JP7112321B2 - game device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to game machines.

In each counter for medals, it is possible to stop the operation of the rotating disk in the hopper during the counting process. Many players leave their seats after closing, and many counting machines with medals remaining in the hopper after closing are seen, which is a problem.

In amusement arcades where game machines such as slot machines are installed, for example, a game device having a counting function corresponding to each game machine, a so-called counter for each machine, is installed so that employees can count the game value up to the island end counter. It is possible to reduce labor for transportation, and there are not a few game arcades that employ such game machines (Patent Document 1).

JP 2013-236712 A

In Patent Document 1, in order to clear the medal jam after counting medals, it is shown that the rotating disk is reversely rotated several seconds after the last medal is detected. A stop button is provided for stopping the counting process for reasons such as the fact that it is not possible, and the operation of this button stops the rotation of the turntable.

In shops that employ such individual counting machines, it is often seen that medals remain in the hopper where the rotating plate is installed after the shop is closed. In this case, the stop button is operated by referring to the operation log. A trend was observed. In other words, the player who has finished the game is in a hurry to leave the store, and even though the medals remain in the hopper during the counting process, the sound of the medals being counted cannot be confirmed for a while. It is presumed that medals may remain in the hopper by operating the stop button by mistakenly recognizing that the medals have been counted.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a gaming machine capable of reducing the risk of leaving game media in a hopper.

According to the invention of claim 1, the first period during which the operation to stop the counting process is permitted during the counting process for counting the game media accumulated in the hopper and the second period in which the operation to stop the counting process is suppressed are provided. Since the hopper is provided, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the game medium is left in the hopper.

1 is an overall block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention; Front view of game machine and game device A diagram showing the relationship between a winning combination and an output rate of a gaming machine Block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the gaming machine Perspective view of the vicinity of the counting receiving part Exploded perspective view of the vicinity of the counting receiving part A perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a counting unit. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a counting processing unit; Partial perspective view showing the schematic configuration of the counting unit Schematic diagram showing the content of the counting process FIG. 11A is a diagram showing an example of a display during counting, in which (a) is a diagram showing an outline of the display contents in the first period, and (b) is a diagram showing an outline of the display contents in the second period; Diagram showing processing flow (part 1) Diagram showing the processing flow (Part 2) Diagram showing the processing flow (Part 3)

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 14. FIG.
FIG. 1 schematically shows the overall configuration of the game arcade system. In the game arcade, a large number of game machines (for example, slot machines shown in FIG. 1) 1 are installed, and a game device 2 is installed corresponding to each game machine 1 . Two game machines 1 and two game machines 2 are connected to one relay device 3 , and the relay device 3 is connected to the management device 5 via the LAN 4 . Peripheral devices such as a POS for exchanging prizes are connected to the LAN 4 so as to be communicable with the management device 5 .

The management device 5 is installed, for example, in a management room in the game hall, and includes a keyboard 5a, a monitor 5b, a printer (not shown), and the like. The management device 5 manages various game information by receiving game signals transmitted from devices on the game machine side (game machine 1, game device 2, etc.) and peripheral devices such as POS.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, several hundred gaming machines 1 are managed by the management device 5. FIG. Further, as described above, if the gaming machine 1 is a slot machine, the game value (game medium) is medals, and if the gaming machine is a pachinko machine, the game value is pachinko balls. In the following explanation, game values (game media) are explained as medals.

In the following description, the direction perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 2 is the front-rear direction (the front side of the paper surface is the front side), and the left-right direction of the paper surface of FIG. and That is, the direction is defined with reference to the case where the game device 2 is viewed from the front.

As shown in FIG. 2, a liquid crystal display unit 6 and a pair of left and right speakers 7 are arranged on the front surface of the gaming machine 1. Furthermore, the reels 9 visible through the display window 8, activated pay lines , a credit clearing button 11 for paying out credited (stored) medals, a MAXBET button 12 for inserting credited medals, and a medal slot 13 for directly inserting medals. , a start lever 14, a left stop button 15, a middle stop button 16, a right stop button 17, a payout amount display portion 18, a credit amount display portion 19, a tray 20, and the like.

