CA2426293A1 - Coin discrimination apparatus and method - Google Patents
Coin discrimination apparatus and method Download PDFInfo
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- CA2426293A1 CA2426293A1 CA002426293A CA2426293A CA2426293A1 CA 2426293 A1 CA2426293 A1 CA 2426293A1 CA 002426293 A CA002426293 A CA 002426293A CA 2426293 A CA2426293 A CA 2426293A CA 2426293 A1 CA2426293 A1 CA 2426293A1
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Abstract
A coin discrimination apparatus and method is provided. Coins, preferably after cleaning, e.g. using a trommel, are singulated by a coin pickup assembly configured to reduce jamming. A coin rail assists in providing separation between coins as they travel past a sensor. The sensor provides an oscillating electromagnetic field generated on a single sensing core. The oscillating electromagnetic field is composed of one or more frequency components. The electromagnetic field interacts with a coin, and these interactions are monitored and used to classify the coin according to its physical properties. All frequency components of the magnetic field are phase-locked to a common reference frequency. The phase relationships between the various frequencies are fixed, and the interaction of each frequency component with the coin can be accurately determined without the need for complicated electrical filters. In one embodiment, a sensor having a core, preferably ferrite, which is curved, such as in a U-shape or in the shape of a section of a torus, and defining a gap, is provided with a wire winding for excitation and/or detection. The sensor can be used for simultaneously obtaining data relating to two or more parameters of a coin or other object, such as size and conductivity of the object. Two or more frequencies can be used to sense core and/or cladding properties. Objects recognized as acceptable coins, using the sensor data, are diverted by a controllable deflecting door, to tubes for delivery to acceptable coin bins.
Description
~~I1~1 Df~C.l~l~~~l~.:~~'~1~ :~2~'~ ~ 'ii'T1S .E~l~l~IF.T~I~li~
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method f or sensing coins and other small discrete ~bjects, and in particular to an api~arat~~s whicf~ n3ay be used in coi;ra counting or handling.
~~~~~~a~l~I~ ~I~TF'~I~l~'T~~:'~~
nu~nh~,r of devices are ntend~d to ide~~tify arrd~'or d.i:~c~-f~ni:aat~ coins or other small discrete objects. ~ne example is coin v~~~nti~g or handling d~,~ric~s, such as those descril7ed in tl.S. Patent Application Ci8/~55,.'3~, r~ovs- ~J.S. P atent 55G45~G;
application S.I'~.
08/689,86; 08/237,4-85, now ~i.S. 1'atenc 56'20079, applica9:i.on S.I\1.
08/834,'~5~, filed April ~0 7,1~g7 now IJ.S. Patent 57~~~7G7; and 08%431,070, now 1_i.S. lsatent 574629. C3ther examples include vending naa~~bines, gan~.ing devices such as slot r~nachin~s, bus or subway coin or token ''fare boxes,'' a~~d the litre. Preferably, for s~.d~.l-~
parposes, t~se sensors pro~~ide information which can be used to disci-zminata dins :~rorn no~~-coin objects and/or which pan discriminate among different coin denominations andlor discriminate coins of one country ~ ~ from those of another.
Previous coin handling devices, a~:d sen.sors therein, he"ewer, have suffered from a nu~r~ber of deficiencies. 1'Vi~.r~y prev?ous sF;ns,~rs have, re,<.ul~ed in an undesia-ably large proportion of discrimination ~n=ors. At least in some cases this is believed to arise frorrF an undesirably small signal to noise ratio r.~ the se~~sor output. r=~~~~rdingly, it would he useful 2o to provide coin discrimination sensors l~a:Ting irre~roved signal to noise ratio.
Many previous Cain candling devices, end ass~ciated son,~ors, were configured to receive only one coin at a ti~ae, such as a ty~ai~al vending machine which receives a sia~gl~
coin at a time through a coin slot. 'hhese devices typically prE,sent. a2~!
easier coin handling a~ad sensing ~nvironmen:~ because tl:.ere is a lower o~6pectation foz coin throughput, a~avoidance
The present invention relates to an apparatus and method f or sensing coins and other small discrete ~bjects, and in particular to an api~arat~~s whicf~ n3ay be used in coi;ra counting or handling.
~~~~~~a~l~I~ ~I~TF'~I~l~'T~~:'~~
nu~nh~,r of devices are ntend~d to ide~~tify arrd~'or d.i:~c~-f~ni:aat~ coins or other small discrete objects. ~ne example is coin v~~~nti~g or handling d~,~ric~s, such as those descril7ed in tl.S. Patent Application Ci8/~55,.'3~, r~ovs- ~J.S. P atent 55G45~G;
application S.I'~.
08/689,86; 08/237,4-85, now ~i.S. 1'atenc 56'20079, applica9:i.on S.I\1.
08/834,'~5~, filed April ~0 7,1~g7 now IJ.S. Patent 57~~~7G7; and 08%431,070, now 1_i.S. lsatent 574629. C3ther examples include vending naa~~bines, gan~.ing devices such as slot r~nachin~s, bus or subway coin or token ''fare boxes,'' a~~d the litre. Preferably, for s~.d~.l-~
parposes, t~se sensors pro~~ide information which can be used to disci-zminata dins :~rorn no~~-coin objects and/or which pan discriminate among different coin denominations andlor discriminate coins of one country ~ ~ from those of another.
Previous coin handling devices, a~:d sen.sors therein, he"ewer, have suffered from a nu~r~ber of deficiencies. 1'Vi~.r~y prev?ous sF;ns,~rs have, re,<.ul~ed in an undesia-ably large proportion of discrimination ~n=ors. At least in some cases this is believed to arise frorrF an undesirably small signal to noise ratio r.~ the se~~sor output. r=~~~~rdingly, it would he useful 2o to provide coin discrimination sensors l~a:Ting irre~roved signal to noise ratio.
Many previous Cain candling devices, end ass~ciated son,~ors, were configured to receive only one coin at a ti~ae, such as a ty~ai~al vending machine which receives a sia~gl~
coin at a time through a coin slot. 'hhese devices typically prE,sent. a2~!
easier coin handling a~ad sensing ~nvironmen:~ because tl:.ere is a lower o~6pectation foz coin throughput, a~avoidance
2~ of the deposit of foreign matcF~ia?., an a ~oidance of small inter-coin spacing (or coin overlap), and because the slot nata~rally defines ~:naxin~uan. coin diarn~~:~r aid thickness. Coin handlers and sensors drat might be operable for a ore-at-a-time coin e~-wironment may not be satisfactory for an erwironmo r;t in wl~~cla xz~a;~s or plurality o~~
coir°Ps ca~~ be received in a -~_ single location, all at ante (such as a tray for receiving a mass of coins, poured into the tray from, e.g., a coin. jar}. ~~cordiragiy it ~n;o~~ld Ire useful to provide a coin ~~aridler and/or sensor ~,vhiclz, although it might be s~~coessful_iy employed in a one-coin-at--a-time environment, can also funption satisfactorily in a device ~~ahich receives a mass of poins_ T~any previous sen.so~-s and associated ~~ircuitry Ldscc~ for coin discrimination were configured to sense ol~aracte~.~istics or parameters of coins (or oElrer objects} so as to provide oats relating to au average vaaaAe for a coiir as a whole. Suph sensors and circuitry wore riot able to provide information specific to pertain regions or level;; of the coin (such as core n-aaterial vs. cladding nnaterial;. In so,~3p currencies, t;~To or more denominations ray have 1o average charac~~pristics rvhi.ch are so svrnilar that it is difficult to distinguish the coins. For example, it is difficult to distinbuish X1.5. dir~ae=: from pre-1~z~2 U.S.
petmies, based only on average differs ncps, the main ~ysipal difforpnc~; being the diffc~~enpo in cladding d;or absence thereof). In sorrxe previous devices, ind uc-tive. coin testing is used to detect the effect of a poin on an alternating electromagnetic f~.ol~. ~,~roducecl by a coil, a~~ci spepi~~pallLy the coin's effect upon the coil's impedance, e.g. related -to one or morn of the coin's diameter, thickness, ponductivity acrd permealaility. In gc;neral, when an alte~r~a~~ing electromagnetip held is provided to such a coil, the f"~eld will ,penetrate a coin to an extent that decreases with increasing freq-~zency. Properties freer the su~-fas;e of a coin lave a greater effect on a higher f-reduency held, and interior ~~ateraal have a les,;er effect. l3ppa~~se pertain coins, suph as the 2o ilr~ited States ten and twent~~-five pent coins, a3-e laminated, this frequency dependency can by of use in coin discrimination, beat. it is beli~°ved, has not previously been used in this ~nanner.. t-accordingly, it would further he useful to provi.c~e a device which pare provide information relating to differe;~at regions oi' coins or ot~npr objs:pts.
~Ithough there arc a nur~rber of parameters whicix, at least theoretically, can be use ~l 25 in discri~rrinati~~g coins and small objects (such as size, inducing diameter and thickness), mass, density, pof~ductivity, ri~agnotip pprmva~~ility, hoanogpneity or laclk thereof (such as cladded or plated coins), and the life, many previous sensors were configured to detect only a single one of suph parameters. In er~abodimpn~s in ~ralrich Gnly a single parameter is used, discrimination among coins and other small objects was often =nacpurate, yielding both misidentifipation of a coin dor~orrainatiot~ {f~ls~; posite~ms), end failure to recognize a coin dc~romination (false npgativcs~. In some cases, two poi~r~s whicta are different may be iden~ii~ed as the sane coin -~eca~~se a ~ararc~e~er which could serve to discriminate between the c~ins ~sazch as pyesez~cc or a6senc~w of :olati~g, magnetic, rlo~~-n3agn etic character of the coin, etc. j is not detected by ire sensor. ~~ ~°~~~s, using sa~ch sensors, when it is desired ~~ use se~:-cral pararr~eic;rs to diser-miraa~e coir~.s a~2d oth:~r objects, it a~as hec~n necessary to ~,rovide a plurality of sensors ~if such sensors are av:~ilable~, yplcally orle sensor for each parameter to be detected. l~liultiplying the nur~-~ver of se~~sors in a device n~c~-eases the cost of fahricating, designing, maintaining and repa~~ring such appara~,ns. _~~~r~the~n~~ore, previous devices typically required that -rr~rvltiple sensors be spacwd ~~pa~~, w~sually alo~~g a linear track whic'~ the coia follow, and often th a spacia~g must a,e ~e.lativ=ly vfar apart in order to properly correlate iC sequential data from two searsors with a particular coin ~an~~ ave~;d attributing da a from the two sens;~rs to a single coin when the data was related, in fact, to two different coir~s~. This spacing i_~.creases the physical sire :e'~~q~p~ire~nents for' such a device, a1d may lead to an apparatus whicl°~ is relatively slow siracJe ~:he pat=z whic~1 the voir~s are required to traverse is io~:ger.
;~'ur-thergnore, url3en t<v~ err gnor-e sensors vacl~ output ~:~ single parameter, it is typically diff~xca~lt ~r impossi'ole tc~ basv discrimar~a~:ior~. or, the relatio:~~sia3~
or profile of one, pavYameter to a second parameter for a give's coin, ~cc,ause of the diffic~~ ety i;r knowing whici~ paint in a ~i~'st paxa~neter pr~~le corresponds to which poiaat in a second parameter pro~glc. if there are multiple sensors spaced along the coin pa~~h, tl-u soft~r~are J:or coin discrimination becomes ensure complicated, since it is necessary vo Deep track o:~ when a coin passes by the va~ous sans~rs. ~r,~rnieag is of fected, ~;.g., h~ speecvaria!.ions in the cc>iras as they wove alc,ng fhe coin path, such as rolling do~vr~ a -rail.
wen in cases where ~~ si.ngle core is used for ~~,vo differen'~ fi-equeF~cies or parameters, many pre-~rious devices take ~neasure~n~,nts at tam different times, typically as the corn moves 2~ through different locations, itt. order tc rr~~r;as~re :several differs~nt parameters. 1?or exa~fgple, in some devices, a cave is arranged v~i~.h ~,~rvc spae~:d-apart poles vaita~ a first meassxrernent taker at a first time and location r~-~~e~ a coin is adjacent a first pole, arid a second ~neasuremerit taken at a second, later time, ~,vlherr the coin has s_noved substantially tovrard the second pole.
~t is believed that, in general, providing t;,v-r~ or' more difl~rer~t measurement 1~catioa~s or siI'aBeS, ~n Crrdcr tCa rYleaSll~'c tfinle'~ C5r fn;~Te pa~'ameters, ~r ~n CsrC~er to ~RSe t~i0 or more ~reqnencies, leads tc undesi:cable loss oa'' coin throughput, occupies undesirably extended space and requires relatively cornplicat:ed eircuiza and/or algorithms (e.g.
to match up sensor outputs as a particular coin rr~oves to different rnc,asairernent ~zocation~).
Some sensors relate to the electrical or magnetic properties of the coin or ofiher object, and may irwolve creation of an electro;~agnetic field for appi.ication_ to the coirg. With anany previous sensors, the interaction of generated rnagnetic flux with the coin was too Io~r to pernnit the desired efficiency and aeca.arac;~ ~~f corn discr~rni~ation, and res:tlted in an insufficient signal-to-noise ratio.
Many previous coin handling devices _brad sensors h.ad characteristics which E-rere undesirable, especially wl~e~ the devices were :for use by nntra=nc~d users.
Such prevoLis devices had insufficient acc~:racy, sh;,rt seivice life, had an undesirably high potential for causing user injuries, were difficult to vise, a~eclL~:iring training or e~t~°nsive instrL~ction, failed, too often, to return unprocessed coins to the user, ~~ook too long to process coons, had an undesirably loev throughput, were susceptible to f~e~~uent jaza~rni~~~g, wl~ict~ could not '~de cleared without human inter~aentio~~, often rec~,ui~ing intervention by trained personnel, could w handle only a narro~r range s~f coin: types, or denominations, were ~werly se:zsit~ve to wet or sticky coins or foreign 0~~ on-coin :objects, ether anatfu~.ctioning or placing the fo~.eign objects in the coin bins, rejected an -undesirably high porfior~ cjf good coins, required fre~a~ent and/or complicated set-up, ~~alibratio~~ or xna~r~tenance, ~-s;cpuired too large a volaarrre or footprint, were overly-sensitive to temperature variations, ~,~ere undesirably loud., were hard 2o to upgrade or retrofit to benefit fron;:. new tec~~nologies o~. ideas, and/or ~r~ere difficult or expensive to design and rnanuiactitre accordingly, it would be adva.ntageoa.~s to provide a coin handler and/or sensor de-aice having unproved dnscriynination and ~.~;eurac;~, r~id~.bced costs or space require-rnenrs, which a faster tharx previous devices, easiei or less expensive to design, construct, use arid maintain, 2~ and/or results in irr~proved sig3~al-tc-noise ratio.
S'~il~l~~f~:~' ~f~' ~fc~C ~F~~~,1'~~':i:~l~~
'l'he present invention provides a device -for processing and/or discriminating coins or other objects, such as disc-Ai~~inating among a pl9arality of eeins or other objects u:-eceive~l all at once, in a rr~ass or pile, ~-othe user, with the coins or objects being of many diff rent _q._ sizes, types or denominations. 'i,lae de ice has a high degrc;e E'f autora~atiorn and high tolerance for foreign ~bjec~~s and less-than-pr~stir~e objects (s~.~cl~ as wet, sticky, coated, ~~ez~t or misshapen coins), so that the device can be, readily used by mernhers of the general public, requiring little, if any, t-raining or i-astrvction and Tittle or -ao human manipulation or interventicn, other than inputting the mass of ~.oi~~s.
according to one ~~~~6.~odim~a~t of the invention, after input and, preferabl~r, cleaning, coins are singulated and move past a sensor for discri~~inazic~n, coisnting and/or sorting. ~n general, coin slouri:~g or acllesion is reduced by avoiding avoidi-:~g extensive flat regions in surfac°s which contact coi~_~ (such ~.~: n~al:ing such snrface;s c~~rvod, quilted or di-rnpled).
Coin paths are configured to flare cr ~.viden in the direction of~ coin travel to avoid jamming.
~. singuiatii~g bin p<~,l~up assembly ~.~ preferably provided with two or more concentrically-mounted disks; one of which iraeludes an integrated exit ledge.
Movable paddies r'~~x to avoid cresting or ~xa~er~c~at~~~g dams and de;.~~ct over the coin exit ledge.
r7ertically stacked coins tip bac;k~-ars into a recess and slide over supporting coins to z5 facilitatc singulation. ~t the ~:nd of a ~ransa~tip>~, coins are forced along the coin path by a rake, and debris is r~rnoved through a trap door. Coins exiting the coin pickup assembly are tipped away from the face-support rail no minimize friction.
according to one e~n~~odirn~v~t of the prcsent inv~ntioxa, a sensor is provided ia~ which nearly all the magnetic field produced by :Vhe coil interacts with the coin providing a 2o relatively intense eiectr~rnag~~etic f~eid ire t~~o regi~n traversed ~a~y a coin or o~:her objet.
Preferably, the sensor can be used to obtain i~~fo~-~nation on tyro diiierent parameters of a coin or other object. fn one err=~bodiment, a singlo sensor provides inforrraation indicae;ive of both.
size, (diameters and conduct~:~iv~. i~~ ;one ear~bo~iinaent, the ;~~;nsor includes a core, such as a ferrite or other magtretically permeable material, in a curved (e.g., torroid or half torroid) ~5 shape which defines a gap. '~ he coin being sen,:ed nxo~~es through .he vicinity of the gap, in one embodiment, inrough the gap. an one embodiment, the pore is shaped to reduce sensiti~it~r of the sensor to slight deviations i~~ tF~~; loca~:ion of the ~o~an within the ~;ap (bounoe or mobble). ~s a coin or the object passes through the field in the vicinity of the gap, data relating to coin parameters are sens<,d, such ~.s changes in indrictance (i~owhich the 3o diameter of the ebject or coin, or po~i:~ns thuro~~f, care be ds;rivece), and the quality factor (Q
_factors,, related to t~~e amount o~ energy dissi~at~;d ~i~orn ~~ri~ic;h conductivity of ~i~e nrE~ject or coin, or portions thereof, ear=_ be obtair~ed~.
in one c~r~bodirnent, data relating to conductance of the coin for ;~orti~ns thereof as a fu.~ction r;f diameter are ana~yz~cd ~e.b. ~y con~~ari~g wit h co~.~ducta~ace-diarz et~r data. for known coxr~s~, in order to discrir_~inate the sensed coins. ~refera1~Iy, the detectior~procedure ia~scs several thr esb,olds or ~,vix~.~io~ para~a~ete~~s to provide high.
rccogr_ition accuracy.
~ccordi~xg to one aspect of the in~reratior~. a coin dascrinxir;.ation apparatus and method gs provided in which an oscillating eicct~on~a~~xetic fieid i;= generated on a sir~glc sensing core. ~'i~~c oscillating electromagnetic acid is composed ~L one or ~norc fre~guency ~c components. 'The edectrornaga~etic field i~steracts wit~n a coin, arid these interactions are monitored and used 'co ctass~~y the coin accordi~~g to its ph~~sicai prope~ies. Ai3 frequency co~npssne~xts of the magnetic field are i~hase-I~c~cd to a con~~~~n reference fre~uer~cy. 'fhe phase relationslxips ~et'~aeen t~~e various freo~xen~;ies arc I~ciced .-_~
order to avoid interference 'oetween frequencies and ~ait~~~ any ncigl~t~aring c~rcs or ss;9~s~~rs rnd to facilitate accurate determination s~f the interaction of eack~ ~~~quenc~r corc~pone~x~t vwitl~
tlxe coin.
tn one crnbodiment, Ic~~J and high ~~ccl.~c~~cy coifs on tlxe core fo~-rn a part of oscillator circuits. 'i~-fe circuits are conf~g~;red to mai~atain oscillatio~a oil chc signal t"~rough the cciis at a substantially constant fre~uex~cy, even us vhe eff°ctl~~c i~~ducl.ance ~i'the, coif changes ~e.g. in response to passage of a coin). ghe ~~~rou,kt caf change in otlxer components o~ the circuit 2o needed t~ offset the change in i~!adL~ctance hand thus rnaintairx ire fre~uenc;~ at a s~xbstantially constant values is a measure ~~f yhc ~nag~zi~Eude ov: tl~xe c~~~nge =-.n tl:e ~_nductance ca;xscd by the ;aassagc os~thc coin, and indicative of coin dian~aeter.
t~'a ~e.ddit~on t~ ~5r~~~d~~xg in~s,~rrf~~tF~r~ rci'slted tai coxn i:~i~r~FpetGr9 the seI'~S~r can alS~ tie used tcs provide inforrr~atio~~ relatad to cE3in cc~xduci:ance, preferably s~xbstantially 25 sirnultaneowsly with pr~viding tg~e dia~eeter i~gf~v_-~-n~tiora. As ~. coin -moves Toast tie coil, tiierc will be are am~~nt of energy oss a~;ad tie ar;2~s~itude ~:f y one s~gnax in the coi? vain f;hange in a ~'nanner reiated to the conductance cf tt°~e cc~an ~~r porn~ns the~~c.~~. for a given effective diameter of the coin, the cnc.gy loss in tl~c~ e~:dy currents 4vili be inversely related to the conductivity of the coin rna erai pcr~et~-atcd icy tl~e n-fagr~ctic f=ield.
3e hreverably, tire coin pici~up asscrnbly and sensor rcgi~a~~s are c~rgi~gurc;d for easy access for cleaning and rnairztcnancc, such as by providing a se~xsor blocl~
which Slides a~,vay ~E(?ri2 tP'IC Coln path and Can be re-pf3Sstdoned wlt~'2ollt rCCa~l~S'Catlo~.
girl f3ne embodln2ent, the diverter assembly as hinged ~o permit it to lie r-upped outwa.a°d iP~r access. ~referabPy, corns which stray r~on~ the coin pat; are defhcted, e.g. via a ramped sf;nsor housing and/or bypass chutes, to a cusiomer retnrr~ area.
loins which are recognized and properly positioned or spaced are deflected ovt of the default gravity-fed) coir°~ pa~iy into are a~cc:p~~an~~, bin or troli.ey. any coins or other objects which are not thus af;tively accepted t~-ar~cl along a de~aa~lt path to the customer return area.
i'referabPy, information is sensed which perwits a~ estimate of coin velocity and/or accePeration so that the d~fiø~tor ~aio~°~anisr~a c=_~n be rimed to c~e~.oct a coins elwen tho3.~gb different coins may be t~ravoing at dili~erent vol~aoities e.g. owing to stickiness or adhesion).
In one errbbodiment, each object is ir~divid~.~all,~ analyzed tfJ determine if it is a coin that should be accepted ~i.e. is recognized vs an acceptabPe coin denomirtation,~, and, if so, if it is possible to properly de~°lofit tA-~~ coin (c.g. it is s~~ff'qciently s~saoed g~ore7. aci~acent f;oins~. ~y refiuiring that ac(i~rc; steps be taken to accept ~ coin ~i.e. by ~na~_ing the default path the '~ "rf-eject'' path, it is snore iik~iy that r~~l accop~vd ob~oots will ire fact b~ ~ne~-albe~°s f~f an ac~eptaL~l~, class, and will ~e ac:curat~l~e f~o~~nt~d.
4ig. l~ depicts a coin handling apparai~us that may he used i:a connection with an ombod~rrm'nt of the present ~r~°av'9ltlor,.~
2o pig. l~ depicts a cf~i~~ handling apparatLa according to an embodiment oz the present invention;
p lg. 2~ is a from oie atio~=aP view of a sensor and. adjacent coin, according t:~ an embodiønent ofthe present ir~r»ntior;
digs. 2P~ ants 2~ are perspective, views of sensors ag_d a f;oi~~-transport rail accorfiing 2~ to embodiments of the present invention;
p'ig. 2I~ depicts a c,~~s~-core cor=figura3ior~ according ~:o an embodiment o~-the present invention;
s= lg. 3 is a front elevatonaP viet~~ of a sensor and ad~acont coin, according; to anotrer embodiment of the present ir~~.~dntior;
gig. 4 is a top plan grie~~~ ~:f the sensor of i~ig. 3;
Fig. 5 is a block dia~~~~i~ of a iascriri~ir~~?tioza device ~.ccc.rdang to an embodiment of the present invention.
~iig. ~ is a bioc~ diag?~~~.~ of a fllscria~i~-.~tion d~,vice ~cc~rd.ing to ,an ecz~l~odiment of the present invention;
~°~ig. 7 depicts various s~_b~als ih~t occ~_r iii the circuit a:~~°hl~,s. 8A-C;
Figs. 8A-8D are block and schematic diagrams of a circuit which may be used in conr~ect~owvith an ernhodin ~cg~~ od' tlae ~rese~~tv iu~Tentio~~;
Fig. 9 depicts an exa~pFe o~.' ouipuL signals of a type output by the circuit of ~~igs. $A-o I~ as a coin passes the sensor;
pigs. 1 ~~A and I ~~ depict standard data and tolerance regions of a type that may he used for discriinatiug coins ~~; the bas is of ciat~ ou$~p~~~~y sf;~sscrs of the pxeser~t ir~ventien;
pig. I I is a bloc diagrarra of a discrimination device, accorc>ing to an embodiment of the present lnveYltl~i~;
~5 Fig. IIA is a bloclt diagram of a i~.vo-rote discrirrr.ination device, according to an er~~bodiment of the present Yr~wenciony pig. l~ is a schemativ and hlcck diagram of a discrimination advice according to an embodiment of the present in~ier~tion;
pig. 13 depicts use of i~-phase; and delayed amplitude datra for coin discriminating 2G according to one embocimer~s~;
pig. I~ depicts use of in-phase and del~~yed an~plit~ade data for coin discriminating according to another emhodir~~ent;
jigs. I~u anc ISB a-rc wont elevational ~~nd top plan Vickers of a sensor, coin path and coin, according to an en~bodin~ent of t~~e pres~;nt invention;
2~ 3~igs. I6A and I61~ ire graphs sho~vir~g FB output from high and log frequency sensors, respectively, for eight copper arid aluminum clishs of variaa:~s diameters, according to an embodiment of the preser~"z i~zventio~_;
p ig. I7 is a perspective view of a coin pickup assembly, rail, sensor and ci~ute system, according to an embodiment of the prese~~t in~erztion;
coir°Ps ca~~ be received in a -~_ single location, all at ante (such as a tray for receiving a mass of coins, poured into the tray from, e.g., a coin. jar}. ~~cordiragiy it ~n;o~~ld Ire useful to provide a coin ~~aridler and/or sensor ~,vhiclz, although it might be s~~coessful_iy employed in a one-coin-at--a-time environment, can also funption satisfactorily in a device ~~ahich receives a mass of poins_ T~any previous sen.so~-s and associated ~~ircuitry Ldscc~ for coin discrimination were configured to sense ol~aracte~.~istics or parameters of coins (or oElrer objects} so as to provide oats relating to au average vaaaAe for a coiir as a whole. Suph sensors and circuitry wore riot able to provide information specific to pertain regions or level;; of the coin (such as core n-aaterial vs. cladding nnaterial;. In so,~3p currencies, t;~To or more denominations ray have 1o average charac~~pristics rvhi.ch are so svrnilar that it is difficult to distinguish the coins. For example, it is difficult to distinbuish X1.5. dir~ae=: from pre-1~z~2 U.S.
petmies, based only on average differs ncps, the main ~ysipal difforpnc~; being the diffc~~enpo in cladding d;or absence thereof). In sorrxe previous devices, ind uc-tive. coin testing is used to detect the effect of a poin on an alternating electromagnetic f~.ol~. ~,~roducecl by a coil, a~~ci spepi~~pallLy the coin's effect upon the coil's impedance, e.g. related -to one or morn of the coin's diameter, thickness, ponductivity acrd permealaility. In gc;neral, when an alte~r~a~~ing electromagnetip held is provided to such a coil, the f"~eld will ,penetrate a coin to an extent that decreases with increasing freq-~zency. Properties freer the su~-fas;e of a coin lave a greater effect on a higher f-reduency held, and interior ~~ateraal have a les,;er effect. l3ppa~~se pertain coins, suph as the 2o ilr~ited States ten and twent~~-five pent coins, a3-e laminated, this frequency dependency can by of use in coin discrimination, beat. it is beli~°ved, has not previously been used in this ~nanner.. t-accordingly, it would further he useful to provi.c~e a device which pare provide information relating to differe;~at regions oi' coins or ot~npr objs:pts.
~Ithough there arc a nur~rber of parameters whicix, at least theoretically, can be use ~l 25 in discri~rrinati~~g coins and small objects (such as size, inducing diameter and thickness), mass, density, pof~ductivity, ri~agnotip pprmva~~ility, hoanogpneity or laclk thereof (such as cladded or plated coins), and the life, many previous sensors were configured to detect only a single one of suph parameters. In er~abodimpn~s in ~ralrich Gnly a single parameter is used, discrimination among coins and other small objects was often =nacpurate, yielding both misidentifipation of a coin dor~orrainatiot~ {f~ls~; posite~ms), end failure to recognize a coin dc~romination (false npgativcs~. In some cases, two poi~r~s whicta are different may be iden~ii~ed as the sane coin -~eca~~se a ~ararc~e~er which could serve to discriminate between the c~ins ~sazch as pyesez~cc or a6senc~w of :olati~g, magnetic, rlo~~-n3agn etic character of the coin, etc. j is not detected by ire sensor. ~~ ~°~~~s, using sa~ch sensors, when it is desired ~~ use se~:-cral pararr~eic;rs to diser-miraa~e coir~.s a~2d oth:~r objects, it a~as hec~n necessary to ~,rovide a plurality of sensors ~if such sensors are av:~ilable~, yplcally orle sensor for each parameter to be detected. l~liultiplying the nur~-~ver of se~~sors in a device n~c~-eases the cost of fahricating, designing, maintaining and repa~~ring such appara~,ns. _~~~r~the~n~~ore, previous devices typically required that -rr~rvltiple sensors be spacwd ~~pa~~, w~sually alo~~g a linear track whic'~ the coia follow, and often th a spacia~g must a,e ~e.lativ=ly vfar apart in order to properly correlate iC sequential data from two searsors with a particular coin ~an~~ ave~;d attributing da a from the two sens;~rs to a single coin when the data was related, in fact, to two different coir~s~. This spacing i_~.creases the physical sire :e'~~q~p~ire~nents for' such a device, a1d may lead to an apparatus whicl°~ is relatively slow siracJe ~:he pat=z whic~1 the voir~s are required to traverse is io~:ger.
;~'ur-thergnore, url3en t<v~ err gnor-e sensors vacl~ output ~:~ single parameter, it is typically diff~xca~lt ~r impossi'ole tc~ basv discrimar~a~:ior~. or, the relatio:~~sia3~
or profile of one, pavYameter to a second parameter for a give's coin, ~cc,ause of the diffic~~ ety i;r knowing whici~ paint in a ~i~'st paxa~neter pr~~le corresponds to which poiaat in a second parameter pro~glc. if there are multiple sensors spaced along the coin pa~~h, tl-u soft~r~are J:or coin discrimination becomes ensure complicated, since it is necessary vo Deep track o:~ when a coin passes by the va~ous sans~rs. ~r,~rnieag is of fected, ~;.g., h~ speecvaria!.ions in the cc>iras as they wove alc,ng fhe coin path, such as rolling do~vr~ a -rail.
wen in cases where ~~ si.ngle core is used for ~~,vo differen'~ fi-equeF~cies or parameters, many pre-~rious devices take ~neasure~n~,nts at tam different times, typically as the corn moves 2~ through different locations, itt. order tc rr~~r;as~re :several differs~nt parameters. 1?or exa~fgple, in some devices, a cave is arranged v~i~.h ~,~rvc spae~:d-apart poles vaita~ a first meassxrernent taker at a first time and location r~-~~e~ a coin is adjacent a first pole, arid a second ~neasuremerit taken at a second, later time, ~,vlherr the coin has s_noved substantially tovrard the second pole.
~t is believed that, in general, providing t;,v-r~ or' more difl~rer~t measurement 1~catioa~s or siI'aBeS, ~n Crrdcr tCa rYleaSll~'c tfinle'~ C5r fn;~Te pa~'ameters, ~r ~n CsrC~er to ~RSe t~i0 or more ~reqnencies, leads tc undesi:cable loss oa'' coin throughput, occupies undesirably extended space and requires relatively cornplicat:ed eircuiza and/or algorithms (e.g.
to match up sensor outputs as a particular coin rr~oves to different rnc,asairernent ~zocation~).
Some sensors relate to the electrical or magnetic properties of the coin or ofiher object, and may irwolve creation of an electro;~agnetic field for appi.ication_ to the coirg. With anany previous sensors, the interaction of generated rnagnetic flux with the coin was too Io~r to pernnit the desired efficiency and aeca.arac;~ ~~f corn discr~rni~ation, and res:tlted in an insufficient signal-to-noise ratio.
Many previous coin handling devices _brad sensors h.ad characteristics which E-rere undesirable, especially wl~e~ the devices were :for use by nntra=nc~d users.
Such prevoLis devices had insufficient acc~:racy, sh;,rt seivice life, had an undesirably high potential for causing user injuries, were difficult to vise, a~eclL~:iring training or e~t~°nsive instrL~ction, failed, too often, to return unprocessed coins to the user, ~~ook too long to process coons, had an undesirably loev throughput, were susceptible to f~e~~uent jaza~rni~~~g, wl~ict~ could not '~de cleared without human inter~aentio~~, often rec~,ui~ing intervention by trained personnel, could w handle only a narro~r range s~f coin: types, or denominations, were ~werly se:zsit~ve to wet or sticky coins or foreign 0~~ on-coin :objects, ether anatfu~.ctioning or placing the fo~.eign objects in the coin bins, rejected an -undesirably high porfior~ cjf good coins, required fre~a~ent and/or complicated set-up, ~~alibratio~~ or xna~r~tenance, ~-s;cpuired too large a volaarrre or footprint, were overly-sensitive to temperature variations, ~,~ere undesirably loud., were hard 2o to upgrade or retrofit to benefit fron;:. new tec~~nologies o~. ideas, and/or ~r~ere difficult or expensive to design and rnanuiactitre accordingly, it would be adva.ntageoa.~s to provide a coin handler and/or sensor de-aice having unproved dnscriynination and ~.~;eurac;~, r~id~.bced costs or space require-rnenrs, which a faster tharx previous devices, easiei or less expensive to design, construct, use arid maintain, 2~ and/or results in irr~proved sig3~al-tc-noise ratio.
S'~il~l~~f~:~' ~f~' ~fc~C ~F~~~,1'~~':i:~l~~
'l'he present invention provides a device -for processing and/or discriminating coins or other objects, such as disc-Ai~~inating among a pl9arality of eeins or other objects u:-eceive~l all at once, in a rr~ass or pile, ~-othe user, with the coins or objects being of many diff rent _q._ sizes, types or denominations. 'i,lae de ice has a high degrc;e E'f autora~atiorn and high tolerance for foreign ~bjec~~s and less-than-pr~stir~e objects (s~.~cl~ as wet, sticky, coated, ~~ez~t or misshapen coins), so that the device can be, readily used by mernhers of the general public, requiring little, if any, t-raining or i-astrvction and Tittle or -ao human manipulation or interventicn, other than inputting the mass of ~.oi~~s.
according to one ~~~~6.~odim~a~t of the invention, after input and, preferabl~r, cleaning, coins are singulated and move past a sensor for discri~~inazic~n, coisnting and/or sorting. ~n general, coin slouri:~g or acllesion is reduced by avoiding avoidi-:~g extensive flat regions in surfac°s which contact coi~_~ (such ~.~: n~al:ing such snrface;s c~~rvod, quilted or di-rnpled).
Coin paths are configured to flare cr ~.viden in the direction of~ coin travel to avoid jamming.
~. singuiatii~g bin p<~,l~up assembly ~.~ preferably provided with two or more concentrically-mounted disks; one of which iraeludes an integrated exit ledge.
Movable paddies r'~~x to avoid cresting or ~xa~er~c~at~~~g dams and de;.~~ct over the coin exit ledge.
r7ertically stacked coins tip bac;k~-ars into a recess and slide over supporting coins to z5 facilitatc singulation. ~t the ~:nd of a ~ransa~tip>~, coins are forced along the coin path by a rake, and debris is r~rnoved through a trap door. Coins exiting the coin pickup assembly are tipped away from the face-support rail no minimize friction.
according to one e~n~~odirn~v~t of the prcsent inv~ntioxa, a sensor is provided ia~ which nearly all the magnetic field produced by :Vhe coil interacts with the coin providing a 2o relatively intense eiectr~rnag~~etic f~eid ire t~~o regi~n traversed ~a~y a coin or o~:her objet.
Preferably, the sensor can be used to obtain i~~fo~-~nation on tyro diiierent parameters of a coin or other object. fn one err=~bodiment, a singlo sensor provides inforrraation indicae;ive of both.
size, (diameters and conduct~:~iv~. i~~ ;one ear~bo~iinaent, the ;~~;nsor includes a core, such as a ferrite or other magtretically permeable material, in a curved (e.g., torroid or half torroid) ~5 shape which defines a gap. '~ he coin being sen,:ed nxo~~es through .he vicinity of the gap, in one embodiment, inrough the gap. an one embodiment, the pore is shaped to reduce sensiti~it~r of the sensor to slight deviations i~~ tF~~; loca~:ion of the ~o~an within the ~;ap (bounoe or mobble). ~s a coin or the object passes through the field in the vicinity of the gap, data relating to coin parameters are sens<,d, such ~.s changes in indrictance (i~owhich the 3o diameter of the ebject or coin, or po~i:~ns thuro~~f, care be ds;rivece), and the quality factor (Q
_factors,, related to t~~e amount o~ energy dissi~at~;d ~i~orn ~~ri~ic;h conductivity of ~i~e nrE~ject or coin, or portions thereof, ear=_ be obtair~ed~.
in one c~r~bodirnent, data relating to conductance of the coin for ;~orti~ns thereof as a fu.~ction r;f diameter are ana~yz~cd ~e.b. ~y con~~ari~g wit h co~.~ducta~ace-diarz et~r data. for known coxr~s~, in order to discrir_~inate the sensed coins. ~refera1~Iy, the detectior~procedure ia~scs several thr esb,olds or ~,vix~.~io~ para~a~ete~~s to provide high.
rccogr_ition accuracy.
~ccordi~xg to one aspect of the in~reratior~. a coin dascrinxir;.ation apparatus and method gs provided in which an oscillating eicct~on~a~~xetic fieid i;= generated on a sir~glc sensing core. ~'i~~c oscillating electromagnetic acid is composed ~L one or ~norc fre~guency ~c components. 'The edectrornaga~etic field i~steracts wit~n a coin, arid these interactions are monitored and used 'co ctass~~y the coin accordi~~g to its ph~~sicai prope~ies. Ai3 frequency co~npssne~xts of the magnetic field are i~hase-I~c~cd to a con~~~~n reference fre~uer~cy. 'fhe phase relationslxips ~et'~aeen t~~e various freo~xen~;ies arc I~ciced .-_~
order to avoid interference 'oetween frequencies and ~ait~~~ any ncigl~t~aring c~rcs or ss;9~s~~rs rnd to facilitate accurate determination s~f the interaction of eack~ ~~~quenc~r corc~pone~x~t vwitl~
tlxe coin.
tn one crnbodiment, Ic~~J and high ~~ccl.~c~~cy coifs on tlxe core fo~-rn a part of oscillator circuits. 'i~-fe circuits are conf~g~;red to mai~atain oscillatio~a oil chc signal t"~rough the cciis at a substantially constant fre~uex~cy, even us vhe eff°ctl~~c i~~ducl.ance ~i'the, coif changes ~e.g. in response to passage of a coin). ghe ~~~rou,kt caf change in otlxer components o~ the circuit 2o needed t~ offset the change in i~!adL~ctance hand thus rnaintairx ire fre~uenc;~ at a s~xbstantially constant values is a measure ~~f yhc ~nag~zi~Eude ov: tl~xe c~~~nge =-.n tl:e ~_nductance ca;xscd by the ;aassagc os~thc coin, and indicative of coin dian~aeter.
t~'a ~e.ddit~on t~ ~5r~~~d~~xg in~s,~rrf~~tF~r~ rci'slted tai coxn i:~i~r~FpetGr9 the seI'~S~r can alS~ tie used tcs provide inforrr~atio~~ relatad to cE3in cc~xduci:ance, preferably s~xbstantially 25 sirnultaneowsly with pr~viding tg~e dia~eeter i~gf~v_-~-n~tiora. As ~. coin -moves Toast tie coil, tiierc will be are am~~nt of energy oss a~;ad tie ar;2~s~itude ~:f y one s~gnax in the coi? vain f;hange in a ~'nanner reiated to the conductance cf tt°~e cc~an ~~r porn~ns the~~c.~~. for a given effective diameter of the coin, the cnc.gy loss in tl~c~ e~:dy currents 4vili be inversely related to the conductivity of the coin rna erai pcr~et~-atcd icy tl~e n-fagr~ctic f=ield.
3e hreverably, tire coin pici~up asscrnbly and sensor rcgi~a~~s are c~rgi~gurc;d for easy access for cleaning and rnairztcnancc, such as by providing a se~xsor blocl~
which Slides a~,vay ~E(?ri2 tP'IC Coln path and Can be re-pf3Sstdoned wlt~'2ollt rCCa~l~S'Catlo~.
girl f3ne embodln2ent, the diverter assembly as hinged ~o permit it to lie r-upped outwa.a°d iP~r access. ~referabPy, corns which stray r~on~ the coin pat; are defhcted, e.g. via a ramped sf;nsor housing and/or bypass chutes, to a cusiomer retnrr~ area.
loins which are recognized and properly positioned or spaced are deflected ovt of the default gravity-fed) coir°~ pa~iy into are a~cc:p~~an~~, bin or troli.ey. any coins or other objects which are not thus af;tively accepted t~-ar~cl along a de~aa~lt path to the customer return area.
i'referabPy, information is sensed which perwits a~ estimate of coin velocity and/or accePeration so that the d~fiø~tor ~aio~°~anisr~a c=_~n be rimed to c~e~.oct a coins elwen tho3.~gb different coins may be t~ravoing at dili~erent vol~aoities e.g. owing to stickiness or adhesion).
In one errbbodiment, each object is ir~divid~.~all,~ analyzed tfJ determine if it is a coin that should be accepted ~i.e. is recognized vs an acceptabPe coin denomirtation,~, and, if so, if it is possible to properly de~°lofit tA-~~ coin (c.g. it is s~~ff'qciently s~saoed g~ore7. aci~acent f;oins~. ~y refiuiring that ac(i~rc; steps be taken to accept ~ coin ~i.e. by ~na~_ing the default path the '~ "rf-eject'' path, it is snore iik~iy that r~~l accop~vd ob~oots will ire fact b~ ~ne~-albe~°s f~f an ac~eptaL~l~, class, and will ~e ac:curat~l~e f~o~~nt~d.
4ig. l~ depicts a coin handling apparai~us that may he used i:a connection with an ombod~rrm'nt of the present ~r~°av'9ltlor,.~
2o pig. l~ depicts a cf~i~~ handling apparatLa according to an embodiment oz the present invention;
p lg. 2~ is a from oie atio~=aP view of a sensor and. adjacent coin, according t:~ an embodiønent ofthe present ir~r»ntior;
digs. 2P~ ants 2~ are perspective, views of sensors ag_d a f;oi~~-transport rail accorfiing 2~ to embodiments of the present invention;
p'ig. 2I~ depicts a c,~~s~-core cor=figura3ior~ according ~:o an embodiment o~-the present invention;
s= lg. 3 is a front elevatonaP viet~~ of a sensor and ad~acont coin, according; to anotrer embodiment of the present ir~~.~dntior;
gig. 4 is a top plan grie~~~ ~:f the sensor of i~ig. 3;
Fig. 5 is a block dia~~~~i~ of a iascriri~ir~~?tioza device ~.ccc.rdang to an embodiment of the present invention.
~iig. ~ is a bioc~ diag?~~~.~ of a fllscria~i~-.~tion d~,vice ~cc~rd.ing to ,an ecz~l~odiment of the present invention;
~°~ig. 7 depicts various s~_b~als ih~t occ~_r iii the circuit a:~~°hl~,s. 8A-C;
Figs. 8A-8D are block and schematic diagrams of a circuit which may be used in conr~ect~owvith an ernhodin ~cg~~ od' tlae ~rese~~tv iu~Tentio~~;
Fig. 9 depicts an exa~pFe o~.' ouipuL signals of a type output by the circuit of ~~igs. $A-o I~ as a coin passes the sensor;
pigs. 1 ~~A and I ~~ depict standard data and tolerance regions of a type that may he used for discriinatiug coins ~~; the bas is of ciat~ ou$~p~~~~y sf;~sscrs of the pxeser~t ir~ventien;
pig. I I is a bloc diagrarra of a discrimination device, accorc>ing to an embodiment of the present lnveYltl~i~;
~5 Fig. IIA is a bloclt diagram of a i~.vo-rote discrirrr.ination device, according to an er~~bodiment of the present Yr~wenciony pig. l~ is a schemativ and hlcck diagram of a discrimination advice according to an embodiment of the present in~ier~tion;
pig. 13 depicts use of i~-phase; and delayed amplitude datra for coin discriminating 2G according to one embocimer~s~;
pig. I~ depicts use of in-phase and del~~yed an~plit~ade data for coin discriminating according to another emhodir~~ent;
jigs. I~u anc ISB a-rc wont elevational ~~nd top plan Vickers of a sensor, coin path and coin, according to an en~bodin~ent of t~~e pres~;nt invention;
2~ 3~igs. I6A and I61~ ire graphs sho~vir~g FB output from high and log frequency sensors, respectively, for eight copper arid aluminum clishs of variaa:~s diameters, according to an embodiment of the preser~"z i~zventio~_;
p ig. I7 is a perspective view of a coin pickup assembly, rail, sensor and ci~ute system, according to an embodiment of the prese~~t in~erztion;
3~ p ig. I g is an exploded view of the systerr7 of pig. I7;
pig. I q depicts the systeA~ of Fib. t '7 witl°~~ the front po~~~io~~
pivoted;
_g_ Fig. 20 is a cross-sectional view taken aioi~g line 20-z~ of Fig. 17;
pig. 21 is a ~~ont elevational view of 21~e coin rail portion of ~ ig. 17;
~'ig. 22 is a perspective vie,v c~ the cyst m of Fig. 1'7, shovring an Pxar~ple of coin locations:
Figs. 23A tnroitgh 2~~'s are cross sectior.~I vie~.~~s taken along lines 23A-2~A through 23~a-23C~, respectively, oi'Fig. 21;
Fig 24 is a cross sectional view taken along line 24-24 of 1=ig. 22;
ig. 25 is a rear eievat;on~l vie v,.~ o i'tla.~: system of gig. i 7;
~'ig. 25 A is a partiai view cc~~:~espondi~rg to 1~ ig. ~5,, beat sluo~vin.g the ~~alce in tic downstream position;
Figs. 2~ any 26A are cross-sec,-Tonal ~aie~~~s taken alo~~g li~aes 2~-2~ and 26A-26~~ of Figs. 25 and 2oA ;
Fig. 26 is a top plan view of a portion o~~ ~.?~e system aF.~~'ig. i'l, showing a rail rake;
Figs. 27A and 27~ are vront and rear pe~~spective views of a sensor and sensor board ~5 according to an embodiment of the present/ in~er~tion;
gigs. 2~1~ and 2~ 1~ are firont axed side el~;vationa.l viev,~s o1' a sensor core according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 29 is ~. block diagram of ~'~nctional components o1" a sensor board, according to an embodiment of the present invention;
ig. 3~ is a graph of an exaF~piv or scns~~r signais according to an cmbodi5ment oi~ tl~e present 121vent2t9n;
Fig. 31 is a schematic diagrarrr of a sens:~r boaa~d, according to an embodiment of flee presentinvention;
Fig. 32 is a block diagram ~~ hardware for a coin discrimination device, according to 2~ an embodiment of the prcsenv inventio<<;
Fig. 33 is a graph o_° a 1=ypothetic;al example of sensor signals, according to an embodyment o-f the present ~nR~~eyl$aon;
Fig. 34 is a flow c~~art o~~' a coin signat~r,re cale~:lation process, according to an ernbadiment of the present invention;
3o Fig. 35 is a state uiagram or a cobble discriminatio~z ~,~rocess according to are embodiment of the present in >-entior;
Fig. 3~ is a state diagran-h for a categorization process according to art embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 3'7 is a ~locl.~ di~,gran~ ~or a ~~tegoriz~.tiott process accot-c-~ing to art em'~odiment of tile present invention;
Fig. 38 is a state di~tb~arrr or'' a lC~irec~ l~ev~ory 1~,~:~cess ~~roaess accorl~rr~rg to an embodiment of the present inve~~~ion;
Fig. 39 is a timing diagrarrt of a 33ireca I~en~ory f~ceess process according to an embodiment of the present in.verttior3;
Fig. 4~ is a flowchart slrowir'~g a coi~a discrimination process, according to an y0 embodiment or'the present irt~wntiort;
Fig. 41 is a block ;l.iag;rari~r slo~%~~ing ccymponents ~~~ ~ co::n discrirnina~ion system according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 42 is a flowchart showing a leading find trailing gap verification procedure; and Fig. ~-3 is a partial cross sectional vie5,v showing a coin retrarn path according to an ~ 5 embodiment of the present invention.
I~~T~IL,EI~ D~ ~~I~T'II)1~ ~~'~I~~~ PI~~~~~I~~I~ ~~aWfB~II~II~~'T~
The sensor and associated apparatus described herein can b~; used in connection with a number of devices and purposes. ~ne device is illustrated in Fig. 1~. 1rxi this c!evice, coins are placed into a tray 120, acrd fed to a, ser2sor region 123 via a first ramp 2:~~ and coin pickup 2o assembly 28~. in this sensor region 123, data is collected by wrhicll coins are discriminated front iron-coin objects, and different denontinatiorts or courur-ies of coins are discriminated.
The data collected irt the sensor area 123 is used by the corrzprater 29d to control rnovemera of coins along a second ramp I2~ in suc.la a way as to route tlte, coins into one of a plurality of bins 210. The computer may ~t~tput x,~forn~atic~n such as tl2ttotal value of the coins prated 2~ into the tray, ~~ia a printer 27G, screen 13~fl, or the line. in the depicted embodiment, the conveyance apparatus 23~, '~80 which ~s upstream of the ser'asor region 123 provides the coins to the sensor area 123 serially, one at a tirr~e.
The embodiment depicted in Fig. 1 B ger~er~,lly inchades a coin counting/sorting pot~tiort 12 and a coupon/voucher dispey~si~rg ~ortioras l~ta,b. ia~ tl-ze depicted emb~,dirnent, the coin counting portion i~, incl~~c~es an ~~~put ts~ay 16, a voucher dispensing region 18, a coin return region 22, and custorr~e~- ,/C~ dezrices, including ~ keyl~o~~-d ~4, additional keys 26, a speaker 28 and a video screen ~~. 'fhe apparatu s can include ~Ta~ous indicia, signs, displays, adver~isernent anal the l~l~e o~ y ~a e~tevrZaF su-~ facc . ~ ,power r~o -~~
34 provides power to the mechanism as described below:.
Preferably, when the doors 36a,. 3~b are rtn the open ~ms~tion as shown, ~nesst or alb of the components are accessible for cleaning a3~d/cr maintenance. Ii: t:be depicted embodiment, a voucher printer 23 ~~ig. 41 f ~s mounted on the inside of the ~Loo:~ 36a. ~
numbe< of printers can be used for this purpose. In one ernbodimenr, a model KI~,I3S~54j3 printer, available from ~xioh is used. 'fhe right-hand porticsn s.~f the cabinet incl.~~~des tlae coL~pon feedex 4~ for dispensing, e.g., pre-printed ~nanufact<.~rer e;oupon sheets through a chute 44 tc a coupon hopper on the outside portio9-~ of the door 36b. ~~. cornp~.~ter '~~, ire the depicted ernbodin~ent, is positioned at the top of the sight hand portion of the cabinet in order to provide a relatively clean, location for the computer. An I/~ board ~~ is positioned a~~~ac,ent the sheet feeder ~~2.
~ 5 'fhe general coin pat: for the e~nbodirneat depicted in ~ lg. 113 l s from the input tray 16, down first and second ch~yi;,s to a tron~zneF 5;%, to ~ coin picl<~p a.ssepnb~y 54, ~Fong a coin rail 56 and pass: a sensor 58. If, based on sensor data, it is dctern~ined th~.t the coin can and should be accepted, a controiahle deflector door 62 is acti~-~ated t~J divert coins from 'heir gravitational paah to coin tubes 64a, b for deliveiy to coin trclleys ti6a, b.
If it has not'~een 2o determined that a coin can and should be accepted, the door f~2 is not activated arid coins nor other objects continue dowx tFaeir gravitational or default pr.~tlz to a eye jest cute 68 for delivery to a customer-accessible reject or return box ~~.
devices that may be ~~sed in co~~r~ection °~aith the inpo.t tr~.y are described :gin ~.S.S.1~1.
08/x.55,539, no:v IJ.S. Patent 5564546, v8!237,486, Nov. IJ.S. a~atent 5626'79, supra.
25 devices that may be used in connection ~.vith the coi7:~. trxlejrs 66a, 66b are described in Ci.S.S.~. X8/883,776, now I1.S. Patent 6,Q82,519.
devices that may be r~sed in connection with the coi:c~ chutes and the tror~~el 52 are described in ~C'f/US97/~3F36 1?eb ~'8, 1997 and its parent provisional application iJ.S.S.1~T.
60/~ 1 X964.
3o Briefly, and as descri~oed more thoroughly below and in the above-noted applications, a user is provided with instructions such as on cc~~~puter screen ~~. 'fhe user places a mass of coins, typically of a plurality of denor~ir~atio~s (typically accompanied by dirt or other non-Co~n ob~eCtS~ in the input tray 16. ~~~e user is prompted to push a button to inform the machine that the; user wishes to lave coins dise~-i~~zinated. Th~~-eupo~-~, the computer causes an input gate 17 (Fig. ~l~ to open and ilh:minates a signal to prompt the user to begin feeding coins. '~ ho gate may be controlled to open or close for a m9mb~,r of pu~.~oses, such as in respo~.se to sensing of a jarn, so~~sirag of load in tree trommel o~ coin pickup asseni~ly, and the like. In ox_o embodiment, signadevices such as L,E>Js can p-=o~ride a user ~.vith an indication of whether tlae gate is open or closed for other<wcse to prompt the user to feed or discontinue feeding coins or other ob3ects~. ~yltlzoubh anstra~ctions to feed or discontinue may be provided on the computer screen ~2, indicator ligi~ts are b~;lie~od useful since users often are vvatcl~ing the throat of the ~h~~te, rather tl-~ar~ the voa~.putor screen, during the feeding of coins or other objects. ~Jhon the gate is open, a. motor i~ (Fig. =~-l~ is actisrated to begin routing the trommel assembly 52. she user ~~~nvos coins over tl~o l~oaked output edge 72 0:~ the inf,uWtrray 1C~, typically by lifting or pivoting the tray by haw~dle 7~-, aa~d/or y~anually feeding coins over the peak 72. '1'he coins pass the gate ~Lypioall~,~ set to preve~,~t passage of morn than a precleterrnai~ed number of stacked ~oirs, suc;l~ a;~ by dea~inir~g> a~~~
~opo~aing equal to about/ ~.5 times a typical coin thickness). Instructions ors the screen :~2 may be used to tell the user to continue or discontinue feeding coins, can reay the status of the machine, the amaunt counted thus far, provide onoou~-agome-~3t or advertising messages and the like.
2o First and second chutes knot shown} are positio_~ed betwoen the outaut edge 72 of the input tray Id and the input t~ the trammel 5=. preferably, the second chute provides a funxieling effect by having a greater ~ridch a.t ~~xs uhst~eam ~;dgo than its downstream edge.
Preferably, the coins cascade o= ''EVate~~fail" :vheu passing from taro first chute to the second chute, e.g. to increase momen tum and t:urnbli~~g of the coins.
Preferably, some or all of the surfaces that contact the coin along thc~ coin path, including the chutes, have no fEat region largo enough for a ~:;oir~ to contaet the surface over all or substantially all of ~,no of the races o-Y tie coin. So~~.~~o such surf~~cos a~:r; curved to achieve This result, such that coins make contact or~, at most, ~'wo points of such surfaces.
~ther surfaces may have depressions or protrusions such as being provided with dimplos9 3C quiitir~g or other textures. Preferably, ~:he surface of the second chute is const~ruct:;d such tl-aat it has a finite radius of curvatzzru along ~;ny plane z~oz-rn~ti $o its longitudinal axis, and preferah:~y with s='ach radii of~E~r~;atLare incz-uasing in tlzu direction of coin flow.
In one embodiment, ~I~~ chutes are formed from injected molded plastic such as an acutaI resin e.g. I~eErira~, a~~aiia~le frc~n~. .E.1. ~nPor~$ de l~In~~o~?rs a~ ~o., or a polyarzzide polymer, such as a nylon, azad the like. ether rmterials that cart be used for the chute; include metals, ceramics, fi'oerglass. reinforced .anat~ri~IS, epoxies, cez-amic-coated or ._reinforeed materials and the like. The chorus may contain devices for performing additional functions such as stops or raps, e.g., for dealing wraith vario~.zs types of el,~ng~ate objects.
T he trommel 52, in fne depic $ed urlbodiment is a perforated-wall, square cross ~o suction, rotatably mounted co~aain"r. ~r~fcrabl.~, dimples protrz~de slightly into ~'.he inteior region of the trommel to avoid adhesion and/or reduce friction between coins and the interior surface of the tromn,el. 'f;~~ trornmel is rotated shout its lor~gitudiraal axis. Preferaoly, operation of the device is monitored, such as by monaitoring current draw for the tromrr_ul motor using a current sensor ~1. ~ sudden increase or spike :'.n caz~.~runt draw may 1u ~ 5 considered indicative of an undesirable load and/or jam of the, ti om_°nel. T he system may be configured in various ~~ays no suspor.d to su~I-~ a suz~sed jrrr~-s such as by turrai.ng off the trommel m~tor tO S$Op attempted trOYk~Ii181 rOt~t1021 and/or reverSlng tl?e mo$Or, Or altering motor diruc;tioz~ periodically, vu ~ttumps: to clear the jan~y. In c;nu embodiment, ~vl~~,n a jav~z or undesirable load is sensed, coin food is sto~p~;d or discouraged, e.g., by closing the gate 2o and/or illuminating a "stop feed'' indicator. ~.5 the trommel motor r~
rotates the trommul, one or more vines protrudixzg into tine into~ic~r of the tror~a~~,l assist in providing coin-lifting/frue-fall and zno~ing il~~: coins in a direction towards tie output region. C~bjuuts smaller than the smallest acceptable coi_~. (about 17.5 aim, in ozse ernbodiment) p<~ss through the perforated -wall as the coins tumble. In one umbodimene, ~lie hobs have a diameter of 25 about x.61 inclxes (about 1.5~ ~~~~) ~to l~ruvunt passage of LJ.~.
dizzr:es. l~n output chute directs the (at least paz'~ially) cleaned coins exiting the trommel towards the coin:
pickup assembly 54. The depicted horizontal disposition oa° Ehe '~rom~r~el, whi~i~
relies on vanes rather Ehar~.
trornmel inclination for longitudinal coin ar-~ov~ments, achieves a relatively small vertical space re~uiremunt for the troE~r~nel. Preferably ~:hu tromznel is z~ounted in such a way that it 3o may be easily removed anc~'o° opened or disassumbl.ed for cleaning and maintenance, as described, e.g., in PCT Applio~z.on L7 ~~7/0313~., supra.
~s depicted in i~'~g. 17, coin pickup asscl~~s~Iy 5~ includes a il~pper l 702 fir Yecei~ring c~siYPs ~utput fr~ri~l the tr~xnrnci ~~. 'fhe b~pper 1702 Inay be rrPadv at relat-iErely 1~~r cyst such as by vacu~Pln fc~rrraing. lza ~P~c ~;r~Pb:~da:r~e:rP~~, vhe i~~pper 1702, is f~rr~~aed ~f a plastic -material, s~.acb as polyetlPylene, backed ~.rab~PP scsund-a'os~rb-~PZg f~aYra F~r redP.~cing noise. ~Jitbs~u~ being b~und by any Cheery, is is belie~Jed that p~iyeflPyi~ne is useful t~ reduce c~ir~ sticking. Miler features ~hicb may be fsre~vided fc~Y the lP~pper include =,~Qap:-rig t~
prr~~Jidc a curvatuYe sufficient ~s~ avoid face-to-face c~ntact betw~.en coins arPd the hopper surface and/~Y
providing suYface texture (such as e-b~,ssi~~Pg, dilrPpling, faceting, daa~.lting, ~-idgang or Yibbing~
can the ~~~pper inLeri~r sP~rfac~'. ~i~~, 1-E~ppe~. 1 702 preferably axes an a~n~un~: df f~~exibility, ~o rat'~er ahan being rigid, wi~ic~= redPPCes ?be ~c:cPaYrence ~f ~a:ra aPld assists in clearing ~a~~~s slnCe C~Enu are nit ~t~F'~ed agaxx3St a Sa311d, 'rt?iy P°s""~~i~lg SBIrfaCe.
fps descilbed bel~W, ta"i~:, J'~lYls n=~4"v':° xnt~ a n anaPP~~aI
~C:PT"a ~~atll dc~ Iae'd, ~51~ the ~Llts',de, by the edge ~f a circulaY z~ecess 180 (l~ig. 18~ a~~d, can vxPe inside, by a ledge t80~ fs~~-xnec~ eon a Yail disk 180. 'flxe c~ins ~.-~e cna~e~'. along tb° anl~ular pati~'~y paddles 1704a, b, c, d fc~Y
~5 deli~Jery to the coin Yail 5~.
<~ CPYCUIt ~J~aYd ~7~~~- L~t p<53~11f:°~.Ia:~ C;~:~I'tc'.Tn CW'?~r~l fl.P:nC~P~rIJ, aS deSCYIbed be$~E~, Is preferably rn~unted erg the generally accessib:~.e front surface ~f the chassis 184. !fin electrc:~yagnetic inteYfeYencc (~~,1~~~ saget~ sbield i7~.0 ne~rn~al~y c~~J~;YS the circuit beard 174 and S6~Ilngs ~perf ~n ?IPnges 1 7~ ~Sa,b fCi: ea Sy Ss~,Y~~P~e aG~eSS.
2o in the emb~dirnent depicted in ~~'ig. 17 anti 18, the c~in rail ~e5 and fee recess 1808 fir the disks are fc~rrrled as a single piece ~r bic~ck, ;such as the depicted base plate 1810. In one ernb~dirneut, the base plate 1810 is f~a-rsacd ~c~rP~ high densit;~
p~Iyethylene (pI~f9E~ and the recess 1808 arid c~in Yail 5~, as vaell as the sari~us ~pe~bings depicted, are fdrrl'~ed by nPacb,ining a sheet ~r bl~ck ~f .~:~1'~,. i~i3:~f; a useful rnateria:
becaPase., arn~ng ~t~ier reasa~ns, 25 cn~~Ppenents Inay be Irl~unted asing sei~ tapp:i~lg sc-re~vs9 ~-educio~g manufacturing cysts.
~''urtlierrn6)re, uSe ~f a nen-~llcsa~l~C ba~~i ~~SaaE;~; IS 'i7referred In i)r~~a' w~,~ a\l.~.iP:° Inter~,rel"1Ce VtJlt tile sensa~r. In ~ne elnb~dinPCnt, e~.ectrically c~nducti~re ~l~f°~
h~~y be used, e.g. ~~~ dissipate acetic electricity.
be base plate I 8l0 is -~I~unted ~n a chassis 186 ~v3~bcb is p~sitioned ~rdithin the 3o cabinet (~'ig. l~~ such that the base plate 1810 is lisp.~sed at a~~ angle 186 ~aicl~ respect t~
vertical 188 of between abc~s~t 0° and abcPPt ~5°, preferably l~et~meP~ about 0° and a~o~Pt l ~°, more preferably about 2t1°. IW :,~erablr-, ~~ac ~iv=vrtei~ co~Jer 1,~~
a ~s pavotal~y co~:pleca to trc base plate I8I~, e.g. by hinges 18 r ~a, Id i2b, s~~ that the di~~&:~~rte,r coyer 18I l rna;y'~c easily pivoted forward'~Fig. ISO e.g. for clearAing arid rr~~~irlte~~a.~ce.
~ rotaiing Train disk I 8I2 is f~:o:i~g~red I'-:~r tight ~smax clearances ,~~t against the edge 18412 of recess i_8(18. ~ir~ger ~;~Ies I813a, b, ~, d facilitate rerr~o~~al of the disl> for c~lea~irag or r~~aii~tena~ce. relatively Ioose ~Iarge clearance) ~t is provided between disk holes 181~a, b, c, d and Lrub pins 18I C~a, b, c, d and bctween central opening 1818 a:~d motor ha~b 1820. ~'he l~cse ~t of the bt~les arid the tight l ,:.: o:" the edge o~ disk l 8 i.2 a=.ssssi in redur;ing debris ent~rapnaent aid motor jams. ~3eca~se the main disk is recei~aed lm recess 1802, it is free i~
~ o flex and/or tilt, to some degr,~e, e.g. iir order to react to coin jams.
statio~~ary rail disk 18~1~ is positioned adjacent fee rnairdisk 1812 and l.as a central opening I82~. fitting loosely ~~iti~ respect 9o the ~~otor I~~b I 8~~. :'~~~~
.one e~~bodirr~ent, the rail disk is Iorz~fed of graphite-i~Iled i~br:molic.
~'h~e ledge 1804 deflg~ed by the r~~il dish I8f3G is preferably c~nfiigured so drat the 'i5 an~r~lar c~in path flares or ~~~ide~~s i_~ the di~-~.~cti;~n of coin t~~~3~rel s=~~ch rha~ spaci~rg between the Ledge and the recess edge near tl~e bottom or begyaning o~ the cain path fat the cigl~t o'clock positi~~~ I87d~ is smaller ~s~ch as about 13.25 inches, or about 6 n~~
srnaller~ than the corresponding distance I82~ a.t the twcL~re osciocls position I828. tn one e~~-~lsodirnent, the rail disk I80~ (and- -~~~tor 232; are r~zo~#nted rt ~k sligb~ anbl~, to tl~.e plane forrr~e~, by the 2~ attachrr~ent edge 2~~2 of flee s~aoppe-r I7112 such that, along tr"~e coi ~
path., the coin charnel generally ;r~creases in depth ~i..v. in a dit~ectiox pe~pe~adic~rlar tc~ tl~e G.ce ~sf tie rail ~zisls~.
l~.s the coins travel co~;~tercloc~Cw~s~., frorr~ approxir~i.ate~y a twelve o'clo~~k position I828 of the rail disk, the ledge is thereaf~es substantially linca~ ai~ng a portion I83~. (p'ig. lg~
extending to the periphery o4 the rail disk 18t1~ aJ~d ending adjacent the coin backplate 56 and 25 rail '~ip IB~~;. I~. tab-I~ICe prot~~asi~~ 1838 is engaged by rakl'rip I83C, bolding tl~e pail disk I B~~ in position. flee rail dusk is '~elaeved to be more easily ~ranLrfactared and constructed than p:-e~ious designs, such as those -sing a coin kril'e. ~ ~:r'therrnore, the present design avoids the problean, o~te~: f~s~~~d ~vitl~ a c~~in knife, in wl~icl. the tip of the knife was susceptible to p=-ying outward b;~ debris accuvr~nh rd bel~ird t1~~4. 'v_ip ;~~' the c~~in knil~.
~ tension dish 1838 is e~ositioned adjacent the rail ~Iisl~. 'f be tension dish 1838 is ~x~ounted on ti~~e rnoaor hub 182 aria ce~~t~-al ope~ring I 842 and threaded di;yk knob I 8~~. ~s _t~_ tic lcnoh 18~~- is tightened, spring inge3-s i 84~U, d, c, d ap~rv~y .sorc;e to keep the disks 188, I80~, 1812 tightly together., reducing spices or cracks i~~ w=~~iclz debris could otherwise become entrapped. l~re~ers'~Iy, the k~m~L 1844 carr be easily r~.~noved Isy hand, permitting re~novai oP all e.he disks 181 z; 1804, 1838 ~e.b., ~:er rnai~tena:r~ce or Gleaming) withoi~~ the need for tools.
~~ one e~~bodi-~nent, tE~e tension disk 188 end ~~airr d~~islC I8I2 are formed of stainless steel while tie rail disk i.8~~i is fo~x~ed of ~ different r~~aateria.l s~~ch as graphite-filled phenolic, which is be?ieved to be lrelpfai in ;educing galling. The depicted coin disc co?~fig~ratior~, ~rsing ahe descri~ued Frra~c~-i~ls, Marx he :~a~r~f~ctt~t-ed relatively easily aa~d .e ir~e~pe~sively, compared t~ previous de~rices. la~ddles 37~4~, ~s, c, d are pivotally amounted or: tension disk pins 1848a, b, c, d so as to pernit one paddles to pivot in direcfiions 1852a, i 852b paralleY to the, tensfon~: disxc piianc: = 838. Such piveztir=.I; i s v~setaxl in ~:c:,dz~cng the creation or exacerbation of coin jarris since coins or other ite~rzs which are stopped along the coin path will cause tg~e paddles to flex, or to pivot arourDd pins 1848x, b, c, d, rather tha~~
iC re~L~iring tl7.e paddles to coat~~~~e ~pplyir~g ~yall $~~otor-~~ducs~d t~ref, ors the stopped coins or other objects. Springs 1854a, b, c, d resist the pivoting 185~a, ? 852b, urging the paddles to a positior3 oriented radially ov:~:ward, i~ tl~e a~~sence of resista~~cc ~.;.g.
from a stopped coirA or other object.
preferably, sharp or i-~-rsgular s~triaces v~~hich rnay stop yr entrap coins are avoided.
