Game machine

Abstract

To provide a game machine capable of optimizing the management of a game machine that imparts a large amount of put-out balls.SOLUTION: A game machine includes determination means for determining whether or not a predetermined value calculated on the basis of a game profit imparted to a player has reached a specific value, game suppression means for controlling subsequent games in a suppressed mode when it is determined that the predetermined value has reached the specific value, and operation control means for operating a movable body capable of operating according to a performance. In a state where a game is not controlled in the suppressed mode by the game suppression means, the operation control means can execute restoration processing for returning the movable body to its initial position by a specific condition being satisfied when the movable body is not in its initial position, but cannot execute the restoration processing based on the specific condition in a state where a game is controlled in the suppressed mode by the game suppression means.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to gaming machines such as pachinko gaming machines (generally also referred to as "pachinko machines") and slot machine gaming machines (generally also referred to as "pachislot machines"). [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there is known a gaming machine that draws a lottery to determine whether or not a jackpot will be awarded based on the entry of a gaming ball into a starting hole, and if the lottery results in a jackpot, a jackpot symbol is statically displayed on a display device to generate a jackpot game. Also, many gaming machines have been proposed that control the state after the jackpot game to be more advantageous to the player than normal times (for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-26097 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In recent years, even when a large number of balls are awarded to a fraudster due to new fraudulent practices, it is difficult to distinguish between cases where a large number of balls have been awarded to a player due to a bias in the probability of winning or losing, and it can be difficult for gaming halls to urge fraudsters to stop playing, which has led to problems in the management of gaming machines.Furthermore, there are also cases where a large number of balls are awarded to legitimate players due to a bias in the probability of winning or losing, which has led to problems such as so-called "addiction."

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and its purpose is to provide a gaming machine that makes it possible to optimize the management of gaming machines that award large amounts of balls. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] Effective solutions for achieving the above-mentioned object are shown below. The operation and other details will be explained as necessary. For ease of understanding, the corresponding configurations and other details will be shown in the embodiments of the invention as appropriate, but are not intended to be limiting.

[0007] The present invention provides In a gaming machine that can be controlled to an advantageous state where a symbol variation game is performed based on the establishment of a predetermined start condition, and a specific result is derived as a result of the symbol variation game, the gaming machine is easy to award a game value, a determining means for determining whether a predetermined value calculated based on the gaming profit given to the player has reached a specific value; a game-disabled state control means for controlling the game to a game-disabled state in which game progress is disabled when it is determined that the predetermined value has reached the specific value; A motion control means for moving a movable body capable of moving in accordance with a performance; Equipped with The operation control means In a situation where the game is not controlled to the unplayable state, a specific restoration process can be executed to return the movable body to its initial position based on the establishment of a specific condition when the movable body is not in its initial position. In a situation where the game is controlled to the unplayable state, the specific restoration process is not executed, When it is determined that the predetermined value has reached the specific value during the advantageous state, the game can be controlled to the unplayable state after the advantageous state ends, When the power supply is cut off while the machine is in the unplayable state and then power is supplied, the machine may be controlled to the unplayable state or may not be controlled to the unplayable state depending on the mode of the administrator operation performed at the time of power supply; Furthermore, if a specific abnormality occurs, the specific abnormality can be resolved by supplying power to the gaming machine, If the specific abnormality occurs during the advantageous state between when it is determined that the predetermined value has reached the specific value and when it is controlled to the unplayable state, and the power is subsequently cut off and then supplied, the specific abnormality is resolved but the advantageous state is not initialized, and it is possible to return to the advantageous state after it is determined that the specific value has been reached. It is characterized by:

[0008] [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] In this way, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a gaming machine that can optimize the management of a gaming machine that awards a large number of balls. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view of a pachinko machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a pachinko machine shown with the upper side tilted forward. [Figure 3] This is a perspective view of a pachinko machine as seen from the front. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a rear view of the pachinko machine. [Figure 5] This is an oblique view showing the door frame, main body frame, and outer frame that make up the pachinko machine in the open state, each rotated on its hinges. [Figure 6] This is an exploded perspective view of a pachinko machine, broken down into its main components and viewed from the front. [Figure 7] This is an exploded perspective view of a pachinko machine broken down into its main components and viewed from the rear. [Figure 8] This is a front view of the pachinko machine with the door frame removed. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing the game board separated from the main body frame in FIG. 8. [Figure 10] This is a front view of the pachinko machine with the door frame and game board removed. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a rear view of the pachinko machine of FIG. [Figure 12] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the pachinko machine of FIG. 10 as seen obliquely from the front. [Figure 13] This is an exploded perspective view of the outer frame and main body frame disassembled from each other as seen from the front. [Figure 14] This is an exploded perspective view of the outer frame and main body frame disassembled from the rear. [Figure 15] This is a plan cross-sectional view of the outer frame cut at the center in the vertical direction. [Figure 16] FIG. [Figure 17] This is an exploded oblique view of the main body frame as seen from the front, with the main components disassembled. [Figure 18] This is an exploded perspective view of the main body frame disassembled into its main components and viewed from the rear. [Figure 19] FIG. 11 is a plan view of the pachinko machine of FIG. 10 cut at the center from top to bottom. [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 19. [Figure 21] 9 is a front view of the main part of the front view of FIG. 8, showing the launch unit, the foul unit, etc. in cross section. [Figure 22] This is an exploded oblique view of the main frame base unit of the main frame, disassembled into its main components, viewed from the front. [Figure 23] This is an exploded oblique view of the main frame base unit in the main frame, disassembled into its main components and viewed from behind. [Figure 24] 1A is a front view of a main body frame base in a main body frame base unit, and FIG. 1B is an explanatory perspective view showing a state in which multiple main body frame bases are stacked. [Figure 25] (a) is a perspective view of the ball launching unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the ball launching unit in the main body frame as seen from the back. [Figure 26] 1A is an exploded perspective view of the ball launching unit as seen from the front, and FIG. 1B is an exploded perspective view of the ball launching unit as seen from the rear. [Figure 27](a) is an oblique view of the launch unit cover of the ball launch unit seen from the rear left, and (b) is an explanatory diagram of the ball launch unit showing only the launch unit cover in cross section when viewed from the front. [Figure 28] FIG. 10 is a front view of the ball launching unit showing the launch subtraction sensor and firing hammer in dashed lines. [Figure 29] 1A is a perspective view of the foul unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the foul unit in the main body frame as seen from the back. [Figure 30] FIG. 1(a) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit as seen from the front, and FIG. 1(b) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit as seen from the rear. [Figure 31] 1A is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross section of the foul unit with the foul shutter in a closed state, and FIG. 1B is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross section of the foul unit with the foul shutter in an open state. [Figure 32] FIG. 10A is a perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the front, and FIG. 10B is a perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the rear. [Figure 33] 10A is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the front, and FIG. 10B is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the rear. [Figure 34] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit of the second embodiment with the foul shutter in a closed state, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit of the second embodiment with the foul shutter in an open state. [Figure 35] 1A is a perspective view of the circulation ball path unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the circulation ball path unit in the main body frame as seen from the back. [Figure 36] This is an exploded oblique view of the circulating ball path unit as seen from the front. [Figure 37] This is an exploded perspective view of the circulation ball path unit as seen from behind. [Figure 38](a) is a plan view showing only the ball serpentine member and ball removal shutter in the circulating ball path unit, and (b) is an oblique view from the front showing only the ball serpentine member and ball removal shutter in the circulating ball path unit. [Figure 39] (a1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball removal shutter and ball serpentine member in the closed position together with the ball receiving tray in a side cross section, (a2) is an explanatory diagram showing only the ball removal shutter portion in (a1) from the bottom, (b1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball removal shutter and ball serpentine member in the open position together with the ball receiving tray in a side cross section, and (b2) is an explanatory diagram showing only the ball removal shutter portion in (b1) from the bottom. [Figure 40] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing a front cross section of the circulating ball path unit cut at the out ball sensor location, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a front cross section of the circulating ball path unit cut at the safe ball sensor location. [Figure 41] (a) is an oblique view from the front showing an enlarged view of the lower part of the main body frame together with the outer frame with the serpentine cover of the circulation ball path unit removed, and (b) is an oblique view from the back showing an enlarged view of the lower part of the main body frame together with the outer frame with the serpentine cover of the circulation ball path unit removed. [Figure 42] A plan view showing the ball serpentine member, serpentine cover, ball removal shutter, and gauge section in the circulating ball path unit. [Figure 43] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged view of the key parts of the rear cross section taken at the out ball sensor when the cover member of the ball elimination mechanism in the circulating ball path unit attached to the main frame is closed, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing (a) with the cover member open. [Figure 44] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross section of the ball serpentine member and ball removal tray when the ball removal shutter is in the closed position with an iron ball magnetically attached to it; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross section of the ball serpentine member and ball removal tray when the ball removal shutter is in the open position with an iron ball magnetically attached to it; and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross section of the ball serpentine member and ball removal tray when the ball removal shutter has been slid from the (b) position to the closed position with an iron ball magnetically attached to the underside. [Figure 45](a) is an oblique view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame seen from the front left, (b) is an oblique view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame seen from the front right, and (c) is an oblique view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame seen from the rear. [Figure 46] This is an exploded oblique view of the ball lifting unit, showing the state in which the ball grinding motor base and cassette pressing piece have been opened and the ball grinding cassette has been removed. [Figure 47] (a) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit without the ball polishing cassette attached, (b) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the ball polishing motor base and cassette pressing piece open and the ball polishing cassette attached, and (c) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the ball polishing cassette attached. [Figure 48] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the door frame being closed when the Kuma cassette is not completely locked, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the state in which the door frame moves in the closing direction from the state in (a) and the protrusion on the door frame abuts against the tip of the Kuma motor base, and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing the state in which the door frame is closed from the state in (b) and the Kuma cut is locked. [Figure 49] This is an enlarged front view showing the main parts with the ball polishing cassette removed from the ball lifting unit attached to the main body frame. [Figure 50] (a) is a right side view showing the main parts of the ball grinding mechanism and ball lifting mechanism in the ball lifting unit, (b) is a rear view showing the main parts of the ball lifting mechanism, and (c) is a plan view of the main parts of the ball lifting mechanism as seen from arrow A in (b). [Figure 51] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the lifting spiral shaft and the polishing cloth in the ball lifting unit. [Figure 52] (a) is an enlarged view of the lifting inlet sensor and lifting outlet sensor areas and is an oblique view of the ball lifting unit seen from the rear left, and (b) is a plan cross-sectional view of the ball lifting unit cut at the lifting inlet sensor area. [Figure 53] An explanatory diagram showing the front and rear portions of a ball sensor consisting of a photosensor in the ball passage. [Figure 54](a) is an oblique view of the ball polishing cassette of the ball lifting unit seen from the front left, (b) is an oblique view of the ball polishing cassette seen from the rear right, and (c) is a right side cross-sectional view of the ball polishing cassette cut in the center in the left-right direction. [Figure 55] (a) is a perspective view of the ball throwing unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the ball throwing unit in the main body frame as seen from the back. [Figure 56] 1A is an exploded perspective view of the ball throwing unit as seen from the front, and FIG. 1B is an exploded perspective view of the ball throwing unit as seen from the rear. [Figure 57] This is a front cross-sectional view of the ball sending unit cut at the pre-launch sensor location. [Figure 58] 10 is a perspective view showing the state in which the main body frame is opened relative to the outer frame, and the rear cover and frame substrate unit are also opened. FIG. [Figure 59] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged view of a portion of a frame substrate unit in the outer frame and the main body frame. FIG. [Figure 60] This is a reference photograph showing the rear side of the main body frame with the frame substrate unit open. [Figure 61] This is an explanatory diagram showing the various passages for game balls on the rear side of the main body frame from the rear. [Figure 62] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of game balls in the main body frame. [Figure 63] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an outline of the control configuration of a pachinko machine. [Figure 64] 10 is a flowchart showing a launch permission process. [Figure 65] 10 is a flowchart showing a ball possession subtraction process. [Figure 66] 10 is a flowchart showing the process of adding balls in possession due to foul balls. [Figure 67] 10 is a flowchart showing a launch control process. [Figure 68] 10 is a time chart showing the operation of the launch solenoid and the ball delivery solenoid in the launch sequence. [Figure 69]67(a) is a flowchart showing a different launch control process from that of FIG. 67, and FIG. 67(b) is a flowchart showing the remaining ball subtraction process in the launch control process of FIG. 67(a). [Figure 70] 10 is a flowchart showing prize ball processing. [Figure 71] 10 is a flowchart showing a lifting motor operation process. [Figure 72] 10 is a table showing the relationship between the lift inlet sensor and the lift outlet sensor and the operation of the lift motor. [Figure 73] 10 is a graph showing the relationship between the launching operation of the game ball and the operation of the ball lifting unit. [Figure 74] 10 is a graph showing the operation of the ball lifting mechanism in the ball lifting unit. [Figure 75] 10A is a flowchart showing security processing, and FIG. 10B is a flowchart showing security processing of an embodiment different from that of FIG. [Figure 76] 10 is a table showing the relationship between the low circulating ball sensor and the high circulating ball sensor and error notification. [Figure 77] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the orientation of a magnetic sensor that can detect magnetic lines of force from a magnet, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the orientation of a magnetic sensor that cannot detect magnetic lines of force from a magnet, (c) is an explanatory diagram that shows a schematic perspective view of the detection range of the magnetic sensor on the game board, (d) is an explanatory diagram showing the positional relationship between the magnetic sensor and a magnetic body where the magnetic lines of force from the magnet cannot be detected, (e) is an explanatory diagram showing the positional relationship between the magnetic sensor and a magnetic body where the magnetic lines of force from the magnet can be detected, and (f) is an explanatory diagram showing the magnetic sensor and the holding part separated. [Figure 78] This is a front view of the game board, showing the transparent center gimmicks and other parts as opaque. [Figure 79] FIG. 79 is a perspective view of the game board of FIG. 78 as seen from the front right. [Figure 80] FIG. 79 is a perspective view of the game board of FIG. 78 as seen from the front left. [Figure 81] FIG. 79 is a perspective view of the game board of FIG. 78 seen from behind. [Figure 82]This is an exploded perspective view of the game board disassembled into its main components and viewed from the front. [Figure 83] This is an exploded perspective view of the game board disassembled into its main components and viewed from behind. [Figure 84] This is a front view of the game board, showing the inside of the game area where game balls circulate, by cutting the front unit parallel to the surface of the game panel. [Figure 85] 1(a) is a front view of the lottery device in the center role, and FIG. 1(b) is a perspective view of the lottery device seen from above in front. [Figure 86] This is a side cross-sectional view of the lottery device in the center role, cut at the center in the left-right direction. [Figure 87] 1(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a cross section of a lottery device in a state where the game ball cannot loop, and FIG. 1(b) is an explanatory diagram showing a cross section of a lottery device in a state where the game ball can loop. [Figure 88] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing the flow of game balls in a lottery device. [Figure 89] FIG. 2 is a front view of the game board in a normal state. [Figure 90] This is a front view of the game board, showing the state in which the rear front lifting decorative unit of the rear front performance unit has been dropped from the standby position to the performance position, from the normal state. [Figure 91] This is a front view of the game board showing the rear lifting decoration of the rear performance unit moved from the retracted position to the appearing position from the normal state. [Figure 92] This is a front view of the game board, showing the state in which, from the normal state, the rear front rising decoration unit of the rear front performance unit has been dropped from the standby position to the performance position, and the rear rear rising decoration of the rear rear performance unit has been moved from the retracted position to the appearing position. [Figure 93] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an outline of the control configuration of a pachinko machine. [Figure 94] This is an explanatory diagram showing the center device of the first embodiment attached to the game panel, cut halfway in the vertical direction, together with the previous components. [Figure 95](a) is an explanatory diagram showing the decorative body of the center accessory disassembled into a front decorative part and a rear decorative part from the front, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the decorative body consisting of a front decorative part and a rear decorative part from the front. [Figure 96] This is an explanatory diagram showing the center frame of the center accessory in Figure 94 placed on a stand with its rear end facing downwards. [Figure 97] This is an explanatory diagram showing a partial cross section of a center accessory with a center frame to which a decorative body different from that shown in Figure 94 is attached. [Figure 98] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the main parts of the center reel of the second embodiment as seen from within the frame, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in (a), and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing the center reel of (a) with the rear end facing downwards and the center frame placed on a stand. [Figure 99] This is a front view showing a gaming board with a center device of the third embodiment, with the area behind the gaming panel omitted. [Figure 100] This is an exploded oblique view of the center gadget and game panel of Figure 99, viewed from the front. [Figure 101] This is an exploded perspective view of the center accessory in Figure 99, viewed from the front. [Figure 102] 10(a) to 10(g) are explanatory diagrams showing various joining patterns between the first frame and the second frame in the center role piece of the third embodiment. [Figure 103] FIG. 10(a) is a front view showing the main part of a game board on which a side unit of a second embodiment is provided, and FIG. 10(b) is a perspective view of (a) seen from the front. [Figure 104] (a) is an exploded oblique view showing the side unit disassembled from the game panel on the game board of Figure 103, (b) is an exploded oblique view showing the side unit of (a) disassembled from the front, (c) is an exploded oblique view of the side unit of (b) seen from behind, and (d) is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the game panel and the side unit in vertical cross section. [Figure 105] An explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the side unit and the game panel in Figure 104 in cross section. [Figure 106] This is an explanatory diagram showing a side unit of a different form from the side unit in Figure 103 in vertical cross section together with a game panel. [Figure 107] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing a side unit of a different shape from the side unit shown in Figure 105 in vertical cross section together with the game panel, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing an oblique view of the main parts of the LED board and board cover of the side unit in (a). [Figure 108] This is an explanatory diagram showing a side unit having a different configuration from the side unit shown in Figure 107 in vertical cross section together with the game panel. [Figure 109] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a vertical cross section of a side unit of a different type together with a game panel. [Figure 110] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a vertical cross section of a side unit of a different type together with a game panel. [Figure 111] 10A is an explanatory diagram showing a cross section of a side unit of a different type together with a game panel, and FIG. 10B is an explanatory diagram showing a vertical cross section of FIG. [Figure 112] (a) is a front view showing the main parts of the game board on which the side unit etc. of the third embodiment is installed, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged view of the outlet part in (a), and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a longitudinal cross section of (b). [Figure 113] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged view of the outlet area of ​​a game board equipped with a side unit having a finger grip portion of a different shape from that shown in Figure 112, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing (a) in vertical cross section. [Figure 114] 10 is an explanatory diagram schematically showing a panel plate of a gaming panel in which an opening to which a side unit is attached and an outlet are continuously connected. FIG. [Figure 115] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which the non-contact surface portion is located behind the LED board, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which the non-contact surface portion is located behind the LED board in a form different from (a), (c) is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which the non-contact surface portion is located so as to overlap the LED board, and (d) is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which the non-contact surface portion is located around the entire circumference of the unit cover. [Figure 116] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing a frame decorative member that can be attached to and detached from a door frame. FIG. [Figure 117] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when the door frame is opened and the frame decoration member is removed during normal business hours. [Figure 118] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a frame decoration member is removed while the door frame is open in reuse confirmation state A and then the frame decoration member is attached while the door frame is next opened. [Figure 119] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a frame decoration member is removed while the door frame is open in reuse confirmation state B and then the frame decoration member is attached while the door frame is next opened. [Figure 120] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a frame decoration member is detached while the door frame is open in reuse confirmation state A. [Figure 121] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a frame decoration member is detached while the door frame is open in reuse confirmation state B. [Figure 122] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a frame decoration member is attached after it is determined at the judgment timing that the frame decoration member is not connected. [Figure 123] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a frame decoration member is removed while the door frame is open in an error state and reuse confirmation state A, and then the frame decoration member is attached while the door frame is next opened. [Figure 124] 10 is a time chart showing an example of the amount of balls dispensed calculated in relation to the progress of the stop counter. [Figure 125] This is a table showing the conditions for clearing the "amount of balls calculated before the stop state begins" and the "restrictions on play during the stop state." [Figure 126] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when the amount of balls dispensed reaches a specific value and play is restricted. [Figure 127] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when restrictions on play are lifted when the power is turned back on after being shut off. [Figure 128] This is a specific example of a presentation in which the amount of balls dispensed reaches a specific value at the moment the game ball enters the big prize opening during a jackpot game. [Figure 129] This is a specific example of a presentation in which the amount of balls dispensed reaches a specific value at the time when a game ball enters a general winning slot while a special pattern is being displayed in a changing state. [Figure 130] This is the limit clear pattern table 4 that is selected when the limit clear pattern selection switch is set to "4." [Figure 131] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a minor abnormality occurs during a normal state or a stop state. [Figure 132] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a serious abnormality occurs during a normal state. [Figure 133] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a serious abnormality occurs during a stoppage state. [Figure 134] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a minor abnormality occurs during the stop preparation state. [Figure 135] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a serious abnormality occurs during the preparation state for stopping the game. [Figure 136] This is a specific example of what happens when a minor abnormality occurs during normal or dead-end conditions. [Figure 137] This is a specific example of what happens when a serious abnormality occurs during normal or dead-end conditions. [Figure 138] This is a specific example of what happens when a minor or major abnormality occurs during the end preparation state. [Figure 139] 10 is a time chart showing the transition of advance notice display after advance notice display has started. [Figure 140] 10 is a modified example of the restriction clear pattern table 4 when the power is turned on. [Figure 141]10 is a time chart showing the start of output of a special external signal before the start of a stop preparation state and a stop state. [Figure 142] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a stop-like state occurs after the stop-state is cleared when the power is turned on. [Figure 143] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when an advance notice display or an indication that progress is not possible is displayed during standby mode. [Figure 144] This is a time chart showing the operation of the movable body when the special pattern does not transition to a stop state during variable display. [Figure 145] This is a time chart showing the case where the game transitions to a stop state before the timing of the movable body's operation during the variable display of the special pattern, and the movable body is not operated thereafter. [Figure 146] This is a time chart showing the case where the movable body transitions to a stop state during operation while the special pattern is being displayed in a variable manner, and the movable body is not operated thereafter. [Figure 147] This is a time chart showing a case where the game transitions to a stop state before the timing of the movable body's operation during the variable display of the special pattern, and the movable body is then operated. [Figure 148] This is a specific example of a presentation in which the moving body transitions to a stop state during the movement of the moving body while the special pattern is being displayed in a changing state, and the moving body is not moved thereafter. [Figure 149] This is a specific example of a presentation in which the game transitions to a stop state before the timing of the movable body's movement during the changing display of the special pattern, and the movable body is then moved. [Figure 150] This is another example of a specific presentation in which the game transitions to a stop state before the timing of the movable body's movement during the variable display of the special pattern, and the movable body is then moved. [Figure 151] This is a time chart showing a case where the game transitions to a stop state while the movable body is not moving during the changing display of the special pattern, and then the celebratory movement of the movable body is performed. [Figure 152]This is a time chart showing a case where a state is transitioned to a stop state during the operation of a movable body during the variable display of a special pattern, and then a celebratory operation of the movable body is performed. [Figure 153] This is a time chart showing a case where the movable body transitions to a stop state during an abnormal stop and a celebratory action of the movable body is performed when the movable body returns to its initial position. [Fig. 154] 10 is a time chart showing a case where the movable body transitions to a stop state during an abnormal stop of the movable body and does not return to the initial position. [Figure 155] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when the game board is replaced when the power is cut off. [Figure 156] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when the game board is replaced before the power is cut off. [Figure 157] 10 is a table comparing the notification modes regarding light emission and sound in a normal standby state, an energy saving mode, and a stopped state. [Figure 158] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when it transitions to an energy saving mode during a stop state. [Figure 159] This is a table comparing notification modes related to light emission and sound when transitioning to notification mode C during a stop state. [Figure 160] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when transitioning to notification mode C during a stop state. [Figure 161] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when a first manager operation or a second manager operation is performed during energy saving mode and the machine transitions to a stop state. [Figure 162] FIG. 10 is a schematic perspective view showing the back side of a side unit of yet another different type. [Figure 163] FIG. 163 is an enlarged side view showing the vicinity of the magnetic sensor shown in FIG. 162. [Fig. 164] This is an enlarged plan view of the vicinity of the ball sensor shown in Figure 162. [Figure 165] A schematic perspective view showing the back side of a starting port unit of a different type. [Figure 166] This is an enlarged rear view of the area around the second starting port sensor shown in Figure 165. [Figure 167] FIG. 10 is a schematic rear view showing another aspect of the main wiring. [Figure 168] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when the game board A1 is replaced with the game board A2 when the power is cut off. [Figure 169] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when the game board A1 is detached when the power is cut off. [Figure 170] FIG. [Figure 171] This is a table showing the conditions for clearing the number of balls you have. [Fig. 172] This is a time chart showing the conditions for the occurrence of a counting permission state in which the number of balls held can be calculated. [Figure 173] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when the counting button switch is operated. [Fig. 174] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when it transitions to a ball removal state upon power-on. [Figure 175] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when it transitions to a ball removal state upon power-on. [Figure 176] This is a diagram showing a magnetic sensor provided around a foul ball sensor. [Figure 177] 10 is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when magnetism is detected by a magnetic sensor. [Figure 178] This is a time chart showing the behavior of a pachinko machine when various switches are operated when the power is turned on with no game board installed. [Figure 179] FIG. 1 is a front view showing the center accessory. [Figure 180] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a part of the first center role and the third center role. [Figure 181] 1(a) to 1(c) are schematic front views showing the first center role device and the second center role device. [Figure 182]1(a) to 1(c) are schematic front views showing the first center role and the third center role. [Figure 183] FIG. 10 is a front view showing another embodiment of the center accessory. [Figure 184] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the game board from the front right. [Figure 185] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the game board from the rear right. [Figure 186] 186(a) is an end view showing the AA' end face of FIG. 184, and FIG. 186(b) is an end view showing another aspect of the game board shown in FIG. 186(a). [Figure 187] This is a schematic oblique view of the game panel from the front right. [Figure 188] 1 is a schematic perspective view of the game panel from the rear right. [Figure 189] 188 is a cross-sectional view showing the AA' section of FIG. 187. [Figure 190] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the game board from the front right. [Figure 191] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the game board from the rear right. [Figure 192] FIG. 191 is a schematic end view showing the AA′ end face of FIG. [Figure 193] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of a portion of the game board viewed from the front right. [Figure 194] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a portion of the game board viewed from the rear right. [Figure 195] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the game board from the front right. [Figure 196] FIG. 196 is a schematic end view showing the AA′ end face of FIG. 195. [Figure 197] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view showing a portion of the game board. [Figure 198] FIG. 10 is a perspective view from behind showing a portion of the game board. [Figure 199] 199 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of the front component of FIG. 198; [Figure 200] FIG. 10 is a side view showing a portion of the front component placed on a flat surface. [Figure 201] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the shape of a first positioning pin. [Figure 202] 10 is a perspective view showing a portion of a gaming panel to which the component is attached. FIG. [Figure 203] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view showing the game board. [Figure 204] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view from the front showing the game board. [Figure 205] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the lower right panel decorative portion. [Figure 206] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the lower right panel decorative portion. [Figure 207] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the opening / closing axis side of the game board. [Figure 208] 1(a) is a front view showing the front surface of the side unit, and FIG. 1(b) is a rear view showing the rear surface of the side unit. [Figure 209] FIG. 10 is an exploded view of the side unit with the film member detached therefrom. [Figure 210] FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing the structure of the film member of this example in detail, in which the film member is disassembled into a plurality of film layers. [Figure 211] This is a figure showing a modified example of the notation style of the winning slot notation and the winning slot notation in Figures 208 and 209. [Figure 212] 10(a) is a front view showing the front surface of a side unit of another embodiment, and FIG. 10(b) is a rear view showing the rear surface of a side unit of another embodiment. [Figure 213] FIG. 2 is a front view showing a game board having a front unit. [Figure 214] FIG. 1 is a front view showing a pachinko machine equipped with a game board to which a front unit is attached. [Figure 215] This is a specific example of a production to explain the outline of the spot the difference production. [Figure 216] This is a specific example of a spot-the-difference presentation to explain the sequence of events. [Figure 217] This is a specific example of a spot-the-difference presentation to explain the sequence of events. [Figure 218] This is a specific example of a spot-the-difference presentation to explain the sequence of events. [Figure 219]This is a specific example of a spot-the-difference presentation to explain the sequence of events. [Figure 220] This is a specific example of a spot-the-difference presentation to explain the sequence of events. [Figure 221] This is a specific example of a spot-the-difference presentation to explain the sequence of events. [Figure 222] This is a specific example of a variation in which the answer to the spot the difference presentation is not announced. [Figure 223] This is a specific example of a presentation to explain a modified example in which the shape of the luminous decorative body is different. [Figure 224] This is a specific example of a presentation to explain a modified example in which the patterns on the game board are different. [Figure 225] This is a specific example of a production to explain a modified example in which a predetermined component is present or absent. [Figure 226] This is a specific example of a hint effect. [Figure 227] This is a specific example of a hint effect (hint effect A) to explain the hint effect. [Figure 228] This is a specific example of a hint effect (hint effect B) to explain the hint effect. [Figure 229] This is a specific example of a hint effect (hint effect C) to explain the hint effect. [Figure 230] This is a specific example of a hint effect (hint effect D) to explain the hint effect. [Figure 231] This is a specific example of a hint effect. [Figure 232] This is a specific example of a hint effect. [Figure 233] This is a specific example of a hint effect. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] [1. Overall structure of a pachinko machine] A pachinko machine 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. First, the overall configuration of the pachinko machine 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 1 to 7. Fig. 1 is a front view of a pachinko machine according to one embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a front perspective view of the pachinko machine with the upper side tilted forward. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the pachinko machine as viewed from the front, and Fig. 4 is a rear view of the pachinko machine. Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing the door frame, main body frame, and outer frame that make up the pachinko machine in an open state after being rotated on hinges. Fig. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the pachinko machine as viewed from the front, with each main component disassembled, and Fig. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the pachinko machine as viewed from the rear, with each main component disassembled.

