JP6890839B2 - Slot machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a slot machine provided with a medal chute that allows a medal to flow down to a payout port at the bottom of the front door.

In a general slot machine, medals inserted into the slot flow down a narrow medal passage in the medal selector, and are sorted into captured medals and returned medals in the medal passage. Then, the captured medals are stored in the hopper device inside the housing, and the returned medals are returned to the saucer from the payout port at the lower part of the front door. Further, on the back side of the front door, a medal return passage is formed by a medal shoot to allow the return medal to flow down to the payout exit. At the upper end of the medal return passage, a return medal receiving entrance is opened at a position facing the return medal exit of the medal selector, and the lower end of the medal return passage is connected to the payout exit. Further, a payout medal receiving port is opened on the back side of the medal chute, and the medal sent by the hopper device enters the medal return passage from the payout medal receiving port and is paid out to the saucer from the payout exit.

The medal passage of the medal selector is configured to be widened and opened when removing or cleaning a jammed medal. Specifically, the medal selector includes a selector base member forming the front side of the medal passage and a selector cover member forming the back side, and rotates the selector cover member so as to be separated from the selector base member. As a result, the medal passage can be widened and opened.

In such a slot machine, in recent years, a fraudulent device is inserted from a payout exit along a medal return passage, and the fraudulent device is allowed to enter the inside of a housing through a return medal receiving port to work on a control board or the like. The fraudulent act of doing is regarded as a problem. Then, in order to make it difficult to insert such an illegal device, measures such as making the medal return passage into a bent shape and arranging a return piece protruding inward of the medal return passage have been proposed (for example). , Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent No. 3643418

As mentioned above, recent medal return passages complicate the internal shape to prevent the insertion of fraudulent instruments, but on the other hand, the flow of medals tends to be delayed and medals are clogged in the medal return passage. Is increasing in frequency. Here, in the conventional configuration, when a severe medal clogging occurs in the medal return passage, it cannot be recovered only by applying vibration or impact from the outside of the medal chute, and the medal chute is removed from the front door to obtain a medal. The clogging is cleared. However, the work of removing the medal chute from the front door and reattaching it is complicated, and the game must be interrupted for a long time. Another problem is that when the medal chute is removed, the medals that stay in the medal return passage are spilled and easily scattered on the floor.

The present invention has been made in view of the current situation, and an object of the present invention is to provide a slot machine capable of easily clearing a medal clogging in a medal return passage.

In the present invention, a housing having an opening on the front side, a front door arranged so that the opening can be opened and closed, an inlet opening to the front door, and a payout outlet opening to the lower part of the front door. A medal selector provided with a medal passage through which medals inserted into the insertion slot flow down, and a medal selector for distributing and discharging medals flowing down the medal passage into a return medal outlet and a capture medal outlet, and the back of the front door. A slot machine provided on the side and including a medal chute forming a medal return passage for flowing medals discharged from the return medal outlet to the payout outlet, wherein the medal chute is the back surface of the front door. Movable that can be held at a fixed trough fixed to the side, a passage forming position that forms at least a part of the upstream part of the medal return passage, and a retracted position that opens at least a part of the upstream part of the medal return passage. With a trough, the movable trough does not form a downstream portion of the medal return passage , the movable trough forms at least the back side of the medal return passage, and the lower portion is axial to the fixed trough. The retracted position is a position that is supported and tilted toward the back side from the passage forming position with the lower portion as the center, and the medal selector is on the back side of the front door and is inserted into the insertion slot. Is detachably locked to a mounting position that allows the medal passage to be received, and moves from the first position to the second position as the movable trough moves from the retracted position to the passage forming position. The interlocking portion engages with the medal selector at the second position while the movable trough is at the passage forming position and the medal selector is locked at the mounting position. As a result, the movable trough is configured to be held at the passage forming position, and when the medal selector is locked at the mounting position, the interlocking portion at the first position is pressed against the medal selector. The slot machine is characterized in that the movable trough is configured to move from the retracted position to the passage forming position by moving to the second position.

Here, the upstream part of the medal return passage corresponds to the upstream part when the medal return passage is divided into three equal parts with respect to the flow direction of the medal, and the downstream part of the medal return passage is the flow of the medal through the medal return passage. It corresponds to the downstream part when divided into three equal parts in the direction. In such a configuration, the movable gutter is held in the forming position when the medal chute is used, and when the medal is clogged in the medal return passage, the movable gutter is converted from the forming position to the retracted position and held. Without removing the medal chute from the front door, it is possible to clear the medal clogging by picking up or scraping the clogged medal in the medal return passage with a finger or a tool. Here, the movable gutter does not form the downstream part of the medal return passage, and even if the movable gutter is converted to the retracted position, the wall surface forming the downstream part of the medal return passage is not opened. There is an advantage that medals staying in the medal return passage are hard to spill even if the medals are converted to the retracted position. As described above, according to the present invention, even if a severe medal jam occurs in the medal return passage, the medal jam can be cleared without removing the medal chute, and the medal spills from the medal return passage in the medal jam clearing work. Since it is possible to reduce the risk of medals, it is possible to easily eliminate the medal clogging in the medal return passage as compared with the conventional configuration.

In the present invention, the medal return passage is provided with a return piece protruding inward of the medal return passage, and at the retracted position of the movable gutter, at least in the vicinity of the arrangement portion of the return piece. Then, a configuration is proposed in which the medal return passage is opened.

By providing a return piece in the medal return passage, it becomes difficult to insert an illegal device from the downstream side to the upstream side of the medal return passage, but on the other hand, medal clogging is relatively likely to occur at the place where the return piece is arranged. .. Therefore, if the medal return passage is opened in the vicinity of the return piece placement portion when the movable gutter is held in the retracted position as in such a configuration, the medal generated at the return piece placement portion is provided. The clogging can be easily cleared.

Further, in the present invention, the medal selector includes a selector base member forming the front side of the medal passage and a selector cover member forming the back side of the medal passage, and the selector cover member is the same. It is rotatably attached to the selector base member and can be separated from the closing position that forms the narrow medal passage closest to the selector base member in the direction of widening and opening the medal passage. The movable trough is configured to include a selector regulating portion that extends upward, and the selector regulating portion rotates the selector cover member from the closed position at the passage forming position of the movable trough. Is proposed, and the rotation of the selector cover member from the closed position is not restricted at the retracted position of the movable trough.

In such a configuration, by providing the selector restricting portion on the movable gutter that can move near the medal selector, it is possible to appropriately restrict the rotation of the selector cover member from the closed position without occupying a large space.

Further, in the present invention, the movable gutter forms at least the back side of the medal return passage, and the lower portion is pivotally supported by the fixed gutter, and the passage forming position is centered on the lower portion. A configuration is proposed in which the position tilted toward the back side is the retracted position.

In such a configuration, when the movable gutter is converted to the retracted position, it is easy to look into the inside of the medal return passage from the open portion on the back side, and a finger or a tool is inserted into the medal return passage from the open portion. At that time, since the movable gutter is less likely to get in the way, the work of clearing the medal clogging becomes relatively easy.

Further, in the above configuration, a hopper device configured to accept medals discharged from the import medal outlet and send the accepted medals one by one to the payout medal receiving port formed in the medal chute. It is proposed that the movable gutter is provided inside the housing and is located above the upper edge of the hopper device at the retracted position.

In such a configuration, even if the front door is closed with the movable gutter tilted to the retracted position, the movable gutter does not collide with the hopper device inside the housing, so that the movable gutter can be prevented from being damaged. ..

