JP2006014909A - Game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game machine realizing a variety of pattern performance. <P>SOLUTION: A pattern control part 3 for realizing pattern performance operation is constituted divided into: a first circuit 10 for deciding the display mode of each sprite; and a second circuit 12 for plotting each sprite on a display device by a decided display mode. The first circuit 10 decides the display mode of each sprite by referring to a control command received from a main control part 1, scenario data stored in a first memory 11b, and writes the operation parameter of each sprite for specifying the decided display mode in the instruction table TBL of the second circuit. The second circuit 12 plots each sprite on the display device DISP by referring to the operation parameter written in the instruction table TBL and CG data stored in a second memory 13. The scenario data is transferred from a hard disk device HDD to the first memory when required. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine such as a pachinko machine, an arrangement ball machine, a sparrow ball game machine, and a revolving game machine, and more particularly to a gaming machine that realizes a variety of symbol variation operations.

  A gaming machine is generally composed of a plurality of circuit boards separated by function, and the plurality of circuit boards operate synchronously based on control commands, thereby realizing a complex gaming operation as a whole. Such a gaming machine is generally composed of a main control board that outputs a control command and a plurality of sub-control boards that operate based on the control command from the main control board.

Each sub-control board is equipped with, for example, a computer circuit that realizes lamp effects, sound effects, and symbol effects. Display patterns such as a liquid crystal display are synchronized with the blinking operation of the illumination lamps and effect music. The player's interest is intrigued by appropriately fluctuating operation (for example, Patent Document 1).
Japanese Patent Application No. 2003-059997

  However, the conventional gaming machines, including the gaming machine described in Patent Document 1, have a problem that the gaming contents are uniform for each model, and that makes it easy for players to get bored. Therefore, if the characters drawn on the display device can be changed as appropriate even though they are the same model, the novelty of the game operation can be maintained and the product life can be extended.

  In general, a player expects a more interesting performance for a gaming machine, but in order to appropriately respond to such a demand, a circuit configuration that smoothly realizes a variety of complex and sophisticated symbol effects. It is necessary to adopt.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a gaming machine capable of changing appearance characters and the like appropriately and realizing a variety of symbol effects while being the same model. And

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 is a symbol control that realizes a symbol effect operation by drawing one or more sprites on a display device based on a control command received from another control unit. The symbol control unit is divided into a first circuit that determines a display mode of each sprite and a second circuit that draws each sprite on the display device in the determined display mode. The first circuit determines a display mode of each sprite with reference to a control command received from another control unit, scenario data stored in the first memory, and an elapsed time of the symbol effect operation. The operation parameter of each sprite that specifies the determined display mode is written to the instruction table of the second circuit, while the second circuit includes the operation parameter written to the instruction table, Each sprite is drawn on the display device with reference to the CG data stored in the memory, and the scenario data is configured to be transferred from the nonvolatile external storage device to the volatile first memory. Yes.

  The invention according to claim 2 is a gaming machine comprising a symbol control unit that realizes a symbol effect operation by drawing one or more sprites on a display device based on a control command received from another control unit. The symbol control unit is divided into a first circuit that determines a display mode of each sprite and a second circuit that draws each sprite on the display device in the determined display mode. The one circuit determines the display mode of each sprite by referring to the control command received from another control unit, the scenario data stored in the first memory, and the elapsed time of the symbol effect operation. The operation parameter of each sprite that specifies the mode is written in the instruction table of the second circuit, while the second circuit is configured to store the operation parameter written in the instruction table and the C stored in the second memory. With reference to the data and rendering each sprite on the display device, the CG data is transferable configured from the external non-volatile storage device to the second volatile memory.

  Sprite means a group of graphic data that determines one unit such as characters and decorative characters that appear in design effects. In the present specification, sprites are used to mean the characters and decorative characters themselves. There is also. The display mode of each sprite means, for example, the display position, display posture (including tilt), deformation state, and coloring state of an image such as a character. The CG data in the second memory specifies the basic shape of each sprite, and includes cases where it is stored in the second memory as compressed data.

  In the present invention, the scenario data means data in which the temporal transition of which sprite is drawn at which position of the display device and in what manner is defined. The operation parameters include the coordinate position of each sprite, the enlargement / reduction ratio, the color to be colored, the presence / absence of rotation, the rotation angle, and the like. The scenario data indicates the temporal transition of such operation parameters. For simplicity, the scenario data is time-series data obtained by concatenating the operation parameters, but the operation parameters are generated by arithmetic processing based on the scenario data. It's okay.

  The non-volatile external storage device means a storage device with a large storage capacity such as a hard disk device or a CD-ROM device. In any case, a large amount of the scenario data and CG data described above can be stored. Therefore, even if the storage capacity of the first memory or the second memory is not particularly large, it is possible to realize a variety of symbol effects.

  In the present invention, after the CG data is read from the external storage device, the first circuit writes the CG data to the temporary storage unit of the second circuit for each unit, while the second circuit writes the written CG data. It is preferable that the CG data in the temporary storage unit is transferred to the corresponding address in the second memory. Further, it is preferable that the second circuit notifies the first circuit every time the transfer processing of the unit of CG data is completed. Further, it is preferable that a plurality of types of scenario data and CG data are stored in the external storage device in correspondence with each other.

