JP2004215935A - Game machine and control method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make the initial setting of standard time in a clocking means easy. <P>SOLUTION: An auxiliary control part receives a command from a personal computer via the interface (S1:Yes, S2: Yes). If the received command is a regular command (S3: Yes), the time data from the personal computer are written in the clocking means (S6). When the initial setting in the clocking means is completed normally (S7: Yes), the time data written in the clocking means are returned to the personal computer side (S9), and the initial setting operation is terminated. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a gaming machine having a main control unit for performing control relating to the progress of a game, an auxiliary control unit for performing control relating to production of a game, and a control method therefor.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Generally, gaming machines such as slot machines and pachinko machines are controlled by a microcomputer. The microcomputer is provided with a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc., on a control board on which printed wiring of a predetermined pattern is provided in advance. Are mounted and configured.
[0003]
Taking a slot machine as an example, the slot machine is provided with two types of control boards, and constitutes a main control unit for controlling the progress of the game and an auxiliary for controlling the production of the game. Some constitute a control unit.
[0004]
After the medal is inserted, the main control unit performs a lottery to determine whether or not a winning is performed by operating a start switch, starts the rotation of all three rotating reels almost at the same time, and then sets three stop switches. One of these operations stops the rotation of the rotating reel corresponding to the stop switch, and stops the rotation of all three rotating reels when the operation of all three stop switches is completed. Perform control. At this time, if the predetermined symbol stops at a predetermined position, a winning is achieved, and the number of medals according to the winning mode is credited or paid out from a payout port. On the other hand, the latter auxiliary control unit performs control related to the effect of the game, such as blinking of an effect lamp and selection of a sound effect output from a speaker in order to notify a player of winning or winning.
[0005]
Meanwhile, in recent years, there has been proposed such a slot machine having a clock function for measuring and displaying the elapsed time from the start of the game in addition to the current time (for example, see Patent Document 1).
[0006]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2001-327653 A (paragraphs [0042] to [0053])
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, when setting a standard time for such a timepiece function, after a control board is conventionally attached to the housing of the slot machine in the pachinko hall, the date / time / time provided in the auxiliary control unit is provided for each slot machine. Since the initial setting must be performed to operate the setting switch for the minute or the like to adjust to the standard time, there has been a problem that the initial setting operation is very complicated and burdens on the operator.
[0008]
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to make it possible to easily perform an initial setting operation of a standard time to a time measuring means.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-described object, a gaming machine according to the present invention includes a main control unit that performs control related to progress of a game, and a gaming machine that includes an auxiliary control unit that performs control related to production of a game. A battery provided in the auxiliary control unit; a time counting unit driven by the battery provided in the auxiliary control unit; a time display unit for displaying a time measured by the time counting unit; and a battery provided in the auxiliary control unit. And a computer having a clock function and an output function of outputting time data by the clock function, the auxiliary control unit communicating with the interface, and transmitting the time data by the computer through communication. Is taken and written into the time counting means (claim 1).
[0010]
According to such a configuration, by connecting the computer to the interface of the auxiliary control unit, the time data by the computer is taken in by communication and written into the time counting means. Therefore, the standard time can be initially set in the time counting means only by connecting the computer to the interface, and the initial setting work of the time counting means can be easily performed without imposing a burden on the operator.
[0011]
At this time, as described in claim 2, it is preferable that the time counting means counts the elapsed time related to the effect of the game in addition to the current time. Further, as set forth in claim 3, it is preferable that a switching means is provided for switching and setting the display of the time display means to a current time by the time counting means and an elapsed time related to a game effect.
[0012]
By doing so, in particular, by measuring and displaying the elapsed time related to the production of the game, the time measuring means and the time display means can be used as one of the production means. As a specific example, game data can be displayed within a unit time. The game data includes the number of games, the number of INs, the number of OUTs, the number of bonus prizes, the number of small role prizes, the payout rate, and the like.
[0013]
Further, by operating the switching means, it is possible to switch to a display of either the current time or the elapsed time related to the production of the game according to the preference of the player.
[0014]
In addition, the control method of the gaming machine according to the present invention includes providing a battery, a time counting unit driven by the battery, and an interface for connection with an external device in the auxiliary control unit. A time display means for displaying time is provided, a computer having a clock function and an output function for outputting time data by the clock function is connected to the interface, and the time data by the computer is fetched by communication and written into the time clock means. (Chart 4).
[0015]
According to such a configuration, by connecting the computer to the interface of the auxiliary control unit, the time data by the computer is taken in by communication and written into the time counting means. Therefore, the initial setting is performed only by connecting the computer to the interface. This makes it possible to easily perform the initial setting work of the time counting means without putting a burden on the operator.