[0012] The pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment is installed and used in an island facility of a gaming hall. This pachinko machine 1 is a gaming machine called a sealed gaming machine or a controlled gaming machine in which a large number of game balls B (for example, 40 to 60 balls) are sealed in without being discharged to the outside or supplied from the outside, and the game balls B circulate inside so that the player does not come into contact with the game balls B. In this pachinko machine 1, the number of balls held by the player is converted into held ball data and handled.

[0013] The game ball B enclosed in the pachinko machine 1 may have the same diameter (hereinafter also referred to as diameter D; diameter D = 11 mm) as the game ball used in conventional pachinko machines, and may be made of, for example, non-magnetic stainless steel such as SUS304, or may be a conventional iron ball (SB). Note that if game ball B is made of stainless steel, it will not rust like a conventional iron ball even if it is enclosed in the pachinko machine 1 for a long period of time.

[0014] The pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment comprises a frame-shaped outer frame 2 installed in an island facility (not shown) of an amusement hall, a door frame 3 that closes the front of the outer frame 2 in an openable and closable manner, a main frame 4 that supports the door frame 3 in an openable and closable manner and is attached to the outer frame 2 in an openable and closable manner, and a game board 5 that is detachably attached to the main frame 4 from the front and is visible from the player side through the door frame 3 and has a game area 5a into which the player hits a game ball B.

[0015] [2. Outer Frame] The outer frame 2 of the pachinko machine 1 will be described mainly with reference to Figures 8 to 16. Figure 8 is a front view of the pachinko machine with the door frame removed. Figure 9 is an exploded perspective view of the pachinko machine with the game board separated from the main body frame in Figure 8. Figure 10 is a front view of the pachinko machine with the door frame and game board removed, Figure 11 is a rear view of the pachinko machine in Figure 10, and Figure 12 is a perspective view of the pachinko machine in Figure 10 as seen diagonally from the front. Figure 13 is an exploded perspective view of the outer frame and main body frame disassembled as seen from the front, and Figure 14 is an exploded perspective view of the outer frame and main body frame disassembled as seen from the rear. Figure 15 is a plan cross-sectional view of the outer frame cut at the center in the vertical direction. Figure 16 is a perspective view showing the lower part of the outer frame.

[0016] The outer frame 2 is attached to an island facility of an amusement hall (not shown), and can be attached to the main frame 4 so that it can be opened and closed forward and can be detached. The outer frame 2 includes an outer frame main body 10 formed in a vertically long frame shape overall, outer frame assembly fittings 20 to which the outer frame main body 10 is attached, an outer frame hinge mechanism 30 that supports the main frame 4 so that it can be opened and closed, an outer frame locking fitting (not shown) for locking the main frame 4 in a closed state, a panel 45 attached to the lower frame body 14 of the outer frame main body 10, and a sliding plate 46 attached to the upper surface of the panel 45.

[0017] The outer frame body 10 of the outer frame 2 includes a left frame body 11 and a right frame body 12 that extend vertically and are spaced apart from each other on the left and right sides, an upper frame body 13 that connects the upper ends of the left frame body 11 and the right frame body 12, and a lower frame body 14 that connects the lower ends of the left frame body 11 and the right frame body 12. The left frame body 11 and the right frame body 12 are each formed from an extruded metal material such as an aluminum alloy. The upper frame body 13 and the lower frame body 14 are formed from wood. The left frame body 11, the right frame body 12, the upper frame body 13, and the lower frame body 14 have the same dimensions in the front-to-rear direction.

[0018] The outer frame assembly fittings 20 of the outer frame 2 have an upper left fitting that connects the left frame body 11 and the upper frame body 13, an upper right fitting that connects the right frame body 12 and the upper frame body 13, a lower left fitting that connects the left frame body 11 and the lower frame body 14, and a lower right fitting that connects the right frame body 12 and the lower frame body 14. The lower left fitting also serves as the outer frame lower hinge body 35.

[0019] The outer frame hinge mechanism 30 has an upper outer frame hinge body 31 provided at the upper left end of the outer frame main body 10 and a lower outer frame hinge body 35 provided at the lower left end of the outer frame main body 10.

[0020] The upper outer frame hinge body 31 of the outer frame hinge mechanism 30 is attached to the upper left surface of the upper frame body 13, with its front end protruding forward beyond the outer frame main body 10. The upper outer frame hinge body 31 has, in the portion protruding forward beyond the outer frame main body 10, a bearing groove 31a that penetrates vertically and is open on one side, and a locking member 32 that is provided on the underside of the portion protruding forward beyond the outer frame main body 10 and is capable of opening and closing the open portion of the bearing groove 31a.

[0021] The bearing groove 31a of the outer frame upper hinge body 31 can support the main frame hinge shaft 511a of the main frame upper hinge body 511 in the main frame 4 by inserting the main frame hinge shaft 511a of the main frame upper hinge body 511 into the main frame 4 from the released portion. The locking member 32 of the outer frame upper hinge body 31 is normally located in a locked position where it closes the released portion of the bearing groove 31a due to the biasing force of an elastic piece (not shown). When the locking member 32 is moved to the released position against the biasing force of the elastic piece, the bearing groove 31a is opened to the side, allowing the main frame hinge shaft 511a to be inserted into the bearing groove 31a from the side, or the main frame hinge shaft 511a inserted in the bearing groove 31a to be removed from the bearing groove 31a.

[0022] The lower outer frame hinge body 35 of the outer frame hinge mechanism 30 is attached to a portion (upper portion) of the upper left end surface of the back panel 45 that overlaps with the lower frame body 14, and its front end protrudes forward beyond the outer frame main body 10. The lower outer frame hinge body 35 has a hinge shaft 35a that protrudes upward at a portion that protrudes forward beyond the outer frame main body 10. By inserting the hinge shaft 35a of the lower outer frame hinge body 35 into an outer frame shaft hole (not shown) of the lower main frame hinge body 512 in the main body frame 4, the lower main frame hinge body 512 can be rotatably supported.

[0023] The outer frame hinge mechanism 30 supports the main frame 4 so that it can be opened and closed by supporting the main frame hinge shaft 511a of the main frame upper hinge body 511 in the main frame 4 in the bearing groove 31a of the outer frame upper hinge body 31, and inserting the hinge shaft 35a of the outer frame lower hinge body 35 into the outer frame shaft hole of the main frame lower hinge body 512.

[0024] Two outer frame locking fittings for the outer frame 2 are provided spaced apart vertically on the inner surface (left side surface) of the right frame body 12. The outer frame locking fittings are respectively engaged with outer frame locking claws 784 of lock units 780 in the main frame 4, thereby locking the main frame 4 to the outer frame 2 in a closed state so that it cannot be opened.

[0025] The top panel 45 of the outer frame 2 is attached to the lower frame body 14, with its front end protruding forward beyond the lower frame body 14. The top panel 45 is made of synthetic resin. Two sliding plates 46 are provided on the upper surface of the top panel 45, spaced apart on the left and right. The sliding plates 46 are contacted by the lower end surface of the main frame 4 when the main frame 4 is closed against the outer frame 2. The sliding plates 46 are made of a low-friction material, which makes the main frame 4 slide easily, facilitating opening and closing.

[0026] To describe the panel 45 in more detail, the panel 45 has a panel main body 45a formed to cover the area of ​​the upper end surface of the lower frame body 14 that is forward of the center in the fore-and-aft direction and the front end side of the lower frame body 14, a hinge body cover portion 45b provided near the left end of the upper surface of the panel main body 45a, a rear wall portion 45c extending upward in a flat plate shape from the rear end of the hinge body cover portion 45b, and a guide display portion 45d provided on the upper surface of the panel main body 45a.

[0027] Hinge body cover portion 45b of top panel 45 is provided to cover the underside and sides of lower outer frame hinge body 35. As a result, when a player, a worker performing maintenance, transport, installation, etc. reaches near lower outer frame hinge body 35, hinge body cover portion 45b can prevent the hand from directly touching lower outer frame hinge body 35, and injury from the edge of lower outer frame hinge body 35 can be prevented.

[0028] In addition, the hinge body cover portion 45b covers the underside and sides of the outer frame lower hinge body 35, thereby hiding the outer frame lower hinge body 35 from the player and enhancing the sense of unity with the curtain board 45 (curtain board main body 45a) to improve the appearance.

[0029] The rear wall portion 45c of the top panel 45 is provided so that when the main body frame 4 is closed relative to the outer frame 2, the rear surface of a main body frame lower hinge body 512 of the main body frame 4, which will be described later, abuts against the front surface of the rear wall portion 45c. As a result, when the main body frame 4 is closed relative to the outer frame 2, the main body frame lower hinge body 512 abuts against the rear wall portion 45c, thereby restricting the main body frame 4 from hinge-rotating further rearward.

[0030] As shown in Figures 15 and 16, the guide display portion 45d of the back panel 45 is provided so as to protrude rearward from the rear edge of the top surface of the back panel main body 45a, and extends in the left-right direction from the rear of the left sliding plate 46 to the rear of the right sliding plate 46. This guide display portion 45d has an arrow pointing left near the left end and an arrow pointing right near the right end, and the words "! No protrusion of fixing nails or fixing metal fittings into this area!" are displayed between the two arrows. These arrows and words were engraved by the mold used to injection mold the back panel 45.

[0031] The guide display portion 45d is provided so as not to come into contact with the main frame 4, which is provided so as to be able to open and close relative to the outer frame 2. This guide display portion 45d is intended to alert workers when installing the pachinko machine 1 in the island equipment of an amusement hall. Specifically, when fixing the lower frame body 14 of the outer frame 2 to the island equipment with mounting screws (not shown), the guide display portion 45d alerts workers to ensure that the heads of the mounting screws do not protrude above the guide display portion 45d within the range indicated on the guide display portion 45d. By fixing the outer frame 2 with the mounting screws in accordance with this alert, when the main frame 4 is closed relative to the outer frame 2, the mounting screws will not come into contact with the main frame 4 and will not interfere with the main frame 4.

[0032] This guide display 45d makes it possible to prevent the mounting screws that secure the outer frame 2 from interfering with the main body frame 4, thereby preventing damage to the main body frame 4 due to interference from the mounting screws. Furthermore, because the guide display 45d serves as a marker for the depth to which the mounting screws for securing the outer frame 2 are driven, there is no need to open and close the main body frame 4 while driving the mounting screws to prevent interference, improving work efficiency.

[0033] Furthermore, since it has a guide display portion 45d, when checking the fixed state of the outer frame 2 to the island equipment, by using the guide display portion 45d as a guide, it is possible to easily visually check whether the condition of the mounting screws is good or bad.

[0034] In addition, the guide display portion 45d, which indicates the fixing range of the mounting screws, is molded integrally with the panel main body 45a. Therefore, the guide display portion 45d can be provided on the outer frame 2 simply by attaching the panel main body 45a to the lower frame body 14 and assembling it to the outer frame 2, thereby reducing costs compared to when the guide display portion 45d is provided separately.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the guidance display portion 45d protruding rearward from the rear end of the curtain board main body 45a is shown as extending continuously in the left-right direction from the arrow on the left end to the arrow on the right end, but this is not limited to this, and it is also possible for only the portions indicated by the left and right arrows to protrude rearward from the rear end of the curtain board main body 45a.

[0036] In addition, in the above embodiment, the guide display portion 45d is engraved during injection molding of the panel 45, but this is not limited to this, and the guide display portion 45d may be provided by attaching a sticker, printing, or painting.

[0037] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the guide display portion 45d is provided on the header panel 45, but this is not limited thereto and the guide display portion 45d may be provided on the lower frame 14, the sliding plate 46, or the like. When the guide display portion 45d is provided on the lower frame 14, it may be provided by, for example, attaching a sticker, stamping with ink, or branding. When the guide display portion 45d is provided on the sliding plate 46, it may be provided by, for example, making a recessed mark on the sliding plate 46.

[0038] [3. Door frame] The door frame 3 of the pachinko machine 1 will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 3 and Figures 5 to 7. The door frame 3 is formed in a rectangular shape extending vertically in a front view with approximately the same size as the interior of the outer frame 2, and is attached to the interior of the outer frame 2 via the main frame 4 so as to be able to open and close from the front side. The door frame 3 is provided with a door frame main body 100 that is openable and closable relative to the main frame 4 and has a game window 101 through which the game area 5a of the game board 5 attached to the main frame 4 is visible when closed, a transparent glass 120 that is detachably attached to the rear side of the door frame main body 100 and closes the game window 101, a ball count display unit 140 that displays the number of balls the player has, a handle 160 that the player operates to shoot game balls B into the game area 5a of the game board 5, a cylindrical handle cover 170 that surrounds the outer periphery of the handle 160, and a count button switch 180 that can be operated by the player.

[0039] The door frame 3 also includes a door frame panel 190 extending from the lower end of the front of the door frame main body 100 across the entire width in the left-right direction at a certain height, a shelf unit 200 protruding forward at a position between the game window 101 and the door frame panel 190 on the front of the door frame main body 100, and an effect operation unit 250 provided in the left-right center of the shelf unit 200 and operable by a player. The ball holding number display unit 140 and the count button switch 180 are provided on the top surface of the shelf unit 200 (top surface of the shelf portion 201).

[0040] Furthermore, the door frame 3 includes a door frame top unit 300 provided above the game window 101 on the front surface of the door frame main body 100, a door frame left side unit 320 provided to the left of the game window 101 on the front surface of the door frame main body 100, and a door frame right side unit 340 provided to the right of the game window 101 on the front surface of the door frame main body 100.

[0041] The door frame main body 100 has a door frame hinge mechanism 110 for opening and closing the door frame 4. The door frame hinge mechanism 110 has an upper door frame hinge body 111 (see FIG. 6) provided at the upper left end of the door frame main body 100, and a lower door frame hinge body 112 provided at the lower left end of the door frame main body 100. The upper door frame hinge body 111 has an upper door frame hinge shaft 111a that protrudes upward. The door frame hinge mechanism 110 supports the door frame 3 so that it can be opened and closed relative to the main frame 4 by inserting the door frame upper hinge shaft 111a of the door frame upper hinge body 111 from below into the door frame upper shaft hole 511b of the main frame upper hinge body 511 described later, and by inserting the door frame lower hinge shaft 112a of the door frame lower hinge body 112 from above into the door frame lower shaft hole 512b of the main frame lower hinge body 512 described later.

[0042] 5 and 7, the door frame main body 100 has a protrusion 102 that protrudes rearward from near the lower end on the rear surface. When the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main frame 4, the protrusion 102 abuts against a support step 501q of a main frame base 501 of the main frame 4 (described later), thereby lifting the door frame 3 to a certain extent. The protrusion 102 allows the door frame 3 to be lifted by closing the door frame 3 relative to the main frame 4, distributing the weight of the door frame 3 between the protrusion 102 and the lower-frame hinge body 112. This prevents excessive load from being continuously applied to the hinges (the lower-frame hinge body 112 and the lower-frame hinge body 35) that enable the door frame 3 to be opened and closed, making the hinges less likely to be distorted. Furthermore, even if the hinges are distorted, the protrusion 102 can lift the door frame 3, allowing the door frame 3 to be closed in the appropriate position relative to the main frame 4. Although not shown, the lower surface of the protrusion 102 has a plurality of ribs extending in the front-rear direction, which increase the strength and rigidity.

[0043] The protrusion 102 has a guide surface 102a that is inclined so as to move leftward as it extends rearward. As will be described in detail later, when the door frame 3 is to be closed relative to the main frame 4 with the ball lifting unit 650's ball motor base 686 in a position other than the locked position, the guide surface 102a of the protrusion 102 comes into contact with the front end of the ball motor base 686, thereby moving (rotating) the ball motor base 686 to the locked position.

[0044] The ball count display unit 140 is configured with a 6-digit 7-segment LED. The ball count display unit 140 is located on the top surface of the shelf unit 200 to the right of the center in the left-right direction and to the left of the count button switch 180.

[0045] The handle 160 is provided at the lower right corner of the front surface of the door frame main body 100, i.e., near the right end between the game window 101 and the door frame panel 190 on the front surface of the door frame main body 100. The handle 160 is attached so that the player can rotate it with its rotation axis facing forward and backward. The handle 160 is shaped like an automobile steering wheel, and has a central hub portion 160a, multiple (here, three) spoke portions 160b extending outward from the hub portion 160a, and an annular ring portion 160c connecting the tips of the spoke portions 160b.

[0046] The ring portion 160c of the handle 160 is located in a position slightly forward from the front end of the cylindrical handle cover 170, and is positioned so that the player cannot grip the ring portion 160c. Therefore, when a player rotates the handle 160, the player mainly operates the handle while gripping the hub portion 160a with their fingers passing through the spokes 160b. In this state, the player's fingers are inserted into the cylindrical handle cover 170.

[0047] The handle 160 is equipped with a launch stop switch 161 that can be pressed by the player, a handle touch sensor 162 that detects changes in the electrostatic capacitance of the handle 160, and a handle rotation sensor 163 that detects the rotation angle of the handle 160 (see Figure 63).

[0048] When the player presses the launch stop switch 161, the frame control board 740 stops the drive of the launch solenoid 553. Therefore, if the player presses the launch stop switch 161 while rotating the handle 160, the launch of the game ball B can be temporarily stopped without returning the rotation of the handle 160. After that, if the player releases the pressing of the launch stop switch 161 while continuing to rotate the handle 160, the game ball B can be shot into the game area 5a again with the same impact strength (impact strength corresponding to the rotation of the handle 160) as before the launch stop switch 161 was pressed.

[0049] The handle touch sensor 162 detects static electricity acting on the handle 160, and when the player touches the handle 160, it detects the static electricity acting from the player and detects the player's contact (touch) with the handle 160. Then, when the handle touch sensor 162 detects the player's contact, if the handle 160 is rotated, the detection of the handle rotation sensor 163 is accepted, and the drive of the launch solenoid is controlled with a strength according to the rotation angle of the handle 160, allowing the game ball B to be shot in.

[0050] Therefore, even if a player tries to shoot game ball B into the game area 5a by rotating the handle 160 in some way without touching it, the handle touch sensor 162 does not detect the player's contact, so the launch solenoid 553 is not driven and game ball B cannot be shot in. This makes it possible to prevent a player from playing a game by rotating the handle 160 in a way that is different from the intended way, and reduces the burden (stress) on the game hall where the pachinko machine 1 is installed.

[0051] The handle rotation sensor 163 is a variable resistor, and when the handle 160 is rotated, the detection axis rotates and the internal resistance changes according to the rotation angle of the detection axis. Therefore, when the handle 160 is rotated to change the internal resistance of the handle rotation sensor 163, the driving force of the launch solenoid 553 in the ball launch unit 550 (described later) changes according to the internal resistance, and the game ball B can be shot into the game area 5a with a strength according to the rotation angle of the handle 160.

[0052] Handle cover 170 is formed in a conical cylindrical shape, extending rearward from the rear part of the annular portion of handle 160 so that its diameter widens. Openings 171 that communicate with the interior are provided on the right and bottom peripheral surfaces of the outer periphery of handle cover 170. These openings 171 allow debris, liquid, etc. to be discharged downward even if they get inside handle cover 170.

[0053] The counting button switch 180 is located on the top surface of the shelf unit 200, to the right of the center in the left-right direction. The counting button switch 180 will be described in detail later, but by pressing it when there are balls in your possession, you can send the balls to the game ball lending device 8 and settle the account.

[0054] The door frame panel 190 extends left and right at a fixed height with a length equal to the left-right width of the door frame main body 100, and is attached to the lower end of the front surface of the door frame main body 100. The door frame panel 190 penetrates from front to back at the center in the left-right direction and has a duct grill 191 located in front of the bass reflex duct 501e of the main body frame 4, which will be described later. The duct grill 191 extends in an elongated shape to the left and right and is partitioned by multiple vertical lattices. This duct grill 191, which will be described in detail later, is used to release air vibrations (wind) caused by the driving of the main body frame speaker 503 from the bass reflex duct 501e of the main body frame 4 forward.

[0055] Shelf unit 200 is provided on the front surface of door frame main body 100, between game window 101 and door frame panel 190. A spherical effect operation unit 250 is provided in the center of shelf unit 200 in the left-right direction. Shelf unit 200 has shelf portion 201 that bulges forward in a shelf-like shape from the top edge along the bottom edge of game window 101, speaker grill 203 provided below shelf portion 201 and to the right of effect operation unit 250, setting adjustment button 204 provided on the top surface of shelf portion 201 and consisting of four push buttons arranged in a front-to-back and left-to-right direction, and a pair of protrusions 205 provided spaced apart on the left and right. Of the four push buttons arranged in a front-to-back and left-to-right direction, setting adjustment button 204 allows volume adjustment by operating the front and rear push buttons, and allows light intensity adjustment by operating the left and right push buttons.

[0056] The top surface of shelf 201 is formed to be a smooth surface. On the top surface of shelf 201, to the right of the center in the left-right direction, count button switch 180 is provided near the right end, and held ball count display 140 is provided to the left of count button switch 180. To the right of the center in the left-right direction, setting adjustment button 204 is provided, and protrusions 205 are provided on both the left and right sides near the rear end of setting adjustment button 204.

[0057] The pair of protrusions 205 protrude higher than the setting adjustment button 204 and have rounded upper ends. The pair of protrusions 205 are provided approximately parallel to the rear edge of the shelf portion 201. The pair of protrusions 205 can be used, for example, to prop up a smartphone on the top surface of the shelf portion 201, which is convenient.

[0058] The speaker grill 203 is located in front of a main frame speaker 503 in the main frame 4 (described later) and is made of punched metal with multiple through holes. The speaker grill 203 is symmetrical to and has the same size as the handle 160 across the center of the door frame 3, and is formed in a shape that bulges forward like the handle cover 170.

[0059] The performance operation unit 250 is provided in the center of the shelf unit 200 in the left-right direction, with its front end protruding forward from the shelf unit 200 and its upper end protruding upward from the shelf unit 200. The performance operation unit 250 is formed in a spherical shape as a whole. The performance operation unit 250 has a circular first performance button 251 provided near the center on the top surface, and an annular second performance button 252 provided so as to surround the periphery of the first performance button 251. Although detailed illustration is omitted, the first performance button 251 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and the second performance button 252 is formed in a cylindrical shape. The first performance button 251 and the second performance button 252 are provided on the same axis, and are inclined so that the axis moves more forward as it goes upward.

[0060] The first effect button 251 and the second effect button 252 are provided so that they move upward (pop up) in their entirety in response to the player participation effect. The first effect button 251 can be pressed at all times, whereas the second effect button 252 can only be pressed when it pops up.

[0061] Although not shown in the drawings, a vibrator (vibration device) is provided inside the first effect button 251.

[0062] The door frame top unit 300 is located above the game window 101 on the front surface of the door frame main body 100, with both its left and right ends sandwiched between the upper end portions of the left door frame side unit 320 and the right door frame side unit 340. The door frame top unit 300 protrudes forward like a canopy. The door frame top unit 300 is equipped with a semi-tubular door frame top decorative body 301 that extends left and right along its front edge and is translucent. The door frame top decorative body 301 is curved in the front-to-rear direction so that the center in the left-to-right direction is located furthest forward in a plan view.

[0063] Although not shown, the door frame top unit 300 has a door frame top decorative board on which multiple LEDs are mounted to illuminate and decorate the door frame top decorative body 301, a pair of door frame top speakers 303 spaced apart on the left and right and outputting sounds such as voice, music, and sound effects, and a pair of door frame top side speakers 304 located on both the left and right outside of the pair of door frame top speakers 303. The pair of door frame top speakers 303 are full-range speakers (or mid-range speakers), and the pair of door frame top side speakers 304 are tweeters (high-frequency speakers).

[0064] The door frame left-side unit 320 is located on the front of the door frame main body 100 to the left of the game window 101, and extends vertically from near the top of the door frame main body 100 to near the speaker grill 203 below the shelf portion 201 of the shelf unit 200. The door frame left-side unit 320 extends over its entire length in the vertical direction and is equipped with a semi-tubular door frame left-side decorative body 321 that is translucent. The door frame left-side decorative body 321 is curved to the right near its bottom end.

[0065] The door frame left side unit 320 has a door frame left side decorative board (not shown) on which multiple LEDs are mounted to illuminate and decorate the door frame left side decorative body 321.

[0066] The door frame right-side unit 340 is provided on the front of the door frame main body 100 to the right of the play window 101, and extends vertically from near the upper end of the door frame main body 100 to the handle cover 170 below the shelf portion 201 of the shelf unit 200. The door frame right-side unit 340 protrudes further forward than the door frame left-side unit 320, and is formed in the shape of a vertically long partition.

[0067] The right-side door frame unit 340 includes a semi-tubular, translucent right-side door frame decorative element 341 extending vertically along the front edge, a translucent left-side right-side door frame decorative element (not shown) located behind the right-side door frame decorative element 341 and forming the left side, a translucent right-side right-side door frame decorative element (not shown) located behind the right-side door frame decorative element 341 and forming the right side, and a right-side door frame decorative board (not shown) on which multiple LEDs are mounted to illuminate and decorate the right-side door frame decorative element 341, the left-side right-side right-side right-side right-side right-side right-side right-side right-side decorative element. The right-side door frame decorative element 341 is curved leftward near its bottom end.

[0068] The door frame right side unit 340 also has an opening 342 that penetrates from front to back near the bottom end and through which the keyhole 782 of the lock unit 780 faces forward.

[0069] [3-1. Counting button switch] The counting button switch 180 is located on the top surface of the shelf unit 200, to the right of the center in the left-right direction. By pressing the counting button switch 180 when there are balls in hand (number of balls in hand > 0), the balls can be sent to the game ball lending device 8 for settlement. The counting button switch 180 can be sent one ball at a time or a predetermined number of balls (for example, 250 balls) depending on the amount of time it is pressed, as will be described in detail later. The number of balls sent to the game ball lending device 8 is sent to the management server 9 via the communication network, and an IC card storing the number of balls in hand is ejected from the game ball lending device 8.

[0070] Here, the game ball lending device 8 is installed adjacent to the pachinko machine 1 in the island equipment of the gaming hall (also referred to as a sand). Although not shown in detail, the game ball lending device 8 is provided with an insertion slot for inserting cash or prepaid cards, a card slot for inserting / removing IC cards, a ball lending button switch 8a, a return button switch, a display unit that displays the inserted amount and the counted number of balls, etc. When cash or the like is inserted into the insertion slot and the ball lending button switch 8a is pressed, the game ball lending device 8 lends out a predetermined number of game balls B within the amount inserted. In this embodiment, the number of loaned game balls B is transmitted as digital data to the frame control board and also transmitted via a communication network to the management server 9 for management.

[0071] To explain the counting button switch 180 in more detail, when a player has balls in their possession and "short-presses" the counting button switch 180 (for example, pressing the switch once for less than 500 ms), one game ball B is counted from the balls in their possession. When the counting button switch 180 is "long-pressed" (for example, pressing the switch once for 500 ms or more), 250 game balls B are counted at the count notification timing every predetermined time (for example, 300 ms) while the counting button switch 180 is pressed until the number of balls in their possession falls below 250. When the number of balls in their possession falls below 250 during the long-pressing, one game ball B is counted. Furthermore, when the counting button switch 180 is "long-pressed" (for example, pressing the switch once for 500 ms or more), the counting button switch 180 may be configured to unconditionally count all of the balls in their possession, even if the counting button switch 180 is not continuously pressed.

