JP5429489B2 - Launching ball feeder - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a launching ball supply device used for supplying a game ball from a ball supply path in a pachinko machine to a launch position provided at a lower end of a launch rail.

  Conventionally, in the pachinko machine, the game ball in the supply tray provided at the lower surface of the pachinko machine is sent to the launch position provided at the lower end of the launch rail via the ball supply path and sent to the launch position. The game ball is hit with a launcher that moves forward and backward with respect to the launch position by the operation of the drive unit, and sent out from the launch rail to the game board. In this case, in order to prevent a plurality of game balls from being supplied to the launch position at a time, one play ball is passed through the ball supply path for one advance and retreat of the launcher to the launch position. A launching ball supply device provided with a mechanism for supplying to is used (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  In this launching ball supply device, sprockets in which concave portions capable of engaging with a single game ball and tooth portions are alternately formed on the outer peripheral edge are rotatably arranged facing the ball supply path. . Then, by rotating the sprocket according to the weight of the game balls located in the recesses, the game balls are passed one by one from the upstream side of the ball supply path to the launch position side. Further, in the vicinity of the sprocket, a stopper provided with an upper engaging portion and a lower engaging portion that can engage with the sprocket teeth is rotatably provided. This stopper is configured to reciprocate in conjunction with a firing rod that moves forward and backward with respect to the firing position by driving a plunger type solenoid.

  The stopper is reciprocally rotated in conjunction with the advancement and retraction of the launching rod, so that the upper engagement portion and the lower engagement portion are alternately engaged with or disengaged from the sprocket teeth. To do. At this time, after the engagement between the upper engagement portion and the tooth portion is released, the lower engagement portion and the tooth portion are engaged, and further, the engagement between the lower engagement portion and the tooth portion is released. The sprocket is rotated by the weight of the game ball until the upper engagement portion and the tooth portion are engaged, and one game ball is passed from the upstream side of the ball supply path to the firing position side.

JP 61-29375 A

  In the above-described conventional launch ball supply device including a sprocket and a stopper, in order to have a certain interval in the timing of supplying game balls, the upper engagement portion and the lower engagement portion are alternately arranged. The sprocket is configured to prevent the sprocket from rotating in the direction of passing the game ball. However, the sprocket can be rotated not only in the direction in which the game ball passes, but also in the opposite direction. When the sprocket reciprocates, the sprocket rattles due to vibration in the direction opposite to the direction in which the game ball passes. When it rotates, a plurality of game balls pass through the ball supply path, or the game balls are sandwiched between the sprocket teeth and the wall of the ball supply path, and the sprocket becomes non-rotatable. Sometimes.

  The present invention has been made to address the above-described problems, and its purpose is to make the sprocket pass through the game ball by engaging the upper engaging portion and the lower engaging portion of the stopper with the sprocket. It is an object of the present invention to provide a launching ball supply device capable of restricting the sprocket from rotating in the opposite direction when it is prevented from rotating. In the description of each constituent element of the present invention below, the reference numerals of corresponding portions of the embodiment are shown in parentheses in order to facilitate understanding of the present invention. The present invention should not be construed as being limited to the configurations of the corresponding portions indicated by the reference numerals of the forms.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, a structural feature of the launching ball supply device according to the present invention is that the game ball (B) is supplied to the launch position (12a) provided at the lower end of the launch rail (12). A supply path (11), a launcher (21) provided so as to be able to advance and retreat relative to the launch position, and a game ball supplied to the launch position as a launcher by moving the launcher forward and backward relative to the launch position A driving unit for striking, and a rotating body arranged with a plurality of ball transport recesses (31) recessed inward from the outer peripheral edge (a) of the movable region on the outer periphery, with the outer periphery facing the ball supply path The sprocket (30) that allows the game ball to pass from the upstream side of the ball supply path to the launch position side by rotating in one direction depending on the weight of the game ball that enters the ball conveyance recess, is installed so as to be capable of reciprocating rotation. From the main body (41) and the upper and lower parts of the main body An upper engagement portion (43) and a lower engagement portion (44) projecting to the sprocket side are provided, and the upper engagement portion and the lower engagement portion are alternately advanced and retracted relative to the sprocket by reciprocating rotation. The stopper (40) that allows the sprocket to rotate when the engagement of the upper engaging portion and the lower engaging portion with the edge of the ball transport recess is switched. And a launching ball supply device (A) having interlocking means (50) for reciprocally rotating the stopper in conjunction with the advancement and retraction of the launching rod, the upper engagement portion and the lower engagement portion are rotated by the stopper. Consists of a protrusion extending from the center side toward the outer peripheral side, and the end (43d) on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion engages with the edge of the ball transport recess to prohibit rotation in one direction of the sprocket When the tip of the upper engaging portion (43a) is When the tip end portion (44a) of the lower engaging portion engages with the edge of the ball conveyance recess and prohibits rotation in one direction of the sprocket. That is, the end (44b) on the rotation center side of the lower engagement portion is positioned in the same spherical conveyance recess as the tip portion of the lower engagement portion.

  In the launching ball supply device according to the present invention, the stopper includes an upper engagement portion and a lower engagement portion that protrude from the upper and lower portions of the main body and can engage with the edge of the sprocket ball recess. Yes. The upper engaging portion is formed by a protrusion extending from the rotation center side of the stopper toward the outer peripheral side, and the end portion of the upper engagement portion on the rotation center side is engaged with the edge of the ball transport recess, thereby forming a sprocket. When rotation in one direction is prohibited, the tip end portion of the upper engagement portion is also located in the same spherical conveyance recess as the end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion. In this case, the spherical conveyance recess is a portion that is recessed from the outer peripheral edge of the movable region of the sprocket. For this reason, when the end of the upper engagement portion on the rotation center side prohibits rotation of the sprocket in one direction, if the sprocket tries to rotate in the other direction due to vibration, the tip of the upper engagement portion is conveyed in a ball. Engage with the opposite edge of the recess to limit sprocket rotation in the other direction.

