Prize exchange system and prize exchange device for amusement arcades

Abstract

To enable suppression of wrong operation on a prize exchange apparatus with which employees can try training operation.SOLUTION: When a card or a receipt is read as a normal recording medium during a training mode on POS, notification means notifies an employee of that the normal recording medium is read, thereby suppressing such the wrong operation as forgetting switching the training mode to a normal mode and running the parlor in the training mode.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 15

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a prize exchange system for a game arcade and a prize exchange device for a game arcade.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, a so-called POS (prize exchange device) has been installed at the prize exchange counter in a game arcade, and prize exchange processing using the POS has been performed by an employee. In this type of POS, it has been considered to mount a practice mode so that the employee can get used to the prize exchange processing (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, with the POS having the above configuration, while practical practice can be carried out on the POS, there is a risk that actual prize exchange processing may be performed in the practice mode during business hours. That is, what is to be accounted for in the POS is a recording medium such as an IC card brought in by a player during business hours, and information including the counted values of actually acquired balls and medals is recorded on the recording medium. Therefore, if an employee accidentally reads the player's recording medium by mistake in the practice mode, the prize exchange history will not be accumulated (the history will not remain), and it will be difficult to verify the incorrect operation and identify the counted values and the like.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a prize exchange system for a game arcade and a prize exchange device for a game arcade that can suppress incorrect operations in a prize exchange device capable of employee practice operations.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The invention of claim 1 is a prize exchange system for amusement arcades that can switch between a normal mode that enables normal operations for processing prize exchanges during business hours and a practice mode that enables employees to practice processing prize exchanges, The system includes an authentication means for authenticating an employee performing the prize exchange process, an authorization setting means for granting the employee authenticated by the authentication means the authority to switch to the practice mode, a counting means (for example, a counting dispensing unit 2 or island-end counting device 8) capable of counting the number of game media acquired by the player as a result of the game (for example, the number of balls counted), a normal issuing means (for example, a counting dispensing unit 2 having a counting unit or island-end counting device 8 having an issuing unit 8c) for issuing a normal recording medium (for example, cards 10A, 10B or receipt 11) associated with the number of game media counted by the counting means, a practice issuing means (for example, a POS 6 having a card RW 35 or printer 36) for issuing a practice recording medium (for example, cards 10A', 10B' or receipt 11') associated with the number of virtual game media in the practice mode, and the normal recording medium and the previous The system includes: a recording medium reading means (for example, a POS6 having a card RW35 or scanner 34) for reading a practice recording medium; a prize exchange processing execution means (for example, a control unit 37 of the POS6) capable of executing the prize exchange process by reading the normal recording medium and the practice recording medium with the recording medium reading means; a storage means (for example, storage units 37m, 5c) for storing information related to the prize exchange process executed by the prize exchange processing execution means; a mode determination means (for example, a control unit 37) for determining whether the recording medium is in normal mode or practice mode; a recording medium determination means (for example, a control unit 37) for determining whether the recording medium read by the recording medium reading means is a recording medium corresponding to the mode determined by the mode determination means; and a notification means for notifying an employee if the recording medium determination means determines that the recording medium is not corresponding to the mode.

[0007] According to the invention of claim 1, when the recording medium is normally read during practice mode, the notification means notifies the employee, thus preventing errors such as forgetting to switch from practice mode to normal mode and proceeding with the normal prize exchange process while still in practice mode during business hours. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] A schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a prize exchange system for amusement arcades in one embodiment. [Figure 2] Perspective view of the POS system from the employee's perspective. [Figure 3] External perspective view of the POS system as seen from the player's side. [Figure 4] Functional block diagram focusing on POS [Figure 5] Diagram showing the standby screen on the employee-side monitor of a POS system. [Figure 6] Diagram showing the menu screen. [Figure 7] Diagram showing the confirmation screen when switching to practice mode. [Figure 8] Diagram showing the practice mode screen. [Figure 9] Diagram showing the card reading screen when creating a practice recording medium. [Figure 10] This diagram shows the screen for selecting the type of recording medium when creating a practice recording medium. [Figure 11] This diagram shows the input screen for the number of game media when creating a practice recording medium. [Figure 12] This diagram shows a receipt as an example of a standard recording medium and a practice recording medium. [Figure 13] This diagram shows an example of a pop-up display on an employee's monitor. [Figure 14] This diagram shows an example of information stored in POS systems and management devices during the prize exchange process. [Figure 15] Flowchart showing the prize exchange process [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In the prize exchange system for a game arcade shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of gaming machines 1 are installed in the game arcade, and corresponding to each of these gaming machines 1 on a one-to-one basis, a counting lending unit 2 and an information display device 3 are attached. The gaming machine 1, the counting lending unit 2, and the information display device 3 are connected to a relay device 4 in pairs of two, and the relay device 4 is connected to a management device 5 via a LAN. The relay device 4 collects the operating status of the gaming machine 1 and the information of the counting lending unit 2 and the information display device 3. The management device 5 manages game information for each gaming machine 1, personal data for each member gamer registered as a member, etc. by receiving information (signals) transmitted from devices on the gaming machine side such as the gaming machine 1, the counting lending unit 2, etc.

[0010] Note that the information display device 3 in FIG. 1 includes a data display unit 3a that displays game information, announcements from the game arcade, etc. according to the operation of the gaming machine 1, and a well-known call button, etc. not shown in the figure. Also, "Pachinko Island" in FIG. 1 indicates a gaming machine island where the devices on the gaming machine side are installed. In the game arcade, for example, a plurality of gaming machine islands including a gaming machine island with a lending unit price of game media (lending unit price of balls) of 4 yen and a gaming machine island of 1 yen are formed.

[0011] In the game arcade, a POS 6, a settlement device 7, and an island end counting device 8 are also installed, and these devices 6 - 8 are also connected to the management device 5 via a LAN. A plurality of POS 6 are installed at a prize exchange corner (prize exchange counter) where a gamer exchanges game value for prizes. The POS 6 includes an attached device 9 for processing an IC card 10 such as a general card 10A or a member card 10B shown in FIG. 4 or a receipt 11 (see FIG. 12).

