JP5688935B2 - Game machine - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a gaming machine having a computer circuit, and more particularly to a gaming machine that can execute powerful lamp effects without malfunction.

  A ball and ball game machine such as a pachinko machine has a symbol start port provided on the game board, a symbol display unit for displaying a series of symbol variation modes such as stopping a plurality of display symbols after varying a predetermined time, and an opening / closing plate It is configured with a grand prize opening that opens and closes. When the detection switch provided at the symbol start port detects the passing of the game ball, the game ball is in a winning state and the symbol display unit changes the display symbol for a predetermined time. After that, when the symbol stops in a predetermined manner such as 7-7-7, a big hit state is established, and the big winning opening is repeatedly opened to generate a profit state advantageous to the player.

  The symbol display unit is usually composed of a liquid crystal display, and executes various symbol effect operations including a reach effect, a notice effect, and a jackpot effect. Reach production is a design production that continues to be a big hit state in one step and excites the player. It is a design effect that warns of a big hit. The jackpot effect is an effect executed in a big hit state, and a more flashy symbol effect is executed in response to the joy of the player.

  At the time of execution of such a symbol effect, a lamp effect is also executed in synchronism with this, and at the time of a reach effect or a big hit effect, a lamp is flashed in response to the symbol effect on the liquid crystal display. In addition, when a big hit state is entered, a special lamp is lit vividly, or a movable effect corresponding to this is also executed.

  As mentioned above, lamp production is indispensable to achieve powerful performance operations, but if a lamp that should emit light only in special cases is ignited due to noise or other causes, it will make the player white. Not only letting it happen, it can also cause troubles with the game hall. Here, countermeasures for suppressing the generation of noise can be considered, but it is virtually impossible to eliminate the influence of noise in a state where a large number of gaming machines generating electromagnetic noise are arranged in close proximity.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and provides a gaming machine having a configuration capable of realizing a powerful lamp effect and preventing malfunction even in a noise environment so that the special lamp effect is not spoiled. The issue is to provide.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the invention according to claim 1 is a gaming machine that generates a gaming state advantageous to a player based on a winning lottery resulting from a predetermined winning state, wherein A light emission control means having a plurality of driver circuits for driving a plurality of light emitters arranged is provided, and each driver circuit obtains lighting data that defines the lighting state of each light emitter, and permits / prohibits driving operation. Each light emitter is configured to be driven based on lighting data acquired by the driver circuit that has received the permission level operation control signal in response to the prescribed operation control signal. It is divided into a specific driver circuit that drives a specific light emitter to stimulate the player's expectation and a general driver circuit that drives other light emitters. While receiving the operation control signal, the specific driver circuit is configured to receive 1-bit lighting data output from the specific terminal of the general driver circuit, and the light emission control means at the specific timing, as the lamp effect, While the lighting data is controlled to the permitted level, the lighting data of the specific terminal is controlled to the prohibited level at other timings .

  The specific light emitters are preferably a plurality of light emitters that are turned on at a special timing (during production) that is highly valuable to the player. As a lighting mode, it is preferable that a plurality of light emitters are lit or blinked all at once, or the light emitters of each group constituting the plurality of light emitters are turned on cyclically.

  Here, the special effect having a high value for the player corresponds to, for example, a jackpot confirmation notice in which a subsequent big hit state is guaranteed among the notice effects performed during the movement of the symbols. Note that this is a case where the jackpot confirmation notice is executed during the symbol variation operation, and it is guaranteed that the jackpot state is confirmed through any of the symbol effects waiting in the hold state. If such a big hit confirmation notice is mistakenly executed, the notice effect at the corner will be ruined and not only will make the player whiten but also cause trouble with the game hall. Thus, such a malfunction can be prevented in advance.

  The special effects having high value for the player are not limited to those described above. For example, in a gaming machine in which a plurality of jackpot rounds are prepared, it is confirmed that the jackpot rounds are the maximum value. Lamp effects to be performed, and lamp effects to make a preliminary announcement that the transition to the probability variation state after all jackpot rounds are completed are also included. In addition, it is not always necessary to make a notice in a state where the big hit state has been confirmed, and it may be a case where it is guaranteed that the relevant symbol variation will subsequently shift to a reach effect. In addition to the above, the present invention is effective when executing a lamp effect that gives the player a great sense of expectation.