Further, in the above configuration, the medal selector is detachably locked at a mounting position on the back side of the front door so that the medal inserted in the insertion port can be received in the medal passage. The movable gutter is provided with an interlocking portion that moves from the first position to the second position as the movable gutter moves from the retracted position to the passage forming position, and the movable gutter is in the passage forming position and said. With the medal selector locked to the mounting position, the interlocking portion engages with the medal selector at the second position so that the movable gutter is held at the passage forming position. When the medal selector is locked to the mounting position, the interlocking portion at the first position is pressed by the medal selector and moves to the second position, so that the movable gutter is moved from the retracted position. It is proposed that it is configured to move to the passage forming position.

In such a configuration, if the medal selector is mounted at the mounting position, the movable gutter is naturally held at the passage forming position. Therefore, the movable gutter converted to the evacuation position is forgotten to be returned to the passage forming position, and the front door is left. Can be prevented from closing.

It is a perspective view of the slot machine 1 of Example 1. FIG. It is a perspective view of the slot machine 1 in the state where the front door 3 is opened. It is a rear side perspective view of the front door 3 with the medal chute 16 and the like attached. It is a rear side perspective view of the front door 3 which shows the medal chute 16 and the like separately. It is a perspective view of a slot member 19 and a connecting metal fitting 22. It is an exploded perspective view which shows the assembling mode of the selector holder 20 such as a slot member 19. It is a perspective view of the state where the slot member 19 and the like are attached to the selector holder 20. It is a perspective view of the front side of the medal guide 26. It is (a) the perspective view from the front side upper side and (b) the perspective view from the back side lower side of the medal selector 15. It is a perspective view of the back side of the medal selector 15, (a) shows a state in which a selector cover member 31 is in a closed position, and (b) shows a state in which a selector cover member 31 is rotated upward from a closed position on the back side. Shown. It is explanatory drawing which shows the locking method of the medal selector 15 to the selector holder 20, (a) is the state in the process of locking the medal selector 15, and (b) is the state which locked the medal selector 15 in the mounting position. Is shown. It is a rear view enlarged view of the front door 3 which shows by cutting the medal chute 16. It is a perspective view of the medal chute 16, in which (a) shows the state where the movable gutter 51 is in the passage forming position, and (b) shows the state where the movable gutter 51 is in the retracted position. It is an exploded perspective view of the medal chute 16. FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a peripheral portion of the movable gutter 51 in a state where the movable gutter 51 is in a passage forming position. FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of a peripheral portion of the movable gutter 51 in a state where the movable gutter 51 is in the retracted position. It is a side view of the front door 3 which shows by cutting the medal chute 16 along the medal return passage 45 with the movable gutter 51 in the passage formation position. It is a side view of the front door 3 which shows by cutting the medal chute 16 along the medal return passage 45 with the movable gutter 51 in the retracted position. It is explanatory drawing which cuts the movable gutter 51 and shows the contact mode of the selector regulation part 57 and the selector cover member 31 of a limiting position. It is a perspective view of the medal chute 16a which concerns on Example 2, (a) shows the state which a movable gutter 51a is in a passage formation position, and (b) shows the state which a movable gutter 51a is in a retracting position. (A) is a perspective view showing a state in which the lock piece 42 is held in the unlocked position and the medal selector 15 is rotated from the mounting position, and (b) is a state in which the lock piece 42 is held in the locked position and the medal selector 15 is rotated. It is a perspective view which shows the state which locked the 15 in the mounting position. It is a perspective view of the medal chute 16b according to the third embodiment, (a) shows a state in which a movable gutter 51b is in a passage forming position, and (b) shows a state in which a movable gutter 51b is in a retracted position. It is an exploded perspective view of the medal chute 16b which shows the fixed gutter 50b and the movable gutter 51b separately. It is a perspective view which shows the positional relationship of the medal selector 15, the medal chute 16 and the selector holder 20, (a) shows the state which a movable gutter 51b is in a passage formation position, (b) is a state which the movable gutter 51b is in a retracting position. Indicates the state. It is explanatory drawing which shows the positional relationship with the medal selector 15 and the selector holder 20 by traversing the medal chute 16, (a) shows the state which the movable gutter 51b is in the passage formation position, and (b) is the movable gutter 51b. Indicates the state in which is in the retracted position. It is a side view which shows the movement of the movable gutter 51b accompanying the locking of a medal selector 15 to a selector holder 20. It is explanatory drawing which shows the state which the movable gutter 51c which concerns on Example 4 is in a passage formation position. It is a side view which shows the outline of the reference example 1, (a) shows the state which a movable part 51d is in a steady position, and (b) shows the state which a movable part 51d is in a retracted position. It is a side view which shows the outline of Reference Example 2, (a) shows the state which a movable part 51e is in a steady position, and (b) shows the state which a movable part 51e is in a retracted position.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the following examples.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the slot machine 1 of the first embodiment. The slot machine 1 includes a housing 2 having an opening on the front side, and a front door 3 that covers the opening of the housing 2 from the front. As shown in FIG. 2, the front door 3 is pivotally supported by one side edge of the housing 2 so that the opening of the housing 2 can be opened and closed. A viewing window 4 for visually recognizing the three reels 9 arranged inside the housing 2 is provided in the central portion of the front door 3. Further, on the front side of the front door 3, various switches such as bet switches 5a and 5b, start switch 6, stop switch 7, and payout switch 8 used for game operation are arranged below the viewing window 4. , The insertion slot 10 into which medals X can be inserted one by one is open. Further, at the lower part of the front door 3, a payout port 11 for ejecting the medal X is opened, and a saucer 12 for receiving the medal X ejected from the payout outlet 11 is arranged.

As shown in FIG. 2, the hopper device 13 is arranged below the reel 9 inside the housing 2. The hopper device 13 pays out the medal X to the payout port 11, and is locked to the bottom plate of the housing 2 as shown in FIG. A medal tank 13a for storing medals X and a hopper main body 13b for paying out medals X stored in the medal tank 13a are provided. The upper portion of the medal tank 13a is open, and as will be described later, the medal X inserted into the insertion port 10 is received and stored in the medal tank 13a. The hopper body 13b takes in the medals X from the bottom of the medal tank 13a with a disk-shaped rotor (not shown), sends them out one by one from the medal sending portion 13c on the front side of the hopper device 13, and delivers the medals X one by one. Pay out to the saucer 12 from the payout port 11 of the front door 3.

As shown in FIG. 2, a medal selector 15 for distributing medals X inserted from the insertion port 10 is arranged on the back side of the front door 3. The medal selector 15 receives the medal X inserted into the insertion slot 10 and sorts it into a take-in medal to be taken into the medal tank 13a and a return medal to be returned to the payout outlet 11 of the front door 3, and ejects the medals from different outlets. To do. Further, on the back side of the front door 3, a medal chute 16 is arranged to allow the returned medals discharged from the medal selector 15 to flow down to the payout port 11.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the medal selector 15 and the medal chute 16 are mounted on the back side of the front door 3. Specifically, the insertion port member 19 provided with the insertion port 10 is fitted into the opening 18 formed in the central portion on the front side of the front door 3. Then, on the back side of the front door 3, a selector holder 20 is arranged directly under the insertion port member 19, and the medal selector 15 is detachably attached to the selector holder 20. Further, the medal chute 16 is arranged on the back side of the front door 3 so as to connect the arrangement position of the medal selector 15 and the opening position of the payout outlet 11.