[0012] As will be described in detail later, the POS6 reads the information recorded on the IC card 10 and the receipt 11 using the attached device 9, and executes a prize exchange process based on the identified game value (the number of counting balls, the number of stored balls (in the case of a member)). That is, in the prize exchange process, the POS6 reads the game value (the number of game media) from the IC card 10 or the receipt 11, or identifies the member who wishes to exchange a prize, and thereby obtains online from the management device 5 the savings value (stored balls, etc.) deposited by the player as such a member at the game arcade, and identifies the game value that can be used for prize exchange. In addition, when the POS6 outputs to the management device 5, it adds a POSNo. (device ID) that can identify from which device among the plurality of POS6s at the prize exchange counter the signal is output.

[0013] The settlement device 7 includes a card insertion slot 7a into which the IC card 10 is inserted, and a card RW (card reader / writer, not shown in the figure) that reads the remaining deposit amount recorded on the inserted card 10, and executes a return process of returning the read remaining deposit amount (monetary value, hereinafter abbreviated as "balance") in cash such as banknotes and coins from the return port 7b.

[0014] The island end counting device 8 is a counting means capable of counting the pachinko balls (acquired balls) acquired by the player as a result of the game in the gaming machine 1, and is installed at a plurality of locations within the game arcade (for example, the island ends of the gaming machine islands). The acquired balls of the player need to be stored in a ball box and then transported from the gaming machine 1 to the island end of the gaming machine island and counted using the island end counting device 8, and the work related to the counting is performed by an employee. As shown in FIG. 1, the island end counting device 8 includes an input unit 8a for acquired balls, a touch panel type liquid crystal display unit 8b having a display function for displaying various information such as counting information and a reception function for operation inputs, a receipt issuing unit 8c for issuing a receipt 11, a card RW (only the insertion slot 8d is shown in the figure), and the like.

[0015] When acquired balls are inserted into the input section 8a of the island end counting device 8, the counting unit (not shown) of the device 8 performs counting processing on the acquired balls. Furthermore, when the island end counting device 8 has finished the counting processing, if, for example, a member card 10B is inserted into the card RW insertion slot 8d, it sends the counted value of the acquired balls (counted balls) as the number of stored balls (number of stored balls for the day), along with the member ID and the information including the number of stored balls, to the management device 5, and also issues the member card 10B to the outside of the insertion slot 8d (issuance process). On the other hand, when the island end counting device 8 has finished the counting process, if the member card 10B is not inserted into the card RW slot 8d, it performs an issuance process to issue a receipt 11 from the issuance unit 8c that has a 2D code indicating the number of balls counted recorded (associated with it).

[0016] Furthermore, when the island end counting device 8 finishes the counting process, it can issue a general card 10A that has recorded the number of balls counted by feeding it out to the outside of the insertion slot 8d, for example, if a general card 10A is inserted into the card RW insertion slot 8d, or by feeding out a card 10A from the card stock unit (not shown) mounted on the device 8 to the card RW side. Thus, the island end counting device 8 (normal issuing means) issues an IC card 10 or receipt 11 from the receipt issuing unit 8c that associates the number of balls (number of game media) counted by the counting unit.

[0017] Here, I will explain the IC card 10 and the receipt 11. As shown in Figure 4, both the general card 10A and the membership card 10B of the IC card 10 have an IC chip embedded in them and are standard recording media (hereinafter also referred to as "cards 10A and 10B") that can be associated with at least the number of gaming media in a way that allows for identification. The general card 10A is issued to an unspecified number of players as a card valid only for the day, and the IC chip 10a of the card 10A records a general ID (Identification), as well as information that can identify the balance and the number of balls counted (the total number of balls won by the player on that day) for each unit price.

[0018] On the other hand, the membership card 10B is a card that is valid until a predetermined expiration date (for example, 3 years) and is issued to players who have registered as members in advance. The number of stored balls associated with the membership card 10B (number of balls stored on the day and number of balls stored the previous day) is stored in the member account of the management device 5 for each unit price, while the IC chip 10b of the card 10B records the balance and the member ID of the member, which can identify the gaming value of the member account.

[0019] The receipt 11 is formed from a piece of paper shown at the top in Figure 12, and is a standard recording medium on which a two-dimensional code 11d, etc., is printed to attach (associate) information about the number of balls counted. As shown in the same figure, the receipt 11 has the name of the pachinko parlor 11a, the counting time (issuance time) 11b, the number of balls counted 11c, a two-dimensional code 11d (a barcode may also be used) for the POS 6 to read the information including the number of balls counted, and a message 11e warning that the prize exchange on the receipt 11 is only valid on the day of issue. Furthermore, the "information regarding the number of balls counted" associated with cards 10A, 10B, and receipt 11 shall include the number of gaming media and the type of gaming media (whether pachinko balls or tokens, and the rental price), as shown in "Total number of balls" and "4P" in Figure 14 described later.

[0020] The management device 5 shown in Figure 1 is installed in a gaming facility, for example, in an office, and includes a control unit including a CPU and memory unit (not shown), a transmitting and receiving unit, an input unit such as a keyboard 5a and a mouse, and an output unit such as a monitor 5b and a printer. The management device 5 manages the operating status of the gaming machine equipment and various devices 6 to 8, and for example, it stores and accumulates information related to the prize exchange process performed by POS 6 in the storage unit 5c (shown only in Figure 4) of the device 5.

[0021] Next, we will explain the gaming machine 1 and the counting / dispensing unit 2 as equipment on the gaming machine side. Note that in gaming machine islands (pachinko corners), there are corners equipped with counting / dispensing units 2 that have a so-called individual counting function, and corners equipped with counting / dispensing units 2 that do not have an individual counting function, depending on whether or not there is an island end counting device 8. However, we will mainly explain the counting / dispensing units 2 that have an individual counting function.

[0022] The game machine 1 shown in Figure 1 is a CR pachinko machine and has an operating handle 12, an upper receiving tray 13, and a lower receiving tray 14 that constitute a launching device for launching balls onto the game board 1a. The game board 1a also has an LCD display 15, a starting slot 16, and a big prize slot 17. When a player operates the operating handle 12, a ball is launched onto the game board 1a. When the pachinko ball enters the starting slot 16, the machine dispenses a number of pachinko balls corresponding to the entry, or a big win lottery is held. In the big win lottery, the LCD display 15 performs a symbol change using so-called special symbols, and a big win occurs when the stopped symbol displayed is a big win symbol. When a big win occurs, the big prize slot 17 is opened for, for example, 15 rounds.

