Gaming machine

Abstract

The present invention provides a gaming machine that can stabilize the positional relationship between the stage components and the prize entry points in the game area, thereby suppressing a decline in the enjoyment of the game. [Solution] A gaming machine comprising: a gaming panel that partitions a portion of a gaming area through which gaming balls can flow; a stage member that receives gaming balls flowing through the gaming area, causes them to roll laterally, and drops them to the front side of the gaming panel; a performance-only area partitioned above the stage member; an enclosure that protrudes forward from the front of the gaming panel and surrounds the performance-only area; and a transparent plate provided in front of the gaming panel with a gap that allows gaming balls to flow down, wherein the stage member constitutes a portion of the enclosure and has a plate-shaped upper wall portion that prevents the movement of gaming balls between the gaming area and the performance-only area, and the stage member further has a rear wall portion formed to support the rear end of the upper wall portion.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a gaming machine.

Background Art

[0002] A gaming machine such as a pachinko machine includes a game panel that demarcates a part of a game area where game balls can flow down, and a frame-shaped center accessory attached to the front surface of the game panel. At the lower part of the center accessory, a stage member is provided that releases the game ball into the game area on the front surface of the game panel after rolling the game ball left and right. At the upper part of the stage member, a dedicated effect area where the entry of game balls is restricted is demarcated (for example, Patent Document 1). In this type of gaming machine, a game ball rolling on the rolling surface of the stage member enters a winning port such as a starting port with a high probability when released from a specific part of the rolling surface, and a difference is provided in the winning probability from that of a game ball released from other parts.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, if there is a deviation in the positional relationship between the stage member and the winning port, there will also be a deviation in the winning probability of the game ball released from a specific part of the rolling surface, and there is a risk that the intended interest of the game cannot be obtained.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a gaming machine capable of suppressing a decrease in gaming interest.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The following are effective solutions for achieving the above-mentioned objectives. Explanations of their operation and other aspects will be provided as needed. Furthermore, for ease of understanding, corresponding configurations and other aspects in the embodiments of the invention will be shown as appropriate, but these are not limiting in any way.

[0007] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention A game panel that demarcates a portion of the game area through which game balls can flow, A stage member that receives the game balls flowing down the game area, rolls them laterally, and drops the game balls to the front side of the game panel, A dedicated performance area partitioned above the aforementioned stage member, A surrounding portion that protrudes forward from the front of the game panel and encloses the area dedicated to the performance, A gaming machine comprising a transparent plate provided in front of the gaming panel at a distance from which gaming balls can flow down, The stage member constitutes a part of the enclosure and has a plate-shaped upper wall portion that prevents the movement of the game ball between the game area and the performance area. The stage member further has a rear wall portion formed to support the rear end of the upper wall portion. A gaming machine characterized by the following features. Here, the dedicated performance area is an area where no game balls are played, and where performances are exclusively carried out using images, mechanical movable units, etc.

[0008] In recent gaming machines, the transparent plate may momentarily swing towards the game panel due to the impact when the glass unit is closed, or it may be pushed in by an impatient player. However, even when such external forces act on the upper wall through the transparent plate, the stage is configured such that the rear end of the upper wall is supported by the rear wall, allowing the upper wall to flex and disperse the external forces acting on it. As a result, the risk of damage to the stage members due to external forces can be reduced, and the positional relationship between the stage members and the prize entry points in the game area can be stabilized, thereby suppressing a decline in the enjoyment of the game (see the sections [8-8c-5. Fourth Embodiment of the Stage Unit] and [8-8c-5i. Summary] in [Modes for Carrying Out the Invention], and Figures 120 to 132 in [Drawings]). [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a gaming machine that can suppress the decline in the enjoyment of playing games. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This is a front view of a pachinko machine, which is one embodiment of the design. [Figure 2] This is a front view perspective of a pachinko machine, shown with the top tilted forward. [Figure 3] This is a front view of a pachinko machine. [Figure 4] This is a rear view of a pachinko machine. [Figure 5] This is a perspective view showing the door frame, main body frame, and outer frame of a pachinko machine in the open position, with their hinges rotated. [Figure 6] This is a disassembled perspective view of a pachinko machine, showing its main components from the front. [Figure 7] This is a disassembled perspective view of a pachinko machine, showing its main components from the rear. [Figure 8] This is a front view of a pachinko machine with the door frame removed. [Figure 9]It is an exploded perspective view showing the state where the game board is separated from the main body frame in FIG. 8. [Figure 10] It is a front view of the pachinko machine showing the state where the door frame and the game board are removed. [Figure 11] It is a rear view of the pachinko machine in FIG. 10. [Figure 12] It is a perspective view of the pachinko machine in FIG. 10 seen obliquely from the front. [Figure 13] It is an exploded perspective view seen from the front in the state where the outer frame and the main body frame are disassembled. [Figure 14] It is an exploded perspective view seen from the rear in the state where the outer frame and the main body frame are disassembled. [Figure 15] It is a plane sectional view where the outer frame is cut at the center in the vertical direction. [Figure 16] It is a perspective view showing the lower part of the outer frame. [Figure 17] It is an exploded perspective view seen from the front with the main body frame disassembled by each main component. [Figure 18] It is an exploded perspective view seen from the rear with the main body frame disassembled by each main component. [Figure 19] It is a plan view where the pachinko machine in FIG. 10 is cut at the center in the vertical direction. [Figure 20] It is a sectional view cut along the A-A line in FIG. 19. [Figure 21] It is a front view of the main part showing the firing unit and the far unit etc. in section in the front view of FIG. 8. <从这里开始,每个翻译后的文本都保留了原始的7位标签,如 等,未对其进行翻译或修改。 [Figure 22] It is an exploded perspective view seen from the front with the main body frame base unit in the main body frame disassembled by each main component. [Figure 23] It is an exploded perspective view seen from the rear with the main body frame base unit in the main body frame disassembled by each main component. [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 view showing the state where a plurality of main body frame bases are stacked in a perspective view. [Figure 25] (a) is a perspective view of the ball firing unit in the main body frame seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the ball firing unit in the main body frame 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 launch unit cover of the ball launch unit, seen from the left rear, and (b) is an explanatory diagram of the ball launch unit showing only the launch unit cover in cross-section in a front view. [Figure 28] This is a front view of the ball launching unit, with the launch / decrement sensor and launch hammer indicated by dashed lines. [Figure 29] (a) is a perspective view of the foul unit in the main frame, seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the foul unit in the main frame, 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 closed, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit with the foul shutter open. [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, taken from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment, taken 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 closed, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit of the second embodiment with the foul shutter open. [Figure 35] (a) is a perspective view of the circulating sphere path unit in the main frame, seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the circulating sphere path unit in the main frame, seen from the rear. [Figure 36]This is a disassembled perspective view of the circulating sphere pathway unit, seen from the front. [Figure 37] This is an exploded perspective view of the circulating sphere pathway unit, taken from the rear after disassembly. [Figure 38] (a) is a plan view showing only the ball meandering member and ball release shutter in the circulating ball path unit, and (b) is a front perspective view showing only the ball meandering member and ball release shutter in the circulating ball path unit. [Figure 39] (a1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball release shutter and ball meandering 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 release shutter portion in (a1) from the bottom; (b1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball release shutter and ball meandering 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 release 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 a front perspective view showing the lower part of the main frame along with the outer frame with the meandering cover of the circulating sphere path unit removed, and (b) is a rear perspective view showing the lower part of the main frame along with the outer frame with the meandering cover of the circulating sphere path unit removed. [Figure 42] This is a plan view showing the ball meandering member, meandering cover, ball release shutter, and gauge section of the circulating ball path unit. [Figure 43] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged view of the main part of the rear cross-section cut at the location of the out-of-ball sensor in the circulating ball path unit attached to the main frame, with the cover member of the ball release mechanism 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 release shutter with the iron ball magnetically attached to it in the closed position, along with the ball meandering member and the ball release tray; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the ball release shutter with the iron ball magnetically attached to it in the open position, along with the ball meandering member and the ball release tray; and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the ball release shutter with the ball meandering member and the ball release tray, after sliding the ball release shutter from the state in (b) to the closed position, with the iron ball magnetically attached to its lower surface. [Figure 45] (a) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame, seen from the front left; (b) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame, seen from the front right; and (c) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame, seen from the rear. [Figure 46] This is an exploded perspective view of the ball lifting unit, showing the ball lifting unit with the ball motor base and cassette pressing piece opened and the ball cassette removed. [Figure 47] (a) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit without the Kuma cassette installed, (b) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the Kuma motor base and cassette pressing piece open and the Kuma cassette installed, and (c) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the Kuma cassette installed. [Figure 48] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the door frame being closed with the Kuma cassette not fully locked; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the state where the door frame moves from the state in (a) towards closing and the projection of the door frame contacts the tip of the Kuma motor base; and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing the state where the door frame is closed and the Kuma cut is locked from the state in (b). [Figure 49] This is a front view showing a close-up of the main parts with the Kuma cassette removed from the ball lifting unit attached to the main frame. [Figure 50] (a) is a right side view showing the ball lifting mechanism and the main parts of the 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 top view of the main parts of the ball lifting mechanism as seen from arrow A in (b). [Figure 51] This is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the lifting spiral shaft and the polishing cloth in a ball lifting unit. [Figure 52] (a) is a magnified view of the lifting inlet and lifting outlet sensors, and is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit seen from the left rear, while (b) is a plan cross-sectional view of the ball lifting unit cut at the lifting inlet sensor. [Figure 53] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the front and rear sections of a spherical sensor consisting of a photosensor in a spherical passage. [Figure 54] (a) is a perspective view of the Kuma cassette of the ball lifting unit, seen from the front left; (b) is a perspective view of the Kuma cassette, seen from the rear right; and (c) is a right-side cross-sectional view of the Kuma 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 frame, seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the ball-throwing unit in the main frame, seen from the rear. [Figure 56] (a) is an exploded perspective view of the ball-throwing unit as seen from the front, and (b) 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-throwing unit, cut at the pre-launch sensor. [Figure 58] This is a perspective view showing the main frame opened relative to the outer frame, with the back cover and frame circuit board unit also open. [Figure 59] This is an explanatory diagram showing a magnified view of the frame substrate unit portion of the outer frame and main frame. [Figure 60] This is a reference photograph showing the rear of the main frame with the frame circuit board unit open. [Figure 61] This is an explanatory diagram showing the various pathways for the game balls on the rear side of the main frame, viewed from the back. [Figure 62] This is an explanatory diagram illustrating the flow of game balls within the main frame. [Figure 63] This is a block diagram that shows the control configuration of a pachinko machine in general terms. [Figure 64] This is a flowchart showing the launch authorization process. [Figure 65] This is a flowchart showing the process of subtracting the number of balls held. [Figure 66]This is a graph showing the process of adding balls to your hand due to foul balls. [Figure 67] This is a flowchart showing the launch control process. [Figure 68] This is a time chart showing the operation of the launch solenoid and ball-feeding solenoid in the launch sequence. [Figure 69] (a) is a flowchart showing a different launch control process than that in Figure 67, and (b) is a flowchart showing the ball deduction process in the case of the launch control process in (a). [Figure 70] This is a flowchart showing how prize balls are processed. [Figure 71] This is a flowchart showing the operation process of the lifting motor. [Figure 72] This table shows the relationship between the lifting inlet sensor, lifting outlet sensor, and the operation of the lifting motor. [Figure 73] This graph shows the relationship between the launching action of the game ball and the operation of the ball lifting unit. [Figure 74] This graph shows the operation of the ball lifting mechanism in the ball lifting unit. [Figure 75] (a) is a flowchart showing the security process, and (b) is a flowchart showing the security process in a different embodiment from (a). [Figure 76] This table shows the relationship between the circulating ball under-sensor, the circulating ball over-sensor, and error notification. [Figure 77] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the orientation of a magnetic sensor capable of detecting magnetic field lines from a magnet; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the orientation of a magnetic sensor that cannot detect magnetic field lines from a magnet; (c) is an explanatory diagram schematically showing the detection range by the magnetic sensor on the game board using a perspective view; (d) is an explanatory diagram showing the positional relationship between the magnetic sensor and the magnetic material in which magnetic field lines from a magnet cannot be detected; (e) is an explanatory diagram showing the positional relationship between the magnetic sensor and the magnetic material in which magnetic field lines from a magnet can be detected; and (f) is an explanatory diagram showing the magnetic sensor and the holding part separated. [Figure 78] This is an explanatory diagram showing a decorative frame component that can be attached to and removed from a door frame. [Figure 79]This is a front view of the game board, showing the transparent center piece and other elements in an opaque form. [Figure 80] Figure 79 is a perspective view of the game board as seen from the front right. [Figure 81] Figure 79 is a perspective view of the game board seen from the front left. [Figure 82] Figure 79 is a perspective view of the game board from the rear. [Figure 83] Figure 79 is an exploded perspective view of the game board, disassembled into its main components and viewed from the front. [Figure 84] Figure 79 is an exploded perspective view of the game board, disassembled into its main components and viewed from the rear. [Figure 85] This is a front view of the game board, showing the game area through which the game balls circulate, with the front unit cut parallel to the surface of the game panel. [Figure 86] (a) is a perspective view from the front of the assembly of the game board in Figure 79, which includes the front components, game panel, and front unit, and (b) is a perspective view from the rear of the assembly of the game board in Figure 79, which includes the front components, game panel, and front unit. [Figure 87] Figure 86 is a disassembled perspective view of the assembly shown, with its main components separated and viewed from the front. [Figure 88] Figure 86 is a disassembled perspective view of the assembly shown, with its main components separated and viewed from the rear. [Figure 89] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged perspective view of the first information display section of the game board in the aforementioned component; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a cross-section of the first information display section of the game board; (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a perspective view of the first information display section and the first information sticker base separated; and (d) is a perspective view of the first information sticker base with the first information sticker attached, viewed from the front. [Figure 90] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged perspective view of the second information display section of the game board in the aforementioned component; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a cross-section of the second information display section of the game board; (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a disassembled perspective view of the second information display section of the game board and the second information sticker base; and (d) is a perspective view from the front of the second information sticker base to which the second information sticker is attached. [Figure 91] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an enlarged perspective view of the third information display section of the game board in the aforementioned component; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a cross-section of the third information display section of the game board; (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a disassembled perspective view of the third information display section and the third information sticker base; and (d) is a perspective view from the front of the third information sticker base to which the third information sticker is attached. [Figure 92] This is a front-view perspective of the center component of the game board. [Figure 93] This is a perspective view of the center component of the game board, seen from behind. [Figure 94] (a) is a front view of the stage unit in the center mechanism, and (b) is a rear view of the stage unit in the center mechanism. [Figure 95] This is a disassembled perspective view of the stage unit, seen from the front. [Figure 96] This is a disassembled perspective view of the stage unit, seen from the rear. [Figure 97] This is a front view showing a close-up of the main parts of the stage unit. [Figure 98] (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the tar-tar line in Figure 97, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the chi-chi line in Figure 97, (c) is a cross-sectional view taken along the tsu-tsu line in Figure 97, and (d) is a cross-sectional view taken along the te-te line in Figure 97. [Figure 99] (a) to (e) are explanatory diagrams showing various forms of demolding marks. [Figure 100] (a) is a front view of the first member of the center stage unit, which has demolding marks on both the front and rear sides, and a rear view of the first member of the stage unit, which has demolding marks on both the front and rear sides. [Figure 101] (a) is a front view of the second member of the stage unit, in which a demolding mark is provided only on the rear side, and (b) is a rear view of the second member of the stage unit, in which a demolding mark is provided only on the rear side. [Figure 102](a) is a front view of the third member of the stage unit, in which a demolding mark is provided only on the front side, and (b) is a rear view of the third member of the stage unit, in which a demolding mark is provided only on the front side. [Figure 103] (a) is a plan view of the second member, in which the demolding marks are located in a different place than in Figure 101, and (b) is a front view of the third member, in which the demolding marks are located in a different place than in Figure 102. [Figure 104] This is an explanatory diagram illustrating a center component, which has a mold-removal mark on its front side, together with the game board. [Figure 105] This is a front view showing a part of the stage unit of a second embodiment, which differs from Figure 94, etc. [Figure 106] (a) is a perspective view of the stage unit in Figure 105, seen from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the stage unit in (a), seen from the rear. [Figure 107] Figure 105 is an exploded perspective view of the stage unit, taken from the front after disassembly. [Figure 108] Figure 105 is an exploded perspective view of the stage unit, taken from the rear after disassembly. [Figure 109] (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line N-N in Figure 105, (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line N-N in Figure 105, and (c) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line N-N in Figure 105. [Figure 110] This is a front view showing a cutaway portion of the stage unit of a third embodiment, which differs from Figure 105, etc. [Figure 111] This is a partially cutaway front view of the stage unit, showing a section further inside than Figure 110. [Figure 112] This is a partially cutaway front view showing an enlarged view of the main part of Figure 110. [Figure 113] This is a partially cutaway front view showing an enlarged view of a key part, which is a different configuration from Figure 110. [Figure 114] This is a partially cutaway front view showing an enlarged view of a key part, which is a different configuration from Figure 110. [Figure 115]Figure 110 is an exploded perspective view of the stage unit (stage component) as seen from the front after disassembly. [Figure 116] Figure 110 is an exploded perspective view of the stage unit (stage component) as seen from the rear after it has been disassembled. [Figure 117] (a) is the LL line end view in Figure 110, (b) is the MM line end view in Figure 110, and (c) is the NN line end view in Figure 110. [Figure 118] (a) is an end view of line OO in Figure 110, and (b) is an end view of the combined line PpP in Figure 110. [Figure 119] This is the diagram of the QQ line in Figure 110. [Figure 120] This is a front view showing a portion of the stage unit of the fourth embodiment, which differs from Figure 105, etc., with a section cut out. [Figure 121] This is a partially cutaway front view of the stage unit, showing a section further inside than Figure 120. [Figure 122] This is a partially cutaway front view showing an enlarged view of the main part of Figure 120. [Figure 123] This is a partially cutaway front view showing an enlarged view of a key part, which is a different configuration from Figure 120. [Figure 124] This is a partially cutaway front view showing an enlarged view of a key part, which is a different configuration from Figure 120. [Figure 125] Figure 120 is an exploded perspective view of the stage unit (stage component) as seen from the front after disassembly. [Figure 126] Figure 120 is an exploded perspective view of the stage unit (stage component) as seen from the rear after disassembly. [Figure 127] (a) is the LL line end view in Figure 120, (b) is the MM line end view in Figure 120, and (c) is the NN line end view in Figure 120. [Figure 128] (a) is an end view of line OO in Figure 120, and (b) is an end view of the combined line PpP in Figure 120. [Figure 129] This is the diagram of the QQ line in Figure 120. [Figure 130](a) is a perspective view from the front of the third member with the second member positioned on top of it, and (b) is a perspective view from the rear of the third member with the second member positioned on top of it. [Figure 131] (a) is a schematic view of line AA in Figure 130(a), and (b) is a schematic view of line BB in Figure 130(b). [Figure 132] This is a schematic front view showing the second component. [Figure 133] This is a front view of the game board, showing the game board in a state where the first retractable decorative element on the back has been moved from its normal position to an intermediate position between its lower end standby position and its upper end raised position. [Figure 134] This is a front view of the game board, showing the game board in a state where the second rear lifting ornament has been moved from its normal position to an intermediate position between its lower end standby position and its upper end raised position. [Figure 135] This is a block diagram that shows the control configuration of the game board in general terms. [Figure 136] This is a front view showing the game board attached to the main frame, along with the outer frame. [Figure 137] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing a magnified view of the game board locking member provided on the game board in the unlocked position in Figure 136, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the game board locking member in the locked position from the unlocked position in (a). [Figure 138] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the game board locking member provided on the main frame in the unlocked position in Figure 136, magnified, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the game board locking member in the locked position from the unlocked position in (a). [Figure 139] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the game board locking member and the teaching unit in the unlocked position, which is different from Figure 136, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the state from the unlocked position in (a) to the locked position. [Figure 140] This is an exploded perspective view of the game board, showing the front components, function display unit, and game panel separated and viewed from the front. [Figure 141]This is an exploded perspective view of the game board, showing the front components, function display unit, and game panel separated and viewed from the rear. [Figure 142] (a) is a front view of the inner rail unit in the front component, and (b) is a rear view of the inner rail unit in the front component. [Figure 143] (a) is an enlarged explanatory diagram showing the ball backflow prevention unit provided at the tip of the inner rail unit when the backflow prevention member is in the open position, (b) is an enlarged explanatory diagram showing the ball backflow prevention unit provided at the tip of the inner rail unit when the backflow prevention member is in the closed position, (c) is a front view of the backflow prevention member, and (d) is a rear view of the backflow prevention member. [Figure 144] This is an explanatory diagram showing the sticker attachment area and sticker base separated in the aforementioned component, in a perspective view. [Figure 145] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing the disassembled first information display section and first information sticker base of the game board in the aforementioned component, with the demolding marks indicated on each, in a perspective view; and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the relationship between the demolding marks and the protrusions in the first information sticker base in cross-section. [Figure 146] This is a rear view of the certificate base, which serves as a decorative element in the front component. [Figure 147] This is an explanatory diagram showing an exploded perspective view from the rear, with the front components and the function display unit separated, and the area where the function display unit is mounted is shown enlarged together with the function display unit. [Figure 148] (a) is an exploded perspective view of the function display unit as seen from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the function display unit as seen from the rear. [Figure 149] This is a rear view perspective of the first case, which has a demolded area in the LED hole. [Figure 150] This is an explanatory diagram showing the lower back of a pachinko machine where a specific screw section is located. [Figure 151] (a) is an enlarged diagram showing a portion of the lower back of a pachinko machine where multiple specific screw holes are located, and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA in (a). [Figure 152] This is an explanatory diagram showing a pachinko machine installed on the island equipment of a gaming hall, with a wire for an anti-opening device attached to a specific screw part. [Figure 153] (a) is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which a molding mark is provided near a specific screw portion as a specific part, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which a mark is provided near a specific screw portion as a specific part, and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing an example in which a seal is affixed near a specific screw portion as a specific part. [Figure 154] (a) is a rear view of a partition member that constitutes part of the front components of the game board, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a part of the partition member in (a) together with a transparent game panel in a perspective view from the rear, and (c) is an explanatory diagram schematically showing the relationship between the partition member and the game panel in cross-section. [Figure 155] (a) is a schematic cross-sectional diagram illustrating an example in which no separate member is provided inside the recess in the partition member of Figure 154, and (b) is a schematic cross-sectional diagram illustrating an example in which a separate member is provided inside the recess, in contrast to (a). [Figure 156] (a) is a schematic cross-sectional diagram illustrating the relationship between a partition member having a step between the outer wall and the inner wall and the reinforced wall and a game panel; (b) is a schematic cross-sectional diagram illustrating the relationship between a partition member having an outer wall that extends to the rear and no step between the inner wall and the reinforced wall and a game panel; and (c) is a schematic cross-sectional diagram illustrating the relationship between a partition member having an outer wall that extends to the rear and a step between the inner wall and the reinforced wall and a game panel. [Figure 157] (a) is a schematic diagram illustrating the relationship between a partition member, which constitutes part of the front components of the game board, and the game panel in cross-section; (b) is a diagram showing (a) from the rear; and (c) is a diagram showing a part of the partition member from the rear in a perspective view. [Figure 158](a) is an explanatory diagram showing a portion of a partition member with a specific non-contact portion of a different form than that shown in Figure 157, viewed from the rear; (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a portion of a partition member with a specific contact portion of a different form than that shown in Figure 157, viewed from the rear; and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a portion of a partition member with the specific non-contact portion of (a) and the specific contact portion of (b), viewed from the rear. [Figure 159] (a) is a schematic cross-sectional diagram showing a partition member having a step between the outer wall, the inner wall, and the reinforced wall, and (b) is a diagram showing (a) from the rear. [Figure 160] (a) is a schematic cross-sectional diagram showing a partition member in which the outer wall extends to the rear and there is no step between the inner wall and the reinforced wall, and (b) is a diagram showing (a) from the rear. [Figure 161] (a) is a rear view of the game board, including some of the harness components, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a magnified view of the main parts of (a). [Figure 162] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the relationship between the circuit board and multiple harness components. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] [1. Overall structure of a pachinko machine] A pachinko machine 1, which is 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 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 7. Figure 1 is a front view of the pachinko machine, which is one embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 is a front perspective view of the pachinko machine with the top tilted forward. Figure 3 is a perspective view of the pachinko machine from the front, and Figure 4 is a rear view of the pachinko machine. Figure 5 is a perspective view showing the door frame, main body frame, and outer frame that constitute the pachinko machine, each in an open state with their hinges rotated. Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view of the pachinko machine, disassembled into its main components and viewed from the front, and Figure 7 is an exploded perspective view of the pachinko machine, disassembled into its main components and viewed from the rear.

