JP2011194141A - Movable board face component - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To effectively prevent a rack gear from rocking forward and backward around a guide shaft and prevent a screw stop part from loosening with time in a constitution where the rock gear is screwed to the bottom portion of an opening and closing member parallelly moving with a game board surface and opening and closing a liquid crystal display device or the like, and where the rack gear is moved forward and backward by a pinion gear on a fixed side.SOLUTION: A movable board face component includes at least: opening and closing members 50 and 60 moving in a horizontal direction while the upper part and the lower part are respectively guided by an upper guide portion 32 and a lower guide portion 40 provided at a base member 30; rack gear members 51 and 61 fixed parallelly to the lower parts of the opening/closing members; and a motor for driving the pinion gear. The lower guide portion includes guide rails 41 and 42 extending in the horizontal direction and having non-circular cross-sections. The rack gear members includes guided recesses 53 and 63 having inner surface shapes which slides in an axial direction while matching with the outer surfaces of the guide rails and being prevented from relatively turning forward and backward.

Description

  The present invention relates to a movable board surface component that solves a problem that the opening and closing member causes rattling in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction in a gaming machine including an opening and closing member such as a door that opens and closes a liquid crystal screen on the game board.

In pachinko machines, various board parts such as a prize opening, windmill, variable display device, and lighting device are provided on the board surface of the game board in order to diversify the contents of the game, winning prizes during the game, and other situation changes The stage effect is enhanced by moving the movable panel surface parts in various directions.
For example, when a game ball wins a start winning opening provided on the game board, the symbol displayed on the variable display device in the game board starts to change, and the symbol stopped after a predetermined time elapses is a predetermined jackpot symbol. When it becomes, it becomes a big hit state, and a player can acquire a lot of balls. In such a gaming machine, various display effects are performed in order to enhance the interest of the game.
For example, in Patent Document 1 related to the proposal of the present applicant, a shoji that opens and closes a display surface of a liquid crystal display device provided on a game board surface and a door opening / closing member are opened and closed in a direction substantially parallel to the board surface, and is moved in and out. Has proposed a movable panel surface component that is capable of producing a characteristic effect in the progress of the game.

FIGS. 13A and 13B are side longitudinal sectional views of the driving mechanism 110 for opening and closing the two opening and closing members 100 and 105 in the horizontal direction, and FIG. No normal state, (b) shows the abnormal state where rattling occurs.
As the drive mechanism 110, a rack and pinion mechanism is often used, and a resin rack gear 111 fixed so as to extend in the horizontal direction at the lower part of each opening and closing member 100 and 105 that opens and closes in a direction orthogonal to the paper surface. The resin-made pinion gear 120 is meshed with 115, and the pinion gear 120 is rotated by a driving force from a motor (not shown) to advance and retract the open / close members 100 and 105 in the horizontal direction. In this type of drive mechanism, the rack gears 111 and 115 are guided in the horizontal direction by round bar-shaped metal shafts 112 and 116 supported horizontally on the gaming machine body side. In other words, cylindrical round holes (recesses) 111a and 115a penetrating in the axial direction are formed inside the rack gears 111 and 115, and round bar-shaped metal shafts 112 and 116 are formed in the round holes 111a and 115a. It is the structure which inserted through.

However, when the cylindrical round hole formed in the rack gear provided at the lower part of the opening / closing member is supported by the round bar-like metal shaft in such a manner as to be movable forward and backward in the axial direction, the upper part of the opening / closing member is supported by the guide rail. Even if it is slidably supported in the horizontal direction, the upper part of the opening / closing member swings back and forth around the metal shaft due to backlash and dimensional error between the upper part of the opening / closing member and the upper guide rail. (See FIG. 13B).
Further, the fixing method of the lower part of the opening and closing member and the rack gear is merely a simple screwing structure with screws 125 as shown in FIG. The part is loosened and the opening / closing member and the rack gear are likely to rattle, and in the worst case, they are damaged.

