JP2005078004A - Image display device and game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image display apparatus in which efficiency in cooling an optical modulation element is improved while a sharp image display is maintained. <P>SOLUTION: An image display unit 11 has in its housing 34: an optical engine 31 which has the optical modulation element capable of optically modulating light from a light source into projection light Lp for image display; and a blower 46 which sends a stream of air towards the optical modulation element. The unit 11 projects projection light Lp emitted from an optical engine 31 onto the back of a screen panel 32, thereby displaying an image. The image display unit 11 is provided with a blowing fan 54 which sends a stream of air in a predetermined direction in the housing 34. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  According to the present invention, an optical engine having a light modulation element and a blower fan that blows air toward the light modulation element are disposed in a casing, and projection light emitted from the optical engine is projected onto the back of a screen to generate an image. The present invention relates to an image display device configured to be able to display and a gaming machine including the image display device.

  As this type of image display device, a liquid crystal projector device (1) disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-284701 is known. In the present specification, the reference numerals in the same gazette will be described below in parentheses. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 of the publication, the liquid crystal projector (1) includes a casing (2) having a sealed structure, a screen (3), an optical system constituent unit (7), and a mirror (9). It is prepared for. In this case, the screen (3) is disposed on the front side of the housing (2). The optical system unit (7) is disposed in the lower part of the housing (2). Further, the mirror (9) is disposed on the back side of the housing (2). The optical system configuration unit (7) includes a light source (5) and an optical block (6). The optical block (6) includes a case (10), and optical components such as liquid crystal light valves (light modulation elements: 19a, 19b, and 19c) are disposed in the case (10). In addition, a duct (12) communicates with the case (10), and a fan (27) for cooling the liquid crystal light valves (19a, 19b, 19c) is disposed inside the duct (12). ing. Further, a passage (25) for guiding the air in the housing (2) to the duct (12) is formed on the lower side of the housing (2).

In the liquid crystal projector device (1), the liquid crystal light valves (19a, 19b, 19c) are cooled by forcibly circulating the air in the housing (2) by the fan (27). Specifically, the air in the case (10) whose temperature has risen due to the heat generated by the liquid crystal light valves (19a, 19b, 19c) is moved from the opening (11a) to the upper part in the housing (2) by the fan (27). It is discharged toward At this time, the discharged air lowers in temperature while diffusing heat into the surrounding air and descends in the housing (2). Further, the diffused heat is transferred to the upper surface and the rear surface of the housing (2) and is radiated to the outside of the housing (2). On the other hand, the air descending in the housing (2) is caused to flow again into the case (10) through the passage (25) and the duct (12) by the fan (27). Thereby, the air in a housing | casing (2) is forcedly circulated and a liquid crystal light valve (19a, 19b, 19c) is cooled.
JP 2000-284701 A (page 3-4, Fig. 1-4)

  However, the conventional liquid crystal projector device (1) has the following problems. That is, in the liquid crystal projector device (1), the air in the housing (2) is forcibly circulated by only one fan (27). In this case, since the fan (27) is disposed on the side opposite to the opening (11a), the air flowed by the fan (27) is allowed to flow through the liquid crystal light valves (19a, 19b) in the case (10). , 19c) and the like, and discharged with a low flow rate. Therefore, since the exhausted air cannot flow to the upper part of the housing (2), the temperature of the air does not sufficiently decrease. As a result, the air in a state where the heat is not sufficiently lowered again flows in the case (10). Therefore, in the liquid crystal projector device (1), the heat generated in the liquid crystal light valves (19a, 19b, 19c) cannot be efficiently radiated to the outside of the housing (2). , 19b, 19c) is low in cooling efficiency. In this case, the casing (2) is changed to a structure having air permeability, and the cooling efficiency is improved by performing exhaust to the outside of the casing (2) and intake from the outside of the casing (2). Although a method is also conceivable, in this method, external dust enters the inside of the housing (2) together with air and adheres to the liquid crystal light valves (19a, 19b, 19c) and the mirror (9), and the image is unclear. There is a risk of becoming. Therefore, it is difficult to adopt this method.

