JP2009247489A - Dispensing machine and dispensing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a dispensing machine and a dispensing method allowing a higher-level device to manage accurate sale proceeds. <P>SOLUTION: This dispensing machine (a CR unit) 30 receives a setting of a dispensing unit amount, determines whether or not the dispensing unit amount whose setting is received is a multiple number of a pulse association amount or not, when determining that the amount is not the multiple number of the pulse association amount, invalidates the setting of the dispensing unit amount so as to, even if an employee of a game parlor or the like erroneously sets the dispensing unit amount whose consistency with the pulse association amount cannot be guaranteed in a situation where game machines with cash machines or the CR machines are mixedly installed in a game corner, invalidate the setting of the dispensing unit amount. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention performs a gaming medium lending process by subtracting the valuable value for a lending unit amount that determines the amount of lending a gaming medium at a time from the high value of the valuable value valued on the gaming recording medium, The present invention relates to a lending processor and a lending processing method for outputting a pulse signal to a higher-level device so that a pulse-related amount associated with a unit pulse with a device is equal to a lending unit amount.

  Conventionally, in pachinko games, pachinko machines involved in lending pachinko balls, so-called “CR machines”, have been widely spread. Generally popular.

  Among these, the game media lending machine attached to the “CR machine” pachinko machine has the value information valued on the game recording medium (prepaid card) when a ball lending operation is accepted from the player. In exchange, a card processing unit that instructs a pachinko machine to throw a pachinko ball corresponding to the requested loan amount, a so-called “CR unit” is widely used (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  On the other hand, as a game media lending machine attached to a pachislot machine, which is a “cash machine”, when a low-value banknote (1000 yen) is accepted from a player, a medal corresponding to the inserted banknote is thrown out from an internal medal hopper The medal lending machine is widely used.

  In this way, the game media lending machine provides a game machine lending instruction to the attached game machine (CR machine) and through its own game medium dispensing mechanism without performing the game medium lending control. There are those that throw out game media.

  In addition, in the amusement store, in order to accurately manage the sales in the store, a host device (for example, a device such as a hall computer or T / C) that collects sales information from the above-described CR unit or medal lending machine is provided. Such a hall computer is configured such that every time a game medium is lent out by a CR unit or a medal lending machine, the amount is notified by pulse communication.

  And in pachinko games, the unit price of a game medium (pachinko balls: 4 yen / ball, medal: 20 yen / M) is lower than that of pachislot games, so it can be rented in units of hundreds or hundreds of yen. On the other hand, in the pachislot game, since the unit price of the game medium is expensive, the medal lending machine is configured to lend medals in units of thousand yen.

  For this reason, in the pachinko corner, for example, when a 100-yen pachinko ball is lent out, the CR unit is configured to output one pulse to the hall computer, and in the hall computer that receives the pulse output from the CR unit, one hundred pulses are generated. It is stipulated that it was interpreted that there was yen sales (lending).

  On the other hand, at the pachislot corner, a medal lending machine is configured to output one pulse to the hall computer when, for example, a 1,000 yen pachinko ball is lent, and a hall computer that receives a pulse output from the medal lending machine has a thousand pulses per pulse. It is stipulated that it was interpreted that there was yen sales (lending).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-081591

  By the way, recently, the “cash machine”, which was the mainstream as a pachislot machine, has tended to shift to a “CR machine,” and along with this, the medal lending machine attached to the pachislot machine has also been changed to a “cash machine”. There is an urgent need to move from the ones that were installed side by side to ones that are compatible with CR machines.

  In this way, in the hall industry, since there is a transitional period in which a pachislot corner shifts from a cash machine to a CR pachislot machine, there may be a situation where a cash machine and a CR machine coexist in the pachislot corner.

  However, if there are both cash machines and CR machines in the pachislot corner, the amount associated with the pulse output between the CR unit and the hall computer (hereinafter referred to as the pulse associated amount) and once. There are many cases in which consistency with the amount of medals lent (hereinafter referred to as the lending unit amount) cannot be secured, resulting in miscalculation when totaling the hall sales amount, resulting in accuracy in the host computer or other higher-level device. May not be able to manage the amount of sales.

  In other words, the CR unit that was installed in the pachinko corner can be connected directly to the pachislot machine that is a CR machine, so the CR unit in the pachinko corner is attached to the CR pachislot machine to reduce the initial cost. However, in such CR units, the lending unit amount is set in units of one hundred yen, whereas the pulse-related amount is often defined as 1,000 yen per pulse with the host device. In such a case, even if medals are lent, the pulse signal cannot be output to the host device so that it is equal to the lending unit amount, and the sales amount notified to the host device by the pulse signal is the actual sales amount And deviate. If the host device is an old model, as described above, 100 yen / pulse is set for the pachinko corner, and 1000 yen / pulse and the pulse-related amount are set for the pachislot corner due to performance limitations. There are many cases.

  Also, recently, due to the need to provide games that female and novice players can enjoy at a low price for a relatively long time, and the need for trial games and popularity analysis of game machines, it is cheaper than usual. An increasing number of halls have low-rate corners for renting media.

  More specifically, balls are usually loaned at 4 yen / piece and medals at 20 yen / card. For example, 2 yen / ball or 1 yen / ball for balls, 10 yen for medals. Lending at a low rate such as / sheet.

