Game tool

Abstract

To provide a game tool capable of improving game properties.SOLUTION: A game tool has a crawler belt unit that has an upper section positioned in a horizontal direction and extending in a first direction and a lower section positioned below the upper portion and extending in the first direction, is formed annularly, and moves at least one portion of the upper portion in one of the first directions by drive and moves it to the lower portion and moves at least one portion of the lower portion in the other of the first directions and moves it to the upper portion, a drive unit for driving the crawler belt unit, and a support unit for supporting the crawler belt unit while separating it from a grounding surface for predetermined distance while the lower end is grounded. In the crawler belt unit, multiple grids showing an arrangement place of a piece are formed in the first direction, and in a second direction that is positioned in the horizontal direction and is vertical to the first direction in the upper section and in the lower section, the grids have a holding section for holding the piece, and the holding section holds the piece when being positioned in the upper portion and in the lower portion.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a game device.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, game devices for playing games such as shogi and go, where the outcome is determined by the placement of pieces, have been widely spread. In addition, board game devices having a function of dropping pieces placed on the upper side of the game device have been developed (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the technology described in Patent Document 1 above, pieces can only be placed on the upper side of the game device, and there is room for further improvement.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a game device capable of improving the gameplay.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The first means is a crawler unit having an upper part extending in a first direction located horizontally and a lower part located below the upper part and extending in the first direction, formed in a ring shape, and driven to move at least a part of the upper part to one side in the first direction and move it to the lower part, while moving at least a part of the lower part to the other side in the first direction and moving it to the upper part; a drive unit for driving the crawler unit; A support unit having a lower end grounded and supporting the crawler unit at a predetermined distance from the ground surface. In the crawler unit, a plurality of squares indicating the placement locations of the pieces are formed in the first direction and in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction and located in the horizontal direction, on the upper part and the lower part. The square has a holding part for holding the piece, and the holding part holds the piece when located on the upper part and the lower part. It is characterized by this.

[0007] The second means is the first means, The crawler unit has side parts that extend downward from both side parts in the first direction of the upper part and are connected to both side parts in the first direction of the lower part. The squares located on the side parts have the holding part holding the piece. It is characterized by this.

[0008] The third means is the first means, The crawler unit has a plurality of flat crawler plate members in which a plurality of the squares are formed in the second direction. The crawler unit is formed in a ring shape by rotatably connecting a plurality of the crawler plate members. It is characterized by this.

[0009] The fourth means is the third means, The crawler plate member has a shaft part connected to one of the two crawler plate members to be connected and a bearing part connected to the other crawler plate member. A shaft pin extending in the second direction is formed on the shaft part. A bearing for rotatably supporting the shaft pin is formed on the bearing part. It is characterized by this.

[0010] The fifth means is the fourth means, The crawler unit has a first crawler plate member and a second crawler plate member that is at least partially different from the first crawler plate member. The first shaft portion, which is the shaft portion of the first tread plate member, is configured to be connectable to the second bearing portion, which is the bearing portion of the second tread plate member. The second shaft portion, which is the shaft portion of the second tread plate member, is configured to be connectable to the first bearing portion, which is the bearing portion of the first tread plate member. At least a part of the first shaft portion is different from the second shaft portion. It is characterized by this.

[0011] The sixth means is the fifth means, A predetermined number of the shaft pins are respectively formed on the first shaft portion and the second shaft portion. A predetermined number of the bearing portions are respectively formed on the first bearing portion and the second bearing portion. The shaft pin formed on the second shaft portion, At least one is formed at the same position as the shaft pin formed on the first shaft portion, At least one is formed at a position different from the shaft pin formed on the first shaft portion. It is characterized by this.

[0012] The seventh means is the third means, At least a part of the drive unit is located between the upper part and the lower part of the crawler unit, and has a rotating member that rotates about the second direction. The rotating member, Has a drive portion that extends in the second direction and is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape in which four sides forming the side surfaces have the same shape. One of the four side surfaces of the drive portion supports the upper part of the crawler unit. It is characterized by this.

[0013] The eighth means is the seventh means, The drive unit has a resistance portion that resists the driving force for rotating the rotating member about the second direction. The resistance portion resists the driving force when the side surface of the drive portion that supports the upper part of the crawler unit inclines from the horizontal state. It is characterized by this.

[0014] The ninth means is the first means, wherein the support unit is located near both ends on the second direction side of the crawler unit and has a cover member that covers both ends when viewed from the second direction, wherein the cover member has an upper wall portion formed along the upper portion of the crawler unit, a side wall portion extending downward in the vertical direction from at least one end on the first direction side of the upper wall portion, and a first protruding portion extending in the inner corner direction from a corner portion formed by the upper wall portion and the side wall portion, and is characterized by this. characterized in that

[0015] The tenth means is the first means, wherein the support unit is located near both ends on the second direction side of the crawler unit and has a cover member that covers both ends when viewed from the second direction, wherein the cover member has an upper wall portion formed along the upper portion of the crawler unit, and a second protruding portion extending upward from the end on the crawler unit side of the upper wall portion, and is characterized by this. characterized in that

[0016] The eleventh means is the first means, wherein the support unit has a third protruding portion located above the center of the crawler unit in the first direction, characterized in that

[0017] The twelfth means is the first means, wherein the holding portion includes a locking pin extending in the vertical direction from the mass, and the top is formed with a locked portion that is flexible and locked to the locking pin, characterized in that

[0018] The thirteenth means is the twelfth means, The locked part includes a recess that is locked to the locking pin. The recess has a polygonal opening. It is characterized by this.

Effect of the Invention

[0019] According to the first means, the game tool is supported by being separated from the ground surface by a predetermined distance by the support unit, and the crawler unit formed with a mass having a holding part for holding the pieces is driven by the drive unit, so that the pieces held by the crawler unit can be moved downward while being held. Therefore, the game tool can provide a game to the user in which the pieces are held above and below the crawler unit.

[0020] According to the second means, the crawler unit can hold the pieces also on the side part.

[0021] According to the third means, it can be formed in an annular shape while improving manufacturability.

[0022] According to the fourth means, the crawler unit can support the tread plate members so as to be rotatable with respect to each other about the left - right direction while having a simple configuration.

[0023] According to the fifth means, the drive unit can prevent so - called mis - assembly.

[0024] According to the sixth means, the drive unit can prevent so - called mis - assembly.

[0025] According to the seventh means, the drive unit can maintain the flatness of the upper part of the crawler unit while driving the crawler unit.

[0026] According to the eighth means, the drive unit can preferably maintain the flatness of the upper part of the crawler unit.

[0027] According to the ninth means, the first plate portion can suppress the intrusion of foreign matters or the like on the inner angle side of the corner portion that is opened when the crawler unit is driven.

[0028] According to the tenth means, the second plate portion can suppress the intrusion of foreign matters or the like below a part near the second plate portion at the upper part of the crawler unit.

[0029] According to the eleventh means, the support unit can suppress the upward movement of the upper part of the crawler unit when the crawler unit is driven.

[0030] According to the twelfth means, the crawler unit can hold the disk well by being locked by the disk holding portion in which the flexible locked portion is formed.

[0031] According to the thirteenth means, a concave portion is formed so as to extend from the polygonal opening toward the inside of the disk, and the contact area between the locking pin 83 and the locked portion 8a can be made appropriate.

[0032] Note that the above effects are merely exemplary for convenience of explanation and are not limiting. In addition to or instead of the above effects, any effects described in the present disclosure or effects obvious to those skilled in the art can also be achieved.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0033]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

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Figure 8

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Figure 11

Figure 12

Figure 13

Figure 14

Figure 15

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0034] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. For the sake of convenience of explanation, among the horizontal directions, an arbitrary one direction will be described as the front - rear direction (the first direction), the direction perpendicular to the front - rear direction among the horizontal directions will be described as the left - right direction (the second direction), and the direction perpendicular to the horizontal direction will be described as the up - down direction. Also, the right side in the left - right direction indicates the right - hand direction when facing from the rear to the front in the front - rear direction, and the left side in the left - right direction indicates the left - hand direction when facing from the rear to the front in the front - rear direction.

[0035] Referring to FIG. 1, a perspective view of the game tool 1 according to the present invention is shown. Also, referring to FIG. 2, an exploded perspective view of the game tool 1 according to the present invention is shown. The game tool 1 is a game prop that is arranged, for example, on a table (on the grounding surface G) and used by multiple people using the pieces 8. This game tool 1 includes a support unit 3, a drive unit 5, and a crawler unit 7.

