JPH1063933A - Merchandise supplying device and game machine using the device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a merchandise supplying machine with high reliability on operation for maintaining plural plane-shaped merchandise, and smoothly and successively supplying each merchandise without affecting the number of maintained merchandise, and a game machine using this. SOLUTION: A merchandise maintaining part 16 formed like a comb in which plane-shaped merchandise is inserted into each holding spatial part 17a between sawteeth 17 so as to be maintained is provided at the outer peripheral part of a rotary body 18. This rotary body 18 is set so as to be rotatable while inclined so that merchandise 5 maintained in the merchandise maintaining part 16 can be allowed to slip out of it by its own weight at a prescribed position, and an outer peripheral barrier 19 for interrupting the merchandise 5 from slipping out of the merchandise maintaining part 16 by its own weight during the rotation is provided in the prescribed outer peripheral range of the rotary body 18. This outer peripheral barrier 19 is provided with a slit 22 with width enabling the merchandise 5 to pass, and the merchandise 5 dropped from the merchandise maintaining part 16 through this slit is carried to an output port by a feed rail part.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a merchandise supply apparatus and a game machine using the same, and more particularly, to a CD player.
The present invention relates to a merchandise supply device that stores a large number of flat products such as (compact discs) and sequentially supplies the merchandise to a take-out port, and a gaming machine incorporating the merchandise supply device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a vending machine, for example, is mainly composed of a device for storing a large number of commodities and for sequentially supplying the commodities to a take-out port when a consumer selects desired commodities. It is well known that

[0003] Various types of merchandise supply devices have been developed depending on the shape of the merchandise to be handled, which store a large number of merchandise and sequentially supply the merchandise to an outlet. For example, a commodity supply device in a vending machine that sells compact discs (CDs) and various other things in a flat plastic protective case usually stores the commodities in a flat-stacked state. When it is desired to take out the product, one of the products at the bottom is taken out and supplied to the take-out opening (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 5-73768).

[0004]

However, in the conventional apparatus for sequentially supplying a large number of flat products, the products are stored in a flat stack as described above, and when the products are taken out, they are taken from the bottom. Since the products are extracted, there is a limit to the number of sheets to be piled up naturally due to the load on the bottom due to the weight of the product.

In general, a plastic protective case containing a CD or the like is wrapped in a thin cellophane-like sheet, so that mutual sliding is very poor.
Therefore, it was very difficult to extract only one from the bottom when stacked, and it was not possible to expect smooth extraction.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve such a conventional problem, and it is possible to store a large number of flat-shaped products, and it has an effect on the number of products stored. It is an object of the present invention to provide a highly reliable product supply device capable of smoothly and sequentially supplying products without any trouble, and a gaming machine using the same.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a product supply device, and is configured as follows to solve the above-mentioned technical problem. That is, the commodity supply device of the present invention is provided with a commodity storage section formed in a comb shape and capable of inserting and storing a flat commodity in each space between the comb teeth and storing the commodity, and is arranged in the commodity storage section. A rotator that is rotatably installed at an angle to the extent that the product exits and drops under its own weight at a predetermined position, and is disposed in a predetermined outer peripheral area of the rotator, and the product is stored during the rotation of the rotator. An outer peripheral barrier for preventing the product from falling out of the portion by its own weight, a slit formed in the outer peripheral barrier and having a width capable of passing the product, and taking out the product that has exited from the product storage portion of the rotating body through the slit. And a feed rail that guides to the mouth. <Additional Configuration in the Present Invention> The commodity supply apparatus of the present invention includes the above-described essential components, but is also established when the following components are further added to the components. The additional component is that the slit is formed with a width that allows the passage of at least two commodities, and at the exit side of the slit, commodities following the commodities dropped on the feed rail portion are partially separated from the commodities storage section. A stopper is provided to stop further dropping when it comes out of the slit and protrudes from the slit, and detection means for detecting that a product has contacted the stopper is provided at or near this stopper. Features.

[0008] Further, such a product supply device can be applied to a game machine. That is, the present invention is a gaming machine including the commodity supply device therein, wherein the prize of the gaming machine is supplied as the commodity to a prize outlet formed in a housing of the gaming machine. .