[0012] The pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment is used by being installed in island facilities in amusement halls. This pachinko machine 1 is a so-called sealed-type or managed-type amusement machine in which a large number (for example, 40 to 60) of game balls B are sealed inside without being discharged to the outside or supplied from the outside, and circulate within the machine so that players do not come into contact with the game balls B. In this pachinko machine 1, the number of balls a player has is recorded and handled as ball data.

[0013] The game ball B enclosed in pachinko machine 1 has the same diameter (hereinafter also referred to as diameter D; diameter D = 11 mm) as the game balls used in conventional pachinko machines, but is made of a non-magnetic stainless steel such as SUS304. This prevents game ball B from rusting even if it is enclosed in pachinko machine 1 for a long period of time, and distinguishes it from conventional magnetic game balls (iron ball SB).

[0014] The pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment comprises a frame-shaped outer frame 2 installed on an island (not shown) in a gaming hall, a door frame 3 that can open and close the front of the outer frame 2, a main body frame 4 that can open and close the door frame 3 and is also attached to the outer frame 2 in an open and closed manner, and a game board 5 that can be detachably attached to the main body frame 4 from the front and is visible to the player through the door frame 3, and has a game area 5a where the player puts game balls B into.

[0015] [2. Outer frame] The outer frame 2 of the pachinko machine 1 will be explained mainly with reference to Figures 8 to 16, etc. 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 in Figure 8 with the game board separated from the main frame. 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 from the front at an angle. Figure 13 is an exploded perspective view from the front with the outer frame and main frame separated, and Figure 14 is an exploded perspective view from the rear with the outer frame and main frame separated. Figure 15 is a plan cross-sectional view of the outer frame cut in 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 island equipment in a gaming hall (not shown), and the main frame 4 can be attached to it in a way that allows it to be opened and closed forward and to be detached. The outer frame 2 comprises an outer frame body 10 formed in a vertically elongated frame shape, an outer frame assembly fitting 20 to which the outer frame body 10 is assembled, an outer frame hinge mechanism 30 that supports the main frame 4 so that it can be opened and closed, an outer frame lock fitting (not shown) for locking the main frame 4 in the closed position, a fascia plate 45 attached to the lower frame body 14 of the outer frame body 10, and a sliding plate 46 attached to the upper surface of the fascia plate 45.

[0017] The outer frame body 10 comprises a left frame body 11 and a right frame body 12 that extend vertically and are spaced apart from each other to the left and right, 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 profile 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-back direction.

[0018] The outer frame assembly fitting 20 includes a left upper fitting that connects the left frame body 11 and the upper frame body 13, a right upper fitting that connects the right frame body 12 and the upper frame body 13, a left lower fitting that connects the left frame body 11 and the lower frame body 14, and a right lower fitting that connects the right frame body 12 and the lower frame body 14. The left lower fitting is also used as the outer frame lower hinge body 35.

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

[0020] The upper outer frame hinge body 31 of the outer frame hinge mechanism 30 is attached to the upper left end surface of the upper frame body 13, with its front end protruding forward from the outer frame body 10. The upper outer frame hinge body 31 has a bearing groove 31a that penetrates vertically and is open on one side in the portion that protrudes forward from the outer frame body 10, and a locking member 32 provided on the lower surface of the portion that protrudes forward from the outer frame body 10, which can open and close the open portion of the bearing groove 31a.

[0021] The bearing groove 31a of the outer frame upper hinge body 31 allows the main frame hinge shaft 511a of the main frame upper hinge body 511 on the main frame 4 to be supported by inserting it into the open portion of the bearing groove 31a. In its normal state, the locking member 32 of the outer frame upper hinge body 31 is in a locked position, closing the open portion of the bearing groove 31a by 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 into 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 the upper left end surface of the skirting board 45 at the portion that overlaps with the lower frame body 14 (the upper portion), and its front end protrudes forward from the outer frame body 10. The lower outer frame hinge body 35 has a hinge shaft 35a that protrudes upward from the portion that protrudes forward from the outer frame body 10. By inserting the hinge shaft 35a of the lower outer frame hinge body 35 into the outer frame shaft hole (not shown) of the lower main frame hinge body 512 in the main 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 in an openable and closable manner by pivoting the main frame hinge shaft 511a of the main frame upper hinge body 511 on the main frame 4 into 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] The outer frame lock fittings for the outer frame 2 are provided in two, spaced vertically apart, on the inner surface (left side) of the right frame body 12. The outer frame lock fittings engage with the outer frame lock claws 784 of the lock unit 780 on the main frame 4, thereby locking the main frame 4 to the outer frame 2 in a closed state, preventing it from being opened.

[0025] The fascia board 45 of the outer frame 2 is attached to the lower frame body 14, with its front end protruding forward from the lower frame body 14. The fascia board 45 is made of synthetic resin. Two sliding plates 46 are provided on the upper surface of the fascia board 45, spaced apart on the left and right. The sliding plates 46 come into contact with 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 with low frictional resistance, making the main frame 4 slide easily and facilitating opening and closing.

[0026] To describe the fascia board 45 in more detail, the fascia board 45 has a fascia board body 45a formed to cover the portion of the upper end surface of the lower frame body 14 that is in front of the center in the front-to-back 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 fascia board 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 fascia board body 45a.

[0027] The hinge body cover portion 45b of the skirting board 45 is provided to cover the lower surface and sides of the lower outer frame hinge body 35. This prevents players, maintenance workers, transporters, and installation workers from directly touching the lower outer frame hinge body 35 when they reach near it, thus preventing injuries from the edges of the lower outer frame hinge body 35.

[0028] Furthermore, the hinge body cover portion 45b covers the bottom and sides of the lower outer frame hinge body 35, thus concealing the lower outer frame hinge body 35 from the player's perspective and enhancing the sense of unity with the fascia board 45 (fascia board body 45a), thereby improving the overall appearance.

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

[0030] As shown in Figures 15 and 16, the guide display section 45d of the skirting board 45 is provided so as to protrude backward from the rear edge of the upper surface of the skirting board body 45a, and extends from the rear part of the left sliding plate 46 to the rear part of the right sliding plate 46 in the left-right direction. The guide display section 45d has an arrow pointing to the left near the left end and an arrow pointing to the right near the right end, and the words "!Protrusion of fixing nails and fixing fittings prohibited in this area!" are displayed between the two arrows. These arrows and words are engraved by a mold used for injection molding the skirting board 45.

[0031] The guidance display section 45d is positioned so as not to come into contact with the main frame 4, which is openable and closable relative to the outer frame 2. This guidance display section 45d is intended to alert workers when installing the pachinko machine 1 into the island equipment of a gaming hall. Specifically, when fixing the lower frame body 14 of the outer frame 2 to the island equipment with mounting screws (not shown in the illustration), it is intended to alert workers to ensure that the heads of the mounting screws do not protrude above the guidance display section 45d within the range indicated on the guidance display section 45d. By fixing the outer frame 2 with mounting screws in accordance with this warning, 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 the mounting screws will not interfere with the main frame 4.

[0032] This guide display section 45d makes it possible to prevent the mounting screws that secure the outer frame 2 from interfering with the main frame 4, thus preventing damage to the main frame 4 due to interference from the mounting screws. In addition, the guide display section 45d serves as a marker for the amount of mounting screws to be driven in to secure the outer frame 2, eliminating the need to open and close the main frame 4 while driving in the mounting screws to prevent interference, thus improving work efficiency.

[0033] Furthermore, because it has a guide display section 45d, when checking the fixing status of the outer frame 2 to the island equipment, the guide display section 45d can be used as a guide to easily visually check the condition of the mounting screws.

[0034] Furthermore, since the guide display section 45d, which indicates the fixing range of the mounting screws, is integrally molded with the main body 45a of the skirting board, the guide display section 45d can be provided on the outer frame 2 simply by attaching the main body 45a of the skirting board to the lower frame 14 and assembling it with the outer frame 2, thereby reducing costs compared to the case where the guide display section 45d is provided separately.

[0035] In the above embodiment, the guide display section 45d protruding rearward from the rear end of the fascia body 45a is shown as extending continuously in the left-right direction from the leftmost arrow to the rightmost arrow. However, it is not limited to this configuration, and it is also possible to have a configuration where only the portions indicated by the left and right arrows protrude rearward from the rear end of the fascia body 45a.

[0036] Furthermore, although the above embodiment shows that the guide display portion 45d is engraved during the injection molding of the fascia board 45, the invention is not limited to this, and the guide display portion 45d may also be provided by attaching a sticker, printing, or painting.

[0037] Furthermore, although the above embodiment shows a guide display section 45d provided on the skirting board 45, it is not limited to this, and may also be provided on the lower frame 14 or the sliding plate 46, etc. If the guide display section 45d is provided on the lower frame 14, for example, a sticker may be attached, an ink stamp may be pressed, or a brand may be pressed. If the guide display section 45d is provided on the sliding plate 46, for example, a recessed mark may be made 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 that extends vertically when viewed from the front and is approximately the same size as the inside of the outer frame 2, and is attached to the inside of the outer frame 2 from the front via the main frame 4 so as to be openable and closable. The door frame 3 is provided with the main frame 4 so as to be openable and closable and has a game window 101 that, when closed, faces forward to the game area 5a of the game board 5 attached to the main frame 4, a transparent glass 120 that is detachably attached to the rear side of the door frame 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 circumference of the handle 160, and a counting button switch 180 that the player can operate.

[0039] Furthermore, the door frame 3 includes a door frame panel 190 that extends from the lower end at a constant height across the entire width in the left-right direction on the front of the door frame body 100, a shelf unit 200 that protrudes forward in the area between the game window 101 and the door frame panel 190 on the front of the door frame body 100, and a performance operation unit 250 that is located in the left-right center of the shelf unit 200 and can be operated by the player. The ball count display unit 140 and the counting button switch 180 are located on the upper surface of the shelf unit 200 (the upper surface of the shelf section 201).

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

[0041] The door frame body 100 has a door frame hinge mechanism 110 for attaching it to the main frame 4 so as to be openable and closable. The door frame hinge mechanism 110 has an upper door frame hinge body 111 (see Figure 6) provided at the upper left end of the door frame body 100 and a lower door frame hinge body 112 provided at the lower left end of the door frame 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 upper hinge shaft 111a of the upper hinge body 111 into the upper shaft hole 511b for the door frame of the main frame upper hinge body 511 (described later) from below, and inserting the lower hinge shaft 112a of the lower hinge body 112 into the lower shaft hole 512b for the door frame of the main frame lower hinge body 512 (described later) from above.

[0042] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 5 and 7, the door frame body 100 has a projection 102 that protrudes rearward from near the lower end on its rear surface. When the door frame 3 is closed against the main frame 4, the lower surface of this projection 102 contacts the support step 501q of the main frame base 501 of the main frame 4, which will be described later, allowing the door frame 3 to be lifted to a certain extent. With this projection 102, the door frame 3 is lifted when it is closed against the main frame 4, so the load of the door frame 3 can be distributed between the projection 102 and the lower door frame hinge body 112. This prevents excessive load from being continuously applied to the hinges (lower door frame hinge body 112 and lower outer frame hinge body 35) that enable the door frame 3 to open and close, making the hinges less prone to distortion. Even if the hinges are distorted, the projection 102 can lift the door frame 3, allowing the door frame 3 to be closed in the correct position relative to the main frame 4. Although not shown in the diagram, the lower surface of the projection 102 has multiple ribs extending in the front-rear direction, and these ribs enhance its strength and rigidity.

[0043] The projection 102 has a guide surface 102a that is inclined to move to the left as it moves towards the rear. As will be described in detail later, the guide surface 102a of the projection 102 is such that when the ball lifting unit 650 is in a position other than the locked position and the door frame 3 is about to be closed against the main frame 4, the front end of the ball lifting unit 650 makes contact with the guide surface 102a, causing the ball lifting unit 650 to move (rotate) to the locked position.

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

[0045] The handle 160 is located at the lower right corner of the front surface of the door frame body 100, that is, near the right end between the game window 101 and the door frame panel 190 on the front surface of the door frame body 100. The handle 160 is mounted so that it can be rotated by the player with its axis of rotation facing the front-to-back direction. The handle 160 is formed in a shape similar to a car steering wheel and has a central hub portion 160a, a plurality (three in this case) of spoke portions 160b extending outward from the hub portion 160a, and an annular ring portion 160c connecting the ends of the spoke portions 160b.

[0046] The ring portion 160c of the handle 160 is located 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 the player rotates the handle 160, they mainly operate it while gripping the hub portion 160a with their fingers passing between the spoke portions 160b. In this state, the player's fingers are inserted into the cylinder of the handle cover 170.

[0047] The handle 160 is equipped with a firing 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 having to reverse the rotation of the handle 160. After that, if the player releases the pressure on the launch stop switch 161 while keeping the rotation of the handle 160 in place, the game ball B can be launched into the game area 5a again with the same force as before the launch stop switch 161 was pressed (the force corresponding to the rotation of the handle 160).

[0049] The handle touch sensor 162 detects static electricity acting on the handle 160. When a player touches the handle 160, the sensor detects the static electricity acting from the player and detects the player's contact (touch) with the handle 160. When the handle touch sensor 162 detects the player's contact, and the player rotates the handle 160, the detection by the handle rotation sensor 163 is received, and the drive of the launch solenoid is controlled with a strength corresponding to the rotation angle of the handle 160, allowing the game ball B to be launched.

[0050] Therefore, even if a player attempts to rotate the handle 160 in some way without touching the handle 160 to launch the game ball B into the game area 5a, the launch solenoid 553 will not be driven because the handle touch sensor 162 does not detect the player's contact, and the game ball B cannot be launched. This prevents players from rotating the handle 160 in a way that is not intended, thereby reducing the load (burden) on the gaming 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 shaft rotates and the internal resistance changes according to the rotation angle of the detection shaft. Therefore, when the handle 160 is rotated and the internal resistance of the handle rotation sensor 163 is changed, the driving force of the launch solenoid 553 in the ball launching unit 550 (described later) changes according to that internal resistance, and the game ball B can be launched into the game area 5a with a strength corresponding to the rotation angle of the handle 160.

[0052] The handle cover 170 extends backward from the rear of the annular portion of the handle 160, widening in diameter, and is formed in a conical shape. Openings 171 that communicate with the interior are provided on the right and lower outer surfaces of the handle cover 170. These openings 171 allow any dirt, liquids, etc. that enter the handle cover 170 to be discharged downward.

[0053] The counting button switch 180 is located on the upper surface of the shelf unit 200, to the right of the center in the left-right direction. As will be described in detail later, when the counting button switch 180 is pressed while there are balls in the player's possession, the player can send the balls to the game ball dispensing device 8 for settlement.

[0054] The door frame fascia 190 extends to the left and right at a constant height and to the same length as the width of the door frame body 100 in the left-right direction, and is attached to the lower end of the front of the door frame body 100. The door frame fascia 190 penetrates from front to back through the center in the left-right direction and has a duct grille 191 located in front of the bass reflex duct 501e of the main frame 4, which will be described later. The duct grille 191 extends long and narrow to the left and right and is partitioned by multiple vertical bars. As will be described in detail later, this duct grille 191 is for releasing air vibrations (wind) caused by the drive of the main frame speaker 503 from the bass reflex duct 501e of the main frame 4 forward.

[0055] The shelf unit 200 is installed in the area between the game window 101 and the door frame panel 190 on the front of the door frame body 100. A spherical performance control unit 250 is installed in the center of the shelf unit 200 in the left-right direction. The shelf unit 200 has a shelf section 201 that bulges forward in a shelf shape from the top end along the bottom end of the game window 101, a speaker grille 203 installed below the shelf section 201 and to the right of the performance control unit 250, a setting adjustment button 204 consisting of four push buttons arranged front-to-back and left-to-right on the top surface of the shelf section 201, and a pair of protrusions 205 installed spaced apart on the left and right. The setting adjustment button 204 allows for volume adjustment by operating the front and rear push buttons, and light intensity adjustment by operating the left and right push buttons.

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

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

[0058] The speaker grille 203 is located in front of the main frame speaker 503 in the main frame 4, which will be described later, and is made of perforated metal with multiple through holes. The speaker grille 203 is provided symmetrically with the handle 160 and of the same size, with the center of the door frame 3 as the dividing line, and is formed in a shape that bulges forward, similar to the handle cover 170.

[0059] The performance control unit 250 is located in the center of the shelf unit 200 in the left-right direction, with its front end protruding forward of the shelf unit 200 and its upper end protruding upward of the shelf unit 200. The performance control unit 250 is formed in a spherical shape. The performance control unit 250 has a circular first performance button 251 located near the center of its upper surface, and an annular second performance button 252 located around the first performance button 251. Although detailed illustrations are 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 located coaxially, and their axes are inclined to move forward as they move upward.

[0060] The first and second performance buttons 251 and 252 are designed to move upward (pop up) in response to player-participation performances. The first performance button 251 can be pressed at any time, while the second performance button 252 can only be pressed when it has popped up.

[0061] Although not shown in the diagram, a vibrator (vibration device) is installed inside the first performance button 251.

[0062] The door frame top unit 300 is located on the front of the door frame body 100, above the game window 101, and is positioned so that both ends in the left-right direction are sandwiched between the upper ends 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 an overhang. 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. In a plan view, the door frame top decorative body 301 is curved in the front-back direction so that its left-right center is located furthest forward.

[0063] The door frame top unit 300, although not shown in the illustration, includes a door frame top decorative substrate on which multiple LEDs are mounted for illuminating the door frame top decorative body 301; a pair of door frame top speakers 303 that output sounds such as voice, music, and sound effects and are spaced apart on the left and right sides; and a pair of door frame top side speakers 304 that are located on the left and right outer sides 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 left side unit 320 of the door frame is located on the front of the main door frame 100, to the left of the game window 101, and extends vertically from near the top of the main door frame 100 to near the speaker grille 203, below the shelf portion 201 of the shelf unit 200. The left side unit 320 extends along its entire vertical length and is equipped with a translucent, semi-tubular left side decorative element 321. The left side decorative element 321 curves to the right near its lower end.

[0065] The left side unit 320 of the door frame, although not shown in the illustration, has a left side decorative circuit board on which multiple LEDs are mounted for illuminating the left side decorative element 321 of the door frame.

[0066] The right side unit 340 of the door frame is located to the right of the game window 101 on the front of the main door frame 100, and extends vertically from near the top of the main door frame 100 to the handle cover 170 below the shelf section 201 of the shelf unit 200. The right side unit 340 of the door frame protrudes further forward than the left side unit 320 of the door frame and is formed in a vertically elongated partition shape.

[0067] The right side unit of the door frame 340 includes a semi-tubular door frame right side decorative body 341 that extends vertically along its front end and is translucent; a translucent door frame right side left side decorative body (not shown) located behind the door frame right side decorative body 341 and forming the left side; a translucent door frame right side decorative body (not shown) located behind the door frame right side decorative body 341 and forming the right side; and a door frame right side decorative substrate (not shown) on which multiple LEDs are mounted to illuminate the door frame right side decorative body 341, the door frame right side left side decorative body, and the door frame right side right side decorative body. The door frame right side decorative body 341 is curved to the left near its lower end.

[0068] Furthermore, the right side unit 340 of the door frame extends forward and backward near its lower end and has an opening 342 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 upper surface of the shelf unit 200, to the right of the center in the left-right direction. When the counting button switch 180 is pressed while there are balls remaining (number of balls > 0), the balls are sent to the game ball dispensing device 8 for settlement. As will be described in detail later, the counting button switch 180 can send balls one by one or in predetermined numbers (for example, every 250 balls) depending on the pressing time. The number of balls sent to the game ball dispensing device 8 is sent to the management server 9 via the communication network, and an IC card storing that number of balls is ejected from the game ball dispensing device 8.

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

[0071] To elaborate on the counting button switch 180, if a player has balls and "short-presses" the counting button switch 180 (for example, a single press duration of less than 500ms), one game ball B is counted from the player's balls. If the counting button switch 180 is "long-pressed" (for example, a single press duration of 500ms or more), 250 game balls B are counted at predetermined time intervals (for example, 300ms) while the switch is long-pressed until the number of balls held falls below 250. Once the number of balls held falls below 250 while the switch is long-pressed, game balls B are counted one at a time. Alternatively, if the counting button switch 180 is "long-pressed" (for example, a single press duration of 500ms or more), the entire number of balls held may be counted unconditionally, even if the counter is not continuously pressed.

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

[0073] [4. Main frame] The main frame 4 of the pachinko machine 1 will be described in detail with reference to Figures 8 to 14, Figures 17 to 21, etc. Figure 17 is an exploded perspective view of the main frame as seen from the front, disassembled into its main components, and Figure 18 is an exploded perspective view of the main frame as seen from the rear, disassembled into its main components. Figure 19 is a plan view of the pachinko machine of Figure 10 cut in the center vertically. Figure 20 is a cross-sectional view taken along the 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 and foul unit, etc., in cross-section.

[0074] The main frame 4 is formed in the shape of a box with an open front, and the game board 5 is detachably housed inside from the front. The main frame 4 is attached to the outer frame 2, which is a frame-shaped structure attached to the island equipment of the gaming hall, at the top and bottom of the front left side of the main frame 4 so as to be openable and closable, and a door frame 3 is attached so as to be openable and closable so as to close the open front side.

[0075] The main frame 4 comprises a frame-shaped main frame base unit 500 that is openable and closable with respect to the outer frame 2, a ball launching unit 550 for launching game balls B into the game area 5a of the game board 5, a foul unit 570 for recovering game balls B that were launched by the ball launching unit 550 but did not land in 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 recovered by the foul unit 570 to the ball launching unit 550, a ball lifting unit 650 for moving game balls B upward from the downstream end of the circulating ball path unit 600, and a ball delivery unit 700 for sending the game balls B lifted by the ball lifting unit 650 one by one to the ball launching unit 550.

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

[0077] [4-1. Main frame base unit] The main frame base unit 500 in the main 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 frame base unit in the main frame, disassembled into its main components and viewed from the front, and Figure 23 is an exploded perspective view of the main frame base unit in the main frame, disassembled into its main components and viewed from the rear. Figure 24(a) is a front view of the main frame base in the main frame base unit, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which multiple main frame bases are stacked in a perspective view.

[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 fitted with a ball launching unit 550, a foul unit 570, a circulating ball path unit 600, a ball lifting unit 650, a ball delivery unit 700, a ball receiving tray 720, a frame base unit 730, a lock unit 780, and the like.

[0079] The main frame base unit 500 comprises a main frame base 501 which is formed as a vertically elongated rectangle and has a game board insertion section 502 into which the game board 5 is inserted from the front, and a base wall section 501b 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] Furthermore, the main frame base unit 500 includes a main frame speaker 503 attached to the rear side of the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501, a box-shaped main frame speaker box 504 attached to the base wall portion 501b so as to cover the main frame speaker 503 from the rear and with the front open, and a rear cover 505 provided so as to be able to open and close the game board insertion portion 502 of the main frame base 501 from the rear.