  The driver circuit preferably includes N shift registers that perform a shift operation in synchronization with a shift clock, an N-bit latch register that stores output data of the N shift registers in synchronization with a latch pulse, and a permission level. And an N-bit gate circuit that outputs the output data of the latch register to the output terminal based on the operation control signal.

The light emission control means outputs serial data to the driver circuit every predetermined time regardless of whether or not to change the lighting state of each light emitter at the timing when the lighting state of the light emitter should be controlled. This is effective for noise suppression. Here, the light emission control means preferably outputs all or part of a shift clock, a latch pulse, and an operation control signal.

The present invention is configured to include a main control unit that executes a lottery determination to comprehensively control gaming operations, and a light emission control unit that drives and controls the light emitter based on a control command output by the main control unit. It is typical. In addition, in the case of an Example, although a light-emitting body is an LED lamp, it is not specifically limited also about this. In any case, the present invention is suitably applied to a ball game machine or a revolving game machine.

  According to the above-described present invention, it is possible to realize a gaming machine that can prevent erroneous lighting of a lamp even in an environment where noise is generated.

It is a perspective view of the pachinko machine shown in an example. It is drawing explaining a part of pachinko machine of FIG. It is the front view which illustrated in detail the game board of the pachinko machine of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the whole structure of the pachinko machine of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the circuit structure of an effect control part, an effect interface part, and a liquid-crystal control part. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a lamp connection board | substrate and a light emission board | substrate. The internal structure of a driver and the arrangement position of a driver are illustrated. It is a flowchart explaining the control procedure of a driver.

  Examples of the present invention will be described in detail below. FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a pachinko machine GM according to an embodiment. This pachinko machine GM includes a rectangular frame-shaped wooden outer frame 1 that is detachably mounted on an island structure, and a front frame 3 that is pivotably mounted via a hinge 2 fixed to the outer frame 1. It is configured. A game board 5 is detachably attached to the front frame 3 from the front side, not from the back side, and a glass door 6 and a front plate 7 are pivotally attached to the front side so as to be openable and closable.

  On the left and right sides of the glass door 6, there are vertically arranged electrical display portions 4 and 4 in which LEDs, electrical lamps, and driver elements are built. The front plate 7 is provided with an upper plate 8 for storing game balls for launch, and a lower plate 9 for storing game balls overflowing or extracted from the upper plate 8 and a launch handle 10 at the lower part of the front frame 3. And are provided. The launch handle 10 is interlocked with the launch motor, and a game ball is launched by a striking rod that operates according to the rotation angle of the launch handle 10.

  A left push button 11 a and an intermediate push button 11 b are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the upper plate 8. The left push button 11a and the middle push button 11b do not function normally, but can be operated when a special game state in which the player can participate in the game progress occurs. The intermediate push button 11b has a substantially spherical operation surface, and inside this operation surface is a movable object MV that rotates vividly when a special notice operation or a big hit state is confirmed. Built in.

  FIG. 2 is a drawing schematically showing the inside of the intermediate push button 11b. The movable body MV is fixed to the light collecting plate 52 through the light emitting substrate 51, the light emitting substrate 51 on which the LED lamp is mounted, the translucent light collecting plate 52 that covers the upper portion of the light emitting substrate 51 and exhibits the lens effect. The rotating shaft 53, the reflecting tower 54 that rotates integrally with the light collector 52 in accordance with the rotation of the rotating shaft 53, the driven gear 55 that rotates integrally with the rotating shaft 53, and the drive gear that meshes with the driven gear 55. 56 and a motor 57 that rotationally drives the drive gear 56. Here, the rotating shaft 53 is disposed with an inclination angle θ with respect to the horizontal plane, and the motor 57 is configured to be rotatable in both directions (see FIG. 2D).

  The reflection tower 54 has a shape that bisects an egg shell in the major axis direction, and its inner surface is formed in a mirror shape to appropriately reflect light emitted from the LED lamp. In this embodiment, the LED lamp is turned on only when the reflecting tower 54 is rotated, and the LED lamp is kept off at other timings.