  Such low-rate operation is increasing, and it is expected that it will increase in the future, but in that case, the slot machine that is currently lending at 1000 yen may also be 500 yen etc. is expected. In such a case, since it is not possible to meet the requirement of 1,000 yen per pulse, a setting of 500 yen or 100 yen per pulse is set.

  In such a case, even if the pachislot is the same, the setting of the pulse association amount differs depending on the corner (due to the difference in the rate), so that the above-described problem may occur when the CR unit is moved between corners.

  It is also possible to re-specify the pulse-related amount with the host device so that it is equal to the lending unit amount, but the pachislot performance of the pachislot machine installed in the game hall (for example, the machine discount of the installed model) Therefore, it is extremely difficult to prevent setting mistakes if the pulse-related amount is redefined every time a unit is replaced. In addition, it is not realistic to force the host device to define different pulse association amounts between the CR units due to the convenience of the CR unit that is the lower device.

  For this reason, when cash machines and CR machines are mixed in the gaming corner, how to ensure the consistency between the pulse association amount and the lending unit amount is an important issue. This problem is common not only to the CR unit attached to the CR pachislot machine, but also to the broader lending machine including the CR unit attached to the pachinko machine.

  Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems (problems) caused by the prior art, and provides a lending processing machine and a lending processing method capable of managing an accurate sales amount with a host device. For the purpose.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the lending processor according to the present invention is a lending unit that determines the amount of lending game media at a time from the high value of the valuable value valued on the game recording media. The game media is lent out by subtracting the valuable value for the amount of money, and a pulse signal is output to the host device so that the pulse association amount associated with the unit pulse with the host device is equal to the loan unit amount A determination processing unit that receives the setting of the lending unit amount, and a determination that determines whether or not the lending unit amount received by the setting receiving unit is a multiple of the pulse association amount And invalidating means for invalidating the setting of the lending unit amount when it is determined by the determining means that it is not a multiple of the pulse associated amount. It is characterized in.

  Further, the lending processor according to the present invention further includes notification control means for controlling to notify the fact when it is determined by the determination means that it is not a multiple of the pulse association amount in the above invention. It is characterized by.

  The lending processor according to the present invention is characterized in that, in the above invention, the determination means determines whether or not a multiple of the pulse association amount with respect to the lending unit amount is available when the lending processor is activated.

  Further, the lending processing method according to the present invention subtracts the valuable value for the lending unit amount that determines the amount of lending the gaming medium at a time from the high value of the valuable value valued on the gaming recording medium. A lending processing method for performing a lending process and outputting a pulse signal to the higher-level device so that a pulse-related amount associated with a unit pulse with a higher-level device is equal to a lending unit amount, the lending unit amount A setting accepting step for accepting the setting, a determining step for determining whether or not the lending unit amount received by the setting accepting step is a multiple of the pulse association amount, and a multiple of the pulse association amount by the determining step And the invalidation step of invalidating the setting of the lending unit amount when it is determined that the loan unit amount is not.

  According to the present invention, when the setting of the lending unit amount is accepted, it is determined whether or not the lending unit amount for which the setting has been accepted is a multiple of the pulse association amount. Since it is configured to invalidate the setting of the lending unit amount, the amount associated with the pulse by a game machine employee in a situation where a cash machine and a CR machine or a normal rate and a low rate operation are mixed in the game corner Even if a lending unit amount that cannot be guaranteed to be consistent with the loan unit is mistakenly set, the setting of the lending unit amount can be invalidated, and the consistency between the pulse association amount and the lending unit amount can be ensured. As a result, it is possible to obtain an effect that it is possible to manage an accurate sales amount with the host device.

  In addition, according to the present invention, when it is determined that the amount is not a multiple of the pulse-related money amount, the control is made so as to notify the fact, so that it is possible to quickly notify the store, and a new appropriate lending The effect is that the unit amount can be manually set.

  In addition, according to the present invention, since it is configured to determine whether or not the multiple of the pulse association amount with respect to the lending unit amount can be determined when the lending processor is started, the latest processing is established when the lending processor is established with the host device. It is possible to determine whether or not multiples can be performed using the pulse association amount, and even if the pulse association amount is changed depending on the operation needs of the amusement store, the result can be compared with the pulse association amount after the change. As a result, the pulse association amount before the change was used. The effect that it becomes possible to prevent the erroneous determination in the case is obtained.

  Exemplary embodiments of a lending processor and a lending processing method according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following, the case where the present invention is applied to a pachislot game will be described.

  In the following first embodiment, the outline and features of the lending processor (CR unit) according to the first embodiment, the configuration of the CR unit, and the flow of processing will be described in order. In the first embodiment, the present invention is applied to a game system for pachislot games.

[Outline and Features (Example 1)]
First, the system configuration of the sales management system including the CR unit according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, and the outline and characteristics of the CR unit will be described after clarifying the positioning of the CR unit. FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram illustrating a system configuration of a sales management system including a CR unit according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for explaining features of the CR unit according to the first embodiment.

  The sales management system 1 causes the hall computer 10 to collect and manage the sales amount generated by medal lending by the CR unit 30. As shown in FIG. 1, the hall computer 10 and a stand unit (hereinafter referred to as DU) 20), a CR unit 30, and a pachislot machine 40.

