JP4895128B2 - Ball game machine and movable accessory control method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine such as a pachinko gaming machine, and more particularly to a technique for stably operating a movable accessory.

  Various types of pachinko machines are popular as bullet ball machines. Among conventional pachinko gaming machines, when a game ball enters a start port formed on a game board, a lottery value is randomly acquired as a result. The acquired lottery values are temporarily stored, for example, up to four as reserved balls. The reserved balls are sequentially read one by one. The read lottery value is determined whether or not the winning symbol is determined, and a symbol called a special symbol is variably displayed.

When the special symbol is stopped and displayed in the winning mode, the gaming state shifts to a special game as a so-called “big hit”. A special game is composed of a plurality of unit games. The big prize opening formed on the game board is opened at the start of the unit game. The unit game ends when a predetermined period, for example, 30 seconds elapses from the start of the unit game, or when nine or more game balls are won in the big prize opening during the unit game. At this time, the grand prize opening is also closed. During a unit game, if the game ball passes through a specific area called a V zone provided in the special winning opening, the unit game is continued to the next unit game. At this time, the grand prize opening is opened again. The unit game can be continued up to a predetermined number of times, for example, 15 times. When the game balls fall into the big prize opening, more game balls than usual are paid out as prize balls.
A general player plays a game for the purpose of opening a special winning opening in order to obtain a lot of prize balls, that is, shifting the gaming state to a special game (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

It is often the case that the player's expectation for jackpots is further enhanced by variably displaying a symbol for a production purpose called a decorative symbol or a production symbol during the variation display period of the special symbol. Also, as a mechanical structure for production purposes, so-called movable accessories are often provided on the game board surface or around the liquid crystal screen. The movable accessory may be used as a mechanical element that determines the progress of the game itself.
JP 2003-230714 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2007-014408 JP 2007-007057 A

  In order to ensure the operational stability of various movable accessories, the robustness of the movable accessory itself is of course important. However, it is desirable that the abnormal operation of the movable accessory can be detected at once and returned to normal operation. However, in view of various design restrictions in pachinko gaming machines, such as product costs and detection program size, the control mechanism for movable accessories is a simple configuration that does not restrict the gaming mechanism as a whole. It is desirable.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a subject, The objective is to provide the technique for ensuring the operation | movement reliability of a movable accessory with a comparatively simple structure in a bullet ball game machine.

One embodiment of the present invention relates to a ball game machine.
The ball game machine includes a game board in which a game area into which a game ball is inserted is formed, a movable accessory that can be raised and lowered with respect to the game area, a lifting mechanism that raises and lowers the movable accessory, A descent detection sensor that is located at the target lowering position and detects that the movable accessory has reached the target lowering position, and as a normal operation of the movable accessory, the support of the movable accessory is temporarily released and the movable accessory is moved by gravity. After lowering the object to the target lowering position, the normal control means for raising the movable accessory to the predetermined ascent position by driving and controlling the lifting mechanism in the upward direction, and a predetermined time after the movable accessory starts to descend When the movement detection of the movable accessory is not detected by the descent detection sensor within the range, the abnormality determining means for determining the operation of the movable accessory as abnormal and the operation of the movable accessory as abnormal are determined. Drive the elevating mechanism downward. Return control that resumes normal operation by lowering the movable accessory by controlling it, and when the lowering detection sensor detects the arrival of the movable accessory to the target lowering position, the elevator mechanism is driven again in the upward direction. Means.

  The “descent due to gravity” here may be, for example, free fall or descent due to sliding. The movable accessory is raised again by the lifting mechanism after being lowered by gravity. The “elevating mechanism” may be any mechanism that can realize the rising of the movable accessory by lifting from the upper part and the lowering by gravity, or the raising of the movable accessory by the lifting from the lower part and the lowering by gravity. In any case, any mechanism can be used as long as it can realize the active movable accessory ascending by external power and the descent due to gravity. In addition, the “target lowering position” may be any position that is set at or below the lowest reaching point when the movable accessory is lowered by gravity. That is, when the movable accessory is lowered by gravity, the movable accessory reaches the target lowering position, or reaches a lower position than the target lowering position.

  According to such an aspect, when the movable accessory is lowered by gravity, when the target lowering position is not reached as planned, the occurrence of such an abnormality can be detected in real time by the lowering detection sensor. At this time, the movable accessory is actively lowered by external power, and after confirming whether the movable accessory can be lowered to the target lowering position, the movable accessory is raised. According to such an aspect, it is possible to attempt recovery from an abnormal state and return to normal operation by executing a process different from the normal time of actively lowering the movable accessory.

The elevating mechanism includes a wire that suspends the movable member, a hoisting gear that winds the wire by rotation, a meshing portion that meshes with the hoisting gear, and a drive gear that has a missing tooth portion that is disengaged. May be included.
The normal control means rotates the drive gear in the forward direction to raise the movable accessory by the hoisting force of the drive gear meshing with the drive gear, and the meshing position of the hoisting gear and the drive gear reaches the missing tooth portion. When the meshing gear is temporarily released, the movable accessory is lowered by gravity due to the rolling of the hoisting gear, and the abnormality determining means starts the lowering of the movable accessory due to the rolling of the hoisting gear. If the movement detection of the movable accessory is not detected by the descent detection sensor within a predetermined time from the start of the movement, the operation of the movable accessory is determined to be abnormal, and the return control means determines that the operation of the movable accessory is abnormal. When the determination is made, the movable member is lowered by rotating the drive gear in the reverse direction, and when the arrival of the movable accessory to the target lowering position is detected by the lowering detection sensor, the drive gear is moved in the forward direction again. Rotate It may be allowed to resume normal operations by the.

  The “wire” here may be, for example, a metal wire that has a certain degree of rigidity in the extension direction, or may be a rope or a thread. The movable accessory is supported so as to be suspended by this wire. When the drive gear rotates in the forward direction, the rotational force is transmitted to the hoisting gear to wind up the wire, and the movable accessory is raised. When the drive gear further rotates in the forward direction and the meshing position with the hoisting gear reaches the tooth missing portion, the hoisting gear rotates in the reverse direction to lower the movable accessory.

  According to such an aspect, raising / lowering of a movable accessory is realizable only by rotating a drive gear to a normal direction. When an abnormality occurs, the drive gear can be rotated in the reverse direction to attempt to recover the abnormality and return to normal operation. In any case, the elevation of the movable accessory can be controlled only by the rotational drive of the drive gear. In particular, when a wire rod is caught, if the drive gear is rotated forward to pull up the movable accessory, an excessive force is applied to the lifting mechanism, which may cause an unrecoverable failure. . According to the above aspect, there is a possibility that the catching of the wire rod or the like may be eliminated without applying an excessive load to the lifting mechanism by rotating the drive gear in the reverse direction.

  The wire is configured to have a length that can be loosened to a position where the descent of the movable accessory is completed, and the return control means winds by rotating the drive gear in the reverse direction when it is determined that the operation of the movable accessory is abnormal. The lowering of the movable accessory to the target lowering position may be promoted by rotating the upper gear reversely to loosen the wire.

  According to such an aspect, the winding of the movable accessory can be loosened by the rotation of the drive gear in the reverse direction, so that further lowering of the movable accessory can be promoted.

  The wire rod is formed of a predetermined rigid material, and the return control means reversely rotates the hoisting gear by rotating the drive gear in the reverse direction when the operation of the movable accessory is determined to be abnormal. The movable accessory may be pushed toward the target lowering position.

