Mahjong machine and mahjong tile feeding device thereof

Abstract

The utility model discloses a mahjong machine's card feeding device and mahjong machine. A mahjong machine's card feeding device, including annular storage card groove and drive mahjong card to move the card pushing subassembly in storage card groove, be equipped with magnetic component in the mahjong card, the bottom of storage card groove is equipped with magnet assembly, and this magnet assembly is configured to produce repulsion with the magnetic component inside mahjong card, so that the normal pressure of mahjong card and storage card groove contact surface is reduced, the storage card groove includes the card inlet and the card outlet, and the card feeding direction of card inlet and the card outlet direction of card outlet are 45 to 90 degrees angle. Also disclose a mahjong machine, including the shuffling disc and the four groups of card feeding device around the shuffling disc periphery are established, and each group card feeding device corresponds a group of card feeding device of any one scheme described above. The utility model has the advantages of: solved the industry pain point of " the card pushing resistance increases with the card weight increase and increases sharply " in the prior art, and the card feeding process is ensured to be continuous and smooth.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the technical field of mahjong machines, specifically to a card-loading device and a mahjong machine. Background Technology

[0002] Mahjong machines, as automated equipment in the modern entertainment field, are widely used in homes and entertainment venues due to their advantages of eliminating the need for manual shuffling and high efficiency in dealing cards, greatly enhancing the convenience and fun of the mahjong game. Their core working principle is based on a combination of magnetic attraction and mechanical transmission: the mahjong tiles contain a magnetically attractable material (such as magnetic patches); during shuffling, the tiles rotate within an inclined shuffling disc, are attracted to the conveyor trough of the card-delivering device, and then a stacking motor piles them into a stack shape, which is then pushed to the card-delivering area by a card-pushing component, ultimately completing the card-delivering process.

[0003] As user demands evolve, the size and weight of mahjong tiles are gradually increasing. Larger tiles make it easier for users to see the patterns on the tiles, enhancing the gaming experience. However, this also places higher demands on the tile-feeding mechanism of mahjong machines. To reduce the overall size of mahjong machines and optimize the internal space layout, the industry has seen the emergence of technical solutions that improve the traditional lifting tile-feeding mechanism into a rotary lifting or ring conveyor type. For example, Chinese utility model patent CN107773976A (publication date March 9, 2018) discloses a ring-shaped tile-pushing device for an automatic mahjong machine. By setting a ring-shaped tile-pushing groove on the base and having a motor drive a turntable to move the tile-pushing blocks within the ring-shaped groove, it effectively reduces the tile-pushing space and solves the problems of large size and complex structure in traditional mahjong machines, becoming one of the mainstream tile-feeding mechanism design ideas.

[0004] However, existing ring conveyor-type tile-loading mechanisms still have the following technical defects when adapting to large-sized and heavy mahjong tiles, which can easily cause jamming (tile jamming) during the tile loading process, affecting the stability and service life of the equipment:

[0005] Excessive friction leads to a high risk of card jamming: The positive pressure between the heavy mahjong tiles and the bottom of the annular conveyor trough (hereinafter referred to as the "card storage trough") increases significantly, resulting in a substantial increase in the sliding friction between the two. The pushing force design of the existing annular pushing device's pushing components (such as pushing blocks and pushing heads) is not adapted to high-friction scenarios, and the mahjong tiles are prone to stagnation and jamming in the annular trough due to insufficient pushing force. The card jamming problem is more prominent in the turning of the trough or in the area where cards are inserted / discarded.

[0006] Excessive load on the drive motor can easily lead to damage: To overcome the high friction mentioned above, existing technologies usually require the use of a higher power drive motor. This not only increases the production cost and energy consumption of the mahjong machine, but also causes the motor to operate under high load for a long time. When the mahjong tiles become slightly stuck, the motor output torque increases sharply, which can easily cause it to burn out due to overheating or overload, severely shortening the motor's service life and increasing the user's maintenance costs.

[0007] The connection between the inlet and outlet directions of the annular conveyor trough is unreasonable: In some existing annular conveyor troughs, the inlet and outlet are designed in the same direction or at a small angle. When heavy mahjong tiles are transferred from the inlet section to the outlet section, they are prone to impacting the trough wall or adjacent mahjong tiles due to inertia, which further aggravates the jamming phenomenon. Moreover, there is a lack of optimized design for the conveying direction to guide the tiles to transition smoothly. On the other hand, if the angle between the inlet and outlet directions is too large, the length of the entire conveyor trough will not be enough to accommodate more mahjong tiles, requiring a new, longer conveyor trough, which will encroach on the space of other components.

