JP2013109451A - Coin identification device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a coin identification device to allow a user easily to remove a coin remained on a conveyance surface by jam or the like.SOLUTION: A coin identification device includes a conveyance plate having a conveyance surface to convey a coin, a detection member to detect the coin, a regulation part having a regulation surface to regulate movement of the coin on the conveyance surface, an extension part extending from the conveyance plate so as to surround a detection hole formed at a position corresponding to the detection member, a recess on the regulation part formed at a position facing the extension part. The recess has a slope for connecting the regulation surface and a bottom face of the recess.

Description

  The present invention relates to a coin discriminating apparatus that discriminates the types of coins.

  A coin identifying device is a device that identifies a denomination of a coin in a coin processing device that manages coins handled by a register installed in a store or the like, for example.

  As a coin identification device, for example, there is one described in Patent Document 1. The coin identification device described in Patent Document 1 includes a transport plate having a transport surface for transporting coins, a transport belt for transporting the coins between the transport surfaces, the outer diameter, material, thickness, etc. of the transported coins. And a detection sensor for magnetically detecting the type of coin and determining whether it is true or false.

Japanese Patent No. 4607922

  In the above coin identification device, there is a restriction unit that restricts the movement of coins so that coins being transported may come off the transport belt due to a jam or the like, and coins that have come off the transport belt do not jump out of the transport surface. It has been. For this reason, the coin removed from the transport belt stays in the vicinity of the restricting portion, and the user of the coin identifying device pushes out the staying coin while bringing it to the restricting portion and removes the coin.

  By the way, a detection hole for detecting a coin by the detection sensor is formed in the transport plate. When the position of the detection hole is located at the end of the transport plate, an extending portion extending from the transport plate is provided so as to surround the detection hole from the viewpoint of securing the strength of the transport plate. In such a case, a recess is further provided at the position of the restricting portion corresponding to the extending portion for the reason of attachment of the transport plate and the frame. That is, a step is formed in the restricting portion.

  In the case where a step is formed in the restricting portion, there is a fear that the stepped portion of the restricting portion may be caught when the staying coin is pushed out. And when a coin is caught in the level | step difference of a control part, removal of the staying coin becomes difficult.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a coin identifying device that can easily remove coins that have accumulated on the transport surface due to a jam or the like. is there.

  In order to solve the above problems, according to an aspect of the present invention, a transport plate having a transport surface for transporting coins, a detection member for detecting the coins, and movement of the coins on the transport surface are regulated. A restriction part having a restriction surface, an extension part extending from the conveying plate so as to surround a detection hole formed at a position corresponding to the detection member, and a position facing the extension part. And a concave portion of the restricting portion, wherein the concave portion has a slope connecting the restricting surface and a bottom surface of the concave portion.

  According to such a coin identifying device, the recess of the restricting portion formed at a position facing the extending portion of the transport plate has a slope connecting the restricting surface and the bottom surface of the recess. Thereby, it can prevent that a level | step difference is formed between the bottom face of a recessed part, and a control surface. As a result, the staying coin is guided by the slope and easily moved, so that the staying coin can be prevented from being caught by the step of the recess and not being removed.

  Moreover, it is good also as providing the fixing | fixed part which is provided above the said detection hole and the said recessed part, and fixes the said detection member.

  Further, the regulation surface is provided on the upstream side and the downstream side of the recess in the coin conveying direction, and as the slope, a slope connecting the regulation surface on the upstream side and the bottom surface, and the downstream side It is good also as the slope which connects a control surface and the said bottom face being provided.

  The slope may be a linear plane. Alternatively, the inclined surface may be a curved surface formed in a curved shape.

  The regulation unit further includes a conveyance member that is provided along a conveyance direction of the coin and that conveys the coin while being in contact with the coin, and a guide unit that guides the coin conveyed by the conveyance member in the conveyance direction. May be provided on the side opposite to the guide portion as viewed from the conveying member, and restrict movement of the coins that are not in contact with the conveying member.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to easily remove coins staying on the transport surface due to a jam or the like.

