JP4405214B2 - Box-type game machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a box-type game machine such as a slot machine or a ball game machine having a lower panel structure.

  The current slot machine has a main board assembly, a main reel, and a design panel in line with the game concept, and it has a structure that makes it easy to touch these parts just by opening and closing the front door. In particular, since the main board performs the main control of the gaming machine, contrivances have been made to increase the security of the main board, such as sealing the main board case.

As an example of such a prior art, there is a “board case for gaming machines” that can prevent unauthorized modification of a control board by attaching a case that protects the main board to the main board in a detachable manner (for example, Patent Documents) 1). In addition, there is a “separable slot machine” that can facilitate replacement work and normal maintenance by making the exchange unit with the reel unit and the main control device detachable from the housing (for example, patents). Reference 2).
JP 11-019310 A JP 2003-047685 A

  However, the form of the invention described in Patent Document 1 is very complicated in changing the contents of the gaming machine, and the invention described in Patent Document 2 can be easily applied to the main board when the front door is opened. There is still a problem in terms of security because it can be touched.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a box-type gaming machine having a lower panel structure that can easily change the contents of the game and has higher security.

In order to achieve such an object, the present invention has a cabinet box having a front opening and a front door that covers the front opening and is attached to the cabinet box so as to be openable and closable. A box-type game machine in which an effect display device dedicated to effect is arranged behind the window, and has an approximately square box-shaped storage means that can be attached to and detached from the front door below the effect display device. The storage means is sealed in a state in which the reel unit storing the main reel displaying a combination of a plurality of symbols and the main control board for controlling the operation of the main reel are stored, and a part of the storage means is a transparent member The main control board housed in the housing means can be viewed from the outside of the box-type game machine without opening the front door through the transparent member.

  According to the present invention, as a first effect, when the content of the game is changed by making the lower panel assembly a substantially rectangular box-type structure that can be attached to and detached from the front door, and housing and fixing the main reel and the main board. Most changes can be completed simply by changing the lower panel assembly.

  The second effect is that the lower panel assembly cannot be attached / detached unless the front door is opened, and a black box structure is used when it is installed, so that the main board cannot be touched simply by opening the front door. Improved security for the board.

  As a third effect, a transparent window is provided in a part of the lower panel assembly, and the main board body is provided in the transparent window portion, so that the main board body (especially the main control ROM) is visually checked without the need to open the front door. Is possible.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. As a representative example of a gaming machine having a housing structure according to the present invention, a slot machine SM is shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. First, the overall structure of the slot machine SM will be described with reference to these drawings. Here, FIG. 10 is an external perspective view of a general slot machine SM, and FIG. 11 is a front view showing the internal structure in a state where the front door of the slot machine SM is unlocked and opened.

As shown in FIG. 10, the slot machine SM is housing 1 consisting of a cabinet box 2 box-shaped to have a front opening, a front door (front mask) mounted for opening and closing to cover the front opening 3 which And various game development devices are arranged in each part of the housing. The front door 3 is attached so that it can be opened laterally by an upper and lower hinge mechanism (not shown) disposed at the left edge of the cabinet box 2 and the front door 3, and is always provided at the right edge. 4, the cabinet box 2 is held closed and locked.

  The front side of the front door 3 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 10, the front door 3 has stop buttons 12, 13, 14 provided corresponding to the medal slot 5, the start lever 11, and the spinning reels R 1, R 2, R 3 of the spinning reel device 200. The left and right upper speakers SL, SR and the lower speaker SW are attached. A transparent window 10 is disposed on the middle panel in the front center of the front door 3 so as to be aligned with the spinning reel device 200, and is drawn along the cylindrical outer peripheral surface of each of the spinning reels R1, R2, and R3. A predetermined range (for example, a range of three upper and lower patterns) among a large number of patterns can be seen through from the front of the gaming machine. A medal payout opening 6 is provided at the center lower portion of the front door 3, and a receiving tray 7 protruding forward is provided below the medal payout outlet 6, and a game medal paid out from the hopper device HP is this medal. The tray 7 is received and stored through the discharge outlet 6.

  The back side of the front door 3 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, an effect display device 8 is provided between the speakers SR and SL on the upper back side of the front door 3. Furthermore, a sub-control board 300 formed of an electric circuit board is attached to the rear surface side of the effect display device 8. The sub-control board 300 is formed as a so-called electric circuit board in which electronic components such as an integrated circuit device (IC), a transistor, a resistor, and a capacitor are mounted and connected on an insulating resin substrate on which a conductive wiring pattern is formed. It is attached so as to overlap the back side of the effect display device 8.

