EP2859538B1 - Method and apparatus for processing value documents - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method and a device for processing value documents, in particular removal of value documents from value document containers by means of a gripper.

For receiving banknotes, containers are used in which the value documents, in particular banknotes, are present as separate units. In this case, separate units are to be understood as meaning an amount of at least one banknote or more that is assigned to a specific person, an account, a settlement unit, and so on. In addition, the units can include not only banknotes but also checks, vouchers or other documents of value. For example, the separate units may be formed from separate deposits. The separate deposits are prepared for processing before being processed with a bank note processing machine and filled into containers. For this purpose, in particular data or information of the deposit are recorded and made available for the processing of the bank note processing machine. The data may include information about the depositor, an account number, the amount and value of the banknotes forming the deposit, a unique transaction number, and so on. In order to enable uninterrupted processing by the bank note processing machine, the deposits are made e.g. separated by header cards or separation cards inserted between different deposits. The bank note processing machine recognizes these header cards or separation cards and thus also the beginning of a new deposit.

For the separation of different stacks of value documents it is from the DE102009042891 A1 known to use separators, through which a container can be flexibly divided into several storage areas for value documents. One or more value document stacks of loose value documents are inserted into the containers which are open on one side. In order to remove the value documents, the container is usually arranged so that its open side points upward and the value documents in the container stand on their longitudinal edges. Both the inner wall of the container and the separating elements advantageously have a meandering surface of a plurality of projections and recesses on their sides facing the value document surfaces. In order to remove the value-document stack automatically from the container by means of a gripper, a gripper with several gripper fingers can be inserted, which dive into the recesses of the meander-shaped surface from above. For example, the gripper has two rake-type gripping members made up of a plurality of gripper fingers that can be moved toward and away from one another to grasp the value-document stack securely and without risk of damage once the gripper fingers are vertically immersed in the recesses of the container. In this way, the desired value document stack can be gripped, removed from the container and stored away from the container or inserted into a device for value document processing.

The gripper is equipped with optical sensors, by which the light reflected from a reflection strip located at the bottom of the container can be detected. In order to determine at which positions in the container separating elements are present and whether value documents are contained between the separating elements of the container, the gripper is moved along the longitudinal direction of the container. On the basis of the respective detected sensor signal, the gripper can determine whether at the respective position of the container over which the gripper is currently located, the reflection strip is visible or whether it is covered by value documents or by a separating element. With the aid of the sensors, the gripper searches for the correct position for lowering the gripping elements. If he has found the right position, the gripping elements are lowered to remove the value document stack contained between the separating elements. After the first document of value stack has been removed from the container and transported away from the gripper, the gripper returns to the container to remove the next value document stack, etc.

In the previous removal of value document stacks, it is disadvantageous that the gripper must check after every value document stack to be removed whether and, if so, at which positions in the container the next value document stack to be removed is present, and that the gripper uses its sensors each time must seek correct position for lowering the gripper, since he can only recognize this when he is in the lowered position above the separating element. In this search of the next lowering position, the gripper must be moved relatively slowly over the container.

A further disadvantage of this sequential detection of the separating element positions is that possibly incorrect positioning of the separating elements is not revealed until during the emptying of a container. It can, for. For example, information about the contents of a container may report data for five deposits, but in reality only four retention areas exist. It may also happen that the distance of the separating elements has been chosen too large, so that the adjustment range of the gripping elements is exceeded and the stack can not be safely gripped. In sequential detection of Trennelementpositionen such errors are not discovered until the container already partially is emptied. A termination of the value document removal at this time is disadvantageous, since then a time-consuming manual capture and post-processing of the partially emptied container is required.

The object of the present invention is to accelerate the removal of value document stacks from valuable document containers.

This object is solved by the features of the independent claims. The dependent claims contain advantageous developments of the invention.