[0023] The equipment on the gaming machine side transmits various game signals, such as an out signal that can identify the number of out balls indicating the number of game media inserted into the gaming machine 1, a safe signal that can identify the number of safe balls indicating the number of game media dispensed from the gaming machine 1 upon winning, and a status signal that can identify the jackpot state that has occurred in the gaming machine 1, in accordance with the progress of the game, such as when the player shoots balls or when a ball enters the starting slot 16.

[0024] Furthermore, the counting and dispensing unit 2 shown in Figure 1 includes a status display unit 22 that shows the current operating status, a banknote slot 23 into which banknotes are inserted, a touch panel type LCD display unit 24 that accepts operation input from the player and displays various data such as balance, number of balls counted and number of stored balls, a dispensing button 25 for dispensing one unit (equivalent to 500 yen) of balls, a dispensing nozzle 26 through which the dispensed balls pass, a card slot 27 into which a general card 10A or a membership card 10B is inserted, and a counting tray 28 that is detachably connected to the lower tray 14 of the gaming machine 1.

[0025] The counting and dispensing unit 2 is capable of detecting the operation of the dispensing button 1b and the return button 1c provided on the gaming machine 1. Although not shown in the diagram, the counting and dispensing unit 2 also contains, for example, a card stock section capable of storing up to 10 general cards 10A, a card RW for reading and writing various information recorded on each card 10A, 10B, and a counting section for counting the balls flowing in from the counting tray 28.

[0026] The counting and lending unit 2 has the following functions: (1) When a banknote is inserted into the banknote slot 23, the amount of the inserted banknote (in units of 1,000 yen) is stored, and the inserted amount (remaining balance) is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 24. (2) When the dispensing button 1b of the gaming machine 1 is operated, a dispensing process is performed in which the dispensing mechanism inside the gaming machine 1 dispenses a number of balls equivalent to one unit (500 yen) within the balance, according to the operation of the dispensing button 1b. If the counting dispensing unit 2 is installed on a 4 yen pachinko island, 125 balls will be dispensed, and if the counting dispensing unit 2 is installed on a 1 yen pachinko island, 500 balls will be dispensed. At this time, a signal is sent from the gaming machine 1 to the counting dispensing unit 2 indicating that balls equivalent to one unit have been dispensed, so one unit (500 yen) is deducted from the balance displayed on the LCD display unit 24, and a sales signal is sent that allows the identification of the number of balls dispensed. Since one pulse is sent each time balls equivalent to one unit are dispensed, one pulse is identified as a sales amount of 500 yen.

[0027] (3) When balls that have fallen from the lower receiving tray 14 of the gaming machine 1 are received in the counting tray 28, the balls received in the counting tray 28 flow into the counting unit, where a counting process is performed to count the balls which are the gaming medium, and the number of balls counted is displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 24. (4) When the payout button 25 is operated, the payout mechanism inside the gaming machine 1 dispenses a number of balls equivalent to one unit (500 yen) within the range of the counted number of balls or the number of stored balls, in accordance with the operation of the payout button 25.

[0028] (5) When the return button 1c of the gaming machine 1 is operated, information regarding the balance and the number of balls counted is recorded on the general card 10A, or the balance is recorded on the member card 10B and issued in accordance with the operation of the return button 1c. If neither card 10A nor 10B is inserted into the insertion slot 27, the information regarding the balance and the number of balls counted is recorded on the general card 10A stored in the card stock section by the card RW and issued. If the member card 10B is inserted into the insertion slot 27, the balance is recorded on the member card 10B, and the information regarding the number of balls counted is transmitted to the management device 5 on the condition that a PIN is entered and the member card 10B is issued. When a general card 10A or member card 10B is issued, an issuance signal that can identify the information recorded on the card 10A or 10B (information regarding the balance and the number of balls counted) is transmitted to the management device 5 along with the general ID or member ID, so that the management device 5 also stores the information recorded on the card 10A or 10B.

[0029] (6) When a general card 10A is inserted into the slot 27, the balance and number of balls recorded on the general card 10A are read by the card RW and displayed on the liquid crystal display unit 24. When a general card 10A is accepted, lending and return (issuance) processing is performed within the range of the balance and number of balls recorded on that general card 10A. (7) When the member card 10B is inserted into the slot 27, the balance recorded on the member card 10B is read by the card RW and displayed on the liquid crystal display 24, and the number of stored balls (counted balls) stored in the member account of the management device 5 is also displayed, subject to the input of a PIN. When the member card 10B is accepted, lending and return (issuance) processing is performed within the range of the balance recorded on the member card 10B and the number of counted balls and stored balls in the member account.

[0030] Although not shown in the diagram, the counting and lending unit 2 is equipped with a well-known camera that photographs the upper body, including the player's face, and the lending of gaming media is possible according to the authentication result of the player's facial image. As described above, the counting and lending unit 2 functions as a counting means capable of counting the number of game media acquired by a player as a result of playing the game through the counting process, and also functions as a normal issuing means for issuing general cards 10A and membership cards 10B associated with the counted number of game media as normal recording media.

[0031] Next, the configuration of POS6 will be described in detail, referring to the diagrams from Figure 2 onward. Here, Figures 2 and 3 show perspective views of the POS6 as seen from the employee side and the player side. As shown in the figures, the POS6 comprises a main unit 30 having monitors 31 and 32, and an accessory device 9 and a player operation unit 39, which are separate from the main unit 30. The POS6 is integrally constructed with the main unit 30 and a pair of monitors 31 and 32 facing away from each other, and one of the monitors 31 and 32 is the employee-side monitor 31, which is positioned to face the direction D1 where the employee is located at the prize exchange counter.

[0032] The employee-side monitor 31 consists of, for example, an LCD display and displays content for employees. The employee-side monitor 31 has a touch panel 33 on its front, and employees can operate the touch panel 33 with their fingers while looking at the monitor 31 (hereinafter referred to as touch operation).