[0016]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
One embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a slot machine which is a game machine will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 is a front view of the slot machine, FIG. 2 is a block diagram, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are flowcharts for explaining the operation.
[0017]
The slot machine according to the present embodiment is configured as shown in FIG. 1, for example. That is, as shown in FIG. 1, in the slot machine 1, the front surface of the housing 3 is openably and closably closed by the front panel 5, and the operation plate 7 is disposed at a position substantially at the center of the front panel 5. In addition, a front plate 9 is disposed above the operation plate 7.
[0018]
On the front plate 9, three reel windows 11 are juxtaposed, and left, middle and right rotating reels are arranged inside each reel window 11, and beside the reel window 11 on the right end, A liquid crystal display 13 for displaying a game effect screen is provided, and each reel window 11 is set so that three symbols on each reel can be seen.
[0019]
The operation plate 7 further includes a credit medal button 15 for inserting a credited medal, a start lever 17 for starting rotation of each reel, first to third stop buttons 19, 21, 23, and , A medal slot 25 and a payout button 27 are provided.
[0020]
In addition, a pay line is drawn on the front panel 9, an effective display lamp 31 for displaying an active line in the pay line, various effect display lamps 33 for displaying a state of a bonus game, and the number of credit medals. A medal number display 35 is provided on the front plate 9, and a medal payout port 37 and a medal receiver 39 are provided below the operation plate 7. Further, at the right end of the operation panel 7, for example, a time display means 41 composed of a segment display element or a liquid crystal display element for digitally displaying the time and time is provided, and the time display means 41 is provided with an auxiliary control unit 270 described later. The time and the time measured by the time measuring means 275 provided in the display section 275 are displayed. It may be displayed on a liquid crystal display.
[0021]
Next, a configuration of a control block of the slot machine 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The slot machine 1 includes a control mechanism using a microcomputer. As shown in FIG. 2, the control mechanism receives a signal from various sensors and switches and controls a main reel motor 200 and the like. And an auxiliary control unit 270 that performs effects by the sound device 191 and the illumination mechanism 43 that illuminates each reel from the rear according to the state of the game. Here, the main control unit 200 and the auxiliary control unit 270 are configured by mounting chip components such as a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM on separate control boards called a main control board and an auxiliary control board, respectively.
[0022]
The main control unit 200 includes a winning control unit 210, a reel stop control unit 220, a main game control unit 230, and an operation control unit 240. In addition, as a sensor or a switch for inputting a signal to the main control unit 200, the medal sensor 161 provided in the medal slot 25 for detecting the number of inserted medals and the credit medal button 15 are incorporated, and the required number of medals from credit medals is reduced. A medal button sensor 163 for detecting the operation of the credit medal button 15 when using the inserted medal, a start switch 165 incorporated in the start lever 17 for detecting that the start lever 17 has been operated, a first stop button 19, A first stop switch 171, a second stop switch 172, and a third stop switch 173 that are incorporated in the two-stop button 21 and the third stop button 23, respectively, and detect that the respective stop buttons 19, 21, and 23 have been operated. And credit medals There are payout switch 167 or the like to be incorporated into the payout button 27 to be dispensed.
[0023]
Devices controlled by the main control unit 200 include a first main reel motor 181, a second main reel motor 182, a third main reel motor 183, a stepping motor for rotating three main reels, and a credit. A medal number display 35 for displaying the number of medals, a hopper device 193 for paying out credit medals, etc., an effective display lamp 31 for displaying an effective line according to the number of inserted medals, an effect display lamp 33 for displaying the progress of a game, and the like. is there.
[0024]
In addition, the auxiliary control unit 270 includes, in addition to the sound control unit 271 and the illumination control unit 273, a time clock unit 275 that includes a clock IC or the like and counts the current time or a predetermined elapsed time. In addition, it controls the acoustic device 191 having a speaker and the lighting mechanism 43.
[0025]
The auxiliary control unit 270 is provided with an interface 277 for connecting to an external personal computer (hereinafter, abbreviated as a personal computer). A personal computer having a clock function and an output function for outputting time data by the clock function is connected to 277. When time data is transmitted from the personal computer by communication, the auxiliary control unit 270 takes in the time data and measures the time. A writing process is performed on the means 275.
[0026]
Subsequently, the overall operation of the slot machine 1 will be described. In the slot machine 1, when the insertion of a medal is detected by the medal sensor 161 or the medal button sensor 163, the effective display lamp 31 corresponding to the inserted number is turned on, and four or more medals are inserted from the medal insertion slot 25. Then, a value obtained by adding the fourth and subsequent medals as credit medals to the already credited number is displayed on the medal number display 35.
