JP4245622B2 - Game media supply device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a game medium supply device that automatically supplies medals as game media to each game machine in a game hall where a plurality of game machines are installed.

  FIG. 10 shows a main part of the medal supply device 171 of the reference technology. To explain this outline, medals stored in the storage means 172 are distributed in two directions, left and right in the figure, by a distribution means 173 consisting of a belt conveyor that can be rotated forward and backward horizontally disposed below the storage means 172. Distributed and discharged. The medals distributed and discharged in the left direction in the figure are guided by the guiding means (conveyor insertion chute) 174 to the lifting means 175 formed of a belt conveyor with blades, and are picked up there and automatically supplied to each gaming machine. Is done.

  On the right side surface of the medal supply device 171, a bucket housing portion 177 for installing a bucket 176 that can accommodate and carry medals is formed. The medals distributed and discharged in the right direction in the drawing are guided by the guiding means (bucket payout outlet) 178 to the bucket accommodating portion 177 and are put into the bucket 176 accommodated in the bucket accommodating portion 177.

The present invention automatically supplies game media to a gaming machine or the like, and manually supplies game media to a bucket for manually supplying gaming media to the gaming machine or the like, and further to an adjacent game media supply device. Also aimed at transporting game media .

A game medium supply device according to one aspect of the present invention receives a storage means for storing a game medium collected from a gaming machine, a lifting means for lifting the game medium upward, and a game medium stored in the storage means. A feeding means inlet chute for guiding to the lifting means, and a replenishing means for replenishing the gaming machine by a certain amount when automatically supplying the gaming media lifted upward by the lifting means to the gaming machine. the door, the game medium supply device having a portable bucket for accommodating the game medium, and a bucket containing portion for loading and unloading can accommodate, the game media of the storage means, and the bucket of the bucket accommodating portion, wherein to a pumped unit inlet chute, and distribution means capable of dispensing said the upper part of the game medium supply device and the starting end, the island passes to be stretched between the adjacent game medium supplying apparatus Combe And the game medium that has been paid out to the feeding means inlet chute by the distributing means and lifted upward by the lifting means is conveyed to the adjacent game medium replenishing device by the island conveyor, Alternatively, a branching unit that branches so as to enter the replenishing means is provided.

  The replenishing means stores, at the upper position of the gaming machine, a replenishing conveyor disposed along the arrangement direction of the gaming machines, and the gaming medium that has been lifted by the lifting means, It may have a replenishment tank paid out to the replenishment conveyor.

As described above, according to the present invention, the game medium is automatically supplied to the gaming machine or the like, the game medium is manually supplied to the bucket for manually supplying the game medium to the gaming machine, and the like . The game media can be transported to the adjacent game media supply device .

  First, the configuration of the gaming machine island will be described with reference to FIG. In the pachinko parlor, a gaming machine island 3 (hereinafter simply referred to as “island”) in which a plurality of gaming machines 1 are arranged in the horizontal direction is installed. The gaming machine 1 is a slot machine that is played using coin-shaped gaming media (hereinafter also referred to as “medals”). A medal lending machine 2 for lending medals is provided so as to be sandwiched between the gaming machines 1. The medal lending machine 2 is provided at a ratio of 1 to 1 or 2 gaming machines. Hereinafter, the gaming machine 1 and the medal rental machine 2 are collectively referred to as a medal use machine. As for the gaming machine island 3, a form called Katashima in which the gaming machines 1 are arranged only on one side and a form called both islands in which the gaming machines 1 are arranged on both sides are selected as necessary. There are often multiple rows of gaming machine islands 3 in the pachinko parlor, and each gaming machine island 3 has about 10 to 20 gaming machines 1 and about 5 to 20 medal lending machines 2 on one side. Often lined up.