According to the commodity supply device of the present invention described above,
A large number of flat products are inserted into each space between the comb teeth in a comb-shaped product storage section formed on the outer periphery of the rotating body, and are stored independently, that is, the products are not interfered with each other. I have. Then, the rotating body is intermittently rotated. Since the rotating body is supported so as to be rotatable diagonally, that is, the rotation center axis forms an angle with respect to the vertical axis, the rotating body is stored in the product storage unit located below the center point of the rotating body. Some products try to fall down under their own weight, which is blocked by the outer barrier.

When the product held by the rotating body is aligned with the slit formed in the outer peripheral barrier, the product tends to escape from the product storage unit through the slit. The slit is formed with a width dimension that allows the product held between the two adjacent comb teeth to escape, so that, for example, when one product first aligns with the slit, the entire product is removed from the product storage unit of the rotating body. It is possible to electrically recognize that there is a product to be supplied without contacting the stopper and operating the detecting means without coming off.

[0011] Next, when the rotating body rotates intermittently, the product that has stopped falling off at the stopper moves within the range aligned with the slit and comes off the stopper, thereby moving downward through the slit. Fall under its own weight. The dropped product falls on the feed rail, and slides inside the feed rail to move to the take-out port.

Such a product supply device can be applied not only as a product supply device in a vending machine, but also as a device for supplying a prize to a take-out port in a game machine.

[0013]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a commodity supply apparatus according to the present invention. FIG.
1 shows an entire gaming machine 1 in which a product supply device 10 of the present invention is installed.

The gaming machine 1 is a price game machine for one player, and when a game is won, a single CD is paid out. To briefly explain how to use the price game machine, when a coin is inserted, the roulette lamp 2 at the center of the game machine body is sequentially turned on and off, and as a result, the lighting of the lamp starts moving right and left. Then, the lamp installed in the translucent stop button 3 starts blinking, and after confirming this blinking, the player presses the stop button 3 at an appropriate time to turn on and off the roulette lamp group 2. Stop.

At the middle position of the roulette lamp group 2, there is a heart-shaped lamp 2A. When the lighting movement of the roulette lamp group 2 stops at the heart-shaped lamp 2A, a win is made, and a lower part of the game machine body is formed. One single CD 5 falls into the provided prize take-out port 4 and the operator can acquire it. When the operator presses the stop lamp 3, when the roulette lamp group 2 stops moving on the lamps 2 other than the heart-shaped lamp 2A, the game is over.

The inside of such a gaming machine 1 is shown in FIG. 2, and a commodity supply device 10 is installed at a substantially central portion inside the housing of the gaming machine 1. This product supply device 10
The base plate 11 is, as shown in FIGS.
And a rotating plate 12 arranged at an interval on the surface side of the rotary member.
A hollow support shaft 13 is provided upright at the center of the base plate 11, and a rotation shaft 14 is rotatably supported by a bearing 15 in the support shaft 13. The rotating plate 12 described above
It is connected and fixed to one end of a rotating shaft 14 protruding from the support shaft 13.

An annular merchandise storage section 16 having a comb shape is attached to the outer peripheral edge of the rotating plate 12. As shown in FIG. 3, the product storage section 16 is constituted by a large number of comb teeth 17 which open outward in the radial direction, and a space 17a between the comb teeth 17 is a flat plate such as a single CD. The product 5 is inserted and held so as to be sandwiched.

Therefore, for convenience, this space 17a is referred to as a holding space. The product storage section 16 in this embodiment is actually divided into a plurality of arc-shaped segments 16a, and the radial inner edge of each of the segments 16a is fixed to the outer peripheral edge of the rotating plate 12 by screws or the like. It is provided on the entire circumference of the rotating plate 12. A rotating body 18 is constituted by the rotating plate 12 and a product storage unit 16 attached to an outer peripheral edge thereof.

The outer peripheral wall 1 surrounds the outer peripheries of the group of commodities when the commodities 5 are arranged in the respective holding spaces 17a in the comb-shaped commodities storage section 16 constituting the rotating body 18.
9 and 20 are erected on the base plate 11. As shown in FIG. 3, the outer peripheral walls 19 and 20
When viewed from the front, 0 is formed by a semicircular wall located below a virtual horizontal line passing through the center point of the rotating shaft 14 and a semicircular wall located above, The wall 19 is
It mainly functions as a barrier for preventing the product 5 from dropping out of the product storage unit 16 by its own weight for the reason described later.

