JP2015173741A - Token sorting device of game machine, and game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To inexpensively achieve a change between passages without any occurrence of clogging and swallowing of tokens.SOLUTION: In a token sorting device 25, a side guide 45 guides a lower portion of a token from a side, and a blocker 41d retracts outside a passage 37 in a state where a bottom surface of the passage is formed in a passage formation part 41b of a lower guide 41. In a state where the bottom surface of the passage is not formed in the passage formation part 41b of the lower guide 41, the side guide 45 goes down to height equal to or lower than that of a partial bottom surface 41a of the passage formation part 41b, and the blocker 41d projects into the passage 37.

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine, and more particularly to a medal sorting device.

  Generally, a medal sorting device provided in a gaming machine sorts the size of a medal inserted into an insertion slot, takes an appropriate size medal inside, and returns medals of an inappropriate size to an external return slot. It has a sorting function.

  For example, in Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 8, a medal passage 123 that communicates with an insertion port and allows a medal to roll inward and in which the medal thickness direction is inclined is provided. An outlet 130 for discharging unapplied medals is provided on the side wall surface, forms a part of the medal passage 123, and a medal reception guide position for guiding conveyance of an appropriate size medal, and an improper size medal There is described a medal sorting device 120 of a gaming machine provided with a movable guide plate 126 which is movably switched to a medal reception restricting position where a kind is discharged to the discharge port 130.

  Also, the medal sorting device 120 can accept medals when the game hall is not ready, the slot machine is not in operation, or when the credit reaches the upper limit during winning or rotating the reel. In a state where it is impossible, even if the inserted medal is an appropriate size medal, it has a mechanism for rejecting acceptance and returning it to the return slot. Specifically, in the medal receiving state, the medal passage 123 forms a concave groove for passing medal rolling with the lower surface between the facing surface of the opening / closing plate 122 and the U-shaped substrate 121 and the bottom plate positioned therebetween, The upper part forms a concave groove for passing medal rolling between the opposed surfaces of the movable guide plate 126 and the U-shaped substrate 121. On the other hand, in the medal acceptance restricted state, the movable guide plate 126 rotates about the shaft support portion, and at this time, one side of the upper groove forming the medal passage 123 is opened and the passage is opened. Synchronously, the tip of the regulating lever 136 protrudes into the medal passage 123 to restrict the passage of the medal that reaches here, and the medal is moved side by side and removed from the discharge port 130 one by one.

  Further, in Patent Document 2, in the disk body sorting apparatus, as shown in FIG. 9, the disk body forcibly removing means 220 for forcibly removing the disk body from the disk body guide passage 211 is energized. A disc body exclusion lever 223 having one end protruding into the disc body guide passage 211 by the biasing force of the means 224; a retracting means 225 for retracting the disc body exclusion lever 223 from the disc body guide passage 211; The side wall of the disc body guide passage 211 is normally formed by the urging force of the means 232, and when the one end of the disc body exclusion lever 223 protrudes into the disc body guide passage 211, the disc body exclusion lever 223 And a disc body guide lever 230 that is separated from the disc body guide passage 211 in conjunction with the disc body guide passage 211.

JP 2002-172203 A (released on June 18, 2002) JP 2001-155223 A (released on June 8, 2001)

  However, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, since the lower part of the discharge port 130 guides the lower end of the medal during the medal discharging operation, smooth removal of the medal is hindered and swallowed (medal to be returned) Phenomenon). Further, when switching from the medal acceptance state to the medal acceptance restriction state, the medal is pinched between the opening / closing plate 122 and the restriction lever 136, which causes clogging.