[0036] The support unit 3 is a support body that supports the drive unit 5 and the crawler unit 7. According to FIG. 2, the support unit 3 has a base member 11 and a pair of left and right standing members (cover members) 13. The base member 11 is a housing-shaped resin member extending in the horizontal direction. This base member 11 supports the crawler unit 7 so as to be drivable. Further, the base member 11 has a first pin 21 and a second pin 22 formed at both left and right ends thereof, respectively. The first pin 21 is a substantially columnar pin extending in the left-right direction from the center in the front-rear direction of the base member 11. For example, a horizontal plane 23 is formed at the lower end of the first pin 21. The second pin 22 is a columnar pin extending outward in the left-right direction from two locations on the front side and the rear side in the front-rear direction of the base member 11. A female screw portion 24 extending inward in the left-right direction is formed at the tip of the second pin 22.

[0037] Referring to FIG. 3, a perspective view of the standing member 13 on the right side in the left-right direction in the support unit 3 is shown. Hereinafter, the standing member 13 on the right side in the left-right direction will be mainly described. In this embodiment, the standing member 13 on the left side in the left-right direction is a member having the same shape and is rotated 180° about the vertical direction, so detailed description thereof will be omitted. The standing member 13 is a housing-shaped resin member extending in the vertical direction and the front-rear direction. Further, the standing member 13 has an upper cover portion 13a and a lower leg portion 13b from approximately the center in the vertical direction upward. Specifically, the standing member 13 is formed with a design wall portion 31, an upper wall portion 32, a lower wall portion 33, a side wall portion 34, and an intermediate wall portion 35.

[0038] The design wall portion 31 is a wall portion that forms the design surface on the right side in the left - right direction of the standing member 13. A horizontal hole 31a extending in the front - rear direction is formed in the design wall portion 31 below the center in the up - down direction. The horizontal hole 31a is a hole that penetrates the design wall portion 31 in the left - right direction. The upper wall portion 32 extends leftward from the upper end of the design wall portion 31, the lower wall portion 33 extends leftward from the lower end of the design wall portion 31, and the side wall portions 34 extend leftward from the front - rear ends of the design wall portion 31. The intermediate wall portion 35 is a wall portion extending in the front - rear direction at approximately the center in the up - down direction of the standing member 13. This intermediate wall portion 35 extends leftward from the design wall portion 31 in the same manner as the upper wall portion 32 and the like. Also, although details will be described later, the intermediate wall portion 35 is located below the crawler unit 7. In this way, the standing member 13 has its right side formed by the design wall portion 31, its upper surface formed by the upper wall portion 32, its lower surface formed by the lower wall portion 33, and its front - rear side surfaces formed by the side wall portions 34. Also, the standing member 13 is reinforced by the intermediate wall portion 35. And, the standing member 13 has its upper side formed as a cover portion 13a and its lower side formed as a leg portion 13b from the upper surface of the intermediate wall portion 35.

[0039] Referring to FIG. 4, a partial front view of the game device 1 viewed from the front in the front - rear direction is shown. For the standing member 13, the height from the upper surface of the intermediate wall portion 35 to the lower surface of the lower wall portion 33 (that is, the height of the leg portion 13b) is H1. Preferably, the height H1 of the leg portion 13b is 30 mm or more and 35 mm or less. Here, if the height of the square 8 is H2, the height H1 of the leg portion 13b is higher than the height H2 of the square 8. Preferably, the height H2 of the square 8 is, for example, 18 mm or more and 25 mm or less. Also, the subtraction height H3 obtained by subtracting the height H2 of the square 8 from the height H1 of the leg portion 13b is lower than the height H2 of the square 8. That is, the standing member 13 is formed such that the height H1 of the leg portion 13b is higher than the height H2 of the square 8 and less than twice the height H2 of the square 8. Preferably, the height H1 of the leg portion 13b is 1.2 times or more and 1.9 times or less the height H2 of the square 8.

[0040] Returning to FIG. 3, the standing member 13 is formed with a first support portion 41, a second support portion 42, a third support portion 43, a fourth support portion 44, a first plate portion (first protruding portion) 46, a second plate portion (second protruding portion) 47, and a third plate portion (third protruding portion) 48. The first support portion 41 is a cylindrical support portion extending in the left-right direction formed substantially at the center in the front-rear direction of the standing member 13. This first support portion 41 is a cylinder having an inner diameter similar to the outer diameter of the first pin 21 of the base member 11 and having a bottom on the side of the design wall portion 31. Also, the first support portion 41 has a horizontal plane 41a corresponding to the horizontal plane 23 of the first pin 21. The second support portion 42 is a cylindrical support portion extending in the left-right direction formed at a position corresponding to the second pin 22 of the base member 11. This second support portion 42 is a cylinder having an inner diameter similar to the outer diameter of the second pin 22 of the base member 11 and having a bottom on the side of the design wall portion 31. Also, the second support portion 42 has a through-hole corresponding to the female screw portion 24 formed in the bottom. That is, the through-hole is formed to penetrate the design wall portion 31 in the left-right direction.

[0041] The third support portion 43 is a cylindrical support portion extending leftward from the design wall portion 31. This third support portion 43 is a cylinder having a bottom on the side of the design wall portion 31. Also, the third support portion 43 is reinforced by, for example, reinforcing wall portions 43a extending radially in the vertical and left-right directions. The fourth support portion 44 has a cylindrical support column 44a extending leftward from the design wall portion 31. The support column 44a is a prism having a square cross-sectional shape on the outer surface. Also, the support column 44a has a through-hole 44c penetrating the design wall portion 31 and extending in the left-right direction inside. This support column 44a has no wall portion such as the reinforcing wall portion 43a in the vertical and front-rear directions as compared with the third support portion 43. In other words, a space is formed at the periphery of the support column 44a in the fourth support portion 44. Therefore, a resistance portion 5a described later can be disposed in the space in the fourth support portion 44.

[0042] The first plate portion 46 is a plate portion extending from the corner portion 37, which is the joint portion between the upper wall portion 32 and the side wall portion 34, and the T-shaped portion 38, which is the joint portion between the side wall portion 34 and the intermediate wall portion 35, toward the third support portion 43 or the support column 44a. The second plate portion 47 is a plate portion extending upward from the upper left end above the third support portion 43 and the fourth support portion 44 on the upper wall portion 32. The third plate portion 48 is a plate portion extending leftward from the left end at the center in the front-rear direction on the upper wall portion 32 and the intermediate wall portion 35. An inclined portion 48a extending outward in the vertical direction is formed on the third plate portion 48 as it extends outward in the front-rear direction. In other words, the inclined portion 48a is formed on the third plate portion 48 so as to be spaced apart from the crawler unit 7 in the vertical direction as it extends outward in the front-rear direction.

[0043] According to FIG. 2, the drive unit 5 rotates about the left-right direction by a manual operation of the user to drive the crawler unit 7. The drive units 5 are positioned in a pair, one in front of and the other behind the base member 11. The drive unit 5 has a rotating member 51 and a handle 53. Further, the drive unit 5 has a click member 55, a spring 57, and a recess 63 (to be described later) of the rotating member 51 as a resistance portion 5a that gives a sense of resistance to the drive. Hereinafter, the drive unit 5 on the front side in the front-rear direction will be mainly described. The drive unit 5 on the rear side in the front-rear direction has the same configuration in this embodiment and is obtained by rotating 180° about the vertical direction, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0044] The rotating member 51 is a prismatic resin member located in front of the base member 11 and extending in the left-right direction. The rotating member 51 has a drive portion 61, a rotating shaft 62, and a recess 63. The drive portion 61 extends in the left-right direction and is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape with a square cross section. That is, the drive portion 61 has side surfaces 61c that follow four identical rectangles in the front-rear direction and the vertical direction. Further, the upper side of the drive portion 61 in the posture shown in FIG. 2 is open to open the internal space. Further, the drive portion 61 is reinforced by a reinforcing portion 61a parallel to the surfaces in which the space extends in the front-rear direction and the vertical direction. Furthermore, the drive portion 61 is formed with groove portions 61b extending along the corners corresponding to the four sides (long sides) extending in the left-right direction when viewed as a rectangular parallelepiped.

[0045] The rotating shaft 62 is a cylinder extending outward in the left - right direction from the left end face (sliding surface 61d) and the right end face of the drive unit 61. Among this rotating shaft 62, on the rotating shaft 62 extending leftward, a flat surface 62a and a female screw portion 62b are formed. The flat surface 62a is a flat - shaped notch formed at the upper part of the left end of the rotating shaft 62. The female screw portion 62b is a female screw formed by extending rightward from the left end of the rotating shaft 62. The recesses 63 are formed side - by - side in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft 62 on the left end face of the drive unit 61. In this embodiment, four recesses 63 are arranged at equal intervals when viewed in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft 62.

