Island equipment

Abstract

To provide island equipment facilitating a setting of coordinates of a display area of game data displayed on respective display panels since the multiple display panels can be disposed in a juxtaposition direction of game machines and the relative position relationship between the game machines and the display panels corresponding to the respective game machines can be adjusted identically in each machine.SOLUTION: Island equipment D in which an installation area F in which multiple game machines P can be installed side by side is formed and multiple display panels M capable of performing display corresponding to a game machine P installed in the installation area F can be installed is provided with a holding member 1 that is extended in a juxtaposition direction of the multiple game machines installed in the installation area F, and holds the multiple display panels M and slides the respective display panels M in a juxtaposition direction of game machines for positioning.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an island facility capable of accommodating a plurality of gaming machines. [Background technology]

[0002] An island facility has multiple installation areas where gaming machines such as pachinko machines or slot machines can be installed, and a curtain board is installed above the installation areas in the direction in which the gaming machines are installed. Conventionally, it has been proposed to place display panels (EL panels) on the curtain boards above the installation areas in the island facility, display game data of the gaming machines installed in the installation areas, and to coordinate the displays on the multiple display panels to create an effect. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-008589 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the above-mentioned conventional island equipment has the following problems. Display panels such as EL panels and LCD panels have different horizontal and vertical dimensions depending on the manufacturer and specifications, so when EL panels are connected horizontally, the relative position between the center line of the gaming machine and the center line of the EL panel corresponding to the gaming machine may be shifted, making it difficult to set the coordinates of the game history display area on the EL panel.

[0005] In addition, the distance between adjacent gaming machines in an island facility varies from store to store depending on the machine spacing devices installed adjacent to the gaming machines and the machine spacing pillars of the island facility, so the relative position between a specific display panel and its corresponding gaming machine often becomes misaligned, which is expected to make it difficult to physically align the gaming machine and the display panel, and to align the display position of the display panel relative to the gaming machine.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide an island facility that allows multiple display panels to be arranged in the direction in which the gaming machines are arranged, and that allows the installation positions of the display panels to be easily adjusted to correspond to the gaming machines installed in the installation area. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The invention described in claim 1 is an island equipment in which an installation area is formed in which a plurality of gaming machines can be installed side by side, and in which a plurality of display panels capable of displaying information corresponding to the gaming machines installed in the installation area can be installed, characterized in that the island equipment is provided with a holding member that extends in the direction in which the plurality of gaming machines installed in the installation area are installed, and that holds the plurality of display panels and can slide each of the display panels in the direction in which the gaming machines are installed to position them.

[0008] The invention described in claim 2 is characterized in that, in the island equipment described in claim 1, the retaining member has an upper locking member capable of locking the upper end of the display panel and a lower locking member capable of locking the lower end of the display panel, and the upper locking member and the lower locking member are attached at a predetermined distance apart depending on the height dimension of the display panel.

[0009] The invention described in claim 3 is characterized in that, in the island equipment described in claim 2, it has a connecting member that connects the upper locking member and the lower locking member, and the connecting member has a length dimension that corresponds to the height dimension of the display panel.

[0010] The invention described in claim 4 is characterized in that, in the island equipment described in any one of claims 1 to 3, the holding member is capable of holding a portion of the adjacent display panels so that they overlap in the front-to-back direction when viewed from the front.

[0011] The invention described in claim 5 is characterized in that, in the island equipment described in claim 4, the holding member is formed with a convex portion that separates the display panel located on the front side from the display panel located on the rear side.

[0012] The invention of claim 6 is the island equipment of claim 2, wherein the holding member has a side holding member that holds a side surface of the display panel.

[0013] The invention of claim 7 is the island equipment of claim 2, wherein the holding member has a rattle absorbing member made of an elastic member that absorbs rattle of the display panel.