  Further, in the technique described in Patent Document 2, the disk body guide passage 211 is operated by the rotation of the disk body exclusion lever 223 against the biasing means 232 that biases the disk body guide lever 230. Since the closed state is switched to the released state, the operation time becomes longer, which may cause swallowing. In addition, since the return passage on the lower side of the disc body guide passage 211 is narrow, there is a problem that the disc body continuously inserted in the open state (medal acceptance restricted state) is likely to be clogged.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a normal passage and a passage for returning medals with an inexpensive configuration without causing clogging or swallowing of medals. It is to provide a medal sorting device that can realize the switching.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the medal sorting device of the present invention has a passage for rolling the inserted medal by its own weight between the opposed surfaces of the pair of plate-like members, and does not accept the medal. , A medal sorting device for opening a part of the bottom of the passage and returning a medal, wherein one plate-like member is provided with a discharge port for discharging the medal facing the passage, and the other plate-like The member is provided with an upper guide that guides the upper end of the medal, a movable lower guide mechanism that opposes the discharge port and guides the lower end of the medal, and a drive device that drives the lower guide mechanism, The lower guide mechanism is rotatably supported by the other plate-like member, and a lower guide in which a passage forming portion that forms a part of the bottom surface of the passage is provided so as to be able to protrude and retract in the passage is attached to the lower guide. Can be moved freely in the aisle A blocker provided, and a side guide rotatably supported by the lower guide, wherein the lower guide is biased in a direction in which the passage forming portion is separated from the upper guide, By turning on against the urging direction, the passage forming portion appears in the passage and forms the bottom surface of the passage, and the bottom surface of the passage is formed, The side guide guides the lower part of the medal from the side, the blocker retracts out of the passage, and the side guide forms a bottom surface of the passage in the passage formation portion in a state where the bottom surface of the passage is not formed. The blocker descends to a level below the level, and the blocker appears in the passage.

  According to the above configuration, when the lower guide in the lower guide mechanism receives a medal, the drive device is turned on to rotate against the urging direction to form a passage in the passage formation portion. , Allowing the passage of medals. On the other hand, when the medal is not accepted, the driving device is turned off, so that it is rotated in the urging direction to release the passage formation by the passage forming portion, and the medal is removed from the discharge port. By making the turning direction of the lower guide when releasing the passage the same as the urging direction, the passage formation can be quickly released and the swallowing of medals can be prevented.

  Also, the side guide is provided so as to interlock with the rotation of the lower guide, and when the bottom surface of the passage is formed by the passage formation portion, the lower part of the medal is guided from the side surface, and in the state where the bottom surface of the passage is not formed, The lower part of the medal is guided by the side guide when the medal is not accepted, so that the medal is swallowed when the medal is not accepted. Nothing happens.

  In addition, when releasing the passage from the state where the bottom surface of the passage is formed in the passage formation portion, the medal is not sandwiched between the blocker and the one plate-like member, and the discharge port can be secured widely. , Medal clogging does not occur either. In addition, since the configuration is simpler than the prior art, it can be manufactured at low cost.

  Therefore, it is possible to provide a medal sorting device capable of realizing switching between a normal passage and a passage for returning medals with an inexpensive configuration without causing clogging or swallowing of medals.

  In the medal sorting device of the present invention, the one plate-like member has an inclined portion having an inclination that rises in the discharge direction on the lower side of the discharge port, and the side guide is interlocked with the lower guide. Then, by sliding on the inclined part, the lower part of the medal is displaced from the side surface.

  With the above configuration, in conjunction with the lower guide, the lower portion of the medal is guided from the side surface when the bottom surface of the passage is formed in the passage formation portion, and the passage is formed when the bottom surface of the passage is not formed. It is possible to easily realize the side guide that descends to a height equal to or lower than the surface that forms the bottom surface of the passage in the section.

  In addition, the medal sorting device of the present invention includes a sensor that detects passage of a medal downstream of the blocker in the passage in the advancing direction of the medal, and the side guide contacts the medal in the acceptance restricted state, It has a protrusion that restricts the entry of medals into the detection area of the sensor.

  According to the above configuration, even if a medal that collides with the end of the discharge port is repelled in the direction approaching the sensor, it can be prevented by the protrusion, so that the medal to be discharged to the discharge port can be detected by the sensor. There is no false detection. This makes it possible to accurately count the passage of medals.

  In addition, the present invention also falls within the scope of the invention for a gaming machine provided with the above-described medal sorting device of the present invention.

  The present invention has an effect that switching between a normal passage and a passage for returning medals can be realized with an inexpensive configuration without causing clogging or swallowing of medals.

