JP2005245602A - Game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game machine for assisting target pressing by using the drum device of a double reel structure. <P>SOLUTION: During a normal game, in the state of overlapping a specified pattern corresponding area of a second reel (212) and a specified pattern corresponding area of a first reel (211), rotation control is executed for both. When a specified pattern is won, the first reel is stopped at a position invisible to a player and the rotation control is executed only for the second reel. A second reel area corresponding to a first reel specified pattern is made transparent, colored or wrinkled. Further, after the target pressing operation is successful and winning is established, the specified pattern of the first reel stopped at the position invisible to the player is restarted and controlled to be on a valid line. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine suitable for use in, for example, a slot machine, including first and second reels having a cylindrical shape and different diameters, each of which includes a spinning device that is independently controlled in rotation.

  A spinning machine such as a slot machine is provided with a spinning device composed of three reels. The rotating game machine rotates the reels all at once according to the instruction to start the game. Subsequently, when an instruction to end the game is given, each reel is stopped. When the combination of symbols displayed on each reel is aligned on a predetermined active line, a winning is determined, and game medals are paid out according to the combined symbol combination.

  The player sets a target and operates the stop button (presses) to align specific symbols on the active line. However, since the reel rotates at a relatively high speed and the range (the number of sliding frames) that the player can withdraw after operating the stop button is determined, it is very difficult for beginners unfamiliar with the game. It becomes operation. This is particularly noticeable for symbols with a small number of arrays, such as jackpot symbols.

  By the way, as a method of assisting the above-described eye pressing operation, conventionally, a fluorescent paint is applied to a specific design and made conspicuous with black light (for example, refer to Patent Document 1), a plurality of specific designs are arranged continuously, A method of differentiating from a rotating symbol (for example, see Patent Document 2) and a method of making two specific symbols arranged in the vertical direction appear as one specific symbol (for example, see Patent Document 3) are known. .

JP 2002-126161 A JP-A-11-169505 JP 2000-308705 A

  The present invention provides a gaming machine that assists in pushing in place of the technique disclosed in the above-mentioned patent document, and includes an outer reel and an inner reel having different diameters, each having a cylindrical shape, and each independently rotating. It is an object of the present invention to provide a gaming machine capable of facilitating the pushing operation even for beginners who are unfamiliar with games while using a controlled reel device having a double reel structure.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the present invention is a gaming machine that includes first and second reels having a cylindrical shape and different diameters, each of which includes a spinning device that is independently rotationally controlled. The first reel on which a reel tape made transparent except for a part of the area where the specific pattern is arranged is mounted on the first reel, and the reel tape on which a predetermined pattern is disposed except for the area corresponding to the specific pattern. Rotation control together with the spinning device comprising the second reel mounted and the specific symbol corresponding area of the second reel and the specific symbol area of the first reel overlapped during normal game And when the specific symbol is won, the first reel is stopped at a position where it cannot be seen by a player, and a rotation control device for controlling the rotation of only the second reel is provided. To do.

  In the present invention, the second reel area corresponding to the first reel specific pattern is transparent, colored or embossed.

  Also, in the present invention, after the specific symbol is won, the spinning control device is configured such that the specific symbol area of the second reel corresponding to the specific symbol of the first reel is an effective line by a stop operation by the player. When stopped above, the specific symbol of the first reel that is stopped at a position that cannot be seen by the player is restarted on the effective line.

  Further, in the present invention, the spinning device is composed of a first reel and a second reel each having a cylindrical shape and a different diameter, and a second reel is disposed inside the first reel, The first and second reels are independently controlled to rotate around a common rotation axis.

According to the present invention, during the normal game, the spinning control device performs rotation control with the specific symbol corresponding area of the second reel overlapped with the specific symbol area of the first reel, and the specific symbol is selected. In this case, the first reel is stopped at a position where it cannot be seen by the player, and only the second reel is controlled to rotate, so that the player can perform operability by pushing the light of the back lamp as a mark. Thus, even a beginner who is unfamiliar with the game can perform the pushing operation relatively easily.
In addition, the specific symbol position can be further differentiated by adding transparency, coloring, or embossing to the second reel area corresponding to the first reel specific pattern, so that the pushing operation becomes easier. . Furthermore, the spinning cylinder control device restarts the specific symbol of the first reel, which is stopped at a position where the player cannot see after the successful pushing operation and the winning is confirmed, on the effective line. The effect as a production is also obtained.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Here, a slot machine 1 will be described as a gaming machine to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the external structure of the slot machine 1, and FIG. 2 is a view showing the internal structure of the slot machine 1. In FIG. 1, the slot machine 1 includes a box-shaped casing 3 and a front door 2 attached to the casing 3 and a hinge mechanism so as to be opened and closed.

On the side of the front door 2 facing the player, an upper panel portion 21, a middle panel portion 22, and a lower panel portion corresponding to a so-called decorative plate, each of which is designed and designed substantially integrally with hard plastic. 23 is provided. An operation console 24 is provided integrally between the middle panel portion 22 and the lower panel portion 23, which slightly protrudes toward the player and on which switches to be described later for performing game operations are arranged.
Note that the upper panel portion 21, the middle panel portion 22, the lower panel portion 23, and the console 24 face the player side, and these constitute a “front panel portion”.