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

[0082] The main frame base 501 is formed in a vertically elongated rectangular shape when viewed from the front. The main frame base 501 is made of black opaque synthetic resin. The main frame base 501 comprises a frame-shaped frame body 501a without a left side, a game board insertion section 502 that penetrates the frame of the frame body 501a from near the upper end downwards for a range of approximately 2 / 3 of the total height, a base wall section 501b provided below the game board insertion section 502, a game board regulating section 501c that protrudes upward (into the game board insertion section 502) near the center in the left-right direction on the upper end surface of the base wall section 501b, a main frame speaker opening 501d that penetrates the base wall section 501b from front to back near the left end and through which the main frame speaker 503 faces forward, and a bass reflex duct 501e that is horizontally elongated and penetrates the base wall section 501b from front to back near the lower end of the center in the left-right direction.

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

[0084] Furthermore, the main frame base 501 includes a foul unit mounting section 501h and a ball launching unit mounting section 501i, which are provided side by side on the left and right above the ball storage passage insertion opening 501g on the front surface of the base wall section 501b; a ball lifting unit mounting section 501j, which is provided to the right of the ball launching unit mounting section 501i on the base wall section 501b; a ball delivery unit mounting section 501k, which is provided on the rear surface of the base wall section 501b in the area behind the ball launching unit mounting section 501i; a circulating ball path unit mounting section 501l, which is provided on the rear surface of the base wall section 501b; and a cylinder insertion opening 501m, which penetrates from front to back near the upper right corner of the base wall section 501b and through which the lock cylinder 781 of the lock unit 780 is inserted.

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

[0086] Furthermore, the main frame base 501 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 end edge of the upper cover 502a, a left side cover 502c extending rearward from the left end of the game board insertion section 502 with 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 with 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] Furthermore, the main frame base 501 includes a plurality of ventilation holes 502f that penetrate the rear cover 502b, a plurality of upper recesses 502g provided in the upper cover 502a that are recessed downward, a plurality of lower recesses 502h provided in the lower cover 502e that are 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, the main frame base 501 is provided above the ball launching unit mounting portion 501i and further includes a canopy portion 501p to block light from entering the ball launching unit 550 from above. This canopy portion 501p blocks external light from reaching the launch / subtraction sensor 554, which consists of a photosensor of the ball launching unit 550 attached to the ball launching unit mounting portion 501i, thereby preventing false detections by the launch / subtraction sensor 554.

[0089] Furthermore, the main frame base 501 includes a support step portion 501q located between the tray insertion recess 501f and the opening 501o, slightly above the bottom surface of the tray insertion recess 501f, and a pair of support protrusions 501r located vertically separated near the right end of the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b, projecting backward. The support step portion 501q has an upward-facing surface (top surface). When the door frame 3 is closed against the main frame 4, the projection 102 of the door frame 3 comes into contact with this support step portion 501q so as to ride up, allowing the door frame 3 to be lifted to a certain extent, thus supporting a portion of the load of the door frame 3. The rear end surface of the support protrusion 501r is provided with a locking hole into which the Nylatch 774 of the frame base plate unit 730 is locked.

[0090] The game board insertion section 502 of the main frame base 501 is into which the game board 5 is detachably inserted from the front. The area of ​​the game board insertion section 502 that is rearward from the base wall section 501b is surrounded by the top cover 502a, the left side cover 502c, the right side cover 502d, and the bottom cover 502e.

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

[0092] The game board restrictor section 501c restricts the movement of the game board 5 in the left-right and rearward directions when the game board 5 is inserted into the game board insertion section 502. The main body frame speaker opening 501d is formed in a grid shape as shown in the figure, and is positioned behind the speaker grille 203 of the door frame 3 when the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main body frame 4. The main body frame speaker 503 is mounted on the rear surface of the base wall section 501b so as to close the main body frame speaker opening 501d from the rear.

[0093] The bass reflex duct 501e is formed in a rectangular cylindrical shape that is long from left to right. As will be described in detail later, the bass reflex duct 501e communicates with the enclosure 504a of the main frame speaker 503, which is composed of the base wall 501b and the main frame speaker box 504, and is intended to invert the phase of the sound output from the main frame speaker 503 to the rear and release it forward. In this embodiment, the cylindrical bass reflex duct 501e makes it possible to resonate and amplify the low-frequency range of the sound output from the main frame speaker 503, thereby producing a deeper bass sound. This bass reflex duct 501e is provided so as to be located 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 support the ball receiving tray 720 in a removable manner from the front. The bottom wall of the tray insertion recess 501f is sloped so that the front end is lower (see Figure 20). This allows game balls B to be discharged forward even if they spill into the tray insertion recess 501f when the ball receiving tray 720 is not inserted into it. In addition, because the bottom wall of the tray insertion recess 501f is sloped so that the front end is lower, the ball receiving tray 720 placed on it can be easily slid forward.

[0095] The ball storage passage insertion port 501g is provided so that the front portions of the ball meandering member 613 and meandering cover 614 of the circulating ball path unit 600, which are attached to the rear surface of the base wall portion 501b, pass through and protrude forward. The foul unit mounting portion 501h is provided near the upper end of the base wall portion 501b and to the right of the main frame speaker opening 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 the area between the upper end and lower end of the base wall portion 501b.

[0096] The ball-feeding unit mounting section 501k is provided on the rear surface of the base wall section 501b such that the upper surface of the ball-feeding unit 700 faces upward (into the game board insertion section 502), and is designed to allow the ball-feeding unit 700 to be attached and detached from above. When the ball-feeding unit 700 is attached to the ball-feeding unit mounting section 501k, the elastic claw 709b of the ball-feeding unit 700 penetrates the locking hole in the base wall section 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, and the knob 709a provided on the upper surface of the ball-feeding unit 700 is grasped and pulled up, allowing the ball-feeding unit 700 to be removed upward.

[0097] The circulating ball path unit mounting section 501l is located in the central left-right portion of the rear surface of the base wall section 501b, above the box extension section 504c of the main frame speaker box 504, which will be described later. The cylinder insertion port 501m is located near the upper end of the base wall section 501b, to the right of the ball lifting unit mounting section 501j.

[0098] The top cover 502a extends rearward from the game board 5 when the game board 5 is installed in the game board insertion section 502. As shown in Figures 17 and 18, the top cover 502a has two upper recesses 502g spaced apart to the left and right, and these upper recesses 502g allow for the omission of some of the reinforcing ribs relative to the top cover 502a. This configuration allows the top cover 502a to be positioned higher than when multiple reinforcing ribs are arranged in a row in the left-right direction on the top surface of the top cover, thereby securing the internal volume of the game board insertion section 502. Furthermore, if multiple reinforcing ribs are provided on the top surface of the top cover, residue may remain when cleaning, impairing the aesthetic appearance. However, in this embodiment, the aesthetic appearance can be maintained by eliminating the reinforcing ribs 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 so that they become lower towards the rear at an angle of approximately 2 degrees relative to the horizontal plane. Furthermore, the pachinko machine 1 is usually installed tilted backward, and the angle of backward tilt is generally about 0.75 degrees, resulting in a total downward slope of approximately 2.75 degrees. In addition, the width of the two top recesses 502g increases from left to right as they move towards the rear.

[0100] By creating such a gentle slope, the game balls B falling from above the pachinko machine 1 flow down the upper surface of the upper cover 502a or the upper recess 502g and fall into the game ball collection path of the island equipment located below the pachinko machine 1, where they are collected. In addition, falling objects such as metal powder and non-spherical objects such as screws accumulate on the upper surface of the upper cover 502a or the upper recess 502g. To achieve this effect, it is desirable that the slope of the upper surface of the upper cover 502a from the horizontal plane be within 15 degrees.

[0101] Since the top cover 502a is formed in a flat shape, the lower surface (back surface) of the two upper recesses 502g that are recessed from above in the top cover 502a protrudes downward from the lower surface of the top cover 502a (see Figure 24(b)). In other words, the upper recesses 502g have the form of convex parts that protrude downward on the lower surface of the top cover 502a. The endpoints of the two upper recesses 502g, i.e., the front walls, are the back surfaces of the abutment surfaces 502j, and the abutment surfaces 502j are in contact with the rear surface of the upper edge of the game board 5 to perform positioning.

[0102] In other words, the back side (bottom side) of the top cover 502a has the back sides of the two top recesses 502g. The front ends of the back sides of the two top recesses 502g are abutment surfaces 502j that contact the rear surface of the top edge of the game board 5 to position the game board 5.

[0103] On the underside (bottom side) of the top cover 502a, there are four of the multiple reinforcing ribs 502i, which, together with the top recess 502g, reinforce the top cover 502a. By placing the reinforcing ribs 502i on the inner bottom side of the top cover 502a rather than the top surface, it is possible to maintain the aesthetic appearance of the top (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. However, the area above these ribs 502k is covered by the frame 501a of the edge of the main frame base 501, and further above that is covered by the outer frame 2. Therefore, metal powder and other debris will not fall from above, and the aesthetic appearance will not be affected.

[0105] Furthermore, although not shown in the diagram, the upper surface of the upper cover 502a and the upper recess 502g do not have gates for injecting molten resin during injection molding. This is to prevent the gates from creating irregularities that would obstruct the flow of the game balls B down the upper surface of the upper cover 502a and the upper recess 502g.

[0106] Furthermore, care has been taken to avoid leaving ejector pin marks on the upper surface of the upper cover 502a or the upper recess 502g, which are used to remove the injection-molded main frame base 501 from the mold. Normally, ejector pin marks are unlikely to obstruct the flow of the game balls B if the burrs are properly removed, but they may impair the aesthetics when cleaning the upper surface of the upper cover 502a or the upper recess 502g where metal powder or other debris may have accumulated. For this reason, care has been taken to avoid leaving ejector pin marks.

[0107] The rear cover 502b of the main frame base 501 is connected at both the left and right ends to the left side cover 502c and the right side cover 502d, respectively. Multiple vertically elongated slit-shaped ventilation holes 502f are arranged in a row in the left-right direction on this rear cover 502b.

[0108] Furthermore, the left side cover 502c of the main frame base 501 has the same depth in the front-to-back direction as the top cover 502a. In a plan view, the left side cover 502c is inclined to the right as it moves towards the rear. At the rear end of the left side cover 502c, there are two cover locking parts 502l that are spaced apart vertically for locking the back cover 505.

[0109] The right side cover 502d of the main frame base 501 is inclined in a plan view so as it moves to the left as it approaches the rear. The portion of the right side cover 502d below the rear cover 502b is cut out from the rear end toward the front, and the rear end of this portion is located in front of the rear end of the top cover 502a. In other words, the right side cover 502d is formed with a shorter depth in the portion below the rear cover 502b. At the rear end of the right side cover 502d, in the portion below the rear cover 502b, there are multiple cover pivot supports 502m provided at vertical intervals to support the back cover 505 so as to be hinge-rotatable.

[0110] The lower cover 502e of the main frame base 501 extends rearward from a point one step higher than the lower end of the game board insertion section 502 (the upper surface of the base wall section 501b). The lower cover 502e is provided so as not to exceed the portion above the ball circulation path unit mounting section 501l. To the left of the ball circulation path unit mounting section 501l, it extends rearward to the same position as the rear end of the left side cover 502c, and to the right of the ball circulation path unit mounting section 501l, it extends rearward to the same position as the rear end of the portion of the right side cover 502d that is formed with a shorter depth. This lower cover 502e is inclined so that it becomes higher towards the rear.

[0111] The lower recess 502h of the main frame base 501 is recessed downward from the upper surface of the lower cover 502e. The lower recess 502h is open towards the front and is formed so that its width narrows from left to right towards the rear. The bottom surface of the lower recess 502h is sloped so that it becomes higher towards the rear, similar to the lower cover 502e. Since the lower cover 502e is formed in a flat shape, the lower surface (back surface) of the lower recess 502h, which is recessed from above on 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 that protrudes downward on the lower surface of the lower cover 502e. Reinforcing ribs 502i are provided inside the lower recess 502h.

[0112] Multiple reinforcing ribs 502i are provided on the lower surface of the upper cover 502a and on the bottom surface of the lower recess 502h, respectively. The upper cover 502a is provided with four reinforcing ribs 502i, two of which extend forward from the two abutment surfaces 502j, and the remaining two are provided on the left and right outer sides of the two upper recesses 502g. The reinforcing ribs 502i provided on the left and right outer sides of the upper recesses 502g have their rear ends connected to the rear cover 502b and extend forward to a shorter extent than the upper recesses 502g.

[0113] Of the multiple reinforcing ribs 502i, a total of four—two located on the left and right outer sides of the upper recess 502g in the upper cover 502a, and two located in the two lower recesses 502h—are provided to function as interlocking ribs. More specifically, the main frame base 501 of this embodiment is configured to be placed horizontally without wobbling when placed on a workbench or the like with its front end facing downwards. Furthermore, as shown in Figure 24(b), the main frame base 501 is formed to be stacked for storage. In this case, the four reinforcing ribs 502i, acting as ribs, come into contact with the mating surface, preventing the stacked main frame bases 501 from interlocking. This reduces the time required to remove parts (main frame bases 501) that would otherwise interlock, thereby improving the efficiency of assembly work. In addition, because the main frame bases 501 can be stacked, it becomes possible to increase the number of packages and reduce the size of the packaging boxes.

[0114] In this embodiment, the main frame base 501, which protects the game board 5 housed in the main frame 4 from above, has an upper surface that slopes downwards towards the rear. This allows for proper handling of game balls B, metal powder, screws, etc., that fall from above the pachinko machine 1. Specifically, spherical game balls B can flow down the upper surface of the upper cover 502a and fall below the pachinko machine 1, thus being recovered without causing any problems. Non-spherical items such as metal powder and screws can remain on the upper cover 502a without flowing down, thus also preventing any problems.

[0115] Furthermore, ventilation holes 502f are not provided on the top surface of the top cover 502a. This 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 the injection molding machine, does not have a gate for injecting molten resin into the mold during molding. As a result, no irregularities caused by the gate are created on the upper surface of the top cover 502a, and therefore do not obstruct the flow of the game balls B.

[0117] Similarly, care has been taken to avoid leaving ejector pin marks when removing the injection-molded main frame base 501 from the mold. Normally, ejector pin marks are unlikely to obstruct the flow of game balls B if the burrs are properly removed, but they may remain on the upper surface of the top cover 502a where metal powder or other debris has accumulated, potentially impairing the aesthetics. By avoiding ejector pin marks, the aesthetics can be easily restored through cleaning.

[0118] Furthermore, this top cover 502a is integrally molded with the main frame base 501. This molding method allows for savings in assembly time and improves the overall strength of the main frame base unit 500 (game board housing frame).

[0119] Furthermore, the top cover 502a not only protects the game board 5 housed inside, but also has a positioning section (buttock surface 502j) on its inside that contacts the game board 5 to position it. 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) to protect the game board 5.

[0120] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 18, etc., the top surface of the top cover 502a does not have reinforcing ribs. This makes cleaning easier and maintenance simpler, as ribs do not make cleaning difficult. However, if there are other components (for example, frame 501a, outer frame 2, etc.) covering the top surface of the top cover 502a and foreign objects do not fall from that area, then ribs may be provided.

[0121] The side reinforcing plate 509 is formed in a U-shape in plan view, opening to the right, and is attached to replace the open left side of the frame body 501a in the main frame base 501. The side reinforcing plate 509 is formed from an extruded metal profile such as aluminum alloy. The side reinforcing plate 509 has two left position regulating members 509a provided vertically spaced apart. The left position regulating members 509a are for positioning the left side of the game board 5.

[0122] The main frame speaker 503 is mounted on the rear side of the base wall 501b so as to close the main frame speaker opening 501d of the main frame base 501 from the rear. The main frame speaker 503 is a cone-type speaker that primarily outputs low frequencies.

[0123] The main frame speaker box 504 is formed in a box shape that is open to the front and is attached to the rear side of the base wall 501b so as to cover the main frame speaker 503 from the rear. By being attached to the base wall 501b, the main frame speaker box 504 forms the enclosure 504a of the main frame speaker 503.

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

[0125] The enclosure 504a consists of a box body 504b and a box extension 504c, and communicates with the outside through a bass reflex duct 501e. In other words, the bass reflex duct 501e, the main frame speaker 503, and the main frame speaker box 504 constitute a phase-inverting bass reflex speaker.

[0126] More specifically, the main frame speaker 503 outputs predetermined sounds forward and backward. The sound output forward from the main frame speaker 503 is released to the front of the pachinko machine 1 through the main frame speaker opening 501d and the speaker grille 203.

[0127] On the other hand, the sound output from the main frame speaker 503 to the rear causes the air inside the main frame speaker box 504 (enclosure 504a) to vibrate. Since this enclosure 504a is open to the front (outside) by a cylindrical bass reflex duct 501e, the sound is released forward from the bass reflex duct 501e. At this time, because the bass reflex duct 501e is formed in a cylindrical shape of a predetermined length, the low-frequency range is amplified by resonance due to the vibration of the air column inside it, and the sound is released forward in a phase-inverted state.

[0128] As a result, the sound output from the main unit speaker 503 to the front and the sound output to the rear do not cancel each other out and attenuate, but rather resonate with each other and amplify each other. This allows the main unit speaker 503 to produce a loud sound with deep bass even with a small diameter, allowing players to hear a sound with rich bass.

[0129] The box extension 504c of the main frame speaker box 504 is formed with a depth in the front-to-back direction that is longer than the height in the up-to-down direction, and its rear end is provided to protrude slightly behind the rear end of the frame board unit 730 (see Figure 20). When assembled to the main frame 4, the box extension 504c covers the bottom of the frame board unit 730 (unit base 770 and power supply board box 772) so that a gap is formed between it and the frame board unit 730. This prevents the various wires connected to the frame board unit 730 from hanging down.

[0130] As shown in Figure 20, the box extension section 504c is sloped so that its upper surface is lower towards the rear. This allows debris and game balls B that fall from above to be guided to the rear and discharged. The box extension section 504c is also sloped so that its lower surface is higher towards the rear. This prevents the box extension section 504c from coming into contact with the lower frame 14 of the main frame 4 when closing the main frame 4 to the outer frame 2.

[0131] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 20, the box extension portion 504c is inclined such that its lower surface becomes higher towards the rear. This allows the lower surface of the box extension portion 504c to guide the main frame 4 into the outer frame 2 even if the main frame 4 is tilted when closing the main frame 4 to the outer frame 2.

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

[0133] Furthermore, the main frame speaker box 504 is made of transparent synthetic resin, allowing the main frame speaker 503 to be seen from the outside.

[0134] The back cover 505 is provided to the main frame base 501 so as to cover the rear of the game board 5 which is attached to the main frame 4 when assembled to the pachinko machine 1, and is designed to open and close. The back cover 505 is formed in an L-shape in plan view, as if the right side of a flat plate were bent forward. The back cover 505 has two locking claws 505a provided vertically separated at the left end and a plurality of shaft portions 505b arranged vertically in a row at the right end. The locking claws 505a are detachably locked to the cover locking portion 502l on the main frame base 501. The shaft portions 505b are pivotally supported on the cover shaft support portion 502m on the main frame base 501. This allows the back cover 505 to be attached to the main frame base 501 of the main frame 4 in an open and close manner. The back cover 505 is provided with a plurality of ventilation holes so that heat from the game board 5 can be released to the outside. This back cover 505 is made of transparent synthetic resin.

[0135] The back cover 505 is designed such that, if an attempt is made to close it to the main frame base unit 500 (main frame base 501) after the frame substrate unit 730 (described later) has been closed to the main frame base unit 500, it will interfere with (come into) the closed frame substrate unit 730, preventing it from closing. Furthermore, the back cover 505 is designed such that, if an attempt is made to close the main frame 4 to the outer frame 2 while the main frame 4 is open relative to the outer frame 2 and the back cover 505 is open relative to the main frame base 501, it will interfere with (come into) the outer frame 2, preventing it from closing.

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

[0137] The door open switch 507 is for detecting the opening and closing of the door frame 3 relative to the main frame 4. The door open switch 507 is mounted below the cylinder insertion opening 501m in the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501.

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

[0139] The main frame hinge mechanism 510 includes an upper main frame hinge body 511 attached to the upper left edge of the main frame base 501, and a lower main frame hinge body 512 attached to the lower left edge of the main 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 on the outer frame 2, and an upper shaft hole 511b for the door frame, which is provided adjacent to the main frame hinge shaft 511a and into which the upper hinge shaft 111a of the door frame upper hinge body 111 on 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 horizontally extending portion of the main frame upper hinge body 511 is provided with the main frame hinge shaft 511a and the upper shaft hole 511b for the door frame. The portion of the main frame upper hinge body 511 that extends downward is attached to the main frame base 501.

[0141] The main frame lower hinge body 512 includes an outer frame shaft hole (not shown) into which the hinge shaft 35a of the outer frame lower hinge body 35 in the outer frame 2 is inserted from below, and a door frame lower shaft hole 512b into which the door frame lower hinge shaft 112a of the door frame lower hinge body 112 in the door frame 3 is inserted from above. The main frame lower hinge body 512 has a flat, horizontally extending portion and a portion that extends upward from the rear end of the horizontally extending portion. The horizontally extending portion of the main frame lower hinge body 512 is provided with the outer frame shaft hole and the door frame lower shaft hole 512b. The portion of the main frame lower hinge body 512 that extends downward is attached to the main frame base 501. Furthermore, the portion of the lower hinge body 512 of the main frame that extends downward contacts the rear wall portion 45c of the fascia board 45 when the main frame 4 is closed relative to the outer frame 2. As a result, the main frame 4 cannot rotate any further backward with the hinge.

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

[0143] Furthermore, the main frame hinge mechanism 510 supports the door frame 3 so that it can be opened and closed by inserting the upper hinge shaft 111a of the upper hinge body 111 on the door frame 3 into the upper shaft hole 511b for the door frame of the upper hinge body 511 for the main frame from below, and inserting the lower hinge shaft 112a of the lower hinge body 112 on the door frame 3 into the lower shaft hole 512b for the door frame of the lower hinge body 512 for the main frame from above.

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

[0145] The ball launching unit 550 is for launching game balls B into the game area 5a of the game board 5, and has a ball inlet 550a for receiving game balls B sent from the ball delivery unit 700, a ball launching port 550b for releasing the launched game balls B to the outside, and a ball discharge port 550c for discharging the game balls B. The ball launching unit 550 can drive the game balls B with a force corresponding to the rotation angle of the handle 160 at the lower right corner of the front of the door frame 3. The ball launching unit 550 is attached to a ball launching unit mounting part 501i located on the upper front of the base wall 501b of the main frame base 501, to the right of the center in the left-right direction and below the opaque canopy 501p.

[0146] The ball inlet 550a of the ball launching unit 550 is located on the rear and is a square opening large enough for one game ball B to pass through. When assembled on the main frame 4, this ball inlet 550a is located in front of the ball outlet 702 of the ball delivery unit 700 and communicates with the ball outlet 702. The ball launching port 550b is located on the left edge of the top surface and opens diagonally so that the left edge is lower. When assembled on the main frame 4, this ball launching port 550b communicates with the upper part of the foul right opening 570b of the foul unit 570. The ball discharge port 550c is located on the left side. When assembled on the main frame 4, this ball discharge port 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 mounted to cover the front side of the unit base 551, a launching solenoid 553 mounted on the rear side of the unit base 551 such that its rotating shaft 553a protrudes forward of the unit base 551, a launching subtraction sensor 554 capable of detecting whether or not a game ball B has been launched, a launching hammer 555 mounted on the rotating shaft 553a of the launching solenoid 553, a nut 556 attaching the launching hammer 555 to the rotating shaft 553a of the launching solenoid 553, an annular spacer 557 inserted into the rotating shaft 553a of the launching solenoid 553, and two contact rubbers 558 that can contact the launching hammer 555.

[0148] The unit base 551 of the ball launching unit 550 is formed from 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 upwards when viewed from the front.

