JP2013154094A - Image display device, and game machine including image display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To create a three-dimensional visual effect by a simple structure.SOLUTION: A panel 10 is disposed in front of a liquid crystal display screen 16, and a translucent three-dimensional display part 24 formed of letters and/or figures, and a background part 25 formed in the periphery of the three-dimensional display art 24 and having translucency lower than that of the three-dimensional display part 24 are provided in the panel 10. Further, a specific image 33a of a single color, overlapping with the three-dimensional display part 24 and also with the background part 25 in the periphery of the three-dimensional display part 24, and having a contour shaped to overlap with the background part 25, is displayed in the liquid crystal display screen 16. With this structure, the three-dimensional display part 24 can be visually recognized by a player in such a way as to stand out of the background part 25 by displaying the specific image 33a in the liquid crystal display screen 16.

Description

  The present invention relates to an image display device disposed in a gaming machine or the like.

  An gaming machine such as a slot machine or a pachinko machine is provided with an image display device constituted by a liquid crystal display, and an effect image and game information are displayed on the image display device. In recent years, an image display device that displays a stereoscopic image to improve the visual effect has appeared (for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2010-162287 A

  Although the gaming machine of the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 enables a powerful presentation having a stereoscopic visual effect, a dedicated liquid crystal display with a stereoscopic image display function and a display process are required, which is expensive. There is a problem that the burden is large.

  The present invention has been made in view of the present situation, and an object of the present invention is to provide an image display device capable of displaying a stereoscopic image with a simple configuration, and a gaming machine including the image display device.

  The present invention includes a liquid crystal display, display control means for controlling the liquid crystal display, and a panel disposed in front of a display screen of the liquid crystal display, and the panel includes characters and / or figures. A light-transmitting stereoscopic display unit and a light-transmitting background portion formed around the stereoscopic display unit, and the display control means is arranged on the display screen of the liquid crystal display. The stereoscopic display unit includes a control content for displaying a specific image of a single color that overlaps with the display unit, overlaps with the background unit around the stereoscopic display unit, and has an outline that overlaps with the background unit. An image display device characterized by having higher light transmittance than a background portion and displaying the specific image on a display screen of a liquid crystal display so that the stereoscopic display portion can be visually recognized as being raised from the background portion. It is.

  In such a configuration, an image displayed on a display screen of a liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as a liquid crystal screen) is visually recognized through a three-dimensional display portion and a background portion of a panel disposed in front of the liquid crystal screen. It will be. For this reason, the specific image displayed on the liquid crystal screen is visually recognized as a color in which the color of the specific image and the transmission color of the stereoscopic display unit are mixed with respect to the portion overlapping the stereoscopic display unit, and the portion overlapping the background portion is The color of the specific image and the transmission color of the background portion are visually recognized as a mixed color. In this configuration, since the stereoscopic display unit transmits light more easily than the background portion, the portion where the stereoscopic display portion and the specific image overlap is viewed brighter than the portion where the background portion and the specific image overlap. It will be. Since the bright color is a relatively advanced color compared to the dark color, according to such a configuration, when the specific image is displayed behind the stereoscopic display unit, it is possible to produce a visual effect in which the stereoscopic display unit is raised. .

  In addition, the device configuration of the present invention is a simple one in which only a panel is disposed in front of an existing general liquid crystal display, and the display control of an image displayed on the liquid crystal screen can be simple. Compared to an expensive device or a conventional machine that realizes stereoscopic viewing by complicated display processing, the present invention can realize stereoscopic viewing with a simple and inexpensive configuration. Further, in the present invention, a three-dimensional visual effect can be obtained without strictly defining the relative position and the relative angle between the three-dimensional display portion of the panel and the specific image on the liquid crystal screen. For this reason, in the configuration of Patent Document 1, the direction for obtaining a three-dimensional visual effect is limited, but in the present invention, even when the player or the like is viewed from a different direction, the three-dimensional visual effect is limited. Visual effects can be obtained. In addition, when the panel or the liquid crystal display is attached to the gaming machine, it is not necessary to strictly adjust the position and angle of the panel and the liquid crystal screen, so that the attaching operation is simple.

  In this invention, the panel may be arrange | positioned at intervals between the display screens of a liquid crystal display, and may be in contact with the display screen. In addition, the method for forming the three-dimensional display portion and the background portion according to the present invention is not particularly limited. For example, a light-transmissive printing layer (ink layer) is formed on the panel by silk screen printing, or a film is formed on the panel.・ Attaching sheets can be mentioned. Further, the color and shape of the specific image displayed on the liquid crystal screen are not particularly limited, but it is desirable to display in a bright color that is easy for a player or the like to visually recognize via the panel. In the present invention, the three-dimensional table can be colorless and transparent, and the background can be colored and transparent. In this case, the stereoscopic display portion is a colorless and transparent region formed by the surrounding colored background portion, and the color of the specific image on the liquid crystal screen is visually recognized as it is for a portion where the stereoscopic display portion and the specific image overlap. Become.

  Further, in the present invention, a configuration is proposed in which the background portion of the panel is plain and the panel is disposed with a space in front of the display screen of the liquid crystal display.

  In such a configuration, the contour of the stereoscopic display portion (the boundary between the stereoscopic display portion and the background portion) appears on the panel, whereas the contour of the specific image behind appears on the liquid crystal screen. It is visually recognized that the outline of the three-dimensional display unit is in front by the interval of the liquid crystal screen. Here, since the background part of the panel is plain and there is no pattern that becomes a clue to grasp the distance, the overlapping part of the specific image and the background part seems to be on the liquid crystal screen with the outline of the specific image as a clue. Visible to. On the other hand, the overlapping portion of the specific image and the stereoscopic display unit is visually recognized as being on the panel with the outline of the stereoscopic display unit as a clue. For this reason, according to the present invention, when a specific image is displayed on the liquid crystal screen, the characters and / or figures of the three-dimensional display portion appear to protrude from the surrounding background portion by the distance between the panel and the liquid crystal screen. 3D visual effects can be obtained.

