JP6735626B2 - Amusement machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a gaming machine for playing a game.

As a gaming machine, it is equipped with a variable display unit capable of variably displaying a plurality of types of identification information that can be identified, and after variably displaying the variable display unit, the display result is derived by stopping the variable display of the variable display unit. There is a slot machine in which a prize can be generated according to the display result. Further, as a game machine, a game ball, which is a game medium, is launched into a game area by a launching device, and when the game ball wins a winning area such as a winning opening provided in the game area, a predetermined winning value is given to the player. There is a pachinko machine to give.

As such a gaming machine, there is a slot machine that executes a setting changing process for a manager such as a store clerk to change a set value indicating a degree of advantage for the player (for example, Patent Document 1). Further, conventionally, there is also a slot machine that executes setting confirmation processing as processing for confirming the setting value of the slot machine.

JP 2006-34749 A

In the slot machine described above, no consideration is given to the case where an abnormality occurs in the slot machine in the administrator state while the administrator is performing processing such as setting change and setting confirmation. Therefore, when an abnormality occurs in the slot machine in the administrator state, there is a risk that processing such as setting change and setting confirmation may be interrupted.

The present invention has been conceived in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a gaming machine that does not cause any inconvenience when an abnormality occurs in the administrator state.

(1) In a gaming machine (slot machine 1, pachinko gaming machine) for playing a game,
A predetermined operation (administrator such as a store clerk) of the gaming machine turns on the setting key switch 37 in order to shift to the setting change state, and then turns on the power of the slot machine 1 to change the setting confirmation state. Based on the operation of turning on the setting key switch 37 when the power of the slot machine 1 is in the on state for the transition, from the game state in which the game can proceed (game mode) to the administrator state in which the game cannot progress (setting) State transition means (setting confirmation processing and setting change processing by the main control unit 41) for transitioning to an administrator mode such as a changed state and a setting confirmation state;
Abnormality detection means (main control unit 41) for detecting an abnormality (insertion error, payout error, etc.) that has occurred in the gaming machine,
An abnormality processing unit (main control unit 41) for executing abnormality processing (error processing such as displaying an error code (Sh5 of start waiting error processing, etc.)) according to detection of an abnormality by the abnormality detection unit;
An external output unit (main control unit 41) for externally outputting a predetermined signal (setting-in-progress signal, insertion error signal, payout error signal),
The abnormality processing means,
When an abnormality is detected by the abnormality detecting means in the gaming state, the abnormality processing is executed in the gaming state (error processing such as displaying an error code as shown in FIG. Not executed during the setting change process but executed during the game start waiting process),
When an abnormality is detected by the abnormality detecting means in the administrator state, the abnormality processing is executed in the gaming state after the state transition from the administrator state (as shown in FIG. 13, during setting confirmation processing and Even if an error is detected in the timer interrupt process during the setting change process, the error process is executed in the subsequent game start waiting process),
The external output means,
The predetermined signal is externally output when the state is changed from the game state to the manager state by the state changing means (as shown in FIGS. 8, 9, 10 and 22, the setting key switch is turned off). The external output signal is switched from off to on when the status is switched to on and the administrator mode is entered.),
After the state is changed from the manager state to the game state by the state changing means, the external output of the predetermined signal is maintained when the abnormal processing is executed (see FIGS. 8, 9, 10 and 22). As shown, after the setting key switch is switched from on to off and shifts to the game mode, the external output signal is kept on when error processing is being executed), whereas the abnormal processing is executed. If not, the external output of the predetermined signal is terminated (as shown in FIGS. 8, 9, 10 and 22, the setting key switch is switched from on to off and the state is shifted to the game mode, and then error processing is performed. When is not executed, the external output signal switches from on to off).

According to such a configuration, when an abnormality is detected in the administrator state, the abnormality process is executed in the gaming state after the state transition from the administrator state. Therefore, even if an abnormality occurs in the administrator state, the inconvenience that the operation of the administrator in the administrator state is interrupted does not occur, and further, after the state transitions from the administrator state to the gaming state, Occurrence can be suggested to the administrator. Further, since the predetermined signal is externally output when the game state is changed to the manager state, the predetermined signal can be externally output at an appropriate timing. Further, after the state transition from the administrator state to the game state, the external output of the predetermined signal is maintained when the abnormal processing is being executed, while the external output of the predetermined signal is being executed when the abnormal processing is not being executed. Since the output ends, the predetermined signal can be appropriately output to the outside depending on whether or not the abnormal process is executed.

(2) In the gaming machine of (1) above,
An advantage display control means (main control section 41) for performing an advantage display control (display control of the set value) for displaying the advantage (set value) for the player,
Output control means (main control unit 41, sub-control unit 91) for performing output control (output of setting signal, notification of setting confirmation) for recognizing externally that the advantage display control is being performed; Equipped with
The advantage display control means starts the advantage display control with a start operation (setting key switch 37 on), and ends the advantage display control with an end operation (setting key switch 37 off). Then
The output control means starts the output control triggered by the start operation, and ends the output control after a predetermined delay period (delay period) has elapsed after the end operation was performed.

According to such a configuration, the advantage display control is started with the start operation as a trigger and ends with the end operation as a trigger, while outputting that the advantage display control is being performed externally recognizable. Since the output control is started by the start operation and continues until the predetermined delay time elapses after the end operation is performed, it is possible to reliably externally confirm that the advantage is confirmed.

(3) In the gaming machine of (2) above,
The output control is control to output an external output signal (setting signal) indicating that the advantage display control is being performed to an external device,
The output control means starts the output of the external output signal triggered by the start operation, and outputs the external output signal after a predetermined delay period (delay period) has elapsed after the end operation was performed. finish.

With such a configuration, it is possible to make the external device surely recognize that the advantage is confirmed.

(4) In the gaming machine of (2) or (3) above,
A first controller (main controller 41) including the advantage display controller,
An informing means (a liquid crystal display 51, speakers 53, 54) capable of informing,
A second control unit (sub-control unit 91) for controlling the notification unit based on the control information (command) transmitted from the first control unit,
The output control means includes the first control means and the second control means,
The output control is a control (notification during setting confirmation) for notifying by the notifying means that the advantage display control is being performed,
The first control means transmits start control information (setting confirmation start command) indicating the start of the advantage display control triggered by the start operation, and a predetermined delay period (delay) after the end operation is performed. After a period of time has elapsed, end control information (setting confirmation end command) indicating the end of the advantage display control is transmitted,
The second control means starts notification by the notification means (notification during setting confirmation) when the start control information is received, and ends notification by the notification means when the end control information is received.

According to such a configuration, the notification means can surely recognize that the advantage is confirmed.

(5) In the gaming machine according to any one of (2) to (4) above,
Whether to insert a game medium (medal) can be inserted (the insertable flag is set) or cannot be inserted (the insertable flag is not set). Equipped with state setting means (main controller 41),
The loading propriety state setting means loads the game medium regardless of whether the game medium can be loaded or the game medium cannot be loaded when the advantage display control is started. Is set to an impossible state (clear the throwable flag).

With such a configuration, when the advantage display control is performed, regardless of whether the game medium can be loaded or cannot be loaded, the game medium can be loaded. Since the impossible state is set, it is possible to surely make it impossible to insert the game medium when performing the advantage display control.

(6) In the gaming machine according to any one of (2) to (5) above,
Insertion availability determination means (insertion availability determination processing) for determining whether or not a game medium can be loaded,
Insertion permission/inhibition state setting means for setting one of a state in which the game medium can be inserted (a state in which the insertion possible flag is set) and a state in which the game medium cannot be inserted (a state in which the insertion possible flag is not set) (Main controller 41),
The advantage display control means starts the advantage display control with the start operation as a trigger, regardless of whether or not a game medium can be inserted (a state in which an insertable flag is set).
The insertion possibility determination means determines whether or not a game medium (medal) can be inserted when the advantage display control is finished,
The loading propriety state setting means sets a state in which the game medium can be loaded or a state in which the game medium cannot be loaded according to the determination result of the loading capability determination means.

According to such a configuration, even after the end of the advantage display control, even when the game medium can be loaded or the game medium cannot be loaded, the game medium can be changed except when the profit display control is finished. Even when setting the state in which the game medium can be inserted or the state in which the game medium cannot be inserted, the processing for setting these states can be made common.

(7) In the gaming machine according to any one of (2) to (6) above,
The time required to detect the start operation is shorter than the time required to detect an operation related to the progress of the game (on of the start switch 7).

According to such a configuration, since the time required to detect the start operation is relatively short, it is possible to detect at a high rate if there is a possibility that a fraud has been made, and on the other hand to the progress of the game. Since the time required to detect such an operation is relatively long, it is possible to improve the accuracy of determining whether or not an operation has been performed.

(8) In the gaming machine according to any one of (2) to (7) above,
Equipped with a door (front door 1b),
The start operation can be performed on condition that the opening/closing door is open.

With such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the advantage display control from being fraudulently performed.
(9) In the gaming machine according to any one of (1) to (8) above,
The game medium is placed in either a take-in passage for taking in the game medium thrown in from the slot into the game machine or a return passage for discharging the game medium to the outside of the game machine. Switching means for switching the passage through which
A switching control unit (main control unit 41) that performs switching control for switching the passage through which the game medium input from the input port flows down by the switching unit,
Game medium detecting means (inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c) for detecting the passage of the game medium flowing down the intake passage,
Storage means (credit) for storing the number of game media detected by the game media detection means,
A confirmation state control means (main control section 41) is provided for controlling to a confirmation state (setting confirmation state) in which the degree of advantage (set value) for the player can be confirmed based on a predetermined operation (operation of the setting key switch 37). ,
Whether or not the switching control means has already performed switching control for switching to the return passage (control for turning off the flow path switching solenoid 30) when the confirmation state control means controls the confirmation state. Instead, switching control for switching to the return passage (control for turning off the flow passage switching solenoid 30) is performed.

According to such a configuration, when controlling to a confirmation state in which the degree of advantage for the player can be confirmed based on a predetermined operation, a switching control for switching the passage through which the game medium inserted from the inlet flows down to the return passage. Since the switching control for switching to the return passage is performed regardless of whether or not the switching is performed, it is possible to reliably switch to the return passage when controlling to the confirmation state.

(10) In the gaming machine of (9) above,
A detection invalidation unit (main control unit 41) that invalidates the detection of the game medium (medal) by the game medium detection unit (clears the insertable flag) before performing the switching control for switching to the return passage.

According to such a configuration, prior to performing the switching control for switching to the return passage, the detection of the game medium by the game medium detection means is invalidated, so that the passage is switched to the return passage. It is possible to prevent the game medium from being unintentionally detected by the game medium detecting means.

(11) In the gaming machine of (10) above,
After the detection of the game medium is invalidated (cleared by the input enable flag) by the detection inactivating means, the detection of the game medium by the game medium detection means is enabled (insertion) when the insertion of the game medium is permitted. A detection enabling means (main control section 41) for setting a possible flag),
The switching control means switches to the take-in passage on the condition that the detection of the game medium by the game medium detecting means is validated by the detection validating means (the throwable flag is set). (Control for turning on the flow path switching solenoid 30) is performed.

According to such a configuration, when the passage through which the game medium input from the input port flows is switched to the intake passage, the game medium flowing down the intake passage is not detected by the game medium detection means. It can be prevented from flowing down to the inner side of the gaming machine.

(12) In the gaming machine according to any one of (9) to (11) above,
An upper limit number determination means (insertion possibility determination processing) for determining whether or not the number of game media (medals) stored in the storage means has reached an upper limit number (upper limit number of credits),
The upper limit number determination unit determines whether or not the number of game media stored in the storage unit has reached the upper limit number when the setting confirmation state control unit ends the confirmation state,
The switching control means switches to the take-in passage on the condition that the number of game media stored in the storage means has not reached the upper limit by the game media number determination means. The flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned on).

According to such a configuration, even when the switching control for switching to the intake passage is performed after the confirmation state ends, and for the switching control for switching to the intake passage other than the end of the confirmation state, the switching for switching to the intake passage is performed. Control can be shared.

(13) In the gaming machine according to any one of (9) to (12) above,
Control information transmitting means (main control unit 41) for transmitting control information (setting confirmation start command) when controlling to the confirmation state;
And a notification unit (sub-control unit 91) for notifying (setting confirmation notification) based on the control information (setting confirmation start command) transmitted by the control information transmitting unit,
After the control information (setting confirmation start command) is transmitted by the control information transmission unit, the switching control unit performs switching control (control for turning off the flow passage switching solenoid 30) to the return passage.

With such a configuration, it is possible to notify that the game medium cannot be loaded before the passage through which the game medium loaded from the loading port flows down is switched to the return route.

(14) In the gaming machine according to any one of (9) to (13) above,
An abnormality detection unit for detecting an abnormality (medal clogging error) related to the detection of the game medium based on the detection state of the game medium detection unit,
The abnormality detection unit is a period from the time when the switching control unit performs the switching control for switching to the return passage (the control for setting the flow passage switching solenoid 30 to the off state) to the elapse of a predetermined time (500 ms) ( During the period in which the detection time invalidation timer is set), no abnormality related to the detection of the game medium (medal clogging error) is detected.

According to such a configuration, even though the passage through which the game medium flows down has been switched to the return passage, the game medium may flow down into the take-in passage with the momentum that is thrown in. In this case, the game medium The time when the game medium flows down is often longer than the time when the game medium normally flows down, but a predetermined time elapses from the time when the passage through which the game medium flows down is switched to the return passage by the switching means. Since the abnormality related to the detection of the game medium is not detected during the period up to, it is possible to prevent the abnormality detection from occurring frequently due to the so-called game medium being swallowed.

(15) In the gaming machine according to any one of (9) to (14) above,
Insertion possible informing means (insertion request LED 17) for informing that the game medium can be inserted,
And a notification control unit (main control unit 41) for controlling the throwable notification unit,
The notification control means performs switching control (control for turning off the flow path switching solenoid 30) to switch the passage through which the game medium, which is thrown in from the input port, by the switching control means to the return passage. Accordingly, the notification (lighting) by the input possible notification means is stopped.

With such a configuration, it is possible to notify the player that the game medium cannot be loaded because the game has been switched to the return passage.

FIG. 38 is a front view of the slot machine of the embodiment to which the present invention is applied. It is a perspective view showing an internal structure of the slot machine. It is a figure which shows the symbol arrangement of a reel. It is a block diagram showing a configuration of a slot machine. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a main control part. (A) is sectional drawing of the medal selector in the state which turned off the flow-path switching solenoid, and (b) is an AA sectional view of (a). (A) is a sectional view of the medal selector in a state where the flow path switching solenoid is turned on, and (b) is a sectional view taken along line BB of (a). 6 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting confirmation state according to the first embodiment. 6 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting change state according to the first embodiment. 9 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in a setting change state according to the modified example of the first embodiment. 6 is a flowchart showing the control contents of an initialization process executed by the main control unit. 7 is a flowchart showing the control contents of main processing executed by the main control unit. It is a flowchart which shows the control content of the game start waiting process which a main control part performs. It is a flowchart which shows the control content of the game start waiting process which a main control part performs. It is a flowchart which shows the control content of the game start waiting process which a main control part performs. It is a flow chart which shows the contents of control of the medal insertion judgment processing which a main control part performs. 7 is a flowchart showing the control contents of a thrown permission/prohibition determination process executed by the main control unit. 7 is a flowchart showing the control contents of a setting confirmation process executed by the main control unit. 6 is a flowchart showing the control contents of start waiting error processing executed by the main control unit. 7 is a timing chart showing an output situation of an external output signal in the setting confirmation processing. It is a timing chart showing an output situation of an external output signal of the slot machine to which the present invention is not applied. 9 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting confirmation state according to the second embodiment. 9 is a timing chart illustrating a process when an error occurs in the setting change state according to the second embodiment. 9 is a timing chart illustrating a process when an error occurs in a setting change state according to the modified example of the second embodiment.

[Structure of slot machine]
Modes for carrying out a slot machine according to the present invention will be described below based on the embodiments. An embodiment of a slot machine to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the drawings. In the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a housing 1a having a front opening and a housing 1a And a front door 1b rotatably supported at the side end thereof.

Inside the housing 1a of the slot machine 1 according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, reels 2L, 2C, 2R (hereinafter, left reel, middle reel, right) in which a plurality of types of symbols are arranged on the outer periphery are arranged. (Reels) are arranged side by side in the horizontal direction, and as shown in FIG. 1, three continuous symbols among the symbols arranged on these reels 2L, 2C, 2R are seen through the transparent window 3 provided on the front door 1b. It is arranged to be visible.

Each reel 2L, 2C, 2R is rotated by a reel motor 32L, 32C, 32R (see FIG. 4) provided correspondingly, so that the symbols on each reel 2L, 2C, 2R are continuous to the see-through window 3. While the reels 2L, 2C, 2R are stopped from rotating while being displayed, three consecutive symbols are derived and displayed on the see-through window 3 as display results.

Inside the reels 2L, 2C, and 2R, reel sensors 33L, 33C, and 33R that detect reference positions for the reels 2L, 2C, and 2R, respectively, and a reel LED 55 that irradiates the reels 2L, 2C, and 2R from the rear side. , Are provided. The reel LED 55 is composed of 12 LEDs corresponding to three consecutive symbols on the reels 2L, 2C, and 2R, and each symbol can be independently illuminated.

A display area 51a of a liquid crystal display 51 (see FIG. 1) is arranged at the front side (player side) of each reel 2L, 2C, 2R of the front door 1b. The liquid crystal display 51 has a liquid crystal panel which is transparent in the state where no voltage is applied to the liquid crystal element, and through the transparent area 51b and the transparent window 3 corresponding to the transparent window 3 of the display area 51a. As a result, the reels 2L, 2C, 2R can be visually recognized from the player side.

As shown in FIG. 1, the front door 1b is provided with a medal insertion slot 4 into which medals can be inserted, a medal payout opening 9 from which medals are paid out, and a credit (the number of medals stored as a gaming value owned by the player). Using the maximum bet number out of the prescribed number of bets determined according to the gaming state within that range (in the present embodiment, the prescribed number of RT0 to 4 which will be described later is 3 and the prescribed number of RB is 2). MAXBET switch 6 operated when setting (determined), and the medals stored as credits and the medals used for setting the bet number are settled (the medals used for setting the credit and the bet number are set. The settlement switch 10 that is operated when returning), the start switch 7 that is operated when starting the game, and the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R that are operated when stopping the rotation of the reels 2L, 2C, 2R, respectively. A performance switch 56 used for performance is provided so that it can be operated by the player.

In the present embodiment, of the three reels 2L, 2C, 2R that have started to rotate, the reel that first stops is referred to as a first stop reel, and the stop thereof is referred to as a first stop. Similarly, the second stop reel is called the second stop reel, the stop is called the second stop, the third stop reel is called the third stop reel, and the stop is the third stop. Alternatively, it is called a final stop.

Further, as shown in FIG. 1, on the front door 1b, a credit indicator 11 for displaying the number of medals stored as credits, the number of medals paid out by the occurrence of a prize, and the content thereof when an error occurs are shown. An error code, information that can identify the stop order of reels by a navigation notification to be described later, and a game auxiliary display 12 that displays the setting value at that time while changing the setting value or confirming the setting value. 1 bet LED 14 that informs that 1 is set by lighting, 2 bet LED 15 that informs that 2 bets are set by lighting, 3 bet LED 16 that informs that 3 bets are set by lighting, and medal insertion is possible Input request LED 17 for notifying that the state is turned on by lighting, start effective LED 18 for notifying that the start operation of the game by operating the start switch 7 is effective, weight (because a certain period has not elapsed since the start of the previous game. A game display section 13 is provided, which is provided with a waiting LED 19 that lights to indicate that it is in a state of waiting for the start of reel rotation, and a replay LED 20 that lights to indicate that a replay game is in progress. ing.

Inside the MAXBET switch 6, a BET switch valid LED 21 (see FIG. 4) for notifying by lighting that the setting operation of the bet number by the operation of the MAXBET switch 6 is provided, the stop switches 8L, 8C, Inside the 8R, there are provided left, middle, and right stop enable LEDs 22L, 22C, 22R (see FIG. 4) for notifying by lighting that the stop operation of the reels by the corresponding stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R is effective. In the interior of the effect switch 56, there is provided an effect LED 56a (see FIG. 4) for notifying by lighting that the operation of the effect switch 56 is effective.

Inside the front door 1b, as shown in FIG. 2, a reset switch 23 for detecting a reset operation for canceling an error state described later and a stopped state described later by a predetermined key operation, and a predetermined switch is used to stop. A stop switch 36a for selecting valid/invalid of a stop function for controlling a state (a state in which the progress of the game is restricted until a reset operation is performed), an automatic settlement process (stored as a credit at a predetermined timing) The automatic settlement switch 36b for selecting the valid/invalid of the automatic settlement function for controlling the settlement (returning) regardless of the player's operation), and the passage of the medals inserted from the medal slot 4 , A channel switching solenoid 30 for selectively switching to one of a hopper tank 34a (see FIG. 2), which will be described later, provided inside the housing 1a or a medal payout opening 9 side, and insertion from a medal insertion opening 4 The inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c for detecting medals flowing down to the hopper tank 34a side, and the medal selector 29 having the insertion opening sensor 26 for detecting the insertion of foreign matter on the upstream side of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c, the front door 1b. A door open detection switch 25 (see FIG. 4) for detecting the open state is provided.

As shown in FIG. 2, the reel 1L, 2C, 2R, the reel motors 32L, 32C, 32R (see FIG. 4), and the reel reference positions of the reels 2L, 2C, 2R are respectively provided inside the housing 1a. Reel unit 2 composed of detectable reel sensors 33L, 33C, 33R (see FIG. 4), external output substrate 1000 (see FIG. 4) for outputting an external output signal, and stores medals inserted from medal slot 4 The hopper tank 34a, the hopper motor 34b for paying out the medals stored in the hopper tank 34a from the medal payout opening 9 (see FIG. 4), and the payout sensor 34c for detecting the medals paid out by driving the hopper motor 34b ( A hopper unit 34 (see FIG. 4) and a power supply box 100 are provided.

An overflow tank 35 for storing medals overflowing from the hopper tank 34a is provided on the side of the hopper unit 34. Inside the overflow tank 35, a full tank sensor 35a (see FIG. 4) for detecting that the stored medals are full is provided.

As shown in FIG. 2, on the front surface of the power supply box 100, a setting key switch 37 for switching to a setting change state or a setting confirmation state, and a reset switch for canceling an error state or a stopped state in a normal state are functioned. However, in the setting change state, the reset/setting switch 38 that functions as a setting switch for changing the set value of the winning probability (ball-out rate) of the internal lottery, which will be described later, the power supply that is operated when the power is turned on/off. A switch 39 is provided.

