Pusher amusement device with pivoting arm and game piece propulsion feature
AssigneeElaut N.V.
InventorEric Verstraeten
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A pusher-type amusement machine that includes a motorized coin track assembly for the introduction of coins that has an track end that sweeps across a playfield and includes a base, a coin hopper for collection and ejecting coins and a track that extends from the coin hopper to a track end opening and a control switch to activate the hopper to push coins through the track so that they are ejected from the end of the track towards a playfield on the machine.
Claims16
An amusement machine comprising:
- a planar playing surface on which a plurality of playing pieces may be supported,
- a playing piece pusher element configured for reciprocating motion that moves over said playing surface to engage any playing pieces on said playing surface,
- wherein said playing surface further comprises a horizontal edge and said playing pieces, when engaged by said pusher element, can drop over said edge and pass to a collection location,
- a transport assembly for moving said playing pieces from said collection location to said playfield,
- said transport assembly comprising a motorized hopper and a track,
- said motorized hopper located below said playfield, and adapted to collect and sequentially eject said playing pieces into said track, and,
- said track adapted to receive said playing pieces and having a proximal end extending from said hopper and a distal end defining an exit passage, said exit passage facing said playfield, and
- a control switch that activates said motorized hopper and,
- a transport assembly motor configured to drive said transport assembly to cause it to pivot and thereby causing said track exit passage to sweep in an arc above said playfield.
An amusement machine of the pusher type, comprising:
- a playing surface on which a plurality of playing pieces may be supported,
- a playing piece pusher element configured for reciprocating motion that moves over said playing surface to engage any playing pieces on said playing surface,
- wherein said playing surface further comprises a horizontal ledge and said playing pieces, when engaged by said pusher element, can drop over said ledge of said playing surface and pass to a collection location, a transport assembly for moving said playing pieces from said collection location to said playfield,
- said transport assembly comprising a hopper and a track,
- said hopper for collecting and sequentially ejecting said playing pieces into said track, and
- said track adapted to receive said playing pieces, and comprising a first track section that extends from said hopper to a second section that extends over said playfield,
- wherein said track further comprises a spring-biased pivotable retainer element on the end of said track wherein said retainer holds said playing pieces in said track when in a first position, and when a said playing piece is pushed against a stop surface of said member, said member pivots upward to a second position to allow for the release of playing piece from said track,
- said machine further comprising a central controller, and player input control devices, said control devices comprising a player game piece release switch to allow players to activate said motor to cause said game pieces to be released from the end of said track.
The amusement machine as recited in claim 13 wherein said player control devices comprise a stop switch that allows a player to temporarily stop the motion of said pusher element.
The amusement game recited in claim 13 wherein said second track section is connected to a motor that causes said track section to sweep back and forth across said playfield.
A transport assembly for moving said playing pieces from a collection location to an amusement game playfield,
- said transport assembly comprising a motorized hopper and a track,
- said motorized hopper adapted to collect and sequentially eject said playing pieces into said track, and,
- said track defined by a bottom wall, two side walls and top wall and said track adapted to receive said playing pieces and having a proximal end extending from said hopper and a distal end defining an exit passage,
- a control switch that activates said motorized hopper and,
- a transport assembly motor attached to said assembly and configured to drive said transport assembly to cause it to pivot and thereby causing said track exit passage to sweep in an arc.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.