Mahjong machine, tile-raising device, tile-dealing mechanism and mahjong machine

Abstract

The purpose of this invention is to provide a tile-raising device capable of accurately performing tile-raising actions, as well as a tile-adding mechanism and a mahjong machine incorporating the tile-raising device. The tile-raising device includes a carrying unit, a swinging unit, and a tile-raising control unit. The swinging unit includes a swinging motor, a swinging driven wheel that rotates under the drive of the swinging motor, a swinging linkage that reciprocates and translates with the rotation of the swinging driven wheel, a swinging arm that swings with the translation of the swinging linkage, and a swinging sensing component that senses the rotational position of the swinging driven wheel. The swinging driven wheel includes a first swinging sensing part corresponding to the swinging position above the carrying plate and a second swinging sensing part corresponding to the swinging position below the carrying plate. The tile-raising control unit determines whether the carrying plate has reached the upper swinging position or the lower swinging position based on the sensing signal, and controls the swinging motor based on the determination result.

Description

Mahjong machine, tile-raising device, tile-dealing mechanism and mahjong machine Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of mahjong entertainment equipment, and relates to mahjong machines, and more particularly to a tile-lifting device for raising the tile stack, as well as a tile-loading mechanism containing the tile-lifting device and a mahjong machine. Prior Technology

[0002] Mahjong machines typically include a shuffling mechanism for shuffling the mahjong tiles, a stacking mechanism for stacking the shuffled tiles and placing them on the table for use, a control panel mechanism for users to input operating instructions, and a table frame mechanism for overall support.

[0003] The card-dealing mechanism needs to be set up separately for each user. For example, if a typical mahjong machine is used by four users, then four sets of card-dealing mechanisms need to be set up. In this case, each set of card-dealing mechanisms also needs to perform functions such as stacking, storing, pushing, and raising cards. Therefore, its layout space is relatively limited, and the structural design needs to be very compact.

[0004] In some existing mahjong machines, the tile-adding mechanism includes a tile-lifting device that raises the tile stacks to the tabletop. For example, CN111991798A discloses a fully automatic mahjong machine whose tile-lifting assembly includes a lifting arm and a lifting push rod. The lifting push rod drives the lifting arm to swing, and the lifting arm, in turn, drives the tile-carrying seat to rotate via a lever, thus adding tiles. In such a tile-lifting assembly, because the lifting push rod relies on an intermittently engaged gear system to achieve reciprocating motion, and the start or end of the lifting action depends on the intermittent engagement of the gears, precise automated process control cannot be achieved.

[0005] In particular, if a user wants to use different card-dealing modes (e.g., wanting to deal the starting hand and the waiting cards at once, or wanting to deal the starting hand and the waiting cards in two separate transactions), the lifting and lowering actions need to be precisely performed (start, pause, or end) according to the different modes and the action status of other components. However, the existing card-dealing devices cannot perform such precise action control, and therefore, it is impossible to realize the aforementioned different card-dealing modes. Summary of the Invention

[0006] To solve the above problems, this invention provides a tile-raising device that can accurately perform the tile-raising action, as well as a tile-adding mechanism and a mahjong machine containing the tile-raising device.

[0007] Specifically, this invention provides a tile-lifting device installed in a mahjong machine to raise the delivered tile stacks to the tabletop. The tile-lifting device includes: a support unit with a support plate for supporting the tile stacks; a swing unit for raising and lowering the support plate, causing it to swing to place tiles onto the stacks or swing downwards to receive new stacks; and a tile-lifting control unit. The swing unit includes a swing motor, a swing driven wheel rotating under the drive of the swing motor, a swing linkage capable of reciprocating with the rotation of the swing driven wheel, a swing arm capable of swinging up and down with the translation of the swing linkage, and a swing sensor for sensing the rotational position of the swing driven wheel. The component includes a swing arm, one end of which is adapted to the support plate, enabling the support plate to swing up and down. The swing driven wheel is equipped with a first swing sensing part that cooperates with the swing sensing component and corresponds to the upper swing position of the support plate, and a second swing sensing part that cooperates with the swing sensing component and corresponds to the lower swing position of the support plate. The lifting control unit is connected to the swing sensing component and the swing motor. The lifting control unit determines whether the support plate has reached the upper swing position based on the sensing signal corresponding to the first swing sensing part, and determines whether the support plate has reached the lower swing position based on the sensing signal corresponding to the second swing sensing part, and controls the swing motor according to the determination results.

[0008] As a first embodiment, the card-raising device provided by this invention includes a swing sensing component comprising a first swing sensor that cooperates with a first swing sensing unit and a second swing sensor that cooperates with a second swing sensing unit. The card-raising control unit determines whether the support plate has reached the upper swing position based on the sensing signal of the first swing sensor, and determines whether the support plate has reached the lower swing position based on the sensing signal of the second swing sensor.

[0009] In the first embodiment of the card-raising device described above, both the first swing sensing part and the second swing sensing part are magnets, and both the first swing sensor and the second swing sensor are magnetic induction sensors. The first swing sensing part and the second swing sensing part are disposed on different circumferences of the swing driven wheel.

[0010] Furthermore, in the first embodiment of the card-raising device described above, the surface of the oscillating driven wheel is provided with a track groove. The track groove has a far end that is farthest from the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel and a near end that is closest to the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel. The oscillating connecting rod has a roller that is slidably engaged in the track groove. When the roller is located at one of the far end and the near end, the support plate reaches the upper oscillating position and the first oscillating sensor is opposite to the first oscillating sensing part. When the roller is located at the other of the far end and the near end, the support plate reaches the lower oscillating position and the second oscillating sensor is opposite to the second oscillating sensing part.

[0011] As a second embodiment, the present invention provides a card-raising device in which the swing sensing component includes a swing sensor capable of cooperating with the first swing sensing part and the second swing sensing part respectively. The swing sensor is a distance sensor. The first swing sensing part is one of a protrusion and a concave hole, and the second swing sensing part is the other of a protrusion and a concave hole. The first swing sensing part and the second swing sensing part are disposed on the same circumference of the swing driven wheel. The card-raising control unit determines whether the support plate is in the upper swing position, the lower swing position, or between the upper swing position and the lower swing position based on the different sensing signals generated by the swing sensor on the protrusion, the concave hole and the surface of the swing driven wheel.

[0012] In the second embodiment of the lifting device described above, the surface of the oscillating driven wheel is provided with a track groove. The track groove has a far end that is farthest from the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel and a near end that is closest to the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel. The oscillating connecting rod has a roller that is slidably engaged in the track groove. When the roller is located at one of the far end and the near end, the bearing plate reaches the upper oscillating position and the oscillating sensor is opposite to the first oscillating sensing part. When the roller is located at the other of the far end and the near end, the bearing plate reaches the lower oscillating position and the oscillating sensor is opposite to the second oscillating sensing part.

[0013] In addition, in the tile-raising device provided by this invention, a load sensor is provided at one end of the support plate. The load sensor is used to sense whether there are still mahjong tiles on that end of the support plate. When the load sensor does not detect mahjong tiles, the swing control unit determines that it is in a state where the next tile-raising can be carried out.

[0014] In the lifting device provided by this invention, one end of the swing linkage is provided with drive teeth arranged in a straight line, and one end of the swing arm is provided with a swing shaft for rotational installation. The swing shaft is provided with swing shaft teeth that match the drive teeth and are distributed circumferentially along the swing shaft.