  In this embodiment, twelve LED lamps are mounted on the light-emitting substrate 51. All the LED lamps are lit at the same time only in special cases such as during a special notice operation or when a big hit is confirmed. The emitted light is reflected by the reflecting tower 54 and strongly appealed to the player. In addition, since the movable body MV (reflecting tower 63) is rotating at the timing when the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 emits light, the reflection state with respect to the player changes corresponding to the rotation of the reflecting tower 63.

  As described above, in this embodiment, since the lighting of the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 has a special meaning, it is configured not to malfunction in any case. That is, the player is whitened if the LED lamp of the light emitting board 51 is erroneously lit due to the influence of noise or the like, and thus a configuration in which such erroneous lighting does not occur (specifically described later) is adopted.

  Now, returning to FIG. 1, the description will be continued. On the right side of the upper plate 8, an operation panel 12 for ball lending operation for a card-type ball lending machine is provided, and the frequency at which the remaining amount of the card is displayed as a three-digit number. A display unit, a ball lending switch for instructing lending of game balls for a predetermined amount, and a return switch for instructing to return the card at the end of the game are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the game board 5 is provided with a guide rail 13 formed of a metal outer rail and an inner rail in an annular shape, and a display device, which is a display device, is provided at the approximate center of the game area 5 a inside thereof. A device DISP is arranged. In addition, at a suitable place in the game area 5a, a symbol starting port 15, a big winning port 16, a plurality of normal winning ports 17 (four on the right and left sides of the big winning port 16), and a gate 18 serving as two passing ports are arranged. Has been. Each of these winning openings 15 to 18 has a detection switch inside, and can detect the passage of a game ball.

  The liquid crystal display DISP is a device that variably displays a specific symbol related to a big hit state and displays a background image and various characters in an animated manner. This liquid crystal display DISP has special symbol display portions Da to Dc in the center portion and a normal symbol display portion 19 in the upper right portion. And, in the special symbol display parts Da to Dc, a reach effect is executed that expects a big hit state to be invited, or in the special symbol display parts Da to Dc and the surroundings, a notice effect that informs the result of the success / failure is executed. Is done.

  The normal symbol display unit 19 displays a normal symbol. When a game ball that has passed through the gate 18 is detected, the normal symbol fluctuates for a predetermined time, and the lottery extracted at the time when the game ball passes through the gate 18 is extracted. The stop symbol determined by the random number for use is displayed and stopped.

  For example, the symbol start opening 15 is configured to be opened and closed by an electric tulip having a pair of left and right opening and closing claws 15a. 15a is released only for a predetermined time or until a predetermined number of game balls are detected.

  When a game ball wins the symbol start port 15, the display symbols of the special symbol display portions Da to Dc change for a predetermined time and are determined based on the lottery result corresponding to the winning timing of the game ball to the symbol start port 15. Stop at the stop symbol. In addition, in special symbol display parts Da-Dc and its circumference, a notice effect may be performed between a series of symbol effects.

  The big winning opening 16 is controlled to open and close by, for example, an opening / closing plate 16a that can be opened forward, but when the stop symbol after the symbol change of the special symbol display portions Da to Dc is a big hit symbol such as “777”, the “big hit game” Is started, and the opening / closing plate 16a is opened.

  After the opening / closing plate 16a of the big prize opening 16 is opened, the opening / closing plate 16a is closed when a predetermined time elapses or when a predetermined number (for example, 10) of game balls wins. In such an operation, the special game is continued up to 15 times, for example, and is controlled in a state advantageous to the player. In addition, when the stop symbol after the change of the special symbol display parts Da to Dc is a specific symbol among the special symbols, there is a privilege that the game after the end of the special game becomes a high probability state (probability variation state). Is granted.

  FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an overall circuit configuration of the pachinko machine GM. A one-dot broken line arrow in the figure mainly indicates a DC voltage line.

  As shown in the figure, this pachinko machine GM includes a power supply board 20 that receives AC 24V and outputs various DC voltages, a system reset signal SYS, etc., a main control board 21 that plays a central role in game control operations, and a main control board. An effect control board 22 that executes a lamp effect and a sound effect based on the control command CMD received from the control board 21; a liquid crystal control board 23 that drives the liquid crystal display DISP based on the control command CMD ′ received from the effect control board 22; Based on a control command CMD "received from the main control board 21, a payout control board 24 for controlling the payout motor M to pay out the game ball, and a launch control board 25 for firing the game ball in response to the player's operation, , It is structured around.

