tile block is formed. The standby table 802 is connected to a driving mechanism described later. Have been. When the standby table 802 is at the origin position (normal position), the standby table 802 is at the same level as the lower mounting table 702 or at a slightly lower level. On the other hand, the tile placement table 801 is connected to a drive mechanism described later, and when the tile placement table 801 is at the origin position (normal position), the tile placement table 801 is at the same level as the upper placement table 703 or at a slightly lower level. It is stationary.
[0059]
The tiles 10 distributed and placed on the lower mounting table 702 of the pushing mechanism 700 are pushed out by the lower pushing pieces 710 and move to the standby table 802 adjacent to the lower mounting table 702. Then, when the next tile 10 is placed on the lower mounting table 702 and pushed out by the lower push-in piece 710, the tile 10 previously placed on the standby table 802 is pressed by the next tile 10, and FIG. In the pushing direction of the lower push-in piece 710, which is the X direction, by one tile. By repeating the above operation a required number of times, the tiles 10 sorted and mounted on the lower mounting table 702 are firstly arranged on the standby table 802 by a required number in one step.
[0060]
When the first-stage alignment is completed in this way, the waiting stand 802 is lowered by the thickness of the tiles 10, and then the tiles for aligning the second-stage tiles on the first-stage tiles 10 in the same manner as described above. 10 are sequentially extruded from the lower mounting table 702 by the lower pushing pieces 710. The tile 10 placed on the first tile 10 is moved in the pushing direction of the lower pushing piece 710 on the first tile by the tiles 10 being pressed adjacent to each other. This operation is repeated a required number of times, and the second-stage tiles 10 are aligned on the first-stage tiles 10, whereby a required two-stage tile block is formed.
[0061]
On the other hand, the tiles 10 sorted and placed on the upper placement table 703 are pushed out by the upper pushing pieces 709 and moved to the tile placement table 801. Then, when the next tile 10 is placed on the upper placing table 703 and pushed out by the upper pushing piece 709, the tile 10 placed on the tile placing table 801 is pushed by the tile 10 pushed out next. Then, it moves by one tile in the pushing direction of the upper pushing piece 709. By repeating this operation a required number of times, the tiles 10 sorted and placed on the upper placement table 703 are arranged on the tile placement table 801, and a required number of tiles are formed in a one-row, one-row state. Thereby, a required tile block is formed. As can be understood from the above description, the tiles 10 sent out from the alignment mechanism 500 can be placed on the tile placement table 801 (first table) or on the standby table 802 (second table) by the sorting mechanism 600 and the extruding mechanism 700. It constitutes a selective feeding mechanism for feeding to either side.
[0062]
The standby table 802 described above moves up and down not only to receive tiles from the push-out mechanism 700 but also to transfer a two-layer tile block formed on the standby table 802 to an elevator 901 described later. ing. In addition, the tile placement table 801 is configured to perform a rotational movement so as not to hinder the upward movement of the standby table 802 when the standby table 802 moves upward.
[0063]
A configuration for vertically moving the stand 802 will be described with reference to FIGS. The standby table 802 is fixed to a rectangular parallelepiped holding member 803 at two places on the lower surface, and a guide hole provided at the center of the holding member 803 is inserted into a support shaft 804 that is set upright on the base plate 115. Thus, the holding member 803 supports the standby table 802 so as to be slidable up and down. A lateral groove 805 is formed on the lower side surface of the holding member 803, and a roller 807 provided at one end of the arm 806 is fitted into the lateral groove 805.
[0064]
The arm 806 is rotatably supported by a fixed shaft 808 provided on a side plate 840 obtained by bending the base plate 115 into a U-shape, and is urged downward by an urging spring 809. Above the arm 806, a cam shaft 810 that is rotatably supported through a side plate of the base plate 115 is provided. A roller 811 is provided at the other end of the arm 806, and the roller 811 is provided so as to contact a cam 812 provided on a cam shaft 810.
[0065]
The camshaft 810 is connected to a drive motor 815 via gears 813 and 814. When the drive motor 815 is started to rotate the camshaft 810 one turn, the stand 802 is moved between the dotted line and the solid line in the drawing. Perform up and down movement once. At one end of the camshaft 810, a notched sensor plate 816 and photointerrupters 818a to 818c are provided to detect the rotation angle and control the drive motor 815 to stop. The origin position, the descending position, and the ascending position of the stand 802 are detected in accordance with the rotation angle of the cam shaft 810 detected by the sensor of FIG.
[0066]
Next, the turning motion of the tile placement table 801 will be described with reference to FIGS. The tile placement table 801 is fixed to a tip of an arm 821 rotatably supported by a fixed shaft 820 provided on a side plate 840 of the base plate 115. The arm 821 is biased by a spring 822. At the other end of the arm 821, there is a roller 822, which is in contact with a cam 812 provided on a cam shaft 810. When the cam shaft 810 makes one rotation in the direction of the arrow, the tile placement table 801 is shown by a dotted line and a solid line. And reciprocate.
[0067]
In this manner, the vertical reciprocation of the stand 802 and the reciprocation of rotation of the tile placement table 801 are performed by one rotation of one camshaft 810. The relationship between the camshaft 810 and the cam 812 will be described below. I do.