The value documents are provided in a container, which is open on one side and which is subdivided by dividing elements into a plurality of storage areas for value documents, which possibly contain value documents or not. To remove the value documents from the container, a gripper is used, which is designed for the removal of value documents contained in the container. The gripper is arranged so that it can insert a value document stack removed from the container into an input compartment of a value-document processing device. Since the separating element positions of different document containers can be different, it is determined for each container to be processed at which positions along the container the dividing elements are arranged. Determining the Trennelementpositionen is not done by the gripper itself, but already at an earlier date, regardless of the gripper, so without the aid of the gripper. The determination of the separating element positions of the container is carried out at a time before the gripper begins with the removal of the value documents from the container. The positions of the separating elements can thus be determined without the aid of sensors of the gripper. The determined Information about the separator position associated with the container is then communicated to a gripper control of the gripper which is configured to control the movement of the gripper. For removal of documents of value from the container, the gripper control controls the gripper according to the previously transmitted information about the separating element positions such that the gripper is positioned at a lowered position above the respective separating element and lowered from the lowered position into the container to value documents from the container remove.

In particular, the determination of the separating element positions of the container is carried out at a point in time before the gripper is moved towards this container in order to remove documents of value from this container. In particular, the transmission of the information about the separating element positions of the container to the gripper control is also carried out before the gripper is moved towards this container in order to remove documents of value from this container. The gripper control is the information on the next lowering position of the gripper so already available before the gripper has arrived at the respective lowered position on the container, preferably before the gripper is moved to the container to remove documents of value from the container. In the case of a contradictory or incorrect number and / or position of the separating elements, an error message can be issued and removal by the gripper can be prevented until the error has been corrected or the entire container has been unloaded.

The position of the separating elements is not determined by the gripper, but by another device. Therefore, the position of the separating elements of the respective container can not be determined until the Gripper moves towards the container, but is already known before. Since the gripper control receives the information about the Trennelementposition of the respective container earlier than previously, it is avoided that the gripper has to look at each batch removal his next Absenkposition new independently. This allows the gripper to approach the correct lowering position faster. The removal of the value documents from the container is thereby accelerated. Thus, a consistently high processing speed of the value-document processing device is also made possible if the respective container has many small storage areas with few value documents.

The gripper has e.g. comb-like structures, which are adapted to engage in free recesses of the separating elements, which point to the lying between the separating elements storage areas of the documents of value. The gripper control positions the gripper as a function of the respective separating element position at a lowered position above the container, at which the gripping fingers of the gripper can dip into the recesses of the respective separating element by lowering the gripper into the container. After removal from the container, the documents of value removed from the container are removed by the gripper, e.g. placed in an input tray of a value-document processing device and then edited by the value-document processing device.

The separating element positions are determined automatically with the aid of a plurality of sensors which are arranged along a container receptacle into which the container for removing the value documents is inserted, eg with sensors of a value-document processing device or sensors of an input module of a value-document processing device. To get the information faster, determining the separator positions of the container are automatically performed simultaneously for a plurality of separating elements of the respective container. The separation element positions of the container are determined simultaneously before the gripper begins to extract the value documents from the container, in particular before the gripper is moved toward the container for removal of the value documents from the container. For example, the separating element positions are determined simultaneously by a plurality of sensors, which are arranged along the container receptacle, in which the container for removing the value documents is inserted. The sensors are arranged along the container receptacle such that each of the possible separating element positions of a container accommodated in the container receptacle can be checked by one of the sensors as to whether a separating element is actually present in the container at the respective possible separating element position. In this way, the positions of all separating elements actually present in the container can be detected at the same time before the gripper starts to remove the value documents from the container, in particular before the gripper, for removing the value documents from the container, is moved towards the container.

Instead of simultaneously determining all separating elements of a container, the separating element positions can also be determined simultaneously in groups, with only one region of a plurality of possible separating element positions being scanned automatically at the same time.

In one example, the information about the separator positions outside of the detection range of the gripper, manually or automatically, determined and stored there in a disk of the container, which is permanently attached to the container. The information about the separator positions may be read from the data memory by a reader be read, for example, by a reading device of a container receptacle in which the container is included in the removal of the value documents. The information read out can be transmitted from the reading device to the gripper control before the gripper starts to extract the value documents from the container, in particular before the gripper, for removing the value documents from the container, is moved towards the container.

