Gaming Machines

Abstract

To provide a game machine capable of suppressing excessive consumption of power of an actuation power source generated by a power supply board.SOLUTION: A body frame 2 includes: a power supply board 851 for generating various types of DC actuation power sources based on an AC power source; an outage monitoring circuit 117 that, when detecting a sign of outage or momentary interruption of the actuation power source generated by the power supply board 851, outputs an outage forenotice signal at least to a main control board 100; and an alarm signal output circuit 853 that monitors a current value of the actuation power source generated by the power supply board 851 and, when the current value exceeds a predetermined regulated value, outputs an alarm signal to the effect that the power is excessively consumed, before the outage forenotice signal is output from the outage monitoring circuit 117. A peripheral control board 130 disposed on a game board 5 can receive the alarm signal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 103

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a sealed-ball type gaming machine in which a predetermined number of gaming balls are circulated in a closed manner to allow a game to be played. [Background technology]

[0002] An example of a conventional sealed-ball type gaming machine is disclosed in Patent Document 1.

[0003] [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-081695 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the gaming machine described in Patent Document 1 has room for improvement.

[0006]

[0007] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT EMBODIMENT An object of the present invention is to provide a gaming machine which is an improvement over conventional gaming machines. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] The present invention relates to "A game board with a game area where game balls flow down, and a main body frame that houses the game board, The main body frame is provided with a launching device that launches game balls into the game area, and a transport path that flows down the game area, collects game balls discharged from the game board, and transports them again to the launch position of the launching device; A gaming machine in which a game is played by circulating a predetermined number of gaming balls without paying out gaming balls, The conveying path is provided with a lifting device that lifts the game balls by a screw unit, and a ball polishing unit is provided near the lifting device, The game balls come into contact with the ball polishing section through an opening provided in the lifting device, and the game balls are polished by the movement of the game balls accompanying the lifting, The opening is of a size that the game balls cannot pass through, and the game balls do not spill out of the lifting device even if the ball polishing unit is not installed. A circulation ball number determination control means is provided for determining whether the number of circulation balls is excessive or insufficient, Further, a game control means is provided which is capable of executing a game control for performing a lottery based on the detection of a game ball by a specific game ball detection sensor provided on the game board and for varying and displaying a pattern according to the result of the lottery; The ball polishing unit is detachable and replaceable from the gaming machine, Even when the ball polishing unit is removed from the gaming machine, the gaming control means can control the gaming machine. 、 When the ball polishing unit is removed from the gaming machine, the gaming balls held in the screw unit are visible through the opening. This is a gaming machine characterized by the above. In addition, the following means are disclosed for reference as another invention different from the present invention. The gaming machine according to [Solution 1] is A game board in which a game area is partitioned and which has a plurality of winning holes into which game balls rolling down the game area can enter; A main body frame into which the game board is fitted and stored; a door frame that is supported on the front surface of the main body frame so as to be openable and closable, and has a game window through which the game area of ​​the game board faces the player when the door frame is closed; A ball launching device is disposed on the main body frame and launches game balls toward the game area in response to an operation by a player; A main control board is provided on the game board, and controls the game and outputs a control command based on the reception of the game ball into the winning hole; A peripheral control board provided on the game board and performing presentation control based on the control command output from the main control board; a power supply board provided on the main body frame and configured to generate various DC operating power supplies based on an AC power supply; A power failure monitoring circuit provided in the main body frame outputs a power failure warning signal to at least the main control board when a sign of a power failure or momentary power failure of the operating power generated by the power supply board is detected; In order to solve the above problem, A warning signal output means is provided on the main body frame, monitors the current value of the operating power source generated by the power supply board, and when the current value exceeds a predetermined specified value, outputs a warning signal indicating that too much power is being used before the power outage warning signal is output from the power outage monitoring circuit. The peripheral control board is capable of receiving the warning signal. [Solution 1] is characterized by the above.

[0009] According to the gaming machine of [Solution 1], the main frame monitors the current value of the operating power generated by the power supply board, and when the current value exceeds a predetermined value, a warning signal output means outputs a warning signal indicating that too much power is being used before a power outage warning signal is output, and the peripheral control board that controls the performance is capable of receiving the warning signal. Therefore, the peripheral control board can recognize that too much power is being used before the power outage warning signal is input to the main control board.

[0010] The gaming machine according to [Solution 2] is the gaming machine according to [Solution 1], wherein the warning signal output means is provided on the power supply board. It is characterized by the above.

[0011] According to the gaming machine of [Solution 2], the power supply board is configured to include a warning signal output means. Therefore, the power supply board can monitor the current value of the generated operating power source and detect excessive power consumption. In addition, since there is no need to install a warning signal output means every time a gaming board is manufactured, it can contribute to reducing the manufacturing cost of the gaming board.

[0012] The gaming machine according to [Solution 3] is the gaming machine according to [Solution 1] or [Solution 2], wherein when the peripheral control board receives the warning signal, the performance control performs control to reduce the volume or the amount of light emitted. It is characterized by the above.

[0013] According to the gaming machine of [Solution 3], when the peripheral control board receives a warning signal indicating that too much power is being used, the peripheral control board controls the performance to lower the volume or light emission. Therefore, by lowering the volume or light emission, the power consumption can be reduced. As a result, it is possible to prevent a power outage caused by excessive electricity use. Effect of the Invention

[0014] According to the enclosed ball type gaming machine of the present invention, the conventional gaming machine is improved and the gaming balls used in the game are polished. Long operating time despite being Gaming machines can be provided. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0015] [Figure 1] 1 is a front view showing a pachinko machine and an adjustment machine attached to the pachinko machine according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] This is a front view of the gaming machine with the door frame removed. [Diagram 3] This is a front oblique view showing the main body frame that constitutes the pachinko machine. [Figure 4] This is a rear perspective view showing the main body frame that constitutes the pachinko machine. [Diagram 5] This is an oblique view showing the upper launching device, the irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit, and the ball collecting section. [Figure 6] A right side view showing the upper launch device, ball supply path member, and ball lifting device. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the upper launch device and launch area from below and in front of the gaming board looking up at the top of the gaming board. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a front view of the upper launching mechanism (launching hammer striking position). [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the upper launch device as viewed from the front left. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the upper launch device as viewed from the rear left. [Figure 11] This is an oblique view of the upper launch device from the rear left with the ball delivery unit cover removed. [Figure 12] 1 is a diagram showing the upper launch device of the gaming machine in an open state with the door frame removed. FIG. [Figure 13] This is a right side view showing the vertical cross section of the gaming machine with the door frame removed. [Figure 14] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a portion of a cross-sectional perspective view taken along line AA in FIG. 2. [Figure 15] 13 is an oblique view showing the state in which the joint between the upper launch device and the base plate and the protruding portion of the panel holder on the game board are in contact with each other. FIG. [Figure 16] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the upper launch device as viewed from the front right. [Figure 17] FIG. 2 is a front view showing the upper launching device (launching hammer standby position). [Figure 18] This is a right side view showing the upper launch device (ball feed solenoid is not energized, and the ball feed member is in the holding position and return ball blocking position). [Figure 19] 11 is a cross-sectional view of the upper launching device taken along the line BB in FIG. 10 (the ball feeding solenoid is not excited, and the ball feeding member is in the holding position and the return ball blocking position). [Figure 20] This is an oblique view showing the ball feeding member, ball feeding shaft, and ball feeding sheet metal in the ball feeding device from diagonally behind. [Figure 21] A right side view showing the upper launch device (ball feed solenoid excited, ball feed member in feed position and allowable position). [Figure 22] 11 is a cross-sectional view of the upper launching device taken along the line BB in FIG. 10 (ball feed solenoid is excited, and ball feed member is in the feed position and allowable position). [Diagram 23] This is a cross-sectional view of the main body frame cut vertically to show the upper launching device, the ball supply path member, and the ball lifting device. [Figure 24] 4 is a time chart showing the drive timing of the ball feeding solenoid and the launch solenoid. [Diagram 25] A front oblique view of the ball outlet opening and closing unit. [Figure 26] A rear oblique view of the ball outlet opening and closing unit. [Figure 27] An oblique view showing the relationship between the upper launch unit and the ball outlet opening and closing unit in the main body frame. [Figure 28] FIG. 2 is an external perspective view illustrating the irregular-shaped sphere / magnetic sphere discharge unit. [Figure 29] This is a diagram illustrating the magnetic ball discharge section cover in Figure 28 separated and turned over. [Diagram 30] This is a plan view of the irregular-shaped sphere / magnetic sphere discharge unit. [Diagram 31] This is a rear view of the irregular-shaped sphere / magnetic sphere discharge unit. [Diagram 32] FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating the base plate of the irregular-shaped sphere / magnetic ball discharge unit. [Diagram 33] This is a diagram explaining the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit separated into an irregular-shaped-ball discharge unit and a magnetic-ball discharge unit. [Diagram 34] 13 is a diagram explaining the path along which irregular-shaped spheres and magnetic balls are discharged in the irregular-shaped sphere / magnetic ball discharge unit. FIG. [Diagram 35] 13 is a diagram illustrating the situation in which a magnetic ball is separated from a circulation path and discharged. FIG. [Diagram 36] A diagram illustrating the state in which a magnetic ball reaches a magnetic ball discharge inclined surface. [Figure 37] A front left oblique view of the ball collection section and ball lifting device. [Figure 38] A front view of the ball collection section and ball lifting device. [Figure 39] A front view showing the state in which the ball polishing cartridge is removed from the ball collection section. [Diagram 40] This is a rear oblique view showing the state in which the case of the ball collection section and the cover of the ball lifting device have been removed. [Diagram 41] FIG. 41 is an enlarged rear perspective view of the ball assembly in FIG. 40. [Diagram 42] FIG. 41 is a further enlarged view. [Diagram 43] FIG. 13 is a plan view of the ball assembly with the case removed. [Diagram 44] FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view showing a state in which the upper gear box and the lower gear box have been removed. [Diagram 45] This is a right side view showing the ball lifting device with the cover removed. [Figure 46] FIG. 46 is an enlarged view of (A) in FIG. [Figure 47] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a screw in an exploded state. [Figure 48] This is an oblique view showing the upper part of the ball lifting device. [Figure 49] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an engaged and non-engaged state of a screw and a fitting member. [Figure 50] A left side view showing the ball polishing cartridge attached. [Figure 51] 13 is an oblique view illustrating the mechanism for fixing the ball polishing cartridge. FIG. [Figure 52] 1 is a perspective view showing the state at a point in the middle of installing the ball polishing cartridge. FIG. [Figure 53] This is an oblique view showing the state in which the game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge are pressed against each other. [Figure 54] This is a left side view showing the game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge being pressed against each other. [Figure 55] This is a left side view showing the ball polishing cartridge in Figure 54 with the left side cover removed. [Figure 56] This is an enlarged view of the ball polishing cartridge and its surroundings in Figure 55. [Figure 57] 2 is a perspective view showing the ball polishing cartridge attached. FIG. [Figure 58] FIG. 58 is a perspective view showing a state in which only the right outer side cover is removed in FIG. 57 for the purpose of explanation. [Figure 59] FIG. 59 is a top perspective view showing the state in which the right side cover is open in FIG. 58. [Figure 60] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a ball polishing cartridge. [Figure 61] FIG. 2 is a front view of the ball polishing cartridge. [Figure 62] FIG. 2 is a side view of the ball polishing cartridge. [Figure 63] 63 is a side view showing the state in FIG. 62 with the left side cover removed. [Figure 64] 1 is an oblique view of the ball polishing cartridge mounting portion. [Figure 65] An oblique view showing the relationship between the ball polishing cartridge and the ball polishing cartridge mounting portion. [Figure 66] FIG. 40 is an enlarged view of the ball polishing cartridge and its surroundings in FIG. 39. [Figure 67] FIG. 11 is a side view showing a second embodiment of the lifting slope member. [Figure 68] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the lifting slope member. [Figure 69] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the lifting device with the upper gear box removed. [Figure 70] FIG. 4 is a rear view showing the state in which the lifting section cover of the lifting device has been removed. [Figure 71] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which the number of game balls inserted does not reach a predetermined number when game balls are inserted into a sealed-ball game machine. [Figure 72] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which a predetermined number of game balls have been inserted when game balls are sealed into a sealed-ball game machine. FIG. [Figure 73] 1 is a schematic diagram showing the behavior of game balls when the number of game balls inserted exceeds a predetermined number when game balls are inserted into a sealed-ball game machine. FIG. [Figure 74] 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a game ball introduction member protrudes from a game panel. [Figure 75] 1 is an oblique view showing the state in which the game ball introduction member is stored in the game panel. FIG. [Figure 76] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the main parts of an embodiment of a main control board installed in a sealed-ball pachinko machine. [Figure 77]This is a block diagram showing the main parts of a ball information control board installed in a sealed ball type pachinko machine. [Figure 78] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing each element connected to the settlement machine. [Figure 79] 11 is a flowchart showing the main control side power-on processing executed by the main control MPU of the main control board. [Figure 80] This is a flowchart showing the continuation of the main control side power-on processing in Figure 79. [Figure 81] 13 is a flowchart showing the main control side timer interrupt processing executed by the main control MPU. [Figure 82] This is a flowchart showing the ball information control side power-on processing executed by the ball information control MPU of the ball information control board. [Figure 83] This is a flowchart showing the continuation of the processing when power is turned on on the ball information control side in Figure 82. [Figure 84] This is a flowchart showing the continuation of the processing when the ball information ball yield control side is powered on, following Figure 83. [Figure 85] This is a flowchart showing the ball information control power-off processing executed by the ball information control MPU of the ball information control board. [Figure 86] A flowchart showing an example of ball information control side timer interrupt processing. [Figure 87] 13 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of the ball lending processing performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 88] 13 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of the ball hit / unhit determination process performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 89] A flowchart showing a subroutine of the ball count processing performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 90] 13 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of the ball feeding / launching drive processing performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 91] This is a continuation of the flowchart in Figure 90. [Figure 92] 13 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of the shot ball detection processing performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 93] A flowchart showing a subroutine of the ball holding count subtraction process performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 94] This is a flowchart showing the subroutine of the lifting drive processing performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 95] A flowchart showing a subroutine of the ball jam notification processing performed by the ball information control MPU. [Figure 96] A diagram showing the cushion and following member provided on the back side of the door frame, and the cushion receiving plate provided on the upper launching device. [Figure 97] 13 is a diagram showing a positioning guide member arranged on the inner wall of the left side plate of the main body frame. FIG. [Figure 98] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing the fitting of the game board in the second embodiment of the game machine. [Figure 99] FIG. 1 is an example of a block diagram showing a game board and a main body frame connected with a drawer connector. [Figure 100] FIG. 1 is an example of a block diagram showing a game board and a main body frame connected with a drawer connector. [Figure 101] A diagram showing a conventional example of signal output from a ball information control board to an external terminal board. [Figure 102] A diagram showing this embodiment of signal output from the ball information control board to the external terminal board. [Figure 103] 1 is a block diagram showing a portion of a power supply system including a power supply board according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 104] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a main part of a warning signal output circuit and a peripheral control board. [Figure 105] 13 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of a warning signal determination process executed by a peripheral control MPU of a peripheral control board. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0016] [Machine Overview] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The pachinko machine 1 (enclosed ball type game machine) according to this embodiment can be installed in the current island equipment in a hall (pachinko game parlor), and the game content is the same as that of a well-known pachinko machine. However, this game machine does not use the ball supply mechanism or ball discharge mechanism of the island equipment. That is, in the enclosed ball type pachinko machine 1 according to this embodiment, a predetermined number of game balls made of a non-magnetic material (e.g., stainless steel) are stored in the game machine, the predetermined number of game balls are launched into the game area by a launching device to play a game, and the game balls that have been played are collected and guided to the launching device to be used in circulation, so that the game is played using game balls that have been sealed in the game machine beforehand. Then, game balls can be launched in accordance with the number of game balls (data on the number of balls held) based on the data on the number of loaned balls input from a storage medium such as a card via a settlement system, and when the game balls are launched, the data on the number of balls held is subtracted in accordance with the number of game balls launched.

[0017] In addition, when a launched game ball enters a winning hole in the game area and a prize ball (game ball) is generated, the actual game ball is not paid out, and the number of prize balls is added to the number of balls held. In addition, when the number of balls held data becomes "0", the game ball cannot be launched. In this state, when a value (number of loaned balls) is added to the number of balls held data based on the amount data and ball reserve data stored in a storage medium such as a card, the game ball can be launched again. In addition, the launched game ball is collected in the game machine and sent to the launch position again to circulate in the game machine. In other words, the pachinko machine 1 according to this embodiment is a sealed ball type game machine that collects the game balls launched in the game area and supplies them to play again.

[0018] First, a main body frame 2 (FIG. 3) and a door frame 3 (FIG. 1) constituting a pachinko machine 1 of the embodiment 1 will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 4. Note that a settlement machine 4 is provided as an external device in addition to the pachinko machine 1 of Figure 1.

[0019] The pachinko machine 1 is configured with an outer frame 1a (Figure 12) that is rectangular and installed in an island facility on the hall side, a main body frame 2 that is pivotally supported by the outer frame 1a so as to be freely opened and closed and to which a game board 5 (Figure 2) can be attached, and a door frame 3 that is pivotally supported by the main body frame 2 so as to be freely opened and closed. A decorative cover 6 is attached to the front of the outer frame 1a at a position lower than the main frame 2 and the door frame 3, so that the front of the outer frame 1a is completely closed by the door frame 3 and the decorative cover 6. The outer frame 1a, the main frame 2, and the door frame 3 are arranged so that their upper ends are approximately aligned, and the main frame 2 is rotatably supported by a hinge 7 (FIG. 3) provided on the left side of the outer frame 1a, so that the main frame 2 is opened by moving the right side of the main frame 2 forward relative to the outer frame 1a. The door frame 3 is rotatably attached to the main frame 2 by a pin, so that the door frame 3 is opened by moving the right side of the door frame 3 forward.

[0020] [Door Frame 3] The door frame 3 has a game window 9 through which a player can view a game area 8 of a game board 5 into which game balls are shot, and a ball-hitting handle 10 that is disposed below the game window 9 and that shoots game balls into the game area 8 based on the player's operation. A transparent plate 11 is attached to the game window 9, which covers the front surface (game area 8) of the game board 5 attached to the main body frame 2 side so that the front surface can be seen when the door frame 3 is closed against the main body frame 2. The ball-hitting handle 10 drives a launching solenoid 13 (see FIG. 5) of a ball-hitting device (referred to as an upper launching device 12) attached to the upper left of the main body frame 2 based on the player's rotational operation, thereby shooting game balls into the game area 8. The ball-striking handle 10 is equipped with a microswitch (not shown) that is turned ON when rotated, a launch stop switch that turns the microswitch OFF when pressed while the microswitch is ON, and a touch switch that detects the player's contact with the ball-striking handle 10 via the conductive plating applied to the outer peripheral surface of the ball-striking handle 10. The upper launch device 12 will be described later.

[0021] Furthermore, the door frame 3 and the main frame 2 can be opened relative to the main frame 2 by inserting a key into the key device located in the lower right corner of the door frame 3 and rotating it in one direction.

[0022] [Touch panel section 14] The door frame 3 is provided with a horizontally elongated touch panel section 14 at the lower part of the game window 9 (corresponding to the upper tray of a well-known pachinko machine that is a non-enclosed ball type). The touch panel section 14 displays the remaining number of times, the number of balls held by the game machine, and the number of balls left.

[0023] Here, the remaining number of points refers to a value equivalent to the amount stored on the card used in the settlement machine 4, and the number of balls the player has is the sum of the number of balls lent to the player by ball lending and the number of winning balls the player has won as a result of playing the game.

[0024] The touch panel unit 14 displays a ball lending button as a ball lending command input means operable by the player, and a settlement button as a settlement command input means operable by the player. The ball lending button is used to instruct the lending of balls for playing a game. The settlement button is used to instruct the player to end a pachinko game and settle the account.

[0025] The touch panel unit 14 also displays a number of odd balls display button as a means for inputting a command to display the number of odd balls that can be operated by the player. The number of odd balls here refers to the number of balls remaining when the number of balls held by the player is divided by the number of balls equivalent to one special prize at the time of prize exchange. When the display of the number of odd balls is instructed by the number of odd balls display button, the touch panel unit 14 can also display a message such as "Do you want to insert only the odd balls?". A message in the form of a dialogue question is displayed together with the number of odd balls display button, and a YES button and a NO button are displayed for the player to select and input a response of either yes or no.

[0026] [Main frame 2] The main body frame 2 is box-shaped and has a picture-frame-like fitting frame 15 and a peripheral wall portion 16 so that it fits exactly inside the rectangular outer frame 1a (Figs. 3 and 4). The fitting frame 15 has a square-shaped storage opening 17 on its front side for fitting and storing the game board 5. A protruding wall 18 that protrudes inward is integrally formed at the back of the storage opening 17 (Figs. 3 and 12). The back side is closed with a rear cover. When the door frame 3 is closed against the main body frame 2, the front side (play area 8) of the game board 5 stored in the main body frame 2 can be seen through the game window 9 of the door frame 3.

[0027] An irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit storage section 19 is formed below the storage opening 17, and an irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20 is disposed in the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit storage section 19. As will be described later, a discharged ball receiving box 234 that stores irregular-shaped balls and magnetic balls that are smaller in diameter than regular game balls discharged from the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20 can be attached and detached from the front of the game machine.

[0028] Also, Fig. 23 is a cross-sectional view of the main body frame cut vertically to show the upper launching device, the ball supply path member, and the ball lifting device. As can be seen in Figs. 3, 5, 6, and 23, the main body frame 2 is provided with the upper launching device 12, a ball collection section 21, a ball lifting device 22, and a ball supply path member 24. The ball collection section 21 receives game balls that have passed through the irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 and guides them to the base of the ball lifting device 22 (Fig. 5), and is equipped with a ball polishing device, etc.

[0029] The ball launching device 29 for launching game balls toward the game area 8 is disposed on one side (left side) of the front and upper part of the main body frame 2 (FIGS. 3 and 23). The ball feeding device 28 for sending the game balls arranged and stored in a guide passage (ball feeding guide gutter 69 described later, see FIG. 11) one by one to the launch position of the ball launching device 29 is disposed behind the ball launching device 29 so as to overlap in the front-to-rear direction (FIGS. 6 and 23). In this embodiment, the ball launching device 29 and the ball feeding device 28 form the upper launching device 12 as an upper launching unit.

[0030] In this embodiment, the ball lifting device 22 uses a screw 25 driven by a ball lifting motor 150 (see FIG. 24), and the game balls that reach the base are lifted from below to the top of the main body frame 2 by the rotation of the screw 25, creating spaces between the game balls. The ball lifting device 22 is attached to the rear surface of the main body frame 2, behind the upper launch device 12, and the upper end of the ball lifting device 22 is located above the ball sending device 28 (FIGS. 3, 4, 23).

[0031] Between the upper end of the ball lifting device 22 and the upper part of the upper launching device 12, a ball supply path member 24 is provided in the front-rear direction for sending the game balls lifted by the ball lifting device 22 from above to the ball sending device 28 (FIGS. 3, 4, 23). In this embodiment, the ball supply path member 24 is formed at the upper end of the ball lifting device 22 and is gently inclined downward toward the front, and is composed of a ball sending out gutter 23 that sends the lifted game balls from above to the front, and a lifting connecting gutter 65 that is formed at the rear upper part of the upper launching device 12, is connected to the ball sending out gutter 23, and is gently inclined downward toward the front. The game balls lifted by the ball lifting device 22 are sent out to the ball sending out gutter 23. The ball sending out gutter 23 of the ball supply path member 24 is provided with a launch waiting ball detection switch 26 that detects the presence or absence of game balls flowing down the ball sending out gutter 23 (see FIG. 6).

[0032] [Upper launcher] Fig. 8 is a front view of the upper launching device, Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the upper launching device seen from the front left, Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the upper launching device seen from the rear left, and Fig. 11 is a perspective view of the upper launching device seen from the rear left with the ball feed unit cover removed.

[0033] Fig. 12 is a view showing the upper launching device in an open state in the gaming machine with the door frame removed, and Fig. 13 is a right side view showing a vertical section of the gaming machine with the door frame removed. Fig. 14 is a view showing a part of a cross-sectional view taken along AA in Fig. 2. Fig. 15 is a perspective view showing a state in which the joint between the upper launching device and the base plate and the protruding part of the panel holder on the gaming board are in contact with each other.

[0034] The upper launching device 12 is equipped with a metal base plate 39 for mounting and fixing the upper launching device 12 to the main body frame 2, a ball feeding device 28 that receives game balls arriving from the ball supply path member 24 and reliably sends out the game balls one by one to the ball launching position of the launch hammer 30 (Figure 8) of the ball launching device 29 using a ball feeding solenoid 31 (Figure 11) and a ball feeding member 32, and a ball launching device 29 that launches the game balls toward the play area 8 (see Figures 8 to 11).

[0035] The ball feeding device 28 is a device for receiving game balls arriving from the ball supply path member 24 (Figure 6) and reliably feeding the game balls one by one using the ball feeding member 32 to the launch position of the launch hammer 30 (Figure 8) of the ball launching device 29.

[0036] As shown in Fig. 9, the ball launching device 29 has a launching hammer 30, a launching solenoid 13, a rail member 33, a launch stopper 34, a return stopper 35, a launched ball confirmation switch 36, a hinge 37 for the upper launching device, and a launch port 38. These members are attached to a base plate 39 (a metal plate in this embodiment) which serves as a base. The launch port 38 is formed opposite the tip of the launching hammer 30, and the rail member 33 is attached to this part. The rail member 33 is a member that holds, by a rail portion 332, one game ball sent to the launch position (ball-hitting position) by the ball sending member 32. The game ball shot out by the launching hammer 30 is launched from the launch port 38 into the game area 8.

[0037] The launched ball confirmation switch 36 is positioned relative to the rail portion 332 of the rail member 33 and detects the presence or absence of a game ball to be shot by the launching hammer 30, and detects that one game ball has been launched by the launching hammer 30 by switching the detection of the game ball by the launched ball confirmation switch 36 to non-detection.

[0038] As shown in Figure 5, the circulation path of the game balls passes through the irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20, the ball collection section 21, the ball lifting device 22, the ball supply path member 24, the upper launching device 12, and the game area 8. The game balls launched from the upper launching device 12 to the launching area 40 (Figure 7) of the game area 8 flow down from the top to the bottom of the game area and return to the irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 via the winning opening 41 or the outlet 42.

[0039] [Game board] A game board 5 is attached to the fitting frame 15 of the main body frame 2. In this embodiment, the game board 5 has a structure in which a transparent panel plate 44 is attached to a panel holder 43, and a front component member 45 is attached to the front of the panel plate 44 to fix the transparent panel plate 44 (Fig. 12). This game board 5 does not have anything equivalent to a conventional inner rail, and the upper part of the inner peripheral surface of the front component member 45 serves as a game ball running surface 46 (Fig. 7).

[0040] The electrical connection of the game board 5 to the main body frame 2 will be described with reference to FIG. 99. The mechanical and electrical connection between the game board 5 and the main body frame 2 is made by connection with a drawer connector. The game board 5 is provided with a game board side main drawer connector and a game board side auxiliary drawer connector, and the main body frame 2 is provided with a main body frame side main drawer connector and a main body frame side auxiliary drawer connector. By fitting the game board 5 into the main body frame 2, the game board side main drawer connector and the main body frame side main drawer connector, and the game board side auxiliary drawer connector and the main body frame side auxiliary drawer connector are connected, and the game board 5 and the main body frame 2 are mechanically connected and electrically connected at the same time. This allows electrical communication between the game board 5 and the main body frame 2.