  At the end of each gaming machine island 3, a medal supply device 4 according to the present invention is provided. The medal replenishing device 4 includes a placing table-equipped medal replenishing device 4a provided with a placing table 6 for placing the medal counter 5 at a front portion thereof, and a placing table-less medal replenishing device 4b provided with no placing table 6. There is. In the example of FIG. 1, three rows of gaming machine islands 3 on both islands, each having 10 gaming machines l and 5 medal lending machines 2 arranged side by side, are installed at the ends of the gaming machine islands 3 on both sides. Is provided with a medal replenishing device 4a with a mounting table, and a medal replenishing device 4b without a mounting table is provided at the end of the central gaming machine island 3. A double door lower door 7 is provided at the front lower portion of each medal replenishing device 4, a single door upper door 8 is provided at the front upper portion, and a side door 9 is provided near the middle height of both side surfaces.

On the upper part of the upper door 8, a display lamp 10 for displaying the operation status of the medal replenishing device 4 and the like is provided. The display lamp includes three display lamps: a display lamp 10a using a green LED, a display lamp 10b using a red LED, and a display lamp 10c using a yellow LED. The medal supply device 4 at the center and the medal supply devices 4 on both sides are connected by an island conveyor 11 that conveys medals between the medal supply devices 4 in order to equalize the amount of medals held by each gaming machine island 3. .
The number of medals using machines, the number of installed gaming machines island 3, the selection of Katashima and Ryoshima, and the selection of medal supply device 4a with mounting table and medal supply device 4b without mounting table can be freely selected according to the form of the pachinko shop. Selected. Further, when the medal rental machine 2 is separately provided in the pachinko parlor away from the gaming machine island 3, the medal rental machine 2 may not be provided on the island.

  The internal mechanism is almost the same between the mounting table and the mounting table-less medal replenishing device 4a, 4b. With the mounting table, the medal counted by the medal counter 5 is sent to the lower tank 25 described later. The difference is that. Therefore, the internal mechanism of one medal supply device 4a will be described and the description of the other will be omitted. The internal mechanism of the medal replenishing device 4a is roughly composed of the end part of the medal collecting means, the medal cleaning means, the washed medal storage means, the bucket payout means, the replenishing means, and the like. It demonstrates using FIGS. 1-5.

Collecting means for medals A recovery conveyor 21 is horizontally disposed along the parallel direction of the gaming machines 1 at a position below the gaming machines 1 arranged in parallel with the gaming machine island 3. The medals that have overflowed the internal hopper (not shown) of the gaming machine 1 are discharged onto the collection conveyor 21 through the discharge port 22 and conveyed to the island end where the medal replenishing device 4 is provided. As the recovery conveyor 21, various forms of conveyors capable of conveying medals, such as a belt conveyor, a screw conveyor, and a chain conveyor, can be adopted.

  The medals transported to the end of the recovery conveyor 21 pass through the recovery lift insertion rochute 23, and the recovery lift 24 erected at the rear of the medal supply device 4 raises the height of the upper surface of the mounting table 6 of the medal supply device 4 to a high level. It is lifted up. The recovery lift 24 of the present embodiment is formed by welding a large number of synthetic resin blades for scooping up the medals in the recovery lift insertion rochute 23 on the surface of the belt. It is discharged at the position where the apex has passed, but as another form of collection lift, one that holds medals by a pair of belt conveyors arranged close to each other in the vertical direction and lifts the bucket, attaches a bucket to the vertical conveyor, Various forms of lifts may be employed, such as those that receive and lift medals by buckets. The raised medals are put into a lower tank 25 provided at the lower part of the medal supply device 4.

  Further, medals as prizes paid out from the gaming machine 1 as a result of the game played by the player are inserted into the medal counter 5 placed on the mounting table 6 of the medal replenishing device 4 and counted, and the medal counter 5 To the lower tank 25 through a chute that passes through the upper surface of the mounting table 6 and communicates with the lower tank 25. The upper surface of the lower tank 25 is opened, and a discharge port 26 is formed at the bottom of the lower tank 25. The side surface of the lower tank 25 is inclined so as to guide the stored medal to the discharge port 26. A lower tank conveyor 27 is disposed below the lower tank 25 at a distance from the discharge port 26. When the lower tank conveyor 27 is not in operation, medals guided to the discharge port 26 of the lower tank 25 are stable in a state where they are piled on the lower tank conveyor 27 and spill out from the discharge port 26. There is no. By operating the lower tank conveyor 27, the medals piled on the conveyor are sequentially conveyed and discharged. At this time, the amount of medals discharged can be adjusted by adjusting the distance between the discharge port 26 and the lower tank conveyor 27 or the drive speed of the conveyor.