[0027]
When the start switch 165 detects that the start lever 17 has been operated, the rotation of the first to third main reel motors 181 to 183 is started by the reel drive control means of the winning control means 210, and the reel stop control is performed. The means 220 starts to determine the symbol of each main reel displayed on the main reel window 11 in accordance with the rotation angle of each main reel. If a general game is being played, the main game control means 230 controls the lottery. And stores a symbol to be stopped such as a winning symbol based on a winning determination table (not shown).
[0028]
When the operation of the first stop button 19 is detected by the first stop switch 171, the first main reel motor 181 is stopped, and the operation of the second stop button 21 is detected by the second stop switch 172. The second main reel motor 182 is stopped, and when the operation of the third stop button 23 is detected by the third stop switch 173, the rotation of the three main reels is stopped by stopping the third main reel motor 183. Let it.
[0029]
When stopping the rotation of each main reel corresponding to each of the stop buttons 19, 21 and 23, the operation control means 240 is displayed in the main reel window 11 of the main reel to be stopped by the reel stop control means 220. The first to third main reel motors 181 to 183 are configured to stop the symbols determined by the stop position designation table (not shown) with reference to the symbols to be stopped stored in the winning determination table while determining the symbols. Stop the rotation of.
[0030]
Then, when all the main reels have stopped, the main game control means 230 determines whether or not the symbol stopped on the activated line has won, and when it has won, the number of medals corresponding to the winning combination is paid out. I do. The payout of medals is performed by adding the number of payout medals to the credit or by driving the hopper device 193 so that the operation control unit 240 discharges the required number of medals to the medal receiver 39.
[0031]
Further, when the symbol stopped on the activated line becomes the symbol of the bonus combination, when the main game control means 230 determines the winning of the bonus combination, a required number of medals such as 10 or 15 are paid out, and As a bonus game, control by a special game control means (not shown) of the main game control means 230 is started. In the control by the special game control means, the prize control means 210 is controlled so that the payout probability of medals is higher than that of the general game.
[0032]
By the way, in the case of a special game such as a bonus game, the special control winning information from the main control unit 200 is input to the auxiliary control unit 270 through communication, and the sound control unit 271 of the auxiliary control unit 270 controls the rhythmical music or up-tempo. Sound processing is performed by the sound device 191 to produce a sound such as notifying the player of a special game.
[0033]
Next, the timekeeping / display function provided in the auxiliary control unit 270 will be described in detail. In particular, since the method of initializing the standard time in the time counting means 275 provided in the auxiliary control unit 270 is a feature of the present invention, the procedure of the initial setting will be described.
[0034]
First, a personal computer having a clock function and an output function of outputting time data by the clock function is connected to the interface 277, and the communication between the auxiliary control unit 270 and the personal computer is set. Then, as shown in FIG. 3, it is determined whether or not the auxiliary control unit 270 has received a command from the personal computer via the interface 277 (S1). If this determination result is NO, the process returns to the start, and the determination is made. If the result is YES, it is determined whether or not the mode is the clock setting mode (S2).
[0035]
Then, if the decision result in the step S2 is YES, it is checked whether the received command is a legitimate command (S3), and thereafter, it is determined whether or not the data received from the personal computer is normal (step S3). S4) If the determination result is NO, the process proceeds to Step S5 together with the case where the determination result of Step S2 is NO, and after the received command is invalidated (S5), returns to the start.
[0036]
On the other hand, if the decision result in the step S4 is YES, the received time data from the personal computer is written to the time counting means 275 (S6), and it is determined whether or not the initial setting of the time counting means 275 is completed (S6). S7) If the result of this determination is NO, initial setting has failed, so that the time counting means 275 is set to the default value (S8), and the process returns to the start.
[0037]
On the other hand, if the decision result in the step S7 is YES, since the initial setting has been normally performed, the time data written in the time counting means 275 is returned to the personal computer side from the auxiliary control unit 270 via the interface 277 ( S9) Then, the initial setting operation ends.
[0038]
By the way, on the personal computer side, processing relating to the initial setting of the time counting means 275 as shown in FIG. 4 is performed. That is, as shown in FIG. 4, after the connection with the interface 277 is completed, a predetermined command is transmitted to the auxiliary control unit 270 (S11), and time data is transmitted to the auxiliary control unit 270 (S12). After that, the process waits for a predetermined time (S13).