  Similarly, the lower engagement portion is formed by a protrusion extending from the rotation center side of the stopper toward the outer peripheral side, and the tip end portion of the lower engagement portion engages with the edge of the ball conveyance recess to When rotation in one direction is prohibited, the end on the rotation center side of the lower engagement portion is also positioned in the same spherical conveyance recess as the tip of the lower engagement portion. For this reason, when the tip of the lower engagement portion prohibits rotation of the sprocket in one direction, if the sprocket attempts to rotate in the other direction due to vibration, the end of the lower engagement portion on the rotation center side is Engage with the opposite edge of the ball transport recess to limit the rotation of the sprocket in the other direction. As a result, when the upper engagement part prohibits rotation of the sprocket in one direction and when the lower engagement part prohibits rotation of the sprocket in one direction, rotation of the sprocket in the other direction is restricted. The

  The circumferential length that allows the sprocket to rotate in the other direction is determined by the circumferential length of the sprocket at the upper engaging portion and the lower engaging portion. For this reason, a plurality of game balls pass through the ball supply path by appropriately setting the circumferential length of the sprocket at the upper engagement part and the lower engagement part and the installation position of the sprocket with respect to the ball supply path. It is possible to prevent the sprocket from becoming unrotatable due to the game ball being sandwiched between the protruding tooth portion formed between the ball transport recesses of the sprocket and the wall portion of the ball supply path.

  Further, in the present invention, the interlocking means reciprocally rotates the stopper in conjunction with the advancement and retreat of the launching rod so that the upper engagement portion and the lower engagement portion are alternately engaged with the edge of the sprocket ball conveyance recess. The sprocket is allowed to rotate in one direction when the engagement of the upper engaging portion and the lower engaging portion with respect to the edge of the ball conveyance recess is switched. For this reason, game balls are supplied to the launch position one by one for each advancement and retreat of the launcher. In this case, when the launcher is in the standby position, the upper engaging portion engages with the edge of the ball transport recess on the upper side of the sprocket, and at this time, the game ball is held in the predetermined ball transport recess. . Next, while the launcher advances to the launch position and hits the game ball already supplied to the launch position, the engagement between the upper engagement portion and the edge of the ball transport recess is released, and the lower engagement The portion engages with the edge of the ball transport recess on the lower side of the sprocket. During this time, the sprocket rotates in one direction to supply the game ball to the launch position.

  Further, when the launching rod returns to the standby position, the engagement between the lower engagement portion and the edge of the ball conveyance recess is released, and the upper engagement portion engages with the edge of the upper ball conveyance recess again. At this time, the sprocket rotates in one direction to guide the next game ball into the ball transport recess. In this way, the operation of supplying the game ball to the launch position is performed at the same timing as the operation of the launcher hitting the game ball. A rotary solenoid or a plunger type solenoid can be used as the drive unit. As the interlocking means, there is an interlocking mechanism that mechanically interlocks using a cam, a link, etc., and a separate solenoid that reciprocally rotates the stopper, and an interlocking that electrically interlocks the operation of this solenoid with the operation of the drive unit. A device or the like can be used.

  Further, another structural feature of the launching ball supply device according to the present invention is that at least a part of at least one of the upper engaging portion and the lower engaging portion is located in the ball transport recess. It is in.

  According to this, when the engagement between the upper engagement portion and the edge of the ball conveyance recess is released and the upper engagement portion comes out of the movable region of the sprocket, a part of the lower engagement portion is in the ball conveyance recess. Therefore, the rotation length of the outer peripheral portion of the sprocket is equal to or shorter than the length of one of the ball conveyance recesses. Immediately after the upper engaging portion comes out of the movable region of the sprocket, the lower engaging portion and the edge of the ball transport recess are engaged. The case of the lower engaging portion is the same as that of the upper engaging portion. For this reason, when the engagement between the upper engagement portion and the edge of the spherical conveyance recess and the engagement between the lower engagement portion and the edge of the spherical conveyance recess are switched, the sprocket is one of the spherical conveyance recesses. It can be surely prevented from rotating more than one minute.

  Further, another structural feature of the launching ball supply device according to the present invention is that the outer peripheral side portion of the edge of the ball transport recess is an end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion when the stopper rotates. When the end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion is engaged with the outer peripheral side portion of the edge of the ball conveyance recess. In addition, the convex curve portion is located on the rotation trajectory.

  According to this, when the upper engaging portion and the edge of the ball transport recess are engaged, the end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engaging portion is difficult to reach the back side of the convex curve portion. The sprocket rotates in the direction that allows the game ball to pass when it becomes difficult to engage the edge of the joint and the ball transport recess, or when the engagement between the upper engagement portion and the edge of the ball transport recess is released. As a result, the engagement between the upper engagement portion and the edge of the ball conveyance recess is not easily released. That is, according to the present invention, when the end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion is engaged with the outer peripheral side portion of the edge portion of the spherical conveyance recess, the convex curve portion is positioned on the rotation track. When the part engages with the edge of the ball conveyance recess, or when the engagement is released, the sprocket can be kept stationary, and the engagement and release operations are smooth.

  Still another structural feature of the launching ball supply device according to the present invention is that the length between the rotation center of the stopper and the end of the upper engagement portion on the rotation center side, the rotation center of the stopper, This is because the length between the side engaging portion and the tip portion is the same.

  According to this, each engagement portion when the upper engagement portion transitions from the state engaged with the edge of the ball transport recess to the state where the lower engagement portion engages with the edge of the ball transport recess, The respective engaging portions when the lower engaging portion is engaged with the edge of the ball transport recess and the upper engaging portion is engaged with the edge of the ball transport recess are on the same arc. Come to be located. For this reason, the balance of the force which a sprocket and a stopper receive mutually improves.