[0041] The upper left corner of the game board 5 is formed with a notch 47 (Fig. 12) in accordance with the shape of the upper launching device 12. The notch 47 reaches from the front component 45 to a part of the transparent panel board 44 of the game area 8. The launch port 38 of the upper launching device 12 faces the part where the transparent panel board 44 is cut away, and as shown in Fig. 7, the game area 8 near the launch port 38 along the game ball running surface 46 above the launch port 38 is the launch area 40. Therefore, the game balls shot out by the launch hammer 30 of the upper launching device 12 are guided to the game ball running surface 46 of the front component 45 in the launch area 40.

[0042] In the game area 8 of this embodiment, a large number of obstacle nails (not shown) and various winning holes such as a winning hole are provided, and a predetermined number of prize balls are awarded according to winning into the various winning holes. Note that, since this embodiment is an enclosed ball type game machine, "1" is subtracted from the data on the number of balls held according to the shooting of one game ball, while the number of prize balls according to winning into the various winning holes is added to the data on the number of balls held, and the corresponding number of balls held is displayed on the touch panel unit 14.

[0043] In addition, since this is a sealed-ball pachinko machine, prize balls are not paid out, and the number of balls dispensed, the number of balls entered, the difference in number of balls, the number of balls held, etc. are not the actual number of game balls, but are numerical values ​​on the data. In other words, the game balls actually used are only a limited number (for example, 50 or 75) that are used in circulation, and the number of balls held is obtained from the number of balls entered, the number of balls dispensed, the difference in number of balls, and the number of balls held, for example, from the number of balls fired and counted by detecting the game balls fired into the game area 8, the number of balls collected and counted by detecting the game balls fired into the game area 8 and collected, the number of prize balls when a prize is won, the number of balls borrowed from the hall, etc.

[0044] That is, unless there is a problem such as the door frame 3 being opened and the game balls falling out, the number of shot balls = the number of collected balls. And, the number of shot balls = the number of collected balls = the number of shot balls, the number of shot balls = the number of prize balls (accumulated value) = the number of shot balls - the number of lent balls (the number of replay balls) + the number of held balls, the number of held balls = the number of lent balls (or the number of replay balls held) + the number of shot balls - the number of shot balls, the number of shot balls - the number of shot balls = the difference in the number of balls, and the number of held balls = the number of lent balls (or the number of replay balls held) + the difference in the number of balls. In this way, the game with the pachinko machine 1 is completely performed as a numerical value on data, and there is no error caused by spilling game balls or leaving game balls in the lower or upper tray, and it can be reliably managed in integer units. Incidentally, in the structure of the upper launching device 12 described later, basically no foul balls are generated.

[0045] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the front component 45, the panel holder, and the transparent panel plate 44 are constructed as separate members, but they can be integrated, for example, by gluing, or molded as one piece to construct a single member. In this way, when the front component 45, the panel holder 43, etc. are integrally formed with the transparent panel plate 44, the provision of the notch 47 in the game board 5 makes it possible to prevent the structural weakening of these components caused by the cutting of the frame structure (four sides connected) of the front component 45 and the panel holder 43.

[0046] FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing the upper launching device as viewed from the front right, FIG. 17 is a front view showing the upper launching device (launching hammer standby position), and FIG. 18 is a right side view showing the upper launching device.

[0047] [Ball Launcher 29] The ball launching device 29 can shoot the game balls supplied from the ball feeding device 28 into the game area 8 of the game board 5 with a strength corresponding to the rotation operation of the ball striking handle 10. The ball launching device 29 includes a launch solenoid 13 attached to the upper rear surface of the base plate 39 so that a rotary drive shaft 60 protrudes forward, a launch hammer 30 fixed to the rotary drive shaft 60 of the launch solenoid 13 so as to be rotatable together with the launch hammer 30, a hammer tip 61 fixed to the tip of the launch hammer 30, a rail member 33 attached to the front surface of the base plate 39 with a predetermined position on the movement trajectory of the hammer tip 61 as the launch position, a launch stopper 34 that restricts the hammer tip 61 from rotating counterclockwise from the hitting position where the game ball stopped at the launch position by the rail member 33 can be hit, a return stopper 35 that restricts the launch hammer 30 to a standby position (initial position) in its rotational movement, a launched ball confirmation switch 36 for detecting the presence or absence of a game ball stopped at the launch position, a hinge 37 for the upper launching device, and a launch port 38 opened facing the game area 8 (see Figures 8, 9, 16 and 18).

[0048] Although detailed illustration is omitted, the launch solenoid 13 in the ball launching device 29 has a rotary drive shaft 60 that reciprocates at a strength (speed) according to the rotation operation angle of the ball-striking handle 10. The launch hammer 30 of the ball launching device 29 includes a fixed part 301 fixed to the rotary drive shaft 60 of the launch solenoid 13, a shaft part 302 extending in a gentle arc from the fixed part 301, the tip of which faces a normal direction to the axis of the rotary drive shaft 60 and has a hammer tip 61 fixed to the tip, and a stopper abutment part 303 extending to the opposite side of the shaft part 302 across the fixed part 301 and capable of abutting against the launch stopper 34. The stopper abutment part 303 of the launch hammer 30 abuts against the launch stopper 34, thereby restricting the launch hammer 30 from rotating in a counterclockwise direction when viewed from the front (see FIG. 8).

[0049] In addition, a ball supply port 63 formed in a ball feeding unit base (described later) of the ball feeding device 28 is disposed immediately above the rail member 33 of the ball launching device 29. The rail member 33 stops at the launch position one game ball sent out from the ball supply port 63 by the ball feeding operation of the ball feeding member 32 of the ball feeding device 28 described later.

[0050] The rail member 33 is formed by bending a metal plate, and includes a mounting plate portion 331 that is fixed to the base plate 39, and a rail portion 332 that is bent forward from the mounting plate portion 331 (see FIG. 8). The rail portion 332 for setting the launch position is generally L-shaped, inclined 45 degrees to the left when viewed from the front, and is composed of a left rail plate 333 that forms the left side of the rail portion 332, and a right rail plate 334 that forms the right side of the rail portion 332 (see FIG. 8). The left rail plate 333 is formed with a through hole 335 through which the hammer tip 61 passes when the launch hammer 30 hits the ball (see FIGS. 9 and 21).

[0051] 7 and 8, when viewed from the front, the right side of the ball launching device 29 of the upper launching device 12, from the center to the lower end in the vertical direction, is exposed and disposed facing the play area 8. As shown in Figs. 8 and 16, a launch port decoration member 64 is disposed on the front right side of the base plate 39, and the launch port decoration member 64 is attached to the base plate 39 and a ball feeding unit base 67 described below.

[0052] 7, 8 and 16, the launch port decoration member 64 is disposed with its right side surface and lower side surface facing and exposed to the play area 8, and therefore the right side surface and lower side surface of the launch port decoration member 64 are formed into a ball entry prevention wall 51 that prevents game balls shot into the play area 8 from entering the inside of the ball launching device 29. The launch port 38 is formed in the ball entry prevention wall 51 on the right side surface of the launch port decoration member 64, and the ball entry prevention wall 51 is configured to surround the launch port 38 and form an arch shape that rises forward from approximately the same plane as the rear end surface of the play area 8.

[0053] As can be seen from Figures 8 and 16, launch port 38 is located diagonally above and to the right in front view with respect to rail portion 332. As can be seen from Figures 8 and 17, the distance between rail portion 332 (launch position) and launch port 38 is short (about twice the diameter of game ball P), and therefore, due to the short launch distance, a foul ball is not generated, and the launched game ball can be reliably launched into game area 8.

[0054] The launched ball confirmation switch 36 detects whether or not there is a game ball parked at the launch position, and detects that one game ball has been launched by the launch hammer 30 by switching game ball detection to non-detection when a game ball at the launch position is struck and launched by the launch hammer 30.

[0055] The launch ball confirmation switch 36 is made of a transmission type photosensor, and the light emitting section and the light receiving section are arranged so as to straddle the rail section 332 which sets the launch position. The launch ball confirmation switch 36 is arranged with respect to the launch position by being supported by a photo bracket 361, and the photo bracket 361 is attached and fixed to the lower front surface of the base plate 39.

[0056] The ball launching device 29 includes a stopper cover 62 that covers the front surface of the launch stopper 34 that can restrict the rotation end of the launch hammer 30 toward the ball-hitting position, and a return stopper 35 that restricts the rotation end of the launch hammer 30 away from the ball-hitting position (the clockwise rotation end when viewed from the front). The surfaces of the stoppers 34 and 35 are covered with rubber, which can absorb the impact when the launch hammer 30 comes into contact with them and can suppress noise caused by the contact.

[0057] In addition, the ball launching device 29 is configured so that the launching solenoid 13 is driven by a ball information control unit described later with a drive strength corresponding to the rotation operation of the ball-hitting handle 10, and is driven to perform a ball-hitting operation with a drive timing described later with respect to the drive timing of the ball-feeding solenoid 31 of the ball-feeding device 28 (see FIG. 24). Specifically, in the ball-feeding device 28 that supplies game balls to the ball-feeding device 29, when the ball-feeding solenoid 31 is driven (ON), the ball-feeding member 32 sends the game ball it has received to the ball-feeding device 29, and when the drive of the ball-feeding solenoid 31 is released (OFF) from that state, the ball-feeding member 32 receives the game ball.

[0058] In the ball launching device 29, when the ball-striking handle 10 is operated to launch, the launch solenoid 13 is repeatedly energized and de-energized with a voltage according to the amount of operation. This causes the launch solenoid 13 to be energized and de-energized, as shown in Figures 8 and 17, so that the launch hammer 30 rotates in the launch direction (counterclockwise) from the initial position (Figure 17) to hit the game ball parked at the launch position with the hammer tip 61 (Figure 8), and then rotates clockwise to return to the initial position, repeating the launching operation.

[0059] [Ball feeder 28] Next, the ball sending device 28 will be described. As shown in Fig. 10 and Fig. 11, the ball sending device 28 is mainly configured as a unit, and includes a lifting communication gutter 65 having a ball inlet 66 connected to the front end of the ball sending gutter 23 of the ball supply path member 24 shown in Fig. 6, a ball sending unit base 67 connected to the lifting communication gutter 65 and having a ball supply port 63 for supplying the game balls entering from the lifting communication gutter 65 to the ball launching device 29 and having an open rear end, a ball sending unit cover 68 that closes the rear end of the ball sending unit base 67 and has an open front end, a ball sending solenoid 31 disposed under the ball sending unit base 67, and a ball sending member 32 that simultaneously realizes a ball sending operation and a return ball blocking operation described later by driving the ball sending solenoid 31.

[0060] The lifting and conveying communication gutter 65 has a gentle downward slope from the rear end where the ball inlet 66 is formed to the front end. The ball conveying unit base 67 is attached to the rear left side of the base plate 39, and the front end of the lifting and conveying communication gutter 65 is connected to the upper right side. When viewed from behind, the ball conveying unit base 67 has a gentle downward slope from the upper right side connected to the front end of the lifting and conveying communication gutter 65 to the center in the vertical direction to the left in the horizontal direction, and has a ball conveying guide gutter 69 bent downward halfway, and a ball supply port 63 penetrating in the front-rear direction at the lower end of the ball conveying guide gutter 69 (see FIG. 11).

[0061] Further, on the rear surface of the ball transport unit cover 68, which faces the part above the ball supply port 63 below the bent part of the ball transport guide channel 69, there is provided a shot-waiting ball detection switch 70 that detects the presence or absence of a game ball waiting in the ball transport guide channel 69 (see FIG. 10). The shot-waiting ball detection switch 70 is composed of a flat-type proximity switch that detects a game ball as a metal body by a change in impedance of the detection coil of the high-frequency oscillation circuit.

[0062] The ball feeding solenoid 31 in this embodiment is composed of an electromagnet, and is disposed at the bottom of the ball feeding unit base 67 with the suction part that exerts the suction function by excitation facing downward. The ball feeding member 32 is disposed at the bottom of the ball feeding unit base 67 adjacent to the left side of the ball feeding solenoid 31. The ball feeding member 32 in this embodiment is integrally provided with a return ball blocking part that is movable between an allowable position that allows the passage of the ball without interfering with the ball launched from the launch position by the ball-hitting action of the ball launching device 29 and a return ball blocking position that blocks the entry of the return ball returning from the play area 8 to the launch port 38 by the excitation / de-excitation of the ball feeding solenoid 31.

[0063] [Ball feed member 32] The ball feeding member 32 will be described below. Fig. 18 is a right side view showing the upper launching device 12 (the ball feeding solenoid 31 is not excited, and the ball feeding member 32 is in the holding position and the return ball blocking position), Fig. 19 is a cross-sectional view of the upper launching device 12 broken along the line BB in Fig. 10 (the ball feeding solenoid 31 is not excited, and the ball feeding member 32 is in the holding position and the return ball blocking position), and Fig. 20 is a perspective view showing the ball feeding member 32, the ball feeding shaft, and the ball feeding sheet metal in the ball feeding device 28 from an oblique rear view.

[0064] In addition, Figure 21 is a right side view showing the upper launching device 12 (the ball feed solenoid 31 is excited, and the ball feed member 32 is in the supply position and the allowable position), and Figure 22 is a cross-sectional view of the upper launching device shown cut along the arrow line BB in Figure 10 (the ball feed solenoid 31 is excited, and the ball feed member 32 is in the supply position and the allowable position).

[0065] As shown in Fig. 20, an axial hole 75 is formed in the left-right direction in the vertical middle of the ball feeding member 32. A ball feeding shaft 76 is inserted into the axial hole 75 with both ends protruding, and both left-right ends of the ball feeding shaft 76 are supported by the ball feeding unit base 67. This allows the ball feeding member 32 to be supported rotatably in the front-rear direction with the ball feeding shaft 76 as the rotation center.

[0066] In addition, an arm portion 77 is formed extending rearward from the middle of the ball feeding member 32, and at the lower end of the arm portion 77, as shown in Figure 11, an operating rod portion 72 is formed extending downward from the ball feeding solenoid 31, and a sheet metal receiving portion 73 is formed in the operating rod portion 72, and a ball feeding sheet metal 71 made of a metal material that is attracted by a magnet is stored in the sheet metal receiving portion 73.

[0067] Directly below the sheet metal accommodating portion 73, a sheet metal locking claw 78 is formed that protrudes toward the rear and prevents the ball feeding sheet metal 71 from falling off. This prevents the ball feeding sheet metal 71 from accidentally falling off the sheet metal accommodating portion 73 when the ball feeding member 32 is operating.

[0068] As shown in Fig. 20, a hook projection 79 is formed on the end of the operating rod 72, and one end of the tension spring 52 shown in Fig. 19 is hooked to the hook projection 79. The other end of the tension spring 52 is hooked to a spring locking portion 53 formed on the lower bottom surface of the ball feeding unit base 67, as shown in Fig. 19.

[0069] As shown in Fig. 20, above the shaft hole 75 of the ball feeding member 32, a roof-shaped ball feeding section 74 is formed integrally with the ball feeding member 32 toward the lower edge of the ball supply port 63. The ball feeding section 74 is formed in a mountain shape with the center of the upper surface rising upward, and is provided with a ball feeding guide surface 80 that is inclined from the center toward the front, that is, toward the lower edge of the ball supply port 63 formed at the lower end of the ball feeding guide gutter 69 in Fig. 19, and a ball holding surface 81 that is inclined from the center toward the rear, that is, toward the ball feeding unit cover 68 that closes the rear end of the ball feeding guide gutter 69 in Fig. 19 in a convex arc shape. In addition, a hanging piece 82 that hangs downward is formed at the rear end of the ball holding surface 81 of the ball feeding section 74.

[0070] In addition, the upper part of the ball feeding member 32 in the vertical direction penetrates the ball feeding unit base 67 toward the front, and as shown in Figures 18, 20 and 21, a rectangular frame-shaped return ball blocking portion 83 is formed which extends toward the ball path from the rail portion 332 (launch position) when viewed from the side, and a rectangular ball passage opening 85 is formed in the center of the return ball blocking portion 83.

[0071] 16 and 17, the frame-shaped return ball blocking portion 83 formed integrally with the ball feeding member 32 is disposed adjacent to the launch port 38 in the direction of the launch position. In addition, a ball stopping portion 84 is formed on the launch position direction side of the portion located on the front side of the frame of the return ball blocking portion 83, the ball stopping portion 84 having a horizontal base portion and projecting in a triangular shape toward the rail portion 332. The ball stopping portion 84 is disposed in front of the ball feeding portion 74 and facing the ball feeding portion 74 with a gap therebetween above the launch position.

[0072] In addition, the ball guide protrusion 54 is formed in a forward-facing position behind the ball supply port 63 on the ball feed unit cover 68, and a forward guide surface 55 is formed in an arc-shaped concave shape facing the ball supply port 63 on the upper part of the forward-facing ball guide protrusion 54. The lower part of the ball guide protrusion 54 is curved in a convex shape facing the rear, and the ball feed part 74 can be moved backward in the space below the lower part of the ball guide protrusion 54 when the ball feed member 32 rotates in the forward and backward directions around the ball feed shaft 76. In addition, a stopper piece 56 is formed protruding forward from the lower end of the ball guide protrusion 54.

[0073] [Ball sending operation and return ball blocking operation of the ball sending member 32] The ball feeding operation and return ball blocking operation of the ball feeding member 32 of the ball feeding device 28 configured as above will be described below. When the ball feeding solenoid 31 is in a non-excited state, the lower end of the ball feeding member 32 is pulled toward the ball feeding unit base 67 by the tensile force of the tension spring 52 hooked to the hook protrusion 79 at the end of the operating rod portion 72 of the ball feeding member 32 and the spring locking portion 53 formed on the lower bottom surface of the ball feeding unit base 67.

[0074] As shown in FIG. 18, in the normal state (when the ball-feeding solenoid 31 is in a non-excited state), the ball-feeding member 32 is in a rotational position with the ball-feeding shaft 76 as the rotation center, with the rectangular frame-shaped return ball blocking portion 83 tilted backward, and in a side view seen from the play area 8, that is, in a position immediately on the launching position side of the launching port 38 in the ball-hitting path from the launching position of the ball-hitting launching device 29 to the launching port 38, the part located in front of the frame of the return ball blocking portion 83 is in a position intersecting with the launching port 38, and the ball-hitting passage port 85 is in a position shifted backward with respect to the launching port 38 in the ball-hitting path, making it impossible for the ball to pass through the ball-hitting passage port 85 in the ball-hitting path. That is, in this position, the return ball blocking portion 83 takes a return ball blocking position that blocks the return ball returning from the play area 8 to the launching port 38 from entering.

[0075] After the ball is shot, the return ball blocking part 83 takes the return ball blocking position, thereby blocking the game ball shot into the game area 8 from returning and entering the launch port 38, and since the return ball can be blocked, it is possible to prevent a decrease in interest in the game due to the return ball.

[0076] Also, as shown in Figure 19, in the normal state (when the ball feeding solenoid 31 is in a non-energized state), the ball holding surface 81 of the ball feeding portion 74 retracts into the space below the ball guide protrusion 54 of the ball feeding unit cover 68, and the hanging piece 82 formed at the lower end of the ball feeding portion 74 abuts against the stopper piece 56, and the ball feeding member 32 is restricted to a holding position for the ball feeding operation in a rotational posture with the ball feeding shaft 76 of the ball feeding member 32 as the rotation center.

[0077] In the holding position, the ball feeding guide surface 80 of the ball feeding portion 74 is located in front of the lower end of the front guide surface 55 of the ball guide protrusion 54, and is located on an extension line in the tangential direction of the front guide surface 55. In addition, the ball stopping portion 84 approaches the ball supply port 63, and the game ball P1 gets stuck in the gap between the lower end of the ball supply port 63 and the ball stopping portion 84, so that the game ball P1 is retained.

[0078] [Excitation of ball feed solenoid 31] When the ball feeding solenoid 31 is excited by passing electricity through it, the electromagnet function causes the ball feeding metal plate 71 to be attracted upward, and the operating rod portion 72 of the ball feeding member 32 moves upward against the tensile force of the tension spring 52, causing the ball feeding member 32 to rotate counterclockwise in Figure 19 around the ball feeding shaft 76 as the rotation center, and as shown in Figures 21 and 22, the ball feeding member 32 moves to the supply position in the ball feeding operation and to an allowable position that allows the passage of the ball.

[0079] As a result, the ball stopping portion 84 moves forward from a position close to the ball supply port 63, and at the same time, the ball sending portion 74 moves forward, sending the game ball P1 that remained in the holding position to the launch position (see Figure 22).

[0080] 21, when the ball feed solenoid 31 is in an excited state, the rectangular frame-shaped return ball blocking portion 83 takes an upright position in a rotational posture with the ball feed shaft 76 as the rotation center, and in a side view seen from the playing area 8, that is, in a position immediately to the launching position direction of the launching port 38 in the ball path from the launch position of the ball launching device 29 to the launching port 38, the ball passing opening 85 is in a position that coincides with the launching port 38 in the ball path, and is in a position that allows the ball to pass through to the ball passing opening 85 in the ball path. That is, in this posture, the return ball blocking portion 83 takes an allowable position that allows the ball to pass through without interfering with the ball launched from the launching position.

[0081] 22, when the ball feeding solenoid 31 is in an excited state, in the supply position in the ball feeding operation, the ball holding surface 81 of the ball feeding section 74 is located in front of the ball guide protrusion 54 of the ball feeding unit cover 68, and the following game ball P2 fits into the gap between the upper end of the ball supply port 63 and the ball holding surface 81 of the ball feeding section 74, so that the following game ball P2 is retained. By the ball feeding operation described above, the ball feeding member 32 feeds the game balls stored in the ball feeding guide trough 69 one by one to the launch position of the ball launching device 29.

[0082] 24 is a time chart showing the drive timing of the ball feeding solenoid 31 and the launch solenoid 13. The launch solenoid 13 is turned on when period A has elapsed since the ball feeding solenoid 31 was turned on, the ball feeding solenoid 31 is turned off when period B has elapsed since the launch solenoid 13 was turned on, and the launch solenoid 13 is turned off when period C has elapsed since the ball feeding solenoid 31 was turned off.

[0083] In this embodiment, period A is 300 ms, period B is 30 ms, and period C is 50 ms. When the ball feeding solenoid 31 is turned on, the ball feeding member 32 feeds the fired ball to the firing position (rail portion 332). That is, the fired ball is detected by the fired ball confirmation switch 36. In this embodiment, if the fired ball confirmation switch 36 detects a game ball that is stopped at the firing position for a predetermined specified time (period D is set to 30 ms), it is determined that a fired ball is present.

[0084] In this way, when the launched ball confirmation switch 36 detects a game ball parked at the launch position for a predetermined specified time, it is determined that a launched ball is present, thereby eliminating erroneous counting of launched balls due to noise and increasing the reliability of detected launched balls.

[0085] The operation is controlled by the ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control unit 118 described later according to the drive timing of the ball feeding solenoid 31 and the launch solenoid 13 shown in Fig. 24. That is, when the return ball blocking part 83 of the ball feeding member 32 is in the permitted position, the ball launching device 29 is operated to perform the ball hitting operation by the launching hammer 30, and after a predetermined specified time (30 ms) has elapsed since the activation of the ball launching device 29, the excitation of the ball feeding solenoid 31 is released to move the return ball blocking part 83 to the return ball blocking position, thereby controlling so that the return ball is blocked by the return ball blocking part 83.

[0086] According to this, when the return ball blocking portion 83 takes the permissible position, the ball is allowed to pass without interfering with the ball launched from the launch position. Since there is no interference with the launched ball, it is possible to prevent distrust in hitting the game ball at the intended position and to prevent a decrease in interest in the game.

[0087] After the ball is shot, the return ball blocking part 83 takes the return ball blocking position, thereby blocking the game ball shot into the game area 8 from returning and entering the launch port 38, and since the return ball can be blocked, it is possible to prevent a decrease in interest in the game due to the return ball.

[0088] In this embodiment, the return ball blocking portion 83 is formed integrally with the ball feeding member 32, so that the ball can be fed to the launch position and the return ball can be prevented at the same time by energizing / de-energizing a single electric drive source (ball feeding solenoid 31). That is, the ball feeding member 32 is provided with a frame-shaped return ball blocking portion 83 formed so that when the ball feeding member 32 is in the supply position, the ball passing opening 85 is located on the ball path through which the game ball launched from the launch position passes, while when the ball feeding member 32 is in the holding position, the ball passing opening 85 is located at a retraction position off the ball path.

[0089] When the ball sending member 32 takes the supply position, the return ball blocking part 83 takes the permissible position and does not interfere with the ball shot from the shooting position, so that it is possible to prevent the player from feeling distrustful of hitting the game ball at the targeted position and to suppress a decline in interest in the game.

[0090] In addition, when the ball feeding member 32 moves to the holding position, the return ball blocking section 83 simultaneously moves to the return ball blocking position, thereby blocking the game ball launched into the game area 8 from returning and entering the launch port 38, thereby blocking the return ball, thereby preventing a decrease in interest in the game due to the return ball.

[0091] In addition, the gaming machine described in the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 is structured so that the ball is forcibly pried open by the ball return prevention valve blocking the launch port, and the ball is shot or pushed into the play area. For this reason, an electric drive source with a size and power commensurate with the ball-hitting action is required, and a large current needs to be supplied to obtain the ball-hitting force, resulting in a large power consumption.

[0092] In contrast, in the upper launching device 12 of this example, when the launching hammer 30 performs a ball-hitting motion, the return ball blocking portion 83 of the ball-feeding member 32 is in an allowable position that allows the passage of the shot ball (a state in which the shot ball passage opening 85 and the launch opening 38 are both aligned on the shot ball path) and does not interfere with the shot ball, so it is sufficient to provide a shot force sufficient to shoot the ball into the play area 8, and this can be fully achieved by employing an electric drive source with low power. This allows the electric drive source to be made smaller and thinner, and the power consumption required for its operation to be kept low.

[0093] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 24, the launch solenoid 13 is excited for a period C from the time the launch solenoid 13 is turned on, causing the hammer tip 61 to protrude through the through hole 335 of the rail portion 332 (FIG. 9). This prevents the game ball from remaining on the rail portion 332, thereby preventing returned balls and making erroneous counting of launched balls more reliable.

[0094] In the present embodiment, the return ball blocking portion 83 is shown as being in the shape of a rectangular frame with a ball passage opening 85 in the center, but the shape of the return ball blocking portion 83 is not limited to this, and may be, for example, in the shape of a piece or rod, or may not have a ball passage opening 85. That is, it is sufficient that the return ball blocking portion 83 is provided adjacent to the launching position direction of the launching opening 38 on the ball path from the launching position to the launching opening 38, and is movable between a permissive position that allows the ball to pass without interfering with the ball launched from the launching position, and a return ball blocking position that blocks the entry of the return ball returning from the play area 8 to the launching opening 38.

[0095] In the sealed-ball gaming machine of this embodiment described above, the ball lifting device 22 is attached to the rear surface of the main frame 2, behind the upper launching device 12, which is located on one side of the front and upper part of the main frame 2, the upper end of the ball lifting device 22 is located above the ball feeding device 28, and a ball supply path member 24 extending in the front-to-rear direction is provided between the upper end of the ball lifting device 22 and the upper part of the upper launching device 12, for feeding the gaming balls lifted by the ball lifting device 22 from above to the ball feeding device 28.

