JP3810727B2 - Push button with image display function - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a push button with an image display function having a display unit including a liquid crystal panel (LCD) or the like capable of displaying an image.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, it has been known that a liquid crystal panel is provided on a push button to display images such as various characters and pictures. As such push buttons, there are those that alert the operator by a change in color displayed on an image display panel (for example, a liquid crystal panel), and cause the switch element to be turned on and off by pressing the liquid crystal by the operator. is there.
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, when trying to make the image display surface non-contact with the push button, it is necessary to consider the stroke of the push button, and therefore it is necessary to design the push button exclusively for the casing of the gaming machine.
[0004]
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a push button with an image display function having high versatility.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The push button with an image display function according to the present invention includes a display unit holder having a first neck and a display unit holding plate that is fixed to the first neck and is wider than the first neck. A second movable portion that accommodates the display portion holder, a housing having a third neck portion that is inserted into a through-hole provided in the base, a third neck portion, and a third neck portion. A C-ring to be brought into contact with the lower end surface of the neck portion and a nut threadedly engaged with the third neck portion, the second neck portion being looped around the first neck portion, The third neck is mounted, the lower end surface of the housing is in contact with the surface of the base, the upper end surface of the nut is in contact with the back surface of the base, and the base is sandwiched between the housing and the nut. .
[0006]
In this push button with an image display function, by using a wide display portion holding plate, the display portion holder, the button movable portion, and the housing can be easily and surely integrated into a sub-assembly by the C ring and the nut. Also, the use of C-rings and nuts improves the assembly workability and facilitates the handling of the push buttons. At the same time, it can easily cope with differences in the base plate thickness while preventing rattling of each member during assembly. be able to. In addition, a highly versatile push button that does not change the button stroke can be obtained.
[0007]
In addition, it is preferable to make the outer diameter of the C-ring smaller than the inner diameter of the nut. By adopting such a configuration, even when the base plate is thick, the assembly can be achieved simply by adjusting the tightening degree (tightening height) with the nut without changing the overall length of the third neck. A highly versatile space-saving push button can be realized.
[0008]
In addition, it is preferable that the operating lever provided at the lower end of the button movable portion can be inserted into the slit portion of the C ring. With this configuration, the switch element can be installed directly below the operating lever. Therefore, since the switch element can be inserted from above into the through hole of the base with the switch element attached to the first neck of the display unit holder, the assembling workability is improved and the size is reduced.
[0009]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a push button with an image display function and a gaming machine according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[0010]
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the push button 1 with an image display function has a housing 3 fixed to an operation panel (base) 2 of a gaming machine such as a slot machine. The housing 3 is formed with a rectangular opening 3 a and a cylindrical male screw portion (third neck) 3 a that is inserted into the through hole 2 a of the operation panel 2. Then, a flat nut 4 is screwed (screwed) to the male screw portion 3 a and the operation panel 2 is sandwiched between the housing 3 and the nut 4, thereby firmly fixing the housing 3 to the operation panel 2.
[0011]
In such a housing 3, a liquid crystal panel (display unit) 6 with a backlight that can switch display of an image by a control signal from the control unit is disposed. The liquid crystal panel 6 includes a display unit holder 7. Via the housing 3. This display unit holder 7 is provided at the top of the hollow pipe 8 and the hollow pipe (first neck) 8 inserted from above so as to penetrate the cylindrical male screw portion 3a, and the liquid crystal panel 6 is bonded and fixed. At the same time, it is composed of a flat display portion holding plate 9 formed wider than the diameter of the hollow pipe 8. Further, the liquid crystal panel 6 is prevented from falling off by the flange portions 9 a provided at both ends of the display unit holding plate 9.
[0012]
Then, the fitting portion 10a of the plate-like C ring 10 is inserted from the side into the cut portion 8a provided at the lower end of the hollow pipe 8, and the upper surface side of the C ring 10 is pressed against the lower end surface of the male screw portion 3a. Thus, the display unit holder 7 is prevented from being detached and prevented from rotating. Accordingly, the display unit holder 7 is fixed to the housing 3, and as a result, the liquid crystal panel 6 is firmly fixed to the operation panel 2 inside the housing 3. The C-ring 10 is formed of an elastic resin and is attached to the cut portion 8a as “click”. Further, by using the hollow pipe 8, the lead wire A of the liquid crystal panel 6 can be drawn downward. Further, the upper surface of the C ring 10 fitted into the hollow pipe 8 is brought into contact with the lower end of the male screw portion 3 a of the housing 3, thereby preventing the display unit holder 7 from falling off.
[0013]
Between the housing 3 and the display unit holder 7 fixed in this manner, a non-contact operation button (button movable unit) 11 that houses the display unit holder 7 and moves independently is disposed. The operation button 11 is surrounded from the side surface (side) in a non-contact state by the housing 3. The operation button 11 is elastically supported by a compression spiral spring 14 as an example of an elastic mechanism and is connected to the pusher portion 12 that presses the spring 14 during operation, and is connected to the pusher portion 12 in a non-contact state. It comprises a transparent cap portion 13 that covers the display surface (upper surface) 6a of the liquid crystal panel 6. At the center of the pusher portion 12, a guide tube (second neck) 12a for guiding the vertical movement of the operation button 11 along the outer peripheral surface of the hollow pipe 8 is provided. At the upper end of the guide tube 12a, A main body portion 12b that creates the accommodation space S by being connected to the transparent cap portion 13 is integrally formed.