[0068]
When the camshaft 810 is at the origin position, the standby table 802 is at the height of the lower mounting table 702 as described above, and the tile placement table 801 is at the level of the upper mounting table 703. When the first (lower) tiles are formed on the stand 802, the drive motor 815 is activated to rotate the camshaft 810 in the direction of the arrow, and the stand 802 is lowered. The tile placement table 801 maintains the lowered position. At a lowered position where the stand 802 is lowered by one tile, the photo interrupter 818b detects the start end of the cutout of the sensor plate 816 and stops the drive motor 815. In this state, a second (upper) aligned tile is formed on the stand 802. In this state, tiles are formed on the tile table 801, and two-tier tiles are formed on the standby table 802.
[0069]
As can be understood from the above description, the tile 10 sent out from the alignment mechanism 500 is formed as a tile distribution block on the tile distribution table 801 which is the first table by the sorting mechanism 600, the extrusion mechanism 700, and the standby mechanism 800. And a tile forming / standby mechanism for forming the tiles 10 sent from the alignment mechanism 500 as a two-stage tile block on the standby stand 802 as the second stand and waiting there. I have.
[0070]
In this manner, the tile block formed on the tile table 801 and waiting, and the two-stage tile block formed on the standby table 802 and waiting are formed by a push plate serving as a transfer mechanism. The mechanism 1000 is configured to be selectively transferred onto the elevating table 901 of the elevating mechanism 900.
[0071]
As can be seen from FIG. 3, the tile placement block 801 operating as described above, the tile placement block formed on the waiting stand 802, or the two-stage tile block is received and raised to the level on the top board 4. An elevating table mechanism 900 and a pressing plate mechanism 1000 are provided near the table 801 and the standby table 802. Referring also to FIG. 26, a schematic configuration diagram of the tile placement table 801, the standby table 802, the elevating table mechanism 900, and the push plate mechanism 1000 is shown.
[0072]
FIG. 26 shows a state in which no tile blocks are formed on the tile distribution table 801 and the standby table 802. An elevating table 901 that moves up and down is provided at the center side of the main body 2 of the tile placement table 801 and the standby table 802. A push plate mechanism 1000 is provided.
[0073]
FIG. 27 is a perspective view of the lifting platform mechanism 900, and FIG. 28 is a front view of the lifting platform mechanism 900. The elevator platform mechanism 900 will be described with reference to FIGS. 24, 27, and 28. A holding member 902 is fixed to substantially the center of the L-shaped elevating platform 901. A guide hole is provided in the holding member 902, and a support shaft 903 fixed vertically to the base plate 115 is inserted into the guide hole, so that the holding member 902 and the elevating table 901 are moved along the support shaft 903. You can move up and down. A tension spring 904 is provided between the holding member 902 and the base plate 115, and the elevating table 901 is constantly urged in the direction toward the base plate 115 by the tension spring 904.
[0074]
A sliding member 906 is provided below the holding member 902 so as to be inserted into the support shaft 903, and a long slot 905 is formed symmetrically on the back surface of the sliding member 906, and one side of the sliding member 906 is provided. A lateral groove 964 is formed in the front and rear direction on the side surface of the. On both sides of the sliding member 906, arms 908 each having a roller 907 at the tip are fixed to a holding member 909, and the holding member 909 is rotatably supported by a fixing pin 910. The roller 911 at the tip of the holding member 909 is provided so as to fit into the elongated groove 905 of the sliding member 906, and when the sliding member 906 is moved up and down, the elevator 901 can move up and down in conjunction with this. It has become.
[0075]
FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a driving mechanism of the sliding member 906. The driving mechanism of the sliding member 906 will be described with reference to FIGS. 24 and 29. This driving mechanism is provided on a U-shaped sheet metal 960 provided adjacent to the sliding member 906, and has a U-shape. A cam shaft 1010 is rotatably held on a side surface of the sheet metal 960. One end of the camshaft is provided directly connected to the drive motor 912, and a cam 1011 for driving the elevator is arranged on the camshaft 1010.
[0076]
An arm 961 is rotatably held below a lift drive cam 1011 by a holding shaft 1007 provided between the side surfaces of the sheet metal 960. A roller 962 is provided at the tip of the arm 961, and a roller 963 is provided in the middle. The roller 962 is fitted in the lateral groove 964, and the roller 963 is in contact with the cam 1011. A sensor plate 965 having a notch is provided at the other end of the camshaft 1010, and the notch is detected by the photointerrupter 966, and the drive motor 912 is controlled by one rotation. The sliding member 906 is configured to move up and down by a drive motor 912, and the elevating table 901 also moves up and down in conjunction with the up and down movement of the sliding member 906.
[0077]
FIG. 30 is a block diagram showing a configuration in which the tile block formed on the tile table 801 or the two-layer tile block formed on the standby table 802 is pushed out onto the platform 901 of the platform mechanism 900 configured as described above. FIG. 31 is an elevational view for describing a push plate mechanism 1000 for moving the push plate mechanism 1000. The push plate mechanism 1000 will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0078]
The U-shaped fixing plate 1001 is fixed above the side surface 840 of the base plate 115 (see FIG. 26). The fixed plate 1001 is provided with a pair of support shafts 1051 as shown in FIG. A sliding piece 1003 having a vertical groove 1002 is fitted to the pair of support shafts 1051 so as to be able to reciprocate horizontally. As shown in FIG. 26, a push plate 1004 having an L-shaped cross section has a T-shaped projection formed at the center of the upper surface. A pair of biasing springs 1005, 1005 are provided between the push plate 1004 and the fixed plate 1001.
