A shuffling method for mahjong machine

Abstract

The present invention relates to the technical field of mahjong machines, and specifically discloses a shuffling method for a mahjong machine, which includes at least a first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1. In the shuffling method of the present invention, at the beginning stage of shuffling, after the mahjong tiles slide onto the upper surface of the shuffling plate, since the scraping arm of the card scraper rotates in the same direction as the shuffling plate, part of the mahjong tiles will rotate with the shuffling plate, slowing down the speed at which part of the mahjong tiles in the mahjong pile slide toward the upper card opening, and only part of them move to the upper card opening, so that the mahjong tiles at the upper card opening will not be piled up in large quantities, thereby improving the efficiency of loading the tiles at the upper card opening.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of mahjong machines, and in particular to a shuffling method for mahjong machines. Background Art

[0002] In the prior art mahjong machine, the card scraping mechanism is usually fixed, and the shuffling plate rotates during shuffling. The scraping arm of the card scraping mechanism blocks and guides the mahjong tiles on the shuffling plate, thereby causing the mahjong tiles on the shuffling plate to move toward the upper card opening.

[0003] The defects caused by the fixed card-scraping mechanism in the prior art are:

[0004] (1) When shuffling begins, all the mahjong tiles fall onto the upper surface of the shuffling plate at once and pile up. The relatively stationary scraper arm creates a very large resistance to the pile of mahjong tiles, resulting in a very large movement resistance of the shuffling plate. A high-torque motor is required to drive the shuffling plate, which increases the cost of the mahjong machine. At the same time, when the mahjong tiles pile up and cause congestion, the high-torque motor can easily damage the linkage gear mechanism.

[0005] (2) The resistance of the mahjong tile pile to the scraper arm is very large, which makes the scraper arm easily deformed. The material performance requirements of the scraper arm are relatively high. As time goes by, the scraper arm fails due to excessive deformation, resulting in the mahjong tiles not being able to reach the card outlet, causing a malfunction.

[0006] (3) Due to the obstruction and guidance of the fixed scraper arm, the mahjong pile quickly slides to the upper card opening and forms an accumulation at the card opening. Since each card opening can only absorb one mahjong tile at a time, the mahjong tiles piled up at the card opening cause a large mutual force between the mahjong tiles, which will cause the magnetic attraction force of the card loading mechanism to be insufficient to remove the mahjong tiles from the card stack, resulting in the phenomenon of idling of the card loading mechanism, which results in low card loading efficiency.

[0007] (4) During the rotation of the shuffling plate, the large resistance of the mahjong tile pile causes the free end of the scraper arm to deform. The deformed free end of the scraper arm quickly recovers after passing through the tile pile, generating a large noise. In addition, since the scraper arm is fixed and the shuffling plate rotates, collision noise is generated between the mahjong tiles and the scraper arm. Summary of the invention

[0008] The technical problem to be solved is to solve the technical defects caused by the fixed structure of the card scraper in the prior art mahjong machine.

[0009] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides a technical solution as follows: a shuffling method for a mahjong machine, the mahjong machine at least comprising a coaxially arranged shuffling plate and a card scraper, the shuffling method at least comprising:

[0010] a first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1; and

[0011] In the second shuffling stage, the card scraper stops rotating and the shuffling disk rotates until the shuffling is completed.

[0012] In a preferred embodiment, the card scratcher performs intermittent rotational motion.

[0013] A shuffling method for a mahjong machine, the mahjong machine at least comprising a coaxially arranged shuffling plate and a card scraper, the shuffling method at least comprising:

[0014] The first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1;

[0015] a second shuffling stage, in which the card scraper stops rotating and the shuffling plate continues rotating; and

[0016] The third shuffling stage, in which the card scraper rotates in the opposite direction relative to the shuffling plate, and the shuffling plate continues to rotate in the direction of rotation of the first shuffling stage and the second shuffling stage until the shuffling is completed.

[0017] A shuffling method for a mahjong machine, the mahjong machine at least comprising a coaxially arranged shuffling plate and a card scraper, the shuffling method at least comprising:

[0018] The first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1;

[0019] A second shuffling stage, in which the card scraper stops rotating and the shuffling plate continues rotating;

[0020] A third shuffling stage, in which the shuffling disk performs reverse rotational motion and is configured to initiate reverse rotational motion of the card scraper; and

[0021] In the fourth shuffling stage, after the reverse rotation of the scraper is started, the rotation direction of the shuffling disk is switched to the same as that in the first shuffling stage, and the scraper rotates reversely relative to the shuffling disk until the shuffling is completed.

[0022] A shuffling method for a mahjong machine, the mahjong machine at least comprising a coaxially arranged shuffling plate and a card scraper, the shuffling method at least comprising:

[0023] a first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1; and

[0024] In the second shuffling stage, the card scraper rotates in the opposite direction relative to the shuffling plate, and the shuffling plate continues to rotate in the direction of rotation of the first shuffling stage until the shuffling is completed.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment, the card scraper performs intermittent motion during the counter-rotational motion relative to the shuffling disk.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment, the rotation speed of the card scraper in the reverse rotational motion relative to the shuffling disk is n3, wherein n3≤n2<n1.

[0027] In a preferred embodiment, in the first shuffling stage, the angle of rotation of the scratcher is R, wherein 60°≤R≤720°.

[0028] In a preferred embodiment, n2=(0.2-0.8)*n1.

