JP7423586B2 - gaming machine - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a gaming machine on which games can be played.

Conventionally, in a gaming machine, game balls, which are game media, are fired into a game area by a firing device, and when the game balls land in a prize area such as a prize opening provided in the game area, a predetermined number of prize balls are delivered to the player. There is known a gaming machine (so-called pachinko machine) that changes the gaming state when the display result of a variable display (also referred to as "variation") of identification information becomes a specific display result.

In addition, after setting a predetermined number of bets for one game, the player operates the start lever to start displaying the identification information, and the player operates the stop switch to control the operation timing. The variable display of the identification information is stopped within a predetermined maximum delay time from , and a winning occurs according to the display result derived when all variable displays are stopped, and a predetermined amount is determined according to the winning. 2. Description of the Related Art A gaming machine (so-called slot machine) is known that changes the gaming state when a specific winning occurs after a certain amount of gaming media is paid out.

Among such gaming machines, gaming machines equipped with a light guide plate that allows incident light to exit from the surface are known (for example, Patent Documents 1 to 3).

JP2019-92600A Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2015-159878 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-126294

By the way, the light guide plate has a tendency to warp, and if the light guide plate is directly fixed using screws or the like, there is a risk of damage or failure of light output. Therefore, it is conceivable to hold the light guide plate by sandwiching it from the front and back without directly fixing the light guide plate. However, for example, when the sandwiched light guide plate comes into contact with the holding part and rubs during transportation of the gaming machine or driving of the accessory, powdery substances may be generated. When powdery substances are generated, there is a risk that the marketability of the gaming machine may be lowered, such as by obstructing the visibility of the image displayed by the light guide plate and the liquid crystal display placed behind the light guide plate.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a gaming machine that can prevent a decline in the marketability of the gaming machine.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a gaming machine equipped with a light guide plate that emits incident light from the surface, including a holding part that holds the light guide plate, and the holding part holds the light guide plate. It includes a front side holding part and a back side holding part that are held by sandwiching from the front and back, and the area where the front side holding part can come into contact with the light guide plate is larger than the area where the back side holding part can come into contact with the light guide plate. Storage capable of storing small powdery substances generated when the front side holding part or the back side holding part and the light guide plate come into contact with each other in a space created by bringing the front side holding part and the back side holding part into close contact with each other. It is characterized by having a section . As a result, it is possible to suppress the generation of powdery substances due to friction between the light guide plate and the holding portion in the portions that are visible to the player, and therefore it is possible to prevent a decline in the marketability of the game machine. Further, it is possible to prevent powdery substances from entering various parts of the gaming machine and causing malfunctions of the gaming machine.

Further, by providing the storage section, the powdery material may not reach a predetermined driving source.
Therefore, malfunction of the drive source due to the intrusion of powdery substances can be prevented.

It is a front view of a pachinko machine. It is a front view of a game board unit. It is a front view of a light guide plate unit. It is a perspective view of a light guide plate unit. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the light guide plate unit. It is a front view of the back side holding member of a light-guide plate unit. It is a back view of the front side holding member of a light-guide plate unit. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a light guide plate unit. It is an explanatory view showing the positional relationship between a light guide plate unit, a motor, and a ball passage. It is an explanatory view showing the arrangement position of the design member of a light guide plate unit. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the light guide plate unit of a portion to which a design member is attached.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[overall structure]
FIG. 1 is a front view of a pachinko gaming machine (hereinafter abbreviated as "pachinko machine") 1. As shown in FIG. The pachinko machine 1 uses game balls as a game medium, and players borrow game balls from a game hall operator and play games on the pachinko machine 1. In addition, in the game on the pachinko machine 1, each game ball is a medium that has a game value, and the privilege (profit) that the player enjoys as a result of the game is, for example, the game ball that the player has acquired. It can be converted into gaming value based on the number of . The overall configuration of the pachinko machine 1 will be described below with reference to FIG.