2C Thvs, covers 18S6a, b, c, d ~ze placed oxen the springs 185~9~, ~~, c, d and coraic<~11;~-shaped washers 1858x, b, c, d protect tile pi vot p=..rs 184~8a, b, c, d. Ir~. a ;>i.rnilar spirit, the edge of the tension disk 182 is angled ~s= charr~fered to avoid coins hanging on a disk edge, potentially ca~~sing j~rnmi~g.
As depicted in pig. 2~, a number of corrrponents are mo;.~nte.d on the rear surface o.f 25 the chassis 18f~~. A motor, s~~c~. as rnod~.~ ~~3~, drives the rotation of disks 1812, 1.88 via motor drive hrz'~ 18~~. ~n ~ctvrator su~;n ~s solenoid ~,01~~ cozrtrois rruove~a~ent of the trap door 1872 (described below. ~ sensor asserr~bly, i~~cla.ding sensor printed circuit boa°d (P~~) %~ 12 is slidably nnour~ted in ~ shield ~~ L4.
The Lower edge of the recess 3.88 is ~:orr~ned by a. se jaraate piece 18'72 ~vhicl~ is 3C r~o~znted to act as a trap door. '~'he trap door 187=~ is configured to be moved rearwardly ~,(11~
~h'ig. ~~'~ by actuator 2414 to a position ~'~1C tc~ eatable debris to fall into debris cep 218.
~oleaao~d ~~314 is actuated ~~a~de~: coma cal o=~ E~ nn~~roc~~~troliea- as described below. Preferably, tl~e, trap door A 872 retracts .sa~~stantial~y no .arti':ea~ there the Ii~or~t edge of the coin rail dis:~C, to avoid catching, vrhich coaald lead to a failaare ov'the trap dour to close.
preferably, a seaasor switch providca a signal to the rnicrocontrcller indicating ~x-heth.er the trap door has completely shut. preferably the trap door is resiliently held in the closed position in such a nZanner that it carr be ~anaraii~y opened if desired.
loins vahich fall into ~l~e hopper I70~, i~ro~~ the t~oa~~a~ie~ 5~, are dire~;ted by the ca~rvat~are of the hopper towaa-ds the six c~'~~-~oci~ position I8'77 ~~ig.
l~) of the ~~nnaalar coin path. In general, coins tr~s~elia~g over the do~r~marci Aurning edge 20?4 of the hopper 3 7~2 1o are tipped onto edge and, partially owing to the bacls~ard iaa.,~lir~ation IB~~ of the appaaratus, tend to fall into the annular space 18i:~ 1. wins which are not positioned in the space 18~ 1 with their faces adjacent tl?e staraace o~ she rail dsk ~saach as c,oir~s that rrtay be tip-ped outv~Vlard 2(s2~a or rraay be perpendicaal.ar to the rail. disk ~~2Gb~ gill ire stn°xek; by the paddle i7~4 as it rotates, agitating the coins arad everata~ally corr;rctly positiorainb coins in the aranaslar space i8fl1 ~Tith their faces adjace~:at the face 18(11 o-the annular space defined by ~~he rail dish 180. It is believed that tire shape of tl~e paddle head 2~28a, ~~~8c, in particular the rounded shape of the radially oazt~nost portion ~2~~ of the; head, assists in agitating or striking coins in saach a manner that they will ass-earns ths: desired position.
~~nce eoiA~as are positionez~ aion~; the w~nn~ ~ar path, the leac~~fazg edge of the paddle heads 2;28 contact the i-railing edge c'~the coins, forcing tlner~ along t'~ae coin pa~:h, e.g. as depicted in Fig. l ~. Pre Drably each paddle can move Ea plurality of coins; such as up to about l coins. she coins are thus eventually forced to ~a~el onto and along the linear portion I834 of the rail disc ledge 184 and are pushed onfo the coi~~~ rail tip 18~G. sortie previous devices were provided with an exit gate for coins exitir~.g the coin p~i:c~$.~~a asseanisiy vrhich, in some, 25 cases, sues susceptible to jasy~z~irag. according to any embod:irnent of bhe presea~~: ir~vent~o~, sazch jamrraing is eliminated heca:a~se no coin Tick=gyp assembiv exit gaze is provided.
As the paddle heads ~0~8 continaae to an:we along the circular path, they contact the linear portion 1834 (Fig. l~~ of vhe ledge i8t:~- and flex axiall~T outward 2~~2, facilitated by a tapered sha~~e o~ the radially ia~~,~~ard poa~tiort of t'~a~ pa;~dle pa,d X328 to ride over ii.e. 33~ front 30 ofd a portion 1881 of the rail disc. In one eo~bodirnea~~;, openings or holes l 7~8 are provided in this portion to fed~zce frictional drag and 3o receive e.g. trapped debris, which is thus cleared from the annular coin p~~h.
~s seen in hig. 21, ~Iyc ledge 1 ~~3~ as defined by the rail disk 1806 is displaced upwardly 2102 with respect to tire Ie~~ge 2i0~ ~~f tlm coin rail tip I82G. The di,ytance 2102 nm~y be, a~'or example, abo~ t .I inches ~abo~v 2.~ an~,'~. alZe diilrre~~ce i~~, G~eigb~ 2102 assists ird gravitationally r'i~ovi~g cons ~ro~~ rbe rail disk Iedge I8(1~j1 over the upper portion of the :' ~d'.. gad (described below) and onto th:° Iedge of coir' rail tip :
83 G.
~'he te~cninal point 210 of the rail disk ledge is laterally spaced a distance 2107 from the initial edge of the Cain ray; Ic;dge 2104 to define a '"~" ga~~ tile~-ebetween. 'This gap, ~,~ich ~o extends a certain dista~-~ce 210 circun~erential!y, as seen any dig. 21, receives debris which a~~zay be swept along by the coiq~. paddles. ~~Im e,xiste~~ce ol°tl~e gap 21C)7, and its placement, extending below tl~e rail ledge, by providirng ~~ place for debris swept ~~p by t''r~e paddles, avoids a problem fond in cer~E~in pz~=~vio~s de~,~ices in ~.v2~~i.c~b debris tea~s~ed to ac~.;urra~late wI-~ere a disk region met a linear region, comet°xnes acca~m~~uati~~g t=o the point of creating a bump or o'ostruction which could cause coins to loop or fly off the ledge or Bail.
'fhe coin rail SG functions to recei~re coins outp5at by fhe coin pickup assen~bl~r 5~, and tra~~sports the coins irx a singulated (one:-at-a-tirrfe) fas~~ior~ past the sensor :~8 to tl:ie divreraing door 62. Singulation and s~:,pa~-ation of coins is of particular usc, in connection with the describes sensor, alFho~gh other types of se~~sor~~, znay also -Ge;:e~ebFt fzom coin singuhtion and 2o spacing. In general, coins a~w delivered to the coin rail ~G $ollir~g o-~
sliding on t,~eir edge or rips. along tl:e rail ledge 2ltl~. 'flee face of the cogs as they s3ide or roll dov~ra the coin rail are supported, daring a portion of their tra~aeL, b~,~ rails or stringers 210Ga, b, c. The s~~.ringers are positioned (dig. 23~.), respecti~mly, at heights 2108x, b, c (r~rith respect to the height of the ledge 2104) to pro~~ide support suitable for the ranger or coin sixes to be handled 'vhile providing a relatively sr:~all area or region of contact between tlia coin face and the stringers.
Altbougl~ son°be pr-evio~s devices provide for flat-topped or ro~~nn.ed-profile rails or ridges, the present invention provides ~sdgea or stringek~s ~Tnicl~ at least in4 tl~e second portion, 2121b, have a triangular or peaked p~wi~Le. ~'I~is is belic;ved to be eavsier to rr~ay~ufact~re (such as by machining ia~to the baseplate 18I0) and also maintains relati~aely sa~~all area of contact 4Fsrith 3o the coin face despite stringer wear.
_t ~_ ffhe position and shape of the st~ir~gers and the wi.cl~lz of the rail 210-are selected depending on the range of coi~~ sizes to be l~~nd=ed by the de~icv. lra one enrbodirnent, which is able to handle U.S. coins in the sine range he~~~een a fl.S. dime and a U.S. hall-dollar, the ledge 21(3 has a depth 2111 (~~orr~ thr.: hacl~platt~ 2.11~~ of about O.C~~
inches (shout 2.3 ~?rn~}.
The top stinger 2106a is posl"cioned at a l~e~ght L1_08a (above t~~e; 1e age 21~3~} o~ about 0.825 inches {about 20 ~~}, {the _diddle stringer 21t)6h is r~ositiened at a height 2108i~ of aoour 0.4~ inches (about 12.4 ~nrn;, and the bottor~~ stringer 210Ge is positioned at a height of about 0.175 inches (ahoua~~ 4~.4 nom f. 1n. one ernbo~xrrxent, the stringers are about 0.8 inches (ah~ut ~
~nn~} wide 210 (Fig, 23C} and protr~,de about 0.05 i~aches Labout 1.3 rnrn}
2111 above the 'each plate 2114 of the coin rail.
~s seen in liig. 22, ~v~ the coirAs enter the coin i.~-_~il 5~, the coins acv typically horizontally sings.~latecl, i.e., coins are in single ~Ie, albeit possihl.y ad~ace~~t or t~sucl2ing one another. ~l'he singulated conllg~~ratyor~ o= thc; coins can he contrasted with coins which are lnorizontahy par~lally o~~e°lapi~re~a 2~i;La, ~ as slø-:wn irG l~ig.
:~:'~~~.. ~'ig. 2G~. also llustra~res a ~5 situation i~,. which son2e Coins are staclccd on top of one ;a.~~o that vertically 2202c, d. l~
nurr~her of features of the coin rail 56 c~ontribaate to claangirg the coins from the bunched conraguration to a singulated, a~~d eventually separated, se rie:~ of coins by the time tl~zey move past the sensor 58. one such fat~re is a ~,~~t-o~~~v or recess ~°.'z s ~ provided in or adjacent_ tlm top portion of the rail along a -~~rst portion of its extent. ~s se~,n in Fig.
24, when coins which 2o are vertically staged such as s:oins 2202c, b, ila~strated in Fib. 22, reach the Cut-out portion 2116, the top coin, aided by ~~lae inclination 186E5 of the raii., tips backward 2402 an ~rnount sufficient that it will tend to slid.; for~.rarc~ 2 ;~-0~- in front of the lower coin 2202, falling into the hopper extension 204 which is pc~sirior~c;d 'i~eneath the c~rut-out region 2116, and sliding back into the main portion of ra~~. hopper 1 ~O 2 to ~e conqd~eyecl 'hack ~~~
to the coin :rail.
25 l~nother feature cont~il~uaing to singulatic~~ is the charyge in inclination of the eoir~ rail frorr~ a first portion 2121a which is inclined, wt~h respect t;~ a Horizontal plane 212 at an angle 2126 of about 0° to a~9E~~~~. 30°, lrreferabl~ about 0° to ~~bo~,~t 15° and more preferably about 10°, to a second portion 21.21h whic~r~ is inclined w:~i;e~
respect t;o a horizontal plane 2124 by an angle 2128 of about 30° to about 60°, preferably between about 40° arid about 50°
3o arid more preferably about ~-5°. l~v~°eferabiy, t12~ t,oin ;path in the transitional reuiora 212:ic het~~een the ~nrst portion 2121 a anc sec:onrdl portion 2121h is ~moothiy cued, as showno .1n ..t~_ or3e o~nbodia~~er~t, the radius ol'~urva~~re oA the lodge 21~~in tire rtransition region '~121c is about 1.5 inch (about 3.8 c~.~.
~ne feature of sing~,tlatirag ~oir~s, aocordir~g to ~~las; depicted embodiment, is to primarily use gracitationai t=ortes for this purpose. E~rse of gravity force is believed to, in general, reduce systerr~ cost ancf cornpiexity. 'l~l~is is aocom~Iisl-~ed by con~pgnring the rail so tl;at a given coin, as it aplaroac'hes and tiaer~ enters the second portion 2121b, will be gravitationally accelerated ~r~ii~ tire rnox~: ("fol6~wir~g") colony o~~ a shallower sl~~e., is being ac;celorated to a ~n~.acl~ smaller s~egreo, tlv~~s all~~~ring the frost ~a>in to rr~cwo aw~~y from the following coin, crewing a space therebetween and ~ffectivo:~y producing a gap between the 1o singulated coins. 'Thereafter, t'2e follo~vir~g ooii~ mows into the region where it is, in turn, accelerated away from the s=~ooessive coin. I~s a coin moves ~~yn ~e first region 2121a toward and into the second region 2121b, the claangc in rail 3~:mfina~ion 212, ~~i 8 (dig. 2i, causes the coin to acoelerat~, while the following coins, wl-~i~'~~ acv still positioned ia~ the ~mst -region 2121x, ha~~e a relativ°1y':ower ~rlo~iry.
An one embodiment, acceleration of~ a coin as it moves invo the second rail region 2121b is also enhanc;.d by placemorlt of a short, rolativr,-;ly -fall auxiliary stringer 2132 generally i~~ the transition regio~7 2121v°°. 'f ho auxiliary stringer 2132 projects out~rTardly from the back surface 211 of the coin tail., a distance 2i3~ (dig. 2~~) greater than tike distance 2112 of projection of the ~goz-n~~l stra~tgors 21i)~a, b, c. Thus, as a corn rrpo~~~s i~rto the ~o ransation rogior~ 2I21c, the aa:~xiliary st~~ingo~- 21~~2 tills the c;nin temp outward 232, away from contact zuit'tlze norrr~al stringers 21~~a, b, c so -t#~at it tends to "'~y"
(roll or slide otb its edge or rim along the coin rail ledge 210 without contact with the n orn2al stringers 21~ba, b, c~
and, for at least a Limo period foV Towing rno ~arement past the auxi?°=ary stringer 2132, continuos to contact the coin rail only alor g the ~~~dgo 21 ~3~., fur'~hor rnaa.~:a~-ring or redacirfg ii-iction arid allowing ~~e coin to accei'.orate along the second rPgior~ 2:~ 2 l ~ of the coin ~a~il. In ono ona.bodirnent, the coin-contact portion of the strirugers i~~ the first ~orLion 2121 a are somewhat r'~attened (dig. 23A) to increase friction and exaggerate the difference in coin acceleration ~oet~~reen the first section 2121a .and the seLor~d suotior~ 2121b, where the stringer profiles are more pointed, such as being substarltialiy poa'~ed (1G'ig. 23C~.
~notl~er feataxre of the coin rail oor~tributing to acceleration is the provisio~a of ono or more free-fall regions where coins will noally be out of cor~t~~t with the stringo~.~s and thus -2i)-will contact, at most, only tyro lodge por~ioc~ 2134 of the rail. In the depicted err~bodimeot, a first free-fall ,region is pro~ricied at the: area 2136x ~~rherrii> ~:h~;
auxiliary swinger 2132 ter~°~.2inates. !~s pared above, coins in this region will teed to oontaf~t the coin rail only along the ledge 2104. mother free:--all region occurv just da~rnst=°~.ar~~ of the upsream edge 2342 of the door 62. ~s seers in trig. 2~~, the e~oor 62 is prefea~a.biy positioned a dvstance 2344 such as about 0.~2 ir~ol-~es, about tl.~ m~~) fro=g the s~~rfacr 2114 of the rail rogioa~. This setback 2344, combined with chv termination of the stringers 216, provides a free-fall region ad~acont the door 62. if desirod, anotho~~ fr~,e-~~l.l regnon ca~g be provided dowz~stre.ar~a ~rorr~
the door 62, e.g., where the ;eject coin path 1~2I meets the ~;~rofor~bly embossed) surface of the reject chute or roject chute entrance ~,vhich ~r~ay be set bank a distance such as about lib inch ~abo~~-i 3 mm).
Rnother Eros-fall reg~~o~-; may be dofs~zed near tl3e loc;~tion 213 where coins exit the disks 1812, 186 and enter tie rail 56, e.g., by positioning the disk 1812 to have its front surface in a plane slightly forF3arard ~o.g., about 0.3 ~.r~cl~es, ox a'~i~out ~.~ n:m) of the plane ~5 defined by rail stringers 21~~.. This Eros-fall ro~,ion is useful not only to assist tyke transition from the disk onto the rail but snakes it more likely That coins which may be slowed or stepped on tho rail near tlae o:~~d of a t~~ansaotion will bo positioned :lownstream of the retract position .~~ ig. 2I~ of the rako 21 i;2 s~~cb tlZat ~rvho:~ the rape operates ~ as described below), it is more likely to push slo~,ved or stopped coins down tl~e rail than to knock such oohs aff the 2G tail. Providing periods of c~:lr~ :~:~yiw~g rodueos '~iction9 oontr~-lb~;ctes to coin acceleration and else reduces variation in coi~~ ~rolooity si~~oo sti~l~y or 3~rot ce~ins boi~ave s~~nilarly to pristine coins when both are in a flying mode. Producing periods of relying is believed to be particularly ~asefnY in ~~naintaib.ing a dosirod aocoioration and =aelocity of' coins which may bo wet or sticky.
25 The sensar 58 is positioned a dista~.co 234 (:fig. 2310 away from the surface of the stringers 2106x, b, c safriciers' to acca~nr~~odate passage of rife thickest coin to ~e handlod.
~ltho~agla contain prefo~ed sensors, and tlr~,ir use, are doscri~~od more thoroughly helow, it is possible to use features of the present invention: with other ~.ypos of sensors which spay be positioned in another fashion ~~~zoh as embedded lr~ the coin rail 56.
sG 'fhe loading surface of tile sensor 1<o~.~sir~y is preferably raza~ped 236 such tl~a~: coins or other objects which do not travel into thv spaoN 2304 {such as coins or other objects which -2 t -axe, too 1a~-~e or ha~Te moved ~~avially ~f~ tl~e; ee~in path) ~wYl:~ be aleflected by the r~~np 2~0~
onto a bypass chute 1722 ~~'ig. 17), bavir~~~ a deflector plane 1724 and a trough 1725 for delivery to the coma ret~xrn om ~-ejecl: cir~E~~e ~8 -here they ~~y he returned to the user. 'fhe sensor housing also performs a spacer function, tending to hold any jams at least a minimum distance f,orr the sensor c~~-e, prefe~-a~3y strf'iicientiy far that the se~asor rea;di:-~g is not affected ~~~hich could cause ~~isdetectbo~~). 1f c~.esired, the se~~s~cr housing can be configured such that jams rr~ay be penr:itted witl~i.r~ tl_e se;~~sing range of the sensor (e.g., to assist in detecting jam occu~-~er3ce).
In the depicted configuration, the sensor 58 is configwred so that it can be rr~aoved to a position 2142 away from the ce~in rain .~~~, for cleaning or r~~aiatenar~ce, such as by sliding along slot 2144. Preferably, tF~e device is cor~stnzcted wits a3:interference fit so that the se~~sor 58 ~~ay be ~r~~ved out ol~ position enRy w!r~en 'she diver per ;over I
8I 1 has ~eer~ pivoted forvJard 102 (Fig. 1 g) and such that tt~e diverte~° cover 1811 n~a~!
not be repositio~md I904 to its operating confib~ration a.intil. the se~~so-r 2 A 42 leas been p3operty ~~ositioned in -'_~a operating ~5 location fig. 2.1). Preferably, the sens~ss apparatus is conf~g~~red so that it will sea's reliably and accurately in a desired position with respect to the coin nail such as by engagement of a retention clip 2704 (Fig. 2:L;. ~~.ac;h seati~~g, ~~rm'erably combined with a relati~rely high tolerance for positions; variations of coins with respect to the sr~nsor (descri'oed below), :neaps that the sensor rr~°°~ay b:: -r_rovr~d vo ~l~e muintena~2ce po:~ition :? l42 a.~d ret~~~-~ed to the operating position repeatedly, ~-i~tl?out r.°~ui=~ng recalib3atior~ of tie device.
t~.s noted above, in tba~ depicted e-bodirver~~t, a door fi,2 -~s used t~
selectiaeiy deflect coins or other objects so the ~°ol~~s u~.tiraately travel to either a=~
~scce;ptable-object or coin bin or trolley, or a reject chute 58.
In tl~e embodi~-ne~at depicaed in 1~'ig. 43, a coin return raxTap 4312 extends free the coin return region 1981, through the opening 1813 of the diver ter cover 18I I and extends a distance 4314 out-c~rard and above the i~ri tial abortion of the coin retu~~n chute ~8. 7Chus, coins which are riot deflected by the door C~2 caravel dov~rn t~t1e ramp 4.312 and fly off the end 431 of the ramp i=ii a ''ski jump" fasbsor~ befog°e ar~din~; on ~~l~e coin ~etua~.n chaste surface 68. E~~e~~
t~o~zgh prcfPrably, coin contact s~xrfaces s~.ch as the ramp 43 ~2 end coin return clsus~e 68 aye embossed or otherwise reduce facial contact wvth coins, providing the "ski jump:' flying region further reduces pote~~ax for slowing or adar3esion of co~rEs for ether objects) as their travel d~~~~n the return chute tolvard.s the c~asto~~r retaarn box..
~refeYably the devicL is co~~figvre~such i=~at aciivatic~r~ of :hc door deitects coins ~o an acceptaF~Ie coin -din and non-activation al~~~~e a coin to rove ales~~g a default patl-~ to the reject chute 68. Such ''actuate-tc-accept' technique rot only avoids accumulation of debris in the exit bins but improves accuracy h~,> acc;epttn.g only coins fleet are rec~gr~i~ed and, further, provides a ccn~~guration wtricn is belie~.-e~ superior during p~~wc;r failure situations. xhe actlaate-to-accept approach also has the advantage that the actuation mechanism will be operating on a~~ object of ~~~own characteristic; ~e.g. known diameter, which may be used, ~~ e.g. in conneeti.on with determining veloci~~ anE~/or accwleration, or known r~°~ass, which a~nay be used, e.g. for adjustment of forces, such as deflection forcea). This affords the opportunity to adjust, e.g. the tixni~g, dr~r~tion and/or st~~eng~h of the deflection to the speed ~und/or mass of the coin. fn a system iE~ which items to be rejected are actively deflected, it =~~ouLd be ne~~,essa~-y to acttaate the dex~ection nrecha~nisnm%~ritl~ respect to an ebjs;ct which x~ a~/ ~e ~~ unrecognized or have ~nhno~rn characteristics.
although in one embodin~er~t the dcor ~2 is separately actwated for each acceptable co8n (thus redL~cing solenoid '23116 dut;r cJcie and heat generati~~~), it wou:(d also be possible ro con figure a device in wh~cFr, where therw are ore or t~%c or ~r ore sequential accepted coins, the door 62 is maintained in its flexed position continuously until the next non-accepted coin 20 for other object) approaches rye door 6'g.
~n embodiment for control and ti'sning of the door 62 deflection will be described more thoroughly be.cv~. In aye de=~icted err~bod~Qnent, the door 62 is dsflecteci by aciivaiion of a solenoid 236. The dc~oz 62, in one e~nbo~~iment, as rn~de of a hard resilient material, such as 3111 full hard stainless si;eel which n<ay be provided in a channel shape as shown. fn 2~ one embodiment, the baci~ s~~rface of' as~~e coin-contact region of the door 23~8a is substantially covered with a sound-deaLden~;irbg rr,aterial 2334 su~,h, as a foam tape ~availa:&~le from 3i~ Company). PreferGbly the faam tape has a hole 233a adjacent the region ~rhere the solenoid 23(16 si~ikes. the door 2.,.
fn one embodiment, tl?,°, door 62 is not ringed but a-noz~es outwardly from its rest 3Q position {f~ig. 23~) to its dyf~ec;teci position= ~~ig. 23F) by bending or flexing, rather than pivoting. Boor 62, being formed of a resiiier?t me~rerial, =.vill tlre~x deflect back 2312 to its rest pesition once the solenoid %30~ is ro conger activated. ~y relying on resilierscy of an unhinged door for a return ri~otion, there is no need to provide a door return spring.
~ur~lleaore, the resiliency o~~ E~~e door, i~a 'ene~vl, p.ro~-~des f. force greate< than the solenoid sg~ring return force normally Frovided with a ;~c~lenoid, so -shat tire doer 62 will force she solenoid back to its rest positi:~n (Fig. 2~1:) (after cessatiorF oz°
the, activation pulse), more quickly thar~s ~trould have bee~~ ~ossibi; if ~e,iyiv~g on t'~~e force o:l° the solenoid retu~~spring.
As a -resu;et, the effective cycle ti~n.e for the sc~lenoid/doc~r system is reduced. In one embodiment, a solenoid is used which has a ne:mal cycle tire of about 24 n ~illi seco~~ds baat ~nrhich is able to achieve a cycle tine of about 1~milliseconds ~~i'ren the resilient-door closing ~o fe<~ture is used for solenoid reta'rr~,, as desca~it~ed. l.n one c~ar~bodi~nent, a solenoid is used which is rated at 12 volts brat is activated usi~~g a 24-volt yulse.
1n sor~te situations, ~articuia~rly at the end of a coin disc:rirrainatien cycle er transaction, one or more coins, especially ~ve,t o~ stic;ky coins, nay reside on the first portion 23.21a of tlae rail such that tbey ~;vil1 not s~o~~taneously for will only slovaly) move tovrrard the ~~ sensor 58. 'fhus, it may b a desiza~~le ro include a rnee~haraical or other transducer for providing energy, in response to a sensed dam, =low-up or other abnorrnalit~~.
l~ccordir~g to one enibodirnent for providing e,ne~.°g~'., a co3~a r~~l~e 212, nc~~~~ally retra.c~ed into a rake slot 2154 (Fig. 23Aa), rnay be activated to extend ca~tward 215~i fro~~ the slot 2154 and move lengthwise 2155 do~,vn the slot 2154 to p~.ah slo=F~ or stopped coins :down the coin path, such 2o as onto the second portion 2121r of the coin raisj or off the ~~il to be captured by the hopper extension 2204. ~n e~~!bodir.=r_ent for tt~~~ng ;and control ~~f tl~e rape is descrvib~;c~: more thoroughly belo~,v. do one e~~bodirnent, rake ~novei~zent is aci.~ieved by activating a rake motor 2502 (Fig. 19) coupled lo a link arm 2.504 (Fig. 25). 'This link 2504 is movably mounted to the rear portion of tr3e Chassis 184 l:y a pin and sfot sys~en~
2506a,b, 2507a,b. 1~
2~ plate section 2509 of the link 25:;4 is c~~r~pled via slot 2511 to~ an eccentric din of motor 2502.
~ slot 251 of the Fink arm 2504 engages d rear ;portion of ripe rake 2152.
~,ctiva.tion of the motor 2502 rotates eccentric pir~ 2515 and causes link 2504 to move longitudinally '2517. l~
slot 2513 of tl7.e linl~ arrn 2504, forces the ~°alce 2152 to move 2,51' along the bnclined slot 2I54 toward a dowrastreay~ p~;s-ition 2510 ~:p~ig. 2~1~. ~'he ._anc;tior~ of causing ~:he rake r~o 30 ~arotrude or extend outward 215 fro=n the slot 2154 car: be a~;;sieved in a number of fashions.
~n one embodinYent, the link Arab 2504 is slxa~ed so that ~.vhe~~ .she :~al~,e is position~:,d dowvn the -2~_ slot 21 ~4, the rake 2152 is urged outvwar~iy 215~ bt.t the shape of' the resilient link arra 2504.
As the rake is moved tzpstrea~~ 225 to~varcl the nortxiat o;~~e;rating location, a c~.art follower fo~-n~od on the free end 2527 03 the link arl~~ is atrgecl rearwat-dly by a cans 252 carrying tlZe rake 2152 wits it, rear~,varslly to tlae retracted pos,itior~ (hig. 2:1A, ~~ig. 2~~.
t'referably, the rake position is sensed. or monitored, :;',~ch tas by sensia~zg t~f~ position of the rake motor 2502, ir6 order to ot.~tsure proper- rake operation.
t~~eierably the system will detect (e.g. via activity seaisor -1754) if the ~oia-: rake icnoci~ed coins off the rail or, -aria coin sensor 5~, if the coin rake pushed wins ~o~~,~n the coi~x rail to .move past the sensor 5~. Try one on~bodi~net~t if activation of the c;oin ral~~ results in coins bei:tag lcnoc;lced of:f the rail or moved deu-n the tail, the coin rake ~ritl be activated at: least a soo~~r~d tirst~
and tl~e system array be cota~~gur~d to ontprtt a message indi~;atir~g .~l~tat the systerr~ slao~~tid be cleaned or req~a.ires maintenance.
~etwec~ the tire t3~at a coin passes ~~ert~;atta the sense Sb avid tile tigne it reaches the deflection door b2 (typically a period of about 3~ milliseconds), control apparatus and ~J so:it~war~ (described beio~v) de'~t;~~nir~e'~i~c;thor the coin sho~:,Ic~E
be di~zrted by the deter ~2. In gei°teral, it is preferred to make the time delay ~~et~:aeen sensir g an object and detecting the object (i.e., to make the distance ~oetu~~~n the sensor and ~ti~o deflection doom as shore as possible while still allwving sufficient tirt~e for the recognition and categorization processes to operate. '~l°~o time roqati:rerra~~~ts will i:~e at ls;ast pat~;ially depora~~on~: on the spend of the 2~ processor which is used. In got~oral, it :is passibl~; to shorten the delay by employing a higher-spc;ed processo3-, al~beat at increased e~pors~,. ~h~rto;_ing the math between alto sensor and tlae deflector not only reduces the physical size of tltt; device but also reduces the possibility that a coin or other object gnay beco~~e stately o~~ saray froa~~ tl~e coin pat:kt after detection and before disposition (po~_entially restalting in et°ror s, e.g. of a type irt a coin is "credited" but net ~~ directed to a coin bind. ~urtiacrrnore, si~ortonir~g the sepa;~a~iot~
reduces the chzcnce that a faster foliodving coin will "catoli up" ~vEth a pro~rous siov~ or stio~y coin bet~,~een the sensor and the deflector door. ~ho~oning i;l~~; s~,paration addition~v~iy rc~d~a~~ s the opportunity for coin acceleration or velocity to change '~o a signifycant degror~ between the sensor Sg and the door 62. since the door, in ono ombocti~ra~~at, is controlled ~oased ors velocity or ~~rcoloration ~~ measured or (calculated using data f~oas~red~i at the sensor, a larger separation (and conseqtaently larger rail length .x~ith potential vavriatio~as is, e.g.
z''riot:ior~) bet~veor~ the sensor 5~ and the door ~2 increases the pot°ntiar f~r the ~easur~;ci o-cGicralated coin velocity or acceleration to be in error (or ~nisiea.ding).
because the coin dei'iector requires a certain rr~inimurcl cycle time (i.e., the time from activation of the solenoid until the door :gas rewun'ed to a rest state-, and is ca~alrle of being re~~cti~:"ated), it is impossible to succ;e;rsf~;aiiy de:E°lect E.~o c~iias r.~~l~icb are too close together.
~ccorcEingiy, when the syst~;n~ deter~r~ines ~thas two coins are too close togetlue~~ (e.g. by detecting s~~ccessive ''tai!'' tunes ~vi~ich are less tha~-~ a ~rsi~~i~n~~~n period apart), tl~e systmn will refrain frorr~ activating the deflector door r:l3on passage of one or both such coins, ;.pus allowing one or both such coins to follow the default bath to 5;he reject chute, despite the fact 1o that the coins may have been both s~~ccessfu'ily r=~cognized as acceptable coins.
if a coin is to be di~e.t~ted, when it waches the door ~z, solenoid 23t3C is activated.
"f;~ically, beeaaase of the step 2i36b a;~.~d/or oth'.r flya-~g-inducing feataares, by the ti~~~e a coin reaches door ~2 it will be sy~ac~;~? a shirt;~istancc 23x7 (such as ~.~~
inches, or ahc~~t 2 rum) above the door ~lar~e 62 and tl~.e door, as it is deflected to :its u.ctivated Tosition (~~ig. 231?), 15 will meet the i~ying coin a~~d lanock the coin i~~ an outward direction 2323 to the common entrance 1 X28 of accep table-coin tubes ~4a, 64b. preferably all co=n contact surfaces of the ret~zrn ch~.zte and coin tube are; ~~rovidud ~:~~ith a surface texture s~rcf~
as an embossed s~zrfaee ~,vbic'h vain reduce friction and/or adh~~siona additionally; sucr~ surfaces may i7~e provided with a sound-deadening material andlor a l:ine~;ic energy-absorbing material (to heir direct 2o coins accurately into the accept ~~insr.
an one ernbodi~nent, the timing of dea~ection of the door 62 is controlled. to increase the likelihood that the door urill stripe the coin as desired in such a fashion as to divert it to entrance to the coin tubes 172zi. 'The preferred sulking ~osit:ion :nay he selected empirically, if desired, and :gay defsend, a~t least pa~:iaily, o4. the diameter a~~d mass of the coins and the 2~ coin min erected in the machr~~e as ~~elas the: size and clnzracteri~stics of the door 62. In one embodiment, the machine is con~.gr~red to, ~~n average, s9.ril;e tl~e coin when the leading edge ofthe coin is approxi~nat.ely 3 tern ~pstHean~ ("npstrearn" iradicd~~ting a direction opposite the direction of coin flow 2332 of the do'~-nstream edge 23~~ of the actuator door 62 (dig.
23~). In one e~~bodirnent, this strike position is the g~refe~°.~recposition regardless of the so dia;peter of the coin.
-2~-hr°~'era~bly, there is ~ gap hetwee~~ co-ins as they ;:~ean~ past the doer ~~. The prea'~erred bap bet~reers adjacP~~t: coins wl_ich 12a.~ae dif~e~-ent:
destinations (i.e., wren adjacent coins include an accepted coin and a not-~cce~ted Cain) depends on whether the accepted coin is before or after the non-accepted coin (i ~ .which the ''accepted coi.~'9 is a coin r:~~ich will be di~rerteci 17y the door and the not-~t~cepted coin will rr~vei pE~st the door withorxt being diverted. The gaga behind a not-accepted coin (or other ofs~ect~ which reaches ~:he door ~2 before an accepted coin is re'errc;d to hereir3 as a ''ieading gay:;". '-fee bap hehinci an accepted coin is referred to nerei~~ as ~ ''~railii~g, gad 7'. In one err~hodirr~ent, the preferrre,d lcading gap is described by the followirxg e~i~atzo~:
1 ~ ~ ~'~~':ead.min " L~~Sr-oa..lead + ~~T'Ors>ius ~ a ( 1 wficre:
~dsco>v.~ead represents the chz.ng:; ir'~hc; actual inter-coin gap ~-oe~ the ~i~e the coins pass tae sensor ~~ to the tune e~%hcn the coins reach tie docfr ~~ (approximately 3 mrn~;
:~rrorpl"5 represents th.c dis~a~.ce erro:~° d~~e s;o compensation ~~ncertainties, ass~.'~~ia~g leading gap worst condx~.ons of rr~~x~na~~~~ initial vs~~oc;ity and ~ fricvionless rail (approxirraately ~S ~nrn j; and a represents the dir~~.ension from thAe d~~'~vnstrca~n ecl~;e of the actuator door 234 to flee leading edge of tf~e coyr~ at ehe preferred strike position (approximately 3 rnrn).
The preferred rr~ini~n~leading oap of approxiYnate.y l ~ rpm applies when a non-2o accepted coin (or other object; precedes a<~ acce~ced coin. lr~ the coon case o~~ a strip g of consecutive accepted coins, ~f~is constrai~~t r~.eed :got ~e enfc~rcvd ~.~-ten the first coin it the strea3n.
In one enWodirnent, the pre~rred trailing bap is descrued'by the foliowina equation:
~%~p = ~d t , + A4d + i,rror + b .__ a _-_ ~: ~rZ) tr.min 'y.o~,.Crail ontime minus coin.mi ~5 Vvl~ere:
~dsto7-.trail ~~epreserltS the Ch~ftbe In aCvLia~ In''s:er-~%~ln gap bett'aeed3 the. SensC3r 58 a:'~d the d765r ~~ (approxin-~ately ~ rnrr~), ~,do",;me represents the distance the coins travel during the time the actuator door is extended (approxir~~~tely ~ n~~r~~;
_~-; _ ~rrQrn~inus re~reSe~'~S the e~i~9r ~~.le ~.~ C~9~~13pe~-tSatI~312 ~llCeTi29~n0.deS, ~sSl&mll'ng ~T~%hng gap tvorst conditions of zero ir~iti~I velocity and ~ stic;ky or high-friction rail (approximately 6 rnn~);
b represents the length 2336 of the door 62; and represents the dian_eter of tiw accepted coin (in the worst case for a comr~~on ~J.S.
Co~r~ tngx, 17.3 yl-~?~~.
This resuf~s in ~ preferred min?in23am tr~iii~~g gap of ~.2 rxnm.
-f7rocess fog- ~.~ez-itrnx~g ?=~e ~;xisie~lce of preferred '~e~~i~g ~r~d ~~-aili_!g gyps, ~s appropriate si~~atior~s, and/on selecting or contr~IIiT~g the act~~at3.o~~ of the door ~2 to strike 1 o coins at the preferred position:, is deser:bed belo~~~.
In the depicted e~rtbodirre~t, f~a~v re~yors of t;~e cona~~~o~~ er~trauce 1728 ~pag. 17) >s pro~~ided with a flapper movable fvorr~ a r~rs positao~~ 1732x -e:~hich guides the coins into the arst coin tube 64a for delivery, ultr.mate:~y; to ~ first coin trolley 66x, to ~. second position 1732b for deflection to the second coin tube 64b for delivery to the second eoin ~.rolley 66b.
~5 In one embodiment, the flapper 1732 a trade of plastic to reduce noise and the tendency to bind during operation. ~ scienoid actd~ator 1734, via linl~ ~rn~ I736, is used to r:~ove the flapper between the positions 173'2a,1732~5, =z:.g. in respor_se to cor~trox signals i'~rorn a rnicrocor~trolleA (described be,lo~). Tl~.e flapper 1732 naay also be rapidly cycled between its extreme positions to sell cleans ~-r~ateri~F frr~n-~ tha :nechanisrrr~, 1n o~~i em~bod=~~nea~.c, such self ~o cleaning is performed a fter each ~rar~sac~io~~. In one ernbodimen~, coin detect~ers sa~ch as paired L~,~s and optical detectors 1738a, b output signals to the naicrocontrolle~- ~arhenever passage o~'' a coin is detecte~~. '1'hese signals ,~a;~ 'ue assn for carious purposes s~~ch as verifying that a coin deflected icy the n~ooT 62 i,~ delivered tai ~ coi~~
tribe, ~erifyng that the flapper 1732 is in the correct positi~n, and detecting coin tube byaoc~ages such as may result 2~ from bacl~up of coins from a~~ over-tilled coin biro. Thus., the sensor 1738x, 1738b at the end of each tube provides data used for performing tv,~o or mcjre ~ct~nctio~ss, such as verifying accepted-coin delivery, verifying s'lapper placement, and ve=-ifying and detecting coin bin overfill.
~s ~~est seen n a~igs. ~ 7~~. and 278, t ge se~~sor ~8 is pre,fe.ra~~iy directly rnov><~rted on the 3o sensor 1'~~ 251 and comr~-3~~nicates, ele;c~~-icar~~r, there~itl:i via a header ~,7Q2 ,pith leads 2704 soldered onto the board 2512. providing lie sensor a:rsd the sensor board ~s ~ single -2~-integrated unit reduces manufacturing costs and eliminatds cabling and associated signal n' ise. 't'he sensor 58 is made of a c;;~Ye 2862 Figs. 28~;, 28~;with a lo~;v-~~=seque~~~;y 2804 and high i'requenc~r 286 windings on tAm core. i'olarity ~~ the ~=rindings s?~o4ald b~ ob5ervoG so that they are properly svnohronized. PrLvidin t; a winding in a reverse dire~ti,~n can ca~ese signal cancella~eion.
'fhe core 28~2, in tlc, depict=~,d ~~n~~aoc~~nen"~, is g~~~:~rally 1_1-shaped ~~ritr~ a lamer a~~na~lar, semicircular, rsctang~l.ar cross-se;ctloned portion 2808 and an upper portaon de~aning two spaced-apart logs 2812a, 2812b. '~'h~ core 28(32., in t.l~e depicted embodiment, has a ~:hiokness 2814 of less than abo~~t (~.~ inches, ~3r2ferably ab=ut ~.Z inches (abo~~t ~ rnrr~), a ?o r~e:ight 2816 of abort 2.~~ Y.~~i~~,s ~ai~ou2 5~ ~-r:~j and a v~-:vd~t~
2818 ov abo~ay a.~4 incbes about 3.G5 crn).
because the sensor 58 is prefezably ~rlatavvly thin, 2814, the magnetic field is relatively tightly focused in the iongitd~di~~al ~st~~am wisp) difecti.on. ~.s a result, the coin or otaler object must be relativs~l~ close t~~ the s~;ns~~g before the coin gill have significant e~'~ect ~~ on sensor o~~tput. for this mason, it is possible to provide vr~lati~a~ly close spacing o~' coins without substantial risl~ of ~.~nd~sirablE.: influence of a leading or following coin on sensor output.
'~'he facing surfaces 2b22a, b of ~h~ legs 2812a, ba~-~., i~".: tl~o d~pioted ez~nbodinma:, substantially parallel and planar and are spaee~~ apace a distance x:824 of about a.3 inches 20 ~abOUt 8 min). 'f he interior iao~~ag surfacos % 822:a, b h2ve a height a.t least equal to flee widf~
of flee coin rail 2826, s~acl~ as ~boL~t -~.~ irNhes (bout 8' mrn). ~iUitxthe sensor positioned as depicted in 1~ig. 21 in tl~e op~~~crng co.,gfigu~atic~~s, the ~~ppeY leg :~,8L2a of the core is spayed from the lower leg 2812b of ahe core ;see hig. 231_3) by the inter-face gap 2824 to define a space 2804 for coin passage ~~r_Pougla the in~:er-leg gap. 'Tlne co~v 282 may be viewed as 2~ l~a~ring the shape of a gappo~ r~orroid wig i~ oxte~7ded legs 2 8,12a, 2812b with parallel faces 2822a, b. In one ~,mbodirr~onr~, the legs 2812~s, b aro substantially parallel. In another orr~bodiment, the legs 2812a, ~ are slightly inclined with respect to one another to define a tapered gap. ~Jithout wishing to b~ bound by any thoo~y, it is believed that extended faces which are inclined to de~~n~ a gap whicl'~ slig°.~tly tapers vurti~c~ly downward yields s~y~newhat ~o greater sensitivity near the rail ~:~,~herP tl~e majority of the coins or other items will ire located) but is relatively insensitive to tlbo vertical 2828 ~r horizontal 282 position of coins therein ~so as to provide useiazl data regardless of dnoslerate ~~oin ~~~~z:m~ee and/or dvobble) as a coin passes through tl~e gap 282. Lr~ the ~aepie~ed e~rqbodiznent, the faces 2822a,'b extend across the entire path width, to sense ;~~1 c~xe~allic o~~~ep:~s that move along the path in the z-c;gion of the sensor.
It is believed that providing a core i~~it=~- a larger gap ~i.e. with more air volume) is pat~tially responsible for decz-ea.img the serzsitiviry to coin an~saligzsznents but tends to result iz~
a somewl~zat lower magnetic ~,:jezasitivity and a~z increase in cross-talk. In one eznbodirnent, t~.e sensor can provide reliable sezzsor or~t,~».2t despite, a ve~ical dispi~icernez~t ("boanc~") of aboza 0.1 inch (about 2.5 znm) or more, az.id a sidewa_is (a~~~ay from tl°ie stringers) displacerzzent or ~o ''i~~obble" of up to tl.~l5 incises about ~.4 znnl).
In the depicted embodi~~z~ent tl-~e lo~~ frequency windi$~g 2864 is positioned at tine bo~aom of the sernicirc3,~Iar portion 28~~ and the 3:~igh ~reque~z~~y ~~.nnc~ing is positioned on each leg 28J6a, b of the semicirc~.zla~ portion. In oa~;~ en~hodime~~~ tire Iow frequency winding is configzAred to have an inductance din the c~-ivinr; and deteci-inn circuitry described below) of 75 about ~-.0 rnillihenrys and tile high frequency winding 28~6a; b to have an inductance of about 4(~ microhenrys. 'These inductance values are F_==~easured in the low frequency winding wi9;h the high frequency wvin=ding open and A Teaszzred ire the high Frequency v~inding witl~z file lo~v frequency winding shoz-teci together. ~l~e signals on the ~~~in~l.ing~;s are provided to printed circuit board via leads 27~~.
2o T'ig. 2S depicts the rr aor ~.anct-ional corrzljonents of the sensor 1'~:'B
25I2. In general, the sensor or transducer 58 provides a portion of ~ phase locked Loop which is rrzairztained at a substantially constant i°requez~ey. fl~~,~s, ~l~e lovj frequency coil leads are provided to a lovJ
'requency T LL 2q02a and the high freqLaency leads are pro~rided t~o high freqazeocy sensor ~T,1J 29~2b.
25 Fig. ~0 provides arf overview oI° a E-~ical transaction. T'la~;
transaction beg..ns v~hen a user presses a ''go'' or start bzztton ~d~12. ;lf~ response, the sy.==9te~
opens tl~e gate, and begins the lxor~3mel and coin pickup assembly disk znoto~-s 4431. AEs coins begin passing through the system, a sensor root sl~own~ is ~~sed to dete~~zine if tl~e hopper is in an overfill condition, izi which case the gate is closer. ii(~IB. 'The s~ste,rn is eorztinuo~~;ly oraitored for cazrrent peaks 3o in the zn.otors ~6L22 e.g. azsing cuz°rent se:_~so~-s 21,1121 ~~ig.
~-ll) s~~ that corrective actiozz such as reversing either or both of the motors For dejarnming porpo ses ~~24 can be irrzplemented.
_3G-~tirlrl~T ~aL3rC'~a~ CiTL~~i'~s?~ 63pera''s~~l~S, ~~9e syStLraL W31~. Se~~Se that CC~IY'iS are S-'~'varYLl'Clg past the sensor ~r02~. 'fhe s~st~:is a°~i~ t~ det~rri~i~-m 402 z~rli;.~thc~r ~oir~s are being sent to the reject chute or the coin trolley. lm the utter case, the system proceeds norrnaIy if the sensor in idle coin t~b~ outpaces ~~ ir~te~~r~i~tent or' 'fiiclcering yi~~~l.
l3oWever9 if the eoin tube sensor is stuck on or off, indicating a jam ripsveaan or dowTns9~~,arn such as an overfilled bin), operatic~r~s are suspended 4~~~%.
in one ~rr~bodiment7 t'ne ~~oW o~ ~~i~5 thra~ugh tl~~ systs~a~- is nnaraaged and/or'~alanced.
.~s shoWn in Fig. 4I, coin r~oi~~ can be managed by, e.g., control-Eing any or alI of the state of the gate l7, state or speed eQ r~h~ trammel ~-motor l~ ~~ ~/or st~~t~; ~~r speed ~;s~ the e;o~~ pickup ;o assembly motor ~Oj~ e.g. to ;~p,~i3nize or eth~~-wisv control the aff~ou~~t of coins residing in the tromrnel and/or coin pickuv asse-xnbly. ~~ur ~~car~~pl~, i~ a serz.soY 17:p4 indicates tl-iat the coin pickup assembly 54 'gas be~~~~~ fLBll, tl~~ r~icrocont~roxl~r ~a~2 cau turn.
off cue qtr~n~mea to stop feeding tine coin pick~~p assembly. In one embodimenit, a sensor ~ I 1 L, coupled to or adja~e~~t the trornmel SB, senses the ar~e~~,tnt ~ar~d/or type) of c~~bris falling out of the ti~~~rrr~1 r5 duri~ag a partit;a~lar transactieri car time ;period and, in response, the ~nicrocontrollev- 320 ca~.aes the coin pickup assembly r~~zot~>r t032 t~~ ~~~ ~:~ a dii'fPre-at speed and/or arovement patte-r~. ~e.g. to a~co~~modate s particulariy di.a~y bath ~f coins), po:~sibl.y ~~t tl~~ e~;p~nse of a reduction in throughput.
~~3~en the ~c~in ser~s~:~- ~~ ~~and ~ss6~~iated circuitTry a~Z~ci s~iriW are) are ~~sed ~o ~~easuro ~o or calculate coin sped, this <~~ t~r-matior3 rnay be ~:rsed :~,c~t only ~o eontrol the deflector door ~2 as described herein, but to oa-~~t an indication cf a need for maintenance.
For example as coin speeds decrease, a message for series oiT messages) to tlza3: ~~~~~t may lbe s°r~t to the host computer 4S so that it cara r~q.~est preventive 3-naintenance, pcr;entially there'oy avoiding a jam that eight halt a tra~~sactior.
~Q~~e the sys'~~m senses that ~oia~s are r~o iorag~r streanr~~ng past the sensor, i.f desired a sensor nay be used to determi:~o whether coins are present e.g. near the bottom oftr3e hopper 4042. li' coins are still present, the motor s ~~rontiu'L~~ op~ratir~~~ 4~~~
until ~oir~s are ~~ longer detected near the bottem of t;~~ 3~~pper. ~n~~ no more coins are detected rear the bottom of the hopper 404e~, tha system det~rniair~es that the transaction is cempiete.
'3'he system ~.aili 3o then actrwate the ~oa~~ rake, aracl, ~.f coins axe sensed t~ m~ve paast tie coin s~a~sor 5~ or into the hopper, the counting cycle is preferably repeated. ~ther~.visL, the transaction EviII be considered finished ~J~,B, an d the systeyr vvil3 cycle the trap doer and oa~ut e.g. ~ voucher of a type which nay be exchanged far goods, servi~:es or cash.
The Cain sensor phase locked ioo~ (~'~.L;, wlyich inciudes thu: sensor or transducer 58, maintains a c~tastant frenuer~cy arsd respands to the presence o3 ~.~ coin in the ga~j 2824 by a change in the oscillator sig_n:~i ~i~npiitude a~~d a change in the ~~,~=.
:error va~ca.ge. The phase locked loa~~? s~~owr~ in the depicted erriba~irx~e;ni: ~-e~,uires no adv~z~strnen~s and typical2y settles in about 200 microseconds. The system is self siar~ing and begins oscillating and locks phase automatically. The v~indir~g sigr;als (2 each for high :fre~ueruy and low frequency chan-s~els) are conditioned 2~0~ as described beio~v a.~d sent to an analog-to-digital (A/'~) converter 29f3~. The A/~~1 converter sai~~~les and digitizes ~~ a analog si~rna~s a~~ad pas:yes the inforrnasion to the ~.icr~controller 3202 (~'ig. ~2) ox~ the ~;on~~-ol ~ri.r~ted C',ircuit .hoard ~ssernlely (l'~hf~.) (described below) for further ~:nanilsr:laviar~ to identify coins.
l~s a coin passes thraugh tc~e tra~~s~l~ce;~- 5~, the un3p:~ite~cie of gibe ~~I.,I. error voltage 2~0~ a,b (sorraeti3nes referrdd to herein as a "~'' signal) and the aYnplitude of the ELI, ~~ sir~usoida9 ascillator signal (so~g~eti~~aes re-ierred ~~o as a "~"
s~gr~a.i) ~~ecrease. Tie ~'~,i~ error voltage is tittered and conditiorecl -nor eon~~ersi.on to digital data. The oscillatar signal is filtered, de~~nodulated, then canditioned for con~rersion ~o digital data.
since these signals a.re ge~~erated'~y two ~~~~ circ~~its (higp~ and iaw fre~:l~,~ency), four sigxrals resarit as the "signats~re"
~''or identifying coins. ~ figure :30 shows a your channel oscilloscope plot of the change in the 2o fo~~r signals (Lf-~ 3002, ~~,i~-C~ 30~J4~,, Vii"-f~ 3a0dg and ~~Ii-~ X008) as a coin passes the sensor. Information about the coin is represented in tl~e shape, tuning and amplitude of the signal changes in the four signals. 'fhe ~ontr~zl ~'~i~~9 which receives a digitized data representation ox'~these signals, laerforji3s a discrimination algorit.hrn to catd~,gorize a coi~~ and deterrrrine its speed through ~~-~e ~ar~sduce_, as de.3cribed belo~i~.
2~ T lie cain sensor ph~6se loc-iced lao~°, ac~;ording to e~~ne en~:'bodirnent, c~:~s:ists of a voltage controlaed oscillator, a phase cornparator, apnplifier':lilter for the phase comparator ou~~at9 and a rcferer~ce clock. The ~vo ~;~~ 's overate ~t 200 I~~z and 2.0 I~Iid~, with weir reference clocks synchronized. The phase relationship between the twa clock sigma 3101a, b is maintained ~by using u, divide~a-down c=ock rather '~har°x twa iradepend'.ent clc~~ck sources 30 3102. The 2 1~I~ cl~ck aartput 3101 a .is a?so used as tl~e ynaster clock for r~he A/~ converter 2906.
~s a coin passes ~~~roaagi-~ the t~ransduc3~r°s slot, they~e ~~ a change in ~f~e magnetic circuit's reluctance: This is seen; b~~ cirCuir-y as a decrease in the ineuctance value and results in a corresponding caeCrease in ~:l~e ampli~:~dc of ~he'~f,i. errs;r voltage, providing a first coin-identifying factor. The passing coin also causes a decrease i:ra tl-fe arnplitrrde of thEe sinusoidal F oscillator ~w~a~~efoa~~~, depending or= its ccr;~posit~u~~, e.g. dug; to ~ ~
eddy cvrz~rent Toss, and this is aneasured tss provide a second coin-ide~-wi~~ring factor.
T lae topology of th a oscillators 2q02a, b relies ors a 180 degree phase shift for feedback to its drive circt~i~~ arid is classi~ged as a ~olpi~ts c~sciz~~~or.
'hhe Colpitts oscillator is a syrnn3etric topoi~gy and allows the :oscillator to be isolated from ground. give for the o oscilla~~or is provided by a ~~igl> speed conaparator ~104a, b. ~'~a~e conlparator has a fast propagation to mirs:mize distortion due, to phase delay., low inr~r~t current to xnir~in~i~e loss, and remains stable ~,vhile operating in its lir~~:ar region. Ire the depicved ~,r~~r~odirr~ent, tl~e plus and minus rerrninais of the ir°rduCrors go directly to a high-speed ~,~~~mpar,~.tor~ whic~~ autobiases the Comparator so that signals convert quickly f>~~d are less susceptible to oscillakion and so ~5 lhat adhere is no need to bias the co~nparato~ to a central voltage ievc;l.
lay tying the plus and minas terminals of the indrzctor to tl~e plus arrd rrzinus terminals of the Comparator, the crossing o~ the te~nals' vok~;age at aray arbitrary poan'r in tl~u; voltage spertrurn v~ill cause a switch in tl°~e Comparator o~~~ut voltage so that ii. is autohiasing.
~'S~as achieves a wore nearly eves: ~~0%,~ duty cycle.
'fhe output of the cor-nparator driF~es the osci.ilator tlhro~.~gh resistors ~10~a, b. '~'he amplitude of the oscillating signal varies a.nd is correlated to~ the change i~~ "~" of the tuned circuit. without wishing to be bond by an.y tlaCOry, t~nis c,har~ge is believed t~~ be due to change in eddy current when a Coin passes tl~roul;h the transducer gaq.
~esators 3I08 a, Is, C, d v~rork wi~~l~ the input capacitance o~tru:; Corr~par~zor 3104x, b to provide frltering of unwanted 2~ hig'_~ frequency signal Compo~Eents.
Voltage Control of tie oscillator f~-equenCy is provided by way of the varactors 3l 12x, b, c, d, which act as voltage con~:rolled capacitors ~o~- tuning diodes).
These varactors change the capacit'ive Components of the oscillator. t.lse of two va~~aCCors maintains balanced Capacitance on eacE~ leg o~ windings .280~,280f1. A,s the reverse diode aoltage increases, ~~ Capacitance decreases. 'phus by changing tl-ae 'aToltage ~or~trolled ~scillator ~~IC~3~ input vol~agc in accordance with the Cl~iange :-a indr~.ctance due to rye presence of a Coin, the frequency of oscillation can tie maintained. TEtis ~~C;C~ input voltage is the signal used to indicate cisange; of inductance in this eirci~a.
'~'he phase/frequency detector ~ s ? 4-a, h per-~~omns certain ~ont~rol functions in t'_~is circuit. L compares the ou~;pt~'~ frequer$~~y of bile cornparat:or ~i~6a, b to a synchronized reference clocl~ signal and has an outpa.~t that varies as the ~~wo si~-~als diverge. ~~e out~p~t stage of the device amplifies aa~d filters =iris please comparator output signal. This an~pli~ed and 1°iltered output provides the ~J~~ s~on~oi sihnaa Bused to izndic;ate charge of inductance ire this circuit.
in addition. the depicted d~,vice ides an o~~-put ~ l l ~;~, C~ w:'~iclz, when afrpropriately 1o conditioned, carp be used to deterrr~i~e whether she 1'LL is '~in lock''.
In one ern~odiment, a 'ioclc-fail signal is sent to the i~ucxo~;roressor on ':he ~ ontrol g~~:f~ as era error indication, and an LLD is provided to indicate when both high and low frequency I'LL are in a locked state.
Because flee sensor S8 receives e~citat::ozL at ~:va~~ frequencies ~:~rougl~
t~~o cons wrapped on the same ferrite code,~ there is a pot~yntial for the coupling of signals which rrnay ~5 result it undesired amplit~,~de modulation orb~ the irdividr.iai s~~~gnais .hat are being rraonitored.
Filters 2~12a, b remove the undesired s-~ectraa component while maintaining the desired signal, prior to arnpiitude nreasuze~~en~. it this way, tie m~;w~sured aanpli~~ade of each. signal is not influenced by an independent change in the amplitu.<le of tfae other osciilatc;r circuit sib als.
'fee filt~°red output signals ire le,~~el-shied to cent~;:r there at ~.~ ~~~ in order to control -che ~neasurernent of the signal an~plir~de dy dovvr~strea~a~
circuitry.
n. the de;~ic~~ed ern~rodirr~en;, thr; acti~ie highpass and i:ova,~ass filter s are ir~pi~~nerxted as Sallen=Fey ~utterrvorth two~poie filter =circv:its ~91~a, ~. ~~ offset adjuscrnent of tine o~avput sigr-~als is accomplished icy using ~ 'duf~~:,red voitag~; divid~,r as a referee c~,. Input 2s buffers ~~I4a, b are provided to miniz ize iossus or' the oscillator circuit by rnain-taining a high inpart irrapedarce to the f:~lter stage.
The lowpass falter ~~l~a is designed to provide more than ~Odl~ of attearuation at 2 I~~~~ while maintaining integrity of the ~i>~ :~l-.lz signal, with less teat ~;9.1 d~ of loss at that frequency. The cutoff frequency is 5~~ ~~f~z. iglapass filtering of the outp=at from the 30 lov~-pass filter is provided 2~18a vri.~~ a c~~"Lofi frequency of ~'l -5:,z. Tying to a 1~~; referer~gce 2922a provides an adjusted output that centers tire 2~t1 l~r signal at 3.~
~i~~. This output of feet adjustment is desired for subsoq~~aer~t ampla~de easure~nont.
'Y he highpass filter ~~ I ~~ is ~~igrE~,~~ to ~rovici~ nlog:e; =harp '~~d~
oi° atten~.atxorat 2~D~
1~3z while maintaining integt>;ry of the 2t~J i~Jli~a~' sig~ml, w~~:I:~ Ices than ~. ~ dl~ of loss at that frequency. 'The cutoff frequency is ?~~ ~~z.
~rr~plitrude ~neasurenn~.W of the sinusoi dal oscillator waveforrn is acconlplislled by d~~nod~lating the signal with a :negative peak detecting circuit, and measuring tree; dif~~erence between this value and the .1~~ reference voltage at ~~vl~ich the sina~soi~3al signal ;.s centered.
'hi is comparison n ~oasureinent is then sealed to utilize a significant portion of the 1~I~
.0 converter's input ravage. ~'he ir3put to the cvrcant is a ialterev.
sin.~~sa~idal signal centered at a l~nown ~C; referenc;e voltage o~~~ut of the ~~ighpass or lowpass active fiiLee.
The input signal is delnodu fated joy a c~_osed-loop diode peak detector circuit. Tlle tune constant of the network, e.g. ~3 rnsov, is h:ng co~nparod to tll;. period of tlle. sinusoidal input, bnt short when copa~-~~. re tl~e tirr~e ~;:~apsud as a ~oi~~~ passes thro~agia the sensor. 'his ~5 relationship allows the peak detector t9~ r~a~t q~aiclcly to a change in a~~nlitude caused by a coin event. She circuit is inlplenlented as a negative peak dot;ctor rather tlfan a positive peak detector because the ~;o~paraz~o~~ is rnoro predictable in its ability to drive the signal to ground than to drive it high. ~on~tpa~~ators ~Iz~a., b, such as mosi~,l l~'1'101~;~~8, ava'ila~tsle from f,inear '1'ecllnology, provide a high slew rate anc maintain stability ~%vhil~
i~a the liruear regio~-~.
~o The analog closed-loop peak detector avoids the potential phase error problems that f~lter-stage phase lag and dyna~ci~ plJ_ p;~~aso s!gifts n.~.ight -~,reate for a sample-aryd-hold iamplexnentatio:n, and elin~i~satos tile n~eti for a saTf~~pling clock.
'f'he negative pe2Lk de=actor output is compared to the a~~ reference voltage, then scaled and paltered, by using ail op anlp 31~~a, b implemented as a ~lifferenee amplifier. '1'he ~~ difference a~np is configured -.:~a subrrac3: vhe : ~~gati~r~, peas frog:
the l:~C reference and ~~nultiply the difference by a sealing factor. i:z~ one embo di~n~nt, for tale low i~r~~uency channel, the scaling factor is ~i.t32, and tlm high frequency challnc.l scales the output by 5.11.
~:"ne output of the difference ar~:pli~fior has ~. lo~vpass ialte~- on tl-~e feedback with a corner frequency at appro~irnat~iy ~~~ ~1;;. .in ~~~e depicted ~nlbodi~alezat, there i,<.~ a snulbboz at tl~~
~o output to filter high frequency trc~nszents ca~zsod l=y switching in th.e ~~/I) ~o:lvert~~:.
'1'he error voltage rne~s~~~..o~~enc, scaling, and filtering ois-~uit 31~.~a, b is designed to subtract 2.5 VAC from the 1?:~Jl=, error voltage and amplify the-, resulting di ierence by a factor ol'tvro. g'ize T'L.~. orro:~ voltage input signal ~vilT be ire the, 2.'s-4.~
~i~C range, and in order io maximize the use of the h/T~ c.:~=_~verte:-'s input Tango, the offset volrage is subtracted and the signal is a~npliTied.
'i ho input signal is pre-~~ltored with a ltawpass con~e3 fro~uency of 477 T~~z, and the oa~t~ut is altered in the feedbacq~ loop, Y~Ji~~ ~ cup:-off ~~~uer~c;~ off=
2.3 T~z. ~ sra~g'obor at the output ~lte°rs high fro~uency tra:r~si~;nts ~~~sed by s~ritohing ir~~
the l~/~ converter.
In an interface circuit, 2T~22 data and control signals are pulled up and pass through se~~i~,s ter~~r°zination resistors., In: ~.~aitio~~, ~~Ee dates signals T~~'T,~ -~aAft~ 1 ~ are bu~~:exo d by bi-directional registers. these bi-directional buffers isolate the ~1/l~
converter frown direct connection to tlae data bus and. associated int rconno~-,.~ s;ablir~a~.
~~he A/~ converter 2~~~ is a singh~ sv~pply, 8-charnel, 12-bit sampling converter such as yodel ~;~7859.f~p s~.~~ilable: fro~~:~ A7~aTog ~evi~e~s~. The ~ll~
transactions are 95 directly controlled by the ar~ic-ropxo~esso~- ors the ~~o~~trol hC:~~l~.
l~n overvievaT of control provided for various hardware components is depicted in Eig.
3~. In 1=b. 32, the control h~rdr~aar~; is g~=:~orally derided inez, ~~:~.
c;oin sensor harwware 32~~
and the coin transport hard~.varo 3206. ~ ~~umTser of aspects of hardware 32~~., 3206 are controlled ~ri~ a miorocontrolTob 3202 whielA nay be ~r~y of ~ ~ru~-~~b~r of rnicrocontrollers. In ~o one, ernbodin~ent, ~l'~I86E~, available from l~dvan~; d l~;icro ~oviCes, is provided.
~ho microcontroller 3202 corna~a~r~icates with and is., to sor.:~e degree, co~~t-rolled by, the 110St comptater a~~. 1 he lost ~oxnp~.~to~~ ~.~0 cazx be any ofir ~
narxral-yer of c;omput~;rs. gn one embodiment, comp~3ter 46 is a computer e~~ploying an Intel X86 or Pentiam~
processor or o~uivalont. 'fhe host ~oynp~~_'~,r ~6 and ~~aoroc~~ntzollor 320 communicate over serial limo 25 3208 via respective serial ports 321L,321~. 'The rnicrocontroller 3202, in the depicted orr~bodirno~~t, has ~ second serial po.~t X216 which may be ~T~sed for nurpos~;s such as debuggib~g, freld service 3218 and t&3e liT~o.
I)~aring normal opera.tior~g progr~mm.i~xg and data for tA o :icrocontroller ~r~ stored in rr°~emory ~;~~hich may ir:~IucT~ normal rar~ds~.rn across rneanc~f ~l~l'~h 3222, norh-volatile 3o random access memory such as hash -~r~orgro~y, static memory and the li~~
322, and read-only rnon~or3~ 322 which ~rg~.y in~l~~~~~, programmable :r°Fd/or electronical-l~ oras~b:~o ~rogram~ra~ble react-only m.en~ep~ (:~;f;la~~h/l). In one e,rr~bociirnex~t, microprocessor ~rmwa~-e can be downloaded from a remote location= via tlxe host computer.
Applications software 32?~ for co~~~-olli~y operation. ~r~ zhe 'post computed
pig. I q depicts the systeA~ of Fib. t '7 witl°~~ the front po~~~io~~
pivoted;
_g_ Fig. 20 is a cross-sectional view taken aioi~g line 20-z~ of Fig. 17;
pig. 21 is a ~~ont elevational view of 21~e coin rail portion of ~ ig. 17;
~'ig. 22 is a perspective vie,v c~ the cyst m of Fig. 1'7, shovring an Pxar~ple of coin locations:
Figs. 23A tnroitgh 2~~'s are cross sectior.~I vie~.~~s taken along lines 23A-2~A through 23~a-23C~, respectively, oi'Fig. 21;
Fig 24 is a cross sectional view taken along line 24-24 of 1=ig. 22;
ig. 25 is a rear eievat;on~l vie v,.~ o i'tla.~: system of gig. i 7;
~'ig. 25 A is a partiai view cc~~:~espondi~rg to 1~ ig. ~5,, beat sluo~vin.g the ~~alce in tic downstream position;
Figs. 2~ any 26A are cross-sec,-Tonal ~aie~~~s taken alo~~g li~aes 2~-2~ and 26A-26~~ of Figs. 25 and 2oA ;
Fig. 26 is a top plan view of a portion o~~ ~.?~e system aF.~~'ig. i'l, showing a rail rake;
Figs. 27A and 27~ are vront and rear pe~~spective views of a sensor and sensor board ~5 according to an embodiment of the present/ in~er~tion;
gigs. 2~1~ and 2~ 1~ are firont axed side el~;vationa.l viev,~s o1' a sensor core according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 29 is ~. block diagram of ~'~nctional components o1" a sensor board, according to an embodiment of the present invention;
ig. 3~ is a graph of an exaF~piv or scns~~r signais according to an cmbodi5ment oi~ tl~e present 121vent2t9n;
Fig. 31 is a schematic diagrarrr of a sens:~r boaa~d, according to an embodiment of flee presentinvention;
Fig. 32 is a block diagram ~~ hardware for a coin discrimination device, according to 2~ an embodiment of the prcsenv inventio<<;
Fig. 33 is a graph o_° a 1=ypothetic;al example of sensor signals, according to an embodyment o-f the present ~nR~~eyl$aon;
Fig. 34 is a flow c~~art o~~' a coin signat~r,re cale~:lation process, according to an ernbadiment of the present invention;
3o Fig. 35 is a state uiagram or a cobble discriminatio~z ~,~rocess according to are embodiment of the present in >-entior;
Fig. 3~ is a state diagran-h for a categorization process according to art embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 3'7 is a ~locl.~ di~,gran~ ~or a ~~tegoriz~.tiott process accot-c-~ing to art em'~odiment of tile present invention;
Fig. 38 is a state di~tb~arrr or'' a lC~irec~ l~ev~ory 1~,~:~cess ~~roaess accorl~rr~rg to an embodiment of the present inve~~~ion;
Fig. 39 is a timing diagrarrt of a 33ireca I~en~ory f~ceess process according to an embodiment of the present in.verttior3;
Fig. 4~ is a flowchart slrowir'~g a coi~a discrimination process, according to an y0 embodiment or'the present irt~wntiort;
Fig. 41 is a block ;l.iag;rari~r slo~%~~ing ccymponents ~~~ ~ co::n discrirnina~ion system according to an embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 42 is a flowchart showing a leading find trailing gap verification procedure; and Fig. ~-3 is a partial cross sectional vie5,v showing a coin retrarn path according to an ~ 5 embodiment of the present invention.