Medal Cleaning Means The medals discharged and conveyed from the lower tank 25 by the lower tank conveyor 27 are guided to the cleaning unit 28. The cleaning unit 28 transports the inserted medals obliquely upward by the inclined conveyor 28a, sprays the cleaning liquid on the medals being transported and cleans them, and presses the medals by a pair of water absorption rollers 28b at the outlet of the inclined conveyor 28a. And then dehydrated and dried. The cleaning unit 28 of the present embodiment exemplifies a method of spraying the cleaning liquid on the transported medal, but other methods such as a method of immersing the medal in the cleaning liquid, a polishing method using a cloth or a brush, Various well-known cleaning and polishing methods such as a polishing method using mixed friction with the resin can be employed.

Washed medal storage means The medals discharged from the washing unit 28 are passed through the main lift entry chute 29, and then the medal is placed by the main lift 30 (see FIG. 3) which stands vertically at the right rear position of the medal replenishing device 4. It is lifted up to the top of the replenishing device 4. The main lift 30 of the present embodiment employs the same configuration as that of the recovery lift 24, but various forms of lifts can be employed as in the case of the recovery lift 24. The medals scooped up by the main lift 30 are lifted up to the upper position of the medal replenishing device 4, discharged on the upper tank 31 and put into the tank.

  Similar to the lower tank 25, the upper tank 31 has a shape with an open upper surface and a discharge port 32 on the bottom surface. Below the upper tank 31, an upper tank conveyor 33 as a means for distributing medals in the tank is horizontally arranged in the left-right direction with a slight distance from the discharge port 32. In a state where the upper tank conveyor 33 is not in operation, medals near the discharge tank 32 of the upper tank 31 are stable in a state of being piled on the upper tank conveyor 23 and do not spill from the discharge port 32. By operating the upper tank conveyor 33, medals piled up on the conveyor are sequentially distributed and discharged. At this time, the distribution amount of medals can be adjusted by adjusting the distance between the discharge port 32 and the upper tank conveyor 33 or the driving speed of the conveyor. The upper tank conveyor 33 is driven by a motor capable of rotating in the forward and reverse directions, and medals can be selectively paid out at two locations of the bucket chute 34 and the replenishment lift entry rochute 35 depending on the driving direction of the conveyor. The upper tank conveyor 33 that pays out medals at the two locations may be divided into two, and one may be paid out to the bucket chute 34 and the other to the supply lift inlet chute 35. In the case of this configuration, there is a possibility that both upper tank conveyors operate simultaneously to pay out medals.

Dispensing means for buckets Inside the side doors 9 formed on both side surfaces of the medal replenishing device 4, bucket accommodating portions 49 are provided that can receive and accommodate the buckets 48. The bucket 48 is a container with a handle that can store medals, and is used when it is necessary to manually supply medals to the gaming machine 1 or the medal lending machine 2, and is generally called a mug. . The medal stored in the upper tank 31 is guided to the bucket chute 34 by moving the upper tank conveyor 33 to the right in FIG. The bucket chute 34 is a cylindrical body whose top and bottom are opened, and its start end is attached to the right end bottom of a case 33a (see FIG. 4 (b)) holding the upper tank conveyor 33 by screws, and a terminal end portion. Faces the bucket accommodating portion 49 and inserts the guided medal into the bucket 48.

  The clerk opens the side door 9, installs the bucket 48 at a predetermined position in the bucket housing portion 49, depresses a bucket payout switch provided near the bucket chute 34, releases the medal from the bucket chute 34, Accept medal. In the example of FIG. 2, the bucket housing portion 49 on the right side surface is configured to be used, and the bucket housing portion 49 on the left side surface is not used.

