JP5866554B1 - GAME SYSTEM, MANAGEMENT DEVICE, AND READER / WRITER DEVICE - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to reduce the time required for verification processing for payment of a usage fee by electronic money settlement in a game system. Upon receiving medium information from a medium used as electronic money, a reader / writer device 400 manages a collation destination request signal for requesting an instruction of a collation device 200 that is a collation destination among a plurality of collation devices 200. When the verification destination information including the address of the verification device 200 that is the verification destination is received from the management device 100, the verification request signal is transmitted to the verification device 200 corresponding to the address. When the management apparatus 100 receives the verification destination request signal from the reader / writer apparatus 400, the management apparatus 100 selects one verification apparatus 200 from the plurality of verification apparatuses 200 based on a preset condition, and selects the selected verification apparatus 200. Is sent to the reader / writer device 400. [Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present disclosure relates to a game system, a management device, and a reader / writer device.

  Generally, when a game machine is used in a game facility, it is necessary to pay a preset usage fee. In recent years, in addition to conventional coins or coins, it has become possible to pay by using electronic money using a contactless IC chip (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  The system described in Patent Document 1 enables a game application to be executed using electronic money, and a plurality of game terminals that execute the game application and a medium used as electronic money (for example, an electronic money card) ) To verify whether or not the usage fee of the game terminal can be paid, and a plurality of verification units that perform verification processing on the medium. In Patent Document 1, when a user pays a usage fee with an electronic money card, each game terminal transmits a verification request for data received from the electronic money card to the verification unit, and a verification process is performed by any of the multiple verification units. Execute.

  More specifically, in Patent Document 1, each verification unit includes a verification interface unit and a verification unit. When the verification interface unit receives the verification request, the verification interface unit confirms whether the verification unit as a pair can be verified. If the collation is possible, settlement processing is performed in the collation unit. If collation is impossible, the collation request is transferred or retransmitted to another collation unit.

Japanese Patent No. 4739267

  However, in Patent Document 1, in order to collate electronic money, it is necessary to check one by one whether a collation unit can be collated in a plurality of collation units. Therefore, collation processing is actually performed in any one of the collation units. It may take some time to be heard.

  One aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a game system, a management device, and a reader / writer device that can reduce the time required for verification processing for payment of usage fees by electronic money settlement.

A game system according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a plurality of reader / writer devices that are installed in each of a plurality of game devices that execute applications and communicate with a medium that is used as electronic money, and the game device is used by the medium. When the collation process including collation of whether or not the payment of the fee is possible and the withdrawal process performed on the medium via the reader / writer device when it is determined that the payment is possible, the collation completion signal And a management device that manages the plurality of verification devices, and the reader / writer device receives the medium information from the medium, and A collation destination request signal for requesting an instruction of the collation device that is the collation destination is transmitted to the management device, and the address of the collation device that is the collation destination When the collation destination information including received from the management apparatus, without going through the management device, the verification device corresponding to the address, sends a verification request signal, receiving the verification completion signal from the verification device, the verification If the result is that the usage fee can be paid, the game device is notified of the execution of the application, and the collation device determines that the withdrawal process performed via the reader / writer device has timed out. Also when the collation device determines, the collation completion signal is transmitted to the management device, and when the management device receives the collation destination request signal from the reader / writer device, the plurality of the plurality of match signals are set based on preset conditions. the verification apparatus of idle one selected from the verification device, and managed as a state during processing the selected verification device, the selected matching device Transmitting the verification destination information including address to the reader-writer device, when the verification process is completed, or the subtraction processing when the verification device and the time-out is determined, transmitted from the verification device When the collation completion signal is received, the processing state of the collation device is changed to an empty state .

A management device according to an aspect of the present disclosure is installed in each of a plurality of game devices that execute an application, and a plurality of reader / writer devices that communicate with a medium used as electronic money, and the use of the game device by the medium When the collation process including collation of whether or not the payment of the fee is possible and the withdrawal process performed on the medium via the reader / writer device when it is determined that the payment is possible, the collation completion signal a definitive management apparatus to a game system including a plurality of matching device, a management device, a for transmitting, from the reader-writer device that receives the medium information from the medium, and requests an instruction matching destination becomes collating device Upon receiving the verification destination request signal, based on a preset condition, one matching device idle from the managed plurality of matching device election And manages a state during processing the selected collation apparatus, collation destination information including an address of said selected verification device, and transmitted to the reader writer device, when the verification process is completed, or When the collation device determines that the withdrawal process has timed out and receives the collation completion signal transmitted from the collation device, the processing state of the collation device is changed to an empty state. .

Writer device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, whether or not the verification whether it is possible to pay a charge for Gate arm device by the medium that is used as electronic money, the case where payment is judged to be A plurality of collation devices that transmit a collation completion signal upon completion of collation processing including the removal processing performed on the medium via the reader / writer device, and the collation processing is performed. When the collation apparatus receives the collation completion signal transmitted from the collation apparatus when the collation apparatus determines that the withdrawal process has timed out, or when the collation apparatus is processing the empty state in the game system including a management apparatus for changing, and is installed in each of the plurality of game devices for executing applications, the reader-writer device for communicating with the medium When the medium information is received, a collation destination request signal for requesting an instruction of a collation device that is a collation destination among the plurality of collation devices is transmitted to the management device, Based on the set condition, when receiving the collation destination information indicating the address of one collation device selected from the plurality of collation devices in the empty state , without passing through the management device, A configuration for transmitting a verification request signal to a verification device corresponding to an address and notifying the game device of the execution of the application when the verification completion signal indicating that the usage fee can be paid is received from the verification device Take.

  According to one aspect of the present disclosure, it is possible to reduce the time required for the verification process for the usage fee payment by electronic money settlement.

The figure which shows the structural example of the game system which concerns on Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a management device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a collation device according to the first embodiment. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a reader / writer device according to a first embodiment. Sequence diagram showing an operation example of the settlement processing according to the first embodiment Sequence diagram showing an operation example of the settlement processing according to the first embodiment The figure which uses for description of the determination method of the collation destination which concerns on Embodiment 1 The figure which shows an example of the log number in each collation apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1. The figure which shows an example of the log number in each collation apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1. The figure which shows the example of a status transition of the collation apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a management apparatus according to the second embodiment. The figure which uses for description of the method of judging the appropriateness of the number of the collation apparatuses which concern on Embodiment 2. The figure which uses for description of the method of judging the appropriateness of the number of the collation apparatuses which concern on Embodiment 2. Sequence diagram showing an example of payment processing operation according to the third embodiment (when processing is incomplete) Sequence diagram showing an example of payment processing operation according to the third embodiment (after incomplete processing)

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  Hereinafter, as an example of the game system, a game system having a game machine that a user can pay with electronic money will be described.

  Hereinafter, a case where an electronic money card (for example, a non-contact IC card) is used as an example of a medium used as electronic money will be described. The medium used as electronic money is not limited to a card, but may be any medium having an electronic money function. For example, a mobile phone having an electronic money function may be used.

  In the following, for the sake of simplicity, the configuration and operation for performing processing related to payment by electronic money will be mainly described, and description of the other configuration and operation will be omitted.

(Embodiment 1)
[Overview of game system]
FIG. 1 shows a configuration example of a game system according to the present embodiment. In the game system 1 shown in FIG. 1, a store 10 and a server 30 are connected via a network 20. The game system 1 may include a plurality of stores 10.

  The store 10 employs a configuration including a management device 100, a plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200-N, a plurality of game machines 300, and a LAN 600. Each game machine 300 has a configuration including a reader / writer device 400 and a charging device 500.

  The management device 100 manages devices in the store 10. For example, the management device 100 centrally manages the statuses of the plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200 -N in the store 10. Further, when an electronic money card is connected to the reader / writer device 400 installed in each of the game machines 300, the management device 100 selects the reader / writer from among a plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N to be managed. The verification device 200 that performs the verification processing is selected for the device 400.

  Each store 10 only needs to have at least one management device 100.

  The verification device 200 receives an electronic money verification request from the reader / writer device 400 installed in the game machine 300, and performs verification processing (settlement processing). In addition, each verification device 200 holds a log (settlement log) of settlement processing performed in each, and a server via the network 20 at a predetermined timing (for example, when the upper limit of the number of settlement logs is exceeded). Upload the log that is held to 30.

  In the game machine 300, a user can pay a usage fee with coins (coins) or electronic money. When the game machine 300 detects payment of the usage fee, the game machine 300 executes the game application.

  When the usage fee is paid by electronic money, the reader / writer device 400 receives a medium information (card information) from the electronic money card, and sends a verification request signal for requesting verification processing (verification request) to the verification device 200. Send. When the verification process between the electronic money card and the verification device 200 is completed, the reader / writer device 400 transmits a verification completion notification to the charging device 500. The management device 100 selects the verification device 200 for which the reader / writer device 400 requests verification.

  When the billing device 500 receives payment by coins (coins) or a completion notification of verification by electronic money from the reader / writer device 400, the billing device 500 executes the game application to a device (not shown) that controls the execution of the game application. Instruct. Thereby, the game machine 300 executes a game application.

  The LAN 600 connects the management device 100, the verification device 200, and the game machine 300 (reader / writer device 400).

  If the number of reader / writer devices 400 in the store 10 is M, for example, the collation device 200 and the game machine 300 may be set so as to satisfy M> N. That is, in each store 10, M (> N) reader / writer devices 400 are subjected to verification processing by N verification devices 200. As described above, in the game system 1, in each store 10, collation processing is performed on the plural (for example, M) reader / writer devices 400 by the collation device 200 having N redundant configurations. At this time, the reader / writer device 400 and the verification device 200 are not fixedly associated with each other, but are dynamically associated by the management device 100.

  In the game system 1, the server 30 manages the usage status of the game machines 300 installed in a plurality of stores 10 connected via the network 20. For example, the server 30 aggregates data relating to usage charges at each store 10 (each game machine 300). Further, the server 30 aggregates data related to payment (settlement) by electronic money at each store 10. For example, when there are a plurality of electronic money operators that can be used in the game system 1, the server 30 is configured by a server provided in each electronic money operator. In addition, the server 30 may be configured by a plurality of servers including a server that manages the usage status of the game machine 300 and a server that manages data related to electronic money settlement.

  The network 20 connects the server 30 and the plurality of stores 10. For example, the network 20 may be configured by the Internet or a telephone line.

[Configuration of Management Device 100]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of the management apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. 2, the management device 100 includes a communication unit 101, a storage unit 102, and a control unit 103.

  The communication unit 101 communicates with the collation device 200 and the reader / writer device 400 via the LAN 600 (see FIG. 1).

  Specifically, the communication unit 101 requests an instruction from the reader / writer device 400 for the collation device 200 to be a collation destination (connection destination at the time of settlement processing) among the plural collation devices 200-1 to 200-N. A verification request signal is received. Further, as a response to the collation destination request received from the control unit 103, the communication apparatus 101 transmits, for example, collation destination information including the IP address of the collation apparatus 200 serving as the collation destination to the reader / writer apparatus 400.

  In addition, the communication unit 101 receives a verification process result notification (verification completion signal) from the verification device 200. Further, the communication unit 101 receives from the reader / writer device 400 a processing result notification indicating whether or not a game is started in the game machine 300.

  The storage unit 102 stores the statuses of a plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200 -N in the store 10. Further, the storage unit 102 stores collation results (transaction results) in the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N and processing results (transaction results) in the plurality of reader / writer devices 400 as a settlement log. The storage unit 102 stores each transaction result in the reader / writer device 400 and the verification device 200 in association with each other.

  The control unit 103 controls collation processing using electronic money by the reader / writer device 400 and the collation device 200. In addition, when the control unit 103 receives a verification process result notification from the verification device 200, the control unit 103 updates the settlement log stored in the storage unit 102. When the control unit 103 receives the processing result notification from the reader / writer device 400, the control unit 103 updates the settlement log stored in the storage unit 102.

  For example, the control unit 103 employs a configuration including a management unit 104, a selection unit 105, and a notification unit 106.

  The management unit 104 manages a plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200 -N in the store 10. For example, the management unit 104 manages the status for each of the plurality of verification devices 200 stored in the storage unit 102. The status of the verification device 200 indicates, for example, a processing state (Busy state) and a free state (Idle state). For example, when one collation device 200 is selected by the selection unit 105 to be described later, the management unit 104 changes the status of the collation device 200 from an empty state to a processing state. In addition, when the management unit 104 receives a verification completion signal from the verification device 200 selected by the selection unit 105, the management unit 104 changes the status of the verification device 200 from a processing state to an empty state. Further, the management unit 104 changes the status of the verification device 200 from an empty state to a processing state while the verification device 200 uploads a settlement log to the server 30.

  Upon receiving the collation destination request signal, the selection unit 105 selects one collation device 200 as a collation destination from the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200 -N stored in the storage unit 102. For example, the selection part 105 selects the collation apparatus 200 based on the priority set beforehand with respect to the some collation apparatus 200-1 to 200-N. In addition, the selection unit 105 selects one collation device whose status managed by the management unit 104 is an empty state (idle state) from among the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N.

  The notification unit 106 generates collation destination information including the IP address of the collation device 200 selected by the selection unit 105, and transmits the collation destination information to the requesting reader / writer device 400 via the communication unit 101.

[Configuration of Verification Device 200]
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of collation apparatus 200 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 3, the collation device 200 employs a configuration including a communication unit 201, a storage unit 202, and a collation unit 203.

  The communication unit 201 communicates with the management device 100 and the reader / writer device 400 via the LAN 600 (see FIG. 1).

  Specifically, the communication unit 201 receives a verification request signal from the reader / writer device 400. Further, the communication unit 201 transmits a verification completion signal including a notification result of verification processing received from the verification unit 203 described later to the management device 100 and the reader / writer device 400.

  In addition, the communication unit 201 transmits the result of the verification process (settlement log) stored in the storage unit 202 to the server 30 via the network 20. The timing when the communication unit 201 transmits the settlement log to the server 30 is, for example, the timing when the number of settlement logs stored in the storage unit 202 reaches the upper limit.

  Further, the communication unit 201 exchanges data (such as balance data) relating to the withdrawal process between the reader / writer device 400 and the electronic money card in communication in the collation process by the collation unit 203.

  The storage unit 202 stores the result of the collation process performed in the collation unit 203.

  The collation unit 203 collates whether or not the usage fee for the game machine 300 can be paid using the electronic money card. Specifically, the verification unit 203 is capable of paying the transaction amount by the electronic money card based on the balance received from the electronic money card and the transaction amount (usage fee) included in the verification request signal. Judge whether or not.

  When it is determined that the transaction amount can be paid by the electronic money card, the verification unit 203 transmits the amount obtained by subtracting the transaction amount from the balance to the electronic money card via the reader / writer device 400. When the verification unit 203 receives a signal (for example, ACK) indicating that the balance has been updated from the electronic money card, the verification unit 203 transmits a verification completion signal to the management device 100 and the reader / writer device 400.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the transaction amount cannot be paid with the electronic money card, the verification unit 203 transmits a signal indicating that verification cannot be performed to the reader / writer device 400.

[Configuration of Reader / Writer Device 400]
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the reader / writer device 400 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 4, the reader / writer device 400 includes a communication unit 401 and a control unit 402.

  The communication unit 401 communicates with the electronic money card and receives card information. The card information includes, for example, a number (identification number) unique to the electronic money card and a balance of electronic money. The communication unit 401 may include, for example, an antenna and an RF (Radio Frequency) circuit (not shown), and may perform wireless communication with the electronic money card by bringing the electronic money card close to the antenna.

  The communication unit 401 communicates with the management device 100 and the verification device 200 via the LAN 600 (see FIG. 1). Specifically, the communication unit 401 transmits a collation destination request signal to the management apparatus 100 and receives collation destination information that is a response to the collation destination request signal from the management apparatus 100. The communication unit 401 transmits a verification request signal to the verification device 200 corresponding to the verification destination information, and receives a verification completion signal that is a response to the verification request signal from the verification device 200.

  Further, the communication unit 401 transmits a signal indicating completion of payment by the electronic money card (that is, a signal for instructing the start of the game) to the charging apparatus 500.

  The control unit 402 controls processing among the electronic money card, the management device 100, the verification device 200, and the billing device 500. For example, the control unit 402 employs a configuration including a card control unit 403, a collation control unit 404, and a notification unit 405.

  The card control 403 controls communication with the electronic money card via the communication unit 401. For example, the card control unit 403 receives card information from an electronic money card. The card control unit 403 controls communication between the electronic money card and the verification device 200 in the withdrawal process.

  The collation control unit 404 controls communication related to collation processing via the communication unit 401. For example, when the card control unit 404 receives card information from the electronic money card, the verification control unit 404 requests verification from the verification device 200 that is a verification destination among the verification devices 200-1 to 200-N. The destination request signal is transmitted to the management apparatus 100. In addition, when the collation control unit 404 receives collation destination information indicating the IP address of the collation device 200 that is a collation destination from the management device 100, the collation control unit 404 transmits a collation request signal 200 to the collation device 200 corresponding to the IP address. And the collation control part 404 receives the collation completion apparatus from the collation apparatus 200 of collation destination.

  When the verification control unit 404 receives the verification completion signal, the notification unit 405 notifies the charging apparatus 500 of the execution of the game application (use start instruction). When the notification unit 405 instructs execution of the game application, the notification unit 405 notifies the management apparatus 100 of the processing result.

[Electronic money verification processing]
The operation of the electronic money settlement process in the game system 1 having the above configuration will be described.

  FIG. 5 is a sequence showing operations of the management device 100, the verification device 200, the game machine 300 (the reader / writer device 400, the charging device 500), and the electronic money card (denoted as a card) in each store 10 of the game system 1. FIG.

  In step (hereinafter referred to as “ST”) 101, the user (user) selects, for example, electronic money as a method of paying the usage fee of the game machine 300 to the game machine 300 (reader / writer device 400). At the same time, the amount of usage fee is selected, and the electronic money card is held over the reader / writer device 400 provided in the game machine 300. Thereby, the reader / writer device 400 specifies the usage fee (transaction amount) of the game machine 300.

  In ST102, the reader / writer device 400 performs an electronic money card detection process. For example, the reader / writer device 400 checks whether or not the electronic money card is close to the reader / writer device 400 at a predetermined interval (that is, whether or not the electronic money card is held over the reader / writer device 400). I do. When the reader / writer device 400 detects an electronic money card, the reader / writer device 400 acquires card information of the electronic money card. The card information includes, for example, Idm, which is an identification number (identification ID) unique to the electronic money card, and the card type of the electronic money card.

  In ST103, the reader / writer device 400 inquires of the management device 100 about the collation device 200 (the collation device 200 that performs settlement processing) that is the collation destination among the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N. Specifically, when the reader / writer device 400 receives the card information of the electronic money card in ST102, in ST103, the reader / writer device 400 instructs the collation device 200 that is a collation destination among the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N. The requested verification destination request signal is transmitted to the management apparatus 100. This verification destination request signal may include, for example, the transaction amount specified in ST101 and the card type of the electronic money card indicated in the card information acquired in ST102.

  In ST104, the management apparatus 100 selects one verification apparatus 200 for the reader / writer apparatus 400 that transmitted the connection destination request in ST103, from among a plurality of verification apparatuses 200-1 to 200-N. Specifically, when receiving a verification destination request signal from the reader / writer device 400 that has received the card information from the electronic money card in ST103, the management device 100 manages based on preset conditions in ST104. One collation device 200 is selected from the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N. Details of the selection process of the collation device 200 in the management device 100 will be described later.

  In addition, the management device 100 stores the transaction amount and card type included in the verification destination request signal in the storage unit 102 (not shown).

  In addition, the management device 100 manages the states (status) of the plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200-N. For example, when the management apparatus 100 selects one collation apparatus 200 in ST104, the status of the one collation apparatus 200 is set to processing (Busy), and when a collation completion signal is received in ST109, the transmission source of the collation completion signal Is managed as an idle state (Idle).

  In ST105, the management apparatus 100 sends collation destination information including information (for example, IP address) regarding the collation apparatus 200 selected in ST104 to the reader / writer apparatus 400 that transmitted the collation destination request in ST103. Send as a response.

  In ST106, the reader / writer device 400 transmits the transaction amount specified in ST101 and the electronic money card acquired in ST102 to the verification device 200 corresponding to the IP address indicated in the verification destination information received in ST105. A verification request signal including the card type is transmitted. That is, the reader / writer device 400 requests the verification device 200 selected by the management device 100 to perform verification processing (settlement processing).

  In ST107, the verification device 200 that has received the verification request signal from the reader / writer device 400 performs a withdrawal process on the electronic money card via the reader / writer device 400. For example, the verification device 200 reads the balance from the electronic money card (Read), subtracts the transaction amount included in the verification request signal from the read balance, and writes the subtracted amount (post-transaction amount) to the electronic money card. (Write) The response (Ack) to the writing is received from the electronic money card, thereby completing the withdrawal process.

  When the withdrawal process (collation process) in ST107 is completed, collation apparatus 200 notifies collation completion signal indicating the completion of the collation process to reader / writer apparatus 400 in ST108, and in ST109, the result of the collation process (transaction) in collation apparatus 200 The management apparatus 100 is notified of a verification completion signal including the result.

  In this way, the collation device 200 collates whether or not the usage fee for the game machine 300 can be paid using the electronic money card. If the verification device 200 determines that the usage fee cannot be paid by electronic money as a result of the verification processing, the verification device 200 notifies the reader / writer device 400 of a verification completion signal indicating that the usage fee cannot be used.

  In ST110, management device 100 updates the transaction result of the corresponding verification device 200 based on the transaction result included in the verification completion signal received in ST109. In addition, the management apparatus 100 manages the transaction result for every some collation apparatus 200-1 to 200-N.

  Upon receiving the verification completion signal in ST108, the reader / writer device 400 informs the user that the payment of the usage fee by the electronic money card has been completed in ST111 by updating the sound or the display on the display. In addition, when the reader / writer device 400 receives a verification completion signal indicating that payment by electronic money cannot be performed, the reader / writer device 400 updates the sounding or display display that the usage fee cannot be paid by the electronic money card, Tell the user.

  In ST112, reader / writer device 400 instructs charging device 500 to execute the game application. Specifically, the reader / writer device 400 instructs the billing device 500 to send a pulse signal corresponding to the verified transaction amount. When the reader / writer device 400 receives a verification completion signal indicating that payment by electronic money cannot be made, the reader / writer device 400 does not instruct the sending of a charging signal to the charging device 500.

  In ST113, charging device 500 transmits the pulse signal instructed in ST112 to a game application control device (not shown). Thereby, the game application is executed, and the user can start the game (ST114). When the usage fee is paid with coins (coins), billing device 500 sends a pulse signal corresponding to the inserted coins to the game application control device.

  In ST115, the reader / writer device 400 notifies the management device 100 of a processing result indicating that a pulse signal (game start instruction) has been transmitted to the game application control device of the game machine 300.

  In ST116, management apparatus 100 updates the transaction result of reader / writer apparatus 400 based on the processing result received in ST115. The management apparatus 100 holds the transaction result of the collation device 200 updated in ST110 and the transaction result of the reader / writer apparatus 400 updated in ST116 in association with each collation process.

  In this way, the processing shown in FIG. 5 is performed at each store 10 in the game system 1. In each store 10, it is also assumed that a collation request is generated at the same time in the reader / writer device 400 provided in the plurality of game machines 300. In this case, for example, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the management apparatus 100 differs from the plurality of reader / writer apparatuses 1 and 2 (reader / writer apparatus 400) that transmitted the verification request signal to different verification apparatuses 1 and 2 (collation apparatus). 200) is selected. That is, in each store 10, the management device 100 can select the verification devices 200 that are the verification destinations for the plurality of reader / writer devices 400 by managing the verification devices 200 in the store 10 in an integrated manner.

[Method for selecting collation device 200]
Next, details of the selection method of the collation device 200 in the management device 100 will be described.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram for explaining a selection method of the collation device 200 in the management device 100. In FIG. 7, as an example, a case will be described in which one store 10 includes five verification devices A to E and M reader / writer devices 400-1 to 400-M.

  Further, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the management device 100 holds a table for managing the priority order, status, and IP address between the matching devices A to E for each of the matching devices A to E. The status of the collation device 200 is represented as “Busy” during the collation processing or the collation result (log) uploading process, for example, and is represented as “Idle” when no processing is performed. Is done.

  For example, in FIG. 7, the management apparatus 100 receives a collation destination request signal from the reader / writer apparatus 400-1 (procedure 1; corresponding to ST103 shown in FIG. 5).

  Upon receiving the verification destination request signal, the management apparatus 100 refers to the held table and selects the verification apparatus 200 having the highest priority from the verification apparatuses 200 whose status is Idle. For example, in FIG. 7, the management apparatus 100 selects the collation apparatus C with the highest priority among the collation apparatuses C and E whose status is Idle (procedure 2. This corresponds to ST104 shown in FIG. 5).

  The management apparatus 100 notifies collation destination information including the IP address (192.168.1.3) of the selected collation apparatus C to the reader / writer apparatus 400-1 that is the request source (procedure 3, corresponding to ST105 shown in FIG. 5). In addition, the management apparatus 100 changes the status of the selected verification apparatus C from Idle to Busy (procedure 4).

  When the reader / writer device 400-1 receives the IP address of the verification device C as the verification device 200 of the verification destination, the reader / writer device 400-1 sends a verification request signal including settlement information (transaction amount, card type) to the verification device C. Transmit (procedure 5; corresponds to ST106 shown in FIG. 5). As a result, the withdrawal process is performed between the collation device C and the reader / writer device 400-1 and the electronic money card in communication (ST107 shown in FIG. 5).

  In addition, when receiving a verification completion signal (transaction result) from the verification device C, the management device 100 changes the status of the verification device C from Busy to Idle.

  In this way, in the game system 1, the management device 100 selects the collation device 200 that is the collation destination for the reader / writer device 400 from among the plural collation devices 200-1 to 200 -N. The management device 100 manages the status of the verification device 200 in the store 10 and grasps the verification device 200 that can perform verification processing (the verification device 200 in an empty state). Therefore, the management apparatus 100 can immediately notify the collation apparatus 200 that can be collated to the reader / writer apparatus 400 that requests collation.

  Thereby, for example, the time required for determining the collation device 200 as compared with the case where the reader / writer device 400 that requests collation is checked and selected one by one to determine whether the plurality of collation devices 200 can be used, That is, it is possible to shorten the time until the collation process is started.

  Each verification device 200 starts uploading to the server 30 when the number of logs held reaches the upper limit. The verification device 200 that is uploading a log to the server 30 cannot perform verification processing. For this reason, for example, if the management device 100 evenly allocates a plurality of collation devices 200 as collation destinations of the reader / writer device 400, the timing when the number of logs reaches the upper limit in each collation device 200 may be the same period. Becomes higher. In this case, since a plurality of collation devices 200 upload logs simultaneously, the collation devices 200 that can be selected as collation destinations for the reader / writer device 400 are reduced, and the system availability cannot be maintained.

  On the other hand, in the present embodiment, priorities are set in advance for a plurality of collation devices 200 (for example, collation devices A to E shown in FIG. 8). Then, the management apparatus 100 selects the collation apparatus 200 that is the collation destination of the reader / writer apparatus 400 based on the priority order.

  By doing so, the collation device 200 having a higher priority is more likely to be selected as the collation destination of the reader / writer device 400. In other words, the management device 100 allocates the verification device as a verification destination of the reader / writer device 400 biased to a specific verification device having a higher priority among the verification devices 200. As a result, for example, as shown in FIG. 8, there is a bias in the number of logs held by each collation device 200 (that is, the number of times selected as a collation destination). For this reason, the timing of uploading the log differs among the plurality of verification devices 200. Therefore, even if the reader / writer device 400 requests a collation destination, the collation devices 200 that can be selected as collation destinations are not extremely reduced, and the system availability can be maintained.

[Example of setting priority of collation device 200]
Next, an example of setting priorities of a plurality of collation devices 200 will be described.

  The storage unit 202 of the verification device 200 is configured by, for example, a nonvolatile memory. Therefore, when the priority order is set as described above and the matching device 200 selected as the matching destination is biased toward a specific device, the memory of the matching device 200 that is more easily selected has a higher rewrite frequency and is deteriorated. It becomes easy to do. That is, there is a bias in memory degradation between the verification devices 200.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the management device 100 changes the priority order set for the plurality of verification devices 200 for each predetermined period. The predetermined period may be, for example, one day, a plurality of days, or a time unit.

  FIG. 9 shows a case where the priority order of the collation device 200 is changed every day as an example.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the priorities of the collation devices A to E on July 16 are 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, respectively. On the other hand, the priorities of the collation devices A to E on July 17 are 2, 4, 5, 3, and 1, respectively. The priorities of the collation devices A to E on July 18 are 5, 1, 3, 2, and 4, respectively. Similarly, on July 19 and July 20, the priorities of the collation devices A to E are different from those of other days.

  By doing so, the number of logs (that is, the number of selected times) in each period (one day in FIG. 9) for the plurality of verification devices A to E is similar to that in FIG. When looking at 5 days in FIG. 9, the total number of logs is almost the same.

  That is, within each period (one day), similarly to FIG. 8, the log upload timings of the plurality of collation devices 200 can be varied by biasing the frequency selected by the plurality of collation devices 200. . On the other hand, over a plurality of periods, the degree of memory degradation in the plurality of verification devices 200 can be leveled by making the selected frequencies substantially the same among the verification devices 200.

  The example of setting the priority order of the plurality of verification devices 200 has been described above.

  In this way, in the present embodiment, the management device 100 selects one verification device 200 from among the multiple verification devices 200 in the store 10. Specifically, the management device 100 centrally manages the status of the verification device 200 in the store 10 and selects the verification device 200 that can perform verification processing for the reader / writer device 400 that requests the verification destination. Thus, each time there is a connection destination request from the reader / writer device 400, the collation device 200 that can be collated can be selected immediately without sequentially checking whether or not the plurality of collation devices 200 can be collated. Can do. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to suppress a time delay required until the collation process between the reader / writer device 400 and the collation device 200 is started.

  In the present embodiment, the management apparatus 100 only selects the collation apparatus 200 that performs collation processing. In other words, after the collation device 100 is selected, collation processing is directly performed between the reader / writer device 400 and the selected collation device 200 without using the management device 100. By minimizing the processing in the management apparatus 100 related to the collation processing in this way, the time delay required for the collation processing can be suppressed.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to reduce the time required for verification processing for payment by electronic money.

  In the present embodiment, the management apparatus 100 sets priorities for a plurality of collation apparatuses 200 and preferentially assigns collation apparatuses 200 with higher priorities to the reader / writer apparatus 400. Thereby, in the some collation apparatus 200, the bias | inclination of the log number accumulate | stored can be produced and the timing of the upload to the server 30 can be varied. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to avoid that all the collation devices 200 cannot be used due to the upload process, and to maintain the availability of the system.

(Embodiment 2)
In the present embodiment, an example of determining the number of verification devices 200 installed in the store 10 will be described.

  As described above, when the management apparatus 100 receives the collation destination request of the collation apparatus 200 from the reader / writer apparatus 400, the management apparatus 100 selects the collation apparatus 200 that is the collation destination based on the status and priority of the collation apparatus 200. Here, the management device 100 transmits an error as a response to the verification destination request of the reader / writer device 400 when the verification requests from the plurality of reader / writer devices 400 are simultaneously generated and the statuses of all the verification devices 200 are Busy. Then, the reader / writer device 400 is prompted to retry the collation destination request.

  For example, FIG. 10 illustrates an operation when a plurality of reader / writer devices 400-1 to 400-6 make a verification request in a store 10 including a plurality of verification devices A to E.

  As illustrated in FIG. 10, each reader / writer device 400 transmits a verification destination request signal (expressed as an IP request) of the verification device 200 to the management device 100 in the order of the reader / writer devices 400-1 to 400-6. . As shown in FIG. 10, all the statuses of the collation devices A to E before the management device 100 receives the collation destination request signal are set to Idle.

  In this case, the management apparatus 100 selects the collation apparatuses A to E as the collation destinations of the reader / writer apparatuses 400-1 to 400-5 by the operation described in the first embodiment in the order in which the collation destination request signals are received. . As a result, all the statuses of the collation devices A to E are finally changed to Busy.

  As a result, collation processing (settlement processing) is directly performed between the reader / writer devices 400-1 to 400-5 and the collation devices A to E. When the settlement process is completed, the collation devices A to E notify the management apparatus 100 of a collation completion signal including the settlement process result (transaction result). When the management apparatus 100 receives a verification completion signal from each of the verification apparatuses A to E, the management apparatus 100 changes the status to Idle.

  On the other hand, even if the management apparatus 100 receives the verification destination request signal from the reader / writer apparatus 400-6, the status of all of the verification apparatuses A to E is Busy. Is not assigned, and an error is sent as a response. When receiving the error, the reader / writer device 400-6 requests the collation destination instruction of the collation device 200 again. That is, the reader / writer device 400-6 continues to transmit the request until the collation destination of the collation device 200 is instructed.

  As shown in FIG. 10, after the status of the verification apparatus A connected as the verification destination of the reader / writer apparatus 400-1 is changed to Idle again, the management apparatus 100 requests the verification destination from the reader / writer apparatus 400-6. When the signal is received, the IP address of the verification device A is transmitted to the reader / writer device 400-6, and the status of the verification device A is changed to Busy. Thereby, the collation processing (settlement processing) is performed between the reader / writer device 400-6 and the collation device A.

  In this way, each reader / writer device 400 retries a collation destination request until all of the collation devices 200 are in the idle state when all the collation devices 200 are processing. Therefore, the collation process is delayed for the period during which the retry is executed.

  If the above-mentioned retries occur frequently, it will lead to a loss of opportunity for collation processing, so it is necessary to increase the redundancy of the collation device 200 (that is, it is necessary to increase the number of collation devices 200). On the other hand, when the above retry does not occur at all and the collation apparatus 200 with lower priority is not used at all (when the collation apparatus 200 is excessive), it is necessary to reduce the number of collation apparatuses 200 in order to reduce the running cost. is there. As described above, it is very important to appropriately set the number of collation devices 200 in each store 10 in consideration of the operational aspect and the cost aspect of the collation processing.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, a method for determining an appropriate number of collation devices 200 in each store 10 will be described.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a configuration of management apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 11, the same reference numerals are assigned to components that perform the same processing as in the first embodiment (FIG. 2), and description thereof is omitted. In the present embodiment, the control unit 103a performs a new process in addition to the process of the control unit 103 according to the first embodiment. Specifically, the management unit 104a performs other processing to be described later in addition to the processing of the management unit 104 (FIG. 2) according to the first embodiment, and the determination unit 130 is newly added. This is different from Form 1.

  Further, since the basic configuration of the collation device and the reader / writer device according to the present embodiment is the same as that of the collation device 200 and the reader / writer device 400 according to the first embodiment, description will be made with reference to FIGS.

  First, points of interest in the present embodiment will be described. As described in the first embodiment, when there is a collation destination request from the reader / writer device 400, the management device 100 preferentially selects the collation device 200 having a status of Idle and a higher priority. In other words, the collation device 200 with the lowest priority is selected only when collation processing equal to or more than the number of collation devices 200 is occurring simultaneously, that is, when all the collation devices 200 are busy. Therefore, the number of times the matching device 200 having the lowest priority performed the matching process within the predetermined period (the number of logs), the number of matching processes equal to or more than the total number of the matching devices 200 in the store 10 occurred simultaneously within the predetermined period. It can be said that it is equivalent to the number of times.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the management apparatus 100 manages the number of logs in a predetermined number of verification apparatuses 200 having a low priority, so that the number of verification apparatuses 200 installed in the store 10 to which the management apparatus 100 belongs is appropriate. It is determined whether or not.

  In FIG. 11, the management unit 104 a holds in advance a counter that indicates the number of verification cases (the number of logs) in each of the plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200 -N in the store 10. When receiving a collation completion signal from collation device 200 selected by selection unit 105 (corresponding to ST109 shown in FIG. 5), management unit 104a changes the status of collation device 200 from Busy to Idle as in the first embodiment. At the same time, the counter of the matching device 200 is incremented.

  Note that the counter held by the management unit 104a may be reset when the upper limit value equal to the upper limit value of the number of logs held by the collation apparatus 200 is reached. That is, the value of the counter held by the management unit 104a is the same as the number of logs in the verification device 200.

  The determination unit 130 determines whether the number of the plurality of verification devices 200 installed in the store 10 is appropriate based on the counter value of each verification device 200 during a predetermined period. Specifically, the determination unit 130 includes a plurality of matching devices based on at least the counter value of the matching device 200 having the lowest priority among the plurality of matching devices 200-1 to 200-N in the store 10. It is determined whether the number of 200 is appropriate.

  For example, the determination unit 130 uses the counter value of the collation device 200 with the lowest priority and the counter value of the collation device 200 with the second lowest priority to determine the collation device 200 installed in the store 10. Determine whether the number is excessive or insufficient. 12A to 12C show an example of determination processing in the determination unit 130. FIG. 12A to 12C, it is assumed that five verification devices 200 are currently installed in one store 10.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 12A, when the value of the counter of the collation device 200 having the lowest priority (that is, the number of logs of the collation device 200) is 1 or more, all the collation devices 200 are assigned at the store 10 at the same time. The state has occurred at least once. Therefore, the determination unit 130 determines that the verification device 200 is insufficient in the store 10 when the counter value of the verification device 200 having the lowest priority is 1 or more.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 12B, when the number of matching devices 200 whose counter value is 0 is one, there is no state in which all the matching devices 200 are simultaneously assigned in the store 10, and This is a state in which almost all verification devices 200 in the store 10 are used. Therefore, when the counter value of the collation device 200 having the lowest priority is 0 and the counter value of the collation device 200 having the second lowest priority is 1 or more, the determination unit 130 performs collation in the store 10. It is determined that the number of devices 200 is appropriate.

  Further, as illustrated in FIG. 12C, when there are two or more collation devices 200 in which the number of logs is 0, a plurality of collation devices 200 are not used in the store 10. Therefore, when the counter value of the matching device 200 having the lowest priority is 0 and the counter value of the matching device 200 having the second lowest priority is 0, the determination unit 130 performs matching in the store 10. It is determined that the number of devices 200 is excessive.

  In FIG. 12, a case has been described in which the determination unit 130 determines the appropriateness of the number of collation devices 200 using the counter values of the two collation devices 200 having low priorities. When determining appropriateness, the counter values of three or more matching devices 200 having low priorities may be used.

  In this way, the management device 100 identifies the number of times that the matching process occurs simultaneously in all the matching devices 200 based on at least the number of logs (counter value) of the matching device 200 having the lowest priority, 10 determines whether or not the number of verification devices 200 is appropriate. Thereby, in this Embodiment, the management apparatus 100 can provide the information used as the parameter | index for determining the appropriate number of the collation apparatuses 200 with respect to the manager of the shop 10, or an electronic money business operator. That is, for example, an administrator of a store 10 or an electronic money business operator can estimate the appropriate number of verification devices 200 in the store 10 based on the determination result in the management device 100 of each store 10.

  Therefore, according to the present embodiment, by installing an appropriate number of verification devices 200 for each store 10, the verification processing in the store 10 can be appropriately executed. As described above, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of a delay in the collation process, and it is possible to suppress an increase in time required for the collation process by the electronic money.

  Further, the determination result in the determination unit 130 or the value of the counter in the management unit 104a may be displayed on, for example, a display (not shown) provided in the management apparatus 100, or the manager of the store 10 or the electronic money You may display on the display (not shown) of the terminal device which a provider etc. use.

  Further, as illustrated in FIG. 13, the management apparatus 100 may take statistics of determination results in a plurality of periods. In FIG. 13, for example, the management apparatus 100 performs appropriate determination of the number of collation apparatuses 200 based on the counter value (number of logs) for seven periods (for example, seven days), and collates based on the determination results for seven days. A comprehensive appropriateness determination of the number of devices 200 is performed. In FIG. 13, the determination results for 7 days are deficiency 5 times, appropriateness 1 time, and excess 1 time. Since the number of times that the management device 100 is determined to be insufficient is the largest, the management device 100 comprehensively determines that the number of verification devices in the store 10 is insufficient. For example, it may be assumed that fluctuations such as the verification process being biased to a specific day or time occur due to a service (discount service) at the store 10 or the like. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 13, the management device 100 can absorb the fluctuation by determining the appropriateness of the number of verification devices 200 based on long-term statistics. Appropriateness can be determined appropriately.

  In addition, the management device 100 may not include the determination unit 130. In this case, for example, the manager of the store 10 or the electronic money business operator confirms the value of the counter for each collation device 200 managed by the management unit 104a and collates according to the same criteria as the judgment criteria in the judgment unit 130 described above. What is necessary is just to determine the excess or deficiency of the number of apparatuses 200.

(Embodiment 3)
In the withdrawal process performed between the electronic money card and the verification device via the reader / writer device, a subtraction command is transmitted from the reader / writer device to the electronic money card. Communication may be interrupted, such as being separated from the device. When communication with the electronic money card is interrupted during the withdrawal process in this way, the reader / writer device or the verification device does not respond to the subtraction command from the electronic money card, and the recorded content in the electronic money card is subtracted. It is not possible to determine whether the process has been abandoned before being subtracted. Such a state is called “processing incomplete”.

  In the present embodiment, a case where processing incompletion occurs will be described.

  Since the management apparatus, collation apparatus, and reader / writer apparatus according to the present embodiment have the same basic configuration as the management apparatus 100, collation apparatus 200, and reader / writer apparatus 400 according to the first embodiment, FIG. 2, FIG. 3, and FIG. 4 will be used for explanation. The management device 100, the collation device 200, and the reader / writer device 400 according to the present embodiment further perform processing for processing incomplete in addition to the same processing as in the first embodiment. Note that the management apparatus 100, the collation apparatus 200, and the reader / writer apparatus 400 according to the present embodiment may perform the processing described in the second embodiment.

  In collation apparatus 200 (FIG. 3) according to the present embodiment, collation section 203 communicates with reader / writer apparatus 400 when it receives a collation request signal from reader / writer apparatus 400 (FIG. 4), as in the first embodiment. A collation process is performed with the electronic money card inside. When the collation is completed, the collation unit 203 completes the collation result including the card information (Idm or the like) of the electronic money card, the balance information (first balance information) of the electronic money card, and whether or not the process in the collation is incomplete. Is transmitted as a verification completion signal to the management apparatus 100 (FIG. 2) via the communication unit 201. Here, when the processing has not been completed, the balance information of the electronic money card included in the verification completion signal indicates the balance before verification of the electronic money card.

  When receiving a balance inquiry signal for requesting a balance inquiry from the reader / writer device 400, the collation unit 203 acquires balance information (second balance information) from the electronic money card in communication with the reader / writer device 400. The collation unit 203 transmits the acquired balance information to the reader / writer device 400 via the communication unit 201.

  In management device 100 (FIG. 2) according to the present embodiment, management unit 104 includes card information, balance information, and electronic money card information included in a verification completion signal received from each of a plurality of verification devices 200 (FIG. 3). And the matching result (including the presence or absence of incomplete processing) is associated. The associated information is stored in the storage unit 102 as a settlement log.

  When the management unit 104 receives the card information and verification destination request signal of a certain electronic money card from the reader / writer device 400, the management unit 104 selects one verification device 200 from the plurality of verification devices 200 in the same manner as in the first embodiment. select.

  In addition, the management unit 104 refers to the settlement log stored in the storage unit 102 and confirms whether or not the processing incomplete is included in the matching result associated with the card information. When the verification result associated with the card information does not include incomplete processing, the management device 104 transmits only the verification destination information including the IP address of the selected verification device 200 to the reader / writer device 400. On the other hand, when the verification result associated with the card information includes processing incomplete, the management unit 104 performs verification destination information (IP address), a processing incomplete notification indicating that processing is incomplete, and card information. The stored balance information (the first balance information) corresponding to is transmitted to the reader / writer device 400 via the communication unit 101.

  In the reader / writer device 400 (FIG. 4) according to the present embodiment, when the collation control unit 404 receives only collation destination information including the IP address of the collation device 200 as a collation destination from the management device 100, the IP address A verification request signal is transmitted to the verification device 200 corresponding to. On the other hand, when receiving the balance information of the electronic money card and the processing incomplete notification from the management apparatus 100 in addition to the verification destination information (IP address), the verification control unit 404 sends to the verification apparatus 200 corresponding to the IP address. The balance inquiry signal is transmitted without transmitting the verification request signal.

  The verification control unit 404 receives balance information (the second balance information) from the verification device 200. The verification control unit 404 then subtracts the usage fee from the amount indicated in the balance information (first balance information) received from the management device 100, and the balance information (second balance information) received from the verification device 200. It is determined whether or not the amount shown in () matches. If the amounts match, the collation control unit 404 instructs the game machine 300 (billing apparatus 500) to execute the game application via the notification unit 405.

  14 and 15 illustrate operations of the management device 100, the verification device 200, the game machine 300 (the reader / writer device 400, the charging device 500), and the electronic money card in each store 10 of the game system 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. In FIG. 14 and FIG. 15, the same processes as those in the first embodiment (FIG. 5) are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 14 shows the operation when the processing incomplete occurs, and FIG. 15 shows the operation when the management apparatus 100 manages that the processing incomplete has occurred.

  First, the operation of each device when processing incomplete occurs will be described with reference to FIG.

  In FIG. 14, in ST 103 a, the reader / writer device 400 transmits a verification destination request signal to the management device 100 to the management device 100. In this verification destination request signal, in addition to the transaction amount specified in ST101 and the card type of the electronic money card indicated in the card information acquired in ST102, the identification number of the electronic money card acquired in ST102 Idm is included.

  The management device 100 manages the results (settlement log) of each verification process using information received from the reader / writer device 400 and the verification device 200. For example, in the present embodiment, the management device 100 stores a settlement log including at least a transaction amount, whether or not processing has been completed, and whether or not compensation for processing has been completed for each transaction of an electronic money card (that is, each Idm). I manage. These pieces of information are notified to the management apparatus 100 by, for example, the processing of ST103a (that is, the collation destination request signal), ST109a (that is, the collation result of the collation apparatus 200), and ST115a (that is, the processing result of the reader / writer apparatus 400). The

  Here, as shown in FIG. 14, it is assumed that communication interruption occurs during the withdrawal process (ST107) performed between the electronic money card and the verification device 200 via the reader / writer device 400. Note that the cause of the communication interruption in the withdrawal process is not limited to the fact that the electronic money card is separated from the reader / writer device 400, for example, a communication error between the electronic money card and the reader / writer device 400, or A communication error between the reader / writer device 400 and the verification device 200 is also assumed.

  Each of the reader / writer device 400 and the verification device 200 starts timing when the withdrawal process is started (not shown), and when the withdrawal process does not end before a preset time has elapsed, Judged as timeout. For example, the reader / writer device 400 and the collation device 200 may start timing at the transmission / reception timing of the collation request signal in ST106.

  For example, in FIG. 14, since communication interruption has occurred in ST 107, timeout occurs in reader / writer device 400 and verification device 200 in ST 201 and ST 202.

  In this case, the collation device 200 determines that the collation process corresponding to the withdrawal process has not been completed. In ST109a, collation apparatus 200 notifies management apparatus 100 of a collation completion signal indicating that processing has not been completed. In addition, when the collation apparatus 200 has acquired the balance of the electronic money card (the balance before transaction) in the withdrawal process that has timed out, the balance information (first balance information) indicating the balance is also included in the collation completion signal. .

  Further, the reader / writer device 400 determines that the matching process corresponding to the withdrawal process has not been completed, and does not issue a pulse transmission instruction (that is, a game start instruction) to the charging apparatus 500. In ST115a, the reader / writer device 400 notifies the management device 100 of a processing result indicating that a pulse signal (use start instruction) has not been transmitted to the game application control device of the game machine 300.

  The management device 100 updates the stored settlement log using the processing incomplete processing indicated in the verification completion signal received in ST109a and the balance of the corresponding electronic money card (that is, the balance before transaction). (ST110a). Further, management apparatus 100 updates the stored settlement log using the processing result (no pulse transmission) received in ST115a (ST116a).

  As described above, when the processing incomplete occurs, the management apparatus 100 determines that the processing is incomplete, the balance before the transaction, and the transaction amount regarding the electronic money card (Idm) in which the processing is incomplete. Etc. are managed as a settlement log.

  Next, the operation in each device when the management device 100 manages the incomplete processing as described above will be described with reference to FIG.

  In ST301, in ST301, management apparatus 100 searches for a collation result (settlement log) of an electronic money card corresponding to Idm included in the collation destination request signal received in ST103a. As a result of the search, if the electronic money card corresponding to the Idm has not been processed, the management apparatus 100 performs processing in ST105b in addition to the verification destination information including the IP address of the verification apparatus 200 selected in ST104. A processing incomplete notification (double withdrawal suppression instruction), which is an instruction for compensation processing for incomplete, and information indicating the balance before transaction and the transaction amount stored in the settlement log when the processing is incomplete are sent to the reader / writer device 400. Notice.

  Note that the reader / writer device 400 to which the electronic money card is currently connected and the verification device 200 selected this time as the verification destination by the management device 100 were used when processing incomplete occurred for the electronic money card (Idm). The reader / writer device 400 and the verification device 200 are not necessarily the same.

  Upon receiving the processing incomplete notification in ST105b, the reader / writer apparatus 400 in ST106b, a balance inquiry request signal for requesting a balance inquiry to the collation apparatus 200 corresponding to the IP address indicated in the collation destination information received in ST105b. Send. That is, the reader / writer device 400 does not transmit a verification request signal when receiving a processing incomplete notification.

  In ST107b, the collation device 200 that has received the balance inquiry request signal from the reader / writer device 400 performs balance inquiry processing on the electronic money card via the reader / writer device 400.

  In ST108b, the collation device 200 notifies the reader / writer device 400 of a balance collation processing completion signal including the balance of the electronic money card. As in the first embodiment, collation apparatus 200 notifies management apparatus 100 of a collation completion signal including a collation processing result (balance inquiry result) in collation apparatus 200 in ST109.

  In ST302, the reader / writer device 400 determines whether or not the electronic money card needs to be compensated for incomplete processing.

  For example, the reader / writer device 400 obtains the value obtained by subtracting the transaction amount from the pre-transaction balance acquired in ST105b (that is, the amount when the collation process is normally performed) and the current balance of the electronic money card acquired in ST108b. It is determined whether or not they match.

  When the value obtained by subtracting the transaction amount from the balance before transaction matches the balance of the electronic money card, the reader / writer device 400 determines that the balance of the electronic money card has been reduced when the processing has not been completed, and performs compensation processing. In other words, when it is determined in ST302 that the compensation process is necessary, the reader / writer device 400 instructs the charging device 500 to execute the game application in ST112. In other words, the reader / writer device 400 compensates for the usage fee that was accidentally withdrawn when the processing was not completed by not withdrawing the usage fee from the electronic money card in the current verification process.

  In ST115b, the reader / writer device 400 notifies the management device 100 of a processing result indicating that the compensation processing has been performed. The management apparatus 100 updates the stored settlement log that the compensation processing indicated in the processing result received in ST115b has been performed (ST116b). That is, when the management apparatus 100 receives the processing result indicating that the compensation process has been performed from the reader / writer apparatus 400, the management apparatus 100 updates the compensation process associated with the corresponding card information in the settlement log.

  On the other hand, when the value obtained by subtracting the transaction amount from the pre-transaction balance does not match the balance of the electronic money card (not shown), the reader / writer device 400 deducts the usage fee from the electronic money card when the processing is not completed. It is determined that it is not, and no compensation process is performed.

  Further, if the verification device 200 has not acquired the balance (pre-transaction balance) of the electronic money card (ST107 in FIG. 14), that is, if it is not managed in the settlement log of the management device 100, the processing is not completed. Therefore, the reader / writer device 400 does not perform compensation processing.

  When the compensation process is not performed, the reader / writer device 400 may start the collation process in the same manner as in the first embodiment (ST106 shown in FIG. 5) or hold the electronic money card over the user again. Information for prompting the user may be displayed on the display.

  In this way, in the present embodiment, the management apparatus 100 acquires the verification process in which the usage fee is paid by the electronic money card in the store 10 from each verification apparatus 100 and each reader / writer apparatus 400, and the process is not completed. Centralized management as a settlement log including the presence or absence and the presence or absence of compensation for incomplete processing. As a result, in the store 10, the same electronic money card immediately after the occurrence of the processing incomplete in the verification device 200 and the reader / writer device 400 different from the verification device 200 and the reader / writer device 400 used when the processing is incomplete. Even if the collation process is performed by the above, it is possible to perform the compensation process for the electronic money card.

  For example, it is assumed that a plurality of users can use the same game at the same time using a plurality of game machines 300 in the store 10. In this case, when the collation process is not normally completed in the reader / writer device 400 installed in any one of the plurality of game machines 300 (when the process is not completed), the user It is assumed that the electronic money card is again held over the reader / writer device 400 installed in another game machine 300 (for example, an adjacent game machine). Since the management device 100 centrally manages the payment log of the electronic money card for all the devices in the store 10, the game machine 300 when the processing is not completed and the game in which the matching process immediately after is performed are performed. Even if the machine 300 is different, compensation processing can be performed on the electronic money card.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, even if processing incomplete occurs in any of the plurality of reader / writer devices 400 and the plurality of verification devices 200 in each store 10, compensation processing for the processing incomplete can be performed. It becomes. That is, even if the collation device 200 and the reader / writer device 400 that have not been processed are different from the collation device 200 and the reader / writer device 400 that perform the compensation processing, the compensation processing is appropriately performed. In other words, according to the present embodiment, compensation can be performed even if processing incomplete occurs in any apparatus. As a result, it is possible to suppress an increase in time required for collation processing using electronic money, including time required for compensation processing.

  In FIG. 15, when the reader / writer device 400 receives the process incomplete notification (ST105b), the case has been described in which the presence or absence of the compensation process is determined in ST302. However, when the reader / writer device 400 receives the process incomplete notification, the reader / writer apparatus 400 may perform the compensation process without performing the determination.

  In FIG. 14, when processing incomplete occurs, in ST109a, the verification device 200 notifies the management device 100 of the pre-transaction balance of the electronic money card, that is, the management device 100 performs transaction with processing incomplete. The case where the previous balance is associated and managed has been described. However, in this embodiment, when the processing is not completed, in ST109a, the collation apparatus 200 manages the amount obtained by subtracting the usage fee from the pre-transaction balance of the electronic money card (the amount when the transaction is performed). You may notify the apparatus 100. That is, the management apparatus 100 manages the post-transaction balance in association with the incomplete processing. In this case, the management apparatus 100 notifies the reader / writer apparatus 400 of the post-transaction balance together with the processing incomplete notification. In the compensation process, the reader / writer device 400 determines whether or not the compensation process is performed based on whether or not the post-transaction balance managed by the management device 100 matches the balance amount acquired from the electronic money card in communication. What is necessary is just to judge.

  In FIG. 15, when the compensation process is performed in ST302 and a processing result indicating that the compensation process is performed is transmitted from the reader / writer device 400 to the management device 100 (ST115b), the management device 100 displays the settlement log. In the above, the case where the transaction result of the corresponding electronic money card is updated to compensated is described. However, in the present embodiment, instead of the above operation, when the management apparatus 100 transmits a processing incomplete notification to the reader / writer apparatus 400 (ST105b), the management apparatus 100 performs transaction of the corresponding electronic money card in the settlement log. The result may be updated to compensated.

  The embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above.

  In the above embodiment, a case has been described in which priorities are set in advance for the plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200-N. However, in the above-described embodiment, the plurality of verification devices 200-1 to 200-N may be selected so that the usage frequency (the number of selections) is biased. For example, instead of the priority order, a probability according to a normal distribution may be set for each of the plurality of matching devices 200. The management device 100 may select the verification device 200 that is a verification destination based on the probability set for each verification device 200. As a result, in the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N, the probability of being selected as a collation destination is biased according to the normal distribution. Therefore, as described above, the plurality of collation devices 200-1 to 200-N can be used simultaneously. It can be avoided.

  Moreover, although the game system was demonstrated as an example of a game system in the said embodiment, a game system is not limited to a game system. For example, the above embodiment may be applied to a television system for viewing a television set in a hotel guest room. In this case, the store 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 may be regarded as one hotel, and the game machine 300 may be regarded as a television set in a guest room.

  One embodiment of the present disclosure is useful for a system having a game machine that allows a user to pay with electronic money.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Game system 10 Store 20 Network 30 Server 100 Management apparatus 200 Verification apparatus 300 Game machine 400 Reader / writer apparatus 500 Billing apparatus 600 LAN
101, 201, 401 Communication unit 102, 202 Storage unit 103, 103a, 402 Control unit 104, 104a Management unit 105 Selection unit 106, 405 Notification unit 130 Determination unit 203 Verification unit 403 Card control unit 404 Verification control unit

Claims (12)

A plurality of reader / writer devices that are installed in each of a plurality of game devices that execute applications and communicate with a medium that is used as electronic money;
Verification of whether or not the game device usage fee can be paid by the medium, and a withdrawal process performed on the medium via the reader / writer device when it is determined that the payment is possible A plurality of verification devices that transmit a verification completion signal when the verification process is completed ;
A management device for managing the plurality of verification devices;
A game system comprising:
The reader / writer device is
When medium information is received from the medium, a collation destination request signal for requesting an instruction of a collation apparatus that is a collation destination among the plurality of collation apparatuses is transmitted to the management apparatus,
When receiving the collation destination information including the address of the collation device as the collation destination from the management device , the collation request signal is transmitted to the collation device corresponding to the address without passing through the management device ,
When the verification completion signal is received from the verification device and the result of the verification is that the usage fee can be paid, the game device is notified of the execution of the application,
The verification device is
When the verification device determines that the withdrawal process performed via the reader / writer device has timed out, the verification completion signal is transmitted to the management device,
The management device
When receiving the matching destination request signal from the reader-writer device, based on a preset condition, the matching device of the idle one selected from a plurality of matching device, processes the selected matching device Managed as a state,
Transmitting the collation destination information including the address of the selected collation device to the reader / writer device ;
When the collation device receives the collation completion signal transmitted from the collation device when the collation processing is completed or when the collation device determines that the withdrawal process has timed out, Change to free status,
Game system. In the above conditions, a priority order is set for the plurality of verification devices,
The management device selects the one verification device based on the priority;
The game system according to claim 1. The priority order among the plurality of matching devices is changed every predetermined period.
The game system according to claim 2. In the condition, a probability according to a normal distribution is set for each of the plurality of matching devices,
The management device selects the one verification device based on the probability.
The game system according to claim 1. Writer apparatus definitive game system according to claim 1 to 4. Definitive verification device in the game system according to claim 1 to 4. Definitive management device to the game system according to claim 1 to 4. It is installed in each of the plurality of game devices for executing applications, a plurality of reader-writer device for communicating with the medium that is used as electronic money, whether it is possible to pay a charge for the game device by the medium A plurality of collation devices that transmit a collation completion signal upon completion of collation processing including collation and withdrawal processing performed on the medium via the reader / writer device when it is determined that payment is possible, and a management device and, a definitive management device in the game system, including,
When receiving a collation destination request signal for requesting an instruction of a collation device as a collation destination from the reader / writer device that has received medium information from the medium, the plurality of collation devices managed based on a preset condition the verification apparatus of idle one selected from the,
This selected verification device is managed as a processing state,
Sending verification destination information including the address of the selected verification device to the reader / writer device ,
When the collation device receives the collation completion signal transmitted from the collation device when the collation processing is completed or when the collation device determines that the withdrawal process has timed out, Change to free status,
Management device. In the above conditions, a priority order is set for the plurality of verification devices,
Selecting the one verification device based on the priority;
The management device according to claim 8. The priority order among the plurality of matching devices is changed every predetermined period.
The management apparatus according to claim 9. In the condition, a probability according to a normal distribution is set for each of the plurality of matching devices,
Selecting the one verification device based on the probability;
The management device according to claim 8. Whether the collating whether it is possible to pay a charge for Gate arm device by the medium that is used as electronic money, to the medium via the reader writer device if the payment is determined to be A plurality of collation devices that transmit a collation completion signal upon completion of the collation process including the withdrawal process, and the plurality of collation devices are managed, and when the collation process is completed, or the withdrawal process times out When the collation device determines that the collation device has received the collation completion signal transmitted from the collation device, the management system changes the processing state of the collation device to an empty state . A reader / writer device that is installed in each of a plurality of game devices that execute applications and communicates with the medium,
When the medium information is received, a verification destination request signal for requesting an instruction of a verification device to be a verification destination among the verification devices is transmitted to the management device,
Based on conditions set in advance from the plurality of collation devices, when receiving collation destination information indicating the address of one collation device selected from the plurality of collation devices in the empty state, from the management device, Sending a verification request signal to the verification device corresponding to the address without going through the management device ,
When the verification completion signal indicating that the usage fee can be paid is received from the verification device, the game device is notified of the execution of the application.
Reader / writer device.

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