JPH0319792B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a pachinko ball conveying machine that constitutes an automatic pachinko ball circulation system employed in pachinko game parlors.

[Conventional technology] Conventionally, pachinko game halls have adopted an automatic pachinko ball circulation system that uses a power source to automatically transport a large number of pachinko balls to form a supply path for pachinko balls, thereby saving labor in the game hall. We are trying to

The pachinko ball conveyor is a part of the pachinko ball automatic circulation system, and is a device that has the function of conveying pachinko balls located at a low place to a high place. FIG. 3A shows a schematic diagram showing its operating status. As shown in the figure, the basic structure of a pachinko ball conveyor is that at least an endless belt B
is rotated using a driving device V such as an electric motor, and a surface of the belt (conveying surface) is placed at a position opposite to the rotating endless belt B at a distance slightly smaller than the diameter of the pachinko ball T. The pachinko ball T is held between the support plate S and the belt B, and the pachinko balls are held by the rotational force of the belt. It is transported to a high place. Note that P in the figure represents a pulley that supports one end of belt B, and A represents a game machine.

Therefore, the clamping force between the endless belt B and the support plate S is closely related to the conveyance capacity of the pachinko balls T, and if the clamping force is weak, the pachinko balls T will fall due to their own weight and cannot be conveyed upward. If the clamping force is strong, not only will unnecessary force be required to rotate the belt B, but there is also a possibility that the belt B and the support plate S may be damaged. Therefore, the support plate S shown in FIG. 3A has a two-layer structure, as shown in FIG. The intermediate plate S1 was urged toward the conveying surface of the belt B.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, the above-mentioned pachinko ball conveying machine also had the following problems and was still not satisfactory.

That is, in order to bias the entire planar plate called the intermediate plate S1 toward the belt side, a large number of coil springs C are required as shown in FIG. 3B. Moreover, unless all the elastic forces of the coil springs C are of uniform quality, the gripping force of the pachinko balls T will be uneven, which will cause problems in conveyance. In addition, consideration must be given to the material of the middle plate S1, as shown in Figure 3C.
In order to prevent the central axis from swelling and causing uneven gripping force, a highly rigid material must be used, but this may also damage the pachinko balls. Therefore, conventionally, the middle plate S1 has a multilayer structure, and the surface that holds the pachinko balls is made of a soft material, and the surface that is biased by the coil spring C is made of a highly rigid material, which reduces costs. This resulted in high production costs and complicated manufacturing processes.

The present invention was developed in view of the above problems, and is an excellent invention that can always maintain the best conveyance capacity for pachinko balls despite the small number of coil springs used, is easy to manufacture, and can be produced at low cost. Its purpose is to provide a pachinko ball transport machine.

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides means for rotating the pachinko balls and the endless belt while applying a frictional force between the belt and the pachinko balls. In a pachinko ball conveyor that lifts and transports balls, a large number of rollers are provided at predetermined intervals on the back side of the lifting surface of the endless belt that comes into contact with the pachinko balls, and each of the rollers assists the rotation of the belt; The gist is a pachinko ball conveying machine characterized by comprising: a biasing spring that is provided and biases each roller in the direction of the lifting surface.

Here, the rollers provided in the pachinko ball conveying machine in the present invention are rollers on the belt conveying surface that convey the pachinko balls so that the endless belt does not bend when the endless belt conveys the pachinko balls facing the support plate. It is provided on the back side. Usually, a cylindrical roller is rotatably supported around its axis, and is arranged on the back side of the conveying surface so as to rotate in the same direction as the rotation of the endless belt.

Further, this roller is biased by a biasing spring in the direction of the conveying surface of the endless belt, that is, in the direction in which the pachinko balls being conveyed are present. Therefore,
The biasing spring always presses the roller against the endless belt.

[Function] In the pachinko ball conveying machine of the present invention having the above configuration, the urging spring urges the roller to move the roller along the conveying surface of the endless belt to the side where the pachinko balls being conveyed are present. Similarly, it is energized.

EXAMPLES Hereinafter, in order to explain the present invention more specifically, the present invention will be described in detail by giving examples.

[Embodiment] FIG. 1A is a schematic structural diagram of a pachinko ball conveying machine that is an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a pulley rotatably driven by an electric motor (not shown), which rotates a pulley 3 for driving a belt of a pachinko ball conveyor via a belt 2. An appropriate amount of pachinko balls T are flowed by the stopper 4, and when they reach the entrance 5 of the pachinko ball conveyor, they are held between the endless belt 6 for conveyance rotated by the pulley 3 and the support plate 7. , and then conveyed to the upper position of the driven pulley 8 by the rotational movement of the belt 6. As a result, the pachinko balls used at the pachinko machine A are returned to the supply pipe at the top of the pachinko machine A.