I~~T~IL,EI~ D~ ~~I~T'II)1~ ~~'~I~~~ PI~~~~~I~~I~ ~~aWfB~II~II~~'T~
The sensor and associated apparatus described herein can b~; used in connection with a number of devices and purposes. ~ne device is illustrated in Fig. 1~. 1rxi this c!evice, coins are placed into a tray 120, acrd fed to a, ser2sor region 123 via a first ramp 2:~~ and coin pickup 2o assembly 28~. in this sensor region 123, data is collected by wrhicll coins are discriminated front iron-coin objects, and different denontinatiorts or courur-ies of coins are discriminated.
The data collected irt the sensor area 123 is used by the corrzprater 29d to control rnovemera of coins along a second ramp I2~ in suc.la a way as to route tlte, coins into one of a plurality of bins 210. The computer may ~t~tput x,~forn~atic~n such as tl2ttotal value of the coins prated 2~ into the tray, ~~ia a printer 27G, screen 13~fl, or the line. in the depicted embodiment, the conveyance apparatus 23~, '~80 which ~s upstream of the ser'asor region 123 provides the coins to the sensor area 123 serially, one at a tirr~e.
The embodiment depicted in Fig. 1 B ger~er~,lly inchades a coin counting/sorting pot~tiort 12 and a coupon/voucher dispey~si~rg ~ortioras l~ta,b. ia~ tl-ze depicted emb~,dirnent, the coin counting portion i~, incl~~c~es an ~~~put ts~ay 16, a voucher dispensing region 18, a coin return region 22, and custorr~e~- ,/C~ dezrices, including ~ keyl~o~~-d ~4, additional keys 26, a speaker 28 and a video screen ~~. 'fhe apparatu s can include ~Ta~ous indicia, signs, displays, adver~isernent anal the l~l~e o~ y ~a e~tevrZaF su-~ facc . ~ ,power r~o -~~
34 provides power to the mechanism as described below:.
Preferably, when the doors 36a,. 3~b are rtn the open ~ms~tion as shown, ~nesst or alb of the components are accessible for cleaning a3~d/cr maintenance. Ii: t:be depicted embodiment, a voucher printer 23 ~~ig. 41 f ~s mounted on the inside of the ~Loo:~ 36a. ~
numbe< of printers can be used for this purpose. In one ernbodimenr, a model KI~,I3S~54j3 printer, available from ~xioh is used. 'fhe right-hand porticsn s.~f the cabinet incl.~~~des tlae coL~pon feedex 4~ for dispensing, e.g., pre-printed ~nanufact<.~rer e;oupon sheets through a chute 44 tc a coupon hopper on the outside portio9-~ of the door 36b. ~~. cornp~.~ter '~~, ire the depicted ernbodin~ent, is positioned at the top of the sight hand portion of the cabinet in order to provide a relatively clean, location for the computer. An I/~ board ~~ is positioned a~~~ac,ent the sheet feeder ~~2.
~ 5 'fhe general coin pat: for the e~nbodirneat depicted in ~ lg. 113 l s from the input tray 16, down first and second ch~yi;,s to a tron~zneF 5;%, to ~ coin picl<~p a.ssepnb~y 54, ~Fong a coin rail 56 and pass: a sensor 58. If, based on sensor data, it is dctern~ined th~.t the coin can and should be accepted, a controiahle deflector door 62 is acti~-~ated t~J divert coins from 'heir gravitational paah to coin tubes 64a, b for deliveiy to coin trclleys ti6a, b.
If it has not'~een 2o determined that a coin can and should be accepted, the door f~2 is not activated arid coins nor other objects continue dowx tFaeir gravitational or default pr.~tlz to a eye jest cute 68 for delivery to a customer-accessible reject or return box ~~.
devices that may be ~~sed in co~~r~ection °~aith the inpo.t tr~.y are described :gin ~.S.S.1~1.
08/x.55,539, no:v IJ.S. Patent 5564546, v8!237,486, Nov. IJ.S. a~atent 5626'79, supra.
25 devices that may be used in connection ~.vith the coi7:~. trxlejrs 66a, 66b are described in Ci.S.S.~. X8/883,776, now I1.S. Patent 6,Q82,519.
devices that may be r~sed in connection with the coi:c~ chutes and the tror~~el 52 are described in ~C'f/US97/~3F36 1?eb ~'8, 1997 and its parent provisional application iJ.S.S.1~T.
60/~ 1 X964.
3o Briefly, and as descri~oed more thoroughly below and in the above-noted applications, a user is provided with instructions such as on cc~~~puter screen ~~. 'fhe user places a mass of coins, typically of a plurality of denor~ir~atio~s (typically accompanied by dirt or other non-Co~n ob~eCtS~ in the input tray 16. ~~~e user is prompted to push a button to inform the machine that the; user wishes to lave coins dise~-i~~zinated. Th~~-eupo~-~, the computer causes an input gate 17 (Fig. ~l~ to open and ilh:minates a signal to prompt the user to begin feeding coins. '~ ho gate may be controlled to open or close for a m9mb~,r of pu~.~oses, such as in respo~.se to sensing of a jarn, so~~sirag of load in tree trommel o~ coin pickup asseni~ly, and the like. In ox_o embodiment, signadevices such as L,E>Js can p-=o~ride a user ~.vith an indication of whether tlae gate is open or closed for other<wcse to prompt the user to feed or discontinue feeding coins or other ob3ects~. ~yltlzoubh anstra~ctions to feed or discontinue may be provided on the computer screen ~2, indicator ligi~ts are b~;lie~od useful since users often are vvatcl~ing the throat of the ~h~~te, rather tl-~ar~ the voa~.putor screen, during the feeding of coins or other objects. ~Jhon the gate is open, a. motor i~ (Fig. =~-l~ is actisrated to begin routing the trommel assembly 52. she user ~~~nvos coins over tl~o l~oaked output edge 72 0:~ the inf,uWtrray 1C~, typically by lifting or pivoting the tray by haw~dle 7~-, aa~d/or y~anually feeding coins over the peak 72. '1'he coins pass the gate ~Lypioall~,~ set to preve~,~t passage of morn than a precleterrnai~ed number of stacked ~oirs, suc;l~ a;~ by dea~inir~g> a~~~
~opo~aing equal to about/ ~.5 times a typical coin thickness). Instructions ors the screen :~2 may be used to tell the user to continue or discontinue feeding coins, can reay the status of the machine, the amaunt counted thus far, provide onoou~-agome-~3t or advertising messages and the like.
2o First and second chutes knot shown} are positio_~ed betwoen the outaut edge 72 of the input tray Id and the input t~ the trammel 5=. preferably, the second chute provides a funxieling effect by having a greater ~ridch a.t ~~xs uhst~eam ~;dgo than its downstream edge.
Preferably, the coins cascade o= ''EVate~~fail" :vheu passing from taro first chute to the second chute, e.g. to increase momen tum and t:urnbli~~g of the coins.
Preferably, some or all of the surfaces that contact the coin along thc~ coin path, including the chutes, have no fEat region largo enough for a ~:;oir~ to contaet the surface over all or substantially all of ~,no of the races o-Y tie coin. So~~.~~o such surf~~cos a~:r; curved to achieve This result, such that coins make contact or~, at most, ~'wo points of such surfaces.
~ther surfaces may have depressions or protrusions such as being provided with dimplos9 3C quiitir~g or other textures. Preferably, ~:he surface of the second chute is const~ruct:;d such tl-aat it has a finite radius of curvatzzru along ~;ny plane z~oz-rn~ti $o its longitudinal axis, and preferah:~y with s='ach radii of~E~r~;atLare incz-uasing in tlzu direction of coin flow.
In one embodiment, ~I~~ chutes are formed from injected molded plastic such as an acutaI resin e.g. I~eErira~, a~~aiia~le frc~n~. .E.1. ~nPor~$ de l~In~~o~?rs a~ ~o., or a polyarzzide polymer, such as a nylon, azad the like. ether rmterials that cart be used for the chute; include metals, ceramics, fi'oerglass. reinforced .anat~ri~IS, epoxies, cez-amic-coated or ._reinforeed materials and the like. The chorus may contain devices for performing additional functions such as stops or raps, e.g., for dealing wraith vario~.zs types of el,~ng~ate objects.
T he trommel 52, in fne depic $ed urlbodiment is a perforated-wall, square cross ~o suction, rotatably mounted co~aain"r. ~r~fcrabl.~, dimples protrz~de slightly into ~'.he inteior region of the trommel to avoid adhesion and/or reduce friction between coins and the interior surface of the tromn,el. 'f;~~ trornmel is rotated shout its lor~gitudiraal axis. Preferaoly, operation of the device is monitored, such as by monaitoring current draw for the tromrr_ul motor using a current sensor ~1. ~ sudden increase or spike :'.n caz~.~runt draw may 1u ~ 5 considered indicative of an undesirable load and/or jam of the, ti om_°nel. T he system may be configured in various ~~ays no suspor.d to su~I-~ a suz~sed jrrr~-s such as by turrai.ng off the trommel m~tor tO S$Op attempted trOYk~Ii181 rOt~t1021 and/or reverSlng tl?e mo$Or, Or altering motor diruc;tioz~ periodically, vu ~ttumps: to clear the jan~y. In c;nu embodiment, ~vl~~,n a jav~z or undesirable load is sensed, coin food is sto~p~;d or discouraged, e.g., by closing the gate 2o and/or illuminating a "stop feed'' indicator. ~.5 the trommel motor r~
rotates the trommul, one or more vines protrudixzg into tine into~ic~r of the tror~a~~,l assist in providing coin-lifting/frue-fall and zno~ing il~~: coins in a direction towards tie output region. C~bjuuts smaller than the smallest acceptable coi_~. (about 17.5 aim, in ozse ernbodiment) p<~ss through the perforated -wall as the coins tumble. In one umbodimene, ~lie hobs have a diameter of 25 about x.61 inclxes (about 1.5~ ~~~~) ~to l~ruvunt passage of LJ.~.
dizzr:es. l~n output chute directs the (at least paz'~ially) cleaned coins exiting the trommel towards the coin:
pickup assembly 54. The depicted horizontal disposition oa° Ehe '~rom~r~el, whi~i~
relies on vanes rather Ehar~.
trornmel inclination for longitudinal coin ar-~ov~ments, achieves a relatively small vertical space re~uiremunt for the troE~r~nel. Preferably ~:hu tromznel is z~ounted in such a way that it 3o may be easily removed anc~'o° opened or disassumbl.ed for cleaning and maintenance, as described, e.g., in PCT Applio~z.on L7 ~~7/0313~., supra.
~s depicted in i~'~g. 17, coin pickup asscl~~s~Iy 5~ includes a il~pper l 702 fir Yecei~ring c~siYPs ~utput fr~ri~l the tr~xnrnci ~~. 'fhe b~pper 1702 Inay be rrPadv at relat-iErely 1~~r cyst such as by vacu~Pln fc~rrraing. lza ~P~c ~;r~Pb:~da:r~e:rP~~, vhe i~~pper 1702, is f~rr~~aed ~f a plastic -material, s~.acb as polyetlPylene, backed ~.rab~PP scsund-a'os~rb-~PZg f~aYra F~r redP.~cing noise. ~Jitbs~u~ being b~und by any Cheery, is is belie~Jed that p~iyeflPyi~ne is useful t~ reduce c~ir~ sticking. Miler features ~hicb may be fsre~vided fc~Y the lP~pper include =,~Qap:-rig t~
prr~~Jidc a curvatuYe sufficient ~s~ avoid face-to-face c~ntact betw~.en coins arPd the hopper surface and/~Y
providing suYface texture (such as e-b~,ssi~~Pg, dilrPpling, faceting, daa~.lting, ~-idgang or Yibbing~
can the ~~~pper inLeri~r sP~rfac~'. ~i~~, 1-E~ppe~. 1 702 preferably axes an a~n~un~: df f~~exibility, ~o rat'~er ahan being rigid, wi~ic~= redPPCes ?be ~c:cPaYrence ~f ~a:ra aPld assists in clearing ~a~~~s slnCe C~Enu are nit ~t~F'~ed agaxx3St a Sa311d, 'rt?iy P°s""~~i~lg SBIrfaCe.
fps descilbed bel~W, ta"i~:, J'~lYls n=~4"v':° xnt~ a n anaPP~~aI
~C:PT"a ~~atll dc~ Iae'd, ~51~ the ~Llts',de, by the edge ~f a circulaY z~ecess 180 (l~ig. 18~ a~~d, can vxPe inside, by a ledge t80~ fs~~-xnec~ eon a Yail disk 180. 'flxe c~ins ~.-~e cna~e~'. along tb° anl~ular pati~'~y paddles 1704a, b, c, d fc~Y
~5 deli~Jery to the coin Yail 5~.
<~ CPYCUIt ~J~aYd ~7~~~- L~t p<53~11f:°~.Ia:~ C;~:~I'tc'.Tn CW'?~r~l fl.P:nC~P~rIJ, aS deSCYIbed be$~E~, Is preferably rn~unted erg the generally accessib:~.e front surface ~f the chassis 184. !fin electrc:~yagnetic inteYfeYencc (~~,1~~~ saget~ sbield i7~.0 ne~rn~al~y c~~J~;YS the circuit beard 174 and S6~Ilngs ~perf ~n ?IPnges 1 7~ ~Sa,b fCi: ea Sy Ss~,Y~~P~e aG~eSS.
2o in the emb~dirnent depicted in ~~'ig. 17 anti 18, the c~in rail ~e5 and fee recess 1808 fir the disks are fc~rrrled as a single piece ~r bic~ck, ;such as the depicted base plate 1810. In one ernb~dirneut, the base plate 1810 is f~a-rsacd ~c~rP~ high densit;~
p~Iyethylene (pI~f9E~ and the recess 1808 arid c~in Yail 5~, as vaell as the sari~us ~pe~bings depicted, are fdrrl'~ed by nPacb,ining a sheet ~r bl~ck ~f .~:~1'~,. i~i3:~f; a useful rnateria:
becaPase., arn~ng ~t~ier reasa~ns, 25 cn~~Ppenents Inay be Irl~unted asing sei~ tapp:i~lg sc-re~vs9 ~-educio~g manufacturing cysts.
~''urtlierrn6)re, uSe ~f a nen-~llcsa~l~C ba~~i ~~SaaE;~; IS 'i7referred In i)r~~a' w~,~ a\l.~.iP:° Inter~,rel"1Ce VtJlt tile sensa~r. In ~ne elnb~dinPCnt, e~.ectrically c~nducti~re ~l~f°~
h~~y be used, e.g. ~~~ dissipate acetic electricity.
be base plate I 8l0 is -~I~unted ~n a chassis 186 ~v3~bcb is p~sitioned ~rdithin the 3o cabinet (~'ig. l~~ such that the base plate 1810 is lisp.~sed at a~~ angle 186 ~aicl~ respect t~
vertical 188 of between abc~s~t 0° and abcPPt ~5°, preferably l~et~meP~ about 0° and a~o~Pt l ~°, more preferably about 2t1°. IW :,~erablr-, ~~ac ~iv=vrtei~ co~Jer 1,~~
a ~s pavotal~y co~:pleca to trc base plate I8I~, e.g. by hinges 18 r ~a, Id i2b, s~~ that the di~~&:~~rte,r coyer 18I l rna;y'~c easily pivoted forward'~Fig. ISO e.g. for clearAing arid rr~~~irlte~~a.~ce.
~ rotaiing Train disk I 8I2 is f~:o:i~g~red I'-:~r tight ~smax clearances ,~~t against the edge 18412 of recess i_8(18. ~ir~ger ~;~Ies I813a, b, ~, d facilitate rerr~o~~al of the disl> for c~lea~irag or r~~aii~tena~ce. relatively Ioose ~Iarge clearance) ~t is provided between disk holes 181~a, b, c, d and Lrub pins 18I C~a, b, c, d and bctween central opening 1818 a:~d motor ha~b 1820. ~'he l~cse ~t of the bt~les arid the tight l ,:.: o:" the edge o~ disk l 8 i.2 a=.ssssi in redur;ing debris ent~rapnaent aid motor jams. ~3eca~se the main disk is recei~aed lm recess 1802, it is free i~
~ o flex and/or tilt, to some degr,~e, e.g. iir order to react to coin jams.
statio~~ary rail disk 18~1~ is positioned adjacent fee rnairdisk 1812 and l.as a central opening I82~. fitting loosely ~~iti~ respect 9o the ~~otor I~~b I 8~~. :'~~~~
.one e~~bodirr~ent, the rail disk is Iorz~fed of graphite-i~Iled i~br:molic.
~'h~e ledge 1804 deflg~ed by the r~~il dish I8f3G is preferably c~nfiigured so drat the 'i5 an~r~lar c~in path flares or ~~~ide~~s i_~ the di~-~.~cti;~n of coin t~~~3~rel s=~~ch rha~ spaci~rg between the Ledge and the recess edge near tl~e bottom or begyaning o~ the cain path fat the cigl~t o'clock positi~~~ I87d~ is smaller ~s~ch as about 13.25 inches, or about 6 n~~
srnaller~ than the corresponding distance I82~ a.t the twcL~re osciocls position I828. tn one e~~-~lsodirnent, the rail disk I80~ (and- -~~~tor 232; are r~zo~#nted rt ~k sligb~ anbl~, to tl~.e plane forrr~e~, by the 2~ attachrr~ent edge 2~~2 of flee s~aoppe-r I7112 such that, along tr"~e coi ~
path., the coin charnel generally ;r~creases in depth ~i..v. in a dit~ectiox pe~pe~adic~rlar tc~ tl~e G.ce ~sf tie rail ~zisls~.
l~.s the coins travel co~;~tercloc~Cw~s~., frorr~ approxir~i.ate~y a twelve o'clo~~k position I828 of the rail disk, the ledge is thereaf~es substantially linca~ ai~ng a portion I83~. (p'ig. lg~
extending to the periphery o4 the rail disk 18t1~ aJ~d ending adjacent the coin backplate 56 and 25 rail '~ip IB~~;. I~. tab-I~ICe prot~~asi~~ 1838 is engaged by rakl'rip I83C, bolding tl~e pail disk I B~~ in position. flee rail dusk is '~elaeved to be more easily ~ranLrfactared and constructed than p:-e~ious designs, such as those -sing a coin kril'e. ~ ~:r'therrnore, the present design avoids the problean, o~te~: f~s~~~d ~vitl~ a c~~in knife, in wl~icl. the tip of the knife was susceptible to p=-ying outward b;~ debris accuvr~nh rd bel~ird t1~~4. 'v_ip ;~~' the c~~in knil~.
~ tension dish 1838 is e~ositioned adjacent the rail ~Iisl~. 'f be tension dish 1838 is ~x~ounted on ti~~e rnoaor hub 182 aria ce~~t~-al ope~ring I 842 and threaded di;yk knob I 8~~. ~s _t~_ tic lcnoh 18~~- is tightened, spring inge3-s i 84~U, d, c, d ap~rv~y .sorc;e to keep the disks 188, I80~, 1812 tightly together., reducing spices or cracks i~~ w=~~iclz debris could otherwise become entrapped. l~re~ers'~Iy, the k~m~L 1844 carr be easily r~.~noved Isy hand, permitting re~novai oP all e.he disks 181 z; 1804, 1838 ~e.b., ~:er rnai~tena:r~ce or Gleaming) withoi~~ the need for tools.
~~ one e~~bodi-~nent, tE~e tension disk 188 end ~~airr d~~islC I8I2 are formed of stainless steel while tie rail disk i.8~~i is fo~x~ed of ~ different r~~aateria.l s~~ch as graphite-filled phenolic, which is be?ieved to be lrelpfai in ;educing galling. The depicted coin disc co?~fig~ratior~, ~rsing ahe descri~ued Frra~c~-i~ls, Marx he :~a~r~f~ctt~t-ed relatively easily aa~d .e ir~e~pe~sively, compared t~ previous de~rices. la~ddles 37~4~, ~s, c, d are pivotally amounted or: tension disk pins 1848a, b, c, d so as to pernit one paddles to pivot in direcfiions 1852a, i 852b paralleY to the, tensfon~: disxc piianc: = 838. Such piveztir=.I; i s v~setaxl in ~:c:,dz~cng the creation or exacerbation of coin jarris since coins or other ite~rzs which are stopped along the coin path will cause tg~e paddles to flex, or to pivot arourDd pins 1848x, b, c, d, rather tha~~
iC re~L~iring tl7.e paddles to coat~~~~e ~pplyir~g ~yall $~~otor-~~ducs~d t~ref, ors the stopped coins or other objects. Springs 1854a, b, c, d resist the pivoting 185~a, ? 852b, urging the paddles to a positior3 oriented radially ov:~:ward, i~ tl~e a~~sence of resista~~cc ~.;.g.
from a stopped coirA or other object.
preferably, sharp or i-~-rsgular s~triaces v~~hich rnay stop yr entrap coins are avoided.
2C Thvs, covers 18S6a, b, c, d ~ze placed oxen the springs 185~9~, ~~, c, d and coraic<~11;~-shaped washers 1858x, b, c, d protect tile pi vot p=..rs 184~8a, b, c, d. Ir~. a ;>i.rnilar spirit, the edge of the tension disk 182 is angled ~s= charr~fered to avoid coins hanging on a disk edge, potentially ca~~sing j~rnmi~g.
As depicted in pig. 2~, a number of corrrponents are mo;.~nte.d on the rear surface o.f 25 the chassis 18f~~. A motor, s~~c~. as rnod~.~ ~~3~, drives the rotation of disks 1812, 1.88 via motor drive hrz'~ 18~~. ~n ~ctvrator su~;n ~s solenoid ~,01~~ cozrtrois rruove~a~ent of the trap door 1872 (described below. ~ sensor asserr~bly, i~~cla.ding sensor printed circuit boa°d (P~~) %~ 12 is slidably nnour~ted in ~ shield ~~ L4.
The Lower edge of the recess 3.88 is ~:orr~ned by a. se jaraate piece 18'72 ~vhicl~ is 3C r~o~znted to act as a trap door. '~'he trap door 187=~ is configured to be moved rearwardly ~,(11~
~h'ig. ~~'~ by actuator 2414 to a position ~'~1C tc~ eatable debris to fall into debris cep 218.
~oleaao~d ~~314 is actuated ~~a~de~: coma cal o=~ E~ nn~~roc~~~troliea- as described below. Preferably, tl~e, trap door A 872 retracts .sa~~stantial~y no .arti':ea~ there the Ii~or~t edge of the coin rail dis:~C, to avoid catching, vrhich coaald lead to a failaare ov'the trap dour to close.
preferably, a seaasor switch providca a signal to the rnicrocontrcller indicating ~x-heth.er the trap door has completely shut. preferably the trap door is resiliently held in the closed position in such a nZanner that it carr be ~anaraii~y opened if desired.
loins vahich fall into ~l~e hopper I70~, i~ro~~ the t~oa~~a~ie~ 5~, are dire~;ted by the ca~rvat~are of the hopper towaa-ds the six c~'~~-~oci~ position I8'77 ~~ig.
l~) of the ~~nnaalar coin path. In general, coins tr~s~elia~g over the do~r~marci Aurning edge 20?4 of the hopper 3 7~2 1o are tipped onto edge and, partially owing to the bacls~ard iaa.,~lir~ation IB~~ of the appaaratus, tend to fall into the annular space 18i:~ 1. wins which are not positioned in the space 18~ 1 with their faces adjacent tl?e staraace o~ she rail dsk ~saach as c,oir~s that rrtay be tip-ped outv~Vlard 2(s2~a or rraay be perpendicaal.ar to the rail. disk ~~2Gb~ gill ire stn°xek; by the paddle i7~4 as it rotates, agitating the coins arad everata~ally corr;rctly positiorainb coins in the aranaslar space i8fl1 ~Tith their faces adjace~:at the face 18(11 o-the annular space defined by ~~he rail dish 180. It is believed that tire shape of tl~e paddle head 2~28a, ~~~8c, in particular the rounded shape of the radially oazt~nost portion ~2~~ of the; head, assists in agitating or striking coins in saach a manner that they will ass-earns ths: desired position.
~~nce eoiA~as are positionez~ aion~; the w~nn~ ~ar path, the leac~~fazg edge of the paddle heads 2;28 contact the i-railing edge c'~the coins, forcing tlner~ along t'~ae coin pa~:h, e.g. as depicted in Fig. l ~. Pre Drably each paddle can move Ea plurality of coins; such as up to about l coins. she coins are thus eventually forced to ~a~el onto and along the linear portion I834 of the rail disc ledge 184 and are pushed onfo the coi~~~ rail tip 18~G. sortie previous devices were provided with an exit gate for coins exitir~.g the coin p~i:c~$.~~a asseanisiy vrhich, in some, 25 cases, sues susceptible to jasy~z~irag. according to any embod:irnent of bhe presea~~: ir~vent~o~, sazch jamrraing is eliminated heca:a~se no coin Tick=gyp assembiv exit gaze is provided.
As the paddle heads ~0~8 continaae to an:we along the circular path, they contact the linear portion 1834 (Fig. l~~ of vhe ledge i8t:~- and flex axiall~T outward 2~~2, facilitated by a tapered sha~~e o~ the radially ia~~,~~ard poa~tiort of t'~a~ pa;~dle pa,d X328 to ride over ii.e. 33~ front 30 ofd a portion 1881 of the rail disc. In one eo~bodirnea~~;, openings or holes l 7~8 are provided in this portion to fed~zce frictional drag and 3o receive e.g. trapped debris, which is thus cleared from the annular coin p~~h.
~s seen in hig. 21, ~Iyc ledge 1 ~~3~ as defined by the rail disk 1806 is displaced upwardly 2102 with respect to tire Ie~~ge 2i0~ ~~f tlm coin rail tip I82G. The di,ytance 2102 nm~y be, a~'or example, abo~ t .I inches ~abo~v 2.~ an~,'~. alZe diilrre~~ce i~~, G~eigb~ 2102 assists ird gravitationally r'i~ovi~g cons ~ro~~ rbe rail disk Iedge I8(1~j1 over the upper portion of the :' ~d'.. gad (described below) and onto th:° Iedge of coir' rail tip :
83 G.
~'he te~cninal point 210 of the rail disk ledge is laterally spaced a distance 2107 from the initial edge of the Cain ray; Ic;dge 2104 to define a '"~" ga~~ tile~-ebetween. 'This gap, ~,~ich ~o extends a certain dista~-~ce 210 circun~erential!y, as seen any dig. 21, receives debris which a~~zay be swept along by the coiq~. paddles. ~~Im e,xiste~~ce ol°tl~e gap 21C)7, and its placement, extending below tl~e rail ledge, by providirng ~~ place for debris swept ~~p by t''r~e paddles, avoids a problem fond in cer~E~in pz~=~vio~s de~,~ices in ~.v2~~i.c~b debris tea~s~ed to ac~.;urra~late wI-~ere a disk region met a linear region, comet°xnes acca~m~~uati~~g t=o the point of creating a bump or o'ostruction which could cause coins to loop or fly off the ledge or Bail.
'fhe coin rail SG functions to recei~re coins outp5at by fhe coin pickup assen~bl~r 5~, and tra~~sports the coins irx a singulated (one:-at-a-tirrfe) fas~~ior~ past the sensor :~8 to tl:ie divreraing door 62. Singulation and s~:,pa~-ation of coins is of particular usc, in connection with the describes sensor, alFho~gh other types of se~~sor~~, znay also -Ge;:e~ebFt fzom coin singuhtion and 2o spacing. In general, coins a~w delivered to the coin rail ~G $ollir~g o-~
sliding on t,~eir edge or rips. along tl:e rail ledge 2ltl~. 'flee face of the cogs as they s3ide or roll dov~ra the coin rail are supported, daring a portion of their tra~aeL, b~,~ rails or stringers 210Ga, b, c. The s~~.ringers are positioned (dig. 23~.), respecti~mly, at heights 2108x, b, c (r~rith respect to the height of the ledge 2104) to pro~~ide support suitable for the ranger or coin sixes to be handled 'vhile providing a relatively sr:~all area or region of contact between tlia coin face and the stringers.
Altbougl~ son°be pr-evio~s devices provide for flat-topped or ro~~nn.ed-profile rails or ridges, the present invention provides ~sdgea or stringek~s ~Tnicl~ at least in4 tl~e second portion, 2121b, have a triangular or peaked p~wi~Le. ~'I~is is belic;ved to be eavsier to rr~ay~ufact~re (such as by machining ia~to the baseplate 18I0) and also maintains relati~aely sa~~all area of contact 4Fsrith 3o the coin face despite stringer wear.
_t ~_ ffhe position and shape of the st~ir~gers and the wi.cl~lz of the rail 210-are selected depending on the range of coi~~ sizes to be l~~nd=ed by the de~icv. lra one enrbodirnent, which is able to handle U.S. coins in the sine range he~~~een a fl.S. dime and a U.S. hall-dollar, the ledge 21(3 has a depth 2111 (~~orr~ thr.: hacl~platt~ 2.11~~ of about O.C~~
inches (shout 2.3 ~?rn~}.
The top stinger 2106a is posl"cioned at a l~e~ght L1_08a (above t~~e; 1e age 21~3~} o~ about 0.825 inches {about 20 ~~}, {the _diddle stringer 21t)6h is r~ositiened at a height 2108i~ of aoour 0.4~ inches (about 12.4 ~nrn;, and the bottor~~ stringer 210Ge is positioned at a height of about 0.175 inches (ahoua~~ 4~.4 nom f. 1n. one ernbo~xrrxent, the stringers are about 0.8 inches (ah~ut ~
~nn~} wide 210 (Fig, 23C} and protr~,de about 0.05 i~aches Labout 1.3 rnrn}
2111 above the 'each plate 2114 of the coin rail.
~s seen in liig. 22, ~v~ the coirAs enter the coin i.~-_~il 5~, the coins acv typically horizontally sings.~latecl, i.e., coins are in single ~Ie, albeit possihl.y ad~ace~~t or t~sucl2ing one another. ~l'he singulated conllg~~ratyor~ o= thc; coins can he contrasted with coins which are lnorizontahy par~lally o~~e°lapi~re~a 2~i;La, ~ as slø-:wn irG l~ig.
:~:'~~~.. ~'ig. 2G~. also llustra~res a ~5 situation i~,. which son2e Coins are staclccd on top of one ;a.~~o that vertically 2202c, d. l~
nurr~her of features of the coin rail 56 c~ontribaate to claangirg the coins from the bunched conraguration to a singulated, a~~d eventually separated, se rie:~ of coins by the time tl~zey move past the sensor 58. one such fat~re is a ~,~~t-o~~~v or recess ~°.'z s ~ provided in or adjacent_ tlm top portion of the rail along a -~~rst portion of its extent. ~s se~,n in Fig.
24, when coins which 2o are vertically staged such as s:oins 2202c, b, ila~strated in Fib. 22, reach the Cut-out portion 2116, the top coin, aided by ~~lae inclination 186E5 of the raii., tips backward 2402 an ~rnount sufficient that it will tend to slid.; for~.rarc~ 2 ;~-0~- in front of the lower coin 2202, falling into the hopper extension 204 which is pc~sirior~c;d 'i~eneath the c~rut-out region 2116, and sliding back into the main portion of ra~~. hopper 1 ~O 2 to ~e conqd~eyecl 'hack ~~~
to the coin :rail.
25 l~nother feature cont~il~uaing to singulatic~~ is the charyge in inclination of the eoir~ rail frorr~ a first portion 2121a which is inclined, wt~h respect t;~ a Horizontal plane 212 at an angle 2126 of about 0° to a~9E~~~~. 30°, lrreferabl~ about 0° to ~~bo~,~t 15° and more preferably about 10°, to a second portion 21.21h whic~r~ is inclined w:~i;e~
respect t;o a horizontal plane 2124 by an angle 2128 of about 30° to about 60°, preferably between about 40° arid about 50°
3o arid more preferably about ~-5°. l~v~°eferabiy, t12~ t,oin ;path in the transitional reuiora 212:ic het~~een the ~nrst portion 2121 a anc sec:onrdl portion 2121h is ~moothiy cued, as showno .1n ..t~_ or3e o~nbodia~~er~t, the radius ol'~urva~~re oA the lodge 21~~in tire rtransition region '~121c is about 1.5 inch (about 3.8 c~.~.
~ne feature of sing~,tlatirag ~oir~s, aocordir~g to ~~las; depicted embodiment, is to primarily use gracitationai t=ortes for this purpose. E~rse of gravity force is believed to, in general, reduce systerr~ cost ancf cornpiexity. 'l~l~is is aocom~Iisl-~ed by con~pgnring the rail so tl;at a given coin, as it aplaroac'hes and tiaer~ enters the second portion 2121b, will be gravitationally accelerated ~r~ii~ tire rnox~: ("fol6~wir~g") colony o~~ a shallower sl~~e., is being ac;celorated to a ~n~.acl~ smaller s~egreo, tlv~~s all~~~ring the frost ~a>in to rr~cwo aw~~y from the following coin, crewing a space therebetween and ~ffectivo:~y producing a gap between the 1o singulated coins. 'Thereafter, t'2e follo~vir~g ooii~ mows into the region where it is, in turn, accelerated away from the s=~ooessive coin. I~s a coin moves ~~yn ~e first region 2121a toward and into the second region 2121b, the claangc in rail 3~:mfina~ion 212, ~~i 8 (dig. 2i, causes the coin to acoelerat~, while the following coins, wl-~i~'~~ acv still positioned ia~ the ~mst -region 2121x, ha~~e a relativ°1y':ower ~rlo~iry.
An one embodiment, acceleration of~ a coin as it moves invo the second rail region 2121b is also enhanc;.d by placemorlt of a short, rolativr,-;ly -fall auxiliary stringer 2132 generally i~~ the transition regio~7 2121v°°. 'f ho auxiliary stringer 2132 projects out~rTardly from the back surface 211 of the coin tail., a distance 2i3~ (dig. 2~~) greater than tike distance 2112 of projection of the ~goz-n~~l stra~tgors 21i)~a, b, c. Thus, as a corn rrpo~~~s i~rto the ~o ransation rogior~ 2I21c, the aa:~xiliary st~~ingo~- 21~~2 tills the c;nin temp outward 232, away from contact zuit'tlze norrr~al stringers 21~~a, b, c so -t#~at it tends to "'~y"
(roll or slide otb its edge or rim along the coin rail ledge 210 without contact with the n orn2al stringers 21~ba, b, c~
and, for at least a Limo period foV Towing rno ~arement past the auxi?°=ary stringer 2132, continuos to contact the coin rail only alor g the ~~~dgo 21 ~3~., fur'~hor rnaa.~:a~-ring or redacirfg ii-iction arid allowing ~~e coin to accei'.orate along the second rPgior~ 2:~ 2 l ~ of the coin ~a~il. In ono ona.bodirnent, the coin-contact portion of the strirugers i~~ the first ~orLion 2121 a are somewhat r'~attened (dig. 23A) to increase friction and exaggerate the difference in coin acceleration ~oet~~reen the first section 2121a .and the seLor~d suotior~ 2121b, where the stringer profiles are more pointed, such as being substarltialiy poa'~ed (1G'ig. 23C~.
~notl~er feataxre of the coin rail oor~tributing to acceleration is the provisio~a of ono or more free-fall regions where coins will noally be out of cor~t~~t with the stringo~.~s and thus -2i)-will contact, at most, only tyro lodge por~ioc~ 2134 of the rail. In the depicted err~bodimeot, a first free-fall ,region is pro~ricied at the: area 2136x ~~rherrii> ~:h~;
auxiliary swinger 2132 ter~°~.2inates. !~s pared above, coins in this region will teed to oontaf~t the coin rail only along the ledge 2104. mother free:--all region occurv just da~rnst=°~.ar~~ of the upsream edge 2342 of the door 62. ~s seers in trig. 2~~, the e~oor 62 is prefea~a.biy positioned a dvstance 2344 such as about 0.~2 ir~ol-~es, about tl.~ m~~) fro=g the s~~rfacr 2114 of the rail rogioa~. This setback 2344, combined with chv termination of the stringers 216, provides a free-fall region ad~acont the door 62. if desirod, anotho~~ fr~,e-~~l.l regnon ca~g be provided dowz~stre.ar~a ~rorr~
the door 62, e.g., where the ;eject coin path 1~2I meets the ~;~rofor~bly embossed) surface of the reject chute or roject chute entrance ~,vhich ~r~ay be set bank a distance such as about lib inch ~abo~~-i 3 mm).
Rnother Eros-fall reg~~o~-; may be dofs~zed near tl3e loc;~tion 213 where coins exit the disks 1812, 186 and enter tie rail 56, e.g., by positioning the disk 1812 to have its front surface in a plane slightly forF3arard ~o.g., about 0.3 ~.r~cl~es, ox a'~i~out ~.~ n:m) of the plane ~5 defined by rail stringers 21~~.. This Eros-fall ro~,ion is useful not only to assist tyke transition from the disk onto the rail but snakes it more likely That coins which may be slowed or stepped on tho rail near tlae o:~~d of a t~~ansaotion will bo positioned :lownstream of the retract position .~~ ig. 2I~ of the rako 21 i;2 s~~cb tlZat ~rvho:~ the rape operates ~ as described below), it is more likely to push slo~,ved or stopped coins down tl~e rail than to knock such oohs aff the 2G tail. Providing periods of c~:lr~ :~:~yiw~g rodueos '~iction9 oontr~-lb~;ctes to coin acceleration and else reduces variation in coi~~ ~rolooity si~~oo sti~l~y or 3~rot ce~ins boi~ave s~~nilarly to pristine coins when both are in a flying mode. Producing periods of relying is believed to be particularly ~asefnY in ~~naintaib.ing a dosirod aocoioration and =aelocity of' coins which may bo wet or sticky.
25 The sensar 58 is positioned a dista~.co 234 (:fig. 2310 away from the surface of the stringers 2106x, b, c safriciers' to acca~nr~~odate passage of rife thickest coin to ~e handlod.
~ltho~agla contain prefo~ed sensors, and tlr~,ir use, are doscri~~od more thoroughly helow, it is possible to use features of the present invention: with other ~.ypos of sensors which spay be positioned in another fashion ~~~zoh as embedded lr~ the coin rail 56.
sG 'fhe loading surface of tile sensor 1<o~.~sir~y is preferably raza~ped 236 such tl~a~: coins or other objects which do not travel into thv spaoN 2304 {such as coins or other objects which -2 t -axe, too 1a~-~e or ha~Te moved ~~avially ~f~ tl~e; ee~in path) ~wYl:~ be aleflected by the r~~np 2~0~
onto a bypass chute 1722 ~~'ig. 17), bavir~~~ a deflector plane 1724 and a trough 1725 for delivery to the coma ret~xrn om ~-ejecl: cir~E~~e ~8 -here they ~~y he returned to the user. 'fhe sensor housing also performs a spacer function, tending to hold any jams at least a minimum distance f,orr the sensor c~~-e, prefe~-a~3y strf'iicientiy far that the se~asor rea;di:-~g is not affected ~~~hich could cause ~~isdetectbo~~). 1f c~.esired, the se~~s~cr housing can be configured such that jams rr~ay be penr:itted witl~i.r~ tl_e se;~~sing range of the sensor (e.g., to assist in detecting jam occu~-~er3ce).
In the depicted configuration, the sensor 58 is configwred so that it can be rr~aoved to a position 2142 away from the ce~in rain .~~~, for cleaning or r~~aiatenar~ce, such as by sliding along slot 2144. Preferably, tF~e device is cor~stnzcted wits a3:interference fit so that the se~~sor 58 ~~ay be ~r~~ved out ol~ position enRy w!r~en 'she diver per ;over I
8I 1 has ~eer~ pivoted forvJard 102 (Fig. 1 g) and such that tt~e diverte~° cover 1811 n~a~!
not be repositio~md I904 to its operating confib~ration a.intil. the se~~so-r 2 A 42 leas been p3operty ~~ositioned in -'_~a operating ~5 location fig. 2.1). Preferably, the sens~ss apparatus is conf~g~~red so that it will sea's reliably and accurately in a desired position with respect to the coin nail such as by engagement of a retention clip 2704 (Fig. 2:L;. ~~.ac;h seati~~g, ~~rm'erably combined with a relati~rely high tolerance for positions; variations of coins with respect to the sr~nsor (descri'oed below), :neaps that the sensor rr~°°~ay b:: -r_rovr~d vo ~l~e muintena~2ce po:~ition :? l42 a.~d ret~~~-~ed to the operating position repeatedly, ~-i~tl?out r.°~ui=~ng recalib3atior~ of tie device.
t~.s noted above, in tba~ depicted e-bodirver~~t, a door fi,2 -~s used t~
selectiaeiy deflect coins or other objects so the ~°ol~~s u~.tiraately travel to either a=~
~scce;ptable-object or coin bin or trolley, or a reject chute 58.
In tl~e embodi~-ne~at depicaed in 1~'ig. 43, a coin return raxTap 4312 extends free the coin return region 1981, through the opening 1813 of the diver ter cover 18I I and extends a distance 4314 out-c~rard and above the i~ri tial abortion of the coin retu~~n chute ~8. 7Chus, coins which are riot deflected by the door C~2 caravel dov~rn t~t1e ramp 4.312 and fly off the end 431 of the ramp i=ii a ''ski jump" fasbsor~ befog°e ar~din~; on ~~l~e coin ~etua~.n chaste surface 68. E~~e~~
t~o~zgh prcfPrably, coin contact s~xrfaces s~.ch as the ramp 43 ~2 end coin return clsus~e 68 aye embossed or otherwise reduce facial contact wvth coins, providing the "ski jump:' flying region further reduces pote~~ax for slowing or adar3esion of co~rEs for ether objects) as their travel d~~~~n the return chute tolvard.s the c~asto~~r retaarn box..
~refeYably the devicL is co~~figvre~such i=~at aciivatic~r~ of :hc door deitects coins ~o an acceptaF~Ie coin -din and non-activation al~~~~e a coin to rove ales~~g a default patl-~ to the reject chute 68. Such ''actuate-tc-accept' technique rot only avoids accumulation of debris in the exit bins but improves accuracy h~,> acc;epttn.g only coins fleet are rec~gr~i~ed and, further, provides a ccn~~guration wtricn is belie~.-e~ superior during p~~wc;r failure situations. xhe actlaate-to-accept approach also has the advantage that the actuation mechanism will be operating on a~~ object of ~~~own characteristic; ~e.g. known diameter, which may be used, ~~ e.g. in conneeti.on with determining veloci~~ anE~/or accwleration, or known r~°~ass, which a~nay be used, e.g. for adjustment of forces, such as deflection forcea). This affords the opportunity to adjust, e.g. the tixni~g, dr~r~tion and/or st~~eng~h of the deflection to the speed ~und/or mass of the coin. fn a system iE~ which items to be rejected are actively deflected, it =~~ouLd be ne~~,essa~-y to acttaate the dex~ection nrecha~nisnm%~ritl~ respect to an ebjs;ct which x~ a~/ ~e ~~ unrecognized or have ~nhno~rn characteristics.
although in one embodin~er~t the dcor ~2 is separately actwated for each acceptable co8n (thus redL~cing solenoid '23116 dut;r cJcie and heat generati~~~), it wou:(d also be possible ro con figure a device in wh~cFr, where therw are ore or t~%c or ~r ore sequential accepted coins, the door 62 is maintained in its flexed position continuously until the next non-accepted coin 20 for other object) approaches rye door 6'g.
~n embodiment for control and ti'sning of the door 62 deflection will be described more thoroughly be.cv~. In aye de=~icted err~bod~Qnent, the door 62 is dsflecteci by aciivaiion of a solenoid 236. The dc~oz 62, in one e~nbo~~iment, as rn~de of a hard resilient material, such as 3111 full hard stainless si;eel which n<ay be provided in a channel shape as shown. fn 2~ one embodiment, the baci~ s~~rface of' as~~e coin-contact region of the door 23~8a is substantially covered with a sound-deaLden~;irbg rr,aterial 2334 su~,h, as a foam tape ~availa:&~le from 3i~ Company). PreferGbly the faam tape has a hole 233a adjacent the region ~rhere the solenoid 23(16 si~ikes. the door 2.,.
fn one embodiment, tl?,°, door 62 is not ringed but a-noz~es outwardly from its rest 3Q position {f~ig. 23~) to its dyf~ec;teci position= ~~ig. 23F) by bending or flexing, rather than pivoting. Boor 62, being formed of a resiiier?t me~rerial, =.vill tlre~x deflect back 2312 to its rest pesition once the solenoid %30~ is ro conger activated. ~y relying on resilierscy of an unhinged door for a return ri~otion, there is no need to provide a door return spring.
~ur~lleaore, the resiliency o~~ E~~e door, i~a 'ene~vl, p.ro~-~des f. force greate< than the solenoid sg~ring return force normally Frovided with a ;~c~lenoid, so -shat tire doer 62 will force she solenoid back to its rest positi:~n (Fig. 2~1:) (after cessatiorF oz°
the, activation pulse), more quickly thar~s ~trould have bee~~ ~ossibi; if ~e,iyiv~g on t'~~e force o:l° the solenoid retu~~spring.
As a -resu;et, the effective cycle ti~n.e for the sc~lenoid/doc~r system is reduced. In one embodiment, a solenoid is used which has a ne:mal cycle tire of about 24 n ~illi seco~~ds baat ~nrhich is able to achieve a cycle tine of about 1~milliseconds ~~i'ren the resilient-door closing ~o fe<~ture is used for solenoid reta'rr~,, as desca~it~ed. l.n one c~ar~bodi~nent, a solenoid is used which is rated at 12 volts brat is activated usi~~g a 24-volt yulse.
1n sor~te situations, ~articuia~rly at the end of a coin disc:rirrainatien cycle er transaction, one or more coins, especially ~ve,t o~ stic;ky coins, nay reside on the first portion 23.21a of tlae rail such that tbey ~;vil1 not s~o~~taneously for will only slovaly) move tovrrard the ~~ sensor 58. 'fhus, it may b a desiza~~le ro include a rnee~haraical or other transducer for providing energy, in response to a sensed dam, =low-up or other abnorrnalit~~.
l~ccordir~g to one enibodirnent for providing e,ne~.°g~'., a co3~a r~~l~e 212, nc~~~~ally retra.c~ed into a rake slot 2154 (Fig. 23Aa), rnay be activated to extend ca~tward 215~i fro~~ the slot 2154 and move lengthwise 2155 do~,vn the slot 2154 to p~.ah slo=F~ or stopped coins :down the coin path, such 2o as onto the second portion 2121r of the coin raisj or off the ~~il to be captured by the hopper extension 2204. ~n e~~!bodir.=r_ent for tt~~~ng ;and control ~~f tl~e rape is descrvib~;c~: more thoroughly belo~,v. do one e~~bodirnent, rake ~novei~zent is aci.~ieved by activating a rake motor 2502 (Fig. 19) coupled lo a link arm 2.504 (Fig. 25). 'This link 2504 is movably mounted to the rear portion of tr3e Chassis 184 l:y a pin and sfot sys~en~
2506a,b, 2507a,b. 1~
2~ plate section 2509 of the link 25:;4 is c~~r~pled via slot 2511 to~ an eccentric din of motor 2502.
~ slot 251 of the Fink arm 2504 engages d rear ;portion of ripe rake 2152.
~,ctiva.tion of the motor 2502 rotates eccentric pir~ 2515 and causes link 2504 to move longitudinally '2517. l~
slot 2513 of tl7.e linl~ arrn 2504, forces the ~°alce 2152 to move 2,51' along the bnclined slot 2I54 toward a dowrastreay~ p~;s-ition 2510 ~:p~ig. 2~1~. ~'he ._anc;tior~ of causing ~:he rake r~o 30 ~arotrude or extend outward 215 fro=n the slot 2154 car: be a~;;sieved in a number of fashions.
~n one embodinYent, the link Arab 2504 is slxa~ed so that ~.vhe~~ .she :~al~,e is position~:,d dowvn the -2~_ slot 21 ~4, the rake 2152 is urged outvwar~iy 215~ bt.t the shape of' the resilient link arra 2504.
As the rake is moved tzpstrea~~ 225 to~varcl the nortxiat o;~~e;rating location, a c~.art follower fo~-n~od on the free end 2527 03 the link arl~~ is atrgecl rearwat-dly by a cans 252 carrying tlZe rake 2152 wits it, rear~,varslly to tlae retracted pos,itior~ (hig. 2:1A, ~~ig. 2~~.
t'referably, the rake position is sensed. or monitored, :;',~ch tas by sensia~zg t~f~ position of the rake motor 2502, ir6 order to ot.~tsure proper- rake operation.
t~~eierably the system will detect (e.g. via activity seaisor -1754) if the ~oia-: rake icnoci~ed coins off the rail or, -aria coin sensor 5~, if the coin rake pushed wins ~o~~,~n the coi~x rail to .move past the sensor 5~. Try one on~bodi~net~t if activation of the c;oin ral~~ results in coins bei:tag lcnoc;lced of:f the rail or moved deu-n the tail, the coin rake ~ritl be activated at: least a soo~~r~d tirst~
and tl~e system array be cota~~gur~d to ontprtt a message indi~;atir~g .~l~tat the systerr~ slao~~tid be cleaned or req~a.ires maintenance.
~etwec~ the tire t3~at a coin passes ~~ert~;atta the sense Sb avid tile tigne it reaches the deflection door b2 (typically a period of about 3~ milliseconds), control apparatus and ~J so:it~war~ (described beio~v) de'~t;~~nir~e'~i~c;thor the coin sho~:,Ic~E
be di~zrted by the deter ~2. In gei°teral, it is preferred to make the time delay ~~et~:aeen sensir g an object and detecting the object (i.e., to make the distance ~oetu~~~n the sensor and ~ti~o deflection doom as shore as possible while still allwving sufficient tirt~e for the recognition and categorization processes to operate. '~l°~o time roqati:rerra~~~ts will i:~e at ls;ast pat~;ially depora~~on~: on the spend of the 2~ processor which is used. In got~oral, it :is passibl~; to shorten the delay by employing a higher-spc;ed processo3-, al~beat at increased e~pors~,. ~h~rto;_ing the math between alto sensor and tlae deflector not only reduces the physical size of tltt; device but also reduces the possibility that a coin or other object gnay beco~~e stately o~~ saray froa~~ tl~e coin pat:kt after detection and before disposition (po~_entially restalting in et°ror s, e.g. of a type irt a coin is "credited" but net ~~ directed to a coin bind. ~urtiacrrnore, si~ortonir~g the sepa;~a~iot~
reduces the chzcnce that a faster foliodving coin will "catoli up" ~vEth a pro~rous siov~ or stio~y coin bet~,~een the sensor and the deflector door. ~ho~oning i;l~~; s~,paration addition~v~iy rc~d~a~~ s the opportunity for coin acceleration or velocity to change '~o a signifycant degror~ between the sensor Sg and the door 62. since the door, in ono ombocti~ra~~at, is controlled ~oased ors velocity or ~~rcoloration ~~ measured or (calculated using data f~oas~red~i at the sensor, a larger separation (and conseqtaently larger rail length .x~ith potential vavriatio~as is, e.g.
z''riot:ior~) bet~veor~ the sensor 5~ and the door ~2 increases the pot°ntiar f~r the ~easur~;ci o-cGicralated coin velocity or acceleration to be in error (or ~nisiea.ding).
because the coin dei'iector requires a certain rr~inimurcl cycle time (i.e., the time from activation of the solenoid until the door :gas rewun'ed to a rest state-, and is ca~alrle of being re~~cti~:"ated), it is impossible to succ;e;rsf~;aiiy de:E°lect E.~o c~iias r.~~l~icb are too close together.
~ccorcEingiy, when the syst~;n~ deter~r~ines ~thas two coins are too close togetlue~~ (e.g. by detecting s~~ccessive ''tai!'' tunes ~vi~ich are less tha~-~ a ~rsi~~i~n~~~n period apart), tl~e systmn will refrain frorr~ activating the deflector door r:l3on passage of one or both such coins, ;.pus allowing one or both such coins to follow the default bath to 5;he reject chute, despite the fact 1o that the coins may have been both s~~ccessfu'ily r=~cognized as acceptable coins.
if a coin is to be di~e.t~ted, when it waches the door ~z, solenoid 23t3C is activated.
"f;~ically, beeaaase of the step 2i36b a;~.~d/or oth'.r flya-~g-inducing feataares, by the ti~~~e a coin reaches door ~2 it will be sy~ac~;~? a shirt;~istancc 23x7 (such as ~.~~
inches, or ahc~~t 2 rum) above the door ~lar~e 62 and tl~.e door, as it is deflected to :its u.ctivated Tosition (~~ig. 231?), 15 will meet the i~ying coin a~~d lanock the coin i~~ an outward direction 2323 to the common entrance 1 X28 of accep table-coin tubes ~4a, 64b. preferably all co=n contact surfaces of the ret~zrn ch~.zte and coin tube are; ~~rovidud ~:~~ith a surface texture s~rcf~
as an embossed s~zrfaee ~,vbic'h vain reduce friction and/or adh~~siona additionally; sucr~ surfaces may i7~e provided with a sound-deadening material andlor a l:ine~;ic energy-absorbing material (to heir direct 2o coins accurately into the accept ~~insr.
an one ernbodi~nent, the timing of dea~ection of the door 62 is controlled. to increase the likelihood that the door urill stripe the coin as desired in such a fashion as to divert it to entrance to the coin tubes 172zi. 'The preferred sulking ~osit:ion :nay he selected empirically, if desired, and :gay defsend, a~t least pa~:iaily, o4. the diameter a~~d mass of the coins and the 2~ coin min erected in the machr~~e as ~~elas the: size and clnzracteri~stics of the door 62. In one embodiment, the machine is con~.gr~red to, ~~n average, s9.ril;e tl~e coin when the leading edge ofthe coin is approxi~nat.ely 3 tern ~pstHean~ ("npstrearn" iradicd~~ting a direction opposite the direction of coin flow 2332 of the do'~-nstream edge 23~~ of the actuator door 62 (dig.
23~). In one e~~bodirnent, this strike position is the g~refe~°.~recposition regardless of the so dia;peter of the coin.
-2~-hr°~'era~bly, there is ~ gap hetwee~~ co-ins as they ;:~ean~ past the doer ~~. The prea'~erred bap bet~reers adjacP~~t: coins wl_ich 12a.~ae dif~e~-ent:
destinations (i.e., wren adjacent coins include an accepted coin and a not-~cce~ted Cain) depends on whether the accepted coin is before or after the non-accepted coin (i ~ .which the ''accepted coi.~'9 is a coin r:~~ich will be di~rerteci 17y the door and the not-~t~cepted coin will rr~vei pE~st the door withorxt being diverted. The gaga behind a not-accepted coin (or other ofs~ect~ which reaches ~:he door ~2 before an accepted coin is re'errc;d to hereir3 as a ''ieading gay:;". '-fee bap hehinci an accepted coin is referred to nerei~~ as ~ ''~railii~g, gad 7'. In one err~hodirr~ent, the preferrre,d lcading gap is described by the followirxg e~i~atzo~:
1 ~ ~ ~'~~':ead.min " L~~Sr-oa..lead + ~~T'Ors>ius ~ a ( 1 wficre:
~dsco>v.~ead represents the chz.ng:; ir'~hc; actual inter-coin gap ~-oe~ the ~i~e the coins pass tae sensor ~~ to the tune e~%hcn the coins reach tie docfr ~~ (approximately 3 mrn~;
:~rrorpl"5 represents th.c dis~a~.ce erro:~° d~~e s;o compensation ~~ncertainties, ass~.'~~ia~g leading gap worst condx~.ons of rr~~x~na~~~~ initial vs~~oc;ity and ~ fricvionless rail (approxirraately ~S ~nrn j; and a represents the dir~~.ension from thAe d~~'~vnstrca~n ecl~;e of the actuator door 234 to flee leading edge of tf~e coyr~ at ehe preferred strike position (approximately 3 rnrn).
The preferred rr~ini~n~leading oap of approxiYnate.y l ~ rpm applies when a non-2o accepted coin (or other object; precedes a<~ acce~ced coin. lr~ the coon case o~~ a strip g of consecutive accepted coins, ~f~is constrai~~t r~.eed :got ~e enfc~rcvd ~.~-ten the first coin it the strea3n.
In one enWodirnent, the pre~rred trailing bap is descrued'by the foliowina equation:
~%~p = ~d t , + A4d + i,rror + b .__ a _-_ ~: ~rZ) tr.min 'y.o~,.Crail ontime minus coin.mi ~5 Vvl~ere:
~dsto7-.trail ~~epreserltS the Ch~ftbe In aCvLia~ In''s:er-~%~ln gap bett'aeed3 the. SensC3r 58 a:'~d the d765r ~~ (approxin-~ately ~ rnrr~), ~,do",;me represents the distance the coins travel during the time the actuator door is extended (approxir~~~tely ~ n~~r~~;
_~-; _ ~rrQrn~inus re~reSe~'~S the e~i~9r ~~.le ~.~ C~9~~13pe~-tSatI~312 ~llCeTi29~n0.deS, ~sSl&mll'ng ~T~%hng gap tvorst conditions of zero ir~iti~I velocity and ~ stic;ky or high-friction rail (approximately 6 rnn~);
b represents the length 2336 of the door 62; and represents the dian_eter of tiw accepted coin (in the worst case for a comr~~on ~J.S.
Co~r~ tngx, 17.3 yl-~?~~.
This resuf~s in ~ preferred min?in23am tr~iii~~g gap of ~.2 rxnm.
-f7rocess fog- ~.~ez-itrnx~g ?=~e ~;xisie~lce of preferred '~e~~i~g ~r~d ~~-aili_!g gyps, ~s appropriate si~~atior~s, and/on selecting or contr~IIiT~g the act~~at3.o~~ of the door ~2 to strike 1 o coins at the preferred position:, is deser:bed belo~~~.
In the depicted e~rtbodirre~t, f~a~v re~yors of t;~e cona~~~o~~ er~trauce 1728 ~pag. 17) >s pro~~ided with a flapper movable fvorr~ a r~rs positao~~ 1732x -e:~hich guides the coins into the arst coin tube 64a for delivery, ultr.mate:~y; to ~ first coin trolley 66x, to ~. second position 1732b for deflection to the second coin tube 64b for delivery to the second eoin ~.rolley 66b.
~5 In one embodiment, the flapper 1732 a trade of plastic to reduce noise and the tendency to bind during operation. ~ scienoid actd~ator 1734, via linl~ ~rn~ I736, is used to r:~ove the flapper between the positions 173'2a,1732~5, =z:.g. in respor_se to cor~trox signals i'~rorn a rnicrocor~trolleA (described be,lo~). Tl~.e flapper 1732 naay also be rapidly cycled between its extreme positions to sell cleans ~-r~ateri~F frr~n-~ tha :nechanisrrr~, 1n o~~i em~bod=~~nea~.c, such self ~o cleaning is performed a fter each ~rar~sac~io~~. In one ernbodimen~, coin detect~ers sa~ch as paired L~,~s and optical detectors 1738a, b output signals to the naicrocontrolle~- ~arhenever passage o~'' a coin is detecte~~. '1'hese signals ,~a;~ 'ue assn for carious purposes s~~ch as verifying that a coin deflected icy the n~ooT 62 i,~ delivered tai ~ coi~~
tribe, ~erifyng that the flapper 1732 is in the correct positi~n, and detecting coin tube byaoc~ages such as may result 2~ from bacl~up of coins from a~~ over-tilled coin biro. Thus., the sensor 1738x, 1738b at the end of each tube provides data used for performing tv,~o or mcjre ~ct~nctio~ss, such as verifying accepted-coin delivery, verifying s'lapper placement, and ve=-ifying and detecting coin bin overfill.
~s ~~est seen n a~igs. ~ 7~~. and 278, t ge se~~sor ~8 is pre,fe.ra~~iy directly rnov><~rted on the 3o sensor 1'~~ 251 and comr~-3~~nicates, ele;c~~-icar~~r, there~itl:i via a header ~,7Q2 ,pith leads 2704 soldered onto the board 2512. providing lie sensor a:rsd the sensor board ~s ~ single -2~-integrated unit reduces manufacturing costs and eliminatds cabling and associated signal n' ise. 't'he sensor 58 is made of a c;;~Ye 2862 Figs. 28~;, 28~;with a lo~;v-~~=seque~~~;y 2804 and high i'requenc~r 286 windings on tAm core. i'olarity ~~ the ~=rindings s?~o4ald b~ ob5ervoG so that they are properly svnohronized. PrLvidin t; a winding in a reverse dire~ti,~n can ca~ese signal cancella~eion.
'fhe core 28~2, in tlc, depict=~,d ~~n~~aoc~~nen"~, is g~~~:~rally 1_1-shaped ~~ritr~ a lamer a~~na~lar, semicircular, rsctang~l.ar cross-se;ctloned portion 2808 and an upper portaon de~aning two spaced-apart logs 2812a, 2812b. '~'h~ core 28(32., in t.l~e depicted embodiment, has a ~:hiokness 2814 of less than abo~~t (~.~ inches, ~3r2ferably ab=ut ~.Z inches (abo~~t ~ rnrr~), a ?o r~e:ight 2816 of abort 2.~~ Y.~~i~~,s ~ai~ou2 5~ ~-r:~j and a v~-:vd~t~
2818 ov abo~ay a.~4 incbes about 3.G5 crn).
because the sensor 58 is prefezably ~rlatavvly thin, 2814, the magnetic field is relatively tightly focused in the iongitd~di~~al ~st~~am wisp) difecti.on. ~.s a result, the coin or otaler object must be relativs~l~ close t~~ the s~;ns~~g before the coin gill have significant e~'~ect ~~ on sensor o~~tput. for this mason, it is possible to provide vr~lati~a~ly close spacing o~' coins without substantial risl~ of ~.~nd~sirablE.: influence of a leading or following coin on sensor output.
'~'he facing surfaces 2b22a, b of ~h~ legs 2812a, ba~-~., i~".: tl~o d~pioted ez~nbodinma:, substantially parallel and planar and are spaee~~ apace a distance x:824 of about a.3 inches 20 ~abOUt 8 min). 'f he interior iao~~ag surfacos % 822:a, b h2ve a height a.t least equal to flee widf~
of flee coin rail 2826, s~acl~ as ~boL~t -~.~ irNhes (bout 8' mrn). ~iUitxthe sensor positioned as depicted in 1~ig. 21 in tl~e op~~~crng co.,gfigu~atic~~s, the ~~ppeY leg :~,8L2a of the core is spayed from the lower leg 2812b of ahe core ;see hig. 231_3) by the inter-face gap 2824 to define a space 2804 for coin passage ~~r_Pougla the in~:er-leg gap. 'Tlne co~v 282 may be viewed as 2~ l~a~ring the shape of a gappo~ r~orroid wig i~ oxte~7ded legs 2 8,12a, 2812b with parallel faces 2822a, b. In one ~,mbodirr~onr~, the legs 2812~s, b aro substantially parallel. In another orr~bodiment, the legs 2812a, ~ are slightly inclined with respect to one another to define a tapered gap. ~Jithout wishing to b~ bound by any thoo~y, it is believed that extended faces which are inclined to de~~n~ a gap whicl'~ slig°.~tly tapers vurti~c~ly downward yields s~y~newhat ~o greater sensitivity near the rail ~:~,~herP tl~e majority of the coins or other items will ire located) but is relatively insensitive to tlbo vertical 2828 ~r horizontal 282 position of coins therein ~so as to provide useiazl data regardless of dnoslerate ~~oin ~~~~z:m~ee and/or dvobble) as a coin passes through tl~e gap 282. Lr~ the ~aepie~ed e~rqbodiznent, the faces 2822a,'b extend across the entire path width, to sense ;~~1 c~xe~allic o~~~ep:~s that move along the path in the z-c;gion of the sensor.
It is believed that providing a core i~~it=~- a larger gap ~i.e. with more air volume) is pat~tially responsible for decz-ea.img the serzsitiviry to coin an~saligzsznents but tends to result iz~
a somewl~zat lower magnetic ~,:jezasitivity and a~z increase in cross-talk. In one eznbodirnent, t~.e sensor can provide reliable sezzsor or~t,~».2t despite, a ve~ical dispi~icernez~t ("boanc~") of aboza 0.1 inch (about 2.5 znm) or more, az.id a sidewa_is (a~~~ay from tl°ie stringers) displacerzzent or ~o ''i~~obble" of up to tl.~l5 incises about ~.4 znnl).
In the depicted embodi~~z~ent tl-~e lo~~ frequency windi$~g 2864 is positioned at tine bo~aom of the sernicirc3,~Iar portion 28~~ and the 3:~igh ~reque~z~~y ~~.nnc~ing is positioned on each leg 28J6a, b of the semicirc~.zla~ portion. In oa~;~ en~hodime~~~ tire Iow frequency winding is configzAred to have an inductance din the c~-ivinr; and deteci-inn circuitry described below) of 75 about ~-.0 rnillihenrys and tile high frequency winding 28~6a; b to have an inductance of about 4(~ microhenrys. 'These inductance values are F_==~easured in the low frequency winding wi9;h the high frequency wvin=ding open and A Teaszzred ire the high Frequency v~inding witl~z file lo~v frequency winding shoz-teci together. ~l~e signals on the ~~~in~l.ing~;s are provided to printed circuit board via leads 27~~.
2o T'ig. 2S depicts the rr aor ~.anct-ional corrzljonents of the sensor 1'~:'B
25I2. In general, the sensor or transducer 58 provides a portion of ~ phase locked Loop which is rrzairztained at a substantially constant i°requez~ey. fl~~,~s, ~l~e lovj frequency coil leads are provided to a lovJ
'requency T LL 2q02a and the high freqLaency leads are pro~rided t~o high freqazeocy sensor ~T,1J 29~2b.
25 Fig. ~0 provides arf overview oI° a E-~ical transaction. T'la~;
transaction beg..ns v~hen a user presses a ''go'' or start bzztton ~d~12. ;lf~ response, the sy.==9te~
opens tl~e gate, and begins the lxor~3mel and coin pickup assembly disk znoto~-s 4431. AEs coins begin passing through the system, a sensor root sl~own~ is ~~sed to dete~~zine if tl~e hopper is in an overfill condition, izi which case the gate is closer. ii(~IB. 'The s~ste,rn is eorztinuo~~;ly oraitored for cazrrent peaks 3o in the zn.otors ~6L22 e.g. azsing cuz°rent se:_~so~-s 21,1121 ~~ig.
~-ll) s~~ that corrective actiozz such as reversing either or both of the motors For dejarnming porpo ses ~~24 can be irrzplemented.
_3G-~tirlrl~T ~aL3rC'~a~ CiTL~~i'~s?~ 63pera''s~~l~S, ~~9e syStLraL W31~. Se~~Se that CC~IY'iS are S-'~'varYLl'Clg past the sensor ~r02~. 'fhe s~st~:is a°~i~ t~ det~rri~i~-m 402 z~rli;.~thc~r ~oir~s are being sent to the reject chute or the coin trolley. lm the utter case, the system proceeds norrnaIy if the sensor in idle coin t~b~ outpaces ~~ ir~te~~r~i~tent or' 'fiiclcering yi~~~l.
l3oWever9 if the eoin tube sensor is stuck on or off, indicating a jam ripsveaan or dowTns9~~,arn such as an overfilled bin), operatic~r~s are suspended 4~~~%.
in one ~rr~bodiment7 t'ne ~~oW o~ ~~i~5 thra~ugh tl~~ systs~a~- is nnaraaged and/or'~alanced.
.~s shoWn in Fig. 4I, coin r~oi~~ can be managed by, e.g., control-Eing any or alI of the state of the gate l7, state or speed eQ r~h~ trammel ~-motor l~ ~~ ~/or st~~t~; ~~r speed ~;s~ the e;o~~ pickup ;o assembly motor ~Oj~ e.g. to ;~p,~i3nize or eth~~-wisv control the aff~ou~~t of coins residing in the tromrnel and/or coin pickuv asse-xnbly. ~~ur ~~car~~pl~, i~ a serz.soY 17:p4 indicates tl-iat the coin pickup assembly 54 'gas be~~~~~ fLBll, tl~~ r~icrocont~roxl~r ~a~2 cau turn.
off cue qtr~n~mea to stop feeding tine coin pick~~p assembly. In one embodimenit, a sensor ~ I 1 L, coupled to or adja~e~~t the trornmel SB, senses the ar~e~~,tnt ~ar~d/or type) of c~~bris falling out of the ti~~~rrr~1 r5 duri~ag a partit;a~lar transactieri car time ;period and, in response, the ~nicrocontrollev- 320 ca~.aes the coin pickup assembly r~~zot~>r t032 t~~ ~~~ ~:~ a dii'fPre-at speed and/or arovement patte-r~. ~e.g. to a~co~~modate s particulariy di.a~y bath ~f coins), po:~sibl.y ~~t tl~~ e~;p~nse of a reduction in throughput.
~~3~en the ~c~in ser~s~:~- ~~ ~~and ~ss6~~iated circuitTry a~Z~ci s~iriW are) are ~~sed ~o ~~easuro ~o or calculate coin sped, this <~~ t~r-matior3 rnay be ~:rsed :~,c~t only ~o eontrol the deflector door ~2 as described herein, but to oa-~~t an indication cf a need for maintenance.
For example as coin speeds decrease, a message for series oiT messages) to tlza3: ~~~~~t may lbe s°r~t to the host computer 4S so that it cara r~q.~est preventive 3-naintenance, pcr;entially there'oy avoiding a jam that eight halt a tra~~sactior.
~Q~~e the sys'~~m senses that ~oia~s are r~o iorag~r streanr~~ng past the sensor, i.f desired a sensor nay be used to determi:~o whether coins are present e.g. near the bottom oftr3e hopper 4042. li' coins are still present, the motor s ~~rontiu'L~~ op~ratir~~~ 4~~~
until ~oir~s are ~~ longer detected near the bottem of t;~~ 3~~pper. ~n~~ no more coins are detected rear the bottom of the hopper 404e~, tha system det~rniair~es that the transaction is cempiete.
