Horse race game apparatus

Abstract: A horse race game instrument (1) which utilizes a simple running mechanism enabling running bodies (4) to move and with which a horse race game can be enjoyably played on a table. A plurality of running bodies (4) with a dummy of a horse or the like fit thereto being caused to move at different speeds on an oval-shaped running track (3) formed in the top surface of a board body (2), a plurality of planar oval-shaped grooves (23) are provided along the bottom of the running track (3), an endless belt (24) is movably disposed in each of the grooves (23), a magnet (25) is provided to an upper part of each of the running belts (24) in order to move the running bodies by attraction, and a drive motor is provided under each of the running belts (24) in order to move each of the running belts around along each of the grooves (23).

Description: This invention relates to a horse race game apparatus for enjoying playing a horse race game on a table. As prior art, horse race game apparatus for enjoying playing horse race games, large-sized game devices to be installed in video arcades or the like, are generally known, and one example is described in an official gazette, JP. Provisional Patent Publication No. 4-75680, wherein a running table for placing running bodies thereupon is provided in a board body formed to contain a hollow space, the running bodies are placed on the running table, and when a disk in the board body is moved around by a moving means, then the running bodies are led in the moving direction of the disk by mutual attraction between second magnets or third magnets and first magnets of the running bodies, the disk being equipped therein with freely movable small articles each having the second magnets and freely rotatable rotating articles each having the third magnets. On this occasion, the small articles can move freely in the disk and the rotating articles make rotating motion relative to the disk, and therefore the moving bodies can be moved in the sphere of the disk or in the rotating sphere of the rotating articles while changing their running course. Further, when a guide member for limiting movement of the first magnets of the running bodies and of the small articles is additionally provided to the top of the hollow room in the disk, small articles attractedly attached to the top of the room cannot move freely relative to the disk and therefore the running bodies are caused to move around keeping almost the same position relative to the disk. Still further, when a rotation means comprising contact members contacting with the side face of the disk and drive means for driving the contact members is additionally provided in the board body, the disk is forcibly rotated by the rotation means and the running bodies are also turned, and because this turn is accompanied by movement along the track, the running bodies move in a parabola-like curve in the movement direction, and thereby running courses or rankings of the running bodies are changed. The aforesaid prior art horse race game apparatus, however, have disadvantage that devices thereof are not fit for a mechanism of horse race game apparatus to be used on a table, because the running mechanism becomes complicated and microcomputer control is required in order that running bodies are moved by causing small articles bearing second magnets to be freely movable while rotating articles bearing third magnets to make rotating motion, causing the devices to become large-scaled and expensive. US 5,501,455 describes a racing game wherein each racing object, such as a car or horse, is moved around a race track having varying levels by way of a magnet attached to a flexible chain which, in turn, is moved by a sprocket connected to a drive motor. The speed of the racing objects is controlled by a speed controller which controls the startup, rotation and stopping of drive motors connected to the individual sprockets. The speed of the individual drive motors is based on information entered by the players, detection signals from sensors that locate the racing objects, and an odds calculator. At the beginning of a game, bets are placed on the racing objects according to odds generated by an odds calculator. Once all the bets have been confirmed, the game begins. The speed of each racing object is varied individually with time so that the finish ranking of the racing objects is determined in accordance with probabilities which correspond to the reciprocal of the odds. Therefore, the outcome of each game is determined by a microprocessor in accordance with odds generated initially at random and then by players who bet on the race. Unfortunately, the complexity of the apparatus described in US 5,501,455 does not lend itself to being scaled so that the game could be played on a table. Indeed, the apparatus is disclosed in the form of a large-scale arcade-style game, thereby allowing as many people as possible to interact. A horse race game apparatus suitable for a table-top in described in US 3,843,123 where the horses are moved by magnets attached to moveable bands located underneath a race track. Each band is moved manually by way of a handle that grips and progresses the band when moved in one direction, and releases and stops movement of the band when moved in the opposite direction. In this way, the band is moved forward in an intermittent manner and the speed at which a horse is moved is determined by the speed at which the player can operate the handle. The randomness in the outcome of each race and the enjoyment of playing with the apparatus described in US 3,843,123 is provided by the competitiveness generated in seeing how fast each player can move his or her horse around the track by way of the manual handle. This invention was accomplished in view of the above problems and has an object to provide a horse race game apparatus which utilizes simple running mechanism enabling running bodies to move and with which a horse race game can be enjoyably played on a table. In a first mode of the invention, in order to achieve the aforementioned object, a horse race game apparatus, comprising a plurality of running bodies with a dummy of a horse or the like fitted thereto that are caused to move at different speeds on an oval-shaped running track formed by a top surface of a board body, wherein a plurality of planar oval-shaped grooves are provided under the running track, an endless belt is movably disposed in each of the grooves, and a magnet is provided on an upper part of each of the running belts in order to move the running bodies by attraction, characterised in that a drive motor is provided under each of the running belts in order to move each of the running belts in each of the grooves, and an inside of the board body is provided with a control means for changing the rotational speed of each of the plurality of drive motors to an arbitrary rotational speed. In a second mode of the invention, the board body is characterised in that the inside thereof is provided with speed sense contacts for detecting the speed of each of the running bodies and that the speed and starting positions of the running bodies are respectively set by means of the speed sense contacts. In a third mode of the invention, the running bodies are characterised by each having a bottom plate, a magnet disposed on each bottom plate for being attracted by the magnet of a running belt, and a power transmission tire for causing the dummy of a horse or the like to swing back and forth. FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an embodiment according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a partial vertical sectional view concerning FIG. 1. A preferred embodiment of the present invention is now described referring to the drawings. In FIG. 1, the reference numeral 1 denotes a horse race game apparatus. This horse race game apparatus 1 is configured so that a running track 3 is formed in the top surface of a board body 2 and running bodies 4 are capable of running on this running track 3. The board body 2 comprises a rectangular solid-like box-shaped frame body 21 and a running table 22 which covers the open top of the frame body 21 while four running grooves 23 are formed in concentric circles on the upper part of the frame body 21 along the bottom of the running track 3 of the running table 22. The miming grooves 23 each have a predetermined depth while an endless belt 24 is disposed in, and moves around along, each of the running grooves 23. Each of the running belts 24 is moved around in the corresponding running groove 23 by a drive motor 5 disposed under eaclh of the running belts 24. The drive motors 5 being fixed to the inside of the board body 2, the rotary shaft of each of the drive motors 5 is equipped with a drive gear 51 which engages with inside teeth formed on the inside surface of each of the running bells 24, while a running belt pinch roller 52 is located, standing close by the corresponding drive gear 51, on the outside surface of each of the running belts 24, and power of each of the drive motors 5 can be securely transmitted to each of the running belts 24 by sandwiching each of the running belts 24 between each of the drive gears 51 and the corresponding running belt pinch roller 52. As shown in FIG. 2, a magnet 25 is fixed to an upper part of each of the running belts 24 and moves along each of the running grooves 23 as each of the running belts 24 move around. Each of the running grooves 23 is equipped, on its bottom part, with a speed sense contact 26 for detecting moving speed of each of the magnets 25, which is aligned with a center line transversely bisecting the running track 3, and consequently moving speed of each of the running belts 24 is detected by each of the speed sense contacts 26, and along with this, speed of each of the running bodies 4 is adjusted by changing rotational speed of each of the drive motors 5 as one thinks fit. The board body 2 is equipped, on its central bottom part, with a control circuit board 6 for controlling rotational speed of each of the drive motors 5. The running grooves 23, being covered with the running table 22 disposed on the top of the frame body 21, are situated under the running track 3. Each of the running bodies 4 comprises a bottom plate 41, a support member 42 uprightly attached on the top of the bottom plate 41, a dummy of a horse 43 supported, freely swingably back and forth, by the support member 42, a magnet 44 fixed to the bottom plate 41 and attracted by the magnet 25 of a running belt 24, and a power transmission tire 45 which is rotated by the bottom plate 41 moving on the running track 3 and causes the dummy of a horse 43 to swing back and forth. Accordingly, when a running body 4 is placed on the running track 3, the magnet 44 of the running body 4 is attracted by the magnet 25 of a running belt 24 via the running table 22, and in this state, if the running belt 24 is moved around along the corresponding running groove 23 by rotating the corresponding drive motor 5, the running body 4 is moved in the running track 3 by being attracted by the magnet 25. Running speed of each of the running bodies 4 changes by changing rotational speed of the corresponding drive motor 5 as one thinks fit, and as a result, a horse racing game can be played enjoyably in which dummies of a horse run a nip and tuck race with one another on the running track. Further, it gives realism to a game that dummies of a horse make back and forth swinging motion while moving on the running track 3. As described above, the present invention provides a horse race game apparatus wherein a plurality of planar oval-shaped grooves are provided along the bottom of a running track, an endless belt is movably disposed in each of the grooves, a magnet is provided on an upper part of each of the running belts in order to move the running bodies by attraction, a drive motor is provided under each of the running belts in order to move each of the running belts in each of the grooves, and a control means for changing rotational speed of each of the plurality of drive motors to an arbitrary rotational speed is provided inside the board body. In this way, a simple running mechanism enabling the running bodies to move is realized and complicated control with a microcomputer is no longer necessary, thereby providing a horse race game that can be played on a table. According to the second mode of the present invention, speed sense contacts for detecting the speed of each of the running bodies are provided inside the board body and the speed and starting positions of the running bodies are respectively set by means of the speed sense contacts, and therefore the speed control and starting positions can be reliably set. According to the third mode of the present invention, each of the running bodies is provided with a bottom plate, a magnet disposed on each bottom plate for being attracted by the magnet of a running belt, and a power transmission tire for causing the dummy of a horse to swing back and forth, and therefore each of the running bodies is capable of moving, as each of the running belts runs, on the running track while causing the dummy of a horse or the like to make back and forth swinging motion.