[0079]
The arm 1006 is rotatably held by a holding shaft 1007, and a roller 1008 is provided at one end. The roller 1008 is provided in contact with a vertical groove 1002 formed in the sliding piece 1003. A roller 1009 provided at the other end of the arm 1006 is in contact with a cam 1012 provided on the cam shaft 1010 adjacent to the cam 1011. Then, when the drive motor 912 described above makes one rotation, the push plate 1004 makes one horizontal reciprocating movement between the position shown by the dotted line and the position shown by the solid line.
[0080]
In this manner, the vertical reciprocating motion of the lift 901 and the horizontal reciprocating motion of the push plate 1004 are performed by one rotation of one cam shaft 1010, and the relationship between the cam 1011 for driving the lift and the cam 1012. Starts the drive motor 912 to lower the elevating table 901 at the height of the top 4 to a predetermined lowering position, and in this state, the push plate 1004 at the retreating position is advanced to transfer the arranged tiles. Then, when the transfer is completed and the push plate 1004 starts retreating, the elevator 901 is raised to push out the aligned tiles on the top plate, and the elevator 901 is moved to the position of the top plate 4 and the push plate The drive motor 912 is configured to stop when 1004 reaches the retreat position.
[0081]
The standby mechanism 800, the elevating platform mechanism 900, and the push plate mechanism 1000 are configured to operate as described above, and the tiles on the tile placement table 801 move onto the top plate 4 with reference to FIGS. The operation when the two-tiered tile on the stand 802 rises to the height position on the top plate 4 after that will be described. First, the drive motor 912 makes one rotation to drive the elevating table 901 and the push plate 1004, and push the tiles on the tile table 801 onto the top plate 4. When the drive motor 815 is activated, the camshaft 810 is turned by an arrow. Rotate in the direction of.
[0082]
By the rotation of the camshaft 810, the tile placement table 801 is retracted to the position shown by the dotted line in the figure and maintains that state, and during this time, the standby table 802 at the predetermined lowered position starts to rise. When the standby table 802 rises to the height position of the lowered position of the elevating table 901, the photo interrupter 818c detects a notch in the sensor plate 816, and the drive motor 815 stops in response to this detection.
[0083]
In this state, the drive motor 912 makes one rotation again to drive the elevator 901 and the push plate 1004, and the two-tier tiles are pushed out onto the top plate 4. When the drive motor 815 rotates again after the camshaft 1010 returns to the home position, the standby table 802 starts lowering due to this rotation.
[0084]
When the waiting table 802 deviates from the locus of movement of the tile table 801, the tile table 801 starts a return operation to the origin position, and a photo is taken at a position where the tile table 801 and the waiting table 802 return to the original position. The interrupter 818a detects a notch in the sensor plate 816, and the drive motor 815 stops in response to this detection. It should be noted that when the tiles are not distributed, the tiles are not transferred and raised.
[0085]
FIG. 31 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of the automatic mahjong table 1. The automatic mah-jong table 1 responds to outputs from various switches for operation and a sensor for detecting the position of the tile 10 and the position of each member, and controls a solenoid or a motor for driving various members. An arithmetic unit 30 for executing a control operation for performing a required operation is provided. The arithmetic unit 30 is configured as a data processing device using a microcomputer, and stores in advance various control programs necessary to execute the various control operations described above.
[0086]
The automatic mahjong table 1 has a series of mechanisms from the above-described drawing of the tiles 10 to the formation of the tile distribution block and the two-tiered tile block and the lifting of the tiles on the top plate in each of the east, south, west, and north places. One set is provided. FIG. 31 shows a detailed configuration of inputting / outputting various types of input / output information to / from the arithmetic unit 30 using the two input / output interfaces 41 and 42 for the eastern location, but the same applies to other locations. is there.
[0087]
The solenoid 453 for rotating the partition, the entrance sensor 403, the solenoid 620 for the reversing mechanism, the solenoid 614 for the distribution plate, and the reflection type photo sensors 707 and 708 provided on the upper and lower mounting tables are connected via the interface 41. It is connected to the arithmetic unit 30.
[0088]
The drive motor 912 and the photo interrupter 966 for the elevator, the drive motor 815 for the stand and the three photo interrupters 818a, 818b, and 818c are connected to the arithmetic unit 30 via the interface 42.
[0089]
In addition, four input / output interfaces 43, 44, 45, and 46 are connected to the arithmetic unit 30, and the arithmetic unit 30 inputs and outputs required input and output information with each of the input and output interfaces 43 to 46. It is configured as follows.
[0090]
The top plate switch 51, the pumping mechanism, and the drive motor 204 that drives the turntable are connected to the arithmetic unit 30 via the input / output interface 43. The game selection switch 52, the game mode display 53, the prize tile presence / absence selection switch 54, and the tile distribution presence / absence selection switch 55 are connected to the arithmetic unit 30 via the input / output interface 44.
[0091]
A lid opening / closing motor 56, an open sensor 57, and a close sensor 58 are connected to the input / output interface 45, and these motors and each sensor are connected to the arithmetic unit 30 via the input / output interface 45. The start switch 6A, the start lamp 59, other various switches, lamps, sensors, and the like are connected to the arithmetic unit 30 via the input / output interface 46.