  Further, another structural feature of the launching ball supply device according to the present invention is that the interlocking means includes a biasing means (51) for rotating the stopper so that the lower engagement portion approaches the sprocket, and launching A press provided between the heel and the stopper, which causes the stopper to rotate so that the upper engagement portion approaches the sprocket by following the retraction of the launching heel from the firing position against the urging force of the urging means. And means (52). According to this, the interlocking means can be made simple.

  According to still another structural feature of the launching ball supply device according to the present invention, the stopper body includes a pair of elongated connecting pieces (42a, 42b) extending from the rotation center side of the stopper toward the outer peripheral side. The upper engaging portion is provided in one connecting piece, and the lower engaging portion is provided in the other connecting piece. According to this, the main body of the stopper can be configured with only a necessary minimum portion without useless portions.

It is the front view which showed the ball supply apparatus for a launch which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is the front view which showed the inside of the launching ball supply apparatus. It is the front view which showed the sprocket with which the ball supply apparatus for launches is provided. It is the perspective view which showed the stopper with which the launching ball supply apparatus is provided. The stopper is shown, (a) is a plan view, (b) is a front view, (c) is a left side view, and (d) is a right side view. The coil spring is shown, (a) is a front view, (b) is a top view, It is the perspective view which showed the launching rod attachment lever with which the launching ball supply apparatus is provided. The launcher mounting lever is shown, (a) is a plan view, (b) is a front view, and (c) is a left side view. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state immediately before the engagement with the upper engaging part of a stopper, and the tooth | gear part of a sprocket is cancelled | released. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state which the lower side engaging part of the stopper and the tooth | gear part of the sprocket engaged. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state just before engagement with the lower side engaging part of a stopper and the tooth | gear part of a sprocket is cancelled | released. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state when the top part of an upper side engaging part engaged with a tooth | gear part, and stopped the rotation to the counterclockwise direction of a sprocket. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state just before the engagement with the top part of an upper side engaging part, and a tooth | gear part. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state when the front-end | tip part of a lower side engaging part engaged with a tooth | gear part, and stopped the rotation to the counterclockwise direction of a sprocket. It is explanatory drawing which showed the state just before the engagement with the front-end | tip part of a lower side engaging part and a tooth | gear part is cancelled | released. It is explanatory drawing which showed the engagement state of the upper side engaging part with respect to the convex curve part of a sprocket.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 and 2 show a launch ball supply device A according to the embodiment. This launching ball supply device A is incorporated in a lower part of a pachinko machine main body (not shown) via an installation case 10, and a game ball B (see FIG. 5) in a supply tray provided on the surface of the pachinko machine main body. 2) is supplied to the launch position 12a provided at the lower end of the launch rail 12 via the ball supply path 11. The launching ball supply device A is provided with a hitting device 20, a sprocket 30, a stopper 40, and an interlocking mechanism 50 that interlocks the launching rod 21 and the stopper 40 provided in the hitting device 20 in the installation case 10. It is configured.

  The installation case 10 protrudes forward from a square plate-like substrate 10a disposed with the surface facing forward, and a peripheral portion of the substrate 10a (a portion closer to the center than the edge on the right side of the substrate 10a). A frame-shaped peripheral wall portion 10b (only a part of which is shown), and a front surface portion 10c that is connected to the peripheral edge of the front end of the peripheral wall portion 10b and covers the inside of the peripheral wall portion 10b. In this specification, the left-right and front-back directions are described based on FIGS. 1 and 2. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a lower guide wall 13 and an upper guide wall 14 extending from the upper left side to the lower right side are vertically spaced apart from each other on the left side portion between the substrate 10a and the front surface part 10c. They are kept parallel to each other. A firing rail 12 is installed at the lower end of the lower guide wall 13. The firing rail 12 has a substantially M-shaped cross section, and a shallow groove (not shown) having a V-shaped cross section along the longitudinal direction is formed on the upper surface. The firing rail 12 is fixed to the lower guide wall 13 by screws 13a.

  The upper guide wall 14 is formed with a space that allows the game ball B to pass between the lower guide wall 13 and the firing rail 12 with a margin, and a ball stop protruding downward at the lower end thereof. A portion 14a is provided. That is, between the lower guide wall 13 and the firing rail 12 and the upper guide wall 14 constitutes a ball launch path through which the game ball B is launched toward the game board, and the vertical width of the lower end thereof is The stop portion 14a is narrowed by protruding downward, and has a length that prevents the game ball B from passing therethrough. In this embodiment, a portion where the game ball B in the vicinity (slightly above the lower end) between the lower end of the launch rail 12 and the lower end of the ball stop portion 14a cannot pass is defined as the launch position 12a.

  The ball supply path 11 is formed from the supply tray of the main body of the pachinko machine to the front side of the front surface portion 10c of the installation case 10, and the lower end thereof communicates with the launch position 12a. The ball supply path 11 includes a part of the front surface portion 10c, guide side walls 11a and 11b protruding forward from the front surface portion 10c at a distance from each other, and a covering wall 15 that covers the front portions of the guide side walls 11a and 11b. It consists of parts. The ball supply path 11 is gently inclined from the upper right front part of the installation case 10 to the lower left part, extends to the upper left upper part of the installation case 10 and then bends to make a U-turn, and further protrudes to the right side. After extending so as to draw a semicircular arc, it extends downward. In addition, an opening 11c having a length about twice the diameter of the game ball B is formed in a portion of the guide side wall 11a that extends so that the ball supply path 11 draws a semicircular arc, and an opening in the guide side wall 11b is formed. A protrusion 11d that protrudes toward the inner side of the ball supply path 11 is formed at a portion facing the portion 11c.

