JP2017090452A - Vibration characteristic discrimination unit - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To precisely detect, with high precision, abnormal vibration or an impact applied artificially to a game machine (amusement equipment) of pachinko etc.SOLUTION: A vibration characteristic discrimination unit comprises: a sensor part (10) which detects mechanical vibration; and a determination part (20) which determines abnormal vibration or an impact based upon a time for which the level of a vibration detection signal of the sensor part is being continuously equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold. The determination part (20) sets different determination reference times corresponding to one or more different thresholds respectively so as to determine one or more different kinds of abnormal vibration or impact. The sensor part comprises: a coil (11) which varies in inductance according to mechanical vibration; a self-oscillation circuit (13) which has the coil built in as an oscillation element; and a computing part (14) which generates a measurement value corresponding to an oscillation frequency thereof, finds a temporal difference value of the measurement value as speed data, and also integrates the speed data to find displacement data, and then outputs the displacement data as the vibration detection signal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a vibration characteristic discriminator for detecting vibrations or shocks, and particularly suitable for detecting abnormal vibrations or shocks that are artificially applied to game machines (amusement equipment) such as pachinko machines. It is.

  In a gaming machine (amusement device) such as a pachinko, a user during the game may perform an illegal act such as hitting the device. For this reason, as a security measure, it has been conventionally performed to appropriately detect abnormal vibrations or shocks caused to such devices by such illegal acts. For example, in Patent Document 1 described below, a steel ball is installed on an annular coil, and the movement displacement of the steel ball due to vibration / impact is captured as a voltage signal from the inductance displacement of the coil, and is determined and output at a predetermined threshold value. In this case, since the determination is performed only based on whether the level of the voltage signal exceeds a predetermined threshold, there is a problem that the determination accuracy is poor. Therefore, the determination accuracy is improved by inputting a signal of the gaming machine state (winning ball, etc.) and changing the threshold value each time according to the state. However, there is a disadvantage that the gaming machine state must be detected.

  In the following Patent Document 2, a piezoelectric element is used as an impact sensor, and the output voltage signal is filtered to discriminate between the frequency at which the gaming machine table is shaken and the frequency at which it is tapped. Further, as described above, it is disclosed that the accuracy of fraud determination is improved by monitoring the gaming machine state and combining the gaming machine state and detection information by a sensor. The following Patent Document 3 also discloses that a piezoelectric element is used as an impact sensor and the output voltage signal is filtered to discriminate between the frequency at which the gaming machine base is shaken and the frequency at which it is tapped. The fraud determination is performed by changing the gain for each frequency. However, these conventional techniques have the disadvantage of requiring a filter for frequency discrimination.

Japanese Patent No. 5211502 JP 2010-124999 A Japanese Patent No. 4987552

  In the above-described prior art, when detecting vibration (impact) due to external force on the gaming machine, if detection sensitivity is increased, vibration may be detected in the absence of substantial external force. In order to avoid this, it is only necessary to lower the detection sensitivity. However, in that case, there is a disadvantage that vibration due to an external force cannot be detected. Therefore, the state of the gaming machine is monitored, and if it is not related to the winning ball, sensor detection is disabled or the detection threshold is increased to lower the detection sensitivity, while in the case of a winning ball, the detection sensitivity is increased. Judgment is made. Therefore, there is an inconvenience that a system configuration for detecting the gaming machine state must be adopted. In addition, it is necessary to install a sensor in a place where it is easy to detect vibration due to external force (near the prize opening). However, since one sensor has low detection accuracy, it is necessary to install two or more sensors. There is a very difficult current situation.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is suitable for accurately detecting vibrations or impacts that are artificially applied to a gaming machine (amusement device) such as a pachinko with a simple configuration. The present invention intends to provide a vibration characteristic discriminator, and further provides a highly accurate vibration detection device.

  The vibration characteristic discriminator according to the present invention includes a sensor unit that detects mechanical vibration and a determination unit that determines vibration or impact based on a time during which the level of a vibration detection signal from the sensor unit lasts a predetermined threshold or more.

  According to the present invention, since the vibration or impact is determined based on the time during which the level of the vibration detection signal from the sensor unit lasts more than the predetermined threshold, the predetermined threshold corresponding to the type of vibration or impact to be determined. By appropriately setting the combination of the above level change and its duration, it is possible to easily determine a specific type of vibration or impact without detecting the gaming machine state and without providing a filter for frequency discrimination. can do.

