JP2009248067A - Coin cleaning apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a coin cleaning apparatus of a compact and simple structure for easy maintenance that can recover coins after completely removing dirt and remaining cleanser from the coins. <P>SOLUTION: The main body 11 of the coin cleaning apparatus is equipped with: at least a hopper 12 for charging the coins C; a charging amount-regulating mechanism 22 for controlling the amount of the coins C; a water wheel 42 for holding the charged coins C in their standing posture; an ultrasonic cleaning tub 52 for ultrasonic cleaning of the coins C held in their standing posture; a receiving trough 35 for receiving the washed coins C; an endless conveyor belt 62 for conveying the coins C sent from the receiving trough 35; a showering mechanism 72 for showering water on the coins C immediately after beginning of conveying; and a liquid-removing mechanism 82 for removing the remaining liquid droplets on the conveyed coins C. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  According to the present invention, game medals or coins (generally referred to as “coins” in the present specification) used in game machines such as slot machines can be cleaned and reliably removed. This is a technique related to a coin cleaning device.

The game coins repeatedly used in a gaming machine such as a slot machine is attached with greasy dirt such as dirt, so that the player's fingers are soiled and uncomfortable. For this reason, it is necessary to remove this type of coin, and as an apparatus therefor, there is a continuous coin cleaning device disclosed in Patent Document 1 below, for example.
JP 2000-259886 A

  The continuous coin washing device includes a hopper into which coins are inserted, a hexagonal cylindrical rotary drum provided with a spiral guide blade to which coins are supplied from the hopper, and provided with a polishing brush on the inner peripheral surface thereof. A cleaning liquid tank in which the lower side of the rotating drum is immersed, a cart that scoops up coins discharged from the rotating drum, a first conveyor that scoops up the coins and conveys coins in the upward direction, and the first conveyor The basic configuration includes a squeeze roll that removes the cleaning liquid attached to the coins conveyed through the conveyor, and a second conveyor that further conveys the coins from which the cleaning liquid has been removed to the takeout port.

  For this reason, according to the continuous coin cleaning device disclosed in Patent Document 1, the coins inserted into the rotary drum from the hopper can be polished with the polishing brush while being fed to the discharge end by the guide vanes. Therefore, the coin cleaning efficiency can be increased.

  Also, the first conveyor can prevent coins from being overlapped and can be aligned one by one and fed into the squeeze roll, so that the cleaning liquid adhering to the coins can be reliably removed and then collected via the second conveyor. It is supposed to be possible.

  However, in the case of the continuous coin washing apparatus of Patent Document 1, since the coin is polished with the polishing brush, the structure inside the rotating drum becomes complicated, and there is a disadvantage that maintenance work becomes complicated accordingly. It was.

  In addition, in order to convey coins to a predetermined position by the continuous coin washing device, three conveying means of the carriage, the first conveyor, and the second conveyor are required, and the whole mechanism is complicated and enlarged. There was also a bug.

  Furthermore, the cleaning liquid used avoids stickiness of residue of the detergent remaining on the recovered coin after the cleaning, even though the detergent concentration must be at least 1% for obtaining the required cleaning effect. From the viewpoint, for example, a detergent concentration of about 0.2 to 0.3%, which is inferior in the cleaning effect, is used, and as a result, the collected coins are reused without being sufficiently cleaned. There was also a problem that.

  In view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, the present invention is excellent in cleaning performance, and the whole mechanism can be simplified in a compact manner, and maintenance can be easily performed. In addition, dirt and attached cleaning liquid can be reliably dropped to collect coins. It is an object of the present invention to provide a coin cleaning device that can do this.