That is, the commodity supply device 10 is configured as shown in FIG.
As is clear from FIG. 3, the rotation center axis of the rotation shaft 14 is inclined so as to form a certain angle with respect to the vertical or horizontal. Therefore, when the rotating body 18 is rotating, the product storage unit 16 located below the horizontal center line of the rotating body 18
Each of the commodities 5 stored in each holding space portion 17a of the holding space 17a is moved by its own weight as it moves vertically downward.
Get out of a and try to fall. The falling-off of the commodity 5 to be dropped is stopped by the wall portion 19 until it comes to a predetermined position.

Therefore, the lower wall portion 19
Functions as an outer peripheral barrier for preventing the product 5 from falling out of each holding space 17a of the product storage unit 16. The outer peripheral walls 19 and 20 are engaged with positioning slits (not shown) formed at predetermined positions of the base plate 11 and engaging pieces (not shown) projecting from lower ends of the outer peripheral walls 19 and 20.
After that, the mounting legs 21 formed outside the lower ends of the outer peripheral walls 19 and 20 are fixed to the base plate 11 by screws.

The inclination of the product supply device 10 when installed is basically such that the product 5 stored in the product storage unit 16 falls out of the predetermined position by its own weight and falls. The number of inclination angles of the rotating shaft 14 is designed depending on the space in the housing of the gaming machine 1 in which the product supply device 10 is installed.

At the position on the vertical center line of the rotating body 18 in the outer peripheral barrier 19 for preventing falling off of the product located below the horizontal center line of the rotating body 18, two adjacent holding space portions 17a are provided.
The slit 22 is formed to have a width that allows the products in the same state to pass at the same time. A stopper 23 is provided on the exit side of the slit 22 and near the anti-rotational direction of the rotating body 18 to stop the product 5 from falling off when the product 5 slightly comes out of the slit 22, and the stopper 23 is provided near the stopper 23. A microswitch 24 is provided as detection means for detecting that the product 5 has come into contact with the stopper 23.

The microswitch 24 has a detecting piece 24b connected to the switch operating portion 24a, and the tip of the detecting piece 24b extends to the extent that it crosses about half of the width of the slit 22 on the side opposite to the rotating body in the rotating direction. ing. That is,
The detection piece 24b extends to the space between the stopper 23 and the holding space 17a located above the stopper 23. Therefore, the product 5 that has moved to the slit 22 while sliding on the outer peripheral barrier 19 by the rotation of the rotating body 18 is
2 falls on the stopper 23, and at this time, the detection piece 24 b is pressed onto the stopper 23.

As a result, the switch operating portion 24a connected to the detecting piece 24b is rotated, and the switch portion formed inside the main body of the micro switch 24 is closed. A spring is provided inside the main body of the microswitch 24 to return the switch portion to the opening direction. Therefore, when the detection piece 24b is not pressed against the stopper 23, it returns to its upper position and stands by. Will be.

The half of the width of the slit 22 in the direction of rotation of the rotating body is a dropping port of the product 5, and the product 5 on the stopper 23 is self-weighted downward from the dropping port by the intermittent rotation of the rotating body 18. To fall. Immediately below this drop,
As shown in FIG. 2, a feed rail 25 is provided to receive the commodity 5 dropped from the drop opening and send it to the prize take-out port 4 of the gaming machine 1.

The product 5 held in the product storage section 16 of the rotating body 18 is dropped from the holding space 17a of the product storage section 16 before dropping into the feed rail section 25 from the drop opening of the slit 22. Since it is once received by the stopper 23 in a state where it has come out to some extent, the rotating body 18
In the next rotation, the impact when the product 5 drops from the drop opening of the slit 22 to the feed rail portion 25 can be reduced.

Also, as described above, the product 5 is inserted into the slit 2
In the stage before dropping from the dropping port 2 to the feed rail 25,
Because the stopper 23 is once received in a state in which the product 5 has come out of the holding space portion 17a of the product storage portion 16 to some extent, even if the insertion state of the product 5 into the holding space portion 17a is poor and the falling-off due to its own weight is slow. Since it is suspended on the stopper 23 for a certain period of time, it can be expected that it will recover naturally by its own weight and fall on the stopper 23 to be in a fall preparation state.