  Here, the sub-control board 300 is a board that controls effects related to lamps, sound such as sound effects and music, and effect images provided in the gaming machine. On this sub-control board 300, the production speakers SR, SL, SW, the production lamps 17, 18, 19 and the production display device 8 are wired and connected via predetermined wiring cables (not shown), The electric circuit provided on the sub-control board 300 drives these effect speakers SR, SL, SW, effect lamps 17, 18, 19 and the effect display device in accordance with instructions from the main control board 700, thereby It is designed to appeal to people's vision and hearing.

  Below the effect display device 8 and the sub-control board 300, a substantially rectangular frame 20 in which a see-through window 10 is formed is attached. Below the frame 20, it hits the back side of the lower panel 9, and is sorted by the selection mechanism G 0 that sorts whether the thrown-in thrown from the medal throwing unit 5 is a regular game medal or foreign object, and is sorted by the select mechanism G 0 A guide member G1 for guiding game medals to the hopper device HP provided on the cabinet box 2 side, a guide member G2 for guiding foreign matter distributed by the selection mechanism G0 to the medal payout port 6, and the hopper device HP. A guide member G3 for guiding a payout game medal to the payout exit 6 is provided, and a speaker SW constituting the sound emitting unit 21 is attached in the vicinity of the medal payout exit 6.

  Next, the inside of the cabinet box 2 will be described. As shown in FIG. 11, the interior of the cabinet box 2 is divided into two upper and lower stages than the shelf 15 fixed by connecting the left and right side plates, and the operation of the slot machine SM is integrated in the upper stage. A main control board 700 to be controlled is housed in a transparent resin board case, screwed to the upper part of the back plate 16, and three reel reels R1, R2, R3 on which a number of symbols are drawn along the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder. A rotating reel device 200 for rotating / stop-driving is supported and attached to the upper surface of the shelf board 15. In the lower part, a power source that supplies power to various game development devices such as a hopper device HP that pays out game medals according to a winning state in response to a command signal from the main control substrate 700, and the main control substrate 700 and the spinning reel device 200. An auxiliary storage section SHP for storing game medals overflowing from the medal storage section when the game medals are inserted while the apparatus substrate 500 and the medal storage section (not shown) of the hopper apparatus HP are full are attached. ing. A main power supply unit PWU is provided below the cabinet box 2. The main power supply unit PWU is 100V or 24V input from the outside, is transformed to each predetermined voltage, and is supplied to each substrate.

  Here, at the upper part inside the cabinet box 2, a main control board 700 having a unit structure housed in a hard plastic housing case is provided to control the operation of the slot machine SM. With the main control board 700 as a center, the sub-control board 300, the central display board 400, the power supply device board 500, the spinning device board 600, and the external concentrated terminal board 800 are connected to each other via predetermined cables (not shown). Has been.

  The main control board 700 is equipped with a semiconductor memory ROM and a microprocessor MPU (both not shown). The microprocessor MPU stores a system program and a slot machine game program stored in advance in the semiconductor memory ROM. By executing and controlling each of the substrates 300, 400, 500, 600, and 800, the operation state of the slot machine SM and the progress of the game are integrated and managed. Specifically, the main lottery of gaming machines, control of each reel, management of input switches and the like are performed.

  As described above, game development devices (200, 500, 700, HP, etc.) attached to the cabinet box 2 and game development devices (5, 11-14, SL, SR, SW, etc.) attached to the front door 3 ) Are connected to each other by a wire harness (electrical wiring) (not shown) so that the slot machine SM can be played.

  In the slot machine SM configured as described above, when a player inserts a game medal into the medal slot 5, presses one of the bet buttons B1, B2, and B3 and operates the start lever 11, the main control board 700 Outputs a start command signal to the spinning reel device 200 based on the signal from the start lever 11 to simultaneously rotate and start the three spinning reels R1, R2, and R3. The player can arbitrarily select a rotating reel and operate the corresponding stop buttons 12, 13, and 14 in a desired order and timing, and the main control board 700 receives an operation signal from these stop buttons. In response, a stop command signal is output to the spinning reel device 200, and the rotation of the corresponding spinning reel is braked and stopped.