  The scenario data or CG data is preferably read from the external storage device as an initial operation when power is turned on and transferred to the first memory or the second memory. Further, it is effective that a plurality of types of scenario data or CG data stored in the external storage device are selected at random and read by the first circuit. The control command is typically transmitted directly or indirectly from a main control unit that mainly controls gaming operations.

  The second circuit of the present invention includes a second memory for storing CG data for specifying a basic shape of each sprite, an instruction table for receiving an operation parameter write process by the first circuit, and the second memory and the instruction table. It is preferable to include an image generation unit that generates an image to be drawn on the display device according to the content.

  The first circuit of the present invention is executed each time a command reception process started when a control command is acquired from another control unit and a drawing process of a unit frame by the display device is completed, and is acquired by the command reception process. Write processing for writing predetermined operation parameters in the instruction table of the second circuit based on the control command that has been executed, the scenario data group specified by the acquired control command, and the elapsed time of a series of symbol effect operations Is preferably provided. This write process is preferably started based on an interrupt signal supplied from the second circuit, and the command reception process is started based on an interrupt signal supplied from another control unit. Is preferred.

  The second circuit of the present invention is a computer circuit configured by a single IC, and includes an interface unit that receives data from a second memory that stores the basic shape of each sprite, and the first circuit. It is preferable that an instruction table that receives an operation parameter writing process and a generation unit that generates an image to be drawn on the display device according to the contents of the second memory and the instruction table are provided.

  According to the above-described invention, although it is a gaming machine of the same model, it is possible to change the appearance characters and the like as appropriate and realize a variety of symbol effects.

  Hereinafter, the gaming machine of the present invention will be described in more detail based on examples. FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a pachinko machine according to an embodiment.

  The illustrated pachinko machine has a main control board 1 for centrally controlling gaming operations, a lamp control board 2 for driving lamps based on a control command CMD1 received from the main control board 1, and a lamp control board 2 A control board 3 for changing the character of the liquid crystal display DISP based on the control command CMD2; a voice control board 4 for driving the speaker SP based on the control command CMD3 received from the lamp control board 2; Based on a control command CMD4 received from the control board 1, a payout control board 5 for driving the payout motor M1 to pay out the game ball, a launch control board 6 for driving the launch motor M2 to fire the game ball, and each part of the apparatus And a power supply substrate 7 for supplying a DC voltage to the main body.

  In this embodiment, a hard disk device HDD is connected to the symbol control board 3, and a series of scenario data groups for specifying a symbol effect of the liquid crystal display DISP and each sprite drawn on the liquid crystal display DISP are connected to the hard disk device HDD. A plurality of types (N + 1) of CG data groups for specifying the number are stored. Here, the sprite is a general term for one unit of graphic data that can be arbitrarily moved independently of other images on the liquid crystal display DISP. In this embodiment, the decoration characters “1” to “9” are used. And other effect characters are specified. The background image is also composed of sprites.

  FIG. 9A exemplifies the contents of the hard disk device HDD, and N + 1 types of scenario data groups (effect numbers i = 0 to N) and CG data groups are stored in association with each other. In this embodiment, the symbol effect drawn on the liquid crystal display DISP is transmitted from the main control board 1 via the lamp control board 2 to the symbol control board 3 (specifically, the “variation pattern number command”). )), But in a series of scenario data groups defined for each production number, the temporal transition of how and where each sprite is drawn is defined for each variation pattern number. (See FIG. 9B). Note that the scenario data in the illustrated example is time-series data obtained by concatenating the operation parameters for specifying the coordinate position of each sprite in time series.

  As shown in FIG. 9B, a series of scenario data groups for a certain effect number X is divided for each variation pattern number command, and a symbol effect is specified for each variation pattern number. And if the production number X changes, the design character of the production character that appears in the design production operation or the special design will be different even with the same variation pattern number. However, the total time of the symbol effect and the time transition of the effect story are the same even if the effect number X changes, and there is no synchronization shift between the lamp effect and the sound effect and the symbol effect.

  When power is applied to the pachinko machine configured as described above, any one of a plurality of types (N + 1) of scenario data groups and CG data groups stored in the hard disk device HDD is randomly selected. And stored in the memory of the symbol control board 3 (see ST2 in FIG. 7). For this reason, the scenario data group and CG data group used for the design effect change randomly every day, and the design effect of the liquid crystal display DISP for the same “variation pattern number command” changes daily. Unique game operations are realized.

  The main control board 1, the lamp control board 2, the symbol control board 3, the voice control board 4, and the payout control board 5 shown in FIG. 1 are each configured by a computer circuit having a CPU (specifically, a one-chip microcomputer). Yes. The lamp control board 2, the design control board 3, the voice control board 4, and the payout control board 5 correspond to sub-control boards, and each of the sub-control boards 2 to 5 directly from the main control board 1 or other It operates based on a control command received indirectly through the board. In the following description, the circuits mounted on the control boards 1 to 5 and the operations realized by the circuits are collectively referred to as a main control unit 1, a lamp control unit 2, a symbol control unit 3, The voice control unit 4 and the payout control unit 31 may be referred to.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the lamp control unit 2 and the payout control unit 5 perform a lamp effect and a game ball payout operation based on the control commands CMD1 and CMD4 transmitted from the main control unit 1. On the other hand, the symbol control unit 3 and the voice control unit 4 execute the symbol effect and the voice effect based on the control commands CMD2 and CMD3 transmitted from the lamp control unit 2, respectively.

