Amusement devices: games – Including means for processing electronic data – Player-actuated control structure
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-12
2001-12-04
Harrison, Jessica J. (Department: 3713)
Amusement devices: games
Including means for processing electronic data
Player-actuated control structure
C463S020000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06325720
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a game machine for allowing a player to play a game, and more particularly to a game machine such as a slot machine.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, a typical conventional slot machine comprises a plurality of rotatable annular reels each of which is provided with different symbols on its outer surface. Recently, there has been proposed another slot machine comprising a plurality of display units each having a window capable of simulating the annular reels to display series of different symbols changed at random on the window.
When the player plays the game, the player initially inserts medals to the game machine and determines a betting condition including a number of medals to be betted and prize-winning line. The reels start rotating in response to the player's instruction. The reels then stop rotating in response to the player's instruction. The reels may automatically stop rotating after passing predetermined time duration. The game machine is thus operated to evaluate the combination of symbols on the predetermined prize-winning line to award a winning prize point to the player.
The game machine of this type comprises a control unit for executing a game program and a storing unit electrically connected to the control unit. The storing unit may include a ROM for storing therein the game program executed by the control unit, a RAM for serving as a work area for the control unit and a register for storing therein a credit point indicative of a total number of credit medals and so on.
This type of game machine is shown in
FIG. 6
of the drawings to comprise a housing
50
and various operational buttons including three different betting buttons
51
,
52
and
53
, a start lever
14
and three different stop buttons
56
,
57
and
58
, a dispense button
64
, and a medal slot
66
. The housing
50
has a front panel
55
having three windows w
1
to w
3
through each of which three symbols aligned lengthwise are displayed. Each of the betting buttons
51
,
52
and
53
may be constructed by a push button. The betting buttons
51
,
52
and
53
are designed to allow the player to determine a betting point, e.g., one, two and three medals, respectively, to be betted for playing the game. The betting point is indicative of the number of medals betted for playing the game by the player. The medals to be betted may be coins, tokens, a prepaid card or the like. The game machine of this type may be provided with three different prize-winning lines consists of a middle transverse line
61
, upper and lower transverse lines
62
, and slanting lines
63
as shown in FIG.
6
. The betting buttons
51
,
52
and
53
are operated by the player to have the prize-winning lines
61
,
62
and
63
determined, respectively, as well as the betting point determined.
Each of prize-winning lines has three symbols displayed thereon. The game machine is designed to evaluate the combination of three symbols on each of the determined prize-winning lines to award the winning prize point to the player on the basis of the betting point.
The start lever
14
is pivotally supported on the housing
50
and upwardly and downwardly movable to assume a neutral position, an upper position and a lower position. The neutral position is located between the upper and lower positions. When the start lever
14
is operated by the player to be positioned at one of the upper and lower positions, all of the reels start to rotate to have the symbols displayed through the windows w
1
to w
3
.
The stop buttons
56
to
58
are designed to allow the player to selectively stop the reels moved to have the combination of the symbols displayed through the windows w
1
to w
3
defined, respectively. Each of the stop buttons
56
to
58
may be constructed by a push button.
When the combination of the symbols are defined, the control unit is operated to evaluate the combination of the symbols on the basis of the prize-winning line predetermined by the player. When the symbols on the predetermined prize-winning line are identical with each other, the winning prize point corresponding to the betting point is awarded to the player. At this time, the winning prize point is added to the credit point and stored in the register.
When the dispenser button
64
is operated by the player, the control unit is operated to dispense the medals corresponding to the credit point stored in the register to the player and to stop executing the game.
As shown in
FIG. 7
, the game machine further comprise a lever assembly
11
which comprises a rod portion
12
having a front half section extending outwardly of the housing
50
and a rear half section extending inwardly of the housing
50
, and an axle portion
13
integrally formed with the longitudinally intermediate portion of the rod portion
12
and having a center axis
13
a
substantially perpendicular to the center axis
12
a
of the rod portion
12
. The axle portion
13
is pivotally supported on the housing
50
and pivotal about the center axis
13
a
thereof. The lever assembly
11
further comprises a handle portion
14
integrally formed with the front end of the rod portion
12
and a sensor actuating portion
16
integrally formed with the rear end of the rod portion
12
. The handle portion
14
is movable to assume three different positions consisting of neutral, upper and lower positions. The neutral position is located between the upper and lower positions. The rod portion
12
is pivotable around the center axis
13
a
of the axle portion
13
to ensure that the handle portion
14
is movable to the upper and lower positions from the neutral position.
The lever assembly
11
comprises a resiliently urging member
15
for resiliently urging the rod portion
12
of the lever assembly
11
toward the neutral position from the upper and lower positions. The resiliently urging member
15
is constructed of a pair of tensile coil springs
17
each having a center axis
17
a
extending in perpendicular relationship to the center axis
13
a
of the axle portion
13
of the lever assembly
11
.
The lever assembly
11
comprises an optical sensor
18
including a light source
18
a
for projecting a light on a light path L substantially perpendicular to the center axis
12
a
of the rod portion
12
of the lever assembly
11
and a light detector
18
b
for detecting the light projected from the light source
18
a
. The center axis
17
a
of a pair of tensile coil springs
17
is also perpendicular to the light path L of the optical sensor
18
. The tensile coil springs
17
have one ends securely connected to the housing
50
and the other ends securely connected to the rear half section of the rod portion
12
of the lever assembly
11
.
The optical sensor
18
is positioned to have the projected light intercepted by the sensor actuating portion
16
of the lever assembly
11
when the rod portion
12
of the lever assembly
11
is located at the neutral position. The optical sensor
18
is operated to issue an instruction to the control unit when the light passes from the light source
18
a to the light detector
18
b
, i.e., when the rod portion
12
of the lever assembly
11
is positioned to one of the upper and lower positions.
When the player plays the game on the game machine thus constructed, the player operates the game machine through the following steps: operating one of the betting buttons
51
to
53
to determine the betting condition, operating the handle portion
14
of the lever assembly
11
to have the reels start rotating, operating all of the stop buttons
56
to
58
to have the reels stop rotating. When the player intends to repeatedly play the game, all of the aforesaid steps are repeated. The player is liable to be tired due to the repetition of the operations. As shown in
FIG. 6
, there is a distance between the betting buttons
51
to
53
and the handle portion
14
of the lever assembly
11
which is not less than 5 cm. Therefore, the pla
Koyama Takeo
Kusanagi Mitsuaki
Tsukahara Nakayasu
Aitken Richard L.
Aruze Corporation
Harrison Jessica J.
Nguyen Kim T.
Venable
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