  A portion of the front surface portion 10c where the lower end portions of the guide side walls 11a and 11b are located is cut out to allow the ball supply path 11 to communicate with the rear firing position 12a. Further, the lower end portions of the guide side walls 11a and 11b are formed in a fan shape when viewed from the side, and gradually approach the front surface portion 10c as going downward. For this reason, the part located in the lower end part of guide side wall 11a, 11b in the covering wall 15 is comprised by the curved surface part 15a which approaches the front-surface part 10c gradually, so that it goes below. Further, the covering wall 15 extends in parallel to the front surface portion 10c from the guide side wall 11a to a central portion in the left-right direction of the front surface portion 10c and a portion facing the upper portion. A housing-side stop piece 15b that protrudes rearward is formed on a portion of the back surface of the covering wall 15 that is slightly to the right of the center of the front surface portion 10c and that faces the upper portion.

  The hitting device 20 includes a launcher 21, a rotary solenoid (not shown) that rotationally drives the launcher 21, a stop 22 that regulates the position of the launcher 21 on the hit side, and a position on the standby side of the launcher 21 And a magnet that attracts the launcher 21 toward the stop 23 side is provided inside the rotary solenoid. When the electromagnet provided in the rotary solenoid is not energized, the launcher 21 is energized to the standby side by the attractive force of the magnet and the electromagnet, and when the electromagnet is energized, the magnet and the electromagnet are repelled to the striking side. Moving. The rotary solenoid provided with this magnet constitutes the drive unit according to the present invention. The launcher 21 is composed of a lever composed of a plate-like metal main body 21a that is curved and extended so that the right edge is a convex curve, and a coating layer 21b that covers the right right edge on the convex side of the metal main body 21a. Has been. A shaft hole is formed in the base end portion (upper part of FIG. 2) of the launching rod 21, and the front end portion of the rotating shaft connected to the rotary solenoid is fixed to the shaft hole.

  The rotary solenoid is installed on the back surface of the substrate 10a. A rotating shaft connected to the rotary solenoid extends through the substrate 10a to the surface side of the substrate 10a, and a base end portion of the launcher 21 is connected to the front end portion of the substrate 10a through a shaft hole. When the rotary solenoid is energized, the rotating shaft rotates, and thereby the launcher 21 rotates in the clockwise direction in FIG. At this time, the tip 21c of the launcher 21 moves to the launch position 12a and hits the game ball B supplied to the launch position 12a. Thereafter, when the energization of the rotary solenoid is stopped, the launcher 21 returns to the standby position by the attractive force of the magnet.

  The sprocket 30 is formed in the shape shown in FIG. 3 by forming five identically shaped ball transport recesses 31 at regular intervals on the outer peripheral edge of a circular plate-like body. Then, five identical tooth portions 32 arranged at regular intervals are formed by protrusions positioned between the respective ball conveyance recesses 31. Each of the ball transport recesses 31 is formed by a recess whose edge is formed in an arc shape. Here, a circle is drawn with the length between the center of the sprocket 30 and the tip of the tooth portion 32 as a radius. The outer peripheral edge a (see FIGS. 12 to 15) and the edge of the ball transport recess 31 are referred to as a ball transport recess 31. Further, a small arc-shaped notch is formed at the front edge of each tooth portion 32 when the sprocket 30 shown in FIG. 3 rotates counterclockwise (one direction according to the present invention). The part 33 and the gentle convex curve part 34 located in the outer peripheral side of the notch part 33 are formed.

  In addition, each tooth portion 32 when the sprocket 30 shown in FIG. 3 rotates in the counterclockwise direction is shorter than the convex curve portion 34 and has a straight slope on the outer peripheral side of the edge on the rear side in the rotation direction. A line portion 35 is formed. A corner portion formed by the convex curve portion 34 and the inclined line portion 35 is formed at a corner portion having a sharp tip. A shaft hole 36 is formed at the center of the sprocket 30, and the rear end portion of the support shaft 37 is inserted into the shaft hole 36. The front end portion of the support shaft 37 is fixed to the covering wall 15, and the sprocket 30 is prevented from being detached from the support shaft 37 by a flange portion provided at the rear end portion of the support shaft 37. It is supported so as to be rotatable from both sides of the covering wall 15 at a distance.

  Further, the sprocket 30 is arranged in the opening portion 11 c so that a part of the left side is located in the ball supply path 11. The distance between the sprocket 30 and the protrusion 11d of the guide side wall 11b is such that when the sprocket 30 is rotated counterclockwise with the game ball B positioned in the ball transport recess 31, the game ball B The length is set such that the game ball B cannot pass when the sprocket 30 can pass and the sprocket 30 is stopped. The sprocket 30 also moves counterclockwise depending on the weight of the game ball B when the game ball B flowing down from the upstream in the ball supply path 11 enters the ball transport recess 31 located on the left side. Rotate.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the stopper 40 includes an annular rotating body 41, connecting pieces 42a, 42b, 42c extending from the outer periphery of the rotating body 41 in different directions, and a connecting piece 42a. The upper engagement portion 43 provided on the rear surface of the front end, the lower engagement portion 44 provided on the rear surface of the front end of the connection piece 42b, the locking piece 45 provided on the rear surface of the connection piece 42c, and the rotating body 41 The stopper side stop piece 46 is provided on the front surface. The rotating body 41 and the connecting pieces 42a, 42b, 42c constitute a body according to the present invention. The rotary body 41 has a two-stage shape including a base portion 41a formed in an annular shape and a central annular portion 41b provided at the front portion of the base portion 41a and having an outer diameter larger than the base portion 41a and a shorter axial length. It is comprised by the annular body.

