JP4263161B2 - Ball launcher for pachinko machines - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a ball launcher for a pachinko machine, and more particularly to a ball launcher in which a hitting portion of a launcher is formed of a synthetic resin.

  The launcher in a conventional ball launcher of a pachinko game machine is generally formed in a lever shape with metal as described in, for example, Patent Document 1 below, and a bullet spring made of a coil spring is attached to the tip of the launcher Configured. The launching rod is fixed to the rotary shaft of the rotary solenoid, and with the game ball held at the lower end of the firing rail, the launching rod rotates about the rotation shaft, and the tip of the launching rod Bomb hits the game ball and fires it towards the game area.

  The launcher of this type of ball launcher has a coil spring fixed to the tip of a metal launcher by welding or the like during manufacture, but the tip of the launcher is thin and narrow, so the coil spring must be positioned accurately. It is difficult to fix the coil spring, the number of man-hours during manufacturing increases, and there is a problem that the mounting position of the coil spring tends to vary.

Therefore, conventionally, a cylindrical or conical rod body is projected at the tip of the launch rod, and is attached so as to cover the coil spring, and a synthetic resin rod tip is attached to the tip of the coil spring. A launching device has been proposed in Patent Document 2 below. Further, a launching device having a structure in which a sheath member is movably moved in the axial direction on a cylindrical rod member protruding from the tip of the launching rod has been proposed by Patent Document 3 below.
JP-A-4-256766 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 4-58283 JP 2003-220197 A

  However, each of the launching rods described in Patent Documents 2 and 3 is intended to improve the workability of assembling while maintaining the elastic force at the time of hitting the ball. Therefore, it is difficult to position the coil spring because the number of parts increases, and the latter has a problem that the number of processing steps increases as the number of parts increases because a spiral groove is formed around the flange member. .

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a ball launcher for a pachinko gaming machine that can easily produce a launcher while ensuring good game ball launch performance. To do.

In order to achieve the above object, in the ball launching apparatus of claim 1 of the present invention, a launching rod having a hitting ball portion at the tip is reciprocatingly rotated about a rotation axis, and the hitting ball portion is moved to a game ball. In the ball launcher of a pachinko gaming machine that hits the game ball toward the game area, the metal body of the launcher is formed in a substantially L shape, and the corner of the metal body is used for the rotating shaft. And a coating layer of a synthetic resin having a high resilience is formed on at least the tip of the metal body of the launching rod and exposing the metal surface around the shaft hole . At the time of molding, the metal main body is used as an insert, and insert molding is performed so as to cover the synthetic resin coating layer around the metal main body, and the hitting ball portion is integrally formed with the coating layer. through hole is provided in parallel with the pivot shaft, the striking surface of the ball portion, of the game ball radius than wider Characterized in that it is formed in the shape.

Further, as described in claim 2, a thermoplastic elastomer can be used as the high resilience synthetic resin material .

  In the invention of claim 1, a coating layer of synthetic resin is coated and formed on at least the tip of the metal body of the launcher, and the hitting ball portion is molded with a synthetic resin having high resilience integrally with the coating layer. In addition to ensuring launch performance, there is no need for the complicated processing and assembly work of fixing a spring spring made of a coil spring to the tip of the launcher as in the past. can do.

In addition, for example, a steel body is cut into a predetermined shape to form a metal body of a launcher, the metal body is set as an insert in a mold, and a high rebound resilience is formed so as to form a coating layer around the metal body. Insert molding is performed using a synthetic resin material, and a ball hitting portion is formed at the tip of the launching rod integrally with the coating layer at the time of insert molding. Therefore, the launcher can be efficiently manufactured, the hitting ball portion can be accurately formed at the tip position of the launcher, the adhesiveness of the coating layer is good, and the coil spring is made of the metal body as in the conventional case. A complicated processing / assembling process such as forming a hitting ball portion by fixing to a narrow and narrow tip portion becomes unnecessary. Further, since the through-hole is provided in the hitting ball portion in parallel with the rotation axis to facilitate elastic deformation, the rebound resilience of the hitting ball portion can be further increased and the launch performance of the game ball can be improved. Furthermore, since the striking surface of the hitting ball portion is formed in a rectangular shape wider than the radius of the game ball, when the hitting ball is stable and the turning force is constant, a constant firing direction and flight distance can be secured. .

In addition, if a thermoplastic elastomer is used as a synthetic resin material for insert molding as in the invention of claim 2 , the hit ball portion can have high resilience, wear and deterioration at the time of hit ball are less, and durability Can be improved .