When the start lever 14 is operated with medals inserted (when a game start operation is performed), the gaming machine 1 extracts one random number from the generated random numbers and executes an internal lottery. When there is a winning combination, a flag corresponding to the internal winning combination is established and each reel 9 is started (rotated). stop the rotation. Subsequently, based on a stop table (not shown) for determining the stop position of each reel 9 according to the flag of the internal winning combination, stop control including so-called pull-in control (slip control) (Control to stop and display with a winning symbol or a losing symbol according to the type of ) is executed. The pull-in control is a control capable of pulling a symbol within a predetermined pull-in range (up to 4 symbols at maximum) from the point of time when the operation of each stop button 15 to 17 is detected and stopping the winning line.

The gaming machine 1 is provided with a BB (big bonus) combination, an RB (regular bonus) combination, a small combination, and a replay combination as so-called bonus combinations. As shown in FIG. 2, the gaming machine 1 is provided with a total of five active lines (three lines in the horizontal direction corresponding to the upper, middle and lower stages of the display window 8 and two in the diagonal direction). It is When the player operates the stop buttons 15 to 17 to align the symbols corresponding to the internal winning combination on any one of these activated lines, that is, when the combination of symbols stopped and displayed on the activated line is displayed internally. A prize is awarded when a combination of symbols corresponding to the winning combination is matched.

When a prize is won, a BB state or an RB state is generated, or the corresponding number of medals is paid out (game value is awarded). For example, when the BB and RB symbols are aligned, the state shifts to the BB state and the RB state, respectively, and the winning rate of small wins increases during the BB and RB. Such a BB state or RB state ends when a predetermined payout number is reached.

The gaming machine 1 can change the internal winning probabilities of the BB and RB hands by changing the set values. The set values are provided in six stages from 1 to 6 as shown in FIG. One of these setting values is selected by the administrator of the game arcade and used. A theoretical payout rate (ball payout rate) is associated with each set value, and this payout rate is adjusted by the above-described internal winning probability of the bonus combination. That is, in the gaming machine 1, the larger the set value is, the higher the probability of winning the bonus combination becomes, and accordingly the theoretical payout rate becomes larger. Incidentally, although the minor combination probability is common to all settings, it may be different.

To change the setting value (mode) of the game machine 1, the game machine 1 is turned off with the power switch, and the setting mode switching unit (both not shown) is changed from "game" to "setting" with the setting key. ”, and when the power is turned on, the setting changeable state is entered. In the setting changeable state, the game machine setting value (mode) is displayed on the credit number display unit 19, and the display is switched in order according to the operation of a setting button (not shown). When the start lever 14 is operated while the set value to be changed is displayed, the set value is determined.

The gaming machine 1 outputs the following signals.
Out signal=output from gaming machine 1; Assuming that the medals in the bet state are consumed according to the start operation, the number of medals in the bet state (three medals) is pulse-outputted, so the number of out signals×1 becomes the out (consumption value, number of used media). Corresponding portions are also output during replay.
Safe signal=output from gaming machine 1; Since one pulse is output each time one medal is paid out (given) according to winning, the number of safe signals×1 becomes the safe (winning award award value, number of payout media). It should be noted that even when a replay combination is won, the medals used in the game are output.
BB or RB signal=output from gaming machine 1; Since the level is output in the corresponding bonus state (BB, RB), the signal input period is specified as the bonus state.

The gaming machine 2, as shown in FIG. 4, is operated by a control section 2a constituted by a microcomputer having a CPU 2b, a ROM 2c, a RAM 2d and an I/O 2e. The gaming device 2 includes a money slot 22 for inserting money, a status indicator lamp 23 indicating the gaming state of the gaming device 2 or the gaming machine 1, a return button 25 for return operation, a payout button 26 for payout operation, a payout button. A payout nozzle 27 for paying out medals to the receiving tray 20 of the game machine 1 and a display unit 28 are provided in response to the depression of the button 26 . The display section 28 includes an information display section 28a that displays various information, a count stop button 28b that performs a counting stop operation, and a ball display section 28c that displays information on counting medals.