[0096] Due to the above-mentioned configuration, the ball supply path member 24 does not interfere with the various components attached to the rear of the game board 5 (the movable body, the power transmission mechanism for driving the movable body (e.g., a gear train), the slide rail for guiding it in the left-right direction, the drive motor as a drive source, the position detection sensor for detecting the position of the movable body, the LED board, the relay board, etc.), and the game balls lifted to the top of the main body frame 2 by the ball lifting device 22 at the rear of the game machine can be smoothly sent to the upper launching device 12.

[0097] Furthermore, since the ball supply path components do not interfere with the various components attached to the rear of the game board, the space formed behind the upper launch device 12 can be used as space for arranging the various components attached to the rear of the game board 5.

[0098] Moreover, for the reasons mentioned above, the upper launching device 12 shown in Fig. 23 employs an electric drive source that is smaller and thinner than conventional ones. As shown in Fig. 23, since the electric drive source (launch solenoid 13) of the ball launching device can be made smaller and thinner, the electric drive source does not protrude to the rear of the upper launching device 12, and therefore a larger arrangement space 57 for each member attached to the rear of the game board 5 can be secured.

[0099] Furthermore, the upper launching device 12 of this embodiment can be rotated by the upper launching device hinge 37 and can be opened and closed relative to the main frame 2 (Figure 12), so that when the game board is attached, the upper launching unit can be rotated and positioned at a position off the movement path when the left end of the game board is inserted, making it easy to attach the game board to the main frame.

[0100] In this case, it is advisable to provide a ball spill prevention means for blocking the ball outlet 58 of the ball discharge trough 23 when the upper launching device 12 is opened relative to the main frame 2, so that the game balls do not spill out even if there are game balls remaining in the ball discharge trough 23.

[0101] An embodiment of the spill ball prevention means (ball outlet opening / closing unit) will be described below. Figure 25 is a front perspective view of the ball outlet opening / closing unit, and Figure 26 is a rear perspective view of the ball outlet opening / closing unit. Also, Figure 27 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the upper launch unit and the ball outlet opening / closing unit.

[0102] As shown in Figures 6 and 23, the ball supply path member 24 is formed at the upper end of the ball lifting device 22 and is composed of a ball discharge gutter 23 that sends the lifted game balls from above to the front, and a lifting connecting gutter 65 that is formed at the upper rear part of the upper launching unit 12 and is connected to the ball discharge gutter 23.When the upper launching unit 12 is closed against the main body frame 2, the ball outlet 58 at the front end of the ball discharge gutter 23 is opened, thereby connecting the ball outlet 58 to the ball inlet 66 at the rear end of the lifting connecting gutter 65, making it possible to supply game balls from the ball outlet 58 to the ball inlet 66.

[0103] The ball feeding device of the upper launching device 12 is provided with an opening / closing actuation piece 426 for operating the opening / closing shutter 412 of the ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 on the right side of the ball feeding unit cover (FIG. 27). When the upper launching device 12 is closed relative to the main body frame 2, this opening / closing actuation piece 426 comes into contact with a spherical abutment portion 424 of the opening / closing crank 413 in the ball outlet opening / closing unit 410, thereby rotating the opening / closing crank 413 and opening the opening / closing shutter 412.

[0104] [Ball outlet opening / closing unit] In this embodiment, the ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 in the main frame 2 is attached to a mounting member 407 attached to the underside of the ball delivery trough 23 of the ball lifting and transporting device 22, and when the upper launching device 12 is opened relative to the main frame 2, it can close the ball outlet 58 at the front end of the ball delivery trough 23 in the ball lifting and transporting device 22, thereby blocking the flow of game balls from the ball lifting and transporting device 22 to the ball transporting device 28 of the upper launching device 12.

[0105] The ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 comprises a shutter base 411 attached to a vertically facing hanging wall 408 of the mounting member 407, a plate-shaped opening / closing shutter 412 held on the shutter base 411 so as to be able to slide vertically, an opening / closing crank 413 which slides the opening / closing shutter 412 vertically, and an opening / closing spring 414 which biases the opening / closing shutter 412 upwards and downwards via the opening / closing crank 413.

[0106] The shutter base 411 of the ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 includes a pair of slide grooves 415 extending in the vertical direction for holding the opening / closing shutter 412 slidably in the vertical direction so that it protrudes above the upper end of the shutter base 411, a rectangular opening 416 penetrating in the front-rear direction between the pair of slide grooves 415, a crank support part 417 arranged on the front of the left end when viewed from the front and supporting the opening / closing crank 413 rotatably around an axis extending in the front-rear direction, and a spring locking part 418 that locks one end (upper end) of the opening / closing spring 414. The crank support part 417 of the shutter base 411 is arranged on the left side of the opening 416 when viewed from the front, and the spring locking part 418 is arranged near the upper part toward the left of the center in the left-right direction when viewed from the front.

[0107] In addition, the opening / closing shutter 412 of the ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 comprises a flat shutter body 419, a pair of sliding protrusions (not shown) which protrude from the front surface of the shutter body 419 and slide within the slide groove 415 of the shutter base 411, and a horizontally elongated rectangular drive hole 420 which is positioned between the pair of sliding protrusions and faces the opening 416 of the shutter base 411, and which penetrates in the front-to-back direction.

[0108] The opening / closing crank 413 of the ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 comprises an axis portion 421 supported rotatably around an axis extending in the front-to-rear direction by the crank support portion 417 of the shutter base 411, a drive rod 422 extending outward to the right from the right outer periphery of the axis portion 421 when viewed from the front, with its tip extending to near the center of the opening 416 in the left-to-right direction, a drive pin 423 protruding rearward from the tip of the drive rod 422 and being slidably inserted into the drive hole 412b of the opening / closing shutter 412, a contact portion 424 extending downward from the lower outer periphery of the axis portion 421 when viewed from the front, with its tip being spherical, and a spring locking portion 425 formed on the upper surface of the drive rod 422 midway and locking the other end (lower end) of the opening / closing spring 414.

[0109] The ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 is configured so that when the opening / closing crank 413 rotates around an axis extending in the front-to-back direction, the drive pin 423 of the opening / closing crank 413 rotates in an arc in the vertical direction, and at the same time, the opening / closing shutter 412 slides in the vertical direction through the drive hole 420 into which the drive pin 423 is inserted.

[0110] In this ball outlet opening / closing unit 410, when the upper launching device 12 is closed relative to the main body frame 2, the abutment portion 424 of the opening / closing crank 413 abuts against the opening / closing operating piece 426 of the upper launching device 12, and the abutment portion 424 rotates clockwise when viewed from the front against the biasing force of the opening / closing spring 414, and the drive pin 423 rotates clockwise when viewed from the front together with the abutment portion 424, causing the opening / closing shutter 412 to descend and open the ball outlet 58 at the front end of the ball delivery gutter 23. In other words, the ball outlet 58 is connected to the ball inlet 66 at the rear end of the lifting and transporting communication gutter 65, making it possible to supply game balls from the ball outlet 58 to the ball inlet 66.

[0111] When the upper launching device 12 is opened relative to the main frame 2 from this state, the abutment between the abutment portion 424 of the opening / closing crank 413 and the opening / closing operating piece 426 on the upper launching device 12 is released, and the opening / closing crank 413 rotates counterclockwise when viewed from the front due to the force of the opening / closing spring 414, and at the same time, the opening / closing shutter 412 rises, allowing the ball outlet 58 at the front end of the ball discharge trough 23 to be closed (Figure 27).

[0112] In this way, the ball outlet opening / closing unit 410 can automatically open and close the ball outlet 58 at the front end of the ball discharge trough 23 in the ball lifting device 22 in accordance with the opening and closing of the upper launching device 12 relative to the main frame 2, so that even if the upper launching device 12 is opened while there are game balls remaining in the ball discharge trough 23, it is possible to prevent the game balls from spilling out of the ball outlet 58.

[0113] [Irregular shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit] FIG. 28 is a diagram explaining the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit. FIG. 29 is a diagram explaining the magnetic-ball discharge section cover in FIG. 28 separated and turned over. FIG. 30 is a plan view of the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit. FIG. 31 is a rear view of the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit. FIG. 32 is a diagram explaining the base plate of the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit. FIG. 33 is a diagram explaining the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit separated into an irregular-shaped-ball discharge unit and a magnetic-ball discharge unit. FIG. 34 is a diagram explaining the path by which irregular-shaped balls and magnetic balls are discharged in the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit. FIG. 35 is a diagram explaining the situation in which the magnetic balls are separated from the circulation path and discharged. FIG. 36 is a diagram explaining the state in which the magnetic balls have reached the magnetic-ball discharge inclined surface.

[0114] As shown in FIG. 28, the irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 has an irregular-shaped ball discharge function and a magnetic ball discharge function. The irregular-shaped ball is a spherical object such as a bearing with a smaller diameter than a regular game ball. The irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 is a transparent resin molded product, and is disposed in the lower part of the game machine body (irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit storage part 19), and is configured to be covered at the front side by a front plate (not shown) and at the rear side by a rear plate (ball receiving trough base 201). At the top, there is a recovery port 202 that recovers out balls that flow down without winning in various winning ports (special variable winning device, general winning port, normal variable winning device) and game balls as safe balls that win in various winning ports and flow down the safe ball discharge path. The out balls flow into the recovery port 202 through the out port 42 (see FIG. 2, FIG. 3, FIG. 5). The safe ball flows into the recovery port 202 via the winning port 41 (see FIG. 5).

[0115] The circulation path in the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20, which is connected to the recovery port 202, is formed inside the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20 by meandering left and right and folding up and down, and is provided with a recovered ball detection switch 203, an irregular-shaped-ball discharge section 204, a magnetic ball discharge section 205, a ball path full detection switch 206, and a ball proper amount detection switch 207 along the circulation path. The game balls that flow into the recovery port 202 move in a single line along the circulation path in the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20, and reach the ball collection section 21 connected to the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20. However, the irregular-shaped balls and magnetic balls are separated from the circulation path of regular game balls in the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20 and discharged outside the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20 so as not to move to the ball collection section 21.

[0116] Next, the movement of game balls collected in the collection port 202 within the irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 will be explained step by step. The number of game balls collected in the collection port 202 is counted one by one by the collected ball detection switch 203. Game balls that pass through the collected ball detection switch 203 reach the irregular-shaped ball discharge section 204. If the difference in the number of game balls detected by the collected ball detection switch 203 and the fired ball detection means increases, it can be detected that an abnormality has occurred in the gaming machine.

[0117] The irregular ball discharge section 204 is composed of an irregular ball discharge section base 208 fixed to an irregular ball discharge section base mounting section 212 provided on the ball receiving trough base 201, and two irregular ball separation shafts 209, 210 fixed to the irregular ball discharge section base 208.

[0118] As shown in Figures 31 and 32, the irregular ball discharge unit base mounting part 212 is a rectangular opening provided in the ball receiving gutter base 201. As shown in Figure 28, the irregular ball discharge unit base mounting part 212 is provided at an incline on the ball receiving gutter base 201 so that the side on the recovery port 202 side is higher. This causes the irregular ball separation shafts 209, 210 to be positioned at an incline, so that the game balls can move from the upstream side 213 (see Figure 30) to the downstream side 214.

[0119] Figure 33 is a diagram explaining the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit separated into an irregular-shaped-ball discharge unit and a magnetic-ball discharge unit. Figure 33(a) shows the irregular-shaped-ball discharge section 204. Figure 33(b) shows the magnetic-ball discharge section 205.

[0120] The irregular-ball discharge unit 204 utilizes the difference in diameter between regular game balls and irregular balls to remove irregular balls having a diameter smaller than that of regular game balls from the circulation path in the irregular-ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20. As shown in FIG. 30, the irregular-ball discharge unit 204 is provided with two irregular-ball separation shafts 209, 210 with a circular cross section arranged in parallel from the upstream side 213 to the downstream side 214 of the circulation path. In order to remove irregular balls, i.e., irregular balls having a diameter smaller than that of regular game balls, from the circulation path in which regular game balls circulate, the irregular-ball separation shafts 209, 210 are fixed to the irregular-ball discharge unit base 208 so that the gap distance between the two irregular-ball separation shafts 209, 210 is narrower than the diameter of regular game balls on the upstream side 213 and wider than the diameter of regular game balls on the downstream side 214, that is, so that the distance between the two irregular-ball separation shafts 209, 210 gradually increases.

[0121] Game balls flow down one by one to the irregular ball discharge section 204 via the recovery port 202 and the recovered ball detection switch 203, and roll as they flow down, straddling the two irregular ball separation shafts 209, 210. On the upstream side, the gap distance between the two irregular ball separation shafts 209, 210 is narrower than the diameter of a regular game ball, so that regular game balls do not fall between the irregular ball separation shafts 209, 210.

[0122] On the other hand, irregular balls, which are irregular balls with a smaller diameter than regular game balls, fall between the two irregular ball separation shafts 209, 210. The fallen irregular balls are discharged from the irregular ball discharge port 216 to the outside of the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 via the irregular ball discharge path 215 as shown in Figure 33 (a). The irregular ball discharge path 215 is formed by an irregular ball discharge path forming member 217 attached to the front side of the ball receiving trough base 201 and the underside of the irregular ball discharge section base 208. The irregular ball discharge path forming member 217 is also integrally provided with a connection path 218 that leads balls having the same diameter as regular game balls to the magnetic ball discharge section 205.

[0123] Regular-sized game balls rolling down the two irregular-shaped ball separation shafts 209, 210 fall between the two irregular-shaped ball separation shafts 209, 210 on the downstream side 214, and pass through the connecting passage 218 to reach the circulation path 219 formed in the magnetic ball discharge section 205.

[0124] The magnetic ball discharge section 205 is fixed to the ball receiving trough base 201 as shown in FIG. 28. FIG. 33 shows the state in which the magnetic ball discharge section 205 has been removed from the ball receiving trough base 201. The magnetic ball discharge section 205 is formed with an inclined surface 220 connected to the communication path 218, and the downstream side of the inclined surface 220 is connected to a steeply descending drop surface 221, and the magnetic ball discharge inclined surface 222 is formed at the point where the inclined surface 220 is extended. A gap of a discontinuous portion 223 is provided so that the inclined surface 220 and the magnetic ball discharge inclined surface 222 are not continuous. In the magnetic ball discharge section 205, at least one of the side wall 224 or the ceiling wall 225 has a magnet attached to at least one of its front surface, back surface, or interior.

[0125] FIG. 35 shows an example in which a magnet 229 is attached to a magnet storage space 230 on the back side of the ceiling wall 225. The magnet storage space 230 is formed as a space with a rectangular cross section arranged along the back side of the ceiling wall 225. The magnet 229 is a flat magnet, and is a permanent magnet with a north pole or south pole on one side and a south pole or north pole on the other side. The magnetic force of the magnet is not so strong that a game ball (magnetic ball 232) made of a magnetic material is attracted and prevented from rolling, but it is sufficient that the game ball can flow down the area of ​​the inclined surface 220 and reach the magnetic ball discharge inclined surface 222 without falling from the discontinuous portion 223. The magnet to be attached may be a permanent magnet or an electromagnet.

[0126] Regular game balls 233 flowing from the connecting path 218 roll down the inclined surface 220, and then roll down from the inclined surface 220 onto the falling surface 221. Non-magnetic regular game balls 233 fall through the discontinuous portion 223, pass through the circulation path 219, and reach the ball assembly 21 connected to the irregular-shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20.

[0127] On the other hand, irregular balls (magnetic balls 232) made of magnetic material are stuck to the inner wall surface of the ceiling wall 225 by the attractive force of the magnet 229 housed in the magnet housing space 230, and flow down the circulation path 219 from the upstream side to the downstream side of the inclined surface 220 while rolling due to the action of gravity. Then, as shown in Figure 35, the magnetic ball 232 reaches the area of ​​the magnetic ball discharge inclined surface 222 (see Figure 28) as shown in Figure 36 without falling from the discontinuous portion 223. The irregular balls made of magnetic material that have reached the area of ​​the magnetic ball discharge inclined surface 222 are discharged to the outside of the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20 from the magnetic ball discharge outlet 227 via the magnetic ball discharge path 226 (see Figure 34).

[0128] The portion of the ceiling wall 225 above the magnetic ball discharge inclined surface 222 is configured as a magnetic force adjustment section 231. The magnetic force adjustment section 231 is formed so that the distance between the magnet storage space 230 and the magnetic ball discharge path 226 increases as the magnetic ball discharge path 226 moves downstream. In FIG. 35, the magnetic ball discharge path 226 has a curved portion, and this curved portion functions as the magnetic force adjustment section 231. As a result, the distance between the magnetic ball 232 and the magnet 229 increases as the magnetic ball discharge path 226 moves downstream. Then, the magnetic force (attractive force) of the magnet 229 acting on the magnetic ball 232 gradually decreases. Therefore, the magnetic ball 232, which was adhering to the wall surface of the ceiling wall 225 and moving downstream, separates from the wall surface of the ceiling wall 225 and falls onto the magnetic ball discharge inclined surface 222. Then, it is discharged from the magnetic ball discharge port 227 via the magnetic ball discharge path 226.

[0129] The irregular balls and the magnetic irregular balls are discharged from the irregular ball discharge port 216 and the magnetic ball discharge port 227 to the outside of the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 (Fig. 34). The irregular balls or magnetic balls discharged from the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 are collected in the discharged ball receiving box 234 (see Figs. 2, 3, and 5). In this way, the irregular balls and the magnetic irregular balls can be removed from the circulation path 219 of the regular game balls by using the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20. In this embodiment, the configuration can be simplified by using gravity to discharge the irregular balls and the magnetic balls to the outside of the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20. The irregular ball discharge path 215 is arranged along the side of the magnetic ball discharge section 205, and the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 can be configured compactly.

[0130] The irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20 can remove irregular balls or illegal balls made of magnetic material from the circulation path 219 of regular game balls without stopping the game, preventing the player's interest from declining, while reducing the opportunity for the employees of the game hall to be called to each game machine to deal with illegal balls and deal with malfunctions of the game machine. The irregular ball discharge unit 204 and the magnetic ball discharge unit 205 may each be configured independently. In other words, when the discharge of irregular balls is performed by another component in the game machine, the magnetic ball discharge unit 205 may be configured independently.

[0131] One embodiment of the enclosed ball type gaming machine of the present invention includes a gaming board having a game area defined therein, a main frame into which the gaming board is fitted and housed, a ball launching device disposed on top of the main frame and launching gaming balls toward the game area, a circulation path including irregularly shaped ball / magnetic ball discharge means for recovering the gaming balls launched by the ball launching device as enclosed balls on the back side of the gaming board, eliminating illegal balls, and supplying them again to the ball launching device, a ball sending device that sends the enclosed balls arranged and stored in an arrangement passage formed in a part of the circulation path one by one to the launch position of the ball launching device based on the drive of an electric drive source, a main control board that performs game control processing related to pachinko games, and a control circuit connected to the main control board for two-way data communication, the control circuit controlling the increase / decrease in the number of balls held based on prize ball commands transmitted from the main control board in the game control processing and ball number information of the shot balls shot by the ball launching device, and the control of the launch of the game balls by the ball launching device, and and a ball information control board that controls the sending of game balls to the launch position by a ball launching device, and is configured to circulate a predetermined number of game balls in a closed manner without paying out the game balls, and the ball launching device is equipped with a launch rail for stopping the game balls at the launch position, a launching member that performs a ball hitting operation based on the drive of an electric drive source and launches the game balls stopped at the launch position, and a launched ball confirmation means that detects the game balls stopped at the launch position, and the ball information control board is equipped with a launched ball detection and judgment means that determines that a launched ball is present when a game ball stopped at the launch position is detected by the launched ball confirmation means for a predetermined specified time, and a held ball number subtraction means that determines that a game ball stopped at the launch position has been launched and subtracts one from the held ball number when a game ball is not detected by the launched ball confirmation means, provided that the launched ball detection and judgment means has determined that a launched ball is present.

[0132] According to the above embodiment, a launched ball detection and determination means is provided which determines that a launched ball is present when a game ball parked at the launch position is detected by the launched ball confirmation means for a predetermined specified time, and, provided that the launched ball detection and determination means has determined that a launched ball is present, if the launched ball confirmation means does not detect a game ball, it is determined that the game ball parked at the launch position has been launched, and the number of balls held is reduced by one.Therefore, if noise is introduced into the launched ball confirmation means, it is possible to eliminate erroneous counting of launched balls due to noise, increase the reliability of detected launched balls, and remove irregularly shaped balls and magnetic balls from the circulation path along which regular game balls circulate.

[0133] [Sphere collection part 21] Fig. 37 is a front left perspective view of the ball collecting section and the ball lifting device, Fig. 38 is a front view of the ball collecting section and the ball lifting device, Fig. 39 is a front view showing the state where the ball polishing cartridge is removed from the ball collecting section, Fig. 40 is a rear perspective view showing the state where the case of the ball collecting section and the cover of the ball lifting device are removed, Fig. 41 is an enlarged rear perspective view of the ball collecting section in Fig. 40, Fig. 42 is a further enlarged view of Fig. 41, and Fig. 43 is a plan view of the ball collecting section with the case removed.

[0134] The ball collecting section 21 (Fig. 41) has a ball feed passage 275, a ball polishing cartridge 251, a ball polishing cartridge mounting section 273 (Fig. 39), and a lifting / feeding inlet switch 156. The ball feed passage 275 is a groove structure with walls on both sides located at the bottom of the entire ball collecting section 21, and has a ball receiving port 275a that connects to the ball outlet (not shown) of the irregular-shaped-ball / magnetic-ball discharge unit 20, and a ball feed port 275b that opens into the ball feed rotor 350 (described below) (Figs. 41, 42, 43).

[0135] The ball polishing cartridge mounting section 273 is an opening provided in the ball collection section 21 for attaching and detaching the ball polishing cartridge 251 described later (Fig. 39). The ball polishing cartridge 251 can be attached and detached to the ball polishing cartridge mounting section 273 from the front side of the gaming machine, and a ball polishing cloth 263 is arranged on the part of the ball polishing cartridge 251 that faces the ball lifting device 22 described later (Fig. 41). The lifting inlet switch 156 is provided on the outside of one of the walls that constitute the ball transport passage 275, and detects the presence or absence of gaming balls passing through the ball transport passage 275 (Fig. 41).

[0136] [Ball lifting device 22] Fig. 44 is a rear perspective view showing the state where the upper gear box and the lower gear box have been removed. Fig. 45 is a right side view showing the state where the cover of the ball lifting device has been removed, and Fig. 46 is an enlarged view of part (A) in Fig. 45. Fig. 47 shows the state where the screw is disassembled, Fig. 48 is a perspective view showing the upper part of the ball lifting device, and Fig. 49 shows the engaged and unengaged states of the screw and the engaging member.

[0137] The ball lifting device 22 has a screw 25 (Figure 40), a ball lifting motor 150 (Figures 38, 48), a lifting guide rail 282 (Figures 40, 44), an upper gear box 356 (Figures 37, 40), a lower gear box 357 (Figures 37, 40), a ball feeding rotor 350 (Figure 40), a ball feeding inclined section 351 (Figures 40, 41), a lifting section cover 353 (Figure 37), a spiral base cover 352 (Figure 37), a lifting slope member 354 (Figure 46), and a ball delivery gutter 23 (Figures 44, 46, 48).

[0138] The spiral base cover 352 and the lifting section cover 353 are cover members 368 arranged to surround the screw 25 and are made of transparent resin (acrylic resin). The spiral base cover 352 has an opening 281 obliquely provided in a portion facing the ball polishing cartridge 251 in the ball collecting section 21 (FIG. 39). Further, a protrusion is formed on the upper surface of the cover member 368 for mounting the lower surface of the upper gear box 356 (described later) (FIG. 69).

[0139] The screw 25 is arranged vertically from the base to the top of the ball lifting device 22 inside a square cylindrical cover member 368. The cover member 368 is arranged so as to surround the screw 25 by assembling a spiral base cover 352 and a lifting section cover 353. The screw 25 is composed of a screw shaft 25a, two small pitch ridge members 25b located above and below, and four large pitch ridge members 25c located in the center (Figure 45). These are fitted into the screw shaft 25a.

[0140] The small-pitch ridge member 25b is composed of a cylindrical portion 25e and a helical ridge 25d (FIG. 45). As shown in FIG. 47, the small-pitch ridge member 25b is formed by assembling a half body 25bR, which is obtained by dividing the entire member into two halves along a vertical plane including the screw shaft 25a, and a half body 25bL, which are sandwiched between the screw shaft 25a, to form an integrated unit. A pair of a recess 25g and a protrusion 25h for assembling the half bodies 25bR and 25bL on both sides is formed on the cut surface of the cylindrical portion 25e, on the top and bottom, and these allow the unit to be integrated.

[0141] The upper edges 25i of the half bodies 25bR and 25bL are formed with upper edge recesses 25j that open upward, and the lower edges 25k are formed with lower edge protrusions 25m that protrude downward. These upper edge recesses 25j and lower edge protrusions 25m are for vertically connecting the small pitch ridge members 25b and the large pitch ridge members 25c to each other and transmitting rotation therebetween.

[0142] The large pitch ridge member 25c is similarly designated by the same reference numerals and will not be described in detail, but the pitch of the helical ridge 25d is larger than that of the small pitch ridge member 25b. The helical ridge 25d of the small pitch ridge member 25b and the helical ridge 25d of the large pitch ridge member 25c are smoothly connected to each other, although the pitch varies at the portion where they are connected. The large pitch ridge member 25c is composed of a half body 25cR and a half body 25cL.

[0143] The pitch is the distance between the straight helical ridges 25d. The pitch of the helical ridges 25d of the small pitch ridge member 25b is smaller than that of the large pitch ridge member 25c. For example, the pitch of the small pitch ridge member 25b is 25 mm, and the pitch of the large pitch ridge member 25c is 43.2 mm.

[0144] The screw shaft 25a shown in Figure 47 is the rotating shaft of the screw 25, and as shown in Figure 44, an upper escaping gear 360 (spur gear) is fixed to the upper end, and a lower escaping gear 362 (spur gear) is fixed to the lower end.

[0145] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 49, the small pitch protrusion member 25b at the lower part of the screw 25 has its lower edge convex portion 25m engaged with a mating recess 366a of a mating member 366 formed integrally with the lower escaping gear 362 by means of concave-convex engagement, and is driven and rotated integrally with the screw shaft 25a and the lower escaping gear 362.

[0146] The ball lifting motor 150 is a motor that drives the screw 25 and is attached to the underside of the upper gear box 356 in the ball lifting device 22 (Figures 38 and 48).

[0147] The upper gear box 356 is disposed at the upper end of the ball lifting device 22, and houses and supports the ball lifting motor gear 358, the idle gear 359, and the upper lifting gear 360 (Figures 40 and 44). The ball lifting motor gear 358 is fixed to the drive shaft of the ball lifting motor 150, and meshes with the idle gear 359. The idle gear 359 is a two-stage gear that integrates an upper gear with a large number of teeth and a lower gear with a small number of teeth on its lower surface, and meshes with the ball lifting motor gear 358 at the upper gear, and meshes with the upper lifting gear 360 at the lower gear. These gears are spur gears, and the vertical dimension of the upper gear box is low. The upper lifting gear 360 is fixed to the upper end of the screw shaft 25a. With this gear configuration, the screw 25 is driven and rotated by the ball lifting motor 150.

[0148] The lower gear box 357 is disposed from the lower end of the ball lifting device 22 to the lower end of the ball collection section 21, and houses and supports the lower lifting gear 362 and the ball feed rotor gear 363 (Figure 44). The lower lifting gear 362 is fixed to the lower end of the screw shaft 25a, and meshes with the ball feed rotor gear 363. The gear ratio between the ball feed rotor gear 363 and the lower lifting gear 362 is 2:1.