  The present invention has been made in view of such problems, and it is a main object of the present invention to provide an image display device and a gaming machine that can improve the cooling efficiency for cooling the light modulation element while maintaining a clear image display. And

  In order to achieve the above object, an image display device according to the present invention includes an optical engine having a light modulation element capable of modulating light from a light source into projection light for image display, and a first air blown toward the light modulation element. 1 is an image display device configured to display an image by projecting the projection light emitted from the optical engine onto the back surface of the screen. A second blower fan that blows air in a predetermined direction is provided.

  According to this image display device, the second blower fan allows high-temperature air discharged from the optical engine to flow to, for example, the upper part in the casing, whereby the air can be circulated almost in the entire area of the casing. Therefore, even if the casing is configured in a sealed structure, the heat generated in the light modulation element is transferred to almost the entire casing and dissipated to the outside. In addition, it is possible to sufficiently improve the heat radiation efficiency while reliably preventing a situation where it adheres to the mirror. As a result, the cooling efficiency for cooling the light modulation element can be sufficiently improved while maintaining a clear image display.

  In the image display device according to the present invention, in the image display device, the second blower fan is a light source cooling fan that is attached to the light source and cools the light source.

  According to this image display device, by configuring the second blower fan with the light source cooling fan that cools the light source, air circulation in almost the entire area within the housing can be realized without providing a dedicated blower fan. Therefore, the image display apparatus can be configured simply and inexpensively.

  The image display device according to the present invention is the above image display device, wherein the light source includes a red light source having a red light emitting diode that emits red light, a green light source having a green light emitting diode that emits green light, and A blue light source having a blue light emitting diode that emits blue light, and the light source cooling fan is attached to at least one of the red light source, the green light source, and the blue light source.

  According to this image display device, a light source is configured by a red light source including a red light emitting diode, a green light source including a green light emitting diode, and a blue light source including a blue light emitting diode, so that a current for light emission or Since the voltage can be adjusted for each type (color) of light emitting diode, the balance of the amount of red light, green light, and blue light can be easily changed. As a result, the hue (tone) of the image can be reliably and easily Can be changed. Furthermore, by attaching a light source cooling fan to at least one of a red light source, a green light source, and a blue light source, the optical engine can be configured in a small size.

  Furthermore, the image display device according to the present invention is the above image display device, wherein the light source cooling fan is attached to at least one of the red light source, the green light source, and the blue light source. Yes.

  According to this image display device, the cooling efficiency for cooling the light source with the largest amount of heat generation is sufficiently obtained by attaching the light source cooling fan to at least the light source with the largest amount of heat generation among the red light source, the green light source, and the blue light source. Can be improved.

  The image display device according to the present invention is the above image display device, wherein the light source cooling fan is attached to all of the red light source, the green light source, and the blue light source, and the red light source, the green light source, and The light source cooling fan attached to other light sources excluding the light source with the smallest calorific value among the blue light sources is protruded to the outside of the housing, and the second blower fan has the largest calorific value. The light source cooling fan is attached to a small number of light sources.

  According to this image display device, the light source cooling fan attached to the other light source except the light source with the smallest heat generation amount is projected outside the housing, for example, the red light source with the large heat generation amount among the light sources. Since the heat generated by the light source and the green light source can be radiated to the outside of the housing, the temperature rise inside the housing due to the heat generated by the light source can be reliably suppressed.

  In addition, a gaming machine according to the present invention includes the above-described image display device and a display control unit that causes the image display device to display a game image.

  According to this gaming machine, by providing the image display device and the display control unit, it is possible to achieve the same effect as that of the image display device.