The gaming machine 2 of the present embodiment includes a counting processing section 29 as shown in FIG. 4 and FIGS. 7 to 9 to be described later. The counting processing unit 29 has a so-called each-vehicle counting function. The counting processing unit 29 includes a counting sensor 29a capable of detecting medals, and is communicably connected to the control unit 2a.

The gaming device 2 can accept the medals obtained by the player via the counting receiving unit 30, count the accepted medals in the counting processing unit 29 and manage them as owned balls. is pressed (accepting the giving operation), if the refund processing (value giving processing) is performed with the balls as a consideration, the value (the same number as the refunded medals) is subtracted from the balls. The counting receiving unit 30 functions as counting receiving means into which game media are inserted. When the player presses the return button 25 (accepts the issue operation) while the balance and balls remain, an IC card that can specify the balance and balls is issued. The IC card includes a general card and a membership card that can specify the gaming value possessed by the player. Also, when an IC card is accepted, the balance and possession balls are taken over. In the following description, slot machines with medals as game values are exemplified.

Through serial communication with the relay device 3, the game device 2 performs money acceptance processing, value provision processing, value provision processing, balance, balls held, tokens to be borrowed, number of refunds, amount of money deposited, number of balls to be counted, and sales amount as consideration for lending. , and various information such as IC card acceptance and issuance processing can be specified, but these may be specified by pulse signals (for example, 1 pulse for every 1000 yen received, 1 pulse for every 100 yen sold, etc.) .

Now, as shown in FIG. It has a positional relationship in which it is arranged above the saucer 20. - 特許庁In this way, the counting receiving unit 30 (or the game device 2) provided in the game device 2 corresponding to the game machine 1 is provided between the game machines 1 and 1 so as to line up on the side of the game machine 1. ing.

5 and 6 are diagrams for explaining the configuration of the game device 2, showing a perspective view and an exploded perspective view of the vicinity of the counting receiving section 30. FIG. The game device 2 is a so-called counting machine provided with a payout nozzle 27 and a counting receiving portion 30 . As shown in FIG. 5, the counting receiving section 30 is assembled to a base plate 31 on the front side of the gaming machine 2 via upper and lower mounting bodies 32 and 33 made of synthetic resin material, for example. Specifically, the base plate 31 is formed in a rectangular plate shape below the gaming device 2 and covers the front surface of the gaming device 2 .

The base plate 31 has a payout port 31a formed at a slightly upper position, and a lower communicating hole 31b formed at a position immediately below the payout port 31a. The payout port 31a is set to have a width dimension to the extent that one medal can be inserted through it, and a communication duct 31a' protruding to the rear surface side is extended. The payout port 31a is a payout hole that communicates with a payout hopper (not shown) built in the gaming machine 2 via a communication duct 31a'. On the other hand, the lower communication hole 31b is set wider than the payout port 31a, and is a counting hole that communicates with the hopper portion 34 of the counting processing portion 29 built in the gaming machine 2. be. The hopper portion 34 functions as storage means for storing the game media thrown into the counting receiving portion 30 .

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the mounting body 32 integrally has a rear wall 32a in the shape of a vertically long rectangular plate, and frame walls 32b to 32d projecting forward from the lower half of the rear wall 32a. The rear wall 32a of the mounting body 32 has a payout port 32e1 corresponding to the payout port 31a of the base plate 31, and a communicating hole 32e2 corresponding to the lower communicating hole 31b. When the attachment body 32 is attached to the upper portion of the base plate 31, the upper outlets 31a and 32e1 are connected to each other, and the lower communication hole 31b and the communication hole 32e2 are connected to each other.

The frame walls 32b to 32d of the mounting body 32 form a frame shape with left and right frame walls 32b and 32c facing each other with the same width as the gaming machine 2 and extending forward, and a front frame wall 32d. The upper edges of the left and right frame walls 32b and 32c are gently inclined downward toward the front frame wall 32d so as to match the dimensions and shape of the counting receiving portion 30. As shown in FIG. The inside of the frame walls 32b to 32d is partitioned left and right by a partition wall 35, and has a counting structure communicating with a communication hole 32e2 on the right side of the partition wall 35 and a bottom surface 35a communicating with a discharge port 32e1 on the left side of the partition wall 35. forming a dispensing structure.