The parts attached to the front door 3 will be described below. In the following description, the front, back, top and bottom, left and right of each part are attached to the front door 3 in the direction shown in the upper right part of FIG. It refers to the direction in the state.
As shown in FIG. 5, the input port member 19 is a resin member on which the input port 10 is formed, and is arranged on a fitting portion 19a that fits with the opening 18 of the front door 3 and an upper portion of the fitting portion 19a. It is provided with a protruding portion 19b that is provided and projects to the front side of the front door 3. The insertion port 10 is a slit-shaped through hole having a size that allows one medal of a specified size to pass through, and penetrates the fitting portion 19a and the protruding portion 19b in the vertical direction. The slot member 19 is connected to the selector holder 20 on the back side of the front door 3 in a state of being fitted into the opening 18 of the front door 3 in order to align with the medal selector 15. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the inlet member 19 has an L-shape including a horizontal side portion 22a and a pair of vertical side portions 22b and 22b hanging from the edge of the horizontal side portion 22a. It is connected to the upper part of the selector holder 20 via the connecting metal fitting 22 of the above. Screw insertion holes 23a to 23c are formed in the horizontal side portions 22a and the vertical side portions 22b and 22b of the connecting metal fitting 22, respectively. As shown in FIG. 5, the connecting metal fitting 22 has the screw insertion of the horizontal side portion 22a. By screwing the screw 24a inserted through the hole 23a into the screw hole 25a formed at the bottom of the inlet member 19, the screw 24a is screwed into the bottom of the inlet member 19. Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the screws 24b and 24c inserted into the screw insertion holes 23b and 23c of the vertical side portion 22b in the state where the insertion port member 19 and the connecting metal fitting 22 are screwed are placed on the upper portion of the selector holder 20. By screwing into the formed screw holes 25b and 25c, the input port member 19 is connected to the upper part of the selector holder 20. Here, in the present embodiment, in the state where the connecting metal fitting 22 is screwed to the input port member 19, the upper surface of the connecting metal fitting 22 is brought into contact with the bottom surface of the input port member 19, so that the input port member 19 and the connecting metal fitting 22 are brought into contact with each other. Is positioned in the vertical direction, and the rib 19c in the front-rear direction formed on the bottom of the inlet member 19 is fitted with the notch 22c in the front-rear direction formed on the lateral side portion 22a. 19 and the connecting metal fitting 22 are positioned in the horizontal direction. Further, the heads of the screws 24a to 24c connecting the slot member 19 and the selector holder 20 are configured to be covered by the medal selector 15 when the medal selector 15 is attached to the selector holder 20.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the selector holder 20 is formed by bending a metal plate piece, and is screwed to the front door 3 through screw insertion holes 23d to 23g formed at the top and bottom. .. The selector holder 20 includes a main plate portion 20a arranged on the front side of the medal selector 15, side plate portions 20b and 20c extending from the left and right side edges of the main plate portion 20a to the back side, and upward from the upper right portion of the main plate portion 20a. It includes an extension port connecting portion 20d, a guide mounting portion 20e extending to the left from the left side plate portion 20c, and a guide mounting portion 20e extending to the left from the left side plate portion 20c. As will be described later, the medal selector 15 is locked to the left and right side plate portions 20b and 20c. As described above, the input port connecting portion 20d is a portion to which the input port member 19 is connected via the connecting metal fitting 22.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the medal guide 26 is mounted on the guide mounting portion 20e of the selector holder 20. The medal guide 26 is a resin member that guides the medal X discharged as a captured medal from the medal selector 15 to the medal tank 13a on the back side, and is a guide surface 26a for changing the traveling direction of the medal X and a guide surface 26a. It is provided with side walls 26b and 26b formed on both sides to prevent the medal X from coming off from above the guide surface 26a. As shown in FIG. 8, a clip portion 26c that engages with the upper portion of the guide mounting portion 20e and a boss 26d having a screw hole 25d formed are arranged on the upper portion of the medal guide 26. In the medal guide 26, with the clip portion 26c engaged with the upper portion of the guide mounting portion 20e, the screw 24d is inserted into the screw insertion hole 23h formed in the guide mounting portion 20e to form the screw hole 25d of the boss 26d. By screwing, it is fixed to the selector holder 20.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a shield finger 27 as a ground is fixed to the back surface side of the main plate portion 20a. That is, the shield finger 27 comes into contact with the passage switching solenoid 39 (see FIG. 9A) of the medal selector 15 mounted on the selector holder 20 to short-circuit the passage switching solenoid 39 and the selector holder 20.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the medal selector 15 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape with short front and rear dimensions. The medal selector 15 is formed by stacking a plate-shaped selector cover member 31 on the back side of the plate-shaped selector base member 30. A narrow medal passage 32 is formed in the front-rear direction in the gap between the overlapped selector base member 30 and the selector cover member 31. That is, the selector base member 30 forms the front side of the narrow medal passage 32, and the selector cover member 31 forms the back side.

The medal selector 15 receives the medal X to be inserted into the insertion slot 10 into the medal passage 32, and divides the medal into a take-in medal to be taken into the medal tank 13a and a return medal to be returned to the payout port 11 of the front door 3, respectively. Discharge from different outlets. More specifically, an insertion medal inlet 34 is formed between the selector base member 30 and the selector cover member 31 in the upper right portion of the medal selector 15, and the medal X inserted into the insertion port 10 is the insertion medal entrance 34. Flows into the medal passage 32. Then, the medal X that has flowed in from the inserted medal entrance 34 is distributed into a return medal and a captured medal while flowing down the medal passage 32. Then, the returned medal is discharged from the returned medal outlet 35 formed at the bottom of the medal selector 15, and the captured medal is discharged from the captured medal outlet 36 formed at the left side of the medal selector 15. Further, the medal selector 15 is provided with medal sensors (not shown) for detecting medals X passing through the inserted medal inlet 34, the captured medal outlet 36, and the like.

Here, the selector base member 30 and the selector cover member 31 are connected to each other so as to be rotatable at the upper left portion of each other, and the selector cover member 31 is connected to the selector base member 30 as shown in FIG. 10 (a). As shown in FIG. 10B, the medal passage 32 is configured to be separable from the closing position that forms the narrow medal passage 32 closest to the back surface in the direction of widening and opening the medal passage 32. Then, the selector cover member 31 is normally urged to the closed position by the coil spring 33 attached to the connecting portion with the selector base member 30. According to this configuration, the selector cover member 31 is rotated toward the back surface side of the selector base member 30 against the coil spring 33 to open the medal passage 32, thereby removing the medal X stuck in the medal passage 32. , The medal passage 32 can be easily cleaned.

To elaborate on the selection of the returned medal and the captured medal, the medal selector 15 usually distributes the medal X of an appropriate size to the imported medal and the medal X of an improper size to the returned medal. Specifically, in the medal passage 32, only the medal X having an appropriate diameter is supported by the support rail 38 arranged at the bottom of the medal passage 32, and reaches the intake medal outlet 36 on the left side of the medal selector 15. It is configured to flow down. Then, the medal X having an inappropriate diameter is configured to fall off from the support rail 38 and flow down to the return medal outlet 35. Further, the medal selector 15 is provided with a passage switching solenoid 39, and when the passage switching solenoid 39 is not energized, the support rail 38 retracts from the medal passage 32, regardless of the size of the medal X. All medals X flowing down the medal passage 32 are configured to flow down to the return medal exit 35.

The medal selector 15 is detachably locked to the selector holder 20 screwed to the front door 3, so that the medal selector 15 is held at a predetermined mounting position on the back side of the front door 3. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 9, locking pins 40a and 40b are provided on both the left and right sides of the selector base member 30 one by one at the upper part and one at the lower part, and at the lower left side of the selector base member 30. Is provided with a flexible engaging piece 41. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 7, the left and right side plate portions 20b and 20c of the selector holder 20 are fitted with a locking hook 20f for hooking the upper locking pin 40a of the medal selector 15 and a lower locking pin 40b. A locking groove 20 g to be worn is formed. Further, a locking hole 20h that engages with the protrusion 41a formed in the engaging piece 41 is formed in the lower portion of the left side plate portion 20c.

