MECHANICAL MOUNTS AND ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS FOR GAMING MACHINES

Abstract: An assembly (10) comprising a reel (22) mounted for movement relatively to a support (12), a base (14), with which said support can be brought in engagement, and a handle (16). Said support (12) and base (14) are associated with first and second latching members (28, 60). The latching members (28, 60) are capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said support (12) and said base (14) are moved relatively to one another to a latching position. The handle (16) is movable relatively to both the support (12) and the base (14) for facilitating disengagement of said support (12) from said base (14). Said support (12) and base (14) are associated with a first and a second series of electrical members (32, 68). The first and second series of electrical members (32, 68) are brought in electrical connection with one another when said support (12) and said base (14) are engaged with one another.

Description: 1 MECHANICAL MOUNTS AND ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS FOR GAMING MACHINES The present invention relates generally to mechanical mounts and/or electrical connectors and relates more especially but not exclusively to mechanical mounts and/or electrical connectors for use in so-called fruit machines. Typically, a fruit machine has a series of symbol- carrying reels arranged to spin independently of one another about a common axis. It is desirable to avoid wide gaps between the reels. However, the lack of space can make it difficult to mount the reels securely and can make it particularly difficult to replace a reel located between other reels. It is also desirable for each reel to have electrical equipment such as a motor, an array of lamps for lighting the reel and an optical device for detecting the rotational position of the reel. However, the complexity of wiring for such electrical equipment can make it difficult and time- consuming to connect the wiring reliably to a power source. There will be many other situations in which there is a need for secure mechanical mounting and/or reliable electrical connection. In a first aspect of the present invention, an assembly comprises a first part associated with a first latching member, and a second part associated with a second latching member, said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to a latching position, and means being provided to resist release of said first and second latching members when said first and second parts are in said latching position. Preferably, said means for resisting release is carried by and movable with respect to one of said first and second parts and said movement of said means for resisting release is reciprocal rather than rotary. Preferably, said means for resisting release is a projection, and said latching member associated with the other of said first and second parts is a resiliently deflectable tongue, with said projection being capable of resisting resilient deflection of said tongue when said first and second parts are in said latching position. Preferably, said tongue has a hook, said hook has a recess, and said projection is capable of being received in said recess in said hook when said first and second parts are in said latching position. In a second aspect of the present invention, an assembly comprises a first part associated with a first latching member, and a second part associated with a second latching member, said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to a latching position, and means being provided to facilitate release of said first and second latching members when said first and second parts are in said latching position. Preferably, said means for facilitating release is carried by and movable with respect to one of said first and second parts and said movement of said means for facilitating release is reciprocal rather than rotary. Preferably, said means for facilitating release is at least one ramped member, and said latching member associated with the other of said first and second parts is a resiliently deflectable tongue, with said at least one ramped member being capable of resiliently deflecting said tongue when said first and second parts are in -said latching position. Preferably, said tongue has a hook, and two of said ramped members are capable of being brought into engagement with said hook to cause resilient deflection of said tongue when said first and second parts are in said latching position. In a third aspect of the present invention, an assembly comprises a reel mounted for movement relatively to a support, a base with which said support can be brought into engagement, and a handle movable relatively to both said support and said base for facilitating disengagement of said support from said base. Preferably, said support engages with said base to one side of the centre of said reel and said handle extends to the other side of the centre of said reel - the handle may be thin to allow adjacent reels to be mounted without a wide gap therebetween and with the handle extending between the adjacent reels to a position close to the peripheries of the adjacent reels. Preferably, said support is formed with a channel, and said handle is εlidingly retained for reciprocal movement in said channel. Preferably, said support is associated with a first latching member, and said base is associated with a second latching member, said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said support and said base are moved relatively to one another to a latching position. In a fourth aspect of the present invention, an assembly comprises a first part associated with a first series of electrical members, and a second part associated with a second series of electrical members, said first and second series of electrical members being capable of being brought into electrical connection with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to a connecting position, and means being provided to guide said first and second parts to align said first and second series of electrical members before reaching said connecting