JPS58190466A - Electronic control type controller for pinball machine - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] This bulletin contains application data before electronic filing, so abstract data is not recorded.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a control system for an electronically controlled pachinko machine that attempts to electronically control predetermined game functions based on a real recording medium passed through the hands of a player.

Generally, the actual recording medium mentioned above is considered to be in the form of a card, on which various information described below is stored.Therefore, this type of electronically controlled pachinko machine is generally referred to as a card-type pachinko machine, for example. It will become a new field to be understood.
In this type of pachinko machine, the actual play method required for firing is simply circulating the balls inside the machine, so the number of balls is small, and ball disposal is extremely easy, as well as other "electronic control" Compared to a mechanism that allows or disallows the player's shot, the mechanical mechanism locks only against means such as a handle rod or a conventional ball feeding mechanism that sends balls one by one to the firing position. Since only a few steps are required, the mechanical structure of the pachinko ridge itself can be made extremely simple. In addition, the detection of the winning ball in the winning hole 8 is generally performed electronically, and the mechanical system that was conventionally attached to this becomes unnecessary. In addition, as a player, you do not have to worry about transporting the large amount of purchased game balls and prize balls, and you only need to carry the actual recording medium such as a card on which the number of actual balls is recorded. , it has advantages such as being extremely simple.

The present invention was made with the aim of realizing such an electronically controlled pachinko machine control system through computer technology, and is basically of the type that is applied to each machine string. However, as will be described later, by effectively applying the information processing capability of one main computer, this system can monitor and control all machines and additionally make it possible to collect 1% of other necessary information on the store side.

An embodiment of the control system for an electronically controlled pachinko machine according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the attached drawings, but this embodiment is the actual recording medium for the number of balls held by a player. In the following, the description will be made assuming that the card is a so-called cash cart-like card, and for ease of understanding, only - and h are shown for the pachinko machine main body l, and the control system for this will be illustrated as an example. Note that the pachinko machine main body and internal mechanical mechanism are indirect components, so they are shown with imaginary lines.

The computer mechanisms used in this control system generally include an input/output block [Al, a memory block [B], and a calculation block [C].
], etc., and the specific electronic circuit utilizes publicly known technology to meet the various requirements described below.
□, 7 A card issuer 2 is shown as a peripheral device of the computer mechanism (7), but this corresponds to a conventional ball rental machine, in which a player inserts a coin and receives a predetermined number of balls according to the amount. Instead of actually being ejected, a card with a predetermined number of valuable records is issued.In other words, when a coin is inserted into the slot 3, the detector 4 sends a coin insertion signal to the input/output block [ It reaches the input part all in Al, and goes through the storage block to the calculation block [C
] is converted into the number of game balls corresponding to the amount of money by the real ball number conversion unit CLLL in the real ball number converter CLLL, and a signal representing the number of balls is fed back to the recording system 5 in the card issuer via the output unit a12.

In the recording system 5, the number of balls actually played is recorded on one of the cards stored in the card issuer in some way (punch processing, magnetic recording, etc.), and the recorded card is transferred to the existing card delivery mechanism ( (not shown) from the discharge mechanism 6 to the outside of the device,
It is handed over to the player. Note that the present invention does not directly specify the configuration of the card issuer itself, so we will not go into details about it, but it does include a selector that determines whether the inserted coin is correct or not, and a display device that visually displays the real number. , and in some cases an f-switch that prompts card ejection.

It has a card storage part (none of which is shown) and the like as appropriate. Also, whether the signals passing through the computer mechanism are compared and processed by the memory block [B] depending on the purpose (for example, in the case described above, the information that the same law is already written for one unit of money), Regarding each route below, the function of the calculation block will be mainly explained without referring to the storage block unless it is particularly necessary.

This is because such a viewpoint is thought to be effective in explaining computer technology without making it unnecessarily complicated. Regarding the concept of the actual number of balls played, it is thought that in reality it is stored, recorded, etc. using the n-ary system and associated means, but here it will be explained using the decimal system concept.