It is an external appearance perspective view which shows an example of the slot machine in this Embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of a slot machine. It is drawing which shows an example of a medal sorting device, (a) is a perspective view which shows the front side of a medal sorting device, (b) is a perspective view which shows the back side of a medal sorting device. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of a medal sorting device. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the lower guide mechanism which a medal sorting device has. It is a figure which shows the two states which a lower guide mechanism can take, (a) is principal part sectional drawing of the medal selection apparatus which shows the medal acceptance state of a lower guide mechanism, (b) is a medal acceptance regulation of a lower guide mechanism. It is principal part sectional drawing of the medal selection apparatus which shows a state. It is a figure which shows operation | movement of a lower guide mechanism, (a) is a front view of a medal sorting device, (b)-(e) is the state of a lower guide mechanism when switching from a medal acceptance state to a medal acceptance regulation state FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a transition of the line A-A in FIG. It is a figure which shows the conventional medal sorting device. It is a figure which shows the disc body forced exclusion means in the conventional disc body classification | selection apparatus.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals. Their names and functions are also the same. Therefore, detailed description thereof will not be repeated.

  The drawing shows a slot machine installed in a game hall as an example of a gaming machine, and FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an example of a slot machine in the present embodiment. This slot machine 11 has a panel 12 and a reel portion 13 at the front upper part corresponding to customer service, has three parallel stop buttons 14 in the width direction of the front center, and a start lever 15 and a multiplying number setting on the left side thereof. It has a button 16a and a settlement button 16b, a return button 17 on the right side and an insertion port 18 for inserting medals one by one, and a tray 19 at the lower front of these.

  When the player uses the slot machine 11 for games, medals are inserted into the insertion slot 18 one by one. The inserted medals are sorted by a medal sorting device 25, which will be described later. Appropriate medals selected as valid are taken into the inside, and medals selected as inappropriate and surplus medals exceeding a predetermined number are medal payout shoots 26. And it returns to the saucer 19 through the return port 27 (refer FIG. 2). The medal is also returned to the tray 19 when the player depresses the settlement button 16b to stop the game.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the internal structure of the slot machine. As shown in FIG. 2, the front door 11a of the slot machine is opened in a single-open manner, the slot machine main body 11b is provided with a control unit 11c in the upper part of the internal space, and the position of the pattern on the outer peripheral surface in the center. 3 rows of reels 13 are installed to rotate and stop and use the game, a medal taking-in and paying-out medal paying device 21 is installed in the lower center, a power supply device 22 is installed on the left side, and a right side An overflow tank 23 is installed in the tank. The control unit 11c processes signals of the medal sorting device 25 and controls each unit of the slot machine 11.

  On the other hand, the front door 11a has a reel cover 24, a medal sorting device 25 for selecting the suitability of medals, a medal payout chute 26, and a return port 27 in this order from the top to the bottom. Then, the medals inserted into the insertion slot 18 are once guided to the medal sorting device 25, and after being sorted here, the accepted medals are passed through the medal transport passage 25a connected to the outlet of the medal sorting device 25. Then, it is received in a hopper tank 21 a provided at the upper part of the medal payout device 21. On the other hand, the medal rejected by the medal sorting device 25 is returned to the tray 19 through the medal payout chute 26 and the return port 27.

  FIG. 3 is a drawing showing an example of the medal sorting device, where (a) is a perspective view showing the front side of the medal sorting device, and (b) is a perspective view showing the back side of the medal sorting device. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an internal structure of the medal sorting device, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of a lower guide mechanism included in the medal sorting device. 6A and 6B are diagrams showing two states that the lower guide mechanism can take. FIG. 6A is a cross-sectional view of the main part of the medal sorting device showing a medal receiving state of the lower guide mechanism, and FIG. 6B is a lower guide mechanism. It is principal part sectional drawing of the medal selection apparatus which shows the medal acceptance | regulation control state of.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the medal sorting device 25 is integrally combined with a passage 37 connecting the inlet 31 (see FIG. 1) and the inlet 31 corresponding to the connection to the outlet 33 below. In a medal acceptance restricted state between the board 61 and the push plate 35 and not accepting medals, medals are excluded from the passage 37 by the lower guide mechanism. The pressing plate 35 is rotatably mounted on the substrate 61 with the support shaft 57 as a rotation fulcrum, and is always urged toward the substrate 61 by the urging force of the pressing plate pressing coil spring 56 wound around the support shaft 57. Is kept closed. In the following description, the push plate 35 side of the medal sorting device 25 is the front side of the device, and the substrate 61 side is the back side of the device. Further, in the push plate 35 and the substrate 61, the surface on which the respective passages 37 are formed is defined as an inner surface, and the other surface is defined as an outer surface.

