JP2020146087A - Performance device for game machine - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a performance device for a game machine capable of improving mechanical strength against vibration transmitted from a solenoid.SOLUTION: A performance device for a game machine comprises: a performance button 201; and a solenoid 271 comprising a plunger 273 which is moved forward/rearward in a prescribed direction, in which the plunger 273 is brought into contact with the performance button 201 to apply vibration. The performance button 201 has a protrusion part 248 coming into contact with the plunger 273 according to the forward/rearward movement of the plunger 273. The protrusion part 248 is formed into a thickness deviation shape by a punched part 248a, and is configured so that a contacted part which come into contact with the plunger 273 is thicker than the other parts of the protrusion part 248.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 11

Description

The present invention relates to a game machine production device provided in a game machine such as a slot machine.

A slot machine, which is a type of game machine, has a plurality of reels with multiple types of symbols on the outer peripheral surface, a start lever for instructing the start of rotation of all reels, and each for instructing the operation to stop the rotation of each reel. It is equipped with a plurality of stop switches provided corresponding to the reel. In this slot machine, after the player inserts a medal, when the start lever is operated, a winning combination lottery is performed and a plurality of reels are rotationally driven all at once. When the rotation speed of the reel reaches a certain speed, the stop switch can be operated, and when the stop switch is operated, the reel corresponding to the stop switch is stopped and the symbol is displayed. Then, when a plurality of symbols stopped and displayed on the valid line are aligned in a specific combination (combination corresponding to a predetermined combination), a prize is won, and the number of medals corresponding to the winning combination is paid out to the player. Then, the game ends.

In a game machine such as a slot machine, in order to add fun to the game, as a player participation type production device, a production operation device having a production button that can be pressed by the player is provided. (See, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-162885

Some production operation devices have a solenoid for vibrating the production button, and the effect button is vibrated by driving the plunger of this solenoid to move forward and backward, and the vibration is transmitted to the player's fingers or the like who touch the production button. As a result, the vibration effect of notifying the player of predetermined game information has become well known. However, the effect button is provided with a contacted portion that directly contacts the plunger, and the contacted portion may be damaged by receiving vibration (impact) from the plunger due to repeated use. Therefore, in such an effect button device, it is required to improve the mechanical strength against vibration received from the solenoid so that it can withstand long-term use due to the vibration effect.

The present invention has been made in view of such a problem, and an object of the present invention is to provide an effect device for a game machine capable of improving the mechanical strength against vibration transmitted from a solenoid.

In order to achieve such an object, the effect device for a game machine according to the present invention includes a vibrated member and a solenoid having a movable portion that moves forward and backward in a predetermined direction, and the movable portion is used as the vibrated member. An effect device for a game machine that abuts and applies vibration, and the vibrated member has a protrusion that comes into contact with the movable portion according to the advancing / retreating operation of the movable portion, and the protrusion is the said. It is formed in a hollow tubular shape with a lightening that opens on the side facing the movable part, and the protrusion is formed into an uneven thickness by the lightening and serves as a portion that comes into contact with the movable part. It is characterized in that the abutting portion is configured to be thicker than other portions of the protruding portion.

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the mechanical strength against vibration transmitted from the solenoid in the effect device for a game machine.

It is a front view of the slot machine of 1st Embodiment. It is a rear view which looked at the front door of the slot machine of 1st Embodiment from the rear. It is a front view which shows the internal structure of the slot machine of 1st Embodiment. It is a perspective view which looked at the production operation unit from above. It is a perspective view which looked at the production operation unit from below. It is sectional drawing of the production operation unit. (A) is a plan view of the effect operation unit, and (B) is a bottom view of the effect operation unit. It is a front view of the production operation unit. It is a right side view of the production operation unit. It is sectional drawing which shows along the arrow AA of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows along the arrow BB of FIG. It is an exploded perspective view which looked at the production operation unit from above. It is an exploded perspective view which looked at the production operation unit from below. It is an exploded perspective view which looked at the effect button and the like from above. It is an exploded perspective view of the effect button and the like viewed from below. It is a perspective view which looked down on the production button and the like. It is a front view of the pachinko gaming machine of the 2nd embodiment. It is a rear view of the pachinko gaming machine of the second embodiment. It is a front view of a game board. (A) is a front view of the accessory body of the movable accessory, and (B) is a bottom view of the accessory body of the movable accessory. (A) is a front view of the base portion of the movable accessory, and (B) is a bottom view of the base portion of the movable accessory. It is a front view which shows the operating state of the movable production unit. It is a schematic diagram which shows the flow of the normal production operation of a movable accessory. It is a schematic diagram which shows the flow of the special production operation of a movable accessory.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Slot machine]
As the gaming machine according to the first embodiment, the slot machine SM is shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, and first, the overall configuration of the slot machine SM will be described with reference to this figure. In the following description, for convenience, the directions indicated by the arrows in FIG. 1 will be referred to as front-back direction, left-right direction, and up-down direction, respectively.

<External configuration of slot machine>
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the slot machine SM includes a box-shaped housing 5 having an open front surface (front) and a front door 2 operably attached to the front opening of the housing 5. ing. The front door 2 is attached to the front opening of the housing 5 so as to be openable and closable by using hinge mechanisms 6a to 6c arranged at the front of the left side plate 5a of the housing 5 in front view. ..

A display screen 30a of the image display device 30 arranged on the rear surface side is arranged so as to face the front in a portion extending from the upper portion to the intermediate portion of the front door 2. Below the image display device 30, reel windows W facing the surfaces of the three reels 11a, 11b, 11c arranged side by side in the housing 5 are provided. That is, the display screen 30a is formed on the portion of the image display device 30 excluding the reel window W. Left and right upper speaker units 12a and 12b are provided above the left and right of the display screen 30a at the upper part of the front door 2. A decorative member 13 having a predetermined decoration is provided above the display screen 30a at the upper part of the front door 2. Left and right upper side lamps 14a and 14b are provided on the left and right sides of the display screen 30a at the upper part of the front door 2. Left and right lower side lamps 15a and 15b and left and right side lamp decorative members 16a and 16b are provided on the left and right sides of the display screen 30a in the middle portion of the front door 2. An operation panel 21 is provided below the display screen 30a in the middle portion of the front door 2.

On the upper surface side of the operation panel 21, a medal insertion slot 22 for inserting a game medal (game medium), a BET switch unit 23 for betting a game medal within the credited range, and an operation related to production are performed. An effect operation unit 100 for this purpose and a display lamp unit 46 composed of an LED lamp or the like are provided. On the front side of the operation panel 21, there are a start lever (start switch) 25 that is operated when all the reels 11a to 11c are started to rotate, and three for individually stopping the rotation of each reel 11a, 11b, 11c. Stop switches 26a, 26b, 26c (The stop switch 26a on the left side in the figure corresponds to the reel 11a on the left side, the stop switch 26b in the center corresponds to the reel 11b in the center, and the stop switch 26c on the right side corresponds to the reel 11c on the right side. Corresponding) is provided. Further, on the right side of the operation panel 21, a cylinder lock 28 for opening and closing the front door 2 is provided.

The medal passage extending from the medal insertion slot 22 is a receiving passage through which the inserted game medal passes when the inserted game medal is effectively accepted (leading to the hopper 51 described later), and a case where the inserted game medal is not accepted. Is branched into a return passage through which the game medal passes (leading to the game medal payment exit 41 described later), and a medal selector 35 (see FIG. 2) is provided at the branching portion. The medal selector 35 guides the game medals inserted into the medal insertion slot 22 to the receiving passage during the period when the inserted game medals are effectively accepted, and is inserted into the medal insertion slot 22 during the other period. The receiving passage and the returning passage are selectively configured so that one can be opened and the other can be closed so as to guide the game medal to the return passage.

As shown in FIG. 1, the reel window W is such that when all three reels 11a to 11c are stopped, three symbols for each reel, a total of nine symbols, are visibly displayed by the player. It is configured in. The winning line 29 that connects the symbol display areas of the reels 11a to 11c horizontally (horizontally in a straight line) is a winning line that is activated by betting a specified number of game medals, and is an activated winning line. It is configured so that the presence or absence of the establishment of the game combination is determined by the symbol combination stopped and displayed on 29 (also referred to as "effective line 29").

A transparent lower panel cover 31 is attached to the lower front side of the front door 2. A semi-transparent lower panel base and a lower panel illuminator (neither shown) provided with a predetermined pattern are attached to the back surface side of the lower panel cover 31, and the lower panel illuminator is turned on. Therefore, the design of the lower panel base is configured to be illuminated from the back side. A lower speaker unit 32 is provided on the lower right side of the lower panel cover 31. A woofer unit 33 is provided at the lower left of the lower panel cover 31.

A saucer assembly 40 is provided at the lower end of the front door 2. The saucer assembly 40 is provided with a game medal payment outlet 41 for paying out game medals, and a game medal storage plate 42 for storing game medals so as to face the game medal payment exit 41. .. An ashtray (not shown) may be provided on the game medal storage plate 42.

<Internal configuration of slot machine>
As shown in FIG. 3, a medal payout device 50 for paying out game medals obtained when a predetermined winning mode is configured as a result of the game is provided in the lower part (on the bottom plate 5d) in the housing 5. ing. The medal payout device 50 has a medal detection unit (not shown) for detecting game medals, and a hopper 51 that physically stores (stores) the inserted and effectively accepted game medals. There is. An auxiliary storage 53 for storing game medals overflowing from the hopper 51 is provided in the vicinity of the medal payout device 50, and the auxiliary storage 53 is in a full state (the auxiliary storage 53 can overflow the game medals). A full detection unit (not shown) is provided to detect whether or not the condition is (not shown). Further, at the left position of the medal payout device 50, a power supply device (power supply board) 55 for supplying electric power to various devices mounted on the slot machine SM is provided.