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1 shows a front view of a launching device 10 of a pachinko machine, FIG. 2 shows a right side view thereof, and FIG. 3 shows an exploded perspective view thereof. The launching device 10 is configured by mounting a launching member 12, a rotary solenoid 14, first and second stopper portions 17, 18 and the like on a base plate 11 formed in a rectangular shape by a metal plate or the like. A shaft hole is formed on the right side of the center of the base plate 11, and the rotary solenoid 14 is fixed to the back surface of the base plate 11 with a fixing screw or the like so as to project the rotating shaft 14a from the shaft hole.

  A synthetic resin launcher member 12 is fixed on the base plate 11 with a fixing screw or the like. The launch port member 12 is formed with a launch passage 12a inclined obliquely upward at substantially the center thereof, and a launch rail 13 is attached to the left side wall portion toward the launch passage 12a.

  In addition, the launch passage 12a of the launch member 12 is inclined toward the introduction port 5 that is provided obliquely downward between the lower end portion of the outer rail 3 on the game board 2 described later and the inner rail 4. It is formed. Further, a ball holding portion 12b is formed at the lower end portion in the launch passage 12a so as to squeeze the passage by protruding the side wall, and one game ball sent from a ball feed mechanism (not shown) is this ball. It is held by the holding unit 12.

  The launch rail 13 that forms the lower side wall portion of the launch passage 12a is formed by bending a contact surface of a metal plate bent in a U shape into a substantially V shape, and the length of the launch rail 13 is the length of the game ball. The length is approximately twice the diameter. This launch rail 13 serves as a guide for launching the game ball, but by launching the game ball toward the inlet at the lower end of the outer rail at a slightly larger launch angle than the tilt angle of the launch rail 13, The contact with the firing rail is reduced, and the length of the firing rail 13 is shortened from the conventional one.

  The launch rod 15 is generally formed in an approximately L shape, and a shaft hole for fitting a rotation shaft is formed at a corner portion thereof. Further, a ball striking portion 16 for hitting a game ball is formed at the tip of the launching rod 15, and one portion on the side opposite to the ball striking portion is in contact with first and second stopper portions 17 and 18, which will be described later. For this purpose, a rotation range limiting portion 15a is formed. As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the launcher 15 is insert-molded so as to cover a synthetic resin having high resilience around the metal insert (metal main body) 15 b, and a synthetic resin coating layer 15 c. Is coated and formed on the periphery thereof, and the hitting ball portion 16 at the tip is integrally formed at the time of insert molding.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the metal insert 15 b that is a metal body of the launcher 15 is formed by cutting a steel plate into a substantially L shape, for example, and a shaft hole 15 d is formed in a corner portion of the metal insert 15 b. Is provided with a pin hole 15e for inserting an insert holding pin. The metal insert 15b having such a shape is set in a predetermined insert molding die at the time of manufacturing, and insert molding is performed by injecting a synthetic resin material around it. As the synthetic resin material, it is preferable to use a thermoplastic elastomer having intermediate softness between general rubber and plastic, and having high impact resistance and impact resilience. The use of a polyester elastomer is preferred.

  The firing rod 15 is formed into a shape as shown in FIG. 5 by such insert molding, and a synthetic resin coating layer 15c is coated and formed on the outer periphery of the metal insert 15b so as to cover substantially the whole. A ball striking portion 16 for hitting a game ball is integrally formed on the left end surface of the tip portion of the launching rod 15 together with the coating layer 15c of the range limiting portion 15a. The hitting ball portion 16 is formed of a synthetic resin material having high rebound resilience, and can be simply formed as a protruding portion to give good rebound resilience. Here, the through hole 16a is formed in the lateral direction. Thus, higher impact resilience is generated in the hit ball portion 16.

  In addition, in order to produce the high rebound resilience, the ball hitting portion of the launcher 15 has a plurality of grooves 26a formed on both side surfaces of the hit ball portion 26 as shown in FIG. Can also be secured. Moreover, it can also be set as a recessed part instead of a groove | channel.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the hitting surface of the hitting ball portion 16 is formed in a rectangle wider than the radius of the game ball, and may be elliptical. The radius of the game ball is 5.5 mm, and the lateral width of the striking surface can be 6 mm, for example. In this manner, by forming the striking surface of the hitting ball portion 16 into a rectangle or ellipse wider than the radius of the game ball, even when the positional relationship between the game ball and the hit ball portion 16 is slightly shifted, stable launching is performed. be able to. Therefore, when the launcher 15 rotates with a constant turning force, variations in the launch direction and flight distance of the game ball can be reduced, and a constant hit ball can be performed.