  However, in this embodiment, the control command CMD output from the main control board 21 is transmitted to the effect control board 22 via the command relay board 26 and the effect interface board 27. Further, the control command CMD ′ output from the effect control board 22 is transmitted to the liquid crystal control board 23 via the effect interface board 27, and the control command CMD ″ output from the main control board 21 is set to the main board relay board 28. Is transmitted to the payout control board 24. The effect interface board 27 and the effect control board 22 are directly connected by a connector without using a cable.

  The main control board 21, the effect control board 22, the liquid crystal control board 23, and the payout control board 24 are each equipped with a computer circuit including a one-chip microcomputer. Accordingly, the circuits mounted on the control boards 21 to 24 and the operations realized by the circuits are collectively referred to as a function. In this specification, the main control unit 21, the effect control unit 22, and the liquid crystal control unit 23 are used. , And the payout control unit 24. All or part of the effect control unit 22, the liquid crystal control unit 23, and the payout control unit 24 is a sub-control unit.

  By the way, this pachinko machine GM is roughly divided into a frame side member GM1 surrounded by a broken line in FIG. 5 and a board side member GM2 fixed to the back of the game board 5. The frame side member GM1 includes a front frame 3 on which a glass door 6 and a front plate 7 are pivotally attached, and a wooden outer frame 1 on the outside thereof. Is fixedly installed. On the other hand, the board side member GM2 is replaced in response to the model change, and a new board side member GM2 is attached to the frame side member GM1 instead of the original board side member. All except the frame side member GM1 is the panel side member GM2.

  4, the frame-side member GM1 includes a power supply board 20, a payout control board 24, a launch control board 25, a frame relay board 32, an external terminal board OT, and a ball lending machine UT. Interface board IF, and these circuit boards are respectively fixed at appropriate positions of the front frame 3. On the other hand, on the back of the game board 5, a main control board 21, an effect control board 22, and a liquid crystal control board 23 are fixed together with a liquid crystal display DISP and other circuit boards. And the frame side member GM1 and the board | substrate side member GM2 are electrically connected by the connection connectors CN1-CN4 concentratedly arranged in one place.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the power supply board 20 is connected to the main board relay board 28 through the connection connector CN2, and is connected to the power supply relay board 30 through the connection connector CN3. The main board relay board 28 outputs the system reset signal SYS, the RAM clear signal, the voltage drop signal, the backup power supply, DC12V, and DC32V received from the power board 20 to the main controller 21 as they are. Similarly, the power supply relay board 30 also outputs the system reset signal SYS received from the power supply board 20 and the AC and DC power supply voltages to the effect interface board 27 as they are. The production interface board 27 outputs the received system reset signal SYS to the production control unit 22 and the liquid crystal control unit 23 as they are.

  On the other hand, the payout control board 24 is directly connected to the power supply board 20 without going through the relay board, and receives the same system reset signal SYS, RAM clear signal, voltage drop signal, backup power supply as the main control unit 21 receives. Directly with other power supply voltages.

  Here, the system reset signal SYS output from the power supply board 20 is a signal indicating that the AC power supply 24V is supplied to the power supply board 20, and the one-chip microcomputer or other IC element of each of the control units 21 to 24 by this signal. The power is reset. The RAM clear signal received from the power supply board 20 by the main control unit 21 and the payout control unit 24 is a signal that determines whether or not to initialize all areas of the built-in RAM of the one-chip microcomputer of each control unit 21 and 24. Thus, it has a value corresponding to the ON / OFF state of the initialization switch operated by the staff.

  The voltage drop signal received from the power supply board 20 by the main control unit 21 and the payout control unit 24 is a signal indicating that the AC power supply 24V has started to drop. By receiving this voltage drop signal, each control unit 21, In 24, a necessary termination process is started prior to a power failure or business termination. The backup power source is a DC 5V DC power source that retains data in the built-in RAM of the one-chip microcomputer of the main control unit 21 and the payout control unit 24 even after the AC power source 24V is shut off due to business termination or power failure. Therefore, the main control unit 21 and the payout control unit 24 can resume the game operation before power-off after power-on (power backup function). This pachinko machine is designed to retain the stored contents of the RAM of each one-chip microcomputer for at least several days.