  Further, in the present invention, a configuration is proposed in which the display control means includes a control content for displaying the specific image so that the contour of the specific image borders the contour of the stereoscopic display unit from the outside.

  In such a configuration, since the difference between the distances to the respective contours becomes clear because the stereoscopic display unit and the contour of the specific image are close to each other, a stereoscopic visual effect is displayed when the specific image is displayed on the liquid crystal screen. It becomes easy to obtain.

  Further, in the present invention, the display control means displays, on the display screen of the liquid crystal display, the specific image and a background image that is darker than the specific image and overlaps a background portion of the panel around the specific image. A configuration is proposed in which a control content to be displayed is provided so that a portion where the background portion and the specific image overlap with each other overlaps a portion where the background portion and the background image overlap.

  That is, in such a configuration, when the specific image and the background image are displayed on the liquid crystal screen, the portion where the background portion and the specific image overlap is visually recognized in a bright advance color rather than the portion where the background portion and the background image overlap. The portion where the background portion and the specific image overlap is visually recognized as being closer to the front side than the portion where the background portion and the background image overlap. Therefore, according to such a configuration, it is visually recognized that the portion where the background portion and the specific image overlap with respect to the portion where the background portion and the background image overlap, and the stereoscopic display portion further protrudes than the portion that appears to protrude. Therefore, it is possible to further enhance the visual effect in which the stereoscopic display portion appears to be raised.

  Further, in the present invention, a configuration is proposed in which the stereoscopic display portion of the panel is substantially colorless and transparent, the background portion is black and transparent, and the display control means displays the background image in black. . Here, “black transparent” means a black color having transparency, such as gray smoke, and is not limited to a transparent color that is strictly achromatic.

  In such a configuration, when the specific image is displayed, the color of the specific image on the liquid crystal screen is visually recognized as it is on the stereoscopic display unit, and the color obtained by darkening the color of the specific image on the liquid crystal screen is visually recognized on the background portion. Therefore, it is possible to visually recognize the specific image by adding a light and dark difference. Further, in such a configuration, when the backlight of the liquid crystal display is turned off, the stereoscopic display portion and the background portion are both visually recognized as black and it is difficult to identify the boundary between them. By turning it off, it can be visually recognized as if the design of the stereoscopic display unit has been lost.

  In the present invention, the panel includes a substantially colorless and transparent transparent plate material, and a light-transmitting ink layer formed on the surface of the transparent plate material with a light-transmitting gray ink, A configuration is proposed in which the transparent ink layer is not formed, the three-dimensional display portion is formed in a portion where the surface of the transparent plate material is exposed, and the background portion is formed in a portion where the light transmissive ink layer is formed.

  That is, in such a configuration, the color of the three-dimensional display (colorless and transparent) is realized by the color of the transparent plate itself, and the color of the background (black and transparent) is changed by the color of the light-transmitting ink layer formed on the transparent plate. Realize. As described above, if the three-dimensional display unit is realized by only the color of the plate material of the panel, it is possible to reduce the labor for forming the ink layer on the plate material and the amount of ink used. The ink layer formed on the panel can be formed on either the front surface or the back surface of the transparent plate material, but it is preferable to form the ink layer on the back surface of the transparent plate material. This is because the ink layer is covered from the front side by the transparent plate material, and the ink layer is hardly worn.

In the present invention, a configuration is proposed in which the light-transmitting ink layer is thicker than other portions at a boundary portion where the stereoscopic display portion and the background portion are adjacent to each other.

It is proposed that the light transmissive ink layer is thicker than other portions at the boundary portion where the first color portion and the second color portion are adjacent to each other.

  In such a configuration, the transmission color of the background portion becomes dark at the boundary portion with the stereoscopic display portion, and the boundary between the stereoscopic display portion and the background portion becomes high at the boundary portion, so that the boundary between the stereoscopic display portion and the background portion is reduced. Can be emphasized. For this reason, with such a configuration, even when the transmitted colors of the stereoscopic display portion and the background portion are relatively similar, the player or the like can reliably identify the boundary portion between the two and grasp the shape of the stereoscopic display portion. It becomes possible to do.

  Another aspect of the present invention includes the image display device and a game control means for controlling the progress of the game, and the game control means controls the display control means in accordance with the progress of the game. It is a gaming machine characterized by being. And in this structure, the said game control means controls the said display control means according to progress of a game, and displays the effect image over the whole area of this display screen on the display screen of a liquid crystal display. A configuration is proposed in which the specific image is included in the effect image. With such a configuration, the effect of the gaming machine can be improved by the three-dimensional visual effect obtained by displaying the specific image.

  As described above, according to the present invention, by overlapping the panel and the liquid crystal screen, it is possible to produce a three-dimensional visual effect such that the three-dimensional display unit formed on the panel appears to be raised. In addition, the present invention has an advantage that such a three-dimensional visual effect can be realized by a simple and inexpensive configuration as compared with the conventional configuration. Further, the present invention has an advantage that the three-dimensional visual effect is hardly impaired even when viewed from a direction other than the front. Furthermore, there is an advantage that the position and angle of the panel and the liquid crystal screen can be easily adjusted when the panel and the liquid crystal display are attached.