[0014] The invention of claim 8 is characterized in that, in the island equipment of claim 1, the display panel is capable of switching between displaying data and effects of the corresponding gaming machine. [Effects of the Invention]

[0015] According to the present invention, multiple display panels can be arranged in the direction in which the gaming machines are arranged, and the relative positional relationship between the gaming machines and the display panels corresponding to each gaming machine can be adjusted to be the same for each machine, making it easy to set the coordinates of the display area for the gaming data to be displayed on each display panel. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0016] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front view showing an island facility according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] Side view of the island's facilities [Figure 3] A front view showing a holding member (holding a display panel) arranged in the island equipment. [Figure 4]Cross section of line IV-IV in Figure 3 [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a front view showing the holding member (not holding the display panel); [Figure 6] Cross section of line VI-VI in Figure 5 [Figure 7] FIG. 10 is a side view showing a state in which the holding member holding the display panel according to the embodiment is attached to the island equipment. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a side view showing a state in which the connecting member of the holding member is attached to the island equipment. [Figure 9] 1A and 1B are front and side views showing a display panel held by a holding member of the island equipment; [Figure 10] 1A and 1B are front and top views showing a first side holding member applied to the island equipment; [Figure 11] 1A and 1B are front and top views showing a second side holding member applied to the island equipment; [Figure 12] Schematic diagram showing the state in which the display panel is held by the holding member in the island equipment [Figure 13] Schematic diagram showing the state (another form) in which the display panel is held by the holding member in the same island equipment [Figure 14] Schematic diagram showing a state in which a display panel is held by a holding member in the island equipment (still another form) [Figure 15] Schematic diagram showing an example of display (data display) on a display panel held by a holding member in the island equipment [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a side view showing a holding member according to another embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is a side view showing a holding member according to still another embodiment of the present invention; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0017] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the island equipment D of this embodiment is provided with an installation area F in which multiple gaming machines P (such as pachinko gaming machines and slot machines (gaming machines known as "pachislot")) can be installed, and is also capable of installing multiple display panels M that can display information corresponding to the multiple gaming machines P installed in the installation area F.

[0018] More specifically, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, the island equipment D has game machine installation areas F erected in its extension direction, and is provided with a tray D1 extending horizontally across the lower part of the installation areas F, and a curtain board D2 and a ramp board D3 formed horizontally across the upper parts of the installation areas F. An inter-machine device consisting of a ball lending machine is installed to the left of the pachinko game machine, and an inter-machine device consisting of a sandbox is installed to the right of the slot machine.

[0019] Here, the lamp board D3 according to this embodiment is fitted with a holding member 1 capable of holding a display panel M. The display panel M is made up of a display device having an LCD screen capable of displaying data or effects of the corresponding gaming machine P, and as shown in FIG. 9, is configured with a connector e that can be connected to wiring extending from the island equipment D to supply power. Note that instead of an LCD screen, a display panel M having a screen of another type, such as an EL screen, may be used.

[0020] 9, the display panel M used in this embodiment is a rectangular panel with a height a and a width b, having an upper end Ma, a lower end Mb, and left and right side surfaces Mc, and is attached so that the front surface Md, on which the liquid crystal screen is formed, faces the player, and the back surface Me, on which the connector e is formed, faces the lamp plate D3. Furthermore, through-holes through which wiring can be inserted are formed at predetermined positions on the lamp plate D3, and the wiring inserted through the through-holes can be connected to the connector e of the display panel M to supply power.

[0021] The holding member 1 extends in the arrangement direction (horizontal direction) of the multiple gaming machines P installed in the installation area F, and is capable of holding the multiple display panels M while sliding each display panel M in the arrangement direction of the gaming machines P to position it.As shown in Figures 3 to 8, it has an upper locking member 2 that can lock the upper end Ma of the display panel M, and a lower locking member 3 that can lock the lower end Mb of the display panel M, and the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 are attached at a predetermined distance apart according to the height dimension a of the display panel M.

[0022] Specifically, the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 each comprise a rail-shaped member extending horizontally, and are connected to each other by a connecting member 4. The connecting member 4 has a length corresponding to the height dimension a of the display panel M, and as shown in Figures 7 and 8, is fixed to an appropriate location on the lamp plate D3 with screws n1, and the upper and lower parts of the connecting member 4 are connected to the upper and lower parts of the connecting member 4. A pressing member 5 is attached to the connecting member 4 with screws n2. The pressing member 5 serves to secure the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 together while the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 are positioned by the connecting member 4.