Replenishment means By moving the upper tank conveyor 33 in the left direction of FIG. 2, the medals stored in the upper tank 31 are guided to the replenishment lift entry rochute 35. In the center of the rear surface of the upper door 8 of the medal replenishing device 4, a replenishing lift 36, which has a height that extends from the height of the upper surface of the lower tank 25 to near the ceiling of the medal replenishing device 4, stands up. Scoop up and move the medal in Rochete 35. The replenishment lift 36 of the present embodiment has the same form as the recovery lift 24 and the main lift 30, but various forms of lifts can be adopted as with the recovery lift 24 and the main lift 30. In the example shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the bucket accommodating portion 49 facing the side door on the right side surface of the apparatus is used, and when the clerk wants to insert a medal into the bucket, Open the side door 9 on the right side and receive a medal.

  In the case where the gaming machine island 3 is both islands in which medal machines are arranged in parallel on both sides of the island, there is often no problem regardless of which side of the medal replenishing device 4 the bucket housing portion 49 is. However, for example, in the case where the gaming machine island 3 is a island where medals using machines are arranged in parallel only on one side of the island, and one side of the medal replenishing device 4 is installed near the wall of the amusement shop, Since the closed side door 9 cannot be opened, the bucket accommodating portion 49 may be provided only on the right side or the left side. Therefore, in the medal replenishing device 4 according to the present invention, the bucket accommodating portion 49 which is more convenient among the bucket accommodating portions 49 provided on the left and right side surfaces is used by simply recombining the bucket chute 34 or the replenishment lift insertion rochute 35. It has been devised to make it possible.

  FIG. 4A is a plan view of the vicinity of the replenishment lift insertion rochute 35 when the right bucket accommodating portion 49 is configured to be usable, FIG. 4B is the same front view, and FIG. It is a right view. The bucket and the bucket accommodating portion are indicated by phantom lines only in the front view, and the upper tank conveyor is indicated by phantom lines in the front view and the right side view. The upper tank conveyor (distribution means) 33 is a conveyor that is driven forward and backward in the left-right direction, and is disposed horizontally below the upper tank (storage means) 31. The case 33a is a case for holding the upper tank conveyor 33, and first and second discharge ports 144 and 145 for paying out medals are formed at the left and right ends of the bottom surface.

  Bucket accommodating portions 49 are provided at two locations so as to face side doors (openings) 9 formed on both side surfaces of the medal supply device 4. A bucket chute 34 is attached to the first discharge port 144 at the right end of the bottom surface of the case 33a, and is installed at a position where the discharge port communicates with the right bucket accommodating portion 49. When an attendant wants to receive a medal in the bucket 48, the right side door 9 is opened, the bucket 48 is set, a bucket payout switch (not shown) is pressed, and a bucket payout request is transmitted to the control unit. In this case, since the installation position of the bucket chute 34 is on the right side and the right bucket accommodating portion 49 can be used, the control unit moves the upper tank conveyor 33 in the right direction in order to pay out medals to the bucket. Control to do.

  The replenishment lift 36 (lifting means) is erected substantially in front of the center of the upper tank conveyor 33 in the left-right direction, that is, substantially at the center of the medal replenishing device 4. The replenishment lift entry rochute (lifting means entry rochute) 35 includes a chute main body 141, an auxiliary chute 142, and a conveyor exit rochute 143. The chute main body 141 is a chute that is attached to the lower right side lower end portion of the replenishment lift 36 and guides medals to an inlet 36a that becomes a medal intake port of the replenishment lift 36. The upper surface portion is an opening that communicates with the auxiliary chute 142. The side surface portion is an opening that communicates with the replenishment lift inlet 36a, and the bottom surface portion is an inclined surface that faces the replenishment lift inlet 36a.