1 is a perspective view of a slot machine 1 to which the present invention is applied. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the slot machine 1 with a front door 3 opened. 3 is a vertical side view of an image display unit 8. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a panel 10 and a liquid crystal unit 11. FIG. 2 is a front view of the panel 10. FIG. (A) is a rear view of the panel 10, (b) is explanatory drawing which shows the cross-sectional shape of the AA part in (a). 3 is a block diagram showing a control circuit of the slot machine 1. FIG. (A) is a first effect image 30 displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16, (b) is a front view of the panel 10, and (c) is an overlap of the first effect image 30 and the panel 10. It is the synthesized image 31 synthesized by the combination. It is explanatory drawing which shows the aspect with which the 3rd design part 24 and the 1st base image 33a overlap, (a) is an enlarged view of the image 30 for 1st effects, (b) is an enlarged view of the panel 10. FIG. (C) is an enlarged view of the composite image 31. It is explanatory drawing which shows the three-dimensional visual effect produced by the 3rd design part 24 and the 1st base image 33a. It is explanatory drawing which shows the aspect with which the 2nd base image 33b and the 3rd base image 33c overlap with respect to the 2nd design part 23, (a) is an enlarged view of the image 30 for 1st effects, (b) FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the panel 10, and FIG. 5C is an enlarged view of the composite image 31. It is explanatory drawing which shows the aspect with which the 1st design part 22 and the 6th base image 33f overlap, (a) is an enlarged view of the image 30 for 1st effects, (b) is an enlarged view of the panel 10. FIG. (C) is an enlarged view of the composite image 31.

Embodiments of the present invention are described according to the following examples.
In the following embodiments, the image display device according to the present invention corresponds to the image display unit 8. The display control means according to the present invention corresponds to the liquid crystal control substrate 42. The game control means according to the present invention corresponds to the main control board 40 and the sub control board 41. In addition, the stereoscopic display unit according to the present invention corresponds to the third design unit 24 of the panel 10, and the specific image for projecting and showing the third design unit 24 corresponds to the first base image 33 a.

  In this embodiment, the present invention is applied to a slot machine. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the housing 2 of the slot machine 1 is opened forward and is covered by the front door 3 from the front. As shown in FIG. 1, a visual recognition window 4 for visually recognizing three reels 48 disposed in the inside of the housing 2 is provided in the central portion of the front door 3. A horizontally elongated image display unit 8 according to the present invention is disposed above the viewing window 4. Also, on the front side of the front door 3, various switches such as bet switches 5 a and 5 b, a start switch 6, a stop switch 7, a settlement switch 47, and an effect button unit 54 used for game operations are arranged below the viewing window 4. Established. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a speaker 56, a medal selector 58, and the like are disposed on the back side of the front door 3. As shown in FIG. 2, the main control board 40 and the sub-control board 41 are installed in the case 2 in the case 2 in the case 2 while being housed in the case. 43 and the hopper unit 50 are disposed.

  The image display unit 8 displays an effect image. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the image display unit 8 is provided on a light-transmitting panel 10 fitted in a rectangular opening 9 provided in the front door 3 and on the back side of the panel 10. The liquid crystal unit 11 is configured.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the liquid crystal unit 11 is configured by housing a liquid crystal display 13 and a liquid crystal control board 42 for controlling the liquid crystal display 13 in a case 14. The liquid crystal display 13 is a general-purpose product including a liquid crystal panel, a driver circuit, a backlight, and the like. A display screen (liquid crystal screen) 36 of the liquid crystal display 13 is exposed to the opening 15 formed in the front surface of the case 14. One panel 10 is a flat plate without unevenness, and has substantially the same shape as the liquid crystal screen 16.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the liquid crystal unit 11 is fixed to the front door 3 so as to close the opening 9 of the front door 3 from the back side. At this time, the liquid crystal unit 11 is attached with the liquid crystal screen 16 tilted forward by about 5 ° so that the player can easily see the liquid crystal unit 11. On the other hand, the opening 9 of the front door 3 is fixed to the front door 3 so as to be closed from the front side. The panel 10 is disposed in front of the liquid crystal screen 16 so as to face the liquid crystal screen 16 with an interval of about 6 mm (5 mm to 10 mm). The panel 10 is attached in a posture inclined forward by about 5 ° so as to be substantially parallel to the liquid crystal screen 16.

  FIG. 5 is a front view of the panel 10. The panel 10 is subjected to silk screen printing with a colored ink on the back side of a colorless and transparent transparent plate 20 having a thickness of about 3 mm (2 mm to 5 mm), so that the colorless and transparent first color arrangement portion 21a and gray smoke (black transparent) The second color arrangement portion 21b and the opaque black third color arrangement portion 21c are color-coded into three color arrangement portions. The second color arrangement portion 21b of the grace smoke has a transparency that allows the outline of the image displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16 on the back side to be sufficiently visually recognized.

  And the design part 22-24 which consists of a character and a figure, and the background part 25 are formed in the panel 10 by the combination of these three color arrangement parts 21a-21c. The design parts 22 to 24 are a first design part 22 composed of characters “Show Time” formed in the center of the panel, and a double arc-shaped second design part formed on both sides of the first design part 22. 23 and a third design portion 24 formed of characters “Exciting” formed at the upper center of the first design portion 22.

  More specifically, first, the background portion 25 of the panel 10 is formed by the second color arrangement portion 21b of gray smoke. In addition, in the figure, although the pattern is attached | subjected in order to show the color classification of the color arrangement parts 21a-21c, the background part 25 is formed as a plain area | region.

