CA1168757A - Automatic money handling device - Google Patents

Abstract

An automatic money handling device for receiving bills and coins for dispensing bills and coins as change. The device has a storage reel, first and second bill belts extending from a first and supply reels around a first and second entrance rollers at an opening to the housing then to the storage reel. The two belts converge at the entrance rollers and then extend in superposed relation from the entrance rollers to the supply reel. Reversible drives can cause the belts to travel toward and away from the opening for receiving, dispensing and storing bills. A first sensor outside the opening senses the presence of a bill and can control the operation of the drive motors. A second sensor inside the housing adjacent the entrance rollers senses if and when the bill has been drawn far enough into webs and belts operation of the forward drive, thus positioning a tendered bill at a viewing station for inspection. The second sensor is an optical sensor for causing any bill not having a predetermined opacity to be rejected. A time delay is provided for halting forward drive of the belts if a bill tendered does not reach the second sensor within the preset time period.

Description

AUTOMATIC MONEY HANDLING DEVICE

Cross References to Related Applications -The present invention is related to two other Canadian patent applications filed on the same date as the present appllcation, all of which are assigned to a common assignee. These applications, Nos. 370,301 and 370,302, are, re-spectively, Point of Sale Terminal Having Prompting Display and Automatic Money Handling invented by Norris S. Azcua, Geor~ge D. Margolin, Audrey Miller and Victor V. Vurpillat and Point of Sale Terminal Having Prompting Display, invented by the same four inventors listed above.

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1 nn~ t-~5~7 The pre33nt inv~ntion relatcs to ~ devic0 ~or ~smi-automaticnlly h~ndling money, coin~
and bill~ coupons~ certiricat~i~ and ~imil~r items. The devic~ hi~s a computer devlce to control one or msre movable bill belt~ in re~ponDe to signals rec~iv~d rrom bill detec~
tors placed ~lone the bill~ p~th ~g it moves rrom outslde the bill bel~ to a po~ltion sandwiched b0twsen th~ bill b~lts. The bill belt~ ~ro driv~n in both ror~ard and re~ersc direction~ by motora ~iontrolléd by th~ sensor~
and th~ oomput0rO Tho devic0 ha~ Q hou~ln~
with a Yiewing wlndow~ a keyboard and an ~nlet-outle~ oh~n~l~ Tho bill belts tr~n~port t~e tendered bill to the ~ewing wlndow for id~n ti~ication and veri~1cation b~ the devi~
op~rator. The oper~tor then actu~te~ an acc~pt key or reject key to indicate if the tendered bi}l 1~ ~c~pt~dD Ir the bill i~ re~0ctad by the operQtor, keying the re~ect key c~u~s the ' :

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belts ~o b~ ~riY~n in the r~var~e d~r~ctlon ~o return the bill to the ou~tomer.
One embodiment Or the pre3ent lnvention ha~ ~our bill belt~a Each belt mechanism l~
independently ~riven by separat~ motors but commonly controlled by on~s computin~ control device. Each belt mechan.l~m h~s its own sen-~ors, viewin~ window, inlet outlat channel and accept ~nd reject keys. Each belt i3 control-led ~o that it oan't be "tea~ed" by a customer tendering Q bill ~nd then wlthdrawing it~ If a bill is not d~tected within a rixcd time period by the second ~ahsor, the belt motor~
ar~ ~topped. Thi~ ~nt~te~so ~unction save~
belt ~torage 8pSCe and prep~re3 the deYice to -accept a v~l$d trans~ction.
The bill belt~ in on~ embodlm~nt of the inventlon ha~e desiBnated input~: a $1 belt,-a $5 belt, a $10~$20 belt, ~nd ~ coupon , certiricate and related docum~nt belt. Each ~ belt trsn~pQrent ~nd ha~ a ~ir~t bill deteotor : ~ . ;

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adj~cent ~he input-output channel to the belt and ~ ~econd detector alon~ the viewing path in between the inputoutput ehann~l and tho viewing window. A third bill detector may bc used on the opposito side Or the Yiewing window.
B~cau~e the bill b~lt~ can be driven in both rorward ~nd reverse directio~sO money c8n be dispensed ~ ch~ng~ by the device. How~
e~er, in one ~mbodlment Or the prasent inYen~
tlonO only the $1 and ~5 bill balt~ cQn ba oper~ted a~ bill dl~pensar~; although ~11 bill belt~ can rsject unacceptab~o bill~.
I~ mors than one bi~l balt 18 employ3d~
Q ~ignal light can be plac3d ln the housine near the viewlng window to indic~te which bs~t ~a in operation ~o that the oper~tor can look for a tendered bill in the proper v$ewing window. The bslts can ba controlled so that .
only one bill belt at ~ time c~n be act~va.
The motors can be controlle~ ~o that th~ bill belt di~pon~es bill~ to kho inlet outlet ch~nnel but requires the cUstomer to remove the blll or tho l~st bill a~ change ~n order : .
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oo to have 'che controller proceod to 'che n~xt step ln th~ tr~n~ction9 In on~ embod~m~nt Or th~ pre~ent invention the ~en~or~ are separatod by ~ dl~tanc~ . than one bill length ~nd the ~ntire vl~wing path Qlong th~
top Or th~ housirlg i~s ~bout two bill lengt~s .

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~rief Description_of the Dxawlngs Figure 1 shows a top perspective view of the housing forming a part of one embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 shows a keyboard forming a part of the present invention.
Figure 3 shows the bill trays and viewing windows forming part of the present invention.
Figure 4 shows an axial view of the bill belt mechanism forming a part of the present invention.
Figure 5 shows the basic steps performed by the operator and the terminal during a sale.
Figures 6 and 7 show two views of the coin changer used in connection with the present invention.
Figures 8 and 9 are side and top views of a prompting display which can be used in conjunction with the present invention and which are shown and described in co-pending Canadian Patent Application Serial Number 370,302 filed on February 6, 1981..
Figure 10 shows a block diagram of the present invention as part of a larger point oE sale terminal system.

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Figure 11 shows a block diagram of the multiplexer shown in Figure 10.
Figures 12-23 show details of the electrical circuitry shown in Figure 11 above.
Figures 24 and 25 show a block diagram of the method steps used by the operator in actuating the present invention during a sale.

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- , , . ' : - , D~TAIL DESCRIPTION
Introduct,ion The presant inventio,l provide~ a point Or sale kerminal ror autom~tlcally caleulatlrlg a p~ymant due ror a aale~ tran~ction and ror receiving money tsndered in payment ~nd ~or dlsp~nsi~g ¢hanB~ Tha ~tem includ~ ~
dat~ processing subsyste~ comprl~ing at least one comput~r~ ~ memory which m~y Include read~only memory (ROM) and a random~e~e~
m~mory (RAM) ~ ke~bo~rd; and a cu~tomer~
ed money ~torage ~nd p~y~out daviceO The keybo~rd inoludes a group Or item-repre~entln~
ke~s~ pre~erably ror thos~ ~tems hAving the hi~hest volume o~ ~ale~. The terminal , .. ~
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also includes a promptlng display for prompt-ing the operator to key in item-identification data. A computer receives such item-identifi-cation data, retrieves from the memory price data for each keyed item, and calculates the tota] price of the transaction. The money handling device has a plurality of customer-fed bill belts for receiving, storing and dis-pensing bills of different denominations, as well as ~or receiving checks, coupons, and the like. The money handling device includes a coin receiver, storer, sorter and dispenser.
The bill and coin devices operate under con-trol of one or more computers to receive money and to dispense change. A digital dis-play subsystem operating under control of a computer displays the amount of sale and the amount tendered. A printer provides a print-out of sales data and data identifying the attendant responsible for each transaction.

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Fi~sure~ 1 and 3 illustrate housing 10 having an intertor I`or contf~lning e~ectro-mechani c~l and el~ctronic app~ratu~. An upper port~on of the hr)using ha~ ~n exts3rior r~Oe 11 with a kcyboard ~4 ol~ one slde 13 Or the housing. The keyboar~l ~hotr~n in wi~ure 2 i~
descrlbed in detflil in a sep~r~te section.
The upper portion on a cu~tomer ~ide 15 Or the houYing ilas un exterior race 17 ror acces9 to a ~erie8 o~ rour side-by~usid~ cu~
-tomer-~d bill belt devie0s. E:~ch bill belt dev~e is a sep~r~t0 eleetro-mechan~aal device ~ub~çt to ¢ommon ~ontrolO In ~ ~ep~r~te ae~;
tion there 18 ~I det~ilad d2sariptlon of' an individual ~ill belt. Each blll belt ~0~
G~ltlE~ with a corraspond~ng one o~ ~our money trays 16 pro~eoting outwardly ~rom the c~astomer 3ide o~ the housin~ 100 Each bill belt davle~
h~ an inl~tJoutlet channel at the ~uneti on bet~0en the 'cr~ ~d the ~hou~in~a Bill3 de~p~naed a3 ch~nge or re je~tea ~re received in th~ mon~y trays 16.

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Four side-by-side windows 20 are provided on a top portion Or the housin~ ~or viewing from both the attendant ~ide 13 ~nd the cu~-tomar sidc 15 Or the housing., E~ch bill balt la ~ligned with one Or the window3 20 ~o that a b~ll s~nclwiched between the bill belts can be viewed by an operator.
The custom0r side i8 Or tll~ housin~ 10 includs~ digital di~play~ 22 and 242, Di~play "~ 22 shows the totQl ~mount Or each ~Rlea trana-~ctiorl and di~pl~y 21~ ~3}'10W9 the ~nount tendered by the cu~tomer. A coin ~lot 26 and ~ coin receptacle 28 are 1 ocatad on tha oustomer ~id~3 Or the hou~ 1 5o ! ',' Th0r~ ~re Oal tho keyboard ~ D. grslup o~`
TOtEi1 koys by wnich e~ch operator ¢An entor data that the ~omputer recogni2es a~ both transactlon dat~ ~nd employ0e-id~ntirication dsta9 and & group o~ A¢c0pt and Re~ect key~
by uhi~- an operakor G~n corltrol the bill b~lt~.