  On the other hand, the effect control unit 22 and the liquid crystal control unit 23 are not provided with the power supply backup function described above. However, the system reset signal SYS is commonly supplied to the effect control unit 22 and the liquid crystal control unit 23, and the power reset operation is realized at a timing substantially synchronized with the other control units 21 and 24.

  4 and 5, the effect interface board 27 includes a command relay board 26, a power supply relay board 30, a frame relay board 31, an effect control board 22, a lamp connection board 34, and a liquid crystal control board 23. Are connected to the inverter board 33.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the effect control unit 22 includes a one-chip microcomputer 40 that executes processing such as sound effects, lamp effects, and data transfer, an EPROM 41 that stores a control program for the one-chip microcomputer 40, and the one-chip microcomputer. 40, an audio reproduction LSI 42 that generates an audio signal based on an instruction from 40, an audio memory (phrase ROM) 43 that stores compressed audio data that is the original data of the generated audio signal, and a watchdog timer WDT. Configured.

  The one-chip microcomputer 40 includes a serial communication circuit SIO and a parallel port PIO. In this embodiment, serial data DATA and shift clock CLOCK are output from serial communication circuit SIO, and latch signal LATCH and operation control signal ENABLE are output from parallel port PIO. Further, a control command CMD ′ and a strobe signal STB ′ are also output from the parallel port PIO.

  The watchdog timer WDT is reset by a clear pulse periodically supplied from the one-chip microcomputer 40. When the clear pulse is interrupted due to a program runaway or the like, a reset signal RESET is output. As a result, the one-chip microcomputer 40 is forcibly reset to the initial state, and the program runaway state is solved.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the control command CMD and the strobe signal (interrupt signal) STB output from the main control board 21 are sent to the one-chip microcomputer 40 of the effect control board 22 via the buffer 48 of the effect interface board 27. Have been supplied. Then, the effect control unit 22 acquires the control command CMD by the reception interrupt process activated by the strobe signal STB. In addition to (a) error notification and other notification control commands, the control command CMD acquired by the effect control unit 22 includes (b) control for specifying an outline of various effect operations resulting from winning at the symbol start opening. Commands (variation pattern commands) are included. Here, the outline of the production operation specified by the variation pattern command includes the production total time from the production start to the production end, and the result of winning or failing in the big hit lottery. In addition to these, the change pattern command including the presence or absence of the reach effect or the notice effect may be specified, but even in this case, the specific content of the effect content is not specified.

  Therefore, when the effect control unit 22 acquires the variation pattern command CMD, the effect lottery is subsequently performed, and the effect outline specified by the acquired variation pattern command is further specified. For example, the specific contents of the reach effect and the notice effect are determined. Then, in accordance with the determined specific game content, a lamp effect by blinking LED lamps or the like and a sound effect preparation operation by a speaker are performed, and an effect operation by a lamp or speaker is performed on the liquid crystal control unit 23. A control command CMD ′ relating to the synchronized symbol effect is output.

  In this case, the effect control unit 22 outputs a control command CMD ′ to the effect interface board 27 together with the strobe signal (interrupt signal) STB ′ for the liquid crystal control unit 23. In addition, when receiving the notification control command or other control command related to the liquid crystal display, the effect control unit 22 outputs the control command as it is to the effect interface board 27 together with the interrupt signal STB ′.

  Corresponding to the configuration of the effect control board 22, the effect interface board 27 is configured to receive an 8-bit control command CMD ′ and a 1-bit interrupt signal STB ′. These data CMD ′ and STB ′ are output to the liquid crystal control board 23 as they are via the buffer circuit 45.

  In addition, the effect interface board 27 receives the lamp driving control signals (DATA, CLOCK, ENABLE, LATCH) output from the effect control unit 22 and outputs them via the buffer circuit 46. The lamp drive control signal output from the effect interface board 27 is supplied to the LED lamp such as the light emitting board 51 via the lamp connection board 34, and as a result, the lamp corresponding to the control command CMD output by the main control unit 21. Production is realized.

  FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a circuit configuration of the lamp connection substrate 34, including the light emitting substrate 51. As shown in the figure, a plurality of drivers Dr 1,..., Drn−1, Drn are connected in series to the lamp connection board 34, and each driver Dr is serially connected from the one-chip microcomputer 40 of the effect control unit 22. It operates by receiving the signal DATA, the latch signal LATCH, the shift clock CLOCK, and the operation control signal ENABLE. Although not limited in any way, in this embodiment, BD7851FP (see FIG. 7), which is a 16-bit constant current LED driver manufactured by ROHM, is used as the driver Dri.

  As shown in FIG. 7, in this embodiment, the serial signal DATA received from the one-chip microcomputer 40 of the effect control unit 22 is supplied to the 16-bit length shift register SFR via the S_IN terminal, and the shift clock CLOCK Shifted in synchronization with the rising edge. And the serial signal which passed through the shift register is output from the S_OUT terminal.

  The serial signal DATA input to the shift register is acquired by the 16-bit latch register LTR in synchronization with the rising of the latch signal LATCH. When the latch signal LATCH returns to the L level, the acquired value of the latch register LTR is held. Is done. The acquired value of the latch register LTR is output as it is from the output terminals OUT1 to OUT16 if the operation control signal ENABLE is L level, but if the operation control signal ENABLE is H level, an open collector type output gate train is All are released (HiZ).

  The driver Dri having such a configuration has its output terminals OUT1 to OUT16 connected to the LED lamp via corresponding connectors. In the circuit example of FIG. 6, N-2 drivers Dr1 to Drn-2 from the first stream side to the N-2 series on the most upstream side as viewed from the effect control unit 22 are each 16 × 2 LEDs. Driving the lamp. The N-1 series driver Drn-1 drives 15 × 2 LED lamps, and the highest output terminal OUT16 is connected to the operation control terminal ENABLE of the N series driver Drn. Therefore, the N-th series driver Drn drives the 12 LED lamps under the control of the N-1 series driver Drn-1.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in the LED lamp group from the first series to the N-1 series, a plurality (two) of LED lamps are connected in series, and the cathode terminal of the most advanced LED lamp is the output terminal of the driver Dri. The lighting data is received from OUTj. On the other hand, one of the current limiting resistors R is connected to the anode side terminal of the LED lamp, and the other of the current limiting resistors R is supplied with a power supply voltage (DC 12 V) in common from the lamp connection board 34.

  Therefore, the two LED lamps that have received the L level lighting data OUTj from the driver Dri are turned on, and the two LED lamps that have received the H level lighting state are turned off. As described above, when the operation control signal ENABLE is at the H level, the output terminals OUT1 to OUT16 are opened, and all the LED lamps are turned off.

  On the other hand, the light emitting substrate 51 is mounted with three groups of effect lamp groups in which four LED lamps are connected in series. The cathode terminals of the most advanced LED lamps in each group receive lighting data from the output terminals OUT1 to OUT3 of the driver Drn. On the other hand, one terminal of the current limiting resistor r is connected to the anode side terminal of the LED lamp, and a power supply voltage (DC 12 V) is supplied to the other of the current limiting resistor r from the lamp connection board 34 in common.

  As described above, the output of the output terminal OUT16 of the driver Drn-1 is supplied to the operation control terminal ENABLE of the driver Drn. Therefore, if the output of the output terminal OUT16 of the driver Drn-1 is at the L level, the lamp group of the light emitting substrate 51 is turned on or off according to the output levels of the output terminals OUT1 to OUT3 of the driver Drn. On the other hand, when the output terminal OUT16 of the driver Drn-1 is at the H level, the output terminal of the driver Drn is forcibly released, and the LED lamp connected to any output terminal is not lit.

  The reason for adopting such a configuration is to prevent the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 from being erroneously turned on due to noise or the like. That is, in this embodiment, since 16 × (N−1) +3 bits of data are transferred via the shift register SFR of the driver Dri, the transfer data can be garbled due to the influence of noise or the like. In this case, the LED to be turned off is turned on. In particular, an LED lamp that should be turned on only in special cases is mounted on the light-emitting board 51, and if this is turned on unnecessarily, the player will be whitened.

  Therefore, by adopting the circuit configuration of FIG. 6, the driver Drn is controlled to the non-driven state at the timing when the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 should be turned off. That is, in this embodiment, only when the movable body MV is rotated, the specific output terminal (OUT16) of the driver Drn-1 is set to L level and the 3-bit output of the driver Drn is set so that the light emitting substrate 51 emits light. The output levels of the terminals (OUT1 to OUT3) are set to appropriate lighting levels.

  If all the 3-bit output terminals (OUT1 to OUT3) are set to L level, all 12 LED lamps are all lit. On the other hand, each group of LED lamps in order, for example, first group of LED lamps (1-4) → second group of LED lamps (5-8) → third group of LED lamps (9-12) Can be turned on cyclically.

  In any case, at the timing when the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 is not turned on, the output level and the H level of the most significant bit (OUT16) of the driver Drn-1 and the least significant 3 bits (OUT1 to OUT3) of the driver Drn are set. . Therefore, erroneous lighting does not occur unless the most significant bit OUT16 of the driver Drn-1 is changed to the L level together with the lower bits (OUT1 to OUT3) of the driver Drn.

  All the drivers Dr1 to Drn including the driver Drn for driving the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 are controlled by the one-chip microcomputer 40 of the effect control unit 22. FIG. 8 is a flowchart for explaining the control process of the one-chip microcomputer 40. In this embodiment, the N drivers Dr1 to Drn are controlled by a timer interrupt that is activated every predetermined time (for example, 16 ms). Note that the N * 16-bit lighting data supplied to Dr1 to Drn is prepared in the lighting data storage area BUF when the lighting data is updated.

  Based on the above description, based on FIG. 8, when a timer interruption occurs, the start timing of the lamp effect or whether the lamp effect is in progress is determined by the control flag, the lamp effect is unnecessary, and the lighting before that If the state should be maintained, the interrupt process is finished as it is (ST30).

  On the other hand, if the timing is necessary for the lamp effect, first, the lighting data storage area BUF is initially set to the H level (ST31). This is because, among LED lamps of the 1st to Nth series, even if there are LED lamps that are set to the off state or LED lamps that do not require lamp effects, the corresponding driver is repeatedly turned to the OFF level (H This is to prevent erroneous lighting due to noise by outputting lighting data of level.

  In the circuit configuration in which N drivers Dr1 to Drn are connected in series as in this embodiment, if only one noise is superimposed on the shift clock, there is a possibility that the lighting data of all 16 × N bits will be at a staggering level. Therefore, the presence of step ST31 is significant.

  If the process of step ST31 is completed, it is determined whether or not the first sequence is in an operating state in which a lamp effect is to be executed (ST32). If the operation state is to execute the lamp effect, lighting data (16 bits) for the first series driver Dr1 is created and written in the storage area BUF in accordance with the scenario managed in the process of step ST43. (ST33).

  The same applies to the lighting data of the second series to the Nth series, and if it is an operation state in which the lamp effect is to be executed, the corresponding driver Dr2 corresponding to the scenario advanced in the processing of step ST45 or step ST47. Lighting data to be supplied to Drn is created and written in the storage area BUF (ST35, ST37).

  As a result of the above processing, since the latest lighting data corresponding to the scenario progress is prepared in the storage area BUF, these lighting data are transferred in the order from the most downstream driver Drn to the most upstream driver Dr1. (ST38). Specifically, lighting data is output for each bit from the serial communication circuit SIO, and a shift clock CLOCK is output. When such an operation is repeated (N−1) * 16 + 3 times, a total of (N−1) * 16 + 3 lighting data (including 1-bit operation control data) is transferred to each of the drivers Dr1 to Drn. become.

  Here, the first 4 bits of (N-1) * 16 + 3 bits relate to the LED lamp of the light emitting board 51, and are the operation control signal ENABLE of the driver Drn and the lower 3 bits of the driver Drn. Therefore, these four bits are normally all at the H level, and become *** L only in special cases such as when the big hit state is determined. Note that. *** is L level or H level depending on whether or not it is lit. When blinking, it goes without saying that H level and L level are repeatedly output in an appropriate number of timer interrupt processes.