[0008] In summary, the existing ring conveyor-type card-loading mechanism cannot meet the smooth conveying requirements of large-sized and heavy mahjong tiles. There is an urgent need for a technical solution that can reduce the friction between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot, optimize the card-loading path, avoid card jamming, and does not rely on a high-power motor, so as to solve the current pain points in the industry. Utility Model Content

[0009] This utility model aims to overcome the shortcomings of existing ring conveyor type mahjong machine card loading devices, such as easy card jamming and excessive load on the drive motor. It provides a card loading device and mahjong machine that reduces the positive pressure between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot and optimizes the direction of card loading and unloading, thereby achieving smooth card loading and extending the service life of the motor.

[0010] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this utility model is achieved through the following technical solution:

[0011] A tile-loading device for a mahjong machine includes an annular tile storage slot and a tile-pushing assembly that drives the mahjong tiles to move within the storage slot. The mahjong tiles contain magnetic components, and a magnetic assembly is located at the bottom of the storage slot. This magnetic assembly is configured to generate a repulsive force with the magnetic components inside the mahjong tiles, thereby reducing the positive pressure on the contact surface between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot. The storage slot includes a tile inlet and a tile outlet, with the tile inlet's inlet direction forming an angle of 45° to 90° with the tile outlet's outlet direction.

[0012] In the aforementioned card-loading device for a mahjong machine, the bottom of the card storage slot has an installation groove arranged along the length of the card storage slot, and the magnet assembly is disposed in the installation groove.

[0013] In the aforementioned card-loading device for a mahjong machine, the magnet assembly is located on the back side of the bottom of the card storage slot.

[0014] In the aforementioned card-adding device for a mahjong machine, the magnetic assembly includes a plurality of magnets arranged continuously or at intervals.

[0015] In the aforementioned card-loading device for a mahjong machine, a friction-reducing pad is provided at the bottom of the card storage slot above the magnet assembly. The friction-reducing pad has at least two spaced tracks protruding towards the bearing surface of the mahjong tiles, and the tracks are continuously arranged along the length of the card storage slot.

[0016] In the aforementioned card-loading device for a mahjong machine, the magnet assembly is located in the gap area between adjacent tracks, or is embedded inside the tracks.

[0017] In the aforementioned card-feeding device for a mahjong machine, the magnet assembly is located in the gap area between adjacent tracks, and the friction-reducing pad has an array of through holes at the position corresponding to the magnet assembly, the array of through holes extending through the thickness direction of the friction-reducing pad.

[0018] In the aforementioned card-feeding device for a mahjong machine, the card storage slot includes an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall is the side closest to the center of the card storage slot, and the outer wall is the side furthest from the center of the card storage slot.

[0019] In the aforementioned card-feeding device for a mahjong machine, the card-pushing assembly includes a card-pushing head that abuts against the mahjong tiles, and the distance between the card-pushing head and the outer side wall is greater than the distance between the card-pushing head and the inner side wall.

[0020] In the aforementioned card-feeding device for a mahjong machine, the card-pushing assembly includes a card-pushing head that abuts against the mahjong tiles. The lower end of the card-pushing head has a protrusion extending toward the direction of the mahjong tiles, and the height of the protrusion gradually decreases along the extending direction.

[0021] A mahjong machine is also disclosed, including a shuffling plate and four sets of card feeding devices arranged around the outer periphery of the shuffling plate, each set of card feeding devices corresponding to a set of card feeding devices described in any of the above embodiments.

[0022] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of this utility model are:

[0023] By setting a magnetic component at the bottom of the card storage slot, the repulsive force between the magnetic component and the built-in magnetic components of the mahjong tiles directly offsets part of the weight of the mahjong tiles, reducing the positive pressure on the contact surface between the tiles and the storage slot. This design reduces friction from the mechanical source without relying on additional friction-reducing structures (such as friction-reducing pads or smoothing patches), preventing the tiles from stagnating or getting stuck in the storage slot. In particular, it solves the industry pain point of "the resistance to pushing tiles increases sharply with the weight of the tiles" in existing technologies, ensuring a continuous and smooth tile loading process.

[0024] Because of the repulsive force between the mahjong tiles and the magnetic assembly, the friction between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot is significantly reduced, thus significantly decreasing the pushing force required by the pushing assembly to move the tiles. Compared to the existing technology that "forces the use of high-power motors to overcome high friction," this invention can be directly adapted to conventional power motors without upgrading motor specifications. On the one hand, it avoids the increased cost and energy consumption associated with high-power motors; on the other hand, the motor does not need to operate under high load for extended periods, especially when the tiles are slightly stuck. This avoids overheating and burnout caused by a sudden increase in torque, directly extending the service life of the motor and the mahjong machine as a whole, and reducing subsequent maintenance costs for users.