  In one embodiment, the determination unit may be configured to determine one or more different types of vibrations or impacts by setting different determination reference times corresponding to each of the one or more different thresholds.

  In one embodiment, the sensor unit includes a coil, a magnetic response member arranged to be displaced with respect to the coil in response to a mechanical vibration to be detected, and the coil as an oscillating element. Generating a measurement value corresponding to the oscillation frequency based on the oscillation output signal of the self-excited oscillation circuit, and a self-excited oscillation circuit whose oscillation frequency changes according to the inductance change of the coil according to the displacement of the magnetic response member A calculation unit that obtains a temporal difference value of the measured value as velocity data, obtains displacement data by integrating the velocity data, and outputs the displacement data as the vibration detection signal. Thereby, the calculating part which processes the output signal of a coil is comprised as an all digital circuit, and can perform a measurement with sufficient precision. Further, since the speed data is obtained from the change in the oscillation frequency and the displacement data is obtained from the speed data, the displacement data corresponding to the impact or vibration is appropriately generated based on the change in the oscillation frequency according to the change in the inductance of the coil. Therefore, accurate vibration detection can be performed.

  If another viewpoint of this invention is followed, the said sensor part using the said coil can be applied as a single vibration detection apparatus. That is, the vibration detection device according to the present invention incorporates a coil, a magnetic response member disposed so as to be displaced with respect to the coil in accordance with a mechanical vibration to be detected, and the coil as an oscillation element, A self-excited oscillation circuit whose oscillation frequency changes according to a change in inductance of the coil according to the displacement of the magnetic response member with respect to the coil, and a measurement value according to the oscillation frequency is generated based on the oscillation output signal of the self-excited oscillation circuit And a calculation unit that obtains a temporal difference value of the measured value as velocity data, obtains displacement data by integrating the velocity data, and outputs the displacement data as a vibration detection signal. According to this configuration, the speed data is obtained from the change in the oscillation frequency according to the change in the coil inductance, and the displacement data is obtained from the speed data. Therefore, the shock or vibration is generated based on the change in the oscillation frequency according to the change in the coil inductance. Displacement data according to the frequency can be appropriately generated, and vibration detection with high accuracy can be performed.

The block diagram which shows one Example of this invention. The timing chart which shows the operation example of the determination part in FIG. The block diagram which shows the detailed example of the sensor part in FIG. (A) is a perspective view which shows an example of the combination of the coil and magnetic response member in FIG. 1, (b) is a side view which shows another example of the combination of the coil and magnetic response member in FIG.

  In FIG. 1, a vibration characteristic discriminator according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a sensor unit 10 and a determination unit 20. The sensor unit 10 is provided at an appropriate position inside a gaming machine (for example, a pachinko machine), and detects mechanical vibration applied to the gaming machine from the outside. This mechanical vibration is undesirable in terms of security, for example, when a player strikes or shakes a gaming machine. For example, the sensor unit 10 outputs a vibration detection signal (displacement detection data) having a level corresponding to the displacement of the mechanical vibration. As the sensor unit 10, an appropriate vibration detection device such as one using a coil (inductance element) as described later or one using a piezoelectric element may be used. It is assumed that the output signal of the sensor unit 10 has a positive / negative value with the midpoint of vibration (0 point of displacement) being 0.

  The determination unit 20 determines vibration or impact based on the time during which the level Ld of the vibration detection signal from the sensor unit 10 lasts a predetermined threshold value or more, and is different corresponding to each of one or more different threshold values L1 and L2. By setting the determination reference times Th1 and Th2, one or more different types of abnormal vibrations or impacts are determined. In FIG. 1, as an example, the determination unit 20 includes two determination sequences. In the first determination series, the comparison unit 21 determines whether or not the absolute value of the level Ld of the vibration detection signal is greater than or equal to a predetermined first threshold L1. That is, the level Ld composed of positive or negative values is compared with the positive + L1 and negative value −L1 of the first threshold value L1, respectively, and it is determined whether Ld ≧ + L1 or Ld ≦ −L1 is satisfied. The duration counting unit 23 counts the duration T1 in which “Ld ≧ + L1” or “Ld ≦ −L1” is continuously established, and the comparison unit 25 determines that the duration T1 is a predetermined determination reference time Th1. It is determined whether it is above. Similarly, in the second determination series, the comparison unit 22 determines whether the absolute value of the level Ld of the vibration detection signal is equal to or greater than a predetermined second threshold L2 (that is, Ld ≧ + L2 or Ld ≦ −L2). And the duration counting unit 24 counts the duration T2 in which “Ld ≧ + L2” or “Ld ≦ −L2” is continuously established. It is determined whether or not the duration T2 is equal to or longer than a predetermined determination reference time Th2.