  The upper panel portion 21 is provided with an effect lamp 211 formed of a high-intensity light emitting diode or the like, and sound emitting portions 212a and 212b each having a slit groove hole with a speaker (not shown) that emits an effect sound effect attached to the back side. It is installed.

  A liquid crystal display unit 213 is disposed between the sound emitting units 212a and 212b so as to face a display window 214 formed by inserting a transparent hard plastic plate or the like. The liquid crystal display unit 213 displays an image related to the game effect and is viewed through the display window 214.

  The middle panel portion 22 is provided with a panel surface 221 formed of a hard plastic plate or the like. A substantially rectangular transparent display window 222 is formed substantially at the center of the panel surface 221, and the three reels 311a, 311b, and 311c attached in the housing 3 can be seen through the display window 222. .

  Here, although details will be described later, the spinning device 31 installed in the housing 3 is configured by arranging three cylindrical reels 311a, 311b, and 311c in the rotation axis direction, and each reel 311a. , 311b, 311c, a plurality of types of symbols are drawn along the circumferential direction. Then, the player can visually check the three symbols in the vertical direction drawn on one reel through the display window 222 and the symbols in the three rows of reels arranged in the horizontal direction. Further, the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c are rotated and stopped in accordance with the player's instruction operation, whereby the type of the displayed reel symbol is changed.

  In addition, on the panel surface 221 of the middle panel unit 22, an effect display unit 223 for effecting and displaying information related to a gaming state such as an internal winning for a winning combination by turning on a lamp (not shown) provided on the back side, A plurality of light emitting diodes are arranged in a matrix and each light emitting diode selectively emits light to produce a dot image, and a game medal (hereinafter simply referred to as “reserved”) in the slot machine 1. A status display LED 225 is provided for displaying numerical information such as the number of “medals”, the number of medals won by winning, or the number of winning combinations.

  Further, on the panel surface 221, the usage method of the slot machine 1, explanation of game contents, and the like are drawn by characters and the like designed to enhance the visual effect.

  On the side of the middle panel portion 22, there are provided effect lamps 226a and 226b formed of fluorescent lamps or high-intensity light emitting diodes. A plurality of effect lamps 211, 226a, and 226b described above blink in accordance with the progress of the game, thereby enhancing the effect of the game.

  On the lower side of the middle panel portion 22 is formed an operation console 24 having a plane inclined slightly downward while facing the player side. On the right side of the plane of the console 24, a medal insertion unit 241 for inserting medals is provided, and on the left side of the plane, three bet buttons 242, 243, and 244 that are push button switches are provided. ing.

  The bet buttons 242, 243, and 244 are button switches for presenting the number of medals to bet on one game of the slot machine. When the game is started, the bet button 242 is pressed, and one medal is bet on the game from the stored medals. Similarly, two or three medals are bet by pressing the bet button 243 or 244, respectively. Note that the bet button 244 is particularly called a “max bet button” because it is provided to present the maximum number of medals that can be bet on one game.

  A start lever 245 for instructing the start of rotation of the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c is provided on the left side of the front surface of the console 24, and the rotation of the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c is stopped at the center of the front surface of the console 24. Three stop buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c, which are push button switches for instructing, are provided corresponding to the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c.

  The start lever 245 includes a swingable console having a spherical operation knob at the tip, and is turned on when the console is tilted, and automatically when the hand is released from the console by the biasing force of the spring. It is formed of a switch unit that returns to a position and is turned off. The stop buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c are switches for independently stopping the rotating reels 311a, 311b, and 311c by pressing them.

  That is, when the player presses one of the bet buttons 242, 243, and 244, the number of medals bet on the game is presented, and when the start lever 245 is tilted, the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c are all at once. Rotate to. At this time, the slot machine 1 performs a lottery of a winning combination (winning winning combination) by internal processing (hereinafter referred to as “internal lottery”).

  When each reel 311a, 311b, 311c reaches a predetermined number of revolutions, the reel stop operation by the stop buttons 246a, 246b, 246c is ready. In this state, when the player presses the stop buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c in any order, the corresponding reels are controlled to stop. When the symbols displayed by the stopped three reels 311a, 311b, 311c are aligned on an effective line in a combination corresponding to the winning combination in the internal lottery, the winning combination is obtained, and according to the type of winning combination. A number of medals are distributed to the player.

  A key hole 247 into which a key for unlocking the front door 2 is inserted is provided on the front right side of the console 24. When an administrator of the slot machine 1 inserts a predetermined key into the keyhole 247 and performs an unlocking operation, the front door 2 attached to the housing 3 can be opened forward by a hinge mechanism, and the front door 2 can be opened. These are automatically locked when closed to the housing 3 side.

  The lower panel portion 23 is provided with a panel 231 for introducing game contents of the slot machine 1 or appearance characters. Also, on the lower side of the panel 231, there are provided a discharge port 232 for discharging medals and a tray 233 for receiving the discharged medals. Further, adjacent to the discharge port 232, sound emitting portions 234a and 234b formed from a large number of holes are provided, and a speaker described later that emits effect sound effects is disposed on the back side of the sound emitting portions 234a and 234b.