  The present invention has been made to achieve the above-described object, and a hopper into which a large number of coins, which are objects to be cleaned, are inserted, and the coins in the hopper are sorted into predetermined amounts and supplied to the next stage. A rotating water turbine that supports a predetermined amount of the coin supplied from the supply amount regulating mechanism via a feed rod along the inner circumferential surface thereof, and is supported separately from each other; An ultrasonic cleaning tank for ultrasonically cleaning the coin, which is supported upright by immersing the lower side portion of the rotating water turbine, in the cleaning liquid, and the coin pulled up from the cleaning liquid as the rotating water turbine rotates is naturally A receiving rod that receives the falling, a front endless conveying belt that receives the coin fed through the receiving rod at the conveying start end side, and a position above the conveying start end of the endless conveying belt Immediately after the start of conveyance Shower mechanism relative to the coin pour water, and most important feature that is provided in at least the apparatus main body and a removing solution mechanism for removing extraneous droplets of the coins to be fed through the conveyor belt.

  In this case, it is preferable that an ultrasonic reflector is disposed on the upper surface side of the ultrasonic cleaning tank. In addition, it is desirable that a contact member that breaks the overlap of the coins to be conveyed one by one is disposed on the conveyance path surface of the endless conveyance belt.

  According to the present invention, since a coin can be washed using a miniaturized rotating water turbine, the entire apparatus is made compact and the maintenance thereof is simplified, thereby reducing the running cost and reducing the running cost. It can be suitably provided as a coin cleaning device for an amusement facility.

  Moreover, according to the present invention, the coin group supplied by the predetermined amount through the supply amount regulating mechanism can be immersed in the ultrasonic cleaning tank while being placed in a standing state in the rotating water turbine. The ultrasonic cleaning can be performed on both sides of the coin to effectively remove the dirt.

  Moreover, the coins after washing can be automatically collected by washing away the washing liquid adhering via the shower mechanism and removing the adhering droplets of the coin by passing through the liquid removal mechanism. For this reason, the cleaning liquid in the ultrasonic cleaning tank can be cleaned with a detergent concentration of 1% or more, which is rich in cleaning effect, and the attached droplets can be washed away through a shower mechanism. The sticky feeling can be wiped out from the collected coins.

  Further, when an ultrasonic reflector is disposed in the ultrasonic cleaning tank, the cleaning effect on the coin can be further enhanced. Further, when the abutting member is disposed on the conveyance path surface of the endless conveyance belt, the coins can always be fed to the liquid removal mechanism one by one.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a schematic overall configuration of the present invention viewed from the front direction, and FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the example illustrated in FIG. 1 viewed from the right side.

  According to these figures, the whole is a hopper 12 into which a large number of coins C to be cleaned are inserted, and a supply amount for sorting coins C in the hopper 12 into predetermined amounts and supplying them to the next stage. A regulating mechanism 22 and a rotating water turbine 42 that supports a predetermined amount of coins C supplied from the supply amount regulating mechanism 22 via a feed rod 32 while standing separately along the inner peripheral surface thereof. And an ultrasonic cleaning tank 52 that ultrasonically cleans the coin C supported upright by immersing the lower side of the rotating water turbine 42 in the cleaning liquid L, and is pulled up from the cleaning liquid L as the rotating water turbine 42 rotates. A receiving hook 35 for receiving the natural fall of the coin C, a front endless conveying belt 62 for receiving the coin C fed through the receiving hook 35 on the conveying start end 62a side, and the endless conveying belt 62 Close to conveyance start end 62a A shower mechanism 72 that pours water onto the coin C immediately after the start of conveyance positioned above, and a liquid removal mechanism 82 that removes adhering droplets of the coin C fed from the end of conveyance 62b via the endless conveyance belt 62. At least the apparatus main body 12 is provided.

  Among these, the hopper 12 gathers on the lower surface side through the upper surface opening portion 13 into which the coin C is inserted, the swash plate portion 14 for sliding the coin C inserted from the upper surface opening portion 13, and the swash plate portion 14. And a cylindrical delivery port 15 for delivering the coin C group to the next stage side.

As shown in FIG. 3, the supply amount regulating mechanism 22 includes a feed cylinder portion 23 that guides the coin C group fed from the connected delivery port 15 obliquely downward, and is accommodated in the feed cylinder portion 23 and is accommodated in the motor M. ₁ and a sorting unit 24 which is rotationally driven by ₁ .

In this case, sorting unit 24, as shown in FIG. 4, a rotary shaft 25 which is connected to a rotary shaft (not shown) of the motor M _1, the open end at a predetermined interval in the axial direction of the rotary shaft 25 A coin introduction wall 26 formed around the axis on the side of the portion 25a, and a partition wall 27 formed around the axis for storing the coin C introduced at a predetermined interval from the coin introduction wall 26. ing.

  Further, the coin introduction wall 26 includes four notch introduction grooves 26a provided at equal intervals so as to introduce a predetermined amount of the coin C group fed from the hopper 12 side.

  Further, the rotary support shaft 25 positioned between the coin introduction wall 26 and the partition wall 27 has a partition wall 28 formed at equal intervals around the axis and partitioned into four stock spaces 29 facing the notch introduction groove 26a. It is provided separately for each position.

  In addition, the feed tube portion 23 is placed on the side facing the one stock space 29 secured on the upper side when rotating, and the coin C in the one stock space 29 is placed downstream via the feed rod 32. A supply port 23a for feeding out is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the rotating water turbine 42 includes a cylindrical water turbine main body 43 having a plurality of through holes 43 a having a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the coin C and provided on the circumferential surface thereof, and the water turbine main body 44. A shielding plate 45 covering one side opening surface side, a barrier portion 46 positioned on the other opening surface side to prevent the coin C from falling out, and standing upright at equal intervals in the width direction of the inner peripheral surface of the turbine body 43 The plurality of partition walls 47 are formed.

  In this case, the adjacent partition walls 47 and 47 are erected with a mutual interval shorter than the outer diameter of the coin C. For this reason, each coin C fed through the feed rod 32 is held in a standing state between the partition walls 47 and 47. In addition, each partition wall 47 can be configured to slightly delay the natural fall of the coin C by slightly bending the tip of the partition wall 47 in the rotational direction of the rotary turbine 42.

Further, the rotary water turbine 42 is driven via a drive chain 49 by a motor M ₂ disposed in the apparatus main body 11 in a state where its lower side is immersed in the cleaning liquid L of the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52. It can be forcibly rotated.

  An ultrasonic cleaning tank 52 in which a cleaning liquid L having a detergent concentration of 1% or more rich in cleaning effects including a neutral detergent and an antifoaming agent is stored up to a predetermined liquid level via a float (not shown), An ultrasonic transducer 54 is disposed on the bottom 53 side, and an ultrasonic reflection plate (not shown) is disposed above the ultrasonic transducer 54, so that the cleaning effect can be further ensured via the ultrasonic transducer 54. can do. As an ultrasonic transducer 54 used in this case and a cleaning method using the same, Patent No. 2785022, Patent No. 2794438, and Patent No. 2832443 which use two different frequencies for switching are used. Those described can be preferably used. In the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52, a heater (not shown) for warming the cleaning liquid L can be installed.

  Moreover, the cleaning liquid stored in the storage tank can be supplied into the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52 by a pump interposed in a liquid supply path (not shown). The cleaning liquid L in the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52 is pumped to the filtering means via a pump (not shown), and the liquid filtered through the filtering means is returned to the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52 again. A possible circulation channel can also be formed. In this case, as a filtering means, a relatively large cartridge type equipped with a replaceable filter can be preferably used after being supported on the apparatus main body 11 side, for example.

  The receiving rod 35 having a mesh bottom is arranged to receive the coin C pulled up from the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52 with the rotation of the rotating water turbine 42 and to send it to the next stage while cutting the cleaning liquid L. It is installed.

  For example, the endless transport belt 62 inclined forward and backward by 37 degrees, for example, is placed in the apparatus main body 11 under an arrangement relationship in which the coin C fed through the receiving rod 35 can be received on the transport start end 62a side. It is arranged.

  In this case, the endless transport belt 62 is desirably a modular belt such as a caterpillar capable of finely adjusting the length and width. Further, the endless transport belt 62 can be provided with a protrusion that prevents the coin C from slipping down at a constant interval in the width direction of the transport surface.