'3'he system ~.aili 3o then actrwate the ~oa~~ rake, aracl, ~.f coins axe sensed t~ m~ve paast tie coin s~a~sor 5~ or into the hopper, the counting cycle is preferably repeated. ~ther~.visL, the transaction EviII be considered finished ~J~,B, an d the systeyr vvil3 cycle the trap doer and oa~ut e.g. ~ voucher of a type which nay be exchanged far goods, servi~:es or cash.
The Cain sensor phase locked ioo~ (~'~.L;, wlyich inciudes thu: sensor or transducer 58, maintains a c~tastant frenuer~cy arsd respands to the presence o3 ~.~ coin in the ga~j 2824 by a change in the oscillator sig_n:~i ~i~npiitude a~~d a change in the ~~,~=.
:error va~ca.ge. The phase locked loa~~? s~~owr~ in the depicted erriba~irx~e;ni: ~-e~,uires no adv~z~strnen~s and typical2y settles in about 200 microseconds. The system is self siar~ing and begins oscillating and locks phase automatically. The v~indir~g sigr;als (2 each for high :fre~ueruy and low frequency chan-s~els) are conditioned 2~0~ as described beio~v a.~d sent to an analog-to-digital (A/'~) converter 29f3~. The A/~~1 converter sai~~~les and digitizes ~~ a analog si~rna~s a~~ad pas:yes the inforrnasion to the ~.icr~controller 3202 (~'ig. ~2) ox~ the ~;on~~-ol ~ri.r~ted C',ircuit .hoard ~ssernlely (l'~hf~.) (described below) for further ~:nanilsr:laviar~ to identify coins.
l~s a coin passes thraugh tc~e tra~~s~l~ce;~- 5~, the un3p:~ite~cie of gibe ~~I.,I. error voltage 2~0~ a,b (sorraeti3nes referrdd to herein as a "~'' signal) and the aYnplitude of the ELI, ~~ sir~usoida9 ascillator signal (so~g~eti~~aes re-ierred ~~o as a "~"
s~gr~a.i) ~~ecrease. Tie ~'~,i~ error voltage is tittered and conditiorecl -nor eon~~ersi.on to digital data. The oscillatar signal is filtered, de~~nodulated, then canditioned for con~rersion ~o digital data.
since these signals a.re ge~~erated'~y two ~~~~ circ~~its (higp~ and iaw fre~:l~,~ency), four sigxrals resarit as the "signats~re"
~''or identifying coins. ~ figure :30 shows a your channel oscilloscope plot of the change in the 2o fo~~r signals (Lf-~ 3002, ~~,i~-C~ 30~J4~,, Vii"-f~ 3a0dg and ~~Ii-~ X008) as a coin passes the sensor. Information about the coin is represented in tl~e shape, tuning and amplitude of the signal changes in the four signals. 'fhe ~ontr~zl ~'~i~~9 which receives a digitized data representation ox'~these signals, laerforji3s a discrimination algorit.hrn to catd~,gorize a coi~~ and deterrrrine its speed through ~~-~e ~ar~sduce_, as de.3cribed belo~i~.
2~ T lie cain sensor ph~6se loc-iced lao~°, ac~;ording to e~~ne en~:'bodirnent, c~:~s:ists of a voltage controlaed oscillator, a phase cornparator, apnplifier':lilter for the phase comparator ou~~at9 and a rcferer~ce clock. The ~vo ~;~~ 's overate ~t 200 I~~z and 2.0 I~Iid~, with weir reference clocks synchronized. The phase relationship between the twa clock sigma 3101a, b is maintained ~by using u, divide~a-down c=ock rather '~har°x twa iradepend'.ent clc~~ck sources 30 3102. The 2 1~I~ cl~ck aartput 3101 a .is a?so used as tl~e ynaster clock for r~he A/~ converter 2906.
~s a coin passes ~~~roaagi-~ the t~ransduc3~r°s slot, they~e ~~ a change in ~f~e magnetic circuit's reluctance: This is seen; b~~ cirCuir-y as a decrease in the ineuctance value and results in a corresponding caeCrease in ~:l~e ampli~:~dc of ~he'~f,i. errs;r voltage, providing a first coin-identifying factor. The passing coin also causes a decrease i:ra tl-fe arnplitrrde of thEe sinusoidal F oscillator ~w~a~~efoa~~~, depending or= its ccr;~posit~u~~, e.g. dug; to ~ ~
eddy cvrz~rent Toss, and this is aneasured tss provide a second coin-ide~-wi~~ring factor.
T lae topology of th a oscillators 2q02a, b relies ors a 180 degree phase shift for feedback to its drive circt~i~~ arid is classi~ged as a ~olpi~ts c~sciz~~~or.
'hhe Colpitts oscillator is a syrnn3etric topoi~gy and allows the :oscillator to be isolated from ground. give for the o oscilla~~or is provided by a ~~igl> speed conaparator ~104a, b. ~'~a~e conlparator has a fast propagation to mirs:mize distortion due, to phase delay., low inr~r~t current to xnir~in~i~e loss, and remains stable ~,vhile operating in its lir~~:ar region. Ire the depicved ~,r~~r~odirr~ent, tl~e plus and minus rerrninais of the ir°rduCrors go directly to a high-speed ~,~~~mpar,~.tor~ whic~~ autobiases the Comparator so that signals convert quickly f>~~d are less susceptible to oscillakion and so ~5 lhat adhere is no need to bias the co~nparato~ to a central voltage ievc;l.
lay tying the plus and minas terminals of the indrzctor to tl~e plus arrd rrzinus terminals of the Comparator, the crossing o~ the te~nals' vok~;age at aray arbitrary poan'r in tl~u; voltage spertrurn v~ill cause a switch in tl°~e Comparator o~~~ut voltage so that ii. is autohiasing.
~'S~as achieves a wore nearly eves: ~~0%,~ duty cycle.
'fhe output of the cor-nparator driF~es the osci.ilator tlhro~.~gh resistors ~10~a, b. '~'he amplitude of the oscillating signal varies a.nd is correlated to~ the change i~~ "~" of the tuned circuit. without wishing to be bond by an.y tlaCOry, t~nis c,har~ge is believed t~~ be due to change in eddy current when a Coin passes tl~roul;h the transducer gaq.
~esators 3I08 a, Is, C, d v~rork wi~~l~ the input capacitance o~tru:; Corr~par~zor 3104x, b to provide frltering of unwanted 2~ hig'_~ frequency signal Compo~Eents.
Voltage Control of tie oscillator f~-equenCy is provided by way of the varactors 3l 12x, b, c, d, which act as voltage con~:rolled capacitors ~o~- tuning diodes).
These varactors change the capacit'ive Components of the oscillator. t.lse of two va~~aCCors maintains balanced Capacitance on eacE~ leg o~ windings .280~,280f1. A,s the reverse diode aoltage increases, ~~ Capacitance decreases. 'phus by changing tl-ae 'aToltage ~or~trolled ~scillator ~~IC~3~ input vol~agc in accordance with the Cl~iange :-a indr~.ctance due to rye presence of a Coin, the frequency of oscillation can tie maintained. TEtis ~~C;C~ input voltage is the signal used to indicate cisange; of inductance in this eirci~a.
'~'he phase/frequency detector ~ s ? 4-a, h per-~~omns certain ~ont~rol functions in t'_~is circuit. L compares the ou~;pt~'~ frequer$~~y of bile cornparat:or ~i~6a, b to a synchronized reference clocl~ signal and has an outpa.~t that varies as the ~~wo si~-~als diverge. ~~e out~p~t stage of the device amplifies aa~d filters =iris please comparator output signal. This an~pli~ed and 1°iltered output provides the ~J~~ s~on~oi sihnaa Bused to izndic;ate charge of inductance ire this circuit.
in addition. the depicted d~,vice ides an o~~-put ~ l l ~;~, C~ w:'~iclz, when afrpropriately 1o conditioned, carp be used to deterrr~i~e whether she 1'LL is '~in lock''.
In one ern~odiment, a 'ioclc-fail signal is sent to the i~ucxo~;roressor on ':he ~ ontrol g~~:f~ as era error indication, and an LLD is provided to indicate when both high and low frequency I'LL are in a locked state.
Because flee sensor S8 receives e~citat::ozL at ~:va~~ frequencies ~:~rougl~
t~~o cons wrapped on the same ferrite code,~ there is a pot~yntial for the coupling of signals which rrnay ~5 result it undesired amplit~,~de modulation orb~ the irdividr.iai s~~~gnais .hat are being rraonitored.
Filters 2~12a, b remove the undesired s-~ectraa component while maintaining the desired signal, prior to arnpiitude nreasuze~~en~. it this way, tie m~;w~sured aanpli~~ade of each. signal is not influenced by an independent change in the amplitu.<le of tfae other osciilatc;r circuit sib als.
'fee filt~°red output signals ire le,~~el-shied to cent~;:r there at ~.~ ~~~ in order to control -che ~neasurernent of the signal an~plir~de dy dovvr~strea~a~
circuitry.
n. the de;~ic~~ed ern~rodirr~en;, thr; acti~ie highpass and i:ova,~ass filter s are ir~pi~~nerxted as Sallen=Fey ~utterrvorth two~poie filter =circv:its ~91~a, ~. ~~ offset adjuscrnent of tine o~avput sigr-~als is accomplished icy using ~ 'duf~~:,red voitag~; divid~,r as a referee c~,. Input 2s buffers ~~I4a, b are provided to miniz ize iossus or' the oscillator circuit by rnain-taining a high inpart irrapedarce to the f:~lter stage.
The lowpass falter ~~l~a is designed to provide more than ~Odl~ of attearuation at 2 I~~~~ while maintaining integrity of the ~i>~ :~l-.lz signal, with less teat ~;9.1 d~ of loss at that frequency. The cutoff frequency is 5~~ ~~f~z. iglapass filtering of the outp=at from the 30 lov~-pass filter is provided 2~18a vri.~~ a c~~"Lofi frequency of ~'l -5:,z. Tying to a 1~~; referer~gce 2922a provides an adjusted output that centers tire 2~t1 l~r signal at 3.~
~i~~. This output of feet adjustment is desired for subsoq~~aer~t ampla~de easure~nont.
'Y he highpass filter ~~ I ~~ is ~~igrE~,~~ to ~rovici~ nlog:e; =harp '~~d~
oi° atten~.atxorat 2~D~
1~3z while maintaining integt>;ry of the 2t~J i~Jli~a~' sig~ml, w~~:I:~ Ices than ~. ~ dl~ of loss at that frequency. 'The cutoff frequency is ?~~ ~~z.
~rr~plitrude ~neasurenn~.W of the sinusoi dal oscillator waveforrn is acconlplislled by d~~nod~lating the signal with a :negative peak detecting circuit, and measuring tree; dif~~erence between this value and the .1~~ reference voltage at ~~vl~ich the sina~soi~3al signal ;.s centered.
'hi is comparison n ~oasureinent is then sealed to utilize a significant portion of the 1~I~
.0 converter's input ravage. ~'he ir3put to the cvrcant is a ialterev.
sin.~~sa~idal signal centered at a l~nown ~C; referenc;e voltage o~~~ut of the ~~ighpass or lowpass active fiiLee.
The input signal is delnodu fated joy a c~_osed-loop diode peak detector circuit. Tlle tune constant of the network, e.g. ~3 rnsov, is h:ng co~nparod to tll;. period of tlle. sinusoidal input, bnt short when copa~-~~. re tl~e tirr~e ~;:~apsud as a ~oi~~~ passes thro~agia the sensor. 'his ~5 relationship allows the peak detector t9~ r~a~t q~aiclcly to a change in a~~nlitude caused by a coin event. She circuit is inlplenlented as a negative peak dot;ctor rather tlfan a positive peak detector because the ~;o~paraz~o~~ is rnoro predictable in its ability to drive the signal to ground than to drive it high. ~on~tpa~~ators ~Iz~a., b, such as mosi~,l l~'1'101~;~~8, ava'ila~tsle from f,inear '1'ecllnology, provide a high slew rate anc maintain stability ~%vhil~
i~a the liruear regio~-~.
~o The analog closed-loop peak detector avoids the potential phase error problems that f~lter-stage phase lag and dyna~ci~ plJ_ p;~~aso s!gifts n.~.ight -~,reate for a sample-aryd-hold iamplexnentatio:n, and elin~i~satos tile n~eti for a saTf~~pling clock.
'f'he negative pe2Lk de=actor output is compared to the a~~ reference voltage, then scaled and paltered, by using ail op anlp 31~~a, b implemented as a ~lifferenee amplifier. '1'he ~~ difference a~np is configured -.:~a subrrac3: vhe : ~~gati~r~, peas frog:
the l:~C reference and ~~nultiply the difference by a sealing factor. i:z~ one embo di~n~nt, for tale low i~r~~uency channel, the scaling factor is ~i.t32, and tlm high frequency challnc.l scales the output by 5.11.
~:"ne output of the difference ar~:pli~fior has ~. lo~vpass ialte~- on tl-~e feedback with a corner frequency at appro~irnat~iy ~~~ ~1;;. .in ~~~e depicted ~nlbodi~alezat, there i,<.~ a snulbboz at tl~~
~o output to filter high frequency trc~nszents ca~zsod l=y switching in th.e ~~/I) ~o:lvert~~:.
'1'he error voltage rne~s~~~..o~~enc, scaling, and filtering ois-~uit 31~.~a, b is designed to subtract 2.5 VAC from the 1?:~Jl=, error voltage and amplify the-, resulting di ierence by a factor ol'tvro. g'ize T'L.~. orro:~ voltage input signal ~vilT be ire the, 2.'s-4.~
~i~C range, and in order io maximize the use of the h/T~ c.:~=_~verte:-'s input Tango, the offset volrage is subtracted and the signal is a~npliTied.
'i ho input signal is pre-~~ltored with a ltawpass con~e3 fro~uency of 477 T~~z, and the oa~t~ut is altered in the feedbacq~ loop, Y~Ji~~ ~ cup:-off ~~~uer~c;~ off=
2.3 T~z. ~ sra~g'obor at the output ~lte°rs high fro~uency tra:r~si~;nts ~~~sed by s~ritohing ir~~
the l~/~ converter.
In an interface circuit, 2T~22 data and control signals are pulled up and pass through se~~i~,s ter~~r°zination resistors., In: ~.~aitio~~, ~~Ee dates signals T~~'T,~ -~aAft~ 1 ~ are bu~~:exo d by bi-directional registers. these bi-directional buffers isolate the ~1/l~
converter frown direct connection to tlae data bus and. associated int rconno~-,.~ s;ablir~a~.
~~he A/~ converter 2~~~ is a singh~ sv~pply, 8-charnel, 12-bit sampling converter such as yodel ~;~7859.f~p s~.~~ilable: fro~~:~ A7~aTog ~evi~e~s~. The ~ll~
transactions are 95 directly controlled by the ar~ic-ropxo~esso~- ors the ~~o~~trol hC:~~l~.
l~n overvievaT of control provided for various hardware components is depicted in Eig.
3~. In 1=b. 32, the control h~rdr~aar~; is g~=:~orally derided inez, ~~:~.
c;oin sensor harwware 32~~
and the coin transport hard~.varo 3206. ~ ~~umTser of aspects of hardware 32~~., 3206 are controlled ~ri~ a miorocontrolTob 3202 whielA nay be ~r~y of ~ ~ru~-~~b~r of rnicrocontrollers. In ~o one, ernbodin~ent, ~l'~I86E~, available from l~dvan~; d l~;icro ~oviCes, is provided.
~ho microcontroller 3202 corna~a~r~icates with and is., to sor.:~e degree, co~~t-rolled by, the 110St comptater a~~. 1 he lost ~oxnp~.~to~~ ~.~0 cazx be any ofir ~
narxral-yer of c;omput~;rs. gn one embodiment, comp~3ter 46 is a computer e~~ploying an Intel X86 or Pentiam~
processor or o~uivalont. 'fhe host ~oynp~~_'~,r ~6 and ~~aoroc~~ntzollor 320 communicate over serial limo 25 3208 via respective serial ports 321L,321~. 'The rnicrocontroller 3202, in the depicted orr~bodirno~~t, has ~ second serial po.~t X216 which may be ~T~sed for nurpos~;s such as debuggib~g, freld service 3218 and t&3e liT~o.
I)~aring normal opera.tior~g progr~mm.i~xg and data for tA o :icrocontroller ~r~ stored in rr°~emory ~;~~hich may ir:~IucT~ normal rar~ds~.rn across rneanc~f ~l~l'~h 3222, norh-volatile 3o random access memory such as hash -~r~orgro~y, static memory and the li~~
322, and read-only rnon~or3~ 322 which ~rg~.y in~l~~~~~, programmable :r°Fd/or electronical-l~ oras~b:~o ~rogram~ra~ble react-only m.en~ep~ (:~;f;la~~h/l). In one e,rr~bociirnex~t, microprocessor ~rmwa~-e can be downloaded from a remote location= via tlxe host computer.
Applications software 32?~ for co~~~-olli~y operation. ~r~ zhe 'post computed
4~~ may be stored in, e.g., hard disk memory, nonvolatile ~~1~ memory and the like.
Although a nu~-nber of items ire ~escrahe~ as being ~~.p:~ienzented in soi~ware, iri general it is also possible to ~rc~ride a ~a~-e~~avare in~plexnentatior~ such as by using hard wired consrol logic and/or ar~ application specific i~-Faegoated cireuit (~Si~).
Ar~ inpa~.t/out~s~at ~l/C~) i3~terface on ripe rencrocontroller 3~~~
9:acilita~.es corn~n~~nication such as bus communication, direct l!f, inters~~pt requests and/or direct meary ace;ess 1o ~~ll~A) requests. Since, as desc~°ihed rr~~orc thorc~~~ghly belo~Fr, ~A°~f~~ is used for ~a~.~ch. o:l°the sensor communications, the coin sensor :;ircr~itrv includes D~c~~i logic circuitry 3~3~ as well as circuitry for status and control signals ~2~~. a~lt'novgh, in t~~e described embodyrnent, only a single sensor is provided :~flr coin sensing, it is possible cv cc~nflgure an operable device hacking additional sensors 3L3~.
In addition to the motors ~SQ2, 2~3G, solenoicas 201~1f i'734, ~3~6 and seF~sors 1738, I734 described above in connection wi=h coin transport, controlling latches, gates end drivers oa° a type that will be uaAderst~:c~ci-ay those fi.l> skiI in tae are :~~tur ~~nderst~.ndia~g the present invention, are provided 342.
A method X08 derivi~~g, rro~~ tape doa~r s~;;nsoz~ signai.;s ~l;ig. 3C3) a set of v~ai~~es or ''slb~latLel'e" lndlCat~Ve (if a ~E3?~? wi2lCh ø3as p~sSE9'~,."' the sel3SOr, is '~eSC:rlbet3 In COni-F4:eElt9n V~IItI°~
the graphs ofp'ig. 33 which shorn a hypothetical etaple of tape four sibnals L,F~ 332, L~,F'~
33~~, ~Ip'~ 33x6 arid ~pQ 33~Dci during ~ icerioci o° tune in which a c~in passes ah~-ough the arms of the sensor. Units of p'ig. 33 are arbivary since pig. 33 is used to illustrate the privnciples behind thus ~rnbodi~.r~e,nt. A baseline ~~alue, 331, 331.x., 33t~, 3318 is associ~tecl 2~ with each of the sensor signals, representing a value equal to the average or mean value for that signal ~rahen no coins are ~ci~~cent tE~e sensor. l~lthough, i~~, tl~e depicted embodiment, the l,~D signal is used to define a =uirrdow o-= time 33~~ curing which the minimum values for each of tl~e four signals 3362, 33~~, j3~;~, 33()8 will be ~~~,te~~ir~ed and otl~e~~ tl~=eshold-crossing events, (at least in pert because this sigryal typically i~as tlae sharpest peal), it would be possible to use ather signals t~ defir-._e any or all of the variozas crossing events, or it rnay be possible to define the win dow separately for each signal.
_~~_ In the depicted embodiment, the base line value 3312 associated with the LFD
signal 3302 is used ~o define a tlesc~~~t ~i~re,Yl~e~-~d 33~~~ (equal to -tie i~l~~
baseline 3~1~ nainns a predefined descent offset 3326, and a predefined gap threshold 3328 equal to the ~Fl;
baselir~Ee 331 minus a gap oI'l'se'~ 3332).
In one embodiment, tl~e system will remain in an idle loop 340 (Fig. 34) until the system is placed in a ready states (as described. beiow) 340.. ~~nce the systerr~ is in ready status, it is ready to respond to passage of a coin past the sensor.
In fibs depicted vr~n~odirnent, t_~ce ~egi~~:nirg of a coin passage past t~~e sensor is signaled by the ~,FD signal 33x2 ~~ec;or~~ing less 421 ~ than tl~c descent ti~reshold 33'4 (3406) which, in the e~r~bodi~nergt of .~~in. 33, occ~xs at ta~~ae t, 3336. ~l-ae~~
this event occurs 3338, a nu?~sber of vahaes are initiali~;ed or s9:ordud 3408. rs'he status is set to ~~ value indicating that tlae ~,vindo~h, 932 is opera 4~ 14. ~otlr the ''ue~~C" tune ;revue a:~d the f"lead"
time value are set eq~aa? to the clocl~ value, v.e., equal ~:o ti 3336. Four varia'~les i=,~~1~12~ 33~1~2, LF~TvII~ 3344, I~FDII~IhI 3346 and I-lF~i~l1\T ~>348, are used to hold a value indicating the ~5 rninirn~~rn signal values., for ~~aE.aa o~ tl~p sgzgals. 330, 330., 3306, 3308, tl~~s-i~~r achieved during the window 332 and Thus are initialized at the T~ vah~es vfor each of tl:e variatJles 3302, 3304, 3306, 3308. in tl~e illust~atior~ of ~'ig. 339 tl~e .~a~dno.~ag rr~inirrat~rrz ~ralues 3342, 3344, 3346, 3348 are depicted as dotted lines, slightly offset vertical.y do~~nward for clarity.
During the time tllak t~~e ~vindo~.-.,~ ~s og~e~~ 33~~., ~:e ~nir,im~m-hoidir~g varia=ales 20 1=,FDl~, 1_,F~IvIll~t, ~FDllhand 1-1F ~?~~IIV will be npd;~ted9 as needed, to reflect the minimum valve thus-far achie~r=;d. i:n i:lae depicv:ed embodirr~u~nt, 3:h~;
fovr values are updated serially and cyclically, once every clock signal. Updating orn values can be distributed ir~ a di~ferev~t fashion if it is desired, for ~;~am~le, 1:0 ~rovgde greater tines resolution for some variables than for others. It as believed that, by ever sampling specil"~c channels, recognition 2~ aver accuracy c~:r~ be improved. ~s the ~.~ ~ ~~alue is heaz~g te;>ted anc, if necessary, updated, a value for an ascent threshold 3336 (whci. will bs~ used to deii~~e tl~e end of the window 33~~,, as described beow) is caiculated or upe~ated 341st. 'l'i~e valve ror the ascent f~res~°r~ld 3336 is calc~zlated or ~~,~dated as a vai~e cquai t~, the; current val~ze for LFI~~IgIaT 3342 plus a predefined ascent hysteresis 332.
3a ~7henever the ~.F171~/11I~ value 334 moat 6e updated (i.e.., when the valve o~ ~,FD
descends below the previously-stored ~r-tinim~a~n value 3412)" tl~e ''peak"
time value is also vlsdated by ~eir~~ s:~ade eciL~a l t~s raid c~.~x-e;rt cl~~;z~ value. ~r~
;:~~is ~.v~y, at t&~e end 4~~~ ~f the ~.~~s~d~~r 332, tie ~°isealc" c~a.°iai~ie ~~~i:~~lc~ °~
,value °~rdicati~~~g rye ~is~e a~: r~eic~ i,v.~~ ~3fl2 bleached itS unrai~~uvat-~ze $x~it~i~~ the ~rir~d.~~ra ~:'>Z~.
I'-~S a C~l~l masses t~lT~a''g;~~a ~~e 4i~~iY3,S L3~_ fa' Ser~S~i~, tfte ;:~L't~ Si-~%3a~ '~r~Ie~eS ~~~C., ~~0~~, 33t~~, 33fl~ ~vili, in ~e~erai, ~-eacii ~ tmiair~z~~~~ ~:~aiu° ardd t:~~er~ ise~irl ~~ras;e ~~r~; t~ aSCend io~arard tie '~aseiine valL4e ~~ > ~, ~3 :i~., ~~ t. ~" ~ ~ l is. i~~ ~s~e depicted ~~u~~c~di~ier~t, the -~ir~~v~w-322 is declared 5'closed"' ~,i~e~~ the, iJ~'3~ ~ ~s_~~e ~~fl2 raises t~ a ~c~in,: that it e~uaiS tl3e current value f~r the ascent ~,'aiv~e t',r;;-eSl~eid ~> ~~~. ire We iil~:stra~ia~r~
<:f °~i~. J~', ftaiS ~w',J~t :~35~~
cccurS at time ~'3 :~35~. ~Jr~~~~ de~cc~i~r~ ~~.1 ~ ~f tha e~aez~t, tle cLtrre~~t ~~aiue fir 'die cl~G;ic '~0 ~i.e., t8~e ~ra~Lie it2dF~atl~l~ tfd's""~P r~3,~ fS Sid "d 3~ ttsE:
'trf8li" star ~~~'a;. ~'~lCdS, at t~1~5 ~7C~S~tt, t$~ri;2:
Yi~,lec~ t~lr.'L~re ~~;eCi St~:"~',~' ~'~~ t~rPe el2tF:aFf9ee,: ''~eai:"
~k.'~C9~CS a ar~.'~Lae tYlC~~~a'a~~z~ t~$~3e ~~I, Le., te1':, l r'~e at VJi'iLCh tl~C; 'vV'ei3~~~rv' ~H~'au ~~ef'~e~.d~ ;'~"9~,~~iC'~
~3C~lC"~ ~ oral a ~.'~1CE.Cat~~l~ tYarle ~~'~,, 9.e., the ~~i~ei<nLt~~ ~~alue lcr ~raria~lwc lrl-yy 33fl~.~ a~~d v'ariv~le '°tr~il" ~:u lc°s a ~alv~e i~dicatis~~ ti~~e 'T3, i.e., the dyne ~r~~er~ the wi~d~~~r '322 ~vaS ~;~sed.
'~'l~e ~tl~er p~srti~n ~f tie si~~t~xre fir the ccsin vrhich maS .just detected (in addition r~
~f'°~'.; ~.~lree 9~1'13e ~IaYFaa~3~teS~ afC vraatkeS 1~''.ei~Cai~~T~
the F=Fdi~klP~'u~rFw a~:.:';~-~e'~7ed, iRr~t~'91r: '~~~e 4h~111dC1~FV
T
~3~~., fir each of t~~e variables ~.~fl2, ~:7~3~, ~fflc., ~3fl~. 'f hes';
ve~Iues are calculat=~d ~42~ by Subtracting the ~fi~irn~~~r~ valuc;s at tizr~e ~~~ 3~~~2, J ~44, ~,;~~, ~~~.~
fr~rr~ tire res~ecti~m i~aseiir~e va?ueS ~3 i~', 33 i~, ~~ l s, ~'~ l t', vcreld i~ur dxfferea~~~;e ~r delta values, r~i_,~ ~ 33~~, ~C ~~,~~ ~3~~, ~"-lf~ ~~~~ a3~~.~ ~ii~'~ ~~>~~. =~°c~R~idiug ~L~t~L~r jai ~,r is negative t~ 5~he baseline value fs~r each Signal is useful kr~ av~idirr~ se~asiti4rit~ tc~ re~~e~TatLare charade.
E~lt~.ou~l'~, ~',~ ti~~e t3 ~~de~, ail The ~,r~3ue~ rewired is t~~.e c~i~
Si~ria'a~re lz~ve been ~'L9taliied, lIa t~e C'ae~lf'vtC'd e~'~2~L3E3~'..a'i.rl2'o,'i~t, za~~
S'~'StnJ9~a''! IS ~'I~t ~'et er~~ced ~t;i a 6':"C,'ud~l" Str'~.te'. ~'rfaS ~S
i::L,'~a$9SaJ fit KS deSYYC'~~ td~ aSS3~:~:~; Ei'~.aC t~Am~'.~-:. d a s3Y~
least sz ~r~~1~13rI2~~rt~i1 ~%a~ ~3F',t't%irref'lI tl3C, ~~Q~~3. W 3~Cla 25 vas ~uS~ detected and any f~;l'~~v~rir~~ cc~~t~. I~ is aiS~ desirable r~
ai~atai~ at least ~~ r~i~irr~a~x~
distance ~r dap ~-~r~~ a~~ ~recedi~~~ c~iz~. ~r~ ~e~:~eral, it, is believed ~~seful r~ ~rc~v~ide at least S~9I'~Ye S?~ac>~'i~ ~G'etWe~n ~C'31Y'3S ~:~:ik' ''~~c~ur~:~e selS~r lead3ilb, SI~''r(;~~ dC9ina ~.~=~:~Y~~ a:~e t~~C~'iln~ pan reScalt xi1 eddy GL?rrGrit hSaSS~r3.~% ~~et~rEe-ta ~~~~iS. i~~~alntaxY:ln~ ~e ~"~~.~a~3lr~Lll'$3 ~a~'r- as ~~.~ES ~'x~a9$~C;
t~~~rard tl~e d~~r ~2 is useful in >~a~in~~ SLkre that duct d2 ~,0 3;: Srrilte the c~:i~~ at the deSi:_ed 3~ tie arae ~ecat~~n. ~er~~en~; 'v:~~ S~~b~~ e;r v~~ x~,t~; a;~ _~eSUtt ire <
efiectin~ a~~ acce~wd ce~~r ~tlrer than into the acceptance, viax, degr~di~a~ sysvwa=~;c~;~aac~.
_gg_ Information gathered by the se:txso~- ~8 rr~ay also be used in corn~ection with assuring the existence of a preferred ~~ryi~~ ~~ n~z~~ gap ~cvwea~~~ c~ins. Irr al2is way, if coins are too closely spaced, one or more coins ~~,~hich might otherlvise 'ne an accented coin, will not he deflected hand will not he "couretecl" as '>n accepted ~,e~i~.z). ~i~~iA~~rly, lm ~~~e er'~l~odimen~, a coin hacking an acceleration less than a thress~old (sz~cla as less than half a maxirra~am acceleration) will not be accepted.
Accordingly, in order to assure an adequate leading gap, she system is not placed in a "ready'' state lentil the L~L~ sigr_.al 33~~ ryas reached a value c,qual td~
the gap threshold 3~~~.
Ai"cer the syste-=r~ ver>f~es 34~~i~ that this F"vent '~~~7% leas oc~;vrred, the status is set equal to ~ o "ready'' 33~~ and the system returns to are idle st:a~te 34~ 1 to awai t passage of the next coin.
To provide for a min:im3~xrn preferred tailing gap, ik~ orne eh~dirnent, tl~e soft~aee monitors the ~ F~ signal 33t~~ far a short time after ~;lZe ascending hysteresis citerion has been satisfied 4~3~. if ~Yae s~gr~ai ha.s moved ;g~~f~~cicntly I~~cls towards the baseline ~3i2 (rr~easured either with respect to tl~~e baseline or with respec; to the peak) after a fi~ predetermined time period, tl2en an adequate trailing gap exi~~cs and the door, if t~~o, c~~in is an accepted coin, will he actuated 4244. Is rise trailing gap is not achieved, the actua4ion pulse is canceled 4240., and nor~~ally ~i~e coin will he r~~;turned to tl;e ~.sc;r. In all cases, software thresholds are prefera'oly calibrated using the srr?;allest coins ~e.g., a U.~. dune in the case of a ~lJ.~. coin mix).
20 Because the occurrence of events sucl-~ as the crossing of thresholds 333$, 334, 3372 are only tested a"~ discrete time irate vats 341 o a, 34? 1h, 34'1 lc, 341 1d, in most cases the event will not he detected until some tune after it has occurred. hot exar~iple, it tray happen that, with regard to ~tize ascent-crossir~Lg event 3:~~4, the previous wvenl;-test at tune f4 3374 occurs before the crossing event 3354 and the, next event-test occurs at tine 'f5, a period of dime 25 337 after the crossing event 3:~1i4. Aaco.4di~:gly, in on.c er~~~odirnent, once a lest determin~,s that a crossing event spas occ~:rre~l, interpolation such as linear interpolation, spline-fit interpolation ox the Iil'e, is used to pro~ride a n ion°e accurate e;9~:imafe of the actual rira~e of tl~e event 3354.
As noted above, by dyne t3 335, all the valises requiy-ed for the coin sig~.ature have so been obtained. Also,'ny tisane t3, tl~e in:lor&nation v,~~hich can be ~scd I~r calculating the tine at wl°.ich the door ~2 should he activated (assuming the coin is iden~;ifed as an accepted coin) is _~co_ c'1~'aEla"t7i~.. l~~;S;atISE.; tlYe Q'ES~scl'a"~.:C =i'C3Ytd tt~.e ;yi.Y'li;:~Jr tLi tile dC~~<~Y Es (:orE;;taYEt and ~'~Y~O~,UIl, t~G
aYE-EOUnt oi'tie Ye~uired for ~. Goin t~ tra~:.%ei to iisv ~refe~-Yed ~~os~t~~t~ vJit~ t'es~ect to tt~e door Gau t72 CaiCtllated eXaCtly 1i i~C; a~,CC,r)',:'Etia3i3_ :>~ t~'t~<, CoEU2 '~a'3C37'2~; 'lle E'~~f is "h'IIOWYx ~~'t3d C:OYlstantj aYEd a ~eiocit<~,, such as =she ~eioci~~ at the setlsor is ~Ylow~. l~ccoxdi~.g to one ~~etiaod, ac~eleratio=~ is e;alct.lated ~~y ~,~or~s~~rir~~ r~t~e =~cioE~rty o~ tire cc .a ~s it Yuo~~res fast t3~e senso- 5~
~~~h the velocitr~ of the coi~~ ~s it ~ass;~s o~~er tire ''~:~~ee" iE~ v"~e ~-~°~ositiorE regio~~~tC. 1rE
of>e e~Wodir~e~n, tile ir~Etiai ''iEkfee"' vc;zoct~ is ~.sst~~~';ed to ~~; ~
single ~~aiae for all coins, i~
oYEe case, c1.5 tmeceYu/second. °~uowi.raY; the: ~%~:loC;ity at two loz:atons (the lc~~ee ~e~t~: aYtd the sensor location ~g~ at~d lsr~:~~n~~g the drst~<4G~: t'rc~~: the l_nee ~i~~: to the seas~F-',oc°.atior~ 5~, ~~ $he steel~~°ration a};~erienced ~y jhe coil Sara tie caicula~:.~d.
used can this calculated aCCeleratlOU, a dS c~~lf;i't paossEiJle to jeliC;tiiate 1?C3~:,, bong a'~
v6r~~~ iCSe, C'Oiit~Y2E3EFlg at $hat acceleraC~oi~, lSelo~~, the ~,otai ks ~~sit~ouLr~ az th!~ ~ae~erred ro'ca~ao~
o~~e~- ~,he actt':aLor. rt,hts system essentially opeYatcs o:r~ ~. ~Yinc~s~it; c;r asst<Y~ing =xr initial ~~eloGity a=kd using rneasureYnents of tire sensor vo uitim~~tel,,.r calctE:late hov fYEe ~nora ~oY
oth en t°ac;tCSrs such as r5 Surface teYES3°JIE~ af$GGtS tFIG ~CCZ;;$eYa'II(~~~t >'V.',~~'?sr a X~eiEGl'aE;ed v~y P~e;'ll GO~.'°g. f~.YEiltIFG-r ~13sY9TOaGl~
r3"lEght ~G i.ES2d jYi 4~Il~1Ci2 an ~;~IGv°t2~le ~i'aGtios~ xxlelS
aS;~ui 3Gd clE, a C;OI~St~n$ ~:~alue a:'fid tie data gathered at the Sensor ~~~e°1S -~.~SG:~ Lo C~li.i."1'setG, tse 2asitir'El ~c'I~IIGe''j ~°~,!!oGityr In any case, tl°~e Galculat~o~a o~elt~; ~qm.C; W Een the Goin r~r~~:l :~e~tGh -trae ~ret~eYYed ~ositioY~
C;a~a l7e CX~GCteL~ t0 i3a~e S~~-~e ~'i'l7,OixYl~. old eYE'or ~?.e., C'altfererEGe ~G't~leeY~ Ga9GUla'e~ ~50s1t3E5Y1 2a and atlas: r~osition at the deov aGtiYratioYF diz~f::~. ',he ~;rYor car arse t°rom ~. nun~l~eY of factors ir~GIudiYlg de~art~ares fYOm the assumption r'cgarding the l~nec velocity, xaon-c~Ytstant values i'or friction along tlEe rail, ~~ad tl~~, lihe. ~~~~ oYSe e_~~hodi.~ent a h°~>;~ ~r~.en found the -, .wing tige, ~'JE,'sCY'a5ed ~;YOCG6~au3'G, auCE f0< 's;'Y'n.e ds:.~~v~.Ye d a?1~
CaC,SCrIE'9GCm deSEyk°'9 tl'~~; ~loY'gt'-CaSe GYroY oCGtirs with the s~~Eallest coin ~e.g., aEaAount i';'.~ mrr iEr diameters ak~d ~.:~ouY?ts to alsproXit~ately a 25 Y°alYU ~n e'athG~' d3reC$iori. It $s Ei~CIEf~"~Tc;,d t.l''aa'E, EE'E
'-at aa;aSt SOEIIe Cal~3sCY~;lli~ie3lts, aLi eZY'G"r !~V'~S&d~~~1 t'9a ~ i'ilm ~S tOIC,Ya~Sle ~LG., reSUltS ~n a C, ~ W'~/C?y ~~;b~ :ate of Y'a'E1SC'~~d°i~CLEtig Coins yW otl'9e: o ~~eG$S~, I~ order to implement this aoG~,dts:~e, data ~htainc;;~~ ~t the senso: 5~ is ~~'sed to calculate a velocity. ~GCOrdi'~g to one sc;'ixe~y~e, tirtlv '~3 ~33d is tal'en as the tiYn~~ v~~~en the '~,oii'i t?rst e:'TterS tile SGUSOr ~a3~C~ t:~l~e tE ~,t~3C °'i;~G,a~~"
t~:'liG,y Es ta~<~;n aS ~:he tErFG ~JV'hea~~' the COE:~~Y Es 3e Ge,ntered oYE the sensor, aYad thus a~~s traveled a distaY~ce a;~~ro~iY~~ately equal to a coin radios.
~eGause, o~ace the Goin laas'oce~ recogr~i~cd ~e.g. as d~,scrihe~t -~elova in conueGtion ~crith gigs.
_~. ; _ 36 and 3'~;, tl~e radius of tl~.c coin is l~i~~~ro (,~;.g. ~~sang a ~~o~-uh t~hl~., it is possible to calculate .-elocittyr as radius divided by the difference (i~ -ti).
Tlxe proc;ed~re illustraved i:~ Figs. 3~ a'ncl 3~ is an exhale oa' orac emhodi~~ent of a detection process 35~~. ~s seen i~~ Fig. 35, a number of processes., in addition to detectiors, should be performed lsetwc~e~t tl~e time d~~~ is obtained by the sensor 53 and flee tzr~ae a coin reaches the door 6~. ~n ge:~e_-al, processes ca~~ be considered as being either recognition processes 35~~ relating to identifying and lovating objecf ~~hich pass the sew sor, and disposition processes 350, ~ei~zti~~g to .s~,rgdin;~ co~~s to d:.~;s~:~ed desti,~~tions. Jnce t~~e detection process lies examined the stream of sensor readings and has gLnerated signatures 1o ccs~~espoz~ding to the coin (or odder objcct~ tsassi.x~ag the sensor, t~~e signatures are passed ~'?~~
to a categorization process 3~~1~. This process examines ftie signatures received from the detection process 352 and de~v~~~i'nes, impossible, ~~hat coin or objc;ct has passed the sensor.
preferring t~ Fig. 32, the rec;grition and dispc~sitio~i processes 3'_i0~, 3306 are preferably perfomned by the rr~icroconfiroller 3242..
~5 Fig. 3pro4rides an r'siia:~stration o:~ o.~e ex-rlbodirn.ent ~u° ~:
ca~:egorimtion ;,ro:,ess. ~~s shown in Fig. 36, in one eF~bodiment a calil=retion mode may be pro~rided in which a pl~:rality ot'l6nown t~lpes of coins a;re pi~~c~d in ti:.e r~~ci'~ine arid, uhesc~ coins are us~;d io de ~~e maximum and minirrnum Ll~'~, LF~, i~Fl~ and FIFE oralue s for that par'cicular category or denomination of coi.:~. ~n one ~.bodixr~er?t, vira~i~~g parameter;: are also est~blishec a:d stored 20 during the calibration process:. l~cc;ordi~xg to the embodiment of F ig.
3Fs, if the system is a.An~ergolng Callbra't~~'.~'1 j~~~, '~zl~, Sy~''':ent dies no'i, atte~'Flpt t~
r'~C~,'i,,.Tlilli~e yr ~cntegC9ri%,d, =:hC: C~lns and, by C~~'a~~el~tlC3n, ~l~e ~'L7lns Y..~~~:.d ~43r ~.~''~~i#~r~8;30I7 are ~ateg~rle~d as "'~7~ire~~:gnlZe~" i~Qdr.
As illustrated in Fia_ 3?, in one, embodiment, a coin signature 37Q2 is used to categorize an o'dject by performing a co~~~,~ariso~~ for each oi' ~ ~uumber or 3iffereE~t ,~otenti~i 25 categories, starting with the first vatego~~,~ 366 and stepping to each next category 3~i0~ until rz~atch is found 3612 or all categories arpexhaosced 3614 ~~-ithout ~r~dir~g a matc;l~ 3616, in which case the coin is categorized ~#2~,i:~ as ur~~rec.ognized 36i3~-. wring each test far a match 361 ~, each of th.e four sigrsal peals 336, ;364., 3366, 336, is compared, (successively for each category 37J~a, 3 J 04b, 3 ~~~n) ~~nt~ Fa~'ini~~~u~n and rraa.~ic~urre ("~loc>r" arad ".ceilings') 30 ~a3ues defining a "~~indow" For each sigi~at~zre component 3ls~,a, 3fli3b, 3714x, h, 3716a, 1j, 37 =. Via, h. ~~ match is dcclare~~ 361 ~ fear ~. given category onl ,~
.~i° x.11. four c,ompo~=eats of the _c 2_ sign~ti~r~ 332, 334, 336, ~F~ca 3:~~~ r~'aiE ~~;iari~i~ ~iF~ cwres;~c~r~diF~g ~rr~dc~~l f~r Q~ ~a~rti~;Fnar Cc~t~gory .~704~3., i7, ~, <~.
it Evhe ~FnhodiFr~eF~t ~F ~i~. ~~, ~:'~~~; s~s~~ir= rrmy h~ coafigFv~-~d t~
~rFd tl~c: ~w~~,g~~riz~=~ioF~
~roCeSS ~~~G ~.x/h~Y~~:~Er t~l~ 3a: St ~i~c~g~rr~ 3~~Gi reSF&iiiF3g 1F~ %~
r~~c'°'tCh ~~35 ~6,~r6 ~:~3Ltrld, ~'~' t~
so~~FtiF~FFe 3~'~~ ~~rFti~ ~Ii F~ ~~~~g~~'ies i ~~~~ ~~~;eF~ ~~sted. arF
.~&yrr;~ai ~~per~t'x~F°~, the first ra~~de 3~~~ ,iii vy~i~,~.iiy ~~e ~~sed. i is h~;li~~:~wci th,l iatt~r m~d~; ~nii '~e ~sv~:m? ~rir~,ci~~ilv fc~r rvs~arch ~r~d d~«e6o~rrF~Fit ~_~~r,7~s~,s.
'f:~e ~'es~.FZts oil ~h~ ~a~~;g~ b-izatiorF 35J~ ~~~; stor~,d ire <z category buffer 35 ii: a,nd ~r~
~7rE~~Fd~,C~ t~ tii~ rei~gat~r ~rii~,~~SS 3~ ~.Qr. ~ p~ C~Ff~ir~rcC~ ;wtW~"~~
~~I~gt3rFZr'3~;doIF c~~~i r~;e~gs~ll~SiF
~o r~l~t~s, iFF dart, tc~ the diff~~'~_~r~. h~t~m~r~ ~ ~~iF~ ~at~gc~r~ ~r~.r~
a c;~mr~ de~F~rr~iF~~tic~F~. l~T~s~ ~.il ~C3eEiS of ~a giV~r"z d~r~~rYFFrIi~Lxor3 ~~Ild~ ~lc~le, Si~:~Fll~r StrB~i~~ure, ~~1C~ '9;rF~S tv:~o ~~~3FI2S Czg' ~CiG; S~Y2'1 ~$~~C3rYFIIIc'3tF~r1 $I2s~~ T2~~I2 S~FOS~c?"atF~E~)~ Ct:~f~.r~F'Ft Slg%FC'3fLFr~S. ~~~~ ~X~F~~~5~~,7 ~~~Fr~3ES FYllrat~d ~e ire 1~~2 ha~;~~, ~ str~~c~~rc .~,o~~~r c~r~s~~t~stz~FFti~fh;~ dif:~e;r~F~-w ~r~F~ t~:f~~t ~f ~~~9Fic;s ~iF~t~.d ~Gaftijr td~~~ '~~'i~ ~Zlr~C; ~or~j. '~oFT'Fy 'urc°,Ii~_IS ~1~'dIC~S
~"l~~~w s'.r:~el~~tE;d to d~F_F~lE; ~ ~olr1 ~o dis~~~amir~atioF~~ has~d ~n ~~~i.~~ d~norrFiF-~~tior, ~~hi~h ~vv~~zi~l Thus rPq~ir~ ~ dv~ri~;~ wi-~.icn~
~-~~;~gF~izes i'~;io ~i~ysi~,~ii~ dif-f~r~rFt ~~pc~s of a>wr~F~;y ~s ~
sirFg$~: ~;~x~~;ga:~~r.
~c~ordirFg t~ c~~Fe ~ b~ib.~odi~3~~~~, c;oiFFS or other ~i~~~~ts ~r~
discrirFSiF~~t~d asst rtelJ~SSc"~rl~~;W ir9 the: ~~SiS ol~F't~,viW33'F~Fg'~~tloi~,?"F~: ~z'~ ttl~
~u.S~S ~f G('~F3F C;r'~tE;g~rF°~"S ~Fr~ th~~F~~~'t c' SlF:rg~~
:'iC;S'aOriFi:F~~IE~r~, rlF~~ i~F~~T~ tZ7s-'o ~:" ~is'~ra:; ~~ta',~;~3$'$~5~.
' i''iLIS, c ~~~rdFYlg to ~Yl~ G~'a'~l~t')~ rTl(.;F'tt, 20 ~~r~rlies r~iF~teci bef~sr~ 1~~2 ~esci A~c;rFa~i~s r~~i~Ft~~d ~~'~t~r i9a~
~,~i~FFg r~ t~~r~ di~:fe~r~F~Ft ~~ir~
~~tPg~ries 37~4~. ~,~is use ~'° ~.t~gori<~,s, i~asc;d ~trz i~hysirv~i ~
S ~r~ct~;risticJ of ~~ir-,s (~r ocher ~b~~ts), rather tv~rF ~ttei~iStiF~g t~ d~,_irFv oY~ tire h~sis ~f ,~~,nora~i_Fatior~s, is ~civ~r~tag~~~s sirF~e it is ~eliw~d tiF~t this ~~f;roG:E.,h I~.~ds t~; h~ttcr discriF~.~~~F~ri~F~ ~c~airy~cl. iF~ p~~'cic~.l~r, by defirFirxg se~~r~t~ c~~~g~ri~s ~.g. f~c ~r~,-1 ~~~, ~~Fc3 ,post-i~~~
~s~rFrFies, it ~ec~r~~s busier t~
25 dis~rirr~i~~te aiA fs~~Fr~ies f~'~~ti~~r ~~~~~cts, ~>'i-z~:~~s i3: ~rF
~tt~~~~t ~~r~s r~~d~t~s d~firF~ a sirFgi~
~~t~g~ry ~rra6ra~i~Fg both tyg~~s ~f ~~:~Fr~i~s, -it is ~~a'i~~ed ~h~~ ~h~
r~c~gr~itioFF ~n~i~de~ws ~r thr~ushdids ~~~id h~~r~ t~ h~ s,~ ur~~diy d~i~F~~d :hat t~~FeF~~ w~~.Fici ~e ~
s~F~3~s~:~r~ti~i ris~~c ~f F~nis-dis~;rii~~ti~r~. ~y rovid.~r~~ ~ s°yst~;rr°._ ire ~.rhi~h v~ir~
~~zt~g~ri~s r~r~her tr~F~ ~~iF~
'~~~or?IF~atFoIlS ~ul~ rG~og1'F1Z~:,~, :"Jir ~~ S~:iF~sa~ity~.3S :~FFr~"~1 ~G;
~~S3k?,~ ~w%aF:~;F~F.7r~.d ~i"ld ~~~fg~.~-;d.
f't?'1''".i&~ri'Pi~r~, I3~ ~°dCYg~F~°Jiy t'~ ?il'l~~idS~liF3J
d4i9~rF3rsTri~t.fi~rF ~~4s:,~Tr3r~, ~~hi, ~r~S~F-9'. Fif~IL,'rl~2or~
~eF'o"YFd~S ~::3 o~3~~rtiArFIt~ s:o CeY'u~~ Ct31r1S ~;?a~ S~Srt ~~.Oi~lS sir ~tj2~;r e,:~~3~~~.tS ~F"i ~ ~33S~S ~v~~r ?.E'1~9'g _(,L;j_ C'~e~Y.~srYlaTat:oI3. P~CY' z,'an?pte, i~ ~CSnY'et~. l~fy ~C"I~CC CCJ5.3~Ln be C'~fi'~akgl~~"Cd tC: ~51c'YCe e'''e~~ SL~~ICf9, Co'_ns II"s r~ sepFar~te Cfl123 ~1i2 S~ t~las ti=:W3'EaC%~IErP;~
f°~~3e3'cttC9Y' C;eLi~1 i~o'Y'AeLYt ~':l~rtl irlelr p~3telYtYa~~~
grCater '~ia~L~2.
~~~ce a relegator process 3~ t4 ~-eceiYres i~~foYatior~ fi=:~Y~i a category bL~i'i'er regardirLg tbe, category of a coin (or other oi~..~ecc~, the relegator a»tp°LLts a destinaii~:A"~ indicator, cor-resporYding to tiYat coin, to ~ clestina-~~o~ ~~Y~i'fer 3~1~. 'gibe data ~rarrY the destinE~.ti~n buffer is provided to a director prows :~5~ 'dri~~sze ~~~zne~~ioY~ ~~ to p~' ~i~~appropriate coY~trot sig~~ais at the app's(9prLate ~:>r~C YY't ~2''~Ca' t'~'~ Si.',F2C~_ '~<i; >~,~~frl tar ~ desYl'~CL? F:FC;;>tlnc°~tlt3rY, e.g. Tt~ pr~~Y~~-r' Stgslals CaYtSYng the C3CfiCCtoI" <~e~.esr ~~ aCtY'Jate at Care pa:~pCr tYC'~C
.1. t~fxe C~Yn IS destYned fCY' an ~0 acceptance bin. 3n the c.Y~bd:dYrYe~it o3 f~g. G~, the director pr~c;miare o~tpttts rLfor~r~atio~~Y
ra,gard:T'lg tiie aCLlon &.~ ~e ta~e_i7 atl~~ tale tlnle ~~r.~LCiI it 's t~ JC
va3~i,T3 t~5 f C~ntr;)~ 5C13eCrLLle process 3522 vr~Yich generates ~ con-trs~i bit iY~i~ge ~~2~ provided t.o rrYicroprocessor output ports 3524 for transYYaissiorY to the coirY :Y-aYFsiaort'~ard~.vae 3~~1~;.
<n '~'ne elr?b~'9s''i?.lneYlt, tie v:~~Cllo4~ ?~' C~i2trn~~ed i~. SlACt'L ~
I'~ic'3iY_'leL' as 9;~ YYt'~t oYl~c~r eJ~n~rvl ~ 5 tIYC t'rY:e at ~~l~Cb the C2Gi3r a , a CtY'~I~utC~ L~l, >~,nv~c.~"Gv i~3~t a~s~ ~:~~C ~°~. YiY~arlt ~<., ~(3Y'CC tC: ~3C khseC~
(such as t<~Yc strengtiY and/or :~~-ati~frY o~ tire soleYYOid ac;tivarnc>r1 '~Ioi.es~. fr1 one eY~~Ybo~~.iY~ent, the amount off' force is varied dcpendirfg ~s~ tiYe nYass o~ the c;oiYY, -~rfYicb can be ~iet0.~rrYYined, e.g., ~rs~rr a loolE-~p table, basELd on rec~~gY-~ation oa''the coiY~ categoY-y.
~referai;~ly, nfoY-r~~.a'eYO vrorY3 tlYw ~ st>YaattoY~ brLiFer 3~ ~ ~ is also pr~Jided to ~a c~~nter 20 ~52g ~rb.ich retains a taliy ~, ~t least t~Ye, Ym~Y~Yb~;~- o~ coins ea:f' each denoYYniYYatio~Y sent to the C"a)Yh'1 ~i~Yiis. °~d.~~slre~, a Y38~YYPis~:;~° v1 C;~s~tr<~;eaw G,',~r:~Y ~~; prCs~7idCd SQs t<i%~t ~a~e systCrrY CaY'.~ 1C°Cp traCIO
rYOt only oi°eacb coYY$ deaorYtl~atYOYYy biLt oq~ea~,h "oYn caeegor~' arYc/ox', vrl~YC~~ com i~YYr tire coYn v~r~s ClestYned for.
an general, tlYe i~oz~~ ~:' data depicted ~n =ig. ~ 3°eprd:,sY=ts a narro~;ving band:~ridt~ iYY
~~ which a relatively large ai~noL~YYt o~ data is ~ro~rided f~on~ the ~/~
co~YVeY~tex~ ~bicl~ is aced by ta~Ye detecto_~ 352 to oLZ put ~~:~ sY'Y~~aler ~rYY;~~7nt o~ data (as rlYe coins sigrQature), ~~ltir~ately resui.tiYLg in a single counter iY~YC;~-er~ont ~5>~. ~~,ccoY'diY~g to ~:,YYe ~~.rrLbodiYYaent of 11~; prese.Yt i~YVentioYY, v-~Ye systeY~z is coY~l~gLwred to vae tire YrY~st rapid aYY~~
i~i~ci~YYt YrYcE~rLS of amforr~Yation tans~er for those aY"~3'orrrAatio~~ oa signa. -~d the ~~r~:~iclY -~~a;~e t~.~~
greatest voiY.~a~e or bar~Yd~vidth :~o re~~~iY'eY~ents. ~ccoYdiYYgly, i~~ ore en?bocia~Ye~n, a direct rrYeYYY,~r;J access (~.~I~~.~ p:~oced~xe is used in wor~s:fectio~~ vviti~ ~ E:~ss~e~~-i~g s~:~rse~::- data fr~~~~ ~~~c;
co~~e:~e~ ~~Ob> go the ~r~ackoco~tr~ller reading h~~~~e~ ~5G°~.
!~s depicted irl ~'ig. ~3, a a wwo-char~~el ~jl~r~ c~ntroiie~~ ~~~-o'~idir~g char~~~eis 1W!i~~9 and 3~I'~~i j is used ~~~~. t~ rr~e d~~ic=~e t e;_~v~L.rirrae~~t, orle cs~
~iae i_~I'e~f~. ci~a~nels is ~~sefor u~ioading the ~rograru ~roa a c;~ae o~'' ~Wi~c s~:~iai ~o~~s re ru~;.~z~,ry.
~ste~- this ope~~tioha is cop:~~Ieted, both ~~f~. ci~anneis are; als4;d r~~ _~y:e;n~er tirlg the ~r°~tl~ transfer. ~i~i9~~ is v~sed to ;rite coa~troiler data 38~4~ to ,,she ~~-~~~-~ collvee-ter ~~Gb, ~,~o:~ a ~:°o~ar~I register ~~~~age hu~''er ~8~b. ~'~is o~~,rat~or~ seiec~s 'ale. a~jagc;g c.:W~~~~~efog tl-te next: read, scax'ts ttize cor;'~e~'sion end sees ark tire :next Fead ~o~. t~~e l>-zo-.i~ ,.c,z~':ae9iver output data ~'egisre~'. i)I~il~i thc;B ;reads the 70 output ciat~ register 3~~~. ~i~/i1-~.~3 ~;-iIi the~i ~~~ricc: to ,~i~e con~~'o~c~r :~egistei3~~3b ar:d ~I~~~i ~,~ri?i read tire next a~:al~g chaz~~~~;1 al3d s~~ ~~~r~q~.
'l'1 the,° 33r(J'fL,'~'S"eC~ eS%~~ ii~$~r1&Grit, tg'1c''. i.."~ ~f?.
~r9t~::1~~2Ce ~f"es l~C'~ ~'c1'f3F~c th-e aO~~F~~~ ~~ t,~lE,' s~L't~vare to inde~endea~tiy re~~.~ ~,~- ~v.-ite: ~o tire; ~ -ro-~ con~~e~Eer.
.:t is possible, ho~~,~er, that wxairag t~ the c~a~trog register oy''the ~-t~-~ cor~~erter in the ~a~iddlo of a ~~~~ t~ar~si'er ~-~~ay ~ ~ cause the ~rrcsz~g cha~~ne? to bP read.
~re~erahi~ the ~~'~~~-~ ,;~racess t~ices e~d~,~usg~t~ge o~ the; ~L~~~ chars Leis to c;o~;vigul'e a ~r~ui~ii~fe word table irl merliel-y -~i~h the ~os~rec r~-to-~ cor~u oie,r register' data. ~reter~bi~
tl'le ~~~T~e ye'Llgt~'~ Li'~t~121~3er c3~ ~e!s,-fd~ In '~~~t, ~~~ue~ is Ca~ST~t"~~f$gufa~SiC, ~3~;r~?''xltt'~rig ~ ~5r~:.a''~ i,e ~a'~, bb, st~zaci~ het°~een reducing r~i{.;~-or"ontroie~ ~~;~erh~;aci ~h~ using ~
codger tablej, a~~d reducing 2o memory requirements Lby king ~ shooed tabia~. '~'~e ~l~iit~ recess sr~ts u~
~~l~~i~.4~s nor writing tp~~ese words to a i~x~,d =J~ acdrsuss. I~T~;.~t, ~'~~~:~ii is se;t ~q~ ~r rea~i~~; yho same iau~~her ~~ words fl'oryl the sar~~e /~ aci;~ress to ~ data hugger ir:
~~fe~ory., ~i~~i is ire-.~er~hl5~
se~~ u~ to i~~terru~t the processor zvhcn ~:li yh~ords hive been 1-ead 3 ~ l ~. ~re~erahi~y hardware I3I~~ dodder Iogic cont~'ois tl-te 'binding ~c~e:~~,ween ~3l~tf~.~ and l=~~if~.I.
2u big. ~g depicts timing f~:~ ~~'~f~ ax~rs~er according ~p:~ a.g~ y~~-ahodi.~r~e~Qt o~~ she -~reser~t in~er~tio~a. ~i~ ibis emhodirne'.~t, a t~i~ ,~irx ~.~,?ii ige used t~ eru~.hte or disabi:~ the t~f~er ~utput 3g~~. T~ the tier enable slg ~a~. 39C~~ rs ic~w, th~~ hard~rare ~~r~li bi~e~
the till7.er oufi~ut ~~f92 ssYtd C(r'iP°eTg.3'S2oT"~s C~'~"il '~Srliy ~e ',3'-~~,'~'"cl.C= ~~' ',y'C;'tTii~ tsli.,', s'iart E".,°~I3' f,''sa~~R Milt I:'$ '~'.~le Co~~t'o~ 1'eglSt.°,r o~'ehe ~-to-~ conwørter 39~b. -i~ tape tanen e~lai~ie sigrai 3~~~r~ ~s y~.igh., the ~~I~ co~-~~.jersiolls 3o start at the rising edge o~ the til~~ler out~~ut ~~~2., and halite e~mies ~riil be r~yio~re~ ~nly a~'~ter the roil~willg edge od tile tiAn.er- ovot~~~:~,~~~3~ with 1-ead cycles ol.iy being allowed after the -~;.~_ t~i~sy signal ~yi2 goes lom v~eiie the tidnev o~rtp~~~ signal 3~~r is ~ig~.
r~'3~e ciescri~c;d design pioVldeS gze?zt l~e5i:~'V~'tf~t~~ :%v"~t$-W las~Vi'.>~~ ST3lutl ~V~IeYl?a,2VC~. ~.~re ~S a SI~"Pgle ~rltci'7"~I'~3t ~~te6~'~a intept~ event once the b~~~'~~;r a l-illeci ~,~itt= dat:~ ~ro~-~-~ the i~.-to-i~ coY~~~e~-tur are Yc~ad and peat ~n~0 tn~oe~l. ~Z'e~~'ra~3i~, ~.~3~'~;e/ESr~ e,aS '1'3sJ
~°.C9Y'x~xgL~red "~C9 c'~i<~Y'tg''~. tte ~l~i~, conligiawatl~~1 to read aray or alt analog clra~Y~eis7 do ~nz~"atipie ~~eaels in some cti=r~.r~~ls., re~.~ tie cha:::~~r°;ls ire ~~~y order arid the litCe. preferably, t.~e 1~-vo-~~; converter is diYC~.~~ linked vo the ~zcroprocessor tfy a l~-t~sr data teas. she ~~ c~:oproce,s~~oF ~.s able; to read or vaEitv ~o the ~~-to-t~ con:-c,rter lamas ?lltea.'~aCC; port aS a Sd~~gtC: ~l~a~i Via' C3?.~tpli.l FxaS~~'iiGt~~.'~I'1 it'. ~; ;llXe~~ ~~.~~ ~ddieSS. ',Bata ~CVtx' ~3et'~3~/c~.'.rp the ~.-~o-~ cor~weYteY aa~d ~t~e ~-~icP-opr~cessoi is coutYOllcd >~~% ~'r~~e t7usy 39t2, chip select, Yead ~~:4 and ~~'rite ~~~~ signals. .~ coksaersco~ ci~cla 3~~2 and cl~~c~ ~~ma~le 3~'~J~ signals pro~ride co~~tYOi aid legibility over trse; ~~~-td;-~ w:~r~~~ersior~ rake.
~~~othcr er~.~odir~er~t o'.~ ~ gapped to~~YOi~~ sensor, a.~c~~its ~~s , is (i~,picteci ire t~llgs ~~~
thYo~g:ra ddb. r'~s depicted ira ~'~eg. ~~, a ;devisor, 2l2 incla~d~°,.s ~ core 2t~ l''ra~~rir_g a generally carded shape ~:~d de~niY~g ~ gap ~ l ~~, l~a~,eng a ~i=-st ~rid~h 2l ~ . 1t5~
tz~e depicted e~ntyodae~~t, ~5 the curw~ed cot-P is a torroi~lal sectio:~. ~ttho-~~gt~ "toy°roic~a " inci~des a locus de~'med ~
~'otating a circle at9~B8t~ a ~'JYi--~s"3~6',YSa°.ctig$g Cop~a~lc3Y' ~~Y$e, aS ~LSe~ ~~..'"e(E~, t~F~ ~e~'rY~ "~~~'r~~dc'aly' generally cleans a shape ~vlric~b is c~~~md oi° o'~perwrse r~~ra-:li~~e~r. ~~an~hles include a zing shape, a ~;~ shape, ~ ~ shape oY -~ polygon. ~:Y~ tl~c; depicted ee~x-~~oc?in~c~~t ~otl~ the ~na7or cgoss Se~tlor'x ~o~tt'ie Shape aS a °vtil~eJ'~~j aYld ~_':~e .?~2.!'a.~'sr ~;b'oSS Sc:,ct14~~1t Vi~1~3??E% geileYat';r~g r'~~srr~y~ ~ia'Je ~
20 cYrcLllar Shape. ~~h~°rS%e~er ~u~i"ier "~,aa3" ~;9'~' ~~111C?-w-:",9"~SS y~c~~~'al~~ S~'ta~eS ~~3r ~)e ~,iSe~i, I~~tEdd~i'~g e:,t'llpti~cs~ ~Y f33~c'~~ Ssia~~5, ~a~"that e:,~~lpi:S, 0-"~,7~~5 0~" ~.~,li~seS {S~cl~ aS a S~rY~~-clYCe~ts~nr S~ditpe~, p~°~g~9rial S~"xapeS ~5~~~~ ~~u sa Te;r"a°~~2_: ~~r ~:''i,g~~l~~ tie~ia~,';,~I2~.'~.Q~-ielg~~~, ~,tc.y, arid t"2e tl~~.
he core 22 ~~ rnay -~e _~.ade sYoxra a nnrnt>er o~ 3~~ate~-~~'ls pro ided that the a~ateriat is capat~le oi° pro~~idiY.g a su~r~star?tgal rna,~~c~~ic e<d ire tt~e gap ~ t s. try ~.~Y~e en~b~dier~t, the 25 core 2i~ consists ~p or ir~clu~zes, a rewite -l~ateri~~l, sr~cr~t as fo~-~~ed '~,y ~usi-ng ferric o ride pith anOtller ~lc2~erlai Stt~,l? aS ~ cc'?~"~o~late 2?~jr~:tr~X3diJ ~r ~l~x'i~1311C: ~C~et~~ ci~'~~r9de, a Cer"c3~aa: ~e~'i''xte, and ~t~e life. t~ tt~xe core is d->i°~'ex~ b;a a~f al~er~~atir:g current, ~t~c z~v~terial c~oscn fof the corn of t;~e inductor, spoa~lct ~e n~rrrka~-loss or lo~~'-=oss at tl7e ~requ~eacy of' oscill~~tior~ such that the 'cP3~3-coli'9" ~ G~ the ~,~ c~Y~3::'j: &S S'n~~BStE?x'7tS~Vtlc~ ~lg~lcr ~~laPYd t~5~: '.;~ y.,y idle t~~ ~IYc~~t '~VL'&'~ a a,~F~
3e ad~ace~~t t~'~e senso:-. This Yatio detcnr~~ir~cs, in ~SaYt, tie sig~ral-tc~-~~~oise ratio poi t~~e coin's co~_ducti~ity ~easurerr~ent. '~lae toiler the losses i~~ tt~e core ~~nd the;
~%indi~ag, tie greateY ties -4~_ change in cdci~ cu~-r~~$ iosse,s, ~~ahc~ t~Yc ~,~iri is placed in or gasses by tic gap, a~a~ $haxs the greater the sensi$ivity of the device. i~ the dcpic$ed cr~bo~ir,~e~~$, ~
c~n~~zctivc F~ixe ~2~ is w~l~ZlC~ a~C~.l$ ? i~~3YL~.~2F1 ~:~ $~?~~ C~a'~C ~ ~.~~°- SC; %?. '~~
~:~'~?~~ "r~i'~ ~,ilCYB,~iE:CIV~'~ o'~>,~'~cC. ~~t~~l~B.lgs~ ~lg. Gf'1 depicts a sirYgle coil, in some ermb~~i~~~°Ets, o or r~~ore coils ~fay i,~e ~sec~, e.g. as described below. In the depicted crn'~od9.r~~erg$, the coirg or c~thc~' object to be discrirnil.~ated is posi$ioned ire the vicio~i$y o~ tb~e gap ~~~~ the clepic~.t,d ~~2r~bE~t~i~~er~t, =~ai~la.irb t~~e gap 2IC). y~~~s, in the det~icted erszbodie~~: tl~e gad ~~rid~r ~ I ~ -~s soZ~~cvv-h~t IaYge - t~~~~
rbe thickness. ~ %~2 of t~.e thickest coin to be sensed ~~~ the se~~sor ~1~, to allow i'o~: i.s-aligrnra~ent, ~ne~~erner!$, clelcrrr,ii~, or o;:rt~~~,ess of $he c:«~-~r~. a'rexer~~~i;', ~~Pc gap ~1~ i~, as sra~ali as possible, consis..en$
0o wi~~n practical -passage oi°thc <:.f'~r. i~< o~~e e~~-~boe.rr~e~t, ~~hc ga~~ i~ abo~3t 4 rxzrr~.
I= gig. 2~ c~ep~c$s a se~soi° ~ ~ ~ ~, ~o:~~~$~o~e~ vai$~~: rcspec~ t~;
a co~F~ co~~e~~~:g ~~c~il ~ 32, such that-, as the coin 2~,4 na~aJes ciow~-Y t;~"Y~, mail '?~~., the rail g~~i~~~e,s the coin Gg4 rh~:oz~gh $he ~~i~.~3 2 ~ ~ C o the SeIlSi r L iG'. ~'~ it~tO °gil " ig. ~~; dG:pIC~S
-L~3;: CC~T"a 2 ~ fit. =~Y'a~~C~tY2,'~~ 999 a ~;lel"$~ca~ ~C3r~_ edge) orien$a$iorf, oho device e~oz~~ei I-re :.°o~~~~g~.~red 50 $hat ts:,e° ce~in ~~4 Nra~o~s r o?-Ise'r '~5 'Jr~el"PtatICi'1S, s~.2C~2 aS '~I2 a ~atC'r~~~C3~'li~i~ft~a~CC3'al~g~Fra$-~~rl ~'o~s=FgI~;S t~le3'cbe$wcEpl. ~nC ~~~
the advantages ~~ tl~e pres~,~v ir~~entio~ s $i~c ;~bilit> to iras~rc~?se ;~pecd ~:~ coiQ°~ nBO~ren~en$
~'slnQ ''d~~.~5 $T~'~"t~g~'I~f~$) S212Ce C~'~I"~ ~krscr'tfi'E:~c"~~:f~1'.s Ca~1 't3° pC,'~:~ii'!"iiiS~;C~'' i~aplC~f~~. ~~liS aec'3tl~r<,°, ~S
par$i.culariy in~por$aa~~~ in $he ~r~;so,;~t inY~er=tif.~~ s~ce coirYs °~,z ~fic-i~, n~o~c vca~ rapr~il~~ dow~rr~ .a ,fi,~''.i"R ~'aP~i °~"W~l~', sh $ei~Cn~'~lcV $'v' 'ci~°l.,js9 J#" ~1~C~~"4,'C., p~r$i°.~~.'~~°j/ Eili~~~3P' ~Tt'Jl~En.',I~tc'9Y'$~r~ '(.d''v$~21j 3'~C~d~ $12c '."il~~.