  As described above, the shaft hole is formed in the corner of the L-shaped main body of the launcher 15, and the tip of the rotary shaft 14a of the rotary solenoid 14 is fitted into the shaft hole, and is fastened and fixed by the fixing nut 14b. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the metal surface is exposed around the shaft hole 15d so that the firing rod 15 is firmly fixed by the fixing nut 14b.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the rotary solenoid 14 is fixed to the back surface of the base plate 11 so that the rotation shaft 14a protrudes from a hole formed on the right side of the center of the base plate 11, and is attached to the tip of the rotation shaft 14a. The launcher 15 is fastened and fixed by the fixing nut 14b. At this time, as shown in FIG. 7, the hitting ball portion 16 of the launching rod 15 has a ball holding portion 12b when the firing rod 15 rotates clockwise from approximately 6 o'clock to approximately 8 o'clock in a front view. The game ball is hit and fired in a predetermined firing direction.

  Further, a rotation range limiting portion 15a for limiting the rotation range is formed on one side of the launching rod 15 on the side of the hitting ball portion, and the first stopper portion is opposed to the rotation range limiting portion 15a. 17 and the 2nd stopper part 18 are being fixed on the base board 11 so that contact is possible.

  The first stopper portion 17 is fixed on the base plate 11 at a position where the rotation range limiting portion 15a abuts when the shooting rod 15 is turned to the shooting side and hits a ball. Further, the second stopper portion 18 is fixed on the base plate 11 at a position where the rotation range limiting portion 15a contacts when the launching rod 15 returns to the standby position after the hitting operation. In the first stopper portion 17 and the second stopper portion 18, a portion such as a polymer elastomer having rubber-like elasticity with respect to the synthetic resin mounting portion is in contact with the rotation range limiting portion 15 a of the launch rod 15. A cylindrical elastic body is attached so that the impact when the launcher 15 hits the stopper portion is buffered.

  As described above, the launch rod 15 is provided with the rotation range limiting portion 15a for limiting the rotation range and the hitting ball portion 16 for hitting the game ball. As described above, the metal insert 15a is used as an insert for high resilience. By performing the insert molding of the elastic synthetic resin, the coating layer 15c of the rotation range limiting portion 15a and the hitting ball portion 16 can be simultaneously formed in one molding process, and the production efficiency of the launcher 15 is greatly improved. Can do.

  The launcher 15 is driven in the firing direction (clockwise in FIG. 7) by the rotational drive of the rotary solenoid 14, and after firing, due to its own weight and the magnetic force of the permanent magnet 19 provided on the launcher member 12, FIG. 1 to the position shown in FIG. 1 so as to rotate counterclockwise and return to the standby position. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, a transparent cover 10a is attached to the front surface of the launching device 10 so as to cover the launching rod 15 and the like, and the game ball accidentally enters a place other than the ball holding portion 12b. Is preventing.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the launching device 10 configured in this way is attached to the lower center position of the game board 2 in the front frame 1 of the gaming machine. The game board 2 is detachably attached to the center portion of the front frame 1, and an outer rail 3 and an inner rail 4 are disposed on the game board 2 so as to surround the center game area. In the drawing, obstacle nails, various types of objects, display devices, winning holes, and the like placed on the game board 2 are omitted.

  When the game board 2 is viewed from the front, an introduction port 5 is formed between the lower end portion of the outer rail 3 on the lower left side and the inner rail 4 for introducing the launched game ball. The introduction port 5 is formed to open from the left end portion toward the lower center portion of the game board 2, that is, toward the lower oblique center portion, and the launching device 10 is installed at a substantially central position below the game board 2. Is done.

  The rotary solenoid 14 of the launcher 10 is connected to a launch control circuit (not shown). The launch control circuit detects contact of the player with a launch lever (not shown), detects a rotation amount (rotation angle) when the launch lever rotates, and operates a ball feed mechanism (not shown), The game balls sent from the tray are sent one by one to the ball holding portion 12b of the launching device 10, and the rotary solenoid 14 is rotationally driven with a torque corresponding to the rotation angle of the launch lever to control the launch operation of the game balls. It is configured.

  Next, the operation of the ball launching device having the above configuration will be described. When the player operates the launch lever, a ball feed mechanism (not shown) operates to send game balls one by one to the ball holding portion 12b of the launch device 10, and the rotary solenoid 14 is driven to cause the launch rod 15 to move as shown in FIG. It is rotated clockwise from the standby position toward the launch position in FIG. 7 in a front view. At this time, by the rotation of the launcher 15, the hitting ball portion 16 at the tip thereof hits the game ball of the ball holding portion 12b, and the game ball passes through the launch passage 12a toward the introduction port 5 at the lower end portion of the outer rail 3. Fired.

