JP2008067754A - Game medium put-out device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a game medium put-out device which enables the accurate prevention of the fraudulent putting out of game media or others by effectively opposing to fraudulent operation of a drive means such as a motor for putting out the game media from outside. <P>SOLUTION: A token put-out device 100 which has a put-out disc (conveying disc 140 or the like) which receives tokens M stored in a hopper 110 to be put out from a release port 131 is provided with a clutch mechanism 129 for cutting or connecting the power transmission from a put-out motor 122 for the rotary drive of the put-out disc. The clutch mechanism is normally cut off and conducts the connection only when a put-out request signal is outputted from the main control board 21 to make the putting out of tokens ready. This accurately avoids the putting out of tokens as caused by such a fraudulence as an attempt to make the put-out motor malfunction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a game medium payout device which is provided in a main body of a gaming machine such as a slot machine or a lending machine and which pays out a game medium used in the game, and in particular, a game medium by generating an illegal operation or signal. The present invention relates to a game medium payout device that can effectively prevent illegal acts such as illegally paying out a game.

  For example, when playing a game with a slot machine installed in a pachinko hall or the like, a game medal (hereinafter referred to as “medal”) is generally used as a game medium. In a slot machine, a player bets medals, rotates a variable display device composed of a plurality of reels, and a winning combination is obtained when the symbols, numbers, etc. displayed when each reel stops are in a predetermined combination. To establish. When a winning is established, the medal payout device (game medium payout device) inside the slot machine main body is operated, and the number of medals according to the winning mode is paid back to the front tray.

  The medal payout device is also used for a lending machine or a money changer in a pachinko hall, and there is a device that pays out a predetermined number of medals and lends them to a player according to a player's lending operation.

  A conventional medal payout device includes, for example, a hopper capable of storing a plurality of medals, a medal payout unit including a payout disk that is rotationally driven by a motor, and a payout detection unit that detects medals actually paid out. A payout control means for receiving a payout request signal output from an external control board (for example, a main control board of a slot machine) and driving a motor of a medal payout section and receiving a payout completion signal to stop the motor; Counting means for outputting the payout completion signal to the payout control means when it is determined that the actual payout number obtained by counting and integrating the detection signals from the detection unit has reached a given payout number.

  By the way, in such a conventional medal payout device, for example, an illegal act of causing a motor of the medal payout unit to malfunction due to an intrusion of an illegal tool or an illegal operation from the outside and causing an inappropriate number of medals to be paid out. It is a problem.

  As a countermeasure for preventing such an illegal act by a malicious player or the like, for example, in Patent Document 1, when the payout detection unit (photo sensor or the like) detects a medal during a period when the above-described payout request signal is not output. A technique for notifying the error, and a technique for preventing the motor of the medal payout unit from being driven when the payout detection unit has already output the detection signal even if the payout request signal is output. It is disclosed.

Japanese Patent No. 2781495

  However, even with the above-described conventional technology, there is no room for handling direct signal operations such as externally adding a drive signal to the motor of the medal payout unit, and unauthorized payout is permitted. There was a fear.

  The present invention has been made in view of such conventional problems, and counteracts direct unauthorized operation from the outside to a driving means such as a motor for paying out game media, and reliably prevents such illegal payout. It is an object of the present invention to provide a game medium payout device that can perform such operations.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention described in claim 1 is a hopper that can accommodate a plurality of game media, and a rotating disk that is arranged at the bottom of the hopper and that receives the game media and conveys it in a circumferential direction. Body, driving means for applying a rotational driving force to the rotating disk body, and discharging means for discharging the game medium transported to a predetermined position by the rotating disk body, and when the request signal is received, the driving A game medium payout device for operating the means to release a game medium, comprising an intermittent means for disconnecting and connecting the transmission of the rotational driving force from the driving means to the rotating disc body in response to the request signal. It is characterized by being.

  According to the game medium payout device of the first aspect, the game medium payout device includes the intermittent means for cutting and connecting the transmission of the rotational driving force to the rotating disk body that pays out the game medium by rotating, and responds to the payout request signal. The interrupting means disconnects and connects. Thereby, an inappropriate payout operation of the game medium is avoided.

  A second aspect of the present invention is the gaming medium payout device according to the first aspect, wherein the intermittence means is always in a state of cutting a rotating shaft portion between the driving means and the rotating disc body. When the request signal is received, the rotating shaft portion is connected to transmit the rotational driving force to the rotating disk body.