It is a top view which shows the coin identification device 100 which concerns on 1st Embodiment. 1 is a side view showing a coin identifying device 100. FIG. 4 is a top view showing the shape of a transport plate 102. FIG. It is a figure which shows the state in which the coin C which removed from the conveyance belt 108 stays under the 1st sensor built-in part 132. FIG. It is a top view which shows the coin identification device 200 which concerns on a comparative example. In coin identification device 200, it is a figure showing the state where coin C stagnated under the 1st sensor built-in part 132. FIG. It is a top view which shows the coin identification device 100 which concerns on 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the state in which the coin C which removed from the conveyance belt 108 stays under the 1st sensor built-in part 132. FIG.

  Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In addition, in this specification and drawing, about the component which has the substantially same function structure, duplication description is abbreviate | omitted by attaching | subjecting the same code | symbol.

<1. First Embodiment>
(1-1. Configuration of Coin Identification Device)
A coin identifying device is a device that identifies a denomination of a coin in a coin processing device that manages coins handled by a register installed in a store or the like, for example. In addition, after accepting coins in a lump, the coin processing device recognizes the coins of each coin, discriminates the denomination, sorts the coins for each denomination according to the discrimination result, and withdraws the sorted coins To do.

  The configuration of the coin identifying device 100 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a top view showing a coin identifying apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a side view showing the coin identifying device 100.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the coin identification device 100 includes a conveyance plate 102 that is an example of a conveyance plate, a conveyance belt 108 that is an example of a conveyance member, a guide unit 112, a regulation unit 114, and a detection member. A first coin detection sensor 122 and a second coin detection sensor 124 that are examples of the sensor, and a sensor fixing unit 130 that is an example of a fixing part.

  The transport plate 102 is a sheet metal member on which the coins C (see FIG. 4) are transported in the transport direction. The conveyance belt 108 conveys the coin C in the conveyance direction by rotating in a state where the coin C is sandwiched between the conveyance surfaces 103 of the conveyance plate 102 (in contact with the coin C).

  FIG. 3 is a top view showing the shape of the transport plate 102. As shown in FIG. 3, the transport part plate 102 includes a transport surface 103, a detection hole 104, and an extension part 105.

  The conveyance surface 103 is a surface that conveys the coin C in the conveyance direction. The detection hole 104 is formed at a position corresponding to the coin detection sensors 122 and 124 so that the first coin detection sensor 122 and the coin detection sensor 124 can detect a coin. The extending portion 105 is a portion extending from the transport surface 103 so as to surround the detection hole 104, and ensures the strength of the transport plate 102 in which the detection hole 104 is formed.

  The guide portion 112 is provided along the transport belt 108 and has a guide surface 113 that guides the coin C transported by the transport belt 108 in the transport direction. The transport belt 108 transports the coins C in the transport direction while being offset to the guide surface 113.

  The regulating portion 114 is provided along the conveyance belt 108 on the opposite side of the guide portion 112 when viewed from the conveyance belt 108 in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction (Y direction shown in FIG. 1). The restricting portion 114 has a restricting surface 115 that restricts the movement of the coins C that are separated from the conveyor belt 108 (not in contact with the conveyor belt 108). Thereby, it is possible to prevent the coin C detached from the conveyor belt 108 from jumping out to the opposite side of the guide portion 114. Here, the restricting portion 114 is formed integrally with the sensor fixing portion 130, but is not limited thereto, and the restricting portion 114 and the sensor fixing portion 130 may be separate parts.

  The first coin detection sensor 122 and the second coin detection sensor 124 detect the coin C on the transport surface 103 being transported. For example, the first coin detection sensor 122 and the second coin detection sensor 124 are configured such that the diameter of the coin C passing through a predetermined detection area, the material of the coin C, the thickness of the coin C, the unevenness state of the surface of the coin C, the hole Detect presence or absence.

  The first coin detection sensor 122 is located below the conveyance surface 103, and the second coin detection sensor 124 is located above the conveyance surface 103. The first coin detection sensor 122 and the second coin detection sensor 124 oppose each other with the conveyance surface 103 interposed therebetween.

  The 1st coin detection 122 and the 2nd coin detection sensor 124 are magnetic sensors which detect the kind (characteristic) of a coin here by magnetism. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the first coin detection 122 and the second coin detection sensor 124 may be optical sensors, for example. Moreover, although the two coin detection sensors 122 and 124 were provided in the above, you may provide only one coin detection sensor (1st coin detection sensor 122).

