JP2007236506A - Game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To stop paying out of tokens when a fraudulent act is performed. <P>SOLUTION: At a lower part inside of a slot machine, a hopper apparatus and a housing tank are provided. At a storage tank, an ejection opening is formed. On the left side face of the storage tank, a shutter is arranged. The shutter is connected to a sub control board. At a place which is at the top of the storage tank and under a supply cylinder, a sending out member is arranged. The sending out member is connected to the sub control board. A fraud detection part is connected to the sub control board. When the fraud detection part detects the fraud is performed in the slot machine, the fraud detection part outputs a detection signal to the sub control board. A timer is provided at the sub control board. The timer starts timing in response to input of the detection signal. When a time measured by the timer becomes one minute or longer, the sub control board drives the shutter to be at an open position and drives the sending out member to be at a sending out position in response to the passage of time. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine such as a slot machine installed and used in a game hall such as a pachinko parlor.

  In this specification, description will be made using medals as game media, but the game media includes other media such as coins.

  A slot machine installed and used in a game hall such as a pachinko parlor can give medals a certain value, and exchange medals earned by playing games for various prizes. The slot machine is provided with a hopper device for paying out the number of medals corresponding to the value to the payout when a game is won and a prize is won.

  The control unit that controls the slot machine pays out medals to the payout port when a medal payout signal is input (for example, when a game is won and a prize is obtained).

By the way, in recent years, an illegal act of acquiring a medal by a method different from a regular method may be performed. As one of the fraudulent acts, there is a case where a foreign object such as a wire is inserted from a payout port to cause the hopper device to malfunction and to illegally pay out medals from the hopper device. For this reason, a slot machine that prevents foreign matter from being inserted through the payout opening has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Documents 1, 2, and 3).
JP 2005-110848 A JP-A-2005-118300 JP 2005-118438 A

  However, in the gaming machines (slot machines) disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3, a person who performs an illegal act inserts a device used when illegally inserting a medal from a medal insertion slot and illegally acquires a medal. In addition, the medals won will be paid out. The fact that some players gain profits illegally due to fraudulent acts not only results in a loss in the profits of the amusement hall, but also loses the player's interest in games because they cannot play fair games. Adding a function for preventing illegal acts to a slot machine is one of the major challenges for slot machine manufacturers.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a gaming machine capable of stopping the payout of medals when an illegal act is performed.

  In order to achieve the above object, the gaming machine of the present invention has a storage tank for storing medals, and stored in the storage tank when a payout request signal for paying out medals is input. In a gaming machine equipped with a hopper device that pays out the medal to a medal tray, it detects whether or not a preset fraud has been performed, and fraud detection means for outputting a detection signal when the fraud is detected And when the detection signal is output from the fraud detection means, the time measuring means for starting the time measurement, and when the time measured by the time measuring means is equal to or longer than a preset time, is stored in the storage tank An extraction means for extracting a medal outside the storage tank and other than the medal tray is provided.

  In addition, as the preset fraudulent act, there are a case where an instrument used for illegally inserting a medal into the medal insertion slot is inserted, or a front door is illegally opened. Moreover, it is preferable that the preset time can be changed. Furthermore, it is preferable to provide a reset means for resetting the measurement time by the time measuring means and stopping the time measurement. Further, the reset means is preferably provided at a position that can be operated only by a game hall manager and cannot be operated by the player (for example, a position exposed when the door is opened).

  The medal supplied from the medal supply device that supplies medals to the storage tank when the time measured by the time measuring unit becomes equal to or longer than a preset time is outside the storage tank and the medal tray It is preferable to include a sending means for sending out other than the above.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the extraction means includes an opening formed in the storage tank, and a shutter provided movably between a shielding position that shields the opening and an open position that opens the opening.

  Moreover, it is preferable that the bottom surface inside the storage tank is formed to be inclined downward toward the opening. Furthermore, it is preferable to provide a storage tank for storing medals extracted by the extraction means.

  In addition to medals, coins that are currencies, substitute money such as tokens, or the like can be used for the gaming machine of the present invention.