Since the power supply box 100 is provided inside the housing 1a, and the front door 1b can be opened by a predetermined key operation carried by a store clerk or the like, it is provided on the front surface of these power supply boxes 100. The set key switch 37, the reset/set switch 38, and the power switch 39 are operated only by a person having a key, such as a store clerk, and cannot be operated by the player. The same applies to the reset switch 23 detected by a predetermined key operation. In particular, since the setting key switch 37 requires the key operation after opening the front door 1b by the key operation, only the clerk of the game hall who has the key to operate the setting key switch 37 It is possible to operate.

When a game is played in the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, first, medals are inserted through the medal insertion slot 4 or credits are used to set the bet number. To use the credit, the MAXBET switch 6 may be operated. When the specified number of bets determined according to the gaming state is set, the pay line LN (see FIG. 1) becomes valid, and the operation of the start switch 7 is valid, that is, the game can be started. Become. In the present embodiment, three bets are set as the specified number of bets in RT0 to 4 to be described later, and two are set as the bet number in the RB to be described later, and the specified number according to the gaming state. When the bet number is set, the pay line LN becomes effective. It should be noted that when the medals are thrown in exceeding the maximum number out of the prescribed number corresponding to the gaming state, the amount is added to the credit.

The winning line is a line set to determine whether the combination of symbols displayed on the transparent window 3 of each reel 2L, 2C, 2R is a combination of winning symbols. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, only the pay line LN is set across the symbols arranged horizontally in the middle of the reel 2L, the middle of the reel 2C, and the middle of the reel 2R, that is, the middle. Is defined as. Although only one pay line is applied in the present embodiment, a plurality of pay lines may be applied.

In addition, in the present embodiment, in order to make it easy to recognize that the winning line LN has a combination of symbols constituting the winning line, ineffective lines LM1 to 4 are set separately from the winning line LN. The ineffective lines LM1 to 4 are not those in which the winning is determined by the combination of the symbols arranged in the ineffective lines LM1 to LM, and the ineffective lines are obtained when the combinations of the symbols constituting the specific winning are aligned in the winning line LN. By configuring a combination of symbols (for example, Bell-Bell-Bell) that will be won when aligned on the pay line LN in any of LM1 to 4, it is possible to configure a specific prize on the pay line LN. This makes it easy to recognize that the combinations are complete.

In addition, in the present embodiment, as a winning combination, when a predetermined combination of symbols (for example, “bell-watermelon-cherry b”) defined as a winning combination on the winning line LN is prepared, the winning combination is made and at the same time. By aligning the symbol combinations in any of the invalid lines LM1 to LM4, which are indexes that are easier to recognize than the predetermined symbol combinations (for example, “watermelon-watermelon-watermelon”), the invalid lines LM1 to LM1. Includes a winning combination that can be shown as a winning combination by using a combination of symbols arranged in any of LM4. In the following, when a predetermined symbol combination is aligned on the pay line LN, a symbol combination aligned on any of the ineffective lines LM1 to LM4 is referred to as an index symbol combination, and an index symbol combination is configured. The design is called an index design.

When the start switch 7 is operated in a state in which the game can be started, the reels 2L, 2C, 2R rotate, and the symbols on the reels 2L, 2C, 2R continuously change. When any of the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R is operated in this state, the rotation of the corresponding reels 2L, 2C, 2R is stopped and the display result is derived and displayed on the see-through window 3.

Then, all the reels 2L, 2C, 2R are stopped to complete one game, and a predetermined symbol combination (hereinafter also referred to as a winning combination) on the pay line LN is displayed on each reel 2L, 2C, 2R. As a result, when the game is stopped, a prize is generated, and the number of medals determined according to the prize is given to the player and added to the credit. When the number of credits reaches the upper limit (50 in this embodiment), medals are paid out directly from the medal payout opening 9 (see FIG. 1). Further, on the pay line LN, when the combination of symbols accompanied by the transition of the game state is stopped as the display result of each reel 2L, 2C, 2R, the state of the game is shifted to the game state corresponding to the combination of the symbols. ..

In the present embodiment, the game starts when the operation of the start switch 7 is detected while the operation of the start switch 7 is valid, and the game ends when all reels are stopped. Further, the control of one unit for executing the game (game control) starts when all the controls accompanying the end of the previous game are completed, and when all the controls associated with the end of the game are completed. finish.

Further, in the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, after the game is started and the reels 2L, 2C, 2R are rotated to start changing the symbols, one of the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R is turned on. When operated, the rotation of the reels corresponding to the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R is stopped and the symbols are stopped and displayed. The maximum stop delay time from the operation of the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R to the stop of the rotation of the corresponding reels 2L, 2C, 2R is 190 ms (milliseconds).

The reels 2L, 2C, and 2R rotate 80 times per minute, and the symbols for 80×21 (the number of symbol frames per reel)=1680 frames are changed, so a maximum of 4 symbols are drawn in 190 ms. It will be possible. That is, the symbols that can be selected as the stop symbols are the symbols displayed when the stop switches 8L, 8C, and 8R are operated, and the symbols that are four frames ahead therefrom, that is, the symbols for a total of five frames.

Therefore, for example, when the symbols displayed in the lower row of the reel corresponding to the stop switch when any of the stop switches 8L, 8C, and 8R is operated as a reference, the symbols up to four frames ahead Since the symbol can be displayed in the lower row, in each reel 2L, 2C, 2R, the symbol displayed in the middle row of the reel corresponding to the stop switch when any of the stop switches 8L, 8R is operated It is possible to display symbols arranged within 5 frames including the symbol on the pay line.

Hereinafter, the reels 2L, 2C, and 2R may be simply referred to as reels unless it is necessary to distinguish them. Further, the reel 2L may be referred to as a left reel, the reel 2C may be referred to as a middle reel, and the reel 2R may be referred to as a right reel. Further, an operation of stopping the reels 2L, 2C, 2R by operating the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R may be referred to as a stop operation.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the slot machine 1. As shown in FIG. 4, the slot machine 1 is provided with a game control board 40, an effect control board 90, and a power supply board 101. The game control board 40 controls the game state, and the effect control board 90 causes the game state. The effect according to is controlled, and the power supply board 101 generates drive power for the electric components that make up the slot machine 1, and supplies the drive power to each unit.

The power supply board 101 is supplied with an AC100V power supply from the outside, and a DC voltage necessary for driving the electric components of the slot machine 1 is generated from the AC100V power supply, and the game control board 40 and the effect control board 90 are generated. To be supplied to. Further, the hopper motor 34b, the dispensing sensor 34c, the full tank sensor 35a, the setting key switch 37, the reset/setting switch 38, and the power supply switch 39 are connected to the power supply board 101.

On the game control board 40, the MAXBET switch 6, the start switch 7, the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R, the settlement switch 10, the reset switch 23, the stop switch 36a, the automatic settlement switch 36b, the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c, which are described above. The door opening detection switch 25 and the reel sensors 33L, 33C, 33R are connected, and the above-mentioned payout sensor 34c, full tank sensor 35a, setting key switch 37, and reset/setting switch 38 are connected via the power supply board 101. The detection signals of these connected switches are input. Further, on the game control board 40, the above-mentioned credit indicator 11, game auxiliary indicator 12, 1 to 3 BET LEDs 14 to 16, insertion request LED 17, start valid LED 18, wait LED 19, replay LED 20, BET switch valid LED 21, left. , Middle, right stop valid LEDs 22L, 22C, 22R, flow path switching solenoid 30, reel motors 32L, 32C, 32R are connected, and the above-mentioned hopper motor 34b is connected via the power supply board 101. The electric components are driven under the control of a main controller 41, which will be described later, mounted on the game control board 40.

On the game control board 40, a main control section 41 for directly or indirectly controlling each section of the control circuit mounted on the game control board 40 as well as performing processing relating to the progress of the game, and an oscillation signal of a predetermined frequency are provided. A control clock generation circuit 42 that generates a control clock CCLK, a random number clock generation circuit 43 that generates a random number clock RCLK that is an oscillation signal of a predetermined frequency different from the oscillation frequency of the control clock CCLK, and a game control board. A switch detection circuit 44 that receives a detection signal input from switches connected directly to the 40 or via the power supply board 101 and transmits the detection signal to the main control unit 41, and a motor drive signal output from the main control unit 41 (stepping A motor drive circuit 45 for transmitting a motor phase signal) to the reel motors 32L, 32C, 32R, a solenoid drive circuit 46 for transmitting a solenoid drive signal output from the main control unit 41 to the flow path switching solenoid 30, and a main control The LED drive circuit 47 for transmitting the LED drive signal output from the section 41 to various display devices and LEDs connected to the game control board 40, and the voltage of the power supply supplied to the slot machine 1 are monitored to reduce the voltage. When detected, the power failure detection circuit 48 that outputs a voltage drop signal indicating that to the main control unit 41, and the main control unit 41 in a state where power supply is unstable such as when power is turned on or off. And a reset circuit 49 for providing a system reset signal.

FIG. 5 shows a configuration example of the main control unit 41 mounted on the game control board 40. The main control unit 41 is a one-chip microcomputer, and has an external bus interface 501, a clock circuit 502, a matching block 503, a unique information storage circuit 504, an arithmetic circuit 505, a reset/interrupt controller 506, A CPU (Central Processing Unit) 41a, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 41b, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 41c, a free-run counter circuit 507, random number circuits 508a and 508b, a timer circuit 509, and an interrupt controller 510. A parallel input port 511, a serial communication circuit 512, a parallel output port 513, and an address decoding circuit 514.

The reset/interrupt controller 506 is for controlling various reset and interrupt requests generated inside or outside the main control unit 41. The reset/interrupt controller 506 includes an out-of-designated area prohibition (IAT) circuit 506a and a watchdog timer (WDT) 506b. The IAT circuit 506a is a circuit for monitoring whether or not the user program is correctly executed in the designated area, and has a function of outputting an IAT generation signal when detecting that the user program is executed outside the designated area. Further, the watchdog timer 506b has a function of generating a time-out signal for each set period.

The external bus interface 501 is a bus interface having an interface function between an external bus and an internal bus of a chip constituting the main control unit 41, an address bus, a data bus, and a direction control function of each control signal. The clock circuit 502 is a circuit that generates the internal system clock SCLK by dividing the control clock CCLK by two. The verification block 503 has a function of connecting to an external verification device and performing chip verification. The unique information storage circuit 504 is a circuit that stores a plurality of types of unique information as internal information of the main control unit 41. The arithmetic circuit 505 is a circuit that performs multiplication and division.

The CPU 41a is a control CPU that executes game control in the slot machine 1 by executing a user program (game control processing program for game control) based on the control code read from the ROM 41b. When such game control is executed, the CPU 41a reads fixed data from the ROM 41b to read fixed data, the CPU 41a writes variable data to the RAM 41c to temporarily store various data, and the CPU 41a temporarily stores to RAM 41c. A variable data read operation for reading various kinds of variable data, a reception operation in which the CPU 41a receives an input of various signals from the outside of the main control unit 41 via the external bus interface 501, the parallel input port 511, the serial communication circuit 512, and the like, the CPU 41a. A transmission operation for outputting various signals to the outside of the main control unit 41 via the external bus interface 501, the serial communication circuit 512, the parallel output port 513, and the like is also performed.

The ROM 41b stores a control code indicating a user program (game control processing program for game control), fixed data, and the like. The RAM 41c provides a work area or the like for game control. Here, at least a part of the RAM 41c may be a backup RAM backed up by a backup power supply. That is, even if the power supply to the slot machine 1 is stopped, at least a part of the content of the RAM 41c is saved for a predetermined period.

An 8-bit free-run counter is mounted as the free-run counter circuit 507. The random number circuits 508a and 508b are circuits that generate numerical data such as 8-bit random numbers and 16-bit random numbers, which are random number values having a predetermined update range. In this embodiment, the hardware random number generated by the 16-bit random number circuit 508b of the random number circuits 508a and 508b is used as a random number for internal lottery described later. The timer circuit 509 is a 16-bit programmable timer, down-counts the set timer value based on the input of the control clock CCLK, and outputs an interrupt request signal to the interrupt controller when 0000H is reached. In this embodiment, it is possible to use the timer circuit 509 to periodically make an interrupt request or measure time.

The interrupt controller 510 is a circuit that controls an external interrupt request from an interrupt terminal and an interrupt request from a built-in peripheral circuit (eg, serial communication circuit 512, random number circuits 508a and 508b, timer circuit 509). .. The parallel input port 511 has a built-in 8-bit wide input-only port. The parallel output port 513 included in the main control unit 41 shown in FIG. 4 has a built-in 11-bit width dedicated output port. The serial communication circuit 512 is a circuit that performs asynchronous serial communication in input/output to/from the outside.

The address decode circuit 514 is a circuit for decoding each functional block inside the main control unit 41 and a chip select signal which is a decode signal for an external device. By the chip select signal, the internal circuit of the main control unit 41 or an external device serving as a peripheral device is selectively activated to enable access from the CPU 41a.

For example, when the main control unit 41 accesses an area of the storage area of the ROM 41b in which a program or the like is not stored, or an access prohibited area of the storage area of the RAM 41c is accessed. In other words, when an access to a memory area that is not accessed in normal operation is made, an illegal access reset is generated, so that the progress of the game is disabled, and an unused area or operation of the ROM 41b is performed. Even if an unauthorized program is stored in an area that is not related to, an unused area of the RAM 41c, etc., it is possible to prevent the unauthorized program from being executed.

Further, the main control unit 41 is activated when an internal or external reset occurs. At this time, the value assigned to the ROM 41b and set in the vector table in which the start address of the interrupt process is set. Determines whether the value is an unused value or a value indicating the area where the program, etc. is actually stored.If it is neither value, it will not start and the interrupt It is possible to prevent in advance that processing that is not intended is executed due to occurrence or the like.

The main control unit 41 transmits various commands to the sub control unit 91 via the parallel output port 513. The command transmitted from the main control unit 41 to the sub control unit 91 is transmitted only in one direction, and the command is not transmitted from the sub control unit 91 to the main control unit 41. Further, in the present embodiment, the command is transmitted to the sub-control unit 91 via the parallel output port 513, that is, the command is transmitted as a parallel signal. However, the command is transmitted via the serial communication circuit 512. Alternatively, the command may be transmitted to the sub control unit 91, that is, the command may be transmitted as a serial signal.

Further, the main control unit 41 receives the detection states of various switches connected to the game control board 40 from the parallel input port 511. Then, the main control unit 41 executes a main process that shifts stepwise according to the detection states of various switches input from the parallel input port 511. Further, the main control unit 41 can interrupt the main process when an interrupt occurs and execute the interrupt process. In the present embodiment, the timer circuit 509 executes the time-out, that is, the timer interrupt process (main) is executed at regular time intervals (about 0.56 ms in the present embodiment). Further, the main control unit 41 is set so as to automatically prohibit other interrupts during execution of the interrupt process, and when a plurality of interrupts occur at the same time, a predetermined order is set. Has set the interrupt to be executed with priority. If another interrupt factor occurs during execution of the interrupt process and the interrupt factor continues even after the interrupt process ends, the interrupt will be generated when the interrupt process ends. The prohibition is automatically lifted, and a new interrupt will be generated at that time. Note that other interrupts are set to be automatically prohibited during execution of the interrupt process, and the interrupt prohibition is not automatically released when the interrupt process is completed. Other interrupts may be prohibited by the program at the start, and the interrupt prohibition may be canceled by the program at the end of the interrupt process.

The main control unit 41 repeatedly loops the processing according to the control state until the detection state of the various switches connected to the game control board 40 changes as the main processing, and responds to the change of the detection state of the various switches. Execute the process of shifting in stages. Further, the main control unit 41 executes a timer interrupt process (main) at regular time intervals (about 0.56 ms in this embodiment). Note that the execution interval of the timer interrupt process (main) is set to a time longer than the sum of the time when the process that repeats according to the control state makes a round in the main process and the execution time of the timer interrupt process (main). As a result, between the current time and the next timer interrupt process (main), the process that repeats according to the control state must be completed at least once.

In addition, the main control unit 41 acquires the input data in the port input processing for various switches each time the timer interrupt processing is executed, and the input data acquired in the current timer interrupt processing and the previous timer interrupt processing. When the input data acquired in the process is in the same state, the finalized data indicating that the current input data and the previous input data are the same for each corresponding switch is set in a predetermined area of the RAM 41c, and the current timer interrupt is set. When the finalized data set in the processing and the finalized data set in the previous timer interrupt processing are in different states, the edge data of each switch indicating that the finalized data in this time and the finalized data are different is stored in the RAM 41c. Is set in a predetermined area.

Then, for example, with respect to the start switch 7, it is determined whether or not the start switch 7 is operated in a state in which the game can be started based on whether or not rising edge data indicating the rising of the start switch 7 is set. The rising edge data of the start switch 7 is detected by the start switch 7 in the switch input determination processing which is executed once every four timer interrupt processing (main) which is executed by interrupting at fixed intervals (every 2.24 ms). It is set on condition that the definite data based on the state has changed from off to on. Since the finalized data is data that is updated only when the current detection state and the previous state match for each switch input determination process, the rising edge data of the start switch 7 is the detection state of the start switch 7 being off. In this case, it is set when the start switch 7 is detected to be on twice in succession in the switch input determination process. On the other hand, since the execution interval of the switch input determination process is about 2.24 ms, the start switch 7 is provided on condition that it is continuously detected for at least about 2.24 ms or more after the start switch 7 is turned on. The rising edge data is set, and the operation of the start switch 7 is detected. It should be noted that the determination data and the edge data are similarly set for various switches other than the start switch 7.

As a result, the operation of each switch is detected under the condition that the on state is continuously detected for a certain period (at least about 2.24 ms) for a certain period of time. It is possible to prevent the on state of each switch from being erroneously detected due to the noise of.

Regarding the setting key switch 37, whether the setting key switch 37 has been operated in the initial setting process that is first executed after the power supply to the slot machine 1 is started and the game start waiting process that waits until the game is started. Whether or not it is determined based on the state of the input port corresponding to the setting key switch 37. That is, the operation of the setting key switch 37 is detected only by changing the setting key switch 37 to the on state.

Thereby, in the initial setting process or the game start waiting process, whether the setting key switch 37 has been operated based on the on-off state of the setting key switch 37 when determining whether the setting key switch 37 has been operated Since it is determined whether or not the setting key switch 37 is turned on, even if the setting key switch 37 is on or below the execution interval of the timer interrupt process (main), the setting key switch 37 may be operated. It can be determined that the key switch 37 has been operated.

A production switch 56 is connected to the production control board 90, and a detection signal of the production switch 56 is input. Further, production devices such as a liquid crystal display 51, a production effect LED 52, speakers 53 and 54, a reel LED 55, etc. are connected, and these production devices are controlled by a sub-control unit 91, which will be described later, mounted on the production control board 90. It is designed to be driven based on. In the present embodiment, the sub-control unit 91 mounted on the effect control board 90 controls the output of the effect devices such as the liquid crystal display 51, the effect effect LEDs 52, the speakers 53 and 54, and the reel LEDs 55. However, in addition to the sub-control unit 91, an output control unit that directly controls the output of the production device is mounted on the production control board 90 or another board, and the sub-control unit 91 is based on a command from the main control unit 41. The output pattern of the rendering device may be determined by the sub-control unit 91, and the output control unit may control the output of the rendering device based on the output pattern determined by the sub-control unit 91. The output control of the effect device is performed by both of the control units. Further, in the present embodiment, the liquid crystal display 51, the effect LED 52, the speakers 53 and 54, and the reel LED 55 are illustrated as the effect device, but the effect device is not limited to these, and is mechanically driven, for example. A display device or a mechanically driven role object may be applied as the production device.

The effect control board 90 is composed of a microcomputer having a sub CPU 91a, a ROM 91b, a RAM 91c, and an I/O port 91d, and controls the effect. Display control circuit 92 for performing display control, effect effect LED 52, LED drive circuit 93 for performing drive control of reel LED 55, audio output circuit 94 for performing audio output control from speakers 53, 54, power-on or A reset circuit 95 that gives a reset signal to the sub CPU 91a when an initialization command from the sub CPU 91a is not input for a certain period of time, and a switch detection circuit 96 that detects a detection signal input from switches connected to the production control board 90. , A clock device 97 for outputting time information including date information and time information, and a power supply voltage supplied to the slot machine 1 are monitored, and when a voltage drop is detected, a voltage drop signal indicating that is sent to the sub CPU 91a. An electric power failure detection circuit 98 for outputting the signal and other circuits are mounted.

The sub CPU 91a receives a command transmitted from the game control board 40, performs various controls for performing an effect, and directly or indirectly controls each part of the control circuit mounted on the effect control board 90. ..

The reset circuit 95 is set to have a lower voltage for releasing the reset signal than the reset circuit 49 which gives a system reset signal to the main control unit 41 in the game control board 40, and the sub control unit 91 controls the main control when the power is turned on. It is designed to be activated earlier than the section 41. On the other hand, the power cutoff detection circuit 98 is set to have a lower voltage for outputting the voltage drop signal than the power cutoff detection circuit 48 for outputting the voltage drop signal to the main control unit 41 in the game control board 40. In, the sub control unit 91 detects the power failure at a stage later than that of the main control unit 41 and performs the power interruption process (sub).

Like the main control unit 41, the sub control unit 91 has an interrupt function, generates an interrupt when receiving a command from the main control unit 41, and acquires the command transmitted from the main control unit 41. , Execute command reception interrupt processing to store in the buffer. Further, the sub control unit 91 generates an interrupt each time the number of inputs of the system clock reaches a constant number, that is, at a constant time interval (about 2 ms), and executes a timer interrupt process (sub) described later. Further, unlike the main control unit 41, the sub control unit 91 interrupts the process even if the timer interrupt process (sub) is being executed when the interrupt occurs based on the reception of the command. The command reception interrupt process is executed at 1, and the command reception interrupt process is executed with the highest priority even if the interrupts that trigger the timer interrupt process (sub) occur simultaneously. Further, the backup power supply is also supplied to the sub control unit 91 during a power failure, and the data stored in the RAM 91c is retained while the backup power supply is supplied.

[Setting value]
In the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, the payout rate of medals changes according to the set value. Specifically, the payout rate of medals can be changed by determining the winning probability used in the internal lottery described later according to the set value. The fact that the winning probability changes according to the set value is also referred to as a setting difference, and the fact that the winning probability does not change according to the setting value is also referred to as no setting difference. The set value is composed of 6 levels from 1 to 6, where 6 is the highest payout rate, and the smaller the value is in the order of 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, the lower the payout rate. That is, when 6 is set as the set value, the advantage is highest for the player, and as the value becomes smaller in the order of 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, the advantage becomes gradually lower. However, among a plurality of types of lottery target combinations, to a section in a state where the degree of advantage for the player is high (such as a high probability state of AT lottery called CZ, and a state in which a net increase in number like AT described later increases). There is no setting difference in the lottery target winning combination that is the target of the advantageous section operation lottery that determines whether or not to shift. On the other hand, among a plurality of types of lottery target winning combinations, lottery target winning combinations that are not the target of the advantageous section operation lottery may have a setting difference. In order to change the set value, a setting key switch 37 provided inside the slot machine 1 may be operated by a manager such as a store clerk to shift to a setting change state in which the set value can be changed. Further, in order to confirm the set value, an administrator such as a store clerk may operate the setting key switch 37 to shift to a setting confirmation state in which the set value can be confirmed.