[0033] The auxiliary device 9 is installed facing the employee, to the left of the POS 6 (as seen from the employee's perspective, see Figure 2), and is capable of communicating with the main unit 30. The auxiliary device 9 is configured as a single device equipped with the functions of a scanner 34, a card RW 35, and a printer 36, as shown in Figure 4. As shown in Figure 2, the auxiliary device 9 is shaped like a rectangular block, and on its top surface, the reading surface 34a of the scanner 34, the card insertion slot 35a, and the printing slot 36a of the printer 36 are arranged in order from the employee's front side. The card slot 35a of the auxiliary device 9 allows insertion of cards 10A, 10B, etc., to be read by the card RW 35, and the reading surface 34a is for scanning receipts 11, etc., with the scanner 34. The printer 36 issues receipts 11', etc., as described later, from its output slot 36a.

[0034] Furthermore, the player control unit 39 is positioned to the right of the POS 6 (as viewed from the player's side, see Figure 3) and is facing the player, and is capable of communicating with the main unit 30. The player control unit 39 is equipped with an enclosure 39a that extends along its left, right, and rear edges, and a keypad 39b enclosed by the enclosure 39a. The player can enter a PIN into the POS 6 by operating the keypad 39b. In POS6, the other monitor 32 is positioned, for example, at a prize exchange counter, back-to-back with the employee-side monitor 31, facing the direction D2 where the player is located, and displays content for the player. The player-side monitor 32 is also composed of, for example, an LCD display.

[0035] Figure 4 shows a functional block diagram of POS6. The control unit 37 of POS6 is mainly composed of a microcomputer having a CPU 37a, memory units 37m such as ROM 37b and RAM 37c, and I / O 37d. Peripherals connected to the control unit 37 include the employee-side monitor 31, touch panel 33, and player-side monitor 32 mentioned above, as well as an I / F unit 38 that sends and receives various signals and information with the management device 5, etc. Peripherals also include the scanner 34, card RW 35, and printer 36 of the accessory device 9, and the numeric keypad 39b of the player operation unit 39.

[0036] The control unit 37 of POS6 reads cards 10A and 10B received by card RW 35 and receipt 11 received by scanner 34 to perform the prize exchange process in the following procedure. Prior to performing the prize exchange process, the employee in charge must be authenticated. This is done by reading the operator information of the employee card (not shown) inserted into the card slot 35a with card RW 35 and comparing that operator information (ID and name of the employee in charge, etc.) with the all-employee ID table pre-stored in the storage unit 37m.

[0037] (a) When a general card 10A or a member card 10B is inserted into the card slot 35a in place of an employee card, the card RW 35 reads the information of card 10A, 10B, including ID information such as general ID or member ID (hereinafter referred to as "card information"), and transmits the card information to the management device 5 to request verification of the number of balls counted (number of balls stored for the day) corresponding to the ID information. Note that if a general card 10A is inserted into the slot 35a, the card information read by the card RW 35 also includes information regarding the number of balls counted. Furthermore, when a receipt 11 is held over the reading surface 34a of the scanner 34, the scanner 34 reads the information of the 2D code 11d on the receipt 11 (hereinafter referred to as "receipt information"), transmits the receipt information to the management device 5, and requests verification of the corresponding number of balls counted.

[0038] (b) Based on the verification results transmitted from the management device 5, if the handling of information regarding the number of balls counted is deemed valid, the number of special prizes that can be exchanged with that number of balls is calculated for each unit price and the number of balls counted and the number of special prizes are displayed on each monitor 31, 32 respectively. On the other hand, if the information regarding the number of balls count is deemed invalid based on the verification results, this is displayed as an "error" on at least the employee-side monitor 31, prompting the employee in charge to verify the authenticity of the card 10A, 10B or receipt 11.

[0039] (c) When exchanging stored balls for prizes using the member card 10B, if a PIN is entered by operating the keypad 39b of the player's operation unit 39, the number of stored balls for the corresponding member is requested from the management device 5, and the number of stored balls transmitted from the management device 5 is displayed. This display of stored balls is done by displaying the total number of balls, which is the sum of the number of stored balls for the day and the number of stored balls for the previous day, on each of the monitors 31 and 32. (d) Regarding the selection of prizes, the type of prize is identified based on the operation input by touch operation on the employee monitor 31 (touch panel 33), or based on the operation input by reading the prize identification code (e.g., barcode) with the scanner 34, and the type of prize that the player wishes to exchange is identified. In addition, calculation processing is performed to determine the number of balls (prize value) corresponding to the identified prize.

[0040] (e) Determine the prize to be exchanged and subtract the number of balls corresponding to that prize from the total number of balls to calculate the remaining number of balls. After the prize is confirmed by POS6, the prize is handed over by the employee in charge. If there are any remaining balls or balance on cards 10A and 10B, the remaining balls or balance is recorded on cards 10A and 10B by card RW35 (for membership cards, only the balance is recorded). After that, cards 10A and 10B are returned to the player by the employee in charge.

[0041] In this embodiment, the prizes include the special prizes and general prizes described above. There are three types of special prizes: large special prize (hereinafter also referred to as "large"), medium special prize (hereinafter also referred to as "medium"), and small special prize (hereinafter also referred to as "small") (see Figure 14 below). The corresponding amounts for each special prize (the amount at which they are purchased at the exchange counter outside the game hall) are set as follows, for example, 5,000 yen for large special prize, 1,000 yen for medium special prize, and 200 yen for small special prize. General prizes are general prizes such as confectionery (hereinafter simply referred to as prizes), and various types of prizes are available at the prize exchange counter.

[0042] When exchanging special prizes for general prizes, etc., the operations performed by employees during business hours using the touch panel 33, scanner 34, card RW 35, etc., to process the prize exchange at POS 6 are referred to as normal operations. Normal operations include not only the employee operations described in (a) to (e) above, but also operations performed in conjunction with the prize exchange process. The history of these operations is transmitted to the management device 5 as information related to the prize exchange process and stored therein. For example, if a member card 10B is inserted into the slot 35a in POS6, and a deposit operation is performed to store balls without exchanging them for special prizes based on the receipt information (number of balls counted) read, the number of balls deposited, associated with the member ID of card 10B, is transmitted to the management device 5. In this case, the storage unit 5c of the management device 5 stores information about the stored balls with the number of special prizes exchanged set to zero "0" (see the "Stored Balls: ○" and "0" columns in "Large" to "Small" in Figure 14 described later).

[0043] Now, the POS6 (prize exchange device for amusement arcades) of this embodiment is configured to be switchable between a normal mode that enables normal operations for processing prize exchanges during business hours and a practice mode that enables employees to practice processing prize exchanges, and in practice mode it is possible to issue a practice recording medium that corresponds to the number of virtual game media.