  The passage 37 has a shape having a longitudinal passage 37a and a lateral passage 37c in a substantially L shape. Specifically, the passage 37 includes a longitudinal passage 37a, a lateral passage 37c that is inclined downward and reaches the outlet, and a curved portion 37b that connects these bidirectional passages 37a and 37c in a smooth curved shape. Is done.

  A substantially elliptical discharge port 65 opening along the lateral passage 37c is formed in a portion of the substrate 61 forming the lateral passage 37c. The discharge port 65 is for discharging a medal to be returned, and the discharged medal is guided to the return port 27 (see FIG. 2). As will be described in detail later, an inclined portion 63 on which the slider portion 45a of the side guide 45 provided on the push plate 35 slides is provided at the lower edge of the discharge port 65 in the substrate 61. .

  An eject button 53 is provided on the outer surface side of the substrate 61. The eject button 53 is opened by pushing the push plate 35 in conjunction with the depression of the return button 17 (see FIG. 1). When the player presses the return button 17 and the eject button 53 is pressed, the push plate 35 is opened in conjunction with this, and the jammed medals fall downward from the opening between the two open plates, forcing it. To be eliminated.

  An upper guide 39 is provided on the upper side of the lateral passage 37c on the push plate 35 side to restrict and guide the upper portion of the standing standing medal. A fixed lower guide 38 and a movable lower guide 41 are provided below the lateral passage 37c on the push plate 35 side to restrict and guide the lower portion of the standing standing medal. The upper guide 39 and the fixed lower guide 38 are made of a hard metal plate fixed to the push plate 35.

  The fixed lower guide 38 is located upstream of the movable lower guide 41 in the advancing direction of the medal. A passage on the push plate 35 side between the upper guide 39 and the fixed lower guide 38 is provided with an exclusion lever 42 that rotates in the thickness direction of the passage and is configured so as to be able to protrude and retract in the passage. The exclusion lever 42 is urged from the outer surface side of the push plate 35 by an urging spring 54 (see FIG. 5) so as to face the passage 37, and protrudes into the passage when not in contact with the medal. When it comes into contact with a passing medal, it immerses and protrudes again after passing the medal.

  Such an exclusion lever 42 is disposed to discharge an irregular medal having a diameter smaller than that of a regular medal from a discharge port 65 provided on the substrate 61 side. Specifically, medals having a small diameter and passing through the passage 37 without being supported by the upper guide 39 are pushed out toward the discharge port 65 and discharged from the discharge port 65.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, the movable lower guide 41 is composed of an L-shaped plate member disposed from the outer surface side of the push plate 35. The movable lower guide 41 is provided with an L-shaped passage forming portion 41b on the inner surface side of the push plate 35 through an opening 35a (see FIG. 4) formed in the push plate 35, and one surface 41a thereof is a lateral passage. A part of the bottom surface of 37c is configured (hereinafter, the surface 41a is referred to as a partial bottom surface 41a), and the lower end of the medal is supported.

  The movable lower guide 41 has an L-shaped side support portion 41c rotatably supported by a shaft 40 provided on the outer surface side of the push plate 35, and a passage forming portion 41b (partial bottom surface 41a) by an urging spring 43. Is urged away from the upper guide 39. In addition, the movable lower guide 41 has a transmission portion 41e with which an armature 51, which is a movable plate of a solenoid (driving device) 47, which will be described later, abuts on the opposite side of the passage forming portion 41b in the L-shaped side support portion 41c. The blocker 41d protrudes from the outer surface side of the push plate 35 toward the inside of the passage 37. The push plate 35 is provided with a hole 35b (see FIG. 4) that allows the blocker 41d to appear and retract in the lateral passage 37c in accordance with the rotation of the movable lower guide 41 in the vicinity of the upper guide 39.