  The hitting ball portion 16 is formed of the same synthetic resin integrally with the coating layer 15c. However, since a thermoplastic elastomer (for example, polyester elastomer) having a high resilience is used, the game ball has a good spring-like elasticity. Can be stably fired at a certain flight distance in a certain firing direction.

  Further, during such a launching operation, the launching rod 15 stops with one side of the rotation range restricting portion 15a coming into contact with the first stopper portion 17. The driving current for rotationally driving the rotary solenoid 14 is a pulsed current having a short time width, and is supplied in a pulse shape. As a result, the hitting portion 16 rotates and hits the game ball, and the rotation range. When the limiting portion 15a comes into contact with the first stopper portion 17, the drive pulse current disappears and the rotational torque becomes zero. Therefore, after the striking operation, the launcher 15 rotates counterclockwise in FIG. 7 due to its own weight and returns to the standby position in FIG. Stops in contact with.

  Thus, by driving the rotary solenoid 14, the firing rod 15 repeats reciprocating rotation within a predetermined angular range, and the hitting ball portion 16 at the tip of the firing rod 15 rotates clockwise and is held by the ball holding portion 12b. By hitting the played game ball, the game ball is successfully launched. Since the hitting ball portion 16 is integrally formed of the same thermoplastic elastomer as the coating layer 15c, the impact at the time of hitting is satisfactorily reduced by the good high resilience and high impact resistance, and the wear of the hitting ball portion 16 is also minimized. Can be suppressed.

  FIG. 9 shows a launcher 35 according to another embodiment. In this example, a coating layer 35c is formed only on the tip of the metal main body 35b on the ball striking portion side, and the ball striking portion 36 is formed integrally with the coating layer 35c. Has been. The coating layer 35c is formed by insert molding using a thermoplastic elastomer as a material in the same manner as described above, and thus, by providing the coating layer 35c only in the vicinity of the tip of the metal main body 35b, the hitting portion 36 is also formed. Formation is easy.

  FIG. 10 shows a launcher 45 of another embodiment. In this example, the coating layer 45c is coated only on the tip of the metal main body 45b on the ball striking portion side, and the coating layer 45c is fixed by the fixing screw 45d. A ball striking portion 46 is formed integrally with the coating layer 45c, and the coating layer 45c is molded from a thermoplastic elastomer as described above. Thus, even if the coating layer 45c is provided only at the tip of the metal main body 45b on the ball striking portion side, the ball striking portion 46 can be easily formed by integrally forming the ball striking portion 46 on the coating layer 45c. it can.

It is a front view of the launching device which shows one Embodiment of this invention. It is a right view of the launching device. It is a disassembled perspective view of a launcher. It is a front view of the metal insert of a launcher. (A) is a front view of a launcher, and (b) is a left side view thereof. It is a front view of the front frame of a pachinko gaming machine. It is a front view of the launcher at the time of launch operation. It is a front view of the launching kit of other embodiments. It is a front view of the launcher of further another embodiment. It is a front view of the launcher of further another embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

10-Launching device 12b-Ball holding unit 13-Launch rail 14-Rotary solenoid 15-Launch rod 15a-Rotation range limiting unit 15b-Metal insert 15c-Coating layer 16-Balling unit

Claims (2)

A ball launcher for a pachinko gaming machine, in which a launcher having a hitting ball portion at the tip is reciprocatingly rotated about a rotation axis, hitting the hitting ball portion against a game ball, and shooting the game ball toward the game area In
The metal body of the launcher is formed in a substantially L shape, the shaft hole for the pivot shaft is formed at the corner of the metal body, and at least the tip of the metal body of the launcher and the shaft hole A synthetic resin coating layer having high rebound resilience is coated and formed by exposing the surrounding metal surface. When molding the coating layer, the synthetic resin coating layer is formed around the metal body using the metal body as an insert. Insert-molded so as to cover, the hitting ball part is integrally formed with the covering layer, the hitting ball part is provided with a through hole parallel to the rotation shaft, and the hitting surface of the hitting ball part is a game ball A ball launcher for a pachinko gaming machine, characterized in that it is formed in a rectangular shape wider than the radius . 2. The ball launcher for a pachinko gaming machine according to claim 1, wherein a thermoplastic elastomer is used as the high resilience synthetic resin material.

Images