  The diameter of the hole 41c formed at the center of the central annular portion 41b is slightly smaller than the outer diameter of the base portion 41a, and a cylindrical shape extending forward from the center of the base portion 41a in the hole 41c. The support portion 47 is disposed with a distance from the inner peripheral surface of the hole 41c. The rear end of the support portion 47 protrudes slightly rearward from the rear surface of the base portion 41a, and a support hole 47a penetrating in the front-rear direction is formed at the center of the support portion 47. A locking hole 48 penetrating the back surface of the base portion 41a is formed in a portion between the inner peripheral surface of the hole 41c and the outer peripheral surface of the support portion 47 in the base portion 41a. Moreover, the stopper side stop piece 46 protrudes from the upper right part (upper right in the state of FIG.5 (b)) in the front surface of the center annular part 41b toward the front.

  The connecting piece 42a is formed in an elongated plate shape extending straight from the upper left portion (upper left in the state of FIG. 5B) on the outer periphery of the central annular portion 41b toward the upper left, and its tip shape is the front. It is formed in a semicircular shape when viewed from above. And the upper engaging part 43 which protrudes back is formed in the front-end | tip rear surface of the connection piece 42a. In the upper engaging portion 43, the length along the longitudinal direction of the connecting piece 42a is longer than the length along the width direction of the connecting piece 42a, and the edge of the distal end portion 43a is connected to the connecting piece 42a. It is formed in the semicircle shape along the front-end | tip part. The edge of the upper engaging portion 43 on the rotating main body 41 side portion is configured by a convex curved portion 43b formed in an arc shape with the upper portion protruding outward, as viewed from the rear, and the lower portion is a convex curved portion 43b. It is comprised by the linear part 43c extended straightly toward the front end side lower part of the upper side engaging part 43 from the lower end part. The top portion 43d located at the boundary between the convex curved portion 43b and the straight portion 43c is located at the center in the width direction of the connecting piece 42a.

  The connecting piece 42b is formed in an elongated plate shape extending from the lower left portion on the outer periphery of the central annular portion 41b toward the diagonally lower left, and the base end portion thereof is formed to have substantially the same width as the width of the connecting piece 42a. The tip side portion is formed in a tapered shape as viewed from the front. The tapered shape of the tip side portion of the connecting piece 42b is formed by inclining the left edge with respect to the right edge so that the left edge of the connecting piece 42b approaches the right edge as it goes to the tip side. ing. And the lower engaging part 44 which protrudes back is formed in the rear surface of the connection piece 42b.

  The lower engaging portion 44 is formed over substantially the entire portion excluding the base end side portion of the connecting piece 42b. The distal end portion 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 is configured by a top portion where the right arc-shaped portion and the left straight portion intersect. In addition, the portion of the lower engagement portion 44 on the rotating body 41 side is configured by a semicircular protrusion 44b that protrudes toward the rotating body 41 when viewed from the rear. The length between the distal end portion 44 a of the lower engagement portion 44 and the central portion of the rotary body 41 is set to be the same as the length between the top portion 43 d of the upper engagement portion 43 and the central portion of the rotary body 41. ing.

  The connecting piece 42c is formed in a plate shape having a large width extending from the lower part of the outer periphery of the central annular part 41b toward the slightly right side below, and its tip shape is semicircular when viewed from the front. Is formed. The connecting piece 42c has a width that is approximately twice the width of the connecting piece 42a, and its length is slightly shorter than the length of the connecting piece 42b in the longitudinal direction. And the rectangular latching piece 45 which protrudes back is formed in the back surface of the connection piece 42c. The support shaft 47 is inserted into the support hole 47a of the stopper 40 thus configured, and the stopper 40 is prevented from being detached from the support shaft 49 by the flange portion provided at the rear end portion of the support shaft 49. Thus, it is supported rotatably from both the front surface portion 10c and the covering wall 15 with a space therebetween.

  The stopper 40 is installed in the vicinity of the sprocket 30 with the central annular portion 41b and the connecting pieces 42a, 42b, and 42c positioned in front of the sprocket 30. The positions of the upper engagement portion 43 and the lower engagement portion 44 in the front-rear direction are the same as those of the sprocket 30, and the upper engagement portion 43 and the lower engagement portion 44 are connected to the sprocket 30. It is installed so that it may be located in the outer peripheral side. The stopper 40 can reciprocate with the upper engagement portion 43 and the lower engagement portion 44 sandwiching the sprocket 30, and one of the upper engagement portion 43 and the lower engagement portion 44 can be rotated. The part is installed so as to be located within the outer peripheral edge a of the movable range of the sprocket 30.

  For this reason, when one of the upper engaging portion 43 and the lower engaging portion 44 is positioned outside the outer peripheral edge a of the movable range of the sprocket 30, the sprocket 30 engages the tooth portion 32 with the upper engaging portion. It can be rotated by passing through the positions of the joint portion 43 and the lower engaging portion 44. Further, when the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 is engaged with the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30 (see FIG. 2), the distal end portion 43a of the upper engagement portion 43 is in the ball transport recess 31, that is, The sprocket 30 is located inside the outer peripheral edge a of the movable range. On the other hand, when the tip 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 is engaged with the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30 (see FIG. 10), the central portion of the protrusion 44b of the lower engagement portion 44 is a ball. Located in the conveyance recess 31.

  Further, the curvature of the convex curve portion 34 of the tooth portion 32 is set to be the same as the curvature of the rotation track b (see FIG. 16) of the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 when the stopper 40 rotates. When the top portion 43 d of 43 is engaged with the convex curve portion 34 of the tooth portion 32, the convex curve portion 34 is positioned on the rotation path b. Further, the stopper 40 is urged clockwise by a coil spring 51 shown in FIG. The coil spring 51 includes a spiral spring portion 51a and locking portions 51b and 51c that are positioned at both ends of the spring portion 51a and extend straight in the axial direction, and one of the locking portions 51b and 51c is engaged. It is inserted into the blind hole 48. The other of the locking portions 51 b and 51 c is fixed to the back surface of the covering wall 15 in a state where the spring portion 51 a is twisted so as to urge the stopper 40 in the clockwise direction.