Japanese Patent Application No. 2008-188632

As described above, when the rack gear is screwed and fixed to the lower part of the opening / closing member that horizontally moves in parallel with the game board surface to open and close the liquid crystal display device etc., the rack gear is advanced and retracted by the pinion gear on the fixed side. The open / close member easily swings back and forth around a round bar-shaped metal shaft that guides the rack gear, and further, there is a problem in durability that the screw stopper is easily loosened with time. In addition, since the opening / closing member and the rack gear are only screwed and fixed, the screwing portion loosens over time, and the opening / closing member and the rack gear tend to rattle, and in the worst case, damage Will be.
The present invention has been made in view of the above, and a rack gear is screwed and fixed to a lower portion of an opening / closing member that horizontally moves in parallel with a game board surface to open and close a liquid crystal display device and the like, and this rack gear is advanced and retracted by a pinion gear on a fixed side. With the purpose of providing a movable panel surface component that can effectively prevent the rack gear from swinging back and forth around the guide shaft and the screwing portion from loosening with time when configured to Yes.

In order to achieve the above object, the movable platen part according to the first aspect of the present invention comprises at least one opening / closing member that moves in the horizontal direction while being guided by the upper guide portion and the lower guide portion provided on the base member, respectively. A rack gear member horizontally fixed to the lower part of the opening and closing member, a pinion gear that meshes with the rack gear member and rotates the rack gear member in the horizontal direction, and a motor that drives the pinion gear. The lower guide part includes a guide rail having a non-circular cross-sectional shape extending in the horizontal direction, and the rack gear member is aligned with the outer surface of the guide rail and is relatively rotated in the front-rear direction. A guided recess having an inner surface shape that slides in an axial direction while being prevented from moving is provided.
Conventionally, when one or more open / close members are moved back and forth between the closed position and the open position in the horizontal direction, the lower part of the open / close member is supported by a round bar-shaped guide rail. There was a problem that the opening / closing operation and the opening / closing track were not stable.
In the present invention, the lower part of the opening / closing member is supported by the guide rail having a non-circular cross-sectional shape so as not to be swingable in the front-rear direction.

In the invention of claim 2, a guide protrusion having a curved cross-sectional shape is provided on either the guide rail or the inner wall of the guided recess, and the top of the guide protrusion is provided on the inner wall of the guided recess or the guide. It is characterized by being brought into sliding contact with the rail.
The contact portion with the top portion of the guide projection becomes a line contact, and the contact resistance can be greatly resisted, so that the movement becomes smooth.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, the rack gear member and the opening / closing member are screwed in a state in which a horizontally long protruding piece protruding from the lower portion of the opening / closing member is fitted in a horizontally extending elongated hole formed in the rack gear member. It is fixed and fixed.
Conventionally, since the rack gear member and the lower part of the opening / closing member are fixed by simple screwing, the strength of the fixing portion is not sufficient, but the present invention can solve such a problem.

  According to the present invention, the rack gear member is screwed and fixed to the lower part of the opening / closing member that horizontally moves in parallel with the game board surface to open and close the liquid crystal display device and the like, and this rack gear member is advanced and retracted by the pinion gear on the fixed side. In this case, it is possible to effectively prevent the rack gear member from swinging back and forth around the guide shaft and loosening of the screw stop portion with time.