The pachinko machine 1 mainly includes an outer frame unit 2, an integral door unit 4, and an inner frame assembly 7 (plastic frame, gaming machine frame) as its main body. When viewed from the front facing the player, the integral door unit 4 is located at the frontmost side. An inner frame assembly 7 is located on the back side (inner side) of the integral door unit 4, and an outer frame unit 2 is arranged so as to surround the outside of the inner frame assembly 7.

The outer frame unit 2 is a structure made by combining wood and metal materials into a vertically elongated rectangular shape. It is fixed using In addition, in the vertically long rectangular outer frame unit 2, wood is used for parts corresponding to the upper and lower short sides, and metal materials are used for parts corresponding to the left and right long sides.

The integral door unit 4 has a structure in which a saucer unit 6 is integrated at a lower position thereof. The integral door unit 4 and the inner frame assembly 7 are attached to the island equipment via the outer frame unit 2, and each operates in an open/close manner via a hinge mechanism (not shown). The opening/closing axis of the hinge mechanism (not shown) extends vertically along the left side end when viewed from the front of the pachinko machine 1.

A unified locking unit is provided inside the right edge of the inner frame assembly 7 when viewed from the front in FIG. Correspondingly, locking tools (not shown) are also provided on the right edges (back sides) of the integral door unit 4 and the outer frame unit 2, respectively. As shown in FIG. 1, when the integral door unit 4 and the inner frame assembly 7 are closed with respect to the outer frame unit 2, the unified lock unit on the back side is locked together with the integral door unit 4 and the inner frame assembly 7. It is impossible to open the .

Furthermore, a cylinder lock 6a with a keyhole is provided on the right side edge of the saucer unit 6. For example, when the manager of the game center inserts a special key into the keyhole and twists the cylinder lock 6a clockwise, the unified lock unit is activated and the integrated door unit 4 together with the inner frame assembly 7 can be opened. When the whole is opened from the outer frame unit 2 to the front side (moved like a door), the back side of the pachinko machine 1 is exposed at the front side.

On the other hand, when the cylinder lock 6a is twisted counterclockwise, only the integral door unit 4 is unlocked while the inner frame assembly 7 remains locked, and the integral door unit 4 can be opened. When the integral door unit 4 is opened to the front side, the game board unit 8 is directly exposed, and in this state, the manager of the game hall can remove obstacles such as balls jammed in the board. Further, when the integrated door unit 4 is opened, the saucer unit 6 is also opened to the front side.

Furthermore, the pachinko machine 1 includes the above game board unit 8 as a game unit. The game board unit 8 is supported by the above-mentioned inner frame assembly 7 behind (inside) the integral door unit 4. The game board unit 8 can be attached to and detached from the inner frame assembly 7, for example, with the integral door unit 4 opened to the front side. A vertically oblong window 4a is formed in the center of the integral door unit 4, and a glass unit (no reference numeral) is installed within this window 4a. The glass unit is, for example, a combination of two transparent plates (glass plates) cut to match the shape of the window 4a. The glass unit is attached to the back side of the integral door unit 4 via a mounting tool (not shown). A game area (board surface, game board) is formed in the front of the game board unit 8, and this game area is visible to the player from the front side through the window 4a. When the integral door unit 4 is closed, a space is formed between the inner surface of the glass unit and the board surface into which game balls can flow.

The saucer unit 6 has a shape that projects from the integral door unit 4 toward the front side as a whole, and has an upper tray 6b formed on its upper surface. This upper tray 6b can store game balls lent to players (rental balls) and game balls won by winning (prize balls). Further, in the saucer unit 6, a lower plate 6c is formed at a position below the upper plate 6b. The lower tray 6c stores game balls that are further paid out when the upper tray 6b is full. The pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment is a model connected to a card unit, and the game balls borrowed by the player are transferred from the payout device unit on the back side to the tray unit 6 (upper tray 6b or lower tray 6c) separately from the prize balls. ) will be paid out.