The feed rail portion 25 is a groove-shaped guide rail having a U-shaped cross section. The width of the groove is such that a flat product can be vertically moved from the holding space portion 17a of the product storage portion 16 through the drop opening of the slit 22. Since it is dropped in a state, it is slightly larger than the thickness of the product. Then, the feed rail portion 25 is connected to the prize take-out port 4 so that the commodity 5 dropped in the groove slides in the groove of the feed rail portion 25 by its own weight and is sent to the prize take-out port 4 of the gaming machine 1. It is inclined to descend.

The fact that a product has fallen from the product drop opening of the slit 22 to the feed rail 25 is determined by a drop sensor 30 provided between the slit 22 and the feed rail 25.
(See FIG. 5). This drop sensor 30
It is preferable to use an optical sensor.

Further, while the rotating body 18 is rotating, the outer peripheral portion of the product 5 is in direct sliding contact with the outer peripheral barrier 19 and the base plate 11.
In order to prevent the occurrence of damages such as scratches due to full contact with the product 5 and to reduce frictional resistance to ensure smooth product movement, the outer peripheral barrier 19 is provided with a ridge 19 a on the rotating body 18. The base plate 11 is formed in an arc shape with the shaft 14 as the center, and the protruding ridge 11 a is similarly formed in an annular shape with the rotation shaft 14 as the center.

A gear 26 is fixed to an end of the rotating shaft 14 for rotating the rotating body 18 protruding from the back surface of the base plate 11, and the gear 26 is rotatably supported on the back surface of the base plate 11. The small gear 27 is engaged. A worm gear 29 mounted on the rotation shaft of a drive motor 28 (see FIG. 3) mounted on the base plate 11 or an appropriate fixed portion meshes with the small gear 27.

As a result, when the drive motor 28 is driven, its rotational force is transmitted to the rotary shaft 14 via the worm gear 29, the small gear 27, and the gear 26, and thus the rotary body 18
Is rotated. The rotating body 18 is intermittently rotated at an angle at which the commodities 5 in the respective holding spaces 17 a in the comb-shaped merchandise storage section 16 are sequentially aligned with the drop openings in the slits 22 of the outer peripheral barrier 19. Therefore, the drive motor 28
The rotation is controlled by the control device 32 (see FIG. 5). In this case, it is preferable to use a geared motor.

Next, the operation of the commodity supply device 10 will be described in relation to the operation of the price game machine as the gaming machine 1. As shown in the block diagram of FIG. 5, the price game machine basically includes a coin detector 31 for detecting a coin to be inserted, and a control circuit 32 to which a detection signal is input. ing. The control circuit 32 further includes the microswitch 24 and the slit 2 described above.
The signal from the drop sensor 30 which detects that a product falls from the 2nd product drop opening is input.

A control circuit 32 for receiving signals from the coin detector 31, the micro switch 24 and the drop sensor 30 controls and drives predetermined devices such as a speaker 6 and an indicator provided in the price game machine. The rotation of the motor 28 is controlled. The main operation of the control circuit 32 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

The control circuit 32 includes the microswitch 2
In response to the signal from the control unit 4, it is always determined in step 33 whether the micro switch 24 is on or off. That is, when the micro switch 24 is turned on, it means that there is a CD of a prize product on the stopper 23, which means that the game machine can be operated. .

If the micro switch 2
If it is determined that the prize 4 is turned off, it means that the prize to be refunded is not stored in the commodity supply device 10, so that the alarm circuit 34 is activated to warn the user of the game machine of the supply of the commodity 5. And the operation of the game machine is made inoperative.

The microswitch 24 is controlled by the control circuit 32.
Is determined to be on, it is determined whether or not a predetermined coin has been inserted through the coin insertion slot 7 (step 35).
Is determined by This is determined based on whether a signal has been input from the coin detector 31 or not. If a coin has been inserted, the process proceeds to the game process 36, and a predetermined game is started. It is determined in step 37 whether or not a hit has occurred in the game process 36. When a hit has occurred, the constant angle rotation control unit 38 controls the rotation of the drive motor 28 by a predetermined angle and rotates the rotating body 18 by a predetermined angle.