The first design portion 22 is formed by a character portion 22a “Show Time” formed by the first color arrangement portion 21a and a second color arrangement portion 21b, and a first border portion that borders the periphery of the character portion 22a. 22b and a second border 22c formed by the third color arrangement portion 21c and further bordering the periphery of the first border 22b. Here, the border width of the first border portion 22b and the second border portion 22c is formed to be approximately the same as the line width of the character portion 22a.

  The second design part 23 is a double arc-shaped figure composed of an inner arch part 23a and an outer arch part 23b arranged in parallel with a space therebetween, and is formed by the first color arrangement part 21a. Around the second design portion 23, a background portion 25 composed of the second color arrangement portion 21b is formed.

  The letters “Exciting” and the star-shaped figures constituting the third design part 24 are formed by a colorless and transparent first color arrangement part 21a. Around the third design portion 24, a background portion 25 composed of the second color arrangement portion 21b is formed.

  FIG. 6B shows a cross-sectional shape of the AA portion of FIG. FIG. 6B shows a state in which the front side of the panel 10 is directed downward. As shown in FIG. 6B, ink layers 27 and 28 that form the second color arrangement portion 21 b and the third color arrangement portion 21 c are provided on the back side (liquid crystal screen side) of the panel 10. Specifically, the ink layers 27 and 28 include a light-transmitting ink layer 27 made of a light-transmitting gray ink and an opaque ink layer 28 made of a light-impermeable gray ink. The color arrangement portion 21 b is formed in the formation portion of the light-transmitting ink layer 27, and the opaque black third color arrangement portion 21 c is formed in the formation portion of the opaque ink layer 28. On the other hand, the first color arrangement portion 20a is formed in a portion where the ink layers 27 and 28 are not formed and the surface of the transparent plate 20 is exposed. That is, the color of the first color arrangement portion 21a is realized only by the color of the colorless and transparent transparent plate member 20. As described above, in this embodiment, one color arrangement portion 21a among the three color arrangement portions 21a to 21c formed on the panel 10 is realized by the color of the transparent plate member 20 itself constituting the panel 10, so that the color arrangement is achieved. The kind and amount of ink forming the portions 21a to 21c can be suppressed.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 6B, in the portion where the first color arrangement portion 21a and the second color arrangement portion 21b are adjacent to each other, the light transmitting ink layer 27 is formed at the boundary portion between the two color arrangement portions 21a and 21b. A thick portion 27a that is thicker than other portions is formed. According to the thick portion 27a, the transmitted color of the second color arrangement portion 21b is locally dark at the boundary portion between the two color arrangement portions 21a and 21b, and the boundary between the two color arrangement portions 21a and 21b is emphasized. Therefore, in this embodiment, even if the transmitted colors of the colorless and transparent first color arrangement portion 21a and the second color arrangement portion 21b of gray smoke are relatively approximate, the player can define the boundary between the two color arrangement portions 21a and 21b. It is possible to reliably identify the shape of the design portions 22 to 24 formed by the two color arrangement portions 21a and 21b.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6B, in the portion where the second color arrangement portion 21b and the third color arrangement portion 21c are adjacent to each other, on the boundary portion between the two color arrangement portions 21b and 21c, on the opaque ink layer 28 (on the back side). ), The light-transmitting ink layer 27 overlaps with a predetermined width. According to such a configuration, it is not necessary to exactly match the edges of the light-transmitting ink layer 27 and the opaque ink layer 28, so the second color arrangement portion 21b and the third color arrangement portion 21c can be formed relatively easily. Can do. On the other hand, in the portion where the light transmissive ink layer 27 and the opaque ink layer 28 overlap, the light transmissive ink layer 27 is hidden behind the opaque ink layer 28 and cannot be seen, so the front side of the panel 10 (FIG. 6B). ), The second color arrangement portion 21b and the third color arrangement portion 21c appear to be adjacent to each other without any gaps at the boundary portion.

  Next, a control circuit for controlling the operation of the slot machine will be described with reference to FIG.

  The main control board 40 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and performs control related to the progress of the game. Connected to the input port of the main control board 40 are a power supply box 43, a closing sensor 46, bet switches 5 a and 5 b, a start switch 6, a stop switch 7, a settlement switch 47, and a setting change switch 57. Further, the reel 48, the hopper unit 50, the external terminal board 53, and the sub control board 41 are connected to the output port of the main control board 40.

  The power supply box 43 is for supplying power to each device of the slot machine 1 and changes the power switch 44 for switching the power ON / OFF and the winning probability for each role (so-called setting change). The setting key switch 45 is provided.

  The insertion sensor 46 detects a medal inserted into the slot machine 1. The insertion sensor 46 is disposed in a medal passage in a medal selector 58 provided on the back side of the front door 3, detects one medal passing through the medal passage one by one, and outputs a insertion signal every time a medal is detected. .

  The bet switches 5a and 5b are for inserting credited medals. As the bet switches 5a and 5b, a single bet switch 5a and a max bet switch 5b are provided. The single bet switch 5a inserts credited medals one by one. The maximum bet switch 5b inserts the maximum number of medals per game.

  The start switch 6 is for starting the rotation of the reel. In this embodiment, a lever type switch is used, and the three reels 48 start to rotate by tilting the lever.

  The three stop switches 7 are for stopping the rotation of the reel 48. Each stop switch 7 is associated with a separate reel 48, and when the stop switch 7 is pressed, the corresponding reel 48 stops rotating.

  The settlement switch 47 is used to return medals that have been credited and medals that have been inserted but are not yet used in the game.

  The setting change switch 57 is for changing the setting together with the setting key switch 45 of the power supply box 43, and is provided on the back side of the front door 3.