[0046] The handle 53 is a resin knob in which, for example, four gripping portions extend in the radial direction with respect to the axial direction of the rotating shaft 62. This handle 53 is located on the left side of the standing member 13. Also, the handle 53 has a cylindrical support portion 53a formed by extending rightward from the center in the front - rear direction and the up - down direction on the left side surface. The support portion 53a has a cylindrical shape with an inner diameter the same as the outer diameter of the rotating shaft 62. Also, the support portion 53a has a flat surface 53b formed on the inside corresponding to the flat surface 62a.

[0047] The click member 55 included in the resistance portion 5a is a disc - shaped resin member disposed between the rotating member 51 and the standing member 13. According to FIG. 3, the click member 55 has a biasing portion 65, a sliding portion 66, a prism hole 67, and a convex portion 68. Hereinafter, for the sake of convenience of explanation, when explaining the click member 55 along FIG. 3, the click member 55 on the rear side in the front - rear direction will be taken as an example for explanation. As described above, the click member 55 on the front side in the front - rear direction is obtained by rotating the click member 55 on the rear side in the front - rear direction by 180° about the up - down direction axis.

[0048] The biasing portion 65 included in the resistance portion 5a is a disc-shaped flat plate portion that extends radially about the left-right direction axis. The outer diameter of this biasing portion 65 is larger than the outer diameter of the spring 57. The sliding portion 66 is a columnar pillar portion that extends rightward from the center of the biasing portion 65. The outer diameter of this sliding portion 66 is smaller than the inner diameter of the spring 57. The prismatic hole 67 is a hole that penetrates in the left-right direction from the center of the biasing portion 65 and the sliding portion 66. This prismatic hole 67 has a substantially square cross-section corresponding to the outer shape of the support pillar 44a in the fourth support portion 44 of the standing member 13. The convex portion 68 is a hemispherical convex portion that protrudes leftward from the left end surface of the biasing portion 65. In this embodiment, similar to the concave portion 63 formed in the drive portion 61 of the rotating member 51, four convex portions 68 are arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction as viewed from the center of the biasing portion 65. That is, the convex portion 68 is formed at a position corresponding to the concave portion 63 formed in the drive portion 61 of the rotating member 51.

[0049] Returning to FIG. 2, the spring 57 is a coil spring that biases in the left-right direction. This spring 57 is disposed between the standing member 13 and the click member 55. Specifically, the spring 57 has its right end in contact with the biasing portion 65 while covering the radially outer periphery of the sliding portion 66 of the click member 55. Also, the left end of the spring 57 is in contact with the support surface 44b (see FIG. 3) of the fourth support portion 44 in the standing member 13.

[0050] The crawler unit 7 is a so-called endless track formed in a single belt and annular shape. This crawler unit 7 has an upper portion 7a that extends in the front-rear direction, a lower portion 7b that is located below the upper portion 7a and extends in the front-rear direction, and side portions 7c that extend downward from both front-rear ends of the upper portion 7a and connect to both front-rear ends of the lower portion 7b. Also, the crawler unit 7 covers the upper, front, lower, and rear sides of the support unit 3 and the drive unit 5. Also, the crawler unit 7 is a resin member and is composed of a plurality (for example, 16) of tread plate members 70 that are flat plate-shaped and extend in the left-right direction.

[0051] Referring to FIG. 5, a perspective view of the upper part of the crawler unit 7 is shown. The tread member 70 includes a partition groove 81, a mass 82, a locking pin (holding portion) 83, a rough surface 85, a shaft portion 87, and a bearing portion 89. The partition groove 81 is a groove extending in the front-rear direction formed on the upper surface (also referred to as the surface) of the tread member 70. This partition groove 81 is a groove for equally partitioning the surface of the tread member 70 in the left-right direction. That is, a plurality (six in this embodiment) of masses 82 partitioned by the partition groove 81 are formed on the surface of the tread member 70.

[0052] The locking pin 83 is a pin extending upward from the center of the mass 82. This locking pin 83 can be locked to a locked portion 8a formed on the piece 8 (a longitudinal section is shown for explanation in FIG. 4). Here, the piece 8 is a resin member containing, for example, ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (Ethylen-Vinyl Acetate: EVA) and having flexibility. This piece 8 is formed, for example, in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. Further, the piece 8 has a locked portion 8a formed thereon. The locked portion 8a is, for example, a recess extending inward from a square (polygonal) opening formed at one end of the piece 8.

[0053] Therefore, since the piece 8 has a gap when the locked portion 8a is locked to the columnar locking pin 83, it is possible to suppress the fluctuation of the air pressure inside the locked portion 8a when the locking pin 83 is locked to the locked portion 8a while adjusting the frictional force between the locking pin 83 and the locked portion 8a. Thus, even when the locking pin 83 extends downward in the front-rear direction and the vertical direction due to the drive of the crawler unit 7, the piece 8 can be appropriately held by the locking pin 83 and can be removed from the locking pin 83 by the user of the game device 1. Further, since the piece 8 contains a flexible material such as EVA, the contact area between the locking pin 83 and the locked portion 8a can be widened when the piece 8 is locked to the locking pin 83. Also, among the plurality of pieces 8, some of the pieces 8 have protrusions formed on the upper head portion 8b in the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 1. The protrusions on the head portion 8b indicate the type of the piece 8. That is, the head portion 8b has the same number of types of shapes as the number of types of the piece 8. Thereby, the user can recognize the type of the piece 8 by touching the protrusion of the piece 8.

[0054] Returning to FIG. 5, the rough surface 85 is a surface with a higher surface roughness compared to other parts of the tread plate member 70. This rough surface 85 is formed every other one of a plurality of blocks 82. That is, the tread plate member 70 has a change in surface roughness every other one of the blocks 82.

[0055] Referring to FIG. 6, a bottom surface (also referred to as the back surface) view in which the first tread plate member 71 and the second tread plate member 72 are arranged side by side is shown. The shaft portion 87 is formed at the rear end portion of the tread plate member 70. This shaft portion 87 includes a plurality of shaft pins 91 and pin support portions 92. The shaft pin 91 is a pin that extends rightward from a pin support portion 92 that extends rearward from the rear side portion of the tread plate member 70. Also, the shaft pin 91 and the pin support portion 92 project downward when viewed from the left - right direction (see FIG. 5). The bearing portion 89 is formed at the front end portion of the tread plate member 70. This bearing portion 89 includes a plurality of bearings 93. The bearing 93 projects forward from the front side portion of the tread plate member 70. An inner bearing hole 94 that opens to the left and extends rightward is formed inside this bearing 93. The bearing hole 94 is a hole having an inner diameter substantially equal to the outer diameter of the shaft pin 91. Also, the bearing 93 projects downward when viewed from the left - right direction in the same manner as the shaft pin 91 and the pin support portion 92 (see FIG. 5).

[0056] Here, the plurality of tread plate members 70 constituting the crawler unit 7 are composed of, for example, two types, namely, the first tread plate member 71 and the second tread plate member 72. The first tread plate member 71 is formed such that the first, third, and fifth blocks 82 from the right side in the left - right direction become the rough surface 85. On the other hand, the second tread plate member 72 is formed such that the surface roughness of the second, fourth, and sixth blocks 82 from the right side in the left - right direction becomes the rough surface 85. That is, in the first tread plate member 71 and the second tread plate member 72, the positions of the rough surface 85 in the plurality of blocks 82 are different.

[0057] Further, at least a part of the position of the shaft pin 91 is different between the shaft portion 87 of the first sole plate member 71 and the shaft portion 87 of the second sole plate member 72. Similarly, at least a part of the position of the bearing 93 is different between the bearing portion 89 of the first sole plate member 71 and the bearing portion 89 of the second sole plate member 72. Hereinafter, the shaft portion 87 and the bearing portion 89 of the first sole plate member 71 are respectively referred to as a first shaft portion 87a and a first bearing portion 89a, and the shaft portion 87 and the bearing portion 89 of the second sole plate member 72 are respectively referred to as a second shaft portion 87b and a second bearing portion 89b.

[0058] A plurality (six in this embodiment) of shaft pins 91 are formed on the first shaft portion 87a of the first sole plate member 71 so as to be separated from each other by a first distance D1. Similarly, a plurality of bearings 93 having the same number as the shaft pins 91 of the first shaft portion 87a are formed on the second bearing portion 89b of the second sole plate member 72 so as to be separated from each other by the first distance D1. That is, the plurality of shaft pins 91 on the first shaft portion 87a of the first sole plate member 71 are formed to have the same interval as the plurality of bearings 93 on the second bearing portion 89b of the second sole plate member 72. Thereby, the first sole plate member 71 can be rotatably assembled to the second sole plate member 72 by inserting the shaft pin 91 of the first shaft portion 87a into the bearing hole 94 of the bearing 93 of the second bearing portion 89b in the second sole plate member 72.