  As described above, the control commands CMD2 and CMD3 given from the lamp control unit 2 to the symbol control unit 3 and the voice control unit 4 include a “variation pattern number command” that specifically specifies the production contents. When the control units 3 and 4 operate with the variation pattern numbers given from the lamp control unit 2, the lamp effect, the design effect, and the sound effect are all executed in synchronization.

  By the way, the lamp control unit 2 generates another control command through a case where the control command CMD1 received from the main control unit 1 is transferred as it is and a lottery process based on the control command CMD1 received from the main control unit 1. May be transmitted. The latter control command generated by the lamp control unit 2 specifically specifies the contents of the symbol effect and the sound effect, and the effect contents are precisely synchronized with the lamp effect as described above. It has become.

  On the other hand, the former control command transferred as it is from the lamp control unit 2 to the symbol control unit 3 includes a first symbol designation command for specifying a special symbol that stops at the first digit and a special symbol that stops at the second digit. A second symbol designation command to be identified and a third symbol designation command to identify a special symbol to be stopped at the third digit are included. Here, the special symbol is a symbol that means that if all three symbols are in a big hit state, if the gaming machine is in such a big hit state, it is very easy to pay out a large amount of game balls. It is like that. It is typical to stop the first symbol from the first symbol to the left, middle, and right, but when the left and right symbols match, an effect operation called reach action (see FIG. 6) is started. While the player's sense of expectation is evoked, the symbol at the center position continues to move further.

  2 and 3 are block diagrams showing a specific configuration of the symbol control unit 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the symbol control unit 3 of this embodiment includes a one-chip microcomputer 10, a control memory 11 that defines the operation content of the one-chip microcomputer 10, and a liquid crystal display DISP based on instructions from the one-chip microcomputer 10. A graphic controller (specifically, a VDP: Video Display Processor) 12 that generates a drawing signal for the image and a CG memory 13 that stores CG data such as sprite pattern data drawn on the liquid crystal display DISP. .

  Specifically, the control memory 11 volatilizes a control ROM (Read Only Memory) 11a that stores a control program that defines the operation contents of the symbol control unit 3, and a series of scenario data groups that specify the symbol effect of the liquid crystal display DISP. And a random access memory (RAM) 11b. A series of scenario data groups is read from the hard disk drive HDD each time the power is turned on and stored in the RAM 11b. As described above, the hard disk device HDD stores N + 1 types of scenario data groups (see FIGS. 9A and 9B), and any one type of scenario data group is based on a random number value. Are selected and transferred to the RAM 11b (see ST13 in FIG. 8A).

  The CG memory 13 is composed of an SRAM (Static Random Access Memory), and stores a CG data group for specifying each sprite drawn on the liquid crystal display DISP. Each time the power is turned on, the CG data group is read from the hard disk device HDD and stored in the CG memory 13 (see ST14 in FIG. 8A). In this embodiment, N + 1 types of CG data groups are stored in the hard disk device. It is stored in the HDD (see FIGS. 9A and 9C), and what type of CG data group is read out is determined randomly. The design of decorative characters “1” to “9” and the production characters are individually different for each read CG data group.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the hard disk device HDD is connected to the input port and the output port of the one-chip microcomputer 10 via a control circuit 14 having a SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) bus interface chip. A plurality of types of scenario data groups and CG data groups are stored in the hard disk device HDD in a nonvolatile manner, and randomly determined scenario data groups and CG data groups are read by the one-chip microcomputer 10 when the power is turned on. Is as described above.

  However, in the case of this embodiment, a CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) device may be connected instead of the hard disk device HDD. In this case, the compact disc CD can be replaced as appropriate for more variations. A rich pattern production becomes possible. Even when a CD-ROM device is connected to the one-chip microcomputer 10, the same SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) control circuit 14 as in the case of the hard disk device HDD can be used, and the driver program of the control ROM 11a is simply used. It is preferable that only the change is required.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the one-chip microcomputer 10 receives the control command CMD2 from the lamp control unit 2 at the input port and also receives the strobe signal STB from the lamp control unit 2 at the interrupt terminal IRQ1. When the strobe signal STB becomes active, the interrupt processing program (command reception interrupt shown in FIG. 7B) stored in the control memory 11a is activated so that the control command CMD2 is acquired by the one-chip microcomputer 10. It has become.

  On the other hand, the interrupt signal INT from the graphic controller 12 is received at the interrupt terminal IRQ0 of the one-chip microcomputer 10. In the initial state after the power is turned on, an interrupt processing program for CG data transfer (see FIG. 8B) every time a unit (16 bits) of CG data is transferred from the graphic controller 12 to the CG memory 13. The one-chip microcomputer 10 writes the next unit of CG data into the corresponding register CGD of the graphic controller 12. This operation is a CG data transfer process from the hard disk device HDD to the CG memory 13, and is executed as an initial process when the power is turned on.

  Thereafter, when the symbol control unit 3 is in a steady operation state, an interrupt signal INT is supplied to the interrupt terminal IRQ0 of the one-chip microcomputer 10 every 1/60 seconds when drawing of one frame of the liquid crystal display DISP is completed. Is started (see FIG. 7C). Then, due to this drawing interruption, the one-chip microcomputer 10 writes operation parameters for determining the drawing position of each sprite into the instruction data table TBL, and the position and deformation shape of each sprite to be drawn next are written. It is specified (see ST6 in FIG. 7). Hereinafter, this drawing process may be referred to as an operation parameter writing process.