1 is a front view of a pachinko gaming machine equipped with a movable panel surface component according to the present invention. It is a front view of movable board surface parts concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a rear view of movable board surface parts concerning one embodiment of the present invention. It is a front side perspective view of the movable board surface component of this invention. It is a back side perspective view of movable board surface parts of the present invention. It is a disassembled perspective view of this movable panel surface component. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part structure of movable board surface components. It is a front side exploded perspective view showing each rack gear member and each guide rail. It is a back side exploded perspective view showing each rack gear member and each guide rail. It is a side part longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the principal part structure of movable board surface components. (A) And (b) is an expanded sectional view which shows the structure of the connection part of a guide rail and a rack gear part. (A) And (b) is a comparison figure with the support structure of the opening-and-closing member by this invention, and a prior art example. (A) And (b) is a side part longitudinal cross-sectional view of the drive mechanism for opening and closing two sheet | seat opening / closing members to a horizontal direction, (a) is the state at the time of the normal state where the rattling does not generate | occur | produce. And (b) is a diagram showing a state at the time of abnormality where rattling occurs.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to embodiments shown in the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a front view of a pachinko gaming machine equipped with a movable surface component according to the present invention.
A glass frame 2 supporting a glass plate is attached to the front side of the game board 1 so as to be openable and closable. Also, at the lower part of the game board 1, there are provided a tray part 3 for storing game balls and a launch lever 4 for launching game balls in the tray part. Further, a button switch for gaming machine, a purchase button for game balls, and a purchase cancel button (none of which are shown) are provided on the upper surface of the tray portion 3.
On the back side of the game board 1, a synthetic resin mechanism board (none of which is shown), which is assembled with back parts related to the progress and production of the game, such as a liquid crystal screen, main control board and sub-control board, can be freely opened and closed. Has been. Around the game area 1a of the game board 1, an outer rail R1 that guides a game ball launched from the launch device by operating the launch lever 4 to the upper part of the game area 1a, or guides to the out port 10, and An inner rail R2 is provided.
A center member 5 having an opening at the center is disposed at a substantially central portion of the game board 1. A symbol display device 6 is arranged inside the center member 5. The symbol display device 6 is constituted by a liquid crystal display panel such as a liquid crystal display device, for example, and displays a special symbol image (not shown) in a normal operation state. In the so-called special game state, an effect image indicating the special game state is displayed. In this example, two opening / closing members 50 and 60 simulating a mask in front of the symbol display device 6 are arranged to be openable and closable in the lateral direction. The opening / closing member constitutes a movable platen surface component 30 that characterizes the present invention.

A variable winning device 11 for variably displaying the special symbol of the symbol display device 6 is provided at the lower right of the center member 5. On the right side of the variable winning device 11, a gate 12 is provided for operating the normal symbol displayed on the normal symbol display device 16. Further, below the variable winning device 11, there is provided a large winning opening 13 having an open / close door that is opened in a big hit state which is one of the special gaming states.
The variable winning device 11 includes an electric tulip having a pair of left and right open / close claws (movable pieces) for variably displaying the symbol display device 6.
The game board 1 is provided with a normal winning port 14, an out port 10, and the like, and a windmill 15 and a number of game nails (not shown) are provided so as to project. The game nail slows down the falling speed of the game ball and changes the falling direction in a complicated manner to enhance the interest in game progression.

The normal symbol displayed on the normal symbol display device 16 can variably display one or a plurality of symbols, and the symbol is a random number on condition that the gate 12 as a normal symbol start port detects a game ball. It is variable and stopped for a predetermined time by control or the like.
A configuration in which a movable piece made of an electric tulip provided in a variable winning device is opened for a predetermined time when a normal symbol becomes a predetermined mode by random number control on condition that a game ball has passed through the gate 12 Has been.
The special symbol displayed on the symbol display device 6 is configured to be in a big hit state when the stop symbol is a predetermined symbol combination, for example, the same symbol combination. In addition, the special symbol is scrolled by random number control etc. on the condition that the game ball is detected at the lower start port (not shown) where the game ball is guided by the opening operation of the electric tulip of the variable winning device, etc. It fluctuates (varies) for a predetermined time with a predetermined fluctuation pattern and stops at a symbol. At that time, when two stop symbols become the same on the active line, a reach state occurs, and in this reach state, the last stop symbol on the active line is already stopped. A jackpot condition occurs when they are the same. In addition, as a special symbol, a numerical symbol, an alphabet symbol, a character symbol, etc. can be used.