  In the sales management system 1, one DU 20 is provided for each of the four CR units 30 and the pachislot machine 40, and the DU 20 manages the game table information of the pachislot machine 40 including the sales amount in the game store. Have a connection relationship connected to

  The sales management system 1 is also related to a prepaid card system that provides a medal lending service based on the prepaid balance valued to the prepaid card in order to manage the sales amount by medal lending. 30 belongs to both systems because it also rents medals using prepaid cards.

  For this reason, the CR unit 30 is connected to the prepaid card T / C 100 via the island controller 200 which is a relay device provided for each group called “island”. The hall computer 10 is connected to a terminal controller (hereinafter referred to as a prepaid card T / C) 100 that is a management device for managing the remaining amount of the prepaid card.

  The DU 20 is a unit that converts a pulse signal output from the CR unit 30 or the pachislot machine 40 into a digital signal. For example, when a sales pulse is received from the CR unit 30 via the sales output line, the correspondence between the unit pulse defined in advance between the hall computer 10 and the CR unit 30 and the sales amount, ie, pulse association Referring to the amount (yen / pulse), the number of sales pulses received from the CR unit 30 is converted into the amount of sales, and the sales amount together with the unit number of the pachislot machine 40 attached to the output CR unit 30 Notify the computer 10. Further, when an IN pulse or an OUT pulse is received from the pachislot machine 40 via the IN output line or the OUT output line, the unit pulse and the number of medals prescribed in advance between the hall computer 10 and the pachislot machine 40 , The number of IN pulses or OUT pulses received from the pachislot machine 40 is converted into the number of INs or OUTs, and the number of ins or outs is numbered together with the unit number of the output pachislot machine 40. Notify the computer 10. The number of ins refers to the number of medals inserted into the pachislot machine 40, and the number of outs refers to the number of medals (for example, award medals or rental medals) paid out from the pachislot machine 40.

  The CR unit 30 is interposed between the prepaid card T / C 100 that manages the remaining amount of each prepaid card and each pachislot machine 40, and inquires about the remaining amount of the prepaid card and subtracts the remaining amount of the prepaid card from the prepaid card T / C 100. This is a device that makes a request and instructs the pachislot machine 40 to place a medal for the subtracted amount when there is a prepaid balance. Specifically, when a medal lending operation is accepted from a player with a prepaid card with a remaining amount inserted, the lending unit amount is subtracted from the remaining amount of the prepaid card in order to collect the lending consideration. When the prepaid card T / C 100 is requested to notify the fact that the prepaid card T / C 100 has completed the prepaid balance subtraction process, the pachislot machine 40 is instructed to lend medals.

  Furthermore, the CR unit 30 is issued to a card storage unit 36b in the unit, which will be described later, from the viewpoint of eliminating the inconvenience of allowing a prepaid card to be purchased to a card issuing machine (not shown) disposed on the island edge or the like. Prepaid cards (cards with no remaining value that are not associated with valuable value) are stored in advance, and have a value-adding function for adding value to a prepaid card in addition to the above-mentioned inquiry and subtraction of the remaining amount. Specifically, when insertion of a bill is accepted, one of the prepaid cards stored in the card storage unit 36b is regarded as a value to be valued, and a prepaid equivalent to the inserted bill is inserted into the prepaid card T / C100. The cash value is given to the prepaid card by requesting the remaining amount to be added.

  Further, in response to the subtraction processing of the lending unit amount with respect to the prepaid card being inserted, the CR unit 30 sells so that the pulse association amount associated with the unit pulse with the hall computer 10 is equal to the lending unit amount. A pulse is output to DU20. For example, when the pulse association amount with the hall computer 10 is defined as 1000 yen / pulse, and the lending unit amount is set to 1000 yen, the lending unit amount is determined from the remaining amount of the prepaid card. Since 1000 yen is subtracted, the number of times equal to the lending unit amount of 1000 yen, in this example, the pulse-related amount is 1000 yen / pulse, so one sales pulse is sent to the DU 20 via the sales output line. Output. In the present embodiment, the lending unit amount to be processed for medal lending by a single medal operation, that is, the lending amount to be subtracted from the prepaid remaining amount by the prepaid card T / C100, is set by the clerk operation as will be described later. And

  As described above, when a medal lending operation is performed by a player, a loan medal corresponding to the lending unit amount is thrown from the inside of the pachislot machine 40, and a sales pulse corresponding to the number of the lending unit amount is generated via the sales output line. It is output to DU20.

  The pachislot machine 40 is a device that performs a lottery for winning combination, reel drive, reel stop control and medal throwout in response to a game operation by a player. In this embodiment, a so-called CR pachislot machine compatible with prepaid cards. It is supposed to be.

  In addition, the pachislot machine 40 outputs an IN pulse or an OUT pulse to the DU 20 in response to insertion or throwing out of medals. Specifically, when a medal is inserted due to the digestion of a unit game or the like and an in occurs, an IN pulse is output to the DU 20 via the IN output line, and a medal or award medal is thrown out. When out occurs, an OUT pulse is output to the DU 20 via the OUT output line.