  According to the gaming machine of the present invention, there is a storage tank for storing medals, and when a payout request signal for paying out medals is input, the medals stored in the storage tank are paid out to the medal tray. A hopper device, detecting whether a preset fraud has been performed, fraud detection means for outputting a detection signal when fraud is detected, and timing when a detection signal is output from the fraud detection means And a time-out means for starting the medals, and a means for extracting the medal stored in the storage tank outside the storage tank and outside the medal tray when the time measured by the time-measurement means exceeds a preset time. The medal stored in the storage tank is stored when the fraudulent act is performed and the time when the detection signal is output from the fraud detection means exceeds a preset time. A external links withdrawn Besides medal tray, it becomes impossible to perform the payout of medals, it is possible to reliably prevent abuse being acquired illegally medals.

  In addition, when the time measured by the time measuring unit becomes equal to or longer than a preset time, the medal supplied from the medal supply device that supplies the medal to the storage tank is sent out outside the storage tank and other than the medal tray. Since the means is provided, it is possible to more reliably prevent an illegal act in which a medal is illegally obtained.

  Furthermore, since the extraction means includes an opening formed in the storage tank and a shutter that is movably provided between a shielding position that shields the opening and an open position that opens, the extraction means can be easily configured with a simple configuration. It is possible to prevent an illegal act of acquiring a medal illegally.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a slot machine (game machine) 10 which is an embodiment of a gaming machine is provided with a display window 11 on the front surface of a housing 10a. A part of the third reels 12 to 14 is exposed. The housing 10a includes a box-shaped storage box 10b and a front door 10c attached to the front side of the storage box 10b so as to be freely opened and closed.

  As is well known, on the outer periphery of the first to third reels 12 to 14, a pattern including a plurality of types of winning patterns is arranged at a constant pitch, and three patterns per reel are observed through the display window 11. Can do.

  Below the display window 11, there are provided a medal insertion slot 15, a start lever 16, and first to third stop buttons 17-19 for stopping the operation of the reel. A medal tray 20 is provided in front of the lower end portion of the front door 10c, and a payout opening 21 for paying out the acquired medals 23 to the medal tray 20 is provided in front of the lower end portion of the front door 10c. ing.

  When a predetermined number of medals are inserted into the medal insertion slot 15 and the start lever 16 is operated, the first to third reels 12 to 14 rotate simultaneously. Thereafter, the rotations of the first to third reels 12 to 14 are stopped by sequentially operating the first to third stop buttons 17 to 19. At this time, a predetermined pattern is arranged on one of a total of five winning active lines, for example, three horizontal lines and two diagonal lines, which are formed by combining the patterns displayed for each reel one by one. The number of medals corresponding to the prize value is paid out from the payout exit 21.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a hopper device 22 is provided below the inside of the slot machine 10. The hopper device 22 is provided with a hopper outlet 24 for exposing the medal 23 at the lower front portion. A guide passage 25 is provided between the hopper outlet 24 and the payout outlet 21, and the medal 23 paid out from the hopper device 22 is guided from the hopper outlet 24 through the guide passage 25 to the payout outlet 21.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the hopper device 22 includes a storage tank 27 and a medal payout mechanism 28. The storage tank 27 stores a large number of medals 23 and supplies the medals 23 from the upper medal reservoir 29 toward the lower supply port 30. In the present embodiment, the storage tank 27 is formed in a size that can store about 500 medals 23.

  The storage tank 27 has an inner bottom surface that is inclined downward toward the left side when the hopper outlet 24 is the front surface. An extraction opening (opening) 27 a for extracting the medal 23 stored in the storage tank 27 to the storage tank 34 is formed on the left side surface of the storage tank 27. That is, the inner bottom surface of the storage tank 27 is inclined downward toward the extraction opening 27a.

  As is well known, the medal payout mechanism 28 includes a rotatable rotary disk 31 and pays out the medals 23 stored in the storage tank 27 one by one from the hopper outlet 24. The medal payout mechanism 28 is connected to a main control board 32 provided with a probability changing unit that changes the winning probability of the slot machine 10, and the drive is controlled by the main control board 32. The medal payout mechanism 28 pays out the medal 23 in response to the input of a payout request signal from the main control board 32.