A lending operation section 14 is provided on the upper surface of the saucer unit 6, and a ball lending button 10 and a return button 12 are arranged on this lending operation section 14. When a player operates the ball rental button 10 with a valuable medium (for example, a magnetic recording medium, a storage IC built-in medium, etc.) inserted into a card unit (not shown), the number of balls corresponding to a predetermined frequency unit (for example, 5 degrees) is (For example, 125 game balls) are lent. For this reason, a frequency display section (not shown) is arranged on the top surface of the lending operation section 14, and the remaining frequency of the valuable medium inserted into the card unit is displayed on this frequency display section. Note that by operating the return button 12, the player can receive the return of valuable media with remaining credits. In this embodiment, a gaming machine connected to a card unit is taken as an example, but the pachinko machine 1 may be a cash machine (a gaming machine not connected to a card unit).

A handle unit 16 is installed at the lower right portion of the saucer unit 6. By operating the handle unit 16, the player can operate the launch control board set and launch (drive) a game ball toward the game area 8b (ball launch device). The fired game ball rises from the lower edge of the game board unit 8 along the left side edge, is guided by an outer band (not shown), and is thrown into the game area 8b. A large number of obstacle nails, windmills (no reference numerals in the figure), etc. are arranged within the game area 8b, and the thrown game ball flows down within the game area 8b while being guided and guided by the obstacle nails and windmills. The configuration of the inside of the game area 8b (board surface, game board) will be further described later with reference to other drawings.

A lens unit 47 and an upper right illumination unit 49 are installed in the integrated door unit 4 as components for presentation. Of these, a lamp 46 is incorporated in the lens unit 47, and a right lamp 50 is incorporated in the upper right illumination unit 49.

The various lamps 46 and 50 described above perform effects by emitting light (lighting, blinking, change in brightness gradation, change in color tone, etc.) of built-in LEDs, for example. Further, each of the integrated door units 4 includes speakers 54a to 54d. These speakers 54a to 54d are used to output sound effects, BGM, audio, etc. (general sound) to execute the performance.

Further, in the center of the saucer unit 6, a production switching button 45 is installed at a position in front of the upper tray 6b. By pressing and operating this performance switching button 45, the player can switch the performance content (for example, the background screen displayed on the liquid crystal display 42), for example, while the symbols are changing, while a jackpot is confirmed, or during a jackpot game. It is possible to generate some kind of performance (a preview performance, a fixed promotion performance, a promotion performance during a major role, etc.).

Further, a jog dial 45a is installed around the performance switching button 45 so as to surround the performance switching button 45 (operation input receiving means, rotary selector). By rotating the jog dial 45a, the player can change the performance content displayed on the liquid crystal display 42, for example.

[Game board unit configuration]
FIG. 2 is a front view showing the game board unit 8 alone. The game board unit 8 includes a game board 8a as a base, and is made into a unit by attaching the game board 8a, a liquid crystal display 42, etc., which will be described later, to a set board. A game area 8b is formed on the front side of the game board 8a. The game board 8a is made of, for example, a transparent resin plate, and when the game board unit 8 is fixed to the inner frame assembly 7, the front surface of the game board 8a is parallel to the glass unit. On the front surface of the game board 8a, the above-mentioned game area 8b is formed inside a firing rail (no reference numeral) installed in a substantially circular shape.

The gaming area 8b is largely divided into a left side portion and a right side portion. The left side of the game area 8b is the first game area (left-handed game area) used in the normal game state (low probability non-time saving state), and the right side of the game area 8b is the advantageous game state (jackpot game state). , small winning game state, low probability time reduction state, high probability time reduction state, etc.).

In addition, in the gaming area 8b, there is a starting gate 20, normal winning holes 22, 24, first starting winning hole 26, variable starting winning device 28 (second starting winning hole), variable winning device 30 (big winning hole), etc. are distributed and installed.