  FIG. 3 illustrates the graphic controller 12 in more detail. As shown in the figure, the graphic controller 12 includes a CPU interface unit 14 connected to a data bus and an address bus of the one-chip microcomputer 10 and a pattern memory interface unit that receives sprite pattern data (CG data) from the CG memory 13. 15, an SDRAM (Synchronous Dynamic RAM) 16 used as a control register group, an instruction data table TBL, a frame buffer (memory area for holding graphic image data), a sprite surface generation unit 17 for generating graphic image data, and the like. The compressed data decompression unit 18 that functions when compressed data is received from the CG memory 13, the SDRAM (Synchronous Dynamic RAM) 19 that functions as a work area of the compressed data decompression unit 18, and the sprite surface generation unit 17 Graph And click the image data to the DA converter DAC 20, is composed of a controller CTL for outputting such sync signals of the liquid crystal display DISP.

  In the register group provided in the SDRAM 19, an “interrupt control register ITR” that defines the operation content related to the interrupt signal INT for the one-chip microcomputer 10, a “flag register FGR” that can identify the cause of the interrupt, and an access to the CG memory 13 An “address register CGA” for writing an address and a “data port register CGD” for writing transfer data to the CG memory 13 specified by the address register CGA are included (see FIG. 2). When the one-chip microcomputer 10 writes the address value ADRS into the address register CGA and writes the transfer data into the data port register CGD, the graphic controller 12 performs data transfer to the corresponding address ADRS in the CG memory 13. The transfer data stored in the port register CGD is automatically written. Here, the transfer data means CG data to be transferred from the HDD to the CG memory.

  In this embodiment, in the initial state after power-on, the interrupt control register ITR is set so that a transfer end interrupt is generated every time 16-bit CG data is transferred to the CG memory 13, and the liquid crystal display DISP The interrupt control register ITR is set so that a drawing interrupt is generated every time drawing for one frame is completed. In a steady state where the transfer of CG data is completed, the transfer end interrupt is prohibited and only the drawing interrupt is allowed.

  Further, the flag register FGR is provided with a transfer end flag indicating that the data transfer of 16-bit length to the CG memory 13 is completed, and a completion flag indicating the drawing completion state. Therefore, the one-chip microcomputer 10 can identify the cause of the interrupt by checking the corresponding bit in the flag register FGR. In the case of this embodiment, in the steady state, the transfer end interrupt is prohibited and only the drawing interrupt is permitted. However, by specifying the cause of the interrupt based on the contents of the flag register FGR, a malfunction due to noise or the like is caused. Can be eliminated.

  By the way, the instruction data table TBL provided in the SDRAM 19 functions as a peripheral device (memory) that can be connected to the external bus of the one-chip microcomputer 10 like the register group described above. It is also possible to access directly by positioning (direct mapping). In addition, although it is possible to perform addressing indirectly via a built-in register of the graphic controller 12 (indirect mapping), in any case, the graphic controller 12 is not involved in the writing process. Input processing is not executed for the one-chip microcomputer 10.

  As described above, the graphic controller 12 only reads the data of the instruction data table TBL, reads the pattern data of a specific sprite from the CG memory 13 based on the operation parameters stored in the instruction table TBL, and is designated. Data calculation processing is performed to draw each sprite at the position with the specified deformed shape. The result of the data calculation is converted into an analog signal and output as an R, G, B image signal to the liquid crystal display DISP.

  As described above, the image data (CG data) of each sprite is stored in the CG memory 13 by the initial process after power-on. FIG. 4 shows a sprite composed of 16 × 16 dots (pixels). Is illustrated. Color information is defined for each pixel divided into 16 × 16. In the illustrated example, a dot with a color number of 00H, a dot with a color number of 02H, and a dot with a color number of 01H are appropriately set. In combination, the specific symbol “7” is realized.

  In this embodiment, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, n sprites (# 1 to #n) are configured, and these are superimposed on the sprite (#m) that realizes the background image. The image is drawn on the liquid crystal display DISP. The number of pixels of the background image sprite is appropriately set according to the resolution of the liquid crystal display DISP. However, if the number of pixels exceeding the resolution of the liquid crystal display DISP is set, the background image can be moved naturally up, down, left and right. Is possible.

  FIG. 5 illustrates the relationship between the instruction table TBL provided in the SDRAM 16 and sprites drawn based on the data stored in the instruction table TBL. The instruction table TBL is provided with an operation parameter writing area of about 16 bytes for each sprite (# 1 to #m), and the display position and the enlargement / reduction ratio of each sprite are determined by the written operation parameter. It has come to be identified.

  The display position of the sprite is defined by, for example, the coordinate position (DOx, DOy) of the upper left dot of the sprite. When the sprite size is 16 × 16 dots, the sprite is displayed by the operation of the sprite surface generation unit 17. The image is drawn within a rectangular range surrounded by the upper left end (DOx, DOy) to the lower right end (DOx + 15, DOy + 15) of the sprite surface. In these operations, the frame buffer of the SDRAM 16 is used.

  As is apparent from the above description, if the one-chip microcomputer 10 performs the writing operation of the instruction table TBL and changes the display position of the sprite #n from (DOx, DOy) to (DOx + A, DOy + B), the liquid crystal display DISP Then, the sprite #n moves by + A in the X direction and + B in the Y direction. However, according to the resolution of the liquid crystal display DISP, what is actually displayed is limited to a rectangular range of the number of horizontal display dots HDW × the number of vertical display lines VDW. Each sprite can be freely moved on the liquid crystal display DISP.

