Brake unit mechanism for video driving game machine

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD [Detailed description of the invention]

【0001】

[Industrial application field]

The present invention relates to a brake unit mechanism provided in a driving video game machine.

【0002】

[Conventional technology]

Conventionally, a driving video game machine that simulates driving an automobile or the like is provided with operating members such as a steering wheel, a shift lever, an accelerator pedal, and a brake pedal, and a player operates these operating members. It is possible to change the driving state of the car on the screen.

【0003】

Usually, a car race is often held in a game machine as described above, and a player operates an accelerator pedal to drive a car at high speed and operates a brake pedal to drive the car in order to win this race. By decelerating, you can drive on curves and avoid obstacles.

【0004】

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention]

By the way, when driving in an actual automobile in which braking is frequently applied during high-speed driving, a state in which the brakes are heated and cannot be braked occurs, so-called fade phenomenon. The phenomenon that the amount becomes considerably large occurs.

【0005】

However, in a game machine such as the above, no matter how hard the brake pedal of the car is used, the change in the degree of depression (depression weight and depression amount) due to the above fade phenomenon does not appear, which is not realistic and is not realistic for the player. Was lacking in presence.

【0006】

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and the brake portion mechanism of a driving video game machine that allows a player to experience a greater sense of presence by changing the degree of depression of the brake portion according to the game situation. It is intended to be provided.

【0007】

[Means for solving problems]

The invention according to claim 1 is a stepping means for depressing the brake pedal and a change control means for changing the depressing condition by the stepping means according to a game situation in the brake unit mechanism of a driving video game machine having a brake pedal. It is configured to include.

【0008】

The invention according to claim 2 comprises a shaft support means for the stepping means to rotate the brake pedal with respect to the game machine main body, and an urging means for generating a reaction force so as to return the brake pedal to the initial position. The change control means includes the urging force changing means for changing the urging force of the urging means, and is configured to change the urging force by the urging force changing means according to the game situation.

【0009】

The invention according to claim 3 is configured such that the urging means is composed of an air cylinder, and the urging force changing means is composed of a pressure control valve that changes the pressure in the air cylinder by a signal of the change control means. ..

【0010】

In the invention according to claim 4, the urging means comprises an elastic member, and the urging force changing means converts the rotational motion of the motor and the motor into a linear motion, and displaces the elastic member with respect to the direction in which the additional force acts. It is composed of a displacement mechanism unit to be made to move.

【0011】

The invention according to claim 5 has a shaft support means for making the brake pedal rotatable with respect to the game machine main body, and a regulating member for restricting the amount of depression by contacting the brake pedal. The control means includes a regulation position changing means for changing the position of the regulation member with respect to the stepping direction, and is configured to change the position of the regulation member by the regulation position changing means according to the game situation.

【0012】

[Action]

According to the invention of claim 1, the change control means causes the stepping means to change the setting according to the game situation, so that the degree of depression of the brake pedal is changed.

【0013】

According to the invention of claim 2, when the brake pedal is operated, the change control means causes the urging force changing means to change the urging force by the urging means based on the game situation, so that the reaction force of the brake pedal Is changed.

【0014】

According to the invention of claim 3, the reaction force of the brake pedal is changed because the change control means causes the pressure control valve to change the pressure in the air cylinder.

【0015】

According to the invention of claim 4, the change control means rotationally drives the motor according to the game situation, and the displacement mechanism unit converts the rotational motion of the motor into a linear motion to displace the elastic member, so that the brake pedal Reaction force is changed.

【0016】

According to the invention of claim 5, since the change control means causes the regulated position changing means to change the position of the regulating member according to the game situation, the contact position is changed and the amount of depression of the brake pedal is changed. ..

【0017】

[Example]

FIG. 5 shows a schematic configuration of a driving video game machine to which the brake mechanism of the game machine according to the present invention is applied. The game machine 1 is composed of a main body 2 and a seat 3 on which a player sits. The main body 2 includes a monitor 4 for displaying a game screen, a start button 5 for starting a game, and a game screen on the game screen. It is equipped with a handle 6 for changing the traveling direction of the automobile, a shift knob 7 for switching the transmission of the automobile, an accelerator pedal 8 for accelerating the automobile, and a braking mechanism 9 for decelerating the automobile. In addition, a change control means 10 is provided inside the main body 2, and each operating member of the steering wheel 6, shift knob 7, accelerator pedal 8, and brake pedal 91 is provided with a detector for detecting the amount of operation. The operating state of is detected as an electric signal.