Then, the game ball flowing down the left side area of the game area 8b will enter the normal winning holes 22, 24 or the first starting winning hole 26, or if the ball does not enter the various winning holes (winning), the final ball will be The ball enters the out port 32. On the other hand, the game ball flowing down the right side area of the game area 8b mainly enters the out port 34 and passes through the starting gate 20, enters the variable starting winning device 28 during operation, or enters the variable starting prize device 28 during the opening operation. There is a possibility that the ball will enter the variable winning device 30.

The game balls that enter the starting gate 20, the normal winning openings 22, 24, the first starting winning opening 26, the variable starting winning device 28, the variable winning device 30, and the out openings 32, 34 form the game board (game board unit 8). It is collected to the back side of the game board unit 8 through a through hole formed in a plywood material, a transparent plate, etc.).

The variable start winning device 28 is activated when a person wins a lottery held when passing through the start gate 20 and the normal symbol is stopped and displayed in a winning manner for a predetermined stop display time. Enables the ball to enter the winning hole 28a.

The variable winning device 30 is activated when the special symbol is stopped and displayed in a jackpot or small win mode, and allows the ball to enter the big winning hole 30a.

In addition, a liquid crystal display 42 (image display) is installed in the center of the game board unit 8, and this liquid crystal display 42 displays various performance images including performance symbols corresponding to special symbols. Is displayed.

A light guide plate 44 is provided in front of the liquid crystal display 42 to reflect light incident from an LED (not shown) and output it from the surface. When light enters the light guide plate 44 and is emitted from the surface, a predetermined effect image can be displayed by emitting light.

In addition, the game area 8b is provided with a design member 56 and a movable accessory 58 with a design that matches the gameplay. In this embodiment, the design member 56 has a design of a bamboo leaf as a motif, and the movable accessory 58 has a motif of an animal that eats bamboo leaves.

[Explanation of game progress]
In the pachinko machine 1, when the gaming state is the normal state, the player performs a firing operation (so-called left-handed hitting) aiming at the left side of the gaming area. When the player performs a left-handed hit by rotating the handle unit 16 and the game ball enters the first starting prize opening 26, the first special symbol display device starts variable display of the first special symbol.

In the variable display of the first special symbol, if a specific special symbol (a jackpot symbol, e.g. "7", the actual symbol differs depending on the jackpot type described later) is stopped and displayed as a confirmed special symbol, it is a "jackpot". becomes. Further, if a special symbol (a losing symbol, for example, "-") different from the jackpot symbol is stopped and displayed, it becomes a "losing" symbol. In addition, even if the first special symbol is displayed in a variable manner, the small winning symbol may be stopped and displayed at an extremely low rate, resulting in a "small winning".

After the display result of the variable display of the first special symbol becomes a "jackpot", the game is controlled to a jackpot game state as an advantageous state advantageous to the player.

In the jackpot game state, the jackpot opening 30a formed by the variable winning device 30 is opened in a predetermined manner. In the jackpot game state, the player can win a prize ball by hitting right and causing the game ball to enter the jackpot opening 30a. After the jackpot game state ends, depending on the type of jackpot, the control may be changed to a variable probability state, a small win rush state, or a time saving state.

When the jackpot game is finished and the game state is controlled to a variable probability state, a small win rush state, or a time saving state, it is advantageous for the player to perform a firing operation (hitting to the right) aiming at the right side of the game area. When the player hits the ball to the right by rotating the handle unit 16 and the game ball passes through the starting gate 20, the normal symbol display starts to display the normal symbols in a variable manner.

In this variable display of ordinary symbols, if a specific ordinary symbol (a symbol per ordinary symbol) is stopped and displayed, the display result of the ordinary symbol becomes "per ordinary symbol". On the other hand, if a normal symbol other than the regular symbol (ordinary symbol losing symbol) is stopped and displayed as a confirmed ordinary symbol, the display result of the ordinary symbol becomes "ordinary symbol losing". When it becomes a "normal map hit", opening control is performed to keep the variable start winning device 28 open for a predetermined period of time (the second start winning opening 28a becomes open).

When the game ball enters the second starting winning hole 28a, the second special symbol display device starts variable display of the second special symbol.