  As described above, the one-chip microcomputer 10 can perform various symbol effects including reach effects by rewriting the contents of the instruction data table TBL with the drawing interrupt signal INT every 1/60 seconds. In the reach effect operation shown in FIG. 6, if the coordinate position of the sprite upper left corner of a specific symbol (such as “1” to “9”) drawn in the center of the sprite surface is increased by a predetermined value in the Y direction, The image in FIG. 6A can be changed from FIG. 6B to FIG. 6C.

  Next, the operation content of the one-chip microcomputer 10 of the symbol control unit 3 will be described for confirmation based on the flowchart of FIG. The steady operation of the one-chip microcomputer 10 is activated due to a command reception interrupt routine (FIG. 7B) activated due to the strobe signal STB from the lamp control unit 2 and an interrupt signal INT from the graphic controller 12. The drawing interruption routine (FIG. 7C) to be performed and the main routine (FIG. 7A) for substantially executing a series of operations of the symbol control unit 3 are configured.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, when the power is turned on, the one-chip microcomputer 10 executes an initialization process (ST1) and a data transfer process (ST2) from the hard disk device HDD. FIG. 8A shows the details of steps ST1 and ST2 of FIG. 7A in more detail. As shown in FIG. 8A, the process in step ST1 in FIG. 7A is more specifically performed by the initial process (ST10) of the one-chip microcomputer 10, the initial process (ST11) of the graphic controller 12, and the random process. This is comprised of a numerical effect number acquisition process (ST12). Here, the initial processing (ST11) of the graphic controller 12 includes processing for clearing the instruction data table TBL built in the graphic controller 12 and processing for setting initial values of register groups built in the graphic controller 12.

  The production number X (= 0 to N) in the process of step ST12 may be acquired by an appropriate method if randomness is ensured. For example, the counter value built in the one-chip microcomputer 10 is obtained at random timing. It is decided by acquiring. When the production number X is determined in this way, the acquisition position of the stored data (see FIG. 9) of the hard disk device HDD is determined.

  Therefore, the one-chip microcomputer 10 reads the scenario data group specified by the effect number X from the hard disk device HDD and stores it in the RAM area 11b of the control memory 11 (ST13). As described above, the scenario data group defines the temporal transition of how and where each sprite is drawn for each fluctuation pattern number (see FIG. 9B).

  When the scenario data group transfer process is completed, the one-chip microcomputer 10 then reads the CG data group specified by the production number X from the hard disk device HDD and transfers it to the CG memory 13 (ST14). However, since the one-chip microcomputer 10 cannot directly access the CG memory 13, the above transfer process is realized by setting necessary data in the built-in registers (CGA, CGD) of the graphic controller 12. The specific processing content is as shown in FIG.

  FIG. 8B is a flowchart for explaining a transfer end interrupt. As described above, when the graphic controller 12 writes one unit of CG data to the CG memory 13, the interrupt signal INT indicating the end of transfer is supplied to the one-chip microcomputer 10. Therefore, the one-chip microcomputer 10 checks the contents of the transfer buffer storing the CG data read from the hard disk device HDD at the beginning of the interrupt process (ST20). If all CG data stored in the transfer buffer has been transferred to the CG memory 13, the hard disk device HDD is newly accessed, and CG data for a predetermined sector is read into the transfer buffer (ST21).

  Next, the one-chip microcomputer 10 writes the write destination address of the CG memory 13 to the address register CGA (see FIG. 2) of the graphic controller 12, and then updates the value of the write destination address (ST22). Further, CG data to be written into the CG memory is written into the data port register CGD (see FIG. 2) of the graphic controller 12 (ST23). Of course, after the writing process to the data port register CGD, the value of the pointer indicating the CG data to be read next from the transfer buffer is updated.

  Subsequently, the one-chip microcomputer 10 determines whether or not all necessary CG data has been transferred from the hard disk device HDD (ST24), and if there is remaining CG data, the interrupt processing is finished as it is. If there is no remaining CG data, the interrupt control register ITR (see FIG. 2) is set to prohibit the transfer end interrupt, and the interrupt process ends (ST25).

  As described above, one transfer end interrupt process is completed, but when the write process (ST23) to the “address register CGA” and “data port register CGD” of the graphic controller 12 is executed, the graphic controller 12 Then, the contents (CG data) of the data port register CGD are read, and this CG data is automatically written into the corresponding address of the CG memory 13 indicated by the address register CGA. When the writing of CG data to the CG memory 13 is completed, the transfer end interrupt signal INT is again supplied to the one-chip microcomputer 10, and the process of step ST20 is started.

  The processing contents of steps ST1 and ST2 in FIG. 7 are as described above, and thereafter, the steady processing in steps ST3 to ST8 in FIG. 7 is repeated in an infinite loop. In parallel with this steady processing, the graphic controller 12 draws one frame (screen) of the liquid crystal display DISP in a time of 1/60 seconds, and the vertical synchronization signal is drawn every time one frame is drawn. The interrupt signal INT is output to the one-chip microcomputer 10 in synchronization with the above. Therefore, in the drawing interrupt routine of the one-chip microcomputer 10, the drawing request flag FLG is set to 1 and the interruption process is finished (ST30 in FIG. 7C).