[0014]
The main body portion 12a is provided with four L-shaped ribs 12d. The ribs 12d are fitted into the four key grooves 3d of the crown 3c provided at the center of the housing 3, so that the guide function is provided. At the same time, the detent of the pusher portion 12 is also achieved. At this time, it is preferable to minimize the gap between the rib 12d and the wall surface of the key groove 3d. The accommodation space S enables the operation button 11 to move up and down independently. In addition, the transparent cap part 13 is being fixed so that it may be fitted via the adhesive agent in the peripheral part of the main-body part 12b.
[0015]
Further, a compression spiral spring 14 is disposed between the upper surface of the C ring 10 and the main body portion 12 b of the pusher portion 12, and the operation panel 6 is continuously supported elastically by the compression spiral spring 14. After the pushing operation, the operation button 11 is naturally returned. The operation button 11 is independently movable along the hollow pipe 8 in a direction orthogonal to the display surface 6 a of the liquid crystal panel 6. Note that the operator recognizes images such as characters and pictures on the liquid crystal panel 6 through the transparent cap portion 13 made of resin or glass.
[0016]
Further, an L-shaped operating lever 12c extending in the movable direction of the liquid crystal panel 6 is integrally formed on the main body 12b of the pusher unit 12, and the operating lever 12c pushes the detecting unit 16a of the switch element 16 to operate. In this way, it is in contact with the top of the detector 16a. Such a switch element 16 is fixed to the hollow pipe 8 via a plate-like L-shaped bracket 17. The bracket 17 is formed with an opening 17a to be fitted into the fitting groove 8b of the hollow pipe 8, and the switch element 16 is provided with an attaching portion 17b for fixing via a grommet. Accordingly, first, the switch element 16 is fixed to the mounting portion 17b of the bracket 17, and in that state, the bracket 17 is fitted from below so that the hollow pipe 8 is inserted into the opening 17a of the bracket 17, so that the switch The element 16 can be mounted at a predetermined position of the push button 1.
[0017]
Further, since the operation lever 12c provided integrally with the lower end of the operation button 11 is freely inserted into the slit portion 10b of the C ring 10, the switch element 16 can be installed directly below the operation lever 12c. . Therefore, since the switch element 16 can be inserted from above into the through hole 2a of the operation panel 2 while being fixed to the hollow pipe (first neck) 8 of the display unit holder 7, the assembly workability is improved. Contributes to downsizing.
[0018]
In the push button 1 configured as described above, a guide tube (second neck) 12a is provided around the hollow pipe (first neck) 8, and a male screw is provided to the guide tube (second neck) 12a. A portion (third neck) 3a is mounted, and the lower end surface of the housing 3 is brought into contact with the surface of the operation panel (base) 2 by using the nut 4 and the C ring 10 described above. The upper surface of the nut 4 is brought into contact with the back surface, and the operation panel 2 is sandwiched between the housing 3 and the nut 4.
[0019]
Therefore, by using the wide display unit holding plate 9, the display unit holder 7, the operation button (button movable unit) 11, and the housing 3 are easily and reliably integrated into the sub-assembly by the C ring 10 and the nut 4. Can be Further, the use of the C-ring 10 and the nut 4 facilitates the handling of the push button 1 and at the same time, prevents the backlash of each member during assembly and copes with the difference in the thickness of the operation panel (base) 2. Can do. Moreover, it can be a highly versatile push button that does not change the button stroke.
[0020]
Further, since the outer diameter of the C-ring 10 is smaller than the four inner diameters of the nut, the nut 4 can be obtained without changing the overall length of the male screw portion (third neck portion) 3a even when the thickness of the operation panel 2 is thick. Since the assembly can be achieved simply by adjusting the tightening degree (tightening height), a highly versatile space-saving push button 1 can be realized.
[0021]
In such a push button 1, the liquid crystal panel 6 capable of switching the display of images is arranged in a non-contact state in the accommodation space S of the operation button 11, so that the operator presses the operation button 11. The liquid crystal panel 6 can continue to maintain the state without being affected by the movement of the operation button 11. As a result, the detection unit 16 a of the switch element 16 can be operated by the operation button 11 without the operator's pressing force being transmitted to the liquid crystal panel 6.
[0022]
Therefore, since no force is applied to the liquid crystal panel 6 from the outside, even when the liquid crystal panel 6 having a structure that is very easily damaged is adopted as the display unit, the durability thereof is improved. 1 durability will be improved. In addition, since the influence of external force on the liquid crystal panel 6 is extremely reduced, the enlargement of the liquid crystal panel 6 can be easily and reliably promoted without applying a special design to the liquid crystal panel 6 itself. it can.