[0025] Because the card-in direction at the card-inlet is at a 45° to 90° angle to the card-out direction at the card-outlet, the curved shape of the card storage slot better fits the internal space of the mahjong machine (especially the annular area surrounding the shuffling tray). This eliminates the need to lengthen the card storage slot or adjust the position of the card-feeding / lifting components to accommodate the small angle, avoiding the problem of "the card storage slot and the card-feeding device overlapping vertically," indirectly helping to reduce the height of the mahjong machine's main unit. Furthermore, this angle design increases the effective storage length of the card storage slot, accommodating larger mahjong tiles and ensuring smooth handling of these large tiles during the card-feeding process. This prevents card jamming and scattering, making the card-pushing process smoother, adapting to the internal space layout of the mahjong machine, and improving the equipment's compactness.

[0026] Furthermore, the bottom of the card storage slot has an installation groove extending along its length, and the magnet assembly is housed within this groove. The shape and length of the installation groove perfectly match the extension path of the card storage slot, forcing the magnet assembly to be precisely aligned along the conveying trajectory of the slot. This prevents the magnet from shifting laterally or moving longitudinally due to vibrations from the mahjong machine or friction from the card-pushing assembly. The installation groove is located at the bottom of the card storage slot, ensuring that the magnet assembly does not protrude from the support surface after embedding. This completely avoids direct friction between the magnet and the mahjong tiles, protecting both the surfaces of the mahjong tiles and the magnet assembly while ensuring smooth sliding of the mahjong tiles along the card storage slot.

[0027] Furthermore, the magnet assembly is located on the back side of the bottom of the card storage slot. This eliminates the need to machine the slot on the bearing surface, maintaining the flatness of the bearing surface at the bottom of the card storage slot. For existing mahjong machine card storage slots that are already formed, there is no need to create new installation slots; the magnet assembly can simply be added to the back side of the bottom using methods such as adhesive or bolt fixing. This significantly reduces the cost of modifying the original structure of the card storage slot and allows for more flexible assembly scenarios.

[0028] Furthermore, the magnet assembly includes several magnets arranged continuously or at intervals. For straight sections with low friction requirements, "interval arrangement" can reduce the total number of magnets and avoid material waste caused by using a single magnet or overly dense continuous magnets. In turning sections requiring strong magnetic effects, "continuous arrangement" can also replace "a single large magnet" by "splicing together multiple small magnets". On the one hand, the production and processing costs of small magnets are lower, and on the other hand, it can reduce the risk of damage during magnet transportation and assembly, indirectly reducing production losses.

[0029] Furthermore, the bottom of the storage slot above the magnet assembly is provided with a friction-reducing pad. The friction-reducing pad has at least two spaced-apart tracks protruding towards the bearing surface of the mahjong tile, and these tracks are continuously arranged along the length of the storage slot. The tracks only contact the mahjong tile through their top surfaces, reducing the contact area between the mahjong tile and the friction-reducing pad. This further reduces actual frictional resistance, especially for heavy mahjong tiles, effectively avoiding the risk of jamming due to residual friction caused by a large contact area despite magnetic repulsion. The two spaced-apart tracks ensure smooth movement of the mahjong tile within the storage slot, preventing tilting and avoiding jamming between the tile and the side walls of the storage slot.

[0030] Furthermore, the magnet assembly is located in the gap area between adjacent tracks or embedded inside the tracks. Since there is no track body obstructing the gap area, the magnetic field generated by the magnet assembly can directly pass through the gap space of the pad and act on the mahjong tiles, avoiding the track material's obstruction of the magnetic field and ensuring sufficient transmission of repulsive force. This maximizes the core objective of "reducing the positive pressure between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot." After embedding the magnet inside the track, the distance between the magnet and the mahjong tiles is minimized, and the track material thickness is uniform, avoiding local attenuation of the magnetic field due to "uneven path," ensuring uniform force on the mahjong tiles, and preventing uneven friction and tile jamming risks caused by insufficient local magnetic repulsion.

[0031] Furthermore, the magnet assembly is located in the gap region between adjacent tracks. The friction-reducing pad has an array of through holes at the corresponding positions of the magnet assembly, which extends through the thickness of the friction-reducing pad. The through-hole array extends through the thickness of the friction-reducing pad, creating a "non-physical barrier" magnetic field channel in the gap region where the magnet assembly is located. The magnetic field generated by the magnet assembly can directly penetrate the pad through the through holes without overcoming the magnetic resistance of the physical material, significantly reducing magnetic field loss and ensuring that the repulsive force is fully applied to the magnetic components built into the mahjong tile.

[0032] Furthermore, the tile storage slot includes an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall is located closer to the center of the slot, and the outer wall is located further away from the center. The inner and outer walls prevent the mahjong tiles inside the slot from sliding out.