  Further, a side guide 45 is supported on the movable lower guide 41 so as to be rotatable on a shaft 46 (see FIG. 6) provided on the back side of the partial bottom surface 41a. The side guide 45 includes an attachment portion 45c attached to the back side of the partial bottom surface 41a in the passage formation portion 41b, a guide portion 45d (see FIG. 6) erected from the attachment portion 45c, a slider portion 45a, and a projection portion 45b. And have.

  As shown in FIG. 6A, the guide portion 45d protrudes upward from the partial bottom surface 41a and supports the lower portion of the passing medal from the side (in the thickness direction of the medal) in the medal receiving state where the medal is received. To do. Further, as shown in FIG. 6B, the guide portion 45d descends to a position that is the same as or lower than the partial bottom surface 41a in the medal acceptance restricted state in which no medal is accepted, and enters the discharge port 65. Together with the partial bottom surface 41a having an inclination that goes downward, the passing medal is guided to the discharge port 65.

  The slider portion 45a is a rounded portion provided outside the corner portion connecting the attachment portion 45c and the guide portion 45d, and abuts against an inclined portion 63 (see FIG. 4) provided on the substrate 61. Slide with this. The protrusion 45b is provided at the downstream end of the guide portion 45d in the medal movement direction. The protrusion 45b prevents a medal to be excluded from hitting an end of the discharge port 65 and bounced into a detection area of the sensor unit 49 described later in a medal acceptance restricted state where no medal is accepted. is there. In addition, although the case where the two slider parts 45a are provided is illustrated here, it is not limited to this. The side guide 45 is urged in the same direction as the movable lower guide 41 by its own weight.

  A sensor unit 49 is provided between the blocker 41 d and the outlet 33 on the push plate 35 side. The sensor unit 49 counts the number of medals that pass through the movable lower guide 41 and reach the outlet 33. The sensor unit 49 has two detection means (sensors), is configured to be able to detect the advancing direction of the medal, and is arranged from the outer surface side of the push plate 35.

  On the outer surface side of the push plate 35, in addition to the sensor portion 49, a solenoid 47, an L-shaped side support portion 41c in the movable lower guide 41, and the like are disposed. The solenoid 47 rotates the movable lower guide 41 via a plate-shaped armature 51 (see FIG. 5) by turning on and off. Specifically, one end of the armature 51 is urged by the return spring 52 and the other end is positioned on the opposite side of the partial bottom surface 41 a of the L-shaped side support portion 41 c of the movable lower guide 41. It is provided so as to contact the transmission part 41e.

  In addition, a sensor 55 (see FIG. 5) for detecting the state of the exclusion lever 42 in and out of the passage is provided on the outer surface side of the push plate 35, and it is possible to detect clogged medals and unauthorized devices.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the lower guide mechanism includes a movable lower guide 41, a side guide 45, and a blocker 41d.

  Here, the operation of the lower guide mechanism will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7A is a front view of the medal sorting device. FIGS. 7B to 7E are diagrams showing the transition of the state of the lower guide mechanism when switching from the medal acceptance state to the medal acceptance restriction state in the AA cross section of FIG. 7A. (E)-(b) of FIG. 7 has shown the transition of the state of the lower guide mechanism when it switches from a medal acceptance control state to a medal acceptance state.

  In the medal acceptance restricted state, the solenoid 47 is off. As shown in the order of (e) to (b) of FIG. 7, when the solenoid 47 is turned on when transitioning from the medal acceptance restricted state to the medal acceptance state, the armature 51 is separated from the outer surface of the substrate 61 by the magnetic force. Sucked into. Along with this movement, the transmission portion 41e in the movable lower guide 41 also rotates in a direction away from the outer surface of the push plate 35, and the passage forming portion 41b on the other end side has a right angle between the inner surface of the push plate 35 and the partial bottom surface 41a. Rotate until That is, the movable lower guide 41 rotates to a position where the distance between the upper guide 39 and the partial bottom surface 41a becomes smaller than the diameter of the regular medal. The rotating direction at this time is a direction against the urging force of the urging spring 43.

  Further, the side guide 45 also rotates in conjunction with the movement of the movable lower guide 41. Specifically, the side guide 45 rotates until the guide portion 45d becomes a right angle with respect to the partial bottom surface 41a while the slider portion 45a slides in a direction in which the slider portion 45a is inclined with respect to the inclined portion 63. As a result, a medal receiving state in which the inserted medal can pass through the passage 37 is established (see FIG. 6A).