[0029] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0030] (1) At the beginning of shuffling, after the mahjong tiles slide onto the upper surface of the shuffling plate, the scraper arm of the scraper rotates in the same direction as the shuffling plate, so that some mahjong tiles will rotate with the shuffling plate, slowing down the speed at which some mahjong tiles in the mahjong pile slide toward the upper card opening, and only some of them move toward the upper card opening, so that the mahjong tiles at the upper card opening will not accumulate in large quantities, thereby improving the efficiency of loading cards at the upper card opening;

[0031] (2) The scraper arm of the card scraper rotates in the same direction as the shuffle plate, and the rotation speed is lower than that of the shuffle plate. The relative speed difference will produce a certain resistance to the mahjong tiles, blocking and guiding the mahjong tiles to slide to the bottom. However, in this process, the resistance is relatively small, the deformation of the scraper arm will be smaller, and the torque of the driving motor of the shuffle plate will also be smaller, which saves costs and prolongs the service life;

[0032] (3) Since there is no accumulation at the card loading port, the resistance to the free end of the scraper arm is small, the deformation of the free end of the scraper arm is small, and the noise generated during the rotation process is greatly reduced;

[0033] (4) After the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction for a certain angle, most of the mahjong tiles have been loaded by the loading mechanism. By controlling the card scraper to stop rotating or rotate in the opposite direction, the remaining small number of mahjong tiles on the shuffling plate are quickly dispersed, which helps the remaining mahjong tiles to quickly slide from the shuffling plate to the upper card mouth, thereby improving the efficiency of shuffling. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0034] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the external structure of the Mahjong machine with the card-scraping mechanism and the card-shuffling plate linked together according to the first embodiment;

[0035] Figure 2 for Figure 1 The schematic diagram of the exploded state structure of the card-scraping mechanism and the card-shuffling plate-linked mahjong machine shown;

[0036] Figure 3 It is a schematic cross-sectional structural diagram of the shuffling plate in the first embodiment;

[0037] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the installation state of the card scraping mechanism and the transmission gear set in the first embodiment;

[0038] Figure 5 It is a structural schematic diagram of the card-scraping mechanism in the first embodiment;

[0039] Figure 6 It is a structural schematic diagram of the card scratcher in the first embodiment;

[0040] Figure 7 It is a structural schematic diagram of the separation limit block in the first embodiment;

[0041] Figure 8 It is a structural schematic diagram of the fixing base in the first embodiment;

[0042] Fig. 9 It is a structural schematic diagram of the central lifting dice plate mechanism in Example 1;

[0043] Fig.10 It is a structural schematic diagram of the transmission gear set in the first embodiment;

[0044] Fig.11 It is a partial cross-sectional structural schematic diagram of the separation limit block in the card scraping mechanism and the card shuffling plate linkage mahjong machine shown in the first embodiment in the highest position state;

[0045] Fig.12 It is a partial cross-sectional structural schematic diagram of the separation limit block of the card scraping mechanism and the card shuffling plate linkage mahjong machine shown in the first embodiment in the lowest position state;

[0046] Fig.13 It is a partial cross-sectional structural schematic diagram of the separation limit block in the moving position of the card scraping mechanism and the card shuffling plate linkage mahjong machine shown in the first embodiment;

[0047] Fig.14 It is a structural schematic diagram of the separation limit block in the card scraping mechanism and the card shuffling plate linkage mahjong machine described in the second embodiment;

[0048] Fig.15 It is a schematic structural diagram of the explosion state of the card scraping mechanism in the Mahjong machine of the card scraping mechanism and the card shuffling plate linkage type described in the third embodiment;

[0049] Fig.16 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper in an exploded state as shown in Example 4;

[0050] Fig.17 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the shuffling plate in the fourth embodiment;

[0051] Fig.18 It is a structural schematic diagram of the card scratcher in the fourth embodiment;

[0052] Fig.19 It is a structural schematic diagram of the fixing base in the fourth embodiment;

[0053] Fig. 20 This is a schematic diagram of the bottom structure of the separation limit block in the fourth embodiment;

[0054] Fig.21 It is a structural schematic diagram of a mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper as shown in Example 5;

[0055] Fig. 22 for Fig.21 The exploded state structural diagram of the second embodiment is shown;

[0056] Fig.23 It is a structural schematic diagram of the card scratcher in the fifth embodiment;

[0057] Fig.24 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper as shown in Example 6. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0059] In the description of the present invention, it is necessary to understand that the terms "upper", "lower", "front", "back", "inside", "outside", etc. indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

[0060] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise clearly stipulated and limited, the terms "installation", "connection" and "connection" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it can be a fixed connection, an integral connection, or a detachable connection; it can be the internal connection of two components; it can be a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0061] The shuffling method of the present application is described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments.

[0062] Embodiment 1

[0063] This embodiment discloses a mahjong machine with a card-scraping mechanism and a card-shuffling plate linked together, such as Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, it includes a shuffling plate 10, a card scraping mechanism 20 and a central lifting dice plate mechanism 30.

[0064] In this embodiment, Figure 2 , Figure 3 As shown, the shuffling disk 10 is equipped with a disk driving device for driving the shuffling disk 10 to rotate, and the disk driving device includes a pair of symmetrically arranged disk driving motors 13, and a driving gear 14 is installed on the output shaft of the disk driving motor. A driven gear ring 11 meshing with the driving gear 14 is arranged at the bottom of the shuffling disk 10.