[0039]
Then, it is determined whether or not there is a response from the auxiliary control unit 270 (S14). If this determination is NO, the process returns to step S11. If the determination is YES, the time data returned is The contents transmitted in step S12 are collated and checked (S15), and it is determined whether there is any abnormality in the return data (S16). If this determination result is NO, that is, if it is determined that there is abnormality, the process proceeds to step S11 described above. Returning, if the determination result is YES, that is, if it is determined that there is no abnormality, the operation ends.
[0040]
The current time is counted by the time counting means 275 in which the standard time is set as described above, and the counted current time is displayed on the time display means 41. The time can be easily known. The elapsed time since the first operation of the start lever 17 is detected by the start switch 165 can be measured, and the game time can be displayed to notify the player. Therefore, a display switch is separately provided on the operation plate 7 or the like. You should leave it.
[0041]
Therefore, according to the above-described embodiment, by connecting the personal computer to the interface 277 of the auxiliary control unit 270, the time data transmitted from the personal computer by the communication is taken into the auxiliary control unit 270 and is sent to the time counting unit 275. Written.
[0042]
Therefore, the standard time can be easily set in the time counting means 275 simply by connecting a personal computer to the interface 277, and the initial setting work of the time counting means 275 can be easily performed without burdening the operator. it can.
[0043]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various changes other than those described above can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention.
[0044]
For example, in the above-described embodiment, the example has been described in which the current time is measured by the time counting means 275 and the current time is displayed by the time display means 41. The time, elapsed time, and the like to be performed may be measured, and the time, the elapsed time, and the like may be displayed on the time display unit 41. Specifically, the time when the bonus is won may be stored and displayed. If the stored bonus time is 5:00 am, the time display means 41 displays 5:00 am as the bonus winning time. Then, since it is clearly outside the opening hours of the hall, it can be determined that some error has occurred.
[0045]
In addition, the game data may be displayed within the measured unit time. Here, the game data includes the number of games, the number of INs, the number of OUTs, the number of bonuses, the number of small combinations, the payout rate, and the like. Can be mentioned.
[0046]
Further, in this case, it is effective to provide switching means such as a changeover switch capable of switching and setting the display of the current time by the time display means 41 and the elapsed time related to the effect of the game. In this way, it is possible to switch to the display of either the current time or the elapsed time related to the production of the game in accordance with the preference of the player. The operation of the switching means may be performed only by the device manager such as a pachinko hall.
[0047]
In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a slot machine has been described. However, the present invention can be applied to other gaming machines such as a pachinko machine, and in that case, the same as each of the above-described embodiments is applied. The effect of can be obtained.
[0048]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the first or fourth aspect of the present invention, by connecting the computer to the interface of the auxiliary control unit, the time data by the computer is taken in by communication and written into the time counting means. The standard time can be easily set in the time counting means simply by connecting a computer to the system, and the initial setting work of the time counting means can be easily performed without putting a burden on the operator.
[0049]
According to the second and third aspects of the present invention, by measuring and displaying the elapsed time related to the production of the game, it is possible to use the time clock unit and the time display unit as one of the production units. become.
[0050]
Moreover, by operating the switching means, it is possible to switch to the display of either the current time or the elapsed time related to the effect of the game according to the preference of the player.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front view of a slot machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of one embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the embodiment of the present invention;
[Explanation of symbols]
1 slot machine (game machine)
41 Time display unit 200 Main control unit 270 Auxiliary control unit 275 Time clock unit 277 Interface

Claims (4)

In a gaming machine having a main control unit that performs control related to the progress of a game, and an auxiliary control unit that performs control related to production of a game,
A battery provided in the auxiliary control unit;
Time clock means provided in the auxiliary control unit and driven by the battery,
Time display means for displaying the time measured by the time clock means,
An interface for connection with an external device provided in the auxiliary control unit,
A computer having a clock function and an output function of outputting time data by the clock function is connected to the interface, and the auxiliary control unit fetches time data from the computer by communication and writes the time data to the time clock means. A gaming machine. 2. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the time counting means counts an elapsed time related to the effect of the game in addition to the current time. 3. The gaming machine according to claim 2, further comprising a switching unit configured to switch and set the display of the time display unit to a current time by the time counting unit and an elapsed time related to a game effect. In a control method for a gaming machine including a main control unit that performs control related to the progress of a game, and an auxiliary control unit that performs control related to production of a game,
A battery, a time measuring unit driven by the battery, and an interface for connection to an external device are provided in the auxiliary control unit, and a time display unit displaying a time measured by the time measuring unit is provided.
A computer having a clock function and an output function of outputting time data by the clock function is connected to the interface,
A method for controlling a gaming machine, characterized in that time data by said computer is fetched by communication and written into said time counting means.

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