[0033] Furthermore, the pushing component includes a pushing head that abuts against the mahjong tile, and the distance between the pushing head and the outer wall is greater than the distance between the pushing head and the inner wall. This structure can directly counteract the inertial force of the mahjong tile shifting towards the outer wall, forcing the tile to move along the preset trajectory of the storage slot, avoiding problems such as "friction and jamming between the outer edge of the mahjong tile and the outer wall" or "tilting and squeezing adjacent tiles" caused by the pushing force being biased inward.

[0034] Furthermore, the pusher assembly includes a pusher head that abuts against the mahjong tiles. The lower end of the pusher head has a protrusion extending towards the mahjong tiles, and the height of the protrusion gradually decreases along the extending direction. The contact area between the pusher head and the mahjong tiles cannot be too large; otherwise, the pusher will not be flexible enough, and the mahjong tiles, once tilted due to being confined, will become stuck in the storage slot and cannot be adjusted.

[0035] A mahjong machine includes a shuffling disc and four sets of card-feeding devices arranged around the outer periphery of the shuffling disc. Each set of card-feeding devices corresponds to a card-loading device as described in any of the above-mentioned solutions. The four sets of card-loading devices can simultaneously receive mahjong tiles fed by the corresponding card-feeding devices. With the help of the card-loading devices described in any of the above-mentioned solutions, the smooth transport of mahjong tiles in each area can be achieved, avoiding the problem of "decreased overall card-loading efficiency and tile accumulation" caused by jamming of a single set of card-loading devices in traditional machines. Especially for large-sized and heavy mahjong tiles, all four sets of card-loading devices have "low friction and anti-jamming" characteristics, which can simultaneously overcome the transport resistance of heavy tiles, ensuring that the card-loading process of the whole machine is continuous and uninterrupted, and improving the user's gaming experience. Attached Figure Description

[0036] Figure 1 This is a top view of a mahjong machine according to the present invention;

[0037] Figure 2 This is a top view of a mahjong machine card-loading device according to the present invention;

[0038] Figure 3 for Figure 2 Sectional view of AA;

[0039] Figure 4 for Figure 3 Enlarged view of a section at point B in the middle;

[0040] Figure 5 This is a perspective view of the pusher component in this utility model.

[0041] The attached figures are labeled as follows:

[0042] Card storage slot 100, card inlet 110, card outlet 120, mounting slot 130, inner side wall 140, outer side wall 150, card pushing assembly 200, card pushing head 210, protrusion 220, rotating seat 230, push plate rod 240, magnet assembly 300, friction reducing pad 400, track 410, through hole array 420, card shuffling plate 500, card feeding device 600, card lifting plate 700. Detailed Implementation

[0043] A mahjong machine's card-loading device includes an annular card storage slot 100 and a card-pushing assembly 200 for moving mahjong tiles within the card storage slot 100. The mahjong tiles contain magnetic components, and the bottom of the card storage slot 100 is provided with a magnetic assembly 300. This magnetic assembly 300 is configured to generate a repulsive force with the magnetic components inside the mahjong tiles, thereby reducing the positive pressure on the contact surface between the mahjong tiles and the card storage slot 100. The card storage slot 100 includes a card inlet 110 and a card outlet 120, with the card inlet 110's card-feeding direction and the card outlet 120's card-discharging direction forming an angle of 45° to 90°.

[0044] By setting a magnet assembly 300 at the bottom of the card storage slot 100, the repulsive force between the magnet assembly and the magnetic components inside the mahjong tiles directly offsets part of the weight of the mahjong tiles, reducing the positive pressure on the contact surface between the tiles and the card storage slot 100. This design reduces friction from the mechanical source without relying on additional friction-reducing structures (such as friction-reducing pads 400 or smooth patches), preventing the tiles from stopping or getting stuck in the card storage slot 100. In particular, it solves the industry pain point of "the resistance to pushing tiles increases sharply with the weight of the tiles" in the prior art, ensuring a continuous and smooth tile loading process.

[0045] Because of the repulsive force between the mahjong tiles and the magnetic component 300, the friction between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot 100 is significantly reduced, thus significantly reducing the pushing force required by the pusher component 200 to move the tiles. Compared to the existing technology that "forces the use of high-power motors to overcome high friction," this invention can be directly adapted to conventional power motors without upgrading motor specifications. On the one hand, it avoids the increased cost and energy consumption caused by high-power motors; on the other hand, the motor does not need to operate under high load for extended periods, especially when the tiles are slightly stuck. This avoids motor overheating and burnout caused by a sudden increase in torque, directly extending the service life of the motor and the mahjong machine as a whole, and reducing subsequent maintenance costs for users.