  In the medal receiving state, the solenoid 47 is on. As shown in the order of (b) to (e) in FIG. 7, when the solenoid 47 is turned off and becomes a non-magnetic force in the transition from the medal acceptance state to the medal acceptance restriction state, the armature 51 has the force of the return spring 52. Is biased in a direction approaching the outer surface of the push plate 35. Along with this movement, the transmitting portion 41e of the movable lower guide 41 also rotates in the direction approaching the outer surface of the push plate 35 by the biasing force of the biasing spring 43, and the partial bottom surface 41a on the other end side moves away from the upper guide 39. To turn. That is, the movable lower guide 41 rotates to a position where the distance between the upper guide 39 and the partial bottom surface 41a becomes larger than the diameter of the regular medal.

  Further, the side guide 45 also rotates in conjunction with the movement of the movable lower guide 41. Specifically, the side guide 45 rotates in a direction in which the guide portion 45 d moves away from the upper guide 39 while the slider portion 45 a slides in a direction in which the slider portion 45 a is inclined with respect to the inclined portion 63. As a result, the guide portion 45d of the side guide 45 is aligned with the partial bottom surface 41a inclined by the rotation, or is placed in a medal acceptance restricted state positioned below (see FIG. 6B). Thus, the inserted medal is not guided by the upper guide 39 on the upper side, and collides with the blocker 41d protruding from the lateral passage 37c, so that the medal pushed out to the substrate 61 side becomes the lateral passage. 37c is removed and returned to the player through the outlet 65.

  Further, a medal that is excluded from the discharge port 65 may collide with an end portion of the discharge port 65 or the like and be flipped to the detection area of the sensor unit 49. In the above configuration, since the protrusion 45b flips the medal toward the discharge port 65, it can be avoided that the sensor unit 49 erroneously detects the medal to be returned.

  As described above, the medal sorting device 25 according to the present embodiment has the passage 37 between the opposed surfaces of the pair of substrates 61 and the push plate 35 for allowing the inserted medal to roll and pass by its own weight. The medal sorting device 25 opens a part of the bottom surface of the passage 37 and returns a medal in a state where the medal is not received, and the substrate 61 is provided with a discharge port for discharging the medal facing the passage. An upper guide 39 that guides the upper end of the medal on the push plate 35, a movable lower guide mechanism that opposes the discharge port 65 and guides the lower end of the medal, and a solenoid 47 that is a drive device that drives the lower guide mechanism; The lower guide mechanism is pivotably supported by the push plate 35, and a movable lower guide 41 in which a passage forming portion 41b that forms a part of the bottom surface of the passage is provided so as to be able to protrude and retract in the passage is possible. A blocker 41d attached to the lower guide 41 and provided so as to be able to move in and out in the passage 37, and a side guide 45 rotatably supported by the movable lower guide 41. The movable lower guide 41 includes a passage forming portion 41b. Is biased in a direction away from the upper guide 39, and when the solenoid 47 is turned on, the passage forming portion 41b appears in the passage 37 by rotating against the biasing direction so that the bottom surface of the passage 37 is covered. In the state where the bottom surface of the passage 37 is formed, the side guide 45 guides the lower part of the medal from the side surface, the blocker 41d is retracted outside the passage 37, and the bottom surface of the passage 37 is not formed. Thus, the side guide 45 descends to a height equal to or lower than the height of the partial bottom surface 41a in the passage forming portion 41b, and the blocker 41d appears in the passage 37.

  For this reason, when the movable lower guide 41 in the lower guide mechanism receives a medal, the solenoid 47 is turned on to rotate against the urging direction to form a passage in the passage formation portion 41b. Allows the passage of medals. On the other hand, when the medal is not accepted, the solenoid 47 is turned off to rotate in the urging direction to release the passage formation by the passage formation portion 41 b and remove the medal from the discharge port 65. By making the rotational direction of the movable lower guide 41 when releasing the passage formation the same as the biasing direction, the passage formation can be quickly released and the swallowing of medals can be prevented.