  Further, the command reception process of FIG. 7B is executed in parallel with the steady process of steps ST3 to ST8. In the command reception interrupt routine, first, the control command CMD2 is acquired from the input port of the one-chip microcomputer 10 (ST40), and the acquired control command CMD2 is stored in a reception buffer having a ring buffer structure (ST41). Then, the ring buffer pointer is cyclically increased to specify the next storage position, and the process is terminated (ST42).

  The control command stored in this way is read in the command analysis process (ST4) of the main routine, and then the pointer value of the ring buffer is returned to the original value. In the case of the present embodiment, the control command received by the symbol control unit 3 (specifically, the one-chip microcomputer 10) includes a variation pattern number command that specifically specifies the symbol effect and the left position of the liquid crystal display DISP. Includes a first symbol designating command that identifies a symbol that stops at the center position, a second symbol designating command that identifies a symbol that stops at the center position, and a third symbol designating command that identifies a symbol that stops at the right position. .

  In the case of the present embodiment, the variation pattern of the display symbol is roughly divided into a hit variation pattern that finally ends in the big hit state and a deviant variation pattern that finally ends in the off state. There is a production with reach action such as 6 and a production without. When the main control unit 1 or the lamp control unit 2 selects a variation pattern with a reach action, the stop symbols specified by the first symbol designation command and the third symbol designation command naturally match. On the other hand, when the main control unit 1 or the ramp control unit 2 selects a hit variation pattern, all three stop symbols specified by the first symbol designating command to the third symbol designating command match.

  Further, as shown in the time chart of FIG. 10A, the control command for specifying the design effect is: variation pattern number command → first digit stop symbol designation command → second digit stop symbol designation command → third digit stop symbol The lamp control unit 2 transmits the command to the symbol control unit 3 in the order of the designated command, and the variation stop command is transmitted from the lamp control unit 2 to the symbol control unit 3 at the timing when all the rendering operations are completed. Note that FIG. 10 is a time chart for explaining the rendering operation when a deviation variation pattern with a reach action is selected.

  As a precaution, the effect operation in the symbol control unit 3 shown in FIG. 10B will be described. The symbol control unit 3 performs the symbol variation operation of the liquid crystal display DISP at the timing (T1) when the variation pattern number command is received. After that, the left symbol is stopped at timing T2. The left symbol to be stopped here is a symbol that has already been specified by the first-digit stop symbol designation command. In this embodiment, the symbol is “7”.

  Next, the right symbol is stopped at the timing T3. This stop symbol is a symbol that has already been specified by the third-digit stop symbol designation command, and is the specific symbol “7” in this embodiment. Thereafter, after an appropriate reach action is performed, the central symbol is stopped at timing T4, and the symbol variation operation is completely terminated at timing T5 when a variation stop command is received. The symbol to be stopped at the center position is a symbol already specified by the second-digit stop symbol designation command, and is a special symbol other than “7” in this example describing the deviation variation pattern.

  Finally, the steady process (ST3 to ST8) shown in FIG. In the steady process, whether or not there is a drawing request is checked based on the value of the drawing request flag FLG and waits until the drawing request flag FLG becomes 1 (ST3). As described above, the drawing request flag FLG is set every 1/60 seconds in synchronization with the vertical synchronizing signal of the liquid crystal display DISP in the drawing interrupt routine.

  Eventually, when the drawing request flag FLG is set to 1, the drawing request flag FLG is reset and the process proceeds to step ST4. In the command analysis process of step ST4, an unprocessed control command is read from the reception buffer having the ring buffer configuration, and a process corresponding to the control command is performed. For example, if a new variation pattern number command is received, the necessary preparation operation is performed, such as specifying the content of the production by this variation pattern number and starting the timing operation of the management timer for managing the production time. Hereinafter, the case where the symbol variation operation specified by the variation pattern number is started or sustained will be mainly described, but the same operation can be performed even when the stationary symbol is continuously drawn before the variation pattern number command is received. is there.

  When the command analysis processing in step ST4 is completed, it is necessary to execute the symbol variation operation based on the variation pattern number instructed from the lamp controller 2, so that it is prepared in the previous interrupt processing and is currently displayed on the liquid crystal display DISP. First, the displayed image is erased (ST5). The image is erased by setting the graphic controller 12 to the display OFF state. As a result, the image signal to the liquid crystal display DISP is lost, and the screen of the liquid crystal display DISP becomes dark. The reason why such a process is provided is that if the image on the liquid crystal display DISP is displayed during the writing operation of the instruction table TBL by the one-chip microcomputer 10, the display image becomes unreasonable.

  When the process of step ST5 for erasing the image is completed, the next image to be drawn on the liquid crystal display DISP is specified according to the progress of the series of symbol effects specified by the variation pattern number, and according to the specified contents. The contents of the instruction table TBL of the graphic controller 12 are rewritten.

  For example, if the state shown in FIG. 6 (b) is moved to the state shown in FIG. 6 (c), a group of special symbols (1... 6, 7,...) Arranged at the center position. , The coordinate position of the upper left corner is increased by a predetermined value in the Y direction. Further, the color of the sprite is changed as necessary, and deformation processing such as enlargement / reduction is performed. These processes are realized by writing predetermined operation parameters in the area assigned for each sprite number in the instruction table TBL. The operation parameters include, for example, the coordinate value of the upper left corner of each sprite, the enlargement / reduction ratio, the presence / absence of symbol rotation, and the like.