  The best mode of an image display device and a gaming machine according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  First, the configuration of the pachinko machine 1 (an example of a gaming machine according to the present invention) will be described with reference to the drawings. The pachinko machine 1 shown in FIG. 1 is, as an example, a “seven machine” type pachinko machine in which a “big hit” is generated by lottery, and includes a game image G (for example, the earth, Mt. Fuji, and the numbers “ 123 ”) is displayed on the back side of the game board 21 and is visible through the game board 21. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the pachinko machine 1 includes a game mechanism 2, a main control unit 3, a main storage unit 4, a display device 5, and a housing 6 (see FIG. 1). Yes. The game mechanism 2 includes a game board 21 and a drive mechanism 27, as shown in FIG. The game board 21 is formed, for example, in the shape of a rectangular plate as a whole by a light-transmitting resin (polycarbonate as an example), and is formed in a circular game part 21a partitioned by a frame member F as shown in FIG. A game ball is configured to be movable. In this case, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the game unit 21a has a plurality of nails 22, 22,..., A start chucker 23, a big winning opening (attacker) 24, winning openings 25, 25, windmills 26, 26, and the like. The gaming parts are arranged. A door 28 fitted with a transparent glass plate 28 a is attached to the front of the game board 21. As shown in FIG. 3, the drive mechanism 27 is disposed on the bottom side in the housing 6, and collects and pays out game balls in accordance with instructions from the main control unit 3.

  The main control unit 3 controls the drive mechanism 27 and the display device 5 in an integrated manner, and executes a lottery when a game ball wins the start chucker 23. In addition, the main control unit 3 outputs a command C when the game state changes, for example, at the start of a lottery or when a big hit occurs, thereby causing the display device 5 to execute image display processing and various game images. G is displayed. In this case, the main control unit 3 outputs a command C including designation of display procedure data Ds (this will be described later) necessary for displaying the game image G. The main storage unit 4 stores an operation program of the main control unit 3 and the like.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the display device 5 includes an image display unit 11, a display control unit 12, a RAM 13, a display procedure data storage unit 14, a VRAM 15, and a symbol data storage unit 16. The image display unit 11 corresponds to the image display device according to the present invention, and as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the optical engine 31, the screen panel 32, the reflection mirror 33, and the casing 34 (corresponding to the casing in the present invention). ). In this case, the image display unit 11 includes an optical engine 31, a screen panel 32, and a reflection mirror 33 fixed to and integrated with a casing 34, and is attached to the back side of the casing 6 as shown in FIG. Yes.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the optical engine 31 is tilted at a predetermined tilt angle, and the emitted projection light Lp can be reflected toward the back surface of the screen panel 32 by the reflection mirror 33 (hereinafter simply “preliminarily” Projected light that is fixed at a position near the bottom surface of the housing 34 in a specified state) and light-modulated based on display image data Dg (which will be described later) output by the display control unit 12 Lp is projected toward the reflection mirror 33 disposed on the back side of the housing 34. Further, the optical engine 31 is constituted by, for example, a three-plate transmissive liquid crystal type including three light modulation elements. As shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, the light source units 41r, 41g, and 41b (hereinafter, when not distinguished) (Also referred to as “light source unit 41”), mirrors 42, 42, 42, liquid crystal light valves 43, 43, 43, prism 44, projection lens 45, blower 46, drive circuit board 47, and case 48.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the light source unit 41 includes an LED unit 51, a lens array 52, and heat radiating fins 53. As shown in FIG. 6, the light source unit 41 is fixed to the case 48 with the heat radiation fins 53 protruding outside the case 48 and the LED unit 51 and the lens array 52 disposed inside the case 48. Has been. The LED unit 51 corresponds to a light source in the present invention, and as shown in FIG. 9, a plurality of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) 61, 61,... Are arranged on a substrate in a matrix, for example. Yes. In this case, LEDs 61 (red light emitting diodes) that emit red light are arranged in the LED units 51 (hereinafter also referred to as “LED units 51r”) of the light source unit 41r. In addition, in the LED unit 51 of the light source unit 41g (hereinafter also referred to as “LED unit 51g”), LEDs 61 (green light emitting diodes) that emit green light are arranged. Further, the LED unit 51 of the light source unit 41b (hereinafter also referred to as “LED unit 51b”) emits blue light (hereinafter also simply referred to as “light L” when red light, green light, and blue light are not distinguished). LEDs 61 (blue light emitting diodes) are arranged.