In addition, changing the winning probability of the internal lottery according to the setting of the set value, changing the winning probability of the advantageous section operation lottery according to the setting of the setting value, and winning the internal lottery according to the setting of the setting value Any of changing the probability and changing the winning probability of the advantageous zone operation lottery may be performed.

In order to change the set value, it is necessary to turn on the setting key switch 37 and then turn on the slot machine 1. When the setting key switch 37 is turned on and the power is turned on, the setting value read from the RAM 41c is displayed as a display value on the game auxiliary display 12, and the setting value can be changed by operating the reset/setting switch 38. Change to change state. When the reset/setting switch 38 is operated in the setting change state, the display value displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 is updated by 1 (when the setting value 6 is further operated, it is set to 1). Return). Then, when the start switch 7 is operated, the display value is set as the set value. Then, when the setting key switch 37 is turned off, the confirmed display value (setting value) is stored in the RAM 41c of the main control unit 41, and the game is allowed to proceed.

Note that when the setting key switch 37 is turned on and the power is turned on, the door open detection switch 25 detects that the front door 1b has been opened, and the setting change state may be set. Of course, with such a configuration, it is possible to prevent unauthorized setting changes while the front door 1b is not open. Further, in the configuration in which the state is changed to the setting change state on the condition that the detection corresponding to the opening of the front door 1b is made, the door open detection switch 25 corresponds to the opening of the front door 1b after the state is changed to the setting change state. It is preferable to maintain the setting change state even if the detection is not made, so that even if the front door 1b is temporarily closed during the setting change, the operation for shifting to the setting change state again can be performed. It is not necessary and the setting change operation does not become complicated. Further, when the setting switch is turned off after the start switch 7 is operated and the set value is confirmed after the setting is changed, the door open detection switch 25 detects the opening of the front door 1b. It may be configured to end the setting change state and shift to a state in which the game can be progressed on condition that the front door 1b is not opened even in such a configuration. It is possible to prevent the settings from being changed.

Further, in order to confirm the set value, after the game is over, the setting key switch 37 may be turned on with the bet number not set. When the setting key switch 37 is turned on in such a situation, the setting value read from the RAM 41c is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, and the setting value is confirmed. In the setting confirmation state, the game cannot proceed, and by setting the setting key switch 37 to the off state, the setting confirmation state ends, and the game is returned to a state in which it can proceed.

After the game is over, when the setting key switch 37 is turned on with the bet number not set, the door open detection switch 25 detects that the front door 1b is opened. The configuration may be changed to the setting confirmation state, and with such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the setting value from being illegally confirmed while the front door 1b is not opened. In addition, in the configuration that shifts to the setting confirmation state on condition that the detection corresponding to the opening of the front door 1b is performed, after the shift to the setting confirmation state, the front door 1b is opened by the door opening detection switch 25. It is preferable to maintain the setting confirmation state even if it is not detected, so that even if the front door 1b is temporarily closed during the setting confirmation, the operation for shifting to the setting confirmation state again can be performed. It is not necessary and the setting confirmation operation does not become complicated. Further, when the setting switch is turned off after the start switch 7 is operated and the set value is confirmed after shifting to the setting confirmation state, the door open detection switch 25 detects the opening of the front door 1b. It may be configured to end the setting confirmation state and return to a state where the game can proceed, on condition that the front door 1b is not opened even in such a configuration. It is possible to prevent the set value from being confirmed.

[Disconnection]
In the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 determines whether or not the voltage drop signal from the power failure detection circuit 48 is detected every time the timer interrupt process (main) is executed. When the power outage determination process is performed and it is determined that the voltage drop signal is detected in the power outage determination process, the power interruption process (main) for setting the data for determining whether the data in the RAM 41c is normal at the next recovery To execute.

Then, the main control unit 41 restores the processing state of the main control unit 41 to the state before the power interruption based on the data stored in the RAM 41c, provided that the data in the RAM 41c is normal at the time of its activation. However, when the RAM 41c data is not normal, it is determined that the RAM is abnormal, the RAM abnormality error code is set in the register to control the RAM abnormality error state, and the progress of the game is disabled.

The sub control unit 91 also determines whether or not the voltage drop signal from the power failure detection circuit 98 is detected in the timer interrupt process (sub), and when it is determined that the voltage drop signal is detected, When returning next time, an electric power interruption process (sub) for setting data for determining whether the data in the RAM 91c is normal is executed.

Then, the sub-control unit 91 restores the processing state of the sub-control unit 91 to the state before the power interruption based on the data stored in the RAM 91c, provided that the data in the RAM 91c is normal at the time of its activation. However, if the data in the RAM 91c is not normal, it is determined that the RAM is abnormal and the RAM 91c is initialized. In this case, unlike the main control unit 41, the RAM 91c is only initialized and the execution of the effect is not disabled.

Even if the sub control unit 91 determines that the data in the RAM 91c is normal at the time of its activation, if the sub control unit 91 receives from the main control unit 41 a setting command to be described later, which indicates that the setting has been changed, the sub control unit 91 is activated. The RAM 91c is adapted to be initialized even when neither a later-described restoration command nor a setting command indicating that the control state of the main control unit 41 has been restored is received even after a lapse of a certain time thereafter. Also in this case, the RAM 91c is only initialized, and execution of the effect is not disabled.

In the initial setting process, the main control unit 41 first sets the interrupt to disabled and then determines whether the setting key switch 37 is in the on state at the time of startup, and the setting key switch 37 is turned on at the time of startup. When it is determined that the state is the state, the process shifts to the setting change process, and the RAM 41c is initialized at the start of the setting change process. At this time, if the data in the RAM 41c is normal, by holding the special work and initializing the other areas, a part of the control state (setting value, game state, etc.) before the change is changed. On the other hand, if the data in the RAM 41c is not normal, the data in the RAM 41c can be reliably eliminated from the abnormality by initializing the entire usable area including the special work. It has become.

After the RAM 41c is initialized, the interrupt is set to enable, the set value is updated by 1 in the range of 1 to 6 each time the reset/setting switch 38 is operated, and after the start switch 7 is detected to be on, The setting value when the setting key switch 37 is detected to be on is stored in the RAM 41c, and the setting changing process is ended.

In this way, the main control unit 41 starts up in a state where the initial value of the interrupt master permission flag is prohibition of interrupts and interrupts are prohibited, and even in the initial setting process after startup, first, Since the interrupt is set to be prohibited and the subsequent initial setting process is executed, it is possible to prevent an unintended interrupt from occurring.

In addition, the main control unit 41, after the setting change processing is completed, executes main processing for performing processing step by step according to the progress of the game for each game unit. In the main process, the RAM 41c is initialized for each game unit, and the RAM 41c is also initialized at the end of the setting change process. Then, after the setting change process is completed, the main process is started from the stage before the process of initializing the RAM 41c in the main process, and the initialization of the RAM 41c is completed after the setting change process and the game unit. It is possible to perform the initialization of the RAM 41c for each of them in a common process.

[Internal lottery]
In the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, the type of winning combination is determined according to the gaming state, but it is roughly classified into a small winning combination involving payout of medals and setting of the number of bets. There are a re-play role that allows the player to start the next game without any action, and a special role that involves a transition to a gaming state that is advantageous to the player. Below, the small winning combination and the re-playing combination are collectively called a general winning combination. In order for the winning of each winning combination determined according to the gaming state to occur, it is necessary to win an internal lottery described later and the winning flag of the winning combination is set in the RAM 41c. Of the winning flags for each of these winning combinations, the winning flags for the small winning combination and the re-gaming combination are valid only in the game in which the flags are set, and are invalid in the next game. The flag is valid until the combination of the allowed combinations is prepared by the flag, and is invalid in the game in which the combination of the allowed combinations is prepared. That is, once the winning flag of a special winning combination is won, even if the combination of winning combinations allowed by the flag cannot be aligned, the winning flag is not invalidated and carried over to the next game. Becomes

In the internal lottery, before the display result of all the reels 2L, 2C, 2R is derived by the main control unit 41, whether or not the winning of each of the winning combinations described above is permitted (specifically, the start switch 7 Is detected). In the internal lottery, first, a random number value for the internal lottery (an integer of 0 to 65535) is acquired when the start switch 7 is detected. Specifically, the value generated by the random number circuit 508b and stored in the random number value register of the random number circuit 508b is set in the lottery work assigned to the RAM 41c. Then, for each combination determined according to the gaming state, according to the numerical data stored in the lottery work and the number of judgment values of each combination determined according to the current gaming state, the bet number and the set value. It is determined whether or not the winning is allowed.

In the internal lottery, the number of judgment values determined corresponding to the winning combination of the internal lottery, the current game state and the set value is sequentially applied to the random number value for the internal lottery (numerical data stored in the lottery work). It is determined that the winning combination is won when the addition is made and the result of the addition overflows. Therefore, the winning combination is won with a probability (the number of judgment values/65536) according to the size of the number of judgment values.

When it is determined that one of the winning combinations is won, the winning flag corresponding to the winning combination is set in the internal winning flag storage work assigned to the RAM 41c. The internal winning flag storage work is made up of a 2-byte storage area, the upper byte of which is assigned as the special combination storing work in which the winning flag of the special combination is set, and the lower byte is the general combination winning combination. It is assigned as a general role storing work for which a flag is set. Specifically, when a special winning combination is won, the winning flag of the special winning combination indicating that the special winning combination has been won is set in the special winning combination work, and the winning flag set in the general winning combination work is cleared. In addition, when the general combination is won, the winning flag of the general combination indicating that the general combination is won is set in the general combination storing work. If none of the winning combinations and winning combinations are won, only the general winning combination storing work is cleared.

[Reel control]
Next, stop control of the reels 2L, 2C, 2R will be described. The main control unit 41 refers to the table index and the table creation data stored in the ROM 41b when the reel starts rotating, when the reel stops, and when there is still a reel still spinning. , Create a stop control table for each spinning reel. Then, when one of the stop switches 8L, 8C, and 8R corresponding to the spinning reel is effectively detected, the stop control table of the corresponding reel is referred to, and the reference stop control table is slipped. Control is performed to stop the rotation of the reels 2L, 2C, 2R corresponding to the operated stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R based on the number of frames.

In the present embodiment, a value of 0 to 4 is set as the number of sliding symbols, and it is possible to pull in a maximum of 4 symbols and stop the reel after detecting a stop operation. That is, the stop position of the symbol can be specified from a maximum of 5 frames including the stop operation position where the stop operation is detected. Further, since it is necessary to move one frame to move the reel by one symbol, it is possible to pull in a maximum of four symbols and stop the reel after detecting the stop operation. Including the operation position, the stop position of the symbol can be specified from the range of maximum 5 symbols.

In the present embodiment, when one of the winning combinations has been won, when the stop operation is performed, the winning combinations within the pull-in range of a maximum of four frames are stopped together. If it is possible, the control is performed so that the winning combination is stopped, and the winning combination that is not won is controlled without stopping in the pull-in range of a maximum of four frames. When a special role and a small role are elected at the same time, such as when the small role is won while the special role has been carried over from before the previous game, when the special operation and the small role are elected at the same time, the maximum number on the winning line If it is possible to stop all winning small wins within the 4-frame withdrawal range, control is performed to stop them in parallel, and the winning combination with a maximum of 4 frames within the winning range will be placed on the winning line. If you can not pull in, if you can stop the special winning combination with a maximum pull-in range of 4 frames on the winning line, it will be controlled to stop it, and the winning combination will be In the pull-in range of 4 frames, control is performed to stop without aligning. That is, in such a case, the control of aligning the small wins on the winning line is prioritized over the special win, and the special win can be won only when the small win cannot be drawn. In addition, when a special combination and a small combination can be drawn in at the same time, only the small combination is drawn in, and the small combination is not aligned with the special combination on the pay line. In addition, when a special role and a small role are elected at the same time, the control of aligning the special role on the winning line is prioritized over the small role, and the small role is placed on the winning line only when the special role cannot be drawn. Alignment control may be performed.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the special game and the re-game combination are won at the same time, such as when the re-game combination is won while the special combination has been carried over from the previous game, the stop operation is performed. When the player wins, control is performed to align the symbols of the re-playing combination within the pull-in range of a maximum of four frames on the winning line and stop. In this case, the symbols constituting the re-game combination or the symbols constituting the re-game combination to be simultaneously won are arranged within 5 symbols for each of the reels 2L, 2C and 2R, that is, at intervals of 4 frames or less. Since it can always be stopped at any position within the pull-in range of 4 frames, regardless of the operation timing of the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R by the player when the special combination and the re-gaming combination are simultaneously won. Instead, all re-playing roles will be won. That is, in such a case, the control of aligning the re-gaming combination on the pay line is prioritized over the special combination, and the re-gaming combination is always won. In addition, when the special combination and the re-game combination can be drawn in at the same time, only the re-play combination is drawn, and the special combination is not aligned on the pay line at the same time as the re-play combination.

In the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 measures the game time, which is the time elapsed from the start of the rotation of the reel, that is, the time elapsed after the start of the game, every time the rotation of the reel is started. When a game start operation is performed with a specified number of bets set by the insertion of medals after the end of one game and the game start operation is enabled, the reel rotation of the previous game is performed. A weight is generated if the game time from the start time to start counting the time is equal to or longer than the specified time (4.1 seconds in the present embodiment), that is, if the specified time has passed from the reel start time of the previous game. Instead, the reels for the game in the game are started to rotate at that time. On the other hand, after the end of one game, when the game start operation is performed with the specified number of bets set by inserting medals and the game start operation is enabled, the reel rotation start of the previous game is started. If the game time that started timing from the time is less than the specified time, that is, if the specified time has not elapsed since the reel rotation start time of the previous game, wait is generated and the reel starts to rotate at that time. Instead, the process waits until the game time when the timing is started reaches the specified time from the reel rotation start time of the previous game, and the reel starts to rotate when the specified time is reached.

[External output]
In the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 controls to output an external output signal indicating a game state, an error occurrence state, and the like. These external output signals are output to a hall device such as a hall computer through an external output board 1000 and an information providing terminal board of a game shop (hall) in which the slot machine 1 is installed.

The main control unit 41 has a medal IN signal indicating the number of medals used for setting the bet number, a medal OUT signal indicating the number of medals awarded to the player due to the occurrence of winning, and a gaming state of RB (regular bonus). RB signal indicating that, BB signal indicating that the game state is BB (big bonus), AT signal indicating the start of AT (assist time), door opening signal indicating that the front door 1b is open, It outputs a setting-in-progress signal indicating that the state is changed to a setting change state or a setting confirmation state, a throw-in error signal indicating an abnormality of the medal selector 29, and a payout error signal indicating an abnormality of the hopper unit 34, which will be described later.

The external output board 1000 is provided with a relay circuit, a parallel/serial conversion circuit, a terminal for each output signal, and a connector to be electrically connected to the circuit of the information providing terminal board. Among the signals output from the game control board 40, the medal IN signal, the medal OUT signal, the RB middle signal, the BB middle signal, and the AT signal are directly output to the information providing terminal board as pulse signals via the relay circuit. .. On the other hand, the door open signal, setting signal, closing error signal, and payout error signal are converted by the parallel/serial conversion circuit into security signals that are serial signals that can be individually identified, and information is provided. Output to the terminal board. In the present embodiment, the setting-in-progress signal, the insertion error signal, and the payout error signal are output from the same terminal on external output substrate 1000. On the other hand, the door opening signal is output on the external output board 1000 from a terminal different from each of the setting signal, the insertion error signal, and the payout error signal.

[command]
Next, a command transmitted from the main control unit 41 to the sub control unit 91 will be described.

In the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 instructs the sub-control unit 91 to input a number-of-coins command, a credit command, a game state command, an internal winning command, a reel acceleration information command, a stop operation command, a sliding frame number command, Stop command, game end command, winning number command, payout start command, payout end command, standby command, stop command, error command, return command, setting command, setting confirmation start command, setting confirmation end command, door command, operation detection A plurality of types of commands including a command, a settlement start command, a settlement end command, an error start command, and an error cancellation command are transmitted. These commands consist of 1-byte type data indicating the type of command and 1-byte extension data indicating the content of the command, and the sub-control unit 91 can determine the type of command from the type data.

The inserted number command is a command that can specify the number of inserted medals, that is, the number of medals used to set the bet number, and is a state from the end of the game (after the setting change) to the start of the game, when the power is restored. , Or when a medal is inserted in a state where the bet number of the specified number is not set, or when the bet number is set by operating the MAXBET switch 6. Further, since the thrown command is transmitted when the bet number setting operation is performed, it is possible to specify that the bet number setting operation has been performed by receiving the thrown number command.

The credit command is a command that can specify the number of medals stored as credits, which is a state from the end of the game (after changing the setting) to the start of the game, and in a state where a specified number of bets is set, Sent when a medal is inserted and credits are added.

The game state command is a command that can specify the game state of the game, and is transmitted when the start switch 7 is operated to start the game.

The internal winning command is a command capable of specifying the internal lottery result, and is transmitted when the start switch 7 is operated to start the game and after the game state command. The internal winning command includes a first internal winning command and a second internal winning command, and a state in which the navigation notification is performed when the notification target combination to be the notification of the navigation in the internal lottery is won (AT If the navigation notification is performed during or during non-AT), the first internal winning command that can specify the type of the winning combination to be notified and the stop order advantageous to the player is transmitted, and the navigation notification is given. If it is not performed (when the navigation notification is not performed during non-AT), the type of the notification target winning combination that has been won can be specified, but the stop order that is advantageous to the player cannot be specified. The command is sent.

The game state command and the internal winning command are transmitted when the start switch 7 is operated to start the game. Therefore, by receiving these commands, it is possible to specify that the start switch 7 has been operated and the game has started. Is.

The stop operation command is a command that can specify the area number of the stop operation position of the corresponding reel, whether the reel to be stopped is the left reel, the middle reel, or the right reel. It is sent every time the accompanying stop control is performed.

The sliding frame number command is a command that can specify whether the reel to be stopped is the left reel, the middle reel, or the right reel, and the number of sliding frames to move from the stop operation of the corresponding reel to the stop. That is, every time stop control is performed in accordance with the stop operation of each reel, the corresponding stop operation command is transmitted and then transmitted.

The stop command is a command that can specify the left reel, the middle reel, or the right reel to stop, and the area number of the stop position of the corresponding reel, and the stop control accompanying the stop operation of each reel. Is transmitted every time after the corresponding slide frame number command is transmitted.

Each of the stop operation command, the number of sliding frames command, and the stop command can specify whether the reel to be stopped is the left reel, the middle reel, or the right reel, and is accompanied by the stop operation of each reel. Since it is transmitted every time stop control is performed, by receiving these commands, it is possible to specify that one of the reels has been stopped and the reel to be stopped.

The game end command is a command that can specify that the game has ended, and is transmitted when the player depresses the stop switch to stop the third stop reel and releases the stop switch.

The winning number command is a command that can specify the combination of symbols arranged on the winning line LN, the presence or absence of winning, the type of winning, and the number of medals to be paid out at the time of winning, because the player stops the third stop reel. It is when the stop switch is pushed down and the stop switch is released, which is transmitted after the game end command is transmitted.

The game end command and the winning number command are both transmitted when the player presses the stop switch to stop the third stop reel and releases the stop switch. Therefore, by receiving these commands, It is possible to specify that all the operations required to progress one game have ended.

The payout start command is a command for notifying the start of payout of medals, and is transmitted when the payout of medals by winning is started. The payout end command is a command for notifying the end of payout of medals, and is transmitted when the payout of medals due to winning is completed.

The settlement start command is a command indicating the start of the settlement process of the medal used for the credit or the bet number, is transmitted when starting the settlement process, and the settlement end command is a command indicating the end of the settlement process, Sent at the end of settlement process.

The standby command is a command indicating a transition to the standby state, and when the estimated end time (60 seconds in the present embodiment) has elapsed without the bet number being set after the end of one game, the standby command is Sent after the settlement completion command is transmitted.

The stop command is a command indicating the occurrence or cancellation of the stop state, and when the ending production waiting time has elapsed after the end of the BB, the stop command indicating the occurrence of the stop state is transmitted, and the reset operation is performed. When the stopped state is released, a stopped command indicating the release of the stopped state is transmitted.

The error start command is a command that indicates the start of error processing and the type of error. It is sent when error processing is started, and the error cancel command is a command that indicates the end of error processing. Sent when the condition is cleared.

The return command is a command indicating that the main control unit 41 has returned to the control state before power failure, and is transmitted when the main control unit 41 returns to the control state before power failure when the main control unit 41 is activated.

The setting command is a command that indicates the start or end of the setting change state and the setting value after the setting change.When the setting change state is entered, the setting command indicating the start of the setting change state is sent, and when the setting change state ends. A setting command indicating the end of the setting change state and the setting value after the setting change is transmitted. Further, since the control state of the main control unit 41 is initialized with the transition to the setting change state, it is possible to specify that the control state of the main control unit 41 has been initialized by the setting command indicating the setting start. ..

The setting confirmation start command is a command indicating the start of the setting confirmation state, and is transmitted when shifting to the setting confirmation state, and the setting confirmation end command is a command indicating the end of the setting confirmation state and ends the setting confirmation state. Sometimes sent.

The door command is a command indicating the detection state of the door open detection switch 25, that is, on (open state)/off (closed state), and when the power is turned on, at the end of one game (after the game, the bet number of the next game) Is sent before the setting of can be started), when the detection state of the door opening detection switch 25 changes (from on to off, from off to on).

The operation detection command is a command indicating the detection state (on/off) of the operation switches (MAXBET switch 6, start switch 7, stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R), and is transmitted at regular time intervals.

Of these commands, the commands other than the door command and the operation detection command are generated in the main process, temporarily stored in the command queue provided in the RAM 41c, and transmitted in the subsequent command transmission process of the timer interrupt process (main). It

On the other hand, the door command is generated in the door monitoring process of the timer interrupt process (main), temporarily stored in the command queue provided in the RAM 41c, and transmitted in the command transmission process of the subsequent timer interrupt process (main). It

The operation detection command is generated based on the detection state of the switch every time the command transmission process of the timer interrupt process (main) is executed 10 times, and is temporarily stored in the command queue provided in the RAM 41c. Is transmitted in the command transmission process of the timer interrupt process (main) thereafter.

Next, the control of the production performed by the sub control unit 91 based on the command transmitted from the main control unit 41 to the production control board 90 will be described. The sub control unit 91 executes a command reception interrupt process when it receives a command from the main control unit 41. In the command reception interrupt process, the command acquired from the command transmission line is stored in the reception buffer provided in the RAM 91c.