When mounting the medal selector 15 on the selector holder 20, first, as shown in FIG. 11A, the upper locking pin 40a is hooked on the left and right locking hooks 20f of the selector holder 20. Then, from this state, when the lower portion of the medal selector 15 is rotated forward and the lower locking pin 40b is fitted into the left and right locking grooves 20g, the medal selector is as shown in FIG. 11B. The protrusion 41a of the engaging piece 41 of 15 engages with the locking hole 20h of the selector holder 20, and the medal selector 15 is locked at the mounting position. At the mounting position of the medal selector 15, the insertion medal inlet 34 of the medal selector 15 is connected to the insertion port 10 of the insertion port member 19, and the medal X inserted into the insertion port 10 can be received in the medal passage 32. Further, the take-in medal outlet 36 of the medal selector 15 is connected to the guide surface 26a of the medal guide 26, and the return medal outlet 35 is connected to the return medal reception port 46 (see FIG. 12) that opens at the upper end of the medal chute 16. Be connected. At the mounting position, the medal selector 15 is locked to the selector holder 20 via the locking pins 40a and 40b of the selector base member 30 and the engaging piece 41, and the selector cover member 31 is engaged with the selector holder 20. It doesn't fit. Therefore, the medal selector 15 can rotate the selector cover member 31 from the closed position to the back side even when the medal selector 15 is locked to the selector holder 20.

With the medal selector 15 locked at the mounting position, the engagement between the protrusion 41a of the engaging piece 41 of the medal selector 15 and the locking hole 20h of the selector holder 20 is the end of the engaging piece 41. Can be released by bending inward. That is, when the medal selector 15 is removed from the mounting position, the engagement piece 41 and the locking hole 20h are disengaged, the lower portion of the medal selector 15 is rotated to the back side, and then the upper side is locked. The pin 40a may be removed from the locking hook 20f.

As shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 12, the medal chute 16 is attached to the back side of the front door 3 and forms a medal return passage 45 with the front door 3. The medal return passage 45 communicates the return medal outlet 35 of the medal selector 15 with the payout outlet 11 that opens at the bottom of the front door 3, and causes the medal X discharged from the return medal outlet 35 to flow down to the payout outlet 11. This is a passage for returning the product from the payout port 11 to the saucer 12. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 12, the upper end of the medal return passage 45 is opened directly below the return medal outlet 35 of the medal selector 15 to receive the medal X discharged from the return medal outlet 35. A medal receiving entrance 46 is provided. The lower end of the medal return passage 45 is connected to the payout port 11 from the back side, and the medal X received from the return medal receiving port 46 flows down to the back side of the payout exit 11 along the medal return passage 45. It is discharged from the payout port 11 to the saucer 12 on the front side.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a slit-shaped payout medal receiving port 47 is opened in the lower portion on the back side of the medal chute 16. The payout medal receiving port 47 is connected to the medal sending section 13c of the hopper device 13 when the front door 3 is closed, and the medal X ejected from the medal sending section 13c is a medal return passage 45 from the payout medal receiving port 47. Is paid out to the saucer 12 from the payout outlet 11.

As shown in FIG. 12, the medal return passage 45 is bent in a dogleg shape so that the medal X flows down diagonally downward to the left from the return medal receiving port 46 at the upper end and then flows down directly below. Further, in the medal return passage 45, in order to prevent unauthorized equipment from being inserted from the payout port 11 into the return medal receiving port 46, a return projecting from the inner surface of the medal chute 16 downward inside the medal return passage 45. Pieces 48a-48c are formed.

As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the medal chute 16 includes a fixed gutter 50 fixed to the lower back side of the front door 3 and a movable gutter 51 rotatably arranged with respect to the fixed gutter 50. It becomes. Further, a metal reinforcing cover 52 is arranged inside at the lower end of the fixed gutter 50, and a metal reinforcing plate 53 is arranged on the front side of the fixed gutter 50. The reinforcing cover 52 is for preventing the lower end portion of the medal chute 16 from being worn by the medal X flowing down the medal return passage 45, and the reinforcing plate 53 is used for the medal return passage 45 from the payout medal receiving entrance 47. This is to prevent the front door 3 from being worn by the medal X that vigorously enters the market.

As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the fixed gutter 50 is a resin member having a recess formed on the front side of the medal return passage 45. When the medal return passage 45 is divided into three equal parts in the upstream part, the middle part, and the downstream part with respect to the flow direction of the medal X, the entire middle part and the downstream part of the medal return passage 45 and the lower half of the upstream part are fixed. It is formed by a gutter 50. Screw insertion holes 23i and 23j are formed in the upper portion and the central portion of the fixing gutter 50, and as shown in FIG. 4, the fixing gutter 50 is in contact with the lower part of the back surface of the front door 3 for screw insertion. It is screwed to the front door 3 through the holes 23i and 23j. The upper part of the fixed gutter 50 is fastened together with the selector holder 20 to the front door 3, whereby the medal selector 15 and the medal chute 16 are aligned (see FIG. 16). Further, the above-mentioned payout medal receiving port 47 is formed on the back side of the fixed gutter 50, and the return pieces 48a to 48c are projected inside the recess of the fixed gutter 50. Further, a bearing portion 54 that pivotally supports the movable gutter 51 is formed at the upper end portion of the fixed gutter 50.

The movable gutter 51 is composed of an integral resin member, and has a gutter portion 56 forming the medal return passage 45 and a selector restricting portion 57 formed above the gutter portion 56 and covering the back side of the medal selector 15. And a pair of left and right rotating shafts 58, 58 formed at the lower end portion. Then, the movable gutter 51 is pivotally supported by the bearing portion 54 of the fixed gutter 50 so that the rotating shaft 58 is pivotally supported from a passage forming position that stands up from the upper end portion of the fixed gutter 50 as shown in FIG. 13 (a). As shown in FIG. 13B, the rotation shaft 58 can be rotated to a retracted position tilted about 90 ° toward the back side. The movable gutter 51 cannot rotate forward of the passage forming position and below the retracted position due to the rotation restricting portion 59 formed around the rotating shaft 58 coming into contact with the fixed gutter 50. It has become.

The gutter portion 56 of the movable gutter 51 is a portion that forms the medal return passage 45, and as shown in FIG. 14, the back plate portion 56a that forms the back side of the medal return passage 45 and the side plate portions that form both the left and right sides. It consists of 56b and 56c. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 15 and 17, when the movable gutter 51 is in the passage forming position, the gutter portion 56 abuts on the back side of the front door 3 and is above the upstream portion of the medal return passage 45. The back side of the half and the left and right sides are formed, and the upper edge of the gutter portion 56 forms the return medal receiving port 46. On the other hand, when the movable gutter 51 is in the retracted position, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 18, the gutter portion 56 retracts downward on the back side of the medal return passage 45 and does not form the medal return passage 45, so that the medal is returned. The back side and the left and right side portions of the upper half of the upstream portion of the passage 45 are opened.