[0072] When counting is performed by pressing the counting button switch 180, the number of balls held displayed on the ball count display unit 140 is subtracted and displayed, and the counted number of balls is displayed on a display unit (not shown) of the game ball lending device 8.

[0073] [4. Main frame] The main body frame 4 of the pachinko machine 1 will be described in detail with reference to Figures 8 to 14, 17 to 21, etc. Figure 17 is an exploded perspective view of the main body frame broken down into its main components as seen from the front, and Figure 18 is an exploded perspective view of the main body frame broken down into its main components as seen from the back. Figure 19 is a plan view of the pachinko machine of Figure 10 cut at the center from top to bottom. Figure 20 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in Figure 19. Figure 21 is a front view of the main parts of the front view of Figure 8, showing the launch unit, foul unit, etc. in cross section.

[0074] The main body frame 4 is formed in a box-like shape with an open front, and a game board 5 is housed inside in a detachable manner from the front. The main body frame 4 is openably and closably attached to a frame-shaped outer frame 2 attached to the island equipment of the game hall at the top and bottom of the front end on the left side of the front face, and a door frame 3 is openably and closably attached to close the open front side.

[0075] The main frame 4 comprises a frame-shaped main frame base unit 500 that is supported on the outer frame 2 so as to be able to open and close, a ball launching unit 550 for shooting game balls B into the game area 5a of the game board 5, a foul unit 570 for collecting game balls B that were shot by the ball launching unit 550 but not shot into the game area 5a, a circulating ball path unit 600 for sending game balls B discharged from the game board 5 and game balls B collected by the foul unit 570 to the ball launching unit 550 side, a ball lifting unit 650 that moves game balls B upward from the downstream end of the circulating ball path unit 600, and a ball sending unit 700 that sends game balls B lifted by the ball lifting unit 650 one by one to the ball launching unit 550.

[0076] The main frame 4 also includes a ball receiving tray 720 for receiving game balls B discharged from the ball outlet 613p of the circulation ball path unit 600, a frame base unit 730 having a frame control board 740 for controlling the ball launching unit 550, the ball lifting unit 650, etc., and a locking unit 780 for locking the outer frame 2 and the main frame 4 and the door frame 3 and the main frame 4.

[0077] [4-1. Main frame base unit] The main body frame base unit 500 in the main body frame 4 will be described in detail mainly with reference to Figures 22 to 24. Figure 22 is an exploded perspective view of the main body frame base unit in the main body frame, broken down into its main components, as viewed from the front, and Figure 23 is an exploded perspective view of the main body frame base unit in the main body frame, broken down into its main components, as viewed from the rear. Figure 24(a) is a front view of the main body frame base in the main body frame base unit, and (b) is an explanatory perspective view showing multiple main body frame bases stacked on top of each other.

[0078] The main frame base unit 500 is supported on the outer frame 2 so as to be able to open and close forward, and is also capable of supporting the door frame 3 so as to be able to open and close forward. The main frame base unit 500 is equipped with a ball launching unit 550, a foul unit 570, a circulating ball path unit 600, a ball lifting unit 650, a ball sending unit 700, a ball receiving tray 720, a frame base unit 730, a lock unit 780, etc.

[0079] The main frame base unit 500 is provided with a main frame base 501 which is formed in a vertically elongated rectangular shape overall and has a game board insertion section 502 which penetrates from front to back and into which the game board 5 is inserted from the front, and a base wall section 501b which is provided below the game board insertion section 502, and a side reinforcing plate 509 which reinforces the left side of the main frame base 501.

[0080] The main body frame base unit 500 also includes a main body frame speaker 503 attached to the rear side of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501, a box-shaped main body frame speaker box 504 attached to the base wall portion 501b so as to cover the main body frame speaker 503 from the rear and having an open front, and a back cover 505 that is provided so that the game board insertion portion 502 of the main body frame base 501 can be opened and closed from the rear.

[0081] Furthermore, the main body frame base unit 500 includes a game board locking member 506 attached to the main body frame base 501, a door opening switch 507 and a frame opening switch 508 attached to the main body frame base 501, and a main body frame hinge mechanism 510 attached to the main body frame base 501.

[0082] The main body frame base 501 has a vertically elongated rectangular shape when viewed from the front. The main body frame base 501 is made of black, opaque synthetic resin. The main body frame base 501 includes a frame-shaped frame body 501a with no left side, a game board insertion portion 502 that penetrates the frame body 501a from near the top end downward over a range of approximately two-thirds of the total height, a base wall portion 501b provided below the game board insertion portion 502, a game board restriction portion 501c that protrudes upward (into the game board insertion portion 502) near the center in the left-right direction on the upper end surface of the base wall portion 501b, a main body frame speaker port 501d that penetrates the base wall portion 501b from front to back near the left end and through which the main body frame speaker 503 faces forward, and a horizontally elongated bass reflex duct 501e that penetrates the base wall portion 501b from front to back near the lower end of the base wall portion 501b in the center in the left-right direction.

[0083] The main frame base 501 also has a tray insertion recess 501f that is recessed from the front side to the rear above the bass reflex duct 501e in the base wall portion 501b and into which the ball receiving tray 720 is inserted, and a ball storage passage insertion port 501g that penetrates from front to back above the tray insertion recess 501f in the base wall portion 501b and into which the ball serpentine member 613 and serpentine cover 614 of the circulating ball passage unit 600 are inserted.

[0084] The main frame base 501 also has a foul unit mounting portion 501h and a ball launching unit mounting portion 501i arranged side by side above the ball storage passage insertion port 501g on the front surface of the base wall portion 501b, a ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j arranged to the right of the ball launching unit mounting portion 501i on the base wall portion 501b, a ball sending unit mounting portion 501k arranged at a position behind the ball launching unit mounting portion 501i on the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b, a circulating ball path unit mounting portion 501l arranged on the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b, and a cylinder insertion port 501m that penetrates from front to back near the upper right corner of the base wall portion 501b and through which the lock cylinder 781 of the lock unit 780 is inserted.

[0085] Furthermore, main body frame base 501 is provided with locking claws 501n that protrude from the left and right inner walls of tray insertion recess 501f and that lock elastic claws 721 of ball receiving tray 720 inserted into tray insertion recess 501f to restrict forward movement of ball receiving tray 720. Main body frame base 501 also has a vertically elongated opening 501o that penetrates from front to back at the location of ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j.

[0086] The main frame base 501 also includes an upper cover 502a extending rearward from the upper end of the game board insertion section 502, a rear cover 502b extending downward in a short, flat shape from the rear edge of the upper cover 502a, a left side cover 502c extending rearward from the left end of the game board insertion section 502 and having its upper end connected to the upper cover 502a, a right side cover 502d extending rearward from the right end of the game board insertion section 502 and having its upper end connected to the upper cover 502a, and a lower cover 502e extending rearward from the lower end of the game board insertion section 502.

[0087] The main frame base 501 also has a plurality of ventilation holes 502f penetrating the rear cover 502b, a plurality of upper surface recesses 502g provided in the upper cover 502a and recessed downward, a plurality of lower surface recesses 502h provided in the lower cover 502e and recessed downward, and a plurality of reinforcing ribs 502i provided on the lower surface of the upper cover 502a and the upper surface of the lower cover 502e, respectively.

[0088] Furthermore, main body frame base 501 is provided with eaves portion 501p, which is provided above ball launching unit mounting portion 501i, for blocking light from above onto ball launching unit 550. This eaves portion 501p can block external light from reaching launch subtraction sensor 554, which is a photosensor of ball launching unit 550 attached to ball launching unit mounting portion 501i, thereby preventing false detection by launch subtraction sensor 554.

[0089] The main frame base 501 further includes a support step 501q located between the tray insertion recess 501f and the opening 501o and slightly above the bottom surface of the tray insertion recess 501f, and a pair of support protrusions 501r located vertically spaced apart near the right end of the rear surface of the base wall 501b and protruding rearward. The support step 501q has an upward-facing surface (top surface). When the door frame 3 is closed against the main frame 4, the protrusion 102 of the door frame 3 abuts against the support step 501q, lifting the door frame 3 to some extent and supporting part of the weight of the door frame 3. A locking hole is provided on the rear end surface of the support protrusion 501r to lock the Nylatch 774 of the frame substrate unit 730.

[0090] The game board 5 is removably inserted from the front into the game board insertion portion 502 of the main body frame base 501. The area of ​​the game board insertion portion 502 behind the base wall portion 501b is surrounded by an upper cover 502a, a left side cover 502c, a right side cover 502d, and a lower cover 502e.

[0091] The game board 5 is placed on the upper end surface of the base wall portion 501b. A door opening switch 507, a ball launching unit 550, a foul unit 570, and a ball receiving tray 720 are attached to the front surface of the base wall portion 501b. In addition, a main body frame speaker 503, a main body frame speaker box 504, a frame opening switch 508, a circulating ball path unit 600, a ball lifting unit 650, and a ball sending unit 700 are attached to the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b.

[0092] The game board regulating portion 501c regulates left-right and rearward movement of the game board 5 when the game board 5 is inserted into the game board insertion portion 502. As shown in the figure, the main body frame speaker port 501d is formed in a lattice shape, and is provided so as to be located behind the speaker grill 203 of the door frame 3 when the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main body frame 4. A main body frame speaker 503 is attached to the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b so as to close the main body frame speaker port 501d from behind.

[0093] The bass reflex duct 501e is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape that is elongated from side to side. The bass reflex duct 501e, which will be described in detail later, is connected to the enclosure 504a of the main frame speaker 503, which is composed of the base wall portion 501b and the main frame speaker box 504. The bass reflex duct 501e inverts the phase of the sound output rearward from the main frame speaker 503 and emits it forward. In this embodiment, the cylindrical bass reflex duct 501e resonates and amplifies the low-frequency range of the sound output from the main frame speaker 503, producing a deeper bass sound. The bass reflex duct 501e is positioned behind the duct grille 191 of the door frame 3 when the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main frame 4.

[0094] The tray insertion recess 501f can detachably support the ball receiving tray 720 from the front. The bottom wall of the tray insertion recess 501f is inclined so that the front end is lower (see Figure 20). This allows game balls B to be ejected forward even if they spill into the tray insertion recess 501f when the ball receiving tray 720 is not inserted into the tray insertion recess 501f. Furthermore, because the bottom wall of the tray insertion recess 501f is inclined so that the front end is lower, the ball receiving tray 720 placed therein can be easily slid forward.

[0095] The ball storage passage insertion port 501g is provided so as to penetrate and protrude forward through the ball serpentine member 613 and the front portion of the serpentine cover 614 of the circulating ball passage unit 600 attached to the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b. The foul unit mounting portion 501h is provided near the top end of the base wall portion 501b, to the right of the main frame speaker port 501d. The ball launching unit mounting portion 501i is provided to the right of the foul unit mounting portion 501h. The ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j is provided in a region between near the top end and near the bottom end of the base wall portion 501b.

[0096] The ball sending unit mounting portion 501k is provided on the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b so that the top surface of the ball sending unit 700 faces upward (inside the game board insertion portion 502), and is provided so that the ball sending unit 700 can be attached and detached from above. When the ball sending unit 700 is attached to the ball sending unit mounting portion 501k, the elastic claw 709b of the ball sending unit 700 penetrates the locking hole in the base wall portion 501b and faces forward to the right of the ball launching unit 550. In this state, the elastic claw 709b is pressed backward to elastically deform it, and the knob portion 709a provided on the top surface of the ball sending unit 700 is grasped and pulled up, whereby the ball sending unit 700 can be removed upward.

[0097] Ball circulation path unit mounting portion 501l is provided in the center of the left-right direction on the rear surface of base wall portion 501b, above box extension portion 504c of main body frame speaker box 504 (described later). Cylinder insertion opening 501m is provided near the upper end of base wall portion 501b, to the right of ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j.

[0098] The top cover 502a extends rearward beyond the game board 5 when the game board 5 is attached to the game board insertion portion 502. As shown in FIGS. 17 and 18 , the top cover 502a has two top recesses 502g spaced apart from each other on the left and right, which eliminate some of the reinforcing ribs on the top cover 502a. This configuration allows the top cover 502a to be positioned higher by the amount of the reinforcing ribs than when multiple reinforcing ribs are arranged in a row in the left-right direction on the top surface of the top cover, thereby ensuring the internal volume of the game board insertion portion 502. Furthermore, if multiple reinforcing ribs were provided on the top surface of the top cover, some would be left unwiped during cleaning, which would detract from the aesthetic appearance. However, in this embodiment, the aesthetic appearance can be maintained by eliminating the reinforcing ribs, etc. from the top surface of the top cover 502a.

[0099] The top surface of the top cover 502a and the bottom surfaces of the two top recesses 502g are inclined at an angle of about 2 degrees relative to the horizontal plane, gradually decreasing toward the rear. Furthermore, pachinko machines 1 are usually installed with a backward tilt, typically about 0.75 degrees, resulting in a total downward tilt of about 2.75 degrees. Furthermore, the width of the two top recesses 502g from side to side increases toward the rear.

[0100] By providing such a gentle slope, game balls B falling from above the pachinko machine 1 flow down the upper surface of the upper cover 502a or the upper surface recessed portion 502g, and fall into and are collected in a collection path for game balls B in the island equipment provided below the pachinko machine 1. In addition, falling objects that are not spherical, such as metal powder or screws, will accumulate on the upper surface of the upper cover 502a or the upper surface recessed portion 502g. To achieve this effect, it is desirable that the upper surface of the upper cover 502a be inclined at an angle of 15 degrees or less from the horizontal.

[0101] Since the top cover 502a is formed in a flat plate shape, the undersides (rear faces) of the two top recesses 502g recessed from above in the top cover 502a protrude downward from the underside of the top cover 502a (see FIG. 24(b)). In other words, the top recesses 502g are in the form of convex portions protruding downward from the underside of the top cover 502a. The end points, i.e., the front walls, of the two top recesses 502g are behind the abutment surfaces 502j, which contact the rear surface of the upper edge of the game board 5 for positioning.

[0102] In other words, the back side (lower surface side) of the top cover 502a has the back sides of two top recesses 502g. The tips (front ends) of the back sides of the two top recesses 502g form abutment surfaces 502j, which come into contact with the rear surface of the upper edge of the gaming board 5 to position the gaming board 5.

[0103] The back side (lower surface side) of the top cover 502a has four of the multiple reinforcing ribs 502i, which, together with the top surface recesses 502g, reinforce the top cover 502a. By providing the reinforcing ribs 502i on the inner lower surface of the top cover 502a rather than on the top surface, it is possible to maintain the aesthetic appearance of the top surface (outer surface) of the top cover 502a.

[0104] As shown in Figure 23, multiple ribs 502k are provided at the front end of the upper surface of the top cover 502a, but the upper parts of these ribs 502k are covered by the frame body 501a at the edge of the main frame base 501, and further covered above that by the outer frame 2, so metal powder and the like will not fall from above and will not affect the aesthetic appearance.

[0105] Furthermore, although not shown in the drawings, the upper surface of the upper cover 502a and the upper surface recess 502g are not provided with a gate for feeding molten resin during injection molding. This is because the unevenness of the gate does not interfere with the flow of the game ball B down the upper surface of the upper cover 502a and the upper surface recess 502g.

[0106] Similarly, consideration is given to not leaving marks on the upper surface of the top cover 502a or the top recess 502g from ejector pins used to remove the injection-molded main body frame base 501 from the mold. Normally, marks from the ejector pins are unlikely to hinder the flow of the game ball B if the burrs are properly removed, but they may spoil the appearance when cleaning the upper surface of the top cover 502a or the top recess 502g where metal powder or the like has accumulated. For this reason, consideration is given to not leaving marks from the ejector pins.

[0107] The left and right ends of the rear cover 502b of the main body frame base 501 are connected to a left side cover 502c and a right side cover 502d, respectively. A plurality of vertically long slit-shaped ventilation holes 502f are arranged in a row in the left-right direction in the rear cover 502b.

[0108] The left side cover 502c of the main body frame base 501 has a depth in the front-to-rear direction that is the same as the depth of the top cover 502a. In a plan view, the left side cover 502c is inclined so that it moves to the right as it moves rearward. Two cover locking portions 502l for locking the rear cover 505 are provided at the rear end of the left side cover 502c, spaced apart vertically.

[0109] The right side cover 502d of the main body frame base 501 is inclined to move leftward as it extends rearward in a plan view. The right side cover 502d has a portion below the rear cover 502b cut out from the rear end toward the front, and the rear end of this portion is located forward of the rear end of the top cover 502a. In other words, the right side cover 502d is formed so that the depth of the portion below the rear cover 502b is shorter. At the rear end of the right side cover 502d, below the rear cover 502b, multiple cover pivot supports 502m are provided at intervals in the vertical direction to support the rear cover 505 so that it can rotate about a hinge.

[0110] The bottom cover 502e of the main body frame base 501 extends rearward from a position one step higher than the bottom end of the game board insertion section 502 (the top surface of the base wall section 501b). The bottom cover 502e is provided so as to exclude the area above the circulation ball path unit mounting section 501l, and in the area to the left of the circulation ball path unit mounting section 501l, it extends rearward to the same position as the rear end of the left side cover 502c, and in the area to the right of the circulation ball path unit mounting section 501l, it extends rearward to the same position as the rear end of the part of the right side cover 502d that is formed with a shorter depth. This bottom cover 502e is inclined so that it becomes higher as it extends rearward.

[0111] The lower recess 502h of the main body frame base 501 is recessed downward from the upper surface of the lower cover 502e. The lower recess 502h is open toward the front and is formed so that its width narrows toward the rear. The bottom surface of the lower recess 502h, like the lower cover 502e, is inclined so that it becomes higher toward the rear. Because the lower cover 502e is formed in a flat plate shape, the lower surface (back surface) of the lower recess 502h, which is recessed from above in the lower cover 502e, protrudes downward from the lower surface of the lower cover 502e (see Figure 24(b)). In other words, the lower recess 502h has the form of a convex portion protruding downward from the lower surface of the lower cover 502e. A reinforcing rib 502i is provided inside the lower recess 502h.

[0112] A plurality of reinforcing ribs 502i are provided on the lower surface of the top cover 502a and on the bottom surface of the bottom recess 502h. Four reinforcing ribs 502i are provided on the top cover 502a, two of which extend forward from each of the two abutting surfaces 502j, and the remaining two are provided at positions on both the left and right outer sides of the two top recesses 502g. The rear ends of the reinforcing ribs 502i provided on both the left and right outer sides of the top recess 502g are connected to the rear cover 502b and extend forward shorter than the top recess 502g.

[0113] Of the multiple reinforcing ribs 502i, four—two on both the left and right outer sides of the top recess 502g of the top cover 502a and two on each of the two bottom recesses 502h—are provided to function as contact ribs. Specifically, the main body frame base 501 of this embodiment is configured so that it can be placed horizontally without rattle when placed front-side down on a workbench or the like. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 24(b), the main body frame bases 501 are configured to be stacked for storage. In this case, the four reinforcing ribs 502i acting as ribs abut against each other, preventing the stacked main body frame bases 501 from interlocking with each other. This reduces the time required for removal due to interlocking of components (main body frame bases 501), thereby improving the efficiency of assembly work. Furthermore, because the main body frame bases 501 can be stacked, it is possible to increase the number of packages and reduce the size of the packaging box.

[0114] According to the main body frame base 501 of this embodiment, the top cover 502a of the main body frame base 501, which protects the game board 5 housed in the main body frame 4 from above, has an upper surface that slopes gently downward toward the rear, so that game balls B, metal powder, screws, etc. that fall from above the pachinko machine 1 can be properly handled. Specifically, spherical game balls B can be made to flow down the top surface of the top cover 502a and fall below the pachinko machine 1, so game balls B are collected as they are and do not cause any trouble. Furthermore, non-spherical metal powder, screws, etc. can be retained on the top cover 502a without flowing down, so they also do not cause any trouble.

[0115] Furthermore, no ventilation holes 502f are provided on the top surface of this top cover 502a, which prevents metal powder, screws, etc. from entering through the ventilation holes 502f and does not adversely affect the electrical components of the game board 5.

[0116] Furthermore, the upper surface of the top cover 502a, which is molded by an injection molding machine, does not have a gate for injecting molten resin into a mold during molding. As a result, no irregularities resulting from the gate are created on the upper surface of the top cover 502a, and the flow of the game ball B is not impeded.

[0117] Similarly, consideration has been given to avoiding leaving ejector pin marks when the injection-molded main body frame base 501 is removed from the mold. Normally, ejector pin marks are unlikely to hinder the flow of game ball B if the burrs are properly removed, but there is a possibility that the ejector pin marks will remain when cleaning the top surface of the top cover 502a where metal powder or the like has accumulated, and this may spoil the aesthetic appearance. For this reason, by not leaving ejector pin marks, the aesthetic appearance can be easily restored by cleaning.

[0118] Moreover, this top cover 502a is molded integrally with the main body frame base 501. By molding it in this manner, it is possible to save on assembly steps and improve the strength of the entire main body frame base unit 500 (game board housing frame).

[0119] The top surface of the top cover 502a not only protects the game board 5 housed inside, but also has a positioning portion (abutment surface 502j) on the inside that contacts the game board 5 to position the game board 5. This fixes the positional relationship between the game board 5 and the top cover 502a, thereby fulfilling the purpose of the game board housing frame (main frame 4) of protecting the game board 5.

[0120] 18, etc., no reinforcing ribs are provided on the top surface of top cover 502a, which means that ribs do not make cleaning difficult and maintenance is easier. Note that if there are other members (for example, frame 501a, outer frame 2, etc.) covering the top surface of top cover 502a, ribs may be provided in areas where foreign objects will not fall.

[0121] The side reinforcing plate 509 has a U-shape in plan view that is open to the right, and is attached to the main frame base 501 so as to replace the open left side of the frame body 501a. The side reinforcing plate 509 is made of an extruded metal material such as an aluminum alloy. The side reinforcing plate 509 has two left position restricting members 509a spaced apart from each other above and below. The left position restricting member 509a is used to position the left side of the game board 5.

[0122] Body frame speaker 503 is attached to the rear side of base wall portion 501b so as to close from the rear body frame speaker port 501d of body frame base 501. Body frame speaker 503 is a cone-shaped speaker that mainly outputs low-pitched sounds.

[0123] Body frame speaker box 504 is formed in a box shape that is open to the front, and is attached to the rear side of base wall portion 501b so as to cover body frame speaker 503 from behind. Body frame speaker box 504 forms enclosure 504a for body frame speaker 503 by attaching it to base wall portion 501b.

[0124] Main body frame speaker box 504 has box main body portion 504b located behind main body frame speaker 503, box extension portion 504c connected to the lower end of box main body portion 504b and extending to the right in front view, and frame board unit pivot support portion 504d provided on the rear surface of box main body portion 504b. Box extension portion 504c of main body frame speaker box 504 extends to the right near the right end of main body frame base 501 so as to cover the rear of bass reflex duct 501e, and a portion of it extends further rearward than box main body portion 504b.

[0125] Enclosure 504a is composed of box main body 504b and box extension 504c, and is in communication with the outside through bass reflex duct 501e. In other words, bass reflex duct 501e, main body frame speaker 503, and main body frame speaker box 504 form a phase-inverting bass reflex speaker.

[0126] More specifically, a predetermined sound is output forward and backward from the main body frame speaker 503. The sound output forward from the main body frame speaker 503 is emitted forward of the pachinko machine 1 through the main body frame speaker port 501d and the speaker grill 203.

[0127] On the other hand, the sound output rearward from main body frame speaker 503 vibrates the air inside main body frame speaker box 504 (enclosure 504a). Since enclosure 504a is open to the front (outside) by cylindrical bass reflex duct 501e, the sound is emitted forward from bass reflex duct 501e. At this time, because bass reflex duct 501e is formed into a cylindrical shape of a predetermined length, the low-frequency range is amplified inside it by resonance caused by air column vibration, and the sound is emitted forward with its phase reversed.

[0128] As a result, the sound output forward from the main frame speaker 503 and the sound output backward do not cancel each other out and act to attenuate, but rather resonate with each other and act to amplify, so that even though the diameter of the main frame speaker 503 is small, it can output a loud sound with deep bass, allowing the player to hear a sound with rich bass.

[0129] Box extension portion 504c of main body frame speaker box 504 is formed so that its depth in the front-to-back direction is longer than its height in the top-to-bottom direction, and its rear end is provided so that it protrudes slightly rearward beyond the rear end of frame board unit 730 (see FIG. 20). Box extension portion 504c covers the bottom of frame board unit 730 so that a gap is formed between frame board unit 730 (unit base 770 and power supply board box 772) and box extension portion 504c when assembled to main body frame 4. This makes it difficult for the various wiring connected to frame board unit 730 to droop.

[0130] As shown in Figure 20, the box extension portion 504c is inclined so that its upper surface becomes lower toward the rear. This allows trash, game balls B, and the like that fall from above to be guided rearward and discharged. The box extension portion 504c is also inclined so that its lower surface becomes higher toward the rear. This prevents the box extension portion 504c from coming into contact with the lower frame 14 of the main body frame 4 when the main body frame 4 is closed relative to the outer frame 2.

[0131] 20, the box extension section 504c has a bottom surface that is inclined so that it rises toward the rear. As a result, when closing the main body frame 4 against the outer frame 2, the bottom surface of the box extension section 504c can guide the main body frame 4 into the outer frame 2 even if the main body frame 4 is inclined.

[0132] When assembled to the main body frame 4, the main body frame speaker box 504 supports the rear end side of the tray insertion recess 501f in the main body frame base 501 so as to hang down. As a result, the game balls B discharged from the circulating ball path unit 600 are received by the ball receiving tray 720, and even if a load (the weight of multiple game balls B) acts from above on the tray insertion recess 501f via the ball receiving tray 720, the tray insertion recess 501f will not deform.

[0133] Furthermore, main body frame speaker box 504 is made of transparent synthetic resin, so that main body frame speaker 503 can be seen from the outside.

[0134] The rear cover 505 is mounted to the main frame base 501 in an openable and closable manner so as to cover the rear of the game board 5 attached to the main frame 4 when assembled into the pachinko machine 1. The rear cover 505 is formed in an L-shape in plan view, like a flat plate with the right side bent forward. The rear cover 505 has two locking claws 505a spaced apart vertically at its left end and multiple shafts 505b aligned vertically at its right end. The locking claws 505a are detachably engaged with cover locking portions 502l on the main frame base 501. The shafts 505b are pivotally supported by cover pivot support portions 502m on the main frame base 501. This allows the rear cover 505 to be attached to the main frame base 501 of the main frame 4 in an openable and closable manner. The rear cover 505 has multiple ventilation holes that allow heat from the game board 5 to escape to the outside. The rear cover 505 is made of a transparent synthetic resin.

[0135] The rear cover 505 is formed so that, when an attempt is made to close the main body frame unit 500 (main body frame base 501) after first closing a frame substrate unit 730 (described later) on the main body frame unit 500, the rear cover 505 interferes with (abuts against) the closed frame substrate unit 730 and is prevented from being closed. The rear cover 505 is also formed so that, when the main body frame 4 is opened relative to the outer frame 2 and an attempt is made to close the main body frame 4 relative to the outer frame 2 with the rear cover 505 open relative to the main body frame base 501, the rear cover 505 interferes with (abuts against) the outer frame 2 and is prevented from being closed.

[0136] The game board locking member 506 is attached to the front surface of the main body frame base 501 (base wall portion 501b) so as to be rotatable about an axis extending in the front-rear direction. By rotating the game board locking member 506 to the lock position with the game board 5 inserted into the game board insertion portion 502, the lower end side of the game board 5 can be prevented from moving forward.

[0137] The door opening switch 507 is for detecting whether the door frame 3 is opened or closed relative to the main body frame 4. The door opening switch 507 is attached to the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501 below the cylinder insertion opening 501m.

[0138] The frame opening switch 508 is for detecting the opening and closing of the main frame 4 relative to the outer frame 2. The frame opening switch 508 is attached below the door opening switch 507 on the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501.

[0139] The main body frame hinge mechanism 510 has a main body frame upper hinge body 511 attached to the upper end of the left side of the main body frame base 501 and a main body frame lower hinge body 512 attached to the lower end of the left side of the main body frame base 501.

