JP2010172671A - Pseudo ball box - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a ball box for reducing burdens on a player and a shop employee and achieving the satisfaction of the player and the vigor of a shop. <P>SOLUTION: The pseudo ball box 100 is the ball box 100 independent of a game machine used in a game hall and includes a communication means, and the ball box is operated by receiving signals transmitted corresponding to the number of game media possessed by a player by the communication means. The pseudo ball box includes: an upper lid 20 covered with pseudo game media 25; side face plates 30 surrounding four sides in a trapezoidal shape with a lower surface narrower than an upper surface; a recessed part in the upper part of the side face plate 30; a plurality of movable pieces 34 having a fulcrum at the outer side lower part of the side face plate 30 and brought down to the outer side of the side face plate 30 on the lower part of the side face plate 30; a bottom surface plate 80 provided on the side face plate 70 at the bottom part of the plurality of stacked side face plates; and an elevating and lowering mechanism 120 installed between the bottom surface plate 80 and the upper lid 20. The elevating and lowering mechanism 120 is moved corresponding to the number of game media acquired by a player. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  In the present invention, after the game media obtained by the player from the gaming machines are counted by the counting means provided in each gaming machine, the counted number of gaming media can be expressed in a three-dimensional manner by a pseudo ball box. It relates to the simulated ball box.

  Games using game media have long been popular as entertainment rooted in the hearts of the masses. Pachinko is particularly popular as an easy way to enjoy entertainment. The sound of a pachinko ball falling at a pachinko amusement store (hereinafter referred to simply as a store), the sound effect of a pachinko ball entering a winning slot, and even within the store The music of the flowing warship march creates a unique vibrancy in a noisy atmosphere, satisfying the playfulness of the player. In addition, as shown in FIG. 13, a ball box that collects the balls that a player placed on the floor in a cluttered manner disturbs the service behavior of store employees and other players, but it is rather a player. It gives the player a sense of fun and satisfies the playfulness of the player, and at the same time brings out the effect of directing the vibrancy of the store.

  However, because of the recent technological advancement and the reduction of the burden of player or employee assistance in heavy goods transportation caused by exchanging large amounts of pachinko ball prizes, A game machine of a ball circulation system is provided in a store, which is provided with a counting control means for the number of balls for the purpose of quickly processing a prize exchange or the like without directly touching a pachinko ball. This ball count management means provides a dedicated ball box in the gaming machine, puts pachinko balls stored in the lower plate into the dedicated ball box, and counts pachinko balls from the outlet that communicates with this ball box. The number of balls counted by the ball counting unit is sent to the management server for management and recorded in a storage medium owned by the player, such as a card, so that prizes can be exchanged at store counters. (See Non-Patent Document 1, etc.).

  In such a store, although it seems to be orderly as shown in FIG. 14, the player cannot visually confirm the amount of pachinko balls acquired. Therefore, what about the neighbors, I'm out, but what about others, conversely, I'm losing so much, but I can't compare what other people are, and the player feels the appearance. I can not feel it in general. The store managers do their best, but only the players know the pachinko balls that are out, and the store atmosphere is not strong. As a result, even if it is a prosperous store, the operation tends to decrease, and even if a new store is opened, the ability to attract customers is affected and it becomes more difficult to maintain management.

  For this reason, a method for displaying the quantity of pachinko balls acquired on the upper part of the gaming machine has been proposed as a proposal for making the player feel the satisfaction of giving a sense of play (see Patent Document 1). There are also proposals for volume display by voice (see Patent Document 2, etc.) and proposals for display on a chair or floor (see Patent Document 3, etc.).

  In addition, although imitation ball boxes have been proposed, they do not operate in conjunction with the number of pachinko balls acquired by the player, but are imitation ball boxes that are merely masquerade (see Patent Document 4, etc.) ).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-137828 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-5433 JP 2004-81578 A Registered Utility Model No. 3023758

Game Communications “Release staff from ball traffic and concentrate efforts to improve services.” Game News, Inc., August 25, 2007, p. 66-67

  In a store where a gaming machine using the above-described ball circulation system is installed, a display corresponding to the number of pachinko balls acquired, for example, an LED (Light Emitting Diode) lamp is lit to let the player know the current number of balls or a box. Although the production is directed to inform the number, it does not satisfy the player's satisfaction because the ball box is stacked at the player's feet because it does not actually store the balls from the pachinko machine Issues such as the inability to direct the vibrancy of the store with the ball boxes stacked on the floor still remain.

  Therefore, the present invention provides a ball box that can reduce the burden on the player and store employees, give the player a sense of satisfaction while concentrating on the game, and can also produce the liveliness of the store. With the goal.

  As a result of intensive studies, the present inventor has found the usefulness of a pseudo ball box that operates in conjunction with the number of game media acquired by the player for the above problems, and has completed the following invention.

  (1) A ball box used in association with a gaming machine used in a game hall, comprising a communication means, wherein the communication means receives signals transmitted corresponding to the number of game media possessed by the player. Pseudo ball box that works.

  The invention described in (1) is a store where a gaming machine using a ball circulation system is installed, and even if the player does not need a ball box for storing balls, a pseudo ball box is placed on the floor. It is a pseudo ball box that represents a ball box corresponding to the number of game media acquired by the player. The pseudo ball box is equipped with communication means and operates according to the number of game media acquired by the player, so that the player can put the game media acquired by the player into the ball box, It can reproduce the state where the ball box is placed on the floor like a conventional store, without burdening the work of carrying the bag. For this reason, the vigor of the store can be produced at the same time as giving the player a feeling of appearance.

  (2) An upper lid on which pseudo game media are spread or an upper lid on which game media are printed, a side plate surrounding the four sides in a trapezoidal shape whose lower surface is narrower than the upper surface, a recess above the side plate, and a lower side of the side plate A plurality of movable pieces having a fulcrum at the outer side lower portion of the side plate, and falling to the outside of the side plate; a bottom plate provided on a side plate at a lowermost portion of the stacked side plates; and the bottom plate And a lifting / lowering mechanism that is installed between the upper lid and operates in response to a signal received by the communication means.