  Each reel 48 has a cylindrical shape, and a total of 21 symbols such as “7”, “BAR”, “cherry”, “watermelon”, “bell”, and “replay” are arranged on the outer peripheral surface. Each reel 48 is provided with a stepping motor 49. The three reels 48 are rotated and stopped by each stepping motor 49, and a predetermined symbol combination is aligned to determine whether or not to win.

  The hopper unit 50 is for paying out medals, and includes a tank for storing medals and a delivery mechanism for sending out the medals in the tank toward the payout opening. The sending mechanism includes a motor 51 serving as a driving source and a payout sensor 52 for detecting a sent medal.

  The external terminal board 53 externally outputs game information (injection / payout information, game history information, error information, etc.), and allows information such as a jackpot history of the slot machine 1 to be viewed by the game hall equipment.

  The sub-control board 41 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and controls effects related to games. The ROM of the sub-control board 41 stores fixed data related to various effect patterns. The main control board 40 and the effect button unit 54 are connected to the input port of the sub control board 41. Information relating to the progress of the game is input from the main control board 40 to the sub control board 41. The effect button unit 54 is for the player to select the contents of the effect. Then, the sub control board 41 selects an effect pattern based on information input from the main control board 40 and a signal from the effect button unit 54, and in order to execute the selected effect pattern, A command is transmitted to the speaker 56, and further, a command is transmitted to the liquid crystal control board 42 in order to display a required image on the liquid crystal display 13.

  The liquid crystal control board 42 includes a CPU, a RAM, a ROM, and the like, and performs display control of the liquid crystal display 13. As described above, the liquid crystal control board 42 is housed in the case 14 together with the liquid crystal display 13 to constitute the liquid crystal unit 11. The ROM of the liquid crystal control board 42 stores a large amount of data for generating an effect image to be displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16. When the liquid crystal control board 42 receives a command from the sub control board 41, the CPU performs arithmetic processing, writes the effect image data in the RAM and outputs it to the liquid crystal display 13, and the effect pattern selected by the sub control board 41 is obtained. A street effect image is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16.

  Next, the structure which concerns on the principal part of this invention is demonstrated in detail.

  As described above, in the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, information related to the game is transmitted from the main control board 40 to the sub control board 41, and the sub control board 41 selects an effect pattern according to the progress of the game, etc. The liquid crystal control board 42 displays an effect image on the liquid crystal screen 16 in accordance with a command from the sub control board 41. The effect image is displayed over the entire area of the liquid crystal screen 16. Here, since the panel 10 is disposed in front of the liquid crystal screen 16, the player does not directly view the effect image displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16 but directly displays the effect displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16. A synthesized image formed by overlapping the image for use and the design portions 22 to 24 of the panel 10 is visually recognized as an image of the image display portion 8. The composite image of the image display unit 8 plays a central role in the production of the slot machine 1, and this composite image cooperates with the blinking of the production lamp and the sound effect from the speaker, so that the game progresses. Production according to the situation is realized. In this embodiment, the effect image displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16 is not shown to the player as it is, but the player can visually recognize the composite image obtained by superimposing the effect image and the front panel 10. A visual effect that cannot be obtained by the liquid crystal display 13 alone is realized.

  Explaining with a specific example, in the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, the first effect image 30 shown in FIG. 8A is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16 at a required timing in accordance with the progress of the game. The first effect image 30 is not directly recognized by the player, and the player can obtain a composite image obtained by overlapping the first effect image 30 and the panel 10 (see FIG. 8B). 31 (see FIG. 8C) is visually recognized as an image of the image display unit 8.

  As shown in FIG. 8A, the first effect image 30 includes a black background image 32 and a plurality of base images 33a to 33f. Each of the base images 33a to 33f is formed by forming a predetermined shape with a solid single color. In the display state of the first effect image 30, these base images 33a to 33f are displayed on the back side of the design portions 22 to 24 of the panel 10, and the base images 33a to 33f and the design portions 22 to 24 are overlapped. A composite image 31 with a high visual effect can be obtained. Note that hatching appearing in the drawings after FIG. 8 indicates the color coding of the base images 33a to 33f.

  As shown in FIG. 8A, the first base image 33a is displayed at the upper center of the first effect image 30. The first base image 33 a is formed of a single pink color and is surrounded by a black background image 32. The first base image 33a is displayed on the back side of the third design portion 24 of the panel 10, and overlaps the entire area of the third design portion 24 as shown in FIG. The outline of the first base image 33 a overlaps the background part 25 around the third design part 24. At this time, the first base image 33a is visually recognized in two colors. That is, as shown in FIG. 9C, a portion 34a where the first base image 33a and the colorless and transparent third design portion 24 overlap is visually recognized in the pink color of the first base image 33a. A portion 34b where 33a and the gray smoke background portion 25 overlap is visually recognized as a dark pink color when the pink color of the first base image 33a is mixed with the color of the background portion 25. Further, the periphery 34c of the first base image 33a is visually recognized as black because the black background image 32 overlaps with the gray smoke background portion 25 and is mixed.

  As described above, in the first effect image 30, the first base image 33a is converted into the third design portion 24 formed by the first color arrangement portion 21a and the background portion 25 formed by the second color arrangement portion 21b. By displaying so as to straddle, the first base image 33a of a single color can be visually recognized with two gradations.