The container may be equipped with a container identification, eg with a number and / or with a bar code applied to the container, which uniquely identifies the container itself or at least the container type (eg the size). In some embodiments, the information about the Trennelementpositionen outside the detection range of the gripper, manually or automatically, determined and linked there with the container identification of the respective container. The container identification is then, together with the associated information about the Trennelementpositionen, transmitted via a data connection to the gripper control, before the gripper begins with the removal of the documents of value from the container, in particular before the gripper to remove the documents of value the container to which container is moved. The data connection can be eg a wireless or a wired network connection, via which the gripper control receives the information. The information transmitted via the network connection is stored in a data memory, eg a data memory of the gripper control. In the data memory, for example, the respective separating element positions are stored linked to the respective container identification for a plurality of containers.

To determine the separator positions of a container to be processed shortly, e.g. during the value document removal from a previous container, the container identification of the container to be processed shortly is read out by a reading device. For the read-out container identification of the container to be processed, the information about the separation element positions are then retrieved from the data memory, which were previously stored linked with the read-out container identification of the container to be processed. Thus, the gripper control information is provided before the gripper begins with the removal of the documents of value from the container, in particular before the gripper is moved to remove the documents of value from the container to the container.

The separating elements of the container may be fixed separating elements whose positions are previously known and not variable. For example, one or more different container types with fixed dividing elements are known, wherein the containers of the respective container type have the same separating element positions. For the known container types then, e.g. in the run-up to value document processing, these already known separating element positions are linked to the respective container identification and stored in the data memory. When processing the container of a known container type, the separating element positions valid for the respective container can then be selected on the basis of the container identification from the data memory.

However, the separating elements may also be variably positionable in the container, wherein the separating elements can be fastened to freely selectable or to predetermined separating element positions in the container. The separator positions are then determined only when the container with value documents is filled. In variable position separators, the read container identification of the container to be processed is compared with the container identifications transmitted via the data connection for consistency. The separating element positions of the container to be processed are then the separating element positions transmitted via the data connection which have been linked to the matching container identification. The retrieval of the linked separator positions is performed before the gripper begins to extract the documents of value from the container to be processed, for example, during the removal of documents of value from a previous container, which is processed in front of the container to be processed.

Outside the detection range of the gripper, the determination of the separator position information may also be performed by an operator inputting the separator position information on an operator interface before the gripper starts to extract the value documents onto the container, in particular before the gripper engages Removal of the value documents from the container to which container is moved. The separation element positions of a container to be processed, for example, determined by the operator before the gripper has completed the removal of value documents from the previously processed container. The operator interface can be an operator interface of a value-document processing device or the operator interface of an input module of a value-document processing device or the operator interface of a preparation station at which the containers are filled with value documents and / or checked. The separator position information entered by the operator at the operator interface is sent from the operator interface via a data link (directly or indirectly) to the gripper controller transmitted. The entered separating element positions can be transmitted to the input module or to the value-document processing device and made available there to the gripper control. However, the separator element positions entered on the user interface can also be stored immediately in the data carrier of the container.

Before the removal of the value documents from the container, the information about the separating element positions can be checked, for example for plausibility, and the gripper control can stop the removal of the value documents by the gripper, if the check indicates a defective state of the container. A faulty state may be, for example, too great a distance of the separating elements, which goes beyond the maximum distance of the gripping elements of the gripper. A plausibility check may include determining the separator positions first detected outside the gripper's sensing range, then a second time by the sensor (s) or the image sensor to verify the separator positions determined outside of the gripper's sensing range. For plausibility checking, alternatively or additionally, the number and / or size of the storage areas of the container can also be determined from the determined separating element positions and checked as to whether this matches the number and / or size of the deposits made previously for the container, for example by the depositor or an operator. Due to the plausibility check, errors in the positioning of the separating elements are already detected before the beginning of the withdrawal of the document. Since such a partial emptying of the container is avoided, the manual effort for reworking the "defective" container is reduced.