[0015] In the card-raising device provided by this invention, the oscillating gear element includes an oscillating drive wheel mounted on the output end of the oscillating motor, and the oscillating driven wheel meshes with the oscillating drive wheel, so that the oscillating driven wheel can be driven by the oscillating motor to rotate.

[0016] This invention also provides a tile-feeding mechanism, which is installed in a mahjong machine. The tile-feeding mechanism includes: a tile-feeding device for absorbing mahjong tiles from a shuffling device and feeding them; a tile-stacking device for stacking the mahjong tiles fed by the tile-feeding device to form a tile stack, one side of the tile-stacking device being coupled to one side of the tile-feeding device; a tile-storing device for storing the tile stack, one side of the tile-storing device being coupled to the other side of the tile-stacking device; a tile-pushing device for pushing and conveying the tile stack, the tile-pushing device being disposed within the inner circle of the tile-storing device; and a tile-lifting device for raising the conveyed tile stack to the tabletop, one side of the tile-lifting device being correspondingly disposed on one side of the tile-storing device, wherein the tile-lifting device is any of the above-mentioned tile-lifting devices.

[0017] This invention also provides a mahjong machine, which includes: a shuffling mechanism for shuffling mahjong tiles; and a tile-adding mechanism for adding tiles to the shuffled mahjong tiles. The tile-adding mechanism is the aforementioned tile-adding mechanism and is positioned around the shuffling mechanism.

[0018] Creative Function and Effect

[0019] According to the tile-raising device and the tile-loading mechanism and mahjong machine containing the tile-raising device provided in this invention, since the swing driven wheel is provided with a first swing sensing part that cooperates with the swing sensing component and corresponds to the upper swing position of the support plate, and a second swing sensing part that cooperates with the swing sensing component and corresponds to the lower swing position of the support plate, and the tile-raising control unit determines whether the support plate has reached the upper swing position based on the sensing signal corresponding to the first swing sensing part, and determines whether the support plate has reached the lower swing position based on the sensing signal corresponding to the second swing sensing part, the tile-raising control unit can accurately determine the current position of the support plate and control the swing motor according to the determination result. Regardless of the tile loading method (e.g., loading tiles once or loading tiles twice) or the user suddenly inputs a tile loading command, the tile-raising device can perform the tile-raising action in a timely, rapid and accurate manner. Simple Explanation of the Diagram

[0020] Figure 1: It is a structural diagram of a mahjong machine according to one embodiment of this invention; Figure 2: It is a structural diagram of a mahjong machine from one angle, according to one embodiment of this invention; Figure 3: This is a structural diagram of a mahjong machine according to one embodiment of this invention, with a portion of the structure omitted. Figure 4: It is a structural diagram of the license plate mechanism from one angle in one embodiment of this invention; Figure 5: This is a structural diagram of the license plate mechanism from another angle in one embodiment of this invention; Figure 6: It is a structural diagram of the card-dispensing device according to one embodiment of this invention; Figure 7: It is a structural diagram of the stacking device of one embodiment of this invention; Figure 8: It is a structural diagram of the stacking device of one embodiment of this invention; Figure 9: This is a structural diagram of the card stacking device according to one embodiment of this invention, omitting the card stacking housing and the card stacking motor; Figure 10: This is a structural diagram of one side of the stacked card block in one embodiment of this invention; Figure 11: It is a structural diagram of the toggle drive block of one embodiment of this invention; Figure 12: It is a structural diagram of the card storage device according to one embodiment of this invention; Figure 13: It is a structural diagram of the mating parts of the card storage device, card stacking device, and card supply device in one embodiment of this invention; Figure 14: This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of the card slot in one embodiment of this invention; Figure 15: It is a structural block diagram of the card-pushing device according to one embodiment of this invention; Figure 16: It is a structural diagram of the card-pushing device of one embodiment of this invention from one angle; Figure 17: This is a structural diagram of the card-pushing device from another angle, representing one embodiment of this invention; Figure 18: It is a structural diagram of the card-raising device according to one embodiment of this invention; Figure 19: It is a structural diagram of the card-raising device according to one embodiment of this invention; Figure 20: This is a structural diagram of the plate-lifting device according to one embodiment of this invention, with the support frame omitted; Figure 21: It is a structural diagram of one side surface of the driven wheel in one embodiment of this invention; Figure 22: It is a structural diagram of the swing linkage in one embodiment of this invention; Figure 23: This is a structural diagram of the other side surface of the driven wheel in one embodiment of this invention; and Figure 24: It is a flowchart of the card-raising action of the card-raising device in one embodiment of this invention. Implementation

[0021] The specific implementation of this invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0022] <Example>

[0023] Figure 1 is a structural block diagram of the mahjong machine according to an embodiment of the invention; Figure 2 is a structural diagram of the mahjong machine according to an embodiment of the invention from one angle; and Figure 3 is a structural diagram of the mahjong machine according to an embodiment of the invention after omitting a portion of its structure.

[0024] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, this embodiment provides a mahjong machine 100 for automatically shuffling and loading mahjong tiles 200. The mahjong machine 100 includes a tile loading mechanism 101, an operation panel mechanism 102, a table frame mechanism 103, a shuffling mechanism 107, and a control device 108.

[0025] The table frame mechanism 103 includes an outer frame 104, a table board 105 mounted on the outer frame 104, and a lower frame 106 that supports the table board 105 and other mechanisms. The bottom of the lower frame 106 is provided with table legs for supporting the ground (the table legs are omitted in Figures 2 and 3, and Figure 2 further omits the outer frame 104, the lower frame 106, the table board 105, and the shuffling mechanism 107).

[0026] The control panel mechanism 102 is located in the middle of the tabletop 105, and the top of it is equipped with a control panel 1021. The control panel 1021 is equipped with multiple different operation buttons (not shown in the figure) for users to input operation commands. In this embodiment, the control panel mechanism 102 is also equipped with a lifting element, which can lower the control panel 1021 under the control of the control device 108, exposing the gap between the control panel 1021 and the tabletop 105. At this time, the user can push the used mahjong tiles 200 through the gap to shuffle the tiles.

[0027] The shuffling mechanism 107 is located below the operation panel 1021 and is used to receive the used mahjong tiles 200 and shuffle them. The shuffling mechanism 107 includes a shuffling plate for carrying and rotating the mahjong tiles and a drive motor for driving the shuffling plate to rotate. Its specific structure and function are the same as those of the prior art and will not be described in detail here.

[0028] The mahjong machine 100 of this embodiment can be used by four users at the same time, and is provided with four card-adding mechanisms 101, which are located at the four corners of the lower frame 106 respectively.

[0029] The control device 108 is used to control the operation of various components of the mahjong machine 100 according to the operation instructions input by the user. The control device 108 may be a chip or industrial control computer or microcomputer with a predetermined control program, and is connected to the operation panel mechanism 102 and various controlled components and sensors of the mahjong machine 100. In addition, in this embodiment, each of the control units described below may include a control program integrated into the control device 108, or may include a control program set in a separate chip, which is electrically or communicatively connected to the control device 108. At the same time, each control unit may also be provided with an appropriate signal transmission or control circuit structure to realize the reception of sensor signals and the control of controlled components.

[0030] Figure 4 is a structural diagram of the license plate registration mechanism from one angle in this embodiment of the invention, and Figure 5 is a structural diagram of the license plate registration mechanism from another angle in this embodiment of the invention.