[0059] In the first bearing portion 89a of the first tread plate member 71, a plurality (six in this embodiment) of bearings 93 are formed in the same manner as the second bearing portion 89b of the second tread plate member 72. On the other hand, different from the second bearing portion 89b of the second tread plate member 72, at least one bearing 93 (the third and fourth bearings 93 from the right side in the left - right direction in this embodiment) of the first bearing portion 89a of the first tread plate member 71 is formed at a position offset by a second distance D2 to the right side in the left - right direction. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the third and fourth bearings 93 in the first bearing portion 89a are referred to as specific bearings 97. Further, in the second shaft portion 87b of the second tread plate member 72, a plurality (six in this embodiment) of shaft pins 91 and pin support portions 92 are formed in the same manner as the first shaft portion 87a of the first tread plate member 71. On the other hand, different from the first shaft portion 87a of the first tread plate member 71, at least one set of shaft pins 91 and pin support portions 92 (the third and fourth shaft pins 91 and pin support portions 92 from the right side in the left - right direction in this embodiment) of the second shaft portion 87b of the second tread plate member 72 are formed at a position offset by a second distance D2 to the right side in the left - right direction. Hereinafter, for convenience of explanation, the third and fourth shaft pins in the second shaft portion 87b are referred to as specific shaft pins 95, and the third and fourth pin support portions in the second shaft portion 87b are referred to as specific pin support portions 96.

[0060] That is, the shaft pins 91 and pin support portions 92 including the specific shaft pins 95 and specific pin support portions 96 in the second shaft portion 87b of the second tread plate member 72 are formed so as to have the same interval as the bearings 93 including the specific bearings 97 in the first bearing portion 89a of the first tread plate member 71. Thereby, the second tread plate member 72 can be rotatably assembled to the first tread plate member 71 by inserting the shaft pins 91 in the second shaft portion 87b into the bearing holes 94 of the bearings 93 in the first bearing portion 89a of the first tread plate member 71.

[0061] Here, when assembling the first sole plate member 71 on the front side of the second sole plate member 72, all the shaft pins 91 of the first shaft portion 87a are inserted into all the bearings 93 of the second bearing portion 89b for assembly. At this time, since all the shaft pins 91 and the pin support portions 92 are positioned at the same intervals as all the bearings 93, the right ends of all the pin support portions 92 abut against the left ends of all the corresponding bearings 93. Thereby, when assembling the first sole plate member 71 on the front side of the second sole plate member 72, the left and right side portions of the first sole plate member 71 and the second sole plate member 72 coincide. Similarly, when assembling the first sole plate member 71 on the rear side of the second sole plate member 72, all the shaft pins 91 including the specific shaft pin 95 of the second shaft portion 87b are inserted into all the bearings 93 including the specific bearing 97 of the first bearing portion 89a for assembly. At this time, since all the shaft pins 91 and the pin support portions 92 are positioned at the same intervals as all the bearings 93, the right ends of all the pin support portions 92 abut against the left ends of all the corresponding bearings 93. Thereby, also when assembling the first sole plate member 71 on the rear side of the second sole plate member 72, the left and right side portions of the first sole plate member 71 and the second sole plate member 72 coincide.

[0062] Referring to FIG. 7, an explanatory diagram is shown for explaining the correspondence relationship between the second shaft portion 87b and the second bearing portion 89b when attempting to assemble the second sole plate member 72 to the second sole plate member 72. When attempting to assemble the second sole plate member 72 on the front side of the second sole plate member 72, in other words, when attempting to erroneously assemble the second sole plate members 72 to each other, the specific shaft pin 95 of the second shaft portion 87b in the front second sole plate member 72 in the front-rear direction is inserted into the bearing hole 94 of the bearing 93 that is not the specific bearing 97 of the second bearing portion 89b in the other second sole plate member 72. When the specific shaft pin 95 is inserted into the bearing hole 94 of the bearing 93 in this way, the specific pin support portion 96 abuts against the bearing 93. On the other hand, the pin support portion 92 that is not the specific pin support portion 96 is separated from the bearing 93 by a second distance D2. That is, when attempting to erroneously assemble the second sole plate members 72 to each other, only the specific pin support portion 96 abuts against the bearing 93 without the pin support portion 92 abutting against the bearing 93. Thereby, a relative displacement, for example, a second distance D2, occurs in the left-right direction between the two second sole plate members 72.

[0063] Therefore, by providing the crawler unit 7 with the specific shaft pin 95 and the specific pin support portion 96 of the second shaft portion 87b in the second tread plate member 72 at positions offset by the second distance D2 as compared with the other shaft pins 91, when attempting to erroneously assemble the second tread plate members 72 together, a relative displacement in the left - right direction can be caused between the second tread plate members 72. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 can prevent a so - called misassembly of erroneously assembling the second tread plate members 72 together. Further, since the difference between the first tread plate member 71 and the second tread plate member 72 is the difference in the positions of the shaft pin 91, the pin support portion 92, and the bearing 93 in the bearing 93 and the bearing hole 94, misassembly can be prevented while maintaining the design property.

[0064] The crawler unit 7 can be configured such that, by alternately assembling the first tread plate member 71 and the second tread plate member 72, the surface roughnesses of the adjacent cells 82 in the front - rear direction and the left - right direction are different from each other. In this way, since the crawler unit 7 is configured such that the surface roughnesses of the adjacent cells 82 in the front - rear direction and the left - right direction are different from each other, for example, even when a visually impaired person uses the game device 1, the cells 82 can be distinguished by touch. In particular, by preventing misassembly such as assembling the second tread plate members 72 together as described above, the first tread plate member 71 and the second tread plate member 72, which are difficult to distinguish, can be accurately assembled alternately.

[0065] Next, based on FIGS. 2 and 3, an example of the assembly procedure of the game device 1 will be described. In the first step, the standing member 13 on the right side in the left-right direction is assembled to the base member 11. Specifically, the first pin 21 of the base member 11 is inserted into the first support portion 41, and the second pin 22 of the base member 11 is inserted into the second support portion 42 of the standing member 13. At this time, since the horizontal plane 23 is formed on the first pin 21 of the base member 11, the standing member 13 is assembled with the horizontal plane 23 of the first pin 21 abutting against the horizontal plane 41a of the first support portion 41. Thereby, the base member 11 can be assembled to the standing member 13 in the correct posture without being inverted up and down. Thereafter, the second pin 22 and the second support portion 42 of the standing member 13 are screwed together by the screw 9 to fix the base member 11.

[0066] In the second step, the driving unit 5 on the rear side in the front-rear direction is assembled to the standing member 13 at the fourth support portion 44. Specifically, first, the click member 55 has the support column 44a of the fourth support portion 44 inserted into the square column hole 67. At this time, the spring 57 is disposed while being inserted into the sliding portion 66 of the click member 55 and being sandwiched between the biasing portion 65 and the support surface 44b of the fourth support portion 44. Next, while pressing the spring 57 to the right in the left-right direction, the rotating member 51 inserts the rotating shaft 62 into the through hole 44c of the support column 44a in the fourth support portion 44 and projects the rotating shaft 62 to the right of the design wall portion 31 of the standing member 13. Next, the handle 53 has the support portion 53a inserted into the rotating shaft 62 of the rotating member 51 from the right side in the left-right direction of the standing member 13. Then, the handle 53 is fixed to the rotating member 51 by screwing the screw 9 into the female screw portion 62b of the rotating shaft 62 in the rotating member 51. Here, as described above, a plane 53b corresponding to the plane 62a of the rotating shaft 62 is formed on the support portion 53a of the handle 53. That is, the handle 53 is fixed to the rotating shaft 62 so that the plane 53b of the support portion 53a and the plane 62a of the rotating shaft 62 are in contact with each other. Thereby, the plane 62a and the plane 53b can prevent the handle 53 from rotating relative to the rotating member 51.

[0067] In the third step, the erected member 13 has the rotating member 51 of the drive unit 5 arranged on the third support portion 43 on the front side in the front-rear direction. Specifically, for the erected member 13, the rotation shaft 62 of the rotating member 51 is inserted into the third support portion 43.

[0068] In the fourth step, the crawler unit 7 is arranged to cover the front-rear and up-down directions of the base member 11 and the rotating member 51. Specifically, for example, the crawler unit 7 is formed in an annular shape by connecting the first tread plate members 71 and the second tread plate members 72 alternately in advance. The crawler unit 7 formed in an annular shape in this way is moved from the left side to the right side in the left-right direction of the base member 11 and the rotating member 51 so as to cover the base member 11 and the rotating member 51. The crawler unit 7 moving to the right side in the left-right direction has its right end abutted against the erected member 13. At this time, for the crawler unit 7, the upper and lower tread plate members 70 are positioned between the third plate portion 48 and the base member 11.