[0149] A ball-feeding rotor 350 is fixed to the gear shaft 363a of the ball-feeding rotor gear 363, and the ball-feeding rotor 350 is driven to rotate by the ball-feeding rotor gear 363. The ball-feeding rotor 350 is disposed in correspondence with the ball-feeding port 275b of the ball-feeding passage 275 in the ball collection section 21, and is a low cylindrical member, with ball-engaging recesses 350a for accommodating game balls at 180-degree intervals provided on the periphery in this embodiment. The ball-engaging recesses 350a have a depth that accommodates approximately half of the game balls (FIG. 43).

[0150] The ball-transporting inclined portion 351 (FIG. 42) is a member formed around the ball-transporting rotor 350 and having a slope for lifting the game ball. The range in which the ball-transporting inclined portion 351 exists is the range from the position of the ball-transporting port 275b, which is the ball-transporting rotor-side exit of the ball-transporting passage 275, to the position where the ball-transporting rotor 350 delivers the game ball to the screw 25 in relation to the rotation direction of the ball-transporting rotor 350.

[0151] As described above, this ball sending inclined portion 351 is in the shape of a circular arc along the outer circumference of the ball sending rotor 350 from the ball sending opening 275b to the delivery position, and has an inclined surface 351a that rises upward from the position of the ball sending opening 275b to a delivery position 7 mm (about 5 to 8 mm) higher, and a top inclined portion 351b that protrudes from the top of the inclined surface 351a toward the screw 25 and inclines downward. The width of the inclined surface 351a is 4 mm (about 3 to 5 mm), and the top inclined surface 351b is formed in a range larger than the diameter of the game ball, extending from the front to the rear of the delivery position in the rotation direction of the ball sending rotor 350.

[0152] The positional relationship between the ball-transporting rotor 350 and the screw 25 in a plan view is such that the game ball that has fallen from the top inclined surface 351b can be received between the pitches of the spiral ridge 25d. A cover member 368 (not shown) is disposed along the outer periphery of the ball-transporting inclined portion 351 up to the vicinity of the delivery position, preventing the game ball from falling from the inclined surface 351a.

[0153] A guide block 365 (Figs. 42 and 43) is disposed on the upper surface of the lower gear box 357 in close proximity to the lower front side of the screw 25. The guide block 365 has an arc-shaped spherical guide surface 365a in close proximity to the helical ridge 25d of the screw 25, and a stopper surface 365b continuing from the spherical guide surface 365a. The spherical guide surface 365a is formed from the vicinity of the top inclined surface 351b to the opening 281 provided in the helical base cover 352, and ends at the stopper surface 365b (Fig. 43).

[0154] The two lifting guide rails 282 are arranged adjacent to each other in parallel with the screw 25, and are round bar-shaped guide members with a diameter of about 5 mm that serve as guides to linearly guide the game balls lifted by the screw 25 upward. The lifting guide rail 282 is located almost opposite the ball-feeding rotor 350 in the rotation direction of the screw 25, and is arranged vertically upward from a position equivalent to the upper end of the opening 281 (FIG. 39) obliquely provided in the spiral base cover 352, and its upper end is fixed to the lower surface of the upper gear box 356. The distance between the two adjacent lifting guide rails 282 is a width (5 to 8 mm at the inner distance between the lifting guide rails 282) that prevents the game balls (diameter 11 mm) from passing through. In addition, since the game balls are lifted while being in contact with the guide rail 282, the lift guide rail 282 has a low coefficient of friction and is rigid enough not to be deformed by the pressing force from the game balls to the guide rail 282 generated by the rotation of the screw 25. It is preferable to use stainless steel as the material.

[0155] The support member 367 is a cushion member that prevents deformation of the hoisting guide rail 282 and absorbs vibrations transmitted between the game balls and the hoisting guide rail 282, and to the upper launching device 12, and has a portion that maintains the hoisting guide rail 282 in its original position.It is a plate-shaped block member that is thick enough to fit between the cover member 368 consisting of the spiral base cover 352 and the hoisting section cover 353 and the hoisting guide rail 282, and has a flat side that comes into contact with the cover member 368 and a recess on the side that supports the hoisting guide rail 282. The lifting guide rail 282 has a rigidity sufficient to prevent it from being deformed by the pressing force from the game balls onto the guide rail 282 generated by the rotation of the screw 25. However, if the pressing force from the game balls is applied over a long period of time, the lifting guide rail 282 will gradually deform in the pressing direction, which may cause the game balls to fall out of the guidance of the lifting guide rail 282. Therefore, this deformation is regulated.

[0156] Furthermore, since the screw 25, the lifting guide rail 282, and other parts through which the game balls mainly pass are designed with clearances, vibrations generated by the driving of the ball lifting motor 150, for example, are transmitted to the screw 25 and the lifting guide rail 282, and there is a risk of abnormal noise being generated between the lifting guide rail 282 and the game balls. Furthermore, since the lifting device 22 is surrounded by the cover member 368, the screw 25, the lifting guide rail 282, and other parts, if an abnormal noise occurs within the lifting device 22, it will resonate and become louder. However, by arranging the support member 367, it is possible to absorb vibrations generated in the game machine and suppress the generation of abnormal noise. The support members 367 are arranged in a number sufficient to restrict deformation of the guide rail 282 between the cover member 368 and the lifting guide rail 282 and to prevent abnormal noise due to vibration.

[0157] The lifting slope member 354 shown in Figure 46 is a block member having a slope formed on the underside of the upper gear box 356, facing the upper end of the screw 25. The slope is positioned so as to intersect with the path along which the game balls are sent up, and changes the direction of movement of the game balls lifted vertically by the screw 25 to a horizontal direction, guiding them to the ball sending-out gutter 23.

[0158] The ball-sending gutter 23 is provided at the upper end of the spiral base cover 352, and is a passageway with an incline for sending the game balls guided from the lifting slope member 354 to the upper launch device 12. The side of the ball-sending gutter 23 is provided with a ball-removing member 355 for discharging the game balls inside the game machine to the outside of the game machine (Figs. 44 and 48). The ball-removing member 355 is a removable cover member, and can be removed from the side wall of the ball-sending gutter 23 by operating the knob at the bottom, thereby opening the opening in the side wall. The ball-sending gutter 23 has an inclined portion, and the ball-removing member 355 is arranged on the wall at the tip side of the inclined portion (Fig. 44).

[0159] Furthermore, a launching ball waiting ball detection switch 26 that detects the presence or absence of game balls is disposed on the outer surface of the ball delivery chute 23 (FIG. 45). When the launching ball waiting ball detection switch 26 does not detect a game ball, the screw 25 is driven and new game balls are supplied one by one from the ball lifting device 22 to the upper launching device 12.

[0160] [Operation of the ball assembly 21 and the ball lifting device 22] The game balls sent from the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20, which constitutes a part of the circulation path, are sent to the ball sending rotor 350 in the ball lifting device 22 through the ball sending passage 275 of the ball collection section 21. Meanwhile, the screw 25 is rotated via the gear train 358, 359, 360 by the driving of the ball lifting motor 150, and the ball sending rotor 350 is rotated via the screw shaft 25a and the lower gear train 362, 363. Since the gear ratio between the lower lifting gear 362 and the ball sending rotor gear 363 is 2:1, the ball sending rotor 350 makes one rotation for two rotations of the screw 25. The ball sending rotor 350 receives the game balls one by one from the ball sending passage 275 into the ball engagement recess 350a and rotates counterclockwise (Figure 43).

[0161] Then, due to the rotation of the ball-feeding rotor 350, the game ball engages with the ball-engaging recess 350a and moves, while the remaining outer half moves along the inclined surface 351a of the ball-feeding inclined portion 351 and reaches the top inclined surface 351b. Since the top inclined surface 351b is inclined downward, the game ball is fed from that position into the spiral ridge 25d of the small-pitch ridge member 25b. At this time, the game ball fed from the slightly higher top inclined surface 351b has a larger gap with the following game ball, and is reliably separated one by one. In order to achieve stable feeding of the game balls, it is possible to arrange the end of the top inclined surface 351b and the game ball delivery position of the small pitch protrusion member 25b at substantially the same height. Furthermore, when feeding the gaming ball from the top inclined surface 351b to the small pitch ridge member 25d, it is not limited to using a downward incline, and for example, a configuration in which the gaming ball is guided to the small pitch ridge member 25d using rails may be used. Furthermore, if the step between the end of the inclined surface 351a and the small pitch protrusion member 25d at the bottom of the screw 25 that receives the game ball is small, it is also possible to drop the game ball directly from the inclined surface 351a onto the small pitch protrusion member 25d.

[0162] Next, the game ball moves along the ball guide surface 365a of the guide block 365 with the rotation of the small pitch ridge member 25b and collides with the stopper surface 365b. During this time, the game ball rises with the rotation of the screw 25 and reaches the lower end of the opening 281 provided in the spiral base cover 352. In this case, the ball feed rotor 350 has ball engagement recesses 350a at every 180 degrees as described above, and rotates at half the speed of the screw 25, so that one ball is supplied to the screw 25 at every half rotation. Since one-half rotation of the ball feed rotor corresponds to one pitch of the small pitch ridge member 25b, the game balls fed from the ball feed rotor 350 are always fed continuously between the pitches of the small pitch ridge member 25b one ball at a time. (FIG. 41) In other words, the game balls are prevented from becoming strung together inside the ball lifting device 22.

[0163] The ball comes into contact with the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251 through the opening 281. That is, as the game ball is lifted by the screw 25 of the ball lifting device 22, the game ball is rubbed against the ball polishing cloth 263 through the opening 281, and the game ball is cleaned and polished (FIG. 39). By being guided diagonally upward, the area of ​​the ball polishing cloth 263 can be effectively utilized.

[0164] After passing through the opening 281, the game ball is lifted to the upper end of the ball lifting device 22 as the screw 25 rotates, and at that time, the game ball is guided by the lifting guide rail 282 arranged in parallel and moves linearly. The guide rail 282 allows the game ball lifted by the screw 25 to move up and down, and restricts its movement in the left and right directions. During this time, the lifting of the game ball is relatively slow at the lower small pitch protrusion member 25a because the pitch is small, so that there is no hindrance to the ball receiving from the ball sending rotor 350. In addition, the pitch is also small at the upper small pitch protrusion member 25b, so that there is no hindrance to the ball sending to the upper launching device 12. On the other hand, in the middle part of the screw 25, there is no particular problem if the lifting speed of the game balls is increased, so a large pitch protrusion member is used. This makes it possible to reduce the number of game balls circulated in the ball lifting device 22. Furthermore, this makes it possible to reduce the burden on the screw 25 caused by the weight of the game balls (Figure 45). In addition, in this embodiment, the term "lifting" is used to mean continuously transporting game balls from the bottom to the top of the gaming machine.

[0165] When the game ball reaches the upper end of the ball lifting device 22, it abuts against the slope of the lifting slope member 354 from below, and the direction of the game ball lifted by the screw 25 is changed from vertical to approximately horizontal, and the game ball is smoothly sent from the ball lifting device 22 to the ball sending out gutter 23. Then, the game ball sent to the ball sending out gutter 23 rolls on the gentle slope of the ball sending out gutter 23 and is sent to the upper launch device 12 (Figure 46). In this case, when the lifted game ball comes into contact with the sloped portion of the lifting slope member 354, it leaves the guide of the lifting guide rail 282 and flows naturally down to the floor of the ball discharge trough 23, so that no ball pressure is applied to the lifting guide rail 282 or the screw 25, and the ball can be sent in smoothly.

[0166] When it is necessary to remove the circulating game balls from the game machine for maintenance, etc., they can be easily removed from the game machine by operating the ball removal member 355 provided on the outer surface of the ball discharge trough 23 (Figures 37 and 48).

[0167] In this embodiment, the spiral base cover 352 and the lifting section cover 353 are made of transparent resin (acrylic resin). Using such transparent resin is preferable because it allows the condition inside the ball lifting device 22 to be easily visually checked without disassembly, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the spiral base cover 352 and the lifting section cover 353 may be made of opaque resin, metal, etc.

[0168] Although the small pitch ridge members 25b and the large pitch ridge members 25c are configured to be joined together as halves, they may be integrally molded into a cylindrical shape from the beginning. Furthermore, by making full use of synthetic resin molding technology, the entire screw 25 except for the screw shaft 25a can be molded as a single unit.

[0169] Moreover, the screw 25 and the lifting guide rail 282 are preferably made of a material that slides smoothly and has a rigidity sufficient to prevent deformation due to the pressing force from the game balls to the lifting guide rail 282 generated by the rotation of the screw 25, and may be made of a metal such as aluminum or a synthetic resin. Moreover, it is considered that the helical protrusion 25d uses a hard silicon material or the like at least in the portion that receives the game balls from the ball-feeding rotor 350. This makes it possible to absorb the impact generated when the game balls fall onto the helical protrusion 25d.

[0170] In this embodiment, the hoisting guide rail 282 is two rails that guide the game ball vertically, but this is not limited to two rails. For example, the hoisting guide rail 282 may be one rail, and the other guide may be extended so that the inner wall of the cover member 368 is adjacent to and parallel to the hoisting guide rail 282 to guide the game ball.

[0171] In addition, the support member 367 is disposed between the cover member 368 consisting of the spiral base cover 352 and the lifting section cover 353 and the lifting guide rail 282, but as long as it is limited to absorbing vibrations, it is not limited to the cover member 368, and for example, as shown in Fig. 70, the support member 367 may be disposed so as to cover both ends of the lifting guide rail 282. This absorbs various vibrations generated in the game machine, such as vibrations generated by the operation of movable parts (not shown) and electric drive sources such as motors disposed on the game board, and vibrations caused by impacts generated when a player operates the touch panel section 14 disposed on the door frame 3, and it is possible to suppress a situation in which the game balls come off the guide of the guide rail and cannot be lifted, or the launch of the game balls becomes unstable due to vibrations.

[0172] In addition, in this embodiment, the game balls are continuously sent out and lifted, one ball at a time for each pitch of the spiral ridge 25d over the entire length of the screw 25, but this is not limited to this as long as the configuration is such that the game balls are continuously lifted, even if they are not lifted at all pitches of the screw 25.

[0173] Furthermore, the lifting slope member 354 may be constructed in any manner that allows the game balls lifted vertically by the screw 25 and the lifting guide rail 282 to be smoothly sent into the ball discharge trough 23, and may be molded integrally with the upper gear box 356, or, as shown in Figures 67 and 68, the upper surface of the ball discharge path 23 may be extended onto the lifting path of the game balls and a slope formed on the underside of the extended portion.

[0174] In addition, the ball lifting device 22 of the present invention is configured to lift the game balls using a screw 25, but as long as the game balls are lifted by guiding them vertically and transporting them, various methods can be selected, such as a belt conveyor that can continuously lift the game balls, and is not limited to a screw.

[0175] [Ball polishing device] Next, a ball polishing device that cleans and polishes the game balls enclosed in the game machine will be described. Figure 38, which has been described above, is a front view of the ball polishing device with the ball polishing cartridge attached, and Figure 39, which has been described above, is a front view of the ball polishing device with the ball polishing cartridge removed.

[0176] Also, Fig. 50 is a left side view showing the state in which the ball polishing cartridge is installed, Fig. 51 is a perspective view explaining the mechanism for fixing the ball polishing cartridge, and Fig. 52 is a perspective view showing the state at the midway point of installing the ball polishing cartridge.

[0177] Fig. 53 and Fig. 54 are diagrams showing the state where the game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge are pressed against each other, Fig. 53 is a perspective view showing the state where the game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge are pressed against each other, Fig. 54 is a left side view showing the state where the game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge are pressed against each other, and Fig. 55 is a left side view showing the state where the left side cover of the ball polishing cartridge is removed in Fig. 54. Also, Fig. 56 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of the ball polishing cartridge in Fig. 55.

[0178] Next, Fig. 57 is a perspective view showing the ball polishing cartridge in the installed state, Fig. 58 is a perspective view showing the state in Fig. 57 with the right outer side cover removed to explain the inside of the right side cover, Fig. 59 is a top perspective view showing the state in Fig. 58 with the right side cover open. Fig. 60 is a perspective view of the ball polishing cartridge, Fig. 61 is a front view of the same, Fig. 62 is a side view of the same, and Fig. 63 is a side view of Fig. 62 with the left side cover removed.

[0179] As shown in Figures 38 and 50, the ball collection section 21 is provided at the bottom of the ball lifting device 22, and the ball polishing cartridge 251 can be attached to the ball polishing cartridge attachment section 270, which is a part of the ball collection section 21. Here, the outside of the ball lifting device 22 is made of a transparent plastic material, so that even if a game ball is clogged in the ball lifting device 22, the location of the clog can be easily seen. As shown in Figure 51, the ball polishing cartridge 251 attached to the ball polishing cartridge attachment section 270 is structured so that the ball polishing cartridge 251 is pressed backward and leftward by hanging the other end of the ball polishing cartridge fixing lever 271, which is provided in the ball polishing cartridge attachment section 270 and has one end supported on a shaft and the other end rotatable, on a ball polishing cartridge fixing stopper 272 also provided in the ball collection section 21. In addition, in Figure 51, in order to make it easier to understand the movement mode of the ball polishing cartridge fixing lever 271, both the open state and the closed state of the ball polishing cartridge fixing lever 271 are shown.

[0180] Figure 39 is a front view showing the state in which the ball polishing cartridge 251 has been removed. As shown in Figure 39, the ball polishing cartridge mounting section 270 has a ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273 consisting of a hollow portion that allows the ball polishing cartridge 251 to be mounted. Note that in Figure 39, for ease of viewing, the ball polishing cartridge fixing lever 271, and the mounting sensor 291 and drive shaft 290 that are provided inside the ball polishing cartridge mounting section 270 and are visible from the ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273 are omitted.

[0181] Figure 66 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of the ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273 in Figure 39. At the back of the ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273 inside the ball polishing cartridge mounting portion 270, at the bottom of the right side surface, there is provided a drive shaft 290 that is coaxial with the second drive gear 257 shown in Figure 59 and fits into the first gear shaft 261 of the ball polishing cartridge 251, and at the top of the right side surface, there is provided an installation sensor 291 with a pushable button 292. By a series of installation operations of the ball polishing cartridge 251, the button 292 of the installation sensor 291 is pushed in, and the installation of the ball polishing cartridge 251 is detected. A specific mode of the installation operation will be described later.

[0182] In addition, at the innermost part of the ball polishing cartridge mounting section 270 facing the ball lifting device 22, the ball lifting device 22 is provided with an opening 281 whose long side has an angle different from the moving direction of the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251 described later. As a result, a misalignment occurs between the lifting direction of the game ball and the moving direction of the ball polishing cloth 263, so that it is possible to effectively use the width of the ball polishing cloth 263 to clean and polish the game balls without using only a part of the width of the ball polishing cloth 263 having a predetermined width.

[0183] Furthermore, the width between the long sides of the opening 281 is configured to allow at least a portion of the peripheral edge of the game ball lifted by the ball lifting device 22 to protrude outside the ball lifting device 22 at the opening position, and is configured to be smaller than the diameter of the game ball; in this embodiment, the width between the long sides of the opening 281 is set to 8.4 mm for a game ball with a diameter of 11 mm, and the game ball protrudes from the opening 281 toward the ball polishing cloth 263 by approximately 1.5 mm.

[0184] As a result, during the game period, a part of the peripheral portion of the game ball being lifted in the ball lifting device 22 protrudes outside the ball lifting device 22 at the position of the opening 281, and the game ball can come into contact with the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251. In particular, if the ball polishing cartridge 251 has an elastic member inside and is configured to press the ball polishing cloth 263 against the game ball, the ball polishing cloth 263 can be more reliably brought into contact with the game ball, enabling more reliable ball polishing.

[0185] Furthermore, even if the ball polishing cartridge 251 is removed during times outside the playing period while game balls remain in the ball lifting device 22, the width of the opening 281 is configured to be smaller than the diameter of the game ball, so that the game balls remaining in the ball lifting device 22 will not spill out onto the ball polishing cartridge mounting portion 273 of the ball polishing cartridge 251.

[0186] Figure 52 is a perspective view showing a state in the middle of mounting the ball polishing cartridge 251 from the state of Figure 39. As can be seen from Figures 39 and 52, in this embodiment, the ball polishing cartridge 251 is configured to be inserted and mounted from the front of the main body frame 2.

[0187] Figure 60 is a perspective view of the ball polishing cartridge 251, Figure 61 is a front view of the same, Figure 62 is a side view of the same, and Figure 63 is a side view showing the state in Figure 62 with the left side cover removed. Here, 259 is a winding roller, 260 is a driven roller, 261 is a first gear shaft, and 262 is a second gear shaft, and the first gear shaft 261 is configured to be coaxial with the winding roller 259 and the second driving gear 257 described later, and the second gear shaft 262 is configured to be coaxial with the driven roller 260. Also, 268 is a game ball contact mark, and as shown in Figure 39, since the lifting direction of the game ball by the ball lifting device 22 and the winding direction of the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251 are at different angles to the vertical direction, the game ball contact mark 268 is formed with an inclination with respect to the long side direction of the ball polishing cloth 263.

[0188] Figures 53 and 54 are figures showing the state in which a game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge are pressed against each other, with Figure 53 being an oblique view showing the state in which a game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge are pressed against each other, and Figure 54 being a left side view showing the state in which a game ball and the ball polishing cloth of the ball polishing cartridge are pressed against each other.

[0189] As shown in Figures 53 and 54, the game balls are lifted by the screw 25 provided in the ball lifting device 22, and at the point where the ball lifting device 22 and the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251 face each other, the game balls come into contact with the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251 through the opening 281 of the ball lifting device 22, and as the game balls are lifted by the screw 25 of the ball lifting device 22, they are rubbed against the ball polishing cloth 263, thereby cleaning and polishing the game balls.

[0190] As shown in Figures 53 and 54, the screw 25 in the ball lifting device 22 has a different shape in the upper and lower parts and in the middle part. In the upper and lower parts, the inclination angle of the spiral of the screw 25 (spiral protrusion 25d in Figure 47) is small and the pitch is narrow, while in the middle part, the inclination angle of the spiral of the screw is large and the pitch is wide. Since it is not necessary to take time for lifting in the middle part, the inclination angle of the spiral is large and the lifting speed is increased, so that the game balls can be lifted in a short time. Also, it is possible to reduce the number of game balls contained in the middle part, and the number of game balls enclosed inside the game machine can be reduced.

[0191] Also, narrowing the pitch interval at the lower part reduces the lifting speed of the game ball at the part where the game ball faces the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251, thereby lengthening the contact time between the game ball and the ball polishing cloth 263, and thus the game ball can be reliably cleaned and polished. Furthermore, narrowing the pitch interval at the upper part reduces the lifting speed of the game ball at the lifting end of the ball lifting device 22, eliminating the occurrence of problems such as ball biting when transferring the ball from the ball lifting device 22 to the ball delivery gutter 23, and allowing the game ball to be smoothly delivered to the ball delivery gutter 23.

[0192] As shown in Fig. 54, the ball lifting device 22 is equipped with two guide rails 282 that guide the lifting of the game ball. The distance between the two guide rails is set to be approximately the same as the diameter of the game ball, but it can also be adjusted to be somewhat narrower to stabilize the game ball in places where the game ball may behave violently. In this way, the game ball is lifted through the ball lifting device 22 with both sides supported by the two guide rails.

[0193] Figure 55 is a left side view showing the state in which the left side cover of the ball polishing cartridge in Figure 54 has been removed. Also, Figure 56 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of the ball polishing cartridge in Figure 55. Here, 259 is a winding roller, and 260 is a driven roller, to which driving force is transmitted from a ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155 described later. The winding roller 259 is rotated by the rotation of the second drive gear 257 configured to be coaxial with the winding roller 259, and the ball polishing cloth 263 is wound up by the frictional force between the winding roller 259 and the driven roller 260.

[0194] In addition, a ball polishing cloth 263 is arranged in the portion of the ball polishing cartridge 251 facing the ball lifting device 22, and a tensioner 267 that functions to press the ball polishing cloth 263 is provided behind the ball polishing cloth 263, and two coil-shaped ball polishing cloth pressing springs 264 that function to press the tensioner 267 and the ball polishing cloth 263 against the game ball are provided behind the tensioner 267. Furthermore, a spring presser 266 that supports the ball polishing cloth pressing spring 264 is provided behind the ball polishing cloth pressing spring 264. In addition, a leaf spring 265 is provided on the upper part of the ball polishing cartridge, and the leaf spring 265 lightly presses and aligns the ball polishing cloth 263, and plays a role in aligning the ball polishing cloth 263 before it is sent to the portion facing the ball lifting device 22.

[0195] The ball polishing cloth 263 taken up by the winding roller 259 and the driven roller 260 is stored inside the ball polishing cartridge 251, but in Figures 55 and 56, the ball polishing cloth 263 inside the ball polishing cartridge after it has been taken up by the winding roller 259 and the driven roller 260 is omitted.

[0196] FIG. 57 is a perspective view showing the state in which the ball polishing cartridge is attached, and 253 is a right side cover, which is composed of a right outer side cover 253a and a right inner side cover 253b, which are integrated together. 258 is a second drive gear case that covers a second drive gear 257, which will be described later. FIG. 58 is a perspective view showing the state in which only the right outer side cover 253a of the right side cover 253 in FIG. 57 has been removed for the purpose of explanation, and 253b is a right inner side cover, and 155 is a ball polishing ribbon feed motor, which is a drive source for winding up the ball polishing cloth 263 in the ball polishing cartridge 251. In addition, the rear end of the right side cover 253 is provided with a hinge 255 that engages with the hinge receiving portion 254, and the right side cover 253 is rotatable around the hinge 255 as a fulcrum. In this embodiment, the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155 is a stepping motor. The specific driving mode of the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155 will be described later.

[0197] Fig. 59 is a top perspective view showing the state in which the right side cover 253 is opened in Fig. 58, and the right side cover 253 can be rotated around the hinge 255 that engages with the hinge receiving portion 254. Between the right outer side cover 253a and the right inner side cover 253b of the right side cover 253, a first drive gear (not shown) is provided that is coaxial with the rotation shaft of the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155 and rotated by the drive of the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155, and in this embodiment, a gear with 16 teeth is used. Similarly, between the right outer side cover 253a and the right inner side cover 253b, a second drive gear that is coaxial with the drive shaft 290 and meshes with the first drive gear is also provided, and in this embodiment, a gear with 32 teeth is used.

[0198] Next, the mounting operation and mounting detection of the ball polishing cartridge 251 will be described. Figure 64 is a perspective view of the ball polishing cartridge mounting part 270, and Figure 65 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the ball polishing cartridge 251 and the ball polishing cartridge mounting part 270. The ball polishing cartridge mounting part 270 is configured so that the ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273 widens around the hinge part as a fulcrum (direction A in Figure 64) when the right side cover 253 is rotated around the hinge 255 as a fulcrum.

[0199] In this state, as shown in Fig. 65, the ball polishing cartridge 251 is inserted from the front into the ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273. During insertion, the right side cover 253 is rotated to widen the ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273, so that the drive shaft 290 and the mounting sensor 291 do not get in the way of the insertion. After inserting the ball polishing cartridge 251, the ball polishing cartridge 251 is rotated in the opposite direction to A in Fig. 64 to return the ball polishing cartridge mounting port 273 to its original width, and then the ball polishing cartridge fixing lever 271 is engaged with the ball polishing cartridge fixing stopper 272, whereby the drive shaft 290 engages with the first gear shaft 261 of the ball polishing cartridge 251, the button 292 of the mounting sensor 291 is pressed in, and it is detected that the ball polishing cartridge 251 has been mounted.