  The stopper 40 rotates counterclockwise in conjunction with the counterclockwise rotation of the firing rod 21 via the launching rod mounting lever 52 shown in FIGS. The firing rod mounting lever 52, the coil spring 51, and the locking piece 45 of the stopper 40 constitute an interlocking mechanism 50. The launcher mounting lever 52 is attached to the launcher 21 and includes a fixing portion 53 and a pressing piece 54. The fixing portion 53 is a portion that is attached to the metal main body 21 a of the launcher 21, and includes a flat portion 55, a slip prevention piece 56, and a hook portion 57. The fixing portion 53 is configured so that the flat portion 55 is positioned on the front surface of the left portion on the base end side of the metal main body 21a and the shift prevention piece 56 is applied to the lower left edge portion of the base end side portion of the metal main body 21a The position of the concave portion 57a formed between 57 and the flat portion 55 is aligned with the shaft hole of the metal main body 21a.

  And the fixing | fixed part 53 is being fixed to the metal main body 21a by screwing a screw (not shown) in the front end of the rotating shaft which penetrates a shaft hole. By fixing the fixing portion 53 to the metal main body 21 a, the pressing piece 54 projects forward from the metal main body 21 a and can be engaged with the locking piece 45 of the stopper 40. The return force due to the elasticity of the coil spring 51 that urges the stopper 40 in the clockwise direction is set to be smaller than the attractive force of the magnet that attempts to return the launcher 21 to the standby position. For this reason, when the launcher 21 is in the standby position (the state shown in FIG. 2), the locking piece 45 of the stopper 40 is urged counterclockwise by the pressing piece 54. In this case, the upper engaging portion 43 engages with the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30.

  When the launcher 21 rotates in the clockwise direction in order to hit the game ball B, the stopper 40 rotates in the clockwise direction together with the launcher 21 by the return force of the coil spring 51. When the stopper 40 rotates by a predetermined angle, the stopper-side stop piece 46 hits the housing-side stop piece 15b fixed to the covering wall 15 and the rotation of the stopper 40 stops. At this time, the lower engaging portion 44 engages with the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30. That is, the stopper 40 is between the position when the locking piece 45 is urged counterclockwise by the pressing piece 54 and the position when the stopper-side stop piece 46 hits the housing-side stop piece 15b. By this rotation, the upper engaging portion 43 and the lower engaging portion 44 are alternately engaged with the tooth portions 32 of the sprocket 30.

  Then, when the stopper 40 is rotated according to the attractive force of the magnet or the return force of the coil spring 51 in a state where the game ball B is placed in the ball transport recess 31 of the sprocket 30, the upper engaging portion 43 is moved to the sprocket 30. The sprocket 30 is counterclockwise by one of the ball conveying recesses 31 until the upper engaging portion 43 is engaged with the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30 until the upper engaging portion 43 is engaged with the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30. Rotate around. At that time, the game ball B passes through the sprocket 30 and flows down in the ball supply path 11 toward the launch position 12a.

  When using a pachinko machine equipped with a launching ball supply device A configured in this way, first, a predetermined amount of game balls B are placed in a ball tray. As a result, the ball supply path 11 flows down in order from the game ball B that has entered the ball tray first. Then, the first game ball B enters the ball supply path 11 facing the protrusion 11 d protruding into the ball supply path 11 in the sprocket 30. In this case, as shown in FIG. 2, the upper engaging portion 43 of the stopper 40 is engaged with the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30.

  Next, the rotary solenoid is operated by rotating the operation unit (not shown). As a result, the launcher 21 rotates in the clockwise direction from the state of FIG. 2 to the state of FIG. 10 through the state of FIG. That is, FIG. 9 shows a state immediately before the top portion 43 d of the upper engaging portion 43 is separated from the distal end portion of the tooth portion 32, and FIG. 10 shows the distal end portion 44 a of the lower engaging portion 44 of the tooth portion 32. The state which engaged with the notch 33 is shown. During this time, the sprocket 30 rotates counterclockwise by one of the ball transport recesses 31 by the weight of the game ball B, and the game balls B flow down from the ball transport recess 31 through the ball supply path 11. Head to launch position 12a.

  In the state shown in FIG. 10, the rotation of the stopper 40 in the clockwise direction stops, but the launcher 21 further rotates in the clockwise direction, and the tip 21c of the launcher 21 is at the launch position 12a. To reach. Then, the operation of the rotary solenoid is stopped, and the launcher 21 stops when the proximal end portion hits the stop portion 22, and then starts to rotate counterclockwise by the attractive force of the magnet. In this case, since the first game ball B has not yet reached the launch position 12a, the launch rod 21 is in an idle state. Meanwhile, the first game ball B reaches the launch position 12a, and the next game ball B enters the ball transport recess 31 as shown in FIGS.

  FIG. 11 shows a state immediately before the distal end portion 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 is separated from the distal end portion of the tooth portion 32. At this time, the launching rod 21 is about to return to the standby position. Thereafter, the stopper 40 is pressed by the firing rod 21 and rotates counterclockwise against the restoring force of the coil spring 51. And when the launcher 21 hits the stop part 23 and stops, the stopper 40 also stops and it will be in the state of FIG. From the state of FIG. 2, when the launcher 21 rotates again in the clockwise direction and the tip 21c of the launcher 21 reaches the launch position 12a, the first game ball B at the launch position 12a is moved by the tip 21c. Be blown.

  The hit game ball B passes through the ball launch path and enters the game board provided on the surface of the pachinko machine body. In the meantime, the next game ball B reaches the launch position 12 a, and the next game ball B enters the ball transport recess 31. By repeating such an operation, the game balls B are sent one by one from the supply tray to the ball supply path 11, pass through the sprocket 30 disposed in the ball supply path 11, and supplied to the launch position 12 a. Then, the game ball B that has reached the launch position 12 a is hit by the launcher 21.