  The hall computer 10 is a management device that manages the sales amount and the gaming machine information in the game store using a sales amount management table and a gaming machine information management table (not shown). Specifically, when the unit number and the sales amount are received from the DU 20, the sales amount of the corresponding unit number in the sales amount management table is added and updated, and the in number or out number is received from the DU 20 together with the unit number. In this case, the in-number or out-number of the corresponding machine number in the gaming machine information management table is added and updated. The sales amount, the number of ins and the number of outs can be managed together in one table.

  Here, the CR unit 30 according to the present embodiment receives the setting of the lending unit amount, determines whether or not the lending unit amount for which the setting has been received is a multiple of the pulse association amount, and is not a multiple of the pulse association amount. If it is determined, the feature is that the setting of the lending unit amount is invalidated.

  That is, until recently, the CR unit 30 has been designed with the ball lending to the CR pachinko machine in mind. And since the unit price of balls is less than the unit price of medals, the amount of money that a player wants to rent a game medium with one lending depends on various external factors such as the type of game machine and the customer base. It depends on. For this reason, the CR unit 30 is configured such that the lending unit amount can be arbitrarily set according to the situation unique to each store.

  On the other hand, in medal lending machines, the number of medals equivalent to low-value banknotes (equivalent to 1,000 yen) is set as the upper limit of credit, so the operation of setting the lending unit amount fixed at 1000 yen is generally adopted. Accordingly, the amount associated with the pulse is also defined as 1000 yen / pulse.

  Under these circumstances, there are many halls that use the CR units placed in the pachinko corners for cost-effectiveness in the pachislot corners. If it is not matched with the associated amount, the consistency between the pulse associated amount and the lending unit amount cannot be achieved.

  Similarly, when multiple rate gaming corners coexist in the store, the CR unit placed in the pachislot at the low rate corner is used for the normal rate corner, that is, the CR unit is supported between different rates. The same situation occurs when doing so.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 2, when it is defined that there is a sales of 100 yen per pulse with the hall computer 10, that is, when the pulse-related amount is 100 yen / pulse, the lending unit amount No matter what the amount of money is 100 yen, 500 yen, or 1000 yen, if the sales pulse is output once, five times, ten times to the DU 20, the exact sales amount is notified to the hall computer 10. On the other hand, if the pulse-related amount is 1000 yen / pulse, when the lending unit amount is 100 yen or 500 yen, the amount of both is imbalanced and a sales pulse is output when a medal is lent Even if this is not done, the sales amount management table of the hall computer 10 will be miscalculated.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, whether or not the consistency between the pulse association amount and the lending unit amount is ensured by determining whether or not the lending unit amount for which the setting has been received is a multiple of the pulse association amount. If the lending unit amount is not a multiple of the pulse association amount and the two are not consistent, the previously accepted setting is invalidated.

  In other words, in the example of FIG. 2, when the pulse association amount is 1000 yen / pulse, even if the lending unit amount is set to 100 yen or 500 yen, the setting is canceled and the amount equal to the pulse association amount is lent. The unit amount is reset.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, in the situation where cash machines and CR machines are mixed in the game corner, the loan unit amount that cannot guarantee the consistency with the pulse association amount by the game shop employee etc. is set incorrectly. Even if it is made, the setting of the lending unit amount can be invalidated, and the consistency between the pulse association amount and the lending unit amount can be ensured. As a result, the hall computer 10 can manage the accurate sales amount. It becomes possible.

[Configuration of CR unit]
Next, the configuration of the CR unit 30 according to the first embodiment will be described in detail. Here, after describing the (1) external configuration of the CR unit 30 according to the first embodiment, the (2) internal configuration of the CR unit 30 will be described.

(1) Appearance Configuration FIG. 3 is a front view showing the appearance of the CR unit 30 shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the CR unit 30 is configured as a vertically long rectangular parallelepiped casing, and in the upper part of the front surface of the main body, the state display lamp 301 and the card state display are sequentially arranged downward. An LED 302, a remote control light receiving unit 310, and a depositable display LED 303 are attached.

  The status display lamp 301 is a lamp that indicates whether or not the CR unit 30 can be operated by switching the lighting color. For example, the status display lamp 301 indicates that the CR unit 30 can be operated by “green lighting” and cannot be operated by “red lighting”. It expresses that.

  The card status display LED 302 is an LED that indicates whether or not the prepaid card built in the CR unit 30 needs to be replenished or collected by lighting / flashing. For example, “lit” indicates that the prepaid card needs to be replenished. “Flashing” indicates that collection of the prepaid card is necessary, and “Lights off” indicates that replenishment and collection of the prepaid card is unnecessary.

  The remote control light receiving unit 310 includes a light receiving element that receives infrared rays emitted from a dedicated remote controller (not shown), and performs various operations on the CR unit 30 through the infrared rays emitted from the remote control (for example, unlocking permission operations on the bill storage portion 35c). And an unlocking operation, a prepaid card replenishing operation and a collecting operation).

  The depositable display LED 303 is an LED that indicates whether or not banknotes can be deposited in the CR unit 30 by lighting / flashing. For example, it indicates that banknotes can be deposited by “lighting”. "Flashing" indicates that banknotes cannot be deposited.

  In addition, a bill insertion slot 308 for inserting a bill including a large amount of bills (for example, “10,000 yen”, “5,000 yen”, “2,000 yen”, etc.), a prepaid card or a member is inserted in the center of the front surface of the main body. A card insertion slot 309 for inserting various cards such as cards is provided.