A reel base 19 is provided in the central portion of the housing 5 so as to be bridged between the left and right side plates 5a and 5b, and the reel unit 10 is placed on the reel base 19. Although the details will be described later, the reel unit 10 includes the above-mentioned three reels 11a, 11b, 11c and three reel motors (not shown in FIG. 3) for rotating these reels 11a to 11c, respectively. It is composed of. Each of the reels 11a to 11c is composed of a translucent member, and a translucent reel tape on which a plurality of types of symbols are displayed is attached to the outer peripheral surface thereof. Back lamps (not shown) are arranged on the inner surface side of the reels 11a to 11c, and by turning on these back lamps, the reels 11a, 11b, and 11c facing the inside of the reel window W The area is entirely illuminated from the inner surface side, or a predetermined combination of symbols that is stopped and displayed (for example, a symbol corresponding to a player on a valid line 29 or a winning line different from the valid line 29) is displayed. It is configured to illuminate only a part of each reel 11a, 11b, 11c so as to stand out.

A main control device (main control board) 81 that performs main control (including drive control of reels 11a to 11c, combination determination processing, etc.) related to the progress of the game is provided in the upper part of the housing 5. On the other hand, a sub-control device that performs effect control (image display control by the image display device 30, audio output control by the upper speaker units 12a, 12b, lower speaker unit 32, woofer unit 33, etc.) according to the progress of the game. As shown in FIG. 2, the (sub-control board) 82 is provided on the rear surface side of the front door 2. The main control device 81 and the sub control device 82 are connected by telecommunications using a cable harness, and information transmission between these devices can be performed in only one direction from the main control device 81 to the sub control device 82. It is possible. The image display device 30 is integrally assembled with the sub-control device 82, the frame member 71 covering the front periphery of each reel 11a to 11c, the relay board 72 covered with the relay board cover 73, and the like to form a unit. There is.

<Basic operation of slot machine>
To play a game with the slot machine SM, first bet by actually inserting a game medal into the medal insertion slot 22, or a 1-BET button or a MAX-BET button provided on the BET switch unit 23 (both are shown in the figure). By operating any of (not shown) to bet a specified number of game medals within the credit range, the winning line 29 out of the plurality of winning lines is activated.

Next, when the player operates the start lever 25, the number of bets is fixed (the bet game medals are used for the game), the combination determination process is performed, and then the minimum game time (one). The time (for example, 4.1 seconds) that must be secured at the minimum between the start of rotation of all reels in a game and the start of rotation of all reels in the next game has elapsed. After confirmation, each reel 11a to 11c starts to rotate, and a plurality of types of symbols displayed on the outer peripheral surface of the reels 11a to 11c are moved up and down (usually from top to bottom) in the reel window W. .. Then, when the rotation of the reels 11a to 11c reaches a predetermined speed and becomes a constant speed rotation, and the indexes of all the reels are detected, each of the stop switches 26a to 26c is activated (the operation of the stop switch can be effectively accepted). When the player operates the left stop switch 26a, the rotation of the left reel 11a stops, and when the center stop switch 26b is operated, the rotation of the center reel 11b stops and the right stop switch 26c is operated. Then, the rotation of the reel 11c on the right side is stopped.

Here, if the symbol combination stopped and displayed on the valid line 29 is in a predetermined winning mode (corresponding symbol of a game combination capable of winning a game medal), the number of cards corresponding to each winning mode. The game medal is paid out by the medal payout device 50 or added as a credit.

<Direction operation unit>
Next, the effect operation unit 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 to 16.

The effect operation unit 100 includes a unit base 110 provided on the operation panel 21 of the front door 2, an effect button device 200 including an effect button 201 that can be operated by the player, and a cross key 301 that can be operated by the player. It is mainly composed of a cross key device 300. The effect operation unit 100 is a composite operation device in which both the effect button device 200 and the cross key device 300 are assembled to one unit base 110.

≪Unit base≫
The unit base 110 is formed in the shape of a horizontally long container extending in the left-right direction by using a hard resin material. The unit base 110 includes a substantially flat plate-shaped plate portion 111 arranged on the upper surface of the operation panel 21, and a pair of connecting piece portions protruding from the left and right ends of the lower surface of the plate portion 111 and screwed to the operation panel 21. It includes 112, a box-shaped button mounting portion 120 that bulges from the right side of the lower surface of the plate portion 111, and a box-shaped cross key mounting portion 130 that bulges from the left side of the lower surface of the plate portion 111.

The plate portion 111 is arranged on substantially the same surface as the upper surface of the operation panel 21 by mounting the unit base 110 in a recess provided in the operation panel 21, and is an opening portion of the plate portion 111. The effect button 201 and the cross key 301 are exposed upward. The connecting piece portion 112 is formed with a screw insertion hole 112a through which a screw (not shown) for fastening the plate portion 112 to the operation panel 21 is inserted.

The button mounting portion 120 has a peripheral wall portion 121 extending from the lower surface of the plate portion 111 and surrounding the front, rear, left and right sides, and a bottom wall portion 122 that closes the bottom opening of the peripheral wall portion 121, and has a bottom that opens to the upper surface side. It is formed in the shape of a rectangular box. The button mounting portion 120 is surrounded by the wall portions 121 and 122 to form a button accommodating chamber 123 for accommodating the effect button 201, and the button insertion port 124 formed at the upper end of the button accommodating chamber 123 is provided. Through this, the effect button 201 is exposed to the outside. Three engaging grooves 125 for slidably supporting the effect button 201 are formed through the front edge portion, the trailing edge portion, and the right edge portion of the bottom wall portion 122 in the vertical direction. Three bosses (two screw bosses 122a, 122b and one positioning boss 122c) for holding the LED substrate 250, which will be described later, are erected on the bottom wall portion 122 extending into the button accommodating chamber 123. There is. In the center of the bottom wall portion 122, a guide hole 126 having a circular cross section for guiding the protrusion 248 of the effect button 201, which will be described later, is penetrated in the vertical direction. Further, two short fixed leg portions 127 extending downward are formed on the right end side of the bottom wall portion 122, and two long length portions extending downward are formed between the button mounting portion 120 and the cross key mounting portion 130. Fixed leg 128 is formed. The tips (lower ends) of the fixed legs 127 and 128 are arranged in the same plane, and screw holes 127a and 128a for attaching the protective cover 260 described later are formed in the centers thereof, respectively. Further, on the left end side of the bottom wall portion 122, a sensor insertion hole 129 for inserting the operation detection sensor 256 described later and projecting into the button accommodating chamber 123 is opened in the vertical direction.

The cross key mounting portion 130 has a surrounding wall 131 portion extending from the lower surface of the plate portion 111 and surrounding the front, rear, left and right sides, and is formed in a rectangular box shape that opens to the upper surface side and the lower surface side. A cross key storage chamber 132 for accommodating the cross key device 300 is formed in the cross key mounting portion 130, and a cross is formed through four cross key insertion ports 133 formed at the upper end of the cross key storage chamber 132. The four button portions 302a to 302d of the key 301 are exposed to the outside. A pair of mounting grooves 134 with which the switch case 330 described later is engaged are penetrated in the left-right direction on the left side surface of the surrounding wall portion 131. Further, the cross key accommodating chamber 132 is formed with a protrusion receiving groove 135 (see FIG. 11) for positioning the cross key 301 and the elastic member 310, which will be described later, extending in the vertical direction.

≪Direction button device≫
The effect button device 200 includes an effect button 201 provided in the button accommodation chamber 123 of the unit base 110 and pressed by a player, an operation detection sensor 256 for detecting that the effect button 201 has been operated, and an effect button. It is configured to include a solenoid unit 270 that applies vibration to 201.

The effect button 201 includes an outer button member 210 exposed upward from the button insertion port 124 of the plate portion 111, and an inner button member 240 that supports the outer button member 210 and is slidably attached to the button attachment portion 120. Is configured with.

The outer button member 210 includes an upper button cover 220 to which the player's fingers are touched during a pressing operation, and a lower button cover 230 detachably attached to the lower portion of the upper button cover 220.

The upper button cover 220 is formed in a rectangular container shape (flat container shape) having an opening at the bottom by using a colorless and transparent synthetic resin material having translucency. On the surface side of the upper button cover 220, a gently curved operating surface (a portion touched by the player's fingers) 221 having a convex shape upward is formed. Connecting holes 222 for mounting the lower button cover 230 are formed through the front and rear side surfaces of the upper button cover 220.

The lower button cover 230 is formed in the shape of a rectangular container having an opening at the bottom by using a white translucent synthetic resin material having light diffusivity. The lower button cover 230 may be subjected to the following light diffusion treatment. The light diffusing treatment includes a resin itself containing a light diffusing material (light diffusing fine particles), a textured surface (concavo-convex processing), and a light diffusing sheet attached to the front or back surface. Can be mentioned. A decorative sticker 232 (see FIG. 14 and the like) on which a character string such as "PUSH" is printed is attached to the surface portion 231 of the lower button cover 230. The decorative sticker 232 is formed of a transparent film having translucency. Since the lower button cover 230 is formed in white in appearance as described above, the visual appearance of the decorative sticker 232 (character string) is not impaired, and the character string (red character string) of "PUSH" is not impaired. ) Is highlighted, so that the player can be prompted to press the effect button.

Further, wedge-shaped connecting protrusions 233 that engage with the connecting holes 222 of the upper button cover 220 are formed on the front and rear side surfaces of the lower button cover 230. At the lower end of the lower button cover 230, three first arms 234 extending downward are formed in a cantilever shape. On the tip end side (free end side) of the first arm 234, a hook-shaped first claw portion 234a that engages with the inner button member 240 is formed so as to project outward. Further, at the lower end of the lower button cover 230, a plurality of fitting protrusions 235 (see FIG. 15 and the like) that fit into the upper opening of the inner button member 240 are formed.

The inner button member 240 is formed in the shape of a rectangular container having an upper opening by using a colored opaque synthetic resin material having a high light-shielding property. In the present embodiment, the material of the inner button member 240 is a black synthetic resin material having no translucency or having an extremely low translucency.

On the bottom surface of the inner button member 240, two boss insertion holes 241 having a circular cross section arranged in the front-rear direction so as to allow the three bosses 122a to 122c erected on the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120 to be inserted. 242 and one connector insertion hole 243 having a rectangular cross section are formed through in the vertical direction. The screw bosses 122a and 122b erected on the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120 are inserted into the boss insertion hole 241 and the connector insertion hole 243, respectively. At the upper ends of the screw bosses 122a and 122b, screw holes are formed in which screws 254 inserted into the LED substrate 250, which will be described later, are screwed. A positioning boss 122c erected on the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120 is inserted into the other boss insertion hole 242. A positioning pin for positioning the LED substrate 250, which will be described later, is formed at the upper end of the positioning boss 122c.