[0140] The main frame upper hinge body 511 includes a main frame hinge shaft 511a that protrudes upward in a cylindrical shape and is inserted into the bearing groove 31a of the outer frame upper hinge body 31 in the outer frame 2, and a door frame upper shaft hole 511b that is provided adjacent to the main frame hinge shaft 511a and into which the door frame upper hinge shaft 111a of the door frame upper hinge body 111 in the door frame 3 is inserted from below. The main frame upper hinge body 511 has a flat, horizontally extending portion and a portion that extends downward from the rear end of the horizontally extending portion. The main frame hinge shaft 511a and the door frame upper shaft hole 511b are provided in the horizontally extending portion of the main frame upper hinge body 511. The downwardly extending portion of the main frame upper hinge body 511 is attached to the main frame base 501.

[0141] The lower-frame hinge body 512 has an outer-frame shaft hole (not shown) into which the hinge shaft 35a of the lower-frame hinge body 35 in the outer frame 2 is inserted from below, and a lower-frame shaft hole 512b into which the lower-frame hinge shaft 112a of the lower-frame hinge body 112 in the door frame 3 is inserted from above. The lower-frame hinge body 512 has a flat, horizontally extending portion and a portion extending upward from the rear end of the horizontally extending portion. The horizontally extending portion of the lower-frame hinge body 512 is provided with an outer-frame shaft hole and a lower-frame shaft hole 512b. The downwardly extending portion of the lower-frame hinge body 512 is attached to the frame base 501. Furthermore, the downwardly extending portion of the main frame lower hinge body 512 abuts against the rear wall portion 45c of the top panel 45 when the main frame 4 is closed relative to the outer frame 2. This prevents the main frame 4 from hinge-rotating further rearward.

[0142] The main frame hinge mechanism 510 supports the main frame 4 so that it can be opened and closed relative to the outer frame 2 by inserting the main frame hinge axis 511a of the main frame upper hinge body 511 into the bearing groove 31a of the outer frame upper hinge body 31 in the outer frame 2, and by inserting the hinge axis 35a of the outer frame lower hinge body 35 in the outer frame 2 into the outer frame axis hole of the main frame lower hinge body 512.

[0143] In addition, the main frame hinge mechanism 510 inserts the upper door frame hinge shaft 111a of the upper door frame hinge body 111 in the door frame 3 from below into the upper door frame shaft hole 511b of the upper main frame hinge body 511, and also inserts the lower door frame hinge shaft 112a of the lower door frame hinge body 112 in the door frame 3 from above into the lower door frame shaft hole 512b of the lower main frame hinge body 512, thereby supporting the door frame 3 so that it can be opened and closed relative to the main frame 4.

[0144] [4-2. Ball Launching Unit] The ball launching unit 550 in the main body frame 4 will be described in detail mainly with reference to Figures 25 to 28. Figure 25(a) is a perspective view of the ball launching unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the ball launching unit in the main body frame as seen from the rear. Figure 26(a) is an exploded perspective view of the ball launching unit as seen from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the ball launching unit as seen from the rear. Figure 27(a) is a perspective view of the launching unit cover of the ball launching unit as seen from the left rear, and (b) is an explanatory diagram of the ball launching unit as seen from the front, showing only the launching unit cover in cross section. Figure 28 is a front view of the ball launching unit, showing the launch subtraction sensor and firing hammer in dashed lines.

[0145] The ball launching unit 550 is used to launch game ball B into the game area 5a of the game board 5, and has a ball inlet 550a that receives game ball B sent from the ball sending unit 700, a ball launching port 550b through which the launched game ball B is released to the outside, and a ball outlet 550c through which game ball B is discharged. The ball launching unit 550 can shoot game ball B with a strength that corresponds to the rotation angle of handle 160 in the lower right corner of the front surface of the door frame 3. The ball launching unit 550 is attached to a ball launching unit mounting portion 501i that is provided at the top of the front surface of base wall portion 501b of main frame base 501, to the right of the center in the left-right direction and below opaque eave portion 501p.

[0146] The ball inlet 550a of the ball launching unit 550 is provided on the rear surface and is a square opening large enough to allow one game ball B to pass through. When assembled to the main body frame 4, this ball inlet 550a is located in front of the ball outlet 702 of the ball sending unit 700 and communicates with the ball outlet 702. The ball launching opening 550b opens at an angle at the left end of the top surface, with the left end lower. When assembled to the main body frame 4, this ball launching opening 550b communicates with the upper part of the foul right opening 570b of the foul unit 570. The ball discharge opening 550c opens on the left side surface. When assembled to the main body frame 4, this ball discharge opening 550c communicates with the lower part of the foul right opening 570b of the foul unit 570.

[0147] The ball launching unit 550 comprises a flat unit base 551, a launching unit cover 552 attached to cover the front side of the unit base 551, a launch solenoid 553 attached to the rear side of the unit base 551 so that its rotation axis 553a protrudes forward of the unit base 551, a launch subtraction sensor 554 capable of detecting whether or not a game ball B has been launched, a launch hammer 555 attached to the rotation axis 553a of the launch solenoid 553, a nut 556 attaching the launch hammer 555 to the rotation axis 553a of the launch solenoid 553, an annular spacer 557 inserted into the rotation axis 553a of the launch solenoid 553, and two rubber members 558 that can come into contact with the launch hammer 555.

[0148] The unit base 551 of the ball launching unit 550 is formed of a metal plate such as an iron plate. The unit base 551 is provided with a ball inlet 550a, which penetrates in a square shape from the center to the upper part when viewed from the front.

[0149] Launching unit cover 552 is formed by injection molding using transparent synthetic resin. Launching unit cover 552 includes flat front plate 552a provided at a distance forward from unit base 551, ball launch pad 552b provided behind front plate 552a directly below ball inlet 550a of unit base 551 and inclined so that the left end is higher, and detection port 552c passing vertically through ball launch pad 552b.

[0150] The launch unit cover 552 also has a launch pad upper wall portion 552d on the rear side of the front plate 552a, at the upper right of the ball launch pad 552b when viewed from the front, which forms a gap between the ball launch pad 552b and the launch pad 552b through which the game ball B cannot pass, and a sensor lower mounting portion 552e and a sensor upper mounting portion 552f which are arranged on the rear side of the front plate 552a so as to sandwich the ball launch pad 552b and the launch pad upper wall portion 552d.

[0151] Furthermore, the launch unit cover 552 is provided with a barrier portion 552g which is arranged in the direction of launch of the game ball B from the ball launch pad 552b and whose upper end forms the lower end of the ball launch port 550b, an ejection guide wall portion 552h which extends downward from the left end of the ball launch pad 552b at the rear of the front plate 552a and then extends so as to become lower toward the left, a window portion 552i which penetrates from front to back at the positions above the sensor lower mounting portion 552e and to the right of the sensor lower mounting portion 552e, a wiring groove 552j which is recessed in the front surface of the front plate 552a and extends from the lower left to the upper right, and a plurality of wiring engagement portions 552k which protrude from the front end of the wiring groove 552j parallel to the bottom surface of the wiring groove 552j.

[0152] The ball launcher 552b is where the game ball B supplied through the ball inlet 550a is placed. The top surface of the ball launcher 552b is inclined so that the left end is higher when viewed from the front. The ball launcher 552b is recessed into a constant cross-sectional shape (trapezoidal) that narrows downward along the direction of the inclination of the top surface. The length of the ball launcher 552b in the inclined direction (launching direction) is approximately the same as the diameter of the game ball B, and it is formed so that only one game ball B can be placed on it so that it is in contact with the two inclined surfaces of the trapezoidal recess. In this embodiment, the ball launcher 552b is inclined at an angle of approximately 27 degrees with respect to the horizontal.

[0153] The detection port 552c is provided at the bottom of the trapezoidally recessed portion of the ball launching pad 552b. The launching pad upper wall 552d is provided above the sloping lower end of the ball launching pad 552b. The launching pad upper wall 552d is provided so as to form a gap between the ball launching pad 552b and the launching pad upper wall 552d, through which the game ball B cannot pass but through which the tip of the launching hammer 555 can pass. As a result, the game ball B supplied to the ball launching pad 552b abuts against the left end of the launching pad upper wall 552d and is placed on the ball launching pad 552b in a state where its movement downstream (to the right in this case) in the sloping direction of the ball launching pad 552b is restricted.

[0154] When game ball B is placed on ball launching pad 552b, the center of game ball B is located slightly to the right of the center of ball entrance 550a. Furthermore, ball launching pad 552b is long enough to hold only one game ball B. As a result, even if a game ball B is placed on ball launching pad 552b and the launched game ball B returns or a game ball B is sent from ball sending unit 700, and another game ball B is supplied to ball launching pad 552b, it will be bounced off by the game ball B placed on ball launching pad 552b and will be discharged to the discharge guide wall portion 552h side (foul unit 570 side) without landing on ball launching pad 552b, and will be detected by foul ball sensor 607. Therefore, even if the launched game ball B is placed on the ball launching pad 552b and the launched game ball B returns or is supplied from the ball sending unit 700, the game ball B is sent to the foul unit 570 and the game ball B is added to the balls in hand as a foul ball, thereby eliminating any error with the actual number of launched game balls B.

[0155] The sensor lower mounting portion 552e and the sensor upper mounting portion 552f are respectively fitted with the light-emitting portion 554a and the light-receiving portion 554b that constitute the emission subtraction sensor 554. Because emission subtraction sensor 554 (here, light-emitting portion 554a) is mounted facing upward on the sensor lower mounting portion 552e, there is a risk of false detection if dirt or dust adheres to the upper surface of light-emitting portion 554a, but because light-emitting portion 554a is mounted at an angle, dirt and the like are less likely to accumulate.

[0156] The barrier portion 552g is provided at a position further to the left of the ball launching pad 552b than the diameter of the game ball B, and below the trajectory of the game ball B launched from the ball launching pad 552b. The barrier portion 552g is designed so that game balls B with a weak impact can come into contact with it, and the game ball B that comes into contact with it passes between the barrier portion 552g and the ball launching pad 552b and flows down onto the discharge guide wall portion 552h below, without returning to the ball launching pad 552b. In addition, because the barrier portion 552g extends vertically, it is possible to block the entry of the game ball B from the foul unit 570 side.

[0157] The discharge guide wall portion 552h forms a ball discharge port 550c between the barrier portion 552g and the discharge guide wall portion 552h. The discharge guide wall portion 552h is inclined so that the left end side is lower, and can guide the game ball B that flows down through between the ball launching pad 552b and the barrier portion 552g to the left and discharge it from the ball discharge port 550c at the left end toward the foul unit 570. As a result, the game ball B that was hit by the launching hammer 555 at the ball launching pad 552b but was not launched from the ball discharge port 550b is guided by the discharge guide wall portion 552h and discharged from the ball discharge port 550c to the foul unit 570.

[0158] Window 552i is provided in a region between ball launch pad 552b and sensor lower mounting portion 552e, and in a region forward of the tip of firing hammer 555 in a retracted position away from the striking position. Because launch subtraction sensor 554 (here, light-emitting portion 554a) is attached facing upward in sensor lower mounting portion 552e, dirt and dust tend to accumulate on the upper surface of light-emitting portion 554a, which may result in erroneous detection. However, by inserting a cleaning tool such as a cotton swab through window 552i in the region between ball launch pad 552b and sensor lower mounting portion 552e, the upper surface of light-emitting portion 554a can be easily cleaned.

[0159] Furthermore, since the tip of the launching hammer 555 comes into contact with the game ball B, if there is any dirt or the like attached to the tip of the launching hammer 555, there is a risk that the game ball B will not be launched properly. However, as shown in Figure 28, a window 552i is provided in front of the tip of the launching hammer 555 in the standby position, and the tip of the launching hammer 555 can be easily cleaned by inserting a cleaning tool such as a cotton swab through the window 552i.

[0160] The firing solenoid 553 is configured by a rotary solenoid having a rotation shaft 553a extending forward and backward. As will be described in detail later, the firing solenoid 553 performs a series of operations in hardware based on a predetermined firing sequence in association with the ball sending solenoid 706, which will be described later.

[0161] The launch subtraction sensor 554 can detect the presence or absence of a gaming ball B on the ball launch pad 552b. The launch subtraction sensor 554 is composed of a light-emitting unit 554a that emits detection light and a light-receiving unit 554b that receives the detection light, and these are attached to the sensor lower mounting portion 552e and the sensor upper mounting portion 552f of the launch unit cover 552, respectively. The detection light emitted from the light-emitting unit 554a is received by the light-receiving unit 554b through a detection port 552c provided at the bottom of the ball launch pad 552b. At this time, if a gaming ball B is placed on the ball launch pad 552b, the detection light is blocked by the gaming ball B, and the detection light is not received by the light-receiving unit 554b. This makes it possible to detect the presence or absence of a gaming ball B on the ball launch pad 552b.

[0162] The shot subtraction sensor 554, which will be described in detail later, detects that the game ball B has been shot from the ball launcher 552b and subtracts one ball from the number of balls the player has.

[0163] In this embodiment, the number of balls held is subtracted when the launch subtraction sensor 554 is judged to be OFF, but since the number of balls held by the player changes depending on the operation of the launch subtraction sensor 554, one-to-one reliability is required for the launch of game ball B. Meanwhile, in normal pass judgment for game ball B, the light from the light-emitting unit in the light-receiving unit is judged by switching from OFF to ON (from no game ball B to present) of non-detection, detection, detection (so-called "011") at predetermined time intervals (for example, an interrupt cycle of 4 ms), but there are concerns about ball movement when game ball B is supplied to the ball launch pad 552b (launch rail) and erroneous detection of something other than the launched ball by the tip of the launching hammer 555 after launch.

[0164] In contrast, in this embodiment, focusing on the fact that game ball B is parked at ball launch pad 552b, first it is determined whether game ball B is present at ball launch pad 552b, and when game ball B is no longer present, it is determined that the game ball has been launched. In other words, it is determined that the game ball is ON (game ball present) and then OFF (game ball not present = launched). Specifically, a threshold value for recognizing ON and OFF (for example, an ON threshold of 80 ms and an OFF threshold of 80 ms) is set, and only when the ON threshold is exceeded is it determined that "game ball present." When the OFF threshold is exceeded, it is determined that game ball B has been launched ("game ball not present") and the number of balls held is subtracted. This prevents malfunctions due to game ball chatter or noise. Note that the threshold value is preferably an integer multiple of the interrupt period (for example, 4 ms).

[0165] The firing hammer 555 is used to strike and launch the game ball B. The firing hammer 555 is attached to the rotation shaft 553a of the launch solenoid 553, and rotates (pivots) together with the rotation shaft 553a. The tip of the firing hammer 555 passes between the ball launch pad 552b and the launch pad upper wall portion 552d, and is arranged so that it can come into contact with the game ball B placed on the ball launch pad 552b.

[0166] Incidentally, in order to ensure the launch accuracy of the game ball B when mass-producing the ball launching unit 550, it was necessary to precisely adjust the insertion angle of the tip of the launching hammer 555, the mounting angle of the ball launching platform 552b (launching rail), and the position of the tip of the launching hammer 555 after assembly into the ball launching unit 550, all of which required precise adjustment, making mass production difficult. Therefore, in this embodiment, the method of determining launch accuracy has been changed from the conventional method of determining the launch accuracy by the way the game ball B hits the launching rail and the shape of the launching rail to a method of determining the launch accuracy by only ensuring contact between the launching hammer 555 and the game ball B. With this change, the accuracy of the tip of the launching hammer 555 alone becomes more important for launch accuracy, so the tip of the launching hammer 555 is formed by sheet metal insert molding, and the contact area of ​​the tip of the launching hammer 555 with the game ball B is increased compared to conventional methods. This ensures stable launch accuracy and allows for some assembly error, making it possible to mass-produce the ball launching unit 550.

[0167] Nut 556 is screwed onto rotating shaft 553a of firing solenoid 553. Spacer 557 is inserted into rotating shaft 553a of firing solenoid 553. Rotating shaft 553a of firing solenoid 553 is inserted from the rear through spacer 557 and then firing hammer 555, and nut 556 is screwed onto the tip protruding forward from firing hammer 555 and tightened, thereby attaching firing hammer 555.

[0168] The rubber 558 is attached to the unit base 551 so as to restrict the rotation range (pivot range) of the firing hammer 555 .

[0169] According to the ball launching unit 550 of this embodiment, only one game ball B is placed on the ball launching pad 552b, and the launch subtraction sensor 554 detects that the game ball B has been launched from the ball launching pad 552b, so that the launch of the game balls B can be reliably detected one by one.

[0170] Furthermore, according to ball launching unit 550, because launching unit cover 552 is formed from a transparent synthetic resin, the interior of ball launching unit 550 can be seen from the front by opening door frame 3 relative to main body frame 4. Making launching unit cover 552 transparent could allow light to enter the interior, which could cause a false detection by launch subtraction sensor 554, which is a photosensor. However, when door frame 3 is closed relative to main body frame 4, light from the front is blocked by door frame 3, light from the rear is blocked by unit base 551, which is made of a metal plate, and further light from above is blocked by eaves portion 501p of main body frame base 501, which is black and opaque. Therefore, no light enters the interior, preventing false detection due to light by launch subtraction sensor 554.

[0171] Furthermore, the pachinko machine 1 (recycling gaming machine) disclosed in this embodiment is designed to subtract the number of balls in the player's possession only after the ball has been fired. Therefore, compared to the method used in conventional recycling gaming machines in which the number of balls in the player's possession is subtracted using the ball feed as a trigger before the ball is fired, when settling a game, game ball B (with the number of balls subtracted) that remains on the firing rail without being fired is automatically fired blank to be returned to the player as a foul ball, eliminating the need to add up the number of balls in the player's possession to make the total add up, and allowing for a quick settlement process.

[0172] Furthermore, according to the ball launch unit 550, the launch subtraction sensor 554 is mounted at an angle, which makes it difficult for dirt and dust to accumulate on the detection surface of the launch subtraction sensor 554. Even if dirt or dust does adhere to the launch subtraction sensor 554, the detection surface can be easily cleaned by inserting a cleaning tool such as a cotton swab through the window portion 552i of the launch unit cover 552, making it easy to eliminate false detections (malfunctions) caused by the adhesion of dirt or dust.

[0173] Furthermore, according to the ball launching unit 550, the window portion 552i is also provided in a location where the tip of the launching hammer 555 can be cleaned, so that by inserting a cleaning tool through the window portion 552i in that location, the tip of the launching hammer 555 can be easily cleaned, thereby eliminating variations in the launch of the game ball B due to the adhesion of dirt and the like.

[0174] [4-3. Foul Unit] The foul unit 570 in the main body frame 4 will be described in detail mainly with reference to Figures 29 to 31. Figure 29(a) is a perspective view of the foul unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the foul unit in the main body frame as seen from the rear. Figure 30(a) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit as seen from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit as seen from the rear. Figure 31(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit with the foul shutter in a closed state, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit with the foul shutter in an open state.

[0175] The foul unit 570 is for retrieving game balls B that were launched by the ball launching unit 550 and hit between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5 but did not reach the game area 5a, and game balls B that were launched by the ball launching unit 550 but did not reach the game board 5 (between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002) because the launching strength was too weak. The foul unit 570 has a foul upper opening 570a that opens on the top surface, a foul right opening 570b that opens on the right side surface, and a foul ball outlet 570c that communicates with the foul upper opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b and opens rearward at the bottom end.

[0176] The foul unit 570 is attached to a foul unit attachment portion 501h provided in the center in the left-right direction at the top of the front surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501. When assembled to the main body frame 4, the foul unit 570 has an upper end at approximately the same height as the upper end of the base wall portion 501b, and the foul right opening 570b is closed by the ball launching port 550b and ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550. In other words, when assembled to the main body frame 4, the foul right opening 570b communicates with the ball launching port 550b and ball discharge port 550c. The foul upper opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b are formed by a unit base 572 and a front cover 573, which will be described later, and the ball discharge port 550c is formed in the unit base 572.

[0177] The foul unit 570 comprises a foul shutter 571 that can be opened and closed to prevent the game ball B from passing through the foul upper opening 570a, a unit base 572 that is attached to the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501, a front cover 573 that is attached to the front side of the unit base 572, a rear cover 574 that is attached to the rear side of the unit base 572 so as to cover the rear of the foul shutter 571, and a spring 575 that urges the foul shutter 571 forward.

[0178] The fall shutter 571 is supported so as to be slidable in the front-to-rear direction by cooperation between the unit base 572 and the front cover 573. The fall shutter 571 has a strip-shaped shutter portion 571a that is long in the left-to-right direction, two forward protruding portions 571b that protrude forward from both the left and right ends of the shutter portion 571a, and a flat rear wall portion 571c that extends downward from the rear end edge of the shutter portion 571a.

[0179] The foul shutter 571 can close the foul upper opening 570a by the shutter portion 571a so that the game ball B cannot pass through. The two forward protrusions 571b are provided so that their front ends protrude further forward than the front cover 573, and are provided so that they can abut against the rear surface of the door frame main body 100 of the door frame 3. The front end of the spring 575 abuts against the rear surface of the rear wall portion 571c.

[0180] Unit base 572 is formed in an L-shape that is long from side to side and has a portion extending downward near the right end. Unit base 572 has shutter housing portion 572a that extends from side to side along the upper edge and is recessed toward the rear, ball guide portion 572b that extends from side to side below shutter housing portion 572a and has a downward right end that is recessed toward the rear, tube portion 572c that extends rearward in a rectangular tube shape from the lower end of ball guide portion 572b, and receiving portion 572d that extends forward in a flat plate shape from the lower end of ball guide portion 572b.

[0181] Shutter housing section 572a of unit base 572 houses foul shutter 571 and spring 575 from the front. The portion of ball guide section 572b in unit base 572 that extends to the left and right is inclined so as to become lower to the right. Cylindrical section 572c of unit base 572 is inclined so as to become lower to the rear, and the opening at the rear end is foul ball outlet 570c.

[0182] The receiving portion 572d of the unit base 572 is inclined so that its rear end is lower. The right edge of this receiving portion 572d forms the lower edge of the foul right opening 570b. The right edge of the receiving portion 572d forms the lower edge of the foul right opening 570b, and the lower part, including the lower end of the foul right opening 570b, is connected to the ball outlet 550c of the ball launching unit 550. Therefore, a game ball B that falls from the ball launching pad 552b, is discharged from the ball outlet 550c, and passes through the foul right opening 570b, flows down onto the receiving portion 572d, is guided rearward by the receiving portion 572d, passes through the tubular portion 572c, and is discharged rearward from the foul ball outlet 570c. When the foul shutter 571 is closed, the game ball B that is launched from the ball launching unit 550 and passes through the foul right opening 570b and hits the back surface (underside) of the foul shutter 571 is sent to the rear ball guide section 572b by the lower wall section 573c of the front cover 573, passes behind the receiving section 572d, and is discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c via the tube section 572c.

[0183] The unit base 572 also has a notch 572e recessed from the front near the right end of the bottom wall of the portion extending left and right in the ball guide portion 572b. This notch 572e is formed to a size that does not interfere with the flow of the game ball B, and allows debris that has entered the ball guide portion 572b from the upper foul opening 570a to be discharged downward.

[0184] The front cover 573 comprises an L-shaped, flat front plate 573a that is long from side to side and has a portion extending downward near the right end, a left wall portion 573b that extends rearward from the left edge of the front plate 573a, a lower wall portion 573c that extends rightward from the lower end of the left wall portion 573b along the lower edge of the front plate 573a and also extends rearward, a hanging wall portion 573d that extends downward from the right end of the lower wall portion 573c along the left edge of the portion of the front plate 573a that extends downward and also extends rearward, and a right wall portion 573f that extends rearward from the upper right end of the front plate 573a.

[0185] The upper and right edges of the front panel 573a form the front edges of the upper foul opening 570a and the right foul opening 570b. The right edge of the upper end of the left wall 573b forms the left edge of the upper foul opening 570a, and the left edge of the upper end of the right wall 573f forms the right edge of the upper foul opening 570a. The lower edge of the right wall 573f forms the upper edge of the right foul opening 570b.

[0186] The front cover 573 has a lower wall portion 573c positioned below the foul ball upper opening 570a. The lower wall portion 573c of the front cover 573 is gently inclined so as to lower to the left and also so as to lower to the rear. This prevents the front cover 573 from being directly impacted by a game ball B falling from above as a foul ball, and allows the game ball B to be handed over to the ball guide portion 572b of the unit base 572 provided at the rear while dissipating the impact. The game ball B handed over to the ball guide portion 572b then passes from the lower right end of the ball guide portion 572b through the tube portion 572c and is discharged rearward from the foul ball outlet 570c.

[0187] Two springs 575 are provided spaced apart on the left and right, and are disposed inside a box-shaped shutter accommodating portion 572a in the unit base 572. The front end of each spring 575 abuts against the rear surface of a rear wall portion 571c of the fall shutter 571, and the rear end of each spring abuts against the front surface of the rear wall of the shutter accommodating portion 572a. The springs 575 urge the fall shutter 571 forward.

[0188] When assembled to the pachinko machine 1, the foul unit 570 is attached to a foul unit attachment portion 501h provided at the top near the center in the left-right direction on the front surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame 4. In this state, the ball launching unit 550 is attached adjacent to the right side of the foul unit 570.

[0189] 21, the foul-upper opening 570a of the foul unit 570 is located near the upper end of the base wall portion 501b and is located on the axis of the launch direction of the game ball B in the ball launching unit 550. In other words, the foul-upper opening 570a is provided in a region between the opening portion at the lower end between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5 and the ball launching port 550b of the ball launching unit 550.

[0190] Meanwhile, the upper part of the foul right opening 570b of the foul unit 570 communicates with the ball launching port 550b of the ball launching unit 550, and the lower part communicates with the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550. Therefore, the foul top opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b are provided in the area between the opening at the lower end between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5 and the ball launching port 550b of the ball launching unit 550. As a result, the game ball B launched from the ball launching port 550b of the ball launching unit 550 enters the foul unit 570 through the foul right opening 570b, and then passes through the foul top opening 570a and enters between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5.

[0191] In the foul unit 570 of this embodiment, when the door frame 3 is opened forward relative to the main body frame 4, the foul shutter 571 slides forward due to the biasing force of the spring 575, as shown in FIG. 34(a), and the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571 protrudes between the front surface of the unit base 572 and the front plate 573a of the front cover 573, closing the foul upper opening 570a so that the game ball B cannot pass through. In other words, the foul shutter 571 is in the closed position. In this state, the stepped portion provided at the rear end of the forward protrusion 571b of the foul shutter 571 abuts against the front cover 573, and the foul shutter 571 cannot slide forward any further.

[0192] When the foul shutter 571 is in the closed position and a game ball B is launched from the ball launching unit 550, the launched game ball B enters the foul unit 570 through the foul right opening 570b, abuts against the underside of the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571, and flows down through the foul unit 570 without being launched upward through the foul upper opening 570a. The game ball B that flows down through the foul unit 570 is guided by the lower wall portion 573c, the ball guide portion 572b, the cylindrical portion 572c, etc., and is supplied to the circulating ball path unit 600 through the rear foul ball outlet 570c. This prevents the game ball B from leaking out of the foul unit 570, even if the game ball B is launched when the door frame 3 is open.

[0193] When the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main body frame 4, the door opening switch 507 is turned OFF, and turning the door opening switch 507 OFF may stop the launch of the game ball B from the ball launching unit 550. Alternatively, instead of stopping the launch of the game ball B when the door frame 3 is opened, the main control board 1310 may temporarily suspend the game, and when the door frame 3 is closed, the game may be resumed.

[0194] Furthermore, when the main frame 4 is opened relative to the outer frame 2 (the frame open switch 508 is OFF), the door frame 3 is closed and the game ball B does not leak to the outside, so the launch of the game ball B from the ball launch unit 550 may not be stopped. Alternatively, when the main frame 4 is opened, the same processing as when the door frame 3 is opened may be performed.

[0195] When the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main body frame 4, the rear surface of the door frame 3 abuts against the front ends of the two forward protrusions 571b of the foul shutter 571, causing the foul shutter 571 to slide rearward against the biasing force of the spring 575 (see Figure 34(b)). In this state, the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571 is located rearward of the front surface of the unit base 572, and the foul upper opening 570a is open so that the game ball B can pass through. In other words, the foul shutter 571 is in the open position.

[0196] When the foul shutter 571 is in the open position and a game ball B is launched from the ball launching unit 550, the launched game ball B enters the foul unit 570 from the foul right opening 570b, passes through the foul upper opening 570a, and is launched upward toward the game board 5 (between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002). Then, the launched game ball B passes over the backflow prevention member 1007 provided at the upper end of the inner rail 1002, and is launched into the game area 5a.