  Next, the back surface structure of the front door 2 and the internal structure of the housing 3 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 shows a state in which the front door 2 is opened from the housing 3. In the figure, a plurality of high-intensity light-emitting diodes 251 that are light sources of the effect lamp 211 are arranged on the upper surface of the back surface of the front door 2, and the speakers 252a and 252b are opposed to the sound emitting units 212a and 212b. Is attached. Although not shown in FIG. 2, the display window 214 described above is positioned between the speakers 252 a and 252 b, and the liquid crystal display unit 213 is attached with the display surface facing the display window 214. Further, a sub-control board 200 formed of an electric circuit board is attached to the back side of the liquid crystal display unit 213.

  Although the details will be described later, the operation of the entire slot machine 1 is comprehensively controlled by the main control board 100 provided on the housing 3 side, and the sub control board 200 controls the display of the liquid crystal display unit 213. In addition, control relating to game effects such as control of effect lamps 213, 226a, 226b and speakers 252a, 252b is mainly performed.

  Below the sub-control board 200, a panel surface 221 having a display window 222 for viewing the reels 311a, 311b, 311c is attached. Below the display window 222, an electric circuit (relay) substrate called a central display substrate 240 is provided. The central display board 240 is electrically connected to switches such as bet buttons 242, 243, 244, a start lever 245, stop buttons 246 a, 246 b, 246 c provided on the console 24. Wiring connection is performed so that output signals of the switches are transferred to the main control board 100.

  Below the central display board 240, a selection mechanism 261 that distributes the input material to be inserted into the medal insertion unit 241 according to whether it is a regular medal or a foreign object and a medal distributed by the selection mechanism 261 are provided in the housing 3. A guide member 262 for guiding the hopper device 321, a guide member 263 for guiding the foreign matter distributed by the selection mechanism 261 to the discharge port 232, and a guide for guiding medals discharged from the hopper device 321 to the discharge port 232. A member 264 is provided. In addition, speakers 253a and 253b are attached to both sides of the discharge port 232 so as to face the sound emitting units 234a and 234b described above, so that the effect sound is output via the sound emitting units 234a and 234b. It is configured.

  Next, a rotating drum device 31 including reels 311a, 311b, and 311c is provided at the approximate center in the housing 3. The rotating device 31 is positioned and attached to a predetermined frame (reference number omitted) of the housing 3 so that the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c face the display window 222 when the front door 2 is closed to the housing 3 side. ing. On the upper surface of the spinning device 31, there is provided a spinning device substrate 310 (not shown) that is an electric circuit board for controlling a stepping motor that rotationally drives the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c.

  A main control board 100 that centrally controls the overall operation of the slot machine 1 is attached above the rotating drum 31. A hopper device 321, an auxiliary storage unit 322 for storing medals overflowing from the hopper device 321, and a main power supply device 331 are provided below the spinning device 31. On the side surface of the main power supply device 331, a power supply device substrate 330 corresponding to a so-called switchboard is provided. Further, an external central terminal board 390 that can be connected to a management computer called a “hall computer” installed in the game hall is attached to the inner wall on the upper right side of the housing 3.

  The main control board 100, the sub control board 200, the central display board 240, the spinning device board 310, the power supply board 330, and the external concentrated terminal board 390 are all insulative resins on which conductive wiring patterns are formed. An electronic circuit such as an integrated circuit (IC), a transistor, a resistor, and a capacitor is mounted on the substrate and is formed as a so-called electric circuit substrate connected by wiring. The main control board 100 and the sub control board 200 each have a unit structure accommodated in a hard plastic case.

  Next, a control system provided in the slot machine 1 will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. First, although not shown in FIG. 2 for convenience of explanation, the main control board 100 includes a sub-control board 200, a rotation device board 310, a central display board 240, a power supply board 330, and an external concentrated terminal board 390. Each is connected by a distribution cable.

  The main control board 100 is equipped with a CPU (or a one-chip microcomputer) as an arithmetic unit, a ROM as a semiconductor memory, and electronic components such as a RAM, and system programs and slot machines stored in advance in the ROM. The CPU executes a game program and sends control signals including predetermined commands to each of the control boards 200, 310, 240, 330, and 390, thereby allowing distributed control to be performed on each of the control boards 200, 310, 240, 330, and 390. Centralized control.

  The central display board 240 is connected to the bet buttons 242, 243 and 244, the start lever 245 and the stop buttons 246a, 246b and 246c, and functions as a relay board for transferring output signals output from these switches to the main control board 100. To do. In addition, the central display board 240 transfers an output signal output from the game medal detection sensor provided in the selection mechanism 261 to the main control board 100 to inform the medal insertion unit 241 of the number of medals inserted and To inform you of the clogging and clogging. Further, a monitor LED 248 is connected to the central display board 240, and when the slot machine 1 is abnormal, error information thereof is displayed.

  The sub-control board 200 is equipped with a CPU, ROM and RAM, which are semiconductor memories, and a VDP (Video Display Processor) for performing control to display an effect image on the liquid crystal display unit 213. The sub-control board 200 is connected to effect lamps 211, 226a, 226b, speakers 252a, 252b, 253a, 253b, a liquid crystal display unit 213, and various game information display units such as effect display units 223, 224. When a control signal suggesting the start of production is supplied from the main control board 100, the production lamps 211, 226a, 226b and the speakers 252a, 252b, 253a, 253b are driven, and the production video is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 213. By performing the display, an effect appealing to the visual and auditory sense of the player is performed.