  According to such an aspect, the movable accessory can be actively pushed down through the wire by rotation of the drive gear in the reverse direction.

  You may further provide the production | presentation display apparatus which has a display area provided in the predetermined position of a game area, and the predetermined | prescribed effect image according to a game state is displayed. The movable accessory is configured to include a main body extended so that the display area can be bridged to the left and right when the elevator is raised and lowered, and support portions provided on both left and right ends of the main body, and a pair of wire rods are provided on the left and right. In addition, each wire may suspend left and right support portions at the end opposite to the hoisting gear.

  The “effect display device” here may be constituted by a liquid crystal display, for example, or may be constituted by other display means such as a mechanical drum or LED. The movable accessory may assist the effect displayed on the effect display device.

  When the movable accessory is suspended by the left and right wire rods, it is particularly effective for stably lifting a horizontally long movable accessory. However, in the case of a lifting mechanism of a type that suspends a movable accessory from the left and right, the possibility that the movable accessory is tilted and caught on the mechanism is not zero. In such a case, the recovery process from an abnormality caused by the reverse rotation of the drive gear is particularly effective.

  When it is determined that the movement of the movable accessory is abnormal, the return control means lowers the movable accessory by driving and controlling the elevating mechanism in the descending direction, and the lowering detection sensor reaches the target lowering position of the movable accessory. As a result, the lifting / lowering mechanism is driven and controlled in the ascending direction to raise the movable accessory once and then temporarily release the support of the movable accessory to re-drop the movable accessory by gravity. The normal operation may be resumed after raising the movable accessory to the raised position on condition that the arrival of the movable accessory to the target lowering position is again detected by the lowering detection sensor.

  When an abnormality occurs, the movable accessory is actively lowered to the target lowering position. At this time, how much the elevating mechanism is driven and controlled to move in the lowering direction depends on the situation when the abnormality occurs, depending on whether the movable accessory can reach the target lowering position. For this reason, after that, how much the elevating mechanism is driven and controlled in the upward direction also changes depending on the situation whether the movable accessory can be returned to the original position. Therefore, after the movable combination is actively lowered to the target lowering position, as a uniform control, the movable combination is once again raised and then lowered again by gravity. At this time, if the arrival to the target lowering position is detected, the basic condition of normal operation of “the movable accessory reaches the target lowering position due to the descent of the movable agent due to gravity” is confirmed. . After that, the movable accessory may be raised again to the original position. In this way, when an abnormality occurs, try to lower the movable accessory by gravity, confirm that it has actually reached the target lowering position, and then resume normal operation. It can be further suppressed.

  It should be noted that any combination of the above-described constituent elements and a conversion of the expression of the present invention between a method, an apparatus, a system, a recording medium, a computer program, etc. are also effective as an aspect of the present invention.

  According to the present invention, it becomes easy to stably operate a movable accessory in a ball game machine with a relatively simple configuration.

FIG. 1 shows a basic structure on the front side of a pachinko gaming machine.
Hereinafter, a so-called first type pachinko gaming machine, which is conventionally known as a bullet ball gaming machine, will be described as an example. The pachinko gaming machine 10 is mainly composed of a gaming machine frame and a gaming board. The gaming machine frame of the pachinko gaming machine 10 includes an outer frame 11, a front frame 12, a transparent plate 13, a door 14, an upper ball dish 15, a lower ball dish 16, and a launch handle 17. The outer frame 11 has an opening and is a frame for fixing the pachinko gaming machine 10 to a position where it should be installed. The front frame 12 is a frame body that aligns with the opening portion of the outer frame 11, and is attached to the outer frame 11 so as to be opened and closed by a hinge mechanism (not shown). The front frame 12 includes a mechanism for launching a game ball, a mechanism for detachably storing a game board, a mechanism for guiding or collecting the game ball, and the like.

  The transparent plate 13 is made of glass or the like and is supported by the door 14. The door 14 is attached to the front frame 12 so as to be openable and closable by a hinge mechanism (not shown). The upper ball tray 15 has mechanisms such as storage of game balls, delivery of game balls to the launch rail, and extraction of game balls to the lower ball tray 16. The lower ball tray 16 has a mechanism for storing and extracting game balls. A speaker 18 is provided between the upper ball tray 15 and the lower ball tray 16, and a sound effect corresponding to the gaming state is output. The operation button 82 is a button that the player operates to input a predetermined instruction to the gaming machine. The operation button 82 is provided on the outer wall surface near the upper ball tray 15.

  The game board 50 has an out port 58, a special symbol display device 61, an effect display device 60, and a start winning port (hereinafter referred to as “start port”) 62 on a game area 52 defined by the outer rail 54 and the inner rail 56. , A center ornament 64, a grand prize opening 66, an operation opening 68, and a general prize opening 72. Further, in the game area 52, a plurality of mechanisms such as a game nail and a windmill not shown are installed. The start port 62 includes a start winning detection device 74 for detecting the entrance of a game ball and a normal electric accessory solenoid 76 for expanding the expanding mechanism of the start port 62. When the start port 62 is expanded, the game ball easily enters the start port 62. The start winning detection device 74 is a sensor that detects the entry of a game ball into the start port 62, and generates start win information indicating the winning at the time of entering. The general winning opening 72 includes a general winning detecting device 73 for detecting the entering of a game ball. The general winning detection device 73 is a sensor that detects the entry of a game ball into the general winning opening 72, and generates general winning information indicating the winning at the time of winning. The special winning opening 66 includes a winning detection device 78 for detecting the entry of a game ball and a special winning opening solenoid 80 for expanding the special winning opening 66. The winning detection device 78 is a sensor that detects the entry of a game ball into the big winning opening 66, and generates big winning opening winning information indicating the winning at the time of winning.

  The big winning opening 66 is a horizontal rectangular winning opening that is opened when the special symbol 192 is stopped in a mode indicating “big hit”. The big winning opening 66 is provided above the out opening 58 and the like. The winning detection device 78 of the big winning opening 66 includes a sensor that detects the passage of a game ball.

  When the player turns the launch handle 17 by hand, the game balls stored in the upper ball tray 15 are guided one by one to the inner rail 56 and the outer rail 54 with a strength corresponding to the turning angle, thereby playing the game area. To 52. When the player fixes the rotation position of the firing handle 17 by hand, the game ball is repeatedly fired at regular time intervals. The game ball launched to the upper part of the game area 52 falls in a direction according to the way of hitting while hitting a plurality of game nails and windmills. When a game ball is dropped into each of the general winning port 72, the start port 62, and the big winning port 66, the winning ball corresponding to the type of the winning port is paid out to the upper ball plate 15 or the lower ball plate 16. A game ball dropped into each winning hole such as the general winning hole 72 is processed as a safe ball, and a game ball dropped into the out hole 58 is processed as an out ball. Each winning opening includes a gate type through which a game ball passes. In this application, “incoming”, “entering”, and “winning” include “passing”.

  The special symbol display device 61 provided on the left side of the game area 52 and the effect display device 60 provided substantially in the center of the game area 52 have a variation of the special symbol 192 on each screen and an effect linked to the special symbol 192. The variation of the effect image including the symbol 190 is displayed (hereinafter, such display is referred to as “symbol variation” or “variation display”). A lottery (hereinafter referred to as “winning lottery”) is executed in response to the entry of the game ball into the start port 62. After the winning / losing lottery, the variable symbol 192 starts to be displayed. The special symbol 192 is a symbol corresponding to the result of the success / failure lottery, and shows the result of the success / failure lottery in a mode when the variable display is stopped. The special symbol display device 61 is display means composed of 7-segment LEDs, and the special symbol 192 is represented by ten types of numbers “0” to “9”.