【0018】

FIG. 1 shows the configuration of the first embodiment of the brake unit mechanism according to the present invention. The brake unit mechanism 9 includes a brake pedal 91, a potentiometer (depression amount detecting means) 92 for detecting the depression amount of the pedal, an air cylinder (urging means) 93 for applying a reaction force to the brake pedal 91, and an air cylinder 93. It is composed of a pressure control valve (force changing means) 94 that changes the air pressure inside.

【0019】

The brake pedal 91 is composed of a pedal 91a operated by a foot and a support member 91b that supports the pedal 91a, and the support member 91b is provided in a through hole 21a provided in a front wall 21 below the main body 2. The end portion that is inserted and located inside the front wall 21 is rotatably supported by a horizontal shaft (shaft support means) 22 provided in the main body 2. Further, an arcuate gear piece 95 having a first gear 95a formed around the horizontal axis 22 is fixed at an appropriate position of the support member 91b.

【0020】

The potentiometer 92 has a second gear 96 mounted on its shaft, and the second gear 96 is fixed to the main body 2 at a mounting position where the second gear 96 meshes with the first gear 95a. The potentiometer 92 outputs the amount of depression of the brake pedal 91 from the initial position to the control circuit unit 102, which will be described later, as a depression amount detection signal.

【0021】

The air cylinder 93 is composed of a cylinder 93a to which compressed air is supplied and a rod 93b slidably mounted on the cylinder 93a, and the closed end 93c of the cylinder 93a is attached to the main body 2. The rod 93b is rotatably supported by the shaft, while the tip portion 93d of the rod 93b is rotatably engaged with a horizontal shaft 91c provided near the center of the support member 91b. By mounting the air cylinder 93 in this way, when compressed air is supplied to the cylinder 93a, the rod 93b applies a reaction force to the brake pedal 91 in the direction of the initial position, and the brake pedal 91 is depressed. When it is rotated in the direction of arrow F in the figure, the rod 93b is pushed into the cylinder 93a, the compressed air in the cylinder 93a is further compressed, and the reaction force is increased, resulting in an increase in the reaction force. The rod 93b is immersed in the cylinder 93a until this reaction force is in balance with the stepping operation force applied to the brake pedal 91a.

【0022】

The pressure control valve 94 is provided in a pipe between an air compressor (not shown) provided outside the main body 2 and a cylinder 93a, and the pressure of compressed air from the air compressor is determined later based on a pressure control signal described later. The pressure is changed to the reference pressure to be applied and supplied to the cylinder 93a, and the air pressure in the cylinder 93 is reduced based on the pressure control signal. The reference pressure is set to an appropriate value in which the reaction force of the rod 93b is slightly smaller than the average stepping operation force.

【0023】

FIG. 2 shows a block configuration of the change control means 10, in which the change control means 10 includes an input unit 101 including detectors and potentiometers 92 of the various operation members, and a control circuit unit for developing a game. It consists of 102. The control circuit unit 102 generates an image signal as the game progresses and outputs it to the monitor 4, and further outputs a pressure control signal to the pressure control valve 94 according to the depression amount detection signal and the game situation. is there.

【0024】

Next, the operation when the brake unit mechanism 9 according to the present invention is applied to, for example, a racing game machine will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 5. When the driving game is started by pressing the start button 5, the control circuit unit 102 outputs a pressure control signal to the pressure control valve 94. The pressure control valve 94 changes the compressed air to a reference pressure by the pressure control signal and supplies the compressed air to the cylinder 93a. Therefore, a reference reaction force is applied to the support member 91b at the initial position of the brake pedal 91.

【0025】

At the same time as the game starts, as shown in FIG. 5, the monitor 4 displays the car 4a operated by the player, the rival car 4b, the course 4c, etc., and the player runs the car 4a at high speed. Will start the race with rival car 4b.

【0026】

During this race, the player decelerates the car 4a by stepping on the pedal 91a shown in FIG. 1 to avoid a collision or going off course on a curve. At this time, the brake pedal 91 is rotated in the direction of the arrow F in the figure, and as a result, the second gear 96 is rotated by the first gear 95a, and the potentiometer 92 detects the amount of depression of the brake pedal 91. A signal is generated.

【0027】

When the control circuit unit 102 decelerates the traveling speed of the automobile 4a based on the depression amount detection signal, checks the usage state of the brake based on the frequency of use, the depression amount, etc., and determines that the brake unit is excessively abused. Outputs a pressure control signal to reproduce fading. On the game side, since the deceleration amount with respect to the unit stepping amount is suppressed at the same time as the output of this pressure control signal, the automobile 4a is not decelerated so much even for a strong stepping operation.