That is, on the left side of the frame walls 32b to 32d of the mounting body 32, the bottom surface 35a of the partition wall 35 connecting the communication hole 32e of the rear wall 32a and the notch 32f of the front frame wall 32d extends forward. It slopes gently downwards. A dispensing nozzle 27 is attached to the frame wall 32d in front of the mounting body 32 so as to match the notch 32f. As a result, the mounting body 32 allows medals delivered from the payout portion to pass through the payout port 31a and the communication hole 32e shown in FIG. 27 to form a payout passage A flowing down. 6, the payout passage A is divided into two for the sake of convenience because it is an exploded view, but one payout passage is formed as indicated by the arrow A in FIGS. The payout unit including the payout hopper corresponds to a payout means for paying out medals from the payout nozzle 27 through the payout passage A in accordance with the lending process (or the replay process in which the balls are paid for) by the lending operation. do.

On the other hand, medals inserted from the counting receiving section 30 form a counting passage B that flows into the counting section from the lower communicating hole 31b of the base plate 31 via the communicating hole 32e2 on the right side of the mounting body 32. Although this counting passage B is also divided into two in FIG. 6, one counting passage is formed as indicated by the arrow B in FIG.

The lower mounting body 33 shown in FIG. 6 has a bulging portion 33a that bulges forward in the upper half and a plate-like rear wall 33b in the lower half. integrally has The lower attachment body 33 is attached to the base plate 31 so that the bulging portion 33 a continues to the lower side of the attachment body 32 .

The counting receiving portion 30 is made of synthetic resin material, for example, and has a funnel-like shape corresponding to the shapes of the dispensing passage A and the counting passage B of the mounting bodies 32 and 33 described above. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, the counting receiving portion 30 includes peripheral walls 30b to 30d and a rear wall 30a covering frame walls 32b to 32d of the mounting body 32 from above, and counting slopes 36a to 36c inside thereof. The integral formation forms a funnel portion 36 that is open on the upper surface side and has a counting port 36d at the lower end.

Here, on the left side of the funnel portion 36, the first counting slope 36a slopes downward to the right (inward) from the upper end of the peripheral wall 30b, and the second counting slope 36b at its rear portion slopes downward from the upper end of the rear wall 30a. Slopes downwards towards the front. As a result, at least a portion of the counting receiving portion 30 (counting slopes 36 a and 36 b on the left side, peripheral walls 30 b and 30 d , etc.) has a shape similar to that of the dispensing passage such as the left portion of the mounting body 32 and the base end of the dispensing nozzle 27 . The counting slopes 36a and 36b correspond to the shape of A, and the counting slopes 36a and 36b form the ceiling with respect to the bottom surface 35a of the dispensing passage A. In other words, the base plate 31, the mounting bodies 32 and 33, and the counting receiving portion 30 are assembled into the game device 2 to form a common component for the payout passage A and the counting passage B. Part of the counting slopes 36a and 36b of the counting receiving portion 30 has a shape that secures the space of the dispensing passage A. As shown in FIG.