  The auxiliary chute 142 is a chute that is attached to the back surface of the replenishment lift 36 and receives medals from the conveyor outlet chute 143 and guides the medal to the chute main body 141. 143, the right end portion of the bottom surface portion is an opening that communicates with the chute body 141, and the other bottom surface portion is an inclined surface that guides the medal to the bottom surface opening portion from the conveyor outlet rochette 143 communication portion to the opening portion. The

  The conveyor outlet rochette 143 is a cylindrical body having an opening at the top and bottom, the start end is connected and fixed to the second discharge port 145 at the bottom left end of the case 33 a of the upper tank conveyor 33, and the end is connected to the auxiliary chute 142. The shape faces the upper surface opening. In the case of this configuration, the controller is set to move the upper tank conveyor 33 in the left direction in order to supply medals to the supply lift 36. When a lifting request is transmitted to the control unit due to a lack of medals in the replenishment tank 39, the control unit controls the upper tank conveyor 33 to move leftward and replenishes via a replenishment lift entry rochute 35. A medal is inserted into the lift 36.

  Then, when it is desired to use the bucket accommodating portion 49 on the left side of the apparatus, the configuration is changed to that shown in FIG. FIG. 5A is a plan view of the vicinity of the replenishment lift insertion rochute 35 when the left bucket accommodating portion 49 is configured to be usable, FIG. 5B is the same front view, and FIG. It is a right view. The bucket and the bucket housing portion are shown in a virtual diagram only in the front view, and the upper tank conveyor is shown in a virtual diagram in the front view and the right side view. The bucket chute 34 is replaced with the second discharge port 145 at the left end of the bottom surface of the case 33a of the upper tank conveyor 33, and the bucket chute 34 is changed to an installation position where the discharge port communicates with the left bucket accommodating portion 49. Among the parts constituting the replenishment lift entry rochute 35, the conveyor exit rochette 143 is replaced so as to connect the first discharge port 144 at the right end of the bottom surface of the case 33a and the right end of the upper surface opening of the auxiliary chute 142. The replenishment lift entrance rochute 35 including the chute main body 141 and the auxiliary chute 142 remains fixed.

  The replenishment lift 36 is erected substantially in front of the center of the upper tank conveyor 33 in the left-right direction, and the auxiliary chute 142 is set at approximately the same distance from the left and right ends of the upper tank conveyor 33. Can guide the medal to the auxiliary chute 142 by changing the same parts left and right. In this case, the installation position of the bucket chute 34 is on the left side, and the left bucket accommodating portion 49 can be used. Therefore, when the control unit receives the bucket payout request and pays out medals to the bucket, the upper tank conveyor 33 Is moved in the opposite direction (left direction) to the above-described configuration, and when the lift request is received and the medal is paid out to the lift 36, the upper tank conveyor 33 is switched so as to move in the right direction. . The switching of the control unit may be reset by staff operation processing described later, or the connection of the control terminal of the motor that drives the upper tank conveyor 33 may be switched.

  When an attendant wants to receive a medal in the bucket 48, the left side door 9 is opened, the bucket 48 is set, a bucket payout switch (not shown) is pressed, and a bucket payout request is transmitted to the control unit. The control unit controls the upper tank conveyor 33 to move leftward in order to pay out medals to the bucket, and inserts medals into the bucket 48 via the bucket chute 34. As described above, it is possible to freely select and use one of the bucket storage portions provided on the left and right sides by a simple mechanism change in which only the bucket chute 34 and the conveyor exiting chute 143 are replaced.

  The medals lifted by the replenishment lift 36 are discharged onto the island conveyor 11 via a replenishment lift exit rochute 37 as shown in FIGS. The island transfer conveyor 11 starts from the upper right end of the medal replenishing device 4 and extends horizontally between adjacent medal replenishing devices 4. An island branching unit 38 is provided on the island conveyor 11 in the medal supply device 4. The medals discharged onto the island transfer conveyor 11 are always conveyed as they are to the adjacent medal replenishment device 4, branch off from the island transfer conveyor 11 by closing the gate, and put into the supply tank 39 on the own island.