[0200] When the button 292 of the mounting sensor 291 is pressed in while the gaming machine is powered on, the ball polishing cartridge 251 is detected as being properly mounted and no notification is made, but when the button 292 of the mounting sensor 291 is not pressed in despite the power being on, the ball polishing cartridge 251 is not properly mounted and a notification is made. As a mode of notification, the notification can be made by displaying that the ball polishing cartridge 251 is not mounted on a display device (not shown) that is normally provided in the gaming machine and displays effects according to the mode of play. As another mode of notification, the notification can be made by lighting or blinking a decorative lamp for effects or a dedicated lamp that indicates the mounting state of the ball polishing cartridge 251 in a predetermined manner.

[0201] Furthermore, in a sealed ball type gaming machine such as the present embodiment, game play is carried out by circulating the game balls sealed inside the gaming machine, so if play is continued for too long without cleaning the game balls, dirt may accumulate on the game balls, causing them to roll poorly. Therefore, it is preferable to clean the game balls using a ball polishing device somewhere along the game ball circulation path, but it is not impossible to play without a ball polishing device, so even if it is detected that a ball polishing cartridge is not attached, play can continue with just an alert provided by a display device or lamp.

[0202] Furthermore, the playing time of the player is detected by the touch switch 87 provided on the handle and is accumulated and measured by a measuring means (not shown). In this embodiment, the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155 is advanced by one step every time the accumulated measured time by the measuring means reaches one minute. In this embodiment, the diameter of the winding roller 259 is 25 mm, and considering that the circumference is about 78.5 mm (=25×3.14) and the gear ratio between the first drive gear 256 and the second drive gear 257 is 1 / 2, the feed amount of the ball polishing cloth 263 per step is 0.11 mm (=78.5 / 360 / 2).

[0203] In this embodiment, the ball polishing cartridge 251 is pressed and fixed by hooking the lever onto the stopper, but the fixing method is not limited to this method and other fixing methods can also be used. In addition, in this embodiment, a coil-shaped ball polishing cloth pressing spring 264 is used as a means for pressing the ball polishing cloth 263 against the game ball, but the pressing means is not limited to this, and springs of other shapes or other elastic members, etc. can also be used.

[0204] In this embodiment, the ball polishing cartridge 251 is disposed at the bottom of the gaming machine, but the position of the ball polishing cartridge 251 is not limited to this position, and it can be disposed in the middle or upper part of the gaming machine. In that case, the opening provided in the part of the ball lifting device 22 facing the ball polishing cartridge 251 can be changed to a position corresponding to the position of the ball polishing cartridge 251.

[0205] In addition, in this embodiment, as a method of making the direction in which the game balls are lifted by the ball lifting device 22 different from the winding direction of the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251, the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251 is transported in the vertical direction, and the direction in which the game balls are lifted by the ball lifting device 22 at the part opposite the ball polishing cloth 263 is transported in a direction tilted from the vertical direction, but this method is not limited to this, and various methods can be selected, such as making the game ball transport direction of the ball lifting device 22 vertical and making the transport direction of the ball polishing cloth 263 of the ball polishing cartridge 251 a direction tilted from the vertical direction, or making both of them tilted.

[0206] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the installation sensor 291 for the ball polishing cartridge 251 has a pressable button 292, and the installation of the ball polishing cartridge 251 is detected by pressing the button 292 when the ball polishing cartridge 251 is installed. However, the form of the installation sensor 291 is not limited to these sensors, and other types of sensors such as an optical sensor or a magnetic sensor can also be used.

[0207] Furthermore, in this embodiment, even if the installation sensor 291 detects that the ball polishing cartridge 251 is not installed correctly, the game can continue with only an alert, but it is also possible to prevent the game from being played if it detects that the ball polishing cartridge 251 is not installed correctly.

[0208] [Ball insertion operation] Next, we will explain the operation of sealing a predetermined number of game balls into the enclosed-ball game machine when a new enclosed-ball game machine is installed, or when dirty game balls are removed and cleaned. The sealing operation is performed when the enclosed-ball game machine is not powered on. Therefore, the ball lifting device 22 and various sensors in the enclosed-ball game machine are not operating.

[0209] In a sealed-ball game machine, a game ball is shot into a play area by a shooting device, and after rolling around the play area, it either wins a prize in a prize-winning device or is collected from an outlet 42. The collected game ball is transported back to the shooting device, where it is shot back into the play area for play. In other words, a circulation path for the game balls is formed overall. In the enclosing operation, the game balls are introduced into the circulation path, and in this embodiment, the game balls are introduced from the outlet 42. This eliminates the need to provide a separate inlet for enclosing the game balls in the enclosed-ball game machine, and the configuration of the enclosed-ball game machine can be simplified. Also, instead of the outlet 42, the game balls may be introduced from the winning port 41 of the winning device. The game balls that enter the winning port 41 of the winning device are also merged with the game balls that enter the outlet 42 and are then transported to the launching device, so that even if the game balls are introduced from the winning port 41 of the winning device, they can be introduced into the circulation path in the same way as when the game balls are introduced into the outlet 42. In either case, care must be taken when introducing the game balls so that the game balls, hands, and other objects do not hit the nails. When introducing the game balls into the outlet 42, a game ball introduction member 427 described later can be provided to prevent the game balls from hitting the nails when they are inserted. In addition, the outlet 42 and the winning port 41 correspond to game ball collection ports.

[0210] Fig. 71 is a schematic diagram showing a state in which the number of game balls is less than the predetermined number when game balls are enclosed in the enclosed ball game machine. As described above, when the game balls are enclosed, the power is not yet turned on to the enclosed ball game machine, so the ball lifting device 22 is not driven. Therefore, the game balls inserted from the outlet 42 or the winning port 41 enter from the recovery port 202, pass through the irregular ball / magnetic ball discharge unit 20, and then line up with the ball lifting device 22 at the front.

[0211] Fig. 72 shows the state where further game balls are inserted from the state of Fig. 71 and the number of game balls reaches a predetermined number. As shown in Fig. 72, when the predetermined number of game balls are enclosed, the last inserted game ball 233 is located at the discontinuous portion 223 where the magnetic ball discharge path 226 and the normal game ball path branch off, and is configured to block the discontinuous portion 223.

[0212] Fig. 73 shows a state in which more game balls are inserted from the state of Fig. 72, and the number of game balls inserted exceeds the predetermined number. As described above, since the last inserted game ball 233 is configured to block the discontinuous part 223 when the predetermined number of game balls are enclosed, the further inserted game ball becomes a game ball 235 that exceeds the predetermined number, and cannot enter the path of the regular game ball 233 from the discontinuous part 223, but is guided from the magnetic ball discharge path 226 to the magnetic ball discharge chest 227 and collected.

[0213] In this embodiment, the magnetic ball discharge section is configured to block the discontinuous portion 223 through which the regular game ball 233 is guided when a predetermined number of game balls are enclosed, and to collect game balls equal to or greater than the predetermined number in the magnetic ball discharge section; however, the irregularly shaped ball discharge path can also be configured to block the path through which the regular game ball 233 is guided when a predetermined number of game balls are enclosed, and to collect the game balls in the irregularly shaped ball discharge section.

[0214] In order to improve the efficiency of inserting game balls into the outlet 42, a game ball introduction member 427 is provided on the rail portion of the front component 45 located at the lower edge of the outlet 42 (Figs. 74 and 75). When a game ball is placed on the upper surface of the game ball introduction member 427, the game ball is poured toward the outlet 42, so the game ball can be efficiently enclosed. Also, the game ball can be inserted without hitting the nails nearby.

[0215] 74 is a perspective view showing a protruding state of the game ball introduction member 427. The game ball introduction member 427 can be protruded by opening the door frame 3 and sliding it forward.

[0216] Fig. 75 is a perspective view showing a stored state of the game ball introduction member 427. Since the game ball introduction member 427 can be stored by pushing it in from the state of Fig. 74, it does not hinder the game.

[0217] In this embodiment, the game ball introduction member 427 is structured so that it can be advanced and retreated by manually sliding it, but this is not limited to the above method, and various methods can be selected, such as using a spring or other biasing member to allow it to automatically advance and retreat by opening and closing the door frame 3.

[0218] In this embodiment, the upper launch device 12 is attached and fixed to the upper left side of the main body frame 2. Therefore, when fitting the game board 5 into the main frame 2 for installation of a new machine, etc., the game board 5 must be fitted while avoiding the upper launching device 12. However, since the upper launching device 12 is arranged on the same surface where the game board 5 is fitted, it is difficult to handle the game board 5 when fitting it, and there is a possibility that the game board 5 may be accidentally collided with the upper launching device 12 when fitting the game board 5, resulting in damage to the upper launching device 12 and the game board 5. In order to prevent such problems, a positioning guide member 450 that plays a role in positioning the game board 5 when fitting it into the main frame 2 is arranged in the main frame 2.

[0219] Next, the positioning guide member will be described. As shown in FIG. 97, a positioning guide member is disposed on the inner wall of the left side plate of the main body frame 2. This member is a member that performs positioning and guiding when the game board 5 is fitted into the main body frame 2, and is pivotally supported by a hinge so that it can rotate about 90 degrees. In addition, since it is biased by a biasing member such as a spring, when the game board 5 is not fitted into the main body frame 2, the part where the lower end of the left side of the game board 5 and the lower left end of the front face of the game board 5 are aligned faces the front side. In addition, a floor surface is formed for aligning the left end of the lower face of the game board 5. In addition, in order to stabilize the fit-in, a positioning guide member 450 without a floor surface may be disposed above a positioning guide member 450 with a floor surface.

[0220] The game board 5 is fitted into the main body frame 2 by aligning the lower left end of the front surface, the lower end of the side surface, and the lower left end of the game board 5 with the positioning guide member 450, as shown in Fig. 98(A), and positioning is performed. After that, the game board 5 is rotated toward the main body frame 2 side with the positioning guide member as a fulcrum, as shown in Fig. 98(B), and fitted into the main body frame 2 as shown in Fig. 98(C). In this way, the positioning guide member 450 holds the lower left end of the front surface of the game board 5 toward the main body frame 2 side when fitted, so that the positional relationship between the game board 5 and the main body frame 2 is determined constant without any play, and the launch port 38 of the upper launch device 12 and the launch area 40 of the game board 5 are fixed so as to be flush with each other, and no step or the like that would be an obstacle when the game ball travels is generated between the launch port 38 and the game area 8, and stable launch can be performed.

[0221] Furthermore, the game board 5 is positioned in the main body frame 2 by aligning it with a positioning guide member 450 provided on the inner side wall of the main body frame 2. Thereafter, by fitting the game board 5 into the main body frame 2, the positioning guide member 450 rotates in accordance with the fitting operation of the game board 5, and serves as a guide that draws the game board 5 into the fitting position of the main body frame 2. Since the game board 5 can be fitted into the main body frame 2 without accidentally colliding with the upper launching device 12, the possibility of damaging the upper launching device 12 and the game board 5 due to a collision can be reduced as much as possible.

[0222] Next, an overview of the control of the pachinko machine 1 and the settlement machine 4 as an external device arranged adjacent to one side of the pachinko machine will be described. FIG. 76 is a block diagram showing the main parts of an embodiment of a main control board equipped with an RTC, which is arranged in a sealed-ball type pachinko machine. The control of the pachinko machine 1 is roughly divided between a main board group and a peripheral board group, of which the main board group controls the game operation, and the peripheral board group controls the performance operation (liquid crystal display device 1400, lamps, main body frame lamps, door frame lamps, sound). The main board group is composed of a main control board 100 and a ball information control board 110, and the peripheral board group is composed of a peripheral control board 130.

[0223] [Main control board 100] The main control board 100 controls the pachinko game. The main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 described later are connected to enable two-way data communication. As shown in FIG. 76, the main control board 100 that controls the progress of the game includes a main control MPU 101, which is a microprocessor that includes a ROM that stores various processing programs and various commands and a RAM that temporarily stores data, a main control I / O port 102 as an input / output device (I / O device), a main control input circuit 103 to which detection signals from various detection switches are input, a main control solenoid drive circuit 104 for driving various solenoids, and a RAM clear switch 105 for completely erasing information stored in the RAM (hereinafter referred to as the "main control built-in RAM") built into the main control MPU 101.

[0224] In addition to its built-in ROM (hereinafter referred to as "main control built-in ROM") and main control built-in RAM, the main control MPU 101 also has built-in functions such as a watchdog timer that monitors its operation (system) and a function to prevent fraud. The main control MPU 101 also has built-in non-volatile memory, and this non-volatile RAM pre-stores a unique ID code that is assigned a unique code (a code that exists only once in the world) by the manufacturer that manufactured the main control MPU 101 to identify the individual. Once assigned, this ID code is stored in the non-volatile RAM and cannot be rewritten even by an external device. The main control MPU 101 can retrieve the ID code from the non-volatile RAM and refer to it.

[0225] [RTC control unit] Furthermore, the main control MPU 101 of the embodiment includes an external real-time clock (hereinafter, referred to as "RTC") 107 capable of acquiring time information as a time information acquiring means. Although not shown, the RTC 107 includes a register circuit, a clock input circuit, a clock output circuit, an interrupt output circuit, a data input / output circuit, and a control circuit.

[0226] The RTC 107 has a clock and calendar function. The clock and calendar function is a function that keeps time by counting the year, month, day, hour, minute, and second. If necessary, a function that also counts up to the day of the week may be used. The RTC control unit 106 is provided with the RTC 107 and a battery 108 for driving the RTC 107. By providing the battery 108, the RTC 107 does not stop keeping time or performing the calendar function even when the power supply board (not shown) is shut off.

[0227] The battery 108 may be a primary battery (e.g., a button battery) or a rechargeable secondary battery, which eliminates the need for a backup power supply and avoids complicating the configuration of the main control board 100. The battery 108 is also used as a backup power supply for the RAM 109.

[0228] The main control MPU 101 has a function of identifying the year, month, day, hour, minute, and second (calendar information and time information) by including the RTC 107. The main control MPU 101 of the main control board 100 obtains the time information (hour, minute, and second) from the RTC 107 when the gaming machine is powered on.

[0229] Detection signals from an upper start port detection switch 90 which detects game balls that have entered an upper start port (not shown) arranged in the game area 8 of the game board 5, a lower start port detection switch 91 which detects game balls that have entered a lower start port (not shown), and a general prize port detection switch 93 which detects game balls that have entered a general prize port (not shown) are first input to a main control input circuit 103 and then input to the main control MPU 101 via a main control I / O port 102.

[0230] In addition, detection signals from a gate switch 92 which detects game balls that have passed through a gate section (not shown), a general prize opening detection switch 94 which detects game balls that have entered a general prize opening (not shown), and a count switch 98 which detects game balls that have entered a special prize opening (not shown) are first input to a main control input circuit 103 via a panel relay terminal board 140 attached to the game board 5, and then input to a main control MPU 101 via a main control I / O port 102.

[0231] Based on these detection signals, the main control MPU 101 outputs a control signal from the main control I / O port 102 to the main control solenoid drive circuit 104, thereby outputting drive signals to the start port solenoid 96 and the large prize port solenoid 97 via the panel relay terminal board 140, and outputs drive signals from the main control I / O port 102 to the panel relay terminal board 140 and then to the function display board 141 to the upper special pattern display 142, the lower special pattern display 143, the upper special pattern memory display 144, the lower special pattern memory display 145, the normal pattern display 146, the normal pattern memory display 147, the game status display 148, and the round display 149.

[0232] In addition, the main control MPU 101 serially transmits various information related to the game (game information) and various commands related to the winning balls according to the winning to the ball information control board 110, and serially receives various commands related to the state of the pachinko game machine 1 from the ball information control board 110. In addition, the main control MPU 101 transmits various commands related to the control of the game presentation and various commands related to the state of the pachinko machine 1 to the peripheral control board 130. When the peripheral control board 130 receives the control command transmitted from the main control board 100, it controls various presentations (for example, the display of a decorative pattern row for notifying the winning / losing judgment result on the display panel of the liquid crystal display device 1400, the accompanying presentation display, lamps, sounds, the operation of movable decorative accessories for presentation, etc.) according to the received control command.

[0233] [Ball information control board 110] Fig. 77 is a block diagram showing the main parts of the ball information control board 110 that is mainly installed in sealed-ball type pachinko machines. The ball information control board 110 is equipped with a ball information control unit 118 that manages the balls held and performs various controls related to the ball lifting device 22, the launch solenoid 13, the ball feed solenoid 31, the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155, etc. In addition, the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 are connected to enable two-way data communication.

[0234] [Ball information control unit 118] As shown in FIG. 77, the ball information control unit 118 includes a ball information control MPU 111, which is a microprocessor that has built-in ROM for storing various processing programs and various commands, and RAM for temporarily storing data, a ball information control I / O port 112 as an I / O device, an external watchdog timer 116 (hereinafter referred to as the "external WDT 116") for monitoring whether the ball information control MPU 111 is operating normally, a ball lifting motor drive circuit 114 for outputting a drive signal to the ball lifting motor 150 of the ball lifting device 22 that lifts the ball, a ball information control input circuit 113 to which detection signals from various detection switches are input, a CR unit input / output circuit 115 for exchanging various signals with the settlement machine 4, and a ball polishing ribbon feed motor drive circuit 119 for outputting a drive signal to the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155. In addition to its built-in ROM (hereinafter referred to as the "ball information control built-in ROM") and RAM (hereinafter referred to as the "ball information control built-in RAM"), the ball information control MPU 111 also has built-in functions to prevent cheating.

[0235] The ball information control MPU 111 receives various information regarding the game (game information) and various commands regarding winning balls from the main control board 100 in a serial manner via the ball information control I / O port 112, and an operation signal (detection signal) of the RAM clear switch 105 from the main control board 100 is input via the ball information control I / O port 112.

[0236] The detection signals from the door frame opening switch 131, which detects the opening of the door frame 3 relative to the main frame 2, and the main frame opening switch 132, which detects the opening of the main frame 2 relative to the outer frame, are first input to the ball information control input circuit 113 and then input to the ball information control MPU 111 via the ball information control I / O port 112. Furthermore, a touch detection signal (on signal) from the touch switch 87, which detects whether the palm or fingers are touching the ball hitting handle 10, is input to the ball information control board 110 via the handle relay terminal board 123, and the touch detection signal is further input to the ball information control MPU 111 via the ball information control I / O port 112.

[0237] The ball information control MPU 111 is connected to the launch solenoid 13 through the launch solenoid drive circuit 120 and to the ball feed solenoid 31 through the ball feed solenoid drive circuit 122, and the launch solenoid 13 and the ball feed solenoid 31 are driven according to the control output from the ball information control MPU 111. Detection signals from the launch waiting ball detection switches 26, 70, the launch ball confirmation switch 36, the collected ball detection switch 203, the ball path full tank detection switch 206, the ball proper amount detection switch 207, the lifting inlet switch 156 for detecting the presence or absence of game balls to be supplied to the ball lifting device 22, the lifting motor sensor (photo sensor) 157 for detecting the number of revolutions of the ball lifting motor 150, and the cassette detection switch 158 for detecting that a ball polishing cartridge containing a ball polishing cloth ribbon is attached are input to the ball information control input circuit 113 via the sensor relay board 124 and input to the ball information control MPU 111 via the ball information control I / O port 112. The ball information control MPU 111 outputs drive signals for driving the ball lifting motor 150, the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155, the launch solenoid 13, and the ball feed solenoid 31 to each drive element via the ball information control I / O port 112.

[0238] The ball information control MPU 111 is also connected to a touch panel unit 14 so that it can display information based on control output from the ball information control I / O port 112. The ball information control board 110 relays the electrical connection between the main control board 100 and the external terminal board 133, as well as the electrical connection between the door frame opening switch 131 and the main frame opening switch 132 and the external terminal board 133. The external terminal board 133 is electrically connected to a hall computer installed in the game center (hall).

[0239] The detection signals from the touch switch 87, which detects whether the palm or fingers are touching the ball-hitting handle 10, and the launch stop switch 86, which detects whether the player wants to forcibly stop shooting the game ball, are first input to the ball information control input circuit 113 via the handle relay terminal board 123. In addition, when the settlement machine 4 and the ball information control board 110 are electrically connected, the detection signals are input to the CR unit input / output circuit 115 as a CR connection signal.

[0240] In addition, DC power supplies of +24V, +12V, and +5.2V are supplied from a power supply board (not shown) to the ball information control board 110. In addition, DC power supplies of +24V, +12V, and +5.2V are supplied to the main control board 100 via the ball information control board 110.

[0241] The power failure monitoring circuit 117 compares and monitors the voltage V1 based on +24V with the reference voltage, and the voltage V2 based on +12V with the reference voltage, and when it detects a sign of a power failure or momentary power failure, that is, when the voltage V1 or V2 becomes smaller than the reference voltage, it outputs a power failure warning signal as a power failure warning. The power failure warning signal output from the power failure monitoring circuit 117 is supplied to the ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110, and is also supplied to the main control MPU 101. Although not shown, the power failure warning signal is also input to the peripheral control board 130.

[0242] [Electrical connection between the game board 5 and the main body frame 2] The electrical connection of the game board 5 to the main frame 2 will be described with reference to FIG. 99. FIG. 99 is a block diagram showing the game board and the main frame connected using a drawer connector. The mechanical and electrical connection between the game board 5 and the main frame 2 is made by connection with the drawer connector. The game board 5 is provided with a game board side main drawer connector and a game board side auxiliary drawer connector, and the main frame 2 is provided with a main drawer connector and a main frame side auxiliary drawer connector. By fitting the game board 5 into the main frame 2, the game board side main drawer connector and the main frame side main drawer connector, and the game board side auxiliary drawer connector and the main frame side auxiliary drawer connector are connected, and the game board 5 and the main frame 2 are mechanically connected and electrically connected at the same time. This enables electrical communication between the game board 5 and the main frame 2.

[0243] [Authentication of the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110] When electrical communication is enabled between the game board 5 and the main frame 2 in the manner described above, mutual authentication between the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 is performed when the power is turned on. The authentication function of the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0244] It has been explained above that an ID code is pre-stored in the main control MPU 101 in the main control board 100, but the above-mentioned ID code is also pre-stored in the ball information control MPU 111 in the ball information control board 110. Hereinafter, the ID code pre-stored in the main control MPU 101 will be referred to as the first MPU identification number, and the ID code pre-stored in the ball information control MPU 111 will be referred to as the second MPU identification number.

[0245] In this embodiment, the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 are capable of two-way data communication, and by performing authentication processing between the boards when the power is turned on, it is possible to determine whether each MPU is genuine or not. This will be described in detail below.

[0246] The main control board 100 comprises at least a main control MPU 101, which comprises a first MPU identification number storage unit 101a in which a pre-stored first MPU identification number is stored, a first authentication unit 162 which performs authentication processing to determine whether the second MPU identification number is appropriate, and a main encryption communication unit 160 which encrypts information to be sent to the ball information control MPU 111 and decrypts information sent from the ball information control MPU 111, and further comprises a second MPU identification number storage unit 161 which stores the second MPU identification number.

[0247] In addition, the ball information control board 110 is equipped with at least a ball information control MPU 111, which is equipped with a second MPU identification number storage unit 111a in which a pre-stored second MPU identification number is stored, a second authentication unit 167 which performs authentication processing to determine whether the first MPU identification number is appropriate, and a ball information encryption communication unit 165 which encrypts information to be transmitted to the main control MPU 101 and decrypts information transmitted from the main control MPU 101, and further the second authentication unit 167 is equipped with a first MPU identification number storage unit 166 which stores the first MPU identification number.

[0248] When the gaming machine is powered on, through two-way communication between the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110, the first MPU identification number is encrypted by the main encryption communication unit 160 from the first MPU identification number storage unit 101a and then transmitted to the ball information encryption communication unit 165, and the second MPU identification number is encrypted by the ball information encryption communication unit 165 from the ball information control MPU 111 and then transmitted to the main encryption communication unit 160.

[0249] Next, the main control MPU 101 decrypts the second MPU identification number transmitted from the ball information encryption communication unit 165 from the ball information control MPU 111 using the main encryption communication unit 160, and then stores it in the second MPU identification number storage unit 161 in the first authentication unit 162, and the ball information control MPU 111 decrypts the first MPU identification number transmitted from the main control MPU 101 using the ball information encryption communication unit 165, and then stores it in the first MPU identification number storage unit 166 in the second authentication unit 167.

[0250] Next, the main control MPU 101 performs authentication processing in the first authentication unit 162 based on the second MPU identification number stored in the second MPU identification number storage unit 161, and determines whether the second MPU identification number is valid.

[0251] On the other hand, the ball information control MPU 111 performs authentication processing in the second authentication unit 167 based on the first MPU identification number stored in the first MPU identification number storage unit 166, and determines whether the first MPU identification number is appropriate.

[0252] If the main control MPU 101 and the ball control MPU 111 are determined to be appropriate based on the results of authentication by the first authentication unit 162 and the second authentication unit 167, respectively, the start of the main control side power-on processing in Figure 79 and the ball information control side power-on processing in Figure 82 is permitted and game play can be started; on the other hand, if they are determined to be inappropriate, the start of the main control side power-on processing and the ball information control side power-on processing is not permitted and game play becomes impossible.

[0253] These configurations allow mutual authentication processing to be performed between the main control MPU 101 and the ball information control MPU 111, and by preventing play from being played if such authentication processing is not performed properly, it is possible to effectively deter fraudulent activities such as replacing the main control MPU 101 or ball information control MPU 111 with counterfeit chips.

[0254] As described above, if the mutual authentication results are determined to be proper in the mutual authentication process performed between the main control MPU 101 and the ball information control MPU 111, the start of the main control side power-on process in Fig. 79 and the ball information control side power-on process in Fig. 82 is permitted. In other words, on the condition that the mutual authentication results are determined to be proper in the mutual authentication process performed between the main control MPU 101 and the ball information control MPU 111, it is guaranteed that the game board 5 has been properly attached to the main body frame 2, and the existence of the game board 5 is guaranteed.

[0255] [Combined authentication of the main frame and game board] Next, a manufacturer authentication process execution means for the combination of the main body frame 2 and the game board 5 will be described with reference to Figs. When delivering or replacing gaming machines such as pachinko and pachislot to an amusement parlor (amusement hall), an application and permission must be submitted each time, but when submitting the application, it is mandatory to submit the gaming board 5 and the frame body including the main body frame 2 and door frame 3 as a set of a complete gaming machine. Therefore, even if the main body frame is common to all manufacturers, the combination of the main body frame and the gaming board must be the combination for which an application has been submitted.

[0256] In addition, even if the game board 5, the main frame 2, and the door frame 3 are applied for as a set of game machines, the main frame in this embodiment has a structure common to all manufacturers, so even if the game board is fitted into a main frame of a different combination, it is difficult to determine whether the combination is incorrect just by appearance, and it may be difficult to grasp and manage which manufacturer's game board is really fitted into the main frame in the correct position. This embodiment presents a specific solution for solving the above problem.

[0257] First, a specific method for authenticating whether or not the combination of the game board 5 and the frame body including the main frame 2 and the door frame 3 is the requested combination will be described.

[0258] In addition to the first MPU identification number and second MPU identification number used to authenticate whether an MPU is genuine or not, as mentioned above, the main control MPU 101 in the main control board 100 has game board manufacturer identification information required to recognize the game board's manufacturer information, model number, etc. stored in advance, and the ball information control MPU 111 in the ball information control board 110 has frame manufacturer identification information stored in advance.

[0259] Each game board 5 has a different game board manufacturer identification information stored therein, and each can be recognized separately based on the difference in the character string of the identification information. Also, each main frame 2 has a different frame manufacturer identification information stored therein, and each can be recognized separately based on the difference in the character string of the identification information.