Now, in this case, when the player receives the card handed over as described above, the card insertion section 7 (
For example, if you insert it into a machine that has a mechanical mechanism similar to a cash card acceptance device that also has an ejection function,
The card is taken into the machine, and the card reader built into the machine detects the information stored in the card and sends it to the card read signal input section al.
The insertion section also has a writability, which will be discussed later. The read information includes the above-mentioned signal indicating the number of fast pitches actually played, and a signal indicating the code for each store that has already been recorded in the card issuer or at the time of issuance. Check and remove cards from other stores whose codes do not match; you can also change the codes daily so that the machine does not accept cards returned by players at a later date); For example, there is a machine number registration signal indicating which machine is used to perform processing on the card (effective when one computer performs processing on a plurality of machines as described later). A code check is performed in the card read check section C1 of the computer mechanism, and if the card is determined to be a valid card, the machine number for the card is stored, and the number of actual balls played, that is, the number of balls allowed to be played by the player, is stored. The total number of pitches thrown by M people is also counted. Furthermore, from the perspective of the game's value, it is important to have a method for visually displaying how many pitches the player is currently allowed to shoot (actual number). It is assumed that a digital display section 8 is provided in this embodiment as well, so the number of pitches counted each time as described above is converted into a signal via the display output section a2 and sent to the display section 8. In addition, if a real number is stored in the card, that is, if the arithmetic storage unit detects a number E other than zero, a stopping device such as the ball feed lock mentioned at the beginning, which is provided in the triggering part of the game machine, A signal to cancel H9 is sent from the output section a'2 related to the L display section a2, and from then on the player is allowed to shoot.0On the contrary, the inserted card has no real number record and is worthless. In such a case (such as a card whose real number is exhausted and the display is 0 as described later on another machine), this computer 1 mechanism detects this state in the zero detection unit C5 in parallel with the check operation described in I. is detected, a card ejection signal is sent to the card insertion section 7, and a well-known mechanism is used to eject the card from the device or take it into the machine.
)-The device 9 is kept in working condition.

After the real numbers have been memorized, when the player starts firing,
For example, light is emitted by a radiation detector lO provided at an appropriate location.
A firing signal for each ball is generated using the photosensitive characteristics of the mold element and the organic combination of a magnet and a reed relay.

This can be seen as the player consuming one ball from the poetry, so if we conveniently understand it as the (-) w number, this is sent to the (-) signal input section a3, and the one ball is consumed by the subtraction section c2. 1 is subtracted from the number of memories stored, and in the case shown in the figure, a signal indicating the new number of memories as a result is outputted to the output part a for displaying the (-) @ symbol.
4 to the machine side and displays the number minus 1 on the display section 8. This (-) signal is also used as an adder/subtractor sC8 for various data output devices as an accompanying mechanism useful for good examples described later. has been added.

Foul balls that have weak rebound or bounce back off the board even with normal rebound, resulting in a miss shot, need to be treated as balls that were not consumed. Because there is, I caught this with the foul detector IT, and the (-) at the time of the above-mentioned attack.
(+) signal (+) for each ball to cancel out the signal.
The signal is sent to the human power section a6, and the adder C3 adds 1 to the current memory number.
are added. Similarly, 1 is added to the number displayed on the display section via the (+) signal display output section a7, and a total calculation is also performed in the addition/subtraction section C8.

Regarding winning balls, if there are winning balls of -balls or m balls (m; an integer), the winning detector 12 using, for example, a photoelectric element detects this every time a -ball wins, and the internal (10m) signals are sent to (10m) signal input section a5 through m pulse generation circuits, etc. With this signal, m per ball won is added to the memory number through the same route as the (+) signal, and (+)
m is also added to the number displayed on the display section via the signal display output section a7. In this case as well, a (10m) signal is sent to the addition/subtraction section c8.

In this way, addition and subtraction are interrupted, but of course, each addition and subtraction signal as mentioned above is generated completely randomly during the game, so of course timing processing to arrange them in an orderly manner is necessary. For processing random input, it is possible to use conventional circuit technology or slightly modified versions thereof.

When the number of memories in the memory block [Bl becomes zero during play, which corresponds to when the player finishes hitting the ball in the conventional case, an end signal is sent from the zero detection section C5 via the output section &10. The firing device 9 is activated and subsequent shots are suppressed. This signal is also sent to the card insertion section, which activates a mechanism for ejecting the card or taking it into the machine.

When the player intends to stop playing at that machine in the middle of play, all he has to do is actuate the means to indicate his intention (in this case, the stop button) and send a stop signal to the stop signal input section a8. Block [1st year high school check part C in CI
4 detects this and generates a medium W signal via the output section a8, and operates the I-hitting device in the same way as when the number of calculations and memories is zero.

However, since the χ number is not zero, it is necessary to provide the player with the current number. As just mentioned above, the card insertion section also includes a mechanism that has the ability to record on the card by appropriate means, and after writing the real number information that is allowed in response to the abort signal, the corresponding The cards are ejected to the player's side. At the same time, the number displayed on the display section 8 also returns to zero in response to this stop signal. Note that the previously recorded information on the card may be erased at the time of the above-mentioned writing, or after the check by the original arithmetic storage block is completed.

Looking at this stop signal from a different perspective, it is possible to manipulate it in certain cases. For example, if the number of stoppages is predetermined on the platform string, and the machine reaches the number of stoppages using an information gathering device (for example, as described below), the machine manually performs the same action as the activation of the stoppage means 13. A stop signal may be generated by the output when a set value is reached using a digital switch or a digital switch. Pro t・ri [
C'], but its output may be outputted from the total profit and loss output section a15 as shown in the figure.