[0046] Because the card-in direction of the card inlet 110 and the card-out direction of the card outlet 120 are designed at an angle of 45° to 90°, the arc-shaped curvature of the card storage slot 100 can better fit the internal space of the mahjong machine (especially the annular area around the outer perimeter of the shuffling plate 500). This eliminates the need to lengthen the card storage slot 100 or adjust the position of the card feeding / lifting components to accommodate the small angle, avoiding the problem of "the card storage slot 100 and the card feeding device 600 overlapping vertically," indirectly helping to reduce the height of the mahjong machine's main unit. Furthermore, the aforementioned angle design increases the effective storage length of the card storage slot 100, accommodating larger mahjong tiles and ensuring the smoothness of these large tiles during the card-loading process, preventing card jamming and disorder, making the card-pushing process smoother, adapting to the internal space layout of the mahjong machine, and improving the equipment's compactness.

[0047] The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and intended to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0048] In the description of this utility model, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", and "outer" indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing this utility model and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on this utility model.

[0049] Furthermore, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of indicated technical features. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of that feature. In the description of this utility model, "a plurality of" means at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0050] In this utility model, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "joining," and "fixing," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; they can refer to a mechanical connection, an electrical connection, or a connection that allows communication between them; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components, unless otherwise explicitly limited. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this utility model according to the specific circumstances.

[0051] See Figures 2 to 5 This invention relates to an embodiment of a mahjong machine card-loading device. The device includes an annular card storage slot 100 and a card-pushing assembly 200 that drives the mahjong tiles to move within the card storage slot 100. In this embodiment, the card storage slot 100 is an open annular shape, meaning that the card inlet 110 and the card outlet 120 of the card storage slot 100 maintain a certain distance. Moreover, the card storage slot 100 is not perfectly circular. Based on the actual space and the requirements for cooperating with other components, the card storage slot 100 in this embodiment is composed of several arc-shaped segments and / or straight segments.

[0052] In this embodiment, the card-in direction of the card inlet 110 of the card storage slot 100 and the card-out direction of the card outlet 120 form an angle of 45° to 90°. If the angle is less than 45°, the distance between the card-feeding component connected to the card inlet 110 and the card-up plate connected to the card outlet 120 will be too close, requiring additional space in the height direction or an increase in the radius of the card storage slot 100. This is not conducive to reducing the size of the entire mahjong machine head and will increase the size of the entire mahjong machine. If the angle is greater than 90°, the length of the "effective card-storage segment" (the arc segment between the card inlet 110 and the card outlet 120) of the card storage slot 100 will be significantly shortened, and only a small number of mahjong tiles can be accommodated per unit length. This cannot meet the requirement of "17 stacks of tiles per set of card-up devices" in conventional mahjong machines, resulting in a "insufficient number of tiles and frequent replenishment" fault when carding, affecting the continuity of the game, or requiring an increase in the radius of the card storage slot 100, resulting in an increase in the size of the machine head.

[0053] As the demand for mahjong tiles increases, larger tiles lead to greater weight, increasing friction as they move within the storage slot 100. Since the tiles contain magnetic components and all tiles face down when stacked in the slot, a magnetic assembly 300 is installed at the bottom of the slot. This assembly repels the magnetic components within the tiles, reducing the pressure on the contact surface between the tiles and the slot. Essentially, the repulsive force between the magnetic assembly 300 and the magnetic components applies an upward repulsive force to the tiles, offsetting some of their weight and reducing pressure on the slot, thus decreasing friction. For heavy mahjong tiles, there is no need to rely on the pusher component 200 to increase the thrust, which can avoid the mahjong tiles from stopping or getting stuck in the storage slot 100 due to excessive friction (especially in the turning and entry / exit sections), thus achieving smooth transport.

[0054] Furthermore, there are generally two ways to install the magnet assembly 300: one is to install it on the bottom of the card storage slot 100 facing the mahjong tiles; the other is to install it on the back of the bottom of the card storage slot 100, that is, on the side facing away from the mahjong tiles. The following is a detailed introduction to these two installation methods.

[0055] 1. A mounting groove 130 is formed at the bottom of the tile storage slot 100 along its length, and the magnetic assembly 300 is disposed within the mounting groove 130. Because the magnetic assembly 300 generates a repulsive force with the mahjong tiles, it can be directly snapped into the mounting groove 130. This eliminates the need for other fixing structures or adhesives, reducing installation difficulty and enabling quick installation. Furthermore, the mounting groove 130 protects the magnetic assembly 300 from protruding, preventing damage or wear from impacts or direct contact with the mahjong tiles.

