JP7313654B2 - game machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to gaming machines.

A gaming machine is known that includes a movable accessory and a sensor that detects the position of the movable accessory. For example, Patent Literature 1 below describes a gaming machine equipped with a sensor that detects when a movable accessory is out of its original position.

JP 2018-117733 A

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to reduce the possibility that, in a game machine equipped with a movable accessory and a sensor that detects the movable accessory, a malfunction that occurs in the sensor will cause a problem to become apparent to the player.

A gaming machine according to the present invention, which has been devised to solve the above-mentioned problems, includes a movable role that can be displaced within a predetermined range and can be positioned at a specific position, a first sensor that outputs a detection signal when the movable role is positioned at the specific position, and a second sensor that outputs a detection signal when the movable role is positioned at the specific position. It is characterized by judging that the accessory has reached the specific position.

According to the gaming machine of the present invention, it is possible to reduce the possibility that a malfunction will occur to the player due to an abnormality occurring in the sensor that detects the movable accessory.

1 is a front view schematically showing a gaming machine according to this embodiment; FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating a movable accessory. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the detection circuit ((a) is a diagram showing an outline of the detection circuit, (b) is a diagram showing the circuit output when both the first sensor and the second sensor are normal, (c) is a diagram showing the circuit output when one sensor (first sensor) is non-detection abnormal, and (d) is a diagram showing the circuit output when one sensor (first sensor) is constantly detecting abnormality). FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a reference circuit (for comparison with the detection circuit);

○Overall Configuration Hereinafter, an embodiment of a gaming machine 1 (pachinko gaming machine) according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. First, the overall configuration of the gaming machine 1 will be briefly described with reference to FIG.

The game machine 1 has a game board 21. - 特許庁The game board 21 is made of a substantially square plywood board, and a guide rail 95 forming a passage for guiding the game ball fired by operating the shooting device 62 (shooting handle) to the game area 211 is provided in a substantially arc shape.

The game area 211 is provided with a start winning opening 92, a big winning opening 93, an out opening 94, and the like (the configuration of the playing area 211 is simplified (some game nails and winning areas are omitted)). A display area 221 of the display device 22 is an area that can be visually recognized through an opening 212 formed in the game board 21 .

Similar to the known game machine, the entry of the game ball into the starting prize-winning opening 92 triggers the win/loss determination (win/fail lottery). In the display area 221, a design (hereinafter referred to as an identification design 80) indicating the result of the win/loss determination is displayed. The identification pattern 80 of the present embodiment is a pattern including "numbers", but this aspect is merely an example. In this embodiment, the combination of the three identification patterns 80 that are finally shown informs whether the result of the win/loss determination is a win.

In addition, in the game area 211, a plurality of game nails are provided as obstacles that change the flowing state of the game balls when the falling game balls collide with each other. The game ball flowing down the game area 211 changes in various modes according to the conditions when it collides with the game nail.

In such a gaming machine 1 , game balls are shot toward the game area 211 by operating the shooting device 96 . When a game ball flowing down the game area 211 wins a winning opening such as the starting winning opening 92 or the big winning opening 93, a predetermined number of winning balls are paid out by a payout device.

Descriptions of components and control aspects of the gaming machine 1 that are not related to the present invention, such as the lower and upper trays for storing game balls, and a specific method of winning/losing determination, will be omitted. For these, those having the same structure as known gaming machines can be applied.

O Movable Accessory and Configuration for Controlling the Same The movable accessory 10 and the configuration for controlling it will be described below. The movable accessory 10 can be reciprocated between the original position and the performance position (the original position corresponds to the specific position in the present invention). The movable accessory 10 according to the present embodiment slides linearly between the original position (see FIG. 2(a)) and the rendering position (see FIG. 2(b)), but the motion mode (path of motion) may be any. Also, the aspect (shape, decoration, etc.) of the movable accessory 10 itself may be of any type. The movable accessory 10 may be a display device.

The drive source of the movable accessory 10 is a stepping motor (hereinafter also simply referred to as a motor) not shown. Since the power transmission structure from the motor to the movable accessory 10 may be of any type, the description is omitted. Since the amount of rotation (the number of steps) of the motor and the amount of displacement of the movable accessory 10 are proportional, basically the amount of displacement and the current position of the movable accessory 10 are determined according to the amount of rotation of the motor.