When the player takes out a card on which a real number is recorded and inserts it into another machine, the computer mechanism detects the real number and the same operations as described above are performed on that machine. If you wish to exchange prizes without moving to another machine, you can insert the card into a card reader 15 such as a real number display 14 installed in advance at a prize exchange place, etc. The signal from the pachinko machine body 1 carries code information and real number information in the same way as the card insertion part, and reaches the card reading and checking part c7.If the card is fraudulent, the part C7 outputs an ejection signal. The card is ejected from the card reader, and if the card is legitimate, information containing a real number (generally, it should be assumed that it has been converted to be suitable for display) is sent to the display signal output unit a12 as a real number. The actual number is sent to the display section 16, and the actual number is displayed clearly on the game machine side, store clerk side, etc. Various devices can be considered instead of a simple real number display section, and a device that can specify the number of prizes is also possible.

The following describes the operation of the control system of the invention in accordance with the outline of the game.In this embodiment, it was explained as being attached to one pachinko machine, but in reality, most of the computer mechanism is common to multiple machines. The processing for the machines would be performed by scanning, that is, by attaching a circuit for machine switching and scanning to the input/output block [A], or by simply providing only the input/output block [A] to each machine string. In a relatively short scanning time, information is collected from machine to machine based on the machine registration number. In this case, the signal generated while the information is being read again is temporarily stored (of course, considering the flow speed of the pachinko balls, the number of bits can be small). It is also conceivable to attach it to various signal generating sections of the stand.

In this way, if you want to control all the double-ball tables at once, it would be convenient if you could obtain information such as the number of dowels thrown out, that of the whole store, the operating rate, and the number of 11-tables. For a good reason, such an information collecting device 17 is provided, and the inputs of each arithmetic circuit are used for each device, and the profit and loss signal output a15. In addition, desired information may be obtained by displaying a predetermined display on the device N17 in real time via all other information outputs or by selective manual operation. It is also possible to collect and stock samples in the form of recording tapes, etc.

As described in detail above, since most of the control system is electronically controlled, the structure of the abutment is simple. For example, various signal generation circuits can be assembled as a set and removed from the main body. Replacing the 7-bar table is extremely easy, and it is also possible to easily collect information on lucky cases, which was difficult to achieve with conventional mechanical mechanisms, and it is also easy to change the number of prize balls for each prize winning date by adding a human output unit. This means that it can be done. Of course, there is no doubt that this machine can fully utilize the inherent advantages of the electronically controlled pachinko machine mentioned above.

Incidentally, the actual recording medium is not limited to a card-like one, and various other types can be considered. Furthermore, the card issuing device and the card insertion section can be integrated so that the card can be inserted into the card insertion section immediately after inserting a coin, and
Card issuance by inserting a coin is omitted, and for example, an input signal from a coin slot provided in a dowel is used as an input signal (input section all in the embodiment is communicated via a switching mechanism to determine whether it is a dowel). It is also possible to activate the real number converter c6 of the machine and connect the display signal output part a12 to the display part 8 of the machine for immediate display. In this case, the cards stocked in the aircraft are ejected only when the aircraft is cancelled. That will happen. Of course, it is possible to move the table, so the insertion section 7 is left as is.
Therefore, the other functions should be roughly equivalent).

Note that the control block [D] in the computer mechanism is a circuit system that organically links the functions of each block in series, and is the same as the concept used in normal computer technology, so it needs special mention. It is obvious that there is no such thing.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawing is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the electronically controlled pachinko machine control system of the present invention. In the figure, l is a pachinko machine, 2 is a card issuer, 7 is a card insertion part, 8 is a real ball count display, 9 is a stopping device, 10 is a firing detector, 11 is a 7R detector, 12 is a winning detection device, 1
5 is a card reader for displaying real numbers, 17 is an information gathering device, and (A) is a computer machine-person turn block;
(B) is a memory block, (C) is a calculation block, CD)
are their control blocks.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] When a real recording medium loaded into the machine has a record of non-zero real number information representing the number of play balls permitted to be shot, this state is detected and the real play balls are allowed to be shot; The above real numbers are memorized, and the numbers of fired balls and foul balls are calculated and memorized in opposite directions to the above-mentioned initial calculated memorized real numbers, and winning balls are given within one ball or a predetermined conversion prize. The number of balls is calculated and memorized in the same direction as the foul ball, and when zero is detected in the real number in the calculation memory during the calculation process described above, and when the stop button provided on the surface of the pachinko machine is operated, the game stop signal is issued. It has a computer mechanism including a calculation storage unit that activates a stop device that stops the supply of batted balls when it is received, and prevents the game from being fired after that. Detects whether or not there is a real number stored in the storage unit, and if there is a real number stored, writes it to the real recording medium loaded in the machine, and then operates a mechanism to eject the recording medium out of the machine. 1. A control system for an electronically controlled pachinko machine, characterized in that the display of a digital display unit that displays the contents of the calculation storage unit and the real numbers stored in the calculation storage unit is reset to zero.