[0260] Next, the interrelationships between the terms in the present invention and this embodiment will be presented. The main control board 100 corresponds to the first control board, the ball information control board 110 corresponds to the second control board, the main control MPU 101 corresponds to the first MPU, and the ball information control MPU 111 corresponds to the second MPU.

[0261] In this embodiment, the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 are capable of two-way data communication, and after the game board 5 is fitted into the main body frame 2, a combination authentication process is performed between the two boards when the power is turned on, making it possible to determine whether the game board and the main body frame are a regular combination. This will be described in detail below.

[0262] As shown in FIG. 100, the main control board 100 comprises at least a main control MPU 101, which comprises a game board manufacturer identification information storage unit 4101 in which pre-stored game board manufacturer identification information is stored, a first authentication unit 162 which performs authentication processing to determine whether the frame manufacturer identification information is appropriate, and a main encryption communication unit 160 which encrypts information to be sent to the ball information control MPU 111 and decrypts information sent from the ball information control MPU 111, and further comprises a frame manufacturer identification information storage unit 4112 which stores frame maker identification information.

[0263] The ball information control board 110 comprises at least a ball information control MPU 111, which comprises a frame manufacturer identification information storage unit 4112 in which pre-stored frame manufacturer identification information is stored, a second authentication unit 167 which performs authentication processing to determine whether the game board manufacturer identification information is appropriate, and a ball information encryption communication unit 165 which encrypts information to be sent to the main control MPU 101 and decrypts information sent from the main control MPU 101, and the second authentication unit 167 further comprises a game board manufacturer identification information storage unit 4101 which stores the game board manufacturer identification information.

[0264] When the game board 5 is fitted into the main frame 2 and the game machine is powered on, two-way communication is performed between the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110, and the game board manufacturer identification information is encrypted by the main encryption communication unit 160 from the game board manufacturer identification information storage unit 4101 and then transmitted to the ball information encryption communication unit 165, and the frame manufacturer identification information is encrypted by the ball information encryption communication unit 165 from the frame manufacturer identification information storage unit 4112 and then transmitted to the main encryption communication unit 160.

[0265] Next, the main control MPU 101 decrypts the frame maker identification information transmitted from the ball information encryption communication unit 165 from the ball information control MPU 111 using the main encryption communication unit 160, and then stores it in the frame maker identification information storage unit 4112 in the first authentication unit 162, and the ball information control MPU 111 decrypts the game board manufacturer identification information transmitted from the main control MPU 101 using the ball information encryption communication unit 165, and then stores it in the game board manufacturer identification information storage unit 4101 in the second authentication unit 167.

[0266] Thereafter, main control MPU 101 performs authentication processing in first authentication unit 162 based on the frame maker identification information stored in frame maker identification information storage unit 4112, and determines whether the frame maker identification information is proper.

[0267] Then, the ball information control MPU 111 performs authentication processing in the second authentication unit 167 based on the game board manufacturer identification information stored in the game board manufacturer identification information storage unit 4101, and determines whether the game board manufacturer identification information is appropriate.

[0268] If it is determined based on the results of authentication by the first authentication unit 162 and the second authentication unit 167 that the game board 5 and the main frame 2 are a proper combination at the time of application, it becomes possible to start playing, and if it is determined that the combination is not proper, it becomes impossible to start playing.

[0269] These configurations allow authentication processing to be performed between the main control MPU 101 and the ball information control MPU 111, and if such authentication processing is not performed properly, play will not be allowed. This effectively prevents the game board from being mistakenly fitted into a frame different from the one applied for when installed in the game hall, which would result in play being started with a combination different from the set of gaming machines applied for.

[0270] Furthermore, the results of the authentication process performed between the main control MPU 101 and the ball information control MPU 111 are transmitted via the external terminal board 133 to the hall computer installed in the game hall. Therefore, if the combination of the game board manufacturer identification information and the frame manufacturer identification information is determined to be abnormal, an error signal is output from the external terminal board 133 to the hall computer, making it possible to accurately grasp the abnormality in the combination of the game board 5, main frame 2, and door frame 3.

[0271] [Information output from conventional external terminal board] Next, how information was output and managed from the external terminal board 133 to the hall computer in the past will be explained with reference to FIG. 101. As the game progresses, various signals are sent from the ball information control board 110 to the external terminal board 133, and the signals are sent to the hall computer installed in the game hall, thereby managing all the game machines installed in the game hall. Specifically, in addition to the door frame opening signal and the main frame opening signal, a prize ball number information output signal indicating the number of prize balls for the player, a jackpot information output signal such as a 15-round jackpot information output signal and a 2-round jackpot information output signal from the main control board 100 via the ball information control board 110, and game information signals such as a probability fluctuation information output signal, a special pattern display information output signal, a normal pattern display information output signal, a time reduction information output signal, and a starting hole winning information output signal are output to the external terminal board 133.

[0272] As explained above, the information output from the ball information control board 110 is configured to be a signal such as 15-round jackpot information, which is transmitted to the external terminal board 133 and then output from the external terminal board 133 to the hall computer, but the signal is transmitted after the game processing has started.

[0273] In the authentication process of this embodiment, the result of the authentication process is output from the external terminal board 133 to the hall computer when the power is turned on after the game board is fitted into the main frame (see step S20 in FIG. 79). Therefore, the output line that outputs to the external terminal board 133 during play can be used as an output line that outputs the result of the authentication process.

[0274] Conventionally, the ball information control board 110 and the external terminal board 133 are directly connected, and after the game board 5 is fitted into the main frame 2, various information such as a code identifying the manufacturer of the game machine, a code identifying the model name of the game machine, and MPU-specific information is output to the external terminal board after a predetermined time (e.g., 10 seconds) has elapsed since the power was turned on, and then output from the external terminal board to the hall computer, with the various information transmitted from the ball information control board 110 being directly output to the external terminal board.

[0275] On the other hand, in this embodiment, in addition to the code identifying the manufacturer of the gaming machine, the code identifying the model name of the gaming machine, and the MPU-specific information, the authentication information related to the authentication described above is output to the hall computer via the external terminal board 133 as an authentication information output signal described later.

[0276] [Information output from the external terminal board in this embodiment] In this embodiment, a pulse width change circuit C1 is provided between the ball information control board 110 and the external terminal board 133, which has a built-in change circuit switch that selects either the 15-round jackpot information output signal or the authentication information output signal that transmits MPU-specific information and authentication results, etc. (Fig. 102). This pulse width change circuit C1 has a two-circuit change circuit switch with a normally open contact and a normally closed contact inside, and the normally open contact and the normally closed contact are switched and controlled each time the pulse width change circuit C1 receives the switching control signal S1 transmitted from the ball information control board 110, and operates to select either the 15-round jackpot information output signal or the authentication information output signal.

[0277] The 15-round jackpot information output signal sent from the ball information control board 110 is output through LINE 1. During play, it is controlled by the switching control signal S1 from the ball information control board 110 so that it is connected to a connection point, which is a contact point with LINE 2 described later, through the normally closed contact of the pulse width change circuit C1, and then output to the external terminal board 133 through LINE 3.

[0278] Also, the authentication information output signal from the ball information control board 110 is output through LINE2. When the power is turned on to the gaming machine and the authentication process in the power-on process on the main control side and the power-on process on the ball information control side is started, each contact is switched by the switching control signal S1 from the ball information control board 110, the normally closed contact is opened, and the normally open contact is closed. Then, the pulse width of the authentication information output signal including the MPU specific information and the authentication result is changed by the memory PMC provided in the pulse width change circuit C1 through LINE2 (described later). After that, it is output from LINE3 connected to the connection point, which is the contact point of LINE1 and LINE2, to the external terminal board 133, and then output to the hall computer.

[0279] Before being output to the external terminal board 133, the MPU-specific information and authentication signal are converted by the memory PMC in the pulse width conversion circuit C1 into a pulse with a width of, for example, 125 ms (milliseconds) per bit (equivalent to 8 bps), and then output after being widened to a pulse width that the hall computer can reliably receive. When sending this information by serial transmission, for example, in a form in which one frame is composed of a total of 10 bits, including one start bit, eight data bits, and one stop bit, if four bytes are used for the MPU-specific information, game board manufacturer identification information, and frame manufacturer identification information, and one byte is used for the authentication result, a total of five bytes of data and one start bit and one stop bit are added to each byte data, so a signal of 50 bits is sent. If the pulse width of one bit is 125 ms, it takes 125 ms x 50 bits = 6.25 seconds to send all the bits.

[0280] With the configuration described above, it is possible to switch between a normally open contact and a normally closed contact to output a signal for outputting an authentication information output signal and a signal for outputting jackpot information, making it possible to output without adding a dedicated terminal to the external terminal board 133.

[0281] In this embodiment, the terminal that transmits the 15-round jackpot information output signal during the game is used as a terminal that outputs the authentication information output signal only when the power is turned on, but this is just one embodiment. During the power-on process, output terminals other than the 15-round jackpot information output signal do not output signals, so it is possible to select and use various terminals.

[0282] [Payment machine 4] Figure 78 is a block diagram showing each element mainly connected to the settlement machine 4. The settlement machine 4 and the ball information control board 110 are connected to enable two-way data communication. The control unit of the settlement machine 4 includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, an input / output interface, a communication interface, etc., which are not shown.

[0283] The settlement machine 4 is connected to the ball lending button and settlement button arranged on the touch panel unit 14 of the sealed-ball type gaming machine 1 so that their operation input signals can be inputted, for example, through an interface. Also, the remaining number display unit and the operable notification lamp arranged on the touch panel unit 14 of the sealed-ball type pachinko machine 1 are connected so that they can be displayed by the control output from the settlement machine 4. Also, the settlement machine 4 is provided with a card processing machine 402 at the back of the card insertion slot in FIG. 1.

[0284] [Card 403] The card 403 used in the embodiment is, for example, a magnetic card or an IC card, and is issued by a card issuing machine (not shown) and provided to the player when the player pays a predetermined amount. Figure 78 shows the data structure stored in the card 403.

[0285] The card 403 is set with an ID storage section 404 in which an ID number (hereinafter simply referred to as ID) is stored as identification information individually given to the card 403, a remaining number storage section 305 in which a remaining number of points is stored as valuable information equivalent to the amount paid when purchasing the card 403, and a number of balls storage section 406 in which the number of balls (number of balls in the game machine) acquired by the player as a result of playing the game is stored. When the card 403 is issued, the ID storage section 404 stores an ID, and the remaining number of points equivalent to the amount paid when purchasing the card 403 is stored in the remaining number storage section 405 (for example, if the amount paid is 5000 yen, the remaining number is "5000"), but the number of balls storage section 406 stores "0" as the initial value of the number of balls.

[0286] The card processing machine 402 is a conventionally well-known device, and includes a card sensor for detecting the card 403, a card reader / writer for reading data stored in the card 403 and writing data to the card 403, and a card transport means for feeding the card 403 to a data reading / writing position and ejecting the card 403 into a card insertion slot. When the card 403 is inserted into the card insertion slot, the card processing machine 402 feeds the card 403 to a predetermined data reading / writing position, and reads the stored data, i.e., the ID, remaining number of points, and number of balls held, using the card reader / writer, and outputs it to the settlement machine 4. In response to a write command from the settlement machine 4, the ID, remaining number of points, and number of balls held are written (stored) in each of the above-mentioned memories.

[0287] The settlement machine 4 reads the ID, remaining number of points, and number of balls from the card 403 through the card processing machine 402 and stores them in RAM.

[0288] [Ball rental by card 403] When the settlement machine 4 reads the data of the card 403, it displays the remaining number stored in the RAM on the remaining number display unit. When the card 403 can be used, the settlement machine 4 lends balls in response to the operation of the ball lending button. For example, 125 balls (each ball costs 4 yen) are lent per operation of the ball lending button. In addition, in the case of ball lending, if there are balls in possession and the number of balls in possession is less than 125, the total number of balls in possession is used as the number of lent balls. The settlement machine 4 transmits the number of lent balls to the ball information control board 110. In addition, the settlement machine 4 obtains the consideration for the ball lending by multiplying the set ball price by the number of lent balls, and subtracts the obtained consideration (the consideration corresponding to the ball lending as the remaining number) from the current remaining number. In addition, if there are balls in possession and ball lending is performed from the number of lent balls, the number of lent balls is subtracted from the current number of lent balls. The settlement machine 4 displays this result on the remaining number display unit. Also, the remaining points are written to the remaining points storage unit 405 of the card 403 .

[0289] [Start playing] When the ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110 receives the number of loaned balls transmitted from the settlement machine 4, it adds the number of loaned balls to the number of balls held by the gaming machine, and displays the addition result on the touch panel unit 14. The upper launching device 12 is made ready for launching, and the game becomes ready for play.

[0290] [During gameplay] When the player operates the ball-hitting handle 10, the ball-hitting device 29 is activated, and the game ball at the ball-hitting position is shot into the game area 8 by the launching hammer 30. This is detected as the game ball is shot into the game area 8 one by one based on the ball detection by the shot ball confirmation switch 36. Then, in response to the detection of the shooting of each game ball, the ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110 sequentially subtracts "1" from the game machine's held ball count data stored in the game machine's held ball count storage area, and displays the held ball count on the touch panel unit 14.

[0291] On the other hand, the main control MPU 101 of the main control board 100 performs processing related to the game based on detection signals from the gate switch 92 arranged at the gate (not shown) that allows the game ball to enter and pass through on the game board 5 surface, the general prize opening detection switches 93, 94 arranged for the normal prize opening (not shown), the count switch 98 arranged for the large prize opening (not shown), and the upper and lower start opening detection switches 90, 91 arranged for the start opening (not shown) serving as the upper start opening, and outputs commands and signals as the result of the processing to the ball information control board 110, the peripheral control board 130, the upper and lower special pattern displays 142, 143, the upper and lower special pattern memory displays 144, 145, the normal pattern display 146, the normal pattern memory display 147, the start opening solenoid 96, the large prize opening solenoid 97, etc.

[0292] When a game ball launched by the upper launching device 12 enters one of the various winning ports (start winning port, large winning port, etc.) within the game area 8, the game ball is detected by various winning detection switches (upper start opening detection switch 90, lower start opening detection switch 91, general winning port detection switch 93, general winning port detection switch 94, count switch 98) provided for each winning port.

[0293] The main control MPU 101 outputs a prize ball command indicating the number of prize balls set according to the winning port into which the game ball has entered to the ball information control board 110 as necessary in response to the detection signals of the detection switches provided for each winning port (which include general winning port detection switches 93, 94, count switch 98, and upper and lower start port detection switches 90, 91).

[0294] Furthermore, the main control MPU 101 periodically outputs to the peripheral control board 130 a game status signal (status) indicating the type of the current game status. The game state, for example, in the case of a first type pachinko game machine in which a lottery is held for a win or a loss based on the start port and a winning entry into the start port, a variable display of a special pattern is performed based on the lottery result, and the pattern is stopped, and if the lottery result is a win, the game state transitions to a special game state (jackpot game state), and includes a normal game state (where the probability of winning by lottery is normal and the time for the variable display of the normal pattern is normal), a time-saving game state (where the time for the variable display of the normal pattern is shorter than normal, information output signal during time-saving), a jackpot game state (15-round jackpot information output signal, or 2-round jackpot information output signal), a high probability game state (where the probability of winning by lottery is higher than normal, information output signal during probability fluctuation), special pattern fluctuation (special pattern display information output signal), a state in which there is a hold based on winning the start port (start port winning information output signal), and the like.

[0295] In addition, the peripheral control board 130 outputs control signals to the liquid crystal display device 1400, the prop decoration board (not shown), the board decoration board (not shown), and the frame decoration board (not shown) based on commands output from the main control board 100, thereby controlling the lighting and display of various decorative LEDs, controlling the sounds (voice, sound, sound effects, etc.) output from the speaker (not shown), and controlling the patterns displayed on the liquid crystal display device 1400.

[0296] The ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110 outputs signals to the launch solenoid 13, the ball feeding solenoid 31, the ball lifting motor 150, the ball polishing ribbon feeding motor 155, the number of balls held display on the touch panel unit 14, and the settlement machine 4 based on various input signals.

[0297] The ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110 receives the game status signal and the winning ball command output from the main control board 100.

[0298] In response to receiving such a prize ball command, the ball information control MPU 111 adds the value of the number of prize balls previously set for each winning slot to the data on the number of balls held by the gaming machine stored in the gaming machine ball number memory area, and displays this on the touch panel unit 14.

[0299] [End of game, settlement] Thereafter, when the player operates the settlement button to end the game, the settlement machine 4 transmits a game end command to the ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110.

[0300] In response to the operation of the settlement button, the settlement machine 4 transmits a game end command to the ball information control MPU 111, so that the ball information control MPU 111 receives the game end command sent from the settlement machine 4, and the ball information control MPU 111 transmits "End OK" to the settlement machine 4. Next, the ball information control MPU 111 stops the launch solenoid 13 and the ball sending solenoid 31 to stop the game. The current number of balls held by the gaming machine stored in the game machine ball number storage area is transmitted to the settlement machine 4.

[0301] Then, when the processing of the settlement machine 4 corresponding to the number of balls held by the gaming machine transmitted from the ball information control MPU 111 is completed, the settlement machine 4 transmits a processing end signal, so that the ball information control MPU 111 receives the processing end signal, clears the gaming machine's number of balls held memory area in the RAM to 0, and ends the processing.

[0302] On the other hand, after the settlement machine 4 receives "end possible" as a response to the game end command regarding the end state, the ball information control MPU 111 transmits the number of balls held by the game machine to the settlement machine 4. When the settlement machine 4 receives the number of balls held by the game machine, it adds the received number of balls held by the game machine to the number of balls held by the settlement machine stored in the RAM when the card is inserted, and stores the sum as the number of balls held by the settlement machine. As a result, all the number of balls held as the game result of the player's game is stored as the number of balls held by the settlement machine. Then, it transmits a processing end to the ball information control MPU 111, writes the number of balls held by the settlement machine to the number of balls held memory unit 406 of the card 403, ejects the card 403 from the card insertion port, and ends the processing. As a result, the card 403 with the number of balls held by the game machine added and rewritten as the game result is returned to the player.

[0303] [Various control processes on the main control board] First, various control processes performed by the main control board 100 shown in Fig. 76 in accordance with the progress of play on the pachinko machine 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 79 to Fig. 81. Fig. 79 is a flow chart showing the main control side power-on process performed by the main control MPU 101 of the main control board 100, Fig. 80 is a flow chart showing the continuation of the main control side power-on process of Fig. 79, and Fig. 81 is a flow chart showing the main control side timer interrupt process performed by the main control MPU 101.

[0304] [Processing when main control side power is turned on] When the power is turned on to the pachinko machine 1, the main control MPU 101 (hereinafter, simply referred to as the main control MPU) of the main control board 100 performs the main control side power-on processing as shown in Fig. 79 and Fig. 80. When this main control side power-on processing starts, the main control MPU sets a stack pointer (step S10). The stack pointer indicates, for example, an address stored in the stack to temporarily store the contents of a memory element (register) in use, or an address stored in the stack to temporarily store the return address of this routine when the subroutine is terminated and the routine is returned to, and the stack pointer advances each time the stack is stacked. In step S10, the stack pointer is set to an initial address, and the contents of the register, the return address, etc. are stacked in the stack from this initial address. Then, the stack pointer returns to the initial address by reading the stack from the last stacked stack to the first stacked stack in order.

[0305] Following step S10, wait timer process 1 is performed (step S12), and it is determined whether a power outage warning signal has been input (step S14). The voltage does not rise immediately from when the power is turned on until it reaches the specified voltage. On the other hand, when a power outage or momentary power outage (a phenomenon in which the power supply is suddenly stopped) occurs, the voltage drops and, when it becomes smaller than the power outage warning voltage, a power outage warning signal is output from the power outage monitoring circuit 117 of the ball information control board 110 as a power outage warning and input to the main control MPU. Similarly, when the voltage becomes smaller than the power outage warning voltage from when the power is turned on until it reaches the specified voltage, a power outage warning signal is input from the power outage monitoring circuit 117 of the ball information control board 110.

[0306] Therefore, the wait timer process 1 in step S12 is a process for waiting until the voltage becomes greater than the power failure warning voltage and stabilizes after power is turned on, and in this embodiment, the waiting time (wait timer) is set to 200 milliseconds (ms). The judgment in step S14 is based on the power failure warning signal from the power failure monitoring circuit 117 of the ball information control board 110. After the power is turned on, when the voltage becomes greater than the power failure warning voltage and stabilizes, the power failure warning signal from the power failure monitoring circuit 117 is no longer output, and the main control MPU proceeds to step S16.

[0307] When the process proceeds to step S16, the main control MPU judges whether or not the RAM clear switch 105 (FIG. 76) has been operated (step S16). This judgment is made based on whether or not the RAM clear switch 105 of the main control board 100 has been operated and its operation signal (detection signal) has been input to the main control MPU. When the detection signal has been input, it is judged that the RAM clear switch 105 has been operated, whereas when the detection signal has not been input, it is judged that the RAM clear switch 105 has not been operated.

[0308] If it is determined in step S16 that the RAM clear switch 105 has been operated, the RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG is set to a value of 1 (step S18) and the process proceeds to step S30. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S16 that the RAM clear switch 105 has not been operated, the RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG is set to a value of 0 (step S19) and the process proceeds to step S20.

[0309] This RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG is a flag indicating whether or not to erase game information related to the game such as probability fluctuations and unpaid prize balls stored in the RAM built into the main control MPU 101 (hereinafter referred to as the "main control built-in RAM"), and is set to a value of 1 when the game information is erased, and to a value of 0 when the game information is not erased. The value of the RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG set in steps S18 and S19 is stored in a general-purpose storage element (general-purpose register) of the main control MPU.

[0310] When the process proceeds to step S20, a combination authentication process is executed to determine whether or not the combination of the main control MPU 101 and the ball information control MPU 111 is appropriate. The frame maker identification information output from the ball information control board is stored in the frame maker identification information storage unit 4112 of the main control MPU 101, and it is authenticated whether or not appropriate frame maker identification information has been output. If the authentication is performed appropriately, the process proceeds to step S30, whereas if it is determined to be inappropriate, an abnormality is notified using a speaker, liquid crystal display device, etc.

[0311] When the main control MPU proceeds to step S30, it performs wait timer process 2 (step S30). In this wait timer process 2, the system that controls drawing of the liquid crystal display device (not shown) by the liquid crystal control unit of the peripheral control board 130 is waiting to start (boot). In this embodiment, the time until booting (boot timer) is set to 2 seconds (s).

[0312] Following step S30, it is determined whether the RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG is equal to 0 (step S32). As described above, the RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG is set to 1 when the game information is to be erased, and is set to 0 when the game information is not to be erased. If it is determined in step S32 that the RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG is equal to 0, that is, when the game information is not to be erased, a checksum is calculated (step S34). This checksum is calculated by treating the game information stored in the main control built-in RAM as a numerical value.

[0313] Following step S34, it is determined whether the calculated checksum value (sum value) matches the checksum value (sum value) stored in the main control side power-off processing (power-off) described later (step S36). If they match, it is determined whether the backup flag BK-FLG is 1 (step S38). This backup flag BK-FLG is a flag indicating whether backup information such as game information, the checksum value (sum value), and the value of the backup flag BK-FLG has been stored and held in the main control built-in RAM in the main control side power-off processing described later, and is set to 1 when the main control side power-off processing has been normally completed, and to 0 when the main control side power-off processing has not been normally completed.

[0314] When the backup flag BK-FLG is set to a value of 1 in step S38, that is, when the main control side power cut processing has been normally completed, the working area of ​​the main control built-in RAM is set as power recovery (step S40). This setting involves setting the backup flag BK-FLG to a value of 0, reading power recovery information from the ROM built into the main control MPU (hereinafter referred to as the "main control built-in ROM"), and setting this power recovery information in the working area of ​​the main control built-in RAM. Note that "power recovery" includes not only the state in which the power is turned on after being cut off, but also the state in which power is restored after a power outage or momentary power outage, and the state in which high frequency irradiation is detected, reset, and then restored.

[0315] Following step S40, a power-on command creation process is performed (step S42). In this power-on command creation process, game information is read from the backup information, and various commands corresponding to this game information are stored in a predetermined storage area of ​​the main control built-in RAM.

[0316] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S32 that the RAM clear notification flag RCL-FLG is not 0 (is 1), that is, when the game information is to be erased, or if the checksum values ​​(sum values) do not match in step S36, or if it is determined in step S38 that the backup flag BK-FLG is not 1 (is 0), that is, when the main control side power cut processing has not ended normally, the entire area of ​​the main control built-in RAM is cleared (step S44). Specifically, this is done by writing the value 0 to the main control built-in RAM (note that a predetermined value may be read from the main control built-in ROM as the initial value and set). In addition, when the RAM clear switch 105 is operated to erase game information, when the sum values ​​do not match, or when the main control side power outage processing has not been completed normally, a unique ID code pre-stored in the non-volatile RAM of the main control MPU is retrieved, and an initial value derivation process is executed to always derive the same fixed value from the fixed numerical range of the counter that updates the random number for determining a jackpot, and this fixed value is set as the initial value.

[0317] Following step S44, a work area of ​​the main control built-in RAM is set as an initial setting (step S46). This setting involves reading initial information from the main control built-in ROM and setting this initial information in the work area of ​​the main control built-in RAM.

[0318] Following step S46, a RAM clear notification and test command creation process is performed (step S48). In this RAM clear notification and test command creation process, a power-on command classified as a power-on command for clearing the main control built-in RAM and notifying that the initial settings have been performed is created, and test commands classified as test-related commands for performing various inspections of the peripheral control board 130 are created and stored as transmission information in the transmission information storage area of ​​the main control built-in RAM.

[0319] Following step S42 or step S48, the interrupt initialization is performed (step S50). This setting is for setting the interrupt period when the main control side timer interrupt process described later is performed. In this embodiment, it is set to 4 ms.

[0320] Following step S50, an interrupt permission setting is performed (step S52). This setting causes the main control side timer interrupt process to be repeated at the interrupt period set in step S50, that is, every 4 ms. The process from step S10 to step S52 is referred to as "main control side power-on process."

[0321] Following step S52, a value A is set in the watchdog timer clear register WCL (step S54). The watchdog timer is cleared by sequentially setting the values ​​A, B and C in this watchdog timer clear register WCL.

[0322] Following step S54, it is determined whether or not a power failure warning signal has been input (step S56). As described above, when the power supply of the pachinko game machine 1 is cut off, or when a power failure or momentary interruption occurs, if the voltage becomes equal to or lower than the power failure warning voltage, a power failure warning signal is input as a power failure warning from the power failure monitoring circuit 117 of the ball information control board 110. The determination of step S56 is made based on this power failure warning signal.

[0323] If no power outage warning signal is input in step S56, a non-win / lose random number update process is performed (step S58). In this non-win / lose random number update process, for example, the random number for reach determination, the random number for the variable display pattern, the random number for determining the initial value for the jackpot pattern, and the random number for determining the initial value for the small win pattern are updated. In this way, in the non-win / lose random number update process, random numbers that are not related to the win / lose determination (jackpot determination) are updated. Note that the random number for normal pattern win determination, the random number for determining the initial value for normal pattern win determination, and the random number for the normal pattern variable display pattern are also updated by this non-win / lose random number update process.

[0324] Following step S58, the process returns to step S54, where the watchdog timer clear register WCL is set to value A, and in step S56 it is determined whether or not a power outage warning signal has been input. If no power outage warning signal has been input, in step S58 a non-win / lose random number update process is performed, and steps S54 to S58 are repeated. The process of steps S54 to S58 is referred to as the "main control side main loop process."

[0325] On the other hand, when a power failure warning signal is input in step S56, an interrupt prohibition setting is performed (step S60). This setting disables the main control side timer interrupt process described later, prevents writing to the main control built-in RAM, and protects game information from being overwritten.