[0023] As shown in Fig. 7, the upper locking member 2 is made of an integrally molded member with an extended portion 2a that fits into and is attached to the upper part of the connecting member 4 and a bent portion 2b that is bent downward at the tip of the extended portion 2a, and the upper end Ma of the display panel M faces and is held against the inner surface of the extended portion 2a and is prevented from coming off by the bent portion 2b. Also, as shown in Fig. 7, the lower locking member 3 is made of an integrally molded member with an extended portion 3a that fits into and is attached to the lower part of the connecting member 4 and a bent portion 3b that is bent upward at the tip of the extended portion 3a, and the lower end Mb of the display panel M is placed on and held against the inner surface of the extended portion 3a and is prevented from coming off by the bent portion 3b.

[0024] In this way, the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 are respectively connected to the upper and lower parts of the connecting member 4, whose length corresponds to the height dimension a of the display panel M, so that the display panel M can be held in the spaced apart portion between the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3, as shown in Figures 3, 4, and 7. In this embodiment, when holding the display panel M in the holding member 1, as shown in Figure 7, first the upper end Ma of the display panel M is brought into contact with the upper locking member 2, and then the lower end Mb is pushed in while maintaining this contact, thereby swinging the entire panel, thereby locking the lower end Mb with the lower locking member 3.

[0025] Therefore, the display panel M, whose upper end Ma and lower end Mb are engaged and held by the upper engaging member 2 and the lower engaging member 3, can slide (slide) along the upper engaging member 2 and the lower engaging member 3 while maintaining its held state, so that the display panel M can be slid left and right to position it according to the arrangement of the gaming machines P installed in the installation area F of the island equipment D.

[0026] Furthermore, the holding member 1 according to this embodiment is capable of holding adjacent display panels M with portions of them overlapping (overlapping in the front-to-rear direction) in a front-to-rear direction when viewed from the front. That is, the extension portions 2a, 3a of the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 are sized to be able to lock multiple display panels M (two display panels M in this embodiment) in the front-to-rear direction (the left-to-right direction in FIG. 7), and are configured to be able to hold the display panel M1 located on the front side (the left side in FIG. 7) and the display panel M2 located on the rear side (the right side in FIG. 7). Note that a transparent or translucent protective plate 8 is attached to the holding member 1 according to this embodiment forward of the front display panel M1.

[0027] In this way, the holding member 1 can hold multiple display panels M in the front-to-back direction, so that the display panel M1 located on the front side and the display panel M2 located on the rear side can be overlapped, and the arrangement of the multiple display panels M (M1, M2) can be easily set and changed according to the formation position of the installation area F of the island equipment D.

[0028] That is, since the formation position of the installation area F for the gaming machines P varies depending on the island equipment D, in order to arrange the display panel M in correspondence with the gaming machines P installed in each installation area F, it is necessary to align the display panel M for each island equipment D. The holding member 1 according to this embodiment can hold multiple display panels M and position each display panel M by sliding it in the extension direction, and can also cause the display panel M1 located on the front side and the display panel M2 located on the rear side to overlap, so that the display panels M can be arranged in correspondence with the gaming machines P installed in the installation area F regardless of the dimensions of the display panels M.

[0029] 7, the holding member 1 may have a backlash absorbing member T made of an elastic material attached to the gap between the protective plate 8 and the display panel M. Such backlash absorbing member T can be made of an elastic material such as sponge, resin, or rubber, and can be interposed between the protective plate 8 of the holding member 1 and the display panel M, between the upper locking member 2 and the display panel M, between the lower locking member and the display panel M, or between adjacent display panels M.

[0030] 16, the holding member 1 may be one in which a protrusion 2c and a protrusion 3c that separate the display panel M1 located on the front side from the display panel M2 located on the rear side are formed on both the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 17, the holding member 1 may be one in which a protrusion 3c that separates the display panel M1 located on the front side from the display panel M2 located on the rear side is formed on one of the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 (the lower locking member 3 in this figure).