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

[0150] Furthermore, the launch unit cover 552 includes a launch platform upper wall portion 552d located at the rear of the front plate 552a, in the upper right of the front view of the ball launch platform 552b, which forms a gap between it and the ball launch platform 552b that prevents the game ball B from passing through, and a sensor lower mounting portion 552e and a sensor upper mounting portion 552f provided at the rear of the front plate 552a, sandwiching the ball launch platform 552b and the launch platform upper wall portion 552d.

[0151] Furthermore, the launch unit cover 552 includes a barrier portion 552g provided in the direction of launch of the game ball B on the ball launching platform 552b, with its upper end forming the lower end of the ball launching port 550b; an ejection guide wall portion 552h extending downward from the left end of the ball launching platform 552b on the rear side of the front plate 552a and then sloping downward to the left; a window portion 552i penetrating from front to back above and to the right of the lower sensor mounting portion 552e; a wiring groove 552j recessed on the front surface of the front plate 552a and extending from the lower left to the upper right; and a plurality of wiring locking portions 552k protruding 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 on which the game ball B supplied through the ball inlet 550a is placed. The ball launcher 552b is inclined such that the left end is higher when viewed from the front. The ball launcher 552b is concave in a certain cross-sectional shape (trapezoidal) such that it narrows downward along the direction of the inclination. The length of the ball launcher 552b in the direction of inclination (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 is placed on it so as to be in contact with the two inclined surfaces of the trapezoidal concave shape. 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 located at the bottom of the trapezoidal recessed portion of the ball launcher 552b. The launcher upper wall portion 552d is located above the inclined lower end of the ball launcher 552b. The launcher upper wall portion 552d is provided to form a gap between itself and the ball launcher 552b that prevents the game ball B from passing through, but allows the tip of the launch hammer 555 to pass through. As a result, the game ball B supplied to the ball launcher 552b is placed on the ball launcher 552b with its movement restricted to the downstream side (to the right in this case) in the inclined direction of the ball launcher 552b by contacting the left end of the launcher upper wall portion 552d.

[0154] When a game ball B is placed on the ball launcher 552b, the center of the game ball B is located slightly to the right of the center of the ball entrance 550a. Furthermore, the length of the ball launcher 552b is set to accommodate only one game ball B. As a result, even if another game ball B is supplied to the ball launcher 552b, either by the launched game ball B returning or by the ball delivery unit 700, the other game ball B will be deflected by the game ball B already on the launcher 552b and will be discharged towards the discharge guide wall 552h (foul unit 570 side) without landing on the launcher 552b, where it will be detected by the foul ball sensor 607. Therefore, even if a game ball B is placed on the ball launcher 552b and the launched game ball B returns or is supplied from the ball delivery unit 700, the game ball B is sent to the foul unit 570 and added to the number of balls held as a foul ball, thus eliminating any error with the actual number of game balls B launched.

[0155] The lower sensor mounting section 552e and the upper sensor mounting section 552f are where the light-emitting section 554a and the light-receiving section 554b, which constitute the emission / subtraction sensor 554, are attached, respectively. In the lower sensor mounting section 552e, the emission / subtraction sensor 554 (in this case, the light-emitting section 554a) is mounted facing upwards, so there is a risk of false detection if dust or debris adheres to the upper surface of the light-emitting section 554a. However, since the light-emitting section 554a is mounted at an angle, dust and debris are less likely to accumulate.

[0156] The barrier portion 552g is located to the left of the ball launcher 552b at a distance greater than the diameter of the game ball B, and below the trajectory of the game ball B launched from the ball launcher 552b. The barrier portion 552g is designed to be able to contact game balls B with weak impact force, and the game ball B that contacts it will flow down onto the discharge guide wall portion 552h below, passing between the barrier portion 552g and the ball launcher 552b, and will not return to the ball launcher 552b. In addition, since the barrier portion 552g extends vertically, it is possible to prevent game balls B from entering from the foul unit 570 side.

[0157] The discharge guide wall 552h forms a ball discharge port 550c with the barrier 552g. The discharge guide wall 552h is inclined so that the left end is lower, guiding the game ball B that has flowed down between the ball launching platform 552b and the barrier 552g to the left, allowing it to be discharged from the ball discharge port 550c at the left end toward the foul unit 570. As a result, game balls B that were struck by the launching hammer 555 at the ball launching platform 552b but were not launched from the ball launching port 550b are guided by the discharge guide wall 552h and discharged from the ball discharge port 550c toward the foul unit 570.

[0158] The window portion 552i is provided in the area between the ball launcher 552b and the lower sensor mounting portion 552e, and in the area in front of the tip of the launch hammer 555 in a retracted position away from the striking position. Since the launch subtraction sensor 554 (in this case, the light-emitting portion 554a) is mounted facing upward on the lower sensor mounting portion 552e, dust and debris tend to accumulate on the upper surface of the light-emitting portion 554a, and there is a risk of false detection if dust and debris adhere to it. However, the upper surface of the light-emitting portion 554a can be easily cleaned by inserting a cleaning tool such as a cotton swab through the window portion 552i in the area between the ball launcher 552b and the lower sensor mounting portion 552e.

[0159] Furthermore, since the tip of the launch hammer 555 comes into contact with the game ball B, if dirt or other debris adheres to the tip of the launch hammer 555, it may become impossible to launch the game ball B properly. However, as shown in Figure 28, a window 552i is provided in front of the tip of the launch hammer 555 in the standby position, so the tip of the launch hammer 555 can be easily cleaned by inserting a cleaning tool such as a cotton swab through the window 552i.

[0160] The launch solenoid 553 is composed of a rotary solenoid having a rotating shaft 553a extending forward and backward. As will be described in detail later, the launch solenoid 553, in conjunction with the ball-feeding solenoid 706 described later, performs a series of hardware operations based on a predetermined launch sequence.

[0161] The launch / subtraction sensor 554 can detect the presence or absence of game balls B on the ball launching platform 552b. The launch / subtraction sensor 554 consists of a light-emitting unit 554a that emits detection light and a light-receiving unit 554b that receives the detection light, which are attached to the lower sensor mounting part 552e and the upper sensor mounting part 552f of the launching 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 launching platform 552b. In this case, if game balls B are placed on the ball launching platform 552b, the detection light is blocked by the game balls 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 game balls B on the ball launching platform 552b.

[0162] The launch subtraction sensor 554, as will be explained in detail later, detects when a game ball B is launched from the ball launcher 552b and subtracts one ball from the player's remaining ball count.

[0163] In this embodiment, the number of balls held is reduced by the OFF determination of the launch subtraction sensor 554. However, since the number of balls held by the player may change depending on the operation of the launch subtraction sensor 554, a one-to-one reliability is required for the launch of game ball B. Incidentally, in the normal pass detection for game ball B, the determination is made by switching from OFF (from no game ball B to present) to ON (from no game ball B to present) at predetermined time intervals (for example, with an interrupt period of 4ms) in response to the light emitted from the light-emitting part of the light-receiving part. However, there is a concern that the ball may bounce around when game ball B is supplied to the ball launching platform 552b (launching rail), or that the tip of the launching hammer 555 after launch may cause false detection of something other than the launched ball.

[0164] In contrast, this embodiment focuses on the fact that game ball B is stationary on the ball launcher 552b. First, it determines whether or not game ball B is present on the ball launcher 552b, and when game ball B is gone, it determines that it has been launched. In other words, it first determines ON (game ball present) and then OFF (game ball absent = launched). Specifically, thresholds are set to recognize ON and OFF (for example, an ON threshold of 80ms and an OFF threshold of 80ms). Only when the ON threshold is exceeded is it determined that "game ball present," and when the OFF threshold is exceeded from there, it is recognized that game ball B has been launched ("game ball absent"), and the number of remaining balls is reduced. This prevents malfunctions due to game ball chattering or noise. It is desirable that the above thresholds be integer multiples of the interrupt period (for example, 4ms).

[0165] The launch hammer 555 is used to strike and launch the game ball B. The launch hammer 555 is attached to the rotating shaft 553a of the launch solenoid 553 and rotates (moves) together with the rotating shaft 553a. The tip of the launch hammer 555 is positioned to pass between the ball launching platform 552b and the upper wall portion 552d of the launching platform so that it can contact the game ball B placed on the ball launching platform 552b.

[0166] Incidentally, in order to ensure the accuracy of launching the game ball B when mass-producing the ball launching unit 550, all of the following required precise adjustments: the insertion angle of the tip of the launching hammer 555, the mounting angle of the ball launching base 552b (launching rail), and the adjustment of the tip position of the launching hammer 555 after assembly to the ball launching unit 550. This made mass production difficult. Therefore, in this embodiment, the method for determining launch accuracy was changed from ensuring accuracy based on the way the game ball B hits the launching rail and the shape of the launching rail to ensuring accuracy based solely on the contact between the launching hammer 555 and the game ball B. With this change, the accuracy of the tip of the launching hammer 555 itself becomes more important for launch accuracy. Therefore, the tip of the launching hammer 555 is formed by sheet metal insert molding, and the contact area between the tip of the launching hammer 555 and the game ball B is increased compared to the conventional design. This ensures stability of launch accuracy and allows for some assembly errors, enabling mass production of the ball launching unit 550.

[0167] The nut 556 is screwed onto the rotating shaft 553a of the firing solenoid 553. The spacer 557 into which the rotating shaft 553a of the firing solenoid 553 is inserted. The rotating shaft 553a of the firing solenoid 553 is inserted from the rear, through the spacer 557 and then the firing hammer 555, and the firing hammer 555 is attached by screwing the nut 556 onto the tip that protrudes forward from the firing hammer 555 and tightening it.

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

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

[0170] Furthermore, in the case of the ball launching unit 550, since the launching unit cover 552 is made of transparent synthetic resin, the inside of the ball launching unit 550 can be seen from the front by opening the door frame 3 relative to the main frame 4. Because the launching unit cover 552 is transparent, there is a risk that light may enter the interior and cause false detection in the launch / subtraction sensor 554, which is a photosensor. However, when the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main frame 4, light from the front is blocked by the door frame 3, light from the rear is blocked by the unit base 551 made of a metal plate, and light from above is blocked by the awning portion 501p of the black opaque main frame base 501. As a result, no light enters the interior, and false detection by light in the launch / subtraction sensor 554 is prevented.

[0171] Furthermore, the pachinko machine 1 (circulating game machine) disclosed in this embodiment is designed to deduct the number of balls held only after the launch is complete. Therefore, compared to the conventional circulating game machine that deducts the number of balls held before launch using the ball feed as a trigger, when settling the game, there is no need to automatically fire the game balls B (balls already deducted) that remain on the launch rail without being launched to return them to the player as foul balls, and then add the number of balls to balance the total, allowing for a quick settlement process.

[0172] Furthermore, with respect to the ball launching unit 550, since the launch / subtraction sensor 554 is mounted at an angle, it is difficult for dirt and dust to accumulate on the detection surface of the launch / subtraction sensor 554. In addition, even if dirt or dust adheres 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 552i of the launching unit cover 552, thus easily eliminating false detections (malfunctions) caused by the accumulation of dirt and dust.

[0173] Furthermore, in the ball launching unit 550, since the window portion 552i is also provided in a part where the tip of the launching hammer 555 can be cleaned, the tip of the launching hammer 555 can be easily cleaned by inserting a cleaning tool through the window portion 552i in that part, thereby eliminating inconsistencies in the launch of game balls B caused by the accumulation of dirt and other debris.

[0174] [4-3. Foul Unit] The foul unit 570 in the main 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 frame from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the foul unit in the main frame from the rear. Figure 30(a) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit from the rear, after it has been disassembled. Figure 31(a) is an explanatory diagram showing the foul unit in a side cross-section with the foul shutter closed, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the foul unit in a side cross-section with the foul shutter open.

[0175] The foul unit 570 is for collecting game balls B that were launched by the ball launching unit 550 and hit between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 on the game board 5 but did not hit 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) due to insufficient launch force. The foul unit 570 has a foul upper opening 570a that is open on the top surface, a foul right opening 570b that is open on the right side surface, and a foul ball outlet 570c that is in communication with the foul upper opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b and is open towards the rear at its lower end.

[0176] The foul unit 570 is attached to a foul unit mounting portion 501h located in the middle left-right portion of the upper front surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501. When assembled on the main frame 4, the upper end of the foul unit 570 is at approximately the same height as the upper end of the base wall portion 501b, and the right foul opening 570b is closed by the ball launch port 550b and ball discharge port 550c of the ball launch unit 550. In other words, when assembled on the main frame 4, the right foul opening 570b is in communication with the ball launch port 550b and the ball discharge port 550c. The upper foul opening 570a and the right foul opening 570b are formed by the unit base 572 and the front cover 573, which will be described later, and the ball discharge port 550c is formed on the unit base 572.

[0177] The foul unit 570 includes a foul shutter 571 that can open and close the foul upper opening 570a so that the game ball B cannot pass through, a unit base 572 attached to the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501, a front cover 573 attached to the front side of the unit base 572, a rear cover 574 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 biases the foul shutter 571 forward.

[0178] The faro shutter 571 is supported so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction by the cooperation of the unit base 572 and the front cover 573. The faro shutter 571 has a shutter part 571a in the shape of a long strip plate extending left and right, two front protruding parts 571b protruding forward from both left and right ends of the shutter part 571a respectively, and a flat rear wall part 571c extending downward from the rear end side of the shutter part 571a.

[0179] The faro shutter 571 can close the faro upper opening 570a so that the game ball B cannot pass through it by the shutter part 571a. The two front protruding parts 571b are provided such that the front ends protrude forward from the front cover 573, and the rear surface of the door frame body 100 in the door frame 3 can abut thereon. The front end of the spring 575 abuts on the rear surface of the rear wall part 571c.

[0180] The unit base 572 is formed in an L shape having a part extending downward near the right end and being long left and right. The unit base 572 has a shutter housing part 572a extending left and right along the upper side and recessed backward, a ball guiding part 572b extending left and right below the shutter housing part 572a with the right end extending downward and recessed backward, a cylindrical part 572c extending backward in a square tube shape from the lower end of the ball guiding part 572b, and a receiving part 572d extending forward in a flat plate shape from the lower end of the ball guiding part 572b.

[0181] The shutter housing part 572a of the unit base 572 houses the faro shutter 571 and the spring 575 from the front. The part of the ball guiding part 572b in the unit base 572 extending left and right is inclined so as to be lower on the right side. The cylindrical part 572c of the unit base 572 is inclined so as to be lower backward, and the opening at the rear end is the faro 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. Since 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 in communication with the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550, the game ball B that falls from the ball launching platform 552b and is discharged from the ball discharge port 550c and passes through the foul right opening 570b flows down onto the receiving portion 572d, is guided to the rear by the receiving portion 572d, passes through the cylindrical portion 572c and is discharged to the rear from the foul ball outlet 570c. With the foul shutter 571 closed, the game ball B launched from the ball launching unit 550, passing through the foul right opening 570b and contacting the back surface (bottom surface) of the foul shutter 571, is sent to the rear ball guiding section 572b by the lower wall portion 573c of the front cover 573, passes behind the receiving section 572d, and is discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c via the cylindrical section 572c.

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

[0184] The front cover 573 comprises an L-shaped, flat front plate 573a that is long from left to right and has a portion that extends 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 to the right along the lower edge of the front plate 573a from the lower end of the left wall portion 573b and also extends rearward; a hanging wall portion 573d that extends downward along the left edge of the portion that extends downward on the front plate 573a from the right end of the lower wall portion 573c 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 constitute the front edges of the foul upper opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b. The right edge of the upper end of the left wall section 573b constitutes the left edge of the foul upper opening 570a, and the left edge of the upper end of the right wall section 573f constitutes the right edge of the foul upper opening 570a. The lower edge of the right wall section 573f constitutes the upper edge of the foul right opening 570b.

[0186] The front cover 573 has its lower wall portion 573c located below the foul ball upper opening 570a. The lower wall portion 573c of this front cover 573 is gently sloped downwards to the left and also downwards to the rear. As a result, it does not directly receive the impact of the game ball B falling from above as a foul ball, and the impact is dissipated while the game ball B is transferred to the ball guide portion 572b of the unit base 572 located at the rear. The game ball B transferred to the ball guide portion 572b is then discharged from the lower right end of the ball guide portion 572b through the cylindrical portion 572c and out to the rear from the foul ball outlet 570c.

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

[0188] When assembled into the pachinko machine 1, the foul unit 570 is attached to the foul unit mounting section 501h located on the upper part of the front surface of the base wall section 501b of the main frame 4, near the center in the left-right direction. In this state, the ball launching unit 550 is attached adjacent to the right side of the foul unit 570.

[0189] As shown in Figure 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 also 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 the area between the lower end opening 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] On the other hand, the right foul opening 570b of the foul unit 570 has its upper part communicating with the ball launching port 550b of the ball launching unit 550, and its lower part communicating with the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550. Therefore, the upper foul opening 570a and the right foul opening 570b are provided in the area between the lower end opening 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 right foul opening 570b, and then enters the area between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5 through the upper foul opening 570a.

[0191] In this embodiment, when the door frame 3 is opened forward relative to the main frame 4, the foul unit 570 slides forward due to the biasing force of the spring 575, as shown in Figure 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 protruding portion 571b of the foul shutter 571 is in contact with the front cover 573, and it will not slide any further forward.

[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 right foul opening 570b, then contacts the lower surface of the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571, and flows down inside the foul unit 570 without being launched upward through the upper foul opening 570a. The game ball B that has flowed down inside 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 from the rear foul ball outlet 570c. As a result, even if a game ball B is launched when the door frame 3 is open, the game ball B will not leak out of the foul unit 570 to the outside.

[0193] Furthermore, when the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main frame 4, the door open switch 507 is turned OFF, so the firing of game balls B from the ball firing unit 550 may be stopped when the door open switch 507 is turned OFF. Alternatively, instead of stopping the firing of game balls B when the door frame 3 is opened, the game may be temporarily paused by the main control board 1310, and the game may be resumed when the door frame 3 is closed.

[0194] Furthermore, when the main frame 4 is opened relative to the outer frame 2 (frame release switch 508 is OFF), the door frame 3 is closed and no game balls B leak out, so the launching of game balls B from the ball launching unit 550 may not be stopped. Alternatively, the same process as when the door frame 3 is opened may be performed when the main frame 4 is opened.

[0195] When the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main 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 backward 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 behind the front surface of the unit base 572, and the foul upper opening 570a is open, allowing the game ball B to 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 through the right foul opening 570b, passes through the upper foul opening 570a and is launched towards the upper game board 5 side (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 the game ball B is driven into the game area 5a.

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

[0198] Furthermore, the foul unit 570 receives the game balls B discharged from the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550 at the lower part of the foul right opening 570b. The game balls B that enter the foul unit 570 from the lower part of the foul right opening 570b flow down onto the receiving section 572d, are guided backward by the inclination of the receiving section 572d, and are 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 ball circulation unit 600. As will be described in detail later, the ball circulation unit 600 detects the game balls B supplied from the foul ball outlet 570c using the foul ball sensor 607. When the foul ball sensor 607 detects a game ball B, it adds 1 to the player's ball count.

[0200] Furthermore, in the foul unit 570, the unit base 572, front cover 573, etc., are made of transparent synthetic resin, allowing the inside to be seen from the outside, making it easier to detect ball jams 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 from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment from the rear. Figure 33(a) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the foul unit of the second embodiment from the rear, after it has been disassembled. Figure 34(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit of the second embodiment with the foul shutter closed, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the foul unit of the second embodiment with the foul shutter open.

[0202] The fur unit 570A is for collecting game balls B that have been launched by the ball launch unit 550 and driven between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 on the game board 5 but not into the game area 5a, game balls B that have been launched by the ball launch unit 550 but whose launch intensity is too weak to reach the game board 5 (between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002), and the like. The fur unit 570A has a fur upper opening 570a that is open on the upper surface, a fur right opening 570b that is open on the right side surface, and a fur ball outlet 570c that communicates with the fur upper opening 570a and the fur right opening opening opening 570b and is open rearward at the lower end.

[0203] The fur unit 570A is attached to a fur unit attachment portion 501h provided at the middle portion in the left - right direction at the upper front of the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501. In the state where the fur unit 570A is assembled to the main body frame 4, the upper end is substantially at the same height as the upper end of the base wall portion 501b, and the fur right opening 570b is closed by the ball launch port 550b and the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launch unit 550. That is, in the state where it is assembled to the main body frame 4, the fur right opening 570b communicates with the ball launch port 550b and the ball discharge port 550c. The fur upper opening 570a and the fur right opening (570b) are formed by a unit base 572 and a front cover 573 described later, and the ball discharge port 550c is formed in the unit base 572.

[0204] The fur unit 570A includes a fur shutter 571 that can open and close the fur upper opening 570a so that the game ball B cannot pass through, a unit base 572 attached to the base wall portion 501b of the main body frame base 501, a front cover 573 attached to the front side of the unit base 572, a rear cover 574 attached to the rear side of the unit base 572 so as to cover the rear part of the fur shutter 571, a spring 575 that biases the fur shutter 571 forward, and a fur ball grounding sheet metal 576 provided between the unit base 572 and the front cover 573.

[0205] The foul shutter 571 is supported so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction by the cooperation of the unit base 572 and the front cover 573. The foul shutter 571 has a long, strip-shaped shutter section 571a, two forward projections 571b that protrude forward from both the left and right ends of the shutter section 571a, and a flat rear wall section 571c that extends downward from the rear end edge of the shutter section 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 forward of the front cover 573 and are provided so that the rear surface of the door frame body 100 in the door frame 3 can come into contact with them. The front end of the spring 575 comes into contact with the rear surface of the rear wall portion 571c.

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

[0208] The unit base 572 is provided with a foul ball outlet 570c that extends backward in a rectangular tube shape and penetrates from front to back near the lower end of the portion of the main body 572f that extends downward. The cylindrical foul ball outlet 570c is inclined to be lower towards the rear.

[0209] The main body portion 572f is inclined such that the lower edge of the portion to the left of the portion extending downward is lower to the right. The shutter insertion opening 572g is sized to allow the shutter portion 571a and the forward projection portion 571b of the foul shutter 571 to be inserted. Multiple rear support openings 572h are provided to the left and right so that each is lower to the right, and are arranged in a row along the inclined lower edge of the main body portion 572f. The rear support openings 572h are provided so that the support piece 576a of the foul ball grounding sheet metal 576 is inserted with a gap.

[0210] The front cover 573 comprises a flat, T-shaped front plate 573a that is long from left to right and has a portion that extends 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 to the right along the lower edge of the front plate 573a from the lower end of the left wall portion 573b and also extends rearward; a hanging wall portion 573d that extends downward along the left edge of the portion that extends downward on the front plate 573a from the right end of the lower wall portion 573c and also extends rearward; a bottom wall portion 573e that extends to the right along the lower edge of the portion that extends downward on the front plate 573a from the lower end of the hanging wall portion 573d 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 constitute the front edges of the foul upper opening 570a and the foul right opening 570b. The right edge of the upper end of the left wall section 573b constitutes the left edge of the foul upper opening 570a, and the left edge of the upper end of the right wall section 573f constitutes the right edge of the foul upper opening 570a. The lower edge of the right wall section 573f constitutes the upper edge of the foul right opening 570b, and the right edge of the bottom wall section 573e constitutes the lower edge of the foul right opening 570b.

[0212] The front cover 573 has a lower wall portion 573c located below the upper foul opening 570a, which guides the game ball B that has flowed down through the upper foul opening 570a to the right, and then allows it to flow down along the hanging wall portion 573d onto the bottom wall portion 573e. This bottom wall portion 573e is inclined such that the part in front of the foul ball outlet 570c is lower towards the rear, and the part to the right of that part is inclined such that it is higher towards the right. Therefore, the game ball B that has flowed down onto the bottom wall portion 573e is guided to the rear and discharged to the rear from the foul ball outlet 570c. In addition, since the right edge of the bottom wall portion 573e constitutes the lower edge of the right foul opening 570b, the game ball B that has entered from the right foul opening 570b will flow down onto the bottom wall portion 573e, be guided by the bottom wall portion 573e, and discharged to the rear from the foul ball outlet 570c.