[0092]
FIG. 32 is a flowchart illustrating a control operation for forming a two-stage tile block (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as a two-stage tile) and pushing the tile onto the top board.
[0093]
When the process is started, in a step S1, it is determined whether or not the start switch 6A is turned on. If the start switch 6A is not turned on and is turned off, step S1 is executed again. If the start switch 6A is turned on, the process proceeds to step S2.
[0094]
After the process of opening the tile slot 4A is performed in step S2, it is determined in step S3 whether the start switch 6A has been turned ON. If the start switch 6A is not turned on and is turned off, the process returns to step S3. If the start switch 6A is turned on, the process proceeds to step S4.
[0095]
In step S4, a process of turning off the start lamp 59 is performed, and in step S5, a process of closing the tile slot 4A is performed. Next, in step S6, the previously formed and waiting two-stage tiles are extruded onto the top board 4, and in step S7, processing for forming the two-stage tiles using the tiles captured in step S2 is performed. Is
[0096]
In step S8, it is determined whether or not the two-tiered tile formation processing has been completed. If the two-tiered tile formation processing has not been completed, the determination result in step S8 is NO, and the process returns to step S7. When the two-tiered tile formation process is completed, the determination result in the step S8 is YES, the process proceeds to a step S9, in which a process of turning on the start lamp 59 indicating completion of preparation is performed, and thereafter, the process returns to the step S1. .
[0097]
FIG. 33 is a flowchart for explaining a control operation in the case of forming a two-tiered tile block in which a prize tile is formed and extruding the tile onto a top plate.
[0098]
When the process is started, it is determined in a step S21 whether or not the start switch 6A is ON. If the start switch 6A is off, the process returns to step S21. If the start switch 6A is on, the process goes to step S22.
[0099]
In step S22, a process of opening the tile slot 4A is performed, and in step S23, it is determined whether or not the start switch 6A is ON. If the start switch 6A is off, the process returns to step S23, and if the start switch 6A is on, the process enters step S24.
[0100]
In step S24, a process of turning off the start lamp 59 is performed, and in step S25, a process of closing the tile slot 4A is performed. In step S26, a process of pushing the two-tier tiles onto the top plate 4 is performed, and in step S27, the position of the prize tile is determined by a random number. In step S28, a process of forming a two-tier tile and simultaneously placing a prize tile therein is performed. It is preferable to use a random number because the process is performed by accident. Although random numbers are used in various processes, switching, and the like described below, similar effects can be expected.
[0101]
In step S29, it is determined whether or not the process of forming the two-tier tile in which the prize tiles are arranged has been completed. If the process of forming the two-tier tiles in which the prize tiles are arranged has not been completed, the determination result in the step S29 is NO, and the process returns to the step S28. If the process of forming the two-stage tiles on which the prize tiles are arranged has been completed, the determination result in the step S29 is YES, and the process proceeds to the step S30. In step S30, a process of turning on the start lamp 59 is performed, and the process returns to step S21.
[0102]
FIG. 34 is a flowchart for explaining the operation in the case where the tile arrangement block (hereinafter, may be simply referred to as tile arrangement) and the two-tier tile are sequentially pushed up on the top board 4.
[0103]
When the process is started, it is determined in step S41 whether the start switch 6A is ON or OFF. When the start switch 6A is OFF, the process returns to step S41, and when the start switch 6A is ON, the process proceeds to step S42, in which a process of opening a tile slot is performed.
[0104]
In step S43, it is determined whether the start switch 6A is ON or OFF. If the start switch 6A is off, the process returns to step S43. If the start switch 6A is ON, the process proceeds to step S44, where the tile slot 4A is closed.
[0105]
In step S45, a process of pushing the tiles onto the tabletop 4 is performed, and in step S46, it is determined whether the start switch 6A is ON or OFF. If the start switch 6A is off, the process returns to step S46. If the start switch 6A is on, the process goes to step S47.
[0106]
In step S47, the start lamp 59 is turned off, and in step S48, a process of pushing out the two-tier tiles onto the top board 4 is performed. In step S49, a process of determining a place where a prize tile appears using random numbers is performed. In step S50, a process of determining a tile distribution start time using random numbers is performed. In step S51, a process of forming tiles and two-tier tiles and arranging prize tiles therein is performed at the same time.
[0107]
In step S52, it is determined whether or not the processing of arranging the prize tiles is completed at the same time as forming the tiles and the two-tiered tiles. If the processing for arranging tiles has not been completed, the determination result in step S52 is NO, and the process returns to step S51. If the processing of forming the tiles and the two-tier tiles and arranging the prize tiles therein is completed at the same time, the determination result of the step S52 is YES, and the process proceeds to the step S53.
[0108]
In step S53, the start lamp 59 is turned on, and the process returns to step S41.
[0109]
Next, the operation of the automatic mahjong table 1 will be described. The operation of the automatic mahjong table 1 when four players (136 tiles), no prize tiles, and no tiles are set will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 35. FIG. 35 is a plan view showing the arrangement of the two-tier tiles in this case. After the competition, the used tiles are scattered on the top plate 4, and the other set of tiles is already waiting in the main body 2 in a two-tiered arrangement. In this state, the illuminating lamp (start lamp 59) in the start switch 6A provided in the center of the top board 4 is lit, indicating that the operation for using the automatic mahjong table 1 is possible. ing.