[0031] Furthermore, the holding member 1 according to this embodiment has side holding members (first side holding member 6 and second side holding member 7 in this embodiment) that hold the side surfaces Mc of the display panels M. As shown in FIG. 10 , the first side holding member 6 holds the side surfaces Mc of two adjacent display panels M, and can connect these two display panels M. Furthermore, the second side holding member 7 holds the side surfaces Mc of one display panel M, and can hold the side surfaces Mc of the display panel M located at the outermost edge.

[0032] According to the holding member 1 described above, as shown in Fig. 12, a plurality of display panels M can be arranged in alignment with the center line L of the gaming machine P installed in the installation area F. In this case, as shown in Fig. 12, the holding member 1 can hold and correspond display panels M1 on the left and right sides of the center line L of the gaming machine P as a boundary, and can hold a display panel M2 in the gap between the display panel M1 and the display panel M1 corresponding to the adjacent gaming machine P by overlapping it by a dimension H.

[0033] Furthermore, the display panel M can switch between displaying data and effects for the corresponding gaming machine P. For example, as shown in Fig. 12, the display panel M1 may display data (such as history data) for each of the gaming machines P1 to P3, while the display panel M2 may be turned off or display a decorative image such as a logo, and as shown in Fig. 15(a), when a jackpot is hit on the gaming machine P2, the corresponding display panel M1 and the adjacent display panel M2 may display a jackpot effect.

[0034] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 15(b), when a message for customers, such as "Thank you very much for visiting us today," is displayed integrally on multiple display panels M1 and M2, it is preferable to display the message automatically at a specified time, or to display it intensively on the display panels M of island equipment where there are sparse numbers of customers.

[0035] 13, even if the display panel M is changed to one with a larger width b, the holding member 1 can arrange multiple display panels M in accordance with the center line L of the gaming machines P installed in the installation area F. In this case, the holding member 1 can hold and correspond to the display panel M1 by aligning the center of the screen with the center line L of the gaming machine P, as shown in FIG. 13, and can hold the display panel M2 in the gap between the display panel M1 and the display panel M1 corresponding to the adjacent gaming machine P by overlapping it by the dimension H. Note that even in this case, the display panel M can switch the data display and effect display of the corresponding gaming machine P.

[0036] Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 14, the holding member 1 can arrange multiple display panels M in alignment with the center line L of the gaming machines P installed in the installation area F, and not hold a display panel M2 in the gap between the display panels M corresponding to adjacent gaming machines P. In this case, as shown in Fig. 14, the holding member 1 can hold and correspond display panels M1 on the left and right sides of the center line L of the gaming machine P as the boundary, and not hold a display panel M2 in the gap between the display panel M1 and the display panel M1 corresponding to the adjacent gaming machine P, and a separate display panel M3 can be installed in the island equipment D. Note that even in this case, the display panel M can switch the data display and effect display of the corresponding gaming machine P.

[0037] According to the island equipment D of this embodiment, it is provided with a holding member 1 that is extended in the arrangement direction (horizontal direction) of the gaming machines P installed in the installation area F and that can hold multiple display panels M and position each display panel M by sliding it in the arrangement direction (left and right direction) of the gaming machines P. Therefore, multiple display panels M can be arranged in the arrangement direction of the gaming machines P, and the relative positional relationship between the gaming machines P and the display panel M corresponding to each gaming machine P can be adjusted to be the same for each machine, making it easy to set the coordinates of the display area of ​​the gaming data to be displayed on each display panel M.

[0038] In addition, the holding member 1 in this embodiment has an upper locking member 2 that can lock the upper end Ma of the display panel M, and a lower locking member 3 that can lock the lower end Mb of the display panel M, and the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 are attached at a predetermined distance apart according to the height dimension a of the display panel M. Therefore, by changing the distance between the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3, display panels M with different height dimensions a can be easily attached.

[0039] In particular, in this embodiment, a connecting member 4 is provided that connects the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3, and the connecting member 4 has a length dimension that corresponds to the height dimension a of the display panel M.Therefore, by preparing multiple connecting members 4 with different length dimensions and using a connecting member 4 with a length dimension that corresponds to the height dimension a of the display panel M to be held, display panels M with different height dimensions a can be easily attached.