[0213] Furthermore, the front cover 573 has multiple front support openings 573g arranged in a row from left to right along the lower wall portion 573c on the front plate 573a, and which penetrate from front to back. The multiple front support openings 573g are arranged to face the rear support openings 572h of the unit base 572. The front support openings 573g are also arranged so that the support piece 576a of the foul ball grounding plate 576 is 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 foul shutter 571 is inserted into the rear cover 574, and a spring 575 is also positioned inside. The rear end of the spring 575 abuts against the front surface of the rear wall of the rear cover 574.

[0215] The springs 575 are provided in pairs, spaced apart on the left and right, and are positioned 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 foul shutter 571, while the rear end abuts against the front surface of the rear wall of the rear cover 574. The springs 575 bias the foul shutter 571 forward.

[0216] The foul ball grounding plate 576 is made of a metal plate such as an iron plate and is ultimately connected to the ground of the game hall via a grounding wire (not shown). The foul ball grounding plate 576 is formed in the shape of a long strip from left to right, with multiple support pieces 576a extending outward from the front and rear long sides. The foul ball grounding 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, the game ball B that has flowed down from the upper foul opening 570a toward the lower wall 573c is guided to the right after the static electricity accumulated in contact with the foul ball grounding plate 576 is removed. At this time, since the support piece 576a is loosely fitted into the rear support opening 572h and the front support opening 573g, the foul ball grounding plate 576 vibrates when the game ball B makes contact with it, and this vibration causes dust and debris on the foul ball grounding plate 576 to be discharged to the outside through the gaps in the rear support opening 572h and the front support opening 573g into which it is loosely fitted. In addition, this foul ball grounding plate 576 also serves as reinforcement against the falling game ball B.

[0218] When assembled into the pachinko machine 1, the foul unit 570A is attached to the foul unit mounting section 501h located on the upper part of the front surface of the base wall section 501b of the main frame 4, near the center in the left-right direction. In this state, the ball launching unit 550 is attached adjacent to the right side of the foul unit 570A.

[0219] Furthermore, similar to 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 also 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 the area between the lower end opening 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] On the other hand, the right foul opening 570b of the foul unit 570A has its upper part communicating with the ball launching port 550b of the ball launching unit 550, and its lower part communicating with the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550. Therefore, the upper foul opening 570a and the right foul opening 570b are provided in the area between the lower end opening 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 570A through the right foul opening 570b, and then enters the area between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 of the game board 5 through the upper foul opening 570a.

[0221] In this embodiment, when the door frame 3 is opened forward relative to the main frame 4, the foul unit 570A slides forward due to the biasing force of the spring 575, as shown in Figure 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 is in contact with the rear surface of the main body portion 572f of the unit base 572, and it cannot slide any further forward.

[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 right foul opening 570b, then contacts the lower surface of the shutter portion 571a of the foul shutter 571, and flows down inside the foul unit 570A without being launched upward through the upper foul opening 570a. The game ball B that has flowed down inside the foul unit 570A is guided by the lower wall portion 573c (foul ball grounding sheet metal 576), the hanging wall portion 573d, the bottom wall portion 573e, etc., and is supplied to the circulating ball path unit 600 from the rear foul ball outlet 570c. As a result, even if a game ball B is launched when the door frame 3 is open, the game ball B will not leak out of the foul unit 570A to the outside.

[0223] Furthermore, when the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main frame 4, the door open switch 507 is turned OFF, so the firing of game balls B from the ball firing unit 550 may be stopped when the door open switch 507 is turned OFF. Alternatively, instead of stopping the firing of game balls B when the door frame 3 is opened, the game may be temporarily paused by the main control board 1310, and the game may be resumed when the door frame 3 is closed.

[0224] Furthermore, when the main frame 4 is opened relative to the outer frame 2 (frame release switch 508 is OFF), the door frame 3 is closed and no game balls B leak out, so the launching of game balls B from the ball launching unit 550 may not be stopped. Alternatively, the same process as when the door frame 3 is opened may be performed when the main frame 4 is opened.

[0225] When the door frame 3 is closed relative to the main 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 backward 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 behind the front surface of the unit base 572, and the foul upper opening 570a is open, allowing the game ball B to 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 a game ball B is launched from the ball launching unit 550, the launched game ball B enters the foul unit 570A through the right foul opening 570b, and is then launched outwards towards the game board 5 (between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002) through the upper foul opening 570a. As the launched game ball B passes over the backflow prevention member 1007 provided at the upper end of the inner rail 1002, the game ball B is driven into the game area 5a.

[0227] Furthermore, game balls B launched from the ball launching unit 550 but that do not pass the backflow prevention member 1007 at the upper end of the inner rail 1002 (game balls B that were not hit into the game area) flow down between the outer rail 1001 and the inner rail 1002 and enter as foul balls through the foul upper opening 570a and are collected by the foul unit 570A. The game balls B collected through the foul upper opening 570a flow down onto the foul ball grounding plate 576 placed on the upper surface of the lower wall portion 573c, and static electricity is removed by the foul ball grounding plate 576. At this time, since the foul ball grounding plate 576 is loosely fitted, it vibrates when the game ball B comes into contact with it, and this vibration causes dust and debris on the foul ball grounding plate 576 to be discharged from the foul unit 570A through the rear support opening 572h and the front support opening 573g.

[0228] The game ball B that flows down onto the foul ball grounding sheet metal 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 to be discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c to the circulating ball path unit 600.

[0229] Furthermore, the foul unit 570A receives the game balls B discharged from the ball discharge port 550c of the ball launching unit 550 at the lower part of the foul right opening 570b. The game balls B that enter the foul unit 570A from the lower part of the foul right opening 570b flow down onto the bottom wall 573e, are guided backward by the slope of the bottom wall 573e, and are discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c to the circulating ball path unit 600.

[0230] Thus, 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 ball circulation unit 600. As will be described in detail later, the ball circulation unit 600 detects the game balls B supplied from the foul ball outlet 570c using the foul ball sensor 607. When the foul ball sensor 607 detects a game ball B, it adds 1 to the player's ball count.

[0231] Furthermore, in the foul unit 570A, the unit base 572, front cover 573, rear cover 574, etc., are made of transparent synthetic resin, allowing the inside to be seen from the outside, making it easier to detect ball jams inside.

[0232] [4-3b. Foul Unit of the Third Embodiment] Next, the foul unit 570 of the third embodiment will be described. The foul unit 570 of the third embodiment is the same as the foul unit 570 described above, except that the opening and closing mechanism of the foul shutter 571 is different. 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, although this is not shown in the figures.

[0233] In this embodiment, when the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main frame 4, the door open switch 507 is turned OFF, and the foul shutter 571 slides to the closed position by the electric actuator. As a result, even if a 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 open switch 507 is turned ON, the electric actuator slides the foul shutter 571 to the open position, allowing the game balls B launched from the ball launching unit 550 to be driven through the foul upper opening 570a towards the game board 5.

[0235] Furthermore, even when the frame release switch 508 is turned OFF by opening the main frame 4 relative to the outer frame 2, the foul shutter 571 may be slid to the closed position by the electric actuator. In this case, if the opening and closing process of the foul shutter 571 by the frame release switch 508 is the same as the opening and closing process by the door release switch 507 described above, the configuration of the software can be simplified.

[0236] Alternatively, an opening switch (not shown) capable of detecting the opening of both the door frame 3 and the main frame 4 may be provided, and the foul shutter 571 may be opened and closed by an electric actuator, thereby simplifying the opening and closing mechanism.

[0237] [4-4. Circulatory Sphere Pathway Unit] The circulating sphere path unit 600 in the main 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 sphere path unit in the main frame viewed from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the circulating sphere path unit in the main frame viewed from the rear. Figure 36 is an exploded perspective view of the circulating sphere path unit as seen from the front, and Figure 37 is an exploded perspective view of the circulating sphere path unit as seen from the rear. Figure 38(a) is a plan view showing only the sphere meandering member and sphere release shutter in the circulating sphere path unit, and (b) is a perspective view from the front showing only the sphere meandering member and sphere release shutter in the circulating sphere path unit. Figure 39(a1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball release shutter and ball meandering 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 release shutter portion in (a1) from the bottom; (b1) is an explanatory diagram showing the ball release shutter and ball meandering 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 release shutter portion in (b1) from the bottom.

[0238] Furthermore, Figure 40(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a front cross-section of the circulating ball path unit cut at the out-ball sensor, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a front cross-section of the circulating ball path unit cut at the safe-ball sensor. Figure 41(a) is a front perspective view showing an enlarged view of the lower part of the main frame along with the outer frame with the meandering cover of the circulating ball path unit removed, and (b) is a rear perspective view showing an enlarged view of the lower part of the main frame along with the outer frame with the meandering cover of the circulating ball path unit removed. Figure 42 is a plan view showing the ball meandering member, meandering cover, ball release shutter, and gauge section of the circulating ball path unit.

[0239] The ball circulation path unit 600 stores multiple game balls B discharged from the game board 5 and game balls B recovered 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 ball circulation path unit 600 is attached to the ball circulation path unit mounting section 501l provided on the rear surface of the base wall section 501b of the main frame base 501.

[0240] The ball circulation path unit 600 has an out ball receiving opening 600a that is long to the left and right and opens upward, a safe ball receiving opening 600b that is located behind the out ball receiving opening 600a and is long to the left and right and opens upward, a foul ball receiving opening 600c that opens at the front, and a ball discharge opening 600d that opens to the right near the bottom end. The out ball receiving opening 600a and the safe ball receiving opening 600b are formed with a depth in the front-to-back direction that is 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 opening 600c and the ball discharge opening 600d are formed to be large enough for one game ball B to pass through at a time.

[0241] Out ball receiving port 600a receives game balls B (out balls) that have been received into the out ports of the game board 5. Safe ball receiving port 600b receives game balls B (safe balls) that have been received into the general prize ports, start ports, big prize ports, etc. of the game board 5. Foul ball receiving port 600c receives game balls B (foul balls) that have been discharged from the foul ball outlet 570c of the foul unit 570. Ball discharge port 600d discharges the game balls B that have been received in the out ball receiving port 600a, safe ball receiving port 600b, and foul ball receiving port 600c and stored inside, and hands them over to the ball lifting unit 650.

[0242] Furthermore, the ball circulation unit 600 includes an out ball passage 601 through which game balls B received at the out ball receiving port 600a flow, a safe ball passage 602 through which game balls B received at the safe ball receiving port 600b flow, a foul ball passage 603 through which game balls B received at the foul ball receiving port 600c flow, and a ball storage passage 604 that communicates with the downstream ends of the out ball passage 601, the safe ball passage 602, and the foul ball passage 603, with its downstream end being a ball discharge port 600d.

[0243] Furthermore, the circulating ball path unit 600 includes an out ball sensor 605 that detects each game ball B (out ball) circulating in the out ball passage 601, a safe ball sensor 606 that detects each game ball B (safe ball) circulating in the safe ball passage 602, and a foul ball sensor 607 that detects each game ball B (foul ball) circulating in the foul ball passage 603. The safe ball sensor 606 is equivalent to a sensor for all winning slots in conventional pachinko machines, and can be used to determine fraudulent entries by comparing it with the total number of winning balls in all winning slots.

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

[0245] Furthermore, the circulating ball path unit 600 includes a ball meandering member 613 located below the ball receiving front plate 610, the ball receiving front member 611, and the ball receiving rear member 612, and which is open to the upper side; a meandering cover 614 covering the upper part of the ball meandering member 613; a ball release shutter 615 for discharging game balls B from the ball meandering member 613; a magnet 616 attached to the ball release 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 meandering cover 614.

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

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

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

[0249] The height between the right end of the upper 611a of the out-ball receiving plate and the lower 611b of the out-ball receiving plate is about twice the diameter of the game ball B. As a result, the height of the lower 611b of the out-ball receiving plate on the left side is formed to decrease towards the left. This allows the game balls B received in the out-ball receiving opening 600a to be aligned in a single row.

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

[0251] In the ball receiving member 611, the out ball passage 601 is formed by the upper part 611a of the out ball receiving plate, the lower part 611b of the out ball receiving plate, the crank part 611c, etc. Therefore, the out ball passage 601 is formed to be wide on the upstream side so that many game balls B can be received, and the received game balls B are aligned in a line and passed to the downstream ball storage passage 604 (ball meandering member 613).

[0252] Furthermore, in the ball receiving member 611, the foul ball passage 603 is located below the upper out ball receiving plate 611a and below the lower out ball receiving plate 611b, and slopes downwards to the left from the rear of the foul ball receiving opening 600c to a point to the right of the left end of the lower out ball receiving plate 611b, before extending downwards for a short distance. In the ball receiving member 611, a foul ball sensor 607 is attached to the portion of the foul ball passage 603 that extends to the left. This foul ball passage 603 is formed so that game balls b can flow in a single line, and the game balls B that have flowed through the foul ball passage 603 are passed to a portion of the ball storage passage 604 (ball meandering member 613) downstream of the portion where they are passed from the out ball passage 601.

[0253] The ball receiving member 611 is provided with recesses 611d that are not large enough to obstruct the flow of game balls B at the front edge of the upper 611a of the out ball receiving plate, the front edge of the lower 611b of the out ball receiving plate, and the front edges of the bottom wall that extends to the left and right to form the foul ball passage 603. These recesses 611d allow dust and debris from inside the out ball passage 601 and the foul ball passage 603 to be discharged to the outside.

[0254] Furthermore, the ball receiving front member 611 has a circulating ball path relay board 617 attached to the rear portion of the foul ball passage 603 on its rear surface.

[0255] The rear ball receiving member 612, on its upper surface, cooperates with the front ball receiving member 611 to form a safe ball receiving opening 600b. The rear ball receiving member 612 has a safe ball passage 602 formed in an open state toward the front, and when the front ball receiving member 611 is attached, the front side of the safe ball passage 602 is closed. 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 aligned one behind the other.

[0256] The ball receiving member 612 has an upper safe ball receiving plate portion 612a that slopes downward to the right from the middle of the vertical wall forming 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 to the left from a point below the upper safe ball receiving plate portion 612a on the vertical wall forming the right edge of the safe ball receiving opening 600b to near the lower left edge of the safe ball receiving opening 600b, and a crank portion 612c that extends in a crank shape downward to the 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 line.

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

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

[0259] In the ball receiving member 612, the safe ball passage 602 is formed by the upper safe ball receiving plate section 612a, the lower safe ball receiving plate section 612b, the crank section 612c, etc. Therefore, the safe ball passage 602 is formed to be wide on the upstream side so that many game balls B can be received, and the received game balls B are aligned in a line and passed to the uppermost part of the ball storage passage 604 (ball meandering member 613) downstream.

[0260] The ball receiving member 612 has recesses 612d at the front edge of the upper 612a and the front edge of the lower 612b of the safe ball receiving plate, which are sized not to obstruct the flow of the game balls B. These recesses 612d allow dust and debris in the safe ball passage 602 to be discharged to the outside.

[0261] The ball meandering member 613 extends in the left-right direction, meandering back and forth, with its right end being lower, forming a ball storage passage 604 capable of storing a large number of game balls B. As shown in Figure 38, the ball meandering member 613 has a first straight section 613a that slopes downward toward the front with its rear end being the upstream end, a first folded section 613b that bends to the right from the downstream end (front end) of the first straight section 613a and then bends further toward the rear, a second straight section 613c that extends downward toward the rear from the downstream end (rear end) of the first folded section 613b to a position near the rear end of the first straight section 613a, and a second straight section 613c that bends to the right from the downstream end (rear end) of the second straight section 613c and then A second folded portion 613d that bends downward toward the front, a third perpendicular portion 613e that extends downward toward the front from the downstream end (front end) of the second folded portion 613d to the same position as the front end of the second perpendicular portion 613c, a third folded portion 613f that bends to the right from the downstream end (front end) of the third perpendicular portion 613e and then bends downward toward the rear, and a fourth perpendicular portion 613g that extends downward toward the rear from the downstream end (rear end) of the third folded portion 613f to the same position as the rear end of the third perpendicular portion 613e The structure includes a fourth folded section 613h which bends to the right from the downstream end (rear end) of the fourth perpendicular section 613g and then bends further forward and downward; a fifth perpendicular section 613i which extends from the downstream end (front end) of the fourth folded section 613h to the same position as the front end of the fourth perpendicular section 613g, and a first bent section 613j which bends to the right and downward from the downstream end (front end) of the fifth perpendicular section 613i; and a first lateral section 613k which extends to the right and downward from the downstream end (right end) of the first bent section 613j. The device comprises a second bent section 613l that curves downward towards the rear from the downstream end (right end) of the first lateral section 613k, a sixth perpendicular section 613m that extends downward towards the rear from the downstream end (rear end) of the second bent section 613l to a position near the downstream end of the fifth perpendicular section 613i, a third bent section 613n that curves downward to the right from the downstream end (rear end) of the sixth perpendicular section 613m, and a second lateral section 613o that extends downward to the right from the downstream end (right end) of the third bent section 613n. The opening at the downstream end of the second lateral section 613o forms a ball discharge port 600d that opens to the right.

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

[0263] Furthermore, the ball meandering member 613 includes a ball outlet 613p that penetrates vertically through the first traverse section 613k, a pair of rail sections 613q that extend forward and backward along the left and right edges of the ball outlet 613p on the lower surface of the first traverse section 613k and protrude downward, support pieces 613r that protrude from the lower ends of each of the pair of rail sections 613q so as to approach each other, locking sections 613s provided on the mutually opposing sides of the pair of rail sections 613q, and a plurality of slits 613t provided that penetrate the rolling surface (bottom surface) on which the game ball B rolls.

[0264] The ball release opening 613p of the ball serpentine member 613 is closed by a ball release shutter 615, which will be described in detail later. A pair of rail sections 613q extend rearward from the ball release opening 613p. The pair of rail sections 613q support the ball release shutter 615 so that it can slide in the front-rear direction. Two support pieces 613r prevent the ball release shutter 615 from falling. In addition, the two support pieces 613r protrude from their respective rail sections 613q at the ball release opening 613p. As a result, even if the load of the game ball B acts on the ball release shutter 615 through the ball release opening 613p, the ball release shutter 615 can be sufficiently supported and the ball release shutter 615 can not be removed. The locking part 613s locks the locking projection 615f of the ball release shutter 615, thereby holding the ball release shutter 615 in the open position.

[0265] The slits 613t of the ball meandering member 613 penetrate downwards and are sized not to obstruct the flow of game balls B, allowing debris and dust from within the ball storage passage 604 to be discharged. The slits 613t provided at the folded-back and bent sections are located on the outer side of the curve.

[0266] Furthermore, the ball meandering member 613 is equipped with a circulating ball shortage sensor 621 and a circulating ball excess sensor 622, which are capable of detecting the number of game balls B in circulation, although details will be described later.

[0267] This ball meandering member 613 allows for the formation of a ball storage passage 604 that meanders back and forth and extends left and right, becoming lower to the right. Furthermore, since the ball meandering member 613 is provided with multiple folded sections (first folded section 613b, second folded section 613d, third folded section 613f, fourth folded section 613h) and multiple bent sections (first bent section 613j, second bent section 613l, third bent section 613n), the flow speed of the game balls B can be suppressed at these sections, and the impact on the entrance side of the ball lifting unit 650 can be mitigated.

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

[0269] The meandering cover 614 is formed so that the length of the front-to-back extending portion at its left end is shorter rearward than the first perpendicular portion 613a of the spherical meandering member 613. As a result, when the meandering cover 614 is attached to the spherical meandering member 613, the rear of the first perpendicular portion 613a of the spherical meandering member 613 is opened upward, allowing communication with the out ball passage 601 and the safe ball passage 602 through that portion.

[0270] Furthermore, the meandering cover 614 has an opening 614a that penetrates vertically through a portion of the ball meandering member 613 that is above the rear end of the second perpendicular portion 613c. Through this opening 614a, the foul ball passage 603 can communicate with the ball storage passage 604.

[0271] The ball removal shutter 615 is used to remove (discharge) game balls B (circulating game balls) from the circulating ball path unit 600, etc., and is mounted on the lower surface of the ball meandering member 613 so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. The ball-removal shutter 615 includes a flat door portion 615a capable of closing the ball-removal opening 613p, a knob portion 615b extending up, down, left, and right from the front edge of the door portion 615a, a pair of rod portions 615c extending rearward from the rear ends of both the left and right ends of the door portion 615a, a connecting portion 615e connecting the pair of rod portions 615c at the rear of the door portion 615a to form an opening 615d that penetrates vertically, a locking projection 615f bulging from the outer surface of each rod portion 615c between the connecting portion 615e and the rear end, hook portions 615g extending outward from the rear ends of the pair of rod portions 615c, and a magnet support portion 615h protruding cylindrically from the lower surface of the door portion 615a.

[0272] The magnetic support portion 615h of the ball-removing shutter 615 can support a cylindrical magnet 616 by inserting the magnet 616 into the cylinder. The magnetic support portion 615h is located upstream of the opening 615d. This magnetic support portion 615h has a portion that protrudes into the cylinder at its lower end and is open to the rear. By inserting the magnet 616 from the rear, the portion that protrudes below the magnet 616 is positioned so that the magnet 616 does not fall out of the magnetic support portion 615h.

[0273] When the ball-removing shutter 615 is attached to the ball-swinging member 613, the pair of rail sections 613q of the ball-swinging member 613 are located on the left and right outer sides of the door section 615a and the pair of shaft sections 615c, while the lower surface of the first lateral section 613k and the upper surfaces of the pair of support pieces 613r are located on the upper and lower sides of the door section 615a and the pair of shaft sections 615c. As a result, the ball-removing shutter 615 is slidable in the front-rear direction between the closed position and the open position, which will be described later.

[0274] In its normal state, the ball release shutter 615 is in a closed position, as shown in Figures 39(a1) and (a2), with the door portion 615a preventing game balls B from passing through the ball release opening 613p. In this state, the rear surface of the knob portion 615b abuts against the front surface of the first lateral portion 613k, and the pair of locking projections 615f contact the respective rear end surfaces of the pair of rail portions 613q. As a result, the ball release shutter 615 is restricted from moving in the front-rear direction and is held in the closed position. Therefore, when the ball release shutter 615 is in the closed position, game balls B will not be discharged from the ball release opening 613p into the ball receiving tray 720 below (see Figure 20).

[0275] Furthermore, when the ball release shutter 615 is in the closed position, the magnet support part 615h (magnet 616) is located below the upstream end of the ball release 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 magnetically adhere to the door part 615a, resulting in a ball jam, and making it possible to detect the presence of the iron ball SB.

[0276] When the ball-removing shutter 615 is in the closed position, if the knob portion 615b is grasped and pulled forward, the locking projection 615f provided on the shaft portion 615c comes into strong contact with the rear end surface of the rail portion 613q. At this time, the force applied to the locking projection 615f causes the shaft portion 615c to elastically deform inward, and the locking projection 615f moves toward the inner surface of the rail portion 613q, causing the ball-removing shutter 615 to slide forward from the closed position. When the locking projection 615f reaches the locking portion 613s, the locking projection 615f is locked to the locking portion 613s by the elastic force of the shaft portion 615c, and the hook portion 615g provided on the rear end of the shaft portion 615c comes close to the rear end surface of the rail portion 613q. As a result, the ball-removing shutter 615 is restricted from sliding any further forward.

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

[0278] When the ball receiving tray 720 becomes heavy with accumulated game balls B, it rests on the bottom wall of the tray insertion recess 501f, which is sloped so that the front end is lower. As a result, the tray attempts to slide forward due to the slope of the bottom wall, but this forward sliding is prevented by the locking claw 501n. In this state, when the locking claw 501n is released, the weight of the stored game balls B causes the ball receiving tray 720 to slide forward automatically, allowing it to be easily removed from the tray insertion recess 501f.