As a result, the product storage section 16 of the rotating body 18
The CD, which is the product 5 stored in the holding space 17a, moves from the position where it is stopped by the stopper 23 to the dropping port of the product, and falls by its own weight to the lower feed rail 25 through the slit 22. The fall of the product 5 is determined in step 39, and the fall of the product 5 is detected by the drop sensor 30.
When the signal is detected and supplied to the control circuit 32, the control circuit 32 returns to the start, assuming that the signal has fallen on the feed rail portion 25 and the prize has been refunded.

If the fall sensor 30 does not detect the fall of the commodity 5, a signal is output to the alarm circuit 40, and in response, a warning is given that the game machine has abnormally ended. When it is determined in step 35 that no coin has been inserted, and when the game is lost or the game is over in step 37, the operation of the control circuit 32 returns to the start, assuming that the game is substantially ended. .

Product supply device 10 according to the above-described embodiment
Described an example of using as a prize payout device in a gaming machine, but the present invention is not limited to this, and it is possible that this product supply device 10 can be used also as a product supply device of a vending machine. Needless to say.
When this product supply device 10 is used as a product supply device of a vending machine, a plurality of product supply devices 10 are installed, different products are stored in each of the product supply devices, and the corresponding product supply is selected by a consumer. It is also possible to operate the device to pay out the goods.

[0042]

As described above, according to the commodity supply apparatus of the present invention, a large number of plate-like commodities are stored individually without being stacked, and are sequentially dropped and paid out. Thus, the structure of the product supply device can be greatly simplified, and the stability and reliability of operation can be improved.

According to the commodity supply apparatus of the present invention, the user can easily determine the presence or absence of the commodity to be paid out before the consumer inserts the coin, despite the simple structure described above, so that the commodity management of the user can be performed. In addition to being easy, the product to be supplied next is temporarily stopped at a position slightly out of the holding space, so that the impact due to the falling of the product can be reduced, and the occurrence of damage to the product can be prevented. it can.

Furthermore, according to the gaming machine using the commodity supply apparatus of the present invention, a flat commodity can be easily paid out as a prize, and for example, a CD or the like can be a prize. While enjoying the game C
D etc. can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an entire game machine using a product supply device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view schematically showing the inside of the gaming machine shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a commodity supply device installed inside a housing of the gaming machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the product supply device shown in FIG. 3, cut along line 4-4.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing operating means of the gaming machine shown in FIG.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation in a control circuit constituting the operating means shown in FIG. 5;

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 gaming machine 2 roulette lamp 2A heart-shaped lamp 3 stop button 4 prize take-out port 5 product 10 product supply device 11 base plate 12 rotary plate 13 support shaft 14 rotary shaft 15 bearing 16 product storage section 16a arc segment 17 comb tooth 17a holding Space part 18 Rotating body 19 Outer peripheral barrier 20 Outer peripheral wall 21 Mounting leg part 22 Slit 23 Stopper 24 Micro switch 24a Switch operation part 24b Detecting piece 25 Feed rail part

Claims (3)

[Claims] An outer peripheral portion is provided with a product storage portion formed in a comb shape and capable of inserting and storing a flat product in each space portion between the comb teeth, and a product disposed in the product storage portion is provided with a predetermined shape. A rotator that is rotatably installed at an angle to the extent that it falls out and falls under its own weight at a position, and is disposed in a predetermined outer peripheral area of the rotator, and a product exits from the product storage unit by its own weight during rotation of the rotator. An outer peripheral barrier for preventing the product, a slit formed in the outer peripheral barrier, and having a width through which the product can pass, and a feed for guiding the product that has exited from the product storage portion of the rotating body through the slit to an outlet. A product supply device comprising: a rail portion. 2. The product according to claim 2, wherein the slit is formed to have a width that allows at least two products to pass therethrough, and at the outlet side of the slit, a product following the product dropped on the feed rail portion partially escapes from the product storage portion. A stopper is provided to stop further dropping out of the slit when it protrudes from the slit, and detection means for detecting that a product has contacted the stopper is provided at or near this stopper. The product supply device according to claim 1. 3. A gaming machine, wherein the commodity supply device according to claim 1 is installed inside a housing, and the commodity as a prize is supplied to a prize take-out opening formed in the housing.