  Further, a 7SEG display unit 304, a mode display unit 305, and various button groups (a setting button 311, a rental button 306, a return button 307, and the like) are provided on the lower side of the front surface of the main body in order.

  The 7SEG display unit 304 is a display unit (six digits in this example) formed of 7-segment LEDs, and displays various data of the CR unit 30 (data represented by symbols such as numbers and alphabets expressed by combining segments). Display). For example, in response to the pressing operation of the information button, the amount of the inserted bill, the remaining amount of the prepaid card, the number of stored medals, the number of replays and the points are switched, or the setting unit 311 is pressed and the lending unit amount is input. In this case, the input amount is displayed, or when a prepaid card replenishment operation or collection operation is performed by a dedicated remote controller, the number of sheets to be replenished or the number of sheets to be collected is displayed.

  The mode display unit 305 displays which mode information is displayed on the 7SEG display unit 304. For example, which information is displayed on the 7SEG display unit 304 among “prepaid balance”, “number of medals”, “number of replays”, or “points” is indicated by lighting the corresponding lamp.

  The lending button 306 is an operation button for accepting a medal lending request by a player. When the lending button 306 is pressed, processing such as subtraction of the prepaid balance, medal lending processing, sales pulse output, etc. is performed by the control unit 38 to be described later. Is done.

  The return button 307 is an operation button for accepting a request for returning a prepaid card by a player. When the return button 307 is pressed, the prepaid card being inserted is returned from the card insertion slot 309.

  The setting button 311 is an operation button for accepting a request for setting a lending unit amount by a clerk of a game shop. When the setting button 311 is pressed, the state shifts to a state of accepting a lending unit amount through a numeric keypad.

(2) Internal Configuration Next, the internal configuration of the CR unit 30 shown in FIG. 3 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an internal configuration of the CR unit 30 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the CR unit 30 includes an operation unit 31, a display unit 32, a communication control I / F unit 33a, a gaming machine communication I / F unit 33b, a sales pulse output unit 33c, The remote control light receiving unit 310, the bill processing unit 35, the card processing unit 36, the storage unit 37, and the control unit 38 are included.

  The operation unit 31 is a generic term for various button groups, a lending button 306, a return button 307, a setting button 311 and the like, and the display unit 32 is a status display lamp 301, a card status display LED 302 shown in FIG. A general term for the LED 303, the 7SEG display unit 304, the mode display unit 305, and the like.

  The communication I / F unit 33a is an interface that controls various communications among other devices such as the hall computer 10, the prepaid card T / C 100, and the island controller 200.

  The gaming machine communication I / F unit 33b is an interface that controls various communications (for example, a medal throwing instruction and a throwing completion response) with the pachislot machine 40 provided alongside the CR unit 30.

  The sales pulse output unit 33c is a processing unit that outputs a pulse signal associated with the sales amount based on an instruction from a sales pulse output control unit 38c described later.

  The banknote processing unit 35 is a processing unit that handles banknotes inserted from the banknote insertion slot 308, and includes a BV unit unit 35a, a transport mechanism unit 35b, a banknote storage unit 35c, and a locking mechanism unit 35d.

  Among these, the BV unit part 35 a is a banknote discriminator for identifying the denomination of the banknote inserted into the banknote insertion slot 308, and outputs the identified denomination of the inserted banknote to the control unit 38. In addition, when the inserted banknote is a forged banknote or an unidentifiable banknote (a banknote having a poor storage state), the banknote is returned.

  The conveyance mechanism unit 35b is a mechanism unit such as a roller that conveys the accepted banknote from the banknote insertion slot 308 to the banknote storage unit 35c. The banknote storage unit 35c is a storage unit that stores banknotes. The locking mechanism unit 35d is a lock mechanism that locks the banknote storage unit 35c, and unlocks the banknote storage unit 35c in response to an unlocking instruction from the remote controller.

  The card processing unit 36 is a processing unit that handles various cards inserted from the card insertion slot 309, and includes a C / R (card reader) 36a, a card storage unit 36b, and a transport / feed-out mechanism unit 36c.

  Among these, the C / R 36a is a card reader that reads information recorded on various cards such as a prepaid card (referred to as an IC card) and a membership card inserted into the card insertion slot 309. Specifically, The prepaid card ID and the membership card identification information are read from the card, and the read information is output to the control unit 38.

  The card storage unit 36b is a storage unit for storing a prepaid card whose prepaid balance is not valued. In order to enable a player to play with cash even if he / she does not bring a prepaid card, a plurality of prepaid cards are used in advance. Is stored. For example, when a bill is inserted by a player, one of a plurality of prepaid cards is paid out to the position of the C / R 36a and is targeted for cash value.

  The transport / feed-out mechanism unit 36c is a mechanism unit that transports / feeds out various cards. Specifically, the prepaid card inserted from the card insertion slot 309 is conveyed to the C / R 36a, the prepaid card held in the C / R 36a is conveyed to the card storage unit 36b, and the card storage unit 36b. The built-in prepaid card stored in the card is fed out to the C / R 36a, or the prepaid card held in the C / R 36a is fed out to the card insertion slot 309.

  The storage unit 37 is a storage device such as a non-volatile memory that stores data (for example, prepaid balance) and programs necessary for various processes by the control unit 38, and is configured to manage various settings of the CR unit 30 A management table 37a is stored.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the setting management table 37 a is a table that stores a unit number, a pulse association amount, and a lending unit amount. Here, the unit number is the unit number of the pachislot machine 40 connected to the CR unit 30, and the pulse association amount is the amount associated with the unit pulse with the hall computer 10, both of which are It is delivered from the hall computer 10 when the CR unit 30 is activated. In addition, the lending unit amount is an amount for lending medals at one time. For example, after the amusement store is closed, the employee presses the button on the clerk menu on the remote control and shifts to the clerk operation mode. The lending unit amount can be set when the setting button 311 is pressed after it is secured.

  In the example shown in FIG. 5, the CR unit 30 is connected to the pachislot machine 40 with the machine number 001, and the pulse association amount is defined as 1000 yen, while the lending unit amount is set to 500 yen. Then, it is determined that the amount of money is inconsistent by the multiple possibility determination unit 38d described later, and the setting of the lending unit amount is canceled by the invalidation processing unit 38f described later, and as shown in the example shown in FIG. The amount will be reset to the same amount as the pulse association amount.

  The control unit 38 is a control unit that controls the overall control of the CR unit 30. Particularly, as related to the present invention, a card master update request unit 38a, a medal lending processing unit 38b, a sales pulse output control unit 38c, , A multiple determination unit 38d and a setting processing unit 38e.

  The card master update request unit 38 a is a processing unit that requests a card master update for a prepaid card used in the CR unit 30. Specifically, in cooperation with the prepaid card T / C100, the value of the inserted banknote is valued to the prepaid card built in the card storage unit 36b, or the lending unit is inserted from the prepaid card being inserted as a lending price for the pachinko ball. The amount is subtracted (collected), and when a prepaid card is accepted via the card insertion slot 309, the prepaid balance corresponding to the prepaid card ID read through the C / R 36a is inquired and acquired.

  The medal lending processing unit 38b is a processing unit that instructs the pachislot machine 40 to place a medal when the prepaid balance is subtracted by the card master update request unit 38a. Specifically, a predetermined number of tokens are issued by the CR unit 30 between the gaming machine communication I / F unit 33b and the communication I / F unit (not shown) in the pachislot machine 40. The rule that the pachislot machine 40 throws out medals (for example, 5 cards = 100 yen) is set, and if the lending unit amount is subtracted from the prepaid balance of the prepaid card being inserted, it corresponds to the lending unit amount The pachislot machine 40 is instructed to throw out medals for the number of times to be executed, and causes the pachislot machine 40 to throw out medals for the loan unit amount.

  The sales pulse output control unit 38c is a processing unit that outputs the sales pulse to the DU 20 through the sales pulse output unit 33c, and outputs the sales pulse so that the sales pulse is output to the DU 20 for the number of times that the pulse association amount is equal to the lending unit amount. The unit 33c is instructed. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, when the pulse-related amount is defined as 1000 yen / pulse and the lending unit amount is set to 1000 yen, both are equal, so the sales pulse is output once. In addition, when the pulse association amount is defined as 100 yen / pulse and the lending unit amount is set to 1000 yen, 500 yen or 100 yen, the lending unit amount is 10 times the pulse association amount, Since it is 5 times and this time, sales pulse is output 10 times, 5 times or 1 time.

  The multiple possibility determination unit 38d is a processing unit that determines whether or not the lending unit amount set in the setting management table 37a is a multiple of the pulse association amount set and distributed by the hall computer 10. That is, it is determined whether or not consistency is secured between the lending unit amount that has already been set and the pulse-related amount depending on whether or not the lending unit amount is a multiple of the pulse-related amount. If the amount is not a multiple of the amount associated with the pulse, even if the sales pulse is not output, the sales amount management table of the hall computer 10 is not counted. Therefore, the lending unit amount set in the setting management table 37a is It is determined that there is a lack of consistency with the amount associated with the pulse.

  The setting processing unit 38e is a processing unit that performs various settings relating to the CR unit 30, and includes an invalidation processing unit 38f that invalidates the setting of the lending unit amount. For example, setting registration of the lending unit amount received through the remote controller and the operation unit 31, update registration of various settings distributed from the hall computer 10, and cancellation / resetting of the lending unit amount that may cause a miscalculation in the sales amount are performed. .

  As an example of the setting form of the lending unit amount, after the amusement store is closed or the like, a state where the employee is pressed to press the button of the clerk menu on the remote controller and shift to the clerk operation mode is secured. When the setting button 311 is pressed, the input of the lending unit amount is accepted through the numeric keypad of the operation unit 31. When the replay button that is used as a confirmation button for the determination intention is pressed, the lending in the setting management table 37a Set and register the input acceptance amount in the unit amount.

  In addition, as one mode of update registration of distribution settings, communication with the hall computer 10 is established when the CR unit 30 is activated, and various settings are distributed from the hall computer 10 when communication is established between the two. The various settings received from the hall computer 10 (for example, the unit number and the amount associated with the pulse) are updated and registered in the setting management table 37a. Thus, the reason why the unit number is acquired as a setting when the CR unit 30 is started is to reflect the change when the pachislot machine 40 to which the CR unit 30 is connected is changed by replacing the unit, etc. The reason for acquiring the pulse association amount is to reflect the revision when the pulse association amount is revised on the hall computer 10 side.