The result of the winning / failing lottery is either a big hit or a failure, but the big hit can be further divided into two types of “normal win” and “probable win”. When the probability change wins, the subsequent winning lottery is executed with a higher win probability than usual. A game state that is advantageous to a player in which the winning probability of winning / failing lottery is set higher than usual is called “probability varying game”. The probability variation game continues until a big hit occurs again. In other words, it will continue until a normal win occurs.
In the following, a state in which a probability variation game is being executed and the winning probability of the winning / failing lottery is set higher than normal is “probably changing”, and the winning probability of the winning / failing lottery is normally set to “non- I am going to call it “probably changing”.

  The effect display device 60 is a liquid crystal display that displays the effect symbol 190 in a variable manner in conjunction with the variable symbol display of the special symbol 192. The production symbol 190 is a symbol for visually producing the result display of the success / failure lottery. On the screen of the effect display device 60, an effect image including a variation display mode of the effect symbol 190 is reproduced and displayed as a moving image. The variation display of the effect symbol 190 is linked with the variation display of the special symbol 192. That is, the variation display of the effect symbol 190 is started when the variation of the special symbol 192 is started, and the variation display of the effect symbol 190 is also stopped when the variation of the special symbol 192 is stopped. Further, according to the stop symbol of the special symbol 192, in other words, the stop symbol of the effect symbol 190 is also determined according to the result of the lottery. The screen of the effect display device 60 is provided with three symbol areas, that is, a left variation column, a center variation column, and a right variation column. In each variation column, the effect symbol 190 is variably displayed in the vertical direction from top to bottom. This is an effect that mimics the reel of a slot machine.

  The variation display of the special symbol 192 and the effect symbol 190 is stopped after the lapse of the variation time determined prior to the display. When the special symbol 192 and the effect symbol 190 at the time of the stop are symbols indicating a big hit, the game shifts to a special game that is more advantageous to the player than the normal game, and the opening / closing operation of the big prize opening 66 is started. At this time, the effect symbol 190 simulating the game of the slot machine takes a display mode in which the three symbols are matched. In a special game, the special winning opening 66 is closed once it is opened for about 30 seconds or after nine or more game balls are dropped. If at least one game ball is dropped while the big prize opening 66 is open, the big prize opening 66 is opened again. In this way, the opening / closing of the big prize opening 66 is repeated up to a predetermined number of times, for example, 15 times, on condition that at least one game ball is dropped while the big prize opening 66 is opened once.

  The operation port 68 is provided at the left side position of the game board 50. The operation port 68 includes a passage detection device 69. The passage detection device 69 is a sensor that detects the passage of the game ball to the operation port 68, and generates passage information indicating the passage at the time of passage. The passage of the game ball to the operation port 68 triggers a lottery for expanding the start port 62 (hereinafter referred to as “normal drawing lottery”).

  When the game ball passes through the operating port 68, the normal symbol lottery is executed, and the normal symbol is variably displayed on the normal symbol display device 59 for a predetermined time. The normal symbol display device 59 is provided on the lower right side of the effect display device 60. The usual drawing lottery is won with a probability of 50% in normal times and a game with a shortened variation time, that is, 80% in a so-called short time. When the start port 62 is expanded, the game ball easily enters the start port 62.

  A center ornament 64 is provided around the effect display device 60. The center decoration 64 has functions such as a flow path of the game ball, protection of the special symbol display device 61 and the effect display device 60, and decoration. A lottery hold lamp 20 is provided at the lower left of the effect display device 60, and an operation hold lamp 22 is provided below the normal symbol display device 59 at the lower right of the game area 52, which is a symmetrical position. Yes. The lottery hold lamp 20 is composed of four lamps, and displays the number of lottery holds depending on the number of lights. The number of lottery holds is the number of lottery results won to the start port 62 during symbol variation or special game, and indicates the number of winning balls for which symbol variation has not yet been executed. In other words, the lottery value can be stored up to four. The operation hold lamp 22 is also composed of four lamps, and displays the number of hold of normal symbol fluctuations depending on the number of lights. The number of normal symbol fluctuations held is the number of game balls that have passed through the operation port 68 during the fluctuation of the normal symbol, and indicates the number of normal symbol lotteries for which the fluctuation of the normal symbol has not yet been executed. In this way, it is possible to store a lottery value of normal symbols with an upper limit of four. The game effect lamp 90 is provided in the game area 52 and plays a role of effect by blinking.

A movable accessory 140 is arranged above the effect display device 60 so as to protrude forward of the center decoration 64. The movable accessory 140 is a device that provides a game effect depending on the appearance and the mode of operation. When a predetermined operation condition is established, the movable accessory 140 is moved forward of the effect display device 60 by an elevating mechanism provided on the back of the center ornament 64. Move up and down. The operation condition here may be satisfied when the winning lottery is a big hit or a probable change, or may be established at random. In any case, any event that occurs according to the progress of the game may be set as the operation condition, and what event is set as the operation condition for the movable accessory 140 is arbitrarily set according to the game content do it.
In the present embodiment, description will be made on the assumption that the operating condition is established at the timing when 5 seconds have passed since the winning / no-go lottery becomes a probable change and the fluctuation display of the special symbol 192 is started. In other words, when the movable accessory 140 moves up and down, the player can be convinced that the odd hit has occurred before the special symbol 192 is stopped. As a modification, assuming that the operation condition is established with a probability of 90% at the time of probability variation, uncertainty may be given to the causal relationship between the occurrence of probability variation and the operation of the movable accessory 140.

  In the case of a normal win, in the normal game after the special game is finished, a variable time shortening game (short time) is started. In the variation time shortening game, the variation time of the special symbol 192 and the effect symbol 190 is shortened from the normal time. In addition, the probability of winning the usual drawing is increased. The time is returned to the normal state after the special symbol 192 is displayed a predetermined number of times. In general, the probability variation game is often more advantageous for the player than the variation time shortening game.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining an operation mechanism of the movable accessory 140.
The movable accessory 140 is supported by the bridging portion 170 and bridged on the effect display device 60 from side to side. A support portion 186a and a support portion 186b are connected to both ends of the bridging portion 170. A wire 180 as a wire rod is fixed to the left support portion 186a in the figure, and the wire 180 is wound around the left hoisting gear 172a. Similarly, the wire 180 is also fixed to the right support portion 186b as viewed in the figure, and the wire 180 is wound around the right hoisting gear 172b. The hoisting gear 172a and the hoisting gear 172b are installed so that their teeth mesh with each other.

  Further, the drive gear 178 is engaged with the right hoisting gear 172b. The drive gear 178 is a gear coaxial with a stepping motor (not shown), and is driven to rotate by this stepping motor. As shown by the arrows in the figure, the drive gear 178 rotates in the clockwise direction, that is, in the left direction in the figure (hereinafter, the rotation in such a direction is referred to as “forward rotation”, and counterclockwise, that is, in the figure. When the rotation in the right direction is referred to as “reverse rotation”), the hoisting gear 172b engaged with the drive gear 178 rotates to the right. Further, the hoisting gear 172a meshing with the hoisting gear 172b rotates counterclockwise. By the left rotation of the hoisting gear 172a and the right rotation of the hoisting gear 172b, the wire 180 is wound around each hoisting gear 172, and as a result, the movable accessory 140 is lifted by the forward rotation driving of the driving gear 178. The movable accessory 140 is raised. In the present embodiment, the hoisting gear 172, the driving gear 178, the wire 180, and a stepping motor (not shown) function as a lifting mechanism for the movable accessory 140.

  The hoisting gear 172a and the hoisting gear 172b are provided with teeth on the entire circumference thereof, while the drive gear 178 has a missing tooth on a part of the circumference (hereinafter referred to as this The part with missing teeth is called "missing tooth part"). When the drive gear 178 is continuously rotated in the forward direction, the meshing position of the hoisting gear 172b and the driving gear 178 reaches the missing tooth portion of the driving gear 178, and the meshing of the hoisting gear 172b and the driving gear 178 is released. The hoisting gear 172b loses support due to meshing with the drive gear 178. As a result, the hoisting gear 172b cannot withstand the load of the support portion 186, the bridging portion 170, and the movable accessory 140, and rotates to the left. By the left rotation of the hoisting gear 172b, the hoisting gear 172a that meshes with the hoisting gear 172b rotates to the right. Thus, the movable accessory 140 is lowered by its own weight. In such an elevating mechanism, the movable accessory 140 can be raised and lowered by adjusting the forward rotation amount of the drive gear 178.

A descent start detection sensor 176 is disposed in the vicinity of the drive gear 178. The descent start detection sensor 176 is a transmissive photosensor, and the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion are disposed to face each other so as to sandwich the tooth base of the drive gear 178. When the meshing position with the hoisting gear 172b reaches the missing tooth portion by the forward rotation of the drive gear 178, the light receiving portion receives light and it is detected that the meshing of both gears is released. In actual mounting, the descent of the movable accessory 140 is started after a predetermined time, for example, 0.5 seconds after the descent start detection sensor 176 detects the arrival at the missing tooth portion. However, in this embodiment, in order to clarify the principle of the invention, the timing of detection by the descent start detection sensor 176 is defined as the “descent start timing” of the movable accessory 140. That is, it can be said that the descent start detection sensor 176 is a sensor that detects “descent start timing”.
The movable accessory 140 is normally in a stationary state at a predetermined upper position (hereinafter referred to as “reference position”) of the effect display device 60.
As a modified example, when the movable accessory 140 is in this reference position, the timing at which the drive gear 178 starts to rotate forward to drop the movable accessory 140, in other words, the movable accessory 140 starts to further rise from the reference position. The timing may be defined as “descent start timing”. When the movable accessory 140 is at the reference position, it can be specified as a design value how many times the drive gear 178 is rotated to actually start the descent of the movable accessory 140. Accordingly, the timing for raising the movable accessory 140 from the reference position is a timing that is a certain time before the actual start of descent.
Furthermore, as a modification, when the movable accessory 140 is at the reference position, a timing at which the drive gear 178 is rotated forward by a predetermined number of rotations to drop the movable accessory 140 may be defined as a “descent start timing”. .
In any case, according to the method of defining the descent start timing according to these modified examples, even if the descent start detection sensor 176 is not installed, the timing close to the timing at which the movable accessory 140 actually starts descent is set to “Descent start”. It can be specified as “timing”.

The reference detection sensor 184 is a sensor provided corresponding to the reference position, and transmits a “reference detection signal” to the later-described accessory control means 136 when the movable accessory 140 is at the reference position. The reference detection sensor 184 is assumed to be an infrared objective sensor including a light emitting element and a light receiving element. One of the light emitting element and the light receiving element is provided at the position of the reference detection sensor 184, and the other is provided on the back side of the support portion 186a, thereby detecting the presence of the movable accessory 140 at the reference position.
In the present embodiment, the reference detection signal of the reference detection sensor 184 is used only during the “measurement process” described later with reference to FIG.

When the movable accessory 140 falls, the movable accessory 140 falls to a lower predetermined position (hereinafter referred to as “target lowering position”) or even lower than the target lowering position. The descent detection sensor 182 is a sensor provided corresponding to this target descent position, and when the movable accessory 140 is at the target descent position or passes through the target descent position, a “descent detection signal” is described later. It transmits to the accessory control means 136. The drop detection sensor 182 is also assumed to be an infrared objective sensor including a light emitting element and a light receiving element. One of the light emitting element and the light receiving element is provided at the position of the lowering detection sensor 182, and the other is provided on the back side of the supporting part 186a, thereby detecting the presence of the supporting part 186a at the target lowering position.
In the present embodiment, when the movable accessory 140 is dropped, it is confirmed by the lowering detection signal whether the movable accessory 140 has been lowered to the target lowering position as planned.

FIG. 3 shows a basic structure on the back side of the pachinko gaming machine.
The power switch 40 is a switch for turning on / off the power of the pachinko gaming machine 10. The main board 102 controls the overall operation of the pachinko gaming machine 10 and processes all game operations such as a lottery when a winning is made to the start port 62. The sub board 104 includes the liquid crystal unit 42 and controls display contents on the effect display device 60, operations of the plurality of movable objects 140, and lighting of the game effect lamp 90, and in particular, display contents according to the lottery result by the main board 102. And the lighting of the movable accessory 140 and the game effect lamp 90 is activated along with the progress of the production. The main board 102 and the sub board 104 constitute a game control device 100. The set base 39 includes a prize ball tank 44, a flow path for prize balls, a payout unit 43 for delivering prize balls. The payout unit 43 pays out the game balls supplied from the winning ball tank 44 to the upper ball tray 15 in accordance with winning in each winning opening. The payout control board 45 controls the payout operation by the payout unit 43. The launching device 46 launches the stored balls in the upper ball tray 15 to the game area 52 one by one. The launch control board 47 controls the launch operation of the launch device 46. The power supply unit 48 supplies power to each part of the pachinko gaming machine 10.

FIG. 4 shows functional blocks of the pachinko gaming machine 10 in the present embodiment.
In the pachinko gaming machine 10, the game control device 100 includes a start port 62, a big winning port 66, a general winning port 72, an operating port 68, a special symbol display device 61, an effect display device 60, a normal symbol display device 59, and operation buttons 82. , Speaker 18, game effect lamp 90, drive gear 178, descent detection sensor 182, reference detection sensor 184, and descent start detection sensor 176 are electrically and mechanically connected to each other to transmit and receive various control signals. To do. More specifically, the game control device 100 is connected to the drive gear 178 via a stepping motor (not shown). The game control apparatus 100 controls not only the basic operation of the game but also the staging operations such as the symbol variation display, the movable accessory 140, and the electric decoration. The game control device 100 is configured in such a manner that functions are shared between a main board 102 that controls the overall operation of the pachinko gaming machine 10 including basic operations of the game, and a sub board 104 that controls design effects and the like. The game control device 100 is configured by hardware including elements such as a ROM and a RAM for storing data and programs, and a CPU used for arithmetic processing.

The main board 102 includes an incoming ball judging means 110, a winning / failing lottery means 112, a symbol determining means 114, a holding control means 116, a main display control means 118, a special game control means 120, a specific game execution means 122, and an opening / closing control means 124. . The sub-board 104 includes a pattern storage unit 130, an effect determination unit 132, an effect display control unit 134, an abnormality notification unit 154, and an accessory control unit 136.
Each functional block included in the main board 102 may be configured such that any one of the functional blocks is mounted on the sub board 104 instead of the main board 102. Similarly, each functional block included in the sub-board 104 may be configured such that any one of them is mounted on the main board 102 instead of the sub-board 104.

  The entrance determination means 110 determines whether or not a game ball has entered each winning opening. When receiving the start winning information, the winning determination means 110 determines that the game ball has won the start opening 62, and when receiving the big winning opening winning information, determines that the game ball has won the big winning opening 66, and the general winning is obtained. When the information is received, it is determined that the game ball has won the general winning opening 72. When receiving the passage information, the ball entering determination unit 110 determines that the game ball has passed through the operation port 68.

  The success / failure lottery means 112 obtains a random number value as a “win / fail lottery value” in order to determine whether or not to shift from the normal game to the special game when the game ball enters the start port 62. One winning / failing lottery value is acquired from the range of 0 to 65535. The “random number” in the present application may not be a mathematically generated random number, but may be a pseudo-random number generated by a hardware random number, a software random number, or the like. The success / failure lottery means 112 holds a plurality of success / failure tables to be referred to in the success / failure determination. In the plurality of success / failure tables, the determination result of winning or losing is associated with the winning / losing lottery value, and the success / failure probability is determined according to the associated winning range setting.

  The winning / failing lottery means 112 refers to a success / failure determination table (hereinafter referred to as “non-probability variation appropriateness / prohibition table”) for determination of success / failure with a low probability except when the probability variation game is being executed. Reference is made to a success / failure table (hereinafter, referred to as a “probability change success / failure table”) for determination of success / failure by probability. In the non-probability change acceptance / rejection table, a success / failure lottery value in the range of 0 to 255 is determined to be winning. In the probability variation success / failure table, the success / failure lottery value in the range of 0 to 2500 is determined to be winning. The success / failure lottery means 112 executes the success / failure lottery by referring to any of the success / failure tables and determining whether or not the success / failure lottery value is a win. The determination result by the success / failure lottery means 112 is indicated by the special symbol 192 on the special symbol display device 61 by a variable display. The success / failure is also indicated by a change display of the effect symbol 190.

  The success / failure lottery means 112 obtains a random number value as a “normal lottery value” in order to determine whether or not the starter port 62 is to be expanded with the entry of a game ball into the operation port 68 as an opportunity. One of the usual lottery values is acquired from the range of 0 to 255. In the same manner as the winning / not-lotting lottery, the ordinary drawing lottery is executed by determining whether or not the usual drawing lottery value is a win. As described above, since the winning probability of the normal drawing is increased during the time, the game ball easily falls into the start port 62 during the time. The result of the regular symbol lottery is indicated by the lighting state of the normal symbol after the normal symbol variation display on the normal symbol display device 59.

  The symbol determining means 114 determines the stop symbol and the variation pattern of the special symbol 192 to be displayed on the special symbol display device 61 according to the result of the lottery determination. Moreover, the symbol determination means 114 determines the stop mode of the normal symbol displayed on the normal symbol display device 59 according to the result of the normal symbol lottery. The stop symbol is a symbol indicating whether or not to be displayed at the end of symbol variation. The symbol determination unit 114 holds a pattern determination table for determining a variation pattern.

  The symbol determination means 114 acquires a “pattern determination lottery value” for determining the variation pattern at the start of variation of the special symbol 192. The pattern determination lottery value is a random number generated in the range of “0 to 255”. The pattern determination table is a determination table that defines the correspondence between the pattern determination lottery value and the variation pattern of the special symbol. The symbol determination means 114 determines a variation pattern from the pattern determination table and the pattern determination lottery value. Thus, the variation time of the special symbol 192 is determined.

  The symbol determination means 114 holds a plurality of types of variation patterns having various variation times. Each variation pattern has a variation time for each pattern as an end condition of the symbol variation, and the variation display of the special symbol 192 is stopped when the variation time elapses.

Moreover, the symbol determination means 114 produces | generates a symbol lottery value in the range of 0-255 at the time of a success / failure lottery execution. When the winning / losing lottery value is a win, it is determined based on the symbol lottery value whether it is a normal hit or a probable change.
The symbol determination means 114 notifies the main display control means 118 of the ID of the variation pattern as a result of the success / failure lottery. In addition, the symbol determination unit 114 also notifies the effect determination unit 132 of the result of the lottery determination and the ID of the variation pattern. The symbol determining unit 114 notifies the main display control unit 118 of the main board 102 and the effect determining unit 132 of the sub board 104 of the probability variation and the normal hit. The symbol determining means 114 determines the stop symbol and the variation pattern of the normal symbol to be displayed on the normal symbol display device 59 according to the result of the normal symbol lottery.

  The hold control means 116 holds the winning / losing lottery value acquired by the winning / failing lottery means 112 as a holding ball. The success / failure lottery value is accumulated until the number of holds reaches a predetermined upper limit. The upper limit of the number of holds is 4. The holding control means 116 also holds the usual lottery value as a holding ball. Ordinary lottery values are also held up to four.

The main display control means 118 causes the special symbol display device 61 to variably display the special symbol 192. The main display control means 118 transmits a change start command and a change stop command to the effect display control means 134 at the timing of starting and stopping the change display of the special symbol 192, thereby allowing the special display by the main display control means 118. The variation display of the effect symbol 190 by the symbol 192 and the effect display control means 134 is synchronized, and the interlock is maintained.
Further, the main display control means 118 causes the normal symbol display device 59 to variably display the normal symbols. When the regular drawing lottery is a win, the normal symbol is stopped and displayed in a lighting manner indicating a win after a predetermined time variation display, and a hit signal is sent to the opening / closing control means 124. When receiving the hit signal from the main display control means 118, the open / close control means 124 drives the ordinary electric accessory solenoid 76 of the start opening 62 to widen the start opening 62 for a predetermined time.

  The special game control means 120 controls the execution of the special game when the winning lottery is a win. The special game is a game in which the opening / closing operation of the special winning opening 66 is continuously performed a plurality of times, and is configured by a plurality of unit games with one opening / closing as a unit. The unit game is repeated up to 15 times, for example, and the grand prize opening 66 is opened for about 30 seconds in one unit game. If the number of continuations of the unit game has not reached the upper limit number, the special game control means 120 starts the next unit game after the end of the current unit game. When the upper limit number of unit games is exhausted, the special game is terminated.

  The specific game execution means 122 executes control for shifting the game state from the normal state to the specific game state, and control for returning the specific game state to the normal state. The specific game according to the present embodiment includes a probability change in which the winning probability of winning / failing lottery is switched from a normal probability state to a high probability state and a short time in which the symbol variation time is switched from a normal time to a short time.

The specific game execution means 122 executes the probability variation game by setting the normal game after the special game to a high probability state when the probability change has occurred. At this time, the specific game executing means 122 sets a probability change success / failure table as a success / failure table to be referenced by the success / failure lottery means 112 for the success / failure lottery. In principle, the high probability state is continued until the next jackpot is generated, and during that time, the winning probability by the success / failure lottery means 112 is maintained at a high value. If the normal win occurs in the high probability state, the normal game after the end of the special game is in the low probability state. In other words, the specific game execution means 122 sets a non-probability change success / failure table as a success / failure table to be referenced by the success / failure lottery means 112 for the success / failure lottery.
In addition, when a normal win occurs, the specific game executing means 122 executes the game with a reduced variation time by setting the normal game to the time-saving state after the special game. The short time is continued until the number of changes in the special symbol after the special game reaches a predetermined number, for example, 100 times.

  The opening / closing control means 124 controls the opening / closing of the ordinary electric accessory at the start opening 62 and the special winning opening 66. When the normal symbol is stopped at a specific symbol, the opening / closing control unit 124 sends an opening instruction to the ordinary electric accessory solenoid 76 to open the start port 62. Further, the opening / closing control means 124 sends an opening instruction to the special winning opening solenoid 80 during the special game, and opens the special winning opening 66.

The pattern storage unit 130 of the sub-board 104 holds an effect pattern indicating the moving image reproduction process of the effect image including the change display of the effect symbol 190. The production pattern includes the fluctuation pattern of the production symbol 190 when displaying a normal out symbol, the fluctuation pattern when displaying a symbol out of a reach after reaching a big win if one more symbols are aligned, and the reach state. The variation pattern when displaying the jackpot symbol is included. In particular, the variation pattern in the reach state includes a variation pattern having various variation times. For each effect pattern, a change time is defined as an end condition of the symbol change, and the change display of the effect symbol 190 is stopped when the change time elapses. The effect determining means 132 selects an effect pattern having the same variation time as that of the special symbol in accordance with the variation pattern of the special symbol.
In the following, the variation time of the special symbol 192 and its variation process are referred to as “variation pattern of the special symbol 192” or simply “variation pattern”, and the variation time of the production symbol 190 and its variation process are referred to as “the production symbol 190 The data indicating the moving image reproduction process of the effect image including the change pattern ”and the change display of the effect symbol 190 is referred to as“ effect pattern ”.

  The effect determining means 132 determines the combination of stop symbols of the effect symbol 190 and the effect pattern according to the result of the lottery or the variation pattern of the special symbol 192. The stop mode of the effect symbol 190 is formed as a combination of three effect symbols 190. In the case of a big hit, that is, a transition to a special game, three identical effect symbols 190 such as “7, 7, 7” and “1, 1, 1” are stopped and displayed side by side.

  When the determination result by the winning / failing lottery means 112 indicates that the game does not shift to the special game, a combination that does not have the three effect symbols 190 such as “3.1, 2” and “9,4,6” is selected. The However, if the determination result is that the game does not shift to the special game, and the variation pattern of the special symbol indicating the detachment with reach is selected, “1 • 9 • 1” or “7 • 2 • 7 ”, a combination in which only one effect symbol 190 is not aligned is selected. In the moving image reproduction process by the effect pattern, a moving image other than the fluctuation display of the effect symbol 190 is also reproduced. For example, the player's sense of expectation for the jackpot may be aroused by playing a special video that suggests the possibility that the change is a hit variation. In an effect mode called so-called super reach, various animations and live-action moving image reproduction are often performed in addition to the change display of the effect symbol 190.

  In the pachinko gaming machine 10 according to the present embodiment, the effect symbol 190 is displayed so as to be more conspicuous than the special symbol 192. For this reason, the player recognizes whether or not the effect symbols 190 having the same numbers are arranged. The effect determining unit 132 sends information on the stop symbol and the effect pattern of the effect symbol 190 to the effect display control unit 134.

  The effect display control means 134 causes the effect display device 60 to display an effect image including the effect symbol 190 as a moving image in accordance with the selected effect pattern. The effect display control means 134 further controls effect processing such as lighting and extinguishing of the game effect lamp 90 and sound output from the speaker 18.

  In accordance with the instruction received from the effect display control means 134, the accessory control means 136 causes the movable accessory 140 to act in an effect manner in accordance with the effect contents in the effect display device 60 and the blinking process of the game effect lamp 90.

  The accessory control unit 136 includes a normal control unit 202, a return control unit 204, a measurement control unit 194, and an abnormality determination unit 196. The normal control means 202 drives the stepping motor when the operating condition is satisfied, thereby causing the drive gear 178 coaxial with the stepping motor to rotate forward and moving the movable accessory 140 up and down. The normal control unit 202 includes an ascending control unit 198 and a descending control unit 200. The raising control means 198 raises the movable accessory 140 to the reference position by rotating the driving gear 178 forward by a reference raising driving amount described later. The lowering control means 200 lowers the movable accessory 140 by continuously rotating the driving gear 178 until the meshing portion of the hoisting gear 172b and the driving gear 178 reaches the missing tooth portion. At this time, the descent start detection sensor 176 detects the descent start timing.

  The abnormality determination unit 196 determines whether or not a descent detection signal is received from the descent detection sensor 182 within a predetermined monitoring time after the descent start timing is detected by the descent start detection sensor 176. If the descent detection signal is not received within the monitoring time, it is determined that the operation of the movable accessory 140 is abnormal. At this time, the return control means 204 executes a “return process” for returning the operating state of the movable accessory 140 to a normal state. The restoration process will be described later in detail with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. When the power is turned on, the measurement control unit 194 executes the measurement process shown in FIG. 5 to measure the reference ascending drive amount.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the process of the measurement process.
The measurement process shown in the figure is executed as an initialization process when the power is turned on. First, the descent control means 200 continues to rotate the drive gear 178 forward until the meshing of the hoisting gear 172b and the drive gear 178 is released for the purpose of dropping the movable accessory 140 once. Is dropped (S110). After the fall, the lift control means 198 carefully rotates the drive gear 178 forward until the reference detection signal is sent by the reference detection sensor 184 for the purpose of raising the movable accessory 140 to the reference position. The object 140 is raised (S112). When the ascending process in S112 is started, the measurement control unit 194 measures the number of steps of the stepping motor required to raise the movable accessory 140. The reference detection sensor 184 transmits a reference detection signal to the accessory control means 136 when the movable accessory 140 reaches the reference position. The lift control means 198 stops the forward rotation of the drive gear 178 when receiving the reference detection signal. The measurement control unit 194 stores the number of steps required to raise the movable accessory 140 from the lowest point to the reference position as a “reference increase driving amount” (S114).

  Although it is desirable that the reference ascending drive amount is always a constant value, in actuality, variation occurs each time the measurement process is executed. This may be caused by expansion and contraction of the wire 180 due to aging, or may be caused by aging of the meshing state among the hoisting gear 172a, the hoisting gear 172b, and the driving gear 178. In consideration of such variations, the allowable range of the reference ascending drive amount is set in advance. The abnormality determination unit 196 determines whether or not the reference ascending drive amount measured in S114 is within an allowable range (S116). If it is outside the allowable range (N in S116), the abnormality notifying means 154 notifies the abnormality (S118). For example, a screen indicating that the elevating mechanism of the movable accessory 140 has deteriorated may be displayed in a predetermined area of the effect display device 60, or a signal indicating the occurrence of an abnormality may be transmitted to an external device such as a hall computer. . If it is within the allowable range (Y in S116), the movable accessory 140 is operated based on this reference increase drive amount until the power is turned on again.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a basic operation process in the pachinko gaming machine 10.
The process shown in the figure is a process that is repeatedly executed as a loop process. The processing of FIG. 6 is executed after the measurement processing of FIG. 5 is normally completed and the reference ascending drive amount is acquired. First, a winning process is executed when a game ball has won the starting port 62, the general winning port 72, the big winning port 66, etc., or when the game ball has passed through the operating port 68 (S10). If it is not in a special game (N in S12), a control process of a normal game such as a special symbol lottery is executed (S14), and if it is in a special game (Y in S12), a special game control process is executed ( S16), and award ball payout according to various winnings in the processing from S10 to S16 is processed (S18).