[0326] Following step S60, the drive signals output to the start port solenoid 96, the big prize port solenoid 97, the upper special pattern display 142, the lower special pattern display 143, the upper special pattern memory display 144, the lower special pattern memory display 145, the normal pattern display 146, the normal pattern memory display 147, the game status display 148, the round display 149, etc., shown in FIG. 76, are stopped (step S62).

[0327] Following step S62, a checksum is calculated and the calculated value is stored (step S64). This checksum is calculated by treating the game information in the working area of ​​the main control built-in RAM, excluding the storage area for the checksum value (sum value) and the backup flag BK-FLG value, as numerical values.

[0328] Following step S64, the backup flag BK-FLG is set to the value 1 (step S66), thereby completing the storage of the backup information.

[0329] Following step S66, the watchdog timer is cleared (step S68) by setting the value A, the value B and the value C in the watchdog timer clear register WCL in this order, as described above.

[0330] Following step S68, a loop process is entered in which a state of executing nothing is repeated. The processes and loop process from step S60 to step S68 are referred to as "main control side power off process." In this loop process, the watchdog timer is not cleared because the watchdog timer clear register WCL is not set to values ​​A, B, and C in that order. As a result, the watchdog timer times out and outputs a timeout signal, which resets the main control MPU, after which the main control MPU performs this main control side power on process again from the beginning.

[0331] The pachinko machine 1 (main control MPU 101) is reset when a power outage or momentary power outage occurs, and when power is subsequently restored, the main control side performs power-on processing.

[0332] In step S36, it is checked whether the backup information stored in the main control's built-in RAM is normal, and then in step S38 it is checked whether the main control side power cut processing has been completed normally. In this way, by double checking the backup information stored in the main control's built-in RAM, it is checked whether the backup information has been stored due to fraudulent actions.

[0333] [Main control side timer interrupt processing] Next, the main control side timer interrupt process will be described. This main control side timer interrupt process is repeatedly performed at an interrupt period (4 ms in this embodiment) set in the main control side power-on process shown in Figures 79 and 80.

[0334] When the main control side timer interrupt processing is started, the main control MPU of the main control board 100 sets the value B in the watchdog timer clear register WCL as shown in Fig. 81 (step S70). At this time, the value B is set in the watchdog timer clear register WCL following the value A set in step S54 of the main control side main loop processing.

[0335] Following step S70, the interrupt flag is cleared (step S72). By clearing this interrupt flag, the interrupt period is initialized, and the next interrupt period is timed from the initial value.

[0336] Following step S72, a switch input process is performed (step S74). In this switch input process, various signals input to the input terminals of the main control I / O port 102 are read and stored as input information in the input information storage area of ​​the main control built-in RAM.

[0337] Following step S74, a timer subtraction process is performed (step S76). In this timer subtraction process, in addition to the time during which the upper special symbol display 142 and the lower special symbol display 143 are lit according to the variable display pattern determined by the special symbol and special electric role control process described later, and the time during which the normal symbol display 146 is lit according to the normal symbol variable display pattern determined by the normal symbol and normal electric role control process described later, time management is performed for the ACK signal input determination time set as a determination condition when determining whether or not a ball information main ACK signal that conveys that the ball information control board 110 has normally received various commands transmitted by the main control board 100 (main control MPU) is input. Specifically, when the variable display pattern or normal symbol variable display pattern has a variable display time of 5 seconds, the timer interrupt period is set to 4 ms, so that the variable display time is subtracted by 4 ms each time this timer subtraction process is performed, and the subtraction result becomes a value of 0, thereby accurately measuring the variable display pattern or normal symbol variable display pattern variable display time.

[0338] In this embodiment, the ACK signal input judgment time is set to 100 ms. Each time this timer subtraction process is performed, the ACK signal input judgment time is subtracted by 4 ms until the subtraction result becomes 0, thereby accurately measuring the ACK signal input judgment time. These various times and the ACK signal input judgment time are stored as time management information in the time management information storage area of ​​the main control built-in RAM.

[0339] Following step S76, a random number update process is performed (step S78). In this random number update process, the random numbers for jackpot determination, jackpot pattern random numbers, and small jackpot pattern random numbers are updated. In addition to these random numbers, the random numbers for jackpot pattern initial value determination and small jackpot pattern initial value determination, which are updated in the non-win / lose random number update process of step S58 in the main control side power-on process (main control side main process) shown in FIG. 80, are also updated. These random numbers for jackpot pattern initial value determination and small jackpot pattern initial value determination random numbers are updated in the main control side main process and the main control side timer interrupt process, respectively, to further increase randomness. In contrast, the random numbers for jackpot determination, jackpot pattern random numbers, and small jackpot pattern random numbers are random numbers related to win / lose determination (jackpot determination), so the respective counters are counted up only each time this random number update process is performed. For example, as described above, the counter that updates the random number for jackpot determination is an initial value update type counter that is updated within a predetermined fixed numerical range from the minimum value to the maximum value (in this embodiment, the minimum value is 0 and the maximum value is 32767), and counts up this range from the minimum value to the maximum value by adding 1 each time this main control side timer interrupt process is performed. It counts up from the random number for determining the initial value for jackpot determination toward the maximum value (value 32767), and then counts up from the minimum value (value 0) toward the random number for determining the initial value for jackpot determination. When the counter that updates the random number for jackpot determination finishes counting up the range from the minimum value to the maximum value of the random number for jackpot determination, the random number for determining the initial value for jackpot determination is updated by this win / lose random number update process. At this time, the updated value is determined by the main control MPU fetching the ID code from its built-in non-volatile RAM, executing an initial value derivation process that always derives the same fixed value from the fixed range of the counter that updates the random number for jackpot determination based on this fetched ID code, and this derived fixed value is set as the initial value. In other words, the random number for determining the initial value for jackpot determination is always overwritten and updated as the initial value by the same fixed value derived based on the ID code by executing the initial value derivation process.The random numbers for determining whether a normal symbol is a winning symbol and the random numbers for determining the initial value for determining whether a normal symbol is a winning symbol are also updated by this random number update process. The method for updating the random numbers for determining whether a normal symbol is a winning symbol and the like is the same as the method for updating the random numbers for determining whether a big win is a winning symbol and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0340] Following step S78, a prize ball control process is performed (step S80). In this prize ball control process, input information is read from the above-mentioned input information storage area, and a prize ball command to be sent to the ball information control board 110 based on this input information is created, and a self-check command to check the connection status between the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 is created. The created prize ball command and self-check command are then sent to the ball information control board 110 as main ball information serial data. For example, when one game ball enters the big prize winning hole, a prize ball command representing 15 balls as the number of prize balls is created and sent to the ball information control board 110, and when a ball information main ACK signal that indicates that the ball information control board 110 has normally received this prize ball command is not input within a predetermined time, a self-check command to check the connection status between the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 is created and sent to the ball information control board 110.

[0341] Following step S80, a frame command receiving process is performed (step S82). The ball information control board 110 transmits various 1-byte (8-bit) commands that are classified as status indications. In the frame command receiving process of step S82, when the various commands are normally received as ball information main serial data, information informing the ball information control board 110 of this is stored as output information in the output information storage area of ​​the main control built-in RAM. In addition, the command normally received as ball information main serial data is reshaped into a 2-byte (16-bit) command and stored as transmission information in the transmission information storage area described above.

[0342] Following step S82, a fraud detection process is performed (step S84). In this fraud detection process, an abnormal state related to the winning ball is confirmed. For example, input information is read from the above-mentioned input information storage area, and when a detection signal is input from the count switch 98 when the game is not in a big win game state (when a game ball enters the big win opening), etc., a winning abnormality display command classified as a notification display as an abnormal state is created, and stored as transmission information in the above-mentioned transmission information storage area.

[0343] Following step S84, a special symbol and special electric accessory control process is performed (step S86). In this special symbol and special electric accessory control process, the value of the counter that updates the random number for jackpot determination described above is taken out and judged as to whether it matches the jackpot determination value pre-stored in the main control built-in ROM (judging whether a jackpot game state is generated (called a "special lottery")), or the value of the counter that updates the random number for jackpot symbols is taken out and judged as to whether it matches the probability variable hit determination value pre-stored in the main control built-in ROM (judging whether a probability variable is generated). Here, "probability variable" refers to a change in the probability of winning a jackpot to a high probability (probability variable) that is set higher than normal (low probability). In this embodiment, the range of the jackpot determination value (jackpot determination range) is set to 32668 to 32767 at low probability and is read from the normal time determination table, whereas the range is set to 32438 to 32767 at high probability and is read from the probability change time determination table. In this way, in the special symbol and special electric role control process in step S86, when determining whether the value of the counter that updates the random number for jackpot determination and the jackpot determination value previously stored in the main control built-in ROM match, it is determined whether the value of the counter that updates the random number for jackpot determination is included in the jackpot determination range.

[0344] If the result of these judgments is due to the upper starting hole detection switch 90, various commands related to the special chart 1 synchronization performance are created, whereas if the result of the lottery is due to the lower starting hole detection switch 91, various commands related to the special chart 2 synchronization performance are created and stored in the transmission information memory area as transmission information. In addition, the output of a lighting signal to the upper special pattern display device 142 or the lower special pattern display device 143 is set so as to light up the upper special pattern display device 142 or the lower special pattern display device 143 according to the variable display pattern of the determined special pattern, and stored in the above-mentioned output information memory area as output information.

[0345] In addition, depending on the game state to be generated, for example, when a jackpot game state is reached, various commands classified as jackpot-related are created and stored in the transmission information storage area as transmission information, the output of a drive signal to the jackpot opening solenoid 97 is set to open and close the opening / closing member, and stored in the output information storage area as output information, when the number of times (rounds) that the jackpot opening changes from a closed state to an open state is 2, the output of a lighting signal to the 2 round indicator lamp of the round indicator 149 is set to light the 2 round indicator lamp, and stored in the output information storage area as output information, when the number of rounds is 15, the output of a lighting signal to the 15 round indicator lamp of the round indicator 149 is set to light the 15 round indicator lamp, and stored in the output information storage area as output information, and the output of a lighting signal to the game state indicator 148 is set to light a predetermined color to indicate the presence or absence of a probability fluctuation, and stored in the output information storage area as output information.

[0346] Following step S86, normal symbol and normal electric role control processing is performed (step S88). In this normal symbol and normal electric role control processing, input information is read from the above-mentioned input information storage area, and gate winning processing is performed based on this input information. In this gate winning processing, it is determined from the input information whether or not a detection signal from the gate switch 92 has been input to the input terminal. Based on this determination result, when a detection signal has been input to the input terminal, the value of the counter that updates the random number for determining whether the normal symbol has won is extracted and stored as gate information in the gate information storage area of ​​the main control built-in RAM.

[0347] Following step S88, a port output process is performed (step S90). In this port output process, output information is read from the output information storage area from the output terminal of the main control I / O port 102, and various signals are output based on this output information. For example, when various commands from the ball information control board 110 are normally received, a main ball information ACK signal is output to the ball information control board 110 from the output terminal of the main control I / O port 102 based on the output information, a drive signal is output to the large prize winning port solenoid 97 that performs the opening and closing operation of the opening and closing member of the large prize winning port when in a large prize playing state, a drive signal is output to the start port solenoid 96 that performs the opening and closing operation of the movable piece, and various information (game information) signals related to the game, such as a 15-round jackpot information output signal, a 2-round jackpot information output signal, a probability fluctuation information output signal, a special pattern display information output signal, a normal pattern display information output signal, time reduction information output information, and a start port winning information output signal, are output to the ball information control board 110.

[0348] Following step S90, a peripheral control board command transmission process is performed (step S92). In this peripheral control board command transmission process, the transmission information is read from the above-mentioned transmission information storage area and transmitted to the peripheral control board 130 as main serial data. In this transmission information, various commands classified as related to special chart 1 synchronization performance, various commands classified as related to special chart 2 synchronization performance, various commands classified as related to big win, various commands classified as power-on, various commands classified as related to normal chart synchronization performance, various commands classified as related to normal electric role performance, various commands classified as notification display, various commands classified as status display, various commands classified as test-related, and various commands classified as other are stored, which are created in the main control side timer interrupt process, which is this routine. In the main serial data, one packet is composed of 3 bytes.

[0349] Specifically, the main serial data is composed of a status indicating the type of command having a storage capacity of 1 byte (8 bits), a mode indicating the variation of the performance having a storage capacity of 1 byte (8 bits), and a sum value calculated by treating the status and the mode as numerical values, and this sum value is created at the time of transmission. Note that the processing of steps S74 to S92 is referred to as "game control processing."

[0350] Following step S92, a value C is set in the watchdog timer clear register WCL (step S94). By setting the value C in the watchdog timer clear register WCL in step S94, the value C is set in the watchdog timer clear register WCL following the value B set in step S70. As a result, the value A, the value B and the value C are set in the watchdog timer clear register WCL in this order, and the watchdog timer is cleared.

[0351] Following step S94, the registers are switched (restored) (step S96) and this routine is terminated. When this routine, the main control side timer interrupt processing, is started, the main control MPU saves the contents of the general-purpose registers by stacking them in hardware. This prevents the contents of the general-purpose registers used in the main processing on the main control side from being destroyed. In step S96, the contents saved in the stack are read out and written to the original register. The main control MPU sets interrupt permission after returning in step S96.

[0352] [Various control processes on the ball information control board] Next, various control processes performed by the ball information control board 110 shown in Fig. 77 will be explained with reference to Fig. 81 to Fig. 86. Fig. 82 is a flowchart showing the ball information control side power-on process executed by the ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110, Fig. 83 is a flowchart showing the continuation of the ball information control side power-on process of Fig. 82, Fig. 84 is a flowchart showing the continuation of the ball information control side power-on process following Fig. 83, Fig. 85 is a flowchart showing the ball information control power-off process executed by the ball information control MPU 111 of the ball information control board 110, and Fig. 86 is a flowchart showing an example of ball information control side timer interrupt process.

[0353] [Ball information control side power-on processing] When the power is turned on to the pachinko game machine 1, the ball information control MPU 111 (hereinafter simply referred to as the ball information control MPU) of the ball information control unit 118 in the ball information control board 110 performs the ball information control side power-on processing as shown in Figures 82 to 83. When this ball information control side power-on processing starts, the ball information control MPU sets the interrupt mode (step S500). This interrupt mode sets the priority of the interrupt of the ball information control MPU. In this embodiment, the ball information control unit timer interrupt processing described later is set to the highest priority, and when an interrupt of this ball information control unit timer interrupt processing occurs, the processing is performed with priority.

[0354] Following step S500, input / output settings (I / O input / output settings) are performed (step S502). In this I / O input / output setting, input / output settings of the I / O port of the ball information control MPU are performed.

[0355] Following step S502, the power failure monitoring circuit 117 shown in FIG. 77 starts to output a power failure clear signal (step S504). This power failure monitoring circuit 117 is composed of a voltage comparison circuit and a D-type flip-flop IC. The voltage comparison circuit compares the voltage between +24V and a reference voltage, or between +12V and a reference voltage, and outputs the comparison result. When no power failure or momentary power failure occurs, the logic of this comparison result becomes HI and is input to the PR terminal, which is the preset terminal of the D-type flip-flop, while when a power failure or momentary power failure occurs, the logic becomes LOW and is input to the PR terminal, which is the preset terminal of the D-type flip-flop. In step S504, the power failure clear signal starts to be output to the CLR terminal, which is the clear terminal of this D-type flip-flop. This power failure clear signal is input to the clear terminal, with its logic becoming LOW, via the ball information control I / O port 112 of the ball information control unit 118. This enables the ball information control MPU to release the latched state of the D-type flip-flop, and until the latched state is set, invert the logic input to the PR terminal, which is the preset terminal of the D-type flip-flop, and output it from the 1Q terminal, which is the output terminal, and monitor the signal from the 1Q terminal.

[0356] Following step S504, wait timer process 1 is performed (step S506), and it is determined whether or not a power failure warning signal has been input (step S508). The voltage does not rise immediately from when the power is turned on until it reaches a predetermined voltage. On the other hand, when a power failure or momentary power failure (a phenomenon in which the supply of power is suddenly suspended) occurs, the voltage drops and becomes smaller than the power failure warning voltage, and a power failure warning signal is input from the power failure monitoring circuit 117 as a power failure warning. Similarly, when the voltage becomes smaller than the power failure warning voltage from when the power is turned on until it rises to a predetermined voltage, a power failure warning signal is input from the power failure monitoring circuit 117. Therefore, the wait timer process 1 in step S506 is a process for waiting until the voltage becomes larger than the power failure warning voltage and stabilizes after the power is turned on, and in this embodiment, 200 milliseconds (ms) are set as the waiting time (wait timer). In the determination in step S508, it is determined whether or not the power failure warning signal has been input. This determination is based on the signal output from the 1Q terminal, which is the output terminal of the D-type flip-flop described above, as the power failure warning signal.

[0357] Following step S508, the output of the power failure clear signal to the CLR terminal, which is the clear terminal of the D-type flip-flop, is stopped (step S510). By stopping the output of this power failure clear signal, its logic becomes HI and is input to the CLR terminal, which is the clear terminal, via the ball information control I / O port 112. This allows the ball information control MPU to set the D-type flip-flop to a latched state. When the D-type flip-flop latches the state in which the logic becomes LOW and is input to the PR terminal, which is its preset terminal, it outputs a power failure warning signal from the 1Q terminal, which is its output terminal.

[0358] Following step S510, it is determined whether the RAM clear switch 105 has been operated (step S512). This determination is made based on whether the RAM clear switch 105 of the main control board 100 has been operated and its operation signal (detection signal) has been input to the ball information control MPU. When the detection signal has been input, it is determined that the RAM clear switch 105 has been operated, and on the other hand, when the detection signal has not been input, it is determined that the RAM clear switch 105 has not been operated.

[0359] If it is determined in step S512 that the RAM clear switch 105 has been operated, the ball information RAM clear flag is set to a value of 1 (step S514) and the process proceeds to step S518. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S512 that the RAM clear switch 105 has not been operated, the ball information RAM clear is set to a value of 0 (step S516) and the process proceeds to step S518.

[0360] This ball information RAM clear flag is a flag indicating whether or not to erase various ball information stored in, for example, various flags and various information storage areas stored in the RAM built into the ball information control MPU (hereinafter referred to as the "ball information control built-in RAM"), and is set to a value of 1 when the ball information is to be erased, and to a value of 0 when the ball information is not to be erased.The ball information RAM clear flag set in steps S514 and S516 is stored in a general-purpose memory element (general-purpose register) of the ball information control MPU.

[0361] Following step S514 or step S516, a setting is made to permit access to the ball information control built-in RAM (step S518). This setting allows access to the ball information control built-in RAM, for example, to write (store) or read ball information.

[0362] Following step S518, a stack pointer is set (step S520). The stack pointer, for example, indicates an address stored in the stack to temporarily store the contents of a memory element (register) in use, or indicates an address stored in the stack to temporarily store the return address of this routine when terminating a subroutine and returning to this routine, and the stack pointer advances each time a stack is added. In step S520, an initial address is set in the stack pointer, and the contents of the register, the return address, etc. are added to the stack from this initial address. Then, the stack pointer returns to the initial address by reading the stack items from the last stacked to the first stacked in order.

[0363] Following step S520, the process proceeds to step S521, where a combination authentication process is executed to determine whether or not the combination of the ball information control MPU 111 and the main control MPU 101 is proper. The game board manufacturer identification information output from the main control board 100 is stored in the game board manufacturer identification information storage unit 4101 of the ball information control MPU 111, and authentication is performed to determine whether or not proper game board manufacturer identification information has been output. If the authentication is performed properly, the process proceeds to step S527, whereas if it is determined to be improper, an abnormality is notified using a speaker, liquid crystal display device, or the like.

[0364] Following step S521, the ball information control MPU proceeds to step S527. In step S527, it is determined whether the ball information RAM clear flag is set to a value of 0 (step S527). As described above, the ball information RAM clear flag is set to a value of 1 when the ball information is to be erased, and is set to a value of 0 when the ball information is not to be erased.

[0365] If the ball information RAM clear flag is set to 0 in step S527, that is, if the ball information is not to be erased, a checksum is calculated (step S528). This checksum is calculated by treating the ball information stored in the ball information control internal RAM as numerical values.

[0366] Following step S528, it is determined whether the calculated checksum value matches the checksum value stored during the ball information control unit power-off processing (when power is off) described below (step S530). If they match, it is determined whether the ball information backup flag is set to a value of 1 (step S532). This ball information backup flag is a flag indicating whether ball information backup information such as ball information and checksum value has been stored and retained in the ball information control internal RAM during the ball information control unit power-off processing described below, and is set to a value of 1 when the ball information control unit power-off processing has been completed normally, and to a value of 0 when the ball information control unit power-off processing has not been completed normally.

[0367] When the ball information backup flag is set to a value of 1 in step S532, that is, when the ball information control unit power-off processing is normally completed, the working area of ​​the ball information control internal RAM is set as the time of power recovery (step S534). In addition to setting the ball information backup flag to a value of 0, this setting reads the power recovery information from the ROM (hereinafter referred to as the "ball information control internal ROM") built into the ball information control MPU, and sets this power recovery information in the working area of ​​the ball information control internal RAM. This sets information to be used for various processes based on the above-mentioned ball information backup information stored in the ball information control internal RAM, the various flags, the various information stored in the various information storage area, etc. Note that "power recovery" includes not only the state in which the power is turned on after being cut off, but also the state in which power is restored after a power outage or momentary power outage.

[0368] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S527 that the ball information RAM clear flag is not 0 (is 1), or if the checksum values ​​do not match in step S530, or if it is determined in step S532 that the ball information backup flag is not 1 (is 0), in other words, if the ball information control unit power-off processing has not ended normally, the entire area of ​​the ball information control built-in RAM is cleared (step S536). This clears the ball information backup information stored in the ball information control built-in RAM.

[0369] Following step S536, the work area of ​​the ball information control built-in RAM is set as the initial setting (step S538). This setting involves reading the initial information from the ball information control built-in ROM and setting this initial information in the work area of ​​the ball information control built-in RAM.

[0370] Following step S534 or step S538, the interrupt initialization is performed (step S540). This setting is for setting the interrupt period when the ball information control unit timer interrupt process described later is performed. In this embodiment, it is set to 2 ms.

[0371] Following step S540, an interrupt permission setting is performed (step S542). With this setting, the ball information control unit timer interrupt process is repeated at the interrupt period set in step S540, that is, every 2 ms.

[0372] Following step S542, it is determined whether or not a power failure warning signal has been input (step S544). As described above, when the power supply of the pachinko game machine 1 is cut off, or a power failure or momentary power failure occurs, if the voltage becomes equal to or lower than the power failure warning voltage, a power failure warning signal is input from the power failure monitoring circuit 117 as a power failure warning. The determination in step S540 is made based on this power failure warning signal.

[0373] If there is no power outage warning signal input in step S544, it is determined whether the 2 ms elapsed flag HT-FLG is equal to 1 (step S546). This 2 ms elapsed flag HT-FLG is a flag that counts 2 ms in the ball information control unit timer interrupt process that is processed every 2 ms, as described below, and is set to 1 when 2 ms has elapsed and to 0 when 2 ms has not elapsed.

[0374] If it is determined in step S546 that the 2 ms lapse flag HT-FLG has a value of 0, that is, if 2 ms has not lapsed, the process returns to step S544, where it is determined whether or not a power outage warning signal has been input.

[0375] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S546 that the 2 ms elapsed flag HT-FLG has a value of 1, that is, when 2 ms have elapsed, the 2 ms elapsed flag HT-FLG is set to a value of 0 (step S547), and the process proceeds to step S550, where an external WDT clear signal is output (turned ON, step S550) to the external watchdog timer (external WDT) 116. This external WDT 116 monitors the operation (system) of the ball information control MPU, and if the external WDT clear signal is not stopped at the clear signal release time, it outputs a reset signal to the ball information control MPU and ball information control I / O port 112 to reset them (it periodically diagnoses whether the ball information control MPU system is running out of control).

[0376] Following step S550, a port output process is performed (step S552). In this port output process, various information is read from the output information storage area of ​​the ball information control internal RAM, and various signals are output from the output terminal of the ball information control I / O port 112 based on the various information.

[0377] The output information memory area stores various information, such as ball information main ACK information, which indicates that various commands related to prize balls (prize ball commands and self-check commands) from the main control board 100 have been successfully received, and drive information that controls the drive of the ball lifting device 22.Based on this output information, when a prize ball command from the main control board 100 is successfully received, a ball information main ACK signal is output to the main control board 100 from the output terminal of the ball information control I / O port 112, or a drive signal is output to the launch solenoid 13.

[0378] Following step S552, a port input process is performed (step S554). In this port input process, various signals input to the input terminal of the ball information control I / O port 112 are read and stored as input information in the input information storage area of ​​the ball information control built-in RAM. For example, the door frame opening switch 131, the main frame opening switch 132, the launch waiting ball detection switch 26, 70, the launch ball confirmation switch 36, the collected ball detection switch 203, the ball path full tank detection switch 206, the ball proper amount detection switch 207, the lifting entrance switch 156, the lifting motor sensor (photo sensor) 157, the cassette detection switch 158, the launch stop switch 86, the touch switch 87, the BRQ signal, the BRDY signal, and the CR connection signal from the settlement machine 4, the main ball information ACK signal from the main control board 100 that informs the main control board 100 that the various commands transmitted in the command transmission process described later have been normally received by the main control board 100, and the like are read and stored as input information in the input information storage area.

[0379] Following step S554, a timer update process is performed (step S556). The various judgment times are stored as time management information in the time management information storage area of ​​the ball information control internal RAM. In the timer update process, it is determined whether the timer values ​​of the various timers are set, and if the timer values ​​are set, the timer values ​​are decremented by 1. For example, if "1000" is set in the timer as a value equivalent to 2 seconds (2000 ms), the timer interrupt period is set to 2 ms, so that the timer value is decremented by 1 each time the timer decrement process is performed in a 2 ms period, and the time is up when the decrement result becomes 0, thereby measuring time accurately.

[0380] Following step S556, settlement machine communication processing is performed (step S558). In the settlement machine communication processing, input information is read from the input information storage area described above, and based on this input information, it is determined whether or not various signals (BRQ signal, BRDY signal, and CR connection signal) have been input from the settlement machine 4. Based on the various signals from the settlement machine 4, the ball information control MPU exchanges various signals with the settlement machine 4. For example, when the ball information control MPU receives the number of lent balls transmitted from the settlement machine 4, it adds the number of lent balls to the game machine ball holding number data.

[0381] Following step S558, a command reception process is performed (step S560). In this command reception process, various commands related to the prize balls (prize ball commands and self-check commands) are received from the main control board 100. When these various commands are received normally, ball information main ACK information informing the fact is stored in the output information storage area described above. On the other hand, when the various commands cannot be received normally, connection abnormality information informing the fact that an abnormality has occurred in the connection between the main control board 100 and the ball information control board 110 (an abnormality has occurred in the various command signals) is stored in the status information storage area described above.

[0382] Following step S560, a command analysis process is performed (step S562). In this command analysis process, the command received in step S562 is analyzed, and the analyzed command is stored as received command information in a received command information storage area of ​​the ball information control internal RAM.

[0383] Following step S562, a main operation setting process is performed (step S564). In this main operation setting process, the ball information control MPU performs operation setting of the launch solenoid 13, the ball feed solenoid 31, the ball lifting device 22 (ball lifting motor 150), the ball polishing ribbon feed motor 155, etc. In addition, the ball information control MPU sequentially subtracts "1" from the game machine ball number data stored in the game machine ball number storage area in response to the detection of the shot of one game ball at a time based on the ball detection of the shot ball confirmation switch 36. Furthermore, when a prize ball command is stored in the received command information storage area, the number of prize balls corresponding to this prize ball command is added to the game machine ball number data stored in the game machine ball number storage area.