  When all the reels R1, R2, and R3 that have been rotated stop, the main control board determines a winning symbol, that is, whether or not it is a win or miss. The main control board 700 has an effective line (upper, middle and lower three horizontal lines and left and right two diagonal lines) corresponding to the number of game medals inserted for the symbols displayed in the fluoroscopic window 10 after stopping. Judgment of winning design above. When the symbol combination on the active line corresponds to a predetermined winning symbol combination, a payout command signal corresponding to the winning state is output to the hopper device HP, and a predetermined number of game medals are received from the hopper device HP. To be paid out. At this time, sound effects corresponding to winnings are generated from the upper speakers SR and SL and the lower speaker SW.

  On the other hand, if the winning symbol determination result shows that the combination of symbols on the active line does not correspond to the winning symbol combination set in advance, the gaming medal is not paid out and the inserted gaming medal is stored in the hopper device HP. Part (not shown). Thus, a player who plays a game in the slot machine SM loses the inserted game medal when the displayed symbol does not correspond to the predetermined combination, but the displayed symbol is changed to the predetermined combination. When applicable, it is possible to acquire more game medals than the number inserted, and the enjoyment of increasing game medals can be enjoyed.

  A slot machine having a lower panel structure according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 9 and FIG.

FIG. 1 shows an external front view of a slot machine 100 with an operation table. In this embodiment, the operation table 23 is formed at the lower part of the transmission window 10, and a lower panel assembly 27 detachably attached to the front door 3 is attached inside the lower panel 9 (see FIG. 3). The lower panel assembly 27 has a substantially square box shape, and includes a reel unit 26 (see FIGS. 6 and 7) having a small mini-reel 30 serving as a main reel, and a main control board 700, and is hermetically sealed. It has a black box structure. Similar to the transmission window 10, a small transmission window 42 is provided on the surface of the lower panel 9 so that the mini reel 30 of the reel unit 26 can be seen. In addition, an effect display device 28 is provided inside the transmission window 10 instead of the main reel device.

  FIG. 2 is a front view showing an internal configuration in a state where the front door of the slot machine 100 with operation console is unlocked and opened. The back side of the lower panel 9 of the front door 3 has a space for mounting the lower panel assembly 27. Further, the main control board is not provided in the cabinet box 2, and an effect display device 28 is provided instead of the above-described spinning reel device 200 which is the main reel device. This effect display device 28 includes the function of the liquid crystal display device 8 of the conventional slot machine, and can display a variety of effects such as pseudo reel display and animation display on a large screen.

  FIG. 3 shows a side cross section of the slot machine 100 with operation console. A lower panel assembly 27 is detachably attached to the lower side of the operation table 23, and can be easily taken out by removing a mounting screw and pulling it out in the direction of the arrow in the figure.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 3, in the cabinet box 2, an effect reel device 25, which is a reel device different from the main reel device, is provided on the back side of the see-through window 10 instead of the effect display device 28 described above. It may be arranged. The effect reel device 25 can perform various operations that cannot be performed by the main reel device, for example, reverse rotation, high-speed rotation, frame advance rotation, and the like.

  In addition, the fluoroscopic window 10 has a 15-inch liquid crystal screen as a whole. On the liquid crystal screen, recording and history information relating to the game stand such as effects and demonstration effects related to games using various animations and polygons, winning frequency, etc. Etc. can be displayed. In the present embodiment, the see-through window 10 is a liquid crystal screen as the display means, but an electric display device in which a large number of point displays such as LEDs and LED display devices are arranged in place of the liquid crystal screen is applied. Alternatively, a combination of these devices and a liquid crystal screen may be applied.

Here, the reason why the slot machine with operation console of this embodiment is configured as described above will be described.
Currently, a general slot machine is usually provided with a main reel on the back side of a transparent plate called a middle panel, and an effect display device for displaying an effect image is provided around the main reel. In order for the display device to enhance the player's interest in the game, a variety of effects that cannot be expressed on the main reel are displayed.
Normally, most games in slot machines are out of play, so games other than jackpots tend to be boring for the player. In order to eliminate this, even if the internal lottery is off, an effect that can be expected to be a big hit may be performed on the effect display device. However, a skilled player easily finds out that the above-mentioned effect is not a big hit if he looks at the main reel, the slip of the reel, etc., and the effect display tends to be meaningless.
According to the configuration of the slot machine according to the embodiment of the present invention, the main reel is provided on the lower panel portion of the front door (below the operation portion) while the middle panel portion and the upper panel portion are provided with relatively large effect display devices. This makes it difficult for the player to check the main reel during the game (the player must take a cramped posture to check), so that the player's consciousness and attention are provided above the gaming machine. It becomes possible to turn to.