In the timer interrupt process (sub), the sub-control unit 91 determines whether or not an unprocessed command is stored in the reception buffer. If an unprocessed command is stored, the sub-control unit 91 is the earliest. The control pattern table stored in the ROM 91b is referred to based on the command received at the stage, and the liquid crystal display 51, the effect LED 52, the speakers 53 and 54, the reel LED 55, and the like are referred to based on the control content registered in the control pattern table. Performs output control of various performance devices. In the control pattern table, for each of a plurality of types of effect patterns, a display pattern of the liquid crystal display 51 corresponding to the type of command, a lighting mode of the effect effect LED 52, an output mode of the speakers 53 and 54, a lighting mode of the reel LED 55, and the like. The control patterns of these effect devices are registered, and when the sub control unit 91 receives a command, the sub control unit 91 selects the control patterns corresponding to the effect patterns set in the RAM 91c in the game of the control pattern table. Of these, the control pattern corresponding to the type of the received command is referred to, and the output control of the effect device is performed based on the control pattern. As a result, an effect corresponding to the effect pattern and the progress of the game is executed.

If a new command is received during execution of an effect triggered by the reception of a certain command, the sub-control unit 91 stops the effect based on the control pattern being executed, and changes to the newly received command. The effect based on the corresponding control pattern is executed. That is, even if the effect is not completed to the end, if a new command is received, the effect that was being executed is canceled and a new command is received unless the received new command is a command that triggers a new effect. The effect based on the command will be executed.

When the internal winning command is received, the effect pattern is selected at a selection rate according to the result of the internal lottery indicated by the internal winning command, and is set in the RAM 91c. The selection rate of the effect pattern is registered in the effect table stored in the ROM 91b, and when the sub-control unit 91 receives the internal winning command, the sub-control unit 91 stores the effect in the effect table according to the internal lottery result indicated by the internal winning command. By referring to the registered selection rate, one of the effect patterns is selected from a plurality of types of effect patterns according to the selected rate, and the selected effect pattern is set in the RAM 91c as the effect pattern of the game. Therefore, even if the same command is received, a different control pattern is selected depending on the effect pattern selected when the internal winning command is received, and as a result, different effects may be performed depending on the effect pattern.

In the slot machine 1 according to the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 can execute the navigation notification in which the stop order that is advantageous to the player according to the internal lottery result is notified by the lighting mode of the game auxiliary display device 12. The assist time (hereinafter referred to as AT) can be controlled.

When the main control unit 41 is controlling the AT, the main control unit 41 performs the navigation notification by winning the navigation target combination according to the game state, and transmits the push order command to the sub control unit 91. As a result, the navigation effect using the liquid crystal display 51 or the like is executed. Further, in the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 can execute the navigation notification and execute the navigation effect by satisfying a certain condition even in the normal state where the AT is not controlling. ..

The non-gaming dedicated program is, for example, test signal output processing, foreign matter detection processing, door monitoring processing, external output 2 processing, inserted medal error determination processing, payout medal error determination processing, power failure determination processing, normal time command transmission processing, power interruption Includes hour command transmission processing. The test signal output process is a process for outputting a test signal generated in relation to the result of the game, and the foreign substance detection process is a process for detecting a foreign substance in the medal passage by the slot sensor 26. The door monitoring process is a process for detecting opening of the front door 1b, and the external output 2 process is a security signal (door opening signal, setting signal, closing error signal, payout error signal) of the external output signals. The inserted medal error determination process is a process for performing output control. The inserted medal error determination process is based on the detection status of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c. The payout medal error determination process is a process for performing detection, and is a process for performing backflow detection of payout medals, detection of clogging of medals near the payout port, and detection of foreign matter near the payout port based on the detection status of the payout sensor 34c. The power failure determination process is a process for determining whether or not the voltage drop signal from the power failure detection circuit 48 is detected, and the normal command transmission process is the game dedicated program and the non-game dedicated program. The command setting process is a process for transmitting the first command set among the commands set in the command queue to the sub control unit 91, and the power-off command transmission process is set in the command queue. This is a process for transmitting all the executed commands to the sub control unit 91.

[error]
The throwing errors include throwing error 1 to throwing error 3. The insertion error 1 is an error determined when it is detected that the medals are in the accumulated state in the medal selector 29, such as the medals are jammed in the medal selector 29. For example, when a cheating person carries out a cheating act of throwing a foreign matter into the slot machine 1 and the foreign matter is clogged in the medal selector 29, a throwing error 1 occurs. The insertion error 2 is an error detected when a medal in the medal selector 29 has passed at a timing different from the regular timing (when a medal has entered the hopper tank 34a from the medal insertion section 4). Here, the regular timing means a state where there is a vacant credit (for example, a state where the number of credited medals is less than 50) or a state where the bet number has not reached the maximum value (for example, the bet number is 3). Less than one sheet) and the reel is not rotating. Normally, when a medal is inserted from the medal inserting section 4 at a timing different from the regular timing, the passage on the side of the medal payout outlet 9 is selected by the passage switching solenoid 30 as the passage for the medal. Therefore, the medals are paid out from the medal payout outlet 9 without entering the hopper tank 34a. In other words, when a medal flows down from the medal insertion portion 4 toward the hopper tank 34a at a timing different from the regular timing and the insertion error 2 occurs, it is possible that a wrongdoer has performed some wrongdoing. There is. The insertion error 3 is an error that occurs when a medal passes through a flow path from the medal insertion unit 4 to the hopper tank 34a in a route different from the regular passage order (in the order of the insertion medal sensors 31a to 31c). For example, the throw-in error 3 is an error that occurs when a backward flow of medals occurs, and when the throw-in error 3 occurs, there is a possibility that fraudulent acts are being performed.

The payout error includes a payout error 1 to a payout error 3. The payout error 1 is an error determined when the hopper tank 34a is empty, such as when it is detected that no medals are stored in the hopper tank 34a. For example, a payout error 1 occurs when a cheating person illegally takes out a medal in the hopper tank 34a. The payout error 2 is an error that is determined when the medals paid out in the hopper tank 34a are detected to be clogged, for example, when the medals are clogged between the hopper tank 34a and the medal payout outlet 9. The payout error 2 occurs when a cheating person conducts a cheating act such as inserting a foreign object other than a medal into the slot machine 1. The payout error 3 is an error detected when a medal is paid out (a medal is paid out from the hopper tank 34a to the medal payout outlet 9) at a timing different from the regular timing. Here, the regular timing is the timing at which the payout process is executed. The payout error 3 is an error that can occur when a fraudster attempts to illegally take out a medal from the medal payout opening by any method, and occurs when there is a possibility that a fraudulent act is being performed.

The full tank error is an error determined when the full tank sensor 35a detects that the overflow tank 35 is in a full tank state. When a full tank error occurs, medals may overflow from the overflow tank 35, causing a safety problem such as spilling medals inside the slot machine 1.

[Error handling]
In the slot machine 1 according to the present embodiment, when an error as described above occurs, the main control unit 41 detects the occurrence of the error by the timer interrupt process. When detecting an error, the main control unit 41 sets an error code in a register in the RAM 41c. When the error code is set, the main control unit 41 executes start waiting error processing (FIG. 19) as shown in Sc8 of FIG. In the waiting-for-start error processing, error processing for making the progress of the game impossible is executed.

Specifically, the main control unit 41 displays an error code on the game auxiliary display device 12 in the error processing (Sh5 in FIG. 19). Further, the main control unit 41 transmits an error start command to the sub control unit 91 in the error processing (Sh6 in FIG. 19). Upon receiving the error start command, the sub control unit 91 displays an image indicating that an error has occurred on the screen of the liquid crystal display 51 and outputs an error notification sound from the speakers 53 and 54. In this way, when the error processing is executed, the error code is displayed on the game auxiliary display device 12, so that information such as the number of payouts and the stop order of the reels by the navigation notification are not displayed, and the game progresses. Becomes impossible. Further, when the error processing is executed, an image indicating that an error has occurred is displayed on the screen of the liquid crystal display 51, and the error notification sound is output from the speakers 53 and 54. It is not displayed and the game cannot proceed. Further, when an error is detected, the flow path switching solenoid is turned off, so even if a medal is inserted, the medal is guided to the medal payout opening 9 side, and the game cannot proceed. Further, when an error is detected, even if the start switch 7 or the stop switch is operated, the processing based on the operation is performed until the error is released (until Yes is determined in the processing of Sh7 in FIG. 19). Since it is not protected, the reel does not rotate or the reel does not stop, and the game cannot proceed.

The condition for releasing the error is satisfied by twisting the setting key switch 37 to the on state or operating the reset switch 23 (also referred to as a reset operation). When receiving the reset operation, the main control unit 41 clears the display of the error code on the game auxiliary display device 12. Further, the main control unit 41 transmits an error cancellation command indicating that the error processing is finished to the sub control unit 91. Upon receiving the error cancel command, the sub control unit 91 clears the display of the error image on the liquid crystal display 51 and stops outputting the error notification sound from the speakers 53 and 54. Further, when the error cancellation condition is satisfied, the main control unit 41 switches the flow path switching solenoid from off to on, thereby guiding the medal to the hopper tank 34a side. When the error clearing condition is satisfied, the main control unit 41 executes a process based on the operation of the start switch 7 or the stop switch. Thus, when the error is released, the game can proceed.

On the other hand, in the present embodiment, in the administrator mode, which will be described later, such as the setting confirmation state and the setting change state, even if the setting key switch 37 is turned on or the reset operation is performed, the error release condition is satisfied. do not do.

[Medal Selector]
Next, the structure of the medal selector 29 will be described mainly with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. In the following description, the state in which the medal selector 29 is viewed from the back side of the front door 1b will be described as the front side of the medal selector 29.

The medal selector 29 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, and a medal flow-down passage 133 having a substantially L shape in a front view is formed inside the main body. As shown in FIGS. 6(b) and 7(b), the side wall of the medal flow-down passage 133 is inclined from the lower side to the upper side so that the upper end of the flowing medal is inclined to the front side with respect to the lower end. doing.

On the upper surface of the main body of the medal selector 29, an inflow port 141 communicating with the upstream side of the medal downflow passage 133 is formed, so that the medals inserted from the medal insertion port 4 flow into the medal downflow passage 133. ing. Further, an outlet 142 communicating with the downstream side of the medal downflow passage 133 is formed on the side surface of the main body of the medal selector 29, and the medals discharged from the outlet 142 are guided to the medal chute 149 to be guided to the hopper tank. It is led to 34a.

Further, the above-mentioned insertion slot sensor 26 for detecting the passage of the medals flowing in from the inflow port 141 is provided on the upstream side of the medal downflow passage 133, and to the outflow port 142 on the downstream side of the medal downflow passage 133. The above-described inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c for detecting passage of ejected medals are provided.

Further, the medal selector 29 is adapted to determine the authenticity (shape, size, thickness, etc.) of the inserted medal, and the authentic medal is detected by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c. Then, the false medals are formed at the lower part of the main body of the medal selector 29 before they are detected by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c. It is dropped from the return unit 137 downward and returned to the lower plate from the medal payout outlet 9 (see FIG. 1) via the medal return passage 132 (see FIG. 2) provided below the medal selector 29. It has become.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, below the medal flow-down passage 133, the medal flow-down passage 133 is flowed down from a position downstream of the position where the insertion sensor 26 detects the passage of the inserted medal. A flow path switching plate 147 is provided at a position upstream of a position where passage of medals is detected by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c. The flow path switching plate 147 is linked to the excitation of the flow path switching solenoid 30 (see FIG. 4) provided on the front surface side of the main body, and is in a non-guide position where the lower surface of the medal flowing down the medal flowing path 133 is not guided (see FIG. 6(a)(b)) and a guide position (position of FIGS. 7(a)(b)) for guiding the lower surface of the medal flowing down the medal flowing path 133. It is installed.

When the flow path switching solenoid 30 is not excited (off state), the flow path switching plate 147 is biased to the non-guide position as shown in FIGS. 6(a) and 6(b). Since the medal flow-down passage 133 is retracted to the side, the lower surface of the medal flowing down the medal flow-down passage 133 is not guided. For this reason, the medal flowing in from the inflow port 141 and flowing down the medal downflow passage 133 falls from the medal downflow passage 133 as shown in FIG. 6B because the lower surface thereof is not guided by the flow path switching plate 147. Then, it is discharged from the return unit 137 and returned from the medal payout exit 9 through the medal return passage 132.

Further, when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is excited (on state), the flow path switching plate 147 moves from the non-guide position to the guide position as shown in FIGS. The lower surface of the medal flowing down the downflow passage 133 is guided. Therefore, the medal flowing in from the inflow port 141 and flowing down the medal downflow passage 133 is guided from the medal downflow passage 133 by the lower surface thereof being guided by the flow path switching plate 147, as shown in FIG. 7B. Without falling, it flows down toward the outlet 142, is detected by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c, and is discharged from the outlet 142.

In the present embodiment, as the insertion slot sensor 26 and the insertion medal sensors 31a to 31c, the light receiving section detects interruption of light from the light projecting section when a medal passes between the light projecting section and the light receiving section. Although a photo sensor that detects the passage of medals is used by this, the light emitting part and the light receiving part are arranged at one end side of the passage, and the light receiving part detects the light of the light emitting part reflected on the medal A reflective sensor that detects passage may be used. Further, a physical sensor that detects the passage of the medal by detecting the movement of the movable piece that operates in conjunction with the passage of the medal may be used.

[Slot Machine According to First Embodiment]
In the slot machine 1 having the above configuration, various processes by each configuration in the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 to 21. The basic configuration of the slot machine 1 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7 is also provided in the slot machine 1 according to the first embodiment.

First, the processing when an error occurs in the setting change state or the setting confirmation state will be described below based on FIGS. 8 to 10. In the following, a state in which a game cannot proceed such as a setting change state and a setting confirmation state is also referred to as an administrator mode, and a state in which a game can proceed is also referred to as a game mode.

[When an error occurs during setting confirmation]
FIG. 8 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting confirmation state according to the first embodiment. The horizontal axis indicates the time t, and from the top, "close-up error code, pay-out error code", "error processing", "door open detection switch", "setting key switch", "flow path switching solenoid", and "external output signal" Indicates whether it is on or off. As will be described later, when an error is detected, an error code is set in the register. Then, when the error code is set, the processing shifts to "start waiting error processing" described later. In FIG. 8, among the errors that have occurred, error codes relating to “insertion error (insertion error 1 to insertion error 3)” and “payout error (payout error 1 to payout error 3)” are illustrated. Further, regarding "error processing", the error processing regarding "insertion error" and "payout error" is also illustrated. Since the timer interrupt process is always performed in both the setting confirmation state and the setting change state, when an error occurs in both the setting confirmation state and the setting change state, the error is detected. Error code is set.

As described above, the main control unit 41 controls to output the external output signal indicating the game state, the error occurrence state, and the like. These external output signals are output to a hall device such as a hall computer through an external output board 1000 and an information providing terminal board of a game shop (hall) in which the slot machine 1 is installed. Among these, the signals output to the information providing terminal board as serial signals include a door opening signal, a setting signal (indicating that the setting change state or the setting confirmation state has been entered), a closing error signal, and a dispensing error signal. There is. “External output signal” in FIG. 8 indicates an output signal relating to the setting signal, the insertion error signal, and the payout error signal. Specifically, the ON state indicates that one of the setting-in-progress signal, the closing error signal, and the payout error signal is being output as the external output signal, and the setting-in-progress signal, the closing error signal, and the payout error signal are indicated. In the off state, it is indicated that none of the signals is output. In addition, in this embodiment, as the error signals to be output to the outside, the insertion error signal and the payout error signal are described. However, not limited to this, any error signal may be externally output as long as it can occur during the setting change state and the setting confirmation state.

Further, as described above, the flow path of the medals inserted from the medal insertion port 4 by the flow path switching solenoid 30 is provided on either the hopper tank 34a side or the medal payout opening 9 side provided inside the casing 1a. It can be selectively switched to one side. When the flow path switching solenoid 30 is not energized (off state), the flow path switching plate 147 is biased to the non-guide position, and the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are set to the medal payout opening 9 Will be returned from. When the flow path switching solenoid 30 is excited (on state), the flow path switching plate 147 is biased to the guide position, and the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 store medals. Is discharged to the hopper tank 34a side.

In the present embodiment, the external output signal related to the "setting-in-progress signal, closing error signal, and payout error signal" and the external output signal related to the "door opening signal" are output as different external output signals. The "door open signal" is not shown here. The "door opening signal, setting signal, closing error signal, and payout error signal" may be output as one external output signal. That is, the door open signal may be output from the same terminal on the external output board 1000 as the setting signal, the insertion error signal, and the payout error signal. It should be noted that the definitions of the "input error code and payout error code", "error processing", "setting key switch", "flow path switching solenoid", and "external output signal" shown in FIG. 8 are as described above. The definition is the same also in FIGS. 9 and 10 and FIGS.

Hereinafter, the processing when an error occurs in the setting confirmation state will be described with reference to FIG. In order to switch from the game mode to the setting confirmation state, an administrator such as a store clerk must first open the front door 1b while the power is on. At time t1, the door open detection switch 25 is switched from the off state to the on state by opening the front door 1b. Next, with the front door 1b being opened, the administrator turns on the setting key switch 37 at time t2. As a result, the setting confirmation state is entered, and the setting confirmation processing is executed.

When the game mode is switched to the setting confirmation state, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is switched from the on state to the off state. As a result, the flow path switching plate 147 is switched from the guide position to the non-guide position, so that the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9.

In addition, since the setting in-progress signal is output by shifting to the setting confirmation state, the external output signal is switched from the off state to the on state.

Next, at time t3, it is assumed that a timer interruption process detects a throw-in error or a pay-out error (hereinafter, also called a throw-in error). At this time, a throw-in error code or a pay-out error code (hereinafter, also referred to as throw-in error code) is set in the register. When the error code is set, the error processing is executed in the “waiting start error processing” described later. However, during the setting confirmation state (during the administrator mode), the start waiting error process is not executed, and therefore the error process does not become the on state but remains in the off state.

At time t4, when the administrator switches the setting key switch 37 from the on state to the off state, the setting confirmation state ends.

Here, the case where a throw-in error is detected and the case where a throw-in error is not detected will be described below. At time t4, if a throw-in error or the like is detected, the throw-in error code or the like remains set in the register. As will be described later, when the setting confirmation process is completed, if an error code such as throw-in is set (the throw-in error is continuously detected), the start waiting error process is executed. In the start waiting error process, the main control unit 41 sets an error start command indicating that the error process is started in the command queue until the error release condition (reset operation) is satisfied, and the set error is set. The code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12. Further, the main control unit 41 transmits an error start command to the sub control unit 91. The sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error start command executes an in-error notification that notifies that error processing is in progress.

Further, at this time, the flow path switching solenoid 30 maintains a non-excited state (maintains an off state). That is, since the flow path switching plate 147 is still in the non-guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9.

Further, at this time, the setting key switch 37 is turned off, and the setting signal is turned off. However, if an error such as making is not canceled yet, the making error signal or the paying-out error signal is kept on. Keeps on.

Next, at the time t5, in the start waiting error process, when the error release condition is satisfied by the reset operation by the reset switch 23 and the error such as turning on is released, the main control unit 41 causes the game auxiliary display 12 to display. Clear the error code display. Further, the main control unit 41 sets an error cancellation command indicating that the error processing is to be terminated, and the sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error cancellation command terminates the notification indicating that the error processing is being performed.

Finally, at time t6, the administrator can close the front door 1b to allow the game to proceed.

On the other hand, at time t4, when the detection of the error such as the throw-in is not detected, the error code of the throw-in or the like is not set. When the setting confirmation process is completed and the setting confirmation state, which is the administrator mode, is switched to the game mode, an error code such as input is not set, and therefore the start waiting error process is not executed. Therefore, the error start command indicating that the error processing has started is not set, and the error code is not displayed on the game auxiliary display unit 12. Since the sub-control unit 91 also does not receive the error start command, the in-error notification for notifying that error processing is in progress is not executed.

At this time, the flow path switching solenoid 30 switches from the non-excited state to the excited state (switches from the off state to the on state). That is, since the flow path switching plate 147 is switched from the non-guide position to the guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion port 4 are discharged to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals.

Further, at this time, the setting key switch 37 is turned off, so that the setting signal is turned off. Further, since the insertion error signal or the payout error signal also remains off, the external output signal switches from the on state to the off state.

[When an error occurs during setting change]
FIG. 9 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting change state according to the first embodiment. It is usually the closing time of the hall that the setting is changed. The administrator opens the front door 1b while the power of the slot machine 1 is off. Then, the administrator turns on the setting key switch 37 and then turns on the power of the slot machine 1. By this work, the setting change state is entered, and the setting value read from the RAM 41c is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 as a display value. When changing the setting, unlike the case of checking the setting, the door is opened while the power is off. Therefore, the door open detection switch 25 is detected in the on state at the timing when the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on. At the same time, since the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on while the setting key switch 37 is also in the on state, the setting key switch 37 is also detected in the on state at the timing when the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on. That is, at time t1 when the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on, the door open detection switch 25 and the setting key switch 37 are detected in the on state.

At the timing when the power is turned on, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is in a non-excited state (off state). Since the flow path switching plate 147 is in the non-guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9.

Further, since the setting-in-progress signal is output by shifting to the setting change state, the external output signal is output in the on state.

Next, at time t2, it is assumed that an error such as insertion is detected by the timer interrupt process. At this time, an error code such as input is set in the register. When the error code is set, the error processing is executed in the “waiting start error processing” described later. However, during the setting change state (during the administrator mode), the start waiting error process is not executed, and therefore the error process does not become the on state but remains in the off state.

At time t3, when the administrator switches the setting key switch 37 from the on state to the off state, the setting change state ends.

Here, the case where a throw-in error is detected and the case where a throw-in error is not detected will be described below. At time t3, if a throw-in error is detected, the throw-in error code or the like remains set in the register. As described later, when the setting confirmation process is completed and the setting confirmation state, which is the administrator mode, is switched to the game mode, an error code such as throw-in is set (the throw-in error is continuously detected). Waiting for start error processing is executed. In the start waiting error process, the main control unit 41 sets an error start command indicating that the error process is started in the command queue until the error release condition (reset operation) is satisfied, and the set error is set. The code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12. Further, the error start command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. The sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error start command executes an in-error notification that notifies that error processing is in progress.

Further, at this time, the flow path switching solenoid 30 maintains a non-excited state (maintains an off state). That is, since the flow path switching plate 147 is still in the non-guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9.

Further, at this time, the setting key switch 37 is turned off, and the setting signal is turned off. However, if an error such as making is not canceled yet, the making error signal or the paying out error signal remains on, so that the external output signal Keeps on.

Next, at time t4, in the start waiting error process, when the reset condition of the error is satisfied by the reset operation by the reset switch 23 and the error such as turning on is canceled, the main control unit 41 causes the game auxiliary display 12 to display. Clear the error code display. Further, the main control unit 41 sets an error cancellation command indicating that the error processing is to be terminated, and the sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error cancellation command terminates the notification indicating that the error processing is being performed.

Finally, at time t5, the administrator can close the front door 1b to allow the game to proceed.