[0031] As shown in Figures 1 to 5, the card-feeding mechanism 101 includes a card-supplying device 10, a card-stacking device 20, a card-storing device 30, a card-pushing device 40, and a card-raising device 50.

[0032] Figure 6 is a structural diagram of the card-supplying device according to an embodiment of this invention.

[0033] As shown in Figures 4 to 6, the tile feeding device 10 is used to pick up mahjong tiles from the shuffling mechanism and feed them to the machine. The tile feeding device 10 includes a tile suction wheel 11, a tile feeding frame 12, a belt assembly 13, and a tile feeding motor 14.

[0034] The card feeder 12 is fixedly installed on the lower frame 106 and located near the shuffling mechanism 107. The card feeder 12 has an opening facing one of the shuffling discs of the shuffling mechanism 107. The card suction wheel 11 is rotatably installed in the opening. The output end of the card feeder motor 14 is connected to the card suction wheel 11. The card feeder motor 14 can drive the card suction wheel 11 to rotate under the control of the control device 108.

[0035] The belt assembly 13 includes a feeding belt 15 wound around the card suction wheel 11, a guide wheel 16 for guiding the feeding belt 15, and a tensioning wheel 17 for tensioning the feeding belt 15; the guide wheel 16 is installed near the stacking device 20 so that the feeding belt 15 can transport the mahjong tiles on it to the stacking device 20.

[0036] In this embodiment, a plurality of magnetic magnets are installed on the card-collecting wheel 11, and the mahjong tiles 200 are all inlaid with magnetic material that can be magnetically attracted to the shuffling magnets. When the card-collecting wheel 11 rotates under the drive of the card-feeding motor 14, the magnetic magnets that rotate to the downward position can attract the mahjong tiles 200 below. As the card-collecting wheel 11 continues to rotate, the mahjong tiles 200 are carried to the top of the card-collecting wheel 11 and then transported to the stacking device 20 by the card-feeding belt 15.

[0037] Figure 7 is a structural block diagram of the card stacking device according to an embodiment of the invention; Figure 8 is a structural diagram of the card stacking device according to an embodiment of the invention; and Figure 9 is a structural diagram of the card stacking device according to an embodiment of the invention after omitting the card stacking housing and the card stacking motor.

[0038] As shown in Figures 4 to 5 and Figures 7 to 9, the stacking device 20 is used to stack the single mahjong tiles supplied by the tile supply device 10 to form stacks of two tiles together. The stacking device 20 includes a stacking unit, a tile dispensing unit, a stacking control unit 291, and a stacking sensing element, wherein the stacking sensing element includes a stacking counting sensor 29.

[0039] The stacking unit includes a stacking block 21, a stacking block drive rod 22, a stacking drive wheel 23, and a stacking motor 24. The card-pulling unit includes a card-pulling block 25, a card-pulling connecting rod 26, and a card-pulling drive block 27. In addition, the stacking device 20 also has a stacking housing 28 that accommodates and supports the various components in the stacking unit and the card-pulling unit.

[0040] The top of the stacking block 21 is a flat surface. In the initial state, the flat surface is located near the guide wheel 16 of the supply belt 15 and can receive the mahjong tiles conveyed by the supply belt 15. The stacking block 21 is also provided with a stacking block groove 211. One end of the stacking block drive rod 22 is a movable end, which is slidably fitted into the stacking block groove 211 by a slider.

[0041] As shown in Figure 9, the card stacking drive wheel 23 is mounted on the output shaft of the card stacking motor 24 and rotates under the drive of the card stacking motor 24. One side of the card stacking drive wheel 23 is provided with a card stacking drive groove 231. The card stacking motor 24 receives a card stacking control signal from the card stacking control unit 291 and operates and drives the rotation of the card stacking drive wheel 23 according to the card stacking control signal.

[0042] The other end of the card stacking block drive rod 22 is a fixed end. The card stacking block drive rod 22 has a card stacking drive shaft 221 hinged to the card stacking housing 28. The middle part of the card stacking block drive rod 22 is also provided with a slider that is slidably fitted in the card stacking drive groove 231. When the card stacking drive wheel 23 rotates, the card stacking block drive rod 22 swings up and down, driving the card stacking block 21 to move up and down through its movable end.

[0043] Figure 10 is a structural diagram of one side of the stacked card block in this embodiment of the invention.

[0044] As shown in Figure 10, the stacking drive groove 231 is approximately annular in shape. The stacking drive groove 231 has a concave section 231A with a decreasing radius and a convex section 231B with an increasing radius. When the slider in the middle of the stacking block drive rod 22 is in the concave section 231A, the top plane of the stacking block 21 is lower than the upper plane of the end of the feeding belt 15. The height difference is slightly greater than the thickness of the two mahjong tiles, so that the mahjong tiles fed by the feeding belt 15 can be stacked and fall on the top plane of the stacking block 21. When the slider in the middle of the stacking block drive rod 22 moves to the convex section 231B, it can drive the stacking block 21 to move slightly upward, which facilitates the card-picking block 25 to perform the card-picking action.

[0045] As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the card-pulling block 25 is fixed to the top of the card-pulling linkage 26; the card-pulling linkage 26 is in an approximately L-shaped bend, and its lower end is fixed to one side of the card-pulling drive block 27.

[0046] Figure 11 is a structural diagram of the toggle drive block in an embodiment of this invention.

[0047] As shown in Figures 8 to 9 and Figure 11, the other side of the card-dispensing drive block 27 is provided with an arc-shaped card-dispensing groove 271, and the other side of the stacking drive wheel 23 (i.e. the opposite side of the surface where the stacking block groove 211 is located) is provided with a slider that is slidably fitted into the card-dispensing groove 271. As the stacking drive wheel 23 rotates, under the action of the slider and the card-dispensing groove 271, the card-dispensing drive block 27 moves back and forth intermittently and drives the card-dispensing block 25 to move back and forth through the card-dispensing connecting rod 26. Thus, when the two mahjong tiles 200 at the top of the stacking block 21 overlap to form a tile stack, the tile stack is pushed toward the tile storage device 30.

[0048] As shown in Figures 8 and 9, the stack counting sensor 29 is located near the stacking block 21. Specifically, it can be installed on the relevant components of the card slot of the card storage device 30, or it can be installed on a separate mounting bracket. The stack counting sensor 29 is a magnetic induction sensor, which can generate an induction signal when the mahjong tiles 200 with embedded magnets pass through, thereby counting the mahjong tiles 200 that are stacked and enter the card storage device 30. Since the mahjong tiles 200 are stacked in pairs to form a pile, the number of mahjong tiles 200 counted by the induction signal of the stack counting sensor 29 can be divided by 2 to simultaneously determine the number of piles of mahjong tiles 200.

[0049] Figure 12 is a structural diagram of the card storage device according to an embodiment of this invention.

[0050] As shown in Figure 12, the card storage device 30 is used to store the card stacks. The card storage device 30 includes a card storage tray 31, an upper slot plate 32, a lower slot plate 33, an inner slot plate 34, and a card storage sensing component.

[0051] The card storage tray 31 is roughly square in shape, with a notch at one corner and rounded corners at the other three corners. The edge is provided with a vertically extending baffle 311, and the center protrudes upward, forming a groove, i.e., a card slot 312, between the baffle 311 and the central protrusion. In addition, the bottom of the card storage tray 31 is provided with a support column 313, which is mounted on the lower frame 106.