[0279] Furthermore, when the ball release 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 615b. Therefore, even if the ball release shutter 615 tries to slide forward for any reason, the knob 615b will come into contact with the door frame 3, preventing it from sliding to the open position. As a result, the circulating game balls B will not be accidentally removed and lost, nor will any illegal game balls B be introduced through the ball release 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-removing shutter 615. This magnet 616 is for attracting the iron ball SB. The magnet 616 uses a strong magnetic force, such as a neodymium magnet.

[0281] By the way, in a game hall or the like, if the pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment and conventional pachinko machines in which players can touch the game balls (steel balls SB) are mixed together, there is a risk that steel balls SB may get mixed in when the game balls B are replenished or replaced during maintenance of the pachinko machine 1 of this embodiment.

[0282] In contrast, in this pachinko machine 1, if a steel ball SB is mixed in, a magnet 616 is provided in the ball release shutter 615. Therefore, when the steel ball SB flows through the ball storage passage 604, the steel ball SB will be magnetized and stopped on the upper surface of the door portion 615a of the ball release shutter 615 in the closed position by the magnetic force of the magnet 616. At this time, because a strong magnet 616 is used, even if a force is applied to push the steel ball SB downstream due to the accumulation of many game balls B upstream of the magnetized steel ball SB, the steel ball SB will not move from the upper surface of the door portion 615a.

[0283] Then, with the iron ball SB magnetically attached to the door portion 615a (magnet 616) of the ball release shutter 615 in the ball storage passage 604, if the launching of game balls B from the ball launching unit 550 continues, the game balls B downstream of the magnetically attached iron ball SB will be consumed sequentially, and the consumed (launched) game balls B will be sequentially supplied upstream of the iron ball SB. Consequently, the detection of game balls B will be turned OFF in the circulating ball shortage sensor 621 and the lifting inlet sensor 653 located downstream of the ball release shutter 615, while the detection of game balls B will be turned ON in the circulating ball excess sensor 622, the out ball sensor 605, the safe ball sensor 606, the foul ball sensor 607, etc. located upstream of the ball release shutter 615. This makes it possible to detect and notify that a ball jam has occurred between the circulating ball shortage sensor 621 and the circulating ball excess sensor 622. In other words, it is possible to detect that the iron ball SB is magnetically attached to the door section 615a.

[0284] With the iron ball SB magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a of the ball release shutter 615 by the magnetic force of the magnet 616, when the ball release shutter 615 is slid from the closed position to the open position, the front end of the iron ball SB magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a comes into contact with the front wall of the first traverse portion 613k, preventing only the iron ball SB from moving forward. When the magnet 616 moves forward of the front wall of the first traverse 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 release shutter 615 coincides with the ball release opening 613p, and the game ball B can pass through the ball release opening 613p, so the iron ball SB can be discharged from the ball release opening 613p into the ball receiving tray 720 below and removed from the ball storage passage 604.

[0285] The ball circulation path relay board 617 is attached to the rear surface of the ball receiving front member 611, at the rear of the foul ball passage 603, and below the lower out ball receiving plate portion 611b of the ball receiving rear member 612. The ball circulation path relay board 617 is for relaying the connections between the out ball sensor 605, the safe ball sensor 606, the foul ball sensor 607, the ball circulation shortage sensor 621, and the ball circulation excess sensor 622, and the frame control board 740, which will be described later.

[0286] The gauge section 620 indicates an appropriate quantity area of ​​a predetermined length with respect to the flow direction of the ball storage passage 604 in the ball meandering member 613. Here, the appropriate quantity is defined as the state in which the rear end of the row of stored game balls B overlaps the gauge section 620. The gauge section 620 allows for visual confirmation of the appropriate quantity of game balls B (circulating balls) and is formed from a transparent seal that is partially colored. This gauge section 620 is attached to the upper surface of the meandering cover 614. More specifically, it is attached to the upper surface of the meandering cover 614 to the part upstream of the first traverse section 613k of the ball meandering member 613. As shown in Figure 42, this gauge section 620 has letters and symbols (arrows) indicating the appropriate range (appropriate quantity area) of the stored amount of game balls B.

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

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

[0289] The middle gauge seal 620b has a rod-shaped portion that extends backward (downstream) to the portion indicated by the arrow in 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 forward and backward at the downstream end of the first bent section 613j, an arrow on the upstream side of that line with the tip of the arrow portion pointing towards the line and the rod portion extending along the passage to the upstream end of the fifth perpendicular section 613i, and the words "From here" written (displayed) to the right of the arrow portion upstream of the arrow.

[0291] When inspecting the gauge section 620 during maintenance, if no game balls B can be seen in the gauge section 620 (appropriate amount area), that is, in the area from the line of the upper gauge seal 620a to the line of the lower gauge seal 620c, it indicates that there is a shortage of game balls B, which is less than the appropriate amount. To replenish the game balls B, game balls B are inserted into the out port 1008 of the game board 5, or into the out ball receiving port 600a or the 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" section (the line on the upper gauge seal 620a), it can be seen that there is an excess of game balls B, which is more than the appropriate amount. If there is an excess of game balls B, the ball release shutter 615 is pulled forward and slid to the open position, thereby discharging the game balls B in the ball storage passage 604 from the ball release opening 613p to bring the amount to the appropriate level.

[0293] Thus, with the gauge unit 620 of this embodiment, it is possible to determine at a glance whether the amount of stored game balls B is appropriate, and it is also possible to make the amount of stored game balls B appropriate.

[0294] In the above embodiment, the gauge section 620 is shown as a seal attached to the meandering cover 614, but the appropriate amount area may be colored a different color from other parts, or the molding color of the gauge section 620 may be different, or the gauge section 620 may have colored lines drawn at the downstream and upstream ends of the appropriate amount area.

[0295] Furthermore, although the above embodiment shows the gauge section 620 being located upstream of the ball release shutter 615, the invention is not limited to this configuration. As shown by the dashed line in Figure 62, the downstream end of the gauge section 620 may be located downstream of the ball release shutter 615 and near the upstream of the circulating ball under-saturation sensor 621.

[0296] In this embodiment, the circulating ball path unit 600 has a ball receiving front plate 610, a ball receiving front member 611, a ball receiving rear member 612, a ball meandering member 613, and a meandering cover 614, all made of transparent synthetic resin. Therefore, the internal state can be visually observed from the outside.

[0297] The ball circulation path unit 600 has an out ball sensor 605 and a foul ball sensor 607 mounted between the front ball receiving plate 610 and the front ball receiving member 611, and a safe ball sensor 606 mounted between the front ball receiving member 611 and the rear ball receiving member 612. The out ball sensor 605 and the safe ball sensor 606 are mounted side by side, front to back.

[0298] The out ball sensor 605, safe ball sensor 606, foul ball sensor 607, circulating ball shortage sensor 621, and circulating ball excess 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 to the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501 from the rear. When assembled on the main frame 4, the circulating ball path unit 600 is attached so that the out ball receiving opening 600a and the safe ball receiving opening 600b are at the same height as the upper surface of the base wall portion 501b and in contact with the rear end edge of the upper surface of the base wall portion 501b.

[0300] Furthermore, the circulating ball path unit 600 is mounted on the main frame 4 so that the ball delivery unit 700 is positioned between it and the base wall portion 501b.

[0301] Furthermore, when the circulating ball path unit 600 is assembled on the main frame 4, the portions of the ball meandering member 613 and the meandering cover 614 that are in front of the center in the front-to-back direction protrude forward, passing through the ball storage passage insertion opening 501g provided in the base wall portion 501b from the rear. As a result, when the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main frame 4, the game balls B inside the ball meandering member 613 (ball storage passage 604) can be seen from the front (outside).

[0302] Furthermore, when the circulating ball path unit 600 is assembled on the main frame 4 and the frame base unit 730 is opened to the rear, the interiors of the out ball passage 601, safe ball passage 602, foul ball passage 603, and the parts of the ball storage passage 604 behind the base wall 501b can be viewed from the rear. This makes it possible to check the inside of the out ball passage 601, etc., by opening the frame base unit 730 when a ball jam occurs, making it easier to identify the location of the ball jam.

[0303] Furthermore, when the circulating ball path unit 600 is assembled on the main frame 4, the second traverse portion 613o of the ball meandering member 613 is located behind the base wall portion 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 portion 501b and at a lower position than the ball launching unit 550. This ball discharge port 600d is in communication with 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 includes a circulating ball shortage sensor 621 for detecting when there is an insufficient amount of stored game balls B (circulating balls), and a circulating ball excess sensor 622 for detecting when there is an excess amount of stored game balls B (circulating balls) (see Figure 62).

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

[0306] As will be explained in more detail later, when the number of game balls B is at an appropriate level, the circulating ball deficiency sensor 621 detects game balls B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or longer, while the circulating ball excess sensor 622 does not detect game balls B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or longer. When the number of game balls B is insufficient, neither the circulating ball deficiency sensor 621 nor the circulating ball excess sensor 622 detects game balls B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or longer. On the other hand, when the number of game balls B is in excess, neither the circulating ball deficiency sensor 621 nor the circulating ball excess sensor 622 detects game balls B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or longer. Furthermore, if the circulating ball shortage sensor 621 does not detect game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or longer, and the circulating ball excess sensor 622 detects game ball B for a predetermined time (e.g., 80 ms) or longer, then a ball jam, including the inclusion of iron ball SB, has occurred between the circulating ball shortage sensor 621 and the circulating ball excess sensor 622.

[0307] Here, we will explain the reason for the predetermined time k80ms as the threshold for detecting the presence or absence of game ball B. For example, on the circulation path R, the positions where sensors such as the circulating ball excess sensor 622, circulating ball insufficiency sensor 621, lifting inlet sensor 653, lifting outlet sensor 654, and launch pre-sensor 704 are placed are at the stopping positions of game ball B when the ball lifting unit 650 and ball delivery unit 700 are stopped. This position is where the next game ball B is located each time one game ball B is sent. Therefore, the detection of game ball B here is based on whether or not it has been detected for 80ms or more. This is because the time it takes to detect a game ball B rolling on a slope with an incline of about 5 degrees is about 50ms, so a margin is added to detect it at 80ms to ensure that a game ball B is definitely present at that position. In other words, this value of 80ms is a practical value obtained through experimentation.

[0308] In this way, by combining the detection status of game balls B by the circulating ball shortage sensor 621 and the circulating ball excess sensor 622, the frame control board 740 can automatically determine and notify the amount of game balls B, ball jams, etc.

[0309] In the above embodiment, a low circulating ball sensor 621 and an excess circulating ball sensor 622 are provided. However, the low circulating ball sensor 621 may be replaced with the lift inlet sensor described later, and the excess circulating ball sensor 622 may be replaced with the out ball sensor 605, the safe ball sensor 606, or the foul ball sensor 607.

[0310] [4-4a. Ball jamming relief mechanism] Next, the circulating ball path unit 600 may be provided with a ball jam relief mechanism 630, as shown in Figure 43, to facilitate the relief of 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 in the circulating ball path unit attached to the main frame with the cover member of the ball relief mechanism closed, and (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the state in (a) with the cover member open.

[0311] The ball jam relief mechanism 630 is configured such that the upper wall portions of the out ball sensor 605 and the safe ball sensor 606 in the ball receiving front member 611 and ball receiving rear member 612 of the circulating ball path unit 600 are made into openable and closable lid members 631. As shown in Figure 43(a), the lid member 631 is closed in the normal state. The lid member 631 is held in the closed state by locking with locking claws (not shown).

[0312] This ball jam relief mechanism 630 is used to resolve ball jams that occur in the out ball passage 601 or the safe ball passage 602, or when illegal balls B' with a larger diameter than game ball B are inserted as a result of fraudulent activity, blocking the out ball sensor 605, etc.

[0313] For example, if an illegal ball B' with a larger diameter than the game ball B is inserted through the out port 1008 of the game board 5 and the out ball sensor 605 is blocked, the main body frame 4 is opened relative to the outer frame 2 and the frame substrate unit 730 is opened, revealing the rear of the circulating ball path unit 600. In this embodiment, a gap is formed between the part of the circulating ball path unit 600 where the ball jam relief mechanism 630 is provided and the box body portion 504b of the main body speaker box 504 into which a finger can be inserted. By releasing the locking claw of the lid member 631 through this gap and rotating the lid member 631 so that its lower end moves upward, the lid member 631 can be opened (see Figure 43(b)).

[0314] By opening the cover member 631, a finger can be inserted into the upper part of the out-of-ball sensor 605 within the out-of-ball passage 601, making it easy to remove the illegal ball B' blocking the out-of-ball sensor 605. In this way, the illegal ball B' can be easily removed without having to remove the circulating ball path unit 600, which is screwed in using a screwdriver.

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

[0316] In the above example, the ball jam relief mechanism 630 is shown to be provided with an openable and closable lid member 631. However, for example, elastic claws may be provided on the rear ball receiving member 612 and the front ball receiving member 611, and the rear ball receiving member 612 and the front ball receiving member 611 may be detached to the rear by the locking of the elastic claws. In this case, under normal conditions, the frame base plate unit 730 is located behind the circulating ball path unit 600, and even if the locking of the elastic claws loosens, the rear ball receiving member 612 and the front ball receiving member 611 will not come off to the rear. Furthermore, if the out-of-bounds 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 substrate unit 730 exposes the rear of the circulating ball path unit 600. By releasing the locking of the elastic claws that attach the ball receiving rear member 612 and the ball receiving front member 611, the ball receiving rear member 612 and the ball receiving front member 611 can be easily removed, and the illegal ball B' blocking the out-of-bounds ball sensor 605 can be easily removed.

[0317] Alternatively, as a ball jam resolution mechanism 630, the ball receiving front member 611, which is sandwiched between the ball receiving front plate 610 and the ball receiving rear member 612, may be made so that the portion above the out ball sensor 605 can be slid upward and removed. In this case, under normal conditions, the game board 5 is located above the circulating ball path unit 600, and gravity prevents the slidable portion of the ball receiving front member 611 from coming off upward. When the out ball sensor 605 is blocked by an illegal ball B', the door frame 3 is opened relative to the main frame 4, and the game board 5 is removed from the main frame 4, exposing the upper part of the circulating ball path unit 600. The illegal ball B' blocking the out ball sensor 605 can then be easily removed by sliding the slidable portion of the ball receiving front member 611 upward.

[0318] [4-4b. Ball-removing shutter of the second embodiment] Next, in the circulating ball path unit 600, as shown in Figure 44, the magnet 616 may be attached to the front part of the opening 615d in the ball release shutter 615. Figure 44(a) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the ball release shutter together with the ball meandering member and ball release tray in the closed position with the iron ball magnetically attached to it, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the ball release shutter together with the ball meandering member and ball release tray in the open position with the iron ball magnetically attached to it, and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing a side cross-section of the ball meandering member and ball release tray together with the ball release shutter after sliding the ball release shutter to the closed position from the state in (b) with the iron ball magnetically attached to its lower surface. In this ball release shutter 615, the rear end of the outer peripheral surface of the magnet 616 supported by the magnet support part 615h coincides with the front inner peripheral surface of the opening 615d.

[0319] In the ball-removing shutter 615 of the second embodiment, as shown in Figure 44(a), when the ball-removing shutter 615 is slid from the closed position to the open position forward while the iron ball SB is magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a of the ball-removing shutter 615 by the magnetic force of the magnet 616, the front end of the iron ball SB, which is magnetically attached to the upper surface of the door portion 615a, comes into contact with the front wall of the first lateral portion 613k, preventing only the iron ball SB from moving forward. As the ball-removing shutter 615 slides further forward, the door portion 615a that was supporting the lower end of the iron ball SB disappears, and the iron ball SB moves into the lower opening 615d due to gravity. At this time, since the rear end of the outer surface of the magnet 616 coincides with the front inner surface of the opening 615d, the iron ball SB becomes magnetically attached to the outer surface of the magnet 616 (see Figure 44(b)).

[0320] Furthermore, while the steel ball SB attempts to move from its outer surface toward the pole side with stronger magnetic force (in this case, the lower end surface) on the magnet 616, when the ball release shutter 615 is in the open position, the upper end surface of the ball receiving tray 720 is located below the magnet 616, so the steel ball SB cannot move downwards from the magnet 616. Therefore, when the ball release shutter 615 is slid to the open position, the steel ball B is located in a position that overlaps with the opening 615d, and the game ball B upstream of the steel ball SB cannot be discharged downwards through the opening 615d, or ball release opening 613p.

[0321] After sliding the ball release shutter 615 to the open position, sliding the ball release shutter 615 to the rear closed position prevents the game ball B upstream of the steel ball SB from passing through the ball release opening 613p, while the steel ball SB that was magnetized on the outer surface of the magnet 616 moves to the underside of the magnet 616, resulting in the steel ball SB being magnetized on the underside of the magnet 616 (see Figure 44(c)). Then, the ball receiving tray 720 is pulled out and removed from the tray insertion recess 501f, and the steel ball SB that is magnetized on the underside of the magnet 616 is removed.

[0322] In this way, with the iron ball SB magnetically attached to the door portion 615a of the ball release shutter 615 by the magnet 616, sliding the ball release shutter 615 back and forth allows only the magnetically attached iron ball SB to 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 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 frame viewed from the front left, (b) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame viewed from the front right, and (c) is a perspective view of the ball lifting unit in the main frame viewed from the rear. Figure 46 is an exploded perspective view of the ball lifting unit showing the ball motor base and cassette pressing piece open and the ball cassette removed. Figure 47(a) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit without the ball cassette installed, (b) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the ball motor base and cassette pressing piece open and the ball cassette installed, and (c) is a plan view of the ball lifting unit with the ball cassette installed.

[0324] Furthermore, Figure 48(a) is an explanatory diagram showing the door frame being closed with the Kuma cassette not fully locked, (b) is an explanatory diagram showing the state where the door frame moves in the closing direction from the state in (a) and the projection of the door frame contacts the tip of the Kuma motor base, and (c) is an explanatory diagram showing the state where the door frame is closed and the Kuma cut is locked from the state in (b). Figure 49 is a front view showing the main parts in an enlarged view with the Kuma cassette removed from the ball lifting unit attached to the main frame. Figure 50(a) is a right side view showing the Kuma mechanism and the main parts of the 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 a perspective view of the ball lifting unit viewed from the left rear, showing enlarged views of the lifting inlet sensor and lifting outlet sensor, 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 schematically showing the front and rear parts of the ball sensor, which consists of a photosensor, in the ball passage. Figure 54(a) is a perspective view of the ball polishing cassette of the ball lifting unit viewed from the left front, (b) is a perspective view of the ball polishing cassette viewed from the right rear, and (c) is a right side cross-sectional view of the ball polishing cassette cut in the center in the left-right direction.

[0326] The ball lifting unit 650 is for sending game balls B, which have been discharged from the game board 5 and the foul unit 570 and have flowed 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 section 501j provided on the rear surface of the base wall section 501b of the main frame base 501.

[0327] The ball lifting unit 650 includes a ball lifting mechanism 660 for lifting game balls B, a ball lifting inlet passage 651 for supplying game balls B sent from the circulating ball path unit 600 to the ball lifting mechanism 660, a ball lifting outlet passage 652 for supplying game balls B lifted by the ball lifting mechanism 660 to the ball transport unit 700, a lifting inlet sensor 653 provided in the ball lifting inlet passage 651 for detecting game balls B in circulation, and a lifting outlet sensor 654 provided in the ball lifting outlet passage 652 for detecting game balls B in circulation.

[0328] Furthermore, the ball lifting unit 650 includes a ball lifting inlet grounding plate 655 provided in the ball lifting inlet passage 651 so as to be in contact with the game ball B, a ball lifting outlet grounding plate 656 provided in the ball lifting outlet passage 652 so as to be in contact with the game ball B, a ball lifting relay board 657 which relays the connection to the frame control board 740, and a ball polishing mechanism 680 for polishing the game ball B that is being lifted by the ball lifting mechanism 660.

[0329] First, the ball lifting mechanism 660 of the ball lifting unit 650 includes a lifting spiral shaft 661 that extends vertically and has a spiral lifting groove 661a on its outer circumference, 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 to which the motor gear 663 is attached to the rotating shaft for rotating the lifting spiral shaft 661, a lifting motor index 665 having a detection portion 665a that extends flange-like from the lower end of the shaft gear 662 and is provided so as to be cut out in a 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] Furthermore, the ball lifting mechanism 660 includes a motor base sheet metal 667 to which a lifting motor 664 is attached and which rotatably supports a motor gear 663, and a lifting mechanism base 668 and a lifting mechanism cover 669 to which the motor base sheet metal 667 is attached and which rotatably supports a lifting spiral shaft 661, and which are 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 on its outer surface, with a depth sufficient to accommodate game balls B in a single row. The lifting groove 661a is formed so that the game balls B can be lifted by rotating the lifting spiral shaft 661 in a clockwise direction when viewed from above in its axial direction (see Figure 50(c)). The spiral pitch of the lifting groove 661a is longer near the upper and lower ends than in between. The lifting spiral shaft 661 is rotatably supported by a lifting mechanism base 668 and a lifting mechanism cover 669. The axis of rotation of the lifting spiral shaft 661 is inclined with respect to the vertical such that, in a front view, the upper end is located to the right of the lower end. This allows the upper end of the lifting spiral shaft 661 to be moved to the right from the ball transport unit, making it possible to relatively increase the length of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 and thus increase the storage capacity of game balls B. In this embodiment, the axis of rotation of the lifting spiral shaft 661 is inclined at an angle of 12 degrees with respect to the vertical.

[0332] Furthermore, the lifting spiral shaft 661 will be described in detail. As shown in Figure 51, the lifting spiral shaft 661 has a small diameter section 661b with a bottom diameter (bottom diameter) of D1 in the lifting groove 661a, and a large diameter section 661c with a bottom diameter D2 that is larger than the small diameter section 661b. The large diameter section 661c is provided in the axial middle portion that overlaps with the grinding cloth 682 of the ball polishing cassette 681. The diameter of the lifting spiral shaft 661 is configured to change gradually between the small diameter section 661b and the large diameter section 661c.

[0333] Furthermore, the lifting spiral shaft 661 has a smaller spiral pitch P2 in the larger diameter section 661c compared to the spiral pitch P1 in the smaller diameter section 661b. The smaller the spiral pitch, the slower the lifting speed of the game ball B becomes.

[0334] The lifting spiral shaft 661 is positioned such 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 in the ball polishing cassette 681.

[0335] However, in the lifting spiral shaft 661, if the diameter of the bottom of the lifting groove 661a is made up of the bottom diameter D1 of the small diameter section 661b along its entire length, the bottom diameter D1 is smaller than the bottom diameter D2 of the large diameter section 661c, resulting in a larger gap between the bottom of the lifting groove 661a and the polishing cloth 682. Therefore, even if the lifting spiral shaft 661 is rotated to polish the game ball B that is lifted by the lifting groove 661a with the polishing cloth 682, the larger gap between the polishing cloth 682 causes the game ball B to move towards the bottom of the lifting groove 661a, reducing the contact area between the game ball B and the polishing cloth 682, and thus decreasing the polishing efficiency.

[0336] In contrast, in this embodiment, in the axial middle 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 made larger than the bottom diameter D1 of the small diameter portion 661b, resulting in a larger gap from the bottom of the lifting groove 661a to the surface of the polishing cloth 682 in the large diameter portion 661c than the gap in the small diameter portion 661b. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the gap S1 from the large diameter portion 661c to the polishing cloth 682 is smaller than the diameter D of the game ball B. As a result, in 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, causing the polishing cloth 682 to be indented together with the ball polishing sponge 683 provided on the back side of the polishing cloth 682. This increases the contact area of ​​the polishing cloth 682 with the game ball B, thereby improving the polishing efficiency of the game ball B.

[0337] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the lifting spiral shaft 661 has a spiral pitch P2 in the large-diameter section 661c that overlaps with the polishing cloth 682 that is smaller than the spiral pitch P1 in the small-diameter section 661b. This allows the lifting speed of the game ball B in the large-diameter section 661c to be slowed down. As a result, the contact time between the game ball B and the polishing cloth 682 can be increased, allowing the game ball B to be polished more thoroughly.