[0044] Furthermore, in order to suppress errors caused by the settings of the normal mode and practice mode, POS6 is configured to perform a prize exchange process using practice operations if the recording medium read by the card RW35 or scanner 34 is determined to be a practice recording medium in practice mode, while restricting the prize exchange process if it is determined to be a normal recording medium. In the following, the control unit 37, which is the control body (prize exchange processing execution means), will be simply referred to as "POS6," and "1. Normal mode and practice mode," "2. Issuance of practice mode recording medium and management of history," and "3. Flow of prize exchange processing" will be explained with reference to Figures 5 to 15. Figures 5 to 11 represent the screen of the employee-side monitor 31 in POS6.

[0045] <1. Normal Mode and Practice Mode> Figure 5 shows the standby screen 50 of POS6 in normal mode. The employee in charge of prize exchange has their employee card read in advance by the card RW35 of POS6. As a result, the top section 51 of the standby screen 50 displays the "date (time)" along with the ID of the employee in charge (shown as "Employee 4" in the figure) on the employee display section 51a. In addition, the top section 51 is equipped with a display section 51b that indicates "Standby" to show that it is the standby screen in normal mode.

[0046] The standby screen 50 is provided with a column 52 that displays the "total number" which represents the sum of the number of balls counted or the total number of balls read from the cards 10A, 10B or receipt 11, which are normally used as recording media; the "exchangeable number" which represents the amount of game value that can be exchanged for special prizes from the total number; and the "remainder (total number - exchangeable number)" which is the total number minus the exchangeable number. In addition, there is a column 53 that shows the number of each of the "large," "medium," and "small" special prizes, and a column 54 that shows the "prize name," "unit price," and "quantity" for each of the above-mentioned prizes.

[0047] In the right-hand column 55 of the standby screen 50, various buttons are displayed, including a "Menu" button 55a for displaying the menu screen, a numeric keypad 55b, and buttons related to "storing tokens". When the "Menu" button 55a is touched, POS6 transitions from the standby screen 50 to the menu screen 60 shown in Figure 6. When the "Open / Close Store" button 61a on the same screen 60 is touched, the open / close store menu list 62 is displayed.

[0048] Specifically, in the menu screen 60 of Figure 6, the right-hand column 61 is provided with buttons 61a to 61h for "Open / Close Store," "Inventory," "IC Card," "Settings," "Data," "Members," "Special Operations," and "Maintenance Information." Touching any of these buttons 61a to 61h will display the corresponding content in the menu list 62 on the left. The store opening / closing menu list 62 includes buttons 62a to 62f for performing the following actions when opening or closing the store: "Open," "Close / Remember," "Clear for the day," "Start practice," "Remember data," and "Shift change." Touching any of these buttons 62a to 62f will perform the corresponding action.

[0049] For example, "Start Practice" is button 62d, which is pressed when an employee is unfamiliar with operating POS6 and wants to practice the prize exchange process to become accustomed to it. In other words, if an employee is unfamiliar with the prize exchange process using POS6, it will take time to process the prize and keep customers waiting, so employees need to become familiar with operating POS6. When starting this "Start Practice," it may be done together with a manager or other person in charge, as illustrated in the employee display section 51a of Figure 6.

[0050] When the "Start Practice" button 62d is touched, POS6 transitions from the menu screen 60 to the confirmation screen 70 shown in Figure 7. On the confirmation screen 70, a confirmation field 71 is displayed showing the "Execute" button 71a and the "Cancel" button 71b, along with the message "Start practice processing. Is that OK?". When the "Execute" button 71a is touched, the system transitions to the practice mode screen 80 shown in Figure 8, switching from normal mode to practice mode. The practice mode screen 80 has a display unit 81b at its top 81 that indicates that practice mode is in progress, displaying "Practicing," and a "End Practice" button 81c that is operated when returning from practice mode to normal mode. When the "End Practice" button 81c is touched, POS6 transitions to the menu screen 60 or the standby screen 50 and switches from practice mode to normal mode.

[0051] The practice mode screen 80, like the standby screen 50, has fields 52 for displaying "total number," "exchangeable number," and "fraction," a field 53 for showing the number of each special prize categorized as "large," "medium," and "small," and a field 54 for showing "prize name," "unit price," and "quantity." In practice mode, users can practice the prize exchange process using dedicated receipts and cards. Furthermore, in the practice mode screen 80 shown in Figure 8, touching the "Menu (Close)" button 55a will close the menu section, displaying a group of buttons including the numeric keypad 55b and buttons related to "Store Balls," similar to the standby screen 50 shown in Figure 5.

[0052] On the practice mode screen 80, when transitioning from the confirmation screen 70, that is, when transitioning from normal mode to practice mode, a receipt specifically for practice mode is automatically issued from the printer 36's output slot 36a. The practice recording medium issued at this time is called "receipt 11'" to distinguish it from receipt 11, which is a normal recording medium. Furthermore, a "Create Practice Card" button 61i is provided in the right-hand column 61 of the practice mode screen 80. When the POS6 touches the "Create Practice Card" button 61i, it transitions from the practice mode screen 80 to the practice card creation screen 90 shown in Figure 9, allowing it to issue a general card or membership card specifically for practice mode. The practice recording medium issued in this way is referred to as "General Card 10A'" or "Membership Card 10B'" (neither of which are shown in the illustration), to distinguish it from the general card 10A or membership card 10B used as a normal recording medium.

[0053] <2. Issuance of recording media for practice mode and management of history> Receipt 11' is made up of the paper piece shown at the bottom of Figure 12, and the same information 11a, 11b, 11c, and 11e as receipt 11, such as the name of the pachinko parlor 11a, is printed on the paper piece, along with the notation α "Practice Receipt" and a 2D code 11d'. From the comparison of receipts 11' and 11 in Figure 12, both 11' and 11 are almost identical in appearance except for the notation α that reads "Practice Receipt," but the information assigned by their respective 2D codes 11d' and 11d is different.