An LED accommodation space 239 (FIG. 6) in which an LED substrate 250 for displaying the effect button 201 (upper button cover 220) by emitting light is accommodated between the upper opening of the inner button member 240 and the lower opening of the lower button cover 230. Etc.) is formed. The LED substrate 250 is a rectangular flat plate-shaped circuit board, and a chip-type LED 251 is mounted in the center thereof. A surface mount (SMD) type full-color LED is applied to the chip type LED 251. The LED substrate 250 is formed with screw insertion holes 252 through which screws 254 for attaching and detaching the substrate are inserted at both diagonal corners on one of the front and back surfaces thereof in the vertical direction. Further, in the LED substrate 250, a positioning hole 253 into which the positioning pin of the positioning boss 122c is inserted penetrates in the vertical direction in the other diagonal corner on the front and back surfaces (the corner on the left rear side). It is formed. A connector 255 provided on the lower surface side of the LED board 250 is inserted into the connector insertion hole 243 together with the screw boss 124. In this embodiment, only one chip type LED 251 is mounted, but as a modification thereof, in order to make it easier to adjust the amount of light, or to perform a dramatic light emission display by a lighting pattern such as sequential lighting. In addition, a plurality of chip-type LEDs 251 may be mounted. Further, the plurality of chip-type LEDs 251 may be configured to mount an ultraviolet LED or the like in addition to the full-color LED. According to this, the lower button cover 230 or the decorative sticker 232 is a paint that is excited by ultraviolet rays. It is possible to apply the above to make a special character string or the like stand out.

Three second arms 244 extending downward are cantilevered on the front, rear, and right side surfaces of the inner button member 240. On the tip end side (free end side) of the second arm 244, a second claw portion 244a that engages with the engagement groove 125 of the button mounting portion 120 is formed so as to project outward. Further, the inner button member 240 is formed with an arm insertion hole 245 penetrating in the vertical direction inside the root of the second arm 244. The arm insertion hole 245 is provided at a position consistent with the first arm 234 of the lower button cover 230, and is formed in a size capable of inserting the first arm 234 in the vertical direction. Here, as shown in FIGS. 10 to 11, when the first arm 234 is inserted into the arm insertion hole 245, the outer surface of the first arm 234 comes into contact with or approaches along the inner surface of the second arm 244. It has a positional relationship (a positional relationship in which both overlap in the plate thickness direction). In addition, since the protruding length of the second arm 244 is formed to be longer than the protruding length of the first arm 234 by one claw, the outer surface of the first arm 234 comes into contact with the inner surface of the second arm 244. Alternatively, the first claw portion 234a is configured to engage the second claw portion 244a from below when they are close to each other. Therefore, when these are engaged with each other, the first claw portion 234a is further engaged with the second claw portion 244a engaged with the engagement groove 125 of the button mounting portion 210, which is a double engagement state. Become. In this way, the second claw portion 244a directly engages with the engagement groove 125 of the button mounting portion 120, and the first claw portion 234a indirectly engages, so that the button mounting portion 120 produces an effect. When the button 201 is attached or detached, the first claw portion 234a and the second claw portion 244a can be detached at the same time or individually, which enhances the convenience of maintenance.

A thin disk-shaped spring support portion 246a is projected and formed on the lower surface side of the inner button member 240, and a pair of spring receiving portions 246b that are curved in an arc shape before and after the spring support portion 246a are projected. There is. A coil spring 247 as an urging means is inserted and supported between the spring support portion 246a and each spring receiving portion 246b. The coil spring 247 is interposed between the lower surface of the inner button member 240 and the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120, and always elastically attaches the inner button member 240 (effect button 201) upward. Momentum. Even if the inner button member 240 is urged upward (in the direction of being pushed out of the button insertion port 124) by the coil spring 247, its second claw portion 244a is inside the engaging groove 125 of the button mounting portion 120. By being locked to the wall surface (locking surface) 125a (see FIGS. 6, 10 and the like), the button insertion port 124 is prevented from coming out to the outside. Therefore, the effect button 201 is always held at a position where the player can press it by the urging force of the coil spring 247.

As shown in FIGS. 15 to 16, a substantially tubular protrusion 248 projecting downward is integrally formed at the lower end of the spring support portion 246a. The protrusion 248 is formed with a bottomed meat steal (also referred to as “lightening”) 248a having a crescent-shaped or half-moon-shaped gap in the portion rearward from the center of the protrusion 248. ing. In the present embodiment, the cross section of the meat stealing 248a is formed in a crescent shape or a half moon shape instead of a circular shape (by deviating the position of the gap portion of the meat stealing 248a from the center), and the wall thickness of the protrusion 248 is increased. Is partially non-uniform (uneven wall shape). The protruding portion 248 has a thin-walled portion 248b formed on the outer arc (convex arc) side of the meat stealing 248a and a thick-walled portion 248b formed on the inner arc (concave arc) side of the meat stealing 248a. It has a portion (hereinafter referred to as a “contacted portion”) 248c. That is, the contacted portion 248c is a portion formed to be thicker than other portions of the protrusion 248. The tip surface of the contacted portion 248c is provided on the central axis of the plunger 273 of the solenoid 271 described later, and is a portion that comes into contact with the tip surface of the plunger 273. Reinforcing ribs 248d to 248 g having a semicircular cross section are formed to project substantially radially (diameterally) at four locations on the front, back, left and right of the outer peripheral surface of the protrusion 248. The reinforcing ribs 248d on the front side (contacted portion 248c side) are formed larger than the reinforcing ribs 248e to 248g at the other three locations (thin-walled portion 248b side). This is because the thickness of the contacted portion 248c is substantially increased by the presence of the reinforcing rib 248d, and the strength of the contacted portion 248c is increased. Further, due to the presence of the reinforcing rib 248d, the tip surface of the contacted portion 248c can be made substantially circular, and the surface shape corresponding to the tip surface of the plunger 273 can be made.

On the left side surface of the inner button member 240, a plate-shaped detected piece 249 (see FIG. 15 and the like), which is a portion for detecting that the effect button 121 has been operated by the operation detection sensor 256, is formed so as to project. There is.

The operation detection sensor 256 has a light emitting unit (light emitting element) that emits light and a light receiving unit (light receiving element) that receives light from the light emitting unit, and an inner button member is provided between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit. It is composed of a photosensor formed in a substantially U shape with a gap into which 240 pieces to be detected 249 can be inserted. The exterior body of the operation detection sensor 256 is formed with mounting holes 257 that penetrate vertically. The operation detection sensor 256 is fixed to the button mounting portion 120 by screwing the screw 258 inserted through the mounting hole 257 into the screw hole formed in the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120. At that time, the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion of the operation detection sensor 256 are arranged so as to project into the button accommodating chamber 123 through the sensor insertion hole 129 of the button mounting portion 120, and the detected piece 249 of the inner button member 240 can be detected ( It is held in a position where it can be inserted).

The operation detection sensor 256 outputs an off signal when the effect button 201 is not pressed and the detected piece 249 is not interposed between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit (not shaded), and the effect button 201 outputs an off signal. An ON signal is output when the detected piece 249 is pressed downward and is interposed (shielded) between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion. In the present embodiment, as described above, the entire inner button member 240 including the detected piece 249 is formed in black having a high light-shielding property, and the light emitted from the light emitting portion to the light receiving portion is accurately blocked. As a result, the detection accuracy of the operation detection sensor 256 is improved. The reason why the inner button member 240 is made of a resin material having a color different from that of the lower button cover 230 is that the inner button member 240 is combined with the lower button cover 230 and is white in order to enhance the diffusivity of the internal light. When molding using the resin material of (when the piece to be detected 249 is composed of a white resin material), the light receiving portion of the operation detection sensor 256 causes erroneous detection when detecting the operation of the effect button 201. This is because there is a problem that the risk increases and the detection accuracy decreases. The operation detection sensor 256 is covered and protected from below by a protective cover 260 attached to and detached from the bottom surface side of the button mounting portion 120.

The protective cover 260 is formed in the shape of a rectangular box that opens upward by using a transparent resin material. The protective cover 260 is formed in a size capable of covering the entire bottom surface of the button mounting portion 120. As shown in FIGS. 12 to 13, semi-cylindrical receiving recesses 261 for receiving the fixed legs 127 and 128 of the unit base 110 are formed at the four corners of the protective cover 260, and the protective cover 260 and the solenoid are formed. An upper screw insertion hole 262 through which a screw 279 for attaching / detaching the unit 270 is inserted is formed through. Further, a pair of positioning pins 263 for positioning the solenoid unit 270 are projected on the lower surface of the protective cover 260. Further, in the protective cover 260, a connector insertion hole 264 having a rectangular cross section through which the connector 259 of the operation detection sensor 256 is inserted and a plunger insertion hole 265 having a circular cross section through which the plunger 273 of the solenoid 271 described later is inserted are provided in the vertical direction. It is formed through through. A solenoid unit 270 as a vibration generating portion is provided on the lower surface side of the protective cover 260.

The solenoid unit 270 includes a solenoid 271 that vibrates the effect button 201, and a mounting bracket 276 to which the solenoid 271 is fixed.

The solenoid 271 is an electric actuator including a solenoid main body 272 having a built-in electromagnetic coil (not shown) and a magnetic plunger 273 that moves forward and backward (expansion and contraction drive) in the axial direction by controlling energization / de-energization of the electromagnetic coil. is there. The solenoid 271 is attached so that the advance / retreat direction (expansion / contraction direction) of the plunger 273 is the vertical direction. At the lower end of the plunger 273, a square drive plate 274 having a side length larger than the diameter of the plunger 273 is attached. A return spring (not shown) for urging the drive plate in a direction (downward) away from the solenoid main body 272 is interposed between the drive plate 274 and the solenoid main body 272. The solenoid 271 is electrically connected to the sub-control device 82, and the plunger 273 is expanded and contracted (advance / retreat drive) by applying the drive voltage supplied from the sub-control device 82 to the electromagnetic coil of the solenoid 271. ), And the vibration can be transmitted to the object engaged in or in contact with the tip of the plunger 273. The frequency, amplitude, and vibration intensity of the plunger 273 can be changed by adjusting the pulse width and pulse amplitude of the drive voltage (pulse voltage) set in the sub-control device 82.