[0065] It should be noted that in this embodiment, two large disk drive motors are provided, which is only a preferred implementation of this embodiment, and only one or more than two large disk drive motors can be provided as needed. In addition, the transmission method between the large disk drive motor and the shuffling large disk is also a preferred implementation method, and the shuffling large disk can also be provided with a driven gear meshing with a driving gear, or other feasible transmission methods can be used, which are not limited here.

[0066] As the biggest improvement of this embodiment, the card scraping mechanism 20 is as follows Figure 2 As shown, it includes a fixed base 23 and a card scraper 21 arranged above the fixed base. The structure of the card scraper 21 is as follows: Figure 6 As shown, it includes a movable seat 211 arranged relative to the fixed seat 23 and four scraper arms 212 arranged around the movable seat 211.

[0067] In this embodiment, a motion separation mechanism is provided between the movable seat and the fixed seat, and the motion separation mechanism includes a separation limit block 22. The movable seat 211 is provided with a motion space inside to accommodate the axial motion of the separation limit block 22. The separation limit block 22 includes a first state and a second state in the motion space. Fig.12 In the first state shown, the card scraper 21 is fixed relative to the fixing base 23. Fig.11 , Fig.13 In the second state shown, the card scraper 21 can rotate relative to the fixed base 23.

[0068] The separation limit block 22 of this embodiment is as follows Figure 7 As shown, the end surface facing the fixing seat 23 is provided with two limiting protrusions 224 extending toward one side of the fixing seat, correspondingly, as shown in FIG. Figure 8 As shown, the fixing seat 23 is provided with a limiting hole 232 for plugging and matching with the limiting protrusion 224. The limiting protrusion 224 and the limiting hole 232 constitute a limiting mechanism between the separation limiting block and the fixing seat, and the limiting mechanism is configured not to affect the axial movement of the separation limiting block, and when the separation limiting block is in the first state, the circumferential movement of the separation limiting block is hindered, that is, the separation limiting block is fixed circumferentially relative to the fixing seat and can move axially.

[0069] In this embodiment, an axial guide mechanism is provided between the separation limit block 22 and the inner wall of the movable seat 211, and the axial guide mechanism includes a plurality of guide ribs 223 provided on the outer wall of the separation limit block and extending axially, and a guide groove 213 provided on the inner wall of the movable seat and adapted to the guide ribs 223. The axial guide mechanism enables the separation limit block to only perform axial movement relative to the movable seat. When the separation limit block is in the first state, the card scraper and the fixed seat form a whole and are in a fixed state; when the separation limit block is in the second state, the whole structure formed by the card scraper and the separation limit block can perform rotational movement relative to the fixed seat.

[0070] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the guide rib 223 of the axial guide mechanism is arranged on the outer wall of the separation limit block, and the guide groove is arranged on the inner wall of the movable seat. As an equivalent implementation, the guide rib can also be arranged on the inner wall of the movable seat, and the corresponding guide groove can also be arranged on the outer wall of the separation limit block. Of course, the axial guide mechanism can also adopt other feasible implementations in the prior art, such as the cooperation of the guide shaft and the guide hole, which is not the only limitation here.

[0071] In this embodiment, Figure 2 , Figure 11-13 As shown, an elastic member 24 is provided between the movable seat 211 and the separation limit block 22. The elastic member 24 is preferably a spring, and its configuration is such that when the separation limit block is in the second state, the elastic member is compressed, and when the limit protrusion and the limit block are in a coaxial position, the compression potential energy of the elastic member is released to drive the separation limit block from the second state to the first state.

[0072] As a special feature of this embodiment, a transmission mechanism is provided between the shuffling disk 10 and the card scraper 21, and the card scraper is driven to rotate by the disk driving device.

[0073] Specifically in this embodiment, the transmission mechanism is as follows: Figure 2 , Figure 3-Figure 5 , Figure 7 as well as Fig.10 As shown, it includes a first transmission gear ring 12 arranged on the shuffle plate, a second transmission gear ring 221 arranged on the separation limit block, and a transmission gear set 40. Preferably, in this embodiment, the transmission gear set includes a first transmission gear 41 and a second transmission gear 42 arranged coaxially, wherein the first transmission gear 41 is used to mesh with the first transmission gear ring 12, and the second transmission gear 42 is used to mesh with the second transmission gear ring 221, so as to transmit the rotational motion of the shuffle plate to the card scraper and drive the card scraper to rotate.

[0074] In this embodiment, for the purpose of motion separation, Figure 7 As shown, the second transmission gear ring 221 is provided with a clearance position 222 and is configured such that when the separation limit block is in the first state, the second transmission gear is disengaged from the second transmission gear ring at the clearance position.

[0075] In this embodiment, the structure of the central lifting dice plate mechanism 30 is as follows: Figure 2 , Fig. 9 As shown, it includes a dice plate 31, a central lifting rod 32 and a central lifting seat 33 connected in sequence from top to bottom, and also includes a central lifting motor 35 and a cam 34, wherein the central lifting motor 35 drives the cam 34 to rotate, thereby driving the central lifting seat 33 to rise and fall. It should be noted that the structure and principle of the central lifting dice plate mechanism 30 are conventional technologies in the field of mahjong machine technology, and will not be described in detail here.

[0076] The special feature of this embodiment is that the limiting hole 232 is of a through-type design. Correspondingly, a push rod 36 corresponding to the limiting hole is provided on the center lifting seat 33. The function of the push rod 36 is that when the center lifting seat rises, the push rod 36 enters the limiting hole and pushes the limiting protrusion in the limiting hole out of the limiting hole, driving the separation limiting block to move from the first state to the second state.