  As shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, a substantially L-shaped storage tank 34 is disposed inside the slot machine 10 so as to cover the left side and the rear surface of the medal payout mechanism 28 of the hopper device 22. ing. The storage tank 34 stores the medals 23 extracted from the extraction opening 27a and the medals 23 sent out by a sending member 44 described later.

  On the left side surface of the storage tank 27, a shielding position for shielding the extraction opening 27a (see FIGS. 4 and 5A) and an open position for opening the extraction opening 27a (see FIGS. 5B and 6). ), And a shutter 35 that is movable in the vertical direction. The shutter 35 is connected to a sub-control board 36 that controls driving of LEDs, speakers, and the like provided in the slot machine 10, and the driving is controlled by the sub-control board 36. In the present embodiment, the extracting means for extracting the medal 23 stored in the storage tank 27 to the outside of the storage tank 27 and other than the medal tray 20 includes an extraction opening 27 a and a shutter 35. .

  A fraud detection unit (fraud detection means) 37 is connected to the sub-control board 36. The fraud detector 37 performs fraud in the slot machine 10 (for example, an instrument for illegally inserting a medal into the medal slot 15 is inserted or the front door 10c is illegally opened). This is to detect whether it has been broken or not. The fraud detector 37 outputs a detection signal to the sub-control board 36 when detecting that the slot machine 10 has been fraudulent.

  The sub-control board 36 is provided with a timer (time measuring means) 38. In response to the detection signal input from the fraud detector 37, the timer 38 starts measuring time. Then, in response to the time measured by the timer 38 being equal to or longer than a preset time (for example, 1 minute), the sub control board 36 drives the shutter 35 to be positioned at the open position. . When the shutter 35 is located at the open position, the medal 23 stored in the storage tank 27 is extracted from the extraction opening 27a and stored in the storage tank 34 (see FIG. 5B).

  On the other hand, the sub-control board 36 drives the shutter 35 to be positioned at the shielding position when no detection signal is input from the fraud detection unit 37 and when the time measured by the timer 38 is less than 1 minute. .

  When the storage tank 27 is empty (there is no medal 23 in the storage tank 27), the medal 23 cannot be paid out. A medal supply device 41 for supplying the medal 23 to the tank 27 is provided.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the supply cylinder 42, which is the distal end portion on the downstream side of the medal supply device 41, is disposed above the storage tank 27 inside the slot machine 10. The storage tank 27 is provided with a medal sensor (not shown). The medal sensor responds to the fact that the medal 23 stored in the storage tank 27 has become a set amount (for example, 100 sheets) or less. Then, a medal supply signal is input to the medal supply device 41. The medal supply device 41 supplies the medal 23 to the storage tank 27 in response to the input of the medal supply signal. The storage tank 27 is formed so as to be able to store 500 medals 23, and the medal supply device 41 supplies, for example, 350 medals 23 to the storage tank 27 in response to the input of the medal supply signal. To do. The medal 23 supplied from the medal supply device 41 is supplied from the supply cylinder 42 to the storage tank 27.

  Above the storage tank 27 and below the supply cylinder 42, a storage position (see FIG. 4) for storing the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 in the storage tank 27 and a medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42. A delivery member 44 that is movable in the front-rear direction is disposed between the delivery position (see FIG. 6) and the delivery position for delivering the product to the storage tank 34. The delivery member 44 is connected to the sub-control board 36, and driving is controlled by the sub-control board 36. The delivery member 44 is formed such that the surface that receives the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 is inclined downward toward the left side when the hopper outlet 24 is the front surface. Thereby, the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 when the delivery member 44 is located at the delivery position is sent out toward the storage tank 34 by the delivery member 44.

  In response to the time measured by the timer 38 being equal to or longer than a preset time (1 minute), the sub control board 36 drives the delivery member 44 to be positioned at the delivery position. When the delivery member 44 is located at the delivery position, the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 is sent out to the storage tank 34 and stored in the storage tank 34.