Claims: A horse race game apparatus (1), comprising a plurality of running bodies (4) with a dummy of a horse (43) or the like fitted thereto that are caused to move at different speeds on an oval-shaped running track (3) formed by a top surface of a board body (2), wherein a plurality of planar oval-shaped grooves (23) are provided under the running track (3), an endless belt (24) is movably disposed in each of the grooves (23), and a magnet (25) is provided on an upper part of each of the running belts (24) in order to move the running bodies (4) by attraction, characterised in that a drive motor (5) is provided under each of the running belts (24) in order to move each of the running belts (24) in each of the grooves (23), and an inside of the board body(2) is provided with a control means (6) for changing the rotational speed of each of the plurality of drive motors (5) to an arbitrary rotational speed. A horse race game apparatus according to claim 1, characterised in that the inside of the board body (2) is provided with speed sense contacts (26) for detecting the speed of each of the running bodies (4) and the speed and starting positions of the running bodies (4) are respectively set by means of the speed sense contacts (26). A horse race game instrument according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that each of the running bodies (4) has a bottom plate (41), a magnet (44) disposed on each bottom plate (41) for being attracted by the magnet (25) of a running belt (24), and a power transmission tire (45) for causing the dummy of a horse (43) or the like to swing back and forth.

Inventors: TODOKORO MASATOSHI, TODOKORO, MASATOSHI
Applicants: STAFF CO LTD, STAFF CO., LTD.
Application year: 1996
Main classification: A63F9
IPC codes: A63F9, A63H18