[0077] Of course, the structure in which the top rod on the motion center lifting seat drives the separation limit block to move from the first state to the second state is only a preferred mode of this embodiment, and is not the only limitation. Other feasible structures that can drive the separation limit block to move from the first state to the second state can be applied to this embodiment.

[0078] The working principle of the card-scraping mechanism and the card-shuffling plate linkage mahjong machine of this embodiment and the corresponding card-shuffling method are as follows:

[0079] In this embodiment, the initial state before shuffling begins is as follows: Fig.12As shown, the limiting protrusion 224 of the separation limiting block 22 is located in the limiting hole 232, and the card scraper 21 is in a fixed state. When a game is over and a new game needs to be started, the central lifting motor 35 is started by operating the mahjong machine to drive the central lifting dice plate 31, the central lifting rod 32 and the central lifting seat 33 to rise. In this process, Fig.11 As shown, the push rod 36 pushes the limiting protrusion out of the limiting hole, that is, the separation limiting block moves from the first state to the second state.

[0080] During this process, the mahjong tiles are pushed onto the shuffle plate inside the mahjong machine, and at the same time, the plate drive motor is started to drive the shuffle plate to rotate. Since the scraper arm 212 of the card scraper is elastic and close to the upper surface of the shuffle plate 10, when the shuffle plate 10 rotates, the card scraper is driven to rotate by a certain angle under the action of friction, so that the positions of the limiting protrusion and the limiting hole are staggered, and the lower end surface of the limiting protrusion contacts the upper surface 231 of the fixed seat. At the same time, after the card scraper rotates by a certain angle, the rotation of the second transmission gear ring causes the position of the avoidance position to change, so that the second transmission gear and the second transmission gear ring enter into a meshing state, thereby driving the card scraper to rotate.

[0081] The shuffling method corresponding to the mahjong machine of this embodiment includes a first shuffling stage and a second shuffling stage.

[0082] In this embodiment, in the first shuffling stage, the card scraper and the shuffling disk rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling disk is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1. Preferably, n2=(0.2-0.8)*n1.

[0083] In the first shuffling stage, after the mahjong tiles slide onto the upper surface of the shuffling plate, since the scraper arm of the scraper rotates in the same direction as the shuffling plate, some mahjong tiles will rotate with the shuffling plate, slowing down the speed at which some mahjong tiles in the mahjong pile slide toward the upper card opening, and only a part of them moves toward the upper card opening, so that the mahjong tiles at the upper card opening will not accumulate in large quantities, thereby improving the efficiency of loading the tiles at the upper card opening. The scraper arm of the scraper rotates in the same direction as the shuffling plate, and the rotation speed is lower than that of the shuffling plate. The relative speed difference will produce a certain resistance to the mahjong tiles, blocking and guiding the mahjong tiles to slide to the bottom, but in this process, the resistance is relatively small, the deformation of the scraper arm will be smaller, and the torque of the driving motor of the shuffling plate will also be smaller, saving costs and having a longer service life. Since there will be no accumulation at the upper card opening, the resistance to the free end of the scraper arm is small, the deformation of the free end of the scraper arm is small, and the noise generated during the rotation process is greatly reduced.

[0084] In this embodiment, when the card scraper rotates to a certain angle R, the second shuffling stage is entered. In the second shuffling stage, the card scraper stops rotating, and the shuffling disk rotates until the shuffling is completed.

[0085] In the first shuffling stage, most of the mahjong tiles have entered the loading device through the loading port. After that, a small number of mahjong tiles will remain on the shuffling plate. If the scraper continues to rotate, it will delay the time for the mahjong tiles to enter the loading port. Therefore, in the second stage, the scraper stops rotating, blocking the remaining mahjong tiles and guiding them to the loading port, which helps to improve the shuffling efficiency when there are fewer mahjong tiles.

[0086] In this embodiment, usually, the rotation angle R is selected to be 60°≤R≤360°. In this embodiment, the rotation angle R is controlled by the position control of the upper limit protrusion and the limit hole on the circumferential surface. Preferably, in this embodiment, two groups of limit protrusions and limit holes are provided, but the two groups of limit structures are staggered in the radial direction. Therefore, the rotation angle R of this embodiment is 360°. When the card scraper rotates to the point where the limit protrusion and the limit hole coincide, under the action of the elastic member, the limit protrusion enters the limit hole, causing the card scraper to stop rotating.

[0087] Of course, this is not the only limitation of the present application, and the rotation angle can also be set to other angles. For example, the limiting protrusion can overlap with the limiting hole at the corresponding position after rotating 180°, and the angle setting can be involved as needed. It should be noted that when the rotation angle is not 360 degrees, the second transmission gear ring should also set different numbers of avoidance positions according to the angle.

[0088] Embodiment 2

[0089] The difference between the card scraping mechanism and the card shuffling plate linkage mahjong machine of this embodiment and the first embodiment is that: Fig.14 As shown, the second transmission gear ring 221 is full-toothed in the circumferential direction, and is not designed to avoid gaps. However, a gap 225 is provided above the second transmission gear ring 221. In this embodiment, when the separation limit block is in the first state, there is a height difference between the second transmission gear ring 221 and the second transmission gear 42 and they are disengaged, that is, the second transmission gear 42 is located at the position where the gap 225 is located. When the separation limit block is in the second state, the second transmission gear ring 221 meshes with the second transmission gear after the separation limit block rises, thereby causing the shuffling plate to drive the card scraper to rotate.