  In the first determination sequence, the predetermined first threshold value L1 and the determination reference time Th1 are set so as to determine that a relatively short time strong impact such as hitting a gaming machine has been applied. Regarding such an impact, the frequency of the vibration detection signal output from the sensor unit 10 is relatively high, and the amplitude level is also relatively high. On the other hand, in the second determination series, the predetermined second threshold L2 and the determination reference time Th2 are set so as to determine that vibration such as shaking the gaming machine has been applied. Regarding such vibrations such as shaking, the frequency of the vibration detection signal output from the sensor unit 10 is relatively low, and the amplitude level is also relatively low. Then, the relationship between each threshold value and the determination reference time is generally such that L1> L2 and Th1 <Th2.

  FIG. 2 is a timing chart illustrating an operation example of the determination unit 20. Waveforms 1 and 2 in FIG. 2A show an example of a vibration detection signal output from the sensor unit 10 when a strong impact is applied for a relatively short time such as hitting a gaming machine. In this case, at the first peak (positive peak) of the waveform 1, the time T1 in which the level Ld of the vibration detection signal consisting of the waveform 1 lasts for the predetermined first threshold L1 or more becomes the predetermined determination reference time Th1 or more. The abnormal impact determination signal D1 is output from the unit 25. On the other hand, at the first peak (negative peak) of the waveform 2, the absolute value of the level Ld of the vibration detection signal composed of the waveform 2 may be larger than the predetermined first threshold L1, but the duration T1 thereof is Since it is less than the predetermined determination reference time Th1, the abnormal impact determination signal D1 is not output from the comparison unit 25.

  A waveform 3 in FIG. 2B shows an example of a vibration detection signal output from the sensor unit 10 when a vibration such as shaking the gaming machine is applied. In this case, at the first peak (positive peak) of the waveform 3, the time T2 in which the absolute value of the level Ld of the vibration detection signal comprising the waveform 3 lasts for the predetermined second threshold L2 or more is the predetermined determination reference time Th2 or more. Thus, the abnormal vibration determination signal D2 is output from the comparison unit 26.

  The abnormality determination signal D1 or D2 output from the comparison unit 25 or 26 is OR-combined as an abnormality determination signal via the OR circuit 27. The abnormal impact determination signal D1 and the abnormal vibration determination signal D2 may be appropriately used as different types of abnormality determination signals without OR synthesis.

  In FIG. 1, two determination sequences are provided, but only one determination sequence or three or more determination sequences may be provided. In short, thresholds and duration determinations for level determination in one or more determination sequences The reference time for use may be set to a different value as appropriate according to the type of shock or vibration to be determined. Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to determine one or more different types of vibrations or impacts with a simple configuration without detecting the state of the gaming machine and without providing a filter for frequency discrimination. it can.

  FIG. 3 shows a specific example of the sensor unit 10 when a coil is used as the detection element. In FIG. 3, the sensor unit 10 includes one coil 11, a magnetic response member 12 disposed so as to be relatively displaced with respect to the coil 11 in accordance with a mechanical vibration to be detected, and the coil 11. Is incorporated as an oscillating element, and a self-excited oscillation circuit 13 whose oscillation frequency changes according to the inductance change of the coil 11 according to the displacement of the magnetic response member 12 with respect to the coil 11 is provided. The sensor unit 10 further includes a calculation unit 14 for obtaining displacement data corresponding to the mechanical vibration to be detected based on the oscillation output signal of the self-excited oscillation circuit 13. The calculation unit 14 generates a measurement value corresponding to the oscillation frequency based on the oscillation output signal of the self-excited oscillation circuit 13, obtains a temporal difference value of the measurement value as speed data, and integrates the speed data. Displacement data is obtained and the displacement data is output as the vibration detection signal.