[0054] In other words, receipt 11 is issued from the receipt issuing unit 8c of the island end counting device 8 during business hours, and the 2D code 11d is printed in a way that allows reading of information regarding the number of balls won by the player and the time of issuance of the receipt 11. In contrast, receipt 11' is automatically issued by the POS6 printer 36 when switching to practice mode (i.e., regardless of whether the store is open or not), so the 2D code 11d' is printed in a way that allows information to be read to identify it, so to speak, as a virtual number of balls counted (virtual number of game media). Therefore, the 2D code 11d' can distinguish between information about the virtual number of balls counted, the time the receipt 11' was issued, and identification information indicating that it was issued in practice mode (see "Practice" in Figure 14). In this way, the POS6 and printer 36 function as practice issuing means for issuing receipt 11' in practice mode.

[0055] General cards 10A' and membership cards 10B' are issued as follows: Specifically, first, on the practice card creation screen 90 in Figure 9, the message "Please read the IC card" is displayed in the "Create practice card" section 91 on the left. In this case, a general card 10A or a member card 10B, which does not have any data (number of balls counted) recorded on it, is inserted into the card slot 35a of POS6. As a result, when POS6 receives the general card 10A or member card 10B with card RW35, it transitions from the practice card creation screen 90 to the type selection screen 100 in Figure 10.

[0056] On the type selection screen 100, the message "Please select the type to perform" is displayed in the "Create Practice Card" section 101, along with the "4-Pachinko" button 102 and the "20-Slot" button 103 indicating the aforementioned types. Although not shown in the diagram, it is of course possible to display other types (1-Pachinko or 5-Slot) to correspond to, for example, pachinko machines with a rental price of 1 yen or slot machines with a rental price of 5 yen set at the amusement facility. Furthermore, on the type selection screen 100, the "Return to Menu" button 55d is displayed in the same location as the "Menu (Close)" button 55a on the right. When the "Return to Menu" button 55d is touched, POS6 returns from the type selection screen 100 to the original practice mode screen 80. On the other hand, if a type is selected by, for example, touching the "4-Pachinko" button 102, the system transitions from the type selection screen 100 to the game medium input screen 110 shown in Figure 11.

[0057] The game token input screen 110 displays the message "Please enter the number of tokens" in the "Create practice card" section 111, the selected "4-yen pachinko" type, the "number" and "date and time" of the accepted card's general ID or member ID, and the "status" of the "practice mode." It also displays the "current number of tokens" currently associated with the general card 10A or member card 10B, and the "number of tokens to be rewritten" to be associated as the number of virtual game tokens.

[0058] Additionally, on the game media input screen 110, the following buttons are displayed in the same location as the "Menu (Close)" button 55a on the right: "Return to Menu" button 55d, numeric keypad 55b, "Return to Menu" button 55d, "Cancel" button 55e, and "Rewrite" button 55f. Then, when the "number of balls to rewrite" on the input screen 110 is entered by touch operation on the numeric keypad 55b and the "rewrite" button 55f is touched, POS6 associates (records) the selected type "4-pachinko", the virtual number of balls counted as the "number of balls to rewrite", and identification information indicating that it was issued in practice mode with the general card 10A or member card 10B using card RW35, and issues the card 10A or 10B as general card 10A' or member card 10B'. In this way, POS6 and card RW35 function as practice issuing means for issuing cards 10A' and 10B' in practice mode.

[0059] Furthermore, when the "Cancel" button 55e is touched on POS6, the rewriting of information including "Number of balls to rewrite" is canceled (reset to zero), and when the "Return to menu" button 55d is touched, the system returns from the type selection screen 100 to the practice mode screen 80. This allows the user to practice the prize exchange process in practice mode while the same screen 80 is displayed. This practice operation is for executing a prize exchange process by reading a general card 10A', a membership card 10B', or a receipt 11', and allows for practical practice using operating means (touch panel 33, etc.) or recording medium reading means (scanner 34, card RW 35), similar to the normal operation.

[0060] Furthermore, in this embodiment, information relating to the prize exchange process performed by POS6 is stored in the storage unit 37m (storage means) of the device 6, and the information is transmitted to the management device 5 and stored in its storage unit 5c (storage means). Here, Figure 14 shows an example of information relating to the prize exchange process stored and managed by the management device 5, and this information includes the following.

[0061] • Business Day: This is the date on which the prize exchange processing history is referenced, and can be arbitrarily selected for each business day. • Time: The time when the prize exchange process was executed. • Unit number: Unit number of POS6 identified by the aforementioned device ID • Responsible party: Employee ID that processed the prize exchange. • Type: The type of game medium stored in the recording media 10A, 10B, 10A', 10B', 11, 11' read during the prize exchange process. • Number of tickets: The total number of receipts 11 and 11' read during the prize exchange process. • Card ID / Member ID: The general ID or member ID of card 10A, 10B, 10A', 10B' read during the prize exchange process. • Number of special prizes exchanged: The number of "large," "medium," and "small" special prizes dispensed as a result of the prize exchange process. • Practice: This is the mode used during prize exchange processing, and the practice mode identified based on the aforementioned identification information is specified with "○". • Stored Balls: When balls are transferred to a storage account during the prize exchange process, the deposit of those balls is identified with a "○".

[0062] POS6 displays the information related to the prize exchange process as history on the employee monitor 31. This allows us to see that although all of the prize exchange processes in Figure 14 were performed by the same employee "1", the prize exchange processes at "9:59" and "10:01" were performed during practice mode, while the remaining prize exchange processes were performed during normal mode. Of these, POS6 does not deduct any of the special prizes exchanged during practice mode (they are not included in the accounting). This is because the receipt 11' read at "9:59" and the card 10A' (or 10B') read at "10:01" are merely practice operations handling virtual game media, and are therefore excluded from accounting based on the practice mode identification information.

[0063] In normal operation in normal mode, it can be seen that at time "10:03", receipt 11 was read and one "large", one "medium", and four "small" special prizes were handed to the player, and at time "10:05", card 10A or 10B was read and three "large" and three "medium" special prizes were handed to the player. Furthermore, it can be seen that at time "10:07", receipt 11 was read and a deposit operation for stored tokens was performed without exchanging them for special prizes. Furthermore, the employee-side monitor 31 of POS6 may display the number of prizes exchanged, such as confectionery, in addition to the "Number of Special Prizes Exchanged" shown in Figure 14. The same display as on the employee-side monitor 31 can also be shown on the monitor 5b of the management device 5.

[0064] <3. Flow of prize exchange processing> The flowchart in Figure 15 shows the flow of processing that occurs when cards 10A, 10B, 10A', 10B' are read by card RW35 in POS6, or when receipts 11, 11' are read by scanner 34. S1, S2, ... in the figure represent each step.