[0090] It should be noted that the shuffling method of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment and will not be described in detail here.

[0091] Embodiment 3

[0092] The difference between the card scraping mechanism and the card shuffling plate linkage mahjong machine of this embodiment and the first embodiment is that: Fig.15As shown, the second transmission gear ring 221 is arranged inside the movable seat 211 instead of on the separation limit block. In addition, the second transmission gear ring 221 is provided with a clearance position 222 .

[0093] Preferably, in this embodiment, the guide rib 214 as the axial guide mechanism is arranged on the inner wall of the movable seat, and the guide groove 226 is arranged on the outer wall of the separation limit block. This structure has the same effect as the axial guide mechanism in the first embodiment.

[0094] It should be noted that the shuffling method of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment and will not be described in detail here.

[0095] Embodiment 4

[0096] A mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper according to the present embodiment, such as Fig.16 As shown, it includes a shuffling plate 10, a card scraping mechanism 20 and a central lifting dice plate mechanism 30.

[0097] In this embodiment, Fig.16 , Fig.17 As shown, the shuffling disk 10 is equipped with a disk driving device for driving the shuffling disk 10 to rotate, and the disk driving device includes a disk driving motor 13, and a first driving gear 14 is installed on the output shaft of the disk driving motor. A second driving gear ring 11 meshing with the first driving gear 14 is arranged at the bottom of the shuffling disk 10.

[0098] It should be noted that in this embodiment, there is one large disk drive motor, which is only a preferred embodiment of this embodiment, and the large disk drive motor can also be set to only multiple as needed. In addition, the transmission method between the large disk drive motor and the shuffling large disk is also a preferred embodiment, and the shuffling large disk can also be provided with a second drive gear meshing with the first drive gear, or other feasible transmission methods can be used, which are not limited here.

[0099] As the biggest improvement of this embodiment, the card scraping mechanism 20 is as follows Fig.16 As shown, it includes a fixed base 23 and a card scraper 21 arranged above the fixed base. The structure of the card scraper 21 is as follows: Fig.18 As shown, it includes a movable seat 211 arranged relative to the fixed seat 23 and four scraper arms 212 arranged around the movable seat 211.

[0100] In this embodiment, a motion separation mechanism is provided between the movable seat and the fixed seat, and the motion separation mechanism includes a separation limit block 22. The movable seat 211 is provided with a motion space inside to accommodate the axial motion of the separation limit block 22. The separation limit block 22 includes a first state and a second state in the motion space. Fig.12In the first state shown, the card scraper 21 is fixed relative to the fixing base 23. Fig.11 , Fig.13 In the second state shown, the card scraper 21 can rotate relative to the fixed base 23.

[0101] The separation limit block 22 of this embodiment is as follows Fig. 20 As shown, the end surface facing the fixing seat 23 is provided with two limiting protrusions 224 extending toward one side of the fixing seat, correspondingly, as shown in FIG. Fig.19 As shown, the fixing seat 23 is provided with a limiting hole 232 for plugging and matching with the limiting protrusion 224. The limiting protrusion 224 and the limiting hole 232 constitute a limiting mechanism between the separation limiting block and the fixing seat, and the limiting mechanism is configured not to affect the axial movement of the separation limiting block, and when the separation limiting block is in the first state, the circumferential movement of the separation limiting block is hindered, that is, the separation limiting block is fixed circumferentially relative to the fixing seat and can move axially.

[0102] In this embodiment, an axial guide mechanism is provided between the separation limit block 22 and the inner wall of the movable seat 211, and the axial guide mechanism includes a plurality of guide ribs 214 provided on the inner wall of the movable seat and extending axially, and a guide groove 226 provided on the outer wall of the separation limit block and adapted to the guide ribs 214. The axial guide mechanism enables the separation limit block to only perform axial movement relative to the movable seat. When the separation limit block is in the first state, the card scraper and the fixed seat form a whole and are in a fixed state; when the separation limit block is in the second state, the whole structure formed by the card scraper and the separation limit block can perform rotational movement relative to the fixed seat.

[0103] It should be noted that, in this embodiment, the guide ribs of the axial guide mechanism are arranged on the inner wall of the movable seat, and the guide grooves are arranged on the outer wall of the separation limit block. As an equivalent implementation, the guide ribs can also be arranged on the outer wall of the separation limit block, and the corresponding guide grooves can also be arranged on the inner wall of the movable seat. Of course, the axial guide mechanism can also adopt other feasible implementations in the prior art, such as the cooperation of the guide shaft and the guide hole, which is not the only limitation here.

[0104] In this embodiment, Fig.16 As shown, an elastic member 24 is provided between the movable seat 211 and the separation limit block 22. The elastic member 24 is preferably a spring, and its configuration is such that when the separation limit block is in the second state, the elastic member is compressed, and when the limit protrusion and the limit block are in a coaxial position, the compression potential energy of the elastic member is released to drive the separation limit block from the second state to the first state.

[0105] In this embodiment, the card scraper 21 is equipped with an independent card scraper driving device, and the control system of the mahjong machine controls the card scraper and the shuffling plate to perform independent rotational motion.

[0106] As a preferred embodiment, in this embodiment, the card-scraping driving device is as follows: Fig.16 As shown, it includes a card scraping drive motor 25, and the output shaft of the card scraping drive motor 25 is connected to a third drive gear 26. Fig.16 , Fig.18 As shown, a fourth driving gear 215 is disposed on the movable seat 211 , and the fourth driving gear 215 is used to mesh with the third driving gear 26 .