On the right side of the funnel portion 36, the third counting slope 36c, which is the main surface, slopes downward toward the rear from the upper end of the peripheral wall 30d, and the counting port 36d, which is an opening formed at the lower end of the rear wall 30a, is attached. The deepest part corresponds to the communication hole 32e2 of the body 32. As shown in FIG. Thus, in the counting receiving section 30, the counting slopes 36a to 36c of the funnel section 36 are inclined such that the medals inserted from the upper surface side slide down into the counting opening 36d, and the medals that slide down fall into the counting opening. It is received from 36d into the communication hole 32e2 (that is, counting passage B side) of the mounting body 32, and can be counted by the counting section.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the payout nozzle 27 is configured so that medals paid out from the payout port 31a on the main body side during lending processing, replay processing, etc. can be discharged from the payout port 32e1 through the payout nozzle 27. On the other hand, the medals received by the counting receiving section 30 are discharged through the counting port 36d to the lower communication hole 31b on the main body side, so that the counting processing section 29 inside the main body can count the medals. A path from the payout ports 31a, 32e1 to the payout nozzle 27 constitutes a payout passage A for medals.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the counting receiving portion 30 and the payout passage A including the payout port 32e1 are integrated by adopting common parts. A part of the first counting slope 36a and the like have a shape that secures a space for the dispensing passage A. As shown in FIG. The counting slopes 36a, 36b, and 36c of the counting receiving portion 30 are slopes formed so that medals received by the counting receiving portion 30 slide down into the counting port 36d. A counting unit 40 shown in FIG. 9 is arranged. Note that the direction of the counting unit 40 shown in FIG. 9 is shown in the opposite direction to the direction of the counting unit 40 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, the counting unit 40 is composed of a hopper section 34 and a counting processing section 29. The counting processing section 29 includes a rotary disc for receiving medals and discharging them from a medal discharge port 43. 44 are provided. The rotating disk 44 is a rotating member provided with medal concave holes 44a for accommodating medals placed flat one by one at five places at equal intervals in the circumferential direction. The medals in the medal recessed hole 44a are delivered to the medal passage 43a one by one as the rotary disc 44 rotates. The rotating disk 44 is driven to rotate step by step at each rotational position where medals are sent out to the medal passage 43a, and the number of medals corresponding to the number of rotation steps of the rotating disk 44 is sent out to the medal passage 43a leading to the medal discharge port 43. be.

As shown in FIG. 9, a counting sensor 29a is arranged on the bottom surface of the medal passage 43a. The counting sensor 29a detects the medal while the medal is ejected from the medal ejection port 43 and passes through the medal passage 43a. As the counting sensor 29a, for example, a magnetic induction type proximity sensor having a detection coil that generates an alternating magnetic field can be used. As shown in FIG. 5, the medals ejected from the counting port 36d are received by the hopper portion 34 from the player side and ejected from the medal ejection port 43 to the island side.

The operation flow in the counting unit 40 is as follows.
Counting start forward rotation 1 (during counting) 3s (normal counting process)
Reverse rotation (retry) 2.5s (first counting auxiliary processing)
Forward rotation 2 (during counting) 3s (second counting auxiliary processing)
Automatic stop In the above flow, after counting the number of medals, forward rotation 1 is restarted. Also, it automatically stops after about 8.5 seconds from the last medal count. In the above flow, a period different from the forward rotation 1 can be set as the sub-counting timer, but the same timer may be used.

Next, the operation of the gaming machine 2 will be described. As shown in FIG. 2, when the gaming device 2 receives money from the money slot 22 (money acceptance processing), the amount of money deposited is added to the balance and displayed on the display unit 28 of the gaming device 2, indicating that there is a balance. When the payout button (lending button) 26 of the gaming device 2 is pressed (lending operation, giving operation), the payout unit (for example, 1000 yen) worth of loaned medals (value given value) is paid out from the payout nozzle 27 (value giving process). , the amount of which will be deducted from the balance. It should be noted that money can be accepted in amounts corresponding to a plurality of times of consideration provision processing (for example, up to 10,000 yen).

Through serial communication with the relay device 3, the gaming device 2 performs money acceptance processing, consideration giving processing, balance, balls held, number of balls lent, number of balls withdrawn, amount of money deposited, number of balls counted, number of balls lent It is possible to specify various information such as the amount of sales to be paid for the balls and the reception and issuance processing of the IC card, but these are pulse signals (for example, 1 pulse for every 1000 yen deposited, 1 pulse for every 100 yen sold, etc.) can be specified by

Next, the content of the counting process in the gaming machine 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9. FIG. During the counting process for counting the number of game media (medals) stored in the hopper section 34 (storing means), the gaming device 2 has a first period that allows an operation to stop the counting process, and a first period that allows an operation to stop the counting process. A second period is provided in which the operation is suppressed relative to the first period. The counting process is a process for counting the number of game media (medals), and includes a process of rotating the turntable 44 for sending the game media to the counting processing section 29 (counting processing means). . During the counting process, the display on the display unit 28 shifts to the display for counting shown in FIG. When suppressing the operation to stop the counting process, it is not only possible to prohibit the operation to stop the counting process, but also to restrict the operation to stop the counting process by temporarily not displaying the operation button, for example. including cases where

A gaming device 2 (each counter) corresponding to each gaming machine 1 transmits and receives various information to and from the gaming machine 1 and the management device 5 through the relay device 3. It is counted in the counting processing section 29 . In the game device 2, the rotating disk 44 of the counting processing unit 29 rotates so that the counting sensor 29a can detect medals, and counting processing is performed.