  In this case, in this optical engine 31, in order to display an image in a natural color, the light quantity ratio of red light, green light, and blue light emitted from the LED units 51r, 51g, and 51b, respectively, is 24: 70: 6, for example. It is stipulated in. Accordingly, since the amount of green light is the largest among the amounts of red light, green light, and blue, among the LED units 51r, 51g, and 51b, the LED unit 51g is the largest when the LED 61 is turned on. Generates heat. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 6, the radiating fins 53 of the light source unit 41g are provided with a blower fan 54, which will be described later, in order to improve the radiating efficiency.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the lens array 52 is formed by integrally forming a plurality of small lenses arranged in a matrix, for example, and converts the light L (diverged light) from the LED unit 51 into parallel light. As shown in the figure, the radiating fin 53 is configured to include a plurality of thin metal plates, and is disposed so as to be in close contact with the substrate of the LED unit 51, so that the heat generated in the LED unit 51 (LED 61) is generated. Dissipate heat.

  The blower fan 54 corresponds to the light source cooling fan in the present invention, and as shown in FIG. 6, is arranged at one end (upper part in the figure) of the radiation fin 53 of the light source unit 41 g. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the blower fan 54 blows air toward the upper portion of the housing 34 (a predetermined direction in the present invention), as shown in FIG. 5, thereby surrounding the radiating fins 53 (around the LED unit 51). ) To cool the radiating fins 53. Further, the blower fan 54 also functions as a second blower fan in the present invention, and as shown in the figure, the air in the case 48 discharged by the blower 46 flows to the upper part of the case 34 to flow into the case. Circulate almost all over the body 34.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the mirrors 42, 42, 42 are arranged on the optical paths of the light L from the respective light source units 41, 41, 41 and reflect the light L toward the light modulation element. The liquid crystal light valve 43 corresponds to the light modulation element in the present invention, is driven by the drive circuit board 47, and performs light modulation by transmitting or blocking the light L based on the display image data Dg. In this case, on the incident side of the light L in the liquid crystal light valve 43, an incident-side polarizing plate (not shown) that linearly polarizes the light L is disposed. Further, on the light emission side of the liquid crystal light valve 43, an emission side polarizing plate (not shown) for aligning the amplitude direction of the light modulated light L is disposed. The prism 44 synthesizes the light L (red light, green light, and blue light) light-modulated by the liquid crystal light valves 43, 43, 43, and emits the projection light Lp for displaying the game image G in color. . The projection lens 45 expands the projection light Lp synthesized and emitted from the prism 44. The blower 46 corresponds to the first blower fan in the present invention, and as shown in FIG. 7, the casing is integrally formed with the case 48. Further, the blower 46 cools the liquid crystal light valve 43 by blowing the air sucked from the air suction port 46a into the case 48 and exhausting it from the air discharge port 48a. As shown in the figure, the drive circuit board 47 is attached to the case 48 and drives the light source unit 41 (the LED unit 51 and the blower fan 54) and the liquid crystal light valve 43 under the control of the display control unit 12.