  The sensor fixing unit 130 is a frame that fixes the first coin detection sensor 122 and the second coin detection sensor 124. Thereby, the change of the positional relationship between the 1st coin detection sensor 122 and the 2nd coin detection sensor 124, and the conveyance surface 103 can be prevented. The sensor fixing unit 130 is positioned below the transport surface 103 (detection hole 104) and is positioned above the transport surface 103 (detection hole 104) and the first sensor built-in portion 132 that houses the first coin detection sensor 122. And a second sensor built-in part 134 that houses the second coin detection sensor 124. The first sensor built-in part 132 and the second sensor built-in part 134 are integrally formed.

  The cross-sectional shape when the sensor fixing unit 130 is viewed from the upstream side in the transport direction is an inverted U shape as shown in FIG. The cross-sectional shape when the sensor fixing unit 130 is viewed from the downstream side in the transport direction is a U-shape. That is, the sensor fixing unit 130 is provided so as to sandwich the conveyance surface 103.

  Incidentally, the transport plate 102 has the extending portion 105 as described above. Then, below the first sensor built-in portion 132 of the restricting portion 114, a recessed portion 116 that is recessed from the restricting surface 115 is formed at a position facing the extending portion 105. Here, the reason why the concave portion 116 is formed is to avoid interference or the like when the transport plate 102 is attached to the sensor fixing portion 130 where the restricting portion 114 is provided.

  The recess 116 has an inclined surface 117 that connects the regulation surface 115 and the bottom surface 116 a of the recess 116. The slope 117 is a straight plane as shown in FIG. In addition, as the inclined surface 117, an inclined surface connecting the regulating surface 115 and the bottom surface 116a on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the recess 116 and an inclined surface connecting the regulating surface 115 and the bottom surface 116a on the downstream side in the conveying direction of the recess 116 are formed. By providing such an inclined surface 117, no step is generated between the regulation surface 115 and the bottom surface 116 a, so that it is easy to remove the coin C that is detached from the conveyor belt 108 and stays below the first sensor built-in portion 132. .

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the coin C detached from the conveyance belt 108 stays below the first sensor built-in unit 132. The reason why the coin C stays at a position in contact with the concave surface 116 as shown in FIG. 4 is that the coin C comes off the conveyor belt 108 due to a jam or the like during the coin conveyance. In order for the coin recognizing device 100 to operate normally, the user of the coin recognizing device 100 needs to push out and remove the accumulated coin C using a finger or a tool.

  When the user pushes out the coin C, the coin C moves along the slope 117. Here, since the bottom surface 116a of the recess 116 and the regulation surface 115 are smoothly connected by the slope 117, the coin C is easily guided and pushed out by the slope 117. As a result, the coin C staying below the first sensor built-in portion 132 can be easily removed.

  In the above description, the inclined surfaces 117 are formed on the upstream side and the downstream side in the transport direction of the bottom surface 116a of the recess 116. However, the present invention is not limited to this. A slope 117 may be formed on either the upstream side or the downstream side of the bottom surface 116a in the transport direction.

  In the above description, the conveyance belt 108 that conveys coins between the conveyance surface 103 and the conveyance surface 103 is described as an example. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the structure which pushes and conveys a coin with the pin connected with the rotating belt may be sufficient. Moreover, the structure which inclines the conveyance plate 102 may be sufficient so that a coin may move a conveyance direction with dead weight.

  In the above description, the first sensor built-in part 132 and the second sensor built-in part 134 are integrated, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the first sensor built-in part 132 and the second sensor built-in part 134 may have a structure that can be divided (divided vertically).

(1-2. Method for removing stagnant coins)
Next, a method for removing the coin C staying below the first sensor built-in portion 132 will be specifically described with reference to FIG.

  Here, it is assumed that the coin C detached from the conveyance belt 108 due to a jam or the like stays below the first sensor built-in portion 132. When a jam or the like occurs, the coin identification device 100 displays the occurrence of the jam (coin stagnation) on, for example, a display unit (not shown), and prompts the user to take a recovery measure. The user sees the display on the display unit and performs an operation of removing the accumulated coins.