The fixing bracket 276 includes a U-shaped fixing plate portion 277 with the open side facing upward, and a pair of mounting pieces 278 projecting outward from both ends (open ends) of the fixing plate 277. It is screwed and fixed to the left and right side surfaces of the solenoid body 272. The inner bottom surface of the fixed plate portion 277 is a portion where the drive plate 274 comes into contact with the advance / retreat drive of the plunger 273. That is, the fixing plate portion 277 serves as a reaction force plate for vibration or impact generated by the solenoid 271. The mounting piece 278 has a lower screw insertion hole 278a provided at a position corresponding to the upper screw insertion hole 262 of the protective cover 260 and a pin insertion hole 278b into which the positioning pin 263 of the protective cover 260 is inserted in the vertical direction. It is formed through through.

Here, when the solenoid 271 is energized, the plunger 273 is extended (driven upward) against the urging force of the return spring (not shown) and abuts (collisions) with the protrusion 248 of the effect button 201. Then, vibration is directly applied or impact is applied elastically. On the other hand, when the energization of the solenoid 271 is cut off, the plunger 273 is reducedly driven (retracted downward) by the urging force of the return spring (not shown). In the present embodiment, vibration can be transmitted from the plunger 273 to the protrusion 248 at a position where the effect button 201 is pressed by a predetermined amount.

(Assembly procedure of production button device)
The effect button device 200 having such a configuration is assembled as follows. First, with the coil spring 247 as the urging means supported by the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120, the inner button member 240 is inserted into the button accommodating chamber 123, and each boss 122a of the button mounting portion 120 is inserted. ~ 122c is inserted into the insertion holes 241 to 243 of the inner button member 240, and each second claw portion 244a of the inner button member 240 is engaged with each engagement groove 125 of the button mounting portion 120. At this time, by interposing the coil spring 247 between the lower surface of the inner button member 240 and the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120, the inner button member 240 is constantly urged upward and each of the first. The two claws 244a are locked to the inner wall surface (locking surface) 125a of each engaging groove 125 to prevent them from coming off.

Subsequently, the LED board 250 is placed on the upper end surfaces of the three bosses 122a to 122c inserted into the insertion holes 241 to 243 of the inner button member 240, and the positioning pin of the positioning boss 122c is placed in the positioning hole of the LED board 250. The LED board 250 is supported on the upper end surfaces of the three bosses 122a to 122c by screwing the screw 254 inserted into the screw insertion hole 252 of the LED board 250 into the screw holes of the screw bosses 122a and 122b while inserting the LED board 250. It is installed in the horizontal position.

Next, the lower button cover 230 is inserted into the button accommodating chamber 123, and each first claw portion 234a of the lower button cover 230 is engaged with each second claw portion 244a of the inner button member 240, whereby the lower button cover 230 Is attached to the inner button member 240. Further, the upper button cover 220 is covered with the upper surface of the lower button cover 230, and the connecting projection 233 of the lower button cover 230 is engaged with the connecting hole 222 of the upper button cover 220 to attach the upper button cover 220 to the lower button. Attach to cover 230. As a result, the outer button member 210 (upper button cover 220, lower button cover 230) and the inner button member 240 are integrated to assemble the effect button 201.

Subsequently, the operation detection sensor 256 is attached to the bottom surface side of the button attachment portion 120 by inserting a screw 258 into the attachment hole 257 of the operation detection sensor 256 from below and screwing it into the screw hole of the button attachment portion 120. At that time, the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion of the operation detection sensor 256 are arranged so as to project into the button accommodating chamber 123 through the sensor insertion hole 129 of the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120, and the detected piece of the inner button member 240 is detected. The 249 is held in a detectable (insertable) position.

Then, the protective cover 260 is put on the bottom surface side of the button mounting portion 120, the solenoid unit 270 is applied to the bottom surface side of the protective cover 260, and the screw 279 is inserted into the lower screw insertion hole 278a and the upper screw insertion hole 262 from below. The protective cover 260 and the solenoid unit 270 are fixed to the bottom surface side of the button mounting portion 120 by screwing them into the screw holes 127a and 128a of the fixing legs 127 and 128 of the unit base 110. As a result, the assembly of the effect button device 200 is completed.

(Action of production button device)
In the effect button device 200 having such a configuration, the entire effect button 201 is constantly urged upward by the coil spring 247, and the upper portion of the effect button 201 (outer button member 210) projects upward from the button insertion port 124. Therefore, the pressing operation by the player is possible (in the initial position). At this initial position, the detected piece 249 of the inner button member 240 does not block light between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion of the operation detection sensor 256, and an off signal (non-operation detection signal) is output from the operation detection sensor 256. To.

When the effect button 201 is pressed downward against the urging force of the coil spring 247 to reach the operation position (lower limit position), the lower surface of the inner button member 240 comes into contact with the bottom wall portion 122 of the button mounting portion 120. , Further movement (pressing operation) is restricted. At this operation position, the detected piece 249 of the inner button member 240 shields light between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion of the operation detection sensor 256, and the operation detection sensor 256 outputs an on signal (operation detection signal). The entire inner button member 240 including the detected piece 249 is made of a black resin material having a high light-shielding property, so that the detected piece 249 reliably blocks the optical path between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion for operation. The detection sensor 256 makes it possible to accurately detect the operation of the effect button 201.

When the effect button 201 is in the operating position, the protrusion 248 (contacted portion 248c) of the inner button member 240 is within the movable range of the plunger 273 of the solenoid 271, and the plunger is placed on the contacted portion 248c of the protrusion 248. The 273 can be brought into contact with each other. That is, at the operating position, the plunger 273 is telescopically driven (advanced / retreated) to bring the plunger 273 into continuous or intermittent contact with the contacted portion 248c of the protrusion 248, and transmit the vibration to the effect button 201. It can be used or an impact can be applied (that is, the player can be made to sense the vibration of the effect button 201 as a button vibration effect).

At this time, when the chip-type LED 251 built in the effect button 201 is made to emit light, the light of the chip-type LED 251 is transmitted through the lower button cover 230 and diffused in multiple directions, and the entire upper button cover 220 is uniformly irradiated. (It is possible to prevent uneven light and point emission). The surface-mounted chip-type LED is shorter than the bullet-type LED by the amount of the lead wire, but the bosses 122a to 122c of the button mounting portion 120 are inserted into the insertion holes 241 to 243 of the inner button member 240. By attaching the LED board 250 to the upper ends of the bosses 122a to 122c, the LED board 250 is fixed to the unit base 110 and inside the effect button 201 (between the outer button member 210 and the inner button member 240). The light of the chip-type LED 251 can be surely reached on the surface of the effect button 201, and the LED board 250 is not directly affected by the vibration of the solenoid 271. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of failures and malfunctions of LEDs.

(Maintenance of production button device)
Next, as maintenance of the effect button device 200, a procedure for replacing the LED substrate 250 will be described. First, by loosening the four screws 279 that fasten the solenoid unit 270 and the protective cover 260 to the button mounting portion 120 and releasing the fastening, the solenoid unit 270 and the protective cover 260 can be removed from the button mounting portion 120. Remove. When these are removed, the first claw portion 234a and the second claw portion 244a in an engaged state with each other are exposed on the bottom surface side of the button mounting portion 120, and both claw portions 234a and 244a can be accessed. Here, when the inner first claw portion 234a is separated from the outer second claw portion 244a and the engagement between the first claw portion 234a and the second claw portion 244a is released, the inner button member 240 is attached to the button attachment portion. While remaining in the 120 (while the second claw portion 244a of the inner button member 240 is engaged with the engaging groove 125 of the button mounting portion 120), the outer button member 210 (upper and lower button covers). Only 220, 230) can be removed from the button mounting portion 120. That is, only the outer button member 210 can be removed from the button mounting portion 120 without removing the inner button member 240 from the button mounting portion 120. When the outer button member 210 is taken out from the button accommodating chamber 123 in this way, the LED substrate 250 mounted and fixed on the upper ends of the three bosses 122a to 122c in the button accommodating chamber 123 is exposed upward. Then, the LED board 250 can be easily removed by loosening the two screws 254 that fasten the LED board 250 and the screw bosses 122a and 122b and releasing the fastening of the two screws. After attaching the new LED board 250, the effect button 201 may be assembled and returned to its original position in the same procedure as the above-mentioned assembly procedure. In addition, in order to facilitate the assembling property of the protective cover 260, instead of the configuration of fastening and fixing to the unit base 110 with screws, for example, locking claws such as the claws 234a and 244a are used. It may be configured to be fixed in a detachable manner. According to this configuration, when the LED board 250 is replaced, the protective cover 260 and the outer button member 210 to be accessed can be easily attached to and detached with one touch without the need for a tool such as a screwdriver. It is possible to further improve the maintainability of the button device 200.

≪Cross key device≫
The cross key device 300 includes a cross key 301 that is pressed and operated by a player, an elastic member 310 that elastically deforms in conjunction with the cross key 301, and a switch board 320 that detects that the cross key 301 is pressed. It is provided with a switch case 330 that closes the opening on the lower surface of the cross key storage chamber 132.

The cross key 301 is configured to have an upper button portion 302a, a lower button portion 302b, a left button portion 302c, and a right button portion 302d as button portions in four directions of up, down, left, and right. The button portions 302a to 302d are exposed upward in a state of being inserted into the button insertion openings 133 of the cross key mounting portion 130. On the bottom surface side of each of the button portions 302a to 302d, contact portions 303a to 303d having a cross section in which the elastic member 310 can be pressed are formed. On the outer peripheral surface of the cross key 301, a protrusion 304 for positioning with respect to the cross key mounting portion 130 is formed so as to project in the radial direction (to the right). At the center on the bottom surface side of the cross key 301, a support shaft portion 305 serving as the central axis (swing axis) of the cross key 301 is formed so as to project downward.