[0056] The shape and length of the mounting groove 130 perfectly match the extension path of the card storage groove 100, forcing the magnet assembly 300 to be precisely arranged along the conveying trajectory of the card storage groove 100. This prevents the magnet from shifting laterally or moving longitudinally due to factors such as vibrations from the mahjong machine or friction from the card pushing assembly 200. The magnet assembly 300 is confined inside the mounting groove 130, forming a physical interlocking structure with the card storage groove 100. This eliminates the need for additional connection methods such as glue or clips, achieving a stable assembly. Especially for heavy mahjong tiles, the impact and vibration of the tiles on the card storage groove 100 during the pushing process are greater. The mounting groove 130 effectively resists the risk of the magnet assembly 300 falling off due to external forces, preventing "local frictional increase and card loading jamming" caused by lost magnets, and improving the long-term reliability of the device. The mounting slot 130 is located at the bottom of the card storage slot 100. After the magnet component 300 is embedded, it will not protrude from the bearing surface of the card storage slot 100 (i.e., the contact surface of the mahjong tiles). Compared with the solution of "the magnet is placed directly on the bottom surface of the card storage slot 100", it can completely avoid direct friction (or scratching) between the magnet and the mahjong tiles. This protects the surface of the mahjong tiles and the magnet component 300, and ensures that the mahjong tiles can slide smoothly along the card storage slot 100. At the same time, the "slot-like structure" of the mounting slot 130 can prevent the magnet component 300 from occupying the external space of the card storage slot 100, and reserve more layout space for the card pushing component 200, card feeding device 600 and other components around the card storage slot 100, which is in line with the compact design requirements of the mahjong machine.

[0057] 2. The magnet assembly 300 is located on the back side of the bottom of the card storage slot 100. This method eliminates the need to process the slot on the bearing surface, maintaining the flatness of the bearing surface at the bottom of the card storage slot 100. This avoids the risk of "mahjong tiles getting stuck in the slot and the conveying being stuck" caused by the presence of the mounting slot 130. For heavy mahjong tiles, the flat bearing surface ensures that the bottom of the tile is subjected to uniform force, reducing "sudden changes in local friction force" caused by the uneven structure of the bearing surface, further ensuring the smoothness of the tile loading process, and at the same time avoiding wear caused by the mahjong tiles rubbing against the edge of the mounting slot 130.

[0058] If the card storage slot 100 is made of thin plastic, metal or other materials, opening the mounting slot 130 may weaken the structural strength of the card storage slot 100 (especially since the annular card storage slot 100 needs to withstand the radial pressure of the mahjong tiles). However, this solution does not require cutting the bottom of the card storage slot 100, and can completely preserve the original structural strength of the card storage slot 100, adapting to more lightweight and thin card storage slot 100 designs. For the already formed card storage slot 100 (such as the modification of existing mahjong machines), there is no need to open the mounting slot 130 again. It is only necessary to add the magnet assembly 300 on the bottom back by means of adhesive, bolt fixing or other methods, which greatly reduces the cost of modifying the original structure of the card storage slot 100 and makes the assembly scenario more flexible.

[0059] Based on the above embodiments, the magnet assembly 300 includes a plurality of magnets arranged continuously or at intervals.

[0060] Continuous magnet placement: Applicable to the turning sections of the card storage slot 100 and the connecting section between the card inlet 110 and the card outlet 120. In these areas, the friction of the mahjong tiles is prone to increase sharply due to changes in orientation and inertial impact. The continuously arranged magnets can form a "full-area coverage repulsive force" to ensure that the positive pressure between the mahjong tiles and the card storage slot 100 in this area is continuously reduced, avoiding the local friction from rising and causing jamming.

[0061] Interval magnet arrangement: Suitable for the linear conveying section of the tile storage trough 100. The linear section of the mahjong tiles has a stable movement direction and low friction requirements. The interval magnets can meet the core requirement of "reducing positive pressure" while avoiding excessive magnetic redundancy. At the same time, it can reduce the slight upward movement of the mahjong tiles that may occur due to "strong repulsive force across the entire area" (preventing the tile pusher 210 from losing contact with the tile body), thus balancing "friction reduction" and "conveying stability".

[0062] like Figure 3 , Figure 4As shown, in addition to reducing the friction between the mahjong tiles and the bottom of the storage slot 100, a friction-reducing pad 400 can be provided at the bottom of the storage slot 100. The friction-reducing pad 400 has at least two spaced tracks 410 protruding towards the bearing surface of the mahjong tiles. The tracks 410 are continuously arranged along the length of the storage slot 100. For example, in this embodiment, three tracks 410 are provided. Along the mahjong tile conveying direction, the distance between the two outermost tracks 410 on the left and right is less than the length of the mahjong tiles, ensuring that the tracks 410 can support the mahjong tiles. Even with only two tracks 410, it can still ensure that the mahjong tiles are conveyed smoothly on the tracks 410, avoiding the situation where the mahjong tiles only contact one track 410, causing the mahjong tiles to tilt and get stuck.