As shown in FIG. 14, the selector regulating portion 57 has a rectangular plate shape that is one size larger than the back surface of the medal selector 15, and extends upward from the upper edge of the back plate portion 56a of the gutter portion 56. Further, a lateral pressing rib 57a that bulges toward the front side is formed in the lower portion of the selector regulating portion 57. As shown in FIGS. 15 and 17, the selector regulating unit 57 passes from the back side of the return medal receiving port 46 to the back side of the return medal exit 35 at the passage forming position of the movable gutter 51, and the entire back side of the medal selector 15. It is placed in a restricted position that covers the. Then, as shown in FIG. 19, at such a limited position, the pressing rib 57a of the selector regulating portion 57 comes into contact with the lower edge 31a of the back surface of the selector cover member 31 in the closed position from the back surface side. In this way, since the selector limiting unit 57 abuts on the back surface of the selector cover member 31 at the closing position at the limiting position, the selector cover member 31 is rotated from the closing position to the back side by the selector limiting unit 57 at the limiting position. Is restricted. On the other hand, in the retracted position of the movable gutter 51, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 18, the selector regulating unit 57 is arranged at an unrestricted position retracted downward on the back side of the medal selector 15. In such an unrestricted position, the selector cover member 57 retracts from the rotation range of the selector cover member 31, so that the selector cover member 31 is rotated to the back side of the closing position without being restricted by the selector control unit 57. , The medal passage 32 can be opened.

Engagement means 60 for engaging with the selector holder 20 and holding the movable gutter 51 at the passage forming position are formed on the left and right side edges of the selector regulating portion 57. The engaging / disengaging means 60 includes a locking portion 60b having a locking claw 60a formed at its tip and projecting to the front side, and a releasing operating portion 60c protruding from the base end of the locking portion 60b to the back side. As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the engaging / disengaging means 60 attaches the locking claws 60a to the front edges 20i (see FIG. 7) of the left and right locking hooks 20f of the selector holder 20 at the passage forming position of the movable gutter 51. By engaging with each other, the movable gutter 51 is locked to the selector holder 20 so as not to rotate to the back side, and the movable gutter 51 is held at the passage forming position. As described above, the movable trough 51 can open the upstream portion of the medal return passage 45 by converting the passage forming position to the retracted position, and also turns the selector cover member 31 from the closed position to the back side. The medal passage 32 can be opened by moving it, but since the movable trough 51 is held at the passage forming position by the engaging / disengaging means 60 in this way, the engagement between the engaging / disengaging means 60 and the selector holder 20 must be disengaged. For example, the medal return passage 45 and the medal passage 32 cannot be opened.

The engagement between the engaging / disengaging means 60 and the selector holder 20 can be released by pressing the releasing operation portion 60c inward and bending the locking claw 60a outward. That is, if the front door 3 in which the release operation unit 60c can be operated is in the open state, the engagement between the engagement / disengagement means 60 and the selector holder 20 can be disengaged, and the movable gutter 51 can be converted from the passage forming position to the retracted position. The movable gutter 51 tilted to the retracted position is held so as not to rotate downward from the retracted position when the rotation restricting portion 59 comes into contact with the fixed gutter 50. Then, when the movable gutter 51 in the retracted position is rotated upward to return to the passage forming position, the engaging / disengaging means 60 is re-engaged with the selector holder 20, and the movable gutter 51 is held in the passage forming position again. Will be done.

As described above, in the present embodiment, if the front door 3 is opened, the engagement / disengagement means 60 and the selector holder 20 are disengaged, and the movable gutter 51 is converted from the passage forming position to the retracting position, a medal is obtained. The upstream part of the return passage 45 can be opened. Therefore, in the present embodiment, when a medal jam occurs in the medal return passage 45, the movable trough 51 is converted to a retracted position to open the medal return passage 45, and the medal return passage 45 is opened. By inserting a finger or a tool into the 45 and picking up or scraping out the clogged medal X, the clogged medal can be cleared. In particular, since the movable gutter 51 converted to the retracted position is held in the retracted position, it is not necessary to remove the medal chute 16 from the front door 3 in this embodiment. Further, the movable gutter 51 forms only the upstream portion of the medal return passage 45, and even if the movable gutter 51 is converted to the retracted position, the downstream portion of the medal return passage 45 is not opened. Even if the movable gutter 51 is converted to the retracted position, there is an advantage that the medal X staying in the medal return passage 45 is unlikely to spill. As described above, in this embodiment, even if a severe medal jam occurs in the medal return passage 45, the medal jam can be cleared without removing the medal chute 16, and the medal jam can be cleared from the medal return passage 45 in the medal jam clearing work. Since there is little risk of X spilling out, the medal clogging in the medal return passage 45 can be cleared more easily than in the conventional configuration.

Further, in the present embodiment, the return pieces 48a to 48c are arranged inside the medal return passage 45 in order to prevent the insertion of the illegal instrument, and the medal clogging is relatively caused at the arrangement portion of the return pieces 48a to 48c. It is easy to occur. However, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 18, the return pieces 48a and 48b are arranged in the vicinity of the portion of the medal return passage 45 that is opened at the retracted position of the movable gutter 51, so that the return pieces 48a and 48b are returned. There is an advantage that the medal clogging that occurs at the arrangement portion of the pieces 48a and 48b can be easily cleared from the open portion of the medal return passage 45. Further, in this embodiment, when the movable gutter 51 is converted to the retracted position, the disposition parts of the return pieces 48a and 48b are not opened, and the medal return passage 45 is above the disposition parts of the return pieces 48a and 48b. Since it is opened, there is an advantage that the medal X stuck in the arrangement portion of the return pieces 48a and 48b is unlikely to spill when the movable gutter 51 is converted to the retracted position and the medal return passage 45 is opened.

Further, in the present embodiment, the movable gutter 51 forms the back side and the left and right side portions of the upstream portion of the medal return passage 45 at the passage forming position, and from the passage forming position centering on the rotation shaft 58 at the lower end portion. The medal return passage 45 is configured to be opened by tilting to the back side. In such a configuration, as shown in FIGS. 16 and 18, it is easy to look into the inside of the medal return passage 45 from the open portion of the upstream portion of the medal return passage 45, and the medal return passage 45 is fingered from the open portion. Since the movable gutter 51 at the retracted position is unlikely to be an obstacle when inserting a tool or a tool, the medal clogging in the medal return passage 45 can be relatively easily cleared. Further, in the present embodiment, when the movable gutter 51 is converted from the passage forming position to the retracted position, the gutter portion 56 forming the back side and the left and right sides of the medal return passage 45 is an open portion of the medal return passage 45. Even if the medal X spills from the open portion of the medal return passage 45, the medal X is received by the gutter 56 that has been retracted to the lower part of the back side, and the medal X spills onto the floor. It has the advantage of being able to prevent gutters.

Further, in the present embodiment, the movable gutter 51 includes a selector regulating portion 57 extending upward, and at the passage forming position of the movable gutter 51, the selector regulating portion 57 restricts the rotation of the selector cover member 31 from the closed position. At the passage forming position of the movable gutter 51, the selector restricting portion 57 is arranged at a restricted position that restricts the rotation of the selector cover member 31 from the closing position. According to such a configuration, the rotation of the selector cover member 31 of the medal selector 15 can be appropriately restricted by the medal chute 16. That is, since the medal shoot 16 is arranged close to the medal selector 15 in order to receive the returned medal from the medal selector 15, the medal shoot 16 is forcibly placed in the medal selector for the purpose of arranging the selector regulating unit 57. It is not necessary to arrange the medal shoots in close proximity to 15, and the degree of freedom of arrangement of the medal shoot 16 is not impaired. Further, since the space required for arranging the selector regulating unit 57 can be minimized, there is an advantage that it is easy to secure a space for arranging other members around the medal selector 15.

Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 18, the selector regulating unit 57 passes from the back side of the return medal receiving port 46 to the back side of the return medal outlet 35 at the restricted position, and the selector cover member 31 at the closed position. It extends to the back side of. As described above, in the present embodiment, since the selector regulating unit 57 is arranged on the back side of the connecting portion between the return medal outlet 35 and the return medal receiving port 46 at the passage forming position of the movable gutter 51, the selector regulating unit 57 is arranged from the payout outlet 11. It is difficult for the inserted fraudulent device to invade the inside of the housing 2 from the connection portion between the return medal outlet 35 and the return medal receiving port 46. In particular, since the selector regulating unit 57 according to the present embodiment is arranged over the entire width of the return medal outlet 35 and the return medal reception port 46, the back surface is rearward from the connection portion between the return medal exit 35 and the return medal reception port 46. It is possible to reliably prevent unauthorized equipment from being inserted into the side housing 2.

Further, the movable gutter 51 is configured to be locked at the passage forming position by the engaging / disengaging means 60, and the engaging / disengaging means 60 is arranged on the back side of the front door 3 and outside the medal return passage 45. Since the lock can be released by operating the provided release operation unit 60c, the movable gutter 51 can be converted to the retracted position from the inside of the medal return passage 45 by an illegal device or the like inserted into the payout port 11. Absent.

Further, when the return medal receiving port 46 is formed in the fixed trough 50 as in the conventional configuration, it is constant between the returning medal exit 35 and the returning medal receiving port 46 so as not to interfere with the attachment / detachment of the medal selector 15. Although it is necessary to provide a clearance, in this embodiment, the movable trough 51 forms the return medal receiving port 46, and when the medal selector 15 is attached or detached, the movable trough 51 interferes with the rotation of the medal selector 15. Since it can be retracted to a retracted position, the return medal receiving port 46 can be arranged closer to the returning medal outlet 35 of the medal selector 15 as compared with the conventional configuration. Therefore, in the present embodiment, there is an advantage that it is difficult to insert an unauthorized device into the connecting portion between the return medal outlet 35 and the return medal receiving port 46, as compared with the conventional configuration.

This embodiment is a modified example in which the configuration of the medal shoot is changed from the first embodiment. Therefore, in the following description, with respect to the configuration common to the first embodiment, a common reference numeral is used in the text and in the drawings, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.
The medal chute 16a of this embodiment is characterized in that the engagement / disengagement means 60 is provided only on one side of the movable gutter 51a. That is, while the movable gutter 51 (see FIG. 13) according to the first embodiment has the engaging and disengaging means 60 formed on both the left and right edges of the selector regulating portion 57, the movable gutter 51a of the present embodiment has the movable gutter 51a. The engagement / disengagement means 60 is formed only on the right edge of the selector regulating unit 57. The configuration of the engaging means 60 is the same as that of the first embodiment. As described above, the engaging / disengaging means 60 for holding the movable gutter 51a at the passage forming position may be arranged only on one side of the movable gutter 51a. When the engaging / disengaging means 60 is arranged on only one side, the force for holding the movable gutter 51a at the passage forming position becomes relatively weak, but on the other hand, the configuration of the movable gutter 51a can be simplified and the movable gutter can be simplified. The unlocking operation of 51a becomes easy.

This embodiment is a modified example in which the configuration of the medal shoot or the like is changed from the first embodiment. Therefore, in the following description, with respect to the configuration common to the first embodiment, a common reference numeral is used in the text and in the drawings, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Explaining the changes from the first embodiment, first, as shown in FIG. 21, in the present embodiment, the lock piece mounting portion 20j extending to the right from the locking hook 20f is provided at the upper right portion of the selector holder 20. The lock piece 42 is rotatably attached to the back surface side of the lock piece mounting portion 20j. As shown in FIG. 21A, the lock piece 42 rotates upward of the medal selector 15 mounted on the selector holder 20 to allow removal of the medal selector 15 from the mounting position, and a drawing. As shown in 21 (b), it is possible to rotate to the back side of the medal selector 15 at the mounting position and convert it to a lock position that locks at the mounting position of the medal selector 15. That is, in this embodiment, the medal selector 15 is held at the mounting position not only by the engagement of the engaging piece 41 with the selector holder 20 but also by the engagement with the lock piece 42. Further, as shown in FIG. 21B, since the lock piece 42 is arranged at the upper right portion on the back side of the selector cover member 31 in the closed position at the lock position, the lock piece 42 is arranged from the closed position of the selector cover member 31 at the lock position. It also limits the rotation of.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 22 and 23, the medal chute 16b according to the present embodiment includes a fixed gutter 50b and a movable gutter 51b rotatably arranged at the upper end of the fixed gutter 50b. The fixed gutter 50b is larger and the movable gutter 51b is smaller than that of the first embodiment (see FIGS. 13 and 14). Specifically, as shown in FIG. 23, the fixed gutter 50b extends upward from the fixed gutter 50 of the first embodiment and forms a medal return passage 45 to the upstream side of the fixed gutter 50 of the first embodiment. The bearing portion 64 that pivotally supports the movable gutter 51b is formed above the first embodiment. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 23, the movable gutter 51b has a gutter portion 66 forming the medal return passage 45, a selector restricting portion 67 that restricts the rotation of the selector cover member 31, and a rotation formed at the lower end portion. It has shafts 68 and 68. Then, the movable gutter 51b rotates from the passage forming position (see FIG. 22A) that stands up from the upper end of the fixed gutter 50b by holding the rotating shaft 68 by the bearing portion 64 of the fixed gutter 50b. It can rotate to a retracted position (see FIG. 22B) that tilts about 45 ° toward the back side around the shaft 68. Here, in a state where the movable gutter 51b is tilted to the retracted position, the rotation restricting portion 69 around the rotating shaft 68 comes into contact with the fixed gutter 50b, so that the movable gutter 51b cannot be tilted any more. It is held in the retracted position.

As shown in FIG. 23, the gutter portion 66 of the movable gutter 51b includes a back plate portion 66a forming the back side of the medal return passage 45 and side plate portions 66b and 66c forming both the left and right sides, and is composed of FIG. 24 (a). ), 25 (a), at the passage forming position of the movable gutter 51b, the gutter portion 66 forms the back side and the left and right sides of the upstream portion of the medal return passage 45 directly below the return medal exit 35. Here, in this embodiment, since the fixed gutter 50b forms the medal return passage 45 to the upstream side of the first embodiment, it is the return that the gutter portion 66 of the movable gutter 51b forms the medal return passage 45. It is only the upper end of the upstream portion where the medal receiving entrance 46 is formed. Therefore, in this embodiment, when the movable gutter 51b is converted to the retracted position and the gutter portion 66 is retracted downward on the back side, the medal return passage 45 is as shown in FIGS. 24 (b) and 25 (b). The part near the return medal receiving entrance 46 is opened.

As shown in FIG. 23, the selector regulating portion 67 has a rectangular plate shape extending upward from the upper edge of the back plate portion 66a of the gutter portion 66. The width of the selector regulating unit 67 of this embodiment is about the same as that of the medal selector 15, but the vertical width is about 10% of that of the medal selector 15. Further, the selector regulating portion 67 is formed with a lateral pressing rib 67a that bulges toward the front side, as in the first embodiment. As shown in FIGS. 24 (a) and 24 (a), the selector restricting portion 67 is in a restricted position in contact with the lower edge 31a of the back surface of the selector cover member 31 in the closed position at the passage forming position of the movable gutter 51b. The selector cover member 31 is held in place to limit the rotation of the selector cover member 31 from the closed position to the back surface side. On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 24 (b) and 25 (b), in the retracted position of the movable gutter 51b, the selector regulating unit 67 is arranged at an unrestricted position retracted downward on the back side of the medal selector 15. Then, in such an unrestricted position, the selector covering member 67 retracts from the rotation range of the selector cover member 31, so that the selector cover member 31 is rotated to the back side of the closing position without being restricted by the selector limiting section 67. Then, the medal passage 32 can be opened.