  The pseudo ball box described in (2) is fixed to the upper lid by laying or printing the pseudo game medium on the upper lid. The side plate has a trapezoidal shape in which the lower surface is narrower than the upper surface and surrounds the four sides, and the side plate is not bulky even if a plurality of side plates are stacked. In addition, there are a plurality of movable pieces at the outer lower part of the side plate, and there is a movable shaft at the lower part of the movable piece. Yes. A bottom plate is attached to the lowermost side plate, and the upper lid, the side plate, and the bottom plate form the external shape of the simulated ball box.

  Inside the artificial ball box, an elevating mechanism is provided on the bottom plate, and the upper lid is raised and lowered from the inside by changing the height of the elevating mechanism. The upper lid is fixed to a side plate located at the top of the stacked side plates. With such a simulated ball box, the height is raised or lowered according to the number of game media acquired by the player so that the game media acquired by the player can be visually seen.

  By placing this simulated ball box on the floor around the player, it is possible to reproduce the conventional scene where the ball box is placed on the floor, which cannot be obtained at the store where the ball circulation system is installed, and the player's satisfaction and store Can bring out the liveliness of The artificial ball box does not contain an actual pachinko ball, so it is lightweight and easy to handle.

  The movement of the simulated ball box is as follows. When the upper part of the lifting mechanism pushes up the upper lid from the bottom by driving the lifting mechanism provided inside the dummy ball box, the uppermost side plate first rises with the upper lid and is located at the lower part of the uppermost part. The movable piece is inserted into the recess at the upper position of the side plate laminated below the uppermost portion. Further, when the upper lid is pushed up by the elevating mechanism, the side plates stacked next to the uppermost portion are lifted to operate by a structure that sequentially rises for each box. Thereby, it is possible to express a state in which ball boxes corresponding to the number of game media acquired by the player are stacked.

  By placing this simulated ball box on the floor around the player, it is possible to reproduce the conventional scene where the ball box is placed on the floor, which cannot be obtained at the store where the ball circulation system is installed, and the player's satisfaction and store Can bring out the liveliness of The artificial ball box does not contain an actual pachinko ball, so it is lightweight and easy to handle.

  (3) A signal receiving means, an electric motor, a control means for operating the electric motor in response to the number of game media received by the signal receiving means and controlling the lifting mechanism, and a power supply unit are further provided (2 ) Simulated ball box.

The simulated ball box described in (3) is configured so that the lifting mechanism can be operated by a received signal. For this purpose, the dummy ball box includes an electric motor, control means for operating the electric motor from the received signal to control the lifting mechanism, and a power supply unit for supplying power to the electric motor and the control means.
A signal transmitted corresponding to the number of game media acquired by the player is received by the receiving means of the simulated ball box, and the lifting mechanism is controlled by operating the electric motor. Therefore, the player can concentrate on the game without managing the acquired game media, and the number of acquired game media can be grasped intuitively by visually observing the simulated ball box placed on the floor. You can get a sense of appearance with the number of game media. Also, by controlling the lifting mechanism in the simulated ball box according to the height of the ball box when the acquired game medium is actually put in the ball box, the number of game media acquired can be expressed more realistically. .

  (4) From (2) further comprising an electrical blinking means that blinks together with the operation of the lifting mechanism in conjunction with a game medium acquisition signal transmitted when a player acquires a game medium with a gaming machine The simulated ball box according to any one of (3).

  The pseudo ball box described in (4) is provided with an electric blinking means in the pseudo ball box, and when the player acquires the game medium during the game, the transmitted game medium acquisition signal is transmitted to the pseudo ball box. The signal is received by the receiving means provided in the box, and the blinking means is blinked by the control means. The effect of flashing light can increase the player's satisfaction and, at the same time, activate the atmosphere of the entire store.

  (5) An ID tag having a storage unit capable of storing information and storing information as a unique identifier and a communication unit, a machine number of the gaming machine linked to the simulated ball box, and an ID of the simulated ball box are displayed. The pseudo ball box according to any one of (2) to (4), further including display means for performing.

  According to the invention described in (5), each pseudo ball box can be managed by attaching a tag storing an ID (IDentification), which is a unique identifier, to the pseudo ball box. The tag is an electronic tag, stores the ID in the storage unit, and further has a display means to display the ID. These operations are performed by transmission / reception signals via the tag communication unit.

  Further, display means is provided in the simulated ball box, and the ID of the simulated ball box and the gaming machine number of the gaming machine in which the simulated ball box is used are displayed. This makes it clear which ball box is used for which game machine.

  (6) When the detection unit detects that the elevating mechanism is located at the lowermost part and the detection unit detects that the elevating mechanism is located at the lowermost part, the pseudo ball box is empty. The EMPTY signal transmission means for informing that, the lowermost side body is a detection means when the movable piece provided on the side body comes into contact with the concave portion of the upper side surface, and the detection means detects the contact of the movable piece The pseudo ball box according to any one of (2) to (5), further comprising a FULL signal transmission means for notifying that the space is full.

  The pseudo ball box described in (6) includes a detection unit that detects that the lifting mechanism is positioned at the lowest position, and when the detection unit detects that the lifting mechanism is positioned at the lowest position, An EMPTY signal is transmitted by an EMPTY signal transmission means for informing that the dummy ball box is empty. Thereby, it turns out that the pseudo ball box is empty.

  It is in the side plate located at the lowest position that the moving piece detection means is provided in the concave portion at the upper part of the side plate located at the lowest position of the laminated side plates to notify that the dummy ball box is full. It detects that the movable piece has come into contact and transmits a FULL signal. When this FULL signal is transmitted, control is performed so that the lifting mechanism does not operate even if the player further acquires a pachinko ball. This is to prevent damage to the simulated ball box.