The movable accessory 10 is positioned forward of the display area 221 (display surface) of the display device 22 in the front-rear direction. In this embodiment, the range in which the movable accessory 10 overlaps the display area 221 differs between when the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the original position and when it is positioned at the performance position. Specifically, the area where the movable accessory 10 overlaps in front of the display area 221 becomes larger when the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the performance position than when the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the original position (see FIG. 2). From a player's point of view, the size of the invisible part covered by the movable accessory 10 in the display area 221 is larger when the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the performance position than when it is positioned at the original position. When the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the performance position in a state where the identification pattern 80 is displayed in the display area 221 (the state in which the performance for notifying the success/failure determination result is being executed), it can be said that the identification pattern 80 becomes difficult to see (compared to the position at the original position). In this embodiment, the entirety of the movable accessory 10 positioned at the original position does not overlap the display area 221 , and the entirety of the movable accessory 10 positioned at the performance position overlaps the display area 221 .

A circuit (hereinafter referred to as detection circuit 30) for detecting whether or not the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the original position will be described. The detection circuit 30 includes a first sensor 31, a second sensor 32, and an AND circuit 33 (see FIG. 3(a)). Both the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 are provided at positions for detecting the movable accessory 10 when the movable accessory 10 is located at the original position. That is, when the movable accessory 10 is located at the original position, the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 output detection signals. When the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the performance position, the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 do not detect the movable accessory 10 (no detection signal is output). The first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 may not directly detect the movable accessory 10 itself, but indirectly detect the movable accessory 10 by detecting something that is integrally displaced with the movable accessory 10. In this embodiment, a "U"-shaped photosensor is used, and the part that is displaced integrally with the movable accessory 10 is arranged to enter the detection range (inside the "U") at the original position (see FIG. 2(a)). In addition, in the present embodiment, both the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 have a sensor output (detection signal) of "L" (signal) when the movable accessory 10 is detected, and a sensor output (non-detection signal) of when the movable accessory 10 is not detected is "H" (signal).

In this embodiment, the signals output from the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 are inverted (for example, inverted by the Schmitt triggers 311 and 321) and then input to the AND circuit 33. As described above, both the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 have a detection signal of "L" and a non-detection signal of "H" (signal). Therefore, the inverted "H" is input to the AND circuit 33 when the movable accessory 10 is detected, and the inverted "L" is input to the AND circuit 33 when the movable accessory 10 is not detected.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3B, if there is no abnormality in the detection circuit 30 (if there is no abnormality in the sensor) and the movable object 10 is at the original position, the input 1 of the AND circuit 33 is "H" and the input 2 is "H", so the output of the AND circuit 33 (hereinafter also referred to as circuit output) is "H". On the other hand, when the movable accessory 10 is positioned outside the detection range of the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 (the performance position is outside the detection range), the input 1 of the AND circuit 33 is "L" and the input 2 is "L", so the circuit output is "L". That is, based on whether the circuit output is "H", it is determined whether the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the original position.

The circuit output is output to the control means of the movable accessory 10 (not shown). When returning the movable accessory 10 from the performance position to the original position, it is determined that the movable accessory 10 has reached the original position when the circuit output changes from "L" to "H". In other words, when the detection signal is output from both the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 and the circuit output becomes "H", it is determined that the movable accessory 10 has reached the original position. The control means stops the movable accessory 10 (motor) when the circuit output becomes "H". As a result, the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the original position (returned to the original position).

The above control is performed when the detection circuit 30 does not have an abnormality. The detection circuit 30 according to the present embodiment is superior to a general circuit (reference circuit described later) in its function when an abnormality occurs in the circuit, specifically when an abnormality occurs in one of the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32. Since the probability of occurrence of an event in which both the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 become abnormal at once is extremely low, it is not necessary to assume that such an event will occur.

Abnormal modes of each sensor can be roughly divided into two patterns. One is that the sensor is always in a non-detection state (no detection signal is output regardless of the position of the movable accessory 10) (hereinafter referred to as non-detection abnormality). Possible causes of undetected abnormalities include disconnection of harnesses and failure of sensor components. The other is that the sensor is always in a detection state (a state in which a detection signal is always output regardless of the position of the movable accessory 10) (hereinafter referred to as constant detection abnormality). A possible cause of the constant detection abnormality is a failure of a sensor component or the like.