  The screen panel 32 corresponds to the screen according to the present invention, and as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the screen panel 32 is substantially perpendicular to the bottom surface of the housing 34 (predetermined state) on the front side of the housing 34. The projection light Lp fixed to the edge of the opening 34a and projected from the back side (reflected by the reflection mirror 33) is received to display various images. In this case, for example, the screen panel 32 transmits, as an example, a Fresnel lens that converts the projection light Lp into parallel light, a lenticular lens that converts parallel light into enlarged (diffused) light, and transmits the enlarged light and protects the lenticular lens. A resin plate (both not shown) that functions as a protective plate is integrally formed. Further, as shown in both figures, at the lower part of the screen panel 32, when attached to the housing 6 (see FIG. 3), there are game parts (for example, the start chucker 23) disposed on the game board 21. A notch 32a for avoiding the contact is formed. In this case, the number, size, shape, and position of the notches 32a can be changed as appropriate according to the number, size, shape, and position of the gaming components provided on the game board 21. As shown in FIG. 5, the reflection mirror 33 is fixed to the back side of the housing 34 in a state inclined at a predetermined angle (predetermined state), and the projection light Lp emitted by the optical engine 31. Is reflected toward the back surface of the screen panel 32. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the housing 34 is configured in a box shape with the back side inclined, and an opening 34 a is formed on the front side thereof. The casing 34 is configured to be able to maintain a sealed state by fixing the screen panel 32 to the opening 34a. The housing 34 is configured to be detachable from the housing 6, and as shown in FIG. 3, the housing 6 is attached to the housing 6 by front-side stoppers 71 and 71 and a rear-side fixing member 72. Fixed.

  The display control unit 12 generates display image data Dg for displaying various game images G by executing an image display process according to the command C output by the main control unit 3 as shown in FIG. And output to the optical engine 31. In this case, the display image data Dg is composed of red image data, green image data, and blue image data corresponding to images obtained by color-separating the game image G into red, green, and blue, respectively. The RAM 13 temporarily stores various data generated by the display control unit 12. The display procedure data storage unit 14 stores display procedure data Ds in which designation of symbols used for the game image G, the display position and size of the game image G, and the like are described. The VRAM 15 stores display image data Dg generated when an image is virtually drawn by the display control unit 12. The symbol data storage unit 16 stores various symbol data Dp (symbol data such as the earth, Mt. Fuji, and numbers) for generating the display image data Dg.

  The housing 6 is formed in a box shape as a whole as shown in FIGS. As shown in FIG. 3, an opening 7 for attaching the image display unit 11 is formed on the back side of the housing 6. In addition, partition plates 8 a and 8 b for partitioning the housing portion that houses the drive mechanism 27 are disposed in the lower portion of the housing 6. Further, stoppers 71 and 71 for positioning the front surface of the image display unit 11 in contact with the upper part of the back surface of the game board 21 and the lower part of the partition plate 8b in the housing 6 when the image display unit 11 is attached. Is arranged.

  Next, the overall operation of the pachinko machine 1 will be described with reference to the drawings. In the pachinko machine 1, when the power is turned on, the main control unit 3 outputs a command C designating display procedure data Ds for displaying, for example, the game image G shown in FIG. In response to this, the display control unit 12 checks the content of the command C and executes image display processing. In this image display process, the display control unit 12 reads the display procedure data Ds specified by the command C from the display procedure data storage unit 14. Next, the display control unit 12 stores the symbol data Dp, Dp,... Necessary for generating the display image data Dg for displaying the game image G in accordance with the procedure of the read display procedure data Ds. 16 is read out. Next, the display control unit 12 virtually draws the symbols corresponding to the read symbol data Dp, Dp,... On the virtual plane of the VRAM 15 (stores them in the VRAM 15), thereby displaying the display image data Dg in the VRAM 15. Is generated. Subsequently, the display control unit 12 outputs the display image data Dg in the VRAM 15 to the optical engine 31.