2 and 3 are a front view and a rear view of the movable panel surface component according to the embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 4 and 5 are a front perspective view and a rear perspective view of the movable panel surface component of the present invention. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the movable platen surface component, FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the main part of the movable platen surface component, and FIG. 8 is an exploded front perspective view showing each rack gear member and each guide rail. FIG. 9 is a rear side exploded perspective view showing each rack gear member and each guide rail, and FIG. 10 is a side longitudinal sectional view showing the configuration of the main part of the movable panel surface part. FIG. 12B is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the structure of the connecting portion between the guide rail and the rack gear portion, and FIGS. 12A and 12B are comparison views of the support structure for the opening / closing member according to the present invention and the conventional example. .
The movable panel surface component 30 is a temporary surface that moves in the horizontal direction while being guided at the upper and lower portions by a base member 31 fixed to the game board 1, an upper guide portion 32 provided on the base member 31, and a lower guide portion 40, respectively. A pair of left and right open / close members 50, 60, rack gear members 51, 61 fixed horizontally to the lower portions of the open / close members 50, 60, and the rack gear members 51, 61 meshing with each other to rotate. A pinion gear 70 for moving the rack gear member in the horizontal direction and a motor 71 for driving the pinion gear are provided. In this example, the rack gear member 51 on the opening / closing member 50 side has a rack gear 51a on the upper portion thereof, and the rack gear member 61 on the opening / closing member 60 side has a rack gear 61a on the lower portion thereof.

The lower guide portion 40 includes guide rails 41 and 42 having a non-circular cross-sectional shape extending in the horizontal direction, and the rack gear members 51 and 61 are in contact with the outer surfaces of the guide rails 41 and 42, respectively. Guided recesses 53 and 63 having inner shapes that slide in the axial direction while preventing relative rotation are provided (FIGS. 10 and 11). The guide rails 41 and 42 are fixed to the base member 31 by screwing the respective base portions 41A and 42A.
A driving mechanism for opening and closing the opening and closing members 50 and 60 includes a pinion gear 70, a motor 71 that drives the pinion gear 70, an intermediate gear group 72 that transmits driving force from the motor to the pinion gear 70, and a motor (not shown). Control means.
Projecting pieces 52 and 62 project downward from the lower portions of the opening and closing members 50 and 60, respectively, and rack gear members 51 and 61 are fixed to the lower portions of the projecting pieces 52 and 62, respectively. The overhanging pieces 52, 62 and the rack gear members 51, 61 are not simply fastened by screws, but the rack gear members 51, 61 are placed in elongated holes 52a, 62a formed in the overhanging pieces 52, 62 extending in the horizontal direction. In this state, the protruding pieces 52 and 62 and the rack gear members 51 and 61 are fastened by a screw 75 in a state in which the horizontally long (thin plate-like) protruding pieces 54 and 64 projecting forward are fitted.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing an engaged state between the guide rail 41 and the guided recess 53, and the guide rail 41 has a configuration that protrudes forward in a substantially crank shape from the tip of the base portion 41A extending vertically. The substantially rectangular tip is fitted into the guided recess 53. The guided recess 53 has two guide surfaces 53 a and 53 b that move in proximity to (sliding) in the horizontal direction in proximity to the upper and lower surfaces of the guide rail 41, and a cross section that slidingly contacts the front surface of the guide rail 41. Hemispherical (curved surface) -shaped guide protrusion 53c. The guide protrusion 53 c is a protrusion that extends horizontally in parallel with the guide rail 41.
Small protrusions 41a project from the upper and lower edges of the front surface of the guide rail 41 toward the front. In other words, the guide protrusion 53 c is fitted in a recess provided on the front surface of the guide rail 41. The back surface 41b of the guide rail 41 protrudes downward, and the protruding back surface 41b is guided by a part 51b of the rack gear member 51, so that the guide rail 41 is prevented from being detached from the guided recess 53. Further, since the guide rail 41 has a non-circular longitudinal cross-sectional shape and its outer surface is supported in a close proximity by a guided recess 53 having a non-circular inner surface shape, the rack gear member with the guide rail 41 as a rotating shaft. It is impossible to rotate 51 in the front-rear direction. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the opening / closing member 50 that supports the rack gear member 51 at the lower part from rotating back and forth around the guide rail 41. FIG. 12 (a) shows a state in which the opening / closing member is prevented from moving back and forth. As shown in FIG. 12 (b), the opening / closing member has a circular cross section. It can be seen that the forward and backward movement can be greatly prevented.