  Further, the third design portion 24 formed by the colorless and transparent first color arrangement portion 21a has higher light transmittance than the background portion 25 formed by the second color arrangement portion 21b of gray smoke. For this reason, in the composite image 31 shown in FIG. 9C, the portion 34a where the third design portion 24 and the first base image 33a overlap is brighter than the portion 34b where the background portion 25 and the first base image 33a overlap. Visible in color. Since the bright color image has a visual effect that appears to be disposed relatively forward with respect to the dark color image, in this way, by making the third design unit 24 visible brighter than the surroundings, A three-dimensional visual effect can be obtained as if the third design portion 24 composed of the characters “Exciting” is raised forward.

  Further, in the composite image 31 shown in FIG. 9C, the overlapping portion 34b of the background portion 25 and the first base image 33a is visually recognized in dark pink, whereas the surrounding portion 34c has a background portion 25 and a black portion. The background image 32 is visually recognized as being black. For this reason, in the state where the first effect image 30 is displayed, a portion 34b where the background portion 25 and the first base image 33a overlap is a portion where the background portion 25 and the background image 32 overlap due to a difference in brightness between the two portions. It is visually recognized as being on the near side with respect to 34c. Therefore, in the composite image 31, the overlapping portion 34b of the background portion 25 and the first base image 33a is visually recognized on the near side of the peripheral portion 34c, and the third design portion 24 has the background portion 25 and the first base image 33a. Thus, the three-dimensional visual effect of the third design portion 24 is more conspicuous than the overlapping portion 34b. In this embodiment, the third design portion 24 of the panel 10 is colorless and transparent, the background portion 25 is gray smoke (black transparent), and the background image 32 of the liquid crystal screen 16 is displayed in black. Thereby, the 3rd design part 24 protrudes more and is visually recognized.

  Further, in the present embodiment, since the panel 10 is disposed in front of the liquid crystal screen 16 with a space therebetween, a three-dimensional visual effect can be obtained in which the third design portion 24 is raised further forward. . That is, as shown in FIG. 10, the outline of the third design portion 24 is formed on the front panel 10, whereas the outline of the first base image 33a is formed on the rear liquid crystal screen 16, When viewed from the front side, the outline of the third design portion 24 is visually recognized so as to be positioned on the near side of the outline of the first base image 33a. Since the background portion 25 of the panel 10 and the first base image 33a of the liquid crystal screen 16 are plain, the portion surrounded by the outline is not a clue to grasp the distance. For this reason, in the synthesized image 31 shown in FIG. 9C, a portion 34b where the background portion 25 and the first base image 33a overlap is formed on the rear liquid crystal screen 16 by the outline of the first base image 33a. The portion 34a where the third design portion 24 and the first base image 33a overlap is visually recognized so as to be positioned on the front panel 10 by the outline of the third design portion 24. The third design portion 24 appears to protrude forward from the surrounding background portion 25 by the distance between the liquid crystal screen 16 and the panel 10.

  In particular, in the present embodiment, the first base image 33a is displayed so that its outline borders the outline of the third design portion 24 from the outside, and the contours of the first base image 33a and the third design portion 24 are displayed. Since they are close to each other, it is easy for a player to grasp the difference in distance between the contour of the first base image 33a and the contour of the third design unit 24, and a three-dimensional visual effect is easily obtained. .

  In this way, when the first effect image 30 is displayed, the pink first base image 33a on the liquid crystal screen 16 can be visually recognized with two gradations, so that the first base image on the liquid crystal screen 16 is displayed. The visual effect can be improved compared with the case where 33a is visually recognized as it is. In particular, the combination of the third design unit 24 and the first base image 33a can produce a three-dimensional visual effect such that the characters “Exciting” of the third design unit 24 are raised. Here, since such a three-dimensional visual effect is generated by superimposing the outline of the first base image 33a on the background portion 25 around the third design portion 24, the player can display the image display portion 8 on the screen. Even if the overlapping position of the first base image 33a and the third design part 24 is shifted when viewed from an oblique direction, the third design part 24 is not limited as long as the outline of the first base image 33a appears to overlap the background part 25. There is an advantage that it can be viewed three-dimensionally.

  As shown in FIG. 8A, the second base image 33 b and the third base image 33 c have an arch shape that is parallel to the inside and outside, and is overlapped with the second design portion 23 of the panel 10. Displayed in places. The second base image 33b is displayed in orange, and the third base image 33c is displayed in yellow. As shown in FIG. 11, the arch shape of the second base image 33 b and the third base image 33 c is wider than the arch portions 23 a and 23 b of the second design portion 23, and the second base image 33 b It overlaps so as to cover 23a from the back side, extends to both sides of the inner arch portion 23a, overlaps with the background portion 25 on both sides of the inner arch portion 23a, and its outline overlaps with the background portion 25. The third base image 33 c covers the outer arch portion 23 b from the back side, and overlaps with the background portion 25 on both sides of the outer arch portion 23 b, and the outline overlaps with the background portion 25.

  Thus, the second base image 33b overlaps the inner arch portion 23a formed by the first color arrangement portion 21a and the background portion 25 formed by the second color arrangement portion 21b. For this reason, the orange-colored second base image 33b is visually recognized as an orange color in a portion that overlaps the colorless and transparent inner arch portion 23a, and a relatively dark orange color in a portion that overlaps the gray smoke background portion 25. Visible. Therefore, the visual effect of the second base image 33b can be improved by overlapping the panel 10 as compared with the case where the image on the liquid crystal screen 16 is visually recognized as it is.

  In addition, regarding the third base image 33c of a single color of yellow, a portion overlapping with the outer arch portion 23b is visually recognized in yellow displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16 and overlaps with the background portion 25, similarly to the second base image 33b. In the portion, it is visually recognized as darker yellow than the color displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16. Therefore, the visual effect of the third base image 33c can be improved by overlapping the panel 10 as compared with the case where the image on the liquid crystal screen 16 is visually recognized as it is.