~C the prescnvd inaca~$i~r~ can be ~:e~nfigr~r~:d s=~ch tha$ the sensor <s -~~~qative~.~ i.nsensiti~~ to s~ci~
C'~P,~U~'CLIrcS ~rCrYt. t~c°~ 's.,'Sipec~E',d ~Jr n~za1'irt'c~i Cf~~?1 ~~SttYt71'7. ~f~I~';, $~PC'r Y3reSC~iu '<k.p~IP.l~~l~r:
co~~tribu$es to the abiiity to G:ch ieve ~-a~~id coin ~no~e~r~.c:~t t~or ,~~~~~ bY pr~.viding ra~~ad coin C~ISC:"~I~3fl33a$"s~!: ~61t ~C~SC~3Sa$:~/°L~ bC Cvlh; ~'~~~'f~~~.'9 ~~t~~C~gii i 1~;. Ga ~~ep~C$S d i,~rl~~g~ratl~~ ~~t '~xJ~~C~? $P3e C~di: G~4 rri63"VeS ~.'~,'3i1'~ t<"~E; ~'<<~~ ~~1; n :resq'i~2Se d~ s'~'~=7~$jJ, CCDln ~~'n~~°~Iea~WUd Cad. by 25 achieved by ~tsm:~ ~~~po~rered o~- powcrecl ~~ear~s sa.~ch as a cs~~~rreyo~~ belt. ~itho~gh passage o~ the coi~~ through the gap x.,16 is dcpictecl, in .another embc~dia~aerxt $lae coin passes across, bra;. not $hro~zgl~ the gap ~e.g. as ~iepac$ec v~i$h reg~r~ $o the en~l~odi~nea~t ~~F'I'ig. 4).
~'ig. 3 depicts a seco~:3~.~ cor~~~gv~raii~~~ ol° a sensor, ir' ~rg~ich the g ay 316., va$heg $laar~
bei~~g ~arrnee'~ b~ opposed ~:~?ces 2!1~~,, 24~b, o~~ the co~'e 2i4 a, rns$ead, hoed between 30 opposed edges off' spaced-apag $ plates for "poie pieces") ~S44a., :344, which aee coa~pieci $o the Cfs"i°v ~ ~ 4. in $hl'S C:'~:2~g~~'at~C~'_7, ':l1~', CC'31.°i.
~'-,' a ~'e iS ~~ iial'~=Q(~~s. ~l, x~' p~a$~,'"~ ~~4a, ~Cr4b', r~a~yJ
':5e°.
_~ !_ cflLl~~cd :fl ~ ~fli~'flaC 1a'~ a ftLiYl~a''~a,x' fl~~ ~aSilaflixSy SaaC~l~l aS ~y L3Sat~,"_u, az'a. adilcSa"Je, CcaY&cY"t~: flr' 111.,, ~
~rcss~'a~, soot ~eidia~~, or braz~:aa~, r~~e~i~:~, sc~~-cv~-ia~~., ~r~d Vibe ''_:ac'r. l~ i~iao~agia ~hc ca~bodii~acaa~
dcoicLed ial gig. 3 si~o~,~s t~.c oiatcs X4-4-a, y~~b ~r~acl~cd so tile ~;~~od ~i~-, i~ is also oflssibic ~fla~ ~iae olaaes ~,~~ad ~oaioid ~o be '.foraged in tc~.-aii~~. 1~s scare :::~
i~io. ~, tiae biases 34~~a, 3~~~~~, 'J i 3sP~' Ya'e.'~lc e2a~~ flZl~a~ $~$a~~7a,Sy i3LlL' ~ YaLl~i;~,e',a~ fl>
flt~~cY 5~1~I~3-C.';9 'uT~"s', ~''x3SS~'°sOi:, aa2c~Lndaiti~T
SP.i'r'.~a-clrcLaiary S ~Ll'Q°.rc, r~,'Ctarl~LT~ic°~Y- ~;flry~(3I"Pai, ea ~.' 'asli~ i2:CC. il~'t ~L~a,F'J =.',2"i~~sflC~3r~1'd'aaf flf~~'~F,~S, ~', c"k,~&C~ 4, 'L?1~
fiend-coaaccrata-atira~ efrcc~ of ~crrir~; c~~ 'oc ~~;ed fo ~srocl~~ce a v~c-ry sd~caiizc~~ ~icid for aa~a~cracLaflra ~~a~~ a coara, ~~Las i~e~uca~g :~r c~aa~~at~aE~taa~~; vbc c~~oic;~ ~..f a tflL~cia~n~ aaca~;iai~fla coat.
'i,l~.a ea~abfld~rracaa~ fl~f digs. 3 ~~~d 4 caa'a ~~so be ~;oYafi~;Larcd ~c° '~1c ~~cia~i~ciy ia~scr~s~e~'~rv ~~ tic to cf~cats o~ coita ''z~yi~~ag" a~ad ~~~s cora~ri~~~~ ~o c~c ~~ii~~y to ~av~vadc rapid coma i~o~c~~cn~ farad increase co<aa ~nrflLab~aoLa~. ~l~~oL=b't~ c~c ~~~,rcur~~:a~c o3' ~iac ~a~a~aacric licid ~;rl~icra is ~~sccted by ~lac oresca-ace of a coia~ ~riii ~ys~i~.~~lly be -ices i~~ ~~ac corp~gLar~~i,:~ra og ~~i~s. :5 arid ~, ~l~~Yi in brae cfla'<<ll~Llrc°i t~fla1 'J~ ~a~. 2, Ssk'~~Sa:e'~, c~tz~l'y ~c,'SL~ i ~;S ~;r.'~a'1 ~3c flb~~~ rl_cLs ai" ~~'le ~Ie~~ c~a~~a~T°vS aa"c sLag~cic-ra~iy lark ~~ yield a c~oYis~is-tcn~:iy ~ i~~: s~~raai-~o~-aaois<;
ia~ciica~ior~ off' cflin par~a~ac~crs.
e5 ~rcferably ~iae gao 3 i~ is s~.z~ F~cxca'a~ry sa~a~° s ~fl o~odLac~e ~iac dc~,zrc~xr~~~ne~is aid i.nfvealsity ial oY' ~d~accin~~ ~ lc cflan , irl flr~e2 ":fl ~.X~flSL'-, t~'a'" ck:rlY? i('s a'~a Fn";E~~~S~;" "~lc~C'F 's3S a~ ~~SSe~S ~3y aYp~.'a~,'~~' tiarflLa~b ~Li-ac ~ar~ 3I~. Yra tbc cr~~odia~~cya~ o~ ~~'i~. ~, a~ae enb~ia fly' ~~c ~a~e ~;~2 is i~~-~c cnoLigat Sfl t~aat cflrilS ~~th'~a~~eL'cYt~ dlc~~~ea"S c:~~-cY d3~-Y'e~'~-~aa~ i3r r~flrtag~ziS fli ~11c ~~~.
~~lc ea'I1~OC~ar='aen~; fl~ F~.y 3 ~rl~ ~~ ~S ~~,iac~Ied CC5 ~3c ~5~
'tL,w~~g~y ;S~:La~ ai3 ~'~~L?~aflr3S a3i 2o v~eicb i~ is di~~cLai~ or ixraoossibic Eo o:co~iicle access k~o ~flth ~acc;
~'~ a cflirz a~~ vlle sazBlc ~iaaac.
~flr e~aI'Ya~SIC, P~ ~~ac c~in aS t~c~Y~~ cflYl~Jwyc~ ~':~~ E°3ic flE
asS Yraci:;S '_'er.C~°1c'i ~~aa~ fla'1 era cC~~c ~c.~., iJC>it~ cfll2'dC;yi,',~ ~3n G. cflnVCyflx '~e~~ ~9r .3 ~l~cL?~Y~i bfliYj.
~LaI~~~:ca~Yaxoa'~, ale ~~°tC'. cYrY~bQ~Ca~slcrl~ fl~_ i~igs. 3 and ~., tile ~~0 3 id dfles ~~fl~ Aced zfl ~tc ~vidc cac~~g~a t~~3 acconzz~hodave ~hc Yvaic.icracss ov r~tc eflin aald c~.al be rraade ~ L~=~~e narrob~r sLaci~a Lilac ~iac alla~aaet~~, fieid ~fl ~~iaicil ;.iac cflia~~ is ~5 c~~~flseea as ~iso rclaLaveiy nar~~::;~%. a":t~aS co~fi~La ~~aon care be aa.>>e~~i aaa a~afladanb a~:a ~~i~cer?~ or cc~GLSC~I,aTi~S' cfllaa SalLaaYlflal Sliicc, c:,~/~x.'"i ai~ C."flaYaS
aa'°;, touc~'aaY'a~, i4iiC. ;i:~~i~a"xc9ac ~~acld ~fl 'v'cr~'F,2C.~t ~~~7c cflSalS ~Yc e;~~?flSeLl'' ~lelai3 be ~:3~8 ?leaa"~'~~,4r 10=
Sas'di,L,~aale9a~9y iY~Y~lae~~:; ai~e''~.rE~S~Pak"~ e~ITC cfll:~°t ~~ a Cr97lc ~daaa-ir~g ralflst ~~ a cflira°s oassa~e oasc ~~ae scnsoa~~.
~Flcal an cicc~rgcai ooficn~gai or ~afli~a~e i~ a~s~iicd to ~:ilc coif 22~, a nlagrae-tic ieid is ~0 crc~$cd era ~a"'lc "Jaca.aa~y fli ~t~'ic ~~~i 2~2~, Wv ~~.e. cY'ca~ed a:~
aZi'~~, rie:aT ~aflc ~a~9 2,~~, ~ f ~~.
in~crac~iflra off' ~iae cflial flr o~ileE flujccP. c=~itll sLac~a 6a ala~galc~ic aid ~flr iac~ ~berefl~ :Yic~ds dada w~~icil ~r~~~idcs inf~.~Y~Iatia~ ~b~Iat paractea~s ~.r~ tilC dill c~I- ~bjcc~
v~Iicix ca~x ~>c ~ISed fir discriYrIirIavion, c.g. as dcscribcd ~~~I~I-c ~~c~~ ~~6~~Ii,~ neicx~'.
iI~ olle clnb4~dii~3erlt, ~"x~a~crlt ia~ tlxe fcxl~r~ of a ~~.~Yiabic ox ai~:erYlatir~g ctxrr~;nt ~l-~~,~: is sLl~~licd to the coil 220. ~.ltiA~v~il t~flc i~~~~ ~°.i'~iIC ca~x'rcn.t ~4y ~c s~a't~sta~t~ally s~~x~soidal as i.<ScG ~lCy'clt~ ''r~~'' IS 3r'ieailC tip !~cil~~v a 9~ ~Ir'L~'~abaC: C~Id3~1-c~IISCi~;lt~ eyvc~'!1c ~~"~I'=1, IIYC~.dl~'I~ YaxYI~"s, sawtooth, sqLlare ~avcs, aI-~~ coxaapiex ~faa~ics stet's as ~a~c fcxS
swlBxel°d aYC the Slxrn of two or Yrl(3re Si6IZ4SC9'ad~,l Z~'aVCS. ~f:C.'2~.l~Sc (3f ~'.~dr.;
cc'°,4~Ilyl','y,°~ratl~9le fYi i~'TC SCL1S~Ct', s4rld tl3c f>~Sltl'CYis=~l r4:,'~atIOsISIII'~9 'oaf Yilc cCln ~9I Cib3~ci~ tG~ t'tIC ~c~~, tllc ~;I3IYI
c2a_a ~C,' ".''.ie~C)SCd ~'~,d' e"e 55~%I3I~ce"E:It IIl~I~I1'~,tl~;
licid, which can be sigl'~ificahf~?~ ~ficctcd ~~~ i~c ~~rcsencc of il~~ coin.
~:I~e sensor car.x be ~~scd 1~ tt3 detect isICSE" clla2'?gcS IZ3 ~i'~~;: ~;~~~:CI'~L'i"aag2ct<c tlcld, aS
tllc C;'sx~~aSSC~; ~35i%C0. C5r :fir i~~f~ t'tlc ~a,~, prcfcrabl~ iI3 s~~c~ a as ~,'~r;~ ~s ~~~ i:~ro v~id4data iY3dicati~'c ol° at least t~~~,c daffc:~eYlt l3asarllcterS ~~ ~~1C c~'~slil ~Jj" il~~;~vCt. 1?,Cs~~c c21'I',~43dIY1~IEIt~, c~ 9:5aa'~~'aE,tcl~ SlIcII as ~.~lc SIZc :.'3x' dlaxl'3etcr ~7f the C~I:a ~r ~b~cv= IS xliC"aic~!tc~= j'~'~I a ~;~laY'9~c iI1 II7C_;L~6°.~"~I:Q~C, dl3c ta'~, tbc ~7~SS~~c ~'7f the coils, and the coalductiqJit~~ 4~~° the coin or oLject is ~illvorgel~r; related to the energy loss ~5 (wi~ic~s rrlay be illdicatcd by ~:l~c ellzaiity factor or ~:<~,»~
~i~s. 15~~~ and i5~ ~v~~cr III e_~Ibodi~~IC.It ~lxic~ ~ro~i4~cs a ca~ab~.li=y for ca~acitivc S~'.aeSIYI4n', c.~. f~'S:r dct's..'ctlng A9Y ~:;C~fill5cx'iS~Ft3'ar3o ~E3r i 43112 "'('~lx.°.f ali4 ~~d° f~~~Ix"s~. .i1 the clll~io9dllYfL'rFt of Figs. 1~~ and IS~, a coin ~~4 is constYain.c;si ro nlo~a4v alol~I~ a s~~b,3tal?tiaily liYrc~.r coin ~atll 152 dc~Incd by a :ail dc~icc sx~cb as ~.. ~oE~st~rl~~nc rail iSC~~I. .'~;,t l4:ast a ~ortior~ of the coif ~0 1Ja~:b xS 2d~acc~~".a a '?VJ43-~ea~f';." S3iuctLrsr ~'~w:II~ ;eFI ~xL3~'cY
~~~'~Ie~r ~fer~llcl2 xS SL3iWta~~tl~.:.~~ TIO~
clectricall3r coIIdIxcting 15~~ s~c~ as ~'ExcrglaSs and a second h;rcg I50~~
~aivicll is S~xbsrantiall~
cox~drlcti~~c sxlch as co~pcr. 'F lIc t~.~o-la,~cs sz~~ct~src 1~~4~, 15~,~~
c~xl be con~~exIieYItly provided by ~~rdirdal-~~ circLlit board I~Iac~.;ri~ i 1 ~~~~ szlch ~Ls 1%~3 ir3ch thic~~x ci~~,~-c board Ixlater:~:a~ ~~itY~ t1m ~bcrghss sick contactiYlg t~~c coin ~~s :le~icvc~. iII ~c depicted cnxbodilrxeYat, ~ ;-ec~~aYIgIxlar ~~ windo~~a is foYn~Ied in the co~~c. c3adding ox~ ia~~or 1~~~ to ~~~;co~rl~~od~tc zectalygxli~~r fc~Yite ~l~r~es i ~ 12a, I ~ . 2b ~rhich arc colx~Icd t:~ 'wac~;s '.:~ lea; t ~ 14~~
of ,:~~e fel~rirc torroid coYc I51 d.
~ c orzdaxcti<re ste~ct~rc sxlc~? as a co~~c~~ ~iatc or 4;13icld 1.~1~ is:
~ositioncd ~rit~gixl eiae caxl 1~~~
forl~hcd bct~eeYt the ferrite ~i~:cs 1~1~a, >~l'~b. ~lxc shield ;s ~SefInI fox i~ncreasi~xg the ilv~x IntC',raCtlng ~h'ltu d2~ Caa~fln. IJ"t~I.t<aC;~t '~~JIS'~eli2~ t.~'s P3c '4i~3$I'I'o.."e ~~ aal j~' ~Sx~F~~~,'~~h~, It IS au?f;Il4',QI~.,d "'c_~at S'elcll 3o a Sbield 1~s1~ has thxe effect of f~~YCiI~g a~ae i:~n~ tr> go aro~Yld ;:1c ~~~ieid alld tbcrefore to bl~lge olzt x~IOrc into t~xe coin ~~th ire the vicilxf~y of the t;a~ 152 ~lla.cl. is belie~cd to isr~xvide rxloYc i~Iux iY~teTactir~g ~viti~ fee ~:oiY~ ~~~~~ ~~rfi ~~~ tifu siYieid ~f~r a 'C~~~ttus~ sig~a~-t~:-~~ise ~-afia~;. ~,~c S~li2~d 15~ ~ Cad a~S~ ~7C Y~SCd ~S ~1'~i. S3C'=C, 'Z~ C: Cc~GiaCYf2°~C
SCYi:,<?:', ?~IPL~1 t~3~; 55ti2eT SIC~~° ~f;?Ilg t~l~' c~~per ~acciY~g/grr~~e. ;~Iarv T ~~~ ~i' f~~; c:;rc~.~f ~oaTd sfn~.;~~a.~~-e;
y 5~~'. ~'a~acit~~c ciaas~gc,s sL~sed I~cfwee~~ tl~e s~ieid '_~E~ snd t~~ gro=aYYd ~ia~~~; i~~>& a.,e vc,lieved f~ be T~;~a~.cd t~ fiYe v Tciie~ ~f th~c c~in adjacercf tiYe ~~~ i~2(i aY~c> few dist~~c;c fc~ t~~~;
.,ein..
~~I tile Cil~~~iC~1221CL1~ ~;a ~~Ig. J., fat~C ~L~f~ L?f o~ S3gY~~lf ~ ~ y YS
Y°Ci2.tCd W C~3aYlgC YM
YY1C'iLiCfaYfCC, aI'sd f~~IS t~ Cf?tl'~. C~ai.al?'_C'tC~" :i%~'~IC?~ d:, tCi~Y?C.~~ "~.' r7w~i~ CC3Yi~g~~2°atft)~ :~E ~fg. c~
ycs3~ifs in tire ~~~t~af c~f a sEga ~~~ ~jl~ ~xr~~icp~ is ~-el~ted t~ ~ a~~.
rl~~s tc~ cc~y~dv~cfivity, tca~~cd!, in ~~~g. ~-°,, ''y." f~~fllo'e.lg~7 f~3C .~ ~~~gTEv~ 3S 06 y"J~.itC~~
~eGl~Q;fi(Wl~n: ~~~ C~1~~'it',Ld~" ~~J6:,~Yig at _~~aSf i0 S~z"'~°VI"a2af cYI~LTCt2CCd ~'y ff~3C 'i~'i~~LIC ti-~ ~ j a3:d c~~'a YS YlG~2 Stl2C LL~1 EeflC~Y~$CecY',y ~Y~~~'~'tY~Tlc'~i "s'o C~12d1:Cfad.CC ~~3CIY'~g S~YYY:;'h%9'x'eY'~ etl~Y?Ci'~CC~ ~Sr Ce~iCi ~xaCfCT~
i~ICT=~ YS a S~3~~'~CICIlf ?C,~~f~oiI5~11~
between sig~aa-~ ~ 5 i ~ and e~~i~~ dia~~z~;tc~- a~~s i:refsveeYY sigY~~ f ~r ~ 1 ~ and c~cr~d~~~;fa~ce ~:at ~ITCSC SlgfllazS, '~~~'~E~T? ~T~~CY~y ~Y2'c,'~l~r~C~" Ccc~'". SeTVC aS a baSYS
?'B' CCH;~3 dISC%'Yia'i2r~afYd~~Y. ~plltf:~i.'st ~%is~ing t~ be island by any ~?~co~'J, it s ~c>ic~-cd fiaai. tie ~r~fc<°acfr~~ ~cr~wec~~ ~:~ ~~~d ~ is ~5 s~z'(~sfaY~fgaiiy predictable a:~d is sn~staY~tiaai~,r li»eaT ~vcT ~,~~(~
a~g~~ Qf a~.te~est ivT a c~~i~
c~nnting device.
i'~alay Tnef~~ods andi~~~ ;ievices cG~n be ns~;d ~'a~r a~~~iy~iTa,~ t~~c signa'is 5!~, ~i2, iY~ci~adiY~g visual ia~spccfi~n ~~ app s~sciiiosc~s~sc ;~Tacc ~T g~a.~~c.g. as sh~swx~ in ~'ig. ~~, a~atnr~~atic ~naiysis ~.~sing a uigwtai ~~T a~eahg c~~ca~if a~~d/~~- ~~
:~;:~~nting d~,vic~; such as ~
20 Y-nicr~~r~ccss~T-based c~~~a~~cT a~°~~%c~- ~,asin~, a ~igifai sign~.~ ~~-~ccss~a~' ~~~~'~. "~'~cr~ if is C~CSIICd fas aSe a CJ2Y'3~J11~CT', ~~- pS d~SC~C:;~ i~3 ~Y~S~ii~C SYga~a~S
~~G~. ~Tld ~aG ~va n~ICRd~~y tak~SC
sigfgaa~ s~ as f~ b~vc a v~itagc rar~g~; an~/~T c:~be~° ~apa~~~tTS
c~:n~ati'~i~ ~rit~_ i~~~~~f t~ a c~9:~~~ufcT. in ~nc c~tabodirn~r~f., signai;~ ~~~ and C~i~ viii be ~s~~:ag~
signals n~Trnaiiy iyiY~g ~vif~in fbe TaTYge ~ f~ +5 ~%~its.
2~ ~r~ some cases, if is do<>i~'s~d ~~~ sepav;ateiy Eabfai~~ ia~$'~~~,at~r~n ~.b~uf cr~in ~Sa~-arr~~~tcrs ~'nT
fi'~e lYP,te2'Y~T ~T CCaie ~3'~i'~~~21 C:~~ t~'de CC9gai'~~ t~3C C;~teY'i~'s1 ~Y SisiY1 A:'oY~~'JTl, ~2tY'tiCt3laYx~ 1f( CaSC.S
~vbere s~r::P ~T aii ~,~~ ti2e c~is6s to '~e ~~:iscTii~~ir~ac~:d Yraay be a ,arched, piater.~ ~~~ c~,~fcd c~ia~s.
~'~Y' eXali'l~~e, T~ S~IsPe CaSeS ?f .iY~.~1 JC t~'~af T~~s:; Y~ct,Sf C~~~YCYeY3f ~!Y1~ fC~Yab~E; ~~ay t',1~ C~:,SC:~IITIYTaa-~e ue~~~aeea~ tire tykes ~r_ c~r~s ,'s ~~~ demean ~n~,~ tile ~,'-e,sence ~r Gf~se3,ce, ~~°c~a~dYng ~~ ~.~at~r~gg oT
~o c~na~are z, shin, er cs~~e ~iaraTnekc~ ~~rif~~ a cc~~-~esi~onding s~ird ~~-cite iaara~eteY° ~~ a P~o~~v~~Y
can. in ,~s~e eYrYb~diY-rae~~t, fi>fsPTe~YM :~:~e~it:e:fcie;5 arr, ~.~scd hoc ~r~;b~: di~~'e~~er~t deist's in the _~o_ a ~hic~~Ilf:Ss 6~'? t~lG C~3T.n, rhl'1lS <:°ni.t~3~)(~. ~s .'',~~ec~'"~~~e ~e:,6~aLls.~'-,, in tc~'.'.,.ns ~~ the. lnLt~rt'~CtP~3'i:
IiE,IWFen ~
c~is~ and a ~nagr~etic fieid, tic i~r~eqwrac~y of a va~ia~ie ~~agns~ric iieid defictes a "s~ci;~ depth,"
sv~ich is the effective depth a~ re ~~sr~.z~~ ~~i ~~3e coin or ~tb.L~- object:
v~i~ic~~ interacts ~,vith the era°~iabie n~_agnLtic held: ~ iia~s, in this cxnb~ciia~erat, a first iv~e~iuer~cy is Fir~vid~;d 4,vhic~~ is resaL~ively iow to provide fC3Y ~ i~rger si~in =e;pti~, and th~ss into ~ac'~i~n ~,vith rl~e core e~i°the coin or ~ther object, anti a second, bigiie~- ~~ec~~ency is provided, ;~igi~ enough to res~:It ira a skin depth substantially less than vi-te tilicacY~f~ss c~i the cc~i~-a. rzx this i~ray, rather ~~i~an a siwgie sensor providing t vo paYag~2eters, ~:~~, sensor is ~'bIe to i~rwide ;~ouY
parameters: core conductivity;
cladding or coating conductivity; core ciiameter9 ,end ci~dding or u~av~~irag daan~eter ~aithcsugh it 'E~ Is ~:~tlCipated that, an Ylc'ny ~TESta~'lce;:, ~fli; c&Jre c~i~ld claddT:ng d~~.IlleterS !~v'a~~ 9e Slfn:l2i).
r~rel'e~-abiy, the Io~~-freq~.~ency ski~~ dfup~~ a g-~eateY titan E-he tl~ic~ness of the plating or gaYnia~atio~~, and. tl~.e high ~Ye~.l~~e~~cy sk~r~ depth is less than, a~~
about equal to, the p<~~ing or lannination thicl~i~ess for the change c~~ a~ni~:aatior~ :depths, for t~:e antiLipatecL c~in pop.uiat=on=.
Thus the frequency avhich vs ci~osen ~epcnds ;gin the chaYa°teristics of tie coins or other !5 objects expeca.:ed to be inpv~t. :in c~rae :xrabo~'.itrnt, the lov=r vequeTacy is ~et~~ev~:~ a'~out 5~
I~~Iz and abon~~ ~~~ I~I~z, preferably a~ou~: ~~~ I~~~h a nd the ~sig3Y
:~rcquency is beto.veen al~o~r ~.5 1~~I~ axed aboa.~t l~ I-Ice'. a~refe~-c~bl<r a~o~t 2 i'~I~:~.
I~~ scxne situations, it n~~.y iae necessary to pYOVide a ~Yst drivig~g signal a~equency ~~~n~7~YSC',nt ~lx E9rder t~3 sachl°,d~e, i: Ss;cC~~d, ~k«f~Y~nt f~eCs~lf:3'g~;y~ se;rlsC>Y Srg~a~ c~IT~~7E,'aRe~l°~. ~a1 2o particuiar, it is f~a.~nd that zf the sensor '~ l~ (~'ig. ~) is first drive's at the high frequency using high freclue:~cy coil z4~, a~~d Lien the 3ov~r ~ecl~encar signal 2~~~ as added, adding tf~e low frequency sign~.l will affec=d t~a~ 'erequc~rcy o~ tla~ tagll vPedu~,s-.cy signal 2~i2. Thus, ;she higi~
frectuency driving signal Yr~~ay need t~ -'=~e adj~.~st~;d do drive at ~
nominal fYec~uency which is different Iiom the desired h~g~~ fYeq~.lei_cy of the senso_- suci~ than:
v~~~en the losv ~~~ec~uency is 2~ added, the high frequency is perturbed into the desired v~l~~e '~y the addition of the lcw frequency.
multiple freqa.e~~cies cax be pYOVi: ~.e~~ in a nu~r~beY oi' ways.. 'in o3ie err~bodin~ent, ~.
single continu~us v~~.ve form "?~2 ~~"ig. 7), ~dWic~ is the sum of t~vo for rrj.ore) sinusoid=_ or peYi~dic ~v~vefoYY~s having ~fil°'i~rer~t ''Yeq~ce~~ci~;s 7~4,?~~, is provided to the sensor. fps ~o depicted in dig. 2~, a sensor ~ld~ is .~Yeferabl~T configured ~vitd. tva~
different a,~ils to be driven at tw~ different ~recluencies. I-~ is relieved that, gerae~aliy, 'ciae presence o~ a second _~ ~_ coil can u~desiral~iy affect the iP~ducta~~ce ~~~ the :t'~yrst c~i.~, at the ~~-eq~e~cy of ~peratiou ~~ the first coil. ~~er~eraily, the ~~ur~~Jex- ~~ tu~~s of t~.~e i-irst coif gay ~e correspondingly ad~ustec'~se than the first coif has the desired inductance. lra ~.he e~~hc~di-re~e~~t ~i dig. 2~~, the c;e~s~r coxe ~i~ is i~o~arld in a louver por-ti~~~ ~it~~, a first coin: )2~ for d~i~i~-~g ~,~rit~ a ao~~~ ~~equer~cy signal i~~ and is loured ~~ a second region -,y =. sec~~~d coil %4~, : ~:;~ dw~ib~g at a, higtaer freqL~e~~~cy 7~~. I~~ the depicted ebodi~~~e~at, the Ikig'a: ~~eq~:ency c~il 7~i has a sali~,~ k~uher of tortes and uses a larger gauge -ire than the i~r;a coil ~~~. i~~ the z~e~ict~;d e~a~hodin~e:r.,t7 zhe high frequency coif ~4-2 is spaced i~-Via, ~~~~ao fro~_=~ fh~; first coil ~f,t>
arid is posit~ior~ed c!.oser cc the gap X16. providing sore separation ~!~~a, 24~b is believed t,, help reduce the effect one coif ~o has ova the inductance of the oti~er and nay sor~e~~hat reduce direct coupling hetv~ee~~. the love frequency and high fxeqvaency signals.
~°~s caa~ ~e seen it~n~ _~ig. %, th:~ pifas,. re;latic~nship of tq~e 1<~gh fre(~ue~cy sfgr~al 'l~~i and lo~~ t~equer~cy signal 7~~ twill af~::ce t~.v p,a~iculc:r shape of die c~rr~posite ~ra~~e for~rr~
7~G. signals 7 2 arid %~~ ~~ev~arese~~t e~oltage at ';:he tcinals :~;~ the high a;nd lo~,~~ f~equenc;y 7~ coils; 2~Q, 2~2. ia~ the phase A-elatio~~ship is xaot c~rr~roiled, or ar least l~no~~n, out"~ut signals qr~dicating, for example, arfbp nude and/or ~ irr the oscillator circu t a.s tv~e coin passes the Se'i~S~~' I'i~ay 19e vuCh that It ~s de~~~(:~i~t t~5 C~et~;~fll~~?C, 4153~YJ
3r~~,TCI"? C~f ~ a (rllange 1? a.&rl~:~lltude (~~
or'~ the signal results frcm the passage of vqe coi_~ and how nr~cl~ is attril~~ able to ~~he phase relationship of the two signals ?~~~ a~%d 7J~r in the par~:ic~.lar cycle Being a~~aly red.
20 ~ccordi~.ggy, in one err~l~odi~~zent, the p:r~.asF.~s ~ef tie love ~~nd h igh signals 7~~., 7~f are controlled such that sampling points a.~8~:,z :.he ;composite signal t~2 rdescrhed l;efow~ are t~l~en~ at the sane phase for ~4~ct~ the lour z~~d l~ii;h siga~~ls 7ft~-~, 7~~. ~. L urrahe~~ (~t~ avays of assuring the desired phase relatior~shi~ c~~r~ Ize v~sed ircludi~~.g gen~;rating'~oth sig.~als 1~4, 7~~ fi~aa~ G. c~'-'P'~I2I~~ ~'efe?'~°s'3.~e s~~t'~e ~SalG~a a~3 a Lry~tal ~~Cri3at~~'~ al~dl'~g L~~~Flg a p'~a~f~
2~ locl~ed loop (~~,~.~ to control tl~e _chase re=atior~ship of the si~,~r~als '1~~~, 7~~. ~y usi:nb a phase locl~ed loop, the vaave shape of the composite sgna2 7J~ ~,vil1 he the sage;
during amy cycle (i.e., during any lour frequency cycle', ov ~t least will change only very slcswly a~~d thus it is possible to detcrrniu.e the sa~mpliy~g points (descfi-ihed ~elo~~~ used o~, ~;.g., a ~~re-defined position or phaswaithiz~ tl<e (loen~ ~~eqvyency ~ cycle fatake5- Khan teased ozs defecting 3o characteristics of the wave fd~=.~ 7~~.
figs. 8~ - 8~ depict c:l~c~~ytry ax~=lic:~ c«ir i3e used. for driviGrg tile se;~;~or of trig. 2~ arid obtaining signals useful in c;oirl discrinrvnatiolr. ri'lle low freq~.~ericy arid ~li~;h freq~~el~zcy c~ils 22;x., 242, form porcie~ns o~~ a lom .wide qzlevrcy and 'saigh iz-e~uer~cy please locked Ioop, rcapectiveiy 8~2a, 8o2b. ~e~aigs or: i:he cloci~ cir:;uits 8~8 arc; sll~~vl:.
in fib;. 8~. ri'he derma of the high frequency phase ioc~a~d ic~o~ are dep3c~ted in t~ig. 8~~ a~:~,d, tile loa=~'~req~fc~ncy phase locked loop 802a may ~e ?de=~tical Ro ~ba~ s~~o~~,%:a in f -lg. 8except that ;~~l~e cornponencs i~ay be provided with different vain es, e.g., as discussed belova. 'I~~~e output fro~~ tire phase IoCxted iod?~ iS proVldec: to i~lt~;rS; ~~~r, :5~1:3i~1o,' lln grC;ate,?"
deta:lg In l'lg. 8~.. ~.~"aC relilalnder Cif tree c;ornpoclents of fig. 8~~ ~.4e gel~erai~y~ di~ec:c;d to provici:ng re,t:erencc and/or ;~~r~ipwing ~o pulses or signals for prir~os-us d escril~ed lore p~ui~y beio~~~.
'file crystal oscillator circuit 8(~~ ~:C'ig. 8i~) pro~edes 6a reference freqaaency 8~8 input to the clock pin ~f a counter 81~ sb~ic~a as a ~oat~isorl "davide by I~"
counter. 'fde coa~rster s;rutp3:sts a I'igh freqLIenCy refPra;na;e sig~~.a~ ii S 2 aya~l '4~'urlU~S
o11tg3tl~S ~~-~~ c~ezlne ~c~ ~~lfferer~t please positions vaith respect to 3:1e reference signal 812. In the Depicted erribodinrenE, two of
Although a nu~-nber of items ire ~escrahe~ as being ~~.p:~ienzented in soi~ware, iri general it is also possible to ~rc~ride a ~a~-e~~avare in~plexnentatior~ such as by using hard wired consrol logic and/or ar~ application specific i~-Faegoated cireuit (~Si~).
Ar~ inpa~.t/out~s~at ~l/C~) i3~terface on ripe rencrocontroller 3~~~
9:acilita~.es corn~n~~nication such as bus communication, direct l!f, inters~~pt requests and/or direct meary ace;ess 1o ~~ll~A) requests. Since, as desc~°ihed rr~~orc thorc~~~ghly belo~Fr, ~A°~f~~ is used for ~a~.~ch. o:l°the sensor communications, the coin sensor :;ircr~itrv includes D~c~~i logic circuitry 3~3~ as well as circuitry for status and control signals ~2~~. a~lt'novgh, in t~~e described embodyrnent, only a single sensor is provided :~flr coin sensing, it is possible cv cc~nflgure an operable device hacking additional sensors 3L3~.
In addition to the motors ~SQ2, 2~3G, solenoicas 201~1f i'734, ~3~6 and seF~sors 1738, I734 described above in connection wi=h coin transport, controlling latches, gates end drivers oa° a type that will be uaAderst~:c~ci-ay those fi.l> skiI in tae are :~~tur ~~nderst~.ndia~g the present invention, are provided 342.
A method X08 derivi~~g, rro~~ tape doa~r s~;;nsoz~ signai.;s ~l;ig. 3C3) a set of v~ai~~es or ''slb~latLel'e" lndlCat~Ve (if a ~E3?~? wi2lCh ø3as p~sSE9'~,."' the sel3SOr, is '~eSC:rlbet3 In COni-F4:eElt9n V~IItI°~
the graphs ofp'ig. 33 which shorn a hypothetical etaple of tape four sibnals L,F~ 332, L~,F'~
33~~, ~Ip'~ 33x6 arid ~pQ 33~Dci during ~ icerioci o° tune in which a c~in passes ah~-ough the arms of the sensor. Units of p'ig. 33 are arbivary since pig. 33 is used to illustrate the privnciples behind thus ~rnbodi~.r~e,nt. A baseline ~~alue, 331, 331.x., 33t~, 3318 is associ~tecl 2~ with each of the sensor signals, representing a value equal to the average or mean value for that signal ~rahen no coins are ~ci~~cent tE~e sensor. l~lthough, i~~, tl~e depicted embodiment, the l,~D signal is used to define a =uirrdow o-= time 33~~ curing which the minimum values for each of tl~e four signals 3362, 33~~, j3~;~, 33()8 will be ~~~,te~~ir~ed and otl~e~~ tl~=eshold-crossing events, (at least in pert because this sigryal typically i~as tlae sharpest peal), it would be possible to use ather signals t~ defir-._e any or all of the variozas crossing events, or it rnay be possible to define the win dow separately for each signal.
_~~_ In the depicted embodiment, the base line value 3312 associated with the LFD
signal 3302 is used ~o define a tlesc~~~t ~i~re,Yl~e~-~d 33~~~ (equal to -tie i~l~~
baseline 3~1~ nainns a predefined descent offset 3326, and a predefined gap threshold 3328 equal to the ~Fl;
baselir~Ee 331 minus a gap oI'l'se'~ 3332).
In one embodiment, tl~e system will remain in an idle loop 340 (Fig. 34) until the system is placed in a ready states (as described. beiow) 340.. ~~nce the systerr~ is in ready status, it is ready to respond to passage of a coin past the sensor.
In fibs depicted vr~n~odirnent, t_~ce ~egi~~:nirg of a coin passage past t~~e sensor is signaled by the ~,FD signal 33x2 ~~ec;or~~ing less 421 ~ than tl~c descent ti~reshold 33'4 (3406) which, in the e~r~bodi~nergt of .~~in. 33, occ~xs at ta~~ae t, 3336. ~l-ae~~
this event occurs 3338, a nu?~sber of vahaes are initiali~;ed or s9:ordud 3408. rs'he status is set to ~~ value indicating that tlae ~,vindo~h, 932 is opera 4~ 14. ~otlr the ''ue~~C" tune ;revue a:~d the f"lead"
time value are set eq~aa? to the clocl~ value, v.e., equal ~:o ti 3336. Four varia'~les i=,~~1~12~ 33~1~2, LF~TvII~ 3344, I~FDII~IhI 3346 and I-lF~i~l1\T ~>348, are used to hold a value indicating the ~5 rninirn~~rn signal values., for ~~aE.aa o~ tl~p sgzgals. 330, 330., 3306, 3308, tl~~s-i~~r achieved during the window 332 and Thus are initialized at the T~ vah~es vfor each of tl:e variatJles 3302, 3304, 3306, 3308. in tl~e illust~atior~ of ~'ig. 339 tl~e .~a~dno.~ag rr~inirrat~rrz ~ralues 3342, 3344, 3346, 3348 are depicted as dotted lines, slightly offset vertical.y do~~nward for clarity.
During the time tllak t~~e ~vindo~.-.,~ ~s og~e~~ 33~~., ~:e ~nir,im~m-hoidir~g varia=ales 20 1=,FDl~, 1_,F~IvIll~t, ~FDllhand 1-1F ~?~~IIV will be npd;~ted9 as needed, to reflect the minimum valve thus-far achie~r=;d. i:n i:lae depicv:ed embodirr~u~nt, 3:h~;
fovr values are updated serially and cyclically, once every clock signal. Updating orn values can be distributed ir~ a di~ferev~t fashion if it is desired, for ~;~am~le, 1:0 ~rovgde greater tines resolution for some variables than for others. It as believed that, by ever sampling specil"~c channels, recognition 2~ aver accuracy c~:r~ be improved. ~s the ~.~ ~ ~~alue is heaz~g te;>ted anc, if necessary, updated, a value for an ascent threshold 3336 (whci. will bs~ used to deii~~e tl~e end of the window 33~~,, as described beow) is caiculated or upe~ated 341st. 'l'i~e valve ror the ascent f~res~°r~ld 3336 is calc~zlated or ~~,~dated as a vai~e cquai t~, the; current val~ze for LFI~~IgIaT 3342 plus a predefined ascent hysteresis 332.
3a ~7henever the ~.F171~/11I~ value 334 moat 6e updated (i.e.., when the valve o~ ~,FD
descends below the previously-stored ~r-tinim~a~n value 3412)" tl~e ''peak"
time value is also vlsdated by ~eir~~ s:~ade eciL~a l t~s raid c~.~x-e;rt cl~~;z~ value. ~r~
;:~~is ~.v~y, at t&~e end 4~~~ ~f the ~.~~s~d~~r 332, tie ~°isealc" c~a.°iai~ie ~~~i:~~lc~ °~
,value °~rdicati~~~g rye ~is~e a~: r~eic~ i,v.~~ ~3fl2 bleached itS unrai~~uvat-~ze $x~it~i~~ the ~rir~d.~~ra ~:'>Z~.
I'-~S a C~l~l masses t~lT~a''g;~~a ~~e 4i~~iY3,S L3~_ fa' Ser~S~i~, tfte ;:~L't~ Si-~%3a~ '~r~Ie~eS ~~~C., ~~0~~, 33t~~, 33fl~ ~vili, in ~e~erai, ~-eacii ~ tmiair~z~~~~ ~:~aiu° ardd t:~~er~ ise~irl ~~ras;e ~~r~; t~ aSCend io~arard tie '~aseiine valL4e ~~ > ~, ~3 :i~., ~~ t. ~" ~ ~ l is. i~~ ~s~e depicted ~~u~~c~di~ier~t, the -~ir~~v~w-322 is declared 5'closed"' ~,i~e~~ the, iJ~'3~ ~ ~s_~~e ~~fl2 raises t~ a ~c~in,: that it e~uaiS tl3e current value f~r the ascent ~,'aiv~e t',r;;-eSl~eid ~> ~~~. ire We iil~:stra~ia~r~
<:f °~i~. J~', ftaiS ~w',J~t :~35~~
cccurS at time ~'3 :~35~. ~Jr~~~~ de~cc~i~r~ ~~.1 ~ ~f tha e~aez~t, tle cLtrre~~t ~~aiue fir 'die cl~G;ic '~0 ~i.e., t8~e ~ra~Lie it2dF~atl~l~ tfd's""~P r~3,~ fS Sid "d 3~ ttsE:
'trf8li" star ~~~'a;. ~'~lCdS, at t~1~5 ~7C~S~tt, t$~ri;2:
Yi~,lec~ t~lr.'L~re ~~;eCi St~:"~',~' ~'~~ t~rPe el2tF:aFf9ee,: ''~eai:"
~k.'~C9~CS a ar~.'~Lae tYlC~~~a'a~~z~ t~$~3e ~~I, Le., te1':, l r'~e at VJi'iLCh tl~C; 'vV'ei3~~~rv' ~H~'au ~~ef'~e~.d~ ;'~"9~,~~iC'~
~3C~lC"~ ~ oral a ~.'~1CE.Cat~~l~ tYarle ~~'~,, 9.e., the ~~i~ei<nLt~~ ~~alue lcr ~raria~lwc lrl-yy 33fl~.~ a~~d v'ariv~le '°tr~il" ~:u lc°s a ~alv~e i~dicatis~~ ti~~e 'T3, i.e., the dyne ~r~~er~ the wi~d~~~r '322 ~vaS ~;~sed.
'~'l~e ~tl~er p~srti~n ~f tie si~~t~xre fir the ccsin vrhich maS .just detected (in addition r~
~f'°~'.; ~.~lree 9~1'13e ~IaYFaa~3~teS~ afC vraatkeS 1~''.ei~Cai~~T~
the F=Fdi~klP~'u~rFw a~:.:';~-~e'~7ed, iRr~t~'91r: '~~~e 4h~111dC1~FV
T
~3~~., fir each of t~~e variables ~.~fl2, ~:7~3~, ~fflc., ~3fl~. 'f hes';
ve~Iues are calculat=~d ~42~ by Subtracting the ~fi~irn~~~r~ valuc;s at tizr~e ~~~ 3~~~2, J ~44, ~,;~~, ~~~.~
fr~rr~ tire res~ecti~m i~aseiir~e va?ueS ~3 i~', 33 i~, ~~ l s, ~'~ l t', vcreld i~ur dxfferea~~~;e ~r delta values, r~i_,~ ~ 33~~, ~C ~~,~~ ~3~~, ~"-lf~ ~~~~ a3~~.~ ~ii~'~ ~~>~~. =~°c~R~idiug ~L~t~L~r jai ~,r is negative t~ 5~he baseline value fs~r each Signal is useful kr~ av~idirr~ se~asiti4rit~ tc~ re~~e~TatLare charade.
E~lt~.ou~l'~, ~',~ ti~~e t3 ~~de~, ail The ~,r~3ue~ rewired is t~~.e c~i~
Si~ria'a~re lz~ve been ~'L9taliied, lIa t~e C'ae~lf'vtC'd e~'~2~L3E3~'..a'i.rl2'o,'i~t, za~~
S'~'StnJ9~a''! IS ~'I~t ~'et er~~ced ~t;i a 6':"C,'ud~l" Str'~.te'. ~'rfaS ~S
i::L,'~a$9SaJ fit KS deSYYC'~~ td~ aSS3~:~:~; Ei'~.aC t~Am~'.~-:. d a s3Y~
least sz ~r~~1~13rI2~~rt~i1 ~%a~ ~3F',t't%irref'lI tl3C, ~~Q~~3. W 3~Cla 25 vas ~uS~ detected and any f~;l'~~v~rir~~ cc~~t~. I~ is aiS~ desirable r~
ai~atai~ at least ~~ r~i~irr~a~x~
distance ~r dap ~-~r~~ a~~ ~recedi~~~ c~iz~. ~r~ ~e~:~eral, it, is believed ~~seful r~ ~rc~v~ide at least S~9I'~Ye S?~ac>~'i~ ~G'etWe~n ~C'31Y'3S ~:~:ik' ''~~c~ur~:~e selS~r lead3ilb, SI~''r(;~~ dC9ina ~.~=~:~Y~~ a:~e t~~C~'iln~ pan reScalt xi1 eddy GL?rrGrit hSaSS~r3.~% ~~et~rEe-ta ~~~~iS. i~~~alntaxY:ln~ ~e ~"~~.~a~3lr~Lll'$3 ~a~'r- as ~~.~ES ~'x~a9$~C;
t~~~rard tl~e d~~r ~2 is useful in >~a~in~~ SLkre that duct d2 ~,0 3;: Srrilte the c~:i~~ at the deSi:_ed 3~ tie arae ~ecat~~n. ~er~~en~; 'v:~~ S~~b~~ e;r v~~ x~,t~; a;~ _~eSUtt ire <
efiectin~ a~~ acce~wd ce~~r ~tlrer than into the acceptance, viax, degr~di~a~ sysvwa=~;c~;~aac~.
_gg_ Information gathered by the se:txso~- ~8 rr~ay also be used in corn~ection with assuring the existence of a preferred ~~ryi~~ ~~ n~z~~ gap ~cvwea~~~ c~ins. Irr al2is way, if coins are too closely spaced, one or more coins ~~,~hich might otherlvise 'ne an accented coin, will not he deflected hand will not he "couretecl" as '>n accepted ~,e~i~.z). ~i~~iA~~rly, lm ~~~e er'~l~odimen~, a coin hacking an acceleration less than a thress~old (sz~cla as less than half a maxirra~am acceleration) will not be accepted.
Accordingly, in order to assure an adequate leading gap, she system is not placed in a "ready'' state lentil the L~L~ sigr_.al 33~~ ryas reached a value c,qual td~
the gap threshold 3~~~.
Ai"cer the syste-=r~ ver>f~es 34~~i~ that this F"vent '~~~7% leas oc~;vrred, the status is set equal to ~ o "ready'' 33~~ and the system returns to are idle st:a~te 34~ 1 to awai t passage of the next coin.
To provide for a min:im3~xrn preferred tailing gap, ik~ orne eh~dirnent, tl~e soft~aee monitors the ~ F~ signal 33t~~ far a short time after ~;lZe ascending hysteresis citerion has been satisfied 4~3~. if ~Yae s~gr~ai ha.s moved ;g~~f~~cicntly I~~cls towards the baseline ~3i2 (rr~easured either with respect to tl~~e baseline or with respec; to the peak) after a fi~ predetermined time period, tl2en an adequate trailing gap exi~~cs and the door, if t~~o, c~~in is an accepted coin, will he actuated 4244. Is rise trailing gap is not achieved, the actua4ion pulse is canceled 4240., and nor~~ally ~i~e coin will he r~~;turned to tl;e ~.sc;r. In all cases, software thresholds are prefera'oly calibrated using the srr?;allest coins ~e.g., a U.~. dune in the case of a ~lJ.~. coin mix).
20 Because the occurrence of events sucl-~ as the crossing of thresholds 333$, 334, 3372 are only tested a"~ discrete time irate vats 341 o a, 34? 1h, 34'1 lc, 341 1d, in most cases the event will not he detected until some tune after it has occurred. hot exar~iple, it tray happen that, with regard to ~tize ascent-crossir~Lg event 3:~~4, the previous wvenl;-test at tune f4 3374 occurs before the crossing event 3354 and the, next event-test occurs at tine 'f5, a period of dime 25 337 after the crossing event 3:~1i4. Aaco.4di~:gly, in on.c er~~~odirnent, once a lest determin~,s that a crossing event spas occ~:rre~l, interpolation such as linear interpolation, spline-fit interpolation ox the Iil'e, is used to pro~ride a n ion°e accurate e;9~:imafe of the actual rira~e of tl~e event 3354.
As noted above, by dyne t3 335, all the valises requiy-ed for the coin sig~.ature have so been obtained. Also,'ny tisane t3, tl~e in:lor&nation v,~~hich can be ~scd I~r calculating the tine at wl°.ich the door ~2 should he activated (assuming the coin is iden~;ifed as an accepted coin) is _~co_ c'1~'aEla"t7i~.. l~~;S;atISE.; tlYe Q'ES~scl'a"~.:C =i'C3Ytd tt~.e ;yi.Y'li;:~Jr tLi tile dC~~<~Y Es (:orE;;taYEt and ~'~Y~O~,UIl, t~G
aYE-EOUnt oi'tie Ye~uired for ~. Goin t~ tra~:.%ei to iisv ~refe~-Yed ~~os~t~~t~ vJit~ t'es~ect to tt~e door Gau t72 CaiCtllated eXaCtly 1i i~C; a~,CC,r)',:'Etia3i3_ :>~ t~'t~<, CoEU2 '~a'3C37'2~; 'lle E'~~f is "h'IIOWYx ~~'t3d C:OYlstantj aYEd a ~eiocit<~,, such as =she ~eioci~~ at the setlsor is ~Ylow~. l~ccoxdi~.g to one ~~etiaod, ac~eleratio=~ is e;alct.lated ~~y ~,~or~s~~rir~~ r~t~e =~cioE~rty o~ tire cc .a ~s it Yuo~~res fast t3~e senso- 5~
~~~h the velocitr~ of the coi~~ ~s it ~ass;~s o~~er tire ''~:~~ee" iE~ v"~e ~-~°~ositiorE regio~~~tC. 1rE
of>e e~Wodir~e~n, tile ir~Etiai ''iEkfee"' vc;zoct~ is ~.sst~~~';ed to ~~; ~
single ~~aiae for all coins, i~
oYEe case, c1.5 tmeceYu/second. °~uowi.raY; the: ~%~:loC;ity at two loz:atons (the lc~~ee ~e~t~: aYtd the sensor location ~g~ at~d lsr~:~~n~~g the drst~<4G~: t'rc~~: the l_nee ~i~~: to the seas~F-',oc°.atior~ 5~, ~~ $he steel~~°ration a};~erienced ~y jhe coil Sara tie caicula~:.~d.
used can this calculated aCCeleratlOU, a dS c~~lf;i't paossEiJle to jeliC;tiiate 1?C3~:,, bong a'~
v6r~~~ iCSe, C'Oiit~Y2E3EFlg at $hat acceleraC~oi~, lSelo~~, the ~,otai ks ~~sit~ouLr~ az th!~ ~ae~erred ro'ca~ao~
o~~e~- ~,he actt':aLor. rt,hts system essentially opeYatcs o:r~ ~. ~Yinc~s~it; c;r asst<Y~ing =xr initial ~~eloGity a=kd using rneasureYnents of tire sensor vo uitim~~tel,,.r calctE:late hov fYEe ~nora ~oY
oth en t°ac;tCSrs such as r5 Surface teYES3°JIE~ af$GGtS tFIG ~CCZ;;$eYa'II(~~~t >'V.',~~'?sr a X~eiEGl'aE;ed v~y P~e;'ll GO~.'°g. f~.YEiltIFG-r ~13sY9TOaGl~
r3"lEght ~G i.ES2d jYi 4~Il~1Ci2 an ~;~IGv°t2~le ~i'aGtios~ xxlelS
aS;~ui 3Gd clE, a C;OI~St~n$ ~:~alue a:'fid tie data gathered at the Sensor ~~~e°1S -~.~SG:~ Lo C~li.i."1'setG, tse 2asitir'El ~c'I~IIGe''j ~°~,!!oGityr In any case, tl°~e Galculat~o~a o~elt~; ~qm.C; W Een the Goin r~r~~:l :~e~tGh -trae ~ret~eYYed ~ositioY~
C;a~a l7e CX~GCteL~ t0 i3a~e S~~-~e ~'i'l7,OixYl~. old eYE'or ~?.e., C'altfererEGe ~G't~leeY~ Ga9GUla'e~ ~50s1t3E5Y1 2a and atlas: r~osition at the deov aGtiYratioYF diz~f::~. ',he ~;rYor car arse t°rom ~. nun~l~eY of factors ir~GIudiYlg de~art~ares fYOm the assumption r'cgarding the l~nec velocity, xaon-c~Ytstant values i'or friction along tlEe rail, ~~ad tl~~, lihe. ~~~~ oYSe e_~~hodi.~ent a h°~>;~ ~r~.en found the -, .wing tige, ~'JE,'sCY'a5ed ~;YOCG6~au3'G, auCE f0< 's;'Y'n.e ds:.~~v~.Ye d a?1~
CaC,SCrIE'9GCm deSEyk°'9 tl'~~; ~loY'gt'-CaSe GYroY oCGtirs with the s~~Eallest coin ~e.g., aEaAount i';'.~ mrr iEr diameters ak~d ~.:~ouY?ts to alsproXit~ately a 25 Y°alYU ~n e'athG~' d3reC$iori. It $s Ei~CIEf~"~Tc;,d t.l''aa'E, EE'E
'-at aa;aSt SOEIIe Cal~3sCY~;lli~ie3lts, aLi eZY'G"r !~V'~S&d~~~1 t'9a ~ i'ilm ~S tOIC,Ya~Sle ~LG., reSUltS ~n a C, ~ W'~/C?y ~~;b~ :ate of Y'a'E1SC'~~d°i~CLEtig Coins yW otl'9e: o ~~eG$S~, I~ order to implement this aoG~,dts:~e, data ~htainc;;~~ ~t the senso: 5~ is ~~'sed to calculate a velocity. ~GCOrdi'~g to one sc;'ixe~y~e, tirtlv '~3 ~33d is tal'en as the tiYn~~ v~~~en the '~,oii'i t?rst e:'TterS tile SGUSOr ~a3~C~ t:~l~e tE ~,t~3C °'i;~G,a~~"
t~:'liG,y Es ta~<~;n aS ~:he tErFG ~JV'hea~~' the COE:~~Y Es 3e Ge,ntered oYE the sensor, aYad thus a~~s traveled a distaY~ce a;~~ro~iY~~ately equal to a coin radios.
~eGause, o~ace the Goin laas'oce~ recogr~i~cd ~e.g. as d~,scrihe~t -~elova in conueGtion ~crith gigs.
_~. ; _ 36 and 3'~;, tl~e radius of tl~.c coin is l~i~~~ro (,~;.g. ~~sang a ~~o~-uh t~hl~., it is possible to calculate .-elocittyr as radius divided by the difference (i~ -ti).
Tlxe proc;ed~re illustraved i:~ Figs. 3~ a'ncl 3~ is an exhale oa' orac emhodi~~ent of a detection process 35~~. ~s seen i~~ Fig. 35, a number of processes., in addition to detectiors, should be performed lsetwc~e~t tl~e time d~~~ is obtained by the sensor 53 and flee tzr~ae a coin reaches the door 6~. ~n ge:~e_-al, processes ca~~ be considered as being either recognition processes 35~~ relating to identifying and lovating objecf ~~hich pass the sew sor, and disposition processes 350, ~ei~zti~~g to .s~,rgdin;~ co~~s to d:.~;s~:~ed desti,~~tions. Jnce t~~e detection process lies examined the stream of sensor readings and has gLnerated signatures 1o ccs~~espoz~ding to the coin (or odder objcct~ tsassi.x~ag the sensor, t~~e signatures are passed ~'?~~
to a categorization process 3~~1~. This process examines ftie signatures received from the detection process 352 and de~v~~~i'nes, impossible, ~~hat coin or objc;ct has passed the sensor.
preferring t~ Fig. 32, the rec;grition and dispc~sitio~i processes 3'_i0~, 3306 are preferably perfomned by the rr~icroconfiroller 3242..
~5 Fig. 3pro4rides an r'siia:~stration o:~ o.~e ex-rlbodirn.ent ~u° ~:
ca~:egorimtion ;,ro:,ess. ~~s shown in Fig. 36, in one eF~bodiment a calil=retion mode may be pro~rided in which a pl~:rality ot'l6nown t~lpes of coins a;re pi~~c~d in ti:.e r~~ci'~ine arid, uhesc~ coins are us~;d io de ~~e maximum and minirrnum Ll~'~, LF~, i~Fl~ and FIFE oralue s for that par'cicular category or denomination of coi.:~. ~n one ~.bodixr~er?t, vira~i~~g parameter;: are also est~blishec a:d stored 20 during the calibration process:. l~cc;ordi~xg to the embodiment of F ig.
3Fs, if the system is a.An~ergolng Callbra't~~'.~'1 j~~~, '~zl~, Sy~''':ent dies no'i, atte~'Flpt t~
r'~C~,'i,,.Tlilli~e yr ~cntegC9ri%,d, =:hC: C~lns and, by C~~'a~~el~tlC3n, ~l~e ~'L7lns Y..~~~:.d ~43r ~.~''~~i#~r~8;30I7 are ~ateg~rle~d as "'~7~ire~~:gnlZe~" i~Qdr.
As illustrated in Fia_ 3?, in one, embodiment, a coin signature 37Q2 is used to categorize an o'dject by performing a co~~~,~ariso~~ for each oi' ~ ~uumber or 3iffereE~t ,~otenti~i 25 categories, starting with the first vatego~~,~ 366 and stepping to each next category 3~i0~ until rz~atch is found 3612 or all categories arpexhaosced 3614 ~~-ithout ~r~dir~g a matc;l~ 3616, in which case the coin is categorized ~#2~,i:~ as ur~~rec.ognized 36i3~-. wring each test far a match 361 ~, each of th.e four sigrsal peals 336, ;364., 3366, 336, is compared, (successively for each category 37J~a, 3 J 04b, 3 ~~~n) ~~nt~ Fa~'ini~~~u~n and rraa.~ic~urre ("~loc>r" arad ".ceilings') 30 ~a3ues defining a "~~indow" For each sigi~at~zre component 3ls~,a, 3fli3b, 3714x, h, 3716a, 1j, 37 =. Via, h. ~~ match is dcclare~~ 361 ~ fear ~. given category onl ,~
.~i° x.11. four c,ompo~=eats of the _c 2_ sign~ti~r~ 332, 334, 336, ~F~ca 3:~~~ r~'aiE ~~;iari~i~ ~iF~ cwres;~c~r~diF~g ~rr~dc~~l f~r Q~ ~a~rti~;Fnar Cc~t~gory .~704~3., i7, ~, <~.
it Evhe ~FnhodiFr~eF~t ~F ~i~. ~~, ~:'~~~; s~s~~ir= rrmy h~ coafigFv~-~d t~
~rFd tl~c: ~w~~,g~~riz~=~ioF~
~roCeSS ~~~G ~.x/h~Y~~:~Er t~l~ 3a: St ~i~c~g~rr~ 3~~Gi reSF&iiiF3g 1F~ %~
r~~c'°'tCh ~~35 ~6,~r6 ~:~3Ltrld, ~'~' t~
so~~FtiF~FFe 3~'~~ ~~rFti~ ~Ii F~ ~~~~g~~'ies i ~~~~ ~~~;eF~ ~~sted. arF
.~&yrr;~ai ~~per~t'x~F°~, the first ra~~de 3~~~ ,iii vy~i~,~.iiy ~~e ~~sed. i is h~;li~~:~wci th,l iatt~r m~d~; ~nii '~e ~sv~:m? ~rir~,ci~~ilv fc~r rvs~arch ~r~d d~«e6o~rrF~Fit ~_~~r,7~s~,s.
'f:~e ~'es~.FZts oil ~h~ ~a~~;g~ b-izatiorF 35J~ ~~~; stor~,d ire <z category buffer 35 ii: a,nd ~r~
~7rE~~Fd~,C~ t~ tii~ rei~gat~r ~rii~,~~SS 3~ ~.Qr. ~ p~ C~Ff~ir~rcC~ ;wtW~"~~
~~I~gt3rFZr'3~;doIF c~~~i r~;e~gs~ll~SiF
~o r~l~t~s, iFF dart, tc~ the diff~~'~_~r~. h~t~m~r~ ~ ~~iF~ ~at~gc~r~ ~r~.r~
a c;~mr~ de~F~rr~iF~~tic~F~. l~T~s~ ~.il ~C3eEiS of ~a giV~r"z d~r~~rYFFrIi~Lxor3 ~~Ild~ ~lc~le, Si~:~Fll~r StrB~i~~ure, ~~1C~ '9;rF~S tv:~o ~~~3FI2S Czg' ~CiG; S~Y2'1 ~$~~C3rYFIIIc'3tF~r1 $I2s~~ T2~~I2 S~FOS~c?"atF~E~)~ Ct:~f~.r~F'Ft Slg%FC'3fLFr~S. ~~~~ ~X~F~~~5~~,7 ~~~Fr~3ES FYllrat~d ~e ire 1~~2 ha~;~~, ~ str~~c~~rc .~,o~~~r c~r~s~~t~stz~FFti~fh;~ dif:~e;r~F~-w ~r~F~ t~:f~~t ~f ~~~9Fic;s ~iF~t~.d ~Gaftijr td~~~ '~~'i~ ~Zlr~C; ~or~j. '~oFT'Fy 'urc°,Ii~_IS ~1~'dIC~S
~"l~~~w s'.r:~el~~tE;d to d~F_F~lE; ~ ~olr1 ~o dis~~~amir~atioF~~ has~d ~n ~~~i.~~ d~norrFiF-~~tior, ~~hi~h ~vv~~zi~l Thus rPq~ir~ ~ dv~ri~;~ wi-~.icn~
~-~~;~gF~izes i'~;io ~i~ysi~,~ii~ dif-f~r~rFt ~~pc~s of a>wr~F~;y ~s ~
sirFg$~: ~;~x~~;ga:~~r.
~c~ordirFg t~ c~~Fe ~ b~ib.~odi~3~~~~, c;oiFFS or other ~i~~~~ts ~r~
discrirFSiF~~t~d asst rtelJ~SSc"~rl~~;W ir9 the: ~~SiS ol~F't~,viW33'F~Fg'~~tloi~,?"F~: ~z'~ ttl~
~u.S~S ~f G('~F3F C;r'~tE;g~rF°~"S ~Fr~ th~~F~~~'t c' SlF:rg~~
:'iC;S'aOriFi:F~~IE~r~, rlF~~ i~F~~T~ tZ7s-'o ~:" ~is'~ra:; ~~ta',~;~3$'$~5~.
' i''iLIS, c ~~~rdFYlg to ~Yl~ G~'a'~l~t')~ rTl(.;F'tt, 20 ~~r~rlies r~iF~teci bef~sr~ 1~~2 ~esci A~c;rFa~i~s r~~i~Ft~~d ~~'~t~r i9a~
~,~i~FFg r~ t~~r~ di~:fe~r~F~Ft ~~ir~
~~tPg~ries 37~4~. ~,~is use ~'° ~.t~gori<~,s, i~asc;d ~trz i~hysirv~i ~
S ~r~ct~;risticJ of ~~ir-,s (~r ocher ~b~~ts), rather tv~rF ~ttei~iStiF~g t~ d~,_irFv oY~ tire h~sis ~f ,~~,nora~i_Fatior~s, is ~civ~r~tag~~~s sirF~e it is ~eliw~d tiF~t this ~~f;roG:E.,h I~.~ds t~; h~ttcr discriF~.~~~F~ri~F~ ~c~airy~cl. iF~ p~~'cic~.l~r, by defirFirxg se~~r~t~ c~~~g~ri~s ~.g. f~c ~r~,-1 ~~~, ~~Fc3 ,post-i~~~
~s~rFrFies, it ~ec~r~~s busier t~
25 dis~rirr~i~~te aiA fs~~Fr~ies f~'~~ti~~r ~~~~~cts, ~>'i-z~:~~s i3: ~rF
~tt~~~~t ~~r~s r~~d~t~s d~firF~ a sirFgi~
~~t~g~ry ~rra6ra~i~Fg both tyg~~s ~f ~~:~Fr~i~s, -it is ~~a'i~~ed ~h~~ ~h~
r~c~gr~itioFF ~n~i~de~ws ~r thr~ushdids ~~~id h~~r~ t~ h~ s,~ ur~~diy d~i~F~~d :hat t~~FeF~~ w~~.Fici ~e ~
s~F~3~s~:~r~ti~i ris~~c ~f F~nis-dis~;rii~~ti~r~. ~y rovid.~r~~ ~ s°yst~;rr°._ ire ~.rhi~h v~ir~
~~zt~g~ri~s r~r~her tr~F~ ~~iF~
'~~~or?IF~atFoIlS ~ul~ rG~og1'F1Z~:,~, :"Jir ~~ S~:iF~sa~ity~.3S :~FFr~"~1 ~G;
~~S3k?,~ ~w%aF:~;F~F.7r~.d ~i"ld ~~~fg~.~-;d.
f't?'1''".i&~ri'Pi~r~, I3~ ~°dCYg~F~°Jiy t'~ ?il'l~~idS~liF3J
d4i9~rF3rsTri~t.fi~rF ~~4s:,~Tr3r~, ~~hi, ~r~S~F-9'. Fif~IL,'rl~2or~
~eF'o"YFd~S ~::3 o~3~~rtiArFIt~ s:o CeY'u~~ Ct31r1S ~;?a~ S~Srt ~~.Oi~lS sir ~tj2~;r e,:~~3~~~.tS ~F"i ~ ~33S~S ~v~~r ?.E'1~9'g _(,L;j_ C'~e~Y.~srYlaTat:oI3. P~CY' z,'an?pte, i~ ~CSnY'et~. l~fy ~C"I~CC CCJ5.3~Ln be C'~fi'~akgl~~"Cd tC: ~51c'YCe e'''e~~ SL~~ICf9, Co'_ns II"s r~ sepFar~te Cfl123 ~1i2 S~ t~las ti=:W3'EaC%~IErP;~
f°~~3e3'cttC9Y' C;eLi~1 i~o'Y'AeLYt ~':l~rtl irlelr p~3telYtYa~~~
grCater '~ia~L~2.
~~~ce a relegator process 3~ t4 ~-eceiYres i~~foYatior~ fi=:~Y~i a category bL~i'i'er regardirLg tbe, category of a coin (or other oi~..~ecc~, the relegator a»tp°LLts a destinaii~:A"~ indicator, cor-resporYding to tiYat coin, to ~ clestina-~~o~ ~~Y~i'fer 3~1~. 'gibe data ~rarrY the destinE~.ti~n buffer is provided to a director prows :~5~ 'dri~~sze ~~~zne~~ioY~ ~~ to p~' ~i~~appropriate coY~trot sig~~ais at the app's(9prLate ~:>r~C YY't ~2''~Ca' t'~'~ Si.',F2C~_ '~<i; >~,~~frl tar ~ desYl'~CL? F:FC;;>tlnc°~tlt3rY, e.g. Tt~ pr~~Y~~-r' Stgslals CaYtSYng the C3CfiCCtoI" <~e~.esr ~~ aCtY'Jate at Care pa:~pCr tYC'~C
.1. t~fxe C~Yn IS destYned fCY' an ~0 acceptance bin. 3n the c.Y~bd:dYrYe~it o3 f~g. G~, the director pr~c;miare o~tpttts rLfor~r~atio~~Y
ra,gard:T'lg tiie aCLlon &.~ ~e ta~e_i7 atl~~ tale tlnle ~~r.~LCiI it 's t~ JC
va3~i,T3 t~5 f C~ntr;)~ 5C13eCrLLle process 3522 vr~Yich generates ~ con-trs~i bit iY~i~ge ~~2~ provided t.o rrYicroprocessor output ports 3524 for transYYaissiorY to the coirY :Y-aYFsiaort'~ard~.vae 3~~1~;.