[0040] Furthermore, the holding member 1 of this embodiment is capable of holding adjacent display panels M with portions of them overlapping in the front-to-back direction when viewed from the front, so that the display panels M can be arranged in correspondence with the center line L of the gaming machine P regardless of the dimensions of the display panels M (particularly the width dimension b), and multiple display panels M can be arranged continuously in the horizontal direction.

[0041] Furthermore, the holding member 1 of this embodiment may have protrusions (2c, 3c) formed on both or either of the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 to separate the display panel M1 located on the front side from the display panel M2 located on the rear side, in which case the protrusions (2c, 3c) can reliably maintain the front-to-back relationship between the display panel M1 on the front side and the display panel M2 on the rear side.

[0042] Furthermore, the holding member 1 according to this embodiment has side holding members (first side holding member 6 and second side holding member 7) that hold the side surfaces Mc of the display panel M, and therefore can more stably hold the display panel M held by the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3. Furthermore, a backlash absorbing member T made of an elastic member that absorbs backlash of the display panel M may be formed, and in that case, the display panel M held by the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 can be stably fixed by the backlash absorbing member T.

[0043] In addition, the display panel M is capable of switching between displaying data and effects for the corresponding gaming machine P, so that when displaying effects, for example, it is possible to perform continuous effects (such as an effect in which a pattern moves from one end to the other) on multiple display panels M held in succession horizontally, and it is also possible to perform linked effects on adjacent display panels M.

[0044] Although the present embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, instead of the retaining member 1 being composed of the upper locking member 2 and the lower locking member 3 as in the present embodiment, a retaining member made of an integrated part may be used. In addition, instead of or in addition to the retaining member 1 being mounted on the lamp plate D3, the retaining member 1 may be mounted on the header board D2, or a separate mounting plate may be formed on the header board D2 and the retaining member 1 may be mounted on the separate mounting plate. Furthermore, the connecting member 4 is fixed to the lamp plate D3 with the screw n1, but the hole through which the screw n1 is inserted may be an elongated hole, and the entire retaining member 1 may be movable up and down by changing the position in the elongated hole through which the screw n1 is inserted. [Industrial Applicability]

[0045] Other forms of island equipment may be used as long as they have the same gist as the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 1. Holding member 2 Upper locking member 2a Extension part 2b Bend part 2c Convex part 3 Lower locking member 3a Extension part 3b Bend part 3c Convex part 4 Connecting members 5 Presser member 6 First side holding member 7 Second side holding member 8 Protective plate D island equipment D1 Dining board D2 Backboard D3 Lamp Plate F Installation area M, M1, M2, M3 display panel Ma upper end Mb lower end Mc side P gaming machine T Backlash absorption member

Claims

1. An island facility in which an installation area is formed in which a plurality of gaming machines can be installed side by side, and in which a plurality of display panels capable of displaying information corresponding to the gaming machines installed in the installation area can be installed, An island facility characterized by having a holding member that extends in the direction in which multiple gaming machines are installed in the installation area, and that holds the multiple display panels and can slide each of the display panels in the direction in which the gaming machines are installed to position them.

2. The island equipment described in claim 1, characterized in that the retaining member has an upper locking member capable of locking the upper end of the display panel and a lower locking member capable of locking the lower end of the display panel, and the upper locking member and the lower locking member are attached at a predetermined distance apart depending on the height dimension of the display panel.

3. The island equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that it has a connecting member that connects the upper engaging member and the lower engaging member, and the connecting member has a length dimension corresponding to the height dimension of the display panel.

4. An island equipment as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the holding member is capable of holding a portion of the adjacent display panels so that they overlap in the front-to-back direction when viewed from the front.

5. The island equipment according to claim 4, characterized in that the holding member has a convex portion formed thereon that separates the display panel located on the front side from the display panel located on the rear side.

6. 3. The island equipment according to claim 2, wherein the holding member includes a side holding member that holds a side surface of the display panel.

7. 3. The island equipment according to claim 2, wherein the holding member has a backlash absorbing member made of an elastic material that absorbs backlash of the display panel.

8. 2. The island equipment according to claim 1, wherein the display panel is capable of switching between displaying data and displaying effects of the corresponding gaming machine.

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