  (7) (6) further comprising communication means for transmitting and receiving the FULL signal and the EMPTY signal between the plurality of pseudo ball boxes in order to represent the game medium acquired by the player with the plurality of dummy ball boxes. The simulated ball box.

  The simulated ball box described in (7) is a game acquired using a plurality of dummy ball boxes when the number of game media acquired by the player increases and one dummy ball box becomes full. Communication means capable of communicating with each other, which can use a pseudo ball box expressing the number of media, is provided. For this purpose, when the pseudo ball box transmits and receives the FULL signal and the EMPTY signal to each other and one pseudo ball box is full and transmits a FULL signal, the other pseudo ball box can be operated. Become.

  In addition, when a plurality of simulated ball boxes are used, if the number of game media acquired by the player decreases and an EMPTY signal is transmitted, another full dummy ball box receives the EMPTY signal. It is also possible to reduce the height by the reduced amount.

  As described above, when a plurality of pseudo ball boxes are used, it is possible to cope with a case where a player has acquired a large amount of game media by providing a communication means for mutually transmitting and receiving a FULL signal and an EMPTY signal. It becomes possible.

  (8) Read / write means capable of reading / writing ID tag information, input means for inputting a gaming machine number of a gaming machine, communication means capable of communicating with a management server, and reading / writing means from the ID tag The ID number of the pseudo ball box read by the above and the gaming machine number of the gaming machine input from the input means are transmitted to the management server by the communication means, and the gaming machine number is stored in the storage unit of the ID tag. An ID tag management device comprising control means for storing.

  In the invention described in (8), the gaming machine number of the gaming machine that the player plays and the ID of the pseudo ball box used accompanying the gaming machine are transmitted to the management server in association with each other, and the ID It is an ID tag management device that stores a gaming machine number of a gaming machine in a tag storage unit.

  The pseudo ball box is provided with an electronic ID tag, and a read / write means is provided for reading information from the ID tag or storing information in the ID tag. The information written in the ID tag can be read by the reader means via the communication unit. In addition, information can be stored by a writer means via a communication unit. Therefore, by providing an input means capable of inputting and inputting the gaming machine number, the gaming machine number can be written in the ID tag attached to the pseudo ball box.

  Further, the ID of the pseudo ball box read from the ID tag and the input gaming machine number are sent to the management server by the communication means, and are associated and managed by the management server.

  (9) Read / write means capable of reading and writing ID tag information, the number of game media acquired by the player in the gaming machine using the simulated ball box, the input means for inputting the ID of the simulated ball box, and the pseudo Communication means capable of mutual communication with the ball box, and the communication means for inputting the number of game media input to the pseudo ball box attached with an ID tag whose ID read by the read / write means matches the input ID And a control means for operating the simulated ball box having the ID.

  The invention of (9) is a control device for a simulated ball box that can change the height according to the number of acquired game media. The pseudo ball box control device includes a read / write unit capable of reading and writing an ID tag, an input unit for inputting the number of game media and the pseudo ball box ID, and a communication unit capable of communicating with the pseudo ball box. The input number of game media and the ID of the simulated ball box are transmitted to the simulated ball box by the communication means to control the height of the simulated ball box.

  (10) A management server, a simulated ball box, an ID tag management device that can communicate with the management server, a simulated ball box control device that can communicate with the simulated ball box, and a game acquired by the player A gaming machine having communication means capable of communicating with the medium counting means and the management server, and the gaming machine number associated with the ID tag management device, the ID of the pseudo ball box, and the game The game machine number of the machine and the number of game media are transmitted to the management server via the communication means, and based on the data managed by the management server, the ID of the simulated ball box and the number of game media are A simulated ball box management system that inputs the ball box control device and operates the simulated ball box.

  The invention described in (10) includes a management server, a simulated ball box, an ID tag management device that can communicate with the management server, a simulated ball box control device that can communicate with the simulated ball box, and a player This is a simulated ball box management system including a gaming machine having communication means capable of communicating with each other. The game machine number to be played is input from the input means of the ID tag management device. This input work is performed by the employee. The ID stored in the ID tag attached to the pseudo ball box is read by the read / write means of the ID tag management device and transmitted to the management server by the communication means together with the input game machine number. In the management server, the ID of the simulated ball box and the gaming machine number are associated and managed together with the number of gaming media from the gaming machine.

  Based on the data in the management server, enter the ID of the simulated ball box and the number of game media acquired for the gaming machine in which the simulated ball box is used from the simulated ball box control device, and send it to the simulated ball box To do. Then, the pseudo ball box with the matching ID is controlled by the control means so that the height is raised or lowered according to the game medium.

  The pseudo ball box management system according to the present invention adds a pseudo ball box, an ID tag management device, and a pseudo ball box control device to a store that newly introduces a pseudo ball box management system without changing existing facilities. This can be realized only by this and has the effect of suppressing the initial introduction cost.

  (11) A management server having communication means with a simulated ball box, a simulated ball box, an ID tag management device, a game medium counting means acquired by a player, and a gaming machine having communication means with the management server And the ID number of the gaming machine associated with the ID tag management device and the ID of the pseudo ball box, and the gaming machine number and the number of game media are transmitted to the management server via the communication means. The management server transmits the simulated ball box ID and the number of game media to the simulated ball box based on the data managed by the management server, and operates the simulated ball box that matches the ID. .

  The invention described in (11) includes a management server provided with a communication means with a simulated ball box, a simulated ball box, an ID tag management device, a game medium counting means acquired by a player, and a communication means with the management server. This is a simulated ball box management system provided with a gaming machine having. By providing the management server with means for communicating with the simulated ball box, it is possible to directly operate the simulated ball box by transmitting a signal from the management server. In the simulated ball box management system described in (10) On the other hand, the pseudo ball box control device becomes unnecessary.

  Since the pseudo ball box and the game machine number are transmitted to and associated with the management server by the ID tag management device, the number of game media acquired from the game machine is managed based on the management data collected by communication with the game machine. A signal can be sent from the server to the simulated ball box. For this reason, it is possible to perform the operation of the pseudo ball box in conjunction with the number of game media acquired by the player with the gaming machine.