[0069] In the fifth step, the erected member 13, the handle 53, the click member 55, and the spring 57 are assembled on the left side in the left-right direction of the base member 11 and the rotating member 51. Specifically, first, for the erected member 13, the support column 44a of the fourth support portion 44 is inserted into the square column hole 67 of the click member 55 so as to sandwich the spring 57. At this time, for the crawler unit 7, the upper and lower tread plate members 70 are positioned between the third plate portion 48 and the base member 11. Next, for the erected member 13, the first pin 21 and the second pin 22 of the base member 11 and the rotation shafts 62 of the rotating members 51 on both sides in the front-rear direction are inserted into the first support portion 41, the second support portion 42, the third support portion 43, and the fourth support portion 44, respectively. Next, for the erected member 13, the second pin 22 and the second support portion 42 are screwed together by the screw 9 and fixed to the base member 11. Then, the handle 53 is fixed to the rotating member 51 by screwing the screw 9 into the female screw portion 62b of the rotation shaft 62 in the rotating member 51. By assembling in this way, the game tool 1 can be efficiently assembled with relatively few operations, so that, for example, the manufacturing cost related to the assembly can be reduced.

[0070] Referring to FIG. 8, a perspective view of the gaming device 1 in a state where the crawler unit 7 is driven by the drive unit 5 is shown. Further, referring to FIG. 9, a side view of the gaming device 1 in a state where the crawler unit 7 is driven by the drive unit 5 as viewed from the left side in the left-right direction is shown. Note that the gaming device 1 in FIG. 9 does not show the standing member 13 on the left side in the left-right direction, as well as the handle 53, the click member 55, and the spring 57.

[0071] When at least one of the two handles 53 is rotated about the left-right direction by the user, the crawler unit 7 is driven in the gaming device 1. Specifically, when the handle 53 rotates about the left-right direction, the rotating member 51 also rotates about the left-right direction in conjunction with the handle 53. According to FIG. 9, for example, when the rotating member 51 on the front side in the front-rear direction is driven to rotate counterclockwise as viewed from the right side in the left-right direction, the tread plate member 70 in contact with the rotating member 51 on the front side in the front-rear direction rotates in conjunction with the rotating member 51. Further, the tread plate member 70 located on the upper side of the base member 11 is pulled forward in the front-rear direction by the tread plate member 70 that rotates in conjunction with the rotating member 51 on the front side in the front-rear direction.

[0072] Also, the tread plate member 70 in contact with the rotating member 51 on the rear side in the front-rear direction is pulled by the tread plate member 70 that moves forward in the front-rear direction. At this time, since the rotating member 51 can rotate around the rotation axis 62, the tread plate member 70 in contact with the rotating member 51 on the rear side in the front-rear direction rotates in conjunction with the rotating member 51. Further, the tread plate member 70 located on the lower side of the base member 11 is pulled rearward in the front-rear direction by the tread plate member 70 that rotates in conjunction with the rotating member 51 on the rear side in the front-rear direction. Then, the tread plate member 70 in contact with the rotating member 51 on the front side in the front-rear direction is pulled rearward by the tread plate member 70 that moves rearward in the front-rear direction.

[0073] Therefore, when the handle 53 is driven by the user, the drive unit 5 can move the track shoe member 70 like a so-called infinite track to drive the crawler unit 7. In particular, due to the formation of the groove portion 61b, the rotating member 51 can be engaged with the shaft portion 87 and the bearing portion 89 of the track shoe member 70 and interlock therewith. Further, when the crawler unit 7 is driven by the drive unit 5, the piece 8 can move in the front-rear direction and the up-down direction together with the attached track shoe member 70.

[0074] Here, as described above, a third plate portion 48 is formed on the upper wall portion 32 of the standing member 13. Further, the third plate portion 48 is located above the track shoe member 70 located above the base member 11. That is, the track shoe member 70 located above the base member 11 has its up-down movement restricted by the base member 11 and the third plate portion 48. Thereby, the base member 11 and the third plate portion 48 can suppress the track shoe member 70 located above the base member 11 from rotating in the up-down direction when the crawler unit 7 is driven. Similarly, since the up-down movement of the track shoe member 70 located below the base member 11 is restricted by the base member 11 and the third plate portion 48, it is possible to suppress the track shoe member 70 from rotating in the up-down direction when the crawler unit 7 is driven. Further, by forming the inclined portion 48a on the third plate portion 48, it is possible to appropriately guide the track shoe member 70 to move outward in the front-rear direction and outward in the up-down direction when the crawler unit 7 is driven.

[0075] Referring to FIG. 10, an enlarged view of the range A in FIG. 8 is shown. When the crawler unit 7 is driven, for example, when the rotating member 51 rotates 30° counterclockwise as viewed from the left about the left - right direction from a state where the side surface 61c is vertical or horizontal (hereinafter also referred to as a static state), the inner - angle side of the corner 37 formed by the upper wall portion 32 and the side wall portion 34 may be opened (the open portion K1 in FIG. 10). At this time, similarly, at the T - shaped portion 38 which is the joint portion between the side wall portion 34 and the intermediate wall portion 35, the inner - angle side facing the third support portion 43 may be opened (the open portion K2 in FIG. 10). On the other hand, as described above, on the standing member 13, a first plate portion 46 extending from the corner 37 and the T - shaped portion 38 toward the third support portion 43 or the support column 44a is formed. Therefore, by forming the first plate portion 46 on the standing member 13, even in such a case, the opening areas of the open portions K1 and K2 can be reduced. Thus, the first plate portion 46 can prevent a user's finger or the like from entering the open portions K1 and K2.

[0076] Also, for example, when the rotating member 51 rotates 30° in the forward rotation direction from the static state, the shaft portion 87 and the bearing portion 89, which are the joint portions of the two crawler plate members 70 near the third support portion 43 and the fourth support portion 44 respectively, may be located above the upper surface of the upper wall portion 32. In such a case, when viewed from the left - right direction, a gap located above the upper surface of the upper wall portion 32 may be formed on the inner - angle side of the two crawler plate members 70. On the other hand, as described above, on the standing member 13, a second plate portion 47 extending upward from the upper - left end above the third support portion 43 and the fourth support portion 44 in the upper wall portion 32 is formed. Therefore, by forming the second plate portion 47 on the standing member 13, even in such a case, the gap can be covered by the second plate portion 47. Thus, the second plate portion 47 can prevent a user's finger or the like from entering the gap.

[0077] Referring to FIG. 11, an enlarged view of the range B in FIG. 8 is shown. FIG. 11 is shown as a cross - section in which the standing member 13, the handle 53, the click member 55, and the spring 57 are broken along the up - down / left - right plane including the rotation axis center of the rotating member 51.

[0078] In the resistance portion 5a of the drive unit 5, the click member 55 is biased rightward in the left - right direction by the spring 57. When the concave portion 63 and the convex portion 68 of the rotating member 51 are separated in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft 62, the convex portion 68 abuts against the sliding surface 61d of the rotating member 51. That is, when the rotating member 51 is in a posture rotated 30° in the forward rotation direction from the static state, the convex portion 68 abuts against the sliding surface 61d. From such a state, when the rotating member 51 further rotates 60° in the forward rotation direction, the convex portion 68 relatively approaches the concave portion 63 of the rotating member 51 in the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft 62. And when the rotating member 51 finishes rotating 60° in the forward rotation direction, the convex portion 68 loosely fits into the concave portion 63. That is, when the rotating member 51 is in the static state, the click member 55 is biased rightward in the left - right direction by the spring 57 and the convex portion 68 is in a state of loosely fitting into the concave portion 63.

[0079] On the other hand, when the rotating member 51 rotates in the forward rotation direction while in the static state, the click member 55 moves leftward in the left - right direction. Specifically, the click member 55 moves leftward in the left - right direction by the height of the convex portion 68 in the left - right direction in order to get out of the state where the convex portion 68 loosely fits into the concave portion 63. Thus, in order for the rotating member 51 to rotate in the forward rotation direction while in the static state, it is necessary to move the click member 55 leftward in the left - right direction against the biasing force of the spring 57 that biases the click member 55 rightward in the left - right direction. In other words, the resistance portion 5a of the drive unit 5 resists the driving force that rotates the rotating member 51 about the rotating shaft 62 when the rotating member 51 rotates from the static state. Therefore, the user who rotates the handle 53 can determine whether the rotating member 51 is in the static state based on the resistance feeling (click feeling) due to the rotational resistance when rotating the handle 53. Thus, the user can easily make the rotating member 51 in the static state when rotating the handle 53. Consequently, the game device 1 can accurately keep the upper mass 82 of the crawler unit 7 horizontal.