  When the distribution setting is received from the hall computer 10, it is determined that the lending unit amount set in the setting management table 37 a by the multiple determination unit 38 d is not a multiple of the pulse association amount set and distributed by the hall computer 10. If so, reset the lending unit amount equal to the pulse-related amount.

[Process flow]
Next, the processing flow of the CR unit 30 according to the first embodiment will be described in detail. In the following, (1) the lending unit amount setting process performed by the employee after closing the amusement store or the like will be described, and then (2) the setting receiving process performed when the CR unit 30 is started will be described.

(1) Lending Unit Amount Setting Processing As described above, here, the lending unit amount setting processing according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating the procedure of the lending unit amount setting process according to the first embodiment. This process is performed in a state in which it is ensured that the staff operation is performed by pressing the button of the staff menu on the remote controller and shifting to the staff operating mode after the game store is closed.

  As shown in FIG. 8, when the setting button 311 is pressed in the clerk operation mode (Yes at Step S801), the setting processing unit 38e shifts to a lending unit amount input standby state through the numeric keypad of the operation unit 31 (Step S801). S802).

  When accepting the input of the lending unit amount through the numeric keypad of the operation unit 31 (Yes at Step S802), the setting processing unit 38e shifts to an operation standby state of a replay button that is substituted as a confirmation button for determination intention (Step S803). ).

  Here, when the replay button pressing operation as the lending unit amount setting operation is accepted (Yes in step S803), the setting processing unit 38e sets and registers the input acceptance amount in the lending unit amount in the setting management table 37a ( Step S804), the process is terminated.

  If the cancel button is pressed without accepting the input of the lending unit amount or the setting operation of the lending unit amount (No in Step S802 or No in Step S803), the processing is ended as it is.

(2) Setting Reception Processing Next, setting reception processing according to the first embodiment will be described. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the procedure of the setting reception process according to the first embodiment. This process is performed when the CR unit 30 is activated.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the setting processing unit 38e establishes communication with the hall computer 10 when the CR unit 30 is activated (step S901), and receives various settings from the hall computer 10 after establishing communication (for example, various settings (for example, The registration number is updated and registered in the setting management table 37a (step S902), and the lending unit amount is transferred to the multiple availability determination unit 38d.

  Here, the multiple determination unit 38d reads the setting of the lending unit amount from the setting management table 37a (step S903), and the currently set lending unit amount is a multiple of the pulse association amount set and distributed by the hall computer 10. It is determined whether or not there is (step S904).

  At this time, when the lending unit amount is not a multiple of the pulse association amount (No in step S904), the invalidation processing unit 38f resets the lending unit amount of the same amount as the pulse association amount in the setting management table 37a (step S904). S905), the process is terminated. If the lending unit amount is a multiple of the pulse association amount (Yes in step S904), the consistency is ensured between the lending unit amount and the pulse association amount, and the process is terminated as it is.

  For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2, if the pulse-related amount is 100 yen / pulse, the sales pulse will be displayed regardless of whether the lending unit amount is 100 yen, 500 yen, or 1000 yen. If the 1st, 5th, and 10th times are output to the DU 20, it is possible to notify the hall computer 10 of an accurate sales amount. On the other hand, if the pulse association amount is 1000 yen / pulse, the lending unit amount is 100. If the amount is ¥ 500 or ¥ 500, the amount will be unbalanced. Therefore, even if the lending unit amount is set to ¥ 100 or ¥ 500, the setting will be canceled and the amount of ¥ 1000, which is the same amount as the pulse association amount, will be canceled. Reset to amount.

  As described above, in the first embodiment, the setting of the lending unit amount is accepted, it is determined whether or not the lending unit amount for which the setting has been accepted is a multiple of the pulse association amount, and is not a multiple of the pulse association amount. When judged, since the setting of the lending unit amount is invalidated, in the situation where cash machines and CR machines are mixed in the game corner, the game store employee etc. Even if a lending unit amount that cannot be consistently secured is set incorrectly, the setting of the lending unit amount can be invalidated, and the consistency between the pulse association amount and the lending unit amount can be ensured It becomes possible to manage the exact sales amount with the hall computer 10.

  Further, in the first embodiment, since it is configured to determine whether or not the multiple of the pulse association amount with respect to the lending unit amount is possible when the CR unit 30 is activated, the latest information is obtained when the CR unit 30 establishes communication with the host device. It is possible to determine whether or not multiples can be performed using the pulse association amount, and even if the pulse association amount is changed depending on the operation needs of the amusement store, the result can be compared with the pulse association amount after the change. As a result, the pulse association amount before the change was used. In this case, it is possible to prevent erroneous determination.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described so far, the present invention may be implemented in various different forms other than the embodiments described above. Therefore, another embodiment included in the present invention will be described below.

(1) Determining whether or not multiples are possible For example, in the above-described first embodiment, whether or not multiples are allowed is determined when the CR unit 30 is activated. Also good. That is, in the first embodiment, when the setting is accepted, the setting of the lending unit amount is once registered in the setting management table 37a. By doing so, when the pulse-related amount is operated substantially fixedly, it is possible to invalidate an incorrect setting of the lending unit amount at an earlier stage.