【0028】

On the other hand, the pressure control valve 94 reduces the air pressure in the cylinder 93a based on the pressure control signal. Therefore, the reaction force of the brake pedal 91 is weaker than the reference reaction force, the player feels that the stepping operation of the brake pedal 91 is lighter, and the fading phenomenon that occurs in the automobile 4a is experienced.

【0029】

In this embodiment, since the reaction force applied to the brake pedal 91 is generated by the pressure control valve 94 and the air cylinder 93, the brake pedal 91 can be changed only by changing the pressure control signal from the control circuit unit 102. The reaction force to be applied can be easily changed.

【0030】

Next, a second embodiment of the brake unit mechanism will be described with reference to FIG. In the figure, those having the same reference numerals as those of the first embodiment perform the same functions. This brake unit mechanism includes a brake pedal 201, a coil spring (elastic member) 202 that applies urging force to the brake pedal 201, a rack 203 and a spur gear 204 that form a displacement mechanism unit, a worm 205, and a motor 206. ..

【0031】

The brake pedal 201 is composed of a pedal 201a and a support member 201b, and the support member 201b is rotatably supported by a horizontal shaft 24 provided on the main body 2 near the center thereof, and is inside the main body 2. A locking groove 201c is formed at the end.

【0032】

The coil spring 202 generates an urging force, one end 202a thereof is formed in a hook shape and locked in the locking groove 201c, and the other end is connected to the end of the rack 203. In this way, the urging force in the contraction direction of the coil spring 202 is applied to the locking groove 201c of the support member 201b, and the direction of this urging force is reversed on the horizontal axis 24 to become the reaction force of the brake pedal 201.

【0033】

On the other hand, the worm 205 is mounted on the shaft of the motor 206, and the spur gear 204 is pivotally supported by the main body 2 in a state of being meshed with the rack 203 and the worm 205. The spur gear 204 and the rack 203 displace the coil spring 202 in the direction of arrow D2 in the figure.

【0034】

Further, a stopper 207 is erected below the inner portion of the support member 201b to stop the rotation of the support member 201b by the coil spring 202 in the clockwise direction at the initial position shown by the solid line in FIG.

【0035】

The control circuit unit 102 in this embodiment outputs a motor drive signal, and therefore the rotation direction and the amount of rotation of the motor 206 are determined by the motor drive signal. Further, the control circuit unit 102 monitors the position of the rack 203 from the output motor drive signal, and the control circuit unit 102 drives the motor 206 to return the rack 203 to the initial position at the start of the game. As a result, the coil spring 202 is displaced by a predetermined amount (initial displacement amount), and an initial reaction force of a predetermined strength is applied to the brake pedal 201.

【0036】

The operation of this second embodiment will be described. First, when the game is started, the control circuit unit 102 outputs a motor drive signal to apply an initial reaction force to the brake pedal 201.

【0037】

On the other hand, if the control circuit unit 102 determines that fading phenomenon needs to be reproduced during the game, it suppresses the deceleration amount of the automobile 4a with respect to the unit depression amount of the brake pedal 201, outputs a motor drive signal, and arrows the motor 206. Rotate in the C1 direction. Therefore, the rack 203 is slid in the direction of arrow D1 by an appropriate amount smaller than the initial displacement amount, the reaction force of the brake pedal 201 is weakened from the initial reaction force, and the player is given a stepping operation force of the brake pedal 201. You can feel it lighter.

【0038】

In this second embodiment, the reaction force applied to the brake pedal 201 is generated by the coil spring 202, the rack 203, the spur gear 204, the worm 205, the motor 206, etc., so that the large-scale equipment such as the compressor is not required. Become.

【0039】

The elastic member may be an elastic body such as rubber, and is not limited to the coil spring 202.

【0040】

In the above two embodiments, the case where the brake pedal depression weight is reduced by a certain amount when fading occurs has been described, but the control circuit unit 102 needs to reproduce fading depending on the game situation. , The degree of fading is determined, and the pressure control signal and the motor drive signal are generated as signals according to the degree of fading. Then, in the brake unit mechanism shown in the above two embodiments, the stepping weight is reduced according to the degree of fading, and a more realistic sense of reality can be obtained.

【0041】

Next, a third embodiment of the brake unit mechanism will be described with reference to FIG. This brake unit mechanism includes a brake pedal 301, a coil spring 305 that applies a reaction force to the brake pedal 301, a regulation member 302 that regulates the amount of depression, and an electromagnetic solenoid (regulation position changing means) that changes the position of the regulation member 302. It is composed of 303 etc.