[0052] The upper groove plate 32 is a plate-shaped component adapted to the shape of the baffle 311 and is embedded in the upper part of the inner surface of the baffle 311 (equivalent to the outer side of the card slot 312); the lower groove plate 33 is a plate-shaped component adapted to the card slot 312 and is embedded in the bottom surface of the card slot 312; the inner groove plate 34 is approximately annular and adapted to the central protrusion of the card storage tray 31, and is installed on the outer edge of the central protrusion of the card storage tray 31 (equivalent to the inner side of the card slot 312).

[0053] Figure 13 is a structural diagram of the mating parts of the card storage device, card stacking device, and card supply device according to an embodiment of the invention; in Figure 13, some components of the card storage device, card stacking device, and card supply device are omitted in order to show the mating relationship between the components.

[0054] As shown in Figures 4 to 5 and Figure 13, the card feeding device 10 and the card stacking device 20 are located at the notch corner of the card storage tray 31 and are set near one end of the card slot 312. The card stacking block 21 is located at the end opening of the card slot 312. When the card block 25 is pushed towards the card storage device 30, the card block will enter the card slot from the end opening of the card slot 312. When the next card block is stacked and pushed towards the card slot 312 by the card block 25, the card block will also push the card block that has already entered the card slot 312. This process is repeated so that a certain number of card blocks can be stored in the card slot 312.

[0055] Figure 14 is a cross-sectional structural diagram of the card slot in this embodiment.

[0056] As shown in Figure 14, the upper slot plate 32, the lower slot plate 33, and the inner slot plate 34 are all adapted to the tile slot 312, together forming a tile storage slot structure that can store and allow the tile stacks to pass through. The bottom end of the upper slot plate 32 has a flange 321 protruding towards the center of the tile slot 312, and the upper half of the inner slot plate 34 protrudes outward, so that the tile slot 312 forms two parts with different movement radii (i.e., distances relative to the center of the tile storage tray 31), namely the upper tile slot 312A and the lower tile slot 312B (as shown in the dashed box). The upper tile slot 312A and the lower tile slot 312B correspond to the upper and lower mahjong tiles in the tile stack, respectively. Since the movement radius of the upper tile slot 312A is larger, the mahjong tiles on the upper layer will lag slightly behind the mahjong tiles on the lower layer during the movement in the tile slot 312.

[0057] The card storage sensing component includes a card storage sensor 35 with an opening at the end of the card slot 312 (i.e., near the card lifting device 50). The card storage sensor 35 is a magnetic induction sensor. When there is a card block at the end of the card slot 312, it senses the magnet in the mahjong card 200 and generates a corresponding sensing signal.

[0058] Figure 15 is a structural block diagram of the card-pushing device according to an embodiment of the invention; Figure 16 is a structural diagram of the card-pushing device from one angle according to an embodiment of the invention; and Figure 17 is a structural diagram of the card-pushing device from another angle.

[0059] As shown in Figures 4 to 5 and Figures 15 to 17, the pusher device 40 is used to push and transport the stack of cards stored in the storage device 30. The pusher device 40 includes a pusher seat 41, a pusher rotating seat 42, a pusher arm 43, a pusher motor 44, a pusher drive gear 45, a pusher sensing component 46, and a pusher control unit 47. The pusher sensing component includes a first pusher sensor 461, a second pusher sensor 462, and a pusher sensing trigger.

[0060] The card pusher 41 is fixedly installed in the middle of the card storage tray 31. The middle part has a circular notch 41A and a rotating groove 411 around its perimeter. The shape and outline of the rotating groove 411 are basically matched with the card slot 312A, but the size is smaller. At the same time, there is a recessed section 412 near the notch of the card storage tray 31.

[0061] The card pusher rotating seat 42 is rotatably mounted on the card storage tray 31 via a rotating shaft 310. Its entire body is located within the notch 41A, and its upper surface is exposed from the notch 41A. A pusher mounting protrusion 421 is provided on the upper surface of the card pusher rotating seat 42, and a pusher mounting hole 422 extending through along the horizontal direction is provided in the pusher mounting protrusion 421.

[0062] One end of the pusher arm 43 is movably fitted into the pusher arm mounting hole 422, and the other end is provided with a pusher head 431 for pushing the tile blocks in the tile slot 312. The lower end of the pusher head 431 is provided with a pusher protrusion 433 extending along the pushing direction, which can push the lower layer of mahjong tiles forward more. Combined with the structural design of the larger movement radius of the tile slot 312A, it can always keep the upper layer of mahjong tiles slightly behind the lower layer of mahjong tiles.

[0063] When the tile stack reaches the tile lifting device 50, the upper layer of mahjong tiles has less friction because it only contacts the lower layer of mahjong tiles. After the pushing force of the tile pusher 431 is removed, it usually slides forward a short distance. However, in this embodiment, through the combination of the structural design of the tile pusher protrusion 433 and the larger movement radius of the tile loading groove 312A, the upper layer of mahjong tiles always stays slightly behind during the movement. After the pushing force is removed, the upper layer of mahjong tiles slides a short distance and then overlaps exactly on top of the lower layer of mahjong tiles, so that the mahjong tiles can be stacked neatly when the tiles are loaded.

[0064] The pusher arm 43 is also provided with a pusher slider 432 located near the pusher head 431. The pusher slider 432 is slidably embedded in the rotating groove 411.

[0065] The card-pushing motor 44 is located below the card-pushing base 41, and a card-pushing drive gear 45 is mounted on its output shaft. The lower surface of the card-pushing rotating base 42 is provided with rotating seat teeth 423 that mesh with the card-pushing drive gear 45, thereby enabling the card-pushing motor 44 to drive the card-pushing rotating base 42 to rotate. When the card-pushing rotating base 42 rotates, the card-pushing slider 432 also moves accordingly in the rotating groove 411, driving the card-pushing head 431 to push the card blocks in the card slot 312. Since the rotating groove 411 has a recessed section 412, when the card-pushing slider 432 reaches the position of the recessed section 412, the distance between the card-pushing slider 432 and the rotation center (i.e., the rotating shaft 310) of the card-pushing rotating base 42 will be shortened, causing the card-pushing head 431 to retract inward towards the rotation center and not contact the components of the card-feeding device 10 and the card-stacking device 20, thereby avoiding mutual interference.

[0066] Both the first card pusher sensor 461 and the second card pusher sensor 462 are magnetic induction sensors, installed below the card pusher rotating seat 42 and located on the same circumference as the card pusher rotating seat 42 rotates. The lower surface of the card pusher rotating seat 42 is also provided with a card pusher sensing trigger, which is located on the same circumference in the vertical direction as the first card pusher sensor 461 and the second card pusher sensor 462. The card pusher sensing trigger is a magnet. When the card pusher sensing trigger moves to directly above the first card pusher sensor 461 or the second card pusher sensor 462 as the card pusher rotating seat 42 rotates, the first card pusher sensor 461 or the second card pusher sensor 462 can sense the card pusher sensing trigger and generate a corresponding sensing signal.