FIG. 10 shows that in the counting process in the gaming device 2, after the normal counting process, the first counting auxiliary process is executed, and after the medals are counted, the normal counting process is resumed, and then the medals are counted by the first counting auxiliary process. The time chart is illustrated when the reverse counting timer times out without any delay, and then the second counting auxiliary process is executed. As shown in FIG. 10, if the counting sensor 29a does not detect medals for a certain period of time (usually for a counting timer, for example, 3 seconds) after the last medal is detected, the game device 2 further detects a medal for a certain period (for a reverse counting timer, for example, 2 seconds). 0.5 seconds) The rotating disk 44 is rotated in the reverse direction, and if medals are still not detected, the counting assistance process is performed to rotate the rotating disk 44 in the forward direction for a certain period of time (for the sub-counting timer, for example, 3 seconds). That is, in the counting assistance process, a process of rotating the turntable 44 in a reverse direction with respect to the forward rotation and a process of returning to the forward rotation after the reverse rotation are performed.

If medals are detected during the auxiliary counting process, the process is performed in the same manner as when medals are detected during the previous normal counting process. That is, when a game medium is detected during the period in which the auxiliary counting process is performed, the normal counting process is performed, and the auxiliary counting process is performed again after the normal counting process. If no medals are detected, the rotating disk 44 is stopped after forward rotation for the sub-counting timer.

The counting process includes a normal counting process for counting the game media stored in the hopper portion 34, and a counting assisting process that is executed so that no game media remain in the hopper portion 34 after the normal counting process. , and a second period is provided corresponding to the counting assistance process. The forward rotation direction means the rotation direction of the rotating disk 44 in the normal counting process, and the reverse rotation direction means rotation in the reverse direction of the forward rotation direction.

By operating the return button 25, a recording medium (not shown) such as an IC card that can specify the game value owned by the player is issued. Limit or suppress the publishing process. That is, during the counting process of the game media by the counting processing means, the recording medium issuing process of the return button 25 (issuing processing means) is suppressed. Therefore, when the counting process ends due to the stop of the turntable 44, the issuing process is permitted. The return button 25 functions as issuing processing means for issuing a recording medium capable of specifying the game value owned by the player.

To enable a stop operation for stopping counting processing for the reason that issuing processing is suppressed until counting processing is completed and counting processing prevents concentration on a game. The stop operation is accepted by operating the count stop button 28b displayed when the display unit 28 displays the counting operation as shown in FIG.

Issue processing (operation of return button 25) is disabled during counting processing due to the voltage supplied to game device 2. FIG. Therefore, there is a tendency for a player who rushes the issuing process to press the counting stop button 28b to interrupt the counting process and perform the issuing process when he/she determines that there are no more medals to be counted by the counting process.

If the stop operation is allowed at any time during the counting process, the significance of performing the counting auxiliary process is diminished, so the counting stop button 28b is not displayed during the reverse rotation of the turntable 44, which is a part of the normal counting process and the counting auxiliary process. The stopping operation is temporarily limited or suppressed, and the period of this suppression is indicated as a second period. It should be noted that lending processing, replay processing, etc. are also disabled during counting processing.

On the other hand, by permitting a stop operation during the forward rotation in which the sub-counting timer operates, which is a part of the period of the auxiliary counting process, the needs of the player who want to stop the counting process in order to perform the issuing process, To meet the needs of wanting to stop the counting process because the counting process makes it impossible to concentrate on the game.

Next, a processing flow in the gaming machine 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 12 to 14. FIG. The following processing is specifically controlled by the control unit 2a of the game device 2, but the following description assumes that the game device 2 functions as the control unit.