  On the other hand, in the optical engine 31, when the power is turned on, the LEDs 61, 61,... Of the light source units 41, 41, 41 are turned on under the control of the drive circuit board 47, and the liquid crystal light valve 43 is driven. It is done. At this time, heat generated in the LED unit 51 (LED 61) is transferred to the radiating fins 53 through the above-described substrate, and is radiated around the radiating fins 53 outside the case 48. In the power-on state, the blower 46 blows the air in the image display unit 11 (inside the casing 34) sucked from the air suction port 46a into the case 48 and discharges it from the air discharge port 48a. Flow the air inside. At this time, the heat in the case 48 (hereinafter also referred to as “hot air”) heated by the heat generated in the LED unit 51 (LED 61) and the heat generated in the liquid crystal light valve 43 is referred to as “hot air” from the air discharge port 48a. Since the liquid is discharged outside the case 48, the liquid crystal light valve 43 is cooled. In the power-on state, the blower fan 54 operates to blow air toward the upper portion of the housing 34. At this time, since the air around the radiating fins 53 of the light source unit 41g is caused to flow by the blast of the blower fan 54, the heat around the radiating fins 53 is further diffused to the surroundings. As a result, the LED unit 51g is efficient. Cooled.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the high-temperature air discharged to the outside of the case 48 flows to the upper portion of the housing 34 by the blower fan 54 and then flows to the air inlet 46 a of the blower 46. Further, this air is sucked from the air suction port 46a by the blower 46 and discharged from the air discharge port 48a. For this reason, the air in the housing 34 is circulated almost throughout the housing 34. At this time, the high-temperature air diffuses heat to the surroundings and the temperature decreases. Further, the diffused heat is transferred to almost the entire housing 34 and is radiated to the outside of the housing 34. Therefore, since the heat dissipation efficiency is improved, the cooling efficiency for cooling the liquid crystal light valve 43 is sufficiently improved. Further, since the housing 34 is maintained in a sealed state, the entry of dust from the outside is avoided, and as a result, adhesion of dust to the mirror 42, the liquid crystal light valve 43, the reflection mirror 33, and the like is reliably prevented. .

  Next, the liquid crystal light valves 43, 43, 43 modulate the light L from the light source units 41, 41, 41 based on the display image data Dg under the control of the drive circuit board 47. Next, the prism 44 combines the light L light-modulated by the liquid crystal light valves 43, 43, 43 and emits the projection light Lp. Subsequently, the projection lens 45 expands the projection light Lp emitted by being synthesized by the prism 44. At this time, the projection light Lp magnified by the projection lens 45 is reflected by the reflection mirror 33 and projected onto the screen panel 32 as shown in FIG. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 1, the game image G is displayed on the screen panel 32 and is visually recognized through the game board 21.

  For example, when a game is started and a game ball wins the winning opening 25 and a lottery is executed, or when a “big hit” is generated as a result of the lottery, the main control unit 3 causes the lottery game image G or big win. The command C specifying the display procedure data Ds for displaying the effect game image G is output, and the display control unit 12 executes the image display process to output the display image data Dg. On the other hand, the optical engine 31 emits the projection light Lp for displaying the lottery game image G and the big hit effect game image G based on the display image data Dg. As a result, the lottery game image G and the jackpot game image G are accurately displayed at the display position on the screen panel 32.

  As described above, according to the pachinko machine 1 and the image display unit 11, the high-temperature air discharged from the case 48 of the optical engine 31 is provided by including the blower fan 54 that blows air toward the upper portion of the housing 34. Can be made to flow up to the upper part of the housing 34 by the blower fan 54, so that the air can be circulated almost throughout the housing 34. Therefore, in the sealed housing 34, the heat generated in the liquid crystal light valve 43 can be transferred to almost the entire housing 34 and dissipated to the outside. 42, the heat radiation efficiency can be sufficiently improved while reliably preventing the liquid crystal light valve 43 and the reflection mirror 33 from adhering to the surface. As a result, the cooling efficiency for cooling the liquid crystal light valve 43 can be sufficiently improved while maintaining a clear image display.

  Further, by using the blower fan 54 that cools the LED unit 51 to blow air toward the upper part of the housing 34, air circulation in almost the entire area of the housing 34 is realized without providing a dedicated blower fan. Therefore, the image display unit 11 can be configured simply and inexpensively.

  In addition, since the light source is configured by the LED units 51r, 51g, and 51b, the light emission current and voltage can be adjusted for each type (color) of the LED 61. Therefore, the amount of red light, green light, and blue light can be adjusted. As a result of being able to easily change the balance, the hue (color tone) of the game image G can be changed reliably and easily. Furthermore, the optical engine 31 can be made compact by attaching the blower fan 54 only to the LED unit 51g.