[0197] Furthermore, game balls B that are launched from ball launching unit 550 but do not pass over backflow prevention member 1007 at the upper end of inner rail 1002 (game balls B that are not shot into the game area) flow down between outer rail 1001 and inner rail 1002, enter through foul upper opening 570a as foul balls, and are collected by foul unit 570. Game balls B that are collected through foul upper opening 570a are guided by lower wall portion 573c, ball guiding portion 572b, cylindrical portion 572c, etc., and are discharged (supplied) to circulating ball path unit 600 from rear foul ball outlet 570c.

[0198] In addition, the foul unit 570 receives, at the bottom of the foul right opening 570b, the game ball B discharged from the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550. The game ball B that enters the foul unit 570 from the bottom of the foul right opening 570b flows down onto the receiving portion 572d, is guided rearward by the inclination of the receiving portion 572d, and is discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c to the circulating ball path unit 600.

[0199] In this way, the foul unit 570 can collect game balls B that were launched from the ball launching unit 550 but did not land in the game area 5a of the game board 5 without leaking to the outside, and supply them to the circulating ball path unit 600. As will be described in detail later, the circulating ball path unit 600 detects game ball B supplied from the foul ball outlet 570c with the foul ball sensor 607. When game ball B is detected by this foul ball sensor 607, one ball is added to the player's possession.

[0200] Furthermore, in the foul unit 570, the unit base 572, front cover 573, etc. are made of transparent synthetic resin, so that the inside can be seen from the outside, making it easy to find any balls stuck inside.

[0201] [4-3a. Foul unit of the second embodiment] Next, the foul unit 570A of the second embodiment will be described in detail, mainly with reference to Figures 32 to 34. Figure 32(a) is a perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the rear. Figure 33(a) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment as seen from the rear. Figure 34(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a cross-sectional side view of the foul unit of the second embodiment with the foul shutter in a closed state, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a cross-sectional side view of the foul unit of the second embodiment with the foul shutter in an open state.

[0202] The foul unit 570A is for retrieving game balls B that were launched by the ball launching unit 550 and hit between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5 but did not hit into the game area 5a, and game balls B that were launched by the ball launching unit 550 but did not reach the game board 5 (between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002) because the launching strength was too weak. The foul unit 570A has a foul upper opening 570a that opens on the top surface, a foul right opening 570b that opens on the right side surface, and a foul ball outlet 570c that communicates with the foul upper opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b and opens rearward at the bottom end.

[0203] The foul unit 570A is attached to a foul unit attachment portion 501h provided in the center in the left-right direction at the top of the front surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501. When assembled to the main body frame 4, the foul unit 570A has an upper end at approximately the same height as the upper end of the base wall portion 501b, and the foul right opening 570b is closed by the ball launching port 550b and ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550. In other words, when assembled to the main body frame 4, the foul right opening 570b communicates with the ball launching port 550b and ball discharge port 550c. The foul upper opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b are formed by a unit base 572 and a front cover 573, which will be described later, and the ball discharge port 550c is formed in the unit base 572.

[0204] The foul unit 570A comprises a foul shutter 571 that can be opened and closed to prevent the game ball B from passing through the foul upper opening 570a, a unit base 572 that is attached to the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501, a front cover 573 that is attached to the front side of the unit base 572, a rear cover 574 that is attached to the rear side of the unit base 572 so as to cover the rear of the foul shutter 571, a spring 575 that urges the foul shutter 571 forward, and a foul ball earth metal plate 576 that is provided between the unit base 572 and the front cover 573.

[0205] The fall shutter 571 is supported so as to be slidable in the front-to-rear direction by cooperation between the unit base 572 and the front cover 573. The fall shutter 571 has a strip-shaped shutter portion 571a that is long in the left-to-right direction, two forward protruding portions 571b that protrude forward from both the left and right ends of the shutter portion 571a, and a flat rear wall portion 571c that extends downward from the rear end edge of the shutter portion 571a.

[0206] The foul shutter 571 can close the foul upper opening 570a by the shutter portion 571a so that the game ball B cannot pass through. The two forward protrusions 571b are provided so that their front ends protrude further forward than the front cover 573, and are provided so that they can abut against the rear surface of the door frame main body 100 of the door frame 3. The front end of the spring 575 abuts against the rear surface of the rear wall portion 571c.

[0207] The unit base 572 has a T-shaped, flat main body 572f that is long from side to side and has a portion extending downward near the right end, a shutter insertion opening 572g that penetrates from front to back near the upper end of the main body 572f and extends left and right, and a plurality of rear support openings 572h that are provided along the lower edge of the main body 572f to the left of the portion that extends downward and penetrates from front to back.

[0208] Near the lower end of the downward-extending portion of main body 572f, unit base 572 is provided with foul ball outlet 570c, which penetrates from front to back and extends rearward in the shape of a square tube. Cylindrical foul ball outlet 570c is inclined so that it slopes lower toward the rear.

[0209] The lower edge of the main body 572f is inclined so that the left side of the downwardly extending portion is lower to the right. The shutter insertion opening 572g is sized to allow the shutter portion 571a and forward protrusion 571b of the foul shutter 571 to pass through. The multiple rear support openings 572h are elongated on the left and right sides so that each is lower to the right, and are lined up along the inclined lower edge of the main body 572f. The rear support openings 572h are designed so that the support piece 576a of the foul ball ground metal plate 576 can be inserted with a gap between them.

[0210] The front cover 573 comprises a flat, partial T-shaped front plate 573a that is long from side to side and has a portion extending downward near the right end, a left wall portion 573b that extends rearward from the left edge of the front plate 573a, a lower wall portion 573c that extends rightward from the lower end of the left wall portion 573b along the lower edge of the front plate 573a and also extends rearward, a hanging wall portion 573d that extends downward from the right end of the lower wall portion 573c along the left edge of the portion of the front plate 573a that extends downward and also extends rearward, a bottom wall portion 573e that extends rightward from the lower end of the hanging wall portion 573d along the lower edge of the portion of the front plate 573a that extends downward and also extends rearward, and a right wall portion 573f that extends rearward from the upper right end of the front plate 573a.

[0211] The upper and right edges of the front panel 573a form the front edges of the upper foul opening 570a and the right foul opening 570b. The right edge of the upper end of the left wall 573b forms the left edge of the upper foul opening 570a, and the left edge of the upper end of the right wall 573f forms the right edge of the upper foul opening 570a. The lower edge of the right wall 573f forms the upper edge of the right foul opening 570b, and the right edge of the bottom wall 573e forms the lower edge of the right foul opening 570b.

[0212] The front cover 573 has a lower wall portion 573c located below the foul ball upper opening 570a, allowing the game ball B flowing down through the foul ball upper opening 570a to be guided to the right and then allowed to flow down along the hanging wall portion 573d onto the bottom wall portion 573e. This bottom wall portion 573e is inclined so that the portion in front of the foul ball outlet 570c is lower toward the rear, and the portion to the right of this portion is inclined so that the portion in front of the foul ball outlet 570c is higher toward the right. Therefore, the game ball B flowing down the bottom wall portion 573e is guided rearward and discharged rearward from the foul ball outlet 570c. Furthermore, because the right edge of the bottom wall portion 573e forms the lower edge of the foul right opening 570b, the game ball B entering through the foul right opening 570b flows down onto the bottom wall portion 573e, is guided by the bottom wall portion 573e, and is discharged rearward from the foul ball outlet 570c.

[0213] The front cover 573 also has a plurality of front support openings 573g that are arranged in a row on the left and right sides along the lower wall portion 573c on the front plate 573a and penetrate from front to back. The plurality of front support openings 573g are provided to face the rear support openings 572h of the unit base 572. The front support openings 573g are also provided so that the support pieces 576a of the foul ball grounding metal plate 576 can be inserted with a gap between them.

[0214] The rear cover 574 is formed in a box shape with an open front. The rear part of the fall shutter 571 is inserted inside the rear cover 574, and a spring 575 is also disposed inside the rear cover 574. The rear end of the spring 575 abuts against the front surface of the rear wall of the rear cover 574.

[0215] Two springs 575 are provided spaced apart on the left and right, and are disposed inside the box-shaped rear cover 574. The front end of each spring 575 abuts against the rear surface of the rear wall portion 571c of the fall shutter 571, and the rear end abuts against the front surface of the rear wall of the rear cover 574. The springs 575 urge the fall shutter 571 forward.

[0216] The foul ball grounding metal plate 576 is formed from a metal plate such as a steel plate, and is ultimately connected to the ground of the gaming hall via a ground wire (not shown). The foul ball grounding metal plate 576 is formed in the shape of a long strip from side to side, with multiple support pieces 576a extending outward from the front and rear long sides. The foul ball grounding metal plate 576 is placed on the upper surface of the lower wall portion 573c of the front cover 573, and the multiple support pieces 576a are inserted with some play into the rear support opening 572h of the unit base 572 and the front support opening 573g of the front cover 573.

[0217] As a result, game ball B flowing down through foul upper opening 570a toward lower wall portion 573c comes into contact with foul ball earth metal plate 576, and is guided to the right with the static electricity removed. At this time, because support piece 576a is loosely fitted into rear support opening 572h and front support opening 573g, contact of game ball B causes foul ball earth metal plate 576 to vibrate, and this vibration causes dust and dirt on foul ball earth metal plate 576 to be expelled to the outside through the gaps between rear support opening 572h and front support opening 573g. Note that this foul ball earth metal plate 576 also serves as reinforcement against falling game ball B.

[0218] When assembled to the pachinko machine 1, this foul unit 570A is attached to a foul unit attachment portion 501h provided at the top near the center in the left-right direction on the front surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame 4. In this state, the ball launching unit 550 is attached adjacent to the right side of the foul unit 570A.

[0219] As with the foul unit 570 of the first embodiment, the foul upper opening 570a of the foul unit 570A is located near the upper end of the base wall portion 501b and is located on the axis of the launch direction of the game ball B in the ball launching unit 550. In other words, the foul upper opening 570a is provided in a region between the opening portion at the lower end between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5 and the ball launching port 550b of the ball launching unit 550.

[0220] Meanwhile, the upper part of foul right opening 570b of foul unit 570A is in communication with ball launching port 550b of ball launching unit 550, and the lower part is in communication with ball discharge port 550c of ball launching unit 550. Therefore, foul top opening 570a and foul right opening 570b are provided in the area between the lower opening portion of game board 5 between outer rail 1001 and inner rail 1002 and ball launching port 550b of ball launching unit 550. As a result, game ball B launched from ball launching port 550b of ball launching unit 550 enters foul unit 570A through foul right opening 570b, and then passes through foul top opening 570a to enter between outer rail 1001 and inner rail 1002 of game board 5.

[0221] In the foul unit 570A of this embodiment, when the door frame 3 is opened forward relative to the main body frame 4, the foul shutter 571 slides forward due to the biasing force of the spring 575, as shown in FIG. 34(a), and the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571 protrudes between the front surface of the unit base 572 and the front plate 573a of the front cover 573, closing the foul upper opening 570a so that the game ball B cannot pass through. In other words, the foul shutter 571 is in the closed position. In this state, the rear wall portion 571c of the foul shutter 571 abuts against the rear surface of the main body portion 572f of the unit base 572, and it cannot slide forward any further.

[0222] When the foul shutter 571 is in the closed position and a game ball B is launched from the ball launching unit 550, the launched game ball B enters the foul unit 570A through the foul right opening 570b, abuts against the underside of the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571, and flows down through the foul unit 570A without being launched upward through the foul upper opening 570a. The game ball B flowing down through the foul unit 570A is guided by the lower wall portion 573c (foul ball earthing metal plate 576), the hanging wall portion 573d, the bottom wall portion 573e, etc., and is supplied to the circulating ball path unit 600 through the rear foul ball outlet 570c. This prevents the game ball B from leaking out of the foul unit 570A even if the door frame 3 is open.

[0223] When the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main body frame 4, the door opening switch 507 is turned OFF, and turning the door opening switch 507 OFF may stop the launch of the game ball B from the ball launching unit 550. Alternatively, instead of stopping the launch of the game ball B when the door frame 3 is opened, the main control board 1310 may temporarily suspend the game, and when the door frame 3 is closed, the game may be resumed.

[0224] Furthermore, when the main frame 4 is opened relative to the outer frame 2 (the frame open switch 508 is OFF), the door frame 3 is closed and the game ball B does not leak to the outside, so the launch of the game ball B from the ball launch unit 550 may not be stopped. Alternatively, when the main frame 4 is opened, the same processing as when the door frame 3 is opened may be performed.

[0225] When the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main body frame 4, the rear surface of the door frame 3 abuts against the front ends of the two forward protrusions 571b of the foul shutter 571, causing the foul shutter 571 to slide rearward against the biasing force of the spring 575 (see Figure 34(b)). In this state, the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571 is located rearward of the front surface of the unit base 572, and the foul upper opening 570a is open so that the game ball B can pass through. In other words, the foul shutter 571 is in the open position.

[0226] When the foul shutter 571 is in the open position and the game ball B is launched from the ball launching unit 550, the launched game ball B enters the foul unit 570A from the foul right opening 570b, passes through the foul upper opening 570a, and is launched upward toward the game board 5 (between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002). Then, the launched game ball B passes over the backflow prevention member 1007 provided at the upper end of the inner rail 1002, and is launched into the game area 5a.

[0227] In addition, game ball B that was launched from ball launching unit 550 but did not pass over backflow prevention member 1007 at the upper end of inner rail 1002 (game ball B that was not hit into the game area) flows down between outer rail 1001 and inner rail 1002, enters through foul upper opening 570a as a foul ball, and is collected by foul unit 570A. Game ball B that was collected through foul upper opening 570a flows down onto foul ball earth metal plate 576 placed on the upper surface of lower wall portion 573c, and static electricity is removed by foul ball earth metal plate 576. At this time, since foul ball earth metal plate 576 is loosely fitted, it vibrates when game ball B comes into contact with it, and the vibration causes dust and dirt on foul ball earth metal plate 576 to be ejected from rear support opening 572h and front support opening 573g to the outside of foul unit 570A.

[0228] The game ball B that flows down onto the foul ball earth metal plate 576 (lower wall portion 573c) is guided to the right by its inclination, flows down along the hanging wall portion 573d onto the bottom wall portion 573e, and is guided backward by the inclination of the bottom wall portion 573e and discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c into the circulating ball path unit 600.

[0229] In addition, the foul unit 570A receives, at the bottom of the foul right opening 570b, the game ball B discharged from the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550. The game ball B that enters the foul unit 570A from the bottom of the foul right opening 570b flows down onto the bottom wall 573e, is guided rearward by the inclination of the bottom wall 573e, and is discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c to the circulating ball path unit 600.

[0230] In this way, the foul unit 570A can collect game balls B that were launched from the ball launching unit 550 but did not land in the game area 5a of the game board 5 without leaking to the outside, and supply them to the circulating ball path unit 600. As will be described in detail later, the circulating ball path unit 600 detects game ball B supplied from the foul ball outlet 570c with the foul ball sensor 607. When game ball B is detected by this foul ball sensor 607, one ball is added to the player's possession number.

[0231] In addition, in the foul unit 570A, the unit base 572, front cover 573, rear cover 574, etc. are made of transparent synthetic resin, so the inside can be seen from the outside, making it easy to find any balls stuck inside.

[0232] [4-3b. Foul unit of the third embodiment] Next, a description will be given of a foul unit 570 of a third embodiment. The foul unit 570 of the third embodiment differs only in the opening and closing mechanism of the foul shutter 571, and other configurations are the same as those of the above-described foul unit 570. Although not shown, the foul unit 570 of the third embodiment is provided with an electric actuator such as a motor or solenoid for opening and closing the foul shutter 571.

[0233] In this embodiment, when the door open switch 507 is turned off by opening the door frame 3 relative to the main body frame 4, the foul shutter 571 is slid to the closed position by the electric actuator. As a result, even if the game ball B is launched from the ball launching unit 550 with the door frame 3 open, the game ball B will not fly out from the foul upper opening 570a.

[0234] Then, when the door frame 3 is closed and the door opening switch 507 is turned ON, the foul shutter 571 slides to the open position by the electric actuator, allowing the game ball B launched from the ball launching unit 550 to be shot through the foul upper opening 570a and into the game board 5 side.

[0235] It is also possible to have the fall shutter 571 slide to the closed position by the electric actuator even when the frame opening switch 508 is turned off by opening the main frame 4 relative to the outer frame 2. In this case, if the opening and closing process of the fall shutter 571 by the frame opening switch 508 is made the same as the opening and closing process by the door opening switch 507, the software configuration can be simplified.

[0236] In addition, an opening switch (not shown) can be provided that can detect the opening of both the door frame 3 and the main frame 4, and the fall shutter 571 can be opened and closed by an electric actuator, thereby simplifying the mechanism for opening and closing.

[0237] [4-4. Circulation Ball Pathway Unit] The circulating ball path unit 600 in the main body frame 4 will be described in detail mainly with reference to Figures 35 to 42. Figure 35(a) is a perspective view of the circulating ball path unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the circulating ball path unit in the main body frame as seen from the back. Figure 36 is an exploded perspective view of the circulating ball path unit as seen from the front, and Figure 37 is an exploded perspective view of the circulating ball path unit as seen from the back. Figure 38(a) is a plan view showing only the ball serpentine member and ball removal shutter in the circulating ball path unit, and (b) is a perspective view of the circulating ball path unit as seen from the front. Figure 39(a1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball removal shutter and ball serpentine member in the closed position together with the ball receiving tray in a side cross section, (a2) is an explanatory diagram showing only the ball removal shutter portion in (a1) from the bottom, (b1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball removal shutter and ball serpentine member in the open position together with the ball receiving tray in a side cross section, and (b2) is an explanatory diagram showing only the ball removal shutter portion in (b1) from the bottom.

[0238] Also, Figure 40(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a front cross section of the circulating ball path unit cut at the location of the out ball sensor, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a front cross section of the circulating ball path unit cut at the location of the safe ball sensor. Figure 41(a) is an oblique view from the front showing an enlarged view of the lower part of the main body frame together with the outer frame with the serpentine cover of the circulating ball path unit removed, and (b) is an oblique view from the rear showing an enlarged view of the lower part of the main body frame together with the outer frame with the serpentine cover of the circulating ball path unit removed. Figure 42 is a plan view showing the ball serpentine member, serpentine cover, ball removal shutter, and gauge section in the circulating ball path unit.

[0239] The circulating ball path unit 600 stores multiple game balls B discharged from the game board 5 and game balls B collected by the foul unit 570, and sends the stored game balls B to the ball launching unit 550 via the ball lifting unit 650. The circulating ball path unit 600 is attached to the circulating ball path unit mounting portion 501l provided on the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501.

[0240] The circulating ball path unit 600 has an out ball receiving port 600a that is long on the left and right and opens upward, a safe ball receiving port 600b that is located behind the out ball receiving port 600a and is long on the left and right and opens upward, a foul ball receiving port 600c that opens at the front, and a ball discharge port 600d that opens to the right near the bottom end. The out ball receiving port 600a and the safe ball receiving port 600b are formed so that their depths in the front-to-back direction are slightly wider than the diameter of the game ball B, and are formed so that multiple game balls B can pass through in the left-to-right direction. The foul ball receiving port 600c and the ball discharge port 600d are formed to be large enough to allow one game ball B to pass through each.

[0241] The out ball receiving port 600a receives a game ball B (out ball) received in an out port of the game board 5. The safe ball receiving port 600b receives a game ball B (safe ball) received in a winning port of the game board 5, such as a general winning port, a starting port, or a big winning port. The foul ball receiving port 600c receives a game ball B (foul ball) discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c of the foul unit 570. The ball discharge port 600d discharges the game ball B received in the out ball receiving port 600a, the safe ball receiving port 600b, and the foul ball receiving port 600c and stored therein, and hands it over to the ball lifting unit 650.

[0242] The circulating ball path unit 600 also has an out ball passage 601 through which game balls B received in the out ball receiving port 600a circulate, a safe ball passage 602 through which game balls B received in the safe ball receiving port 600b circulate, a foul ball passage 603 through which game balls B received in the foul ball receiving port 600c circulate, and a ball storage passage 604 which is connected to the downstream ends of the out ball passage 601, the safe ball passage 602, and the foul ball passage 603 and whose downstream end is the ball release port 600d.

[0243] Furthermore, the circulating ball path unit 600 has an out ball sensor 605 that detects each game ball B (out ball) circulating in the out ball path 601, a safe ball sensor 606 that detects each game ball B (safe ball) circulating in the safe ball path 602, and a foul ball sensor 607 that detects each game ball B (foul ball) circulating in the foul ball path 603. The safe ball sensor 606 is what is called an all-winning-port sensor in conventional pachinko machines, and can be used to determine whether a prize has been won illegally by comparing it with the total number of winning balls in all winning ports.

[0244] The circulating ball path unit 600 comprises a flat ball receiving front plate 610, a front ball receiving member 611 attached to the rear side of the front ball receiving plate 610, and a rear ball receiving member 612 attached to the rear side of the front ball receiving member 611. A ball storage passage 604 is provided below the front ball receiving plate 610, front ball receiving member 611, and rear ball receiving member 612.

[0245] The circulating ball path unit 600 also includes a ball serpentine member 613 that is provided below the ball receiving front plate 610, the ball receiving front member 611, and the ball receiving rear member 612 and is open upward, a serpentine cover 614 that covers the top of the ball serpentine member 613, a ball removal shutter 615 for discharging game balls B from the ball serpentine member 613, a magnet 616 attached to the ball removal shutter 615, a circulating ball path relay board 617 attached to the rear side of the ball receiving front member 611, and a gauge section 620 provided on the serpentine cover 614.

[0246] The ball receiving front plate 610 extends to the left and right, and is provided with a foul ball receiving opening 600c that penetrates from front to back near the bottom center in the left-right direction.

[0247] The front ball receiving member 611 cooperates with the front ball receiving plate 610 to form the out ball receiving opening 600a on its top surface. The front ball receiving member 611 is formed with an out ball passage 601 and a foul ball passage 603 that are open to the front, and the front ends of these are closed when the front ball receiving plate 610 is attached. The downstream end of the out ball passage 601 opens downward at the lower left end of the front ball receiving member 611. The opening at the downstream end of the out ball passage 601 is located in front of the opening at the downstream end of the safe ball passage 602. The downstream end of the foul ball passage 603 opens downward at a position on the front ball receiving member 611 below and to the right of the downstream end of the out ball passage 601.

[0248] The front ball receiving member 611 has an upper ball receiving plate portion 611a that slopes downward toward the right from the middle of the vertical wall that forms the left edge of the out ball receiving opening 600a to near the center in the left-right direction, a lower ball receiving plate portion 611b that slopes downward toward the left from a point on the vertical wall that forms the right edge of the out ball receiving opening 600a below the upper ball receiving plate portion 611a to near the bottom of the left edge of the out ball receiving opening 600a, and a crank portion 611c that extends in a crank shape toward the bottom left from the left end of the lower ball receiving plate portion 611b with a width that allows game balls B to pass through in a single file.

[0249] The height between the right end of the upper out ball receiving plate 611a and the lower out ball receiving plate 611b is about twice the diameter of the game ball B, so that the height of the lower out ball receiving plate 611b on the left side decreases as it moves leftward. This allows the game balls B received in the out ball receiving opening 600a to be aligned in a single row.

[0250] An out ball sensor 605 is attached to a vertically extending portion of the crank portion 611c directly below the downstream end of the out ball receiving plate portion 611b.

[0251] In the front ball receiving member 611, the out ball passage 601 is formed by the out ball receiving plate upper portion 611a, the out ball receiving plate lower portion 611b, the crank portion 611c, etc. Therefore, the out ball passage 601 is formed wide on the upstream side so that it can receive many game balls B, and the received game balls B are aligned in a row and transferred to the downstream ball storage passage 604 (ball serpentine member 613).

[0252] In addition, in the ball receiving front member 611, the foul ball passage 603 is located below the out ball receiving plate upper portion 611a and below the out ball receiving plate lower portion 611b, and slopes downward from the rear of the foul ball receiving opening 600c to a portion to the right of the left end of the out ball receiving plate lower portion 611b, and then extends downward a short distance. In the ball receiving front member 611, a foul ball sensor 607 is attached to the portion of the foul ball passage 603 extending to the left. This foul ball passage 603 is formed so that game balls b flow in a single file, and game ball B that flows through the foul ball passage 603 is delivered to a portion of the ball storage passage 604 (ball serpentine member 613) downstream of the portion where it is delivered from the out ball passage 601.

[0253] The front ball receiving member 611 has recesses 611d at the front edge of the upper out ball receiving plate portion 611a, the front edge of the lower out ball receiving plate portion 611b, and the front edge of the bottom wall extending to the left and right and forming the foul ball passage 603. These recesses 611d allow dust, dirt, etc. inside the out ball passage 601 and the foul ball passage 603 to be discharged to the outside.

[0254] In addition, a circulating ball path relay board 617 is attached to the rear surface of the ball receiving front member 611 at a location behind the foul ball passage 603.

[0255] The upper surface of the rear ball receiving member 612 cooperates with the front ball receiving member 611 to form the safe ball receiving opening 600b. The rear ball receiving member 612 is formed with the safe ball passage 602 open to the front, and the front side of the safe ball passage 602 is closed when the front ball receiving member 611 is attached. The downstream end of the safe ball passage 602 opens downward at the lower left end of the rear ball receiving member 612. The opening at the downstream end of the safe ball passage 602 is located behind the opening at the downstream end of the out ball passage 601. In other words, the opening at the downstream end of the out ball passage 601 and the opening at the downstream end of the safe ball passage 602 are lined up front to back.

[0256] The post-ball receiving member 612 has an upper safe ball receiving plate portion 612a that slopes downward toward the right from halfway up the vertical wall that forms the left edge of the safe ball receiving opening 600b to near the center in the left-right direction, a lower safe ball receiving plate portion 612b that slopes downward toward the left from a point on the vertical wall that forms the right edge of the safe ball receiving opening 600b below the upper safe ball receiving plate portion 612a to near the bottom of the left edge of the safe ball receiving opening 600b, and a crank portion 612c that extends in a crank shape toward the lower left from the left end of the lower safe ball receiving plate portion 612b with a width that allows game balls B to pass through in a single file.

[0257] The height between the right end of the upper safe ball receiving plate 612a and the lower safe ball receiving plate 612b is about twice the diameter of the game ball B, and the height of the lower safe ball receiving plate 612b on the left side is therefore formed to become lower as it goes leftward. This allows the game balls B received in the safe ball receiving opening 600b to be aligned in a single row.

[0258] A safe ball sensor 606 is attached to a vertically extending portion of the crank portion 612c directly below the downstream end of the safe ball receiving plate portion 612b.

[0259] In the post-ball receiving member 612, the safe ball passage 602 is formed by the upper safe ball receiving plate portion 612a, the lower safe ball receiving plate portion 612b, the crank portion 612c, etc. Therefore, the safe ball passage 602 is formed wide enough on the upstream side to receive many game balls B, and the received game balls B are aligned in a row and delivered to the most upstream portion of the downstream ball storage passage 604 (ball serpentine member 613).

[0260] The post-ball receiving member 612 is provided with recesses 612d at the front edge of the upper safe ball receiving plate portion 612a and the front edge of the lower safe ball receiving plate portion 612b, which are recessed to a size that does not interfere with the flow of the game ball B. These recesses 612d allow dust, dirt, etc. inside the safe ball passage 602 to be discharged to the outside.

[0261] The ball serpentine member 613 snakes back and forth and extends in the left-right direction so that its right end is lower, forming a ball storage passage 604 capable of storing a large number of game balls B. As shown in FIG. 38 etc., the ball serpentine member 613 comprises a first straight portion 613a which is inclined so as to become lower toward the front with its rear portion as the upstream end, a first turned-back portion 613b which is bent to the right from the downstream end (front end) of the first straight portion 613a and then bent so as to become lower further toward the rear, a second straight portion 613c which extends from the downstream end (rear end) of the first turned-back portion 613b to a position near the rear end of the first straight portion 613a so as to become lower toward the rear, and a second straight portion 613c which is bent to the right from the downstream end (rear end) of the second straight portion 613c and then bent to the right a second folded portion 613d bent so as to become lower toward the front; a third straight portion 613e extending from the downstream end (front end) of the second folded portion 613d to the same position as the front end of the second straight portion 613c so as to become lower toward the front; a third folded portion 613f bent from the downstream end (front end) of the third straight portion 613e to the right and then bent so as to become lower toward the rear; and a fourth straight portion 613g extending from the downstream end (rear end) of the third folded portion 613f to the same position as the rear end of the third straight portion 613e so as to become lower toward the rear. a fourth turning portion 613h that turns right from the downstream end (rear end) of the fourth straight portion 613g and then turns forward and lower; a fifth straight portion 613i that extends forward and lower from the downstream end (front end) of the fourth turning portion 613h to the same position as the front end of the fourth straight portion 613g; a first bending portion 613j that turns right from the downstream end (front end) of the fifth straight portion 613i; and a first lateral portion 613k that extends rightward and lower from the downstream end (right end) of the first bending portion 613j. a second bent portion 613l bent rearward from the downstream end (right end) of the first lateral portion 613k, a sixth straight portion 613m extending rearward from the downstream end (rear end) of the second bent portion 613l to a position near the downstream end of the fifth straight portion 613i, a third bent portion 613n bent rightward from the downstream end (rear end) of the sixth straight portion 613m, and a second lateral portion 613o extending rightward from the downstream end (right end) of the third bent portion 613n. An opening at the downstream end of the second lateral portion 613o forms a ball discharge port 600d that opens to the right.