  The replenishment tank 39 includes a chute 39a and a tank main body 39b. The chute 39a guides medals branched from the island transfer conveyor 11 to the tank main body 39b. The tank main body 39b is inserted from the chute 39a. In addition to storing medals, a predetermined amount of medals are paid out to the replenishment conveyor 42 during replenishment. At the upper position of the medal use machine, a replenishment conveyor 42 that is horizontally arranged along the parallel direction of the medal use machines is provided with the opposite end of the gaming machine island 3 as a termination. The medals conveyed by the supply tank conveyor 41 are discharged onto the supply conveyor 42 and conveyed to the island end. A branch unit 43 is disposed on the supply conveyor 42, and medals conveyed on the supply conveyor 42 are selectively branched and discharged to the right side or the left side of the supply conveyor 42. A replenishing port 44 for receiving the branched and discharged medals is provided, and a guide tube 45 for guiding the medals to the hopper of the medal use machine is connected. A relay control box 46 having a relay control unit for managing and controlling the branch unit 43 is disposed on the supply conveyor 42.

  Next, a description will be given of the main part of another embodiment of the present invention in which one of the bucket accommodating portions 49 provided on the left and right can be freely selected and used. Note that the configuration other than the main part being described is the same as that of the first embodiment, and thus the description thereof is omitted.

  A second embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. A bucket chute 34 is attached to one of the first and second discharge ports 144 and 145 on both the left and right sides of the bottom surface of the case 33a. When it is desired to use the bucket receiving portion 49 on the right side of the apparatus, the bucket chute 34 is attached to the first discharge port 144 on the right side of the bottom surface of the case 33a. The control unit is set to drive in the direction.

  The auxiliary chute 142 constituting the replenishment lift entrance rochute 35 is configured to be wider than the lateral width of the upper tank conveyor 33 so as to receive the medals discharged and discharged from the discharge ports 144 and 145 at both ends of the bottom of the case 33a. Out of both the left and right outlets 144, 145 on the bottom surface of the case 33a, medals discharged from the outlet (the left outlet in FIG. 6) 145 where the bucket chute 34 is not attached are thrown into the auxiliary chute 142. Then, since it is thrown into the replenishment lift 36 through the chute body 141, when there is a request for lifting, the control unit is set so as to drive the upper tank conveyor 33 in the left direction.

  When it is desired to use the bucket receiving portion 49 on the left side of the apparatus, the bucket chute 34 is attached to the first discharge port 145 on the left side of the bottom surface of the case 33a, and the discharge port communicates with the left bucket receiving portion 49. In addition to changing to the installation position, when there is a bucket payout request, the control unit is switched to drive the upper tank conveyor 33 in the left direction.

  According to the above configuration, one of the bucket storage units provided on the left and right can be freely changed by only changing the installation position of the bucket chute 34 and switching the transfer direction of the upper tank conveyor 33 (distribution means) of the control unit. It can be selected and used, and it is not necessary to change the configuration of the replenishment lift entrance rochute 35.

  A third embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. In this embodiment, the configurations of the upper tank conveyor 33, the case 33a, the replenishment lift 36, the replenishment lift entrance rochute 35, and the bucket housing portion 49 are substantially the same as those of the embodiment of FIG. A bucket chute 34 is attached to the first discharge port 144 on the right side of the bottom surface of the case 33a. In the present embodiment, the left bucket accommodating portion 49 is used, and the bucket chute 34 is formed of a portable bellows tube, and starts from the first discharge port 144 on the right side of the bottom surface of the case 33a. As described above, the medals distributed around the upper tank conveyor 33 are guided to the left bucket accommodating portion 49 through the rear of the replenishment lift entrance rochute 35 and communicated with the left bucket accommodating portion 49.

  The second discharge port 145 on the left side of the bottom surface of the case 33a is provided with a conveyor discharge chute 143 that constitutes the supply lift inlet chute 35, and guides medals discharged from the second discharge port 145 on the left side to the supply lift 36. . The control unit is set to move the upper tank conveyor 33 in the right direction when receiving the bucket payout request, and to move the upper tank conveyor 33 in the left direction when receiving the replenishment request. When it is desired to use the right side bucket housing part 49 of the apparatus, the bucket chute 34 is replaced with a short one 34 'so that the right first outlet 144 on the bottom surface of the case 33a and the right side bucket housing part 49 communicate with each other. Constitute.