  According to the game medium payout device of the second aspect, the intermittent means is normally in a state of cutting the rotary shaft portion of the drive means and the rotary disk body, and when the request signal is received, the rotary shaft portion is turned off. Connect to transmit rotational driving force to the rotating disk. If the request signal is not received, the rotational driving force is not transmitted to the rotating disk, so that, for example, even if there is an unauthorized operation, only the driving means is idle, and the inappropriate payout operation of the game medium can be avoided reliably. . Furthermore, if the intermittent means is controlled to be cut off when the payout operation is stopped, it is possible to reliably prevent the payout of extra game media.

  As described above, according to the game medium payout device of the first aspect, the intermittent means disconnects and connects the transmission of the rotational driving force from the drive means in response to the game medium payout request signal. Inappropriate payout operation of the game medium based on the action can be avoided.

  Further, according to the game medium payout device according to claim 2, in addition to the advantageous effects of the game medium payout device according to claim 1 described above, for example, a direct illegal operation such as causing the drive means to malfunction from the outside. Even if there is, there is always a state in which the rotating shaft portion of the driving means and the rotating disk is cut off, so that it is possible to effectively counter such fraud. Accordingly, it is possible to reliably prevent inappropriate payout of game media based on fraud.

  Hereinafter, the medal payout device 100 will be described as an embodiment of the game medium payout device according to the present invention. First, an outline of the slot machine 1 equipped with the medal payout device 100 will be described. Here, FIG. 1 is a front view of the slot machine 1, and FIG. 2 is a view showing the internal structure of the slot machine 1 with the front door 3 opened.

  In the slot machine 1, a front door 3 is attached to an opening of a housing 2, which is a substantially rectangular box, so as to be opened and closed via a hinge mechanism. The front mask formed on the front surface of the front door 3 is roughly divided into an upper panel portion, a middle panel portion, and a lower panel portion from the top, and these are integrally formed by a hard plastic designed to enhance visual effects as a decorative board. Is formed. A tray unit 4 including a tray 4a for storing medals is provided below the lower panel portion.

  The upper panel is equipped with an effect lamp (fever lamp) such as an upper lamp 5 with a built-in high-intensity light-emitting diode, and lights up or flashes when reaching or hitting a jackpot. ing. In addition, sound emitting portions 6a and 6b each having a built-in speaker are provided at the left and right positions of the upper panel portion, respectively, and a game is produced with sound effects and musical sounds. Further, a liquid crystal display unit 7 is disposed at a central position between the sound emitting units 6a and 6b.

  The liquid crystal display unit 7 displays a moving image that is appropriately selected according to the progress of the game to give the game a story, and when a bonus game or the like is won, a more dynamic image is displayed. It is displayed and effects such as causing a player to expect a high payout.

  Side lamps 9a and 9b, which are other effect lamps incorporating the above-described light emitting diodes, are arranged on the left and right positions of the middle panel portion in the middle stage.

  A middle panel plate 8 having a substantially rectangular transparent display window 8a is attached to the front center of the middle panel portion. And it is comprised so that a player can see three cylindrical reels 10a, 10b, 10c provided in the housing | casing through this display window 8a.

  Note that, for example, 21 symbols (not shown) including a plurality of different types are arranged on the peripheral surfaces of the reels 10a, 10b, and 10c at substantially equal intervals, and the three vertical and three horizontal rows facing the display window 8a are arranged. Are visible to the player through the display window 8a. Although not shown in the figure, an information display section composed of an LED segment for displaying an internal winning prize and an LED segment for displaying a credit remaining number, etc. are formed at appropriate positions on the front surface of the middle panel board 8. ing.

  Below the middle panel plate 8 is formed a table-like portion called a console that slightly protrudes forward, and includes a medal insertion portion 11 having an insertion slot for inserting medals used in the game, A bet button 12, a start lever 13, three stop buttons 14a, 14b, and 14c for instructing operations are provided.

  The bet button 12 is a push-type button switch for presenting the number of medals bet on the game. The start lever 13 is a lever switch for instructing to rotate the reels 10a, 10b, and 10c all at once. The start lever 13 is turned on when a lever having a spherical operation knob at the tip is tilted in any of the vertical and horizontal directions. When the hand is released from the lever, the spring is automatically returned to the original position by the urging force of the spring and is turned off.