[0110]
When the user operates the start switch 6A, the tile slot 4A at the center of the top 4 is opened, and the user drops the used tile 10 from the tile slot 4A into the main body 2. At the same time as the switch operation is performed, the drive motor 204 starts to rotate and the stirring mechanism 100 is activated, so that the tiles 10 inserted into the main body 2 gradually diffuse outward on the turntable 101. . With the operation of the stirring mechanism 100, the pumping mechanism 200, the aligning mechanism 500, the sorting mechanism 600, and the pushing mechanism 700 start operating simultaneously, but the partition 451 at the entrance of the pumping mechanism 200 is closed, Pumping is prohibited.
[0111]
When the user operates the start switch 6A again, the drive motor 912 operates to push up the two-tier tiles onto the top board 4. Upon completion of this operation, the drive motor 815 operates, and the tile placement table 801 and the standby table 802 stop at the origin position. The illuminating lamp in the start switch 6A is turned off to indicate that the operation is not possible, and the partition 451 is operated to be in an open state, so that pumping is possible.
[0112]
The tiles 10 on the turntable 101 gradually move toward the periphery while being stirred. The tiles whose faces are facing downward in the tiles 10 moving around the periphery repel the tile reversing magnet 104 and are flipped so that the faces face upward. In addition, even a standing tile with the character face turned sideways rotates under the rotational force depending on the state, and the character face is turned upward. The tile 10 with the character face turned sideways gradually becomes flat with the stirring operation of the stirring mechanism 100. Thus, the tiles 10 moving on the periphery of the turntable 101 reach the obstacle wall 113. At this time, in the case of the flat tile, the tiles 10 pass through the lower part, while in the case of the standing tiles, the tile 10 falls down on the obstacle wall 113. Or, it moves along the obstacle wall 113 in the tile state.
[0113]
The suction surface 401B of the rotating cylindrical rotating body 401 is at the lowered position, and the tile 10 whose character surface is moving upward below the tile 10 is easily sucked and pumped upward. The tiles 10 attracted to the cylindrical rotating body 401 are unified in a vertically long direction by the guide member 501, are pumped upward, and are counted and detected by the entrance sensor 403.
[0114]
The drawn tile 10 enters the guideway 504, is separated from the suction surface 401B, slides on the guideway 504, is sucked by the movable piece 601 and stops. The tile 10 on the movable piece 601 is pushed by the rotating rod-shaped pushing piece 607 and peels off from the magnet 602, and advances along the tree-shaped base 608 of the distribution plate 604, and the rod-shaped pushing piece 607 is in a substantially horizontal state. The tile 10 is sent onto the lower mounting table 702 around.
[0115]
The tile 10 on the lower mounting table 702 is detected by a reflection type photosensor 707 provided in the side wall 706. Slightly after the rod-shaped pushing piece 607 sends the tile 10 onto the lower mounting table 702, the lower pushing piece 710 moves forward and pushes the tile 10 on the lower mounting table 702 onto the standby table 802. In this way, the tiles 10 are successively pushed onto the stand 802, and the first-stage tiles are formed.
[0116]
Further, when the 17th tile is detected by the entrance sensor 403 provided at the entrance of the pumping mechanism 200, the partition 451 at the entrance is controlled, and the pumping of the tiles 10 is prohibited. When it is detected by the reflective photosensor 707 that the seventeenth tile 10 reaches the lower mounting table 702 and is pushed by the lower pushing piece 710 onto the standby stand 802, after a predetermined time (the lower pushing piece 710). The drive motor 815 is activated at a value that takes into account the exercise time), and the stand 802 descends by one tile. When the lower position is detected by the photo interrupter 818b, the drive motor 815 is stopped, and the partition 451 at the entrance is opened to resume the drawing of tiles. Then, the tiles are aligned again. The second-stage tiles are formed on the stand 802.
[0117]
When the thirty-fourth tile is detected by the entrance sensor 403, the partition 451 is controlled and the pumping of tiles is prohibited. When the reflection type photosensor 707 detects that the 34th tile 10 has been pushed onto the stand 802, the drive motor 815 is activated after a predetermined time which is a time taking into consideration the movement time of the lower pushing piece 710. Then, the stand 802 is raised, and when the photo-interrupter 818c detects the raised position of the stand 802, the drive motor 815 stops. In this way, when all the two-tier tiles are formed, the drive motor 204 is stopped, and the start lamp 59 in the start switch 6A is turned on, indicating that the apparatus is in the standby state.
[0118]
When the mahjong competition ends on the top board 4, the start switch 6A is operated to open the tile slot 4A, the tile 10 is inserted into the main body 2 from the tile slot 4A, and then the start switch 6A is operated again. The tile insertion slot 4A is returned to the original position, the drive motor 912 is activated, the elevator 901 is lowered, and the two-tiered tiles on the standby table 802 are transferred to the elevator 901 by the push plate 1004, The drive motor 912 stops when the photo interrupter 818a detects a position where the lifting platform 901 has risen and the two-tiered tile has risen above the top board 4.