  (12) a management server, the simulated ball box, a read / write unit capable of reading and writing ID tag information, a game medium counting unit acquired by a player, and a communication unit between the management server and the simulated ball box And the ID of the simulated ball box read by the previous read / write means provided in the gaming machine and the number of gaming media acquired by the gaming machine are transmitted to the management server. And a simulated ball box management system for operating the simulated ball box by transmitting the number of game media acquired by the player to the simulated ball box.

  The invention described in (12) includes a management server, the simulated ball box, read / write means capable of reading and writing ID tag information, a game medium counting means acquired by a player, a management server, and the simulated ball box And a gaming machine having a communication means with a pseudo ball box management system in which the gaming machine is provided with a communication means between the read / write means of the ID tag attached to the dummy ball box and the dummy ball box. By adding read / write means capable of reading / writing the ID tag information of the pseudo ball box and communication means with the pseudo game medium to the gaming machine, the gaming machine number of the gaming machine and the ID of the dummy ball box are associated with each other. The ID tag management device is not required for the pseudo game medium management system described in (11).

  The simulated ball box is directly associated with the gaming machine by the ID tag read / write means in the gaming machine, and the number of gaming media counted by the gaming medium coefficient means of the gaming machine is directly transmitted to the simulated ball box by the communication means. it can. For this reason, with respect to the simulated ball box management system described in (10) or (11), the simulated ball box management system does not require a simulated ball box control device and an ID tag management device.

  (13) The simulated ball box management system according to any one of (10) to (12), further including an instruction unit that instructs operation, installation, or removal of the simulated ball box.

  In the invention described in (13), in the simulated ball box management system according to (10) or (11), the operation instruction of the simulated ball box by the simulated ball box control device is performed by an instruction unit installed in the store. Is. For example, it is performed by an intercom capable of calling between employees. When introducing a simulated ball box management system in an existing store, there is no communication means with the management server or gaming machine, and the simulated ball box cannot be operated in conjunction with the number of game media acquired by the player. An employee who receives an instruction inputs a signal to the simulated ball box control device and operates the simulated ball box control device.

  In addition to the simulated ball box management system described in (10), in the simulated ball box management system described in (11) or (12), the person in charge of the management server is based on the data managed by the management server. The employee can see the number of game media for each gaming machine by looking at the display screen of the management server, and can instruct the employee in charge of pseudo ball box management to add or remove.

  As described above, according to the present invention, even in a store where a game machine of the ball circulation system is installed, by placing the simulated ball box according to the present invention at the player's feet, the amount of pachinko balls acquired can be visually checked. In addition, the player's satisfaction that is the same as before can be obtained, and the simulated ball boxes arranged on the floor have the effect that the atmosphere of the store is also lively in combination with the effect of blinking of the blinking means. Further, the simulated ball box according to the present invention moves up and down in conjunction with the number of pachinko balls acquired by the player, and further uses a plurality of simulated ball boxes to transmit and receive signals to each other to obtain a large amount of acquired pachinko balls. It is possible to deal with numbers. For this reason, a player can concentrate on a game, and work burdens, such as addition of a dummy ball box and carrying around, are reduced.

It is a figure which shows the basic dummy ball box by embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the movable piece and recessed part with which the side plate used for the pseudo ball box of this invention demonstrated in FIG. It is a block diagram of the electric circuit with which the dummy ball box by embodiment of this invention was equipped. It is sectional drawing which shows an internal state when the pseudo ball box by embodiment of this invention becomes full. It is a block diagram of the ID tag management apparatus which manages the ID tag of the pseudo ball box according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram of the pseudo ball box control device of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the pseudo ball box management system of Example 1 at the time of introducing the pseudo ball box of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the pseudo ball box management system of Example 1 at the time of introducing the pseudo ball box of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the corner of the game island at the time of introducing the pseudo ball box of this invention in the store where the game machine of the ball circulation system was installed. It is the schematic which looked at the game island at the time of introducing the pseudo ball box of this invention in the store where the game machine of the ball circulation system was introduced. It is a block diagram which shows the dummy ball box management system of Example 2 at the time of introducing the dummy ball box of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the dummy ball box management system of Example 3 at the time of introducing the dummy ball box of this invention. It is the state of the conventional store where the game machine of the ball circulation system is not introduced. It is the state of the store where the game machine of the ball circulation system was introduced.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, taking a pachinko game as an example. This is merely an example, and the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to this.

  First, in Example 1, a pseudo ball box according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. FIG. 5 shows an ID tag management device for individual management of pseudo ball boxes, and FIG. 6 shows a pseudo ball box. A pseudo ball box control apparatus that performs the above operations will be described. 7 to 10, a management system in the case where the simulated ball box of the present invention is introduced into a store where a game machine of the ball circulation system is installed will be described.

  FIG. 1 is an internal perspective view of a basic simulated ball box 100 according to the present invention. A pseudo pachinko ball 25 is placed on the upper lid 20 and fixed to the upper lid 20. The pseudo pachinko ball 25 includes a blinking lamp (not shown). This blinking lamp blinks when the pachinko ball enters the winning opening to give the player satisfaction, and does not need to be incorporated in all the pseudo pachinko balls 25, and may be any number. The upper lid 20 is fixed inside the flange portion 32. There is a side plate 30 that is formed obliquely from the inside of the flange portion 32 downward and has a trapezoidal shape with a narrow bottom surface that surrounds the four sides. A movable piece 34 is provided below the side plate 30. The movable piece 34 has a rotating shaft in the lower part and is inclined to the outside of the side plate 30. The flange portion 32 has a shape protruding outward along the upper edge of the side plate 30 and can be used as a handle for carrying.

  When the side plate 30 with the flange portion 32 is laminated on the side plate 40, the side plate 40 is formed obliquely, so that the movable piece 34 is pushed along the inner wall of the side plate 40, and the side plate 40. Can be stacked in close contact with each other. In this way, any number of side plates can be used in an overlapping manner. In the illustrated example, five side plates are stacked. A bottom plate 80 is fixed to the bottom side plate 70.