In the variable display of the second special symbol, if a specific special symbol (a jackpot symbol, e.g. "7", the actual symbol differs depending on the jackpot type described later) is stopped and displayed as a confirmed special symbol, it is a "jackpot". If a predetermined special symbol (a small winning symbol, for example, "2") different from the jackpot symbol is stopped and displayed, it becomes a "small winning". Further, if a special symbol (a losing symbol, for example "-") different from the jackpot symbol or the small winning symbol is stopped and displayed, it becomes a "loser".

After the display result of the variable display of the second special symbol becomes a "jackpot", the game is controlled to a jackpot game state as an advantageous state advantageous to the player. After the display result of the variable display of the second special symbol becomes "small win", the game is controlled to a small win game state.

[About the progress of the production]
In the pachinko machine 1, various effects (effects for notifying the progress of the game or for enlivening the game) are executed according to the progress of the game. The performance will be explained below.

As a performance executed according to the progress of the game, in the "left", "middle", and "right" performance pattern display areas provided on the liquid crystal display 42, a variable display of the first special symbol or a second special symbol is displayed. In response to the start of the variable display, the variable display of the left effect symbol, middle effect symbol, and right effect symbol is started. At the timing when the display result (also referred to as a confirmed special symbol) is stopped and displayed in the variable display of the first special symbol or the variable display of the second special symbol, the final effect symbol (three A combination of performance symbols) is also stopped and displayed (derived).

When the display result of the variable display of the special symbols becomes a "jackpot", a fixed effect pattern that becomes a predetermined jackpot combination is derived on the screen of the liquid crystal display 42 as a display result of the variable display of the effect patterns. (The display result of the fluctuating display of production symbols is a "jackpot"). When the display result of the variable display of the special symbols becomes a "small hit," the display result of the variable display of the production symbols will be a fixed effect pattern (for example, , "1 3 5", etc.) are derived (the display result of the fluctuating display of the production symbols becomes "small hit"). As an example, performance symbols constituting a chance eye are stopped and displayed on predetermined effective lines in the "left", "middle", and "right" performance symbol display areas. If the display result of the variable display of the special symbol is a "lose", the mode of the variable display of the production symbol does not become a reach mode, and the fixed production symbol of the non-reach combination is displayed as the display result of the variable display of the production symbol. (Also referred to as "non-reach loss") may be stopped and displayed (the display result of the fluctuating display of production symbols becomes "non-reach loss"). In addition, if the display result is a "lose", after the mode of fluctuating display of the production symbols changes to the reach mode, the display result of the fluctuating display of the production symbols will be a predetermined reach combination that is not a jackpot combination. (Also referred to as), the fixed performance symbol may be displayed in a stopped state (the display result of the fluctuating display of the performance symbol may be "reach loss").

In the pachinko machine 1, various effects can be executed in the process of displaying variable effects of effect symbols. The performances that can be executed by the pachinko machine 1 include light-emitting display of a performance image by the light guide plate 44. This suggests, for example, that there will be a big hit or a small hit, and the degree of expectation thereof.

[Configuration of light guide plate unit]
Next, the light guide plate unit 100, which is formed into a unit by incorporating the light guide plate 44, will be described using FIGS. 3 to 5.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the light guide plate unit 100 includes a light guide plate 44, a holding member 102 that holds the light guide plate 44, and a design member 56. The light guide plate unit 100 is detachably attached to the front surface of the game board 8a with screws. When the light guide plate unit 100 is attached to the front surface of the game board 8a, the light guide plate 44 is placed in front of the liquid crystal display 42.

The light guide plate 44 is made of a highly transparent acrylic plate, and has grooves and holes formed on its surface. The light incident on the light guide plate 44 is reflected by the grooves and holes, so that the effect image can be displayed on the light guide plate 44 by emitting light.

The holding member 102 includes a front side holding member 106 and a back side holding member 108. The front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108 are each formed into a frame shape. The front side holding member 106 holds the light guide plate 44 from the front side, and the back side holding member 108 holds the light guide plate 44 from the back side.