[0067] Driven by the card-pushing rotating seat 42, the card-pushing head 431 rotates roughly in a circular direction within the card slot 312. When it is about to reach the card stacking device 20, it usually needs to wait for the card stacking action to be completed (i.e., reaching the predetermined number of card stacks) before it can continue to move forward. It starts to contact the card stacks from the card slot 312 in front of the card stack block 21 and pushes the cards. During this process, the position where the card-pushing head 431 is about to reach the card stacking device 20 and is waiting for the card stacking action to be completed is the card stacking entrance waiting position. In addition, after the card-pushing head 431 pushes all the card stacks that need to be loaded along the card slot 312 to the card lifting device 50, it usually needs to wait in place for the card lifting device 50 to complete the card lifting. The position at this stage is the card lifting entrance waiting position.

[0068] In this embodiment, the first push card sensor 461 is set to correspond to the card stacking entrance waiting position of the push card head 431. When the push card rotating seat 42 rotates to the point where the first push card sensor 461 senses the push card sensing trigger (that is, when the push card sensing trigger is approximately directly above the first push card sensor 461), the push card head 431 just reaches the card stacking entrance waiting position. When the push card rotating seat 42 rotates to the point where the second push card sensor 462 senses the push card sensing trigger, the push card head 431 just reaches the card lifting entrance waiting position.

[0069] The push card control unit 47 controls the operation of the push card motor 44 based on the sensing signals of the first push card sensor 461 and the second push card sensor 462, so that the push card head 431 can push all the predetermined card blocks from the card slot 312 to the card lifting device 50 when push cards are needed.

[0070] Figure 18 is a structural block diagram of the card-lifting device according to an embodiment of the invention; Figure 19 is a structural diagram of the card-lifting device according to an embodiment of the invention; and Figure 20 is a structural diagram of the card-lifting device according to an embodiment of the invention after omitting the support frame.

[0071] As shown in Figures 3 to 5 and Figures 18 to 20, the card lifting device 50 is used to push the card pusher 40 to lift the card stacks to the tabletop. The card lifting device 50 includes a support unit, a swing unit, and a card lifting control unit 501. The support unit includes a support frame 51, a support plate 52, and a support sensor 502. The swing unit includes a swing motor 53, a swing arm 54, a swing linkage 55, a swing gear set composed of a swing drive wheel 56 and a swing driven wheel 57, and a swing sensing component 60.

[0072] The support frame 51 is fixedly installed on the lower frame 106, located near the card supply frame 12 and fixedly connected to the card supply frame 12 to form a frame; an opening is formed at the lower end of one side of the support frame 51 to facilitate the exposure of the card suction wheel 11, and a support groove 511 is formed at the upper end. The support groove 511 has an open end 511A, which faces the tail end of the card slot 312, and the depth of the support groove 511 gradually increases from the other end to the open end 511A.

[0073] The support plate 52 is used to support the card stack to be placed; the support plate 52 is a long strip plate, one end of which is the receiving end that can receive the card stack pushed by the card pusher arm 43 from the card slot 312, located at the opening end 511A; the other end is the mounting end, which is rotatably mounted on the other end of the support slot 511 relative to the opening end 511A via a rotating shaft, so that the support plate 52 can swing up and down in the support slot 511, and correspondingly its receiving end can rise or fall at the opening end 511A.

[0074] In this embodiment, a bearing sensor 502 is provided at the edge of the receiving end of the bearing plate 52. The bearing sensor 502 is a magnetic induction sensor. When the pusher arm 43 pushes the tile block in the tile slot 312 onto the bearing plate 52, the bearing sensor 502 can sense the magnet in the mahjong tile and generate a corresponding induction signal. When the tile at the edge of the receiving end is removed, the bearing sensor 502 can no longer sense the magnet in the mahjong tile and no longer generates a corresponding induction signal.

[0075] Since the tile stacks pushed by the tile pusher arm 43 are usually distributed from the edge of the receiving end towards the installation end, and the tiles at the edge of the receiving end are usually the last to be removed, if the load sensor 502 does not detect the mahjong tiles, it means that all the mahjong tiles on the load plate 52 have been removed, and it is time to prepare for the next tile raising action.

[0076] The tabletop 105 is provided with a card slot 105A that corresponds to the position and shape of the support plate 52. When the support plate 52 swings upward until the receiving end rises to the highest position, the entire support plate 52 protrudes from the card slot 105A onto the tabletop, and the user can remove the card stacks on the support plate 52. The position of the support plate 52 in this state is referred to as the upward swing position of the support plate 52. When the support plate 52 swings downward until the receiving end descends to the lowest position, the receiving end is basically flush with the bottom of the card slot 312. The card pushing arm 43 can push the card stacks in the card slot 312 from the receiving end onto the support plate 52. The position of the support plate 52 in this state is referred to as the downward swing position of the support plate 52.

[0077] The swing motor 53 is installed below the card storage tray 31, and its output axis extends upward to the card storage tray 31.

[0078] The swing drive wheel 56 is mounted on the output shaft of the swing motor 53 and can rotate under the drive of the swing motor 53.

[0079] A driven wheel groove 314 is provided on the storage plate 31 near the swing drive wheel 56. The swing driven wheel 57 is rotatably mounted in the driven wheel groove 314 through a driven wheel shaft 316 and meshes with the swing drive wheel 56. Therefore, it can be driven by the swing drive wheel 56 to rotate under the drive of the swing motor 53.

[0080] Figure 21 is a structural diagram of one side surface of the driven wheel in this embodiment.

[0081] As shown in Figures 19 to 21, a track groove 572 is provided on one side surface of the oscillating driven wheel 57. The track groove 572 is shaped to protrude on one side. The farthest part of the track groove 572 from the center of the oscillating driven wheel 57 (rotation center, i.e., the center of the driven wheel shaft 316) is the far end 572A, and the closest part to the center of the oscillating driven wheel 57 is the proximal end 572B.

[0082] Figure 22 is a structural diagram of the swing linkage in this design.

[0083] As shown in Figures 19 to 20 and 22, each end of the swing linkage 55 has a straight rod-shaped end. One end is the driven wheel engagement end 551 that engages with the swing driven wheel 57, and the other end is the swing engagement end 552 that engages with the swing arm 54. In this embodiment, the length directions of the driven wheel engagement end 551 and the swing engagement end 552 are parallel to each other.

[0084] The driven wheel groove 314 is provided with a straight connecting rod mating groove 315 whose size matches the driven wheel mating end 551. The driven wheel mating end 551 is located in the connecting rod mating groove 315, so that the driven wheel mating end 551 is approximately below the oscillating driven wheel 57.

[0085] The side surface of the track groove 572 of the oscillating driven wheel 57 faces downward. A roller 553 is also provided on the upper surface of the driven wheel mating end 551. The roller 553 is slidably embedded in the track groove 572, so that when the oscillating driven wheel 57 rotates, it can drive the oscillating connecting rod 55 to reciprocate along the length direction of the connecting rod mating groove 315 through the roller 553.

[0086] As shown in Figure 20, the lower end of the swing arm 54 is provided with a swing shaft 541, which is provided through the support frame 51, so that the swing arm 54 can rotate around the swing shaft 541 and swing up and down.

[0087] The swing shaft 541 has circumferentially distributed swing shaft teeth 542 on the end exposed outside the support frame 51, and swing mating teeth 554 are distributed along the length direction on the swing mating end 552. The swing shaft teeth 542 and the swing mating teeth 554 mesh with each other. When the swing connecting rod 55 moves back and forth, it can drive the swing arm 54 to swing up and down.