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A ~e~ture Or the present lnvantion i9 that the ~ttendant need not rememb~r the price of any item ordered by à customer. Having re~elved the customcr~ 8 order, the attendant ~imply actuates khe appropriate keya eith~r item key~ or c~tegory ~nd number key3 a9 prompted by the prompting display to key in item-identiricat~on data. In re3pon~e~ the data processor retriev0s rrom memory the corresponding pric0 data, and displays it on 22, A~ter all the ordered item~ have baan entered, the oper~tor ~ctua~es the proper Total ~e~ to conclude the order pha~ Or the ~ale8 transaetionO The n~xt pha8e 0~ the ~ales tran~a~tion ln~olve~ the cal~ulation ahd di~play o~ payment-duc dat~, In as much a~ the d~ta entered by ths ~otal key provide~
employee~ide~ti~ication the oomputer c~n up~
d~te an a~tiv1ty re~ord ~tored In the memory.
Such an a~ti~i:ty re¢ord i~ particularly u~e-ul to evaluat~ p~r~ormanoe o~` employeesO
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' ' Arter the paymentdu~ has been c~lcu~ted,, the computsr arms the money belt~ either direct~y or throu~h ~nother computer or con-trollar. An attemptcd depo~it o~ money by customer prior to ~uch armine will prove rruitle~s~ Prior to armin~" any ¢oin d0po~ite~
in the coin alot Z6 drop~ down ~ chute to coin r~c0pt~clo 28 rOr return to the customer, Deposit Or a blll into the l~nnrmed bill belts will leave the bill in tha tray 160 This feature minimiæes the po~ibility of di~pute~
~ince it iB ~ simple matter to demonstr~te th~t money cannot be ~ed into the una~med money receptacle~
Onc~ armed the terminal anters a pay~in mod3. NO~D ~hen the cu~tomer drops a coin into coln ~lo~ 26 it will b0 sortod and ~tor0d on the b~sl~ o~ d~nomonatlon, E~ch bill t~ndered i~ tran~ported to the window 20 ror viewin~ the cu~tomer tender~ ~n unaccep~
table bill, the ~tendA~t can c~U8e it to be returnod to the cu~tomer by actuating the .

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appropriate reject key 84, 88, 98, 104. If the visual -test is passed, the attendant actuates an Accept key.
The computer is responsive to successive actua~ions of the Accept keys after a bill is sensed to accumulate and display a running total of the amount of money accepted.

The computer determines whether any chanye is due to the customer. If no change is due to the customer, the data processor disarms the money handling apparatus.
If change is due, the system enters a change-dispensing mode during which either or both coins and bills are dispensed. In either case a printer produces a record of the transaction.

Keyboard The keyboard illustrated in FIG. 2 includes a group of individual item-representing keys 32, or Best Seller keys. In the illustrated embodiment there are twelve Best Seller keys 32 in the group. Each Best Seller key preferably has a corresponding pictorial represen tation, (illustrated in phantom lines at 34 on each key) of the item associated with the particular key, together with a separate label 36 printed on each key describing the item associated with that particular key. The labels 36 relating to the items identified by the twelve Best Seller keys are indicated in the drawings as Item 1 through Item 12 for simplicity.

The keyboard 14 also includes a prompting display 38 for displaying product category and corresponding item-listing information for the less frequently sold items and for the Best Seller items the prompting display provides data for prompting the attendant to actuate certain keys on the keyboard to identify to :....

,, .. ~ .. . ~ . . -, the data processor corresponding less-frequently sold items being sold a-t the point of sale.

In the illustrated embodiment, a series of eight mutually spaced apart Category keys 40 are positioned alongside a window 42 which covers the prompting dis-play and through which the prompting display can be viewed. Each category key has a corresponding label 41 for identifying a category of .information to which the key corresponds. The prompting display includes a movable roll 44. An electro-mechanical drive appar-atus is provided for moving the roll 44. Each cate-gory and its related list of items is printed on the roll. A selected portion of the roll can be moved to the window 42 for display when the attendant actuates a particular Category key 40. For example, in the embodiment shown a category heading 46 entitled "CATEGORY 5" displays a listing of corresponding individual items 48, depicted as "ITEM Q"; and when the attendant manually actuates the category key 40 labeled "CATEGORY 5" the roll 44 is moved until the listins for CATEGORY 5 is displayed in the window 42.

The roll shows a separate item-identifying code 50 unique to each item listed in the prompting display.
In the illustrated embodiment the prompting indicia for each item is a two-digit number displayed on the roll next to the item.

A group of numeric keys 54, hereafter collect-ively called a numeric pad, are positioned on the keyboard next to the prompting display 38. The .
numeric pad preferably comprises ten individual keys labeled O through 9, respectively, with an eleventh key 56 labeled "TAX", for identifying taxable items.

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..r~ 7 The numeric pad can be used to identify to the data processor i-tems selected from the prompting display.
To identify each item selected from the prompting display, first a category key is actuated and then two of the numeric keys are actuated in an order which supplies to the data processor a three-digit number for itentifying the selected item. For example, to indicate ITEl~ J in CATEGORY 5 first the CATEGORY 5 key is actuated and then the numeric keys are actu-ated in the sequence 3,2 for supplying a correspond-ing three-digit number (5,3,2) to the data processor for identifying ITEM ~.

The prompting display roll preferably contains a Listing of all available items for sale. Owing to this preferred feature, "redundancy" is provided in that items represented on the Best Seller keys 32 are also represented on the roll.

By way of example, in the course of the order-entry phase of a sales transaction in~olving the sale of one or more sest Seller items and one or more less frequently sold items, separate item-representing keys 32 are actuated to indicate purchase of each Best Seller item. The promptiny display is actuated to display information relating to each item not represented on the Best Seller keys, and in a sequence prompted by the prompting display, the numeric keys 54 are actuated to indicate a separate multi-digit code for each less frequently sold item displayed on the prompting display. Data processor subsystem includes a look-up table for retrieving a pre-loaded price for each item identified in the order-entry phase of the sales transaction. The Tax button 56 is actuated after each taxable itam is indicated and the data processing sybsyscem Falculates the tax on ~....
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each taxable item. An arlthmetic un:i-t in the data processor sums the individual prices of each iden-tified item, as well as the tax on each item, so as to calculate the total price of the sale transac-tion.

The keyboard includes Total keys 62. In the illustrated embodiment~ there are eight Total keys having indicia 64 suitably the letters A throuyh H.
In response to the actuation of any one of the Total keys during a sales transaction, the computer cal-culates the payment due.

Above the group of numeric keys there is a first Special-Item key 57. This key is used to enter into the data processor concerning the sale of special items not otherwise identiiable by the item-repre-senting keys 32 or the category information in theprompting display 38. The data processor can be programmed so that when the Special-Item key 57 is actuated, followed by entry of the sale amount, in cents, on the numeric keys 54, the sale can be recorded, along with its identification as a special item b~
selection of the next keyboard entry. I this is the last or only sale entry, then actuation of a corresponding Total key 62 can record the sala.

A second Special-Item key 58 above the group numeric keys can be used to enter the sale of gift coupons. ~he data processor can be programmed so that when the second Special-Item key is actuated, followed by entry of the sale amount on the numeric keys, 54, the sale is recorded and identified in a manner similar to the first Special-Itern key described above.

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"' A Clear key 59 is located above the group of numeric keys 54. The C~ear key is used for clearing the last entry made.

A Sign-In key 66 and a Sign-Out key 68 are loc-ated on the keyboard above the Total ke~s 62. The Sign-In key is manually actuated by each attendant to indicate when he or she is starting a work shift and to assign a separate attendant identi~ication code to each attendant. An attendant starting:awork shift can depress the Sign-In key, enter his or her three digit attendant number on the numeric pad 54, and key 62 for indicating his or her code for that part-icular work shift. Once a particular Total key is assigned to an attendant by the sign-in procedure, that particular Total key is unavailable for being assigned to another attendant until the Sign-Out key is actuated to release use of the key for an attendant working a.subse~uent work shift.

The Sign-Out key 68 is manualIy actuated to cause the data processor to record the times when the atten-dants end their respective work shifts, as well as for releasing the Total key code assigned to each attendant ending a work shift. Attendants ending their work shift sign out by actuating the Sign-out key, entering their employee number on the numeric keys 54, and entering their assigned code on one of the Total keys 62.

~A Void key 70 is provided on the keyboard above : the Sign-In and Sign-Out keys. The Void key is used to clear from the data processor all data entered from the start of a given sales transaction. The Void key becomes inoperative after arming of the bill caches, : - 19 -.
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Above each bill belts opening are respective label 72 indicating the type of paper currency or money equiv-alent to be inserted into the opening of each bill belt 10. One dollar bills for a first bill belt 74;
five dollar bills for a second bill belt 76; either ~10 or $20, checks or other bills for a third bill belt 78; and other bills, checks, coupons etc.,for a fourth bill belt 80. The fourth bill belt is adapted for receipt of promotional items.

~ach group of Accept/Reject keys as shown in Figure 2 includes one or more keys labeled according to the type of bill, coupon, check, etc., to be received by a corresponding bill belt. ~ first group of Accept/Reject keys associated with the first bill cache 74 includes a One Dollar Accept key 82 and a One Dollar Reject key 84.

The second group of Accept/Reject keys comprises a Five Dollar Accept key 86 and Reject key 88.

A third group of Accept/Reject keys includes a Ten Dollar Accept key 90, a Twenty Dollar Accept key 92, a Check Accept key 94, an Other Dollar Accept key 96, a Reject key 98 for rejecting any of the bills in the third bill belt.

Above a fourth group of Accept/Reject keys, there is a special function key 100 labeled "SS" for enter-ing acceptance of special transactions not covered elsewhere on the key~oardO The fourth group comprises a set of four keys 102 for indicating acceptance of four different tvpes of coupons or similar store pro-motion certificates. A Reject key 104 enters;rejec-tion of any coupon certificate or the like tendered into the fourth bill cache.

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71~'7 Operation o~ the Ac~ept/Reject keys is under-stood best by the followiny example. After having entered data relatiny to all items involved in a single order, the attendant depresses his or her assigned Total key 62 to calculate and display the amount of sale, i.e., the payment due. Payment is made by the customer by inserting coins into the coin slot 26 and/or bills, checks, coupons or the like into appropriate openings 18. Upon tenderiny of a bill to any opening 18 a light identifying the active bill belt cues the att:endant to look to the proper window 20. The attenclant then visually in-spects the tendered bill. Upon verification, the attendant depresses the appropriate One, Five, Ten, Twenty key. Actuation of any of these keys indicates the amount of payment made against the total sale amount.

When payment of an amount equal to our greater than the amount of sale is detected by the data processor, the required amount of change, i~ any is automatically calculated and dispensed by the coin, the one dollar and five dollar bill devices as required. No change is given from other than the one or five dollar bill belts and the coin changer.
Recording of receipts and disbursements by denomin-ation, along with the store-opening amounts, enable the system to maintain an accurate account oE all bills and coins throughout the business day.

Customer submittal o~ checks or other bill denominations (two dollars, fi~ty dollars, etc.) is verified by the attendant examining the dollar or check amount through the corresponding window 20.
I~ the tendered bill or check is acceptable, the ,.. .~

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a-ttendant then enters the amount of the bill or check, using the numeric keys 5~. Subsequent actuation of either the Check key or the Other Dollar key 96 iden-tifies the type and amount of payment to the lata processor.

Actuation of the "SS" keys 100 provides a means to record and identify special transaction, such as discounts, give-aways, no charge sales, etc. Under these conditions the bill belts are not activated.
Actuation of the "SS" keys, preceded by entering the amount on the keys 54 enters an amount to be deducted from the total sale and recorded as expense.

The coupon keys 102 labeled Coupon l through Coupon 4 can be used to identify different types of promotional sales. Actuation of this key can cause the data processor to accept the value previously entered on the numeric keys 54, to identify the sale as resulting from a store promotion and to enter in memory the cash value of the promotion to be used later on cashreconciliation.

The keyboard includes a first digital display 106 for displaying the amount of each sales transaction, and a second digital display 108 for displaying the cumulative amount tendered in payment of each sales transaction. Display 106 can be used to momentarily display the price of each item sold and the tax on each item sold. The keyboard also includes a first LED 110 for being activated when display 106 relates to the price of a particular item being sold; a second LED 112 for indicating the tax on either the amount previously displayed or the total tax; and a third LED 114 to be activated; display 106 indicates the ~
total amount of the sales transaction, including tax.

f~ ~, ., , On the customer side 15 of the housing 10, as illustrated in FIG 3, the digital displays 22 and 24 provide the same displays as -the amount of Sale display 106 and the Amount Tendered display 108, respectively. Similarly, LED displays 116, and 120 on the custor,ler side 15 of the housing are activated along with correspondiny activation of the LEDIs 110, 112, and 114 for corresponding itern, tax and total information, respectively.

In a specific embodiment, in which the keyboard 14 is adapted for use in a point of sale terminal involving the sale of ice cream products, all keys on the keyboard are a flat.touch type which can be wiped clean with a damp cloth and which have no openings through which liquids can reach -the switch-ing mechanisms. Switches are mechanical, rather than capacitive, in order to minimize accidental activation.

Bill Handling The construction of each bill belt device is shown in FIG.4. Each bill belt device includes a housin~ 122 containing a first and second supply unstoring reels 124, 126 spaced apart from each other, and a take-up or storage reel 128. A lower entrance roller 130 is located immediately inside the housing 122 below the opening 18 and an upper entrance ro].ler 132 is located immediately inside the housing 122 above the opening 18 and above the lower entrance roller 132. The two entrance rollers are rotatable about corresponding axes of rotation which are para-llel to one another and perpendicular to the path of travel of a bill inserted into the opening of the bill cache.

A first ~ransparent money belt 134 is secured at one end -to the ~irst supply reel 124 and is secured ~3 -.. ~,: ' .

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, 7S~:7 at its opposite end to the storage reel 1280 The flrst belt has a portlon extendlng upwardly away from the flrst supply reel, around the lower entrance roller, and then along a straight pa-th away from the entrance rollers and around a first guide roller 136 on a side of the housing opposite the entrance roller. ~uch porti.on of the first belt then extends from the first guide roller down to the storage reel 128. A second transparent money belt 138 has a portion extending upwardly from the second supply reel 126 into engage-ment with a second yuide roller 13~ adjacent ~he first guide roller 136 and then around a third gui.de roller 140 above the second guide roller. Such portion of the second belt then extends along a straiyht path near the top of the housing toward the entrance to the bill cache and is wrapped around the upper entrance roller 132 and ls then reversed to travel in a super-posed relatlon above the portlon of the first web which extends in a straight path across the top of the houslng. The superposed path of the first and second belts is illustrated at 142 in FIG~ 4 and is referred to below as the viewing path or viewing position.
The first and second belts both extend around the first guide roller 136 in their superposed relation and both belts then extend down to the storaye reel 128, in the superposed relation, for attachment to the storage reel. The first and second belts are wound in unison around the storage reel when the storage reel is rotated in the direction of the arrow at 144 shown in FIGo 4~

Thus, the first and second belts converge at the entrance rollers which, in turn, apply a slight amount of pressure against one another so that the two bel-ts are pressed slightly into contact with one another as they converge inside the opening 18 to the housing 122. The belts then pass in a superposed relation along - : ~ , , .

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-the straight viewing path 142 across the upper por-tion of the housing from the opening 18. The two belts are held in con-tact wi-th one another along the straight viewing path 142 as they pass around the first guide roller 136 to the storage reel 128.

First and second gear wheels 152, 154 are rigidly affixed to the first and second supply reels 124, 126.
The two gear wheels are the same diameter, and have gear tee-th of identical size and spacing.

A third gear wheel 156 is rigidly affixed to the s-torage reel. The third gear wheel has approx-imately twice the area of either the first or the second gear wheel, and has gear teeth of the sarne size and spacing as the first and second gear wheels.

A first supply reel drive motor 158 is rnounted in the housing 122 adjacen-t the first gear wheel 152.
A first driven gear wheel 160 on the output shaft of the first supply reel drive motor engages the first gear wheel. ~he first driven gear wheel is substan-tially smaller in diameter than the diameter of the first gear wheel. Similarly, a second supply reel drive motor 162 is mounted in the housing adjacent the second gear wheel 154, and a second driven gear wheel 164 identical to gear 160 on the output shaft of the second supply reel drive motor engages the second gear wheel.

A take-up reel drive motor 166 is mounted in the housing 122 adjacent the third gear wheel 156, and a third driven gear 168 on the output shaft of the take-up reel drive motor engages the third gear wheel.

,.~, ?, ' A serve mechanlsm is provided for the bill belts.

A computer issues a number of commands to the controller.

When the bill belt is operated in a pay-in mode, its take-up reel drive motor 166 is energized by the serve to rotate the third gea.r wheel 156 clock~wise in the storiny direction (wit.h reference to FIG. 4) which, in turn rotates the st.orage reel 128 in the clockwise direction illustrated by the arrow 144 in FIG~ 4. At the same time, the first and second belts unwind from their respective supply reels and travel together, in their superposed relation, along the viewing path 142 away from the entrance rollers and toward the first guide roller 136. Preferably, ten-sion is maintained by applying a relatively low levelof energization to the supply reel drive motors 158 and 162 which are electrically connected in series. The bill is drawn into the opening 18 and between the first and second belts by the action of the belts traveling over the entrance rollers and into the housing along the viewing path 142 to a window 20 in the point of sale housing~ 10. The window 20 is illus-trated i.n phantom in FIG. 4. The drive motors are de-energized, under control of a computer, to position the bill below the window, for viewing by the operator.
,.. . . .
As bills continue to be drawn into the housing they become s.andwiched between the belts wrapped around the stora~e reel 128.

: When the bill belt is operated in a pay-out mode, its series-connected supply reel drive motors are : energized by the serve to turn their respective gear wheels in a counter-clockwise direction in an unstoring . . :

;. , : , 7~7 direction (with reference to FIG. 4) which, in turn, rotates the supply reels in a counter-clockwise direction, as illustrated by the arrows at 172 in FIG. 4. Preferably, tension is main-tained by applying a relatively low level ofenergization to the take-up reel drive motor 166. This travel of the belts causes each bill sandwiched between them to be payed out through the opening 18.

In the illustrated embodiment, the bill belt sensors include outer optical detectors out-side the entrance rollers 130, 132 and inner optical detectors inside the housing adjacent the entrance rollers. The outer sensors can be a first infra-red (IR) sensor 174 located in front of the entrance rollers above the opening 18 and a cooperating IR emitter 175 embedded in the money tray 16 in front of the entrance rollers and below the first IR sensor 174. The emitters 175 and 177 are electrically connected in a gate-controlled series circuit path.

~ The outer optic~ sensors are located as close to the outside of the entrance rollers as possible. It is desirable that the inner optical sensors also be located fairly close to the in-side of the entrance rollers, although they can be spaced inwardly from the entrance rollers no more than~the length of a bill being tendered into the bill cache.

~: , : - ':
, ..
:. . ',:

In the . bill balt, each of the two ernitk~r and sen~or combinations provide~
~or detacting when a bill i~ pre~erlt between them. Each ~ensor sense~ ~11 the IR r~diQtion, transmltted to lt rrom the corre~pondlng emit-ter whsn no bill i~3 presorlt b~t~s~n them, ~nd the sen~or produce~ an output 9~ gn~l h~virl~ a rirst value proportion~l to th~ s~nsed tr~n~
mitted I~ radiation ~or indicatlng th~t no bill i9 present., WheIl a tendared bill i~ pro-sent between the sen~or an~ det0ctor, ~ certain amount o~ IR r~diation i9 tr~n~mlttad through tha bill p but mo~t transmltted IR radiatio~ i9 blo¢kedO The sensor produces ~n output 3ignal havin~ a ~econd ralue proporti~n to the redueed amount o~ ~en~ed tran~mitted IR r~dis~on l'or indio~ting that ~ bill i3 present" Thi~
capabllity ~ of' the ~en~or~ ca~ be u~ed to dstJct bills that ~re too }ight ab~ort~re"
eeqO doubla bill~ or bllls that are too l~ght trEInEllQi88iVe~ ~,qO certa~n oountsr~eit bllls.

r.
`

~': , ' ~ ~ ' :
- . ' ~ .: , .. . . . .
,, . ,, . ~ , . .` : ' ~ ` :` ' '' : `

IR-typa emitters and sensor~ are u~ed ~o t,hat the bill eacha ~ontrol~ ~are ln~n~itive to stray ambierAt llght, i.eO, li~sht in th~ vi ibla sp~3ctrum.
The outer optical sensor~ 174, 175 ar~
u~ed a~ part of' fl mean~ to count bills di n-pensed as chnnge. During operation in the pay-out modc, e~ch bill di.spensed to the oper~ine 1~ i~ det;ected by the out0r opt~cal ~en~ing means. Th~ bill belt~ can be control-led to dispens~ each bill ent~rely pa~t the entrance rollers and past the f'ir~t sen~lng me~ns and into ths money trRy 16; Rnd the outer sen~ing mean~ ~n detect when each bill ha~
been di~pensed f'rom the openine to provide dat~ to a counter f`or counting each bill ~o di ~pen~d~, Altern~tiveïy; the bill belt~ c~n be ::~ controlled ~n the pay~out mode to f`eed a b~ ll halrway through th~ op~ning 80 that the blll rema~ns betbtean the en~s~ance roller~ blocking the ou$er 3eln80r unti 1 the bill i~ taken rrom the openlng 'by the cu~tomer. The outer ~ensor q , .
- . . . . .

, ~ ' :

.

75~

can detect when ~ bill prs~ent bctween the antrance roller~ i~ taken by a customer and can produce d~ta fad to ~ countcr ~or countin~
aach ~ill taken by the cu~tomer. Th~ bill belts can be controlled ~o :

~:, . ~ .
.
- ~ :

. ~

. .

7~:~'7 in the pay-out mode to feed only the last bill paid as change halfway through the opening 18. The com-puter disarms the bill belts after the last bill is paid out as change, and remains so until a subsequent arming command from a Total key.

The inner optical sensors 176, 177 can detec-t whether or not a bill that is tendered into the opening is actually drawn into the housin~. The pay-in cycle is activated when the outer optical sen-sors 174, 175 indicate that a bill is in tlle opening.
If the tendered bill is not detected by the inner optical sensors 176, 177 within the Q.5 second time per-iod, counted by the computer a command ls issued for halting the belts. This restricts the forward travel of the belts when they are "teased", thus valuable storage space is saved.

Either the outer or the inner sensing means also can be used to detect the thickness of a tendered bill in order to validate a pay-in transaction. Each IR sensor can indicate the opacity of a tendered bill between the emitter and the sensor. A valid bill has a predetermined opacity. If more than one bill is between the emitter and sensor, or if the thickness of the tendered bill is not the required thickness, or if the tendered bill is otherwise not yenuine, the light transmissivity detected by the optical sensor either can be too high or too low, compared to a required range of opacity for a genulne bill.

Third optical sensors are provided by an infra-30 red sensor 178 and emitter 179 positioned to the rear of the bill viewing path 142 immediately in front o~

: : :
~ '' ' ' .

the first guide roller 136. These sensing means can be optionally used to detect the leading edge of a bill drawn into the bill cache for generating data to be fed to the data processor to issue a command for stopping the pay in feed operation.

Coin Cache FIGS. 6 and 7 show a coin receiver dispenser and storing device 200 located in the interior of the housing 10. The coin changer includes a coin sorter and a coin dispenser. Coins deposited into the single coin slot 26 on the front of the housing 10 travel through a Eirst coin guide 502 for funneling the coins, one at a time, into the top of a second coin guide 504 having a sloping internal -track 506 for guiding each coin to a coin sorter 508.

Separate optical sensors, or mechanical or electrical switches at the coin sorting openings in the coin sorter can detect when a particular coin passes into each opening of the sorter for issuing signals to the computer indicating the denominations of coins received. The computer, in turn, can provide for calculating the payment received. For example, a first optical senso.r 550 is located adjacent the dime-sorting opening 532, a second optical sensor 552 is located adjacent the penny-sorting opening 534, a third optical sensor 554 is located adjacent the nickel-sorting opening 536, and a fourth optical sensor 556 is disposed adjacent the quarter-sorting opening 538. The optical signal emitted and sensed by each sensor is blocked when a coin either passes through the opening or bypasses the opening where each sensor is located.

.

` ''' ` ~-'' ' `, .

7~t7 The change dispenser is conventional in struc-ture and operation, and an example of a coin dispen-ser which can be used for the purpose of the present invention is Model 2941 Change Dispenser manufactured by SCI Systems, Inc. of Hun-tsville, Alabama. Coins dispensed as change by the coin dispenser generate data for the computer to provide a running total of coins available in each column dispenser.

The data processing system also provides for detecting when a coin overflow condition is imminent.
When a coin overflow condition is imminent in a given column, the solenoid 562 is energized to pivot the coin diverter 558 in the position shown in phantom lines in figure 6 for funneling any further coins that column into a coin reservoir 266. After the coin diverter has diverted the coin to the coin reservoir, the solenoid is de-energized to return the coin diverter to its normal position, under the action of the coil spring 264. Coins of a particular denomin-ation are funneled into the coin reservoir only whenan overflow condition for that particular denomin-ation is sensed. If coins are removed from a coin column in the coin dispenser, appropriate data related to the amount of coins removed is supplied to the data processor.

Or~anization of Electronic Hardware With reference toFIG. 10, there will now be gen-erally described the overall organization of the elec-tronic hardware contained in housing 10.
The computer comprises a data processor 350 and a memory,preferably including a R~l 352 and ROM 354.
It is preferable to split the memory into a random - : :
' ' , .

access portion and a read-only portion so that software and ~systern constants can be stored in the read-only memory portion and thereby prevent temporary loss thereof in the event of a power failure or the like.
Suitable capacity for RAM 352 is 16K bytes (each byte being 8 bits). Suitable cap acity Eor RO~1 354 is 24I~ bytes.

In the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, data processor 350, R~
352, and ROM 354 and a battery backed RAM~
These products are commercially manufactured by Motorola and others under the designations .
MC6800 Microprocessing Unit, MCM 4027 Random Access Memory, and Intel Read-On~ly Memory, 2708 EPROM) respectively. Motorola has ~:
published a series of manuals describing the constructions and operation of, and various uses for,~the MC6800 Microprocessing Unit :: : :
~ 20 and various~companion products including the :: : :
MCM 4027 Random Access Memory, an~MC6820 Peripheral Interface Adapter (PIA), the MCM6830 ,:
:
~ - 34 -:

, . , ~ . , - ~ :, . :
- i , , - , : .. , . ~:
, . ~

7i~

Read-Only Memory, and an MC6850 Asynchronous Communication Interface Adapter (ACIA). These manuals include an M6800 EXORciser User's Guide, an M6800 Microprocessor Program-ming Manual, an M6800 Microprocessor Applications Manual, and various M6800 Microprocessor Family of Parts date sheets.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that -the above-described specific products are exemplary of various commercially available products suitable or use in -the point of sale system. The MC6800 microprocessor in-corporates particular structure for performing certain func-tions such as input/output functions that are performed by different structures in other commercially available systems which are suitable for use with the present invention.

A unibus is depicted in FIG. 10 as bus 356 coupling data processor 350 to RAM 352, ROM 354, a PIA 358, a PIA
360, an ACIA 362, a controller 364, a controller 366, and a multiplexer and control electronics 368. Each PIA is fully described in the above-identified Motorola manuals. Sim-ilarly, the ACIA is fully described therein, PIA 358 pro vides an interface between data processor 350 and a control-ler 370 for the keyboard and the displays, and PIA 360 pro-_ ~ _ 3~
i ~., ~.. .~ .. .

~' ~

vides an interface for the printer 372 and a modem374. Modem 374 is coupled to DAA 377 so that data stored in R~ 352 can be transmitted via a telephone line to a cen-tral data processing system. Multi-plexer 368 is a specially designed interfaciny device.

Multiplexer With reference to FIG. 11, multiplexer 368 isconnected to bus 356 to receive addresses and com-mands from data processor 350 and to feed status data back to data processor 350. The address bus portion of bus 356 comprises 16 wires (not incliv-idually shown). More than 64K separate addresses can be instantaneously defined by the parallel-by-bit signals carried by the address bus, each address is symbolized by a four place hexidecimal number.
For example, in the specifically described embodi-ment, the address of multiplexer 368 has been arbitrarily chosen as the four place hexidecimal number 80El. Numbers that expressed in hexidecimal form are indicated by the letter H or "$" preceding the number.

The addresses applied to bus 356 by data pro-cessor 350 are in accordance with positive logic format subject to three-state control (TSC). That is, each of the 16 address bus wires is connected tothe output of one of 16 three-state buffer cir-cuits wi-thin data processor 350.

Whenever data processor 350 applies an address to the address busj it simultaneously controls the value of an R/W signal to designate whether a read or write operation is involved.

~.7 ~ t~ 7 Multiplexer 368 has circuitry for strobing data transEers, herein referred to as strobing circuitry 380 with positive logic format.

A suitable arrangement of digital circuits which is used in the illustrated embodiment for producing the above-mentioned strobing signals is shown in detail in FIG. 12. A NOR gate 381 (such as one-half of type 74LS260) receives five input signals and pro-duces an output signal that is high (at or near +VI) only when each of its five input signals is low (at or near ground). A NAND gate 383, (such as type 74LS30) receives eight input signals and produces an output signal that is low only when each of its eight input signals is high. The above-mentioned input signals include signals identified as BAl through BA7, (which are the eight least significant bits of the address carried by the address bus~, and I/O signal produced by decoding circuitry. The I/O signal equals 1 when the eight most significant bits of the address define the number H80. With gates 381 and 383 being connected as shown, the output signal produced by gate 383 is low whenever the address H80El is carried by the address bus.

NOR gate 385 ~1/4 of type 74LS02) received two in-put signals and its output is the CSTB signal-which in when high the computex issues a command to multi-plexer 368.

The R/W signal is inverted by an inverter 386 whose output signal is applied as one of two input signals to a NOR gate 387. The other illput si~al for a NOR gate 387 is received from NAND gate 383. The out-put signal produced by NOR gate 387 is inverted by an ;, : :

. ~ ~ .. .
.:

.
: :, ~ `' , .: ;~ ' :

13~ PS ;i' inverter 388 to produce the RDSTS signal. Owing to the foregoing arrangement, the RDSTS signal EQUALS O whenever data processor 350 addresses multiplexer 368 for a read operation to read status data.

With reference again to FIG. 11, multi~
plexer 368 has command receiving circuitry 390 that is strobecl by the CSTB signal. A suit-able arrangement of cligital circuitry which used in the illustrated embodiment for receiving commands is shown in detail in FIG. 15. Each command issued by data processor 350 to multi-plexer 368 is carried by a portion of bus 356.
The data bus portion comprises either bi-direct-ional lines for carrying signals identified as ~; BDO through BD7 respectively. Of these, the ::
signals BDO through BD4 are involved in defining the commands issued to multiplexer 368.

Table l below give the coding for the com-mands issued to multiplexer 368.
~: :
:, :::
~: :

- ~ :
;: :

: . ' ' ' ' .` .

:. ' : , ' ' ~ , .,, ~ :. ' . '"
.: ~ `;

~L~ 7'~17 BD4 BD3 BD2 BDl BDO
X X X H H select belt 74 ($1) as scanned one X X X H L select belt 76 ($5) as scanned one X X X L H select belt 78 ($10/20) as scanned one X X X L L select belt 80 (coupon) as scanned one X H H X X stop X H L X X forward X L H X X reverse X L L X X unload L X X X X arm H X X X X disarm Command receiving circuitry 300 includes five inver-ters 391-1 through 391-5 for inverting the five parallel 15 signals defining the commands issued to multiplexer 368.
This signal produced by inverter 391-5 is applied to the D input of a D-type flip flop 392 (one quarter of 74LS84). An inverter 391-6 responsive to the CSTB sig~
nal has its output connected to the clock input of flip flop 392. Accordlngly, when data processor 350 issues an arming command to multiplexer 368, flip flop 392 is triggered into its set state, and when data processor issues a disarming command to multiplexer 368, flip flop 392 is triggered into its reset state. Flip flop 392 25 can also be cleared by the B RESET signal carried by bus 356.

:..

., : . ~ ~- . -- ' , . ~ .

': ' , , ,7~'~

.
An AND e~te 393 i8 re~pon~ive to th~ out-put ~ignal produced by rlip f`lop 392 an~l to a F~;l~ s:l~nal. Normally hi~h and i~ low only ror n brie~ interval ~uch aa ~pproxlmately 100, millise~ond~ rollow~ng lniti~l application Or power $o the electron~o hardware. The ~ignal produood by AND e~te 393 i~ the E~lA si~n~l ~hic~ is a mod~ control ~ignnl~
The ENBA sign~l i9 applied to the clear input o~ a re~ tsr 394. (type ?~IJS175) corn-prising f~our D-type ~lip ~lop~ (not individually 3hown). So long a~ the ENBA ~ignal equal~ 0, thereby de~ining ths di~abled mode, e~ch of' the rlip rlopa in re8is~er 394 i8 held in t~le r0set ~tate. With the ENBA ~ignal equaling 1, register 39~ i9 re~ponaiYe to~ triggering by 'che C~TB s~gnal, with sach such tri~eer cau~ing tho reglster to be lo~ded with a oommand is~ued by d~a pro:cessor 350 ~or ~ontrollin~ ~ ~ele~ted one Or th~ bill a~che~ 74" 76, 78, and 80.

', :
:
;

Command rece~vine curcuitry 39O rurther include~ a copy/lateh register 39~ ~type 7475) compri~lng ~our latch circuits ~not lndlvidually ~hown~, Copy/latch register 39~ r~cie~e~ Y
sienal which equal~ O only durlng interYals Or time durin~ whl~h an electrlcnl energization pulse i3 belng ap~lied to cau~e the aoanned one Or the blll belta to be driven, With the ~Y ~ignal equdiing 0, copy/latch regist0r 395 exhibit~ memory. Duri~g the interv~ls in ~hich the ~3Y ~ign~l equal~ 1, each Or the rour latch eircuits in copy/l~t~h regi~ter 395 cople~ th~
output ~ignal Or ~ ~orr~sponding one o~ the rour rllp ~lop~ ln regiater 394O
Wlth r~0renc0 agQin to ~lgure 11~ multi-plexer 36B lnolude~ a bolt ~Iect decoder 4OO
~or decoding the bill belt ident~ying portion o~ eaoh ¢ommand l~ued to multlple~er 36B. A
suitable nrrangement o~ dig~t~l clrcuitry which ~8 u~ed in the illu~trated embodiment ~or e~e~ting 3uch decoding i~ 3ho~n in d~tail in ~igure 17. An AND gat~ 401 rece;ve~ the ::

, and ~ signal~ ~nd proàuce~ ~n output ~i~nal that 1~ ~ppl~ed to Qn AND gate 1~02. The ENBA
~lgnal 1~ al~o applied to AND ~e 402. The oukput ~i~n~l produced by AND gQte 1~02 i9 ~pplied to three inverter~ 1~03" 1~04, and 405.
Inverter~ 403 and 404 produ¢e output 9ign6119 ~; ~nd ~5, respectively~ vorter 405 h~
it~ output r~sistlvely conrlected to th~ base electrodes of` power translstor~ 406 and 1~07.
When power transi~tur 406 i~ 3witched on, it C0~9Ct~ a sour¢e of' pow~r +V29 ~uitably +12 volt~ unregulated, to one termirlal SMV0 of' tha ~eries connected ~upply rael drive motor~
ln bill cache 71~o At the 3~me t~me thQt tr~n ~i~tor 406 i8 ~kched on" power tr~lqtor 407 ~ swi tched on to connsct the ~our~e o~ power to on~ te~ n~l TMV0 o~ the take-up driva motor ln b1ll c~che 74~
During int0rval~ ~a which tha disabled mode i8 beirae def'lYaed b~ the ENBA si~nal ~, copy~latoh reg~st~r 395 (rlgure 15~ identi~ies ~ll bel~ 740 In~smuch 89 ANO gate 402 i~
respon~ive to the ENBA ~ignalO however~ nelther power transl~tor 406 nor power tran~istor 1~07 ~witched on in th~ di~abled mode.
,~0 .:

7'~

Decoder l~OO rurther includ~s three d~cod~
ing ~rran~ements that are structurally identi-cal to eAch other and are sub~tantiQlly similar to tha ~bove-dsscribed decoding arrangement concern~ng bill belt 74O ~he only dirrsrence in ~tructure arl~fls becaus~ thsre i8 no nced ~or the decodin~ arrange~ent~ ror bill belt~
76~ 7~9 and Bo to respond to the ENBA ~i6nal~
Inasmuch ~9 the~e three d~coding Qrrangements are structurally i.dentical to each other, C~sc-~1l3 2C
only one Or them i~ An AND gate 1~10 recei~e~
tha CLO and CLI ~ignal~ and produoe~ an out-put ~ignRl that i8 appl l ed to inverters l~11, l~12, ~nd 413. In~ert0r~ 411 and 412 produce output ~i~na~s ~ ~nd ~ re~p~otlvely.
~nvonter 413 h~its output r~ tively ¢on-~eGted to the base ele~trode~ oP power tran-si~tors 414 and 415 that control the ~wltch1n~
Or pow~r to the ~upply ~nd take-up dr~vs ~otor~
in bill oache Bo in the 9~m~ man~ler 2~ ~ower tran~iBtor3 3~o6 ~nd 4O7 do ~o ~or ~ill bel~ 71~.

:

~f3 `

,~ ., , '7 Six of the gates shown in figure 16 (which shows the decoder 402) are involved in detecting whether the existing command equals the next command. These are exclu-sive-OR gates 421, 422, 423, and 424 and AND
gates 425 and 426. In circumstances in which the existing command equals the next command, the output signals produ.ced by AND gates 425 and 426 each equals 0, two of the control signals produced by decoder 420, namely, UNLD signal produced by a NAND gate 428, each equals l.

The UNLD signal is involved in control-ling a high-speed dump operation by which a store owner or manager empties a bill belt.
As a security measure, housing 10 has a key-controlled:lock (not shown) used for controlling a KSW signal. An inverter 429 receives the KSW signal. and produces an out-:
:put signal that lS applied to an AND gate 430.
: Owing to the connection as shown between AND
gate 430 and NAND gate 427, the UNLD signal cannot equal ~0 unless the KSW equals O.
`
::

:: :
- 44 _ A ~, ~ ' , ' ' ~ ', When the 3torage r~el ha~ reached it~
maximum diameter or the suE~ply reel~ have reached th~ir maximwn diame~er, N~ND gate 431 rece~ve~ an RLSC signal produced by clrcuitry to be de~cribed with refer~!nce ;:o ~igure îg and ~ha~ rcce~ve~ the CQENQ ~ign~l produced by lthe c:ircuitry d~cribed ~bove wlth r~f~r-ence to ~$yure 15. In circum~tsnces in whic:h the exi~tlng command calls ~or ~ b~ll belt to unlo~d at a tlm~ while the P~LSC ~ignal equals O, ~n such cirs~ tance~, ~ND gate~
432, 433, and 43~, which ar~ ~onnected ~n 1:andem ~ shown be~ween N~ND g~t~ 431 and NAND gat~ 427, c:au~e the IJNLI) ~ ~nal to equal 1. Under the s~na conditionu N~ND gate ~35 rece~ve~ a F~SC ~ign~l al80 p~oduc~d by the circui~ry s~own in flgure 19~ asld r~ce1v the c~ucpu~ ~gn~l produced by ~n ~N~ g~t~
436. Con~ider now ~rcu~3tance~ 1~ which th~ exl~lng comm~nd c~ for a ~i~l bel~
to mo~l~ orward ~t a t~me whll~ th~ FLSC
~ignal equal~ 1~ In ~uch c1rcun st~n~e~ ~

. .~,. ~
.' ~f~
.