[0338] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the lifting spiral shaft 661 is designed so that its diameter gradually changes between the small-diameter section 661b and the large-diameter section 661c. This prevents abrupt changes in the load applied when lifting the game ball B, thereby 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 to the vertical, so that it intersects the polishing cloth 682 at an angle. This allows 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 shown has a large-diameter section 661c in the middle in the axial direction, it is not limited to this configuration. Alternatively, a small-diameter section 661b may be provided only at the lower end, and the large-diameter section 661c may be provided 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 tries to rotate due to the load acting on it by the numerous game balls B contained in the lifting groove 661a of the lifting spiral shaft 661, the motor gear 663, which is a worm gear meshed with the shaft gear 662, can prevent the rotation. Furthermore, because the motor gear 663 is a worm gear, even if the lifting spiral shaft 661 tries to rotate due to the inertia when the drive of the lifting motor 664 stops, that rotation can be stopped immediately, 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 made of a worm gear, less prone to chipping. 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 manner. The detection portion 665a of the lifting motor index 665 is provided such that a 45-degree angle range is cut out from the entire circumference. The lifting motor index sensor 666 is a photosensor. The lifting motor index sensor 666 is in a light-receiving state at the detection portion 665a of the lifting motor index 665, and is in a non-light-receiving state in the other parts of the lifting motor index 665. 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 explained in more detail later, the lifting spiral shaft 661 rotates once for every 32 rotations of the lifting motor 664's axis, thanks to the shaft gear 662 and motor gear 663. The lifting motor index sensor 666 is positioned outside the detection unit 665a and enters a non-light-receiving state. After 28 rotations of the lifting motor 664, it reaches the detection unit 665a and enters a light-receiving state. After 4 more rotations of the lifting motor 664, it moves away from the detection unit 665a and enters a non-light-receiving state. In this embodiment, the origin is set to the position two rotations after the lifting motor 664 has reached the detection unit 665a and entered a light-receiving state. In other words, the center of the detection unit 665a is set as the origin of rotation for the lifting spiral shaft 661.

[0345] The motor base sheet metal 667 has the lifting motor 664 attached to its left end in a front view, and rotatably supports the right end of the motor gear 663 at its right end. The motor base sheet metal 667 is attached to the lifting mechanism base 668 at its upper end and to the lifting mechanism cover 669 at its lower end.

[0346] The lifting mechanism base 668, in cooperation with the lifting mechanism cover 669, houses the lifting spiral shaft 661 and rotatably supports the lifting spiral shaft 661. The lifting mechanism base 668 has a ball opening 668a that 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 an opening of the ball opening 668a on its bottom surface, capable of accommodating the rear end of the ball cassette 681. The ball opening 668a extends vertically with a width narrower than the diameter of the game ball B. The ball polishing opening 668a is provided such that a portion of the game ball B, which is lifted by the lifting spiral shaft 661, protrudes forward. The portion of the game ball B that protrudes forward from 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, which is attached (mounted) in the cassette mounting recess 668b, thereby polishing the game ball B.

[0347] The lifting mechanism base 668 is provided with the downstream portion of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 in a location to the right of the lifting spiral shaft 661 when viewed from the front, near its lower end. The portion of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 provided on the lifting mechanism base 668 has an upstream end that opens towards the rear and slopes downward towards 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 in a location to the right of the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661 when viewed from the front.

[0348] Furthermore, the lifting mechanism base 668 is provided with 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 towards the left in a front view, then slopes downward towards the rear, with the downstream end opening towards the rear. The ball lifting outlet passage 652 slopes downward from the rearward opening portion on the lifting mechanism base 668 towards the left, then slopes downward towards the front, and opens towards the front at its front end. This portion of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 is formed by the cooperation of the lifting mechanism base 668 and the lifting mechanism cover 669.

[0349] Furthermore, a Kuma motor base 686, to which the Kuma motor 688 of the Kuma mechanism 680 is attached, is rotatably mounted on the lifting mechanism base 668 with respect to an axis that extends vertically.

[0350] The lifting mechanism cover 669 works in cooperation 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 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 that is upstream of the portion provided on the lifting mechanism base 668 in the ball lifting inlet passage 651. The portion provided on the lifting mechanism base 668 in the ball lifting inlet passage 651 has its downstream end opening forward at a point on the right side of the front view near the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661, extends rearward, then bends to the left to pass behind the lifting spiral shaft 661, and then extends diagonally forward with its upstream end opening to the left. A ball lifting inlet grounding plate 655 is attached to this lifting mechanism cover 669, which is provided so as to be in contact with the game ball B flowing through the ball lifting inlet passage 651, behind the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661.

[0352] Furthermore, the lifting mechanism cover 669 has a portion downstream of the portion provided on the lifting mechanism base 668 in the ball lifting outlet passage 652. The portion of the lifting mechanism cover 669 in the ball lifting outlet passage 652 has an upstream end that opens to the rear, bends to the left in a front view, extends to the left to the left end, then bends forward, and the downstream end at the front end of the lifting mechanism cover 669 opens forward.

[0353] Furthermore, a lifting outlet sensor 654 is attached to the lifting mechanism cover 669 near the left end of the portion of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 that extends to the left in a front view. In addition, a ball lifting outlet grounding plate 656 is attached to the lifting mechanism cover 669 upstream of the lifting outlet sensor 654 in the portion of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 that extends to the left, and is provided to be in contact with the game ball B flowing through the ball lifting outlet passage 652.

[0354] Furthermore, the lifting mechanism cover 669 has a support projection 669a that protrudes forward from the right end, slightly below the center in the vertical direction, compared to the lifting mechanism base 668, and a locking hole 669b that penetrates the front surface of the support projection 669a and into which the Nylatch 694 is locked. When the ball lifting unit 650 is attached to the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j of the main frame 4 from the rear, the support projection 669a protrudes to the front side of the base wall portion 501b through the opening 501o that penetrates the 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 that opens to the left near the lower part of the left side of the ball lifting unit 650. This opening is positioned to face the ball discharge port 600d of the circulating ball path unit 600 when assembled to the main frame 4. The ball lifting inlet passage 651 slopes downward from the left end inlet toward the right, extends to the right of the lifting spiral shaft 661 to bypass the rear of the lifting spiral shaft 661, then turns back toward the front and extends to the left near the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661. Then, near the lifting spiral shaft 661, it bends in a crank shape to wrap around to the front of the lifting spiral shaft 661, and communicates with the lifting groove 661a of the lifting spiral shaft 661 near the front of the lower end of the lifting spiral shaft 661.

[0356] The ball lifting inlet passage 651 is provided such 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 the game balls B that have flowed through the ball storage passage 604 are passed through and circulated there.

[0357] The ball lifting inlet passage 651 has a lifting inlet sensor 653 installed in the right-hand portion of the lifting spiral shaft 661, and a ball lifting inlet grounding plate 655 is attached to the rear portion of the lifting spiral shaft 661.

[0358] The ball lifting outlet passage 652, near the upper end of the ball lifting unit 650, has an upstream end that communicates with the lifting groove 661a in front of the upper end of the lifting spiral shaft 661. It extends to the left of the lifting spiral shaft 661, then bends rearward, extending to the same position as the rear end of the lifting spiral shaft 661, and then bends to the left again. From there, it extends to the left near the left end of the ball lifting unit 650, then bends forward, and its downstream end opens forward on the front surface of the ball lifting unit 650 (lifting mechanism cover 669).

[0359] The ball lifting exit passage 652 is provided such that the opening at its downstream end faces the ball supply port of the ball transport unit described later, allowing game balls B to be supplied to the ball transport unit 700.

[0360] The ball lifting outlet passage 652 has a lifting outlet sensor 654 installed near the left end of the portion that extends to the left near the rear end of the ball lifting unit 650, and a ball lifting outlet grounding plate 656 is attached to the upstream side (right side) of it. The bottom wall of the portion of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 where the ball lifting outlet grounding plate 656 is installed has an opening that is sized not to obstruct the flow of game balls B, and dust and debris can be discharged to the outside through this opening.

[0361] The lifting inlet sensor 653 detects the presence or absence of game balls B to be lifted when the lifting motor 664 drives the lifting spiral shaft 661 to lift the game balls B. As will be described in detail later, if the lifting inlet sensor 653 does not detect game balls B, the lifting motor 664 will not be driven.

[0362] The lifting outlet sensor 654 detects the presence or absence of game balls B supplied to the ball feeding unit. As will be described in detail later, when the lifting inlet sensor 653 detects game balls B, and the lifting outlet sensor 654 no longer detects game balls B, and a predetermined condition is met (in this case, a predetermined number (e.g., 3) of game balls B are subtracted by the launch subtraction sensor 554), the lifting motor 664 drives the lifting spiral shaft 661 to rotate and lift a predetermined number of game balls B.

[0363] The lifting inlet sensor 653 and the lifting outlet sensor 654 are photosensors having a light-emitting part and a light-receiving part, and they detect the presence or absence of the game ball B without contact by blocking the light from the light-emitting part when the game ball B is present.

[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 explained. Here, the relationship between the ball lifting inlet passage 651 and the lifting inlet sensor 653 will be explained, and the relationship between the ball lifting outlet passage 652 and the lifting outlet sensor 654 will be the same and therefore omitted. As shown in Figures 52 and 53, the part of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 where the lifting inlet sensor 653 is installed is a V-shaped passage section 651a with a V-shaped cross-section (an inverted trapezoidal shape that narrows downwards). 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 an open U-shaped cross-section.

[0365] The same applies to the ball lifting outlet passage 652, where the lifting outlet sensor 654 is located in a V-shaped passage section 652a (a V-shaped inverted trapezoidal shape that narrows downwards), and the other parts are U-shaped passage sections 652b that are open upwards.

[0366] In other words, the V-shaped passage sections 651a and 652a each have a pair of inclined surfaces to which the game ball B comes into contact, and the spacing between them widens as they move upward. The U-shaped passage sections 651b and 652b each have a flat bottom surface to which the game ball B comes into contact and which is wider than the diameter of the game ball B, and a pair of side walls erected from both ends of the bottom surface in the width direction. The ball transport passage 703 of the ball transport unit 700, which is downstream of the ball lifting outlet passage 652, is also formed in the same shape as the U-shaped passage sections 651b and 652b.

[0367] Incidentally, if the cross-section of the passage for the lifting inlet sensor 653, which consists of a photosensor, is a U-shaped passage that opens upwards, the circulating game balls B will come into contact with the side walls. As a result, scratches and dirt caused on the side walls of the passage by contact with the game balls B may hinder the photosensor's light reception and emission, potentially leading to false detections. Furthermore, in a U-shaped passage, the position of the game balls B in the width direction of the passage is not constant and unstable, so the detection position by the sensor will vary, potentially leading to false detections.

[0368] In contrast, in this embodiment, the lifting inlet sensor 653 (lifting outlet sensor 654) is located in a V-shaped passage section 651a (V-shaped passage section 652a) with a V-shaped cross-section. By holding the game ball B at two points with the diagonal sides of the V-shape, movement in the width direction of the passage can be restricted, and the position of the game ball B can be kept constant and stable with respect to 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), preventing scratches and dirt caused by contact with the game ball B, eliminating false detections, and ensuring reliable detection of the game ball.

[0369] In the above description, a V-shaped passage section 651a (V-shaped passage section 652a) with a V-shaped (inverted trapezoidal) cross-section was shown as the shape of the passage that keeps the position of the game ball B constant and stable relative to the sensor. However, it may also be a pair of protrusions that are spaced closer together than the diameter of the game ball B and extend in the direction of the flow of the game ball B.

[0370] The ball lifting inlet passage 651 is equipped with a lifting spiral shaft 661 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, causing them to move intermittently, and resulting in game balls B remaining stationary in the ball lifting inlet passage 651. On the other hand, the ball lifting outlet passage 652 is equipped with a ball transport unit 700, which will be described later, at its downstream end. Therefore, in the ball lifting outlet passage 652 upstream of the ball transport unit 700, game balls B are moved intermittently one by one by the ball transport operation of the ball transport unit 700, causing game balls B to remain stationary 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 around the lifting inlet sensor 653 (lifting outlet sensor 654) is a V-shaped passage section 651a (V-shaped passage section 652a), while the other areas are U-shaped passage sections 651b (U-shaped passage section 652b). Therefore, even if multiple game balls B are stationary in the passage, the ball pressure exerted by the multiple game balls B on the downstream side can be reduced.

[0372] More specifically, as shown by the dashed line in Figure 53, in the V-shaped passage section 651a (V-shaped passage section 652a), multiple game balls B are arranged in a straight line (in a single row along the axis of the passage), but in the U-shaped passage section 651b (U-shaped passage section 652b), multiple game balls B are pushed downstream and arranged in a staggered pattern so as to alternately contact the side walls on both sides, thereby distributing the ball pressure to the side walls and reducing the ball pressure caused by the multiple game balls B downstream. Therefore, parts provided downstream of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 (ball lifting outlet passage 652) (for example, the lifting spiral shaft 661, the ball-feeding movable member 705 of the ball-feeding unit 700, etc.) will not be damaged by the ball pressure of the multiple game balls B that are stationary (stored), and there is no need to excessively reinforce these parts against ball pressure, thereby reducing the cost of the pachinko machine 1.

[0373] By the way, the detection of game ball B at the prize entry point, etc., is performed by checking the output from the ball sensor at a predetermined interrupt cycle (for example, 4ms), and if the output is 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 anything other than "011", it is determined to be OFF. However, in ball sensors (here, lifting entrance sensor 653 and lifting exit sensor 654) installed in ball passages where multiple game balls B are stationary, such as the ball lifting entrance passage 651 and the ball lifting exit passage 652, if the presence or absence of game balls B is determined by the above-described determination method, then the ball sensors will only generate OFF if there are no game balls B in the ball passage, many ON signals at short intervals will occur if game balls B are being supplied to the ball passage, and many OFF signals at short intervals will occur if the game balls B stored in the ball passage are moving one by one (the game balls B are moving at the launch interval). Therefore, the above-described determination method could not accurately determine whether there were no game balls B in the ball passage.

[0374] In contrast, in this embodiment, thresholds are set for ON and OFF determination (for example, an ON threshold of 200ms and an OFF threshold of 200ms), and ON or OFF is determined only when the threshold is exceeded and there is a continuous period of no detection or detection. In other words, for example, when the output from the ball sensor is "01111...", it is determined to be ON, and when it is "10000...", it is determined to be OFF. This makes it possible to reliably detect (determine) the presence or absence of game balls B in a ball passage where multiple game balls B are stationary.

[0375] The thresholds for determining ON or OFF may vary depending on the type of ball passage, the number of game balls B that are stationary, etc., and the thresholds for ON and OFF may be different. In this embodiment, for example, the lifting inlet sensor 653 of the ball lifting inlet passage 651 has an ON threshold of 80ms and an OFF threshold of 200ms. Similarly, the lifting outlet sensor 654 of the ball lifting outlet passage 652 has an ON threshold of 80ms and an OFF threshold of 200ms. Furthermore, the launch pre-launch sensor 704 of the ball transport unit 700, which will be described later, has an ON threshold of 12ms and an OFF threshold of 12ms. Also, as mentioned above, the launch subtraction sensor 554 of the ball launch unit 550 has an ON threshold of 80ms and an OFF threshold of 80ms.

[0376] If the thresholds mentioned above are too small, even slight vibrations can cause false detections and create noise in the control system. Conversely, if the thresholds are too large, the state of the game ball B will be missed. Therefore, the appropriate threshold varies depending on where the ball sensor is installed, but it is desirable to have a minimum of 10ms and a maximum of 300ms. Also, if the threshold is set to a multiple of the interrupt period (e.g., 4ms) (e.g., 3 to 60 times), the software control only needs to count the number of interrupts, thus reducing the burden on the software. Basically, the threshold is short for the pre-launch sensor 704 where the game ball B is reliably held in a fixed position, but it is longer to provide a margin for error when the game ball B is held in a nearly fixed position but there is some variation in the holding position (e.g., the lift-out exit sensor 654). In the launch-subtraction sensor 554, the game ball B is held (stationary) in a fixed position, but the threshold is long to prevent false detections due to human-induced vibrations.

[0377] The ball lifting inlet grounding plate 655 removes static electricity from the game balls B supplied from the circulating ball path unit 600 to the ball lifting inlet passage 651. The ball lifting inlet grounding plate 655 is installed upstream of the lifting inlet sensor 653. This allows static electricity from the game balls B passing through the lifting inlet sensor 653 to be removed in advance, preventing false detections at the lifting inlet sensor 653 or malfunctions of the frame control board 740 due to static electricity from the game balls B.

[0378] The ball lifting outlet grounding sheet metal 656 removes static electricity from the game ball B, which is lifted by the ball lifting mechanism 660 and polished by the ball polishing mechanism 680. The ball lifting outlet grounding sheet metal 656 is located upstream of the lifting outlet sensor 654. This allows static electricity from the game ball B passing through the lifting outlet sensor 654 to be removed in advance, preventing false detections in the lifting outlet sensor 654 or malfunctions 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 connections between the lifting inlet sensor 653, lifting outlet sensor 654, lifting motor 664, lifting motor index sensor 666, ball motor 688, etc., and the frame control board 740. The ball lifting relay board 657 is mounted on the rear side of the lifting mechanism cover 669.

[0380] The ball grinding mechanism 680 is mounted on the front side of the ball lifting mechanism 660. The ball grinding mechanism 680 comprises a ball grinding cassette 681 with an outer shape of a vertically elongated rectangular box, an endless ring belt-shaped grinding cloth 682 with part of it exposed to the outside on the rear surface of the ball grinding cassette 681, a sheet-shaped ball grinding sponge 683 provided between the exposed part of the grinding cloth 682 and the rear surface of the ball grinding cassette 681, a ball grinding feed gear 684 supported in the lower part of the ball grinding cassette 681 so as to be rotatable around an axis in the left-right direction, and a ball grinding driven gear 685 which meshes with the ball grinding feed gear 684 with the grinding cloth 682 in between and is supported so as to be rotatable around an axis in the left-right direction.

[0381] Furthermore, the Kuma mechanism 680 includes a flat plate-shaped Kuma motor base 686 located to the left of the Kuma cassette 681, with a constant front-to-back depth and extending vertically, and its rear end rotatably attached to the lifting mechanism base 668; a gear cover 687 attached to the left side of the Kuma motor base 686; a Kuma motor 688 attached to the left side of the gear cover 687, with its rotating shaft protruding between the gear cover 687 and the Kuma motor base 686; a spur gear-shaped motor gear 689 attached to the rotating shaft of the Kuma motor 688; and a gear that meshes with the motor gear 689. The transmission gear 690 has a large-diameter gear portion 690a that meshes with the large-diameter gear portion 690a and a small-diameter gear portion 690b that rotates integrally with the large-diameter gear portion 690a and is rotatably supported between the Kuma motor base 686 and the gear cover 687, and comprises a spur-shaped transmission gear 691 that meshes with the small-diameter gear portion 690b of the transmission gear 690 and is rotatably supported between the Kuma motor base 686 and the gear cover 687, and a rotating connecting portion 692 that rotates integrally with the transmission gear 691 and protrudes to the right through the Kuma motor base 686.

[0382] Furthermore, the Kuma mechanism 680 includes a flat cassette pressing piece 693 that abuts against the front surface of the Kuma cassette 681, with its left end locked to the front end of the Kuma motor base 686 and its right end attached to the front surface of the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501; a nylon latch 694 that detachably attaches the right end of the cassette pressing piece 693 to the front surface (locking hole 669b) of the support projection 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669; and a spring 695 that biases the cassette pressing piece 693 rearward (towards the Kuma cassette 681) relative to the Kuma motor base 686.

[0383] As shown in Figure 54, the Kuma cassette 681 of the Kuma mechanism 680 is formed in the shape of a hollow box, and slits 681a are provided at both the upper and lower edges of the rear surface through which the grinding cloth 682 can pass. The Kuma cassette 681 is detachably attached from the front to the lifting mechanism base 668 of the Kuma lifting mechanism 660 so as to close the Kuma opening 668a.

[0384] Furthermore, the Kuma cassette 681 has a connecting hole 681b located on the lower left side and a positioning hole 681c located in front of the connecting hole. The rotating connecting part 692, which protrudes to the right from the Kuma motor base 686, is inserted into the connecting hole 681b, and the tip of the rotating connecting part 692 inserted into the connecting hole 681b is connected to the Kuma feed gear 684. The positioning hole 681c is into which the positioning pin 686b of the Kuma motor base 686, which will be described later, is inserted. When the positioning pin 686b is inserted, the Kuma cassette 681 is positioned relative to the ball lifting mechanism 660, and the forward movement of the Kuma cassette 681 relative to the ball lifting mechanism 660 is restricted (locked).

[0385] Furthermore, the Kuma cassette 681 includes 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 located close to the upper slit 681a. The tension spring 681e applies tension to the portion of the polishing cloth 682 that is exposed to the outside from the Kuma cassette 681 by pressing the polishing cloth 682 against the rollers 681d, preventing the polishing cloth 682 from bending on the outer side of its rear surface.

[0386] The polishing cloth 682 is formed in the shape of an endless ring belt with a constant width on both sides. As shown in Figures 50(a) and 54(c), the polishing cloth 682 is housed in a meandering manner within the Kuma cassette 681, with a portion of it exposed behind the rear surface of the Kuma cassette 681 through the upper and lower slits of the Kuma cassette 681.

[0387] The Kuma sponge 683 is positioned between the rear surface of the Kuma cassette 681 and the rearward-exposed portion of the polishing cloth 682, and is attached to the rear surface of the Kuma cassette 681. The inner surface of the polishing cloth 682 is in contact with the rear surface of the Kuma sponge 683. When assembled with the ball lifting unit 650, the Kuma sponge 683 elastically presses the polishing cloth 682 against the game ball B exposed forward from the Kuma opening 668a of the ball lifting mechanism 660, ensuring that the polishing cloth 682 makes contact with the spherical surface of the game ball B over a wider area. The Kuma sponge 683 is replaceable and attached to the Kuma cassette 681.

[0388] The Kuma feed gear 684 is positioned such that, with the Kuma cassette 681 attached, its axis coincides with the axis of the transmission gear 691 (rotating coupling part 692), and the left end of the rotating shaft is connected to the rotating coupling part 692, allowing it to rotate together with the transmission gear 691.

[0389] The Kuma driven gear 685 is meshed with the Kuma feed gear 684 such that there is a gap for the abrasive cloth 682 to fit into it. When the Kuma feed gear 684 rotates, the Kuma driven gear 685 rotates in the opposite direction and can also feed the abrasive cloth 682 that is sandwiched between the Kuma feed gear 684 and the Kuma driven gear 685.

[0390] The Kuma motor base 686 extends vertically along the left side of the Kuma cassette 681, and its rear end is rotatably mounted around an axis that extends vertically relative to the lifting mechanism base 668. This allows the Kuma motor base 686 to rotate between a locked position parallel to the left side of the Kuma cassette 681 and a released position where its front end is moved away to the left from the Kuma cassette 681. The Kuma motor base 686 has a locking hole 686a that penetrates horizontally at a portion of its front edge above the vertical center. A locking hook portion 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 Kuma motor base 686 has a rotating coupling portion 692 protruding to the right from a portion near the rear in the front-rear direction near the lower end on the right side. The Kuma motor base 686 also has a positioning pin 686b that protrudes cylindrically to the right from a portion near the center in the front-rear direction near the lower end on the right side. The tip (right end) of the positioning pin 686b is formed in a conical shape. This positioning pin 686b is inserted into the positioning hole 681c of the Kuma cassette 681 to position the Kuma cassette 681 and restrict its forward movement.