  An elevating mechanism 120, an electric circuit unit 130, and a battery 150 are provided inside the pseudo ball box 100 in which five side plates are stacked. A plurality of plate-like members 124 are assembled in a pantograph shape with a fulcrum in the elevating mechanism 120, and the electric motor 140 attached thereto is connected to a screw-like shaft member 145 by a connecting mechanism, The upper plate 126 of the lifting mechanism 120 is moved up and down by the expansion and contraction of the pantograph-shaped lifting mechanism 120 by the rotation. Thereby, the position of the upper lid 20 is moved up and down.

  The elevating mechanism 120 in the stacked ball box 100 has an EMPTY detection means 160 for detecting an empty state and outputting an EMPTY signal. The elevating mechanism 120 has a recess in the side plate 70 located at the lowest position. Is provided with a FULL detecting means 165 for detecting a state when it is full.

  In order to manage the individual simulated ball box 100, an ID tag 170 is attached. The ID tag 170 affixes a sheet-like RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) as an electronically readable / writable IC tag to the side plate 70 at the bottom of the pseudo ball box.

  Further, display means 175 is provided on one flange 32 of the upper lid 20. The display means 175 displays the ID of the simulated ball box 100 and the gaming machine number of the gaming machine 19 in which the simulated ball box 100 is used, and which simulated ball box 100 is used for which gaming machine 19. To understand.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the movable piece 34 and the recess 36 provided on the side plate 30. The movable piece 34 is provided at the lower part of the side plate 30 together with the rotation shaft, and falls down around the rotation shaft. An urging member such as a coil spring may be attached to the rotating shaft, and the urging member may be urged so as to rotate and fall outside the side plate 30. A concave portion 36 is provided in the upper part of the side plate 30 from the inside to the outside of the side plate. The other side plates to be laminated are similarly provided with a movable piece and a recess.

  When the upper lid 20 is pushed up from the inside, the side plate 30 to which the upper lid 20 is fixed rises. The function of the movable piece 34 at this time will be described with reference to FIGS. As the side plate 30 is raised, the movable piece 34 provided on the side plate 30 falls along the inner wall of the side plate 40 stacked below the side plate 30, and finally provided on the upper portion of the side plate 40. The upper end of the movable piece 34 is inserted into the recess. When the upper lid 20 is further pushed up from the inside, the movable piece 34 provided on the side plate 30 hits the wall above the recessed portion of the side plate 40 and pulls up the side plate 40.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram 200 showing the function of the electric circuit unit 130 mounted on the simulated ball box 100. The receiving means 210 for receiving the radio signal transmitted when the player has acquired the pachinko ball, the FULL detecting means 220 for detecting that the dummy ball box 100 is full, and the dummy ball box 100 are emptied. EMPTY detection means 230 for detecting that the control means 240 controls each signal to operate the motor drive means 250 to control the lifting mechanism 120 to a height corresponding to the acquired pachinko ball. Further, when the player acquires a pachinko ball, the blinking control means 260 causes the blinking lamp to blink. Furthermore, a transmission unit 280 that receives signals from the FULL detection unit 220 and the EMPTY detection unit 230 and transmits the signals to the other simulated ball box 100 is provided. The receiving means 210 can also receive an EMPTY signal and a FULL signal transmitted from another pseudo ball box 100. Further, the display control means 270 displays the associated simulated ball box 100 and the gaming machine number of the gaming machine 19 on the display means 175 provided in the simulated ball box 100.

  FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the internal state when the simulated ball box 100 is full. The operation of the simulated ball box 100 when a pachinko ball is acquired will be described using FIG. 4 with reference to FIG.

  When the player acquires a pachinko ball, an acquisition signal corresponding to the acquired number of pachinko balls is transmitted, and this signal is received by the receiving means 210 of the electric circuit unit 130 provided in the simulated ball box 100. Then, the height at which the elevating mechanism 120 is raised is determined by the control means 240, and the motor driving means 250 is controlled such that the motor 140 has a rotational speed corresponding to the determined height. At the same time, the controller 240 controls the blinking of the blinking lamp by the blinking controller 260.

  When the screw-shaped shaft member 145 is rotated by the rotation of the electric motor 140 and the upper plate 126 of the elevating mechanism 120 is raised, the upper lid 20 is pushed up, and the side plate 30 is first raised. At this time, the movable piece 34 provided on the side plate 30 falls along the inner wall surface of the side plate 40. When the movable piece 34 reaches the recess 46 provided in the side plate 40, the tip of the movable piece 34 is inserted into the recess 46. When the upper lid 20 is further raised by the elevating mechanism 120, the movable piece 34 hits the upper wall of the recess 46, and this time the side plate 40 is pushed up. As described above, when the upper lid 20 is pushed up by the elevating mechanism 120, the side plates 40, 50, 60 are sequentially raised. Thereby, the state where the pachinko balls accumulate in the simulated ball box 100 one box at a time can be realistically expressed.

  Further, when the upper plate 126 is raised by the elevating mechanism 120 of the simulated ball box 100, the movable piece 64 provided on the side plate 60 comes into contact with the concave portion 76 of the side plate 70 located at the lowest position. This state means that the simulated ball box 100 is full. For this reason, a FULL detection means 165 is provided in the recess 76 of the lowermost side plate 70 to output a signal notifying that the dummy ball box 100 is full.

  When the simulated ball box 100 is full, another dummy ball box 101 (not shown) is placed on the floor to express the number of pachinko balls acquired by the player in cooperation. In this case, the other pseudo ball box 101 is controlled by the control means 240 so as to operate when a FULL signal is received. When the second dummy ball box 101 is full, a further dummy ball box 102 (not shown) can be used.