  Furthermore, the cooling efficiency for cooling the LED unit 51g can be sufficiently improved by attaching the blower fan 54 to the LED unit 51g having the largest heat generation amount among the LED units 51r, 51g, and 51b.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said structure. For example, the configuration example in which the image display unit 11 is mounted on the pachinko machine 1 has been described above, but the present invention can also be applied to, for example, the slot machine 101 shown in FIG. 10 (another example of a gaming machine according to the present invention). As shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. 11, the slot machine 101 includes a gaming mechanism 102, a housing 103, and an image display unit 11. In this case, the gaming mechanism 102 is disposed on the bottom side in the housing 103 and executes the payout of coins (medals) under the control of the main control unit 3. The housing 103 is configured such that an opening 103a for detachably attaching the image display unit 11 is formed on the back side thereof. The image display unit 11 is detachably attached to the housing 103, and displays a game image G (for example, an image simulating a reel shown in FIG. 10) under the control of the display control unit 12. Also in this slot machine 101, since the image display unit 11 is provided, the heat generated by the liquid crystal light valve 43 can be transferred to almost the entire case 34 and radiated to the outside, so that the heat radiation efficiency is sufficient. As a result, the cooling efficiency for cooling the liquid crystal light valve 43 can be sufficiently improved.

  Further, the present invention can be applied to a pinball machine 201 (a further example of the gaming machine according to the present invention) shown in FIG. The pinball machine 201 includes a game board 202, a housing 203, and an image display unit 11 as shown in FIG. In this case, the game board 202 is provided on the upper surface side of the housing 203 and is formed of a light-transmitting resin while various kinds of accessories are attached. The housing 203 is configured such that an opening 203a for detachably attaching the image display unit 11 is formed on a side surface thereof. The image display unit 11 is detachably attached to the housing 203 and displays a game image G (for example, an image representing a score shown in FIG. 12) under the control of the display control unit 12. Also in this pinball machine 201, by providing the image display unit 11, the heat generated by the liquid crystal light valve 43 is transferred to almost the entire case 34 in the same manner as the pachinko machine 1 and the slot machine 101 described above. Since the heat dissipation efficiency can be sufficiently improved, the cooling efficiency for cooling the liquid crystal light valve 43 can be sufficiently improved.

  Furthermore, the gaming machine according to the present invention is not limited to a pachinko machine, a slot machine, and a pinball machine, and includes various arcade game machines. Of course, the present invention can be applied to a rear projector and a rear projection television. Further, the configuration example in which the image display unit 11 in which the optical engine 31, the screen panel 32, and the reflection mirror 33 are fixed and integrated with the housing 34 is attached to the pachinko machine 1, the slot machine 101, and the pinball machine 201 has been described above. The optical engine 31, the screen panel 32, and the reflection mirror 33 can be directly fixed to the housing 6 (or the housing 103 or the housing 203). Further, the optical engine 31 in which the blower fan 54 is attached only to the LED unit 51g (light source unit 41g) has been described as an example. However, the blower fan 54 is attached to each of the LED units 51b and 51g (light source units 41b and 41g). An optical engine can also be employed.

  Furthermore, like the image display unit 81 shown in FIG. 14, it is also possible to include an optical engine 91 in which the blower fans 54 are attached to all of the LED units 51r, 51g, 51b (light source units 41r, 41g, 41b). . In this optical engine 91, as shown in the figure, the LED unit 51b with the least heat generation among the LED units 51r, 51g, 51b is disposed on the upper portion of the case 92 (near the projection lens 45). The blower fan 54 attached to the LED unit 51b functions as a fan (second blower fan in the present invention) that circulates the air inside the housing 82 in the image display unit 81. Further, in this optical engine 91, LED units 51g and 51r (other light sources except the light source with the least amount of heat generation in the present invention) are arranged on the left and right sides of the case 92 in the figure. Further, in the image display unit 81, as shown in the figure, notches 82a and 82a are formed in the lower left corner and the lower right corner on the front surface side of the housing 82, respectively, and attached to the LED units 51g and 51r. The radiating fins 53 and the blower fans 54 are projected from the notches 82a and 82a (that is, outside the housing 82). According to the image display unit 81, the heat generated by the LED units 51g and 51r having a large amount of heat generation can be radiated to the outside of the casing 82, so that the temperature rise inside the casing 82 due to this heat is reliably suppressed. be able to.