  FIG. 4A is a perspective view showing an example of a combination of the coil 11 and the magnetic response member 12. In the example of FIG. 4A, the coil 11 made of a flat coil is fixed to the fixed portion 15, and the leaf spring-like movable portion 16 made of a magnetic material or a nonmagnetic and conductive material functions as the magnetic response member 12. The leaf spring-like movable portion 16 vibrates in accordance with the mechanical vibration to be detected, and the gap between the coil 11 and the movable portion 16 changes, whereby an inductance change corresponding to the mechanical vibration is applied to the coil 11. Arise.

  FIG. 4B is a side view showing another example of the combination of the coil 11 and the magnetic response member 12. In the example of FIG. 4B, the coil 11 made of a flat coil is fixed to the fixed portion 15, and a plate spring-like first movable portion 17 made of a magnetic material is disposed opposite to one surface of the flat coil, A flat spring-like second movable portion 18 made of a nonmagnetic and conductive material is disposed opposite the other surface of the flat coil, and both movable portions 17 and 18 function as the magnetic response member 12. Also in this case, the leaf spring-like first and second movable parts 17 and 18 vibrate in accordance with the mechanical vibration to be detected, and the gap between the coil 11 and the first and second movable parts 17 and 18 is increased. By changing, an inductance change corresponding to the mechanical vibration occurs in the coil 11. In this configuration, when one magnetic movable part 17 approaches the coil 11 according to the mechanical vibration to be detected, the other nonmagnetic movable part 18 moves away from the coil 11 so as to be displaced by push-pull. As a result, the inductance generated in the coil 11 changes additively, and the detection accuracy is improved.

  Returning to FIG. 3, the calculation unit 14 includes an oscillation period measurement step 30 as means for generating a measurement value corresponding to the oscillation frequency based on the oscillation output signal of the self-excited oscillation circuit 13. In this case, for example, by appropriately dividing the oscillation output signal so as to easily count the oscillation frequency period, a rectangular wave signal having an extended period is generated, and the extended period of the rectangular wave signal is set. It is preferable to generate a measurement value corresponding to the oscillation frequency by counting.

  In the next step 31, the speed data is calculated by obtaining the time difference value of the measurement value obtained in step 30. Next, in step 32, the displacement data Ld is calculated by integrating the speed data obtained in step 31.

  The displacement data Ld obtained in step 32 in the calculation unit 14 is supplied to the determination unit 20 in FIG. 1 as a vibration detection signal detected by the sensor unit 10 shown in FIGS. In the configuration examples of FIGS. 3 and 4, the impact or vibration of the detection target is primarily detected as a change in the oscillation frequency, but the shock or vibration of the detection target is processed by the processing of the calculation unit 14 illustrated in FIG. 3. Is converted into easy-to-handle displacement data and secondarily detected, and thus has an excellent effect of high practicality. Therefore, the sensor unit 10 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 can be advantageously applied in an appropriate measurement field as a single vibration detection device by being separated from the determination unit 20.

  The function of the calculation unit 14 may be realized by a combination of a microcomputer and software for realizing the processing of each step, but is not limited thereto, and may be realized by a dedicated digital circuit. Also, the function of the determination unit 20 in FIG. 1 can be realized by a combination of a microcomputer and software for realizing the processing of each unit 21 to 27, or can be realized by a dedicated digital circuit. May be.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Sensor part 11 Coil 12 Magnetic response member 13 Self-excited oscillation circuit 14 Calculation part 20 Determination part

Claims (3)

A sensor unit for detecting mechanical vibration;
A vibration characteristic discriminator comprising: a determination unit that determines vibration or impact based on a time during which a level of a vibration detection signal from the sensor unit lasts a predetermined threshold value or more.   The vibration characteristic discriminator according to claim 1, wherein the determination unit determines one or more different types of vibrations or shocks by setting different determination reference times corresponding to each of the one or more different threshold values. The sensor unit is
Coils,
A magnetic response member arranged to be displaced with respect to the coil in response to a mechanical vibration to be detected;
A self-oscillation circuit in which the coil is incorporated as an oscillating element, and an oscillation frequency is changed according to an inductance change of the coil in accordance with a displacement of the magnetic response member with respect to the coil;
A measurement value corresponding to an oscillation frequency is generated based on an oscillation output signal of the self-excited oscillation circuit, a time difference value of the measurement value is obtained as speed data, and displacement data is obtained by integrating the speed data, The vibration characteristic discriminator according to claim 1, further comprising a calculation unit that outputs displacement data as the vibration detection signal.

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