The elastic member 310 is made of a rubber-based material having electrical insulation. In the elastic member 310, four elastic support portions 311a to 311d formed in a columnar shape are formed corresponding to the four button portions 302a to 302d. The elastic support portions 311a to 311d are provided in a one-to-one relationship with the button portions 302a to 302d, and elastically support the contact portions 303a to 303d of the button portions 302a to 302d. A circular shaft hole 312 for receiving the support shaft portion 305 of the cross key 301 is penetrated through the front and back sides of the center of the elastic member 310, and the cross key 301 (each button portion 302a to 302d) is supported so that it can be pressed. Terminal portions 313a to 313d having electrical conductivity are formed on the back surface side of the elastic support portions 311a to 311d, respectively. On the right end surface of the elastic member 310, a protrusion 314 for positioning with respect to the cross key mounting portion 130 is formed so as to project to the right at a position consistent with the protrusion 304 of the cross key 301. The protrusions 304 and 314 are received and positioned by the protrusion receiving groove 135 (see FIG. 11) formed in the cross key storage chamber 132.

At each edge of the bottom surface of the elastic member 310, four positioning protrusions 315 to 318 are formed so as to project downward. Specifically, a left positioning convex portion 315 is formed on the left edge portion of the bottom surface of the elastic member 301, a right positioning convex portion 316 is formed on the right edge portion of the bottom surface of the elastic member 301, and the bottom surface of the elastic member 301 is formed. A front positioning convex portion 317 is formed on the front edge portion of the elastic member 301, and a rear positioning convex portion 318 is formed on the rear edge portion of the bottom surface of the elastic member 301. Here, regarding the width dimension (width dimension in the longitudinal direction) of the four positioning convex portions 315 to 318, the width dimension of the left positioning convex portion 315 is the largest among the four positioning convex portions 315 to 318, and the right positioning convex portion 315 is the largest. The width dimension of the portion 316 is the smallest. The width dimension of the front positioning convex portion 317 and the width dimension of the rear positioning convex portion 318 are the same, smaller than the width dimension of the left positioning convex portion 315, and smaller than the width dimension of the right positioning convex portion 316. Is also getting bigger.

The switch board 320 includes a board body 322 on which four electrode portions 321a to 321d are formed, and four connectors 325 to 328 provided on the back surface side of the board body 322. The four electrode portions 321a to 321d are electrically insulated from each other, and are provided at positions corresponding to each of the four terminal portions 313a to 313d of the elastic member. Further, each of the electrode portions 321a to 321d has a pair of counter electrodes electrically insulated from each other, and when the elastic member 310 is pushed down, the terminal portions 313a to 313d correspond to the electrode portions 321a to 321d. By contacting and bridging a pair of counter electrodes of 321d, the counter electrodes are made conductive with each other. A left notch 323 with which the left positioning convex portion of the elastic member 310 engages is recessed on the left side surface of the substrate main body 322. A right notch 324 with which the right positioning convex portion of the elastic member 310 engages is recessed on the right side surface of the substrate main body 322. The right notch 324 is formed to have a notch width in which only the narrowest right positioning protrusion 316 of the four positioning protrusions 315 to 318 can be engaged. The front positioning convex portion 317 and the rear positioning convex portion 318 of the elastic member 310 are arranged so as to sandwich the front end surface and the rear end surface of the substrate main body 322.

The connector 325 is a connector for making an electrical connection with the sub control device 82, and is fitted and connected to a connector provided at the end of a cable connected to the sub control device 82. The connector 326 is a connector (relay connector) for making an electrical connection with the solenoid 271, and is fitted and connected to a connector provided at the end of a cable connected to the solenoid 271. The connector 327 is a connector (relay connector) for making an electrical connection with the operation detection sensor 256, and is fitted and connected to a connector provided at the end of a cable connected to the operation detection sensor 256. The connector 328 is a connector (relay connector) for electrical connection with the LED board 250, and is fitted and connected to a connector provided at the end of a cable connected to the LED board 250.

The switch case 330 is formed in the shape of a rectangular container using a transparent resin material. At the center of the right side surface of the switch case 330, a supported portion 331 supported from below by the upper left surface portion of the protective cover 260 is formed. The upper surface side of the switch case 330 (excluding the upper surface side of the supported portion 331) is formed in a size capable of mounting the substrate main body 322 of the switch substrate 320. On the left side surface of the switch case 330, a pair of projecting piece portions 332 that engage with the pair of mounting grooves 134 of the cross key mounting portion 130 are formed. The switch case 330 is formed with a connector insertion port 333 through which a large connector 325 is inserted and a connector insertion port 334 through which small connectors 326 to 328 are inserted at the same time.

In order to assemble the cross key device 330 having such a configuration to the cross key mounting portion 130 of the unit base 110, the cross key 301, the elastic member 310, from the lower surface side of the cross key storage chamber 132,
The switch board 320 is inserted in this order. At this time, by passing the protrusion 304 of the cross key 301 and the protrusion 314 of the elastic member 310 into the protrusion receiving groove 135 in the cross key accommodating chamber 132, the cross key 301 and the elastic member 310 are passed through the cross key mounting portion 130. It is installed in the correct position and orientation.

Further, the left positioning convex portion 315 of the elastic member 310 is engaged with the left notch 323 of the switch board 320, and the right positioning convex portion 316 of the elastic member 310 is engaged with the right notch 324 of the switch board 320. , The elastic member 310 and the switch board 320 can be mounted in the correct position and orientation. The right notch 324 of the switch board 320 is formed to have a notch width in which only the narrowest right positioning convex portion 316 of the four positioning convex portions 315 to 318 of the elastic member 310 can be engaged. Therefore, other positioning protrusions 315, 317, 318 cannot be engaged with the right notch 324, and the elastic member 310 and the switch board 320 are configured so as not to be assembled in the wrong position and orientation. There is. Finally, the switch case 330 is inserted into the cross key storage chamber 132 from below, and the projecting piece portion 332 of the switch case 330 is engaged with the mounting groove 134 of the cross key mounting portion 130 to engage the cross key device 300. Is assembled to the unit base 110. The left upper surface of the protective cover 260 is in contact with the supported portion 331 of the switch case 330 and is supported from below, thereby preventing the switch case 330 from falling off from the unit base 110.

In the cross key device 300 configured in this way, when any of the four button portions 302a to 302d of the cross key 301 is pressed, the elastic support portions 311a to 311d corresponding to the button portions 302a to 302d are pushed down. The terminal portions 313a to 313d provided at the bottoms of the elastic support portions 311a to 311d come into contact with the corresponding electrode portions 321a to 321d of the switch substrate 320 and electrically conduct the button portions 302a to the button portions 302a. It is detected that the 302d is pressed.

As described above, according to the effect operation unit 100 according to the first embodiment, the effect button 201 is attached / detached by collectively arranging the claws 234a and 244a of both the outer button member 210 and the inner button member 240 at positions corresponding to each other. The structure can be realized in a small space, the access positions at the time of attachment / detachment are integrated, and both claws 234a and 244a can be removed at the same time or individually according to the content of maintenance, thus improving maintainability. It becomes possible.

Further, in the effect operation unit 100 according to the first embodiment, a meat stealing (lightening) 248a having a partially uneven thickness of the protrusion 248 of the effect button 201 is formed to form a contacted portion 248c.
By making the wall thicker than other parts, the mechanical strength and rigidity of the protrusion 248 (contacted part 248c) can be increased as compared with the case where it is formed into a simple solid cylindrical shape as in the prior art. It can be improved, and the durability of the effect button 201 can be improved without being damaged by the impact of vibration received from the solenoid 271.

Further, in the effect operation unit 100 according to the first embodiment, the effect button 201 has a separate structure of the outer button member 201 and the inner button member 240, and the lower button cover 230 of the outer button member 210 has high light diffusivity. By forming it from a colored (milky white) resin material, the entire upper button cover 220 can be uniformly emitted and displayed so that the light from the chip type LED 251 does not look like a bright spot, and the detected piece can be detected. By forming the entire inner button member 240 including the 249 with a colored (black) resin material having a high light-shielding property, the light-emitting part and the light-receiving part of the operation detection sensor 256 are surely shielded from light, and the button by the player The operation can be detected accurately, and the detection accuracy by the operation detection sensor 256 can be improved.

In the first embodiment, the case where the game machine operation device or the game machine production device is applied to the production operation unit 100 (effect button device 200) has been described as an example, but the configuration is limited to this configuration. Instead, it can be applied to various operation devices (BET switch unit 23, stop switch 26, etc.) and effect devices (movable effect devices) provided in the slot machine SM.

[Pachinko game machine]
Next, as the gaming machine according to the second embodiment, the pachinko gaming machine PM is shown in FIGS. 17 to 18, and first of all, referring to this figure, the pachinko gaming machine PM (also simply referred to as “gaming machine PM”). The overall configuration of (referred to as) will be described.

First, the basic structure of the front side of the pachinko gaming machine PM will be described with reference to FIG. The pachinko gaming machine PM has a front frame 402 that is configured in a square frame size that matches the opening of the outer frame 401 that forms a vertical fixed holding frame that is configured in the outer square frame size and that forms an opening / closing mounting frame. The upper and lower hinge mechanisms 403 arranged on the front left edge of each other allow it to be opened and closed and attached / detached sideways, and the locking device 404 called a double lock provided on the front right edge is always used. Is held in a closed state engaged and connected to the outer frame 401.

A square glass frame 405 that matches the upper front area of the front frame 402 is attached to the front frame 402 so as to be openable / closable and detachable by using the upper and lower hinge mechanisms 403, and the locking device 404 is used. It is always held in a closed state covering the front surface of the front frame 402. The game board 410 is detachably set and held in the front frame 402, and the game area PA in front of the game board 410 can be visually observed through the double glazing 405a of the glass frame 405 that is always closed and held. ing.

On the front side of the glass frame 405, a frame lamp (not shown) that emits light according to the development status of the game and a speaker 409 that generates a sound effect according to the development status of the game are provided. Upper and lower ball plates (upper ball plate 406 and lower ball plate 407) for storing game balls are provided in the lower part of the glass frame 405, and the upper ball plate 406 is pressed by the player in the center of the front surface. The above-mentioned effect operation unit 100 is provided, and a launch handle 408 for launching a game ball is provided on the front right side of the lower ball plate 407.