  The stop buttons 14a, 14b, and 14c are push-type button switches for individually instructing to stop the rotation of the reels 10a, 10b, and 10c, and are arranged in parallel corresponding to the arrangement of the reels.

  On the lower panel 15 constituting the lower panel portion of the front mask, for example, a picture (not shown) of an appearing character or the like is printed and displayed for allowing the player to recognize the model type or the like of the slot machine 1.

  The tray unit 4 provided at the lowermost part of the front door 3 has a medal payout port 16 through which a medal is paid out by a prize payout and the like, and a sound emitting unit 17 that has a built-in speaker and generates an effect sound according to the progress of the game. Are arranged respectively.

  Next, the internal structure of the slot machine 1 will be described with reference to FIG. First, a main control board 21 that performs overall control of the overall operation of the slot machine 1 is accommodated and attached to an upper position on the housing 2 side in a transparent board case 21A. Further, in the center of the housing 2, the reel unit 10 in which three reels 10a, 10b, and 10c are arranged in parallel in the axial direction is unitized, and the display window 8a described above is formed on the front door 3 side. Is fixed to a predetermined frame 22.

  A rotating device substrate (not shown) is attached to the top of the reel unit 10. The rotating device board relays the drive pulse signal from the main control board 21 and amplifies the current, and outputs it to the stepping motors of the reels 10a, 10b, and 10c. Thereby, control of rotation and stop of each reel is performed.

  A medal payout device 100 according to the present invention is provided in a space below the reel unit 10. The medal payout device 100 stores the medals inserted from the medal insertion unit 11 in the hopper 110, discharges medals from the above-described medal payout opening 16 and pays them to the player at the time of a prize payout or the like.

  Further, adjacent to the medal payout device 100, an overflow tank 24 for storing medals overflowing from the hopper 110 of the medal payout device 100, and a power source for distributing required power to each device built in the slot machine 1 A unit 25 or the like is installed.

  Next, at the upper position on the back surface side of the front door 3, an LED substrate 31 constituting a top lamp 5 by mounting a light emitting diode, speakers 32a and 32b facing the sound emitting portions 6a and 6b, and the liquid crystal display unit 7 are provided. (See FIG. 1) and a sub-control board 33 and the like for driving these to produce a game effect by an audiovisual effect. The sub control board 33 is also housed and provided in a board case 33A, which is a transparent plastic case, like the main control board 21 described above.

  A cold cathode fluorescent tube 34 for irradiating the reel is provided on the back side of the middle panel portion, provided on the front side with a middle panel plate 8 formed with a display window 8a through which the player 10 sees the reels 10a, 10b, 10c. And lamp substrates 35 and 36 on which light emitting elements such as notification display units are mounted, and a central display substrate 37 that relays outputs of switches such as the start lever 13 and stop buttons 14a, 14b, and 14c to the main control substrate 21. The lamp house unit 38 that is assembled and unitized is attached.

  A medal selector 39 is attached below the lamp house unit 38. The medal selector 39 is a device that determines and distributes the suitability of medals inserted into the medal insertion unit 11 on the front side. The medal selector 39 is provided with a selector sensor, and the selector sensor detects medals selected as appropriate and transmits a medal acceptance signal to the main control board 21. The main control board 21 adds medals to credits (internal storage) every time a medal acceptance signal is received.

  Below the medal selector 39, a lower panel 15 provided on the front mask and a lower panel unit 40 incorporating a fluorescent tube or the like for illuminating the lower panel 15 from the back are attached.

  On the back side of the lower panel unit 40, a medal guide unit 41 that guides medals selected as appropriate by the medal selector 39 to the hopper 110 of the medal payout device 100, and medals that are excluded as inappropriate by the medal selector 39 ( A flow chute 42 for guiding the foreign object) to the medal payout exit 16 and a medal payout passage 43 for guiding the medal paid out from the medal payout device 100 to the medal payout exit 16 are provided. Furthermore, a speaker 44 facing the sound emitting unit 17 is attached to the lower part of the back surface of the lower panel unit 40.

  The slot machine 1 configured as described above enters a standby state when a winning is made in the previous game and the payout of medals is completed, or when a loss is confirmed in the previous game. In this state, when the bet button 12 is pressed, medals are bet on the game from medals (credits) stored therein, and the game starts. When the start lever 13 is tilted in the game start state, the main control board 21 starts to rotate the reels 10a, 10b, and 10c all at once, and at the same time, the winning combination is drawn by internal processing, and the result is obtained. Store in a flag (memory).

  Next, when the player presses the stop buttons 14a, 14b, and 14c in an arbitrary order, the main control board 21 sequentially stops the corresponding reels accordingly. When the main control board 21 detects that all the reels 10a, 10b, and 10c have stopped, the combination of symbols displayed on each reel matches the combination of symbols related to the winning combination stored in the above-described flag. Determine if you are doing it. When they match, the winning is confirmed, and the number of medals corresponding to the type of winning combination is added to the credit. When the credit reaches a predetermined upper limit value due to winning, the main control board 21 operates the medal payout device 100 and pays out to the tray unit 4 the number of medals to be paid exceeding the upper limit.

  As described above, the player of the slot machine 1 performs a game operation for rotating / stopping the reels 10a, 10b, and 10c, and loses the bet medals if the symbols displayed on the display window 8a are not variably displayed. If a winning combination is achieved with a combination of symbols, it is possible to acquire more medals than the betted number, so that it is possible to enjoy a win / lose game with an interest in increasing the number of medals depending on skill and luck.

  Next, the configuration of the above-described medal payout device 100 installed in the slot machine 1 or the like will be described in detail. Here, FIG. 3 is an external perspective view of the medal payout device 100, FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view showing the configuration, and FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view. With reference to these drawings, the medal payout device 100 is a medal payout in which a generally cocoon-shaped hopper 110 and a payout mechanism that attaches the hopper 110 to the upper surface and discharges medals to the outside from the discharge port 131 are formed in the sheet metal case. The unit 120 is mainly configured. The medal payout device 100 includes a hopper 110 that stores medals, and is also referred to as a “hopper unit”.

  The hopper 110 includes a base portion 114 having an outer diameter formed in a rectangular shape, and a hook-like portion 112 that is integral with the base portion 114 and has an opening upward, and these are molded by a hard plastic or the like. ing. The bottom surface of the bowl-shaped portion 112 is formed with an inclined surface 111 that receives the dropped medal and guides it to the bottom hole 115 on one side. In addition, an overflow hole 113 is formed at a predetermined height position of the bowl-shaped portion 112.

  A base plate 121 integrated with the sheet metal case is provided on the upper surface of the medal payout portion 120, and a sub plate 130, which is a metal plate punched out in a circular shape at a substantially central portion, is fixed in close contact with the upper surface of the base plate 121.

  In the sheet metal case of the medal payout portion 120, a payout motor 122, which is an electric rotary motor, is attached to the back side of the base plate 121. The driven shaft 123 to which the rotational driving force of the payout motor 122 is transmitted is pivotally supported so as to penetrate the base plate 121. The shaft holes 152 and 143 of the stirring disk 150 and the transport disk 140 are fitted and fixed to the driven shaft 123, and are attached so as to rotate integrally with the driven shaft 123. The agitation disk 150 and the transport disk 140 constitute a payout disk as a rotating disk, and this payout disk is in the medal transport space defined by the base plate 121 and the opening edge 132 of the sub-plate 130. Is provided to rotate.

  The stirring disk 150 is formed in a disk shape from a molded product such as hard plastic or aluminum die casting, and has a plurality of circular receiving ports 151 (eight in the embodiment) that can receive medals on the same radius of the disk surface. ). In order to efficiently capture medals stored at the bottom of the hopper 110, each receiving port 151 has an inclined surface around it and is formed at a position slightly recessed from the disk surface. Thereby, when the stirring disk 150 rotates, the medals stored randomly in the hopper 110 are aligned substantially horizontally one by one and are received by the receiving ports 151.

  The transport disk 140 is made of a plate-like alloy material such as an iron-based material such as stainless steel or aluminum, and a plurality of groove portions 141 having a width corresponding to the diameter of the medal are formed at equal intervals (for example, 8 locations) on the outer periphery thereof. Yes. A pushing portion 142 that extends in the radial direction and gently curves in the left direction is formed between the adjacent groove portions 141.

  Further, as shown in the sectional view of FIG. 5, a clutch mechanism 129 is provided between the drive shaft 122a of the payout motor 122 and the driven shaft 123 into which the transport disk 140 and the stirring disk 150 are fitted. . Although details will be described later, the clutch mechanism 129 is electromagnetically controlled, and is configured to disconnect and connect the rotational driving force transmitted from the payout motor 122 to the conveying disk 140 (stirring disk 150).

  The medal payout device 100 is assembled by attaching the base portion 114 of the hopper 110 to the base plate 121 that is the upper surface of the medal payout portion 120 that is inclined. The medal M dropped into the opening of the hopper 110 slides down on the inclined surface 111 with its own weight, and is stored in the base portion 114 through the bottom hole 115. Then, the medal M is received in the receiving port 151 of the stirring disk 150 and is captured by the groove 141 of the transport disk 140 aligned with the receiving port 151. Further, when the medal M is transported to a later-described ejecting mechanism unit by rotating the transport disk 140, the ejecting mechanism unit vigorously ejects the medal M from the ejection port 131 to the outside.

  The medal payout mechanism including this release mechanism will be described in more detail. FIG. 6 is a plan view of the medal payout portion 120 viewed from the position facing the base plate 121 indicated by the arrow A in FIG. FIGS. 7A and 7B are plan views showing a discharge mechanism portion formed at the upper left end of the medal payout portion 120. 6 and 7 illustrate a state in which the stirring disk 150 is removed.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the discharge mechanism portion of the medal payout portion 120 is formed with a discharge path in which a part of the sub-plate 130 is notched and the discharge port 131 is an open end. Moreover, rotatable pin rollers 161 and 162 are provided on both sides of the discharge path.

  The lower pin roller 161 is fixed to the base plate 121. Further, the upper pin roller 162 is provided on a rotating arm 163 that is pivotally supported by the support shaft 164 on the back surface side of the base plate 121, protrudes into the discharge path through the long hole 191, and the position thereof can be reciprocally displaced. . Further, the pin roller 162 is always urged toward the side to be closed toward the fixed pin roller 161 facing the spring 165 connected to the rotating arm 163.

  In addition, two photo interrupters 171 a and 171 b for detecting the rotation position of the rotation arm 163 are provided on the back surface side of the base plate 121. The photo interrupters 171a and 171b constitute a payout sensor 171 as a payout detection unit for detecting the payout of medals.

  According to the payout mechanism including the discharge mechanism portion, when the control means (for example, a payout control board 180 described later) of the medal payout device 100 drives the payout motor 122 to rotate the transport disk 140 in the right direction, the groove portion 141 The captured medal M is conveyed so as to circulate along the opening edge 132 of the sub-plate 130 while being pressed by the pushing portion 142 behind the medal M.

  As shown in FIG. 7A, when the medal M is transported to the vicinity of the release mechanism, the edge of the medal M abuts on the pin rollers 162 and 161, and the pressing force of the pushing portion 142 passes through the medal M. This acts on the side where the pin roller 162 is opened. At this time, elastic energy due to expansion is accumulated in the spring 165.

  Further, when the transport disk 140 rotates and the center of the medal M exceeds the line connecting the axes of the pin rollers 161 and 162 at the position shown in FIG. 7B, the elastic contraction force of the spring 165 closes the pin roller 162. Acts on the intended side. As a result, the elastic energy accumulated in the spring 165 is released all at once and is pressed by the pin roller 162, so that the medal M is released from the discharge port 131 vigorously.

  At this time, the two photo interrupters 171a and 171b (payout sensors 171) detect the respective positions of the rotating arm 163 that reciprocates together with the pin roller 162, and outputs a medal detection signal SM. Based on such a series of operations of the photo interrupters 171a and 171b, the control means detects the payout of the medals M for each sheet.

  Next, details of the clutch mechanism 129 provided between the drive shaft 122a of the payout motor 122 and the driven shaft 123 of the transport disk 140 (payout disk) will be described with reference to the cross-sectional views of FIGS.

  The driven shaft 123 that is the output shaft (driven shaft) of the clutch mechanism 129 is provided on the axis of the drive shaft 122 a that is directly connected to the payout motor 122. A clutch 124 is fitted on the drive shaft 122 a and faces the driven gear 125 fixed to the end of the driven shaft 123.

  A longitudinal groove 124b corresponding to the spline 122b of the drive shaft 122a is formed on the inner periphery of the shaft hole of the clutch 124. Therefore, the clutch 124 rotates with the rotation of the drive shaft 122a and also with respect to the drive shaft 122a. Is slidable in the axial direction. Further, on the surfaces facing the clutch 124 and the driven gear 125, saw-shaped meshing surfaces 124a and 125a corresponding to mesh with each other are formed. When the clutch 124 is pressed against the driven gear 125, the meshing surfaces 124 a and 125 a are meshed and connected, and the rotational driving force output from the payout motor 122 is transmitted to the driven shaft 123.

  A spring accommodating portion 124c is formed on the base end side (the payout motor 122 side) of the clutch 124 so that a shaft hole through which the drive shaft 122a is inserted is expanded, and is loosely inserted into the drive shaft 122a and elastically compressed. The coil spring 126 is accommodated in the spring accommodating portion 124c. The coil spring 126 is provided between the annular protrusion 122c of the drive shaft 122a and the end of the spring accommodating portion 124c, and in a direction to separate (cut) the clutch 124 from the driven gear 125 by its elastic extension force. Always energized.

  The clutch mechanism 129 is provided with a solenoid 127 that is an actuator for connecting the clutch 124 to the driven gear 125. The plunger 127a of the solenoid 127 is coupled to a lever 128 that is swingably attached. The other end of the lever 128 is engaged with an engagement groove 124d formed on the outer periphery of the clutch 124. That is, when the solenoid 127 is not energized, the clutch 124 is urged by the coil spring 126 and held away from the driven gear 125 as shown in FIG. In a state where the drive current (solenoid drive signal DS) is supplied to the solenoid 127 and excited, the plunger 127a is retracted by the magnetic action, and the lever 128 resists the biasing force of the coil spring 126 as shown in FIG. The clutch 124 is pushed up by the portion to engage the meshing surfaces 124a and 125a.

  In this way, only when the drive current (solenoid drive signal DS) is supplied to the solenoid 127, the drive shaft 122a of the payout motor 122 and the driven shaft 123 are connected, and the stirring disk 150 and the transport disk 140 (payout disk). The rotational driving force from the dispensing motor 122 is transmitted to the motor.

  Next, FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system provided with a payout control board 180 for controlling the medal payout device 100. Here, an embodiment in which a payout control board 180 as a control means of the medal payout apparatus 100 is built in the apparatus main body has been described. However, means for realizing various functions of the payout control board 180 is described in the slot machine 1. It may be provided on the main control board 21 or other electric circuit board.

  The payout control board 180 that drives and controls the medal payout device 100 is connected to the main control board 21 of the slot machine 1 so that serial or parallel communication is possible, and performs a control operation under the command of the main control board 21. The operation of this control system will be described below with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 10 and the timing chart of FIG.

  First, the main control board 21 generates a payout request signal RqD including data on the number of medals to be paid out (payout number data) when winning is confirmed or when a lending operation by a player is detected. Send to.

  The payout control means 181 provided on the payout control board 180 outputs a solenoid drive signal DS to the solenoid 127 of the clutch mechanism 129 via the drive circuit 183 when receiving the payout request signal RqD. By supplying the solenoid drive signal DS amplified by the drive circuit 183 to the solenoid 127, the clutch 124 is connected to the driven gear 125 as described above.

  Also, the payout control means 181 supplies the motor drive signal DM to the payout motor 122 via the drive circuit 184 when receiving the payout request signal RqD. As a result, the rotational driving force of the payout motor 122 is transmitted to the payout disc and rotated, and medals are discharged one by one.

  At this time, each photo interrupter 171a, 171b of the payout sensor 171 sends a medal detection signal SM to the payout control board 180 every time a medal is released. The counting means 182 counts the payout of medals by receiving the medal detection signal SM and making a logical determination. When the counting means 182 determines that the counted actual payout number data has reached the payout number data included in the payout request signal RqD, the counting means 182 outputs a payout completion signal CpD to the payout control means 181.

  When receiving the payout completion signal CpD, the payout control means 181 stops the output of the motor drive signal DM and the solenoid drive signal DS, and completes the medal payout operation. Then, when it is determined that the medal payout operation by the medal payout device 100 is normally completed, the payout control unit 181 transmits the preparation / operation signal RdY to the main control board 21 in a ready state.

  As described above, according to the medal payout device 100 of the present embodiment, the clutch mechanism 129 for disconnecting and connecting the power transmission of the payout motor 122 for paying out medals is provided, and the clutch mechanism 129 is always in a disconnected state, The connection is made only when the main control board 21 of the machine 1 generates the payout request signal RqD. As a result, even if a fraudulent person misoperates the payout motor 122 by some illegal operation, only the payout motor 122 is idled because the clutch mechanism 129 is in a disconnected state, and the payout disc (the stirring disc 150 and the stirring disc 150 and The transport disk 140) does not rotate. Accordingly, it is possible to reliably and effectively prevent such an illegal payout of medals. Further, when the payout is stopped, the clutch mechanism 129 is disconnected to prevent excessive payout of medals.

  The present invention is well applied not only to slot machines but also to general gaming machines and lending machines having a payout function for game medals and other game media.

It is a front view of the slot machine by embodiment. It is a figure showing the internal structure of the slot machine by embodiment. 1 is an external perspective view of a medal payout device that is an embodiment of a game medium payout device. FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of the medal payout device according to the embodiment. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the medal payout device according to the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a plan view of a medal payout portion viewed from a position indicated by an arrow A in FIG. 4. It is the top view which expanded and represented the discharge | release mechanism part vicinity of the medal payout apparatus by embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the clutch mechanism of the medal payout apparatus by embodiment. It is sectional drawing of the clutch mechanism of the medal payout apparatus by embodiment. It is a block diagram showing the composition of the control system which controls the medal payout device by an embodiment. It is a timing chart for demonstrating operation | movement of the control system shown in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Slot machine 2 ... Housing 3 ... Front door 4 ... Receptacle unit 5 ... Upper lamp 6a, 6b ... Sound emission part 7 ... Liquid crystal display unit 8 ... Middle panel board 8a ... Display window 10 ... Reel unit 10a, 10b, 10c ... Reel 11 ... Medal insertion part 12 ... Bet button 13 ... Start lever 14a, 14b, 14c ... Stop button 15 ... Lower panel 16 ... Medal payout port 17 ... Sound emission part 21 ... Main control board 24 ... Overflow tank 25 ... Power supply unit 31 ... LED board 31a ... Light emitting diode 32a, 32b ... Speaker 33 ... Sub control board 34 ... Cold cathode fluorescent tube 35, 36 ... Lamp board 37 ... Central display board 38 ... Lamp house unit 39 ... Medal selector 40 ... Lower panel unit 41 ... Medal guide part 42 ... Flow chute 43 ... Medal payout passage 44 ... Speedy DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Medal paying apparatus 110 ... Hopper 111 ... Inclined surface 112 ... Spear-shaped part 114 ... Base | substrate part 120 ... Medal paying part 121 ... Base plate 122 ... Discharge motor 122a ... Drive shaft 122b ... Spline 122c ... Annular protrusion 123 ... Driven shaft 124 ... Clutch 124a ... meshing surface 124b ... vertical groove 124c ... spring housing portion 124d ... engagement groove 125 ... driven gear 125a ... meshing surface 126 ... coil spring 127 ... solenoid 128 ... lever 129 ... clutch mechanism 130 ... subplate 131 ... discharge port 140 ... Conveying disk 141 ... Groove part 142 ... Pushing part 143 ... Shaft hole 150 ... Stirring disk 151 ... Receiving ports 161 and 162 ... Pin rollers 163 ... Rotating arm 164 ... Spindle 165 ... Spring 171 ... Discharge sensor 171a, 171b ... Photo interrupter M ... medal DS ... Solenoid drive signal DM ... Motor drive signal SM ... Medal detection signal CpD ... Dispensing completion signal RqD ... Dispensing request signal RdY ... Preparation / actuation signal

Claims (2)

A hopper capable of accommodating a plurality of game media, a rotating disk body that is disposed at the bottom of the hopper and receives the game media and conveys the game medium in a circumferential direction, and a driving unit that applies a rotational driving force to the rotary disk body And a discharge means for discharging the game medium transported to a predetermined position by the rotating disc body, wherein the drive means is operated to release the game medium when receiving a request signal. ,
A game medium dispensing apparatus comprising: an intermittent means for disconnecting and connecting transmission of rotational driving force from the driving means to the rotating disk body in response to the request signal.   The interrupting means is normally in a state of cutting the rotating shaft portion between the driving means and the rotating disk body, and when receiving the request signal, the rotating shaft portion is connected to rotate the driving force. 2. The game medium payout device according to claim 1, wherein the game medium payout device is transmitted to a disk.

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