[0107] It should be noted that the above-mentioned card-scraping driving device is only a preferred implementation of this embodiment, and is not the only limitation of this application. Among them, the fourth driving gear can also adopt a gear ring structure to mesh with the third driving gear. Or other feasible transmission methods can be adopted, which is not the only limitation here.

[0108] Preferably, in this embodiment, for the purpose of motion separation, a clearance position 222 is provided on the fourth drive gear 215, and is configured so that when the separation limit block is in the first state, the fourth drive gear 215 disengages from the third drive gear 26 at the clearance position 222.

[0109] In this embodiment, the structure of the central lifting dice plate mechanism 30 is the same as that of the central lifting dice plate mechanism in the first embodiment, and will not be described in detail here.

[0110] The special feature of this embodiment is that the limiting hole 232 is of a through-type design. Correspondingly, a push rod 36 corresponding to the limiting hole is provided on the center lifting seat 33. The function of the push rod 36 is that when the center lifting seat rises, the push rod 36 enters the limiting hole and pushes the limiting protrusion in the limiting hole out of the limiting hole, driving the separation limiting block to move from the first state to the second state.

[0111] Of course, the structure in which the top rod on the motion center lifting seat drives the separation limit block to move from the first state to the second state is only a preferred mode of this embodiment, and is not the only limitation. Other feasible structures that can drive the separation limit block to move from the first state to the second state can be applied to this embodiment.

[0112] As a preference, Fig.19 As shown, on the fixing seat 23 of this embodiment, a track groove 233 extending from the lowest position where the lower end of the limiting protrusion is located to the upper surface of the fixing seat is provided on one side of the limiting hole 232, and the arc track of the track groove 233 is adapted to the limiting protrusion. Moreover, when the limiting protrusion 224 slides out of the track groove 233 from the bottom of the track groove, the rotation direction of the card scraper is opposite to the rotation direction of the dish washer.

[0113] It should be noted that the mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper in this embodiment can realize a variety of shuffling methods through the control of the mahjong machine control system. The various shuffling methods are described in detail below in combination with the working principles.

[0114] The first shuffle method:

[0115] In this embodiment, the initial state before shuffling begins is as follows: Fig.12 As shown, the limiting protrusion 224 of the separation limiting block 22 is located in the limiting hole 232, and the card scraper 21 is in a fixed state. When a game is over and a new game needs to be started, the central lifting motor 35 is started by operating the mahjong machine to drive the central lifting dice plate 31, the central lifting rod 32 and the central lifting seat 33 to rise. In this process, Fig.11 As shown, the push rod 36 pushes the limiting protrusion out of the limiting hole, that is, the separation limiting block moves from the first state to the second state.

[0116] During this process, the mahjong tiles are pushed onto the shuffling plate inside the mahjong machine, and at the same time, the plate drive motor is started to drive the shuffling plate to rotate. Since the scraper arm 212 of the card scraper is elastic and close to the upper surface of the shuffling plate 10, when the shuffling plate 10 rotates, the card scraper is driven to rotate by a certain angle under the action of friction, so that the positions of the limiting protrusion and the limiting hole are staggered, and the lower end surface of the limiting protrusion contacts the upper surface 231 of the fixed seat. At the same time, after the card scraper rotates by a certain angle, the rotation of the fourth drive gear causes the position of the avoidance position to change, so that the third drive gear and the fourth drive gear enter into a meshing state, thereby driving the card scraper to rotate.

[0117] The first shuffling method includes a first shuffling stage and a second shuffling stage.

[0118] In this embodiment, in the first shuffling stage, the card scraper and the shuffling disk rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling disk is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1. Preferably, n2=(0.2-0.8)*n1.

[0119] In this embodiment, when the card scraper rotates to a certain angle R, the second shuffling stage is entered. In the second shuffling stage, the card scraper stops rotating, and the shuffling disk rotates until the shuffling is completed.

[0120] In the first shuffling stage, most of the mahjong tiles have entered the loading device through the loading port. After that, a small number of mahjong tiles will remain on the shuffling plate. If the scraper continues to rotate, it will delay the time for the mahjong tiles to enter the loading port. Therefore, in the second stage, the scraper stops rotating, blocking the remaining mahjong tiles and guiding them to the loading port, which helps to improve the shuffling efficiency when there are fewer mahjong tiles.

[0121] In this embodiment, usually, the rotation angle R is selected to be 60°≤R≤360°. In this embodiment, the rotation angle R is controlled by the position control of the upper limit protrusion and the limit hole on the circumferential surface. Preferably, in this embodiment, two groups of limit protrusions and limit holes are provided, but the two groups of limit structures are staggered in the radial direction. Therefore, the rotation angle R of this embodiment is 360°. When the card scraper rotates to the point where the limit protrusion and the limit hole coincide, under the action of the elastic member, the limit protrusion enters the limit hole, causing the card scraper to stop rotating.

[0122] Of course, this is not the only limitation of the present application, and the rotation angle can also be set to other angles. For example, the limiting protrusion can overlap with the limiting hole at the corresponding position after rotating 180 degrees, and the angle setting can be involved as needed. It should be noted that when the rotation angle is not 360 degrees, the fourth drive gear should also be set with different numbers of avoidance positions according to the angle.

[0123] The second shuffling method:

[0124] The second shuffling method is different from the first shuffling method in that, in the first stage, the rotational motion of the scratcher can be an intermittent motion.