Similar to the first embodiment, the effect operation unit 100 includes a unit base 110, an effect button device 200, and a cross key device 300. Although duplicate description will be omitted for each component of the effect operation unit 100, the effect operation unit 100 of the second embodiment can also exhibit the same effects as those of the first embodiment.

Subsequently, the basic structure on the back side of the pachinko gaming machine PM will be described with reference to FIG. On the back side of the front frame 402, a back set board 430 formed in a rectangular frame shape, which has a front-rear communication window in the center and is slightly smaller than the front frame 402, is attached. Each part of the back set board 430 has a ball storage tank 433 for storing game balls supplied from the game facility side, a gutter member 434 for flowing down the game balls supplied from the ball storage tank 433, and a game for flowing down the gutter member 434. A prize ball payout unit 435 for paying out balls, a back passage member (not shown) for allowing game balls paid out from the prize ball payout unit 435 to flow down to the upper ball plate 406 or the lower ball plate 407 are provided.

On the back side of the game board 410, there is a main control device (main control board) 440 that comprehensively controls the operation of the pachinko gaming machine PM, and general effects such as image display, effect lighting, and sound effects according to the game development. A sub-control device (sub-control board) 441 that performs control is attached. At the lower part of the back surface of the back set board 430, a payout control device (payout control board) 44 that controls the payout of game balls
2. A power supply device (power supply board) 443 that receives power from the game facility side and supplies power to various control boards and electrical / electronic components, and a power switch 444 for turning on / off the power of the game machine PM are installed. Has been done. An external relay terminal plate 445 that relays signals from the main control device 440, the payout control device 442, and the like to an external device of the pachinko gaming machine PM is attached to the upper part of the rear surface of the back set board 430. These control boards and the electrical and electronic components of each part of the pachinko gaming machine PM are connected by a harness (connector cable) to enable the pachinko gaming machine PM to operate.

In the pachinko gaming machine PM, the outer frame 401 is fixedly installed on the game island (installation frame stand) of the game facility, and the front frame 402, the glass frame 405, etc. are closed and locked before being used for the game on the upper ball plate 406. The game is started by storing the game balls and rotating the firing handle 408. When the launch handle 408 is rotated, the game balls stored in the upper ball plate 406 are sent out one by one to the launch mechanism by the ball feed mechanism arranged on the back side of the glass frame 405, and the launch mechanism After being launched in the game area PA, pachinko games will be developed thereafter.

[Game board]
Next, the configuration of the game board 410 will be described with reference to FIG. The game board 410 is constructed based on a substrate formed in a rectangular flat plate shape using a synthetic resin material such as acrylic resin, polycarbonate resin, or ABS resin. On the front surface of the game board 410, a rail decoration having an inner rail and an outer rail that form a substantially circular game area PA on which the game ball can roll is attached. In this game area PA, along with a windmill and a large number of game nails, various winning openings such as a first starting opening 421, a second starting opening 422, an operating gate 423, a large winning opening 424, and a general winning opening 425, as well as special A main control display device 426 having a symbol display device, a normal symbol display device, and the like is provided. A center decoration 412 is arranged substantially in the center of the game area PA, and a screen 413a of the effect display device 413 is visibly provided through the central opening 412a of the center decoration 412. The center decoration 412 is provided with a movable effect unit 500 that executes an effect operation according to the development status of the game. At the lower end of the game area PA, an out port 429 is provided through which a game ball that has flowed down without entering various winning ports can pass. Hereinafter, each component provided on the game board 410 will be described in order.

The first start port 421 is provided as a start winning opening corresponding to the first special symbol game, and includes a first start port switch (not shown) for detecting the entry of the game ball. The entry of the game ball into the first starting port 421 triggers the first special symbol lottery.

The second start port 422 is provided as a start winning opening corresponding to the second special symbol game, and includes a second start port switch (not shown) for detecting the entry of the game ball. The entry of the game ball into the second starting port 422 triggers the second special symbol lottery. The second starting port 422 is variable to a closed state in which the game ball cannot enter or is difficult to enter, and an open state in which the game ball can enter or is easy to enter. Here, the second starting port 422 has a structure in which it is difficult for a game ball to enter unless it is in the open state. On the other hand, when the second starting port 422 is opened, the ease of entering the ball into the second starting port 422 is increased.

The actuating gate 423 is provided as a start winning opening corresponding to a normal symbol game, and includes an actuating gate switch (not shown) for detecting the passage of a game ball. The passage of the game ball through the operating gate 423 triggers a normal symbol lottery for determining whether or not to expand the second starting port (normal electric accessory) 422.

The large winning opening 424 is formed as a winning opening (so-called attacker device) having a horizontally rectangular shape that is opened when a big hit or a small hit is made in the winning or losing lottery of the first special symbol or the second special symbol. The large winning opening 424 is provided with a large winning opening switch (not shown) for detecting the entry of a game ball. The large winning opening 424 is variable to a closed state in which the game ball cannot enter or is difficult to enter, and an open state in which the game ball can enter or is easy to enter. In this embodiment, the large winning opening 424 is provided in the right side area (right-handed area) in the game area PA. Therefore, in a special game (big hit game), when launching a game ball toward the game area PA, by hitting the right side area, so-called right-handed hitting, it is easy to enter the big winning opening 424. It has become.

The general winning opening 425 is provided with a general winning opening switch (not shown) for detecting the entry of a game ball. The entry of the game ball into the general winning opening 425 does not trigger the lottery of the special symbol or the ordinary symbol, but it does trigger the winning of the winning ball like the other winning openings (excluding the operating gate 423).

The main control display device 426 is a display device in which the main control device 440 independently controls lighting. The main control display device 426 includes a first special symbol display device, a second special symbol display device, a first special symbol hold lamp, a second special symbol hold lamp, a normal symbol display device, a normal symbol hold lamp, and a round indicator lamp. , Status indicator lamp, right-handed indicator lamp, error indicator lamp, and other display means are provided. The detailed description of each display means will be omitted.

[Movable production unit]
Next, the configuration of the movable effect unit 500 will be described with reference to FIGS. 20 to 24. The movable effect unit 500 is configured as a hold effect device that informs the number of operation hold balls of the special symbol in an effectful manner. Here, the number of balls on hold for operation of the first special symbol is acquired based on the entry of the game ball into the first starting port 421 during the fluctuation of the first special symbol or the second special symbol or during the execution of the jackpot game. It is the number of random values that have been obtained, and the acquired random value is withheld, that is, the acceptance / rejection judgment is temporarily suspended until the acceptance / rejection permission condition (variation start condition) is satisfied for the acquired random number value. Shows the number. Similarly, the number of balls on hold for operation of the second special symbol is a random number value acquired based on the entry into the second starting port 422 during the fluctuation of the first special symbol or the second special symbol or during the execution of the jackpot game. It indicates the number of such numbers, that is, the number of the acquired random value is suspended, that is, the number of the acquired random value for which the hit / fail judgment is temporarily held until the hit / fail judgment permission condition (variation start condition) is satisfied. There is.

The movable production unit 500 includes a unit base 510 attached to the back side of the game board 410, four movable accessories 520 vertically movablely supported by the unit base 510, and 4 attached to the unit base 510. It is configured to include a base solenoid unit 530. In this embodiment, four movable accessory 520s corresponding to the upper limit number (4) of the operation holding balls of the special symbol are provided, and the number of movable accessory 520s protruding upward is the special symbol (first special symbol). Corresponds to the number of operation holding balls of the symbol or the second special symbol). In this embodiment, among the operation-holding balls of the first special symbol and the second special symbol, the number of operation-holding balls of the special symbol that is the main player of the game in the currently executing game state is notified. That is, when the currently executing gaming state is a normal gaming state (low probability low base state) or a latent probability gaming state (high probability low base state), the variable display of the first special symbol becomes the subject of the game. , The number of operation-holding balls of the first special symbol is notified. On the other hand, when the currently executing game state is a time-saving game state (low probability high base state) or a probability variation game state (high probability high base state), the variable display of the second special symbol becomes the main body of the game. The number of operation-holding balls of the second special symbol is notified.

The unit base 510 is configured as a mounting base for the movable effect unit 500, and is screwed and fixed to the back side of the game board 410. Although not shown in detail, the unit base 510 is formed in a box shape that opens upward using a transparent or opaque synthetic resin material. The unit base 510 is provided with a guide portion (rail portion) (not shown) that guides the vertical movement of each movable accessory 520, and the movable accessory 520 is supported so as to be vertically movable along the guide portion. There is. Further, a position detection sensor 541, 542, 543 (see FIGS. 23 to 24) for detecting the position of each movable accessory 520 is attached to the unit base 510.

The movable accessory 520 includes an accessory main body 521 having a predetermined pattern on its surface and a base portion 525 that is detachably attached to the lower portion of the accessory main body 521. In the following, when each movable accessory 520 is individually pointed to, the "first movable accessory 520" and the "second movable accessory 520" are sequentially referred to from the left to the right when viewed from the front side of the game machine PM. , "Third movable accessory 520", "fourth movable accessory 520".

The accessory main body 521 is formed in a rocket shape that tapers upward using a colored translucent (white translucent) synthetic resin material having light diffusivity. The accessory main body 521 may be subjected to the following light diffusion treatment. The light diffusing treatment includes a resin itself containing a light diffusing material (light diffusing fine particles), a textured surface (concavo-convex processing), and a light diffusing sheet attached to the front or back surface. Can be mentioned. A cylindrical fitting projection 522 for connecting to the base portion 525 is formed so as to project downward on the accessory main body 521. Further, the accessory main body 521 has a hollow structure having an opening 521a below, and the hollow portion is a space illuminated by an LED substrate (not shown) described later.

The substrate portion 525 is formed in a hollow cylindrical shape having an opening 525a above using a colored opaque synthetic resin material having a high light-shielding property. In the present embodiment, a black synthetic resin material having no translucency or having an extremely low translucency is used as the material of the substrate portion 525. The base portion 525 is provided with a fitting hole 526 that fits vertically with the fitting projection 522 of the accessory main body 521. Further, the base portion 525 is slidably supported in the vertical direction along a guide portion (rail portion) (not shown) of the unit base 510.