[0262] In ball serpentine member 613 (ball storage passage 604), the opening at the downstream end of safe ball passage 602 is located above the rear end of first straight section 613a, and the opening at the downstream end of out ball passage 601 is located in front of that. In addition, the opening at the downstream end of foul ball passage 603 is located above the rear end of second straight section 613c.

[0263] The ball serpentine member 613 also has a ball outlet 613p that penetrates the first horizontal section 613k from top to bottom, a pair of rail sections 613q that extend forward and backward along the left and right end edges of the ball outlet 613p on the underside of the first horizontal section 613k and protrude downward, support pieces 613r that protrude towards each other from the lower ends of the pair of rail sections 613q, locking sections 613s that are provided on the side surfaces of the pair of rail sections 613q that face each other, and a plurality of slits 613t that are provided through the rolling surface (bottom surface) on which the game ball B rolls.

[0264] The ball removal opening 613p of the ball serpentine member 613 is closed by the ball removal shutter 615, as will be described in detail later. A pair of rail portions 613q extend rearward from the ball removal opening 613p. The pair of rail portions 613q support the ball removal shutter 615 so that it can slide back and forth. Two support pieces 613r prevent the ball removal shutter 615 from falling. Furthermore, the two support pieces 613r protrude from their respective rail portions 613q at the ball removal opening 613p. This ensures that the ball removal shutter 615 is adequately supported and prevents it from falling off, even if the weight of the game ball B acts on the ball removal shutter 615 through the ball removal opening 613p. The locking portion 613s locks onto the locking protrusion 615f of the ball removal shutter 615, thereby holding the ball removal shutter 615 in the open position.

[0265] The slits 613t of the ball serpentine member 613 penetrate downwards to a size that does not interfere with the flow of the game ball B, and can discharge debris and dust from the ball storage passage 604. The slits 613t provided at the turning and bending portions are provided at the outside of the curve.

[0266] The ball snaking member 613 is provided with a circulating ball shortage sensor 621 and a circulating ball excess sensor 622 that can detect the game balls B in circulation, as will be described in detail later.

[0267] This ball serpentine member 613 can form a ball storage passage 604 that snakes back and forth and extends left and right so as to become lower to the right. In addition, since the ball serpentine member 613 is provided with a plurality of turning portions (first turning portion 613b, second turning portion 613d, third turning portion 613f, fourth turning portion 613h) and a plurality of bending portions (first bending portion 613j, second bending portion 613l, third bending portion 613n), the circulation speed of the game ball B can be suppressed at those portions, and the impact on the inlet side of the ball lifting unit 650 can be alleviated.

[0268] The serpentine cover 614 is attached to the ball serpentine member 613 so as to cover the open upper end of the ball serpentine member 613. By attaching the serpentine cover 614 to the ball serpentine member 613, it is possible to prevent game balls B from leaking from the ball serpentine member 613 (ball storage passage 604) to the outside, and to prevent game balls B that do not fit into the ball storage passage 604 or illegal game balls B from being inserted from the outside.

[0269] The length of the portion of serpentine cover 614 that extends forward and backward at its left end is shorter toward the rear than first straight portion 613a of ball serpentine member 613. As a result, when serpentine cover 614 is attached to ball serpentine member 613, the rear portion of first straight portion 613a of ball serpentine member 613 is opened upward, allowing communication with out ball passage 601 and safe ball passage 602 through that portion.

[0270] The serpentine cover 614 also has an opening 614a that penetrates vertically above the rear end of the second straight portion 613c of the ball serpentine member 613. The foul ball passage 603 can communicate with the ball storage passage 604 through this opening 614a.

[0271] The ball removal shutter 615 is used to remove (discharge) game ball B (circulating game ball) from the circulating ball path unit 600, etc., and is attached to the underside of the ball serpentine member 613 so as to be slidable in the forward and backward directions. The ball removal shutter 615 has a flat door portion 615a that can close the ball removal opening 613p, a knob portion 615b that extends up, down, left, and right from the front edge of the door portion 615a, a pair of rod portions 615c that each extend rearward from the rear ends of the left and right ends of the door portion 615a, a connecting portion 615e that connects the pair of rod portions 615c at the rear of the door portion 615a to form an opening 615d that penetrates vertically, locking protrusions 615f that bulge from the outer surface of each of the pair of rod portions 615c between the connecting portion 615e and the rear end, hook portions 615g that extend outward from the rear ends of the pair of rod portions 615c, and a magnet support portion 615h that protrudes cylindrically from the underside of the door portion 615a.

[0272] Magnet support portion 615h of bulb-removed shutter 615 can support cylindrical magnet 616 by inserting the magnet 616 into the cylinder. Magnet support portion 615h is provided upstream of opening 615d. This magnet support portion 615h has a portion that protrudes into the cylinder at its lower end and is open to the rear. By inserting magnet 616 from the rear, the portion that protrudes downward of magnet 616 is positioned, preventing magnet 616 from falling off magnet support portion 615h.

[0273] When the ball removal shutter 615 is attached to the ball serpentine member 613, the pair of rail portions 613q of the ball serpentine member 613 are located on both the left and right outer sides of the door portion 615a and the pair of rod portions 615c, and the lower surface of the first horizontal portion 613k and the upper surfaces of the pair of support pieces 613r are located on both the top and bottom sides of the door portion 615a and the pair of rod portions 615c. This allows the ball removal shutter 615 to slide back and forth between a closed position and an open position, which will be described later.

[0274] As shown in Figures 39(a1) and 39(a2), the ball ejection shutter 615 is normally in a closed position, where the door portion 615a prevents a gaming ball B from passing through the ball ejection opening 613p. In this state, the rear surface of the knob portion 615b abuts against the front surface of the first horizontal portion 613k, and the pair of locking protrusions 615f abut against the rear end surfaces of the pair of rail portions 613q. This restricts the ball ejection shutter 615 from moving forward and backward and keeps it in the closed position. Therefore, when the ball ejection shutter 615 is in the closed position, a gaming ball B is not ejected from the ball ejection opening 613p into the ball receiving tray 720 below (see Figure 20).

[0275] Furthermore, when the ball removal shutter 615 is in the closed position, the magnet support portion 615h (magnet 616) is located below and near the upstream end of the ball removal opening 613p. As will be described in detail later, when an iron ball SB (see Figure 44) flows through the ball storage passage 604, the magnetic force of the magnet 616 causes the iron ball SB to be magnetically attracted to the door portion 615a, resulting in a ball jam, making it possible to detect the presence of the iron ball SB.

[0276] When the ball removal shutter 615 is in the closed position, gripping the knob portion 615b and pulling it forward causes the locking protrusion 615f on the rod portion 615c to strongly abut against the rear end surface of the rail portion 613q. At this time, the force acting on the locking protrusion 615f elastically deforms the rod portion 615c inward, causing the locking protrusion 615f to move toward the inner surface of the rail portion 613q, sliding the ball removal shutter 615 forward from the closed position. When the locking protrusion 615f reaches the locking portion 613s, the elastic force of the rod portion 615c locks the locking protrusion 615f to the locking portion 613s, and the hook portion 615g on the rear end of the rod portion 615c approaches the rear end surface of the rail portion 613q. This restricts the ball removal shutter 615 from sliding forward any further.

[0277] In this state, as shown in Figures 39(b1) and (b2), the opening 615d of the ball removal shutter 615 is aligned with the ball removal opening 613p, allowing the game ball B to pass through the ball removal opening 613p. In other words, the ball removal shutter 615 is in the open position. When the ball removal shutter 615 is in the open position, the game ball B upstream of the ball removal opening 613p in the ball storage passage 604 is discharged through the ball removal opening 613p and the opening 615d into the ball receiving tray 720 below. This makes it possible to remove the circulating game ball B to the outside.

[0278] When game balls B accumulate in ball receiving tray 720 and it becomes heavy, ball receiving tray 720 is placed on the bottom wall of tray insertion recess 501f, which is sloped so that the front end is lower, and the slope of the bottom wall causes ball receiving tray 720 to attempt to slide forward, but this is prevented by locking claw 501n. In this state, when locking claw 501n is released, ball receiving tray 720 automatically slides forward due to the weight of the stored game balls B, and ball receiving tray 720 can be easily removed from tray insertion recess 501f.

[0279] When the ball removal shutter 615 is assembled to the pachinko machine 1, the rear surface of the door frame 3 is close to the front surface of the knob portion 615b, and even if the ball removal shutter 615 tries to slide forward for some reason, the knob portion 615b abuts against the door frame 3, preventing it from sliding to the open position. This prevents circulating game balls B from being accidentally removed and lost, and prevents illegal game balls B from being mixed in through the ball removal opening 613p.

[0280] The magnet 616 is formed in a cylindrical shape that can be inserted into the magnet support portion 615h of the ball removal shutter 615. This magnet 616 is for attracting the iron ball SB. The magnet 616 is made of a material with strong magnetic force, such as a neodymium magnet.

[0281] Incidentally, in an amusement hall or the like, if the pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment coexists with conventional pachinko machines in which players can touch the game balls (iron balls SB), there is a risk that the iron balls SB may become mixed in when the game balls B are replenished or replaced during maintenance of the pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment.

[0282] In contrast to this, in this pachinko machine 1, when an iron ball SB gets mixed in, because magnet 616 is provided in ball removal shutter 615, when the iron ball SB flows through ball storage passage 604, the iron ball SB is magnetically attracted to the upper surface of door portion 615a of ball removal shutter 615 in the closed position by the magnetic force of magnet 616 and stops. At this time, because magnet 616 with strong magnetic force is used, even if a large number of game balls B accumulate upstream of the magnetically attracted iron ball SB and a force pressing it downstream acts, the iron ball SB will not move from the upper surface of door portion 615a.

[0283] Then, when the iron ball SB is magnetically attached to the door portion 615a (magnet 616) of the ball ejection shutter 615 in the ball storage passage 604 and the game balls B continue to be released from the ball release unit 550, the game balls B downstream of the magnetically attached iron ball SB are sequentially consumed, and the consumed (released) game balls B are sequentially supplied upstream of the iron ball SB. Therefore, the detection of game ball B is turned OFF in the low circulating ball sensor 621 and the lifting inlet sensor 653, which are provided downstream of the ball ejection shutter 615, and the detection of game ball B is turned ON in the excess circulating ball sensor 622, the out ball sensor 605, the safe ball sensor 606, the foul ball sensor 607, etc., which are provided upstream of the ball ejection shutter 615. This allows the occurrence of a ball jam between the low circulating ball sensor 621, etc. and the excess circulating ball sensor 622, etc. to be detected and reported. That is, it is possible to detect that the iron ball SB is magnetically attracted to the door portion 615a.

[0284] When the ball removal shutter 615 is slid forward from the closed position to the open position with the iron ball SB magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a of the ball removal shutter 615 by the magnetic force of the magnet 616, the front end of the iron ball SB magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a abuts against the front wall of the first horizontal portion 613k, preventing only the iron ball SB from moving forward. When the magnet 616 moves forward of the front wall of the first horizontal portion 613k, the magnetic force acting on the iron ball SB weakens, and the iron ball SB begins to roll downstream. At this time, the opening 615d of the ball removal shutter 615 is aligned with the ball removal opening 613p, allowing the game ball B to pass through the ball removal opening 613p. Therefore, the iron ball SB can be discharged from the ball removal opening 613p into the ball receiving tray 720 below, and can be removed from the ball storage passage 604.

[0285] The circulating ball path relay board 617 is attached to the rear of the front ball receiving member 611, behind the foul ball passage 603, and below the out ball receiving plate portion 611b of the rear ball receiving member 612. The circulating ball path relay board 617 relays the connections between the out ball sensor 605, safe ball sensor 606, foul ball sensor 607, low circulating ball sensor 621, and high circulating ball sensor 622 and the frame control board 740, which will be described later.

[0286] The gauge section 620 indicates an appropriate amount region of a predetermined length in the flow direction of the ball storage passage 604 in the ball serpentine member 613. Here, the appropriate amount is defined as a state in which the rear end of the row of game balls B stored in a line hangs over the gauge section 620. The gauge section 620 allows the appropriate amount of game balls B (circulating balls) to be visually confirmed, and is formed of a transparent sticker with a colored portion. This gauge section 620 is attached to the upper surface of the serpentine cover 614. More specifically, it is attached to a portion of the upper surface of the serpentine cover 614 upstream of the first horizontal section 613k of the ball serpentine member 613. This gauge section 620 has letters and symbols (arrows) indicating the appropriate range (appropriate amount region) of the storage amount of game balls B, as shown in FIG. 42.

[0287] The gauge section 620 is composed of three seals: an upper gauge seal 620a attached to the upper portion of the third straight section 613e and the third folded section 613f of the spherical serpentine member 613; a middle gauge seal 620b attached to the upper portion of the fourth straight section 613g; and a lower gauge seal 620c attached to the upper portion of the fifth straight section 613i and the first bent section 613j.

[0288] The upper gauge seal 620a has a line extending left and right near the center of the front-to-back direction of the third straight section 613e, an arrow on the downstream side (front side) of the line with the tip of the arrow portion pointing toward the line and the rod portion extending along the passage to the downstream end of the third turning section 613f, and the words "Up to here" written (displayed) on the right side downstream of the arrow portion of the arrow.

[0289] The middle gauge seal 620b has a rod-shaped portion extending rearward (downstream) to continue from the rod portion of the arrow on the upper gauge seal 620a, and the words "appropriate range" are written near the upstream end of the rod-shaped portion.

[0290] The lower gauge seal 620c has a line extending back and forth at the downstream end of the first bend 613j, an arrow on the upstream side of the line with the tip of the arrow pointing toward the line and a rod portion extending along the passage to the upstream end of the fifth straight section 613i, and the words "From here" written (displayed) on the right side upstream of the arrow portion of the arrow.

[0291] When the gauge section 620 is viewed during maintenance, etc., if no game balls B can be seen in the area of ​​the gauge section 620 (appropriate amount area), that is, the area ranging from the line of the upper gauge seal 620a to the line of the lower gauge section 620c, it can be determined that there are fewer game balls B than the appropriate amount. To replenish game balls B, insert game balls B into the out port 1008 of the game board 5, or the out ball receiving port 600a or safe ball receiving port 600b until the appropriate amount is reached.

[0292] On the other hand, when looking at the gauge section 620, if game balls B can be seen in all parts of the gauge section 620, that is, if the rear end of the row of game balls B is upstream of the "up to here" part (the line of the upper gauge seal 620a), it can be determined that there are an excess of game balls B, that is, more than the appropriate amount of game balls. If there are an excess of game balls B, the ball removal shutter 615 can be pulled forward and slid to the open position, thereby discharging the game balls B in the ball storage passage 604 from the ball removal opening 613p to make the amount appropriate.

[0293] In this way, according to the gauge section 620 of this embodiment, it is possible to determine at a glance whether the stored game balls B are appropriate (the right amount), and it is also possible to make it easier to keep the amount of stored game balls B at the right amount.

[0294] In the above embodiment, the gauge portion 620 is formed by attaching a sticker to the serpentine cover 614, but the appropriate amount region may be colored a different color from the other portions, or the portions of the gauge portion 620 may be molded in different colors, or the gauge portion 620 may have colored lines drawn at the downstream and upstream ends of the appropriate amount region.

[0295] In addition, in the above embodiment, the gauge section 620 is shown to be located upstream of the ball removal shutter 615, but this is not limited to this, and as shown by the dotted line in Figure 62, the downstream end of the gauge section 620 may be located downstream of the ball removal shutter 615 and near the upstream of the low circulating ball sensor 621.

[0296] In this embodiment, the ball circulation path unit 600 is made of a transparent synthetic resin, including the ball receiving front plate 610, the ball receiving front member 611, the ball receiving rear member 612, the ball serpentine member 613, and the serpentine cover 614. This allows the internal state to be visually confirmed from the outside.

[0297] Circulating ball path unit 600 is mounted with out ball sensor 605 and foul ball sensor 607 sandwiched between ball receiving front plate 610 and front ball receiving member 611, and safe ball sensor 606 sandwiched between front ball receiving member 611 and rear ball receiving member 612. Out ball sensor 605 and safe ball sensor 606 are arranged side by side in the front and back.

[0298] The out ball sensor 605, safe ball sensor 606, foul ball sensor 607, insufficient circulating ball sensor 621, and excessive circulating ball sensor 622 detect game ball B in a non-contact manner, for example, by detecting changes in induced current.

[0299] The circulating ball path unit 600 is attached from the rear to the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501. When the circulating ball path unit 600 is assembled to the main body frame 4, the out ball receiving port 600a and the safe ball receiving port 600b are attached at the same height as the upper surface of the base wall portion 501b and in contact with the rear edge of the upper surface of the base wall portion 501b.

[0300] In addition, when the circulation ball path unit 600 is assembled to the main body frame 4, the ball sending unit 700 is attached so as to be positioned between it and the base wall portion 501b.

[0301] Furthermore, when the circulation ball path unit 600 is assembled to the main body frame 4, the portions of the ball serpentine member 613 and the serpentine cover 614 forward of the center in the front-to-rear direction penetrate the ball storage path insertion port 501g provided in the base wall portion 501b from the rear and protrude forward. As a result, when the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main body frame 4, the game ball B in the ball serpentine member 613 (ball storage path 604) can be seen from the front (outside).

[0302] Furthermore, when the circulation ball path unit 600 is assembled to the main body frame 4 and the frame base unit 730 is opened to the rear, the interior of the out ball path 601, the safe ball path 602, the foul ball path 603, and the area behind the base wall 501b in the ball storage path 604 can be seen from behind. This means that when a ball jam occurs, the inside of the out ball path 601 can be checked by opening the frame base unit 730, making it easy to identify the location of the jam.

[0303] Furthermore, when the circulating ball path unit 600 is assembled to the main body frame 4, the second horizontal section 613o of the ball serpentine member 613 is located behind the base wall 501b and below the ball launching unit 550. In other words, the circulating ball path unit 600 has a ball discharge port 600d that opens to the right behind the base wall 501b and at a lower position than the ball launching unit 550. This ball discharge port 600d is connected to the ball lifting inlet passage 651 of the ball lifting unit 650, which will be described later.

[0304] The circulating ball path unit 600 of this embodiment has a circulating ball shortage sensor 621 for detecting when there are too few stored game balls B (circulating balls), and a circulating ball excess sensor 622 for detecting when there are too many stored game balls B (circulating balls) (see Figure 62).

[0305] The low circulating ball sensor 621 is located downstream of the gauge section 620 in the ball storage passage 604. The low circulating ball sensor 621 may also be located upstream of the ball removal shutter 615. The excess circulating ball sensor 622 is located near the upstream end of the gauge section 620 in the ball storage passage 604. The low circulating ball sensor 621 and the excess circulating ball sensor 622 are connected to the frame control board 740 via the circulating ball path relay board 617.

[0306] Although details will be described later, when there is an appropriate amount of game ball B, the under-circulating ball sensor 621 detects game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or more, and the excess circulating ball sensor 622 does not detect game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or more. When there are too few game balls B, neither the under-circulating ball sensor 621 nor the excess circulating ball sensor 622 detects game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or more. On the other hand, when there are too many game balls B, both the under-circulating ball sensor 621 and the excess circulating ball sensor 622 detect game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or more. Furthermore, if the insufficient circulating ball sensor 621 does not detect game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or more, and the excessive circulating ball sensor 622 detects game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or more, a ball jam including the inclusion of iron ball SB has occurred between the insufficient circulating ball sensor 621 and the excessive circulating ball sensor 622.

[0307] Here, we will explain the reason for the predetermined time k of 80 ms as the threshold for detecting the presence or absence of game ball B. For example, along the circulation path R, the positions of sensors such as the circulating ball excess sensor 622, the circulating ball shortage sensor 621, the lifting inlet sensor 653, the lifting outlet sensor 654, and the launch front sensor 704 are located at the stopping positions of game ball B when the ball lifting unit 650 and the ball sending unit 700 are stopped. This position is where the next game ball B is located each time a game ball B is sent. Therefore, game ball B is detected here by determining whether it has been detected for 80 ms or more. This is because it takes about 50 ms to detect game ball B rolling on a slope with an incline of about 5 degrees, so a margin is added to ensure that game ball B is present at that position and the detection time is 80 ms to ensure reliable detection. In other words, this value of 80 ms is a practical value obtained through experiments.

[0308] In this way, by combining the detection states of game ball B by the low circulating ball sensor 621 and the high circulating ball sensor 622, the frame control board 740 can automatically determine and report the amount of game ball B, ball clogging, etc.

[0309] In the above embodiment, a circulating ball shortage sensor 621 and a circulating ball excess sensor 622 are provided, but the circulating ball shortage sensor 621 may be replaced with the lifting inlet sensor described below, and the circulating ball excess sensor 622 may be replaced with the out ball sensor 605, the safe ball sensor 606, and the foul ball sensor 607.

[0310] [4-4a. Ball jamming elimination mechanism] Next, the circulating ball path unit 600 may be provided with a ball jam elimination mechanism 630 as shown in Figure 43 to make it easier to eliminate ball jams in the out ball sensor 605 and the safe ball sensor 606. Figure 43(a) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged view of the main part of the rear cross section cut at the out ball sensor with the cover member of the ball elimination mechanism in the circulating ball path unit attached to the main body frame closed, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the cover member in (a) in an open state.

[0311] The ball jamming elimination mechanism 630 is configured by using an openable and closable cover member 631 as the wall portion above the out ball sensor 605 and the safe ball sensor 606 in the pre-ball receiving member 611 and the post-ball receiving member 612 of the circulating ball path unit 600. As shown in Figure 43(a), the cover member 631 is normally closed. The cover member 631 is held closed by a locking claw (not shown).

[0312] This ball jamming elimination mechanism 630 is used to eliminate ball jams that occur in the out ball passage 601 or the safe ball passage 602, or when a fraudulent ball B' with a larger diameter than the game ball B is inserted as a fraudulent act, blocking the out ball sensor 605, etc.

[0313] For example, if a rogue ball B' with a larger diameter than game ball B is inserted through outlet 1008 of game board 5 or the like and blocks out ball sensor 605, opening main frame 4 relative to outer frame 2 and then opening frame base unit 730 will reveal the rear of circulating ball path unit 600. In this embodiment, a gap large enough to insert a finger is formed between the portion of circulating ball path unit 600 where ball jam elimination mechanism 630 is provided and box main body 504b of main frame speaker box 504. Therefore, by releasing the locking claw of lid member 631 through the gap and rotating lid member 631 so that the lower end of lid member 631 moves upward, lid member 631 can be opened (see FIG. 43(b)).

[0314] By opening the cover member 631, a finger can be inserted into the area above the out ball sensor 605 in the out ball passage 601, making it possible to easily remove the illegal ball B' blocking the out ball sensor 605. In this way, the illegal ball B' can be easily removed without having to remove the circulation ball passage unit 600, which is screwed in place using a screwdriver.

[0315] Even if the safe ball sensor 606 is blocked by the illegal ball B', the illegal ball B' can be removed by the same procedure as above.

[0316] In the above, ball jamming elimination mechanism 630 is shown as having an openable / closable lid member 631, but, for example, rear ball receiving member 612 and front ball receiving member 611 may be provided with elastic claws that can be engaged to allow rear ball receiving member 612 and front ball receiving member 611 to be attached and detached rearward. In this case, frame base unit 730 is normally located behind ball circulation path unit 600, and even if the elastic claws are loosened, rear ball receiving member 612 and front ball receiving member 611 will not come off rearward. If the out ball sensor 605 is blocked by an illegal ball B', opening the main frame 4 relative to the outer frame 2 and then opening the frame base unit 730 will reveal the rear of the circulation ball path unit 600.By releasing the engagement of the elastic claws that attach the post-ball receiving member 612 and the front-ball receiving member 611, the post-ball receiving member 612 and the front-ball receiving member 611 can be easily removed, and the illegal ball B' that is blocking the out ball sensor 605 can be easily removed.

[0317] Alternatively, the ball jamming elimination mechanism 630 may be configured so that the portion above the out ball sensor 605 in the front ball receiving member 611, which is sandwiched between the front ball receiving plate 610 and the rear ball receiving member 612, can be slid upward and removed. In this case, under normal conditions, the game board 5 is positioned above the circulating ball path unit 600, and gravity prevents the slidable portion of the front ball receiving member 611 from detaching upward. If the out ball sensor 605 is blocked by a stray ball B', opening the door frame 3 relative to the main body frame 4 and removing the game board 5 from the main body frame 4 reveals the upper part of the circulating ball path unit 600. By sliding the slidable portion of the front ball receiving member 611 upward and removing it, the stray ball B' blocking the out ball sensor 605 can be easily removed.

[0318] [4-4b. Second embodiment of the bulb shutter] Next, in the circulating ball path unit 600, as shown in FIG. 44, a magnet 616 may be attached to the ball removal shutter 615 in a portion forward of the opening 615d. FIG. 44(a) is an explanatory side cross-sectional view of the ball serpentine member and ball removal tray with the ball removal shutter in the closed position, with a magnetically attached iron ball; FIG. 44(b) is an explanatory side cross-sectional view of the ball serpentine member and ball removal tray with the ball removal shutter in the open position, with a magnetically attached iron ball; and FIG. 44(c) is an explanatory side cross-sectional view of the ball serpentine member and ball removal tray with the ball removal shutter slid from the state shown in FIG. 44(b) to the closed position, with a magnetically attached iron ball on the underside. In this ball removal shutter 615, the rear end of the outer periphery of the magnet 616 supported by the magnet support portion 615h is aligned with the front inner periphery of the opening 615d.

[0319] According to the ball-removal shutter 615 of the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. 44(a), when the ball-removal shutter 615 is slid forward from the closed position to the open position while the iron ball SB is magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a of the ball-removal shutter 615 by the magnetic force of the magnet 616, the front end of the iron ball SB magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a abuts against the front wall of the first horizontal portion 613k, preventing only the iron ball SB from moving forward. Then, when the ball-removal shutter 615 slides forward further, the door portion 615a that supported the lower end of the iron ball SB disappears, and the iron ball SB moves downward into the opening 615d due to gravity. At this time, the rear end of the outer circumferential surface of the magnet 616 coincides with the inner surface of the front side of the opening 615d, so the iron ball SB becomes magnetically attached to the outer circumferential surface of the magnet 616 (see FIG. 44(b)).

[0320] Furthermore, the iron ball SB tries to move from the outer circumferential surface of the magnet 616 toward the pole with the stronger magnetic force (here, the bottom end surface), but when the ball removal shutter 615 is in the open position, the top end surface of the ball receiving tray 720 is located below the magnet 616, and the iron ball SB does not move below the magnet 616. Therefore, when the ball removal shutter 615 is slid to the open position, the iron ball B is located in a position overlapping with the opening 615d, and the game ball B upstream of the iron ball SB is not discharged downward through the opening 615d, i.e., the ball removal port 613p.

[0321] After sliding the ball removal shutter 615 to the open position, when the ball removal shutter 615 is slid to the rear closed position, the door portion 615a prevents the game ball B upstream of the iron ball SB from passing through the ball removal opening 613p, while the iron ball SB that was magnetized on the outer circumferential surface of the magnet 616 moves to the underside of the magnet 616, and the iron ball SB becomes magnetically attached to the underside of the magnet 616 (see Figure 44(c)). After that, the ball receiving tray 720 is pulled out and removed from the tray insertion recess 501f, and the iron ball SB that is magnetically attached to the underside of the magnet 616 is removed.

[0322] In this way, when the iron ball SB is magnetically attached to the door portion 615a of the ball removal shutter 615 by the magnet 616, by sliding the ball removal shutter 615 back and forth, only the magnetically attached iron ball SB can be removed from the ball storage passage 604 to the outside.