  On the other hand, the sub-control board 36 drives the delivery member 44 to be located at the storage position when no detection signal is input from the fraud detector 37 and when the time measured by the timer 38 is less than 1 minute. To do.

  Inside the slot machine 10, there is provided a reset button (not shown) for resetting the time measured by the timer 38 and stopping the time measurement. When the reset button is pressed, the time measured by the timer 38 is reset and the time measurement is stopped. The reset button is provided at a position (for example, a position that is exposed when the front door 10c is opened) that can be operated only by the manager of the game hall and cannot be operated by the player. As a result, the measurement time of the timer 38 is not reset by an unauthorized person.

  Next, the operation of the slot machine 10 configured as described above will be described using the flowchart of FIG. When the player plays a game and no detection signal is input from the fraud detection unit 37 (no fraud is performed in the slot machine 10), the sub-control board 36 drives the shutter 35 to be positioned at the shielding position. At the same time, the delivery member 44 is driven to be positioned at the storage position (step (hereinafter, S) 1). When the shutter 35 is located at the shielding position, the medal 23 is stored in the storage tank 27 (see FIG. 5A). When the delivery member 44 is located at the storage position, the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 is stored in the storage tank 27 (see FIG. 4).

  The fraud detector 37 detects whether or not fraud has been performed on the slot machine 10 (S2), and outputs a detection signal to the sub-control board 36 when it is detected that fraud has been performed on the slot machine 10 ( S3).

  In response to the input of the detection signal (in the case where the person who performs the fraudulent act performs the fraudulent act and attempts to obtain the medal 23 illegally), the sub control board 36 starts the time count by the timer 38 (S4). ). Next, it is detected whether or not the reset button has been operated (S5). When the reset button is not operated, the sub control board 36 determines whether or not the time measured by the timer 38 is equal to or longer than a preset time (for example, 1 minute) (S6). In response to the time measured by the timer 38 being 1 minute or longer, the sub-control board 36 drives the shutter 35 to be in the open position and positions the sending member 44 in the sending position. (S7). When the shutter 35 is located at the open position, the medal 23 stored in the storage tank 27 is extracted from the extraction opening 27a and stored in the storage tank 34 (see FIGS. 5B and 6). When the delivery member 44 is located at the delivery position, the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 is delivered to the storage tank 34 by the delivery member 44 and stored in the storage tank 34 (see FIG. 6).

  On the other hand, when the time measured by the timer 38 is less than 1 minute (N in S6), the sub-control board 36 is in a state where the shutter 35 is located at the shielding position and the delivery member 44 is located at the storage position. continue. As described above, when the shutter 35 is located at the shielding position, the medal 23 is stored in the storage tank 27, and when the delivery member 44 is located at the storage position, the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 is stored in the storage tank. 27 is stored.

  Further, when the reset button is operated after the detection signal is input to the sub control board 36 and the time measurement by the timer 38 is started (Y in S4), the time measured by the timer 38 is reset ( S8). When the time measured by the timer 38 is reset, the sub-control board 36 continues the state where the shutter 35 is located at the shielding position and the delivery member 44 is located at the storage position.

  As described above, when the slot machine 10 is cheated and one minute or more has passed after the detection signal is input to the sub-control board 36 (the time measured by the timer 38 is one minute or more), the sub-control board 36, the shutter 35 is positioned at the open position, and the medal 23 stored in the storage tank 27 is extracted from the extraction opening 27a and stored in the storage tank 34. Therefore, the illegal act of illegally acquiring the medal 23 is ensured. Can be prevented.

  Further, since the inner bottom surface of the storage tank 27 is inclined downward toward the extraction opening 27a, the medal 23 is reliably extracted from the extraction opening 27a when the shutter 35 is positioned at the open position. Can be stored in the storage tank 34.

  Furthermore, when an illegal operation is performed in the slot machine 10 and one or more minutes have passed since the detection signal was input to the sub control board 36 (the time measured by the timer 38 is one minute or more), the sub control board 36 Since the sending member 44 is positioned at the sending position and the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 is sent out to the storage tank 34 by the sending member 44 and stored in the storage tank 34, the medal 23 is obtained illegally. Can be more reliably prevented.