Furthermore, the endless conveyor belt 62 is arranged so that it can be driven via the rotary roller 68 is rotatably supported by the rotary shaft 67 to be forced rotation via a drive chain 66 for example by a motor M _3, such as the geared motor Has been.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the shower mechanism 72 is connected to the pump P interposed in the water supply pipe 73, the water storage tank 74 in which the start end 73 a side of the water supply pipe 73 is immersed in the water, and the end 73 b side of the water supply pipe 73. The sprinkler 75 is provided with a water sprinkling portion 75 that is positioned above the transport start end 62a of the endless transport belt 62 and pours water onto the coin C immediately after the transport is started. In addition, the code | symbol 76 in a figure shows the water receiving tank which receives and stores the water poured from the water sprinkling part 75 below.

  Further, on the conveyance path surface 63 of the endless conveyance belt 62, for example, a contact member 55 made of a rubber material or the like that breaks the overlap of coins C that are conveyed in an overlapping manner and allows only one sheet to pass therethrough is shown in FIG. It is arranged at two places in the transport direction.

The liquid removal mechanism 82 includes a first driven roller 83 driven and rotated by the motor M ₃ as a driving source, a second driven roller 84 driven and rotated by the first driven roller 83, and a driven rotation by the second driven roller 84. And at least being configured.

  In this case, the coin C that has reached the end 62 b side of the endless transport belt 62 passes between the first driven roller 83 and the second driven roller 84, and the adhered droplets are removed. Further, the droplets adhering to the second driven roller 84 are scraped off by the squeegee roller 85 and can be returned into the ultrasonic cleaning liquid tank 52 via the flow-down rod 78.

  Next, the operation and effect of the present invention will be described based on the illustrated example. After the power is turned on, first, a predetermined amount of coins C to be cleaned are inserted into the hopper 12 from the upper surface opening 13.

  The hopper 12 into which a predetermined amount of coins C has been inserted gathers at the delivery port 15 via the swash plate portion 14 and is delivered to the supply amount regulating mechanism 22 side. The sorting unit 24 rotating in the feed cylinder unit 23 sequentially feeds a predetermined amount of coins C into the corresponding stock space 29 through the notch introduction grooves 26a of the coin introduction wall 26.

  The coins C in each stock space 29 face the supply port 23 in order by rotating in the feed tube portion 23, and are sent out from the supply port 23 toward the feed rod 32 at the time of facing.

  The coin C group that has passed through the feed rod 32 is dropped between the partition plates 47 and 47 that hold an interval shorter than the outer diameter of the coin C of the rotating water turbine 42 and is supported in an upright state. It will be.

  Moreover, since the lower portion of the rotating water turbine 42 enters the cleaning liquid L in the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52, each coin C immersed in the cleaning liquid L also generates ultrasonic vibrations generated by the ultrasonic vibrator 54. Received and washed. In this case, even if the plurality of coins C are erected so as to overlap each other between the partition plates 47 and 47, they are individually washed by receiving ultrasonic vibration.

  That is, the coin C in the cleaning liquid L can be more reliably removed by combining chemical cleaning with the cleaning liquid L and physical cleaning by ultrasonic cleaning.

  In this case, when an ultrasonic transducer 54 that can switch between two different frequencies is used, the cleaning unevenness is caused by the movement of the position where the dirt often falls in the ultrasonic wave (standing wave position). Can be eliminated. In addition, when performing ultrasonic cleaning, persistent clogging can be separated from the coin C due to the cavitation effect, and the ultrasonic wave wraps around the fine part of the coin C, so that it has not reached so far Can effectively remove dirt. In addition, when the ultrasonic cleaning tank 52 includes an ultrasonic reflector (not shown), ultrasonic cleaning can be performed more efficiently.

  The coin C located between the partition plates 47 and 47 is eventually pulled up from the cleaning liquid L as the rotating water wheel 42 rotates, and naturally falls due to its weight while moving upward.

  Since the receiving bowl 35 is disposed at a lower position where the coin C naturally falls, it can be fed to the next stage while cutting off the attached cleaning liquid through the net bottom.