[0088] The lower surface of the receiving end of the bearing plate 52 is provided with a bearing mating groove 521, and the upper end of the swing arm 54 is provided with a swing slider 543 that is slidably fitted in the bearing mating groove 521. When the swing arm 54 swings up and down under the drive of the swing connecting rod 55, it can drive the receiving end of the bearing plate 52 to swing up and down, that is, swing back and forth between the upper swing position and the lower swing position.

[0089] Since the far end 572A and the near end 572B of the track groove 572 correspond to the two ends of the reciprocating translation stroke of the swing link 55, when the roller 553 moves to the far end 572A, the swing arm 54 will rotate away from the swing link 55, and vice versa.

[0090] In this invention, the relative positions of the swing link 55 and the swing arm 54 can change depending on the meshing state of the swing shaft tooth 542 and the swing mating tooth 554. Therefore, the movement of the swing link 55 can correspond to different lifting and lowering movements of the swing arm 54, as follows:

[0091] When the swing link 55 is in the retracted state (i.e., the roller 553 is located at the proximal end 572B and the swing link 55 is located closer to the swing driven wheel 57), the swing arm 54 is facing upwards, and the rotational motion of the swing arm 54 away from the swing link 55 will cause its upper end to move downwards; when the swing link 55 is in the retracted state and the swing arm 54 is facing the swing link 55 (at this time the swing arm 54 is in an approximately horizontal state), the rotational motion of the swing arm 54 away from the swing link 55 will cause its upper end to move upwards.

[0092] Therefore, the far end 572A of the track groove 572 corresponds to one of the upper swing position and the lower swing position of the bearing plate 52, while the near end 572B corresponds to the other of the upper swing position and the lower swing position.

[0093] In this embodiment, the first case (i.e., the swing link 55 is in the retracted state and the swing arm 54 is in the vertical state) will be used as an example for specific explanation.

[0094] Figure 23 is a structural diagram of the other side surface of the driven wheel in this embodiment.

[0095] As shown in Figures 19 to 20 and Figure 23, the other side surface (i.e. the upward-facing surface) of the oscillating driven wheel 57 is provided with a first oscillating sensing part 58 and a second oscillating sensing part 59.

[0096] Figure 23 shows the different circumferences of the oscillating driven wheel 57 in the form of a dashed circular frame; as shown in Figure 19, with the center of the driven wheel shaft 316 as the center, the first oscillating sensing part 58 and the second oscillating sensing part 59 are distributed on both sides of the driven wheel shaft 316, and the two are located on the same diameter of the oscillating driven wheel 57, but on different circumferences of the oscillating driven wheel 57 (that is, the distance between the two and the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel 57 is different).

[0097] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the distal end 572A and the proximal end 572B are also on the same diameter line of the oscillating driven wheel 57.

[0098] The swing sensing assembly 60 includes a first swing sensor 61 that cooperates with the first swing sensing unit 58 and a second swing sensor 62 that cooperates with the second swing sensing unit 59.

[0099] In this embodiment, the first swing sensing part 58 and the second swing sensing part 59 are both magnets, and the first swing sensor 61 and the second swing sensor 62 are both magnetic induction sensors.

[0100] In this embodiment, the first swing sensor 61 and the second swing sensor 62 are both set at specific positions, such that when the roller 553 reaches the near end 572B, the first swing sensor 58 just reaches below the first swing sensor 61, and at the same time, when the roller 553 reaches the far end 572A, the second swing sensor 59 just reaches below the second swing sensor 62.

[0101] Thus, when the roller 553 reaches the proximal end 572B, causing the swing arm 54 to be in a vertical state and the support plate 52 to be in an upward swing position, the first swing sensor 61 just senses the first swing sensing part 58 and outputs a sensing signal; when the roller 553 reaches the distal end 572A, causing the swing arm 54 to swing from a vertical state to a horizontal state and the support plate 52 to be in a downward swing position, the second swing sensor 62 just senses the second swing sensing part 59 and outputs a sensing signal.

[0102] Furthermore, when the roller 553 is neither at the near end 572B nor at the far end 572A, neither the first swing sensor 61 nor the second swing sensor 62 outputs a sensing signal, indicating that the bearing plate 52 is at a position between the upper swing position and the lower swing position.

[0103] Therefore, in this embodiment, the first swing sensing unit 58 corresponds to the upward swing position of the support plate 52, and the second swing sensing unit 59 corresponds to the downward swing position of the support plate 52. By observing the sensing signals output in real time by the first swing sensor 61 and the second swing sensor 62, it is possible to accurately determine whether the support plate 52 is currently in the downward swing position, the upward swing position, or a position between the two.

[0104] In this embodiment, the actions of each component in the card-raising device 50 are all performed under the control of the card-raising control unit 501. The specific card-raising operation process is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0105] In this embodiment, when the user needs to shuffle the mahjong tiles 200, he / she can input a shuffling command through the operation panel 1021. The control device 108 controls the operation panel mechanism 102 to descend and controls the shuffling mechanism 107 to start shuffling. At this time, the user can push the scattered mahjong tiles on the table 105 into the gap for shuffling.

[0106] After the shuffling is completed (for example, the shuffling time can be set), the control device 108 can control the card feeding device 10 to feed cards and control the card stacking device 20 to stack cards. At the same time, the card pushing control unit 47 controls the card pushing head 431 to reach the card stacking entrance waiting position.

[0107] During the stacking process, the card supply device 10 can determine how many stacks of cards have entered the card slot 312 based on the sensing signal from the card stacking counting sensor 29. Once the required number of stacks is reached (e.g., the number of stacks required according to the current game mode), the card supply device 10 controls the card stacking device 20 to pause or stop stacking cards, and simultaneously controls the card pushing device 40 to push cards. Subsequently, if the card storage sensor 35 senses the mahjong tiles 200 for the first time, it indicates that the card pushing device 40 has pushed the stacks into place, with the first stack of tiles having reached the end of the card slot 312.

[0108] In this situation, the control device 108 can receive the sensing signal from the carrier sensor 502. When it senses that there are no mahjong tiles 200 on the carrier plate 52 (meaning that the original mahjong tiles 200 have been removed), it can directly control the tile-raising device 50 to raise the tiles, or wait a while and control the tile-raising device 50 to raise the tiles when the user wants to raise the tiles according to the tile-raising command input by the user from the operation panel 1021.

[0109] For example, in the one-time card-raising mode, since the stack of cards to be raised contains both the starting hand and the cards to be drawn, the control device 108 does not need to determine whether there are still mahjong tiles 200 on the support plate 52. Instead, it controls the card-raising device 50 to raise the cards after the user inputs the card-raising command. In the two-card-raising mode, in the case of the first card-raising (raising the starting hand), the control device 108 also does not need to determine whether there are still mahjong tiles 200 on the support plate 52. Instead, it controls the card-raising device 50 to raise the cards after the user inputs the card-raising command. However, in the case of the second card-raising (raising the cards to be drawn), since the user may not have taken all the initial hand cards, the control device 108 needs to determine that there are no mahjong tiles 200 on the support plate 52 before directly controlling the card-raising device 50 to raise the cards.

[0110] Figure 24 is a flowchart of the card-raising action of the card-raising device in this embodiment.

[0111] As shown in Figure 24, in this embodiment, under the control of the control device 108, the card-raising device 50 performs the card-raising operation process including the following steps:

[0112] Step S1, the card-raising control unit 501 receives the sensing signal from the second swing sensor 62;

[0113] In step S2, the lifting control unit 501 determines the current position of the support plate 52 based on the sensing signal from the second swing sensor 62. If it is in the downward swing position, proceed to step S5; otherwise, proceed to step S3.