The invention also relates to a device for extracting value documents from the container, which is designed to carry out the method according to the invention. The device may be a value-document processing device having a gripper, or a robot for inputting banknotes into a value-document processing device having a gripper, or an input module having a gripper and configured to input banknotes into a value-document processing device. The input module can be connected to a value-document processing device such that value-document stacks can be inserted by the gripper out of the input module into the value-document processing device. However, the device can also have two or more of these components (value-document processing device, robot, input module) and possibly a container receptacle and / or a transport device for transporting a plurality of containers to a value-document processing device and / or a preparation station where the containers for removal by the Gripper to be prepared.

The apparatus comprises a gripper for extracting value documents contained in the container and a gripper control for controlling the movement of the gripper. Optionally, the gripper has sensors that monitor the movement of the gripper in the work area and send corresponding information to the gripper control. In addition, the device has a device which is adapted to receive information about the positions of the separating elements independently of the gripper, without the aid of the gripper. To determine the separating element positions, the device has a plurality of sensors which are arranged along the container receptacle in which the container is received. The device is connected to the gripper control to the recorded To convey information about the positions of the separating elements to the gripper control. The gripper control is designed to control the movement of the gripper, in accordance with the transmitted information about the separating element positions, in such a way that the gripper is positioned at a lowered position above the respective separating element and that the gripper is in the lowered position for removing documents of value from the container is lowered into the container to remove documents of value from the container.

The means for receiving the separator position information is not part of the gripper and is not physically connected to the gripper. It is designed to receive information about the separating element positions (from the outside) and to transmit the information about the separating element positions to the gripper control at a time before the gripper starts to remove the value documents from the container, in particular before the gripper, for removing the documents of value from the container, is moved to the container.

The device may also include a container receptacle which receives the container such that its relative position to the gripper is predetermined and reproducible. The container receptacle can be designed for manual insertion of the container. Preferably, the container receptacle on a mechanical protection against rotation, so that the container can be inserted only in the correct orientation in the container receptacle. The container housing then has a corresponding asymmetry. This ensures that the emptying of the storage areas takes place in a specific order and thus the correct allocation of deposits and / or associated header cards or separation cards is complied with. Optionally, the device has a plurality of container receptacles so that the device can simultaneously accommodate a plurality of containers loaded with documents of value. The device can also have a transport device which is designed to transport containers filled with documents of value into the gripping area of the gripper and to transport the containers out of the gripping area after removal of the documents of value by the gripper. Or the device may be connected to such a transport device.

By arranged along the container receptacle sensors, the separating element positions of the container are automatically determined before the gripper is moved to remove the documents of value to the container .. The sensors are arranged for example along the container receptacle, that in each case one of the sensors at each of the possible separating element positions a container received in the container receptacle is arranged. The device may comprise a reading device for reading out the information about the separating element positions from a data carrier of the container. The reading device can be integrated into the container receptacle, but it can also be arranged outside of the container receptacle in / on the device or on a container transport device that transports the container to be emptied into the detection range of the gripper, or at the preparation place, on the loaded value document container arrive or be filled. It can read the information automatically or only after manual operation, eg if the respective container has a data medium. The device may also include a communication interface configured to receive information about the separator positions of the container from outside the device, eg, a Network interface or a device interface to the value-document processing device.

Figur 1a

einen Wertdokumentbehälter mit mehreren Trennelementen und einen Greifer zur Entnahme von Wertdokumenten aus dem Behälter,

Figur 1b

eine Vorrichtung zur Bearbeitung von Wertdokumenten mit einem daran angeschlossenen Eingabemodul,

Figur 1c

die Wertdokumententnahme aus einem Wertdokumentbehälter in einem Eingabemodul, das an eine Vorrichtung zur Bearbeitung von Wertdokumenten angeschlossen ist,

Figur 2

eine Vorrichtung zur Bearbeitung von Wertdokumenten mit einem Roboter und ein Transportsystem zur Transportieren von Wertdokumentbehältern zu der Vorrichtung,

Figur 3

den möglichen Informationsfluss betreffend die Information über die Trennelementpositionen für einige Ausführungsbeispiele.

The invention will be explained by way of example with reference to the following figures. Show it:

FIG. 1a

a valuable document container with a plurality of separating elements and a gripper for removing documents of value from the container,

FIG. 1b

a device for processing value documents with an input module connected thereto,

Figure 1c

the value document removal from a value document container in an input module which is connected to a device for processing value documents,

FIG. 2

a device for processing value documents with a robot and a transport system for transporting valuable documents containers to the device,

FIG. 3

the possible flow of information concerning the separator position information for some embodiments.

FIG. 1a shows a container 100 for receiving documents of value in which the value documents 1 are placed standing on their longitudinal edges. The container 100 is divided by three separating elements 101 into four storage areas in which value documents of different accounting units are kept separate from each other. The separating elements 101 can be variably positioned along the container to adjust the size of the storage areas to different sized value document stack can. For this purpose, the separating elements 101 can be inserted at different points of the container 100, at which the container wall has corresponding slots. To remove the value documents, a gripper 9 is used, which is lowered into the container 100 in order to remove the respective value-document stack of a storage area. The container 100 has an identification ID, for example a barcode, by means of which the container can be uniquely identified. In the case of a container type with fixed separating elements whose separating element positions are known, it may be sufficient if at least the container type results from the identification ID of the container.

Optionally, the container 100 has a data carrier 102, for example an RFID transponder, in which information about the value documents 1 contained in the container is stored. These include, for example, information about the payer of the respective value document stack and possibly about the number or the total value of the value documents. Information about the positions of the separating elements 101 of the container 100, which were determined at an earlier point in time, can also be stored in the data carrier 102. This information about the separating element positions may have been stored in the data carrier 102, for example when filling the container with value documents, for example when automatically filling the container, or during manual filling of the container, eg by the depositor of the value documents, or at the preparation station 40 of a device 60 for Value document processing, cf. FIG. 2 , Alternatively, this information can also be provided or linked by a machine-readable header card or separation card, which was inserted into the container at the beginning of the respective value-document stack.

In FIG. 1b a device 60 for processing documents of value is shown, on whose input side an input module 10 is connected. The input module 10 is designed to input value documents, eg banknotes, into an input compartment 61 of the device 60 and for this purpose has a gripper 9 which extracts a stack of value documents from a container and inserts them into an input compartment 61 of the device. The value documents 1 entered into the input compartment are then singulated, transported, checked, possibly sorted by the device 60 and stored in one or more output compartments of the device 60. The input module 10 can be designed to receive a plurality of valuable document containers 100 and thus form a kind of buffer memory for the containers 100. For example, the input module 10 has a transport device which transports containers filled with documents of value into the detection area of the gripper 9 and, after the documents of value have been removed by the gripper 9, removes the emptied containers from the gripping area 9.

In Figure 1c For example, an embodiment of an input module 10 for automatically retrieving the value documents from the container 100 is shown. The input module 10 has a gripper 9 in order to remove value documents 1 in batches from a storage area of the container 100 and insert them into the input compartment 61 of the device 60. The container 100 has been manually or automatically inserted into a container receptacle 7 of the input module 10. The information about the separating element positions are determined in the input module 10, with the aid of sensors 2 of the input module 10, which are arranged along the container receptacle 7. The container receptacle 7 may be equipped with a reading device 4 to the identification ID of the container 100 from the data memory 102 of the container read. The gripper control 8 has, for example, a data memory 5, in which the information about the positions x of the separating elements 101 can be stored. In the illustrated container 100, this information includes the three x-positions x1, x2, x3 of the three separators 101 of the container, indicating the distance of the separators from the fixed stop (x = 0) at which the container on the front wall of the container receptacle 7 is present. In the data memory 5, this information about the positions x1, x2, x3 linked to the identification ID of the container 100 are stored, and possibly corresponding information for further containers with further identifications ID1-IDn.

In addition, the information about the separating element positions x1, x2, x3 of the container 100 can also be transmitted to the gripper control 8 via a network interface 3 of the input module 10. However, the information x1, x2, x3 can also be input via an operator interface 6 by an operator into the input module 10 and transmitted by the operator to the gripper controller 8. Instead, however, it is also possible for the control device 62 of the device 60 to receive the information about the separating element positions x1, x2, x3 of the container 100 via a network interface 63 of the device 60 or via an operator interface 66 from an operator of the device 60 and to output this information the value-document processing device 60 via the device interface 13 to the gripper control 8 transmitted. The operator inputs the information at one time to the respective user interface 6, 66 before the emptying of the container 100 begins, eg while a preceding container is being emptied by the gripper 9. The information about the separating element positions x1, x2, x3 are preferably transmitted to the gripper control 8 linked to the container identification ID. If this information early enough before removal the value documents from the respective container, eg for a plurality of containers to be emptied, are present, the gripper control 8 stores the transmitted information in their data memory 5 and engages only when needed, eg just before the gripper is to be moved to the respective container, to the information about the respective Trennelementpositionen too.

The information about the Trennelementpositionen are determined in the input module 10, using the sensors of the input module 10 at a time before the gripper 9, the emptying of the container 100 begins. For example, the information about the separator positions x1, x2, x3 of the container 100 may be determined while the gripper is performing the value document removal from one of the preceding containers emptied in front of the container 100. In Figure 1c For this purpose, a plurality of mechanical sensors 2, which are arranged at specific positions along the longitudinal direction of the container receptacle 7, are shown by way of example. The mechanical sensors 2 have pivotal fingers that are pivotable about an axis A together to check whether or not there is actually a separator 101 at the respective position of the container 100. If the respective pivoting finger experiences a mechanical resistance during pivoting, it is retained by the separating element 101 and can not follow the deflection of the remaining pivoting fingers about the axis A. The respective sensor 2 detects the individual deflection of the respective pivoting finger, for example by means of an inductive switch, a light barrier or the like. The individual sensors 2 are connected to a sensor control S (connection not shown) which then provides the corresponding information about the separating element positions of the sensor Container 100 is transmitted to the gripper control 8. Instead of the mechanical sensors 2, electrical, acoustic, optical, magnetic or other sensors may also be used be arranged, for example, analog along the longitudinal direction of the container receptacle 7. Since the information about the separating element positions for a plurality or all separating elements of a container 100 can be determined simultaneously with the aid of the above-mentioned sensors, a clear time saving results compared to a serial detection of the individual separating elements.

In addition, the determined positions of the separating elements can be checked for plausibility before the gripper 9 begins the removal of the value documents 1. In doing so, e.g. checked whether the number and / or size of the storage areas determined by the sensors 2 with the number and / or size of deposits matches. In the test can also be checked whether the gripper 9 can safely remove the distance of two adjacent separating elements, so the size of a storage area. If the conditions underlying the test are not met, the operator may be prompted to correct the position of the separators 101 or to completely remove the container 100, e.g. to return to the consignor. A further embodiment comprises a self-test of the mechanical sensors 2. By a probeweises rotating the pivot fingers before a container 100 is inserted in the container receptacle, it is possible to check the correct operation of the sensors 2 and give an error message in case of failure.

In FIG. 2 an example is shown in which is provided for a value-document processing device 60 - instead of an input module 10 - a robot 31 having a gripper to remove documents of value from containers 20 and insert into the input tray 61 of the device 60. The robot may be self-contained or part of the device 60. The loaded with documents value container 20 are by means of a Transport system 50 transported to the device 60 in the detection range of the robot gripper. After the document has been removed by the robot gripper, the empty containers 20 are again transported away by the transport system 50 by the robot and transported back to the processing stations 40. At processing stations 40, the containers 20 are prepared by operators 30 for the automatic removal of the value documents. The preparation includes, for example, a check of the container, if the containers already loaded with documents of value arrive at the preparation stations and / or inserting a header card or separation card at the beginning of each value document stack. The filling of the container can also be performed only at the preparation sites 40. The preparation by the respective operator 30 also includes, for example, determining the positions of the separating elements, which are fixed in the container 20 or are introduced variably or are first introduced by the operator 30. For this purpose, the operator inputs the separating element position, for example, to an operator interface 46 of the preparation station 40, cf. FIG. 3 , In this case, digital information about the separating element positions x of the respective container is generated and this is linked to a container identification ID of the respective container. With the help of the link, the associated information about the separating element positions of the respective container to be emptied can be determined in the subsequent value document removal, based on the container identification ID.