[0080] Referring to Fig. 12, there is shown an explanatory diagram for explaining the positional relationship between the frame 8 located in the range S and the game tool 1 as viewed from the left in the left - right direction. Also, referring to Fig. 13, there is shown an explanatory diagram for explaining the visibility of the frame 8 located in the range S as viewed from the left in the left - right direction. Hereinafter, for the sake of convenience of explanation, among the plurality of squares 82 located below the crawler unit 7, the frame 8 located in the squares excluding the squares 82 of the tread plate member 70 located at the front - rear ends or left - right ends is referred to as the invisible frame 8B.

[0081] According to Fig. 13, the crawler unit 7 is supported by the support unit 3 as described above. Also, the support unit 3 has a base member 11 that supports the crawler unit 7 and a pair of left - right standing members 13 as described above. Furthermore, the base member 11 has a leg portion 13b with a height H1 as described above. That is, the lower part in the up - down direction of the crawler unit 7 is open in the front and rear directions in the front - rear direction. Thus, the support unit 3 can allow the user to visually recognize the frame 8 attached to the locking pin 83 of the square 82 of the tread plate member 70 located at the front - rear ends or left - right ends, even if it is a frame 8 located below the crawler unit 7.

[0082] On the other hand, the game tool 1 suppresses the invisible frame 8B from being visually recognized by the user. Specifically, when viewed from the left in the left - right direction, the invisible frame 8B is located in the outer - angle side range S when the angle C formed between the straight line L extending from the lower - end point P in the up - down direction below the shaft portion 87 or the bearing portion 89 in the tread plate member 70 forming the rear side in the front - rear direction of the crawler unit 7 and the ground surface G is less than or equal to the angle θ. Therefore, by positioning the invisible frame 8B in the range S, the game tool 1 can suppress the invisible frame 8B from being visually recognized by the user.

[0083] Referring to FIG. 14, there is shown an explanatory diagram for explaining the positional relationship between the piece 8 located in the range S and the game tool 1 in the I-I cross section in FIG. 13. Also, referring to FIG. 15, there is shown an explanatory diagram for explaining the visibility of the piece 8 located in the range S as viewed from the front in the front-rear direction. As described above, the design wall portion 31 has a horizontal hole 31a formed therein that extends in the front-rear direction below the center in the vertical direction. Thereby, even for the piece 8 located below the crawler unit 7 of the game tool 1, the piece 8 attached to the locking pin 83 of the cell 82 near the horizontal hole 31a can be made visible to the user.

[0084] On the other hand, the game tool 1 suppresses the invisible piece 8B from being visually recognized by the user. Specifically, when viewed from the front in the front-rear direction, the invisible piece 8B is located in the outer angle side range S when the angle C formed by the straight line L extending from the left end point Q in the left-right direction of the upper end edge of the horizontal hole 31a formed in the design wall portion 31 to the ground surface G and the ground surface G is an angle of θ or less. Therefore, the game tool 1 can suppress the invisible piece 8B from being visually recognized by the user by positioning the invisible piece 8B in the range S.

[0085] Here, the angle θ of the above-described inner angle C is the angle of the inner angle C formed by the straight line L drawn without being blocked by the tread plate member 70, the standing member 13, etc. between the starting point E of the user and the invisible piece 8B when the user visually recognizes the ground surface G below the crawler unit 7. Preferably, the angle θ is 45° or less. More preferably, the angle θ is 30° or less. Also, the height H1 of the leg portion 13b is preferably 100 mm or less. More preferably, the height H1 of the leg portion 13b is 35 mm or less.

[0086] Therefore, by setting the angle C formed between the straight line L and the ground surface G to be equal to or less than the angle θ, it is possible to suppress the user from visually recognizing the invisible frame 8B when using the game tool 1. Also, by setting the angle θ to be 45° or less, since the angle bisector of the angle formed by the upper part and the side part of the crawler unit 7 coincides with the straight line L, when the user visually recognizes the frame 8 held by the upper part and the side part of the crawler unit 7, it is possible to preferably suppress the invisible frame 8B from being reflected in the visual field. In particular, by setting the angle θ to be 30° or less, when trying to visually recognize the invisible frame 8B, the user's posture collapses, so it is possible for other users etc. to confirm that the user is trying to intentionally visually recognize the invisible frame 8B. Further, by setting the height H1 of the leg part 13b to be 100 mm or less, in other words, to be equal to or less than the vertical length from the chin to the eyes of an approximately average human, even when the user assumes a posture of touching the ground surface G with the chin, it is possible to suppress the invisible frame 8B from being visually recognized by the user. Furthermore, by setting the height H1 of the leg part 13b to be 35 mm or less, in other words, to be equal to or less than the horizontal length from the cheek to the eyes of an approximately average human, even when the user assumes a posture of touching the ground surface G with the cheek, it is possible to suppress the invisible frame 8B from being visually recognized by the user.

[0087] Also, as described above, according to FIG. 4, by setting the height H1 of the leg part 13b to be higher than the height H2 of the frame 8 and less than twice the height H2 of the frame 8, while preventing the frame 8 from coming into contact with the ground surface G, it is possible to suppress the possibility that the height H1 of the leg part 13b is unnecessarily increased and the invisible frame 8B is more likely to be visually recognized by the user. Furthermore, by setting the height H1 of the leg part 13b to be 1.2 times or more and 1.9 times or less the height H2 of the frame 8, while preferably preventing the frame 8 from coming into contact with the ground surface G, it is possible to preferably suppress the possibility that the height H1 of the leg part 13b is unnecessarily increased and the invisible frame 8B is more likely to be visually recognized by the user, and furthermore, it is possible to lower the center of gravity of the game tool 1.

[0088] As described above, in the game tool according to the present invention, there are an upper part 7a and a lower part 7b extending in the front-rear direction, which are formed in an annular shape and are driven to move at least a part of the upper part 7a in one direction in the front-rear direction and move it to the lower part 7b, while moving at least a part of the lower part 7b in the other direction in the front-rear direction and moving it to the upper part 7a. The crawler unit 7, a drive unit 5 for driving the crawler unit 7, a support unit 3 in which the lower wall portion 33 of the standing member 13 is grounded and the crawler unit 7 is supported at a height H1 away from the ground surface G. The crawler unit 7 has a plurality of squares 82 indicating the placement locations of the pieces 8 formed in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction on the upper part 7a and the lower part 7b. And the square 82 has a locking pin 83 as a holding portion for holding the piece 8, and when located on the upper part 7a and the lower part 7b, the locking pin 83 holds the piece 8.

[0089] Thereby, the game tool 1 according to the present invention is supported at a height H1 away from the ground surface G by the support unit 3 and the crawler unit 7 having the squares 82 formed with the holding portions for holding the pieces 8 is driven by the drive unit 5, so that the piece 8 held by the crawler unit 7 can be moved downward while being held. Therefore, the game tool 1 according to the present invention can provide the user with a game in which the pieces 8 are held above and below the crawler unit 7.

[0090] Also, in the game tool 1 according to the present invention, the crawler unit 7 has side portions 7c extending downward from both sides in the front-rear direction of the upper part 7a and connecting to both sides in the front-rear direction of the lower part 7b. For the squares 82 located on the side portions 7c, the locking pins 83 hold the pieces 8. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 can also hold the pieces 8 at the side portions 7c.

[0091] Also, in the game tool 1 according to the present invention, the crawler unit 7 has a plurality of flat crawler plate members 70 on which a plurality of squares 82 are formed in the left - right direction. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 can maintain the surface of the square 82 as a plane. Also, since a plurality of squares 82 are formed in the left - right direction on the flat crawler plate member 70, the relative positions of the adjacent squares 82 in the left - right direction can be appropriately maintained. Furthermore, in the game tool according to the present invention, the crawler unit 7 is formed in a ring shape by rotatably connecting a plurality of crawler plate members 70. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 can be formed in a ring shape that can relatively rotate a plurality of crawler plate members 70 to flexibly change its posture. Therefore, the crawler unit 7 can be driven in an endless track shape while enhancing manufacturability by being composed of only a plurality of crawler plate members 70.

[0092] Furthermore, in the game tool according to the present invention, the crawler plate member 70 has a shaft portion 87 connected to one of the two connected crawler plate members 70 and a bearing portion 89 connected to the other crawler plate member 70. A shaft pin 91 extending in the left - right direction is formed on the shaft portion 87, and a bearing 93 for rotatably supporting the shaft pin 91 is formed on the bearing portion 89. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 is rotatably supported by the bearing 93 of the bearing portion 89 in the other crawler plate member 70 for the shaft pin 91 extending in the left - right direction formed on the shaft portion 87 of one crawler plate member 70. Thus, with a simple configuration, the crawler plate members 70 can be rotatably supported relative to each other about the left - right direction as an axis.