[0063] The track 410 contacts the mahjong tiles only through its top surface, replacing the traditional method of full-area contact at the bottom of the tile storage slot 100. This significantly reduces the contact area between the mahjong tiles and the pad. According to the friction formula f = μN (where μ is the coefficient of friction and N is the normal force), given that N in the magnet assembly 300 has already been reduced, the sharp reduction in contact area further reduces the actual frictional resistance, especially for heavy mahjong tiles, effectively preventing the risk of jamming.

[0064] Furthermore, the magnet assembly 300 is located in the gap area between adjacent tracks 410, or embedded inside the track 410. Since there is no physical obstruction from the track 410 in the gap area, the magnetic field generated by the magnet assembly 300 can directly pass through the gap space of the pad and act on the mahjong tiles, avoiding the obstruction of the magnetic field by the track 410 material (such as plastic), ensuring sufficient transmission of repulsive force, and maximizing the core objective of "reducing the positive pressure between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot 100". The magnet assembly 300 is embedded inside the track 410: the track 410 itself is a low-friction material (such as modified plastic). After embedding the magnet inside the track 410, the distance between the magnet and the mahjong tiles is compressed to the shortest possible distance. Moreover, the uniform thickness of the track 410 material avoids local attenuation of the magnetic field due to "uneven path," ensuring uniform force on the bottom of the mahjong tiles and preventing uneven friction and tile jamming risks caused by insufficient local magnetic repulsion.

[0065] Preferably, the magnet assembly 300 is located in the gap area between adjacent tracks 410. The friction-reducing pad 400 has a through-hole array 420 at the position corresponding to the magnet assembly 300, and the through-hole array 420 penetrates through the thickness direction of the friction-reducing pad 400. The through-hole array 420 penetrates through the thickness direction of the friction-reducing pad 400, so that the gap area where the magnet assembly 300 is located forms a "non-physical barrier" magnetic field channel. The magnetic field generated by the magnet assembly 300 can directly penetrate the pad through the through-hole without overcoming the magnetic resistance of the physical material, greatly reducing magnetic field loss and ensuring that the repulsive force acts on the magnetic components built into the mahjong tile. Especially for heavy mahjong tiles, the stronger repulsive force can further offset the weight of the tile, reduce the positive pressure, and indirectly reduce the sliding friction between the track 410 and the mahjong tile, avoiding the risk of jamming due to insufficient magnetic effect.

[0066] like Figure 2 , Figure 5 As shown, based on the above embodiment, the tile-pushing assembly 200 includes a rotating base 230, a pusher rod 240 mounted on the rotating base 230, and a tile-pushing head 210 mounted on the pusher rod 240. The tile-pushing head 210 is movable in the tile storage slot 100 and can push mahjong tiles. The rotating base 230 is rotatably connected to the base of the mahjong machine. The rotating base 230 is connected to a motor, which drives the pusher rod 240 to rotate around the center of the rotating base 230. The tile-pushing head 210 rotates with the pusher rod 240, and pushes the mahjong tiles to place them on the machine.

[0067] The tile storage slot 100 includes an inner wall 140 and an outer wall 150. The inner wall 140 is the side closest to the center of the slot 100, and the outer wall 150 is the side furthest from the center. The tile pushing assembly 200 includes a pushing head 210 that abuts against the mahjong tiles. The distance between the pushing head 210 and the outer wall 150 is greater than the distance between the pushing head 210 and the inner wall 140. For example, the ratio of the distance between the pushing head 210 and the inner wall 140 to the outer wall 150 is 1:8 to 1:2. The optimal ratio is 1:3. Since the tiles are added by rotation, the pushing head 210 cannot directly push the center of the mahjong tile. If it were in the center, the center of the mahjong tile would easily shift as it moves along the slot 100, and the tile could easily get stuck in the slot 100. The ratio of the distance between the pusher head 210 and the bottom of the storage slot 100 to the depth of the tile path is 1:10 to 1:5, with a preferred ratio of 1:6. If the mahjong tiles are stacked in two piles, excessive pushing force will cause the mahjong tiles to tilt and get stuck, and will also cause the upper and lower mahjong tiles to separate.

[0068] Furthermore, the lower end of the pusher head 210 is provided with a protrusion 220 extending toward the direction of the mahjong tiles. The height of the protrusion 220 gradually decreases along the extension direction. The contact area between the pusher head 210 and the mahjong tiles cannot be too large. If it is too large, the pusher will not be flexible enough. After the mahjong tiles are limited and tilted, they cannot be adjusted and will be stuck in the storage slot 100.