position. Preferably, said means for guiding includes at least one rib or groove associated with said first part and at least one complementary groove or rib associated with said second part. Preferably, said first part is associated with a first latching member, and said second part is associated with a second latching member, said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to said connecting position. In a fifth aspect of the present invention, an assembly comprises a reel mounted for movement relatively to a support, said support being associated with a first series of electrical members, and a base with which said support can be brought into engagement, said base being associated with a second series of electrical members, wherein said first and second series of electrical members are brought into electrical connection with one another when said support and said base are engaged with one another. Preferably, said support is associated with a first latching member, and said base is associated with a second latching member, said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said support and said base are moved relatively to one another to a latching position. Preferably, said reel is a symbol-carrying spinning reel, and said electrical connection of said first and second series of electrical members connects a power source to electrical equipment associated with said symbol- carrying spinning reel. In a sixth aspect of the present invention, an assembly comprises a series of at least two sub-assemblies, each of said sub-assemblies including a reel mounted for rotation relatively to a support which can be brought into engagement with a base, and adjacent ones of said sub- assemblies being connected together by said bases thereof. Preferably: all of said reels are arranged to spin independently of one another about a common axis; each of said connections between said adjacent ones of said sub- assemblies is adjustable; each of said connections between said adjacent ones of said sub-assemblies involves a telescopic engagement of at least one part of one of said bases with at least one part of the other of said bases; each of said connections between said adjacent ones of said sub-assemblies is adjustable by the provision of a resiliently deflectable pin for location in a selected one of a plurality of openings; and said openings correspond to different widths of said reel. It will be appreciated that any aspect of the present invention, and the preferred features thereof, may be combined with any one or more of the other aspects of the present invention, and the preferred features thereof. Several assemblies, each incorporating various aspects of the present invention, will now be described in more detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: - Figure 1 is a rear perspective view of a first assembly of the present invention from which some components have been omitted for clarity; Figures 2, 3 and 4 are rear views showing, respectively, the fully locked, part locked/part unlocked and fully unlocked positions of the assembly of Figure 1; Figures 5, 6 and 7 are fragmentary side sections taken, respectively, along the lines X-X, Y-Y and Z-Z of Figures 2 , 3 and 4 ; Figures 8 and 9 are schematic perspective views showing a second assembly of the present invention respectively in its fully locked and part locked/part unlocked positions; and Figures 10 and 11 are schematic perspective views showing a third assembly of the present invention respectively in its fully locked and part locked/part unlocked positions. An assembly 10 embodying all aspects of the present invention comprises a first part in the form of a support 12 (or frame) , a second part in the form of a base 14 (or foot) and a handle 16 which is both carried by and movable with respect to the support 12 to co-operate with the base 14 in a manner to be discussed hereinafter. As shown most clearly in Figure 1, the support 12 carries a motor 18 and a lamp housing 20 with a reel 22 (shown in broken outline) being rotatable by the motor 18 relatively to the lamp housing 20 - typically, the reel 22 would have a translucent plastics strip secured thereto such that symbols on the strip would be illuminated as the reel 22 was spun. The support 12 also includes a channel 24 and a pair of legs 26. More particularly, with reference to Figure 4, it will be seen that the channel 24 includes a first latching member in the form of a rib 28, with each of the legs 26 including a guiding member in the form of a rib 30. Below the rib 28, and between the ribs 30, the support 12 carries a first series of electrical members in the form of electrical pins 32. Reverting to Figure 1, the base 14 includes a pair of posts 40 whose upper ends (as shown) are connected by a bar 42 and whose lower ends (as shown) are joined to respective arms 44 which are themselves connected by a plate 46. Each of the arms 44 includes a pair of mounting lugs 48 as well as an arm extension 50 provided with a resiliently deflectable tongue 52 having a pin 54. The purpose of the arm extensions 50 is to allow telescopic engagement through openings 56 (indicated schematically in broken line) of an adjacent base 14 so that the pins 54 can snap into engagement with selected ones of series of openings 58 (again indicated schematically in broken line) corresponding to different widths of the reel 22. This allows adjacent sub-assemblies to be connected by their bases 14, wherein each sub-assembly includes a reel 22 mounted for rotation relatively to a support 12 which can be brought into engagement with a base 14. The base 14 also includes a second latching member in the form of a resiliently deflectable tongue 60. More particularly, with reference to Figures 4 and 7, a free end of the tongue 60 is formed with an inwardly directed hook 62 whose outer face is formed with a recess 64. The outer lateral faces of the posts 40 are formed with respective grooves 66 complementary to the ribs 30 formed on the support 12. Finally, the bar 42 carries a second series of electrical members in the form of electrical receivers 68 complementary to the electrical pins 