While waiting for counting (S10: NO), the gaming machine 2 executes a waiting flow for determining whether the counting start condition is satisfied (S11). In the gaming device 2, when the counting sensor 29a detects medals or the player performs a counting start operation, the counting start condition is established (S11: YES). Although not shown in the drawing, the count value is also added when the counting start condition is satisfied by medal detection.

During the counting standby (S10: NO), when the counting start condition is established (S11: YES), the counting process is started by starting the rotation of the turntable 44 (S12), and the operation of the normal counting timer is started. (S13), the normal count flag is set to 1 (S14), and the return button 25 is deactivated (S15). After that, no new medals are counted (S16: NO), the turntable 44 is rotating forward (S17: YES), the normal count flag is 1 (S18: NO), and the normal count timer has timed out. (S35: NO), when returning in the counting process (S10: YES), it is determined whether medals have been counted (S16). Since the disc 44 is rotating forward (S17: YES) and the normal counting flag is 1 (S18: NO), the normal counting process, which is a standby flow for determining whether the normal counting timer has timed out (S35), is executed. conduct.

Here, when the gaming device 2 counts the medals (S16: YES), it adds the count value (S24) and restarts the normal counting timer (3 seconds) (S25). Since it is rotating (S26: NO) and the normal count flag is 1 (S29: NO), the process returns.

On the other hand, if the normal counting timer times out without detecting medals for the normal counting timer from the last medal detection (S35: YES), the rotating disk 44 starts to rotate in the reverse direction (S36), and the normal counting flag is set to 0 ( S37), start the operation of the reverse counting timer (2.5 seconds) (S38), return, during the counting process (S10: YES), determine whether medals have been counted (S16), and if not (S16: NO), since the turntable 44 is rotating in the reverse direction (S17: NO), the first counting auxiliary processing (reverse rotation corresponding).

Here, when the game device 2 counts the medals (S16: YES), the count value is added (S24), the operation of the normal counting timer is started (S25), and the turntable 44 is rotating in the reverse direction. (S26: YES), the normal count flag is set to 1 (S27), the rotating disk 44 is rotated forward, and the normal count process is resumed.

On the other hand, when the reverse counting timer times out without the gaming machine 2 detecting medals (S31: YES), the rotating board 44 starts rotating forward (S32), and the sub-counting timer starts operating (3 seconds) ( S33), the counting stop button 28b is activated (S34). In this way, during the counting process (S10: YES), it is determined whether or not medals have been counted (S16). Since the normal counting flag is 0 (S18: YES), the standby flow for determining whether the sub-counting timer has timed out (S19) and whether the operation of the counting stop button 28b has been accepted (S23). 2 Count auxiliary processing (corresponding to forward rotation) is performed. This period is the first period during which the counting stop button 28b is activated to allow the operation to stop the counting process.

Here, when the gaming device 2 counts the medals (S16: YES), the turntable 44 is rotating normally (S26: NO), and the normal counting flag is 0 (S29: YES), so the normal counting The flag is set to 1 (S30), the counting stop button 28b is deactivated (S22), and the normal counting process is resumed by returning. On the other hand, if the sub-counting timer times out without the gaming machine 2 detecting any medals (S19: YES), the turntable 44 is stopped (S20) to return the medals to wait for counting after completing the counting process (S20). The button 25 is activated (S21), and the counting stop button 28b is deactivated (S22). Further, when the operation of the counting stop button 28b is accepted (S23: YES), the counting process is terminated in the same manner and the counting standby is started. If the counting start condition is met again during the counting standby (S11: YES), the normal counting process is resumed.

According to the embodiment described above, the following effects are obtained.
In order to provide a first period for allowing an operation to stop the counting process for counting game media (medals) accumulated in the hopper section 34 of the counting unit 40 and a second period for suppressing an operation to stop the counting process, It is possible to reduce the possibility that the game media are left in the hopper portion 34 while remaining there.

Also, since the issuing process is suppressed during the counting process, the counting process and the issuing process are performed at the same time, so that the processing load can be reduced and the risk of the game media being counted after the issuing process is reduced.