  In particular, the second base image 33b and the third base image 33c are displayed adjacent to each other inside and outside, and the boundary portions adjacent to each other overlap the second color arrangement portion 21b (background portion 25) and are adjacent to each other. Since the first color arrangement part 21 a (second design part 23) overlaps with the part other than the boundary part, the two-color second base image 33 b and the third base image 33 c are displayed on the composite image 31 in four colors. It can be visually recognized as an arch shape.

  Further, regarding the second base image 33b and the third base image 33c, these base images 33b and 33c overlap the inner arch portion 23a and the outer arch portion 23b, whereby the inner arch portion 23a and the outer arch portion 23b are moved forward. A three-dimensional visual effect can be obtained. The principle that the arch portions 23a and 23b appear to be raised is the same as the principle that the third design portion 24 appears to be raised. That is, due to the difference in distance between the contours of the arch portions 23a and 23b formed on the panel 10 and the contours of the base images 33b and 33c formed on the liquid crystal screen 16, the arch portions 23a and 23b on the panel 10 are It appears that the portion where the background portion 25 and the base images 33 b and 33 c overlap is raised forward by the distance between the liquid crystal screen 16 and the panel 10.

  As shown in FIG. 8A, the fourth base image 33d and the fifth base image 33e are displayed so as to overlap with a portion of the second design portion 23 that is directly below the first design portion 22. The second base image 33b is displayed so as to be continuous with the arch shape. The fourth base image 33d is displayed so as to be continuous with the arch shape of the second base image 33b, and is displayed in a darker orange color than the second base image 33b. On the other hand, the fifth base image 33e is displayed so as to be continuous with the arch shape of the third base image 33c, and is displayed in darker yellow than the third base image 33c. As shown in FIG. 8C, the fourth base image 33 d and the fifth base image 33 e are directly below the first design unit 22 in the composite image 31 in which the first effect image 30 and the panel 10 overlap. The first design part 22 appears to be raised with respect to the second design part 23 by being viewed darker than the second base image 33b and the third base image 33c and appearing as a shadow of the first design part 22. This creates a visual effect.

  As shown in FIG. 8A, the sixth base image 33f is an orange-colored image displayed at the center of the first effect image 30. The sixth base image 33f is displayed on the back side of the first design portion 22, and overlaps all of the character portion 22a, the first edge portion 22b, and the second edge portion 22c constituting the first design portion 22 in the front-rear direction. Yes. Then, as shown in FIG. 12, the orange sixth base image 33 f is displayed in three colors in the composite image 31 by overlapping with the first design unit 22. That is, in the portion where the sixth base image 33f and the colorless and transparent character portion 22a overlap each other, the orange color of the sixth base image 33f is visually recognized as it is. In the overlapping portion, the orange color of the sixth base image 33f is visually recognized as a dark orange color by being mixed with the color of the first border 22b. Then, in the portion where the sixth base image 33f and the opaque black second border 22c overlap, the orange color of the sixth base image 33f is blocked by the second border 22c and is visually recognized as black. Therefore, the visual effect of the sixth base image 33f can be improved by overlapping the panel 10 as compared with the case where the image on the liquid crystal screen 16 is visually recognized as it is.

  The sixth base image 33f is overlapped with the transparent character portion 22a formed on the front panel 10, the first edge portion 22b of gray smoke, and the second edge portion 22c of black opaque. As shown in (c), in the composite image 31, the portion overlapping the character portion 22a is visually recognized in the brightest color (orange), and the portion overlapping the first border portion 22b is the second brightest color (dark orange). And the portion overlapping the second border 22c is visually recognized in the darkest color (black). According to the composite image 31, the second brightest first edging portion 22b is visually recognized behind the darkest second edging portion 22c, and the brightest character portion 22a is more than the first edging portion 22b. Furthermore, it will be visually recognized in the back | inner side, and the visual effect that the character part 22a is sinking can be given to a player.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, when the first effect image 30 for effect is displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16, the base images 33 a to 33 f included in the first effect image 30 are displayed on the panel 10. Since the base images 33a to 33f having a predetermined shape are visually recognized in a plurality of colors by overlapping with the color arrangement portions 21a to 21c, the composite image 31 synthesized by the first effect image 30 and the panel 10 is used. Has a higher visual effect than the first effect image 30 itself. In particular, in the present embodiment, several base images 33 a to 33 f included in the first effect image 30 overlap with the design portions 22 to 24 of the panel 10, thereby generating a stereoscopic visual effect in the composite image 31. There is an advantage that can be made. Since the first effect image 30 is displayed at a predetermined timing in accordance with the progress of the game and used for the game effect, in the present embodiment, the display of the first effect image 30 There is an advantage that a game effect can be realized with a high visual effect. In addition, these visual effects do not require expensive equipment or complicated control processing, so compared to adopting a high-performance liquid crystal display or performing complex image control processing to improve visual effects. Thus, there is an advantage that the visual effect can be improved efficiently. The first effect image 30 described above is only one of the effect images displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16, and an effect image other than the first effect image 30 is also appropriately displayed on the liquid crystal screen 16. Is displayed.