Assume a situation in which one sensor is non-detection abnormal (the other sensor is normal). For example, in a situation where the first sensor 31 becomes non-detection abnormal, as shown in FIG. Therefore, the output of the AND circuit 33, that is, the circuit output does not become "H", and "L" continues to be output. The same applies when the second sensor 32 becomes non-detection abnormal (the first sensor 31 is normal).

Even when the movable accessory 10 is displaced from the performance position to the original position, the circuit output continues to be "L". Specifically, switching of the circuit output from "L" to "H" triggered by the arrival of the movable accessory 10 at the original position does not occur. In other words, even if the movable accessory 10 is actually located at the original position, it is not determined to be located at the original position. In such a case, it is not possible to stop the movable accessory 10 (motor) when the circuit output becomes "H". In other words, it is not possible to determine whether or not the movable accessory 10 has reached the original position based on the circuit output. In such a case, the following special control is performed in this embodiment.

Storage means (not shown) stores the amount of displacement of the movable accessory 10 required to displace from the performance position to the original position (hereinafter referred to as the theoretical displacement amount). Strictly speaking, it is the number of steps of the motor, which is the driving source, required for the movable accessory 10 to be displaced from the performance position to the original position. Further, the storage means stores an excess displacement amount, which is a displacement amount exceeding the theoretical displacement amount. In this embodiment, "theoretical displacement x 1.2 = excess displacement".

Theoretically, if the movable accessory 10 is moved by the amount of theoretical displacement while the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the performance position, the movable accessory 10 will theoretically reach the original position. That is, using the detection functions of the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32, the movable accessory 10 is stopped at the original position.

On the other hand, when one of the sensors is non-detection abnormal, the movable accessory 10 is operated by the excess displacement amount as special control. That is, since the circuit output does not switch from "L" to "H" and the detection function of the sensor cannot be used, the movable accessory 10 is reliably returned to the original position by performing an operation of 1.2 times the theoretically required amount of operation (by operating with a margin of 20% from the theoretical value, the movable accessory 10 is reliably returned to the original position. The excess (20% in this embodiment) can be increased or decreased as appropriate). In this way, even if one of the sensors is non-detection abnormal and the detection function of the sensor cannot be used, the movable accessory 10 is operated by the amount of excess displacement so that the movable accessory 10 returns to its original position, thereby reducing the possibility that the player's problem will become apparent. In other words, even though the sensor is internally abnormal, the movement of the movable accessory 10 visually recognized by the player is the same as when the sensor is normal, so there is an advantage that the sensor abnormality is less likely to lead to complaints from the player.

Assume a situation in which one sensor is always abnormal in detection (the other sensor is normal). For example, in a situation where the first sensor 31 is constantly detecting abnormally (the second sensor 32 is normal), as shown in FIG. Since the second sensor 32 is normal, 'H' is input to the input 2 of the AND circuit 33 when the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the original position, and 'L' is input when the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the performance position. The output of the AND circuit 33, that is, the circuit output, is "H" when the movable accessory 10 is at the original position, and is "L" when the movable accessory 10 is at the performance position. The same is true when the second sensor 32 always has a detection abnormality (the first sensor 31 is normal).

In this way, even if one of the sensors is constantly detecting abnormally, when the movable accessory 10 is displaced from the performance position to the original position, the circuit output is switched from 'L' to 'H'. In other words, the movable accessory 10 can be stopped at the original position in the same way as when both the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 are normal.

(Reference Circuit) Advantages of the detection circuit 30 in this embodiment will be described in comparison with the reference circuit. As shown in FIG. 4(a), the reference circuit includes one sensor. The one sensor is provided at a position to detect the movable accessory 10 when the movable accessory 10 is located at the original position, and is the same as the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 in the above embodiment. The output of the sensor is inverted and output. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4B, when there is no abnormality in the reference circuit (sensor), the output of the reference circuit is "H" when the movable accessory 10 is at the original position, and "L" when the movable accessory 10 is at the performance position.