  Stepping motors 312a, 312b, and 312c that rotationally drive the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c and photosensors 313a, 313b, and 313c that detect the rotational positions of the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c are connected to the spinning device substrate 310. ing. When the control signal indicating that the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c are to be rotated or stopped is supplied from the main control board 100, the spinning device board 310 receives the detection signals from the photosensors 313a, 313b, and 313c. While appropriately grasping the rotation position of each reel 311a, 311b, 311c, the drive pulse signal to the stepping motors 312a, 312b, 312c is controlled to control the operation of the reels 311a, 311b, 311c.

  The power supply device board 330 is formed with a power distribution circuit that distributes various power supply voltages generated by the main power supply device 331 to the hopper device 321 and other parts, and system power necessary for the operation of the slot machine 1 is supplied from the power distribution circuit. Supply. When the power supply device board 330 receives a command to pay out medals from the main control board 100, the power supply device board 330 controls the hopper device 321 to pay out medals.

  The external concentrated terminal board 390 is a terminal board for sending a status signal of the slot machine 1 output from the main control board 100 or a signal indicating the progress of the game to the hall computer.

  The slot machine 1 having such a configuration enters a standby state when the medals are paid out to the previous player. In this standby state, for example, when a new player inserts a medal into the medal insertion unit 241, it is possible to play a game. It becomes.

  When the player inserts a medal into the medal insertion unit 241 and presents the number of medals to bet on the game by any of the bet buttons 242, 243, 244, and then turns on the start lever 245, the main control board 100 is 3 The reels 311a, 311b, 311c are started to rotate simultaneously. At the same time, the winning combination is lottery-drawn, and if there is a winning combination, a flag corresponding to the winning combination is stored.

  Next, when the player turns on the stop buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c in an arbitrary order, the main control board 100 performs control to sequentially stop the reels accordingly. When it is detected that all the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c are stopped, it is determined whether or not the symbol displayed on each reel matches the symbol combination related to the winning combination corresponding to the above flag. .

  That is, among the nine symbols stopped facing the display window 222, they are arranged in three sets of symbols arranged on three horizontal lines in the upper, middle, and lower rows, and two diagonal lines on the right and left sides. Two sets of symbols are examined, and when any one of the symbols satisfies the winning combination conditions, it is determined that the winning combination corresponding to the above flag is won. When winning a winning combination is confirmed, medals with a predetermined number of payouts are paid out to the player according to the type of the winning combination.

  Here, apart from the normal game, the slot machine 1 is provided with a jackpot winning combination in which a special game that can be awarded several times in succession can be continuously performed. And this slot machine 1 can set the probability that this jackpot winning combination will occur to a plurality of levels. For example, at the setting level 1, the probability that the jackpot winning combination is won internally is 1/300, and at the setting level 6, the probability is 1/350. In this way, by changing the setting level appropriately, the payout rate of the slot machine 1 can be changed. The setting level is stored in a storage element in a CPU (or microcomputer) provided in the main control board 100 of the slot machine 1 or a RAM of the main control board 100, and a hole manager or the like is stored in the slot machine 1. This setting level can be changed by performing a predetermined operation.

FIG. 4 shows an example of a double reel structure spinning device 300 used in the embodiment of the present invention.
As shown in FIG. 4, the spinning device 300 includes three reels 311 a, 311 b, 3111 c, plate-like unit plates 22 a, 22 b, 22 c to which these reels are rotatably attached, and a substrate 231. It is configured with. The unit plates 22a, 22b, 22c and the substrate 231 are all integrally formed of hard plastic.

  In detail, the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c are each composed of an outer reel 211 and an inner reel 212 that are cylindrical and have different diameters, and the inner reel 212 is disposed inside the outer reel 211. The outer reel 211 and the inner reel 212 are attached to the unit plates 22a, 22b, and 22c so that they can rotate independently around a common rotation axis. Note that a structure in which two reels are arranged in a radial direction is called a “double reel structure”.

Next, one reel that constitutes the spinning device 300 will be described. In FIG. 5, the reel is configured by assembling an outer reel 211, an inner reel 212, stepping motors 251c and 252c, a speed reduction mechanism 253, and a back lamp unit 26c to a unit plate 22c. Note that three reels having such a configuration are arranged and attached to the substrate 231 to assemble the spinning device 300.
The outer reel 211 includes a boss portion 211a having a shaft hole into which the rotation shaft 254 of the speed reduction mechanism 253 is inserted, a plurality of arm portions 211b extending radially around the boss portion 211a, and a tip portion of the arm portion 211b. A first ring portion 211c concentrically formed from the center of the boss portion 211a and a second ring portion having the same diameter as the first ring portion 211c and positioned in parallel with the first ring portion 211c 211d, and a rod-shaped beam portion 211e that connects the first ring portion 211c and the second ring portion 211d at a plurality of locations, and these are integrally formed of plastic as a framework. Further, at one end of the second ring portion 211d, a tongue-shaped light shielding piece 211f extending toward the unit plate 22c is formed.