An LED substrate (not shown) for displaying the movable accessory 521 by light emission is accommodated between the opening 521a of the accessory main body 521 and the opening 525a of the base portion 525. This LED substrate is a flat plate-shaped circuit board, and a chip-type LED is mounted in the center thereof. A surface mount (SMD) type full-color LED is applied to the chip type LED.

Further, a substantially tubular protrusion 527 that protrudes downward is integrally formed at the lower end of the base portion 525. The protrusion 527 is formed with a bottomed meat steal (also referred to as “lightening”) 527a having a crescent-shaped or half-moon-shaped gap in the portion rearward from the center of the protrusion 527. ing. In the present embodiment, the cross section of the meat stealing 527a is formed in a crescent shape or a half moon shape instead of a circular shape (by deviating the position of the gap portion of the meat stealing 527a from the center), and the wall thickness of the protrusion 527 is increased. Is partially non-uniform (uneven wall shape). The protrusions 527 are a thin-walled portion 527b formed on the outer arc (convex arc) side of the meat-stealing 527a and a thick-walled thick-walled portion 527b formed on the inner arc (concave arc) side of the meat-stealing 527a. It has a portion (hereinafter referred to as a “contacted portion”) 527c. That is, the contacted portion 527c is a portion formed thicker than the other portion of the protrusion 248. The tip surface of the contacted portion 527c is provided on the central axis of the plunger 533 of the solenoid 531 described later, and is a portion that comes into contact with the tip surface of the plunger 533. Reinforcing ribs 527d to 527g having a semicircular cross section are formed to project substantially radially (diameterally) at four locations on the front, rear, left and right sides of the outer peripheral surface of the protrusion 527. The reinforcing ribs 527d on the front side (contact portion side) are formed larger than the reinforcing ribs 527e to 527g at the other three locations. This is because the thickness of the contacted portion 527c is substantially increased by the presence of the reinforcing rib 527d, and the strength of the contacted portion 527c is increased. Further, due to the presence of the reinforcing rib 527d, the tip surface of the contacted portion 527c can be made substantially circular, and the surface shape corresponding to the tip surface of the plunger 533 can be made.

The solenoid unit 530 includes a solenoid 531 that serves as a drive source for operating the movable accessory 520 in the vertical direction, and a mounting bracket 536 that is fixed to the unit base 510. The solenoid unit 530 basically has the same configuration as the solenoid unit 270 of the first embodiment.

The solenoid 531 is an electric actuator including a solenoid body 532 with a built-in electromagnetic coil (not shown) and a magnetic plunger 533 that is driven forward and backward (expansion and contraction drive) in the axial direction by controlling energization / non-energization of the electromagnetic coil. is there. The solenoid 531 is electrically connected to the sub-control device 441, and the plunger 533 is expanded and contracted (advanced / retreated) by the drive voltage supplied from the sub-control device 441. The solenoid 531 is attached to the unit base 510 so that the advance / retreat direction (expansion / contraction direction) of the plunger 533 is in the vertical direction. On the tip end side (upper end side) of the plunger 533, a movable accessory 520 that moves up and down under the driving force of the plunger 533 is placed. A square drive plate 534 having a side length larger than the diameter of the plunger 533 is attached to the base end side (lower end side) of the plunger 533. A return spring (not shown) that urges the drive plate 534 in the direction away from the solenoid body 532 (the plunger 533 is reduced) is interposed between the drive plate 534 and the solenoid body 532. .. The driving force of the plunger 533 can be changed by adjusting the pulse width and pulse amplitude of the driving voltage (pulse voltage) set in the sub-control device 441.

When the solenoid 531 is energized, the plunger 533 is extended (driven upward) against the urging force of the return spring (not shown) to urge the movable accessory 520 in contact with the spring. Then, the movable accessory 520 is moved upward (jumped up). At this time, by keeping the solenoid 531 in the energized state, the plunger 533 can be held in the extended state. On the other hand, when the energization of the electromagnetic coil 531 is cut off, the plunger 533 is reducedly driven (retracted downward) by the urging force of the return spring (not shown). At this time, by keeping the solenoid 531 in the non-energized state, the plunger 533 can be held in the reduced state. The movable accessory 520 that flew upward finally moves downward (free fall) due to its own weight, and returns to a position where it comes into contact with the tip surface of the plunger 533 in the extended state or the reduced state.

The movable accessory 520 can be displaced to the first position, the second position, and the third position in the vertical movement. The first position is a position (also referred to as an "initial position") when the movable accessory 520 is held on the tip surface of the plunger 533 in the reduced state (non-energized state). The second position is a position (also referred to as a "hold display position") when the movable accessory 520 is held on the tip surface of the plunger 533 in the extended state (energized state). The third position is the position (also referred to as "maximum movable position") at which the movable accessory 520 becomes the highest reaching point when the movable accessory 520 flies upward by the urging force of the plunger 533. Here, the distance between the first position and the second position is substantially the same as the stroke of the expansion / contraction drive (advance / retreat drive) of the plunger 533, but the distance between the first position and the third position is the distance of the plunger 533. The interval is larger than the stroke of expansion / contraction drive (advance / retreat drive). In FIG. 22, for reference, the first movable accessory 520 is held in the second position, the second movable accessory 520 jumps up to the third position, and the third movable accessory 520 is the third. It shows a state in which the fourth movable accessory 520 is held in the first position while being held in the first position.

In the present embodiment, the number of movable accessory 520 held in the second position (hold display position) corresponds to the number of operation hold balls of the special symbol. In the present embodiment, the first movable accessory 520 is displaced from the first position to the second position when the first operation holding ball is generated, and the second operation holding ball is generated when the second operation holding ball is generated. When the movable accessory 520 was displaced to the second position and the third operation holding ball was generated, the third movable accessory 520 was displaced to the second position and the fourth operation holding ball was generated. Occasionally, the fourth movable accessory 520 is displaced to the second position. On the other hand, each time the operation holding ball of the special symbol is digested (every time the variable display of the special symbol ends), the movable accessory 520 protruding to the second position moves from the right side to the left side one by one to the first position. And return.

The side surface of the base portion 525 of the movable accessory 520 is a portion for detecting the position (first position, second position, third position) of the movable accessory 520 by each position detection sensor 541, 542, 543. A plate-shaped piece to be detected 528 is projected. The detected piece 528 may be provided on the back side (rear surface side) of the base portion 525 due to the problem of visibility by the player.

In this embodiment, the first position detection sensor 541 that detects that the movable accessory 520 is in the first position, the second position detection sensor 542 that detects that the movable accessory 520 is in the second position, and the movable It is provided with a third position detection sensor 543 that detects that the accessory 520 has reached the third position. Although the position detection sensors 541 to 543 are shown in a simplified diagram in FIGS. 23 to 24, similarly to the first embodiment, the light emitting unit (light emitting element) that emits light and the light from the light emitting unit are emitted. From a photosensor that has a light receiving unit (light receiving element) that receives light and has a gap between the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit into which the detected piece 528 of the movable accessory 520 can be inserted. Become. Each position detection sensor 541 to 543 outputs an off signal when the detected piece 528 of the movable accessory 520 is not interposed between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion (not shaded), and the movable accessory 520 outputs an off signal. The ON signal is output when the detected piece 528 is interposed (shielded) between the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion. In the present embodiment, as described above, the entire substrate portion 525 including the detected piece 528 is formed in black having a high light-shielding property, and the light emitted from the light emitting portion to the light receiving portion is accurately blocked. Therefore, the detection accuracy by the position detection sensors 541 to 544 is improved.

Next, the operation of the movable accessory unit 500 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 23 to 24. The production operation of the movable accessory 520 includes a normal production operation in which the movable accessory 520 is displaced in the order of the first position (initial position) → the third position (maximum movable position) → the first position (initial position), and the movable combination. There is a special effect operation in which the object 520 is displaced in the order of the first position (initial position) → the third position (maximum movable position) → the second position (hold display position). In the movable accessory unit 500 of the present embodiment, although not shown, the first position (for example, the lower end position) and the first position (for example, the lower end position) and the first position (for example, the lower end position) and the first position (for example, the lower end position) and the first position (for example, the lower end position) and the first position (for example, the lower end position) and the first position It is also possible to repeat the operation between two positions (for example, the upper end position).

(Normal production operation)
First, the normal effect operation of the movable accessory 520 will be described with reference to FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 23 (A), when the energization of the solenoid 531 is cut off and the plunger 533 is in the reduced state, the movable accessory 520 is held at the first position held on the tip surface of the reduced plunger 533. It is in. As shown in FIG. 23B, when the solenoid 531 is energized and the plunger 533 is extended and driven, the movable accessory 520 in contact with the plunger 533 is urged (pressed) upward and jumps up to the third position. After the movable accessory 520 jumps up, the energization of the solenoid 531 is cut off, and the plunger 533 is reduced and driven to return from the extended state to the reduced state. As shown in FIG. 23C, the movable accessory 520 freely falls onto the tip surface of the plunger 533 in the reduced state due to its own weight, and the movable accessory 520 returns to the first position.

(Special production operation)
Next, the special effect operation of the movable accessory 520 will be described with reference to FIG. 24. First, as shown in FIG. 24 (A), when the energization of the solenoid 531 is cut off and the plunger 533 is in the reduced state, the movable accessory 520 is held at the first position held on the tip surface of the reduced plunger 533. It is held in. As shown in FIG. 24 (B), when the solenoid 531 is energized and the plunger 533 is extended and driven, the movable accessory 520 in contact with the plunger 533 is urged (pressed) upward and jumps up to the third position. Even after the movable accessory 520 jumps up, the solenoid 531 is maintained in the energized state, and the plunger 533 is held in the extended state. As shown in FIG. 24C, the movable accessory 520 freely falls onto the tip surface of the plunger 533 in the extended state due to its own weight, and the movable accessory 520 is held in the second position (hold display position).