  The coin C that has passed through the receiving bowl 35 falls onto the conveyance path surface 63 located on the conveyance start end 62a side of the endless conveyance belt 62, and is conveyed to the conveyance end 62b side. In this case, since the water sprinkling part 75 which comprises the shower mechanism 72 is arrange | positioned on the conveyance path surface 63 located near the conveyance start end 62a, it is adhering washing water with the shower water poured from this water sprinkling part 75. Is washed away.

  In addition, when the contact member 65 is disposed on the conveyance path surface 63 of the endless conveyance belt 62, the coins C are always laid one by one and fed to the next-stage liquid removal mechanism 82 side. Can do.

  Each coin C that has been washed with water and laid down one by one in this way is transported to the transport end 62b side, and the attached droplets are removed by passing through the slow liquid mechanism 82. Will be collected.

  In addition to a coin cleaning device for cleaning game coins, the present invention can be applied to a use as a cleaning device for cleaning coins provided for other uses as long as it has a coin shape.

Explanatory drawing which looked at the example of the outline whole composition of the present invention from the front. Explanatory drawing which looked at the example shown in FIG. 1 from the right side surface direction. Explanatory drawing which shows schematic structure of a supply amount control mechanism. Explanatory drawing which shows schematic structure of the classification part which comprises a supply amount control mechanism. Explanatory drawing which shows the arrangement | positioning relationship between a rotary turbine, a feed rod, and a receiving rod.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Apparatus main body 12 Hopper 13 Upper surface opening part 14 Diagonal board part 15 Outlet 22 Supply amount control mechanism 23 Feeding cylinder part 23a Supply port 24 Sorting part 25 Rotating spindle 25a Open end part 26 Coin introduction wall 26a Notch introduction groove 27 Partition wall DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 28 Bulkhead 29 Stock space 32 Feeding rod 35 Receiving rod 42 Rotating water wheel 43 Water wheel main body 43a Through hole 44 One side opening surface 45 Shielding plate 46 Barrier part 47 Partition wall 49 Drive chain 52 Ultrasonic washing tank 53 Bottom part 54 Ultrasonic vibrator 62 Endless Conveying Belt 62a Conveying Start End 62b Conveying Termination 63 Conveying Road Surface 65 Abutting Member 66 Drive Chain 67 Rotating Shaft 68 Rotating Roller 72 Shower Mechanism 73 Water Supply Pipe 73a Starting End 73b Terminating 74 Water Storage Tank 75 Water Sprinkling Portion 76 Water Receiving Tank 82 Liquid Removal Mechanism 83 1st driven roller 84 1st driven roller 85 squeegee roller 86 flows down trough C coin L cleaning liquid M ₁ ~M ₃ Motor P Pump

Claims (3)

  A hopper into which a large number of coins to be cleaned are inserted, a supply amount regulating mechanism for sorting the coins in the hopper into predetermined amounts and supplying them to the next stage, and a feed rod from the supply amount regulating mechanism A rotating water turbine that supports a predetermined amount of the coins that are supplied along the inner peripheral surface of the coin in a standing state, and a lower side portion of the rotating water wheel is immersed and supported. An ultrasonic cleaning tank for ultrasonically cleaning the coin in the cleaning liquid, a receiving bowl for receiving the natural fall of the coin pulled up from the cleaning liquid as the rotating water wheel rotates, and the coin is fed through the receiving bowl An endless transport belt that rises forward to receive the coin at the transport start end side, a shower mechanism that pours water to the coin immediately after the start of transport, positioned above the transport start end of the endless transport belt, Transport Coin cleaning device being characterized in that the removing liquid mechanism for removing extraneous droplets of the coins to be fed through the belt is provided on at least the apparatus main body.   The coin cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an ultrasonic reflector is disposed on the upper surface side of the ultrasonic cleaning tank.   The coin washing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a contact member is disposed on a conveyance path surface of the endless conveyance belt so as to break up overlapping coins conveyed one by one.

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