[0069] The operation of the card-feeding device in this embodiment is the same as other card-feeding devices. When the stacked mahjong tiles accumulate to a specified number along the storage slot 100, the card-pushing component 200 is activated, pushing the mahjong tiles along the storage slot 100 onto the lifting plate 700 connected to the outlet of the storage slot 100. Due to the mutual repulsion between the magnetic component 300 at the bottom of the storage slot 100 and the magnetic components inside the mahjong tiles, the friction between the mahjong tiles and the bottom of the storage slot 100 is reduced. Even if the mahjong tiles are larger, the original card-pushing motor can be used to drive the card-pushing component 200 to push the mahjong tiles. The solution in this embodiment uses the magnetic component 300 at the bottom of the storage slot 100 as the core. The repulsive force between the magnetic component 300 and the magnetic component inside the mahjong tile offsets part of the weight of the tile, reducing the positive pressure on the contact surface between the tile and the storage slot 100, thus reducing sliding friction from the mechanical source. At the same time, the raised track 410 on the friction-reducing pad 400 optimizes the "full-area contact" to "partial contact on the top surface of the track 410", further reducing the contact area and forming a dual friction-reducing system of "magnetic repulsion reducing positive pressure + track 410 reducing contact", which completely avoids the stagnation and jamming of heavy mahjong tiles caused by a sudden increase in friction. Furthermore, the card-in direction of the card inlet 110 and the card-out direction of the card outlet 120 are designed at an angle of 45° to 90°. This design not only accommodates the layout of the annular card storage slot 100 around the outer periphery of the shuffling plate 500, but also avoids the problem of increased machine head size caused by the conflict between the components due to small angles, as well as the problem of insufficient card storage capacity caused by large angles. This ensures that the card body can smoothly turn during the connection between the card inlet and the card outlet without the risk of jamming.

[0070] like Figure 1 This embodiment also discloses a mahjong machine, including a shuffling plate 500 and four sets of card feeding devices 600 arranged around the outer periphery of the shuffling plate 500. Each set of card feeding devices 600 corresponds to a card placement device described in any of the above-mentioned schemes. The four sets of card placement devices can simultaneously receive the mahjong tiles conveyed by the corresponding card feeding device 600. With the help of the card placement devices described in any of the above-mentioned schemes, the smooth conveying of mahjong tiles in each area can be realized, avoiding the problem of "decreased card placement efficiency and tile accumulation" caused by jamming of a single set of card placement devices in traditional machines. Especially for large-sized and heavy mahjong tiles, all four sets of card placement devices have the characteristics of "low friction and anti-jamming", which can simultaneously overcome the conveying resistance of heavy tiles, ensuring that the card placement process of the whole machine is continuous and uninterrupted, and improving the user's gaming experience.

[0071] The above description is only a specific embodiment of the present utility model, but the technical features of the present utility model are not limited thereto. Any changes or modifications made by those skilled in the art within the scope of the present utility model are covered by the patent scope of the present utility model.

Claims

1. A tile-loading device for a mahjong machine, comprising an annular tile storage slot and a tile-pushing assembly for moving mahjong tiles within the storage slot, wherein the mahjong tiles contain magnetic components, characterized in that: The bottom of the storage slot is provided with a magnetic assembly, which is configured to generate a repulsive force with the magnetic components inside the mahjong tiles, so as to reduce the positive pressure on the contact surface between the mahjong tiles and the storage slot. The card storage slot includes a card inlet and a card outlet, with the card inlet's direction forming an angle of 45° to 90° with the card outlet's direction of dispensing.

2. The card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom of the storage slot has an installation groove along the length of the storage slot, and the magnet assembly is disposed in the installation groove.

3. The card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The magnet assembly is located on the back side of the bottom of the card storage slot.

4. A card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The magnet assembly includes a number of magnets arranged continuously or at intervals.

5. The card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom of the storage slot above the magnet assembly is provided with a friction-reducing pad. The friction-reducing pad has at least two spaced tracks protruding towards the bearing surface of the mahjong tile. The tracks are continuously arranged along the length of the storage slot.

6. The card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 5, characterized in that, The magnet assembly is located in the gap area between adjacent tracks or embedded inside the tracks.

7. A card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, The magnet assembly is located in the gap area between adjacent tracks, and the friction-reducing pad has an array of through holes at the position corresponding to the magnet assembly, which extends through the thickness direction of the friction-reducing pad.

8. The card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The card storage slot includes an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall is the side closest to the center of the card storage slot, and the outer wall is the side furthest from the center of the card storage slot.

9. The card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The pusher assembly includes a pusher head that abuts against the mahjong tile, and the distance between the pusher head and the outer side wall is greater than the distance between the pusher head and the inner side wall.

10. The card-adding device for a mahjong machine as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The pusher assembly includes a pusher head that abuts against the mahjong tiles. The lower end of the pusher head has a protrusion extending toward the mahjong tiles, and the height of the protrusion gradually decreases along the extension direction.

11. A mahjong machine, comprising a shuffling tray and four sets of card feeding devices arranged around the outer periphery of the shuffling tray, characterized in that, Each set of license plate delivery devices corresponds to a set of license plate issuing devices as described in any one of claims 1 to 10.

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