Light ray gun and target changing projectors

• US 3,960,380 A
• Filed: 01/27/1975
• Issued: 06/01/1976
• Est. Priority Date: 09/16/1974
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Nintendo Company Limited
• Inventors: Yokoi, Gunpei
• Primary Examiner(s): Apley, Richard J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Siskind, Marvin
• Application Number:
  US05/544,342
• Time in Patent Office: 491 Days
• Field of Search: 273/101.1, 273/101.2, 273/102.2 R, 273/105.3, 35/25, 352/39
• US Class Current: 463/50
• CPC Class Codes: F41J 5/10 Cinematographic hit-indicating systems cinematographic targets F41J9/14
• CPC Class Codes: F41J 9/14 Cinematographic targets, e.g. moving-picture targets F41G3/26 takes precedence

Abstract

A rapid-firing game machine wherein a player with a light-emission gun fights a series of simulated fights with images of objects (e.g. gunmen) on a motion-picture screen. A first film on a first projector has a plurality of scenes each including one of the gunmen and a second film has the same number of scenes showing the corresponding gunmen in defeated condition, a successful firing of the player'"'"'s weapon causing said second projector to be driven and brought into projecting relation with said screen while said first projector remains to be driven but not in projecting relation and an unsuccessful firing of the weapon causing said first projector to remain in projecting relation while the second projector remains to be driven for a while but not in projecting relation.

Claims

1. In a rapid firing game machine including a shooting system having a screen means, a weapon and a shooting detection means having a target area on said screen, a first motion picture projector for projecting an image showing an object to be shot at onto said screen, and a second picture projector for projecting an image showing said object in a defeated condition upon successful firing of said weapon at said object, the improvement comprising, in combination, employing a light-emitting gun as said weapon and at least one photo-sensor element which emits a signal when struck by light as said shooting detection means, the area on the screen, which when struck by light from said weapon will activate said photo-sensor, being the target area at least including a life-size image of each object to be shot as projected onto said screen, a single first film mounted on said projector having a plurality of scenes including at least a corresponding number of objects to be shot at, the first portion of each of said scenes showing the object in the scene to be shot at in a challenging position and a next portion thereof showing the same object in a triumphant position, a single second film mounted on said second projector having the same number of scenes showing the respective objects in defeated condition in the sequence corresponding to the sequence of appearance of said objects on said first film, said second film having a view-blocking image in an initial part of each scene and having a changeover mark at the boundary between adjacent scenes, detecting means in said second projector for detecting said changeover mark, shooting effective signal generating means in said first projector for generating from said first projector a signal to indicate when a portion of the scene corresponding to a time during which shooting will be effective for each of the scenes is displayed by said first film on said first projector, projector driving means coupled to said projectors for driving said first projector throughout the operation of the machine and for driving said second projector, control circuit means having inputs coupled to said shooting effective signal generating means, said sensor element, and said detecting means and having outputs coupled to said projector driving means for driving said second projector in the intervals in which a signal is received from said photo-sensor element and a shooting effective signal is received at the same time from said shooting effective signal generating means or when said shooting effective signal has disappeared without generation of a signal from said photo-sensor element, and for stopping said second projector when a changeover mark on said second film has been detected by said detecting means, and means coupled to said control circuit means for effectively directing the light projected from the second projector onto the screen only when a signal is received from said photo-sensor element and a shooting effective signal is simultaneously received from said shooting effective signal generating means and for continuing to direct the light from the second motion picture projector onto the screen until a changeover mark is detected, and for effectively directing the light from the first motion picture projector onto the screen when light from the second motion picture projector is not directed onto the screen.

2. The improvement as claimed in claim 1 in which said first film is an endless film and has a game-over signal mark thereon for generating a game-over signal at the end of the last of the series of scenes, and a game-over detecting means in said first projector and coupled to said control means for stopping said first projector when a game-over signal is generated.

3. The improvement as claimed in claim 1 in which a shooting starting indicator is provided on said film for projection on the screen in the initial portion of each of the effective shooting times and the position of the shooting starting indication is changed from one scene to another within the area of the image of the object to be shot at on said screen.

4. The improvement as claimed in claim 1 in which said first film has a signal mark thereon for actuating said shooting effective signal generating means for generating a shooting effective signal for a predetermined effective shooting time for each scene.

5. The improvement as claimed in claim 4 in which said shooting effective signal generating means includes means for making the length of the shooting time shorter in each succeeding scene.