[0119]
Upon completion of the operation, the drive motor 815 operates, and the tile placement table 801 and the standby table 802 stop at the origin position. The start lamp 59 in the start switch 6A is turned off to indicate that the operation is not possible, and the partition 451 is operated to enable pumping. As described above, the two-tier tiles are pushed out onto the top board 4, and the next competition starts.
[0120]
Next, a case where a prize tile is generated and used under the above conditions will be described. Since a series of operations are almost the same as the above-described operations, only different portions will be described. The operation is the same as described above until the start switch 6 </ b> A is operated to push the waiting two-tiered tile onto the top board 4. Prior to releasing the partition 451 and starting pumping the tiles 10, the arithmetic unit 30 determines the position of the prize tile using random numbers. It is also possible to determine a place where no prize tile is generated. This is because the position of the prize tile is determined by the number of two dice in a normal mahjong game, and is configured accordingly. In the case of 136 tiles for four players in this example, the places where the prize tiles are generated are the first to tenth and seventeenth places in each place, and there are 44 positions of the prize tiles.
[0121]
The four sides of the mahjong table have the names east, west, south, and north, which are determined for convenience. For example, it is assumed here that the control device determines that the prize tile is generated at the fifth position in the east. When the position of the prize tile is determined, the partition piece 451 provided at the entrance is released, the pumping of tiles is started, and the formation of two-tier tiles is started. The same operation as that described above is performed in a place where no prize tile is generated, that is, in a south place, a west place, and a north place.
[0122]
In the east field where the prize tiles are generated, since the prize tiles are generated in the upper stage, the lower stage is formed by the same operation as described above. After the first stage is formed on the standby table 802 and the standby table 802 is lowered by one tile, the partition 451 is released, the drawing of tiles is resumed, and the formation of the upper level is started.
[0123]
When the entrance sensor 403 detects the 21st tile (17 + 4), the partition 451 is closed once and the pumping of the tile is prohibited. When it is confirmed by the reflection type photosensor 707 that the tile 10 of the 21st tile has reached the lower mounting table 702, the solenoid 614 is operated and the movable piece 601 is retracted, and the partition piece 451 is again released to release the 22nd tile. After one tile is drawn, the partition 451 is closed again to prohibit the drawing of the tile.
[0124]
When the reflection type photosensor 707 confirms that the tile 10 (prize tile) with the character face up by the reversing mechanism has reached the lower mounting table 702, the operation of the solenoid 614 is stopped and the movable piece 601 is returned to the original position. At the same time, the partition 451 is released again to pump up the tiles. Then, when the 34th tile is detected by the entrance sensor 403, the partition 451 is closed to prohibit the pumping of the tile. The rest is exactly the same as above.
[0125]
FIG. 36 is a plan view showing a tile arrangement pattern in this embodiment, and FIG. 37 is a plan view showing an arrangement pattern of two-tier tiles. After the competition, the used tiles are scattered on the tabletop 4, and the other set of tiles is waiting in the table in the state of tiles and two-tiered tiles. In this state, the start lamp 59 in the start switch 6A at the center of the top panel 4 is lit, indicating that the operation is possible.
[0126]
The user operates the start switch 6A to open the tile slot 4A and drop used tiles inside. When the start switch 6A is operated again, the drive motor 912 is activated to lower the elevator 901 and the tiles on the tile 801 are transferred to the elevator 901 by the push plate 1004. To raise. When the photo interrupter 139 detects the position where the tiles have risen above the top 4, the drive motor 912 is stopped, and the drive motor 815 is started to raise the standby table 802, and the photo interrupter 818 c detects the rise position to drive. The motor 815 stops. In this state, the start lamp 59 in the start switch 6A is lit, indicating that the operation of pushing the two-tiered tiles onto the top plate 4 is possible.
[0127]
After confirming that all the tiles have been removed from the lifting platform 901 by each competitor and operating the start switch 6A again, the drive motor 912 is activated and the lifting platform 901 is lowered, and the push plate 1004 The two-tier tiles on the stand 802 are transferred to the elevating stand 901. The drive motor 912 stops when the photo interrupter 139 detects that the elevator 901 on which the two-tier tiles are placed and the two-tier tiles rise to the position on the top plate 4. Upon completion of this operation, the drive motor 815 operates, and the tile placement table 801 and the standby table 802 stop at the origin position. Then, the start lamp 59 in the start switch 6A is turned off, and a message that operation is disabled is displayed.
[0128]
In addition, the arithmetic unit 30 determines a place where a prize tile is to be issued using random numbers and from which point the tile is to be distributed. To explain this point further, for example, the number of tiles used by a general four-player mahjong is 136 tiles, the number of tiles arranged is 13 tiles, and the tile arrangement pattern shown in FIG. 35 is applied. Since the arrangement pattern of the two-tiered tiles excluding the tiles is predetermined as shown in FIG. 36, it is determined where the prize tiles are to be displayed. Then, when the south field is selected, a prize tile is generated at the sixth position from the right of the south field. In the south, eight rows of two-tier tiles are formed, in the west, 17 rows of two-tier tiles are formed, in the north, 17 rows of two-tier tiles are formed, and in the east, two-tier tiles are formed. Is not formed. By the way, when the east field is selected, the arrangement pattern is rotated by 90 ° clockwise.