As shown in FIG. 4(c), when the above one sensor becomes non-detection abnormal (when the sensor output is always "H"), the output of the reference circuit is always "L". That is, switching from "L" to "H" does not occur when the movable accessory 10 is displaced from the performance position to the original position. In other words, even if the movable accessory 10 is actually located at the original position, it is not determined to be located at the original position. Regarding the output of the circuit, the situation is the same as that in the reference circuit described in the above embodiment in which one of the sensors is in a non-detection abnormality (the other sensor is normal). Therefore, by performing the special control described in the embodiment above, the movable accessory 10 can be reliably returned to the original position.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4(d), when the above-mentioned one sensor always has a detection abnormality (when the sensor output is always "L"), the output of the reference circuit is always "H". Even if the movable accessory 10 is positioned at a position other than the original position (outside the detection range of the sensor), it is determined to be positioned at the original position. For example, in a scene where the movable accessory 10 should be displaced from the performance position to the original position, the output of the reference circuit is "H" even though the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the presentation position, so that the movable accessory 10 is determined to be at the original position and the displacement to the original position is not executed. In other words, the movable accessory 10 remains at the performance position, and the player is likely to complain. In particular, as described in the above embodiment, if the size of the invisible portion of the display area 221 covered by the movable accessory 10 is larger when positioned at the production position than when positioned at the original position, the identification pattern 80 displayed in the display area 221 by the movable accessory 10 becomes difficult to see, which increases the probability of complaints from the player.

On the other hand, with the detection circuit 30 described in the above embodiment, even if one of the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 is constantly detecting abnormally, the circuit output is "L" when the movable accessory 10 is at the production position and "H" when the movable accessory 10 is at the original position (see FIG. 3(d)).

○Summary As described above, in the gaming machine 1 according to the present embodiment, when the movable accessory 10 is displaced toward the original position, it is determined that the movable accessory 10 is positioned at the original position when the detection signal is output from both the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32. By doing so, even if one sensor always becomes abnormal in detection, the other sensor (normal sensor) judges that the movable accessory 10 has reached the original position, so the movable accessory 10 can be positioned at the original position. That is, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the movable accessory 10 remains at a position other than the original position (performance position, etc.) and that a problem becomes apparent to the player.

In addition, when one of the sensors becomes non-detection abnormal, it is not determined that the movable accessory 10 is located at the original position (the circuit output is always "L"), but since special control is performed to move the movable accessory 10 by the amount of excessive displacement, the possibility that the movable accessory 10 will not reach the original position is reduced. In other words, it is possible to reduce the possibility that the movable accessory 10 does not reach the original position and the player finds a problem.

Further, in the present embodiment, the output of the first sensor 31 and the output of the second sensor 32 (strictly speaking, each output is inverted) are input to the AND circuit 33, and various controls are performed based on the output from the AND circuit 33. That is, the output of the entire detection circuit 30 is one (1 bit). This point is the same as the configuration with only one sensor as shown in the reference circuit (the output of the reference circuit is also one), so an increase in the load of the control circuit as a whole is also suppressed.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is by no means limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the present invention.

In the above embodiment, the movable role 10 is detected by the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 when the movable role 10 is located at the original position. That is, the position (specific position) where the movable accessory 10 is detected by the first sensor 31 and the second sensor 32 is not limited to the original position.

The gaming machine 1 according to the above embodiment is a so-called pachinko gaming machine, but the same technical idea can be applied to other gaming machines such as a reel-type gaming machine as long as the gaming machine is provided with the movable accessory 10 .

1 gaming machine 10 movable accessory 22 display device 221 display area 30 detection circuit 31 first sensor
32 second sensor 80 identification pattern

Claims (1)

a movable accessory that can be displaced within a predetermined range and positioned at a specific position;
a first sensor that outputs a detection signal when the movable accessory is positioned at the specific position; a second sensor that outputs a detection signal when the movable accessory is positioned at the specific position;
with
The movable accessory is linearly displaced along a predetermined direction, and the first sensor and the second sensor are provided so that their positions in the predetermined direction are the same,
When performing control to displace the movable accessory in the predetermined direction toward the specific position,
While determining that the movable accessory has reached the specific position when a detection signal is output from both the first sensor and the second sensor,
A gaming machine characterized in that , when a detection signal is not output from one of the first sensor and the second sensor, the movable accessory is operated by an excess displacement amount exceeding a theoretical displacement amount required for the movable accessory to reach the specific position.

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