  Further, when the time measured by the timer 38 is less than 1 minute, the sub control board 36 drives the shutter 35 to be positioned at the shielding position and drives the delivery member 44 to be positioned at the storage position. When the detection signal is input from the fraud detection unit 37 to the sub control board 36, such as when the game hall administrator opens the front door 10c of the slot machine 10, the reset button is pressed in less than one minute. Thus, even after the front door 10c is closed, the shutter 35 can be positioned at the shielding position and the delivery member 44 can be positioned at the storage position, so that normal games are not hindered.

  In the above embodiment, the storage tank 34 is formed in an approximately L shape, but the shape of the storage tank 34 can be changed as appropriate.

  In the above embodiment, the shutter 35 is provided so as to be movable in the vertical direction between the shielding position for shielding the extraction opening 27a and the opening position for opening. However, the shutter 35 is not limited to this. The shutter 35 may be movable between a shielding position for shielding the extraction opening 27a and an open position for opening, and for example, the shutter 35 may be provided to be movable in the front-rear direction.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the sending member 44 has a sending position for sending the medal 23 supplied from the supply tube 42 to the storage tank 34, and a storage position for storing the medal 23 supplied from the supply tube 42 in the storage tank 27. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the delivery member 44 is provided with a delivery position for delivering the medal 23 supplied from the supply cylinder 42 to the storage tank 34, and from the supply cylinder 42. What is necessary is just to be movable in the front-back direction between the storage position where the supplied medal 23 is stored in the storage tank 27. For example, the sending member 44 may be provided to be movable in the left-right direction.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the sub control board 36 drives the shutter 35 to be located at the open position in response to the time measured by the timer 38 being 1 minute or longer, and the delivery member 44. In response to the time measured by the timer 38 being 1 minute or longer, the sub-control board 36 is provided with an LED provided in the slot machine 10 or the like. You may make it alert | report that an illegal act was performed by driving a speaker etc.

It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance of the slot machine which implemented this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the hopper apparatus provided in the inside of a slot machine. It is a perspective view which shows a storage tank, a medal payout mechanism, and a shutter. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a storage tank, a medal payout mechanism, a shutter, a storage tank, a medal supply device, and a delivery member when the delivery member is located at a storage position. It is sectional drawing which shows a storage tank, a shutter, and a storage tank. It is a perspective view which shows a storage tank, a medal payout mechanism, a shutter, a storage tank, a medal supply device, and a sending member when the sending member is located at the sending position. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of the game in a slot machine.

Explanation of symbols

10 Slot machines (gaming machines)
20 Medal tray 22 Hopper device 23 Medal 27 Storage tank 27a Extraction opening (opening)
28 Medal payout mechanism 34 Storage tank 35 Shutter 36 Sub control board 37 Fraud detection unit (fraud detection means)
38 Timer (Time measuring means)
41 medal supply device 42 supply cylinder 44 delivery member (delivery means)

Claims (5)

A game having a storage tank for storing medals, and a hopper device for paying out the medals stored in the storage tank to a medal tray when a payout request signal for paying out the medals is input In the machine
Fraud detection means for detecting whether a preset fraud has been performed and outputting a detection signal when the fraud is detected;
Timing means for starting timing when the detection signal is output from the fraud detection means;
An extraction means for extracting a medal stored in the storage tank to the outside of the storage tank and other than the medal tray when the time measured by the time measuring means becomes a preset time or more. A gaming machine characterized by that.   A medal supplied from a medal supply device that supplies medals to the storage tank when the time measured by the time measuring means is equal to or longer than a preset time is outside the storage tank and other than the medal tray 2. A gaming machine according to claim 1, further comprising a delivery means for delivering. The extraction means includes
An opening formed in the storage tank;
The gaming machine according to claim 1, further comprising: a shutter movably provided between a shielding position that shields the opening and an opening position that opens the opening.   4. The gaming machine according to claim 3, wherein a bottom surface inside the storage tank is formed to be inclined downward toward the opening.   The gaming machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a storage tank for storing medals extracted by the extraction means.

Images