[0065] In this embodiment, in order to suppress erroneous operations caused by mode switching in POS6, a pop-up display is shown on the employee-side monitor 31 screen. For example, if card 10A is read while POS6's mode is switched to practice mode (S10 and S12), the pop-up display 103 will show the message "Caution!! This is a regular IC card. Regular IC cards cannot be used in practice mode." and a "Confirm" button 131, as illustrated in Figure 13, to inform the employee that a recording medium corresponding to the mode is not being handled.

[0066] Specifically, first, POS6 determines, as a mode determination means, whether the current mode is normal mode or practice mode (S1). If POS6 determines that the current mode has been switched to normal mode in response to the touch operation of the "Start Practice" button 62d (S1: YES, S2), it determines whether the recording medium read by card RW35 or scanner 34 is a normal recording medium or a practice recording medium (S3).

[0067] Here, if the POS6 (recording medium determination means) determines, based on the reading result by the card RW35 or scanner 34, that the recording medium is a normal recording medium (card 10A, 10B, or receipt 11) in which the practice mode identification information is not recorded (S3: YES, S4), it executes the prize exchange process (S5). In this case, for example, on screen 50 in Figure 5, the "total number" which is the number of balls counted, is displayed, and the number of special prizes that can be exchanged is calculated and the number of special prizes for each category from "large" to "small" is displayed. Alternatively, based on the operation input by touch operation, the type of prize that the player wishes to exchange is identified, and the result of subtracting the number of balls corresponding to that prize from the counted number (remaining number of balls) is displayed. Also, if there are remaining balls or balances on cards 10A and 10B, the remaining balls or balances are recorded by card RW35 in association with cards 10A and 10B (updated as remaining balls), and this prize exchange process is terminated (returned).

[0068] On the other hand, if POS6 determines in S3 that the practice recording medium (card 10A', 10B' or receipt 11') has practice mode identification information recorded on it (S3: NO, S6), it restricts the prize exchange process in normal mode (S7). In this case, POS6 does not exchange special prizes or other prizes (actual payout of prizes), nor does it deduct the number of balls counted in connection with such exchanges.

[0069] Then, if card 10A' is to be read, POS6 executes a notification process (S8) on screen 50 in Figure 5, displaying a pop-up message including "Caution!! This is a practice IC card. Practice IC cards cannot be used in normal mode." and a "Confirm" button. In this case, when the "Confirm" button is touched, POS6 deletes the number of balls counted recorded on card 10A' (resetting the number of virtual game tokens to zero) and terminates the process (returns).

[0070] On the other hand, if POS6 determines in S1 that the current mode has been switched to practice mode (S1:NO, S10), it determines whether the recording medium read by card RW35 or scanner 34 is a normal recording medium or a practice recording medium (S11). At this time, if POS6 determines, based on the reading result by card RW35 or scanner 34, that the recording medium is a normal recording medium in which no practice mode identification information is recorded (S11:YES, S12), it restricts the prize exchange process (S13) and performs notification processing (S14).

[0071] In other words, for example, if card 10A is read while in practice mode (S12), POS6 will not accept the practice operation on screen 80 in Figure 8, so as not to perform the prize exchange process as a practice operation, nor will it deduct the number of balls recorded on card 10A (S13), and will notify the employee by displaying the pop-up display 103 in Figure 13 on the same screen 80 (S14). This prompts the employee to confirm whether card 10A is a regular recording medium or a practice recording medium, and then the process ends (returns). In response, the employee can take action by touching the "Confirm" button 131 on the pop-up display 103, or by touching the "End Practice" button 81c at the top of the same screen 80 to switch from practice mode to normal mode.

[0072] On the other hand, if POS6 determines that the current mode is practice mode and the read recording medium is a practice recording medium (S10 and S11: NO, S15), it executes the prize exchange process based on the practice operation (S16). In this case, POS6 displays, for example, the number of special prizes that can be exchanged according to the number of game media recorded on card 10A', or the number of other prizes according to the practice operation, but no special prizes are actually dispensed (no actual exchange of special prizes takes place), nor are the stocks of other prizes reduced. Furthermore, even if a practice operation is performed at POS6, the number of game media recorded on card 10A' is not reduced, and the prize exchange process can be executed any number of times. Information on the exchange history related to the prize exchange process executed in practice mode is stored in a way that allows identification that it is in practice mode (see "Practice: ○" in Figure 14).

[0073] As described above, the following effects can be obtained according to this embodiment. When the mode determination means determines that the system is in practice mode (S10), POS6 executes the prize exchange process based on practice operations if the reading target determined by the recording medium determination means is a practice recording medium such as cards 10A', 10B', or receipt 11' (S15), while restricting the prize exchange process if it is a normal recording medium such as cards 10A, 10B, or receipt 11 (S12). According to this, in POS6, if, for example, cards 10A, 10B, or receipt 11 are read during practice mode, the prize exchange process is restricted. This prevents errors such as forgetting to switch from practice mode to normal mode and accidentally performing a normal prize exchange process while still in practice mode during business hours.

[0074] When the mode determination means determines that the mode is normal (S2), POS6 executes the prize exchange process if the reading target determined by the recording medium determination means is a normal recording medium (S4), while restricting the prize exchange process if it is a practice recording medium (S6). According to this, when a card 10A', 10B' or receipt 11' issued in practice mode is read during normal mode in POS6, for example, the prize exchange process is restricted. This prevents errors such as processing these practice recording media in normal mode, and eliminates the problem of errors occurring when prize exchange processing is performed on gaming media that have not actually been counted.

[0075] POS6 is configured as a recording medium count deletion means that deletes the number of virtual game media associated with the practice recording medium (S9) when the mode determination means determines that it is in normal mode (S2) and the reading target determined by the recording medium determination means is a practice recording medium (S6). According to this, for example, when reading cards 10A', 10B' or receipt 11' in normal mode, the number of game media recorded on the practice recording medium is deleted, thus preventing the prize exchange process from being carried out using virtual game media even in normal mode.

[0076] If the mode determination means determines that the POS6 is in practice mode (S10), it stores information related to the prize exchange process in the storage means (for example, storage unit 37m or storage unit 5c) in a way that identifies that it is in practice mode. This makes it possible to identify whether the information related to the prize exchange process was performed in practice mode, and even if, due to a malfunction or other reason, a normal card is read and the prize exchange process is performed despite the system being in practice mode, it becomes possible to recover the data later.