Here, as shown in FIG. 12, a cover member (not shown) such as a flat plate can be slid and accommodated around the small transparent window 42 so that the player can selectively cover the mini reel 30. The housing frame member 43 may be provided (FIG. 12A), or a fixing support member 44 such as a clip may be provided to fix the cover member, for example, the game description booklet 46 (FIG. b)).
With such a configuration, the player can arbitrarily cover the display portion of the main reel, pay attention to the effect image of the effect device without worrying about the main reel, and further proceed with the game with an interest. it can. In addition, most halls now have a game description booklet for explaining the game content and game method to the player for each type of gaming machine, and this game description booklet is usually A5 size. Since the size of the housing frame member 43 shown in FIG. 12 (a) is just large enough to fit the A5 plate, the player or hall manager can use a cover member for covering the main reel display section. By using this game description booklet, there is no need to prepare, and the clear reel can be easily covered.
The housing frame member 43 and the fixed support member 44 can be provided in a slot machine in which a mini reel is provided in addition to the lower panel.

  Next, the lower panel assembly 27 including the main reel device and its mounting structure will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 4 to 9.

FIG. 4 shows a schematic cross section of the slot machine to which the above-described lower panel assembly 27 is attached as seen from directly above.
Lower panel Assy27 rivets 47 can not be detached with a tool on the side of the front door attached using screws 52 that can be detached with a tool in the interior of the front door. As shown in FIG. 5, the mounting portion uses a front door mounting portion 37 such as a sheet metal bracket. One front door mounting portion 37 is provided on each of the left and right upper and lower sides of the lower panel assembly 27, but the mounting location and number are not limited thereto.
The reel unit 26 is attached to the lower panel base 48 using the lower panel attachment portion 29. A lower panel side screwing portion 36 is formed on the lower panel base 48, and unit side screwing portions 35 are formed on the left and right outer edges of the opening of the reel unit 26. Stopped. FIG. 1 shows the front appearance of the reel unit 26 screwed to the lower panel.

  Also, as shown in FIG. 5, in this embodiment, the main board is stored in the lower panel assembly 27 by attaching it to the back surface of the mini reel as the main reel by a method not shown. Therefore, in the conventional general slot machine, the main control board 700 controls the spinning reel device 200 and the sub-control board 300 controls the liquid crystal display device 8 and the mini reel (not shown). In the slot machine 100 with an operation table of the embodiment, the main control board 700 controls the mini reel 30 in the reel unit 26, and the sub control board 300 is 15 inches of the effect reel device 25, the effect display device 28, or the see-through window 10. Control the LCD screen. The main control board 700 can be installed anywhere as long as it is inside the lower panel assembly 27.

Here, by providing a transparent plate in a part of the lower panel assembly 27, the inside of the lower panel assembly 27 may be confirmed. For example, FIG. 9 shows a case where the transparent plate 41 is attached to the inner side surface of the lower panel Assy 27. By inserting the transparent plate 41 into the side surface of the lower panel Assy 27 in a sliding manner, the front plate is opened from the outside without opening the front door. The state inside the panel assembly 27 can be confirmed. As shown in FIG. 9, the surface on which the main control ROM 50 of the main control board 700 accommodated in the transparent case is mounted may be arranged so as to face the transparent plate 41. With such an arrangement, visual confirmation of the main control ROM can be performed very easily from the outside. When the main control board 700 is provided on the rear surface of the reel unit 26 as shown in FIG. 5, a transparent portion 49 may be provided on a part of the front door 3 as shown in FIG. In addition, when providing this transparent part 49 , it is desirable to make it the structure which cannot be opened and removed from the back side of the front door 3. FIG.

  Next, the reel unit 26 will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, the reel unit 26 is formed in a rectangular box shape with the outer peripheral material being resin. Unit side screwing portions 35 of the lower panel mounting portion 29 are formed on the outer edge portions on the left and right sides of the unit. In addition, the inside of the unit is an assembly of a mini reel 30 as a main reel so that the design of the mini reel 30 can be seen from the opening at the top of the unit. As shown in FIG. 7, the reel unit 26 is formed by combining a reel unit lower part 31 and a reel unit upper part 32, and a mini reel 30 is provided inside the unit.