.,..,;
-.

.

. . .

7~

the C~EN1 ~nd the CQENO ~ienals e~ch e~luals 1, whereby the output 3igna l produced by AND ~ate 1~3~ al~o equ~l~ 1. Owin~; to the connection ~9 ~hown Or the tande~ gat0s between AND gate 436 and NAND eate 42~, 'the ~ signal equ~ls 1 in these circwn~tances.
A ~uit~ble arrangetrlent Or ~uch burf`er circuit~ 45O u~ad in the illu~trated embodl~ent i~ shown in d~tail ln f'igure ï 9. As ~ho~,m, two D-ty}~c ~lip ~lop3 1~5~ and 452 qre includad in thaso burf'0r c~rcui~ O When th~ ~upply r~Hl 8 Or th~ ~canned b~ll balt3 havc reach~d m~ximum diameter, its rcver2e l1mlt switch cau3e~ an s~n~l to equ~l O. Thi~ ~gn~l i9 coupled through ~n RC del~y circuit 'co the clear input o~ flip ~lop 451. Accordillgly9 whlle the supply reels Elre ~t maximwn diameter"

rlip rlop: 451 is in it~ re3et ~tate cau~ing an RLSC signal to 9qu81 1 and an ~ ~ign~l to equal O,. The .f`lip rlOp ~8 trig~ered into its ~et ~t~tc when a con~nand i~sue~ to multiplexer 36B" th~reby cau~in~ the C~TB sign~l to dl~fin~
a po~itive pul9e,: ~t a tlme wh~le the RLSl~J
~ignal equals t tharaby caus~ng th~ CSTE~ ~ien~
,~
~6 .. , . . _ ' .
:

to d~fine a po3itive pul~e9 at ~ time wh~le the ~W ~ignal equ~l~ 1 ther~by indic~t~n~
that the ~uppl~ reel~ ~re~ not at m~imum diameter~ .
Simllarly; when the take-up reel Or the ~canned bill belt ha~ reached m~ximum di~meter, itD ~orw~rd limit ~witch causea an ~3~ ~ignal to equal O. Th:ls ~i~nal i8 coupled throu~h ~n RC delay circuit to the ~lear inp~t Or rlip rlop 452. Accordingly9 while the tQke-up re~l is at maximum diameterD flip flop 452 i9 in its re~et ~tata9 causing the FL~C ~ign~l to equal 1 and ths ~ signal to equal o. Flip rlOp 452 i~ triggerad into itB ~et Bt~te when a command i~ue9 ~0 mult~plex~r 3689 there~y cau~lng the CSTB ~ignal to dc~ine B positive pul3e~ at ~ ti~e whils the ~W ~ignal equals 1 thereby indicating th~t th0 8upply reals ~re not at maximum diameter. Th~ above-dascr~bed rour output: 3~gnala o~ buffer c~rcuit~ 4~O
are di~tributsd to co~trol sl.gnal decoder 42O~
to O~ ~unction ~ircuitry 455 ~gures 11 ~nd 13)~ ~nd to statu3 byte bu~er circuitry 46O

~f1 ` .

r~j&7S

f i gure ~ 1 1 nnd 20~
A ~uitable ~rrangement Or ~uch ~en~or bur-rer~ u~ed i~ . illustr~ted. The principal runction o~ the circuitry o~ ure 18 ralAt0~ ~
to ~an~or bufrerin~ tha circuitr~ al~o provides ror producing the PRST sign~l which ~3 us~d to initi~lize the ~tates of v~rious b~table cir-cuits incident to the turning on o~ power. In this connection, the sensor burrer 465 o~ rigure 18 inelude~ a comparator circuit 466 (t~pe 6M339) whose output cign~l lc the-PR5T aig~al. The ~nverti~g input o~ compsrator ~ircuit 466 l~
connected to a node 467 o~ a r~ tor diYlder ne~work eomprisin~ resi~tors 468 and ~69 ~nd potentiomet~r 470. Th~ non-lnYer~ing input o~
comp~rator cir¢uit 4~6 i8 eonnoeted to ~ posi-tlve ~eedback ~rral.gement o~ re~i~tors 4~1 and 472. When power l~ turnad onS the Yoltage level ~t nods 467 o~ the re~ibtor dl~ider nat-work rAp1dly chan~ea to it~ steady ~tat~ valu0.
On the other hand, a delay clrGuit eompri~lng a re~l~tor h73 ~nd a cap~cltor 474 supplie~ a :: : : ~ :

- :

:

:

:

~L~Lr~f~75 ~

rel~tiv~ly ~lowly changing voltage to resistor 47~0 For approxim&tel~ thls rir9t l OO milli- :
~conds af`tar power i~ applied~, the volt~ge at node 467 exceeds the voltage ~pplied to resistor .
l~72 with the result that th~ F si~nal equal3 O for this brief` :Interval~ ~t t~he end of' thi~q b~ier interval" whieh end3 ~8 800n Qn ~che volt-age to rcsi~tor 472 exceed~ the voltaee at node 1~67~ tha ~ signal c~ange~ to the 1 ~slue., Tha po~itlYe reedbAek ~rrangem~rlt cau~e~ the pul~a def'ined by tha PRST ~ign~l to h~ve sharp riae ~nd ~all t~ma~,, IdentiGal cornparator c1 rcuit~ 75 and 476 are likawise connected to positiva ~eedback arrang~ments ~or ~u~ing the output 8ign~ 9 they produce, identlried as DET A,, and DET B9 to havs shsrp ri~a ~nd f`all tim~n~ qhe non~
invurtin6 ~nplit~ of' comp~rator ~ir~uit~ 475 ~nd 47i5 Qre coupl~d by reDi9tor8 Or thair po3itlve f'eedbQck arrangements to the node 467.
The inv~rting input o~ ~omparator circuit 475 $~7 q `

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, ': ~ , . , . ' ' . ' ' 7;~'7 is re~istively coupl~d to the terminal identi- -ried ~8 DET A-. It ~lll. be recalled ~rorn the description of the 01lter IR ~en30rs~ set rorth in the section dil~3cted to the construction Or-R bill cache" tn~t the emitter electrode~ o~
the rour eml tt~r electrodes ~re commonly con~
nected to thi~ terminalO
While any one Or the ~our sien~l~ SL0 throueh 3~ (rieure 17) equal~ OJ, the signa~
applied to thi~ terminal norm~lly 4 ~ mors po~i~
tiv3 than the steady state vol'Gaee at node Ij~.67, Ir a bill i~ present ln the ~canned bill belt batwe~n its IR emitter ~75 and it~ sen~or 171~5, thls sien~l becoms~ 10~18 po~i'cl~e, with the result that the output signal DET A becomes equal to 1. In like manner, the inYerting .
input o~ comparator circu~t 476 ~ re~i~tively coupled to re c e ive a ~ l gn~l ~ppl i ~ d to the DET B-t,erminal O Th~ ~ign~l i3 controlle~l by ~he ~nner IR sen~t)r o~ the sGannsd blll belt to be normally more posititr~ than the 3t~ady state oltags at node 467~ a bill i9 pre~ent in the scannod bill belt, bekween tt~ IR emitter 177 ~nd it~ ~ensor 176" ~ ignal becomes ~ `

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f'~'7 le8~ po3itlve with thc result th~t the output signal DET B becomes equnl to 1. Anothar co~
parator circuit 477 has a ~ingle po~itive reed-b~ck resl~tor nnd ha~ it~ nonin~ertin~ input connected to the tnp Or potentlomet~r 1~70~
The invertine input Or compnrater circuit 1-1.77 i8 resi~tively coupl~d to the DET B~ terminal.
Owing to this ~rraneement9 whencver the inner sen~or o~ ths sc~nnsd bill cache detects a double bill, the DET D s~g~al becomes equal to 1, The lo~c circuitry 455 cooperate~ with other ~ircuitry de~cribed below ~ith re~erence to ~igurs 14 to ga~rato ~n interrupt reque~t supplied to data pro~essor 3~0~ The DET A
~ignal ~8 inverted by an inv~ter 480 who~e output ~ign~l i9 applied to a delay clrcuit gen~rally 1d~nti~ied at 4~1, The output B~ gn~l o~ delay circuit 481 iR invert~d b~ inverter 4B20 One input o~ exclu~ive OR gate 4B3 iB diractly connected to the output algn~l o~ ~nverter 482 and the ~ther lnput is coupled through d~lay circuit 4.84 to receiYc the ~ame cienal. Thus~
~ ' .
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' 7~t7 whenever the DE~ A si~nal chan~3e~ rrom O to 1 or change~ f'rom 1 to O, the OUtpllt signnl pro duced by gate 483 is po'3~tive.
NOR gat0 485 respo;nd3 to each positiYe pulse to cau~e itB output si~;n~l, (~) to a ne~sntl~re puise. Whenever the leadin~ edgle or trai lin~ edg0 of' R bill passes the outer sen~or of' the sG~nned bill belts) the ~;~
~ienal will change rrom its normal 1 to a tem-porary O and then return to it~ normal 1~
An arlrangsment ~truc'tur~lly identical to the f'oregoing parf'orms the same f'unction with re9p9ct to the innsr sensor. Whene~r a chan~;s f~rom either a 1 to ~ O or rrom ~ O to a 1 occurs in . the D13T B ~gnal " a n~eative ~oinE
pul~e is de~ined in the ~ signal. A
.
BSY ~i&nalO produoed by ~ircuitry to be ~le~
scribed with ref'erence to i`~gure 72, is t applied to ~n inYerter 486 whose output i~
:
coupled t~rou~h ~ dif'ferenti~ting circuit :
enerally ident~ried at 1~87 to NOR eate ~l~5-'i When~ver the ~BSY ~ign~l ~hang~s ~rom 1 to Og - ~ negative goine pul ~e i~ de:f'in0d ~n the ~RiF
ignal.
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The ramaining circuitry shown in ri~ur0 13 provide~ s~parate sienal flow path~, ench o~
which i,~ ~tructurally identicAl to the sien~l path de~cribed above with ra.~erence to the BSY ~ignal ~ ~o that the ~ sienal i9 re~
sponsive to the ~ and tho RLSC ~ nnls in tho ~nme manner that i~ responaive to the B~Y
~ignal.
Circuitry 490 receive~ sevor~l input ignals, lncludi~g the 3~ signal produced by OR funct~on circultry 455c ~nd ~pplleg two output ~ienal~ identi~led R8 ~ and ~ to ~wo Or the wires o~ the bus 356~
In ~lgure 14 a D-type ~lip .~lop l~91 has a direct Ei~ t input that reoeive~ tho ~ T~
signal 80 that ea¢h time a neg~ti~e ~oing pul~e i~ de~1ned in the ~ signal~ flip rlop 491 is pl~ced into its ~et ~tats~ A NAND
gata 492 receives the QUtpUt ~ignal of ~lip ~lop 491 and ~n T~ n~l produced by in~erter 4930 The input o~ lnverter 493 i9 GOllneCt0d to one o~ the wir~s Or bu~ 3~6 to roceiv~ an IRQ INT a ~lg~l. Norm~lly, the l~tter ~ign~l .

~3 ~ .

."" ,~,, .... . ~ . . . . _ ' . ~

~ 7 ~t~

equQls 0; it equal~ 1 only when data proce~sor 3~0 acknowled.i3es an lnt~rrupt reque~t and s~ek~
to ascert~in the identity of the peripheral that ~enerated the interrupt request. A D-type rlip rlOp 494 ha~ a direct sat input that re-eeives the sl~nal produced by NAND ~ate ll.92, Thu~D rlip rlop L~91~ i9 plaoed into it~ ~et ~tato ~ach time a negative goine pul~e iq de~ined in the ~ signalO An inverter ll95 ~roduces the ~ ~ignal which, while it equ~ls 0~ indlcate~ that an interrupt requa~t i~ pend-ingO When d~ta processor 350 ~cknowledges the interrupt request by cau~in~ ~ po~it~ve golng pul8e to be de~ined in the IRQ INT A ~lgnal, an inYerter 496 enabls~ a three ~tat~ gatz 497 to~drive one Or the w~ re8 Or the data bus poro tlon o~ bu~ 356. Whlle 80 en~ble~ ree-stat0 gate 497 cau~e~ tho ~ ~ignal to equal O which s~rvas to lnform data proceqsor ~50 that it ia multlplsxer 368 that i~ ~enerating the interrupt raquest, .. .. .
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One of` the wires Or bus 356 c~rries a ~ ignal produced by data proce~sor 350.
Norm~lly7 this sienal equals 1. Fllp f`lop 494 ha~ ~ direct clear input ~or placlng rl$p rlop 49L~ inko it~ reset at~te each time tha ~ ~ien~l equals 00 Flip ~lop 1~94 l~
normall~y tri~5gered into ~ lta rcset st~te by the trailing edge o~ the pos:ltiv0 pul~e derined in tho ~5 ai~nal w}ien d~ta proc~or 350 ~eek~ to ascort~in the ~dantlty Or the ~ource Or the interrupt reque~t4 A~ter datQ proGessor 350 h~ ~cknowl~dgsd Qn i~t~rrupt requast and ~cartainad th~$ it i8 multiplexer 36B that i~ th~ ~o~rce Or the inter~pt requ~t, data proc~s~or ~50 exe¢ut~
a re~d ~ycls oper~tlon during whiLch ~tstu~ dat~
i9 erltered lnto d~ta proce~o~ 350. ~n this connection, ~on~ld0r ~igure 20. It will be ra~alled ~rom tha de~oript:Lon Or ~igure 1 ?
th~t the ~ ~i~n~l equal~ O whlle ~ata prooes~or 350 causes the R/W ~ignal to ~qual 1 ~nd simultaneously addres3e~ multiplexer 36~.

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7~'7 The ~ ign~l i9 ~pplied to two invert0rs 500 ~nd 501 each of whlch controls a group ~r four three~state gate~. The ~ormat Or each statu~ byte ~pplied to the dat~ bus portion bu~ 3~6 i~ evident rrom rigur~ 20~
Thc r~maining circuitry in¢luded ~ithin multiplexer 36a provides ~ time-~hared ~ervo ~ubsystem ~or.the bill caches~ Thi8 i~ubsys~em includes, ~9 gen0rally ~hown in ~igure 11 J
~ervo r~te ~eleat circuitry 505, tach ~el~ct circuitry 510, and ~umming ~unction ~elect c~rcuitry 515, A ~uitable ~rraneement o~ tach ~elect circuitry 510 u~ed in the ~llustrated embodimen~
i8 3hown in det~il in ~igure 210 It will be recal1ed rrom the de~criptisn o~ ~igure l~ that each bill belt lnclude~ a tachometer~ In ~ieure ,, , : ~ 21~ th~ ~ignal8 prod~ced by the:four ldentical ; tachomet~r~ i~re identi~ed as t~h 0 Sth~ on~
:
: ; ln bill b~l:t 7~, t~h 1 ~the one in bill bolt : :
76), t~ch 2 (th~ono in blll belt 7B)~ and ta~h ` ': 3 (the GnO ~ln bill belt 80)~
: ~

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When the exi3tin~ comm~nd identi~:l e9 bill bslt 7l~, the 3~5 ~lenal equal~ O. An ~et 516 receiveR thc ~ ~i~snal at it9 eate electrode and is ~witched on wh~la t,he ~ 5 a~gnal aquals O. The source and drain electrode~ of` ~et 516 ~re connected in a 9erit39 circuit path between tach O and th0 inv3rtine input o~ an ~nalog operational ampli~ler 5t 7 whone output ~ iden-ti~isd ~ ~qFB1 (AFB is an acron~n f'or Analog Feedbaak). A~ shown~ L~ conv~alt~onal ~ervo componc~tion net~ork 518 i3 ~ro~rldad to oontrol the gQ~n proYlded by amplirier 517. An lnv~rt-ing un~ty gain clrcuit eompri~ing opel~ational ampll~i~r 5t 9 re~pond~ to th~ AFB1 ~i~n~l ~o produce ~n AFB2 s~gnal which i9 t~O degree~ out o~ phase ~rom the AFBl ~ienal O
Three other ~et~s~itched ~erie~ oircult paths, ~ch identical irl structure to 'che abo~re de~cribed ~19ri98 circuit path ~or tac~ O, ~ro provlded ror Belectively ooupling the t~¢h 1 through tach 3~ als to ampli~ies~ ~179 ~7 .
.,,~.. , ......... ~

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Thes~ three aerls~ cîrcuit path~ are controlled b~J the ~ ~i~nal ~ the ~ 9 a~d the ~ si~nnl, rsspectivaly.
Circuitry 505 ~hown in ~igure 22 13 con~
trolled signal~ 1~ and ~ nd produca~ an an~log ~gnal AIR ~an aocronym ror Analoe Input F~ate ) 1~ The tim~-sh~red ~ervo ¢ontrolY the an~ular veloolty o~ a bill. c~che drivc motor ln Accordan¢e with~a magnitude Or the AIR ~ignal.
For the high ~pe~d dump operation~ it is do-sirable that an~ular veloci~y be relat:lvely hl~h; ~ lower angular velocity i9 more desirable in oonn~ction with either of' the pay-iLn or pay-out moda~ Or tho bill caches.
sn~l equala O whil~ the 8e-curity ke~ ~w~ toh i9 actuated and the e~isting con~n~nd 1~ ~n unlo~d ~onnnand. An FET ~;21 reoeivs~ the ~ ~i~nal at lt~ gate ~leotrode ~nd is switched on wh~l~ the ~ 3ignal equal~
O, l~e source and drain electrode~ o~ FE:T
521 ~re conneoted in a ~eries ol~rcuit path between +V1 asld the lnvertin~ lnput o~ an 5 ~

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'7~'7 oper~tional ampliri~r 5220 ~he gain Or ampli-rier 522 i~ controll~d by a conv~3ntional reed-back circuit e;enea: ally ~ndic~ted at ~23. Th0 output ~ign~l produced by amplirier 522 i appli~d to an inteerator generally indicated ~t 521,~. Suitably,, the R~ time constant Or intee r~tor 524 1E~ between a hnlf' a second ~nd one ~ecorld. The output sign~l producsd by intcgr~tor 524. i~ applied to an invertingD unity gain ~mplirier ~enar~lly inc'lcated at 525 who9e output ~ignal i~ the AIR signal~ The AIR
~ignal i.8 appllsd ~l~o to one end of a ~eedback re~istor ~26~, ths other end of' whl~h is con~
n~cted l;o the imrerting lnput of' ~mpli~ler 522~, The ~R, ~l~Snal ~qual~ O wh~lo th~ ~s3ci~tlng command î~ eith0r ~ For~ard co~na~ad or ~ Rsver~e (normal spe0d ) command. An FET 527 r05eiv the ~ ~i~nal 0.t ltg Essto ele~trode ~nd h~s lts source ~nd draln electrode~ oormect~d in a ~er~e~ cirouit path between a potentiomet~r ~28 ~d ~he inv~rting inpllt o~ ampli~ier 522.

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7~

FET 527 ia ~witched on only while the ~ ai~nal equal ~ O .
Whilo neithsr tha ~1~ nor ths ~ si~n~ls equal~ O~ th8 AIR ~ignul has ~ ~teady 8t8t~3 ~ra1ue o~ O. When a command i8 decoded to ~ause th~ 3n~1 to ~hange l;o ~, ~'ET 5~7 swit~h~
on, thn mugnitude Or the AIR ~ignal incrsase~
po~it~ v~ly to d~rln~ A ramp ror an int,erlral who~e duration is ~ixed by the time oonst~nt of irltegrator 5~ At the end o~ that interval ~, 'che lalput lto in~egrator 524 will be slull O Ow~ng to th0 momory pro~ided by integr~tor ~;246 how~o ever9 the llIR ~l~al will have a po~itiv~
value proportiorl~l to the ~etting Or potentio-meter 5281~ In a simil~r m~nner~ whon ~at~
proce~sor 350 ls~uea ~ Stop cormnand th~t ~
decoded to oau~ lthe ~ ~grlal to change bQ.ck to ~, th~ AIR ~ignal ~ e~in3 a d~c~ndlng ramp to l.'ca ~t~Ady ~tato ~lua Or O ~olt~.
The ~ame ki~d o~ d~nE~ ~d tr~ r~mp ia d~fil~ed 1~1 roopon~0 to ~ ~yola of ~he ~
81~nal" tho o~l~ d~rrero~aoe ~ro~s th0 ~oregolng-re~idin8 lrl the~ ~agnitude Or the AI~ nal.
. q~ .
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llhe output ~ignal produced by ~nverter 52l~
i~ al~o applied to a circuit generally indicated at 529 thnt i~ ~ub~t6ntia:11y the s~me in con~-st~uctlon arld operltien a~3 the circuits describe~
above with re~erence te r Lgure 180 ~lrcuit 529 produces the B~Y ~ign~ nd ~n invert~r 530 re~ponl3iYe th0reto produ~l~s the ~ sienRl~
q~he B~Y and ~Y ~ign~l~ provld~ 9tatu8 i~lrOrma-tion ~ to whether the timo ~hAr0d ~ervo 13 ener~Sizing a drive rnotor~
A suitable ~rr0.ng~ment ~o~ s~ing J-rnction aelect clrcultr~ 515 uaed in the illustrat0d embodlment iB ~hown in det~ll in ~gure 23.
Durlng a pay-~n mode o~ op~ratlon, the time ~hur~d ~arvo~i~ u3ed to coxltrol the ~alo~; Y13100~ ;
iby Or the take~up r0el drl~ motor in the s~anned one o~ the bill caahe~. At the 9ame time, an open-loopO rel~ti~r0'.~ low~ sl en~rglzation oP tho ~upply re~l drivo motor o~
the 301eoted b~ a~he o~ ln tho op~o~ite dirootion ~o Q~ to Pl~int~l~ wob to21~ionO A
po~er tran~i~tor 535 ~oop~r~toa ~flth ~our of' ~-".
th~ pow0r tr0Jn~i ~tors ~bo~ iguro 23 .,` bl ~ .

:~ :

to en~rgize the t~ka-up reel driv~ motor in the selected bill cache. A power trunsi~tor 536 cooper~tes with th~ rsm~iniz~g rour o~ th~
powcr transi~tor~ ~hown in rigure 23 to erler-~ize the ~upply rael drive motora ~n the ~el~t~d bill oaohaO
Whil e the exi~t~ng ~ommand ia a Forward ~Q~nand~ power tr~nalstor 535 operat0~ a~
part o~ the tlm~ ~hared BerVO wh~re~ power tran~l~tor 536 op~rates on ~n open~loop basis.
On the hand9 while the exl~ting co~n~nd i9 either ~ Rever~e or ~n Unload con~nandD power tran~i~to~ 536 o~rates n~ part Or the time ~hared ~ervo where~s power tran~istor 535 operat~ on, a~ open loop ba~
While pow~r tran~iator 535 oper~tea part of` the tlmo shared ~r~o, tb0 s~nming ~un¢t~on Iror the time ~harsd servo i~ ~ In' sun~aln~ tloJa 537O B0tw~0n ~In~ uu~ning ~U~6-tion 53'1 ~d th~ b~ elootrod~ o~ po~sr tr~n-8i8tor 535 thor~ r g~ner~
indl~at~d Qt 538~ Wh~l~ pow~r tr~n~i~tor ~36 op~rat3~ ~ p~rt Or tho tiD~ !hared s0rvo~ th~

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3umming ~unction for the time shared ~ervo i9 1 Out ~ summing ~;~etion 539 . Between ' Out BUm-ming junotio~ 539 arld the ba~e ~lectode o~
power tr~llsi~tor 536 there i~ ~n ampll~ler gener~lly lndie~ted at 540.

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The pres~nt invention i8 ~hown Dnd de-~cribed wi th two alternate mode~ o~ plem~n-tation - a ~o~tware mode And ~ hardware ~ode, Both ~odes arfl shown in conjunction with A
microproce~qor~ At the t~me thi~ application i~ fil~d~ the inventor~ do not know what mode of` imp~ementation will be employod. It i~
very po~ible that the ~re3ent invention will be mnnuractured and 90 d a~ H ~tand-alone davice to interconne~t with exi~t1ng in-place point-or-~ale te~inal~

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Accordingly, the inventors recognize that those skilled in the art to which -the present invention relates understand that there are many variations possible in the structures shown and described in this application. These struc-tures are shown as illustrations only and not in limitations of the inventive concepts des-cribed herein.
Accompanying the Specification are the following attached Appendices:
Appendix A consists of ~ pages of drawings showing the circuit boards for the digital con-trol of the bill belt mechanism for a ~our belt device embodiment of the present invention.
Appendix B is 11 pages of drawings showing the circuit boards ~or the analog control of the belt mechanism for the four bill belt embodi-ment of the present invention.
Appendix C shows the flow charts for a microprocessor embodiment of the present invention showing the interface between the microprocessor and the bill belt control mechanism hardware implementation.

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Claims (18)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. In a cash handling apparatus comprising in combination: a housing means having a top, bottom, front, back, and side surfaces; said front surface having at least one input-output channel formed therein for receiving and dis-pensing bills; said top surface having at least one viewing window formed therein; at least one transparent money belt means having two belt members contained within said housing means;
at least two driven unstoring reel means an at least one driven storing reel means for driving each of the transparent money belt means; the money belt means disposed within the housing such that a bill is transported by the money belt means from the input-output channel to a position opposite the viewing window prior to reaching the storing reel.

2. The device claimed in claim 1 including further: bill sensing means in said housing for detecting the presence of a bill; the sen-sing means disposed adjacent to the viewing window and between the viewing window and the input-output channel means.

3. The device claimed in claim 1 or 2 includ-ing further: said input-output channel having an input end; a second bill sensing means dis-posed at the input end of the input-output chan-nel for sensing and the trailing edge of a bill leaving the channel.

4. The device claimed in claim 1 wherein: there is a plurality of input-output channel means and there is a viewing window and a money belt means fox each input-output channel.

5. The device claimed in claim 1 including further: a third bill sensing means disposed in the housing.

6. The device claimed in claim 1 wherein.
the viewing window is positioned in the top surface of the housing means to be viewed by persons positioned adjacent the front and back surface of the housing means.

7. The device claimed in claim 2 including further: control means for controlling the operation of said unstoring reels and said storing reel; reversible motor means for ac-tuating said storing and unstoring reel means;
said bill sensing means having first, second, and third detector members disposed in said housing; said first detector member disposed near the input-output channel, said second detector member disposed intermediate the in-put-ouput channel and the viewing window, said third detector member disposed downstream of the viewing window and the second detector member;
said detector members providing location sig-nals to the control means; time sensing means forming part of said control means; said first detector providing a signal to said control means in the presence of the leading edge of a bill to cause the control means to direct the storage reel means to rotate in the storing direction; said second detector member active to send a signal to said control means when the presence of said leading edge of the bill is detected, if the signal from said second detector member reaches said control means within a predetermined period of time measured by said time sensing means said control means continues to direct the rotation of the storage reel means in the storing direction, if no lending edge is sensed within the predetermined period of time, the control means causes the storage reel means to stop rotating in the storing direction: said second detector member operative to cause the control means to stop the rotation of the storage reel means in the storing direction with the bill in front of the viewing window.

8. The device claimed in claim 7 including further an operator controlled actuation means for driving the storage reel means in either the storing or the unstoring direction after the bill has been examined by the operator at the viewing window.

9. The device claimed in claim 7 wherein said detection members are comprised of optical generator and detector members.

10. The device claimed in claim 7 wherein said reel means include an electric motor and speed sensor for controlling the speed of the motor and the tension applied to the belt members.

11. The device claimed in claim 7 wherein there are at least two money belt means each having its associated viewing window and input-output channel means; said money belt means are de-signated to accept different denominations of bills; the control means is operative to permit bills on all the money belt means to be posi-tioned in a stored condition after the view-ing station; the control means is operative permit only certain money belt means to be driven in the unstoring direction sufficient distance to allow a bill to be taken from the stored condition to the input-output channel.

12. The device claimed in claim 7 wherein:
there are at least two money belt means, viewing window and input output channels; a signal means is associated with each money belt means and viewing window; said bill sensing means produce a signal means when the leading edge of a bill is sensed by said first detector member.

13. The device claimed in claim 12 wherein said signal means is actuated by said control means in response to a signal from said bill sensing means when said first detector member senses the presence of the trailing edge of a bill.

14. The a cash handling apparatus to receive and dispense bills the combination comprising: a housing means having top, front, and back sur-faces; a viewing window member formed in the top surface having a window larger than the physical size of the cash to be viewed; a plurality of input-output slot members formed in the front surface of housing means; a plurality of money belt means contained within the housing and adapted to transport cash from the input-output slot members to the viewing windows;

each slot member, viewing window and money belt means forming a bill handling combination for bills moving in a stream form the slot to the viewing window, upstream to downstream; first, second and third bill detector means associated with each money belt means; the first detector means located near the downstream end of the slot member, the second detector means located downstream of the first detector means but up-stream of the viewing window, the third detector means located downstream of the second detector means and of the viewing window;
signal means associated with each money belt means; automatic operator controlled input means;
control means for processing the various signals received from the detector means and the oper-ator controlled input means; the money belt means having a plurality of transparent belt members, a plurality of unstoring reels, a storing reel and drive means for controlling the actuation of the storing reels and unstoring reel; the drive means input determined by the control means responsive to the signals received from the detector members and the operator controlled input means; said drive means operative to re-ceive bills after an appropriate signal from the operator controlled input means; said drive means operative to dispense bills only after an appropriate signal from said control means; said control means having a memory means, a sequencing means and a lodge means.

15. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein said de-tector members have optical input and output members to optically sense the presence of the bills.

16. The apparatus of claim 14 including further a signal means associated with each belt means for informing the operator of the apparatus which of said belt means is receiving a bill.

17. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein less than all of said belt means can be actuated to dis-pense bills.

18. The apparatus of claim 14 including further ?? optical sensor means associated with each of said belt means for determining the opacity to light of a bill.