FIG. 1B shows a cross-sectional view taken along line GG in FIG. 1A. In the figure, the roller 9 in contact with the endless belt 6 has a cylindrical shape, and the shaft 10
It is rotatably supported around the center, and its circumference is in contact with the back surface 6B of the conveyance surface 6S of the endless belt 6. Further, the belt 6 is installed inside a belt frame 11, and ribs 12 are provided protruding from the belt frame 11. A biasing coil spring 13 is fitted between the rib 12 and the shaft 10 of the roller 9 in a compressed state. Therefore, this coil spring 1
3 always exerts a force that separates the rib 12 from the shaft 10, and the roller 9 comes into contact with the belt 6 and urges the belt 6 toward the support plate 7. With this, the pachinko ball T is
is securely held. The support plate 7 has a groove formed on the side facing the outer frame 14 and the belt 6, and a mat 15 having an elastic force and forming a passage for the pachinko balls T is embedded in the groove. Furthermore, a protective film 16 is laid on the surface of the mat 15 to protect and clean the pachinko balls T. Since the support plate 7 has a multilayer structure in this way, it not only has better gripping power for the pachinko balls T, but also has the function of cleaning and protecting the pachinko balls T.

In the pachinko ball conveying machine of this embodiment configured as described above, only two coil springs are needed for each roller 9 to hold the pachinko balls. Conventionally, rollers 9 have been provided to ensure smooth rotation of the belt 6, so only the coil springs 13 are required to manufacture the pachinko ball conveying machine of this embodiment. Furthermore, it is clear that the coil springs 13 are extremely economical, as the number of coil springs 13 that were conventionally provided in large numbers on the support plate 7 side is reduced to only two per roller 9.

That is, in order to uniformly bias a planar object such as the support plate 7, a large number of coil springs are required in the width direction and the length direction of the support plate 7. However, in this embodiment, the belt 6 can be biased across the entire width direction by simply biasing the roller 9 from both ends.

Next, a second embodiment is shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Second
Figure A is a schematic diagram showing the usage state of the pachinko ball conveying machine of the second embodiment, and as shown in the figure, the parts that hold the pachinko balls in order to convey them are both constituted by endless belts. .
In the figure, reference numeral 21 denotes a pulley rotatably driven by an electric motor (not shown), which rotates belt-driving pulleys 23a and 23b of the pachinko ball conveyor via a belt 22. As a result, when the pachinko balls T reach the entrance 25 of the pachinko ball conveyor,
It is held between conveyor belts 26a and 26b which are rotated by pulleys 23a and 23b,
Thereafter, it is conveyed to the upper driven pulleys 27a, 27b by the rotational movement of the belts 26a, 26b. Here, the two belts 26a, 26b may be rotating at the same or different speeds; one may be faster and the other may be slower. Furthermore, depending on the case, they may be rotated in opposite directions.

FIG. 2B is a sectional view taken along the line HH in FIG. 2A. In this embodiment, both belts 26a and 26b are provided within guides 31a and 31b. In both guides 31a and 31b, rollers 39a and 39b for holding down the belt are provided. In this embodiment, the bearing 32 of the belt holding roller 39b is
A spring 34 is provided between the guide 31b and the locking frame 33, and the belt pressing roller 39b always holds the belt 2.
It is biased in the direction 6a. Therefore, when the pachinko ball T is held between the belts 26a and 26b,
The pachinko balls T move from a low place to a high place while being securely held between both belts 6a and 6b.

Similarly, a coil spring 34 is also attached to the roller 39a.
It is also possible to provide a structure in which the roller 39b is biased toward the roller 39b, and by doing so, the holding force for the pachinko balls T becomes even better.

That is, in the past, one of the pachinko balls had to be fixed and immovable like a support plate in order to hold the balls, but with this embodiment, both of them can be configured as movable belts 39a and 39b. This also becomes possible.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above in detail with reference to the embodiments, the pachinko ball conveying machine of the present invention rotates the endless belt of the pachinko balls while exerting a frictional force between the endless belt and the pachinko balls. In a pachinko ball conveying machine that lifts pachinko balls, a large number of rollers are provided at predetermined intervals on the back side of the lifting surface of the endless belt that is in contact with the pachinko balls, and each of the rollers is provided for each of the large number of rollers. and a biasing spring that biases each roller in the direction of the lifting surface.

Therefore, since the pachinko balls are held by the springs that urge the rollers on the back of the belt, a sufficient holding force can be obtained over the entire width of the belt despite the small number of springs. This results in an excellent pachinko ball conveying machine that also achieves cost reduction and simplification of the manufacturing process.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1A is a schematic diagram of a pachinko ball conveyor according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1B is a sectional view taken along line GG, and FIG. A schematic diagram of the conveyor, FIG. 2B is a sectional view taken along line H-H,
3A, B, and C are a schematic diagram, a structural explanatory diagram of a support plate, and a cross-sectional view of a conventional pachinko ball conveyor. 1, 3, 23a, 23b...Pulley, 6, 26
a, 26b... Conveyance belt, 13, 34... Spring, 9, 39a, 39b... Roller.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. In a pachinko ball conveying machine that lifts the pachinko balls by rotating the belt while exerting a frictional force between the pachinko balls and the endless belt, the pachinko balls on the endless belt and A large number of rollers are provided at predetermined intervals on the back surface of the lifting surface in contact and assist the rotation of the belt; and urging rollers are provided for each of the large number of rollers and bias each roller in the direction of the lifting surface. A pachinko ball conveying machine characterized by comprising a spring and.