The inner reel 212 has a smaller diameter than the outer reel 211 and has substantially the same shape as the outer reel 211. That is, the inner reel 212 includes a boss portion 212a to which the rotation shaft 255 of the speed reduction mechanism 253 is fixed, a plurality of radial arm portions 212b from the boss portion 212a, and a first ring connected to a battle end portion of the arm portion 212b. Part 212c, second ring 212e positioned in parallel with first ring part 212c, and tongue-shaped light shielding piece 212f formed at one end of one arm part 212b. Is formed.
The speed reduction mechanism 253 is screwed and fixed to brackets 221 and 222 that are in contact with the inside of the unit plate 22c through an attachment portion that protrudes from the periphery of the case. Further, the speed reduction mechanism 253 has a rotating shaft 254 that transmits the rotational force of the stepping gear data 251c to the outer reel 211, and a rotating shaft 255 that transmits the rotational force of the stepping motor 252c to the inner reel 212.

Here, the outer rotating shaft 255 has a double shaft structure in which the central shaft portion is formed in the air and the inner rotating shaft 254 passes through the center shaft portion. The leading end of the rotating shaft 254 passes through a hole formed at the center of the boss portion 212a of the inner reel 212, and is fixed to the shaft hole provided in the boss portion 211a of the outer reel 211 with a set screw or the like. Further, the tip end portion of the rotating shaft 255 is inserted into the hole formed in the boss portion 212 a of the inner reel 212, and the nut 256 is fastened and fixed to the screw portion screwed around the rotating shaft 255.
Inside the unit plate 22c, a photosensor 271c for detecting a rotation position serving as a reference for the outer line 211 is attached at a predetermined position. Each time the outer reel 211 rotates one time, the photo sensor 271c passes through the light shielding piece 211f and is turned on while being shielded. Thus, the rotational position of the outer reel 211 is detected and output to the sub reel control board 200. The sub reel control board 200 compares the detection signal from the photo sensor 271c with the number of pulses of the drive pulse signal output to the stepping motor 251c so as to appropriately control the rotation, braking, and stop of the outer reel 211. It has become.

Further, a photosensor 272c for detecting the reference rotation position of the inner reel 212 is attached to a bracket 211 formed on the unit plate 22c via a metal fixture 233. Similarly, the photo sensor 272c detects the rotation position of the inner reel 212 through the light shielding piece 212f and outputs a detection signal to the sub reel control board 200.
The outer reel 211 and the inner reel 212 control the drive pulse signal sent from the sub reel control board 200 to the stepping motors 251c and 252c, so that the rotation position, the rotation speed, the rotation direction, etc. of each reel are independent of each other. The rotation operation is controlled.

  The back lamp unit 26 c is attached to a bracket 222 formed on the unit plate 22 c via an attachment 263. A back lamp 262 is mounted on the substrate 261 in three stages of upper, middle, and lower. A plastic cover 264 having three openings corresponding to the arrangement of the back lamps 262 is attached to the attachment 263 together with the substrate 261. The back lamp unit 26 c emits light from the inner side of the inner reel 212 toward the front, and brightly displays the symbols drawn on the outer peripheral surface of the inner reel 212.

FIG. 6 is a diagram quoted for explaining the operation concept of the spinning device which can prepare the eyelash even for the player who is not good at the eyelash.
6, (a) shows the relationship between the outer reel 211 and the inner reel 212 during a normal game, and (b) shows the positional relationship between the outer reel 211 and the inner reel 212 when winning (flag establishment).
As shown in FIG. 6 (a), a specific symbol (7 in this case) is arranged on a part of the outer reel 211, and a transparent reel tape is provided at other portions. Further, the inner reel 212 is transparent because the specific symbol is not arranged in the specific symbol corresponding area of the outer reel 211, and a reel tape on which a normal symbol is arranged is additionally provided. During normal play, since the specific symbol position of the inner reel 212 and the specific symbol position of the outer reel 211 are rotated together, it appears to the player that the symbols are arranged on the entire reel.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the specific symbol is won, the specific symbol of the outer reel 211 stops at a position where it cannot be seen by the player, and only the inner reel 212 rotates. For this reason, the specific symbol of the outer reel is not visible, the light of the back lamp is transmitted only at the specific symbol position, and the confirmation becomes easier than other symbols. In addition to making the specific symbol position of the inner reel 212 transparent, it may be possible to differentiate the color from the other symbol arrangement regions by coloring or embossing and adjusting the lighting condition of the back lamp and other peripheral lamps. . Thus, the player can easily perform the pushing operation. The control system will be described in detail below.

FIG. 7 shows that during the normal game, rotation control is performed with the specific symbol corresponding area of the inner reel 212 and the specific symbol area of the outer reel 211 overlapped, and when the specific symbol is won, the outer reel 211 is given to the player. It is the block diagram which expanded and showed the function about the spinning cylinder control device which stops in the position which cannot be visually observed, and performs rotation control only of the inner reel 212. Specifically, the blocks shown here are mounted on the main control board 100, the central display board 240, and the spinning device board 310 shown in FIG.
In FIG. 7, the spinning cylinder control device includes a start (ST) lever operation detection unit 101, a stop (STP) button operation detection unit 102, a reel and reel rotation control unit 103, an internal lottery processing unit 104, and an initial detection. Unit 105, interrupt detection unit 106, calculation unit 107, pull-in control unit 108, back lamp lighting control unit 109, and winning detection unit 110.