(2) Invalidation In addition, in Example 1 described above, when invalidating the setting of the lending unit amount, the registered setting is canceled and the amount equal to the pulse association amount is reset as the lending unit amount. As long as it is a multiple of the pulse association amount, it is a multiple of the pulse association amount, and the amount closest to the canceled amount may be used as the lending unit amount.

(3) Application Example In the above-described first embodiment, when the lending unit amount is determined not to be a multiple of the pulse association amount by the multiple possibility determination unit 38e, the setting of the lending unit amount is invalidated. Although described, control may be performed so as to notify that consistency is not ensured between the lending unit amount and the pulse association amount. For example, if notification is made to the status display lamp 301 of the CR unit 30 or the income possessed by the employee after the acceptance of the lending unit amount is accepted or the CR unit 30 is activated at the time of activation of the CR unit 30, it is possible to quickly inform the store. As a result, it is possible to manually set a new appropriate lending unit amount.

  Further, instead of outputting a sales pulse every time a medal lending process is performed as in the first embodiment, if the lending unit amount is not a multiple of the pulse association amount, the sales amount by medal lending is cumulatively added. The sales pulse may be output to the DU 20 when the cumulative sales amount exceeds the pulse association amount.

  In other words, this allows the range of the amount that can be set as the lending unit amount to be expanded other than a multiple of the pulse association amount, and it becomes possible to set the lending unit amount that is more suitable for the operation needs of the amusement store.

(4) Others In the first embodiment described above, an example in which the present invention is applied to a pachislot game has been described. However, the present invention can be applied to a case where a pachinko game is further included or only a pachinko game is a target. The same can be applied. In addition, although the example which applies this invention to a pachinko store and a pachislot store was demonstrated here, this invention is not limited to this, It can apply similarly to game facilities, such as a game center.

  In addition, among the processes described in this embodiment, all or part of the processes described as being performed automatically can be performed manually, or the processes described as being performed manually can be performed. All or a part can be automatically performed by a known method. In addition, the processing procedure, control procedure, specific name, and information including various data and parameters shown in the above-described document and drawings can be arbitrarily changed unless otherwise specified.

  Further, each component of each illustrated apparatus is functionally conceptual, and does not necessarily need to be physically configured as illustrated. In other words, the specific form of distribution / integration of each device is not limited to that shown in the figure, and all or a part thereof may be functionally or physically distributed or arbitrarily distributed in arbitrary units according to various loads or usage conditions. Can be integrated and configured.

  As described above, the lending processing machine and the lending processing method according to the present invention are suitable for managing an accurate sales amount with a host device.

1 is a system configuration diagram illustrating a system configuration of a sales management system including a CR unit according to Embodiment 1. FIG. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the characteristic of CR unit which concerns on Example 1. FIG. It is the front view which showed the external appearance of CR unit shown in FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of CR unit 30 shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the information memorize | stored in a setting management table. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the information memorize | stored in a setting management table. It is a figure for demonstrating the processing content of the sales pulse output control part 38c. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of a lending unit amount setting process according to the first embodiment. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of setting reception processing according to the first embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1 Sales management system 10 Hall computer 20 DU (unit)
30 CR unit 31 operation unit 32 display unit 33a communication control I / F unit 33b communication I / F unit for gaming machine 33c sales pulse output unit 35 banknote processing unit 35a BV unit unit 35b transport mechanism unit 35c banknote storage unit 35d locking mechanism unit 36 Card processing part 36a C / R (card reader)
36b Card storage unit 36c Transport / feeding mechanism unit 37 Storage unit 37a Setting management table 38 Control unit 38a Card master update request unit 38b Medal lending processing unit 38c Sales pulse output control unit 38d Multiple determination unit 38e Setting processing unit 38f Invalidation processing Department 40 Pachi-slot machine 100 Prepaid card T / C
200 island controller

Claims (4)

While subtracting the valuable value for the lending unit amount that determines the amount of lending game media at a time from the high value of the valuable value assigned to the game recording media, the game media is lending processing and A lending processor that outputs a pulse signal to the host device so that the pulse association amount associated with the unit pulse is equal to the lending unit amount,
Setting accepting means for accepting the setting of the lending unit amount;
A determination unit that determines whether or not the lending unit amount whose setting is received by the setting reception unit is a multiple of the pulse association amount;
A lending processor comprising: an invalidating unit that invalidates the setting of the lending unit amount when the determining unit determines that the amount is not a multiple of the pulse association amount.   The lending processor according to claim 1, further comprising notification control means for performing control so as to notify that when the determination means determines that the amount is not a multiple of the amount associated with the pulse.   The lending processor according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the determination unit determines whether or not a multiple of the pulse association amount with respect to the lending unit amount is available when the lending processor is activated. While subtracting the valuable value for the lending unit amount that determines the amount of lending game media at a time from the high value of the valuable value assigned to the game recording media, the game media is lending processing and A lending processing method for outputting a pulse signal to the host device so that the pulse association amount associated with the unit pulse is equal to the lending unit amount,
A setting reception step for receiving the setting of the lending unit amount;
A determination step of determining whether or not the lending unit amount whose setting has been received by the setting reception step is a multiple of the pulse association amount;
A lending processing method comprising: an invalidating step of invalidating the setting of the lending unit amount when it is determined by the determining step that it is not a multiple of the pulse associated amount.

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