As shown in FIG. 22, the movable gutter 51b of the present embodiment includes an interlocking portion 70 protruding from the side plate portion 66b of the gutter portion 66, and by engaging the interlocking portion 70 with the medal selector 15, the movable gutter 51b can be formed. The selector regulating unit 67 is held at the restricted position at the passage forming position. Specifically, the interlocking portion 70 is held at the retracted position of the movable gutter 51b at the first position protruding upward as shown in FIG. 22 (b). Then, the interlocking portion 70 is tilted from the first position to the front side as the movable gutter 51b is rotated from the retracted position to the passage forming position, and as shown in FIG. 22A, the movable gutter 51b is tilted. In the passage forming position of, it is held in the second position that projects diagonally forward on the front side. Then, as shown in FIG. 26C, when the medal selector 15 is locked at the mounting position and the movable gutter 51b is arranged at the passage forming position, it is on the back side of the interlocking portion 70 at the second position. , The lower part of the selector base member 30 is arranged, and the interlocking portion 70 engages with the selector base member 30 in the front-rear direction at the second position, so that the movable gutter 51b cannot rotate to the back side, and the movable gutter 51b Is held at the passage forming position, and the selector regulating unit 67 is held at the limiting position.

As described above, in this embodiment, the medal selector 15 at the mounting position holds the movable gutter 51b at the passage forming position and the selector regulating portion 67 at the limiting position, so that the medal selector 15 is locked at the mounting position. If the medal selector 15 is not rotated from the mounting position as shown in FIGS. 24 (b) and 25 (b), the movable gutter 51b is converted to the retracted position and the selector regulating unit 67 is converted to the unrestricted position. Can not. That is, in this embodiment, unless the medal selector 15 is rotated from the mounting position to separate the medal passage 32 from the insertion slot 10 and the medal return passage 45, the selector base member 31 is rotated to rotate the medal passage 32. It cannot be opened. Therefore, in the present embodiment, it is difficult to insert a fraudulent device into the medal passage 32 from the insertion slot 10 or the medal return passage 45 to open the medal passage 32.

In this embodiment, when the medal selector 15 is locked to the mounting position, the movable gutter 51b moves from the retracted position to the passage forming position, and the selector regulating unit 67 moves from the unrestricted position to the restricted position in conjunction with the medal selector 15. It is configured to rotate. Specifically, when locking the medal selector 15 to the mounting position, as shown in FIGS. 26 (a) → 26 (b) → 26 (c), the locking pin 40a on the upper side of the medal selector 15 is used. Hook on the locking hook 20f of the selector holder 20, rotate the lower part of the medal selector 15 forward around the locking pin 40a, and move the lower locking pin 40b to the locking groove 20g of the selector holder 20. Fit into. Here, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 26A, the interlocking portion 70 at the first position protrudes into the rotation range of the medal selector 15 at the retracted position of the movable gutter 51b, and FIG. As shown in (b), while the medal selector 15 is being rotated forward to the mounting position around the locking pin 40a, the lower part of the medal selector 15 (selector base member 30) becomes the interlocking portion 70 at the first position. It will come into contact from the back side. Therefore, when the medal selector 15 is rotated forward as it is from the state of FIG. 26B, the interlocking portion 70 is pressed by the medal selector 15 and rotates forward, and the movable gutter 51a rotates in the direction of the passage forming position. To do. Then, as shown in FIG. 26 (c), when the medal selector 15 is rotated to the mounting position, the interlocking portion 70 is rotated to the second position, the movable gutter 51b is moved to the passage forming position, and the selector regulating portion 67 is placed. Is converted to the restricted position.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the medal selector 15 is mounted at the mounting position, the movable gutter 51b is naturally held at the passage forming position and the selector regulating portion 67 is naturally held at the limiting position, and the medal return passage 45 is closed. At the same time, the rotation of the selector cover member 31 is restricted. Therefore, in this embodiment, the front door 3 is closed while the movable gutter 51b is held in the retracted position, the medal return passage 45 is opened, and the game is played in a state where the rotation of the selector cover member 31 is not restricted. It can be prevented from being done. Further, when the medal selector 15 is locked to the mounting position, the movable gutter 51b is configured to rotate in conjunction with the medal selector 15, so that, for example, the medal X is prevented from coming off the medal return passage 45. Compared with the case where the back plate portion 66a is provided on the fixed gutter 50b without being provided on the movable gutter 51b, the back plate 66a is less likely to interfere with locking the medal selector 15 to the mounting position.

Further, in the present embodiment, when the front door 3 is closed, the hopper device 13 inside the housing 2 is arranged on the back side of the medal chute 16b (see FIG. 2), but in the present embodiment, the movable gutter Even if the front door 3 is closed with the 51b tilted to the retracted position, there is no risk that the medal chute 16b will collide with the hopper device 13 and be damaged. As shown in FIG. 26, in this embodiment, the movable gutter 51b is pivotally supported above the height of the upper edge of the hopper device 13 (H line in FIG. 26) and tilted toward the back side at the retracted position. This is because by reducing the angle, the movable gutter 51b is arranged above the upper edge (H line in FIG. 26) of the hopper device 13 even in the retracted position.

In this embodiment, the configuration of the movable gutter 51b according to the third embodiment is partially modified. Specifically, the movable gutter 51b of the third embodiment is provided with the selector regulating portion 67 on the upper edge of the gutter portion 66, whereas the movable gutter 51c according to this reference example is as shown in FIG. 27. A selector regulating portion is not arranged on the upper edge of the gutter portion 66. Therefore, in the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 27, the movable gutter 51c does not exist in the rotation range of the selector cover member 31 even when it is in the passage forming position. Therefore, in the present embodiment, even when the movable gutter 51 is in the passage forming position, if the lock piece 42 is held in the released position, the selector cover member 31 is rotated from the closed position to the back side to open the medal passage 32. can do.

<Reference example 1>
This reference example is a modified example in which the configuration of the medal chute 16b is changed from the above-mentioned Example 3. Therefore, in the following description, with respect to the configuration common to the third embodiment, a common reference numeral is used in the text and in the drawings, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.
As shown in FIG. 28, the medal chute 16d according to this reference example includes a fixed gutter 50d and a movable portion 51d rotatably arranged at the upper end of the fixed gutter 50d. .. The fixed gutter 50d of this reference example forms a medal return passage 45 over the entire length, and a return medal receiving port 46 is formed at the upper end of the fixed gutter 50d directly below the return medal outlet 35. On the other hand, the movable portion 51d includes a selector regulating portion 77 that restricts the rotation of the selector cover member 31, a rotating shaft 78 that is pivotally supported by the fixed gutter 50d, and an interlocking portion 80 that projects to the front side. It does not have a gutter that forms the medal return passage 45. As shown in FIG. 28 (a), the movable portion 51d is centered on the rotation shaft 78 from the steady position where the interlocking portion 80 engages with the medal selector 15 at the mounting position, as shown in FIG. 28 (b). It is possible to rotate from the steady position to the retracted position that tilts about 30 ° to the back side.