[0114] In step S3, the lifting control unit 501 controls the swing motor 53 to rotate, driving the swing drive wheel 56 and the swing driven wheel 57 to rotate, which in turn drives the swing connecting rod 55 to translate, causing the swing arm 54 to swing the support plate 52 downward and the receiving end to descend. Steps S2 to S3 are repeated until the lifting control unit 501 determines the current position of the support plate 52 to reach the downward swing position based on the sensing signals of the first swing sensor 61 and the second swing sensor 62, and then proceeds to step S4.

[0115] In step S4, the card-lifting control unit 501 controls the swing motor 53 to stop rotating, so that the support plate 52 is stationary in the lower swing position. At this time, the control device 108 can control the card-pushing device 40 to push the card according to the judgment result that the position of the support plate 52 has reached the lower swing position. The card stack that needs to be loaded is pushed onto the support plate 52. After the card-pushing head 431 reaches the card-lifting entrance waiting position, the process proceeds to step S5.

[0116] In step S5, the lifting control unit 501 controls the swing motor 53 to rotate, which drives the swing drive wheel 56 and the swing driven wheel 57 to rotate, thereby driving the swing connecting rod 55 to translate, so that the swing arm 54 drives the support plate 52 to swing and the receiving end to rise, and then proceeds to step S6;

[0117] In step S6, the card-raising control unit 501 receives the sensing signal from the first swing sensor 61, and then proceeds to step S7;

[0118] In step S7, the card-raising control unit 501 determines the current position of the support plate 52 based on the sensing signal of the first swing sensor 61. When the upper swing position is reached, the card-raising action ends.

[0119] After the tile-raising action is completed, the tile-raising control unit 501 continues to receive the sensing signal from the bearing sensor 502 and determines whether there are still mahjong tiles 200 on the receiving end. If mahjong tiles 200 can still be sensed, it means that the next tile-raising cannot be carried out. After mahjong tiles 200 are no longer sensed, the tile-raising control unit 501 determines that it is in a state where the next tile-raising can be carried out.

[0120] Subsequently, under the control of the control device 108, the tile-raising control unit 501 can perform the next tile-raising action based on the overall operation of other devices (e.g., whether the tile-pushing device 40 has pushed the first stack of tiles to the end of the tile slot 312), the sensing status of the load sensor 502, and / or the instructions input by the user.

[0121] Functions and effects of the embodiments

[0122] According to the tile-raising device, the tile-loading mechanism, and the mahjong machine containing the tile-raising device provided in this embodiment, since the swing sensing element includes a first swing sensor 61 and a second swing sensor 62, the swing driven wheel 57 is provided with a first swing sensing part 58 that cooperates with the first swing sensor 61 and corresponds to the upper swing position of the support plate 52, and a second swing sensing part 59 that cooperates with the second swing sensor 62 and corresponds to the lower swing position of the support plate 52. Furthermore, the tile-raising control unit 501 determines whether the support plate 52 has reached the upper swing position based on the sensing signal of the first swing sensor 61 and whether the support plate 52 has reached the lower swing position based on the sensing signal of the second swing sensor 62. Therefore, the tile-raising control unit 501 can accurately determine the current position of the support plate 52. Regardless of the tile-loading method (e.g., tile loading once or tile loading twice) or if the user suddenly inputs a tile-loading command, the tile-raising device 50 can perform the tile-raising action in a timely, rapid, and accurate manner, making the mahjong machine 100 of this embodiment adaptable to various application scenarios.

[0123] Furthermore, since the first swing sensor 58 and the second swing sensor 59 are located on different circumferences of the swing driven wheel 57, during the rotation of the swing driven wheel 57, the first swing sensor 61 will not sense the second swing sensor 59, and the second swing sensor 62 will not sense the first swing sensor 58. That is, there will be no mutual interference between the first swing sensor 58 and the second swing sensor 59. Therefore, the judgment result of the lifting control unit 501 is more accurate and will not affect the use process due to judgment errors.

[0124] Furthermore, in this embodiment, since a load sensor 502 is present, it can also generate a corresponding sensing signal when there are still mahjong tiles 200 on the support plate 52. Therefore, the swing control unit 501 can determine whether it is ready to perform the next tile-raising operation based on the remaining mahjong tiles on the support plate 52. This allows it to combine the operation of other devices and the user's instructions to perform the next tile-raising operation. This method ensures that the next tile-raising operation will not occur until all the mahjong tiles 200 on the support plate 52 have been picked up, thus avoiding affecting the user's ability to pick up and use the remaining mahjong tiles 200.

[0125] Since the load sensor 502 is located at the edge of the receiving end of the load plate 52, even if only one mahjong tile 200 remains, the next tile-raising action will not begin. This avoids misjudgment when there are few mahjong tiles 200, which could lead to the next tile-raising action starting before all mahjong tiles 200 have been picked up, thus improving the user experience.

[0126] Those skilled in the art should understand that this invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The embodiments and descriptions in the specification are merely illustrative of the principles of this invention. Various changes and improvements can be made to the technical solutions without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention, and all such changes and improvements fall within the scope of protection claimed by this invention.

[0127] For example, in the embodiment, both the first swing sensing part 58 and the second swing sensing part 59 are magnets, and the first swing sensor 61 and the second swing sensor 62 are corresponding magnetic induction sensors. In this invention, as long as the corresponding cooperation between the first swing sensor 61 and the first swing sensing part 58 and the corresponding cooperation between the second swing sensor 62 and the second swing sensing part 59 can be achieved, other sensors and sensing parts can also be used. For example, the first swing sensing part 58 and the second swing sensing part 59 can be set as concave holes and / or protruding pillars with a specific depth or height, and the first swing sensor 61 and the second swing sensor 62 can both be set as distance sensors. The lifting control unit 501 can determine whether the sensing part has reached below the corresponding sensor according to the distance signals of the first swing sensor 61 and the second swing sensor 62, and determine the position state of the support plate 52 accordingly.

[0128] Based on the above changes, further modifications can be made. Specifically, the first swing sensing part 58 can be configured as either a protrusion or a recess, and the second swing sensing part 59 can be configured as either a protrusion or a recess, with both positioned on the same circumference. The circumference, except for the first and second swing sensing parts 58 and 59, has a uniform overall height. In this case, the swing sensing element can include only one distance sensor as the swing sensor. When the swing sensor detects a signal with a longer distance, it indicates that the recess is below it; when it detects a signal with a shorter distance, it indicates that the protrusion is below it; and when it detects a signal with a distance between the two, it indicates that neither the recess nor the protrusion is below it. The lifting control unit 501 can determine the position state of the support plate 52 based on these different signals.

[0129] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the first swing sensing unit 58 and the second swing sensing unit 59 are located on the same diameter. However, in other embodiments, they may not be located on the same diameter. As long as the positions of the two sensors are adjusted accordingly, the first swing sensor 61 can sense the first swing sensing unit 58 and the second swing sensor 62 can sense the second swing sensing unit 59.

