JP2006221392A - Information card handling device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information card handling device having a sure dust-preventing function with a simple structure. <P>SOLUTION: In an information card handling device 1, a blocking member itself is given flexibility by using foaming materials for a blocking member 2 for interrupting a card conveyance 12 so that adhesiveness can be improved, and that the intrusion of dusts or foreign matters can be surely prevented. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an information card handling device, and more particularly to a card handling device suitable for a manual insertion type card reader or card reader / writer.

  In recent years, for example, prepaid cards, various ID cards, magnetic cards and IC cards typified by deposit / save card of financial institutions, or a combination type information card (hereinafter also referred to as a card) are frequently used. With the diversification of applications, information card handling devices that read and record information on cards made of different materials such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and plastic are also diversifying.

  Since these information card handling devices have various installation locations and use environments, reading failures and malfunctions are liable to occur due to the intrusion of dust and foreign matter into the device, and dust-proof measures have been attracting attention in the past. In general, high-end models use an electromagnetic actuator at the card slot and have a dust-proof shutter that opens and closes automatically. No effective dust-proofing measures are taken due to the fact that it is a formula or cost.

  Examples of conventional dustproof measures include providing a cylindrical member inside the card insertion slot to prevent dust from entering, and providing a dustproof sheet that elastically closes the card insertion slot. For example, there are Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2.

  4 and 5 show examples of conventional dustproof measures. FIG. 4 shows a cross section of the information card handling apparatus 1 when no card is inserted, and the card guide members 4a and 4b form a card transport path 12 and a groove 7 for accommodating a blocking member, and the groove 7 is inside. A blocking member 2 made of hard plastic is disposed in contact with the card guide member 4a via the spring 3 and is rotatable in the card insertion direction 10. FIG. 5 shows a cross section of the card handling device 1 at the time of card insertion, and the card 8 inserted from the card insertion slot is inserted between the blocking member 2 and the card guide member 4a. Only the card is inserted by the weight of the blocking member 2 and the pressing force of the spring 3 to try to prevent the intrusion of dust and foreign matter.

JP-A-6-314355 JP 2002-298098 A

  As described above, the information cards targeted by the present invention are generally made of PET or plastic, and fine dust and foreign matter are likely to adhere to them due to, for example, static electricity. In the conventional dust-proof countermeasure examples of FIGS. 4 and 5 described above, when the card is inserted, these dusts and foreign matters enter the card guide member while adhering to the card, causing data reading failure or failure. .

  Furthermore, various information may be given to a card | curd by forming an unevenness | corrugation in the surface by embossing according to a use. In the dust-proof mechanism shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, when the embossed portion of the card passes between the blocking member and the card guide member, the blocking member is lifted, and a gap is generated between the guide member and dust or foreign matter is generated. There was a case of intrusion.

  In addition, the conventional blocking member is made of hard plastic or metal material, and when the embossed part of the embossed information card comes into contact with the blocking member, it interferes and the blocking member vibrates to create a gap. In some cases, dust and other foreign substances invaded.

  Further, it is preferable that the blocking member has a columnar shape or a cylindrical shape in order to attach the blocking member so as to be rotatable and to easily insert the leading end of the card between the blocking member and the card guide member. However, due to the shape of the blocking member, the dust-proof member and the guide member are in a substantially linear contact with a small contact area, and there is a fundamental problem that it is difficult to obtain adhesion.

  The technical problem of the present invention is to provide an information card handling device having a simple structure and a reliable dustproof function.

  According to the present invention, there is provided a dustproof mechanism that includes at least an information card insertion slot, an information card transport path, and an information reproduction unit, and blocks the information card transport path by pressing a blocking member on at least one surface of the information card transport path An information card handling device is obtained, wherein at least a part of the blocking member is made of a foam material.

  According to the present invention, there is obtained an information card handling device in which the blocking member is pressed against at least one surface of the information card transport path by its own weight.

  According to the present invention, the dustproof mechanism includes a groove, a spring member housed in the groove, and the blocking member pressed against at least one surface of the information card transport path by the spring member. A card handling device is obtained.