The ST lever operation detection unit 101 detects the operation of the ST lever 245 by the player, and the STP button detection unit 102 detects the operation of the STP buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c by the player, and sets the reel & reel rotation control unit 103 respectively. To drive.
The internal lottery processing unit 104 is activated when the ST lever operation detection unit 101 detects an operation of the ST lever 245 by the player, where a random number is obtained and compared with a plurality of predetermined winning combination determination values. If it is a corresponding value, the winning control unit 108 is notified that each winning combination has been won internally. The pull-in control unit 108 detects the origin position of the reel by the initial detection unit 105 described later, and then receives a stop operation by the player via the STP buttons 246a, 246b, 246c, and reels up to the maximum number of control frames determined. Slide in to control the pull-in of the jackpot stop picture.

The initial detection unit 105 senses a specific marker (initial) mounted on the reel at the start of rotation of the reel, detects the origin position of the reel, and supplies the signal to the calculation unit 107. The computing unit 107 computes the symbol position of the reel that has been stopped by using the origin position as the head and using the rotation drive pulse data output via the stepping motor that rotationally drives the reel as an offset. Note that the spinning drum drive pulse data is supplied to the arithmetic unit 107 via the interrupt detection unit 106.
The calculation unit 107 also determines the allowable maximum stop time, the time required to stop per symbol determined by the number of symbols held by the reel from the time required for one revolution of the reel, the interrupt error generated by the excitation switching of the stepping motor, and the symbol The number that can be divided by the time calculated by adding the control time is calculated as the number of controllable symbols.

The reel & reel rotation control unit 103 performs rotation control in a state where the specific symbol corresponding area of the inner reel 212 and the specific symbol area of the outer reel 211 are overlapped during a normal game, and when the specific symbol is won, The outer reel 211 is stopped at a position where the player cannot see it, and only the inner reel 212 is controlled to rotate. Further, the back lamp lighting control unit 109 shines light on the rear surface of the reels to make the symbols arranged on the reel tapes mounted on the inner and outer reels 211 and 212 conspicuous.
In addition, the winning detection unit 110, when the winning of the specific symbol is confirmed, the reel when the specific symbol area of the inner reel 212 corresponding to the specific symbol of the outer reel 211 is stopped on the active line by the STP button operation by the player. & The reel rotation control unit 103 has a function of restarting a specific symbol of the outer reel that is stopped at a position where the player cannot see it on the effective line.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the operation of the embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, the operation of the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 7 will be described in detail with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
First, the ST lever 245 is turned on by the player, and the ST lever operation detection unit 101 detects this (S801). Subsequently, the ST lever operation detection unit 101 drives the reel & reel rotation control unit 103 to start rotation control, and activates the internal lottery processing unit 104 to start lottery processing and lottery for effects ( S802).

Here, when winning (S803 “winning”), the calculation unit 107 calculates the stop position of the outer reel 211 (S805). The stop position of the outer reel 211 is as described above, and is a position that cannot be seen by the player. In other words, the calculation unit 107 detects the reel origin position via the initial detection unit 105 at the start of reel rotation, and outputs the rotation output via a stepping motor that rotates the reel with the origin position at the head. The symbol stop position (step number n) of the outer reel 211 to be stopped is calculated using the cylinder drive pulse data (1 to 400) as an offset, and the stop control of the outer reel 211 is performed via the reel & reel rotation control unit 113. . At this time, the normal rotation of the inner reel 212 is continued (S806).
If the lottery is missed (S803 “normal”), the inner and outer reels 211, 212 continue to rotate until the stop buttons 246a, 246b, 246c are operated with the specific symbol positions overlapped (S804). .

On the other hand, as the reel starts rotating, the initial detection unit 105 detects the initial and permits the player to accept the stop button operation. Subsequently, the player operates the STP buttons 246a, 246b, 246c (S807), and the STP button operation detection unit 102 controls the stop of the inner reel 212 by the reel & reel rotation control unit 103.
Here, the player performs a pushing operation, but the winning symbol of the outer reel 211 is stopped at a position where it cannot be seen by the player, and only the inner reel 212 is rotating. For this reason, the winning symbol of the outer reel 211 is lost, and light corresponding to the winning symbol is transmitted through the lighting control of the back lamp by the back lamp lighting control unit 109 only in the area of the reel 212, which is confirmed more than other symbols. Becomes easier.

After the reels are stopped, a winning confirmation is performed (S808). When the winning symbol positions of the inner reel 212 are aligned on the winning line, a predetermined winning effect display is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 213 and the effect lamps 211, 226a, 226b. Is performed (S602), and a predetermined number of medals are paid back (S810).
Although not shown in the flowchart, when the winning symbol area of the inner reel corresponding to the winning symbol of the outer reel 211 is stopped on the active line by the stop operation by the player, it is not visible to the player. The effect of the presentation can be enhanced by restarting the winning symbol of the outer reel that has been stopped on the active line. This restart control is realized by the winning detection unit 110 controlling the reel & reel rotation control unit 103.