[0093] In particular, in the game device according to the present invention, the crawler unit 7 has a first tread plate member 71 and a second tread plate member 72 that is at least partially different from the first tread plate member 71. The first shaft portion 87a of the first tread plate member 71 is configured to be connectable to the second bearing portion 89b of the second tread plate member 72, and the second shaft portion 87b of the second tread plate member 72 is configured to be connectable to the first bearing portion 89a of the first tread plate member 71. The first shaft portion 87a is at least partially different from the second shaft portion 87b. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 can specify the first bearing portion 89a and the second bearing portion 89b to be connected based on the difference between the first shaft portion 87a and the second shaft portion 87b. Therefore, the crawler unit 7 can prevent a so-called misassembly in which the first tread plate member 71 and the second tread plate member 72 are assembled in the wrong order when connecting a plurality of tread plate members 70.

[0094] Specifically, a predetermined number (six in this embodiment) of shaft pins 91 are respectively formed on the first shaft portion 87a and the second shaft portion 87b, and a predetermined number (six in this embodiment) of bearing portions 89 are respectively formed on the first bearing portion 89a and the second bearing portion 89b. At least one (four in this embodiment) of the shaft pins 91 formed on the second shaft portion 87b is formed at the same position as the shaft pins 91 formed on the first shaft portion 87a, and at least one (two specific shaft pins 95 in this embodiment) is formed at a position different from the shaft pins 91 formed on the first shaft portion 87a. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 can prevent misassembly while maintaining the design property.

[0095] Also, in the game device according to the present invention, the drive unit 5 has a rotating member 51 that is at least partially located between the upper part 7a and the lower part 7b of the crawler unit 7 and rotates about the left-right direction. The rotating member 51 has a drive portion 61 that extends in the left-right direction and is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape in which four surfaces forming the side surface 61c have the same shape. One of the four side surfaces 61c of the drive portion 61 supports the upper part 7a of the crawler unit 7. Thereby, the drive unit 5 can support the upper part 7a of the crawler unit 7 by the side surface 61c of the drive portion 61, and can maintain the flatness of the upper part 7a of the crawler unit 7 while driving the crawler unit 7.

[0096] In addition, in the game apparatus according to the present invention, the drive unit 5 has a resistance portion 5a that resists the driving force for rotating the rotating member 51 about the left-right direction axis. The resistance portion 5a resists the driving force when the side surface 61c of the drive portion 61 that supports the upper portion 7a of the crawler unit 7 inclines from the horizontal state. Thereby, the drive unit 5 can give a sense of resistance to the user who applies a driving force to the handle 53 to rotate the rotating member 51, for example, by resisting the driving force when the side surface 61c inclines from the horizontal state by the resistance portion 5a. As a result, since the drive unit 5 resists the driving force when the side surface 61c inclines from the horizontal state by the resistance portion 5a, the flatness of the upper portion 7a of the crawler unit 7 can be suitably maintained.

[0097] In addition, in the game apparatus according to the present invention, the support unit 3 is located near both end portions in the left-right direction of the crawler unit 7 and has a standing member 13 that covers the both end portions when viewed from the left-right direction. The standing member 13 includes an upper wall portion 32 formed along the upper portion 7a of the crawler unit 7, a side wall portion 34 extending downward in the vertical direction from the front-rear direction end portions of the upper wall portion 32, and a first plate portion 46 extending in the inner corner direction from a corner portion 37 formed by the upper wall portion 32 and the side wall portion 34. Thereby, the support unit 3 can block at least a part of the inner corner side of the corner portion 37 that is opened when the crawler unit 7 is driven by including the first plate portion 46 extending in the inner corner direction from the corner portion 37 formed by the upper wall portion 32 and the side wall portion 34. As a result, the first plate portion 46 can suppress the intrusion of foreign matters or the like into the inner corner side of the opened corner portion 37.

[0098] In addition, in the game tool according to the present invention, the support unit 3 is located near both end portions in the left - right direction of the crawler unit 7 and has a cover member that covers the both end portions when viewed from the left - right direction. The standing member 13 includes an upper wall portion 32 formed along the upper portion 7a of the crawler unit 7 and a second plate portion 47 extending upward from the end portion of the upper wall portion 32 on the crawler unit 7 side. Thereby, the support unit 3 includes the second plate portion 47 extending upward from the end portion of the upper wall portion 32 on the crawler unit 7 side. Even when a part near the second plate portion 47 of the upper portion 7a of the crawler unit 7 moves above the upper wall portion 32 when the crawler unit 7 is driven, a part of the crawler unit 7 can be covered when viewed from the left - right direction. As a result, the second plate portion 47 can suppress the intrusion of foreign substances or the like under a part of the crawler unit 7.

[0099] In addition, in the game tool according to the present invention, the support unit 3 has a third plate portion 48 located above the center in the front - rear direction of the crawler unit 7. Thereby, the support unit 3 can suppress the upward movement of the upper portion 7a of the crawler unit 7 when the crawler unit 7 is driven.

[0100] In addition, in the game tool according to the present invention, the locking pin 83 as a holding portion for holding the piece 8 includes a locking pin 83 extending in the vertical direction from the square 82. The piece 8 is formed with a locked portion 8a having flexibility and locked to the locking pin 83. Thereby, the crawler unit 7 can hold the piece 8 well by locking the piece 8 having the flexible locked portion 8a with the locking pin 83.

[0101] In particular, in the game tool according to the present invention, the locked portion 8a includes a recess locked to the locking pin 83, and the recess has a polygonal opening. Thereby, for example, the recess can be formed so as to extend from a square opening toward the inside of the piece 8, and the contact area between the locking pin 83 and the locked portion 8a can be made appropriate.

[0102] (Modification example) As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described, but the present invention is not limited to such embodiments, and various modifications are possible.

[0103] For example, in the present embodiment, the game apparatus 1 has been described as including the support unit 3, the drive unit 5, and the crawler unit 7, but it is not necessary to include all of these, and some of them may be integrated. Further, the game apparatus 1 may include components other than the support unit 3, the drive unit 5, and the crawler unit 7.

[0104] Also, although the support unit 3 has been described as having the base member 11 and the pair of left and right standing members 13, it is sufficient if it can support the drive unit 5 and the crawler unit 7, and it is not limited to these configurations. For example, although the base member 11 and the standing members 13 have been described as housing-shaped resin members, they may be configured as a solid wooden body or a combination of metal pipes. Further, although the standing member 13 has been described as having the upper cover portion 13a and the lower leg portion 13b from approximately the center in the vertical direction, they may be formed as separate bodies. Also, although the standing member 13 has been described with respect to the reinforcing wall portion 43a extending radially in the vertical and horizontal directions from the third support portion 43 and the first plate portion 46 extending from the corner portion 37 and the T-shaped portion 38 toward the third support portion 43, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, by extending the first plate portion 46 so as to be connected to the third support portion 43 while abolishing the reinforcing wall portion 43a, the third support portion 43 can be reinforced while reducing the opening area of the open portion on the inner angle side of the corner portion 37 and the inner angle side facing the third support portion 43 of the T-shaped portion 38.

[0105] Also, although the drive unit 5 has been described as being positioned in a pair, one in front and one behind, of the base member 11, it may be either in front of or behind the base member 11. In this case, for the other side with respect to the said one side, instead of the drive unit 5, only the rotating member 51 may be arranged, as long as the tread plate member 70 can be moved passively when the crawler unit 7 is driven and the tread plate member 70 positioned on the upper side can be supported. Further, although the rotating member 51 has been described as a resin member in which the drive portion 61 is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape, it may also be a triangular prism or a hexagonal prism. Furthermore, although the rotating member 51 has been described as having an upper side in the posture shown in FIG. 2 opened to open the internal space, the opened upper side may be closed with a flat plate or the like, or it may be configured as a solid body.

[0106] Also, although the resistance portion 5a of the drive unit 5 has been described as having the click member 55, the spring 57, and the concave portion 63 of the rotating member 51, it does not have to be such a configuration, and the user may be made to recognize the static state of the side surface 61c of the rotating member 51 (that is, the state where the tread plate member 70 positioned above the rotating member 51 is horizontal). Also, although the drive unit 5 has been described as rotating about the left - right direction by a manual operation of the user, for example, an electric motor or the like may be provided and it may be configured to rotate by the driving force of the electric motor. Also, although the drive unit 5 has been configured such that the user rotates the handle 53, for example, an operation button that the user presses in a linear direction may be provided, and the force with which the operation button is pressed in the linear direction is converted into a force in the rotational direction (driving force), and the rotating member 51 may be rotated using this driving force.