<n '~'ne elr?b~'9s''i?.lneYlt, tie v:~~Cllo4~ ?~' C~i2trn~~ed i~. SlACt'L ~
I'~ic'3iY_'leL' as 9;~ YYt'~t oYl~c~r eJ~n~rvl ~ 5 tIYC t'rY:e at ~~l~Cb the C2Gi3r a , a CtY'~I~utC~ L~l, >~,nv~c.~"Gv i~3~t a~s~ ~:~~C ~°~. YiY~arlt ~<., ~(3Y'CC tC: ~3C khseC~
(such as t<~Yc strengtiY and/or :~~-ati~frY o~ tire soleYYOid ac;tivarnc>r1 '~Ioi.es~. fr1 one eY~~Ybo~~.iY~ent, the amount off' force is varied dcpendirfg ~s~ tiYe nYass o~ the c;oiYY, -~rfYicb can be ~iet0.~rrYYined, e.g., ~rs~rr a loolE-~p table, basELd on rec~~gY-~ation oa''the coiY~ categoY-y.
~referai;~ly, nfoY-r~~.a'eYO vrorY3 tlYw ~ st>YaattoY~ brLiFer 3~ ~ ~ is also pr~Jided to ~a c~~nter 20 ~52g ~rb.ich retains a taliy ~, ~t least t~Ye, Ym~Y~Yb~;~- o~ coins ea:f' each denoYYniYYatio~Y sent to the C"a)Yh'1 ~i~Yiis. °~d.~~slre~, a Y38~YYPis~:;~° v1 C;~s~tr<~;eaw G,',~r:~Y ~~; prCs~7idCd SQs t<i%~t ~a~e systCrrY CaY'.~ 1C°Cp traCIO
rYOt only oi°eacb coYY$ deaorYtl~atYOYYy biLt oq~ea~,h "oYn caeegor~' arYc/ox', vrl~YC~~ com i~YYr tire coYn v~r~s ClestYned for.
an general, tlYe i~oz~~ ~:' data depicted ~n =ig. ~ 3°eprd:,sY=ts a narro~;ving band:~ridt~ iYY
~~ which a relatively large ai~noL~YYt o~ data is ~ro~rided f~on~ the ~/~
co~YVeY~tex~ ~bicl~ is aced by ta~Ye detecto_~ 352 to oLZ put ~~:~ sY'Y~~aler ~rYY;~~7nt o~ data (as rlYe coins sigrQature), ~~ltir~ately resui.tiYLg in a single counter iY~YC;~-er~ont ~5>~. ~~,ccoY'diY~g to ~:,YYe ~~.rrLbodiYYaent of 11~; prese.Yt i~YVentioYY, v-~Ye systeY~z is coY~l~gLwred to vae tire YrY~st rapid aYY~~
i~i~ci~YYt YrYcE~rLS of amforr~Yation tans~er for those aY"~3'orrrAatio~~ oa signa. -~d the ~~r~:~iclY -~~a;~e t~.~~
greatest voiY.~a~e or bar~Yd~vidth :~o re~~~iY'eY~ents. ~ccoYdiYYgly, i~~ ore en?bocia~Ye~n, a direct rrYeYYY,~r;J access (~.~I~~.~ p:~oced~xe is used in wor~s:fectio~~ vviti~ ~ E:~ss~e~~-i~g s~:~rse~::- data fr~~~~ ~~~c;
co~~e:~e~ ~~Ob> go the ~r~ackoco~tr~ller reading h~~~~e~ ~5G°~.
!~s depicted irl ~'ig. ~3, a a wwo-char~~el ~jl~r~ c~ntroiie~~ ~~~-o'~idir~g char~~~eis 1W!i~~9 and 3~I'~~i j is used ~~~~. t~ rr~e d~~ic=~e t e;_~v~L.rirrae~~t, orle cs~
~iae i_~I'e~f~. ci~a~nels is ~~sefor u~ioading the ~rograru ~roa a c;~ae o~'' ~Wi~c s~:~iai ~o~~s re ru~;.~z~,ry.
~ste~- this ope~~tioha is cop:~~Ieted, both ~~f~. ci~anneis are; als4;d r~~ _~y:e;n~er tirlg the ~r°~tl~ transfer. ~i~i9~~ is v~sed to ;rite coa~troiler data 38~4~ to ,,she ~~-~~~-~ collvee-ter ~~Gb, ~,~o:~ a ~:°o~ar~I register ~~~~age hu~''er ~8~b. ~'~is o~~,rat~or~ seiec~s 'ale. a~jagc;g c.:W~~~~~efog tl-te next: read, scax'ts ttize cor;'~e~'sion end sees ark tire :next Fead ~o~. t~~e l>-zo-.i~ ,.c,z~':ae9iver output data ~'egisre~'. i)I~il~i thc;B ;reads the 70 output ciat~ register 3~~~. ~i~/i1-~.~3 ~;-iIi the~i ~~~ricc: to ,~i~e con~~'o~c~r :~egistei3~~3b ar:d ~I~~~i ~,~ri?i read tire next a~:al~g chaz~~~~;1 al3d s~~ ~~~r~q~.
'l'1 the,° 33r(J'fL,'~'S"eC~ eS%~~ ii~$~r1&Grit, tg'1c''. i.."~ ~f?.
~r9t~::1~~2Ce ~f"es l~C'~ ~'c1'f3F~c th-e aO~~F~~~ ~~ t,~lE,' s~L't~vare to inde~endea~tiy re~~.~ ~,~- ~v.-ite: ~o tire; ~ -ro-~ con~~e~Eer.
.:t is possible, ho~~,~er, that wxairag t~ the c~a~trog register oy''the ~-t~-~ cor~~erter in the ~a~iddlo of a ~~~~ t~ar~si'er ~-~~ay ~ ~ cause the ~rrcsz~g cha~~ne? to bP read.
~re~erahi~ the ~~'~~~-~ ,;~racess t~ices e~d~,~usg~t~ge o~ the; ~L~~~ chars Leis to c;o~;vigul'e a ~r~ui~ii~fe word table irl merliel-y -~i~h the ~os~rec r~-to-~ cor~u oie,r register' data. ~reter~bi~
tl'le ~~~T~e ye'Llgt~'~ Li'~t~121~3er c3~ ~e!s,-fd~ In '~~~t, ~~~ue~ is Ca~ST~t"~~f$gufa~SiC, ~3~;r~?''xltt'~rig ~ ~5r~:.a''~ i,e ~a'~, bb, st~zaci~ het°~een reducing r~i{.;~-or"ontroie~ ~~;~erh~;aci ~h~ using ~
codger tablej, a~~d reducing 2o memory requirements Lby king ~ shooed tabia~. '~'~e ~l~iit~ recess sr~ts u~
~~l~~i~.4~s nor writing tp~~ese words to a i~x~,d =J~ acdrsuss. I~T~;.~t, ~'~~~:~ii is se;t ~q~ ~r rea~i~~; yho same iau~~her ~~ words fl'oryl the sar~~e /~ aci;~ress to ~ data hugger ir:
~~fe~ory., ~i~~i is ire-.~er~hl5~
se~~ u~ to i~~terru~t the processor zvhcn ~:li yh~ords hive been 1-ead 3 ~ l ~. ~re~erahi~y hardware I3I~~ dodder Iogic cont~'ois tl-te 'binding ~c~e:~~,ween ~3l~tf~.~ and l=~~if~.I.
2u big. ~g depicts timing f~:~ ~~'~f~ ax~rs~er according ~p:~ a.g~ y~~-ahodi.~r~e~Qt o~~ she -~reser~t in~er~tio~a. ~i~ ibis emhodirne'.~t, a t~i~ ,~irx ~.~,?ii ige used t~ eru~.hte or disabi:~ the t~f~er ~utput 3g~~. T~ the tier enable slg ~a~. 39C~~ rs ic~w, th~~ hard~rare ~~r~li bi~e~
the till7.er oufi~ut ~~f92 ssYtd C(r'iP°eTg.3'S2oT"~s C~'~"il '~Srliy ~e ',3'-~~,'~'"cl.C= ~~' ',y'C;'tTii~ tsli.,', s'iart E".,°~I3' f,''sa~~R Milt I:'$ '~'.~le Co~~t'o~ 1'eglSt.°,r o~'ehe ~-to-~ conwørter 39~b. -i~ tape tanen e~lai~ie sigrai 3~~~r~ ~s y~.igh., the ~~I~ co~-~~.jersiolls 3o start at the rising edge o~ the til~~ler out~~ut ~~~2., and halite e~mies ~riil be r~yio~re~ ~nly a~'~ter the roil~willg edge od tile tiAn.er- ovot~~~:~,~~~3~ with 1-ead cycles ol.iy being allowed after the -~;.~_ t~i~sy signal ~yi2 goes lom v~eiie the tidnev o~rtp~~~ signal 3~~r is ~ig~.
r~'3~e ciescri~c;d design pioVldeS gze?zt l~e5i:~'V~'tf~t~~ :%v"~t$-W las~Vi'.>~~ ST3lutl ~V~IeYl?a,2VC~. ~.~re ~S a SI~"Pgle ~rltci'7"~I'~3t ~~te6~'~a intept~ event once the b~~~'~~;r a l-illeci ~,~itt= dat:~ ~ro~-~-~ the i~.-to-i~ coY~~~e~-tur are Yc~ad and peat ~n~0 tn~oe~l. ~Z'e~~'ra~3i~, ~.~3~'~;e/ESr~ e,aS '1'3sJ
~°.C9Y'x~xgL~red "~C9 c'~i<~Y'tg''~. tte ~l~i~, conligiawatl~~1 to read aray or alt analog clra~Y~eis7 do ~nz~"atipie ~~eaels in some cti=r~.r~~ls., re~.~ tie cha:::~~r°;ls ire ~~~y order arid the litCe. preferably, t.~e 1~-vo-~~; converter is diYC~.~~ linked vo the ~zcroprocessor tfy a l~-t~sr data teas. she ~~ c~:oproce,s~~oF ~.s able; to read or vaEitv ~o the ~~-to-t~ con:-c,rter lamas ?lltea.'~aCC; port aS a Sd~~gtC: ~l~a~i Via' C3?.~tpli.l FxaS~~'iiGt~~.'~I'1 it'. ~; ;llXe~~ ~~.~~ ~ddieSS. ',Bata ~CVtx' ~3et'~3~/c~.'.rp the ~.-~o-~ cor~weYteY aa~d ~t~e ~-~icP-opr~cessoi is coutYOllcd >~~% ~'r~~e t7usy 39t2, chip select, Yead ~~:4 and ~~'rite ~~~~ signals. .~ coksaersco~ ci~cla 3~~2 and cl~~c~ ~~ma~le 3~'~J~ signals pro~ride co~~tYOi aid legibility over trse; ~~~-td;-~ w:~r~~~ersior~ rake.
~~~othcr er~.~odir~er~t o'.~ ~ gapped to~~YOi~~ sensor, a.~c~~its ~~s , is (i~,picteci ire t~llgs ~~~
thYo~g:ra ddb. r'~s depicted ira ~'~eg. ~~, a ;devisor, 2l2 incla~d~°,.s ~ core 2t~ l''ra~~rir_g a generally carded shape ~:~d de~niY~g ~ gap ~ l ~~, l~a~,eng a ~i=-st ~rid~h 2l ~ . 1t5~
tz~e depicted e~ntyodae~~t, ~5 the curw~ed cot-P is a torroi~lal sectio:~. ~ttho-~~gt~ "toy°roic~a " inci~des a locus de~'med ~
~'otating a circle at9~B8t~ a ~'JYi--~s"3~6',YSa°.ctig$g Cop~a~lc3Y' ~~Y$e, aS ~LSe~ ~~..'"e(E~, t~F~ ~e~'rY~ "~~~'r~~dc'aly' generally cleans a shape ~vlric~b is c~~~md oi° o'~perwrse r~~ra-:li~~e~r. ~~an~hles include a zing shape, a ~;~ shape, ~ ~ shape oY -~ polygon. ~:Y~ tl~c; depicted ee~x-~~oc?in~c~~t ~otl~ the ~na7or cgoss Se~tlor'x ~o~tt'ie Shape aS a °vtil~eJ'~~j aYld ~_':~e .?~2.!'a.~'sr ~;b'oSS Sc:,ct14~~1t Vi~1~3??E% geileYat';r~g r'~~srr~y~ ~ia'Je ~
20 cYrcLllar Shape. ~~h~°rS%e~er ~u~i"ier "~,aa3" ~;9'~' ~~111C?-w-:",9"~SS y~c~~~'al~~ S~'ta~eS ~~3r ~)e ~,iSe~i, I~~tEdd~i'~g e:,t'llpti~cs~ ~Y f33~c'~~ Ssia~~5, ~a~"that e:,~~lpi:S, 0-"~,7~~5 0~" ~.~,li~seS {S~cl~ aS a S~rY~~-clYCe~ts~nr S~ditpe~, p~°~g~9rial S~"xapeS ~5~~~~ ~~u sa Te;r"a°~~2_: ~~r ~:''i,g~~l~~ tie~ia~,';,~I2~.'~.Q~-ielg~~~, ~,tc.y, arid t"2e tl~~.
he core 22 ~~ rnay -~e _~.ade sYoxra a nnrnt>er o~ 3~~ate~-~~'ls pro ided that the a~ateriat is capat~le oi° pro~~idiY.g a su~r~star?tgal rna,~~c~~ic e<d ire tt~e gap ~ t s. try ~.~Y~e en~b~dier~t, the 25 core 2i~ consists ~p or ir~clu~zes, a rewite -l~ateri~~l, sr~cr~t as fo~-~~ed '~,y ~usi-ng ferric o ride pith anOtller ~lc2~erlai Stt~,l? aS ~ cc'?~"~o~late 2?~jr~:tr~X3diJ ~r ~l~x'i~1311C: ~C~et~~ ci~'~~r9de, a Cer"c3~aa: ~e~'i''xte, and ~t~e life. t~ tt~xe core is d->i°~'ex~ b;a a~f al~er~~atir:g current, ~t~c z~v~terial c~oscn fof the corn of t;~e inductor, spoa~lct ~e n~rrrka~-loss or lo~~'-=oss at tl7e ~requ~eacy of' oscill~~tior~ such that the 'cP3~3-coli'9" ~ G~ the ~,~ c~Y~3::'j: &S S'n~~BStE?x'7tS~Vtlc~ ~lg~lcr ~~laPYd t~5~: '.;~ y.,y idle t~~ ~IYc~~t '~VL'&'~ a a,~F~
3e ad~ace~~t t~'~e senso:-. This Yatio detcnr~~ir~cs, in ~SaYt, tie sig~ral-tc~-~~~oise ratio poi t~~e coin's co~_ducti~ity ~easurerr~ent. '~lae toiler the losses i~~ tt~e core ~~nd the;
~%indi~ag, tie greateY ties -4~_ change in cdci~ cu~-r~~$ iosse,s, ~~ahc~ t~Yc ~,~iri is placed in or gasses by tic gap, a~a~ $haxs the greater the sensi$ivity of the device. i~ the dcpic$ed cr~bo~ir,~e~~$, ~
c~n~~zctivc F~ixe ~2~ is w~l~ZlC~ a~C~.l$ ? i~~3YL~.~2F1 ~:~ $~?~~ C~a'~C ~ ~.~~°- SC; %?. '~~
~:~'~?~~ "r~i'~ ~,ilCYB,~iE:CIV~'~ o'~>,~'~cC. ~~t~~l~B.lgs~ ~lg. Gf'1 depicts a sirYgle coil, in some ermb~~i~~~°Ets, o or r~~ore coils ~fay i,~e ~sec~, e.g. as described below. In the depicted crn'~od9.r~~erg$, the coirg or c~thc~' object to be discrirnil.~ated is posi$ioned ire the vicio~i$y o~ tb~e gap ~~~~ the clepic~.t,d ~~2r~bE~t~i~~er~t, =~ai~la.irb t~~e gap 2IC). y~~~s, in the det~icted erszbodie~~: tl~e gad ~~rid~r ~ I ~ -~s soZ~~cvv-h~t IaYge - t~~~~
rbe thickness. ~ %~2 of t~.e thickest coin to be sensed ~~~ the se~~sor ~1~, to allow i'o~: i.s-aligrnra~ent, ~ne~~erner!$, clelcrrr,ii~, or o;:rt~~~,ess of $he c:«~-~r~. a'rexer~~~i;', ~~Pc gap ~1~ i~, as sra~ali as possible, consis..en$
0o wi~~n practical -passage oi°thc <:.f'~r. i~< o~~e e~~-~boe.rr~e~t, ~~hc ga~~ i~ abo~3t 4 rxzrr~.
I= gig. 2~ c~ep~c$s a se~soi° ~ ~ ~ ~, ~o:~~~$~o~e~ vai$~~: rcspec~ t~;
a co~F~ co~~e~~~:g ~~c~il ~ 32, such that-, as the coin 2~,4 na~aJes ciow~-Y t;~"Y~, mail '?~~., the rail g~~i~~~e,s the coin Gg4 rh~:oz~gh $he ~~i~.~3 2 ~ ~ C o the SeIlSi r L iG'. ~'~ it~tO °gil " ig. ~~; dG:pIC~S
-L~3;: CC~T"a 2 ~ fit. =~Y'a~~C~tY2,'~~ 999 a ~;lel"$~ca~ ~C3r~_ edge) orien$a$iorf, oho device e~oz~~ei I-re :.°o~~~~g~.~red 50 $hat ts:,e° ce~in ~~4 Nra~o~s r o?-Ise'r '~5 'Jr~el"PtatICi'1S, s~.2C~2 aS '~I2 a ~atC'r~~~C3~'li~i~ft~a~CC3'al~g~Fra$-~~rl ~'o~s=FgI~;S t~le3'cbe$wcEpl. ~nC ~~~
the advantages ~~ tl~e pres~,~v ir~~entio~ s $i~c ;~bilit> to iras~rc~?se ;~pecd ~:~ coiQ°~ nBO~ren~en$
~'slnQ ''d~~.~5 $T~'~"t~g~'I~f~$) S212Ce C~'~I"~ ~krscr'tfi'E:~c"~~:f~1'.s Ca~1 't3° pC,'~:~ii'!"iiiS~;C~'' i~aplC~f~~. ~~liS aec'3tl~r<,°, ~S
par$i.culariy in~por$aa~~~ in $he ~r~;so,;~t inY~er=tif.~~ s~ce coirYs °~,z ~fic-i~, n~o~c vca~ rapr~il~~ dow~rr~ .a ,fi,~''.i"R ~'aP~i °~"W~l~', sh $ei~Cn~'~lcV $'v' 'ci~°l.,js9 J#" ~1~C~~"4,'C., p~r$i°.~~.'~~°j/ Eili~~~3P' ~Tt'Jl~En.',I~tc'9Y'$~r~ '(.d''v$~21j 3'~C~d~ $12c '."il~~.
~C the prescnvd inaca~$i~r~ can be ~:e~nfigr~r~:d s=~ch tha$ the sensor <s -~~~qative~.~ i.nsensiti~~ to s~ci~
C'~P,~U~'CLIrcS ~rCrYt. t~c°~ 's.,'Sipec~E',d ~Jr n~za1'irt'c~i Cf~~?1 ~~SttYt71'7. ~f~I~';, $~PC'r Y3reSC~iu '<k.p~IP.l~~l~r:
co~~tribu$es to the abiiity to G:ch ieve ~-a~~id coin ~no~e~r~.c:~t t~or ,~~~~~ bY pr~.viding ra~~ad coin C~ISC:"~I~3fl33a$"s~!: ~61t ~C~SC~3Sa$:~/°L~ bC Cvlh; ~'~~~'f~~~.'9 ~~t~~C~gii i 1~;. Ga ~~ep~C$S d i,~rl~~g~ratl~~ ~~t '~xJ~~C~? $P3e C~di: G~4 rri63"VeS ~.'~,'3i1'~ t<"~E; ~'<<~~ ~~1; n :resq'i~2Se d~ s'~'~=7~$jJ, CCDln ~~'n~~°~Iea~WUd Cad. by 25 achieved by ~tsm:~ ~~~po~rered o~- powcrecl ~~ear~s sa.~ch as a cs~~~rreyo~~ belt. ~itho~gh passage o~ the coi~~ through the gap x.,16 is dcpictecl, in .another embc~dia~aerxt $lae coin passes across, bra;. not $hro~zgl~ the gap ~e.g. as ~iepac$ec v~i$h reg~r~ $o the en~l~odi~nea~t ~~F'I'ig. 4).
~'ig. 3 depicts a seco~:3~.~ cor~~~gv~raii~~~ ol° a sensor, ir' ~rg~ich the g ay 316., va$heg $laar~
bei~~g ~arrnee'~ b~ opposed ~:~?ces 2!1~~,, 24~b, o~~ the co~'e 2i4 a, rns$ead, hoed between 30 opposed edges off' spaced-apag $ plates for "poie pieces") ~S44a., :344, which aee coa~pieci $o the Cfs"i°v ~ ~ 4. in $hl'S C:'~:2~g~~'at~C~'_7, ':l1~', CC'31.°i.
~'-,' a ~'e iS ~~ iial'~=Q(~~s. ~l, x~' p~a$~,'"~ ~~4a, ~Cr4b', r~a~yJ
':5e°.
_~ !_ cflLl~~cd :fl ~ ~fli~'flaC 1a'~ a ftLiYl~a''~a,x' fl~~ ~aSilaflixSy SaaC~l~l aS ~y L3Sat~,"_u, az'a. adilcSa"Je, CcaY&cY"t~: flr' 111.,, ~
~rcss~'a~, soot ~eidia~~, or braz~:aa~, r~~e~i~:~, sc~~-cv~-ia~~., ~r~d Vibe ''_:ac'r. l~ i~iao~agia ~hc ca~bodii~acaa~
dcoicLed ial gig. 3 si~o~,~s t~.c oiatcs X4-4-a, y~~b ~r~acl~cd so tile ~;~~od ~i~-, i~ is also oflssibic ~fla~ ~iae olaaes ~,~~ad ~oaioid ~o be '.foraged in tc~.-aii~~. 1~s scare :::~
i~io. ~, tiae biases 34~~a, 3~~~~~, 'J i 3sP~' Ya'e.'~lc e2a~~ flZl~a~ $~$a~~7a,Sy i3LlL' ~ YaLl~i;~,e',a~ fl>
flt~~cY 5~1~I~3-C.';9 'uT~"s', ~''x3SS~'°sOi:, aa2c~Lndaiti~T
SP.i'r'.~a-clrcLaiary S ~Ll'Q°.rc, r~,'Ctarl~LT~ic°~Y- ~;flry~(3I"Pai, ea ~.' 'asli~ i2:CC. il~'t ~L~a,F'J =.',2"i~~sflC~3r~1'd'aaf flf~~'~F,~S, ~', c"k,~&C~ 4, 'L?1~
fiend-coaaccrata-atira~ efrcc~ of ~crrir~; c~~ 'oc ~~;ed fo ~srocl~~ce a v~c-ry sd~caiizc~~ ~icid for aa~a~cracLaflra ~~a~~ a coara, ~~Las i~e~uca~g :~r c~aa~~at~aE~taa~~; vbc c~~oic;~ ~..f a tflL~cia~n~ aaca~;iai~fla coat.
'i,l~.a ea~abfld~rracaa~ fl~f digs. 3 ~~~d 4 caa'a ~~so be ~;oYafi~;Larcd ~c° '~1c ~~cia~i~ciy ia~scr~s~e~'~rv ~~ tic to cf~cats o~ coita ''z~yi~~ag" a~ad ~~~s cora~ri~~~~ ~o c~c ~~ii~~y to ~av~vadc rapid coma i~o~c~~cn~ farad increase co<aa ~nrflLab~aoLa~. ~l~~oL=b't~ c~c ~~~,rcur~~:a~c o3' ~iac ~a~a~aacric licid ~;rl~icra is ~~sccted by ~lac oresca-ace of a coia~ ~riii ~ys~i~.~~lly be -ices i~~ ~~ac corp~gLar~~i,:~ra og ~~i~s. :5 arid ~, ~l~~Yi in brae cfla'<<ll~Llrc°i t~fla1 'J~ ~a~. 2, Ssk'~~Sa:e'~, c~tz~l'y ~c,'SL~ i ~;S ~;r.'~a'1 ~3c flb~~~ rl_cLs ai" ~~'le ~Ie~~ c~a~~a~T°vS aa"c sLag~cic-ra~iy lark ~~ yield a c~oYis~is-tcn~:iy ~ i~~: s~~raai-~o~-aaois<;
ia~ciica~ior~ off' cflin par~a~ac~crs.
e5 ~rcferably ~iae gao 3 i~ is s~.z~ F~cxca'a~ry sa~a~° s ~fl o~odLac~e ~iac dc~,zrc~xr~~~ne~is aid i.nfvealsity ial oY' ~d~accin~~ ~ lc cflan , irl flr~e2 ":fl ~.X~flSL'-, t~'a'" ck:rlY? i('s a'~a Fn";E~~~S~;" "~lc~C'F 's3S a~ ~~SSe~S ~3y aYp~.'a~,'~~' tiarflLa~b ~Li-ac ~ar~ 3I~. Yra tbc cr~~odia~~cya~ o~ ~~'i~. ~, a~ae enb~ia fly' ~~c ~a~e ~;~2 is i~~-~c cnoLigat Sfl t~aat cflrilS ~~th'~a~~eL'cYt~ dlc~~~ea"S c:~~-cY d3~-Y'e~'~-~aa~ i3r r~flrtag~ziS fli ~11c ~~~.
~~lc ea'I1~OC~ar='aen~; fl~ F~.y 3 ~rl~ ~~ ~S ~~,iac~Ied CC5 ~3c ~5~
'tL,w~~g~y ;S~:La~ ai3 ~'~~L?~aflr3S a3i 2o v~eicb i~ is di~~cLai~ or ixraoossibic Eo o:co~iicle access k~o ~flth ~acc;
~'~ a cflirz a~~ vlle sazBlc ~iaaac.
~flr e~aI'Ya~SIC, P~ ~~ac c~in aS t~c~Y~~ cflYl~Jwyc~ ~':~~ E°3ic flE
asS Yraci:;S '_'er.C~°1c'i ~~aa~ fla'1 era cC~~c ~c.~., iJC>it~ cfll2'dC;yi,',~ ~3n G. cflnVCyflx '~e~~ ~9r .3 ~l~cL?~Y~i bfliYj.
~LaI~~~:ca~Yaxoa'~, ale ~~°tC'. cYrY~bQ~Ca~slcrl~ fl~_ i~igs. 3 and ~., tile ~~0 3 id dfles ~~fl~ Aced zfl ~tc ~vidc cac~~g~a t~~3 acconzz~hodave ~hc Yvaic.icracss ov r~tc eflin aald c~.al be rraade ~ L~=~~e narrob~r sLaci~a Lilac ~iac alla~aaet~~, fieid ~fl ~~iaicil ;.iac cflia~~ is ~5 c~~~flseea as ~iso rclaLaveiy nar~~::;~%. a":t~aS co~fi~La ~~aon care be aa.>>e~~i aaa a~afladanb a~:a ~~i~cer?~ or cc~GLSC~I,aTi~S' cfllaa SalLaaYlflal Sliicc, c:,~/~x.'"i ai~ C."flaYaS
aa'°;, touc~'aaY'a~, i4iiC. ;i:~~i~a"xc9ac ~~acld ~fl 'v'cr~'F,2C.~t ~~~7c cflSalS ~Yc e;~~?flSeLl'' ~lelai3 be ~:3~8 ?leaa"~'~~,4r 10=
Sas'di,L,~aale9a~9y iY~Y~lae~~:; ai~e''~.rE~S~Pak"~ e~ITC cfll:~°t ~~ a Cr97lc ~daaa-ir~g ralflst ~~ a cflira°s oassa~e oasc ~~ae scnsoa~~.
~Flcal an cicc~rgcai ooficn~gai or ~afli~a~e i~ a~s~iicd to ~:ilc coif 22~, a nlagrae-tic ieid is ~0 crc~$cd era ~a"'lc "Jaca.aa~y fli ~t~'ic ~~~i 2~2~, Wv ~~.e. cY'ca~ed a:~
aZi'~~, rie:aT ~aflc ~a~9 2,~~, ~ f ~~.
in~crac~iflra off' ~iae cflial flr o~ileE flujccP. c=~itll sLac~a 6a ala~galc~ic aid ~flr iac~ ~berefl~ :Yic~ds dada w~~icil ~r~~~idcs inf~.~Y~Iatia~ ~b~Iat paractea~s ~.r~ tilC dill c~I- ~bjcc~
v~Iicix ca~x ~>c ~ISed fir discriYrIirIavion, c.g. as dcscribcd ~~~I~I-c ~~c~~ ~~6~~Ii,~ neicx~'.
iI~ olle clnb4~dii~3erlt, ~"x~a~crlt ia~ tlxe fcxl~r~ of a ~~.~Yiabic ox ai~:erYlatir~g ctxrr~;nt ~l-~~,~: is sLl~~licd to the coil 220. ~.ltiA~v~il t~flc i~~~~ ~°.i'~iIC ca~x'rcn.t ~4y ~c s~a't~sta~t~ally s~~x~soidal as i.<ScG ~lCy'clt~ ''r~~'' IS 3r'ieailC tip !~cil~~v a 9~ ~Ir'L~'~abaC: C~Id3~1-c~IISCi~;lt~ eyvc~'!1c ~~"~I'=1, IIYC~.dl~'I~ YaxYI~"s, sawtooth, sqLlare ~avcs, aI-~~ coxaapiex ~faa~ics stet's as ~a~c fcxS
swlBxel°d aYC the Slxrn of two or Yrl(3re Si6IZ4SC9'ad~,l Z~'aVCS. ~f:C.'2~.l~Sc (3f ~'.~dr.;
cc'°,4~Ilyl','y,°~ratl~9le fYi i~'TC SCL1S~Ct', s4rld tl3c f>~Sltl'CYis=~l r4:,'~atIOsISIII'~9 'oaf Yilc cCln ~9I Cib3~ci~ tG~ t'tIC ~c~~, tllc ~;I3IYI
c2a_a ~C,' ".''.ie~C)SCd ~'~,d' e"e 55~%I3I~ce"E:It IIl~I~I1'~,tl~;
licid, which can be sigl'~ificahf~?~ ~ficctcd ~~~ i~c ~~rcsencc of il~~ coin.
~:I~e sensor car.x be ~~scd 1~ tt3 detect isICSE" clla2'?gcS IZ3 ~i'~~;: ~;~~~:CI'~L'i"aag2ct<c tlcld, aS
tllc C;'sx~~aSSC~; ~35i%C0. C5r :fir i~~f~ t'tlc ~a,~, prcfcrabl~ iI3 s~~c~ a as ~,'~r;~ ~s ~~~ i:~ro v~id4data iY3dicati~'c ol° at least t~~~,c daffc:~eYlt l3asarllcterS ~~ ~~1C c~'~slil ~Jj" il~~;~vCt. 1?,Cs~~c c21'I',~43dIY1~IEIt~, c~ 9:5aa'~~'aE,tcl~ SlIcII as ~.~lc SIZc :.'3x' dlaxl'3etcr ~7f the C~I:a ~r ~b~cv= IS xliC"aic~!tc~= j'~'~I a ~;~laY'9~c iI1 II7C_;L~6°.~"~I:Q~C, dl3c ta'~, tbc ~7~SS~~c ~'7f the coils, and the coalductiqJit~~ 4~~° the coin or oLject is ~illvorgel~r; related to the energy loss ~5 (wi~ic~s rrlay be illdicatcd by ~:l~c ellzaiity factor or ~:<~,»~
~i~s. 15~~~ and i5~ ~v~~cr III e_~Ibodi~~IC.It ~lxic~ ~ro~i4~cs a ca~ab~.li=y for ca~acitivc S~'.aeSIYI4n', c.~. f~'S:r dct's..'ctlng A9Y ~:;C~fill5cx'iS~Ft3'ar3o ~E3r i 43112 "'('~lx.°.f ali4 ~~d° f~~~Ix"s~. .i1 the clll~io9dllYfL'rFt of Figs. 1~~ and IS~, a coin ~~4 is constYain.c;si ro nlo~a4v alol~I~ a s~~b,3tal?tiaily liYrc~.r coin ~atll 152 dc~Incd by a :ail dc~icc sx~cb as ~.. ~oE~st~rl~~nc rail iSC~~I. .'~;,t l4:ast a ~ortior~ of the coif ~0 1Ja~:b xS 2d~acc~~".a a '?VJ43-~ea~f';." S3iuctLrsr ~'~w:II~ ;eFI ~xL3~'cY
~~~'~Ie~r ~fer~llcl2 xS SL3iWta~~tl~.:.~~ TIO~
clectricall3r coIIdIxcting 15~~ s~c~ as ~'ExcrglaSs and a second h;rcg I50~~
~aivicll is S~xbsrantiall~
cox~drlcti~~c sxlch as co~pcr. 'F lIc t~.~o-la,~cs sz~~ct~src 1~~4~, 15~,~~
c~xl be con~~exIieYItly provided by ~~rdirdal-~~ circLlit board I~Iac~.;ri~ i 1 ~~~~ szlch ~Ls 1%~3 ir3ch thic~~x ci~~,~-c board Ixlater:~:a~ ~~itY~ t1m ~bcrghss sick contactiYlg t~~c coin ~~s :le~icvc~. iII ~c depicted cnxbodilrxeYat, ~ ;-ec~~aYIgIxlar ~~ windo~~a is foYn~Ied in the co~~c. c3adding ox~ ia~~or 1~~~ to ~~~;co~rl~~od~tc zectalygxli~~r fc~Yite ~l~r~es i ~ 12a, I ~ . 2b ~rhich arc colx~Icd t:~ 'wac~;s '.:~ lea; t ~ 14~~
of ,:~~e fel~rirc torroid coYc I51 d.
~ c orzdaxcti<re ste~ct~rc sxlc~? as a co~~c~~ ~iatc or 4;13icld 1.~1~ is:
~ositioncd ~rit~gixl eiae caxl 1~~~
forl~hcd bct~eeYt the ferrite ~i~:cs 1~1~a, >~l'~b. ~lxc shield ;s ~SefInI fox i~ncreasi~xg the ilv~x IntC',raCtlng ~h'ltu d2~ Caa~fln. IJ"t~I.t<aC;~t '~~JIS'~eli2~ t.~'s P3c '4i~3$I'I'o.."e ~~ aal j~' ~Sx~F~~~,'~~h~, It IS au?f;Il4',QI~.,d "'c_~at S'elcll 3o a Sbield 1~s1~ has thxe effect of f~~YCiI~g a~ae i:~n~ tr> go aro~Yld ;:1c ~~~ieid alld tbcrefore to bl~lge olzt x~IOrc into t~xe coin ~~th ire the vicilxf~y of the t;a~ 152 ~lla.cl. is belie~cd to isr~xvide rxloYc i~Iux iY~teTactir~g ~viti~ fee ~:oiY~ ~~~~~ ~~rfi ~~~ tifu siYieid ~f~r a 'C~~~ttus~ sig~a~-t~:-~~ise ~-afia~;. ~,~c S~li2~d 15~ ~ Cad a~S~ ~7C Y~SCd ~S ~1'~i. S3C'=C, 'Z~ C: Cc~GiaCYf2°~C
SCYi:,<?:', ?~IPL~1 t~3~; 55ti2eT SIC~~° ~f;?Ilg t~l~' c~~per ~acciY~g/grr~~e. ;~Iarv T ~~~ ~i' f~~; c:;rc~.~f ~oaTd sfn~.;~~a.~~-e;
y 5~~'. ~'a~acit~~c ciaas~gc,s sL~sed I~cfwee~~ tl~e s~ieid '_~E~ snd t~~ gro=aYYd ~ia~~~; i~~>& a.,e vc,lieved f~ be T~;~a~.cd t~ fiYe v Tciie~ ~f th~c c~in adjacercf tiYe ~~~ i~2(i aY~c> few dist~~c;c fc~ t~~~;
.,ein..
~~I tile Cil~~~iC~1221CL1~ ~;a ~~Ig. J., fat~C ~L~f~ L?f o~ S3gY~~lf ~ ~ y YS
Y°Ci2.tCd W C~3aYlgC YM
YY1C'iLiCfaYfCC, aI'sd f~~IS t~ Cf?tl'~. C~ai.al?'_C'tC~" :i%~'~IC?~ d:, tCi~Y?C.~~ "~.' r7w~i~ CC3Yi~g~~2°atft)~ :~E ~fg. c~
ycs3~ifs in tire ~~~t~af c~f a sEga ~~~ ~jl~ ~xr~~icp~ is ~-el~ted t~ ~ a~~.
rl~~s tc~ cc~y~dv~cfivity, tca~~cd!, in ~~~g. ~-°,, ''y." f~~fllo'e.lg~7 f~3C .~ ~~~gTEv~ 3S 06 y"J~.itC~~
~eGl~Q;fi(Wl~n: ~~~ C~1~~'it',Ld~" ~~J6:,~Yig at _~~aSf i0 S~z"'~°VI"a2af cYI~LTCt2CCd ~'y ff~3C 'i~'i~~LIC ti-~ ~ j a3:d c~~'a YS YlG~2 Stl2C LL~1 EeflC~Y~$CecY',y ~Y~~~'~'tY~Tlc'~i "s'o C~12d1:Cfad.CC ~~3CIY'~g S~YYY:;'h%9'x'eY'~ etl~Y?Ci'~CC~ ~Sr Ce~iCi ~xaCfCT~
i~ICT=~ YS a S~3~~'~CICIlf ?C,~~f~oiI5~11~
between sig~aa-~ ~ 5 i ~ and e~~i~~ dia~~z~;tc~- a~~s i:refsveeYY sigY~~ f ~r ~ 1 ~ and c~cr~d~~~;fa~ce ~:at ~ITCSC SlgfllazS, '~~~'~E~T? ~T~~CY~y ~Y2'c,'~l~r~C~" Ccc~'". SeTVC aS a baSYS
?'B' CCH;~3 dISC%'Yia'i2r~afYd~~Y. ~plltf:~i.'st ~%is~ing t~ be island by any ~?~co~'J, it s ~c>ic~-cd fiaai. tie ~r~fc<°acfr~~ ~cr~wec~~ ~:~ ~~~d ~ is ~5 s~z'(~sfaY~fgaiiy predictable a:~d is sn~staY~tiaai~,r li»eaT ~vcT ~,~~(~
a~g~~ Qf a~.te~est ivT a c~~i~
c~nnting device.
i'~alay Tnef~~ods andi~~~ ;ievices cG~n be ns~;d ~'a~r a~~~iy~iTa,~ t~~c signa'is 5!~, ~i2, iY~ci~adiY~g visual ia~spccfi~n ~~ app s~sciiiosc~s~sc ;~Tacc ~T g~a.~~c.g. as sh~swx~ in ~'ig. ~~, a~atnr~~atic ~naiysis ~.~sing a uigwtai ~~T a~eahg c~~ca~if a~~d/~~- ~~
:~;:~~nting d~,vic~; such as ~
20 Y-nicr~~r~ccss~T-based c~~~a~~cT a~°~~%c~- ~,asin~, a ~igifai sign~.~ ~~-~ccss~a~' ~~~~'~. "~'~cr~ if is C~CSIICd fas aSe a CJ2Y'3~J11~CT', ~~- pS d~SC~C:;~ i~3 ~Y~S~ii~C SYga~a~S
~~G~. ~Tld ~aG ~va n~ICRd~~y tak~SC
sigfgaa~ s~ as f~ b~vc a v~itagc rar~g~; an~/~T c:~be~° ~apa~~~tTS
c~:n~ati'~i~ ~rit~_ i~~~~~f t~ a c~9:~~~ufcT. in ~nc c~tabodirn~r~f., signai;~ ~~~ and C~i~ viii be ~s~~:ag~
signals n~Trnaiiy iyiY~g ~vif~in fbe TaTYge ~ f~ +5 ~%~its.
2~ ~r~ some cases, if is do<>i~'s~d ~~~ sepav;ateiy Eabfai~~ ia~$'~~~,at~r~n ~.b~uf cr~in ~Sa~-arr~~~tcrs ~'nT
fi'~e lYP,te2'Y~T ~T CCaie ~3'~i'~~~21 C:~~ t~'de CC9gai'~~ t~3C C;~teY'i~'s1 ~Y SisiY1 A:'oY~~'JTl, ~2tY'tiCt3laYx~ 1f( CaSC.S
~vbere s~r::P ~T aii ~,~~ ti2e c~is6s to '~e ~~:iscTii~~ir~ac~:d Yraay be a ,arched, piater.~ ~~~ c~,~fcd c~ia~s.
~'~Y' eXali'l~~e, T~ S~IsPe CaSeS ?f .iY~.~1 JC t~'~af T~~s:; Y~ct,Sf C~~~YCYeY3f ~!Y1~ fC~Yab~E; ~~ay t',1~ C~:,SC:~IITIYTaa-~e ue~~~aeea~ tire tykes ~r_ c~r~s ,'s ~~~ demean ~n~,~ tile ~,'-e,sence ~r Gf~se3,ce, ~~°c~a~dYng ~~ ~.~at~r~gg oT
~o c~na~are z, shin, er cs~~e ~iaraTnekc~ ~~rif~~ a cc~~-~esi~onding s~ird ~~-cite iaara~eteY° ~~ a P~o~~v~~Y
can. in ,~s~e eYrYb~diY-rae~~t, fi>fsPTe~YM :~:~e~it:e:fcie;5 arr, ~.~scd hoc ~r~;b~: di~~'e~~er~t deist's in the _~o_ a ~hic~~Ilf:Ss 6~'? t~lG C~3T.n, rhl'1lS <:°ni.t~3~)(~. ~s .'',~~ec~'"~~~e ~e:,6~aLls.~'-,, in tc~'.'.,.ns ~~ the. lnLt~rt'~CtP~3'i:
IiE,IWFen ~
c~is~ and a ~nagr~etic fieid, tic i~r~eqwrac~y of a va~ia~ie ~~agns~ric iieid defictes a "s~ci;~ depth,"
sv~ich is the effective depth a~ re ~~sr~.z~~ ~~i ~~3e coin or ~tb.L~- object:
v~i~ic~~ interacts ~,vith the era°~iabie n~_agnLtic held: ~ iia~s, in this cxnb~ciia~erat, a first iv~e~iuer~cy is Fir~vid~;d 4,vhic~~ is resaL~ively iow to provide fC3Y ~ i~rger si~in =e;pti~, and th~ss into ~ac'~i~n ~,vith rl~e core e~i°the coin or ~ther object, anti a second, bigiie~- ~~ec~~ency is provided, ;~igi~ enough to res~:It ira a skin depth substantially less than vi-te tilicacY~f~ss c~i the cc~i~-a. rzx this i~ray, rather ~~i~an a siwgie sensor providing t vo paYag~2eters, ~:~~, sensor is ~'bIe to i~rwide ;~ouY
parameters: core conductivity;
cladding or coating conductivity; core ciiameter9 ,end ci~dding or u~av~~irag daan~eter ~aithcsugh it 'E~ Is ~:~tlCipated that, an Ylc'ny ~TESta~'lce;:, ~fli; c&Jre c~i~ld claddT:ng d~~.IlleterS !~v'a~~ 9e Slfn:l2i).
r~rel'e~-abiy, the Io~~-freq~.~ency ski~~ dfup~~ a g-~eateY titan E-he tl~ic~ness of the plating or gaYnia~atio~~, and. tl~.e high ~Ye~.l~~e~~cy sk~r~ depth is less than, a~~
about equal to, the p<~~ing or lannination thicl~i~ess for the change c~~ a~ni~:aatior~ :depths, for t~:e antiLipatecL c~in pop.uiat=on=.
Thus the frequency avhich vs ci~osen ~epcnds ;gin the chaYa°teristics of tie coins or other !5 objects expeca.:ed to be inpv~t. :in c~rae :xrabo~'.itrnt, the lov=r vequeTacy is ~et~~ev~:~ a'~out 5~
I~~Iz and abon~~ ~~~ I~I~z, preferably a~ou~: ~~~ I~~~h a nd the ~sig3Y
:~rcquency is beto.veen al~o~r ~.5 1~~I~ axed aboa.~t l~ I-Ice'. a~refe~-c~bl<r a~o~t 2 i'~I~:~.
I~~ scxne situations, it n~~.y iae necessary to pYOVide a ~Yst drivig~g signal a~equency ~~~n~7~YSC',nt ~lx E9rder t~3 sachl°,d~e, i: Ss;cC~~d, ~k«f~Y~nt f~eCs~lf:3'g~;y~ se;rlsC>Y Srg~a~ c~IT~~7E,'aRe~l°~. ~a1 2o particuiar, it is f~a.~nd that zf the sensor '~ l~ (~'ig. ~) is first drive's at the high frequency using high freclue:~cy coil z4~, a~~d Lien the 3ov~r ~ecl~encar signal 2~~~ as added, adding tf~e low frequency sign~.l will affec=d t~a~ 'erequc~rcy o~ tla~ tagll vPedu~,s-.cy signal 2~i2. Thus, ;she higi~
frectuency driving signal Yr~~ay need t~ -'=~e adj~.~st~;d do drive at ~
nominal fYec~uency which is different Iiom the desired h~g~~ fYeq~.lei_cy of the senso_- suci~ than:
v~~~en the losv ~~~ec~uency is 2~ added, the high frequency is perturbed into the desired v~l~~e '~y the addition of the lcw frequency.
multiple freqa.e~~cies cax be pYOVi: ~.e~~ in a nu~r~beY oi' ways.. 'in o3ie err~bodin~ent, ~.
single continu~us v~~.ve form "?~2 ~~"ig. 7), ~dWic~ is the sum of t~vo for rrj.ore) sinusoid=_ or peYi~dic ~v~vefoYY~s having ~fil°'i~rer~t ''Yeq~ce~~ci~;s 7~4,?~~, is provided to the sensor. fps ~o depicted in dig. 2~, a sensor ~ld~ is .~Yeferabl~T configured ~vitd. tva~
different a,~ils to be driven at tw~ different ~recluencies. I-~ is relieved that, gerae~aliy, 'ciae presence o~ a second _~ ~_ coil can u~desiral~iy affect the iP~ducta~~ce ~~~ the :t'~yrst c~i.~, at the ~~-eq~e~cy of ~peratiou ~~ the first coil. ~~er~eraily, the ~~ur~~Jex- ~~ tu~~s of t~.~e i-irst coif gay ~e correspondingly ad~ustec'~se than the first coif has the desired inductance. lra ~.he e~~hc~di-re~e~~t ~i dig. 2~~, the c;e~s~r coxe ~i~ is i~o~arld in a louver por-ti~~~ ~it~~, a first coin: )2~ for d~i~i~-~g ~,~rit~ a ao~~~ ~~equer~cy signal i~~ and is loured ~~ a second region -,y =. sec~~~d coil %4~, : ~:;~ dw~ib~g at a, higtaer freqL~e~~~cy 7~~. I~~ the depicted ebodi~~~e~at, the Ikig'a: ~~eq~:ency c~il 7~i has a sali~,~ k~uher of tortes and uses a larger gauge -ire than the i~r;a coil ~~~. i~~ the z~e~ict~;d e~a~hodin~e:r.,t7 zhe high frequency coif ~4-2 is spaced i~-Via, ~~~~ao fro~_=~ fh~; first coil ~f,t>
arid is posit~ior~ed c!.oser cc the gap X16. providing sore separation ~!~~a, 24~b is believed t,, help reduce the effect one coif ~o has ova the inductance of the oti~er and nay sor~e~~hat reduce direct coupling hetv~ee~~. the love frequency and high fxeqvaency signals.
~°~s caa~ ~e seen it~n~ _~ig. %, th:~ pifas,. re;latic~nship of tq~e 1<~gh fre(~ue~cy sfgr~al 'l~~i and lo~~ t~equer~cy signal 7~~ twill af~::ce t~.v p,a~iculc:r shape of die c~rr~posite ~ra~~e for~rr~
7~G. signals 7 2 arid %~~ ~~ev~arese~~t e~oltage at ';:he tcinals :~;~ the high a;nd lo~,~~ f~equenc;y 7~ coils; 2~Q, 2~2. ia~ the phase A-elatio~~ship is xaot c~rr~roiled, or ar least l~no~~n, out"~ut signals qr~dicating, for example, arfbp nude and/or ~ irr the oscillator circu t a.s tv~e coin passes the Se'i~S~~' I'i~ay 19e vuCh that It ~s de~~~(:~i~t t~5 C~et~;~fll~~?C, 4153~YJ
3r~~,TCI"? C~f ~ a (rllange 1? a.&rl~:~lltude (~~
or'~ the signal results frcm the passage of vqe coi_~ and how nr~cl~ is attril~~ able to ~~he phase relationship of the two signals ?~~~ a~%d 7J~r in the par~:ic~.lar cycle Being a~~aly red.
20 ~ccordi~.ggy, in one err~l~odi~~zent, the p:r~.asF.~s ~ef tie love ~~nd h igh signals 7~~., 7~f are controlled such that sampling points a.~8~:,z :.he ;composite signal t~2 rdescrhed l;efow~ are t~l~en~ at the sane phase for ~4~ct~ the lour z~~d l~ii;h siga~~ls 7ft~-~, 7~~. ~. L urrahe~~ (~t~ avays of assuring the desired phase relatior~shi~ c~~r~ Ize v~sed ircludi~~.g gen~;rating'~oth sig.~als 1~4, 7~~ fi~aa~ G. c~'-'P'~I2I~~ ~'efe?'~°s'3.~e s~~t'~e ~SalG~a a~3 a Lry~tal ~~Cri3at~~'~ al~dl'~g L~~~Flg a p'~a~f~
2~ locl~ed loop (~~,~.~ to control tl~e _chase re=atior~ship of the si~,~r~als '1~~~, 7~~. ~y usi:nb a phase locl~ed loop, the vaave shape of the composite sgna2 7J~ ~,vil1 he the sage;
during amy cycle (i.e., during any lour frequency cycle', ov ~t least will change only very slcswly a~~d thus it is possible to detcrrniu.e the sa~mpliy~g points (descfi-ihed ~elo~~~ used o~, ~;.g., a ~~re-defined position or phaswaithiz~ tl<e (loen~ ~~eqvyency ~ cycle fatake5- Khan teased ozs defecting 3o characteristics of the wave fd~=.~ 7~~.
figs. 8~ - 8~ depict c:l~c~~ytry ax~=lic:~ c«ir i3e used. for driviGrg tile se;~;~or of trig. 2~ arid obtaining signals useful in c;oirl discrinrvnatiolr. ri'lle low freq~.~ericy arid ~li~;h freq~~el~zcy c~ils 22;x., 242, form porcie~ns o~~ a lom .wide qzlevrcy and 'saigh iz-e~uer~cy please locked Ioop, rcapectiveiy 8~2a, 8o2b. ~e~aigs or: i:he cloci~ cir:;uits 8~8 arc; sll~~vl:.
in fib;. 8~. ri'he derma of the high frequency phase ioc~a~d ic~o~ are dep3c~ted in t~ig. 8~~ a~:~,d, tile loa=~'~req~fc~ncy phase locked loop 802a may ~e ?de=~tical Ro ~ba~ s~~o~~,%:a in f -lg. 8except that ;~~l~e cornponencs i~ay be provided with different vain es, e.g., as discussed belova. 'I~~~e output fro~~ tire phase IoCxted iod?~ iS proVldec: to i~lt~;rS; ~~~r, :5~1:3i~1o,' lln grC;ate,?"
deta:lg In l'lg. 8~.. ~.~"aC relilalnder Cif tree c;ornpoclents of fig. 8~~ ~.4e gel~erai~y~ di~ec:c;d to provici:ng re,t:erencc and/or ;~~r~ipwing ~o pulses or signals for prir~os-us d escril~ed lore p~ui~y beio~~~.
'file crystal oscillator circuit 8(~~ ~:C'ig. 8i~) pro~edes 6a reference freqaaency 8~8 input to the clock pin ~f a counter 81~ sb~ic~a as a ~oat~isorl "davide by I~"
counter. 'fde coa~rster s;rutp3:sts a I'igh freqLIenCy refPra;na;e sig~~.a~ ii S 2 aya~l '4~'urlU~S
o11tg3tl~S ~~-~~ c~ezlne ~c~ ~~lfferer~t please positions vaith respect to 3:1e reference signal 812. In the Depicted erribodinrenE, two of
5 these Abase positi~n pulses 8 L'Ga, 8:~ ~b arc p3 ovisled to '~f~e hi~il :~req~~ency ,p~lase i~~c~ed loop 8fl2b for purposes describes ~=cio~~. I~ second cc~ar~r~ter Bid' rsyce°~~eJ its cRc;c~ °snpl.it ir~rrz tree reference signal 8l2 and o~~tpa~rs a I~v~ freqnericy refere:rice signal 8I2' and first end second low frequency sample p=:rlses 81~a' 81~~~' ~i-=rhich z~fe vssed in ~ sasi~ion analogous to tae use c~f tree high frequency y~ulses 8i~a arid 81~i~ desc;ri~c;d belom.
20 Mlle high freqzlency p~as~, locked ="or~ circuit 8~2<~, do~~ic.~ed in fig.
813, contains ~i~~e main sections. ~'lae co~~e ~~scal2ator 822 provides ~ driving sig~lal for the high frequency coil 242. the p~siti~~e and negat-i~-e peas san~~lers i~2~ sample p4,ak and trougl~l voltages of ~I~e coi' 242 ~,-i~lic~a are provided to ail output cil~cui~ 82,~ for o~~.rpv,~~til~ig the high frequency r ~1H~~?at signal ~I2. Mlle nigh= x~~equency re:lerencs~ signa'i 812 =s converted P:o a triangle ~~ave 2~ by a triangle wave generator 828. 'fhe ~:ria<~gie wave is used, ~i~_. a fashion discussed below, by a sarriplisag phase detector 8:~% for pron~idil~g an: inp~~?~ t~ a s°:if~"~,rer~ce arnplifmr 834 wl~icl~
~utputs an error- sig~lal S l2, s%rhich is pro~~ided to Erie oscillator 822 ~to rr~ain'~in the f~equericy and phase of the oscillator su~~stanti~lly constarzc~ and p r~vides wire iBigla ~geql~ency ~ output signal 512.
0o IJ~vv frequency phase l~cl~ed loop circuit: 8t12a is sirrnlar t~ that d~,picted in fig. 8~
exce.,~t for t:~le ~.~G:l~~e or°certain ~,ompol~e<~ts wi~:ich are di::ferent in ~l-d~~r to pl-ovide ap-;~ropriate levy frequency respense. in ~~e l~ig~a ~reclxaenc~r circa<t e:~' 'itig. 8~, an indaac;ter 836 and capaciter 8~8 are previded to palter ~ut ~ev,~ greci~.aency, e.g. to aveid duty frecguea~cy cycling the cer~;~arat~r 842 ~whicl~ has a leer °P-equ.,ncy conr~enent~. ~i~~is is azsef~.l r~ ave~id driving leer frequency and high freq~~ency in the same esciTlater 822. 1~s seeae ire '~ig. 8~, the induct~r and c~~acitex have ~r~lraes, res-pectiwely, ef 82 anicrc~i~aea~~s and 82 picefarads. fhe cerresp~nding c~xnpenents ia~ t'~e aev~ freque~~cy circuit 80~~~. i;ave values, respectively, ef one xnicr~~nenry arid 0.1 micro-Brads., res~~,ctivel~.r ~if such a fr~~ex is yr~vided at ail). tn high freqaaency triangle ~mve gc;-r~erater, ca~aciteQ 8'~a~ is shown ~it'ra a ~~aiue ~f 82 picefarads av~~ile t'rae Lerres;~~nding ce~:~e~~ert irt tlac lu~v ~:i-equer~cy cir~:uir 8G2a has, a value of O.OOi ~o rnicrefarads.
ensidering ~e circ~Lair a f pig. Z~~ in sen~ev-~av greater detail, it is desired to ~re~~ide the escilla~er 822 in such a fa~~ien f~~.~_ ~I~e ,req~~:ency re~sair~s s~ai~st:~ratially cerastanb, despite changes in inductance ~f the coil ~~~. (sucld as array arise fierr~ passage of a c~~ira fast -~l~~e sex~ser~. ~ba order *e aclaie~~e ~rais goal, tz:e a~sciliaeer 8~:~ ~s prev~des:l °~itlr a velt~ge 1~ c~a~tr~~Itahie ca~saciter her varacter di~~~e;~ 8~~4~ s~~cl~ wet, as ~l~e ix~aclucrance ~f tl~e veil 24~z ciaanges, ~~se capacitance of ~lre varacter di~de 8~~~ is adjusted_, g~sing the e:rrer signal 512 t~
ce:~a~~ensa~e, s~ as to maintai:a ~~e ~ ~' -,._useraar~~~ freqaaency su~~stantiaaly c~nstant. ~n the ce~:~figuratien of ~~ig. 8a3, the capacitaric~e ~eterm:nir~g the resenz~nt f°eqaae.~cy is ~ au.actiera of l~et~ the vaxacter diode c~pac;j~ance; and ti-ge ca~acitauce ea~ used capacic~r 846. f'refera'~ly, 2o Ea'y3a~At~r ~~r6 and 4~r°~,ra~"C(9r ~t~, ~c'S'~~r arm; s6,FC,'E;~ed S~ that tile &~s'~I'~bi''e~ ~l"a'9~ter~~:; ~~~'G ;c'~.~z uSe the greater ~ar~~ ~f the dynamic range of ~i~ae varacter diode a»d yet the c~ratr~i velw~age X12 remains in a preferred range such as 0-~ ~Telr~s ~aa .e=aal for eui,r~utting directEy t~ a cea~puter~.
C)1 aanp 852 is a zero gain harffe- ~:mpai''ier rrra,3~;~3arfce iseiai:~ry ~~aese eaat;~ut pr,~vdes one ixaput t~ c~n~parater 842 ~vhic~i acts as =~ i~2ard lirr~ite-r and has xelav~~.~c;ly high oyaiy~. The lZard-25 limited square ~,vave~ ~rat~ut of cer~rapa~~ter 8~~~ is pr~vided, acr~ss ~
high value resister 8~~4 t~ drive t'se cell 242. ~'he iai~~ valaae e4 tize resistance 8~-~r is :>eiected sL.ci~a that nearly all the voltage of faZe ware wave is dxeplsed across :his ,esistea- seed t~4uv the resaa'i~~ing v~'~~:a~;e ~ra the cola 242 is a -fainctiera of irs ~. gm snrnrtaax-y, ~: sine °wave ~sc-~?latvi~rp in the ~.~ circuit is ceraver~eca t~ a constant arnpiitaade sqaaare ~.~~ave sgr~al driv-ing tine i.~
circuit :°e that the 0o arnpgitude of the escillati~ns v i:~ae l.~ cireaait are directly a x°ra~easr~xe of dse ~ ~f the circuit.
In order to obtain a rneas~re of the a~.~plitevde of the ~roatage, it is necessary to sample the voltage at a peals and a trough of Llre signa. In the embodiment of dig.
8i~, virst and second switches 854a, 854b provide sa~:n pies of the voltage value at times determined by the high frequency pulses 8lSa, 8,I6b. In one era~boclime~~t, the t:i~~ing is determined empirically by selecting different outputs 814 ffon~ tire co~nt~:.r 81Q. As seen ire ~~'ig. 8A, the ~e~npiric~lly selected) outputs used for the high freciwe~~cy circuit pray be different frorr~ those used for the Iow frequency circuit, e.g., beca'ase of difPerirg delays in the two circuits and the tike.
;witches 854 and capacitors 8~5 forr~~ a. sarrr~ple arid bold ~;ir~;Liit for sampling peak and trough voltages and these; voltages are provided. to differer~f:~.al a~r~plifier 856 whose output ~0 612 is thus prol'ortional to the amplitude of the signal in the I_,~, circuit and, accordingly is inversely proportional to ~ {and ~~.us related to cond~cta.nce o~~ tlrc, cesin~. because tile phase loci~ed loops for the low and high frcoa~er~cy signals az-e loci<ed to a corz~rnon re~~erence, the phase relationship between the two frequency co~~por~ents is fired, and any interference between the tyro frequencies will be cor°nrrron mode ~~>e rbearl~~ soy, since tlge wave; ~orrrb will stay nearly the same from cycle to cycle. a~~d the eorr~mon mode component wih be subtracted. ont by the differential antplii~ev~ 8~e~.
~n addition to pro iding art out~~.t 612 which is related to corn conductance9 the same circuit 802b also provides an output 512 related to coin diameter. yn the embodiment of dig.
8'~, the high frequency diarnetei signal I~I~ X12 is a signal ~;vhich i~~diCate,~ the noagnitude of 2o the correction that rraust be applied to varactor diode 844 to correct for changes l- inductance of the coil 242 as tire coin passes the se:rsor. Ii'ig. 7 iliustra.es signals which play a role in deterra~ining whether correction to the varacror diode 844 is needed. If there a~as been rao change in the coil inductance 242, the resonant frequency of tire oscillator 822 will remain substantially constant and ~v:ll have a sabs~tan dally constant pA=ase reiationsi~ip with aespect to the ~~igh frequency reference signal 8:~2. fhr~sg i.n the abserr.ce of the passage of a coin past the sensor (or any other disturbance of the inducance of the coil 242 the square wave output signal 84~ will have a phase which corresponds to the -phase of tire reference signal 812 such that at the tirrae of each edge 7I2a., 712b, 7I2c ~~f the oscillator s~a~are wa.vc sig~.aF 84~, the reference signal 8I2 wilt be in a phase midway between the wave peak and wave trough.
3o Any departure from this co-~aditior~ indicates them; has been a c:irange in the resonant frequency of the oscillator 822 (and consequent phase drift) which creeds to be corrected. fn the ,.55_ e'~?e~odiment of Pig. 81, i.n order to dea~eci arid ~;or~-ect such depar'~,~res, the reference signal 81? is converted, via triangle wave generator 828, to a triangle ~,~rave 862 having the sane phase as the reference signal 812. 'his triangle ~Raave 862 is p~-ovideci to an analog s~~itch 864 which samples the ~-iar~gle wave 8~2 a~ ti ~~~aes deterrr~iried by pirpses ger~er~a.ted in response to edges of t'ne oscillator sqLaare wave signal 84'x, o;.rtput over line; 8~c~.
The sampled signals axe held by capacitor 868. As can be seers frofn f'ig. 7, if there has been no change in the frequency or phase relationship of the osc;illato~ signal 843, zit tl~e tames o~ the square wave edges 712a, 712b, % 12c, the value of the squave wave signal 8~~y2 vuill be half way between the peak value arid the trough value. In the depicted en~bodin~er~t., the triangle ~,~~ave 862 is ~o configured to have an amplitude equal to tlae dii'Ference bet~~~een ~~:C
atypically 5 volts) a~ad ground potential. 'Thus, difference amplifier 83~. is corb~gure~l to compare the sample values from the triangle wave 862 with one-half of '=lCC 872. i-~ the sampled values frorrr the triangle wave 862 are hali way between gro~.~~_d potential and '~JC:C, the output 512 frora~
co~nparator 834 will be zero and th~.as tl~~;re will be no error sig:~al-induced change to the ~5 capacitance of varactor diode 844. however, iw the sampled 'Tal~.res frorr~
the triangle wave 8~2 are not halfway between grouped potential a~~d '~/~;~, differer~~ce amplifier 8~4 will output a voltage on li~~.e 5 l 2 which is sufficie~~t t~~ adjust the c~.pacit~nce of varactor diode 844 in an arrfount and direetian needed to correct the a--usonant frequency of the oscillator 822 to ~naintai_n the frequency at tae d°sire~i s~.~bstantially consta.r~r value. '~~hus signal X12 is a 2~ measure of the magnitude of the char.~ges i.r the efl'ecaive i~~duc Lance ~~' the coil 242, e.g., arising from passage of a coirE past the sensor. ~s shown in Pig. 8~, ouvputs 612, 512 ~~rom the high li~equency P1.1J circ,ui~~ as well as cor~respor~ding ~c~utputs 612° S 12° from the to w ~:requency P~,l , are provided to filters d~4. '~. tle depicted i:ilters 8Q4 a~:e low pass alters can~gurecl for noise rejectio n. The pass jands for the filters 834 are preferably selected to 2~ provide desirable signal to noise ratio clmracteristic i'or the outgun signals 882a, 882b, 882a°, 882b'. ~'or example, the bandwi~Etl~ wh-c;:~ is provided for the alters 804 >~a~y depend upon the speed at which coins pass the sensors, and sirnila.r factors.
In one embodimer~'~, the output signals 88a, 882b, 882a°, 882b°
are provided Lc a computer for coin discrianination or o~~er ar~aAysis. Before describi:ag examples of such 3o analysis, it is belie ved useful to describe tine ~rp-jeal profiles of the output signals 882x, 882b, 882a°, 882b°. ~~ig. ~ is a graph depictif~g she ou~.put signals, ~;.g., as they gnight appear if the ~a~tp~~t signals were dispiaye~ ~~~ a prcpekly ~;c~~~fig~red ~scii~s~sc:Bpe.
In tile ili~~stYatica~ ~f pig. ~, tire ~~ai~.es ~f the high ar'~d lcsw frecuvlRgcy ~ signals 88?a, 882x' arld tlm high and 1w frequency ~ signals 882h, 88~~' i~aue valves depicted c;~~ tic; ief~ ~f ,ne graph c~f ~i lg. ~) pri~:~
t~ ~c'~SSage ~f a C~ln ~Jc~sSt tile i°~"aaS~'K, ~s~I27~.?? ~.~~targe as '%~2(il~att~C'i 311 ~'dg. ~ aS tile i.~12 ~'P~69~es te~ward the se~ls~~-, arid is ad~acealt or centered ~,~ith.i~ tile gad ~f the sensor at tune 1 r, retrlhrlilig t~ si~'cstarltiaiiy tire ryriginal watt=es as tire ec~ir moves a~~ay fr~~~ ~l~e se~lsc~r at ~irrle ~~z.
'11m signals 882x, 882, 882.°9 88~'~' can he eased ire a nlzrrl~er of fashions t~
chal'acteri~e, c~}ns ~r ~thel~ ~~~;jects as descri'~e~$ ~ei~,~.~.
'~'hea~a~~litllde ~f changes ~~~2a, ~ o ~~2a' ef the I~~~ frequency a4id laiglr frequency t~ values as t~.e girl passes Mlle sans~r and the ads~lute values 9~~, 904' c~f tie ion algid ~ggil frequency ~ siglla~s 8~2a°, 8~2a, respectively, at flee t1111G t; 'i~.nleTt the C~lly ~l' 13ti1e'' (i'~ser'$ S rY7~3SE
11ec11':~ a'.lg_led 4~12t11 tile sellS~r ~as determined e.g., ~y the tirr~e of the c~cai a~iesl~~a~, in the ~ signals 8.82, 88~b'~ ar'e useful in cllaracterizirlg ccius. both the l~~ a.~d ~~is~t~ jrPq,nerlcy ~d wa~l~~Js ~xr'v ~~seflrl fir dis~;:rir:~inaii~rl.
'5 l,arninated c~ins show sign llca~at dif~~~re~rc;c~;g irtl"ge ~ reacirg ,~r' hw~ w~. high frequency.
'flee tow arid Ilibh fredue~,cy "'~~' v~la~es are, else ~lsef~~e ~cc~r discr'irrlilratic~rl. ft Ilas hcen f~~ard that s~rne ~f all e~f these ~iaxilres arP, at lea;~t fir s~rl~e coin ~~~plxla;i~rls, ;9ur°'flciently characteristic ~f various c~i~. der-l~nav~iofs tf~at c~airls cap 3~e discrirr:irlated vnth high accuracy.
2o In ~rle er~lb~dirrlent, vetoes 9~~a., 9~2a°, ~~~94, 9~d' are.;
~~taaed fix a large n~~trlher~ of girls s~ as t~ de.irle standard ~~a_~,a.~es cllaractel-i5t~c ~f each coin ~.e~ofnirgatic~rl. digs. IOI~, and l~~ depict high arid 1~wv fre~l~::e~~cy ~ a:~~l~! ~ d~t~, fur divferet~~:
~i.8. girls. '-flee values f~. tile data p~rritS tn ~'~gS. 1~~ alma 'f~ a v :?l a;'rJFc~aiy 111'3lts. ~S
rl~lrB~t~~7er ~r~ feattlreS ~f tile data wire ap;~arel~t fr~~~igs. 1~~. arld 14~~. pa's, it is recited t14_at the ~., I~
data p~ir~ts f~Pr different 2~ dez~l~y~lillati~srls ~f cc~irrs are clustered in th.e sense that a given ~, ~ data peirlt f~r a cabin tends to ~~se closer t~ data p~irrts fir the sa-rne derl~~p~irlati~e~ dill tl-lan fcsr a different den~~rlinati~n c~il~l. Sec~lld; it is doted that Mlle relat~~ea ~~~siti~ti s~f the der~~cn~~~illati~n ~r ~h° le~v frequency data Fig. I~~~ are different 1'l'~lrl t~~e ~ehbtiwie p_~siti~ns fir c;~la-esponding del~lel~linati~ns ire ftle haigll frequency graph :dig. ~ø~.