  When the transfer of the lighting data is completed as described above, the enable signal ENBLE is then changed to H level (ST39). As a result, all LED lamps from the first series to the N-1 series are extinguished at this moment. In response to the output terminal OUT16 of the driver Drn-1 being in an open state, the operation control terminal ENABLE of the driver Drn is at H level, so that the LED lamp on the light emitting board is also turned off. The operation control terminal ENABLE is pulled up by an internal resistance (FIG. 7).

  Subsequently, the latch signal LATCH is raised and then returned to the L level (ST40). Then, at the rising timing of the latch signal LATCH, the latest lighting data is written to the latch register LTR from the shift registers SFR of all the drivers Dri including the driver Drn. However, at this timing, since the enable signal ENB is at the H level, all the LED lamps remain off.

  Next, the enable signal ENB is changed to L level (ST41). As a result, all the LED lamps are turned on based on the latest lighting data transmitted in the process of step ST39. In normal times, since the output terminal OUT16 of the driver Drn-1 is maintained at the H level, the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 does not light up. However, in a special case, the output terminal of the driver Drn-1 OUT16 becomes L level, and the LED lamp of the light emitting substrate 51 is appropriately turned on.

  After that, the processes of steps ST42 to ST47 are executed to advance the lamp effect according to a predetermined scenario. When there is no progress, the same lighting data is output again.

  As described above, in this embodiment, since the lighting data of the register of the driver Dr is updated every time in the timer interrupt process, the influence of noise can be surely eliminated. That is, since it is sufficient that the lamp effect appealing to human vision is changed every few hundreds of milliseconds, the same lighting data is repeatedly transmitted in the timer interruption process of a considerable number (= several hundreds of milliseconds / 16 milliseconds). However, the duplicate transmission is an effective noise countermeasure.

  In addition, for the N-series light-emitting substrates 51, the driver Drn is in an operating state only at the timing when the LED lamp should be turned on, and otherwise the driver Drn maintains a non-operating state. The possibility of is almost eliminated.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described in detail, the specific description content does not specifically limit this invention.

GM gaming machine SW switch circuit

Claims (6)

A gaming machine that generates a gaming state that is advantageous to a player based on a winning or failing lottery attributed to a predetermined winning state,
Providing light emission control means having a plurality of driver circuits for driving a plurality of light emitters arranged at predetermined positions of the gaming machine ,
Each driver circuit acquires lighting data that defines the lighting state of each light emitter, and receives an operation control signal that defines permission / prohibition of driving operation,
Each light emitter is configured to be driven based on lighting data acquired by a driver circuit that has received an operation control signal of a permission level,
The plurality of driver circuits are divided into a specific driver circuit that drives a specific light emitter only at a specific timing to stimulate a player's expectation and a general driver circuit that drives other light emitters. The circuit receives a common operation control signal, while the specific driver circuit is configured to receive 1-bit long lighting data output from a specific terminal of the general driver circuit,
The light emission control means is configured to control the lighting data of the specific terminal to the permitted level as a lamp effect at the specific timing, and to control the lighting data of the specific terminal to the prohibited level at other timings. A gaming machine.   The gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein the specific light emitters are a plurality of light emitters that are turned on at a special timing having high value for the player. The driver circuit includes N shift registers that perform a shift operation in synchronization with a shift clock, an N-bit latch register that stores output data of the N shift registers in synchronization with a latch pulse, and an operation control signal at a permission level. the gaming machine according to claim 1 or 2 is configured to have a gate circuit of N bits for outputting the output data of the latch register to the output terminal, a based on. The light emission control means is at a timing to control the lighting state of the light emitter.
The gaming machine according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein serial data is output to the driver circuit every predetermined time regardless of whether or not the lighting state of each light emitter is changed. The gaming machine according to claim 4, wherein the light emission control means outputs all or part of a shift clock, a latch pulse, and an operation control signal. The main control part which performs a lottery lottery and controls game operation centrally, and the light emission control means which drives and controls a luminous body based on the control command which a main control part outputs, and is constituted. The gaming machine according to any one of 1 to 5 .