[0384] Following step S564, an LED display data creation process is performed (step S566). In this LED display data creation process, for example, the game machine ball count data stored in the game machine ball count storage area described above is read out, and display data for displaying the ball count on the touch panel unit 14 is created and stored as LED display information in the output information storage area described above.

[0385] Following step S566, a command transmission process is performed (step S568). In this command transmission process, various information is read from the above-mentioned state information storage area, and various commands classified as state displays are created based on this various information and transmitted to the main control board 100.

[0386] Following step S568, the output of the external WDT clear signal to the external watchdog timer (external WDT) 116 is stopped (turned OFF, step S570). This clears the external WDT 116 and prevents a reset from being applied to the ball information control MPU and ball information control I / O port 112. Furthermore, when the output of the external WDT clear signal is stopped, the external WDT 116 starts timing the clear signal release time.

[0387] Following step S570, the process returns to step S544 to determine whether or not a power outage warning signal has been input. If no power outage warning signal has been input, the process determines whether or not the 2 ms lapse flag HT-FLG has a value of 1 in step S546. If the 2 ms lapse flag HT-FLG has a value of 1, that is, if 2 ms has elapsed, the 2 ms lapse flag HT-FLG is set to a value of 0 in step S547. An external WDT clear signal is output (ON) to the external WDT 4120c in step S550. Port output processing is performed in step S552. Port input processing is performed in step S554, timer update processing is performed in step S556, adjustment machine communication processing is performed in step S558, command reception processing is performed in step S560, command analysis processing is performed in step S562, main operation setting processing is performed in step S564, LED display data creation processing is performed in step S566, command transmission processing is performed in step S568, output of the external WDT clear signal to external WDT 116 is stopped (OFF) in step S570, and steps S544 to S570 are repeatedly performed. The processing of steps S544 to S570 is referred to as "ball information control main processing".

[0388] On the other hand, when a power failure warning signal is input in step S544, an interrupt prohibition setting is performed (step S572). This setting disables the ball information control unit timer interrupt process described later, prevents writing to the ball information control built-in RAM, and protects the ball information from being overwritten as described above.

[0389] Following step S572, a power failure clear signal is output to the CLR terminal, which is the clear terminal of the D-type flip-flop of the power failure monitoring circuit 117, via the ball information control I / O port 112 (step S574). As a result, the power failure clear signal is output, and the D-type flip-flop can release the latched state.

[0390] Following step S574, the output of the drive signal to the launch solenoid 13 is stopped (step S576). This stops the launch of the game ball. Following step S576, the output of the drive signal to the ball feed solenoid 31 is stopped (step S578). This stops the feed of the game ball to the ball launch device 29.

[0391] Following step S578, an external WDT clear signal is output to the external WDT 116 to stop its output (ON / OFF, step S580). This clears the external WDT 116. Following step S580, a checksum is calculated and the calculated value is stored (step S582). This checksum is calculated by treating the ball information in the working area of ​​the ball information control internal RAM, excluding the checksum value calculated in step S528 and the storage area for the value of the ball information backup flag HBK-FLG, as a numerical value. Following step S582, the ball information backup flag is set to a value of 1 (step S584). This completes the storage of the ball information backup information. Following step S584, a setting is made to prohibit access to the ball information control internal RAM (step S586). This setting prohibits access to the ball information control internal RAM, making it impossible to write or read, and protecting the ball information backup information stored in the ball information control internal RAM.

[0392] Following step S586, a loop process is entered in which a state of doing nothing is repeated. In this loop process, the clear signal to the external WDT 116 is not turned on / off. For this reason, the external WDT 116 outputs a reset signal to the ball information control MPU and ball information control I / O port 112 to reset it. The ball information control MPU then performs this ball information control side power-on process again from the beginning. The processes and loop process from step S572 to step S586 are referred to as "ball information control power-off processing."

[0393] The pachinko machine 1 (ball information control MPU) is reset when there is a power outage or momentary power outage, and when power is subsequently restored, the ball information control side performs power-on processing.

[0394] In step S530, it is checked whether the ball information backup information stored in the ball information control built-in RAM is normal, and then in step S532, it is checked whether the ball information control unit power-off processing has ended normally. In this way, by doubly checking the ball information backup information stored in the ball information control built-in RAM, it is checked whether the ball information backup information has been stored due to fraudulent activity.

[0395] [Ball information control side timer interrupt processing] Next, the ball information control side timer interrupt processing will be described. This ball information control side timer interrupt processing is repeatedly performed at the interrupt period (2 ms in this embodiment) set in step S540 of the ball information control side power-on processing shown in FIG.

[0396] When the ball information control side timer interrupt processing is started, the ball information control MPU of the ball information control unit 118 in the ball information control board 110 disables the timer interrupt and switches (saves) the register (step S590), as shown in FIG. 86. Here, the general-purpose memory element (general-purpose register) used in the above-mentioned ball information control unit main processing is switched to an auxiliary register. By using this auxiliary register in the ball information control side timer interrupt processing, the value of the general-purpose register is no longer overwritten. This prevents the contents of the general-purpose register used in the ball information control side main processing from being destroyed.

[0397] Following step S590, the 2 ms elapsed flag HT-FLG is set to a value of 1 (step S592). This 2 ms elapsed flag HT-FLG is a flag that counts 2 ms each time this ball information control unit timer interrupt process is performed, that is, every 2 ms, and is set to a value of 1 when 2 ms has elapsed and to a value of 0 when 2 ms has not elapsed. Following step S592, register switching (return) is performed (step S594). This return switches from the auxiliary register used in the ball information control side timer interrupt process to a general-purpose memory element (general-purpose register). By using this general-purpose register in the ball information control side main process, the value of the auxiliary register is no longer overwritten. This prevents the contents of the auxiliary register used in the ball information control unit timer interrupt process from being destroyed. Following step S594, interrupt permission is set (step S596), and this routine ends.

[0398] [Processing executed in the main process of ball information control] Next, the processes executed every 2 ms by the ball information control MPU of the ball information control board 110 in the ball information control main process of Fig. 84 will be described. First, the loan ball process will be described, followed by the hit / no hit determination process, the number of balls held count process, the ball forwarding / launching drive process, the shot ball detection process, and the number of balls held subtraction process. Note that the hit / no hit determination process, the number of balls held count process, the ball forwarding / launching drive process, the shot ball detection process, the number of balls held subtraction process, and the lifting drive process are executed as part of the main operation setting process of step S564, and are executed in the following order: hit / no hit determination process, number of balls held count process, ball forwarding / launching drive process, shot ball detection process, number of balls held subtraction process, and lifting drive process.

[0399] When a player inserts a card 403 into the card insertion slot, the settlement machine 4 detects the insertion of the card 403, and the data stored in the card 403 is read through the card processor 402. That is, the ID stored in the ID memory unit 404 of the card 403 in Fig. 78, the remaining number stored in the remaining number memory unit 405, and the number of balls stored in the number of balls memory unit 406 are read and stored in predetermined memory areas of the RAM (ID memory area, remaining number memory area, number of balls memory area).

[0400] Next, the settlement machine 4 judges whether the inserted card 403 is usable or unusable. In this embodiment, if the read remaining number is 0 and the read number of balls held is 0, the settlement machine 4 judges the card 403 to be unusable and ejects the card 403 from the card insertion port. Therefore, if the card 403 is judged to be unusable, the following processes of ball counting, ball forwarding / firing drive process, and ball number subtraction process are not executed.

[0401] On the other hand, if the remaining number of points read is not 0, or if the remaining number of points read is 0 but the number of balls held is not 0, the settlement machine 4 determines that the card is usable and transmits card usable information to the ball information control board 110.

[0402] When a player presses the ball lending button to play a game, the operation signal of the ball lending button is input to the settlement machine 4. In response to the operation signal of the ball lending button, the settlement machine 4 performs ball lending processing, for example, sending a specified number of lent balls to the ball information control MPU of the ball information control board 110, and then waits until it receives a ball lending completion message sent from the ball information control MPU.

[0403] [Ball rental processing] Here, the ball lending process executed by the ball information control MPU will be described. Figure 87 is a flowchart showing the subroutine of the ball lending process executed by the ball information control MPU. The ball lending process is executed as one process of the settlement machine communication process of step S558 executed every 2 ms in the ball information control main process.

[0404] When the ball information control MPU starts the ball lending process, it determines whether or not card usable information transmitted from the settlement machine 4 is received (step S600). If card usable information transmitted from the settlement machine 4 is received in step S600, the process proceeds to step S601, where the ball count counter (game machine ball count memory area), which is part of the memory area set in the built-in RAM, is cleared to 0 (step S601), and the process proceeds to step S602. On the other hand, if card usable information transmitted from the settlement machine 4 is not received in step S600, the process proceeds directly to step S602. The initial value of the ball count counter is set to "0" by the power recovery setting of the RAM working area in step S534.

[0405] When the ball information control MPU proceeds to step S602, it determines whether or not the number of loaned balls transmitted from the settlement machine 4 is received (step S602). If the number of loaned balls transmitted from the settlement machine 4 is received in step S602, it proceeds to step S603, adds the received number of loaned balls to the value of the ball holding counter (step S603), transmits the end of ball loaning to the settlement machine 4 (step S604), and exits the ball loan processing subroutine.

[0406] On the other hand, if the number of loaned balls transmitted from the settlement machine 4 is not received in step S602, the process does not proceed to steps S603 and S604, but directly exits the loaned ball processing subroutine.

[0407] In this way, card usable information is sent to the ball information control board 110 only when a new usable card 303 is inserted into the settlement machine 4. Also, after the card usable information is received, the number of loaned balls is sent to the ball information control MPU only when an operation signal of the ball loan button is input to the settlement machine 4. And, only when the number of loaned balls is received, the number of loaned balls is added to and stored in the value of the ball number counter.

[0408] [Ball playability determination process] Next, the hit-ball possible / impossible judgment process executed by the ball information control MPU will be described. Figure 88 is a flowchart showing a subroutine of the hit-ball possible / impossible judgment process executed by the ball information control MPU. The hit-ball possible / impossible judgment process is executed as one of the main operation setting processes of step S564 executed every 2 ms in the ball information control main process.

[0409] When the ball information control MPU starts the hit / unhit determination process, it determines whether the number of balls held is 0, i.e., whether the value of the ball count counter is 0 (step S710). If it is determined in step S710 that the value of the ball count counter is not 0, i.e., if step S710 is determined as NO, it proceeds to step S711, where it determines whether the shot waiting ball detection switch 70 (see FIG. 10) is on, i.e., whether there is a waiting ball in the ball delivery device 28 (step S711).

[0410] If it is determined in step S711 that the shot waiting ball detection switch 70 (see FIG. 10) is on, the shot possible flag is set to 1 (shot possible) (step S712), and the subroutine for the shot possible / unshot possible determination process is exited. On the other hand, if it is determined in step S710 that the value of the ball number counter is 0, or if it is determined in step S711 that the shot waiting ball detection switch 70 is not on (off), the shot possible flag is set to 0 (shot not possible) (step S713), and the subroutine for the shot possible / unshot possible determination process is exited.

[0411] In this way, when the value of the held ball counter is not 0 and there are waiting balls in the ball feeding device 28, the launch solenoid 13 and the ball feeding solenoid 31 can be driven, and the device is in a playable state where game balls can essentially be shot into the play area 8. On the other hand, when the value of the held ball counter is 0 or there are no waiting balls in the ball feeding device 28, the launch solenoid 13 cannot be driven, and the device is in a non-playable state where game balls cannot essentially be shot into the play area 8. At the same time, the ball feeding solenoid 31 cannot be driven either.

[0412] [Pitch count processing] Next, we will explain the ball count processing, which corresponds to the ball information processing during the game, assuming that the game is substantially enabled. Figure 89 is a flow chart showing the subroutine of the ball count processing performed by the ball information control MPU. The ball count processing is executed as one of the main operation setting processing of step S564 executed every 2 ms in the ball information control main processing.

[0413] When the ball information control MPU starts the ball counting process, it judges whether or not there is a prize ball command analyzed in the command analysis process of step S562 (step S720). That is, it judges whether or not there is a prize ball command stored in the received command information storage area. If there is a prize ball command stored, it judges step S720 as "yes," adds and stores the number of prize balls corresponding to the prize ball command stored in the received command information storage area to the value of the ball count counter (step S722), and exits the subroutine of the ball counting process. On the other hand, if there is no prize ball command stored, it judges step S720 as "no," and exits the subroutine of the ball counting process.

[0414] For example, if a prize is won at a prize slot that is set to the number of prize balls "4," the number of prize balls "4" is added to the value of the ball count counter and stored; for example, if a prize is won at a prize slot (large prize slot) that is set to the number of prize balls "15," the number of prize balls "15" is added to the value of the ball count counter and stored.

[0415] [Ball delivery and launch drive processing] Next, the ball forwarding and firing drive process will be described. Figures 90 to 91 are flow charts showing an example of a subroutine of the ball forwarding and firing drive process performed by the ball information control MPU. The ball forwarding and firing drive process is executed as one of the main operation setting processes of step S564, which is executed every 2 ms in the ball information control main process.

[0416] 24 is a time chart showing the drive timing of the ball feeding solenoid 31 and the launch solenoid 13. The launch solenoid 13 is turned on when period A has elapsed since the ball feeding solenoid 31 was turned on, the ball feeding solenoid 31 is turned off when period B has elapsed since the launch solenoid 13 was turned on, and the launch solenoid 13 is turned off when period C has elapsed since the ball feeding solenoid 31 was turned off.

[0417] In this embodiment, period A is 300 ms, period B is 30 ms, and period C is 50 ms. When the ball feeding solenoid 31 is turned on, the ball feeding member 32 feeds the fired ball to the firing position (rail portion 332). That is, the fired ball is detected by the fired ball confirmation switch 36. In this embodiment, if the fired ball confirmation switch 36 detects a game ball that is stopped at the firing position for a predetermined specified time (period D is set to 30 ms), it is determined that a fired ball is present.

[0418] In this way, when the launched ball confirmation switch 36 detects a game ball parked at the launch position for a predetermined specified time, it is determined that a launched ball is present, thereby eliminating erroneous counting of launched balls due to noise and increasing the reliability of detected launched balls.

[0419] When the launch solenoid 13 is turned on, the game ball parked at the launch position is shot out into the game area 8 by the launch hammer 30, and the shot ball confirmation switch 36 is turned off. This reduces the number of balls held by one.

[0420] When the ball information control MPU starts the ball forwarding and launching drive process, it first determines whether the launch possible flag is 1 (launch possible) or not (step S730). If it is determined that the ball is launch possible in the ball hit possible / unhit possible determination process described above, the launch possible flag is set to 1 (launch possible). If it is determined in step S730 that the launch possible flag is not 1 (launch possible), i.e., if the launch possible flag is 0 (launch not possible), the ball forwarding and launching drive process subroutine is exited. In this case, the actual ball forwarding and launching drive process is not executed.

[0421] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S730 that the firing possible flag is 1 (firing possible), the process proceeds to step S731, where it is determined whether or not the processing flag is 0 (step S731).

[0422] Here, the processing flag is a flag for identifying which of the processes the ball information control MPU will branch to in the ball feeding / launching drive processing described below; in other words, it is a flag for identifying the control state in the ball feeding / launching drive; "0" means the initial setting, "1" specifies the period from turning on the ball feeding solenoid 31 to turning on the launch solenoid 13, "2" specifies the period from turning on the launch solenoid 13 to turning off the ball feeding solenoid 31, and "3" specifies the period from turning off the ball feeding solenoid 31 to turning off the launch solenoid 13.

[0423] At the start of the ball feed / launch drive process, the value of the process flag is set to 0. Therefore, step S731 is judged as YES, the process proceeds to step S732, the timer is set to a timer value equivalent to period A (see FIG. 24, 300 ms) (step S732), the ball feed solenoid 31 is turned on (step S733), the process flag is set to 1 (step S734), and the subroutine of the ball feed / launch drive process is exited. Note that the timer value set in the timer is decremented by 1 at 2 ms intervals in the timer update process of step S556 in FIG. 82.

[0424] The next processing cycle of the ball feeding / launching drive processing will be 2 ms later. As a result of the processing flag being set to 1, in the next cycle of the ball feeding / launching drive processing, step S730 is judged as YES, step S731 is judged as NO, and the process proceeds to step S735. In step S735, it is judged whether the value of the processing flag is 1 or not (step S735). In this case, since the processing flag is set to 1, step S735 is judged as YES, and the process proceeds to step S736 to judge whether the timer has timed out or not (step S736). If the timer has not timed out, step S736 is judged as NO, and the subroutine of the ball feeding / launching drive processing is exited.

[0425] Thereafter, until the timer that has been set for period A times out, the processing routine is repeated in which, based on the value 1 of the processing flag, a YES determination is made in step S730, a NO determination is made in step S731, a YES determination is made in step S735, and a NO determination is made in step S736.

[0426] When the timer times out, step S736 is judged as YES, period A is deemed to have elapsed, and the process proceeds to step S737, where the timer is set to a timer value equivalent to period B (see FIG. 26, 30 ms) (step S737), the launch solenoid 13 is turned on (step S738), the processing flag is set to 2 (step S739), and the ball feeding / launch drive processing subroutine is exited.

[0427] As a result of the processing flag being set to 2, in the ball feeding / firing drive processing of the next cycle, step S730 is judged as YES, step S731 is judged as NO, step S735 is judged as NO, and the process proceeds to step S740. In step S740, it is judged whether the value of the processing flag is 2 or not (step S740). In this case, since the processing flag is set to 2, step S740 is judged as YES, and the process proceeds to step S741 to judge whether the timer has timed out or not (step S741). If the timer has not timed out, step S741 is judged as NO, and the subroutine of the ball feeding / firing drive processing is exited.

[0428] Thereafter, until the timer that has been set for period B times out, the processing routine is repeated in which, based on the value 2 of the processing flag, a YES determination is made in step S730, a NO determination is made in step S731, a NO determination is made in step S735, a YES determination is made in step S740, and a NO determination is made in step S741.

[0429] When the timer times out, step S741 is judged as YES, period B is deemed to have elapsed, and the process proceeds to step S742, where the timer is set to a timer value equivalent to period C (see FIG. 24, 50 ms) (step S742), the ball feeding solenoid 31 is turned off (step S743), the processing flag is set to 3 (step S744), and the ball feeding / launching drive processing subroutine is exited.

[0430] As a result of the processing flag being set to 3, in the ball feeding / firing drive processing of the next cycle, step S730 is judged as YES, step S731 is judged as NO, step S735 is judged as NO, step S740 is judged as NO, and the process proceeds to step S745. In step S745, it is judged whether the timer has timed out (step S745). If the timer has not timed out, step S745 is judged as NO, and the subroutine of the ball feeding / firing drive processing is exited.

[0431] Thereafter, until the timer set for period C times out, the processing routine is repeated in which step S730 is judged as YES, step S731 is judged as NO, step S735 is judged as NO, step S740 is judged as NO, and step S745 is judged as NO, based on the value 3 of the processing flag.

[0432] When the timer times out, step S745 is judged as YES, period C is deemed to have elapsed, and the process proceeds to step S746, where the launch solenoid 13 is turned off (step S746), the processing flag is set to 0 to return it to its initial value (step S747), and the ball feeding / launch drive processing subroutine is exited.

[0433] [Fired ball detection process] Next, the shot ball detection process will be described. Figure 92 is a flowchart showing the subroutine of the shot ball detection process performed by the ball information control MPU. The shot ball detection process is executed as one of the main operation setting processes of step S564 executed every 2 ms in the ball information control main process.

[0434] When the ball information control MPU starts the shot ball detection process, it first judges whether the shot ball confirmation switch 36 is on or not (step S750). As described above, when the ball feed solenoid 31 is turned on, the shot ball is sent to the shooting position (rail portion 332) by the ball feed member 32. That is, the shot ball is detected by the shot ball confirmation switch 36.

[0435] If it is determined that the shot ball confirmation switch 36 is on, the value of the timing counter, which is a counter for measuring the time during which the switch is on, is incremented by +1 (step S751), and the process proceeds to step S753.

[0436] On the other hand, if it is determined that the shot ball confirmation switch 36 is not on, that is, if the shot ball confirmation switch 36 is off, the timing counter is set to 0 (step S752), and the process proceeds to step S753.

[0437] When the process proceeds to step S753, it is determined whether the value of the timing counter has reached a predetermined specified time D (30 ms in this example) (step S753). If the value of the timing counter has not reached the predetermined specified time D, step S753 is determined as NO, and the subroutine for the shot ball detection process is exited.

[0438] Since the shot ball detection process is executed every 2 ms, when the game ball stopped at the shot position continues to be detected by the shot ball confirmation switch 36 for a predetermined specified time D, the value of the clock counter is incremented by 1 every 2 ms, and the value of the clock counter reaches the predetermined specified time D (30 ms, count value 15 in this example). In this case, step S753 is judged as YES, the shot ball is deemed to have been detected, the shot ball detection flag is set to 1 (detected) (step S754), and the subroutine of the shot ball detection process is exited.

[0439] On the other hand, when noise enters the shot ball confirmation switch 36, the shot ball confirmation switch 36 turns on momentarily, but then turns off. Therefore, in response to the shot ball confirmation switch 36 turning off, the value of the timing counter is set to 0, so that the value of the timing counter never reaches the predetermined specified time D (30 ms, count value 15 in this example).

[0440] In this way, when the launched ball confirmation switch 36 detects a game ball parked at the launch position for a predetermined specified time, it is determined that a launched ball is present, thereby eliminating erroneous counting of launched balls due to noise and increasing the reliability of detected launched balls.

[0441] [Number of balls held subtracted] Next, the ball number subtraction process will be described. Figure 93 is a flow chart showing the subroutine of the ball number subtraction process performed by the ball information control MPU. The ball number subtraction process is executed as one process of the main operation setting process of step S564 executed every 2 ms in the ball information control main process.

[0442] When the ball information control MPU starts the ball number subtraction process, it first judges whether the shot ball detection flag is 1 (detected) or not (step S760). If it judges that the shot ball detection flag is not 1 (detected), that is, if it judges step S760 as NO, it exits the subroutine of the ball number subtraction process. In this case, the number of balls held is not subtracted.

[0443] If it is determined in step S760 that the shot ball detection flag is 1 (detected), i.e., if step S760 is determined as YES, the process proceeds to step S761, where it is determined whether the shot ball confirmation switch 36 is off (step S761). If it is determined in step S761 that the shot ball confirmation switch 36 is not off, i.e., if step S761 is determined as NO, the subroutine for the ball count subtraction process is exited.

[0444] As mentioned above, when the launch solenoid 13 is turned on, the game ball parked at the launch position is shot into the game area 8 by the launch hammer 30, and the launched ball confirmation switch 36 is turned off. This decrements the number of balls held by 1. If it is determined in step S761 that the launched ball confirmation switch 36 is off, that is, if step S761 is determined to be YES, the value of the held ball number counter is decremented by 1 (step S762), the launched ball detection flag is set to 0 (no detection) (step S763), and the subroutine for the held ball number decrement process is exited.

[0445] In this way, if the fired ball confirmation switch 36 detects a game ball parked at the launch position for a predetermined specified time, it is determined that there is a fired ball, and if the fired ball confirmation switch 36 does not detect a game ball, it is determined that the game ball parked at the launch position has been fired, and the number of balls held is reduced by one.Therefore, if noise is introduced into the fired ball confirmation switch 36, it is possible to eliminate erroneous counting of fired balls due to the noise, and the reliability of detected fired balls can be increased.

[0446] [Sphere lift drive processing] Next, the lifting drive process will be described. Figure 94 is a flow chart showing the subroutine of the lifting drive process performed by the ball information control MPU. The lifting drive process is executed as one of the main operation setting processes of step S564, which is executed every 2 ms in the ball information control main process.

[0447] When the ball information control MPU starts the pumping drive process, it first judges whether the launch waiting ball detection switch 26 is on or not (step S770). If it judges in step S770 that the launch waiting ball detection switch 26 is off, that is, if step S770 is judged as NO, it proceeds to step S771, where it judges whether the pumping inlet switch 156 is on or not (step S771). If it judges in step S771 that the pumping inlet switch 156 is on, that is, if step S771 is judged as YES, it drives the ball pumping motor 150 (step S772), and exits the pumping drive process subroutine.

[0448] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S770 that the launch waiting ball detection switch 26 is on, that is, if step S770 is determined as YES, the ball lifting motor 150 is stopped (step S773), and the lifting drive processing subroutine is exited. Also, if it is determined in step S771 that the pumping inlet switch 156 is off, that is, if step S771 is determined as NO, the ball pumping motor 150 is stopped (step S773) and the pumping drive processing subroutine is exited.

[0449] In this way, when no game balls are detected by the launch waiting ball detection switch 26, it is determined that the required number of game balls is not met in the ball supply path member 24, and when the lifting entrance switch 156 detects game balls waiting in line in the ball feed passage 275, the ball lifting motor is driven on the condition that it is determined that there are game balls, and when the launch waiting ball detection switch 26 detects game balls waiting in line in the ball supply path member 24, the ball lifting device 22 is stopped to stop lifting the game balls, so that it is possible to prevent excessive lifting of game balls in the ball supply path member 24 and ball clogging. As a result, since the configuration is such that game balls are lifted, game balls can be sent to the ball supply path member 24 without excess or shortage.

[0450] In addition, the period during which the balls are sent out by the ball lifting device 22 to the ball supply path member 24 is set to be shorter than the period during which the balls are launched by the ball launching device 29 in the upper launching unit 12 and the period during which the balls are fed by the ball feeding device 28. In this embodiment, the period during which the balls are launched by the ball launching device 29 and the period during which the balls are fed by the ball feeding device 28 are 600 ms (100 shots per minute), and the period during which the balls are sent out by the ball lifting device 22 to the ball supply path member 24 is 384 ms. As a result, during play, the upper launching unit 12 operates to launch game balls into the play area by the ball launching device 29 and to send the game balls to the launch position by the ball sending device 28. However, since the cycle of sending game balls to the ball supply path member 24 by the ball lifting device 22 is shorter than the cycle of launching game balls and sending them to the laun...

Claims

[Claim 1] The apparatus includes a game board having a game area where game balls flow down, and a main body frame that houses the game board; The main body frame is provided with a launching device that launches game balls into the game area, and a transport path that flows down the game area, collects game balls discharged from the game board, and transports them again to the launch position of the launching device, A gaming machine in which a game is played by circulating a predetermined number of gaming balls without paying out gaming balls, The conveying path is provided with a lifting device that lifts the game balls by a screw unit, and a ball polishing unit is provided near the lifting device, The game balls come into contact with the ball polishing section through an opening provided in the lifting device, and the game balls are polished by the movement of the game balls accompanying the lifting, The opening is of a size that the game balls cannot pass through, and the game balls do not spill out of the lifting device even if the ball polishing unit is not installed. A circulation ball number determination control means is provided for determining whether the number of circulation balls is excessive or insufficient, Further, a game control means is provided which is capable of executing a game control for performing a lottery based on the detection of a game ball by a specific game ball detection sensor provided on the game board and for varying and displaying a pattern according to the result of the lottery; The ball polishing unit is detachable and replaceable from the gaming machine, Even when the ball polishing unit is detached from the gaming machine, the gaming control means can control the gaming machine. When the ball polishing unit is removed from the gaming machine, the gaming balls held in the screw unit are visible through the opening. A gaming machine characterized by the above.

Images