The counting process includes a normal counting process and a counting auxiliary process for checking the game media remaining in the hopper unit 34 after the normal counting process. It is possible to reduce the possibility that game media remain without being processed.

Since the normal counting process and the period in which the rotating disk 44 is rotated in the reverse direction in the auxiliary counting process are defined as the second period, the period in which the rotating disk 44 is rotated forward in the auxiliary counting process is defined as the first period. The rotation of the turntable 44 makes it easier to recognize that the period has shifted to the first period.

When a game medium is detected during the period in which the auxiliary counting process is performed, the normal counting process is performed, and the auxiliary counting process is performed again after the normal counting process. Even if it is detected, it will be possible to respond appropriately.

(Other embodiments)
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but can be modified or expanded as follows.
Although the example of allowing the stop operation in the second counting auxiliary process has been illustrated, the configuration that allows the stop operation in the first counting auxiliary process or the normal counting process, or the stop operation is suppressed regardless of forward rotation or reverse rotation. A configuration can also be assumed, and any configuration may be adopted as long as a period in which the stop operation is allowed and a period in which the stop operation is suppressed are provided in the counting process.

Although prohibiting the stop operation is exemplified as the suppression process, for example, the stop operation is accepted, but the period from the operation to the stop is lengthened compared to the allowed period. processing may be employed.

As an example of the auxiliary counting process, the rotating direction of the rotating disk 44 is changed twice, but it is also possible to reversely rotate the rotating disk 44 once. Any processing for preventing game media from remaining in the hopper unit 34 may be used as the counting assistance processing.

Although the processing of rotating the turntable 44 is exemplified as the counting processing, for example, the processing of sending out the game media by a configuration such as a belt conveyor can be used for counting the game media accumulated in the hopper section 34, like the counting processing. Any processing may be used as the counting processing as long as it is processing.

All the game information illustrated may be specified directly by the input signal or indirectly by using an arithmetic expression.
The numerical values, number of digits, items, etc. described above are examples, and any numerical values may be adopted.

Either "less than" or "less than" may be used, and expressions such as "not reached" are expressions corresponding to both less than or less than. The same applies to "greater than" and "exceed", and expressions such as "attained" correspond to both.

The target game machine may be any game machine such as a pachinko game machine other than a slot machine as long as it performs a counting process.
Whether or not the exemplified configuration is employed may be appropriately changed according to the setting, the exemplified configurations including the modified examples may be combined in any way, and the configuration may be excluded as appropriate.

In the drawings, 1 is a game machine, 2 is a game device (control unit), 25 is a return button (issue processing means), 29 is a counting processing unit (counting processing means), 30 is a counting receiving unit (counting receiving means), 34 is A hopper portion (storage means) 44 indicates a rotating disc.

Claims (3)

counting receiving means into which game media are inserted;
a storage means for storing the game media inserted into the counting receiving means;
counting processing means for performing a counting process for counting the number of game media stored in the storage means;
A first period during which an operation to stop the counting process is permitted during the counting process of the game media by the counting processing means, and a second period in which the operation to stop the counting process is suppressed compared to the first period. , is provided ,
The counting process is a process of rotating a turntable for sending out the game media, and includes a normal counting process of counting the game media stored in the storage means and a a counting auxiliary process that is executed to prevent the remaining game media from remaining in the
When the rotating direction of the rotating disk in the normal counting process is set to the forward rotating direction, the auxiliary counting process includes a process of rotating the rotating disk in a reverse direction with respect to the forward rotation, and a process of returning the rotating disk to the forward rotation after the reverse rotation. and is done,
The second period is provided corresponding to the period during which the normal counting process is performed and the period during which the rotating disk is reversely rotated in the auxiliary counting process. A game device provided corresponding to a period in which the board is rotated forward . It has an issue processing means for issuing a recording medium capable of specifying the game value owned by the player ,
2. The game apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the issuing processing of the recording medium by the issuing processing means is suppressed during the counting processing of the game media by the counting processing means. 3. The game according to claim 1 , wherein the normal counting process is performed when the game medium is detected during the period during which the auxiliary counting process is performed, and the auxiliary counting process is performed again after the normal counting process. Device.

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