In the present embodiment, this special effect operation is an effect operation performed when an operation holding ball of a special symbol is generated. In this embodiment, when the game ball starts and wins a prize, and the number of balls on hold for operation of the special symbol becomes one, the special effect operation of the first movable accessory 520 is performed (as a result, one operation is performed). When the movable accessory 520 is held in the hold display position) and the number of balls on hold for the special symbol is 2, a special effect operation of the second movable accessory 520 is performed (as a result, two movable objects are movable). When the accessory 520 is held in the hold display position) and the number of pending balls of the special symbol is 3, the special effect operation of the third movable accessory 520 is performed (as a result, the three movable accessories are held). 520 is held in the hold display position), and when the number of holding balls of the special symbol is 4, the special effect operation of the fourth movable accessory 520 is performed (as a result, the four movable accessories 520 are moved. It is held in the hold display position). Then, the player can recognize the number of operation-holding balls of the special symbol by counting the number of movable accessories 520 protruding to the hold display position (second position).

As described above, according to the movable effect device according to the second embodiment, the movable accessory 520 not only moves up and down to the first position (initial position) or the second position (hold display position), but also serves as a momentary arrival point. By jumping up to the third position (maximum movable position) and free-falling from there, it is possible to realize unexpected production movements that are difficult for the player to predict, and as a result, monotonous production movements are prevented. Therefore, it is possible to improve the fun of the game. In addition, as the effect operation of the movable accessory 520, a continuous jump may be performed in which the above effect operations (normal effect operation, special effect operation) are continuously executed, and a look-ahead (in advance) for the operation holding ball of the special symbol may be performed. As a look-ahead notice effect (hold notice effect) that suggests or informs the expectation of a big hit or the expectation of a high expectation effect (reach effect) based on the result of the judgment), a continuous jump including a normal effect operation and a special effect operation May be done.

Further, the movable production unit 500 according to the second embodiment forms a meat stealing (lightening) 527a in which the protrusion 527 of the movable accessory 520 has a partially uneven thickness shape, as in the first embodiment described above. Then, by making the contacted portion 527c thicker than the other portions, the protrusion 527 (contacted portion 527c) is compared with the case where the contacted portion 527c is formed into a simple solid cylindrical shape as in the prior art. ) Can be improved, and the durability of the movable accessory 230 can be improved without being damaged by the impact of pressing from the solenoid 530 or the impact of dropping (at the time of landing). It becomes.

Further, in the movable effect unit 500 according to the second embodiment, as in the first embodiment described above, the movable accessory 520 has a separate structure of the accessory main body 521 and the base portion 525, and the accessory main body 521 is formed. By forming it from a colored (milky white) resin material with high light diffusivity, the entire accessory body 521 can be uniformly emitted and displayed so that the light from the chip-type LED does not look like bright spots. At the same time, by forming the entire base portion 5250 including the detected piece 528 with a colored (black) resin material having a high light-shielding property, the light-emitting portion and the light-receiving portion of each operation detection sensor 541 to 543 are reliably shielded from light. Therefore, the operating position of the movable accessory 520 can be accurately detected, and the detection accuracy by the operation detection sensors 541 to 543 can be improved.

In the second embodiment, since the driving force (striking force) when the plunger 533 is extended is controlled to be constant, the movable accessory 520 can always jump up to a substantially constant position (third position). However, the driving force (striking force) of the plunger 533 may be variably controlled so that the third position can be changed up and down. It should be noted that a jackpot expectation or high expectation effect (reach effect) for a special symbol operation hold ball (also called "look-ahead target hold", "specific hold", or "trigger hold") that is the target of look-ahead (preliminary judgment) ) Is suggested or notified in advance by the display color of the hold image (hold icon) displayed on the screen. Instead of the hold change effect, the height (position) of the movable accessory 520 can be the third position. It may be configured to be expressed by (change). That is, when the movable accessory 520 jumps up, the higher the arrival point of the third position, the higher the expectation of the big hit or the high expectation effect, and the lower the arrival point of the third position, the higher the expectation of the big hit or It may be configured so that the expectation of the high expectation production is low.

Next, in order to make it easier to clearly understand the technical significance of the present embodiment and the modified examples, the problems corresponding to the above-described embodiments and the modified examples will be outlined.

<Part 1>
A slot machine, which is a type of game machine, has a plurality of reels with multiple types of symbols on the outer peripheral surface, a start lever for instructing the start of rotation of all reels, and each for instructing the operation to stop the rotation of each reel. It is equipped with a plurality of stop switches provided corresponding to the reel. In this slot machine, after the player inserts a medal, when the start lever is operated, a winning combination lottery is performed and a plurality of reels are rotationally driven at the same time. When the rotation speed of the reel reaches a certain speed, the stop switch can be operated, and when the stop switch is operated, the reel corresponding to the stop switch is stopped and the symbol is displayed. Then, when a plurality of symbols stopped and displayed on the valid line are aligned in a specific combination (combination corresponding to a predetermined combination), a prize is won, and the number of medals corresponding to the winning combination is paid out to the player. Then, the game ends.
In a game machine such as a slot machine, in order to add fun to the game, as a player participation type production device, a production operation device having a production button that can be pressed by the player is provided. (See, for example, "Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2018-183284").
By the way, the effect operation device is generally provided with an LED board for displaying the effect button by light emission, and this LED board is subject to maintenance such as replacement. Further, when handling as a reuse part in the manufacture of a game machine, there is also a need to repeatedly use an LED substrate having a long life even if the exterior of the effect operating device is required to be replaced due to a defect in appearance such as scratches. Therefore, in order to improve maintainability at the time of replacement or reuse of the LED board, it is required to easily disassemble the effect operation device and easily replace the LED board.

<Part 2>
In a game machine such as a slot machine, in order to add fun to the game, as a player participation type production device, a production operation device having a production button that can be pressed by the player is provided. (For example, see "Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-162885").
An optical sensor (photo sensor) for detecting that the effect button has been operated by the player is attached to the effect operation device. This optical sensor is configured to include a light emitting element and a light receiving element, and the effect button is operated when the optical path between the light emitting element and the light receiving element is blocked by a predetermined portion (detected portion) of the effect button. It is now detected that it has been done. In a player-participation type production using this effect button device, it is necessary to properly detect the operation of the effect button, and for that reason, improvement in detection accuracy by an optical sensor is required.

<Part 3>
In a game machine such as a slot machine, in order to add fun to the game, as a player participation type production device, a production operation device having a production button that can be pressed by the player is provided. (For example, see "Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2013-162885").
Some production operation devices have a solenoid for vibrating the production button, and the effect button is vibrated by driving the plunger of this solenoid to move forward and backward, and the vibration is transmitted to the player's fingers or the like who touch the production button. As a result, the vibration effect of notifying the player of predetermined game information has become well known. However, the effect button is provided with a contacted portion that directly contacts the plunger, and the contacted portion may be damaged by receiving vibration (impact) from the plunger due to repeated use. Therefore, in such an effect button device, it is required to improve the mechanical strength against vibration received from the solenoid so that it can withstand long-term use due to the vibration effect.

<Part 4>
As a type of gaming machine, the pachinko gaming machine has a large number of game nails, windmills, winning openings, out openings, etc. arranged on the gaming board that constitutes the gaming area, and is a center accessory in the center of the gaming area. Is attached, and a device having an effect display device for displaying an effect image according to the game development is generally known in the opening of the center accessory (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Then, after the hit / fail judgment is executed when the game ball enters the start port provided in the game area, if the result of the hit / miss judgment is incorrect, for example, a symbol consisting of three rows is displayed in a variable manner. After that, the symbol is stopped and displayed in a predetermined non-winning mode, and when the result of the winning / failing determination is a big hit, for example, the symbol consisting of three columns is displayed in a variable manner, and then the symbol is displayed in a predetermined winning mode. It is configured to stop and display with and establish a special game (big hit game) in which the big winning opening is opened.
On the other hand, it is difficult to give the game an interest only by the effect display on the effect display device, and the game content tends to be monotonous. Therefore, a movable accessory (movable effect body) that executes a required effect operation according to the development status of the game is provided, and the movable accessory is synchronized and fused with the effect display performed on the effect display device to operate in a timely manner. As a result, a configuration is known that improves the visual effect (see, for example, "Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2008-12194").
In the above cited document, the movable accessory is configured to reciprocate between the initial position and the movable position with reference to a predetermined initial position (origin position). However, there is a problem that if the movable accessory simply repeats the reciprocating motion, the effect motion becomes monotonous and the effect effect is reduced.

Therefore, in the gaming machine according to the above embodiment and the modified example, the above-mentioned configuration is adopted, and the above-mentioned action and effect are achieved.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and modifications, and can be appropriately improved as long as it does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. In addition, each component described in the above-described embodiment and modification is appropriately combined, or a part of each component described in the above-described embodiment and modification is deleted or converted by a well-known / conventional technique or the like. The above is also included in the scope of the present invention.

SM slot machine (first embodiment)
2 Front door 5 Housing 21 Operation panel 100 Effect operation unit 110 Unit base 120 Button mounting part 130 Cross key mounting part 200 Effect button device 201 Effect button 210 Outer button member 220 Upper button cover 230 Lower button cover 234 1st arm 234a First 1 Claw part 239 LED accommodation space 240 Inner button member 244 Second arm 244a Second claw part 248 Protrusion part 248a Meat stealing 248c Contacted part 249 Detected piece 250 LED substrate 251 Chip type LED
256 Operation detection sensor 270 Solenoid unit 271 Solenoid 273 Plunger 300 Cross key device PM Pachinko game machine (second embodiment)
PA Game area 401 Outer frame 402 Front frame 405 Glass frame 410 Game board 500 Movable production unit 510 Unit base 520 Movable accessory 521 Accessory body 525 Base part 527 Protrusion part 527a Meat theft 527c Contacted part 528 Detected piece 530 Solenoid Unit 531 Solenoid 533 Plunger 541 1st position detection sensor 542 2nd position detection sensor 543 3rd position detection sensor

Claims (1)

A game machine effect device comprising a vibrated member and a solenoid having a movable portion that moves forward and backward in a predetermined direction, and abutting the movable portion against the vibrated member to apply vibration.
The vibrated member has a protrusion that comes into contact with the movable portion according to the advancing / retreating movement of the movable portion.
The protrusion is formed in a hollow tubular shape with a lightening opening that opens on the side facing the movable portion.
The protrusion is formed in an uneven thickness shape by the lightening, and the contacted portion, which is a portion that comes into contact with the movable portion, is formed to be thicker than other portions of the protrusion. A production device for a game machine.

Images