[0323] [4-5. Ball lifting unit] The ball lifting unit 650 in the main body frame 4 will be described in detail mainly with reference to Figures 45 to 54. Figure 45(a) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main body frame as seen from the front left, (b) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main body frame as seen from the front right, and (c) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main body frame as seen from the rear. Figure 46 is an exploded perspective view of the ball lifting unit with the ball polishing motor base and cassette pressing piece open and the ball polishing cassette removed. Figure 47(a) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit without the ball polishing cassette installed, (b) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the ball polishing motor base and cassette pressing piece open and the ball polishing cassette installed, and (c) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the ball polishing cassette installed.

[0324] Also, Figure 48(a) is an explanatory diagram showing the state in which the door frame is closed when the ball grinding cassette is not completely locked, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the state in which the door frame moves in the closing direction from the state in (a) and the protrusion of the door frame abuts the tip of the ball grinding motor base, and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing the state in which the door frame is closed from the state in (b) and the ball grinding cut is locked. Figure 49 is an enlarged front view showing the main parts with the ball grinding cassette removed from the ball lifting unit attached to the main frame. Figure 50(a) is a right side view showing the main parts of the ball grinding mechanism and ball lifting mechanism in the ball lifting unit, (b) is a rear view showing the main parts of the ball lifting mechanism, and (c) is a plan view of the main parts of the ball lifting mechanism as seen from arrow A in (b).

[0325] Furthermore, Figure 51 is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the lifting spiral shaft and the polishing cloth in the ball lifting unit. Figure 52(a) is an enlarged view of the lifting inlet sensor and the lifting outlet sensor, and is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit seen from the rear left, and (b) is a plan cross-sectional view of the ball lifting unit cut at the lifting inlet sensor. Figure 53 is an explanatory diagram showing the front and rear parts of the ball sensor consisting of a photosensor in the ball passage. Figure 54(a) is a perspective view of the ball polishing cassette of the ball lifting unit seen from the front left, (b) is a perspective view of the ball polishing cassette seen from the rear right, and (c) is a right side cross-sectional view of the ball polishing cassette cut at the center in the left-right direction.

[0326] The ball lifting unit 650 is for sending the game ball B, which has been discharged from the game board 5 or the foul unit 570 and circulated through the circulating ball path unit 600, to the ball launching unit 550 via the ball sending unit 700. The ball lifting unit 650 is attached to the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j provided on the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501.

[0327] The ball lifting unit 650 is equipped with a ball lifting mechanism 660 for lifting game balls B, a ball lifting inlet passage 651 that supplies game balls B sent from the circulating ball path unit 600 to the ball lifting mechanism 660, a ball lifting outlet passage 652 that supplies game balls B lifted by the ball lifting mechanism 660 to the ball sending unit 700, a lifting inlet sensor 653 that is provided in the ball lifting inlet passage 651 and detects game balls B in circulation, and a lifting outlet sensor 654 that is provided in the ball lifting outlet passage 652 and detects game balls B in circulation.

[0328] The ball lifting unit 650 also includes a ball lifting inlet earth metal plate 655 that is arranged so as to be able to come into contact with the game ball B in the ball lifting inlet passage 651, a ball lifting outlet earth metal plate 656 that is arranged so as to be able to come into contact with the game ball B in the ball lifting outlet passage 652, a ball lifting relay board 657 that relays the connection with the frame control board 740, and a ball polishing mechanism 680 for polishing the game ball B that has been lifted by the ball lifting mechanism 660.

[0329] First, the ball lifting mechanism 660 of the ball lifting unit 650 comprises a lifting spiral shaft 661 that extends vertically and has a spiral lifting groove 661a on its outer circumferential surface, a shaft gear 662 attached to the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661, a motor gear 663 that meshes with the shaft gear 662 and is rotatable around an axis perpendicular to the axis of the lifting spiral shaft 661, a lifting motor 664 that has the motor gear 663 attached to its rotating shaft and rotates the lifting spiral shaft 661, a lifting motor index 665 that extends flange-like from the lower end of the shaft gear 662 and has a detection portion 665a that is cut out in part of the circumferential direction, and a lifting motor index sensor 666 that can detect the detection portion 665a of the lifting motor index 665.

[0330] The ball lifting mechanism 660 also includes a motor base metal plate 667 to which a lifting motor 664 is attached and which rotatably supports the motor gear 663, a lifting mechanism base 668 attached to one side of the motor base metal plate 667 and which rotatably supports the lifting spiral shaft 661, and a lifting mechanism cover 669 attached to the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j of the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501.

[0331] The lifting spiral shaft 661 has a spiral lifting groove 661a formed on its outer periphery, deep enough to accommodate game balls B in a single row. The lifting groove 661a is formed so that the lifting spiral shaft 661 can lift game balls B by rotating clockwise when viewed from above in its axial direction (see FIG. 50(c)). The spiral pitch of the lifting groove 661a is longer near the upper and lower ends than between them. The lifting spiral shaft 661 is rotatably supported by a lifting mechanism base 668 and a lifting mechanism cover 669. The rotation axis of this lifting spiral shaft 661 is inclined relative to the vertical so that the upper end is located to the right of the lower end when viewed from the front. This allows the upper end of the lifting spiral shaft 661 to be positioned farther to the right from the ball sending unit, thereby relatively lengthening the length of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 and increasing the storage capacity of game balls B. In this embodiment, the rotation axis of the lifting spiral shaft 661 is inclined at an angle of 12 degrees to the vertical.

[0332] Next, the lifting spiral shaft 661 will be described in detail. As shown in Figure 51, the lifting spiral shaft 661 has a small diameter portion 661b having a bottom diameter D1 which is the diameter (bottom diameter) of the bottom of the lifting groove 661a, and a large diameter portion 661c having a bottom diameter D2 larger than that of the small diameter portion 661b, with the large diameter portion 661c being located in an axially intermediate portion that overlaps with the polishing cloth 682 of the ball polishing cassette 681. The diameter of the lifting spiral shaft 661 is configured to gradually change between the small diameter portion 661b and the large diameter portion 661c.

[0333] Furthermore, the spiral pitch P2 in the large diameter portion 661c of the lifting spiral shaft 661 is smaller than the spiral pitch P1 in the small diameter portion 661b. The smaller the spiral pitch, the slower the lifting speed of the game ball B.

[0334] The lifting spiral shaft 661 is disposed so that a gap S1 smaller than the diameter D of the game ball B is formed between the large diameter portion 661c and the surface of the polishing cloth 682 of the ball polishing cassette 681.

[0335] Incidentally, in the lifting spiral shaft 661, if the diameter of the bottom of the lifting groove 661a is configured to be the bottom diameter D1 of the small diameter portion 661b over the entire length, the bottom diameter D1 is smaller than the bottom diameter D2 of the large diameter portion 661c, and therefore the gap between the bottom of the lifting groove 661a and the polishing cloth 682 becomes large. Therefore, even if the lifting spiral shaft 661 is rotated to polish the game ball B lifted by the lifting groove 661a with the polishing cloth 682, the gap between the polishing cloth 682 becomes large, causing the game ball B to escape to the bottom side of the lifting groove 661a, and the contact area of ​​the game ball B with the polishing cloth 682 becomes small, resulting in a decrease in polishing efficiency.

[0336] In contrast, in this embodiment, at the axially intermediate portion of the lifting spiral shaft 661 where it overlaps with the polishing cloth 682 of the ball polishing cassette 681, the bottom diameter D2 of the lifting groove 661a is set to the large diameter portion 661c, which is larger than the bottom diameter D1 of the small diameter portion 661b. Therefore, the gap from the bottom of the lifting groove 661a to the surface of the polishing cloth 682 at the large diameter portion 661c can be made smaller than the gap at the small diameter portion 661b. Also, in this embodiment, the gap S1 from the large diameter portion 661c to the polishing cloth 682 is made smaller than the diameter D of the game ball B. For these reasons, at the large diameter portion 661c, the game ball B cannot escape to the bottom side of the lifting groove 661a, and the bottom of the lifting groove 661a can press the game ball B against the polishing cloth 682, which can dent the polishing cloth 682 together with the ball polishing sponge 683 provided on the back side of the polishing cloth 682. This allows the contact area of ​​the polishing cloth 682 with the game ball B to be increased, and the polishing efficiency of the game ball B to be improved.

[0337] Furthermore, in the lifting spiral shaft 661 of this embodiment, the spiral pitch P2 in the large diameter portion 661c that overlaps with the polishing cloth 682 is smaller than the spiral pitch P1 in the small diameter portion 661b, so that the lifting speed of the game ball B in the large diameter portion 661c can be slowed. This allows the game ball B to be in contact with the polishing cloth 682 for a longer period of time, so that the game ball B can be polished more thoroughly.

[0338] Furthermore, the lifting spiral shaft 661 of this embodiment is designed so that its diameter gradually changes between the small diameter portion 661b and the large diameter portion 661c, thereby making it possible to avoid a sudden change in the load applied when lifting the game ball B, and reducing the load during the lifting operation.

[0339] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 50(b), the lifting spiral shaft 661 of this embodiment is inclined at an angle of 12 degrees from the vertical, so that it intersects the polishing cloth 682 diagonally, allowing the entire width of the polishing cloth 682 to be used to polish the game ball B, and the polishing cloth 682 can be used efficiently for polishing.

[0340] Although the lifting spiral shaft 661 has been shown as having a large diameter portion 661c in the middle of the axial direction, this is not limited to this, and it is also possible to have a small diameter portion 661b only at the lower end and a large diameter portion 661c above that all the way to the upper end.

[0341] The shaft gear 662 is a spur gear (worm wheel gear). The motor gear 663 is a worm gear. As a result, even if the lifting spiral shaft 661 attempts to rotate due to the load acting when a large number of game balls B are accommodated in the lifting groove 661a of the lifting spiral shaft 661, the rotation can be prevented by the motor gear 663, which is a worm gear meshed with the shaft gear 662. In addition, because the motor gear 663 is a worm gear, even if the lifting spiral shaft 661 attempts to rotate due to the inertia generated when the drive of the lifting motor 664 stops, the rotation can be immediately stopped, thereby preventing the game balls B from overshooting.

[0342] In this embodiment, the shaft gear 662 is made of POM (polyacetal resin), and the motor gear 663 is made of fiber-reinforced plastic containing polyamide carbon fiber. This makes the motor gear 663, which is a worm gear, less likely to chip. The motor gear 663 may also be made of metal.

[0343] The lifting motor 664 is a DC motor. The lifting motor index 665 is integrally molded with the shaft gear 662 in a flange-like shape. The detection portion 665a of the lifting motor index 665 is provided so that a 45-degree angle range is cut out around the entire circumference. The lifting motor index sensor 666 is a photosensor. The lifting motor index sensor 666 receives light at the detection portion 665a of the lifting motor index 665, and blocks light and is in a non-light-receiving state at portions other than the detection portion 665a. This makes it possible to detect the rotational position of the lifting spiral shaft 661 via the lifting motor index 665.

[0344] As will be described in detail later, the lifting spiral shaft 661 rotates once when the rotation shaft of the lifting motor 664 rotates 32 times via the shaft gear 662 and the motor gear 663. The lifting motor index sensor 666 then reaches the detection unit 665a and enters the light-receiving state 28 times after the lifting motor 664 rotates. After entering the light-receiving state, the lifting motor 664 rotates another four times after entering the light-receiving state, and moves away from the detection unit 665a and enters the non-light-receiving state. In this embodiment, the origin is the position where the lifting motor 664 rotates two times after reaching the detection unit 665a and entering the light-receiving state. In other words, the center of the detection unit 665a is the origin of rotation of the lifting spiral shaft 661.

[0345] The motor base metal plate 667 has a lifting motor 664 attached to its left end when viewed from the front, and rotatably supports the right end of the motor gear 663 at its right end. The motor base metal plate 667 has an upper end attached to a lifting mechanism base 668 and a lower end attached to a lifting mechanism cover 669.

[0346] The lifting mechanism base 668 cooperates with the lifting mechanism cover 669 to house the lifting spiral shaft 661 and rotatably support the lifting spiral shaft 661. The lifting mechanism base 668 has a ball polishing opening 668a that is large enough to prevent the game ball B from passing through and penetrates from front to back so that the lifting spiral shaft 661 faces forward, and a cassette mounting recess 668b that is recessed from the front to the rear and has the ball polishing opening 668a opening at the bottom so that the rear end of the ball polishing cassette 681 can be housed therein. The ball polishing opening 668a extends vertically with a width narrower than the diameter of the game ball B. This ball polishing opening 668a is arranged so that a portion of the game ball B lifted by the lifting spiral shaft 661 protrudes forward, and the game ball B is polished when the portion of the game ball B that protrudes forward beyond the ball polishing opening 668a comes into contact with the polishing cloth 682 of the ball polishing cassette 681 in the ball polishing mechanism 680 attached (mounted) to the cassette mounting recess 668b.

[0347] The lifting mechanism base 668 is provided with a downstream portion of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 near the lower end and to the right of the lifting spiral shaft 661 when viewed from the front. The portion of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 provided on the lifting mechanism base 668 opens toward the rear at the upstream end and slopes downward toward the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661 on the left. In addition, a lifting inlet sensor 653 is attached to the lifting mechanism base 668 at a position to the right of the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661 when viewed from the front.

[0348] Additionally, the lifting mechanism base 668 has an upstream portion of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 near its upper end. The portion of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 provided on the lifting mechanism base 668 slopes downward from the front of the upper end of the lifting spiral shaft 661 to the left as viewed from the front, then slopes downward toward the rear, with its downstream end opening toward the rear. The ball lifting outlet passage 652 slopes downward toward the left from the portion of the lifting mechanism base 668 that opens toward the rear, then slopes downward toward the front, and opens toward the front at its front end. This portion of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 is formed by the lifting mechanism base 668 and the lifting mechanism cover 669 working together.

[0349] Further, a grinding motor base 686 to which a grinding motor 688 of the grinding mechanism 680 is attached is attached to the lifting mechanism base 668 so as to be rotatable about an axis extending vertically.

[0350] The lifting mechanism cover 669 cooperates with the lifting mechanism base 668 to house the lifting spiral shaft 661 and rotatably supports the lifting spiral shaft 661, and is attached from the rear to the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501. A ball lifting relay board 657 is attached to the rear surface of the lifting mechanism cover 669.

[0351] The lifting mechanism cover 669 has a portion upstream of the portion of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 that is provided on the lifting mechanism base 668. The portion of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 that is provided on the lifting mechanism base 668 has a downstream end that opens forward at a position on the right side when viewed from the front near the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661, extends rearward, bends to the left, passes behind the lifting spiral shaft 661, and then extends diagonally forward, with its upstream end opening to the left. A ball lifting inlet earth metal plate 655 is attached to this lifting mechanism cover 669 behind the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661 so as to be able to come into contact with the game ball B flowing through the ball lifting inlet passage 651.

[0352] Furthermore, lifting mechanism cover 669 has a portion downstream of the portion provided in lifting mechanism base 668 in ball lifting outlet passage 652. The portion provided in lifting mechanism cover 669 in ball lifting outlet passage 652 has an upstream end that opens rearward, bends leftward when viewed from the front, extends leftward to the left end, and then bends forward, with the downstream end at the front end of lifting mechanism cover 669 opening forward.

[0353] Also, a lifting outlet sensor 654 is attached to the lifting mechanism cover 669 near the left end of the portion extending to the left in a front view of the ball lifting outlet passage 652. Furthermore, a ball lifting outlet earth metal plate 656 is attached to the lifting mechanism cover 669 at a portion upstream of the lifting outlet sensor 654 in the portion extending to the left in the ball lifting outlet passage 652, and is arranged so as to be able to come into contact with the game ball B flowing through the ball lifting outlet passage 652.

[0354] Furthermore, lifting mechanism cover 669 has, from a position on the right end near the bottom center in the vertical direction, a support protrusion 669a that protrudes forward beyond lifting mechanism base 668, and a locking hole 669b that penetrates the front surface of support protrusion 669a and locks with Nylatch 694. When ball lifting unit 650 is attached to ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j of main body frame 4 from the rear, support protrusion 669a protrudes toward the front surface of base wall portion 501b through opening 501o that penetrates base wall portion 501b.

[0355] Next, the ball lifting inlet passage 651 of the ball lifting unit 650 has an opening (inlet) at its upstream end facing left near the bottom of the left side of the ball lifting unit 650. This opening is arranged to face the ball discharge port 600d of the circulating ball path unit 600 when assembled to the main body frame 4. The ball lifting inlet passage 651 slopes downward from the left end inlet toward the right. It extends to the right of the lifting spiral shaft 661, bypassing the rear of the lifting spiral shaft 661, then turns back toward the front and extends left to near the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661. It then bends in a crank shape near the lifting spiral shaft 661, wrapping around to the front side of the lifting spiral shaft 661, and communicates with the lifting groove 661a of the lifting spiral shaft 661 on the front side near the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661.

[0356] The ball lifting inlet passage 651 is arranged so that the opening at its upstream end faces the ball discharge port 600d, which forms the opening at the downstream end of the ball storage passage 604 in the circulating ball path unit 600, and game balls B that have circulated through the ball storage passage 604 are handed over and circulated.

[0357] The ball lifting inlet passage 651 has a lifting inlet sensor 653 installed to the right of the lifting spiral shaft 661, and a ball lifting inlet earth metal plate 655 attached to the rear of the lifting spiral shaft 661.

[0358] Ball lifting outlet passage 652 has an upstream end communicating with lifting groove 661a on the front side near the upper end of lifting spiral shaft 661 near the upper end thereof near the upper end of ball lifting unit 650, extends to the left of lifting spiral shaft 661, then bends backward, extends to the same position as the rear end of lifting spiral shaft 661, and then bends leftward. From there, it extends leftward near the left end of ball lifting unit 650 and bends forward, and its downstream end opens forward at the front surface of ball lifting unit 650 (lifting mechanism cover 669).

[0359] The ball lifting outlet passage 652 is arranged so that the opening at the downstream end faces the ball supply port of the ball sending unit described later, and can supply game balls B to the ball sending unit 700.

[0360] Ball lifting outlet passage 652 has lifting outlet sensor 654 near the left end of the section extending leftward near the rear end of ball lifting unit 650, and has ball lifting outlet earth metal plate 656 attached upstream (to the right) of it. Note that the bottom wall of the section of ball lifting outlet passage 652 where ball lifting outlet earth metal plate 656 is provided has an opening that is large enough not to interfere with the flow of game balls B, and dust, dirt, etc. can be discharged to the outside through said opening.

[0361] The lifting entrance sensor 653 detects the presence or absence of the game ball B to be lifted when the lifting motor 664 is driven to rotate the lifting spiral shaft 661 and lift the game ball B. Details will be described later, but when the lifting entrance sensor 653 does not detect the game ball B, the lifting motor 664 is not driven.

[0362] The lifting outlet sensor 654 detects the presence or absence of game balls B supplied to the ball sending unit. Details will be described later, but when the lifting inlet sensor 653 detects game balls B and the lifting outlet sensor 654 does not detect game balls B, and a predetermined condition is met (here, a predetermined number (e.g., three) of game balls B are subtracted by the launch subtraction sensor 554), the lifting motor 664 is driven to rotate the lifting spiral shaft 661, and a predetermined number of game balls B are lifted.

[0363] The lifting entrance sensor 653 and the lifting exit sensor 654 are photosensors having a light-emitting element and a light-receiving element, and detect the presence or absence of the game ball B in a non-contact manner by the game ball B blocking the light from the light-emitting element.

[0364] Here, the relationship between the ball lifting inlet passage 651 and the ball lifting outlet passage 652 and the lifting inlet sensor 653 and the lifting outlet sensor 654 will be described. Here, the relationship between the ball lifting inlet passage 651 and the lifting inlet sensor 653 will be described, and the relationship between the ball lifting outlet passage 652 and the lifting outlet sensor 654 will be omitted because it is the same. As shown in Figures 52 and 53, the part of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 where the lifting inlet sensor 653 is provided is a V-shaped passage section 651a with a V-shaped cross section (an inverted trapezoidal shape that narrows downward). The part of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 other than the V-shaped passage section 651a is a U-shaped passage section 651b with a U-shaped cross section that is open upward.

[0365] The same is true for the ball lifting outlet passage 652, where the portion of the lifting outlet sensor 654 is a V-shaped passage section 652a with a V-shaped cross section (an inverted trapezoidal shape narrowing downward), and the other portion is a U-shaped passage section 652b with a U-shaped cross section that is open upward.

[0366] In other words, the V-shaped passage portion 651a and the V-shaped passage portion 652a each have a pair of inclined surfaces that the game ball B comes into contact with and that are inclined so that the spacing between them increases upward. The U-shaped passage portion 651b and the U-shaped passage portion 652b each have a flat bottom surface that the game ball B comes into contact with and that is wider than the diameter of the game ball B, and a pair of side wall surfaces that stand upright from both ends of the bottom surface in the width direction. The ball sending passage 703 of the ball sending unit 700, which is downstream of the ball lifting outlet passage 652, is also formed in the same shape as the U-shaped passage portion 651b and the U-shaped passage portion 652b.

[0367] Incidentally, if the cross section of the passage at the location of lifting entrance sensor 653 consisting of a photosensor is made into a U-shaped passage that opens upward, the circulating game ball B will come into contact with the side wall, and scratches and dirt that occur on the side wall of the passage due to the contact of game ball B will hinder the light reception and emission of the photosensor, which may result in false detection. Also, in a U-shaped passage, the position of game ball B in the width direction of the passage is not constant and stable, so the detection position by the sensor will vary, and there is a risk of false detection.

[0368] In contrast to this, in this embodiment, the lifting inlet sensor 653 (lifting outlet sensor 654) is configured as a V-shaped passage 651a (V-shaped passage 652a) with a V-shaped cross section, and therefore, by holding the game ball B at two points by the diagonal portions on both sides of the V, it is possible to restrict movement in the width direction of the passage, and it is possible to keep the position of the game ball B constant and stable in the width direction of the passage. As a result, the game ball B does not come into contact with the side wall of the passage at the lifting inlet sensor 653 (lifting outlet sensor 654), and therefore it is possible to prevent scratches and dirt caused by contact of the game ball B, eliminate false detection, and reliably detect the game ball.

[0369] In the above, the V-shaped passage section 651a (V-shaped passage section 652a) having a V-shaped (inverted trapezoidal) cross section is shown as the shape of the passage that stabilizes the position of the game ball B relative to the sensor, but it may also be a pair of protrusions that are spaced apart at a distance narrower than the diameter of the game ball B and extend in the direction of flow of the game ball B.

[0370] The ball lifting inlet passage 651 has a lifting spiral shaft 661 provided at its downstream end. Therefore, in the ball lifting inlet passage 651 upstream of the lifting spiral shaft 661, game balls B are picked up one by one by the lifting groove 661a of the lifting spiral shaft 661, so that they move intermittently, and the game balls B stop in the ball lifting inlet passage 651. On the other hand, the ball lifting outlet passage 652 has a ball sending unit 700, which will be described later, provided at its downstream end. Therefore, in the ball lifting outlet passage 652 upstream of the ball sending unit 700, game balls B move intermittently one by one due to the ball sending operation of the ball sending unit 700, and the game balls B stop in the ball lifting outlet passage 652.

[0371] Furthermore, in the ball lifting inlet passage 651 (ball lifting outlet passage 652), as shown in Figure 53, only the area of ​​the lifting inlet sensor 653 (lifting outlet sensor 654) is made into a V-shaped passage section 651a (V-shaped passage section 652a) with a V-shaped cross section, and the other areas are made into a U-shaped passage section 651b (U-shaped passage section 652b) with a U-shaped cross section, so that even if multiple game balls B are placed inside the passage and stopped, the ball pressure caused by the multiple game balls B on the downstream side can be reduced.

[0372] 53, in the V-shaped passage portion 651a (V-shaped passage portion 652a), the multiple game balls B are lined up in a straight line (in a line on the axis of the passage), but in the U-shaped passage portion 651b (U-shaped passage portion 652b), the multiple game balls B are pushed downstream and lined up in a staggered pattern so as to alternately contact the side walls on both sides, which allows the ball pressure to be dispersed to the side walls and reduces the ball pressure exerted on the downstream side by the multiple game balls B. Therefore, parts (e.g., the lifting spiral shaft 661, the ball sending movable member 705 of the ball sending unit 700, etc.) provided downstream of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 (ball lifting outlet passage 652) will not be damaged by the ball pressure of the multiple game balls B that are retained (stored), and there is no need to excessively reinforce these parts against the ball pressure, thereby reducing the cost of the pachinko machine 1.

[0373] Incidentally, detection of game ball B at a prize winning slot or the like is performed by checking the output from the ball sensor at a predetermined interrupt period (for example, 4 ms), and when the output becomes not detected, detected, detected (in other words, "011"), it is determined that game ball B has been detected (ON). In other words, when the output from the ball sensor is "011", it is determined to be ON, and when it is other than "011", it is determined to be OFF. However, when a ball sensor (here, lifting inlet sensor 653 and lifting outlet sensor 654) installed in a ball passage where multiple game balls B are stationary, such as ball lifting inlet passage 651 and ball lifting outlet passage 652, is used to determine the presence or absence of game ball B using the above-mentioned determination method, the ball sensor will only generate OFF when there are no game balls B in the ball passage, will generate many short-interval ONs when game balls B are being supplied to the ball passage, and will generate many short-interval OFFs when the game balls B stored in the ball passage are moving one by one (game balls B are moving at the launch interval). Therefore, the above-mentioned determination method could not accurately determine that there are no game balls B in the ball passage.

[0374] In contrast, in this embodiment, threshold values ​​(for example, an ON threshold of 200 ms and an OFF threshold of 200 ms) are set for ON and OFF judgments, and ON or OFF is judged only when non-detection or detection continues beyond the threshold. In other words, for example, when the output from the ball sensor is "01111...", it is judged as ON, and when it is "10000...", it is judged as OFF. This makes it possible to reliably detect (judge) the presence or absence of a game ball B in a ball passage where multiple game balls B are stationary.

[0375] The threshold for determining ON or OFF may vary depending on the type of ball passage, the number of game balls B parked, etc., or the ON threshold and OFF threshold may be different. In this embodiment, the lift-up inlet sensor 653 of the ball lift-up inlet passage 651 has an ON threshold of 80 ms and an OFF threshold of 200 ms, for example. The lift-up outlet sensor 654 of the ball lift-up outlet passage 652 has an ON threshold of 80 ms and an OFF threshold of 200 ms, for example. The pre-launch sensor 704 of the ball sending unit 700, which will be described later, has an ON threshold of 12 ms and an OFF threshold of 12 ms, for example. As described above, the launch subtraction sensor 554 of the ball launching unit 550 has an ON threshold of 80 ms and an OFF threshold of 80 ms, for example.

[0376] If these thresholds are too small, even slight vibrations can cause false detection, resulting in control noise. Furthermore, if the thresholds are unnecessarily large, the state of game ball B will not be detected. Therefore, the appropriate threshold varies depending on the location of the ball sensor, but a minimum of 10 ms and a maximum of 300 ms are desirable. Furthermore, if the threshold is set to a multiple (e.g., 3 to 60 times) of the interrupt period (e.g., 4 ms), the software control only counts the number of interrupts, thereby reducing the burden on the software. Basically, the threshold is short for the pre-launch sensor 704, where game ball B reliably stays in a fixed position. However, for sensors where game ball B stays in a nearly fixed position but there is a certain degree of variation in the stay position (e.g., lift-out sensor 654), the threshold is lengthened to provide a margin. At the launch subtraction sensor 554, game ball B stays (stops) in a fixed position, but the threshold is lengthened to prevent false detection due to artificial vibrations.

[0377] Ball lifting inlet earth metal plate 655 removes static electricity from game ball B supplied from circulating ball path unit 600 to ball lifting inlet passage 651. Ball lifting inlet earth metal plate 655 is provided upstream of lifting inlet sensor 653. This allows static electricity from game ball B passing through lifting inlet sensor 653 to be removed in advance, preventing false detection by lifting inlet sensor 653 and malfunction of frame control board 740 due to static electricity from game ball B.

[0378] The ball lifting outlet earth metal plate 656 removes static electricity from the game ball B that has been lifted by the ball lifting mechanism 660 and polished by the ball polishing mechanism 680. The ball lifting outlet earth metal plate 656 is provided upstream of the lifting outlet sensor 654. This allows static electricity from the game ball B that passes through the lifting outlet sensor 654 to be removed in advance, preventing false detection by the lifting outlet sensor 654 and failure of the frame control board 740 due to static electricity from the game ball B.

[0379] The ball lifting relay board 657 is used to relay the connections between the lifting inlet sensor 653, the lifting outlet sensor 654, the lifting motor 664, the lifting motor index sensor 666, the ball motor 688, etc. and the frame control board 740. The ball lifting relay board 657 is attached to the rear side of the lifting mechanism cover 669.