Then, by fixing the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108 with screws, the light guide plate 44 is held in a state where it is sandwiched between the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108. Further, the design member 56 is attached to the front surface of the front side holding member 106 with screws.

As shown in FIG. 6, cylindrical bosses 110 are provided at three locations on the front side of the back side holding member 108. The boss 110 is formed on a slightly larger base 110a. Further, a rib 112 is formed on the front side of the backside holding member 108 and outside the boss 110 over the entire circumference.

As shown in FIG. 7, a plurality of ribs 114 are formed on the back side of the front side holding member 106 (the side opposite to the mounting surface of the design member 56). Unlike the rib 112, the rib 114 is partially provided. Specifically, the ribs 114 are arranged at predetermined intervals over the entire circumference.

Further, the ribs 114 are composed of ribs 114a arranged mainly on the upper side and left side of the back side holding member 108, and ribs 114b arranged mainly on the lower side and right side of the back side holding member 108. The width of the rib 114b is shorter than the width of the rib 114a.

Further, holes 44a corresponding to the bosses 110 are formed at three locations in the light guide plate 44 (see FIGS. 5 and 8).

Then, when attaching the light guide plate 44 (the thick line part in FIG. 6) between the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108, the hole 44a of the light guide plate 44 is inserted into the boss 110 of the back side holding member 108.

After that, when the front side holding member 106 is placed over the back side holding member 108 and screwed together using screw holes provided in the boss 110, the light guide plate 44 is sandwiched between the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108. It can be kept in this state.

When the light guide plate 44 is held by the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108, the ribs 114 of the front side holding member 106 and the ribs 112 of the back side holding member 108 are positioned at the ends of the light guide plate 44. The relative positional relationship between the ribs 112, 114 and the light guide plate 44 is determined.

FIG. 8 shows a cross section taken along line AA in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, when the boss 110 is inserted into the hole 44a of the light guide plate 44, the light guide plate 44 comes into contact with the base 110a. In this state, the front end surface of the rib 114 of the front side holding member 106 faces the front surface of the light guide plate 44, and the front end surface of the rib 112 of the back side holding member 108 faces the back surface of the light guide body 44. In this state, a gap of 1 mm is created between the tip surface of the rib 114 of the front side holding member 106 and the front surface of the light guide plate 44, and a gap of 1 mm is created between the tip surface of the rib 112 of the back side holding member 108 and the back surface of the light guide plate 44. The height of the base 110a of the boss 110 is set so that there is a gap of 1 mm between them.

Due to the nature of the acrylic plate, the light guide plate 44 is susceptible to warping due to changes in temperature and humidity. For example, warping may occur due to differences in humidity or temperature between manufacturing and delivery.

In addition, the light guide plate 44 has grooves and holes formed therein for displaying the performance image by light emission, and is thick enough to form the grooves and holes, so it has the property of warping more easily than a mere thin flat plate. are doing. If the light guide plate 44 is completely fixed by screwing or the like, there is a risk that the light guide plate 44 will be damaged due to warpage or that light emission failure (in other words, lighting failure) will occur.

However, in this embodiment, when the light guide plate 44 is held by the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108, the above-mentioned gap is formed between the ribs 112, 114 and the light guide plate 44, and this gap causes , warpage of the light guide plate 44 is allowed. Therefore, even if the light guide plate 44 is warped, damage to the light guide plate 44 and failure of light output can be prevented.

Furthermore, there is a risk that the light guide plate 44 and the ribs 112, 114 may come into contact with each other due to transportation or vibrations caused by the movement of the movable accessory 58, and the light guide plate 44 and the ribs 112, 114 may rub against each other, generating powder. If powdery substances are generated, there is a risk that the marketability of the pachinko machine 1 will be lowered, such as by reducing the visibility of the effect image displayed by light emission on the light guide plate 44 or the effect image displayed on the liquid crystal display 42.