FIG. 9A is a diagram in which the types of winning combinations provided in the slot machine, combinations of symbols corresponding to each winning combination, and the number of game medals to be paid out when winning each winning combination are represented. FIG. 9B is a schematic diagram showing the principle of the role lottery.
In FIG. 9 (a), the slot machine has a special combination called single bonus (SB), a re-playing combination called replay, and two small combinations, that is, small combination <1> and small combination <2>. Is provided.

In the single bonus (SB), the player operates the BET button 244, the ST lever 245, and the STP buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c to play one game. As a result, the outer peripheries of the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c shown in FIG. For example, when the symbols drawn on the surface are stopped on the transparent window in a combination of “7”-“7”-“7”, for example, 13 symbols (that is, the number of bets placed on the player) (13 times) game medals are paid out, and further, it provides a privilege that allows the player to advance the game in an advantageous manner.
The replay is drawn on the outer peripheral surface of each of the reels 311a, 311b, 311c shown in FIG. 1 as a result of the player playing one game by operating the BET button 244, the ST lever 245, and the STP buttons 246a, 246b, 246c. When all the symbols on the display are aligned on the active line of the transparent window with a combination of “RP”-“RP”-“RP”, the game medals are not paid, but the bet number is presented to the player. It is the role which gives the privilege which plays a game once again.

The small role <1> is a result of the player operating the BET button 244, the ST lever 245, and the STP buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c to play one game. As a result, the outer circumference of each reel 311a, 311b, and 311c shown in FIG. When each symbol drawn on the surface stops in line with the effective line of the transparent window with a combination of “bell”-“bell”-“bell”, 13 game medals (that is, 13 times the bet number) It is a role that pays.
The small role <2> is drawn on the outer peripheral surface of the reel 311a shown in FIG. 1 as a result of the player operating the BET button 244, the ST lever 245, and the STP buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c to play one game. When the “Cherry” symbol stops on the active line of the transparent window, it is a role of paying three game medals (that is, three times the bet number). In other words, the small role <2> wins only by stopping the “cherry” symbol on the reel 311a on the effective line of the transparent window, and the remaining reels 311b and 311c have three symbols (betting). This is the role of paying 3 times the number of game medals.

When the player operates the BET button 244 to present the number of bets per game and operates the ST lever 245, the main control board 100 starts control of one game and performs a role lottery. In this role lottery, first, the CPU in the main control board 100 (internal lottery processing unit 104 in FIG. 4) performs a random number calculation, whereby the minimum random value 0 to the maximum random value ηmax (in this case, 65535). ) Is internally generated within one range.
Then, as shown in FIG. 7B, the single bonus (SB), the replay, the small combination <1>, and the small combination <2> have a predetermined random number value within the minimum random number value 0 to the maximum random number value ηmax. The CPU is assigned in advance in association with the range, and the CPU compares the internally generated random value ηi with the range of each assigned random number to determine the match, thereby determining the single bonus ( SB), replay, small role <1>, and small role <2> are selected by lottery. Also, if the internally generated random value ηi does not correspond to any random number value of single bonus (SB), replay, small combination <1>, and small combination <2>, a lottery is selected.

For example, when the internally generated random value ηi satisfies the relationship 0 <ηi <η1 shown in FIG. 7B, the CPU draws the small combination <2>, and when the random number ηi satisfies the relationship η1 <ηi <η2, When <1> is drawn, the replay (replaying player) is drawn when the relationship η2 <ηi <η3 is satisfied, and when the relationship η3 <ηi <η4 is satisfied, the single bonus (SB) is drawn, and η4 <ηi < When the relationship of ηmax is satisfied, other combinations or loses are drawn.
The range of random values corresponding to the loss is the largest, and then the range of random values gradually decreases in the order of small role <2>, small role <1>, replay (replaying role), and single bonus (SB). By being determined in advance, the lottery probability of loss is the highest, and the lottery probability of single bonus (SB) is the lowest.

  Next, when the player stops the STP buttons 246a, 246b, and 246c in any order, the main control board 100 instructs the spinning device board 310 to turn the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c in the order of the stop operation. Then, the sub control board 200 is instructed to cause the liquid crystal display unit 213 to display effects, lighting and blinking operations of the effect lamps 211, 226a, and 226b and sound effects of the speakers 252a, 252b, 253a, and 253b. Is also changed to produce visual appeal and auditory appeal corresponding to the player's stop operation. Note that the player can enjoy the game more effectively by causing the liquid crystal display unit 213 to perform an effect display suitable for the game site.

  As a result of the internal lottery, it is determined whether there is a winning combination. If it is determined that there is a winning combination, a flag corresponding to the winning combination is stored. In this case, a control signal for effect display regarding the winning combination is supplied from the main control board 100 to the sub control board 200, and the sub control board 200 controls the liquid crystal display unit 213 to display an effect display corresponding to the winning combination. In addition, the winning combination will be notified. Even if there is no winning combination, the main control board 100 instructs the sub-control board 200 to produce an effect and excite the start of the game.

Next, when the player turns on the stop buttons 76a, 76b, and 76c in an arbitrary order, the main control board 100 performs control for stopping the reels 311a, 311b, and 311c.
Here, when the single bonus (SB) is drawn in the above-described internal lottery, the main control board 100 sets the symbols of the reels 311a, 311b, 311c to “7”-“7”-“7”. Each stepping motor is brake-controlled in the order of stop operation so as to be aligned on the effective line L1 in combination, and each is stopped within the stop time τ (that is, 75 msec) while satisfying the condition of the control frame number Nz. .

  That is, the main control board 100 further rotates (slides) the reel 311a from the time when the player performs the stop operation of the stop button 311a to two frames, which is the maximum number of control frames Nz, so that the reel 311a rotates. Even if the player stops the STP button 246a when, for example, the symbol “7” indicated by the symbol number 16 shown in FIG. 6 is positioned on the active line, the main control board 100 While the reel is rotated by an extra two frames, the symbol “7” is positioned on the effective line, and the reel 311a is stopped at that time. As a result, the symbol “7” corresponding to the winning combination is accurately stopped on the active line.

Thus, even if the symbol of the reel 311a at the time of the stop operation by the player is not “7” related to the internal winning combination, the number of control frames Nz is set to 2 (Nz ≦ 2). The reel 311a is slid by a maximum of two frames, so-called pull-in control is performed, and the symbol "7" is reliably stopped on the effective line.
Similarly, the main control board 100 rotates the other reels 311b and 311c by a maximum of two frames from the time when the stop operation is performed, and the symbol “7” of the reels 311b and 311c is positioned on the effective line during that time. In order to stop, pull-in control is performed.

  Further, even when any of the other small roles <1>, small roles <2>, and rib lays (replays) is drawn, the main control board 100 is the same as in the case of the single bonus (SB) role. In addition, by controlling the stepping motor while satisfying the conditions of the number of control frames Nz and the stop time τ, it is almost certain that the symbols corresponding to those roles (the lottery role is, for example, the small role <1>) In this case, "bell"-"bell"-"bell") is positioned on the effective line, and the reels 311a, 311b, 311c are stopped.

As described above, the present invention performs the rotation control in a state where the specific symbol corresponding area of the second reel and the specific symbol area of the first reel are overlapped during the normal game, and when the specific symbol is won, The first reel is stopped at a position where it cannot be seen by the player, and only the second reel is controlled to rotate. By this, the player performs a push operation using the light from the back lamp as a mark. The operability is improved, and even a beginner who is unfamiliar with the game can perform the pushing operation relatively easily.
In addition, the specific symbol position can be further differentiated by adding transparency, coloring, or embossing to the second reel area corresponding to the first reel specific pattern, so that the pushing operation becomes easier. . Furthermore, the spinning cylinder control device restarts the specific symbol of the first reel, which is stopped at a position where the player cannot see after the successful pushing operation and the winning is confirmed, on the effective line. A production effect is also obtained.

It is a perspective view showing the appearance structure of the slot machine according to the embodiment. It is a figure showing the internal structure of the slot machine which concerns on embodiment. It is a block diagram showing the control system of the slot machine which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the spinning device which concerns on embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the spinning device which concerns on embodiment. It is the operation | movement conceptual diagram which showed notionally operation | movement of the rotating drum apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is the block diagram which expanded the function and showed the internal structure of the spinning cylinder control apparatus which concerns on embodiment. It is a flowchart showing operation | movement of the spinning cylinder control means which concerns on embodiment. It is the schematic diagram showing the kind of role which concerns on this embodiment, and the principle of a role lottery.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Slot machine, 2 ... Front door, 3 ... Housing | casing 31 ... Revolving apparatus, 311a, 311b, 311c ... Reel 100 ... Main control board, 101 ... ST lever operation detection part, 102 ... STP button operation detection part, 103 Reel and reel rotation control unit 104 104 Internal lottery processing unit 105 Initial detection unit 106 Interrupt detection unit 107 Calculation unit 108 Pull-in control unit 109 Back lamp lighting control unit 110 Win detection Section 200 ... Sub control board, 240 ... Central display board, 245 ... ST lever, 246a, 246b, 246c ... STP button

Claims (4)

A gaming machine comprising a first and second reels having different diameters having a cylindrical shape, each of which is equipped with a rotating device that is independently controlled in rotation,
The first reel on which a reel tape that is transparent except for a part of the area where the specific pattern is arranged is mounted, and the reel tape on which a predetermined pattern is disposed except for the area corresponding to the specific pattern. The spinning device comprising the second reel to be mounted;
During normal gaming, rotation control is performed in a state where the specific symbol corresponding area of the second reel and the specific symbol area of the first reel are overlapped, and when the specific symbol is won, the first reel is A spinning cylinder control device that stops at a position that is not visible to the player and controls rotation of only the second reel;
A gaming machine characterized by comprising:   The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the second reel area corresponding to the first reel specific pattern is transparent, colored, or embossed. The rotating cylinder control device includes:
After the specific symbol is won, when the specific symbol area of the second reel corresponding to the specific symbol of the first reel is stopped on the active line by the stop operation by the player, the player cannot see the specific symbol area. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the specific symbol of the first reel that is stopped is restart-controlled on the effective line. The spinning device is
Each is composed of a first reel and a second reel having a cylindrical shape and different diameters. A second reel is disposed inside the first reel, and the first and second reels are independently provided. 2. The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein rotation is controlled around a common rotation axis.

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