【0042】

The support member 301a of the brake pedal 301 is pivotally supported by a horizontal shaft 22 provided inside the main body 2, and an annular portion 305a of the coil spring 305 is further fitted to the horizontal shaft 22. Both ends of the coil spring 305 are locked to protrusions 23 and 301b provided on the main body 2 and the ends of the support member 301a, respectively. By doing so, the brake pedal 301 is urged in the direction indicated by the arrow E.

【0043】

The regulating member 302 is made of a columnar member, the tip surface 302a thereof is formed on an upwardly inclined surface, and the base end surface 302b is connected to the tip portion of the core member 303a of the electromagnetic solenoid 303. The electromagnetic solenoid 303 is a linear electromagnetic solenoid composed of an electromagnetic coil and a return spring (not shown) and a core member 303a. By changing the frequency and duty ratio of the current supplied to the electromagnetic coil, the core The slide amount of the member 303a can be changed. On the other hand, when the electromagnetic coil is not excited, the core member 303a is returned to the initial position shown by the solid line in the figure by the return spring.

【0044】

Further, between the tip surface 302a and the support member 301a, a roller 304 mounted so as to be able to slide in the horizontal direction is horizontally provided. The diameter of the roller 304 is set so that an appropriate distance is secured between the front end surface 302a and the lower side surface 301c of the support member 301a when the regulation member 302 is in the initial position. By setting the diameter of the roller 304 in this way, the amount of depression of the brake pedal 301 that is normally operated is secured. Further, since the roller 304 rotates, the frictional force between the tip surface 302a that moves linearly and the lower side surface 301c of the support member 301a that moves in an arc shape is reduced.

【0045】

The control circuit unit 102 in this embodiment determines whether or not it is necessary to reproduce the fade phenomenon according to the depression amount detection signal and the game situation, and determines the degree of the fade phenomenon, and the duty is set according to the determination result. The ratio regulation position change signal is output to the electromagnetic solenoid 303.

【0046】

Next, the operation of this third embodiment will be described. When the control circuit unit 102 determines that fading phenomenon needs to be reproduced while the game is in progress, the deceleration amount of the automobile 4a with respect to the unit depression amount of the brake pedal 301 is suppressed, and the duty according to the degree of fading phenomenon is suppressed. Outputs a regulated position change signal with a ratio. Then, the electromagnetic solenoid 303 changes the position of the regulating member 302 toward the position indicated by the alternate long and short dash line in the figure by an amount corresponding to the duty ratio, so that the brake pedal 301 is rotated in the direction of arrow G, and the position is changed. The amount of depression increases.

【0047】

As a result, the player can experience fading due to the increased amount of depression, and even if the brake is operated, the car 4a on the game screen is not decelerated so much, so that a more realistic sense of reality can be obtained. it can.

【0048】

If the brake pedal 301 is depressed based on this fade phenomenon at only one position as shown by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 4, the core member is in the return position instead of the linear electromagnetic solenoid 303. It may be a general electromagnetic solenoid that can move only between the two positions of and the operating position.

【0049】

[Effect of the invention]

According to the present invention, since the change control means is configured to cause the stepping means to change the setting of the depression condition according to the game situation or the like, the depression condition of the brake pedal is changed, and the player can experience a great sense of presence. be able to.

【0050】

According to the inventions of claims 2 to 4, since the pressing weight of the brake pedal can be changed, it is possible to provide the player with a more realistic sense of reality.

【0051】

According to the invention of claim 5, the brake unit mechanism is provided with a shaft support means for rotatably supporting the brake pedal, a regulation member for regulating the amount of depression, a regulation position changing means for changing the position of the regulation member, and the like. Because of the configuration, the change control means changes the position of the regulating member by the regulating position changing means according to the game situation, etc., and changes the amount of depression of the brake pedal. Therefore, it is possible to increase the sense of presence with a relatively simple configuration. it can.

[Simple explanation of drawings]

[Figure 1]

It is a side view of the 1st Example of the brake part mechanism which concerns on this invention.

[Figure 2]

It is a block block diagram of the change control means in the said 1st Example.

[Fig. 3]

It is a side view of the 2nd Embodiment of the said brake part mechanism.

[Fig. 4]

It is a side view of the 3rd Embodiment of the said brake part mechanism.

[Fig. 5]

It is an overview diagram of the driving video game machine to which the brake part mechanism which concerns on this invention is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Video game console 2 Main body 4 monitor 9 Brake mechanism 10 Change control means 91 Brake pedal 92 Potentiometer 93 air cylinder 94 Pressure control valve 102 Control circuit section 202 coil spring 203 rack 204 Spur gear 205 worm 206 motor 302 Regulatory member 303 electromagnetic solenoid 304 Laura