According to this configuration, the bucket storage portions 49 provided on the left and right sides can be more simply replaced by changing the bucket chute and changing the bucket storage portion to be supplied without changing the settings of the supply lift chute and the control unit. One of the two can be freely selected and used.
As the bucket chute 34, a portable bellows tube is used so as to be convenient to be placed across a device in which a replenishment lift, a replenishment lift-in-place chute, etc. are installed. A manufactured chute may be used, and a linear chute can also be used if the arrangement of the replenishment lift or the like is appropriately changed.

  A fourth embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. This figure is a plan view of the vicinity of the replenishment lift entry rochute 35. A bucket chute when the right bucket accommodating part 49 is usable is indicated by a solid line, and a bucket chute when the left bucket accommodating part 49 is usable is indicated by a one-dot chain line. In the present embodiment, the upper tank conveyor 33 is arranged so as to be transferred in the front-rear direction to the lower part of the upper tank. This is for equalizing the distance from the outlet 145 of the case 33a of the upper tank conveyor 33 to the two bucket housing portions 49 facing the side doors 9 (openings) on the left and right side surfaces. The medals discharged from the first discharge port 144 on the front side of the upper tank conveyor 33 are supplied to the supply lift 36 via the supply lift entrance rochute 35 and are transported.

  The medals discharged from the second discharge roller 145 on the rear side of the upper tank conveyor 33 are guided to the bucket housing portion 49 via the bucket chute 34 and supplied to the bucket 48. The bucket chute 34 is a cylindrical chute that is open at both ends, the start end side is rotatably attached to the second discharge port 145, and the installation position is changed so that the end side communicates with one of the left and right bucket accommodating portions 49. Provided as possible.

  According to this configuration, only by changing the installation position of the bucket chute 34, one of the bucket storage units provided on the left and right can be freely selected and used. There is no need to change the setting.

  A fifth embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. In this embodiment, the configurations of the upper tank conveyor 33, the case 33a, and the replenishment lift 36 are the same as those in the first embodiment. A bucket chute 34 is attached to each of the first and second discharge ports 144 and 145 on both the left and right sides of the bottom surface of the case 33a. It is the same in that the bucket housing portions 49 are provided at two places so as to face the side doors (openings) 9 formed on both side surfaces, but fall from the upper bucket chute 34 to the bottom surface of each bucket housing portion 49. A plurality of openings 146 are formed to allow the medal to pass therethrough. The replenishment lift entry rochute 35 includes a chute body 141 and an auxiliary chute 142. The configuration of the chute main body 141 is the same as that of the embodiment of FIG. 4, but the auxiliary chute 142 is larger than the width of the upper tank conveyor 33 so as to receive medals discharged from the discharge ports 144 and 145 at both ends of the upper tank conveyor 33. Widely configured. As a result, the medals discharged from the upper tank conveyor 33 are put into the auxiliary chute 142 and the medals dropped from either of the outlets 144 and 145 are put into the supply lift 36 through the chute main body 141.

  When it is desired to use the bucket receiving portion 49 on the right side of the apparatus, the control unit is set to drive the upper tank conveyor 33 in the right direction when the bucket payout switch is pressed and a bucket payout request is generated. When an attendant wants to receive a medal in the bucket, the right side door 9 is opened, the bucket 48 is set, and a bucket payout switch (not shown) is pressed. Then, the control unit determines that a bucket payout request has occurred, drives the upper tank conveyor 33 to the right, distributes and discharges medals, and inserts medals into the bucket 48 via the bucket chute 34. .

When the control unit determines to lift the medal, the upper tank conveyor 33 is driven leftward to distribute and discharge the medal, and the medal is passed through the opening 144 of the left bucket accommodating portion 49 and the auxiliary chute 142. And is supplied to the supply lift 36 through the chute body 141.
When it is desired to use the bucket housing part 49 on the left side of the apparatus, the setting of the control unit is changed so that the upper tank conveyor 33 is driven leftward when a bucket payout request is generated.