  Next, when the number of pachinko balls acquired by the player decreases and the additional dummy ball box 101 becomes empty, the EMPTY detection unit 160 operates and outputs an EMPTY signal. The EMPTY signal is received by the already filled dummy ball box 100, and the upper plate 126 is lowered by the lifting mechanism 120 of the filled dummy ball box 100 to lower the height of the dummy ball box 100. .

  In this way, even when the number of pachinko balls acquired by the player is large, the number of pachinko balls acquired in cooperation with each other can be expressed using a plurality of pseudo ball boxes.

  In order to introduce a simulated ball box into a store operated by a ball circulation system, an ID tag management device and a simulated ball box control device are required. The ID tag management device reads the ID tag attached to the pseudo ball box and manages the pseudo ball box, and transmits the input game machine number and the ID read from the ID tag of the dummy ball box to the management server. It has a function to do. Further, the simulated ball box control device has a function of inputting the number of game media acquired by the player in the gaming machine and transmitting it to the simulated ball box used in the gaming machine.

  FIG. 5 is an electrical block diagram of the ID management device 400. In FIG. 5, an employee of the store inputs the game table number selected by the player from the input means 410, while the ID of the simulated ball box 100 is read from the ID tag 170 of the simulated ball box 100 by the read / write means 420. Read. The input gaming machine number and the read ID are displayed on the display means 430 and can be confirmed by the control means 450, and are transmitted to the management server 310 (not shown) via the communication means 440 after confirmation. Is done. Further, the game table number is stored in the simulated ball box 100 by the read / write means 420. Thereby, in the management server 310 and the simulated ball box 100, the game machine number and the ID of the simulated ball box 100 can be stored and managed in association with each other.

  FIG. 6 is an electrical block diagram of the simulated ball box control device 500. In FIG. 6, the input means 510 inputs the ID of the simulated ball box and the number of pachinko balls acquired in the gaming machine in which the simulated ball box is used. The read / write means 520 reads the ID from the ID tag attached to the simulated ball box 100 and transmits the signal input via the communication means 540 to the simulated ball box 100 with the matching ID. The control unit 550 manages input signals and IDs, and controls display on the display unit 530 and transmission / reception of signals to the dummy ball box 100 via the communication unit 540. Since the pseudo ball box control device 500 is provided with the display means 530, the number of pachinko balls and the game machine number can be confirmed.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing a management system in which the simulated ball box 100 is introduced into the conventional management system of the management server 310 and the ball lending machine 15 with a counter. The management server 310 transmits and manages the gaming machine number and the number of pachinko balls of the player acquired by the ball lending machine 15 with the counting machine from the ball lending machine 15 with the counting machine. The ID tag management device 400 is connected to the management server 310 via a communication line, and transmits the gaming machine number and the ID of the pseudo ball box 100. In the management server 310, the gaming machine number of the ball lending machine with counting machine 15 and the ID of the pseudo ball box 100 are managed in association with each other, and the gaming machine number transmitted by the ball lending machine with counting machine 15 and the acquired pachinko machine are managed. The number of balls is managed by the management server 310 in association with the number of acquired pachinko balls and the simulated ball box 100.

  From the simulated ball box control device 500, the ID of the simulated ball box 100 and the acquired number of pachinko balls are input and transmitted to the simulated ball box 100. In the simulated ball box 100, the gaming machine number written by the ID tag management device 400 is stored, and therefore, the designation of the simulated ball box 100 may input the gaming machine number. The simulated ball box 100 receives the number of pachinko balls input by the simulated ball box control device 500 and operates the lifting mechanism 120.

  In the first embodiment, an input operation to the simulated ball box control device 500 is performed by an employee in charge of managing the simulated ball box 500. This instruction is given by the terminal of the management server 310. The employee in charge of the management terminal who operates operates the display screen of the management terminal 320 to instruct the person in charge of the pseudo ball box management. A wireless intercom is used for communication between the two. The wireless intercom is intended to be used as a business call method in the store, in addition to the usual in-store broadcast, to make a call between employees at the same time. It is a telephone system that excels in number, wearability, and operability. Normally, when an alarm or trouble occurs in the gaming machine 19, for example, “200 series, door open, please confirm”, “200 series, radio fraud, please confirm” etc. .

  FIG. 8 shows a schematic diagram of the simulated ball box management system when the dummy ball box 100, the ID tag management device 400, and the simulated ball box control device 500 of the present invention are used in a game hall. The system management unit 300 includes a management server 310, a game medium catch number storage device 315 for storing game medium acquisition data from the ball lending machine 15 with a counter, a management terminal 320, and a game medium lending card reading / writing device. 350 is connected to the LAN server 330 via a communication line. The LAN server 330 is further connected with an outgoing ball central management control board 340. The output ball central management control board 340 is connected to the ball lending machine 15 with a counting machine, and game medium information from the game medium counting means provided in the ball lending machine 15 with a counting machine is transmitted to the management system 300, and the management server Centralized control is performed at 310. Operations such as input of management information to the management server 310 are performed by an employee in charge of the management terminal at the management terminal 320, and data is stored in the storage device 315 for the management server 310. The storage device 315 stores the IDs of the ball lending machine 15 with a counter and the simulated ball box 100, and each ball lender 15 with a counter and each simulated ball box 100 are managed correspondingly.

  The ID tag management device 400 is connected to the management server 310, and the ID is read from the gaming machine number of the pachinko gaming island 10 and the ID tag (RFID) of the simulated ball box 100. At the same time, the gaming machine number input to the ID tag is written.

  The simulated ball box control device 500 is portable and can be easily carried by an employee in charge of the simulated ball box management. The simulated ball box control device 500 and the simulated ball box 100 can communicate wirelessly. The employee in charge of the management terminal and the employee in charge of the pseudo ball box in the management server 310 call information on the pseudo ball box corresponding to the gaming machine 19 by using the microphone-equipped headphones using a call means by wireless intercom.