The robot 31 has a gripper control 8 which has a data connection (eg wireless) to the device 60 and / or to the processing stations 40, via which the information about the separator positions x1, x2, x3, linked to the container identification ID, can be transmitted to the gripper control 8. The transmission of the information to the gripper control 8 can take place as soon as the operator 30 reaches the positions the separating elements 101 has determined and has entered this information associated with the container identification ID information at the processing stations 40. The gripper control 8 stores the transmitted information in its data memory 5 in order to access it again as soon as the respective container is to be emptied by the robot gripper.

FIG. 3 FIG. 12 shows the possible information flow of the information about the separator position, if the separator positions are determined spatially removed from the input module 10 and from the value-document processing device 60. The remote location is, for example, a preparation site 40 equipped with an operator interface 46, such as a preparation site FIG. 2 , or a depositor's office. At the preparation site 40, an operator sets the separator position associated with a container ID of the respective container at the operator interface 46. The operator can either enter the separator positions individually for each container or associate the respective container with one of a plurality of predetermined container locations whose separator positions are previously known.

The generated at the remote location digital information about the associated with the container ID ID Trennelementpositionen x of each container are then sent via data links 15 to a network 16, from which the information is transmitted, for example, directly via a network interface 3 to the gripper control 8 , Alternatively, the information about the separating element positions x associated with the container identification ID can also be transmitted from the network 16 to the network interface 63 of a value-document processing device 60, from which the information be forwarded by the control device 62 to the gripper control 8. If the respective container 100 is then delivered from the spatially remote position at a later time and is received in the container receptacle 7 of the input module 10, the information about the separator position x which belongs to this container is therefore already available. The delivered container 100 is then assigned the correct information about the separator positions by means of its container ID ID. For this purpose, the container identification ID of the delivered container 100 is read in by a reading device 4 of the input module and searched in the data memory 5 of the gripper control for this container identification. Of the separator positions associated with the stored container identifications ID, ID1-IDn in the data memory 5, those separator positions x1, x2, x3 associated with the container ID of the delivered container 100 are extracted. The gripper control 8 then uses the information taken from the data memory 5 to control the gripper 8 during removal of the value documents from the delivered container 100. This information can also be used as the basis for the plausibility check of the positions of the separating elements determined by the sensors 2.

Claims (13)

1. A method for removing value documents (1) from a container (100) with the aid of a gripper (9) which is configured for removing value documents (1) contained in the container, comprising the steps:

   - making available a container (100) which is open on one side and which is subdivided into several storage regions for value documents by separator elements (101),

   - ascertaining at which positions (x) along the container (100) the separator elements (101) are arranged,

   - transferring information items about the separator element positions (x) belonging to the container (100) to a gripper control (8) which is configured for controlling the motion of the gripper (9),

   - moving the gripper (9) for removing value documents (1) from the container (100), the gripper control (8) controlling the motion of the gripper (9) corresponding to the obtained information items about the separator element positions (x) in such a way that the gripper (9) is positioned at a lowering position above the respective separator element (101) and from the lowering position is lowered into the container in order to remove value documents (1) from the container (100),

   characterized in

   - that upon the step of ascertaining at which positions (x) along the container (100) the separator elements (101) are arranged, the positions (x) of the separator elements (101) are ascertained independently of the gripper, the separator element positions (x) being automatically ascertained with the aid of several sensors, and

