JPH04361768A - Ball shooting device of pachinko machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To eliminate the necessity of maintaining the angle of rotation of a shooting handle against a spring in order to maintain desired shooting strength. CONSTITUTION:The angle of rotation of a handle 11b at a shooting handle 10 is detected by a rotary solenoid 11c and a counter circuit 23 and then a touch electrode 11b1 and a touch sensor circuit 21 detect whether or not the pachinko game is being played according to changes in interpolar electrostatic capacity to ground. In accordance with signals output from the touch sensor circuit 21 and from the counter circuit 23, a control circuit 22 sets shooting strength at one proportional to the angle of rotation of the handle 1b when the game is being played, while when the game is not played the circuit 23 sets shooting strength at zero. The rotary solenoid 31 of a ball hitting mechanism 30 is driven according to a driving current input via a D/A converter circuit 24 and a power amplifying circuit 25, so that game balls are shot at the decided shooting strength.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a ball firing device for a pachinko machine, and more particularly to a ball firing device for a pachinko machine that electrically controls the firing intensity.

0002

[Prior Art] Conventionally, a ball launcher for this type of pachinko machine is supported rotatably within a predetermined angle at the front of the pachinko machine, and is biased by a spring in a predetermined direction of rotation. and a firing handle that outputs an electric signal according to the rotation angle of the firing handle, and an electric firing mechanism that inputs the electric signal and fires the game ball with a firing intensity according to the rotation angle of the firing handle. Are known.

In such a configuration, the firing handle is biased by a spring so as to return to its initial position, and when the player rotates the firing handle against the spring, the firing handle receives electricity according to the angle of rotation. A signal is output, and the electric firing mechanism receives the electric signal and fires a game ball with a firing intensity corresponding to the rotation angle of the firing handle.

At this time, as the firing handle is rotated in a certain direction, the firing strength gradually increases, so the player adjusts the rotation angle of the firing handle to obtain the desired firing strength.

[0005]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] In order to maintain the desired firing strength in the above-mentioned conventional ball firing device of a pachinko machine, the player must hold the firing handle at a constant rotation angle against the spring. However, there was a problem that it was troublesome.

[0006] Another problem is that some people push coins or the like into the gap between the rotating member and the fixed member of the firing handle in order to maintain the desired firing strength, forcing the firing handle to become fixed and damaging the device. There was also.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and eliminates the need for maintaining the rotation angle of the firing handle against a spring in order to maintain the desired firing strength, thereby eliminating the inconvenience for the player. An object of the present invention is to provide a ball launching device for a pachinko machine which can prevent equipment from being damaged.

[0008]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 includes a game detecting means for detecting whether or not a game is being played, and a device rotatably supported on the front surface of a pachinko machine. a rotation angle detection means for detecting the rotation angle of the handle; a firing mechanism having a storage area and firing a game ball at a firing intensity stored in the storage area; When it is detected that the rotation angle of the handle is detected by the rotation angle detection means, the firing intensity is set in the storage area, and when it is detected by the game detection means that the game is not being played. The configuration includes firing intensity setting means for returning the firing intensity stored in the storage area to zero.

[0009]

[Operation] In the invention according to claim 1 configured as described above, when the player rotates the handle rotatably supported on the front of the pachinko machine, the game detection means detects that a game is in progress. The rotation angle detection means detects the rotation angle of the handle.

On the other hand, since the game detecting means has detected that the game is being played, the firing intensity setting means adjusts the firing intensity of the game ball according to the rotation angle of the handle detected by the rotation angle detecting means. The firing intensity is determined and the firing intensity is set in a storage area in the firing mechanism. This results in
The firing mechanism fires the game ball at a set firing intensity.

On the other hand, when the player finishes the game,
Since the firing strength setting means returns the firing strength stored in the storage area to zero so as not to fire the game ball, the firing mechanism does not fire the game ball.

0012

As explained above, the present invention determines the firing strength according to the rotation angle of the handle rotated during the game, and uses a spring or the like to return the firing strength to zero when the game ends. It is no longer necessary to force the handle to return to its initial position, which eliminates the trouble of holding the handle while playing, and prevents damage to the equipment due to unauthorized fixation of the handle. It is possible to provide a ball launching device for a pachinko machine that can prevent the above.

[0013]

Embodiments Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be explained based on the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a ball launcher for a pachinko machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the mounted state as seen from the back side of the pachinko machine.

In the figure, the lower part of the pachinko machine 10 is provided with a firing handle 11 that passes through the pachinko machine 10 in the front and back direction, and the firing handle 11 has a hollow base 11a and a handle 11b is fixed to the front end. At the same time, a shaft (not shown) to which the rotation axis of the rotary encoder 11c is fixed is rotatably supported at the rear end.

A metal touch electrode 11b1 is connected to the front surface of the handle 11b.
1b1 and the rotary encoder 11c are connected to the control section 20.

Here, the touch electrode 11b1 is connected to the control section 20.
The touch sensor circuit 21 determines whether or not the player is touching the touch electrode 11b1 based on the ground capacitance of the touch electrode 11b1. The touch sensor circuit 21 outputs a high-level touch signal when the player is touching the touch electrode 11b1, and outputs a low-level touch signal when the player is not touching it. That is, the touch electrode 11b1 and the touch sensor circuit 2
1 constitutes a game detection means for detecting whether or not a game is being played. Note that the touch sensor circuit 21 includes a chattering prevention circuit to prevent the touch signal from changing unstablely.

This touch signal is input to a control circuit 22, and this control circuit 22 executes processing according to the level of the touch signal when executing a sequence corresponding to the flowchart shown in FIG. Further, a counter parallel signal outputted from a counter circuit 23 is also input to the control circuit 22, and this counter circuit 23 increases or decreases the counter value based on the output signal of the rotary encoder 11c, and the counter circuit 23 increases or decreases the counter value based on the output signal of the rotary encoder 11c. A counter parallel signal is output.

Here, the rotary encoder 11c sends a pulse signal to the pulse signal line 11 every time it is rotated by a predetermined angle.
c1 and 11c2, and the pulse signals output to each pulse signal line 11c1 and 11c2 have a predetermined phase difference. The counter circuit 23 has both signal lines 11c
Each signal for forward rotation or reverse rotation is inputted through the signal input paths 23a1 and 23a2 corresponding to signals 1 and 11c2, and when the rotation is forward, the counter value counted in binary numbers is increased, and when the rotation is in the reverse direction, the counter value is increased. In this case, the counter value is decreased and the counter parallel signal of the counter value is set to high level or low level.

On the other hand, the counter circuit 23 is provided with a clear input path 23b, and this clear input path 2
3b is connected to the control circuit 22, and this control circuit 2
When a high-level reset signal is input from the counter circuit 2, the counter circuit 23 sets the count value to "0". Therefore, the rotary encoder 11c and the counter circuit 23 constitute a rotation angle detection means for detecting the rotation angle of the handle.

The control circuit 22 inputs a count value based on the counter parallel signal, determines and stores the firing intensity according to the rotation angle of the handle 11b from this counter value, and transmits this stored value to the firing intensity signal line. The signal is output from 22a to the D/A conversion circuit 24. The D/A conversion circuit 24 converts the emission intensity represented by a binary number into an analog value of current according to the signal level of the emission intensity signal line 22a, and outputs the converted current to the power amplifier circuit 25. That is, the control circuit 22 and D/
The A conversion circuit 24 constitutes a firing intensity setting means for setting the firing intensity.

On the other hand, the touch signal is transmitted to the pulse oscillation circuit 2.
6, and this pulse oscillation circuit 26 outputs a firing timing pulse representing the firing timing to the power amplification circuit 25 when the touch signal is at a high level. The power amplifier circuit 25 is connected to the pulse oscillation circuit 2.
When the firing timing pulse outputted by 6 is input, the current outputted by the D/A conversion circuit 24 is amplified and outputted to the rotary solenoid 31 in the ball hitting mechanism 30.

The rotary solenoid 31 is composed of an electromagnetic coil 31a fixed to an axial center, and a hollow cylindrical rotor 31b supported rotatably within a predetermined angle range on the same axis as the electromagnetic coil 31a. ing. Here, the electromagnetic coil 31a has a pair of magnetic pole generating pieces 31a1 and 31a2, and the rotor 31b has attraction pieces 31b1 and 31b2 made of magnetic material.
When magnetic poles are not generated in a1 and 31a2, the adsorption piece 3
1b1 and 31b2 are located at the positions indicated by solid lines in FIG.
1b1 and 31b2 are the magnetic pole generating pieces 31a1 and 31a2.
4, and rotates to the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG.

One end of the suction piece 31b1 of the rotor 31b extends in the radial direction and serves as a firing punch 31c with a springing portion 31c1 at its tip, and when the rotor 31b rotates, the tip of the firing punch 31c The provided resilient part 31c1 moves toward the game ball held on the guide rail 32 while drawing a circular arc.

In this way, each time the pulse oscillation circuit 26 outputs a firing timing pulse, the power amplifier circuit 25 outputs a drive current, and the ball hitting mechanism 30 fires the game ball at a predetermined firing intensity. , a power amplification circuit 25, a pulse oscillation circuit 26, and a ball hitting mechanism 30 constitute a firing mechanism.

[0025] In conjunction with the operation of the firing punch 31c, the guide rail 32 is released from the tray 33 provided on the front of the pachinko machine.
Game balls are fed onto the top one ball at a time, and this feeding mechanism is a well-known mechanism.

Next, the operation of this embodiment having the above configuration will be explained. When the player is not touching the handle 11b of the firing handle 11, the ground capacitance of the touch electrode 11b1 connected to the handle 11b is small, and the touch sensor circuit 21 outputs a low-level touch signal. This touch signal is input to the pulse oscillation circuit 26, and since the touch signal is at a low level, the pulse oscillation circuit 26 does not output a firing timing pulse. Therefore, the power amplification circuit 25 is connected to the rotary solenoid 3.
The rotary solenoid 31 does not output the current that drives the ball, and the rotary solenoid 31 does not fire the game ball.

Furthermore, when executing the sequence corresponding to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, the control circuit 22 inputs a touch signal in step 100, and if this touch signal is at a high level, it determines that a game is in progress. However, in this case, since the level is low, it is determined that the game is not in progress. If the game is not in progress, it is determined in step 140 whether 10 seconds or more have elapsed since the game ended. Specifically, it is determined whether or not the time period during which it is determined that the game is not in progress continues for 10 seconds or more, and although the flowchart does not show details of the above determination, it is determined that the game is not in progress. It is sufficient to prepare a 10-second timer that is cleared when it is determined that the game is not in progress, increment this 10-second timer when it is determined that no game is being played, and then determine whether or not the 10-second timer has timed up.

Initially, the time during which it is determined that the game is not in progress does not continue for more than 10 seconds, and the process returns to step 100 to repeat the above-described process again. However, after 10 seconds or more have elapsed, the control circuit 22 outputs a reset signal to the clear input path 23b of the counter circuit 23, and outputs the emission intensity to the D/A conversion circuit 24 as "0". When the reset signal is input to the clear input path 23b, the counter circuit 23 sets the count value to "0" and starts counting again. Note that if a reset signal is output to the clear input path 23b of the counter circuit 23 at this time, the emission intensity will inevitably become "0", so the emission intensity is purposely set to "0" and output to the D/A conversion circuit 24. You don't have to.

Therefore, when there is no player, the game ball is not ejected, but at the same time the above-mentioned process is repeatedly executed, and the ejection intensity stored in the control circuit 22 is always "0". It becomes.

On the other hand, assume that the player grasps the handle 11b and rotates it by a predetermined angle in the forward rotation direction in order to start a game.

As the handle 11b is rotated, the rotation axis of the rotary encoder 11c is rotated, and accordingly, the rotary encoder 11c outputs a pulse signal to each pulse signal line 11c1, 11c2 every time it rotates by a predetermined minute angle. do. Then, the counter circuit 23 determines that the rotation is normal based on the phase difference between the pulse signals, and increases the count value each time a pulse signal is output.

On the other hand, the control circuit 22 determines whether or not a game is being played based on the touch signal in step 100, but the touch signal output by the touch sensor circuit 21 from the time the player touches the handle 11b is The control circuit 22 determines that the game is in progress and inputs the counter value based on the counter parallel signal output from the counter circuit 23 in step 110.

Since this count value can be a negative value or an extremely large value depending on the direction of rotation of the handle 11b, the control circuit 22 determines in step 120 whether the counter value is within a predetermined range corresponding to the firing intensity. If it is outside this range, it is forcibly corrected to within a predetermined range. Of course, if the counter value is within a predetermined range, no correction is made. In this manner, the control circuit 22 determines and stores the firing intensity from the count value.

Next, the control circuit 22 outputs the stored emission intensity to the D/A conversion circuit 24 in step 130, and returns to step 100 again to repeat the above-described process. Then, the D/A conversion circuit 24 converts the emission intensity expressed in binary numbers into an analog current value and outputs it to the power amplifier circuit 25.

By the way, since the touch signal is at a high level, the pulse oscillation circuit 26 outputs a firing timing pulse to the power amplifier circuit 25 at a predetermined timing, and the power amplifier circuit 25 is a D/A converter circuit. The current value output from 24 is amplified by a predetermined amount, and the amplified current is output to the rotary solenoid 31 every time a firing timing pulse is input.

In this way, the current supplied to the rotary solenoid 31 is increased or decreased based on the count value counted by the counter circuit 23 in accordance with the rotation angle of the handle 11b. The current also increases.

When the rotation angle of the handle 11b is large, the current supplied to the rotary solenoid 31 is also large, and the magnetic field generated in the magnetic pole generating pieces 31a1 and 31a2 by the electromagnetic coil 31a through which the current flows becomes strong. Therefore, the suction pieces 31b1 and 31b2 of the rotor 31b are attracted with a strong force, and the rotor 31b rotates at a high speed. Rotor 3
As the ball 1b rotates, a firing part 31c1 provided at the tip of the firing punch 31c also moves quickly, causing the game ball held on the guide rail 32 to be fired at a high speed.

However, when the rotation angle of the handle 11b is small, the current supplied to the rotary solenoid 31 is small, so the magnetic field generated in the magnetic pole generating pieces 31a1 and 31a2 is weak, and the force that attracts the attracting pieces 31b1 and 31b2 of the rotor 31b is also weak. weak. Therefore, the rotational speed of the rotor 31b is slow, and the ejection strength of the game ball ejected by the resilient portion 31c1 is also weak.

Therefore, the player only has to change the rotation angle of the handle 11b to adjust the desired firing strength, and then continue playing the game while maintaining this rotation angle. Note that no spring or the like is attached to the handle 11b, and no force is applied to rotate the handle 11b. Therefore, when the desired firing strength is reached, the handle 11
The above ejection intensity can be maintained simply by touching the touch electrode 11b1 provided at b.

[0040] During the game, you may let go of the handle 11b for some reason, but if it is within 10 seconds, the control circuit 22 will not reset at step 150, so when you touch the handle 11b again, The game can be continued with the same firing intensity. However, when the handle 11b is not touched, the pulse oscillation circuit 26 is activated by the power amplifier circuit 2.
Since it does not output a firing timing pulse to the rotary solenoid 31, the power amplifying circuit 25 does not output drive power to the rotary solenoid 31 and does not perform the firing operation of the game ball.

[0041] Also, like when the game is finished, 10
Assuming that you do not touch the handle 11b for more than a second,
In step 150, the control circuit 22 outputs a reset signal to the counter circuit 23 to set the counter value to "0" and to set the emission intensity to "0". Therefore, even if the previous player has finished the game with the handle 11b rotated by a predetermined amount, the rotation angle of the handle 11b will be detected from the time the next player starts playing the game. There is no need to return the handle 11b to its initial position.

In the above embodiment, the emission intensity is determined using the control circuit, but the counter circuit may be connected to the D/A conversion circuit to simplify the configuration. In this case, the touch signal may be input to the clear input path of the counter circuit via a delay circuit, and the counter circuit may be reset when the touch electrode is not touched.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, a pulse is output every time the rotary encoder rotates by a predetermined angle, and the rotation angle is accumulated by the counter circuit, but the rotary encoder is directly connected to the control circuit, The rotation angle may be calculated by the control circuit. In addition, an absolute type rotary encoder that outputs the absolute rotational angular position, rather than one that detects relative angles, is connected to the control circuit, and this control circuit determines the rotational angular position at the start of the game. The firing intensity may be determined by finding the difference between the rotational angle position during the game.

Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the power amplifier circuit 25 is used to control the current to the rotary solenoid, but the output of the D/A conversion circuit 24 changes the duty ratio of the power transistor constituting the switching circuit. It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the drive current of the rotary solenoid is controlled by controlling the rotary solenoid.

In addition, in the above embodiment, a so-called wired logic control process is performed using a control circuit, but the control process may be performed by software using a microcomputer. In addition, a rotary solenoid was used as the ball hitting mechanism, but
Other electrically controllable mechanisms may also be used.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a ball launcher for a pachinko machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of a pachinko machine to which a ball launcher for a pachinko machine is applied.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart corresponding to a program executed by a control circuit.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the operation of a rotary solenoid.

[Explanation of symbols]

10...Pachinko machine 11...Fire handle 11b...handle 11b1...Touch electrode 11c...Rotary encoder 20...Control unit 21...Touch sensor circuit 22...Control circuit 22a...Emission strength signal line 23...Counter circuit 24...D/A conversion circuit 25...Power amplifier circuit 26...Pulse oscillation circuit 30...Ball hitting mechanism 31...Rotary solenoid 31c...launching pestle 31c1...Bullet part

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A game detecting means for detecting whether or not a game is being played; a handle rotatably supported on the front surface of a pachinko machine; a rotation angle detecting means for detecting a rotation angle of the handle; and a memory. a firing mechanism that has a region and fires a game ball at a firing intensity stored in the storage region; firing intensity setting means for setting the firing strength in the storage area according to the rotation angle of the handle, and for returning the firing intensity stored in the storage area to zero when the game detecting means detects that no game is being played; A ball launcher for a pachinko machine comprising: