The discovery of metals has brought a powerful impetus to human history. First came bronze, then iron, which eventually led to technological progress in evolutionary change. Although the first metal they learned to work was bronze, iron and its alloys became the leaders in production. It is true that now one can machine almost any metal and get ultra-light and super-strong alloys, with iron and cast iron occupying one of the most important positions. The cast iron casting process has its own process characteristics. It’s also pretty much everywhere. The same goes for slot machines.
Characteristics of pig iron production
The first iron smelting took place around the 12th century BC. Instead, the nature of the process has not changed significantly since that moment, but the technical solutions have become more efficient. For the past 100 years, people have been using much the same technology to smelt iron. Iron ore is heated in huge blast furnaces with coke, which is burned with the help of air. Iron oxide from the ore reacts with part of the coal as a result of the reduction reaction. This reaction produces pure iron in the molten state. The melting point of iron is about 1600 degrees Celsius. When all the iron has been reduced from the ore, it is poured in a molten state into special molds, where it solidifies. Cast iron is actually an alloy of iron and carbon (from 2.5% to 5%). Pig iron is obtained in the same way as iron in a blast furnace, while the smelting process is slightly different, turning ore into pig iron immediately, bypassing the remelting of pure iron. Cast iron melts at a relatively low temperature of 1100-1300 °C. There are other methods of extracting iron from ore, and they are also used in various metallurgical plants.
Bingo game made by ourselves
In this article, we will take the video slot machine as the most interesting slot machine example.
Technically, a standard slot machine is a metal case that houses a gamepad, 2-3 monitors, a touchscreen and peripherals.
On the main (lower) display, a special program simulates the spinning of reels representing game symbols. There are mostly 5 reels with 3 symbols high each, although there are of course many variations to ‘stand out’. Players are tasked with catching specific symbol combinations on adjacent reels. Most are sequential, mostly left to right, but not always.
In this game situation, 4 “10” symbols are drawn along the line of the number 19. In this case, the “Lion” symbol is a WILD symbol that substitutes for all other symbols.
The rules of the game vary and are usually placed on a separate additional monitor.
An example of a payout table
Interestingly, the additional displays, which were previously just advertising glass with pricing information, have grown so large that they now exceed the size of the main work area. The total number of displays on one unit can be up to five – a mini touch panel for control, a display with reels, 2 displays with prize/jackpot information and a branded top-of-the-line ‘Topler’ display. The standard diagonal is 24 inches.
Let’s take a look inside the device
At the heart of the product is the game board. In the past, these were the most complex modular multilayer boards that we produced ourselves, costing the manufacturer a fortune.
Proprietary boards have only one advantage – manufacturing complexity as copyright protection, but China and Taiwan haven’t stopped that. The cost of a copy is very tangible, like the cost of a mere copy (without firmware) of a gamepad.
Control
“Just Buttons” This is one of the great strengths of our industry – you can “feel” a fun product for work purposes.
Williams gaming device keyboard
LCD touch panels are popular these days, but don’t convey a tactile pressure sensation, so they’re more often used in conjunction with a depressible mechanical “START” button.
Invoice acceptance
The main elements of a semi-autonomous device (there are cashless solutions, but more on that later). Typically, this is a complex electromechanical device with many sensors and electromechanical drives.
Subtitled “Fun Fact”: A lot of people have wondered how banknote validators recognize banknotes. It doesn’t have an optical scanner like a computer. Of course there are developments based on image processing, but most are just optical and UV sensors with prisms that accumulate the full color components and compare them to a standard.
These sensors work in conjunction with magnetic sensors and banknote physical presence sensors. The principle of comparing integral parameters makes it possible to filter out defects on banknotes, as well as to cope with different degrees of wear.
Coin acceptor
Rarely used, mostly associated with coin payment devices (hoppers).
Coin validators are straightforward (we call them coin comparators), determine the size of a token by comparing it to a standard, and are intelligent—they can differentiate between coins of different denominations.
We all remember how difficult it was sometimes to press the virtual buttons on payment terminals. The reason is the acoustic touchscreen (surface acoustic wave touchscreen – SAW). They are very sensitive to contamination (foreign objects completely obstructing the operation of the equipment). They also don’t like loud noises (or rather vibrations).
The gambling industry uses infrared and capacitive touch screens. Infrared screens are slightly more expensive than surfactants, but more reliable. They don’t like direct sunlight, but this element is completely absent in our sphere. But the vibration of sound is comparable.
Structurally, the infrared screen is a frame surrounded by LEDs and photosensors. The more of them, the more accurate. But fingers are thick, so you don’t need much.
The frame creates some depth between the outer surface of the case and the display’s glass, so they don’t always match up. The design feature is that the glass is not sunken or manufacturers who share ordinary glass with multiple screens (such as smartphone manufacturers) cannot use infrared screens, so they choose capacitive screens.The base is made of cast iron. Withstands all details and deliveries of the machine.
Subtitled “Fun”: Slot machines, including those with touchscreens, use at least one mechanical button — “Go” (play). Players are so used to pressing this button that the stainless steel plate will often warp over time. So nobody wants those megajoules to disappear from the monitor screen and a button is used.
Counter
Even modern machines use electromechanical counters. In fact, it is a subsystem for replicating the integrity of financial information.
Data in electronic format can be compromised or hacked, and sealed gauges increase reliability. Game boards can often determine the fact that the counter is disconnected, and the sealed connectors make it difficult to install “stubs”.
Subtitle “Worth knowing”: In Romania, control authorities require online readings of mechanical gauges. How to read data from meters that don’t have a communication protocol – they don’t know it themselves. The optical digital identification system cannot be applied because. The gauge should look out through a clear window in the case.
Exotic
Some manufacturers use 3D displays, although the practicality of this solution is questionable – the eyes will be very tired. However, the depth of the 3D effect can be adjusted to zero.
IGT devices with 3D displays that don’t require glasses.
Those with enough money make brand name chairs with keyboards, built-in speakers and vibrations.