  As shown in FIG. 4, since the coin C is hidden under the first sensor built-in portion 132, the user cannot grasp the accumulated coin C. For this reason, the user pushes the coin C while moving it toward the restricting portion 114 to a position that is not hidden by the first sensor built-in portion 132.

  For example, the user applies a force to the coin C in the direction A shown in FIG. Then, the coin C staying in the vicinity of the recess 116 moves to the upstream side in the transport direction and contacts the inclined surface 117.

  Thereafter, when the user applies a force in the A direction to the coin C, the coin C is guided and moved to the slope 117 by the component force on the upstream side in the transport direction among the forces acting on the coin C. The moved coin C is located at a position where the user can grab the coin C. Then, when the user picks up the coin C, the removal of the coin C is completed.

  In addition, although the case where the coin C was extruded to the upstream of a conveyance direction was demonstrated above, when pushing the coin C to the downstream of a conveyance direction, force is applied with respect to the coin C in the B direction of FIG. become. As a result, the coin C is guided and moved by the inclined surface 117, thereby being located at a position not hidden by the first sensor built-in portion 132.

  In the above description, the user pushes out the coin C with his / her finger. However, even when the coin C is pushed out with a tool such as a stick, the coin C is guided by the slope 117 and moved. It becomes easy to remove the coin C staying under the one-sensor built-in portion 132.

(1-3. Effectiveness of coin identification device)
According to the coin discriminating apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment, the concave portion 116 has the inclined surface 117 that connects the regulating surface 115 and the concave bottom surface 116a, so that the coin C staying under the first sensor built-in portion 132 is collected. It is easy to push out by guiding to the slope 117. As a result, the coin C staying under the first sensor built-in portion 132 can be easily removed.

  The effectiveness of the coin identification device 100 according to the first embodiment will be further described in comparison with the comparative example shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. FIG. 5 is a top view showing a coin identifying apparatus 200 according to a comparative example. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the coin C stays under the first sensor built-in unit 132 in the coin identifying device 200.

  The coin discriminating apparatus 200 according to the comparative example also has a recess 216 below the first sensor built-in part 132, but is different from the coin discriminating apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment having the inclined surface 117, and a step is formed. The recess 216 has a side surface 217 that connects the regulation surface 115 and the bottom surface 216 a of the recess 216. The side surface 217 is a surface orthogonal to the regulation surface 115.

  When such a concave portion 216 is provided, there is the following problem when removing the coin C staying below the first sensor built-in portion 132 due to a jam or the like. That is, by providing the concave portion 216 having a step with the regulating surface 115, when the user pushes out the accumulated coin C, the coin C may be caught by the step and not pushed out as shown in FIG. is there. In this case, since the coin C remains below the first sensor built-in portion 132, it is difficult to remove the coin C.

  On the other hand, since the recessed part 116 of the coin processing apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment has the slope 117 that connects the regulation surface 115 and the bottom surface 116a, a step is formed between the regulation surface 115 and the bottom surface 116a. Can be prevented. For this reason, the staying coin C is guided by the slope 117 and pushed out from under the first sensor built-in portion 132. Thus, since the coin C moves easily, the removal operation of the coin C can be improved.

<2. Second Embodiment>
The configuration of the coin identifying device 100 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. FIG. 7 is a top view showing the coin identifying apparatus 100 according to the second embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the coins C detached from the transport belt 108 stay below the first sensor built-in unit 132.

  The concave portion 116 of the coin identifying apparatus 100 according to the second embodiment has a curved surface 157 instead of the slope 117 of the first embodiment. Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, detailed description thereof is omitted.

  The curved surface 157 is a curved surface. The curved surface 157 is formed on each of the upstream side and the downstream side in the transport direction of the bottom surface 116 a, and the bottom surface 116 a and the regulation surface 115 are smoothly connected by the curved surface 157. As a result, the coin C that is detached from the conveyor belt 108 and stays below the first sensor built-in portion 132 is guided by the curved surface 157 and is easily moved, so that the coin C is easily removed.

  Further, since the curved portion 157 is a smooth curve connecting the bottom surface 116a and the regulation surface 115, load fluctuations acting on the user when the coin C moves from the bottom surface 116a to the curved surface 157, and the coin C is curved. The load fluctuation that acts on the user when shifting from 157 to the regulation surface 115 becomes moderate. For this reason, the coin C pushed by the user is hardly separated from the finger, and the coin C is moved more smoothly.

  Next, a method for removing the coin C staying below the first sensor built-in portion 132 due to a jam or the like will be described. The coin C removing method of the second embodiment is substantially the same as that of the first embodiment. That is, as shown in FIG. 8, by applying a force in the A direction or the B direction to the coin C staying below the first sensor built-in portion 132, the coin C is guided to the curved surface 157, and the first sensor It moves to a position that is not hidden by the built-in unit 132. Thereafter, the user grasps the coin C to complete the removal of the coin C.

  According to the second embodiment described above, the concave portion 116 has the curved surface 157 that connects the regulating surface 115 and the concave bottom surface 116a, and thus, similarly to the first embodiment, below the first sensor built-in portion 132. The staying coin C is guided to the slope 117 and is easily pushed out. As a result, the coin C staying under the first sensor built-in portion 132 can be easily removed. In particular, in the case of the second embodiment, since the curved surface 157 is provided, the load fluctuation when the coin C moves becomes moderate, so that the coin C moves more smoothly and the coin C is removed. It becomes easier.

<3. Summary>
According to the coin identifying device 100 described above, the recess 116 of the restricting portion 114 formed at a position facing the extending portion 105 of the transport plate 102 is an inclined surface (inclined surface 117) connecting the restricting surface 115 and the bottom surface 116 a of the recess 116. Or a curved surface 157). Thereby, it is possible to prevent a step from being formed between the bottom surface 116 a of the recess 116 and the regulating surface 115. As a result, the staying coin C is guided by the slope and easily moved, so that the staying coin C can be prevented from being caught by the step of the recess and not removed.

  The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to such examples. It is obvious that a person having ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention pertains can come up with various changes or modifications within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims. Of course, it is understood that these also belong to the technical scope of the present invention.

  Although the sensor fixing unit 130 described above is fixed, the configuration is not limited to this. For example, the first sensor built-in unit 132 may be movable. In such a case, when the coin C is removed, the first sensor built-in portion 132 is moved, so that it becomes easy to remove the coin C retained due to a jam or the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Coin identification apparatus 102 Conveyance plate 103 Conveyance surface 104 Detection hole 105 Extension part 108 Conveyance belt 112 Guide part 113 Guide surface 114 Restriction part 115 Restriction surface 116 Recessed part 116a Bottom face 117 Slope 122 First coin detection sensor 124 Second coin detection Sensor 130 Sensor fixing part 132 First sensor built-in part 134 Second sensor built-in part 157 Curved surface

Claims (6)

A transport plate having a transport surface for transporting coins;
A detection member for detecting the coin;
A restricting portion having a restricting surface for restricting movement of the coin on the transport surface;
An extending portion extending from the transport plate so as to surround a detection hole formed at a position corresponding to the detection member;
A concave portion of the restricting portion formed at a position facing the extending portion;
With
The coin recognizing apparatus, wherein the recess has a slope connecting the regulation surface and a bottom surface of the recess.   The coin identifying device according to claim 1, further comprising a fixing portion that is provided above the detection hole and the concave portion and fixes the detection member. The restriction surface is provided on the upstream side and the downstream side of the recess in the coin conveyance direction,
The inclined surface that connects the upstream regulation surface and the bottom surface and the slope that connects the downstream regulation surface and the bottom surface are provided as the slope. The coin identification device according to.   The coin identifying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inclined surface is a linear plane.   The coin identifying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the inclined surface is a curved surface formed in a curved shape. A conveying member that is provided along a conveying direction of the coin and that conveys the coin while contacting the coin;
A guide part for guiding coins conveyed by the conveying member in the conveying direction;
Further comprising
The said restriction | limiting part is provided in the opposite side to the said guide part seeing from the said conveyance member, The movement of the said coin which is not contacting the said conveyance member is controlled, The any one of Claims 1-5 characterized by the above-mentioned. The coin identification device according to claim 1.

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