  FIG. 9 shows a part of the pachinko game island 10 in the case where the simulated ball box of the present invention is introduced in a store where a ball circulation system is installed. The pachinko game island 10 includes a plurality of gaming machines 19 each having a gaming machine 11 and a ball lending machine 15 with a counter (also called a lending machine or a ball sand) arranged in a horizontal direction. One gaming machine row. A single gaming machine 19 is operated integrally with the gaming machine 11 and a ball lending machine 15 with a counting machine that lends pachinko balls as gaming media. The ball lending machine 15 with a counter is provided with a pachinko ball counting unit and a communication unit with the management server 310. On the island edge of the pachinko game island 10, a pseudo ball box storage area A and an ID tag management device 400 are installed. The employee takes out the simulated ball box 100 from the simulated ball box storage area A, causes the ID tag management device 400 to read the ID tag, inputs the game machine number of the gaming machine 19 selected by the player, and so-called association Do work.

  Thereafter, the player sits down on the chair 12 in front of the selected gaming machine 19, inserts banknotes from the banknote insertion slot 16 in the ball lending machine 15 with counting machine, borrows pachinko balls, and starts the game. The dummy ball box 100 is placed on the player's peripheral floor as shown, and is in the same state as a conventional store. FIG. 10 shows a view of this state from the top of the game island 10. A simulated ball box 100 is placed beside or behind the player, creating a crowded and active atmosphere. In the gaming machine 19, when the player acquires a pachinko ball, the display device 13 blinks to notify the player.

  When the player wins a pachinko ball, an on-site broadcast is also performed. For example, a live effect is produced by voice in a broadcast such as “Congratulations on the 200s, Special Awards”. On the other hand, based on the information sent from the ball lending machine 15 with a counter provided in the gaming machine 19, the employee in charge of the management server gives the employee in charge of the simulated ball box to the , Ball box 4 ”. The employee in charge of the simulated ball box management receives the instruction and operates the simulated ball box 100 with the simulated ball box control device 500. Therefore, the flashing lamp blinks at the same time as the simulated ball box 100 rises, and a more gorgeous effect is produced. can do. In the wireless intercom, the employee in charge of the management terminal can instruct the employee in charge of the dummy ball box to add or remove the dummy ball box 100 used in the gaming machine 19 and bother the player. As a result, customer service is greatly improved. When the game is over, the return button 18 is pressed to take out the storage medium from the return port 17. Even in this case, the employee in charge of the dummy ball box can be instructed by the wireless intercom, and the employee who has received the instruction removes the game, so that the player can end the game without returning the dummy ball box 100.

  The second embodiment is a simulated ball box management system that does not use the simulated ball box control device 500 used in the first embodiment by providing the management server 310 with wireless communication means with the simulated ball box 100.

  FIG. 11 is a block diagram of the simulated ball box management system 700 according to the second embodiment. The management server 310 is provided with communication means capable of communicating with the simulated ball box 100. Further, the ID tag management device 400 and the gaming machine 19 of the simulated ball box 100 are connected to the management server 310. The ball rental machine 15 with a counter provided in the ID tag management device 400 and the gaming machine 19 is connected to the management server 310 and has the same function as described in the first embodiment. In this simulated ball box management system, since signals can be directly transmitted and received between the management server 310 and the simulated ball box 100, when the player acquires a pachinko ball, the pachinko ball acquisition and the operation of the simulated ball box 100 are linked. It can be performed, and has a feature that can produce a more realistic feeling.

  From the management server 310, in response to the number of pachinko balls acquired by the player in the gaming machine 19, a pachinko ball acquisition signal is transmitted to the pseudo ball box 100 used in the gaming machine 19 by a radio signal. Upon receiving the signal, the simulated ball box 100 receives the signal by the receiving unit 210 and controls the simulated ball box 100 to a height corresponding to the acquired number of pachinko balls.

  Further, since the management server 310 manages the number of pachinko balls acquired in each gaming machine 19, the employee in charge of the management terminal can monitor information on the number of pachinko balls acquired from the management terminal 320. For this reason, the administrator monitors the number of pachinko balls acquired and transports them by adding the simulated ball box 100 to the gaming machine 19 in which the dummy ball box 100 is required. The wireless intercom is used to instruct the employee to collect the remaining dummy ball box 100 or to remove the dummy ball box 100 from the gaming machine 19 that has finished the game.

  In the third embodiment, an ID tag read / write unit is provided in the ball lending machine 15 with a counter provided in the gaming machine 19, and the gaming machine 19 and the simulated ball box 100 are connected by the communication unit with the simulated ball box 100. This is a pseudo ball box management system that enables direct mutual communication and eliminates the ID tag management device 400 from the second embodiment.

  FIG. 12 shows a block diagram of a simulated ball box management system 800 according to the third embodiment. The ball lending machine with counting machine 15 provided in the gaming machine 19 transmits the number of pachinko balls acquired by the player to the management server in association with the gaming machine number, and the pseudo ball box 100 corresponds to the acquired pachinko balls. Operate by sending a signal. The gaming machine number of the gaming machine 19 and the ID of the simulated ball box 100 read by the read / write means provided in the ball lending machine 15 with a counter are transmitted to the management server 310. In addition, a game machine number is written in the pseudo ball box 100.

  Thereby, even if the player uses the simulated ball box 100, the game table number and the simulated ball box 100 are automatically set by simply placing the simulated ball box 100 in the gaming machine 19 without inputting the game table number. Are associated with each other and transmitted to the management server 310. Furthermore, since the dummy ball box 100 is automatically operated in conjunction with the acquisition of the pachinko ball, the convenience of the player is further improved.

  Even in the case of the third embodiment, the management server 310 manages the number of pachinko balls acquired in each gaming machine 19, so the management server employee monitors the number of pachinko balls acquired and uses wireless intercom. The dummy ball box 100 is added to the game machine 19 that requires the dummy ball box 100 and transported, or the dummy ball box 100 that is sufficiently surplus with respect to the number of acquired pachinko balls is collected, or the game is ended. The employee can be instructed to remove the dummy ball box 100 from the gaming machine 19.