However, when the light guide plate 44 is held by the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108, the ribs 114 of the front side holding member 106 and the ribs 112 of the back side holding member 108 are positioned at the ends of the light guide plate 44. In addition, since the relative positional relationship between the ribs 112, 114 and the light guide plate 44 is determined, even if powdery matter is generated, it is not noticeable within the range where the player can see it. This makes it possible to suppress the generation of powdery substances in areas that are visible to players, thereby preventing the pachinko machine 1 from deteriorating in terms of marketability.

In addition, when the front side holding member 106 and the light guide plate 44 come into contact with each other and powdery substances are generated, the player is more likely to avoid powder than when the back side holding member 108 and the light guide plate 44 come into contact with each other and generate powdery substances. It becomes easier to visually recognize objects.

Therefore, in this embodiment, by providing the ribs 114 of the front side holding member 106 partially and providing the ribs 112 of the back side holding member 108 all around the circumference, the area where the back side holding member 108 and the light guide plate 44 can come into contact can be increased. The area in which the front side holding member 106 and the light guide plate 44 can come into contact with each other is made smaller. As a result, the area where powdery substances are generated on the front side of the light guide plate 44 is limited, and the generation of powdery substances in areas that are visible to players can be suppressed, thereby improving the marketability of the pachinko machine 1. The decline can be prevented.

In the present embodiment, inside the light guide plate unit 100, there is a portion where the lower end of the light guide plate 44 and the ribs 112, 114 come into contact, in other words, the front side holding member 106 or the back side holding member 108 and the light guide plate A storage portion 118 is provided that can store powdery substances generated when the two parts come into contact with each other. The storage section 118 is formed by a space created by bringing the front side holding member 106 and the back side holding member 108 into close contact with each other. Therefore, the storage section 118 can catch the powdery material and prevent the powdery material from spreading outside, thereby preventing the powdery material from entering various parts of the pachinko machine 1 and causing malfunction of the gaming machine. can.

In particular, as shown in FIG. 9, in the game board unit 8 of this embodiment, a motor 120 for moving the movable accessory 58 and a ball passage 122 through which game balls can flow are provided near the light guide plate unit 100. ing.

However, the storage section 118 is provided at a position where powdery substances generated when the front side holding member 106 or the back side holding member 108 and the light guide plate 44 are in contact with each other are scattered on the motor 120, and the light guide plate 44 is rubbed. As a result, powdery substances generated by this can be prevented from reaching the motor 120, thereby preventing failure of the motor 120 and clogging of game balls in the ball passage 122 due to the intrusion of powdery substances.

FIG. 10 is a front view of the design member 56 attached to the front side holding member 106, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view (BB cross section in FIG. 3) of the design member 56 attached to the front side holding member 106. . Note that, in order to make it easier to understand the positional relationship between the design member 56 and the ribs 114b, FIG. 10 is a diagram in which the back side of the front side holding member 106 is seen through.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, in this embodiment, when the design member 56 is attached to the front side holding member 106, the design member 56 is placed at a position overlapping the rib 114b of the front side holding member 106. For this reason, even if powdery material is generated due to the light guide plate 44 being rubbed, the powdery material is difficult to be seen by the player due to the decorative member 56 (the part circled in FIG. 10). As a result, it is possible to prevent powder from standing out in areas that are visible to players, and therefore it is possible to prevent a decline in the marketability of the pachinko machine 1.

In particular, in this embodiment, the rib 114b has a shorter width than the rib 114a. Therefore, the amount of ribs 114a is reduced compared to the locations where ribs 114a are provided. Since the ribs 114b are further covered with the design member 56, the synergistic effect of the dimension settings of the ribs 114b and the design member 56 effectively prevents the powder from becoming noticeable even if it occurs. can.

With the above-described configuration, in this embodiment, powdery substances that are inevitably generated due to the nature of the light guide plate 44 are generated only in places where it is difficult for the player to visually recognize them. It is possible to prevent the deterioration of the marketability of the pachinko machine 1 due to the generation of powdery substances due to the rubbing of the light guide plate 44.