[0129]
Next, a description will be given of when to place tiles. For example, if it is determined by random numbers that tiles are to be distributed after the N tiles are drawn, first, the partition 451 at the entrance of the south, west, or north is released and the tiles are pumped to form a two-tier tile. To start. The Toba partition 451 is not released. The drawn tiles are counted by the respective entrance sensors 403, and when the total value becomes N, the formation of the two-tiered tiles is temporarily stopped and the tiles are started simultaneously.
[0130]
In this embodiment, the number of tiles is 13 tiles, but the present invention is not limited to this number. Further, the tile distribution pattern and the timing of tile formation are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to this method. Of course, other tile distribution patterns and timing of tile formation may be used.
[0131]
As described above, the operation of the automatic mahjong table 1 in the case where the prize tile is in the south field and the start of the tile distribution is determined to be after 30 tiles have been drawn will be described in detail below. When the arithmetic unit 30 determines the place where the prize tiles are to be issued and the time at which the tiles are to be distributed using the random numbers, the partition pieces 451 in the place except for the eastern place are released all at once.
[0132]
The tiles 10 are simultaneously started to be pumped by the pumping mechanism 200 in each place, and the tiles 10 are counted and detected by the respective entrance sensors 403. When the total value reaches 30, the partition pieces 451 of the pumping place are simultaneously closed, and the partition pieces 451 of the east field are released, and at the same time, the distribution plate 604 is operated upward. At this time, assuming that the count value of the south field is 8, the count value of the west field is 10, and the count value of the north field is 12, a reflection type photo sensor in which the eighth tile is provided on the lower mounting table 702 in the south field When the detection is made by 707, the distribution plate 604 is controlled upward, the partition 451 is released, and the pumping of tiles is resumed.
[0133]
Similarly, when the tenth tile is detected in the west field and the twelfth tile is detected in the north field by the respective reflective photosensors 707, the sorting plate 604 is controlled to the upper side. The partition 451 is released, and pumping of tiles resumes.
[0134]
In this way, tiles are gradually formed on the tile distribution table 801 and the entrance sensor 403 detects the number of tiles to be distributed, the number of tiles being 13; the east field is the 13th; the south field is the 21st; When the 25th is detected, the partition 451 is temporarily closed. When it is detected by the reflection type photo sensor 708 that a predetermined number of 13 tiles have been sent to the tile placement table 801 in each place, the distribution plate 604 is controlled to be lowered, and the partition 451 is released. The pumping of tiles is resumed. However, since the two-tiered tiles are not formed in the east field, the partition pieces 451 are not released. In the south, west, and north fields where the partition 451 is released, the temporarily suspended two-tier tiles are formed in exactly the same manner as described above. The same applies to the occurrence of prize tiles on the southern ground. Note that the eighth tile in the south field when the total number 30 is detected in this example corresponds to the predetermined number in the first row, and therefore, the lowering of the standby table 802 prior to the opening of the partition piece 451 also corresponds to the above operation. It takes place in parallel.
[0135]
As described above, when the formation of the tiles and the formation of the two-tiered tiles are all completed, the lamp in the start switch 6A is turned on to indicate that operation is possible. As described above, the automatic mahjong table in the present embodiment can form tiles and two-tier tiles on the top 4. Although it has been described that the partition pieces 451 are simultaneously closed at the time when the total value N has been counted and the entry of tiles is prohibited, at this time, a tile other than the place where the total value N is detected has already been set. Is entered, and the tiles that have entered are processed as they are, so that a count exceeding the total value N (maximum N + 2) occurs. Therefore, the determination of N by random numbers is performed in consideration of this so as not to cause the shortage of the number of tiles, but the essential meaning of the present invention does not change.
[0136]
In addition, although the tile 10 is pumped up by suctioning the character side in this embodiment, if the polarity of the related magnet is changed and the reversing mechanism is always operated, the bamboo surface can be suctioned. Needless to say.
[0137]
【The invention's effect】
According to the present invention, as is apparent from the above description, the tile distribution block and the two-tiered tile block are extruded onto the top plate using one lifting platform, so that it is necessary to separately provide openings. Since only one opening is required, the strength of the tabletop is not impaired, and since there is no step in the arrangement area, a comfortable game can be enjoyed. Further, since the tile arrangement table and the standby table can be vertically stacked, the automatic mahjong table is small, light, compact, and economical.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing an example of an embodiment of an automatic mahjong table according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of tiles used in the automatic mahjong table shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the inside of an automatic mahjong table main body when a top plate is removed.
FIG. 4 is a plan view for explaining a pumping mechanism for pumping tiles on the turntable shown in FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of FIG. 4;
FIG. 6 is an elevational view of the cylindrical rotating body shown in FIG. 4;
FIG. 7 is a plan view of the cylindrical rotating body shown in FIG. 4;
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the entrance opening / closing mechanism shown in FIG. 4;
FIG. 9 is a perspective view for explaining a series of operations of the pumping mechanism.
FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining an example of an operation in which tiles are aligned by an alignment mechanism.
FIG. 11 is a view for explaining another example of the operation in which tiles are aligned by the alignment mechanism.
FIG. 12 is a front view and a side view of the disk rotating body shown in FIG. 9;
FIG. 13 is a view for explaining the distribution plate shown in FIG. 9;
FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a state of transferring tiles when the sorting plate is directed to the lower mounting table.
FIG. 15 is a view for explaining a transfer state of tiles when the sorting plate is directed to the upper mounting table.
FIG. 16 is a view for explaining a state of transferring tiles when the sorting plate is directed to the upper mounting table.
FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an operation when a tile is inverted by a tile inversion mechanism.
FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an operation when a tile is inverted by a tile inversion mechanism.
FIG. 19 is a diagram illustrating an operation when a tile is inverted by a tile inversion mechanism.
FIG. 20 is a perspective view of a mounting portion of the pushing mechanism shown in FIG. 19;
FIG. 21 is a perspective view of an extrusion mechanism.
FIG. 22 is an elevation view of an extrusion mechanism.
FIG. 23 is a diagram illustrating a configuration for vertically moving a stand shown in FIG. 22;
FIG. 24 is a plan view illustrating a configuration for driving a standby mechanism, a lifting platform mechanism, and a pressing plate mechanism.
FIG. 25 is a view for explaining the pivotal movement of the tile placement table shown in FIG. 22;
FIG. 26 is a schematic configuration diagram of a tile placement table, a standby table, an elevating table mechanism, and a push plate mechanism.
FIG. 27 is a perspective view of the lifting platform mechanism shown in FIG. 26;
FIG. 28 is a front view of a lifting platform mechanism.
FIG. 29 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a driving mechanism of the sliding member shown in FIG. 27;
FIG. 30 is an elevation view for explaining the push plate mechanism shown in FIG. 26;
FIG. 31 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system of the automatic mahjong table.
FIG. 32 is a flowchart for explaining a control operation for forming a two-stage tile block and pushing it out onto the top plate.
FIG. 33 is a flowchart for explaining a control operation in the case of forming a two-layer tile block forming a prize tile and extruding the tile on a top plate;
FIG. 34 is a flowchart for explaining the operation in the case where the tile distribution block and the two-tier tile are sequentially pushed up on the top board.
FIG. 35 is a plan view for explaining the operation of the automatic mahjong table when it is set for four players (136 tiles), no prize tiles, and no tiles.
FIG. 36 is a plan view showing an arrangement pattern of two-tier tiles excluding tiles.
FIG. 37 is a plan view showing an arrangement pattern of two-tiered tiles.
FIG. 38 is a plan view showing an arrangement pattern of two-tier tiles for three players (108 tiles).
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Automatic Mahjong table
2 body
4 Top plate
4A tile slot
6 Operation plate
6A Start switch
10 tiles
11 magnet
100 stirring mechanism
200 Pumping mechanism
450 entrance opening and closing mechanism
500 Alignment mechanism
600 Sorting mechanism
604 sorting board
650 tile flip mechanism
700 Extrusion mechanism
702 Lower mounting table
703 Upper mounting table
709 Upper pushing piece
710 Lower push-in piece
800 Standby mechanism
801 tile placement table
802 Waiting stand
900 elevating platform mechanism
901 elevator
1000 Push plate mechanism
1004 push plate

Claims (6)

A main body having a top plate provided with four openings for supplying tiles to each place, a stirrer provided in the main body for stirring tiles embedded with a magnetic material, An automatic mahjong table comprising a correspondingly provided automatic supply device for pumping tiles from the stirring device and supplying aligned tiles from corresponding openings,
A pumping mechanism for pumping tiles from the stirring device,
An alignment mechanism for aligning and sending tiles from the pumping mechanism;
A first table and a second table; tiles sent from the alignment mechanism are formed as tile distribution blocks on the first table; and the tiles are sent to the second table; A block forming / standby mechanism for forming and waiting as a two-stage tile block on a table;
An elevating mechanism for elevating the elevating platform between the top plate and a predetermined tile receiving position, including an elevating platform disposed opposite to a corresponding one of the four openings;
A transfer mechanism for selectively transferring the tile distribution block and the two-tiered tile block waiting on the first and second tables respectively to the elevator table at the tile receiving position. Automatic Mahjong table. 2. The automatic mahjong table according to claim 1, wherein the block forming / standby mechanism includes a selective feeding mechanism for feeding tiles sent from the alignment mechanism to one of the first and second tables. . The selective feeding mechanism, a mounting member having an upper mounting table and a lower mounting table respectively corresponding to the first table and the second table, and a tile sent out from the alignment mechanism, the upper or lower mounting table A sorting mechanism for selectively feeding the tiles to one of the first and second platforms, and a mechanism for transferring the tiles fed to the placing member to a corresponding one of the first and second platforms. The automatic mahjong table according to claim 2, comprising: In the block forming / standby mechanism, the first table is disposed above the second table, and the tiles sent to the upper mounting table are sequentially transferred to the first table to thereby perform the second step. A tile block is formed on one platform, and tiles sent to the lower platform are sequentially transferred to the second platform to form a two-tier tile block on the second platform. Automatic Mahjong table described in 3. The first platform is provided such that the elevation platform is provided at a level substantially equal to the level of the tile receiving position, and the second platform can be raised so as to match the level of the tile receiving position. 5. The automatic mahjong table according to claim 4, wherein, when said second table rises, said first table is repositioned so as not to hinder said second table from rising. . The automatic mahjong table according to claim 4, wherein the switching of the selective sending of the tiles by the sorting mechanism is performed by accident using random numbers.

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