Further, in the process in which the rack gear member 51 moves along the guide rail 41, the portion where the front surface of the guide rail 41 contacts the rack gear member is mainly the tip portion of the guide projection 53c, and the top portion of the guide projection 53c whose tip portion is curved. Since the contact portion is a line contact, it can be stably guided by the guide rail 41 with a small sliding resistance. A guide protrusion having a curved surface may be provided on the front surface of the guide rail 41, and the guide protrusion may be slid with the inner surface of the guided recess.
The structure of the engaging portion between the guide rail 41 and the rack gear member 51 is the same as the structure of the engaging portion between the guide rail 42 and the rack gear member 61.
The cross-sectional shape of each of the guide rails 41 and 42 may be a substantially quadrangular shape as illustrated, or may be a polygon such as a triangle or a pentagon, or an indeterminate shape. In short, any shape may be used as long as it can prevent rotation in the front-rear direction when engaged with the guided recesses 53 and 63.
The overhanging pieces 52 and 62 and the rack gear members 51 and 61 are not simply fastened by screws, but the rack gear members 51 are installed in the elongated holes 52a and 62a formed in the overhanging pieces 52 and 62 in the horizontal direction. , 61, the projecting pieces 54, 64 projecting from the front (thin plate-like) are fitted, and the projecting pieces 52, 62 and the rack gear members 51, 61 are fastened by screws 75. is there. For this reason, compared with the conventional structure in which the opening and closing member and the rack gear member are only screwed and fixed, the screwing portion loosens over time and the opening and closing member and the rack gear cause rattling, The problem of easy breakage can be solved.

As described above, according to the present invention, the rack gear member is screwed and fixed to the lower portion of the opening and closing member that horizontally moves in parallel with the game board surface to open and close the liquid crystal display device and the like, and the rack gear member is advanced and retracted by the pinion gear on the fixed side. In such a configuration, the rack gear member can swing back and forth about the guide shaft to destabilize the operation of the opening / closing member and the track, and to effectively prevent the screw stop portion from loosening with time. Can do.
The game board unit constructed by incorporating the movable board surface component of the present invention into the game board can be applied to pachinko gaming machines and other gaming machines.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Game board, 1a ... Game area, 2 ... Glass frame, 3 ... Dish part, 4 ... Launch lever, 5 ... Center member, 10 ... Out port, 11 ... Variable prize-winning device, 12 ... Gate, 13 ... Grand prize port , 14 ... Normal winning opening, 15 ... Windmill, 16 ... Normal symbol display device, 30 ... Movable panel surface component, 31 ... Base member, 32 ... Upper guide part, 40 ... Lower guide part, 41 ... Guide rail, 41b ... Back face, 41a ... small protrusion, 41A, 42A ... base, 41b ... back, 42 ... guide rail, 50 ... opening / closing member, 51 ... rack gear member, 51a ... rack gear, 51b ... part, 52, 62 ... overhang, 52a ... long Hole, 53, 53a ... Guide surface, 53c ... Guide protrusion, 63 ... Guide recess, 54 ... Projection piece, 60 ... Opening / closing member, 61 ... Rack gear member, 61a ... Rack gear, 70 ... Pinion gear, 71 ... Motor 2 ... intermediate gear group, 75 ... screw

Claims (3)

At least one opening / closing member that moves in the horizontal direction while being guided by an upper guide portion and a lower guide portion provided on the base member, respectively, a rack gear member that is horizontally fixed to the lower portion of the opening / closing member, and the rack gear A movable platen surface component comprising a pinion gear that moves the rack gear member in a horizontal direction by meshing with a member and rotating, and a motor that drives the pinion gear,
The lower guide portion includes a guide rail having a non-circular cross-sectional shape extending in the horizontal direction,
The rack gear member has a guided recess having an inner surface shape that slides in an axial direction while being prevented from relative rotation in the front-rear direction in alignment with the outer surface of the guide rail. Panel parts.   Either one of the guide rail or the inner wall of the guided recess is provided with a guide projection having a curved cross-sectional shape, and the top of the guide projection is brought into sliding contact with the inner wall of the guided recess or the guide rail. The movable platen part according to claim 1.   The rack gear member and the opening / closing member are screwed and fixed in a state where a horizontally long protruding piece protruding from the lower portion of the opening / closing member is fitted in a horizontally extending elongated hole formed in the rack gear member. The movable platen part according to claim 1 or 2.

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