  When the rewriting process of the instruction table TBL is completed as described above, the liquid crystal display is set to the ON state (ST7). Then, according to the rewritten operation parameter of the instruction table TBL, the pattern data of the corresponding sprite is read from the CG memory 13, and after being subjected to necessary deformation processing, it is arranged at the designated coordinate position and stored in the frame buffer. Written. Then, since the analog-converted image signal RGB is sent to the liquid crystal display, an image different from the previous image is displayed on the liquid crystal display DISP and the changing operation is realized.

  Thereafter, after outputting a necessary signal to the external terminal for the inspection engine (ST8), the process returns to step ST2 and waits for the next drawing interrupt to occur. As a result, the image constructed this time is displayed on the liquid crystal display DISP as a still image for 1/60 second, and is rewritten to another still image by the next interruption process. Before the symbol change operation is started, still images may be continuously displayed on the liquid crystal display DISP. In such a case, the operation parameter rewriting operation is skipped in the process of step ST6. .

  As mentioned above, although the symbol control part 3 which concerns on an Example was demonstrated concretely, the specific description content does not specifically limit this invention. For example, in the case of the above embodiment, the main control unit 1 and the sub control unit (the lamp control unit 2, the symbol control unit 3, the voice control unit 4, the payout control unit 5) are controlled by the CPU. Although the sub-control unit is configured, it is not always necessary to configure each control unit separately, and it is needless to say that they may be combined appropriately.

  In the above embodiment, the lamp control unit 2 and the payout control unit 5 function as a first sub-control unit, and the symbol control unit 3 functions as a second sub-control unit. Of course, the arrangement positions of the units and the voice control unit may be changed as appropriate, and all or some of the control units may be combined to form a single unit.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, when the power is turned on, the CG data group and the scenario data group are read from the hard disk device HDD or CD-ROM device and transferred to the memory. However, the present invention is not limited to this operation. For example, a CG data group or scenario data group may be rewritten by providing a “transformation time” during a game operation. Further, instead of randomly determining the data group to be read, the player may be allowed to select an appearance character.

  In the present embodiment, the substantial operation of the symbol control unit 3 is automatically started in response to the power reset, and the production contents are determined (see ST10 to ST12 in FIG. 8A). After the power reset of the control unit 3, the symbol control unit 3 may start substantial operation after receiving the “operation start command” from the higher-level control units 1 and 2 such as the main control unit ( FIG. 8 (a) ′). In such a case, a hardware timer or software timer that starts the counting operation after power resetting is provided, and the timer value at the time of receiving the “operation start command” or at the timing of step ST12 can be adopted as the random value. The processes of steps ST10 and ST11 may be executed either before or after the reception process of the “operation start command”. Of course, a random number value may be transmitted together with the “operation start command” from the upper control unit to the symbol control unit.

  In addition, since the hard disk device HDD has a large storage capacity, it is effective not to use the scenario data group and CG data once selected again for a considerably long period. In this case, the random number value once employed in step ST12 may be stored in the hard disk device HDD or the like, and the operation may be performed so that the same random number value is not used again until all random number values are used.

  Finally, a pachinko machine to which the present invention is preferably applied will be described for confirmation. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the pachinko machine 22 of the present embodiment, and FIG. 12 is a side view of the pachinko machine 22. A plurality of pachinko machines 21 are arranged in the length direction of the island structure of the pachinko hall while being electrically connected to the card-type ball lending machine 22.

  The illustrated pachinko machine 21 includes a rectangular frame-shaped wooden outer frame 23 that is detachably mounted on an island structure, and a front frame 24 that is pivotably mounted via a hinge H fixed to the outer frame 23. It consists of A game board 25 is detachably attached to the front frame 24 from the back side, and a glass door 26 and a front plate 27 are pivotally attached to the front side so as to be freely opened and closed.

  The front plate 27 is provided with an upper plate 28 for storing game balls for launch. A lower plate 29 for storing game balls overflowing from or extracted from the upper plate 28 and a launch handle 30 are disposed below the front frame 24. And are provided. The launch handle 30 is interlocked with the launch motor, and a game ball is launched by a hitting bar 31 that operates in accordance with the rotation angle of the launch handle.

  On the right side of the upper plate 28, an operation panel 32 for lending the ball to the card-type ball lending machine 22 is provided, and on this operation panel 32, a card remaining amount display unit 32a for displaying the remaining amount of the card with a three-digit number. A ball lending switch 32b for instructing lending of game balls for a predetermined amount, and a return switch 32c for instructing to return the card at the end of the game. On the upper part of the glass door 26, a big hit LED lamp P1 indicating a big hit state is arranged. In addition, in the vicinity of the big hit LED lamp P1, abnormality notification LED lamps P2 and P3 are provided to indicate a replenishment state or a full state of the lower plate.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the game board 25 is provided with a guide rail 33 formed of a metal outer rail and an inner rail in an annular shape, and a liquid crystal color display DISP is provided at the approximate center of the game area 25a inside. Is arranged. In addition, at a suitable place in the game area 25a, a symbol start opening 35, a big winning opening 36, a plurality of normal winning openings 37 (four on the right and left of the big winning opening 36), and a gate 38 which is two passage openings are arranged. Has been. Each of these winning openings 35 to 38 has a detection switch inside, and can detect the passage of a game ball.