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing in detail the normal game control process of S14 in FIG.
In the normal game control process, if the winning / losing lottery value is on hold (Y in S30) and the symbol variation is not being displayed (N in S32), the winning / losing lottery means 112 executes the determining process. (S34). The main display control means 118 starts the variable display of the special symbol 192 and transmits a change start command to the sub-board 104. Receiving this, the effect determining means 132 selects the effect pattern, and the effect display control means 134 starts changing the effect symbol display (S36).

  If the winning / losing lottery value is not held in S30 (N in S30), the processing from S32 to S36 is skipped. If the symbol is changing in S32 (Y in S32), the processing from S34 to S36 is performed. Processing is skipped. If the symbol variation has already started (Y in S38), the symbol variation display process is continued (S40). The accessory control means 136 performs an accessory control process as needed (S42). Details of the accessory control process will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. When the symbol is not changing (N in S38), the processes in S40 and S42 are skipped.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing in detail the accessory control process in S42 of FIG.
First, the normal control unit 202 determines whether or not an operation condition that triggers the operation of the movable accessory 140 is satisfied (S120). In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the operating condition is satisfied when 5 seconds have elapsed since the start of the fluctuation, during the symbol fluctuation when the winning / raising lottery is a chance to win. If the operation condition is not satisfied (N in S120), the subsequent processing is skipped.

  If the operating condition is satisfied (Y in S120), the lowering control means 200 rotates the drive gear 178 in the forward direction to drop it (S122). The movable accessory 140 is further raised from the reference position. The abnormality determination unit 196 determines whether or not the descent detection signal is received by the descent detection sensor 182 before the predetermined monitoring time elapses after the descent start detection sensor 176 detects the descent start timing (S124). ). In the case of a design in which the normal drop time is 2 to 3 seconds, the monitoring time may be set to a predetermined time slightly longer than that, for example, about 5 to 7 seconds. If the descent detection signal is received within this monitoring time, it is determined that the descent is normal (Y in S124). The ascending control means 198 drives the stepping motor by the reference ascending drive amount to raise the movable accessory 140 to the reference position (S126). In raising the movable accessory 140 to the reference position, it is important that the ascending control means 198 does not need to adjust the driving amount of the stepping motor while monitoring the timing at which the reference detection sensor 184 sends the reference detection signal. is there. Since the number of steps required to raise the movable accessory 140 to the reference position is measured in advance as the reference increase drive amount, the normal stepping motor is driven by the reference increase drive amount during normal game control. Thus, the movable accessory 140 can be placed at the reference position. For this reason, the process of raising the movable accessory 140 in the state where the descent has ended to the reference position accurately can be realized by a simple program.

  On the other hand, if the descent detection signal is not received even after the monitoring time has elapsed and the arrival of the movable accessory 140 at the target descent position is not detected (N in S124), the abnormality determining unit 196 determines that the operation is abnormal. Such an abnormality is often caused by a catch of the wire 180, the movable accessory 140, the support portion 186, or the like, or an abnormal meshing of each gear. When an abnormality occurs, the return control means 204 executes a return process (S128). The return process of S128 will be described in detail with reference to the following FIG. 9 and FIG.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram for explaining a mechanism for promoting the lowering of the movable accessory 140 by the reverse rotation of the drive gear 178.
In this embodiment, the force required for further pulling out increases as the wire 180 is pulled out from the hoisting gear 172. What is necessary is just to form so that the force which resists reverse rotation becomes large, for example with known mechanical power, such as a mainspring, so that the winding gear 172a reversely rotates (right rotation).

  When the meshing of the hoisting gear 172b and the drive gear 178 is released, the lowering of the movable accessory 140 is started, and the weight of the movable accessory 140 and the force required to pull out the wire 180 from the hoisting gear 172 are obtained. At the balanced point, the descent of the movable accessory 140 is completed. At this time, as shown in the figure, the movable accessory 140 descends to the target lowering position or further below. When the descent of the movable accessory 140 ends and stops, the force with which the wire 180 lifts the movable accessory 140 upward and the gravity applied to the movable accessory 140 are balanced. However, since the length of the wire 180 itself has a margin, if the drive gear 178 is rotated in the reverse direction, the hoisting gear 172a can further feed the remaining wire 180, and the movable accessory 140 is further lowered. Can be made. In other words, when the meshing position of the hoisting gear 172 and the drive gear 178 reaches the missing tooth portion, the movable accessory 140 can be lowered by gravity due to the weight of the movable accessory 140, but the drive gear 178 rotates in the reverse direction. If this is done, the movable accessory 140 can be lowered further.

  As a modification, the wire 180 may be formed of a rigid member having a certain degree of strength and cross-sectional area. In this case, if the drive gear 178 is rotated in the reverse direction, the fed wire 180 pushes the support portion 186 downward. Also according to such an aspect, the descent of the movable accessory 140 can be promoted by the reverse rotation of the drive gear 178.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing in detail the return processing in S128 of FIG.
First, when the movable accessory 140 is not lowered to the target lowering position (N in S124 of FIG. 8), the return control means 204 reversely rotates the drive gear 178 to actively lower the movable accessory 140 (S130). ). If the target lowering position is not reached even by such reverse rotation (N in S132), the abnormality notifying means 154 notifies the outside of the abnormality (S140). If the vehicle can be lowered to the target lowering position (Y in S132), the return control means 204 rotates the drive gear 178 forward more slowly than usual to raise the movable accessory 140 (S134). The return control means 204 rotates the drive gear 178 in the normal direction and drops the movable accessory 140 again. At this time, if the target descent position is not reached within the monitoring time (N in S136), the abnormality notifying unit 154 notifies the abnormality (S140). If it is normally lowered (Y in S136), the return control means 204 rotates the drive gear 178 forward by the reference upward drive amount and returns the movable accessory 140 to the reference position (S138). In this way, the normal accessory operation process can be resumed in S42.

If the drive gear 178 is rotated forward to pull up the movable accessory 140 when the wire 180 is caught or the like, an excessive force is applied to the elevating mechanism, which may cause an unrecoverable failure. is there. Therefore, by reversely rotating once in S130 and lowering the movable accessory 140, an attempt is made to solve the problem of the wire or gear. Further, even if the movable accessory 140 can be lowered to the target lowering position by the reverse rotation of the drive gear 178, it is predicted in advance how much the movable accessory 140 can be lowered to the target lowering position. Can not. Therefore, even if the movable accessory 140 can be lowered to the target lowering position, it is not known how much the movable accessory 140 can be returned to the reference position if it is rotated forward. Therefore, once the drive gear 178 is rotated forward until the descent of the movable accessory 140 due to gravity starts in S134, the movable accessory 140 is lowered again. Then, in S136, it is determined whether a normal drop is detected. It is easy to prevent the recurrence of the abnormality because it is returned to the normal state after confirming that the basic operation of the movable accessory 140 to reach the target lowering position is performed normally.
Even in the measurement process shown in FIG. 5, the return process shown in FIG. 10 may be executed if the descent to the target descent position cannot be detected in S112.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing in detail the special game control process in S16 of FIG.
A special game is a game that is executed after a symbol change when the winning or failing lottery is won and the special game flag is turned on. First, if the big prize opening 66 has not been opened (N in S70), the effect display control means 134 starts the special game effect processing (S72), and the open / close control means 124 opens the special prize opening 66 (S72). . If the big winning opening 66 has been opened, S72 and S74 are skipped (Y in S70). When the predetermined opening time has elapsed since the grand prize opening 66 was opened (Y in S76), or the opening time has not elapsed (N in S76), there are nine or more game balls to the big winning opening 66 When the player has entered the ball (Y in S78), the opening / closing control means 124 closes the special winning opening 66 (S80). If the opening time has not elapsed (N in S76) and the number of balls entered into the grand prize winning opening 66 has not reached nine or more (N in S78), the processing after S80 is skipped and the flow of S16 Exit.