[0107] Also, although the crawler unit 7 has been described as being composed of a plurality of tread members 70, for example, it may be composed of an annular belt, as long as the pieces 8 can be held above and below the crawler unit 7. That is, the crawler unit 7 may form a holding portion such as a locking pin 83 that protrudes outward from the annular belt, or may be formed by attaching a plurality of plate members such as the tread members 70 to the annular belt. Further, although the tread member 70 has been described as holding the piece 8 when the locking pin 83 is locked to the locked portion 8a, a concave portion such as the locked portion 8a may be formed in the tread member 70 and a pin such as the locking pin 83 may be formed on the piece 8 to hold the piece 8, as long as the piece 8 can be held. For example, the tread member 70 may be formed flat without forming the locking pin 83 on the mass 82, and a suction cup may be provided on the piece 8, or a hook-and-loop fastener, a magnet, a snap button, etc. may be provided on the mass 82 and the locking pin 83. Also, although the piece 8 has been described as including a flexible material such as EVA, it is not necessary for the entire piece 8 to be flexible, as long as the locked portion 8a is flexible.

[0108] Also, although the tread member 70 has been described as being configured such that the surface roughness of the adjacent masses 82 in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction is different due to the rough surface 85, for example, the feel may be changed by the material, or a plurality of notch grooves may be formed on the surface of the mass 82 such that the extending directions of the notch grooves of the adjacent masses 82 in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction are different to change the feel, as long as the masses 82 can be distinguished by the feel. Further, although the crawler unit 7 has been described as forming a shaft portion 87 and a bearing portion 89 on the tread member 70 to rotatably connect the tread members 70 to each other, for example, the tread members 70 may be connected to each other using a rubber member, as long as the tread members 70 can be rotatably connected to each other. In particular, it has been described that the tread member 70 provides the specific shaft pin 95 and the specific pin support portion 96 of the second shaft portion 87b in the second tread member 72 at a position offset by a second distance D2 compared to the other shaft pins 91. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the diameter of the specific shaft pin 95 may be different from that of the other shaft pins 91, as long as incorrect assembly can be prevented.

[0109] In the above-described embodiment, an example of the assembly procedure of the game device 1 was described. However, the contents and order of these steps are merely examples, and the game device 1 may be assembled with different contents and orders of steps. Specifically, in the fourth step, it was described that the crawler unit 7, which is formed in an annular shape by alternately connecting the first tread plate members 71 and the second tread plate members 72 in advance, is moved from the left side to the right side in the left-right direction of the base member 11 and the rotating member 51 so as to cover the base member 11 and the rotating member 51. However, the crawler unit 7 does not necessarily have to be formed in an annular shape in advance, and may be formed in an annular shape while covering the front, rear, upper, and lower portions of the base member 11 and the rotating member 51 while alternately connecting the first tread plate members 71 and the second tread plate members 72.

[0110] In the above-described embodiment, resin members and constituent materials such as EVA were described as examples for each component. However, these are merely examples, and materials such as metal and wood may be used.

[0111] In addition, the names used in the above-described embodiment are merely used to distinguish the devices and configurations from each other, and other names may be given according to the functions of each device. Further, in the present disclosure, even if descriptions such as "first" and "second" are made, it does not mean that only two elements to which these are attached are limited. Naturally, "third", "fourth", and a plurality of other elements may be included.

[0112] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, even if the direction is specified for explanation, it is for convenience of explanation, and it is not necessarily required to follow the direction used in the explanation. For example, in the above-described embodiment, it was described by way of example that the rotating member 51 rotates counterclockwise (rotates in the forward rotation direction) when viewed from the left around the left-right direction axis. However, the same operational effects may occur when the rotating member 51 rotates clockwise when viewed from the left around the left-right direction axis.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0113] 1 Game device 3 Support Unit 5 Driving Unit 5a Resistance Part 7 Crawler Unit 7a Upper Part 7b Lower Part 7c Side Part 8 Komatsu 8a Locked Part 13 Upright Member (Cover Member) 32 Upper Wall Part 33 Lower Wall Part 34 Side Wall Part 37 Corner Part 46 First Plate Part (First Protrusion) 47 Second Plate Part (Second Protrusion) 48 Third Plate Part (Third Protrusion) 51 Rotating Member 61 Driving Part 61c Side Surface 70 Track Plate Member 71 First Track Plate Member 72 Second Track Plate Member 82 Mass 83 Locking Pin (Holding Part) 87 Shaft Part 87a First Shaft Part 87b Second Shaft Part 89 Bearing Part 89a First Bearing Part 89b Second Bearing Part 91 Shaft Pin 93 Bearing

Claims

1. A crawler unit having an upper part extending in a first direction located horizontally and a lower part located below the upper part and extending in the first direction, formed in a ring shape, and when driven, at least a part of the upper part is moved in one direction of the first direction to the lower part while at least a part of the lower part is moved in the other direction of the first direction to the upper part; A drive unit for driving the crawler unit; A support unit having a lower end grounded and supporting the crawler unit at a predetermined distance from the ground surface, comprising: In the crawler unit, a plurality of masses indicating the placement locations of the pieces are formed in the first direction and in a second direction located horizontally and perpendicular to the first direction; The mass has a holding part for holding the piece, and when located in the upper part and the lower part, the holding part holds the piece; A game device characterized by the above.

2. The crawler unit has side parts extending downward from both side parts of the upper part in the first direction and connecting to both side parts of the lower part in the first direction; The mass located on the side part has the holding part holding the piece; The game device according to claim 1, characterized by the above.

3. The crawler unit has a plurality of flat crawler plate members in which a plurality of the masses are formed in the second direction; The crawler unit is formed in a ring shape by rotatably connecting a plurality of the crawler plate members; The game device according to claim 1, characterized by the above.

4. The crawler plate member has a shaft part connected to one of the two crawler plate members to be connected and a bearing part connected to the other crawler plate member; A shaft pin extending in the second direction is formed on the shaft part; A bearing for rotatably supporting the shaft pin is formed on the bearing part; The game device according to claim 3, characterized by the above.

5. The crawler unit has a first crawler plate member and a second crawler plate member at least partially different from the first crawler plate member; The first shaft part, which is the shaft part of the first crawler plate member, is configured to be connectable to the second bearing part, which is the bearing part of the second crawler plate member; The second shaft part, which is the shaft part of the second crawler plate member, is configured to be connectable to the first bearing part, which is the bearing part of the first crawler plate member; The first shaft part is at least partially different from the second shaft part; The game device according to claim 4, characterized by the above.

6. A predetermined number of the shaft pins are formed on each of the first shaft portion and the second shaft portion, A predetermined number of the bearing portions are formed on each of the first bearing portion and the second bearing portion, The shaft pins formed on the second shaft portion At least one is formed at the same position as the shaft pins formed on the first shaft portion, At least one is formed at a position different from the shaft pins formed on the first shaft portion, The game tool according to claim 5, characterized in that.

7. At least a part of the drive unit is located between the upper part and the lower part of the crawler unit, and has a rotating member that rotates about the second direction as an axis, The rotating member Has a drive portion that extends in the second direction and is formed in a rectangular parallelepiped shape in which four side surfaces forming the side surfaces have the same shape, One of the four side surfaces of the drive portion supports the upper part of the crawler unit, The game tool according to claim 3, characterized in that.

8. The drive unit has a resistance portion that resists the driving force for rotating the rotating member about the second direction as an axis, The resistance portion resists the driving force when the side surface of the drive portion that supports the upper part of the crawler unit inclines from a horizontal state, The game tool according to claim 7, characterized in that.

9. The support unit Is located near both ends of the crawler unit in the second direction side, and has a cover member that covers the both ends when viewed from the second direction, The cover member An upper wall portion formed along the upper part of the crawler unit, A side wall portion extending downward in the vertical direction from at least one end of the upper wall portion in the first direction, And a first protruding portion extending in the inner corner direction from the corner portion formed by the upper wall portion and the side wall portion, The game tool according to claim 1, characterized in that.

10. The support unit Is located near both ends of the crawler unit in the second direction side, and has a cover member that covers the both ends when viewed from the second direction, The cover member An upper wall portion formed along the upper part of the crawler unit, And a second protruding portion extending upward from the end of the upper wall portion on the crawler unit side, The game tool according to claim 1, characterized in that.

11. The support unit has a third protruding portion located above the center of the crawler unit in the first direction, The game tool according to claim 1, characterized in that.

12. The holding part includes a locking pin extending vertically from the piece. The board has a flexible locked part formed thereon which is locked to the locking pin. The gaming implement according to claim 1, characterized in that.

13. The locked part includes a recess locked to the locking pin. The recess has a polygonal opening. The gaming implement according to claim 12, characterized in that.

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