  FIGS. 12 to 15 show the engaged state between the sprocket 30 and the stopper 40 when the game ball B passes through the sprocket 30 disposed in the ball supply path 11. That is, FIG. 12 shows an initial state when the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 engages with the convex curve portion 34 of the tooth portion 32 and prohibits the sprocket 30 from rotating counterclockwise. At this time, the tip end portion 43 a of the upper engagement portion 43 is positioned in the ball transport recess 31. For this reason, even if the sprocket 30 tries to rotate in the clockwise direction, the tip end portion 43a of the upper engaging portion 43 engages with the tooth portion 32 and restricts the rotation of the sprocket 30 in the clockwise direction. In this case, the maximum circumferential length in which the sprocket 30 can rotate in the clockwise direction is about ½ of the circumferential length of the ball transport recess 31 and is shorter than the diameter of the game ball B.

  Therefore, a plurality of game balls B pass through the ball supply path 11, or a game other than the game balls B in the ball transport recess 31 between the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30 and the protrusion 11 d of the ball supply path 11. It is possible to prevent the sprocket 30 from becoming unrotatable due to the ball B being sandwiched. FIG. 13 shows a state immediately before the engagement between the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 and the tooth portion 32 is released. At this time, the tip portion 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 is a sprocket. 30 is located in the vicinity of the movable region, and a part of the lower engaging portion 44 is located in the movable region of the sprocket 30. Therefore, immediately after the engagement between the upper engagement portion 43 and the tooth portion 32 is released and the upper engagement portion 43 comes out of the movable region of the sprocket 30, the tip end portion 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 is immediately obtained. Also enters a movable region engageable with the tooth portion 32. This reliably prevents the sprocket 30 from rotating by one or more of the ball conveyance recesses 31.

  FIG. 14 shows a state where the tip 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 engages with the notch 33 of the tooth portion 32 to stop the rotation of the sprocket 30 in the counterclockwise direction. At this time, the protrusion 44 b of the lower engagement portion 44 is positioned in the ball transport recess 31. For this reason, even if the sprocket 30 tries to rotate in the clockwise direction, the protrusion 44b of the lower engaging portion 44 engages with the tooth portion 32 and restricts the rotation of the sprocket 30 in the clockwise direction. In this case, the maximum circumferential length in which the sprocket 30 can rotate in the clockwise direction is shorter than ½ of the circumferential length of the ball transport recess 31 and shorter than the diameter of the game ball B. For this reason, also in this case, a plurality of game balls B pass through the ball supply path 11, or between the tooth portion 32 of the sprocket 30 and the protrusion 11 d of the ball supply path 11, It is possible to prevent the game balls B other than B from being sandwiched and the sprocket 30 from becoming non-rotatable.

  FIG. 15 shows a state immediately before the engagement between the tip end portion 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 and the tooth portion 32 is released. At this time, the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 is a sprocket. In addition to being located in the vicinity of the movable region 30, a part of the upper engaging portion 43 is located in the movable region of the sprocket 30. Therefore, immediately after the engagement between the lower engagement portion 44 and the tooth portion 32 is released and the lower engagement portion 44 comes out of the movable region of the sprocket 30, the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 is immediately obtained. Also enters a movable region engageable with the tooth portion 32. This reliably prevents the sprocket 30 from rotating by one or more of the ball conveyance recesses 31.

  FIG. 16 shows an engagement state between the convex curve portion 34 of the sprocket 30 and the top portion 43 d of the upper engagement portion 43. In the present embodiment, when the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 is engaged with the tooth portion 32, the convex curve portion 34 is located on the rotation track b between the top portion 43d and the tip portion 44a. The operation when the engaging portion 43 and the tooth portion 32 are engaged or when the engagement is released becomes smooth. For example, as shown by the broken line c, when the convex curve portion 34 is positioned outside the rotation track b, the engagement between the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 and the tooth portion 32 is released. In doing so, the upper engaging portion 43 pushes the sprocket 30 back in the clockwise direction, and the top portion 43 d is unlikely to be separated from the tooth portion 32.

  When the convex curve portion 34 is positioned on the inner side of the rotation track b as indicated by the alternate long and short dash line d, the top 43 d of the upper engagement portion 43 reaches the back side of the convex curve portion 34. It becomes difficult to prevent the launcher 21 from returning to the standby position, or the engagement between the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 and the tooth portion 32 is easily released, and the engagement is released by vibration. Sometimes. Therefore, when the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 is engaged with the tooth portion 32, the convex curve portion 34 is positioned on the rotation path b between the top portion 43d and the tip portion 44a, thereby the sprocket 30. The engagement state between the tooth portion 32 and the upper engagement portion 43 of the stopper 40 can be improved.

  As described above, in the launch ball supply device A according to the present embodiment, when the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 prohibits the rotation of the sprocket 30 in one direction, the sprocket 30 rotates in the other direction. Can also be restricted. Moreover, when the front-end | tip part 44a of the lower side engaging part 44 prohibits the rotation to the one direction of the sprocket 30, it can restrict | limit that the sprocket 30 rotates to another direction. Therefore, a plurality of game balls B pass through the ball supply path 11, or the game balls B are sandwiched between the tooth portions 32 of the sprocket 30 and the protrusions 11 d of the ball supply path 11, so that the sprocket 30 cannot rotate. It can be prevented from becoming a state.