[0077] POS6 is configured as a notification means that notifies the employee when the mode determination means determines that it is in practice mode (S10) and the reading target determined by the recording medium determination means is a normal recording medium (S12) (S14). According to this, for example, it is possible to prevent situations in which the prize exchange process is inadvertently performed in practice mode with cards 10A, 10B or receipt 11, and to reliably eliminate such errors. The notification means is not limited to a display means such as the pop-up display 103 in Figure 13, but may also be configured to include an audio means that provides warnings by sound, etc.

[0078] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and may be modified or expanded as follows, or each modified example may be combined with the embodiments described above, or each modified example may be combined. Switching to practice mode can be done by any employee, but authentication using the employee card may be required, for example, or the necessary permissions for switching to practice mode may be set on a designated IC card. Additionally, when switching from practice mode to normal mode, the number of game data points recorded on the practice recording medium (cards 10A', 10B', etc.) may be deleted.

[0079] When a recording medium is read in practice mode, if it is a normal recording medium, the prize exchange process is restricted. However, instead of or in addition to this restriction, the system may also notify employees that a normal recording medium has been read in a different mode. The number and types of practice recording media issued can be set in any way; for example, receipts 11 for all types may be issued, such as the top two types with the highest exchange frequency.

[0080] Furthermore, the number of game media recorded on the practice recording medium can be set in any way, for example, it can be a predetermined number of game media, or it can be changed as appropriate, such as setting the number of game media to a constant multiple of the number of seconds of the time based on the time when the practice mode is switched. When issuing cards 10A' and 10B' as practice recording media, employees are currently required to select the type and number of game media. However, it would also be possible to pre-set how many game media each type will record, so that the data is automatically recorded when the card is inserted. Furthermore, the term "memory" in the above description can be understood as having the same meaning as "record," for example, by referring to "means of memory" as "means of recording."

[0081] Although a pachinko machine was used as an example of the target gaming machine 1, slot machines and other similar machines may also be used, and the method can also be applied to so-called sealed-type slot machines and pachinko machines that manage the gaming medium solely through data. In this embodiment, the transition to practice mode is performed by a switching operation on POS6 (the device itself), but the management device 5 may also send a signal to instruct the transition to practice mode. Furthermore, if there are multiple POS6s as in this embodiment, the system may be configured to switch all of the POS6s to practice mode at once. [Explanation of symbols]

[0082] In the drawing, 2 is a counting and lending unit (counting means, normal issuing means), 5c is a storage unit (storage means), 6 is a POS (point-of-sale) system (prize exchange device for amusement arcades, practice issuing means, recording medium reading means, prize exchange processing execution means, mode determination means, recording medium determination means, recording medium count deletion means, notification means), 8 is an island end counting device (counting means, normal issuing means), 10A is a general card (normal recording medium), 10A' is a general card (practice recording medium), and 10B is a membership card (normal recording medium) The components are: 10B' is a membership card (practice recording medium), 31 is a monitor (notification means), 34 is a scanner (recording medium reading means), 35 is a card RW (practice issuance means, recording medium reading means, recording medium count deletion means), 36 is a printer (practice issuance means), 37 is a control unit (practice issuance means, recording medium reading means, prize exchange processing execution means, mode determination means, recording medium determination means, recording medium count deletion means, notification means), and 37m is a storage unit (storage means).

Claims

1. In a prize exchange system for amusement arcades, which can switch between a normal mode that enables normal operations for processing prize exchanges during business hours and a practice mode that enables employees to practice processing prize exchanges, Authentication means for authenticating the employee performing the prize exchange process, An authorization setting means for setting the authority to enable employees authenticated by the authentication means to switch to the practice mode, A counting means capable of counting the number of game tokens acquired by a player as a result of the game, A normal issuing means that issues a normal recording medium associated with the number of game media counted by the counting means, A practice issuing means for issuing a practice recording medium that associates the number of virtual game media in the aforementioned practice mode, A recording medium reading means for reading the aforementioned ordinary recording medium and the aforementioned practice recording medium, A prize exchange processing execution means capable of executing the prize exchange process by reading the ordinary recording medium and the practice recording medium with the recording medium reading means, A storage means for storing information relating to the prize exchange process executed by the prize exchange process execution means, A mode determination means for determining whether the mode is the normal mode or the practice mode, A recording medium determination means for determining whether the recording medium read by the recording medium reading means is a recording medium corresponding to the mode determined by the mode determination means, A means of informing employees, Equipped with, The prize exchange processing execution means, when a normal recording medium is read in practice mode and it is determined that it is a recording medium that does not correspond to the determined mode, restricts the prize exchange processing so as not to deduct the number of game media associated with the normal recording medium. The notification means is a prize exchange system for a gaming arcade that, when the prize exchange process is restricted, notifies that the normal recording medium has been read in the practice mode.

2. In a prize exchange device for amusement arcades, which can switch between a normal mode that enables normal operations for processing prize exchanges during business hours and a practice mode that enables employees to practice processing prize exchanges, Authentication means for authenticating the employee performing the prize exchange process, An authorization setting means for setting the authority to enable employees authenticated by the authentication means to switch to the practice mode, A practice issuing means for issuing a practice recording medium that associates the number of virtual game media in the aforementioned practice mode, A recording medium reading means for reading a regular recording medium and a practice recording medium that associate the number of game media obtained as a result of the player's gameplay, A prize exchange processing execution means capable of executing the prize exchange process by reading the ordinary recording medium and the practice recording medium with the recording medium reading means, A storage means for storing information relating to the prize exchange process executed by the prize exchange process execution means, A mode determination means for determining whether the mode is the normal mode or the practice mode, A recording medium determination means for determining whether the recording medium read by the recording medium reading means is a recording medium corresponding to the mode determined by the mode determination means, A means of informing employees, Equipped with, The prize exchange processing execution means, when a normal recording medium is read in practice mode and it is determined that it is a recording medium that does not correspond to the determined mode, restricts the prize exchange processing so as not to deduct the number of game media associated with the normal recording medium. The notification means is a prize exchange device for a gaming arcade that, when the prize exchange process is restricted, notifies that the normal recording medium has been read in the practice mode.

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