  As mentioned above, although specific embodiment by the pachinko ball game was described about this invention, the technical scope of this invention is not limited to the range as described in the said embodiment. For example, the pseudo ball box may be wired by USB instead of wireless communication, and can be implemented as a game with a pachislot machine. Moreover, it can implement even if it uses a solenoid instead of an electric motor as a drive source of a dummy ball box, and various changes or improvement can be added to the said embodiment. It is apparent from the scope of the claims that the embodiments added with such changes or improvements can be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Pachinko game island 11 Pachinko game machine 12 Chair 13 Display panel 14 Ball box 15 Ball lending machine with counting machine 19 Pachinko machine 20 Upper lid 25 Pseudo pachinko ball 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 Side plate 34, 44, 54, 64, 74 Movable piece 36, 46, 56, 66, 76 Recess 80 Bottom plate 100 Pseudo ball box 120 Lifting mechanism 130 Electric circuit 140 Electric motor 145 Shaft member 150 Battery 160 EMPTY detection means 165 FULL detection means 200 Block diagram 210 of electric circuit section Receiving means 240 Control means 250 Electric motor driving means 260 Flashing control means 270 Transmission means 300 System management section 400 ID tag management apparatus 500 Pseudo ball box control apparatus 600, 700, 800 Pseudo ball box management system

Claims (13)

A ball box used in association with a gaming machine used in a game hall,
Having communication means,
A simulated ball box that operates by receiving signals transmitted corresponding to the number of game media possessed by a player by the communication means. An upper lid laid with pseudo game media or an upper lid printed with game media;
A side plate that surrounds the four sides in a trapezoidal shape with the lower surface narrower than the upper surface
A recess above the side plate;
Below the side plate, there is a fulcrum at the outer lower part of the side plate, a plurality of movable pieces that fall outside the side plate,
A bottom plate provided on the side plate at the bottom of the plurality of laminated side plates;
An elevating mechanism installed between the bottom plate and the upper lid and operating in response to a signal received by the communication means;
The simulated ball box according to claim 1, comprising: Signal receiving means;
An electric motor,
Control means for operating the electric motor according to the number of game media received by the signal receiving means and controlling the lifting mechanism;
A power supply,
The simulated ball box according to claim 2, further comprising: An electrical flashing means that flashes with the operation of the lifting mechanism in conjunction with a game medium acquisition signal transmitted when the player acquires a game medium with a gaming machine,
The pseudo ball box according to any one of claims 2 to 3, further comprising: An ID tag having a storage unit capable of storing information and storing a ID as a unique identifier and a communication unit;
Display means for displaying the machine number of the gaming machine linked to the simulated ball box and the ID of the simulated ball box;
The pseudo ball box according to any one of claims 2 to 4, further comprising: Detecting means for detecting that the lifting mechanism is located at the bottom;
An EMPTY signal transmitting means for notifying that the dummy ball box is empty when the detecting means detects that the lifting mechanism is located at the bottom;
The lowermost side body is a detection means when the movable piece provided on the side body comes into contact with the concave portion of the side surface upper part,
FULL signal transmission means for notifying that the movable piece is full when the detection means detects contact of the movable piece;
The pseudo ball box according to any one of claims 2 to 5, further comprising:   The simulation according to claim 6, further comprising communication means for transmitting / receiving the FULL signal and the EMPTY signal to / from each other in a plurality of pseudo ball boxes in order to represent the game medium acquired by the player by a plurality of dummy ball boxes. A ball box. Read / write means capable of reading and writing the ID tag information;
Input means for inputting the gaming machine number of the gaming machine;
A communication means capable of mutual communication with the management server;
The ID number of the pseudo ball box read from the ID tag by the read / write unit and the gaming machine number of the gaming machine input from the input unit are transmitted to the management server by the communication unit, and the gaming table Control means for storing a number in the storage part of the ID tag;
ID tag management device comprising: Read / write means capable of reading and writing the ID tag information;
Input means for inputting the number of game media acquired by the player in the gaming machine in which the simulated ball box is used, and the ID of the simulated ball box;
A communication means capable of mutual communication with the pseudo ball box,
The pseudo ball having the ID is transmitted to the pseudo ball box with an ID tag whose ID read by the read / write unit is identical to the pseudo ball box having the ID. Control means for operating the box;
A simulated ball box control device. A management server,
Pseudo ball box,
The ID tag management device capable of communicating with the management server, and the simulated ball box control device capable of communicating with the simulated ball box,
A gaming machine having a communication means capable of mutual communication with the game medium counting means acquired by the player and the management server;
With
The gaming machine number associated with the ID tag management device and the ID of the pseudo ball box, and the gaming machine number and the number of game media of the gaming machine are transmitted to the management server via the communication means. Then, based on the data managed by the management server, the simulated ball box control device is operated by inputting the simulated ball box ID and the number of game media to the simulated ball box control device.
Pseudo ball box management system. A management server equipped with a means of communication with the simulated ball box,
Pseudo ball box,
An ID tag management device, a gaming machine counting means acquired by a player, and a gaming machine having a communication means with a management server;
With
The machine number associated with the ID tag management device and the ID of the simulated ball box, and the machine machine number and the number of game media are transmitted to the management server via the communication means, The management server transmits the ID of the simulated ball box and the number of game media to the simulated ball box based on the data managed by the management server, and operates the simulated ball box with the matching ID.
Simulated ball box management system. A management server,
Pseudo ball box,
Read / write means capable of reading and writing ID tag information;
A gaming machine having game medium counting means acquired by a player, and communication means with the management server and the simulated ball box;
With
The pseudo ball box ID read by the read / write means provided in the gaming machine and the number of game media acquired by the gaming machine are transmitted to the management server and stored in the pseudo ball box. Send the number of game media acquired by the player and operate the simulated ball box,
Simulated ball box management system.   The pseudo ball box management system according to any one of claims 10 to 12, further comprising instruction means for instructing operation, installation, or removal of the dummy ball box.