30 (ire rlleth~d ~f lasirzg standard reference data ~f the t~,rpe depicted in digs. ~l ~~, and I~l~ t~ deterl~ine tile den~rrlinati.rrn clf are r~.~nt~nc~~vr3 c4sirl is to define ~, ~ regi~ns ~lr each ef the high frequency and Low freo~ser~cy graphs irl roc ~icini$w of the data Iloints. for a xay~~Ie, in I igs. I0~ arld IO~, regions i00~a-I00~c, IO~e~a°-i Oi3~e°
a.xe depicted as rectangular areas encorrlpassing the data points. E~ccorc,~r~g ~e one errlhodirrlent, ~hritierIo~r f~-ec~~uenry and high frequency ~ and ~ data are n°~ut rc~ vz~:; cor~~prbter in espo~~sc to t~~e coh-, ~rto~iing past the Sea"lS~f, the hFgh i~rcCllle2~CV ~, $~ Ja~'l~s;s ~~~1 tile LlY3IC'ftC9'vVTi C~~'afP ari, ~or'~ipal."ed $~ C;aC~'~, ~i~ the regions 1002a -1002e of the h~gd freqc.~:r~c~;l gv.ap ~ and tae Iov~ ~ ec ~ac:ncy ~, ~ date compared to each of the rcgi~~ns I002a°-iC~02c' o=~ g~~, io'~ i~e~~ac~cy gra~~~
hig. 10~. of tic: ~~~~~n:;~~n co=n Ties ~~ri$hin tl~e ,~rede~r~ c~. Megaons corresponding $o the sarrlc, ~ieno~ination :iov each of tile $Vd~ graphs fag. i~~°~ ~~.g. ~~~, the c~~°e~ 7s tx:;dlcaieCS aS ~ileF'~nalg t ~a$ derAC7rnlnaeloaa. ~f ta3c ';o 'y~, ~ data falls oartside tl2e regi~~ls I002a-IO~2~a, 1.002a°-I00~e' or$ the $~vo graphs or if the data poi~~t of the ~~i~ll~novwn <~,~oi~~ or ~~hjc.ct fas's inside a ~;Jgi~~~~
corresl>oa~ldiz.g co a first deno~rlination evah a high fre que~ac~ g~~ap:~hart r: differe.l~t W
;~~.o~l~ination ~bi$h io~;.r Isequcncy graph, the coin or other o'd~ect is ind~_icatcd as not cerresg~ondi~zg to arty of the den-orniraatio~ls defined in the graphs of Figs. I G ~~ and = ~Jf~.
~'-~s e~~ill be apparent l~~orrg tile; ah~~r<~, disc~ssion9 $he err~,r ~a$e that ~iII occ~~.r i~t regard to such a~:z analysis ~.n~ill partially depend on the; size ;1:,~' the:
rcga.or'_s i00~;a-100~;e., IOO~a'_ 1002c° ~~Iliwvh are dciirled. ~.egions ~vhcil are; toy Large ~~vill ~:~~nd t~, resul-~ ila arl 3ar~acceptahly Large ~~urn~er of false posit~~s es l.c.., leer ~ 9-yRng vhe coii-~ as ~seir~g a Y~a~-ticalar dcnoanination whe~~ it is got; ~~Thile defilring regions ~-I~ich are roo small ~~~:~I result irl an r~naccepta~ly Large 2o rlurnher of false ,.egati~ms (i.e ., sa=Iir~~g ~~ ide~l$if~~ a Ie,giti~~a$c: coixa denorn.ia~a$iony. '~,hus, the size arid shape of the ~rarious regions rriay ~~e defined or adj~~~sved, e.g.
erelpir-ically, to achieve er=~o~~ rates which are rlo grea$e~~- $han des-red error rages. h~ one eri~_~bodirnen$, tile ~virida~.~s 200~a -200~e9 2002a°-200~c' ha a ~ s°=ze and drape de$er~rni~~ed o~B the hasis of a statistical analysis of the ~9 ~ values for a s$arlda~d or' salTnple coin populati~l~~, such as being equal to 2 25 or 3 standard deviaeions from dlc naea~'~ ~9 ~ values for l~no,~~n coins.
~~he size arid shape of the regions IO02a-b00~e, 100~6~'-100~e° r~~ay he diffcrerrt from one another9 i.e., different fox differerg$ denominations and/or different/ fog the Ion frequenc;y arid high frcqrlerlcy graphs.
A ur~her~~lore, tim size ar~~d slr~~e of the ~-eg~ons rr~ay be adjus~:ecl depc;ndirlg on the ar~~a:icipatcd coin popR.Iation ~c.g., in ~°egio~s dear national hsyp-ders, regions rlzay need to he defi~~ed so as ~o $~ dl.SCrlrn3r'xatc f~relgl': cf~IrlS, ~,~~~ri ~t'P:~2e ~CSSL ~f fa>SFlrlg $ITC; fals:~° ilegatBVe err~r rd.tc v6/IlereaS
--J ~.S
such adjus~°xnent of the size or shape ~:~f the regions gray not- be necessary Iocat~o~Es in the interior of a country where foreign coins r~~ay be relatively rare3.
if desired, tlxe cornputc~ can he ~;on~'~gu.red 9:0 obtairE statistics regarding ~;ho (~, l~
values of the coins ~~hich are discrirnninated by the device in the field.
'This data can be useful to detect changes, e.g., cha~~g~;s =n the ~~i~~ population over tin ~e, or changes in the average ~, 1) values sa~cl~ as nay resale :~;r~x~ agi,ig or v~ear of the senscsrs or ether cornpcs~~ents, each informatian may be used .~o adj ust the sofi.~:..~arc or hardware., porforrn maintenance on the device and the lil~~. In ore c,n~bodi~~~c~°Et, t~~ appaxa~~as i~.
~vhacl~ the coin disc;rrx~ination device is used may've provided ~rith a cornn~~~r~::catiot~ device such as a rnoc~err~ 25 ~~ig. 4I) ~o and may be configured to permit the clerinitior~ e,fthe regions IOC~~a-I002e, 10(12x'-1(l~~.e' or other data or soft~,varo to be ~:r~o~ili~d wc~~oteiy g;i.e., to be c~a;~~rnloadcd to a Meld site from a central site). In another er~ibodi~ront, ts~o device is configured to automatically adjust the definitions of the regions I~(3~a-IOG>c, 1~~2a°-1~3~~e° in rdspo:~se to ongoing statistical analysis of the d~, ~, data fox cc~i~zs :which are discrirni.r~ated a~ssng the device, to provide a type ~5 of self calibration for the coin discrzrninator.
In light of the above description, a nuanbcr advantages o:~ ti°~o preser3t invention can be seer-. urn hodinmnts of the pr~s~;r~t in~~o~~tion .~,~~n provide ~ device 4.vii:h increased acc~~xa~y and service life, ease and safety of use, requiring ittle or no -raining and little ox no instruction, vrhi.c~h 3vliably r~,tur~~s ~:anp~-ocossed coins to the rusor, rapidly protease s coins, has 2o a high throughput, a reduced incidence of jaanming, ire ~rhich some or all jams can be reliably cleared ~v;tho~zt huFnan intorvc~~tion, ~vl<iel-Q leas reduced ~~e~d for inte~entior~ by trained personnel, can na~xdle a 'broad range of coin types, ox donorrnr~atio~~s, can handle vret or sticky coins or foreign or non-coin objects, has reduced inciderjc of rr~alfunctioning or placing foreign objects in tl~c coin bins., 1-~as reduc~,d incidence of rejc~t~ng good ce°ins, has simplixmd 25 andior reduced ro~uiremcnts for st--:gyp, oalib~vtio~~ or xnaintenar~~oy has rela~~,~v~;ly sx~all volume or footprint reduirements, is tolrrar~t of temperature variations, is relatively quiet, and/or enhanced ease of upgrading or rctrofatting.
In one embodiment, vhe apparat~..as ac;hio~i~es singulation of a randomly-oz~onted mass of coins s~rith reduced jarnxning and high throughput, fix one ernbodirnent, coins are ~o effectively separated froa-o ore anorh~;~ prior to sd:,nsing and/or d~;~~e~.tio~~. Yn one embodiment, deflection parameters, su:;h as force and/or timing of deflection can be adjusted _5~_ lo take into account characteristics of coins or other objects, such as mass, speed, and/or acceleration, to assist ire accaaracy of coin ~~ax~d?ir~g. ~r~ one er~~~bodia~~e~t, slow ~r stuck coins are autoz~aaticaliy moved ~sucl~ as by a pin or rake;, or otherwise provided with kinetic energy. ~ one embodiment items ir~c3~.~ding t~~ose which are not recognized as valuahle, acceptable or desirable coins o~~ other objects a~~e allo~,~md to follow a nog~-diverted, default path (preferably, under the force of gravity}, while at least Borne recognized and~'or accepted coins are diverted from the deivult pa~~ to move° suci~ hems E.nto an acceptance bin or other location.
in one err~bodip-nent, tiv devie~e pa~c~~.~id~;s aoy ease; oil application le.g. multiple ~o aneasurernents done simultanuo~~sly and;'or at or_e location), increased performance, such as improved throughput and reduced jarr~s (that premat~~rely er~d trar~saczions and risl~ losing coins), more acc~?rate discrirr<nation, ~~r~~~i recluc.ed cost andiQ~r sire.
one or more g.orroidal cores can be used for sensing properties of coins or other objects passing tr~rough a magnetic field, created ins or adjacent a gap in tbc torroid, thus allowing sNoins, disks, spherical, round ~5 or other objects, to be measured for their physical, dime~~sionai, of ~~netallic properties preferably ttwvo or more properties, it ~ single pass over or through one sensor. T":-~e device facilitates rapid coin moverr$ezt and l;igh throughput. '~:~e deKrice provides for better discrimination among coins afFd other objects ti°an many previous crevices, paF~ticusarly with respect to T~J.S. dimes and pennies, while requiring fevaer sensors an k or a smaller sensor 2o region to achieve this resent. Preferably, rn~-.-_ltiple parameters of a coin are measured substantially simultaneoL~sly and witl°~ the, ccaib~ located in tail same position, e.~;., multiple sensors are co ocated at a position on the coin path, such as =~r~ a rail. in a number of cases, cornponeras are provided whic'_a produce; more than o~~e furFction, i~order to ~°educe part count and maintenance. F'or e~ampy:~ certain sensors, as de:~cri;~ed belo~.v, are used for 25 se~rsing t~,vo or more it°n~s anc/or provide data ~xrhir~,h are uses fov tv,~o or more functions.
join handling apparatus 1°gavir~g a lower cost of f~esign, fabrication, shipping, maintenance or repair can be achieved. In one embodiment, a single sensor exposes a coin to tyro different electromaga~etic frequencies substantially sirr~ultaneously, and sia'~stantially without the need to move the coin to achieve the desired ~~~,v~-frequency measurement. ~n this context, 30 '°substantiaily" cleans that., wr~il~thes-~; ~-r~ay be Borne inon~
del~art~zre froth sirn~.tl~~aneity or minor coin moverr~ent du_~ing tree exposuT,e to t~vo different i~equencies, tl~e departure from SIIn~i~taiielt"~ ~r xiI~Vement IS r2~t so great aS t~ Interfere ~ivlt~P C:
urtaln pLlrp~seS ~~ the In VBLP,CIC~n such as redncil~g space I~er~~~ilements, increasing ~~oin tbrougi~.~~~z~ an d the Ills:e, as coIIIpared'~o previous devices. for example, pre~e:~a~l~, d~~rix~g detection o~ tire results of exposure to the t-~,vz~ frequencies, a coin will move less than a ~~iar~mter of the largest-diameter coin to be detected, ~~ore preferably less than ~w~~~ayr ~i~~. a largest-s~ ,i~w diameter and 6;ven more preferably less than about 1/G f a coin iia~ne$e>~.
T'be present invelltiol~ _braises possible in proved disc~i~nil~ation., io~~ver cost, simpler circuit implementation, smaller size, a~~d ease of use in a practical systel~~. ~re:~Ferably, all pa~:an~eters needed Tao ide~~ti~~ a c;oh~ a:-e obt~tine;d at the sang t~-_~xe anc~ v~~tb the coin iIF the L' ~c same physicat location, so swvsvare and ~'~l~e=~ dis,.rilnination algo:~itl~~s are simplified.
~tl-?er door con~gnrat3ons, than those depicted can be ~~sed. ~'~e door 62 rrla, have a lal~iraated str~~ctu~-e, such as ~.~o steel o~- o~~esht,ets c .~Eniec~ by, 4~~.g.., adhesive foa:r:I ~~ape.
l~ ~~armber of ~~ariations and n~o=:liiica~ic;n~5 of the inve~r=i~~r can be used. la: is possible to use some aspeces of the invention vwitlloelt basing others. ~~r example, the described ;5 tec?Isliques and devices for p~-o~,°idil~g I~nlv;ipl~. frequencies at a single sens~~r l~cation can be advantage~a~si~ err~plo~ed ~,vati~o~.~t ne~;essar~ily using the se~~so~~
ge~rnetl~y depicted. it is possible to nse the described torroid-cope sensors, while ~sin~; analysis, devices or teci~~uiq~tes differelzt from those described l~exein and ~~ice versa. Yt is ~~«ssi~ie to use the sensor and or coin rail configuration described berei~I ~~ritl3ont using the described coda pici~azp asser~abl~.
20 for example it is possible 'o use the se~~sor d~ac~-il~ed her;l~-~ in connection with the c~in piclCUp assembty described il~~ ~.T~. ~~/~~:~,~5~ r~owv ~J.~. hat:ent ~~,i~~,~~1. ~t is possible to use aspects of the singralatior.~ and/or d.iscrii~ination portion oE~ t:~~e appa~~at~s vaithout iasi ng a tr~Inrnel. !~ltim~gl~ tlr~e invc:~tion Ilea been described in the, uont~~xt of a ~nacaline wb.ich receives a plurality of coins in a Lass, a :~nrnber ~f features ~~f vhe il~ven~'ion earl b~e used in 25 co~~nection with devices ~rl~icb receive coins one at a tune, s~~f:;b as through a coin slot.
l~ltl-rougb tb~e sensors have been describfud in connec:~.io~. ~s~it:~ the coin co~.nting or handling device, sensors can also b° used i~~ connecti~I~ ~vifh s;oin activated devices, such as vending I-rachines, telephones, gaming deXnc~es, a.nd the Nice. '~a~ addition to using i~forrnatiol~
about discriminated coins foe o~~tp~~~'tin.g v p_-int~d voaclZer, '~he fr~_fol~natic~n care be used ire ~o connection ~rvi~~I ma~illg electronic ~~r~ds td-ansf~rs, e.g. to the t~ar~~~ ace~~~nt ot~ttre user (e.g. an accordance with informaron read tom a banl~ card, credit card an the like) and/or t~ an _g~._ account of a third party, sacra as the re~:~~ii location wlxere the apparatus is placed, to a utility company, to a government ager;cy, such as the iJ.S. Postal :service, or to a charitable, non-profit or political organizations (e.g. as described n U.,~. applicatioxa Seri~:l Nurr~bor ~8/832y328. now U.S. Patent ~,~E19,?9~.). in addition to discx-rnircating among coins, devices cax, be used for dis~rirnirxating a3xd/o1 qeaality control on otiaor devices such as for sn.all, discx-ete metallic parts s~z~l~ as 'pall i~earin.gs, molts a_~d tlm like.
~lltl~.c;ugh the depicted en2bodiments show a single sensor, ii is possible to provide adjacent or spaced multiple sea~sors (e.g., to detect one ox° x~oro pr~p~a~;ies ~~r pat~a~neters at dif~'eront skin d~j~tbs). she sensors of the present invention can be ~, ;xmbinedwith csther s~.;xiso~-s, l~now~~ ixg tb.o a~ such as ~Q optical sensors, mass sensors, and the like. in the depicted embodiment, the coin 2a2 is positioned oxx both a first side 2~!la of 6~lae ga~1 and a second side 244b of the gap. tt is believed that as t'ne coin 224 rr~oves down the :ail 232, it will bL typically positioned very close to the second portion ~~'~b of tl~o coil 2~~, z~ it is ~~~xnd that this close positio~~ing results in an undesirably high scnsitivit~ c.f tl?e sensor it~duc-~~zn~e; vo the coin positio~x (e.g. an 75 undesirably large variation in inductance when coins ''r'iy" or are otherdvise soxrtewhat spaced from the back. wall of the rail ~~2), it .~a~y be desirable to place °the high frequens~y coil 2~2 only on the second portion 244x. (dig. 2~) which is believed t~ 3~e normally somevrhat farther spaced from the coin 242 and th~~zs less sensitive to coin positional variations. The gap may be formed between opposed faces o~ a 'Polaroid section, ~r fox:~ad ~~;wveox~ the oi~posed and 2o spaced edges of two plates, coupled (such as badhesion) to faces of a section of a torroid.
in either eon~guration, a single ~ontin~aous non--linear pore has first and second ends, wiit~ a gap there l~etw~en.
Although it is possible to provide a sensor in which the core is driven by a direct current, preferably, the core is drivers bar ar altor~xating or vax-ying c~x~-rent.
25 gn one embodiment t~w~ or rnore~ frequencies are ~:C~d. Preferably, to reduce the number of sensors in the devices, both i:oquen~ies dri~ae a single core. In this way, a tirst frequency can 'be selected to obta.n parax-neters relating to t~fe core of a coin a~~d a second frequency selected to obtain parameters relating to the shin region of the coin., e.g., to ~haxaeteriz~, plated or laxniuated coins. ~3ne difi~culty in usil~g two or more frequer=cries on a 3o single core is the potential for interference. t~~ one ~rnbodi~~ont, to avoic~< such intor:~'er~noo both frequencies are phase locked to a single reference frequency. In one approacl-f, the sans~r ferrns au ir~dnctor c~f an ~~-~: c~~~cillat~~, ,,v11~se ~~eqa~~ney is maintained by a chased Le~cl.ed 1_,eep (i~'~.~,) to define; ~y~ e~~wr signal (related ~o ~) and a~n~li~~gd~; ~rhic~ change as xhe coin rn~ves past the sense.
~''~s seen in gigs. ~~~, % ~~, ~ arid -~; ~e~e; de~icied sen~~- inc,l~dPs a coil vr;~~aicb ~,v:If previde a certain amount ~~ inductance ~~ indr~ctwe ~eac~a~~ce in a circuit t~
which i8 is c~nnected. ~i'he effective i:~d~pc~ance cs' ~l°ae ~,°~il ~~~ill change a, Ua.g. a coin moves a~djacer~~ ~~
tv~s~a.Igh the ga;~ and this cl~a.lge c~f ind~~c-ca.:~ce c;a~ he ~~scd t~ a~
~~asE partially cha~-~sc~e~ize the coin. ~ii~~°~ssaa~ wishing ~~ ice b~~ancl ~S~ any ~h~;~s:y, it is b~;~~eaed the coin ~a ether ~b~ecL
a~~a-ec~s ind~:ctance in tl~e ~r~ll:~ming ri~a~~nea~. u'ts 'clue coin ~cw~a i~~~ ~~x ac~o;~s the gad., the I~C
magnetic Meld lieges are alter:;d. if she .~ec~~zea~cy ~~ ~vhe va~-ia~g magnetic held is ;9uw~icien tly 1~tigh to de-fvne a "sl~i~~ depth" .~,E~ac~ Es !;ass ~~~ay al~o~f ~~e ~EOc~~c~ess o~'tl~e c,~in, no ~e~d E3~es -will go -~l~e~gh the c:~in as Lire c~i~a ~~~.wes access ~~ through she gad.
~s the coin is unwed across ~r int~ the gad, the ~x~dactance ~~ a coil w~s~:nd on tx~e cQr:
decreases, because the magnetic ~:~eld ofthe direct. sl-~~b-t ~a~h is cane-°led (e.g.9 by eddy cnr~en~s ~'gowing in she ccin).
~~ Since, under these conditi~z~s n~ flv ;~ gees through agw c~ir~ ~~a~~ing any substanral C;0~2d~C~'a~ri~y, the QGCieaS~, -:El ~~dliCCal;lCt; d~~e n:8) ta3e lJrese:ClCe ~ ~he cCan is ~Y?'i~naYl~~r a z ELI=1C'~1i912 ~~ lie SlIP~aCe aYea (ai'ICi ihL~ S Ciia~a~i.~Cr) G' a the C~iP~.
~ relatively straigh~a~~~%orard approach ~v~rald be t~ ose she coif a,9 an induct~r in a resonant circuit such as an ~.~: ~scil'lat~r circuit and detect cha.~ges in the res~nant Frequency 20 ~~ she circa~it as the c~in ~~~c~~~ed fast i,r r~~rc~~g'~~, the ga~~.
~.irh:~=wgh thva seer~ach -~~as been fend ~~ he oy~erable and ~c~ prcsvide i~~~c~°~na~ien v~rhiCh ~~~ay i~° used t~ sense certain characteristics ~:f the coin ~~s~~ch as its dia.rne3vr) a ~n~re: pre:Fzrred ebs~di:~nent ~s sh~wn, in general _~~~n, i~ dig. 5 and is described i~~ g~-eate~: detail below.
~~~ 'she mnbQdiment r~l' n lg. ~, a ~~hase da~~;ct~r 5~6 ct~~ar~a~es a signal indac~ative ~F the 25 frequency in the oscillator 5a~ v~rith a rd,Ferer°ace f~~eqL~e~:cy 5111 and ~utp~~~s an err~r signal S I2 which c~ntrc~ls a frequency_~,a~-ving corna~~~~en'~ ~f the ~scillaror S 14 (such as a variable car~aci;~r). 'l'he rf~ag~~it~de ov~ ~~he error signal 512 is are ind~catiz~~~
of 'she magnie;ude ~f the charge in the effective inductance ol~t~~° coil ~0~'.. ~'he detef~~t~~~~ c~n~guration shs~~rn in dig.
5 is this capable c~f detecti~~g changes in indu~~tance (related ro t'Lm c~i~,~ diameter) ~rnile 30 ~nair~taining the Frequency ~f vhe ~asciil.at~r subsiantiaily c~nstanv. l~~-~viding a substantially ce~3stant Frequency is useFul because, awning ~tner reasons, the sensor vain be less afFected by interfering electxoxnagnetic freids tlxaxl a serlscr first allows t13~:
frecix.ellcy to shift ~~oa:id be. It 1~J~,9~3 ats(9 be easier t~ ~?xe''ler~t ~slllrJal2te~ eleCtrd3YT1ag11etxC
radlatll~7~"_ fr~~ tile SeYIS~3r, sIrICe glltering or shieldixlg would '~e provided cxlly with respect to orre freqlaexlcy as ~pposed to a xar3ge of fre~uer~cies.
without ~vis~i-~ag to be c~c~axyd by a~~:Jr tireo~~y, rt is belief%ed that the presence o-~- the coi~~
affects energy loss, as inldicated by the ~ factor ixl the foliowi~xg ~~annex.
~s noted above, as the coin xPzo~Tes past ox tbrouglr Vibe ga,.;~, eddy cuxrerlts ftow causing au energy less, v~iiic3~ is related to both the arxlplitude of th.e cu~-~e~t, a~~d'>l2e resistarac;e; of~
tre coin. 'fhe a~-~~:~itudc, of t:2e ~..LI3'ieiE~ Is Sllbstantlalh' ~~I,r'~E;gWr:de4i~~ ~t3?~ ~~3_sy Cty'x~dLiCt~~iatJ ~S'~.x~C,e tiBe rllagrlItLIQe Gf t~e ~~ current is ai~w~ays ertoa~gh to c~~~tce? tile ~ag~etiv field rlnat is ~~ae~~e2ated by ~~e ~reser~ce of the C~Ell). 3I~7eE'e~w33~e, for a glVei? s',E~Z.Ct3bi'L Ells°id~etu~~' cf t~e ~i~ii?, t~2e el3exgy ~~sS gall td22 o°ddy currents will be irwersely related °4o the r~~x~ductis~ity ot' the ~~,oi~.. 'The relatiorlshi$ cars be complicated by such factors as the skin de~tb, wi~iclx affects ti-~e area of c~~xrex~t fio~v evith tlxe sltixl depth being related to co~dac~ti~itj~.
~5 'fhlls, fox a coil 5~~ dri~mrx at a ~~rst, e.g. sinusoidal, fxe~~..ency, the alrlplitaxde earl be det~rrr~ix~ed 'oy using tixrlixlg siga~ats ~~~. ~~i~;. ~ ~ to sample tt~e ~ol~~age at a tixr:~, I~.~odv-a to co~espond to the ~~ealc voltage i~z the cycle, u.;irag a ~xsi s~rx~a~le~~ ~~~i and sad~pling at a second poilxt in the cycle ~novr,~r~a to cox-~~apo~ci: to rl~e trough a.irlg a second sampler ~~~. 'i'l1e salmpled ~a~~ad ire'=d) peak and ~roug'~ ~rcltages ca l be prc~~ide~~s tc a~
dis=fexential axnyla sex ~1~, ?o the output of w~~ici~ 6l2 is x-e'=_ated ro 3.:im c~~-~ducaanee.. i~oxe precisely spear{ing, tlxe oivtp~t ~i~ ~raill xepxeserlt the ~ of lie circuit. ~~ ~c~ ge-aI, ~ -is a r~r~ asvre of the arxlola w o°exlergy liSss 121 ar3. ~SC~:ilatcr. fix:. a '~~'el~:~eCt ~SCL~~~~.t~~s. CirClllt, ~ke~'e '1~;.'c~:.~~d. ',,Oe r1.~5 ~CY'ta,3"gy less ((glee started, the circuit ~volrid cscil'~_ate forever j arlc'~. tile ~ vaiu:e ~{~rouid be ixlfrlxite. ?rl a real circuit, the ~nlplitude of oscillat~~ox~s will dixninis3l and ~ is a ~,leaslzxe of tll~~ rate a-~ wilieh tile ~5 ~rnplitalde dixrlilzishes. in anotl~g:,r e~~lbodivrrel~t, data relatirlp~
t:~ changes ixl frec~~~xeracy as a 3~i12Ctlorl ~~ Ca"saYlgeS Irl ~ ara:, ?_~~°',~y ~e~ ~~i.' C~'J2'1'ClateC~ ~,%Jlt~l C'.ata l~2diCatl'~e ~f tal?4S f~sWtl~rllal relationship for' vax-iolls types of coins or order ob~ects~.
~n one exrlbodirrlent, ti=a invention ixlwoa >es cclblbixlixrg two or rxao~re fre:i~rer~cies on ox8e core by phase-ioclcing all t~~e fxeqllwlmies to yixe sa~g~e rPferel'IC,e.
i3ecause tile ~e~guencies 3o axe phase-locl~ed t~ each other, tile ixltexferexace effect of oils fx-edlrexlcy on sine others becorl~es a c~~~rrron-rxlcde signal, which is rexnoG-ed, e.g., ~~rith a differc;~_ti~l axslpli~el-.
In one e~nbodi~nent, a coin dlsc:~in~i~~atvor~ apparatus and ~~e~.:~od as ;provided in ~~rl~ich an oscillating elec3rorrtagnetgc field is generated or a single sensirr.g core:. ~'he oscillating eleetroanagnetic field is co;~ so:9ed ~8~ one or rr~ore E-eq~eny co~~yoa~e~ts.
rl'he elcctrornagnetic field interacts ~n~~th a coix3, arid these interaet:ons are r~non:itored and used to classify the coPn according to ia~s physical ~~ro~e~ties. X11 frequency components of the magnetic Held are phase-loc?ce c to a corru~~o~~ r~;fererce frequency. ~'he phase relationships be3vveen the various l~eq~aenc~e~ are fixed, a:ad tae interaction of ea:~,li frequency ';o~~~o~~ent vv~itr she coin can be accurately dete~-rr~i:~~e~~ v~r~~tbs)ut the need 1°or corr~~licated electrical f~~~~ers or s~ecla~ geornetrac shal3lr°ag :~1 lie ser:.y~ug cope. lI~ o~~e ernJCBd~~nen~y a sensor ha~i~r:g a core, preferably ~el'r~ ~e, '~~It~lcl? IS E~7.i:vled ~~r ~tiner"a~IFSi:: Y3~r~.-lanearj., s'~iCi~ Z~a lip a ~-slza~3e (fir drk $he shape of a section of a ton~:~, and defi~~Fng a gap, is prowlded v~ith a wire ~vir~ding for exci~~ation and/or detection. '?'"he serraor carp ~e .rsed fox siv~n~.~ltaneously obtaining data rela$Ang to CIO ~r more ~Jarar~eterS ~3f ~. ~~iY3 or ~~lRex ob~eCt, S~iCI~ aS
s~2e and Con~LI~tIVIty Ebf the object. ~'vr:~ or ~~ore frequencies c~~: be ~~~sed lo sense core a~rd,~o.~
cladding lsro,pe:~les.
In the ernbodient depicted ire pigs. ~~4.~-~~, the apq~arat~a.s can be constructed ~sir~g parts mhic~~~ are all c~.~rrer~tly readily available and relatively lo~Hr ~;~sr:. ~s vain be ap_~arent to those ot'' skill in the art, other circuits ~_~ay ~e coaWgured for perfor~:zaing 1°anctiozs useful i=~
discri~ina~~ing coins using i~~e sensor of 1~rgs. ;?-~. Borne o:r~~odi~e~rts rt~.ay '~3e r~sefr~l to select co'~~onerats to n~~nirr~a~e the e~'ects of ~:ern~erat~are, drift, etc.
irk some siati.~ns, 2o particularly high vola~~ne s~~~arions, soxn~~ or gull of the carcu~rby may be provided in an integrated fashion such as bei~~g provided ors an ap~licat~or~ s~ecil~c integrated circuit ~~.~1~>,. l~A sorrae ern'oodirr~e~g~a at ~~~ay ~e desixahle to switch f~ae re:.ative roles of t~ze square mave ~~3 and triangle ~rvave ~~~~. hot ;,xa~-n~le, rather than ol~ta~~~i~~g a sample pulse based on a square v~ave slgr;al ~~3, a ~,_xc~it cori'~d be ~~se~~ whgch ~,vould ~x.ovrde a pulse xe-erence that 25 'would go directly to the analog s~vitcb. ~~~ri;:~~out needing are edge detect).. ~e square vJave would'oe ~~sed to generate a triangular w~a,~e.
'~'he Abase locked Ioo~ circuit described above uses a ~~ery high theoretically infinite]
l~~ gain such as about 10f dl3 ox roots on ~~e f4:edback pant, so as no maintain a very small phase error. lz~ sorr~e siiuatior~s this rn~ay lead to difficulty in achieving phase lock r p, upon 30 initiating tl~e circuits and thus it ~raay -de delis able to relax, sorne~vhat, the small phase error requirerr~errts ir"~ order to achaev~e initial phase loc~.~ up ~~aore re~.dily.
~Itire~gla the err~l~~C~iz~EetsE ol' i ids. ~I~-8~' prfsvides f~;~- t~vv frequencies, it is possible to deSlgn a deteCt~3r rlSFng three or ix'~~vre ~r'q'~tera,CteS, e..~ . ~~
~rO~V~U.e l~r 3~se'; eY Cd3~r1 d ~ SCrIrYilY9atf on.
Addftio~ally, rafher thane providing two ~~ r~~~re diss;Yete frequencies, the a~paratlxs could iae co~Fy~.~red to sv~eep o~- "chdrp" tt~rc~Y~gl-. a fres~uer~cy rampage. In one e~c~dienc, ors order to achieve swept-li-eq~e~-~cy data it ~~r~~ald ~e useful co provide ar°. extrerneiy rapid frequency sweep ~s~ 'that a c~iY~ does _aot remove a large distance durirgg tl~e: tune rc°quired ~:er the frequency tc svveep~ or to r~~aintair~ ttze c~i.~ statier~ary d~zri.~~g she frequency stveep.
In s~rr°~e err~hodirr~e.~zs i~. place of or in additio3~. to analyzing values ~htai.xe;d at a 9o single tirr$e ~tl '~ig. >'~ t~ characterize c~~i~~s ~~ otl~.er ohects, it nay be usei~~l tc~ ease data iiom a ~~ay-iety of' dii'_'ererit tunes to devei~p a ~~ 'crs. -profile or 1J vs. ~
p rofiFe ~a:~ahere t represents time) f~r detected oi~jeets. her e~arnple, it is believed ti~at larger dins such as quarters, tend to result in a C~ vs. t pro ale ~ui~ich is ratter, compared to a ~ ;rs, t pr~~le, tl''uan the profile for srr~aaller coins . It is believed spat s~~:~~e, _costly syrnYne~rnc;
wa~~~ef~rms have dips ifi~ thwJ middle ~,~ due; to an 6'an~~:.biar"' ø.:ype coin a,~i~cre tl~~; ~~ o tY.-~e ar~r~er radius ~fi ~=eye ~~oin ~s dgffere~~t fr~rra the ~ of the o~zter annulus. It is relieved t gar, is~ so~~ge cases, ha:~~a orj th.e leading and trailing edges of the ~ ~srave~'orms i~.ay ~;e related ~o tl~e rvrr of the coin or tl-~e tlaiC~.ness ~1'plating or ian~inati~r~~ near 'the ring oe'ti~e ~~,oi~~.
In souse ern~~diment=YY tl~e o~~t~~u~~ data is i~'~fluenced d~j :-elatively small-scale coin ~0 CharaCterlStICS S'~TC~ aS plat~°.15,= t~l~CeCnc;SS or S~rfaCC;
r°l~el. i3". S~?I~2 C~IC~~Y2'°~St~nCeS ~t 'dS
believed that surface relief in~csra~a'~ior~ carp ~e used, c.g.., t~
~arnga~isl-~ the face cf tee coin, ~$C3 C'~»2St~ng~$1S1"a ~'a?e~dS" ~if5ii~ e~tc'~iIS"~ r~'~5 .~''~'n~Stl'3'Sg'c~lS~ old CO?f1s ~Y'~t'4'T rle"~iN C;oEnS oi'L9T'C SaYr2e de~aorninat~or~ and the like. ~n order to prevent rotati~nal ~~se~,!:atic~n of the coin from ir~terferi~~.g ~rvith pr~per surface relief analysis, it is preferable ~~o construct senscars to pr~vide 25 data ~vhic~a is averaged over a~~na~lar regions suci~ as a ~-adially syrnrnetric sears~r or array of sensors configured tQ provide data averaged in annular regions Centered ~n the coin face ce.Yre~.
~lthougl~ dig. 5 depicts one .~asl~io~~ of d~~tainir~g a signal rebated tc: ~, ~tl~~e:~; circ~~its carp also be eased. ~r~ the err~l~~dimef~t depicted in dig. ~, a si~~s~soTdal ~a~ltage is applied tc tl~e so sensor C~il 22~, e.g., using at oscillato<. 11 Off. u'he ~,vaveforrt~ of the curre:r~t ire t~e coil ~2t3, ~.vill he affected lay the presence of a covr~ or ::ether ol?~ect adjacent vhe gap ~i~i, 31~, as described above. ~iI'i'erer~t phase co~np~a~er~ts of the ~esultia~g c~~~-rer~t wave for- cad be used to obtaid data related to i~~d~ctancP ar#d ~'~ aes;~~ectivet~. rru the depicted ebodir~-~erzt, the c~-.°-ea~t in tt~e coil 22~ is deco~~r~ose;d i_~tc at -least tb~ro ~dornpo~~e~~cs, a first component wl~icl~
is id-phase with the autpt~t oi' robe osci3~ator i IO~,., and a second compodedt which is delayed by 9C degrees; with respect t~.3 tl~e ~;utpat ol' the oscillator t 132..
'I'hese r°o~npo~~;a~cs c~z~ be obtained basing phase-sensitive; anap~iliev.s ? l~=I, I It3C sa~ctr as ~_~
pl~.asc locl~ed loop device and, as deeded, a phase shift oz defy device of a type well l~-~~w~~ in tl~e art.
'~~e im-phase cordpodent is related to ~, ar_d r'~~e ~~ cieg~~.e taggidg codzpo7Hcnt is y~elatect to idd~actadce. rn ode erz~bodid~ent, tl=e odtpvt ~-~~a~~ tre pd~se d~:;crtd~id~tors ~ I~~~~, IIc~C~, Es dig3~,~:~ed by ad ~o adalog-to-digital converter i I ~~, add processed bsr a dacroprocessof s.I
I~. Id ~r~e iplernedtati~~.~ of thus tecl~diq~e, r~~e~s~re~~cr°~ts are to%ed et mawy f:requedcies. ~~cl~
frequealcy drives a :esistc~r co=~dected t~t~v coil. 'I'be other w~~d ~~:f the coil is gro~~dded, t~or each freq~er~cy, there is ~ dedicated "receiver'' that detects tlae I a:~~d ~
sigdafs. ~is.er~ati~~ely, ii a possible to analyze aP.l ireq~e~:c~.es sir~mlt~~oeo~=sly by <~~-nploJ~ing, e.g., ~ 9<~st courier ~~ tiadsfo(I~I~ ~'~ ire ~Iae icr~ ~,.~ocusso~. Ire an~~tlmr ed~bo~ligrier°bt, it a possible to ~~se ad ~~ed~r~ce analyzer t~ read t~'=v ~ (r ''?oss tar~ge,-mt°'~ add idd~~cva.~ce :~f ~ col.
td adotller eiI'"~43(9di~3~.~t, '~~.:p~~t~:C? i~'1 dig. Ij, 1~7-~l'J~"Ir~~~tl~Yl regaY~'dl~ig ~~'~'PG' ~o~T3 parameters is obtained by rising the ses;sor i~I2 as ad idddcto~- id aF~ f.~~
oscillator t~~2. fit d~mbex of types of '.~~, oscillators cad be v~sEVd as grill be apyrer~t to those of slC~-~i. id tk~e a~-t, ~o aft~;r ~nderstandidg tl~e preser~~t disclos 7~r~,. ~It~o~gh ~ tra~~sistor I~d4 p.'s been depicted, other amplifiers such as op ~h~ps, cad be ~.~srd i~~ different ~c~:~iig~r~tiods. l~~E ti,e depicted err~bodirr~e~:~t, the sensor I2I~ iias'oeed dep~crcd ~a ad indictor, sE~ce presence of a coin in tt~e vicidity of the sedsor gap wilt affect fihe idci~actarace. ~in,ce the r,:.sodarat f~-eq~aedc~ ~f the oscillator I202 is related to the effective i~~~ddcia~~ce (freqdea~cy v~;.ries as (I/IJ~-~~e as the 2~ diad~eter of the cold idcreases, the freq~~edcy oftne oscillato~-i~~creases. The amplitude of the 1~~; in the resod~a~t I_,~ cigc~~it, is affect~;d by tl~e codddctivity of ols~e,cts in the vicudity of the sedso~ gap. ~'he freqdedcy is ~iPtected by ~requer~c~ detector I~~~, a~~d b~
~~mplit~~de detector I2~r6, ~srng well t~z~own etecrcnics te,cl~~ic~~~es with the res~clts preferabty being digitized I2d~, a~~d processed by mic~-oprocesso~- a~-~. In one e,~~s;~d'pmea.;t tie oscillatio~u loop is 3Q cordpleted by amplifying the voltage, Easing a hard-lixditimg ~~~dplifier (sq~~are wa5~e o~atp~at~, which drives a resistor. ~:hanges id ths; agdi~gde of the idd~zcta~~ce cased tI°~e oscillatar~s fre~~icncy t~ change. ~s the dia~~etex cf ~~se test coiax ir4creases, the fxectue~~cy of the cscillatox q~rcrE;ases. I~s the c~ndn~,t~v:':y cf the test c~ir~ decreases, the amplitude of the A~
voltage and the tuned circuit gees do~~.,~~~. icy raving :~ ha> d~-ii~~axtcr, avc~ ha~i~~g a cuxxent-lirr0.iting resister that is rnucl2 larger tt~~an t;-~e rEs~na~at i~e~iance of thE; tua-aed e.i~:cl~:~it, the arn~litt~de of trm sigrai at trc resonant cfrc~it s~~bsta~tiaily r~c~,~.ira9:eiy indicates, ire inverse reiatio~si~i~, tlm ~ csf the c~~ciy~ctor.
!'~iti~~ngh cite ma~~e~- of anai~z~_::g t3 arid ~ sign-ups ~~sixag a x~icr~i;x~cesscs- is described abovE;, a micropxccessor caar uscJ t:~e data in a ~~urr~a~er cf other ~~ays. hlthough it ~.vc~ld be possible to use f~rar~nxas cr statistic at xegressi~T~~s to calculate oa- obtain the ~0 rl~.ir~lerlcal' ~aiLi'a'.S ~i~T' dla~iet'k'x (E;.g., '1r~ i2l~,~ieS~' ard~C'sx c~rl.C~°~9~E°.~;i~'~s:~ (e.g., lra 'f"r311~'rs~, :it is C~xlte3Tipiated tis'lat a IreCllterlt "~sC E7f t~a"au ~1'',SGrit Y.:~~,~ef~t3~I1 4i'7lda ~~:.', art ct)~1.'~E;Ct:~x~ i%crlt7 a C~?ra couxratex cr handler, which is i~rten~ied to 1~ da;3cxii~rate cc~ir~s fry, nom-cE~ir~ cb~ects, ~) Etyscx~.rrlnL~te d~~nes~L~c txorn fcaie~gn Col.'s Carfc~/or ~~ d~scr~~nar~C~fc c~~6, c~~~ dPa-Li~9xr~ii~at~on from anotnca. l~cccrd~r~giy, ~r~ ,iaE; vrnt;cc~~mle~F~, tsfe rn~c~c~xca..rassor ~opaxes the c~~axne=ex-~5 :3lC~~cat~igg C"tat~, arid C~3iE~'a~ cF'~~7t~1-I~dlh,~ti.'alg datc'9, ~~~~th stai.'d's~rd C~ata ~~~lcat~~le E3f co~ad~ctivit~r and diameter fc~x ~raxi~~s'c~E~~ax~ co us. ~lthoug3u. it ~voyuid be possiblE', to use the microprocessor to convex' detected data. tc stands rd diay:retex and ccx~ducti~rAtz~ vaia~~~es car units (such as incises or r~ghcs~., =nd cornpa~-e ~~riar~ data ~rhiE;h is st:~xed ire m~:~nory in standard values or un~tS, fns c~r~vexsr~s~~ step cap be avo~dE;d Jy s'torg~~g ~r.
n:~ean~ry, data c~:aaacter~st~c 20 ~f various coins in, the sar~r° ~.Yai~Eis ox uni~~~s as ti~P data ~-eceiv~==°d by the ~~:rcroprocessor. i~ox example, ~.~-her~a the detect~r cf i=ig. 5 ~n~ie;r ~ ~~utp~~ts ~raiue:s A~~.
tre range cf c. g., ~ tc~ ~-~
volts, the standard data characteristic ~~f va:cious '~cr~o~rvn coif's carp be converted, prior to storage, tc a scale of i3 to 5, arid stored ire that ferret so that the cornhaxisox~ can ~~e made directly, without an additioa~ai step ot'ccr~vexsior~.
2~ although in ox~c exr~bodimcnt i2: is pe~ssil~le to v se data frcr~~ a sixggle point ire tig~e9 such as ~ri~er~ the coin is centered ova the gap ? l ~, (as iudicate~d, e.g., by ~ relative rr~~~ima~rn, ex minimum, in a sigaxal~, ire ar°~ot'raex e~~~boc~imc~~: a plurality cf vairnE;s ox a continuous signal of the values obtained as the coin xueve z past ox tt~xougr the gap ~ 16 is prefE~rabiy used.
~n e~a~r~ple cf a singe poixat ~sF cc~~pa~iso~z fcr eac;l. ~f the in-phase aa~d delayed 3o detector, is depicted ir: ~'ig. l ~. in v~is ~iguze, star~daxd data (stored ire the Lonaputex~, indicates ties average ar~d~'or acc.°ptax~cc o= toicxa:~cc range of ire-phase amplitudes (indicative of condi~cti~it~), ~~~icia has beer fo~~~d to -Esc associated ~it~ ~CT.~.
i7e~r~ies, mickeys, dimes arid c~~zarters, respectiwei~ I302. ~~-ra is ai~o sto$-~,d, indicating ~3~e averagc and/or acceptance o:
tolerance range of values o~~-~9~~ ~y the ~0 despree delayed a:n~~i~t~~de detector 40~ (indica?-ive of d:~an~c;tei) assoC~ated wuth $~~e Su~~e ccyuns i31p4. I~referau~:y, the enb~elope or ~!~lerance ~s si~z'~ciently broad to lesser tl;e occr~rk~~~ncv ~;f f>~lse negative;
resa:~lt" (~~eich carp arise, e.g., fxom worn, misshapen, or dir ty coins, elcctr~t~ic noise, and tf s~,~c;, bait s~bff~cie~uti~ narrow to avoid false positive results, and tc~ a~~rold ox- reduce substaruial overlap of the er;meiopes of two or fz~ore curves (in order to pa-o.:dhde f~,r ~iscrimir~;~~io~?. bct~reca der~o~~a~r~atio~~s).
Altl~ongh, in tl~e f~g~xres, the data svored In t'~e computer is siao~~r~ fn graphical for.~r~, for the iC Sal6e ~i clc'~rlt~ <'3$ dISCICSS~irv, ;,%~"'~,_y;~Y~~ ta;f; data 'vV~y~
bC', StC7red lie d'agltal f~~2~ 1T~ a rI~53m~ry, E.n a Ynanner well-known in tl~e co-nap~~ztcr art. In the embodir~~ent ~n ~.v~ich only a sir~glc ~~al~.~e is used for discrirni~aation, the digitiae.d si~~gie in-pxdase aYnplitud.c;
value, w-a~~ch is detected for a particular coin (in this exarnp:a.e, r~ ~~ah~~;of .~.~) ~scalcd to a rar~g~, o.'' 0 to :~ and digitised), is co~~rpared to the sta~~dard in-pl~~se data, and the vai~~c of 3. ~ is oound (u sing p-cog~:arnrr~ir~g ;5 tvct~niq~cs =~no~vn in t?~~e art) t~~'~e comsls~e,~~t with either a quaYtcY
or a dime 130. ~irY~iiarly, fhe ~0-degree dclay~ed arnplit~~.de, ~ral~~c ~,vl~rci-~ is detected ii~r t'~~is same coin l 310 (ire this example, a value of l.0), is ~,omparc d to the standard i,~-phase data., and the value of l.0 is f~~and to be consistent with eirhe~- a perar~J- or a dr~~e l~I~. 'f~~~us, aiLho~~g~~ each test n7~ itself would yield am~sigue~us re,sv~7ts, since tic sir~glc detector provides ir~~~rmation on two 20 parameters (one related to Chi CI~J.ct~~llt~ a~_t~ ~Snc related t~u i~~~.rr_v~er), t~ti, t~lSCr~1'Yl".rdc~~~9?& ad?
be made c~narr~big~xoazsl~~ si~;:ace there is only one denomir~atjo~~ (dime) 1314 which is co~~sistent with both the conducti~ait~ data ~nd the, dian~ctcr da.t~~.
~s ~aotcd, rather Thai_ ~ai~gg sir~gie-pint coYnparisons, ii is p~ssf~~e to use rr~.ul~iple data points (or a continrcoaas cc~r~~e) generated as -tie coin rr~o~~~;s -,~;~si: or throa~gh the oap ~1~, 25 31~. l''rofilcs of da to of this ayp,~ ca~~ <<~e as~~d i~r sevøral diff~;re,r~t ~ra~s. .,'~n the ~:xa~~pie of ~~ig. ?4, a plurality of l~now~~ denominatgor~s o-f coins are stmt tl-~rotagh ~:he discriminating de~rice in order to accumulate standard data profiles for each of t.~~c der~orr~i~aation;~ i402a, b, c, d, f404a, -~, c, d. these. Q:e,prescnt isre av~wrage change ~:= outpost i~o~n. t~~e 3n-pi~ase amplitude detector 2 t04 and a ~0-degree delay c~aetector for (shoe: on the werticai axes) 1403 30 and acccp>:ancc ranges or toicrar~ces i4i~ as the ~;oins move pest ~~e detector ove~~ a period of time, (shown on the, horizontal axis). In order to discriminate an urlkcr~own coin or other object, the object is passed thr~r~gh sr across tl~e detector, and each o~ the in-phase apiit~ade detector l I04 a~~d ~0-degree delayed ar~-gp:it~~ade ~.tetector 1 IOE~, respecti~~e$y, prod:.ce a curve or pr~r'~i4e ~0~, i4I0, respc;ciively. 'n ri~c ewbodin°ent df:pie,ted in Fig. ~, ~~e in-phase prof~ie 1~0e~ generated as a coin passes the, actector 2i~, is cox~p~red to the various standard o proti.les foe- di~fere~at coins 3l.Oca, l~!n~-~, s~;s0~yc, 1~~02d.
~'~:_~~ariso~ c;a~~ be jade in a number o~ ways. fn or3e ep~~~odi~er~r, the data is scaled s~~ that a horizontal axis bet~aeera initial and ~'inai threshold valises l~rOGa equals a standard ti~~~e, :nor better rrnatchix~g ~aaith the standard vales I402a throug.v. i40~d. a'a~e profile s~gown is~ ! 40F is then a~m~pa~-ed vaith standard profiles stored in ~~~Fy=ivory 4~~a thr~~~~;b 1~0'~d, to ~~et~,~-i~~e wi~~ether ~~he detected 1o profgle is ~r;~itlri~~ the acceptabte envelopes derzcd in any of t)c~~~
carafes 1 ~02a through 1402d.
~n~ther method is to calculate a closc;ness of' gist parannete- using well l~~ovvn curve-fitting techniques, and select a derzo~snatio~ or several der~orr~ina~ions, w'~ich arfost closely fit the sensed proliie i~05. Mill ~r~~~~ø-~er r~et~od a to select ~z pluraiaty cl~
pontc~ at predete~-rnined sealed) intervals along the tlv~e a~:is 1~~0e~a ~l~'r0~a, b, c, d~ ~~n~l compare these ~~anues v~ith ?5 corresponding ti.nc points for eacz~ o~ tt~e den~Yrnxnations. ~_n "=._leis case, orgy the standard values and tolerances or envelopes at s~~ci~ oYCdeterTrr~ii~~ed tidies needs to be stored ire the computer ~~err~o_~-y. ~,Jsing a3~y or a~_l these Methods, the conr~par3son o~the sensed data 1~0~, vrith the stored standard data '=_.~02a tyro-_~gh 1~~02d ndicat~;s, c~ t'r~is example, that the i~~-phase scr~sed data is most i~~ accord: wi'h urar~dar~~l data nor quarters or di~~.Ps -~40~. _-~~ sirf~ilar 2o comparison of the ~0-degr°e delayed date l~.l~~ to stored standard ~0-degree delayed data (2404a thro~zgh 1~0~d~, indic~.tes Chap: tb~; sensc;d coin was either a penny or ~ dines. f~~s ~~e~'ore, using both these -results, i~: is passable to de'cer~ni~~e that the coin was a dune 1~~04.
In o:~e ~:,rnbodirr~ent, t~.se in-phase ar~d o~xt-of i~:ase data ire co~~a-e:aated tr p-ovide a table or graph o~ in-phase arrarlltude verse~rs ~0-de,gree deray~:~
arr~plitude ~~r the sensed coin 2~ ~simirar to the ~ versus ~3 data depicted ire ,~~gs i01~ and I01~~, vrl~ich carp then be compared ~ri~~ standard in-phase versus delayed proFZles d~tainecl for ~~arioirs coin de,norz~irrations in a rnanraer sirniiar to that discussed abo~~e kr~ connection with Figs IOC ~,nd lfll~.
~itl~o~.gh coin accepta3dce region's are depicted (Figs. :~.Oln, 10~~ as rectangular, they ~-r~ay have any shape.
30 ~n both the con~gvr~ti=~r~ of ~"ig. 2 and t~~~; co~~~'ig~aratisz~~ ov Figs.
3 arid 4, the presence Lf the coin affects the magnetic '.geld. t7 is herieJed that in sor:re cases, eddy currents flowing in the coin, result in a smaller andt~ctanc~, as the coin dianmter is larger, and also result in a io~vcx ~ of the inductor, as the c;o~ada~eti~ity of t~~ coin is ~o~ex. !~s a.
result, data obtained from either the sensor of 11 igs. 2~, and 21..-'~, ox the sensor of h:y-s. 3 a~~d 4, ~r~.n be gathered and analyzed by the apparatus depicted in 1~ igs. 5 and ts, even though the detected changes in the configuration of digs. 3 anti 4. will ~~pi~a?iy ~e sntallex tluarl too changes detected in the configuration of digs. 2~ and 2~.
Although certain sensor shapes ha°~~o be~:n described ~=Herein; the techniques disclosed fox a~plyiug multiple i'~cqt~cn~;ios pan ~~ single c;~x~ cov~ld he applied to and of ~ mambo>- of S2i'~SGr ShxpeS, ~r other 'I1C~~.5 CSf iL9xt'nlug irn '.ud'~.lCt6'~~ t~
a~~byct a a~lri t~ air a~tf~x%i~'~lng 1o magnetic field.
l~lthottgh an en~bodifa'=e~~t d~sct~ib~d above provides ~v~o l-~C;
freqt~~er~cios to a sir-glo sensor core at the same tune, o~l~cr apprc~~~:~r~s axe possi'ole. one approacl;~ is a ti:4~e division approach, in which different frequencies are generated during different, small time periods, as the coin =shoves past tl~e se_~sor. This appxoa~:Ya pr~scnts ~:iae dif ~culty of cox .rolling the ~~ oscillator lo a ''time-slice" fa.swio~~, ar:~l correlating time; periods ~ritl~ freqx~en~ies for achieving the desired analysis. E~nother poteraial problem with lime-multiplexing is the inherent time it takes to accurately measure ~ in a resonant vixe;~:LriE:. The higher tl~o ~, the longer it tales fox the oscillator's amplitude to settle to a stable ~:ralu~,.
This will 'ii~rnit the <ate of switching and ultimately the coin throughput. In another en~bodirient, t~F~o separate sensor ~o cores (11~~ a,b hig. llt~~ caE.'oe provided, each with its o~%~n e~rix~ding ll~i4a, b and each driven at a different f~vq~~n~;r 114dav, ~. This approat;h has nor only the advantage of reducing ex avoiding harmonic interference, but provides the opportunity of optimizing the core materials ox shape to p_-o~ride dhe Host a-esvlts at tl~~, lgvaquency for ~~ltich ~~;~at core is designed. ~~hen two ox morn ~x~quonci~s ire t~s~a~l, analysis e~v tree data ca~r.'bo sia~~.ilar to that 25 described a'oove, with different sets of standard. or reference data -being provided for each frequency. ~n one en~bodimo~~t, ynultiple .ores, such as the ~~o cores 114'~a, b of ~'ig. 1A, along the coin path l l~~ are ~~rive~~ by different i-roquencies 1 i~~a; b that are phase-locked 1152a, b to the same roferei~~e. 115, such as a ~~rystal or other- reference oscillator. tn one embodiment, the oscillators l . ~~a, b that provide the c;oxe driving f~oquor~ci~s 1 t4~a, b are 3o phase-locked by varactor tuning (e.g. as des~riba~d abo~m~ tlzc oscillators l 154a, lie using -.the sensing inductor 1154 a, b as part of the frequency determination.
_~1..
in one embodiment, a sensor inciudes first and second ferrite cores, each substantially in the shape of a secvion o~f ~ ~o~us GBGa, ~ (dig. ~I3), said first core defyning a first gap ~8~a, arid said second core defining a .secon:~ gap ~8~~~, said cores positioned zvi~::n said gaps aligned ~8~ so that a coin conveyed by said counting device ~~ill rr~o~e through said first and second gaps; at least first and second roils 288a, b of corr~ducti~~e material wound about a :~~rst portion of each of said f'arsc and seco~W cores, respvcti~ely; an oscillator ~q~ a covapled to said ~~rst coil 288a configured to ~rov:ide cL~rre~~t defg ing at leash a ~rs~: ii-eq~aency defining a first sl~i~a depth less than said cladding thickness and s~therein, when a coin is conveyed past said first gap 282x, the signal in said coil r.~ndergoes at least a first ci~a~~ge in inductance arid a change ~ c~ in the duality factor of said inductor, an oscillator 292b coupled to said second coil 288b configured t~ provide c~~rren~ defining at least a second f~e~uenc.~ defining a second skin depth greater than said first skin depth wherein, when said coin is canveyed past said second gals 28~~b, the signal in said coil und~:,~rgoes at least a second change in inductance acrd a second change in the dualitz~ factor ~~i' said i~xda~ctor; anti a k7rocessor :~94 co3.~figured to ~o receive data indicative of said z~at and sevoa~,d ~,hanges in inductance and changes in quality factor to permit separate characterisation of said cladding and said core.
in another en~bodimer~~9 cur:reni: pr~oFt~idec to tl=a coil i;..a substantially constant or ~~
current. 'his configuration is usefui. for c~~etectir~rnabnetic (fera~o~agnetic) v. no:r~-magnetic coins. t~s the coin moves 3.hroa~gh or fast the gasp, there will be edey current effects, as .well 2o as permeability effects. As discussed above, -these effects, can be used to obtain, e.g., inf'~rra~ation regarding condvc~i~~ity, such as core cond~ctiasi-~,y.
'~~i~~us, ire this configuration such. a sensor can provide n~-t oniy i.nfo~n~atior~ about the ~errornagneti~;
or r~oar~-r~agne'Lic nature of the coin, but also rega r ding the conductivity. Such a coxrfiguration can be combined ~rith a high-frequency (si~in c;ffect) excitations of the core and, since there would be no lo~.~r-~~ frequency (and thus no low-:i°ze~aency ha~rao~Zics) interfere~.c:e p~~obler~~s should L~e avoided.
~t is also possible to use two (or more) corps, one driven with ~C, and another with ~°~~. A he ~~-driven sensor provides another parameter for discrimination (permeability).
I~errneabiiity easurerner~'~ can be useful in, for example, discriminating betvsree~~ IJ.S.
coins and certain foreign coins or slr~gs. preferably, computer ;cHocessing is performed in order to remove 30 "speed effects."
_~~_ ~l~ho~.~~h ~l~e i~zvents~~ leas been dnscrihed h~ gray of a pre~'e~-red emhod=v~en~ and ceri;ain variations end anodi~~~~~~ions, other ~~aria.tions and ~~iiAaations r:~n also he used, the inventicF: being defined b~ t~~, ieilowi~y ul~i~ns.
20 Mlle high freqzlency p~as~, locked ="or~ circuit 8~2<~, do~~ic.~ed in fig.
813, contains ~i~~e main sections. ~'lae co~~e ~~scal2ator 822 provides ~ driving sig~lal for the high frequency coil 242. the p~siti~~e and negat-i~-e peas san~~lers i~2~ sample p4,ak and trougl~l voltages of ~I~e coi' 242 ~,-i~lic~a are provided to ail output cil~cui~ 82,~ for o~~.rpv,~~til~ig the high frequency r ~1H~~?at signal ~I2. Mlle nigh= x~~equency re:lerencs~ signa'i 812 =s converted P:o a triangle ~~ave 2~ by a triangle wave generator 828. 'fhe ~:ria<~gie wave is used, ~i~_. a fashion discussed below, by a sarriplisag phase detector 8:~% for pron~idil~g an: inp~~?~ t~ a s°:if~"~,rer~ce arnplifmr 834 wl~icl~
~utputs an error- sig~lal S l2, s%rhich is pro~~ided to Erie oscillator 822 ~to rr~ain'~in the f~equericy and phase of the oscillator su~~stanti~lly constarzc~ and p r~vides wire iBigla ~geql~ency ~ output signal 512.
0o IJ~vv frequency phase l~cl~ed loop circuit: 8t12a is sirrnlar t~ that d~,picted in fig. 8~
exce.,~t for t:~le ~.~G:l~~e or°certain ~,ompol~e<~ts wi~:ich are di::ferent in ~l-d~~r to pl-ovide ap-;~ropriate levy frequency respense. in ~~e l~ig~a ~reclxaenc~r circa<t e:~' 'itig. 8~, an indaac;ter 836 and capaciter 8~8 are previded to palter ~ut ~ev,~ greci~.aency, e.g. to aveid duty frecguea~cy cycling the cer~;~arat~r 842 ~whicl~ has a leer °P-equ.,ncy conr~enent~. ~i~~is is azsef~.l r~ ave~id driving leer frequency and high freq~~ency in the same esciTlater 822. 1~s seeae ire '~ig. 8~, the induct~r and c~~acitex have ~r~lraes, res-pectiwely, ef 82 anicrc~i~aea~~s and 82 picefarads. fhe cerresp~nding c~xnpenents ia~ t'~e aev~ freque~~cy circuit 80~~~. i;ave values, respectively, ef one xnicr~~nenry arid 0.1 micro-Brads., res~~,ctivel~.r ~if such a fr~~ex is yr~vided at ail). tn high freqaaency triangle ~mve gc;-r~erater, ca~aciteQ 8'~a~ is shown ~it'ra a ~~aiue ~f 82 picefarads av~~ile t'rae Lerres;~~nding ce~:~e~~ert irt tlac lu~v ~:i-equer~cy cir~:uir 8G2a has, a value of O.OOi ~o rnicrefarads.
ensidering ~e circ~Lair a f pig. Z~~ in sen~ev-~av greater detail, it is desired to ~re~~ide the escilla~er 822 in such a fa~~ien f~~.~_ ~I~e ,req~~:ency re~sair~s s~ai~st:~ratially cerastanb, despite changes in inductance ~f the coil ~~~. (sucld as array arise fierr~ passage of a c~~ira fast -~l~~e sex~ser~. ~ba order *e aclaie~~e ~rais goal, tz:e a~sciliaeer 8~:~ ~s prev~des:l °~itlr a velt~ge 1~ c~a~tr~~Itahie ca~saciter her varacter di~~~e;~ 8~~4~ s~~cl~ wet, as ~l~e ix~aclucrance ~f tl~e veil 24~z ciaanges, ~~se capacitance of ~lre varacter di~de 8~~~ is adjusted_, g~sing the e:rrer signal 512 t~
ce:~a~~ensa~e, s~ as to maintai:a ~~e ~ ~' -,._useraar~~~ freqaaency su~~stantiaaly c~nstant. ~n the ce~:~figuratien of ~~ig. 8a3, the capacitaric~e ~eterm:nir~g the resenz~nt f°eqaae.~cy is ~ au.actiera of l~et~ the vaxacter diode c~pac;j~ance; and ti-ge ca~acitauce ea~ used capacic~r 846. f'refera'~ly, 2o Ea'y3a~At~r ~~r6 and 4~r°~,ra~"C(9r ~t~, ~c'S'~~r arm; s6,FC,'E;~ed S~ that tile &~s'~I'~bi''e~ ~l"a'9~ter~~:; ~~~'G ;c'~.~z uSe the greater ~ar~~ ~f the dynamic range of ~i~ae varacter diode a»d yet the c~ratr~i velw~age X12 remains in a preferred range such as 0-~ ~Telr~s ~aa .e=aal for eui,r~utting directEy t~ a cea~puter~.
C)1 aanp 852 is a zero gain harffe- ~:mpai''ier rrra,3~;~3arfce iseiai:~ry ~~aese eaat;~ut pr,~vdes one ixaput t~ c~n~parater 842 ~vhic~i acts as =~ i~2ard lirr~ite-r and has xelav~~.~c;ly high oyaiy~. The lZard-25 limited square ~,vave~ ~rat~ut of cer~rapa~~ter 8~~~ is pr~vided, acr~ss ~
high value resister 8~~4 t~ drive t'se cell 242. ~'he iai~~ valaae e4 tize resistance 8~-~r is :>eiected sL.ci~a that nearly all the voltage of faZe ware wave is dxeplsed across :his ,esistea- seed t~4uv the resaa'i~~ing v~'~~:a~;e ~ra the cola 242 is a -fainctiera of irs ~. gm snrnrtaax-y, ~: sine °wave ~sc-~?latvi~rp in the ~.~ circuit is ceraver~eca t~ a constant arnpiitaade sqaaare ~.~~ave sgr~al driv-ing tine i.~
circuit :°e that the 0o arnpgitude of the escillati~ns v i:~ae l.~ cireaait are directly a x°ra~easr~xe of dse ~ ~f the circuit.
In order to obtain a rneas~re of the a~.~plitevde of the ~roatage, it is necessary to sample the voltage at a peals and a trough of Llre signa. In the embodiment of dig.
8i~, virst and second switches 854a, 854b provide sa~:n pies of the voltage value at times determined by the high frequency pulses 8lSa, 8,I6b. In one era~boclime~~t, the t:i~~ing is determined empirically by selecting different outputs 814 ffon~ tire co~nt~:.r 81Q. As seen ire ~~'ig. 8A, the ~e~npiric~lly selected) outputs used for the high freciwe~~cy circuit pray be different frorr~ those used for the Iow frequency circuit, e.g., beca'ase of difPerirg delays in the two circuits and the tike.
;witches 854 and capacitors 8~5 forr~~ a. sarrr~ple arid bold ~;ir~;Liit for sampling peak and trough voltages and these; voltages are provided. to differer~f:~.al a~r~plifier 856 whose output ~0 612 is thus prol'ortional to the amplitude of the signal in the I_,~, circuit and, accordingly is inversely proportional to ~ {and ~~.us related to cond~cta.nce o~~ tlrc, cesin~. because tile phase loci~ed loops for the low and high frcoa~er~cy signals az-e loci<ed to a corz~rnon re~~erence, the phase relationship between the two frequency co~~por~ents is fired, and any interference between the tyro frequencies will be cor°nrrron mode ~~>e rbearl~~ soy, since tlge wave; ~orrrb will stay nearly the same from cycle to cycle. a~~d the eorr~mon mode component wih be subtracted. ont by the differential antplii~ev~ 8~e~.
~n addition to pro iding art out~~.t 612 which is related to corn conductance9 the same circuit 802b also provides an output 512 related to coin diameter. yn the embodiment of dig.
8'~, the high frequency diarnetei signal I~I~ X12 is a signal ~;vhich i~~diCate,~ the noagnitude of 2o the correction that rraust be applied to varactor diode 844 to correct for changes l- inductance of the coil 242 as tire coin passes the se:rsor. Ii'ig. 7 iliustra.es signals which play a role in deterra~ining whether correction to the varacror diode 844 is needed. If there a~as been rao change in the coil inductance 242, the resonant frequency of tire oscillator 822 will remain substantially constant and ~v:ll have a sabs~tan dally constant pA=ase reiationsi~ip with aespect to the ~~igh frequency reference signal 8:~2. fhr~sg i.n the abserr.ce of the passage of a coin past the sensor (or any other disturbance of the inducance of the coil 242 the square wave output signal 84~ will have a phase which corresponds to the -phase of tire reference signal 812 such that at the tirrae of each edge 7I2a., 712b, 7I2c ~~f the oscillator s~a~are wa.vc sig~.aF 84~, the reference signal 8I2 wilt be in a phase midway between the wave peak and wave trough.
3o Any departure from this co-~aditior~ indicates them; has been a c:irange in the resonant frequency of the oscillator 822 (and consequent phase drift) which creeds to be corrected. fn the ,.55_ e'~?e~odiment of Pig. 81, i.n order to dea~eci arid ~;or~-ect such depar'~,~res, the reference signal 81? is converted, via triangle wave generator 828, to a triangle ~,~rave 862 having the sane phase as the reference signal 812. 'his triangle ~Raave 862 is p~-ovideci to an analog s~~itch 864 which samples the ~-iar~gle wave 8~2 a~ ti ~~~aes deterrr~iried by pirpses ger~er~a.ted in response to edges of t'ne oscillator sqLaare wave signal 84'x, o;.rtput over line; 8~c~.
The sampled signals axe held by capacitor 868. As can be seers frofn f'ig. 7, if there has been no change in the frequency or phase relationship of the osc;illato~ signal 843, zit tl~e tames o~ the square wave edges 712a, 712b, % 12c, the value of the squave wave signal 8~~y2 vuill be half way between the peak value arid the trough value. In the depicted en~bodin~er~t., the triangle ~,~~ave 862 is ~o configured to have an amplitude equal to tlae dii'Ference bet~~~een ~~:C
atypically 5 volts) a~ad ground potential. 'Thus, difference amplifier 83~. is corb~gure~l to compare the sample values from the triangle wave 862 with one-half of '=lCC 872. i-~ the sampled values frorrr the triangle wave 862 are hali way between gro~.~~_d potential and '~JC:C, the output 512 frora~
co~nparator 834 will be zero and th~.as tl~~;re will be no error sig:~al-induced change to the ~5 capacitance of varactor diode 844. however, iw the sampled 'Tal~.res frorr~
the triangle wave 8~2 are not halfway between grouped potential a~~d '~/~;~, differer~~ce amplifier 8~4 will output a voltage on li~~.e 5 l 2 which is sufficie~~t t~~ adjust the c~.pacit~nce of varactor diode 844 in an arrfount and direetian needed to correct the a--usonant frequency of the oscillator 822 to ~naintai_n the frequency at tae d°sire~i s~.~bstantially consta.r~r value. '~~hus signal X12 is a 2~ measure of the magnitude of the char.~ges i.r the efl'ecaive i~~duc Lance ~~' the coil 242, e.g., arising from passage of a coirE past the sensor. ~s shown in Pig. 8~, ouvputs 612, 512 ~~rom the high li~equency P1.1J circ,ui~~ as well as cor~respor~ding ~c~utputs 612° S 12° from the to w ~:requency P~,l , are provided to filters d~4. '~. tle depicted i:ilters 8Q4 a~:e low pass alters can~gurecl for noise rejectio n. The pass jands for the filters 834 are preferably selected to 2~ provide desirable signal to noise ratio clmracteristic i'or the outgun signals 882a, 882b, 882a°, 882b'. ~'or example, the bandwi~Etl~ wh-c;:~ is provided for the alters 804 >~a~y depend upon the speed at which coins pass the sensors, and sirnila.r factors.
In one embodimer~'~, the output signals 88a, 882b, 882a°, 882b°
are provided Lc a computer for coin discrianination or o~~er ar~aAysis. Before describi:ag examples of such 3o analysis, it is belie ved useful to describe tine ~rp-jeal profiles of the output signals 882x, 882b, 882a°, 882b°. ~~ig. ~ is a graph depictif~g she ou~.put signals, ~;.g., as they gnight appear if the ~a~tp~~t signals were dispiaye~ ~~~ a prcpekly ~;c~~~fig~red ~scii~s~sc:Bpe.