  Further, the side guide 45 is provided so as to be interlocked with the rotation of the movable lower guide 41, and in the state where the bottom surface of the passage is formed by the passage forming portion 41b, the lower portion of the medal is guided from the side surface, and the bottom surface of the passage is formed. When there is no medal, the lower part of the passage forming portion 41b is lowered to a height equal to or lower than the partial bottom surface 41a. Therefore, when the medal is not accepted, the lower side of the medal is guided by the side guide 45 and the medal is swallowed. No such thing happens.

  Moreover, when releasing the passage from the state in which the bottom of the passage is formed in the passage formation portion 41b, the medal is not sandwiched between the blocker 41d and the substrate 61, and the discharge port 65 can be secured widely. , Medal clogging does not occur either. In addition, since the configuration is simpler than the prior art, it can be manufactured at low cost.

  Therefore, it is possible to switch between a normal passage and a passage for returning medals with an inexpensive configuration without causing clogging or swallowing of medals.

  Further, in the medal sorting device 25, an inclined portion 63 having an inclination rising in the discharge direction is provided on the lower side of the discharge port 65 in the substrate 61, and the side guide 45 is linked to the movable lower guide 41 and the inclined portion 63. Is configured to be displaced so as to guide the lower part of the medal from the side surface.

  Thus, in conjunction with the movable lower guide 41, the lower portion of the medal is guided from the side surface in a state where the bottom surface of the passage is formed in the passage formation portion 41b, and the passage formation portion in a state where the bottom surface of the passage is not formed. It is possible to easily realize the side guide 45 that descends to a height equal to or lower than the partial bottom surface 41a in 41b.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope shown in the claims, and embodiments obtained by appropriately combining technical means disclosed in different embodiments. Is also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

11 Slot machines (gaming machines)
25 Medal sorting device 27 Return port 35 Push plate (the other plate member)
37 passage 38 fixed lower guide 39 upper guide 41 movable lower guide (lower guide, lower guide mechanism)
41a Partial bottom surface 41b Passage formation part 41c Side support part 41d Blocker (lower guide mechanism)
43 Biasing spring 45 Side guide (lower guide mechanism)
47 Solenoid (drive device)
49 Sensor part 61 Substrate (one plate-like member)
63 Inclined part 65 Discharge port

Claims (4)

A medal selection that has a passage for rolling inserted medals by its own weight between the opposing surfaces of a pair of plate-like members, and returns a medal by opening a part of the bottom surface of the passage without accepting the medal. A device,
On one plate-like member,
An outlet for discharging medals is provided facing the passage,
On the other plate-shaped member,
An upper guide to guide the top edge of the medal;
A movable lower guide mechanism facing the discharge port and guiding the lower end of the medal;
A driving device for driving the lower guide mechanism,
The lower guide mechanism is
A lower guide that is rotatably supported by the other plate-like member, and a passage forming portion that forms a part of the bottom surface of the passage is provided in the passage so as to be freely retractable;
A blocker attached to the lower guide and provided so as to be freely movable in and out of the passage;
A side guide rotatably supported by the lower guide,
The lower guide is biased in a direction in which the passage forming portion is separated from the upper guide, and is turned against the biasing direction when the driving device is turned on, whereby the passage forming portion is moved in the passage. Appeared to form the bottom of the passage,
In a state where the bottom surface of the passage is formed, the side guide guides the lower part of the medal from the side surface, the blocker is retracted out of the passage,
In a state in which the bottom surface of the passage is not formed, the side guide is lowered to a height equal to or lower than a surface that forms the bottom surface of the passage in the passage forming portion, and the blocker appears in the passage. A medal sorting device. On the lower side of the discharge port in the one plate-like member, it has an inclined portion having an inclination that rises in the discharge direction,
The medal sorting device according to claim 1, wherein the side guide is displaced in a state in which the lower portion of the medal is guided from a side surface by sliding on the inclined portion in conjunction with the lower guide. A sensor for detecting the passage of medals is provided downstream of the blocker in the passage in the traveling direction of the medals,
3. The medal sorting device according to claim 1, wherein the side guide includes a protrusion that contacts a medal in the acceptance restricted state and restricts the medal from entering the detection area of the sensor. 4. .   A gaming machine comprising the medal sorting device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

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