[0130] 100: Mahjong Machine 101: Vehicle registration agency 10: Tag supply device 11: Card Suction Wheel 12: Talisman stand 13: Belt assembly 14: Branded motor 15: Supply belt 16: Guide wheel 17: Tensioner 20: Stacking Card Device 21: Stacking Cards 211: Stacking Card Slot 22: Stacking Block Drive Rod 221: Stacking drive shaft 23: Stacked Card Drive Wheel 231: Stacking Card Drive Slot 231A: Concave segment 231B: Outer convex segment 24: Stacked brand motor 25: Draw the cards 26: Card-pulling linkage 27: Card Draw Driver Block 271: Card-drawing slide 28: Stacked Card Shell 291: Stacking Control Unit 29: Stacking Card Counting Sensor 30: Tag storage device 31: Card Storage Plate 310: Rotating shaft 311: Barrier 312: Card slot 312A: License Plate Slot 312B: Lower Card Slot 313: Pillar 314: Driven wheel groove 315: Connecting rod mating groove 316: Driven wheel shaft 32: Upper groove plate 321: Flange 33:Lower groove plate 34: Inner groove plate 35: License Plate Sensor 40: Card Pushing Device 41: Pushing the card holder 41A: Gap 411: Rotary slot 412: Depressed section 42: Card Push Rotating Seat 421: Push arm mounting protrusion 422: Push arm mounting hole 423: Rotate the seat gear 43: Card Pusher Arm 431: Push the card head 432: Push Card Slider 433: Pushing the card protrudes 44: Push Card Motor 45: Card Pushing Drive Gear 46: Card Pushing Sensor Component 461: First card push sensor 462: Second card pusher sensor 47: Card Pushing Control Unit 50: Plate-raising device 501: Upgrade Control Unit 51: Support frame 511: Bearing groove 511A: Open end 52: Support plate 502: Load sensor 521: Bearing mating groove 53: Oscillating Motor 54: Swing Arm 541: Swing shaft 542: Oscillating shaft teeth 543: Oscillating slider 55: Swing Link 551: Driven wheel mating end 552: Oscillating mating end 553: Roller 554: Oscillating meshing teeth 56: Oscillating drive wheel 57: Oscillating driven wheel 572: Track Slot 572A: Remote 572B: Proximal 58: First swing sensing unit 59: Second swing sensor 60: Oscillation sensor component 61: First swing sensor 62: Second swing sensor 102: Operating Panel Mechanism 103: Table frame mechanism 104: Outer border 105: Tabletop 105A: Card Play Slot 106: Lower Frame 107: Shuffling Mechanism 108: Control device 200: Mahjong tiles

Claims

1. A tile-lifting device, installed in a mahjong machine, for raising a stack of tiles from a conveyor to a tabletop, the device comprising: a support unit including a support plate for supporting the stack; a swing unit for raising and lowering the support plate; and a tile-lifting control unit; wherein, The swing unit includes a swing motor, a swing driven wheel that rotates under the drive of the swing motor, a swing linkage that reciprocates and translates with the rotation of the swing driven wheel, a swing arm that swings up and down with the translation of the swing linkage, and a swing sensing component that senses the rotational position of the swing driven wheel. One end of the swing arm is adapted to the support plate, so that the support plate swings up and down by swinging the swing arm. The swing driven wheel is provided with a first swing sensing part that cooperates with the swing sensing component and corresponds to an upward swing position of the support plate, and a second swing sensing part that cooperates with the swing sensing component and corresponds to a downward swing position of the support plate. The lifting control unit is connected to the swing sensing component and the swing motor. The lifting control unit determines whether the support plate has reached the upward swing position based on the sensing signal corresponding to the first swing sensing part, and determines whether the support plate has reached the downward swing position based on the sensing signal corresponding to the second swing sensing part. The lifting control unit controls the swing motor according to the determination results.

2. The card-raising device as described in claim 1, wherein, The swing sensing assembly includes a first swing sensor that cooperates with the first swing sensing unit and a second swing sensor that cooperates with the second swing sensing unit. The lifting control unit determines whether the support plate has reached the upper swing position based on the sensing signal of the first swing sensor, and determines whether the support plate has reached the lower swing position based on the sensing signal of the second swing sensor.

3. The card-raising device as described in claim 2, wherein, Both the first and second swing sensing parts are magnets, and both the first and second swing sensors are magnetic induction sensors. The first and second swing sensing parts are disposed on different circumferences of the swing driven wheel.

4. The card-raising device as described in claim 2, wherein, One surface of the oscillating driven wheel is provided with a track groove, the track groove including a far end farthest from the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel and a near end closest to the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel. The oscillating link has a roller that is slidably engaged in the track groove. When the roller is located at one of the far end and the near end, the support plate reaches the upper oscillating position and the first oscillating sensor is opposite to the first oscillating sensing part. When the roller is located at the other of the far end and the near end, the support plate reaches the lower oscillating position and the second oscillating sensor is opposite to the second oscillating sensing part.

5. The card-raising device as described in claim 1, wherein, The swing sensing assembly includes a swing sensor that can cooperate with the first swing sensing part and the second swing sensing part respectively. The swing sensor is a distance sensor. The first swing sensing part is one of a protrusion and a concave hole, and the second swing sensing part is the other of a protrusion and a concave hole. The first swing sensing part and the second swing sensing part are located on the same circumference of the swing driven wheel. The lifting control unit determines whether the support plate is located at the upper swing position, the lower swing position, or between the upper swing position and the lower swing position based on the different sensing signals generated by the swing sensor on the protrusion, the concave hole and the surface of the swing driven wheel.

6. The card-raising device as described in claim 5, wherein, The oscillating driven wheel has a track groove on one surface. The track groove includes a far end that is farthest from the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel and a near end that is closest to the rotation center of the oscillating driven wheel. The oscillating link has a roller that is slidably engaged in the track groove. When the roller is located at one of the far end and the near end, the support plate reaches the upper oscillating position and the oscillating sensor is opposite to the first oscillating sensing part. When the roller is located at the other of the far end and the near end, the support plate reaches the lower oscillating position and the oscillating sensor is opposite to the second oscillating sensing part.

7. The card-raising device as described in claim 1, wherein, A load sensor is installed at one end of the support plate. The load sensor is used to detect a mahjong tile. When the load sensor does not detect the mahjong tile, the swing control unit determines that it is in a state where the next tile can be raised.

8. The card-raising device as described in claim 1, wherein, One end of the swing linkage is provided with a drive tooth arranged in a straight line, and the other end of the swing arm is provided with a swing shaft for rotational mounting. The swing shaft is provided with a swing shaft tooth that matches the drive tooth and is distributed circumferentially along the swing shaft.

9. A tile-feeding mechanism, disposed in a mahjong machine, comprising: a tile-feeding device for receiving and feeding a plurality of mahjong tiles from a shuffling device; a tile-stacking device for stacking the mahjong tiles fed by the tile-feeding device to form a tile stack, one side of the stacking device being coupled to one side of the tile-feeding device; a tile-storing device for storing the tile stack formed by the stacking device, one side of the storage device being coupled to the other side of the stacking device; a tile-pushing device for pushing and conveying the tile stack stored in the storage device, the pushing device being disposed within an inner circle of the storage device; and a tile-lifting device for lifting the conveyed tile stack to a tabletop, one side of the lifting device being correspondingly disposed on one side of the storage device; wherein... The card-raising device is the card-raising device described in any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. A mahjong machine, comprising: a shuffling mechanism for shuffling a plurality of mahjong tiles; and a plurality of tile-dealing mechanisms for dealing the shuffled mahjong tiles; wherein, These registration agencies are the registration agencies described in claim 9, and these registration agencies are located around the shuffling agency.

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