The selector regulating unit 77 of this reference example has a rectangular plate shape having a width similar to that of the medal selector 15, and as shown in FIG. 28A, the medal selector 15 is at a steady position of the movable portion 51d. It is held at a restricted position that covers the back side of the selector cover member 31, and limits the rotation of the selector cover member 31 from the closed position to the back side. Here, the selector regulating unit 77 according to this reference example does not abut on the back surface of the selector cover member 31 in the closed position at the restricted position, and rotates the selector cover member 31 from the closed position to the back surface side by about 10 °. At that time, it is configured to come into contact with the selector cover member 31 and restrict the rotation from the position to the back surface side. Further, the selector regulating unit 77 passes through the back side of the return medal receiving port 46 and the back side of the return medal outlet 35 at the restricted position, and extends to the back side of the selector cover member 31 at the closed position. Therefore, at the restricted position of the selector regulating unit 87, it is difficult to make a fraudulent act of inserting the fraudulent device inserted from the payout port 11 into the housing 2 on the back side from the connection portion between the return medal outlet 35 and the return medal receiving port 46. Become.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 28B, in the retracted position of the movable portion 51d, the selector regulating unit 77 is arranged at an unrestricted position retracted downward on the back side of the medal selector 15. Then, in such an unrestricted position, since the selector restricting unit 77 retracts from the rotation range of the selector cover member 31, the selector cover member 31 rotates to the back side of the closing position without being restricted by the selector restricting unit 77. Then, the medal passage 32 can be opened.

As shown in FIG. 28A, the movable portion 51d according to the reference example is in a steady position by engaging the interlocking portion 80 with the medal selector 15 at the mounting position, similarly to the movable gutter 51b according to the third embodiment. Is held in. Further, as shown in FIG. 28 (b), when the medal selector 15 is rotated from the mounting position to the back side, the interlocking portion 80 and the medal selector 15 are disengaged, and the medal selector 15 causes the selector regulating portion 77 to move. When pressed, the movable portion 51d is configured to tilt to the retracted position. On the other hand, when the medal selector 15 rotated to the back side is rotated to the mounting position, the interlocking portion 80 arranged in the rotation range of the medal selector 15 is pressed by the medal selector 15 and interlocked to move. The portion 51d is configured to rotate upward on the front side and return to the steady position. As described above, when the medal selector 15 is removed from the mounting position, the movable portion 51d according to this reference example naturally tilts to the retracted position and the selector regulating portion 77 becomes an unrestricted position. It does not easily interfere with the work of removing the medal selector 15. Further, the movable portion 51d naturally rotates to a steady position when the medal selector 15 is attached to the mounting position, and the selector regulating portion 77 becomes the limiting position. Therefore, after mounting the medal selector 15, the selector regulating portion 77 There is no need to take the trouble of returning the selector to the restricted position, and there is no risk of forgetting to return the selector regulating unit 77 to the restricted position.

In this way, the selector regulating unit can be arranged in the movable portion that does not open and close the medal return passage. The selector regulating unit 77 according to this reference example has a rectangular plate shape that covers the back side of the medal selector 15 at the restricted position, but separately from the selector regulating unit 77, one side or both sides of the medal selector 15. The side plate portion that covers the movable portion 51d may be arranged. By disposing such a side plate portion, it becomes more difficult to invade the housing 2 from the side of the connection portion between the return medal outlet 35 and the return medal receiving port 46 by the fraudulent device inserted from the payout port 11. ..

<Reference example 2>
This reference example is a modified example in which the shape of the selector regulating unit 77 is changed from the reference example 1. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 29 (a), the selector regulating portion 87 of the movable portion 51e according to this reference example extends upward from the rotation shaft 78 at the steady position of the movable portion 51e. The portion 87b is composed of a portion 87b and a protruding portion 87c projecting from the tip end portion of the upward extending portion 87b toward the front side, and the selector regulating portion 87 as a whole has a side surface having a width similar to that of the medal selector 15. It has an L-shape. As described above, since the selector restricting unit 87 according to this reference example has an L-shape in which the upper end bends to the front side at the restricted position, the selector restricting unit 87 is inserted from the payout port 11 at the restricted position. It becomes even more difficult for the instrument to invade the housing 2 on the back side from the connection portion between the return medal outlet 35 and the return medal reception port 46. As shown in FIG. 29B, at the retracted position of the movable portion 51e, the selector restricting portion 87 is held at an unrestricted position retracted from the rotation range of the medal selector 15, so that the selector restricting portion 87 protrudes. Part 87c does not interfere with the attachment / detachment of the medal selector 15.

The slot machine of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. For example, the configuration of the medal selector and the selector holder is not limited to the configuration of the above embodiment, and existing general medal selectors can be appropriately adopted.

Further, the movable gutter 51 according to the above embodiment has a retracted position at a position where the lower portion is pivotally supported and tilted toward the back side from the passage forming position, but the movable gutter according to the present invention is from the passage forming position. The position rotated in the horizontal direction may be the evacuation position, or the position slid from the passage forming position may be the evacuation position.

Further, in the above embodiment, the medal chute 16 is mainly composed of a fixed gutter 50 and a movable gutter 51, but the medal chute according to the present invention has a third medal chute that can open and close the medal return passage in addition to the movable gutter. It may be provided with a member.

Further, the selector restricting unit 57 according to the above embodiment is configured to abut on the back surface of the selector cover member 31 at the restricted position and hold the selector cover member 31 at the closed position. The portion is not limited to the one that holds the selector cover member 31 in the closed position, but is such that when the selector cover member rotates by a predetermined angle from the closed position, it comes into contact with the selector cover member and limits its rotation. There may be. Specifically, in the existing slot machine, when a medal jam occurs in the medal passage, the selector cover member is set to a certain angle range by operating the medal discharge switch arranged on the front side of the front door. It is known that the medal passage can be rotated to widen the medal passage by a certain width, and the present invention is also applicable to such a slot machine.

1 Slot machine 2 Housing 3 Front door 10 Input port 11 Discharge outlet 12 Receiving tray 13 Hopper device 15 Medal selectors 16, 16a, 16b, 16d Medal chute 20 Selector holder 30 Selector base member 31 Selector cover member 32 Medal passage 34 Inserting medal entrance 35 Return medal exit 36 Take-in medal exit 45 Medal return passage 46 Return medal entrance 47 Payout medal reception 48a, 48b, 48c Return pieces 50, 50b, 50d Fixed troughs 51, 51a, 51b, 51c Part 54, 64 Bearing part 56, 66 Hi part 57, 67, 77, 87 Selector regulation part 58, 68, 78 Rotating shaft 60 Engagement / disengagement means 70, 80 Interlocking part X medal

Claims (1)

A housing with an opening on the front side,
A front door that can be opened and closed, and a front door that can be opened and closed.
The inlet that opens to the front door and
A payout outlet that opens at the bottom of the front door,
A medal selector provided with a medal passage through which medals inserted into the insertion slot flow down, and a medal selector that distributes and discharges medals flowing down the medal passage into a return medal outlet and a capture medal outlet.
A slot machine provided on the back side of the front door and provided with a medal chute that forms a medal return passage for allowing medals discharged from the return medal outlet to flow down to the payout outlet.
The medal shoot
A fixed gutter fixed to the back side of the front door,
A movable gutter that can be held at a passage forming position that forms at least a part of the upstream part of the medal return passage and a retracting position that opens at least a part of the upstream part of the medal return passage is provided.
The movable gutter does not form a downstream portion of the medal return passage,
The movable gutter forms at least the back side of the medal return passage, and a position in which the lower portion is pivotally supported by the fixed gutter and is tilted from the passage forming position to the back side with the lower portion as the center. The retracted position
The medal selector is on the back side of the front door and is detachably locked at a mounting position where medals inserted into the insertion slot can be received in the medal passage.
The movable gutter is provided with an interlocking portion that moves from the first position to the second position as the movable gutter moves from the retracted position to the passage forming position.
With the movable gutter at the passage forming position and the medal selector locked at the mounting position, the interlocking portion engages with the medal selector at the second position to move the movable gutter. The gutter is configured to be held in the passage forming position.
When the medal selector is locked to the mounting position, the interlocking portion at the first position is pressed by the medal selector and moves to the second position, so that the movable gutter moves from the retracted position to the passage. A slot machine characterized in that it is configured to move to a formation position.

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