According to this configuration, it is possible to freely select and use one of the left and right bucket storage units simply by changing the setting of the control unit so as to switch the transfer direction of the upper tank conveyor 33 (distribution means). There is no need to change the bucket chute or resupply lift chute.
In addition, when using the bucket accommodating part 49 so that a medal can be passed by removing the bottom surface of each bucket accommodating part 49 in which the plurality of openings 146 are formed, a placing table for placing the bucket 48 is separately provided. You may do it.

It is a perspective view showing an outline of one example of game machine island arrangement. It is a schematic front view which shows the internal mechanism of the medal supply apparatus of the 1st Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view showing main internal mechanisms of the medal supply device and the gaming machine train of FIG. 2. The main part of the embodiment is shown, (a) is a schematic plan view of the vicinity of the supply lift entry rochute when configured to enable the use of the right bucket housing part, (b) is the schematic front view, (c) ) Is a schematic right side view of the same. The same main part as FIG. 4 of the same embodiment is shown, (a) is a schematic plan view of the vicinity of the replenishment lift entry rochute when configured to enable the use of the left bucket housing part, (b) is the schematic front view , (C) is a schematic right side view of the same. It is a partial section principal part schematic front view of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a partial section principal part schematic front view of 3rd Embodiment of this invention. It is a partial cross-section principal part schematic plan view of the periphery of the supply lift entrance rochute of 4th Embodiment of this invention. It is a partial section principal part schematic front view of 5th Embodiment of this invention. It is a partial cross-section principal part schematic front view of the medal supply apparatus of a reference technique.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Game machine 2 Medal lending machine 3 Game machine island 4 Medal supply device 4a Medal supply device with mounting table 4b Medal supply device without mounting table 5 Medal counter 6 Mounting table 7 Lower door 8 Upper door 9 Side door 10 Display lamp 11 Island Transfer conveyor 21 Recovery conveyor 22 Discharge port 23 Recovery lift inlet chute 24 Recovery lift 25 Lower tank 26 Discharge port 27 Lower tank conveyor 28 Cleaning unit 28a Inclined conveyor 28b Water absorption roller 29 Main lift inlet chute 30 Main lift 31 Upper tank 32 Discharge port 33 Upper tank conveyor 33a Case 34 Bucket chute 35 Supply lift inlet chute 36 Supply lift 37 Supply lift outlet chute 38 Island transfer branch unit 39 Supply tank 39a Chute 39b Tank body 41 Supply tank conveyor 42 Supplement Conveyor 43 branch unit 44 supply port 45 guide tube 46 relay control box 47 return pipe 48 bucket 49 bucket accommodating portion

Claims (2)

Storage means for storing game media collected from the gaming machine;
A transporting means for transporting the game medium upward;
Receiving the game medium of the storage means, and feeding means inlet chute for guiding to the lifting means;
Replenishment means for replenishing the gaming machine by a certain amount when automatically replenishing the gaming medium that has been lifted upward by the lifting means;
In the game medium supply device having
A bucket accommodating portion for accommodating a portable bucket for accommodating the game medium in a removable manner;
Distribution means capable of paying out the game medium of the storage means to the bucket of the bucket housing portion and the feeding means inlet chute ,
An island conveyor that starts from the top of the game medium supply device and spans between adjacent game medium supply devices;
The game medium paid out to the feeding means inlet chute by the distribution means and lifted upward by the lifting means is conveyed to the adjacent game medium supply device by the island transfer conveyor, or A branching unit that branches to be fed into the replenishment means,
A game medium supply device provided. 2. The game medium supply device according to claim 1 , wherein the supply means includes:
A replenishment conveyor disposed along an arrangement direction of the gaming machines at an upper position of the gaming machines;
A replenishment tank for storing the game medium that has been transported by the transporting means, and for delivering the game medium to the replenishment conveyor;
A game medium supply device.

Images