If the number of rounds of the unit game has reached 15 after closing the special winning opening 66 in S80 (Y in S82), the effect display control means 134 ends the effect processing of the special game (S84), and the special game control means 120 ends the special game (S86). The special game flag is also turned off. When it is a winning hit (Y in S92), the specific game executing means 122 sets a probability changing success / failure table as a winning / failing table for the winning / failing lottery (S94), and when it is a normal winning (N in S92), An uncertain change determination table is set (S96). In the case of a normal hit, the specific game execution means 122 starts a game with reduced variation time.
If the number of rounds has not reached 15 (N in S82), 1 is added to the number of rounds, and the flow in S16 is terminated (S90).

  As described above, according to the pachinko gaming machine 10 in the present embodiment, when the movable accessory 140 is moved up and down by the rise by the external power and the drop by the gravity, the abnormality when the movable accessory 140 is lowered can be detected in real time during the game. . In the event of an abnormality, the movable accessory 140 is not re-raised by the external power, but by trying to descend by the external power, attempting to eliminate the abnormality in a manner that does not place an excessive burden on the lifting mechanism. it can. In particular, in the case of a type that is suspended by the left and right wires 180, such as the movable combination 140, the movable combination 140 may be caught during the descent due to its inclination. For this reason, in the case of such a type of movable accessory 140, the abnormality detection and recovery processing shown in this embodiment are particularly effective.

  In addition, if the stepping motor drive amount required to pull up the movable accessory 140 from the descent completion position to the reference position is measured as a reference increase drive amount once by the measurement process, the reference increase drive amount will be used thereafter. Based on this, the movable accessory 140 can be stably placed at the reference position. For this reason, the control program of the movable accessory 140 during the game can be simplified. Further, if a measurement process is executed as an initialization process when the power is turned on, an appropriate reference increase drive amount corresponding to aging and individual differences can be specified. Further, by determining whether or not the reference ascending drive amount is within the allowable range, it is possible to rationally determine when the movable accessory 140 or its lifting mechanism should be replaced or repaired.

  In addition to the number of steps of the stepping motor, the reference ascending drive amount may be set for the rotation amount of the drive gear 178 and the hoisting gear 172. Alternatively, when the stepping motor is driven at a constant speed from the descent completion position to the reference position, the time required for the pulling may be set as the reference upward drive amount. In any case, the reference ascending drive amount may be a value indicating the drive amount required to raise the movable accessory 140 from the descent completion position to the reference position.

It is a figure which shows the basic structure in the front side of a pachinko game machine. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the operation | movement mechanism of a movable accessory. It is a figure which shows the basic structure in the back side of a pachinko game machine. It is a figure which shows the functional block of the pachinko game machine in a present Example. It is a flowchart which shows the process of a measurement process. It is a flowchart which shows the basic operation | movement process in a pachinko game machine. It is a flowchart which shows the normal game control process of S14 in FIG. 6 in detail. It is a flowchart which shows in detail the accessory control process in S42 of FIG. It is a schematic diagram for demonstrating the mechanism which promotes the fall of a movable accessory by reverse rotation of a drive gearwheel. It is a flowchart which shows the return process in S128 of FIG. 8 in detail. It is a flowchart which shows the special game control process in S16 of FIG. 6 in detail.

Explanation of symbols

  10 Pachinko machines, 11 Outer frame, 12 Front frame, 13 Transparent plate, 14 Doors, 15 Upper ball dish, 16 Lower ball dish, 17 Launch handle, 18 Speaker, 20 Lottery hold lamp, 22 Operation hold lamp, 39 Set base , 40 power switch, 42 liquid crystal unit, 43 payout unit, 44 prize ball tank, 45 payout control board, 46 launching device, 47 launch control board, 48 power supply unit, 50 game board, 52 game area, 54 outside rail, 56 inside Rail, 58 Out port, 59 Normal symbol display device, 60 Production display device, 61 Special symbol display device, 62 Start port, 64 Center decoration, 66 Large winning port, 68 Working port, 69 Pass detection device, 72 General winning port, 73 General winning detection device, 74 Start winning detection device , 76 ordinary electric accessory solenoid, 78 winning detection device, 80 large winning opening solenoid, 82 operation buttons, 90 gaming effect lamp, 100 gaming control device, 102 main board, 104 sub board, 110 entry judging means, 112 winning / losing lottery Means, 114 symbol determination means, 116 hold control means, 118 main display control means, 120 special game control means, 122 specific game execution means, 124 opening / closing control means, 130 pattern storage means, 132 effect determination means, 134 effect display control means 136, accessory control means, 140 movable accessory, 154 abnormality notification means, 170 bridging part, 172 hoisting gear, 176 descent start detection sensor, 178 drive gear, 180 wire, 182 descent detection sensor, 184 reference detection sensor 186 support unit, 190 performance symbol, 192 special symbol, 194 measurement control unit, 196 abnormality determining means, 198 increase control means, 200 lowering control means, 202 normal control unit, 204 the recovery control means.

Claims (2)

A game board in which a game area into which game balls are thrown is formed;
A movable accessory capable of moving up and down with respect to the game area;
An elevating mechanism for elevating the movable accessory;
A descent detection sensor disposed at a target lowering position of the movable accessory and detecting that the movable accessory has reached the target lowering position;
As a normal operation of the movable accessory, the support of the movable accessory is temporarily released, and after the movable accessory is lowered to the target lowering position by gravity, the elevating mechanism is driven and controlled in the upward direction. Normal control means for raising the movable accessory to a predetermined ascent position by:
When the movable won game reaches to the target lowered position of the movable won game has not been detect by the drop detection sensor within a predetermined time from the start of the descent, abnormality determination operation of the movable won game An abnormality determination means to perform,
When it is determined that the operation of the movable accessory is abnormal, the movable accessory is lowered by driving and controlling the elevating mechanism in the descending direction, and the movable detector is moved to the target lowering position by the lowering detection sensor. When arrival is detected, return control means for resuming the normal operation by driving and controlling the lifting mechanism again in the upward direction;
A ball game machine characterized by comprising:   A method for controlling a movable accessory provided in a game area into which a game ball is thrown in a gaming board of a gaming machine,
  As a normal operation of the movable accessory, the support of the movable accessory is temporarily released, and gravity is applied to the target lowering position provided with a lowering detection sensor that detects that the movable accessory has reached the target lowering position. Step of raising the movable accessory to a predetermined ascending position by driving and controlling an elevating mechanism for raising and lowering the movable accessory after lowering the movable accessory by
  The movement of the movable accessory is determined to be abnormal when the descent detection sensor does not detect that the movable accessory has reached the target lowering position within a predetermined time after the movable accessory starts to descend. Steps,
  When it is determined that the operation of the movable accessory is abnormal, the movable accessory is lowered by driving and controlling the elevating mechanism in the descending direction, and the movable detector is moved to the target lowering position by the lowering detection sensor. Resuming the normal operation by re-driving the lifting mechanism in the upward direction when arrival is detected; and
  A movable accessory control method comprising:

Images