On the other hand, at time t3, if the detection of the error such as the throw-in is not detected, the error code of the throw-in or the like is not set. When the setting confirmation process is completed and the setting confirmation state, which is the administrator mode, is switched to the game mode, an error code such as input is not set, and therefore the start waiting error process is not executed. Therefore, the error start command indicating that the error processing has started is not set, and the error code is not displayed on the game auxiliary display unit 12. Since the sub-control unit 91 also does not receive the error start command, the in-error notification for notifying that error processing is in progress is not executed.

At this time, the flow path switching solenoid 30 switches from the non-excited state to the excited state (switches from the off state to the on state). That is, since the flow path switching plate 147 is switched from the non-guide position to the guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion port 4 are discharged to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals.

Further, at this time, the setting key switch 37 is turned off, so that the setting signal is turned off. Further, since the insertion error signal or the payout error signal also remains off, the external output signal switches from the on state to the off state.

FIG. 10 is a timing chart illustrating a process when an error occurs in the setting change state according to the modified example of the first embodiment. In the present embodiment, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is in a non-excited state (off state) at the timing when the power source of the slot machine 1 is turned on. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the flow path switching solenoid 30 may be momentarily switched from the non-excited state to the excited state at the timing when the power source of the slot machine 1 is turned on (short from the off state to the on state). Switch only time). By turning on the power of the slot machine 1 and immediately switching the flow path switching solenoid 30 to the on state, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are discharged to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals. It This allows the game to proceed promptly.

At time t1 when the power source of the slot machine 1 is turned on, processing for switching the flow path switching solenoid 30 from the non-excited state to the excited state is performed (switching from the off state to the on state). As a result, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are discharged to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals. Then, at time t1, the door open detection switch 25 and the setting key switch 37 are detected in the on state. Furthermore, by switching to the setting change state which is the administrator mode, the flow path switching solenoid 30 switches from the excited state to the non-excited state (switches from the on state to the off state). As a result, the flow path switching plate 147 is switched from the guide position to the non-guide position, so that the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9. As a result, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned off again immediately after it is momentarily switched from the off state to the on state.

Further, since the setting-in-progress signal is output by shifting to the setting change state, the external output signal is output in the on state. The processing from time t2 to t5 is the same as the processing from time t2 to t5 shown in FIG.

[Various control contents executed by the main control unit 41]
Next, various control contents executed by the main control unit 41 in the present embodiment will be described below based on FIGS. 11 to 19.

First, the initial setting process executed by the main control unit 41 at the time of startup will be described. When the main control unit 41 is activated by the occurrence of a reset, the main control unit 41 performs the activation setting. In the startup setting, the status flag included in the main control unit 41 is initialized. The status flag is data that holds the state of the operation result or execution result of the instruction, and particularly includes an interrupt master permission flag that sets prohibition/permission of interrupt. Since the initial value of the interrupt master permission flag is a value indicating prohibition of interrupts, the main control unit 41 is activated in a state where interrupts are prohibited. After that, the main control unit 41 sets various functions by referring to the HW parameter, and then performs an initial setting process according to the program stored in the program/data area.

As shown in FIG. 11, in the initial setting process, first, the value of the interrupt master permission flag is set to a value indicating prohibition of interruption to prohibit interruption (Sa1). As described above, the main control unit 41 is activated in the interrupt-disabled state, but in Sa1, the interrupt is again prohibited. Then, initialization data is set (Sa2), and each output port including the parallel output port 513 is initialized (Sa3). Next, the built-in register is set (Sa4).

Then, it is determined whether or not the voltage of the power supply is normal (Sa5). If the power supply voltage is not normal, the judgment is repeated until it becomes normal. If the power supply voltage is normal, the upper address of the interrupt vector is set (Sa6), access to the RAM 41c is permitted (Sa7), and the stack pointer is initialized (Sa8).

Next, the RAM parity of the game RAM area (the area of F000H to F1FFH including the game stack area and the unused area 3) in the usable area of the RAM 41c is calculated (Sa9). Then, it is determined whether the calculated RAM parity is 0 (Sa10). As will be described later, if the power interruption process (main) is normally performed at the previous power-off time, the RAM parity should be 0, so if the RAM parity is not 0 in step Sd10, the game of the RAM 41c is played. The data stored in the RAM area is not normal, and in this case, the process proceeds to step Sa13 to clear the destruction diagnosis data (Sa13). On the other hand, when the RAM parity becomes 0, the destructive diagnosis data stored in the game RAM area is further acquired (Sa11), and it is determined whether or not the acquired destructive diagnosis data is correct (Sa12). The destruction diagnosis data is cleared (Sa13).

Next, it is determined whether the setting key switch 37 is in the on state (Sa14). When the setting key switch 37 is in the on state, the timer interrupt is set (Sa19). Specifically, the register of the timer circuit 509 built in the main control unit 41 is set so that the timer interrupt is executed at regular intervals. In the present embodiment, a value corresponding to about 0.56 ms is set in a predetermined register (time constant register), so that a timer interrupt is generated at regular intervals of about 0.56 ms. Further, the timer circuit 509 initializes the timer by setting the register, and starts counting the time from the initial value. When the timer interrupt setting in step Sa19 is completed, the process proceeds to the setting change process. In the setting change processing, every time the reset/setting switch 38 changes from off to on, the setting value of the register is updated (1 is added in the case of 1 to 5 and 1 is updated in the case of 6), and the start switch 7 When the setting key switch 37 is turned off after is changed from off to on, the data of the setting value set in the register is stored in the RAM 41c, and the data of the initialization target RAM in the main process described later is stored. The head address is set in the RAM 41c and the main processing is started. In the setting change process, the main control unit 41 sets a setting change flag indicating that the setting change process is being executed in a predetermined area of the RAM 41c at the start of the setting change process, and the setting change process is being executed. In the timer interrupt process performed in step 1, the setting change flag is referred to, and the setting signal as the external output signal output from the external output substrate 1000 is switched to the on state. Then, the main control unit 41 releases the setting change flag at the end of the setting confirmation, and in the timer interrupt process, the setting change signal is turned off based on that the setting change flag is not set. Can be switched.

In the timer interrupt process performed during the execution of the setting change process, if an error such as throw-in is detected, a throw-in error code is set in the register. However, since error processing is not executed in the setting change processing, the error code set by the main controller 41 is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, and the sub controller 91 informs that error processing is in progress. There is no such thing. The error processing (error notification) in the main control unit 41 and the sub control unit 91 is executed in the “waiting for start error processing” after the setting change processing is completed.

On the other hand, when the setting key switch 37 is in the off state, it is determined whether the stored contents of the RAM 41c have been destroyed (Sa15). In step Sa15, it is determined whether or not a RAM abnormality flag, which will be described later, is set, and whether or not the stored contents of the RAM 41c are destroyed based on the determinations in Sa10 and Sa12. If the storage content of the RAM 41c is not destroyed, a return command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91 (Sa16). In addition, when the storage content of the RAM 41c is not destroyed, it is determined that the RAM abnormality flag is not set, the RAM parity is 0 in the step Sa10, and the destruction diagnosis data is determined in the step Sa12. This is the case when it is determined to be correct.

After the step Sa16, all registers are restored based on the data stored in the game RAM area of the RAM 41c (Sa17), and the same timer interrupt setting as the step Sa19 is set (Sa18). Then, the process proceeds to Sd24 of the timer interrupt process (main) described later. As a result, the state of the game RAM area and the non-gaming RAM area of the RAM 41c before the power failure and the processing executed before the power failure will be restored.

Further, if the storage content of the RAM 41c is destroyed in step Sa15, the RAM abnormality flag indicating that the storage content of the RAM 41c is not normal is set in the RAM 41c (Sa20), and the process proceeds to error processing. In the error processing, the progress of the game is disabled. Further, in the error state in which the RAM abnormality flag is set and the state is shifted, the setting key switch 37 is turned on, the power switch 39 is turned on, and the setting change process can be canceled. On the other hand, when the power switch 39 is turned on without turning the setting key switch 37 on, the RAM abnormality flag remains set, and it is determined that the RAM is destroyed in step Sa15. The error state is returned again.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 is activated in the interrupt-disabled state when a reset occurs, and thereafter, the program also interrupts when the initial setting process to be executed first is started. It is possible to prevent an unintended interrupt from occurring even when the main control unit 41 is activated in a state where the interrupt is not prohibited for some reason.

Further, the main control unit 41 is configured to permit the interrupt after the timer interrupt is set in the timer circuit 509 after the activation, and the interrupt occurs when the timer interrupt does not operate normally. It is possible to prevent it. Further, the timer circuit 509 initializes the timer by setting the timer interrupt, and starts timing from the initial value. After the start, the time until the first interrupt occurs It is possible to generate a timer interrupt at a constant time interval without any deviation from the time until the second and subsequent interrupts occur. Further, the main control unit 41 is configured to update the setting of the timer circuit 509 to the initial value by a program in the initial setting process, and when the setting of the timer circuit 509 is rewritten for some reason at the time of start-up. Even if there is, it can be prevented that an unintended interrupt occurs.

Next, the main processing executed by the main control unit 41 will be described with reference to FIG. The main process is repeatedly executed for each unit of game. Then, one cycle of the main process corresponds to one unit of the game.

As shown in FIG. 12, the main control unit 41 first prohibits an interrupt (Sb1). Next, the final address of the initialization target RAM (the final address of the game stack area (unused)) is set (Sb2), the game area initialization processing is executed, and the area of the RAM 41c indicated by the specified address is cleared. Yes (Sb3).

In the game area initialization process, the area of the specified initialization target RAM of the game RAM area is initialized by sequentially clearing from the specified start address to the end address. At this time, when the main process is started after the setting change process, when the setting change process is finished, the area where the special work is stored in the usable area is set as the start address of the initialization target RAM. The address next to the final address of is set, and in Sb2 of the main process, the final address of the game stack area (unused) is set as the final address of the initialization target RAM, so special work in the game RAM area is set. Areas other than the game stack area (in use) (important work, general work, unused area 3, stack area (unused)) are initialized. At the end of the game that is not in a specific game state, the start address of the initialization target RAM (the start address of the unused area 3) at the end of the game is set in step Sb10, which will be described later, and is initialized in step Sb2. Since the final address of the target RAM (the final address of the game stack area (unused)) is set, the unused area 3 and the game stack area (unused) of the usable area are initialized. At the end of the specific game state, and at the end of the game, the start address of the initialization target RAM at the end of the specific game state (special work is stored in the game RAM area in step Sb11 described later). The address next to the final address of the area) is set, and in step Sb2, the final address of the initialization target RAM (the final address of the game stack area (unused)) at the end of the specific game state is set. Therefore, the general work, the unused area 3, and the game stack area (unused) in the game RAM area are initialized.

After the initialization of the RAM in the step Sb3, the interrupt is permitted (Sb4), and the game start waiting process is called and executed (Sb5). In the game start waiting process, a bet number is set in a standby state, a prescribed number of bets is set according to the gaming state, and a process for starting the game is executed when the start switch 7 is operated.

Then, an internal lottery process is executed (Sb6). In the internal lottery process, whether the winning of each winning combination described above is allowed based on the random number value for the internal lottery latched at the start of the game by the detection of the start switch 7 in step Sb5 (that is, the derivation of the display result is performed). Perform processing to determine whether to permit or not).

Then, reel control processing is executed (Sb7). In the reel control process, the process of rotating each reel 2L, 2C, 2R in response to the operation of the start switch 7, the result of the internal lottery in the step Sd2, and the operation of the stop switches 8L, 8C, 8R by the player are detected. In response to this, processing for stopping the rotation of the corresponding reels 2L, 2C, 2R is executed.

Next, a game end time setting process is executed (Sb8). In the game end setting process, when it is determined that the rotation of all the reels 2L, 2C, 2R has stopped in the process of Sb7, a prize is generated according to the display result derived to each reel 2L, 2C, 2R. The process of determining whether or not it is executed. Then, when it is determined that a prize has been generated, processing such as addition of credits and payout of medals is performed based on the number of payouts according to the prize. When a prize is won, a process of setting the gaming state is executed in preparation for the next game after the payout of medals is completed. In addition, when the winning is not generated, after the reels are stopped, the process of setting the gaming state in preparation for the next game is executed.

When the game end time setting process ends, it is determined whether it is the end time of the specific game state (Sb9). If it is not the end time of the specific game state, the start address of the initialization target RAM at the end of the game is set. After setting (Sb10), the process returns to the step Sb1. If it is the end of the specific game state, the start address of the initialization target RAM at the end of the specific game state is set (Sb11), and the process returns to step Sb1.

In the main process, a command storing process that generates a command according to the progress of the game and sets it in the command queue is executed, and the set command is executed in the subsequent timer interrupt process (main) at normal time. It is adapted to be transmitted to the sub control unit 91 by the command transmission process.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 starts the initial setting process when the power supply to the slot machine 1 is started, and the main RAM 41c in the game RAM area of the RAM 41c held by the backup power source. Based on the RAM parity and the destruction diagnosis data stored in the game RAM area, it is determined whether or not the storage content of the RAM is normal, and if it is determined to be normal, the data stored in the game RAM area and the non- The control is restarted based on the data stored in the game RAM area, and whether or not the non-game data stored in the non-game RAM area and having no hindrance to the progress of the game is normal or not. By omitting the determination, it is possible to reduce the load when resuming the control while ensuring that the game can proceed normally.

The game RAM area of the RAM 41c includes an unused area 3 that is not used when performing control based on a game program or control based on a non-game program, and the main control unit 41 When the power supply to the slot machine 1 is started, the initial setting process is executed, and in the initial setting process, the RAM parity of the game RAM area including the unused area 3 is calculated, and the calculated RAM parity is set. Since it is determined whether or not the stored contents of the game RAM area are normal, it is possible to prevent illegal data from being stored in the unused area 3.

Further, the main control unit 41 executes initial setting processing when power supply to the slot machine 1 is started, determines whether or not the storage content of the RAM 41c is destroyed in the initial setting processing, and the RAM 41c When it is determined that the memory content of the memory is destroyed, the RAM error flag is set to control the error processing, and thereafter, the error state is maintained without being automatically restored, while the setting key switch 36 is turned on. In this state, when the power supply to the slot machine 1 is started, the setting change process is controlled, the game area initialization process is executed to initialize the game RAM area, and the non-game area initialization process is executed. By executing to initialize the non-gaming RAM area, that is, because both the gaming RAM area and the non-gaming RAM area are initialized as the error state is released, either the gaming RAM area or the non-gaming RAM area It is possible to prevent the game from proceeding with the abnormality.

Next, the game start waiting process that the main control unit 41 calls and executes in the main process will be described based on FIGS. 13 to 15.

As shown in FIG. 13, in the game start waiting process, first, the value of the BET counter in which the value of the bet number is stored in the RAM 41c is cleared (Sc1). Then, a specified number is set in the RAM 41c according to the gaming state (Sc2), and whether or not the game is a replay game is determined based on whether or not a replay game flag indicating that the game is a replay game is set in the RAM 41c. It is determined (Sc3).

When it is determined in step Sc3 that the game is a replay game, the value of the BET counter is incremented by 1 (Sc4), and then the bet counter is set by referring to the bet counter set in the RAM 41c. It is determined whether or not the value of is a specified number, that is, whether or not the number of bets which is a condition for starting the game is set (Sc5). Then, in step Sc5, if the value of the BET counter is not the prescribed number, the process returns to step Sc4, while if the value of the BET counter is the prescribed number, the process proceeds to step sc6 to determine the credit value as described later. In response to this, insertion possibility determination processing for determining the possibility of inserting medals is executed. Further, if it is determined in step Sc3 that the game is not a replay game, the process proceeds to step sc6 to execute the allowability determination process.

After executing the permission/prohibition determination process in step Sc6, it is determined whether or not an error code is set in the register, that is, whether or not an error is detected (Sc7), and if the error code is set, it will be described later. The processing shifts to the error processing waiting for start (Sc8). On the other hand, if the error code is not set in the step Sc6, the state of the input port corresponding to the setting key switch 37 acquired in the port input processing is referred to, and whether the setting key switch 37 is in the on state or not. It is determined (Sc9), and if the setting key switch 37 is in the on state, a setting confirmation process for displaying a set value for confirmation is executed as described later (Sc10).

After the setting confirmation process is completed in step Sc10, or when it is determined that the setting key switch 37 is not on in step Sc9, the process proceeds to step Sc11 to determine insertion of medals as described later. Execute the judgment process.

After executing the medal insertion determination process in step Sc11, any one of the start switch 7, the MAXBET switch 6, and the adjustment switch 10 is turned off from the off state by referring to the confirmation data set in the predetermined area of the RAM 41c. If it is determined that none of the switches has changed from the off state to the on state based on the confirmation data of each switch (Sc12, Sc21, Sc26), Sc7 Return to step.

When it is determined in step Sc12 that the start switch 7 has changed from the off state to the on state, it is determined whether or not the other switches are in the on state based on the confirmation data of each switch (Sc13). When it is determined that the other switches are not on, it is determined whether the value of the BET counter is the specified number (Sc14). When it is determined in step Sc13 that the other switches are in the on state, or when it is determined in step sc14 that the value of the BET counter has not reached the specified number, the process returns to step sc7. On the other hand, if it is determined in step Sc13 that the other switches are not in the on state, and if the value of the BET counter has reached the specified number in step sc14, the value of the random number storage work is set in the lottery work of the RAM 41c. The flag is set (Sc15), the throwable flag is cleared (Sc16), the value of the output port corresponding to the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to a value indicating off (Sc17), and the medal flow path is set to the medal payout opening 9 side path. As a result, the insertion of a new medal is prohibited and the insertion request LED 17 is set to the off state (Sc18). Then, a detection time invalidation timer for invalidating the detection of the medal clogging error by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c for a predetermined period (500 ms in the present embodiment) is set (Sc19), and the setting at the start of the game is performed. After performing (Sc20), the game start waiting process is ended and the process returns to the main process.

When it is determined in step Sc21 that the MAXBET switch has changed from the off state to the on state, it is determined whether or not the value of the BET counter has reached the prescribed number (Sc22), and the prescribed number has not been reached. In this case, it is determined whether the value of the credit counter is 0 (Sc23). In the step of Sc23, when the value of the credit counter is not 0, the credit counter is decremented by 1 (Sc24), the BET counter is incremented by 1 (Sc25), the process returns to the step of Sc23, and the value of the BET counter reaches the specified number. Alternatively, the processes of Sc22 to Sc25 are repeated until the value of the credit counter becomes zero. If it is determined in step Sc22 that the value of the BET counter has reached the specified number, or if it is determined in step Sc23 that the value of the credit counter is 0, the process returns to step sc7.

When it is determined in step Sc26 that the settlement switch 10 has changed from the off state to the on state, the settlement process for returning the medal used for setting the credit or the bet number is executed as described later (Sc27). ) Then, after the settlement process is completed, the process returns to the step Sc7.

In the game start waiting process of the present embodiment, when the setting key switch 37 is turned on in the state where no error code is set and the error state is not set, the setting confirmation process is performed. Although it is a configuration to be shifted, in the period from the start of the game start waiting process until the operation of the start switch 7 is detected, the setting key switch 37 is in the on state with no error code set. If it is, it is determined whether or not the value of the BET counter is 0, and if the value of the BET counter is 0, that is, the bet number is set according to the operation of the MAXBET switch 6 or the winning of the re-game combination. If not, the process proceeds to the setting confirmation process, while if the value of the BET counter is 0, the configuration confirmation process may not be performed.

Next, the medal insertion determination process executed by the main controller 41 will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 16, in the medal insertion determination process, it is determined whether or not the insertion possible flag is set (Sd1), the insertion possible flag is set, and it is possible to insert medals. Acquires the transition data of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c (Sd2), and when the insertion possible flag is not set and the insertion of medals is impossible, the medal insertion determination process is terminated, Return to the game start waiting process.

After the transition data of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c are acquired in the step Sd2, based on the acquired transition data, whether or not the medal is passing through the medal downflow passage 133 of the medal selector 29 toward the outlet 142. It is determined (Sd3). If it is determined in step Sd3 that the medal is not passing, the value of the output port corresponding to the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to a value indicating on (Sd4), and the medal flow-down passage 133 is set to the outlet 142 side. To allow the insertion of a new medal, set the insertion request LED 17 to the on state (Sd5), and proceed to the step of Sd6. On the other hand, if it is determined in step Sd3 that the medal is passing, the flow proceeds to step Sd6 without setting the flow path switching solenoid 30 and the insertion request LED 17 to the on state.

In step Sd6, it is determined whether the transition data acquired in step Sd2 is normal. If it is determined that the transition data is normal, there is a change in the output of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c. It is determined whether or not (Sd7). If it is determined in step Sd6 that the transition data is not normal, an error code indicating a throwing error is set (Sd13), the medal insertion determination process is terminated, and in step Sd7, the output of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is performed. Even when it is determined that there is no change, the medal insertion determination process is ended and the game start waiting process is returned to.

In the step Sd6, if it is determined that the transition data of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is normal, and in the step Sd7 that the output of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is changed, It is determined whether or not any of the outputs of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is on (Sd8).

If it is determined in step Sd8 that one of the outputs of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is in the on state, it is determined whether or not a one-sheet insertable flag described later with reference to the RAM 41c is set, that is, The medal detected by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is the final medal that can be inserted into the slot machine 1, and it is determined whether or not the value of the credit reaches the upper limit number by the insertion of this medal. In the step Sd9, if the one-sheet insertion possible flag is set, the value of the output port corresponding to the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to a value indicating off (Sd10), and the medal flow-down passage 133 is set to the medal payout opening. Switching to the 9 side, prohibiting the insertion of new medals, setting the insertion request LED 17 to the off state (Sd11), and invalidating the detection time for invalidating the detection of the medal clogging error by the insertion medal sensors 31a to 31c. After setting the timer (Sd12), the medal insertion determination process is ended, and the process is returned to the game start waiting process. On the other hand, if it is determined in step Sd9 that the one-sheet insertion possible flag is not set, the medal insertion determination process is terminated and the game start waiting process is returned without performing steps Sd10 to Sd12.

When it is determined in step Sd8 that none of the outputs of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is in the on state, it is determined whether or not the bet number has reached the specified number by referring to the value of the BET counter. If the bet number has not reached the specified number (Sd14), the BET counter is incremented by 1 (Sd15), the insertion possibility determination process described below is executed, and then the medal insertion determination process is finished and the game starts. Return to the waiting process. On the other hand, in the step Sd14, when it is determined that the bet number has reached the specified number, the credit counter is incremented by 1 (Sd17), the insertion possibility determination process described later is executed, and the medal insertion determination process is ended. Then, the process returns to the game start waiting process.

As described above, in the medal insertion determination process, when the insertion possible flag is set and the medal is not passing, the flow path switching solenoid 30 and the insertion request LED 17 are controlled to be in the off state.