  The liquid crystal display DISP is a device that variably displays a specific symbol related to a big hit state and displays a background image and various characters in an animated manner. This liquid crystal display DISP has special symbol display portions Da to Dc in the center portion and a normal symbol display portion 39 in the upper right portion. The normal symbol display unit 39 displays a normal symbol. When a game ball that has passed through the gate 38 is detected, the displayed normal symbol fluctuates for a predetermined time, and a lottery is drawn at the time the game ball passes through the gate 38. The stop symbol determined by the random number for lottery is displayed and stopped.

  The symbol start opening 35 is opened and closed by an electric tulip having a pair of left and right opening and closing claws 35a, and when the stop symbol after the fluctuation of the normal symbol display unit 39 hits and the symbol is displayed, the opening and closing claw 35a is kept at a predetermined time. Only to be released. When a game ball wins the symbol start opening 35, the display symbols of the special symbol display portions Da to Dc change for a predetermined time, and are determined based on a lottery result corresponding to the winning timing of the game ball to the symbol start opening 35. Stop at the stop symbol pattern.

  The special winning opening 36 is controlled to be opened and closed by an opening / closing plate 36a that can be opened forward. When the stop symbol after the symbol variation of the special symbol display portions Da to Dc is a winning symbol such as “777”, “big hit” is obtained. A special game is started and the opening / closing plate 36a is opened. There is a specific area 36b inside the big winning opening 36, and when the winning ball passes through the specific area 36b, a special game advantageous to the player is continued.

  After the opening / closing plate 36a of the big winning opening 36 is opened, the opening / closing plate 36a is closed when a predetermined time elapses or when a predetermined number (for example, 10) of game balls wins. At this time, if the game ball does not pass through the specific area 36b, the special game ends, but if it passes through the specific area 36b, the special game is continued up to, for example, 15 times, which is advantageous to the player. To be controlled. Furthermore, when the stop symbol after the change is a certain symbol of the special symbols (hereinafter referred to as a specific symbol), a privilege of shifting to a high probability state is given after the special game ends.

It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the pachinko machine which concerns on an Example. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a symbol control part. 2 illustrates an internal configuration of a graphic controller of a symbol control unit. It is drawing explaining the structure of a sprite. It is drawing explaining the relationship between the instruction | indication table TBL and the sprite surface comprised by this. It is drawing which illustrated the reach action among design change operations. It is a flowchart explaining the operation | movement content of the one-chip microcomputer of a symbol control part. It is a flowchart which shows a part of FIG. 7 in detail. 2 illustrates an example of storage contents of a hard disk device. It is a time chart explaining a symbol variation operation. It is a perspective view which shows the pachinko machine which concerns on an Example. It is a side view of the pachinko machine. It is drawing which shows the game board of the pachinko machine.

Explanation of symbols

DISP display device (liquid crystal display)
3 design control unit (design control unit)
22 game machines (ball game machines)
10 First circuit (one-chip microcomputer)
12 Second circuit (graphic controller)
11b First memory (RAM)
13 Second memory (CG memory)
HD external storage device (hard disk device)

Claims (8)

Based on a control command received from another control unit, a gaming machine including a symbol control unit that realizes a symbol effect operation by drawing one or more sprites on a display device, wherein the symbol control unit includes: The first circuit for determining the display mode of the sprite and the second circuit for drawing each sprite on the display device in the determined display mode,
The first circuit determines a display mode of each sprite with reference to a control command received from another control unit, scenario data stored in the first memory, and an elapsed time of the symbol effect operation. While writing the operation parameters of each sprite specifying the display mode to the instruction table of the second circuit,
The second circuit draws each sprite on the display device with reference to operation parameters written in the instruction table and CG data stored in the second memory,
The gaming machine is configured such that the scenario data can be transferred from a nonvolatile external storage device to the volatile first memory. Based on a control command received from another control unit, a gaming machine including a symbol control unit that realizes a symbol effect operation by drawing one or more sprites on a display device, wherein the symbol control unit includes: The first circuit for determining the display mode of the sprite and the second circuit for drawing each sprite on the display device in the determined display mode,
The first circuit determines a display mode of each sprite with reference to a control command received from another control unit, scenario data stored in the first memory, and an elapsed time of the symbol effect operation. While writing the operation parameters of each sprite specifying the display mode to the instruction table of the second circuit,
The second circuit draws each sprite on the display device with reference to operation parameters written in the instruction table and CG data stored in the second memory,
The gaming machine is configured so that the CG data can be transferred from a nonvolatile external storage device to the volatile second memory. The CG data is read from the external storage device and then written to the temporary storage unit of the second circuit for each unit by the first circuit,
The gaming machine according to claim 2, wherein the second circuit transfers the written CG data of the temporary storage unit to a corresponding address of the second memory. 4. The gaming machine according to claim 3, wherein the second circuit notifies the first circuit every time the transfer process of the unit of CG data is completed. 5. The gaming machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a plurality of types of scenario data and CG data are stored in the external storage device in correspondence with each other. The gaming machine according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein scenario data or CG data is read from the external storage device as an initial operation after power-on and transferred to the first memory or the second memory. . The gaming machine according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a plurality of types of scenario data or CG data stored in the external storage device are randomly selected and read by the first circuit. The gaming machine according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the control command is transmitted directly or indirectly from a main control unit that mainly controls gaming operations.