  According to this invention, the said interruption | blocking member is a column shape or a cylindrical shape, The information card handling apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned is obtained.

  According to the present invention, there is obtained an information card handling device in which the blocking member has a central portion made of a metal material and an outer edge portion made of the foamed material.

  The information card handling device of the present invention selects the material of the blocking member so that when the card is not inserted, the blocking member closes the card conveyance path on the surface by its own weight or a pressing force of a spring member or the like. Even when the card is inserted, the card and the card transport path are deformed so as to be in close contact with each other in accordance with the position of the card to prevent entry of dust and foreign matter.

  According to the present invention, an information card that gives flexibility to the blocking member itself by using a foam material for the blocking member that blocks the card conveyance path, improves adhesion, and reliably prevents dust and foreign matter from entering. The handling equipment can be provided.

  As described above, the present invention is a material for a dust or foreign matter blocking member constituting a dustproof mechanism provided in the vicinity of a card insertion slot of an information card handling device provided with at least a card insertion slot, a card transport path, and an information reproducing unit. The card conveying path is tightly blocked by using a foam material. Therefore, as the foam material used in the present invention, a material having elasticity that can be easily deformed and density that does not allow fine dust or foreign matter to pass therethrough is suitable. As a specific foam material, a general acetate foam or polyethylene resin foam can be applied, and a foam in which polyethylene resin or synthetic rubber is in a semi-open cell state is also preferable. Also, a carbon-containing conductive polyethylene foam is preferable for preventing static electricity.

  Further, all of the blocking member may be formed of a foam material, or only a portion in contact with the card conveyance path may be formed of a foam material. From the viewpoint of maintaining the rotational performance, the blocking member is preferably a cylindrical shape, and the portion around the rotation axis is made of a hard material such as a metal material or a hard plastic material, and a foam material is arranged around the periphery. preferable. At this time, it is more preferable from the viewpoint of maintaining the rotation performance that the shaft material is exposed without being covered with the foamed material in the vicinity of the rotating shaft in the columnar or cylindrical bottom surfaces.

  The blocking member may be tightly blocked from the card conveyance path by its own weight, or may be urged by using a spring member made of a material such as metal, plastic, rubber, etc. to reinforce the pressing force. In order to secure its own weight, it is preferable to dispose a material such as metal, plastic, or rubber at the central portion of the blocking member, and the same effect can be obtained by forming at least a portion that contacts the card conveyance path with a foam material.

  The blocking member is installed so as to be compressed and rotatable so as to block and close the card conveyance path at the foamed material portion. Accordingly, it is preferable that the diameter of the bottom surface of the entire blocking member is at least the height of the card insertion slot, and the length in the longitudinal direction of the blocking member is at least the width dimension of the card insertion slot.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

Example 1
1 and 2 are views for explaining a dust-proof mechanism of the information card handling apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a cross section of the information card handling device 1 when no card is inserted, and the card guide members 4a and 4b form a card transport path 12 and a groove 7 for storing a blocking member, A blocking member 2 made of a polyethylene resin foam and having a substantially cylindrical shape is disposed in close contact with the card guide member 4a on the surface and is rotatable with respect to the card insertion direction 10. 1 and FIG. 2, the information recording / reproducing unit is omitted.

  FIG. 2 shows a cross section of the information card handling apparatus 1 when the card is inserted, and the card 8 inserted from the card insertion slot 9 is inserted in close contact between the blocking member 2 and the card guide member 4a. A card having an embossed portion 81 on the surface was used. The blocking member 2 was brought into close contact with the embossed portion 81 of the card, and no occurrence of vibration due to interference was observed. After repeating this operation 15 times, the dust in the card conveying path 12 was observed with a microscope, and no dust of 10 microns or more per square centimeter was confirmed.

  Furthermore, an experiment was performed using a card that was not embossed under the same conditions, and when dust was observed, dust of 10 microns or more per square centimeter was not observed, and vibration due to interference was not observed. For comparison with the conventional example, dust was observed under the same conditions using the information card handling apparatus shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, and four dusts of 10 microns or more per square centimeter were confirmed. From the above observation results, it was confirmed that the blocking member of the present invention exhibits an excellent dustproof effect as compared with the conventional one.