In addition, in the medal insertion determination process, the transition data of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is normal, the output of any of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is changed from off to on, and the one-sheet insertion possible flag is set. If so, that is, when the insertion of the final medal that can be inserted into the slot machine 1 is detected, the flow path switching solenoid 30 and the insertion request LED 17 are controlled to the off state. For this reason, the one-sheet insertable flag is set, and when the inserted medal sensor 31a detects a medal, the medal downflow passage is opened before the other inserted medal sensors 31b and 31c detect the medal. It is designed to switch from the 142 side to the medal return path 132 side, and in the state where only one medal can be inserted, the medal flow-out path is the outlet as early as possible after the last one medal is inserted. Since the medal return passage 132 side is switched from the 142 side, it is possible to prevent the medal from being taken in even when the medal further flows down.

Further, when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is switched from on to off, the detection time invalidation timer is set, and even if the detection time of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c exceeds the medal clogging determination time for a predetermined period, a medal clogging error occurs. Is not determined, the medal flow path is switched from the outlet 142 side to the medal return path 132 side, and then the inserted medals flow down the medal flow path 133 toward the outlet 142 side. In this case, even if the passing speed of the medal becomes slower than usual, the medal clogging error will not be determined.

In addition, when the transition data of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is normal and the output of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c changes from on to off, that is, the medals flowing down the medal downflow passage 133 normally flow down to the outflow port 142. In this case, the inserted medal is added to the bet amount or credit.

Next, the thrown permission/prohibition determination process executed by the main control unit 41 will be described with reference to FIG. The insertability determination process is a common module so that it can be called based on each process such as a game start waiting process, a medal insertion determination process, a settlement process, a setting confirmation process, and an error process.

As shown in FIG. 17, in the thrown permission/inhibition determination process, the credit value and the bet amount value are specified by referring to the credit counter and the BET counter assigned to the game RAM area of the RAM 41c, and the game data area of the ROM 41b is set. The upper limit number of credits (50 in the present embodiment) is identified with reference (Se1). Whether or not the sum of the value of credits and the value of bets has reached the maximum number of medals that can be inserted (in the present embodiment, the sum of the upper limit number of credits 50 and the maximum number of bets 3). If it is determined that the sum of the value of credits and the value of the number of bets has reached the maximum number of medals that can be inserted, the insertion possible flag indicating that medals can be inserted is cleared. (Se3), the acceptance determination processing is terminated, and the processing returns to the calling source.

On the other hand, if it is determined in step Se2 that the sum of the credit value and the bet number value has not reached the maximum number of medals that can be inserted, the sum of the credit value and the bet number value is It is determined whether or not the number of medals that can be inserted is one less than the maximum number (Me4). In the step of Se4, the sum of the value of credits and the value of the number of bets has reached one less than the maximum number of medals that can be inserted, that is, only one more medal can be inserted into the slot machine 1. If it is, a one-sheet insertable flag indicating that one more medal can be inserted is set (Se5), an insertable flag is set (Se6), and the insertability determination process is ended. On the other hand, if the sum of the credit value and the bet amount value in the step of Se5 has not reached 1 less than the maximum number of medals that can be inserted, the throwable flag is set (Se6), and the thrown flag is set. The permission/prohibition determination process is terminated.

As described above, since the input availability determination process of this embodiment is included in the game program as a common module, it can be called based on the settlement process, the setting confirmation process, and the error process, and the game program The capacity can be reduced.

In addition, in the insertability determination processing of the present embodiment, when it is determined that the sum of the credit value and the bet number value does not reach the maximum insertable medal number, the insertable flag is set. .. With the throwable flag being set, after the throwability determination process, it is referred to in the medal throwing determination process, and in accordance with the determination result in the throwability determination process, that is, the throwable flag is set, The flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned on.

When it is determined that the sum of the value of credits and the value of the number of bets has reached one less than the maximum number of medals that can be inserted, the one-piece insertable flag is set. By setting the one-sheet insertable flag, it is referred to when the passage of the inserted medals is detected in the medal insertion determination process after the insertion possibility determination process, and the determination result in the insertion possibility determination process, That is, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned off in response to the setting of the one-sheet loading possible flag.

Further, in the present embodiment, the maximum number of medals that can be stored in the credit (50 in the present embodiment) is stored in the game data area of the ROM 41b, and in the insertion permission/inhibition determination process, the game of the ROM 41b is played. The maximum number of credits is specified by referring to the value set in the data area.

Next, the setting confirmation process executed by the main control unit 41 in the game start waiting process will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 18, in the setting confirmation process, first, a throwable flag indicating that a medal can be thrown is cleared (Sg1), and the value of the output port corresponding to the flow passage switching solenoid 30 is turned off. The value is set to a value (Sg2), and the insertion of a new medal is prohibited by using the medal flow path as the path on the medal payout exit 9 side. Then, the closing request LED 17 is turned off (Sg3), and the setting confirmation flag indicating that the setting confirmation process is being executed is set in a predetermined area of the RAM 41c (Sg4). When the setting confirmation flag is set, the next time the timer interrupt process is executed and the external output 2 process is performed, the external output substrate 1000 is linked with the setting confirmation flag being set. The in-setting signal as the external output signal output from is switched to the on state.

Then, the detection time invalidation timer for invalidating the detection of the medal clogging error by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is set for a predetermined period (500 ms in the present embodiment) (Sg5). After that, a setting confirmation start command indicating that the setting confirmation processing has started is set in the command queue (Sg6), the currently set setting value is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 (Sg7), and is acquired in the port input processing. By referring to the state of the input port corresponding to the set key switch 37, it is determined whether the set key switch 37 is in the on state (Sg8), and when it is determined that the set key switch 37 is in the on state, It waits until the setting key switch 37 is turned off.

When it is determined in step Sg8 that the setting key switch 37 is not in the on state, the display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 is hidden (Sg9). After that, a delay period timer for delaying the progress of the setting confirmation process for a predetermined period (2.24 ms (milliseconds, which corresponds to the time interval of four times of the timer interrupt process in this embodiment) is set in the RAM 41c. The region is set (Sg10), it is determined whether the predetermined period has elapsed (Sg11), and the process waits until the predetermined period elapses. In the step of Sg10, 4 is set in the predetermined area of the RAM 41c as the delay period timer, and thereafter, the value of the delay period timer is decremented by 1 for each timer interrupt process, and in the step of Sg11, When the value of the delay period timer is 0, it is determined that the predetermined period has elapsed.

If it is determined in step Sg11 that the predetermined period has elapsed based on the delay period timer, a setting confirmation end command that can specify that the setting confirmation process is to be ended is set (Sg12), and the setting is performed in step Sg4. The setting confirmation flag is cleared (Sg13). When the setting confirmation flag is cleared, the next timer interrupt process is executed and the external output 2 process is performed, so that the setting confirmation signal is linked to the fact that the setting confirmation flag is not set. Switched to the off state.

After the step Sg13, the thrown availability determination process is called and executed (Sg14), and after the loaded availability determination process is completed, the setting confirmation process is terminated and the game start waiting process is returned to.

In the timer interrupt process performed during the execution of the setting confirmation process, if an error such as throw-in is detected, a throw-in error code is set in the register. However, since error processing is not executed in the setting confirmation processing, the error code set by the main control unit 41 is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, and the sub control unit 91 informs that error processing is in progress. It will not be done. The error processing (error notification) in the main control unit 41 and the sub control unit 91 is executed in the “waiting for start error processing” after the setting confirmation processing is completed.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the setting confirmation process is executed, regardless of whether or not the process of setting the flow path switching solenoid 30 to the on state has already been performed, By setting the value of the corresponding output port to a value indicating off, the flow path switching plate 147 of the medal selector 29 is positioned at the non-guide position, and the medal downflow passage 133 is switched to the return section 137 side. There is.

In addition, in the present embodiment, when the setting confirmation process is started, the throwable flag indicating that a medal can be thrown is cleared to make it impossible to throw a medal, and then the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned on. It is set to the off state, and when the throwable flag is cleared, the state in which the determination of the inserted medals based on the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is not performed is performed.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the setting confirmation process is started, the setting confirmation start command indicating that the setting confirmation process is started is set, and thus the setting confirmation start command is transmitted to the sub-control unit 91. It is like this. The sub-control unit 91 that has received the setting confirmation start command executes the setting confirmation notification for notifying that the setting confirmation state is in effect, and outputs a voice indicating that the setting confirmation state is in the speaker 53, 54. By outputting, the player is informed that the setting confirmation state is being entered and that the medal cannot be inserted through the medal insertion slot 4.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the setting key switch 37 is turned off in the setting confirmation processing and the setting confirmation processing is ended, a setting confirmation end command indicating that the setting confirmation processing is to be ended is set. Then, the setting confirmation end command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. Note that the sub-control unit 91 side that has received the setting confirmation end command ends the notification indicating that the setting confirmation is in progress.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to the off state in the setting confirmation processing, the medal detection invalidation timer is set, so that the predetermined period (500 ms in the present embodiment) is set. The detection by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is invalidated.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to the off state in the setting confirmation processing, the closing request LED 17 is turned off.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the setting confirmation process is terminated, the thrown acceptance determination process is called and executed, and the sum of the bet number, the credit value, and the bet number value is the maximum number of medals that can be thrown. If the sum of the bet number, the credit value, and the bet number value has not reached the maximum number of medals that can be inserted, the throwable flag is cleared. Since the setting is performed, in the game start waiting process that returns after the setting confirmation process is finished, the flow path switching solenoid 30 of the flow passage switching solenoid 30 is determined according to the determination result of the throwability determination process, that is, whether or not the throwable flag is set. The on-off state will be switched.

Further, in the present embodiment, in the setting confirmation processing, after the setting confirmation flag is set, when the setting key switch is determined to be in the on state, the delay period timer is set, , The setting confirmation process does not proceed until the predetermined delay period (2.24 ms (milliseconds)) elapses, and the timer is set within the delay period with the setting confirmation flag set. By executing the interrupt process, the setting confirmation flag is referred to in the external output 2 process of the timer interrupt process, and based on the setting confirmation flag being set, the output from the external output board 1000 is performed. The signal being set as the external output signal is switched to the on state.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the setting key switch is determined to be in the on state in the setting confirmation process, the predetermined delay period is at least the time until the external output 2 process is performed in the timer interrupt process. (In this embodiment, the timer interrupt processing is performed four times), and the delay period timer is set such that the setting signal corresponds to a time sufficient to be detected by the external device. Since the setting confirmation process does not end until the predetermined delay period elapses, the setting output signal is reliably turned on in the external output 2 process of the timer interrupt process executed within the predetermined delay period. In addition to being switched to the state of, the on state of the setting signal is maintained for a time that can be detected by the external device.

Further, in the present embodiment, in the setting confirmation process, the delay period timer is set when it is determined that the setting key switch is in the on state after the setting confirmation start command is set in the command queue. Then, after that, the setting confirmation process does not proceed until a predetermined delay period (2.24 ms (milliseconds)) elapses, and the timer interrupt process is executed within the delay period. The setting confirmation start command set to (1) is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. Then, after the delay period elapses, that is, after the setting confirmation start command is transmitted, the setting confirmation end command is set in the command queue and is transmitted in the subsequent timer interrupt processing. Therefore, the sub control unit 91 On the side, after receiving the setting confirmation start command, at least after the delay period has elapsed, the setting confirmation end command is received, and the setting confirmation notification is executed for at least the delay period.

Further, in the game start waiting process, the main control unit 41 determines whether or not the start switch 7, the MAXBET switch 6, and the settlement switch 10 are in the on state based on the confirmation data of each switch, In the game start waiting process and the setting confirmation process, the setting key switch 37 is configured to determine whether it is in the on state or the off state based on the state of the corresponding input port. The period required to detect the switch operation for starting or ending the setting confirmation state (compared to the period required to detect the switch operation related to the progress (in this embodiment, the period for four timer interrupt processes) ( The period for one timer interrupt process) is set short.

Next, start waiting error processing executed by the main controller 41 in the game start waiting processing will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 19, in the waiting-for-start error processing, first, the insertable flag indicating that the medal can be inserted is cleared (Sh1), and the value of the output port corresponding to the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned off. Is set to a value that indicates that the medal flow path is a path on the side of the medal payout opening 9 to prohibit insertion of a new medal (Sh2), the insertion request LED 17 is turned off (Sh3), and a predetermined period (the present embodiment). In the embodiment, the detection time invalidation timer for invalidating the detection of the medal clogging error by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is set for 500 ms) (Sh4).

Then, the set error code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 (Sh5), and an error start command indicating that error processing has started is set in the command queue (Sh6). By the error processing (Sh5, Sh6) by the main control unit 41 as described above, the main control unit 41 and the sub control unit 91 perform error notification.

It is determined whether or not the error cancellation condition (reset operation) is satisfied (Sh7). If the error cancellation condition is not satisfied, the process waits until the error cancellation condition is satisfied.

When it is determined in step Sh7 that the error cancellation condition is satisfied, the display of the error code on the game auxiliary display device 12 is cleared (Sh8), and the thrown permission/inhibition determination process is called and executed (Sh9). Then, after the thrown permission/inhibition determination process is completed, an error cancellation command indicating that the error process is completed is set (Sh10), and the process is returned to the game start waiting process.

In the present embodiment, if an error code is set in the administrator mode (setting confirmation state or setting change state), start waiting error processing is performed after switching to the game mode, and main control is performed by the error processing. The error code set by the section 41 is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, and the sub-control section 91 displays that error processing is in progress. The display may be performed by either the main control unit 41 or the sub control unit 91, may be performed only by the main control unit 41, or may be displayed by the sub control unit 91 only. May be performed. Further, although the error processing is performed when the setting confirmation state is switched to the game mode, the error processing may not be performed when the setting change state is switched to the game mode.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the start waiting error process is executed, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set regardless of whether the process of setting the flow path switching solenoid 30 to the on state has already been performed. By setting the value of the output port corresponding to 30 to a value indicating off, the flow path switching plate 147 of the medal selector 29 is located at the non-guide position, and the medal downflow passage 133 is switched to the return section 137 side. Has become.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the start waiting error process is started, the throwable flag indicating that a medal can be thrown is cleared to make it impossible to put a medal, and then the flow path switching solenoid is set. 30 is set to the off state, and when the throwable flag is cleared, the state in which the medal insertion determination based on the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is not performed is performed.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the start waiting error process is started, an error start command indicating that the error process is started is set so that the error start command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. It has become. Note that the sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error start command executes an in-error notification that notifies that error processing is in progress, and outputs a voice indicating that error processing is in progress from the speakers 53 and 54, The player is informed that an error is occurring and that a medal cannot be inserted through the medal insertion slot 4.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the error cancellation condition is satisfied in the start waiting error processing and the start waiting error processing is ended, an error cancellation command indicating that the error processing is ended can be set. The error cancel command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. The sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error cancellation command terminates the notification indicating that the error processing is being performed.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to the off state in the start waiting error processing, the medal detection invalidation timer is set, so that the predetermined period (500 ms in the present embodiment). ), the detection by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c is invalidated.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to the off state in the start waiting error processing, the closing request LED 17 is turned off.

In addition, in the present embodiment, when the start waiting error process is terminated, the thrown availability determination process is called and executed, and the sum of the bet number, the credit value, and the bet number value is the maximum throwable amount. If the number of medals has been reached, the throwable flag is cleared, while if the sum of the bet number, credit value and bet number has not reached the maximum number of medals that can be thrown, it is possible to throw Because the flag is set, in the game start waiting process that returns after the start waiting error process is completed, depending on the determination result in the throwability determination process, that is, whether the throwable flag is set, the flow path The on-off state of the switching solenoid 30 is switched.

The main control unit 41 of the present embodiment executes a timer interrupt process (main) that interrupts and executes the main process at regular intervals (interval of about 0.56 ms). The timer interrupt process (main) is a process executed by an interrupt generated according to the count of the timer circuit 509, and the address where the program of the timer interrupt process (main) is stored is the vector table. It is set as the value corresponding to the timer interrupt. Then, when a timer interrupt occurs, the process from the address is executed. In addition, other interrupts are automatically prohibited during execution of the timer interrupt process (main).

In the timer interrupt process (main), a power failure determination process is called and executed to determine whether or not a voltage drop signal is input from the power failure detection circuit 48, and the timer interrupt process (main) is performed twice in succession. When it is determined that the voltage drop signal has been input over the period, it is determined that there is a power failure, and the process proceeds to the power interruption process (main).

In the slot machine 1 of the present embodiment, by arranging the flow path switching plate 147 in the non-guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 flow down to the medal return path 132 side, while the flow path switching plate 147 is operated. Is provided in the guide position, the medal selector 29 is provided with which the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 flow down to the hopper tank 34a side, and the main control unit 41 sets the flow path switching solenoid 30 to the off state. By doing so, the flow path switching plate 147 is positioned at the non-guide position, while the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned on, whereby the flow path switching plate 147 can be changed to the guide position. ..

In such a configuration, the main control unit 41 controls the on-off state of the flow path switching solenoid 30 to perform the previous switching control when switching the medal flow path of the medal selector 29 to the predetermined flow path side. If it is configured to control the switching of the flow path according to the switching status of the flow path that is recognized based on the above, if for some reason the recognized switching status and the actual switching status do not match, The medal flow path may not be switched to the predetermined flow path side.

On the other hand, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment, when performing the settlement process, regardless of whether or not the process of setting the flow path switching solenoid 30 to the on state has already been performed. By setting the value of the output port corresponding to the path switching solenoid 30 to a value indicating off, the flow path switching plate 147 of the medal selector 29 is positioned at the non-guide position, and the medal downflow path 133 is moved to the return section 137 side. The medal return passage 132 can be surely switched to the other side when performing the settlement process.

In addition, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment switches the flow channel regardless of whether or not the process of setting the flow channel switching solenoid 30 to the on state has already been performed when executing the setting confirmation process. By setting the value of the output port corresponding to the solenoid 30 to a value indicating off, the flow path switching plate 147 of the medal selector 29 is positioned at the non-guide position, and the medal downflow passage 133 is switched to the return section 137 side. It is possible to reliably switch to the medal return passage 132 side when performing the setting confirmation process.

Further, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment, when executing the start waiting error process, regardless of whether or not the process of setting the flow path switching solenoid 30 to the on state has already been performed. By setting the value of the output port corresponding to the path switching solenoid 30 to a value indicating off, the flow path switching plate 147 of the medal selector 29 is positioned at the non-guide position, and the medal downflow path 133 is moved to the return section 137 side. The medal return passage 132 can be surely switched to when the start waiting error process is performed.

In addition, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment clears the insertable flag indicating that the medal can be inserted when the respective processes are started in the settlement process, the setting confirmation process, and the start waiting error process. The flow path switching solenoid 30 is set to the off state after the medals cannot be inserted, and the medals based on the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c are cleared by clearing the insertable flag. It is possible to prevent the medals from being unintentionally detected based on the output of the inserted medal sensor 31 by not setting the insertion determination of.

It should be noted that in the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 does not determine the insertion of medals based on the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c when the insertable flag is cleared, so that the inserted medal sensor is determined. Although the detection of medals by 31a to 31c is disabled, the detection of medals by the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c may be disabled while the insertable flag is cleared.

Further, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment determines whether or not a medal can be inserted at the end of each processing of the settlement processing, the setting confirmation processing, and the error waiting for start processing, the insertion possibility determination processing. If it is possible to insert according to the result of the insertability determination process, the insertable flag is set, and thereafter, it is determined that the medal is inserted and the insertable flag is set. The flow passage switching solenoid 30 is set to the on state so that the medal downflow passage 133 can be switched to the hopper tank 34a side. When the medal downflow passage 133 is switched to the hopper tank 34a side, the medal flows down. It is possible to prevent the liquid from flowing down into the hopper tank 34a without performing the determination of the injection of the.

In addition, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment calls and executes the throwable/impossible determination process at the end of each of the settlement process, the setting confirmation process, and the error process to determine the bet number, the credit value, and the bet number. If the sum of the value and the maximum number of medals that can be thrown has been reached, the throwable flag is cleared, while the sum of the bet number, credit value, and bet number is the maximum that can be thrown. If the number of medals has not been reached, the throwable flag is set, and then the on-off of the flow path switching solenoid 30 is determined according to the determination result of the throwability determination process, that is, whether the throwable flag is set. The state of is switched.

In particular, after the settlement process is completed, the credit should be 0, and it is not necessary to make the determination as described above. However, similar to the setting confirmation process and the error process, the common module modularization possibility determination process is executed, By switching the flow path switching solenoid 30 between the on-off states in accordance with the determination result in the throwing permission/inhibition determination processing, the flow channel switching solenoid is switched after each processing of the settlement processing, the setting confirmation processing, and the error processing. It is possible to reduce the capacity of the program related to the control for switching 30.

In the present embodiment, at the end of each process of the settlement process, the setting confirmation process, and the error process, the closing possibility determination process is executed, and the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned on according to the determination result in the closing possibility determination process. Although it is a configuration that switches the on-off state, it is stored whether or not the medal can be inserted before the start of each processing of the settlement processing, the setting confirmation processing, and the error processing, and the settlement processing and the setting confirmation processing The flow path switching solenoid 30 may be switched to the on-off state according to the state before the start of each processing of the error processing.

Further, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment, when starting each process of the settlement process, the setting confirmation process, and the error process, transmits a command indicating that the corresponding process is started to the sub control unit 91. However, the sub-control unit 91 notifies that the corresponding process is executed according to the command, so that the medal insertion is performed during each process of the settlement process, the setting confirmation process, and the error process. It is possible to inform the player that it is impossible.

Further, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment sets the detection time invalidation timer when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is switched from on to off, and thereafter detects the detection time of the inserted medal sensors 31a to 31c for a predetermined period. Even if the medal clogging determination time is exceeded, the medal clogging error is not judged, and after the medal flow-down path is switched from the outlet 142 side to the medal return path 132 side, the inserted medal is momentum and the medal flow-down path is When the 133 flows down to the outlet 142 side, even if the passing speed of the medal becomes slower than usual, the medal clogging error is not determined, and so-called swallowing of the medal frequently causes abnormality detection. It is possible to prevent it.

In addition, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment causes the closing request LED 17 to be turned on when the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned off at the start of each adjustment process, setting confirmation process, and error process. Since the lights are turned off, it is possible to notify the player that a meda cannot be input in each of the settlement process, the setting confirmation process, and the error process.

The slot machine 1 of the present embodiment is provided with a medal selector 29 for discriminating the authenticity of the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4, and the main control section 41 uses the medal downflow passage 133 of the medal selector 29 for the medal hopper. It is possible to switch between a flow path leading to the tank 34a side and a flow path guiding medals to the medal payout opening 9 side, and the number of medals guided to the hopper tank 34a side is an upper limit value (in the present embodiment, the bet number). (The sum of the prescribed number and the maximum number of credits) is reached, the medal flow-down passage 133 is switched to a flow path leading to the medal payout exit 9 side, and the main control unit 41 stores the bet number or credits. After performing the settlement process for returning the medals, the medal flow-down passage 133 is switched to the flow path leading to the hopper tank 34a side.

In such a configuration, after the settlement, the number of medals that should have been inserted should not have reached the upper limit, so if the configuration allows the insertion of medals when the settlement is completed, If credits are not settled normally due to a problem, there is a risk that the insertion of medals will be permitted after the settlement is completed with the bet number and the number of medals stored in the credits reaching the upper limit values. There is.

On the other hand, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment, at the end of the settlement process, executes the insertable/impossible process of determining whether or not the number of medals stored as credits has reached the upper limit number, If it is determined that the maximum number has been reached, the throwable flag is cleared to make it impossible to insert medals, and if it is determined that the maximum number has not been reached, the throwable flag is set. Then, it is possible to insert medals, so even if the settlement process ends without being normally performed due to a malfunction, the settlement process will continue with the number of medals stored in the credits reaching the upper limit. It is possible to prevent the state where the medal can be inserted after the end of.

In addition, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment determines whether or not the number of medals stored in the credit has reached the upper limit in a plurality of processes such as settlement process, setting confirmation process, start waiting error process, and the like. It is possible to call the throwing possibility determination process to be performed. Since the throwing possibility determination process is included in the game program as a common module that can be called based on various processes, the number of bets or credits in a plurality of processes. It is possible to reduce the program capacity required for the process of determining whether or not the number of medals stored in is reaching the upper limit.

The main control unit 41 of the present embodiment adds 1 to the number of medals stored in the credit in the insertability determination process of determining whether or not the number of medals stored in the credit has reached the upper limit. Since this includes a process for determining whether or not the upper limit number is reached, it is not only determined whether or not the bet number or the number of medals stored in the credits reaches the upper limit number by the throwability determination process, and one more is added. By doing so, it is possible to specify whether or not the maximum number will be reached, and by adding 1 more, it becomes possible to prepare for prohibiting the insertion of medals when it is specified that the maximum number will be reached. ..

The main control unit 41 has a configuration capable of executing an insertability determination process for determining whether or not the number of medals stored in the credit has reached the upper limit number, and includes a ROM 41b in which a program and data are stored, The ROM 41b includes a program area (a game program area and a non-gaming program area) in which a program is stored, and a data area (a gaming data area and a non-gaming data area) in which fixed data used by the program is stored. The upper limit number for determining whether or not the number of bets or the number of medals stored in the credits in the determination process reaches the upper limit number is stored in the data area of the ROM 41b, not in the program area. Even when the upper limit number used in the determination process is changed, only the upper limit number can be changed without changing the program.

Further, when starting the settlement process, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment transmits a settlement start command indicating that the settlement process is started to the sub control unit 91, and the sub control unit 91 When the settlement start command is received, the settlement process is informed that the settlement process is executed, and the main control unit 41 sets the throwable flag in the throwability determination process after the settlement process is finished, After the state in which the payment can be input is made, a settlement end command capable of specifying that the settlement process is to be terminated is transmitted to the sub-control unit 91, and the sub-control unit 91 receives the settlement end command. Since the settlement-in-progress notification is ended, it is possible to prevent the medal insertion from being restricted even though the settlement-in-progress notification is completed. The same applies to the setting confirmation process and the start waiting error process.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 20, in the main controller 41, the on state of the setting key switch 37 is detected while the start waiting error process is not executed during the game start waiting process. Then, the setting confirmation process is started. In the setting confirmation processing, the display of the set value is started, the current set value is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, the setting confirmation flag is set in the RAM 41c, and the setting confirmation flag is set. Then, the output of the setting signal from the external output board 1000 as the external output signal is turned on. Further, a setting confirmation start command is set, and the command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. On the other hand, when the sub control unit 91 receives the setting confirmation start command, it causes the liquid crystal display 51 and the speakers 53 and 54 to output an image and a sound indicating that the main control unit 41 is in the setting confirmation state. Notification of setting confirmation is started.

In this state, in the main control section 41, when the setting key switch 37 is operated and the off state of the setting key switch 37 is detected, the display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 is ended, and the delay occurs. The period timer is set. Then, after the predetermined delay period (2.24 ms in the present embodiment) has elapsed, the setting confirmation flag is cleared from the RAM 41c, so that the output of the setting change state signal is turned off. Further, the setting confirmation end command is set, and the command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. On the other hand, by receiving the setting confirmation end command, the sub control unit 91 determines that the setting confirmation state in the main control unit 41 has ended, and ends the setting confirmation notification.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 sets the delay period when an operation to end the setting confirmation state is performed in the setting confirmation process, and clears the setting confirmation flag after the delay period has elapsed. Therefore, during the delay period, the output of the external output signal is maintained in the on state, and after the delay period elapses, the setting confirmation flag is cleared, and then the output of the external output signal is turned off. ..

The main control unit 41 of the present embodiment can change the payout rate of medals according to the set value that is advantageous to the player, and the game is not being played, and the game start waiting process is performed. When the setting key switch 37 is turned on, the setting confirmation process for displaying the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 is started, and the setting key switch 37 is turned off. In this case, the setting confirmation process is terminated and the game start waiting process is resumed.

In such a configuration, when the setting key switch 37 is turned on immediately after the setting key switch 37 is turned on during the game start waiting process, the setting is illegally set. It may not be possible to externally recognize that the setting has been confirmed, such as when the setting has been confirmed, and it may not be possible to identify the possibility of fraud.

On the other hand, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment is a setting for displaying the set value so that the set value can be confirmed when the setting key switch 37 is turned on during the game start waiting process. After starting the confirmation process and starting the display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12, when the setting key switch 37 is turned off, the display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 is performed. After the game is completed, the game start waiting process is resumed. When the setting key switch 37 is turned on and the setting confirmation process is started, the main control is that the setting confirmation process is being performed. The external output control (setting-in-progress signal) that starts displaying the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 managed by the section 41 and outputs the setting confirmation process outside the main control section 41 in a recognizable manner. Output control, control for transmitting a setting confirmation start command) is started, and when the setting key switch 37 is turned off, the display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 is ended, while the delay After setting the period timer and ending the external output control after the elapse of a predetermined delay period, the setting confirmation process is ended and the process is returned to the game start waiting process. The display starts with the start operation of the setting confirmation process and ends with the end operation, while the external output control that externally recognizes that the setting confirmation process is being performed The process is started with a start operation and continues until a predetermined delay time elapses after the end operation is performed, so that it is possible to reliably recognize that the setting confirmation process has been executed outside the main control unit 41. be able to.

Further, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment has a configuration capable of executing the setting confirmation process in the game start waiting process, and when the setting key switch 37 is turned on, the setting confirmation process is started. By setting the setting confirmation flag, the output of the setting signal which is an external output signal is started as the external output control, and after the setting key switch 37 is turned off, a predetermined delay period elapses, Since the output of the setting signal is terminated by clearing the setting confirmation flag, it is the main fact that the setting confirmation process is executed on the external device connected to the outside of the slot machine 1 based on the output of the setting signal. It can be surely recognized outside the control unit 41.

In particular, as shown in FIG. 21, after the setting key switch 37 is turned on and the setting confirmation process is started, an external output 2 process for controlling the output state of the setting signal is performed, and a timer interrupt process is performed. If the setting confirmation flag is cleared in the period until it is executed, the setting confirmation process ends without switching the setting signal to on, but after the setting confirmation process starts, The setting key switch 37 is turned on by setting the period longer than the period until the timer interrupt process in which the external output 2 process for controlling the output state of the setting signal is executed as the predetermined delay period. It is possible to prevent that the setting signal is not detected by the external device because the setting signal is not switched to the on state as the external output signal even though the state is detected and the setting confirmation process is performed.

Also, in the external device to which the setting-in-progress signal is input, it takes a certain time to detect that the setting-in-progress signal is switched to the on state, but the setting key switch 37 is set to the on state. After the setting confirmation process is started, the period during which the setting signal is switched to the on state and then switched to the off state is sufficient to detect that the setting signal is switched to the on state in the external device. Even if the setting key switch 37 is detected to be in the on state and the setting confirmation processing is performed and the setting signal is switched to the on state by setting the predetermined delay period so as to secure the appropriate time. Regardless, it is possible to prevent the external device from not detecting the setting signal.

Further, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment has a configuration capable of executing the setting confirmation process in the game start waiting process, and when the setting key switch 37 is turned on, the setting confirmation process is started. , A setting confirmation start command capable of specifying that the setting confirmation processing has started as external output control is transmitted to the sub-control unit 91, and after the setting key switch 37 is turned off, a predetermined delay period After a lapse of time, a setting confirmation end command capable of specifying that the setting confirmation processing is to be ended is transmitted to the sub control unit 91, then the setting confirmation processing is ended and the game start waiting processing is returned to. Then, the sub-control unit 91 starts the setting confirmation notification for notifying that the setting confirmation processing is being performed when the setting confirmation start command is received, and when the setting confirmation end command is received, Since the in-confirmation notification is ended, the sub-control unit 91 can surely recognize that the main control unit 41 has executed the setting confirmation process based on the setting confirmation start command and the setting confirmation end command.

In particular, after the setting confirmation start command is transmitted, as a predetermined delay period for delaying until the setting confirmation end command is transmitted, the sub control unit 91 receives the setting confirmation command and starts the setting confirmation notification, and then performs the setting confirmation. By setting the period sufficient for the clerk to recognize the middle notification, the setting confirmation switch is set by the setting confirmation notification although the setting key switch 37 is detected to be in the on state and the setting confirmation processing is performed. It can be prevented that the confirmation process is not recognized.

In the present embodiment, when the setting control switch 41 determines that the setting key switch 37 is off in the setting confirmation process, the main control unit 41 sets the delay period timer so that the predetermined delay period elapses. The setting confirmation end command is transmitted to the sub-control unit 91, and the sub-control unit 91 ends the setting confirmation notification when the setting confirmation end command is received. When it is determined that the setting key switch 37 is off in the setting confirmation processing, the unit 41 transmits a setting confirmation end command to the sub control unit 91, and the sub control unit 91 transmits the setting confirmation end command. The configuration confirming notification may be terminated after a predetermined delay period has elapsed from the reception, or when the main control unit 41 determines that the setting key switch 37 is in the off state in the setting confirmation process. , A delay period timer is set, and after a predetermined delay time has elapsed, a setting confirmation end command is transmitted to the sub-control unit 91, and the sub-control unit 91 receives a setting confirmation end command and then a predetermined predetermined amount. The configuration confirming notification may be terminated after the delay period has elapsed. In such a configuration, in the setting confirmation processing, the main control unit 41 causes the sub-control unit 91 to notify the setting confirmation after at least a predetermined delay period has elapsed after the operation for ending the setting confirmation state is performed. Can be managed to terminate.

Further, in the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 delays in the setting confirmation process after transmitting the setting confirmation start command so that the predetermined delay period corresponds to the time interval of at least four timer interrupt processes. The configuration is such that the period timer is set, the setting confirmation flag is released after the delay period has elapsed, and the setting confirmation end command is transmitted. However, the main control unit 41 transmits the setting confirmation start command and then the setting confirmation start command. As long as the configuration includes a process of intentionally delaying before the confirmation flag is released and the setting confirmation end command is transmitted, a time interval less than four timer interrupts may be set as the delay period, A time interval of four or more timer interrupts may be set as the delay period. In such a configuration, the external output 2 process for controlling the output state of the setting signal is performed as the predetermined delay period as described above. During the period longer than the period until the timer interrupt process is executed, a period during which the setting confirmation signal is switched to the on state in the external device is secured in the external device is secured, and the setting confirmation notification is issued. If the configuration is such that a period sufficient for a store clerk or the like to recognize it is set, the fact that the setting confirmation process has been executed can be reliably recognized outside the main control unit 41.

Further, in the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment, the setting key switch 37 is turned on, the output of the setting signal is started, and a predetermined delay time elapses after the setting confirmation start command is transmitted. After that, the output of the setting signal is ended, and the setting confirmation end command is transmitted, and the delay period until the output of the setting signal is ended and the delay period for transmitting the setting confirmation end command are Although the same time interval is set, the delay period until the output of the setting signal is ended and the delay period for transmitting the setting confirmation end command may be different time intervals.

In addition, in the present embodiment, the main control unit 41 causes the game auxiliary display 12 to display the set value when the setting key switch 37 is turned on in the setting confirmation process, and the setting key switch 37 When the off state is set, the display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 is stopped, but the main control section 41 sets the set value when the setting key switch 37 is set to the on state. The delay time timer is set when the game key is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, and the setting key switch 37 is turned off. When the predetermined delay period elapses, the set value of the game auxiliary display 12 is displayed. May be configured to stop. With such a configuration, after the setting key switch 37 is turned off, the display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 is maintained for a period until a predetermined delay period elapses. The display of the set value on the game auxiliary display 12 can be reliably recognized outside.

In addition, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment obtains the operation of various switches related to the progress of the game such as the start switch 7, the stop switches 8L, 8C, and 8R by the timer interrupt processing of the previous time and this time. Setting key switch that triggers the setting confirmation process while detecting the operation based on the confirmed data indicating that the input data are in the same state, that is, the input data acquired at a plurality of timings. Regarding the operation of 37, the operation is detected based on the state of the corresponding input port at that time, that is, the on/off state of the setting key switch 37 acquired at a single timing. Since the time required to detect the operation of the setting key switch 37 is relatively shorter than the time required to detect the operation related to the progress of the game, the setting key switch 37 is When it is turned on, the setting check state is entered and the external output control is executed, so if there is a possibility that an illegal operation has been performed, it is possible to detect it at a high rate. Since the time required to detect an operation related to the progress of a game is relatively long, it is possible to improve the accuracy of determination as to whether or not an operation has been performed without the operation being mistakenly detected by noise such as static electricity. You can

In the present embodiment, when starting the setting confirmation processing in the game start waiting processing and when ending the setting confirmation processing in the setting confirmation processing, the setting key switch is based on the state of the corresponding input port at that time. The configuration of determining the on-off state of 37 is a configuration of determining the on-off state based on the confirmation data of the setting key switch 37 when starting or ending the setting confirmation process. Good. Even in this case, by setting the time required to acquire the final data of the setting key switch 37 to be shorter than the time required to acquire the final data than other switches for advancing the game, it is extremely short. Even if the setting key switch 37 is turned on, the setting confirmation state is entered and the external output control is executed, and if there is a possibility that illegality has been detected, it should be detected at a high rate. On the other hand, since the time required to detect an operation related to the progress of the game is relatively long, it is possible to determine whether or not the operation has been carried out without being erroneously detected due to noise such as static electricity. The determination accuracy can be improved.

Further, the main control unit 41 of the present embodiment is configured to start the setting confirmation process by operating the setting key switch 37, and the setting key switch 37 is operated by opening the front door 1b. Since it is possible to perform the setting confirmation process, it takes a lot of time to shift to the setting confirmation process, so that it is possible to prevent the setting confirmation process from being executed due to fraud.

The main control unit 41 of the present embodiment is configured to perform the setting confirmation process by setting the setting key switch 37 in the on state in the game start waiting process, but the setting key switch 37 is in the on state. At this time, when it is specified that the front door 1b is opened based on the output of the door opening detection switch 25, the setting confirmation process may be performed. With such a configuration, Since the set value confirmation process cannot be executed without opening the front door 1b, it is possible to more effectively prevent the setting confirmation process from being illegally executed.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, when an error is detected and an error code is set by the timer interrupt process in the administrator mode in the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, the error code is set. , Error processing in the game mode after the state transition from the administrator mode (Sh5 and Sh6 of waiting start error processing, processing in which an error code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 by the main control unit 41, and sub control unit The processing of notifying that the error processing is being performed is executed by 91). If error processing is executed in the administrator mode that is in the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, the error code is displayed on the game auxiliary display unit 12, and the administrator cannot confirm the setting or change the setting. Will end up. Further, when the error processing is executed in the administrator mode which is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, an error image is displayed on the screen of the liquid crystal display 51 and an error notification sound is output from the speakers 53 and 54. It will be output, and it will be an obstacle for the administrator to confirm and change the settings. Therefore, in the present embodiment, even if an error such as a throw-in is detected and an error code is set in the administrator mode, error processing is not executed in the administrator mode, so that the management in the administrator mode is performed. It does not cause the inconvenience that the setting change operation or the setting confirmation operation by the person is interrupted. Further, after the state has been changed from the administrator mode to the game mode, error processing can be executed to indicate to the administrator that an abnormality due to an error such as input has occurred. Further, when the mode is changed from the game mode to the administrator mode, the passage switching solenoid is switched from on to off, so that the passage through which the medal passes is an intake passage to the hopper tank 34a side for storing the medal. Since it is switched to the return passage to the medal payout exit 9 side, it is possible to prevent the medal from being taken into the slot machine 1 even in the administrator mode in which the game cannot proceed.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, further, error processing is executed after the state is changed from the administrator mode, which is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, to the game mode. At this time, by keeping the flow path switching solenoid off, the passage through which the medals pass is changed from the return passage to the medal payout opening 9 side to the intake passage to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals. Since switching is not possible, it is possible to prevent medals from being taken into the slot machine 1 despite the occurrence of an error such as an insertion error.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the setting key switch 37 is turned on when the game mode is changed to the administrator mode which is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state. Thus, the setting-in-progress signal is externally output as the external output signal, so that the external output-signal (setting-in-progress signal) can be externally output at an appropriate timing.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, further, error processing is executed after the state is changed from the administrator mode, which is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, to the game mode. On the other hand, the external output of the external output signal is maintained (the setting signal is no longer detected, but the insertion error signal or the payout error signal is newly detected, so the output of the external output signal is maintained). Since the external output of the external output signal ends when the error processing is not executed, the external output signal can be appropriately externally output depending on whether or not the error processing is executed.

[Slot Machine According to Second Embodiment]
The slot machine 1 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. The basic configuration of the slot machine 1 described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7 and 11 to 22 is also provided in the slot machine 1 according to the second embodiment. In the slot machine according to the second embodiment as well, the timer interrupt process is always performed in both the setting confirmation state and the setting change state, so that the timer interruption process is performed in both the setting confirmation state and the setting change state. When an error occurs, the error is detected and an error code is set.

In the first embodiment, when an abnormality such as a turning-on is detected in the administrator mode in the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, it does not matter whether the administrator mode is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state. Instead, the error processing is executed after shifting from the administrator mode to the game mode, an error code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 by the main control unit 41, and further, error processing is being performed by the sub-control unit 91 side. Was notified.

In the second embodiment, when an abnormality such as a throw-in is detected in the administrator mode, when the administrator mode is changed to the game mode, if the administrator mode has a setting change state, error processing is performed. Do not execute. On the other hand, if the administrator mode is in the setting confirmation state, error processing is executed, an error code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 by the main control unit 41, and further error processing is being performed by the sub control unit 91 side. The notification was made.

[When an error occurs during setting confirmation]
FIG. 22 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting confirmation state according to the second embodiment. In order to switch from the game mode to the setting confirmation state, an administrator such as a store clerk must first open the front door 1b while the power is on. At time t1, the door open detection switch 25 is switched from the off state to the on state by opening the front door 1b. Next, with the front door 1b being opened, the administrator turns on the setting key switch 37 at time t2. As a result, the setting confirmation state is entered, and the setting confirmation processing is executed.

When the game mode is switched to the setting confirmation state, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is switched from the on state to the off state. As a result, the flow path switching plate 147 is switched from the guide position to the non-guide position, so that the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9.

In addition, since the setting in-progress signal is output by shifting to the setting confirmation state, the external output signal is switched from the off state to the on state.

Next, at time t3, it is assumed that an error such as insertion is detected by the timer interrupt process. At this time, an error code such as input is set in the register. When the error code is set, the error processing is executed in the "waiting start error processing". However, during the setting confirmation state (during the administrator mode), the start waiting error process is not executed, and therefore the error process does not become the on state but remains in the off state.

At time t4, when the administrator switches the setting key switch 37 from the on state to the off state, the setting confirmation state ends.

Here, a case in which a throw-in error is detected and a case in which a throw-in error is not detected will be described below. If a throw-in error is detected, the throw-in error code or the like remains set in the register. As described above, when the administrator mode is changed to the game mode, if the administrator mode is in the setting confirmation state, error processing is executed. When the setting confirmation process is completed and the setting confirmation state, which is the administrator mode, is switched to the game mode, if an error code such as throwing is set (the throwing error is continuously detected), an error waiting for start The process is executed. In the start waiting error process, the main control unit 41 sets an error start command indicating that the error process is started in the command queue until the error release condition (reset operation) is satisfied, and the set error is set. The code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12. Further, the error start command is transmitted to the sub control unit 91. The sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error start command executes an in-error notification that notifies that error processing is in progress.

Further, at this time, the flow path switching solenoid 30 maintains a non-excited state (maintains an off state). That is, since the flow path switching plate 147 is still in the non-guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9.

Further, at this time, the setting key switch 37 is turned off, and the setting signal is turned off. However, if an error such as making is not canceled yet, the making error signal or the paying out error signal remains on, so that the external output signal Keeps on.

Next, at the time t5, in the start waiting error process, when the error release condition is satisfied by the reset operation by the reset switch 23 and the error such as turning on is released, the main control unit 41 causes the game auxiliary display 12 to display. Clear the error code display. Further, the main control unit 41 sets an error cancellation command indicating that the error processing is to be terminated, and the sub-control unit 91 side that has received the error cancellation command terminates the notification indicating that the error processing is being performed.

Finally, at time t6, the administrator can close the front door 1b to allow the game to proceed.

On the other hand, at time t4, when the detection of the error such as the throw-in is not detected, the setting of the error code of the throw-in or the like is canceled. When the setting confirmation process is completed and the setting confirmation state, which is the administrator mode, is switched to the game mode, an error code such as input is not set, and therefore the start waiting error process is not executed. Therefore, the error start command indicating that the error processing has started is not set, and the error code is not displayed on the game auxiliary display unit 12. Since the sub-control unit 91 also does not receive the error start command, the in-error notification for notifying that error processing is in progress is not executed.

At this time, the flow path switching solenoid 30 switches from the non-excited state to the non-excited state (switches from the off state to the on state). That is, since the flow path switching plate 147 is switched from the non-guide position to the guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion port 4 are discharged to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals.

Further, at this time, the setting key switch 37 is turned off, so that the setting signal is turned off. Further, since the insertion error signal or the payout error signal also remains off, the external output signal switches from the on state to the off state.

[When an error occurs while changing settings]
FIG. 23 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting change state according to the second embodiment. The setting is changed only when the hall is normally closed. The front door 1b is opened while the power of the slot machine 1 is off. Then, in order to change the set value, the setting key switch 37 is turned on and then the slot machine 1 is turned on. By this work, the setting change state is entered, and the setting value read from the RAM 41c is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12 as a display value. When changing the setting, unlike the case of checking the setting, the door is opened while the power is off. Therefore, the door open detection switch 25 is detected in the on state at the timing when the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on. At the same time, since the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on while the setting key switch 37 is also in the on state, the setting key switch 37 is also detected in the on state at the timing when the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on. That is, at time t1 when the power of the slot machine 1 is turned on, the door open detection switch 25 and the setting key switch 37 are detected in the on state.

At the timing when the power is turned on, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is in a non-excited state (off state). Since the flow path switching plate 147 is in the non-guide position, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9.

Further, since the setting-in-progress signal is output by shifting to the setting change state, the external output signal is output in the on state.

Next, at time t2, it is assumed that an error such as insertion is detected by the timer interrupt process. At this time, an error code such as input is set in the register. When the error code is set, the error processing is executed in "error processing waiting for start". However, during the setting change state (during the administrator mode), the start waiting error process is not executed, and therefore the error process does not become the on state but remains in the off state.

When the setting change by the administrator is completed, the setting key switch 37 is turned off. As a result, at the time t3, the setting key switch 37 is switched from the off state to the on state.

If a throw-in error is detected, the throw-in error code or the like remains set in the register. When the setting change processing is completed and the setting change state, which is the administrator mode, is switched to the game mode, an error code such as throw-in error is set (the throw-in error is continuously detected) and waiting start error handling Is executed. However, in the modification shown in FIG. 23, the setting of the error code is deleted when switching from the setting change state to the game mode. As a result, when the mode is changed from the administrator mode to the game mode, error processing is not executed.

In the present embodiment, the process of deleting the error code setting is performed before the start waiting error process is executed. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and even if an error such as an input is detected, the input is performed in the first place. The error code may not be set. In this way, if an error code such as throwing is not set in the setting change state, error processing is not executed even if the setting change state is shifted to the game mode.

When the setting key switch 37 is turned off, the setting signal is turned off. Further, since the insertion error signal or the payout error signal also remains off, the external output signal switches from the on state to the off state.

Finally, at time t4, the administrator can close the front door 1b to proceed with the game.

FIG. 24 is a timing chart illustrating processing when an error occurs in the setting change state according to the modified example of the second embodiment. In FIG. 23, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is in a non-excited state (off state) at the timing when the power source of the slot machine 1 is turned on. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the flow path switching solenoid 30 may be momentarily switched from the non-excited state to the excited state at the timing when the power source of the slot machine 1 is turned on (short from the off state to the on state). Switch only time). By turning on the power of the slot machine 1 and immediately switching the flow path switching solenoid 30 to the on state, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are discharged to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals. It This allows the game to proceed promptly.

At time t1 when the power source of the slot machine 1 is turned on, processing for switching the flow path switching solenoid 30 from the non-excited state to the excited state is performed (switching from the off state to the on state). As a result, the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are discharged to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals. Then, at time t1, the door open detection switch 25 and the setting key switch 37 are detected in the on state. Furthermore, by switching to the setting change state which is the administrator mode, the flow path switching solenoid 30 switches from the excited state to the non-excited state (switches from the on state to the off state). As a result, the flow path switching plate 147 is switched from the guide position to the non-guide position, so that the medals inserted from the medal insertion slot 4 are returned from the medal payout slot 9. As a result, the flow path switching solenoid 30 is turned off again immediately after it is momentarily switched from the off state to the on state.

Further, since the setting-in-progress signal is output by shifting to the setting change state, the external output signal is output in the on state. The processing from time t2 to t5 is the same as the processing from time t2 to t5 shown in FIG.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 23 and FIG. 24, when an error such as a closing is detected in the setting change state and an abnormality occurs, error processing is performed after the setting change state is ended (error of waiting start error processing). Sh5, Sh6, the process of displaying the error code on the game auxiliary display 12 by the main control unit 41, and the process of notifying that the error process is being performed by the sub control unit 91) are not executed, so management of the clerk etc. There is no inconvenience that the work of the person becomes troublesome due to the error processing. Further, as shown in FIG. 22, when an error such as a closing is detected in the setting confirmation state and an abnormality occurs, error processing is executed after the setting confirmation state ends, and therefore error processing is not executed after the setting confirmation state. As a result, inconvenience that fraud and the like cannot be prevented does not occur. As a result, no inconvenience due to the occurrence of abnormality will occur.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 23 and 24, even if the error code is set in the setting change state, the error code is set when the setting key switch is turned off and the setting change state is switched to the game mode. The setting of is deleted (the error code is switched to off). As a result, in the setting change state, the abnormality occurring in the slot machine 1 is detected as in the setting confirmation state. Therefore, the processing of detecting the abnormality can be shared regardless of the state, and the storage capacity is used extra. You don't have to.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, even if an error such as a throw-in is detected, the error code of throw-in may not be set in the first place. Accordingly, no abnormality is detected in the setting change state, so that the process in the setting change state can be simplified. Further, in the setting change state, the timer interrupt may not be executed, so that an error such as insertion may not be detected. Alternatively, in the setting change state, even if the timer interrupt is executed, an error such as turning on may not be detected.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 22, when an error is detected and an abnormality is detected in the administrator mode in the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, the state is changed from the administrator mode. Error processing is executed in the later game mode. Therefore, even if an error is detected in the administrator mode such as a throw-in, and an abnormality occurs, there is no inconvenience that the administrator's setting change operation or setting confirmation operation in the administrator mode is interrupted. It is possible to indicate to the administrator that an abnormality has occurred due to an error such as throwing in after the mode is changed to the game mode. Further, when the mode is changed from the game mode to the administrator mode, the passage switching solenoid is switched from on to off, so that the passage through which the medal passes is an intake passage to the hopper tank 34a side for storing the medal. Since it is switched to the return passage to the medal payout exit 9 side, it is possible to prevent the medal from being taken into the slot machine 1 even in the administrator mode in which the game cannot proceed.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 22, further, after the state is changed from the administrator mode, which is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, to the game mode, start waiting error processing (main control unit 41, an error code is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, and the sub-control unit 91 notifies that error processing is in progress)), the flow path switching solenoid is turned off. By maintaining the passage, the passage through which the medals pass cannot be switched from the return passage to the medal payout outlet 9 side to the intake passage to the hopper tank 34a side for storing medals, so that an error due to an error such as insertion may occur. It is possible to prevent medals from being taken into the slot machine 1 even though they are generated.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 22, the setting key switch 37 is turned on when the game mode is changed to the administrator mode which is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state. Since the setting signal is externally output as the external output signal, the external output signal (setting signal) can be output at an appropriate timing.

In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 22, after the state is changed from the administrator mode, which is the setting change state or the setting confirmation state, to the game mode, when error processing is executed, While the external output of the output signal is maintained (the signal is not detected during setting, the output of the external output signal is maintained because the insertion error signal or the payout error signal is newly detected), but the error Since the external output of the external output signal ends when the processing is not executed, the external output signal can be appropriately externally output depending on whether or not the error processing is executed.

[Modification]
Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and the present invention is not limited to the modifications and additions without departing from the scope of the present invention. Needless to say, it is included.

[About error handling]
In the present embodiment, when an error such as turning on is detected and an abnormality is detected in the administrator mode, both the error notification by the main control unit 41 and the error notification by the sub control unit 91 are executed in the administrator mode. Instead, the error notification by the main control unit 41 and the error notification (error processing) by the sub control unit 91 are performed after shifting from the administrator mode to the game mode. However, it is not limited to this.

Even if it is executed in the administrator mode, if it is an error process that does not interfere with the operation of setting confirmation and setting change by the administrator and does not cause inconvenience such as interruption of setting confirmation and setting change by the administrator It may be executed in the worker mode. For example, in the present embodiment, while the set value is displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, the error code is also displayed on the game auxiliary display 12, but the set value and the error code are mutually different. The error code may be displayed in the administrator mode as long as it is displayed on a different display. Further, in the present embodiment, the error notification by the liquid crystal display 51 and the speakers 53, 54 is not executed in the administrator mode because it interferes with the setting confirmation and the setting change by the administrator. Since the operation of setting confirmation and setting change by the administrator is not directly interrupted, error notification may be executed by the liquid crystal display 51 or the speakers 53, 54 even in the administrator mode.

As described above, if the setting confirmation and the setting change by the administrator are not interrupted, for example, when an error is detected and an abnormality is detected in the administrator mode, an error is detected by the main control unit 41 in the administrator mode. It is also possible that only the error notification is made and the error notification is not made by the sub-control unit 91. Then, after shifting from the administrator mode to the game mode, the main controller 41 may notify the error and the sub controller 91 may notify the error. Alternatively, after shifting from the manager mode to the game mode, either the error notification by the main control unit 41 or the error notification by the sub control unit 91 may be performed.

For example, when an error such as a closing is detected and an abnormality is detected in the administrator mode, only the error notification is performed by the sub control unit 91 and the error notification is not performed by the main control unit 41 in the administrator mode. Good. Then, after shifting from the administrator mode to the game mode, the main controller 41 may notify the error and the sub controller 91 may notify the error. Alternatively, after shifting from the manager mode to the game mode, either the error notification by the main control unit 41 or the error notification by the sub control unit 91 may be performed.

[Releasing the error]
In the present embodiment, the error state is released by operating the reset switch 23, but a setting change operation (for example, a setting value change operation by operating the reset/setting switch 38, a setting by operating the start switch 7) is performed. The error state may be released by a value fixing operation), or the error state may be released by turning off the setting key switch 37 when ending the setting change state.

[Application to pachinko machines]
In the embodiment described above, as shown in FIGS. 8 to 10 and 22 to 24, when an error occurs in the setting change state or the setting confirmation state in the administrator mode for the slot machine which is an example of the gaming machine. The process has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be applied to a so-called pachinko gaming machine in which a so-called game ball is driven into a game area to play a game.

For example, on a pachinko gaming machine that plays a game by driving a game medium (pachinko ball) into a predetermined game area, based on a random number extracted by passing the driven pachinko ball through a starting area provided in the game area. , Whether or not to generate a big hit, and when to generate a big hit, whether or not to control in a probability variation state or a shortened state in which the probability of becoming a big hit is higher than in the normal time after the big hit ends. Good. Further, the pachinko gaming machine may execute a predetermined effect. For example, when it is decided to control the big hit, a big hit effect such as notifying a character effect image or a blessing sound may be executed.

In such a pachinko gaming machine, for example, as the administrator mode, a state of changing or confirming the setting contents of the effect (sound, color, character, action of a character, etc.) and winning of the jackpot lottery (time saving, probability change) Applicable for states that change or confirm probabilities. Further, as the setting confirmation state, it is possible to apply a state of confirming the setting contents (sound, color, character, action of a character, etc.) of production, and a state of confirming the winning probability of the jackpot lottery (time saving, probability variation). Further, the setting change state can be applied to a state of changing the setting contents of the effect (sound, color, character, action of a character, etc.) and a state of changing the winning probability of the jackpot lottery (time saving, probability variation). An application example will be described below.

For example, when the administrator changes or confirms the setting contents of the effect (sound, color, character, action of a character, etc.), or changes to the state of changing or confirming the winning probability of the jackpot lottery (time saving, probability variation). In addition, the setting switch may be turned on so that the setting signal is externally output as an external output signal.

In addition, for example, from the state where the administrator changes or confirms the setting contents of the effect (sound, color, character, action of character, etc.) or the state where the winning probability of the jackpot lottery (time saving, probability variation) is changed or confirmed. After shifting to the game state, the external output of the external output signal is maintained when the error processing is being executed, while the external output of the external output signal is completed when the error processing is not being executed. It may be something like this.

Further, for example, when an abnormality occurs in the state of changing the setting contents of the effect (sound, color, character, action of a role object, etc.) or in the state of changing the winning probability of the jackpot lottery (time saving, probability variation), the change concerned. Error processing is not executed after the state ends and an error occurs in the state of confirming the setting contents (sound, color, character, action of character etc.) or in the state of confirming the winning probability of the jackpot lottery (time saving, probability variation). When is detected and an abnormality has occurred, error processing may be executed after the end of the confirmation state.

[Regarding modification of slot machine]
As the above embodiment, the slot machine for paying out the game medium to the player in accordance with the occurrence of the prize has been described, but the game medium is enclosed and the game medium is paid out to the player in accordance with the occurrence of the prize. Alternatively, an enclosed slot machine that adds game points (scores) may be adopted. The base and the drum can be distributed, and the housing is common, and only the base or the base and the drum are called gaming machines. Further, it is a slot machine that has a game area in which a game ball can be shot and a game can be played, and the bet number can be set when the game ball passes through a predetermined area provided in the game area. May be.

[About benefits]
In the example described above, the value that directly affects the payout rate of medals and pachinko balls, such as AT winning, is illustrated as a privilege. However, the privilege may be a value that enhances the degree of advantage for the player, and may be a value that does not directly affect the medal payout rate, for example. Specifically, in the AT lottery, when a high probability state that AT is won with a higher probability than usual is provided, execution of probability suggestion production for suggesting whether or not the current state is a high probability state , Execution of a premiere effect with a sound on the liquid crystal display 51 (especial character appearance, execution of a special bonus effect during a bonus that occurs next time, etc.), execution of a set value suggestion effect for suggesting a set value being set, Liquid crystal display of a two-dimensional code that allows points to be exchanged for services defined at the game store where the slot machine 1 is installed by collecting a fixed number, and special videos and special information can be downloaded on a predetermined website It may be displayed on the device 51.

Further, the privilege related to T is not limited to this, and for example, the right (navistock) that allows the AT to control a predetermined number of games (for example, 50 games) may be used. In addition, when the number of times that the navigation effect can be executed is determined and the AT is controlled until the navigation effect is executed by the determined number of times that the navigation effect can be executed, the number of times that the navigation effect can be executed is used as a privilege. Good. Further, for example, when the AT is controlled until the upper limit grant amount is determined and the granted gaming value (medal payout number) reaches the determined upper limit grant amount, the upper limit grant amount may be used as a privilege. In addition, when a predetermined AT start condition is satisfied until a predetermined AT end condition is satisfied, the AT is controlled, and when the AT end condition is satisfied, if a continuous lottery is performed to determine whether or not to continue the AT, the continuation is performed. The continuation probability determined to continue in the lottery may be used as a privilege.

[About advantageous conditions]
In the example described above, the AT and the like are illustrated as an advantageous state, but the present invention is not limited to this as long as it is an advantageous state for the player, and an example of a slot machine will be described below.

An advantageous state is, for example, a regular bonus (RB) or a replay time (RT) in which a winning probability of a predetermined winning combination has a high probability, a concentrated state of a small winning combination, or a retractable range of at least one reel than usual. The challenge time (CT), in which the occurrence of all small wins is allowed in each game as it becomes narrower, does not change the winning probability of winning prizes, etc., but the operation procedure for winning the winning small wins is prescribed. It may be a pseudo bonus or the like that is notified over a period (for example, until 50 games are exhausted). Further, it may be a state in which the probability of being controlled to these advantageous states has a high probability, and a state of having a high probability of being controlled to a freeze state, or a high number of games such as AT games. Advantageous states different from those of the above-described embodiment may be set, such as a state in which the number of additional games is added to the AT or a state in which the number of additional games in the AT is easily increased. In addition, it is indirectly advantageous for the player, such as a condition that the probability of establishing a condition for obtaining a privilege on the communication network or a condition for executing an effect (freeze effect, premium effect, etc.) with a premium feeling is high. It may be a privilege or a state in which the interest of the game is improved. Further, the permission determining means for determining whether or not to allow the shift to the advantageous state is not limited to the internal lottery process, and may be a means for determining regardless of the winning combination.

In addition, the advantageous state is, for example, in the privilege granting lottery for determining whether or not to grant the privilege, the “probability of being granted the privilege”, and the “profit is granted when the privilege is determined to be granted”. At least one of "the value of the privilege (or the expected value of the privilege amount)" is higher than the normal condition (a condition different from the advantageous condition). Further, the advantageous state may be one in which the number of triggers for executing the privilege granting lottery is larger than that in the normal state. In addition, the advantageous state may be a state in which the number of digestion-requiring games that need to be digested in order to give a privilege is smaller than in the normal state.

For example, when the privilege is the number of AT games, the more advantageous state is "AT winning probability in AT lottery" and "AT given when AT is won in AT lottery" than in the normal state. At least one of the "value of the number of games" may be higher than the normal state. Further, the advantageous state may be one in which the number of AT lottery execution triggers is larger than that in the normal state. For example, when the AT lottery execution timing in the normal state is the first winning combination and the second winning combination, the AT lottery execution timing in the advantageous state is the first winning combination and the second winning combination. In addition to this, a third role may be elected.

[About production and notification]
In the above-described example, the example in which the liquid crystal display 51 is used to give an effect or notification is given. ), a transparent liquid crystal display arranged on the front side of the reel (a liquid crystal display configured so that the reel can be seen), a lamp or LED mounted on the front door 1b, vibration of the stop switch, surroundings of the stop switch The effect may be performed by a means different from the above-described embodiment, such as blowing air from, or changing the temperature of the stop switch.

[About AT]
In the example of the slot machine, the example in which the main control unit 41 executes the control related to the AT has been described, but the AT control executed by the main control unit 41 includes the execution of the AT lottery. The AT lottery may include determination of winning or non-winning of the AT lottery, determination of whether to stock the AT game number, determination of the AT game number, additional lottery of the AT game number, and the like. Further, as the control related to the AT, there is a control of the high probability state of the AT lottery. The control of the high probability state of the AT lottery is such that the winning probability of the AT lottery becomes high probability, the control of shortening the period until the AT is controlled according to the result of the internal lottery, the winning probability of the additional lottery and the game Includes controls that favor numbers. Further, as the control related to the AT, it is possible to control to the AT when the prescribed number of games are exhausted. When the number of games of the prescribed number of games is exhausted, it includes the time of reaching the number of ceiling games and the time of reaching the number of games determined by lottery. Further, as the control related to the AT, there is a control for setting a precursory period. The control for setting the aura period includes control for executing effects of, for example, 0 to 32 games during the aura period before the start of AT. Further, as the control related to the AT, there is a control for giving a penalty. The control for giving a penalty includes determination of a penalty content and determination or setting of a penalty period. In addition, as the control related to the AT, the main control unit 41 may perform lighting control of a lamp or an LED indicating that the AT is in progress.

In addition, as the control related to the AT, the main control unit 41 performs lighting control of a lamp and an LED for executing a navigation effect. Further, the sub control unit 91 may execute the navigation effect in synchronization with the main control unit 41 executing the navigation effect. Furthermore, when improving the lottery probability, for example, when controlling the AT lottery to a high probability state, the main control unit 41 notifies that effect by lighting control of a lamp or an LED (for example, the game auxiliary display 12 or the like). You may do it. More specifically, the main control unit 41 may notify the fact that the navigation effect is controlled by the game auxiliary display 12 a predetermined number of times to control the high probability state of AT lottery. Alternatively, the main control unit 41 may notify the sub control unit 91 that the navigation effect is controlled to a high probability state of AT lottery by executing the navigation effect a predetermined number of times.

In addition, when the main control unit 41 executes the control related to the AT, it is preferable that the processing of the main control unit 41 is executed by a control unit that is subordinate to the main control unit 41 and is a subordinate of the main control unit 41. .. For example, the stop control of the reels may be executed by a control unit provided on a board other than the game control board, and the main control section 41 may transfer the operation signal of the stop switch to the control section. As described above, by causing the lower-level control unit to control the main control unit 41, it is possible to prevent the capacity shortage of the ROM 41b and the RAM 41c and the shortage of the processing capacity of the main CPU 41a when the control related to the AT is performed.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the main control unit 41 executes the above-mentioned control related to the AT, but the sub-control unit 91 may execute it. The sub-control unit 91 performs, for example, AT lottery processing or additional lottery processing based on an internal winning command from the main control unit 41, and executes processing for controlling to AT or navigation effect according to the result. You may make it process.

[Setting change status and setting confirmation status]
Regarding the setting change state, it may be possible to shift to the setting change state on condition that “power supply on”+“setting key switch ON”+“front door open detection”. As a result, it is possible to prevent unauthorized setting changes when the front door is not open. In addition, once the setting change status is entered, the setting change status is maintained regardless of the open/closed status of the front door until the end condition for ending the setting change status (the setting key switch is turned off after the set value is confirmed) is satisfied. You may do so. As a result, even if the front door is closed during the setting change state, the setting change state is not terminated, so that it is possible to prevent the trouble of shifting to the setting change state again.

Further, with respect to the setting confirmation state, it may be possible to shift to the setting confirmation state on condition that “setting key switch on”+“front door open detection”. As a result, it is possible to prevent unauthorized setting confirmation when the front door is not opened. In addition, once the setting confirmation state is entered, the setting confirmation state is maintained regardless of the open/closed state of the front door until the end condition for ending the setting confirmation state (setting key switch off operation) is satisfied. Good. As a result, even if the front door is closed during the setting confirmation state, the setting confirmation state is not ended, so that it is possible to prevent the trouble of shifting to the setting confirmation state again.

In the embodiment described above, a plurality of reels capable of variably displaying a plurality of types of symbols that can be identified are provided, and after variably displaying the reels, the variably display of the reels is stopped to derive the display result, The slot machine capable of generating a prize according to the combination of the display results of the reels has been described. That is, the display result is derived by providing a plurality of variable display units capable of variably displaying a plurality of types of identification information, each of which can be identified, and variably displaying the variable display unit and then stopping the variable display of the variable display unit. Then, the slot machine in which the winning can be generated according to the combination of the display results of the plurality of variable display portions has been described. However, the display result is derived by providing a variable display unit capable of variably displaying a plurality of types of identification information, each of which can be identified, and variably displaying the variable display unit and then stopping the variable display of the variable display unit. The slot machine is not limited to one having three reels as long as it is a slot machine capable of generating a winning according to the display result, and a slot machine having a plurality of reels other than three reels. Good.

The embodiments disclosed this time are to be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is shown not by the above description but by the claims, and is intended to include meanings equivalent to the claims and all modifications within the scope.

1 slot machine, 2L, 2C, 2R reels, 6 MAXBET switch, 7 start switch, 8L, 8C, 8R stop switch, 12 game auxiliary indicator, 23 reset switch, 30 flow path switching solenoid, 37 setting key switch, 41 main Control unit, 41c RAM, 91 Sub control unit, 91c RAM, 1000 External output board.

Claims (1)

In gaming machines that play games,
Based on a predetermined operation by the administrator of the gaming machine, state transition means for transitioning from a gaming state in which a game can progress to an administrator state in which a game cannot progress,
Abnormality detection means for detecting an abnormality that has occurred in the gaming machine,
An abnormality processing means for performing abnormality processing according to the detection of an abnormality by the abnormality detection means,
An external output means for externally outputting the predetermined signal,
The abnormality processing means,
When an abnormality is detected by the abnormality detecting means in the game state, the abnormality processing is executed in the game state,
When an abnormality is detected by the abnormality detecting means in the administrator state, the abnormality processing is executed in the gaming state after the state transition from the administrator state,
The external output means,
The predetermined signal is externally output when the state is changed from the game state to the manager state by the state changing means,
After the state transition from the manager state to the game state by the state transition means, while the abnormal process is being executed, the external output of the predetermined signal is maintained, whereas the abnormal process is not being executed. Sometimes, the gaming machine ends the external output of the predetermined signal.

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