   - that the sensors (2) are arranged along the container receiving means (7) into which the container (100) is inserted for removing the value documents.
2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that ascertaining the separator element positions (x) is carried out at a time before the gripper (9) is moved toward the container (100) for removing the value documents from the container.
3. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the separator element positions (x) of the container (100) are automatically ascertained simultaneously for several separator elements (101) of the respective container, in particular for all the separator elements (101) of the respective container, before the gripper (9) starts removing the value documents from the container (100), in particular before the gripper (9) is moved toward the container (100) for removing the value documents from the container.
4. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the separator element positions (x) are ascertained simultaneously with the aid of the sensors, in particular with the aid of a plurality of sensors (2) which are arranged along the container receiving means (7).
5. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that each of the possible separator element positions (x) of a container (100) received in the container receiving means (7) is checked by respectively one of the sensors (2) as to whether at the respective possible separator element position (x) there is actually present a separator element (101) in the container (100), wherein the check of the possible separator element positions is carried out before the gripper (9) starts removing the value documents from the container (100), in particular before the gripper (9) is moved toward the container (100) for removing the value documents from the container (100).
6. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the information items about the separator element positions (x) are ascertained outside the capture region of the gripper (9) and stored in a data carrier (102) of the container (100), and that the information items about the separator element positions (x) are read out from the data carrier (102) of the container by a reading device (4) and transferred to the gripper control (8) before the gripper (9) starts removing the value documents from the container, in particular before the gripper (9) is moved toward the container (100) for removing the value documents from the container.
7. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the information items about the separator element positions (x) are ascertained outside the capture region of the gripper (9) and these are linked with a container identification (ID) of the respective container and that the container identification (ID), together with the information items about the separator element positions (x) linked therewith, is transferred via a data connection (15) to the gripper control (8) before the gripper starts removing the value documents from the container, in particular before the gripper (9) is moved toward the container (100) for removing the value documents from the container.
8. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that

   - for several containers there are respectively stored the container identification (ID, ID1-IDn) and the separator element positions in a data memory (5) in such a way that the respective separator element positions (x) are linked with the respective container identification (ID, ID1-IDn), and

   - that, before the start of the value document removal from a container to be processed, the container identification (ID) of the container to be processed (100) is read out by a reading device (4) and

   - that, from the container identifications (ID1-IDn) contained in the data memory (5) and linked with the respective separator element positions (x), the separator element positions (x) linked with the read-out container identification (ID) of the container to be processed (100) are found before the gripper (9) starts removing the value documents from the container, in particular before the gripper is moved toward the container (100) for removing the value documents.
9. The method according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that before the removal of the value documents from the container the information items about the separator element positions (x) are checked, in particular are checked for plausibility, and the removal of the value documents by the gripper is stopped, if the check, in particular the plausibility check, indicates a faulty state of the container.
10. An apparatus (10, 60, 31) for removing value documents from a container which is open on one side and is subdivided into several storage regions for value documents by means of separator elements (101), wherein the apparatus comprises:

    - a gripper (9) for removing value documents (1) contained in the container (100),

    - a gripper control (8) for controlling the motion of the gripper (9),

    - a device which is configured to take up information items about the positions of the separator elements (101) and which is connected with the gripper control (8) in order to transfer the taken information items about the positions of the separator elements (101) to the gripper control (8),

    wherein the gripper control (8) is configured to control the motion of the gripper (9), for removing value documents from the container (100), in accordance with the transferred information items about the separator element positions (x), in such a way that the gripper (9) is positioned at a lowering position above the respective separator element (101) and is lowered from the lowering position into the container in order, to remove value documents (1) from the container (100), characterized in that

    - the apparatus has a container receiving means (7) into which the container (100) is insertable, and

    - that the apparatus has several sensors which are arranged along the container receiving means (7), and

    - that the device is configured to take up information items about the positions of the separator elements (101) independently of the gripper (9), the separator element positions (x) being automatically ascertainable with the aid of the sensors.
11. The apparatus according to claim 10, characterized in that the container (100) is received in the container receiving means (7) in such a way that the relative position thereof to the gripper (9) is predetermined and reproducible.
12. The apparatus according to any of claims 10 to 11, characterized in that the separator element positions (x) of the container are automatically ascertainable by the sensors before the gripper is moved toward the container.
13. The apparatus according to any of claims 10 to 12, characterized in that the sensors (2) are arranged along the container receiving means (7) in such a way that the sensors (2) can simultaneously ascertain several separator element positions (x) of a container (100) received in the container receiving means.

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