[0125] During the intermittent movement of the card scraper, the blocking effect of the scraper arm on the mahjong tiles on the shuffle plate has more variations, which helps to improve the efficiency of card loading.

[0126] The third shuffle method:

[0127] The third shuffling method is different from the first shuffling method and the second shuffling method in that, on the basis of the first shuffling method or the second shuffling method, a third shuffling stage and a fourth shuffling stage are added.

[0128] In the third shuffling stage, the disk driving motor rotates in the reverse direction, driving the shuffling disk to rotate in the reverse direction. Under the action of the friction between the upper surface of the shuffling disk and the scraper arm, the scraper is driven to rotate in the reverse direction. During this reverse rotation, the limiting protrusion moves along the track groove toward the upper surface of the fixed seat. During this movement, since the fourth driving gear rotates a certain angle, the avoidance position is driven to rotate a certain angle, and the third driving gear is meshed with the fourth driving gear. After meshing, the scraping driving motor rotates in the reverse direction, thereby driving the scraper to rotate in the reverse direction.

[0129] In the fourth shuffling stage, after the reverse rotation of the scraper is started, the rotation direction of the shuffling disk is switched to the same as that in the first shuffling stage, and the scraper rotates reversely relative to the shuffling disk until the shuffling is completed.

[0130] The advantage of the card scraper rotating in the opposite direction to the shuffling plate is that when there are fewer mahjong tiles, it helps to quickly guide the mahjong tiles to the loading port, thereby improving the efficiency of loading tiles.

[0131] Preferably, the rotation speed of the card scraper in the reverse rotational motion relative to the shuffling disk is n3, wherein n3≤n2<n1.

[0132] The fourth shuffle method:

[0133] The fourth shuffling method of this embodiment is different from the third shuffling method in that the reverse rotation motion of the card scraper is an intermittent motion.

[0134] Embodiment 5

[0135] A mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper according to the present embodiment, such as Fig.21 , Fig. 22 As shown, it includes a shuffling plate 10, a card scraper 21 and a central lifting dice plate mechanism 30.

[0136] In this embodiment, Fig.21 , Fig. 22 As shown, the shuffling disk 10 is equipped with a disk driving device for driving the shuffling disk 10 to rotate, and the disk driving device includes a disk driving motor 13, and a first driving gear 14 is installed on the output shaft of the disk driving motor. A second driving gear ring 11 meshing with the first driving gear 14 is arranged at the bottom of the shuffling disk 10.

[0137] It should be noted that in this embodiment, there is one large disk drive motor, which is only a preferred embodiment of this embodiment, and the large disk drive motor can also be set to only multiple as needed. In addition, the transmission method between the large disk drive motor and the shuffling large disk is also a preferred embodiment, and the shuffling large disk can also be provided with a second drive gear meshing with the first drive gear, or other feasible transmission methods can be used, which are not limited here.

[0138] As the biggest improvement of this embodiment, the card scraper 21 is coaxial with the shuffling plate 10 and is rotatably connected. Fig.23 As shown, it includes a movable seat 211 and four scraper arms 212 arranged around the movable seat 211.

[0139] In this embodiment, the card scraper 21 is equipped with an independent card scraper driving device, and the control system of the mahjong machine controls the card scraper and the shuffling plate to perform independent rotational motion.

[0140] As a preferred embodiment, in this embodiment, the card-scraping driving device is as follows: Fig.21 , Fig. 22 As shown, it includes a card scraping drive motor 25, and the output shaft of the card scraping drive motor 25 is connected to a third drive gear 26. Fig. 22 , Fig.23As shown, a fourth driving gear 215 is disposed on the movable seat 211 , and the fourth driving gear 215 is used to mesh with the third driving gear 26 .

[0141] It should be noted that the above-mentioned card-scraping driving device is only a preferred implementation of this embodiment, and is not the only limitation of this application. Among them, the fourth driving gear can also adopt a gear ring structure to mesh with the third driving gear. Or other feasible transmission methods can be adopted, which is not the only limitation here.

[0142] In this embodiment, the structure of the central lifting dice plate mechanism 30 is as follows: Fig.23 As shown, it includes a dice plate 31, a central lifting rod 32 and a central lifting seat 33 connected in sequence from top to bottom, and also includes a central lifting motor 35 and a cam 34, wherein the central lifting motor 35 drives the cam 34 to rotate, thereby driving the central lifting seat 33 to rise and fall. It should be noted that the structure and principle of the central lifting dice plate mechanism 30 are conventional technologies in the field of mahjong machine technology, and will not be described in detail here.

[0143] It should be noted that the mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper in this embodiment can realize a variety of shuffling methods through the control of the mahjong machine control system. The various shuffling methods are described in detail below in combination with the working principles.

[0144] The first shuffle method:

[0145] In this embodiment, the first shuffling method includes a first shuffling stage and a second shuffling stage.

[0146] In this embodiment, in the first shuffling stage, the card scraper and the shuffling disk are controlled to rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling disk is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1. Preferably, n2=(0.2-0.8)*n1.

[0147] In this embodiment, when the card scraper rotates to a certain angle R, the second shuffling stage is entered. In the second shuffling stage, the card scraper stops rotating, and the shuffling disk rotates until the shuffling is completed.

[0148] In the first shuffling stage, most of the mahjong tiles have entered the loading device through the loading port. After that, a small number of mahjong tiles will remain on the shuffling plate. If the scraper continues to rotate, it will delay the time for the mahjong tiles to enter the loading port. Therefore, in the second stage, the scraper stops rotating, blocking the remaining mahjong tiles and guiding them to the loading port, which helps to improve the shuffling efficiency when there are fewer mahjong tiles.