In tile ili~~stYatica~ ~f pig. ~, tire ~~ai~.es ~f the high ar'~d lcsw frecuvlRgcy ~ signals 88?a, 882x' arld tlm high and 1w frequency ~ signals 882h, 88~~' i~aue valves depicted c;~~ tic; ief~ ~f ,ne graph c~f ~i lg. ~) pri~:~
t~ ~c'~SSage ~f a C~ln ~Jc~sSt tile i°~"aaS~'K, ~s~I27~.?? ~.~~targe as '%~2(il~att~C'i 311 ~'dg. ~ aS tile i.~12 ~'P~69~es te~ward the se~ls~~-, arid is ad~acealt or centered ~,~ith.i~ tile gad ~f the sensor at tune 1 r, retrlhrlilig t~ si~'cstarltiaiiy tire ryriginal watt=es as tire ec~ir moves a~~ay fr~~~ ~l~e se~lsc~r at ~irrle ~~z.
'11m signals 882x, 882, 882.°9 88~'~' can he eased ire a nlzrrl~er of fashions t~
chal'acteri~e, c~}ns ~r ~thel~ ~~~;jects as descri'~e~$ ~ei~,~.~.
'~'hea~a~~litllde ~f changes ~~~2a, ~ o ~~2a' ef the I~~~ frequency a4id laiglr frequency t~ values as t~.e girl passes Mlle sans~r and the ads~lute values 9~~, 904' c~f tie ion algid ~ggil frequency ~ siglla~s 8~2a°, 8~2a, respectively, at flee t1111G t; 'i~.nleTt the C~lly ~l' 13ti1e'' (i'~ser'$ S rY7~3SE
11ec11':~ a'.lg_led 4~12t11 tile sellS~r ~as determined e.g., ~y the tirr~e of the c~cai a~iesl~~a~, in the ~ signals 8.82, 88~b'~ ar'e useful in cllaracterizirlg ccius. both the l~~ a.~d ~~is~t~ jrPq,nerlcy ~d wa~l~~Js ~xr'v ~~seflrl fir dis~;:rir:~inaii~rl.
'5 l,arninated c~ins show sign llca~at dif~~~re~rc;c~;g irtl"ge ~ reacirg ,~r' hw~ w~. high frequency.
'flee tow arid Ilibh fredue~,cy "'~~' v~la~es are, else ~lsef~~e ~cc~r discr'irrlilratic~rl. ft Ilas hcen f~~ard that s~rne ~f all e~f these ~iaxilres arP, at lea;~t fir s~rl~e coin ~~~plxla;i~rls, ;9ur°'flciently characteristic ~f various c~i~. der-l~nav~iofs tf~at c~airls cap 3~e discrirr:irlated vnth high accuracy.
2o In ~rle er~lb~dirrlent, vetoes 9~~a., 9~2a°, ~~~94, 9~d' are.;
~~taaed fix a large n~~trlher~ of girls s~ as t~ de.irle standard ~~a_~,a.~es cllaractel-i5t~c ~f each coin ~.e~ofnirgatic~rl. digs. IOI~, and l~~ depict high arid 1~wv fre~l~::e~~cy ~ a:~~l~! ~ d~t~, fur divferet~~:
~i.8. girls. '-flee values f~. tile data p~rritS tn ~'~gS. 1~~ alma 'f~ a v :?l a;'rJFc~aiy 111'3lts. ~S
rl~lrB~t~~7er ~r~ feattlreS ~f tile data wire ap;~arel~t fr~~~igs. 1~~. arld 14~~. pa's, it is recited t14_at the ~., I~
data p~ir~ts f~Pr different 2~ dez~l~y~lillati~srls ~f cc~irrs are clustered in th.e sense that a given ~, ~ data peirlt f~r a cabin tends to ~~se closer t~ data p~irrts fir the sa-rne derl~~p~irlati~e~ dill tl-lan fcsr a different den~~rlinati~n c~il~l. Sec~lld; it is doted that Mlle relat~~ea ~~~siti~ti s~f the der~~cn~~~illati~n ~r ~h° le~v frequency data Fig. I~~~ are different 1'l'~lrl t~~e ~ehbtiwie p_~siti~ns fir c;~la-esponding del~lel~linati~ns ire ftle haigll frequency graph :dig. ~ø~.
30 (ire rlleth~d ~f lasirzg standard reference data ~f the t~,rpe depicted in digs. ~l ~~, and I~l~ t~ deterl~ine tile den~rrlinati.rrn clf are r~.~nt~nc~~vr3 c4sirl is to define ~, ~ regi~ns ~lr each ef the high frequency and Low freo~ser~cy graphs irl roc ~icini$w of the data Iloints. for a xay~~Ie, in I igs. I0~ arld IO~, regions i00~a-I00~c, IO~e~a°-i Oi3~e°
a.xe depicted as rectangular areas encorrlpassing the data points. E~ccorc,~r~g ~e one errlhodirrlent, ~hritierIo~r f~-ec~~uenry and high frequency ~ and ~ data are n°~ut rc~ vz~:; cor~~prbter in espo~~sc to t~~e coh-, ~rto~iing past the Sea"lS~f, the hFgh i~rcCllle2~CV ~, $~ Ja~'l~s;s ~~~1 tile LlY3IC'ftC9'vVTi C~~'afP ari, ~or'~ipal."ed $~ C;aC~'~, ~i~ the regions 1002a -1002e of the h~gd freqc.~:r~c~;l gv.ap ~ and tae Iov~ ~ ec ~ac:ncy ~, ~ date compared to each of the rcgi~~ns I002a°-iC~02c' o=~ g~~, io'~ i~e~~ac~cy gra~~~
hig. 10~. of tic: ~~~~~n:;~~n co=n Ties ~~ri$hin tl~e ,~rede~r~ c~. Megaons corresponding $o the sarrlc, ~ieno~ination :iov each of tile $Vd~ graphs fag. i~~°~ ~~.g. ~~~, the c~~°e~ 7s tx:;dlcaieCS aS ~ileF'~nalg t ~a$ derAC7rnlnaeloaa. ~f ta3c ';o 'y~, ~ data falls oartside tl2e regi~~ls I002a-IO~2~a, 1.002a°-I00~e' or$ the $~vo graphs or if the data poi~~t of the ~~i~ll~novwn <~,~oi~~ or ~~hjc.ct fas's inside a ~;Jgi~~~~
corresl>oa~ldiz.g co a first deno~rlination evah a high fre que~ac~ g~~ap:~hart r: differe.l~t W
;~~.o~l~ination ~bi$h io~;.r Isequcncy graph, the coin or other o'd~ect is ind~_icatcd as not cerresg~ondi~zg to arty of the den-orniraatio~ls defined in the graphs of Figs. I G ~~ and = ~Jf~.
~'-~s e~~ill be apparent l~~orrg tile; ah~~r<~, disc~ssion9 $he err~,r ~a$e that ~iII occ~~.r i~t regard to such a~:z analysis ~.n~ill partially depend on the; size ;1:,~' the:
rcga.or'_s i00~;a-100~;e., IOO~a'_ 1002c° ~~Iliwvh are dciirled. ~.egions ~vhcil are; toy Large ~~vill ~:~~nd t~, resul-~ ila arl 3ar~acceptahly Large ~~urn~er of false posit~~s es l.c.., leer ~ 9-yRng vhe coii-~ as ~seir~g a Y~a~-ticalar dcnoanination whe~~ it is got; ~~Thile defilring regions ~-I~ich are roo small ~~~:~I result irl an r~naccepta~ly Large 2o rlurnher of false ,.egati~ms (i.e ., sa=Iir~~g ~~ ide~l$if~~ a Ie,giti~~a$c: coixa denorn.ia~a$iony. '~,hus, the size arid shape of the ~rarious regions rriay ~~e defined or adj~~~sved, e.g.
erelpir-ically, to achieve er=~o~~ rates which are rlo grea$e~~- $han des-red error rages. h~ one eri~_~bodirnen$, tile ~virida~.~s 200~a -200~e9 2002a°-200~c' ha a ~ s°=ze and drape de$er~rni~~ed o~B the hasis of a statistical analysis of the ~9 ~ values for a s$arlda~d or' salTnple coin populati~l~~, such as being equal to 2 25 or 3 standard deviaeions from dlc naea~'~ ~9 ~ values for l~no,~~n coins.
~~he size arid shape of the regions IO02a-b00~e, 100~6~'-100~e° r~~ay he diffcrerrt from one another9 i.e., different fox differerg$ denominations and/or different/ fog the Ion frequenc;y arid high frcqrlerlcy graphs.
A ur~her~~lore, tim size ar~~d slr~~e of the ~-eg~ons rr~ay be adjus~:ecl depc;ndirlg on the ar~~a:icipatcd coin popR.Iation ~c.g., in ~°egio~s dear national hsyp-ders, regions rlzay need to he defi~~ed so as ~o $~ dl.SCrlrn3r'xatc f~relgl': cf~IrlS, ~,~~~ri ~t'P:~2e ~CSSL ~f fa>SFlrlg $ITC; fals:~° ilegatBVe err~r rd.tc v6/IlereaS
--J ~.S
such adjus~°xnent of the size or shape ~:~f the regions gray not- be necessary Iocat~o~Es in the interior of a country where foreign coins r~~ay be relatively rare3.
if desired, tlxe cornputc~ can he ~;on~'~gu.red 9:0 obtairE statistics regarding ~;ho (~, l~
values of the coins ~~hich are discrirnninated by the device in the field.
'This data can be useful to detect changes, e.g., cha~~g~;s =n the ~~i~~ population over tin ~e, or changes in the average ~, 1) values sa~cl~ as nay resale :~;r~x~ agi,ig or v~ear of the senscsrs or ether cornpcs~~ents, each informatian may be used .~o adj ust the sofi.~:..~arc or hardware., porforrn maintenance on the device and the lil~~. In ore c,n~bodi~~~c~°Et, t~~ appaxa~~as i~.
~vhacl~ the coin disc;rrx~ination device is used may've provided ~rith a cornn~~~r~::catiot~ device such as a rnoc~err~ 25 ~~ig. 4I) ~o and may be configured to permit the clerinitior~ e,fthe regions IOC~~a-I002e, 10(12x'-1(l~~.e' or other data or soft~,varo to be ~:r~o~ili~d wc~~oteiy g;i.e., to be c~a;~~rnloadcd to a Meld site from a central site). In another er~ibodi~ront, ts~o device is configured to automatically adjust the definitions of the regions I~(3~a-IOG>c, 1~~2a°-1~3~~e° in rdspo:~se to ongoing statistical analysis of the d~, ~, data fox cc~i~zs :which are discrirni.r~ated a~ssng the device, to provide a type ~5 of self calibration for the coin discrzrninator.
In light of the above description, a nuanbcr advantages o:~ ti°~o preser3t invention can be seer-. urn hodinmnts of the pr~s~;r~t in~~o~~tion .~,~~n provide ~ device 4.vii:h increased acc~~xa~y and service life, ease and safety of use, requiring ittle or no -raining and little ox no instruction, vrhi.c~h 3vliably r~,tur~~s ~:anp~-ocossed coins to the rusor, rapidly protease s coins, has 2o a high throughput, a reduced incidence of jaanming, ire ~rhich some or all jams can be reliably cleared ~v;tho~zt huFnan intorvc~~tion, ~vl<iel-Q leas reduced ~~e~d for inte~entior~ by trained personnel, can na~xdle a 'broad range of coin types, ox donorrnr~atio~~s, can handle vret or sticky coins or foreign or non-coin objects, has reduced inciderjc of rr~alfunctioning or placing foreign objects in tl~c coin bins., 1-~as reduc~,d incidence of rejc~t~ng good ce°ins, has simplixmd 25 andior reduced ro~uiremcnts for st--:gyp, oalib~vtio~~ or xnaintenar~~oy has rela~~,~v~;ly sx~all volume or footprint reduirements, is tolrrar~t of temperature variations, is relatively quiet, and/or enhanced ease of upgrading or rctrofatting.
In one embodiment, vhe apparat~..as ac;hio~i~es singulation of a randomly-oz~onted mass of coins s~rith reduced jarnxning and high throughput, fix one ernbodirnent, coins are ~o effectively separated froa-o ore anorh~;~ prior to sd:,nsing and/or d~;~~e~.tio~~. Yn one embodiment, deflection parameters, su:;h as force and/or timing of deflection can be adjusted _5~_ lo take into account characteristics of coins or other objects, such as mass, speed, and/or acceleration, to assist ire accaaracy of coin ~~ax~d?ir~g. ~r~ one er~~~bodia~~e~t, slow ~r stuck coins are autoz~aaticaliy moved ~sucl~ as by a pin or rake;, or otherwise provided with kinetic energy. ~ one embodiment items ir~c3~.~ding t~~ose which are not recognized as valuahle, acceptable or desirable coins o~~ other objects a~~e allo~,~md to follow a nog~-diverted, default path (preferably, under the force of gravity}, while at least Borne recognized and~'or accepted coins are diverted from the deivult pa~~ to move° suci~ hems E.nto an acceptance bin or other location.
in one err~bodip-nent, tiv devie~e pa~c~~.~id~;s aoy ease; oil application le.g. multiple ~o aneasurernents done simultanuo~~sly and;'or at or_e location), increased performance, such as improved throughput and reduced jarr~s (that premat~~rely er~d trar~saczions and risl~ losing coins), more acc~?rate discrirr<nation, ~~r~~~i recluc.ed cost andiQ~r sire.
one or more g.orroidal cores can be used for sensing properties of coins or other objects passing tr~rough a magnetic field, created ins or adjacent a gap in tbc torroid, thus allowing sNoins, disks, spherical, round ~5 or other objects, to be measured for their physical, dime~~sionai, of ~~netallic properties preferably ttwvo or more properties, it ~ single pass over or through one sensor. T":-~e device facilitates rapid coin moverr$ezt and l;igh throughput. '~:~e deKrice provides for better discrimination among coins afFd other objects ti°an many previous crevices, paF~ticusarly with respect to T~J.S. dimes and pennies, while requiring fevaer sensors an k or a smaller sensor 2o region to achieve this resent. Preferably, rn~-.-_ltiple parameters of a coin are measured substantially simultaneoL~sly and witl°~ the, ccaib~ located in tail same position, e.~;., multiple sensors are co ocated at a position on the coin path, such as =~r~ a rail. in a number of cases, cornponeras are provided whic'_a produce; more than o~~e furFction, i~order to ~°educe part count and maintenance. F'or e~ampy:~ certain sensors, as de:~cri;~ed belo~.v, are used for 25 se~rsing t~,vo or more it°n~s anc/or provide data ~xrhir~,h are uses fov tv,~o or more functions.
join handling apparatus 1°gavir~g a lower cost of f~esign, fabrication, shipping, maintenance or repair can be achieved. In one embodiment, a single sensor exposes a coin to tyro different electromaga~etic frequencies substantially sirr~ultaneously, and sia'~stantially without the need to move the coin to achieve the desired ~~~,v~-frequency measurement. ~n this context, 30 '°substantiaily" cleans that., wr~il~thes-~; ~-r~ay be Borne inon~
del~art~zre froth sirn~.tl~~aneity or minor coin moverr~ent du_~ing tree exposuT,e to t~vo different i~equencies, tl~e departure from SIIn~i~taiielt"~ ~r xiI~Vement IS r2~t so great aS t~ Interfere ~ivlt~P C:
urtaln pLlrp~seS ~~ the In VBLP,CIC~n such as redncil~g space I~er~~~ilements, increasing ~~oin tbrougi~.~~~z~ an d the Ills:e, as coIIIpared'~o previous devices. for example, pre~e:~a~l~, d~~rix~g detection o~ tire results of exposure to the t-~,vz~ frequencies, a coin will move less than a ~~iar~mter of the largest-diameter coin to be detected, ~~ore preferably less than ~w~~~ayr ~i~~. a largest-s~ ,i~w diameter and 6;ven more preferably less than about 1/G f a coin iia~ne$e>~.
T'be present invelltiol~ _braises possible in proved disc~i~nil~ation., io~~ver cost, simpler circuit implementation, smaller size, a~~d ease of use in a practical systel~~. ~re:~Ferably, all pa~:an~eters needed Tao ide~~ti~~ a c;oh~ a:-e obt~tine;d at the sang t~-_~xe anc~ v~~tb the coin iIF the L' ~c same physicat location, so swvsvare and ~'~l~e=~ dis,.rilnination algo:~itl~~s are simplified.
~tl-?er door con~gnrat3ons, than those depicted can be ~~sed. ~'~e door 62 rrla, have a lal~iraated str~~ctu~-e, such as ~.~o steel o~- o~~esht,ets c .~Eniec~ by, 4~~.g.., adhesive foa:r:I ~~ape.
l~ ~~armber of ~~ariations and n~o=:liiica~ic;n~5 of the inve~r=i~~r can be used. la: is possible to use some aspeces of the invention vwitlloelt basing others. ~~r example, the described ;5 tec?Isliques and devices for p~-o~,°idil~g I~nlv;ipl~. frequencies at a single sens~~r l~cation can be advantage~a~si~ err~plo~ed ~,vati~o~.~t ne~;essar~ily using the se~~so~~
ge~rnetl~y depicted. it is possible to nse the described torroid-cope sensors, while ~sin~; analysis, devices or teci~~uiq~tes differelzt from those described l~exein and ~~ice versa. Yt is ~~«ssi~ie to use the sensor and or coin rail configuration described berei~I ~~ritl3ont using the described coda pici~azp asser~abl~.
20 for example it is possible 'o use the se~~sor d~ac~-il~ed her;l~-~ in connection with the c~in piclCUp assembty described il~~ ~.T~. ~~/~~:~,~5~ r~owv ~J.~. hat:ent ~~,i~~,~~1. ~t is possible to use aspects of the singralatior.~ and/or d.iscrii~ination portion oE~ t:~~e appa~~at~s vaithout iasi ng a tr~Inrnel. !~ltim~gl~ tlr~e invc:~tion Ilea been described in the, uont~~xt of a ~nacaline wb.ich receives a plurality of coins in a Lass, a :~nrnber ~f features ~~f vhe il~ven~'ion earl b~e used in 25 co~~nection with devices ~rl~icb receive coins one at a tune, s~~f:;b as through a coin slot.
l~ltl-rougb tb~e sensors have been describfud in connec:~.io~. ~s~it:~ the coin co~.nting or handling device, sensors can also b° used i~~ connecti~I~ ~vifh s;oin activated devices, such as vending I-rachines, telephones, gaming deXnc~es, a.nd the Nice. '~a~ addition to using i~forrnatiol~
about discriminated coins foe o~~tp~~~'tin.g v p_-int~d voaclZer, '~he fr~_fol~natic~n care be used ire ~o connection ~rvi~~I ma~illg electronic ~~r~ds td-ansf~rs, e.g. to the t~ar~~~ ace~~~nt ot~ttre user (e.g. an accordance with informaron read tom a banl~ card, credit card an the like) and/or t~ an _g~._ account of a third party, sacra as the re~:~~ii location wlxere the apparatus is placed, to a utility company, to a government ager;cy, such as the iJ.S. Postal :service, or to a charitable, non-profit or political organizations (e.g. as described n U.,~. applicatioxa Seri~:l Nurr~bor ~8/832y328. now U.S. Patent ~,~E19,?9~.). in addition to discx-rnircating among coins, devices cax, be used for dis~rirnirxating a3xd/o1 qeaality control on otiaor devices such as for sn.all, discx-ete metallic parts s~z~l~ as 'pall i~earin.gs, molts a_~d tlm like.
~lltl~.c;ugh the depicted en2bodiments show a single sensor, ii is possible to provide adjacent or spaced multiple sea~sors (e.g., to detect one ox° x~oro pr~p~a~;ies ~~r pat~a~neters at dif~'eront skin d~j~tbs). she sensors of the present invention can be ~, ;xmbinedwith csther s~.;xiso~-s, l~now~~ ixg tb.o a~ such as ~Q optical sensors, mass sensors, and the like. in the depicted embodiment, the coin 2a2 is positioned oxx both a first side 2~!la of 6~lae ga~1 and a second side 244b of the gap. tt is believed that as t'ne coin 224 rr~oves down the :ail 232, it will bL typically positioned very close to the second portion ~~'~b of tl~o coil 2~~, z~ it is ~~~xnd that this close positio~~ing results in an undesirably high scnsitivit~ c.f tl?e sensor it~duc-~~zn~e; vo the coin positio~x (e.g. an 75 undesirably large variation in inductance when coins ''r'iy" or are otherdvise soxrtewhat spaced from the back. wall of the rail ~~2), it .~a~y be desirable to place °the high frequens~y coil 2~2 only on the second portion 244x. (dig. 2~) which is believed t~ 3~e normally somevrhat farther spaced from the coin 242 and th~~zs less sensitive to coin positional variations. The gap may be formed between opposed faces o~ a 'Polaroid section, ~r fox:~ad ~~;wveox~ the oi~posed and 2o spaced edges of two plates, coupled (such as badhesion) to faces of a section of a torroid.
in either eon~guration, a single ~ontin~aous non--linear pore has first and second ends, wiit~ a gap there l~etw~en.
Although it is possible to provide a sensor in which the core is driven by a direct current, preferably, the core is drivers bar ar altor~xating or vax-ying c~x~-rent.
25 gn one embodiment t~w~ or rnore~ frequencies are ~:C~d. Preferably, to reduce the number of sensors in the devices, both i:oquen~ies dri~ae a single core. In this way, a tirst frequency can 'be selected to obta.n parax-neters relating to t~fe core of a coin a~~d a second frequency selected to obtain parameters relating to the shin region of the coin., e.g., to ~haxaeteriz~, plated or laxniuated coins. ~3ne difi~culty in usil~g two or more frequer=cries on a 3o single core is the potential for interference. t~~ one ~rnbodi~~ont, to avoic~< such intor:~'er~noo both frequencies are phase locked to a single reference frequency. In one approacl-f, the sans~r ferrns au ir~dnctor c~f an ~~-~: c~~~cillat~~, ,,v11~se ~~eqa~~ney is maintained by a chased Le~cl.ed 1_,eep (i~'~.~,) to define; ~y~ e~~wr signal (related ~o ~) and a~n~li~~gd~; ~rhic~ change as xhe coin rn~ves past the sense.
~''~s seen in gigs. ~~~, % ~~, ~ arid -~; ~e~e; de~icied sen~~- inc,l~dPs a coil vr;~~aicb ~,v:If previde a certain amount ~~ inductance ~~ indr~ctwe ~eac~a~~ce in a circuit t~
which i8 is c~nnected. ~i'he effective i:~d~pc~ance cs' ~l°ae ~,°~il ~~~ill change a, Ua.g. a coin moves a~djacer~~ ~~
tv~s~a.Igh the ga;~ and this cl~a.lge c~f ind~~c-ca.:~ce c;a~ he ~~scd t~ a~
~~asE partially cha~-~sc~e~ize the coin. ~ii~~°~ssaa~ wishing ~~ ice b~~ancl ~S~ any ~h~;~s:y, it is b~;~~eaed the coin ~a ether ~b~ecL
a~~a-ec~s ind~:ctance in tl~e ~r~ll:~ming ri~a~~nea~. u'ts 'clue coin ~cw~a i~~~ ~~x ac~o;~s the gad., the I~C
magnetic Meld lieges are alter:;d. if she .~ec~~zea~cy ~~ ~vhe va~-ia~g magnetic held is ;9uw~icien tly 1~tigh to de-fvne a "sl~i~~ depth" .~,E~ac~ Es !;ass ~~~ay al~o~f ~~e ~EOc~~c~ess o~'tl~e c,~in, no ~e~d E3~es -will go -~l~e~gh the c:~in as Lire c~i~a ~~~.wes access ~~ through she gad.
~s the coin is unwed across ~r int~ the gad, the ~x~dactance ~~ a coil w~s~:nd on tx~e cQr:
decreases, because the magnetic ~:~eld ofthe direct. sl-~~b-t ~a~h is cane-°led (e.g.9 by eddy cnr~en~s ~'gowing in she ccin).
~~ Since, under these conditi~z~s n~ flv ;~ gees through agw c~ir~ ~~a~~ing any substanral C;0~2d~C~'a~ri~y, the QGCieaS~, -:El ~~dliCCal;lCt; d~~e n:8) ta3e lJrese:ClCe ~ ~he cCan is ~Y?'i~naYl~~r a z ELI=1C'~1i912 ~~ lie SlIP~aCe aYea (ai'ICi ihL~ S Ciia~a~i.~Cr) G' a the C~iP~.
~ relatively straigh~a~~~%orard approach ~v~rald be t~ ose she coif a,9 an induct~r in a resonant circuit such as an ~.~: ~scil'lat~r circuit and detect cha.~ges in the res~nant Frequency 20 ~~ she circa~it as the c~in ~~~c~~~ed fast i,r r~~rc~~g'~~, the ga~~.
~.irh:~=wgh thva seer~ach -~~as been fend ~~ he oy~erable and ~c~ prcsvide i~~~c~°~na~ien v~rhiCh ~~~ay i~° used t~ sense certain characteristics ~:f the coin ~~s~~ch as its dia.rne3vr) a ~n~re: pre:Fzrred ebs~di:~nent ~s sh~wn, in general _~~~n, i~ dig. 5 and is described i~~ g~-eate~: detail below.
~~~ 'she mnbQdiment r~l' n lg. ~, a ~~hase da~~;ct~r 5~6 ct~~ar~a~es a signal indac~ative ~F the 25 frequency in the oscillator 5a~ v~rith a rd,Ferer°ace f~~eqL~e~:cy 5111 and ~utp~~~s an err~r signal S I2 which c~ntrc~ls a frequency_~,a~-ving corna~~~~en'~ ~f the ~scillaror S 14 (such as a variable car~aci;~r). 'l'he rf~ag~~it~de ov~ ~~he error signal 512 is are ind~catiz~~~
of 'she magnie;ude ~f the charge in the effective inductance ol~t~~° coil ~0~'.. ~'he detef~~t~~~~ c~n~guration shs~~rn in dig.
5 is this capable c~f detecti~~g changes in indu~~tance (related ro t'Lm c~i~,~ diameter) ~rnile 30 ~nair~taining the Frequency ~f vhe ~asciil.at~r subsiantiaily c~nstanv. l~~-~viding a substantially ce~3stant Frequency is useFul because, awning ~tner reasons, the sensor vain be less afFected by interfering electxoxnagnetic freids tlxaxl a serlscr first allows t13~:
frecix.ellcy to shift ~~oa:id be. It 1~J~,9~3 ats(9 be easier t~ ~?xe''ler~t ~slllrJal2te~ eleCtrd3YT1ag11etxC
radlatll~7~"_ fr~~ tile SeYIS~3r, sIrICe glltering or shieldixlg would '~e provided cxlly with respect to orre freqlaexlcy as ~pposed to a xar3ge of fre~uer~cies.
without ~vis~i-~ag to be c~c~axyd by a~~:Jr tireo~~y, rt is belief%ed that the presence o-~- the coi~~
affects energy loss, as inldicated by the ~ factor ixl the foliowi~xg ~~annex.
~s noted above, as the coin xPzo~Tes past ox tbrouglr Vibe ga,.;~, eddy cuxrerlts ftow causing au energy less, v~iiic3~ is related to both the arxlplitude of th.e cu~-~e~t, a~~d'>l2e resistarac;e; of~
tre coin. 'fhe a~-~~:~itudc, of t:2e ~..LI3'ieiE~ Is Sllbstantlalh' ~~I,r'~E;gWr:de4i~~ ~t3?~ ~~3_sy Cty'x~dLiCt~~iatJ ~S'~.x~C,e tiBe rllagrlItLIQe Gf t~e ~~ current is ai~w~ays ertoa~gh to c~~~tce? tile ~ag~etiv field rlnat is ~~ae~~e2ated by ~~e ~reser~ce of the C~Ell). 3I~7eE'e~w33~e, for a glVei? s',E~Z.Ct3bi'L Ells°id~etu~~' cf t~e ~i~ii?, t~2e el3exgy ~~sS gall td22 o°ddy currents will be irwersely related °4o the r~~x~ductis~ity ot' the ~~,oi~.. 'The relatiorlshi$ cars be complicated by such factors as the skin de~tb, wi~iclx affects ti-~e area of c~~xrex~t fio~v evith tlxe sltixl depth being related to co~dac~ti~itj~.
~5 'fhlls, fox a coil 5~~ dri~mrx at a ~~rst, e.g. sinusoidal, fxe~~..ency, the alrlplitaxde earl be det~rrr~ix~ed 'oy using tixrlixlg siga~ats ~~~. ~~i~;. ~ ~ to sample tt~e ~ol~~age at a tixr:~, I~.~odv-a to co~espond to the ~~ealc voltage i~z the cycle, u.;irag a ~xsi s~rx~a~le~~ ~~~i and sad~pling at a second poilxt in the cycle ~novr,~r~a to cox-~~apo~ci: to rl~e trough a.irlg a second sampler ~~~. 'i'l1e salmpled ~a~~ad ire'=d) peak and ~roug'~ ~rcltages ca l be prc~~ide~~s tc a~
dis=fexential axnyla sex ~1~, ?o the output of w~~ici~ 6l2 is x-e'=_ated ro 3.:im c~~-~ducaanee.. i~oxe precisely spear{ing, tlxe oivtp~t ~i~ ~raill xepxeserlt the ~ of lie circuit. ~~ ~c~ ge-aI, ~ -is a r~r~ asvre of the arxlola w o°exlergy liSss 121 ar3. ~SC~:ilatcr. fix:. a '~~'el~:~eCt ~SCL~~~~.t~~s. CirClllt, ~ke~'e '1~;.'c~:.~~d. ',,Oe r1.~5 ~CY'ta,3"gy less ((glee started, the circuit ~volrid cscil'~_ate forever j arlc'~. tile ~ vaiu:e ~{~rouid be ixlfrlxite. ?rl a real circuit, the ~nlplitude of oscillat~~ox~s will dixninis3l and ~ is a ~,leaslzxe of tll~~ rate a-~ wilieh tile ~5 ~rnplitalde dixrlilzishes. in anotl~g:,r e~~lbodivrrel~t, data relatirlp~
t:~ changes ixl frec~~~xeracy as a 3~i12Ctlorl ~~ Ca"saYlgeS Irl ~ ara:, ?_~~°',~y ~e~ ~~i.' C~'J2'1'ClateC~ ~,%Jlt~l C'.ata l~2diCatl'~e ~f tal?4S f~sWtl~rllal relationship for' vax-iolls types of coins or order ob~ects~.
~n one exrlbodirrlent, ti=a invention ixlwoa >es cclblbixlixrg two or rxao~re fre:i~rer~cies on ox8e core by phase-ioclcing all t~~e fxeqllwlmies to yixe sa~g~e rPferel'IC,e.
i3ecause tile ~e~guencies 3o axe phase-locl~ed t~ each other, tile ixltexferexace effect of oils fx-edlrexlcy on sine others becorl~es a c~~~rrron-rxlcde signal, which is rexnoG-ed, e.g., ~~rith a differc;~_ti~l axslpli~el-.
In one e~nbodi~nent, a coin dlsc:~in~i~~atvor~ apparatus and ~~e~.:~od as ;provided in ~~rl~ich an oscillating elec3rorrtagnetgc field is generated or a single sensirr.g core:. ~'he oscillating eleetroanagnetic field is co;~ so:9ed ~8~ one or rr~ore E-eq~eny co~~yoa~e~ts.
rl'he elcctrornagnetic field interacts ~n~~th a coix3, arid these interaet:ons are r~non:itored and used to classify the coPn according to ia~s physical ~~ro~e~ties. X11 frequency components of the magnetic Held are phase-loc?ce c to a corru~~o~~ r~;fererce frequency. ~'he phase relationships be3vveen the various l~eq~aenc~e~ are fixed, a:ad tae interaction of ea:~,li frequency ';o~~~o~~ent vv~itr she coin can be accurately dete~-rr~i:~~e~~ v~r~~tbs)ut the need 1°or corr~~licated electrical f~~~~ers or s~ecla~ geornetrac shal3lr°ag :~1 lie ser:.y~ug cope. lI~ o~~e ernJCBd~~nen~y a sensor ha~i~r:g a core, preferably ~el'r~ ~e, '~~It~lcl? IS E~7.i:vled ~~r ~tiner"a~IFSi:: Y3~r~.-lanearj., s'~iCi~ Z~a lip a ~-slza~3e (fir drk $he shape of a section of a ton~:~, and defi~~Fng a gap, is prowlded v~ith a wire ~vir~ding for exci~~ation and/or detection. '?'"he serraor carp ~e .rsed fox siv~n~.~ltaneously obtaining data rela$Ang to CIO ~r more ~Jarar~eterS ~3f ~. ~~iY3 or ~~lRex ob~eCt, S~iCI~ aS
s~2e and Con~LI~tIVIty Ebf the object. ~'vr:~ or ~~ore frequencies c~~: be ~~~sed lo sense core a~rd,~o.~
cladding lsro,pe:~les.
In the ernbodient depicted ire pigs. ~~4.~-~~, the apq~arat~a.s can be constructed ~sir~g parts mhic~~~ are all c~.~rrer~tly readily available and relatively lo~Hr ~;~sr:. ~s vain be ap_~arent to those ot'' skill in the art, other circuits ~_~ay ~e coaWgured for perfor~:zaing 1°anctiozs useful i=~
discri~ina~~ing coins using i~~e sensor of 1~rgs. ;?-~. Borne o:r~~odi~e~rts rt~.ay '~3e r~sefr~l to select co'~~onerats to n~~nirr~a~e the e~'ects of ~:ern~erat~are, drift, etc.
irk some siati.~ns, 2o particularly high vola~~ne s~~~arions, soxn~~ or gull of the carcu~rby may be provided in an integrated fashion such as bei~~g provided ors an ap~licat~or~ s~ecil~c integrated circuit ~~.~1~>,. l~A sorrae ern'oodirr~e~g~a at ~~~ay ~e desixahle to switch f~ae re:.ative roles of t~ze square mave ~~3 and triangle ~rvave ~~~~. hot ;,xa~-n~le, rather than ol~ta~~~i~~g a sample pulse based on a square v~ave slgr;al ~~3, a ~,_xc~it cori'~d be ~~se~~ whgch ~,vould ~x.ovrde a pulse xe-erence that 25 'would go directly to the analog s~vitcb. ~~~ri;:~~out needing are edge detect).. ~e square vJave would'oe ~~sed to generate a triangular w~a,~e.
'~'he Abase locked Ioo~ circuit described above uses a ~~ery high theoretically infinite]
l~~ gain such as about 10f dl3 ox roots on ~~e f4:edback pant, so as no maintain a very small phase error. lz~ sorr~e siiuatior~s this rn~ay lead to difficulty in achieving phase lock r p, upon 30 initiating tl~e circuits and thus it ~raay -de delis able to relax, sorne~vhat, the small phase error requirerr~errts ir"~ order to achaev~e initial phase loc~.~ up ~~aore re~.dily.
~Itire~gla the err~l~~C~iz~EetsE ol' i ids. ~I~-8~' prfsvides f~;~- t~vv frequencies, it is possible to deSlgn a deteCt~3r rlSFng three or ix'~~vre ~r'q'~tera,CteS, e..~ . ~~
~rO~V~U.e l~r 3~se'; eY Cd3~r1 d ~ SCrIrYilY9atf on.
Addftio~ally, rafher thane providing two ~~ r~~~re diss;Yete frequencies, the a~paratlxs could iae co~Fy~.~red to sv~eep o~- "chdrp" tt~rc~Y~gl-. a fres~uer~cy rampage. In one e~c~dienc, ors order to achieve swept-li-eq~e~-~cy data it ~~r~~ald ~e useful co provide ar°. extrerneiy rapid frequency sweep ~s~ 'that a c~iY~ does _aot remove a large distance durirgg tl~e: tune rc°quired ~:er the frequency tc svveep~ or to r~~aintair~ ttze c~i.~ statier~ary d~zri.~~g she frequency stveep.
In s~rr°~e err~hodirr~e.~zs i~. place of or in additio3~. to analyzing values ~htai.xe;d at a 9o single tirr$e ~tl '~ig. >'~ t~ characterize c~~i~~s ~~ otl~.er ohects, it nay be usei~~l tc~ ease data iiom a ~~ay-iety of' dii'_'ererit tunes to devei~p a ~~ 'crs. -profile or 1J vs. ~
p rofiFe ~a:~ahere t represents time) f~r detected oi~jeets. her e~arnple, it is believed ti~at larger dins such as quarters, tend to result in a C~ vs. t pro ale ~ui~ich is ratter, compared to a ~ ;rs, t pr~~le, tl''uan the profile for srr~aaller coins . It is believed spat s~~:~~e, _costly syrnYne~rnc;
wa~~~ef~rms have dips ifi~ thwJ middle ~,~ due; to an 6'an~~:.biar"' ø.:ype coin a,~i~cre tl~~; ~~ o tY.-~e ar~r~er radius ~fi ~=eye ~~oin ~s dgffere~~t fr~rra the ~ of the o~zter annulus. It is relieved t gar, is~ so~~ge cases, ha:~~a orj th.e leading and trailing edges of the ~ ~srave~'orms i~.ay ~;e related ~o tl~e rvrr of the coin or tl-~e tlaiC~.ness ~1'plating or ian~inati~r~~ near 'the ring oe'ti~e ~~,oi~~.
In souse ern~~diment=YY tl~e o~~t~~u~~ data is i~'~fluenced d~j :-elatively small-scale coin ~0 CharaCterlStICS S'~TC~ aS plat~°.15,= t~l~CeCnc;SS or S~rfaCC;
r°l~el. i3". S~?I~2 C~IC~~Y2'°~St~nCeS ~t 'dS
believed that surface relief in~csra~a'~ior~ carp ~e used, c.g.., t~
~arnga~isl-~ the face cf tee coin, ~$C3 C'~»2St~ng~$1S1"a ~'a?e~dS" ~if5ii~ e~tc'~iIS"~ r~'~5 .~''~'n~Stl'3'Sg'c~lS~ old CO?f1s ~Y'~t'4'T rle"~iN C;oEnS oi'L9T'C SaYr2e de~aorninat~or~ and the like. ~n order to prevent rotati~nal ~~se~,!:atic~n of the coin from ir~terferi~~.g ~rvith pr~per surface relief analysis, it is preferable ~~o construct senscars to pr~vide 25 data ~vhic~a is averaged over a~~na~lar regions suci~ as a ~-adially syrnrnetric sears~r or array of sensors configured tQ provide data averaged in annular regions Centered ~n the coin face ce.Yre~.
~lthougl~ dig. 5 depicts one .~asl~io~~ of d~~tainir~g a signal rebated tc: ~, ~tl~~e:~; circ~~its carp also be eased. ~r~ the err~l~~dimef~t depicted in dig. ~, a si~~s~soTdal ~a~ltage is applied tc tl~e so sensor C~il 22~, e.g., using at oscillato<. 11 Off. u'he ~,vaveforrt~ of the curre:r~t ire t~e coil ~2t3, ~.vill he affected lay the presence of a covr~ or ::ether ol?~ect adjacent vhe gap ~i~i, 31~, as described above. ~iI'i'erer~t phase co~np~a~er~ts of the ~esultia~g c~~~-rer~t wave for- cad be used to obtaid data related to i~~d~ctancP ar#d ~'~ aes;~~ectivet~. rru the depicted ebodir~-~erzt, the c~-.°-ea~t in tt~e coil 22~ is deco~~r~ose;d i_~tc at -least tb~ro ~dornpo~~e~~cs, a first component wl~icl~
is id-phase with the autpt~t oi' robe osci3~ator i IO~,., and a second compodedt which is delayed by 9C degrees; with respect t~.3 tl~e ~;utpat ol' the oscillator t 132..
'I'hese r°o~npo~~;a~cs c~z~ be obtained basing phase-sensitive; anap~iliev.s ? l~=I, I It3C sa~ctr as ~_~
pl~.asc locl~ed loop device and, as deeded, a phase shift oz defy device of a type well l~-~~w~~ in tl~e art.
'~~e im-phase cordpodent is related to ~, ar_d r'~~e ~~ cieg~~.e taggidg codzpo7Hcnt is y~elatect to idd~actadce. rn ode erz~bodid~ent, tl=e odtpvt ~-~~a~~ tre pd~se d~:;crtd~id~tors ~ I~~~~, IIc~C~, Es dig3~,~:~ed by ad ~o adalog-to-digital converter i I ~~, add processed bsr a dacroprocessof s.I
I~. Id ~r~e iplernedtati~~.~ of thus tecl~diq~e, r~~e~s~re~~cr°~ts are to%ed et mawy f:requedcies. ~~cl~
frequealcy drives a :esistc~r co=~dected t~t~v coil. 'I'be other w~~d ~~:f the coil is gro~~dded, t~or each freq~er~cy, there is ~ dedicated "receiver'' that detects tlae I a:~~d ~
sigdafs. ~is.er~ati~~ely, ii a possible to analyze aP.l ireq~e~:c~.es sir~mlt~~oeo~=sly by <~~-nploJ~ing, e.g., ~ 9<~st courier ~~ tiadsfo(I~I~ ~'~ ire ~Iae icr~ ~,.~ocusso~. Ire an~~tlmr ed~bo~ligrier°bt, it a possible to ~~se ad ~~ed~r~ce analyzer t~ read t~'=v ~ (r ''?oss tar~ge,-mt°'~ add idd~~cva.~ce :~f ~ col.
td adotller eiI'"~43(9di~3~.~t, '~~.:p~~t~:C? i~'1 dig. Ij, 1~7-~l'J~"Ir~~~tl~Yl regaY~'dl~ig ~~'~'PG' ~o~T3 parameters is obtained by rising the ses;sor i~I2 as ad idddcto~- id aF~ f.~~
oscillator t~~2. fit d~mbex of types of '.~~, oscillators cad be v~sEVd as grill be apyrer~t to those of slC~-~i. id tk~e a~-t, ~o aft~;r ~nderstandidg tl~e preser~~t disclos 7~r~,. ~It~o~gh ~ tra~~sistor I~d4 p.'s been depicted, other amplifiers such as op ~h~ps, cad be ~.~srd i~~ different ~c~:~iig~r~tiods. l~~E ti,e depicted err~bodirr~e~:~t, the sensor I2I~ iias'oeed dep~crcd ~a ad indictor, sE~ce presence of a coin in tt~e vicidity of the sedsor gap wilt affect fihe idci~actarace. ~in,ce the r,:.sodarat f~-eq~aedc~ ~f the oscillator I202 is related to the effective i~~~ddcia~~ce (freqdea~cy v~;.ries as (I/IJ~-~~e as the 2~ diad~eter of the cold idcreases, the freq~~edcy oftne oscillato~-i~~creases. The amplitude of the 1~~; in the resod~a~t I_,~ cigc~~it, is affect~;d by tl~e codddctivity of ols~e,cts in the vicudity of the sedso~ gap. ~'he freqdedcy is ~iPtected by ~requer~c~ detector I~~~, a~~d b~
~~mplit~~de detector I2~r6, ~srng well t~z~own etecrcnics te,cl~~ic~~~es with the res~clts preferabty being digitized I2d~, a~~d processed by mic~-oprocesso~- a~-~. In one e,~~s;~d'pmea.;t tie oscillatio~u loop is 3Q cordpleted by amplifying the voltage, Easing a hard-lixditimg ~~~dplifier (sq~~are wa5~e o~atp~at~, which drives a resistor. ~:hanges id ths; agdi~gde of the idd~zcta~~ce cased tI°~e oscillatar~s fre~~icncy t~ change. ~s the dia~~etex cf ~~se test coiax ir4creases, the fxectue~~cy of the cscillatox q~rcrE;ases. I~s the c~ndn~,t~v:':y cf the test c~ir~ decreases, the amplitude of the A~
voltage and the tuned circuit gees do~~.,~~~. icy raving :~ ha> d~-ii~~axtcr, avc~ ha~i~~g a cuxxent-lirr0.iting resister that is rnucl2 larger tt~~an t;-~e rEs~na~at i~e~iance of thE; tua-aed e.i~:cl~:~it, the arn~litt~de of trm sigrai at trc resonant cfrc~it s~~bsta~tiaily r~c~,~.ira9:eiy indicates, ire inverse reiatio~si~i~, tlm ~ csf the c~~ciy~ctor.
!'~iti~~ngh cite ma~~e~- of anai~z~_::g t3 arid ~ sign-ups ~~sixag a x~icr~i;x~cesscs- is described abovE;, a micropxccessor caar uscJ t:~e data in a ~~urr~a~er cf other ~~ays. hlthough it ~.vc~ld be possible to use f~rar~nxas cr statistic at xegressi~T~~s to calculate oa- obtain the ~0 rl~.ir~lerlcal' ~aiLi'a'.S ~i~T' dla~iet'k'x (E;.g., '1r~ i2l~,~ieS~' ard~C'sx c~rl.C~°~9~E°.~;i~'~s:~ (e.g., lra 'f"r311~'rs~, :it is C~xlte3Tipiated tis'lat a IreCllterlt "~sC E7f t~a"au ~1'',SGrit Y.:~~,~ef~t3~I1 4i'7lda ~~:.', art ct)~1.'~E;Ct:~x~ i%crlt7 a C~?ra couxratex cr handler, which is i~rten~ied to 1~ da;3cxii~rate cc~ir~s fry, nom-cE~ir~ cb~ects, ~) Etyscx~.rrlnL~te d~~nes~L~c txorn fcaie~gn Col.'s Carfc~/or ~~ d~scr~~nar~C~fc c~~6, c~~~ dPa-Li~9xr~ii~at~on from anotnca. l~cccrd~r~giy, ~r~ ,iaE; vrnt;cc~~mle~F~, tsfe rn~c~c~xca..rassor ~opaxes the c~~axne=ex-~5 :3lC~~cat~igg C"tat~, arid C~3iE~'a~ cF'~~7t~1-I~dlh,~ti.'alg datc'9, ~~~~th stai.'d's~rd C~ata ~~~lcat~~le E3f co~ad~ctivit~r and diameter fc~x ~raxi~~s'c~E~~ax~ co us. ~lthoug3u. it ~voyuid be possiblE', to use the microprocessor to convex' detected data. tc stands rd diay:retex and ccx~ducti~rAtz~ vaia~~~es car units (such as incises or r~ghcs~., =nd cornpa~-e ~~riar~ data ~rhiE;h is st:~xed ire m~:~nory in standard values or un~tS, fns c~r~vexsr~s~~ step cap be avo~dE;d Jy s'torg~~g ~r.
n:~ean~ry, data c~:aaacter~st~c 20 ~f various coins in, the sar~r° ~.Yai~Eis ox uni~~~s as ti~P data ~-eceiv~==°d by the ~~:rcroprocessor. i~ox example, ~.~-her~a the detect~r cf i=ig. 5 ~n~ie;r ~ ~~utp~~ts ~raiue:s A~~.
tre range cf c. g., ~ tc~ ~-~
volts, the standard data characteristic ~~f va:cious '~cr~o~rvn coif's carp be converted, prior to storage, tc a scale of i3 to 5, arid stored ire that ferret so that the cornhaxisox~ can ~~e made directly, without an additioa~ai step ot'ccr~vexsior~.
2~ although in ox~c exr~bodimcnt i2: is pe~ssil~le to v se data frcr~~ a sixggle point ire tig~e9 such as ~ri~er~ the coin is centered ova the gap ? l ~, (as iudicate~d, e.g., by ~ relative rr~~~ima~rn, ex minimum, in a sigaxal~, ire ar°~ot'raex e~~~boc~imc~~: a plurality cf vairnE;s ox a continuous signal of the values obtained as the coin xueve z past ox tt~xougr the gap ~ 16 is prefE~rabiy used.
~n e~a~r~ple cf a singe poixat ~sF cc~~pa~iso~z fcr eac;l. ~f the in-phase aa~d delayed 3o detector, is depicted ir: ~'ig. l ~. in v~is ~iguze, star~daxd data (stored ire the Lonaputex~, indicates ties average ar~d~'or acc.°ptax~cc o= toicxa:~cc range of ire-phase amplitudes (indicative of condi~cti~it~), ~~~icia has beer fo~~~d to -Esc associated ~it~ ~CT.~.
i7e~r~ies, mickeys, dimes arid c~~zarters, respectiwei~ I302. ~~-ra is ai~o sto$-~,d, indicating ~3~e averagc and/or acceptance o:
tolerance range of values o~~-~9~~ ~y the ~0 despree delayed a:n~~i~t~~de detector 40~ (indica?-ive of d:~an~c;tei) assoC~ated wuth $~~e Su~~e ccyuns i31p4. I~referau~:y, the enb~elope or ~!~lerance ~s si~z'~ciently broad to lesser tl;e occr~rk~~~ncv ~;f f>~lse negative;
resa:~lt" (~~eich carp arise, e.g., fxom worn, misshapen, or dir ty coins, elcctr~t~ic noise, and tf s~,~c;, bait s~bff~cie~uti~ narrow to avoid false positive results, and tc~ a~~rold ox- reduce substaruial overlap of the er;meiopes of two or fz~ore curves (in order to pa-o.:dhde f~,r ~iscrimir~;~~io~?. bct~reca der~o~~a~r~atio~~s).
Altl~ongh, in tl~e f~g~xres, the data svored In t'~e computer is siao~~r~ fn graphical for.~r~, for the iC Sal6e ~i clc'~rlt~ <'3$ dISCICSS~irv, ;,%~"'~,_y;~Y~~ ta;f; data 'vV~y~
bC', StC7red lie d'agltal f~~2~ 1T~ a rI~53m~ry, E.n a Ynanner well-known in tl~e co-nap~~ztcr art. In the embodir~~ent ~n ~.v~ich only a sir~glc ~~al~.~e is used for discrirni~aation, the digitiae.d si~~gie in-pxdase aYnplitud.c;
value, w-a~~ch is detected for a particular coin (in this exarnp:a.e, r~ ~~ah~~;of .~.~) ~scalcd to a rar~g~, o.'' 0 to :~ and digitised), is co~~rpared to the sta~~dard in-pl~~se data, and the vai~~c of 3. ~ is oound (u sing p-cog~:arnrr~ir~g ;5 tvct~niq~cs =~no~vn in t?~~e art) t~~'~e comsls~e,~~t with either a quaYtcY
or a dime 130. ~irY~iiarly, fhe ~0-degree dclay~ed arnplit~~.de, ~ral~~c ~,vl~rci-~ is detected ii~r t'~~is same coin l 310 (ire this example, a value of l.0), is ~,omparc d to the standard i,~-phase data., and the value of l.0 is f~~and to be consistent with eirhe~- a perar~J- or a dr~~e l~I~. 'f~~~us, aiLho~~g~~ each test n7~ itself would yield am~sigue~us re,sv~7ts, since tic sir~glc detector provides ir~~~rmation on two 20 parameters (one related to Chi CI~J.ct~~llt~ a~_t~ ~Snc related t~u i~~~.rr_v~er), t~ti, t~lSCr~1'Yl".rdc~~~9?& ad?
be made c~narr~big~xoazsl~~ si~;:ace there is only one denomir~atjo~~ (dime) 1314 which is co~~sistent with both the conducti~ait~ data ~nd the, dian~ctcr da.t~~.
~s ~aotcd, rather Thai_ ~ai~gg sir~gie-pint coYnparisons, ii is p~ssf~~e to use rr~.ul~iple data points (or a continrcoaas cc~r~~e) generated as -tie coin rr~o~~~;s -,~;~si: or throa~gh the oap ~1~, 25 31~. l''rofilcs of da to of this ayp,~ ca~~ <<~e as~~d i~r sevøral diff~;re,r~t ~ra~s. .,'~n the ~:xa~~pie of ~~ig. ?4, a plurality of l~now~~ denominatgor~s o-f coins are stmt tl-~rotagh ~:he discriminating de~rice in order to accumulate standard data profiles for each of t.~~c der~orr~i~aation;~ i402a, b, c, d, f404a, -~, c, d. these. Q:e,prescnt isre av~wrage change ~:= outpost i~o~n. t~~e 3n-pi~ase amplitude detector 2 t04 and a ~0-degree delay c~aetector for (shoe: on the werticai axes) 1403 30 and acccp>:ancc ranges or toicrar~ces i4i~ as the ~;oins move pest ~~e detector ove~~ a period of time, (shown on the, horizontal axis). In order to discriminate an urlkcr~own coin or other object, the object is passed thr~r~gh sr across tl~e detector, and each o~ the in-phase apiit~ade detector l I04 a~~d ~0-degree delayed ar~-gp:it~~ade ~.tetector 1 IOE~, respecti~~e$y, prod:.ce a curve or pr~r'~i4e ~0~, i4I0, respc;ciively. 'n ri~c ewbodin°ent df:pie,ted in Fig. ~, ~~e in-phase prof~ie 1~0e~ generated as a coin passes the, actector 2i~, is cox~p~red to the various standard o proti.les foe- di~fere~at coins 3l.Oca, l~!n~-~, s~;s0~yc, 1~~02d.
~'~:_~~ariso~ c;a~~ be jade in a number o~ ways. fn or3e ep~~~odi~er~r, the data is scaled s~~ that a horizontal axis bet~aeera initial and ~'inai threshold valises l~rOGa equals a standard ti~~~e, :nor better rrnatchix~g ~aaith the standard vales I402a throug.v. i40~d. a'a~e profile s~gown is~ ! 40F is then a~m~pa~-ed vaith standard profiles stored in ~~~Fy=ivory 4~~a thr~~~~;b 1~0'~d, to ~~et~,~-i~~e wi~~ether ~~he detected 1o profgle is ~r;~itlri~~ the acceptabte envelopes derzcd in any of t)c~~~
carafes 1 ~02a through 1402d.
~n~ther method is to calculate a closc;ness of' gist parannete- using well l~~ovvn curve-fitting techniques, and select a derzo~snatio~ or several der~orr~ina~ions, w'~ich arfost closely fit the sensed proliie i~05. Mill ~r~~~~ø-~er r~et~od a to select ~z pluraiaty cl~
pontc~ at predete~-rnined sealed) intervals along the tlv~e a~:is 1~~0e~a ~l~'r0~a, b, c, d~ ~~n~l compare these ~~anues v~ith ?5 corresponding ti.nc points for eacz~ o~ tt~e den~Yrnxnations. ~_n "=._leis case, orgy the standard values and tolerances or envelopes at s~~ci~ oYCdeterTrr~ii~~ed tidies needs to be stored ire the computer ~~err~o_~-y. ~,Jsing a3~y or a~_l these Methods, the conr~par3son o~the sensed data 1~0~, vrith the stored standard data '=_.~02a tyro-_~gh 1~~02d ndicat~;s, c~ t'r~is example, that the i~~-phase scr~sed data is most i~~ accord: wi'h urar~dar~~l data nor quarters or di~~.Ps -~40~. _-~~ sirf~ilar 2o comparison of the ~0-degr°e delayed date l~.l~~ to stored standard ~0-degree delayed data (2404a thro~zgh 1~0~d~, indic~.tes Chap: tb~; sensc;d coin was either a penny or ~ dines. f~~s ~~e~'ore, using both these -results, i~: is passable to de'cer~ni~~e that the coin was a dune 1~~04.
In o:~e ~:,rnbodirr~ent, t~.se in-phase ar~d o~xt-of i~:ase data ire co~~a-e:aated tr p-ovide a table or graph o~ in-phase arrarlltude verse~rs ~0-de,gree deray~:~
arr~plitude ~~r the sensed coin 2~ ~simirar to the ~ versus ~3 data depicted ire ,~~gs i01~ and I01~~, vrl~ich carp then be compared ~ri~~ standard in-phase versus delayed proFZles d~tainecl for ~~arioirs coin de,norz~irrations in a rnanraer sirniiar to that discussed abo~~e kr~ connection with Figs IOC ~,nd lfll~.
~itl~o~.gh coin accepta3dce region's are depicted (Figs. :~.Oln, 10~~ as rectangular, they ~-r~ay have any shape.
30 ~n both the con~gvr~ti=~r~ of ~"ig. 2 and t~~~; co~~~'ig~aratisz~~ ov Figs.
3 arid 4, the presence Lf the coin affects the magnetic '.geld. t7 is herieJed that in sor:re cases, eddy currents flowing in the coin, result in a smaller andt~ctanc~, as the coin dianmter is larger, and also result in a io~vcx ~ of the inductor, as the c;o~ada~eti~ity of t~~ coin is ~o~ex. !~s a.
result, data obtained from either the sensor of 11 igs. 2~, and 21..-'~, ox the sensor of h:y-s. 3 a~~d 4, ~r~.n be gathered and analyzed by the apparatus depicted in 1~ igs. 5 and ts, even though the detected changes in the configuration of digs. 3 anti 4. will ~~pi~a?iy ~e sntallex tluarl too changes detected in the configuration of digs. 2~ and 2~.
Although certain sensor shapes ha°~~o be~:n described ~=Herein; the techniques disclosed fox a~plyiug multiple i'~cqt~cn~;ios pan ~~ single c;~x~ cov~ld he applied to and of ~ mambo>- of S2i'~SGr ShxpeS, ~r other 'I1C~~.5 CSf iL9xt'nlug irn '.ud'~.lCt6'~~ t~
a~~byct a a~lri t~ air a~tf~x%i~'~lng 1o magnetic field.
l~lthottgh an en~bodifa'=e~~t d~sct~ib~d above provides ~v~o l-~C;
freqt~~er~cios to a sir-glo sensor core at the same tune, o~l~cr apprc~~~:~r~s axe possi'ole. one approacl;~ is a ti:4~e division approach, in which different frequencies are generated during different, small time periods, as the coin =shoves past tl~e se_~sor. This appxoa~:Ya pr~scnts ~:iae dif ~culty of cox .rolling the ~~ oscillator lo a ''time-slice" fa.swio~~, ar:~l correlating time; periods ~ritl~ freqx~en~ies for achieving the desired analysis. E~nother poteraial problem with lime-multiplexing is the inherent time it takes to accurately measure ~ in a resonant vixe;~:LriE:. The higher tl~o ~, the longer it tales fox the oscillator's amplitude to settle to a stable ~:ralu~,.
This will 'ii~rnit the <ate of switching and ultimately the coin throughput. In another en~bodirient, t~F~o separate sensor ~o cores (11~~ a,b hig. llt~~ caE.'oe provided, each with its o~%~n e~rix~ding ll~i4a, b and each driven at a different f~vq~~n~;r 114dav, ~. This approat;h has nor only the advantage of reducing ex avoiding harmonic interference, but provides the opportunity of optimizing the core materials ox shape to p_-o~ride dhe Host a-esvlts at tl~~, lgvaquency for ~~ltich ~~;~at core is designed. ~~hen two ox morn ~x~quonci~s ire t~s~a~l, analysis e~v tree data ca~r.'bo sia~~.ilar to that 25 described a'oove, with different sets of standard. or reference data -being provided for each frequency. ~n one en~bodimo~~t, ynultiple .ores, such as the ~~o cores 114'~a, b of ~'ig. 1A, along the coin path l l~~ are ~~rive~~ by different i-roquencies 1 i~~a; b that are phase-locked 1152a, b to the same roferei~~e. 115, such as a ~~rystal or other- reference oscillator. tn one embodiment, the oscillators l . ~~a, b that provide the c;oxe driving f~oquor~ci~s 1 t4~a, b are 3o phase-locked by varactor tuning (e.g. as des~riba~d abo~m~ tlzc oscillators l 154a, lie using -.the sensing inductor 1154 a, b as part of the frequency determination.
_~1..
in one embodiment, a sensor inciudes first and second ferrite cores, each substantially in the shape of a secvion o~f ~ ~o~us GBGa, ~ (dig. ~I3), said first core defyning a first gap ~8~a, arid said second core defining a .secon:~ gap ~8~~~, said cores positioned zvi~::n said gaps aligned ~8~ so that a coin conveyed by said counting device ~~ill rr~o~e through said first and second gaps; at least first and second roils 288a, b of corr~ducti~~e material wound about a :~~rst portion of each of said f'arsc and seco~W cores, respvcti~ely; an oscillator ~q~ a covapled to said ~~rst coil 288a configured to ~rov:ide cL~rre~~t defg ing at leash a ~rs~: ii-eq~aency defining a first sl~i~a depth less than said cladding thickness and s~therein, when a coin is conveyed past said first gap 282x, the signal in said coil r.~ndergoes at least a first ci~a~~ge in inductance arid a change ~ c~ in the duality factor of said inductor, an oscillator 292b coupled to said second coil 288b configured t~ provide c~~rren~ defining at least a second f~e~uenc.~ defining a second skin depth greater than said first skin depth wherein, when said coin is canveyed past said second gals 28~~b, the signal in said coil und~:,~rgoes at least a second change in inductance acrd a second change in the dualitz~ factor ~~i' said i~xda~ctor; anti a k7rocessor :~94 co3.~figured to ~o receive data indicative of said z~at and sevoa~,d ~,hanges in inductance and changes in quality factor to permit separate characterisation of said cladding and said core.
in another en~bodimer~~9 cur:reni: pr~oFt~idec to tl=a coil i;..a substantially constant or ~~
current. 'his configuration is usefui. for c~~etectir~rnabnetic (fera~o~agnetic) v. no:r~-magnetic coins. t~s the coin moves 3.hroa~gh or fast the gasp, there will be edey current effects, as .well 2o as permeability effects. As discussed above, -these effects, can be used to obtain, e.g., inf'~rra~ation regarding condvc~i~~ity, such as core cond~ctiasi-~,y.
'~~i~~us, ire this configuration such. a sensor can provide n~-t oniy i.nfo~n~atior~ about the ~errornagneti~;
or r~oar~-r~agne'Lic nature of the coin, but also rega r ding the conductivity. Such a coxrfiguration can be combined ~rith a high-frequency (si~in c;ffect) excitations of the core and, since there would be no lo~.~r-~~ frequency (and thus no low-:i°ze~aency ha~rao~Zics) interfere~.c:e p~~obler~~s should L~e avoided.
~t is also possible to use two (or more) corps, one driven with ~C, and another with ~°~~. A he ~~-driven sensor provides another parameter for discrimination (permeability).
I~errneabiiity easurerner~'~ can be useful in, for example, discriminating betvsree~~ IJ.S.
coins and certain foreign coins or slr~gs. preferably, computer ;cHocessing is performed in order to remove 30 "speed effects."
_~~_ ~l~ho~.~~h ~l~e i~zvents~~ leas been dnscrihed h~ gray of a pre~'e~-red emhod=v~en~ and ceri;ain variations end anodi~~~~~~ions, other ~~aria.tions and ~~iiAaations r:~n also he used, the inventicF: being defined b~ t~~, ieilowi~y ul~i~ns.
Claims (7)
1. A method usable for discriminating among coins,comprising the steps of:
providing at least a first sensor having a first magnetic core which is non-linear over at least a portion thereof, said first core defining a first gap to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
coupling said sensor in an oscillator circuit, detecting the change in the inductance of said sensor as said coins move past said first gap for deriving sizes of said coins; and detecting the change in Q of the inductance of said sensor as said coins move past said first gap for deriving conductivity of said coins.
providing at least a first sensor having a first magnetic core which is non-linear over at least a portion thereof, said first core defining a first gap to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
coupling said sensor in an oscillator circuit, detecting the change in the inductance of said sensor as said coins move past said first gap for deriving sizes of said coins; and detecting the change in Q of the inductance of said sensor as said coins move past said first gap for deriving conductivity of said coins.
2. Apparatus usable for discriminating among coins and other discrete objects, comprising:
a sensor having a first integral magnetic core, said first core having first and second substantially opposed end faces defining a first gap; to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
first circuitry which initiates at least a first action in response to discrimination of an object using said sensor; and at least a first communications link coupling said sensor to said first circuitry to provide an output signal from said sensor to said first circuitry.
a sensor having a first integral magnetic core, said first core having first and second substantially opposed end faces defining a first gap; to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
first circuitry which initiates at least a first action in response to discrimination of an object using said sensor; and at least a first communications link coupling said sensor to said first circuitry to provide an output signal from said sensor to said first circuitry.
3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, further comprising:
at least a first conductive coil coupled to said first core.
at least a first conductive coil coupled to said first core.
4. Apparatus usable for discriminating among coins and other discrete objects, comprising:
a sensor having a first integral magnetic core, said first core having first and second end faces substantially coplanar and space apart;
first and second coplanar end plates, coupled to said first and second end faces, said find and second end plates having opposed edges defining a first gap, to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
first circuitry which initiates at least a first action in response to discrimination of an object using said sensor; and at least a first communication link coupling said sensor to said first circuitry to provide an output signal from said sensor to said first circuitry.
a sensor having a first integral magnetic core, said first core having first and second end faces substantially coplanar and space apart;
first and second coplanar end plates, coupled to said first and second end faces, said find and second end plates having opposed edges defining a first gap, to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
first circuitry which initiates at least a first action in response to discrimination of an object using said sensor; and at least a first communication link coupling said sensor to said first circuitry to provide an output signal from said sensor to said first circuitry.
5. Apparatus usable for coin sorting, comprising:
means for defining at least a first magnetic field and outputting at least a first signal related to at least first and second different parameters of said coin, wherein both said first and second parameters are detected by said sensor means substantially simultaneously; and signal processing means for receiving at least said first signal and outputting first information related to said first parameter and second information related to said second parameter.
means for defining at least a first magnetic field and outputting at least a first signal related to at least first and second different parameters of said coin, wherein both said first and second parameters are detected by said sensor means substantially simultaneously; and signal processing means for receiving at least said first signal and outputting first information related to said first parameter and second information related to said second parameter.
6. Apparatus usable for coin sorting, comprising:
sensor means for defining at least a first magnetic field and outputting at least a first signal related to at least first and second different parameters of said coin, wherein both said first and second parameters are detected by said sensor substantially without the need for moving said coin from a first to a second location; and signal processing means for receiving at least said first signal and outputting first information related to said first parameter and second information related to said-second parameter.
sensor means for defining at least a first magnetic field and outputting at least a first signal related to at least first and second different parameters of said coin, wherein both said first and second parameters are detected by said sensor substantially without the need for moving said coin from a first to a second location; and signal processing means for receiving at least said first signal and outputting first information related to said first parameter and second information related to said-second parameter.
7. A method usable for discriminating among coins and other discrete objects, comprising the steps of:
providing at least a first sensor having a first magnetic core which is non-linear over at least a portion thereof, said first core defining a first gap to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
providing a first periodic reference signal;
providing a first periodic waveform to induce a magnetic flux on said first magnetic core; and wherein said first periodic waveform is phase-locked to said reference signal.
providing at least a first sensor having a first magnetic core which is non-linear over at least a portion thereof, said first core defining a first gap to define magnetic flux lines in the vicinity of said first gap;
providing a first periodic reference signal;
providing a first periodic waveform to induce a magnetic flux on said first magnetic core; and wherein said first periodic waveform is phase-locked to said reference signal.
Applications Claiming Priority (5)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| US67263996A | 1996-06-28 | 1996-06-28 | |
| US08/672,639 | 1996-06-28 | ||
| US80704697A | 1997-02-24 | 1997-02-24 | |
| US08/807,046 | 1997-02-24 | ||
| CA002259234A CA2259234C (en) | 1996-06-28 | 1997-06-27 | Coin discrimination apparatus and method |
Related Parent Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002259234A Division CA2259234C (en) | 1996-06-28 | 1997-06-27 | Coin discrimination apparatus and method |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2426293A1 true CA2426293A1 (en) | 1998-01-08 |
| CA2426293C CA2426293C (en) | 2013-02-19 |
Family
ID=27170913
Family Applications (3)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA2426411A Expired - Lifetime CA2426411C (en) | 1996-06-28 | 1997-06-27 | Coin discrimination apparatus and method |
| CA2426293A Expired - Lifetime CA2426293C (en) | 1996-06-28 | 1997-06-27 | Coin discrimination apparatus and method |
| CA002426462A Expired - Lifetime CA2426462C (en) | 1996-06-28 | 1997-06-27 | Coin transporter |
Family Applications Before (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA2426411A Expired - Lifetime CA2426411C (en) | 1996-06-28 | 1997-06-27 | Coin discrimination apparatus and method |
Family Applications After (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002426462A Expired - Lifetime CA2426462C (en) | 1996-06-28 | 1997-06-27 | Coin transporter |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (3) | CA2426411C (en) |
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN114651291A (en) * | 2019-11-12 | 2022-06-21 | 埃沃咖股份公司 | Cup dispenser for beverage vending machine |
Families Citing this family (4)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US9036890B2 (en) | 2012-06-05 | 2015-05-19 | Outerwall Inc. | Optical coin discrimination systems and methods for use with consumer-operated kiosks and the like |
| US8967361B2 (en) | 2013-02-27 | 2015-03-03 | Outerwall Inc. | Coin counting and sorting machines |
| US9022841B2 (en) | 2013-05-08 | 2015-05-05 | Outerwall Inc. | Coin counting and/or sorting machines and associated systems and methods |
| US9443367B2 (en) | 2014-01-17 | 2016-09-13 | Outerwall Inc. | Digital image coin discrimination for use with consumer-operated kiosks and the like |
-
1997
- 1997-06-27 CA CA2426411A patent/CA2426411C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1997-06-27 CA CA2426293A patent/CA2426293C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
- 1997-06-27 CA CA002426462A patent/CA2426462C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN114651291A (en) * | 2019-11-12 | 2022-06-21 | 埃沃咖股份公司 | Cup dispenser for beverage vending machine |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| CA2426462A1 (en) | 1998-01-08 |
| CA2426411C (en) | 2013-04-16 |
| CA2426411A1 (en) | 1998-01-08 |
| CA2426293C (en) | 2013-02-19 |
| CA2426462C (en) | 2004-11-02 |
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