[0023]
Next, an application example of the push button 1 described above will be briefly described. The gaming machine 20 shown in FIG. 5 can switch between a 5-reel game and a poker game using the same model. In this gaming machine 20, an operation panel 2 used as a base is disposed on the front surface of a housing 22, and push buttons 1 having various sizes are arranged on the operation panel 2. Further, a monitor 21 is attached to the housing 22 in front of the operation panel 2.
[0024]
For example, as shown in FIG. 6, when the “CHANGE” button is pressed, “5REEL” is displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6, and an image associated therewith is displayed on the monitor 21. At the same time, “LINE1” to “LINE5” are displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6 of the five push buttons 1 arranged in the upper center of the operation panel 2, and the five arranged in the lower middle of the operation panel 2. The liquid crystal panel 6 of the push button 1 displays “BET1” to “BET5”. Furthermore, “SPIN” and “BETMAX” are displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6 of the other push buttons 1 to prepare for the 5-reel game.
[0025]
On the other hand, when the player wants to select a poker game, as shown in FIG. 7, by pressing the “CHANGE” button, “POKER” is displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6, and the accompanying image is displayed on the monitor 21. Is displayed. At the same time, “BET 1” is displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6 of the push button 1 in the lower left row. Furthermore, “HOLD WIN” is displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6 of the central push button 1 among the five push buttons 1 arranged in the upper center of the operation panel 2. On the other hand, “A” to “E” are displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6 of the five push buttons 1 arranged in the lower center of the operation panel 2. Furthermore, “DEAL / DRAW” and “BETMAX” are displayed on the liquid crystal panel 6 of the other push buttons 1 to prepare for the poker game.
[0026]
Further, although not shown, the push buttons 1 having the 5 × 10 cm liquid crystal panel 6 can be arranged in three rows and used as a reel. For example, when the player stops the reel, the stop button can be eliminated from the gaming machine by directly pressing the reel to be stopped instead of the stop button. A gaming machine with high palatability is realized by changing the color and display at the moment the reel is pressed. Furthermore, various reel games can be provided simply by changing the display design of the liquid crystal panel 6 by electrical control.
[0027]
The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above. For example, the display unit 6 is not limited to a liquid crystal panel, and may be an EL (electroluminescence) display or the like. The switch element 16 may be optical. Further, the gaming machine 20 can realize various complex gaming machines by changing the arrangement and size of the push buttons 1 on the operation panel 2.
[0028]
【The invention's effect】
Since the push button with an image display function according to the present invention is configured as described above, the following effects are obtained. That is, a display unit holder having a first neck, a display unit holding plate fixed to the first neck and having a width wider than the first neck, a second neck, and a display unit holder A button movable portion that houses the housing, a housing having a third neck portion inserted into a through-hole provided in the base, and a C that is attached to the first neck portion and is brought into contact with the lower end surface of the third neck portion. A ring and a nut that is screwed onto the third neck, the second neck is looped around the first neck, the third neck is looped around the second neck, and the base The lower end surface of the housing is in contact with the front surface of the housing, and the upper end surface of the nut is in contact with the back surface of the base. By holding the base between the housing and the nut, a highly versatile push button with an image display function is possible. To.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an embodiment of a push button with an image display function according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the push button shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG.
4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG.
FIG. 5 is an external perspective view showing a gaming machine to which the push button shown in FIG. 1 is applied.
6 is a plan view showing one display mode of an operation panel in the gaming machine shown in FIG. 5. FIG.
FIG. 7 is a plan view showing another display mode of the operation panel in the gaming machine shown in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Push button, 2 ... Base (operation panel), 3 ... Housing, 3a ... Male screw part (3rd neck part), 4 ... Nut, 6 ... Liquid crystal panel (display part), 7 ... Display part holder, 8 ... Hollow Pipe (first neck), 9 ... display holding plate, 10 ... C-ring, 10b ... slit, 11 ... operation button (button movable part), 12 ... pusher, 12a ... guide tube (second neck) 12c ... Actuating lever, 13 ... Transparent cap part, 14 ... Spring (elastic mechanism), 16 ... Switch element

Claims (3)

A display unit holder having a first neck and a display unit holding plate that is fixed to the first neck and is wider than the first neck;
A button movable portion having a second neck portion and accommodating the display portion holder;
A housing having a third neck inserted into a through hole provided in the base;
A C-ring attached to the first neck and abutting against a lower end surface of the third neck;
A nut screwed onto the third neck,
A second neck is wrapped around the first neck, a third neck is wrapped around the second neck, the lower end surface of the housing is in contact with the surface of the base, and the back surface of the base A push button with an image display function, wherein an upper end surface of the nut is brought into contact with the nut, and the base is sandwiched between the housing and the nut. The push button with an image display function according to claim 1, wherein an outer diameter of the C-ring is made smaller than an inner diameter of the nut. 3. The push button with an image display function according to claim 1, wherein an operation lever provided at a lower end of the button movable portion is freely inserted into a slit portion of the C ring.

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