[0392] More specifically, when the Kuma motor base 686 is rotated to a release position with its front end moved to the left in the front-rear direction, and the Kuma cassette 681 is mounted in the cassette mounting recess 668b of the lifting mechanism base 668, rotating the Kuma motor base 686 so that its tip moves to the right to move it to the lock position allows the positioning pin 686b to be inserted into the positioning hole 681c of the Kuma cassette 681 from a direction intersecting the front-rear direction, thereby positioning the Kuma cassette 681 and preventing it from moving forward from the cassette mounting recess 668b.

[0393] The Kuma motor base 686 is positioned so that its tip contacts the projection 102 (guide surface 102a) of the door frame 3. As will be described in more detail later, if the Kuma motor base 686 is in a position other than the locked position and the door frame 3 is attempted to be closed against the main frame 4, the guide surface 102a of the projection 102 contacts the front end of the Kuma motor base 686, causing the Kuma motor base 686 to rotate to the locked position, preventing the door from being left unlocked, and also preventing the cassette pressing piece 693 or the like from getting caught between the door frame 3 and being damaged.

[0394] The Kuma motor 688 is controlled independently of the operation of the lifting motor 664, and is controlled so that the grinding cloth 682 moves 0.17 mm for every 1000 game balls B that are launched.

[0395] The cassette pressing piece 693 extends to the left and right, and a hook-shaped locking hook portion 693a is provided at its left end, which is inserted into and locked into a locking hole 686a of the Kuma motor base 686. This cassette pressing piece 693 is biased by a spring 695 to rotate counterclockwise in a plan view. In other words, it is biased to press the Kuma cassette 681, which is mounted in the cassette mounting recess 668b of the lifting mechanism base 668, backward. The right end of the cassette pressing piece 693 extends to the right of the Kuma cassette 681, and its rear surface is configured to abut against the front surface of the support projection 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669. A nylon latch 694 is provided near the right end of this cassette pressing piece 693.

[0396] The Nylatch 694 can be locked in place by pressing the operating part 694a while the right end of the cassette pressing piece 693 is in contact with the support projection 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669. When the operating part 694a is pressed, the tip expands in diameter and locks into the locking hole 669b of the support projection 669a, immoving the cassette pressing piece 693. The lock can be released by pulling the operating part 694a towards the user. More specifically, the Nylatch 694 comprises an operating part 694a consisting of a disc-shaped disc portion and a rod-shaped portion protruding from the center of the disc 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 the base end of the cylindrical portion near the disc portion, and multiple slits provided circumferentially, which are notched from the tip of the cylindrical portion opposite to the flange portion toward the flange portion. With the cylindrical member inserted into the locking hole 669b of the support projection 669a, pressing the operating part 694a toward the support projection 669a causes the rod-shaped part to slide toward the tip inside the cylindrical part, expanding the diameter so that the tip of the cylindrical part, which is divided by multiple slits, opens up. As a result, the cylindrical member cannot be removed from the locking hole 669b, and it can be locked.

[0397] In this embodiment, the ball lifting unit 650 is attached to the rear side of the base wall portion 501b of the main frame base 501 when assembled to the main frame 4. When assembling this ball lifting unit 650 to the main frame base 501 of the main 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 portion 501b with the ball cassette 681 of the ball mechanism 680 removed from the ball lifting mechanism 660 (see Figure 47(a)). At this time, the ball motor base 686 and support projection 669a, which protrude forward from the lifting mechanism base 668, are made to protrude forward from the base wall portion 501b through the opening 501o that penetrates the ball lifting unit mounting portion 501j from front to back.

[0398] In this state, the ball opening 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 balls B being lifted onto the lifting spiral shaft 661 can be seen from the front of the base wall portion 501b (main frame 4) through the opening 501o and the ball opening 668a (see Figure 49). Since the width of the ball opening 668a is narrower than the diameter of the game balls B, the game balls B will not spill out even if the ball cassette 681 is removed. As a result, by opening the door frame 3 relative to the main frame 4 and removing the ball cassette 681, the lifting spiral shaft 661 and the game balls B being lifted onto the lifting spiral shaft 661 can be seen from the front.

[0399] Once 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 to open forward and to the left against the biasing force of the spring 695, and the Kuma motor base 686 is rotated to the release position so that its tip is away from the Kuma cassette 681, so that the cassette pressing piece 693 and the Kuma motor base 686 do not overlap with the front of the cassette mounting recess 668b of the lifting mechanism base 668. Then, with the surface where the polishing cloth 682 is exposed facing backward, the Kuma cassette 681 is positioned in front of the cassette mounting recess 668b in the lifting mechanism base 668, with the Kuma opening 668a closed from the front (see Figures 46 and 47(b)).

[0400] In this state, the Kuma cassette 681 is moved backward and its rear end is inserted into the cassette mounting recess 668b. Then, the Kuma motor base 686 is rotated to the locked position so that it is parallel to the left side of the Kuma cassette 681, and the rotating connecting part 692 and the positioning pin 686b protruding from the right side of the Kuma motor base 686 are inserted into the connecting hole 681b and the positioning hole 681c of the Kuma cassette 681, respectively. As a result, the rotating connecting part 692 and the positioning pin 686b are inserted into the Kuma cassette 681 from a direction that intersects the front-rear direction, thus restricting the forward movement of the Kuma cassette 681.

[0401] When the Kuma motor base 686 is moved to the locked position, the cassette pressing piece 693 attached to the front end of the Kuma motor base 686 presses the Kuma cassette 681 backward 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 projection 669a of the lifting mechanism cover 669. In this state, when the operating part 694a of the Nylatch 694 is pressed and locked into the locking hole 669b of the support projection 669a, the cassette pressing piece 693 is locked so that it cannot rotate, and the installation of the Kuma cassette 681 is completed.

[0402] To remove the Kuma cassette 681, first pull the operating part 694a of the Nylatch 694 towards you to release the lock, and then remove the Kuma cassette 681 by performing the reverse procedure described above.

[0403] By the way, if the Kuma cassette 681 is installed but the locking mechanism using the Kuma motor base 686 or the cassette pressing piece 693 is not properly engaged, the Kuma cassette 681 may come loose during gameplay, interrupting the game and potentially diminishing the player's enjoyment.

[0404] In contrast, in this embodiment, the Kuma cassette 681 is configured not to come off even if the locking mechanism using the Kuma motor base 686 or the cassette pressing piece 693 is not engaged. More specifically, as shown in Figure 48(a), if the door frame 3 is to be closed relative to the main frame 4 when the Kuma motor base 686 is not in the locked position and the cassette pressing piece 693 is not pressing the Kuma cassette 681 backward, the inclined guide surface 102a of the projection 102 on the door frame body 100 of the door frame 3 will come into contact with the front end of the Kuma motor base 686 (see Figure 48(b)).

[0405] In this case, the cassette pressing piece 693 attached to the front end of the Kuma motor base 686 does not remain in the forward-protruding state as shown in Figure 46, but moves towards the rearward Kuma cassette 681 as shown in Figure 48(a) due to the biasing force of the spring 695. Therefore, the cassette pressing piece 693 does not come into contact with the door frame 3 and rotate in the opposite direction from the Kuma cassette 681, and neither the cassette pressing piece 693 nor the door frame 3 is damaged.

[0406] As the door frame 3 moves further in the closing direction, the tip of the Kuma motor base 686 is pushed by the guide surface 102a and rotates to the rightward lock position. As a result, the rotating coupling portion 692 protruding from the right side of the Kuma motor base 686 is inserted into the coupling hole 681b of the Kuma cassette 681, and the positioning pin 686b of the Kuma motor base 686 is inserted into the positioning hole 681c of the Kuma cassette 681, restricting (locking) the forward movement of the Kuma cassette 681. In addition, the cassette pressing piece 693 is pressed backward by the biasing force of the spring 695 (see Figure 48(c)). As a result, the Kuma cassette 681 is locked and cannot be dislodged forward.

[0407] Although not shown in the diagram, a projection may be provided on the rear surface of the door frame 3 that can press the operating part 694a of the Nylatch 694 backward. This allows the cassette pressing piece 693 to be locked even if the locking mechanism of the Nylatch 694 is forgotten, thereby reliably preventing the Kuma cassette 681 from falling out (coming off).

[0408] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the projection 102 of the door frame 3 moves the Kuma motor base 686 to the locked position, thereby locking the Kuma cassette 681 in a way that prevents it from being removed. However, the invention is not limited to this. For example, the ball launching unit 550 and the foul unit 570 may be provided in a way that allows them to be removed, and a locking mechanism may be provided to lock the ball launching unit 550, etc. in a way that prevents them from being removed. If the door frame 3 is closed against the main frame 4 while the locking mechanism is not fully engaged, the projection 102 will come into contact with the locking mechanism, thereby locking the ball launching unit 550, etc. in a way that prevents it from being removed.

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

[0410] In this state, when the lifting motor 664 rotates the lifting spiral shaft 661 in the direction of lifting 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, in contact with the vertically extending portion on the inner periphery of the ball polishing opening 668a and the lifting groove 661a. As a result, the portion of the game ball B that is in contact with the polishing cloth 682 on the front end changes as the game ball B rises (rotates), making it possible to polish the entire surface of the game ball B evenly.

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

[0412] On the other hand, in the Kuma mechanism 680, with the Kuma cassette 681 installed, when the Kuma motor 688 rotates the Kuma feed gear 684 clockwise in a right-side view, the portion of the grinding cloth 682 that is exposed to the outside from the rear surface of the Kuma cassette 681 is retracted into the Kuma cassette 681 through the lower slit of the Kuma cassette 681. At this time, the portion of the grinding cloth 682 that is exposed to the outside is pulled downward, so the portion of the grinding cloth 682 that is retracted into the Kuma cassette 681 is fed out from the outside through the upper slit of the Kuma cassette 681.

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

[0414] Thus, with 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 transport unit 700 while the game balls B are being polished.

[0415] [4-6. Ball throwing unit] The ball-feeding unit 700 in the main 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-feeding unit in the main frame from the front, and (b) is a perspective view of the ball-feeding unit in the main frame from the rear. Figure 56(a) is an exploded perspective view of the ball-feeding unit from the front, and (b) is an exploded perspective view of the ball-feeding unit from the rear. Figure 57 is a front cross-sectional view of the ball-feeding unit cut at the launch sensor.

[0416] The ball delivery unit 700 is for supplying the game balls B, which have been lifted by the ball lifting unit 650, one by one to the ball launching unit 550. The ball delivery unit 700 is attached to the ball delivery unit mounting section 501k, which is provided on the rear side of the base wall 501b of the main frame base 501. The ball delivery unit 700 is positioned between the base wall 501b and the circulating ball path unit 600, and is mounted so as to be detachable from the top surface of the base wall 501b and sandwiched between them.

[0417] The ball transport unit 700 includes a ball supply port 701 that is open at the rear and into which game balls B supplied from the ball lifting unit 650 can enter, a ball outlet port 702 that is open at the front and for transporting game balls B to the ball launching platform 552b of the ball launching unit 550, a ball transport passage 703 that connects the ball supply port 701 and the ball outlet port 702 and through which game balls B can flow, a pre-launch sensor 704 that can detect game balls B flowing through the ball transport passage 703, a movable ball transport member 705 for releasing game balls B one by one from the ball outlet port 702 as detected by the pre-launch sensor 704, a ball transport solenoid 706 for moving the movable ball transport member 705 to transport game balls B to the ball launching unit 550, and a ball transport relay board 707 that relays the connection between the ball transport solenoid 706 and the pre-launch sensor 704 and the frame control board 740.

[0418] Furthermore, the ball-feeding unit 700 includes a transmission member 708 that transmits the forward and backward movement of the plunger in the ball-feeding solenoid 706 to move the ball-feeding movable member 705, a box-shaped unit base 709 that is open to the rear and has a pre-launch sensor 704 and a ball-feeding solenoid 706 etc. 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 feeding unit 700 is provided by penetrating the unit cover 710 which constitutes the rear surface of the ball feeding unit 700, and is located in the upper right portion from the center when viewed from the front. The ball supply port 701 is sized to allow game balls B to pass through one at a time.

[0420] The ball outlet 702 is provided by penetrating the unit base 709, which constitutes the front side of the ball feeding unit 700, from front to back, and is located slightly below the center when viewed from the front. The ball outlet 702 is sized to allow one game ball B to pass through at a time.

[0421] The ball transport passage 703 connects the ball supply port 701 and the ball delivery port 702. It extends downward to the left from the ball supply port 701 to the upper part of the ball delivery port 702, and then extends downward to the ball delivery port 702. A pre-launch sensor 704 is provided near the left end of the leftward-extending portion of the ball transport passage 703. The ball receiving portion 705a of the movable ball transport member 705 is located in the vertically extending portion of the ball transport passage 703 behind the ball delivery port 702.

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

[0423] The ball transport passage 703, where the pre-launch sensor 704 is installed, is a place where the flow of game balls B stagnates, similar to the ball lifting inlet passage 651 and the ball lifting outlet passage 652. Therefore, the pre-launch sensor 704, like the lifting inlet sensor 653 and the lifting outlet sensor 654, has thresholds set for ON and OFF determinations, and only determines ON or OFF when the threshold is exceeded and non-detection or detection occurs consecutively, thereby reliably determining (detecting) the presence or absence of game balls B. In this embodiment, for example, the ON threshold for the pre-launch sensor 704 is set to 12ms and the OFF threshold is set to 12ms.

[0424] The ball-feeding movable member 705 is movable in response to the drive of the ball-feeding solenoid 706, in order to release the game balls B in the ball-feeding passage 703 one by one from the ball-feeding outlet 702 and supply them to the ball-launching unit 550. The ball-feeding movable member 705 has a ball-receiving section 705a that is U-shaped with its bottom wall inclined forward and open to the right and front and rear, and capable of accommodating only one game ball B; a rod section 705b that extends to the left from the left end of the ball-receiving section 705a; a bearing section 705c that penetrates from front to back at the left end of the rod section 705b and into which the first shaft pin 710a of the unit cover 710 is inserted so as to be rotatable relative to the bearing section 705c; a movable gear section 705d that is fan-shaped to the right on the same axis as the bearing section 705c, and a ball-stopping section 705e that forms the upper part of the U-shaped ball-receiving section 705a.

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

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

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

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

[0429] The unit base 709 has a knob portion 709a that is recessed downward and spaced apart from the left and right on its upper surface, and an elastic claw 709b provided at the lower right corner of its front surface. The knob portion 709a is formed so that an operator can grasp it from above and is used when removing the ball feeding unit 700 upward from the main frame base 501 of the main frame 4. The sides of the knob portion 709a that are close to each other are formed in a dovetail groove shape and are inclined to approach each other as they move downward. Multiple protrusions extending front to back are provided on the side of the knob portion 709a, arranged vertically. The elastic claw 709b is intended to prevent the ball feeding unit 700 from being removed upward when it is attached to the ball feeding unit mounting portion 501k of the main frame base 501 by engaging with the locking hole of the ball feeding unit mounting portion 501k.

[0430] To remove the ball-feeding unit 700 from the main frame base 501, the elastic claw 709b, which extends forward through the locking hole in the base wall portion 501b, is pressed backward to elastically deform it, and the knob portion 709a provided on the upper surface is grasped and pulled up, thereby allowing the ball-feeding unit to be removed upward from the ball-feeding unit mounting portion 501k of the main frame base 501.

[0431] The unit cover 710 has a ball supply port 701 that penetrates from front to back in the upper right portion of the center when viewed from the front. The unit cover 710 works in cooperation with the unit base 709 to form a ball transport passage 703 and also holds the launch sensor 704, the ball transport movable member 705, the ball transport solenoid 706, the ball transport relay board 707, and the transmission member 708. The unit cover 710 has a first axis pin 710a and a second axis pin 710b that protrude forward in a cylindrical shape near the lower left corner when viewed from the front. The first axis pin 710a can be inserted into the bearing portion 705c of the ball transport movable member 705 to support the ball transport movable member 705 in a rotatable manner. The second axis pin 710b can be inserted into the bearing portion 708d of the transmission member 708 to support the transmission member 708 in a rotatable manner.

[0432] In this embodiment, the ball-feeding unit 700, when assembled, has a first shaft pin 710a inserted into the bearing portion 705c of the ball-feeding movable member 705, and a second shaft pin 710b 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 mesh with each other. In this state, the ball-receiving portion 705a at the right end of the ball-feeding movable member 705 is located in the vertically extending portion behind the ball-feeding outlet 702 in the ball-feeding passage 703. When the ball-feeding movable member 705 rotates around the bearing portion 705c, the ball-receiving portion 705a moves up and down in the vertically extending portion of the ball-feeding passage 703.

[0433] In the normal state, the ball-feeding unit 700 has the ball-feeding solenoid 706 de-energized (OFF). As a result, the sheet metal 708a of the transmission member 708 is separated downward from the magnetic pole of the ball-feeding solenoid 706 by gravity. In this state, the lower surface of the ball-receiving portion 705a of the ball-feeding movable member 705 abuts against the bottom wall at the downstream end of the ball-feeding passage 703, the front end opening of the ball-receiving portion 705a coincides with the ball-feeding outlet 702, and the right end opening of the ball-receiving portion 705a does not coincide with the ball-feeding passage 703. Therefore, the game ball B flowing from upstream toward the ball-receiving portion 705a abuts against the U-shaped upper ball-stopping portion 705e of the ball-receiving portion 705a and is not received by the ball-receiving portion 705a. Meanwhile, the game ball B, which is held in the ball receiving section 705a, rolls forward due to the inclination of the bottom wall of the ball receiving section 705a and is released forward from the ball discharge port 702.

[0434] When the ball-feeding movable member 705 is in contact with a game ball B and stopping the ball feed, the ball-stopping portion 705e of the ball-feeding movable member 705 is located on the axis connecting the rotation center of the ball-feeding movable member 705 and the center of the game ball B that is in contact with it, as shown in Figure 57. As a result, the ball pressure from the game ball B acting on the ball-stopping portion 705e can be received by the first axis pin 710a, thus preventing the ball-feeding movable member 705 from rotating and falling toward the ball-launching unit 550 due to the ball pressure of the multiple game balls B stored up to the ball-feeding unit 700.

[0435] Furthermore, in the normal state, the ball stopper 705e is positioned on the axis connecting the center of the first axis pin 710a and the center of the game ball B that is being stopped. Therefore, even if the game ball B in contact with the ball stopper 705e vibrates up and down due to impacts or vibrations from the surroundings, the ball-feeding movable member 705 can be rotated around the first axis pin 710a so that the ball stopper 705e follows the vibrations of the game ball B, thereby preventing the ball stopper 705e from releasing. This prevents the game ball B, whose stopper 705e has been released due to impacts or the like, from being ejected to the foul unit 570 via the ball launching unit 550 and added to the number of balls held as a foul ball.

[0436] In this normal state, when the ball-feeding solenoid 706 is energized (ON), the magnetic force generated at the magnetic pole portion of the ball-feeding solenoid 706 attracts the sheet metal 708a of the transmission member 708 to the upper magnetic pole portion, causing the transmission member 708 to rotate clockwise around its bearing portion 708d. When the transmission member 708 rotates clockwise, the movable gear portion 705d of the ball-feeding movable member 705, which is meshed with the drive gear portion 708e of the transmission member 708, causes the ball-feeding movable member 705 to rotate counterclockwise around its bearing portion 705c, causing the ball-receiving portion 705a to move upward.

[0437] When the ball receiving portion 705a of the ball-feeding movable member 705 moves upward, the front end opening of the ball receiving portion 705a no longer coincides with the ball-feeding outlet 702, and the right end opening of the ball receiving portion 705a coincides with the ball-feeding passage 703, so that the game ball B is received by the ball receiving portion 705a from the ball-feeding passage 703. In this state, since the right end opening of the ball receiving portion 705a does not coincide with the ball-feeding outlet 702, the game ball B received by the ball receiving portion 705a will not roll forward and be released from the ball-feeding outlet 702. Also, since the ball receiving portion 705a is sized to accommodate only one game ball B, when one game ball B is received by the ball receiving portion 705a, the game ball B upstream of it will not be received by the ball receiving portion 705a.

[0438] Subsequently, when the power to the ball-feeding solenoid 706 is turned off, the attraction of the transmission member 708 from the magnetic pole portion of the ball-feeding solenoid 706 to the sheet metal 708a is released. At this time, since the game ball B is being received by the ball-receiving portion 705a of the ball-feeding movable member 705, the ball-feeding movable member 705 rotates clockwise around its bearing portion 705c so that the ball-receiving portion 705a moves downward due to the weight of the game ball B. At the same time, the transmission member 708 rotates counterclockwise around its bearing portion 708d via the drive gear portion 708e, which is meshed with the movable gear portion 705d of the ball-feeding movable member 705, and returns to its normal state.

[0439] Then, when the ball-feeding unit 700 returns to its normal state, the front end opening of the ball-receiving portion 705a of the ball-feeding movable member 705 coincides with the ball-feeding outlet 702, causing the game ball B that was being held by the ball-receiving portion 705a to roll forward and be released from the ball-feeding outlet 702 to the ball-launching unit 550.

[0440] Thus, with the ball-feeding unit 700 of this embodiment, the game balls B can be sent one by one to the ball-launching unit 550 by turning the ball-feeding solenoid 706 ON and OFF.

[0441] [4-7. Ball receiving tray] The ball receiving tray 720 in the main frame 4 will be described mainly with reference to Figures 6, 7, 20, etc. The ball receiving tray 720 is located below the circulating ball path unit 600 and is for receiving game balls B discharged from the ball outlet 613p of the circulating ball path unit 600. The ball receiving tray 720 is formed in the shape of a container that is open upwards, and its bottom wall is inclined to become lower toward the front.

[0442] The ball receiving tray 720 is inserted from the front into the tray insertion recess 501f of the main frame base 501 and installed. The ball receiving tray 720 has elastic claws 721 on both the left and right side walls, and when installed on the main frame base 501, the elastic claws 721 are locked to the locking claws 501n of the main frame base 501, preventing it from coming out forward. To remove the ball receiving tray 720, the locking is released by elastically deforming the elastic claws 721 inward, allowing it to be pulled out forward.

[0443] When attaching the ball receiving tray 720 to the tray insertion recess 501f of the main frame base 501, the ball receiving tray 720 is moved backward from the front of the tray insertion recess 501f and inserted into the tray insertion recess 501f. At this time, because the front end of the locking claw 501n is inclined in an arrowhead shape, when the elastic claw 721 of the ball receiving tray 720 comes into contact with the locking claw 501n from the front, the elastic claw 721 elastically deforms inward due to the arrowhead inclination, allowing the ball receiving tray 720 to be inserted into the tray insertion recess 501f. Then, when the elastic claw 721 of the ball receiving tray 720 passes the part of the locking claw 501n and contact with the locking claw 501n ceases, the elastic claw 721 that was elastically deformed returns to its original state and locks onto the locking claw 501n, preventing the ball receiving tray 720 from sliding forward.

[0444] Since the ball receiving tray 720 is placed on the bottom wall of the tray insertion recess 501f, which is sloped so that the front...

Claims

[Claim 1] A gaming machine capable of awarding game benefits based on a predetermined lottery result, A first member having an adhesive surface on its front surface to which a specific sticker is attached, The first member comprises a second member provided on the rear side of the first member, The first member is detachably fixed to the second member, The first member and the second member have traces that occur during molding, The first mark portion of the first member is located in a position that can be seen from a plan view from the rear side of the first member when the first member is separated from the second member. The second mark portion of the second member is located in a position that is visible from a plan view of the front side of the second member when the first member is separated from the second member. Furthermore, the rear surface of the first member has a rearward projection that protrudes further to the rear than the first mark portion. The second mark portion is provided in a position that does not overlap with the rearward protrusion of the first member in the front-rear direction when the first member and the second member are fixed together. When the first member and the second member are fixed together, a predetermined gap is formed between the first member and the second member, and the first mark portion does not come into contact with the front surface of the second member. No traces are formed on the aforementioned adhesive surface. The aforementioned second member is made of a transparent material, The aforementioned specific seal is affixed to the adhesive surface of the first member and does not extend over the second member. A gaming machine characterized by the following features.