32 carried by the support 12. The electrical receivers 68 may be, for example, of the IDC type. Reverting again to Figure 1, the handle 16 is slidingly retained for reciprocal movement in the channel 24. The limits of movement of the handle 16 are determined by a screw 70 which is secured to the support 12 and extends into a slot 72 formed in the handle 16. An upper end (as shown) of the handle 16 includes a fingergrip 74. A lower end (as shown) of the handle 16 is bifurcated and, as shown in Figures 4 and 7, includes a pair of long outer fingers 76 as well as a short central finger 78. Each of the outer fingers 76 is formed with an elongate flange 80 having a ramp 82 at one end and the free end of the central finger 78 is also formed as a ramp 84. It will be appreciated that the support 12, the base 14 and the handle 16 may each be integrally formed of a plastics material. It will also be appreciated that the support 12, the base 14 and the handle 16 are shown in their fully locked position in Figure 1 in which the support 12 is mechanically mounted on the base 14 and the electrical pins 32 carried by the support 12 are electrically connected to the electrical receivers 68 carried by the base 14. The fully locked position is also shown in Figures 2 and 5. The hook 62 on the tongue 60 of the base 14 is in latching engagement with the rib 28 in the channel 24 of the support 12, and the central finger 78 of the handle 16 is received in the recess 64 in the tongue 60 of the base 14. The central finger 78 thus constitutes means in the form of a projection for resisting release of the latching engagement of the rib 28 with the hook 62. In order to release the above-described latching engagement, the handle 16 is pulled in the direction indicated by the arrows A. An initial consequence of the pulling is that the handle 16 is moved relatively to the support 12 to the part locked/part unlocked position as shown in Figures 3 and 6. In particular, the central finger 78 is removed from the recess 64. The ramps 82 on the flanges 80 of the fingers 76 abut the hook 62 and cause the tongue 60 to deflect resiliently outwardly to disengage the hook 62 from the rib 28. The ramped flanges 80 thus constitute means in the form of at least one ramped member for facilitating release of the latching engagement of the rib 28 with the hook 62. In the part locked/part unlocked position, the electrical pins 32 are still in electrical contact with the electrical receivers 68. However, with continued pulling of the handle 16, the support 12 is bodily moved away from the base 14 to the fully unlocked position of Figures 4 and 7 thereby causing the electrical pins 32 to be moved out of electrical engagement with the electrical receivers 68. The above-described sequence is reversed to bring the support 12 into latching engagement with the base 14. The ribs 30 and the grooves 66 now constitute means for guiding and aligning the electrical pins 32 and the electrical receivers 68 with respect to one another before the support 12 latchingly and electrically engages with the base 14. It will be appreciated that Figures 8 and 9 show a second assembly of the present invention which is extremely similar to the first assembly but more clearly shows the outward flexing of the tongue 60 with initial pulling of the handle 16. It will also be appreciated that Figures 10 and 11 show a third assembly of the present invention which is again similar to the first and second assemblies but with the handle 16 being mounted for rotational as well as reciprocal movement - the rotational movement causes the tongue 60 to be either restrained by a finger 78 or lifted by a ramped flange 80, with the reciprocal movement allowing mounting and release of the support 12 with respect to the base 14 as hereinbefore described.

Claims: 10 CLAIMS 1. An assembly comprising a first part (12) associated with a first latching member (28) , and a second part (14) associated with a second latching member (60) , said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to a latching position, and means (78) being provided to resist release of said first and second latching members (28, 60) when said first and second parts are in said latching position. 2. An assembly according to claim 1, in which said means (78) for resisting release is carried by and movable with respect to one (12) of said first and second parts. 3. An assembly according to claim 2, in which said movement of said means (78) for resisting release is reciprocal. 4. An assembly according to claim 2 or claim 3, in which said means for resisting release is a projection (78) , and said latching member associated with the other (14) of said first and second parts is a resiliently deflectable tongue (60) , with said projection (78) being capable of resisting resilient deflection of said tongue (60) when said first and second parts are in said latching position. 5. An assembly according to claim 3 and claim 4, in which said tongue (60) has a hook (62) , said hook (62) has a recess (64) , and said projection (78) is capable of being received in said recess (64) in said hook (62) when said first and second parts are in said latching position. 6. An assembly comprising a first part (12) associated with a first latching member (28) , and a second part (14) 11 associated with a second latching member (60), said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to a latching position, and means (80) being provided to facilitate release of said first and second latching members (28, 60) when said first and second parts are in said latching position. 7. An assembly according to claim 6, in which said means (80) for facilitating release is carried by and movable with respect to one (12) of said first and second parts. 8. An assembly according to claim 7, in which said movement of said means (80) for facilitating release is reciprocal. 9. An assembly according to claim 7 or claim 8, in which said means for facilitating release is at least one ramped member (80) , and said latching member associated with the other (14) of said first and second parts is a resiliently deflectable tongue (60) , with said at least one ramped member (80) being capable of resiliently deflecting said tongue (60) when said first and second parts are in said latching position. 10. An assembly according to claim 9, in which said tongue (60) has a hook (62), and two of said ramped members (80) are capable of being brought into engagement with said hook (62) to cause resilient deflection of said tongue (60) when said first and second parts are in said latching position. 11. An assembly according to any one of claims 6 to 10 when further dependent on any one of claims 1 to 5. 12. An assembly comprising a reel (22) mounted for movement relatively to a support (12) , a base (14) with 12 which said support (12) can be brought into engagement, and a handle (16) movable relatively to both said support (12) and said base (14) for facilitating disengagement of said support (12) from said base (14) . 13. An assembly according to claim 12, in which said support (12) engages with said base (14) to one side of the centre of said reel (22) and said handle (16) extends to the other side of the centre of said reel (22) . 14. An assembly according to claim 12 or claim 13, in which said support (12) is formed with a channel (24), and said handle (16) is slidingly retained for reciprocal movement in said channel (24) . 15. An assembly according to any one of claims 12 to 14, in which said support (12) is associated with a first latching member (28) , and said base (14) is associated with a second latching member (60) , said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said support and said base are moved relatively to one another to a latching position. 16. An assembly according to claim 15 when further dependent on any one of claims 1 to 11. 17. An assembly comprising a first part (12) associated with a first series of electrical members (32) , and a second part (14) associated with a second series of electrical members (68) , said first and second series of electrical members being capable of being brought into electrical connection with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to a connecting position, and means (30, 66) being provided to guide said first and second parts to align said first and 13 second series of electrical members (32, 68) before reaching said connecting position. 18. An assembly according to claim 17, in which said means for guiding includes at least one rib (30) or groove associated with said first part (12) and at least one complementary groove (66) or rib associated with said second part (14) . 19. An assembly according to claim 17 or claim 18, in which said first part (12) is associated with a first latching member (28) , and said second part (14) is associated with a second latching member (60) , said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching engagement with one another when said first and second parts are moved relatively to one another to said connecting position. 20. An assembly according to claim 19 when further dependent on any one of claims 1 to 11. 21. An assembly comprising a reel (22) mounted for movement relatively to a support (12) , said support (12) being associated with a first series of electrical members (32) , and a base (14) with which said support (12) can be brought into engagement, said base (14) being associated a second series of electrical members (68) , wherein said first and second series of electrical members (32, 68) are brought into electrical connection with one another when said support (12) and said base (14) are engaged with one another. 22. An assembly according to claim 21, in which said support (12) is associated with a first latching member (28), and said base (14) is associated with a second latching member (60), said first and second latching members being capable of being brought into latching 14 engagement with one another when said support and said base are moved relatively to one another to a latching position. 23. An assembly according to claim 22 when further dependent on any one of claims 1 to 11. 24. An assembly according to any one of claims 17 to 23 when further dependent on any one of claims 12 to 14. 25. An assembly according to any one of claims 12 to 23, in which said reel (22) is a symbol-carrying spinning reel, and said electrical connection of said first and second series of electrical members (32, 68) connects a power source to electrical equipment associated with said symbol- carrying spinning reel. 26. An assembly comprising a series of at least two sub- assemblies, each of said sub-assemblies including a reel (22) mounted for rotation relatively to a support (12) which can be brought into engagement with a base (14) , and adjacent ones of said sub-assemblies being connected together by said bases thereof. 27. An assembly according to claim 26, in which all of said reels are arranged to spin independently of one another about a common axis. 28. An assembly according to claim 26 or claim 27, in which each of said connections between said adjacent ones of said sub-assemblies is adjustable. 29. An assembly according to any one of claims 26 to 28, in which each of said connections between said adjacent ones of said sub-assemblies involves a telescopic engagement of at least one part (50) of one of said bases with at least one part (56) of the other of said bases. 15 30. An assembly according to claim 28 and claim 29, in which each of said connections between said adjacent ones of said sub-assemblies is adjustable by the provision of a resiliently deflectable pin (54) for location in a selected one of a plurality of openings (58) . 31. An assembly according to claim 30, in which said openings (58) correspond to different widths of said reel (22). 32. An assembly according to any one of claims 26 to 31, in which each of said sub-assemblies is in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 25.

Inventors: CROSSMAN COLIN, MARCHINI BARRY ALLEN, CROSSMAN, COLIN, MARCHINI, BARRY, ALLEN
Applicants: CROSSMAN COLIN, MARCHINI BARRY ALLEN, STARPOINT ELECTRICS LTD, CROSSMAN, COLIN, MARCHINI, BARRY, ALLEN, STARPOINT ELECTRICS LIMITED
Application year: 1999
Main classification: G07F17
IPC codes: G07F17, H01R13