  Further, in this embodiment, since at least one part of the upper engaging portion 43 and the lower engaging portion 44 is located in the ball transport recessed portion 31, the upper engaging portion 43, the tooth portion 32, and the like. Therefore, when the engagement of the lower engagement portion 44 and the engagement of the tooth portion 32 is switched, it is possible to reliably prevent the sprocket 30 from rotating by one or more of the ball conveyance recesses 31. In addition, since the length between the rotation center of the stopper 40 and the top portion 43d of the upper engagement portion 43 and the length between the rotation center of the stopper 40 and the tip end portion 44a of the lower engagement portion 44 are the same, Transition from a state in which the upper engaging portion 43 and the tooth portion 32 are engaged to a state in which the lower engaging portion 44 is engaged with the tooth portion 32, or a state in which the lower engaging portion 44 and the tooth portion 32 are engaged. The transition from the upper engagement portion 43 to the state in which the upper engagement portion 43 is engaged with the tooth portion 32 becomes smooth.

  Further, the launching ball supply device according to the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be changed as appropriate. For example, in the embodiment described above, the coil spring 51 that urges the stopper 40 in the clockwise direction is installed between the locking hole 48 of the stopper 40 and the back surface of the covering wall 15. The stopper 40 may be urged in the clockwise direction by spanning between the upper portion of the rotating body 41 and the upper right portion of the peripheral wall portion 10b. In addition, a rotary solenoid provided with a magnet is used as the drive unit, but instead of this magnet, a spring that urges the launcher 21 toward the stop 23 is used, or a weight is provided on the launcher 21. The launcher 21 may be urged toward the stop unit 23 by its weight.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, a rotary solenoid is used as the drive unit, but a plunger-type solenoid can be used instead. In this case, a rod shaped rod that advances and retreats in the axial direction is used as the launching rod. Further, as the interlocking means, instead of the interlocking mechanism 50 described above, a interlocking device that separately provides a solenoid that reciprocally rotates the stopper and electrically interlocks the solenoid and the drive unit can be used. According to this, it is possible to easily change the timing of the reciprocating rotation of the stopper and the reciprocating rotation of the stopper. Further, the launching ball supply device according to the present invention can be implemented by appropriately changing the configuration of the other parts of the launching ball supply device within the technical scope of the present invention.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Ball supply path, 12 ... Launch rail, 12a ... Launch position, 21 ... Launch rod, 30 ... Sprocket, 31 ... Sphere conveyance recessed part, 32 ... Tooth part, 34 ... Convex curve part, 40 ... Stopper, 41 ... Rotating body 42a, 42b ... connecting piece, 43 ... upper engaging part, 43a ... tip part, 43d ... top part, 44 ... lower engaging part, 44a ... tip part, 44b ... projecting part, 45 ... locking piece, 50 ... Interlocking mechanism, 52 ... Launching rod mounting lever, A ... Launching ball supply device, B ... Game ball, a ... Outer peripheral edge, b ... Rotating orbit.

Claims (6)

A ball supply path for supplying a game ball to a launch position provided at the lower end of the launch rail;
A launcher provided to be able to advance and retreat with respect to the launch position;
A drive unit for causing the launcher to strike the game ball supplied to the launch position by moving the launcher forward and backward with respect to the launch position;
A plurality of ball transport recesses recessed inward from the outer peripheral edge of the movable region are formed on the outer peripheral portion, and are constituted by a rotating body arranged with the outer peripheral portion facing the ball supply path. A sprocket that allows a game ball to pass from the upstream side of the ball supply path to the launch position side by rotating in one direction depending on the weight;
A main body installed so as to be capable of reciprocating rotation; and an upper engaging portion and a lower engaging portion that protrude from the upper and lower portions of the main body toward the sprocket side, respectively, The lower engagement portion is alternately advanced and retracted with respect to the sprocket to be engaged with the edge of the ball conveyance recess, and the edge of the ball conveyance recess between the upper engagement portion and the lower engagement portion. A stopper that allows the sprocket to rotate when the engagement is switched;
In a launching ball supply device comprising interlocking means for reciprocatingly rotating the stopper in conjunction with the advancement and retraction of the launcher,
The upper engaging portion and the lower engaging portion are constituted by protrusions extending from the rotation center side of the stopper toward the outer peripheral side, and the end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion is a ball conveyance recess. When the sprocket is prohibited from rotating in one direction by being engaged with the edge of the upper engagement portion, the tip end portion of the upper engagement portion is located in the same spherical conveyance recess as the end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion. And when the tip of the lower engagement portion engages with the edge of the ball conveyance recess and prohibits rotation in the one direction of the sprocket, The launching ball supply device is characterized in that the end of the ball is located in the same ball transport recess as the tip of the lower engaging portion.   2. The launching ball supply device according to claim 1, wherein a part of at least one of the upper engagement portion and the lower engagement portion is positioned in the ball conveyance recess.   The outer peripheral side portion of the edge of the ball transport recess is formed by a convex curve portion having the same curvature as the curvature of the rotation track of the end of the upper engagement portion on the rotation center side when the stopper rotates, and 3. The convex curve portion according to claim 1 or 2, wherein an end of the upper engaging portion on the rotation center side engages with an outer peripheral side portion of an edge portion of the ball conveyance recess. The launching ball supply device as described.   The length between the rotation center of the stopper and the end portion on the rotation center side of the upper engagement portion is the same as the length between the rotation center of the stopper and the tip portion of the lower engagement portion. The launching ball supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The interlocking means is
Urging means for rotating the stopper so that the lower engagement portion approaches the sprocket;
The upper engaging portion is provided between the launcher and the stopper, and the stopper is caused to follow the retreat from the launch position of the launcher against the biasing force of the biasing means, and the upper engagement portion is the sprocket. The launching ball supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the launching ball supply device is configured by a pressing unit that is rotated so as to be close to.   The main body of the stopper includes a pair of elongated connecting pieces extending from the rotation center side to the outer peripheral side of the stopper, the upper engaging portion is provided on one connecting piece, and the lower connecting piece is provided on the other connecting piece. The launching ball supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein a side engagement portion is provided.

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