(Example 2)
FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a cross section in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the blocking member used in the dustproof mechanism of the information card handling apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The blocking member 2 has a cylindrical shape, and the rotation shaft center portion 21 is made of a metal material and is concentrically formed by winding a polyethylene resin foam sheet as a foam material portion 22 around the periphery. When this blocking member 2 is mounted on the same card handling device as in Example 1 and dust is observed under the same conditions, dust of 10 microns or more per square centimeter is confirmed regardless of the presence or absence of embossing. There wasn't. Further, as in Example 1, no vibration due to interference was observed. From the above observation results, it was confirmed that the blocking member of the present invention exhibits an excellent dustproof effect as compared with the conventional one.

(Example 3)
An information card handling apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows a cross section in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the blocking member used in the dustproof mechanism of the present embodiment. The blocking member 2 has a cylindrical shape, and the rotating shaft center portion 21 is made of a metal material and is concentrically formed by winding a carbon-containing conductive polyethylene foam sheet around the peripheral portion as the foam material portion 22. When this blocking member is attached to the same card handling apparatus as in Example 1 and dust is observed under the same conditions, dust of 10 microns or more per square cm is not confirmed regardless of the presence or absence of embossing. It was. Further, as in Example 1, no vibration due to interference was observed.
From the above observation results, it was confirmed that the blocking member of the present invention exhibits an excellent dustproof effect as compared with the conventional one.

Example 4
An information card handling apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. When the blocking member 2 shown in FIG. 3 is mounted on the dust-proof mechanism shown in FIG. 1, the pressing force is applied to the blocking member 2 used in the second embodiment via a coil spring in the groove 7. When dust was collected and observed under the same conditions as in Example 1, dust of 10 microns or more per square centimeter was not confirmed regardless of the presence or absence of embossing. From the above observation results, it was confirmed that the blocking member of the present invention exhibits an excellent dustproof effect as compared with the conventional one.

  The embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to examples. However, the present invention is not limited to these examples, and the present invention can be applied even if there is a design change without departing from the gist of the present invention. include. That is, it is a matter of course that the present invention also includes various changes and modifications that can be made by those skilled in the art.

  The information card handling device of the present invention can be used for a card reader or a card reader / writer, and is particularly suitable for a low-priced manual insertion type card reader or card writer.

The state before a card insertion is shown with the explanatory view of the dustproof mechanism of the information card handling device by the example of the present invention. The state during card insertion is shown in the explanatory view of the dustproof mechanism of the information card handling device by the example of the present invention. Explanatory drawing of the interruption | blocking member by the Example of this invention. The state before insertion of a card is shown in an explanatory view of a conventional information card handling device. An explanatory view of a conventional information card handling device shows a state during card insertion.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Information card handling apparatus 2 Blocking member 21 Rotating shaft center part 22 Foam material part 3 Spring 4a, 4b Card guide member
5 Housing 7 Groove 8 Card 81 Embossed section 9 Card insertion slot 10 Card insertion direction
11 Blocking member rotation direction 12 Card transport path

Claims (5)

  An information card handling device comprising at least an information card insertion slot, an information card transport path, and an information reproduction unit, and having a dustproof mechanism that blocks the information card transport path by pressing a blocking member on at least one surface of the information card transport path. The information card handling device is characterized in that at least a part of the blocking member is made of a foam material.   2. The information card handling device according to claim 1, wherein the blocking member is pressed against at least one surface of the information card transport path by its own weight.   2. The information card according to claim 1, wherein the dustproof mechanism includes a groove, a spring member housed in the groove, and the blocking member pressed against at least one surface of the information card transport path by the spring member. Handling equipment.   The information card handling device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the blocking member has a columnar shape or a cylindrical shape.   5. The information card handling device according to claim 1, wherein the blocking member has a central portion made of a metal material and an outer edge portion made of the foamed material.

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