[0149] In this embodiment, usually, the rotation angle R is selected to be 60°≤R≤720°. Since the card scratcher is independently controlled, the rotation angle can be conveniently adjusted and controlled according to factors such as the size of the card.

[0150] The second shuffling method:

[0151] The second shuffling method is different from the first shuffling method in that, in the first stage, the rotational motion of the scratcher can be an intermittent motion.

[0152] During the intermittent movement of the card scraper, the blocking effect of the scraper arm on the mahjong tiles on the shuffle plate has more variations, which helps to improve the efficiency of card loading.

[0153] The third shuffle method:

[0154] The third shuffling method is different from the first shuffling method and the second shuffling method in that a third shuffling stage is added on the basis of the first shuffling method or the second shuffling method.

[0155] In the third shuffling stage, the card scraper is controlled to rotate in the reverse direction, and the shuffling plate continues to rotate in the direction of rotation of the first stage until the shuffling is completed.

[0156] The advantage of the card scraper rotating in the opposite direction to the shuffling plate is that when there are fewer mahjong tiles, it helps to quickly guide the mahjong tiles to the loading port, thereby improving the efficiency of loading tiles.

[0157] Preferably, the rotation speed of the card scraper in the reverse rotational motion relative to the shuffling disk is n3, wherein n3≤n2<n1.

[0158] The fourth shuffle method:

[0159] The fourth shuffling method of this embodiment is different from the third shuffling method in that the reverse rotation motion of the card scraper is an intermittent motion.

[0160] Embodiment 6

[0161] The present embodiment of a mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper is different from the fifth embodiment in that: Fig.24 As shown, the fifth driving gear 27 is also included. The fifth driving gear 27 is coaxially arranged with the third driving gear 26, and the fifth driving gear 27 is meshed with the second driving gear ring 11.

[0162] The special feature of this embodiment is that the fifth driving gear 27 is connected to the driving shaft through a one-way bearing. When the card scraper and the shuffling plate both rotate in the forward direction, the driving force of the card scraping driving motor is transmitted to the shuffling plate through the fifth driving gear, providing auxiliary power for the shuffling plate, which helps to reduce the load of the shuffling driving motor in the initial stage of shuffling when there are many mahjong tiles on the shuffling plate.

[0163] When the card scraper rotates in the opposite direction relative to the shuffling disk, the transmission relationship between the card scraper drive motor and the shuffling disk is disconnected due to the one-way transmission property of the one-way bearing.

[0164] The controllable shuffling mode of the mahjong machine with a rotatable card scraper of this embodiment is the same as that of the fifth embodiment, and will not be described in detail here.

[0165] In short, the above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for shuffling cards in a mahjong machine, the mahjong machine comprising at least a coaxially arranged shuffling plate and a card scraper, characterized in that: The shuffling method at least comprises: a first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1; and In the second shuffling stage, the card scraper stops rotating and the shuffling disk rotates until the shuffling is completed.

2. The shuffling method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The shuffling disk is provided with a disk driving device for driving the shuffling disk to rotate, and the card scraper is provided with an independent card scraper driving device, and the control system of the mahjong machine controls the card scraper and the shuffling disk to perform independent rotational motion; In the first shuffling stage, the card scraper performs intermittent rotational motion.

3. A shuffling method for a mahjong machine, the mahjong machine comprising at least a coaxially arranged shuffling plate and a card scraper, characterized in that: The shuffling disk is provided with a disk driving device for driving the shuffling disk to rotate, the card scraper is provided with an independent card scraper driving device, and the control system of the mahjong machine controls the card scraper and the shuffling disk to perform independent rotational motion; the shuffling method at least comprises: The first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1; a second shuffling stage, in which the card scraper stops rotating and the shuffling plate continues rotating; and The third shuffling stage, in which the card scraper rotates in the opposite direction relative to the shuffling plate, and the shuffling plate continues to rotate in the direction of rotation of the first shuffling stage and the second shuffling stage until the shuffling is completed.

4. A method for shuffling cards in a mahjong machine, the mahjong machine comprising at least a coaxially arranged shuffling plate and a card scraper, characterized in that: The shuffling method at least comprises: The first shuffling stage, in which the card scraper and the shuffling plate rotate in the same direction, the rotation speed of the shuffling plate is n1, and the rotation speed of the card scraper is n2, wherein n2<n1; A second shuffling stage, in which the card scraper stops rotating and the shuffling plate continues rotating; A third shuffling stage, in which the shuffling disk performs reverse rotational motion and is configured to initiate reverse rotational motion of the card scraper; and In the fourth shuffling stage, after the reverse rotation of the scraper is started, the rotation direction of the shuffling disk is switched to the same as that in the first shuffling stage, and the scraper rotates reversely relative to the shuffling disk until the shuffling is completed.

5. A shuffling method according to any one of claims 3 to 4, characterized in that: The card scraper performs intermittent motion during the reverse rotational motion relative to the card shuffling disk.

6. A shuffling method according to any one of claims 3 to 4, characterized in that: The rotation speed of the card scraper in the reverse rotational motion relative to the card shuffling disk is n3, wherein n3≤n2<n1.

7. A shuffling method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: In the first shuffling stage, the angle of rotation of the scratcher is R, wherein 60°≤R≤720°.

8. A shuffling method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: n2=(0.2~0.8)*n1.

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