  FIG. 8 is a side sectional view showing the internal structure of the reel unit 26. In the reel unit 26, a mini reel 30, a stepping motor 34 that controls the rotation operation of the mini reel 30, an initial sensor 33 that detects that the reel has made one rotation by light shielding, and a driver control board (not shown) that controls the initial sensor 33. A reel control board) is provided.

As described above, according to the lower panel structure and gaming machine of the present embodiment, the lower panel assembly is a substantially rectangular box structure that can be attached to and detached from the front door, and the main reel and the main board are accommodated and fixed, When changing the contents of a game, most changes can be completed by simply changing the lower panel assembly.
In addition, the lower panel assembly is not removable unless the front door is opened, and the black box structure is used when the front door is installed, making it impossible to touch the main board just by opening the front door, improving security for the main board. it can.
Further, by providing a transparent window in a part of the lower panel assembly and providing the main board body in the transparent window portion, it is possible to visually check the main control board body (particularly the main control ROM) without having to open the front door.

  Although the present embodiment has been described using a slot machine with an operation table, it may be used for a box-shaped gaming machine other than the slot machine or a lower panel mechanism of a ball game machine.

It is a front view which shows the external appearance of the slot machine which is an Example of this invention. It is a sectional side view showing the inside of the housing of the slot machine of the present invention. It is a sectional side view showing the internal structure of the slot machine which is an embodiment of the present invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the lower panel structure of the slot machine which is an Example of this invention. It is a sectional side view showing the lower panel structure of the slot machine which is an embodiment of the present invention. It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance of the reel unit which concerns on the slot machine of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance of the decomposition | disassembly state of a reel unit. It is a sectional side view which shows the internal structure of a reel unit. It is a side view which shows an example of the lower panel structure concerning the Example of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the external appearance of a general slot machine. It is a front view which shows the internal structure of a general slot machine. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows another Example of a lower panel structure.

Explanation of symbols

1 Enclosure 2 Cabinet box 3 Front door (front mask)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 4 Locking device 5 Medal insertion slot 6 Medal payout opening 7 Receptacle 8 Liquid crystal display device 9 Lower panel 10 Transparent window 11 Start lever 12, 13, 14 Stop button 15 Shelf plate 16 Back plate 17, 18, 19 Production lamp 20 Frame body 21 Sound emission part 22 Upper panel 23 Operation table 25 Reel device for production 26 Reel unit 27 Lower panel assembly
28 Production display device 29 Lower panel mounting portion 30 Mini reel 31 Lower reel unit 32 Upper reel unit 33 Initial sensor 34 Stepping motor 35 Unit side screwing portion 36 Lower panel side screwing portion 37 Front door mounting portion 38 Bracket bracket 39 Lower panel base 40, 48 Screw 41 Transparent plate 42 Small transmission window 43 Housing frame member 44 Fixed support member 45 Rivet hole 46 Game description booklet 47 Rivet 48 Lower panel base 49 Transparent portion 50 Main control ROM
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Slot machine with operation table 200 Spinning reel device 300 Sub control board 400 Central display board 500 Power supply board 600 Spinner board 700 Main control board 800 External concentration terminal board SM Slot machine B1, B2, B3 Bet button R1, R2 , R3 Reel reel HP Hopper device PWU Main power supply BQ System power switch BO Setting switch SHP Auxiliary storage SR, SL Upper speaker SW Lower speaker CS Setting button CT Setting display element G0 Select mechanism G1, G2, G3 Guide member

Claims (1)

A cabinet box having a front opening and a front door that covers the front opening and is attached to the cabinet box so as to be openable and closable are provided behind the transparent window provided in the front door. A box-type game machine with an effect display device,
Below the effect display device, there is a storage device in a substantially square box shape that can be attached to and detached from the front door,
The storage means includes
Sealed in a state where a reel unit storing a main reel displaying a combination of a plurality of symbols and a main control board for controlling the operation of the main reel are stored,
A part of the storage means is formed of a transparent member, and the main control board stored in the storage means is connected to the box-type game machine through the transparent member without opening the front door . A box-type game machine characterized by being visible from the outside.

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