  Moreover, although the example which ventilates toward the upper part in the housing | casing 34 with the ventilation fan 54 was mentioned above, the direction of ventilation is not limited to this, By changing the attachment angle of the ventilation fan 54, it is arbitrary, such as diagonally forward It is also possible to blow in the direction of. Further, the three-plate type optical engine 31 including three liquid crystal light valves 43 has been described as an example. However, a single (single) liquid crystal light valve is a single unit that optically modulates red light, green light, and blue light. A plate-type optical engine can also be employed. Further, instead of the LED units 51, 51, 51, an LED unit in which a white LED (white light emitting diode) that emits white light is disposed is adopted, and a heat radiation fin 53 and a blower fan 54 are attached to the LED unit. It can also be adopted. In this case, this LED unit can be used as a light source to form a three-plate optical engine and a single-plate optical engine. Moreover, it can replace with LED and can employ | adopt the structure which employ | adopts a high pressure mercury lamp, a metal halide lamp, etc. as a light source, and attaches the radiation fin 53 and the ventilation fan 54 to these. Further, the configuration example in which the transmissive liquid crystal light valve 43 is employed as the light modulation element has been described above. However, instead of the liquid crystal light valve 43, a reflective liquid crystal panel can also be employed as the light modulation element.

1 is a front view of a pachinko machine 1. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a pachinko machine 1. 1 is a side sectional view of a pachinko machine 1. 3 is a front view of the image display unit 11. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the image display unit 11. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the optical engine 31. FIG. 2 is a side view of the optical engine 31. FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a configuration in a case 48 in the optical engine 31. 4 is a plan view of a light source unit 41. FIG. 2 is a front view of the slot machine 101. FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of the slot machine 101. FIG. 1 is a front view of a pinball machine 201. FIG. 2 is a side sectional view of the pinball machine 201. FIG. 3 is a front view of an image display unit 81. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Pachinko machine, 11, 81 Image display unit, 12 Display control part, 31, 91 Optical engine, 32 Screen panel, 34, 82 Case, 43 Liquid crystal light valve, 46 Blower, 51, 51b, 51g, 51r LED unit, 54 Fan, 61 LED, 101 slot machine, 201 pinball machine, G game image, L light, Lp projection light

Claims (6)

An optical engine having a light modulation element capable of modulating the light from the light source into projection light for image display, and a first blower fan for blowing air toward the light modulation element are disposed in the housing, and An image display device configured to be able to display an image by projecting projection light emitted from an optical engine onto the back of the screen,
The image display apparatus provided with the 2nd ventilation fan which ventilates toward the predetermined direction in the said housing | casing.   The image display device according to claim 1, wherein the second blower fan is a light source cooling fan that is attached to the light source and cools the light source. The light source includes a red light source having a red light emitting diode that emits red light, a green light source having a green light emitting diode that emits green light, and a blue light source having a blue light emitting diode that emits blue light. ,
The image display device according to claim 2, wherein the light source cooling fan is attached to at least one of the red light source, the green light source, and the blue light source.   The image display device according to claim 3, wherein the light source cooling fan is attached to a light source that generates at least the largest amount of heat among the red light source, the green light source, and the blue light source. The light source cooling fan is attached to all of the red light source, the green light source and the blue light source,
The light source cooling fan attached to the other light source except the light source with the least amount of heat generated among the red light source, the green light source, and the blue light source is projected outside the housing,
The image display device according to claim 3, wherein the second blower fan is configured by the light source cooling fan attached to the light source that generates the least amount of heat.   A gaming machine comprising: the image display device according to any one of claims 1 to 5; and a display control unit that displays a game image on the image display device.

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