[0380] The ball polishing mechanism 680 is attached to the front side of the ball lifting mechanism 660. The ball polishing mechanism 680 comprises a ball polishing cassette 681 having a vertically elongated rectangular box-like external shape, an endless belt-like polishing cloth 682 partially exposed to the outside at the rear surface of the ball polishing cassette 681, a sheet-like ball polishing sponge 683 provided between the exposed portion of the polishing cloth 682 and the rear surface of the ball polishing cassette 681, a ball polishing feed gear 684 supported rotatably around a left-right axis at the bottom inside the ball polishing cassette 681, and a ball polishing driven gear 685 meshing with the ball polishing feed gear 684 across the polishing cloth 682 and supported rotatably around a left-right axis.

[0381] The polishing mechanism 680 is made up of a flat polishing motor base 686 that extends vertically to the left of the polishing cassette 681 with a constant depth from front to back and that has its rear end rotatably attached to the lifting mechanism base 668, a gear cover 687 attached to the left surface of the polishing motor base 686, a polishing motor 688 that is attached to the left surface of the gear cover 687 and whose rotation shaft protrudes between the gear cover 687 and the polishing motor base 686, a spur gear-shaped motor gear 689 attached to the rotation shaft of the polishing motor 688, and a gear meshing with the motor gear 689. The transmission gear 690 has a large-diameter gear portion 690a in the form of a spur gear that is mated with the large-diameter gear portion 690a, and a small-diameter gear portion 690b in the form of a spur gear that rotates integrally with the large-diameter gear portion 690a, and is rotatably supported between the motor base 686 and the gear cover 687; a spur-gear-shaped transmission gear 691 that is mated with the small-diameter gear portion 690b of the transmission gear 690 and is rotatably supported between the motor base 686 and the gear cover 687; and a rotary connecting portion 692 that rotates integrally with the transmission gear 691, passes through the motor base 686, and protrudes to the right.

[0382] Furthermore, the ball polishing mechanism 680 abuts against the front surface of the ball polishing cassette 681, and is equipped with a flat cassette pressing piece 693 whose left end is engaged with the front end of the ball polishing motor base 686 and whose right end is attached to the front surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501, a Nylatch 694 which detachably attaches the right end of the cassette pressing piece 693 to the front surface (engagement hole 669b) of the support protrusion 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669, and a spring 695 which urges the cassette pressing piece 693 backward (towards the ball polishing cassette 681) relative to the ball polishing motor base 686.

[0383] 54, the ball polishing cassette 681 of the ball polishing mechanism 680 is formed in the shape of a hollow box, and has slits 681a at both the upper and lower edges of the rear surface to allow the polishing cloth 682 to pass through. The ball polishing cassette 681 is detachably attached from the front to the lifting mechanism base 668 of the ball lifting mechanism 660 so as to close the ball polishing opening 668a.

[0384] The polishing cassette 681 also has a connecting hole 681b located at the bottom of the left side surface and a positioning hole 681c located in front of the connecting hole. A rotary coupling part 692 protruding to the right from the polishing motor base 686 is inserted into the connecting hole 681b, and the tip of the rotary coupling part 692 inserted into the connecting hole 681b is connected to the polishing feed gear 684. A positioning pin 686b (described later) of the polishing motor base 686 is inserted into the positioning hole 681c. Inserting the positioning pin 686b positions the polishing cassette 681 relative to the ball lifting mechanism 660 and restricts (locks) the polishing cassette 681 from moving forward relative to the ball lifting mechanism 660.

[0385] Furthermore, the polishing cassette 681 has a plurality of rollers 681d around which the polishing cloth 682 is wound, and a flat tension spring 681e that presses the polishing cloth 682 against the rollers 681d that are provided adjacent to the upper slit 681a. The tension spring 681e presses the polishing cloth 682 against the rollers 681d, thereby applying tension to the portion of the polishing cloth 682 that is exposed to the outside from the polishing cassette 681, and prevents the polishing cloth 682 from bending on the outside of the rear surface.

[0386] The polishing cloth 682 is formed in the shape of an endless loop belt with a constant width on both sides. As shown in Figures 50(a) and 54(c), the polishing cloth 682 is stored in the polishing cassette 681 in a serpentine state, with a portion of the cloth exposed behind the rear surface of the polishing cassette 681 through slits at the top and bottom of the polishing cassette 681.

[0387] The ball polishing sponge 683 is provided between the rear surface of the ball polishing cassette 681 and the rear-exposed portion of the polishing cloth 682, and is attached to the rear surface of the ball polishing cassette 681. The inner surface of the polishing cloth 682 contacts the rear surface of the ball polishing sponge 683. When assembled to the ball lifting unit 650, the ball polishing sponge 683 elastically presses the polishing cloth 682 against the game ball B exposed forward from the ball polishing port 668a of the ball lifting mechanism 660, allowing the polishing cloth 682 to contact a wider area with the spherical surface of the game ball B. The ball polishing sponge 683 is attached to the ball polishing cassette 681 so that it can be replaced.

[0388] The ball-finished feed gear 684 is arranged so that its axis coincides with the axis of the transmission gear 691 (rotational connecting portion 692) when the ball-finished cassette 681 is attached, and the left end of the rotating shaft is connected to the rotational connecting portion 692 to rotate integrally with the transmission gear 691.

[0389] The spherical driven gear 685 is engaged with the spherical feed gear 684 so that there is a gap between them that allows the polishing cloth 682 to fit in, and when the spherical feed gear 684 rotates, it rotates in the opposite direction and can feed the polishing cloth 682 that is sandwiched between it and the spherical feed gear 684.

[0390] The polishing motor base 686 extends vertically along the left side surface of the polishing cassette 681, and its rear end is rotatably attached to the lifting mechanism base 668 around an axis extending in the vertical direction. This allows the polishing motor base 686 to rotate between a locked position parallel to the left side surface of the polishing cassette 681 and an unlocked position in which its front end is moved away from the polishing cassette 681 to the left. The polishing motor base 686 has a locking hole 686a penetrating from side to side at a position above the vertical center on its front end edge. A locking hook 693a provided at the left end of the cassette pressing piece 693 is inserted into and locked into this locking hole 686a.

[0391] As shown in Figure 46, the rotary coupling 692 of the ball motor base 686 protrudes rightward from a rearward position near the lower end of the right side surface. The ball motor base 686 also has a cylindrical positioning pin 686b protruding rightward from a center position near the lower end of the right side surface. The tip (right end) of the positioning pin 686b is formed in a conical shape. The positioning pin 686b is inserted into a positioning hole 681c of the ball cassette 681 to position the ball cassette 681 and restrict forward movement.

[0392] In more detail, when the ball polishing motor base 686 is rotated to the release position with its front end moved to the left in the front-to-back direction and the ball polishing cassette 681 is attached to the cassette mounting recess 668b of the lifting mechanism base 668, and the ball polishing motor base 686 is rotated so that its tip moves to the right and moved to the locked position, the positioning pin 686b is inserted into the positioning hole 681c of the ball polishing cassette 681 from a direction intersecting the front-to-back direction, thereby positioning the ball polishing cassette 681 and preventing the ball polishing cassette 681 from moving forward from the cassette mounting recess 668b.

[0393] This ball-shaped motor base 686 is provided so that its tip end abuts against the protrusion 102 (guide surface 102a) of the door frame 3. As a result, as will be described in detail later, when the door frame 3 is attempted to be closed relative to the main frame 4 with the ball-shaped motor base 686 in a position other than the locked position, the guide surface 102a of the protrusion 102 comes into contact with the front end of the ball-shaped motor base 686, causing the ball-shaped motor base 686 to rotate to the locked position, preventing the user from forgetting to lock the door and preventing the cassette pressing piece 693 and the like from being pinched between the door frame 3 and the ball-shaped motor base 686 and being damaged.

[0394] The ball polishing motor 688 is controlled independently of the operation of the lifting motor 664, and is controlled so that the polishing cloth 682 moves 0.17 mm every time 1000 game balls B are shot.

[0395] The cassette pressing piece 693 extends to the left and right, and has a hook-shaped locking hook portion 693a at its left end that is inserted into and locked in a locking hole 686a in the ball motor base 686. The cassette pressing piece 693 is biased by a spring 695 so as to rotate counterclockwise in a plan view. In other words, it is biased so as to press the ball cassette 681 attached to the cassette mounting recess 668b of the lifting mechanism base 668 rearward. The right end of the cassette pressing piece 693 extends further right than the ball cassette 681, and its rear surface is configured to be able to abut against the front surface of the support protrusion 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669. A nylon latch 694 is provided near the right end of the cassette pressing piece 693.

[0396] When the operating part 694a of the Nylatch 694 is pressed with the right end of the cassette pressing piece 693 in contact with the support protrusion 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669, the tip expands in diameter and engages with the engaging hole 669b of the support protrusion 669a, locking the cassette pressing piece 693 so that it cannot move, and when the operating part 694a is pulled toward you, the lock can be released. In more detail, the Nylatch 694 includes the operating part 694a consisting of a disk-shaped disk portion and a rod-shaped portion protruding from the center of the disk portion, and a cylindrical member (grommet) having a cylindrical portion into which the rod-shaped portion of the operating part 694a is slidably inserted, a flange portion extending outward from a base end of the cylindrical portion near the disk portion, and a plurality of slits cut out from the tip end of the cylindrical portion opposite the flange portion toward the flange portion and provided in the circumferential direction. When the operating part 694a of this Nylatch 694 is pressed toward the support protrusion 669a with the tubular member inserted into the locking hole 669b of the support protrusion 669a, the rod-shaped part slides toward the tip inside the tubular part, expanding the diameter so that the tip of the tubular part, which is divided by multiple slits, opens. This prevents the tubular member from slipping out of the locking hole 669b, and locks it in place.

[0397] The ball lifting unit 650 of this embodiment is attached to the rear side of the base wall 501b of the main body frame base 501 when assembled to the main body frame 4. When assembling this ball lifting unit 650 to the main body frame base 501 of the main body frame 4, the ball lifting unit 650 is attached to the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j provided on the rear surface of the base wall 501b with the ball polishing cassette 681 of the ball lifting mechanism 680 removed from the ball lifting mechanism 660 (see Figure 47(a)). At this time, the front ends of the ball polishing motor base 686 and support protrusion 669a protruding forward from the lifting mechanism base 668 protrude forward of the base wall 501b through an opening 501o that penetrates the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j from front to rear.

[0398] In this state, the ball lifting port 668a of the lifting mechanism base 668 of the ball lifting mechanism 660 is located in the opening 501o that penetrates the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j on the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b, and the game ball B being lifted up the lifting spiral shaft 661 can be seen from the front of the base wall portion 501b (main body frame 4) through the opening 501o and the ball lifting port 668a (see Figure 49). Because the width of the ball lifting port 668a is narrower than the diameter of the game ball B, the game ball B will not spill out even if the ball lifting cassette 681 is removed. This means that by opening the door frame 3 relative to the main body frame 4 and removing the ball lifting cassette 681, the lifting spiral shaft 661 and the game ball B being lifted up the lifting spiral shaft 661 can be seen from the front.

[0399] After the ball lifting mechanism 660 side of the ball lifting unit 650 is attached to the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j of the base wall portion 501b, the operating portion 694a of the Nylatch 694 protruding forward from the base wall portion 501b is pulled to release the lock, and the cassette pressing piece 693 is rotated so as to open forward and to the left against the spring force of the spring 695, and the ball polishing motor base 686 is rotated to the release position so that its tip side moves away from the ball polishing cassette 681, so that the cassette pressing piece 693 and the ball polishing motor base 686 do not overlap with the front of the cassette mounting recess 668b of the lifting mechanism base 668. Then, from the front of the base wall portion 501b, with the exposed surface of the polishing cloth 682 facing backward, the polishing cassette 681 is placed in front of the cassette mounting recess 668b in the lifting mechanism base 668 so as to close the polishing opening 668a from the front (see Figures 46 and 47(b)).

[0400] In this state, the polishing cassette 681 is moved rearward, and its rear end is inserted into the cassette mounting recess 668b. Thereafter, the polishing motor base 686 is rotated to the locked position so that it is parallel to the left side of the polishing cassette 681, and the rotary coupling part 692 and positioning pin 686b protruding from the right side of the polishing motor base 686 are inserted into the coupling hole 681b and positioning hole 681c of the polishing cassette 681, respectively. As a result, the rotary coupling part 692 and positioning pin 686b are inserted into the polishing cassette 681 in a direction intersecting the front-to-rear direction, thereby restricting the forward movement of the polishing cassette 681.

[0401] When the ball motor base 686 is moved to the locked position, the cassette pressing piece 693 attached to the front end of the ball motor base 686 presses the ball cassette 681 rearward due to the biasing force of the spring 695, and the right end of the cassette pressing piece 693 comes into contact with the support protrusion 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669. In this state, when the operating part 694a of the Nylatch 694 is pressed and engaged with the engagement hole 669b of the support protrusion 669a, the cassette pressing piece 693 is locked so that it cannot rotate, and the installation of the ball cassette 681 is completed.

[0402] When removing the ball polishing cassette 681, the operation portion 694a of the Nylatch 694 is pulled forward to release the lock, and then the ball polishing cassette 681 can be removed by performing the above steps in reverse.

[0403] However, if the ball-forming cassette 681 is installed imperfectly, for example, by forgetting to lock it using the ball-forming motor base 686 or the cassette pressing piece 693, the ball-forming cassette 681 may come off during play, causing the game to be interrupted and reducing the player's interest.

[0404] In contrast to this, in this embodiment, the structure is such that the ball-forming cassette 681 will not come off even if you forget to lock it using the ball-forming motor base 686 or the cassette pressing piece 693. In more detail, for example, as shown in Figure 48(a), when you try to close the door frame 3 against the main frame 4 with the ball-forming motor base 686 not in the locked position and the cassette pressing piece 693 not pressing the ball-forming cassette 681 backward, the inclined guide surface 102a of the protrusion 102 on the door frame main body 100 of the door frame 3 comes into contact with the front end of the ball-forming motor base 686 (see Figure 48(b)).

[0405] At this time, the cassette pressing piece 693 attached to the front end of the ball motor base 686 does not remain protruding forward as shown in Figure 46, but rather moves toward the rear ball cassette 681 as shown in Figure 48(a) due to the force of the spring 695, so the cassette pressing piece 693 does not abut against the door frame 3 and rotate in the opposite direction to the ball cassette 681, and the cassette pressing piece 693 or the door frame 3 is not damaged.

[0406] Then, as the door frame 3 moves further in the closing direction, the tip of the ball motor base 686 is pushed by the guide surface 102a and rotates to the right toward the locked position. As a result, the rotary coupling portion 692 protruding from the right side of the ball motor base 686 is inserted into the coupling hole 681b of the ball cassette 681, and the positioning pin 686b of the ball motor base 686 is inserted into the positioning hole 681c of the ball cassette 681, restricting (locking) the ball cassette 681 from moving forward. Furthermore, the cassette pressing piece 693 is pressed backward by the biasing force of the spring 695 (see FIG. 48(c)). This locks the ball cassette 681 and prevents it from coming loose forward.

[0407] Although not shown in the drawings, a protrusion that can press the operating portion 694a of the Nylatch 694 rearward may be provided on the rear surface of the door frame 3. This makes it possible to lock the cassette pressing piece 693 with the Nylatch 694 even if you forget to lock it, and it is possible to reliably prevent the ball cassette 681 from falling off (disengaging).

[0408] In addition, in the above embodiment, the protrusion 102 of the door frame 3 is shown to be able to move the ball motor base 686 to a lock position and lock the ball cassette 681 so that it cannot be removed, but this is not limited to this. For example, the ball launching unit 550 and the foul unit 570 may be made detachable, and a locking means may be provided to lock the ball launching unit 550 etc. so that it cannot be removed, and when the door frame 3 is closed against the main frame 4 with the locking means incomplete, the protrusion 102 will abut against the locking means to lock the ball launching unit 550 etc. so that it cannot be removed.

[0409] In the ball lifting unit 650 of this embodiment, when assembled to the main body frame 4, the opening at the upstream end of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 faces the ball discharge port 600d of the circulating ball path unit 600, and game balls B that have circulated through the serpentine ball storage passage 604 are supplied. The game balls B supplied to the ball lifting inlet passage 651 come into contact with the ball lifting inlet earth metal plate 655 to remove static electricity, and are then detected by the lifting inlet sensor 653 and supplied to the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661. At this time, the game balls B are inserted into the ball polishing port 668a, whose front end penetrates forward, and the front end of the game ball B comes into contact with the polishing cloth 682 of the ball polishing mechanism 680, and movement in the left-right direction is restricted by the vertically elongated ball polishing port 668a.

[0410] In this state, when the lifting motor 664 rotates the lifting spiral shaft 661 in a direction to lift the game ball B, the game ball B is pushed from below by the lifting groove 661a and moves upward along the ball polishing opening 668a. At this time, the game ball B moves upward while rotating while contacting the portion extending up and down on the inner peripheral edge of the ball polishing opening 668a and the lifting groove 661a. As a result, the portion of the game ball B that contacts the polishing cloth 682 on the front end side changes as the game ball B rises (rotates), making it possible to polish the entire surface of the game ball B evenly.

[0411] When game ball B reaches the upper end of lifting spiral shaft 661, it enters ball lifting exit passage 652, comes into contact with ball lifting exit earth metal plate 656, is detected by lifting exit sensor 654, and is sent to the ball sending unit from the downstream end of ball lifting exit passage 652. At this time, even if game ball B is polished by polishing cloth 682 as it is lifted by ball lifting mechanism 660 and becomes statically charged, the static electricity is removed by contact with ball lifting exit earth metal plate 656 located upstream of lifting exit sensor 654, and no malfunctions due to static electricity from the ball polishing will occur in lifting exit sensor 654, frame control board 740, etc.

[0412] On the other hand, in the polishing mechanism 680, with the polishing cassette 681 attached, when the polishing motor 688 rotates the polishing feed gear 684 clockwise as viewed from the right side, the portion of the polishing cloth 682 exposed to the outside from the rear surface of the polishing cassette 681 passes through the slit on the bottom of the polishing cassette 681 and is accommodated within the polishing cassette 681. At this time, the portion of the polishing cloth 682 exposed to the outside is pulled downward, so that the portion of the polishing cloth 682 accommodated within the polishing cassette 681 is advanced from the outside through the slit on the top of the polishing cassette 681.

[0413] The polishing cloth 682 of the ball polishing mechanism 680 moves intermittently at a slow speed. In this embodiment, the polishing cloth 682 moves 0.17 mm every time 1000 game balls B are shot.

[0414] In this way, according to the ball lifting unit 650 of this embodiment, the game balls B discharged from the circulating ball path unit 600 can be supplied to the ball sending unit 700 while polishing the game balls B.

[0415] [4-6. Ball sending unit] The ball sending unit 700 in the main body frame 4 will be described in detail mainly with reference to Figures 55 to 57. Figure 55(a) is a perspective view of the ball sending unit in the main body frame as seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the ball sending unit in the main body frame as seen from the back. Figure 56(a) is an exploded perspective view of the ball sending unit as seen from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the ball sending unit as seen from the back. Figure 57 is a front cross-sectional view of the ball sending unit cut at the location of the pre-launch sensor.

[0416] The ball sending unit 700 is for supplying the game balls B lifted by the ball lifting unit 650 one by one to the ball launching unit 550. The ball sending unit 700 is attached to the ball sending unit mounting portion 501k provided on the rear side of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501. The ball sending unit 700 faces upward from the upper surface of the base wall portion 501b so as to be sandwiched between the base wall portion 501b and the circulating ball path unit 600, and is attached detachably upward.

[0417] The ball sending unit 700 is equipped with a ball supply port 701 that opens at the rear and allows game ball B supplied from the ball lifting unit 650 to enter, a ball sending outlet 702 that opens at the front and is used to send game ball B to the ball launch pad 552b of the ball launching unit 550, a ball sending passage 703 that connects the ball supply port 701 and the ball sending outlet 702 and allows game ball B to flow through, a pre-launch sensor 704 that can detect game ball B flowing through the ball sending passage 703, a ball sending movable member 705 that releases game balls B detected by the pre-launch sensor 704 one by one from the ball sending outlet 702, a ball sending solenoid 706 that moves the ball sending movable member 705 to send game ball B to the ball launching unit 550, and a ball sending relay board 707 that relays the connection between the ball sending solenoid 706, the pre-launch sensor 704, and the frame control board 740.

[0418] The ball sending unit 700 also includes a transmission member 708 that transmits the forward and backward movement of the plunger in the ball sending solenoid 706 to move the ball sending movable member 705, a box-shaped unit base 709 that is open to the rear and has a pre-launch sensor 704, ball sending solenoid 706, etc. installed inside, and a flat unit cover 710 that is attached to close the opening at the rear end of the unit base 709.

[0419] The ball supply port 701 of the ball sending unit 700 is provided by penetrating the unit cover 710 that constitutes the rear surface of the ball sending unit 700, and is provided in the area from the center to the upper right when viewed from the front. The ball supply port 701 is formed in a size that allows game balls B to pass through one at a time.

[0420] The ball outlet 702 penetrates the unit base 709, which constitutes the front side of the ball sending unit 700, from front to back, and is located in a position lower than the center when viewed from the front. The ball outlet 702 is formed to a size that allows game balls B to pass through one at a time.

[0421] Ball sending passage 703 connects ball supply inlet 701 and ball sending outlet 702, and extends lower to the left from ball supply inlet 701 to a portion above ball sending outlet 702, and then extends downward to the portion of ball sending outlet 702. A pre-launch sensor 704 is provided near the left end of the portion of ball sending passage 703 that extends leftward. In addition, ball receiving portion 705a of ball sending movable member 705 is located in a portion of ball sending passage 703 that extends up and down behind ball sending outlet 702.

[0422] The pre-launch sensor 704 is provided near the left end of the ball transport passage 703, which extends lower to the left. In other words, the pre-launch sensor 704 is provided immediately upstream of the ball receiving portion 705a of the ball transport movable member 705. The pre-launch sensor 704 detects the game ball B in a non-contact manner, for example, by detecting a change in induced current.

[0423] The ball sending passage 703 in which the launching pre-sensor 704 is installed is where the flow of the gaming ball B stops, similar to the ball lifting inlet passage 651 and the ball lifting outlet passage 652. For this reason, the launching pre-sensor 704, like the lifting inlet sensor 653 and the lifting outlet sensor 654, is provided with thresholds for ON and OFF determinations, and is configured to determine ON or OFF only when the thresholds are exceeded and non-detection or detection continues, thereby enabling reliable determination (detection) of the presence or absence of the gaming ball B. In the launching pre-sensor 704 of this embodiment, for example, the ON threshold is set to 12 ms and the OFF threshold is set to 12 ms.

[0424] The ball sending movable member 705 is movable by the drive of the ball sending solenoid 706, thereby releasing the game balls B in the ball sending passage 703 one by one from the ball sending outlet 702 and supplying them to the ball launching unit 550. The ball sending movable member 705 has a U-shaped ball receiving portion 705a that is open to the right and front and rear and has a bottom wall that slopes forward and can accommodate only one game ball B, a shaft portion 705b that extends leftward from the left end of the ball receiving portion 705a, a bearing portion 705c that penetrates front and rear at the left end of the shaft portion 705b and into which a first shaft pin 710a of the unit cover 710 is inserted so as to be rotatable relative to the shaft portion 705a, a movable gear portion 705d that is provided coaxially with the bearing portion 705c in a fan-shaped manner to the right, and a ball stop portion 705e that forms the upper part of the U-shaped ball receiving portion 705a.

[0425] The ball sending solenoid 706 moves the ball sending movable member 705 to supply the game balls B in the ball sending passage 703 one by one from the ball sending opening 702 to the ball launching unit 550. The ball sending solenoid 706 is located in the upper left corner when viewed from the front, between the unit base 709 and the unit cover 710, with the magnetic pole portion that generates magnetic force when energized facing downward. As will be described in detail later, the ball sending solenoid 706, in conjunction with the launching solenoid 553, performs a series of hardware operations based on a predetermined launch sequence.

[0426] The ball sending relay board 707 is used to relay the connection between the pre-launch sensor 704 and ball sending solenoid 706 and the frame control board 740. The ball sending relay board 707 is provided to the right of the pre-launch sensor 704, between the unit base 709 and the unit cover 710.

[0427] The transmission member 708 transmits the forward and backward movement of the plunger of the ball-transporting solenoid 706 so as to move the ball-transporting movable member 705. The transmission member 708 has a sheet metal holding portion 708b to which a magnetically attachable sheet metal 708a is attached to the magnetic pole portion of the ball-transporting solenoid 706, a shaft portion 708c extending to the right from the sheet metal holding portion 708b, a bearing portion 708d that penetrates the right end of the shaft portion 708c from front to back and into which a second shaft pin 710b of the unit cover 710 is inserted so as to be able to rotate relative to the shaft portion 708c, and a drive gear portion 708e that is fan-shaped and extends to the left on the same axis as the bearing portion 708d and that meshes with a movable gear portion 705d of the ball-transporting movable member 705.

[0428] The unit base 709 is formed in a box shape that is open to the rear, and has a ball delivery port 702 that penetrates from front to back at a position near the lower center of the front. The unit base 709 cooperates with the unit cover 710 to form a ball delivery passage 703, and also holds a pre-launch sensor 704, a ball delivery movable member 705, a ball delivery solenoid 706, a ball delivery relay board 707, and a transmission member 708.

[0429] The unit base 709 has knobs 709a spaced apart laterally on its top surface and recessed downward, and a resilient claw 709b located in the lower right corner of the front surface. The knob 709a is designed to be grasped by an operator from above and is used when removing the ball-throwing unit 700 upward from the main body frame base 501 of the main body frame 4. The knob 709a has dovetail-shaped sides that are close to each other and slope downward to approach each other. The side of the knob 709a has multiple ridges extending forward and backward, arranged vertically. The resilient claw 709b engages with a locking hole in the ball-throwing unit mounting portion 501k of the main body frame base 501 to prevent the ball-throwing unit 700 from being removed upward when the ball-throwing unit 700 is attached to the ball-throwing unit mounting portion 501k of the main body frame base 501.

[0430] When removing the ball sending unit 700 from the main frame base 501, the elastic claw 709b, which passes through the locking hole in the base wall portion 501b and faces forward, is pressed backward to elastically deform it, and the knob portion 709a on the top surface is grasped and pulled up, allowing the ball sending unit 700 to be removed upward from the ball sending unit mounting portion 501k of the main frame base 501.

[0431] The unit cover 710 has a ball supply port 701 extending from the center to the upper right when viewed from the front. The unit cover 710 cooperates with the unit base 709 to form a ball-transport passage 703 and holds a pre-launch sensor 704, a ball-transport movable member 705, a ball-transport solenoid 706, a ball-transport relay board 707, and a transmission member 708. The unit cover 710 has a first and second axle pins 710a and 710b protruding forward in a cylindrical shape near the lower left corner when viewed from the front. The first axle pin 710a is inserted into the bearing portion 705c of the ball-transport movable member 705 to rotatably support the ball-transport movable member 705. The second axle pin 710b is inserted into the bearing portion 708d of the transmission member 708 to rotatably support the transmission member 708.

[0432] In the assembled state of the ball-feeding unit 700 of this embodiment, the first shaft pin 710a is inserted into the bearing portion 705c of the ball-feeding movable member 705, and the second shaft pin 710b is inserted into the bearing portion 708d of the transmission member 708, so that the movable gear portion 705d of the ball-feeding movable member 705 and the drive gear portion 708e of the transmission member 708 are m...

Claims

[Claim 1] A gaming machine that can be controlled to an advantageous state that is advantageous to a player, a determination means for determining whether a predetermined value calculated based on the game value used in the game and the game value awarded has reached a specific value; a game-disabled state control means for controlling the game to a game-disabled state in which progress of the game is disabled when it is determined that the predetermined value has reached the specific value; a first power saving means capable of reducing power consumption of the gaming machine in a predetermined standby state different from the non-playable state; a second power saving means capable of reducing power consumption of the gaming machine in the non-playable state; Equipped with Furthermore, the first power saving means and the second power saving means have different modes of reducing power consumption, By suppressing power consumption by the first power saving means, it is possible to reduce power consumption at a second predetermined timing when a predetermined period has elapsed since the start of the predetermined standby state to be lower than power consumption at a first predetermined timing before the predetermined period has elapsed, By suppressing power consumption by the second power saving means, it is possible to reduce the power consumption at a second specific timing when a specific period has elapsed since the start of the unplayable state to less than the power consumption at a first specific timing before the specific period has elapsed. A gaming machine characterized by:

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