  Further, in the present embodiment, when the backlight of the liquid crystal display 13 is turned off, there is no light transmitted through the panel 10 from the back side, so that the colorless and transparent first color arrangement portion 21a and the second gray smoke. The color arrangement portion 21b is visually recognized as black, and it is difficult to distinguish between the two color arrangement portions 21a and 21b. For this reason, when the backlight of the liquid crystal display 13 is turned off, the second design portion 23 and the third design portion 24 formed by the first color arrangement portion 21a are the background formed by the second color arrangement portion 21b. It is buried in the part 25 and visually recognized as if the design has disappeared. Furthermore, in the state where the backlight of the liquid crystal display 13 is turned off, the first color arrangement portion 21a and the second color arrangement portion 21b are difficult to distinguish from the opaque black third color arrangement portion 21c. The first design portion 22 formed by the second color arrangement portion 21b and the third color arrangement portion 21c is also visually recognized with a single black color when the backlight is turned off and buried in the surrounding background portion 25, and the design has disappeared. As seen. As described above, in this embodiment, the backlight of the liquid crystal display 13 is turned off so that the three design portions 22 to 24 can be seen and the entire panel 10 can be seen as a black region. it can.

  Note that the gaming machine of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

  For example, although the above embodiment describes an example in which the present invention is applied to a slot machine, the present invention is applicable to all gaming machines equipped with an image display device such as a pachinko machine. Further, the image display device of the present invention is not limited to a game machine, and can be applied to an image display device other than a game machine. Further, the design of the panel according to the present invention is not limited to the design of the embodiment, and can be changed as appropriate. In addition, although the panel of an Example prints on the colorless and transparent transparent board | plate material, the colored transparent board | plate material is also employable as a board | plate material to the panel which concerns on this invention. Moreover, the printing performed on the plate material of the panel is not limited to the back side of the plate material, and printing can be performed on the surface side of the plate material or printing on both sides. Further, instead of printing, a colored film may be attached to the plate material.

  Moreover, in the said Example, although the specific image which concerns on this invention is contained in the image for 1st effects displayed on a liquid crystal screen, this image for 1st effects is only a display example of a liquid crystal screen, Other effect images including the specific image can be appropriately displayed on the liquid crystal screen. In the present invention, the specific image need not always be displayed on the liquid crystal screen, and an effect image not including the specific image can be temporarily displayed on the liquid crystal screen. In addition, the specific image according to the present invention is naturally not limited to the one displayed in the color in the first effect image, and is color-coded according to the difference in the transmission color of the panel when viewed through the panel. It only needs to be displayed in a visible color.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the panel is disposed at a distance in front of the liquid crystal screen, but the present invention is not limited to such a configuration, and the panel can be disposed so as to be in contact with the liquid crystal screen. is there.

1 slot machine (game machine)
2 Housing 3 Front door 8 Image display (image display device)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 9 Opening part 10 Panel 11 Liquid crystal unit 13 Liquid crystal display 14 Case 15 Opening part 16 Liquid crystal screen 20 Transparent board | plate material 21a 1st color arrangement part 21b 2nd color arrangement part 21c 3rd color arrangement part 22 1st design part 22a Character part 22b 1st border Part 22c Second edging part 23 Second design part 23a Inner arch part 23b Outer arch part 24 Third design part (three-dimensional display part)
25 background portion 27 light transmissive ink layer 27a thick portion 28 opaque ink layer 30 first effect image 31 composite image 32 background image 33a first base image (specific image)
33b Second base image 33c Third base image 33d Fourth base image 33e Fifth base image 33f Sixth base image 40 Main control board (game control means)
41 Sub-control board (game control means)
42 Liquid crystal control board (display control means)

Claims (9)

A liquid crystal display, display control means for controlling the liquid crystal display, and a panel disposed in front of the display screen of the liquid crystal display,
The panel is provided with a light-transmitting three-dimensional display portion composed of characters and / or figures, and a light-transmitting background portion formed around the three-dimensional display portion,
The display control means specifies a single color that overlaps with the stereoscopic display unit on the display screen of the liquid crystal display, overlaps with the background portion around the stereoscopic display unit, and forms an outline with the background portion. It has control content to display images,
The stereoscopic display unit is more light transmissive than the background portion, and the specific image is displayed on a display screen of a liquid crystal display so that the stereoscopic display unit is visually recognized so as to protrude from the background portion. An image display device characterized by the above.   The image display apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a background portion of the panel is plain, and the panel is disposed in front of a display screen of the liquid crystal display with a space.   The image display apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the display control unit includes a control content for displaying the specific image so that an outline of the specific image borders an outline of the stereoscopic display unit from the outside. The display control means includes a control content for displaying on the display screen of the liquid crystal display the specific image and a background image that is darker than the specific image and overlaps a background portion of the panel around the specific image,
The image display apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a portion where the background portion and the specific image overlap is visually recognized so that a portion where the background portion overlaps the background image is raised. The three-dimensional display part of the panel is substantially colorless and transparent, and the background part is black and transparent,
The image display device according to claim 4, wherein the display control unit displays the background image in black.   The panel includes a substantially colorless and transparent transparent plate, and a light transmissive ink layer formed of a light transmissive gray ink on the surface of the transparent plate, and the light transmissive ink layer is not formed. 6. The solid display portion is formed in a portion where the surface of the transparent plate is exposed, and the background portion is formed in a portion where the light-transmitting ink layer is formed. The image display device according to claim 1.   The image display device according to claim 6, wherein the light-transmitting ink layer is thicker than other portions at a boundary portion where the stereoscopic display portion and the background portion are adjacent to each other. An image display device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, and a game control means for controlling the progress of the game,
The gaming machine is characterized in that the display control means is controlled in accordance with the progress of the game. The game control means controls the display control means in accordance with the progress of the game, and displays an effect image over the entire display screen on the display screen of the liquid crystal display.
The gaming machine according to claim 8, wherein the specific image is included in the effect image.

Images