In addition, with respect to powdery substances that inevitably occur due to the nature of the light guide plate 44, secondary hazards due to the generated powdery substances entering other parts of the pachinko machine 1 (for example, powdery substances in the motor 120, etc.) malfunction of the motor 120 due to clogging can be prevented.

Note that the part where the ribs 114a are formed is a part where a rail base and a ball passage are provided to form a rail on the board surface of the game board 8a, and is difficult to see from the player, so the design member 56 is not included. The design member 56 may also be attached to a portion where the rib 114a is not attached but is provided.

[Effects of this embodiment]
(1) In the present embodiment, in a gaming machine equipped with a light guide plate (in this example, the light guide plate 44) that reflects incident light and emits it from the surface,
A holding part (in this example, a holding member 102 shown in FIG. 5) that holds the light guide plate,
The holding portion includes a front side holding portion (in this example, the front side holding member 106 shown in FIG. 5) and a back side holding portion (in this example, the back side holding member 108 shown in FIG. 5) that hold the light guide plate by sandwiching it from the front and back. ), including
An area where the front side holding part can come into contact with the light guide plate is smaller than an area where the back side holding part can come into contact with the light guide plate.
Therefore, while the light guide plate is held securely, the area where the light guide plate contacts the holding portion can be reduced. Thereby, it is possible to suppress the generation of powdery substances due to friction between the light guide plate and the holding part in the part that is visible to the player, and therefore it is possible to prevent a decrease in the marketability of the gaming machine.

In the above embodiment, a light guide that emits and displays a performance image is used as an example of the light guide plate 44, but a light guide plate that is different from the above embodiments, such as a light guide that simply emits light, may be applied. Good too.

In the above embodiment, by providing the ribs 112 of the front side holding member 106 partially and providing the ribs 114 of the back side holding member 108 around the entire circumference, the area where the back side holding member 108 and the light guide plate 44 can come into contact is larger. Although the area in which the front side holding member 106 and the light guide plate 44 can come into contact is made smaller, for example, the front side holding member 106 is partially provided with ribs, and the back side holding member 108 is also partially provided with ribs. , the area can be changed by a method different from the above embodiment, such as making the area where the front side holding member 106 and the light guide plate 44 can come into contact be smaller than the area where the back side holding member 108 and the light guide plate 44 can come into contact. You can also let

(2) In addition, in this embodiment, a storage section (in this example, a storage section shown in FIG. 8 A storage section 118) is provided.
Therefore, it is possible to prevent powdery substances from entering various parts of the gaming machine and causing malfunctions of the gaming machine.

In the above embodiment, the powder storage portion 118 is provided below the contact points between the ribs 112 and 114 and the light guide plate 44, but the upper end of the light guide plate 44 and the contact points with the ribs 112 and 114 are It is also possible to have a configuration in which it is provided in

(3) Furthermore, in this embodiment, by providing the storage section, the powdery material does not reach a predetermined drive source (in this example, the motor 120 shown in FIG. 9).
Therefore, malfunction of the drive source due to the intrusion of powdery substances can be prevented.

[Other variations of the above embodiment]
In the above embodiment, an example is given in which the present invention is applied to a pachinko machine, but the present invention may also be applied to other types of gaming machines, such as a slot machine in which the number of bets is set using medals and credits as gaming values. may be applied.

1 Pachinko machine 8 Game board unit 8a Game area 42 Liquid crystal display 44 Light guide plate

Claims (1)

In a gaming machine equipped with a light guide plate that emits incident light from the surface,
comprising a holding part that holds the light guide plate,
The holding section includes a front side holding section and a back side holding section that hold the light guide plate by sandwiching it from the front and back,
An area where the front side holding part can come into contact with the light guide plate is smaller than an area where the back side holding part can come into contact with the light guide plate.
A storage part capable of storing powdery substances generated when the front side holding part or the back side holding part and the light guide plate come into contact with each other in a space created by bringing the front side holding part and the back side holding part into close contact with each other. prepared
A gaming machine characterized by: