JPH05285263A - Prize ball discharging device for pachinko machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a prize ball discharging device for pachinko machine which can easily be manufactured at a low cost, miniaturized, enhanced in speed, and improved in responsiveness and reliability. CONSTITUTION:A plurality of eccentric disks 3 are alternately off-centered and fixed to a rotating shaft 2 controlled by a stepping motor 6 to form a prize ball discharge device 1. Thus, the device can easily extremely be manufactured, and the manufacturing cost be can suppressed low. Further, the device can be miniaturized, enhanced in speed, and improved in responsiveness and reliability.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a prize ball discharging device for a pachinko machine, which discharges a predetermined number of prize balls according to the type of prize balls when prize balls are generated in the pachinko machine. It is about.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a prize ball discharging device for discharging prize balls according to winning, for example, as shown in JP-A-4-58972, a lead screw is used to count prize balls one by one. A prize ball discharging device for discharging is proposed. Such a prize ball discharging device continuously supplies the prize balls continuously by continuously supplying the prize balls in a bead shape to the spiral groove of the lead screw formed in a spiral shape and rotating the lead screw by a motor. In addition, the motor is designed so that a large load is not applied.

[0003]

The award ball discharging device of this type is, for example, compared with a device for ejecting a predetermined number of award balls by rotating a sprocket as shown in JP-A-63-164977. As a result, the ball pressure of the prize balls that flow in line in the prize ball discharge passage is dispersed in the direction of the support shaft of the lead screw, so the load on the drive unit is significantly reduced.
Since a component force corresponding to the angle of the inclined surface of the lead screw remains as a rotational force, an inertial force acts on the rotation of the screw to impair the operation accuracy of the drive unit. In order to avoid this, it is necessary to increase the size of the motor and reduce the speed by gears, install a stop mechanism, or the like, which poses a problem that there are restrictions on speeding up and downsizing of the device. Further, the lead screw is generally manufactured by cutting from a rod-shaped steel material, or by cutting after being molded by powder metallurgy and sintered, in any case, in order to obtain a certain degree of accuracy, There was a problem that its production was difficult and costly. The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to facilitate production, keep costs low, and reduce size and speed, improve responsiveness, and improve reliability. An object of the present invention is to provide a prize ball discharging device for a pachinko machine that can be achieved.

[0004]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, in the present invention, a prize ball provided in the middle of a prize ball discharge passage for aligning and flowing down prize balls flowing out of a prize ball tank in a line. In the discharging device, the prize ball discharging device includes a rotating shaft installed in parallel with the prize ball discharging passage, and members adjacent to the rotating shaft are eccentric in opposite directions with a radial interval of the prize ball. The prize ball that is fixed in a position and faces the prize ball discharge passage, and a motor that rotationally drives the rotation shaft, and the prize ball that has entered the interval of the eccentric disk when the motor is rotationally driven is It is characterized in that the ball is moved toward the downstream side of the prize ball discharge passage.

[0005]

The operation of the prize ball discharging device having the above structure will be described below with reference to the drawings. As shown in FIG. 1 (A), a prize ball discharging device 1 is provided with a rotating shaft 2 installed in parallel with the prize ball discharging passages 5a and 5b formed in two rows, and adjacent to the rotating shaft 2. From a plurality of eccentric discs 3 which are fixed to each other at eccentric positions opposite to each other with a radial interval of the prize balls and face the prize ball discharge passages 5a and 5b, and a stepping motor 6 which rotationally drives the rotary shaft 2. Become. In the illustrated case, four eccentric discs 3a to 3d are fixed to the rotary shaft 2 at intervals of ½ of the diameter of the prize ball and adjacent ones at positions eccentric to each other in opposite directions. The distance between each eccentric disc 3 and the side wall of the prize ball passage 5 continuously changes with the rotation of the rotation shaft 2 between the interval at which the prize ball passes downstream and the interval at which the prize ball does not pass. However, for example, when the upstream eccentric disk 3 has an interval for passing the prize ball, the adjacent downstream eccentric disk 3 has an interval for not passing the prize ball. Is 1/2
Each time the ball rotates, the prize ball comes into contact with the eccentric disc 3 on the downstream side and stops. Therefore, every time the rotary shaft 2 makes one rotation, the prize ball is
It can be moved to the downstream side one by one.

The above situation is shown in FIGS. 1 (A), 1 (B) and 1 (C).
Now, as shown in FIG. 1 (A),
The first prize balls 1A flowing down in a line through the prize ball discharge passage 5a on the left side are the second eccentric disc 3b and the fourth eccentric disc 3.
The second prize ball 2A, which is located between the first prize ball 1B and the second prize ball 2A, contacts the fourth eccentric disc 3d and flows down the right prize ball discharge passage 5b in a line. 3a and 3
Located between the second eccentric disc 3c and the second prize ball 2B
When the rotary shaft 2 makes a quarter turn from the state where it is in contact with the third eccentric disc 3c, the major axis diameter side of each of the eccentric discs 3a to 3d faces vertically as shown in FIG. 1 (B). As a result, the intervals between the eccentric discs 3a to 3d and the prize ball discharge passages 5a and 5b are slightly increased, so that the prize balls 1A, 2A, 1B and 2B are slightly moved to the downstream side. , The eccentric disk with which each prize ball abuts
Same as (A).

Further, from the state shown in FIG.
When rotating / 4, as shown in FIG. 1 (C), the first prize ball 1A of the left prize ball discharge passage 5a passes through the second eccentric disc 3b and comes into contact with the first eccentric disc 3a. Then, the second prize ball 2A passes through the fourth eccentric disc 3d and comes into contact with the third eccentric disc 3c. That is, 1/2 of the rotation shaft 2 shown in FIG. 1 (A) to FIG. 1 (C).
By the rotation, one prize ball 1A, 2A has moved to the eccentric disc on the downstream side. On the other hand, the first prize ball 1B of the right prize ball discharge passage 5b passes through the first eccentric disc 3a, is released to the downstream side of the prize ball discharge passage 5b, and is paid out as a prize ball. 2B is the third eccentric disc 3c
After passing through, the second eccentric disc 3b comes into contact with the second eccentric disc 3b, and the subsequent third prize ball 3B comes into contact with the fourth eccentric disc 3d. That is, FIG. 1 (A) to FIG. 1 (C)
By 1/2 rotation of the rotary shaft 2 up to 1B, 2B,
This means that each 3B has moved to the eccentric disc on the downstream side. Thereafter, by repeating the above operation, the prize balls are discharged alternately from the left and right prize ball discharge passages 5a and 5b per one rotation of the rotary shaft 2.

As described above, the prize ball discharging device 1 according to the present invention can reliably discharge prize balls with a simple structure in which the eccentric disk 3 is simply eccentrically attached to the rotary shaft 2 and fixed. Yes, the production is extremely easy, and the production cost can be kept low. Further, the ball pressure of the prize balls flowing down in line in the prize ball discharge passages 5a and 5b is transmitted to the rotary shaft 2 through the eccentric disc 3 and is entirely received by the bearing 4, so that the influence on the drive unit is not affected. In addition to being completely avoidable, the award ball abutting with the rotation of the eccentric disc 3 also moves forward while rotating, so that there is almost no frictional force generated between the award balls abutting the eccentric disc 3 and the eccentric disc 3 rotates. Very little driving force is required. As a result, direct driving by the ultra-compact, low-output stepping motor 6 becomes possible, and a remarkable leap is realized in downsizing and speeding up of the device and improvement of responsiveness. At the same time, the life and reliability of the device are improved. The stepping motor 6 is driven and controlled by a control circuit. The control circuit is designed to discharge an arbitrary number of prize balls predetermined according to the type of winning as a prize. The output to the stepping motor 6 is continued while counting the number of revolutions of 6 or the number of revolutions of the rotary shaft 2 by a detector (not shown).

In addition, in the prize ball discharging device 1 including the eccentric disk 3 fixed to the rotary shaft 2 and the stepping motor 6, one row of prize ball discharging passages is arranged on the outer periphery of one rotary shaft 2. However, when the prize ball discharge passage is divided into three or more N passages and the N passages are arranged in parallel so as to surround one rotation shaft 2, the discharge capacity is N times as large. Become.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An embodiment in which the superiority of the present invention is fully utilized will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a detailed structure of the prize ball discharging device 1 according to the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a rear view of a pachinko machine to which the prize ball discharging device 1 according to the embodiment is applied. There is. In the figure, a rectangular mechanism plate 18 is arranged on the back surface of the pachinko machine 10. The mechanism plate 18 is provided with various mechanisms for processing winning balls generated in the game and paying out a predetermined number of winning balls based on the winning balls.

A prize ball tank 11 for storing a large amount of prize balls is provided above the mechanism plate 18, and the prize balls flowing out of the prize ball tank 11 are aligned below the prize ball tank 11. An upstream prize ball discharge passage 12 (hereinafter referred to as an upstream discharge passage 12) to be made to flow down is provided so as to be inclined in a substantially horizontal direction. In the upstream discharge passage 12, prize balls are arranged in two rows and flow down as described later. Further, a downstream prize ball discharge passage 13 (hereinafter, referred to as a downstream discharge passage 13) provided in a vertical direction is connected to a terminal end portion of the upstream discharge passage 12,
The prize ball discharging device 1 according to the embodiment is installed at the end of the.

The downstream discharge passage 13 is, as shown in FIG.
Extending downward along one side (right side) of the mechanism plate 18,
The lower part is bent toward the center again. An upper plate communication port 14 that communicates with an upper plate (not shown) provided on the front surface of the pachinko machine 1 is formed in the lower upstream portion of the downstream discharge passage 13, and the front surface of the pachinko machine 1 is formed at the lower end of the downstream discharge passage 13. Is formed with a lower plate communication port 15 that communicates with a lower plate (not shown) provided in the. Therefore, the prize balls discharged by the prize ball discharging device 1 are
3 flow down, first preferentially guided to the upper plate communication port 14 and discharged to the upper plate, and then when the upper plate communication port 14 becomes full with prize balls, the overflowing prize balls are lowered. It is guided to the plate communication port 15 and discharged from the lower plate. In addition, in the downstream discharge passage 13 on the upstream side of the upper plate communication port 14, the ball drop passage 1
7 is connected, and by switching the switching lever 16 when a ball drop operation is performed, the prize ball flowing down the downstream discharge passage 13 is guided to the ball drop passage 17.

The prize ball discharging device 1 according to the embodiment as described above.
In the pachinko machine 10 to which is applied, since the mechanism for ejecting the prize balls can be compactly arranged in the upper part, the right side, and the center of the lower part of the mechanism plate 18,
The effective use range on the back surface of the game board can be set to an extremely large use range A1 as compared with the conventional use range A2.
In the game board used in recent pachinko machines, in order to boost the interest of the game, many of the prize winning devices project backwards as the size and complexity of the prize winning device increase. Therefore, the effective use range on the back of the game board is increased. It is desirable to be as large as possible, which increases the degree of freedom in designing the game board.
Therefore, the increase in the effective use range of the back surface of the game board obtained by this embodiment increases the degree of freedom in the design of the game board, which in turn brings an immeasurable advantage in improving the playability of the pachinko machine. You can

By the way, as shown in FIG. 2, the prize ball discharging device 1 installed at the end portion of the upstream discharge passage 12 is provided with
A stepping motor 6 for arranging the rotary shaft 2 at the center of the end portion of the upstream discharge passage 12 having the rows 12a and 12b of rows and driving the rotary shaft 2 to rotate on the extension line of the upstream discharge passage 12
It is configured to be placed. Then, the passage 12a,
The prize balls flowing down 12b sequentially enter the spaces of the plurality of eccentric disks 3 by the rotation of the rotary shaft 2 based on the output from the control circuit, and move to the downstream side. Then, while being counted by the control circuit, it is pushed out to the drop opening 19 which is a connecting portion of the upstream discharge passage 12 and the downstream discharge passage 13 and the prize balls are discharged to the downstream discharge passage 13 alternately from the respective passages 12a and 12b. An adjusting knob 7 is provided at the rear end of the stepping motor 6 in this embodiment, and the rotating shaft 2 can be rotated by manually rotating the adjusting knob 7. Such an operation is performed in order to cause the prize ball stopped at the position of the eccentric disk 3 at the upstream end to flow down to the position of the eccentric disk 3 at the downstream end when the prize ball is first thrown into the upstream discharge passage 12. It is done. For this reason, the cover 20 covering the upper part of the prize ball discharging device 1 part
It is desirable to mold with a transparent synthetic resin.

In the present embodiment, the prize ball discharging device 1 is formed of two rows of upstream discharge passages 1 formed by being inclined in a substantially horizontal direction.
Since it is installed at the end of 2, the ball pressure of the prize ball applied to the bearing 4 through the rotary shaft 2 to which the eccentric disc 3 is fixed is significantly reduced compared to the vertical installation, so that a large driving force is applied to the rotary shaft 2. Don't need In other words, in the present embodiment, the stepping motor 6 directly connected to the rotary shaft 2 may be a small one, and this also allows the eccentric disc 3 to be sufficiently driven and controlled. In addition to the effects described above, in the present embodiment, the prize balls that have been discharged by the eccentric disc 3 can be smoothly and quickly dropped into the vertical downstream prize ball discharge passage 13.

[0016]

As is apparent from the above description, the prize ball ejecting device according to the present invention has a simple structure in which the eccentric disc is simply eccentrically attached to the rotary shaft to securely secure the prize ball. It can be discharged, and the size and speed of the device can be dramatically improved, the responsiveness can be improved, and the reliability can be improved. Moreover, the production is extremely easy, and the production cost can be kept low.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view and a schematic plan view showing the configuration and operation of a prize ball discharging device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a specific example of a prize ball discharging device.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of a pachinko machine to which the prize ball discharging device shown in FIG. 2 is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 prize ball discharge device 2 rotating shaft 3 eccentric disc 4 bearing 5 prize ball discharge passage 6 stepping motor 7 adjustment knob 10 pachinko machine 11 prize ball tank 12 upstream discharge passage (upstream discharge passage portion) 13 downstream discharge passage (downstream discharge passage portion) ) 18 Mechanism plate 19 Drop port

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A prize ball discharge device provided in the middle of a prize ball discharge passage for aligning and flowing down prize balls flowing out of a prize ball tank in a row, wherein the prize ball discharge device is parallel to the prize ball discharge passage. And a plurality of eccentric discs adjacent to the rotation shaft, which are adjacent to each other and are fixed at positions eccentric in opposite directions with a radial interval of the prize ball and facing the prize ball discharge passage, And a motor that rotationally drives the rotating shaft, wherein the prize ball that has entered the interval of the eccentric disk when the motor is rotationally driven is moved toward the downstream side of the prize ball discharge passage. Characteristic ball discharge device for pachinko machines.